The 2014 Holiday Home Tour will feature four homes and a magic display this year.

“Because we are both magicians when you come to our home you’re actually going to see a little 10 to 15 minute magic show as a bonus,” said Lance Rich, Home Owner participating in the St. Joseph Symphony Holiday Homes Tour.

The event will take place Saturday, Nov. 29 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 30 from noon to 4 p.m.  Homes taking place in the tour this year include the Horn Residence, 1021 North Noyes Boulevard, The Magic House of David Sandy and Lance Rich, 4710 Stonecrest Terrace, The Susan Montee Residence, 49 Stonecrest, and the Townsend Historic Home, 1024 Felix Street. Tickets for the homes tour are already on sale and cost $20 in advance or $25 at the door.  They can be purchased at the St. Joseph HyVee store at the service center, or online at http://saintjosephsymphony.org/

“The funds are for the St. Joseph Symphony,” said Sharon Kosek, St. Joseph Symphony Holiday Home Coordinator. “We have a full variety of activities, we have pre-concert activities, concerts.”

Decorating has already begun on the homes.

“It’s sort of a Christmas Circus theme,” said Rich. “About five years ago I actually wrote a story called the Christmas circus and all of the characters that you see on these trees are represented in that story.”

There are around 30 tree that have been decorated in the Magic House.

“A lot of man hours have gone into putting it up but even more though have gone into creating this,” said Rich. “My mother actually made and created all of the nutcrackers.”

A hidden room can also be found inside the Magic Home.

Other themes this year include a Swiss-style design at the Horn residence, modern art and a dragon water fountain found at the Montee residence, and a view overlooking city hall featured at the Townsend home.

 

 

The Fall Classic will now be played at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, MO

Due to an unforeseen chain of inclement weather events expected to take place in Kansas City, Saturday’s Fall Classic has been relocated to Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, Mo., from Arrowhead Stadium.

After consulting with the National Football League office and a thorough review of the weather forecast, our grounds crew strongly suggested eliminating any activity on the field prior to the game on Sunday. Due to the potential combination of wet snow conditions followed by below freezing temperatures, it has been recommended that the field remain covered during the forecasted precipitation on Saturday.

“We would like to express our thanks to Mel Tjeerdsma, Loren Ferré and both universities for their understanding and working with us to find a solution to this unpredictable situation,” Chiefs President Mark Donovan said.

All tickets for Saturday’s scheduled game at Arrowhead will be refunded in full at the original point of purchase. Tickets will be available at the Northwest Missouri State University Ticket Office. Ticket information for Saturday’s game will be available on both Northwest Missouri State and Washburn University’s websites later this afternoon. Kickoff time has also been changed to 1 p.m.

The East Hills branch of the St. Joseph Public Library has unveiled $40,000 in upgrades made to its theater system.

“It’s fully digital, it’s right at the edge of the state of the art,” said Steven Olson, East Hills Branch Manager.

From the outside the theater doesn’t look much different, but from the inside Olson said it’s a complete make-over.

“The screen is larger,” said Olson. “Our projector is capable of showing actual blu-ray quality.”

A touchscreen was added to access the equipment, a new projector was installed, and different types of hook-ups for electronic devices to plug into the system. 

“This is a full commercial system,” said Olson. “You can show yourself up on the screen, you can show 3D objects.”

He said the theater room gets used around 80 times each month for group functions and presentations. He said the room is available to groups  that don’t charge for attendance and allow their event to be open to the public.

“A lot of these groups don’t have any money or they’re not tax supported,” said Olson. “This is really an opportunity for them to come in and use the equipment for whatever they want, for whatever their program is.”

The funds for the upgrade were raised by the Friends of the Library Foundation.

“We don’t make any money, it’s something we do for the public,” said Olson.

Tonight Mostly clear, with a low around 12. North northwest wind 5 to 7 mph.

Friday Mostly sunny, with a high near 31. Light and variable wind.

Friday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 19. Southeast wind 5 to 7 mph.

