Good Morning Wake County - Your Daily Dose of Good News

Wake County woke up to flashing lights near Wendell after an overnight shooting, plus the first draft of school reassignment plans could affect families in Fuquay-Varina, Zebulon, and Apex. Raleigh leaders are pointing to encouraging crime trends, while neighbors near the South Wake Landfill are pushing for action on intensifying odors. For something lighter, there’s a free NC Symphony concert in...

A woman was injured in a Raleigh shooting and a man’s been detained, raising concerns in a local neighborhood. In Cary, a BMW flipped dangerously close to train tracks, while Raleigh police arrested a man for secret peeping at Best Buy. We’ll also preview Lafayette Village’s Oktoberfest — complete with bratwurst, beer, and the famous Wiener Dog Races — plus Cary’s Art Swarm festival and how you ca...

Wake County starts the week with a mix of heavy and light stories. A downtown Raleigh shooting left one person injured and a suspect behind bars. We’ll also update you on a hit-and-run that knocked down power lines on Dixie Trail, plus the bittersweet final game for the Carolina Mudcats in Zebulon. Senator Mark Kelly brought national attention to Raleigh during a veterans town hall, and big change...

Wake County schools are revamping cafeteria meals with real cooking and local food. In Raleigh, basketball coach LeVelle Moton breaks ground on affordable homes where he once played. And 23,000 women are turning Facebook friendships into real brunches. This 8-minute episode brings you feel-good stories from around Wake County — no doom, no drama, just real people doing something good. Visit  TapYo...

In this episode of Good Morning Wake County, we explore the local news that brings good news to Cary. What if your office had child care built in — and your local airstrip had a second life as a flight school? Join us as we meet two innovative Wake County locals who saw a need and created solutions. One transformed a Cary coworking space into a support hub for working parents, while the other reju...

In this episode of Good Morning Wake County, we explore local good news featuring a Raleigh native who transforms a downtown plant shop into a community haven and a Cary tech firm’s AI that helps guide 700,000 births last year. These two inspiring Wake County stories showcase how overlooked news and innovation can help life thrive — one nurtured by soil and sunlight, the other advanced through alg...

In this episode of the Good Morning Wake County local news podcast, we delve into the inspiring stories of a Rolesville family who transforms their son's tragic death into a powerful advocacy campaign through Aven's Quest for Amoeba Awareness. Additionally, we explore how Camp Ignite partnerships between Cary, Apex, and Morrisville fire departments are igniting the next generation of women...

Two Wake County businesses are making very specific bets about who's moving to our area. A Cary development company is building 25 luxury homes starting at nearly $1 million, each with standard EV chargers, specifically targeting California tech workers relocating to Research Triangle Park. Meanwhile, an AI-powered school called Alpha Raleigh opens this fall where kindergarteners work with rob...

An electric fire truck in Cary, a bus from Rocky Mount, and a Raleigh high-rise scaled down with purpose. Real good news from Wake County — and the towns we connect to. If you’re enjoying the show, please leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts — and visit  TapYourNews.com  to get new episodes by email.

One story hides behind a hallway in Morrisville: a neon-lit pinball sanctuary where friendships thrive. The other is a billion-dollar highway project reshaping life in Wake County. Today’s stories are about the places we build—one for joy, one for speed—and how they change everything from morning commutes to who we become. Plus, a dad joke that proves ambition isn’t just for people... roads want p...

What do a forgotten airstrip and a jump rope team have in common? They’re both soaring in Southern Wake. First, how three entrepreneurs turned a crumbling Fuquay-Varina runway into a high-stakes aviation bet. Then, meet the Super Skippers—38 Cary kids headed to the World Jump Rope Championships in Japan. One said yes on a whim, the other jumped in feet first. Plus, a dad joke that should never be...

From a high school side hustle to Downtown Apex's beloved Bella + Mauve boutique, Gabrielle Carlin's journey proves that some dreams are worth the wait. Plus, Wake County's $9.5 million park upgrades at Harris Lake and Blue Jay Point are bringing accessible trails, expanded playgrounds, and new educational spaces to our community. Join our community at  https://TapYourNews.com  for sho...

