This Week's Inspirational Pop Culture Moments

Comics Express cover image by Alec Longstreth, lettering by Caitlin Keegan

Cartoonists bring relief to kids in Jolpin, Missouri, an actor turns the cameras on Tibet and a TV personality becomes a "real model." Here are this week’s most inspirational pop culture moments.

Comics Express Hopes to Make Kids Smile in Joplin, MO

In the wake of the devastation left by tornadoes last month in Joplin, Missouri, the kind folks at Nickelodeon Magazine are pitching in to do what they can to bring a smile to the faces of the kids in the area. A group of cartoonists, editors and designers have joined together and created Comics Express, a limited edition comic book.

Through a site called IndieGoGo, people who want to lend a hand can make a donation to Comics Express. For just $20 you get a copy of the comic book, plus 16 kids in Joplin will get one, too. And if you can afford to give a little extra, the artists will send you posters, graphic novels, t-shirts and more, depending on the amount of your contribution. If you give at least $100 you will be thanked personally inside the comic book in a poem. How cool is that?

The tornadoes destroyed over 8,000 buildings, killed over 150 people and left thousands homeless. This is your chance to brighten the day of a kid who has been struggling to find a way to cope with the disaster. Their IndieGiGo page says, "Relief agencies are taking care of immediate needs: food, clothing, and housing. We decided to offer what we can: astronauts, an octopus with glasses and talking hot dogs."

The artists are donating their time to the project and the money raised will pay for printing and shipping Comics Express to Joplin.

For more information visit the Comics Express page on IndieGoGo.

For more inspirational pop culture moments visit Beliefnet.com.