CNSTC: November 23, 2022

Cooking the competition

Francis Howell High School students show off their culinary skills at the 13th Annual Iron Chef Competition

By Brett Auten

Fresh caught spiedini. Pan seared top sir loin. Tomato panzanella salad. Fall festival cupcakes.

These are not the menu items at a new bougie restaurant in Wentzville, or found at your favorite haunt on Main Street in St. Charles.

These creations were all part of the of ferings created by the four Francis Howell School District high schools as they squared off at the 13th Annual Iron Chef Competi tion, a culinary arts contest held Nov. 15 at Francis Howell High School.

As oven doors opened and closed, pots and pans clanged, and orders, pleas, in structions and compliments echoed, the students showed off an array of skills rang ing from organization, presentation, time management and cooking techniques. Each of the district’s high schools assembled a collection of seven students that are cur rently enrolled in a culinary arts class. The teams consisted of five chefs, a table setter and dishwasher.

“It was a lot of fun and it got me the expe rience I wanted,” Francis Howell senior Will Halterman said. “It’s convinced me that I like working in fast food, at least for now. I still have a lot more to learn. The steaks ended up cooking through a lot faster than our conventional oven. The (facilities) were wonderful and it’s a big thanks to Sodexo for letting us use them.”

The guidelines were, each team had twoand-a-half hours to prepare, from scratch, three dishes that would feed 100 guests in cluding an entrée, side and dessert. And at least one dish had to use the specially select ed secret ingredient – chutney.

A panel of four celebrity judges rated each

team on presentation, flavor, creativity and team effort.

“It was nerve racking,” Halterman said. “We were looking for facial reactions. When one judge whispered over to another after trying our dessert, ‘this was it.’ That was like a big payoff for us.”

Francis Howell North senior Austin Bitter got into cooking through his family.

“You have to eat to survive, so you might as well make it taste good,” Bitter said. “I’m from a big line of cooks. My mom has been a cook, my grandma’s been a cook. They taught me everything I know and there’s

Ms. (Becky) Just who taught me everything else.”

Bitter said he and his teammates had about five or six practices where they made everything or a select few dishes. They scrapped some dishes, added some dishes and worked around the menu.

“I feel very confident, to be honest,” Bit ter said, prior to the judges even sampling North’s wares. “We tinkered around with our menu. Saw what worked and what didn’t and took what worked and made it better.”

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Photo by Brett Auten

Four Francis Howell School District high schools faced off in the 13th Annual Iron Chef Competition, sponsored by Sodexo. The culinary arts competition was held on Nov. 15 at Francis Howell High School. Each high school assembled a team of seven students that are currently enrolled in a culinary arts class. The teams consisted of five chefs, a table setter and dishwasher.

‘COMPETITION’ from cover

Bitter’s confidence was rewarded as Francis Howell North took home first place and will receive a future opportunity of experiential learning at Wildwood’s Stone Soup Cottage.

“It was choreographed chaos, really,” Bitter said. “It was fun and a good learning expe rience too, being back in a real kitchen. To start, it was a lot more humid. But we worked around it and pulled through.”

Members of the public who attended the

event voted and gave the People’s Choice Award to Francis Howell Central.

For Halterman, it was looking for credits to flush out his school schedule that changed everything for him.

“It’s a possible choice for a career but it is always going to be a hobby just because you can make friends with it no matter where you go and you can always make yourself good stuff no matter what you have lying around,” he said. “It started off needing a required credit and I went through Foods I and Foods II and I enjoyed it a lot and went through

Foods II and took Culinary this year and it has been wonderful.”

Sodexo, the district’s food service provid er, sponsored the event and donated funds toward the ingredients and utensils. Sodexo District Chef Karin Mann shared how the culinary competition is a great way to give students the opportunity to practice their cooking skills in a real-world setting.

The district’s Senior PALS (a program that engages with residents 55-and-older through a variety of avenues) were the evening’s spe cial guests.

Local Author Profile: Valerie Battle Kienzle

Valerie Battle Kienzle is a native of Nashville, Tennessee, and a Uni versity of Missouri School of Journal ism graduate. She spent the last 40-plus years in various writing-related posi tions. A lifelong history enthusiast, she has authored four books about St. Lou is, two about St. Charles, and one about Columbia, Missouri. She has lived in St. Charles County for 37 years and cur rently resides in Weldon Spring. She be gan exploring Main Street in 1980 and continues to make new discoveries.

Each year thousands of visitors from throughout the world travel to the banks of the Missouri River to experience the history and architecture of Main Street in St. Charles.

History comes alive in St. Charles, and according to longtime resident, histo ry enthusiast, and author Valerie Bat tle Kienzle, the best way to experience Main Street and nearby areas is on foot. So, grab a pair of comfortable walking

shoes, slip this St. Charles walking tour into your backpack or purse, and pre pare to be wowed!

The new book includes four easy walks, plus several suggested short side trips. Each walk includes a detailed map with points of interest. Each point of in terest is accompanied by brief historical information and photographs.

Check out Missouri’s First State Capi tol buildings. Traverse streets and side walks paved with handmade bricks. See places seen by explorers Lewis and Clark prior to their historic Corps of Dis covery trip, and try to imagine what it was like to travel west by wagon on the Boone’s Lick Trail. Whether you’re a lo cal or a visitor, this book will help you see St. Charles from a whole new angle.

