Author: CNN Newsource

By Grace Rodriguez

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    RINCON, Georgia (WJCL) — A recent Cornell University graduate is planting new seeds in Rincon with the start of a nature and bird conservancy. Isaiah Scott, a Rincon native, started Rookery and Roots Conservancy on 16.1 acres in Effingham County to teach the next generation about nature.

“A lot of people don’t know, but the Gullah Geechee heritage corridor, it extends into Effingham County,” Scott said.

Scott says he’s blending his love of wildlife with his Gullah Geechee heritage, and plans to use the property to educate others.

“One thing we’re very interested in having is an outdoor classroom or also a living classroom where students can come and have, you know, experiences out in nature and, you know, be able to go on field trips,” Scott said.

Teaching others is something his dad says runs in the family.

“Giving back, you know, helping kids, that’s just something that our family has always done. And education is, is key in our family,” Roger Scott said. “I had tears in my eyes yesterday because I can’t believe it’s true. You know, doing something special for my son. You know, he’s 22 years old, owning 16.1 acres of land.”

The project still has another year to go, but the Scott family isn’t wasting any time getting the property ready for visitors.

“We’re planning to build a bird observation blind that people can go in and see ducks coming into the pond,” Scott said. “I just envision a future where, you know, there will be more places such as this where people and wildlife can thrive sustainably in the landscape.”

Scott says that aside from the conservancy, he’s also working on other ways to educate and inspire the next generation of learners.

“I’m actually working on a book about this that are significant in Gullah Geechee culture. I’m illustrating a field guide of birds of the Gullah Geechee Heritage Corridor, and some of the birds, such as, you know, hawks or turkey vultures and even another bird called the bobolink,” Scott said.

The family will host a trail cleanup Monday, Jan. 19, from 1 to 4 p.m. Those attending are asked to bring gloves and trash bags.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Zoe Blair

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    JASPER, Alabama (WVTM) — Dr. Mehmet Oz recently highlighted Alabama’s plan to use robots for ultrasounds due to a shortage of OB-GYNs during a rural healthcare roundtable with White House officials, a statement that has sparked significant attention on social media.

The initiative is part of Alabama’s use of the $203 million awarded under the federal government’s Rural Health Transformation Program, which was created in the Big Beautiful Bill.

According to the grant proposal, Alabama intends to allocate some of the funding for digital obstetric regionalization and telerobotic ultrasound. However, OB-GYNs in the state expressed skepticism about the plan’s effectiveness.

“This won’t take care of access to maternal care, it won’t decrease the mortality rate,” said Dr. LoRissia Autery, an OB-GYN at Walker Women’s Specialists, who serves patients in five rural counties.

She emphasized that while the maternal mortality rate is a significant issue, robotic ultrasounds are not the solution.

“There may be a case where a mom may have no fluid and that patient needs to go to a hospital, but if you’re in a part of the county that doesn’t have a hospital that has obstetrical services, now you have to drive an hour to an hour and a half to receive those services from a physician that did not do the ultrasound,” Autery said. “If she is an hour and a half away, I still have to wait on her to get here. For us, someone is always here all the time. We live here.”

Autery stated that she would not use robotic ultrasounds if given the choice, as she believes they remove the personal touch from caregiving.

“There’s something to be said about just human reaction, touching someone, hugging them if they get bad news. For me, I want that. That’s one of the reasons I actually went into OB-GYN is because we have continuity of care,” she said.

Instead, Autery advocates for investing in recruiting doctors to rural areas. “Alabama has one of the worst maternal mortality rates. So, yes, we do need access to all types of health care,” she said. “Most physicians we’ve been recruiting, they don’t want to come to a smaller area for a variety of reasons.”

The Rural Health Transformation Program will distribute $50 billion across all 50 states, with Alabama receiving $203.4 million for 2026.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Chris Oswalt, Ross Adams

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    JACKSON, Mississippi (WAPT) — Beth Israel Congregation is asking for community support as it begins the long process of rebuilding after a devastating arson caused extensive damage to the historic synagogue.

Congregation leaders said donations are now being accepted to help fund rebuilding efforts following the fire, which damaged walls throughout the building and destroyed the synagogue’s library.

Supporters can donate online, mail checks directly to the congregation or make contributions through stock, bond or wire transfers. Leaders said every donation will help the congregation rebuild and continue serving as a central part of Mississippi’s faith community.

“The outpouring of community support has shown us how welcome and how loved we are,” said Ben Russell, a student rabbi with Beth Israel Congregation. “The building is just a building — we are the people of Beth Israel. Wherever we are, we are together, and our congregation will be strong.”

Authorities said the suspect, Stephen Spencer Pittman, admitted to setting the fire. Investigators said security video shows Pittman pouring gasoline inside the synagogue before setting it on fire.

