(bright music) - [Announcer] This is a production of PBS Charlotte.

- Just ahead on "Carolina IMPACT," how two brothers adopted by different families, use their discovery to help others.

Plus, the new Women's Soccer League in Charlotte elevates female athletes, and how a local business uses an uncommon tool to train folks in the medical field.

"Carolina IMPACT" starts right now.

(bright music) Good evening.

Thanks so much for joining us.

I'm Amy Burkett.

Tonight, we begin with a story of the power of forgiveness and family.

We'll meet two strangers, who in their forties, found out they were actually brothers.

"Carolina IMPACT's" Dara Khaalid and videographer, Marcellus Jones, show us how this unexpected discovery has touched more than just their lives.

(gentle music) - [Dara] It feels so natural to them.

Throwing a football around, cracking jokes, you know, the typical things brothers do.

And when you hang around them, you'll see just how close they are, even finishing each other's sentences.

- [Kevin] He is me and I'm him, from the eyebrows on down to the way that we talk.

- [Dara] You would think they've spent every day of their lives together.

But 43-year-old Kevin McDonald and his 42-year-old brother, Franklin Terry, have only known each other for a few months.

- It feels awesome now.

It kind of feels surreal.

- It means a lot to just get to catch up on lost time.

- [Dara] And when he says lost times, he means over four decades of it.

The biological brothers were both born in North Carolina, Kevin in July of 1981, Franklin in July of 1982, and they were both given up for adoption shortly after.

- It's like I was chosen.

For me to get adopted at that young age and to be bought into a sweet family, like I was truly blessed.

They say they're blessed for getting me, but I was truly blessed.

- [Dara] Kevin grew up as an only child in Charlotte and loved playing sports like basketball.

It touches his heart when he thinks about his adoptive mother, Sabrina Haver Bronson, and her late husband.

- People that aren't adopted, they say adoptive mother, but that's my mother.

You understand what I'm saying?

You don't have to be blood to be family.

It's really unconditional love.

- [Dara] Oh, and you can feel that unconditional love when you ask Sabrina about raising Kevin, the child she dreamed of after suffering years with infertility.

- Oh, you're gonna make me cry.

I can't love him anymore than I do right now.

I can't, I don't think my heart could take it.

He has been such a wonderful presence in my life.

- [Dara] Franklin's adoptive parents, Fred and Evelyn Terry, share the same sentiments for him.

- Franklin is just the love of our lives.

That's the best way I can put it.

He was an adorable baby.

He's been a wonderful child.

- He may think that I'm his mentor, but he has become my mentor, because he has done some things that I don't have the discipline to do that he does.

- [Dara] Franklin grew up in Winston-Salem, played football and was an only child, just like Kevin.

- I couldn't have grown up better, you know what I mean?

I had such a supportive family structure.

I had standup parents.

I had parents that would break their neck with me, still today they would.

- Even with both men being raised in loving households, something inside of them always wanted to bridge who they are with their biological family.

- I was working in my office, and I was just on YouTube, and the Ancestry ad stuck on the Roku, and I could not cut it off, I couldn't change it, and I just said, "If this is a sign, I'm listening."

And I ordered the Ancestry kit right then and there, and I did it.

- [Dara] Little did he know, Sabrina gifted Kevin with an ancestry.com kit with the hope that he'd find some relatives.

And on July 9th, in the middle of Kevin helping his daughter Kamren at home... - A ding came through the phone, a text, and it was Ancestry and they said, "Hey, your results are in."

The moment we came downstairs, dropped the laptop on the table, I'm coming back up, I head here, all I hear is, "Oh my God, you got a brother?"

I'm like, "No."

I turn around, I go, look, it's Franklin holding his shirt like this.

- We were not expecting to see that, so I'm pretty sure when I first saw it, I was like jumping for joy.

I was like, "There's no way!

There's no way!"

- [Dara] From there, Kamren and Sabrina put on their investigator hats and began searching for Franklin on social media.

