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Trauma leads to altruism. Survivors who engage in altruism tend report experiencing greater healing from their sexual abuse experiences.

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J Am Psychiatr Nurses Assoc. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2014 Mar 9.

Published in final edited form as:

Background

Sexual violence is a significant and prevalent problem that affects many people in the United States. Helping others is one way people cope with, or heal from, sexual violence. Objective. To develop of Typology of Helping Others describing how survivors of sexual violence engage in altruism.

Design

Qualitative descriptive methods were used to describe how survivors of sexual violence engaged in altruism in response to their experiences with violence.

Results

Helping others was a salient concern for most participants who experienced sexual violence. Participants indicated multiple and varied ways of helping others. Results also indicated that participants experienced some healing from their experiences before they were able to actively engage in, or be effective in, helping others.

Conclusions

Clinicians working with survivors of sexual violence should be attuned to the different ways survivors engage in altruism and the potential influences of race and gender on helping others.

Keywords: altruism, helping others, abuse, sexual, qualitative description

Description

This study was a secondary analysis of data from a study of "Women's and Men's Responses to Sexual Violence" funded by the National Institute of Nursing Research (RO1, NR008230-01). The parent study used grounded theory methods in order to develop a midrange theory that described, explained, and predicted men's and women's responses to sexual violence as a basis for guiding clinical interventions for individuals who have experienced sexual violence.

Sample

The parent study included 121 men and women age 18 and older who experienced sexual violence at some point in their lives. Adaptive sampling techniques, a set of procedures used to recruit a hidden and vulnerable population, were used to recruit the sample (Martsolf, Courey, Chapman, Mims & Draucker, 2006). Nineteen targeted zip codes in a midsize Midwestern metropolitan area were identified. Members of the research team canvassed each zip code area and met with local businesses and community service agencies to obtain permission to place participant recruitment flyers in their locations. Each flyer had numerous tear off stubs with a toll free number to contact the investigators. The flyer contained information about the study, assured confidentiality, and indicated there would be a $35 compensation for time and travel for participating in the study. Institutional Review Board approval from Kent State University and a Certificate of Confidentiality from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (NINR 04-19) were obtained.

Data Collection

Individuals who contacted investigators were screened by a master's prepared advanced practice psychiatric/mental health nurse. The nurses used a telephone screening guide that assessed for issues that would make participation risky, such as acute psychotic symptoms, current suicidality and active substance abuse. Appropriate community mental health and social service referrals were given to individuals who were screened out of the study. No participants were screened out of the study.

Research team members conducted interviews with eligible participants at sites in their communities, including churches, social service agencies, and community health centers. Prior to the interviews, participants provided informed consent and were asked to complete a brief demographic questionnaire. Open-ended interviews were used to encourage participants to describe their experiences of, and responses to, sexual violence. Interviews began with the statement: "Tell me about your experience with sexual violence." Follow up questions included: "What else was going on in your life at the time of the violence?", "What were the high and low points of your life during this time?", "What was your experience with healthcare providers?", and "How does your community view sexual violence?" Based on the initial analysis, questions that were later added included: "Tell me about an experience of getting help from a healthcare provider", and "Tell me about a time when you told someone else about your experiences." At the conclusion of the interview, a community resource guide was made available to participants who requested it and referrals were made as needed. Interviews were typically 60-90 minutes in length, and field notes were made by the researchers following the interviews.

Analysis

Data were drawn from the transcripts of the entire parent study sample (N=121). Early in data analysis for the parent study, we observed that participants discussed helping others spontaneously in many of the transcripts, and therefore, the team deemed it appropriate to develop it as a category that explained how survivors healed. Qualitative descriptive methods, as described by Sandelowski (2000), were used to describe the ways survivors of sexual violence engaged in altruism in response to their experiences with violence. The team sought to provide a comprehensive summary and straightforward description of how survivors of sexual violence engaged in altruism in their everyday lives. Because the research team determined that the surface language used by the participants, without a high degree of abstraction by the researchers, was most useful in creating the summary, and because the aim of this project was to develop a categorical typology, qualitative description was used.

The team members (the principal investigators of the parent study, a doctoral student, and an advanced practice psychiatric/mental health nurse) began the analysis by identifying the types of altruism described in qualitative and quantitative studies that addressed sexual violence and helping others as part of the healing process (Draucker, 1991, 1992, 2001, 2003; Draucker & Madsen, 1999; Draucker & Petrovic, 1996; Draucker & Stern, 2000). Based on the review of literature, altruism was operationally defined as thoughts or behaviors aimed at helping others, expressions of understanding or compassion for others, and feelings of concern for the welfare of others as a result of having experienced sexual violence. Content analysis, as described by Miles and Huberman (1984), was used to develop a typology of helping others. Initially, narrative data were coded in the six categories that represented the ways of helping others that had been identified in the literature. The six categories, however, were used only as a starting point for coding data. The researchers sought to develop a typology that was primarily based on the data rather than on the predetermined categories. Double coding procedures, using two coders to code the same data set, were used to enhance reliability and to ensure definitional clarity. The coders were the first and fourth authors of this study. Six types of helping others were identified in the sexual violence literature and these served as categories for a preliminary coding system to organize the data for the current study. Categories were: 1) treating others with understanding and compassion, 2) providing guidance or advice about avoiding or healing from abuse, 3) choosing or performing well in a helping profession, 4) becoming involved in advocacy organizations, 5) speaking out publicly on violence and abuse, and 6) taking actions to stop perpetrators.

