CN: November 2, 2022

By Wendy Todd

In December of 1992, Maine business man Morrill Worcester, who owned a family-run wreath making business, do nated extra wreaths to put on veterans’ graves in Arlington National Cemetery. This informal act of patriotism sparked a tradition that has been carried out by the nonprofit, Wreaths Across America.

In addition to the tradition, WAA has a created a Mobile Education Exhibit hon oring veterans that is visiting cities across the country including Florissant. The ex hibit, which was created in 2017, will be

Around

Celebrate Peanut the Turtle’s 38th birthday party at Powder Valley Nature Center. Pg. 7

accompanied by a ceremony sponsored by the Reverend John Clark and O’Fallon Chapters of

Daughters

the Ameri

The exhibit and event have been de signed to bring communities together and

those who have served the coun try.

“The goal of the Wreaths Across

rifice of our nation’s

is to bring

the service and

said Karen

‘HONORING’ from cover

Worcester, executive direc tor, Wreaths Across Amer ica.

The local DAR is happy to host the event in Florissant.

“Our chapter is very ex cited to host this important exhibit on Nov. 19, and help honor our St. Louis area vet erans by welcoming home those who served in the Vietnam War,” said Wendy Powers Sinn, Regent, Rev erend John Clark chapter of the DAR.

The event, which will in clude putting wreaths on gravesites of veterans, will be another way for those widowed by the Vietnam War to remember their spouses.

“Several of our chapter members are the wives of Vietnam veterans and we understand how important it is for our veterans to be recognized and celebrat ed by the members of our community,” said Wendy Krzyzanowski, Chair, Ser vice for Veterans Commit tee, Reverend John Clark chapter of the DAR.

According to Sean Sulli van, Public Relations Man ager of WAA, there are 101 participating cemeteries in Missouri and a total of 369,925 eligible veterans’ graves. Last year WAA placed more than 2.4 mil lion wreaths at more than 3,100 participating loca tions across the country.

Members of the Rever end John Clark, DAR will lay wreaths on the graves of veterans at two histor ic cemeteries: Cold Water Cemetery in Florissant, the oldest Protestant ceme tery west of the Mississippi River, and New Coldwater Burial Grounds Memorial Park in Black Jack, which is one of the few grave yards in Missouri owned by and reserved for use by African-Americans during 1886-1949.

Each wreath is made from evergreens, which symbol ize longevity and endurance. The circular shape symbol izes eternity. Its clean, forest scent symbolizes purity and simplicity. Its red bow sym bolizes the great sacrifice.

The event will take place between 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. with a flag ceremony and “Welcome Home” for Vietnam veterans at 1:30 p.m. Local dignitaries will speak, and local vocalist and Trumpeter, Lady J Huston will perform the national anthem. Scout Troop 942, and their Scoutmaster, Steve Scott, will also assist with the ceremony. Mann Meats food truck will serve food from 12:30-2:30 p.m.

The MEE is making five Missouri stops in 2022 during November. The Nov. 19 stop in Florissant is the final Missouri stop on the tour.

COMMUNITY VOICES:

By Dr. Paula Knight

School safety and security are a constant priority for administrators

There is an increasing demand for district and school officials to have a comprehensive plan to keep students and staff safe while in our educational care.

When we think of crime and violence in our schools, many equate such acts of vio lence that flood social media on a far too fa miliar regular basis, as a normalized behavior within our society.

In years past, we would think of Columbine High School, Virginia Tech and Sandy Hook to name a few. Today, we can add Uvalde School District to the horrific reminder that safety and security is now embedded in the proverbial fabric of the educational system.

There is an undeniable attack on our sys tem, through acts of violence, legislators

making decisions that have direct or indirect impact on the lives of children, and those who do not see school as a safe place for children. The aforementioned incidences are perhaps the most alarming and worst cases of violence in the U.S. school system to date. However, we must not let such harmful acts overshadow the everyday reality that schools are safe. District and building leaders, staff are designing systems to protect children from hurtful acts that have lasting impact on their social-emotional wellbeing.

School safety and security is largely about forethought, prevention and response time. We have a moral obligation to protect our youngest treasures, the children.

Dr. Paula Knight be gan her career with the St. Louis Public School District in 1994 as a classroom teacher at Hamilton Elementary School. Knight has a Bachelor of Arts in El ementary Education from St. Louis Universi ty and a Master of Arts, and a Doctorate in Education Leadership from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. As of July 1, 2021, Knight was unanimously approved by the Jennings School Board of Directors to be the Superintendent of Schools, beginning the 2021-2022 academic year.

The opinions expressed in this column are the columnist’s alone and do not reflect the opinion of the owners or staff of Community News.

Submitted photos

Vaccine for monkeypox is available at Affinia Healthcare

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services has recently expanded vaccine eligi bility for the monkeypox vacci nations to include pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP. Monkey pox PrEP is a vaccination to pre vent monkeypox.

Affinia Healthcare will of fer the monkeypox vaccine on Thursdays 9-11:45 a.m., and Fri days from 9 a.m.-2 p.m., at its midtown location at 2900 Wash ington Ave.

The monkeypox vaccine (JYN NEOS) is available for adults, 18 and over. It requires two doses separated by four weeks. Mon keypox PrEP is intended for people with the highest potential for exposure to monkeypox. The vaccine remains available for post-exposure protection.

Anyone who meets any of the criteria below can get vaccinated for monkeypox:

• Gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men, trans gender or nonbinary people who in the past six months have had:

• A new diagnosis of one or more nationally reportable

sexually transmitted diseases (i.e., acute HIV, chancroid, chlamydia, gonorrhea, or syphilis)

• More than one sex partner

People who have had any of the following in the past six months:

• Sex at a commercial sex venue

• Sex in association with a large public event in a geographic area where monkeypox trans mission is occurring

• Sexual partners of people with the above risks

• People who anticipate experi encing the above risks

Please bring your insurance card (if you have insurance) and a photo ID to your vaccine ap pointment. All Affinia Health care locations will provide the vaccination if the patient does not have insurance.

