Drew Hawkins

2 months ago | wbhm.org | Drew Hawkins

It’s just before Christmas, and customers intermittently stream inside Vaporio, an alternative store that sells herbal remedies and vape supplies in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. They’re greeted by the Malosh family — 28-year-old Trevor, 50-year-old Tracy, and 53-year-old Charles. They talk holiday plans and Christmas gifts with customers. Remind folks when they’ll be closed. It’s a small town. Everyone knows each other. The Maloshes started the business after Charles retired from Verizon in 2019.

2 months ago | mainepublic.org | Drew Hawkins

Carnival season is in full swing in New Orleans. The cost of securing parades has become more expensive for organizers since the deadly New Year's Day attack on Bourbon Street that killed 14 people. Copyright 2025 NPR

2 months ago | wxxinews.org | Drew Hawkins

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2 months ago | mpbonline.org | Drew Hawkins

Having health insurance was critical for Trevor. He’d had surgery to replace one of his heart valves when he was nine. Everything had been going well since then, but they knew that one day, Trevor would need to have the valve replaced. “I’ve considered my condition a ticking time bomb because I knew at some point, I would need surgery,” Trevor said. “So for the last 20 years of my life, I’ve had it in the back of my mind. I knew this was coming up. Did I know it was going to happen this year?

2 months ago | wbhm.org | Drew Hawkins

Just days before the Intergalactic Krewe of Chewbacchus was set to roll, Simonette Berry, one of the krewe’s captains — aka Overlord Apocalypse Meow, her official title — received the parade’s security bill. The sci-fi and fantasy-themed Mardi Gras krewe consists of more than 120 sub-krewes, each ranging from a handful to dozens of members. They’d been warned that costs would be higher this year because of the New Year’s Day attack on Bourbon Street.