- While I'm on Facebook, granddaughter is on Instagram.

Okay, she's writing and she's telling, "Hey, my name is so and so and my daddy is so and so.

"We're on Ancestry, and you're his brother."

- And I was just like, "What?"

I actually text back, "Ma'am, what?

Here's my number."

Right away, by the time I got in the car, he was calling.

- Hey, talk to me, man.

My name's Kevin, first of all, man.

(family speaking indistinctly) - [Dara] Then, less than a week later, a moment they never would've imagined.

- Hey, you look like me, bruh.

- [Dara] But they weren't the only ones lost for words.

- Once I shared that, that's just the video in front of the house, it just went crazy.

You know what I mean?

And the thing that I will say is that it made me realize that it's way bigger than me.

It's way bigger than us, because so many people contacted me about, "Hey, I was given up for adoption.

"I don't know my real dad.

"My brothers and sisters were taken."

- [Dara] Although it seems like this is a rare case, genealogy librarian, Danielle Pritchette, says it's becoming more common.

- People are more interested in genealogy, and one thing about that is the Ancestry DNA component.

And so, now that more people are testing, the DNA pool is getting wider, and so you might have some of those discoveries that you might not have known about.

- [Dara] While most people searching for biological family hope for a positive experience, that doesn't always happen.

- There's a lot of joys that come with reunification, but there also can be some loss, and it can trigger some things, and for them to hand walk through not only the information and the contacting of the people, but how are you doing emotionally with that, and let people hold your hand and help you through that process.

- [Dara] This is something Franklin and Kevin are doing for their biological mother, who they found on Ancestry just a few days after finding each other.

The brothers mentioned their mom told them this was a painful decision, and she's not ready yet to share her story.

- I understand why she did it, and I understand why she feels the way that she feels now sometimes.

Sometimes she may sit up late and cry a little bit, but it's 'cause of the gifts that she has, and she did miss out.

But like I tell her all the time, "You blessed us."

- [Dara] Sports taught them how to support their teammates when they were younger.

These days, their teammates are family, and that support looks a little different.

But Kevin and Franklin look forward to learning new life lessons together.

For "Carolina IMPACT," I'm Dara Khaalid, - An amazing story of connection.

Thank you Dara for sharing that.

The brothers aren't the only ones looking forward to spending more family time.

Kevin's daughter, Kamren, tells us she wants to host weekly gatherings, so that everyone, biological and adoptive, can grow closer.

Well, the popularity of women's professional soccer has reached a fever pitch since the women's national team won gold at the Paris Summer Olympics.

The newly launched USL Super League is part of an effort to grow the game in the US and create more opportunities for female athletes.

Charlotte is one of only eight cities in the inaugural season.

"Carolina IMPACT's" Rochelle Metzker and videographer, John Branscomb, give us an inside look at this new club.

(upbeat music) - [Rochelle] It's an exciting time for women's team sports in the US.

- A WNBA season that's been like no other.

- [Rochelle] With attendance and television viewership hitting record numbers.

- Women professional sports in general, it's just fun.

- [Rochelle] Thanks to the popularity of WNBA players, like Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese and USA women's soccer winning Olympic gold, interest in women's sports has never been higher.

- My husband and I love women's soccer.

- [Rochelle] When Carolina Ascent FC, Charlotte's first and only top-level, professional women's soccer club arrived in August, 2024, Laura Williams and her husband bought season tickets.

The first game set a single-game attendance record for professional women's soccer in the Carolinas with 10,553 fans in the stands.

- To be here to see young ladies play at this level and to have her and I to spend that quality time together.

- [Rochelle] Darrell Johnson brought daughter Aubrey to American Legion Memorial Stadium to cheer on number 37, Jaida McGrew.

He once coached the Charlotte native in track.

It's great to come and see someone that I know play here.

- [Rochelle] Nearly a third of the team has roots in the Carolinas.

