Category: CNN Regional

By Meredith Hackler

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    INDIANAPOLIS (WRTV) — Hundreds of Hoosier students filled the Indiana Statehouse on Monday, determined to make their voices heard on issues affecting young people, with bullying at the forefront for many of them.

The youth-led advocacy event brought together students from across the state. On colorful Post-it notes, they wrote messages and concerns ranging from school safety to mental health, but bullying was a recurring theme.

“When a place that’s meant to be safe becomes a place that starts to break you, you start to believe the problem is you,” said Jakiah Brown, a high school sophomore, speaking to a room full of peers.

Brown shared that when she was 11 years old, she spent eight days in the hospital due to mental health struggles she said were caused by relentless bullying, and that those responsible faced no consequences. She said she tried to report it, but was met with not much action.

“I reached out multiple times, and I didn’t get the answer I wanted or needed, and we see that often in schools where a kid will reach out to a teacher or a counselor, and it will be heard but not taken care of in the right way,” Brown said.

Brown now works with the Parent Coalition for Child Safety & Wellness, and its Speak Our Truth Project, which urges lawmakers to strengthen protections for bullied students. The organization says it has been advocating at the state level for about four years.

“Even in approaching this the right way in the democratic process, we are not getting anywhere,” said Rachel Van Alstine, a parent and coalition member.

This year, the group supported two bills:

House Bill 1093, which would have redefined bullying in state code to make it more reportable

House Bill 1107, which would have required each school district to create a local bullying prevention committee and allowed families to take unresolved cases to the state

Neither bill received a hearing.

“What we are finding is because there is no recourse beyond a district, there is a lot of internal retaliation, there is a lot of internal silencing that happens within school districts, both to the child and parent trying to speak their truth,” Van Alstine said.

Advocates say that’s why student testimony like Brown’s is so crucial.

“Every story matters, every voice deserves to be heard,” Brown said.

According to the Indiana Youth Institute, which tracks child welfare in the state, youth suicides rose from 143 to 152 in 2023. The latest numbers are still being compiled.

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 7 News WHDH

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    SHIRLEY, Massachusetts (WHDH) — After the recent winter storms, one man in Shirley decided to have some fun with all the snow left behind and build a massive snowman for his daughter to enjoy.

Eric Aalerud, who built the snowman, said he used his snow blower to pile up all the snow 20-feet high. He said the base of the snowman is 21-feet across.

“I’m not an artist by any means, I don’t even have good penmanship,” said Aalerud. “I’m a snowman artist if you want to say that!”

Aalerud said he also built a giant snowman last winter, but this one is five feet taller. He said his creation is gaining a lot of attention from people across the area.

“Every five to 10 minutes after we first made the thing, there’d be a car out here stopped,” said Aalerud.

“We got close and it was gigantic. We’ve never seen one this size, so we had to stop and take a picture,” said Mary Whitaker, who spotted the snowman.

The snowman is named “Parker” after the road he lives on. He and his wife said the massive undertaking was a labor of love.

“I was very sore,” Aalerud said. “And I’m an electrician and I flip houses, too. And I will say, I was more sore doing this than anything I’ve done in the last five, 10 years. I don’t think she knows, but I can’t wait to show her this when she’s a little older, you know, we’re on the news!”

With more snow possibly on the way, forecasters say Parker likely won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.

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 Tory Wegerski, Meghan Schiller

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    ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pennsylvania (KDKA) — When a property falls into disrepair — whether through abandonment, a neglectful landlord, or the owner can’t keep up — neighbors start to worry about the impact on their community.

Allegheny County has mostly relied on violation notices and liens to pressure property owners to take care of issues. However, an update to the county’s housing standards means the county can hire someone to solve the problem and stick the owner with the bill.

The Allegheny County Health Department says it’s mostly focused on property issues that create risky conditions for a community. That includes abandoned pools becoming mosquito breeding grounds or knee-high grass and weeds becoming a playground for rodents.

