Wedding gown giveaway shows support for troops

Wedding gown giveawayshows support for troops
WEXFORD, Pa. -- A formalwear store gave away 120 new wedding gowns to women in the armed forces, veterans, or who are engaged to past or present servicemen. Pete Scolieri, who owns One Enchanted Evening in the Pittsburgh suburb of Pine Township with his wife, Linda, said they wanted to show support for the troops. They decided on the giveaway after hearing of similar giveaways by other shops elsewhere in the country. Most giveaway gowns retailed between 500 and 2,000, but one dress was listed for 5,850. One Enchanted Evening donated 100 dresses, and several vendors donated 20 others.
200,000 stamp on ballot
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- An absentee ballot was mailed with what may have been a rare stamp worth as much as 200,000 -- the famous Inverted Jenny -- but the envelope is in a box that by law can't be opened. Broward County Commissioner John Rodstrom discovered the stamp while reviewing absentee ballots. There was no name on the envelope, so the vote didn't count. What looked like a small stamp collection on one envelope caught Rodstrom's eye about 8 p.m. Tuesday. At least one was from 1936, Rodstrom said. Then he noticed one had an upside-down World War I-era airplane -- the hallmark of an Inverted Jenny. But then, the ballot box was sealed. Elections officials will retain the ballot for 22 months, Jenny Nash, a spokeswoman for the Florida secretary of state's office, told The Associated Press. After that, any action is up to the county elections supervisor.
Deer escapes pumpkin
CASCADE TOWNSHIP, Mich. -- A deer whose head was stuck in a plastic Halloween jack-o'-lantern for nearly a week has freed itself and will be fine, animal rescuers said Saturday. Two children found a dented, hair-lined plastic pumpkin in their yard Friday night, and other neighbors saw a thin deer running free, The Grand Rapids Press reported. It was rainy Friday, which rescuers think helped the young deer wriggle free. Rescuers had planned to use a dart gun to tranquilize the yearling, then remove the bucket, meant for collecting candy. The bucket was stuck on the animal's snout, hanging like a feed bag, preventing it from eating or drinking. It had appeared to be snagged on the buck's ears or horn buds.
Hit-run kills mom, 2 kids
DENVER -- A hit-and-run driver struck a couple crossing a street with a stroller, killing a woman and her two young children and injuring the youngsters' father, police said. Two men were arrested early Saturday. Wreckage from the stroller was strewn across the busy intersection Friday night in the popular LoDo district of restaurants, clubs, stores and sports venues. The father was in stable condition at Denver Health Medical Center. The license plate of the red pickup was knocked off in the crash, leading police to the vehicle's owner and to the arrests in neighboring Westminster, authorities said. The parents were walking with their 4-year-old and 2-year-old children, crossing lawfully at a lighted intersection, police said. Lawrence Trujillo, 36, was arrested on three counts of investigation of vehicle homicide, as well as leaving the scene of an accident and resisting arrest, police said. Eric Phil Snell, 35, was arrested on three counts of investigation of accessory to a crime.
Navy to free stuck carrier
NEW YORK -- The Navy is coming to the rescue of one of its mightiest veterans, joining the operation to free the World War II aircraft carrier USS Intrepid from deep Hudson River mud that has blocked efforts to move the ship to a dry dock for renovation, officials announced Saturday. A fleet of civilian tug boats tried Monday to pull the 27,000-ton ship out of the berth where it has been serving as the popular Intrepid Sea Air & amp; Space Museum, but the carrier moved only a few feet before its 16-foot propellers snagged in the 24-year accumulation of sediment. Under a new plan of attack, the Navy will provide salvage support at a cost of about 3 million. That includes dredging mud from underneath the ship's stern to free the propellers.
Painting to cost 68M
WASHINGTON -- The National Gallery plans to buy one of the 19th century's best-known American paintings, "The Gross Clinic" by Thomas Eakins, for a record 68 million. The 8-by-7-foot painting shows a doctor and his students performing surgery on a boy's leg, while his mother covers her face with her hands. The sale price sets a record for a pre-World War II work of art created in the United States, The New York Times reported. The National Gallery of Art will share the work with Alice Walton, daughter of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton, The Washington Post reported. Alice Walton founded the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, which is scheduled to open in 2009 in Bentonville, Ark.
Associated Press