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Friday, Jun. 9, 2006

Dog rescued in the nick of time

The (formerly) “uncatchable Gateway dog” was finally captured two months ago by Animal Welfare workers. A week later she gave birth to nine puppies. »

Nikita is charity’s youngest - and biggest - fundraiser

SIX-year-old Nikita Clements set a record this week and helped to free more than 60 people from the pain and misery of leprosy.
On Monday, the Bute Gardens girl cycled five miles from home to school in Cairncastle, raising £1,302 for Lepra.
She is the charity’s youngest and biggest fundraiser and so impressed them that Lepra plan to present Nikita with a goblet, to mark her achievement.
As reported previously in the Larne Times, Nikita was spurred into action when she and fellow pupils at Cairncastle Primary School learned of the plight of leprosy sufferers.
“When I heard that people had to leave their families when they were sick, I felt very sad and wanted to help them”, the P2 youngster said.
She settled on the sponsored cycle as a means of raising money and so it was that Nikita, accompanied by her mum, Joanna, set off on Monday morning.
Nikita was surprised to arrive at school to a rousing reception. She didn’t know that the principal, Sharon Hollinger, had arranged for the pupils to greet her.
Lepra representative, Carolyn Patterson, was also in the reception party. She explained that Nikita’s exemplary effort raised enough money to heal 62 leprosy sufferers, thanks to sponsors who signed up in Ballygally Shop, Owen Donnelly butchers, at the school and in response to door-to-door collections.
“It costs £21 to treat a leprosy patient and the sooner they receive treatment, the more positive the outcome, as they can be fully cured”, Carolyn explained.
She added, “I wanted to be here personally to thank Nikita for her tremendous effort. She is the youngest child who has ever undertaken a fundraising event and has raised the most money”.
Nikita is grateful to her sponsors. She said, “So many people gave so much, but there are too many for me to talk about”.
The little girl’s parents say she is a very caring and conscientious child and they are very proud of their daughter.
We can’t be sure, though, that we’ve heard the last from Nikita, who is already planning her next fundraising event, to help children in Africa.

Chris, 88, to walk on fire for charity

Updated, Thursday, June 8, 1.30pm: THERE are several things your doctor might advise you not to do once you reach the grand old age of 88… walking bare-footed across a red-hot bed of burning embers would probably be one of them.
But that’s exactly what octogenarian Chris Mason, of Robin Hood’s Walk, Boston, will be doing later this month to raise money for Hovenden House, the Leonard Cheshire nursing home at Fleet.
Chris, Boston’s assistant head postmaster before retiring nearly 30 years ago, appears unworried by the 1,200C temperature the embers will have reached by the time he begins his fire walk.
“Well, I don’t like going to bed with cold feet,” he says with a chuckle. “It’ll certainly be a bit different. There must be some knack to it – they tell me the team who organises it hasn’t lost anybody yet.”
Chris will be one of several people taking part in the sponsored fire walk at Hovenden House on Friday, June 30, as part of the nursing home’s gala fundraising weekend which will also include a disco, live music and other attractions.
Chris’s friends and family are getting used to his age-defying activities – back in 2000 he cycled from Land’s End to John O’Groats to raise money for the Multiple Screlosis Society. He was 82 at the time.
“I still love cycling,” he says. “It’s great exercise. It’s a lovely way to see the countryside – no noise, no fumes.”
Chris admits his wife Linda thinks he ‘must be mad’, but it’s clear he sees Hovenden House as a charity worth risking a few singed toes for.
“It’s a great cause,” he says. “The staff are so dedicated, they look after the residents really well. I understand they’re now after a new minibus. It makes you feel so guilty when you go there, being so fit and with some of them having been in wheelchairs for 20 or 30 years. But their spirit is still there.”

$7000 allergy-free kitty

Most folks would sniff at the idea of paying $7,000 for a kitten. »

Thank teachers

The end of the school year means final exam time. So, parents, take out a No. 2 pencil and circle the correct answer: »

Tuesday, Jun. 6, 2006

Breakthrough drug cuts breast cancer risk

TRIALS of a drug hailed as offering a major breakthrough in the fight against breast cancer have shown it can cut the risk of the disease spreading and reduce the chances of it recurring in the future. »

Man Fends Off Coyote, Saves Dog

A 75-year-old man says he saved a small dog from a hungry coyote by bashing the animal on its head with his flashlight. »

Twelve Amazing Young Heroes from Across North America Receive Awards

It all started with a simple goal, recognizing youngpeople across the U.S. and Canada committed to making a positivedifference in the world. Build-A-Bear Workshop(R) received nearly1,500 nominations for the Third Annual Search for Huggable Heroes(R),a program that rewards kids for their outstanding acts of generosityand volunteerism and encourages other kids to do the same. »

A miracle girl finally goes home

AFTER more than six months of despair, hardship and – finally – ecstasy, Lauren Huxley has come home. »

Man buried under soil, rescued

RAM Kesh, a 35-year-old labourer, was today was today buried 16-feet under the soil on the Sector 55-56 dividing road. He was working on a sewerage pipeline when the ground on the sides of the trench caved. However, he was saved by the shopkeepers of the area and immediately rushed to the hospital. He received some minor injuries and was discharged from the hospital. »

Dangerous dog Ben rescues his owner

A DOG under warning of destruction has saved its owner from a diabetic coma. »

