The week's good news: August 29, 2019

1. Nurses put on an in-room Backstreet Boys concert for patient who missed their show

When Amanda Coley couldn't make it to a Backstreet Boys concert, her nurses brought the concert to her. Coley, a 36-year-old mother of four, was diagnosed earlier this month with leukemia. The Georgia resident and her sister, Maggie Mayes Kingston, are huge fans of the Backstreet Boys and had planned on going to their Aug. 21 show. Coley, now receiving treatment at Northside Hospital in Atlanta, was unable to leave to attend the concert, so to cheer her up, Kingston threw a Backstreet Boys–themed party in her room. She invited nurses and hospital staff, and about 12 people showed up. Together, they sang some of the Backstreet Boys' greatest hits, including "I Want It That Way" and "Everybody (Backstreet's Back)." "It really lifted my spirits," Coley told Good Morning America.

Good Morning America

2. Man paddles 2,500 miles from California to Hawaii

Antonio de la Rosa turned 50 years old in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, as he paddled his way from California to Hawaii. It took him 76 days to make the journey, leaving in June and arriving in Honolulu on Saturday. The Valladolid, Spain, resident used a 21-foot-long paddleboat, which had a tiny cabin for him to sleep in and was equipped with solar panels. His arms were his motors, de la Rosa told The Associated Press, and he spent eight to 10 hours a day paddling. There were some dramatic events along the way, like when Hurricane Flossie passed within 60 miles of de la Rosa. A longtime adventurer — de la Rosa has also circumnavigated the Iberian Peninsula coastline on a paddle board and completed the Iditarod route on a special bicycle with snow tires — he told AP why he goes on these adventures: "I like it because it's hard."

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The Associated Press

3. North Carolina teen registers people to vote in an unexpected place: the line at Popeyes

David Ledbetter went down to a Popeyes in Charlotte, North Carolina, hoping that voting would be as popular with customers as the fast food restaurant's now sold-out chicken sandwich. The 17-year-old high school senior decided over the weekend he would capitalize on the buzz surrounding the sandwich by standing outside the building with voter registration forms. He told WKYC he wants to do something about the "lack of young people politically involved." By the time he was done with his registration drive, Ledbetter had signed up 16 new voters. "I believe that it is our duty to vote as American citizens and it would be wrong not to exercise our political voice," he said.

WKYC

4. New York family reunited with cat that ran away 11 years ago

It took more than a decade, but Maggie Welz knew that her cat Tiger, who slipped out the door of her New York home 11 years ago, would one day reunite with his family. No one knows what Tiger was up to during his first few years on the streets, but in 2016, he appeared in Carol O'Connell's yard. O'Connell works for the Dutchess County SPCA, and said it wasn't until this spring that the cat would let her come close. She scanned him for a microchip, and learned that he had an owner: Welz. The 14-year-old cat was in great shape for having been on his own for 11 years, and after being examined by a vet, Tiger was able to go home. Welz told ABC New York she is "grateful" to O'Connell and her family for their "persistence and their dedication and for making sure that our cat was okay."

ABC New York

5. 99-year-old Pittsburgh Pirates super fan attends her 1st game

Catherine Kyle has always loved the Pittsburgh Pirates, and she was finally able to cheer her team on inside PNC Park Saturday night. To surprise Kyle on her 99th birthday, her grandchildren and great-grandchildren organized a trip to see the Pirates face off against the Cincinnati Reds. Despite being a lifelong fan, Kyle had never been to one of their games, and her family knew this would be the ultimate birthday gift. Wearing matching yellow shirts that said "Catherine's Crew," the family was out in full force, and Kyle told CBS Pittsburgh she was most looking forward to hearing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during the seventh inning. "They're a bunch of nice guys," she said of the team.

CBS Pittsburgh