【推荐1】In 2005, Rachel O’ Neill was working full-time as an assistant for an engineering firm. While active and warm-hearted, she had never imagined doing any global volunteering. But after a trip to Malawi in Africa for her fiftieth birthday, she was impressed by the work done by the local girls to support their families. “I wanted a way to honor them,” she says.

An idea hit her one day and she persuaded her friends to make dresses with her and donated them to the girls in Malawi. Rachel hoped that the dresses donated and sent to the girls would build up their confidence and happiness. After all, all the girls are joyful the moment they receive the dresses and even happier while wearing them. Rachel and her friends achieved their goal in the first year. As word spread, donations poured in. In 2008, without previous experience, she started a nonprofit called Little Dresses for Africa, with a mission of getting simple homemade dresses to girls in poor communities. To date, more than 10 million dresses have been donated to the girls in 97 countries, and Africa remains a focus.

Local communities offer to network with the nonprofit to run a distribution(分配)center to distribute these donated dresses. It attracts a number of volunteers, many of whom have ever received the dresses. They make all the dresses themselves, sort out dresses and box dresses for shipments to other countries. Funds are also received to cover transportation costs.

“With a large population of girls under age 14 in Malawi,” Rachel says, “we are nowhere close to meeting all needs. We only ask people to use material of high quality and different colors,” Generous donations have allowed Little Dresses for Africa to address other needs, including building more than 85 wells and two primary schools. “I couldn’t have done any of this on my own, ” Rachel says. “Everyone’s contribution and generosity make a difference.”

【推荐2】Lanrick Jr. Bennett holds a unique title in Toronto: bicycle mayor. He led a Halloween Kidical Mass ride recently, which I attended with my daughter, son-in-law, their two dogs, and my granddaughter. He is working towards making cycling mainstream and safe for all residents in the city. I did not know that Toronto had a bicycle mayor; I surely would have voted for him in an election.

The bicycle mayor program is run by BYCS, an Amsterdam-based global NGO that believes “bicycles transform cities and cities transform the world”. Standing in the strange but wonderful Bentway, a park built under an elevated expressway, Bennett says, “BYCS has 150 bicycle mayors across the world. And through a few friends putting in some really nice letters of encouragement, BYCS offered me a two-year term as an advocate here in the city of Toronto, becoming the first bicycle mayor of the city.”

Bennett says he is boosting the work being done to make cycling more mainstream in Toronto. “I am giving a bit more exposure to the great work that has allowed me to be able to ride a bike throughout the city. It’s getting better, we’re seeing more infrastructure (基础设施), and we’re seeing more people not wanting to depend on cars as their primary piece. I’m happy that I have been part of a fantastic group thus far,” says Bennett.

Since there’s still a lot of work to do, Lanrick Jr. Bennett has been working hard to improve cycling conditions in Toronto, and his efforts have been recognized by the community. He has been advocating for more bike lanes (车道), better lighting, and other safety measures to make cycling a practical option for commuters (通勤者). It’s great to see people like Lanrick.

Jr. Bennett working towards making cycling safe and accessible for all residents.

【推荐3】My name is Linda. I am from Isla de Maipo, Chile. I live with my dad, my mom and a rabbit happily. But I was born with a cleft lip (唇裂).

I don’t remember anything about my first years with my cleft lip. All I know is that when I was young, my parents found Fundación Gantz in Santiago, where I had been for free treatment.

Every time when I went to Fundación Gantz, my heart was full of thanks to my parents. It was not easy to arrive on time for medical examination. We had to get up at six in the morning to drive for more than an hour and be careful not to get hit by other cars, but my parents never complained about such busy and tiring days.

Doctors at Fundación Gantz helped me a lot. First, they healed my cleft lip. Then, with orthodontic treatment (正畸治疗), they managed to correct my bite, and later they performed an operation on my jawbone.

I thank the doctors there who treated me, and Dr. Angus is my favorite — he has known me since I was born. When I was in the waiting room waiting for my operation on my jawbone, I was sweating all over in fear. Dr. Angus came to my side and talked to me endlessly about the things I was interested in, such as Kayros’ music and Bolano’s books, making me feel relaxed.

In the past, before the treatment, I had no confidence, and children made jokes on my cleft lip at school. I started training in Taekwondo (跆拳道) at the age of four in a gym next to my kindergarten and it was just what I needed at that time. It changed me and the children around me — before, children played tricks on me, but later they respected me. Today, when people talk about something on my lip, I will tell them the little mark never bothers me because it is so small that it can hardly be seen.

I want to tell the medical experts at Gantz to keep it up because their work is admirable, and they help a lot of people in need.