Vaccines are also available through the St. Louis County Department of Health. For more information, please visit the St. Louis County DOH website, st louiscountymo.gov or call 314615-0600.

Fashion salvation on display at the Sheldon Concert Hall

By Scott Shy

The Salvation Army sponsored a 70s-theme fashion show at The Sheldon Concert Hall and Art Galleries on Oct. 15, titled, “Reimagine 75, Fashion with a Cause.”

Chelsea Haynes of Studio STL was the Mis tress of Ceremony of this special event that in cluded a host of local talent and fashion design ers. Special music was powerfully performed by Sya for all in attendance and an esteemed panel of judges included Matthew Anderson, Dirk Elsperman and Mary Ruppert-Stroescu.

Photos by Scott Shy

Many of the spectators and supporters also sported looks and styles of the 70s to further enhance the experience. Also in attendance was Rick Horton, former Cardinal pitcher and broadcaster, and Leah Hill, a meteorologist who also walked the runway.

The Salvation Army wanted to highlight the many community contributions of the orga nization, especially the Annual Tree of Lights campaign, now in its 75th year.

A city on the move

By Kiana Fleming

How Olivette is growing into a sought-after and vibrant municipality

Olivette is often lost in the crowd, a place to drive through but never a destination stop. Over shadowed by the larger surrounding municipali ties of University City, Clayton, Ladue and Creve Coeur, Olivette strives to make a name for itself in the St. Louis region.

“In The Center of It All,” the city of Olivette is a suburban community full of charm and local pride. Transforming from a vil lage to a full-service Home Rule Charter city in the mid-1970s, data released from the 2020 Census shows the city’s total popu lation grew 9.91% to 8,504. This Census marks the second highest population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau in the history of Olivette and high lights Olivette as having one of the largest-growing populations of foreign-born residents in St. Louis County.

Olivette provides a wide array of services, in cluding a CALEA-accredited police department, fire protection, building inspections, public works, parks and recreation, with 104 full-time employ ees. With an operating budget of $8.7 million, the city welcomes new investments to aid in the strong financial strategies that position Olivette to tackle and meet the challenges of the future with expo nentially greater results.

Amid a cultural transformation, the vision for Olivette is big, bold and groundbreaking.

The goals of Olivette’s Strategic Plan: Dynamic Sense of Place are the robust Dielman Industrial Light Park, home to warehouses, distribution cen ters and factories, the $13.5 million bond issue that funded the construction of Olivette’s City Center, and the approval of a buzzing development, Olive Crossing.

Bringing Sugarfire’s first location to Olivette, na tive Olivette resident Greg Yawtiz is redeveloping the corner of Olive and I-170. KDG and KEAT Properties will bring a dynamic 14.8-acre mixeduse center that includes a Marriott Courtyard and Element hotel, 181 apartment units, and office space in addition to retail and dining. This is the city’s first and largest Planned Development Dis trict (PDD).

The Olive Boulevard: Concept Master Plan highlights include The Oliver, a chic apartment complex, a Firestone AutoCare, EZ Storage and Planthaven Commercial Center for retail shop ping.

The Opus Group and Hilltop Woods Develop ment group will build a five-story, 207-unit mul

tifamily apartment complex north of Olive Bou levard, while Douglas Properties, the mastermind behind dozens of luxury homes and mid-rise con dominium buildings in the central corridor of St. Louis, will build a 35-unit townhouse development on 2.84 acres, across from the Olivette City Center.

Olivette’s Parks Master Plan implementation pro vides a new community center, renovations to all five city parks, wayfinding signage throughout Olivette and a partnership with Great Rivers Greenway that will bring an ex tension of the Centennial Greenway to Olivette. The extension will allow people to connect on foot, bicycle, stroller, and wheelchair from down town St. Louis to Warson Park, 39 North and Olive Boulevard.

Olivette’s Stacy Park is the world’s newest Urban Night Sky Place. This is the first Urban Night Sky Place awarded by the International Dark-Sky As sociation (IDA) in the state of Missouri and de fined as a municipal park, open space, observing site, or other similar property near or surrounded by large urban environs whose planning and de sign actively promote an authentic nighttime ex perience while surrounded by significant artificial light.

Olivette’s blossoming partnerships with 39 North AgTech Innovation District and the Don ald Danforth Plant Science Center situate Olivette at the intersection of ag-tech research and inno vation.

Collaborating with local partners including the YWCA, 39 North, and the St. Louis Economic De velopment Partnership, Olivette will be home to a new early childhood education center tackling the lack of quality, affordable childcare in the region. The partnership with the Danforth Center and the ag-tech community in 39 North will enrich the experience by integrating plant life science and in novation into the curriculum to expand children’s knowledge.

Olivette is also located in the desirable topranked Ladue School District which draws fami lies of all sizes and shapes to the city.

No matter what you want to do, chances are you will find it in beautiful Olivette. Home to vibrant economy and beautiful surroundings, Olivette is a special place and is on the move.

Catch them while you can.

Kiana Fleming is Communications Manager for the city of Olivette.

MetroLink Secure Platform Plan highlighted during ‘Talking Transit’ event

Details about the multi-tiered plan that was developed to create a more secure transit environment on MetroLink were revealed on Oct. 18 at Citizens for Modern Transit’s (CMT) “Talking Transit” event, hosted via Zoom. Over 75 members, elected of ficials, stakeholders, transit riders and others were in attendance to learn more about the Secure Platform Plan (SPP) for the MetroLink system, which aims to address the security structure of Metro Transit, in part, by creating centralized, highly secure customer entrances at all 38 MetroLink stations. Those in attendance learned about Secure Platform Plan and why this project is important to the St. Louis area business community. The panel discussion featured Kevin Scott, BiState Development General Manager of Security and Secure Platform Plan Project Leader; Mark Grossenbach er, St. Louis Area Practice Leader at HNTB and Project Manager on the Se cure Platform Plan Project; and Kathy Osborn, President and CEO at the Re gional Business Council. It was moder ated by Kimberly Cella, Executive Di rector of Citizens for Modern Transit.

