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Nathan Fillion shared a sweet pay-it-forward story after a Costco employee helped his mom

Well done, Les from Costco. Well done, Fillion family. Thanks for giving us the boost of faith in humanity we need right now.

Nathan Fillion/Facebook

In a time when we've watched people fight over toilet paper, argue over mask-wearing and storm government buildings with firearms, a nice random act of kindness story is always appreciated. And when that random act of kindness happens to someone who is famous-adjacent, the impact somehow seems all the more pure.

Actor Nathan Fillion, best known for his starring roles in the TV series Firefly (and subsequent movie, Serenity) and Castle, shared one such story on Facebook back in 2020—and people are still loving it. After all, two things will always remain timeless in our collective hearts: Nathan Fillion and Costco.

He wrote:

"The other day in Canada, a woman buying gas at a Costco had trouble with her credit card. The attendant bought her gas out of his own pocket and asked only that she pay it forward. That Costco was in Edmonton, that attendant was Les Thompson, and Les? That woman was my mother. You restore my faith in humanity, sir. My dad and I are sending three iPads and headphones to a nearby senior care facility so that folks there can visit with their families. Right now, we could all stand to be less afraid, and a little more Les. (Canada, Costco, Les, iPads, and my mom not pictured.)"


Fillion's post has been shared nearly 30,000 times, and commenters have expressed their gratitude for highlighting the fact that there are lots of good people out there. Some said they were proud to be Canadian. (Canada is well known for the general kindness of its people.) Others said the story reminded them that hope is not lost, even in the face of fairly constant bad news. Some inquired as to whether or not Fillion was married. (He's not.) But most simply thanked him for sharing a seemingly small, but oh-so-meaningful story about the power of a simple, selfless act of generosity.

Well done, Les from Costco. Well done, Fillion family. Thanks for giving us the boost of faith in humanity we need right now.


This article originally appeared on 5.27.20

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Man who won $200+ million in European lottery is using it to preserve and revitalize Earth

Photo by Matt Palmer on Unsplash

An anonymous lottery winner is donating nearly all of his Euromillions winnings to save the planet.

Imagine winning enough money in the lottery to be able to do pretty much anything you want. Travel the world in luxury. Buy multiple mansions and expensive cars. Hire a gourmet chef to prepare all of your meals. Yachts seem particularly popular among the uber-wealthy. With more than $200 million, there are few material wishes you couldn't fulfill.

But what if your biggest, truest wish was to save the planet from destruction?

An anonymous Frenchman who won 200 million euros (the U.S. equivalent of approximately $218 million) in the Euromillions lottery in 2020 has chosen to use his winnings to preserve and revitalize Earth. The man, nicknamed "Guy" by French lottery group Françaises des Jeux (FDJ), has not identified himself publicly, but has created a foundation called Anyama, named after an Ivory Coast city, for the purpose of protecting the planet. He shared an open letter on the Anyama website explaining why he's using his windfall this way.

“The Anyama endowment fund is the result of an imperious desire to act for nature and human beings that I have had for years," he wrote (translated from French). "Above all, it is the expression of a conviction that I want to share with as many people as possible: giving makes people happy, and constitutes a tremendous lever for transforming indignation into concrete and useful actions."

He explained how seeing truckloads of trees cut from the forests of Burkina Faso passing through the Ivory Coast (where he had spent several years as a child, according to Le Parisien) impacted him. He wrote that he has always only entered lotteries with "important jackpots," specifically for the purpose of creating a charitable foundation.

"My dream has never been to acquire boats, castles or other sports cars," he wrote, "it is to be useful and to give meaning to this money, with maximum positive impact. So that's what I'm doing today by creating Anyama, which acts for the benefit of the common good of all, with one watchword: protect the living. This is for me the urgency of our time and most certainly of the many years to come, in the interest of future generations."

The focus of action for the foundation revolves around the conservation of forests and revitalization of biodiversity, but also around support for human caregivers as well.

"Family caregivers are an essential link in our society," the Anyama website reads. "Accompanying them also means protecting the living in each of us. People in a situation of dependency linked to age, illness or disability are a significant burden for caregivers. Anyama's 'Caregivers' program will support projects aimed at supporting, training, relieving or welcoming family carers."

Guy sees man and nature as one whose vulnerabilities overlap.

"Man, for years, believed he could exploit nature without taking into account his own membership in this ecosystem, freeing himself from the rules that guarantee its balance," he wrote. "This observation obliges us to 'pay attention to others,' to act to protect and regenerate."

According to Le Figaro, Guy told French newspaper Le Parisien that he has already given most of his winnings to the foundation, and that he would "progressively give almost all" of the money to it. He appears to have no desire for notoriety or recognition, saying he plans to "continue to live peacefully, in the most total discretion."

FDJ told Agence France-Presse that it is not uncommon for winners to be generous with their lottery money, but the proportion Guy is donating to philanthropy is a "great first."

What a refreshing approach to becoming a multimillionaire: Genuine generosity and humility, and a desire to use wealth for the betterment of humanity and our home. Congratulations, Guy. It sounds like you deserved this win.

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Soccer star Sadio Mané beautifully explains his approach to sharing his exceptional wealth

Dan Sutich/Facebook, Soccer Stories – Oh My Goal/YouTube

This story originally appeared on 05.13.20


I don't follow international football (soccer, for us Americans), but a viral Facebook post prompted me to look up pro soccer player Sadio Mané. I'm so glad I did.

