RYAN: Well maybe not actual zombies, but I just heard that dire wolves are being resurrected?!
PAM: Okay. Yeah, I think we better jump right in to clarify things, you don’t want to be the boy who cried zombie, right?

RYAN: No, no I do not. I’m Ryan Willard.

PAM: And I’m Pamela Kirkland, it’s Thursday, April 17th.

RYAN: This is Ten Things You Need to Know.

RYAN: Easter is coming up on Sunday, April 20th, a Christian holiday that has been around for 2,000 years and celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. A resurrection is when you come back from the dead…and..it also marks the arrival of Spring! While Easter is considered the holiest day throughout Christianity, it’s also a celebration filled with festive meals, Easter egg hunts, egg decorating–

PAM: –and, at the White House, an Easter egg roll. The annual White House Easter Egg Roll has been around since 1878 when Rutherford B. Hayes was president, but it’s also believed that egg-rolling parties took place under Abraham Lincoln. The 2025 White House Easter Egg Roll will take place on Monday, April 21st, and feature a whopping 30,000 eggs for White House guests to decorate and use for games. Which is egg-cellent news considering the recent price of eggs and the bird flu. But, it is the first year they will use small and medium-sized eggs, which aren’t sold at markets. All that matters is that kiddos get to carry on the tradition of rolling dyed, hard-boiled eggs along the South Lawn!

RYAN: If you get to celebrate Easter with easter egg hunts this year, that sounds more like a treasure hunt. I can still barely afford eggs so I’m doing an Easter Potato hunt at my house. I’M HUNTING POTATOES Y’ALL.

PAM: Following all of the Easter festivities is one of the best days of the year… Earth Day! Every April 22nd, billions of people around the globe come together and raise awareness about the environment's health. Earth Day made it’s debut in 1969 when US Senator Gaylord Nelson witnessed the effects of an oil spill in Santa Barbara, CA. He called on Americans to stand up for the environment, sparking organized protests for a healthy, sustainable environment across the US. As a result of these protests, the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Act were brought into law. This year's theme is “Our Power, Our Planet”, and invites everyone to unite behind renewable energy and to triple the global generation of clean electricity by 2030. Some ways that you can make your mark this Earth Day are to reduce your energy consumption, make the switch to renewable energy sources, and support clean energy policies.

RYAN: Earth Day is also a time to address climate change and its impacts… <SFX WEATHER OR NOT <SFX Thunderclap and rain sounds> April was off to a rocky start for southern and midwest states affected by severe storms that brought historic flooding and tornadoes. Over 90 tornadoes were reported across just 10 states, including Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee. And, due to significant rainfall, at least 18 river gauges were in major flood stage from Arkansas to Indiana. A river gauge measures a river's water level, and major flood stage refers to the highest flood category used by the National Weather Service. In addition to widespread damage, we’re saddened to share that there were at least 25 fatalities reported. It’s important to make sure that you and your family have a plan in place in case of severe weather, and always have your weather alerts turned on as Spring weather continues.

PAM: With all this crazy weather, I think it’s time to get… <OUT… OF… THIS… WORLD! <SFX NASA 3-2-1 Blastoff> Bitcoin investor, Chun Wang, bought a SpaceX flight for himself and three polar explorers that carried them on the first rocket flight over the North and South Poles. With Wang on the flight was Norweigen filmmaker Jannicke Mikkelsen, German robotics researcher Rabea Rogge, and Australian polar guide Eric Phillips. SpaceX’s Falcon rocket launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, taking the passengers on a 3 & ½ day adventure traveling southward over the Atlantic on a path that has never been flown before in 64 years of human spaceflight! It barely took 30 minutes to travel from Florida to the South Pole, and from there, the rocket circled the globe in about one and a half hours, which included just 46 minutes to fly from the North and South Poles.