Scott kicked off the conversation by reinforcing how safety and securi ty has been a main priority for Met ro Transit since 2019 when Bi-State Development and East-West Gateway Council of Governments partnered with consultant WSP to complete a system-wide security assessment for MetroLink.

This resulted in 99 recommenda tions for addressing security strategy, police/security staffing procedures, fare and fare enforcement, technolo gy and crime prevention through en vironmental design. The majority of these recommendations have been im plemented. The Secure Platform Plan will address the remaining items in the categories of fare and fare enforce ment, technology and crime preven tion through environmental design. The plan greatly complements what has already been put in place, posi tively impacting the entire system and propelling Metro Transit to the front of the transit industry.

“We recognize the community’s call for a more secure system,” said Scott. “People have always questioned why the open concept system exists on MetroLink. The Secure Platform Plan will allow us to address those concerns, enhance our overall secu rity efforts that we’ve already made enormous progress on, and show the region – and our ridership – that we are doing everything we can to regain,

rebuild and prioritize their confidence in this extraordinary regional asset.”

The $52 million Secure Platform Plan has received broad support from public and private sector partners. The sources of the $52 million in fund ing include $17.25 million from the Bi-State Development capital funds budget and the American Recovery Plan, $12 million bond refinancing proceeds dedicated to security, $12 million Illinois allocation from feder al stimulus and $10.75 million private sector funding. The private contribu tions are rare and underscore the im portance of this project and the essen tialness of public transit to the future of the region.

The initiative calls for new fare gates and perimeter fencing to be installed at all 38 MetroLink stations. Central ized entrances with fare gates will be created, and once installed, these will only be activated by using a valid tick et or pass. Beyond the gates, the fare purchasing system will be completely upgraded to include new ticket vend ing machines, card readers – featuring payment integration technology into mobile devices – and an update to the transit system’s closed-circuit cam era program with a real-time camera system. There will be an increase from 800 cameras currently on the system to 1,600. All cameras will be equipped with the latest analog and digital tech nologies and built on a sound securi ty platform that feeds into a real-time camera center for proactive viewing of locations. As a result, a fluid, “outin-front-of” approach will be main tained.

The project - including design, pro curement and construction – is ex pected to be completed in 30 months.

“I cannot stress this enough,” added Scott. “This is one project with 38 dif ferent projects, one at each MetroLink station. We are very aggressively mov ing forward, but we want to get it right. There will likely be phased im plementation.”

The event also highlighted what the Secure Platform Plan means to the business community. Kathy Osborn discussed how economic growth is rooted in access to safe, integrated ac cess to public transportation.

“Infrastructure is very important to business,” noted Osborn. “You must be able to get people and product around. This is an economic imperative. It’s also an equity issue. So often people want the job but don’t have the trans portation to get to the job. People need to feel confident in and comfortable with the public transit system.”

Drop-off sites to open for Operation Christmas Child

More than 4,500 locations will open to collect Operation Christmas Child Shoebox Gifts for The Samaritan’s Purse Project. Volunteers are preparing to col lect shoebox gifts during National Col lection Week, Nov. 14 – 21.

Operation Christmas Child has been collecting and delivering shoebox gifts – filled with school supplies, hygiene items and fun toys – to children world wide since 1993. Anyone can pack a shoebox. In 2022, Operation Christmas Child hopes to collect enough shoebox es to reach another 11 million children.

Individuals, families, and groups still have time to transform empty shoebox es into fun gifts. The project partners with local churches across the globe to deliver these tangible expressions of God’s love to children in need. Find a step-by-step guide on the How to Pack a Shoebox webpage.

“Now more than ever, children around the world need to know that God loves them and there is hope,” said Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse. “A simple shoebox gift opens the door to share about the true hope that can only be found in Jesus Christ.”

Participants can find the nearest dropoff location and hours of operation as they make plans to drop off their shoebox gifts. The online lookup tool is search able by city or ZIP code. Signs at each location will identify the drop-off.

This year, for the first time, Parker Road Bap tist Church at 2675 Park er Road, has been named a Central Drop-Off loca tion and trailers will be on-site to receive cartons from other churches.

Parker Road Baptist Church 2675 Parker Road, Flo rissant

Nov. 14, 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Nov. 15, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Nov. 16, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Nov. 17, 5:30-7:30 p.m. Nov. 18, 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Nov. 19, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Nov. 20, 1-3 p.m. Nov. 21, 9 a.m.-11 a.m.

North County Community Church 7410 Howdershell Road, Hazelwood

Nov. 14, 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Nov. 15, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. Nov. 16, 12-2 p.m. Nov. 17, 1-3 p.m.

Nov. 17, 5-7 p.m.

Nov. 18, 2-4 p.m.

Nov. 19, 10 a.m.- 12 p.m.

Nov. 19. 3-5 p.m.

Nov. 20, 12-4 p.m.

Nov. 21, 8 a.m.-11 a.m.

First Baptist Church of Ferguson 333 N. Florissant Road, Ferguson

Nov. 14, 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

Nov. 15, 12-3 p.m.

Nov. 16, 5:30-7:30 p.m.

Nov. 17, 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

Nov. 18, 12-3 p.m.

Nov. 19, 9 a.m-1 p.m.

Nov. 20, 12:30-3 p.m.

Nov. 21, 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

Sutter Evangelical Presbyterian 3500 Fee Fee Road, Bridgeton

Nov. 14. 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

Nov. 15, 6-8 p.m.

