Society & Community

Overland Park, Kan. – October 05, 2026 -- The Golden Scoop, a nonprofit ice cream and coffee shop staffed by adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, will close its original storefront at 9540 Nall Ave. on Saturday, Oct. 31, and replace it with a mobile food truck available for bookings across the Kansas City metro.

The shop opened in April 2021 and quickly drew lines wrapping around its strip center, prompting a second, larger location with a drive-thru at 10460 W. 103rd St., less than three miles away. With two storefronts operating so close together, the organization decided to put its newest unit on wheels instead of opening a third fixed site.

Traverse City – October 05, 2026 -- Families across northern Michigan struggling to heat their homes through harsh winters are getting help from an unlikely source: their local furnace repair company. Precision Plumbing and Heating in Traverse City has built charitable giving directly into its day-to-day service work, according to a new feature on HelloNation highlighting insights from the company's Leslie Roe.

A furnace make-over program targets families in crisis

The Annual Precision Furnace Make-Over initiative lets community members nominate individuals and families facing financial hardship or personal struggles who need help with home heating. The program is aimed especially at households caring for elderly relatives or managing medical challenges, where dependable heat is a matter of safety during northern Michigan's harsh winters.

Georgetown, Texas – October 05, 2026 -- Veterans and active-duty service members can get a free haircut at participating Sport Clips locations on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, as the haircare chain launches its 13th annual Help A Hero fundraising campaign.

The campaign runs Oct. 5 through Nov. 14, 2026, with donations collected at participating Sport Clips stores nationwide to benefit the VFW's Sport Clips Help A Hero Scholarship program.

The program has funded more than 3,600 scholarships since it began

Sport Clips, its clients, franchisees, team members and product partners have raised nearly $17 million through the campaign, funding over 3,600 scholarships via the VFW Foundation for veterans and service members pursuing civilian education and training.

Kimberly, Idaho – October 01, 2026 -- Standlee is dyeing its iconic green Grab & Go hay bales pink this October, with proceeds from limited-edition merchandise and the campaign supporting five breast cancer organizations nationwide.

Now in its sixth year, the Grab & Go to Give campaign marks the second year that pink-packaged bales have been distributed to retailers across the country. The forage inside remains identical to Standlee's standard product; only the packaging changes.

Five organizations will receive support from this year's campaign

Standlee's 2026 donations will benefit the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Living Beyond Breast Cancer, Rein In Cancer, Rural Gone Urban Foundation, and Horses and Hope. These groups fund research, provide education and screening, and offer financial grants to women battling breast cancer, including those in the equine and Western agricultural communities.

Colorado Springs – October 01, 2026 -- Mike Maroone Honda will host its 9th Annual Car Show on Sunday, October 11, from 10 AM to 3 PM at 1103 Academy Park Loop in Colorado Springs, with all proceeds benefiting Pikes Peak Habitat for Humanity.

Last year's show raised $34,000 for affordable housing

Judges will award 18 trophies at 2 PM

Kids' activities and 35-plus vendors round out the day

Sheridan – October 01, 2026 -- Special Olympics Indiana is moving its signature Polar Plunge season showcase from Eagle Creek Park in Indianapolis to SKYLAKE Adventures, a new adventure park in Sheridan, starting in 2027.

SKYLAKE Adventures opened in June 2026 just north of Westfield's Grand Park Sports Campus. Its first phase included a six-acre manmade lagoon, white-sand beaches, floating obstacle courses and water slides. For winter, the venue will add a snow tubing hill, ice skating, a three-story ropes course and holiday activities to host the plunge.

Ramp access will let wheelchair users take the plunge

The new venue keeps Polar Plunge traditions intact, including costumes, teams and fundraising challenges. Ramp access to the water will create opportunities for individuals who use wheelchairs to participate.

Rockville – October 01, 2026 -- More parks, libraries, and stadiums are installing large picture-based communication boards, and the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) is using October's AAC Awareness Month to explain why they matter.

Communication boards are a form of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC)—typically large displays showing a dozen or more common words like "slide," "go," "bathroom," or "play." They let people with limited or unreliable speech communicate with others in public spaces. In the United States, more than 2 million people use AAC, ranging from gestures and facial expressions to picture boards and high-tech speech-generating devices.

New Orleans – October 01, 2026 -- HOTWORX, the infrared sauna fitness franchise with more than 900 studios worldwide, has kicked off its annual Workouts for Heroes campaign, running October 1 through November 30. All proceeds will go to the National Breast Cancer Foundation's Military Women's Patient Relief Fund, which covers non-medical expenses like childcare, lodging and transportation for military women undergoing breast cancer treatment.

Pink retail items fund the cause dollar by dollar

HOTWORX is selling limited-edition Pink Yoga Towels, Pink Yoga Mats and Pink Yoga Mat Holders at studios nationwide. The company will donate $1 for every towel and mat sold, plus $0.14 for every Pink Yoga Mat Slap Band purchased.

Chester County, Tenn. – October 01, 2026 -- Animal Rescue Corps (ARC) removed 24 surviving animals from a property in rural Chester County, Tennessee, after law enforcement requested emergency assistance with an animal cruelty case on Sept. 26, 2026.

Rescuers pulled 12 dogs, 10 cats and kittens, one rabbit and one goat from the property

Many of the animals were emaciated, chained or confined in small, dirty enclosures. Investigators at the scene also discovered the remains of multiple animals that did not survive.

Dallas – September 30, 2026 -- Advance ER is opening its lobbies to community voting for its annual Staff Pumpkin Decorating Contest, with ballots open from Monday, October 5 through Sunday, October 11 at its Park Cities and Preston Hollow/Galleria locations.

Staff spent 14 days transforming blank pumpkins into displays

Undecorated pumpkins were set out in both lobbies on September 16, giving Advance ER staff two weeks to carve and paint their entries before public voting begins.

Families get treats while they vote

During voting week, kids can pick up candy and small gifts, and adults receive a complimentary first-aid kit for the car, limited to one per family. The first five children to vote at each location get a free squishy toy, also limited to one per family.