It’s true that there are many reason to think that 2015 wasn’t all that great. After all, it was the year of the Charlie Hebdo attack, the earthquake in Nepal, the European migrant crisis, and the year that ISIS caused untold carnage.
But amid all this suffering and sadness, good things happened too. Here are a few of our favorites:
#1. Thousands Respond To Call For Christmas Cards For Little Girl Who Lost Family To Arson.
Safyre Terry survived an arson attack that killed her entire family including her dad, sister, and two brothers. In a heartwarming show of global support and Christmas love, Safyre received thousands of Christmas cards and gifts in the post, after a call out on social media for cards to fill her Christmas card-tree. Read the story here.
#2. Man Buys Turtles On Sale In Food Market And Releases Them Into The Sea.
A pair of sea turtles on sale in a Papua New Guinea food market had a lucky escape back to their watery home thanks to the animal-loving efforts of Arron Culling and co-worker Mark. They bought both turtles and drove them up to the beach to release them back into the ocean. Read the story here.
#3. Donkey Gives Biggest Smile Ever After Being Rescued From Floodwater.
Suzanne Gibbons spotted a donkey completely stranded in a flooded river in Kilorglin, Ireland. She called for help and, once the rescuers hauled the donkey to safety, they were rewarded with a big goofy grin from the animal. Read the story here.
#4. Canadian Kids Are Tying Coats To Street Poles To Keep Homeless Warm This Winter.
Every year, Tara Smith-Atkins asks the community of Nova Scotia, Canada, to donate old coats. Then, with her 8-year-old daughter and seven of her friends, they tie the coats, as well as scarves and mittens, to street poles around town. Read the story here.
#5. Iranians Spontaneously Create “Walls Of Kindness” To Help The Homeless This Winter.
“Walls of Kindness” started popping up in cities across Iran for people to leave clothing for the poor and homeless. The first wall sprung up in the north-eastern city of Mashhad, where hooks were placed on a wall with the sign, “If you don’t need it, leave it. If you need it, take it.” Read the story here.
#6. McDonald’s Worker Closes Cash Register To Help Disabled Man Eat.
A McDonald’s worker helped a disabled man eat his meal at a McDonald’s in Union Station in Chicago. Kenny the cashier surprised everyone by closing the cash register and going to the back to wash his hands. “The cashier came out from the kitchen, sat down and began cutting the man’s meal and helped him eat,” bystander Destiny Carreno said. Read the story here.
#7. Mom Adopts Best Friend’s Four Children After She Dies From Brain Cancer.
NY state residents Laura Ruffino and Elizabeth Diamond met when they were just five years old and had been best friends ever since. When Elizabeth was diagnosed with stage-four brain cancer last year at the age of 40, she made a last request of her life-long friend. “[Elizabeth] said ‘if anything ever happens to me I want you to take my girls,’ and I instantly said ‘OK,’” Laura said. Read the story here.
#8. When A Student’s Baby Starts Crying In Class, Her Professor Does The Sweetest Thing Ever.
Sydney Engelberg, who has spent 45 years of his life as an educator, was teaching a master’s degree program to mostly older students when a baby started crying in the middle of his lecture. The embarrassed mom started to leave with her crying baby, but was stopped by Engelberg, who took the infant in his arms, calmed it down, and went right back to teaching his organizational behavior class without missing a beat. Read the story here.
#9. Surgeon Takes Time To Calm Terrified Two-Year-Old Before Heart Operation.
Xin Er, an adorable two-year-old girl from China, had a pre-existing heart condition that meant she was in need of major heart surgery. Understandably, when the day of the operation came at Zhejiang University Hospital, she was terrified. She began to cry and was inconsolable until surgeon Shi Zhuo, Deputy Director of Cardiac Surgery, picked her up and showed her some cartoons on his phone. Read the story here.
#10. Woman Knits Tiny Sweaters For Ex-Factory Chickens To Keep Them Warm This Winter.
Nicola Congdon, aged 25, from Cornwall, UK, found that her ex-battery hens struggled to acclimatise to colder weather after years in a controlled, factory environment. Her solution? Knitting them teeny tiny chicken sweaters. Read the story here.
#11. Loyal Baby Deer Refuses To Leave The Human Who Saved Her Life.