It's equally special for local players, like Waxhaw native, Josie Studer.

- I'm so fortunate to be in this city.

I mean, it's an incredible place and just to be surrounded by friends and family who care about what I do and come out and support it.

It's like the most heartwarming feeling ever.

- [Rochelle] The Ascent is one of eight clubs in the newly launched Division 1 USL Super League, on par with the National Women's Soccer League, except there's no draft, no salary cap, and it runs on a fall to summer schedule.

The club went undefeated in its first 10 matches.

- To see their confidence grow as they see these young players out on the field and to see what reality is possible for them, it just makes my heart overflow.

- Mint Hill mom, Sarah Macey, says it's important for her daughters, Ella and Olivia, to see local athletes like Studer playing professionally in front of cheering fans.

(team supporter cheering indistinctly) - It's just like this overwhelming sense of pride and love and just gratitude that I can't even express.

- [Rochelle] The 23-year-old defender says a typical work week involves training, lifting, treatments, and team meetings with games on the weekends.

When she has time off, Studer likes to visit family and spend time with her animals.

- [Josie] We have like a little bit of a hobby farm that I love to go and hang out with the critters.

- [Rochelle] Studer earned all-conference USA honors at Louisiana Tech.

Now she's the rookie, thankful to have mentors like co-captain, Taylor Porter, to help her with the transition.

- It's means so much to me to actually be in their company and to see what that leadership looks like, to be able to learn and to take those things from them and implement them into who I am as a human being so that I'm better equipped for the roles that I may have in the future is huge.

- [Rochelle] 27-year-old Porter played for the NC State Wolf Pack.

She says returning to the Carolinas for the Ascent's historic inaugural season has been a special experience.

- It's just amazing.

I think it's been a long time coming.

There's so many male professional sports, and I just think we need a lot of little girls to come out and support women's soccer.

- [Rochelle] Porter says supporting women's soccer will also help tackle gender disparities in professional sports.

Historically, women's soccer has been criticized for not paying players a living wage, something Porter knows firsthand.

- And still to this day, I do Rover.

I walk dogs and dog sit, just because I did it then, and I've liked it, even though I can support myself more off of my salary now.

But there's plenty of people that even still, have a second job.

- [Rochelle] Maryanne Bruce is managing investor representative for Empower Her Fund LLC.

The locally-based women's ownership group owns 25% of The Ascent.

Her daughter, Vicki, plays for the team.

- As more and more fans start watching it on TV, as more and more fans attend the games, that will give these teams the opportunity to be financially sustainable long term, and that in turn, should help increase salaries for the female players.

- [Rochelle] According to Bruce, the players earn between $45 and $60,000, depending on experience and expected playing time.

They also get housing and healthcare.

Still, compare that to major league soccer.

The average male player earns close to $475,000.

Bruce says getting more women involved with ownership will help drive some needed change.

- Our goal for the Empower Her Fund is that we would like to attract additional female investors for the next round, because we would love to have majority ownership and not minority ownership.

- [Rochelle] Porter says, "Living your dream means making a lot of sacrifices."

- At the end of the day, it's like when you are in a stadium filled with thousands of people, and you get to play and do what you love, it does make it worth it.

- [Rochelle] Their sacrifices and their successes are paving the way for the next generation of young girls in cleats.

For "Carolina IMPACT," I'm Rochelle Metzker.

- Thanks so much, Rochelle.

The Super League already has plans to add eight more clubs next year.

USL teams play 28 games, 14 at home and 14 away, in a season spanning between August and June.

Well, everybody's body is unique, so when medical professionals need hands-on training, where can they go?

One Charlotte business offers a solution with donated human cadavers.

Producer, Russ Hunsinger, shows us how this saves lives and educates.

But first, be warned, this story shows graphic video.

(bright music) - [Jamie] Dignity and respect is the foundation.

- [Instructor] So now we can go ahead and lock in our correction.

