LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — As the year comes to an end and 2025 is just around the corner, the team at Channel 13 wanted to highlight the most inspirational story they've covered in 2024.
"We're all on social media and this video, or these videos, kept popping into my feed. It was Chris Punsalan taking care of his grandmother.
"They were funny; they were heartfelt, and then one day I saw him wearing a VGK hat and I thought, 'Wait a minute. Does this guy live here?'
"So I reached out and he said yes and he'd be willing to do an interview. And he was just so inspiring, the way that he showed up for his grandmother and the love that he had for her reminded me of the relationship with my grandmother. And I felt that other folks needed to see this story to be inspired by what he was doing.
"I mean, we all go through some difficult times and the way that he was able to navigate that space as a caregiver and what he sacrificed was something that I felt everybody could use and benefit from, and to see what he was able to do with his grandmother hopefully inspired other folks out there as well."
"My favorite story of 2024 was about a local man named George Lee. He's a blackjack dealer, and he's the subject of a new documentary.
"So not a lot of people know this, but in a past life, he was actually the first Asian performer featured in the New York City Ballet.
"So meeting him and hearing his story was so incredible. He's so humble, and I'm just so happy he's finally getting recognition for being the trailblazer he truly is."
"I met Colston Delk and his family earlier this year, and anyone would be captivated by meeting this family.
"Their story is heartbreaking. It describes what happened during baseball, a game that Colston loves. His mother listened to her son and realized he was fighting for his life.
"To hear his story makes any parent concerned and also makes you want to pay attention to anything your children have to say."
"Over the past year, I've covered a number of animal-related stories here in Las Vegas. One story really stuck out to me. the story about the dog named Justice.
"She was found in an East Las Vegas apartment complex severely abused. Well, a rescue took her in and then she eventually found her forever home."
"A story that really made me feel good this year was back in, I want to say, July. It was about this wonderful family that came in from Lahain and unfortunately, they lost everything. Everything was burned down to the ground.
"So the names are Braisley and Sergio Perez. They came here and they just had to start their life over again. They bought a new house. They got their kids settled in school.
"One of the biggest challenges that they faced was that their truck wasn't working. So I did a first story with them. We kind of talked about what they were experiencing, the struggles that they were going through, and then based off of that story, one owner of an auto shop in Henderson actually saw the story and literally fixed their truck at no cost.
"So when I did that follow-up story, it was so great to see Braisley and Sergio and the whole entire family just receiving this amazing gift from our community, and it just truly showed how, and it just truly showed the power of journalism and how amazing our community is."
"So the most inspiring story that I recall covering this year was showing people about the Mats Project. It's a large group of volunteers, they take plastic bags, they get them from a plastic bags manufacturer that otherwise would be unusable misprints, etc.
"But they turn those bags into balls of plastic yarn, and then they crochet them into sleeping mats for the unhoused population here in the Las Vegas Valley.
"I think how work-intensive that process is takes like 24 hours to make a mat, and just giving back to folks who, you know, need it so much I think was the most inspiring thing that I covered here in the valley this year."
"In 2024, my 'Darcy, what's the deal?' segment really took off and the story that resonates most with me and that is my most memorable moment of this past year is one where a viewer asked me, 'Darcy, what's the deal?' when Rochelle Thyrauer reached out to me.
"Her story really tugged at my heart because of what she was going through. Quite frankly, it was ridiculous. The amount of bureaucratic red tape she was facing for something that was owed to her and she deserved just could not be ignored and I couldn't be more grateful that I was able to help her get her money."
"In thinking of all the stories that I've done this year, there's been quite a few that have meant a lot to me, but one in particular comes to mind, and that is the story about Bob's Bikes.
"So Robert Crane is an incredible person. He's a local man, lives out in Henderson, and a few years ago he started up this nonprofit. It was literally by chance. He had an extra bike. He ended up posting it, I want to say on Craigslist, for free. And he ended up getting hundreds of responses from people. That's when he realized there was a real need for bikes in the community, people that didn't have bikes, but specifically for kids.
"He wanted every kid to feel that feeling of the wind in their face and in their hair, just cruising down their neighborhood. And so that small idea and that small post turned into something that I don't think anybody would have ever imagined in specific Bob.
"Alright, so he took this post and this need for bikes and all of a sudden started this nonprofit called Bob's Bikes for Needy Kids. This was about a decade ago that this started. And in those years he's been able to donate thousands of bikes to kids in our community. Not only in our community, I'm talking all across the country, but he loves focusing on kids.
"Just a little bit of context, he was an auto mechanic, and so he kind of used those skills working on cars and translated them over to working on bikes. But what he's done has been so incredible. The fact that he's been able to give this gift to so many people.
"Unfortunately, this story isn't all positive. Earlier this year Bob was diagnosed with cancer, stage 4 prostate cancer to be specific. And it's really taken a toll on his body, so much so that after more than a decade of doing this, he now feels like he has to stop everything that he's done. And he doesn't want to do it, which is why although he can't fix the bikes anymore, he's asking people to donate either some bikes or some money so he can keep purchasing those and giving them back.
"He has a big platform, so he's the person to reach out to if you want to give back, especially during the holiday season or any time of the year. But definitely one of my favorite stories so far. And I wish him and his family the best as he continues to battle his cancer."
"I interviewed a woman who is now a two-time breast cancer survivor, and she's now part of this organization who encourages people to go out and ask their lawmakers and their policymakers, they urge them, encourage them to support breast cancer and cancer funding research.
"So I thought it was a great package to just listen to her journey and encourage others because this affects a lot more people than we even realize. Everyone knows someone who's been affected by cancer."
"Now, before the year ends, I did want to share with you guys one of my favorite stories that I worked on during 2024 and that is of twin sisters Linda and Karen.
"Now, the reason that this story is so special is because you can really see the bond between these two twin sisters. As a matter of fact, one of the twin sisters actually had cancer and as a result of that cancer, she had kidney failure, and so her sister, her twin sister, decided to practically save her life and give her her kidney.
And this is just a very sweet story and you can really see how much these two sisters care and love each other."
"One of the stories I worked on this year was about the reforming of the League of Women Voters chapter here in Las Vegas that have been dormant for several years.
"And, you know, in an era where non-partisans are the majority of Nevada's registered voters, it's good that there's a non-partisan organization that people can turn to for information that gets people involved in the political process.
"Well, they don't have to worry about partisanship, they don't have to worry about getting a slanted agenda, but that's somebody they can go to for information about how to vote and maintain voting rights and things of that nature."
"The story that I did this year that I think was the most inspirational was when I took a trip to Florence McClure Women's Correctional Center up in North Las Vegas to profile some of their inmates who are also CSN students.
"I spoke with one lady who just graduated and just got her certificate from CSN and she was so inspirational.
"It was great to talk to the instructors, the educators, who their main goal was to take a second chance on the inmates and to help reduce recidivism here in Southern Nevada, but also to talk to the inmates and learn about how it feels to take a second chance on themselves."
"I had the pleasure of covering many inspiring stories across our Valley in 2024, but one that's going to stick with me was about Faith Lutheran star basketball player Grayden Lemke, who is now playing at Gonzaga.
"Now Lemke beat unthinkable odds, facing serious adversity on and off the court, and yet he still thrived."
