Community hopes to preserve historic Methodist church built in 1870

Good News Notes: “For Brett Merkley, entering the old Methodist Episcopal Church is like stepping into a frontier church of an old Western movie. The simple one-story brick chapel is lined with wooden pews and hymnals. Light shines through the stained-glass windows. A small pulpit and pump organ stand at the front of the chapel…

Local charity hands out donations to homeless

Good News Notes: “ For the past four years, volunteers hand out collected donations of hygiene items, clothing, and food to homeless citizens in downtown Birmingham. The charity hands the donations out one Saturday every month. Erica Robbins started the group, Be A Blessing Birmingham, after moving to the Magic City. She said there was…

Man helps inmates find hope, purpose through jail ministry

Good News Notes: “Jail is a place where people wait, says Bruce Noddin, who provides spiritual counsel to Androscoggin County Jail inmates. “These guys are in limbo for the most part,” he said. Most haven’t been sentenced and are waiting to learn of their judicial fate. And most are struggling with substance use or mental…

Largest coral reef survey in French Polynesia offers hope

Good News Notes: “Over the course of seven months in 2012 and 2013, more than 70 scientists collaborated to study and map the coral reefs around the islands of French Polynesia in the South Pacific.” “This was a huge undertaking. Researchers covered over 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles), including places never studied by scientists before. They…

This dad gives NICU babies a chance to spend Christmas with Santa

 Good News Notes: “Baby’s first Christmas — with the adorable holiday outfits and the family cheer — is an exciting milestone for any parent. But for families whose babies are born early and have to be in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), it’s a time that’s more stressful than joyful.” “Greg Phelps  knows this all…

New drug shows promising results in the treatment of Alzheimer’s

Good News Notes: “Alzheimer’s disease affects some 5 million people in the United States, and as the population ages, doctors estimate those affected will more than double by 2050.” “A new drug might offer new hope.” “Dr. Daniel Murman, a neurologist with University of Nebraska Medical Center, has been studying a new drug that can…

7Everyday Hero: Cancer survivor gives hearts of hope to those still in the fight

Good News Notes: “Willard needed her pillow in 2015 when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Following her double mastectomy, nurse navigator Ellen Buchannan gave her the pillow gift.” “It’s why she started JWill Pink Village. To date, the nonprofit has sent 2,500 pillows to people battling breast cancer across the country.” “How it works,…

Reactor turns greenhouse gas into fuel.

Good News Notes: Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is currently at it’s highest rate in 800,000 years. New reactor developed by researchers at Rice University will convert carbon dioxide into hydrogen cell fuel. Reactor will run on renewable energy such as wind or solar. So, no fossil fuels are used, fuel cells are created to…