Category: knpn-local-news

Cameron Montemayor

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — One property is damaged and dozens of residents are without power after one vehicle lost control on U.S. Highway 36 and crashed into a nearby yard in St. Joseph.

No injuries were reported in the crash that occurred around 1 p.m. this afternoon in the area of westbound U.S. Highway 36 and South 17th Street.

St. Joseph Police told News-Press NOW a silver 2019 Dodge Challenger was heading west when the driver lost control, likely due to speeding and slick roads from rain.

The Dodge Challenger exited the right side of the highway and crashed into a yard at 2108 S. 17th Street, knocking down a large power line in the process.

Nearly 70 residents in the surrounding area lost power as a result. As of 6:30 p.m., 56 were still without power as Evergy crews continued to make emergency repairs.

The company’s outage map says an estimated timeframe for repairs is around 10 p.m.

Following the crash, the young driver of the vehicle remained on scene and cooperated with police. The driver was issued a citation for the incident.

A resident of the home told News-Press NOW he was thankful no one was seriously injured. He said similar crashes have occurred at least four times at that same location.

Correction: News-Press NOW has updated a previous version of this article to show the vehicle involved was a Dodge Challenger and not a Dodge Charger. We apologize for this error.

St. Joseph police and fire work the scene of a crash at 2108 S. 17th St. on Monday. The crash occurred after a vehicle traveling westbound on U.S. Highway 36 lost control and went off the roadway, crashing through a fence and into one resident’s property. The crash badly damaged a power line and caused nearby residents to lose power. 

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Praji Ghosh

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) —  The Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art is showcasing the work of Jacqueline Bishop in an exhibition called ‘Above the Fruited Plain.’ 

Bishop, who is originally from St. Joseph, is known for her detailed, emotional paintings and prints. Much of her work reflects her decades living in New Orleans and her travels to rainforests and other threatened environments.  

“I think people will find a lot to be interested in it since her work is full of detail and emotions, and she spent a lot of time travelling to rainforests and other threatened environments,” Exhibition Manager Meghan Benitz said.  

The exhibition includes several of Bishop’s prints from the past 10 years. The museum plans to rotate in new pieces over the next few months to keep the display fresh.  

“We have a collection (of) her prints as well from around here and it’s mostly work that she has done in the past 10 years. We will be changing the exhibition in the next three months,” Benitz said.  

Benitz says the museum makes it a priority to feature a variety of artists and perspectives, giving visitors a chance to see the world through different lenses.  

She highlights that Bishop’s use of a deep red pigment is a unifying element of this exhibition.  

“Each individual’s artwork is great but the whole show together can help create this feeling in viewers because it’s red and evokes things like pollution but also a historic pigment that’s (been) used for centuries,” Benitz said.  

The museum will also showcase works that celebrate creativity, resilience in women and the symbolic beauty woven into Bishop’s art. 

A free community reception is planned for Sept. 19 from 4 to 7 p.m. The exhibition officially opens on Sept. 20 and will remain on display through Nov. 2.

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Cameron Montemayor

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — City leaders are eyeing the next generation of cutting-edge technology to help grade and improve the condition of St. Joseph’s streets and roadways.

St. Joseph Public Works and Transportation is in the process of integrating new AI-powered software called Road AI, a type of specialized road maintenance software capable of detecting defects from cracking and fretting to edge deterioration and larger potholes.

“We’re trying to advance everything in Public Works and AI is the big thing right now,” St. Joseph Public Works and Transportation Director Abe Forney said. “This new technology will enhance the ability for our public works department to hit those potholes.”

A $15,380 contract for the new technology is set to be introduced for first reading at Tuesday’s City Council meeting and could be finalized later on Sept. 15.

The program operates by recording street surfaces using smartphones while an inspector drives the route. The video is uploaded nightly to a cloud-based AI program with condition ratings being available within hours.

Data is then exported to Excel and imported into Cartegraph — an operations and asset management software platform — for use in determining overlay lists, concrete repair lists and other maintenance priorities.

“It’ll also give us sign inventory that we’ve never had. So it’s looking at signs. It’s looking at our road conditions. It’s looking at crosswalks where they should be and bike trails that cross the road,” Forney said. “This technology is going to continue to grow.”

RoadAI’s technology will sharply boost efficiency and enhance the long-held process of having a supervisor drive and document 440 lane miles of roadway in St. Joseph.

If approved by council, Forney expects the city will be able to quickly integrate the new software and have it deployed for staff usage in short order. The software is part of a subscription service offered through company Vaisala Inc.

“Taking one of our employees and driving all the roads and him writing on a piece of paper what our road conditions are … this is going to be much better,” Forney said. “This technology is going to free them up to do other things that need attention.”

