Author: CNN Newsource

By Maddie Augustine

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    OMAHA, Neb. (KETV) — Something that started as a way to fill time during the pandemic has turned into a community that an Omaha mother and daughter never expected.

Seven-year-old Preslee Harris and her mother, Thais Diehm, have been posting daily TikToks for years.

“My friends, they usually look at their mom’s phone when she’s scrolling on TikTok, and sometimes they see my TikToks,” Harris said.

Over the last year, the duo’s focus and following on social media have shifted.

In May 2024, Harris was diagnosed with idiopathic juvenile scoliosis — meaning the cause of her scoliosis is unknown.

“She was still in kindergarten, actually. I was taking her to her first-grade physical for the next year, and they start doing the scoliosis test, which is just they’re standing up straight, and they bend over and touch their feet, and they look for, like, a hump on their back,” Diehm said. “And her doctor noticed that and sent us for imaging.”

Harris has no physical restrictions, so Diehm said she never passes up the chance to play soccer or try a new trick on the trampoline.

“She’s able to take her brace off and on. I mean, there’s kids out there that have to have surgery right away, that have to wear their braces 24/7. So, you know, she’s very fortunate in that aspect that hers isn’t as severe,” Diehm said.

Diehm said her daughter is supposed to wear her back brace 16 hours a day, every day. The brace is meant to slow down or help correct the curve in Harris’ spine.

‘Her last appointment in April, she was 21 with brace wearing, which is good because when they braced her, she was at 27, so you know, improvement,” Diehm said.

Despite knowing the brace is helping, Harris said some days are harder than others.

“I still have days that, like, I don’t want to wear it because I want to be like the other people that, like, don’t have scoliosis,” Harris said.

Sharing that vulnerability is what Diehm said stopped people in their doomscroll and caught the attention of millions.

“Seeing, you know, a 6-year-old struggling with brace wearing and having to wear this brace and just like, looks and whispers and just questions, that was really what kind of catapulted that and started that,” Diehm said.

Quickly, the followers, likes and comments came flooding in. Many shared their own scoliosis journey or just offered words of encouragement for Harris.

“We don’t know anyone in our real life that has scoliosis, so her meeting people online also that have scoliosis is really cool,” Diehm said.

“Usually I just see that people without braces and then once I see, like, people that actually have braces, I get, like, kind of happy and I want to wear my brace more,” Harris said.

Inspired by one of their followers, this summer, Diehm wrote their daily affirmations on the front straps of Harris’ brace. Every morning when she puts her brace on, as she tightens the straps, Harris recites the affirmations: “I am strong. I am confident. I am strong.”

“The daily affirmations, we actually started that on our TikTok a long time ago,” Diehm said. “And that was a couple of our known videos were us doing daily affirmations together. So then when when she got her brace, I was like, this is a really cool idea. And we kind of already do that anyway. Why don’t we just go ahead and write on her straps?”

Now, the duo has nearly 390,000 followers and millions of likes on TikTok, fostering and growing a community Diehm said they never expected.

“The overwhelming support and just people like flooding in, supporting her, asking questions, wanting to just be her friend online and make sure she was happy and didn’t know her was really, really sweet,” Diehm said.

It’s also helping make a difference along the way, digitally.

“Maybe a month ago, this mom reached out to me,” Diehm said. “She messaged me on TikTok, and she said that her daughter was — pretty sure she was 9 — she was really, really scared to wear her brace to school, but she watched a bunch of videos of Presley and I that kind of prepped her for school, and she ended wearing it that day. Her watching our videos kind of gave her the courage and confidence to wear it to school, and I thought that was really cool. And that’s kind of what it’s all about. You know, encouraging, motivating other kids and letting them know that they’re not alone and that we’re just like them.”

Harris and Diehm also making an effort to give back to their local community.

In June, through an online fundraiser, Diehm said they raised nearly $3,000. All of the money used to purchase “Higgy Bears,” support stuffed animals wearing back braces, to donate to children with scoliosis.

“We’re going to donate them to the Hanger Clinic, which she goes to,” Diehm said. “And then the children’s hospital.”

Letting others with scoliosis know they’re not alone is what the duo said their TikToks are all about.

“I just wanna say to the people that have a back brace, just be strong,” Harris said.

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By Olivia Tyler

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    URBANDALE, Iowa (KCCI) — Kent Proudfit, a retired resident of Urbandale, has become a beloved figure among morning commuters by waving and offering well wishes at the intersection of 142nd Street and Meredith Drive most weekday mornings.

“They kind of look for me if I’m not catching all four corners, which is hard to do. You got to be like a swivel head,” Proudfit said.

