DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Catastrophic damage closed swaths of the Appalachian Trail. Now thousands are working to restore it
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-20 | by ( Graham Hurley | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

The Appalachian Trail extends for almost 2,200 miles across 14 states – from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine. Portions of the trail in North Carolina’s Pisgah National Forest suffered the most severe damage and remain closed. Towns and businesses need the trail’s trafficThe Appalachian Trail is more than a footpath for many people. Every year thousands of people attempt to hike the entire trail or “thru-hike” it, and about 3 million people visit portions of the trail, according to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy. The total cost of the repairs along the trail remains unclear while officials continue assessing the full extent of the wreckage, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy said.

Persons: Terry Wise, Hurricane Helene, ”, Wise, Helene, –, “, Michelle Mitchell, Franklin Tate, They’ll, Tate, ” Wise, It’s, ’ ” Wise, Johnny’s, We’re, Ed Clark, ” Clark, Roy Cooper’s, Paul Curtin, Curtin, Crews, ” Curtin, Mitchell, Terra Caballero, Caballero, ” Caballero, Billoy, Shutterstock Craig Stivers, Stivers, Erwin, ” Stivers Organizations: CNN, Volunteers, US Forest Service, National Park Service, Forest Service, Forest, Cherokee, North Carolina . North Carolina Forest Service, Appalachian, Conservancy, Forest . United States Forest Service, North Carolina Gov, Carolina Mountain Club, Asheville . United States Forest Service, US Department of Transportation, Officials, conservancy, Unicoi Locations: Erwin , Tennessee, East, Springer, Georgia, Katahdin, Maine, Georgia , North Carolina , Tennessee, Virginia, Southern, North, Pisgah, Tennessee, North Carolina, Hurricane, North Carolina . North, Towns, Appalachian, Erwin, Hot Springs , North Carolina, The, Asheville, Forest, Bent, Asheville ., South Carolina , Tennessee, Florida, Hurricane Milton

☆ My brother drowned trying to save someone else on the Fourth of July. I dread the holiday every year.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-03 | by ( Janet Funk | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

While the rest of America is celebrating, I'm reliving the day my brother drowned, the day my family went from eight kids to seven. My brother Dave and I drove up together on July 3. Janet Funk and her oldest brother, Paul. Paul, Dave, and Tom jumped up and followed him. They were halfway there when Robbie went under.

Persons: I'm, Paul, Sue, Tom, Carol, Ellen, Robbie, Dave, Janet Funk, Janet Funk Robbie, Robbie waded, — Organizations: Service, Business, Irish Catholic Locations: America, Lake Erie

☆ Greek island fire: Yacht captain jailed ahead of arson trial over blaze in Hydra
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-27 | by ( Story Reuters | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Greek judicial authorities have jailed the captain and first officer of a yacht ahead of a trial on charges of arson over a forest fire on the island of Hydra believed to have been sparked by fireworks, legal sources said. The two men and the entire crew of the yacht have denied any wrondoing. Eleven other crew members were freed on bail and with restrictions. Flames engulf the Greek island of Hydra, on June 21. The 13 Greek crew members of the yacht, which was moored 350 meters (383 yards) from the shore when the fire erupted, were arrested on Sunday at a marina near Athens and charged with starting the blaze.

Persons: “, ” Organizations: Volunteer Fire, Hydra, Wednesday, Salaminia Yachting, Athens News Agency, Reuters Locations: Greece, Hydra, Athens, Piraeus

☆ New Yorkers planted a tiny forest in a spot where the city used to warehouse prisoners and smallpox patients
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-14 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

New York City got its first tiny forest, planted on Roosevelt Island on April 6. AdvertisementVolunteers and supporters gather in Southpoint Park on Roosevelt Island for a ceremony before planting a pocket forest on April 6, 2024. AdvertisementSharon Bean volunteered at the pocket forest planting in honor of her sister, Kat Livingston, an avid gardener who died of cancer in January. SUGi has created pocket forests in 42 cities on six continents since 2019 — the Roosevelt Island forest is the group's 200th. AdvertisementThe tiny forest, also known as the Manhattan Healing Forest, sits at the southern end of Roosevelt Island.

