Tragedy followed but all these years later junes story finally has a happy ending. June right, heres his wallet. Garvin of all the things june amrhein still has of her fathers, not every one fits neatly into a bag. June this is his draft card. Garvin to this day, theres one june proudly wears for all to see. June i inherited his smile. Thats what everyone tells me that remembered him. My fathers right here. Garvin remembering louis phipps, it turns out, is what this story is all about. The oldest of his five children, june was just nine years old when he died. June i have many memories and im the only child that does. Garvin in 1942 louis phipps, an ashland, massachusetts, police officer, was assaulted by a drunk patron at a bar. He died of his injuries just a few days later. June and i just couldnt believe it. Do you know, this was my hero. How could he be dead . Garvin for a number of reasons there was never recognition of the fact that officer phipps died in the line of duty. June his police badge. Garvin something that always bothered june but didnt come to the surface until the 1980s when another fallen officers picture went up on the wall at Ashland Police headquarters. June and i said, why isnt my father up there . You know, and this is when the wheels started to work for me. Garvin they turned in vain for some 30 years until june recently uncovered a longlost document. June struggled with a man who had been drinking. Garvin and then found a sympathetic ear on the Ashland Police force. June he said, this should not be a problem. Garvin within a matter of months, june got the news that louis phippss name was being added in may to the Fallen Officers National Memorial in washington, d. C. June and i just sat down and cried. I couldnt believe it. Garvin all june had to do was get to the airport to get to the ceremony. Leo capovilla it was a nobrainer. Garvin which San Mateo County sergeant Leo Capovilla was more than happy to arrange. Leo this was a fellow officer that gave his life. I didnt even have to think twice. Through the dark night garvin june says the ceremony was all she knew it would be because, for her, there was never a question if this honor would come; simply when. June you know what . I was never going to give up. Garvin it never hurts to ask for help. Its a strategy 18yearold esther lucas definitely believes in and shes got nearly 2 million reasons why. The sunnyvale resident has left behind quite a gift for her community. Esther lucas some in here. Garvin like many other girl scouts, esther lucas has a lot of experience selling things to adults. Esther this was for cookie sales. Garvin even with that track record though, this 18yearold is herself a bit surprised at the sale she recently closed. Esther so i came home after that. I was, like, thats a lot of money. Did i really do that . Garvin this all began when esther was looking for a project to earn her gold star, the crowning achievement to a career in girl scouts. Esther i wanna do something where i can help people who dont have the same things as other people. Garvin the people esther settled on were children with disabilities. She realized she never saw them at her local playgrounds, even ones supposedly handicapped accessible. Esthers research on the topic led her to magical bridge, a fully accessible and wildly successful playground in palo alto. Esther was convinced it was just what her city needed. All she had to do was convince the city of it. Male next, we have some speaker cards. Garvin so in september of last year male and im gonna start with esther lucas. Garvin availing herself of the Public Comments period during city council meetings. Esther good evening, mr. Mayor and Honorable Council members. My name is esther garvin esther used her 2 minutes to make her pitch. Esther why do i not see many kids with those disabilities at the park . Esther they said that they liked the idea and that they just cant go forward and that they would have to think about it. Male i just have a few words i wanna say. Garvin well, they did more than just think about it. This summer the city, thanks to esthers lead, allocated 1. 8 million to begin transformation of one of their playgrounds into magical bridge, sunnyvale. Male so again, esther, thank you very much. Garvin it is, esther admits, so much more than she had ever hoped for when she walked up to the microphone last september. So much sweeter, we should add, than any box of cookies. Esther its realits been really cool and its also been really eyeopening what one small thing can do. Garvin ali graham is a 6th grade science and math teacher who wants to be simply known as a good teacher. But shes becoming known for more than that, though. You see, recently, she pulled off a remarkable feat of makeshift engineering. What she made was pretty special and she wants her students to learn an important lesson from it. Ali graham what i need you to do is, when you get your test, youll put your name on the top. Garvin a few years ago when ali graham got a job as a 6th grade math and Science Teacher at Creative ArtsCharter School in san francisco, she was thrilled. Ali im gonna pass this out. Then im garvin ali did, however, have