Category: CNN Regional

By Melea VanOstrand

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    INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A team from central Indiana has returned home after helping a Michigan community heal from a tragic church attack.

The team included two comfort dogs that helped people heal.

The dogs spent several days offering emotional support to survivors and first responders after the deadly church shooting in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan. Four people died and eight others were wounded in the Sunday attack just as services were underway in the crowded sanctuary.

The dogs’ handlers say the canines have a way of bringing peace where words often fall short.

Two of the six comfort dogs, Magdalene and Eternity, traveled to help people cope after the Sept. 28 attack. A former Marine drove a pickup into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, fired shots, and set the church on fire.

Suzanne Ward was one Eternity’s handlers and went on the weeklong trip to Michigan. One of the moments that stuck out to her was at the coroner’s office, when an employee came in on her day off for comfort Ward said, “One of the dogs just noticed that she was just really hurting and just went over and just buried her head in this lady’s lap, and the lady just hugged on this dog for a good 30 minutes.”

Ward says the woman personally knew the gunman and had a lot of angst to relieve.

Lutheran Church Charities runs the Comfort Dog Ministry, a national program to connect trained therapy dogs with people in crisis. Dog Magdalene has been serving at Cornerstone Lutheran Church in Carmel since 2023, and Eternity just joined the team in September.

Judy Callahan, director of development and top dog at Cornerstone Lutheran Church, said about the dogs, “They provide comfort to those who are hurting, and or grieving and under stress.”

The golden retrievers work six days a week serving central Indiana and visit places including nursing homes, hospitals, recovery and foster care agencies, schools, and anywhere where tragedy is.

Callahan said, “The dogs have over 2,000 hours of training before we get trained to handle them, but there is ongoing training with them. We have 14 handlers for the two dogs right now.”

Max Murphy, Carmel site pastor and pastor of care for Cornerstone Lutheran Church, says the Comfort Dog Ministry started just a few years ago. He’s glad it’s now grown to a team of 45 people who work with the dogs in the community. “I have just been amazed at how we’re able to share the love of God through this ministry. It’s become so much more than I realized it could be.”

Nicole Lewis, the dogs’ primary caregiver, said, “They like to play and run around, so when they’re not working they get to be real dogs and have fun together which is really fun to see.”

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By Cat Sandoval

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    WHITESTOWN, Indiana (WISH) — A routine traffic stop became a huge drug bust, police say.

Whitestown Metropolitan Police Department said on Tuesday that it confiscated 24.5 pounds of cocaine worth nearly $200,000. Ten large, silver-wrapped packages were inside a duffel bag at the back of the car of Tionia Britany Miles, 36.

Police Capt. John Jurkash said it’s the largest quantity of narcotics the department has confiscated not just this year, but in the past three years.

The traffic stop turned drug bust happened about 8:30 p.m. Monday on southbound I-65 near the Whitestown exit for Boone County Road 550 South.

Jurkash said, “This was overnight shift, so while people were maybe watching ‘Monday Night Football’ or tucking their kids in for the night, our guys were out looking for criminals and criminal activity. This is a pretty significant one that I just hope the community sees and appreciates the hard work and dedication that our officers are putting in.”

Initially, officers detected a strong odor of marijuana, which led them to search the rest of the vehicle. Indiana is one of four U.S. states where marijuana is illegal. A police dog named K9 Jeter assisted with the arrest.

The police captain said, “This is a testament to how hard those handlers work with their partners and just how great an asset police K9s are.”

The department’s three police dogs and their handlers have made 104 narcotics busts since the start of 2025.

Jurkash said 1 in every 11 arrests in Whitestown is drug-related. The majority of drugs they confiscate are marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin. Jurkash said the department is committed to combating drug trafficking and keeping dangerous substances off roadways and out of the community.

“This very directly could have hit close to home if the drugs were headed to Indianapolis to be distributed. We don’t know that at this time, but Indianapolis is a local nearby city that’s 10-15 minutes south of us.”

Miles on Tuesday night was in Boone County Jail. The Indianapolis resident faces preliminary felony charges for dealing cocaine. Online court records on Tuesday night did not yet show a case filed against Miles.