He calls his routine his “walking and waving ministry.”

He lives just a mile down the road. Each morning, he leaves his house around 5:30 a.m. and waves for three hours until the morning rush is over.

“Kind of gives me more of a purpose in life,” Proudfit said.

He’s been taking morning walks for a while and says whenever he’d hear a car, he’d always turn around and wave. That’s when he got his bright idea.

“I’m really doing it for the Lord’s glory,” Proudfit said.

Because of him, those that pass are having better days. “I had a lady pull over here last week and said, hey, keep doing what you’re doing. She says ‘I had a crappy day.’ Then she said, ‘you really make my day and started it off right.’ So that’s really what I want to do,” Proudfit said.

Kids feel the same way. He gets hand-written notes every day from those on their way to school. “I get more out of this than they do, really, when it gets down to it,” he said.

During his off-days, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, Proudfit said, “I really am anxious to get back into getting out here and waving, trying to make people’s days.”

Proudfit loves it so much, he’s even arranged his set up for the winter. He’ll park at Maplewood Farms across the street from his corner.

“I won’t be walking. I’ll just drive over here and carry my chair over,” Proudfit said, adding that he plans to be bundled up and see if he can gut it out through the cold months.

He wants drivers to know, he’ll be absent starting Thursday through the end of October as he’ll be traveling across the country to visit his grandkids.

Proudfit says not to worry, he’ll be back at the intersection as soon as he gets back to Iowa.

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By John Atwater

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    BOSTON (WCVB) — Jane Goodall, the conservationist renowned for her groundbreaking chimpanzee field research and globe-spanning environmental advocacy, died at the age of 91, the Jane Goodall Institute announced Wednesday.

Goodall last came to Boston’s Museum of Science two years ago with her signature stuffed monkey. Now, one small primate, a cotton-top tamarin at the museum, bears her name.

“Dr. Goodall created this way of looking at animals with empathy when that was maybe frowned upon by other people in science at that time,” said David Sittenfield, a Museum of Science employee.

Goodall’s scientific research reverberates to this day at the Franklin Park Zoo.

“The studies she performed, we still use the baseline templates she developed many years ago,” said Trevor Mia.

Goodall posted a message on Instagram on Earth Day this year, warning of the damage being done to the planet.

“She realized the legacy she leaves behind – people do things to make the world a better and more sustainable place,” Sittenfield said.

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By Nick Matoney

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    BRENTWOOD, Pennsylvania (WTAE) — Kavan Markwood, 21, the man who fell 21 feet at PNC Park back in April, was charged Wednesday with prowling outside of his ex-girlfriend’s home.

Markwood faces a misdemeanor charge of loitering and prowling at nighttime following an incident that happened Friday in Brentwood.

Police said Markwood’s ex-girlfriend called them to say he had been knocking on the front door, attempting to gain entry.

She also told police he had been sending her text messages for several weeks about vehicles parked at her home.

Police said they reviewed Ring doorbell footage that showed Markwood coming onto the property, forcefully knocking on the front door and running off.

Police said that while interviewing the ex-girlfriend, they located Markwood one street over inside his vehicle and ducking down.

Police also said they detected a strong odor of alcohol on his breath.

A friend of Markwood’s came to the scene to take him home.

Police said Markwood would be charged via summons.

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By Tony Atkins

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    ORANGE COUNTY, Florida (WESH) — A 55-year-old woman is accused of abusing her elderly stepmother in Orange County, according to deputies.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office said Cheryl Pyle was arrested after deputies responded to her home on Abberton Road for a well-being check. Investigators said the victim, who lived at the home, was found with contusions on her eye, chin and cheek.

According to arrest records, the call began after someone overheard Pyle’s boyfriend threatening another person’s life. Deputies said as the victim was taken to the hospital, she eventually disclosed that she had been beaten by both Pyle and her boyfriend, who both moved into the victim’s home shortly after the victim’s husband died.

Records allege that Pyle kicked the woman in the ribs. Investigators also said the couple at times took the victim’s phone to keep her from making calls and, at one point, tied a rope from her bathroom door to the garage door to prevent her from leaving her room.

Court records show that deputies have been called to the home at least four times since late July for domestic-related incidents and threats.

One of those incidents appeared in a social media video showing a man confronting a door-to-door salesman. That man has not been charged with a crime related to the video or the alleged abuse.

Neighbors told WESH they had noticed increased law enforcement presence at the home in recent months but were unaware of Pyle’s arrest.

As of Tuesday, Pyle’s boyfriend has not been charged in connection with the case; should that change, WESH 2 will provide updates.

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