benefiting from al's good work today. al? >> hey, matt. thank you. and you're absolutely correct. we've got our friends unloading our penske truck. in fact, we got a donation of a mobile studio, dance studio. they're already using it, doing some ballet right now. and as i said, you mentioned we are not only here in memphis, but our friends in nashville, who were hit hard by historic flooding, we've got a big donation for them, as well. a great charity down there. we'll bring that all to you in just a couple of minutes. matt? >> all right, mr. roker, thank you so much. great job by you and your team this week >> coming up from here we're going to take a look at some high school students who seem destined not to have a chance. all of that change when they attended an innovative high school today. special correspondent jenna bush hager who is also a teacher, i should mention, will tell us this inspiring story. >> also ahead you're never going to get lost in bad style if you take advantage of our fashion road map and our style expert is here this morning and he's got some great tips on what you need to know. >> you have these style emergencies? >> today appearently. ann is on vacation this week, savannah guthrie is up from the white house over at the news desk. >> good morning, matt and tamron. in the news on day 66 of the oil disaster in the gulf, bp says it has overcome the latest setback. a containment cap has been siphoning oil from that blown well, had to be removed for much of wednesday after it was bumped by an underwater robot. bp said the cap was repositioned and working again last night. american gary faulkner is back in the u.s. this morning after returning from pakistan where he wanted to hunt osama bin laden. referring to bin laden, he said, quote, we can't let people like this scare us. after arriving overnight in denver, he said it's good to be back and said he plans to return to pakistan. today, five americans were convicted on terror charges in pakistan, and sentenced to at least ten years in prison. the five, who are from the washington, d.c. area, say they will appeal that conviction. the senate is predicting quick confirmation for general david petraeus. the president's pick as the new top commander in afghanistan. he replaces stanley mcchrystal following mcchrystal's critical remarks about the administration. tragedy in spain, where a train hit a group of young people crossing the tracks to get to a beach party, killing at least 12, and injuring 14 others. about 1,000 evacuated residents of the flagstaff, arizona, area started returning to their homes on wednesday. a 14,000 acre wildfire that started last sunday was still only 20% contained but crews had enough confidence in their fire lines to let the evacuation order be lifted. there was some damage, but no serious injury following a magnitude 5 earthquake wednesday in canada, near ottawa. it was also felt from michigan, and ohio, all the way to vermont. it is now 9:03. back to matt and tamron on the plaza. >> all right, savannah, thank you very much. let's go back to mr. roker down in tennessee this morning. al? >> hey, thanks, guys. and as we unload our truck here in memphis, we couldn't forget our friends in nashville who were hit with historic and devastating flooding. so i've got a special bonus stop of "lend a hand" in nashville. with over 11,000 homes damaged by the floodwaters, hands on nashville is helping kids relief to the assistance of some 17,000 volunteers who are helping to rebuild the city. proving why they call tennessee the volunteer state. and to help with the volunteer recovery efforts, we have these donations to give you. let's start it off. let's go to nashville, lowe's is giving $107,000 worth of home improvement products from stainmaster carpet to drywall. lexington home builders donating $75,000 worth of home furnishings. 1800 mattress dotcom giving $40,000 worth of mattresses. yesterday they gave $15,000 worth of mattresses. our friends at glidden professionals, $52,000 worth of paint. 13,335 worth of clothing from our friends at columbia sports wear. $10,000 from e.b. armored doors security system. and last but not least, ford trucks, giving you a 2011 super duty valued at $50,000. let's bring in brian williams, the director of hands on nashville. brian, are you there? >> i'm here, al. >> brian williams, okay. besides sharing a name with a famous news anchor, what are you going to be doing with these donations, brian? >> we are using the donations that are being given today to not only help stabilize the community but transition the community into rebuild efforts. and they'll be redistributed throughout the flood-impacted areas in our region. >> and, brian, i know the lowe's district manager is there. lowe's has been very active in nashville's rebuilding efforts. is