After a 6 a.m. flight out of Lake Tahoe, we headed back to Phoenix to meet up with Austin Gutwine and Faith Johnson. When he was 9, Austin founded Hoops of Hope, an organization raising money for victims of AIDS in Africa. Along with regularly speaking to thousands of kids all over the country on the Revolving Tour, Austin has found the time to raise 1.5 million dollars, build 2 medical clinics for AIDS treatment, build a school in Zambia, and plans to raise another 500K this year to build a dormitory for the school–all while trying to be a typical 15 year old. 10 yr old Faith was inspired by Austin’s example and recently started Flip Flops of Faith which aims to collect flip flops to send to Africa.
After spending time in Phoenix, we headed to Denver, Colorado to meet up with Aurora Bamba and Rachel Beenken. After a family tragedy left her and her two brothers living with their Grandmother, Aurora Bamba went years headed down the wrong path. It wasn’t until a 7th grade teacher pushed her to be better, that she decided to refocus her life on being a light to others. Now, as a 17 yr old Senior she has a 4.03 GPA, actively tutors and mentors younger kids throughout the Colorado Springs School District, and has become a leader in her school and throughout her community.
Rachel Beenken is the co-founder of Hats for the Homeless, an organization that makes hats, scarves, and blankets for the homeless of the Denver area. Rachel has helped secure a 10K grant and has involved over 850 other students committed to volunteering their efforts for this cause and simultaneously hoping to unite a community around a common effort.
The 7 days crew is sleeping in Oklahoma City tonight. We’ll have three more stories tomorrow from Ok City and Houston: Two kids helping raise money for clean water in Africa and a Houston area kid-scientist who may rewrite the books on energy conservation around the world