Thursday, May 23 2013 7:14 AM EDT2013-05-23 11:14:37 GMT
(WMC-TV) - There is a major slowdown in Memphis this Thursday morning, where a tractor trailer has flipped on Interstate 240 Westbound at the Walnut Grove exit. All lanes of Westbound I-240 have beenMore >>
There is a major slowdown in Memphis this Thursday morning, where a tractor trailer has flipped on Interstate 240 Westbound at the Walnut Grove exit.More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 11:40 PM EDT2013-05-23 03:40:29 GMT
(WMC-TV) - The Memphis Police Department issued a city watch for a 12-year-old boy Wednesday night. Robert McBride II was last seen leaving his residence on foot on Jamaica Avenue. He has a mohawk, andMore >>
The Memphis Police Department canceled a city watch for a 12-year-old boy Wednesday night.More >>
The company's left a 15-state trail of phony book and magazine sales. Andy Wise followed its trail to a $1/2 million house in a gated community off Holmes Rd.More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 11:24 PM EDT2013-05-23 03:24:43 GMT
(WMC-TV) - A Memphis skateboard shop was going under until the Grizzlies' big wins, that is when owner Hunter Demster started selling T-shirts. The "Grind City" shirts saved his Midtown business whichMore >>
A Memphis skateboard shop was going under until the Grizzlies' big wins, that is when owner Hunter Demster started selling T-shirts.More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 11:11 PM EDT2013-05-23 03:11:49 GMT
(WMC-TV) - Cleanup has begun amid the rubble Oklahoma City Wednesday where an EF-5 tornado devastated the Moore community. More than 13,000 homes were damaged or destroyed, causing possibly $2 billionMore >>
Cleanup has begun amid the rubble Oklahoma City Wednesday where an EF-5 tornado devastated the Moore community.More >>
MEMPHIS, TN (WMC-TV) - A Mid-South organization is putting shelter over sexuality for local teens kicked out of their homes after revealing they are gay.
For the past year, Word has been opening her doors to young people who are struggling because of their sexuality.
"I have two sons in their 30's and the oldest is gay, so its an issue close to my heart," she said.
The issue is young men and women who wind up homeless while their parents come to terms with the fact they're gay.
"Sometimes we deal with children who can't go home," she said.
Word is a foster mother for the Memphis Gay and Lesbian Community Center's Y.E.S. Program, which stands for Youth Empowerment Services.
"Some of the kids that we work with have been kicked out because their parents cannot deal with the fact that they're gay or lesbian or transgender," said MGLCC's Executive Director, Will Batts. "It's just how it is and they end up on the streets"
The goal is to help displaced gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth find stability and independence.
"The kids we're dealing with are coming out at 14, 15, 16...they have no safety net," Word said.
The safety net of the YES program could save lives. A 2009 study shows gay adolescents rejected by their families were 8.4 times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers.
"I had, at one point, five kids in the house who all were suicide survivors," Word said.
While providing shelter, Word helps rejected youth repair those family relationships. While she knows she can't replace the bond between a parent and a child, she can offer temporary shelter and love to a young person when he or she needs it the most.
"These are God's children," she said. "This is how God made them, not to be discarded, but to be loved and supported and helped through difficult times."
The MGLCC is in search of more mothers like Deb Word - foster families willing to open their homes and their hearts for three to six months.
"All we ask of them is to provide shelter and food," Batts said. "That's really all we ask."
The MGLCC. conducts thorough background checks of their youth in need, as well as families who are interested in providing temporary foster care.
MGLCC Website: www.mglcc.org
ARTICLE ON SUICIDE STATISTICS: "Family Rejection as a Predictor of Negative Health Outcomes" Caitlin Ryan PhD, study published in the Journal of American Academy of Pediatrics Vol. 123 No. 1 January 2009 http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/123/1/346
The company's left a 15-state trail of phony book and magazine sales. Andy Wise followed its trail to a $1/2 million house in a gated community off Holmes Rd.More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 11:00 PM EDT2013-05-23 03:00:22 GMT
(WMC-TV) - A Memphis mother defends her teenage son who is charged with murdering someone at a graduation party. Rebecca Miller and her son are anything but strangers to Action News 5. Our station helpedMore >>
A Memphis mother defends her teenage son who is charged with murdering someone at a graduation party.More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 11:24 PM EDT2013-05-23 03:24:43 GMT
(WMC-TV) - A Memphis skateboard shop was going under until the Grizzlies' big wins, that is when owner Hunter Demster started selling T-shirts. The "Grind City" shirts saved his Midtown business whichMore >>
A Memphis skateboard shop was going under until the Grizzlies' big wins, that is when owner Hunter Demster started selling T-shirts.More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 11:40 PM EDT2013-05-23 03:40:29 GMT
(WMC-TV) - The Memphis Police Department issued a city watch for a 12-year-old boy Wednesday night. Robert McBride II was last seen leaving his residence on foot on Jamaica Avenue. He has a mohawk, andMore >>
The Memphis Police Department canceled a city watch for a 12-year-old boy Wednesday night.More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 11:00 PM EDT2013-05-23 03:00:20 GMT
(WMC-TV) - A Mid-South mother of four is convinced that one of her sons was murdered. And after spending the past four years trying to prove it, she is turning to the Action News 5 Investigators. FrancesMore >>
A Mid-South mother of four is convinced that one of her sons was murdered. And after spending the past four years trying to prove it, she is turning to the Action News 5 Investigators.More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 10:32 AM EDT2013-05-22 14:32:03 GMT
(WMC-TV) - It is a tiny pest with a big bite that can do major damage. One Germantown family said it only took one infected tick to change their entire lifestyle – something they have been dealing withMore >>
It is a tiny pest with a big bite that can do major damage.More >>
Friday, February 22 2013 7:21 PM EST2013-02-23 00:21:03 GMT
(WMC-TV) - Sold out! That is the word on tickets to hear one of the stars of Duck Dynasty speak in Memphis this spring. The bearded brotherhood is the most popular family in reality TV right now but oneMore >>
Who could have predicted that excess facial hair would become a phenomenon drawing nearly 4 million TV viewers?
That is the reality for Duck Dynasty. But believe it or not, one family member is missing from the series... until now. More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 11:11 PM EDT2013-05-23 03:11:49 GMT
(WMC-TV) - Cleanup has begun amid the rubble Oklahoma City Wednesday where an EF-5 tornado devastated the Moore community. More than 13,000 homes were damaged or destroyed, causing possibly $2 billionMore >>
Cleanup has begun amid the rubble Oklahoma City Wednesday where an EF-5 tornado devastated the Moore community.More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 9:38 PM EDT2013-05-23 01:38:14 GMT
MOORE, OK - The trembling, mud-spattered dog whose photo went viral on Tuesday was not actually standing watch over her owner's body - her name is Susie, her owner is named Curtis Collins, and he's alive.ThanksMore >>
There's a happy ending to the story of the little dog who was found standing guard over a body after the EF-5 tornado that decimated her neighborhood in Moore, OK. Her owner is alive, and they have been reunited thanks to the viral photo. More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 6:22 PM EDT2013-05-22 22:22:48 GMT
(WMC-TV) - The Memphis Police Department fired two of its officers Wednesday. Marc Henderson, 32, and Parker Culver, 29, were terminated for personal conduct and violate regulation. In February, thereMore >>
Marc Henderson, 32, and Parker Culver, 29, were terminated for personal conduct and aid to violate regulation.More >>
