Social Services

By Leah Rainwater One St. Joseph man is advocating for ways to enhance a national resource. Tracy Gillespie, a mental health and homeless advocate in St. Joseph, encountered an issue when he was trying to use the 988 hotline for a personal mental health issue. “I needed some help,” Gillespie said. “My phone was deactivated because,

By Kendra Simpson For over four decades, the AFL-CIO has helped disadvantaged families in the region with the Adopt-a-Family program, but because of its past success, the program now has new guidelines to qualify for assistance. The Adopt-a-Family program started in 1983 when radio DJs got tired of the Cabbage Patch Kid craze. Rather than

By NewsPress Now The United Way is looking for volunteers to share a love for reading with local students. The agency needs adults to read with children through the United Way Reading Adventure program this fall. Volunteers can sign up to read once, a few times or on a regular schedule to kids at Carden

By NewsPress Now The St. Joseph YWCA is highlighting Domestic Violence Awareness Month with a series of events in the coming week. Local restaurants will participate in the Empty Seat at the Table event on Saturday, Oct. 19, by reserving a space as a symbol of those who have lost their lives to domestic violence.

By Kyle Schmidt The Salvation Army Corps is asking the St. Joseph community for help as it prepares for its winter coat drive. Pastor with the Salvation Army Corps Ron Key said donations can be made Monday through Friday at the main office on Seventh and Messanie streets. ”We ask if people donate, they at

By NewsPress Now Cooler days are making it feel a little more like Christmas is on the way, leading one local agency to announce plans for its holiday assistance program. AFL-CIO Community Services will start taking applications for its annual Adopt-A-Family Christmas Program on Monday, Oct. 28. The agency matches those in need with local

By Kendra Simpson Like stepping over the edge of a building; that’s the fear that children may face when reaching out for help from abuse or neglect. This is why Voices of Courage hosted Over the Edge 2024, allowing adults to experience a similar feeling. Over the edge is an annual fundraiser for Voices of

By Kendra Simpson St. Joseph is full of individuals who go out of their way to help better the lives of kids, and the Youth Alliance wants to celebrate those people with the Superstars for Kids award. Every year, the Youth Alliance holds the Superstars for Kids event to acknowledge individuals in the community and

By Kendra Simpson The Noyes Home for Children is fostering kindness among St. Joseph kids with a new essay contest and fundraiser. Open to grades kindergarten through 12th in public, private or homeschool, the Kindness Saint Joseph essay contest asks kids and teenagers to write a one-page essay about the kindest person they know of

By Kendra Simpson To better help the public understand what domestic violence survivors go through, the YWCA is hosting several “In Her Shoes” simulations throughout October. During Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the Young Women’s Christian Association is encouraging St. Joseph residents to take action against domestic violence. The nonprofit will host the “In Her Shoes”

By Leah Rainwater No matter who you are or where you’ve come from, you or someone you love has probably heard, seen or even experienced domestic violence. The Young Women’s Christian Association reports, one in four women and one in seven men experience domestic violence in their lifetime. Defining domestic violence Corina Merritt, the survivor

By NewsPress Now People interested in developing their leadership skills are encouraged to apply for a community betterment program. Applications are being taken for the 43rd class of the United Way Leadership St. Joseph program. Almost 1,000 people have participated since 1982, and many have gone on to become leaders in the community and their

By Kendra Simpson Sunday afternoon, the Noyes Home for Children celebrated 130 years of caring and providing for the community with a block party and celebrity kickball game. The event featured all the makings of a successful block party including music, balloon art and a friendly game of kickball. All proceeds raised at the celebration,

By NewsPress Now Community members who are grocery shopping this weekend won’t have to go far to make a difference and donate to Second Harvest Community Food Bank. Second Harvest is collecting nonperishable items for its “Fill the Van” food drive, with a focus on pasta noodles and sauce, boxed dinners, breakfast items, snacks, rice,

By NewsPress Now A water main repair is closing indoor programming at InterServ, 5400 King Hill Ave., through Thursday morning.  The center’s Meals on Wheels will run on Thursday, and other programming is expected is expected to start running again at 11 a.m.