one reservation about teaching middle school. Ali im, like, oh, shoot. Like, what if its middle school all over again . Ali sophia, right there. Garvin what ali means is that these years can be tough for kids who are different and ali has been different for most of her 25 years. Ali i was really young. I was 18 months old and i got a disease called meningococcemia and so it cut off the circulation to my feet. Garvin two belowtheknee amputations were needed to save alis life. They didnt, however, slow her down. In fact, ali says she never really felt different as a kid until, you guessed it, middle school. Ali well, i had, like, a hard time cause i was bullied a lot. Garvin as shes reached adulthood, ali has become ever more comfortable with her story and her two prosthetic feet. Still, she never wants to call too much attention to them. She wants to be known not as the teacher with prosthetics, but just simply a good teacher. Female please welcome ali graham. Garvin which is why a choice she made this summer was so out of character. Ali yeah, it was a big deal for me to do that. Female shes made some newspaper rods and woven them together. Garvin as part of a Science Teacher camp at the exploratorium there was a competition to build something from packing material. Ali the thing looks pretty sturdy. Garvin what ali built ali so now we have a whole leg. Garvin was a working prosthetic leg. Ali im gonna put that one over there. And were gonna test this out. Garvin which she then demonstrated. Ali take a few steps. Garvin to a surprised audience. Garvin she won the competition. Ali that was a big hurdle for me to, like, get through emotionally and then being able to just do it and have people react in a positive way and not like a, oh, thats weird kind of way, was, like, reinforcing. And so i feel like ive grown even more. Ali its pretty durable. Garvin ali thinks this was a transformative moment for her. Never more focusing on what shes missing but about what it can add. Ali for one, help educate kids. Teach them about, like, having empathy and caring about another person whos different from you. Announcer coming up on this bay area proud special, its the performance of his life. Announcer the message a facebook engineer and violinist has for others after being diagnosed with a terminal illness. First, you dreamed up the career. Then you put yourself through school. Got the degree. Youve given it your all to reach the goals you set. Dont let student debt hold you back. Refinancing Student Loans with sofi can save thousands. So you can get where youve always been headed. Sooner. See how much you can save with sofi. The leader in student loan refinancing. Its true for many musicians but never more than with the man youre about to meet. Eric sun is an engineer by profession and has had a great career at facebook, rising from intern to manager. But if you ask, thats not whats most important to him. Its music and hes spending the rest of his life proving it. Garvin in Community Theaters across the country, fiddler on the roof has been a staple for more than 50 year. I wouldnt have to work hard garvin but this 4week run by the Sunnyvale Community Players is destined to be one of a kind. You see, this is violinist eric suns first performance with them. It will also be his last. Eric i was diagnosed with glioblastoma which is the most lethal and incurable form of brain cancer. Garvin that diagnosis came just 1 year ago with a prognosis to match. Eric, an engineering manager at facebook, took a long hard look at just how he wanted to spend that time. Eric my wife karen and i started thinking about, okay, what is what are the things that i want to leave behind. What are the things that i want to be remembered for. Garvin bringing people together, building community, was the answer. And music was to be their means. Garvin eric had played violin since he was a young boy but lifes responsibilities had pushed that pleasure down the list of priorities. So eric set about spending hours upon hours resurrecting his talent. And when karen learned of the fiddler performance, she had an idea for eric to perform a particularly difficult solo, the violin cadenza. Music director kevin surace had only to be asked once. Kevin surace when i was told i said, youre gonna make it. Im gonna help you make it there. Im gonna help you make it. Learn this part. Garvin others in erics shoes might have chosen more selfish pursuits and no one would have blamed them. But eric spent months perfecting what was to be a gift he didnt wanna get but give. Eric my violin playing is how i build community, how i bring people together. How i show my appreciation for everything that people have done for me. Garvin so for 8 minutes in the middle of each performance eric steps to the center of the stage. He, the audience, and the cast are then bonded by the beauty of music and the fragility of life. Garvin a shared experience that teaches all of us to do what brings you joy because none of us know when our song will end. Announcer coming up on this, bay area proud special, getting clean then giving back. Del and i put a crack pipe in my mouth for 18 seconds and it took 18 years to get it