Walgreens has launched the 2025-2026 Respiratory Index, an interactive online tool that tracks flu and COVID-19 activity nationwide using prescription, testing and over the counter (OTC) product purchase data from Walgreens locations nationwide. This unique tool builds on more than a decade of insights from the Walgreens Flu Index to now offer a more comprehensive view of respiratory illness trends across the U.S., helping the public, healthcare providers, and health officials make more informed decisions throughout the respiratory virus season.

The Walgreens Respiratory Index will be updated weekly and will allow users to search by state to see where their geographic area ranks for both flu and COVID-19 activity.

“The updated Index provides a clearer view of current virus trends, helping individuals make informed decisions to protect their health,” explains Rick Gates, Walgreens chief pharmacy officer. “Virus activity is expected to pick up as we head into the holidays, so now is the time to protect yourself and your loved ones by getting a flu shot and other recommended vaccines if you haven’t already. Vaccination remains the safest and most effective way to prevent highly contagious illnesses like flu, RSV, and COVID-19.”

It is not too late to protect against respiratory viruses. Walgreens is offering flu, COVID-19, and other recommended vaccines for eligible individuals ages 3 years and older at stores nationwide.* Individuals and families can walk into their nearest Walgreens pharmacy or schedule an appointment by visiting Walgreens.com/ScheduleVaccine, through the Walgreens app, texting “Flu” to 66879 or by calling 1-800-WALGREENS. Vaccines are covered by most insurance plans.

Currently, myWalgreens members will receive 20% off their next eligible purchase with any vaccination received—making it even more rewarding to stay healthy.**

Individuals who are experiencing respiratory symptoms should consider getting tested. Walgreens offers a variety of convenient, low-cost, in-store and at-home testing options for flu and COVID-19. A Walgreens pharmacist may also be able to prescribe oral antiviral treatment for flu or COVID-19 with a positive in-store test. And for those who don’t feel well enough to leave home, Walgreens offers virtual care consults and at-home tests, along with OTC symptom relief options such as Walgreens Sugar-Free Cough Drops, Walgreens Cough Mucus Relief DM, Walgreens Ibuprofen, and Walgreens Severe Sinus Congestion, are available for delivery in as little as 1 hour.

As respiratory season evolves, Walgreens pharmacists remain one of the most accessible, trusted healthcare providers across communities. Individuals can talk to their Walgreens pharmacist to learn more about how they can stay safe and get the care they need all season long.

About the Walgreens Respiratory Index

The Walgreens Respiratory Index is an online, interactive tool that ranks the top states for flu and COVID-19 activity in the United States, including Puerto Rico. The Index is updated weekly and is available through an online interactive map linked here. Users can view national activity or search by state to see where their geographic area ranks in any given week and how current activity compares to last season.

Data for the Walgreens Respiratory Index is sourced from multiple places across the Walgreens store footprint and network, including diagnostic testing data for influenza and COVID-19, prescription data related to respiratory illness treatment, and over the counter (OTC) purchases of flu- and cold-related products. For additional context, the Index also incorporates CDC wastewater viral data when available.

The index is not intended to illustrate virus severity, but rather, based on this methodology, to show which populations are experiencing the highest incidence of respiratory diseases. Walgreens continues to refine this surveillance platform with available data streams.

About Walgreens

Founded in 1901, Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) proudly serves nearly 9 million customers and patients each day across its approximately 8,500 stores throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Walgreens has approximately 220,000 team members, including nearly 90,000 healthcare service providers, and is committed to being the first choice for pharmacy, retail and health services, building trusted relationships that create healthier futures for customers, patients, team members and communities.

*In some states, a prescription from a healthcare provider is required to receive an RSV vaccine at Walgreens. No prescription required to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.

** One coupon issued per vaccination up to a limit of three during offer period 8/01/2025 – 2/28/2026. Offer coupon will be provided after vaccination is administered. Offer not valid in AR, NJ or NY. Must be a myWalgreens member and submit offer coupon at time of purchase. Single use offer valid in store only for 14 days from issue date. Offer valid on in-store purchase of eligible items up to $100. Maximum discount per coupon is $20. Limit 1 store coupon redeemed per transaction. Void if copied or transferred. Offer cannot be redeemed on alcohol, dairy, tobacco, gift cards, clinic services, prescriptions, pharmacy items or services, sales tax and items sold by third-party partners. This offer is solely made by Walgreens and not connected with any vaccine manufacturer.

Magnet Maker Studio LLC, a newly launched Arizona-based company, is revolutionizing how families preserve and share memories through innovative photo magnets that seamlessly blend physical keepsakes with digital storytelling. The family-owned business has introduced a groundbreaking product line that embeds QR codes into custom photo magnets, allowing each piece to trigger personal videos, voice messages, or digital photo albums when scanned with a smartphone.

