First Thanksgiving: Iraqi refugee thankful for new life in U.S.

"An Iraqi refugee who fled her native Baghdad last month will give thanks with her American host family for the holiday.

Natalie Ali, 36, worked as a mission interpreter for American troops in Iraq for six years, risking her life as her family’s soul breadwinner. A Shiite Muslim who converted to Christianity, Ali was a target by Sunni spies because she helped Americans. She feared for her life, especially after one of her friends, also an interpreter, was assassinated along with her husband and children."

Click here for more on this family's first American Thanksgiving celebration.

People can hear with their skin, study shows

"Listening is more than a matter of being 'all ears.' People can also hear with their skin, according to new research that deepens our understanding of the senses, showing they can work together but also override one another.

Strange though it seems, scientists are finding that multiple senses contribute to the simplest perceptions. People can see with their ears, hear with their eyes, or hear with a touch."

Click here to read more about this study.

Former World Vision sponsored child named CNN Hero of the Year

"Efren Penaflorida, a schoolteacher from Cavite, Philippines, has won this year’s CNN Hero of the Year Award.

Penaflorida received the honor for his inspiring commitment to help educate street children with his Kariton Klasrum (Classroom Cart) through the Dynamic Teen Company, a group he founded in the 1990’s."

For more on this dramatic story, click here.

God With Us: Us With Them?

"I can’t sing the words of that familiar Advent song 'O Come, O Come, Emmanuel' without remembering a young boy—a child of a prisoner.

Every year, Patty and I deliver Angel Tree Christmas gifts to the children of prisoners. And I’ll never forget one year in particular, when Patty and I drove into a housing project to deliver our gifts."

Click here to read the rest of Chuck Colson's commentary.

Astronaut's baby daughter born as he circles Earth

"Astronaut Randolph Bresnik jubilantly welcomed his new daughter into the world Sunday as he floated 220 miles above it.

Abigail Mae Bresnik was born as her father circled Earth on his first space shuttle mission, just hours after his first spacewalk."

Click here for more on this very special event.

Three with Chicago ties win Rhodes scholarships

"Two Chicago-area residents and a University of Chicago grad are among the 32 winners of this year's Rhodes scholarships.

The prestigious scholarships provide tuition and a living stipend for two to three years study in any field at the University of Oxford in England."

For more on these winners, click here.

Postal Service to resume North Pole Santa letters

"Wide-eyed children around the world will be hearing from Santa's 'elves' at the North Pole after all."

Click here to read more about North Pole mail service.