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Touching moment North Carolina teen Emma Wright with Down’s Syndrome is named homecoming queen: ‘She’s loved by the entire student body’

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Touching moment North Carolina teen Emma Wright with Down’s Syndrome is named homecoming queen: ‘She’s loved by the entire student body’


Touching moment North Carolina teen Emma Wright with Down’s Syndrome is named homecoming queen: ‘She’s loved by the entire student body’

  • A North Carolina high school picked 18-year-old Emma Wright, who has Down syndrome, as their homecoming queen
  • Emma is known to dance spontaneously in the school’s cafeteria and hallways
  • Next fall, Emma plans to attend Western Carolina University and has aspirations to establish her own bakery

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A North Carolina high school has named a teenage girl with Down’s Syndrome as their homecoming queen.

Emma Wright, 18, is a popular student among her classmates at the East Forsyth High School in Kernersville.

The student body took it upon themselves to both celebrate and surprise Emma with the honor.

‘It was pretty cool,’ Wright said, according to WFMY. ‘There’s a lot of good people on this side of the stands. Man, it was a surprise.’ 

To her complete surprise, 18-year-old Emma Wright, who has Down’s Syndrome was named homecoming queen

Emma, who was also on the cheerleading team at the school, was brought to tears by the gesture as she was brought onto the field accompanied by her father Brad Wright, seen left

Emma, who was also on the cheerleading team at the school, was brought to tears by the gesture as she was brought onto the field accompanied by her father Brad Wright, seen left

Emma is known to dance spontaneously in the school's cafeteria and hallways and is popular with her fellow students

Emma is known to dance spontaneously in the school’s cafeteria and hallways and is popular with her fellow students

A North Carolina high school picked Emma as their homecoming queen on Friday

A North Carolina high school picked Emma as their homecoming queen on Friday

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Her school community talked about the love they have for Wright.  

‘We call her our dancer. You can see her dancing in the cafeteria, and the hallways, she’s loved by the entire student body,’ Principal Rusty Hall told Fox 8.

‘It’s what we try to push here. Everybody is included, everybody’s voice matters regardless of your background, your life before you got here,’ Hall said.

‘Once you’re here you’re family. And we appreciate the contributions of all of our students and tonight was a perfect example.’ 

Emma, who was also on the cheerleading team at the school, was brought to tears by the gesture as she was brought onto the field accompanied by her father, Brad Wright.

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Emma, who hopes one day to open her own bakery and ice cream shop will head to Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina, next fall

Emma, who hopes one day to open her own bakery and ice cream shop will head to Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina, next fall

Emma is seen pictured alongside the rest of her family including her mother, brother and dad

Emma is seen pictured alongside the rest of her family including her mother, brother and dad

Aside from being popular with the student body, Emmas has a love for sports

Aside from being popular with the student body, Emmas has a love for sports

'It was so amazing I started crying,' her dad Brad Wright said. 'We had no idea, it's something that you prepare for.

‘It was so amazing I started crying,’ her dad Brad Wright said. ‘We had no idea, it’s something that you prepare for.

The student body took it upon themselves to both celebrate and surprise Emma with the honor of homecoming queen

The student body took it upon themselves to both celebrate and surprise Emma with the honor of homecoming queen

Emma is seen pictured alongside her mom, Barbie Kreuter Wright

Emma is seen pictured alongside her mom, Barbie Kreuter Wright

‘It was so amazing I started crying,’ her dad Brad Wright said.  ‘We had no idea, it’s something that you prepare for. 

‘Just getting dressed, getting all the things done and we are so thankful to be a part of East Forsyth family and so excited for Emma and the opportunity they gave her tonight,’ he told WXII12.

Emma, who hopes one day to open her own bakery and ice cream shop will head to Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina, next fall.

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North Carolina

North Carolina Zoo celebrates its 50 anniversary

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North Carolina Zoo celebrates its 50 anniversary


ASHEBORO, N.C. (WTVD) — The North Carolina Zoo is celebrating 50 years.

Located in Asheboro, the zoo houses about 1,700 animals and over 250 species primarily from Africa and North America.

On social media, NC Zoo wrote Friday:

“Throughout our history, we’ve been home to a diverse array of remarkable animals, dedicated keepers, and passionate employees who work tirelessly behind the scenes. Join us in honoring this milestone by visiting the Zoo in 2024!”