“Main Street St. Charles, MO: A Walk Through History” is available wherever books are sold.

Valerie Battle Kienzle will hold a book signing of “Main Street St. Charles,

MO: A Walk Through History” at St. Charles City-County Library (Kathryn Linnemann Branch) at 2323 Elm Street on Nov 30 at 7 p.m.

Submitted photo

Photos by Brett Auten

Dozens of Francis Howell School District high school students showed off their skills in the kitchen ranging from organization, presentation, time management and cooking techniques.

Missouri experiences increase in respiratory viruses

Like the majority of the United States, Missouri has been experiencing in creased respiratory disease activity caused by multiple viruses, including flu and RSV that is occurring especially among children.

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) is now of fering free testing for flu, RSV and SARSCoV-2 (virus causing COVID-19) at several Missouri locations through March 2023. A single nasal swab will al low for detection of these three viruses. Patients of all ages can be tested. A map of locations and the sites’ schedules can be found at health.mo.gov/communi tytest. Additional sites will continue to be added.

“Although cases overall have not in creased in severity, the increased vol ume has caused a strain on our health care partners,” said Dr. George Turabe lidze, state epidemiologist with DHSS. “Ultimately, we need families to remem ber how important it is that they stay home when sick. Also, we are fortunate to have vaccines available for flu and COVID-19, and it’s important to stay up to date on these.”

For the week of Oct. 30 through Nov. 5, there were 1,738 laboratory-con firmed cases of the flu, compared to 1,280 cases the week before, bringing the statewide total for the season which began Oct. 2, to 4,016 cases. While RSV is not a reportable condition to DHSS in Missouri, CDC tracks state-level trends that show an increase in RSV detections in Missouri.

The flu and COVID-19 have many similar symptoms including cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breath ing, fatigue (tiredness), sore throat, run ny or stuffy nose, muscle pain or body aches and headaches.

RSV is a common respiratory virus that usually causes mild, cold-like symp toms including fever, cough, congestion, runny nose, sneezing, and in infants, fussiness and poor feeding. It can prog ress to more severe symptoms such as fast or short breathing or wheezing, and in infants and young children, grunting noises when breathing or chest caving in during breathing. While persons of any age can develop RSV, it is most common in children under age two Most people will recover in one to two weeks.

Flu season may impact Red Cross blood supply

The American Red Cross urges blood and platelet donors to give now and help fight the potential impact of seasonal illnesses and a potentially severe flu sea son on the blood supply.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicts a serious spread of flu this year and is already reporting an early spike in cases in several states. When seasonal illnesses increase, the number of healthy donors tends to de crease, leaving the Red Cross blood sup ply vulnerable to a potential shortage over the holidays.

Paired with busy holiday schedules, seasonal illnesses may make it harder to collect the blood hospital patients require this winter. Donors − especially those with type O blood and those giv ing platelets − can help bolster the blood supply now by making an appointment to give in the coming weeks.

There is no waiting period to donate blood or platelets after receiving a flu shot. Schedule an appointment by us ing the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org or calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767). Learn more about flu safety and preven tion at redcross.org/flusafety.

As a thank-you, the Red Cross is offer ing several opportunities to donors this month:

• Those who come to give over the Thanksgiving holiday, Nov. 23-27, will get a Red Cross knit beanie, while supplies last.

• All who come out to help Nov. 28-Dec. 15 will receive a $10 Am azon.com Gift Card by email, thanks to Amazon. Details are available at rcblood.org/together.

BLOOD DRIVE SPOTLIGHT 13th annual JOY FM and Boost Radio Perfect Gift Blood Drive

In St. Louis, you can give the gift of life during the Thanksgiving Holiday at the 13th annual JOY FM and Boost Radio Perfect Gift Blood Drive, Friday, Nov. 25 at one of four locations in the Greater St. Louis and Metro East areas. All who attempt to donate will receive a spe cial-edition Red Cross JOY FM/Boost Radio T-shirt. This blood drive is one of the largest Red Cross blood drives across the country on the day after Thanksgiv ing. To make an appointment people can go to redcrossblood.org, download the Red Cross Blood Donor app, or call 1-800-Red Cross and enter/mention sponsor code JOYFMBOOST.

Deer hunters can turn success into supper for families in need with Share the Harvest

$7 may not seem like a lot of money these days, but it can go a long way feeding those in need, thanks to the Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) Share the Harvest Program.

Share the Harvest provides food to the hungry through deer meat donated by hunters. Hunters can choose to give part or the entire deer they harvest. They simply bring their deer to an approved meat processor to process the ven ison, usually into ground meat, where it is then packaged for dis tribution.

More families than ever are cur rently facing financial challenges brought on by rising grocery costs.

Consider that a deer tag for a doe costs a hunter only $7. Imagine how many times over that tag can pay for itself with the amount of nutritious and healthy venison it can provide families in need.

Share the Harvest is a statewide partnership between MDC, the Conservation Federation of Mis souri (CFM), cooperating meat processors and hunters. The St. Louis area is fortunate to have an other key partner in the program, Operation Food Search (OFS).

Thanks to contributions by OFS, St. Louis area hunters donating their entire deer through Share the Harvest can do so with little to no processing fees.

The Overland-based nonprofit hunger relief organization feeds 200,000 people in need each month through over 200 outlets in the metro area. According to OFS, fresh protein like venison is one of the most popular items and the number one in demand.

