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Author: Sarah Thomack

Weekend enforcement campaign focuses on dangers of drug-impaired driving

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A campaign this weekend is focusing on the dangers of drug-impaired driving.

Law enforcement around the state, along with the Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety, is focusing on drug-impaired driving April 19-20.

Jon Nelson is with the Missouri Department of Transportation’s Highway Safety and Traffic Division and is Assistant to the State Highway Safety and Traffic Engineer.

Nelson said this is the second year they are putting on the campaign centered around the 4/20 timeline.

“This 4/20 date is significant in the marijuana community, specifically, but, like alcohol and other drugs, marijuana can significantly impair and inhibit a person’s ability to drive and operate a motor vehicle safely. Anytime we see drivers that are under the influence of a substance, it not only puts that driver at risk and the people in their vehicle, but also all of the others on the road,” Nelson said. “We want to make sure that… people understand that even though legalization of marijuana is becoming more widespread, it’s never acceptable to drive under the influence of marijuana or any other drug.”  

Nelson said law enforcement has seen an overall increase in the prevalence of drugs in drivers in some impaired crashes. 

According to the Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety, preliminary data from 2018 indicate, 78 people were killed and 142 more were seriously injured in Missouri traffic crashes that involved at least one drug-impaired driver.

St. Joseph Police Department Sgt. Larry Stobbs said there are misconceptions surrounding Missouri passing the medical marijuana laws.

“The reality is, if you smoke marijuana and then drive a car, you are just as impaired as you would be if you were driving under the influence of alcohol,” Stobbs said. “The impairment may be a little different between the two, but… if you’re under the influence, it doesn’t matter whether you’re impaired by marijuana or some other type of drug or if you’re impaired by alcohol, you’re still subject to the same laws.”

Stobbs said the real life consequences of being arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs can include losing your license, paying court and attorney costs, increased car insurance rates and increased charges if you injure or kill someone in a crash.

“It’s almost been 20 years ago, we had one of our police dispatch supervisors that was killed on her way to work by an impaired driver. The last I knew, that individual that struck and killed her is still sitting in prison because he was convicted of second degree murder. I’m sure that if you’d go back to that gentleman and go, ‘Would you have rather paid $10 for a cab ride someplace or would you rather spend 20 years in prison?’ We all know what the answer to that would be,” Stobbs said. “I know back 20 years ago when I spoke to him, he didn’t have any intentions of hurting anybody, he never thought he was going to be in an accident. That’s the thing that people need to stop and realize, is that when you’re impaired, you’re not at your 100% best.”

To learn more about the drug-impaired driving enforcement campaign, go to savemolives.com.

For one Chick-fil-A employee, flood relief fundraiser means more (AUDIO)

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Chick-fil-A St. Joseph owner Ruthie Seitz presents United Way of Greater St. Joseph President Kylee Strough with a check for $7,990.29 to go toward flood relief efforts.

By SARAH THOMACK
St. Joseph Post

Chick-fil-A in St. Joseph served enough chicken on April 6th to make an almost $8,000 donation to help area flood victims.

A giant check presentation was held Thursday morning at the Chick-fil-A located at 5303 North Belt Highway in St. Joseph.

Chick-fil-A St. Joseph owner Ruthie Seitz said they donated 50% of all sales between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. on Saturday, April 6, to United Way of Greater St. Joseph’s Flood Relief Fund. 

“Our hearts go out to those who have been impacted by the flooding, who have been displaced, who have lost family homes and we have a team member that is with us whose family farm has been underwater for awhile now,” Seitz said. “Just being able to help in some small way, those people try to get back some of what they have lost is just what we were hoping to do.”

Chick-fil-A Team Member Mary (who asked that her last name not be used) was one of those affected by the flood. She said her boyfriend has property at Big Lake and the family farm in extreme northwest Missouri, which has been through the floods of ‘84, ‘93 and 2011, once again is underwater.

“This year was just so much more devastating because of when it came, it came earlier. So when it’s drying out, we’re still dealing with the spring rains instead of having a nice July drought. So it’s made it harder… to get things cleaned up.”

Mary, according to Seitz, has kept a positive attitude through all the cleaning up and rebuilding, including helping others with flood cleanup.

Mary told St. Joseph Post, Chick-fil-A not only is helping flooding victims by donating funds from April 6th, but they have been understanding as she deals with her own flood cleanup.

