In a year of hard news, here are some of the stories that made us smile in 2024ExBulletin

An MBTA subway train sports googly eyes under its windshield in Boston. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority/AP .

. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority/AP

To put it mildly, 2024 has not held back any bad news. One could be forgiven for looking at last year's headlines and wondering if they should throw their phone into the nearest body of water.

But let's not let this sadness overshadow the joy that 2024 also contained, for example, when millions of people marveled at a total solar eclipse! A constant drumbeat of good news has spread across the country, whether we're paying attention or not. And in case that wasn't the case, NPR member stations followed suit.

Here are some of the stories from coast to coast that made us smile in 2024:

An Iowa boy wanted to ride a motorcycle for his 11th birthday. More than 250 motorcyclists came to his party to grant his wish. Dallas Grave became obsessed with motorcycles after meeting a group of bikers while running a lemonade stand, Iowa Public Radio reported in October. So when he asked to ride one for his birthday, his mother, Ashley Kirkes, thought she would put out an open invitation on Facebook to any motorcyclists who would like to stop by and ride it. She couldn't imagine what was going to happen: there were many of them, with gifts to boot.

A Missouri school district named a school building after its beloved custodian. Claudene Wilson started at the Swedeborg School District in 1992 as a custodian, according to KCUR. But as the years went by, she began wearing more and more hats, like bus driver, lawn mower, or office phone answerer. Generations of students have come to know and love her as the reliable cornerstone of their school. So, at the start of this school year, the district decided to name its K-8 elementary school after him, celebrating his 30 years of dedication.

A mother grizzly bear and her cub in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. Karen Bleier/Getty Images .

switch captionKaren Bleier/Getty Images

Grizzly bears are being reintroduced to the North Cascades. It's been nearly three decades since anyone has seen a grizzly bear near North Cascades National Park, located northeast of Seattle, KUOW reports, even though bears once dominated the area. Now, several grizzly bears from Montana, Wyoming and British Columbia will be flown each summer to the North Cascades to slowly rebuild the population.

A group of Bostonians have asked local rail officials to watch some of their trains with wide eyes. It worked! It's a classic, if unorthodox, example of successful grassroots organizing: Some Boston residents rallied to ask the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority to keep a wide-eyed watch on trains. And as WBUR reported in June, the MBTA is committed. Only five of the trains feature eyes, but a little whimsy makes all the difference.

The total solar eclipse dazzled northern New Hampshire. Northern New Hampshire was one of the areas in the path of solar eclipse totality in the United States last April, and as a result, tourists flocked there. New Hampshire Public Radio staff spoke to everyone from travelers and small business owners to national park employees and local college students. The verdict? As one visitor from Maryland said, “It was the coolest thing I’ve ever experienced in my life.” »

Philadelphia's Kensington Derby once again brought together the city's wackiest human-powered vehicles. Picture this: 15,000 Philadelphians cheering on cyclists, tricyclists and roller skaters dressed as Shrek, the Phillie Phanatic, parking cones and a giant nautilus. This was the scene to behold at the 16th running of the Kensington Derby, where entrants faced a 3-mile course culminating in mud at the finish line. As WHYY reported, it's for a good cause: Proceeds go to local community development organizations.

The sun catches the sunglasses of a man observing the Great North American Eclipse on April 8 in Colebrook, NH Scott Eisen/Getty Images .

switch captionScott Eisen/Getty Images

For the first time since the 17th century, the Nansemond Indian Nation held its annual powwow on land it officially owned. In May, the Suffolk, Virginia, city council voted to return 71 acres of land to Nansemond. of a years-long debate between the town and the tribe, which had been displaced from the land in the 1600s. WHRO reported on the powwow, where members of the tribe celebrated together by dancing, eating and much more.

A duck named Polly has won over everyone at a Texas wildlife sanctuary. Keepers at All Things Wild Rehabilitation believe Polly, a one-year-old Peking duck missing part of her beak, was thrown into a pond by her previous owner and attacked by a snapping turtle. But, as KUT reported, they know one thing for sure: Polly loves everyone at the animal sanctuary, and everyone loves Polly. Proof of this: they made him a 3D printed prosthesis invoice thanks to funds collected by the community.

When the owners of a Seattle music venue left the company, employees stepped in to keep the business operating as a cooperative. The Conor Byrne Pub, a popular music venue frequented by emerging artists, was in danger of closing its doors. doors forever earlier this year, KNKX reported. Instead, it becomes a cooperative, funded and managed by community members through the efforts of its former employees.

Researchers have announced the discovery of a new species of dinosaur in Montana. When a University of Utah paleontologist and his students began examining small bone fragments for research in 2022, all they knew was that they were examining discovered bones in northern Montana. a few years ago, according to Yellowstone Public Radio. They did not know that they had been given pieces of a never-before-seen dinosaur, a reconstruction of which was unveiled last June. Its name: Lokiceratops rangiformis, named after the Norse god Loki.

Signs indicate an endangered snake is making a comeback in Indiana. The Kirtland snake, a small, red-bellied reptile, is considered endangered in Indiana. However, recent sightings suggest the species is recovering, according to Indiana Public Media. While surveying a recently restored wetland near Bloomington, Indiana, local authorities found snakes in an abandoned soybean field near an unusual location that makes herpetologists optimistic about the snakes' return to the the state.

Looking for even more feel-good stories? Check out Iowa Public Radio's daily newsletter dedicated to good news, The Sunnyside Project.

This article includes reporting from member station newsrooms across the United States.

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