mark right there? hey, mark, how are you? >> great. >> mark, why has it been so important for lowe's -- how important has it been for lowe's to be involved with hands on nashville? >> well, lowe's understands the importance of providing relief when the flooding disaster happened and the recovery that followed up afterwards. we've seen firsthand the devastation here in nashville, and the donation to hands on nashville and the previous $50,000 donation we provided to the american red cross will help rebuild, repair, and restore our national communities. >> all right. well, mark and brian, thank you so much. thanks for lowe's for stepping up, mark. we really appreciate that. brian, use all those donations in good health. we thank you, and all the great work you guys are >> it is going to be another hot day to day. temperatures will climb into the mid-90s. there will be a chance for thunderstorms later today. >> all right, that's your latest weather. tamron, you know what, this is -- today's total more than $810,000 worth of merchandise between memphis, and nashville to "lend a hand today." and we're so proud of the efforts of all of our producers in getting these donations for all these worthy charities. >> congratulations, al. congratulations to the organization and great work for those kids. from the halls of washington's government buildings to local city chambers, there's a lot of debate over education. especially during these tough budget cuts that are happening. but in the nation's capital, there's a shining example of what can be achieved, even with very little. "today's" contributing correspondent jennifer hager, who teaches herself, is here with this amazing story. >> good morning, tamron. that's right, there's a lot of criticism of our public education system but we found a surprising innovation. a new public school program that's helping the most at-risk kids have the brightest futures. it's particularly interesting for me, because i teach at the sister program in maryland. >> all right and set. >> reporter: there's a moment some thought might never come. thanking god and good fortune for leading their children to this graduation day. but much of the credit goes to an unusual public school in washington, d.c. in the neighborhood where only 33% of students make it through high school, and few go on to college, the seed school achieves a remarkable feat. >> let every soul -- >> reporter: despite the fact that many students read three grades below grade level. >> how many students are graduating? >> and how many are going on to college? >> 100%. >> reporter: how do they do it? with tough love, hard work and teachers who give more than their job description. seed is a safe haven from the tough, inner city streets. >> they may be facing, abandonment, living with other family members. maybe living in single-family homes. >> reporter: with three meals a day, this is a boarding school. for sixth through 12th graders. they live in dormitories monday through friday, with one goal. high achievement. wherever they go. where are you guys going to college. >> spelman. >> university of maryland. >> do you all already know where you're going and you're in sixth and seventh grades? >> yes. >> reporter: where they come from, motherhood comes early. and life is hard. and sometimes short. do you ever keep in touch with any of your friends that you from middle school? >> a few of them have passed and one of them is in jail. >> reporter: are you ever afraid, like, this could be -- >> yeah. >> reporter: instead, deangelo will be the first in his family to graduate and go on to college. a.c. calculus is your favorite subject? >> yeah. i never understood how in college there would be one problem on the board and it would take up the whole board. but now i see. >> his growth has just been through the roof. you know. he's just such well-rounded, you know, so well-rounded. >> reporter: in addition to rigorous academics, seed teaches social skills and how to navigate in the real world with success. >> i see her as a woman who i transformed. >> reporter: tyler went from making "fs" to making "as." did you always know you were going to go to college? >> i wanted to go to hair school, actually. i didn't want to go to college. >> reporter: do you think the expectations for her as a student at her old school were as high as here at seed? >> not at all. not at any level. on a level of one to ten, it's not even a two. >> reporter: here at seed, it's not just what you learn. it's how you see yourself. so the program focuses on self-esteem, self-respect, and integrity. >> i've learned a lot about myself. i learned capabilities that i didn't think i was able to do, ever. >> reporter: but not everyone is supportive of these, new, personal discoveries. >> i got a lot of backlash from my