Persons: Akira Miyawaki that's, Elise Van Middelem, Eliza Relman, Curtis Zunigh, Jerry Nadler, Franklin D, Roosevelt, Sharon Bean, Kat Livingston, Judith Berdy, she's, Berdy, Christina Delfico's, Delfico, Van Middelem, We've, SUGi, Bean, Tayana Panova, Panova, Olivia MacDonald Organizations: Service, York, Volunteers, New, Lunatic Asylum, Lenape Center, Manhattan Healing, Navajo Nation, New York Times Locations: York City, Roosevelt, Japanese, New York, Park, Dutch, British, Welfare, Manhattan, New York State, London, Syracuse , New York, New Mexico

☆ Madonna honors victims and survivors of Pulse nightclub shooting in powerful speech during Miami concert
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Alli Rosenbloom | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Madonna is honoring the survivors and victims of the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting in Florida. Authorities at the time said it was the deadliest mass shooting in the United States and the nation’s worst terror attack since 9/11. “My job is to bring you together, to make people dance, to make people happy, to not judge. This s— is not supposed to happen.”The “Vogue” singer named a number of the survivors in the audience and mentioned their harrowing survival stories. Innocent lives depend on it.”Madonna heads to Austin, Texas for her next “Celebration” tour show on Sunday.

Persons: ” Madonna, ”, who’d, Madonna, —, Gloria Gaynor’s “, Ray, Madame X Organizations: CNN, ISIS, Authorities, Vogue, . Volunteer Locations: Florida, Miami, American, Orlando, United States, Isla, Argentina, Orlando ., Austin , Texas

☆ An Arms Smugger, a Daring Heist, and the Birth of Israel
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-24 | by ( David Kushner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +35 min

Joining the Haganah, Schwimmer discovered, wasn't as easy as just strolling through the door. "He felt he had to do his part in creating a Jewish state, so this could never happen again," Schwimmer recalled. Rather than melt down the surplus weapons for scrap, Liff told Greenspun to take as much as he wanted — free of charge. "It went against the grain to buck the same government we had fought to preserve only a few years before," Hank Greenspun recalled. In 2001, at the urging of Brian Greenspun, Schwimmer received a presidential pardon from Bill Clinton.

Persons: Danny Schwimmer, They'd, Rina, Al —, David Ben, Gurion, Al Schwimmer, Schwimmer, Bugsy Siegel's, Meyer Lansky, Frank Sinatra, Sinatra, —, Boaz Dvir, Israel —, Danny, Al, I've, Hank Greenspun, Greenspun, Brian, Adolph, Dick Tracy, " Schwimmer, Wing Walker, America, Yehuda Arazi, Arazi, they'd, Schwimmer's, Sam Lewis, Leo Gardner, Milton, Milt, Rubenfeld, Paul Reubens, Herman, Reubens, Bugsy Siegel, Siegel, — Schwimmer, Nathan Liff, Liff, PhotoQuest, Bernarr McFadden, Pat, Ptacek, Rafael Trujillo, Teddy Kollek, Erwin Johnson, Bill Gerson, Gerson, Bud King, Gerson's, Ben, Joel Kimmel, Lewis, Lansky, hadn't, Tommy, Messerschmitts, David, Milt Rubenfeld, Israel, Charlie Winters, Winters, weren't, aren't, America's, Joseph McCarthy, John F, Kennedy, Brian Greenspun, Golda Meir, Bill Clinton Organizations: Israeli Air Force, TWA, Haganah, United Nations, Lockheed Air, Los Angeles Examiner, USC, Getty, US Naval, Schwimmer Aviation, FBI, UN, Customs Service, Palestine . Volunteers, Embassy, Israel, Service Airways, State Department, BI, Pepsi, Zionist, Nazi, Star, American, Avia, Messerschmitt, Pennsylvania State University who's, Las, Sun, Israel Aerospace Industries, IAI, they're, Israeli Locations: Tel Aviv, Israel, Connecticut, Palestine, New York, Copacabana, United States, Hungary, Auschwitz, storages, Arizona, Bridgeport, Rome, Burbank , California, Burbank, Las Vegas, Hawaii, Oahu, Santa Claus, California, Washington, Burbank ., Acapulco, Mexico, it's, Mexico City, Central, South America, Dominican Republic, China, America, Mexican, Panama, Panamanian, Corsica, Oklahoma, Detroit, Suriname, Brazil, Senegal, Casablanca, Sicily, Catania, Europe, Czechoslovakia, Czech, Egypt, Cairo, Los Angeles, American, Gaza, Iran

☆ 'America's greatest gift to Israel'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-24 | by ( David Kushner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +35 min

As the country's founder and first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, once declared, "America's greatest gift to Israel was Al Schwimmer." Joining the Haganah, Schwimmer discovered, wasn't as easy as just strolling through the door. "He felt he had to do his part in creating a Jewish state, so this could never happen again," Schwimmer recalled. Rather than melt down the surplus weapons for scrap, Liff told Greenspun to take as much as he wanted — free of charge. In 2001, at the urging of Brian Greenspun, Schwimmer received a presidential pardon from Bill Clinton.

