Firefighters are constantly striving to improve their skills to better serve the community. The SBM Fire Department has a high tech tool at their disposal that sets them apart from other metro departments.

Police officers shoot a suspect in a Blaine home invasion.

Wargo Nature Center has a day for family fun in the snow and ice.

A non-profit that helps homeless youth has reached its $1 million fundraising goal. With those funds, Hope 4 Youth plans on opening a new homeless shelter in the north metro area.

Since 2008, more than 5 million homes have been foreclosed across the country. While not all of these people ended up homeless, many did. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development says that more than a third of homeless people live in cars, or under bridges or are in some other way living unsheltered. At the same time, the majority of people experiencing homelessness do spend the night in a shelter or some kind of short term housing. Stepping Stone Emergency Housing is one local shelter providing relief.

Jackson Middle School will be holding a Community Wellness Day this year.

Without the new “Meals for Members” program, many mentally ill individuals would not eat a healthy meal for lunch or in some cases they would eat nothing at all.