family, really. the first thing is, when they hear boarding, they equate that with bad. well what did tyler do to deserve that? >> reporter: do you think there are pressures from other kids in your neighborhood because they are choosing to go on to college? >> it is trying to bring them down because they're not, perhaps, in that advantage situation that they want to then bring that child down. and say see, you're just like me. >> reporter: but that hasn't stopped tyler and deangelo. >> i realize my strength. once you go to college you can do whatever you want to do. >> reporter: today they start a new journey, facing a future full of promise. where they say there are no rules. and with graduation behind them, both are heading to college. deangelo is attending miami university in ohio. in the fall. and tyler plans to go to university of maryland eastern shore. both are packing their bags, and ready to take on their futures. >> my eyes are tearing up from the first hoemt that that piece started. i've got to ask you about the parents. because that makes a big difference in a child's life. parental involvement. are the kids seeing a lot of that? >> the parents are incredibly involved. in fact, they are the ones that get them into these programs. and deangelo's mom said there's no option. she didn't graduate from high school and she said, for my son, there is no option. >> it's a great piece. jenna bush hager, thank you so much. coming up, no need to ask for directions. we've got a style road map.ing the way for all of your fashion emergencies. next having a blast at your july fourth celebration. entertaining ideas after this fourth celebration. entertaining ideas after this messages. w it all shared it with single and loving it! who made a cup the next morning for ladies man as he was rushing out the back door. he shared it with blondes have more fun and fiery redhead, who, after finding out about each other, shared starbucks via with their new boyfriends, firemen keep it hot and drummers rock, who called his friend know it all, who said he already knew about it. premium starbucks via ready brew. now available wherever you buy groceries. ♪ we get double miles with every purchase. so we earned a tropical vacation in half the time. we earn double miles every time we use our card. 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[cheering] unlike leading kids' yogurts, danonino has twice the amount of calcium of milk, ounce per ounce, and it contains vitamin d. bravo! danonino. power packed to helps kids grow. was good for it, too? aveeno introduces nourish + style, the first line of styling products with active naturals wheat to fortify while you style for a healthy hold that lasts more than 12 hours. new aveeno nourish + style. ♪ could open a world of wonder ? ♪ ♪ so sensory ♪ so satisfying ♪ the discovery ♪ never seems to stop ♪ ♪ it's the magic friskies ♪ ♪ makes happen ♪ every day ♪ in so many ways ♪ friskies ♪ feed the senses all right, this morning on "today's home," having your fourth of july festivities go off with a bang. from the kid tables to adult beverages, colin cowie is here to tell us how to do it right. >> good morning, savannah. i think this is one of those parties, you're able to see something, today we start off with a wooden table i found. and the foundation is this wonderful graphic red and white striped fabric. which i think is festival. and for the chair covers, i love the idea of the flag. >> this is great. you found it and just tape it on there? >> tape it on the back. and at each place we use the melamine plates. >> and you did sneak a little turquoise in the red, white and blue palette. >> i thought, a couple of sentiments and it calls for a cocktail. sticking with red, white and blue. so wanted to stick with red. blue -- >> it doesn't make you want to wash it down. >> certainly have the recipe here. keep everybody going. you might want to try one of these. >> tell me, what's in this? how did you get the red color? >> this is cranberry juice. >> and strong. >> exactly. >> very important, with the citronella, very good for the bugs. and speaking of bugs -- >> you and i, we have a special expertise in mosquito bites. >> if there's a mosquito they will find me from 100 miles away. >> i think they like me better. >> if they like you better, i'm happy to have you. i like to take the citronella candles and put them under the table. this way when you get up from dinner all of a sudden you don't end up with your legs covered with mosquito bites. >> be careful with tablecloths. we don't want to have a fire hazard. >> moving on, we move on to the kids' table over here, which is great. with the kids, we start with wonderful candy, which is great. all the food comes self-contained. sandwiches, watermelon. >> where did you find these little chairs? >> these come really easy to assemble, and for the kids, basically fireworks in a cup. >> colin cowie, thanks so much. i think we're good to go for fourth of july. great setup, thank you. coming up, all signs point to great style. we've got a fashion road map ahead for wardrobe emergencies. and later star, dirks bentley, part of our today lends a hand is going to lend us a song from nashville when we come back. 