Today I rode the busy streets of Oro Valley, Arizona to honor this town’s only in the line of duty fatality. Hero Detective Gravell gave his life on an illegal immigrant call in 1989.
My first stop was the Police Station where I found Kevin, a very interested patrolman on the Oro Valley force. He was very appreciative for having me stop by on The Kindness Bicycle. Cassidy, who took today’s picture, works for the department and was thrilled to help out in any way she could. I also stopped by the town’s administration offices to leave information for the mayor and council members. Even with the passing of more than 23 years since this tragedy, the response I received from passing vehicles was very strong. My ride ended before noon to get out of the heat and sun of the day. Thank you to Sarah for the mid morning iced tea at one of my quick stops.

The following article was written by; Bree Ide
Founder & Head of School
Willowbrook Day School
During a social studies lesson about rebuilding communities, the students at Willowbrook School in Fort Wayne, IN decided they wanted to do something to help the victims of the devastating tornados just three hours south of them in Henryville, IN.  The 2nd-5th graders held a press conference with all of the parents at their school and told them that they wanted to fill a semi-truck with food and building supplies to send down to Henryville.  They rallied their parents, the school faculty and the local community to help them with their mission.  With the help from Mimi Burns of The Mimi Burns Band in just six days, they had ten other bands volunteering to perform at their Benefit Concert held on the lawn of their school. The evening was a complete success!  They raised $17,000.00 during the concert.

Sow Only Seeds of Love

These are the kind of days I dream of on The Kindness Bus Tour.
I visited Harelson Elementary School in Tucson, Arizona today. This is one very special school with educators who have a passion for teaching students in very creative ways. Ann Jansen, the Behavioral Intervention Monitor was instrumental in making this visit become a reality. My niece, Meredith is a former teacher from Harelson and made the connect with Ann to organize this great visit.
Arranging a prime playground parking spot and an interview on Bobcat TV were key in getting the students excited long before my two programs were delivered. The K – 3 grades were treated to a program that taught many core values with Bogart being used as an example many of the times. The 4 – 6 grades were part of a “town hall” type of presentation with a session of Q and A.
This school is very involved in teaching students to be innovators in the peace process in their school and community. Principal, Andy Heinemann is a talented leader and gifted at keeping this great school at the forefront of everything important for the children in his charge.  The visit to this school was also made possible by the hard work of Brooke and Shelby, two very helpful students at Harelson.
It was a pleasure to be able to help these children consider a lifetime goal of One Million Acts Of Kindness. Thank you, Harelson.

50 years ago, Sara O’Meara and Yvonne Fedderson founded Childhelp, to protect children and families from child abuse. Today, their mission remains the same but with a multi-pronged approach to helping children in every possible way. Knowing that the Childhelp organization was founded in Scottsdale, I felt it necessary to take the time to visit their facility while in town. Robert Bell, a Child Advocate with great knowledge and passion for protecting children and his associate Gabby Ghan met with me today. This very busy facility houses all the agencies under one roof, enabling the child to only have to be interviewed once, about very damaging personal information. April is National Childhood Abuse Prevention Month, if you can do anything to help children or wish help children, contact Childhelp at their website; www.childhelp.org Today I rode through the downtown area of Phoenix with the signs from my previous Domestic Violence an Childhood Sexual Abuse Prevention ride. Ethan the pastry chef from the Pink Pony restaurant in Old Town Scottsdale, near the locations I would  park everyday, created a wonderful dessert for my travels this afternoon. Valerie from Scottsdale Public Art also helped The Kindness Bus Tour before Bogart and I left town. You can never be too far from friends, as I ran into my dentist Dr. Arthur Broad DDS, and the Cunningham family, who were childhood neighbors of mine.

When you hear about something that interests you for the very first time, you take note. When you hear about it for a 2nd time just a couple of hours later, you do something about it. Today I did just that. Hearing about the Scottsdale based Joe Foss Institute on two separate occasions yesterday, I researched their website and visited their new offices today. Melissa the Curriculum Coordinator and Jay a Marine who does classroom presentations, met me in the lobby. The need for kids to learn core values has never been greater and JFI is accomplishing just that.
The Joe Foss Institute was created to work with youth in schools and youth groups across America, with those who will defend our freedoms in the future while encouraging & teaching democracy, patriotism, integrity, and public service. If you are looking to get involved in volunteering for a charity, JFI is a great one to consider.
Today’s ride was a joy as I rode on some of Scottsdale’s great bicycle paths. I just have to find a better way of staying out of the Arizona sun.

There are nine Boys and Girls Clubs in Scottsdale, each uniquely serving the needs of their neighborhoods. Today I visited with Lauren Stratton, the Branch Director, at the Hartley & Ruth Barker facility. She was a wealth of information about all of the programs that her club and she took a big interest in One Million Acts Of Kindness. She told me of some of the groups who visit her club. Naval Officers from the USS Constitution had just paid a visit. Members from the Joe Foss Institute which teaches patriotism, are frequent guests. They can be found at www.joefoss.com Be Great, Graduate is a program which is pairing children with mentors, in the hopes of having these children graduate High School and encouraging them to go on to college. Lauren loved The Kindness Bicycle Ride for Heroes. The more positive role models in a child’s life the better. She is helping to make that happen at this club.
Riding back into Downtown Scottsdale, Jeff flagged me down. Unbelievably, he volunteers for the Joe Foss Institute! He shared with me of how some educators are saying that they have a crisis in the classroom. Jeff is helping by sharing the great story about the Good Samaritan and the importance of helping strangers. He had many inspiring stories as well.
I made two quick stops, one was to a local satellite rescue squad station, Al and Mike, two EMTs wished me well on my travels and the other was to Coronado High School where I left an information packet for the Guidance Counselor and Principal.
While in Scottsdale, The Kindness Bus has been parked across from Buca di Beppo for a few of the days. A big tip of the hat to Vickie, the manager, for the invite to this great Italian restaurant to meet some of the staff and have a complimentary dinner.