☆ Here's how to pick the best free tax filing option this season
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-04 | by ( Kate Dore | Cfp | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

IRS Free FileA public-private partnership between the IRS and Free File Alliance, a nonprofit comprised of tax software companies, IRS Free File offers free guided tax prep software for eligible filers. If you're comfortable with tax software, Free File has eight partners this season, with varying income eligibility — and some offer free linked state filings. Volunteer tax prep from IRS programsIf you're looking for more guidance, you may also qualify for free tax prep from IRS programs with trained volunteers. The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance, or VITA, program offers free tax prep for taxpayers typically making up to $64,000, in addition to filers with disabilities and limited English proficiency. AARP Foundation Tax-Aide also offers free tax prep for low- to moderate-income older adults.

Persons: Tim Hugo, Hugo, Steven Hamilton Organizations: U.S . Bureau of Labor Statistics, Taxpayers, IRS, Alliance, National Taxpayer, Volunteer, Internal Revenue, The George Washington University, Social Locations: Arizona , California, Florida , Massachusetts, Nevada , New Hampshire , New York, South Dakota , Tennessee , Texas, Washington and Wyoming

SEATTLE (AP) — Seattle has agreed to pay $10 million to 50 demonstrators who sued over the police department’s heavy-handed response to racial justice protests in 2020, in a settlement announced by attorneys from both sides Wednesday. The police department — led by then-Chief Carmen Best — used aggressive techniques to disperse the crowds, including flash-bang grenades, foam-tipped projectiles and blast balls that explode and emit pepper gas. A federal judge at one point ordered the department to stop using them against peaceful demonstrators. And when police used them even after Best and then-Mayor Jenny Durkan promised it would stop, the City Council voted unanimously to bar the department from doing so. “This decision was the best financial decision for the City considering risk, cost, and insurance,” Davison said.

Persons: George Floyd, ”, —, Carmen Best —, Jenny Durkan, Aubreanna Inda, “, ” Karen Koehler, Ann Davison, ” Davison Organizations: SEATTLE, Minneapolis police, City Council, City, Peaceful Locations: Seattle

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Gunmen burst into a home in central Mexico and abducted one of the volunteer searchers looking for the country's 114,000 disappeared and killed her husband and son, authorities said Wednesday. Cano’s volunteer group, Salamanca United in the Search for the Disappeared, said late Tuesday the gunmen shot Cano’s husband and adult son in the attack the previous day. State prosecutors confirmed husband and son were killed, and that Cano remained missing. At least seven volunteer searchers have been killed in Mexico since 2021. The volunteer searchers often conduct their own investigations —often relying on tips from former criminals — because the government has been unable to help.

Persons: Lorenza Cano, Cano, —, José Cano Flores, Lorenza Organizations: MEXICO CITY, Salamanca United, Jalisco New, Volunteers Locations: MEXICO, Mexico, Salamanca, Guanajuato, Cabo, brother's, Jalisco, Tlajomulco, America, Caribbean

☆ I made a multigenerational group of friends — from Gen Zers to Boomers — doing ski patrol
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Melissa Hart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

I ended up joining Backcountry Ski Patrol and making an intergenerational group of friends. Two years ago, when the dank Willamette Valley winters threatened to bury me in seasonal affective disorder, I begged Julie to teach me to cross-country ski. In the mountains near my house, I discovered not only bluebird skies above snowy slopes, but a group of multigenerational friends who inspired me to join Backcountry Ski Patrol. The members of our patrol in the Willamette National Forest span four generations, from Gen Zers to Boomers. Some of us cross-country ski.

Persons: Zers, —, Julie, she's, Gen Zers, who'd, who've, Julie Polhemus, I've Organizations: Ski, Boomers, Service, Volunteers, First Locations: Los Angeles, Oregon, Willamette

☆ A climber tumbled hundreds of feet down Oregon’s highest peak. Volunteer rescuers happened to see it - and saved her life
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Sarah Dewberry | Christina Maxouris | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The climber “slid and tumbled down the mountain for approximately 300-400 feet,” Brian McCall, a spokesperson with the sheriff’s office, told CNN. The brutal fall was witnessed by members of Portland Mountain Rescue, a nonprofit volunteer organization focused on helping people in mountainous areas. The climber, Leah Brown, told CNN in an email she doesn’t know what caused her fall. Portland Mountain RescueIn a Facebook post, Portland Mountain Rescue wrote the woman’s injuries “prevented self-rescue,” adding their members worked with the Crag Rats group, also an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization. “I owe them my life.”In a statement after the rescue, Portland Mountain Rescue warned of the dangerous winter conditions at the mountain.

