Nancy Ballard，60，went for a routine checkup that turned into something extraordinary.She had just completed her master’s in botanical illustration.In fact，she was canting a painting of a plant she’d done when she arrived at her doctor’s San Francisco office.“It would be great if we had artwork like that for our chemotherapy(化疗)rooms，”the nurse said.Ballard asked to see one.

She was shocked by what she found.The walls were bare，and the paint was chipping(剥落).She could tell where old artwork had hung because of the naked nails.It was a depressing room for a depressing routine—patients had chemo drips for perhaps several hours，often with nothing to look at other than those sad walls.She couldn’t imagine how anyone could even think about getting healthy in a room like that.As it happened，Ballard’s physician，Stephen Hufford was ill with cancer himself，so finding time to decorate the rooms was low on his to-do list.So Ballard made it her mission to brighten up the place.

She wrote to 20 local interior designers and asked whether they would donate their time and money to transform just one of Dr.Hufford’s rooms each.Six of them wrote back almost immediately.Each of them ultimately chose a theme:The dragonfly room，for example，now features bright artwork and dragonfly wall ornaments.Most rooms got new paint，light fixtures，artwork，and furniture.Each room cost about $5，000.

Dr.Hufford was delighted.“All the patients feel soothed by it.”he noted.He even said that his own tone of voice was different in the rooms and that he was better able to connect with his patients.

Ballard was so encouraged that she created a nonprofit to raise money and decorate more spaces.Since then，she has worked on 20 projects，including one in Pennsylvania.She once went to Philadelphia for a ribbon cutting，and a woman there was on her third battle with cancer.When she saw what Ballard had done，she said，“I’m gonna beat it this time.I thought I wasn’t going to，but now I know I’m gonna beat it.”

What motivates someone to risk arrest and danger just to help others? In Dolores Huerta’s case, it’s a “sense of mission.” She says, “I knew there’s something I was meant to do.”

Dolores Huerta was born in the Great Depression. Huerta’s mother worked two jobs to make sure her children were provided for. She insisted each child help around the house. Even, she tried to help those who struggled to find work. Inspired by her mother, as an adult, Huerta was known as a symbol for passionate commitment.

After graduation, Huerta began to teach children in Stockton, California. Many of her students were poor children whose parents were farm workers barely making enough money to survive. She knew they couldn’t do their best to learn when they came to school hungry. Huerta decided to help her students by helping their whole families.

Huerta helped the farm workers bargain for better ways to work and live. Most farm workers in California worked long hours for low pay then. Workers were often exposed to dangerous chemicals. They sometimes had to pay for the water they drank at work. However, many farm workers didn’t speak enough English to talk with farm owners about these problems.

Huerta first worked with the Community Service Organization (CSO) to help make changes. She signed up workers to vote and urged them to be active in the CSO. She talked to governors and lawmakers about laws to guarantee farm workers’ health and pay. Later, with another activist, she cofounded the United Farm Workers (UFW) to teach workers how to stand up for their rights.

Although the UFW went about its work peacefully, sometimes crowds became angry and the police were called in. In 1988, while handing out information about workers’ problems, Huerta was hurt and had to go to hospital, but it didn’t stop her. Her courage drew notice and donations. Later, she created the Dolores Huerta Foundation.

Despite retiring from the UFW, her mission is the same as it was four decades ago: teach people they have a voice, which really makes a difference.

One of the negative effects from the all-pervasive social media is that it has almost killed the reading habit. To change this situation, a group of IT professionals and engineers have come together to start the 'Let's Read India' movement in Maharashtra by taking their library to the people's doorstep.

Prafulla Wankhede, one of the founders of the campaign, says it's getting an overwhelming response. "Our primary objective is to bring this WhatsApp and social media generation back to books and make them better educated and more civilized citizens," he said.

Wankhede said their library van went to remote places lacking major facilities. "We want to reach out to every person who wants to read a book. We have three mobile libraries now. People can borrow books for a week for free with only one condition: the borrower should submit a 300 -word review about the book to be able to take a second book," he said. "Our objective is to ensure people read."

"Those who want to get books can connect through our social media website and app. This will enable them to know the locations of the mobile library that has GPS attached. Besides, there is a QR code for each book. The mobile library makes the weekly visit to the identified locations," Wankhede said.

Initially, “Let's Read India” Foundation had planned to start the initiative in Maharashtra, Goa and Madhya Pradesh, the plan was shelved because of the pandemic situation. "We are now focusing on Maharashtra," said Wankhede. "Once we grow in Maharashtra, we'll then shift our focus to the rest of the country." The foundation also plans to start a YouTube channel where well-known authors' speeches, interviews and reviews will be played.

"We not only offer books, we also suggest what should be read. Many people are really confused about their reading choices. If they are able to read the kind of books they want, it will help them in their academic and professional life," said Wankhede.