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By James Groh

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    Wisconsin (WTMJ) — A horde of bone-afide patriotic skeletons is taking over a Wisconsin man’s lawn. They are all saying give me liberty, or give me death! Literally.

The iconic Holy Hill Skeleton display in Hubertus is back for its 26th year. Don’t think the party is dead, it’s just getting started. Display creator Jimmy Zamzow wanted to start the fun early and is already celebrating America’s 250th birthday coming next year.

“The skeletons were just dying to get out here, and we decided to do it early because we figured by next fall everybody’s going to be pretty much done partying for the 250th,” Jimmy Zamzow said.

Everyone who is anyone is here, like Uncle Sam and the famous daredevil Evel Knievel, who is the real afterlife of the party. In total, there are about 175 skeletons on display.

You can find this rockin’ party at 5256 Highway 167, Hubertus. It’s completely free, but donations are accepted to help fund next year’s theme. However, to get in, it is reccomended that you salute to the skeletary of defense and the giant Statue of Libe-Bone-Ty.

“I did everything I could to make sure this display was not Democratic and was not Republican. It’s patriotic. It’s for everybody in America. It’s not for one side or the other. It’s for everybody in America to enjoy this display,” Zamzow said.

People enjoy it so much, somebody even wants to get married here.

“Friend of mine texted me, wants to know if it’s okay to have a wedding here,” Zamzow said.

They really just want to embody the spirit of till death do us part. In fact, this won’t be the first wedding here either. That was one of Zamzow’s previous themes. I’ve also covered a 40th high school reunion, a Tour de Skull, surfing skeletons, a dead man’s party, and more.

“I like to see, like, when I come out here, people enjoying, you know, the display, especially the kids,” Zamzow said.

While the theme changes each year, the Rainbow Bridge display has been a common companion piece for the past several years. It’s to honor our pets who have passed. He will often find kids rearranging and grouping the animals together, which is says is completely fine to do. Just don’t touch the larger skeletons.

“The kids liked it so much, I just decided to keep bringing that one back every year,” Zamzow said.

All these skeletons really embody the spirit of the Red, White, and Boo. Our founding fathers would be proud. After all, remember what they said, ‘every person has the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of hauntiness.

With each display, Zamzow also hopes that he can encourage people to become organ donors.

“I’m a strong believer in organ doning, because as you see, they’re all skeletons. They don’t have any organs, and that’s the way we’re all going to end up one day as skeletons,” Zamzow said,.

The display will be up through the first weekend of November.

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By Zitlali Solache

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    BOCA RATON, Florida (WPTV) — A Boca Raton man is bringing light to his community after helping raise money to house a homeless man.

John Ferber is behind the good deed and said his act was inspired by a video on social media. Ferber spotted Peter Martin at a bus stop bench months ago and decided to approach him.

“I just had some free time and I decided to grab some Chinese food,” said Ferber. “I drove up to Peter and sure enough, he was on the bench where I thought he would be and we had a great conversation.”

Ferber learned Martin lost his job back in 2023, leaving him homeless. Ferber started a GoFundMe to help Martin find a studio apartment and quickly raised nearly $4,000.

“Gone through a lot, days and days, 5,6,7, days without eating at times,” said Martin. ‘I look forward to it. It’s a new chapter. Fresh new start.”

With the funds collected by Ferber, Martin will move into a studio apartment on Wednesday. Martin adds the gift came just in time, as he celebrated his 67th birthday on Monday.

“It was my birthday and John pulled up,” said Martin. “He hit me with that big gift and never in my life has anybody been that forthcoming and gracious and hospitable, giving generous,” said Martin.

During his time in the streets, Martin suffered two heart attacks. Martin adds he was once a chef and hopes to get back to his craft.

“I hope to get the job and use what I’ve been using for 45-50 years as far as skill and knowledge and bring some value to a business,” said Martin.

For John, it’s only the beginning of his acts of kindness and his friendship with Peter. He hopes his good deed creates a domino effect in his community.

