Kansas City authorities have arrested an armed robbery suspect after a 100 mph car chase that ended when the suspect’s vehicle caught on fire.

KCPD said the chase started Wednesday night after a person reported an armed robbery outside of the Quicktrip parking lot located at 6641 E Truman Road. Officers say the chase went through Platte and Buchanan counties and ended in Atchison county. Authorities used spike strips and the suspect’s vehicle eventually caught fire.

Kansas City Police Department Office Darin Snapp said KCPD contact area law enforcement officials to assist in the chase that went through Buchanan County and Atchison County.

Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop H, Sgt. Jason Angle said they tried to assist in the pursuit and laid out four spike strips which the suspect managed to avoid.

The chase came to a close in Atchison county after the suspect’s vehicle caught on fire.

Snapp said charges are expected to be filed today and the suspect will be transported back to Kansas City.

Charges have now been filed in this case.  To read that story click here.

The St. Joseph Police Department arrested a man on Missouri Western’s campus Wednesday in connection with a series of counterfeit $20 bills which have been circulated throughout the city.

According to the St. Joseph Police Department a black male suspect was located at Western and arrested for investigation of counterfeiting after a series of tips lead police to his location.

The department said the first report of the fake $20 bills was reported on Oct. 21 with six other reports followed a short time later that day within only a few hours of each other. Convenience stores and fast food restaurants appear to be the choice targets for the suspects.

Sgt. Gary Murphy said the bills are of good quality and were accepted by clerks for payment, some went unnoticed as being counterfeit until being discovered by business management during money count.

Suspects and vehicle descriptions were acquired by police during the investigation. Several black males and one black female were sought in connection with the case. One black male was described as having a facial tattoo and numerous tattoos on his arms who was seen passing a fake $20 at the South Riverside McDonald’s on Oct. 22.

The suspects vehicle was described as a gray 4-door Pontiac Booneville which was located on Western’s campus Wednesday.

Police said the black female driver was questioned on campus which lead to officers to arrest a black male suspect at Western for investigation of counterfeiting.

The Financial Crimes Unit is currently in the process of obtaining video surveillance from businesses his by the fake $20-bills.

Capt. Jeff Wilson said no further information is being released at this time as the department coordinates investigation efforts with the United States Secret Service.

Charges have now been filed in this case.  To read that story click here.

MARYVILLE, Mo. – The assistance provided by the Northwest Missouri State University Small Business and Technology Development Center (SBTDC) during the last year has made a significant impact on small businesses and the economy in Northwest Missouri, including the creation of 13 businesses.

In addition to those new businesses, Rebecca Evans, director of the Northwest SBTDC, reported that, in fiscal year 2014 from October 2013 to September 2014, the SBTDC exceeded nearly all of its goals. During fiscal year 2014, businesses working in collaboration with the SBTDC:

created or retained 231 jobs in northwest Missouri;
experienced an increase in sales of $15 million; and
received loans and investments totaling nearly $38 million.
“The goals of the SBTDC are based on helping business owners and potential entrepreneurs meet today’s competitive challenges,” Evans said. “We reached 151 percent of our sales increase goal, 103 percent of our job creation goal, 159 percent of our job retention goal and an astounding 639 percent of our capitalization goal.”

The region’s SBTDC is operated by Northwest with offices in the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) on the University campus, St. Joseph and Chillicothe, while serving a 17-county area.

“We are proud of the work the SBTDC does every day to assist northwest Missouri small businesses and business owners,” Northwest President Dr. John Jasinski said. “It is but one example of how the University contributes to economic development, and it is imperative all of us take ownership in supporting area businesses and entrepreneurs while advocating strongly for northwest Missouri.”

Like other SBTDC centers throughout the United States at institutions of higher learning, the northwest Missouri center is focused on economic development assistance for businesses with fewer than 500 employees.

The Northwest SBTDC is a leader in small business advocacy in Missouri and helps business owners and potential entrepreneurs meet today’s competitive challenges. It also provides individual business counseling to small business owners and individuals throughout the region, coordinates and conducts research related to technical and general small business problems, and conducts conferences and workshops on topics of interest to small business owners.

The SBTDC is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration. It has developed and cultivated relationships with partners such as the Missouri Department of Economic Development, the state legislature, area chambers of commerce and economic developers throughout the region.

St. Joseph School District counselors are tackling the issue of bullying during October as part of National Bullying Prevention Month.

“Bullying is something that happens. It’s been around forever and it continues to happen,” said Kim Hill, St. Joseph School District Coordinator of Counseling. “We’re always trying to prevent bullying and teach students how they can help.”

