Author: News-Press NOW

Praji Ghosh

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) —  The St. Joseph Public Library will host a jigsaw puzzle swap on Sunday, Aug. 24, at 1:30 p.m. at the East Hills Library. 

Guests are welcome to bring puzzles to exchange, but participation does not require a swap. The library will also have gently used puzzles available for purchase in the lobby. 

The event is free and open to all ages, offering the community a chance to enjoy an afternoon centered around puzzles and connection.  

“I like to do jigsaw puzzles and a lot of people do and when you’re done with it you don’t usually want to do it again so having a swap is a good way to refresh your collection while sharing,” Elizabeth Murray, programming librarian said.  

The puzzle swap has been a regular event at the library for the past four years, taking place every six months. Anyone is welcome to join—whether they want to keep a puzzle you find, bring it back for another swap, or simply browse the selection.  

“Puzzles are expensive, so its a good way to share puzzles without impacting your budget, and everything here is for free,” Murray said.    

The library hopes the event offers people a relaxing Sunday afternoon to spend with family while working through puzzles together.  

Another swap is already planned for February, when participants will also be able to donate puzzles to support the library’s annual book sale.  

“I have come to every single one of them. I have just always done puzzles and I was excited to do some trading because its fun to just swap it out and you don’t have to pay full prices,” Rochelle Greenwood, patron said.  

Greenwood also says she enjoys picking up puzzles to take home, calling it a great way to keep her mind active and focused.  

“I come to the library all the time and you can always walk out of here with some puzzles with you don’t already have one so just come out and do some swapping,” Greenwood said.  

Organizers say their goal is to bring the community together through a simple activity that sparks connection.  

They’re hoping each event will continue to grow with more puzzles to choose from and more people to trade with. 

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Cameron Montemayor

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Buchanan County officials hope to know by the end of this year if they can move forward on decades-long discussions of dredging Lake Contrary and restoring it as a recreational lake.

A permit to dredge Lake Contrary is expected to be approved or denied by the U.S. Corps of Engineers now that soil samples have been collected from the lakebed for testing, a lengthy process that concluded Aug. 17, according to Buchanan County Western District Commissioner Ron Hook.

“This is the furthest we’ve been in this process,” he said. “So if we can get something by the end of this year of whether we’re permitted to do it or not, that would really help.”

Engineering consultants with Terracon, a KC-based firm, were tasked with drilling 30 feet at dozens of locations across the lake to collect samples for the Corps of Engineers to evaluate.

Despite a breakdown of equipment that caused delays, Hook said engineers were able to submit more the double the requested amount to ensure results are conclusive one way or another.

“The (Corps) wanted 17 different plots throughout the lakebed to test the soil; every five feet, they pulled up soil samples,” Hook said. “We wanted to make sure that the whole lakebed was covered. So we did 34 of them.”

If a dredging permit is issued, Hook said the 300-acre lake will require multiple rounds of dredging in different locations over a three or four-year period simply due to its size.

“You can do about 100 acres of dredging per year,” he said.

At the same time, a timeline for a second round of weed spraying is expected to be determined in the coming months to prepare the lake for potential dredging, if authorized by the Corps.

The latest plans call for dredging the lake to approximately 8 feet, but 10 feet in certain areas could be possible.

“We just want it to be available for recreational boating, fishing, swimming, a recreational lake,” Hook said.

The latest development comes after more than a year of work that intensified last summer on restoring the once-great oxbow lake following decades of attempts by supporters and the county.

In its heyday in the early 1900s, Lake Contrary was an iconic recreational destination that featured a theme park with amusement rides, a casino, dance halls and sporting venues. At its peak, the lake was reportedly 10 miles long, quarter of a mile wide and 40 feet deep, large enough to support upwards of 100 boats.

As oxbow lakes naturally do over time, silt built-up from river flooding and creeks has lowered its depth exponentially despite decades of support from many residents, including financing costly underground water pumps.

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Carter Ostermiller

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — St. Joseph residents in search of a job are in luck.

The St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce will host a career fair from 3 to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 23, at Stoney Creek Hotel & Conference Center, located at 1201 N. Woodbine Road.

Businesses that have job openings and are chamber members are scheduled to be in attendance.

For more information about the event, visit jobs.saintjoseph.com

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Carter Ostermiller

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — On Aug. 18, President Trump announced on Truth Social his plan to end mail-in ballots.

The process of voting by mail has been around since the 1980s and has gained more popularity ever since the COVID-19 pandemic. This popularity has been viewed with skepticism due to prior election results and the potential for fraud.

This push for the end of mail-in voting would also have a massive impact on key demographics such as elderly and disabled people.

A change would impact states like Oregon, Washington and Colorado, which are all mail-in voting states.

Some St. Joseph locals like Cindy Remelius feel that only some groups should be able to vote by mail.

“Maybe for specific groups. But other than that, I believe that people should come in person and present their ID to vote,” said Remelius.

On Truth Social, President Trump said he plans to sign an executive order for the 2026 midterms to end all mail-in ballots.

Trump’s Truth Social post calls to revoke mail-in ballots.

According to Article I, Section 4, Clause I of the United States Constitution:

“The Supreme Court has interpreted the Elections Clause expansively, enabling states ‘to provide a complete code for congressional elections, not only as to times and places, but in relation to notices, registration, supervision of voting, protection of voters, prevention of fraud and corrupt practices, counting of votes, duties of inspectors and canvassers, and making and publication of election returns’.”

Common reasons Americans use mail-in voting pertain to convenience, accessibility and health concerns.

