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Natalie Merchant emerges from darkness with nothing but love

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:20:57 GMT

POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. (AP) — As the nation went through a health emergency in 2020, so did Natalie Merchant. The singer-songwriter had major spine surgery just four days before lockdown, with three bones removed from her neck and an incision made over her vocal cords. She lost her voice and suffered nerve damage in her right hand. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! It took nine months to get her voice back and a year to get her hand to behave. And yet out of that came not bitterness or anger, but love: The heart-forward new album “Keep Your Courage.”“This album sort of grew out of all that. It was a health crisis, but also everything was in crisis in the world,” she says. “We all turned inward and held on to each other. And the only thing that really mattered was love. Love and caring for people.”“Keep Your Courage” has some of Merchant's best songwriting, with melodies that veer from Gaelic to Middle Eastern, delving into horn-d...

Officially banned: Native American mascots must go

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:20:57 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (WTEN) -- It’s official. The Board of Regents finalized new measures to prohibit the use of indigenous names, mascots, and logos by public schools. So what’s next for schools across the state as the rebranding process continues? The Department will work with stakeholders to create guidance on the regulations. Glens Falls City School District unveils new school mascot "It got to a point where we felt we needed to clarify and make it clear that districts needed to know, those districts who did not previously comply needed to comply," said Jim Baldwin, Senior Deputy Commissioner for the Stated Education Department. The issue dates back to 2001, when former Education Commissioner, Richard Mills asked schools to end the use of Native American imagery in school emblems. Some schools complied, but not all - that is until the mandate was made official today. Some have criticized the initiative, saying if these mascots are no longer used, people will have no education on Nativ...

Duanesburg man sentenced for negligent homicide

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:20:57 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The suspect connected to the death of Kentish Bennett was sentenced for criminally negligent homicide. Jason Seminary will spend two to four years in prison. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Police say Bennett passed away from injuries sustained in a physical altercation on December 23, 2021. Seminary was initially arrested by the Rotterdam Police Department, and charged with second-degree manslaughter.

41 years since Lynn Burdick disappeared in Berkshire County

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:20:57 GMT

FLORIDA, Mass. (WWLP) — It has been 41 years since Lynn Burdick was last seen working at a business in Florida. In the last year, authorities have shared sketches of the man they believe could be involved. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Lynn was 18 years old when she was working alone at her cousin's store, the Barefoot Peddler's Country Store in Florida, Massachusetts, on April 17, 1982. She disappeared somewhere between 8 p.m. and 8:45 p.m. that night and hasn't been seen since. NBC Dateline interviewed her family last year. The family believes she was abducted from the store. The store co-owner had talked to Lynn at around 8 p.m. on the phone but she had to hang up to help a customer. Her brother then called around 8:30 p.m. and Lynn never answered. NY Missing Persons Day honored in Albany In August 2022, police released sketches of a suspect in a separate attempt of an abduction that happened just 45 minutes earlier ...

School bus driver shortage and delayed routes persist

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:20:57 GMT

CLIFTON PARK, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- School districts across New York State continue to grapple with a shortage of bus drivers. The Shenendehowa Central School District alerting parents Tuesday that some routes would need to be combined, which will lead to routes being a bit late, or taking longer than usual. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Alfred Karam, Director of Transportation at Shen, pointed to a graphic on his office computer showing just how quickly and how much the numbers of applicants and new drivers have fallen off.“Those numbers aren’t there," Karam said, "and that’s what gets us into this kind of a situation.”Karam shared a graphic detailing the number of drivers the district has interviewed and retained over the past several years.Karam said the steep, post-pandemic decline wasn’t just due to people leaving the career behind over fears of getting sick."It dried up the foot traffic. My data showed we had a lot of pe...

