Featured Stories
Downing Community Fire Association Approved for State Equipment Grant
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The Downing Community Fire Association has been approved for a state equipment grant of up to $15,000 through the Missouri Department of Public Safety. The funding is part of a new initiative aimed at helping small volunteer fire departments purchase critical firefighting equipment. The grant program, announced in October, is designed…
Read MoreSchuyler R-1 Board Closes Semester with Audit Approval, Staff Changes, and Student Success Highlights
QUEEN CITY, Mo. — The Schuyler R-1 Board of Education met twice in December, addressing a full agenda of financial oversight, personnel updates, and student-centered reports as the district prepared to close out the first semester of the 2025-2026 academic year. At a special regular session held on Thursday, Dec. 11, the board reviewed the…
Read MoreScurlock’s Celebrate 70th Anniversary
Donald and Carol Scurlock will celebrate their 70th wedding anniversary on December 25. Their son Jerry (Margaret) Scurlock and daughter Joy (Scott) Aylward will hold an open house for them on December 27 at 2:30 p.m. at the Downing Christian Church. They have four grandkids, Jennifer (Brett) Tuttle, John (Sara) Scurlock, Kimberly (Zac) Campbell, and…
Read MoreKnox County Football Standout Honored at KMEM Football Awards Ceremony, Eagle Football All State
By David Sharp Knox County senior Cooper Clair was one of several area high school football athletes recognized at the 2025 KMEM Radio Football Awards Ceremony. The Banquet was held at Memphis, Mo on December 16, 2025. Cooper Clair was named Hawkins Insurance, KMEM Radio Player of the Week three times during the Eagles 10-1…
Read MoreStudent Safety Guides Winter Closure Decisions in NEMO
By Mike Scott, NEMOnews Media Group NORTHEAST MISSOURI — With winter weather forcing school closures across northeast Missouri, some residents are left wondering why student activities — such as basketball games — sometimes still go on. NEMOnews Media group contacted several area school superintendents who say student safety is always the top priority, even if…
Read MoreGraves Secures $4M for Sullivan County Hospital Project
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.) has secured $4 million in federal funding for a new hospital facility in Sullivan County. The funds were included in the Fiscal Year 2026 Agriculture appropriations bill signed into law last month. The money will support the construction of a new 16-bed critical access hospital and rural…
Read MoreThree Weeks Before Christmas, 155 Simmons Workers Told They’re Out
Milan pet food plant to close in January; layoffs hit nearly 5% of county workforce By Echo Menges The Sullivan County community is reeling after learning the Simmons pet food plant is slated to be closed just one month into the new year. Local government officials and Simmons employees were notified on Wednesday, Dec. 3,…
Read MoreStories That Recipes Tell: Old-Time Favorites Passed Down Through Generations
By Emily Bontrager Recipes that stand the test of time and have been passed down through generations are treasured in my family, and I imagine they are in many other families as well. Small boxes of recipes sit in my family’s baker’s cabinet, each one holding a piece of our own type of culinary history.…
Read MoreGorin Home Destroyed by Fire, Four Left Homeless
By Echo Menges GORIN, Mo. – Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025 – A home in Gorin was destroyed by fire early Thursday morning, leaving four people and two pet dogs displaced just two weeks before Christmas. The family lost all of their possessions in the fire. Volunteer firefighters from the Gorin and Rutledge volunteer fire departments…
Read MoreRock Truck Driver Trapped in Wreckage After Violent Rollover
Jaws of Life Used to Free Driver From Crushed Truck Cab By Echo Menges KNOX COUNTY, Mo. — Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025 – A rock truck driver from Greentop is lucky to be alive after a violent rollover crash in Knox County Tuesday afternoon. According to a witness, the fully loaded tractor-trailer was…
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