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Northboro superintendent rescinds ban on Halloween in schools

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:25:57 GMT

Get the spooky lights and candy ready! Elementary students in Northboro will be allowed to dress up as Power Rangers and princesses, and listen to the Monster Mash, at school this Halloween after all.Superintendent Gregory Martineau has agreed not to be a goblin as he’s decided to bring back the popular Halloween parade this year. The reverse of course comes after he initially decided to ban all spooky-related activities due to them not aligning with his district’s “core values of equity and inclusion.”“The principals and I have taken the time to read the emails from Northboro parents and citizens,” Martineau said in a letter Friday. “With the feedback we received, we recognize that, with this decision, the district did not seek input and share its process with families. … As a result, the principals and I have decided to hold Halloween parades at each Northboro elementary school.”There will be some changes to how festivities are held, Martineau said. The parade will shift to the fi...

Two Chilliwack plane crash victims identified as pilots in training from India

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:25:57 GMT

Two of the three people killed in Friday’s plane crash near the Chilliwack airport have been identified in reports from Indian media outlets.Reports say Abhay Gadru and Yash Vijay Ramugade were both Indian nationals from Mumbai who were training to become pilots when their plane, a Piper Seneca, crashed near the Chilliwack Motor Inn around 2 p.m.Related story: 3 people killed in plane crash near Chilliwack airportThe plane is owned by SkyQuest Aviation, a flight school based in Langley. SkyQuest told CityNews it is investigating what happened, but declined to comment any further.The Indian consulate has confirmed with CityNews that it was contacted by RCMP Friday night, and an official with the consulate says they are now working to get the bodies back to India. The official added it was contacted by a family member of one of the victims late Friday night. The official says the consulate will have more information on Monday.Meantime, Chilliwack RCMP say they are investigating ...

Powerful earthquake and aftershocks kill dozens and injure many more in western Afghanistan

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:25:57 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A powerful magnitude-6.3 earthquake followed by strong aftershocks killed dozens of people in western Afghanistan on Saturday, the country’s national disaster authority said.The United Nations gave a preliminary figure of 320 dead, but later said the figure was still being verified. Local authorities gave an estimate of 100 people killed and 500 injured, according to the same update from the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. The update also said 465 houses had been reported destroyed and a further 135 were damaged. “Partners and local authorities anticipate the number of casualties to increase as search and rescue efforts continue amid reports that some people may be trapped under collapsed buildings,” the U.N. said.Disaster authority spokesperson Mohammad Abdullah Jan said four villages in the Zenda Jan district in Herat province bore the brunt of the quake and aftershocks. The United States Geological Survey said the quake’s epi...

Center for Native Futures aims to honor past, while building future for indigenous peoples

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:25:57 GMT

CHICAGO — The Center for Native Futures Gallery officially opened earlier this month and features the work of contemporary Native American artists that focus on honoring the past, while emphasizing the future for indigenous peoples in America.Found near West Adams and South Dearborn Street in the Loop, the center is run by Debra Yepa-Pappan, one of the facility's co-founders who previously worked at the Field Museum."These are all depictions of pottery," Yepa-Pappan said while walking around the center. "[These] have been at the field museum for 100 years on public displays in one of the older exhibitions." Chicago City Council votes to raise tipped worker minimum wage Yepa-Pappan said her work at the center is directed toward confronting and challenging the colonial practices of American institutions."I call this a visual repatriation," Yepa-Pappan said. "I can’t take those physical items out of the museum, but I can rescue their essence."Fellow co-founder and artist Monica Ricke...

What are these huge mounds growing in Ohio yards?

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:25:57 GMT

LAKEWOOD, Ohio (WJW) — Odd-looking growths as big as basketballs are sprouting up in yards all over Northeast Ohio — but what are they?The ball of brown mushrooms, named armillaria, thrive in wet conditions. "We had a lot of rain and torrential downpours over the summer leaving the ground soggy for long periods of time creating perfect conditions for fungus growth like all of these huge mushrooms and there's a lot more of them this year," said Matt Misenik from Cahoon Nursery in Westlake. What are the scariest non-horror movies? Armillaria mushrooms sprout in early fall when the ground gets more damp, but this year there's extra dampness in the ground in many places from excessive summer rain. This type of mushroom starts growing underground in wet tree roots that are "diseased, decaying or dead," urban forester Larry Figart told Fox 8 News.Lakewood resident Patty McLaughlin told Fox 8 News her yard was covered with the "massive mushrooms" so she dug them up because they were unsi...

