Category: knpn-local-news

TaMya Bracy

SAVANNAH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The Savannah High School Meats Science Team is going to the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The team consists of four girls, Mackenzie Schmutzler, Reagan Rodgers, Addison Neiderhouse and Kaylea Farrell.

In March, the team traveled around the state to practice, which helped the team work on their knowledge base and skills. Traveling opportunities have brought the girls to five university meat labs.

The Meats Science Team won first place at the State FFA CDE.

Schmutzler, a senior at Savannah High School, said she was really happy when their team won first place at state.

“We put in a lot of effort and put a lot into it. We went the extra mile to say, outside of school and stuff. So just to see all that like come to fruition was really nice,” Schmutzler said.

FFA Advisor and Savannah High School Teacher, Jeff Baumann, said it makes him extremely proud to be the girls’ advisor.

“We’re proud of their representing their school and their chapter at the national CDE. I’m very proud of their work and their commitment to their team,” he said. “I mean, they are a team in every sense of the word. They help each other. It’s never about them. It’s about the it’s about the team.”

Rodgers, a sophomore at Savannah High School, said she is excited to go to Nationals.

“We had high goals for State, so to accomplish those was really exciting and to do it on a national level as well,” Rodgers said

Although competing at Nationals next week might stir up nerves, the girls said they’re prepared.

“It’s definitely nerve-wracking. Just the competition of it all, but we’ve definitely put in the work and are prepared, I think,” Rodgers said

“We’re going to keep working all the way up till time we compete. So we’re, we’re hoping we’ll have good results,” Schmutzler said.

Making the large step to Nationals means the world for the team, and despite the outcome, both Rodgers and Schmutzler said they’ll be happy with the results.

“I think knowing that we’ve done everything possible that we can and the help of our coaches, is definitely going to be rewarding. We have high goals, but we also know the level of competition that comes with it,” Rodgers said.

“We’ve already reached, like, our goal was to win State and of course we raised those goals, but we have already met high goals that we have set for ourselves, so we’ll still be proud of us even though if we don’t meet those national goals,” Schmutzler said.

The Meats Science Team will be leaving for Nationals on Monday, Oct. 27. They will compete on Thursday, Oct. 30.

Click here to follow the original article.

News-Press NOW

CALDWELL COUNTY, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — A 58-year-old man is dead after striking a truck and a Combine in Caldwell County, just four miles east of Cameron, Missouri.

The crash occurred as a 2011 Ford F-150, a 2005 Dodge Ram 3500 and a 2009 Case IH Combine were traveling west on U.S. Highway 36 just after 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 18.

The Ford contained the 58-year-old male driver and an eight-year-old male passenger, both from Smithville, Missouri.

The Dodge contained a 50-year-old male driver and the Combine contained a 53-year-old male driver.

The Ford failed to change lanes, according to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report, and it struck the Dodge Ram. The Dodge traveled off the north side of Highway 36.

The Ford continued west in the driving lane and struck the Combine on the driver’s side rear wheel and then overturned, slid on its side and overturned again onto its wheels, ejecting the driver.

The Ford came to rest facing north on its wheels. The Dodge and the Combine came to rest facing west on their wheels on the north shoulder of Highway 36.

The 58-year-old driver was pronounced dead at the scene around 2:12 p.m. His body was taken by the Caldwell County Coroner to Bram Funeral Home in Hamilton, Missouri.

The eight-year-old was transported by Caldwell County Ambulance to Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri.

Neither the 58-year-old nor the eight-year-old was wearing a seatbelt.

Click here to follow the original article.

News-Press NOW

HOLT COUNTY, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — An Independence, Missouri, man is dead after a single-vehicle crash in Holt County just before 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday.

The crash occurred when a 45-year-old man was driving a 2008 Nissan Pathfinder north on Interstate 29.

The vehicle then traveled off the west side of the roadway and overturned, ejecting the driver. The vehicle came to rest facing southwest on its wheels off the west side of the roadway, according to a Missouri State Highway Patrol Crash Report.

The driver, who was not wearing a safety device, was pronounced dead at the scene by the Holt County Coroner at 9:47 a.m. The man was then transported by Rupp Funeral Home to Rupp Funeral Home.

Click here to follow the original article.

News-Press NOW

ANDREW COUNTY, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The Andrew County Health and Safety Coalition is holding a Prescription Drug Take Back event at the Savannah Fall Festival.

The event takes place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 25, in the Savannah Square, under the Gazebo.

Community members will be able to turn in unneeded medication for safe disposal.

If community members are unable to drop their unneeded medication at the Fall Festival, they are welcome to drop medications off at the Andrew County Sheriff’s Office or the Savannah Family Pharmacy.

Click here to follow the original article.

