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Manhunt in Tulsa Oklahoma; Navy Crash in Virginia; Kinkade's Legacy; Valerie Burton Promote her New Book about Women Thinking Differently; Urban Chicken Coops, a New Trend

Aired April 07, 2012 - 16:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: A special task force is fanning out across Tulsa, Oklahoma, trying to find a killer, someone who opened fire earlier, five people hit, at least two kills. Let's listen in to this live press conference.

CHIEF CHUCK JORDAN, TULSA POLICE DEPARTMENT: ... who the suspect is in this case and to bring him to justice. This is going to be a joint operation between the Tulsa police department, the U.S. Marshals Service, the FBI, as well as the Tulsa County Sheriff's office. We don't know the duration yet. Obviously, it will be for at least a week until we can run down some of these leads. We're going to try to do much more to promote people calling in, getting the tip line out there. It's really important to us that we get help from our community.

This is one where we have to stand together with our community. We need their help, we want their help and we hope we'll get some good calls, give us some leads. We have a lot of other leads we're following up. We're going to be dedicating 30 people to this operation, officers from the various agencies, it's - this is going to be a difficult investigation, identifying a lone wolf suspect who acted independently is going to be a real challenge.

I'm here to tell you today this department and the people we're collaborating with are up to that challenge. I hope everybody will - we certainly do, and I hope everybody will keep the family of our victims in their prayers as well as the survivors. I want to tell our community that we're going to do whatever it takes to bring the shooter to justice. I also want to say to the perpetrator and anybody who would attempt to aid or abet him, we're coming for you. Do you have any questions?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sir, I heard from someone in the community today that (INAUDIBLE) it's a white male.

JORDAN: That had been identified? Could you give me that name because we'll go sure arrest him. What's his name?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know. I heard it from a barber shop near the (INAUDIBLE). I just thought it was - I thought it had been reported in the news. I honestly don't know.

JORDAN: We do - I was going to talk to you about the suspect when you asked the questions, but we don't have him identified. We just know it was a white male in a white pickup truck. That's the extent of what we know. We were fortunate enough that we had one victim who has survived who was able to give us the information.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So we do know it's a white male?

JORDAN: But that's unidentified. There's a lot of those around.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chief, in talking some of the speculation, are they working similar cases - I don't know in the region or does it ring any bells with them?

JORDAN: It's something I'm not going to talk about, an investigative (INAUDIBLE). I'm not trying to stone wall you, but obviously this is an active, ongoing investigation. I will say those are areas we are certainly exploring.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you tell us how the U.S. Marshal's office, the FBI, how they got involved in that (INAUDIBLE)?

JORDAN: The U.S. Marshal Service has been involved since literally hour one. They facilitate our northeast Oklahoma violent crimes task force. They have deputy marshals in our task force. They work with us on a routine basis anyway. We have asked the FBI to assist us for the very reasons that came out of that last question. We would like assistance with possible national, transnational cases.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The FBI investigating this or (INAUDIBLE) are you trying to figure out if this is a hate crime? There are reports that that's what this is.

JORDAN: That is what the FBI has told me, and Mr. Davis is in the room. Let's get this out here right now. It's - the whole race issue, the hate crime issue, there's a very logical theory that would say that that's what it could be. But I'm a police officer, I've got to go by evidence. I'm not going to make the statement at this time that that's what it is when we have had no evidence. There has been no racial slurs thrown. We haven't arrested anybody that may have literature. It's just not time for us to say that.

Right now, I'm worried about more about three of my citizens being murdered. If it takes us in the direction of a hate crime, that's where we'll certainly go and we'll prosecute them for that as well. If you have no other questions -

Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) What will they do differently?

JORDAN: Well, they have access to a lot of national databases. They have just as the question inferred earlier, possible trends that are similar anywhere else in the nation. They have a lot of lab facilities that we may end up using. They also have expert interviewers that will assist us, and if does go in the direction of a hate crime, we would like them on the ground floor so they can assist us in the prosecution of those crimes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chief, does that also help us with manpower, I mean just having extra people?

