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Friday, 29 March 2024

Midmorning With Aundrea - March 6, 2020 (Part 1)

Credit: WCBI
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Midmorning With Aundrea - March 6, 2020 (Part 1)
Midmorning With Aundrea - March 6, 2020 (Part 1)

(Part 1 of 2) Today, we survey the damage of the deadly tornadoes that swept through Nashville and its environs this week.

And we meet treasure hunters who scour beaches for their untapped riches.

Race to respond.a a very specical midmorning starts right now.

The search for survivors is ástillá not complete in tennessee, after tornadoes left at least 24 people dead.

In hard- hit putnam county, áthreeá people are still unaccounted for.

The tornado áthereá was on the ground for more than á50 milesá -- one of the longest paths of destruction in the region's history.

David begnaud reports from cookeville, tennessee.

He just turned two last week.

Now, it''s gone.

Open!

Yeah, daddy will open it.

They're all gone.

Clint pitts shared with us these photos and videos... of his sister erin, a former school teacher, her husband josh, a mechanical engineer, and their only child: sawyer.

Can you say a prayer?

...amen!

The kimberlins were devoutly christian, and sawyer, the grandson of a preacher... ...loved to direct songs with one of his favorite books, the church hymnal.

There's something about a family unit going together that is just -- i don't know.

I just can't get it out of my mind.

You know, as terrible as this sounds, they wouldn't have wanted to live without each other.

// it hurts but they're all together now.

At this point, that's all we can ask for.

Just around four houses down from the kimberlins is what's left of the collins home.

Matt is a youth minster at a local church.

He and his wife were hurt, but they will survive.

Their four-year- old daughter hattie was killed -- and their youngest child, laney, was critically injured.

She turns one... átodayá.

Both families lived in this neighborhood... where homes are little more than trash piles now.

18 people died in putnam county, tennessee.

The national weather service confirms the tornado here had winds of 175 mile- per-hour.

How are we still here?

When you speak to survivors along this street, like eric grooms -- who has nothing but the foundation of his home left, and the carpet that he and family sat on while the closet walls flew away -- this is what they say.

God just put his hand down and said, "nope, you'r not taking these today."

// i mea literally, you take the floor and the house, and leave the people?

No.

Nobody could do that but god.

Nobody.

Four people walked out of the groom's home which is just right across the street from where the kimberlins lived.

I'm standing on the kimberlins slab.

You know i asked one of the relatives - where could they have possibly gone.

That's the thought that keeps running through everyone's head - where could they have gone to survive.

And the only thought is they could have gone under the house through the crawl space here but the truth is that nobody will ever know what their final moments were like and whether they ever had a chance to even get under here.

David begnaud cbs news in the disaster zone here in cookeville, tennessee.

The damage in nashville is devastating.

Pictures with which we are all too familiar.

And, in times of tragedy... it's natural to want to help in whatever way you can.

But before donating to tennessee tornado relief efforts... beware!

Scam artist might use your good intentions against you with fraudulent emails, social media posts, calls, texts, donation websites, and even door to door knocks soliciting donations.

Meredith wood has three things to look out for.

Donating money on the internet is a gamble..

With so much anonymity and very little accountability... but how do you make sure your donations during tragic events don't fall into the wrong hands?

According to the department of homeland security's cyber agency-- here are three things you should consider to avoid donation scams. number one--- research charities or crowd-funding campaigns yourself and make sure it's clear exactly where your money is going.

Tom fuentes, law enforcement analyst// "there' ample opportunity for hoaxes like that to be conducted and unless a company, organization or even individual does their own due diligence to look into something, they may be subject to it."

Number two-- be cautious when it comes to opening email attachments.

Experts say do not click on links in unsolicited email messages asking for money.

Number three--- be wary of fraudulent pleas and donation ads on social networking sites.

The d-h-s cyber agency also warns about door-to- door solicitations during tragedies.

Even with all the scams.... charitable giving can be an important part of healing after a national incident.

Jeff nene, convoy of hope// "you d your best at knowing that hey, there's gonna be others out there that do things wrong, that do things for the wrong reasons, that are unethical but when you go in with the right heart in the first place, everything works out."

I'm meredith wood.

Women are coming together to build walls and build a future for a monroe county woman.

Locals and spring breakers are all picking up a hammer to help.

Wcbi's allie martin has more on "women buil week."

Nats as construction manager chris partin directs volunteers on this habitat house, annette thompson is helping another team as the walls go up on what will eventually be her home.

Nats thompson and her two daughters will live in this habitat home.