Teacher Lynne’s American dream

AN East Lancashire teacher is helping tell the world about life in the region. »

Monday, Jun. 5, 2006

Miracle man dodges train

A MAN amazingly cheated death yesterday when a freight train plunged off the tracks at 100km/h and ploughed into his car. »

Sheep thinks she’s a dog

A Welsh farmer says his pet sheep thinks she’s a sheepdog. »

Swimming deer in lifeboat rescue

A lifeboat crew has rescued a young deer which was spotted swimming out to sea from Arbroath Harbour. »

New students rescue dogs and cats

They rescued dogs living under a trailer, stray cats surviving by a historic steam locomotive and one female dog with its two puppies that had been bitten by a male dog living in the same pen. »

First Love Reunited 45 Years Later

CHILDHOOD sweethearts Marlene Houston and Gordon Johnson have fallen in love again 45 years on after meeting up through the Friends Reunited website. »

Parallel lives of reunited friends

TWO schoolgirl pals met up for the first time in 41 years this weekend - and found they’d led strangely parallel lives. »

Teen Reunited With Cop Who Delivered Her

Emily Maters could not wait for the police to arrive at her high school graduation party Sunday afternoon. In fact, she invited them. »

Friday, Jun. 2, 2006

Brave Mother’s Little Miracle

A CANCER-stricken Yorkshire mother has had pioneering radiotherapy treatment – despite being heavily pregnant at the time.
Last November Donna Butterworth, 37, from Doncaster, was diagnosed with an incurable brain tumour when she was just a few weeks pregnant.
As surgery failed to remove all the tumour she was faced with a terrible dilemma.
Patients would normally be given a rapid course of radiotherapy and chemotherapy to try to shrink it, but because Miss Butterworth, of Greenwood Avenue, Balby, was 20 weeks pregnant, she was told this might not be possible as it could damage or even kill her baby .
But consultant oncologist Dr David Levy, at Weston Park, Sheffield’s cancer specialist hospital, decided it was a risk worth taking and the radiotherapy went ahead.
Had it not done, he said, Miss Butterworth and her baby daughter Ellie, who is now 12 weeks old, and healthy, might both be dead. As it is, Miss Butterworth knows her cancer will eventually kill her, but the treatment allowed her baby to be born and has given her precious time.
Dr Levy said: “We normally don’t treat patients who are pregnant because of the risk to the unborn baby.
“But this really left Miss
Butterworth between a rock and a hard place – without the radiotherapy she simply would not have survived; the tumour was that aggressive.”
Since the birth Miss Butterworth has had further surgery on her brain and is undergoing chemotherapy.

‘Miracle Kids’ saluted at hospital fundraiser

Jeremy Peterson was awakened in the early morning hours of Dec. 10 by a caller who said Peterson’s 12-year-old son, Zachary, was OK — but that the uncle’s house where Zachary was staying had exploded. »

Nazi camp survivor friends reunited 60 years later

TWO old soldiers who worked together in a Nazi salt mine more than 60 years ago have been reunited. »

Woman reunited with rescue hero

A Londonderry woman today spoke of her emotions as she prepares to be reunited with the man who saved her from the River Foyle as her sister drowned more than 30 years ago. »

Teacher’s award is ‘thank you’ from former pupil

Lindsey Clark wanted to be an engineer when she started taking AP Calculus with Susan Dockery at Fort Mill High School. »

Thursday, Jun. 1, 2006

Toddler rescued from blazing house fire

A GRIMETHORPE man has been commended for his bravery after rescuing a toddler from a blazing house fire.
Hero neighbour David Steele rushed into the burning house, on Manor Crescent, and rescued 14-month-old Cherrie Ashcroft from her bedroom as the fire raged in a nearby room.
Mr Steele, aged 33, was alerted to the fire by the toddlers mum, Tracey, after she and her three other children had fled the burning house.
He told the Times: “Tracey banged on my door and said there was a fire in the house and Cherrie was inside.
“I ran outside and went through the front door of the house. I could see it was full of smoke and there were flames coming from underneath the door of the back bedroom where the fire was.
“It was really black with smoke and I could hardly breathe so I covered my nose and mouth with a piece of clothing.
“I was struggling to see as well but I could hear Cherrie shouting as I ran up the stairs. I went into her bedroom and she was stood up in her cot, I picked her up and ran downstairs and out of the house.”
Mr Steele’s bravery was this week commended by firefighters who tackled the fire last Thursday at 8.30pm.
Royston firefighter, Adam Myers, said: “If he had not gone in to get the girl then the outcome could have been a lot worse. What he did was very brave.”
Mr Steele suffered the effects of smoke inhalation and was given oxygen by paramedics at the scene.
Cherrie, along with her baby brother Marley and 4-year-old sister Anesha, were treated at Barnsley Hospital for smoke inhalation.
The oldest girl, Tamika, aged 7, was in the back bedroom when the fire started and was treated for severe burns to her arms and legs.
Her condition was initially described as “life threatening” and she was transferred to the Northern General Hospital in Sheffield on Friday. The family has requested that no details as to Tamika’s current condition be released to the press.
Four firefighters spent more than an hour tackling the blaze which badly damaged the rear bedroom and caused smoke damage to the rest of the house.
It is believed the fire was started accidentally.

Good News Blog

June, 2006