Meat processors typically charge around $100 to process a deer into ready-to-prepare meat. The CFM has funding to cover $75 for hunt ers donating whole deer statewide. Operation Food Search contributes an additional $20 per deer. Coop erating processors in St. Louis, St. Charles and Jefferson Counties agree to limit their deer process ing fees so there is little to no net charge for donating hunters. All members in the partnership work together to help alleviate the costs for hunters who donate their entire deer.

“Operation Food Search is help ing reduce costs for hunters who want to donate whole deer to Share the Harvest, so it’s easier for them

to participate,” said MDC Conser vation Agent Corporal Jeff Breuer.

The following is a list of meat processors in the St. Louis Region that offer minimal to no cost pro cessing for hunters donating for processing a whole deer, grouped by county.

St. Louis:

• Kenrick’s Meats and Cater ing, South St. Louis County

• John’s Butcher Shoppe, Overland St. Charles County:

• Josephville Meat Processing, Wentzville Jefferson County:

• Dittmer Meat Packing, Ditt mer

• John’s Butcher Shop, Festus

Corporal Breuer reminded hunters that deer harvested from Chronic Wasting Disease Manage ment Zone counties can be donat ed only to processors participating in the Share the Harvest CWD Testing Program.

For more details on the Share the Harvest program and a list of these processors, visit mdc.mo.gov/ share.

CCRB Awards $830,000 in ARPA grants for youth mental health services

At the Oct. 24 Board of Directors meeting, the Com munity and Children’s Resource Board of St. Charles County (CCRB) granted funds totaling just over $830,000 for youth mental health and substance use treatment services in St. Charles County.

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) was authorized by President Biden on March 11, 2021 and included funding for states and local governments to mitigate the negative impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic.

St. Charles County approved distribution of $2.1 million of the county’s ARPA funds to the CCRB to support youth services and care throughout the coun ty. The CCRB recognized an increase in demand for mental health-related services and that providers may be serving children with more intensive needs.

In response, the board approved funding for a vari ety of capital projects and services grants for hiring and retaining staff.

Recipients include Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Charles County, $87,808.27 for facility improvements; The Child Advocacy Center of Northeast Missouri, $118.608 for office space expansion; Megan Meier Foundation, $54,744 for new staff and technology up grades; Our Lady’s Inn, $140,000 to hire and retain staff and Youth In Need, $249,641 for repairs to St. Charles County facilities, staff training, and staff retention.

For a full list of awards, please visit www.st charlescountykids.org.

The CCRB contracts with local nonprofit agencies who provide mental health and substance use treat ment services for children under age 19 in St. Charles County. The CCRB oversees the administration and distribution of the Children’s Community Services Fund, which is funded through a 1/8 cent sales tax.

Submitted photo

(From left) Desmond Niboh, Community Impact Coordinator of Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Charles County stands with Bruce Sowatsky, Executive Director of the CCRB.

Soul Nutrition celebrates second anniversary with ribbon cutting

Soul Nutrition, located at 6173 Mid Rivers Mall Drive, celebrated its twoyear anniversary with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Nov. 2.

Members of the Cottleville Wel don-Spring Chamber of Commerce, lo cal business owners and other commu nity leaders were in attendance. “We are so excited to provide a gateway

into a healthy lifestyle! We offer Healthy Shakes and Energizing Teas that curve cravings and help build healthy habits.” said owner, Candace Keevil. Soul Nu trition has several sisterhood locations throughout Missouri and Illinois.

For more information about Soul Nu trition, follow them on Facebook and Instagram @soulnutritionstpeters.

THIS WEEK’S PICK

Get festive at the St. Peters Annual Tree Lighting and Holiday Hop

The St. Peters 33rd annual Holiday Tree Lighting Ceremony takes place on Dec. 2 at 6:30 p.m.

For over three decades, St. Peters has kicked off the holiday season with the Tree Lighting Ceremony, where residents and their families gather together outside city hall to celebrate together as the holiday tree lights are turned on.

This event is free, and will include festive musical performances from a variety of acts: from the acoustic renditions by the Childbloom Gui tar Program of St. Charles County, to the choral arrangements of Lind enwood’s Voices Only, to an energetic Holiday Hop with Butch Wax & The Hollywoods to cap off the UN-silent night festivities.

The holiday cheer and celebration will be shared by all who attend –that includes a special guest appear ance from Santa Claus himself. Even during the busiest time of year for him, he knows this event is too good to miss. So come on out and celebrate the most wonderful time of year with your family and neighbors.

TREE LIGHTING SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Outdoor Tree Lighting Ceremony, City Hall courtyard

• Master of Ceremonies – Brian Richardson, KFAV Radio

• Childbloom Guitar Program of St. Charles County

• Lindenwood University’s Voic es Only (a cappella ensemble)

• Countdown to the Lighting of the Tree

• Lighting of the tree

• Singing of “God Bless America”

Holiday Hop, Cultural Arts Centre Activity Rooms After Tree Lighting

• Holiday Hop with Butch Wax and The Hollywoods, 7-8:30 p.m. (Doors to the Activi ty Rooms open at 6:45 p.m.)

Please Note: Bring your own chairs and refreshments to the Holiday Hop. Seating is limited.

St. Peters City Hall is located at One St. Peters Centre Blvd. For more in formation on the Tree Lighting event, go online to www.stpetersmo.net.

