Communities giving back, dust devils, stuck raccoons: This week's heartwarming, offbeat headlines
It's been a hard week. Here are some stories about people giving back to their community and extra-strong dust devils from May 21-27 that helped make our days a little brighter:
1. Chandler non-profit to provide rides for seniors who can't get around once again: For so many seniors in the community, simply going out shopping isn't possible, but thanks to a new gift, free rides our returning for many seniors in Chandler.
Chandler non-profit gets new van to help seniors get around
Neighbors Who Care has been providing rides for senior citizens who can't otherwise get around, but when the pandemic began, one of their vans broke down, and rides stopped. Now, thanks to help from Intel, rides are ready to start once again. FOX 10's Steve Nielsen reports.
2. Arizona burn survivors preparing to hike up Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa for a great Arizona cause: Burn survivors from the Phoenix area are getting ready to hike Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa, but before that, they trained by hiking something a bit closer: Piestewa Peak.
3. 'Restored my faith in community': Arizona mom asks for help on Nextdoor app to get special baby formula: The response has been overwhelming – with people even offering to drive around looking for the formula baby Aurora needs.
4. Georgia childhood cancer survivor becomes pediatric cancer nurse: A decade after staring down brain cancer, Julia York's life has come full circle. The 22-year-old recently graduated from UAB School of Nursing and will start her new job in July as a pediatric oncology nurse at Alabama Children's.
Julia York, 22, poses outside the UAB School of Nursing. (UAB School of Nursing)
5. Chandler girl scout earns big award for helping non-profit that helps those impacted by addiction: Besides winning the prestigious Gold Award, Megan Burke's project also benefits Hush-a-bye Nursery, a nonprofit that helps infants and moms impacted by opioid addiction.
6. Dust devil lifts trampoline over 50 feet into air, tosses it onto I-10 in Tucson: You've heard of securing your load, but now the Arizona Department of Public Safety has some new advice – secure your trampoline!
7. Crazy sight! Raccoon gets stuck face-first in Santa Cruz roof: Animal rescuers in Santa Cruz helped rescue a raccoon that was in an unusual situation.
8. Truck spews 15,000 pounds of hot dog filler across Pennsylvania highway: Highway crews in Pennsylvania were left with a slimy mess last week when a semi-truck carrying 15,000 pounds of hot dog filler crashed and spilled pink slime all over the interstate.
Hot dog filler spills onto Interstate 70 in Pennsylvania after a truck crash (Photo courtesy Rostraver Central Fire Department)
9. Remote-controlled crab-like robot is the smallest ever, university says: The robot resembles a tiny crab and measures just a half-millimeter wide. It can "bend, twist, crawl, walk, turn and even jump," according to a university news release.
Smaller than a flea, tiny robotic crab sits next to the eye of a sewing needle. (Northwestern University via Storyful)
10. 2022 monsoon season in Arizona expected to be above-normal – good news for state agriculture: The start of monsoon season is just three weeks away and experts say it could be a wet one as above-normal rainfall is being predicted for the southern half of Arizona.
