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How mindset has aided Chicago's Belal Muhammad's rise in UFC

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:41 GMT

CHICAGO — Sometimes a simple observation can change the course of an entire life. That was certainly the case for a Chicago Mixed Martial Arts fighter who will once again be on the biggest stage of the sport on Saturday night. "My high school wrestling coach was there for a year and he left and I was at the University of Illinois in Champaign going for law," said Bilal Muhammad, a south side native who went to Bogan High School. "I ended up seeing him in the newspaper, fighting on TV and I was like 'Oh crap, that's my old wrestling coach.'"That led to a Facebook message, a visit to his old coach's gym, and the start of a journey in MMA for Muhammad that's put him among the best in his division in the sport. The UFC welterweight fighter has a 22-3 professional record and has worked his way up to the No. 4 ranking in the division in 2023. He's in the co-main event on Saturday's UFC 288 on Saturday night at the Prudential Center in Newark as he'll face fifth-ranked Gilbert Burns.Muhamm...

Severe storms creeping toward the Austin Metro

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:41 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Scattered storms, with a history of producing large hail, are moving toward the Austin Metro with at least one large severe thunderstorm warning. Localized flash flooding is also a possibility with these storms.A Severe Thunderstorm Watch is in effect for most of Central Texas until 10 p.m. The main severe weather threats this evening will be for large hail and damaging winds, but an isolated tornado can't be ruled out.Severe thunderstorm watch until 10 p.m.The latest outlook from the Storm Prediction Center has most areas along and west of I-35 under a slight risk (2 out of 5) for severe storms beginning mid-Friday afternoon through midnight.Risk of isolated to widely scattered severe storms Friday afternoon & eveningAnother round of isolated strong to severe storms is possible Saturday.Risk of isolated severe storms in the Hill Country on SaturdayYet another risk of severe storms is in place for Sunday.Risk of isolated strong to severe storms across the area o...

Mental Health Awareness: Meet Luna! Llano County's new therapy dog

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:41 GMT

LLANO COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Many Americans struggle with mental health conditions that sometimes can go unnoticed or untreated and in rural America getting help can be a challenge."The need for therapy has gone up," said Catherine Bitney, a clinical assistant professor at Texas State University.Bitney said the biggest change over the past few years has been the increase of awareness in mental health problems and people being able to talk about it more."Certainly in my group practice we have gotten a lot more clients looking for therapy," said Bitney.Raising awareness about mental health resources and letting people know that there is help is important, Bitney said.From anxiety to depression, there are a number of factors that contribute to a mental health breakdown. Bitney said someone's profession can also play a part."Anyone who is doing frontline work is probably going to see gruesome stuff, so EMT's, child protective services, firefighters, police officers," Bitney said.A repor...

Minnesota, Wisconsin to detail plans for replacing Osceola Bridge over St. Croix River

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:41 GMT

The Minnesota and Wisconsin departments of transportation are holding a joint meeting to share plans to reconstruct Highway 243 at the Osceola Bridge spanning the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway.The meeting will be held at 5 p.m. May 10 at Osceola Village Hall, 310 Chieftain St. in Osceola, Wis.There will be a presentation followed by questions from the public to learn more about the options being considered for the bridge, which was initially built in 1953.The reconstruction plans began in 2021 and construction is expected to begin in 2026. The bridge connects Washington and Chisago counties in Minnesota with Osceola and Polk counties in Wisconsin.The team is working with various levels of government to make sure the project’s impact on the river and other natural resources are minimized.Related ArticlesLocal News | Railroad tracks back in service after Mississippi River derailment in Wisconsin Local News | MN Senate passes transportation bill wi...

Villa di Como restores Italian goddess statue

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:41 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -A statue outside Villa di Como and 288 Lark Wine & Tap was broken last month by someone walking by. After a month of hard work, chef and owner Ali Celik, was able to rebuild the goddess from its five pieces.Albany police officers arrived to the scene after a report of vandalism came in, which was caught on security cameras last month. As police looked for the suspect, Celik worked with a team of artisans to reassemble the statue. Schenectady PD to enforce Kings Road speed limit "I'm excited to share a glass with my statues again. To us, it felt like forever because we were not happy," said Celik.After completing the statue's restoration, Celik answered a call from Albany police. "It's very ironic. We finished around Tuesday night, we closed the doors, and APD called us and told us they made an arrest," explained Celik. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! 37-year-old Jordan Michael was arrested on Ma...

