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Random Acts of Trophy-ness: And the Award For Excellence in Pet Adoption Advocacy Goes to…

Trophy Central's Random Acts of Trophy-ness Show Us Your Sue AwardAll of us here at Trophy Central are delighted to announce that the very first “Show Us Your Sue” Random Acts of Trophy-ness award has been delivered to a very deserving pet adoption advocate!

Drum roll, please!

The winner of Trophy Central’s Random Acts of Trophy-ness #ShowUsYourSue award for “Excellence in Animal Advocacy” for May 2015 is Krithika Rangarajan.

Congratulations, Krithika!

Trophy Central Random Acts of Trophy-ness Show Us Your Sue award winner Krithika Rangarajan

Meet the first winner of our Random Acts of Trophy-ness “Show Us Your Sue” award, a campaign inspired by Sue Heck from “The Middle”

Krithika was nominated by writer and storyteller Katherine Kotaw, who wrote to us to say that Krithika embodies the Sue Heck spirit “because a year ago (and for her whole life prior) she was petrified of dogs. Less than a year ago, Krithika adopted Oreo, her ‘black and white cookie,’ as she fondly refers to him, and now she advocates through her writing and through social media about how life-changing it is to adopt a dog. She has even become a pit bull advocate after reading all my tales of my sweet red nose pit bull Ivy, when many so-called lifelong dog lovers are prejudiced against this loving and gravely misunderstood breed. To go from being deathly afraid of dogs to advocating for dog adoption and pit bull love epitomizes the Sue spirit. That is why I would like Krithika to be recognized as trophy-worthy!”

Katherine’s wish was our command!

Trophy Central custom engraved trophies for Random Acts of Trophy-ness Show Us Your Sue award

TA DA! The custom engraved trophy we made for “Show Us Your Sue” award winner, Krithika Rangarajan.

Krithika received her trophy for “Excellence in Animal Advocacy” and wrote a beautiful account of the moment she received her award in a post on Google Plus, saying she had to blink away tears of joy.

Since at Trophy Central, we’re in the business of delivering not just trophies, but smiles, Krithika’s comment could not have made us any more joyful!

We are also happy to announce that Krithika decided to return the love and nominate Katherine, saying on Twitter that Katherine Kotaw’s “commitment towards rebranding pit bulls is peerless.”

Why Losing is Winning and Character is Trophy-worthy

Sue Heck from The Middle | Trophy Central Show Us Your Sue Campaign

We think Sue Heck is a superhero!

So our Show Us Your Sue campaign is heating up! Inspired by the perpetually optimistic Sue Heck character played by Eden Sher on ABC’s The Middle, we’re on a mission to deliver trophies to everyday heroes who inspire us. These are the people who keep going even when the going gets tough. The people who aren’t head cheerleaders or award-winning quarter backs, but who we deem just as trophy-worthy — if not more so!

We are all about the underdogs and the dream chasers and Sue Heck is our role model because she never, ever gives up.

When her brother Brick decides to run for class historian but doesn’t want to make any posters, Sue says, her voice full of enthusiasm and gusto, “Flyers are super important, Brick. I did flyers when I lost for student council, and when I lost for Teen Board, and when I lost for junior high Homecoming Court. I just don’t think you get it.”

When Brick wins the title of class historian without any fancy posters, Sue says worriedly to her mom, “If he got the first thing he tried out for, how is he ever going to grow as a person?”

Sue Heck and her younger brother Brick (*whisper* younger brother Brick!) on "The Middle."

Sue Heck and her younger brother Brick (*whisper* younger brother Brick!) on “The Middle.”

We couldn’t agree with Sue’s logic any more if we tried!

That’s why Sue Heck is our Trophy Central role model and why we’ve launched our “Show Us Your Sue” campaign to find the best-of-the-best Sues of the world, those who believe that failure will only lead to character and those who are perennially resilient when faced with defeat.

More Random Acts of Trophy-ness, More Nominees, More Sues!

We are so excited to share with you some additional “Show Us Your Sue” nominees!

Teacher Jill Cofsky | Trophy Central Show Us Your Sue award nominee

Jill Cofsky reading to her students. Trophy Central loves celebrating teachers!

Jill Cofsky, first grade teacher. Nominated by Kristen Lamb, author of the Dani P. Mystery series for children and by Sharna Fulton, creator of the Chloe Pink cartoon and persona.

All of us at Trophy Central believe that Jill is extremely trophy-worthy because she is educating our youth and inspiring young people to believe in themselves and in a better tomorrow. What could be more award-worthy than that?!

Gomee Girl creator, Donna Rheaume Furgal. Nominated by Sharna Fulton, creator of the Chloe Pink cartoon and persona.

Gomee Girl | Trophy Central Show Us Your Sue award nominee

We think Gomee Girl’s brand hashtag #GoBeYOU™ is most definitely trophy-worthy!

