>>There's an osprey chasing us, is this Walter?

>>No, no That's Mark.

>>I'm proud of this place, I'm proud of what we do here, I'm proud of what they've done for me and I plan to be here forever.

>>The most precious time is right now, it's about time that you live to your greatest potential.

>>You pregnant.

>>I'm due February 16.

>>Come here.

>>And it's a boy.

(upbeat music) >>Thank you for joining us.

As we celebrate 30 years of Virginia Currents, I'm Amy Lacey.

Over three decades we've had a chance to meet so many inspiring individuals and we wanna take a moment to revisit a few.

First, we zoom into wildlife photographer Lynda Richardson.

Over the past 30 years Lynda's employers have included the associated press Smithsonian magazine, state national and international wildlife magazines and the National Geographic Society.

In her globe trotting days across several continents she's been up close with lions, tigers and bears American presidents, international leaders, celebrities and those in the underground crime world.

We interviewed Lynda in 2000.

And then again for this 2016 segment along the James river when she changed her professional and her personal focus.

>>Let's go discover the James.

>>Every time you go out to shoot something it's an adventure.

Oh my goodness.

You Don't wanna give up until you get the picture.

Oh yes.

I'm just always looking for something I guess it's in my heart or my vision that I look for because I wanna portray something in a way that makes people love it, or want to learn more about it or keep it on the earth or think more about it when they see it.

>>Look at it it's so awesome when they look right at you you know their pupils go from like tiny and when they look right at you it's like the pupils.

>>I'm married to Mike Ostrander.

This is his livelihood.

Taking people out to sea Eagles to go fishing.

I mean, I can't think of a better partner who has the same loves that I do.

>>How could this ever get old?

>>I know, look at this.

I mean I'm thrilled seeing the eagle this close and we've seen this eagle close a lot.

I have finally gotten a job that I would say is the culmination of all my experiences in life which takes into account my hunting and fishing background.

My 30 plus years as a freelance photographer my interest in educating the public education.

And I'm the art director of Virginia Wildlife Magazine now.

And I'm astatic to have that position.

What a beautiful girl.

2010 I was diagnosed with breast cancer.

I had radiation for six and a half weeks every day except weekends six and a half weeks.

I kept thinking I've never seen pictures of this.

I'm going to take pictures of myself so I laid on the table and I had a little trigger and I've had checkups so they said, I'm fine, totally fine.

But you know what?

Even feeling like I'm totally fine you always have that teeny little sneaking thing underneath.

And you always are like wondering.

And the older you get too and your friends start dying or getting ill, it gets more and more real.

And you start realizing, oh my gosh there's an end here.

And I've got all this junk in my house.

What do I need this for now?

You know, it's definitely a call to arms.

(birds chirp) I love just sitting there watching their little movements.

The little things they do the things they observe.

Each animal has its own personality.

And based on its own experiences just like people, his personality, he's curious.

He's an opportunist, he's trusting.

>>Now in this next pole down here.

>>Oh, I see.

>>There's a great horned owl chick in the nest.

That's an osprey nest that they took before the osprey returned from migration this year.

I love the expressions on those baby puff balls.

>>Look at the deer up along the bank.

There's deer up on the bank.

>>I've called deer in by making the bleeding thorn sound because they go, hey there's a baby fly out there we should go check on it.

Screech owl, a barred out a zebra.

You can make a lion roar by pretending you're another lion at a distance.

You can turn your head and.

I can't tell you how many times I have a lion go what was that?

I did the wildlife pet trade in Nicaragua.

And I took an assistant who could speak Spanish.

And he was this big burly guy.

And I also had the writer.

We went into this really dangerous black market on wildlife pet trade things.

And what happens is in the market if they wanna steal things from you one person will walk by you and they'll either have a knife or a screwdriver and they jam it under your rib cage so that when you go like this whichever side they pull your stuff off of on the other side and run with it.

So that's why I would have 'em on either side of me.

And then they said they saw the guys coming working their way through the market to get to us.

So they were like pulling me and I'm like, wait I'm not finished shooting yet so.

So that's why I always say the animals I know 'em well enough to know what they're gonna do but the people you don't.

A lot of people would say things like you're so brave to do that.

