Welcome to the Good News Roundup for October 5, 2026
Social media influencer raises more than $260k for children with blood cancer
After a social media influencer jokingly started the ‘run from your problems’ run club, she decided to channel the support she received into positivity.
Suzanne White – also known as themomchats – has more than 1.1million followers on Instagram alone, and signed herself up to the Twin Cities marathon in Minnesota in a bid to raise money for Blood Cancer United’s Dare to Dream project.
Suzanne and her husband – known online as thedadchats – put the call out for donations, raising more than $263k, before Suzanne successfully completed the marathon this weekend.
Hear from Suzanne herself, here.
Single use plastics phased out in Angola
Angola has become the latest country to move away from single-use plastics, banning the production, import, sale and use of several items, including plastic bags.
The new rules – introduced last month – will also ban all single-use plastic from beaches, conservation areas, museums and sites listed as world cultural or natural heritage.
It follows similar moves from Guinea – also last month – and Ethiopia earlier this year.
Read more here.
Construction complete on Western Australia’s first children’s hospice
It’s the facility families hope they’ll never need, but construction has been completed on Western Australia’s first ever children’s hospice.
Named Sandcastles (Boodja Mia), the seven-bed facility provides medically supported respite, specialist care and end of life care for children with life-limiting conditions and their families, in an environment that feels more like home than a hospital.
The project was funded and constructed by the Perth Children’s Hospital Foundation, with the first families expected to be welcomed soon.
Read more about this project here.
US man celebrates 108th birthday
A US man is crediting his diet – which includes a daily choc-chip cookie and a cup of coffee – for his longevity, after recently marking his 108th birthday.
Beryl Dillman lives in an assisted living facility in Oregon, and is part of a research project documenting the oldest living people in the world.
The retired educator was born in 1918, with his family believing he’s one of the oldest people in the state.
Read more about Beryl’s celebrations here.
Image credit: themomchats & thedadchats: Instagram
