Missouri Western State University celebrates Homecoming this week.

This year’s theme is “Griffon Country: Where Dreams Come True.”

A highlight of homecoming every year is the parade in downtown St. Joseph.

The parade is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 13 at Union Street and Frederick Avenue. The parade will travel southwest on Frederick to Faraon Street, then west on Faraon to Fifth Street, south on Fifth to Felix Street, and east on Felix to Eighth Street.

Other Homecoming Week activities include:

Monday, Oct. 8
* Residence Hall and Office Decorating Contests. Residence halls and offices will be decorated reflecting this year’s homecoming theme.
* “Western Paints the World” sign contest. Spirit signs created by student organizations will be placed around Downs Drive.
* “Jump In” obstacle course, 6 p.m., Spratt Stadium. Student teams will participate in seven contests, including the hula hoop pass, paper airplane throw, lemon race and more.

Tuesday, Oct. 9
* “Griffon Rescuers” blood drive, 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Blum Student Union 218-219. Student organizations compete to recruit the most blood donors.

Wednesday, Oct. 10
* “It’s a Small World” trivia night, 6 p.m., Blum Student Union. Each participating team gets a passport in the Blum lobby. They must locate 12 hidden tour guides around campus and successfully answer a Disney trivia question to get their passport stamped. The teams have one hour to find all 12 guides.

Thursday, Oct. 11
* “The Laugh Floor” comedy show, 6 p.m., Looney Complex. Organizations will perform skits before a performance by Donnell Rawlings of the Dave Chapelle Show. Rawlings will take the stage at 8 p.m. The show is free to students with a Missouri Western ID. Tickets are $10 for the general public. Advance tickets are available in Blum 207.
* 30th Annual Alumni Awards Banquet, 5:45 p.m., Fulkerson Center. Five Missouri Western alumni and one retired faculty member will be honored with the Herb ’35 and Peggy Iffert Service to the University Award, the Graduate of the Last Decade (GOLD) Award, the Distinguished Alumni Award and the Distinguished Faculty Award. The cost of the dinner is $30 per person. RSVP by calling 816-271-5646 or email Jenny Sherlock at jsherlock@missouriwestern.edu.

Friday, Oct. 12
* Alumni Golf Tournament, 1 p.m., Fairview Golf Course. Cost is $35 per person of $140 per teams of four. RSVP by calling 816-271-5646 or email Jenny Sherlock at jsherlock@missouriwestern.edu.
* “Cinderella’s Can-Tastic Castles,” 6 p.m., Griffon Indoor Sports Complex pavilion. Organizations will build Cinderella’s castle out of canned goods donated around campus during the week. The food will be donated to the Second Harvest Community Food Bank.
* “Griff-Tazmic” dance contest, pep rally and bonfire, 7:15 p.m., Spratt Stadium.

Saturday, Oct. 13
* Homecoming parade, 9:30 a.m., downtown St. Joseph.
* “Arts, Beats and Treats,” 10:30 a.m., Blum Union. Free family fun for all ages. Kids can make fun crafts, and the Balloon Dude and Casey’s Creatures will be there.
* Pre-game tailgate, 11:30 a.m., Lot H near the Baker Family Fitness Center. The Student Government Association and the Missouri Western Alumni Association are sponsoring a free tailgate before the game. Hamburgers, hot dogs and chili will be available.
* Griffon football homecoming game vs. Missouri Southern, 1:30 p.m., Spratt Stadium. As of Oct. 5, the Griffons are undefeated and ranked No. 5 in the AFCA Division II Coaches’ Poll and No. 4 in the D2Football.com Media Poll, the team’s highest national rankings ever.
* Greek Village Ribbon Cutting, 4 p.m., Juda Hall.
* Griffon volleyball vs. Central Oklahoma, 7 p.m., Looney Complex.

 

You might get a little surprise with your pizza delivery this week.

Domino’s Pizza, the National Fire Protection Association, the St. Joseph Fire Department and the Red Cross are joining forces to promote fire prevention.

From Monday, Oct. 8 to Friday, Oct. 12, anyone who orders a Domino’s pizza may be randomly selected and surprised at the door when their pizza arrives aboard a fire engine.

If all the smoke alarms in the home are working, the pizza is FREE. If the smoke alarm is not working, the firefighters will replace the batteries or install a fully functioning alarm.

It’s all part of National Fire Prevention Week, which was established to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire. The tragic 1871 conflagration killed more than 250 people, left 100,000 homeless, destroyed more than 17,400 structures and burned more than 2,000 acres. The Great Chicago Fire began on October 8, but continued into and did most of its damage on October 9, 1871.

A Missouri Water Patrol officer who lost his life in the line of duty during the Missouri River floods of 2011 will be remembered in a permanent way.

Family, friends and fellow officers gathered Friday to remember Fred Guthrie Jr, as a section of highway was formally renamed in his honor.

Guthrie and his dog Reed were swept away by floodwaters near Big Lake in Holt County on August 1, 2011.

The Fred Guthrie Memorial Highway stretches along I-29 from Missouri 273 near Tracy to Route E near Camden Point.

Representative Nick Marshall, who sponsored the bill to rename the highway, said the change is “a humblee expression of the gratitude” of the entire state.

 

A rollover accident west of Clarksdale sent an Easton, Missouri motorist to the hospital with moderate injuries.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol says 54-year-old Patsy Fisher fell asleep behind the wheel at 2:42 p.m. on Route P, five miles west of Clarksdale.

The 2001 Oldsmobile Intrigue left the highway, went airborne and rolled onto its top.  It came to rest  at the bottom of a ditch at approximately 3070 Route P.

A team from the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office, the Clarksdale Fire Department and the San Antonio Fire Department extricated Fisher.

She was taken by ambulance to Heartland Regional Medical Center where she was treated and released.

 

The St Joseph Fire Department made quick work of a fire in an apartment kitchen at the Broadmoor Apartments at 3607 Gene Field Road this afternoon.

Inspector Steve Henrichson says the cooking fire caused extensive damage to apartment A-38.

The firefighting effort also damaged the apartment below.

 

Henrichson estimated damage at $30 thousand upstairs.  The apartment downstairs sustained another $15 to 20 thousand damage to the drywall and furnishings.

There were no injuries.

 

Robidoux Resident Theatre will offer an audition workshop for the upcoming holiday play, A Christmas Story.

The workshop will use the script from the hit television show turned play to assist actors in how to best audition.

The cast requires seven children and four adults, and the workshop is open to both. The cost is $20.00 for the workshop. You may go online to sign up at www.rrtstjoe.org or call 816-232-1778.

The workshop will have general audition technics that could be used in all audition processes.

Auditions for A Christmas Story will be held October 26-27 from 7-9PM in the Robidoux Resident Theatre Rehearsal Hall at 116 S. 8th Street.

Saint Joseph police have released the name of the 35 year old whose body was found in a parked car Thursday night.  Investigators say Jason M. Thompson had a history of medical issues.  There were no outward signs of foul play.  The body was taken to Kansas City, Kansas, where an autopsy will determine the cause of death.  The car was parked at 18th and Holman. The body was discovered at about 9:30 pm.