And I'm like, no, I don't think of it as brave I think of it as interested in life and interested in the things around me and trying to bring those things back to other people who can't go and experience those things.

I look back on my life and all the things that I've done I wouldn't trade it for anything.

And I've met everyone from mercenaries in the Kalahari desert.

I met one of (indistinct) means assassins.

I've met presidents of the United States and various sundry celebrities in my path.

And I wouldn't trade it for the world it's such a life full of richness.

One day, I swear I'm gonna write a book one day I'm gonna write a book.

>>As of this 2020 recording Lynda is still the art director for Virginia Wildlife Magazine.

For more information on the magazine and Mike's eco boat tours on the James river, check out the websites listed on your screen.

In Harrisonburg, Paula Youngblood is an instructor at Brian Mayes Karate and for 16 years trained under the direction of master Brian Mayes, her life made a drastic change after a devastating car accident that forced her to make a choice, give up or press on.

The outpouring of love and support from her friends and her karate family made her decision easy to make.

In 2018 she showed us how she continues to teach and mentor while demonstrating what it means to be Youngblood Strong.

(shouting) >>On your mark, get set go!

(indistinct chatter) I guess you would call me overcomer.

Youngblood Strong is kinda the term that people have come up with 'cause Youngblood is my last name and I've certainly had to reach for a strength that I didn't know I possessed.

I was in a car crash and my hand was amputated.

Needless to say, being a martial arts instructor and having two hands is pretty important.

I don't even call this a job.

I am so blessed to get up and come here and someone actually pays me to do that.

So prior to the crash I thought I am just, you know, I'm 56 years old.

I'm just gonna sit back and cruise.

I didn't really think I had any life lessons or any big things that I still had to do.

>>It would be so easy for her to just kinda give up but that's not her mentality by any means.

I'm just constantly pushing through and going to the next level.

>>It's so much healthier for me to focus on the things that I can do than the things that I can't 'cause otherwise I would be very bitter and everything that I've ever told any student would be lie.

>>Paula has definitely inspired myself quite a bit just through the struggles that she goes through.

One thing she keeps a constant focus on the positive towards everything that she's doing right now.

So as she's doing that it's really getting everyone around her.

It brings just a positive energy and excitement when she comes in the building.

>>(indistinct) just a great person 'cause no matter what's happened to her she's pretty much always here every day doing what she wants to do and helping out everybody.

>>I think the karate family was really critical not only in my survival, because immediately when I was in the crash and I was waiting for them it took 45 minutes to get me out.

I had a lot of time to think.

And my first thought was how am I gonna be a one-armed karate instructor?

And right away, my entire team was at the hospital by my side, saying, we don't care if you have one hand gone, no hand, whatever we want you.

So people really put their actions.

You know, people say they'll be there for you but you don't never know till, but they really did.

As they say in the church, they showed up and showed out.

>>I would do it for her no matter what.

So I don't think about what I get in return or how it makes me feel via any means I just really look at it and say it's Paula, we gotta be there for her, (indistinct chatter) >>This crash and the loss of my hand as tragic as it is really just gives me another opportunity to teach on a level that I was never able to before.

Before the crash I was just a granny and a worker or a coworker or a friend a martial arts instructor.

I have one kid who's decided that he wants to make prosthetics.

If this hadn't happened to me, he may never have thought of that.

You know?

So out of tragedy has come good things.

If someone's trying to attack me, do I wanna spin?

No, I don't ever wanna turn my back on them.

>>Miss Youngblood, makes this room and makes this place very caring, loving and a very safe place for many people.

She's helped me overcome a lot of things a lot of big things in my life that has happened.

>>There's not a day that goes by that these kids don't give me something back.

That's why I keep showing up.

I would do this for free, I honestly would.

That's how much I love it.

When they come I always like to be in the doorway.

I feel like I'm standing in the gap for their parents who can't be here when they get out of school and they'll come in and they'll have snack and then we'll have our afterschool class in here and then it's homework time.

So I'll go through their books and see what they need to do for class today.

Do you need help to study for the test?

The moral of this story is no matter what you step in keep walking along and singing your song.

>>She's always been there for me and even through tough times for me, she's always been by my side.

She's helped me through like concussion last year.

She's a really good teammate and a very good instructor and I'm thankful she's my instructor.

