The week's good news: December 17, 2020

1. WWII veteran makes hundreds of wooden toys to give away each year

Ed Higinbotham's workshop isn't in the North Pole, but it does churn out hundreds of handcrafted wooden toys every year for excited kids. Higinbotham, 94, of Fayette County, Pennsylvania, has been making toys to give away to local children since the 1980s. The World War II veteran, who specializes in trucks and tractors, estimates he has finished at least 3,000 toys, each one marked with the day and year it was completed. "I love to make toys and give them away," Higinbotham told KDKA News in 2019, saying he gets joy from the idea that his wooden boats, wagons, and cars are making kids happy. Last week, Pennsylvania State Trooper Robert Broadwater picked up 300 toys from Higinbotham's house, which he will distribute to preschools. Broadwater has dubbed Higinbotham "Fayette Santa," and on Twitter, praised him for having "the drive and determination to see children smile this time of year. Way to go Ed!"

Robert Broadwater CBS Pittsburgh

2. 7-year-old raises $22,000 for hospital by selling homemade bracelets

Using her jewelry-making skills, Hayley Orlinsky has raised $22,000 for the hospital that took care of her when she was an infant. Seven years ago, the second-grader was a patient in the neonatal intensive care unit at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago. Orlinsky told The New York Times that when the coronavirus pandemic began in March, she heard on the news that the hospital was low on personal protective equipment, and decided to start selling rubber bracelets as a fundraiser. Orlinsky got to work making bracelets in a variety of colors, and as word spread, she started getting orders from as far away as Italy. So far, Orlinsky has sold more than 9,000 bracelets and raised $22,000 for the hospital's COVID-19 relief fund. This is well beyond the $200 goal Orlinsky set for herself, and she told the Times she won't stop "until COVID is over."

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The New York Times

3. 900 Dairy Queen customers keep pay-it-forward chain going for nearly 3 days

Earlier this month, a man ordering lunch at a Dairy Queen in Brainerd, Minnesota, told the cashier he'd like to pay for the car behind him, which triggered a "pay-it-forward" chain that involved 900 customers and lasted nearly three days. Tina Jensen, the Dairy Queen's general manager, told Today Food that pay-it-forward chains usually end by the 20th car, but this time, it kept going; by the end of lunch, 100 people had participated. Jensen kept the community updated on Facebook, and customers were excited to participate, with one person calling in and asking to buy a gift card, which could be used if someone wasn't able to pay for an entire order. By the time the chain ended on Dec. 5, nearly three days after it started, 900 customers covered $10,000 in sales. Jensen told Today Food she was proud of her staff and how their positivity energized customers.

Today Food

4. After careful conservation, museum reveals 'spectacular' 1,000-year-old cross

A person using a metal detector in a Scottish field discovered a massive collection of rare and one-of-a-kind objects from the Viking age, and after years of careful conservation, these treasures — including an Anglo-Saxon silver cross — are dazzling historians. The Galloway Hoard was unearthed in 2014, and is considered the richest collection of Viking-age items ever found in Britain or Ireland. Buried in the late 9th century, it contains more than 100 silver, gold, and bejeweled objects as well as Scotland's earliest examples of silk. The Anglo-Saxon cross stands out, due to its intricate design. Dr. Martin Goldberg, principal curator of early medieval and Viking collections at National Museums Scotland, told The Observer the item is "just spectacular. There really isn't a parallel." National Museums Scotland acquired the hoard in 2017, and didn't rush the cleaning of the cross — a porcupine quill that had been carved into a tool was used on it, removing dirt without damaging the metal.

The Observer

5. University surprises graduate by giving her service dog an honorary degree

When Maggie Leptrone graduated from the University of West Georgia earlier this month with a degree in nursing, so did her labradoodle, Mona. Leptrone has Type 1 diabetes, and says that Mona, who was trained to detect low blood sugar, saved her life when her blood sugar dropped to a dangerous level. Mona goes everywhere with Leptrone, and attended all of her classes and labs on campus. At commencement, organizers gave Leptrone a cap for Mona to wear during the event, but Leptrone told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution she had no idea the university was going to recognize Mona with an honorary Bark-chelor of Science in Nursing. Leptrone, who has accepted a job as an intensive care unit nurse, told the Journal-Constitution she hopes this "shows other people like me who have a service dog that they can still obtain a high level of education and do what they've always dreamed of doing with their lives."

Atlanta Journal-Constitution