The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm watch for our area until midnight tonight.

The watch includes Atchison, Holt, Nodaway and Worth counties in Northwest Missouri, as well as Atchison and Doniphan counties in northeastern Kansas.

Cities included in the watch include Atchison, Craig, Elwood, Fairfax, Forest City, Grant City, Highland, Maitland, Maryville, Mound City, Oregon, Rock Port, Tarkio, Troy and Wathena.

The Weather Service says storms are possible late this evening through the overnight hours, and says a few could become strong to severe. The main threat with these storms is hail and strong straight line winds.

Another round of storms is possible Wednesday afternoon, a few of which could produce strong winds or small hail. Thunderstorm chances will continue through the rest of the week.

A St. Joseph woman will soon retire from her position with the National Board for Certified Counselors Foundation board of trustees. Dr. Karen Hauser has been with the NBCC Foundation for six years and recently stepped down as chair of the foundation. She and fellow board member Dr. Sue Fort White are each nearing completion of their final board terms.

Dr. Hauser recently retired as CEO and Executive Director of Catholic Charities of Northern Kansas.

She continues to be heavily involved in the St Joe community. Dr. Hauser was an art teacher before she became a counselor, and both aspects of her identity have blended to give her a unique perspective in her chosen field.

Since Drs. Fort White and Hauser joined the board in 2011, the Foundation has grown exponentially from the initial 10 annual donor-funded scholarships for military and rural master’s counseling students. During the six years that they have served as trustees, these original scholarship awards increased from $3,000 per awardee to $8,000, and the Foundation also now administers up to 113 federally-funded doctoral- and master’s-level awards through the Minority Fellowship Program each year.

The work of the Foundation has also expanded to include a program for Capacity Building initiatives, as well as the annual Bridging the Gap Symposium, the third of which will take place this May. These efforts, once managed by a single full-time employee when Executive Director Sherry Allen was hired in 2011, are now directed by eight full-time staff members, three contract employees, several graduate assistants and interns, and over 200 volunteers.

The NBCC Foundation is the nonprofit affiliate of the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC), based in Greensboro, North Carolina. NBCC is the nation’s premier professional certification board devoted to credentialing counselors who meet standards for the general and specialty practices of professional counseling. Currently, there are more than 60,000 National Certified Counselors (NCCs) in the United States and more than 50 countries. The Foundation’s mission is to leverage the power of counseling by strategically focusing resources for positive change.

A man charged as a persistent offender with drunk driving will remain behind bars pending his next court appearance, after a judge ruled he was a danger to the community. Officials say Michael McCarty has at least three prior DWI convictions.

A court affidavit says witnesses spotted a motorist swerving between lanes and stopping and appearing to pass out along Lovers Lane May 10. Officers say they found him in the back of his vehicle with the keys in his hands. The vehicle was parked on the wrong side of the street in the traffic lane, according to the court document.

Police said he had the odor of adult beverage on his person and in the vehicle. Police say they found a half-gallon bottle of vodka in the vehicle, more than half gone. He allegedly told officers he “…just wanted to drive around and get wasted for his birthday, and admitted to driving.” Police say he refused a breath test at the scene.

Officials say he was also driving without a license.

Associate Judge Keith Marquart ruled that McCarty was a danger to the community and refused to set bail. He scheduled the case for the preliminary-hearing docket June 1. McCarty will apply for a public defender.

A St. Joe man who left a fight at a local bar only to return and fire gunshots into the air will be held without bail.

Justin Helms is charged with a class-e felony of unlawful use of a weapon while intoxicated. In court documents, police say Helms and two other men got into a disturbance with numerous other unidentified people at the HiHo Bar at 1817 Frederick, during the early morning hours of May 12. The men left and got into a truck. But according to the affidavit, Helms returned with a handgun and fired “about three rounds into the air.”

The men then left the area, but investigators say when officers made contact with Helms later on he had a blood alcohol content level of .160%.

Helms appeared by video in the courtroom of Associate Circuit Judge Keith Marquart Tuesday morning. Judge Marquart refused to set bail in the case, ruling that Helms poses a danger to the community. The probable-cause affidavit also notes that he has been arrested in the past for failure to appear in court.

Judge Marquart scheduled the case for a preliminary hearing docket June 2. Helms will apply for a public defender.

People are being asked to avoid the area of SE State Highway A and McQueen Road due to an electric pole down with wires.

That’s according to an advisory issued by the St. Joseph Police Department shortly before 1 p.m. According to the Kansas City Power and Light Power Outage Map, around 400 people were without power in that area around that time. The outage was reported at 11:52 a.m. Crews from KCP&L are on scene.

Cpl. Sarah Hardin with the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office said the outage was caused by a pole that snapped in the wind and was not caused by a crash.  The location of the downed lines is on A Highway between 32nd and McQueen roads.  She said McQueen road is closed in the area for lines hanging too low.

MARYVILLE, Mo. – Northwest Missouri State University alumni and friends are invited to enjoy an evening at the ballpark during the seventh annual Northwest Night at the St. Joseph Mustangs.

The baseball game featuring the St. Joseph Mustangs and the Joplin Outlaws begins at 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 10, at Phil Welch Stadium, 2600 SW Parkway in St. Joseph. Alumni and friends also are invited to a tailgate party from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Northwest Alumni Association tent outside the stadium.

 

According to a news release, the Northwest Alumni Association has 300 free tickets available to Northwest fans. Game tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis, with a limit of four tickets per person.

Additional game tickets will be available to purchase through the Northwest Alumni Association for a discounted price after all free tickets are redeemed.

Fans may reserve tickets by contacting the Office of Alumni Relations at (660) 562-1248 or alumni@nwmissouri.edu.

Tickets may be picked up by 6:30 p.m. the night of the game at the green Northwest Alumni Association tent at the tailgate party.

 

 

LifeLine Foods has announced it has invested $1.8 million into the installation of a Premier Tech Chronos packaging line in St. Joseph.

“As customer expectations evolve, so much our business,” said Mike Sobetski, LifeLine Chief Ex. Officer. “We’re excited about what it can do to grow our business and the long-term impact in St. Joseph.”

According to a news release, the packaging line provides increased efficiency, consistent bag weights, greater stability of pallets for both transport and storage, as well as, increased product integrity and traceability.

The company plans to hold a ceremony for the new installment Wednesday at 2 p.m. at its location at 2811 S. 11th St.

LifeLine has operating in St. Joseph since 2011. According to the company’s website, it’s producer of high quality food ingredients. It is owned by more than 600 progressive farmer/owners spanning Missouri, Kansas, Iowa and Nebraska and also by ICM, Inc., a leading ethanol engineering firm.