The 28-year-old from Senegal plays for Liverpool and is widely known as one of the nicest guys in the game. He's been known to help offload items off the team's bus, treat unsuspecting fans and ballboys with gifts and even helping scrub toilets at a local mosque after a big game.

He's also known for donating much of his $14 million a year salary as a professional footballer, especially toward helping his home village in Senegal.

The viral post that caught my eye showed Mané carrying a cracked iPhone and included a quote from him explaining his approach to wealth. (The quote was not in response to being asked about the cracked iPhone, but it makes a nice visual).

According to as.com, Mané said in an interview with a Ghanaian newspaper:

"Why would I want ten Ferraris, 20 diamond watches, or two planes? What will these objects do for me and for the world? I was hungry, and I had to work in the field; I survived hard times, played football barefooted, I did not have an education and many other things, but today with what I earn thanks to football, I can help my people. I built schools, a stadium, we provide clothes, shoes, food for people who are in extreme poverty. In addition, I give 70 euros per month to all people in a very poor region of Senegal which contributes to their family economy. I do not need to display luxury cars, luxury homes, trips and even planes. I prefer that my people receive a little of what life has given me"

He's sincere about that. Mané has paid for a hospital to be built as well—a project he funded because his father had died when Mané was a child because there was no hospital in their village. Last summer, he also returned to Senegal on vacation to check up on a school he is building in his home village of Bambali.

Mané's attitude toward his wealth and his choice to spend his money to help others are so refreshing. People are free to do what they want with their money, of course, and it's not like Mané never splurges. But he tries to stay humble. In a world with such extremes of poverty and wealth, seeing someone attempt to balance the scales voluntarily does a heart good. Imagine a society where every millionaire or billionaire were as detached from material things and as generous with what they have as Sadio Mané. While individuals aren't responsible for public welfare, imagine the wide range of good they could do nonetheless.

Thank you, Sadio Mané, for being such an excellent role model.

Learn more about Mané and the work he's done for his village here:

The touching reason Sadio Mané built a hospital in his village | Oh My Goalwww.youtube.com

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People are creatively using sites like Etsy and Airbnb to get money directly to Ukrainians

Photo by Artem Zhukov on Unsplash; screenshot via @renebelew/Instagram

People are using person-to-person purchases to get money to Ukrainians in the war.

As we watch the war in Ukraine from half a world away, many Americans wonder what they can do to help the Ukrainian people.

There are standard NGOs and nonprofits, such as the Red Cross, Amnesty International and the International Rescue Committee, that are organizing aid to refugees inside and outside the country, of course. But not everyone feels good about putting their donation money into a big, pooled pot. Some people want to know exactly where their money is going and who it is helping.

And some people are figuring out creative ways to do that via person-to-person "gig economy" platforms like Etsy and Airbnb.

Here's how they're doing it:

For one, people are booking Airbnb stays in Ukraine for the coming days, which they obviously won't be using, and telling the hosts to keep the money. When you book an Airbnb you can read the profiles and reviews of the hosts to get a sense of who they are, if they have children, etc. Some people rent out private rooms in their own homes, while others own property that they rent out, but it's easy to see who you are renting from. When you book, you are also directly connected to the host so you can message each other.

The responses from people who have done this are both heartbreaking and beautiful.

@renebelew/Instagram

The Quentin Quarantino Instagram account, which has been used for huge crowdfunding efforts, shared the idea and the responses some followers have gotten from Ukrainians when they've done this. It also shared some tips, such as booking dates that are coming up soon since payments only go through to the host once the booking date arrives.

You can click the right arrow to scroll through all of the the screenshots, but here are a few of them:

Screenshot via quentin.quarantino/Instagram

Screenshot via quentin.quarantino/Instagram

Screenshot via quentin.quarantino/Instagram

Screenshot via quentin.quarantino/Instagram

Worth noting that Airbnb has waived the fees for hosts in Ukraine and its nonprofit arm, Airbnb.org, is coordinating stays for 100,000 Ukrainian refugees.

In addition to Airbnb, people are also using Etsy to give to Ukrainian people directly by buying from Ukrainian sellers. Some people have pointed out that sellers who sell digital files—educational or decorative printables, sewing or knitting patterns, and so on—can benefit from getting sales without having any confusion over whether someone wants something shipped.

Here's how you do it:

1. Go to Esty.com and type “digital files” in the search box

2. Click "All Filters" and scroll down to "Country"

3. Under "Custom," type "Ukraine"

You can use the country filter for any item sold on Etsy, but you do have to put something into the search bar before the filter option shows up. If you place an order for a physical item, just let the seller know upfront that you aren't expecting them to ship anything, you just want to send them some financial and moral support.

This is a good opportunity to personalize your giving in more ways than just a personal message. If you have a crocheting hobby, for instance, you could search "crochet" and then filter for Ukraine to support a fellow crocheter. It might sound silly, but those simple human connections are meaningful, especially when people are facing down inhumanity.

The situation in Ukraine is dire, and while it's important to support large-scale aid programs that have experience with getting people the assistance they need in a crisis, there's more than one way to help. Sometimes putting cash directly into the pockets of people who have just lost their livelihoods to war, who might need funds to get out of the country or to get supplies that help them stay safe can make a significant difference.

The beauty of sites like Airbnb and Etsy is that they allow us to connect with and help people on the ground directly, in a way that reminds all of us of the humanity at the heart of it all.


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