When Sarah Wishnia received an iPad from her daughter, “It was like Greek to me.” Max Rosenblum showed her how to socialize on Facebook and shop on Amazon with her new device.With Max's help, Elena learned to give orders to Siri, Mike familiarized himself with Waze and Honey began searching for information about movies, restaurants and books on her smartphone.Max is 16, a rising junior in Davie. His students are residents of Coral Gables, fascinated by technology and eager to learn about this brave new frontier. Max began offering his tech coaching for seniors a year ago, after he helped his grandmother with her iPhone and iPad. He taught her how to text and use Faccbook. He also downloaded a Scrabble app for her to play. “She loved it,”he said, not without a trace of pride.

That experience inspired him and his parents, Adam and Heather. They reached out to a connection at Coral Gables and launched a website, techmaxed. com. He also recruited(招募)other teens to teach the one-on-one lessons in Coral Gables. These youths go to the retirement communities at least once a month. Though teaching a class might appear to be more expedient,soon Max found out that group sessions simply didn't work.“People are at different levels,and it was hard to teach that way," he said. “It's much better to give them individual help.” “Most people come more than once,” he added. “I have my regulars.”

“First he showed me how to get my email on the phone,” Rosen, 88, said, “and then he wrote up a short step-by-step guide for me so I could remember.” Max admits that teaching older adults takes time, but he figures he's also paying it forward.

“Maybe when I'm 87 and there's new technology,”   he said, “somebody will teach me, too.”

Beth Bonness talked into the mirror as her hairstylist cut her hair. Bonness was telling a funny story about a trip to Rome. Suddenly, the stylist started moving her hands around in the mirror. “Beth. Beth. Beth. Can you hear me? ” she said. Bonness asked her what was wrong. In her mind, the words were coming out of her mouth. But she could see in the mirror that her lips weren’t moving. She started seeing bursts of light in the sides of her vision (视野). Then suddenly, the sensations disappeared.

Tests indicated Bonness had a transient ischemic attack (短暂性脑缺血发作) (TlA). About a third of people who have a TIA go on to have a more serious stroke (中风) within a year.

Bonness said she was told it was a one-off incident, so she didn’t worry about future problems. Plus, only old people have strokes, she told herself. She was 49, healthy and fit. Even the doctors implied that she was too young to worry. But the same week, while having a meal with her family, she couldn’t speak clearly again.

Bonness went on disability for a few weeks, and returned to work full-time half a year later. In the beginning, she felt less confident about speaking. Later she threw herself into living as healthy as possible. In 2011, her doctor said she’d fully recovered. She stopped all stroke-related medication.

In 2014, Bonness retired. She ended up saving a historic craftsman-style home in her neighborhood by changing it into a small residential development. The process had so many twists and turns (意外的曲折变化) that Bonness began writing a book about her story.

Last year, she started sharing her writing. She also started a writing group for survivors of stroke and brain injury in the hope that they too might find the same insight (领悟) and comfort. “Maybe it’s about doing more talking and sharing,” she said. “Every experience you have, all that travels with you.”

Elmer Alvarez was a homeless man when he found a $10K check in New Haven, Connecticut. Instead of cashing it in for himself, he looked for its rightful owner.

The owner of the large check was a real estate (房地产) agent named Roberta Hoskie. She was on a busy schedule doing business around town when her check slipped away in a busy crossing. She didn’t realize she lost it until the next day.   

They settled the day they met to hand over the check . Elmer came with a friend. It turned out he couldn’t speak English that well and asked for the help of a stranger to translate what he wanted to do. Roberta also found something about Elmer that shocked her—Elmer was homeless.

And since Roberta is in the real estate business, she realized she could send Elmer to the real estate school to be a part of her company. Not only that, but she also rewarded him with an apartment and paid seven month’s worth of rent to help him get back on his feet. Roberta’s heart was drawn to Elmer’s story because it reminded her of her own past.

She once lived in a shelter, as a single mom with only around $400 to raise her son—until one day, someone blessed her with a job that led her to her success right now. Her experience of being homeless reminded her that she could be a blessing to someone and change their life, too. A year after they met , Roberta and Elmer started Outreach Foundation, a transitional home for homeless teenagers, providing support like church services, substance abuse awareness , and education.   

Elmer’s honesty is something that should be applauded. And in the end, he went from not having a roof over his head, to being capable of lending a hand to others who are really in need.