She said there are many different activities that are taking place in St. Joseph schools this months to bring awareness to bullying. She said speakers have been at several schools talking about the issues and counselors have worked on awareness projects.

“Social media has definitely added a new component to bullying. It’s providing another venue where bullying can take place,” said Hill. “Now there is 24/7 access to social media where students can continue to cyber bully outside of a school setting.”

Now, the counseling department is taking to social media asking people to get involved. Wednesday on Twitter @Counseling_CHS let the public know about a phone application which could help parents approach the subject of bullying with their children.

“It talks about how 15 minutes a day of conversation with a parent can really help with the prevention and dealing with bullying,” said Hill. “It will help with conversation starters and will even send you a reminder to your phone to have that conversation with that child each day when they come home from school.”

The free app is provided by Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. For more information on that app click here.

Hill said when dealing with bullying it’s important not to use labels like “victim” or “bully.”

“When you label students as either the victim or the bully you’re not taking into account the fact that they can change their behavior,” she said.

Hill said if there is a situation of bullying at school to let school counselors know about the issue. Another online resource for bully prevention is stopbullying.gov.

St. Joseph, Mo. —Oct. 22, 2014—Memorabilia on loan from the Walter Cronkite family will be temporarily displayed during the public meeting of the Missouri Western State University Board of Governors on Thursday, Oct. 23. The memorabilia will be displayed from 1 to 3 p.m. in the hallway outside Blum Union room 220, where the board meeting will begin at 1:30 p.m. The one-time display is free and open to the public. Also on Thursday, there will be a free public performance of “Cronkite,” a live multimedia presentation, at 6 p.m. in the Kemper Recital Hall, inside Spratt Hall.

Eric Fuson, artist in residence, had no idea what treasures awaited when he traveled in September to Martha’s Vineyard, Mass., to meet with Kate Cronkite, the daughter of Walter and Betsy, who had been sorting through a family storage unit.

Kate had contacted Missouri Western with an offer to loan memorabilia to the Walter Cronkite Memorial inside Spratt Hall. When he arrived, Kate asked Fuson what kinds of items the university might be interested in. He replied the university would welcome things related to her father’s career, but also would love to have personal items that reflected his private life and interests.

When Fuson returned to St. Joseph a couple of days later, he brought along a selection that included cartoons and caricatures featuring Walter Cronkite and signed by the artists, several awards and honors (including a trophy from a rooster calling contest in Omaha, Neb., in 1960), a medallion presented to Cronkite by Dwight D. Eisenhower on the 20th anniversary of the D-Day invasion, signed photographs from astronauts and politicians, and many more items.

One of the most unique parts of the collection: a selection of belts worn by Cronkite.

“It sounds strange, but they actually say a lot about Mr. Cronkite, especially his love of sailing,” Fuson said. “One is decorated with the flag of his yacht and semaphore flags. Another has a belt buckle from a sailing race to the Bahamas. You can tell these items were used and appreciated by the man, and it’s pretty cool to be able to see and touch them yourself.”

Fuson said it’s been gratifying to work with the family on a project that has meaning to him and to them, and additional items may be loaned to the Memorial in the future.

Walter Cronkite was born in St. Joseph on Nov. 4, 1916. The Walter Cronkite Memorial, in the atrium of Spratt Hall on the Missouri Western campus, was dedicated last year on what would have been his 97th birthday. The 5,000 square-foot display features images and videos of Cronkite’s life and the many historic events he covered as a journalist. The Walter Cronkite Memorial is open daily except Christmas, New Year’s Day and Easter, and admission is always free. Learn more at www.waltercronkitememorial.org.

The memorial is complemented by a live, multi-media performance called “Cronkite,” based on a 2002 appearance by the former CBS anchorman on CNN’s “Larry King Live” one year after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. Public performances of “Cronkite” are currently scheduled at 6 p.m. Oct. 23 and 8 p.m. Nov. 3. Admission is free, but reservations are requested by calling 816-271-4100.

The first game of the world series impacted attendance Tuesday at the St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce’s Primetime event held to introduce new members to the business community.

“Who would have thought when we were planning this in January that the Royals would be in the World Series in October,” said Kristi Bailey, Chamber Director of Communication and Marketing. “We took a hit from the Royals game.”

The Primetime event was held from 5 to 7 p.m. at 36th Street Food & Drink located in the Downtown Holiday Inn.  Around 100 people were in attendance at the event.  However, Bailey said usually there would be more than 200.

“I think everyone there really seemed to get a lot out of it and for some of the new members this is the first time they’ve done something like that,” said Bailey. “We want to invite the new members back next year so they can participate again on a Non-Royals night.”

The Chamber said this year it has gained 100 new members.