Sample

Of the 121 participants who had experienced sexual violence at some point in their lifetime, 64 were women and 57 were men. Forty-nine were African American and 52 were Caucasian; 20 reported more than one race or did not report their race. Participants ranged in age from 18 to 62; 22 were married, 21 were separated or divorced, 70 were single, and 8 did not report marital status. A majority of the participants (59%) had children. Sixty-three reported an income less than $10, 000/year; 22 reported incomes between $10, 000 and $30, 000/year; 14 reported incomes between $30, 000 and $50, 000/year; 16 reported incomes above $50, 000/year, and 6 did not report yearly income information.

Over two-thirds of the participants (N=84) described helping others in some way. Participants' responses varied from brief references to in-depth descriptions of engaging in altruism. The content analysis yielded a typology of nine categories reflecting different ways in which the participants had engaged in altruism. The categories were: protecting children, participating in the study, being understanding, thinking about helping, choosing a helping profession, providing guidance, providing advocacy, stopping perpetrators, and speaking publicly. Table 1 presents the categories, the definition for each category, the number of participants reporting each category, and the number of text units contained in each category. The order in which the categories appear in the typology is based on the number of participants in the category. The categories of the typology are discussed below. All participants are referred to with pseudonyms to protect their identity.

Table 1

Category Name

Category Definition

Number of Participants

Number of Text Units

The Typology

Protecting Children

An important goal for many participants (N=39) was to keep children safe in order to avoid or stop the cycle of sexual violence. For many participants, the primary way to achieve this was to treat children, often their own, in drastically different ways from the way they had been treated by adults during childhood. Participants took a variety of actions that they believed would keep children safe. Some were effective in protecting children from abuse, some were ineffective, and some were overly protective, possibly hindering children's development.

One way participants kept children safe was by questioning or talking to them about violence. Participants felt this was important because adults in the participants' lives had not been aware they were being abused or had not warned them of the dangers of abuse. Several participants wanted to ensure that children would be comfortable telling them about any danger the children encountered. Martha, a woman who had been sexually abused by a cousin at a young age, said, "[I] question my children, my friend's children, to make sure that they are sexually safe, to make sure they know boundaries within their family." She also said, "I don't want them to be in an incestual situation, or anything that could harm them." Participants educated children about how to recognize, avoid, or report abuse and talked with them to keep lines of communication open. Rob, a man who had been sexually abused as a child by his cousin, taught his daughters that "nobody should touch their private parts...." He said, "I teach them how to defend themselves, not just physically, but mentally, how to be aware." Other participants shared their own experiences of violence with children in order to provide examples of how abuse can occur and how to avoid it. Gina, a 35-year-old woman who had experienced date rape at age 13, stated:

I just want to make it better, I don't want my kids to feel bad because of what happened to me, but I don't want my kids to ever be in a situation where something like that could happen to them.

Some participants, despite their best intentions, were ineffective in protecting children from abuse. While they described themselves as "overprotective," they had left their children with untrustworthy people or failed to monitor their children's behaviors or whereabouts. Amy, a woman who had been sexually abused by a cousin at age 8, said she was "very overly protective" of her young daughter. However, her daughter had been abused by an 11-year-old male cousin while in the care of Amy's sister. Some participants recognized that the violence they had experienced adversely affected their own children, and they wished to ameliorate these effects but were unable to do so. Christa, a woman who experienced childhood sexual abuse and rape by an ex-husband, was in a long-term abusive relationship witnessed by her young son. At age 5, he began acting out sexually and physically. She said, "I'm trying to teach my son not to be abusive and that sex is OK when your older, but not at five." Other participants assumed abuse was an inevitable part of life and focused on making sure children reported abuse when it occurred. These participants had not considered that abuse could be prevented. Roxy, a 46-year-old woman who was raped at age 14 by an acquaintance, stated, "I told my daughter, this man is not your father, if anything [abuse] occurs, let me know immediately and we'll deal with it."