- [Jamie] We think it's important for people to know what we do and to kind of pull back the curtains behind this type of education.

(drill whirring) It's not just doctors who need to know how their body works.

I think it's important for the average person to understand that too, to take care of themselves, to take care of their loved ones, to communicate with their doctors.

- Mostly what we do is function as a bioskills lab.

And so, as a bioskills lab, as the name implies, folks are learning life science skills.

And so, that means doctors getting additional education, either practicing a new surgical technique, maybe practicing how to install and remove new devices, technologies are increasing, and then you have to meet the education to those new technologies as they come out.

(gentle music) - When we think of what modern medicine is today, it does not happen without whole body donation.

We think of some of these high tech surgeries that are taking place, robotic surgeries, these unbelievable transplants that go on today.

- As donors come in whole, oftentimes we'll segment donors into parts to be used for different programs based on the the need and the timing of the death.

Once all programming is complete, those parts all return into our care, and the donor is kind of made back whole.

And so, the cremation process happens on the entire donor, which is then returned to the family.

We have a wide variety of people that we cater to from first responders, like EMTs and firefighters, all the way up through practicing clinicians and a lot of things in between, whether it's acupuncture, chiropractic, massage therapists, yoga instructors, we've had artists come in, medical illustrators.

- So you're looking at the esophagus, is that what we wanna look and see and do?

We're running a cadaver lab in our training room here at the headquarters for Cabarrus County EMS.

It allows us to bring in our employees and EMS students to come through here and practice some of the high risk, low frequency skills.

- The training is effective on the cadaver, 'cause we wanna make it as real as possible.

So having those and the different anatomies that they bring is very effective.

- [Jamie] Even something as simple as injection, they wanna make sure they're accurate and that it's done correctly.

Every single body is different, right?

And so the size, location, the approximation of these different structures, docs need to be exceptionally clear on.

- I can put a traction splint on a mannequin and see how the application works, but cadavers give us an opportunity to see internally.

- So the first step is to get another first responder on scene to apply manual traction.

When you get a broken femur, the muscle will actually pull the bones kinda in that position, and so when we apply the traction splint we can actually pull it back, and it brings the pain level down a lot for the patient.

So it's a great tool, and we were able to demonstrate that today and actually show the broken femur and how it actually pulls traction and separates that bone so that it does that for the patient.

When I came to the Cabarrus County EMS, they used what they call an air track here.

Never touched one before, and so the first time that I ever got to really use the air track and figure out the tricks of the trade was on a cadaver, and it made that extremely helpful.

- Take a surgeon for example, I want them to be able to practice that surgery many times before they do it on me.

(bright music) We think that the holistic experience is really important to know your donors and your donor families and gives you the opportunity to match them better with educators and researchers.

And so, it allows us to better match and see what the donor and the family's wishes are, understand what the educators or the learners experience needs to be and match those together.

- We return to the family, when everything is said and done, is cremated remains.

I deal with families to where the decision for whole body donation is a financial decision, 'cause we're able to, in an extent, offer a free cremation in that situation with whole body donation.

- It's an alternative to a traditional funeral that not a lot of people even know exists.

And so, we wanna educate people on the opportunity to donate whole body and how that impacts their community.

- We do go back through and summarize what programming the individual was part of.

That one donor can change the lives when we think over time of hundreds, if not thousands of people.

- Thanks so much, Russ.

Experience Anatomy hosts a number of opportunities for learning throughout the year.

Almost anyone can donate their body, but there are some limitations.

The group stresses that organ donation is a separate process from whole body donation and believes being an organ donor should always take priority.

Well, closing out tonight, the cost of just about everything has gone up in recent years, from food to electricity, housing, transportation, and medical care.

But the price of concert tickets has outpaced inflation by a wide margin.

In 2015, the average price of a show ticket was about $78.

In 2024, that price has ballooned to over $127.