St. Louis robbers tell victim to strip naked after chase

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:20:57 GMT

ST. LOUIS -- Four people ran for their lives after two men started shooting at them in south St. Louis early Tuesday morning. The robbers eventually asked one of the victims to strip naked when they caught up with him.A woman and three men in their early 20s were driving in south St. Louis to deliver food at around 12:30 a.m. Tuesday. One of the men was an Uber Eats worker. He was called to deliver an order to an address on Louisiana Avenue, just south of Osceola.The group was walking back to their vehicle when a late 90s champagne colored Chevrolet Camaro with a black T-top roof pulled up besides them. Two men in their 20s armed with handguns got out of the vehicle. Can’t drive with that: Illinois police find 3 garbage bags of marijuana during traffic stop All four victims started to run back to their vehicle. The suspects chased after them while firing shots and eventually caught up with two of the victims in the 4300 block of Virginia Avenue.The suspects told the man to take of...

Sterling K. Brown and Anthony Fauci to speak at Washington University graduation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:20:57 GMT

ST. LOUIS -- Sterling K. Brown and Anthony Fauci will be receiving honorary degrees from Washington University this May. Brown will be the keynote speaker at the upcoming commencement ceremony. He will receive an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree. Dr. Fauci will also address the students. Brown is a St. Louis native and has received three Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. In 2018, he was named one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people in the world. It has been announced that Top story: Overland armored car robbery video reveals surprising actions Dr. Fauci is a prominent figure in the field of public health. He has been awarded a staggering 58 honorary doctoral degrees from universities both domestically and internationally, as reported by Washington University.Three others receiving honorary degrees from Washington University during the May commencement. Maxine Clark, founder of Build-A-Bear Workshop, and a prominent figure in the world of entrepreneurs...

Missouri Senate committee considers removing restrictions on fentanyl tests

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:20:57 GMT

Fentanyl test strips are easily accessible over the counter in many states, but Missouri is not one of them.Missouri’s statute categorizes anything used to test or analyze drugs as drug paraphernalia, which makes illegal the possession of fentanyl tests, which can be used at home to test drugs and medication for fentanyl contamination.Senate Bill 480, sponsored by Sen. Holly Thompson Rehder, R-Scott City, and heard Monday before the Senate Judiciary Committee, would add an exception to the statute to legalize the test strips.Overdose deaths from synthetic opioids, of which fentanyl is the most deadly, have risen dramatically in recent years. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services reported that over 2,000 drug-related deaths occurred in Missouri in 2021, and of them, about 70% involved a synthetic opioid.According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, to reduce costs, drug manufacturers mix fentanyl with other drugs including heroin, methamphetamine, and cocaine...

Presidential primary would return under bill approved by the Missouri House

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:20:57 GMT

The House gave initial approval Monday to a bill that would reinstate the presidential preference primary in Missouri.The bill was amended to establish that the primary will take place on “the first Tuesday after the first Monday in April.” As introduced, the bill would have ordered the primary to be held on “the second Tuesday after the first Monday in March.”Rep. Michael O’Donnell, R-St. Louis, proposed the change. He said the intent was to save money and increase participation in municipal elections, which are held annually in April.Rep. Peggy McGaugh, R-Carrollton, said holding both elections at the same time raises a concern that non-partisan municipal elections could be turned into partisan elections because a voter would have to ask for a party ballot in order to vote in the municipal election.“The same candidates will be on every ballot,” O’Donnell said in response, adding that the non-partisan elections would continue to be non-partisan.Representatives discussed whether the...

Fox, Denver-based Dominion reach $787.5 million settlement over false election claims

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:20:57 GMT

By DAVID BAUDER, RANDALL CHASE and GEOFF MULVIHILL (Associated Press)WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Fox and Dominion Voting Systems reached a settlement Tuesday in the voting machine company’s defamation lawsuit, averting a trial in a case that exposed how the top-rated network chased viewers by promoting lies about the 2020 presidential election.An attorney for Dominion said the settlement was for $787.5 million.“The truth matters. Lies have consequences,” said Dominion lawyer Justin Nelson in a news conference outside the courthouse after the announcement.Dominion had asked for $1.6 billion in arguing that Fox had damaged its reputation by helping peddle phony conspiracy theories about its equipment switching votes from former President Donald Trump to Democrat Joe Biden. Fox said the amount greatly overstated the value of the Colorado-based company.The resolution announced in Delaware Superior Court follows a recent summary judgment ruling by Judge Eric Davis in ...