“The chamber is a membership organization so we always are looking for new members to join because we survive based on dues and members who buy sponsorship as well as economic development for the community,” said Bailey.

She said the Chamber has helped bring companies to St. Joseph like Nor-Am Cold Storage and the just recently announce Schutz Container Systems which will be adding around 50 jobs to the St. Joseph community.

The Midland Empire Chapter of the Red Cross is sponsoring a Blood Drive in honor of two brothers whose lives were saved with blood donations.

According to the Red Cross, 11-year-old Cole Miller was born with a congenital heart defect requiring open heart surgery. During surgery at birth he did not have enough blood to circulate while he was in operation. Cole needed a blood donation during his surgery.

Cole’s 5-year-old brother Connor was diagnosed with stage 4 Hepatoblastoma in February of 2014. The softball size tumor was found in his liver and had spread to his lungs. During Connor’s intense chemotherapy and liver resection he needed several blood donations to survive the treatment. Both boys are thriving.

In honor of Cole and Connor Miller a Blood drive will be held October 30 from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Eugene Field Elementary School located at 2602 Gene Field Rd. in St. Joseph.

To make an appointment visit redcrossblood.org and use sponsor code Cole&Connor or call (800)733-2767.

 

Fall Open Burning Season
Open burning for fall 2014 begins Monday, November 3, 2014, and runs through Sunday
November 23, 2014. Open burning dates are approved by the Chief of the Enforcement
Section of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
Open burning is permitted on these days within the City of St. Joseph under the
following guidelines:

 Burning for yard waste of residential properties only.
 Burning allowed between 10:00 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.
 All fires must be in an upright cylindrical metal container with a volume equal
to no more than 55 gallons. Containers must be located at least fifteen (15)
feet away from any building. Only one burn container per residence is
allowed.
 All fires shall be monitored from a point on the property where the fire is
located, by a person capable of containing a fire, should containment become
necessary.
 ONLY dry yard waste such as leaves, brush and logs grown on the property
can be burned. NO trash, paper, lumber or building debris may be burned.
 Fire-fighting material, including but not limited to, a garden hose or a
container of water sufficient to contain any fire started shall be at the site of
the fire.
 If weather conditions such as high winds indicate the safety of the
community or the public may be endangered or if open burning may create a
health hazard, the Fire Chief or Health Director may invoke a temporary
burning ban.

Any violation of the open burning restrictions may result in a summons to appear in
court for a misdemeanor violation.
Residents are encouraged to explore alternatives to open burning. Many options for
disposing of yard waste are easy, do not contribute to air pollution, are not dependent
on time restrictions or the weather, and provide the healthy benefit of physical activity
while doing yard work instead of breathing acrid smoke from a waste fire. Such activities
include mowing leaves into fine particles and leaving them to fertilize the lawn, or
incorporating leaves into garden mulch. Larger wood brush can be chipped into mulch.
If you choose to burn, plan to do so within the days provided, as open burning session
will not be extended due to weather blackout dates.

More than a dozen Missouri Western students will be running the polls on Election Day after receiving training from Buchanan County Clerk Mary Baack-Garvey Tuesday.

“They are going to be election judges and we’re actually going to have a couple come in to our office and help with the absentee process,” said Baack Garvey.

As part of a Law Honors class at Western students have been learning about voting rights and getting involved in service projects to promote voter registration.

“If no one’s voting then we’re not going to have a real idea of what the country needs and what the country wants,” said Western Sophomore Caleb Fankhauser.

Fankhauser said his group created a video to get people interested in voting. Other students in the class also took part in registering voters and signed up 80 new registrations.

“If you’re not trying to have your voice heard then no one is,” said Fankhauser.

The students learned how to work the electronic polls, scanning drivers licenses and the process they would be involved in to help out in the November 4th election.

“It’s very important to get the young crowd involved in the voting,” said Baack-Garvey. “If we get some of these honors students involved in the program then maybe they can spread word of mouth about how important this voting process is.”

Lions Club members in Northwest Missouri have added another organization that fights visual impairment to the programs they support. The Children’s Center for the Visually Impaired started in 1952 with 8 youngsters. Last year the Center served 387 children within 150 miles of Kansas City. Traci Todd Murphy says many of the children are from the Saint Joseph area, and all are severely impaired. A benefit this weekend will help raise funds for the cause. 680 KFEQ’s Barry Birr has that story:

The poker run starts at ends at Saint Joseph Harley Davidson. It begins with breakfast at 8 a.m. Saturday. All riders are welcome. Riders will make a circle that includes Gower, Smithville, Weston, Rushville, and back to Saint Joseph at about 2 p.m. for more food and entertainment.