Social Services

By Kirsten Stokes Over the last 40 years, the AFL-CIO of St. Joseph has provided the community with discounted clothing through their Fab-U-Less Finds thrift store. Now, with over a dozen thrift stores in St. Joseph, the market saturation has led to sales in the Fab-U-Less store significantly decreasing leaving no choice but to cease

By Leah Rainwater One local food kitchen was able to serve up some Christmas Day cheer. The Open Door Food Kitchen, located at 615 S. 8th St., was able to serve an average of 200 patrons with a Christmas Day meal, hot chocolate, gifts and more. The meal was served by the Jewish Community. Numerous

By Leah Rainwater Some families, who otherwise would not see anything under the Christmas tree this year, will be able to- thanks to the AFL-CIO’s Adopt-A-Family program. There were 893 families in need of adoption this year, and the St. Joseph community banned together to provide Christmas cheer to those in need. Gabriel Palmer, the

By Jenna Wilson You may have noticed St. Joseph police officers making a significant amount of stops Monday morning, but they weren’t routine traffic stops. Thanks to a secret donor, three St. Joseph police officers were sent on a special operation to gift nine residents $100 cash instead of traffic tickets – handing out more

By Jenna Wilson Buchanan County, Missouri, Sheriff’s Office deputies gifted presents to seven families during their annual Adopt-A-Family delivery Monday. The Sheriff’s Office raised $5,000 to disperse to three families and four senior citizens this Christmas, delivering the gifts on Monday, Dec. 23. For new and incoming deputies riding along for the Adopt-A-Family spree, this

By Kyle Schmidt The AFL-CIO Community Services for St. Joseph had a weekend for the books as more and more donations and adoptions get them ever closer to hitting their Adopt-A-Family goal. The AFL-CIO’s goal is to get all 893 families taken care of before Christmas Day and it is within reach as just 42

By Kirsten Stokes Students in the area are using perseverance to shape their future, proudly displaying their ability to build a home. Area high schoolers with the St. Joseph Youth Alliance are involved in the construction group and will rebuild a home located at 2522 S. 11 St. Ben Girard, YouthBuild Construction Supervisor said this

By Ashley Luthans There are many ways to volunteer or donate to charitable organizations in St. Joseph during this time of year. The St. Joseph Salvation Army is one place that people can volunteer at, not only during the holidays, but year-round. Major Laura Key with the Salvation Army says that each child that has

By Nicole Scott Second Harvest Community Food Bank in St. Joseph will be closed on Friday, Dec. 20.  The organization announced their closure through social media on Friday morning, but did say that its staff will be volunteering at another community organization.  The staff at Second Harvest will be serving meals at Open Door Food

By NewsPress Now The AFL-CIO of Greater St. Joseph is getting closer to its goal of getting all seeking holiday gift assistance adopted. With just six days until the Christmas holiday arrives, the AFL-CIO Adopt-A-Family program has assisted 576 families. However, there are 317 families still waiting. Officials are scheduling as many participants as possible

By Kyle Schmidt The goal of delivering Christmas presents to 893 families including 2,935 individuals will come down to the wire with a week until Christmas. AFL-CIO Community Services Executive Director Nichi Seckinger said 527 families have been adopted. Others still waiting for assistance through the Adopt-A-Family program, which provides Christmas gifts to those in

By NewsPress Now Community Action Partnership of Greater St. Joseph announced on Wednesday morning that since Oct. 1, they have helped more than 2,000 local families with energy assistance this winter. CAP helps area residents in many different ways from their Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, their Housing Development program, Water Assistance program, their

By Kyle Schmidt Musicians from around the country have come together to create a Christmas album that benefits people right here in St. Joseph. The 23-track “Mark Murtha’s Christmas Party in Kansas City” is helping nonprofit organizations across Missouri, including AFL-CIO’s Adopt-A-Family program locally. Murtha, a guitarist and the producer of the album, gathered 40