Some participants, in their attempt to keep children safe, took actions that were counterproductive, such as severely restricting children's activities. Participants even reported keeping children home-bound in order to ensure their safety. Sherri, a woman who had experienced sexual abuse at age 7 by a family member and was raped at age 18, stated, "My son is 10 and I am very overprotective of him. I don't want him to go anywhere by himself and I'm always thinking someone is going to hurt him." Several participants never left their children with other adults, while others avoided intimate relationships because of concern that a partner might harm their child. Ben, a man who had experienced sexual abuse for most of his childhood, ended all relationships with women. He accompanied his son to most activities and rarely allowed him to be alone with others. Although his son was not abused, he did require therapy for anxiety problems. Ben said, "I'm very, very protective of him...I haven't been in a relationship at all in over 4 years...I don't know, I am more scared for him than for me." He continued, "Hopefully [therapy] will help a little bit...but I can tell he misses having a woman in his life." Participants reported that children often resisted and resented these decisions, and this impaired the relationship between the participants and their children.

Participating in The Study

Many participants (N=23) shared their personal experiences with violence with the researchers as a way to better the lives of others. Several participants indicated that they had a deep desire to help others, and the research afforded them an opportunity to do so. Many encouraged the research team to learn from their stories and use these lessons to educate others about sexual violence. A few participants stated that sharing their stories and helping someone else would help them in their own healing.

A few had never, or rarely, shared their stories prior to the interview. They felt it was important to participate even if it was uncomfortable for them to talk about their experiences so that others could be helped and sexual violence could be prevented. Frank, a man who had been gang raped by drug dealers, said, "I do these things [participate in studies] every chance I get because I want help for those coming behind me." Several people participated in the hopes of ensuring that others could get better professional help than they had received. Gina, a 19-year-old woman who had been sexually abused throughout childhood by several family members, had sought healthcare and was called a "nut job" by the physician. She participated in the study to "tell what has happened to me so that it won't happen to other people."

Being Understanding

Participants who described being understanding (N=21) believed, based on their own abuse experiences, that they had special insight into peoples' pain or suffering. Participants described being understanding in three ways: (a) being particularly compassionate towards others, (b) attentively listening to others who had experienced violence, and (c) showing special insight into others' abuse experiences. Several participants often thought about others in pain and felt compassion and empathy for them. After hearing on the local news station about particularly tragic cases of abused children, one participant spent a great deal of time thinking about the children's parents. Some felt particularly concerned when their own family members were in pain. One woman said, "When my kids hurt, I hurt."

Several participants even felt compassion for their perpetrators. John, a man who experienced sexual violence as a child, said, "I try to like grow a compassion for him [the perpetrator] and an understanding that maybe somebody had done something like that to him." Some participants believed that their experiences with sexual violence made them a "better, stronger" person because of the compassion and empathy they felt towards others who suffered. They said, "I hate seeing others in pain" or "I can't stand to see anybody hurt." Some participants noted that sexual violence had "a rippling effect" and affected not only individuals, but families and communities as well.

Several participants listened to others who had experienced abuse in a particularly attentive way. These participants felt that their abuse had rendered them good listeners. Some listened to others because "no one had done that for me." These participants saw themselves as people "who care and are willing to listen" to others who experienced violence. Mark, a coach who had experienced childhood sexual abuse, paid close attention to his players. He said, "It helps you understand...the different things I understand, but if you haven't been there you can't understand what they're going through." Many participants, however, felt that they did not know what to do beyond listening. Jack, man who had been raped by a female acquaintance, listened to a friend who had been raped. He said, "I would listen to whatever he had to say, but as far as what do you do about it, I mean, you don't want to say anything."

A few participants described having special insight because they could pick up on cues indicating that another person might have experienced sexual violence. These participants were more "in tune" to signs of sexual violence or "saw what the average person didn't see" because they had experienced violence firsthand. Jerry, a survivor of rape who worked in a college environment, stated, "What I can see with some of the students here, and some of my friends, the ones that are really self abusive, a lot of times you'll find out in the long run they were abused at some point." Other participants "looked into eyes and saw hurt" or "noticed facial expressions and knew something was happening." Some participants thought the ability to detect signs of abuse as troubling, while others viewed it as a gift.

Thinking About Helping

Many participants (N=20) thought about helping others both in order to help themselves and because they felt that they could be uniquely useful to other survivors. Several participants believed that helping others could be a step forward in their own healing. Mary, a woman who had experienced childhood sexual abuse by her father and grandfather, thought helping others was the "only way I could truly get help." She remarked, "I feel like, if I felt like I was helping, that would help me get rid of all the stuff that just keeps me down." Todd, a man who had experienced childhood sexual abuse, thought helping others would be "another step to getting better." These participants did not provide any indication, however, of whether they had taken actions to help others.

Several participants thought about helping others because they felt they were especially suited to it based on their personal experiences with sexual violence. Keshia, a woman who had experienced date rape, thought about "speaking to others and being an encouragement to somebody else who had been raped or had gone through sexual abuse in order to help somebody else out." Mary, the woman who had experienced childhood sexual abuse by her father and grandfather, suggested that sexually abused people could best help children who have been abused because they were "in the same boat." She explained, "We know exactly where they are coming from, we know what it feels like, we know what they are talking about." However, while these participants felt that they had learned something from abuse that would enable them to help others, they had not actually done so.

