American Essence Magazine, 5 Penn Plaza Floor 8, Manhattan, NY (2025)

09/02/2025

Identical Twins Reunited After 36 Years

Identical twin sisters, who were separated at birth, recently met each other for the first time on their 36th birthday, after decades of living separate lives.Molly Sinert and Emily Bushnell, born in South Korea, were adopted by two different families. Sinert was adopted in Florida, while Bushnell lived in Pennsylvania. Until recently, each sister had no idea that the other even existed. The curiosity of Bushnell's 11-year-old daughter Isabel led to the discovery. Isabel "wanted to do the DNA test because [her mother] was adopted," she told Good Morning America. "I wanted to find out if I had more family on her side.," she added.

Sinert also decided to have a DNA test, and she was stumped by the results. "I clicked on the close relative and didn't understand it," she said. "You share 49.96 percent DNA with this person. We predict that she is your daughter.' This wais obviously not right, because I have never gone into labor, I don't have children," she said. She reached out via email, and learned it was her twin sister's daughter. The twins then agreed to meet on their 36th birthday. "Although I have family who love me and adore me and haves been absolutely wonderful, there was always a feeling of disconnection," said Bushnell. "Finding out that I had an identical twin sister just made everything so clear. It all makes sense."

The twins' reunion was witnessed by ABC, during which the sisters said, "It is like looking in a mirror." "My life changed," Sinert told ABC. Bushnell couldn't hide her joy: "A hole was immediately filled in my heart."

09/01/2025

Train Conductor Returns Rings Worth $107,000 to Passenger

Jonathan Yellowday, assistant conductor, was working the 6:11 p.m. Long Island Railroad (LIRR) train from Penn Station, New York, to Port Washington, when he discovered a tray of engagement rings, valued at $107,000, in a plastic bag.

The rings belonged to Ed Eleasian, a jeweler who runs his trade in an office in Midtown Manhattan. Eleasian had left the rings on his way home on April 22 2021. The LIRR conductor turned in the package to the Metropolitan Transport Authority (MTA) police as soon as possible.

"I got on the next train going back to Penn, turned it in, and the rest is history," said Yellowday in a press release. Eleasian and his wife took the LIRR to Penn Station on the Friday afternoon of April 23 to retrieve the lost items.

There, they were met there by Yellowday and LIRR president Phil Eng. "Not only did you find and return these 36 rings, but just think about the happiness of 36 couples down the road that will be joined together in happiness, and they will have a story to tell," said Eng. "You treated this as you should have, and it is another proud day for us at the railroad."

Upon receiving the returned rings, Eleasian gave a heartfelt hug to the assistant conductor in appreciation. "I could only imagine what you were going through yesterday when you realized that you didn't have your jewelry," Yellowday told him. "You know when you get on the 6:11 you are in good hands."

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08/31/2025

Woman Reunites With Good Samaritan Who Saved Her Life

Jessica Hicks, a California woman, grew up with very little knowledge of where she came from, until a search for answers proved fruitful. Recently she met the man who found her 30 years ago, when she was a new born with her umbilical cord still attached, abandoned in the bushes. Now a mother of six from Moreno Valley, Hicks took the kindhearted Isaac Oliva by surprise when she called him in late April to confirm his identity.

Upon learning that Hicks was the baby he found wrapped in blankets behind an Irwindale build ing back in 1990, Oliva was overwhelmed, reported KABC-TV. "I was just full of emotions, and my jaw just dropped," Oliva told the news outlet. Meeting on April 28, Hicks and Oliva embraced, and swapped impres sions of the amazing story that brought them together.

Glenn Purbaugh, the now-retired Irwindale police detective who investigated Hicks's case, also attended the reunion. The Irwindale Police Department shared photos in a social media statement, of the trio stand ing at the exact spot where Hicks was found. "We have to admit that we love a happy ending," the police department wrote.

While overwhelmed, Hicks said the reunion helped complete the mystery of how her life began. Weighing 9 pounds, 4 ounces when she was found, sunburned but healthy, Hicks was dubbed "Jane Doe" by the media and the hospital that took her into its care. Never reunited with her birth parents, at 15 months of age she was adopted by a woman named Julie Swallow, reported KABC-TV. "She was a blessing from God and L.A. County," Swallow told the news outlet. "I love her very much, like she was my very own.

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08/28/2025

Surfer Saves Man From Rip Current

An ash-spreading ceremony almost turned tragic on May 21 in Corolla, North Carolina, when one of the deceased's family members became caught in a rip current at the beach, surviving thanks to a local surfer. Dennis Kane, 71, his daughter Shannon Kane Smith, and another 40 family members had gath ered to spread the ashes of Dennis's deceased daughter, Kerry Kane, into the sea. Kerry, who had died a year ear lier at age 41, was fond of the Outer Banks beach, so the family chose it as her final resting place.