The concept addresses a growing desire among families to maintain tangible connections to their memories while embracing digital convenience. In an era where thousands of photos remain trapped in phones and cloud storage, Magnet Maker Studio provides a solution that brings selected memories into daily view while maintaining access to expanded digital content. Each magnet becomes a portal to deeper stories, whether it's a grandparent's voice sharing family history, a child's first words, or video highlights from a special celebration.

The company's product line extends beyond family photos to include scripture collections and faith-based designs, reflecting the founders' spiritual inspiration and commitment to creating meaningful connections. Churches and faith communities have already begun partnering with Magnet Maker Studio to create custom magnets that share inspirational messages, promote events, and build stronger congregational bonds. These partnerships demonstrate the versatility of the QR code technology, which can link to sermon recordings, prayer requests, event registrations, or community resources.

Small businesses and schools are discovering creative applications for these interactive magnets. Educational institutions use them to share student achievements with families, linking to performance videos or digital portfolios. Local businesses incorporate them into marketing campaigns, creating memorable promotional items that connect to special offers, company stories, or product demonstrations. The tactile nature of magnets ensures they remain visible in homes and offices, providing ongoing brand exposure while delivering genuine value to recipients.

The handcrafted production process takes place entirely in Arizona, where each magnet is individually created with attention to quality and durability. The company uses premium materials designed to withstand years of handling while maintaining vibrant photo reproduction. The QR codes are seamlessly integrated into the design, ensuring they enhance rather than detract from the aesthetic appeal of each piece. This commitment to craftsmanship reflects the founders' belief that memory preservation deserves the same care as the moments being preserved.

The timing of Magnet Maker Studio's launch coincides with increased awareness about the importance of family connections and memory preservation. Recent studies indicate that displaying family photos contributes to children's self-esteem and family cohesion. By adding an interactive digital layer, these magnets create opportunities for storytelling and connection that static photos alone cannot provide. Grandparents separated by distance can record birthday messages, military families can share deployment videos, and parents can preserve their children's voices at different ages.

The company's faith-inspired approach influences both product development and business practices. Scripture magnets feature carefully selected verses designed to provide daily encouragement, while QR codes can link to devotional content, worship music, or prayer resources. This integration of faith and technology offers churches new ways to maintain connections with congregants between services and provides families with tools for spiritual growth within their homes.

• To mark Remembrance, Findmypast is offering free access to military records* over the Remembrance period (7-13 November)

• Delve into ancestors’ wartime experiences in millions of military records and ensure that no story is left behind

• Delve deeper into their stories within historical newspapers and understand the effects of global conflict on communities, families and individuals

• Use your research to help Findmypast’s Pals campaign by submitting the details of your First World War Pals ancestor to create the first ever collection of records for these forgotten heroes

To mark Remembrance and honour those who served, Findmypast is offering free access to millions of military records from 7–13 November.

This special access gives family historians and researchers the opportunity to explore detail-rich records, uncover personal stories, and truly understand their ancestors’ lives. Whether they joined up as a Pal, served on the front lines, became a prisoner of war, helped on the home front, or worked as a Red Cross volunteer, Findmypast’s military records can paint a vivid picture of your family's wartime experiences and offer a powerful way to remember those who served.

Those with British & Irish roots can explore the largest collection of British Army records anywhere online, including regimental records, army lists, roll calls and the details of those who served with particular regiments, military nurses, volunteer soldiers and army deserters, as well as the British in India collection, covering nearly 350 years from 1656 right up to 1993.

Then delve deeper to understand what life was really like for those who experienced war within Findmypast’s unrivalled collection of historical newspapers. You might find an image of your fallen ancestor within Findmypast’s brand new ‘Faces of the Fallen’ collection, extracted from the pages of British & Irish newspapers, or a story of heroism in your local community. Trace major milestones of the war as they happened – and spot those that were left out by the wartime press.

Plus, Findmypast has created a helpful set of resources and features to help you get further with your military research, faster. Use powerful research tools like Collections to clip and file your favourite newspaper articles, and Workspaces to collate your research on individual ancestors in one place and preserve the stories that matter most. Within the family tree builder, you’ll discover helpful information giving you the context around your ancestor’s military service, including details of regiments and battles. You can also uncover our expert tips, guides and even a video tutorial on our Remembrance hub.

Jen Baldwin, Research Specialist at Findmypast said: “We believe that uncovering and understanding the stories of all those who served is a powerful act of Remembrance. This year, we’re encouraging our genealogy community to help shed light on one of the darkest wartime chapters: the Pals regiments of the First World War. Research military ancestors for free this weekend and help to ensure that no story is left behind.”