So what's happened, "Carolina IMPACT's" Jason Terzis joins us with some answers.

- Well, a number of factors have played a part from sheer demand for the shows to the fact that no one really buys albums, tapes, or CDs anymore.

So, the main source of income for artists is no longer from sales but from touring.

And the fact that Live Nation and Ticketmaster have pretty much a monopoly over the artists, the venues, as well as the promotions, which allows them to set the prices, as well as to tack on as many fees as they'd like.

But what if you could still experience a live show, listen to skilled musicians, hear all the songs that you know, and do it at a much more affordable price?

That's where these guys come in.

("Hotel California" The Eagles) It's the music of a generation, artists that have stood the test of time.

- Motto one, have fun.

If it's not fun, I don't want to do it.

♪ He works at Mr. Cacciatore's ♪ ♪ Down on Sullivan Street ♪ - [Jason] The songs they play and bands they try to replicate are all very much familiar.

♪ Yeah, and he's tradin' in his Chevy ♪ ♪ For a Cadillac ac-ac-ac-ac-ac ♪ ♪ You oughta know by now ♪ But it's the people playing those songs that aren't as familiar.

- We're all super fans of the music.

You wouldn't be able to do this, and I don't think anyone could do this if you didn't like, if you didn't love the music.

- Myself and the bass player have been together for 30 years, since 1994.

- [Jason] Tracy Maples and Mike Santoro head up two of the area's most popular tribute bands, emulating two of the greatest musical acts of all time, Mike playing Billy Joel songs in The Stranger.

♪ I haven't showed you everything a man can do ♪ - I try to emulate how Billy is on the record, not live.

- [Jason] Tracy leading the way, an Eagles tribute band, On the Border.

♪ Well, I'm a-runnin' down the road tryna loosen my load ♪ ♪ Got a world of trouble on my mind ♪ - What bands have longevity?

How many hits do they have?

And the Eagles was a no brainer.

- [Jason] The guys, growing up as kids in the seventies, fell in love with music, thanks in large part to their sisters.

- My oldest sister, Donna, had a stack of vinyl, and when she wasn't home, I went and I was shuffling through them, and I saw Billy Joel.

- My sister had Boston "Foreplay/Long Time" album, Queen, the Kiss albums, so that's where it all started with me, Fleetwood Mac.

- [Jason] Just like Billy Joel, Mike is a Long Island native.

He was just 10 when Billy's Grammy, award-winning album of the year, "52nd Street," was released in 1978.

- That was the album that got me hooked.

♪ Now he gives them a stand-up routine in LA, ooh ♪ - [Jason] At his shows, like this one at the Swanee Theater in Kannapolis, Mike plays the piano just like Billy, except the piano he uses isn't really a piano, it's a keyboard built into a piano shell.

♪ You can speak your mind ♪ ♪ But not on my time ♪ - If we've played in front of 10,000 people, we've played in front of 10, but we seemed to not let the crowd size have any effect on us.

We're enjoying ourselves here, and then hopefully, it translates.

- [Jason] His backing band are all skilled musicians themselves from the drums, guitars, keyboards, and saxophone.

(saxophone solo) ♪ I'm moving out, whoa ♪ - Playing it in and out, day after day, week after week, year after year, it still hasn't gotten boring.

And it's not only just 'cause we're fans, but the people that we play to are equally invested in the show.

- [Jason] The Piano Man, himself, is aware of Mike and The Stranger Show, and he's given his stamp of approval.

- I quote him a lot.

He said, "Thank you for keeping my music alive."

Yeah, it was pretty cool.

(laughs) ♪ Someone's on the ground ♪ - [Jason] Prior to starting his Billy Joel tribute band, Mike was the drummer for Eagles tribute band, On the Border.

- I love Mike.

He's such a talented guy.

- [Jason] So he played with you guys for how long?

- He was with us for probably four years.

Too many conflicts of dates.

That's very popular, we're popular, and he just couldn't do better.

