Category: CNN Regional

By Eric Hanson

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    SOUTH AFRICA (KCCI) — A group of women in Iowa is changing lives by sewing personal hygiene kits for South African girls, helping them stay in school and pursue their dreams.

Wanda Armstrong, a member of the group from Grimes, said, “We’ve been part of the group since 2016.” These kits are essential for many girls who lack access to basic menstrual supplies, which can lead to missing school. Wanda explained, “The girls would have to stay home and miss valuable education opportunities by being in schools.”

The group produces 200 kits annually, each packed with necessary supplies and instructions, providing not just materials but also confidence and a better chance at attending school.

“It gives you a really warm feeling that makes you feel great that Iowa is a part of something great that’s helping these girls stay in school and get an education,” Wanda said.

Every stitch serves a higher purpose, with kits packed into suitcases traveling halfway across the world. The kits end up in South Africa, where they are accompanied by lessons that change lives and keep girls in school.

In a classroom filled with 128 teenagers eager to learn, Hilda Chongani said, “Each and every one has a goal or a dream to want to be someone else when they grow up.”

When the girls discovered the hand-sewn gifts from Iowa were theirs, relief filled the room, and the Iowa women on a mission trip handed out the bags with hugs.

Mimi Kelly-Meyer from Indianola expressed the impact, saying, “And so to be here and support them in all of the knowledge and share supplies with them is really incredible.”

Jessica Lawson from Urbandale noted the shared experiences, saying, “And just to see the same teenage struggles. It’s the same exactly as we have back home.”

This project, based in love, is one of many ways Iowa is delivering generosity from Iowa to Africa.

KCCI’s Eric Hanson recently traveled to South Africa to cover dozens of efforts to provide clean water, healthy food and basic sanitation to children there. His This is Iowa special, From Iowa to Africa, airs Sunday, Feb. 22nd at 9pm on KCCI.

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 Pamela Comme

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    DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (WESH) — A day meant for family fun during Daytona 500 weekend turned into a close call for a teenager after a random attack left him seriously injured.

“We are so lucky our son’s alive. The doctor said if it would have been one millimeter deeper, we’d probably be having a different conversation,” said Jerod Clarke, the boy’s father.

The teen received 13 stitches after the attack Saturday night. Lori and Jerod Clarke said they were spending time on Ocean Avenue in Daytona Beach when a man approached their son.

“He had sort of a strange look in his eyes. And then he went up to my son, and I saw this motion, this, like motion. And I thought, oh, he’s stealing his phone,” Lori Clarke said.

The Clarkes quickly realized that was not the case. They said 44-year-old Jermaine Long targeted their son and cut his neck.

“It was crazy. I mean, I saw my son’s neck totally gashed open. I could see the meat in his neck. It was crazy,” Jerod Clarke said.

“It was absolutely horrifying. I was terrified. I couldn’t believe that could happen so quickly. And that anyone would do that,” Lori Clarke added.

When police arrived, they found Long and arrested him. He is charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.

After his arrest, the family said they learned Long is a registered sex offender with a criminal history involving drugs and battery.

The teen’s parents said he belongs behind bars.

“I want him locked up. And there’s no doubt in my mind he’ll do it again if he gets out,” Jerod Clarke said.

Despite the trauma, the teen still wanted to attend the race the following day. The family has since returned home to Delray Beach and is focused on his recovery while hoping for justice.

Long is being held at the Volusia County Branch Jail on a $50,000 bond.

WESH 2 recently reported that police plan to have a 24-hour patrol unit in the boardwalk area by April to increase safety.

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 Sarah Mankowitz

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    CAPE CORAL, Florida (WBBH) — The Cape Coral Fire Department’s team of rescue divers is rigorously trained to respond swiftly and effectively to emergencies involving vehicles in canals.

William Wood, a fire lieutenant and field training officer for the water rescue program, highlighted the prevalence of such incidents, saying, “There’s a lot of cars that end up in canals here in Cape Coral, more than probably people know.”

Wood explained the requirements for joining the dive team: “To be on the dive team, before you even apply, you have to have your open water and your rescue diver certifications through an outside agency.”

Wood described the initial steps in a rescue operation: “The first thing we want to do is search the driver’s side of the vehicle. The car got in there somehow.”

Once a victim is located, the team works to safely extricate them. Wood detailed the procedure, saying, “Once the window’s broken and the glass is cleared, the diver is going to go ahead and do a search without entering the car. For safety reasons, we don’t want our diver actually entering the vehicle. That way, in case they get entrapped, we don’t want to run into any situation where they need to be rescued.”

Preparation begins before arriving on the scene, with equipment prepackaged for quick deployment. The fire truck is designed specifically for rescue divers, featuring a specialty compartment for dive gear. Wood described, “We have a specialty compartment in the back that specific to holding our dive gear, whether it’s our communications, our spare bottles, any other type of dive equipment that we might carry.”

The training is ongoing. Wood explained, “Our divers are required to do two training dives a year, and we alternate between night dives and boat days.”