When the AC died at Courtney Bowman's Raleigh Cheesy shop during the summer heat, she did something that required real courage - she got vulnerable on Instagram. No script, no polish, just honest desperation. The community's response was immediate and overwhelming: over $15,000 in orders within days. Meanwhile, Jared Haworth of Lightship Neon is fighting Raleigh's 1970s signage rules t...

When the same Raleigh rideshare trip costs $14 on one app and $84 on another, you know something's broken. Steve explores how algorithmic pricing is turning getting home into a high-stakes gamble, then discovers a local Wake County startup using AI to actually make government services work better for residents. From surge pricing mysteries to multilingual government support, these overlooked stori...

Two strangers. Two different places. But the same decision — to show up when no one was watching. In Raleigh, a retired Enloe High School theater teacher named Koko Thornton just won a national award, thanks to a former student who decided she deserved recognition. For 24 years, Thornton focused not just on theater skills but on helping students "see their own potential inside of them."...

You ever have that moment where your brain blanks and your body just moves? Today we've got two stories about exactly that kind of decision-making. First: Eddie Hunnell, a 57-year-old software engineer from Holly Springs, was at his son's wedding rehearsal when Hurricane Helene hit North Carolina. When he saw 66-year-old Leslie Worth swept into the flooded North Fork New River, his Plan A...

James Watson, 64, bought his first home in Southeast Raleigh for $850/month through a housing model most people have never heard of. Steve discovers how Community Land Trusts work, why a former real estate developer had no idea they existed, and the surprising origins that make it all possible. Learn exactly how James saved 22% below market value and why this 50-year-old solution feels revolutiona...

EPISODE DESCRIPTION: This episode explores two remarkable examples of human problem-solving under impossible constraints. At the University of Alabama, Dr. Jalai Wang and the engineering team have developed a revolutionary process to transform potato skins and agricultural waste into sustainable construction materials, capturing carbon while reducing cement emissions. The $6 million National Scien...

A Florida surgeon performs the first FDA-approved transcontinental robotic surgery on a patient in Angola, Africa, an Indiana good Samaritan stops a drunk driver with a potentially fatal BAC of .40, and UK researchers develop tiny robots that could revolutionize water infrastructure maintenance. Steve explores three stories about intervention, medical, personal, and technological, that show how th...

Three overlooked stories worth knowing: A Cary nuclear engineer's true impact had nothing to do with his PhD or judicial career, Australian engineers copied 400-million-year-old shark skin to save airlines billions in fuel costs, and why your plumber has more job security than corporate executives in the AI age. Featuring Jeff Jeffries' mentorship approach that touched "numerous men,&...

Today we share incredible stories of second chances and service from right here in Wake County and beyond. From John Walter's miraculous recovery after defying 1% survival odds following a tragic accident near Wakefield High School, to twenty new firefighters who chose to run toward sirens through Wake Tech's Career in a Year program. Plus, meet the Taylor family in Oklahoma who are teachi...

We begin with the extraordinary legacy of  Lunsford Lane , a man born into slavery in  Raleigh, North Carolina , who returned not for vengeance but for love. His story lit a fire in two children, Anna Julia Cooper  and  Charles N. Hunter , who would go on to shape American education and history. Then we travel to  Philadelphia , where doctors at  Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia  and  Penn Medi...

In this episode of  Good Morning Wake County , host Steve shares four powerful stories of people who saw something broken and stepped up to fix it. From the rugged backcountry of Colorado where the  Good Samaritan Remediation Act  offers hope for toxic mine cleanup, to a  Denver contractor  whose stolen tools sparked a wave of community kindness. You’ll hear how a  WWII dog tag  lost in a 1945 pla...

Feel-good news is alive and well — and today’s stories prove it. An HVAC team in  Scottsdale, Arizona  shows up unannounced to fix a shelter’s broken air conditioning. A nurse-led reunion in  San Jose  gives Jerry and Judie Butler one final moment after 66 years of marriage. And in  Clermont, Florida , someone finds $2,000 at an ATM… and returns every penny. Join host Steve for stories of kindness...

In this enlightening episode of Good Morning Wake County, we bring you feel-good news stories that uplift and inspire. We start with a remarkable tribute as Karin Neilson fulfills her late husband Stephen’s dream by launching his ashes into space aboard a Celestis memorial flight. As a lifelong fan of space exploration, Stephen’s wishes come true as he circles the Earth, reminding us that dreams t...