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(announcer) choosey moms, and dads, choose jif. today, we're going to take yummy, creamy danonino and turn it into a frozen treat. first, we poke the danonino with these little spoons. then, we're going to place them in the freezer. luckily, the staff and i have prepared this tray earlier. [cheering] unlike leading kids' yogurts, danonino has twice the amount of calcium of milk, ounce per ounce, and it contains vitamin d. bravo! danonino. power packed to helps kids grow. and olive garden's one of the few places we can take them where everyone's happy. announcer: try our new crespelle dishes -- italian crepes stuffed with five cheeses, with chicken in garlic cream sauce or with grilled italian sausage, starting at just $10.95, at olive garden. to help your skin get healthy and clear. fast forward a few years... ...and now that your problem is wrinkles we still have the solution dermatologists recommend most. neutrogena anti wrinkle moisturizer with pure retinol sa. in just 1 month it's clinically proven to smooth even the deepest wrinkles. so all you neutrogena girls it's time to become neutrogena women. neutrogena recommended most by dermatologists. numbers today, giving away hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of donations on his "lend a hand" tour. >> he is in memphis, tennessee, for day four. good morning, al. >> hey, good morning, guys. katie smythe who is the founder of the new ballet ensemble and school is with us. katie, we're not done yet with the giving. we've got a little bit more. we've got not just one, but i think this is the first time we've done this, we've got two vehicles for you. first off we've got from general motors foundation, they're donating a 2010 15-passenger chevrolet explorer. >> oh, my gosh! >> yes, yes, katie. look at that bad boy. but that's not all. kool-aid is donating a 2010 silverado pickup truck. kool-aid! hey, kool-aid! kool-aid, come on! they're donating a silverado pickup truck with a trailer to transport your new mobile dance studio. >> oh, this is unbelievable. >> katie, what are you guys going to do with the vehicles? >> we are going to pick up these children at the elementary school and we're going to bring them to our beautiful facility. and we're going to go to dunbar. >> that 15 passenger chevrolet express van, the silverado pickup. and everybody say it, oh, yeah! gotta love it. what's our total now? $828,000 today alone for memphis and nashville, guys. back to you. >> all right, al, thanks. coming up, you wrote in and we are solving your style dilemmas with our fashion road map. >> plus a live performance from nashville, special song from country star dierks bentley. but first your local news and weather. gsd bill? tom? hey! it's an office party! the freedom to name your price. only from progressive. call or click today. have you tried honey bunches of oats with real strawberries? wow. it's seriously strawberry. they're everywhere. it's in the bunches, on the flakes, even real strawberries in the mix. can i have some more? honey bunches of oats with real strawberries. it's delicious. nobody does it quite like us. ♪ [ male announcer ] what are you gonna miss when you have an allergy attack? benadryl® is more effective than claritin® at relieving your worst symptoms and works when you need it most. benadryl®. you can't pause life. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. a teenager is recovering at shock trauma after a swimming accident. sky team 11 was over the scene as medevac airlifted the injured swimmer from joppatowne just after 5:00 last night. it is believed he got caught up as the bing and the gun powder river, but it is not clear what that might have been. a glen burnie teenager is dead after reportedly drowning and an oregon river. he drowned into the river on a dare from friends. investigators say he was visiting his father and oregon on father's day when the accident occurred. he was a standout student and athlete and was awarded a scholarship to new haven university. his body will be flown back to baltimore for burial. a dramatic scene in a courtroom yesterday in the trial of a woman accused of killing her estranged husband di. a 16-year-old described him as her mother allegedly shot her dad four times last june. the defense says that she is mentally ill, and was una -- but the teenager project that, saying she was aware of which was doing. >> time for jurors will make it into the mid-to-upper-90's. -- temperatures will make it to the mid-upper-90's. thunderstorms late in the day. some of those will be strong to severe. when guests perhaps up to 60 miles per hour but we will make an air mass transmission grid that is most likely it will take place this evening. friday will be more comfortable. 