Helena Wegner

ST. PAUL, Minnesota — In two rooms in separate cities, people say their names. Around a circle of chairs and tables, they gather weekly to strategize leaving the streets behind. All have been homeless before or are living on the brink. The conversation is more urgent, as a pandemic winter sets in. And frustration is building with public leaders who they feel have not done enough to help. The Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, though similar in many ways, have taken opposite approaches to

Penny Bankhead says a prayer and spends a few minutes centering herself. She sits at her desk in her spare bedroom in northeast Phoenix, powers on her laptop and logs on to Zoom, where she is greeted by a screen full of familiar faces: volunteers in a grief support group. It’s 6:45 p.m. on a Monday; Bankhead is early and prepared. In 15 minutes, the volunteers will leave her screen and their faces will be replaced with the faces of parents mourning the loss of a child.

If you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts or a behavioral health crisis, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline for support at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). Additional resources can be found at the bottom of this article. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Arizonans have turned to call lines for help more often and for new reasons. The virus has caused many to endure financial hardship, job loss, academic stress and some harmful impacts of isolation, which health officials

Dutch Bros. shut down five coffee shop locations across the Phoenix area for deep cleaning in the past month after several employees tested positive for COVID-19, according to the company's news releases. Positive cases have been reported at Phoenix, Goodyear, Peoria, Tempe and Mesa locations. Arizona has more than 50 Dutch Bros. locations. The state, and Maricopa County in particular, have seen confirmed COVID-19 cases skyrocket in the past month after the state reopened. After every confirm

As temperatures skyrocket, many people experiencing homelessness seek relief from Phoenix's seemingly inescapable heat. Sweltering temperatures are only the latest challenge facing those living on the streets, following the strain of the COVID-19 pandemic as many existing resources have been stripped due to concerns about the spread of the virus. Temperatures were forecasted to reach triple digits of around 115 or higher both Saturday and Sunday. Rocky Farrington and his wife, Juleen Lacrosse

Several fitness centers around metro Phoenix are open, despite orders from the state to remain closed until COVID-19 rates decline. Gov. Doug Ducey issued an executive order weeks ago closing gyms, among other businesses, to prevent spreading the virus. Monday, he released detailed reopening guidelines that make it clear it will be weeks before gyms are allowed to reopen in many Arizona counties. The governor's order states that "indoor gyms or fitness clubs or centers" shall pause operations.

Options for working parents amid shuttered schools: some preschools and day cares remain open Day cares, preschools and nonprofit groups are stepping up to provide childcare options for working parents as schools statewide remain closed. Gov. Doug Ducey and Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Kathy Hoffman announced Friday that all Arizona schools, including private schools, will stay closed until April 10. They had originally announced school closures until March 27 but state leaders

Painting flowers came naturally to Elizabeth Butler, a Phoenix-based artist who has been creating for more than 10 years. Butler learned most of her technical skills at Mesa Community College and then earned a bachelor’s degree in figure painting at Arizona State University. “I started realizing [that] the only time I felt like myself, or that I felt good or OK, was when I was making art,” Butler says. She gravitated toward florals because she says flowers and human beings share the same complex