Like all habitat homeowners, thompson is required to help build her home and also help on other projects.

It's called "swea equity" an thompson is thankful for the opportunity and the volunteers.

"it means a lot t me, a blessing , i appreciate all the people who support me and help me get this job done."

This home on nettleton's front street is being built during "internationa women build week."

"it's kind of a bi deal to help empower women to show they can do things like this too, it gets a few more women on the job site and we get to show them how to use power tools and nail guns and let them beat and bang around and make some noise."

Nats mia patrick is one of the women on this job site.

She is part of a group from michigan state university, spending their spring break to help build a habitat home, especially this week.

"it is awesome, never thought i would be able to put together a roof, with these trusses, made some mistakes in the beginning, but chris is a great leader and he tells us there's not a mistake we can't fix, so we actually went up and fixed my mistakes today, but it's really empowpering, it's awesome it fell during international women's week."

This habitat home should be finished in about two months in nettleton, allie martin, wcbi news habitat homes are not free, all habitat homeowners get a low or no interest 20 year loan on their homes.

When we come back, sifting through the you may have seen them.

People walking along a sandy beach, scanning a metal detector back and forth.

And you may have asked yourself - is it worth it?

Denise sawyer has the surprising answer.

Below the sand off the shore of the treasure coast are believed to be millions of dollars worth of lost treasure.

Jonah martinez 23:07:58:29 i treasure hunt almost all year.

For jonah martinez who has been finding treasure for 24 years each discovery feels like the first.

Jonah martinez 23:13:34:09 i'll never forget that feeling.

I'll never the adrenaline.

But it's his most recent find he will never forget.

Chasing the waves he and his friend cole smith hit the beach.

Jonah martinez 23:20:39:28 i was in waist-deep water and i am getting pounded by the waves and wind.

Then they came across this.

He opens up a zip- lock bag and one by one reveals gold coins worth 5-to-6 thousand dollars.

Cole smith 23:23:49:23 we found these 22 beautiful silver coins here.

Denise sawyer/ @denisesawyertv 23:52:50:06 this part of florida's coastline is known for treasure dating back to over 300 years ago& hence the name "treasur coast.'

11 spanish ships carrying treasure off the coast, sunk during a hurricane in 1715.

Cole smith 23:18:13:23 so excited and it's worth everything.

Just one of the ocean's great mysteries.

Denise sawyer denise sawyer below the sand off the shore of the treasure coast are believed to be millions of dollars worth of lost treasure.

Jonah martinez 23:07:58:29 i treasure hunt america ferrera made a name for herself on the hit t-v- show, "ugl betty".

Now she' stepping ábehindá the camera as executive producer of a new netflix series.

The bilingual comedy "gentefied tells the story of a mexican- american family trying to keep its business afloat in a gentrifying, east los angeles neighborhood.

' ferrera talks about combing her love of storytelling with her passion for her latina roots.

Boyle heights is so stunning, and such a gorgeous backdrop, and - such a beautiful community.

America ferrera is no stranger to east l-a's boyle heights.

The mostly latino community provided the setting for her first big movie role - "real wome have curves" a woman has thoughts, ideas, a mind of her own!

Nearly two decades later - she's back as executive producer for a new netflix series& created by two young latino writers.

"gentefied & follows three mexican-american cousins trying to save their family's taco shop& as rising rent prices threaten to drive them out of the neighborhood.

"we're not gonn save the shop with a burrito.

We're gonna save it, with some changes" gentefied is gentrification so it's kind of progress in a neighborhood, but by the people who are from there.

We met up with ferrera at the restaurant that serves as the taco shop's exterior.

A: i really saw my experience and my identity struggles in what they had written.

And - m: i would imagine that's what drew you to the project then?

A: absolutely.//the kind of push and pull of gentrification, of, you know - progress, and the tension that creates with - with roots, and with history is sort of - an issue that i've lived with internally my whole life.

Ferrera grew up in southern california wanting to fit in but also craving a connection to her honduran heritage.

My genuine heart's desire is to tell stories that haven't been told.// we learn to see ourselves in tom hanks, and julia roberts//or whoever you have.//but there's no reason why we can't also have genuine, authentic reflections of who we really are.

That authenticity came in part by forming ties with the people of boyle heights.

We started building relationships with organizers, and activists, and organizations here in the community before we came in and started shooting.

The show chronicles gentrification in a neighborhood already facing its own real life transformation.

A: it's a very contentious issue, particularly right here in boyle heights.

