11 Good News Stories: Inspiring Adoption; Captain Maryland; Dinosaurs

ACROSS AMERICA — We made you look and hopefully smile with that picture of Maple, an African pygmy hedgehog, didn’t we?

The Highland, Maryland, hedgehog is a finalist in InTouch Magazine’s America’s Favorite Pet contest. If she wins, she will be featured in the magazine and her owner, stay-at-home mom Laura Easter, will take home $10,000.

“She is just a little creature going about her days with no clue that she is in a nationwide contest with people from all over the country voting for her and cheering her on,” Easter told Patch. » By Nikki Gaskins for Columbia (Maryland) Patch

A Love Story

More seriously, this should make you smile, too. Texas State University student Jimmy Amisial was at home in Haiti on New Year’s Eve 2017 when he saved a baby abandoned in a dumpster. Fire ants were feeding on the infant’s unclothed body — a sign to a gathering crowd afraid of black magic that the child was cursed. Only 22 at the time, Amisial stepped in and has been raising young Emilio as his son since. Now that he wants to adopt him, people from around the world are pitching in. “The amount of support I have been given is incredible,” Amisial told Patch. “It’s a love story, really, connecting people from all over the world through the bridge of love and kindness. Let’s love and be kind so that we can have a better world.” » By Beth Dalbey for Austin (Texas) Patch

Captain Maryland A Viral Sensation

Captain Maryland is quickly becoming the state’s unofficial superhero. With Old Bay seafood containers fastened to his utility belt and a large crab mallet in his super-pinch grip, he can run sideways and perform other antics that delight an ever-growing fan base, thanks to social media adulation and sharing. Everyone planning a parade or big celebration seems to want him. Clark Rogers, a retired firefighter, the man behind the quickly growing legend, initially wanted to give his friends a laugh. But after a Comic Con appearance and media exposure, “it’s been nuts,” he said, adding he will continue to play the Captain Maryland part as long as it makes people laugh. » By Mark Hand for Kensington (Maryland) Patch

He’s Eating On His Own!

Bright spots can be hard to find in tragedies such as the 4th of July parade shooting in Highland Park, Illinois, that left seven people dead. Here’s one: Cooper Roberts, the 8-year-old who was among those seriously injured, is off the feeding tube and eating on his own, is off pain medication and antibiotics, and is getting his joy and energy back. “Removing all the tubes has been a huge mood booster for Cooper,” the family said in its statement earlier this week. “You can see his energy coming back as he participates in a wheelchair race down the hallway.” » By Jeff Arnold for Highland Park (Illinois) Patch

Teacher Gets A New Ride

Math teacher Julio Castro, 31, returned to a familiar routine Thursday with the beginning of a new school year, including riding his scooter for 6 miles to the train that would take him to Yula Boys High School in Los Angeles. The meeting he was pulled into was a ruse, part of a well-orchestrated surprise. No longer will he have to take his scooter to the train station. He can drive directly to school now, thanks to students who raised the money to buy him a car. There are many reasons why. One: “He's not the type of teacher to give up on his students,” one of the students said in a video tribute. “He makes sure that everyone gets the material and understands it. He's a very giving and generous person. He really believes in his students, and he shows it.” » By Emily Rahhal for Los Angeles Patch

This Cop Was Lucky

Cleveland police Sgt. Ray O’Connor had the misfortune to be stung twice by a bee during a back-to-school festival. He’s highly allergic to their venom, but forgot his EpiPen. He fell to the ground and lost consciousness. Fortunately, Tomika Johnson, one of the moms attending the event, had her son 10-year-old son Zaire’s EpiPen and saved his life. O’Connor showed up to celebrate Zaire’s birthday, armed with gratitude and gifts. In October, the mother and son will be recognized as good citizens by the city, although Johnson said no thanks are necessary. » By Anna Schier for Cleveland (Ohio) Patch

Read This; It’s Free

Livingston (New Jersey) High School seniors Benjamin Gantman and Noah Kates had noticed free library boxes cropping up in nearby towns, so they put their love of reading and engineering chops to work to create their own, with a couple of distinctions. They created their designs using 3D printers and added solar lighting. The pair have received permission to install three so far, but are far from finished. They want to get more students involved in the effort and raise more money for the bookcases. » By Caren Lissner for Livingston (New Jersey) Patch

Why Big Cats Moved North

Four big cats — two white tigers and two white lions — previously owned by the notorious Joe Exotic (Joseph Maldonado-Passage), the subject of the Netflix documentary “Tiger King,” have settled into a sanctuary in Minnesota. Maldonado-Passage at one point owned 200 big cats, most held in tiny cages at Tiger King Park in Oklahoma, according to the Justice Department. The Wildcat Sanctuary near the Twin Cities has been caring for the cats for about a year and a half, but had to keep that under wraps while felony cases against Maldonado-Passage wended through the courts. The cats that will now live out their lives in Minnesota are recovering from their trauma and revealing their true personalities, the sanctuary said. » By Anna Schier for Across Minnesota Patch

A Royal Beagle

Just weeks after she was rescued from the deplorable conditions of a Virginia breeding facility for medical research dogs, the 7-year-old beagle Mamma Mia went from rags to royalty this week when she was adopted by none other than the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Mamma Mia had never been outside or touched grass before she and 4,000 others were rescued, but now she’ll have plenty of time to roam Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s 7-acre estate in Montecito, California. » By Megan VerHelst for Los Angeles Patch

Collies Saved, But Need Homes

Volunteers from Collie Rescue of Greater Illinois assisted in the rescue of 198 collies in what has been described as one of the largest animal hoarding cases in the state’s history. The dogs were living in “horrid” conditions, according to Marlene Joyce, a Tinley Park, Illinois, woman who coordinates adoptions for the rescue group. “We’re going to have a lot of collies to get adopted,” Joyce told Patch. “It’s been a busy year for dogs being dumped. Everyone got them during COVID, and now they’re gone all day. It was busy before this, and now the collie rescues are going to be swamped.” » By Lauren Traut for Tinley Park (Illinois) Patch

Long, Long Ago …

A drought is hardly good news, but it did reveal something that is increasing scientists’ understanding of the dinosaurs that once roamed what is now Dinosaur Valley State Park near Fort Worth. Extreme drought conditions caused the Paluxy River to dry up, exposing tracks belonging to theropods, a group of primarily carnivorous dinosaurs with three claws on each limb. “There’s tons of them,” a person recording a video of the find said. Researchers are busy documenting the find, because the tracks could soon be covered with sediment and water, a Texas Parks and Wildlife spokeswoman told Patch. » By Jeffrey Perkins for Across Texas Patch

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