Author: CNN

WCCO

By John Lauritsen

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    MINNESOTA (WCCO) — For many veterans, experiencing a war together creates a special bond, but eight decades after World War II, two veterans are just starting to form their own.

For more than a century, 102-year-old Les Schrenk and 101-year-old Casey Bukowski didn’t know each other.

“I corresponded with so many of the POWs I was with and every one of them is gone for a good number of years now,” Schrenk said.

But a couple of weeks ago, Schrenk got a pleasant surprise. Even though he lives in Bloomington, Minnesota, and Bukowski lives near Buffalo, New York, friends of the veterans got to talking and realized the two had a lot in common.

“Actually, unbelievable. Because I had doubts about what would occur and how to approach this thing,” Bukowski said.

When Bukowski flew to Minnesota for Schrenk’s birthday, his gift was memories and a lot of coincidences. Both men realized they were staff sergeants during World War II. Both were gunners on B-17s and both their planes were shot down on the same day: Feb. 22, 1944.

“I lost my eye at that time and had a shrapnel wound and I was knocked out,” Bukowski said.

After bailing out with parachutes, the Germans captured Schrenk in Denmark and Bukowski in Germany. Then they ended up in the same prison camps at the same time.

“That’s amazing. We were practically shaking hands, and yet, we didn’t know each other,” Bukowski said.

They were subjected to the same brutal conditions, and Schrenk and Bukowski were forced into the infamous 86-day German death march, which many of their fellow soldiers didn’t survive.

“We all had very severe dysentery, fleas, lice, and bed bugs. And, of course, the cold,” Schrenk said.

“Actually, they told us that was the worst winter in many years. The coldest winter,” Bukowski said.

From the pains of war to the joy of liberation. The British freed Schrenk around the same time American soldiers liberated Bukowski.

“Finally, for us, the war was over, and we were able to think of going home,” Bukowski said.

Though they were likely just feet from each other in the prison camps and on the death march, it took 81 years to finally meet.

One more coincidence — in both their flight crew photos taken during the war, Schrenk and Bukowski are standing in the same spot: back row, second from left.

“We each brought our own memories back to each other,” Bukowski said. “We were together but didn’t even know it.”

“We are both quite mobile and can clearly remember what happened even 80-some years ago,” Schrenk said.

Schrenk and Bukowski met at the Air Force Museum in South St. Paul. They want to thank Schrenk’s friend, Mike Johnson, and Bukowski’s friend and fellow veteran, Jared Cummings, for connecting them. Next year, the group is planning a trip to Poland to visit the camp sites where Schrenk and Bukowski were held prisoner.

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

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KYW

By Wakisha Bailey

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    PHILADELPHIA (KYW) — For Lt. Colonel Barbara George, the mission to make The Joy of Sharing with the Salvation Army possible isn’t just part of her work. It’s part of her family’s story.

Every time George buttons her Salvation Army uniform, she thinks about the path that brought her here.

“This uniform has opened so many doors for me,” George said. “It’s a reminder every single day of who I serve and why I serve.”

George has been connected to the Salvation Army her entire life — 62 years and counting. But her family’s relationship with the organization stretches back even further.

In 1934, George’s grandmother was suddenly widowed, pregnant with her seventh child and raising a family in Brooklyn with no support systems for widows.

“When she was 10, her dad died,” George said. “My grandmother was pregnant with her seventh child. It’s 1934, Brooklyn, New York. There are no services for widows.”

With few options, her grandmother turned to a small church for help — a church that would change everything.

That church was the Salvation Army.

The support George’s grandmother received sparked a lifelong connection. George’s mother grew up in that same church, fell in love with music and began serving others through it.

Her mother’s compassion and creativity shaped George’s childhood and ultimately inspired her own calling.

“I knew God was calling me to do something bigger,” George said, “and it involved giving back to people.”

Today, the Salvation Army provides far more than Sunday services. It offers meals, social services, emergency assistance, youth programs and spiritual support for families across the region.

During the holidays, their work becomes especially visible — and incredibly meaningful — through The Joy of Sharing campaign.

George and her husband, Lt. Colonel Edgar George, trade their uniforms for holiday hats this time of year, joining volunteers and officers who serve record numbers of families.

“Our officers work so hard. At every location, there are people in record numbers of need, and the need just continues to grow,” George said. “The joy of sharing, it’s something circumstances can’t touch.”

George met her husband in officer training college, and they were commissioned together in 1989. Their shared calling became a shared life.