Submitted photo

The Missouri Department of Natural Resources’ Division of State Parks is seeking bid applications for the concession operation at Washington State Park in De Soto, Missouri. The concession opportunity includes the operation of lodging, including 11 cabins, watercraft rental and floats, swimming pool and swimming pool concession with visitation of more than 300,000 annually.

Interested parties need to register on the official offeror list by contacting Mike Zielinski at (573)751-6758 or email mike.zielinski@dnr. mo.gov. Registrations can be completed online at https://missouribuys.mo.gov/registration.

Francis Howell North journalism program earns national honors

The Francis Howell North High School journalism staffs returned from their fall National High School Journalism Convention that was Nov. 10-13, in down town St. Louis.

The staff did some sightsee ing, attended learning sessions, competed in competitions and brought home a few awards.

“We had 34 students on the trip, which was one of the larg est groups we have ever had,” Director of Student Media Aar on Manfull said. “It was our first in-person convention as a group since 2019 and it was a lot of fun. The students were great on the trip and came back with so many great ideas to make themselves and the program better.”

The top prize went to FHNto day.com as it won First Place Best of Show honors in their catego ry for websites. It’s only the 13th time in school history a staff has earned Best of Show at a conven tion.

“The really cool thing about FHNtoday.com earning that honor is that all students in the program from photo and video to newspaper and yearbook feed content to that site, even the in troductory class students have content on there, so it’s an honor everyone gets to take credit in,” Manfull said. “We preach to the students all the time they are one big team so it’s extra nice when they can all get recognized for something.

The staffs nabbed two other spots in the Best of Show com petition for those schools that attended. FHNtodayTV earned the 10th place spot in the Broad cast category and the North Star Newsmagazine nabbed Ninth Place in their Newsmagazine di vision. FHNtodayTV was also honored as a Pacemaker finalist for the team’s work last school year.

Fifteen FHN staffers were hon ored for their work in national student media contests at the convention. Earning Honorable Mentions for their work were Rachel Trapf, Amber Winkler and Max Ramirez (Online News Package), Sadie Cotton (Lit Mag: Photo), Hannah Anderson (Year book Copy/Caption: Clubs) and Olivia Van Horn (Editorial Writ ing).

Earning Excellent ratings for their work were Marina Williams and Maddie Clark (Broadcast Package), Parker Smith (Broad cast Anchor), Rhea Patel and Laney Quandt (Broadcast Com mercial/PSA), Violet Newton (Lit Mag: Illustration), Carter Houdeshell (Lit Mag: Poetry), and Sophia Black (Press Law & Ethics).

Taking home the top spot of Superior from the contests was Michaela Manfull in the Info graphic Design category.

Numerous students were fi nalists in the National Scholas tic Press Association’s individual awards for work that appeared during the 2021-22 school year. Earning Honorable Mentions were Laney Quandt and Freya Rieken in the Broadcast News Story of the Year, Morgan Chairs in Newsmagazine Spread/Page Design of the Year, Michae la Manfull in Artist of the Year Portfolio, graduate Kyle Button in Broadcast Journalist of the Year Portfolio and Amber Win kler in Multimedia Journalist of the Year Portfolio. Payton John ston earned Fifth Place in Envi ronmental Portrait Photo of the Year, the FHNtoday Social Media Team earned Fifth Place in Social Media Reporting: Best Use of So cial Media, the FHNtoday.com staff earned Fourth Place in Local Climate Change Reporting, and Michaela Manfull earned Third Place in Newsmagazine Spread/ Page Design of the year.

In April, members of the staff will be traveling to San Francis co for the spring national high school convention and next fall they will be traveling to Boston.

The program’s student edi tor-in-chiefs who oversee pro duction of the media are: se nior Chloe Ellison (North Star newsmagazine), senior Maggie Koester (Excalibur Yearbook), senior Amber Winkler (FHNto day.com), seniors Rachel Trapf and Marina Williams (FHN todayTV), and juniors Payton Johnston and Addison Polsgrove (Photography). The journalism program at FHN is led by Aaron Manfull and Jordyn Kiel. They oversee the nearly 100 members on staff and 300 students who run through the program each year.

High school students at FHN can enroll in a variety of journal ism courses. Beginning students can take Digital Photojournal ism for Practical Arts credit. The Introductory Journalism and Broadcast Journalism classes count as Communication Arts credits. Once students have had a prerequisite, they can join staff and enroll in a for-credit class, taking Newspaper Production, Newspaper Production Honors, Yearbook Production or Year book Production Honors. Some courses are even offered for Dual Credit.

Photo courtesy Francis Howell School District The Francis Howell North High School journalism staffs received several awards at the fall National High School Journalism Convention that was Nov. 10-13, in downtown St. Louis.

What’s Happening

Take Notice . . .

The events listed in this section are the latest up dates as of press time, please check with individual sites for the most up to date cancellations and re schedule info.

EVENTS

Nov. 24: Thanksgiving meal

The Wentzville Outreach Li ons Club will be hosting its annual free Thanksgiving lun cheon for the community, in cluding veterans, seniors and those who do not want to be alone, at St. Patrick Catholic School at 701 South Church St. in Wentzville from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. For mor information call 314-258-1069 or 314-7805629.

