Carrie Underwood Graduates College- She's all that and a bag of chips

Carrie doesn't make any bones about her belief in Jesus and this rendition of  How Great Thou Art are no exception.

Carrie Underwood is one of the most recognized faces in country music. This female artist began her rise to fame in 2005 when she dropped out of college to enter the American Idol competition. She took a big chance when she decided to do that, but it paid off in ways that she could have never dreamed possible when she was growing up in Checotah, OK. The 31-year-old recently returned to college to complete her education.

Carrie wins American Idol

Underwood graduated from Northeastern State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in mass communication. Her concentration was in journalism and she walked across the stage with approximately 1800 other students that day. When asked to do an interview, Carrie refused because she did not want to take away from the attention that the other graduates were getting. She is humble by nature and that is one of the things that fans love so much about her.

Carrie is not afraid to have fun as well as shown here singing Good Girl

Underwood sends out a big message to young girls all across America with her decision to return to school to finish her degree. She was only three credits shy of earning it when she dropped out and she really did not need to return in order to be successful. The message to young girls is loud and clear. Finish what you started, no matter how successful or rich you become in the process. A good education means something in today’s world and having something to fall back on is never a bad thing.

Jesus Take the Wheel

Congratulations to Carrie Underwood for graduating college along with the other students who persevered in order to get their degrees. And thank you for letting girls know that you can have it all and then some.

Ann B. Davis of Brady Bunch fame: Memories and more memories

Ann B. Davis is one of the most recognizable faces in America because she played a maid on a seventies sitcom. The sitcom, of course, was the Brady Bunch and many people simply remember her as Alice. The show continues to draw millions of viewers each year, though it hasn’t aired since 1974. Davis died yesterday, June 1, 2014, after she fell and hit her head. She was 88-years-old. I have my own memories of the Brady Bunch and Alice, but since most of America does, I’ll just share some videos in her memory.

Alice takes a spill while getting towels

Alice helps the kids with a petition drive to save the park

Alice resigns

The kids made a terrible mistake and now they must get Alice back

Alice sprains her ankle and Sam goes to the dance without her

Jon Bon Jovi: Rocker extraordinaire and advocate for the homeless

In keeping with today’s homeless theme, I choose a celebrity that is well-known for helping the homeless in his hometown. Danny’s Grace is more about child abuse than homelessness, but the subject is touched on in one or two chapters of the book. There are hundreds of thousands of people going homeless in the United States today, so it is an important subject to confront. In Danny’s Grace, the homelessness takes place on the streets of Los Angeles. Jon Bon Jovi’s story starts in New Jersey.

Jon Bon Jovi offers real hope for the homeless

John Bon Jovi set up the JBJ Soul Foundation to help people in the United States who have become homeless and/or hungry. The foundation covers a wide array of areas that help with each problem. It is one of the most impressive homeless foundations that I have come across and deserves as much attention as possible. Instead of simply handing out meals, the foundation allows people to earn meals so that everyone contributes in some way.

Bon Jovi explains the restaurant concept

The Soul Kitchen is a restaurant setting with an unusual twist. Everyone is welcome to eat at the establishment. The cost of a single meal is $10 for those who can afford it. The money is then turned back over into the program to help provide the free meals that some people are in need of. The meals are not free for those who do not pay though. People who are unable to pay can work for their meals and there are several volunteer positions available to fill the need. No one is ever turned away and no reservations are necessary.

Jon Bon Jovi talks about how WE work together to end homelessness

Soul Homes is another project that is currently in the works. The project will provide affordable homes for low income people and the formerly homeless and will be located in Philadelphia and New Jersey. Resources will be made available to those who move into the new apartments. This project will enable people to get a fresh start so that they can live a more productive life.

Why is Bon Jovi’s foundation one to look at as an excellent example of real help? The foundation offers something that a free hand out does not. It offers hope for the future instead of the immediate. Although the restaurant is an immediate help to those seeking it, it also requires that the person be willing to work for their food. That’s hope and it will be there for a very long time to come.

Celebrities who use their power and money to help others are not uncommon. Some of those celebrities shine far more brightly at it than others do though. Bon Jovi is one of them and our hats are off to him and his organization for a fabulous program that actually helps eradicate hunger and homelessness.