Persons: “, Brian McCall, Leah Brown, ” Brown, Ross, Brown Organizations: CNN, Clackamas County Sheriff’s, Authorities, Rescue, Ross Clemson, “ Locations: Mt . Hood, Portland, Clackamas County, Mt, Hood, Oregon

Joseph Ataman/CNNAfter many foreign workers fled Israel following the October 7 attacks, farmers were forced to abandon crops or rely on volunteers for the harvest. Inbar’s remaining foreign workers quietly motor up and down the rows of zucchini. Hamas fighters torched the barns holding hay for the dairy cows on Kibbutz Alumim, riding unopposed into the settlement before massacring foreign workers and attendees of the nearby Nova music festival. “The foreign workers run the farm, they do all the milking,” farm manager Stevie Marcus said of the working of the farm before October 7. Joseph Ataman/CNNStanding among Inbar’s zucchini, tech worker Avi Leibovich - volunteering on a day off from his day job - said he came to help Israeli farms survive.

Persons: Thais, Nattaphong Duangchan, Matan, Yosi, Joseph Ataman, Avi Dichter, ”, Lior Simcha, Stevie Marcus, Yosi Inbar, it’s, Benjamin Netanyahu, Inbar, “ We’re, Lisa Perlman, Inbar’s, Avi Leibovich, Danny Parizada, hadn’t, Mei –, Mei, “ Organizations: CNN, Hamas, Palestinian, West Bank, Milk Producers Association, United Nations Office, Humanitarian Affairs, of Housing, Brothers, Sisters, Volunteers Locations: Thai, Israel, Gaza, Hamas, Thailand, Thailand’s, Sri Lanka, Israel’s, Egypt, United States, Nova, Kibbutz Alumim, Gaza City, Tel Aviv

Below the shattered windows of the high-rise hotels in downtown Acapulco, people walk alongside towering hills of garbage bags filled with rotting food and debris, from mattresses to Christmas decorations. Volunteer firefighters from distant states clear the waste, wiping away swarms of cockroaches from their arms. Miles from the coastal beachside resorts, Elizabeth Del Valle, 43, listened as her teenage daughter Constanza Sotelo, described the “mountains of trash” still blocking many streets surrounding their home. “We have no way to find face masks to keep ourselves healthy,” said Ms. Del Valle. “We expect that we’re going to get an infection from the smell, from the garbage.”Weeks after Hurricane Otis shocked forecasters and government officials by intensifying rapidly into the strongest storm to hit Mexico’s Pacific Coast and devastate much of Acapulco, residents say they now face an unfolding public health disaster.

Persons: Miles, Elizabeth Del Valle, Constanza Sotelo, ”, Del, “, Hurricane Otis Locations: Acapulco, Del Valle, Coast

☆ How a Ukrainian salt town was laid to waste in Russia's desperate push for Bakhmut
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-12 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

The eastern Ukrainian city of Soledar fell to Russia in January after months of brutal battle. It would be another five months before the eastern Ukrainian city, located 10 miles northeast of Bakhmut, would fall to Russia as the new year dawned. The town of Soledar offered little strategic value to Russia's forces beyond a political win. They didn't care what would happen to Ukrainian forces, they didn't care what would happen to their own forces." "It felt like I had left at least a part of me in Soledar," Cherniavska said.

Persons: —, Tania Synia, Synia, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Soledar, Russia's, Putin, Serhii Ivanov, Ivanov, Kateryna, Tania Synia Wagner, — Prigozhin's, Prigozhin, Bakhmut, Stepanenko, wasn't, Nika Cherniavska, Nika Cherniavksa, Cherniavska, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, ANATOLII STEPANOV Organizations: Service, Wagner Group, Ukrainian Defense Ministry, Volunteers, Ukrainian, Institute, 46th Airmobile Brigade, 77th Airmobile Brigade, 93rd Mechanized Brigade, Russia, Getty, Russian Ministry of Defence Locations: Ukrainian, Soledar, Russia, Bakhmut, Ukraine, Russian, Cherniavska, AFP

☆ Russia's Lancet drone is its most effective weapon in Ukraine, and it's only getting deadlier
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( David Hambling | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Rise of the lancetA Russian Lancet loitering munition shot down in the Zaporizhzhia region in July 2022. At first only a handful of Lancet strike videos were posted each month. Target setUkrainian soldiers shoot at what Ukraine said were Russian Lancet drones in a still image from a video released in May. AdvertisementAdvertisementAccording to Lost Armor, as of October 3 there are 667 Lancet strike videos. These are typically kept several miles back from the front line, but not far enough to be out of Lancet range.

