Author: CNN Newsource

By Leondra Head

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    ATLANTA (WUPA) — For many young Black ballerinas, something as simple as finding ballet shoes that match their skin tone can feel like an uphill battle, one that affects their confidence, sense of belonging, and visibility in an art form long shaped by Eurocentric standards.

An Atlanta entrepreneur is trying to change that.

In her Eagle’s Landing dance studio, 17-year-old Amira Lewis dips a makeup brush into a compact, brushing foundation across her pale ballet slippers — a ritual she’s repeated for years.

“When I was younger, I remember going into a dance store and I could not find my color,” she said. “They didn’t have the color that was closest to my skin tone.”

Ballet tradition calls for shoes that match a dancer’s legs, creating a seamless line that gives the illusion of dancing barefoot. But for dancers like Amira, that meant extra labor.

“I would always have to paint my jazz shoes, ballet shoes with makeup so they would match my tights and skin tone,” she said. “I would paint them every competition because the makeup would rub off on stage.”

The constant blending, matching, repainting was frustrating.

“It was disappointing,” she said. “It made me feel like I didn’t belong.”

That feeling is exactly what Atlanta-based entrepreneur and former dancer Jamia Ramsey set out to address.

Ramsey launched Blendz in 2018 after growing up in studios where dancers still wore “pink and tan tights that mostly matched fair skin tones.”

“Not having the right dancewear makes you feel like you don’t belong,” Ramsey said. “I wanted to make sure the next generation had shoes and tights that matched their skin tone.”

Blendz now offers four inclusive shades — Tan, Brazen Brown, Mahogany, and CoCo — designed specifically with young dancers of color in mind.

For Amira, that changed everything.

“When I got my ballet shoes, my confidence grew,” she said.

Dance instructors have long struggled to find products that reflect the diversity of their students.

“We have tried every brand you can imagine for different skin tones,” said Vanessa Gibson, owner of Eagle’s Landing Dance Center. “Blendz is the only one out of the many we’ve tried that comes closest to all of the girls’ skin tones.”

Ramsey personally fits dancers, including helping parents and kids find the right shade.

“To be here and have a brand that supports our skin tone gives us hope,” one mother told CBS News Atlanta.

When asked what shade he’d wear if he were a dancer, Ramsey told CBS News Atlanta: “Our Brazen Brown. It matches [my] skin tone.”

Amira has big dreams: becoming a professional ballerina.

And while shoes won’t determine the outcome, representation matters, especially in a discipline where so many young Black girls still struggle to see themselves.

With the right shade, the right support, and a stage that finally reflects her, Amira says she feels one step closer.

“The right shoes,” she said, “help me shine.”

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

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By Brandon Truitt

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    BILLERICA, Massachusetts (WBZ) — Police in Billerica, Massachusetts delivered more than a dozen Amazon packages that have been found on the road. It happened on two occasions in just as many weeks.

It started the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. Billerica Police Officer Sam Hawkes was making his rounds near the Market Basket on Boston Road when he drove up on eight Amazon packages laying in the middle of the road.

Instead of moving them off the street or throwing them away, Officer Hawkes called in back up. He and his fellow officers filled the back of two cruisers and hand delivered the packages themselves.

“They were in the middle of the road, so I got out thinking they were trash and [thought about] just pushing them closer to the dumpsters there. But then I found out they were full packages with orders inside,” said Hawkes. “I didn’t want to just leave them. There was nobody around. No cameras to help see what happened back there. That was the first thing we were looking for.”

One of those packages belonged to John Thomas’s wife. He was watching a football game on TV last week when he got a knock at the door. To his surprise, Billerica police officers were on the other side. “I walked out to get it, and I was like oh boy what happened now,” Thomas joked. “[My wife] came down and I said the police are here for you. I made a joke of it, and she said, yeah that’s my package.”

Cut to this week when officers found another eight Amazon packages laying on the side of Salem Road on the other side of town. The officer who found those packages provided the same courtesy and hand delivered the packages to their rightful owners.