88 on saturday. we will be back into the low 90s on sunday. a chance for a few thunderstorms in the afternoon. early next week, high temperatures on the low-to-mid- 80's. >> we will have another update at 9:55. ♪ got to be starting something >> one year ago superstar michael jackson was getting ready for a blockbuster comeback tour, then the world was shocked and saddened by his sudden death at the age of 50. tomorrow, on "today," we'll be live at his neverland ranch to take a look at how his kids and the rest of the family are doing. and the ongoing legal wranglings over his estate and questions still about how he died. you'll remember michael jackson tomorrow on "today." incredible, a year later. i'm tamron hall alongside savannah guthrie. natalie is on assignment. and al is in memphis on day four of his record-breaking "lend a hand" tour. hey, al. you said hey, kool-aid! >> that's right. >> awesome. they're having fun behind you. >> yeah, and i say oh, yeah! we've got the new ensemble ballet. new ballet ensemble and school. this is a hip-hop group. they do all sorts of dance. it's really amazing. of course we also donated in nashville, first time we've done two cities in one day and we've got an added treat for our friends in nashville. dierks bentley has a brand-new cd hout. he's going to be performing a number for us toward the end of the program. guys, back to you. >> all right, al, thanks. as you mentioned we do have the special dierks bentley onhand. a live performance from one of nashville's own favorites. he was also affected by last month's flooding. he'll perform one of his songs live. >> and buckle up, we're taking you on a ride to better style. our fashion experts are solving your wardrobe dilemmas today. like, for example, how do you dress if you are a busy mom? we've got fashion road maps to make sure that you don't make any wrong turns. but first, al, still sticking around, a check of the weather. al? >> kool-aid is back. >> we want to talk about some -- that's why we've got, on a day like today with temperatures into the 90s, kool-aid is very popular. anyway. we all know the kool-aid man. we've also got melissa, the kool-aid manager, and steve, the vice president of expo dry erase markers, and ace hardware. >> the kool-aid hand [ inaudible ] we're always about delivering affordable family smiles and we encourage active play and getting outside. >> these kids are active. >> they are active. >> and steve, expo dry erase markers, you've been with us since monday. >> absolutely. >> and you guys are based out of here, too. >> absolutely. every expo marker is made in the great state of tennessee. we jumped at the chance to be a part of this, al. when you told us, we were absolutely blown away. and with this economy, with all these everyday heroes giving their hard-earned money to supply their classes we're really excited to be part of it. >> we thank you for that. we've got, of course, gene here from ace. they need a lot of the stuff that you're providing, dave. >> yes. >> this is what we do as a company. our 4500 individually owned dealers across the country support the communities in every way and ace is proud to donate $50,000 to this local event. >> we thank you so much. we thank you all for your donations. >> thank you. >> really appreciate it. oh, yeah! >> oh, yeah! >> it is going to be another steamy day today. high temperatures will be in the mid-90s. scattered thunderstorms are possible late in the day. i know tamron and savannah, this is your kind of dance. i know you guys bust the moves. >> we are so on our way there to rock it out. >> you know who else -- you know who else got this? chuck todd. >> oh, yeah. >> he's been -- >> i'm a little bit jealous, i'll be honest. al, thanks. coming up next, pointing you in the direction of better style with a fashion road map. right after this. ed real people to film themselves taking the activia 14-day challenge. i'm mary ellen smith. day one of the activia 14-day challenge. my digestive problems are irregularity. so i'm really excited to see if this really works. my husband tried this last night. he loved it. he said it's the best yogurt i've ever brought home, so...mmm. have just started to notice a slight difference in my digestion. help regulate your digestive system. take the activia challenge. it works or it's free. but look below the surface. your mouth is no different. just brushing leaves germs behind. adding