Nov. 16, 1-3 p.m.

Nov. 17, 6-8 p.m.

Nov. 18, 1-3 p.m.

Nov. 19, 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

Nov. 20, 2-4 p.m.

Nov. 21, 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

More St. Louis locations and hours of operation are available on the Samari tan’s Purse website with an online look up tool searchable by city or Zip code.

Why can’t time be a little kinder?Still In This Together:

Time has a way of messing with us. It speeds up when we most want it to slow down, and crawls in exorably when we’re waiting for something wonder ful, like vacation. I know full well that time is an unchanging thing, but my brain refuses to admit it. I’m just not an empirical thinker; my brain tends to be more imaginative and flightier. I’m sure those of you who have become readers of my column are not in the least surprised by that statement.

I’ve had to learn some tricks to play when vaca tion seems so very far away, but it still seems that the closer it gets, the slower the days crawl. Our vaca tion was just a few weeks ago, and I brought out the composition book I use to keep me focused the very day I bought the vacation salt and pepper in April.

You see, there are rituals to a Bahr vacation, and vacation salt and pepper became one of them many years ago. It’s proof that the countdown has officially begun. I make a trip to the dollar store for a plastic white and black duo that will reside in a very visible spot as a constant reminder that the upcoming vaca tion is indeed a reality.

The vacation book is my written journal of plans

and reminders beforehand, a faithful rendering of driven vacation miles as they pass, including clever highway billboards, gas stations frequented, restau rants enjoyed and cute little stores and produce stands along the way, and a carefully notated dayto-day compilation of the weather, our meal choices, and the things we’ve done each magically wonderful day of vacation.

I find as the years go by that I need these remind ers as proof of the fact that time really hasn’t cheated me out of a day or two of vacation, the way it certain ly seems the closer the last day of our condo rental comes. And what a wonderful diversion it is on a cold winter’s night as I turn the pages of the vacation book and read of our beach vacation, lingering for a moment or two on the reminder of a hot day on a seashell-strewn, sugar-white stretch of seclusion sitting with my toes at the edge of the surf with a thawing frozen bottle of water in my hand.

Time can’t cheat me of those memories when they’ve been duly noted in my composition book and tucked away in a bottom drawer of my dresser.

I need the reminders of the not-so-great mem ories, too: the bedroom shade that wouldn’t quite cover the window no matter how we fiddled with the cords, the dishwasher that somehow knew I had no idea how to work all the buttons and dials because I’m one of the few people who doesn’t own one; the television so persnickety that it required hand-writ ten notes and hand-drawn picture accompaniments to try to explain its workings. We never got it to turn off without having to physically unplug it in the wee hours of the morning.

I didn’t care that autumn leaves were falling in the backyard, nor that I’d providentially brought one box

By Vicki Bahr

of Halloween decorations upstairs before we left as a reminder that there really was something to look forward to when we came home. I didn’t care that we had spent a night at a hotel on the way home to stretch the vacation just a little longer and we wouldn’t have to be carrying luggage into the house in the dark.

I still wanted my chance to argue with time and plead my case. I’ll gladly give back my hour of shov eling snow last year for just two extra minutes to throw bread crumbs to the seagulls. And I’d trade the interminable time spent in the dentist’s chair while he worked on my crown for an extra five min utes at the minor league baseball game we had front row seats for.

But time is too busy to entertain those types of deals. So, I’ll just keep figuring out my little cheats, like a vacation book filled with wonderful memories and a road atlas marked with milkshake drips and starred welcome centers worth revisiting. We also wisely planned our next trip on the way home from this one, and we leave for Omaha in a few days to vis it our daughter, son-in-law and two grandboys there. Gotcha this time, Time!

Vicki Bahr is an inveterate word lover and story sharer, a published author in magazine, newspaper and blog forms. As a mom of four, grandma of nine, and wife of one for 50 years, she finds that inspira tion and wonder are everywhere.

The opinions expressed in this column are the columnist’s alone and do not reflect the opinion of the owners or staff of Community News

Gateway Arch Park Foundation has joined forc es with the National Park Service to present a “Sa lute to Veterans” on Saturday, Nov. 5, at 1 p.m. The concert will take place at Luther Ely Smith Square on the Gateway Arch National Park grounds.

Honoring the bravery and sacrifice of all U.S. military veterans, the program will feature a per formance by the 399th Army Band Missouri Brass Quintet based at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. The performance, which will include both patri otic and traditional repertoire, is expected to run about an hour.

“We’re thrilled to once again honor our veterans and their families through this musical tribute in front of the Arch, and we hope you’ll join us in recognizing them,” said Ryan McClure, executive

director of Gateway Arch Park Foundation. “We are eternally grateful to all U.S. veterans who have given so much for our country.”

Salute to Veterans is free and open to the public, with support from Hyatt Regency St. Louis at The Arch. For more information, visit archpark.org/ veterans.

National Park Service Fee-Free Day: Nov. 11

The National Park Service has designated Vet erans Day on Nov. 11 a fee-free day, in which the entrance fee at all NPS sites is waived. At Gateway Arch National Park, the $3 entrance fee included in each adult Tram Ride to the Top ticket and adult Documentary Movie ticket is waived. Plan your visit and get your tickets at gatewayarch.com.

‘Salute to Veterans’ tribute at the Gateway Arch features 399th Army Band Missouri Brass Quintet

Celebrate Peanut the Turtle’s 38th birthday party at Powder Valley Nature Center

Peanut the Turtle is turning 38, and the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) is throwing her a birthday celebration. The birthday partying takes place at Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center Saturday, Nov. 19 from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. It’s a free event and open to all ages.

Peanut the Turtle has attracted attention all over Missouri, along with national and worldwide fame, as an anti-littering mascot. At a young age, the redeared slider wandered into a discarded plastic sixpack ring, and it stuck around her shell. As her shell grew, it was constricted by the plastic ring and devel oped an unusual, figure-eight shape. In 1993, when she was about nine years old, she was found in the St. Louis area and brought to the Saint Louis Zoo, where the ring was removed.

