7 Good News Stories: Comeback Story; Big Dreams, Big Rewards

ACROSS AMERICA — Talk about a comeback story.

Enduring Honor didn’t have much of a future until Joy Lim Nakrin of Milton, Georgia, rescued him. And by that, we mean the thoroughbred gelding likely would have gone to the slaughterhouse if the Blue Bloods Thoroughbred Adoption and Placement program and Nakrin hadn’t intervened.

The horse proved he still has a lot of life left in him, revealing a hidden talent for jumping and carrying Narkin to a national championship at the Thoroughbred Incentive Program Championships in Aiken, South Carolina. Enduring Honor got special accolades, too.

“This brings me so much hope for the future for rescues,” Nakrin said in a news release. “It just shows that when given the right opportunities and care, rescues can hang with the best. They absolutely deserve a second chance.” » By Amanda Lumpkin for Alpharetta (Georgia) Patch

Big Dreams, Big Rewards

The Global Down Syndrome Foundation’s Quincy Jones Exceptional Advocacy Award has been presented to actors, politicians and others. It’s going this year to actor Eric Dane and Vienna, Virginia, resident David Egan, who has “always had big dreams” for himself and others with Down syndrome. Egan, wrote a memoir with his mother on what it’s like to live with Down syndrome, also volunteers for National Institutes of Health clinical trials to help researchers better protect people with the condition from illnesses and conditions they’re susceptible to. He’s had an impact on his community in other ways, too. » By Emily Leayman for Vienna (Virginia) Patch

A Mission For Understanding

Alex Mann, a 22-year-old Malvern, Pennsylvania, has been on a mission for the past four years and has traveled across five states spreading awareness about autism. He has visited police departments throughout his home state, but also New Jersey, Delaware, California and Maryland. Mann, who has autism, told Patch that by making himself available to police, he hopes to “educate them on how they can interact better with people on the spectrum.” » By Dino Ciliberti for Lower Southhampton (Pennsylvania) Patch

Preserving Memories

When Victoria Turk’s parents faced a health scare — at a time when she and others were contemplating their own mortality during the early pandemic days of rampant illnesses — Turk realized how little her children knew about the various chapters in their grandparents’ lives. Turk turned to technology to change that, starting a business that captures those memories in videos. » By Jerry Barmash for Rockville Centre (New York) Patch

Ladders Out, Lights Up

It wasn’t Santa’s elves rushing around outside, or the clopping of reindeer hooves on the roof of a Frankfort, Illinois, home Thursday evening. Instead, it was a swift-moving team of 100 volunteers, and the sure-footed steps of firefighters called to a scene in need of some serious holiday cheer. Maggie DeVries, a 6-year-old cancer warrior, lives in the home and the nonprofit Project Fire Buddies, made up of volunteers of 30 suburban Chicago fire departments, quickly lit up her life. “It means everything,” Maggie’s grandfather Rick Lorenz told Patch, adding she “will be totally delighted when the sun goes down … and she sees this. She’s gonna love it. I promise you.” » By Lauren Traut for Frankfort (Illinois) Patch

Light Shines Through Dark Time

Zoe Suder’s cancer diagnosis came as a shock. She figured the pain in her hip was a sports injury, something many 15-year-old athletes encounter. That was in August. By the time October rolled around, she was getting chemotherapy. “Our world came to a halt, a screeching halt, and it’s absolutely terrifying,” her mother, Laci Buller, told Patch. Her Beverly Hills soccer club told her they had her back, goodwill that has extended beyond California borders. More than $140,000 has been raised to offset medical bills on GoFundMe, and the family is getting support with rides, meals and other things while Laci concentrates on treatment. “You get what you give,” Buller said. “I think that there’s been a lot of giving through the years of just being kind, and cultivating relationships, and caring about other people, and supporting other people too. ... it's given us an opportunity to really meet and connect with a lot of people.” » By Emily Rahhal for Beverly Hills (California) Patch

In Grief, She Seeks Hope

Long Island mom Carole Trottere says she’s “no expert on grief,” but she wants to spare others of the pain she went through after her son overdosed on fentanyl and heroin. Trottere told Patch that although she lacks the specific expertise to tackle the “huge problem” of addiction to opioids, she can do one simple thing by spreading awareness among her neighbors and training on them on the use of the overdose reversal drug Narcan. She’s especially interested in connecting with young people “who might just be at a party and their best friend says, ‘Hey, I got these pills tonight.’ Or, you know, ‘Try this. Try that. Don't worry about it. My drug dealer would never give me anything bad.’ ” » By Peggy Spellman Hoey for Three Village (New York) Patch