Author: CNN Newsource

By Alex Barber

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    LEXINGTON, Kentucky (WLEX) — Amanda Durand was born and raised in Lexington and has spent years teaching at Morton Middle School — but on November 11, 2023, her life changed in an instant.

Durand turned on the TV to watch a University of Kentucky game and fell asleep. When she woke up, she couldn’t speak.

“Right then I knew this isn’t normal,” Durand said.

She managed to get first responders to her home. As they struggled to determine what was wrong, Durand mustered the energy to type out a message on her phone.

“I somehow manage to type out on my phone. Stroke because I thought I was having one,” Durand said.

First responders rushed her to Baptist Health Lexington, where doctors determined she was not having a stroke. After several tests, they diagnosed her with acute disseminated encephalomyelitis — or ADEM — an inflammation of the brain.

According to the Cleveland Clinic, ADEM is rare, affecting only one in 250,000 people in the United States.

“My head right here was swelling so much that it was pushing my brain off its stem,” Durand said.

She needed surgery immediately. Doctors removed a piece of her skull to relieve the pressure. For the next eight weeks, she had to be extremely cautious until doctors could put her skull back in place.

Durand was out of teaching for several months, but she was determined to return.

“When I came back those kids were fantastic,” Durand said.

She continues to teach middle schoolers and is now involved with Encephalitis International, a nonprofit that gives her a platform to share her story and raise awareness about the condition.

“I let it be part of who I am and not define who I am,” Durand said.

Since her brain surgery, Durand has recovered and returned to the life she loves — though she still faces several challenges.

“Memory loss, my processing if someone says something I have to have them repeat what they’re saying several times. Fatigue is my biggest issue,” Durand said.

Durand often looks back at photos from her time in the hospital. Each year on Nov. 11, she takes the day off from work.

“November 11 I take the day off from work. It’s like a day for me to live again,” Durand said.

What was once a source of pain has become a reminder of how far she has come.

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 Pheben Kassahun

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    BUFFALO, New York (WKBW) — Built in 1957, Kerns Avenue Bowling Center has seen generations roll through its lanes. 18 years ago, it became part of Black history in New York State when Daniel Adams stepped in to save it from shutting down.

For decades, the bowling center has been more than just a place to knock down pins. It has hosted everything from “Beat the Champ” to private parties to Caribbean nights, becoming the hub for community connection.

However, the future was almost not guaranteed.

“The previous owner was getting ready to shut it down and it was going to become a warehouse,” Adams said.

Instead of losing another neighborhood gathering spot, Adams took a risk and bought the bowling center 18 years ago, committing to something he said was bigger than business.

“We’re in a neighborhood that really had nothing and I thought that the community needed some place to go, a place to gather sports, etc. I thought that I’d give it a chance,” Adams said.

He told me that chance came with its challenges. Running a bowling center is not like running your typical business.

“It just offers drinks, dancing and so on and so forth. I thought the versatility of bowling, which is something that families can do, it has a much broader reach to the public,” Adams said.

Despite the grind, staying the course has been absolutely worth it.

“I’m proud that I’m still here,” Adams said.

Now, Kerns Avenue Bowling Center is entering a new chapter with new leadership and a deeper mission. Daniel’s daughter Kimberly Adams is stepping in as general manager, bringing purpose shaped by a personal loss.

“The thought behind the kids’ bowling league is my baby nephew, 3 years old, was fatally shot and killed June 21st, 2024 and his nickname is Luckie and so we would like to have a foundation in honor of him and included in that foundation will be a bowling league for children,” Kimberly Adams said.

For Daniel Adams, creating opportunities for kids, especially Black kids, is important to him.

“My wife and I have gone to several banquets with the Bowling Proprietors Association and no Black kids involved whatsoever,” Adams said. “It’s really something to see kids, their enthusiasm and the joy when they get their trophies and scholarships and so on and so forth. I think that all the kids in the city need to be able to experience that also.”

While Kerns is the only Black-owned bowling center in the state, Adams said inclusion is the goal.

