Three Taunton High School athletes have been selected for the Hockomock League’s Leadership Executive Ambassador Program, or LEAP.

Kennedy MacEarchern, Nevaeh Young and Madison Crowley were chosen for the two-year program, which identifies rising juniors who demonstrate leadership, character and a commitment to strengthening their school communities, according to a community announcement.

Each school in the league can nominate up to four students, and Taunton High had three of its nominees chosen.

Each student brings a unique leadership style shaped by their experiences in athletics.

MacEarchern, a field hockey goalie, describes her on-field leadership as tenacious and vocal, while off the field, she aims to be steady and supportive. Young balances kindness with determination, leading by example in cross country and track and ensuring her teammates feel heard and respected. Crowley focuses on humility and encouragement, creating an environment where everyone feels valued and supported.

Service is a central component of the LEAP program, and each student already has a vision for how they want to give back.

MacEarchern hopes to introduce field hockey to younger students through after-school clinics, noting that discovering the sport in eighth grade opened new doors for her. Young wants to strengthen connections between Taunton High and local youth sports programs by mentoring younger athletes and teaching them lessons about teamwork and perseverance. Crowley hopes to lead leadership activities with young children, drawing on her experience working with preschool athletes at TYSL and her desire to help young students build confidence.

HENRICO, Va. (WWBT/Gray News) – A Virginia woman is hoping to find the person who helped her survive a scary medical situation last month.

Melinda Pereira says Echo Lake Park normally provides her a peaceful escape from reality, but that quickly changed on Nov. 5.

“Something just felt off,” she said. ”Apparently, I went unconscious.”

The next memory Pereira said she had was her waking up in the hospital, where she later learned she had gone into cardiac arrest.

Pereira said first responders credited the quick thinking of a good Samaritan for saving her life.

“Apparently, I was not breathing, no pulse, and unconscious, and some guardian angel that started the first steps to life-saving measures is why I’m still here today,” she said.

As Pereira continues on her road to recovery, the identity of the mystery bystander weighs heavily on her mind.

“The doctors said if everything wasn’t in alignment, it would’ve been a different outcome,” she said. “Nobody knows her name, they just said she was a nurse and that she did CPR, and I have the sore ribs to prove it, and that her efforts were vital to my recovery, to my survival.”

Standing in the same spot where the woman jumped in to help, Pereira says she is determined to track her down.

“Don’t be a ghost,” she said. “Let me know who you are.”

Pereira’s ultimate wish is to thank her personally for her heroic deed.

“I have three kids, and I have six grandchildren. All who came together during this episode to the hospital. They wouldn’t have me if it were not for you,” she said. “I think you were meant to be in the spot that you were in.”

If you have any information about the identity of the mystery bystander, email Desiree Montilla: desiree.montilla@12onyourside.com.

Copyright 2025 WWBT via Gray Local Media, Inc. All rights reserved.

ABOVE: Martin County West students Gracin Hansen and Austin Taylor, of the VEX IQ Challenge Team, “The Penguins,” operate their robot, playing a mix and match game on a 6 x 8 field and scoring points by stacking pins and placing them in corresponding color score zones, during the annual Martin County Know How competition event on Saturday at the Truman Public School gymnasium. Photo by Vanessa Schultze.

TRUMAN – At Truman Elementary Saturday, 60 fifth and sixth graders from Fairmont, Truman, Martin County West and Granada-Huntley-East Chain schools worked together across 27 teams in a Vex IQ robotics competition this past Saturday.

Teams worked in alliances of two to stack pins of the same color or mix and match colors to get as many points as possible in two minutes.

While the task is simple, Martin County Know How Board Member and Fairmont Robotics Coach Sam Viesselman said execution varies depending on experience.

“It’s a claw with an arm, and that’s where we recommend new students go,” he said. “Students who have been doing it for a couple years might opt to do something more advanced, since they built the claw bot before. Even after building the same basic bot, every single team ends up doing their own little version of innovation and ways of making their robots better and differentiated.”

The event was organized by Martin County Know How (MCKH), a subcommittee of Project 1590, which aims to encourage STEM exploration among all age groups in Martin County. It was first put on in 2019. After being cancelled in 2020 due to COVID, it was brought back in 2021 and has returned each year ever since.

“We actually ended up having so many students,” Viesselman said. “It initially was third through sixth grade in one tournament. We have to split it now. We do one tournament in the fall for fifth and sixth graders, and then a tournament in the spring for third and fourth graders.”

To ensure students know about this opportunity and can get involved, Viesselman said each school has either a teacher or staff member who works with robotics.