JORDAN: Absolutely. Just having more boots on the ground is always a good thing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are your investigators able to talk the surviving victims yet?

JORDAN: Not going to talk about that. I think logic would tell you that that's something we would want to do.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Could you tell us what commonalities there are?

JORDAN: Yes, there were some commonalities leading us to believe it's possibly the same shooter or very likely it's the same shooter. In terms of time, they happened very closely in time to each other. Somewhat close in time in geographic area and there are some indications other evidence is the same. There could be some ballistic evidence that it could be the same shooter. We have not confirmed that yet but we're obviously looking at that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have heard reports that the suspect seemed to be pulling over, calling people over to his truck. Is that true?

JORDAN: We only have one surviving witness. And in that case, he did talk to the victim. We don't know about the others. We're surmising that could be, but we don't know that for a fact. We don't have witnesses to those crimes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).

JORDAN: No.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Any other bystanders?

JORDAN: I'm sorry, what?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you get bystanders?

JORDAN: No. We have some good people who called in that did see that white pickup truck in the area (INAUDIBLE) and we're very thankful we had the people calling in. We hope to continue to get that help from our citizenry.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you get any other details about the pickup truck, big, small, (INAUDIBLE) dents?

JORDAN: We haven't been able to nail anything down except it's an older pickup truck. And white, of course.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What about the kind of gun used?

JORDAN: It looks to appear a small caliber, I can't tell you the exact caliber at this point. Again, we haven't had ballistics run on that. They'll do that for us first thing next week.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) Are they part of the task force? JORDAN: They're not part of the task force, but they're certainly a big player for us to collaborate with us as far as determination of evidence.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The victim who did survive, did he say the assailant seemed calm or angry, anything (INAUDIBLE) his demeanor?

JORDAN: I'm not going to tell you what the surviving witness said. I told you that earlier, I can't.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Were there two? It sounds like there is only one now. You were talking about there were two that survived, right?

JORDAN: There were two victims that survived, one may not be a witness.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Thank you for clarifying that. And then the gun, was it the same in all the shooting?

JORDAN: As I said, we can't know that until we run the ballistics tests. They appear to be small caliber gunshot wounds.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What do people in the community need to do, what do we need to know?

JORDAN: Well, I think, you know, take care of each other. If you see, you know, we need information. If you see a white male in a white pickup truck that's - that alone, probably accounts for 50,000 people in the city of Tulsa, but if there's any other thing that sparks your interest, if they're in a neighborhood that they don't belong in, you know, those are things that we want people to call in, if they have a friend that they think might have violent tendencies or talked about guns a lot or brandishes guns, you know, there's all kinds of different scenarios that could prompt somebody to call.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chief, the fact that the crimes happened in residential neighborhoods in the middle of the night, does it make it more difficult to you?

JORDAN: Well, not necessarily. Middle of the night, you know, if you look at two of our shootings, three of them, were reported almost immediately. The last one that we discovered in a business district, it's the middle of the night, nobody is there to hear the gunshots, no one is there to see anyone laying there. So probably being in a residential neighborhood had its advantages for us actually. And we're going to find out more, where going to do canvasses of those neighborhoods once again. Other questions?

I would like to introduce you to introduce you to Mayor Dewey Bartlett. He's got a few words he'd like to say to you. And I think I need to say right now, he's absolutely behind everything we're doing. He's offering us any support or any additional resources we need to make sure we get this completed. Mayor?

MAYOR DEWEY BARTLETT, TULSA, OKLAHOMA: Thanks, chief. Good afternoon. My name is Dewy Bartlett, I'm the mayor of the city of Tulsa. I will make a few comments and then I like to introduce a few people that are with us as well. Yesterday morning early in the morning in a fairly short period of time, five of our fellow Tulsans were violently assaulted in a concise neighborhood in the city of Tulsa. Three died. It pains me to talk about such a violent event that we in this community have not seen certainly in modern history.

