Are you hungry? Colleen Witt here and Eating While Broke is back for Season 4 every Thursday on the Black Effect Podcast Network. This season, we've got a legendary lineup serving up broke dishes and even better stories. On the menu, we have Tony Baker, Nick Cannon, Melissa Ford, October London, and Carrie Harper Howie turning Big Macs into Big Moose. Catch Eating While Broke every Thursday on the Black Effect Podcast Network, iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, wherever you get your favorite shows.
Come hungry for Season 4. I'm Mary Kay McBrayer, host of the podcast The Greatest True Crime Stories Ever Told. This season explores women from the 19th century to now. Women who were murderers and scammers, but also women who were photojournalists, lawyers, writers, and more. This podcast tells more than just the brutal, gory details of horrific acts.
I delve into the good, the bad, the difficult, and all the nuance I can find. Because these are the stories that we need to know to understand the intersection of society, justice, and the fascinating workings of the human psyche. Join me every week as I tell some of the most enthralling true crime stories about women who are not just victims, but heroes, or villains, or often somewhere in between.
Listen to The Greatest True Crime Stories Ever Told on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to My Legacy. I'm Martin Luther King III, and together with my wife, Andrea Waters King, and our dear friends, Mark and Craig Kilberger, we explore the personal journeys that shape extraordinary lives. Join us for heartfelt conversations with remarkable guests like David Oyelowo, Mel Robbins, Martin Sheen, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, and Billy Porter. Listen to My Legacy on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is My Legacy. If you do a lot, a gift of $5, $10 a month really makes a difference in bringing these stories to you each and every week, and just keeping our team on track. Oh, and by the way, you can do that by going to OurAmericanStories.com and simply click the donate button. Steven Raciniak, one of our regular contributors, has a special piece for us today.
This story was written by his daughter, and is being read by his niece, Sandy. This story is entitled, Please Don't Leave. I had done it before, and so I had no reason to believe that this time would be any different. I was sure that when I returned home from my mission trip, as always, I would bring back nothing more than some mud on my boots, a hole or two in my jeans, and of course, a lot of great memories.
Little did I know that this time it was going to be different. The summer before my high school graduation, I went to West Virginia with others from my church as members of the Appalachia Service Project. Our goals included refurbishing the homes of those in need, and where we were heading, there was no shortage of need. Along with volunteers from many churches, we arrived at our destination, much like an invading army in miniature, and we arrived ready to do battle. The tools that we brought from home would serve as our weapons as we prepared to wage war against an all too familiar enemy, substandard living conditions. Our mission was to make the homes of those we served warmer, safer, and drier. And with only five days to accomplish as much as we could, we were anxious to get started.
My group was assigned the task of rebuilding sections of a home that had been damaged by fire. No sooner had we parked on the home's dirt driveway when I saw an excited little girl, no more than five or six years old, standing in the doorway of the family's temporary trailer home. Shoeless and wearing dirty clothes and the biggest smile I'd ever seen, she yelled, Ma, Ma, they really came. I didn't know it then, but her name was Dakota, and four more days would pass before she'd say another word near me.
Behind Dakota was a woman in a wheelchair, her grandmother, we'd learn. I also learned that my job this week would be to help convert a fire damaged dining room into a bedroom for this little girl. After meeting several more family members, we got down to the business of making a difference in their lives. Grabbing our tools, we went to work.
Walls were torn down and replaced, hammers and nails, saws and electric screw guns, drywall prepping and painting, we moved at a fast pace. Over the following days, I noticed Dakota peeking at us every now and then as we worked. A few times I tried talking with her, but she remained shy and aloft, always fluttering around us like a tiny butterfly. Always there, but staying just out of reach, watching us intently, but keeping to herself.
By our fifth and final day, however, this would change. Before I went to work on her home on that last morning, I spoke for a moment or two with the grandmother. I was especially pleased when she told me how much Dakota loved her new room. So much, in fact, that she'd begged to sleep in it the previous night, even though it wasn't quite ready just yet. As we talked, I noticed something I hadn't seen before.
