Latest news with #Youmans
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Traveling Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall arrives in Callahan with community escort
Veterans hold a special place within the Northeast Florida and Callahan communities. 'We have a huge presence here, my family for sure is just full of veterans,' said Event Coordinator for the town of Hilliard, Alicia Head. That's why Thursday morning, dozens of veterans, law enforcement, and community volunteers escorted the traveling Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall to its new temporary home at the Northeast Florida Fairgrounds in Callahan. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] The wall, a three-fifths scale model of the iconic monument in the nation's capital, stretches approximately 300 feet. The wall will stay in Callahan through Monday, honoring Vietnam veterans like retired Army member Ben Carl Youmans, who never received their 'thank you for your service' decades ago. 'A lot of guys I knew got spit on, got called names. So this, in effect, is for the previous generation to honor now,' Youmans told Action News Jax Thursday morning. He said there are 58,281 men and eight women on that wall. 'And now they're getting that respect they really deserve.' >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< The memorial wall also serves to honor those who never made it back from the war, while looking to educate the younger generation on a war and struggle Youmans feels has been sometimes forgotten. 'It means a lot for the younger people to recognize that military should not be forgotten in this country,' Youmans added. Plenty of those younger people will be out here at the wall on scheduled school field trips Friday. The Town of Hilliard celebrated the wall's arrival, calling the escort 'nothing short of powerful: 'The love and respect shown—every vehicle that pulled over on SR 200 and US 1, every person who stood with hand over heart or salute in place—was a reminder of the unity, pride, and reverence our small town holds for those who served. It was emotional. It was humbling. It was honor. 'So many hands showed up to help—volunteers who helped with the set-up, those who quietly decorated with care, and folks who just showed up to support in any way they could. Every single act mattered. You could feel the weight of what this wall represents in every detail.' There will be a sunrise Easter service at the wall on Sunday at 7 a.m., with a closing ceremony at 8 p.m. The wall will remain open for visiting 24/7 until it heads to a new destination. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Yahoo
‘Absolutely terrifying': Neighbor describes moments man was shot by Jacksonville police after driving car toward officer
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said an officer shot a suspect who drove a car toward him on Tuesday. It happened on Gossett Street in Oceanway. RELATED: JSO: Man driving car toward police shot multiple times, asked for cigarette after crawling from car Neighbors told Action News Jax it was scary. When they heard the gunshots, some ducked for cover. 'It's absolutely terrifying,' neighbor Jonathon Lankford said. 'I have four children, three daughters so it's absolutely horrible.' >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< JSO said the incident started when Sgt. Ben McEwan returned to Gossett Street to follow up on a traffic stop from last week. The suspect, 29-year-old Michael Youmans, had fled from officers at the time. So, on Tuesday, the officers came to verify the suspect. Police say Youmans, again, did not comply. 'He reversed his vehicle a few feet back. The sergeant was giving him more commands: 'Stop! Stop! Don't do it. Don't do it,'' JSO Chief of Investigations Alan Parker said. 'The suspect then puts it in drive and accelerates towards the sergeant.' Lankford heard all of this from his backyard. 'I heard a bunch of screaming, a bunch of commotion. I kept hearing, 'Get on the ground! Get on the ground,'' Lankford said. 'I heard I think six gunshots, stared freaking out, told my kids get down.' [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] JSO said Sgt. McEwan shot at Youmans through the windshield, hitting him in the face several times. JSO says Youmans got out and started crawling. Lankford heard him screaming. 'He was screaming, 'I'm going to die, I'm going to die,'' Lankford said. 'And his family was screaming,. Everyone was in shambles. There's dogs barking everywhere, and it was just intense. It was crazy.' After yelling out about dying, he yelled something else that baffled Sheriff T.K. Waters. 'He literally asked for a cigarette multiple times,' Sheriff Waters said. Lankford said he is tired of the dangerous activity in the area, and this was the last straw. 'Terrified,' Lankford said. 'We're definitely looking for places to rent.' [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] JSO said Sgt. McEwan is not hurt, but he's pretty shaken up. He's been with the agency for 11 years, and this was his first officer-involved shooting. Meanwhile, Youmans is stable in the hospital. Action News Jax also learned that he's been arrested in Jacksonville more than a dozen times, and even in other counties too. The arrests are related to drugs, theft, trespassing, burglary, resisting officers, and fleeing and eluding. This was JSO's first officer-involved shooting this year. JSO says body camera footage will be released in a matter of 21 days. Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Paid maternity leave could be coming for Alabama teachers, giving hope to pregnant Houston County educators