out. Announcer the mayor of one of san franciscos most troubled areas turns his life around to help his Community Build a better life. And learning from the best bay area kitchens, the groundbreaking program thats been changing lives for more than 20 years. In spite of that nickname, del seymour is not a politician. He is, instead, a former drug dealer and addict whos using his experience to help his troubled neighbors turn their lives around. Garvin at the intersection of turk and eddy, right in the middle, in where del seymour hit rock bottom. Del this is where i had the fight right here. Garvin it was 2009 and del was in a fight over an unpaid drug debt. Del and im rolling around in the middle of the street with this guy 30 years younger than me and about 150 pounds heavier than me. Im a granddaddy. Im in my early 60s and i said, what the hell am i doing . What the hell am i doing . Garvin it was, del now says, the last time he ever used drugs, as vivid a memory to him as the first time, close to 20 years earlier. Del and i put a crack pipe in my mouth for 18 seconds and it took 18 years to get it out. Del most of these kids you see out here, i dealt with their moms and dads. Garvin eighteen years using drugs, selling drugs, sleeping on the streets of the tenderloin. But after that fight, del began to put his life back together. Del ive been seeing you around. I just havent had a chance to say hello. Garvin and now helps others do the same. It began with an offbeat idea walking tours of the tenderloin. Del so this hotel also served as a jim crow hotel. Garvin del sharing his world with groups of outsiders. It was during one of those tours a young female drug dealer called out to del. Del she came over and said, del, what are you telling those white folks . I hope youre telling them we dont wanna be doing this. Hope youre telling them that we need to put pampers on our babies just like they do but they dont let us in twitter. They dont let us in apple. So we gotta do this crazy stuff were doing. Hope youre telling them that. And that, dell, i know you want me off this corner. What do you want me to do . Where do you want me to go . Del this class is in session here. Garvin del didnt have an answer then but does now. Thats because soon after, he started code tenderloin, a Job Training Program for those who want to do what he did. Del says in the past few years theyve placed dozens in goodpaying jobs. And del, once infamous in this neighborhood, is now in demand. The mayor of the tenderloin some call him. Del says he still regrets all those years lost to drugs but what hes doing now isnt penance for that. He simply wants to improve the neighborhood, not by pushing the current residents out but by helping them up. Del thats not penance. Thats reward. Thats a greatif thats penance ill do that every day. Garvin if you make a positive difference in a single childs life thats an amazing accomplishment. So what do you say about a woman whos helped a thousand . Well, you can say a lot. We first introduced you to betty ewing 3 years ago and recently checked back in as she marked an impressive anniversary. Garvin in some ways it was destined that Erickson Valentine would one day work in a restaurant. Just ask him about memories from his Early Childhood in haiti and the first two things he mentions are food. Erickson valentine a lot of bananas. Bananas and hardboiled eggs, yeah. Garvin but then there is a third. Erickson and then the orphanage. Garvin erickson was adopted at age 7 by a family in palo alto. Still, the trauma suffered during those early years means at 18 erickson still lives with learning disabilities and developmental delay, the kind of things that might make it hard to land a job at a highend restaurant like the sea in palo alto. Except erickson has someone special on his side. Betty ewing hundreds. Garvin and hes not the only one shes helped. Betty hundreds, hundreds. Garvin betty ewing was once the owner of a string of successful bay area restaurants. Then one day she had an idea. Betty asked a nearby high school to send over students who were struggling, either with poor grades or bad behavior. Betty whos having tilapia, anybody . Garvin and she put them to work in her kitchen. One by one, betty watched them transform. Betty getting from a very slumpedover, immature, uncooperative to somebody who will just walk right up, shake your hand. Garvin it worked so well, betty turned the idea into her own nonprofit, the el cajon project, and has been seeing it do wonders for now 25 years. Betty and here i am. Its still got legs of its own and if those kids didnt have the success i probably wouldnt be doing this but i just keep doing it. Garvin and not just the success for the students. At restaurants like the sea chefs say the el cajon kids end up being some of their best employees. Yu min lin they are always following instructions. They will never come here late. They always come to you on time. To be honest with you, that they never come here late, they always comes early. Garvin and that clearly makes this a recipe worth sharing. Announcer coming up, two east bay area women bonded for life. The dogs tale that brought them together and