resilience

Story·Akash Viswanath Mehta, age 10 — A 10-year-old chronicles his parents' divorce with remarkable emotional intelligence, tracing the journey from loss through fights over custody to unexpected gains including a stepfather and baby brother.

Story·Claudia Ross, age 12 — A girl races to catch waves on the last days of summer, gets tumbled by a big swell, then eagerly paddles back out for more.

Story·Elise Watt, age 13 — During community service punishment, Bailey watches ducks struggle free from thorns and finds hope for her parents battling her father's cancer.

Story·Maureen Sullivan, age 12 — A girl reluctantly moves from Wisconsin to Ireland, loses her best friend's photo at the Cliffs of Moher, then discovers a hidden letter from a lonely local girl seeking friendship.

Story·Emmy J. X. Wong, age 12 — A Maine family transforms their seafood restaurant into a tropical paradise when a nor'easter threatens to cancel the parents' long-awaited twentieth anniversary honeymoon to the Bahamas.

Story·Andrew Lee, age 13 — During a freezing night soccer game, a player overcomes bitter cold and narrowly misses a goal, finding warmth in his teammates' support and love for the game.

Story·Erin Cadora, age 11 — After her father's death, a girl moves repeatedly with her family until discovering abandoned baby mice in their new backyard gives her purpose and healing.

Story·Christopher Fifty and Indra Boving, age 11 — A flock of geese migrating south encounters a storm at sea, observing a skipjack crew struggling below before pushing through to reach land.

Story·Adam Jacobs, age 13 — A boy learns his father must move to California for work, runs away in anger and confusion, then returns home ready to face the separation.

Story·Adrienne Hohensee, age 10 — Two competitive students challenge each other at chin-ups in a rain-soaked park, pushing past their limits to discover something beyond winning.