This website was started by Megan Young; an ordinary person, living an ordinary life, doing ordinary things.  A  lot of the people she knew faced many different challenges on a regular basis, and often did so with a great sense of dignity and committment. It saddened her that, outside of a handful of family and friends, their acts of courage went unheralded.

One day her husband returned from a bike race around Lake Taupo, in the centre of NZ's North Island, and told her a story of a paraplegic man who had entered the race.  It's a difficult ride around hilly terrain, and this young man took a very long time to complete it.  But complete it he did.

By the time he had made it to the home stretch, the race's prize-giving had ended and the other contestants were making their way back to their cars and homes and motels.  The only person left to cheer him on was his mother; everyone else just seemed to be blocking the way.  At the edges of the crowd someone noticed him riding his way to the finish and recognised his efforts; they stood back and began to applaud.  Soon the whole crowd had parted and this young man finished his race under the guard of honour of a thousand cheering strangers.

This story stayed in Megan's imagination.  She thought of the amplifying effect that courage and kindness can have on each other, how witnessing such an event is a gift to both the observer and the observed.  She wondered if building an on-line community around this very idea could inspire people to take pride in who they are and what they have done, in all its imperfect glory, and embolden them to continue doing more.  In a small act of courage of her own, she wrote down these words, took a deep breath, and pressed publish.