Dakota was hiding behind her grandmother. Cautiously, she stepped into view and I could see that just like her clothes, her face was still dirty, but no amount of soil could hide those bright blue eyes and her big smile. She was simply adorable. I wanted to hug her, but respecting her shyness, I kept my distance. Slowly, she began walking towards me, and it wasn't until she was inches away that I noticed the folded piece of paper in her tiny hand. Silently, she reached up and handed it to me. Once unfolded, I looked at the drawing she'd made with her broken crayons on the back of an old coloring book cover. It was of two girls, one much taller than the other, and they were holding hands. She told me that it was supposed to be me and her, and scrawled on the bottom of the paper were three little words that instantly broke my heart.
Please don't leave. Now, almost in tears, I surrendered to the impulse that I'd suppressed only moments before. I bent down and hugged her.
She hugged me too, and for the longest time, neither one of us could let go. By early afternoon, we finished Dakota's bedroom, and so I gladly used the rare free time to get to know my newest friend. Sitting under a tree, away from the others, we shared a few apples while she told me about her life in the hollow. As I listened to her stories about the struggles she and her family endured daily, I began to realize how frivolous various aspects of my own life were. Suddenly, things like deciding what to wear when I went out on a Friday night, or which wannabe celebrity was starring the latest reality television series, now seemed so trivial in comparison. Thoughts like this, and others, quickly took a backseat to what really mattered most to me. My friends, my family, and my faith. And maybe, more surprisingly, all it took for me to reaffirm these important truths was the wisdom of one special little girl living somewhere in the mountains of West Virginia. I left for home early the next morning, and of course, I returned with muddy boots and holes in my jeans. But because of Dakota, I brought back with me something else too.
A greater appreciation for all of the blessings of my life. I'll never forget that barefooted little butterfly with the big smile and that dirty face. And in the end, I pray that she'll never forget me either. And great job on that production, as always, by Faith. And a special thanks to Stephen Rociniak's niece, Sandy, for reading Stephen's daughter's words about a simple mission trip.
They don't just go to the beach and eat. They go and they serve. Mama, they really came.
And please don't leave. You can picture it in your hands, and I know you're crying listening to that story. It's a beautiful story about love, about sacrifice, about gratitude. Stephen Rociniak's daughter's mission in West Virginia, the story of her connection with a young girl named Dakota and the people around Dakota's life here on Our American Story.
Lee Habib here again. Our American Stories tries to tell the stories of America's past and present to Americans. We want to hear your stories, too. They're some of our favorites. Send them to us. Go to Our American Stories dot com and click the Your Stories tab.
Again, please go to Our American Stories dot com and click the Your Stories tab. Are you hungry? Colleen Witt here and Eating While Broke is back for season four every Thursday on the Black Effect podcast network. This season, we've got a legendary lineup serving up broke dishes and even better stories. On the menu, we have Tony Baker, Nick Cannon, Melissa Ford, October London and Carrie Harper Howie turning Big Macs into big moves. Catch Eating While Broke every Thursday on the Black Effect podcast network. iHeartRadio app. Apple podcast.
Wherever you get your favorite shows. Come hungry for season four. Dressing. Dressing.
French dressing. Exactly. I'm AJ Jacobs and my current obsession is puzzles. And that has given birth to my podcast, The Puzzler. Something about Mary Poppins.
Exactly. This is fun. You can get your daily puzzle nuggets delivered straight to your ears. Listen to The Puzzler every day on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my legacy. I'm Martin Luther King, the third. And together with my wife, Andrea Waters King and our dear friends, Mark and Craig Kilberger, we explore the personal journeys that shape extraordinary lives. Join us for heartfelt conversations with remarkable guests like David Oyelowo, Mel Robbins, Martin Sheen, Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Billy Porter. Listen to my legacy on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcasts.
This is my legacy. I'm Mary Kay McBrayer, host of the podcast, The Greatest True Crime Stories Ever Told. This season explores women from the 19th century to now. Women who were murderers and scammers, but also women who were photojournalists, lawyers, writers and more. This podcast tells more than just the brutal, gory details of horrific acts. I delve into the good, the bad, the difficult and all the nuance I can find. Because these are the stories that we need to know to understand the intersection of society, justice and the fascinating workings of the human psyche. Join me every week as I tell some of the most enthralling true crime stories about women who are not just victims, but heroes or villains or often somewhere in between. Listen to The Greatest True Crime Stories Ever Told on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
