In an effort to help keep children safe, this week is designated as National Child Passenger Safety Week. 

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, three out of four safety seats are improperly installed. In 2015, four children were killed and 61 suffered injuries as occupants in motor vehicle crashes in Missouri. Thirteen percent of these children killed or injured were not restrained in a car seat or safety belt.

State law requires all children under eight to be in an appropriate child safety or booster seat until they are at least 80 pounds or at least 4’9″ tall.

Traffic Safety Coordinator for the St. Joseph Safety Council Sue Lober said Child Passenger Safety Week aims to educate parents, grandparents, caregivers or anyone that has a car seat in their car. 

“We want them to know how to use it properly, how to install it properly,” Lober said. “We give that week a little bit more focus. We have two car seat events scheduled that week so if anyone wants to have their car seat checked to see if it is in correctly, they have two opportunities.” 

The two car seat check opportunities in St. Joseph will be on Thursday and Saturday. A check from noon until 2 p.m. on Thursday will be at Habitat for Humanity, 3131 Frederick in the front parking lot. From 10 a.m. until noon on Saturday, free checks will be offered at Lowe’s Home Improvement Center. 

“You’ll have a certified child passenger safety technician look at your carseat and see, number one, is it in properly, number two, is it expired, because they do expire, some people don’t realize that,” Lober said. “We’ll look to see if there’s any recalls against that seat and then make sure it’s the proper seat for your child, so height and weight of the child will be taken into consideration.” 

The car seat safety events are being sponsored by the Every Mile Matter Traffic Safety Coalition, a collaboration of local law enforcement, state and non-profit agencies, local businesses and individuals who have joined forces to address traffic safety issues in an effort to reduce the numbers of crashes and traffic related injuries and deaths in Buchanan County. 

To find a certified technician in the area, click here. 

For more information, contact Sue Lober at the Safety Council at (816) 233-3330 or go to savemolives.com.

Police are investigating a “threat situation” at Central High School Friday morning.

According to St. Joseph School District Superintendent Dr. Robert Newhart, there was a possible in-person threat made and police have interviewed three students involved.

Newhart said the situation is under control and students are safe.

 

Police are investigating a burglary at 1601 Frederick Friday morning.

According to the St. Joseph Police Department, it appears a vehicle drove through the front of Smokerz Outlet around 3:15 a.m. Officers say it appears the suspect took items but they are still reviewing video surveillance.

No one is in custody and there is no person of interest at this time.

An 8-year-old student was struck by a vehicle near Mark Twain Elementary Wednesday afternoon.

According to the St. Joseph Police Department, the 8-year-old boy was heading home on a bike around 3:30 p.m. in the 3000 block of Parkway A and traveled off the grassy area into the road and was struck by an oncoming vehicle.

The child was transported to Mosaic Life Care with moderate, non-life threatening injuries.

According to police, no charges will be filed as witness statements say the driver was not driving recklessly.

The Missouri Department of Conservation is in the midst of a multi-year process of updating their management plans and is seeking public input during the process. 

During the month of September, plans for three conservation areas in Platte County will be available for public comment. 

Missouri Department of Conservation Media Specialist Bill Graham said public input gives the MDC a guide for the future and let’s them know of anything they need to change. 

“We’re giving people a chance to provide some input into those areas and those plans,” Graham said. “Is there something that concerns them about the area, is there something new they would like to see.” 

The three areas in Platte County available for public comment include the Kendzora, Little Bean Marsh and Dr. Frederick Marshall areas. 

MDC’s Kendzora Conservation Area north of Edgerton offers fishing, hunting and hiking on 746 acres. According to a press release, fishing opportunities include one mile Platte River frontage and a 35-acre fishing lake. A variety of wildlife habitat is offered including 200 acres of seasonally flooded bottomland, 300 acres of forest, and 190 acres of grasslands and old fields. A portion of the area is in southern Buchanan County. 

Little Bean Marsh Conservation Area north of Weston preserves a 167-acre wetland. It is an old oxbow of the Missouri River and one of the last large marshes in the river’s flood plain. The area is considered a prime birding location. Two paved trails lead into the wetland and forested areas. The 440-acre area also has some forest and old fields. 

MDC’s Dr. Frederick Marshall Conservation Area preserves 169 acres of rolling land southwest of Platte City. Habitat includes forest, old fields, crop land, and a restored woodland mix of large bur oaks and native prairie grasses. The area also has a half mile of frontage on the Platte River. 

To preview draft management plans and share comments online, click here.

Benefiting asthma awareness and education and remembering a friend are goals of an upcoming 5K. 

Run 4 Jen was started to honor Jennifer Shaw Suhr who died in December 2000 as a result of an asthma attack. Jennifer was a wife and mother, a member of Phi Mu sorority and graduated from Northwest Missouri State University in 1992. 

One of the organizers of the 5K, Julie Shaw said this is the 9th annual Run 4 Jen. 

“It’s for asthma awareness,” Shaw said. “Jennifer passed away of an asthma attack when she was 30. So we are just trying to prevent others from suffering from asthma and so people understand that it is serious and that you need to take precautions so that this doesn’t happen to you.” 

Proceeds from the event benefit asthma awareness and education through the KU University Asthma Center and the respiratory unit at St. Francis Hospital in Maryville. 

“By planning and participating in the upcoming event, those of us who knew Jennifer have the opportunity to reminisce about the special times we had with her and that keeps her spirit alive,” Shaw said. “And we also have the ability to raise awareness and educate others on how deadly this disease can be.” 

The Jennifer Shaw Suhr memorial 5k run/walk takes place at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 24, at the Raymond J. Courter College Park Pavilion on the Northwest Missouri State University Campus in Maryville. 

For more information and to sign up, go to runforjen.com or call Julie Shaw at (816) 591-0788.

GreaterGood’s Rescue Rebuild is in town to give the St. Joseph Animal Shelter a makeover.

The organization conducts shelter renovations across the country and is in St. Joseph today through the 18th to help out the shelter on Lower Lake Road. Rescue Rebuild is a volunteer program and St. Joseph Animal Shelter Humane Educator Jenna Keyes said they are in need of more volunteers in the area.

“There will be all different types of volunteer positions where you can fit in and use your skills to help out the shelter,” Keyes said. “Any volunteers we can get out here that are willing to help and really make a big difference for the animals here at the shelter, we greatly appreciate that support.”

The renovation work will be going on from 8 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. each day through Sunday, September 18th at the shelter. Anyone interested in volunteering for any part of the project should register online and fill out a survey indicating areas of interest and time availability.

For more information, go to the Friends of the Animal Shelter Facebook page, fill out the survey here or contact the shelter at (816) 271-4877.