Amazon said they were working with the Billerica Police Department on this but would not comment further.

Officer Tom Cranson helped pick up some of the packages off the road. “We all have to help each other out,” said Officer Cranson. “It is obviously stressful during the holidays so just to get people’s packages back was a huge stress reliever for everybody.”

Their efforts go above and beyond for the people whose deliveries were saved. “They have a lot of other things to do besides delivering packages, and I was very appreciative,” said Thomas.

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By Alyssa Gomez

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    NEW ORLEANS (WDSU) — With Border Patrol agents expected to begin sweeps in New Orleans this week, some Hispanic businesses are temporarily closing their doors in fear of being targeted.

Walking into Las Carnitas Restaurant 2 around brunch, there is just one lone customer. It’s a sight owner, Juan Torres, is not surprised to see.

“You see the streets, no cars, no people, no nothing, ” said Torres.

While one of his restaurants is open, the other is closed. With immigration sweeps happening any day now, he says people are fearful and simply staying home.

“You have a limited amount of foot traffic coming into those small businesses and then on the back end of that, you also have a large population of Latinos who are also working in those businesses,” said Lindsay Navarro, Founder and CEO of El Centro.

El Centro works with Hispanic entrepreneurs in the New Orleans area to help establish their businesses. Navarro says her customers are concerned they’ll be racially profiled, regardless of their status.

“There is a culture that’s been created in this city, a welcoming culture that celebrates individuality, that celebrates other countries, and so for us to lose even a piece of that is pokes a hole in the fabric that we’ve worked so hard to create,” said Navarro.

According to the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, it is not solely Hispanic businesses that will suffer, but rather the state’s economy as a whole.

“Those businesses also need suppliers for their good and services products that they sell, but if they’re not selling, they’re not producing, then they don’t need that, so it’s a revolving door, and at the end of the day, it impacts everyone,” Chamber President Mayra Pineda said.

Pineda says the Chamber is offering resources online for businesses to best prepare ahead of the immigration sweep.

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By Aaron Parseghian

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    IPSWICH, Massachusetts (WBZ) — A woman was severely injured after she was thrown off her horse on a trail in Ipswich, Massachusetts. She said a man on a mountain bike spooked the horse, which later died.

“It’s unfortunate that I’m so incapacitated right now,” Rosie Kennedy said from her bed at a rehab facility in Beverly Wednesday.

Back on November 21, she was riding her 8-year-old horse “Pops” on a trail in Ipswich, when she said a man on a mountain bike zipped past some railroad tracks and turned onto the trail.

“Pops just lost his mind, he was just terrified. He reared and he spun, and he started to gallop,” Kennedy said. She was thrown to the ground and dragged about 10 feet.

“The last thing I remember is hearing Pops galloping away at warp speed, and I never saw him again,” she said through tears. While injured on the ground, Kennedy said she asked the cyclist to identify himself.

“I was probably not polite at that time, I said ‘What are you doing riding along railroad tracks?’ I said it three times and he just left,” she recalled.

Kennedy managed to take a photo of him. She then crawled for a half hour to get back to the barn, where an ambulance picked her up. Pops was found on a farm nearby with life-threatening injuries. A veterinarian determined it was more humane to put him down.

Kennedy ended up with a shattered left ankle and a severely damaged right knee. She said the physical injuries pale in comparison to the loss of her horse.

“Sometimes you can’t control the situation and then a terrible tragedy occurs,” Kennedy said. “It just breaks my heart to think that he ran off running for his life with basically a fatal injury,” she said. “That’s hard to deal with.”

Kennedy chose to speak publicly about the incident to raise awareness about trail safety.

“There have been a lot of bicyclists who’ve moved in the past five or 10 years and have enjoyed our trails,” Kennedy said. “But not every trail is meant for a bicyclist to zoom around corners. Horses have the right of way no matter where they are.”