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The Zoo also mentioned the Zoo’s first animals, which were two Galapagos tortoises named Tort and Retort.

The post said in part: “These two tortoises symbolize the early days of the North Carolina Zoo and are cherished deeply in our hearts.”

The North Carolina Zoo is one of two state-supported zoos in the country. The other is the Minnesota Zoo.

Copyright © 2024 WTVD-TV. All Rights Reserved.





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North Carolina

NC has some of the most dangerous roads in the US: See how Wilmington-area counties rank

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NC has some of the most dangerous roads in the US: See how Wilmington-area counties rank


With a recent study revealing North Carolina as one of the states with the riskiest roads to travel, some may wonder how safe the roads are here in the Cape Fear region. 

MarketWatch Guides, a site that provides “reviews of consumer products and services to help readers make educated purchasing decisions,” focuses in part on car insurance comparisons, vehicle safety and more.  

A recent study by the site analyzed factors including annual miles driven per 100,000 system miles, percentage of rough roads and fatal injuries per 100,000 licensed drivers. States were given a rating out of 10 points, with 10 being the most dangerous. 

More: Distracted driving in Wilmington: How big of a problem is it?

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North Carolina’s ranking among the most dangerous

According to the study, the states with the most dangerous drivers based on the factors studied are: 

  1. Louisiana – 7.55/10 
  1. California – 7.21/10
  1. New Mexico – 6.74/10
  1. Hawaii – 6.73/10
  1. Delaware – 6.67/10
  1. New Jersey – 6.53/10
  1. Mississippi – 6.47/10
  1. North Carolina – 6.39/10
  1. Massachusetts – 6.33/10
  1. Maryland and Texas – 6.26/10

According to the study, North Carolina had 32.5 fatal injuries per 100,000 licensed drivers, but only 2.1% of rough roads, which was the lowest percentage out of the other ranked states.  

For a more localized perspective, the North Carolina Department of Transportation releases annual traffic crash facts data. The most recent 2022 report includes a ranking of counties based on several factors, including reported crashes, crash severity, crash rates based on population, registered vehicles and estimated vehicle miles traveled.  

The most dangerous county for drivers, ranked at No. 1 for the past five years, was Robeson County. The county had 60 fatal crashes in 2022 with 1,136 non-fatal injury crashes. The rest of the total 4,056 crashes were property-damage-only. The county with the best ranking was Hyde County, coming in at No. 100. The county had one fatal crash in 2022 and 10 non-fatal injury crashes. The county had a total of 45 crashes, the rest of which were property damage only.

More: MyReporter: Which intersections see the most red-light camera violations in Wilmington?

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Here’s where the Cape Fear region counties ranked. 

Brunswick County

Ranked No. 76 in 2022, Brunswick County had 25 fatal crashes and 715 non-fatal injury crashes. The total crashes for that year were 3,146. The remainder of the crashes were property damage only.

New Hanover County

Ranked No. 58, New Hanover had 19 fatal crashes and 1,313 non-fatal injury crashes, both of which went down from 2021. The total crashes in New Hanover were 5,617. The remainder of the crashes were property damage only.

Pender County

Ranked No. 47, Pender County had the worst ranking despite having the lowest number of crashes. The county had 12 fatal crashes and 374 non-fatal injury crashes, and a total of 1,156 crashes. The rest of the crashes were property damage only.  

Iris Seaton, USA Today Network, contributed to this report.

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Tropical Storm Debby expected to bring rainfall to Virginia & North Carolina

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Tropical Storm Debby expected to bring rainfall to Virginia & North Carolina


Tropical Storm Debby already has parts of Florida under tropical storm warnings. The Florida Big Bend is currently under a Hurricane Warning. Debby is forecast to briefly strengthen into a category 1 hurricane as it moves over the Gulf of Mexico where water temperatures are near 90 degrees.

As it continues its path over land it is expected to dial back to tropical storm strength as it reaches the Carolinas mid to late next week. Moderate rainfall is possible for northeast North Carolina and southern Virginia by the end of the week.

Higher amounts of rain are possible for southernmost portions of the Outer Banks but generally models show 2-4 inches for northeast North Carolina and 1-2 inches for southern Virginia through Thursday.

Stay with News 3’s First Warning Weather Team for the latest updates as the storm develops.

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