Choosing a Helping Profession

Participants (N=15) chose helping professions as a way to help those in challenging situations. Some participants chose professions that allowed them to work with survivors of sexual or domestic violence or with marginalized people, such as the mentally ill. They became nurses, social workers, counselors, coaches, caseworkers, teachers, or ministers. In their professional roles, they valued spending time listening to others. A few participants felt grateful that their experiences had not been as bad as the experiences of others whom they encountered in their work.

Several participants chose helping professions as a way to return the help they had received from others. They felt they could truly understand the struggles of their clients, patients, or students. John, a caseworker who had experienced childhood sexual abuse by his mother and foster brothers, related to his clients with mental illness in a sensitive way because of his "upbringing." He also made sure they had access to all the community services available to them. Several participants identified their past experiences as the sole reason for choosing their current careers, and others believed their experiences had influenced their career decisions. Juanita had experienced childhood sexual abuse by a cousin and was raped by an ex-husband.

She said:

I went back to school for social work and listened to other people's experiences and let them know that it could be better, that they could move beyond that with proper counseling and someone they could trust...they would understand they don't always have to be the victim and they don't have to believe for the rest of their lives that they made those things happen to them.

Providing Guidance

Participants (N=13) provided guidance to others by giving them advice on how to heal from past abuse or encouraging them to end current abusive relationships. Participants who encountered others who had experienced sexual violence often suggested to them that sharing the experience with others was the best way to heal or "move on" with life. Richard, a man who had experienced sadistic abuse by a male acquaintance at age 14, did not disclose his abuse to others until he was older, and he felt that this had prevented his healing. He said, "And that's why I tell people, anybody that I know who has experienced abuse...you have to talk about it, because the longer you keep it in, the more you hurt yourself." John, a man who had experienced childhood sexual abuse by a babysitter, used his experiences with healing from abuse to help his sister along the path to healing. He said, "I slowly make little statements to her...I can't really bombard her with a heart to heart, let's open this can of worms and sort it all out, but I try to get her thinking along the right path." Other participants spoke of encouraging others to join support groups in order to heal.

A few participants provided guidance to others by encouraging them to leave abusive relationships. Jordan, a man who had experienced child sexual abuse in the context of child prostitution, explained, "If I talk to somebody who has been hurt sexually or who is in an abusive relationship, I tell them to end it because I know what would have happened to me, because I've been there."

Providing Advocacy

Several participants (N=8) provided advocacy to children by volunteering with youth service organizations or to adults by volunteering in community service venues. Most participants provided advocacy to children by volunteering as coaches or mentors in youth service organizations. Several provided advocacy for marginalized children who had been abused. A few participants volunteered for children's organizations because they felt the involvement of concerned adults would have helped them when they were younger. Jeff, a man who had experienced childhood sexual abuse by a babysitter, worked with impoverished children and "became a Big Brother to a couple of kids." Max, a man who was molested as a child by an older male neighbor, was a coach who volunteered for a local community center. He said, "Even when I coach, I look at kids and wonder what's going on in their life, and you know what I might do, what this might have done for me."

A few participants provided advocacy for adults by volunteering with community service organizations. Participants viewed this as way to help others and give back to the community for help they had received in the past. Jeff, a man who had experienced childhood sexual abuse at age 5 by a babysitter, described how he had been "down on his luck" and received help from a woman through a local church organization. In return, he chose to volunteer. He said:

She took me under her wing and every time I look around I'm doing volunteer work and I'm not getting paid for it and I'm broke, but I don't mind, you know, because I figure I'll get my blessing somewhere down the road.

Other participants used past experiences to help educate others. Loretta, a woman who had experienced childhood sexual abuse and adult sexual assault, belonged to the National Organization for Women in order "to do a local, good, strong women's group." She was invested in educating black women about the benefits of the women's movement.

Stopping Perpetrators

Some participants (N=7) stopped perpetrators by reporting the violence and/or the perpetrator to authorities, or by taking action themselves against perpetrators. Participants reported violence or abuse to authorities, including police officers, campus security officers, healthcare workers, and/or school officials, in order to obtain justice for the crimes committed against themselves or others. Linda, who had experienced childhood sexual abuse and rape as an adult, tried to make sure her perpetrator remained in prison so he could not hurt others. She recalled, "I did write to the parole board, and I said, I know the statute of limitations; however, this happened to me when I was 11, and I don't want this to happen to anybody else." Additionally, she contacted school authorities after her young daughter disclosed that she had been touched inappropriately by an older male student at school. Linda said, "I believed her and I contacted the school and the boy was arrested, and he was convicted." A few participants took action if they suspected that their perpetrator continued to abuse others. Todd, a man who had experienced childhood sexual abuse by a father, foster parent, and a residential treatment center employee, did not report his own abuse to authorities as it was happening. Years later, however, he viewed a local news report showing that one of his perpetrators was being charged with molesting children at the same treatment center he had attended. Todd recounted, "I wanted him to pay for what he did to me and the other kids he got caught with...it's wrong... and he's still doing it, so I'm going to try to help put him away."