>>I think miss Youngblood is one of the strongest people I know.

She's also really helped me with life skills and karate moves and martial arts.

>>I live for karate.

I live for these kids and I didn't wanna let this injury separate me from that.

Student creed.

(indistinct chatter) Thank you class.

>>Not long after our interview Paula proudly received her third degree black belt as an amputee.

None of us can allow ourselves to be paralyzed by hate in the world.

That's a quote from Brandon Farbstein 2015 TEDx Talk in Richmond.

It was the first time the team shared a story about being cyber bullied.

And has called for people to use technology for good instead of pain.

Fast forward a few years and Brandon has now taken his platform across the globe.

He showed us how in 2018.

(soft music) >>What's up guys.

Hope you're having an awesome Wednesday.

Thank you so much for hopping in.

What is your job?

I am a motivational speaker so.

I was diagnosed with a rare form of dwarfism when I was two.

I'm a three foot nine, 19 year old obviously not the average person.

And I want to use what I've been given to help people feel 10 feet tall to be able to use the things in their life no matter how much of adversity they had to overcome or what their struggles are, we all have one.

Whether you choose to see that as physical, mental, emotional, whatever it's something.

And if that's been a roadblock in your life it's time to take a step back, realize, you know what?

It's okay to not be okay, whatever that looks like there really is nothing that makes you wrong or not fit in.

It's something that can be a catalyst like it has for me to propel you forward.

The very first week of freshman year in high school, the cyber bullying started.

It went from calling me out saying how disformed I look because of my size.

I used a mobility device that's a very cool, bright yellow segway.

And that drew a lot of attention.

And it got so severe that I started getting a new death threat every week.

It was something that was absolutely toxic for every aspect of my life and midway through junior year I said, I can't do this anymore.

The cloud that it's causing me to have 24/7 it's just too much.

And I got myself out, started online high school and it ended up being one of the greatest things that's ever happened to me because it was then that I was able to use my story to get now to anti-bullying laws passed in Virginia.

I became a professional speaker at the age of 17 and I was able to learn that I don't have to be the victim I could be the victor.

>>You've received so many accolades.

Now, what are some of these awards and recognition that you've received across the globe?

>>I was 16 when I got named Style Weekly's 40 Under 40 I thought that was the coolest thing.

And then year later I got named to an international 30 under 30 list.

And now at the age of 19, I'm in a 19 under 19 list.

And I'm so honored to be on that list for my activism work and what I'm doing in the speaking world especially with youth and trying to empower as many people as I can with my story.

What I realized after I got through the severe cyber bullying in high school was that it was a direct reflection of how those people were feeling whether it was because they've been bullied or they don't have a great family life, or they're insecure whatever the many things could be.

If you can say, you know what?

I see that you're hurting, what can I do to help you?

That's what I've done.

And I come out on top and if we're not telling kids that it's not okay to be this person that stops everything for somebody else by bullying or sending them horrible messages it's gonna continue for the rest of their lives.

Empathy is what we need to be teaching.

>>And what is next for Brandon Farbstein.

>>I want to be the person that I needed when I was at my darkest place.

And to be that person to be that light at the end of the tunnel means absolutely everything to me.

I've had so many opportunities to speak all around the country at universities and conferences and companies, but there's no guarantee that I'll have what I have right now in the future.

So this is what I'm gonna be taking advantage of.

I'm so excited to be doing this as much as I can at the rate that I'm going, trying to change the world every single day.

That's up to us to define the life and live our greatest self.

(upbeat music) >>Brandon's first book "10 Feet Tall" is available to buy online.

You can also follow his journey to inspire on his website brandonfarbstein.com and on Instagram and Twitter just search for @farbstein.

Dana and Arkell graves from Dinwiddie have been married for over 20 years.

Throughout their marriage they've experienced immense pain because of infertility and infant loss.

But in 2015, Dana unexpectedly became pregnant and decided to surprise her husband by putting buns in the oven.

Arkell's reaction was recorded placed on YouTube by a family member and that video immediately went viral.

Good morning America, the Rachel Ray show and People Magazine featured them.

We met little Caleb known as Baby Buns in 2017.

♪ He has done great things ♪ >>We were trying to think of a creative way to tell Arkell about the pregnancy.

