Around 40 years ago, a young elephant named Julie was captured in Africa. Since 1988, she has performed with the Victor Hugo Cardinali Circus. Now, as the last circus elephant in Portugal, she’s finally getting the retirement she deserves—becoming the first resident of the Pangea Elephant Sanctuary.

In 2018, Portugal officially banned wild animals from performing in circuses. The law was fully implemented in 2024 with the circus’s full cooperation. Since then, the circus has continued caring for Julie while Pangea built a home for her and other elephants.

“This has not been an easy decision, as she has been a member of our family for nearly forty years,” Vítor Hugo Cardinali told The Portugal News. “But we believe it is the right decision for Julie. Working with Pangea on her transition to her new home was a critical factor in our deliberations.”

Now Julie is enjoying mud baths and her new surroundings at the sanctuary in Alentejo, Portugal. Pangea’s officials hope to make Julie’s final years the best they can provide.

“We cannot be sure; elephants in the wild live for more than 70 years,” Kate Moore, Pangea’s director-general, told The Associated Press. “Unfortunately, elephants born in captivity have half the life expectancy of an elephant born in the wild, so we cannot know exactly how much time she has left. She has had a hard life, but I must say she has been very energetic at Pangea this week, so we remain hopeful.”

The elephant sanctuary spans 400 hectares and is designed to welcome up to 30 elephants, giving them space to live and thrive. Later in 2026, the sanctuary will welcome a second elephant, Kariba, who is also around 40 years old and currently lives at a zoo in Belgium. Until more elephants arrive, socialize, and get settled, the sanctuary will remain closed to visitors.

Julie also has some little human friends cheering her on as she settles into her new home. The pupils at Wenhaston Primary School near Halesworth, Suffolk, England, are keeping track of Julie’s progress during their science lessons. After learning about Julie’s life in the circus, they wanted to show their support. They were delighted to hear that Julie was enjoying her new life at the sanctuary.

“I was a bit upset that Julie was taken away from her mum when she was really young,” 9-year-old Mars told BBC News. “[I am] really happy [she’s been given a new life] because in the wild it’s their natural habitat. I think she feels really happy.”

The children’s teacher, Emma Skinner, added, “[The students are] just completely in love with the fact that she’s been released and is in a wonderful place, doing all these wonderful things that she’s not been able to do for such a long time.”

With the support of schoolchildren, her former trainer, and Pangea, Julie’s golden years are looking brighter than ever.

• 

  Firefighter Maddie Geer was shocked when she heard the news. Another firefighter was diagnosed with stage five kidney failure out of nowhere. She rushed to volunteer her kidney to save her colleague’s life. That colleague also happened to be her husband.

  Geer and her husband, Robert Coleman Jr., fell in love while training to become firefighters at different stations. Last year, they got married. This year, after visiting a doctor to address fatigue issues, Coleman found that he was diagnosed with a rare kidney disease. 

  It was a total surprise

  “What really threw us for a loop, though, is the fire department does very thorough physicals, and nothing was caught with my blood pressure,” Coleman told Action News 5. “Blood pressure was good when I was going into my doctor’s meetings, but at night, my blood pressure was just going out of control. So, that’s what the scary part is.”

  Not only that, but Coleman had stage five kidney failure. He needed a new kidney as soon as possible. Geer leapt to volunteer.

  “Ever since he got diagnosed with it, I was like‚ ’If I’m a match, it’s meant to be because I’m going to give you my kidney,’” said Geer.

  “(Maddie) was just itching to help me in any kind of way. It ended up being the most miraculous way,” Coleman told 12 News.

  A perfect match

  Geer took the necessary tests and found she was a perfect donor match for her husband. They underwent the transplant to rounds of cheers from friends, family, and hospital workers. After the transplant, Coleman immediately felt the change.

  “Once I saw him, he looked like a new person,” said Geer. “His face was lit up; he had a smile I hadn’t seen in a while.”

  “I felt alive again,” he said. “She gave me a chance at a second life.”

  While the two are itching to get back to their jobs, they have to wait until they’re fully recovered. Knowing that taking the proper time off to heal impacts their income, Geer’s sister Caitlyn has set up a GoFundMe for the couple. The money will be used to help with household expenses and follow-up doctor’s visits.

  Check for signs, see your doctor regularly

  There’s one thing that Robert Coleman Jr. hopes people do after hearing his story. He’s advocating that everyone gets their annual physical and regular checkups with their doctors. 

  “No one is invincible, and I learned the hard way,” he said.

  It’s important to be mindful and alert about any changes in your body. The signs for kidney disease can be pretty mundane. Symptoms include swelling in the ankles and feet, frequent urination, and trouble sleeping among others. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, it’s probably best to check with your doctor. It may be scary, but it’s best address any issue you may experience for the best chance of an optimal outcome.

• 

  Photo credit: Canva – Young Jory Thomas saved a life with his roping skills.

  A teenager is being praised for pulling off a heroic act straight out of an American western film. The boy saved a man from drowning by lassoing him like a cowboy.

  Fourteen-year-old Jory Thomas was just visiting with his grandparents on their campground near Yellowstone River. Jory had his lariat to practice the roping skills he’d been learning for the past year. That’s when he heard cries for help from the nearby river.