Kerry's ashes were contained in a biodegradable urn, which was to be dropped to the ocean floor. “That is when my dad, my sister Kelsey, my sister Lauren, and I walked into the ocean with the urn,” Shannon told ABC. After several minutes at the beach, though, the tide started getting rough and moving in fast, and the family decided to get out of the water.

Upon moving inland, Dennis noticed that the urn had not sunk properly, as it should have, so he went back to push it down. “You can imagine how emotional, upset ting that might have been for anybody, it certainly was for him,” said Michael Kane, his younger brother. “I think he was distressed that the urn was still floating in the ocean, and he did not want it to wash up in the shore.”

At that point, the tides became quite rough, and the farther out Dennis waded, the more dangerous it became. Soon realizing that he was caught up in a rip current, the family began calling out for help. Luckily, a nearby stranger was stowing some beach rentals at the business where he works. “I turned around, I knew I had a board close by, went and got that,” said the rescuer, Adam Zboyovski.

In a rescue mission that lasted around 40 minutes, Zboyovski managed to reach the flagging older man, who was near drowning, and pull him to safety. “I don’t know, I am glad they could still have their father, brother, and grandfather,” Zboyovski said. “It sometimes brings a tear to my eye.”

After the rescue, Shannon praised the courageous man for saving her father’s life. “Not all heroes wear capes, sometimes they have surfboards,” she wrote in a Facebook post. “He is an angel. Please help me make this go viral.

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08/28/2025

“When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.” —Henry Ford

Life is full of bumps in the road, and we all face our fair share of difficulties, obstacles, and challenges.

An airplane can only soar by battling against the wind. Similarly, we grow stronger by tackling the hurdles that come our way.

So, next time you find yourself up against a tough situation, try to embrace it and view it as a chance to become better.

08/19/2025

Born premature and diagnosed with polio at the age of 5, doctors said Wilma Rudolph would never walk again. Yet with relentless determination and the unwavering support of her family, she defied all odds to become the first American woman to win three gold medals in a single Olympics. 🏃🏿‍♀️

Hailed as “America’s greatest female sports hero since Babe Didrikson Zaharias,” Rudolph’s legacy still shines bright more than 30 years after her passing. 🌟

“’Before I realized I was a living person, I was in (leg) braces,’ she once told a crowd of college students.

Kids singled her out for ridicule, or they ostracized her and excluded her from their games and activities. But Rudolph continued to keep her body—and mind—in motion any manner that she could. Fitted with a leg brace and orthopedic shoe, the young girl would not be defeated by her shortcoming. She hopped on one foot in the house and street. She tossed a basketball into a makeshift hoop—a peach basket attached to a pole in the backyard. She helped her mother with the chores, cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the many other children. Rudolph’s family took her to a hospital in Nashville, where the doctors tended to the girl’s compromised leg with massage and exercise.

Lonely and melancholy, she watched the other kids play games on the playground and field. She studied the games they played, especially basketball, worked hard at her leg exercises, and believed that she and her circumstances would improve. Bit by bit, she regained strength and power in her afflicted leg; then one wondrous morning at church, she was able to walk unaided by any medical devices. At age 12, Rudolph and her mother packed the brace in a box and returned it back to the hospital, both of them aware that the girl’s life was starting all over again.”

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08/13/2025

In November 1982, marketing executive Karen Olson saw a homeless woman sitting on a crate as she hurried past Manhattan’s Grand Central Station. On impulse, she bought the woman a sandwich and orange juice—a small act that sparked a 40-year mission to help those in need.

Her nonprofit Family Promise nationwide network of volunteers help support thousands of homeless families every day. Though now retired, Olson continues to volunteer and shares her inspiring story of hope, love, and healing with the world.

“‘A house is where it all begins, both for individuals and families,’ Olson said. ‘You have a house, you have the starting point.’ As an example, Olson mentioned Tim, a formerly homeless man whom she’s known for six years: ‘He’s a changed man with an apartment. He has a bed and TV, a kitchen and bathroom, and nobody’s so proud of his place. Now he’s shaved, and he’s begun to lose weight, and when we left him, he said, ‘Until next time.’ You never heard him say ‘Until next time’ when he was homeless in the park or sleeping in the post office.’

Olson spoke of 20 other people who had struggled and recently received housing. ‘They’re changed. They’re changed people. They hold their head up high with dignity, based around the way they dress, the way they look, the way they socialize—it’s a beautiful thing to see. So housing is really fundamental,’ she said.”

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