With this update, once a property owner has ignored multiple violation notices, the county will hire a contractor to solve the problem.

“That fine does not help that neighbor or that tenant,” said Tim Murphy with the Allegheny County Health Department. “That fine is not getting the mice out of the kitchen. It’s not turning the water back on. They want the problem solved.”

“We can do civil penalty enforcement,” he added. “We find that most of the time, that does do the trick. But having this process laid out for this additional nuisance abatement, we think that’s going to be very helpful.”

Ultimately, he says the county doesn’t expect they’ll have to use the nuisance abatement procedures too often because right now, before they’ve really started using the process, very few property owners don’t solve the problem with some pressure.

Ultimately, the goal isn’t fining owners. It’s about removing a public health hazard. Previously, KDKA has reported on cases in Allegheny County where landlords don’t address issues despite racking up tens of thousands of dollars in fines.

If you live in Allegheny County and there’s a property with public health hazards in your neighborhood, the health department wants to hear from you. The number to report a violation is 412-350-4046, and there is an online complaint form.

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 Wakisha Bailey

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    PHILADELPHIA (KYW) — Grandfamilies, when grandparents step in to raise their grandchildren, often happen unexpectedly without a roadmap.

In North Philadelphia, a group of grandmothers is making sure no one has to do it alone.

When you think of grandparents, your heart softens. But for some families, it also means starting over.

Grands As Parents Inc., aka GAP, supports grandparents who take on the role of parent when their children can’t.

Joan Hughes and Juanita Cox have been friends for more than 50 years. For 30 of those years, they’ve been part of GAP.

“She brought me here, and I have been here ever since,” Hughes said

Cox isn’t just a member — she’s also a grandmother who adopted two of her grandsons.

She said when their parents struggled with addiction, she had to quit her job to care for the boys.

“I had low income and I had to quit my job to take care of these babies. I needed extra food because it was only me,” Cox said.

Organizers said stories like Cox’s are not rare. A recent report says nearly 30% of grandparents in Philadelphia are now serving as guardians — and that’s why support matters.

“Grandparents are on a fixed income. Maybe there’s not enough food for everyone, toiletries, money, but they make it work,” Marcia Abdul-Malik said.

GAP started in 1996 with just three women. Today, it’s a place where grandparents can find resources — and one another.

“Keeping kids off the streets, they start looking forward to coming to GAP,” Hughes said.

For grandparents who have spent a lifetime caring for others, GAP wants them to know they don’t have to carry the load alone.

“Don’t be afraid, just come on down,” Cox said. “We all need help at one time or another.”

GAP provides food, clothing, housing support and legal resources for grandparents raising their grandchildren. The organization relies on community support and is preparing for a Mother’s Day fundraiser to continue the work.

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 Vanessa Murdock

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    CRANFORD, New Jersey (WCBS) — Life in one New Jersey town just got a whole lot sweeter. A man crafted a Good Humor truck out of snow and even sells ice cream out of it for a great cause.

Robert Schott serves up happiness from his front lawn in Cranford, where he parked his truck, which is 99% made out of snow.

Complete with headlights, rims, and a front seat to sit and enjoy, say, a toasted almond, the 1953 Chevy model is “OHSOGOOD,” according to its license plate.

Back then, a Good Humor bar cost only 13 cents, but Schott is selling them for $5 because all profits benefit the Children’s Specialized Hospital Foundation, which is based in Mountainside. Schott’s friend, Charlie Newman, received care there. Schott’s father, Joseph, who is now just days away from his 104th birthday, spent time doing science experiments and playing games with patients.

“In the 1960s and 1970s, I volunteered there,” Joseph Schott said. “I loved it and I’d like to think they enjoyed seeing me.”

Many people stopped by Monday to appreciate the snow incognito, but the grand opening happened Friday evening. Neighbor Lisa Hunt helped bring the event to life and said the line wrapped around the corner.

“When everybody showed up and Robert was standing there, I thought this is what we did it for,” Hunt said.