Join Findmypast’s Pals Campaign

Findmypast has launched an ongoing campaign to build the first and only definitive record collection dedicated to the Pals—groups of brothers, friends, and workmates who enlisted, fought, and often fell together in the First World War. From Caernarfon to Cambridge, Glasgow to Grimsby, these comrades answered Kitchener’s call and stood shoulder-to-shoulder in trenches thick with mud.

Yet, despite their sacrifice, there is no single roll that holds every name of the Pals. Too many stories remain scattered or forgotten. Findmypast is calling on the genealogy community to help change that.

Find a Pal, delve deeper, and share your findings at www.findmypast.co.uk/pals Together, we’ll remember, record, and reunite the Pals.

*Exclusions apply. Free access to selected military records runs from 10:00 GMT on Friday 7 November (November 7 for US) to 23:59 GMT on Thursday 13 November (November 13 for US). After the free access ends, you can only view most records and features with a valid subscription. For more information, including our fair usage policy, read our free access terms and conditions.

Nearly three decades after her death, a murder victim whose partially decomposed body turned up in a brushy ravine in eastern San Diego County has been identified.

DNA testing has confirmed that the remains discovered in an open area off the 1300 block of Avocado Avenue in El Cajon on Aug. 13, 1998, were those of 30-year-old Alicia Ledezma Sanchez, according to police.

Investigators believe she had been dead for as long as six weeks.

Sanchez's death has been classified as a homicide, though no cause-of-death ruling in the case has been made public.

The initial investigation into the woman's death led to no arrests, and attempts to identify her were fruitless.

In 2003, cold-case homicide detectives with the El Cajon Police Department revived the investigation, sending Sanchez's skull to a forensic artist who used it to create a sculpture approximating her facial features as they were in life.

Photographs of the rendering were released to the public, but no viable leads resulted.

Five years later, a DNA sample was obtained from the decedent's remains, and a genetic profile was developed, but the effort led to no matches, according to police.

Then, over a two-year period beginning in 2023, members of an ECPD volunteer cold-case unit worked with several laboratories to conduct genetic genealogy and advanced DNA-analysis techniques that can reveal decedents' characteristics and potential family members.

Three months ago, the El Cajon Police Department posted an update on the investigation on its social media pages in another bid to find out who the victim was.

The cold-case unit was then contacted by a potential family member who believed she knew the victim's identity, and a genetic test with DNA obtained from Sanchez's son confirmed a familial match, finally revealing her identity.

A decades-old Arlington murder case has been solved thanks to advances in DNA technology and the persistence of detectives who never gave up.

Nearly 40 years after 26-year-old Terri McAdams was found beaten to death in her Arlington apartment, police identified her killer in 2024 through investigative genetic genealogy — a breakthrough featured during Mayor Jim Ross’ 2025 State of the City address.

McAdams was discovered Feb. 14, 1985. Despite an extensive investigation, the case went cold for decades. In 2021, new DNA testing produced a suspect profile but no match in national databases. Two years later, Arlington Police partnered with the FBI Dallas Field Office to apply genetic genealogy, which led investigators to Bernard Sharp — who died by suicide months after committing a double murder in a separate case in 1985. A DNA sample from one of Sharp’s relatives later confirmed the match.

The case was featured in a City of Arlington Office of Communication video highlighting how innovative technology and collaboration continue to help Arlington Police bring long-awaited answers to families.

“Terri’s family never gave up hope, and our detectives never wavered,” Arlington Police Chief Al Jones said. “After nearly four decades, we can finally provide closure.”

After more than a decade of preparation, a digital collection of 30,000 primary documents related to the creation of Acadia National Park is now available to the public through the History Trust as the Creating Acadia National Park Research Archive. The Jesup Memorial Library is grateful to Ronald H. Epp, Ph.D. for undertaking the Herculean task of collecting documents from federal, public and academic libraries and making the physical copies available to the public through the Jesup’s new archive.

Ronald H. Epp is the celebrated author of Creating Acadia National Park: The Biography of George Bucknam Dorr, published by Friends of Acadia in 2016. Public demand and the author’s desire for wide distribution led to preparation of the research archive, which includes manuscripts, interviews, and correspondence as well as transcriptions, maps, diverse news clippings, and a robust collection of relevant documents from the Rockefeller Archive Center. The timeframe covers the early 19th century through mid-20th century. Since no administrative history of Acadia National Park existed, the biography was undertaken as an important contribution to the 2016 centennials of Acadia and the National Park Service.

The 40 feet of paper manuscripts covers the breadth and depth of early 20th century pioneering land conservation in New England. The philanthropic efforts of Dorr, Charles William Eliot, and John D. Rockefeller, Jr. also dovetailed with the establishment of the National Park Service.

