North Carolina’s most heartwarming stories of 2025
Read this year’s top tales of do-gooders, good feelings, and other heartwarming stories from NC.
Dec
2025
23
COMMUNITY
Dec
2025
23
Nearly 1 million in NC to see health premiums skyrocket in 2026
Health insurance costs are set to rise in 2026 for many North Carolinians, after Congress decided not to vote on extending Affordable Care Act insurance tax credits, which were cut in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and expire at the end of the year.
Dec
2025
22
Video: Man destroys nativity scene protesting ICE raids in NC
CNN happened to cover a man wrecking a nativity scene in Charlotte protesting ICE raids in NC.
Dec
2025
22
6 ‘good Samaritan’ acts in NC done by regular people
Read six heartwarming stories of "good Samaritans" doing kind deeds in NC.
Dec
2025
22
Report: Trash not a throw-away problem for NC, US
A new report looks through America's trash – and the results aren't pretty.
Dec
2025
22
3 things happening in NC: Drive through High Point’s massive Christmas lights show
Cardinal & Pine's weekly roundup of NC happenings is a full-on holiday party this week. Drive through High Point's massive Christmas lights show, party for Kwanzaa in the Triangle, and a world-renowned Christmas show comes to Charlotte.
Dec
2025
22
Opinion: How former Gov. Jim Hunt transformed North Carolina
A lot of people have come to North Carolina since Gov. Jim Hunt left office 25 years ago. They may not know it, but he’s a big reason they came here.
Dec
2025
19
Good News Friday: The Lumbee Tribe will finally be recognized by the US government
After fighting for generations, the Lumbee Tribe, a local Indigenous population is finally affirmed. Plus, high school students unveil impressive aviation project during annual Wright Bros. memorial while a Charlotte couple wins big on Netflix. ‘Twas the week...
Dec
2025
17
Report: NC teacher pay and per-pupil funding are in a dismal place
In a dismal new report, a libertarian think tank finds that NC teacher pay and per-student public school funding ranks near the bottom of the nation.
Dec
2025
17
Video: NC pastor says ICE took a community member and denied visitation
A NC pastor talks to Cardinal & Pine about ICE's arrest of a Raleigh man who later suffered a medical emergency. ICE reportedly denied his family visitation afterward.
Buddhist monks’ ‘Walk for Peace’ arrives in Washington
| February 10, 2026
The Buddhist monks have become fixtures on social media, along with their rescue dog Aloka, as they traveled to Washington, DC. Their trek included multiple stops in North Carolina.
Billy Ball Explains NC: How to fix social media in America
| February 10, 2026
Social media in America is designed to make us hate each other, but there is a potential fix. Watch the latest Billy Ball Explains NC here.
3 things happening in NC: ‘Raleigh Stampede’ rodeo comes to state fairgrounds
| February 9, 2026
Every week, Cardinal & Pine picks three things happening in NC. This week, the rodeo comes to Raleigh, a classical music lover's paradise, and last days of the Dambo trolls in NC.
Good News Friday: Charlotte Symphony director wins Grammy for Civil War spy opera
| February 6, 2026
"Intelligence" tells the true story of two Civil War spies, Elizabeth Van Lew and Mary Jane Bowser. Charlotte Symphony Orchestra's director Kwamé Ryan conducted the opera.
Controversial Wilmington Harbor deepening project paused by feds
| February 5, 2026
A billion-dollar deepening of Wilmington Harbor is necessary to keep the port competitive, but it comes with economic and environmental concerns for North Carolina's wetlands.