“Everybody here is fabulous to work with because what they’ve kind of let me do is just say, ‘Hey, I think I’m going to need this week off,’ and they let me take off to go,” Mary said. “It really meant a lot (the fundraiser), I was very proud. I saw a lot of my friends who are flood victims here that Saturday and they were very happy, very appreciative of all of it.”

United Way of Greater St. Joseph President Kylee Strough said the money will be added to the United Way’s Flood Relief Fund.

“(It) is really designed to serve people in the 17-county area that we service and help people with needs that will be unmet by other resources,” Strough said. “That can include people who were directly impacted by flooding, maybe their primary residence was impacted, but we’re also beginning to get calls about people who are having to drive an extra hundred miles everyday to work because of flooded out roads and bridges in their regular route and things like that.”

Strough tells St. Joseph Post, the funds will be made available for case workers and social service agencies to apply on behalf of individuals and families to receive support.

“We’ll never be able to make people whole after a flood, it’s devastating to the families that were impacted, and we recognize that, but if there’s something that we can do to help fill in gaps, that’s where United Way wants to be.”

For more information on United Way’s Flood relief efforts and how to donate funds or supplies for cleanup, click here.

Strough said some of the most needed cleaning supply items are Clorox, vinegar and ShockWave disinfectant.

Happy Camper Scamper this weekend will benefit Camp Quality

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The forecast is calling for a sunny and cool Happy Camper Scamper Saturday morning in St. Joseph.

KKJO 105.5 hosts the annual 5K, which benefits Camp Quality Northwest Missouri, a week-long summer camp for kids who have cancer.

“A lot of them can’t walk, so we want to walk for them,” said KKJO 105.5 Morning Personality Gregg Lynn. “We’re going to get out (and) raise some money for camp. They have over 100 campers every summer and it costs about $1,100 per camper, so it’s very expensive and all their money is raised through private donations. This is our way of helping out a little bit, raising a little bit of money, having some fun, it’s going to be a beautiful morning for it.”

Lynn said if anyone cannot participate in the 5K and just wants to donate, they can stop by the morning of the race to drop off a donation or donate through the registration website. KKJO also hosts a Radio-A-Thon each year in May to raise more funds for Camp Quality.

“Over the past however many years, we’ve been able to raise over a quarter of a million dollars for Camp Quality, which we’re pretty excited about, it’s a cause that’s very important to me,” Lynn said. “I’ve been out to camp many times and met with some of these kids. One little girl, the first year we did a Radio-A-Thon, her name is Natalie, and she was in our TV commercial for our Radio-A-Thon and now she’s graduated high school. That’s a great story, too, because she’s beat cancer and she’s living life to the fullest and we just want to make sure these kids can make it out to camp and have a great experience this summer.”

The Happy Camper Scamper begins at 9 a.m. on Saturday at Bartlett Park in St. Joseph. To register, click here and for more information about Camp Quality visit campqualityusa.org/nwmo.

Walk for the Paws 5K raises nearly $16,000

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The 5th Annual Run/Walk for the Paws 5K on April 13th, 2019, raised nearly $16,000.

An event over the weekend raised nearly $16,000 for the new St. Joseph Animal Shelter.

According to Friends of the St. Joseph Animal Shelter President Whitney Zoghby, 436 people registered for the 5th Annual Run/Walk for the Paws 5K and 417 participated Saturday morning, the largest turnout for the event. There were also over 170 dogs who joined their owners on the walk.

Zoghby said while they are still compiling sponsor and vendor donations, the event raised approximately $15,900. The funds will go toward the new St. Joseph Animal Shelter building renovation. The building is located at 5909 Corporate Drive.

For more information about the Friends of the St. Joseph Animal Shelter’s Wags to Wishes campaign, click here.

Four DWI arrests made during overnight saturation

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A DWI saturation conducted overnight Friday resulted in four arrests.

According to Sgt. Larry Stobbs with the St. Joseph Police Department, the saturation was held in coordination with Heartland Mothers Against Drunk Driving during Crime Victims’ Rights Week.

Stobbs said the saturation included 26 officers and covered Andrew, Buchanan, Clinton and DeKalb counties. There were four DWI arrests, at least two drug arrests and one minor-in-possession.

Ribbon cutting and open house to be held for Mosaic Medical Center-Maryville

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A grand opening ribbon cutting and open house will be held next week in Maryville to recognize the hospital transition.

Mosaic Life Care officially assumed operations of SSM Health St. Francis Hospital – Maryville at the beginning of April.