RYAN: Ten’ers, if you’re ever going to space and have an extra seat, I am very open to rocket adventure invitations. And I will bring snacks. While some people have the luxury of buying a rocket adventure, others may not be as fortunate. But, with the support of others, things can turn around pretty quickly. Like it did for Betty, an 81-year-old server at a Pittsburgh local restaurant called Eat’n Park. TikToker Tamie Konzier who was dining at the restaurant with her son noticed that Betty was having a tough time getting around. She then overheard Betty say that she was suffering from chronic back pain, but she needed the job because her $910 social security payout wasn’t enough to cover her bills. Konzier felt for Betty and quickly took to TikTok to share the waitresses story. Her video ended up going viral just as she’d hoped and between the TikTok Creator Rewards Program, a GoFundMe, and Venmo donations, Konzier was able to raise $328,789.18 to change Betty’s life for the better. MANNNN, I love good news. So much so, that I need a quick break.

PAM: Hey Ten’ers, there’s been a lot going on with the U.S. government - the tariffs, federal programs being cut, and concerns about the economy, and we’re curious… how are any of these things affecting you? Has it changed the way your family shops? Or have you had to change your family habits? Any impact on your schools? We’d love to hear from you: you can email us at hello@thetennews.com or leave us a voicemail at 877-TEN-NEWS. Now back to the show!

RYAN: We’re back from the break with big basketball news from the <SFX Wide World of Sports>! First up in our March Madness recap, the UConn Huskies are your 2025 NCAA Women’s National Champions! UConn took the crown over defending champions’ South Carolina with a final score of 82-59 claiming their 12th national championship title. Leading the Huskies was Sarah Strong with 24 points and 15 rebounds alongside Paige Bueckers who had 17 points.

PAM: As for the men’s tournament, the Florida Gators won their third national championship against Houston with a final score of 65-63. In a nail-biting finish, Houston got the ball with 19 seconds left but couldn’t get a final shot off. With five seconds left, Emanuel Sharp pump-faked a three after seeing Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. defend and dropped the ball midair to avoid traveling. But, a teammate couldn’t recover it in time before the buzzer, giving the Gators the win.

RYAN: From the basketball courts to the golf course, the 89th Masters Tournament wrapped up in historic fashion this past Sunday. Irishman Rory McIlroy, now among golf’s all-time greats, won his first green jacket after edging out Justin Rose in a dramatic one-hole playoff. With this victory, McIlroy joins only five other players to complete the career Grand Slam— a player winning all four major championships over the course of their career, and includes: The Masters, the PGA Championship, the U.S. Open, and The Open Championship. The only others to achieve this are Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods. I think it’s so cool how long Mcllroy has been going for this and that all his hard worked paid off. Keep on keepin’ on, Ten’ers!

PAM: And now for some news about, well… the news! The Associated Press, a news agency company has been blocked from joining other journalists to cover Trump in the Oval Office or aboard Air Force Once since February 11, 2025. AP was banned after they refused to adopt the Trump administration’s order to call the “Gulf of Mexico” the “Gulf of America”. But, on Tuesday of last week, U.S. District Judge who was actually appointed by President Trump, ruled that the government cannot retaliate against the AP’s decision to not follow the executive order. As stated by McFadden, “Under the First Amendment, if the Goverment opens its doors to some journalists – be it to the Oval Office, the East Room, or elsewhere – it cannot shut those doors to other journalists because of their viewpoints… the Constitution requires no less.” This is a big win for the AP and emphasizes the importance of free speech!

RYAN: Up next, did scientists really bring back the dire wolf? Biotech company, Colossal Biosciences says that it used a novel gene-editing technology to alter gray wolf DNA that led to the first of three pups with physical features of the dire wolf. But, get this, the species has been extinct for more than 12,000 years! To create the pups, scientists studied DNA from a 13,000-year-old tooth and a 72,000-year-old skull, then used their findings to modify cells from modern gray wolves, which is the dire wolf’s closest living relatives. The modified DNA was used to create embryos, which were implanted into female dogs, leading to the birth of three pups: Romulus, Remus, and Khaleesi. While Colossal calls this a step toward "de-extinction," many scientists argue that the pups aren’t true dire wolves — just gray wolves with cosmetic genetic changes. But pretty cool to hear their little roars. <SFX: clip of them>

PAM: Okay for 10 points, what’s this sound: <SFX elephant> <SFX three second clock tick - DING!> If you guessed an elephant, you are correct. And for our last thing you need to know, let’s go to our Trivia Master, Owen.