DOTHAN, Ala (WDHN) — The state of Alabama could soon ease the burden for expecting mothers in education while trying to eliminate any hardships they may face before or after birth. Teachers all around the state are banning together in hopes that a proposed bill will allow them to be paid when they go on parental leave. A bill that died in the state house last year but is being deemed as one of the priorities during this year's legislative session. 'Having a paid leave would be so beneficial for us and it would be one less struggle for us to worry about,' said Webb Elementary teacher Lydia Stevens. Millions could come to Houston County Sheriff's Office from congress Stevens is a pregnant 5th-grade teacher, currently in her second year as an educator. Right now teachers can struggle financially when they have to build up a bank of sick leave days or they don't get paid to care for a newborn or adopted child. Normally they start out with 10, but that's not enough if you have been out sick or in this case getting ready to have a child to be on leave for two months. 'Me and my husband really had to decide whether we wanted to chose family or not being paid and we chose family and had to find a way to make it work,' said Stevens. Jacea Youmans, an expecting first year teacher in Alabama with little to no days of leave, had to make sacrifices and pinch pennies when she had her first child. She previously taught in Georgia before making the move to Webb Elementary. Dothan chef to appear on ABC's Good Morning America 'We were going off my husband income, he works at a family business and just sold a couple of cows to get through it, fortunately we had that to fall back on but I took the unpaid time,' said Youmans. Kaylee Pelham, a 15-year educator and local reading specialist, had 70 sick days in the bank when she had her first child who was born prematurely and had to be out for a year. 'So when I got back I had zero days when I had my second child and my child was also a NICU baby and had a 4 month hospital stay, so a paid leave would work out for all of us,' said Pelham. They say the perk would also pay off for the profession. 'It would definitely attract more teachers,' said Youmans. 'It's a hard job.' The teachers believe if they spend their time taking care of everybody else's children they should be able to spend time taking care of their own. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBS News
29-01-2025
- CBS News
Man caught on camera stealing lockbox after attempted break-in scare in Folsom
FOLSOM — People living at the Folsom Ranch Apartments are on edge after a man tried to bust down a young woman's door and break in. It happened Monday around 6:30 p.m. at the complex tucked away on a hill on Folsom Ranch Drive. "She said she saw him through the peephole multiple times forcefully doing this and jamming his body up against while messing with the doorknob," said Laura Youmans, who lives in the unit across from the door the man tried to bust through. Youmans walked CBS13 through the terrifying experience. She said her neighbor called the police, which scared off the suspect, and then texted her about what happened. She put a Ring doorbell camera up after police took the report. The apartment complex recently asked everyone to remove the surveillance cameras, stating people can only have one on a case-by-case basis. "He tried five different times at least, if not more," Youmans said. "It was a ten-minute chunk that she timed." Three hours later, the camera captured a man in a purple Lakers sweatshirt, backward Dodgers ball cap, black ski mask and white Jordans using a crowbar to steal a lockbox that contained Youmans' house key. Folsom police confirmed it is investigating if this man is the suspect from the break-in. Youmans took to Facebook to share what happened. The owner of House of Mules Kitchen, located just down the street, saw her post and uncovered a possible connection. "It's the same shoes," owner Lovey Sidhu said. "And there's that ugly Lakers shirt. I knew right away it was the same guy." The owner showed CBS13 surveillance video of what appeared to be the same man, saying he tried to use a counterfeit $100 bill at his restaurant at around 6:45 p.m. Monday. Jamba Juice, in the same lot, confirmed the man in the Lakers sweatshirt tried to pull the same trick there. CBS13 shared that surveillance video with Folsom police. It is investigating if it is all the same man and if it is connected. "It's hard to not feel like it's targeted, knowing he came back after seeing police presence," Youmans said. Youmans spent a sleepless night with her door deadbolted and a couch pushed in front of it. She had the locksmith come out to change the lock Tuesday morning. She also shared that her neighbor had spotted the man wandering near the leasing office at around 6 p.m. before any of the attempted break-ins. That is about a 15-minute walk away from where she lives. CBS13 reached out to the Folsom Ranch Apartments, which refused to comment on the situation saying a police report was made. CBS13 also reached out to the corporate office, First Pointe Management Group, but has not heard back.
