Brighten your day with our uplifting short features — feel‑good stories, local success, cultural discoveries, and creative highlights from across Northeast Florida.
Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Local NFL player honored”
New England Patriots player DeMario Douglas, his mother, Angie Oxendine, grandmother, Yolanda Mack, great-grandmother, Glennie Haile James, and the St. Augustine City Commissioners | Submitted
1 day ago

BIT OF JOY | Local NFL player honored

The St. Augustine City Commission honored NFL player and St. Augustine native DeMario Douglas, who recently played in the Super…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Relive a great Jags comeback”
Relive the stress and excitement of the Jaguars' 2022 showdown against the Chargers. | Vice
2 days ago

BIT OF JOY | Relive a great Jags comeback

The Vice TV series Don’t Call It a Comeback will highlight the 2022 Wild Card game between the Jacksonville Jaguars…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Field of Dreams expansion”
St. Johns County leaders and baseball players celebrated the expansion of the Field of Dreams baseball field last week. | St. Johns County
February 18, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Field of Dreams expansion

St. Johns County leaders cut the ribbon on the newly expanded Field of Dreams baseball field.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Support for Girl Scouts”
HCA Healthcare leaders presented a $25,000 check to the Girl Scouts of Gateway Council last Thursday. | Submitted
February 17, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Support for Girl Scouts

HCA Healthcare donated $25,000 to the Girl Scouts of Gateway Council…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Book-inspired ice cream”
Celebrate books and ice cream with a special book-inspired flavor at Mayday. | Submitted
February 9, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Book-inspired ice cream

Mayday Ice Cream and the St. Johns County Public Library created a special ice cream flavor for Library Lovers’ Month.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Warm coats for students”
Students at S.P. Livingston Elementary try on their new coats. | Submitted
February 4, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Warm coats for students

THE PLAYERS Championship donated hundreds of warm coats to Duval County students in need.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Celebrate Black History at Riverside Arts Market”
The Jacksonville Melanin Market held its Black History 365 Parade and Celebration on March 3, 2024, along A. Philip Randolph Boulevard on Jacksonville’s Eastside. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
February 3, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Celebrate Black History at Riverside Arts Market

Riverside Arts Market and Melanin Market are combining to celebrate Black History Month this Saturday.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Library art show”
This mural is one of several on display at the St. Johns County Main Library. | Submitted
February 2, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Library art show

A new art exhibit is on display at the St. Johns County Main Library.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Perform at a Jumbo Shrimp game”
You could perform the National Anthem at VyStar Ballpark before a Jumbo Shrimp game this season. | Heather Henderson
January 29, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Perform at a Jumbo Shrimp game

The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp will hold auditions for individuals or groups who want to perform the National Anthem before a…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | JU students place in national video contest”
Jacksonville University students show off the award they won for an anti-drug PSA video. | Submitted
January 28, 2026

BIT OF JOY | JU students place in national video contest

A video PSA created by Jacksonville University students won second place in a national contest.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | 2026 Duval Teacher of the Year”
Biology teacher Mari Richardson was named 2026 VyStar Duval County Teacher of the Year. The Jean Ribault High School teacher was selected from a pool of about 180 candidates. Superintendent Christopher Bernier says “she meets students where they are, helps them to exceed their own expectations, and creates a classroom where confidence and achievement grow together.” As a thanks for her dedication to her students, Richardson won grants for her classroom, a cash prize and a new car. She’ll also go on to represent Duval at the Florida Teacher of the Year awards. Way to go!
January 26, 2026

BIT OF JOY | 2026 Duval Teacher of the Year

Biology teacher Mari Richardson was named 2026 VyStar Duval County Teacher of the Year.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Jax students to perform at Carnegie Hall”
These 10 Jacksonville students will perform at Carnegie Hall next weekend in a prestigious music competition. | Submitted
January 22, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Jax students to perform at Carnegie Hall

A Cathedral Arts Project String Orchestra ensemble of 10 Jacksonville students will perform at Carnegie Hall.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Martin Luther King Day parade”
Debra Joshua marches in the 45th Martin Luther King Jr. Grand Parade through Downtown Jacksonville on Monday. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
January 20, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Martin Luther King Day parade

Jacksonville honored the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. with the annual breakfast and parade through Downtown.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Friday Night Safari”
Get wild at the Orange Park Mall's Friday Night Safari. | Submitted
January 15, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Friday Night Safari

Encounter wild animals at the Orange Park Mall’s Friday Night Safari.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Great Tree Giveaway”
Greenscape of Jacksonville is giving away free trees this Saturday. | Greenscape of Jacksonville
January 14, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Great Tree Giveaway

Greenscape of Jacksonville is hosting its Great Tree Giveaway this Saturday.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | North Beach Park”
The new North Beach Park has a spot to hang love locks. | Noah Hertz, Jacksonville Today
January 13, 2026

BIT OF JOY | North Beach Park

St. Johns County officials opened the newly renovated North Beach Park.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Hospital gift exchange”
A patient at Wolfson Children's Hospital (left) enjoys a gift from Buffalo, and a patient at Golisano Children's Hospital of Buffalo enjoys a gift from Jacksonville. | Submitted
January 12, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Hospital gift exchange

Children’s hospitals in Jacksonville and Buffalo did a gift exchange to celebrate the Jaguars and Bills playoff game Sunday.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Win a Super Bowl trip”
You could win a trip to the Super Bowl to cheer on a team that may or may not be from Jacksonville. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
January 8, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Win a Super Bowl trip

The Red Cross is giving blood donors a chance to win a trip to Super Bowl LX.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Best Beaches thrift store”
BEAM Thrift was voted best thrift store at the Beaches. | Submitted
January 7, 2026

BIT OF JOY | Best Beaches thrift store

BEAM Thrift was voted best thrift store at the Beaches.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | 2026 YoungArts honorees”
(From left) Leila Warren, Jayden Giselle Register and Eiana Claire Nova are three of six Douglas Anderson School of the Arts students selected as 2026 YoungArts honorees. | Submitted
December 24, 2025

BIT OF JOY | 2026 YoungArts honorees

Six students from Jacksonville’s Douglas Anderson School of the Arts are 2026 YoungArts honorees.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | St. Johns Reads”
December 23, 2025

BIT OF JOY | St. Johns Reads

The “One Book, One Community” celebration, part of the St. Johns County Library’s St. Johns Reads program, begins in January.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Edible St. Augustine Lighthouse”
December 22, 2025

BIT OF JOY | Edible St. Augustine Lighthouse

A replica of the St. Augustine Lighthouse made of canned food won a big prize for charity.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Jax Litter League winners”
Mayor Donna Deegan (third from left) with the team who won the second Jax Litter League challenge | Wes Lester, city of Jacksonville
December 18, 2025

BIT OF JOY | Jax Litter League winners

A team from the Northside won the 2nd Jax Litter League contest.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Shop with a Jaguar”
Jaguars nose tackle DaVon Hamilton is all smiles with 9-year-old Jayden Parker during the team's annual Shop with a Jaguar event on Monday. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
December 17, 2025

BIT OF JOY | Shop with a Jaguar

Jacksonville Jaguars players brought joy to kids at the annual Shop with a Jaguar event this week.…