Drawings Brought To Life

by Christina Rowsell
The Brighter Side
 via: imgur.com

I remember when I was a kid I thought I did the coolest pictures EVER!  Then as I got older and looked back, they weren't that awesome.  BUT what if you had a dad like this, that brought your pictures to life!  

Here's a dad that flies out of state to work 10 days out of each month. When he goes, his kids give him pictures they've drawn. He colours them on the plane and then gives the pictures back to them when he returns. He says, "Nothing fancy. The kids love them. My wife wants me to put them up. " He wanted to know your thoughts.

Ummm.... AMAZING!  I love it!  He brings them to life! 

Details HERE!

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Moments to Fill Your Heart, Ellen DeGeneres

by Christina Rowsell
The Brighter Side
via: EllenTV.com

Ellen DeGeneres is one of those people who fills up your heart just by watching her energy and her passion for life.  Her show is one of those shows that makes me smile every time.  If you're having a rough day, trying to find that moment of happiness, tune into Ellen.  Caution though, you may find yourself in a gut wrenching laugh from time to time.

You don't really need me to tell you who this woman is, you probably already know.  But The Brighter Side just wanted to celebrate her and recognize her as an Amazing Person!  We're all about Good News, Great Ideas and Amazing People.  Thank you Ellen for putting a smile on our faces to remind us that life is about living, loving and LAUGHING.  You fill our hearts.  Thank you!

Now if someone could just tell me how to NOT cry when I watch this!  Truly, these are moments that will Fill Up Your Heart too!



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ConnecTeen - Hearing YOUth, Helping YOUth

by Christina Rowsell
The Brighter Side
The Distress Centre

"Being a teen can be tough. You have more independence than ever before, but you probably have more questions than ever before too. If you ever have a question, a problem or just need someone to talk to, give us a call, drop us an email, send us a text or chat with us online."  This from the Distress Centre of Calgary with ConnecTeen.

Image © 123rf.com

They have launched an amazing program that gives teens an opportunity to just talk!  Boy do I ever wish this was around when I was a teen. They will connect you directly with a peer who understands your unique perspective and can help talk through your problems. TEXT or CHAT!

Call 403.264.TEEN (8336)

Text at 587.333.2724

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Image credit: dragonimages / 123RF Stock Photo

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Empower with Shelley Streit

by Christina Rowsell via Shelley Streit
The Brighter Side

We all know the world is full of wonderful people!  Why don't we celebrate them more?  Now's your chance.  We were first introduced to "Silent Celebrities" by Shelley Streit.  Shelley Streit is a passionate entrepreneur, speaker, financial advisor, and author. Known for her sincerity and candid, but non-judgmental style, Shelley is a sassy dynamo who gets fired up by empowering women to live life to its full potential. Experience drawn from a difficult life as a youth taught her the value of learning, making tough but intelligent choices, and hard work.

Silent Celebrities is for anyone who makes the space they occupy a little bit of a better place.  Someone who just gives to give.  Those who inspires others because they can!  Stands up for believes and empowers others.  They are someone who doesn't look for accolades and often has no clue of the impact they make on the world around them.

Silent Celebrities are someone who knows when to give to others and is learning when to give to themselves.  Someone who simply makes the world a better place because they are in it.  They are someone who faces adversity with optimism.  You can count on them to help you out when you had a need and never thought twice about it.

Shelley Streit wants to hear about these people.  She is running a blog series where she will celebrate and honor individuals who inspire, empower, connect with, support and love others!

This is not a popularity contest.  There is no nomination.  The stores don't have to be tragic.  It's a celebration of everyone.  There is no one winner!  Everyone is celebrated!

The glitz and the glam is the simple thank you that they will see when they are honored – often how silent celebrities want it. After all saying thank you is one of the highest gifts you can give.

If you know someone like this and want to join in celebrating these incredible people from all over the world who bring so much joy please tell us about them HERE.

P.S. We they have chosen not to have any photos of these individuals to honor them and allow them to continue to be a silent celebrity if they wish.

And be sure to sign up for the blog to receive the updates in your email box so you don’t miss your “Silent Celebrities’ “ day!