“Peter, I love you. I want the best for you. I believe in you. I know that this the first step to the best next year and the rest of your life,” said Ferber.

“I’m glad you’re not on that bench anymore and I’m here with you.”

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By Kristi Harper

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    BALTIMORE COUNTY, Maryland (WMAR) — David Knopp elevates the humble medium of plywood into beautiful functional sculpture, evoking the motion found in nature. The self-taught artist recently gave an inside look at his unique process that has garnered national attention.

“Wood? I love it. I love the saw dust flying, I love carving with the power tools,” Knopp said.

The functional sculptor started working with wood long ago, drawn to its versatility and potential for creative expression.

“It’s a pretty good material to work with ’cause there’s so many ways you can make it do what you want,” Knopp said.

For him, it was a natural step out of the cabinets and household items he’d make around the house.

“Basically building boxes and it got kind of boring…that isn’t how I made my living but it was kind of my side thing,” Knopp said.

That side hustle took a turn when he found a book about modern furniture making. Flipping through it he decided to give it a try.

“I got turned on to the idea of functional sculpture. Never took a sculpture course, so everything I learned is self trained,” Knopp said.

Picking up tools here and there, he developed a truly unique art form. That uniqueness comes from the very nature of his preferred medium.

“I got the idea of working with plywood. It’s pretty accessible. Pretty cheap. A good thing to experiment with,” Knopp said.

Starting with a basic sketch, he cuts a spine establishing the basic shape. Then he painstakingly adds layers outward, finding the fluid lines he’s looking for in the finished piece.

“A lot of sanding, a lot of time involved,” Knopp said.

He says early on he was influenced by what he saw in nature.

“Sometimes it could be something as simple as a certain tree growing a certain way, or a piece of driftwood I found. And I loved the way it had movement and contours of it,” Knopp said.

Eventually he began balancing the form of nature with the function of objects like lamps and tables.

In 2012, Knopp received a local artists award that led to big things and proved the level of uniqueness he had achieved.

“I want to tell you, you just won $25,000 and a show at the Baltimore Museum of Art. And I’m like ‘no way’. And at that point, you know, as we were talking she says, ‘I think you’re like an outsider.’ And I said alright, I’ll take that!” Knopp said.

Now, after an Instagram video posted to promote a talk he gave at Manor Mill in Monkton, his work has gone viral. Knopp says he’s not really looking to be an influencer.

“I think sometimes that’s an attraction to people when they see me, especially on social media, they probably say, look at this guy, he’s an older guy, and self trained, and look at what he can do, you know, I think people get inspired. So that’s good,” Knopp said.

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

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By Emma Romano , Michael Hoffman

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    OKEECHOBEE, Florida (WFTX) — An Okeechobee woman is facing attempted murder charges after police say she poisoned an 11-month-old child with antifreeze while babysitting in February.

Investigators say 59-year-old Anna Adamo was arrested in Georgia early this month and extradited to Florida. The baby survived, but investigators say they don’t know the extent of long-term damage.

WPTV’s Michael Hoffman was face-to-face with the accused as she was released from jail hours ago.

It was in February, behind the fence of a gated community in Okeechobee, where investigators say Adamo was babysitting an 11-month-old baby. When the child was picked up to be brought home, the parents noticed something was off.

Medical tests confirmed the worst: the baby had been poisoned with the toxic component found in antifreeze. The child went into critical condition and cardiac arrest for 10 minutes before medical providers could resuscitate the young baby.

The child is alive and recovering, but investigators say the extent of long-term injuries remains unknown.

“I was not surprised,” said Aiden, Adamo’s 23-year-old son.

He calls his mother cold, cruel and “even a monster.”

Aiden says he always felt singled out by his mother growing up, telling me he dreaded the time he had to be around her and used school as a safe space. He left the house at 15 after he said his parents had terminated their parental rights.

“That’s just unthinkable that somebody would do that,” Aiden said.

The details of the case, Aiden says, are shocking but not surprising. He says he wants to see her in prison.

“She should be in prison. I am glad that there is something in place to prevent her from watching children until she’s convicted,” Aiden said.