Pittman is facing state and federal charges. At last check, he remained hospitalized while being treated for burns sustained in the fire.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Cren Rosenbaum

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    GUILFORD COUNTY, North Carolina (WXII) — Cat-astrophe averted! Animal services in North Carolina sprang into action after a cat got stuck on top of a building with a Doritos bag on top of his head.

Officers said they got a call about a stray cat that was stuck on top of a house at a new construction site. When they arrived, officers saw the cat had a Doritos bag stuck on his head, and he was not moving.

Officers said they couldn’t tell if the cat was frozen in fear or if he was having trouble breathing.

The Greensboro Fire Department was called to assist. Firefighters climbed onto the roof to reach him, but when they got close, he started squirming.

Eventually, firefighters were able to safely take off the bag, put him in a carrier, and bring him down from the building without a scratch.

Now dubbed “Battalion Chief Dorito,” the cat is safe at the shelter. Officials say he is about 5 years old and is still recovering from a very unexpected situation.

He will be listed on the Guilford County Animal Services website when he is available for adoption.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Alexis Crandall

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    SAINT ALBANS CITY, Vermont (WPTZ) — Monitoring the content your kids are watching can be hard.

That is why one St. Albans dad is offering a new alternative to help parents take back some control over what kids can find online.

Go Caboodle is a free site for parents and caregivers to manage what kids are viewing.

“The idea is parents have control,” said founder Galen Dow. “You can have learn your ABCs or learn to draw or sports content or dinosaur content or whatever it is, knowing that, within the child’s app, they can’t wander off and go to anything else other than what you’ve approved to put in.”

Parents create their account and set up one for their kids.

They can search and add videos uploaded by other users to the junior account. Topics range from drawing to music to sports.

“It opens up this universe of organizing really interesting things that could be for any child,” Dow said. “You don’t have to be a child of means. It’s free. That’s important to us.”

Renee Carrico, psychology program director at St. Michael’s College, said screen time can have positive effects, especially when kids are viewing high-quality educational content.

“That’s helping them learn social emotional skills or increasing literacy or academic skills or improving executive function,” she said. “Those are cognitive skills like planning and problem-solving and behavioral control.”

Grandparents, coaches and other caretakers can be added to an account to help add videos. They are responsible for filtering the content.

“The idea is it presents content to your child in alignment with your values. Is it up to us to say that a WWE video has something in it that isn’t right for an 8-year-old child? I don’t think so,” said Dow. “Someone else might not think so, so they might flag it, and that might cause the parent to take a little bit deeper look and make sure this is something that they want.”

With new users joining daily, Dow said he is hopeful the site will continue to improve.

“There are a lot of minor problems that we could help solve, but very long term, there’s an endless roadmap of parents getting control back of these tools and apps for their kids,” he said. “Then, second of all, learning from that and maybe creating better experiences for everyone.”

Dow encouraged parents to join the site and submit feedback on things they like and things they think can be improved.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Doug Meehan

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    FALMOUTH, Massachusetts (WCVB) — You hear it all the time: To be truly happy, follow your passion. The problem is, what if you have not discovered your passion yet?

That was once the situation for a sign maker on Cape Cod. But in the case of Dan Farrington, owner of Farrington Woodcarving, passion found him.

“I was really kind of just looking for my thing. I just wanted something that kind of gave me purpose,” Farrington said.

As it turns out, crafting high-end, hand-carved signage was Farrington’s purpose.

Inside his workshop in East Falmouth, Farrington is carving out quite the reputation on Cape Cod for high-end, hand-carved signs, but that is not all.

In addition to signs for businesses and homes, Farrington designs and creates awe-inspiring decorative eagles and historically accurate mahogany quarter boards.

“It started on ships and now it’s decorations for houses. And people take a lot of pride in their quarter boards,” he said.

Farrington’s start into the signage world was rather serendipitous. Ten years ago, at the insistence of his father, he visited a workshop in Sandwich that he had passed by for years without giving any thought or notice.

“One day my dad said, ‘There is a woodcarver five minutes down the road. Why don’t you go and stop in?'” Farrington said.

That woodcarver happened to be none other than Paul White. Since 1965, White’s work had become synonymous with his patriotic, 23-carat gold-leafed, hand-carved eagles. The encounter set Farrington’s imagination soaring.

“I walked in the door, and I was just blown away by what I saw. I kind of made a decision right there: I’m doing this forever,” Farrington said.

After several years working for his mentor, the Cape Cod native soon set sail on his own. Today, business has never been better, and the passion for his craft that he loves to share with others has never been stronger.

“You got to love pushing a chisel through wood. Honestly, it puts a smile on my face. I’m here all day with a wooden bench just carving. I absolutely love doing it. I’m just so happy that I get to do this every day for work,” Farrington said.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.