The week's good news: January 19, 2017

It wasn't all bad!

Daliyah Marie Arana
(Image credit: Shawn Miller/Library of Congress)

1. For their anniversary, a Virginia husband will give his wife his kidney

For their 20th anniversary, Scott Chafian of Suffolk, Virginia, will give his wife, Cindy, a kidney. Cindy has polycystic kidney disease and has been on dialysis for nearly two years. With her blessing, Scott explored how to go about donating his kidney, and in October, they found out he was a match. On Jan. 24, the day before their anniversary, Scott and Cindy will undergo their surgeries. "Instead of celebrating by having a big party, we're going to celebrate by being in different hospital rooms," Cindy told NBC Los Angeles. "He is literally giving me the gift of life."

2. Golden retriever saves life of Michigan man stuck in snow

A golden retriever named Kelsey was credited with saving her owner's life after he slipped and was left temporarily paralyzed in the snow. The Emmet County, Michigan, man — identified only as Bob — was collecting firewood on New Year's Eve when he fell, herniating multiple discs in his back and neck. For 20 hours, with temperatures plummeting to just 20 degrees, Kelsey kept any frostbite at bay by licking Bob's face and hands, and barking for help until a neighbor discovered the fallen man. "She kept me warm and alert," says Bob.

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Petoskey News

3. Every senior at this Ohio high school has been accepted to college

There are nearly 60 seniors at Cincinnati's DePaul Cristo Rey High School, and every single one has received at least one acceptance letter from a college. "We welcome them in as freshmen with a promise that all students will graduate from high school and college and we will do it together," principal Andy Farfsing told WLWT. On Tuesday, the school held a celebration for the college-bound seniors, who have also earned $3.8 million in merit-based scholarship money. This is the third straight year that the school has had 100 percent college acceptance, with letters still arriving. "We know that we did this together and all the students who are under us are looking up to us," senior Joseph Whittle said. "They're going to be in our seats one day."

WLWT

4. For one day, the Librarian of Congress was a 4-year-old

To say Daliyah Marie Arana is a bibliophile is an understatement. The 4-year-old from Georgia has already read more than 1,000 books by herself. Last week, her dream came true when she was named Librarian for the Day at the Library of Congress. She shadowed Carla Hayden, the 14th Librarian of Congress, and even sat behind her fancy desk. About two years ago, Arana's parents signed her up for Georgia's 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten program, and she quickly made her way through all sorts of tomes, including college texts. Arana has said she wants to be a librarian and to "teach other kids to read at an early age, too."

The Week

5. After an elderly dog's owner died, a senior citizens' home adopted her

Izzy went from having one owner to dozens, after she was adopted by the residents of the Brookdale Kingston assisted living community in Tennessee. Izzy, a 10-year-old mixed breed, moved in with her owner last fall. Staff and residents became enamored with Izzy, and when her owner died and family members were not able to take her in, the community quickly came up with a solution. "We realized her home was here with us and so she has stayed," Lesa Fuller, Brookdale Kingston's sales and marketing manager, told WVLT. "She is part of the family here now." Izzy spends her days greeting people at the front door, attending parties, and playing with her favorite toy — a rubber chicken.

WVLT

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.