‘Pride Night’ gives local hockey player a sense of belonging back on the ice

KESQ on January 10, 2026

Luis Avila

THOUSAND PALMS, Calif. (KESQ) – Acrisure Arena is gearing up to celebrate and support the LGBTQ+ community with its annual Pride Night, bringing inclusion both on and off the ice.

For Matt Kenny, however, this year’s event has a deeper meaning.

Kenny grew up playing hockey before having to step away. He says it became difficult to balance the sport he loved with his sexuality.

“I had to leave the game before going any further because I didn’t really think that the game would be able to love me back the way I loved it,” he explained.

He thought he would never return, until watching Heated Rivalry, a popular Canadian show that follows a romance between two professional hockey players competing on opposing teams. That’s when he found the courage to lace up again and hit the ice at the Berger Foundation Iceplex.

Kenny recalls, “I legitimately broke down, it cracked me wide open, I had a panic attack, I couldn’t breathe and like twenty years of memories and trauma came back and, I don’t know why, but my gut told me the only way that I could heal this was to repair my relationship with hockey.” He adds, “For the first time in over a decade, I grabbed some skates and put them on. It felt amazing.”

Paul O’Kane, founder of Coachella Valley Pride Hockey, says Pride Night sends a message of hope to those facing similar challenges.

“When a young person sees someone like the Firebirds celebrate Pride, celebrate diversity in our community, it really means so much,” O’Kane says. “It tells that young LGBT kid or that young female kid or even older adult who hasn’t played, that hockey is for me too.”

Since sharing his story on story media, Kenny has been able to connect with others who relate to his experience. He hopes he and events like Pride Night can help change the game.

Pride Night will feature special performances, LGBTQ+ youth initiatives, and a game-worn jersey auction to benefit Palm Springs Pride youth services programs.

The Coachella Valley Firebirds will face off against the Henderson Silver Knights, with puck drop set for 6 p.m. tomorrow at Acrisure Arena.

Stay with News Channel 3 for more.

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From Homelessness to Hopeful: How One Mom is Rebuilding Her Life Through St. Vincent’s Support Program

KEYT on January 10, 2026

Patricia Martellotti

Santa Barbara, Calif. (KEYT) – Santa Barbara, Calif. (KEYT) – After months of uncertainty, wondering if she and her child would ever have a safe home, Sophia Mendez found a new beginning through St. Vincent’s Family Strengthening Program.

“Feeling like you were born into a world where you just keep taking punches — I didn’t think I was ever going to make it or that I was smart enough,” Mendez shared.

That changed when she joined the program, which provides housing assistance, parenting classes, and financial training to help women gain independence.

Today, she’s earning her diploma and preparing to take college courses at Santa Barbara City College.

At the heart of the initiative are peer support specialists — women who’ve faced similar challenges and now mentor others on their journeys.

“When I was here, I wish I had a peer support specialist,” said Alicia Visueta, now on staff at St. Vincent’s. “When I first arrived, I didn’t think I could do it — I didn’t know how I’d find a job or child care.”

Thanks to the Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara, which granted $100,000 to the program, more families are getting the tools — and the encouragement — to start fresh.

Mendez gained more than just life skills. “I’ve got a job, my daughter’s in daycare, and I passed my driver’s test — and driving was my biggest fear,” she said with a smile.

Seeing moms like Mendez succeed is what makes Visueta’s work so meaningful. “The best part about my job is getting to say, ‘You can do it.’”

For Mendez, that support has done more than change her address — it’s changed her life.

Since joining the program, Mendez says she’s gained more than practical skills — she’s learned self-confidence and hope for the future.

Fueled by a $100,000 Women’s Fund grant, St. Vincent’s continues to change lives across the community, empowering women to turn struggle into strength.

For Mendez, it didn’t just change her address — it changed her life.

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Lake Ozark gets $300,000 Community Development Block Grant for demolition project

KMIZ on January 10, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The City of Lake Ozark announced in a Thursday press release that it will received a $300,000 Community Development Block Grant from the state’s Department of Economic Development for a demolition project.

