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Annual Ducky Derby raises nearly $600K for Special Olympics Illinois

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:42:35 GMT

CHICAGO — The annual "Ducky Derby" raised nearly $600,000 for Special Olympics Illinois last week, which broke a record for the event.Crowds gathered along the Chicago River downtown Thursday to watch and see which rubber ducky made it to Michigan Avenue first. People paid $5 a duck to be part of the fun and 100,000 ducks were up for “adoption” this year. The derby is a signature event for Special Olympics Illinois and one of its largest fundraisers of the year.In 2022, the event raised over $431,000. This year broke the record with nearly $600,000 raised and donations are still processing.2023 Ducky Derby, courtesy Special Olympics Illinois“We are humbled by the outpouring response from the community,” says Dave Breen, President & CEO, Special Olympics Illinois. “The Chicago Ducky Derby is not possible without the unwavering support from the city of Chicago, our donors, the community, our sponsors, all the staff and volunteers, and participants. The success of this event is a t...

Zoning changes could make way for more music venues, creative spaces around Austin

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:42:35 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – City of Austin is moving to make it easier for music venues and creative spaces to open in more parts of the city and not just confined to certain areas, like downtown. The initiative aims to help relieve some rent and displacement pressure by making relevant zoning changes. Currently, in many parts of the city, music venues are treated as bars or cocktail lounges, said Donald Jackson with the Economic Development Department. “We have kind of an older zoning code that makes it difficult to do a lot of creative spaces and venue-type operations in different parts of the city,” Jackson said. “One of the things we've been working on for a long time – and that [the City Council] has been pushing for a long time – is to try and revise some of those [zoning hurdles] to make it easier for music venues and creative spaces to operate in more parts of the city,” he continued. The main goal of the initiative as it relates to music venues is to expand the zones where mu...

Minnesota, other states that protect transgender health care now try to absorb demand

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:42:35 GMT

By JEFF McMILLAN and HANNAH SCHOENBAUM (Associated Press)States that declared themselves refuges for transgender people have essentially issued an invitation: Get your gender-affirming health care here without fearing prosecution at home.Now that bans on such care for minors are taking effect around the country — Texas could be next, depending on the outcome of a court hearing this week — patients and their families are testing clinics’ capacity. Already-long waiting lists are growing, yet there are only so many providers of gender-affirming care and only so many patients they can see in a day.For those refuge states — so far, California, Connecticut, Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Washington and Vermont, plus Washington, D.C. — the question is how to move beyond promises of legal protection and build a network to serve more patients.“We’re trying our best to make sure we can get tho...

President Biden focuses on factory jobs in Wisconsin, ignoring latest Trump indictment

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:42:35 GMT

By FATIMA HUSSEIN and JOSH BOAK (Associated Press)MILWAUKEE (AP) — On the heels of a fourth indictment for Donald Trump, President Joe Biden focused on manufacturing jobs in a speech at a Wisconsin factory — putting his ideas for growth up against his Republican rivals in a bid to win over voters in a key state in next year’s presidential election.“It’s really kind of basic: we just decided to invest in America again,” Biden said Tuesday. “That’s what it’s all about.”His arrival in Milwaukee came on the eve of the one-year anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act, a major piece of economic legislation he signed into law with great ceremony but polls show that most people know little about it or what it does. It also occurred a week before Republicans descend on Milwaukee for the party’s first presidential debate. But as Biden spoke, much of the political world was focused on his predecessor, Trump, who was charged l...

Lake George boat show expands to third set of docks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:42:35 GMT

LAKE GEORGE, N.Y. (NEWS10) - Antique and classic boats are taking to Lake George this month for an annual boat show that's now expanding to a third dock. The Adirondack Wooden and Classic Boat Show returns to the lake on Friday and Saturday, Aug. 25-26. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! This year's boat show will be held at three locations on the lake, between the village of Lake George and two spots along its west side. A location in the town of Hague joins the roster as the show gets set to bring more than 60 unique boats to the lake. The weekend's events include:Friday, Aug. 25Hague Town Dock, State Route 9L, Hague9 a.m. - noonRogers Park Town Docks, State Route 9L, Bolton Landing9-11 a.m.Saturday, Aug. 26Lake George Village Docks, Beach Road, Lake George10 a.m. - 4 p.m.Water parade at 3:15 p.m. Adirondack ice cream stands fighting ‘Battle of the Cones’ Now in its 49th year, the festival will feature a wide variety of boats ...

