Cathy Free The Washington Post

The four teenage friends were riding five-foot waves in the choppy Northern California ocean for about two hours last week when they stopped for a brief rest in the water on their surfboards. That was when the frantic cries for help started.

Jonathan Pinkard desperately needed a heart transplant. But Pinkard was homeless, and he did not have a support system to help care for him after a transplant - and that disqualified him from the waiting list for a new heart.

The eight electric billboards across Tulsa, Oklahoma were cryptic. "Amy, I love you more!" the signs read, above a logo for the Living Water Irrigation company.

Kyler Nipper ended up in an emergency room in Colorado Springs, Colorado, after several middle-school classmates bullied him about his worn-out shoes. He wanted to do something to help other people who were being bullied or feeling ashamed about having shabby shoes.

Somebody had the wrong number. That was obvious to Bill Clayten when he received a text from a "Sister Fink," asking him what time he'd like her to stop by with dinner.

Quinn is recovering from treatment for a cancerous brain stem tumor and has a severely compromised immune system. He has become a household name in his hometown as hundreds of strangers have stopped by since June to turn his front lawn into a stage of sorts.

Vince Rozmiarek, who lives in the tiny Colorado town of Indian Hills, started his public life of puns six years ago when he began volunteering for his town's community center and took over managing the center's roadside message board sign that stands along the one highway in town.

After Mary Latham's mother died in 2013, the New York wedding photographer spent several years feeling adrift, wondering how long her emotions would feel so raw.

Many healthy women in their late 70s lace up their walking shoes or hiking boots to stay active. But not Suzelle Poole.

Lora Scantling is a professional photographer who has long documented happy moments of birth, graduations and weddings. Then several years ago, her stepfather was dying of lung cancer, and her close friend's 1-year-old son died of cancer.

Sharalee Armitage Howard designed a Pinterest-worthy Little Free Library that looks like the home of a family of magical elves. The converted stump-turned-book-offering is complete with stone steps leading to a tiny glass French door, a hanging lantern, shelves and a peaked roof.

Baby Connor was born a tiny preemie in July, weighing just 11 ounces - about the size of a human heart and lighter than a can of soda. He went home to Connecticut this week in what doctors called a triumph of medicine and the human spirit.

The state of Massachusetts took custody of Gisele when she was 3 months old and transferred her to Franciscan Children's because her lungs needed specialized care, and she had a feeding tube. The baby did not have a single visitor in her five months at the hospital.

The four teenage friends were riding five-foot waves in the choppy Northern California ocean for about two hours last week when they stopped for a brief rest in the water on their surfboards. That was when the frantic cries for help started.

Jonathan Pinkard desperately needed a heart transplant. But Pinkard was homeless, and he did not have a support system to help care for him after a transplant - and that disqualified him from the waiting list for a new heart.

The eight electric billboards across Tulsa, Oklahoma were cryptic. "Amy, I love you more!" the signs read, above a logo for the Living Water Irrigation company.

Kyler Nipper ended up in an emergency room in Colorado Springs, Colorado, after several middle-school classmates bullied him about his worn-out shoes. He wanted to do something to help other people who were being bullied or feeling ashamed about having shabby shoes.

Somebody had the wrong number. That was obvious to Bill Clayten when he received a text from a "Sister Fink," asking him what time he'd like her to stop by with dinner.

Quinn is recovering from treatment for a cancerous brain stem tumor and has a severely compromised immune system. He has become a household name in his hometown as hundreds of strangers have stopped by since June to turn his front lawn into a stage of sorts.

Vince Rozmiarek, who lives in the tiny Colorado town of Indian Hills, started his public life of puns six years ago when he began volunteering for his town's community center and took over managing the center's roadside message board sign that stands along the one highway in town.

After Mary Latham's mother died in 2013, the New York wedding photographer spent several years feeling adrift, wondering how long her emotions would feel so raw.

Many healthy women in their late 70s lace up their walking shoes or hiking boots to stay active. But not Suzelle Poole.

Lora Scantling is a professional photographer who has long documented happy moments of birth, graduations and weddings. Then several years ago, her stepfather was dying of lung cancer, and her close friend's 1-year-old son died of cancer.

Sharalee Armitage Howard designed a Pinterest-worthy Little Free Library that looks like the home of a family of magical elves. The converted stump-turned-book-offering is complete with stone steps leading to a tiny glass French door, a hanging lantern, shelves and a peaked roof.

Baby Connor was born a tiny preemie in July, weighing just 11 ounces - about the size of a human heart and lighter than a can of soda. He went home to Connecticut this week in what doctors called a triumph of medicine and the human spirit.

The state of Massachusetts took custody of Gisele when she was 3 months old and transferred her to Franciscan Children's because her lungs needed specialized care, and she had a feeding tube. The baby did not have a single visitor in her five months at the hospital.