A woman noticed a window sign that asked her to ‘Shout Max!’ What came next was pure joy. |
Imagine you’re strolling along, taking in a beautiful day, when suddenly, your eyes catch a large window. Propped up in front of it is a cardboard, handwritten sign. Well, that’s something different.
The sign reads in Spanish, “Grita Max. Si tienes suerte, aparecerá Ángel.” This translates to, “Shout Max! If you’re lucky, an angel will appear.” One woman took the challenge, and the results paid off beyond many of our wildest dreams.
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A post shared by Pawbuddiz Rescue (@pawbuddizrescue)
On the Pawbuddiz Rescue Instagram, we see it all play out in a short clip. A woman happens upon the sign and begins yelling, “Max? Max! Maaaaaax!” Suddenly, a fluffy Golden Retriever pops up, almost as if he’s in a puppet show. His big brown eyes are sparkling, and some could argue that his gentle pant appears like a smile. Her voice seems to melt. “Maxito! ¿Cómo estás?” Max quite possibly “answers” her question with one simple bark.
Many in the comment section are moved by the cuteness. With over two million views and just short of 300,000 likes, Max is a big, adorable hit.
One commenter shares a similar story, writing, “In Bruges, there used to be a Golden Retriever who sat in the window on the canal. He was there for many years and was a big tourist attraction. There were paintings all over the city of him. It was awesome.” Another who knew this dog, reminded the commenter of his name: “Fidel.” Others had also met him. “I remember him,” one exclaimed. “Had the lucky moment of encountering him.”
It turns out Fidel (or Fidele) was incredibly famous in Belgium and around the world. Back in 2024, a travel blogger shared their wonderful experience meeting him. “When we first arrived in Bruges, I had no idea that the ‘Dog of Bruges’ was so famous. As it turns out, not only is he a famous movie and television star (you can see him for about two seconds at the 4:41 mark in In Bruges, and he also appears in a Godiva Chocolate commercial), but he’s also in the photo collection of every single person who has ever visited Bruges.
The dog is a golden Labrador named Fidel and he lives at the Côté Canal Bed and Breakfast. He sleepily hangs out in a canalside gable window and seems to be oblivious to the hordes of fans that pass him daily.”
Returning to Max, an Instagrammer joked, “If I scream ‘Max’ at my phone, will he appear?” And yet another wrote a little two-line play: “Lady: ‘Maxito! What are you up to?’ Max: ‘Chillaxin’.”
Many simply marvel at how adorable it all is. “Both owner and Max are terrific,” writes one. “Such a sweet angel. I wish I had a Max on my street!” gushes another.
And one makes a practical point, sharing, “Max is probably wondering how these strangers know his name.” The response? “Even if he wondered, he’s still happy that he’s being recognized.”
A single door can open up a world of endless possibilities. For homeowners, the front door of their house is a gateway to financial stability, job security, and better health. Yet for many, that door remains closed. Due to the rising costs of housing, 1 in 3 people around the world wake up without the security of safe, affordable housing.
Since 1976, Habitat for Humanity has made it their mission to unlock and open the door to opportunity for families everywhere, and their efforts have paid off in a big way. Through their work over the past 50 years, more than 65 million people have gained access to new or improved housing, and the movement continues to gain momentum. Since 2011 alone, Habitat for Humanity has expanded access to affordable housing by a hundredfold.
A world where everyone has access to a decent home is becoming a reality, but there’s still much to do. As they celebrate 50 years of building, Habitat for Humanity is inviting people of all backgrounds and talents to be part of what comes next through Let’s Open the Door, a global campaign that builds on this momentum and encourages people everywhere to help expand access to safe, affordable housing for those who need it most. Here’s how the foundation to a better world starts with housing, and how everyone can pitch in to make it happen.