The importance of training was shown by a tragic incident in April 2024 in Riviera Beach, where a man died after crews attempted to rescue him from a car in a canal.

An independent review found the firefighters lacked training and made several mistakes, including breaking a window before the car was secured, which caused the car to sink.

Wood warned, “Without the proper training, you know, we might put ourselves in a situation where we become a victim as well.”

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 Meghan Mosley

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    OKLAHOMA CITY (KOCO) — A woman is grieving the loss of her fiancé after he was shot and killed earlier this month at a southwest Oklahoma City apartment complex.

Police said Brentley Joseph Mueller, 42, was shot on Feb. 6 at an apartment complex on South Pennsylvania Avenue near Southwest 36th Street. He was taken to an area hospital, where he later died.

“He helped me do everything. He was my best friend, my partner, my soul mate, and we just did everything together,” Mueller’s fiancé, Thelisa Sparks, said. “I just remember holding him in my arms, crying and telling him, ‘You gotta breathe. Look at me.’ And he locked eyes with me and he’s trying to take his last breath, and it was so freaking hard.”

The two were set to get married in April after years together through ups and downs. Sparks told KOCO 5 that the last six months marked a new chapter.

“He got a job. He really was giving his all to change his life around, and I think that’s the hardest part. You change your life around, and then your life is just taken out of nowhere,” she said.

Instead of planning a wedding, Sparks is planning Mueller’s funeral.

“He helped me do everything. He was my best friend, my partner, my soul mate. And we just did everything together,” she said.

With all their money going toward the wedding, Sparks finds herself in a bind and created a GoFundMe to help pay for funeral expenses. Anyone who would like to donate can do so here.

“I just want him to come home, and I know he’s not. I know he’s not gonna come home,” Sparks 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 Mindy Basara

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    ABINGDON, Maryland (WBAL) — An Abingdon couple is dealing with something so painful, it’s difficult for them to put into words.

Instead of celebrating their twins’ gender reveal, Paris Singleton-Ajaero and her husband, John Ajaero, are fighting to bring their babies’ bodies back from a foreign country.

“I just want to be able to hold my children, just be able to see them and have them in my presence,” Ajaero told WBAL-TV 11 News.

It all started with the best intentions — a joyous trip for Singleton-Ajaero and her mother, Delores Singleton, before the arrival of the couple’s babies, J.J. and Journey Rose.

Singleton-Ajaero was 21 weeks pregnant and was cleared by her doctor to travel. So, on on Feb. 1, she and her mother boarded a ship for a gospel cruise from Tampa, Florida, to Cozumel, Mexico.

“But we never made it there,” Singleton-Ajaero told WBAL-TV 11 News.

Less than a day into the trip, a nightmare began.

“It was around 3:30 a.m. when things went completely south,” Singleton-Ajaero said. “I wasn’t even processing what was happening.”

Singleton-Ajaero was in pre-term labor and delivered J.J. on the ship. He lived for about an hour.

“They called me around 4:30. I somehow woke up to get the call and found out about the birth of my son. I was able to see my son through Facetime, luckily,” Ajaero told WBAL-TV 11 News.

Over the next 12 hours, Singleton-Ajaero lay in the ship’s infirmary completely still, fighting to keep Journey alive.

“They basically told me, ‘Don’t move, don’t cry.’ Basically, I couldn’t do anything. They didn’t want me to use any abdominal muscles. They wanted to prevent another birth on the cruise, so I just laid in this one spot, on my left side, for the duration of it,” Singleton-Ajaero told WBAL-TV 11 News.

Singleton-Ajaero’s own condition was dire as she needed a blood transfusion. But they were in the middle of the ocean.

Finally, a boat arrived to transport her.

“They lowered me down with a crane, and the boat was bobbing around,” Singleton-Ajaero said. “I didn’t know what was going to happen. It was very scary. I just remember it being dark outside and somewhat rainy.”

Singleton-Ajaero was transferred to another boat and then to an ambulance.

“Everyone was speaking a different language, so there was also a communication barrier,” Singleton-Ajaero said.

By the time she arrived at a hospital in Cancun, 16 hours passed since her ordeal began. She learned at the hospital that her daughter did not survive.

The hospital staff demanded payment up front before agreeing to treat Singleton-Ajaero.

“It was supposed to be a $5,000 promissory payment, but I think, at one point, it was trying to be increased to $10,000,” Singleton-Ajaero told WBAL-TV 11 News.

If an upfront payment sounds fishy, it’s actually standard practice at medical facilities overseas. In fact, a provider could deny care and/or confiscate the traveler’s passport until they’re paid.

And, for those trying to get insurance reimbursements back home, keep in mind, international claims are often considered out-of-network or are not covered at all.

Also, most standard American insurance plans don’t cover medical evacuation, nor do they pay for a patient’s return to the U.S. for treatment.

For all those benefits, travelers would need to purchase separate medical travel insurance. The couple wishes they had known that, and they encourage others to protect themselves.