Since that grand opening, Schott has raised more than $5,000 for Children’s Specialized Hospital Foundation.

On line were some of the children being cared for at Children’s Specialized Hospital.

“The delight the kids were getting — kids with really difficult challenges in their lives and the parents who put so much out to care for their children — that got to my heart,” Robert Schott 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.

WCBS

By Vanessa Murdock

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    CRANFORD, New Jersey (WCBS) — Life in one New Jersey town just got a whole lot sweeter. A man crafted a Good Humor truck out of snow and even sells ice cream out of it for a great cause.

Robert Schott serves up happiness from his front lawn in Cranford, where he parked his truck, which is 99% made out of snow.

Complete with headlights, rims, and a front seat to sit and enjoy, say, a toasted almond, the 1953 Chevy model is “OHSOGOOD,” according to its license plate.

Back then, a Good Humor bar cost only 13 cents, but Schott is selling them for $5 because all profits benefit the Children’s Specialized Hospital Foundation, which is based in Mountainside. Schott’s friend, Charlie Newman, received care there. Schott’s father, Joseph, who is now just days away from his 104th birthday, spent time doing science experiments and playing games with patients.

“In the 1960s and 1970s, I volunteered there,” Joseph Schott said. “I loved it and I’d like to think they enjoyed seeing me.”

Many people stopped by Monday to appreciate the snow incognito, but the grand opening happened Friday evening. Neighbor Lisa Hunt helped bring the event to life and said the line wrapped around the corner.

“When everybody showed up and Robert was standing there, I thought this is what we did it for,” Hunt said.

Since that grand opening, Schott has raised more than $5,000 for Children’s Specialized Hospital Foundation.

On line were some of the children being cared for at Children’s Specialized Hospital.

“The delight the kids were getting — kids with really difficult challenges in their lives and the parents who put so much out to care for their children — that got to my heart,” Robert Schott 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 Kristen Skovira

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    CINCINNATI (WCPO) — Girls flag football is one of the fastest-growing high school sports in the country, and this spring it reaches a major milestone: it becomes an official varsity sport in Ohio.

At the center of that growth is Badin High School, home of the reigning Ohio girls flag football state champions. What started as a brand-new program quickly turned into a title run — and a blueprint for schools across the state.

For players Bella Heile and Lexi Brecht, last season began with uncertainty.

“Everyone kind of doubted us at the beginning of the year,” Heile said. “Then we came out and kind of proved everyone wrong. Everyone started being excited — it was this whole Cincinnati thing.”

That excitement wasn’t just local. Professional football organizations like the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns reached out to Ohio high schools, encouraging them to form girls flag football teams and offering resources to get started.

Watch to learn more about the program and its growing popularity:

Badin head coach Mike Sebastian, a basketball coach by trade, had to learn the sport from scratch.

“First thing was Google,” Sebastian said. “We had to learn everything. The Bengals did a great job with trainings, and there was NFL material we had access to that really helped.”

That crash course paid off quickly. Badin surged all the way to the 2025 state championship — and won.

“All in one season,” Sebastian said. “It was incredible. We actually ran an illegal play on our very first play. So yeah, we had a lot to figure out.”

Flag football’s appeal goes beyond trophies. Players say it’s a sport where speed, agility and effort matter more than size.

“You don’t have to be the biggest or the strongest,” Brecht said. “It’s about speed, agility and wanting to play.”

That accessibility is driving explosive growth statewide. Ohio had fewer than 20 girls flag football teams in the early 2020s. By last season, that number climbed to around 80, and projections show more than 160 varsity teams could be competing in the near future.

“We were at about 20 teams last year,” Sebastian said. “And it looks like they’re doubling that this year.”

The momentum doesn’t stop at high school. Girls flag football has now been added to the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program, officially placing it on the pathway toward becoming a full NCAA championship sport. That move opens the door to college teams, scholarships and national competition — opportunities that didn’t exist just a few years ago.

For Heile and Brecht, the message to others considering the sport is simple.