Lithuanian outdoorsman Darius Sasnauskas saved an injured baby deer left behind by her family because she couldn’t keep up with them. He made the fawn a leg brace from an oatmeal box and fed her every 4 hours and his dog tenderly (and repeatedly) licked the fawn’s face. It was only a matter of time before the beautiful little thing learned to walk again. Read the story here.
#12. Meet Hailey, The 9-Year-Old Who Grows Food And Builds Shelters For The Homeless.
Hailey Ford started Hailey’s Harvest, a garden that was able to donate 128 pounds’ worth of produce to the local food bank last year. But it still wasn’t enough. Soon after, she came up with the idea to build small, mobile shelters for the homeless people in her community. Read the story here.
#13. 8-Year-Old Boy Grows Out Hair To Donate To Kids With Cancer.
Christian grew his beautiful blonde hair to donate to children who have lost theirs due to cancer. It took him two years to get his hair long enough to reach his back. When his hair started growing below the chin, Christian began receiving taunts and comments from adults and kids alike. “Sometimes they would call me a girl,” he said. But he didn’t care. Read the story here.
#14. France Rejects Food Wastage And Votes To Force Supermarkets To Donate Unsold Food To Charity.
Larger French supermarkets are now required by law to give away all edible, unsold food that has reached its sell-by date to charity. The law, passed by the French National Assembly, forces supermarkets larger than 400 square meters to donate the food to charity or turn it into animal feed or compost. Read the story here.
#15. Widow Books Entire Pub, Invites 50 Lonely Elderly People For Christmas Lunch.
An 86-year-old woman spent £1,000 ($1,488) putting on a Christmas lunch for 50 complete strangers who would otherwise be alone this holiday season. Betty Williamson from Devon, UK, booked every single table at a local pub, paying for turkey dinners and wine, and invited anyone spending Christmas Day alone to come along. Read the story here.
#16. Muslims Politely Refuse An ISIS Call To Arms With Hilarious Excuses.
When ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi attempted to recruit people to the extremist cause, Muslims saw the opportunity for a good old fashioned hilarious Twitter roasting. Excuses for avoiding joining the “holy war” ranged from shopping and partying to wanting to watch the new Star Wars film. Read the story here.
#17. Barber Conquers An Autistic Boy’s Fear Of Haircuts.
Mason has autism spectrum disorder and is terrified of haircuts. His barber, James Williams, has been trying different methods for months and recently, by taking things down to Mason’s level, he was finally successful. Not only was Williams able to give Mason a haircut, but he got a thank you hug from the little guy, too. Read the story here.
#18. Sweet Husband Writes Loving Mirror Note For Wife Battling Depression.
“For better, for worse,” is a phrase uttered thousands of times every day, but how many people truly understand its meaning? Los Angeles-based engineer Tim Murphy has certainly lived up to his vows by writing an adoring note on the mirror for his new wife Molly, who is suffering from depression. Read the story here.
#19. Mom Knew Her Baby Would Die, But Refused Abortion So She Could Donate Her Organs.
13 weeks into her pregnancy with twins, Emma Lee was told that baby Hope had anencephaly, a rare condition that prevents the brain and skull from developing. Doctors expected Emma Lee to opt for an abortion, but her instinct was to give birth and donate baby Hope’s organs to other babies in need. Emma gave birth to Hope and healthy twin brother Josh in November. Hope lived for just 74 minutes before dying in her mother’s arms, becoming Britain’s youngest organ donor. Read the story here.
#20. Tight-Knit Farming Community Help Grandpa With Cancer Harvest 450 Acres Of Corn In One Day.
When lifelong farmer Carl Bates was diagnosed with an aggressive terminal cancer, he was unable to work and was worried that he wouldn’t be able to harvest his crops. So the tight-knit farming community of Galva, Illinois, US, came together to help the grandfather out. Some 40 farmers armed with 10 combines, a dozen grain carts, and 16 semi-trucks converged on Carl’s farm in the small town and went to work harvesting corn. Read the story here.
#21. Mother Grieving Stillborn Son Donates 92 Gallons Of Breast Milk To Save Premature Babies.
Amy Anderson was devastated when she lost her unborn son Bryson at 20 weeks. The mom-of-two was told to “bind her breasts and take Sudafed” to reduce the amount of breast milk her body would produce. But she didn’t. As Bryson was so early, Amy’s breast milk was incredibly nutrient rich as it was intended to support a significantly premature baby. “I decided to donate Bryson’s milk and turn my tragedy into a blessing,” Amy said. Read the story here.