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News-Press NOW

ATCHISON CO, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — One person is seriously injured after a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado traveled off of I-29 on Saturday.

The crash occurred just after 3 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 23, as a 53-year-old male driver was southbound on I-29 and traveled off the east side of the roadway, into a grass median.

The vehicle crossed the northbound lanes, impacted a fence, then a ditch and overturned onto its top.

The Silverado came to rest odd of the east side of I-29 at the 119.8 mile marker, nine miles north of Rockport.

The driver was transported by life flight to the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha.

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News-Press NOW

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Some St. Joseph sewer customers are receiving calls from city representatives regarding a billing error.

According to the City of St. Joseph, approximately 230 of the city’s 27,000 sewer customers are affected by the issue.

The 230 customers are enrolled in an auto-pay program and had their accounts debited about three weeks early for the September billing cycle, due to a processing error.

The city said customer service representatives are contacting those affected to discuss options for resolving the issue. The accounts affected include both residential and business customers, with billed amounts for the majority ranging from $10 to $100.

Those impacted by the issue can choose one of two options when contacted by a city customer service representative.

Take no action and allow the early payment to cover their September bill.

Receive a refund now and be billed in September as usual.

City customer service representatives won’t ask for banking, Social Security or their financial information when calling impacted residents.

In a press release sent to News-Press NOW, the city issued an apology on the matter:

“The City of St. Joseph apologizes to those inconvenienced by the error. Staff members are working with the billing software vendor to make sure similar issues are prevented in the future.”

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Patrick Holleron

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — This past weekend, longtime St. Joseph Resident Joan Hickman was nominated to the Missouri 4-H Hall of Fame at the Buchanan County 4-H Missouri Office.

Hickman has contributed to the program for 33 years, holding the position of trustee for 12 of those years and serving in Andrew, Platte, and Clay counties.

“I can’t speak for all for its volunteers, but I’m pretty sure most of us don’t do it for the recognition,” Hickman said. “The reward we get is seeing them catch their spark by trying different aspects of the program, finding what really means something to them. Then we see them develop and thrive, and that’s where our reward comes in.”

Throughout her time with Missouri 4-H, Hickman has worked with many youth. She has gotten to see firsthand the opportunities in agriculture that the program offers, including robotics, filmmaking and photography among many others.

“There’s so many ways that young people can get involved,” Hickman said. “It’s important for you to understand what sustains our agricultural community, what supports the population in general. You have to understand the agricultural side of our world in order to understand where your food comes from, how to stay healthy, how to prepare it. All those things are necessary in order to, live a good life.”

For additional information on the Missouri 4-H program and for ways to get involved, visit their website.

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Carter Ostermiller

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — This past week in St. Joseph, a young juvenile, Athesius Warden, left home, and his whereabouts were unknown. Thankfully, Warden was found and safe.

With movies like “Weapons” and the current Virginia mass kidnapper rumor circulating through the media, it has never been a more prevalent topic.

Children going missing is unpredictable, but how can it be prevented, and what can be done to find them?

Frank Till is the Executive Director of the St. Joseph Safety and Health Council and believes there are many ways we can prevent our children from being in harms way.

An example is tracking them with their phones.

“A lot of children have cell phones, and we can use family tracking apps to help keep an eye on our children.” said Till.

Apps such as Life360 are very useful at keeping you in the know on your child’s location.

It is also important to educate your children on the dangers of social media. Till knows that predators will act as children to prey on the youth.

If your child goes missing, make sure to cooperate fully with the local law enforcement and to provide as many important details as possible.

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News-Press NOW

PLATTE COUNTY, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — On Tuesday, Platte County Clerk Jera Pruitt and the Board of Equalization chair Lee Ann Fadler signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Missouri State Tax Commission (STC) to finalize a negotiated agreement to raise residential property taxes.

In the STC’s original mandated order, Platte County residents would have seen a 15% increase across the board.

Now, all 2024 residential property values will be raised by 6.835%. The new increase aligns more with actual home price increases, which were roughly 7.75% per year from 2019 through 2024.

“This agreement is a clear victory for Platte County taxpayers, as it substantially reduces the financial impact of the STC’s initial directive,” Presiding Commissioner Scott Fricker said. “With very little leverage and very little time, we were able to secure a better deal for Platte County taxpayers that reflects more realistic property value increases.”

The imposed valuation increase circumvents the traditional data-driven assessment process used by Missouri assessors for decades, replacing it with valuations dictated by the STC, which impact property owners regardless of the actual increase in individual property values.

Fricker and the County Commission, with the support of other county officials and the Board of Education, engaged outside counsel and led negotiations with the STC to arrive at this arrangement.

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News-Press NOW

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Missourian who contracted an amoeba that kills brain cells at the Lake of the Ozarks has died, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services said Wednesday.

The Department of Mental Health and Senior Services stated in a news release that the person, whose gender and age have not been released, died in a St. Louis-area hospital. DHSS has so far only identified the patient as an “adult Missouri resident.”

The person was sick after contracting Naegleria fowleri, possibly during a waterskiing trip to the Lake of the Ozarks, DHSS stated in a news release last week. As of Aug. 13, the state was still investigating the source of exposure.

The amoeba is common and found naturally in warm, fresh water. However, cases of infection are rare, with 167 reports in the United States between 1962 and 2024, according to DHSS.

A University of Missouri Health Care doctor told ABC 17 News last week that symptoms show up about one to 12 days after the amoeba makes its way into the brain by entering through the nose. Meningitis, or inflammation in the brain, is a common symptom of a brain-eating amoeba.

Other symptoms include severe headache, fever, stiff neck, vomiting or changes in mental state. 

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