Vote For Your Favorite Lifestylist® Designed Kitchen!

Voting starts today on the Lifestylist® Designed kitchens in the @home Builders YMCA Dream Home, and we are anxious to know which one is your favorite. Go to 13Wham.com and be sure to watch the video at the bottom where I show the different styles, or for more information on how we made the choices we did, go to Lifestylist TV!

Remembering Tim Hetherington

One of the great things about being involved with the USA Film Festival is that many times we have guests and films that I may not know about before we come, but after meeting them and seeing their films you never forget them.
Tim Hetherington was one of those very special people. I didn't know anything about Tim or his film Restrepo before we screened it, but I became one of it's biggest champions after seeing the film and getting to spend time discussing it with Tim.
Restrepo is about the war in Afghaninstan, and it makes the war and our soldiers who are over there fighting for us very personal. Tim made it clear when we talked afterward the film wasn't about politics, but it was about people. He didn't go and stay at the Afghanistan Inn every night - he lived like the soldiers did which is why the film was able to give us such an intimate portrayal of what life was like.
Today I learned that Tim was killed in Libya by a rocket propelled grenade. He was working on his ongoing multimedia project that was to highlight humanitarian issues during wars and conflicts. His ability to put things on film and make you feel like you are there right beside him is going to be missed.
When I met Tim and the soldiers that came with him to the screening, I couldn't stop hugging them. The sacrifices they make, and Tim's personal sacrifice won't be forgotten.

@home Builders Gives Back With a Lifestylist® Designed Home

We are honored that @home Builders has asked us to help design the YMCA Dream Home!
This home will benefit the YMCA of Greater Rochester, and will have a lakeside lot in The Preserve. What really makes this home unique is that YOU can go to www.13wham.com and vote on what materials and lifestyle will be included in the home. There will be 3 Lifestylist Designed choices every week for a month, and at the end bidding will open on the home.
This video explains how we used the @home Builders Design Center to make the choices.

Animal Rescue Corps Saves 120 Animals in TN

Animal Rescue Corps has been busy in Tennessee this week saving over 120 animals from a life of squalor and sadness.  Devoted volunteers have been working night and day to give these animals a better life, and the outpouring of love and compassion from the people of Tennessee as well as others from all over the country has been amazing.
One of these amazing volunteers is Rachel McAuley. She and her severely handicapped daughter run their own non-profit with horses, and Rachel has spent several days at the ARC shelter helping out with this rescue. Rachel decided to do a "Letters to the Puppy Mill Dogs" event, and her daughter Mary who is 9 years old shared the following:
Hello Puppy Dogs,
My name is Mary and I have Special Needs just like you have Special Needs. I can't walk because I am in a wheelchair and your past has kept you from walking due to cages, but don't worry because your little paws are about to hit the ground. I can't talk like you, but I can express myself with my eyes, sounds, and body language just like you. You have special needs that includes someone taking care of you all day with the respect that you deserve. I wear diapers and you use potty pads. I like the couch and you will like the top of a couch someday or a lap to lay on or a pillow to lay above your owners head. I like to be recognized, just like you want to be recognized. I love my parents arms and you are getting that feeling right now being in someone's arms. Isn't it nice, warm, and a safe feeling? Don't worry my friends because you are going to get to experience this world that includes grass, playgrounds, children, and the roam of a house.

Make sure puppy dogs, that you Thank Animal Rescue Corps for coming to get each and everyone of you and the volunteers that are snuggling you up, by not biting when they put their hand in the cage to care for you.
You are Special!  Sleep Tight and Hang Tight because your world is about to be full of colors.
"God is always on your side, after all He created you."
Trust Me,
Mary McAuley (9 years old)
My mom can type my heart!

If this doesn't make you love and appreciate everything you have and cherish what an amazing role model Mary is to all of us...
Please help support Animal Rescue Corps and the amazing work they are doing. My very own special 9 yr. old Jr. Lifestylist® Jenna made her birthday party a fundraiser for Animal Rescue Corps - if she can help you can as well!
This Lifestylist® is trying to do her part by opening a store on eBay, and at least 10% of all of our sales will be donated to Animal Rescue Corps. All of these haunting photos were taken by the talented and compassionate Kristina Bowman.
Please join us in making a difference!