♪ But you can't hide your lying eyes ♪ ♪ And your smile... ♪ - [Jason] At the boatyard in Lake Norman, fans sing along word for word to every Eagle song on the set list.

♪ I thought by now you'd realize ♪ ♪ There ain't no way to hide your lying eyes ♪ - How many people love the Eagles?

It really goes through so many generations of people.

We have kids, we play in large shows, and we've seen children, I'm gonna say children, because they're 8, 9, 10-years-old, right at the front of the stage as excited as they can be, and singing all the words to the songs that I probably still can't remember.

(laughs) (upbeat electric guitar music) (crowd cheering) - [Jason] For these musicians, On the Border is a full-time job.

The band plays upwards of 120 shows a year around the nation - And we have a lot of people that actually get together and go on trips wherever we're playing.

And I don't know how they find out, but they find out the hotels we're staying in.

(laughs) And so it's a good time on the road.

We have a lot of really good fans that have become really good friends, and they've all met and made friends along the way, so it's like a big family, and we enjoy what we do.

♪ I heard about you and that man ♪ - [Jason] Tim Giovanniello sings most of the Don Henley parts with Tracy singing the Glenn Frey parts.

The one song Tracy looks forward to playing most at each show?

- I have always been partial to "One of These Nights."

♪ One of these nights ♪ ♪ One of these crazy old nights ♪ I remember as a kid hearing it on the AM radio, on the phonograph, and there's just something about that song that's nostalgic for me growing up.

♪ They said that Queens could stay ♪ ♪ They blew the Bronx away ♪ ♪ And sank Manhattan out at sea ♪ - [Jason] It's a job but not really a job.

These guys do it for the love of the music, playing in front of live audiences, and yeah, the money's not too bad either.

- I don't even consider it a job.

Sure, it makes money, but we just go have fun.

- The job is the traveling, when you're breaking down, setting up, soundcheck, hotel check in, check out, and when you're on the road, or if you're flying or whatever, that's the job.

♪ On a dark desert highway ♪ ♪ Cool wind in my hair ♪ - [Jason] But most of all, with each performance, the guys are touching audiences with a sense of nostalgia.

- It's amazing the music, how it affects people, even though it's not our music, how it affects people's lives.

Someone that's recovering from cancer or someone's husband passed away or when we play a song, and it brings back memories, and it's touching.

- I had to stop myself from singing along.

Those guys are so fun and extremely good.

- They're good.

I mean, just the voices and the musicianship.

I mean, they spent a lot of time really kind of honing their skills and getting to really mimic them well.

Well, if you would like to catch On the Border, they have a show scheduled at Amos' in Southend coming up in March.

The Eagles themselves are currently doing a residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas.

Mike's The Stranger Show doesn't have any local dates coming up, but check his website.

New shows are being added all the time.

Billy Joel is actually scheduled to play Bank of America stadium coming up next May.

Starting ticket prices for that, around $150, but those are for the way upper deck.

So you could see where, hey, you pay 20 bucks, and you could see a guy that plays pretty much everything and sounds like him, it's not a bad deal.

- Yeah, several years ago, when Billy Joel was at The Spectrum, I was two rows from the top and paid $150.

- Yeah, there you go.

That's the prices that keep going up.

- But we love the music.

Thanks so much, Jason.

Well, this is just one of the many things that makes our community so incredibly unique.

If you know someone with a special story like this, please share it with us.

Email your ideas to stories@wtvi.org.

But before we leave you this evening, I wanna say thanks so much to the amazing students from the Mallard Creek STEM Academy who are in our studio audience tonight.

They were fantastic, had some really inquisitive questions, so we're so glad they came to join us.

Well, that's all the time we have this evening.

Thanks so much for your time, we always appreciate it and look forward to seeing you back here again next time on "Carolina IMPACT."

Goodnight my friends.

(bright music) (bright music) - [Announcer] This is a production of PBS Charlotte.