Treva Lind

Theresa Fall of Otis Orchards first saw the dog Liberty in an online post about how the pup was left abandoned in a California almond orchard for about a month until her rescue. Wings of Rescue, a flight nonprofit for rescue pets to go to shelters with room, was helping Liberty as its 75,000th animal, and she was on her way to Spokane. Now, Liberty is an "early Christmas gift" for Fall and her husband Ed.

You can still dream about a white Christmas, but this year Spokane is likely to have rain and higher-than-normal temperatures for the holiday.

Syrian refugees in Spokane, who fled civil war that erupted in their country in 2012, have closely watched news unfolding since the Dec. 8 power shift in Syria by rebel forces. They're happy rebel fighters successfully advanced into capital, Damascus, forcing President Bashar al-Assad to flee and ending 54 years of tyranny under Bashar and his father beforehand.

Local therapy dog Rocket just took a ride to national recognition for his service in the Kootenai County Sheriff’s K9 unit. In a First Responder Paws Therapy Dog Award contest, the U.S. vote results just came in for the Brittany spaniel and his handler, John McSwain, a department chaplain. Rocket earned a rare honorable mention nod.

Danielle “Dani” Golay, The Bohemian co-owner, met Stacia Garmon at the dentist when they learned of something painfully in common, a baby's death. Garmon cherises a blanket gifted by the hospital for her son. Now, she keeps her mind busy sewing and is selling her own crafted baby blankets and related items at in the Bohemian, with proceeds to donate baby blankets for parents experience such a loss.

Women of the Year Marlene Sullivan regularly takes behind-the-scenes roles that make others shine or uplifted. Her quiet volunteer positions range from being a chaplain to helping veterans hear the calming tones from crystal sound bowls she plays using mallets.

Jenny Shotwell first joined forces with Ellen Travolta in 2021 as a pianist. Now, it's an all-Shotwell family affair for "The Sound of Christmas" at the Coeur d'Alene Resort, with Travolta as producer. Shotwell has extensive musical experience, but her costars have stage merits, including husband Dalton and children Clark, 9 and Skye, 6. They'll do nostalgic songs and touch on Coeur d'Alene's holiday history.

John Haldi, 84, had early-stage Alzheimer's disease when he began a local Aduhelm drug study in 2020 lasting three years. The drug wasn't approved but similar ones now are. By July with testing, a neurologist told Haldi he "no longer has amyloid plaques," to meet Alzheimer's disease diagnosis. He still struggles with short-term memory loss, but Haldi is traveling, finishing puzzles and playing his trombone.