As many of these documents return to their origins in Hancock County, they highlight the historic importance of the Deasy and Lynam law firm of Bar Harbor and the Hale and Hamlin law firm in Ellsworth. These firms provided to Dorr and Rockefeller legal counsel that was "lost" for decades in the attics and basements of these institutions.

Both the paper and digitized archives were donated by Dr. Epp to the Jesup where they were catalogued. Former Jesup Director Matt DeLaney and his staff worked with the History Trust to add this content to their digital archive. The developing goal is to embrace new technologies and enable students, scholars, and the public at-large to explore beyond the old and new walls of the Jesup Memorial Library. The physical collection will be housed in the new climate-controlled archive of the Jesup’s expansion, scheduled to open to the public in 2026. In addition to preserving these resources for future generations, the expansion will provide for greater access to the library’s special collections and facilitate amateur and professional researchers to explore local history and genealogy and to contribute to the living body of scholarship on and about Mount Desert Island.

To access go to jesuplibrary.org/epp-archive; or google “Epp and Acadia.”

Local history librarian Kim Jurkovic will lead a session titled Finding Your Roots Monday, Nov. 10, at 6:30 p.m. Jurkovic will give demonstrations of websites available at the Dover Public Library, including Ancestry, Fold3 and Newspaper Archive. She will also highlight several popular free genealogy sites such as Find a Grave and FamilySearch.

Jurkovic will help attendees navigate these resources, offer tips for researching family history and share a few of the books available in the Local History Room that contain local genealogy information.

The program will be held in the community room at the Dover Public Library, 525 N. Walnut St. To register, visit www.doverlibrary.org/events or call 330-343-6123.

LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY — A 53-year-old Tennessee man has been arrested and charged in connection with a 1996 rape case in southern Indiana, after new DNA technology helped investigators identify him nearly three decades later, according to the Indiana State Police (ISP).

Sammy Wayne Riley, of La Follette, Tennessee, was taken into custody on Saturday, Nov. 1, by the Scott County Sheriff’s Department and charged with one felony count of rape. Officials confirmed Riley formerly lived in Scott County, Indiana, where the assault occurred.

Case Dates Back to 1996 Rape in Austin, Indiana

In 1996, a woman reported being sexually assaulted after leaving the former Austin Lounge in Austin, Indiana, with two men. The victim provided detectives with a name she believed belonged to her attacker, but DNA testing at the time failed to produce a match.

For decades, the case remained unsolved — until recent advances in genetic genealogy and DNA analysis reopened the investigation earlier this year.

DNA Technology Leads Investigators to Riley

According to ISP, a new forensic DNA match made in June 2025 connected the sample from the 1996 case to a close genetic relative of Riley. After identifying him as a suspect, detectives learned he had recently returned to Scott County for a family matter.

Police obtained an arrest warrant on Oct. 29 and located Riley two days later. He was booked into the Scott County Jail on Saturday, where he remains in custody.

“This arrest demonstrates how advancements in forensic science continue to bring justice to victims, no matter how much time has passed,” said a spokesperson for the Indiana State Police.

Justice After Nearly 30 Years

The arrest marks one of the oldest cases to be solved through genetic genealogy in southern Indiana. Authorities said the victim has been notified of the arrest and thanked investigators for never giving up on the case.

Riley faces one felony count of rape and will appear in court later this month. Officials say additional charges could follow as prosecutors review the case evidence.

For updates on this and other cold case investigations across Indiana and Kentucky, visit ChicagoMusicGuide.com.

The Society of Genealogists is offering an early-booking opportunity to secure 2025 prices on three standout 2026 courses — plus special bonuses for early registrants.

With nearly 12,000 event bookings this year, SoG continues to help family historians worldwide strengthen their research skills and connect with expert tutors.

Featured 2026 Courses:

• Advancing Your DNA Skills (5 Jan–25 Mar 2026): Deepen your DNA expertise with leading UK specialists including Mia Bennett, Debbie Kennett, and Michelle Leonard. Bonus: Gold Membership for the course duration.
  ➤More info
• Crime and Punishment for Family Historians (8 Jan–26 Mar 2026): Trace criminals, victims, and justice records across centuries with Angela Buckley, Nathan Dylan Goodwin, and others. Bonus: Three exclusive talks on detectives, forensic genealogy & sleuthing.
  ➤More info
• Family History Skills – Stage 1 (13 Jan–31 Mar 2026): A perfect starting point to research like a pro, guided by SoG’s expert tutors. Bonus: 20% discount on Stages 2 & 3.
  ➤More info

Book by 30 November 2025 to lock in current prices and enjoy these added rewards.