Several participants took it upon themselves to stop perpetrators from abusing others. Some threatened perpetrators or warned other people that the perpetrator posed a danger. Jason, a man who experienced childhood sexual abuse, said, "So he [his perpetrator] knows that I know it happened... and anybody around me, as long I know he is going to be around them, I'm going to warn them of something [the abuse]...and doing that has scared him away."

Speaking Publicly

Participants (N=7) described using their experiences to educate others and increase awareness of the problem of sexual violence in both local and state/national venues. Some participants spoke to others in local venues about their experiences in order to help themselves heal, provide support to others, or give back to their communities. A few participants, for example, shared their personal experiences with students enrolled at a local university. Others described their experiences with violence to local community groups in order to offer hope or support for those currently experiencing violence. Kate, a woman who had been raped at age 16, spoke with local rape support groups. She said, "I'm able to speak about my rape, I can talk and I'm comfortable with it and you know maybe I can be some help to somebody else." Rob, who had experienced childhood sexual abuse by a babysitter, also abused his own brother. He was removed from his home and placed in a boys' residential treatment center until age 18. Upon leaving the treatment center and attending college, he was asked to return to the treatment center and speak to the boys in order to "give them hope" that they could be successful and heal from past experiences of abuse and violence.

Some participants spoke or wrote about their experiences in national or state venues. They told their stories in television/radio broadcasts, in news print articles, and for government agencies. Jackson, a man who had experienced a lifetime of violence, traveled around the country and appeared on nationally syndicated television programs in order to educate people about sexual violence and HIV. George had experienced childhood sexual abuse by several of his brothers, delivered "motivational speeches" for people living with HIV/AIDS as a spokesman for a state department of health. George gave his speeches in order to "teach somebody about life, to tell them about my life, and to give back something to others."

Clinical Implications

Despite the limitations, the study has useful implications for clinical practice. First, the Typology of Helping Others can be used to inform nurses and other clinicians of the variety of ways in which survivors of sexual violence might engage in helping others. Clients in treatment might be involved in helping others in ways that are not readily apparent to clinicians working with this population. The Typology of Helping Others can be used to identify altruistic endeavors of clients and serve as a springboard to explore ways in which clients may wish to help others. The timing of helping others is important, however, and needs to follow some degree of healing. As this study pointed out, some degree of healing is necessary for participants to be effective in helping others. For participants who are helping others early in the healing process their altruistic endeavors may be impeding their own or other survivors' healing. Given these findings it is important for clinicians to assess clients' altruistic approaches and explore with their clients whether or not their approaches are facilitating recovery. Clinicians may also assist clients in actualizing their wish to help others as healing progresses. The variety of ways in which these participants helped others suggests that different ways of helping may be suited to different individuals. For some, passing on life lessons may be most satisfying, whereas others may find that engaging in advocacy or public speaking is the best way to ensure that good comes from their trauma. Clinicians can help clients explore different paths to helping others. The majority of these participants identified protecting children as a way to help others. Many believed they were taking appropriate actions to protect children, although in reality, they were ineffective in keeping children safe from harm. Because this study found that some participants effectively helped children and some did not, clinicians working with survivors of sexual violence might need to explore parenting issues as they relate to a history of sexual violence.

In conclusion, while previous research has identified that survivors of sexual violence help others in response to their experiences, The Helping Others Typology is the first categorization of the multiple and varied ways of altruistic approaches used by survivors. The findings of this study show that helping others is important to survivors and is related to healing and recovery. Survivors who help others are able to find some meaning or benefit from the trauma they have experienced. Helping others, however, is a complex, multifaceted response to trauma. Nurses and other healthcare providers need to consider how helping others relates to recovery from sexual violence in clients who seek their counsel. The Helping Others Typology provides clinicians with examples of how survivors actualize their need to use their experiences to benefit others.

This study is funded by the National Institute of Nursing Research [R01 NR08230-01A1, C. Draucker, PI]

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Altruism in Survivors of Sexual Violence: The Typology of Helping Others

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Sexual violence is a significant and prevalent problem that affects many people in the United States. Helping others is one way people cope with, or heal from, sexual violence. Objective. To develop of Typology of Helping Others describing how survivors ...

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Co-Workers buy a new car for barista who's car was stolen

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Co-Workers buy a new car for barista who's car was stolen

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A Starbucks supervisor is getting ready to buy a new set of wheels, thanks to the loving concern of her coworkers - and an entire college campus.

Karen Collinsworth, 65, has been living near the Marshall University campus in Huntington, West Virginia, for decades, and for much of that time, she's been working at Starbucks, supervising a youthful staff while serving students and faculty.

"I've been here since 1976. I fell in love with Huntington. I'm from outside of Columbus, Ohio," Collinsworth tells TODAY.com over the phone during a short break in her shift. "I've been in the food industry since 1978 and that is my passion. I've loved waiting tables, I just do. Your customer service develops and you just want to please people."