By Ashley Luthans A regional organization aiming to increase charitable giving in Northwest Missouri announced three new members to its board of directors. Monica Bailey, Lindsey Holcumbrink and Joshua Strong have been welcomed into the Community Foundation of Northwest Missouri.  The organization began in 2009 and is a public charity with the goal of making philanthropy

By Ashley Luthans As temperatures lower, the need for warm clothes increases. In order to help the community, The Salvation Army is hosting its annual coat drive in order to provide coats, hats, gloves and more to those in need. The Salvation Army is requesting coats of all sizes, especially children’s sizes, through Oct. 18.

By Kendra Simpson River Bluff Brewing held a tailgate party Sunday afternoon, but this tailgate had a few more tails than the average pre-game party. River Bluff Brewing partnered with Purina to to host an adoption event and raise money for Friends of the Animal Shelter. The party had all the essentials for a good

By Kendra Simpson Local businesses and organizations are working together in October to bring awareness to domestic violence in St. Joseph. Every minute, an average of 24 people in the United States are victims of rape, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner, totaling more than 12 million women and men each year. That’s

By Kendra Simpson Hundreds of runners are set to hit the streets of St. Joseph on Saturday for the second annual St. Joseph Marathon, an event that has its origins in a philanthropic effort. Last year, the marathon saw more than 500 participants sign up to join one of four races, including a 5K, 10K,

By Kirsten Stokes Construction on a cold storage unit is back on track at Second Harvest Community Food Bank. Weather delays and permit confirmations temporarily halted work on the new $3.5 million, 11,500-square-foot facility, which broke ground in March at 915 Douglas St. “Things slowed down just a little bit in terms of federal procurement

By Charles Christian After a noticeable absence due to the pandemic, “dine and donate” programs benefitting nonprofits are returning to St. Joseph. Chelsea Howlett, executive director of the Noyes Home in St. Joseph, said the return of these programs provides an easy way for the community to participate in meeting the needs of nonprofit organizations,

By Charles Christian The “Better Days Made by You” giving campaign by United Way was able to start strong, thanks to Pacesetter companies. The Pacesetter program for United Way consists of local companies who engage in fundraising efforts prior to the annual campaign kickoff. According to this year’s campaign co-chair Doug Walter, these 17 local

By Ashley Luthans Missouri Western State University’s Center for Service hosted its fourth annual Griffs Give Back Day of Service on Friday morning. Approximately 200 students, faculty and staff from Missouri Western volunteered to clean streets and sidewalks around St. Joseph. Freshman Maddie Chidester explained why she came out to help. “We’re doing it for

By Kendra Simpson Greater Than Financial and Sisters of Solace teamed up to host the annual S’mac Down macaroni and cheese cook-off Thursday evening at the Castle Bridge Event Center. “Who doesn’t love macaroni and cheese, right?” said Trina Clark, executive director for Sisters of Solace. “We were just looking for something really unique to

By Kendra Simpson September is recognized as Hunger Action Month, and the Second Harvest Community Food Bank has asked St. Joseph residents to take action in helping the community fight food insecurity. In the Buchanan County area alone, 49,000 people face food insecurity. Through Hunger Action Month, Second Harvest aims to bring awareness to food

By Kirsten Stokes The Salvation Army is looking for donations at its Messanie location, accepting all clothing items for those in need. As the seasons change, taking a look in your closet for apparel and personal items that you no longer use can be resourceful at the Salvation Army. Major Ronald Key said the least

By Ashley Luthans Since 2012, Sept. 5 has been recognized as International Day of Charity. The date to celebrate giving back to others was chosen in honor of Mother Teresa’s passing. Mother Teresa, a Nobel Peace Prize-winning humanitarian, dedicated her life to helping others. Many local organizations in St. Joseph aim to do the same.

By Kendra Simpson The United Way of Greater St. Joseph is striving to create better days for those in need, and the nonprofit is asking for the community’s support to reach its goals this year. Since 1916, United Way has raised funds every year to support local programs and agencies that help individuals in need.