If there’s anything we love more than good news, it’s honest to goodness heroes. Dragging a fellow officer to safety in the middle of a gunfight . . . does that classify as a hero?  Yeah, we thought so too.

You may or may not have heard about Matthew Hastings.  The Vancouver man barricaded himself inside a Clark County home in 2007, shot a cop and held the rest at bay for nearly a full day.

Now, almost two full years later, the team who dragged the shot officer to safety are receiving the Washington State Medal of Honor.  Cpl. Chris LeBlanc (the one who got hurt), Ofc. John Key, Dep. Scott Holmes and Sgt. Scott Schanaker (all of various law enforcement agencies in Clark County) will receive the medals in May on the steps of the state capitol.

Kudos to this amazing quartet!

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Jonathan House - The Beaverton Valley Times

If you find yourself stuck in traffic a lot on Highway 217  (and what westsider doesn’t?) you’ll be glad to know that ODOT is doing a bit of a remodel.  By 2011, the northbound stretch from TV Highway to the Sunset will add a lane which should ease things up a bit.  A new lane is also going in southbound from Wilshire to Walker Road.

Better yet, the two and a half year project will require just shy of 500 new jobs.  

Of course this could mean some traffic issues during the construction.  Make sure you tune in to NewsRadio 750 KXL for the latest on delays.

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16' Cataraft

We don’t know why it flipped, but a 14′ kayak tipped itself over, dumping its middle-aged passenger into the frigid Clackamas River on Saturday.  While rescue teams scrambled to scoop him out of the water, the skipper clung to a rock.  Water rescue teams used a special 16 foot boat (a model is pictured left)  to get across the choppy waves and drag the man to the nearby shore.  He had to get checked by a doctor but the good news is he is in one piece and doing just fine.

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GreenPosting

It’s almost the norm these days to see a business that claims to be “Earth Friendly” or “Going Green” or “Practicing Sustainability.”  But how, the heck, are you supposed to know who is REALLY doing their part and who isn’t?

Thanks to Jonathan Davis, it’s a bit easier.

Davis created a website called Green Posting that lists local businesses (yep, it’s a Portland product) that are Earth conscious.  But, participants are not taken at their word.

First, a business has to send in an easy-to-read statement of what EXACTLY they do that is so green.  Anything from using recycled paper to encouraging employees to use mass transit.  Then, users of the site get to check in and write reviews on the companies.  If a business is caught not living up to their standard, they get booted.

Since its launch last year, the free service is growing rapidly.  You can scope things out here.

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Courtesy TH!NK

Nothing’s official yet, but there’s a press conference scheduled for Tuesday in Downtown PDX including Governor Kulongoski, Senator Wyden and Richard Canny.  Canny is the North America CEO for TH!NK, an electric car manufacturer in Norway.  They’re looking to expand production into the US and have eight spots on their short list.

Oregon is one of them.

Anyone else think it would be a bit odd to have a press conference if it weren’t good news?

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Pat Sullivan - The AP

On Monday, the entire GNPDX staff will be chaning their Facebook status to “NAME LOVES the Dallas Mavericks.”

The Mavs’ 140-116 shoot out – blow out of the Suns Sunday bumped the Blazers into the Playoffs for sure, marking the first time since 2003 that the squad will play after the regular season.

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Courtesy The Oregonian

The Rose City has sunk to a new low.  In 2008, fewer people then ever (well, since they started tracking this kind of thing in 1925) were killed on Portland roads.  Even cooler, since the mid-80’s we’ve been on a slow decline.

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“Mom, dad. Tell us how you two met again!”

OregonRedCross.ORG

“Well, Janey, your mother and I were practicing mouth-to-mouth when . . . “

A local couple may use that EXACT story fifteen years down the road while sitting around the table with their kids.  It turns out, the Valentines Day “Singles CPR Night” at the Red Cross successfully made a match.  While the blood donation hub won’t give specifics about the couple, we do know the happy duo have been together since meeting, six weeks ago, to learn life saving techniques.

Thanks in part to the stellar matchmaking, the Red Cross is offering another singles’ night in a couple weeks.  April 22^nd at the Ace Hotel.  Participants get free snacks and drinks, plus you’ll know that everyone in the room is available.

For more info check out the Red Cross.  

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How many people does it take to dig a really big hole and fill it with water?  1,500.

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After a brief delay, we are back up and running.

Don’t forget to tune in Monday morning at 6:50 AM on News Radio 750 KXL AM for this week’s Good News update.

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