For Collinsworth, making people happy has become her signature trait, according to her fellow Starbucks employees.

"I love coming into work knowing that she's gonna be there. I talk to her about literally everything," Cassie Gray, a sophomore at Marshall who works at Starbucks with Collinsworth, tells TODAY.com. "She's like my mom when I'm away from home and can't talk to my mom. So it's just like a relief, being able to go in there and talk to her and knowing that she's going to help me work through whatever."

Collinsworth's reputation for kindness might explain why an entire campus full of students and faculty came to her aid when they heard she was having trouble with her 2004 Kia which was running on its last legs.

"She had been having a lot of problems with the car in the past with her battery and it just not starting and her neighbors were having to give her jumpstart and things like that," Jaiden Horn, another sophomore at Marshall and co-worker of Collinsworth, tells TODAY.com.

"She actually has had car problems probably the entire time I've known her," Gray says. "But Karen doesn't like to talk about it because she didn't want people feeling bad for her or anything like that."

Both co-workers say, though, that in the past six months, Collinsworth's car trouble has ramped up big time.

"One day she came into work, and she was like, 'Yeah, somebody stole my catalytic converter last night, my car just isn't doing well,'" Horn says, adding that in addition to the catalytic converter, Collinsworth car was broken into again days later and had items stolen from its interior. "And at that point, we all said, 'Well, she cannot be driving this car anymore. It's barely running."

Gray says on a Saturday in late August, she and a few other baristas including Jaiden were working. She saw a post on anonymous social media app YikYak wishing that they could donate some money to Collinsworth to help her out.

"We all just kind of talked about it and we floated around the idea of starting a fundraiser for her," Gray says. "After work when I got back to my dorm, I decided to just make it because I figured even if we couldn't raise that much money, any amount would help her. It was just kind of like a spur of the moment (thing)."

And so, the GoFundMe "We Love You Karen" was started to "help her buy a working car and ensure she wouldn't have to worry about monthly bills," according to the page authored by "Anonymous Baristas." To date, the fundraiser has raised over $40,000 for Collinsworth.

The original goal was $10,000. Horn says her co-workers all shared the fundraiser on Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and Yik Yak, and that goal was met in the first 24 hours.

"It circulated pretty quickly that way and donations were very nearly immediate," Gray says. "It was just amazing to see, honestly."

Gray, Horn and the others had intended to surprise Collinsworth with the fundraiser once it was done, but it spread so quickly that a neighbor broke the news to her instead.

"I was taken aback when I found out. It was very overwhelming. I knew these kids loved me because I love them," Collinsworth says. "But for them to be 19-year-old college students ... They have so much going on in their life, but then to take care of their Starbucks mom, Karen. That's just how big their hearts are."

There are big donations, the highest being a $5,000 donation from Marshall University president Brad Smith, but most of the more than 1,200 donations are much smaller.

"All the $5 donations meant more to me than $1,000 or $3,000," Collinsworth says. "It was just precious coming from these college kids that can't afford a cup of coffee. Just goes to show you their kindness."

Collinsworth says initially she was just looking to fix her old car, but now that she's received such a sum, she is thinking about treating herself to a Subaru. This weekend she'll be going car shopping - all while thinking of what Horn, Gray and all the other baristas, faculty and students did for her.

"I know those kids love me and that's what makes my life worthwhile," Collinsworth says. "They didn't have to do something for me like this. It's just enough knowing that I'm so cared about."

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Starbucks workers raise over $40K for beloved barista after her car was burglarized

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"I know those kids love me and that's what makes my life worthwhile," says Karen Collinsworth, who considers herself a "Starbucks mom" to her 19-year-old co-workers.

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A young Arab-Israeli paramedic gives his life to save strangers

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A young Arab-Israeli paramedic gives his life to save strangers

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23 year-old Awad Darawshe, an Arab-Israeli paramedic, drove his ambulance to a music festival, which had just been the sight of a terrorist attack, to help anyone he could despite the danger, and lost his life while saving others'.

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The Rev. Johnnie Moore is among the prominent evangelical voices urging Christians to support Israel after a horrific Hamas attack earlier this month claimed at least 1,400 Israeli lives and sparked a war.
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Moore, who discussed the political implications, also stressed the spiritual nature of the Israel-Hamas war, expressing the evil nature of hatred directed at the Jewish state.

"There is nothing more Satanic than what these Hamas terrorists did to these Jewish children, and Jewish elderly, and young people," he said. "This is the very image of Satan at work in our world, just like it was in the Holocaust, and in all kinds of other little ways with this irrational hatred of the Jewish people."

Despite the heart-wrenching events that have dominated headlines, Moore said there have also been stories of remarkable goodness and selflessness.

For instance, he described the plight of a young Brazillian woman who died in the terror attack.

She had recently moved to Israel and it was unclear whether she would have the 10 people required to make up a minyan at her funeral (the 10 adults needed to do a religious service) due to her recently coming to the country. But Moore said people heard her story and showed up.

"Over 10,000 people showed up at the funeral," he said.