In the long run, he’s optimistic the AI-powered technology will provide cost savings for the department and could grow in usage in other areas. RoadAI’s website states the software is 50% less expensive that traditional road surveys.

The technology is one key part of the city’s new five-year street master plan, a strategy designed to address top concerns identified in a community survey launched earlier this year.

“The survey that just came out said that our road conditions are in poor shape. We all know that some of our roads need some attention,” Forney said. “There’s so many things that are out there that we can utilize to better our public works department.”

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News-Press NOW

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — A local hospice provider has been recognized by Strategic Healthcare Programs as a ‘Superior Performer.’

Freudenthal Hospice received an overall caregiver and family experience score that ranked in the top 20% of all eligible SHP clients for 2024.

The annual SHPBest award program was created to acknowledge hospice providers that consistently provide high-quality service to families and caregivers of patients receiving hospice care.

The 2024 recipients were determined by reviewing and ranking the overall CAHPS Hospice caregiver experience score for more than 1,800 hospice providers.

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Charles Christian

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — For those looking to save money while having a nostalgic, hands-on shopping experience, antique malls are a popular destination.

Antique malls are a common part of the landscape in and around St. Joseph. Familiar shops like the Jesse James Antique Mall, Black Katt, Hunterland and the recently closed St. Joseph Auction and Antique Mart have served the community for decades.

Rose Mary Seuell, who retired in 2009 from a local company, went to work for an antique mall as a side job, and then decided to buy the shop that’s now known as Hunterland Antiques Downtown.

“We have around 50 booths here,” Seuell said. “A lot of them followed us from the other location when we moved downtown in 2019, and it is common for vendors to have booths in more than one antique mall.”

The vendors are the secret to these malls. They rent booths from the owners, maintain the booths, pay rent and then give a percentage (usually around 10%) of their sales to the owners.

The owners help oversee the booths in the big shop, but the vendors also help the owners in regard to customer service and maintenance.

“We like for them to keep their booths clean and to keep a consistent eye on their booths and their merchandise,” Seuell said. “We’re fortunate here, because our vendors work well together and they keep their booths spotless.”

One vendor, Richard Vanderhoef, said he started as a collector and specializes in antiques and older collectibles.

“I have been a vendor here since 2019, and I have four booths at Hunterland,” Vanderhoef said. “Right now, you can save a lot of money on items that are used, and that keeps things out of the landfill.”

Customers usually like the idea of saving money and of the nostalgia of recapturing the hands-on experience of shopping in person while supporting local businesses. This rings true for collector and antique mall customer Robert Mata.

“I think a lot of it reminds me of shopping with my dad as a kid and going to garage sales,” Mata said. “I think supporting local businesses is great, and having places like this where you can walk in and touch the items and even see some of the history of the area in the items available is great for the community.”

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Kyle Schmidt

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — A new sound will be heard on Missouri Western State University’s campus.

The marching and pep band moved into the athletics department and will be led by first-year hire Adrian Lowry.

“The idea being that we’re going to reform it, we’re going to grow it, and if we get back to the point where we can have a marching band that’s respectable and big enough, to make a significant impact, then we’ll do it,” Lowry said. “We’re just not there right now, we don’t have enough people to do that and to do it correctly, and that’s our goal.”

Already, the group has nearly doubled, with 40 members coming from all over. The band allows students, faculty, staff and even community members to join.

“I remember how big the marching band used to be, watching from the stadium club in elementary school… To see it drop to what it had was frustrating,” drummer for the rock group Tucker Holden said. “So when they had this idea to bring it under athletics and to revitalize it and to build something new to start with a clean slate rather than disband it entirely, you can never be mad about a second chance at life.”

Currently, Lowry said the team has around 85 performance opportunities, which include every sport at MoWest besides golf and tennis.

“Normally, marching bands in college play on the high end 15 or 20 times,” Lowry said. “Basketball pep bands play a little more, but nobody plays 85, and you still have all of three sports to add.”

MoWest’s spring athletic schedule is not finalized yet, but Lowry said the performance total will go up to over 100 once the schedule is released. The group will also perform at campus events, community events and Downtown.

Athletic Bands is an umbrella for many smaller ensembles. The rock group has rotating players filling in each instrument needed. The unique part about the group is student athletes can join as well.

“Music after high school doesn’t have to be just for music majors, and that’s what we’re trying to go for here,” Lowry said. “Give people that opportunity to make music at a high level in front of crowds and crowds of people.”

Captain of Athletic Bands and trumpet player Hanna Summers bought into Lowry’s mission within minutes.

“After I had that first phone call with Adrian, I was locked in,” Summers said. “He pitched it in such an excellent way and I was just really looking forward to it.”

Summers felt the open arms from the athletic department, feeling the athletes have embraced this new idea, saying, “It feels like we’re inside the family now.”