Dec. 4: Christmas house tour

Come join the New Town @ St. Charles Women’s Club for the 13th annual New Town @ St. Charles Christmas House Tour from 1 – 4 p.m. You will tour beautifully decorat ed homes while helping to fund local charities. Tickets ($10) will be available online starting Nov. 1 at 10 a.m. at the New Town House Tour Facebook page (@NTChrist masTour) or available the day of the tour at the New Town Town Hall located at 3300 Rue Royale Street. The tour starts

at the Town Hall where tour maps will be available as well as holiday goodies to pur chase.

more information contact Ed Jurotich at 314-560-1868.

Mondays: Take off Pounds

Sensibly

TOPS meet every Monday at Holy Cross Lutheran Church at 8945 Veterans Memorial Hwy in O’Fallon. Meetings at 9:30 a.m. with weigh in begin ning at 8:30 a.m. For more in formation please call Leogene Weber. 636-399-3124.

Mondays: Alcoholics Anonymous

If you want to drink, that’s your business. If you want to stop, we can help. Call Alco holics Anonymous at 636970-0013.

Mondays: Cottleville Wel don Spring Kiwanis Club

Dec. 4:

Lessons and carols service

Zion Lutheran Church and School at 3866 S. Old High way 94 in St. Charles, invites the public to its 26th Annual Service of Lessons and Carols at 6 p.m. Celebrate the holi day season with scripture and song as performed by over 100 of Zion’s own children and adult choirs, handbells, and instrumentalists. For more information and directions, log on to www.zionharvester. org or contact Mark Thoelke, Minister of Music at 636-4417425.

ONGOING EVENTS

Mondays: Optimist Club meetings

The Wentzville/Lake St. Louis Optimist Club meets on the second and fourth Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at the Wentzville IHOP, 10 Layla Lane, Wentzville, MO.. For

Mondays: Parent support group

Because I Love You, (BILY), Gateway parent support group meets every Monday at 7:30 p.m. at First United Methodist Church at 801 First Capitol Dr. in St. Charles. For information and directions, please contact the helpline at 314-993-7550 or email gate way_parent_help@yahoo. com. BILY is a program of self-help for parents of trou bled children (all ages). We are not professionals, but par ents helping each other. The meetings are free to attend.

Cottleville Weldon Spring Kiwanis Club meets the first Monday of the month at noon at The Breakfast Club, 991 Waterbury Falls Dr., O’Fallon, MO 63368. New club look ing for new members who want to better our commu nity. Contact Christy at 314583-0538.

Mondays: Seasoned eye carvers meeting

Meetings are held from 9 to 11 a.m. at the St. Charles Se nior Citizens Center at 1455 Fairgrounds (near the Bass Pro Shop). Visitors are al ways welcome. For more in formation visit http://www. stcharlesareawoodcarvers. com/ or contact Charles Sapp at cwsapp@charter.net.

Mondays: NAMI

St. Lou is Connection Recovery Support Group

If you have mental health con cerns and need support, please come on Mondays at 6:30 p.m. at Friedens United Church of Christ at 1703 Old Highway 94 South in St. Charles.

Mondays: Choral Arts Singers practice

Choral Arts Singers practice on Mondays, from 7-9 p.m. at Connection ChristianChurch, 1332 Feise Road in Dardenne Prairie. New singers (high school and older) are wel come. Auditions are not re quired. See www.concertarts. org.

Mondays:

St.

Charles County Council of the Blind meetings

Business meetings are held on the first Monday of each month unless otherwise spec ified. Currently, during the COVID pandemic, meetings are held via conference call, starting at 6:45 pm. For more information, contact Beverly Kaskadden at 636-561-6947.

Mondays: St. Peters Rota ry Club

Noon at St. Peters City Hall, One St. Peters Centre Blvd. www.stpetersrotary.org.

Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays: Fitness First Exercise Class 9:30-10:30 a.m., American Legion Hall, 504 Luetkenhaus Blvd., Wentzville. 314-3696521.

Mondays and Thursdays: Bridge St. Peters Senior Center plays bridge from 9 a.m. to noon on Monday and Thursdays, and would love to have any player, regardless of skill level, to join in. Call Mary Ann at 636-397-0866 if you are inter

ested in playing on Monday or Thursday morning.

Mondays: American Le gion Post 388 Meets

Meets the fourth Monday of the month at 6:30 p.m. at American Legion Hall, 607 Westridge Dr., O’Fallon, 636219-0553

Mondays: Measurement

Mondays:

10 a.m. - 12 noon at the ST. Charles Health Deparment in the Upper Level Conference room. Measurement Mon days is a family-friendly breast feeding support group. We are open to all moms and momsto-be who are breastfeeding or interested in breastfeeding. The group is supported by the St Charles County WIC pro gram so there will be informa tion about the program avail able at each meeting. Each meeting will be a little different than the last. There will be baby weigh-ins, introductions, games, interactive education, group conversation, and even snacks.

Mondays and Wednes days: Tai Chi for arthritis class

Every Monday and Wednes day a Tai Chi for arthritis class, sponsored by the city of St. Charles Parks and Recreation, takes place from 9:15 - 10 a.m. at Webster Park across from the Family Arena. This is a class that is taught nationally to manage arthritis and to pre vent falls. For more informa tion call 636-949-3372.

Tuesdays: Women’s AA weekly meeting

Candlelighters Women in Re covery meets every Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Dardenne Prairie Presbyterian Church (enter at Adam Lamb pre-School, turn left) at 7400 South Outer 364 at the corner with Bryan Road.