Watch Moore explain:

And that's not all. Moore also shared the story of Awad Darawshe, an Arab-Israeli paramedic. When Darawshe heard about the attack, the Muslim man immediately drove his ambulance to the Supernova music festival, where at least 260 people were killed.

"He was saving lives until the Hamas terrorist slaughtered him and stole his ambulance," Moore said. "And for all of this evil in the world, I think it's also important to remember those who are lost [and] to honor the heroes that will emerge from this."

Media outlets have been telling Darawshe's story this week and praising his selflessness. The 23-year-old reportedly refused to leave the concert site despite danger and lost his life while saving others.

Moore wrote on X, "Awad is a true martyr who died SAVING lives unlike the cowardly terrorists who came to take them."

In Moore's discussion with CBN Digital, he pointed to these stories to deliver a powerful call to Christians: every time "hate increases," he encouraged people to turn to prayer.

"Every single time you hear a word of hate from these terrorists against the Jewish community ... we issue a call to pray for the Jewish community," Moore said. "We dedicate whole days of prayer and fasting for the Jewish community."

He said Christians should dedicate days and times to pray for the Jewish community. Watch him explain more here.

​***As the number of voices facing big-tech censorship continues to grow, please sign up for Faithwire's daily newsletter and download the CBN News app, developed by our parent company, to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***

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As 'Satanic' Hamas Violence Against Israel Intensifies, Incredible Acts of Selflessness Emerge

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The Rev. Johnnie Moore is among the prominent evangelical voices speaking up on behalf of Israel, urging Christians to support the Jewish state after a horrific Hamas attack claimed lives and sparked a massive war. Moore, who discussed the political implications, also stressed the spiritual nature of the Israel-Hamas war, expressing the evil nature of hatred directed at the Jewish state.

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MrBeast being a viral sensation for his acts of altruism

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MrBeast being a viral sensation for his acts of altruism

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MrBeast, also known as a James Donaldson, helps people all around him as much as he can. He has random street encounters, and gives out an absurd amount of money, or very expensive gifts. Any profit he makes from his videos he just reuses it for his future videos. He's always finding ways to help out, and giving back to his community.

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Doctors and Nurses staying in Gaza while hospitals are being bombed and knowing that they may die which is a situation where the cost of helping other outweighs personal gain is an example of Altruism.

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CNN Interview: MSF Nurse—Palestinian health staff staying in Gaza to help are "heroes"

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Batman is a widely beloved character in current society. Although his methods of managing crime are questionable and debatably make him an anti-hero, he is selfless and willing to sacrifice his life for the sake of others. In this clip, we see him make the decision to stay in Gotham despite his love for Selena (Catwoman). This is because he feels a responsibility to keep Gotham safe despite his personal desires.

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The Batman (2022) - 'All's Well That Ends Farewell'/Ending scene [1080p]

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This Associated Press article, which is several months backdated, covers loose collectives of volunteer doctors and medical personnel who offer their services along the front lines of Ukraine's war against the Russian Federation. These groups, including largely FRIDA Ukraine, aren't just offering medical aid to those wounded on the front, but are particularly offering specialty treatment to Ukrainian civilians whose access to regular treatment has been severely cut since the onset of Russia's invasion of its neighbor. Currently set up in Khrestyshche, in the central Kharkiv Oblast, these volunteer medical personnel are working incredibly close to the North Eastern front line, and are well within Russian cruise missile range, but they stay to offer their free services to those who are entangled in the middle of this terrible conflict. These are people who help others simply because they believe it needs to be done.

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KHRESTYSHCHE, Ukraine (AP) - In a cramped municipal building in this former front-line village, its front window boarded up with plywood, a team of volunteer specialist doctors have set up a mobile clinic.

For the residents, it's a lifeline. Even before Russia's war, access to specialist medical help was available only to those who could get to the city, but the village near the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk did have a primary care doctor.

Now, with the village health clinic damaged by the war, its residents have been left with little access to health care, and in particular to specialist care.

"There is no doctor. We are without a doctor. They left us alone," wept Mariia Hrebenko, 79, as a doctor took her blood pressure and tried to calm her, gently patting her hand. "No one is helping us."

The limited availability of health care has led to an exacerbation of existing illnesses that could be easily treated with regular medical attention, said Bohdan Avramenko, a 27-year-old cardiologist who is the medical coordinator of FRIDA Ukraine, a Ukrainian-Israeli medical aid organization.

"Right now their limited access to the medicine is causing more chronic conditions and the exacerbation of the chronic conditions, which is very bad for the patients because simple diseases like hypertension, diabetes, which can be treated with a very simple medication, to be frank, very cheap medication, they cannot get it," said Avramaneko. "So they stay with high blood pressure, with high glucose levels."

The teams have also been diagnosing what appears to be an increasing level of cancer, he said. "The limited access to the specialists, the limited access to the ultrasound, to the onco(logy) screening cause a lot, a lot, and a lot of new diagnoses of cancer."