She added that approaching a horse quickly, whether on a bike or on foot, can be dangerous.

“Under no circumstances should any bicyclist or any pedestrian ever come up fast behind a horse. That is terrifying to them. And it was terrifying to Pops,” Kennedy said. “I think this accident has caused people to think about it very clearly and perhaps make some changes in the way that trails are opened, traversed at home.”

Ipswich police said they are looking into the incident, but no charges have been filed at this point in the investigation.

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By Mike Hellgren

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    BALTIMORE (WJZ) — A trainee at the Baltimore City Fire Academy was reportedly threatening to harm his classmates, and multiple weapons were found in his vehicle, according to details exclusively obtained by WJZ Investigates.

Police responded to the incident at the academy on Tuesday.

The call came into the Southeast District around noon on Tuesday, police said.

According to sources, a trainee at Baltimore City’s Fire Academy on Pulaski Highway was making threats to harm his colleagues, including that he would be “stacking bodies” and “taking himself out.”

The sources said classmates reported those threats to instructors, who notified police.

Officers reportedly found a cache of weapons inside his vehicle that included 10 automatic weapons and a handgun.

Firefighters’ Union President Matt Coster has seen that photo. He spoke to WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren about the frightening incident.

“Obviously, we train our firefighters and recruits to remain observant and calm in those kinds of situations,” Coster said. “We praise them for their quick action and alerting the fire academy staff to a possible situation that could’ve been very detrimental to the academy.”

Coster called it “an alarming incident.”

Baltimore Police said they responded to “a report of an individual in crisis. Upon arrival, officers spoke with a member of the fire department who informed them that a trainee may require an emergency petition after concerning messages by the trainee were reviewed. Members of the Crisis Response Team responded to the scene, and the trainee was transported to an area hospital for an evaluation.”

An emergency petition is a legal process that allows someone in a mental crisis to be taken into custody to be assessed.

The Baltimore City Fire Department said the incident is under “active investigation.”

“Due to the ongoing nature of the review—and out of respect for the privacy and well-being of the member involved—we are unable to provide additional details,” spokesman John Marsh said. “The Baltimore City Fire Department is committed to handling all personnel matters with the utmost professionalism, confidentiality, and fairness. We appreciate your understanding as we follow our established procedures.”

“We praise the Baltimore City Police Department for their quick action and anything that they did yesterday that would make that situation go away,” Coster added.

WJZ is not naming the trainee.

As of Wednesday afternoon, no criminal charges have been filed stemming from this incident.

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By La’Nita Brooks

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    Missouri (KSHB) — Liberty High School Spanish class students stepped outside the classroom Wednesday to become teachers themselves.

They visited the Liberty Fire Department to help first responders better serve the community’s growing Spanish-speaking population.

The students taught firefighters common Spanish language phrases they can use during emergency calls.

“It was kind of weird being the one up there teaching people,” said Iyari Hyde, a sophomore at Liberty High School. “But it was very nice. It felt like people were looking up to you.”

The students broke down lessons into practical sections, including greetings, reassurance phrases, identification and directions.

“Yeah, they’re really good learners, all the crews were good,” said Julian Alonso, a Liberty High School senior. “They repeated, said it correctly.”

Each student led their own specialized lesson to help firefighters communicate more effectively during emergencies.

“My section was like the body parts and what questions they might ask about body parts,” said Erick Colon, a Liberty High School sophomore.

The training addresses a real need in the community, as Spanish is the second-most spoken language in the United States, with more than 40 million people speaking it at home. Liberty’s Spanish-speaking community is on the rise.

“I feel like it was really important to let them know directions,” said Alonso. “It’s important to help them know where to go or to help guide the people who don’t speak English in the evacuations to help get them to safety or out of the building.”

David Crossley, a Captain with the Liberty Fire Department, says the training session has helped better prepare them for busy seasons like the holidays and the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2026.

“They made note cards for us; they put together a PowerPoint presentation,” said Capt. Crossley. “They did a really good job in researching what would really be useful for us.”