“The judicial process exists for a reason. And I’m just hoping that with everybody coming up on with all this evidence being brought to light, that she is convicted appropriately in prison what she deserves,” he said.

Investigators say Adamo was accused of similar crimes 11 years ago, but the charges were dropped.

Adamo is facing multiple charges, including attempted first-degree murder.

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

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By Victoria Quevedo

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    IMMOKALEE, Florida (WFTX) — Every person who sits in Junior Velasquez’s barber chair has a story, and so does the person behind it.

The 31-year-old owner of Limitless Barbershop in Immokalee turned childhood embarrassment over bad haircuts into a thriving business and a mission to give back to his community.

Looking back at yearbook pictures can bring mixed feelings. For Velasquez, those memories are filled with questionable haircuts by his mom that left him feeling self-conscious.

“It was not a funny like, it wasn’t like a cute picture, but I was like, you know, I’ll laugh about it in the beginning, it bothered me because it was like, it was a bad haircut,” Velasquez said.

At 17 years old, he vowed to be in control of his own head of hair. So he decided to learn the craft of the cut.

“It just started as just wanting to learn how to cut hair, to really in reality, to save money,” Velasquez said.

Velasquez started small, carrying a chair from neighbor to neighbor with an extension cord and a milk bucket for his tools. Now he owns his own barbershop, and the name reflects his philosophy.

“Limitless is pretty much in the name you know, be limitless. Don’t allow your struggles, the you know, the difficulties that you endure in life, to stop you from anything,” Velasquez said.

He doesn’t want anyone else to be limited either. Velasquez remembers receiving a $200 scholarship that helped him buy his first professional clippers. So this past May, he awarded his first scholarship to a graduate pursuing his same passion.

“My mission, giving back. I mean, making a difference, allowing planting those positive seeds into kids like myself when I was a kid… a haircut changes everything. You know it could be having a bad day. You have an amazing experience, especially a good haircut, changes your whole world,” Velasquez said.

Despite people who doubted him, Velasquez never gave up. His message to young people in Immokalee is simple.

“If you dream it and you really want it, you push yourself,” Velasquez said.

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

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By Carmela Karcher

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    LODI, California (KMAX, KOVR) — When retired Lodi teacher Rod Woznick picked up his mail, he received a package he wasn’t expecting.

That’s when he took a closer look at the sender’s name.

“I saw the name Brent Gentner, which kind of hit me,” Woznick explained. “I wasn’t quite sure, so I opened it, and that’s when I was surprised to see a book that he had basically borrowed 40 years ago.”

Inside was a geometry book Woznick used to hand out to students, along with a handwritten note.

“The note said, ‘Rod, I found this book which belongs to you. Thank you for letting me borrow it for the last 40 years. Sincerely, Brent Gentner,’ ” Woznick continued. “I was more shocked when I read the note, saying ‘I’ve had it for 40 years’ because you don’t realize how long the time has gone since you had contact with that person.”

So why did Gentner still have this book, and why did he send it back after all these years? CBS Sacramento asked him.

“I was kind of a nerd back then. I was interested in math and science and that kind of stuff. He had books students could check out,” Gentner said. “Eventually, I moved out to Florida. I moved all my stuff here, and it was still in boxes.”

Gentner eventually went through the boxes and found the book with Rod Woznick’s name printed on the first page.

“I was like, you know, I wonder if I mail it to him, what would happen?” Gentner shared. “I just thought it’d be kind of funny like, 40 years later!”

Even after all this time, Gentner still considered Woznick as one of his favorite teachers.

“He cared about his students,” he said. “He really knew what was going on with his students and if they were having a bad day or good day or whatever. He was great.”

A little book helped bring the student and teacher back together.

“It kind of makes you appreciate that a lot of things that you’ve done with kids in class, most of it is memories, but maybe there might be something that they have kept over the years,” Woznick said.

Gentner is now a software and electrical engineer in Florida.

Woznick hadn’t been able to get in touch with his former student to properly thank him for the, albeit, late return. CBS Sacramento was able to get them back in touch with one another, 40 years later.

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