They said, well, how about you do buns in the oven?

I had his dinner sitting on the stove and he came in and you know that's when the video began.

>>You're pregnant.

>>I had no idea he was going to react the way he did.

And when I saw it, I mean, when I'm looking at him and he's crying, I'm like, oh, he's gonna kill me.

That's all I'm thinking in my head.

>>Come here.

>>When he kept saying, come here, come here.

I turned the camera off and we stood in the kitchen what seemed like hours and hugged and kissed.

>>This was just a complete overwhelm, overjoyed shocker.

And when I look back at the video of myself, I'd be like, wow, I act like that you know what I'm saying?

>>Once it was on YouTube, you know the first day it was about 1500 views and we saw it on Facebook and people viewed it about 2 or 3000 times and the next day it went to 10,000.

Then the next day was like 100,000 and after that it was history.

I was like I cannot believe how many people are looking at this.

We found out it was just so many people that could relate to our story úthat's gone through infertility that's gone through, you know losses.

And they wanted to be able to share this to show that there is hope even after 17 years there's hope.

It's always a woman's dream or I would say it was my dream to have a little girl that looked like me and to have a little boy named after Arkell.

The first time we were right on plan we got pregnant almost two years in 2000.

The pregnancy was going well and all of a sudden at 22 weeks unfortunately I ended up losing the baby.

We ended up getting pregnant again about six months later.

And that one was probably about two months.

I ended up losing my second.

>>I really got tired of seeing my wife physically and mentally, you know, emotionally go through this stress.

But I was content, especially when God gave us Keelyn.

>>I had a friend that called me and she said, Dana I don't wanna get in your business she said, but I know you've had several miscarriages and are you interested in adopting a child?

Well, we had not talked about this to anyone but I had actually reached out to several adoption agencies.

To me it was divine intervention.

This child was meant to be mine.

You know, someone else brought them into the world for me, but this was our son.

>>I really think like people say all the time is when you're not planning everyone is relaxed.

Everything is going well, it happens.

>>I felt this was the pregnancy.

This was the one that was going to give us our complete circle, another son.

But at the same time, while we're going through all of this and so many people are excited for us I'm sick.

I had to get an ultrasound and the doctor came in and she told me, she said you don't have a viable pregnancy right now.

If you don't terminate your pregnancy, you're going to die.

You know my sister started the Facebook page a little before then.

And so many people sent encouraging messages and all night long, I just sat there and I read the messages and prayers that were there to encourage us.

It gave us strength.

It let me know okay regardless of what happens is going to be okay.

They told us that Kaleb's chances of survival was less than 3%.

That meant that he had a 97% chance of dying.

>>The first time we was able to hold him was when they came and got us in the middle of the night.

And they told us that hey, he might not make it.

>>They told us at first that we couldn't touch him because he didn't have skin on him.

He was so small his skin had not yet developed.

>>You can see his organs they had a whole team to get him out.

>>It took 13 people to get this 13 ounce baby out of the incubators.

They're saying, we just want you to hold your baby.

We want you to have an opportunity to hold him because he's probably not gonna make it through the night and I say that can't be, I said we fought so hard to get him here.

I remember holding him.

And I was so scared of him because he was so tired.

I was so scared I said, how am I gonna hold this baby can fit in the palm of my hand.

I was like, how am I gonna hold him?

I said, what do I say to him?

And I didn't know what to say.

And I remember just singing to him.

♪ Sing hallelujah ♪ >>It's really a blessing because you know babies that was up there during his time.

They either had to come back to the hospital for a day or two or be admitted.

He never had to be admitted.

You know we just give that all to God because it's been some nights up in here where his respiratory, it wasn't that great.

And those nights was very scary but we have really mastered this with him doing so well.

>>I'm thankful for the opportunity to have Kaleb but I'm more thankful for the people that were blessed by his story.

It wasn't just about us.

It was truly about being able to give God the glory and being able to help someone else get through their journeys, to encourage others.

>>Like his parents Kaleb is a fighter.

You can follow a story on Facebook, just look up Arkell and Dana's Baby Bun.

Thanks for joining us for this look back at just a few of the highlights from 30 years of Virginia Currents.

I'm Amy Lacey.

(soft music)