Saturday Snow, mainly after noon. High near 30. South southeast wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Saturday Night A chance of snow. Cloudy, with a low around 17. Chance of precipitation is 50%.

Sunday Partly sunny, with a high near 27.

Sunday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 12.

Monday Mostly sunny, with a high near 26.

Monday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 6.

Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 27.

Tuesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 14.

Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 36.

Kansas City Power and Light held a safety demonstration Thursday morning to educate participants about precautions to take around electricity.

“People deal with electricity every day,” said Shawn Spiwak, KCP&L field trainer. “Most people just don’t understand how electricity works. It just looks like magic, you see the lines out there but it’s not doing anything until somebody gets into it and can get seriously injured.”

Spiwak has experience with electricity hazards himself, after losing his right leg, right arm and left ring finger during an accident dealing with power lines.

During a safety demonstration given to members of the local fire departments, police departments and other agencies Spiwak talked about ways to remain safe around electricity.

Using a mobile distribution system that includes poles, conductors, transformers and meter cans participants were able to watch the dangers posed by electrical contact.

“Show high voltage and low voltage arcs and some fires to show realistically how electricity works,” said Spiwak.

The lines were energized at 7200 volts and secondary lines at 120/240 to show the potential dangers of electrical contact.

Spiwak said if a power line is laying on the ground to avoid contact with it and call 911.

“Have the police or fire come out there that way they can rope off the area and keep the general public out and definitely get a hold of the light company to de-energize it,” he said.

This year Kansas Department of Transportation has implemented new snow fighter training courses to better educate new equipment operators on all aspects of roadway snow and ice control as well as how to maintain their equipment.

KDOT has a staff of 1,200 ready for winter weather, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; they have taken their dry runs and have stored 200,000 tons of salt in preparation for this Kansas winter.

Last winter, KDOT spent more than $22 million and used 128,000 tons of salt to clear the state’s highways while plowing approximately 2.8 million miles, effectively plowing the 25,000-mile state system more than 110 times.

“We are constantly fine tuning KDOT’s operation based on what we learned last year,” said Peter Carttar, Assistant Bureau Chief of Maintenance. “We are always working to improve what we do.”

KDOT joins with other state and local agencies to enhance the safety of travelers before, during and after the storm.

One of the best ways to stay safe on the road over the next few days and during the upcoming holiday travel period is to know the conditions before venturing out. There are a variety of ways to get updated information about road conditions in Kansas. Travelers can obtain route-specific road conditions and weather by calling 5-1-1 within the state or (866) 511- 5368 from out of state. The same information and more can be obtained by visiting the KanDrive website, http://www.kandrive.org, which also has maps, camera views of many routes and more, and the 511 mobile text only site, http://511mm.ksdot.org.
Those planning to travel during or after the storm should follow these safety tips:
Completely clean frost and snow off all windows, mirrors, and lights, and use headlights to provide optimum visibility.
Slow down, accelerate and brake gently, and increase following distance between other vehicles.
Don’t use cruise control.
Allow for more travel time.
Always wear a seat belt, and secure children in the proper child safety seats.
Slow down and move over for stopped emergency vehicles and maintenance crews.
· If involved in a non-injury crash on an interstate, U.S. highway, or any divided or multi-lane road in the state of Kansas, and if you are not transporting hazardous materials, you are required by law to move your vehicle out of the lane of traffic. This law is intended to help keep drivers and passengers safe by getting them out of the lane of traffic and away from oncoming vehicles.

· If possible, remain in your vehicle, and remain buckled up, that way if a crash would occur involving your car or another vehicle nearby, you are more protected than if you are out in the roadway or even on the shoulder.

If involved in a traffic crash, or need assistance, call 911, or contact the Kansas Highway Patrol at *47 (*HP) from a cell phone. Call *582 (*KTA) on the Kansas Turnpike.

Welding jobs are increasing in demand. 680 KFEQ’s Barry Birr reports.