Tuesdays: Cribbage Club

Meets every Tuesday, 12:30 – 3:30 p.m. at The Falls Golf Course Clubhouse. Relaxed, friendly play and is open to all. Call 314-954-3364 for info.

Tuesdays: Optimist Club meeting

The St. Charles Optimist Club meets Tuesdays at noon at Pio’s Restaurant. For more informa tion contact Jack Ross at 314287-0569 or jack-ross@att.net.

Tuesdays: Cribbage

Looking for an evening out?

Come and play cribbage Tues days at 6 p.m. at Rookies at 15358 Veterans Memorial Pkwy in Wentzville. Win priz es and awards with semian nual tournaments. ACC sanc tioned. For more information

contact Dee at 636-233-8032.

Tuesdays:

Diabetes sup port group

A diabetes support group meets on the fourth Tuesday of each month except Novem ber and December from 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. at 400 Medical Pla za, Suite 102 in Lake St. Louis. A new speaker each month. Questions? Call Amanda Mey er at 636-625-5447.

Tuesdays: Kiwanis Club of St. Charles

12:05 p.m. at Ginghams Homestyle Restaurant, 1566 Country Clcub Plaza Drive, in St. Charles. Kiwanis is a glob al organization of volunteers dedicated to improving the world one child and one com munity at a time. The group is looking for new members who want to better our community and help its youth. If you are interested in making a positive impact in St. Charles for gener ations to come, please come for lunch. For more information call 636-206-2483. You can also visit http://stcharleski wanis.com.

Tuesdays: Quilting Guild at the O’Fallon Family YMCA

1-4 p.m. Free. Quilt for local charities. No sewing experi ence required.

Tuesdays: Toastmasters Meeting

7 p.m. at the Midwest Bank Centre Board Room at 2299 Technology Blvd., O’Fallon, MO 63368. Info: 636-3792505.

Tuesdays: Mended Hearts

This heart patient support group provides hospital visi tation support for people with any type of heart issues. The group meets at 6:30 p.m. the second Tuesday of each month at the Spencer Road St. Charles Library, at the corner of Boone Hills Dr. and Spencer Rd. For additional information please call 636-639-0875.

Tuesdays:

Tuesdays:

Social club for widows and widowers

On the first and third Tuesday of each month a social club for widows and widowers meets from 1:00 - 3:30 p.m. at St. John’s United Church of Christ at Fifth and Jackson Streets in St. Charles. On the first Tues day there are refreshments and on the third Tuesday there is either a speaker or entertain ment. The group also goes to breakfast, lunch and dinner monthly, and has a pot luck dinner each month.

Tuesdays: NAMI St. Lou is Connection Recovery Support Group

If you have mental health con cerns and need support, please come on the third Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. at Grace United Church of Christ at 8326 Mexico Rd. in St. Peters.

Tuesdays: NAMI St. Louis Family Support Group

If you have a family member or friend who is having mental health concerns there is a sup port group for you. It meets on the third Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. at Grace Unit ed Church of Christ at 8326 Mexico Rd. in St. Peters.

Tuesdays: Dardenne Pres byterian Church Basket ball

8-9:30 p.m., in the Christian Life Center, 7400 South Outer 364 in Dardenne Prairie. Open to high school and adult men.

Tuesdays: Central Missou ri Railroad Association meeting

This unique organization is for railroad modelers, railfans, photographers and railroad re tirees with layouts in O, HO, N hoping to add G scales. Meet ings are on second Tuesdays of the month from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Warrenton Masonic Lodge. For more info call 636279-5522 or 636-456-0776 or visit our Facebook page.

Tuesdays: Cancer support group

Club does not meet in May or November.

Tuesdays and Thursdays: Tai Chi at the St. Charles County Family YMCA 10:15-11:15 a.m. No experi ence necessary. 636-928-1928.

Tuesdays and Thursdays: Get Fit Exercise Classes 9-10 a.m. at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church Hall, New Melle. 314-369-6521.

Third Tuesday: Luncheon for seniors

On the third Tuesday of every month there is a luncheon for seniors from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. at Transfiguration Episcopal Church at 1860 Lake St. Lou

is Blvd. For more information call 636-561-8951.

Wednesdays: Toastmas ters Club

The Cavesprings Toastmas ters Club will transform your speaking ability and offers in person and online meetings every Wednesday from 8 – 9 a.m. at the St. Charles Am bulance District at 2000 Salt River Road in St. Peters. RSVP at cavespringstoastmasters@ gmail.com as guests are free.

Wednesdays: TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) Club

TOPS 502 Wright City meets every Wednesday morning at First Baptist Church at 104

SUDOKU answers from page F-1

Hedeman Ave. in Wright City. Weigh-in 7 - 8:30 a.m. Meeting starts at 9 a.m. For more infor mation call 314-504-5202

Wednesdays: Food pantry

Food pantry open Wednesdays to the public from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at Cornerstone UMC at 1151 Tom Ginnever Ave. in O’Fallon. Bread, canned goods other necessities.

Wednesdays: Quilt guild

Every Fourth Wednesday from January to October, the Loose Threads Quilt Guild meets at 6:45 p.m. at the Cultural Arts Centre at the St. Peters City Hall on Mexico Road in St. Peters.

St.