Lowry’s short-term goal is to put out a product that people can be proud of and to surprise people.

Long term, he wants to continue to build the program, gather more people, more equipment and more performance opportunities.

“We do want to bring in people from other places, but we also want to keep the ones we have here,” Lowry said. “If we can provide something that nobody else provides, regionally that I know of, no one else is providing this opportunity.”

To sign up, visit the Athletic Bands website and click the register tab.

“It’s going to allow for something that Missouri Western’s never seen before, and a lot of other colleges have never seen before,” Holden said. “I wouldn’t be shocked if we execute this correctly; other schools are going to start taking notice and they’re going to start doing what we’re doing now.”

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News-Press NOW

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Congressman Sam Graves presented military recovered service medals to the family of a Northwest Missouri veteran.

U.S. Rep. Graves, R-Mo., presented the medals to the family of William Edgar Taul for his role in WWII.

Taul served in the Army beginning in 1944. His military service records were lost in a fire at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis in 1973. However, Graves was able to obtain several medals for his service.

“I’m grateful for all of our veterans in North Missouri,” said Graves. “It’s an honor to be able to present these medals to Mr. Taul’s family so they can always remember his service to our nation.”

The medals consisted of the Bronze Star Medal, the WWII Victory Medal, the Combat Infantry Badge 1st Award and the Honorable Service Lapel Button WWII.

Taul’s grandson, Ryan Wright and Taul’s daughter and son-in-law, Peggy and Barry Boulware, were presented the awards.

Veterans or their family members are encouraged to reach out to Graves’ office if they are trying to obtain earned service medals.

Grave’s office is also available to assist in accessing Veterans Affairs benefits.

Those in need of assistance are encouraged to call 816-792-3976.

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Rebecca Evans

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The St. Joseph Public Library is celebrating Library Card Sign-Up Month in September with the theme “One Card, Endless Possibilities.”

Library cards provide access to more than books. This includes free programs, job resources, homework help as well as streaming media.

The library is waiving the usual $1 replacement fee for lost cards throughout the month. Patrons who use their cards in September can also enter prize drawings at any of the four library branches.

Prizes include a Smart Cookie stuffed animal and book set for ages six and under, a $25 Dunkin’ Donuts gift card for ages seven to 17 and a $25 Country Cookie gift card for adults.

The library will also hand out mints to visitors as a thank-you for their continued support.

More information is available at SJPL’s website, or on the library’s Facebook page.

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Rebecca Evans

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Three lucky students from Missouri Western State University closed out the summer on an international stage at the SIGGRAPH 2025 conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

“It really feels like it’s given me a jump start on my career,” said Kylee Derr, a senior digital animation student who went on the trip. “Being able to talk to industry professionals and recruiters and being able to have all of that community feedback was really nice. It was a great experience. “

SIGGRAPH is considered the world’s premier conference on computer graphics and interactive techniques. Top talent, researchers and industry leaders from across the globe attend each year.

The students represented MoWest’s Digital Animation program, highlighting the skills and dedication being developed in the program.

“It definitely showed me that I had more opportunities within the career field than I originally thought,” said Eliza Kuker, another senior digital animation student who went on the trip. “There were many unique places there that I would have never assumed had animation positions. It really showed me that I can go in any direction I really want to.”

More information about Digital Animation at MoWest can be found on the university’s website.

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Rebecca Evans

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — AugustFest has returned for its second year at the Good Times Event Center, with festivities continuing through Sunday at 3414 S. 22nd St.

Saturday marked the second day of the three-day festival, where attendees enjoyed a wide range of activities, including indoor and outdoor live music, local vendors, bounce houses, food trucks, and live performances.

A $1 donation is suggested for entry to Augustfest, with wristbands and tickets available for attractions. Bounce wristbands are priced at $20 for one day, $35 for two days, and $50 for the full weekend. Individual tickets are also available for $1 each.

Organizers said 70% of the event’s proceeds will benefit the Youth Alliance’s Youth Volunteer Program. Volunteers, vendors and performers are still being accepted.

One of the performers at the event, Aubrey Zechariah said, “It’s a lot of fun to actually come out and see a lot of people supporting each other and just working together for something good.”

Families also had the opportunity Saturday to meet puppies available for adoption through Collar to Halter, a dog and horse sanctuary based in Harris, Missouri. The organization, located at 16785 Bear Drive, offers free adoptions year-round.

“A lot of small businesses are really struggling right now,” said co-host of the event, Cheynne Tuttle, “We want to try to be one of the ones that do succeed so that we can continue to help the community and give something for the kids, adults and elderly to do.” 

The festival concludes Sunday, Aug. 31, weather permitting. For more information, call or text 816-262-1574, or visit the Good Times Event Center’s Facebook page for updates.

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