Laurel: To a natural treatment. College is stressful all the time, but heading into finals? That’s when things get really tense.

Mental health on university campuses has been a growing problem for years. The University of Pittsburgh and Penn State have worked to increase access to support for students at all campuses. The American Psychological Association says that almost a third of college counseling centers have a wait list for students with issues — mostly anxiety and depression.

But at Pitt-Greensburg, students got a little stress relief without psychiatrists or prescriptions when Youngwood Top Dog Services brought in puppies to the campus’s Fireside Lounge.

“A lot of students really miss their home pets, so this helps a lot,” said senior McKenzie Huntebrinker.

Mental health needs to be prioritized, and care needs to be provided. But we should never underestimate the value of taking time to just take a moment, take a breath and maybe scratch a furry friend behind the ears.

Lance: To a new kind of epidemic. Pennsylvania has managed to avoid other outbreaks of avian flu over the years by enacting biohazard control protocols at farms and zoos, but in 2022, luck has run out. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported six commercial flocks in the Lancaster area have been infected as of Wednesday, with 3.8 million birds affected.

This is a disease spread by wild birds and that is not just confined to the eastern side of the state. Wild waterfowl like ducks and geese spread it as they follow natural migration patterns and stop at water sources. Raptors like hawks and eagles that often feed in those areas pick it up. Scavenger birds like crows contract it from eating dead birds.

At least nine infected wild birds have been identified so far. While none is in Southwestern Pennsylvania, several were just to the north in Clarion, Crawford and Venango counties.

It is important for local farms and backyard flock owners to be vigilant but also for everyone to be on the lookout for sick or dead birds and report them to the Pennsylvania Game Commission at 610-926-3136 or pgc-wildlifehealth@pa.gov.

Laurel: To a too-short life. Chance William Kacin Halloran spent more time in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at UPMC Children’s Hospital than any of the other babies beside him.

Born in March 2021, his life wasn’t easy. Premature, he never knew what it was like to live outside of hospitals. His mother died in October. He was waiting for a liver transplant when he died on Saturday, the same day he was profiled in the Tribune-Review. His own liver just couldn’t hold out anymore.

But while Chance never had the chances he should have, his life and loss offers others the opportunity to realize the importance of organ donation at every age. There are about 1,900 children awaiting donations; 500 are between 1 and 5 years old, just like Chance.

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