Every week, three hundred families are fed with the help of Minnie’s Food Pantry.

“When you volunteer in this pantry, and you see some of the people that come in, it just could be anybody,” said Andre Angel, CEO of TangoTab. “It could be you, me, or anybody else that’s just like us.”

TangoTab is a dining resource that helps hungry patrons find a restaurant offering a deal to dine for a discount. Angel has found a way to encourage diners to visit his website, and give back to the needy in North Texas.

“As they use one of these offers, we are effectively donating a meal to a hungry family or a hungry child,” said Angel.

In honor of Martin Luther King Day, TangoTab donated forty thousand meals to Minnie’s Food Pantry. The tens of thousands of meals will soon fill the hungry bellies of North Texas residents.

“They come in on a daily basis between Wednesday and Saturday, lining up in front of the pantry, and picking up some food so they can feed their families,” said Angel.

Founder of Minnie’s Food Pantry, Cheryl Jackson, says she was once in her patrons shoes. She was forced to feed her family from a food pantry, receiving a brown paper bag filled with food she says she couldnt make a single meal with. She has now created a place where those in need can come and find food and comfort.

“Thousands of people have walked this place and they have cried as they were walking out the doors,” said Jackson. “When I see them cry, they’re crying for different reasons why my tears were shed when I walked out that door. They’re crying because they’ve received so much more than they ever ever thought they would get.”

Through the generosity of the donations by TangoTab, Jackson’s dream of feeding those in need is sustained. She thinks its most fitting the donations were given on the day in honor of Martin Luther King.

“I think Martin Luther King says it best,” said Jackson. “He said, ‘I had the audacity to believe that people can receive three meals a day.’ Well you know what? He had the audacity, I had the dream, and the dream continues through Minnie’s Food Pantry and Tango Tab, and I’m so thrilled.”

Just like the hungry consumer searching for a deal at their favorite dive or diner, Minnie’s Food Pantry is always looking for volunteers and donations.

Watch the video in HD above produced by DFW Reporting – the only news team in Texas that only reports on positive news! The video was reported by Journalist Katherine Lane and shot by Videographer Chris Ghanbari.

Ping Ping. Wiff whaff. Gossmia. Call it what you want but the Rams at Texas Wesleyan University call it table tennis and they’re pretty good too.

“We have a good team,” said Andreas Ball, one of the Rams top table tennis players. “We don’t have to fear any opponent. If we play at our best we can compete with anybody.”

They’ve won numerous national titles in men’s, women’s and mixed, but since the sport isn’t huge in the United States the roster resembles something you’d find at the United Nations. Not Fort Worth.

“They speak Spanish or German or Croatian like myself and another player, but we try to encourage everyone to speak in English when everyone is together,” said Jasna Rather, the Rams Head Coach.

And one of Rather’s best players is China native Sara Hazinski.

“I started when I was in China at the age of seven and I think my dad pushed me really hard to be good,” said Hazinski.

And Andreas Ball represents Germany. So what does he think of Dallas’ most famous German Dirk Nowitzki?

“I’m a big fan of Dirk Nowitzki obviously,” said Ball.

Schools like Ohio State, Stanford and Harvard come to mind when talking about the top table tennis programs in the country so how does NAIA Texas Wesleyan keep winning every year?

“We have to go around the United States and internationally to different tournaments to recruit our top players,” said Rather.

And the age old question why call the sport table tennis and not ping pong?

“Table tennis or ping pong it doesn’t matter,” said Rather. “It’s a fun game and it’s good for anybody to try to play.”

And at Texas Wesleyan, to win.

Watch the video in HD above produced by DFW Reporting  – the only news team in Texas that only reports on positive news!

Electric go karts are turning wheels in Frisco.

“They’re really, really fast but they don’t use gas,” said Robert Finley, Co-Owner of Pole Position Raceway.

Pole Position Raceway originally started in California in 2005.  Now, the company has seven locations across the country, and their newest electric kart racetrack just opened.

“The concept was, let’s do indoor karting like we’ve never done before,” said Finley. “It was always done with gas powered go karts. These are electric battery powered go karts.“

Don’t let the electric karts fool you.  Their torque and acceleration are arguably better than any gas kart out there and even the biggest race fanatics say their power is impressive.

“It’s better than the gasoline powered ones, which is shocking to me because I’ve been driving gasoline engines my whole life,” said customer Michael Arden.

“Actually coming in I thought electric go karts, forty five miles an hour there’s no way they can go that fast,” said Brantley Price, employee of Pole Position Raceway.  ”But then after I’ve been in the seat of these at least ten times, every time it’s an adrenaline rush.”

Finley is excited to see so many people enjoying the new concept, and he’s already announcing plans of a new track in North Texas.

“The goal is in about ninety days we’re going to start breaking ground on another one over in on the west side toward Fort Worth near maybe Southlake,” said Finley.

Finley says it’s been hard work opening the Frisco track, but he’s not complaining.

“I’m having a blast,” said Finley. “It’s not work when you’re having fun everyday.”

And he says his goal is to make sure everyone at Pole Position Raceway is having as much fun as he is.

Watch the video in HD above produced by DFW Reporting  – the only news team in Texas that only reports on positive news!

Support our Journalist Angela Hamann on her official Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Angela-Hamann-Sports-Journalist/178517455530455

After Will Rosellini left the world of professional sports, he dedicated himself to science, a passion developed while watching some of the world’s best pitchers.