Today, as divisional officers, they oversee toy distributions across the region — ensuring gifts arrive on time and spirits stay high.

“I’ll be down there next week handing out toys because that’s my joy, to be with the people,” George said.

Their commitment is generational. The George family’s legacy continues through their children, who also serve as Salvation Army officers. Even their grandson plays a role in holiday efforts.

What started as a single act of support for a struggling family in 1934 has grown into a multi-generational mission of service.

This holiday season, the George family’s story reminds us that compassion can echo through generations — and that the joy of sharing is one gift that never fades.

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

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KCNC

By Christa Swanson

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    Colorado (KCNC) — Deputies came to the rescue earlier this week when an older Colorado woman fell and became trapped on the roof of a host home for patients with dementia and Alzheimer’s.

Arapahoe County deputies were called to the scene in the 6500 block of S. Lisbon Street on Thursday to find the 69-year-old woman lying on her back with her legs dangling over the edge of the roof. She was bracing herself on the gutter as two caretakers on ladders, afraid she would fall, held her in place.

Deputies climbed onto the roof and pulled her back from the edge before helping her back inside through a nearby window. Authorities said the caretakers were hanging Christmas lights when the woman opened the second-story window and walked out onto the roof, where she slipped and fell.

The sheriff’s department said the woman was not injured.

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KCNC

By Justin Adams

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    LITTLETON, Colorado (KCNC) — As the Dakota Ridge Eagles prepare for their Football Friday matchup against Pueblo West, students at the school are earning attention for something far beyond the field.

During the recent federal government shutdown, Dakota Ridge High School was selected as one of several Jeffco Public Schools to operate as a temporary community food bank. The shutdown, the longest in U.S. history, left many families across Colorado struggling with delayed paychecks and reduced access to federal nutrition programs.

When five pallets of donated food arrived from a districtwide drive at Jeffco Stadium, more than 60 students from the school’s leadership team stepped in to help. The group unloaded, sorted, and organized everything from canned goods and kid-friendly snacks to personal hygiene items.

“It makes me feel good knowing that it’s not just the football team or the baseball team. Everybody is getting involved in this school,” said Breck Inmaynes, the senior class president.

Students worked for more than an hour and a half to transfer the donations from the trucks into the school, establishing a system that allows families to pick up supplies twice a week. The food bank is open on Mondays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. and again from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. Any items not claimed at the school are donated to a nearby food pantry.

For many of the students who volunteered, the project was personal.

“Nothing but joy,” said student body president Jaxson Arnold. “Just knowing that what we’re doing is helping somebody else, it just makes you happy.”

The students say they plan to continue running the food bank even with the shutdown over, hoping to support neighbors who are still recovering from lost wages and unexpected financial strain.

“It makes a massive difference,” said student body president Caiden Dixon. “Any way we could help, we wanted to.”

Dakota Ridge High School, located in southwest Jefferson County, has a long history of community involvement. Staff members say the student-led food bank has become a point of pride for the school, and a reminder that the spirit of teamwork extends well beyond Friday nights under the lights.

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WCCO

By John Lauritsen

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    MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota (WCCO) — As a child, she fled Ukraine during a war. Now at the age of 92, a Minneapolis woman is looking to return to her homeland and into another war.

Nadia Pishko’s childhood was about survival. Growing up in Lviv, Ukraine, she experienced mass starvation in the 1930s. And during World War II, she and her family fled the country as the Germans and Russians closed in. But her heart never left her homeland.

“How do you say it? The door never closed. The door never closed,” said Nadia Pishko.

She eventually made her way to Minneapolis where she and her husband raised four kids. Now, at the age of 92, she’s looking to return to Ukraine.

“I want to go and stay there before I die,” said Nadia Pishko.

A debilitating stroke in February has added urgency to Pishko’s wish. Her parents and her husband are buried in Lviv, which has felt the impact of the Russian and Ukrainian War.

“We said, ‘Mom, are you sure you really want to go because remember there is a war going on there?’ She goes, ‘You know, I left during a war, and I’ll be going back during a war,'” said Julian Pishko, Nadia Pishko’s son. “She really wanted to go and she started crying. She got very emotional about it.”

Nadia Pishko still has cousins there and she remembers the beauty of the country, before war took over. Her family bought her a plane ticket, and she’s planning to leave later this month.

The journey back won’t be easy. In addition to all the paperwork needed to make this happen, there’s no direct route to Nadia Pishko’s hometown.