“To keep driving it is more important than it about being a Black business. My appeal is to everybody but being the only Black-owned in the state has its own merits, I would think,” Adams said.

To keep Kerns rolling forward, they plan to renew a focus on youth and keep the tournaments and leagues coming.

“So we just will continue to just be innovative and creative,” Kimberly Adams said.

For Daniel, the future looks brighter, especially since he’s got his daughter as his new business partner.

“Looking forward to more growth with my daughter and we can work together,” Adams 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.

By Marvin Hurst

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    DALLAS (KTVT) — Everything for Malcolm Moore comes back to composure, focus, growth and family – from the roots of his lineage to the future he’s building. The 17‑year‑old is a bi‑institutional student in the Dallas Independent School District.

“Tennis? I have a deep love for tennis,” Moore said.

His love for tennis started with a visit to his grandfather’s place in Longview. Joe Terry David Pierce Jr., Moore’s grandfather, had some equipment that caught the five‑year‑old’s attention.

“And he said, Grandpa, you got tennis rackets in your car,” Pierce recalled. “I said, yeah, I keep them so if I meet somebody who wants to play, I’ll have a racket.”

Moore’s journey in tennis began. He’d gone through soccer, football, checkers, chess, Monopoly, backgammon and fishing. Now, his father, Eric, thought, here we are with another tab, compliments of the grandfather.

A costly passion takes hold

“He introduced him to things that weren’t so expensive first, like chess, right, and other things, but no, there’s a running joke that,” Eric Moore said. “Dad, you got the boy to love the sport that costs the most money, right?”

The 55‑year‑old said they started with mental activities like chess to cultivate his son’s mind. They also saw his athletic ability, so Malcolm Moore got tennis lessons. He improved through repetition and persistence.

A global connection through tennis That investment continues to pay off in expected and surprising ways. Eric Moore wanted his son to travel to Africa to understand his roots. On that work trip with his father to Ghana, Malcolm Moore was having a peer‑to‑peer conversation with the students of Yendi. He mentioned tennis.

“You play lawn tennis? That’s what they call it, lawn tennis?” his father said. “And all the kids, he plays lawn tennis. He plays lawn tennis.”

Tennis made such an impression that Moore and his family donated supplies. The Dallas ISD student created an exchange program called Across the Net to donate tennis supplies to the students at the school. They would need it for their brand‑new tennis court.

“Now they have the option right there at home in the northern region of Ghana to play tennis whenever they like,” the younger Moore said.

His father said the students would also use tennis to apply math, physics and geometry.

Making DISD history

Back in Texas, his son played his way into DISD history. He was the first tennis player, the district said, in more than 60 years to go to state. He was a sophomore and placed. The same as a junior. He hopes to have fun and win this year.

“I’ve had an adverse support system, meaning all the people in my family have always pushed me to do things and get out there,” Malcolm Moore said.

Part of that support was watching him play the drums in the school’s jazz ensemble and at church. The tennis player said it helps him relieve stress, which is tough to see. On and off the court, his focus and composure feel like pieces of his skin.

The tennis player comes from a football lineage. His grandfather was a wide receiver. His father was a defensive back. Even now, his dad believes his son is a tennis player in a defensive back’s body.

Lessons passed down

That equipment his grandfather had when he was five is a wish‑list item Pierce could only watch from a distance as a child in Longview. The 78‑year‑old said he remembered coming out of Mary C. Womack High School, across from a city park.

Pierce said he wanted to watch pros instruct white players on the game, but he said they ran him off. He was still able to get a view.

“And so I started mimicking the forehands and mimicking the backhand, and I learned to count and score the game,” he said.

Pierce was able to pass those lessons along to his grandson, Malcolm, who has signed a tennis scholarship to Coppin State University in Baltimore. He will play tennis and begin his journey to medical school.

” I mean, knowing about it is one thing. Having to deal with it is something else. And it made him a much better person, and it gave me so much satisfaction,” Pierce said.

His grandson calls it inspirational.

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 Kiley Vaughan

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    WAVERLY, Florida (WFTS) — The Polk County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) said a woman was arrested after she threw bleach on a victim’s face and hit a deputy with her car.

