It seems as if over the years, the news of violence, shootings and massacres has been getting worse rather than better. The word "news" almost always has a negative association with it anymore. With the recent tragedy of the Orlando shooting, every time that I turn on the news or go on Facebook, there has been nothing but sadness and constant reminders that life can be over in the blink of an eye. As a nation, we need to focus on helping others and building each other up instead of tearing each other down with harsh words and criticism. It is so easy to get caught up in all the terrible things happening in the world, that we often over look all the incredible things people do for each other. While it is extremely devastating how many lives were lost in Orlando, the community is coming together to be as positive as they can.
Without further ado, I would like to present you with the good news.
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1. Comfort dogs have arrived in Orlando.
I have yet to find anything that makes me happier than doggy kisses. Last Sunday, 12 Golden Retrievers from nine different states traveled to Florida to visit victims in the hospital, families of victims who have been killed, staff members who were working at Pulse at the time of the shooting as well as anyone else in the area who needed some puppy love. These dogs have gone through 12-18 months of training to provide all of their unconditional love to those in stressful and traumatic situations.
2. Chick-fil-A opened on Sunday to support Orlando's victims.
Thousands of people stood in 90-degree weather last Sunday to wait in line to donate blood to the Orlando shooting victims. Chick-fil-A, which is known for being closed on Sundays, opened its doors allowing employees to volunteer their time making chicken sandwiches and brewing tea to donate to the blood donors.
3. Muslims donated during Ramadan.
Many Muslims lined up to donate blood to the victims of the Orlando massacre. This is especially generous of them, as they are celebrating the holy month of Ramadan. During Ramadan, Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset. Going up to 15 hours without food or water and donating blood runs the risk of feeling nauseous, light headed and even passing out. The shooter claimed to be Muslim, yet other Muslims chose to donate not only to help out the victims, but to show that they are not terrible people, and the attack should not reflect on the Muslim name.
4. Jet Blue Is offering free seats to victims' families.
Jet Blue airlines is offering free seats on its available flights to and from Orlando for immediate family and domestic partners of the victims. Jet Blue also made a $100,000 donation to OneOrlando Fund and established a crew member donation channel.
5. Man built 49 crosses for Orlando victims.
Greg Zanis built 49 wooden crosses and drove more than 1,000 miles from Illinois to Florida to place them outside the Orlando Health Medical Center in memory of the 49 men and women killed in the Orlando Massacre.
In the midst of all the bad news, the media overlooks the good news. They fail to show the world that yes, there are a couple bad guys out there, but there are also thousands of good people out there doing everything they can to fix this broken world. There are thousands of people out there, most of them who probably do not have a direct connection to any of the victims, who still go out of their way to help. The world needs more good news, and it needs to see that we are not engulfed in terrorists and criminals, even though they are the ones who get all of the attention. Perhaps if the news focused more on all the people out there making the world a better place, the criminals would follow.
Do a good deed, pick up trash off the road, rescue a dog, help an old person, throw your change in the donation can at the cash register, be the change we need in the world.