Small businesses & entrepreneurs now have more resources with the opening of a new center.

“It’s a contribution to the school and the community,” said Annette Weeks, Director of the Center for Entrepreneurship in the Craig School of Business at Missouri Western State University.

The Center for Entrepreneurship  celebrated its opening at Missouri Western with a ribbon cutting ceremony held Wednesday by the St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce.

“Help the community by helping business,” said Week. “We know that small businesses are the backbone of our community and we want to be able to help them.”

The Center trains, mentors and supports area business owners and entrepreneurs at no cost.  It has been operating for around three months already and Weeks said more than 40 individuals have already been assisted.

“If anyone is dreaming of having their own business and not sure where to start, or need help with a business plan or need help with funding we can help walk them through all of that,” said Weeks. “If you own an existing business and would help strengthen it or grow it we can help with that as well.”

Weeks is A northwest Missouri native with years of practical experience as a business owner and facilitator of entrepreneurs, Weeks spent the last seven years as the enterprise facilitator for Northwest Missouri Enterprise Facilitation, a nonprofit organization that offers free business coaching for clients wishing to start a business or those who need help with an existing business.

“We are helping students as well as faculty members or their families who want to start small business as well,” said Weeks. “We’ve had several students already come in with business ideas.”

For more information about the Center for Entrepreneurship, call Weeks at 816-271-4283 or email aweeks@missouriwestern.edu.

Heartland Health made the final transition into Mosaic Life Care Wednesday.

“In renaming the hospital our attempt is really to reinvent health-care and the way we care for people in St. Joseph,” said Tama Wagner, Mosaic Life Care Chief Brand Officer.

More than 100 people were in attendance at a ribbon cutting ceremony held in front of the Hospital Wednesday afternoon to mark the official name change.

All clinics, services and products throughout the organization’s service region of northwest Missouri, northeast Kansas, southeast Nebraska and Kansas City’s Northland will now operate under the name Mosaic Life Care.

“When we decided to move into the Kansas City market we found we didn’t own the trademark for Heartland Health,” said Wagner. “So as we expand and as we get bigger to be a more effective and efficient organization we had to change our name.”

A Mosaic sign has replaced the Heartland sign at the St. Joseph building and the name Heartland will be removed from all marketing materials to complete the final transition.

“I think it’s going to be a transition for everyone,” said Wagner. “I think it’s just going to take time, change is never easy we recognize that but I think the community will ultimately embrace the name.”

Wagner said around $1-million was allotted for re-branding.

“This includes the signage,” said Wagner. “It’s a process that we’ve been in for about a year and it will continue for several more months.”

Due to the changes in the healthcare industry the hospital has been moving towards a different approach to taking care of patients.

“We want healthcare to be much more about care for you in the continuum,” said Wagner.

Instead of just focusing on diagnosing and treating a patient the hospital plans to focus more on preventative care and wellness

“It’s not just you when you’re sick,” said Wagner. “It’s you when you’re healthy and keeping you healthy and keeping your families healthy.”

United Way Success By 6® and Parent as Teachers have teamed up to offer Adventures in Parenting seminars to area parents, grandparents, foster parents and caregivers.

This free series focuses on practical tips to help parents and other caregivers of young children increase their parenting confidence and enjoyment.

The final session in the Fall 2014 series will Girls are from Mars, Boys are from Venus, on Mon., Nov. 17 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Keatley Center, 1202 S. 28th Street.

Christine Ziemer, PhD will help attendees understand how boys and girls develop in different ways and how parents and other caregivers can support the healthy development of their child. Doors will open at 6:15 p.m.

Limited free childcare will be provided by Parents As Teachers with advance registration. Call (816) 677-4300 to reserve childcare. Childcare is sponsored by Altec Industries, Inc. Childcare providers in attendance will receive credit for one clock-hour of training.

United Way Success By 6 is a community-based movement of public and private partners including business, government, labor, education, childcare, and parents working together to prepare children to be successful learners when they begin kindergarten.