State of Texas: Third special session set to focus on 'education freedom', border security

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:25:57 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s agenda for the third special session for the 88th Legislature lays out what he wants lawmakers to tackle. It includes items hinted at for months, as well as a few surprises. Border security, ‘education freedom’ top Abbott’s special session call; teacher pay absent The first item he labeled “Education Freedom.” The agenda specifically calls for lawmakers to provide legislation for education savings accounts. The governor has called on Texans to contact their state representative to advocate for “school choice.” While we don’t know what any bill would look like, opponents of the idea claim this is just the “school voucher” plan talked about for decades wrapped in new branding. In September, the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) and Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA) met for their annual convention in Dallas. They affirmed they will oppose any plan that means less money for public schools.“We're not interested in comp...

Twins never lead, drop Game 1 of ALDS to Astros

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:25:57 GMT

HOUSTON — It must have been a relief for the Twins, when, after watching future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander shut them down for six innings, he didn’t emerge from the first-base dugout to begin the top of the seventh.The Twins used their new-found opportunity against the Astros’ bullpen to make things interesting, putting up four runs in a hurry. But against an experienced Astros team, the Twins could never pull even after the first pitch out of Bailey Ober’s hand in the first inning landed in the Crawford Boxes in left field.After a double play squashed the Twins’ first-inning opportunity against Verlander, Jose Altuve’s home run set an early tone in a 6-4 loss in Game 1 of the American League Division Series.In each of the first three innings, the Twins had the leadoff runner on base. But big double plays in both the first and second innings let Verlander off the hook and the Twins could do nothing with an Edouard Julien leadoff double an inning later. From there, Verlander sett...

Area college football: Johnnies’ Aaron Syverson passes for 498 yards, five TDs to top Concordia (Moorhead)

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:25:57 GMT

Aaron Syverson had a football game to remember in a 42-23 St. John’s victory over Concordia (Moorhead) on Saturday at Clemens Stadium in Collegeville, Minn.Syverson, the Johnnies’ veteran quarterback, completed 44 of 60 passes for 498 yards and five touchdowns. He had a 170.6 quarterback rating as he completed 73.3 percent of his throws to eight different receivers.His main targets were Nick Vanerp, who had eight receptions for 147 yards and two TDs; Alex Larson, who had 13 catches for 124 yards and one TD; Dylan Wheeler, who finished with 10 receptions for 109 yards; and Marselio Mendez, who had four catches for 50 yards and two TDs.Concordia’s Cooper Mattern had a big game, too, completing 23 of 45 passes for 254 yards and two TDs.Carleton 33. St. Olaf 31Marcus Merkelbach kicked a 30-yard field goal with 23 seconds left in the game as the unbeaten Knights rallied to edge the rival Oles in Northfield, Minn. Next up for Carleton is its biggest game of the season, a...

Down dozens of DJs, KDHX board president addresses mass departures

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:25:57 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Dozens of volunteer DJs who started the year with KDHX 88.1 FM are no longer involved with the community radio station. At least 13 have been dismissed, and many others have quit or gone on strike in recent weeks. Gary Pierson, the president of the KDHX Community Media Board of Directors, shared a statement Saturday morning addressing recent departures. Shared via Facebook, Pierson claims longtime radio show host Tom “Papa” Ray was fired in February due to "a long-standing pattern of bullying, aggression, and harassment." Ray was the first of many former KDHX DJs fired this year, followed by two more in August and 10 in September. Security guard charged in man’s shooting death at Ferguson gas station Pierson contends this decision has encouraged other volunteer DJs, also known as associates, to "intimidate, harass, and threaten current volunteers and their families, staff and board members." He adds that this has transpired as associates have "demanded" Ray to return ...

Security guard charged in man's shooting death at Ferguson gas station

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:25:57 GMT

FERGUSON, Mo. - A security guard fatally shot a gunman at a Ferguson gas station overnight after an argument led to an exchange of gunfire. The security guard now faces criminal charges. The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office has issued charges of voluntary manslaughter and armed criminal action against Maury Adams, according to an update Saturday from the Fergsuon Police Department. Adams was arrested and is being held in the St. Louis County Justice Center on a $50,000 cash-only bond. Which St. Louis County suburbs have grown most over the past decade? The shooting happened around 1:30 a.m. at a Ferguson QuikTrip in the 10000 block of West Florissant Avenue. Investigators have not yet disclosed the identity of the suspect involved. The Ferguson Police Department says the incident unfolded shortly after the suspect tried to make a purchase, and there was "an apparent disagreement over required identification for the transaction." The suspect left, then quickly return...