I can assure you that the city of Tulsa, all citizens of Tulsa, understand the significance of this event. I can also assure you that the police department, the city of Tulsa, the task force that has been put together, the detective division of our police department, we are all of one mindset to find this person, arrest him, and put him behind bars and anybody that is associated with him.

I can also assure you that we as a community need to be very involved with helping the police bring this person to justice. This is not a game. Can you imagine if any of you, if any of us were walking in a neighborhood and this happened to them? Or to a friend, or to a family member. You would be mad. You would be concerned. You would call somebody. I'm asking the entirety of the city of Tulsa, if you have any ideas, any - if you witnessed anything, if you heard of something, if you think of something that might be of interest to the police department, you need to call the Tulsa Police Department immediately.

We look upon the community of Tulsa to assist in such activities. We need your help. This is not a game. This is not something where people feel intimidated by the police department. That is unacceptable. We must help our Tulsa Police Department, the detective division, bring this person in, bring him to justice. We owe it to the families, we owe it to our fellow Tulsans, to owe it to the community. We must do this starting today.

So please make the phone calls, either to 911, we have a web page, phone numbers will be given to the press. But please, please, please, make the phone calls. Now I would like to introduce from the town city council, Councilman Jack Henderson for a few remarks. Jack.

JACK HENDERSON, TULSA CITY COUNCILMAN: Thank you, mayor. My name is Jack Henderson. I'm the district one city councilor. All of these incidents happened in my district. My main concern is for the victims and for the citizens that are worried that this person has not been apprehended yet.

The best thing that I can tell the citizens of district one and the citizens of Tulsa is, and the mayor has said it, the chief has said it, that we need to communicate with the police department. If you know anything, think you know something, think you saw something, you might have heard something, this is the time for you to come forward.

I know that there's some people in district one that don't think that they need to be talking to the police department. But this is a matter of urgency for this community and this city. We need to put aside whatever you think about your inability to be able talk to the police department. We're working together, from day one, I called the mayor. I asked him what was going on. He told me, I asked him to talk to the chief and have the chief to call me. So I could try to ease some of the minds of some of the people in that community. To know that you can't walk down the street at night in your own neighborhood, that's a terrible thing. Terrible feeling.

No one should be subjected to that. This is Tulsa, Oklahoma. We should have the ability to stand out on your porch anytime, day or night, that you want to, to walk down the street, day or night, that you want to. And the only way that this person is going to be brought to justice is we need some leads. We need some people to come forward. We need some people to tell what it is that you know or that you heard. And my plea to anyone is going to be hearing this press conference, let's come together. Let's stand together. Let's do what it takes to put this person behind bars. Any questions?

WHITFIELD: All right. You're listening to city officials there in Tulsa, Oklahoma. That's a city council member, Jack Henderson, also underscoring the need for people to come forward. Now, the five people that have been shot in Tulsa since the early morning hours of Friday. Three people were killed. Still unexplained, the motivation behind the shootings, but the police chief said earlier, they are at this point looking for one suspected gunman.

The only description they have is that it's a white man with a white pickup truck. All five of the victims were black. The police chief addressing concerns as to whether this may have been a hate motivated crime, and the police chief said, it may be logical to think that because of the makeup of the victims and the description of the gunman, but at this time, they're not treating it as a hate crime. No reason to look further than that except that they do have someone who has carried out some murders and unsettling for many people there in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

So of course we're going to continue to monitor the developments coming out of that press conference there, involving the police chief, the mayor, and city councilmen, and of course bring you more information as you get it.

Also coming up, a dramatic new images from that navy plane crash in Virginia. I'll show a lot of those images to you, and give you the latest on the investigation, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Now to Virginia where Navy investigators are beginning the long process of figuring out what caused a Navy fighter jet to crash yesterday. This is a new I-report from the scene sent in by Lauren Chastain. She said she was sitting on her porch in Virginia Beach when she heard three large booms. She saw a fire ball, and one of the pilots falling into a neighbor's roof.

Let's bring in now Sandra Endo who is there in Virginia Beach. Earlier we heard from investigators from the civilian side as well as the military side. Still looking for that flight data recorder. But amazingly, everybody has been accounted for and there's great relief no one was killed in this.

SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Fredricka. That is what state and local officials here in Virginia Beach are saying, this was an Easter miracle. That everyone is accounted for at this hour. There were no fatalities, and new news to report. The one pilot that remained in the hospital in good condition earlier today was released. That means all seven people injured in this crash have now been treated and released.

You were talking about the dramatic new video. This video shows just six minutes after the crash, first responders going door to door, kicking them down, looking for residents inside that apartment complex. Five buildings were burning. You can see the smoke and flames from those buildings as first responders responded to the scene, also finding wreckage of the jet that crashed down.

We also know that two of the pilots ejected right before that plane went down, and as we know now, all of those residents have been accounted for. Now that the search and rescue effort is over, officials are saying the investigation is under way and Navy officials want more answers as to how this all happened in the first place.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADMIRAL JOHN HARVEY, U.S. NAVY: The investigation has just gotten under way, and so what we have done here is control the site, we're now going to start moving in. Now that the city has gotten the whole site under complete control, we're going to come in, sort of in a parallel activity and work our way from the outside in, gathering all of the parts, examining the parts. We'll take all of those parts and put them into what is it, hangar 23, over at NS Oceana, and lay them out and start doing a detailed examination of what we find, looking at all of the tapes, listening to all of the tapes. We'll get their data recorders from the aircraft. It's going to take weeks to put this all together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ENDO: It definitely will take several weeks for the investigation, but so far, Navy officials are calling this a catastrophic mechanical malfunction, and crews today were sifting through the debris, looking through the wreckage of the jet, trying to find that flight data recorder, and any other evidence, any other clues that could point them to the direction as to how this mechanical failure happened in the first place. So clearly, a lot of work ahead of them, but again, local and state officials and lot of residents here saying this is definitely an Easter miracle.

WHITFIELD: Amazing. All right, Sandra Endo, thanks so much, from Virginia Beach.

All right. One of America's most popular and commercially successful artists is dead. Thomas Kinkade painted warm, colorful, peaceful scenes, cottages and lighthouses and natural settings. His work struck a chord with American main stream consumers as well who scoop up painting at malls and order them from home shopping networks. Well it is said that a Kinkade painting hangs in one of every 20 American homes.

Robert Goodwin is with me now from Washington. He wrote a book with Thomas Kinkade called "Points of Light" and once was president of Points of Light Foundation. Robert, good to see you.

ROBERT GOODWIN, CO-AUTHOR "POINTS OF LIGHT": Thank you, good to be with you, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: So how did Thomas Kinkade become known as the painter of light?

GOODWIN: Thomas had a great commitment to encouraging people through his art to exemplifying selfless acts of service. He had a rare ability to exude a sense of warmth, transcendent light which became a metaphor, really, for the compassion for the selfless acts of service, family, faith, community, patriotism, that were abiding values for him, and I think people were able to sense in that work these values which complemented the beauty of the art but also seemed to embellish this idea that was so inspiring to so many.

WHITFIELD: It really did look like almost like reality blended with a bit of fantasy in some of those images.

GOODWIN: Well, again, this came from not only what was obviously a very unique technical ability, but again, he was - had a great commitment to inspire others. One who was nurtured in his early life by family and friends and church to really be an example of selfless acts of service, which in turn became the mission of the Points of Light Foundation, Points of Light Institute, and we were honored that Thomas served as an ambassador of life. He was very philanthropic, he raised millions of dollars for charities, including the Points of Light Institute and we were very honored that he was an ambassador because of the common values that we shared.

WHITFIELD: And we're also looking at images that you and he appearing with Larry King on live back in 2006, and talking about his work and the foundation. So at what point then, you know, he was 54 years old, a fairly young man, to pass away of natural causes. At what point though in his career did he become so popular? I remember in that interview though, he talked about how his mom said everyone has a gift, and it's, you know, your duty to give and share your gift. So at what point did he share that gift with so many?