St. Louis residents react to deadly downtown shootings

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:41 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Les Sterman, the chair of the Citizens for a Greater St. Louis, has lived in downtown for nearly 20 years. He tells FOX 2, he thinks about moving out, “every day.”  “It’s a great place to live under normal circumstances,” he said. Unfortunately, the last two weeks in downtown have been anything but normal. Two people have died, and two others are hurt from recent downtown shootings. Last week, a man was gunned down and killed at Kiener Plaza. Just two days ago, a woman was killed in the Marriott’s downtown parking garage and less than 24 hours later, two more people were shot inside the garage. The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department has arrested a man they believe is responsible for both shootings.   Trending: Kim Gardner supporters upset; some not surprised by her resignation Sterman said he hasn’t had any close calls but said he’s “always afraid of getting in the crossfire.” About four years ago Sterman and his downtown neighbors helped create Citizens for...

Washington Park residents still waiting for municipal building to be replaced

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:41 GMT

WASHINGTON PARK, Ill. - Some Washington Park residents are wanting to know when the village will be able to replace its municipal building, which was destroyed by fire in October 2021.  The building housed Washington Park’s police, fire and public works departments. Plans to rebuild are contingent on state funding. State Rep. Kevin Schmidt (R-Cahokia Heights), said state law requires the village to submit five years of financial records before receiving a grant to rebuild. For Washington Park, that requirement is a problem. Trending: Kim Gardner supporters upset; some not surprised by her resignation “The previous mayor destroyed all the financial records,” said Schmidt. He introduced HB 2341, which would allow communities without the necessary records to appear before a commission to make their case.Schmidt said the bill has 50 co-sponsors and passed unanimously out of committee.  He predicts it would easily pass the full house, but there has yet to be a vote.“I’m just wanting an...

Limited inventory continues to hamper home buyers in Denver market

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:41 GMT

Low inventory continues to keep Denver home prices high and the time on market low, according to the April report from the Denver Metro Association of Realtors.In April, the median sale price of a single-family home was $640,000, up 3.2% from March but down 5.9% from a year earlier when the Denver metro was in the grip of a buying frenzy.“The inventory decline in an already tight market raises some concern as to what the rest of the year has in store for the Denver market,” says Libby Levinson-Katz, chair of the DMAR market trends committee.“The real question on everyone’s mind is when will more inventory hit the market?”Low inventory across all categoriesThe number of single-family homes and condos on the market rose slightly by 2.3% from March to April to 4,620 properties, lower than the historical average increase of 10.4%. It’s the smallest increase since the market decreased by .57% in 2014.New listings sell quickly and spend a median of seve...

Opinion: Students need workplace skills; schools should teach them

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:41 GMT

Editor’s Note: This article was written for Mosaic Vision, an independent journalism training program for high school students who report and photograph stories under the guidance of professional journalists.This June, I’ll be looking for a summer job as I head into my junior year in high school. I have two goals: improve my budgeting skills and pay for my own non-essentials. But I’m not sure where or how to start.There’s not much talk at school about how to find a job and how to successfully apply. Our college-focused high school curriculum skips over a crucial lesson: preparing us to enter the workforce.Bay Area students live in a highly competitive state for both college and careers. We also live in one of the nation’s most expensive regions. In spite of rigorous coursework, I feel unequipped to compete for sought-after entry-level jobs.What is my definition of feeling prepared? Confidence that my high school education has equipped me to track down positions, successfully apply f...

‘Yeah, it’s on’: Home run, no-hitter pulls St. Francis even with Mitty in WCAL

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:41 GMT

NEW: PREP SPORTS MAILBAGThe Bay Area News Group is introducing a high school sports mailbag in May. Get your questions in as soon as possible. Our debut edition is an open forum. Got questions about spring sports playoffs, coaching changes, an early peek at football season, etc.? Send them to [email protected]. Please include “mailbag” in the subject line.MOUNTAIN VIEW — In a pitchers’ duel between the West Catholic Athletic League’s best teams, all it took was one swing of Rebecca Quinn’s bat to put St. Francis ahead of Archbishop Mitty on the scoreboard and even with the Monarchs in the WCAL standings.The two-run homer over the left-field wall in the sixth inning was all the offense St. Francis needed to triumph 2-0 on Friday afternoon and tied Mitty with a 7-1 record in the league.“I was anticipating that pitch, and I knew what I had to do,” said Quinn, who batted 3 for 3. One of the first players to greet her at home plate was junior pitcher Kate...