"I want to be an engineer or an inventor. I'd like to come up with more renewable resources and invent something to reduce pollution. I just want to do something to help the earth."
"There was an assistant soccer coach when I was in high school who had a big impact on my life. She had this way about her that was different from anyone else I knew. She was friendly, funny, and just stood out. One day after practice she invited me to go get coffee, and we became friends. Eventually, she asked me to go to a Bible study with her. I had never had a relationship with God or tried to find out a lot about him. Because of my age, I didn't feel it was that important, but I went to the study anyway and then later went to church with her. I saw that she didn't just say one thing and do another, but that she really lived what she believed. Eventually, I became a believer and accepted Christ. Because of that coach's influence, my life is different now. She's a mentor, best friend, and like an older sister to me. She's helped me build a strong relationship with God."
"My parents have had the biggest impact of anyone on my life. They came to the U.S. from Vietnam 24 years ago, and I'm the first of my family to be born in America. If not for my parents, I wouldn't have the opportunity for the kind of education I'm getting at the University of Memphis. They taught me, first of all, to love God; second, to love family---family will always be there for you---and third, that education is necessary for success."
"My family is from Greece. There's a Greek tradition of naming sons after their grandfathers. In each generation, the first and middle names stay the same, but the order is reversed. So my grandfather's name is Louis Nicholas, my father's name is Nicholas Louis, and my name is Louis Nicholas. In our family, the tradition goes back 25 generations."
"I was in the Air Force during the Korean War. That's when the traveling bug bit me, and I've still got it. I've been to Rome, Venice, Hawaii, all over Canada, and to four national parks. The place I enjoyed most was the Holy Land. I was baptized there in the Jordan River."
"I write scripts for my 'Littlest Pet Shop' toys. Then I move them around to act out the stories and video them with my mom's phone. There are lots of girls who do this on YouTube, even girls who are a lot older, like 16 or 17. We call it LPS Tube. One of my inspirations is a girl named SophieGTV. She's made a lot of episodes in the series called LPS Popular. For me, writing and then making the movies is how I express myself. I've always liked to act, and this is one way I can do it. It's really fun. My two best friends do it too." Hedwig's LPS recommendations (YouTube channels):
"I have two daughters, and this is my son. I can rough and tumble with him. The girls are too prissy."
"Tony Dentman, on staff with Campus Outreach at the University of Memphis, played a huge role in my coming to know the Lord. He was straightforward, bold, and I could tell he wasn't just reciting something. He believed it. Working at Streets, I try to talk to kids the same way he talked to me. My perspective on life and how I do things has changed. I don't just think in the short term anymore. I think eternal."
"I lost my mom to cancer two years ago. My husband and I had just moved to Memphis, and that summer was one of the coolest in recent memory. Mom wanted to go for evening walks, but she couldn't, so Dad pushed her in a wheelchair and we all went along: my sisters (one pushing her triplets in a carriage), our husbands, and me. It was just our family at first, but by the end of the summer, there were 30 or 40 people walking with us every day. Neighbors would come outside and join us, friends would drop by, and all of us would just walk for half an hour or so. Strolling through the neighborhood with all of my favorite people on those 75-degree evenings is definitely one of my favorite family memories. My mom died in August, at the end of that summer."
|
Archives
March 2021
|