GOODWIN: He came from humble beginning beginnings and tells the story of actually hitchhiking, I believe, to California unknown and unappreciated. He went through a great deal of personal sacrifice, painting and shopping center parking lots and other nondescript places until finally it began to catch on. It think it was in his late 20s, early 30s, before he really began to capture that cord of responsiveness in the American mind, and has since, as you say, become probably America's most collected and most successful artist in terms of commercial value of his work.

WHITFIELD: Robert Goodwin, thanks so much for helping us remember this brilliant artist and sharing memories of his legacy with us. Appreciate it.

GOODWIN: Thank you very much for having us.

WHITFIELD: This spring and summer, your favorite bands might be playing at several music festivals. There are websites that can help you find them next.

But thirst, CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta profiles innovators from all walks of life and all fields of endeavor. The program is called "The Next List" and next Sunday, he goes behind the scenes of HBO's hit series "Game of Thrones" and talks with crew members about the show's unique characters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The (INAUDIBLE) are kind of wandering tribe in this kind of imaginary world that George Martin in his books has created. They're first and foremost, warriors.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We took the tribe from George Martin's best selling series, and in George's books, the (INAUDIBLE) speak their own language. And we thought we could create that fictional language for a few lines. And we tried do that and it sounded like (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's where I came in. I created the language for the (INAUDIBLE) and worked as a translator on the show.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It got a little bit skeptical, but once we actually got the (INAUDIBLE) language, that (INAUDIBLE) created and we saw the actress performing the lines there, there was no question, it made a huge difference in those scenes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. You want to tune in tomorrow for "The Next List," 2:00 Eastern time. And then at 2:30, join me right here in the "Newsroom." Trayvon Martin was shot and killed in a gated community in Florida. Well, George Zimmerman admits to pulling the trigger but hasn't been arrested. His attorneys will be joining me to talk about how they believe George Zimmerman has been demonized. Hear why they call him a responsible citizen when they join me tomorrow in the CNN "Newsroom" at 2:30 Eastern time.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: Good weather and good music makes for a great time, even when you're on the road. Finding a music festival starring your favorite band, starts with a search of your play list.

MITCH KOULOURIS, GIGATONE ENTERTAINMENT: A number of online destinations such a Song kick, bands in town, thrill call, and what they do is they scan your music library and then will match up when the bands are coming to town.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: Websites jackbase.com and metrowiz.com details upcoming festivals.

KOULOURIS: You know when you obtained a festival, there's lots of chaos, going around, lots of people, there's just lots to do, and so there are apps that give you the latest and greatest on what specifically is happening within the festival itself.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: Festival apps also alert you to schedule or lineup changes, but pace yourself, especially for the larger festivals.

KOULOURIS: They can be, you know, quite emotionally draining and physically draining. So, you know, make sure that you're prepared before you go.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: Rocking the great outdoors on the go.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FREDRICK WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: All right. Listen up folks. You can't do everything. Nor do you want to. On the job, whether be to advance your career or keep it afloat. Every week we focus on ways to get a jump start in the work force and in our reclaim your work career segment today, don't be a maximizer.

Executive coach and author of "Successful Women, Think differently," Valerie Burton joining me now.

All right. Good to see you.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: So, in your book, you talk about limiting choices, sometimes you just want to do it all. You think it's being more productive, more valued. You say its next.

VALERIE BURTON, EXECUTIVE COACH: Yes. And you know what, in our culture, we really value having choice, and having choice is good. Having too much choice can be really, really overwhelming. You want to be intentional about limiting your choices so you can be more productive. People that are able to do that are happier, they perform better. They are more productive and content.

WHITFIELD: Ok. So, this one might be a little difficult for us type a personalities. You want perfection, but you say, you know, you really have to pare down. What is good enough?

BURTON: Yes. So, this term maxmizer is not my term. There's a research productive areas work that came up with it and really what it means is that a lot of times we want the absolute perfect choice in every situation. And you have to get really clear about which choices really matter and which ones don't really have that much impact, and people that are really productive are able to say, you know what, this deserves more of my time, this one really doesn't.

