A bullying episode motivated US teen to help struggling peers

Luke Swensson learned early that he wanted to help kids find a positive spin in life. — DARIN OSWALD/Idaho Statesman/TNS

LUC SWENSSON has a fondness for bright shoes.

In fact, Swensson, who lives in Boise, Idaho, in the United States, still has the pink sneakers that got him bullied in elementary school. He remembers the day a group of kids surrounded him on the playground, calling him “girly” while pushing him and covering his shoes in mud.