PCSO said deputies responded to a 911 call reporting a battery in-progress at a residence on Avenue C in Waverly.

As deputies were on their way, the suspect, 30-year-old Amber Setiva Pittman of Deltona, fled the residence, according to the report.

The victim told deputies Pittman had arrived at her house uninvited and immediately started a verbal argument with her, per PCSO.

According to the victim, Pittman splashed the contents of a water bottle in the victim’s face during the dispute, which deputies said was later determined to be bleach.

Pittman then reportedly began to batter the victim and threatened to kill her.

The victim said Pittman then walked to her vehicle and retrieved a handgun. A man who was at the residence took the gun from Pittman, according to the victim, and she fled.

Shortly after she left the residence, PCSO said a deputy located the vehicle she had driven away in on Hodge Street and conducted a traffic stop.

According to the report, as the deputy tried to detain Pittman, she resisted and sped away, striking the deputy with the side of her vehicle.

PCSO said the deputy was not injured.

Deputies stopped Pittman in the vehicle again shortly after, and she was taken into custody, per officials.

Deputies said Pittman was arrested and charged with aggravated battery, aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, aggravated assault, battery, resisting without violence, and fleeing to elude.

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 Annette Gutierrez

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    TAMPA, Florida (WFTS) — A Tampa Bay rescue organization is mobilizing to evacuate Americans stranded in Mexico after the killing of a top cartel leader sparked widespread violence.

Grey Bull Rescue, a Tampa-based organization, has already received at least a hundred of calls for help from Americans stranded in Mexico after the death of a notorious cartel leader known as “El Mencho” triggered widespread violence over the weekend.

“They’re pouring in, people are very scared,” said Bryan Stern, the Chairman and Founder of Grey Bull Rescue.

Criminal groups immediately reacted by setting cars and buildings on fire and blocking roads in and around popular tourist destinations. The U.S. Embassy is warning Americans in Mexico to shelter in place, as suspected cartel members have left many travelers with no flights in or out of the country, Sunday and early Monday morning.

Stern said the organization immediately began preparing a mission — dubbed “Operation: Condor Reach” — to rescue Americans stranded in the country.

Tampa Bay 28 reporter Annette Gutierrez has previously covered stories with Grey Bull, helping rescue people out of Jamaica, Venezuela, and now Mexico. She caught up with Stern in a virtual interview on Monday as he was preparing to catch a flight to Mexico.

Stern said the scale of the response effort will require significant resources.

“This is a large-scale evacuation operation — helicopters and airplanes is how this will be done, until that is not available. If that becomes the case, then we have a maritime option as well,” Stern said.

Stern warned that the operation will be dangerous, citing the cartel’s capabilities.

“They are very well trained, very well resourced, very well equipped. They have night vision, and good guns, and body armor, and all the things that we have. So, this is a very capable threat, unlike a lot of the other places that we see,” Stern said.

Stern also expressed concern about the potential for Americans to be taken hostage.

“The cartels like to kidnap people, they like to take hostages, they like to torture people,” Stern said.

A Tampa man who was born in Mexico and left the country partly because of the cartel spoke with us about the situation, asking to hide his face to protect his family back home. In Spanish, he described the conditions on the ground.

“The situation in Mexico is very tense,” he said.

He added that the danger is severe for anyone who does not comply with cartel demands.

“It’s so dangerous … if you don’t cooperate with them, they will kidnap you and ask for ransom,” he said.

He said he is not at ease knowing his family back home cannot leave their house out of fear of being caught in gunfire in the streets.

Despite the dangers, Grey Bull Rescue is offering its services at no cost.

“There’s no such thing as a Grey Bull Rescue Invoice,” Stern said.

If you are stranded in Mexico or know someone who is, you can reach out to Grey Bull Rescue for help. The organization runs solely on donations.

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 Frances Peyton

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    WEST PALM BEACH, Florida (WPTV) — The Palm Beach Zoo is using acupuncture to help one of its oldest residents stay comfortable as he ages.