WHITFIELD: Prioritizing. So, another that is hard for me and a lot of folks. Lower the expectations.

BURTON: Yes. I know. It almost sounds awful, doesn't it?

WHITFIELD: Yes. That sounds like you're giving up or giving in.

BURTON: No, no, no. So, hear me out.

WHITFIELD: Throw in the towel.

BURTON: This isn't about having lower expectations. This is about not expecting that there is some magic bullet or there is something that is going to magically happen if you have the right, perfect choice. So, you have to say, what are my minimum standards here? Your minimum standards might be high. But once you meet those, being willing to make that choice and move on, not second guess it, not regret it.

WHITFIELD: Yes. OK. And then, many of us, you know, may regret, I guess, some of the decisions you make. You say, you know, make the decisions kind an irreversible. So, in other words, it's time to stick with it.

BURTON: That's right. So --

WHITFIELD: No matter what the outcome?

BURTON: You know what, when you make choices and you set your minimum standards and say this is what, this is what we are going to do, whether it's a project or you're trying to choose a new career or a new job, to be able to say I'm going to make this choice and I'm not going to keep going back to it, saying you know what, maybe I can make this a little bit better, instead, commit to it and make the most of it. And that helps you to stop the second guessing which produces a lot of (INAUDIBLE).

WHITFIELD: And not beating yourself up about it.

BURTON: Yes.

WHITFIELD: All right. Valerie Burton. Thanks so much. Appreciate that. Happy Easter weekend!

I know you have a big brunch coming tomorrow which means you're probably going to need eggs. How do you that? Have you thought of farming your own eggs? Putting a chicken coop in the backyard?

BURTON: No, I haven't.

WHITFIELD: It's all the rage.

BURTON: My grandmother used to do that.

WHITFIELD: A lot of our relatives have had that experience. But even if you're living in the city, you're in town; don't think you can't have a chicken coop in your backyard. We're going to explain how and why it's all taking flight. And there's some ideas right there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. These days, if you're hen pecked, it no longer means you're being nagged. It could mean you're bitten by the farming bug, raising something extra at your home.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: This Easter, there are lots of eggs, marshmallow, chocolate, candy, but there's another extravaganza going on, people farming their own organic eggs in their own backyards from the city rooftop patios to the suburban variety, is it all it's cracked up to be or are they joking.

Not Atlanta City sleeker, Laura Saunders.

LAURA SAUNDERS, BACKYARDER: Come on back.

WHITFIELD: This is serious business back here.

SAUNDERS: We're not yoking. There's the baby.

WHITFIELD: In her backyard coop. And you have been doing this for how long?

SAUNDERS: I have had my flock for about two years. About two years now.

WHITFIELD: How did you start out, with just one hen, two?

SAUNDERS: No, six. Six came in a box. Six came in the box, and it kind a just grew from there.

WHITFIELD: She also runs a pet supply store, selling all things organic for you and your pets, from books to beaks.

What are you hearing from pine in general about their appetite for this?

SAUNDERS: I think that the raising your own flock kind a frenzy has caught on because it's, I think, a fun way to show your kids how to take care of animals. I mean, I have a range of different clientele that come in and buy our feed from families to single persons to couples. You know, they just -- it's just fun.

WHITFIELD: In Saunders' case, she's created an organic oasis, bringing the countryside to her in town hide away, a real scramble of all that she loves.

SAUNDERS: And this is a Sussex. She's a British bird. She's a bird rough.

WHITFIELD: I mean, as varied as their feathers are, the color of the eggs are different, too.

SAUNDERS: Different as well.

WHITFIELD: And are the flavors different?

SAUNDERS: No. WHITFIELD: She's driven more by her passion for pets than appetite for fresh eggs. Although she says once you taste farm fresh, you'll never want anything else.

SAUNDERS: To me, it tastes like there's a watered down egg that you get at the grocery store or really deep, rich, flavorful egg that you're, you know, backyard hens will lay for you.

And that's my rooster, little pecker.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: Funny foul language always welcome.