They named her Peanut because of her shell’s shape and gave her to staff at MDC. Peanut has been un der the care of MDC since, where she has served as a popular ambassador for litter awareness. Peanut’s permanent home is now at the nature center.

In the spirit of Peanut’s message, participants can help with litter pickups in and around Powder Valley during her birthday celebration event.

“We’ll provide MoDOT NoMOre trash bags for participants, and for each bag of trash they collect, they can enter a raffle to win prizes,” said MDC Nat uralist Shelly Colatskie.

She added that participants can also qualify for the raffle by sending photos of themselves picking

up litter at other places in the area.

The nature center will also serve birthday cake in honor of Peanut’s big day. Educational programs will help make visitors aware of the environmental chal lenges that plastics pose and inform them about ways they can help prevent Peanut’s fate from happen ing to other wildlife. Ac tivities will also include information on Missouri Stream Teams, crafts, a chance to see live animals, and meet and greet Peanut herself.

At a young age, Peanut, a red-eared slider, wandered into a discarded plastic six-pack ring, and it stuck around her shell.

Peanut’s 38th Birthday Celebration is free, but MDC asks visitors to prereg ister online at https://short.mdc.mo.gov/4pm.

Peanut the Turtle and her one-of-a-kind figure have been reminding us for almost 40 years to con sider wildlife and dispose of litter properly. Peanut has been featured in numerous TV stories and news paper articles, made public appearances at venues like the Missouri State Fair, and even been highlight ed internationally on websites like the Dodo.com. Come to Peanut’s 38th Birthday Celebration and say

St. Luke’s Hospital celebrates fall with new arrivals

hello and thank her for her years of public service.

Powder Valley Nature Center is located at 11715 Cragwold Road in Kirkwood, near the intersection of I-270 and I-44.

The gusty breeze and falling leaves bring pumpkin kisses and harvest wishes from the newest members of the St. Luke’s baby bunting family. These autumn an gels are perfect for snuggling the chill away on a crisp, fall day.

St. Luke’s is known as the “baby bunting hospital” because they provide themed baby buntings on holi

days to make the experience extra special for families in St. Luke’s Birth Care Suites. St. Luke’s has been pro viding holiday baby buntings since 1997. They offer the buntings to the parents of all the babies that are in St. Luke’s Birth Care Suites on the many holidays in which the buntings are available.

Submitted photo

Submitted photo

Happening

EVENTS

Nov. 5: Rummage sale

The rummage sale is on at Cal vary United Church of Christ at 2501 Hartland Avenue in Sycamore Hills. Hours of operation will be from 8 a.m. - 1 p.m. For everyone’s safety, the church is encouraging the wearing of masks.

Nov. 5: Fundraiser gala Assistance League of St. Louis will host Imagine! Puttin’ On The Glitz Gala at the Doubletree by Hilton Chesterfield. The gala is the largest single fundraiser for Assistance League St. Louis, an all-volunteer organization whose mission is to provide programs and services to the underserved in the St. Louis metropolitan area. Event timeline: 6 p.m. – Registra tion, 6:15 p.m. – Cocktails and Silent Auction, 7:30 p.m. – Dinner and 8:15 p.m. - Live Auction. If interested in at tending, please call Assist ance League at 636-227-6200.

Nov 6: Quilt Bingo

St. Ferdinand Ladies Sodal ity Quilt Bingo, doors open 11a.m., games begin at 1 p.m. in School Gym at 1735 Charbonier Rd. in Florissant. Twelve beautiful hand-quilted quilts, cash prizes, raffle, pull

tabs and refreshments avail able. Cash only and no one under 16 years of age.

RECURRING EVENTS

Weekdays: Food pantry volunteers needed

The Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry is in need of on going adult volunteers to sort food, stock shelves and shop with clients. Two-to-four hour shifts are available, Mon day-Friday 8:45 a.m.-3:45 p.m. To learn more or to join this fun group, contact Chelsey Banaskavich at 314-513-1674 or cbanaskavich@jfcs-stl.org.

Mondays: Choral Arts Group meetings

Choral Arts Group practices every Monday from 7 to 9 p.m. at Connection Christian Church at 1332 Feise Rd. in O’Fallon. Auditions not re quired. Ages high school and older are invited to join. There will be spring and fall public concerts. For more informa tion call Marty at 636-5799227, or email concertartsa@ gmail.com.

Mondays: City council meetings

City of Pine Lawn holds regu lar city council meetings at

city hall at 6250 Steve Marre Ave. in Pine Lawn on the second Monday of the month at 6:30 p.m. The meetings are open to the public.

Mondays: Workshop meetings

City of Pine Lawn holds regu lar workshop meetings at city hall at 6250 Steve Marre Ave. in Pine Lawn on the fourth Monday of the month at 6:30 p.m. The meetings are open to the public.

Mondays: A cappella singers

All men who like to sing are invited to come sing with us, The Men of Harmony. We practice every Monday night at 7 p.m. at 5500 Parker Raoad which is the first house on Uthe Lane. We sing four-part harmony a capella (without accompaniment). We sing some traditional songs, as well as show tunes and more con temporary music. We do per form for the public at various functions. Persons interested can come right on in or for more information call Al at 314-993-6134.

Mondays: Korean War Veterans Association meeting

If you had military service in Korea between Sept. 3, 1945 and the present you are cor dially invited to a meeting of Chapter 4, North County Korean War Veterans Associ ation. Meetings take place at the VFW Post 4105 at 410 St. Francois in Florissant on the second Monday of the month, starting at 7 p.m. For more information contact Walter Kaiser at 314-921-2132. For a limited period the Chapter will pay for one (1) year mem bership for new members.