By Leah Rainwater As the holiday season approaches, Voices of Courage shared recommendations to be mindful when taking part in family gatherings. While sitting on Santa’s lap for a picture might seem like something you think your kiddo would enjoy, it could actually share a different message. “Sitting on a strange man’s lap to get

By Ashley Luthans The St. Joseph Host Lions Club is hosting its annual fruit sale to benefit the community. The annual sale began on Friday, Dec. 13 at 10 a.m. and will run daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the former Golden Corral parking lot, 715 N. Belt Highway. The club will be

By Chris Fortune Many families are still seeking assistance in finding the perfect gift in the days leading up to Christmas. The AFL-CIO Adopt-A-Family Christmas Program has 893 families enrolled, and 447 families have already been adopted, but more than 400 still need help. “Last year we had a lot of adopters who would adopt

By Chris Fortune Leadership at the local St. Joseph, Mo., homeless shelter are looking to provide a long-term solution to the growing needs of the homeless population. Community Missions already provides resources and shelter to the homeless community, however, Executive Director Rachael Bittiker is working to expand the services at the cold weather shelter, 700

By NewsPress Now Several people still need assistance to have a merry Christmas through a community program. AFL-CIO of St. Joseph said 473 families are waiting for help through its Adopt-A-Family Christmas Program. This year, 893 applicants were chosen for the program, and as of Dec. 11, 420 families have been adopted by 181 adopters.

By Nicole Scott The Platte County, Missouri, Sheriff’s Office brought comfort and joy to area children this past Saturday. The Platte County Sheriff’s Office shared through social media that last Saturday, Dec. 7, they held their 30th Annual “Shop with a Deputy” event and were able to help 46 children in need. The Sheriff’s Office

By Ashley Luthans Central High School’s new volunteer club is spreading holiday cheer in St. Joseph. Students in the club visited Downtown businesses on Tuesday afternoon to deliver homemade cards and treats. “Unity for the Community” was created for the 2024-25 school year by two juniors at Central: Taevyn Hanson and Lily McClain. McClain shared

By Charles Christian A local nonprofit is set to give away free new toys for kids just in time for the holidays. Grace House, 2638 Lafayette St., will begin offering items for infants and children up to age 12 at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 14. Grace House Executive Director Ruth Costello said that in

By Kendra Simpson Second Harvest Community Food Bank kicked off the “12 Days of Giving” food drive for campus cupboards across St. Joseph. The food drive goes until Dec. 31 and is asking for donations of 12 food items, including bagged rice, canned beans, soup, canned fruit and vegetables, granola bars, mac ‘n’ cheese, peanut

By Kendra Simpson MidCity Excellence Community Learning Center hosted its 16th annual “Tis Better to Give than to Receive” toy drive Thursday evening. The community showed up to help make spirits bright for the 48 students at MidCity Excellence with monetary and toy donations. MidCity Excellence helps keep kids off the street, out of jail

By Kyle Schmidt A local agency is seeking some community Santas to help provide a merry Christmas for those in need. The annual AFL-CIO Adopt-A-Family program is in its final days for people to sign up for holiday assistance. Executive Director Nichi Seckinger said the agency sees a big push of applicants at this time

By Nicole Scott The Noyes Home for Children is sharing a holiday wish with the community.  The agency posted on social media about the need for 30 to 40 shower caddies this holiday season so that each child in its care can have one.  The specific shower caddy asked for is from the brand EUDELE

By Ashley Luthans Hy-Vee, in collaboration with local first responders, distributed 200 free hams to community members on Wednesday. As part of the “Hams for the Holidays” program, the St. Joseph Hy-Vee is one of 18 participating locations giving out a total of 5,000 hams this year. The distribution event began at 3 p.m. at

By Leah Rainwater The Noyes Home for Children hosted its annual holiday open house on Tuesday. Visitors enjoyed refreshments, music and activities including gingerbread house decorating, ornament making and Christmas stories narrated by Will Stuck. Santa was also in attendance and community members were able to tour the Noyes Home and also see the “Help