WHITFIELD: So, how did you get started? How does anyone get started with a coop?

SAUNDERS: Well, this is --

WHITFIELD: Yours is elaborate.

SAUNDERS: Come on in.

WHITFIELD: The other payoff, each chicken lays on average one egg per day.

You're not cooking all of the chickens. What do you do with them? Sorry.

SAUNDERS: No, I don't eat my birds.

WHITFIELD: Egg, but what are you doing with the surplus because you can't possibly consume that many eggs.

SAUNDERS: I give them away.

WHITFIELD: It is unclear how many backyard coops like this are hatching around the country, but specialists in these intimate egg farms believe popularity took flight when the recession landed five years ago.

So, this is really a beautiful coop you have here. And custom built, but for the typical person who says, you know what, I want to entertain this, I'm going to think about doing this. What do they need in order to get started?

SAUNDERS: You can either have a custom coop built or you can buy a prefab coop and just build it yourself or assemble it yourself.

WHITFIELD: First, check if having backyard chickens in your city or county is legal. In all, Saunders says it could cost about $1,000 to begin and about $25 in feed monthly after that. An investment, she believes, more households are willing to scratch into their budget.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: OK. Let me guess, now you're ready to take flight and raise your own chickens, you're in luck.

Up next, I'm going to talk to the founder of mypetchicken.com. Here she is with all kinds of interesting profs and how to, is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Oh, yes, a hard boiled business, backyard Chicken Coop. So, if you want to take a crack at raising your own chickens, where to start. That is where Traci Torres comes in. She's founder of My Pet Chicken which offers tools and advice to backyard chicken owners.

Good to see you, Tracy.

TRACI TORRES, FOUNDER, MY PET CHICKEN: Thanks for having me.

WHITFIELD: My God, this is really incredible. I had no idea after, you know, visiting Lauren Saunders' home that having your backyard coop can look the way it did. There are lots of varieties. So if somebody, you know, really does want to get started and take flight on all this, how do they do it?

TORRES: Well, the first thing you have to do is educate yourself. There are tons of books and magazines on the market. We had a couple here today that you can take a look at. You can buy them on the Web site. You can them on Amazon. You can go to a local feed store.

WHITFIELD: How much space do you generally need?

TORRES: You know, indoors, you need about two square feet of space, two to four as a rule of thumb. Outdoor, you want to provide at least ten square feet of space per chicken. But really, the thing that we recommend is that you free range them because that's the healthiest possible thing for them.

WHITFIELD: And you can't do that though, if you have an indoor, you want to have your chickens inside? Of course, it depends on what kind of county or city rules, you know, would allow, but some people have their chickens in the house?

TORRES: They do. And actually, this is a chicken diaper. So, we actually sell these. They have little (INAUDIBLE).

WHITFIELD: You're kidding me, really?

TORRES: And when they poop, you just dump it out, and clean it out, and replace it with a fresh one. We don't really recommend it because there are behaviors that chickens engage in outside that are optimal for their health like dust bathing to keep them free of lies and mice they are also foraging for bugs and little tiny rocks to help them digest their food. So, we don't recommend it.

WHITFIELD: That is fascinating. OK. So now, most people when they, you know, get into the whole idea of backyard farming or in their apartment farming, are they doing it because they want to save money? And ultimately save them on the grocery bill, or is there another lure, like Lauren, for her, they're her pets? TORRES: Right. And I think that's the majority of our customers. We are My Pet Chicken, so people come to us just for that and we offer specialty breeds. There are certainly people who keep them for money, but we don't really feel that you can save money unless you're a great carpenter, you can build your own coop, you can let your chicken's free rage so that your feed cost are really low. So, for the most part, it's not about that. It's about chickens themselves. They have wonderful personalities. And you learned.

WHITFIELD: Right. I did. And they were all named. I mean, the 11 chickens and a rooster that she had, they had names, they have distinctive personalities, and there were some quite elaborate breeds, which means you have different looking eggs.