Cruz, a 26-year-old anteater, has been experiencing mobility issues, prompting zoo veterinarians to explore acupuncture as a treatment option.

Dr. Carrie Ullmer, the director of veterinary services and conservation medicine, said the treatment is part of a comprehensive, personalized approach to animal care at the zoo.

“Here at the zoo, we provide concierge medical service, so we have a team of two veterinarians and two vet techs that provide the healthcare for all the animals,” Ullmer said.

Ullmer said Cruz’s age has brought on some familiar challenges.

“For animals as they age, sometimes they start to show their age in different ways, and Cruz has developed a little bit of arthritis,” Ullmer said. “He’s 26, so his latest treatment that we have started is acupuncture.”

One of the keys to Cruz’s treatment is the trusting bond he has built with his care team — and a very specific reward.

“We really work hard on developing our relationships with animals at the zoo, and so his zoologists have this very trusting relationship with him, and so they have worked to train him to basically hold still for an avocado smoothie reward and we can go in and do the acupuncture safely,” Ullmer said. “It’s totally voluntary. He can walk away if he chooses to participate in his own healthcare.”

Ullmer said Cruz’s care also highlights the zoo’s commitment to working with outside specialists.

“It’s a good example of how we work with our community partners,” Ullmer said. “We actually bring in a veterinarian, Dr. John Block, from outside of the zoo who comes in to provide this specialty service for us.”

Zoo visitors are encouraged to stop by and visit Cruz on their next trip to the Palm Beach Zoo.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI.

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 Kayla McDermott

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    WEST PALM BEACH, Florida (WPTV) — A West Palm Beach couple says they haven’t been able to use the street outside their home for more than a year due to an abandoned construction project that has become a hub for drug activity.

Christopher Young and his wife live on 20th Street, where blockades, garbage and water leaks now dominate the landscape outside their front door.

The construction project came to a halt about 14 months ago, leaving residents dealing with safety concerns and daily inconveniences.

“It is absolutely a ticking time bomb,” Young said. “We just want to be safe. We just want to have a normal place to live.”

The couple says they haven’t seen construction workers at the site in several months. The abandoned project has created multiple problems for residents, including limited parking and difficulty receiving deliveries.

“The parking is a bad situation,” Young said. “Good luck getting a delivery here.”

More concerning are the safety issues that have emerged. Young says people have started camping between the barriers at night, and he has found drug paraphernalia inside his gate.

“I’ve seen fights in the streets. I’ve seen drug usage,” Young said. “We have seen somebody defecating in front of my house.”

The situation has become so problematic that Young says no one in his household goes outside after dark. If nothing changes, he and his wife are considering moving.

“We want out, and we want out badly,” Young said.

The city of West Palm Beach provided a detailed timeline of the construction issues. Code enforcement officers initially cited the property for violations in July 2025. The property owner obtained the required permits to continue construction at that time, and the case was closed. However, the property was later sold while construction was still underway.

“Following the sale, construction activity paused, and the initial permits expired after six months of inactivity,” the city said in a statement. “In January 2026, Code Enforcement opened a new case after observing ongoing impacts to the street and sidewalk and work occurring in the public right-of-way without active permits.”

The project is associated with private development at 2032 N Dixie Highway and is not a city engineering project. The new owners, Essential Living, are now responsible for completing the work.

The city says the property owner has been advised of the steps needed to become compliant, including obtaining updated permits.

“The City understands that the property owner is working to improve the building, and our goal is to work collaboratively with them to address safety concerns, keep the right-of-way clear and accessible, and ensure the site is properly maintained as the project moves forward,” the city said.

ChenMoore, the engineering company involved in the project, said they were hired in 2023 by the property’s previous owner to design and certify a new water main extension.

“The project did not advance at that time due to a lack of required resources from the owner,” ChenMoore said in a statement. “The property has since changed ownership, and we have worked with the surveyors engaged by the new owner to obtain the data required for certification. We received comments from the City of West Palm Beach dated February 20, 2026 and are actively addressing those items.”

A violation notice from the city gives the owners less than two weeks to fix the site, obtain required permits to finish the work and stop blocking the street. If these requirements aren’t met, a hearing is scheduled for next month where the owners could face fines of $1,000 to $15,000 per day.