Maryville Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Lily White said they will be holding the grand opening and ribbon cutting for what is now known as Mosaic Medical Center-Maryville.

“We want to have as many community members as possible come, learn about some of the transition and kind of what we can expect in the future,” White said.

The ribbon cutting will be held at 10 a.m. on Thursday, April 18th, at the Main Entrance at Mosaic Medical Center-Maryville, 2016 South Main Street.

SJPD investigating death of St. Joseph YWCA resident

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The St. Joseph Police Department is investigating after a death of a YWCA resident.

According to Commander Eric Protzman with the police department, a woman in her 50s, a YWCA resident, passed away Thursday morning. Protzman said while there does not appear to be any foul play, the death is considered an unattended death, which is why the police department is investigating. Police are waiting on results from an autopsy and a toxicology report.

YWCA Chief Executive Officer Tammy Killin said in a statement that they are saddened by the death and prayers go to the family. 

“The YWCA is fully cooperating with the St. Joseph Police Department. We appreciate our First Responders and EMS, the YWCA staff and SJPD for all of their support during this tragic time,” Killin said in the statement.

Killin tells St. Joseph Post that YWCA staff works with an at-risk population.

“I can’t speak to the specifics of this case. However, in general we work with an at-risk population.  We don’t always know the health conditions and medical history of the folks we serve.  We strive to be a safe place for women to come and we respect and maintain their privacy.”

Annual tree planting ceremony held in Maryville to observe Crime Victims’ Rights Week

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By SARAH THOMACK
St. Joseph Post

A tree planting ceremony is held each year in Maryville in recognition of victims of crime.

Crime Victims’ Rights Week is held every year and various events are held nationwide in recognition of it. The 1984 Victims of Crime Act addressed things such as the right of the victim to be in court hearings and to be notified of court hearings.

Tom Seipel is District Administrator of the Parole Office at the Maryville Treatment Center. Seipel said the center opened in December of 1996, and the superintendent at the time asked him to help organize an event for Crime Victims’ Rights Week in 1997.

“Victims needed to be recognized, they were an integral part of the criminal justice system and it seemed like all too often they were being re-victimized or were being forgotten,” Seipel said. “As Mozingo Lake was being developed, (I) talked to the city (of Maryville) and the city gave us basically a selected area and told us to utilize that area. So every year, we’ve continued to plant a tree there in recognition of the victims.”

The keynote speaker at the tree planting will be Missouri Department of Corrections Director Anne Precythe. The Maryville High School Spectrum choir and the American Legion will also be a part of the event and there will be a proclamation by Mayor Rachael Martin.

The tree planting will take place at 10 a.m. on Friday at the Mozingo Lake Recreation Park at the Kiwanis Shelter.

A tree is donated each year for ceremony by Walmart or Sutherlands.

For more information about National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, click here.

St. Joe Fit kicks off Thursday with a few changes

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By SARAH THOMACK
St. Joseph Post

A free walking program in St. Joseph kicks off this week with a few changes.

St. Joe Fit will begin the walking season at 5:30 pm on Thursday. Julie Noel with St. Joseph Parks, Recreation and Civic Facilities said walkers will meet at the St. Joseph REC Center located at 2701 Southwest Parkway.

“It’s so much fun,” Noel said. “You meet new people… you really get a chance to walk along almost every single urban trail we have here in St. Joe and some trails people don’t even realize exist until they get to walk on it.”

Noel said this year they’re making a change to the schedule. The trail walks will run from April 11th until May 30th. During the summer, walkers are encouraged to utilize the free or reduced price fitness classes and wellness nutrition classes available for St. Joe Fit participants.

“Those who want to walk in the summer between June 5th and August 30th can walk for free on Thursdays at the REC Center anytime. The trail walks will start back up September the 5th and go through October the 17th,” Noel said. “The feedback that we received from a survey we provided to participants indicated that it’s really hot during the summer months and we were seeing a lot of numbers fall off so we thought maybe we’d try something different.”

The St. Joe Fit program also includes some options to the trail walks this year so people can choose a length that fits with their schedule or fitness level. There will be three options: a 1-1.5 mile walk, 2.5-4 miles or 4-5 mile walk.

Noel adds the recent flooding should not affect the trail walks scheduled this spring and they will adjust the locations, if needed.

For more information, contact Julie Noel at (816) 271-5516 or visit the St. Joe Fit Facebook page. To register online, click here.

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