how it ended up saving not one but three lives. With the chase mobile app, Michaela Deprince could pay practically anyone, at any bank, all while performing a grand jete between two grand pianos. She could. In a commercial. In real life she uses it to pay her sister, from her couch, for that sweater she stained. What sweater . phone buzzes life, lived michaelas way. Chase. Make more of whats yours. At at t, we believe in access. The opportunity for everyone to explore a digital world. Connecting with the things that matter most. And because nothing keeps us more connected than the internet, weve created access from at t. California households with at least one resident who receives snap or ssi benefits may qualify for Home Internet at a discounted rate of 10 a month. No commitment, deposit, or installation fee. Visit att. Com accessnow to learn more. We wanna take a moment to say thank you. Thank you to the more than 100 people who helped make our first ever bay area proud blood drive a success this fall. After 6 years of covering stories of people doing good i was inspired to do a Little Something myself. In memory of my late father, a physician, i organized the blood drive. With the help of the stanford blood center, we collected 120 units of blood, enough to save close to 400 lives. We look forward to doing it again next year. Finally, tonight, a unique Animal Rescue story. Two women who didnt even know each other are now bonded for life in a couple of ways. Michelle why dont you go play . Garvin Michelle Dunn is a woman in the habit of rescuing things. Michelle whats up . Garvin her new puppy archie just the latest in a long line of them going all the way back to childhood. Michelle i was always bringing stray cats and dogs and Everything Else home. Garvin but you only have to follow that string back a few months. Sue is that your auntie michelle . Garvin and youll discover michelles greatest rescue. You see, she learned about archie from a Facebook Post by susan reale. Sue had just rescued archies litter mate, chipper, from Oakland Animal Services and wanted to help find a home for his brother. Sue i knew i had to help this dog. Garvin sue had been wanting to rescue a dog for quite some time but had put off taking care of one until she took care of herself. Sue for 2 years i was watching my kidneys fail. It was pretty devastating. Garvin sue had been diagnosed with endstage kidney disease, which brings us to michelles other recent rescue. Michelle mostly because if i was in that situation i would want somebody to do the same for me. Garvin at the time, the two didnt even know each other but, again, a Facebook Post by sue asking for help made its way to michelle through a most unlikely series of connections. Sue michelle is the girlfriend of the younger brother of my boyfriends best friend from the 80s. Garvin and so not long after seeing sues post, michelle sent her a message. Michelle something along the lines of, hey, sue. You dont know me but im at the hospital right now getting tested to give you my kidney. Sue theres no words to express how do you thank somebody for wanting to give you a kidney. Its garvin the transplant has been a success so far. And the two women, bonded by a shared organ and now by rescued puppies, have grown ever closer. Their story, evidence that a great act can sometimes have even greater results. Sue well, she would have never had this wonderful dog that she loves if, you know, she hadnt donated the kidney so its like saving lives comes full circle, really. Garvin you can see new bay area proud stories every tuesday and thursday evenings on nbc bay area news at 5 p. M. And if you know someone who should be featured, id love to hear from you. You can find links to my facebook, twitter, email on our website, nbcbayarea. Com. Just scroll down to the bay area proud segment. Goodnight. First, you dreamed up the career. Then you put yourself through school. Got the degree. Youve given it your all to reach the goals you set. Dont let student debt hold you back. Refinancing Student Loans with sofi can save thousands. So you can get where youve always been headed. Sooner. See how much you can save with sofi. The leader in student loan refinancing. Welcome to access, coming from super bowl central. The very, very chilly minneapolis, minnesota. Id say so. It is a balmy 1 degree outside. Negative 4 out here. Freezing. Were here at the verizon up members lounge to bring you the middle of the action from the comforts of your home. Lets start with my exclusive interview with justin timberlake. Roll it. Come on. Game day. Youre an athlete. What is going to be your ritual before the halftime show . Im not going to lie, i will be torn about someone will have to peel me away from the television of actually watching the game to get ready to do what i will be doing at halftime. Im bringing sexy back justin is working behind the scenes to bring sexy back to the pepsi super bowl halftime show. We could arrange something where it is like, bow, bow, bow. Will either the patriots or the eagles have a good time . It depends who wins. What is airing after the fwamgas just as important for this is us fans, with the reveal of how jack