The release says the money will be put toward a $433,030 demolition project “focused on improving safety and redevelopment opportunities in the Bagnell Dam Strip area.” The rest of the money will be paid by Reese Development, who owns the property.

Twenty-three structures around the Bagnell Dam Strip will be demolished, including the former Shoreland Motel and “a series of residential and commercial structures located along Carls Drive, Ballenger Road, Thornsberry Road, Beach Drive, and School Road,” the release says.

Several of the buildings were certified as dangerous and many have asbestos and other contaminants, the release says. Demolition is expected to begin later this year.

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Fewer cases of flu reported in Missouri than previous week

KMIZ on January 10, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

There were fewer cases of influenza reported around Missouri during the week of Dec. 28-Jan. 3 than the previous week, according to information from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

The total of 7,582 cases still puts the Show-Me State in the “very high” category, but it is down by 10 cases from the prior week.

Most flu cases in Missouri are influenza A, which includes the subclade “K” strain that has been going around.

The DHSS says there have been six flu-related deaths this season.  

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MidCity Excellence awarded $50,000 donation to expand ‘Kidz Biz,’ a youth workforce development program

News-Press NOW on January 10, 2026

Patrick Holleron

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — A local Midtown youth academy will take its new workforce readiness program to the next level with the help of a donation from Buchanan County on Friday.

Buchanan County Commissioners approved a $50,000 donation during their regular Friday meeting to help support MidCity Excellence and its new “Kids Biz” youth workforce initiative, a burgeoning program offering hands-on entrepreneurship opportunities to develop kids into career-ready individuals and business people.

With professionals, community mentors and college students working alongside them, kids within the program are able to gain valuable real-world business experience and sharpen their skills in financial planning and marketing — among other areas — using marketing-based principles to train in food and product presentation.

“The youth are learning how to become entrepreneurs, how to market a product, save and manage money into creative wealth projects. They will be able to translate these into business skills into the real world, into real markets and in many different spaces,” said Kimberly Warren, founder and CEO of MidCity Excellence. “Our number one goal is to have a positive and engaging program for teenagers. I think it’s important that kids have an outlet and don’t get bored because that can potentially lead to risky behaviors.”

Along the way, students also learn about the importance of credit, saving, budgeting, investing, and long-term wealth creation.

With the help of a “Kids Biz” food truck operated by MCE, students — many of them teenagers — got the taste of working in a real business setting Friday, helping take orders, prepare food and hone in on critical skills like problem solving, communication, teamwork and conflict resolution.

MCE student Leilani Bell has benefitted greatly from the program by being able to prepare food at different events the truck goes to, learning about responsibility when managing others. She also believes her communication skills have improved, calling it an “outlet” for her and many others.

“I feel like the program has helped me socialize and communicate with others,” she said. “Running the food truck, taking orders, and communicating with my peers as were serving people their food are some of the things I’ve gotten to do. These type of activities keep us connected with each other and lessen our time being online. We feel motivated in the work that we do.”

MidCity Excellence’s next event will be their 12th annual MLK Jr. Solutions Summit, which is set for Monday, Jan. 19, at 11 a.m. inside the Word of Life Church located at 3902 NE Riverside Road.

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Rep. Fulcher applauds “incredibly impressive” military operation in Venezuela, highlights legislative priorities, rural healthcare

KIFI on January 10, 2026

Stephanie Lucas

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — A week after the U.S. military successfully ousted Nicolás Maduro, Congressman Russ Fulcher had high praise for the plan’s execution. Speaking with Local News 8, Rep. Fulcher praised the “complete coordination” of the Venezuelan mission before pivoting to highlight his legislative priorities for this upcoming session.

“I just have to tell you, it’s an incredibly impressive operation,” said Congressman Fulcher. “First of all, we just have to understand there’s no other entity on the planet that can pull that off the way they did. Complete coordination across all branches of the military, plus the intelligence community, multiple different groups in the intelligence community.”

Fulcher also gave his take on what the U.S. actions in Venezuela could indicate on the world stage.

“Regardless of what you think about the action itself, the fact that it got pulled off the way that it did has put China on notice. They’re there. I guarantee you they’re looking at Taiwan a little bit differently right now. Russia is looking a little bit differently at Cuba right now.”