Gomee Girl provides an uplifting online community of support that Donna Rheaume Furgal created in order “to let girls know that they can rock their beauty just the way they are!” Donna says “I encourage girls to express themselves and to embrace what makes them unique with our beautiful designs and our messages of positive self expression. I want girls to believe it when I say that they are amazing and they can love themselves just the way they are!”

Our Trophy Central team thinks that Sue Heck would be jumping up and down and screaming for joy upon hearing Gomee Girl’s mission to inspire girls to be themselves and love themselves for who they are, unattainable beauty standards be damned!

Kristen Lamb, author of the Dani P. Mystery series. Nominated by Sharna Fulton, creator of the Chloe Pink cartoon and persona.

Dani P. Mystery children's book series | Trophy Central Show Us Your Sue award nominee

Kids with their noses in books — what could be better than that?! We think Dani P. Mystery books are award-worthy!

We at Trophy Central have had very positive interactions with Kristen on Twitter upon connecting with her through our #ShowUsYourSue campaign. We bonded with Kristen over a mutual affection for The Middle (she told us she loved the recent episode where Sue celebrated her senior prom at the mall food court!) We love how Kristen encourages kids to use their imaginations and to get excited about reading thanks to her Dani P. Mystery series of children’s books. Kristen (and Dani D.!) are definitely trophy-worthy!

Lovable Lobo childrens book series | Trophy Central Show Us Your Sue award nominee

We love Lovable Lobo! Thanks, C.L. Murphy, for bringing such a wonderful character to life!

C.L. Murphy, creator of the Lovable Lobo picture book series about a wacky wolf pup in a wild world. Nominated by Sharna Fulton, creator of the Chloe Pink cartoon and persona.

Our Trophy Central gang loves that C.L. Murphy teaches kids kindness toward animals and encourages discovery through adventure in her Lovable Lobo books. C.L. Murphy says “I based the character, Lovable Lobo, on something very dear to my heart, a real wolf that I raised for over 14 years. He was a magnificent beast and seemed unaware of how the world perceived him, much like the character in the series.” Does that sound trophy-worthy to you? We say a big YES!

Trophy Illustration by Chloe Pink | Trophy Central Show Us Your Sue award nominee

Chloe Pink wins the award for most likely to put a smile on our faces with her uplifting messages illustrated to whimsical perfection!

Chloe Pink creator, Sharna Fulton. Nominated by Trophy Central!

Yes, we think we should be allowed to nominate people for our “Show Us Your Sue” campaign, too! After all, we did create it!

Our Trophy Central team has unanimously decided to nominate Chloe Pink, a 7 year old girl cartoon character created by Sharna Fulton, because she’s the one who nominated ALL of the nominees above. Chloe Pink been a big supporter of our “Show Us Your Sue” Random Acts of Trophy-ness campaign and we wish to nominate her for spreading her empowering message of girl power through her whimsical illustrations.

We love that Chloe Pink, along with her BFF, Pete, the terrier, encourages every girl to follow her dreams.

Do you agree with the nominees for our Random Acts of Trophy-ness “Show Us Your Show” campaign? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Do you have a special “Sue Heck” in your life who you’d like to see win a trophy? Then please “Show Us Your Sue” and nominate the trophy-worthy person in YOUR life here in the comments section or by tagging us on Facebook or Twitter using the hashtag #ShowUsYourSue and telling us why you think your nominee is trophy-worthy! We can’t wait to send your special “Sue” a trophy!

7 thoughts on “Random Acts of Trophy-ness: And the Award For Excellence in Pet Adoption Advocacy Goes to…

  1. YAY!!!!! Thank you SO MUCH for giving a trophy to my “Show Us Your Sue” nominee, Krithika Rangarajan! She SO deserves the honor for “Excellence in Pet Adoption Advocacy” and I couldn’t be more excited for her — what a gorgeous trophy and wonderfully uplifting and happy-making campaign!

    I’m also happy to see so many of my social media friends nominated for your “Show Us Your Sue” award! Chloe Pink is the epitome of KOTAWesome and I’m so happy she nominated so many inspiring people!

    I would like to add another nomination, someone I believe is very trophy-worthy and who actually introduced me to one of your nominees (the incredible Gomee Girl!) Her name is Jennifer Broderick and she is an amazing artist inspiring people with her art with her “One Doodle a Day for One Year” project. I just wrote about her yesterday here: https://plus.google.com/+KatherineKotaw/posts/Ptx1DJdHxYv

    Jennifer recently shared her story of using her art to overcome mental illness and to help others with mental illness see that they too can find happiness, joy and success (she has two successful businesses, StationTEEN and Jennifer! Designs, as well as an incredible Society 6 shop where she sells her doodle designs on duvets, pillows, rugs, leggings and all sorts of amazing items).

    Jennifer has been through hell but has used her traumatic experiences to help others and to help remove the stigma from the word “mental illness”. Because, as she says, “It’s important for people with mental illness to know that it’s only a part of who they are. It doesn’t define them.”