M: was that something that you guys took into account//the idea that there would be pushback from the people that lived here?

A: absolutely.

Yeah//does it help to talk about this issue//to spotlight boyle heights, does it hurt?

And i think those questions are all very alive and explored in the series.

Landlords like to pull the scare tactic often& ferrera has a cameo in the show& but her ámainá role is ábehindá the scenes directing and producing.

A: it's hard to get stories about people like us made.

M: like us as in?

A: as in latinos.

And then to get those stories told by us//is very very uncommon.

To get to tune into this series, and see a whole brand new cast full of incredible talent, that's a win.

You know, it doesn't have to be, "tune i to see america ferrera, the only latina or one of five//like that's boring.

The 35-year-old -- now pregnant with her second child - is mindful about the society she wants her kids to grow up in.

My desire is to raise my children to love who they are, and to love everything about who they are, and let their natural, innate love of themselves and love of others be what guides them.

She hopes the show will help create a world where latinos feel empowered both on and off screen.

We made this show to appeal to a very specific audience, an audience like ourselves who rarely get to see ourselves on screen.//i think tom hanks and julia roberts should tune in and see themselves in me, and in the people i grew up with.

Nats: show mireya villarreal honoring dedicated service.

Intro in the cbs series " more perfect union," we aim t show that what unites us as americans is far greater than what divides us.

This morning, one tiny organization in northern vermont is reuniting families of those who served, with lost medals and other mentoes.

Mola lenghi shows us how this is helping the families discover new connections and sometimes, reach closure.

"&so this is ou headquarters here&" what began as a passion project for army major zacariah fike& previous reveal "..oh wow..!!

Turned into the creation of purple hearts reunited - a non-profit aimed at returning lost or stolen military medals and effects to veterans and their loved ones at no cost... ?

@ purple hearts united ?

?

?

On this day in vermont -- we unpacked a cardboard-box filled with belongings from a soldier who lost his life while serving in the korean war& ?

?

01;53;59;22 ?

Mola: "&it's a ver intimate connection to somebody&" fike: "&this was real person, this was a hero.

He had his whole life ahead of him, and unfortunately he's not here to tell the stories.

So i think it's our job to tell the story for him&" ?

?

Just as every soldier has their own story... every medal has its own journey... with tens of thousands thought to be lost, stolen or just forgotten about.?

???

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Strangers who randomly find the medals often send them to fike... hoping he'll get them home.?

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00:01:26 + open boxes at table 2 "&you're looking a 20 to 30 heros&" ??

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They begin with only a name&.

Then look to the medal for other clues.?

Vermont "they hav changed subtly in the way they've been manufactured, in the time period and how they were engraved&" ???then fike and his team of just átwoá -- begin making cold calls& 01;05;24;15 ??

"&once we identif who the families are, i come down and see dan and we do a full layout&" ??

Working on 3-d cutter + images of zac and recipients or family smiling ?

??

Dan pattullo runs the village frame shop in vermont -- volunteering with fike to help bring the áreactiveá smiles you see in these pictures to life.

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01;10;53;00 ?

Mola: "&what' usually the response from the families&?"

Fike: "&it bring that family member back in an instant.

And the raw emotion in their face makes all the time and effort worth bringing these metals home&" ?

Congregation in song ?

?

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Home for fike on áthisá weekend is salem, alabama& to reunite pastor david babson with the medals his late father earned in the korean war.?

?

07:18:50;12 ??

David: "he deserve those medals.

He earned them.

And he knows they're with me and that i can cherish 'em.

And-- and that's kinda part that i can always have him with me."

Mola: "sounds lik you're doing it for him as much as you are for yourself."

David: "more so."

?

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Adopted when he was 9 months old -- growing up, babson knew little about his father... meeting him again only much later in life.?

And he knew even less about his service to the country... until fike called.?

??

07:22:24 ?

David: "it takes a act of god to find things and this was an act of god."

Mola: "and a lott hard work."

Fike: "absolutely" "&it's just a grea honor to honor your father, who was one of this nation's heros&we have not forgotten him&" ?

?

Fike isn't merely reuniting a medal with a family... he's helping bring their loved one home.?

??

07:27:10;24 ?

That symbol s-- represents to a lot of these families& them.

In their own spiritual way, his dad is coming home to his son.

And he's gonna look at that frame on his wall every day when he walks through that door.

He's gonna remember his dad.

He's gonna remember that he's a hero.?

Suggested outcue: as we noted, purple hearts reunited is a small operation with a massive task.

It's a burden, one these people say they take very seriously.

But when

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