Staffed by volunteer doctors, the group has been providing specialist doctors through mobile clinics in villages and towns near the front lines and in areas recently retaken by Ukrainian troops from Russian forces. Depending on the location, they can see anywhere between a few dozen and 250 patients a day, and they try to return to the places they have already visited once a month to provide follow-up care.

The specialists most in demand are the ophthalmologist, the endocrinologist and the cardiologist, Avramenko said, while the team also provides childhood vaccinations. The 14 doctors who were working in Khrestyshche on Sunday were expecting to see about 50-60 patients that day.

The teams of volunteers run the mobile clinics in the villages mostly during the weekends as they work in public and private hospitals across Ukraine during the week.

Paramedic, nurse and former New York police officer Joseph Farkas, 61, has been with FRIDA Ukraine for about eight months, helping treat families in bomb shelters in towns pummeled by shelling and in villages that haven't seen a doctor for months.

"I wanted to help out," he said. "Obviously, what is going on here, the Russian military invading Ukraine is wrong. So I wanted to do my share in helping out the people here."

Olena Chetskaya, 38, said both a general practitioner and a pediatrician had worked in the village before the war, but now there was no one to write referrals for specialists, leaving a trip to Sloviansk as the only option.

"It's very important," she said of the volunteer clinic as she waited in line to see a doctor. "We have a lot of old people and they don't have the opportunity to leave and go to the city."

One of them was Lyubo Rimar, 74, who sat patiently waiting for the endocrinologist. She hadn't been feeling well all morning, she said, and felt a lot of pressure in her head.

"Of course this is important," she said of the volunteer group's services. "We are old, and all the illnesses come to us."

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Vasilisa Stepanenko contributed to this report.

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Follow the AP's coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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Volunteer doctors providing critical care near Ukraine war front lines

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A team of volunteer specialist doctors has set up a mobile clinic in a cramped municipal building in a former front-line village in Ukraine.

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Bilbo Baggins also known as the main character travels around with the tiny dwarf king in order for the dwarf king to save his kingdom

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Joey and Phoebe debate what a selfless good deed is. With the former declaring that there is no such thing, and that all people are selfish. In trying to prove him wrong, she realizes that she still felt good even when the deed wasn’t meant to be for her benefit.

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Laboring to undo the selfish acts of others!

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Coastkeeper offers volunteer opportunities across three types of cleanups:

Community Cleanups - Saturday mornings two to four times per month. Community cleanups are family-friendly and open to the public.

Sponsored Cleanups - Private cleanup events organized in partnership with local companies and organizations looking to give back to the community by supporting the cleanup program and participating in an environmentally minded team-building experience.

Cleanup-in-a-Box kits - A do-it-yourself option for small groups looking to take the lead and organize their own cleanup. A great option for groups of friends, classmates, scouting groups, social clubs, and more.

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Coastkeeper offers volunteer opportunities across three types of cleanups: Community Cleanups - Saturday mornings two to four times per month. Community cleanups are family-friendly and open to the public. Sponsored Cleanups - Private cleanup events organized in partnership with local companies and organizations looking to give back to the community by supporting the cleanup program and participating in an environmentally minded team-building experience.

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This article talks about the issue of nurse burnout and the expectation for nurses to sacrifice their own well-being for the sake of their patients. The author argues that this martyrdom mentality is not sustainable and that nurses should not have to choose between their own health and their patients.

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Burned-out heroes: why bedside nurses should not have to be martyrs to be valued

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Nursing has long been seen as a vocation, not a skill. This impacts nursing staff and patients both.

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Doctors risking(and giving) their lives fighting deadly infectious diseases 

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Doctors risking(and giving) their lives fighting deadly infectious diseases 

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This is an older example, but I hear about things like this time and time again. When there are outbreaks or natural disasters, doctors will continue to treat patients even at great personal risk. They may have other motivations, but the cost is so great. It amazes and inspires me that they continue to serve.

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Remembering the first doctors worldwide who offered their lives fighting Ebola virus epidemic

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The outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in West Africa proved to be the longest and deadliest of them all [1]. As of the 15th of August 2014, more than 1250 deaths have occurred. This lead to the declaration by the World Health Organization (WHO) in August 2014 that EBV is a “Public Health Emergen…

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For the good of others, one lawn at a time.

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For the good of others, one lawn at a time.

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Spencer is a hard-working individual who uploads content to Youtube of him cleaning up other people's front lawns, yards, and sidewalks, FREE of charge. While his content has gone viral, it still provides a very important lesson in altruism.

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My name is Spencer and this channel is all about the volunteer work that I conduct in my free time. I have owned a lawn care company in Wichita, KS for 11 years now. We at SB Mowing maintain about 40 properties every week and help out people in need during the evenings.

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Altruism in Birds? Magpies Have Outwitted Scientists by Helping Each Other Remove Tracking Devices

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It was the first time a bird has removed a tracking device, and the second time a bird species showed cooperative “rescue” behavior.