“I would love to see that this road gets reopened,” Young said. “Go back to normal, the way (it was) three years ago when I moved in.”

If the problem isn’t fixed by the owners, the city says it might clean up the site itself and send Essential Living the bill.

When contacted about the issue, Essential Living declined to comment.

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

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 Tyler Hatfield

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    MARTIN COUNTY, Florida (WPTV) — Age is just a number for one woman in Martin County.

Maggie Kennedy, a 98-year-old woman from Jensen Beach, holds the world record as the oldest competitive pool player according to Guinness World Records.

“I fell in love with the game,” Kennedy said. “I think it’s because I’m old, I think that surprises people.”

At pool halls on the Treasure Coast and around the country, Kennedy is a legend.

“That’s what they say,” Kennedy said with a smile.

Kennedy has held the title since 2021, when she was 94 years old competing in Las Vegas. Next Tuesday, she’s making history again, flying to Las Vegas to compete in the BCA Nationals Pool League Tournament with her team: Sunday Funday.

“We’ll be playing every day from Wednesday through Sunday, and then, of course, the slot machines will be right handy,” Kennedy said. “That’s fun.”

But she’s not traveling to Vegas without some style.

On Sunday night at Raxx Billiards in Stuart, the pool community on the Treasure Coast donated over $2,000 for her trip and a seat in first class.

“I’m still flabbergasted,” Kennedy said. “I was just so touched by what they did.”

Two of her sons, Louis and Greg Arsenault, are by her side, watching her get ready to compete.

“She is an inspiration,” Greg Arsenault said.

“I’m just so proud of her,” Louis Arsenault said. “It’s great to see her doing something she loves to do, and she’s pretty good at it.”

How does she do it at her age? Maybe genetics.

“I come from good, hearty New England stock,” Kennedy said.

Or it could be just being Maggie.

“I was taught to be nice and be happy,” Kennedy said. “And here I am.”

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 Amanda Hari

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    SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX) — People living at a homeless encampment on 8th and Harrison Streets in Berkeley are wondering what’s next after city officials called off a planned sweep.

The city posted notices last week saying they would be cleaning up the encampment on Tuesday. Monday, it was delayed. Still, Thomas Parnett was trying to figure out what’s next.

“I have no idea,” Parnett said.

Everything he owns is at the encampment. He was trying to clean and pack it up, just in case the sweeps do happen. He fears losing everything.

“Some of us have some items we’d like to keep,” Parnett explained. “We can’t transport them.”

A sign posted on the pole right near his belongings says, “lodging prohibited, violators subject to arrest,” but attorney for the Berkeley Homeless Union Anthony Prince says there’s no ordinance against living in this specific area.

“There is no city-wide camping ban,” Prince explained. “But nevertheless, the city has found numerous excuses, one after another, to break up encampments.”

Prince said the 8th and Harrison encampment is one of the longest-standing camps in Berkeley, and there used to be a dumpster, but the city removed it last June.

In January, city and county health officials confirmed positive tests for leptospirosis in dogs and rats within the encampment. The city says they posted signage about the potentially deadly disease, removed debris, and handed out hygiene kits to residents.

Prince said if they sweep the camp, more must be done first.

“The fact of the matter is that the court ordered the city to identify at least three locations where people can go safely to camp, and they refused to identify those locations,” Prince stated. “So, we’re fighting in the street.”

He said they’ll go back to court to protect the homeless union members if they have to.

Amber Whitson is a homeless advocate and lives on the streets herself. She used to live at 8th and Harrison, but moved to a more stable location.

“This is the kind of trauma people end up with after being on the streets long enough,” said Whitson. “This whole, ‘We’re going to sweep you tomorrow’, ‘Oh, we’re not going to sweep you this week’. ‘Who knows when we’re going to sweep you again?'”

Parnett is dealing with those feelings right now.

“There’s less and less hope as this goes on,” Parnett explained. “You get pushed here and then pushed there and the hope part kind of goes.”

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.