Mondays-Thursdays: Vol unteers needed Community Action Agency of St. Louis County is in need of volunteers to stock shelves, sort food shipments and pack bags for Food Pantry Clients Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. Two to four hour shifts are avail able. If you are interested, please contact Cheryl Piece at 314-446-4440 or cpiece@ caastlc.org for additional in formation.

Tuesdays: Bingo Florissant Elks Bingo takes place at 16400 New Halls Ferry every Tuesday. Doors open at 4 p.m., bingo starts at 6 p.m. No outside food or drinks allowed per St. Louis County. Food and drinks available for purchase. Max imum 150 players. Must wear

mask to enter. Social distan cing followed.

Tuesdays: A cappella singers

The Gentlemen of Sound are looking for men who like to sing or want to learn. They practice Tuesdays at Lady of the Pillar school at 401 S. Lindbergh from 7 – 9 p.m. They try to do public events monthly. Always looking for new members. Come by or call Kirk at 314-954-7920 .

Tuesdays: Chair Zumba Chair Zumba every Tues day from 2:15 – 3 p.m. at The Bridge At Florissant at 1101 Garden Plaza Dr. (Parker @ Arlington). For more infor mation call 314-831-0988.

Tuesdays: Celebrate Re covery

Celebrate Recovery Tuesday meetings take place at 6 p.m. with a Saturday Bible Study at 9 a.m. at LifePoint Church at 424 Graham Rd. in Floris sant. For more information visit www.lifepointministries. church/celebrate-recovery or call (men) Steve D. at 636634-6582 or (women) Denise W. at 530-417-6151.

Tuesdays: Choir rehears als

The St. Louis Chordinals, a women’s a cappella chorus, re hearse every Tuesday evening from 7 - 9:30 p.m. at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church at 12397 Natural Bridge Rd. in Bridgeton (next to the Bridge ton Government Center). For more information call Linda at 314-839-3495 or visit stloui schordinals.org.

Tuesdays: TOPS (Take off pounds sensibly)

From 9:15 - 10:30 a.m. lo cated at John F. Kennedy Center/Henry Koch Ctr., Howdershell Rd. at Char bonier Rd., Florissant. For more info contact Paul Mc Connell, 314-831-5476.

2nd Tuesday Sept.-June: Show-me Stitchers: Show-me Stitchers is the local chapter of the Embroiderers’ Guild of America. We meet on the second Tuesday, Sept.June at 6:30 p.m. at Trinity Lu theran Church, 14088 Clay ton Road, Chesterfield, MO. Learn needlepoint, embroid ery, cross stitch, and more.

Every 4th Tuesday of the month: Fort Bellefontaine Memorial American Le gion Post 335 meeting

6:30pm, Fort Bellefontaine Memorial American Legion Post 335, at the Bellefon taine Neighbors Community

Center at 9669 Bellefontaine Rd. Those interested in mem bership are invited to attend.

Wednesdays: Bingo Bingo takes place every Wed nesday at American Legion Post 338 at 9655 Midland Blvd. in Overland. Doors open at 5 p.m. For more in formation contact Chairman Ed Hilleman at 314-660-1813.

Wednesdays: Bingo Life Care Center of Bridgeton, at 12145 Bridgeton Square in Bridgeton, welcome all to Community Bingo every last Wednesday of the month at 2:30 p.m. Light refreshment will be served. Please RVSP at 314-298-7444 with the month you will attend and number of people attending.

Wednesdays: TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sens ibly)

TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) meets from 6 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. at St. Andrews United Methodist Church at 3975 N. Hwy 67 in Florissant. For more information con tact Norma at 314-306-4731.

Every Wednesday: Bingo Morning at Florissant Elks Lodge #2316

Florissant Elks Lodge #2316, 16400 New Halls Ferry Rd. in Florissant. Doors at 8:00 a.m., games begin at 9:30 a.m. For more information, call 314-921-2316.

Bridgeton Trails Library Branch Programs: 3455 McKelvey Rd., St. Louis, 314-994-3300. Story Time: Wednesdays, 10:30 a.m. 9 months to 2 yrs. Room 1 (Lap Time); Wednesdays, 10:30 a.m. Ages 3–5. Room 2; Thursdays, 10:30 a.m. Ages 3–5. Room 1.

Florissant Senior Cit izens’ Bingo Clubs: 314839-7604.

Every 1st Wednesday of the Month: Stroke Sup port Group 3-4 p.m., Center for Senior Renewal, Detrick Building 1st floor, 11133 Dunn Rd. For more information, contact Ja mie Stevens at 314-653-5331.

Thursdays: Bingo Community Bingo at the Bridge At Florissant, at 1101 Garden Plaza Drive (intersection of Parker and Arlington) takes place on the third Thursday of each month starts at 2 p.m. There will be snacks and prizes. For more information call 314-831-0988.

Thursdays: Quilting

guild

Every third Thursday of the month the Flower Valley Quilting Guild meets at 7 p.m. in the old school at the Old St. Ferdinand Shrine, 1 Rue St. Francois, Florissant.

Thursdays: Blood pres sure checks

Free blood pressure checks monthly at Life Care Center of Florissant at 1201 Garden Plaza Dr. (off Parker Rd.) in Floris sant every third Thursday of the month. Call 831-3752 for more information.

Thursdays: Women’s chorus meeting

Every Thursday City Voices Chorus, a women’s chorus sing ing four-part a cappella harmo ny, meets at Church of the Good Shepherd at 1166 S. Mason Rd. in St. Louis. Members come from the entire bi-state region. Call Marcia at 636-274-0723 for more information or visit www. cityvoiceschorus.org.

Fridays: Fish fry

St. Ferdinand Fish Fry at 1765 Charbonier Rd. in Florissant, has resumed every Friday from 3 - 7 p.m.

