Atlanta, GA
Volunteers pack 1 million meals at State Farm Arena to fight Atlanta food insecurity
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – On Saturday, thousands of people packed State Farm Arena — but they weren’t there to see a game. Instead, the crowd’s goal was to pack 1 million meals in a single day.
Sponsored by the Atlanta Hawks, 2024 marks the fourth time the community has gathered to pack meals at the arena. The boxed food will go to five local nonprofits dedicated to fighting food insecurity.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Atlanta Hawks, State Farm team up for third 1 million meal pack event
Jon Babul, the Hawks’ vice president of community impact and basketball programs, said the event drew more than 6,000 volunteers this year, which is about 1,000 more than last year. Participants include Hawks fans, Hawks players, politicians and even celebrities like Mariah the Scientist and Domaini Harris.
“This is Atlanta,” he said, waving a hand toward the massive crowd. “It’s just a hodgepodge, potpourri of Atlanta’s people, and we’re here for food insecurity.”
According to the Atlanta Community Food Bank, 1 in 8 Georgians don’t have access to consistent, healthy food. For children, that number is 1 in 5.
This year’s nonprofit meal recipients are:
- Atlanta Community Food Bank
- Hosea Helps
- Midwest Food Bank Georgia
- Sweetwater Mission
- The Salvation Army
Copyright 2024 WANF. All rights reserved.
Atlanta, GA
SF Giants lose pitching coach Martinez, but Tingler reportedly set to join staff
Tony Vitello will be tasked with finding a new pitching coach after J.P. Martinez elected to leave the Giants and join the Atlanta Braves as the team’s bullpen coach.
Martinez, 43, spent just one season as San Francisco’s pitching coach after Bryan Price stepped down after the 2024 season. Price, too, only spent one year as pitching coach under former manager Bob Melvin.
Prior to becoming the pitching coach, Martinez spent four seasons as San Francisco’s assistant pitching coach. In 2025, the Giants finished 10th in ERA in the majors and sent three pitchers — Logan Webb, Robbie Ray and Randy Rodríguez — to the All-Star Game. Martinez was also one of the Giants’ few coaches who also spoke Spanish, another being assistant hitting coach Oscar Bernard.
While Martinez is departing the organization, Jayce Tingler will reportedly be joining Vitello’s coaching staff, likely as a bench coach. The San Francisco Chronicle first reported the news, which has not been announced by the Giants.
Vitello and Tingler were teammates at Missouri, and Tingler’s experience at the major-league level should be invaluable as Vitello navigates his first professional season. Along with managing the San Diego Padres for two seasons, Tingler has been a coach for both the Texas Rangers and Minnesota Twins. Tingler is also bilingual and has experience coaching in the Dominican Republic.
Martinez, who was under contract for next season, is not the only departure from last year’s coaching staff, as bench coach Ryan Christenson and third-base coach Matt Williams will not return for the 2026 season. On Wednesday, the Athletics announced that Christenson would become the team’s first-base coach.
Following Martinez’s departure, Vitello will have to decide if he wants to look internally or externally to fill the vacancy. One strong internal option is Garvin Alston, who has been the team’s bullpen coach for the last two seasons and been with the organization since 2020.
Alston has two decades of professional coaching experience dating back to his time with the Oakland A’s, serving as the Minnesota Twins’ pitching coach for one season in 2018. Alston has also served as the bullpen coach at the major-league level for the Arizona Diamondbacks (’16) and A’s (’17).
Atlanta, GA
Nonprofit bringing injured Palestinian children to metro Atlanta halted by new refugee policies
The Trump administration is restricting the number of refugees admitted annually to the United States from 125,000 to 7,500 — mostly white South Africans.
It’s a dramatic drop that changes America’s traditional role as a haven for people fleeing war and persecution.
The decision is affecting Palestinian families from the Gaza Strip, including one that recently traveled to metro Atlanta to care for a 12-year-old boy who lost his legs during the Israel-Hamas war. Heal Palestine, the nonprofit that’s helping the boy, asked CBS News Atlanta not to use the family’s last name due to safety concerns.
After almost two years of waiting for permission to travel to the United States for emergency medical treatment, Yassin and his family received a warm welcome over the summer at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
“I look and see them and say, ‘I’m good,” Fadwa says.
The mother and son traveled from the Gaza Strip to Atlanta with the help of Heal Palestine, which was founded in 2024 to deliver urgent relief to Palestinian children and families.
“He had surgery here in Atlanta with good doctors and good teams, and now he have therapy,” Fadwa said.
Heal Palestine Atlanta volunteer Ghada Elnajjar said that Yassin was hit by an air strike and lost both legs, which had been amputated without anesthesia.
“When a family like Fadwa’s is evacuated and a child like Yassin is seeking help in the United States, there are communities that come together and help support the child,” Elnajjar said.
The U.S. organization is helping 63 Palestinian children across the country. Several, including Yassin, are in metro Atlanta.
“We take the child, treat them medically and mentally, so we provide mental health wellness, and continue to provide their education through online resources,” Elnajjar said.
The family lived in Khan Younis, a city in southern Gaza that saw heavy shelling during the Israel-Hamas war.
Fadwa says she worked as a quantum physicist before coming to America.
“I lose my husband, I lose my house,” she said.
“As a mother, this is so difficult for Fadwa, having to be torn between finding treatment for her 12-year-old and leaving behind part of her heart in Gaza,” Elnajjar said.
Yassin, his brother, and two of his sisters are living in Alpharetta with their mother while he receives physical therapy and treatment for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. His older brother and sister are still in Gaza, unable to travel to the United States because of visa restrictions.
“I’m cooking Palestinian food. I’m talking about Palestine. That’s my country. And if the war destroys everything, I still love this country,” Fadwa said.
A home she loves and hopes to return to once Yassin heals.
Heal Palestine also provides food, water, and supplies for people who are still living in the Gaza Strip and are still working to evacuate more injured children.
You can learn more about the organization here.
Atlanta, GA
First Alert Forecast: Sunny, warm Thursday with isolated weekend rain ahead
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – Temperatures will remain well above average through most of the weekend. The first FREEZE is expected early next week.
This morning is starting clear but not quite as chilly as previous mornings. Temperatures will once again climb quickly once the sun rises, reaching the 70s after lunch.
Friday will be yet another warm and mostly dry day with highs in the 70s. Isolated showers could move in after sunset, but we’ll also be watching for some late rain/storms pushing into north Georgia after midnight into early Saturday.
Scattered, on/off rain will be possible for the rest of Saturday into Sunday. Behind Sunday’s front, substantially colder air arrives Monday morning with sub-freezing wind chills expected. The coldest morning will be Tuesday.

Copyright 2025 WANF. All rights reserved.
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