listerine® antiseptic cleans deeper. [ boom! ] to penetrate and kill more germs. [ exhale ] [ male announcer ] listerine®. clean deeper. get healthier™. and olive garden's one of the few places we can take them where everyone's happy. announcer: try our new crespelle dishes -- italian crepes stuffed with five cheeses, with chicken in garlic cream sauce or with grilled italian sausage, starting at just $10.95, at olive garden. ♪ ¿por que no probamos esto? [ male announcer ] old el paso. a special blend of seasoning for especially delicious tacos. feed your fiesta. love to see kids' spirits shine. superstar and mom, of seasoning martina mcbride and sunny dacos. ♪ sunny taste. sunny spirit. sunny d. brings out the best in kids. ♪ sunny d this morning on "today's style," we are answering your fashion questions. we asked you to tell us about your wardrobe dilemmas. this morning style expert stephanie greenfield is going to give you some direction using her fashion road map system. good morning, stephanie. >> good morning. >> tell us a little bit about how this fashion road map works. >> the fashion road map is your personal gps to never get lost in style. we've used fashion road signs to help women with their fashion dilemmas. it's fun, it's kitsch. it's all about solutions. for everybody, here's what people tell us to wear, what not to wear, but nobody helps us with our own personal style dilemmas, and most of us have enough in our wardrobe, with a few tweaks and a few great item investments you can look like a million bucks. >> let's get to some viewer emmaims. christy marie from orlando, florida, she sent us an e-mail that reads i'm a mom of two young kids and i never have time to take care of me. i need an updated style, i want to dress more feminine, and i don't want to spend a lot of money. what should i wear? >> that is i think so relatable, her issue. there she is with her baby. >> oh, i love it. i have a 3 1/2-year-old, and the second you have that baby, you want to get back to, you know, your old you. >> yeah, and a new look. >> you don't want to wear the mom jeans and the t-shirt uniform. so what's the solution here? >> well, we have ann curry, our mom coming out. >> her real name. >> with her little boy liam. and the road sign is caution children. and we love this, because ann wanted to dress more feminine. feminine doesn't have to mean floral. the investment, every look you're seeing, head to toe is less than $200. here, a simple dress, $148. all the items are available on websites around the country or stores. i love this. this is a neutral print, the strappy sandal. this dress has pockets which is great. this is clean, it's a grab and go style. she looks feminine without looking too girly. >> and liam approves. >> that is wonderful. as it gets colder, she lives in new york, layer a cardigan over it. put a long steve t-shirt underneath it. it's worth the investment and it's loose and it clean. >> it looks like it's wash and wear. because you're carrying the baby around, you're bending up. >> grab and go, wash and wear. this is worth the investment. the dress, totally. and not too much jewelry because those babies are always grabbing. >> ann curry and liam, you look adorable. thank you both very much. so our next e-mail is from laurie in berlin, connecticut. she writes i recently lost 50 pounds after my doctor and i -- after her doctor tested her positive for diabetes. i worked really hard to lose the weight and to get my numbers down. i'm really proud of myself but i always tend to wear black on black and i need help. let's take a quick look at lori's photo. there she is as promised in black. and what's the fashion look -- well that's not black. but i don't think it's what she wants to look like. >> absolutely. and we all get lost in black. that's why when marcel comes out you're going to be so excited. >> that's our road map sign? >> buckle up. because this can take your ordinary silhouette that you had before the weight loss and bring it to extraordinary. let's congratulation marcel. 56 pounds. >> and marcel, identified with this story because as you mentioned, she lost 56 pounds. looks amazing in this. >> what's exciting here is with one silhouette, the belt, which everybody has in their wardrobe, here $49.50, this is our investment piece. you can take your silhouette from your pre-weight loss and cinch them up. accent the waist, because now you have one, and bring in color. okay, you've worked so hard to lose the weight. you were totally attracting, not distracting. pinch your waist. >> buckle up ladies. >> and marcel you lost weight working out with our resident nutrition guru joy, so that's fantastic. >> joy is fantastic. she brought joy to my life and she is an inspiration on how to keep the weight off. >> joy bringing boy. >> buckle up. and you're sure