Fridays: Fish fry

A fish fry takes place every Fri day at American Legion Post 338 at 9655 Midland Blvd. in

Overland from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. For more information contact Chairman Ed Hilleman at 314660-1813.

Every Friday: Our Lady of Fatima #4429 Knights of Columbus Bingo 6:45 p.m., Knights of Columbus Hall, 1216 Teson Rd. in Hazel wood. For more information call 314-731-9330.

Every 3rd Friday of the month: Bingo 2 p.m., Life Care Center of Flo rissant, 1201 Garden Plaza Dr. For more information, call 314831-3752.

Saturdays: Yoga Yoga returns to Calvary UCC at 2501 Hartland Avenue, on Saturdays from 10:30-11:30. Masks and social distancing are required in the building and participants should bring hand sanitizer with them. For fur ther information call Angela at 314-801-8594.

Saturdays: Toastmasters meeting

Everyone is welcome to attend Toastmasters Saturdays 9 to 10:30 a.m. at Normandy United Methodist Church at 8001 Nat ural Bridge Road (across from UMSL). For more info call 314402-7025.

CROSSWORD

Sports you see with Gary B...

Ambush sign with affiliate for future players

The professional St. Louis Ambush soccer team play in the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) with their home games at the Family Arena in St. Charles for the 20222023 season.

The Ambush have entered into an affiliate agreement with the Iowa Demon Hawks (formerly Des Moines United FC) for the up coming 2022-23 season. The Demon Hawks compete in the Major Arena Soccer League 2 (M2), having moved up for the upcoming season after previously competing in M3.

The M2 is the second tier in the MASL’s three-ti er professional indoor soccer pyramid. It serves as a developmental league for the MASL. M2 will kick off its sixth season of action the weekend of Dec. 10-12. Each M2 team will play a 12-game regular season.

The MASL is the top tier in professional indoor soccer in the United States and will have 14 teams, each playing a 24-game schedule, for the 2022-23 season.

The MASL encourages teams from different tiers to collaborate on player development, to share busi ness strategies and marketing ideas and to promote the sport of professional indoor soccer in general.

St. Louis Ambush Co-Owner and CEO Shelly Clark said this agreement, “…Allows for collabo ration between the two organizations to develop indoor players. As needs arise throughout the sea son, we’ll be able to look at players from the Demon Hawks to help fill roster spots. We look forward to this partnership with the Demon Hawks and feel this can be an arrangement that will benefit both clubs.”

Darwin Salas, owner of the Demon Hawks said, “It is an honor to be affiliated with such a great organi zation like the St. Louis Ambush and encourage all M2 teams to follow the leadership and help of our commissioners for the love and growth of profes sional indoor soccer.”

The upcoming 2022-23 season is the tenth for the

Ambush. Their home opener is slated for Black Fri day, Nov. 25 at 5:05 p.m. at The Family Arena in St. Charles. It is the first of a two-game series against the Kansas City Comets to open the MASL season. The Comets host the second game the next night, Nov. 25, at Cable-Dahmer Arena in Independence.

* Great group to get extra players

Woman on cross country team at Lindenwood in new division and conference picks up hardware Lindenwood University’s first campaign in both Division I and the Ohio Valley Conference, women’s cross country fresh man Holly Harding was named OVC Fe male Cross Country Freshman of the Year.

In Harding’s first year at Lindenwood, she made quite the statement, being the top finisher for Lindenwood in each of its four meets. The New Zealand native kicked things off placing fourth at the SEMO RedHawk Cross Coun try Invitational before running a 14:25.27 to place fourth again the following week, this time at the SLU Invitational.

She then followed up with running a 19:33.5 5K the following week, leading the Lions at that particu lar meet as well. The freshman standout most recent ly a new personal record with her 22:50.4 6K perfor mance at the Bradley Pink Classic last weekend.

* Much more to come from her and other athletes

Gary Baute, a St. Louis native, may be educated in business but he lives and breathes sports. As a fan or an athlete, Gary is all sports all the time. He hosted a radio sports program on KFNS, emceed the River City Rascals’ inaugural season, among many other activi ties. I am currently hosting a Health show on 97.1 FM, ‘Prime Time Health’ www.PrimeTimeSTL.com. It broadcasts Saturday nights at 8 and Sunday mornings at 9.

Movie:

By Steve Bryan

Although Santa Claus cornered the market on toys, Jules Bass and his creative partner, Arthur Rankin, Jr., knew what families really wanted for Christmas. Bass, who passed away at age 87 on Oct. 25, and Rankin formed a partnership that led to such holiday classics as “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” “Frosty the Snowman” and “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town.” Their output also included “The Year Without a Santa Clause” and “Rudolph’s Shiny New Year.”

Born and raised in South St. Louis, Steve Bryan is now based in Anaheim, California, and has been allowed access to movie and television sets to see actors and directors at work. Though his writing has taken him far from St. Louis, Steve is, at heart, still the same wide-eyed kid who spent countless hours watching classic movies at neighborhood theaters.

Animated films created by Rankin/Bass Productions had distinct qualities and voic es. For “Rudolph,” the inimitable Burl Ives lent his vocal talents to Sam the Snowman, the narrator who also sang the classic song “Silver and Gold.” Jimmy Durante narrat ed “Frosty the Snowman,” a holiday spe cial about a snowman who came to life. In contrast, 1968’s “The Little Drummer Boy” was more intense and featured a young boy named Aaron who witnessed the death of his mother and father.

The Rankin/Bass library also had inter esting undertones and themes. Rudolph, for instance, was shunned by the other rein deer simply because his nose was red and

shiny. He left on a hero’s journey to find a place where he belonged and was later ac companied by Hermey, an elf who wanted to become a dentist, and Yukon Cornelius, a prospector who sought only wealth. As Rudolph matured, he realized that the place he sought was his own home and family.