The training comes at a crucial time for firefighters as they increasingly encounter Spanish-speaking residents during emergency calls.

“Just in the last month alone, I’ve used Spanish on three different calls in my capacity here,” Capt. Crossley said.

The language skills could prove vital during life-threatening situations where clear communication is essential.

“Oh, absolutely it can be lifesaving, “Capt Crossley said. “Like I said, if you’re in an emergency medical scenario and you can’t communicate with the person having the emergency, it makes our job a lot harder.”

Crystal Kelly, Liberty High School Spanish teacher, emphasized the broader impact of the cross-cultural exchange.

“Knowing that someone that doesn’t look like you, speak like you, tries to understand you,” Kelly said.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. KSHB’s editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

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By Meryl Hubbard

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    WAUKESHA, Wisconsin (WTMJ) — Almost every week, Bill Rheingans signs his buddy Bob Jacobs out of his senior center in Waukesha. Every time, they find a restaurant to sit down at and share their stories from their service.

Jacobs is 101 years old—a beloved hero admired for both his humor and his remarkable memory.

“There’s not a lot of us World War II veterans left anymore,” said Jacobs.

Jacobs grew up in Beaver Dam and was drafted into the Army in 1943, shortly after he graduated from high school.

“The fellows that I knew of, including myself, was anxious to get in the service and get this thing over with,” said Jacobs.

His first year was spent at Ft. Bliss, Texas, for training camp, where he learned how to be an anti-aircraft weapons soldier. From there, he was stationed in Hawaii for another year before sailing on an LST to Iwo Jima. He says that on his way there, his ship had to drop off its position in the convoy for repairs, only to find out that it may have saved his life.

“If we went back to where we were supposed to be, who knows what happened, because the Kamikaze plane hit the ship in the position where we were supposed to be. So we were just lucky,” said Jacobs.

Once they got there, Jacobs said that Iwo Jima was a land full of ash, where no one lived, and no vegetation grew. It made it hard for Marines to protect themselves.

“You were just in the wide, wide open spaces. The government said that was the bloodiest battle that the United States had ever been in. I lost a lot of friends over there,” said Jacobs.

Jacobs was present when the flag was raised on Iwo Jima and the iconic photo was taken.

Iwo Jima was secured by the U.S. in March of 1945, and the war ended months later in September.

After his service, Jacobs moved back to Wisconsin. He attended business school at Marquette and worked at Mrs. Karl’s Bakery for 37 years. He and his wife were married for more than 70 years.

Nowadays, Rheingans and Jacobs spend their time sitting for hours, sharing their stories—sitting until they are asked to stand.

At Mission BBQ, patrons are invited to sing the national anthem every day at 12 p.m.— a moment for veterans like Jacobs to remember what their service was for.

Rheingans says his mission is simple:

“I just want to make sure that those stories get out to the public and to anybody who’s willing to listen to them, before those stories disappear.”

A couple of months ago, Rheingans stopped by TMJ4’s Let’s Talk West Allis and spoke about the many ways the community can honor United States veterans. Highlighting Jacobs was at the top of the list.

“Bob’s a hero. Every time, like I say, we get together, there’s always some stories, and he’s had a lot of hardships, and I just want to make sure that he’s being recognized and definitely deserving of that recognition,” Rheingans said.

Together, the two of them hope to see more curious minds and more appreciation for the country they fought for.

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By Erika Stanish

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    FAYETTE COUNTY, Pennsylvania (KDKA) — Those with loved ones at a cemetery in Fayette County are outraged after they said maintenance crews drove heavy machinery right over headstones and graves this week.

At Lafayette Cemetery in Grindstone on Wednesday, KDKA-TV saw several tire tracks in the snow that went right over several headstones, along with damaged American flags and decorations.

“This place, they’ve been out of control. They’re damaging the cemetery like crazy,” said David Bella, who has loved ones buried at the cemetery.