Man shot and killed in Midtown St. Louis

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:42:35 GMT

ST. LOUIS -- Police say that a man was shot and killed near the intersection of Lindell and Spring today. They found his body with several gunshot wounds after arriving on the scene. The location is near Saint Louis University's campus.Police have not identified the victim or released a description of the suspect. There is an active investigation into this shooting.This is a developing story. More information will be posted here as it comes into the FOX 2 newsroom.

St. Louis Union Station Polar Express tickets now on sale

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:42:35 GMT

ST. LOUIS -- It may be a little far off to think about Christmas, but now may be the time for some parents to start planning. Tickets are now on sale for the Polar Express train ride at St. Louis Union Station.The Polar Express is the magical story of a boy's search for the real meaning of Christmas, based on the beloved children's book. The train rides begin at St. Louis Union Station on November 17 and continue through December 30th.Tickets start at $41, and can run up to $100. Learn more here.

L.A. councilmember wants to ban businesses from going cash-free

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:42:35 GMT

While the days of wallets stuffed with dollar bills and pockets jingling with coins might be a distant memory for many of us, a Los Angeles City Councilwoman wants to make sure cash doesn’t go extinct.At least not yet.Councilwoman Heather Hutt (District 10), who represents a wide swath of central L.A. from Baldwin Hills to Koreatown, introduced a motion Tuesday to ban cashless retail businesses in the city.“Cashless businesses create an economy in our City that is not inclusive and accessible for all people,” Hutt said in a statement. “There are many unbanked groups, including [minorities] and low-income communities, that rely on cash to pay for goods and services.”A 2022 Pew Research Center study found that roughly 40% of Americans go "cashless" each week – meaning none of their purchases involved physical dollars and cents. That’s up from 29% in 2018 and 24% in 2015.But there is a clear racial divide.The Pew study also found that roughly a quarter of Black adults (26%) and 21% of ...

Feinstein accuses trustees of husband's estate of financial abuse

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:42:35 GMT

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) accused the trustees of her late husband’s estate of committing financial abuse against her and called for them to be suspended as administrators of the account in a recent legal filing.Feinstein, 90, accused the three trustees — Michael Klein, Marc Scholvinck and Verett Mims — of the Richard C. Blum Revocable Trust of denying her funds to which she is entitled from her late husband's estate. Her late husband, Richard Blum, was reportedly a billionaire when he passed away early last year. The filing marks the latest salvo in the battle by the longtime California lawmaker to gain access to the funds.According to her filing, the three trustees are “wrongfully withholding distributions to which [Blum’s] Trust entitles her in bad faith and diverting assets that they should have used to fund” Feinstein’s marital trust. Feinstein said that upon Blum’s death, $5 million was to be placed into her trust, with that total set to be dispersed to her in quarterly...

Southern California football legend drowns in Oregon river

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:42:35 GMT

A Southern California high school football legend, Herman Ho-Ching, drowned Sunday after jumping into an Oregon river.Ho-Ching, 44, was with family members at Riverside Park in Clackamas, a Portland suburb, when he jumped from a cement water intake structure in the Clackamas River, said a report from the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office.He failed to resurface, and he was pulled unresponsive from the river by emergency crews responding to the 911 call.On Monday, the Oregonian reported the death.In 1997, his senior year at Long Beach Poly, Ho-Ching was one of the nation’s top running back recruits. He clinched his reputation with a dominating performance as Poly defeated heavily favored Mater Dei in the CIF Southern State championship.He played two seasons for the Oregon Ducks before he was dismissed from the team for academic reasons. Off-the-field issues scuttled his announced transfer to Nevada in 2001.In announcing Ho-Ching’s death, the sheriff’s office id...