News-Press NOW

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — An intersection along Mitchell Avenue will be closed starting next week for a signal upgrade project.

Starting at 8 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 27, Mitchell Avenue will be closed on both sides of 22nd Street, as the entire outdated signal system is being replaced with mast-arm poles.

Traffic on Mitchell Avenue will be rerouted along the following detours:

Westbound through traffic will detour from Mitchell north onto 26th Street to Messanie Street and then west along Messanie to 20th Street and south back to Mitchell. Drivers will be able to access 22nd Street at Messanie.

Eastbound traffic will detour from Mitchell north onto 20th Street and then east to Olive Street to 26th Street and south back to Mitchell. Drivers will be able to access 22nd Street at Olive.

While 22nd Street will remain open, the speed limit within the construction zone will be reduced to 15 miles per hour.

Work will include new bases, poles, mast arms and signal heads on all four corners. ADA curb corners will also be constructed.

A large cottonwood tree will also be removed, and the sidewalk it has damaged will be repaired.

The project, expected to be completed by mid-December, weather permitting, will cost approximately $350,000.

This project is the last of five signal upgrade projects the city has undertaken to replace old wire-hanging devices. Replacements have been completed at the intersections of Cook Road and Walmart Drive, 22nd Street and Frederick Avenue and Middleton Street and St. Joseph Avenue.

Work is wrapping up on the fourth project at St. Joseph and Grand Avenues.

Click here to follow the original article.

Praji Ghosh

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Community members were invited to give input and be front and center as the St. Joseph School District reviews topics discussed at an Oct. 13 public hearing.

SJSD held a Town Hall meeting at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 21, at Lafayette High School.  

District leaders went over what was discussed in the Oct. 13 public hearing — including an impact analysis that followed board policy.  

Leaders also revisited topics from the board’s recent work session, like a proposal to move Edison Elementary School to the north side as part of SJSD’s Plan 2. 

Plan 2 pointed to a Lafayette and Central High School model.

Another major point of discussion was boundary adjustments — giving students a chance to attend schools closer to home, ideally within a mile of where they live. 

Feeder maps Download

Plan 2 Feeder System and numbersDownload

SJSD also discussed Plan 7, which supports a Central High School and Benton/Hyde model, and Plan E, which keeps all three high schools open and proposes the “least amount of cost and disruption to implement, while achieving necessary cuts.

Plan 7 feeder systemDownload

Plan E feeder systemDownload

As with previous hearings, community members had the opportunity to speak for up to three minutes after providing their name and address. 

The focus centered on facilities and the district’s ongoing reorganization plans. 

Lafayette High School teacher Jeff Leake, who spoke at the hearing, said this could be one of the biggest decisions the district has ever faced.  

“The two plans that they were debating were just two schools and they had a lot of disruption with staff movement and I wanted to investigate a different path which is plan E, keeping three schools,” Leake said.  

He said he’s a strong believer in smaller schools and that keeping a sense of community is what matters most to him.  

He said this plan would benefit students the most and cause the least amount of disruption, even though the other options have some positives, they also come with more challenges.  

Another community member — a parent with two high school graduates and a current Lafayette sophomore — spoke in support of Plan B.  

She said the best way to restore the district’s financial health is by choosing Option Two, which would affect about 427 staff members and 3,878 students — saving roughly $31.6 million in staffing costs. In comparison, the alternative plan would impact 535 staff and 4,257 students, saving only $2.3 million.  

“The financial benefits of option two are higher reserve recovery by 19.89% by 2030 versus 16% lower disruption, 118 fewer staff and 379 fewer students impacted,” community member said.    

Another Lafayette student said she’s worried about the impact these changes could have on students’ mental health.  

She said many students feel overwhelmed by these decisions because they directly impact their lives, especially as seniors looking ahead to new opportunities.  

“I do feel like Lafayette is a better decision because its more cost effective since you can hold way more people in Lafayette Versus Benton and Hyde and you have to change Hyde from an elementary school to fit into a high school,” Erica Spiker said.  

Spiker said she hopes the board makes a decision that leaves everyone as satisfied as possible.  

The board is set to make its final decision at the next meeting on Monday, Oct. 27 — that’s when the community will find out which plan they choose.  

Click here to follow the original article.

News-Press NOW

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — As November approaches, City officials are reminding residents to follow guidelines for open burning.

Open burning of dry yard waste is allowed within the city limits twice a year, during April and November.

Throughout those months, fires are only allowed between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., and must be in an upright container with a volume equal to no more than 55 gallons. A drum-sized container constructed of wire mesh is permissible.

No fire can be 15 feet from any building, and only one burn per container per residence is allowed.