People recount stories of damage at cemetery Bella said this week, maintenance crews were working in the Garden of New Veterans section of the cemetery near the mausoleum where his mother, father and wife are buried. He said crews were digging a new grave in the area where most of the damage is.

“It breaks my heart. I mean, these are veterans. They’re flags. They just plow them over,” Bella said.

He said this is not the first time an incident like this has happened, and he wants to see more respect for those buried at the cemetery and more oversight by management.

“Their equipment’s too heavy. They know it, and they just run over graves,” he said. “They’re breaking headstones. There’s vases that people can’t even get out of their headstones because they’ve smashed them into the headstones. When they buried my wife, they’d run over the vase, and it was smashed into the ground. I literally brought my own tools out, and I managed to fight it, and I got it back up out of there for the people, because they had stuck flowers there. Well, they ran them over with a lawn mower [this summer].”

Another woman said her father’s headstone was cracked two years ago after maintenance crews ran it over with a machine. She said that after repeated phone calls to the office, just last month, the cemetery office called her to let her know crews would repair it.

Bella said he believes there is a protocol that maintenance crews are set to follow when pulling heavy machinery in and out of the gravesites.

“As far as I know, they’re supposed to put plywood down. They carry sheets of plywood, stacks of it. They never use it,” Bella said.

Trying to get answers from management As KDKA-TV was at the cemetery, maintenance crews were seen watching as we filmed before coming over and asking us to move so they could “do their jobs.”

Once KDKA-TV’s team moved out of the way, we saw crews move heavy machinery back into the area that was damaged. Two workers then began pouring what looked like jugs of water on top of some headstones and using a brush to clean them off. One worker also worked to fix a damaged flag.

When KDKA-TV went to speak to management at the office building on the property, workers inside refused to let us in. One worker said she’s “not allowed” and that corporate had to provide a response. When we asked who the corporate office is, she refused to answer.

On a piece of paper posted outside the office door, it states, “Lafayette Memorial Park and its staff are NOT responsible for theft, damage or lost items that have been placed on any grave.”

KDKA-TV reached out to the general manager and was told he was on a leave of absence. Another manager reached for comment hasn’t responded as of Wednesday night.

The vice president of people operations and quality of Everstory Partners, the corporate office, sent this statement:

“Our Park Services teams regularly operate heavy equipment on our grounds, both for interments and for landscaping. While we try to avoid impacts to the grounds, sometimes – particularly during periods of rain and snow – visitors may see tire tracks. We do place seed and straw over any tire tracks as weather permits. And, while our teams attempt to avoid damage from our equipment to any memorials, if we do damage a memorial, we will replace or repair it. Finally, please note that our Cemetery Rules and Regulations prohibit the placement of breakable items on memorials, and we conduct park cleanups twice a year to remove such items. To our knowledge, no memorials have been damaged by park equipment, but if any viewer is aware of a damaged memorial, they should speak to our staff on site.”

KDKA-TV asked Everstory Partners if it was typical that heavy machinery is driven directly on top of headstones and if there was any protocol that maintenance crews follow to prevent damage to headstones. We also asked for an estimated repair timeline if damage was done.

The vice president said, “In this instance, I understand that the heavy equipment had to ‘straddle’ the row of memorials to prevent any damage. Typically, we would use plywood, but here, because of the weather, plywood would have caused slippage, and that is a safety concern. I can’t speak to a repair timeline without having a specific example.”

Pennsylvania Department of State investigations KDKA-TV was informed that several active investigations involving Lafayette Cemetery are underway through the Pennsylvania Department of State. However, a spokesperson for the department said that it cannot confirm or deny whether a complaint has been filed.

“Speaking generally, the Department reviews every potential license violation of which it becomes aware, whether that is through a complaint filed directly to the Department, a notification from local law enforcement, or through media reports,” the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson went on to say, in part, that anyone who suspects violations of professional standards and governing laws should file a complaint on the department’s website.

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