    Jennifer is one of the kindest and most caring people I have ever known. We got to know each other very well through a handwritten letters campaign she started through her StationTEEN company. We’ve exchanged many letters and she has even made handwritten cards and handmade scrapbooks for my dogs, Ivy and LuLu! If that isn’t “Show Us Your Sue” worthy, I don’t know what is! 🙂

    PS: Trophy Central ROCKS! 🙂

    1. Hi Katherine! Thank you so much for another wonderful #ShowUsYourSue nomination! And congratulations of your own nomination for our #ShowUsYourSue award for your pit bull advocacy! We love to see our Random Acts of Trophy-ness community supporting one another, so think it’s really wonderful that your nominee (and first winner ever of our #ShowUsYourSue trophy!) nominated YOU! That just proves how trophy-worthy Krithika is — we love that she’s paying the love forward because that is so Sue Heck!

      Jennifer Broderick is exactly the kind of person we’re looking to reward for being an everyday hero! We love that she is inspiring people with her art and creativity and also that she is educating the public about mental illness. What you wrote about her was so beautiful and the interview she gave that you linked to in your Google Plus post was so brave.

      We are so happy to have Jennifer as an official #ShowUsYourSue nominee! Thank you again for all your support of our Random Acts of Trophy-ness campaign!

      PS: You’re KOTAWesome! 🙂

      1. It warms my heart to be nominated for the “Show Us Your Sue” award.Thank you Katherine Kotaw. You are truly #KOTAWesome!

        Not long ago, the phrase mental illness was not uttered in public. Thank goodness this is changing. The mental health community talks about how when you have any other disease, you get flowers, sympathy and understanding but when someone is diagnosed with mental illness, they don’t even get a lousy casserole. Instead, they lose their friends, their jobs and sometimes their families.

        It’s people like Katherine Kotaw who break down the barriers of stigma by sharing my story with others, listening to those who suffer and talking about it. It makes such a difference in the lives of those who suffer when people like Katherine step up to the plate. Thanks for being a cheerleader for me and the mental health community, Katherine!

        1. Hi Jennifer,

          All of us at Trophy Central are delighted that Katherine Kotaw shared your story with us because you are exactly the kind of everyday hero we want to award for changing the world for the better! It takes great strength of character to speak up about a topic that, as you say, has unfortunately lost so many people the support they so very much need. It’s so important that you are speaking up so that the perception of “mental illness” is changed. People need to see someone like you who has gone through all the awfulness of dealing with a disease that doesn’t come with flowers, but with spite instead, and see how WRONG that is. Because when people look at you and all you’ve accomplished, they will see a very positive and uplifting story and hopefully want to do more to help anyone they may know who has a mental illness. You speaking out personifies courage and your story is so inspiring and so “Show Us Your Sue”! Thank you for making the world a better place and congratulations on all your success! You are truly talented and the world is greater because you’ve shared your talent with the world!

  2. Heartfelt congratulations to Krithika Rangarajan on her #ShowUsYourSue award! With a grandfather who was also petrified of dogs, I can understand how difficult it must have been for her to overcome her fear. It is easy to adopt when you love animals, but it takes true bravery to not only conquer such a fear, but to go on and become an advocate! Kudos to you, Krithika!

    As to the other nominees, they are an amazing group of women! I am blessed to call them friends. They are all winners in my eyes for they all give of themselves in an effort to make the world brighter and to help children. Plus, they LOVE what they do! What greater joy is there than that? So dear friends, congratulations to you as well!

    Finally, thanks to TrophyCentral for coming up with the #ShowUsYourSue campaign. What an “awesupendous” way of highlighting the everyday deeds of special people like Jill Cofsky (a hardworking, dedicated teacher), GomeeGirl (an inspiring motivator for girls, young or old) C.L. Murphy (a wonderful children’s literacy advocate and author), and ChloePink (another inspiring motivator)—not to mention all the other wonderful nominations made on Twitter!

    And finally, I LOVE the quote you picked out! You just have to admire Sue and her wisdom!

    1. Thank you so much, Kristen, for such a thoughtful and caring and beautiful comment! There is so much love in your words and that is so #ShowUsYourSue!

      We agree completely that it is a really incredible feat to go from being genuinely petrified of dogs to adopting a dog and advocating for pet adoption! And we think the story of Krithika learning to love dogs in huge part because of blogs she read by pit bull and all-around animal advocate Katherine Kotaw (who nominated Krithika) is pretty incredible!

      We are so happy to have met you and all the other incredible nominees through our Random Acts of Trophy-ness #ShowUsYourSue campaign. We can’t thank you enough for your positivity and support, as well as for helping to spread around our mission to find everyday heroes who inspire. YOU inspire all of us here at Trophy Central and we thank you for that from the bottom of our hearts!

      So happy you like the Sue Heck quote! Yes, Sue’s wisdom is beyond priceless! 🙂

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