Persons: —, Samuel Bendett, 19FortyFive, Yuriy Sak, Dmytro Smoliyenko, Crews, Bendett, Zala, David Hambling Organizations: Service, Russia, Strategic Communications, Ukrainian Armed Forces, REUTERS, Zala Aero Group, Special Operations Forces, CNA, CNAS, Lancet, Reuters, Ukraine Defense Ministry, Analysts, Publishing, Getty, Artillery, Oryx, Russia's RIA, Telegram, Vostok, Volunteer, Aviation, Forbes, The, New, Popular Mechanics, WIRED Locations: Ukraine, Zaporizhzhia, Syria, Russia, Russian, Ukrainian, German, Kyiv, Lancets, London

☆ Pet euthanasia rates are at a 3-year high, but experts say there are ways to help besides adoption
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Kelly Burch | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

So far this year, 8.5% of animals that enter the shelter system have been euthanized. But Scout's happy ending is out of reach for too many shelter animals, as national euthanasia rates for shelter pets have climbed to a three-year high, according to Shelter Animals Count. While the percentages may seem small, with an estimated 6.3 million animals moving through the shelter system each year, they add up. SAC is working on a more scientific approach to tracking euthanasia rates to help clarify the large range, Filer said. Donate: More resources help shelters save more lives, so donations are always appreciated, Castle said.

Persons: That's, Scout, Stephanie Filer, Filer, that's, Foster, Julie Castle, Christa Chadwick, Aliza, Eliazarov Organizations: Service, Scout, Detroit Free Press, Animals, SAC, American Society for, Animal Society, Best, Volunteers, New Hampshire Society for, Meadow Brook Medical Care Locations: Wall, Silicon, Michigan, Texas , California, North Carolina , Florida, Louisiana, Meadow Brook

☆ Hundreds join largest Loch Ness monster hunt in 50 years in Scotland
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Volunteers get ready to take off in the Loch Ness Project Research Vessel, Deep Scan, as they take part in the largest Loch Ness Monster hunt for 50 years in Scotland, Britain, August 27, 2023. REUTERS/Russell Cheyne Acquire Licensing RightsLOCH NESS, Scotland, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Hundreds of hopeful volunteers joined a two-day hunt for Scotland's fabled Loch Ness monster on Saturday and Sunday, in what organisers described as the biggest search for the elusive "Nessie" in more than 50 years. The Loch Ness Centre, which partnered with voluntary research team Loch Ness Exploration to organise "The Quest", said they would be using surveying equipment that had not previously been tried at the loch, including thermal drones. "We all got a bit excited, ran to go make sure the recorder was on and it wasn’t plugged in." "I chose the Loch Ness monster as my essay assignment, and I thought, 'oh 20 years later it comes full circle so I might as well come and join the hunt' since I heard it was happening," she said, adding that so far they had not found any evidence.

Persons: Russell Cheyne, Alan McKenna, St Columba, Caroline McNamara's, Nessie, Kylie MacLellan, Giles Elgood Organizations: Volunteers, Research, REUTERS, Loch, Thomson Locations: Loch Ness, Scotland, Britain, NESS, London

☆ Uncensored Chatbots Provoke a Fracas Over Free Speech
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-02 | by ( Stuart A. Thompson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Several uncensored and loosely moderated chatbots have sprung to life in recent months under names like GPT4All and FreedomGPT. Many were created for little or no money by independent programmers or teams of volunteers, who successfully replicated the methods first described by A.I. Most groups work from existing language models, only adding extra instructions to tweak how the technology responds to prompts. The uncensored chatbots offer tantalizing new possibilities. Independent A.I.