to be styling. >> congratulations. you look gorgeous. congratulations to lori. our last e-mail comes from megan in fredrick, maryland. she says i'm an up and coming senior at the university of maryland. i got an internship at the public defender's office for the summer. i'm extremely excited for this opportunity but i'm also very nervous. i have no real style to my wardrobe, i wear jeans with sweat shirts or t-shirts most of the time. i'm worried my wardrobe will hinder my chances of getting respect when it comes to my job. what should i do? you can't wear that to the office. that's not going to work. and she looks cute there, but she could do a little more. >> the next phase of dressing. okay. what i love about this is i would wear this any point in my life. >> one item, two ways is our fashion road map sign. >> isn't this a great one? her item is this pencil skirt. how work appropriate does she look? and she could change her top, put her hair down and she's ready to go to the office. $98. i love that we gave a sleek, simple, like i keep saying clean pencil skirt. this is from ann taylor. clean leg, it's appropriate length to the knee. a strappy scandal. >> this is sarah. she has been an interhere at the "today" show. and -- >> but she looks adorable. >> age appropriate. starter with the pencil skirt for her starter job. invest in a key silhouette like a pencil skirt. dress it up if you're going out in the evening after work. dress it down if you're going and you need to be more professional. >> sarah, congratulations on your summer internship here at the "today" show. you all look amazing. ann, marcel, great, we appreciate it. >> thank you. >> follow those road maps. and for more information on stephanie's fashion road map and the signs that are ahead of us, go to the website todayshow.com. for more information. up next, some finger licking bbq. but first, these messages. ns toe (woman 2) it happens to me when i go for a jog (woman 3) it actually happens to me when i sneeze (woman 4) it happens to me too (woman 5) sometimes it just happens (announcer) 1 in 3 women experience light bladder leakage, or... ...lbl poise liners are specifically designed for lbl so they protect better than period only liners learn more at 1in3likeme.com ♪ [ female announcer ] these cookies aren't magic, but they make magic happen. that's because glad has partnered with cookies for kids' cancer. it's small bake sales like these that help raise big money for pediatric cancer research. together, we can make a difference... one container at a time. because with glad, the care that goes in is the care that comes out. ♪ the care that goes in is the care that comes out. we asked real people to film themselves taking the activia 14-day challenge. hi. i'm emily ilic. i'm going to start the activia 14-day challenge today. problems that i have are, you know, irregularity... i do have some doubts if it works. i think it's really good. um... i like the flavors. i think from being a skeptic in the beginning i do think that activia actually works. help regulate your digestive system. take the activia challenge. it works or it's free. ♪ activia we helped keep your skin clear. now we have a solution for wrinkles. neutrogena anti wrinkle with retinol sa smoothes even deep wrinkles. it works...beautifully. neutrogena. it works...beautifully. [music, talking, laughing] what makes hershey's s'mores special? hershey's chocolate goodness that brings people together. pure hershey's. it makes my skin really silky and velvety. this is my body wash. what do you mean? this is it? why?! oh, don't do that to me! dove creamoil body wash. now with nutrium moisture. nutrium moisture. i'm a believer. the nourishment in dove creamoil goes somehow deeper. i'm happy about the change. change is good. dove creamoil body wash. i'm happy about the change. change is good. have you tried honey bunches of oats with real strawberries? wow. it's seriously strawberry. they're everywhere. it's in the bunches, on the flakes, even real strawberries in the mix. can i have some more? honey bunches of oats with real strawberries. it's delicious. nobody does it quite like us. and this morning in today's kitchen, world famous memphis barbecue. hot chef mike mills is the only three-time grand world champion at memphis in may. a barbecue showdown known as the super bowl. the 17th street bar and grill. mike, good to see you. >> good to see up. >> all right you've got the rubber gloves. >> i have gloves on here. >> we're talking ribs. this is what you're famous for. >> this is what i'm famous for. >> they're like baby back. they're not as meaty. you should say you get a slab of 2 1/2 pounds. >> i'm going just the opposite of that. i prefer the baby backs. >> you like the baby backs. a little higher on the hog, the meat is not quite as