Fulcher outlined his reasons for support on the actions taken, citing Maduro’s past interactions with drugs and the United States.

“We have to understand, too, that this is a narco terrorist that has been in the crosshairs for the United States since Barack Obama’s era. And that’s where this bounty initiated,” said Fulcher. “It got elevated during the Biden era. It’s just wasn’t until now that something actually got done about it. But this guy is a bad human being, and we’ve got incredible evidence that says so, and I think everyone pretty much agrees on that. He pretty much took a country to its knees, and in the process, exported countless tons of narcotics illegally into the U.S. and other places, profited off of it and the lives and deaths of Americans.

Fulcher also affirmed his support for President Trump, saying, “I think the president was justified in this action because at the end of the day, what was he doing? He was protecting American lives. This person [Maduro] had been identified and charged many years ago. And it took a long time to get him, but they got him.”

Priorities for next legislative session

Beyond the military operation in Venezuela, Rep. Fulcher spoke about his priorities in the next congressional session, highlighting concerns over health care.

“Are we going to increase the subsidies to try to keep a broken system going, or are we going to do some meaningful reform? And the meaningful reform has to take place. And that’s where I stand,” Fulcher said, explaining why he does not want to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies. “And how that works,” he continued, “is you’ve got to re-insert market forces again. You’ve got to give the patient the control of the money directly over their health care decisions.”

“And that’s what we’re attempting to do,” he continued. “But it’s incredibly complicated, and I’m not trying to sidestep that decision in front of us. But that’s why it hasn’t been fixed – is because it’s so difficult to fix. But that’s the next challenge, and that’s what we’re working on right now.”

Congressman Fulcher also addressed Idaho Governor Brad Little’s recent announcement that the State of Idaho will receive close to $1 billion over five years to improve rural healthcare through grants from the “One Big Beautiful Bill” Act.

“Well, I fought for that, and I’ll tell you why,” said Congressman Fulcher. “Because the existing system tends to favor the large urban blue state populous. I mean, that’s just how that is designed. And that was part of the – that’s part of the problem of the Affordable Care Act. The rural systems and much of Idaho is in that, is left behind just by virtue of how that system is designed. And so we fought for that in a big way. And we know that we have to keep our rural health care system healthy and reinsert some support there, because that’s not where those dollars naturally flow.”

“So that was the purpose behind that legislation,” he continued. “And the Big, Beautiful Bill. And I think it’s going to help. We’ve got a good system in Idaho, but we are lacking in a lot of the rural spaces. And this is going to help that.”

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Man accused of ramming truck into police vehicles enters Alford plea

KMIZ on January 10, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Climax Springs man was sentenced to 10 years in prison after he entered an Alford plea on Thursday in Camden County court.

Zackary Yates, 30, entered a plea for two counts of first-degree assault. An Alford plea occurs when a defendant maintains their innocence but admits evidence would likely result in a guilty verdict if the case went to trial. He is currently being held at the Camden County Jail.

Court documents in previous reporting say Yates was driving a Ford pickup truck 90 miles per hour on Feb. 27, 2024, on Highway 54 and once he was being chased, stopped his truck at the intersection of Osage Beach Parkway and KK Drive, put it in reverse and hit a law enforcement vehicle.

Deputies tried shooting at the vehicle to get it to stop on Arrow Road and a police chief tried putting down spike strips, but neither worked, according to the documents. The chase ended after Yates crashed the truck into a tree on Airport Road.

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DESE submits expense breakdown to federal government amid child care payment delays

KMIZ on January 10, 2026

Mitchell Kaminski

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) 

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and its Office of Childhood are working with federal officials as more than half of the state’s child care providers continue to wait for overdue payments.

DESE said in a release Friday it received a request from the federal government late Thursday for a detailed justification of pending child care payment requests before funding can be released.

A DESE spokesperson told ABC 17 News the department was required to submit a breakdown of expenses by allowable category to the federal government.

