The New Year's Eve ball drop in Times Square is one of the holiday's most cherished traditions, and this year might be its best one yet. Fiskars Living's Tom Brennan joins Cheddar to reveal what makes this year's Waterford New Year's Eve Ball so special. The master artisan explains the painstaking process of creating the iconic scene as the clock strikes midnight.
Brennan reveals why Waterford chose "Gift of Serenity" as this year's theme. He says it represents the spirit of balance and composure heading into the new year. The ball features 288 new crystals that make up the pattern representing the theme.
Finally, Brennan shows off some of the other ways that Waterford is celebrating the holidays. The crystal company is using the New Year's ball as inspiration for some new products including champagne flutes. He says it's a creative way to bring the spirit of the Times Square celebration into your own home.
Tatyana Popkova, chief strategy officer for the health system, talked to Cheddar about how the innovative medical center was designed to take on challenges such as a patient surge from a pandemic.
Vinny Variale, a Lieutenant for the Fire Department of New York City and president of the Uniformed EMS Officers Union said regardless of CDC or FDNY recommendations, EMS workers should always have protective gear on emergency calls amid the pandemic.
While Alinea, located in Chicago, Illinois, serves high-end meals, co-owner Nick Kokonas said they recognized early on that the stay-at-home orders were going to be in place for a while.
Tommy Berges, a veteran paramedic and firefighter out of Washtenaw County, Michigan, said the outbreak has extended emergency response times from the outset.
Transit unions are calling for greater protections for their employees, as coronavirus has taken a heavy toll on bus drivers and train operators working on the frontlines.
The severe weather outbreak came with much of the nation shut down because of the new coronavirus. In Alabama, people huddled into community storm shelters wearing protective masks to guard against the threat.
For Sasha Kogan a Peace Corps volunteer, border closures caused by the pandemic meant a frantic multi-day evacuation from Cameroon to Washington, DC, culminating with her far from her NYC roots to find herself in Illinois without benefits or a clue as to what's next.
Social workers at Woodhull Hospital in Brooklyn are urging hospital administrators to let them work from home but say they are coming up against a company line that maintains every health care worker needs to do their part and show up in person, whether their job demands it or not.
Circle K, the international convenience store chain, is donating a meal to those in need with every fuel transaction, even as the company's own sales have fallen precipitously due to coronavirus.
The sailor was found unresponsive on April 9 and moved to ICU at a hospital. He died Monday. The Roosevelt has been in a coronavirus crisis that prompted the acting Navy secretary to fire the ship's captain on April 2.