Persons: A.I, ”, Oren Etzioni, “ They’re Organizations: Big Tech, A.I, University of Washington, Allen Institute for A.I

☆ Opinion: How to respond to anti-LGBTQ hate this Pride month
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Opinion Allison Hope | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

I promise there are some simple and immensely helpful ways in which LGBTQ people and allies can take action in June and every month. Don Arnold/Getty ImagesIf you don’t know where to begin with lobbying, look to an LGBTQ or civil rights group doing the hard work on the ground. Commit to learning and teaching: Even members and strong allies of the LGBTQ community can benefit from fresh learning. After all, the LGBTQ community is anything but a monolith — there are so many diverse forms of representation and a landscape that is quickly evolving. It’s also not a bad time to support brands that are supportive of the LGBTQ community.

Persons: Allison Hope, Read, Allison, ”, isn’t, ” Melanie Willingham, “, they’re, Octavio Jones, allyship, —, Don Arnold, Virginia Woolf’s, Orlando ”, Dorian Gray ”, Oscar Wilde, Janet Mock’s, ” Young, Maia Kobabe’s, Juno Dawson, Jessica Love, Wilhelmina ”, Joseph Belisle, It’s, Ron DeSantis, intersectionality, let’s Organizations: New Yorker, The New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, Slate, Allison Hope, Tampa Pride, Getty, Progress, Florida Capitol, Sydney Opera House, Volunteer, Reading, Florida Gov, Twitter, Facebook Locations: New, Florida, Tampa, Tallahassee, Australia, Virginia, Paisley, America

☆ What the Boston Marathon Finish Line Means Now
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( Talya Minsberg | Matthew Futterman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +14 min

The Boston Marathon is arguably the most elusive finish line of all, and not just anyone can cross it. In 2013, on a cool, partly sunny day, this ebullient scene was shattered when two bombs exploded near the finish line. On Monday, nearly 30,000 runners will journey, down and up and down, toward the finish line of the 127th Boston Marathon. Volunteer, runner I used to volunteer at the finish line, reading information about runners as they finished for the announcer. It means something so different crossing that finish line compared to other marathon majors.

☆ 5 ways to file your taxes for free this season
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Kate Dore | Cfp | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

IRS Free FileIRS Free File offers free online guided tax preparation for your federal tax returns and some state filings if your adjusted gross income was $73,000 or less in 2022. It's a good option for those who have simple returns, don't need ongoing tax planning advice and could benefit financially from the free service. Although 70% of taxpayers qualify for IRS Free File, only 2% used it during the 2022 filing season, according to the National Taxpayer Advocate. Tax prep for older AmericansOlder Americans may also qualify for free in-person and virtual tax help through the AARP Foundation Tax-Aide program. The program works with VITA and Tax Counseling for the Elderly, or TCE, which also provides free tax preparation for those who qualify.

☆ Fears grow for untold numbers buried by Turkey earthquake
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

But there was also widespread despair and growing anger at the slow pace of rescue efforts in some areas. People sitting on the rubble react in the aftermath of an earthquake, in rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria February 7, 2023. Muhammet Ruzgar, 5, is carried out by rescuers from the site of a damaged building, following an earthquake in Hatay, Turkey, February 7, 2023. Vice President Fuat Oktoy said at least 5,894 people have died from the earthquake in Turkey, with another 34,810 injured. An aerial view shows damaged and collapsed buildings following an earthquake, in Hatay, Turkey February 7, 2023.

☆ Monarch butterflies made a historic rebound this year, but my photos from 'Butterfly Town, USA' are disappointing and sad
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-24 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

California's monarch butterflies made a miraculous rebound from nearly disappearing in 2020. I visited Pacific Grove, AKA "Butterfly Town, USA," to see the monarch migration for the first time. Monarch butterflies fly at the Sierra Chincua butterfly sanctuary in Angangeo, Michoacan state, Mexico. Monarch butterflies fly at the Sierra Chincua butterfly sanctuary in Angangeo, Michoacan state, Mexico. When I was a child, I didn't see monarch butterflies, but they were already in decline.

☆ The author of 'Station Eleven' couldn't update her Wikipedia page to reflect her divorce without citing an article where she confirmed it, so she got a magazine to interview her
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Britney Nguyen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Emily St. John Mandel said getting interviewed was the only way to update her relationship on Wikipedia. The author wanted to update her page to say she is divorced, and needed to cite a published article. After being interviewed by Slate, Mandel was able to update her page to say she's not married. In this case, that's what a volunteer editor used to originally verify the marital status of Emily St. Mandel. Now, her Wikipedia page says Mandel, "has a daughter with former husband Kevin Mandel," and that she has a girlfriend.

Search resuls for: ". Volunteer"

25 mentions found