Globally, almost 3 billion people, including 1 in 6 U.S. families, struggle with high costs and other challenges related to housing. A crisis in itself, this also creates larger problems that affect families and communities in unexpected ways. People who lack affordable, stable housing are also more likely to experience financial hardship in other areas of their lives, since a larger share of their income often goes toward rent, utilities, and frequent moves. They are also more likely to experience health problems due to chronic stress or environmental factors, such as mold. Housing insecurity also goes hand-in-hand with unstable employment, since people may need to move further from their jobs or switch jobs altogether to offset the cost of housing.
Affordable homeownership creates a stable foundation for families to thrive, reducing stress and increasing the likelihood for good health and stable employment. Habitat for Humanity builds and repairs homes with individual families, but it also strengthens entire communities as well. The MicroBuild® Initiative, for example, strengthens communities by increasing access to loans for low-income families seeking to build or repair their homes. Habitat ReStore locations provide affordable appliances and building materials to local communities, in addition to creating job and volunteer opportunities that support neighborhood growth.
Everyone can play a part in the fight for housing equity and the pursuit of a better world. Over the past 50 years, Habitat for Humanity has become a leader in global housing thanks to an engaged network of volunteers—but you don’t need to be skilled with a hammer to make a meaningful impact. Building an equitable future means calling on a wide range of people and talents.Here’s how you can get involved in the global housing movement:
Speaking up on social media about the growing housing crisis
Volunteering on a Habitat for Humanity build in your local community
Travel and build with Habitat in the U.S. or in one of 60 countries where we work around the globe
Join the Let’s Open the Door movement and, when you donate, you can create your own personalized door
Shop or donate at your local Habitat ReStore
Every action, big and small, drives a global movement toward a better future. A safe home unlocks opportunity for families and communities alike, but it’s volunteers and other supporters, working together with a shared vision, who can open the door for everyone.
Visit habitat.org/open-door to learn more and get involved today.
“Get in losers, we’re going to buy an airline,” is the short bio next to the smiling face of Hunter Peterson, an aviation enthusiast making waves trying to disrupt the air travel industry. On Saturday, May 2, at 3 a.m., Spirit Airlines abruptly shuttered, leaving thousands of employees out of work and thousands of travelers holding unusable tickets.
There was no notice or warning. One day, people were booking tickets, and the next, the budget airline went dark. This airline made air travel affordable to a subset of people who otherwise couldn’t afford it.
The FAA and other airlines scrambled to offer solutions for those booked with the budget airline. While Spirit is offering refunds, the loss of a budget airline giant will be felt. Peterson decided to go further by doing something unheard of in the airline industry– crowdsource to buy an airline.
The idea behind crowdsourcing funds is to make the airline people-owned. This means there would be no corporation backing the airline. No overpaid CEO, and no large shareholder who gets to decide the fate of the company. Peterson calls it Spirit 2.0, and much to his surprise, an astonishingly large number of people were interested.
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What started as a zany idea quickly turned into an unexpected movement. Peterson set up a website where interested people could pledge money starting at $45– the average price of a Spirit Airlines ticket. The potential CEO wanted to keep the price point within reach. None of the money has left anyone’s accounts. Their pledge acts as a placeholder for future funds, but the clock is ticking.
It may sound like an elaborate joke or scheme to go viral, but Peterson is doing the work. Not only has he met with the Spirit Flight Attendants’ Union, but he’s also spoken with attorneys. In his videos shared on Instagram, he explains the importance of doing the legal footwork before money leaves people’s accounts.
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“I just got off two calls,” Peterson says. “One, with one of the largest law firms in the world that specializes in mergers and acquisitions, aviation distress assets, and debt, and they basically said, this is doable. We can do this. I also got off a call with someone that represents high-net-worth individuals who may be interested in basically giving us some money to just burn to figure out the legalities of this.”
Peterson explains that in less than a week, they’ll be auctioning the operation certificate for Spirit. This means that if this lofty goal is going to be reached, potential small-donor investors need to reach the astronomical $1.75 billion total. Yes,........