“Research every avenue before you travel,” Ajaero said.

While Singleton-Ajaero made it safely home after a few days, the nightmare is far from over. Not only are she and her husband dealing with overwhelming medical bills, their babies remain in Cancun. The funeral home wants more than $12,000 to return J.J. and Journey to Maryland. The family has set up a GoFundMe to raise the necessary funds to bring the babies home.

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 Krista Tatschl

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    OLATHE, Kansas (KMBC) — Ninety-four-year-old Korean War veteran Rex Comley of Olathe has some stories to tell.

“Maybe I’m just a big mouth. I like to talk.”

A spectacled Comley, his face brimming with a constant ear-to-ear smile, remembers most of his three years as a U.S. Marine Corps sergeant from 1951 to 1954.

At 19 years old, he and several friends decided to enlist but did not know which military branch to join.

He says, “We only chose the Marines because the line was the shortest.”

Comley was a machine gunner with the Weapons Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division.

He muscled around a 1917 A-1 30-caliber weapon up and down the mountains of central and South Korea. His position hugged the 38th Parallel.

He says of being a target for Korean mortar rounds, “They would put a round in front of you, one behind you, and the third was right in your lap.”

In 1952, a round slammed into his position.

“The whole jacket of the machine gun was torn up, and it picked me up and set me back in the bunker about ten feet. That’s when they carried me back off the lines, and I got hit around the face. It tore this eyelid plumb down back, and they said it pitted my face. I don’t know how I figured that, but they said like 13 or 14 pieces of small shrapnel,” Comley recalls.

He was out of the military hospital and back at his position only days later.

To this day, he still has shrapnel in his face. Such injuries and battlefield mettle are worthy of a medal of a different kind — a Purple Heart.

But, due to suspected lost paperwork, the award never made it to Comley.

Enter Don Puchalla.

Puchalla’s recycle and trash bin cleaning business frequently brings him to Comley’s neighborhood.

About six months ago, Puchalla was wearing a U.S. Marine Corps cap outside Comley’s home. Comley spotted the hat and shouted to his wife, Mary, “Mary we got a Devil Dog out here!”

(“Devil Dog” is a nickname for those who are U.S. Marines.)

Puchalla quickly corrected him, saying, “No, sir, I’m not a Marine. My son was a Marine…he is guarding the streets of heaven.”

Puchalla’s son, Gabriel, died on active duty in the Marine Corps. From that moment on, both men say they became fast friends who shared stories.

During one of those conversations, Comley mentioned he was injured in Korea, and Puchalla asked about his Purple Heart. Comley said, “I don’t have one.”

Puchalla says it became his mission to help get that award pinned to Comley’s lapel.

After enlisting the help of many local agencies that assist veterans for several months, a ceremony was scheduled for Feb. 15 to give Comley his long-overdue Purple Heart.

Puchalla says through tears, “I just think it’s really important not to forget…my son would be saying, ‘Heck yeah, Dad! We got to do this!'”

The presentation ceremony was held at the American Legion Post in Overland Park and was attended by dozens of relatives, friends and veterans.

Comley’s wife of 65 years, Mary, expressed, “I’m happy that he’s getting it, really. He deserves it.”

She humorously wondered, “If he goes first, then I have another bad decision, who gets it?”

Comley responded, “We got a lot of grandkids.”

As the Purple Heart was pinned to the left side of Comley’s jacket, he uttered a quiet, “Thank you very much,” to which the room responded with a standing ovation.

Reflecting on his service, Comley said, “I don’t remember the bad times, I remember the good times.”

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 Adam Schumes

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    INDIANAPOLIS (WRTV) — A man was caught red-handed stealing catalytic converters from cars in an east Indianapolis lot, and police say he came back for more on the same day.

Stephen Schauf says he discovered the suspect under one of his vehicles at a storage lot near East 11th Street, actively removing a catalytic converter.

“I get over there, he’s back up under there… coming out from under the car with the catalytic converter,” Schauf said.

According to court documents, the suspect was first confronted and told to leave, but returned later and allegedly stole four catalytic converters and several sets of tires worth about $2,500.

“I threatened him to say, ‘Hey, you need to put that down…’ He said some guy dropped him off in a red truck and told him he could get parts off these vehicles,” Schauf said.

Investigators say the man was later identified as Michael Gray after photos were taken of him under one of the vehicles during the theft. Court records show there is an active warrant out for his arrest.

For Schauf and the lot’s owner, this wasn’t an isolated incident. Schauf says he’s been noticing thefts at least once or twice a week.

“People don’t steal catalytic converters unless they got an outlet to sell them, so somebody’s still buying them. So that’s the biggest problem. People are still buying them from people that don’t have legal documentation of the catalytic converter belonging to them,” Schauf said.

The frustration extends beyond just one suspect for Schauf, who says replacing converters can cost hundreds of dollars that people often never recover.

“Well, they need to go out and get a job. Work like I work. Work like they work. These people earn their money to pay for things like that. They take it for granted,” Schauf 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.