All fires should contain yard-waste only, such as leaves, brush, sticks and logs, and must be monitored closely by a person capable of containing the fire.

Firefighting material, including a garden hose or a container of water, should be at the site of the fire.

As some households prepare for open burning, the St. Joseph Health Department shared that any Fire Department response to open burning calls will be treated as “non-emergency”, meaning no lights or sirens, unless the fire is threatening a structure.

Any violation of open burning restrictions may result in a summons to appear in court for a misdemeanor violation, according to the Health Department.

If weather conditions, such as high winds, indicate the safety of the community is endangered or may create a health hazard, the Fire Chief or Health Director may invoke a temporary burning ban.

The Health Department encourages residents to explore alternatives to open burning that don’t contribute to air pollution, are not dependent on time restrictions or the weather and provide a healthy benefit for physical activity while doing yard work.

Such activities include: mowing leaves into fine particles to fertilize the lawn or incorporating leaves into a mulch container to decompose into humus for use in vegetable and flower gardens or for use on lawns as soil amendment.

A larger wood brush that can be chipped can also be used as mulch around trees and shrubs.

If residents choose to burn, the Health Department suggests doing so within the open burning period, as the open burning session will not be extended due to weather blackout dates.

Click here to follow the original article.

Payton Counts

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) – Weather plays a big factor in what people choose to wear.

In the summer, tank tops and shorts are favored. Now, with fall-like temperatures coming into play, it’s time to switch out the closet with sweaters, jeans, long-sleeves and coats.

Beyond deciding what to wear based on temperature, seasonal fashion trends also play a major role in society, and they’re constantly evolving.

Fashion trends typically start with high-end designers or subcultures, then gain traction among influencers and early adopters. Once they are mainstream, they peak, fade and often return with a fresher look.

Seasonal changes are key drivers of what’s in and what’s not. As fall is settling in, shoppers are leaning into cozy clothes, denim and seasonal shades like brown, red and deep purple.

Vogue states that some of the top fall 2025 fashion trends include “Pop of Red,” “From the Neck Up,” “Monochrome Brown,” and “Modern Prep,” among others.

Some shoppers may not care about what the latest trend is, but want to find the best price.

Studies have shown, shopping behaviors also vary by generation. Gen Z (1997-2012) and millennials (1981-1996) favor online shopping, value quality and follow emerging trends. In contrast, Gen X (1965-1980) are more driven by discounts, loyalty programs and seasonal sales.

At Narrative Boutique, Owner Jenna Geheb said her business isn’t seeing much of an age gap.

“We try to have something for every single age. So oftentimes here at Narrative, we will see granddaughters, moms and grandmothers,” said Geheb.

So how does this local boutique stay in touch with latest styles? Rhonda Luster, who shops online and at other boutiques for Narrative, said one way she finds her inspiration is from social media influencers.

She’s also noticing fashion trends and certain materials making a comeback.

“For this year, suede is going to be really big for fall and winter, and those big fur coats they wore in the 70s,” said Luster.

Either way, no matter what style is preferred is, staying warm as winter approaches is the ultimate goal.

Click here to follow the original article.

Patrick Holleron

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The ongoing renovations at Phil Welch Stadium are ahead of schedule, with the expectation of the project’s completion before the St. Joseph Mustangs kickoff their new season.

As previously reported, new seats and bleachers are being installed alongside layers of concrete.

Upon further inspection, it was found that the I-beams holding up the main walking area needed to be replaced. The webbing holding the beams together had rusted and eroded over time.

“With the I-beams, they have been there since the 1930s, when the stadium was built,” Parks and Recreation Director Jeff Atkins said. “(Since) they’re steel, Mother Nature is going to win that battle eventually. As they were removing the concrete sections of the bleacher seating areas, some of that rust and erosion was seen.”

Atkins also added that new concrete couldn’t simply be added to the beams, as the structural integrity may fail.

Construction is still expected to be finished before the Mustangs play for their 2026 season.

Click here to follow the original article.

Alec Pascuzzi

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Local law enforcement is reminding the public about School Bus Safety Week and what it entails.

Monday, Oct. 20, marked the start of School Bus Safety Week and is meant to remind the public of tips regarding school bus safety.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol said students, parents and motorists should be aware that school bus safety is an important part of driver and passenger etiquette.

MSHP also urges, not only motorists, but school bus drivers as well, to be extra cautious with student riders, whether they are on the bus waiting for their stop, or getting ready to cross the street.

For motorists encountering a school bus, the MSHP also emphasizes patience.

“The motoring public… they need to remember school is in session this time of year here in northwest Missouri, so expect delays during your morning commute. If you get behind a school bus, be patient, be cautious,” said Sgt. Shane Hux, public information and safety officer for the MSHP.

Click here to follow the original article.