The greatest gifts for those facing adversity are education and shelter. For some, that shelter is in the arts, and some of the bravest of us inspire to educate. 

"I remember thinking like, this is the best. I wish I could be in art class all the time. Like how can I do that?" remembers Adam Kreutinger.

The simplest solution for Kreutinger finds him teaching at an elementary school.

"One thing I guess is my hope is that they see as an example of someone doing their art in a positive way and having an effect on other people," he said.

His favorite subject of inspiration might be one of the most inclusive and overlooked mediums.

"Puppetry, to me, is the pinnacle of art," said Adam.

That's where he marries his biggest passion with what he knows his students are all about.

"You ask kids what they wanted to be when they grew up. They wanted to be athletes, a astronaut," he noted. "Now, there's some kids that still want to do that. But most of them say they wanted to be a YouTuber, or a content creator."

So work in the classroom and as an influencer comes at a time where it goes beyond all of that, continuing to fight stage three brain cancer.

"I want people to have empowerment for themselves to tell their stories through puppetry, through content creation, but honestly, I also do it for selfish reasons as well," said Adam. "To me at this point, puppetry and making videos is not a choice anymore. It's something that I have to do."

The list of accomplishments grow, which will always be a part of Adam's legacy, but life and puppetry happens in the here and now.

Some viral videos, podcasts and puppetry programs are broadcast for the same reason he continues to teach.

"Try as hard as I can and not let it be perfect and give it out to the world, maybe for someone else to kind of take the reins and take it further," he said.

And while going up against whatever life throws at you can be scary, it's all about making the most of it with your family and friends along the way.

"To some extent, I'm probably still coming to terms with it a little bit. It's just a crazy thing to experience," Adam said.

"Look around me like this is my happy place. I am very happy. I have I have cancer, really bad cancer, but I am happy doing what I love."

To follow Adam's journey through arts, puppetry and life you can check out the Kreutinger Puppets, Puppet Nerd and other related pages along social media.