“Just get out and try,” Heile said. “There’s bound to be something you’re good at if you really want to.”

This story was reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Scripps editorial team 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 Marielle Mohs

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    MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — A young southern Twin Cities metro snowboarder is proving nothing will stop her from competing in the sport she loves.

Thirteen-year-old Brynn Rux is typically one of only a few girls taking on the terrain at Buck Hill in Burnsville, Minnesota.

“It took a lot of overcoming mental blocks and just being comfortable just being in the park with older people,” Rux said.

She picked up the passion at just 2 years old. Her training and goals were on track as a national competitor until back and shoulder pain started slowing her down.

“I knew it was getting worse, but thought it was probably just pain from snowboarding,” Rux said.

Her mom, Stefanie, brought her in to a doctor and when the X-rays came back, they were shocked to find a 56-degree curve in her spine.

“Even seeing her X-ray, it looked like it was broken. It didn’t even look like scoliosis. It didn’t look like anything I had seen before,” Stefanie said.

Last summer, Rux underwent surgery to correct her congential scholiosis. It’s something Dr. Joseph Perra, a spine surgeon at Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare, said was important to do while Rux was still young.

“Doing it a little bit earlier allows us to get a greater degree of correction,” Perra said.

Surgery required using two rods to straighten Rux’s spine. It’s a recovery that typically takes an entire year, but Rux was back on the slopes within five to six months.

“I know that I’ve gone through this really hard thing and nothing is probably going to be scarier than what I just went through,” said Rux. “If I can do this, I can do anything.”

Perra credits three decades of technological advances for Rux’s speedy recovery.

“(35 years ago) we would never let them go back to this level of sport or this quickly,” Perra said.

The surgery even improved her skills on the slopes.

“Some of the mechanics and physics in what she’s doing, it’s easier now than it was before,” said Stefanie.

Rux is more driven than ever, with her sights set on four years from now.

“That’s where I want to be, like the Olympic level or the world competitions,” Rux 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 Najahe Sherman

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    MIAMI (WFOR) — February is National Cancer Prevention Month, and one South Florida teenager and her friend have teamed up to make sure women in their home country of Ukraine get the necessary breast cancer screenings despite the ongoing war in Ukraine.

For Isabel Gurvitch, starting the non-profit MammogramMe was personal.

Her mother is a breast cancer survivor.

Her family relocated to Miami from Ukraine to escape the war, but she realized many women in her home country aren’t able to take the preventive steps needed to protect their health.

“So, we started MammogramMe to remind women, ‘Hey, you guys need to check yourselves.’ There are things that can kill you in your own body, and we are helping women now in Ukraine get mammograms,” said Gurvitch.

Isabel Gurvitch and her best friend, Mahika Jassal, who now lives in Poland, started a partnership with one of the biggest hospitals in Ukraine, Adonis.

“We send the money to Adonis, and then Adonis will provide the mammograms. Over the last three years, we’ve done over 200 mammograms,” said Gurvitch.

Mahika Jassal FaceTimed us from Warsaw, Poland, where she leads a MammogramMe chapter.

“I go to the American School of Warsaw, and so we established a chapter there, and we have a club with over 35 members. When we give every round of mammograms, and we see the women whose lives we’ve touched, it just really feels like our work has an impact, and it always feels good to see we’re able to help them in some way,” said Jassal.

The movement has taken off, the ladies now have five chapters that help raise money.

“I’m beyond proud. These girls are amazing and they did it all on their own,” said Anna Gurvitch, Isabel’s mother.

“You’re 17-years-old. Where does this drive come from?” asked CBS News Miami.

“It comes from personal experience, from my mom and having to leave a country I called home. It’s a lot of hurt that I turned into grit, so other women don’t have to go through it,” said Gurvitch.

The ladies have big plans for the future of the non-profit.

Their next goal is to raise enough money so they can help provide cancer treatment for women in Ukraine who can’t afford lifesaving care.

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.