juicy. doesn't have as much fat in it. >> how do you prep this? >> first of all you've got to start out with a good product. this rib right here is what we normally serve. >> mm-hmm. >> you take the membrane off the back. >> it's already been removed off of here but i recommend that whether you're using fingerless libs or the loin back style, baby back. >> you've got to put a rub on it? >> a dry rub. we call this our magic dust. i sprinkle a coat on. nice and even. it will make the new membrane on the back very edible. i don't pack it and rub it and do all of that. what i try to do, i do the same thing on the front side of it. >> what's the biggest mistake people do with ribs? >> too high of heat. they rush them. i'm going to come back and put a couple other layers on there during the cooking process. right here, i would take this right now, put it over on the pit. >> that man in the pit there? oh, that's like a bank vault right there. that's a bank vault of meat. right there. >> that holds 150 racks of ribs. >> and it comes out like this? >> they'll come out looking like this. and you don't have to have a knife. >> oh. tell me about this bad boy. >> this bad boy right here. this is a fill shoulder. this is what they cook in memphis in may. you can always tell when it's ready. >> oh, look at that. >> pull these bones out of here. >> oh. hmm. >> just pull the fat skin back right here. >> oh, man. >> get rid of that. wow, people all across the country are having a heart attack. >> just pull that out. >> that looks good. and you've got some deviled eggs here. your secret, barbecue beans? >> these are five kinds of beans in here. there's a pinto beans, pork and beans, large red kidney beans, jelly beans and i always say a mystery bean. whatever you want to add to it. >> put it in there. >> it will be in the book and on your website. >> of course, the punch tressed by our producer sarah, and it's true. mike, thank you so much. and coming up, we've got a special lend a hand concert from dierks bentley in nashville. but first, this is "today" on nbc. for every ant or roach you see in your home, there are hundreds more you can't. the solution? try combat source kill max baits. while aerosols only kill the bugs you spray, combat baits target the source of the problem. ants and roaches take the bait; carry it back to the nest and share it. the result? you destroy not just one, but the entire infestation. if you have unwelcome ants or roaches, try combat source kill max. also look for new combat liquid ant baits. brand power. helping you buy better. all right we want to check in with al again before he heads off to another city. >> al, great job today. >> thank you so much, guys. you know, here in memphis, we raised $828,000 for both the new ballet school, and hands on nashville. and we also would like to remind folks, you can logon to our website, todayshow.com to donate united airlines frequent flyer miles to any of the "lend a hand" charities this week. we're going to be off to our next location, which happens to be in beautiful new hampshire, but we've got a real special treat to sing us off. dierks bentley is going to be singing "love goes wild." and dierks, three years ago you were with us in nashville when we did "lend a hand." you were terrific then. we thank you for helping us today. >> yeah, it's great to be back here doing this, as well. a lot of volunteers here in nashville today. doing to do some great work and help people get back in their homes. me and jason and john get a chance to sing together. >> thanks so ñimuch. as dierks performs "love goes wild" we want to show you our donors who provided commercial consideration. dierks, thanks a lot. ♪ ♪ there's a place where love goes wild ♪ ♪ the heart is just like a child ♪ ♪ like they don't need a lot no matter what ♪ ♪ i used to be hard to care ♪ but you ain't nowhere once i threw love away ♪ ♪ but that fool was yesterday ♪ now my heart is holding steady ♪ ♪ wild things grow i know it will be you and me ♪ ♪ right down in the middle where love grows wild ♪ ♪ >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. city officials have reached an agreement with the naacp and the aclu over quality of life arrests. the had $7,000 settlement requires the city to hire an auditor to track the arrests and expands training of officers. the lawsuit stems from complaints against officers who reportedly made arrests without probable cause. the naacp says it will work this summer to help those affected get records expunged. >> it is going to be another hot and steamy day today. high temperatures will be in the mid-to-upper-90's. it will be very much like yesterday. the chance for thunderstorms, a better chance than yesterday. late in the afternoon and evening. some of those will be strong or severe. it will make a nice air mass