For six years, Barbara Franklin has been the saving grace for her community in Paterson, New Jersey at the Creech Community Center and Food Pantry where she provides food and clothing to adults and provides free after-school tutoring to children.

What was her inspiration?  Her son who dashed into her room one-night and told her a story any mother would be horrified to hear.  Another youth had held a gun to his head and pulled the trigger because he wanted the gold chain her son was wearing.  Thankfully, the gun wasn’t loaded.

That moment changed Barbara’s life forever.  It was her defining moment. 

“Something had to give and it had to be in me.” Franklin stated.  She used her technical knowledge and corporate savvy to discover a way to begin changing her neighborhood.

The program not only has a positive effect on its recipients but it has changed the lives of those who help run the program.  Many of them who started as volunteers and were on welfare and are no longer on welfare. 

The disruption of lives, living in chaos on the streets, in motels, with no education -- can you imagine living this way? No, none of us can, but it’s happening everyday all over America and the numbers are increasing.  Agnes Stevens couldn’t believe it either and that was her defining moment to change the lives of the homeless.  Who is Agnes Stevens? She is a woman who has made her mark in the world of education.

In 1989, she took an early retirement, used her teacher’s salary to buy a modular home and began substitute teaching and tutoring.  She quickly began to focus on finding an opportunity to help a homeless child.

Agnes had no idea that her desire to help one homeless child would turn into an enormous but worthwhile project that would change the lives of hundreds of children On Skid Row in Los Angeles, California.

She realized that what she is doing is not only helping a few children, but she has made a tremendous difference in the lives of entire families and has made progress in breaking the cycle of poverty and lack of education that affects homeless families.    www.schoolonwheels.org

The community of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan had no idea that a wonderful blessing was headed their way.  It was during a brainstorming session that several members of the Cross of Christ Lutheran Church came up with the idea to do a reverse offering. Three-thousand dollars was placed in the collection plate in ten dollar bills.  The parishioners were asked to take ten dollars each and use it to uplift someone’s spirit in the community.  At first they were hesitant.  They saw it as taking money from God.

“I took a wad of money and guarding the door as people left, I was making them hold up their ten dollar bill and if they didn’t have one I would say, you’re not off the hook this week.  Everybody’s going to participate”, replied Reusch.  It quickly became contagious.

The mission of doing something positive with the money was taken seriously by the parishioners and they delivered on their promise.  Ten dollars is not much but it can make a tremendous in difference in someone’s life, not just financially but also emotionally and the results were outstanding. 

Pastor Reusch’s vision is to help others discover a fulfilling place in life.  He often preaches about finding a passion in life; the one thing that can drive you even when you’re tired.

It is amazing how life can present opportunities you never thought were possible, when you change your mindset and begin to see yourself as a winner.

This is exactly how John Basedow became known as one of America’s biggest fitness gurus with his Fitness Made Simple, Unlock Your Potential video he made on a shoestring budget.  He changed his way of thinking and believed in his ability to succeed despite the challenges he faced. 

He always had a dream of appearing in a fitness magazine and as he puts it, “I was nowhere near in the shape I needed to be in to appear in a fitness magazine.  I was like a bowling pin on legs.”   

He quickly became aware that life can throw you a curve ball at any moment and if you’re not prepared to catch it, then you’d better be ready to accept the challenge it will take to get back into the ball game.

John found himself in a place and time where no money was coming in.  “I was frustrated, I was broke, and I was out of shape. I felt like there was nothing going on and nothing to look forward to,” he recalled.  He was at the lowest point he had ever been in his life.  “I couldn’t afford to pay the mortgage.  I wanted to throw up my hands and quit”.

But, he didn’t give up and decided to take stock of his life, to figure out what he was doing wrong.  He accepted the challenge and became empowered to turn his life into a success.

John has achieved success over the years by following his own advice and what he calls his business model:  “Start small, build big, and always keep control along the way.”