🗞️ Germany's World Cup team left behind a $10 million boost for Winston-Salem

🗞️ Give blood at Parks Chevrolet on Wednesday, August 6

🗞️ School is almost here: three things that help kids with the change

🗞️ Five challenges our kids face that we never did in the '80s

⛈️ Hot, humid, scattered storms | High: 88°F | Low: 70°F

Summer humidity is back in full force, so it feels closer to the low 90s. Look for a muggy day with scattered afternoon and evening thunderstorms, a few possibly heavy. Nothing all-day, but keep an eye on the radar if you have outdoor plans and have a way to get alerts.

Turns out hosting a world-famous soccer team is good for business.

Germany's Men's National Team used Wake Forest University and the Graylyn Estate as its World Cup base camp this summer, and a new preliminary report from the university and Visit Winston-Salem says the 23-day stay pumped at least $10 million into the local economy. Most of that came from the team itself, plus the nearly 150 media members who traveled with them and fans snapping up jerseys and souvenirs around the open practice. One merchandise seller near Spry Stadium said he did more than $20,000 in sales in about five hours and ran out of shirts. For perspective, that $10 million is in the same ballpark as what the Black Theatre Festival brings in.

The report also pegs the publicity value at around $120 million, with more than 2,300 news articles worldwide putting an international spotlight on the area. "The prestigious honor pumped $10 million into local businesses and generated publicity that will have long lasting value," said Stephanie Pace Brown, head of Visit Winston-Salem. Germany bowed out in the Round of 32 to Paraguay, so the spending stopped sooner than the city hoped, but the exposure lingers.

Why it matters close to home: leaders say the attention could pay off for years in business recruiting. North Carolina already hosts more than 200 German companies, including Siemens Energy's plant in nearby Rural Hall, and local officials squired German business delegations around town during the team's stay. There is even talk the Triad could land World Cup teams again for the 2031 tournament. Not bad for a few weeks of hosting.

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Here is an easy way to do a lot of good in about an hour.

The Blood Connection is bringing its big red bus to the Parks Chevrolet parking lot at 615 N.C. 66 on Wednesday, August 6. Parks and The Blood Connection have teamed up on drives here for more than six years, and the need is constant: someone in the U.S. needs blood every couple of seconds, and a single donation can help save up to three adults, or as many as seven babies or children. As a thank-you, donors on August 6 get a $70 gift card on top of the usual snacks.

Most healthy folks can give. You need to be at least 18, or 16 with a parent's okay, and weigh at least 110 pounds. A quick questionnaire and mini-physical before you donate will sort out any other questions. Appointments are preferred but walk-ins are welcome. To grab a slot, call Beth James at Parks at (336) 992-2000 or book online. It is a small amount of your Wednesday for something a local family will never forget.

Sign up to donate

The new school year is right around the corner, and whether your kid is thrilled or dreading it, a little prep now makes the first week a lot smoother. Here are three things that really help.

First, start easing back into the routine before day one. If bedtimes and wake-ups have drifted all summer, shift them earlier by 15 or 20 minutes every few days so the first Monday is not a shock. Practice the morning flow a couple of times, breakfast, getting dressed, out the door, so it feels familiar instead of frantic.

Second, take the mystery out of the logistics. Kids worry most about the unknowns: which bus, which door, where the cafeteria is, who they will sit with. If you can, walk the route or visit the school, look at the schedule together, and lay out supplies and a first-day outfit the night before. Knowing what to expect turns nerves into confidence.

Third, make room to talk about the feelings. It is normal for kids to feel excited and anxious at the same time, so let them know that mix is okay. Ask open questions instead of "are you nervous," keep the first week's afternoons calm and unscheduled, and watch for the kid who goes quiet. A few minutes of unhurried listening can be the most important supply on the list.

Parenting has always been hard, but some of what our kids navigate today simply did not exist when we were their age. Naming these can help us meet them with more patience.

First, the world never turns off. A phone in every pocket means there is no true downtime, and the boredom that used to spark backyard games and made-up adventures is a lot harder to come by. Second, comparison is constant. Instead of measuring themselves against a few classmates, kids scroll past an endless highlight reel of everyone's best moments, which can quietly chip away at how they feel about their own ordinary day.

Third, conflict follows them home. Bullying used to end at the last bell; now a hard day at school can keep buzzing on a screen all night. Fourth, their attention is under siege. Apps are engineered to keep them scrolling, and a firehose of content makes it tough to sit with one thing, or with quiet. Fifth, there is more pressure and less free play. Between packed schedules, higher academic stakes and fewer unsupervised hours, a lot of kids get less of the plain, unstructured time that childhood used to be built on.

Here is the encouraging part: the antidotes have not changed. Real conversation, sensible limits on screens, protected time to be bored and creative, and the steady sense that they are loved no matter what. We may not have grown up with these exact challenges, but we are more than equipped to help our kids through them.