What do a puppy and Martin Luther King Jr. have in common?

Besser Elementary School fourth-grader Briana Stewart.

On Tuesday’s City/State page, Stewart is shown in a photo holding a little puppy while Sarah Wetherhult, a family friend of Stewart’s, looks on admiringly.

Wetherhult donated $50 to the Huron Humane Society, where that puppy lives, after she inspired by an essay written by Stewart as part of a class assignment related to King.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day was Monday.

Teacher Gretchen Rea taught her students the history of American racism and King and the Civil Rights Movement and then asked her students to write an essay inspired by King’s famed “I Have a Dream” speech.

Stewart’s speech inspired Wetherhult to act.

“Most fourth-graders aren’t thinking about that kind of stuff,” Wetherhult told reporter Julie Riddle. “Kids do make a difference. And I wanted her to know that she could.”

Amen.

Just one more story illustrating how awesome Northeast Michigan’s teachers are, inspiring students to act, and how awesome our students are, inspiring others.

We believe King would be proud.

(THE ALPENA NEWS)