Louis Chap ter of the

Alzheimer’s

As sociation Male Caregiver Experience

The group meets on third Tuesday of every month from 10-11:30 a.m. at the Alzhei mer’s Chapter Office at 9370 Olive Blvd. For more informa tion about Alzheimer’s disease, support, or the Male Caregiv er Experience, please call the Alzheimer’s Association’s 24/7 Helpline at 800-272-3900 or visit www.alz.org/stl. Regis tration is requested before the first meeting.

Cancer Companions Support Group is a support group for any cancer patient in treatment or post treatment, their care giver and their loved ones that meets on the second Tuesday of each month at Dardenne Presbyterian Church at 7400 South Outer 364 in Dardenne Prairie at 7 p.m. in the parlor. Registration is not required.

Tuesdays: O’Fallon Gar den Club

Meets at 6:30 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of the month at Sunrise Methodist Church, 7116 Twin Chimney Blvd. Info: Barb at 636.978.5930.

CROSSWORD answers from page F-4

Sports you see with Gary B . . .

Francis Howell heading to semifinals

The Francis Howell High School Vikings football team will be part of semifinal competition for 2022.

They sealed the next step in the playoffs by defeating the Timberland Wolves 48-18 in the Class 5 quarterfi nals at Timberland’s Scott Swofford stadium recently.

This is the first time that Francis Howell has made it this far for the past 10 years.

*Go Vikings

Ambush open season Friday

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 2022-2023 season.

The team will start the season at home on Nov. 25 for a 5:05 p.m. contest against the Kansas City Com ets.

Co-owner, general manager and head coach of the Ambush, Jeff Locker’s enthusiasm and energy for the franchise is evident.

Locker became co-owner of the Ambush in Decem ber 2019 and took over the general manager position in March 2020. He added the role of interim head coach in January 2021 before dropping the “interim” title prior to the 2022-23 season.

Several assistant coaches back him up with impres sive backgrounds starting with Jamie Swanner. He is a St. Louis indoor soccer legend who has played for the St. Louis Ambush, Canton Invaders, Buffalo Blizzard and Kansas City Attack in a stellar career that spanned 16 seasons.

Donnie Alberty joined the Ambush as an assistant coach in November, 2020. Alberty is also head coach of men’s soccer at Fontbonne University.

The 2022-23 season is Lucas Almeida’s ninth in pro fessional indoor soccer and his eighth with the Am bush. For the 2022-23 season, Almeida takes on the

additional role of assistant coach as well as a player.

Off the field, there is Shelly Clark and her husband Will who have been a part of the ownership of the St. Louis Ambush since its rebirth in 2013. They became co-owners of the team in 2016.

Shelly graduated Magna Cum Laude from Kent State University in 1997 with a bachelor’s of science in education. She is involved in their local community and serve and support several local charities includ ing Youth in Need, The St. Charles Library Founda tion, Friends of Kids with Cancer, Sunshine Kids, Our Lady’s Inn, St. Louis Food Bank and many others.

Shelly currently serves as the CEO of the St Louis Ambush and oversees the day-to-day operations and also serves on the MASL Executive Committee as Sec retary.

*They is finally coming up fast…ShowTime!

The women’s volleyball team at UMSL excels

The University of Missouri-St. Louis volleyball team clinched its first regional title in program history in dramatic fashion on Saturday as the Tritons reverse swept No. 3 seed Ferris State to win a thriller at Pepsi Arena in Quincy, Illinois. UMSL improves to 24-6 on the season while the Bulldogs finish their season with a 26-10 record.

The Tritons now advance to the NCAA Quarter finals that will be held the first part of December at Royal Brougham Pavilion on the campus of Seattle Pacific in Seattle, Washington.

*Impressive season with more to come

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 Ras cals’ inaugural season, and co-hosted SportsRadioSTL.com, and is current ly hosting a Health show on 97.1 FM, ‘Prime Time Health’ www.PrimeTimeSTL.com It broad casts Saturday nights at 8 and Sunday mornings at 9.

Recipe: Thanksgiving traditions and memory-making meals

To celebrate the special occasion and the joy that Thanksgiving brings, you can enjoy Turkey Cranberry Dinner Rolls as a delicious homemade meal that’s as easy to make as it is to share.

Ingredients:

Nonstick cooking spray

1 package of dinner rolls

2 cups diced turkey, cooked

1 cup cranberry sauce or relish

6 slices Swiss cheese

6 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon yellow mustard

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tablespoon dried minced onion salt, to taste

pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon parsley

1 cup Parmesan cheese

Turkey Cranberry Dinner Rolls

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 F. Cover 9-by-13-inch baking pan with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.

Remove rolls from package in one piece, cutting entire slab in half lengthwise to create one half of “tops” and one half of “bottoms.”

Place bottom half in foil-covered pan and layer with turkey, cranberry sauce and Swiss cheese. Add top half

of rolls.

In microwave, melt butter and whisk in mustard, Worcestershire sauce, onion and salt and pepper, to taste. Pour evenly over rolls.

Cover with foil and let sit 5-10 minutes then bake, covered, 20 minutes. Uncover and bake 5 minutes.

Sprinkle with parsley and Parmesan cheese. Slice into individual rolls.

Tofindfamily-favoriterecipesfitforThanksgivingfeasts,visitwonderbread.com/macys-parade.