1974’s “The Year Without a Santa Clause” began with the premise that Santa, after some choice words from his impatient doc tor, decided to cancel Christmas and not deliver gifts that year. The doctor simply thought no one believed in Santa anymore. Two elves named Jingle and Jangle took the reindeer Vixen on a fact-finding mission to see if anyone still believed. “The Year Without a Santa Clause” has been well-re membered for the characters of the “Heat Miser” and “Snow Miser.”

J.R.R. Tolkien’s books became part of

“The Hobbit,” a 1977 Rankin/Bass animated adventure that arrived just in time for the hol idays. Although he be lieved that adventures “make one late for din ner,” a hobbit named Bil bo Baggins played host to the wizard Gandalf, who wanted Bilbo to join him on a quest that involved trolls, dragons and a ring that made its wearer invisible. “The Hob bit” marked new animated territory for Ranken and Bass.

For years, the studio’s output was only available on television, but that changed with the release of the Sony Betamax and RCA’s VHS (Video Home System) format. Commercially produced videotapes had been expensive, but the now-defunct Mu sicland Group launched the first Suncoast Motion Picture Company store in 1986 with reasonably priced films. Competing stores also opened their doors with similar merchandise. The Rankin/Bass library of films were quite popular with customers, especially when Christmas was drawing

Thank you, Arthur Rankin and Jules Bass, for making the holidays magical for adults and children. Your legacy lives on in your incredible films.

Fill in the blank squares in the grid, making sure that every row, column and 3-by-3 box includes all the digits 1 through 9.

Photo courtesy Rankin/Bass Produtions

WANTED

WANTED

PRAYER TO ST. JUDE May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be adored, glorified, loved and preserved throughout the world, now and forever. Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us. St. Jude, Worker of Miracles, Pray for us. St. Jude, Helper of the Hopeless, Pray for us.

Say this prayer 9 times a day for 9 days, then publish. Your prayers will be answered.

It has never been known to fail.

Thank you, St. Jude. R.H.

NOTICE

Since this is the month of all things food, we should take a moment to ensure our intake is up-to-the-minute fresh. For that task, I will gladly send my daughter over to your house as a complimentary public service. There she will rummage through your non-perishables and glee fully toss out anything that looks contrary to her impossible stan dards.

This girl is our self-appointed food warden. She be lieves it’s her duty to save me and her father from in gesting less than straight-off-the-assembly-belt food products and thus prevent our early demise.

She means well, but she’s mean as well.

She came over for a routine visit then coyly asked for some water. She then intentionally reached into the wrong cupboard for a glass. She can’t help herself; it’s some kind of weird obsession. She then started ran sacking our cupboards to find expired food labels as if she were a toddler searching for Easter eggs on a timed hunt.

She grabbed her first item and shouted, “Ah ha! This box of baking soda is so old it probably came over on the Titanic and we all know how well that ended!”

“Hey,” I say, “I thought you wanted a glass of water.”

“Well, I did, until I saw that your stuff is out-of-date. Now I’m not even sure your water is fresh!”

“That makes no sense,” I say. “Besides, baking soda is a mineral – some kind of rock, which means it’s been around long before caveman days. So basically, it can’t expire.”

People often stop to take stock of important chores that need to be done around the house. While big proj ects like windows are hard to overlook, don’t forget smaller areas that need attention, too, such as your home office.

Making sense of a year’s worth of paperwork and clut ter can take some serious time, especially as many people have been working from home more than normal, but getting organized can help you tackle home management tasks more efficiently. Making the office a priority can reduce frustration when it comes to spending additional time in your office while working from home.

These five tips can help get you started:

1. Make sure you have furniture that can ade quately store your stuff, including plenty of space for files, reference books and comput er equipment. Pieces need not be costly to be functional and there are plenty of attractive options available online and at both small and major retailers.

2. Arrange the space with its intended use and your own work style in mind. For example, if you don’t need ample space to spread out over

By Cindy Moore

“I’m just trying to save you from an early grave.”

She tosses it in the trash then reaches back and pulls some thing up that’s firmly attached.

“Really, Mother?” She chas tises. “This package of spaghetti sauce mix was stuck to the bot tom of the cupboard.”

She scans it for a date and finds none.

“Ha!” I say, “It’s still good. Put it back.”

“Negative,” she challenges. “If it has no date then it’s older than when they started putting dates on the packages. In the trash it goes. Anything older than two years is basically toxic and should be tossed out,” she remarked smugly.

Lightbulb moment: I reminded her that she was much older than two years. Her time had expired. I tossed her out.

Cindy Moore is the mother of three superlative kids, servant of two self-indulgent felines and wife to one nifty husband. Her ficticious occupation? Archeological Humor ist: someone who unearths ab surdity and hilarity in strange and unusual places including public restrooms, the lint filter, and church meetings. Most recent ly, she excavated a find in her neighbor’s bird feeder.

The opinions expressed in this column are Cindy Moore’s alone and do not reflect the opinion of the owners or staff of Community News.

a large, flat work area, elim inate that space – it’s simply an invitation for clutter.

3. Place items you rely on frequently, such as a cal culator or ruler, within arm’s reach so they can easily be put away between uses. Cap ture these items in containers and bins to keep the space looking neat and free of clutter.

4. Establish a filing system that lets you keep track of important papers you need to keep and have a shredder handy to help you discard any sensitive documents. Whether you alpha betize, color code or use some other method, group paperwork into segments for categories such as bills, banking, health care, auto, insur ance and so on for easy access in the future.

5. Tangled cords can make even the most orga nized spaces look messy, and they may pose a fire or tripping hazard. Get control of your cords by storing devices you don’t use regular ly and securing the remaining cords with twist ties or clips. Remember to use a surge-protect ed power strip to minimize the chance of dam age should a power surge occur.

Find more tips to make your workspace tidy and organized at eLivingtoday.com.

TV HOSTS

on Life: Overdue date