More information here http://shelleystreit.com/
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Photo Credit 123rf.com

Katy Perry, Jodi DiPiazza Sing at Night of Too Many Stars

by Christina Rowsell
The Brighter Side

 I'll be honest I had a hard time holding back the tears while watching this. A true testament that ANYTHING is possible. Jodi DiPiazza is an 11-year-old girl living with autism, who uses her music to make a connection to the world.

Recently at Comedy Central's Night Of Too Many Stars, this beautiful young lady had the chance to amaze everyone in a duet with one of her favorite singers, Katy Perry.

Katy Perry you are truly a beautiful woman!  And thank you Jodi DiPiazza for sharing your AMAZING story!

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LegUp.ca Giving Back

by Christina Rowsell

The Brighter Side

We all know that helping our communities, arts and social causes is the right thing to do.  But fundraising for those causes near and dear to your heart is not an easy task.  But what if someone gave you a "LegUp" and helped you through the process?  Thanks to the LegUp.ca team, crowdfunding for Canadians just got easier!  

Founder Michelle Young commented that “crowdfunding for projects both big and small is an ideal solution for groups that really don’t have or desire to build or own the infrastructure needed to make this a sustainable and easy to launch way to launch new fundraising efforts.”

With LegUp.ca, donors are able to quickly contribute to these campaigns and causes that really do matter most.  Your special project can receive funding within days.  A new project can be posted within minutes and live the very same day.

Young goes on to explain that "Early examples of groups taking advantage of the LegUp.ca platform include a grassroots pond hockey rink for a community or a project offering support for the kids hurt in a recent school bus crash north of Calgary.  The demand is growing and we are excited to fill the void.”

Groups using the platform cover any credit card processing fees and pay a very small percentage of what is collected to support the growth and development of the platform.  Donors are not subject to any fees of any kind.

LegUp.ca wants to work with you and support WHAT MATTERS MOST!  Crowdfunding is an alternative means of funding that allows individuals and causes to take their ideas forward and make them a reality with the power of the crowd and change the world around them.

Everyone has a great idea for a fundraising campaign and at LegUp.ca they want to make as many ideas as possible succeed.  Whether you are a school, need funds for a social enterprise, are a charity, or are just an individual with a fantastic idea then they can help you raise the funds needed for your project. 

They strive to provide their campaign owners with the best tools to help them reach their crowdfunding targets and no project is too big or small. Join the LegUp.ca revolution today!

Here are some current fundraising project with LegUp.ca

1.) Students at Chestermere Lake Middle School are teaming up with the ‘Me to We’ initiative to try to raise $10 000 this year.  This money will go towards the ‘Free the Children’ campaign, which will help build schools and classrooms in areas of the world where education is most needed.  If we can raise ten thousand dollars, we can build a whole school through our donation! Details HERE.

2.) Children’s Birthday Miracles, CBM, is a nonprofit organization founded in January 2013. The organization was started by a philanthropic 16-year-old Calgarian, Sheliza Kassam. Sheliza’s vision was to create an initiative that provided less fortunate children with the opportunity to celebrate their own birthday party. They now successfully throw birthday parties that are celebrated monthly at Inn from the Cold in Calgary, a local family homeless shelter. CBM went international in June where they hosted their first birthday party in the Mother Teresa Home, an orphanage located in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania.  Details HERE.

3.) Based on personal experiences, and the stories that we've heard while working with many courageous women who have experienced domestic violence, I have decided to create an App that will provide women access to a wealth of information, enable them to effectively plot themselves on the cycle of abuse over time, gain insight to their unique situation while appreciating that they are not alone, replace victim self-blame with self-compassion, empower women to start taking action to protect themselves, and ultimately provide women with the resources to break the cycle of abuse. Our App empowers women experiencing an abusive relationship to defend their safety by providing the information and tools that foster insight into the impact of abuse, nurture self-compassion, and connect them to a community of resources.  Details HERE.

The Brighter Side LOVES this idea! Full of Good News, Great Ideas & Amazing People! For more information visit LegUp.ca.

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Smile and the world smiles with you :)

by Christina Rowsell

The Brighter Side

Smile and the world smiles with you! 

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