A Little Wray Of Sunshine: Inspirational stories from everyday people

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I had the opportunity of sitting down with my older brother, Rod Wray. Rod has been one of my role model's throughout my life. In this episode, Rod shares his story of losing nearly everything that was dear to him, but somehow finding a way to move forward in life, and becoming a huge example of kindness, courage, love, and forgiveness to all who know him.  Just think about it, Rod's life could be anyone's... losing your job, getting divorced, struggling through the process of blending two families., to name just a few... Having one of these happen in your life might just be enough to knock you to the ground, but having all of them happen in a very short period, and picking up the pieces and moving forward, is what this story is about... "Be positive, have hope, and believe" - Rod Wray.

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Conute and Ashley Dennis are far from what you may consider being  the average young, newly married couple. In fact, as you hear their story, you will realize that there is nothing "average" about them.. Just two remarkable human beings navigating through life in the best way they know how. The differences between Conute and Ashley couldn't be more dissimilar. Ashley is a Caucasian female who was born with Achondroplasia Dwarfism (the most common type of dwarfism) and she is 3'11" tall... Conute is a 6' Black male who's positive personality far surpasses his physical presence. Their story is about acceptance of everyone despite their differences. " View everyone as human, realize that their human; they have emotions, they have feelings, wants and needs just like you." Ashley reminds us all to "be open minded and accept all people how they are."

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In this episode, Jon Blakeman shares his experience of growing up in a "peer abuse" environment which eventually became one of the contributing factors that led to him dropping out of high school. Jon quickly obtained his GED, and decided to follow his family tradition and joined the Army. Today, while earning his Ph.D., Jon is a faculty member in the Sociology Department at BYU-Idaho, enriching the lives of his student's by bringing his life experiences into the classroom. Jon's advice is to "don't just be a peace keeper, but be a peace maker when you can." Through it all, Jon has learned to rely on the Spirit and trust in the Savior as he navigates through his life as a person, a husband, and a father.  "Are we listening, are we being quiet and calm enough and slow enough in our lives to listen to the still small voice, or are we rushing through everything and just waiting for the next day to happen?"

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In this episode I was fortunate enough to visit with and get to know a great man by the name of  Stratie Young. He is an amazing man with a sound understanding of what it takes to find joy and purpose in life. "We love to look at all of the negative parts of the world, but there's a lot of good that's going on in the world as well, and as we focus on those things, I think our lives will be more joyful then what they are." Stratie uses his background, life experience, and love of the Savior to mentor those around him and to help them realize their potential. "We're dead men walking, this is not about us anymore; the Lord has been telling us that the youth are the ones that he has prepared for this time, and so our job is to help them find that purpose; but we don't stand in between them. In essence, we stand under them if we can and help bolster them, more so as a mediatory between them and Him, and to help them find what their purpose is by pushing them up as opposed to standing in between them and that connection that they need to have with Heavenly Father."

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In this episode, Sally Mellor shares her story of faith, loss, religion and recognizing that through it all, there's always a silver lining. "When the hard times come, I look to the silver lining, because there's always a silver lining." I had such an enjoyable time listening to Sally reminisce about her experiences in life, and I was uplifted by her ability to be positive through so many hard things in her life... "We all have hard times, we don't get through life without them." 

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In this short episode I share an experience of reuniting with a woman that I baptized in Sweden more than three decades ago. As you listen to this episode describing the events that happened to make it possible for me to meet Solveig Bergstrom's entire family, you will realize that there are no coincidence's... The Savior knows us  perfectly! 

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This is one woman's story of how life's trials made her strong and taught her that she can do hard things. "Life is gonna have ups and downs, there's gonna be happy and sad times and we're gonna be laughing one minute, and crying the next minute... and, that's ok."  With some help, Briana was able to regain her love for life, and feel happy again... "What a beautiful thing... I fell down, and I got back up... it took a while, but through the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Atonement that I didn't feel I was worthy of, and support from my husband, my family, my friends, and my ward family, they carried me."

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March 15th, 2010 was a day of devastation and unimaginable sorrow for the Storch family as their thirteen year old daughter Taylor was tragically killed in a skiing accident while on a family vacation in Colorado.  Taylor's mother Tara explained that "the Tara I was before March 15th, 2010 is a completely different Tara than I am now and who I was the next day... it completely shifted everything about me."  However, Taylor's death would soon bring hope and new life to five complete strangers who were the recipients of her vital organs.  From this experience, Todd and Tara Storch co-founded a non-profit organization called "Taylors Gift" which provides grief support to organ donor families.  "Organ and tissue donation is all about life... it's the most beautiful act of service to others you could ever give in your final moments of life."  Tara's advice to those who have lost a loved one is to "be gentle with yourself; life is different from what you knew before, but that doesn't mean you won't find joy again, that you won't find happiness again... just give yourself some time and patience with yourself and those around you."  Thank you Tara! You are an inspiration to us all.

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Have you  ever known someone in your life who has experienced the pain and sadness of losing a loved one? Perhaps suffered some type of physical injury or  other personal struggles..., and yet continually finds ways to be positive? If so, you will appreciate this episode; Meet Joe Velasquez... He is the kind of person who can turn his face to the sun and let his shadow fall behind him so to speak. Joe has experienced a great deal of sorrow in his life but his motto is "Take  that sadness and replace it with gratitude." His positive outlook on life will inspire you. I am truly blessed to call him friend.

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In this episode, Erin Dominguez shares her unbelievable and amazing journey of how she has risen above numerous trials in her life. Against all odds, Erin  was able to pick up the pieces and move forward, leading her to where she is today. Among other things, Erin has endured emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, several failed marriages and relationships, homelessness, and eventually thoughts of ending her life on more than one occasion. Through it all, Erin has demonstrated that no matter what someone does in life, they still have a purpose... "Just because you've done this or you've done that or you're broken in some sense, that doesn't mean that you don't have purpose because everybody does...everyone!" Erin's positive attitude and love for life is so refreshing! "God has a plan... He's got a plan and I serve an amazing God, because I know that I would not be here if it wasn't for that kind of Grace."