“We leave it up to each school to figure out how to best advertise in their school that it exists. I know at Fairmont, they do take home folders and post on one of the web forums they have for parents.”

As far as the setup, Viesselman said a lot of the practice is on the students themselves.

“They actually meet at their individual schools and practice building their robots,” he said. “Each school has a field that they can take home and practice the real game on.”

The event was open to the public, meaning parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, and all family friends, and community members had the chance to turn out and see what the fuss is about.

In the way this event and robotics as a whole have grown and spread, Viesselman said he feels a great sense of pride in it.

“How many people have come together to make it happen,” he said. “How cooperative the school districts have been, all the volunteers in our committee, all the volunteer coaches, it really takes a village to make it happen. When it all kind of culminates together at that event, looking at all the work that everyone else has put into it really gives you a sense of pride.”

With robotics and technology as a whole developing rapidly in the current age, Viesselman said he feels events like this are really important for future generations.

“We never say, ‘Wow, next year there’s going to be less technology than the year before,’” he said. “It’s a one-way door, so preparing the youth for that ever-changing world. We can see it in their literacy, fluency and technology. As the workforce demands higher and higher skills, more education, just trying to get ahead of that, but also present it in a way that’s fun.”

Fairmont team Hog Riders, consisting of Nolan Harris and Garrett Meier, and MCW team American’s Team of Titus Krusemark and Bronx Geiger finished first with 115 points.

Fairmont team Hot Rod of Tristan Lyons and Jack Fraser, and MCW team i AM Super of Adalie Grupe, Mejta Rohman and Sage Gwin took second with 88 points.

MCW team Lego Masters of William White and Shay Arnold, and Truman team The Fizzlers of Zach Wiens and Liam Werner, took third with 80 points.

HENRICO, Va. (WWBT/Gray News) – A Virginia woman is hoping to find the person who helped her survive a scary medical situation last month.

Melinda Pereira says Echo Lake Park normally provides her a peaceful escape from reality, but that quickly changed on Nov. 5.

“Something just felt off,” she said. ”Apparently, I went unconscious.”

The next memory Pereira said she had was her waking up in the hospital, where she later learned she had gone into cardiac arrest.

Pereira said first responders credited the quick thinking of a good Samaritan for saving her life.

“Apparently, I was not breathing, no pulse, and unconscious, and some guardian angel that started the first steps to life-saving measures is why I’m still here today,” she said.

As Pereira continues on her road to recovery, the identity of the mystery bystander weighs heavily on her mind.

“The doctors said if everything wasn’t in alignment, it would’ve been a different outcome,” she said. “Nobody knows her name, they just said she was a nurse and that she did CPR, and I have the sore ribs to prove it, and that her efforts were vital to my recovery, to my survival.”

Standing in the same spot where the woman jumped in to help, Pereira says she is determined to track her down.

“Don’t be a ghost,” she said. “Let me know who you are.”

Pereira’s ultimate wish is to thank her personally for her heroic deed.

“I have three kids, and I have six grandchildren. All who came together during this episode to the hospital. They wouldn’t have me if it were not for you,” she said. “I think you were meant to be in the spot that you were in.”

If you have any information about the identity of the mystery bystander, email Desiree Montilla: desiree.montilla@12onyourside.com.

Copyright 2025 WWBT via Gray Local Media, Inc. All rights reserved.

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – Keith Schofield, who died on November 22, was honored at James Ford Rhodes High School before Tuesday night’s varsity basketball game.

Schofield led the team to a city championship in 2004 and is remembered for the impact he had on his players.

His family was given a framed jersey with his last name on the back.

“After a win or a loss just to hear the conversations he would have on the phone about the boys,” Schofield’s daughter Randi said. “They were like his sons.”

Schoefield survived a hit-and-run accident in January 2022 when his car was catapulted off I-90 onto West 98^th street below.

His family previously told 19 News that health issues he already had were made worse by the impact of the crash.

His legacy lives through the lives he touched.

“He’s my best friend. Just the most understanding individual I’ve ever come across,” Randi Schofield said. ”Always there. Always a phone call away.”

Copyright 2025 WOIO. All rights reserved.

For months, Brooke Wilfley raised concerns that the president of her local youth hockey governing board was using his position for profit. 

The Denver-area hockey mom discovered that the president, Randy Kanai, was secretly routing the Colorado Amateur Hockey Association’s money through his private company. 

She reported his conflicts of interest and mismanagement to everyone she could: board members, club directors, coaches and four USA Hockey leaders who oversee the nonprofit. Little was done. 

Then in January 2023, Wilfley received a letter from the Colorado Amateur Hockey Association’s attorney. The board, it said, was launching an investigation. 

Into her.