This week Awesome Stories brings you Housecalls for the Housebound, Little Free Pantry, futuristic trucks and messy learning.
Housecalls for the Housebound
Dr. Samuel Lupin decided to go back to traditional medicine by making house calls. After his daughter died, he realized that he was tired of the commute, office hours, paperwork and making patients wait, so he decided to make house calls for homebound patients. He treated them like extended family and his new practice flourished. In fact, he was joined by his son-in-law, grandson, other doctors and nurses as they grew to a full-service in-home provider caring for over 4000 patients in the New York City area. Their holistic care offers better care to a population that is often under-served, and hospitals save money by referring patients that they can’t help as well as Housecalls for the Housebound.
Little Free Pantry
A local woman and church have partnered to start what they hope will be as prevalent as Little Free Libraries. They see a need for smaller, neighborhood pantries that serve folks who might need food or household supplies when a formal pantry is not open. People in need can come to a Little Free Pantry and take whatever they need. Neighbors and donors will keep the pantries stocked with non-perishable food and household items like toothpaste and toilet paper. They’ve already built one neighborhood pantry and are looking to expand as resources allow. I love this idea and hope to see many Little Free Pantries popping up all over towns. If this speaks to you, contact jessica@littlefreepantry.org.
Trucks of the Future?
Nikola Motors thinks they have a better version of trucks. Their futuristic looking trucks will run on electricity generated on-board with a turbine generator that runs on natural gas and charges the batteries. They offer a host of advantages including better mileage, lower emissions, lower cost to operate, quieter, less weight, regenerative breaks, more cab room and lots of modern cabin features. They’re offering a unique all-inclusive lease program that includes maintenance, gas and upgrades every 7 years. They seem pretty interesting to me. What do you think?
Messy Learning
Schools around the world are experimenting with “messy learning”, a method of teaching that asks open-ended questions that don’t have one right answer. This encourages students to explore, collaborate and learn in groups. The formal name for this approach is SOLEs- Self Organized Learning Environments. In this brief interview, Sugata Mitra talks about how he used a computer placed in a wall to help stimulate learning. This approach seems to succeed across wide skill levels and interests. I would have loved self-directed learning.
May we feed our minds with curiosity and our hearts with compassion. Have an awesome week!
writing to freedom 
Inspiring and encouraging!
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Thanks Annette. Have a beautiful week!
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What a beautiful collection of awesome stories again! I loved the first one the most. I still remember the house call doctors made in Sweden when I was young – and you didn’t need to be housebound, just urgent. That was a fantastic service we enjoyed at the time. Can you hear good ol’ times? I am also a believer in the “messy learning” 🙂
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How wonderful Helen. I’ve only heard about house calls, but never experienced them. to messy learning!
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Thank God for Messy learning in schools. We have been so brainwashed NOT to think for ourselves it is frightening. There is a boundless excitement to life when you can break out of the box and let your mind roam freely into new spaces. This should be encouraged everywhere if we wish to save our children from becoming robots! VK 🙂
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Exactly VK. I wish I had been taught how to think creatively and trust myself. I’m glad some schools are changing their ways!
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Wow what a wonderful Dr.. and it is good to see education taking a different view on how we teach.. 🙂
Wonderful and inspiring Brad.. 🙂 I hope you had a good week and that your weekend is a peaceful one..
Love and warm hugs
Sue ❤
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Awesome doctor, Brad!! And love the looks (and everything) of the new trucks!! Hope you have a beautiful Sunday ❤
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Thanks my friend. 🙂 More hugs and blessings…
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A doctor who makes housecalls? Ohmigosh! I would love that. It would be much better than going to a sterile office, waiting forever, feeling like you’re a numbered specimen. Perhaps this is why Eastern medicine appeals to me more often than not…
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Agreed Cynthia. I would love to have house calls. Maybe one day. 🙂
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Oh I remember house calls well when I was a young girl. The doctor actually came to the house to take out my tonsils. Another great selections of stories Brad!. 🙂 ❤
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How wonderful that you’ve experienced that caring practice of medicine. Maybe house calls will be revived. 🙂
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I hope so! 😊❤️
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Thanks, Brad, for another awesome set of stories. I love the housecalls story and have shared it via FB. See what I mean? You have an eye for great stories that uplift the heart while providing great information.
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Thanks for sharing the post and the encouragement Cynthia. It’s good to know that you find value in my stories.
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