Sam Colella was 7 and shy when he decided he had to do something for kids whose lives were disrupted by war. Overcoming his fears,
he raised over 15 thousand dollars
for children in Sudan, Liberia and Iraq.
Four years ago, at age 8,
Alice Darrow was so moved by the plight of tsunami survivors that she had to help. She started a small business and is still turning its profits over to relief agencies, making her products
and shipping orders in the playtime of others.
Rafe Esquith gives a thousand percent to his job
as a fifth-grade teacher at an enormous school in Los Angeles.
Thanks to his commitment, inspiration and creativity, his "at-risk" students achieve way beyond the norms, doing serious math,
reading great books and performing Shakespeare.
Pharmacologist
Victoria Hale walked away from a secure, high-paying career in the bio-tech industry to start the first-ever nonprofit pharmaceutical company, dedicating it to getting effective remedies to the world's poor.
Matthew Hoh, diplomat, strategist, combat
Marine vet,
gave up a promising career in diplomacy when he resigned
to protest the cost in lives and dollars of
"the US involvement in a 35-year-old civil war."
Malalai Joya, an elected member of the Afghan Parliament, has been so outspoken for the rights of her countrywomen that she receives constant death threats and must be ever on the move.
William Kamkwamba couldn't afford to
go to school
but he haunted the library in his Malawi village,
teaching himself how to supply wind-powered electricity
to his entire village.
Entomologist
James Iredell Moss blew the whistle
on a combination of chemicals that were being used
by the military and could be causing
Gulf War Syndrome in US forces.
Chandini Perera, a plastic surgeon, could be catering to the cosmetic concerns of Sri Lanka's wealthy. Instead she runs a burn center for the poor, repairing injuries caused by cooking fires, acid assaults and self immolations.
(Photo by Giraffe Phil Borges)
Ruth Riffle teaches teens who have severe mental and
physical disabilities, going far beyond her official responsibilities
to help them become independent.
For the last 7 years
Max Wallack has been using his allowance and all his free time to invent products that help refugees, the elderly, disaster victims and the homeless. Max is 13.
