Good News Friday: Seven new babies born at NC Zoo

Happy Friday y’all! We’re sending you into the weekend with another uplifting roundup of feel-good stories. Read on to learn about NC’s healthcare excellence, a star-studded theater production, and more.

North Carolina Zoo welcomes newborn baboon and birds

The NC Zoo announced not one, not two, but SEVEN exciting animal births this week!

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by North Carolina Zoo (@nczoo)

Meet Winnie, a baby baboon born to two of the zoo’s resident primates, Babu and Candy. Winnie is already out in the habitat, so visitors can stop by and say hello to NC’s newest furry friend. She’ll be clinging onto her mother, Candy, while she continues to nurse and grow!

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by North Carolina Zoo (@nczoo)

The zoo also shared that their resident Von der Decken hornbills, Jake and Zuri, welcomed a whopping six chicks into the world this week. Von der Decken hornbills are a species of bird native to East Africa with a very complicated nesting process, so hatching six healthy chicks is quite the accomplishment!

NC has one of the best hospitals in the country

U.S. News released its 2024-2025 Best Hospitals Honor Roll this week, and Duke University Hospital in Durham made the cut. The list recognizes the 20 best hospitals in the country that excel in a wide variety of areas of care. 

Duke University Hospital was rated as High Performing, the highest rating offered, in 19 of the 20 procedures that U.S. News evaluates, and was named the best hospital in North Carolina in their statewide ranking. We’re proud to live in a state with some of the highest quality healthcare in the country!

Broadway stars to perform in Raleigh production

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Theatre Raleigh (@theatreraleigh)

Broadway stars Carmen Cusack, Nik Walker, and John Behlman will star in Theater Raleigh’s upcoming production of “Bull Durham, A New Musical.”

The musical is an adaptation of the 1988 film Bull Durham, which tells the story of the Durham Bulls minor league baseball team. Despite serving as the setting of the musical, this is the first time the production will be performed in Durham.

The production packs some serious star power: Carmen Cusack is a two-time Tony nominee for Best Actress in a Musical, and Nik Walker is best known for playing Aaron Burr in the beloved musical “Hamilton” on broadway and on tour, while John Behlman’s Broadway credits include productions such as “Shucked” and “Tootsie.” 

The production will run from September 10 to September 22 at Duke University’s Reynolds Industries Theater, and tickets are already available online. The minds behind the production have their eyes on Broadway as an ultimate goal, so to all the NC theater lovers, don’t miss your chance to see this NC-based musical while it’s here in our state!

NC girls’ flag football team to compete in NFL Flag Championships

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Carolina Panthers (@panthers)

This weekend, the Butler High School girls’ flag football team will be competing in the NFL Flag Championships for the chance to be named the best youth flag football team in the country!

This year for the first time ever, the NFL is putting on a national flag football championship, where the best youth flag football teams will face off at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. The Butler High School girls’ flag football team began as a pilot program in 2022, so it’s inspiring to see how far they’ve come after just three seasons. It’s also an awesome moment for girls’ sports; the success of this team and the proliferation of girls’ flag football teams around the state show that not only is there an abundance of interest in girls’ football, but a whole lot of talent, too.

The Butler High team enjoyed an epic sendoff by the Carolina Panthers team on Wednesday, and we can’t wait to cheer them on this weekend!

READ MORE: 10 festivals happening in August you don’t want to miss