TORRES: That's right. And we brought some of those. And the eggs are a big driving factor. I mean, I'm sort of obsessed with different egg colors. And as you can see, we have some dark browns and greens and blues. But they're also much healthier, and mother's news has done studies on this. Eggs from backyards chickens are lower in cholesterol. They are lower in saturated fat. They are higher in vitamin c, vitamin a, vitamin e, and double the omega fatty acids.

WHITFIELD: Unbelievable.

TORRES: So, that's a big drive for people.

WHITFIELD: So, what is the downside? There's got to be, right?

TORRES: Well, you're talking to the lady who quit her job to start a chicken company. So, I don't think there are really ton of downsides. You do really want to educate yourself and make sure the coop is predator proof. Because there are lots of predators that would love to get their mouths on some chicken.

WHITFIELD: And then what about diseases because if you're lay back, it can be a problem, too.

TORRES: Chickens can be susceptible to diseases. I had them for seven years and never had a problem. And we polled our customers on this. Most of them never had any sort of a problem. What you want do is get in touch with a local farm or even vet in your areas to make sure that if something should occur, you have a resource and you know where to locate for expert advice.

WHITFIELD: Fantastic! Traci Torres, it's an incredible lifestyle that so many people are embracing, and the numbers are taking flight and, you know, taking off and it's just unbelievable. Mypetchicken.com, that's a good place to start.

TORRES: All sorts of free information, photos of the rare breeds.

WHITFIELD: Fantastic. Thanks so much. Appreciate that.

TORRES: Thanks for having us.

WHITFIELD: All right, so from the Amazon forest now to the urban jungle, a mini hero on a medical mission. This week's CNN hero when we come right back.

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(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STAN BROCK, FOUNDER, REMOTE AREA MEDICAL: All right. Take care of these numbers. They represent several hundred dollars worth of medical care.

The first people who arrived yesterday --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I love with constant pain every day.

BROCK: They spend the night in their cars. Some of them pitch tents.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have lumps in my breasts.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Been here a long time, but it's worth it.

BROCK: I understand what it's like to be penniless, homeless, and uninsured. My name is Stan Brock. I'm the founder of remote area medical. We provide free care for the underserved.

In the beginning, it was an airborne operation in the overseas areas. Today, I would say at least 60 percent of our work is here in the United States.

How many people are here to see the dentist? About 85 percent of all of the people that come are really looking for dentistry and vision.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good. How about the next line down?

BROCK: We don't ask you whether you have insurance or whether you have a job or are you a citizen of the United States. The only requirement is that you have to show up early. Remote Area Medical has seen over half a million people free. This is number 663 of these expeditions, as we call them. You have a pair of glasses, huh?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you. It really does -- it really does help.

BROCK: Well, I'm delighted.

The patients are marvelous. They're so grateful for what we were able to do for them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's so clear.

BROCK: There's no feeling like that, knowing you helped someone. It's just great.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Remember, all of our heroes come from your nominations that go to CNNheroes.com to share your inspirational story. All right, stunning new sound from Coach Gregg Williams. He's now banned from the NFL for having a bounty program. Coming up at 7:00 Eastern time. Don Lemon talks to NFL hall of famer Fran Tarcingten to find out if this was happening back in the day.

Keep it here in the CNN newsroom.

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WHITFIELD: All right. Time to check our stories our affiliates are covering.

Feathers will fly around the world today. Its international pillow fight day and more than 100 cities in 39 countries are planning them. Those are pictures from one of the battles outside Stockholm, Sweden. The playful fights are part of the urban playground movement. Public spectacles that promote free expression.

And meet the starting pitcher for the Colorado Rockies. He's 49 years young, Jamie Moyer, baseball ageless wonder, started playing in the major leagues 25 years ago. His first game pitching for the Rockies is tonight.

And we all love to eat them around Easter, but folks in New Hampshire have turned peeps into viola, art work. You're looking at a peep diorama contest featuring a peep train, spaghetti and peep balls and that favorite work of art, the Mona Peepsa.

That's going to do it for me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Much more in the NEWSROOM straight ahead with my colleague DON LEMON right after this.

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