The federal request follows fraud allegations involving child care centers in Minnesota, where investigations into the alleged misconduct remain ongoing. The investigation also led President Donald Trump’s administration to suspend $10 billion in federal funds that were supposed to go to five Democratic states, a move that was blocked by a federal judge on Friday. 

“We understand the importance of verifying these dollars are spent appropriately, given recent events in other states,” Commissioner of Education Karla Eslinger said in DESE’s release. 

The request also comes as child care centers across Missouri have faced ongoing challenges. In December 2023, the state switched software providers for managing subsidy payments to Carahsoft, MTX and World Wide Technology, a transition that led to a backlog of missed payments and forced some day care centers to close. The backlog was not fully cleared until February.

As of Friday, the state said 1,743 of its child care providers, roughly 53%, were impacted by the delay of federal payments. 

DESE said it has been in contact with providers throughout the week about the delays and is urging them to continue submitting invoices to help prevent further setbacks once the state receives the funding.

State Rep. Gregg Bush (D-Boone County) told ABC 17 News that no child care providers have contacted him yet about the additional documentation. He added, however, that he has frequently heard concerns from constituents about child care affordability and availability.

State Rep. John Martin (R-Boone County) also said he has not yet been contacted by constituents regarding the delayed child care payments.

The department said it will notify child care providers with an updated timeline as soon as more information becomes available.

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Man sentenced 20 years for San Diego-based Marine’s fentanyl overdose death

KESQ on January 10, 2026

City News Service

SAN DIEGO, Calif. (KESQ) – A man who sold fentanyl-laced pills that caused the overdose death of an active-duty San Diego-based U.S. Marine was sentenced today to 20 years in prison.   

Nameer Mohammad Atta, 25, was found guilty by a San Diego federal jury of distribution of fentanyl resulting in death for selling pills that killed the victim identified by prosecutors only as C.M.R., a 26-year-old active-duty lance corporal.  

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, C.M.R. was found in his barracks at Miramar in May of 2020 “in the midst of an overdose.” Fellow service members and responding paramedics tried in vain to revive him.  

Prosecutors allege Atta, who was 19 years old at the time of C.M.R.’s death, sold the victim dozens of counterfeit pills in April and May while knowing they contained fentanyl. He also told buyers on social media that his pills were the “most trusted” in San Diego, while texting others to say his were the “most trusted” and “most potent” in the area, prosecutors said.

Atta was arrested in 2021 following an investigation that included a search of the victim’s phone and the discovery of communications between C.M.R. and Atta.

The victim’s father made a statement during Friday’s sentencing hearing in which he told Atta, “My son trusted you at your word while desperate, in pain and making a mistake. You deserve this sentence because you just did not care who you impacted.”

Defense attorney Anthony Colombo said his client intends to appeal the conviction.  

The attorney said he advised Atta not to make a statement at the hearing while the appeal is pending, but told U.S. District Judge Ruth Bermudez Montenegro that Atta considered the victim a friend and that he was “genuinely remorseful” and “not a day goes by that he doesn’t wish this didn’t happen.”

The 20-year sentence is the mandatory minimum term for distribution of fentanyl resulting in death.  

Atta was convicted in 2022, but the sentencing saw numerous delays over the next few years as Atta’s attorneys filed ultimately unsuccessful motions for a new trial.

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San Luis Obispo Police make felony hit-and-run arrest

KEYT on January 10, 2026

Caleb Nguyen

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (KEYT) – San Luis Obispo Police arrested a 20-year-old on Thursday after 9:30 p.m. for a felony hit and run at the 100 block of Crandall Way.

The driver didn’t stop after hitting two 20-year-old women who crossed the street, leaving both with major, but non-life-threatening injuries, according to the SLOPD.

Both women received medical care at a local hospital and SLOPD investigators later closed the road for further details into the crash.

Eyewitnesses described the suspect car as a dark gray Tesla Model 3 and SLOPD found the vehicle at the 3000 block of McCollum.

SLOPD officers then arrested the 20-year-old driver on two counts of felony hit and run and booked him into the SLO County Jail.

The crash remains under investigation, and those with more information are asked to contact Crime Stoppers at the following number.

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