“I was curious how they could throw with the accuracy of a quarter of an inch, but I could only throw with the accuracy of three to four inches,” said Rosellini, CEO of MicroTransponder.

The former professional baseball player realized this tiny difference related to the nervous system.  That discovery led him to start MicroTransponder, a company developing solutions to treat neurological disorders.

“What we’ve found in clinical studies is that by applying electricity to the vagus nerve we can open up a window in the brain with neurotransmitters that allow us to drive the brain to pay attention and learn faster,” said Rosellini.

MicroTransponder and research partner UT Dallas have quickly discovered their findings could potentially help people with a particular disorder.

“The place where that’s been immediately successful and applicable would be in the treatment of Tinnitus,” said Rosellini.

Tinnitus is not an ordinary ringing of the ears.  It’s constant and can reach unbearable decibels, affecting the way of life for people like Phillip Lofton who suffers from Tinnitus.

“Because you suffer alone and nobody else can hear it, it’s hard for my family members and friends to understand it never, ever goes away,” said Lofton.

For twenty years Lofton has battled Tinnitus. The noise he hears has been measured at decibels equaling a jet engine. To Rosellini, that sound is a reminder of why he’s working so hard.

“For nearly two million people the tinnitus is so bad it affects them at work and for 15% of people of Tinnitus sufferers they’re emotionally disturbed by the suffering,” said Rosellini.

MicroTransponder has seen successful results on human patients in Belgium, and they are currently raising funds to be approved in the United States.

“For smaller companies that are doing medical products, we need to raise on the order of ten to twelve million dollars to get our product approved by the FDA,” said Rosellini.

Although MicroTransponder is in the early stages of fundraising and treatment, the company has big plans.

“We intend to restore or enhance the nervous system of one million patients worldwide,” said Rosellini.

And as long as he still suffers, Lofton says he wants to help find a solution.

Watch the video in HD above produced by DFW Reporting  – the only news team in Texas that only reports on positive news!

Support our Journalist Angela Hamann on her official Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Angela-Hamann-Sports-Journalist/178517455530455

Students at Medrano Middle School have been busy writing letters. They aren’t headed to Santa.

“I feel so proud of myself right now,” said Student Daniel Molina.

“I just want to tell them that I’m glad that they’re here,” said Student Lesley Blanco.

“I think they’re going to feel better with us supporting them,” said Student Jose Mendez.

The letters are for our nation’s heroes. The USO visited the students at Medrano to pick up thousands of letters that will be sent to those serving overseas.

“The soldier is going to come in to a pile of letters dedicated to them, so it’s going to mean a lot,” said Sergeant Roque Garcia.

Cory Faber says he looks forward to encouraging his students to reach out to servicemen and women and thank them for putting their life on the line for their freedom.

“I know they volunteered, but hey, it’s a tough job and it’s a rewarding job,” said Cory Faber, Teacher at Medrano Middle School. “Just to be acknowledged, is kind of a neat deal.”

“If you write, it will really be special to the men and women overseas,” said Student Arturo Gomez.

Gomez says he hopes to join the Marines after finishing school, but for now, he wants his letters to let those serving know he’s thinking of them.

“That way they can know that they’re special and someone misses them,” said Gomez.

“Somebody from the classroom in Dallas, Texas is thinking about the troops out there,” said Garcia. “What better reason to be out there in the first place if not for the people in the United States of America?”

Medrano Middle School students are sending more than four thousand letters overseas to those who won’t be coming home for Christmas.

Watch the video in HD above produced by DFW Reporting Journalist Katherine Lane . DFW Reporting is the only news team in Texas that only reports on positive news!

It’s lunch time in Forney, Texas and Patrick McCrea is busy behind the scenes tending to the hungry crowd. His restaurant Doe Belly’s Catfish Cafe is a popular spot.

“We try to greet them when they come in the door,” said McCrea, Owner of Doe Belly’s. “We try to learn all their names but it gets a little bit overwhelming trying to learn everybody’s names but we know faces. We don’t forget their faces.”

You can’t be to hard on McCrea for forgetting a few names especially since he lives in one of the fastest growing communities in North Texas. Forney’s population has grown from five thousand to fifteen thousand in just a decade.

“My parents moved to Forney in 1969,” said Darren Rozell, Mayor of Forney. “I was a year and a half old.  I remember being eight nine years old walking around these downtown streets.”

Since 2001 the population of Forney has tripled making it the fastest growing city in Kaufman County and locals will tell you despite it’s growth, it hasn’t lost it’s small town charm.

“The barber’s in downtown Forney,” said Forney resident Dennis Holmes. “There’s not a lot of police force out tonight because it’s just family and friends so it’s great.”

J Stephen Sadler says when looking for a place to open his new Tasting Pavilion, Forney stood out.

“What made Forney different was that the whole town was committed to bringing someone down to their downtown,” said Sadler, Owner of Crumbzz.

Incentives to small business owners like Sadler is just one of many reasons the population is on the rise. Forney is just thirty minutes east of Dallas. So stop by, take in Forney’s history, and admire it’s future. Who knows? You may end up staying.

Watch the video in HD above produced by DFW Reporting Journalist Austin Wright and Photojournalist Chris Ghanbari . DFW Reporting is the only news team in Texas that only reports on positive news!