  “We all heard, ‘Help, help,’” Jory said to KTVQ News. “There’s two or three people floating down the river, one hanging on to the cooler, and he wasn’t saying anything.”

  A raft carrying four people crashed into a bridge pillar, knocking them all into the Yellowstone River. While three of them made it to shore, the fourth was drifting quickly downstream as he clung to a cooler. Jory emptied his pockets and grabbed his lariat, immediately rushing to help.

  Practice prepared him for this moment

  “This current was pretty fast then, and he was moving pretty quickly,” said Jory. “Only thing I could focus on was helping him get out of the water because I didn’t want to see anyone go in front of me.”

  Jory had been practicing using a lariat to rope a dummy on his parents’ ranch nearly every afternoon when the weather was fair. Ready for action, Jory ran into the shallower part of the river, getting chest-deep into the water. Letting his training do the work, Jory took his 12-foot lariat and lassoed the drowning man.

  “Luckily, I caught him first try,” he said.

  Jory slowly pulled the man to shore as first responders arrived.

  “I felt pretty good afterwards that I knew he was okay and was out of the water,” he said. “God was basically putting me in the place of all this. God was just telling me all of this at the time and saying, ‘Go get him, you got it, and I believe in you.’”

  Jory’s instinct was to help

  Jory’s family was proud but not too surprised that he leapt into action. To them, being helpful was just Jory being Jory.

  “His first instinct always is to help other people. He’s always been that way,” said Sandy, Thomas’ grandmother. “The whole community is proud of him. We’ve had a lot of feedback, but that’s Jory. He’s always there to help somebody else.”

  “We’ll be in town at the grocery store, and you’ll see an elderly person,” Jase, Jory’s father, told Cowboy State Daily. “They can’t pack the groceries, and he never says a word. He goes over and gets their groceries and packs them out. That’s just who he is.”

  The local police also praised Jory for taking action.

  “My opinion, Jory saved the individual’s life, 100%,” said Sweet Grass County Sheriff Alan Ronneberg. “Had Jory not acted, I believe the chances of this individual making it to shore were very slim.”’

  “Jory saw another in trouble and acted, not for himself but for another,” Ronneberg added. “Jory is a lesson for all of us in this day and age and showed us what is courageous and right.”

• 

  Photo credit: Canva – Sneak a kiss while walking the sidewalk.

  There is a spot dedicated to love in Victoria, British Columbia. In it, a billowing tree grows from a woman’s yard into the sidewalk with an arch-like opening. For decades, couples have shared sweet moments under the shady green privacy of the “Kissing Tree.” Not only that, but children have been making wishes and new parents bring their babies to enjoy the quiet tranquility under the tree. Oddly enough, though, the creation of the Kissing Tree wouldn’t have happened if not for a violent riot.

  The story of Victoria’s Kissing Tree actually starts in New York City. In 1972, Bronx native Brian O’Reilly got his car stuck in the middle of a crowd waiting for a Rolling Stones concert. A riot broke out, forcing O’Reilly to protect himself with the only thing he had in his car: a tape recorder.

  “I wasn’t recording on purpose,” O’Reilly explained to CTV News. “I just had the microphone in my hand, and I had my arm up like this to defend myself and I was asking why he was hitting me.”

  Moving toward love

  O’Reilly was so upset at the encounter that he moved away from the United States to settle in British Columbia. That was where he met and befriended Bonnie. Over the years, the two became close. Then, Brian made his move.

  “He said, ‘I don’t want to date you. I want to marry you,’” Bonnie recalled to CTV News. “It felt amazing and wonderful because I had fallen in love with him.”

  They embraced under what is now known as the Kissing Tree.

  That one bad day in New York turned into 38 years of marriage in Victoria. While Brian has passed away, Bonnie has kept the tree the two of them enjoyed kissing under ready and available to all.

  “If you can come here and have an ‘aha!’ moment, isn’t that wonderful? Wouldn’t you like to do that for everyone?” Bonnie said.

  Screenshot The legacy of the Kissing Tree

  Over the last few decades, the Kissing Tree’s branches have created a natural arch from Bonnie’s yard over the sidewalk. After seeing several couples make a stop to kiss under the privacy of nature, Bonnie hung some lights under the tree to create a more intimate, cozier space.

  Thanks to the O’Reillys, couples have gotten engaged under the tree. Many resident couples have spent years making it a point to kiss under the tree whenever they pass through. That love has extended to children whispering wishes to the tree’s trunk. Pet lovers and new parents also have a nice quiet place for their dogs and babies to enjoy the shade.

  Other ‘Kissing Trees’ in North America

  There are other legendary “Kissing Trees” throughout North America, labeled as such for different reasons. In San Marcos, Texas, a large oak was dubbed “The Kissing Tree” after Sam Houston kissed the cheeks of the women who stitched him the state flag as a gift when he was running for governor.

  The Kissing Trees/Love Trees of St. Augustine, Florida have a legend of their own. These trees are typically an oak and a palm tree that grow intertwined together, symbolizing connection. Legend has it that if you were to kiss under one of these trees, your love will last forever.

  Whether it is imprinting magic onto a landmark or not, it is great to see how something as simple as a tree can connect people across time.