“We are going from Iceland to Copenhagen, to Warsaw and then we are going to take a train from Warsaw to Ukraine,” said Howard Dotson.

Dotson is a chaplain and fellow church member who will be accompanying Nadia Pishko on her return home. They are currently looking for care centers around Lviv where she can stay.

“Her stories and her testimony as a refugee can inspire so many Ukrainians that have been on that journey,” said Dotson.

A homecoming more than 80 years in the making. A final trip to fulfill a lifelong dream.

“She is really determined to be there and die there. That’s what she really wants,” said Julian Pishko.

Pishko is scheduled to fly out on Nov. 23.

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KTVT

By J.D. Miles

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    ADDISON, Texas (KTVT) — Throughout the month of November, North Texans are making special blankets for a project to help kids in pain. It’s based on an idea and personal experience of a TCU student.

When the inevitable pain sets in, Miller Kerr reaches for a fleece blanket that offers more comfort than any medicine.

“There are days that I can’t get out of bed, but I may need help showering or that I need help walking,” said Kerr.

The 22-year-old suffers from a rare condition called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, first diagnosed after a minor sports injury as a child.

“It was originally just a deep bruise to the thigh, and 6 weeks later, I lost the ability to walk, and I thought my life was over,” Kerr said. “I became extremely depressed and suicidal.”

She and 200,000 other Americans live with recurring bouts of pain that subside but never really go away.

A fleece blanket donated to the hospital where she was treated as a 10-year-old gave her hope.

“That was one of the hardest and darkest times in my life,” said Kerr. “When I got that blanket, I felt special. I felt like somebody was rooting for me.”

Through her organization, called Burning Hope, Miller wants to bring that same encouragement to other kids with CRPS by promoting a month of blanket parties, including one on Wednesday night at Venue Forty in Addison.

The TCU student has already donated over 600 blankets to hospitals across the U.S. that are made of a type of fleece that’s easier for pain sufferers to snuggle up to.

“For instance, even air, a feather to the affected limb can hurt, and so the fleece that we use is very soft,” Kerr said.

Kerr still cherishes her blanket and hopes they will help others cope with the pain.

“As well as that symbol of comfort and knowing that somebody else out somewhere in the world is caring for them, said Kerr.

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

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KCNC

By Tori Mason

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    COLORADO (KCNC) — An 8-year-old Coloradan is turning his love for hockey into a way to help other kids get on the ice, especially the children of veterans.

Luke Grahame grew up in a hockey family. His grandmother worked for the Avalanche. His dad played professionally and won a Stanley Cup. His older brothers play, too.

Before he was old enough to lace up skates, he spent a lot of time in rinks watching his brothers’ practices. He’d play tag or throw tennis balls off the wall just to stay entertained. One day, frustrated, he told his mom, “I’m tired of just being a rink dude.” That’s when something clicked. Luke and his mom, Niki, turned that moment into a mission — and Rink Dude was born.

“We thought maybe we could print a hat that said Rink Dude just for him,” Niki said. “Then we thought, what if he sold a few and helped other kids who want to play hockey but can’t afford it?”

Hockey is one of the most expensive youth sports. Between gear, ice time and team fees, many families can’t afford to even start. Luke didn’t like the idea of kids missing out.

“It feels kind of sad,” he said. “Hockey is really fun. I want to help kids play.”

He started selling “Rink Dude” merch and sharing donation cards linked to nonprofits like Hockey Unlimited, which provide equipment, ice time, and support to young athletes. And last week alone, Luke raised more than $3,000.

This week, for Veterans Day, he’s focusing his giving even more to the United Heroes League. The UHL is a nonprofit that keeps military kids active by providing gear, camps, grants and special experiences.

“Our goal is $5,000 to raise for kids of veterans,” Luke said. “Veterans are heroes. They fight for our country. We wouldn’t have this country if we didn’t have them.”

His mom says the idea didn’t surprise her.

“It made me feel really proud,” she said. “He gets to feel the joy of helping others while doing something he loves. And it teaches the importance of giving back to the hockey community that’s given so much to us.”

Luke says the best part isn’t selling merch, it’s knowing another kid is stepping onto the ice because of him.

“It makes me feel good and kind of happy,” he said.

“I’m the youngest in my family, but I have a brand and they don’t,” he added proudly. “They still treat me like the little one, though. A lot.”

You can donate directly to United Heroes League, or visit the Rink Dude Instagram page @rinkdude for more information.

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

Please note: 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.