‘Jerry & Marge Go Large’ and other real-life

– SUDOKU –

Movie:

By Steve Bryan

Based on Jason Fagone’s 2018 HuffPost article, the comedy/ drama “Jerry & Marge Go Large” showed how the generous Evart, Michigan couple made things better for their neighbors. The Selbees found a mathematical loophole in a lottery game called “Winfall” that they exploited and shared. According to “The Cin emaholic,” they spent as much as $720,000 on lottery tickets for one drawing and ultimately made $26 million before they were done. Lottery officials then stepped in to investigate and discovered that other people found the same loophole.

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.

The Selbees are considered folk heroes thanks to their honesty and generosity. They also did nothing illegal. That wasn’t quite the case with “Press Your Luck” con testant Paul Michael Larson. He recorded episodes of “Press Your Luck” at home and, after watching his tapes, Larson uncovered the five patterns used on the “Big Board.” In the studio, he made over $110,000 during his appearance, which was shown in two parts. Although producers thought he cheated, Larson claimed his winnings. A thief later stole $50,000 in cash from Lar son’s home (He was using the money to win a radio contest.)

In 1956, producers of the quiz show “Twenty-One” wanted college professor

Charles Van Doren to replace reigning champion Herbert Stempel to boost ratings.

Stempel later reported that he had been coached by producers to give an incorrect answer and throw the game in favor of Van Doren. In 1959, Van Doren, who was be loved by viewers, admitted to a congressio nal committee that he received answers to questions in advance. Although Van Doren had a three-year contract with NBC, the network dropped him during the ongoing investigations.

Things turned out better for other contes tants. Dr. Joyce Brothers, who appeared on “The $64,000 Question” as a boxing expert, testified before congress about her game show appearance, but she was cleared of

winners and losers

cheating. She went on to appear on her own TV talk show as well as guest appearances on other shows. As a child, actress Patty Duke appeared on “The $64,000 Challenge” when she was 11 years old and won $32,000. Testifying before the Legislative Oversight Subcommittee, Duke said an as sistant producer had told her to study topics that “may be on the show.” Patty Duke went on to have a great career.

If Charles Ingram and his wife Diana had watched “Quiz Show,” they might have avoided cheat ing. Charles was selected as a contestant on the British version of “Who Wants to be a Millionaire,” but he used two lifelines before the episode ended. Conspiring with lecturer Tecwen Whittock, Charles and Diana created a plan for the next episode: Charles would read the four possible answers aloud and Whittock would cough when he spoke the correct answer. Their scheme was uncovered and the trio were convicted on April 7, 2003.

When presented with a unique oppor tunity, people react in different ways. The Selbees thought of others while Paul Larson tried to break the “Press Your Luck” bank and lost a small fortune. No matter what, it always pays to do the right thing.

“Jerry & Marge Go Large,” rated PG-13, streams on the Paramount+ network.

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.

‘Jerry & Marge Go Large’ photo courtesy Landline Pictures

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.

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And you thought COVID was a crazy plague. There’s an even worse one on the rise today; it’s called rudeness and it’s also an epidemic.

Maybe it’s because people were locked up for so long that they forgot social graces and ba sic manners. But it’s getting so scary I’m even afraid to get on social media anymore.

I posted a picture of my cat on Facebook and was immediately attacked in the com ment section by some stranger.

“People like you disgust me!” wrote the dis gruntled person.

“Huh? Why would you say that?” I wrote back.

“Because obviously you hate dogs! Now I’m go ing to have to unfriend you because you’ve caused Flapjack undue stress!”

“How was I to know your pancake had actual feelings,” I shot back.

“Excuse me! Flapjack is my miniature Pomera nian. He has his own Facebook page and used to like you, but no more. People are so rude!”

Wait?! Rude? I wasn’t being rude. She was the one… Too late. I had actually been unfriended by a breakfast item.

I needed to get out and decompress. I drove to the grocery store. Thanksgiving was fast ap proaching and I had to stock up before the day of the big feast, even though prices were outrageous.

On the way to the store I was met with a series of road-ragers. First, I got cut off as I approached the intersection and then someone honked at me mercilessly a nano-second after the light turned green. Then to top it off, I received a one finger salute from a driver who sped by. He let me know that five miles above the speed limit was not ac ceptable on his personal road space.

At home I set my grocery bags on the kitchen counter. My husband started to unload them as I related my stories of all the rude people I had encountered that day.

“What’s all this for?” he asked as he unpacked some chicken thighs, a bag of salad and a brownie mix.

“That’s our Thanksgiving dinner. Everything’s super expensive so I had to downsize this year.”

“Chicken!” he squawked. “We can’t have chick en. That’s blasphemy! And whoever heard of brownies for Thanksgiving?”

“Listen, Mr. Sassy Pants! I’ve had it up to here with impolite people. So just because you’re un grateful you get the I’ve-been-rude meal plan for Thanksgiving.”

“Oh, and what’s that?” he snarled.

“Flapjacks!” I barked..

Cindy Moore is the moth er of three superlative kids, servant of two self-indulgent felines and wife to one nif ty husband. Her ficticious occupation? Archeological

Humorist: someone who unearths absurdity and hi larity in strange and unusu al places including public restrooms, the lint fil ter, and church meet ings. Most recently, she excavated a find in her neighbor’s bird feeder.

The opinions expressed in this column are Cindy Moore’s alone

do not reflect the

of

of

By Cindy Moore

John Hanna Yeggs