Buckeye Beat

It was an emotional day for a young girl from Bellville, Ohio... Who had a wish come true last week. Five-year-old Lizzy Myers suffers from usher syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that leads to blindness and hearing loss.

Lizzy's parents have created a "visual bucket list" for her to see as much as possible before losing her sight. That brought the family to Italy, where they visited Vatican City and got to meet Pope Francis. The pope walked over and approached Lizzy at the end of his general audience.

Before visiting Rome, Lizzy was able to check another item off her bucket list. She visited the Warren Rupp Observatory near her hometown and looked through a giant telescope at the moon and stars.

To Akron now, where there's a new duck in town -- and she's turning heads!

The RubberDucks, a minor league baseball team in Akron, will introduce a new mascot to fans this week-- and it's a girl! The team held a naming competition for the new chick in town... Meet Rubberta. She'll make her debut at the April 14th home opener at Canal Park alongside her male counterpart.

And finally, roller coaster fans rejoice -- some of our favorite amusement parks are gearing up for another season of thrills. But at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio... The first rides will benefit a good cause. The so-called “Roller Coaster Capital of the World” is auctioning off rides on its newest coaster, Valravn -- and the money raised will go to the Lebron James Family Foundation.

Valravn is touted as the tallest, longest and fastest roller coaster of its kind in the world! But if you're brave enough to ride

the park officially opens... It's going to cost ya. Seats began selling last week and the limited front row seats had a price tag of $500. But it's all for a good cause.

Last year, the park held a similar fundraiser on the Rougarou coaster that raised over $150,000 for the James Foundation.

And good news for the rest of us, the park opens to the general public on May 7.