OWEN: Thanks Pam! While elephants mostly live in Africa and Asia, some call the United States their home at sanctuaries and zoos. Do you know where the largest elephant sanctuary is in the U.S.? Is it:

California
Texas
Florida
Or, Tennessee?

OWEN: The answer is… D! The Elephant Sanctuary in Hohenwald, Tennessee is the largest elephant sanctuary and recently celebrated its 30th anniversary in March! It started back in 1995, adopting former circus and show elephants, allowing them to retire in the peaceful wilderness. An elephant named Tarra was the first to arrive and occupied 100 acres of land all to herself. Today, the sanctuary is home to 12 retired African and Asian elephants who get to enjoy 3,060 acres and are under the care of their loving handlers.

PAM: And that was Ten Things You Need to Know.

RYAN: Okay, I feel better knowing I don’t need to be scared of Zombie Direwolves.

PAM: To be honest, Ry, you didn’t even seem that scared of the thought of zombies…you seem way more scared of butter–

RYAN: NOPE. NO PAM. Because once you say that word they start showing up everywhere.

PAM: Like in the Ten News Snaps…?

RYAN: EXACTLY! Wait, we should do some snaps! Right after this quick note for the grownups.

<AD BREAK>

RYAN: Time for Ten News Snaps!

PAM: Back on Spotify, we got a bunch of comments on our last episode…Uncle Sam said, “Let’s go!!!!!!!!” Pokemon Kid said, “This is going to be awesome!!!” Well, we think you two are awesome!

RYAN: A Ten’er named Owen said, “Hey the Ten News Team, I’m Owen I’m a 13 year old male from New York. I have been listening for a long time :) I just wanted to say congrats on your Amby you guys really deserve this.” Owen, thank you for being a long time Ten’er and for the congratulations. Also, I think our Trivia Master would agree, you have a GREAT name.

PAM: Then Tianli said, “This is the best podcast ever!” And left dozens of butterfly and caterpillar emojis…

RYAN: Oh nononononono–

PAM: And then a Ten’er name Ben said, “Yes it is the best ever.” and then a Ten’er named Olivia said, “Congrats on ur Amby!!!! U guys totes deserve it, if kids got a say in voting in the Amby’s, I’d vote 4 u guys. Ur podcast is amazing. I listen 2 it on Monday mornings and it brightens my day. Thanks guys!!!”

RYAN: Awwwww, those comments brightened my day. Thank you Ben and Olivia–

PAM: Olivia also left 47 butterfly emojis and said, “heh heh take THIS Ryan.”

RYAN: Bbbbbleeeeah! Olivia ruined a perfectly great comment with butterflies. BLEAH!

PAM: And two extra notes for the grown-ups, you can now get ad-free versions of our episodes when you join the Ten’ers Club on our website.

RYAN: And if you want to help support the Ten News, you can make a tax-deductible donation at the link in our show notes. The whole team thanks you for your support!

PAM: “The Ten News” is a co-production of Small But Mighty Media and Next Chapter Podcasts and part of the Airwave Podcast Network.

RYAN: The Ten News creative team is ready for all the spring time weather and includes Tracey Not a Crooks, Adam the Great Bambino Bernard, Brian Not Ryan Douglas and Carson Not So Harry Potter. Big thanks to Owen, Not Slowin Down for Anybody.

PAM: Our Production Director is Jeremiah “On Fyaah” Tittle, and our Executive Producers are Donald “Albright Albright Albright” and show creator Tracy “Takes the” Leeds Kaplan. I’m Pamela Kirkland.

RYAN: And I’m Ryan Willard, thanks for listening to the Ten News.

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