Take 5 For Your Health

Missouri Takes Step To Hold Down Health Insurance Rates, But Will It Be Enough? When individual health insurance plans go on sale on healthcare.gov, many Missourians will probably be more than a little shocked to see some rate increases as high as 40 percent. Similar increases are popping up nationwide, but different states have different…

Read More >
An altar with photos and candles.

A Ritual to Remember

It will be fun and games for the costumed ghosts and goblins tonight, but it was a much more solemn affair this past weekend for the Boyce family. From a dark floral scarf and black and red roses decorating an empty chair, to the black tablecloth and dishes, the dinner was a quiet remembrance and invitation for their beloved…

Read More >
A whoopie pie

5 Pumpkin Delights (That are Not Pumpkin Spice Lattes)

To those of you who seek out pumpkin spice lattes with the same doggedness that Harry Potter pursued horcruxes, I can not aid you in the fracturing of your soul. I can however help you discover a new pumpkin wonderland. It’s a place where there is still sweetness, but also savory notes and the bright…

Read More >

Commentary |Creating A Hub For Religious Fluency

Imagine a day when: Any Christian fifth-grader in Kansas City who meets a Muslim fifth-grader immediately says to the Islamic child, “salaam alaikum,” the traditional Muslim greeting that means “peace to you.” Any Buddhist adult here who encounters a Jew after sundown on Friday routinely greets the Jew with these words, “Shabbat Shalom,” meaning a…

Read More >
visitors in lobby of crisis center

New KC Mental Health Center Hailed As National Model

Supporters of a new mental health crisis center in Kansas City hailed the facility as a model for the rest of the state — and beyond — during its ceremonial opening this afternoon. “Other communities in Missouri are going to have their eyes on this project because they want to emulate it,” said Mike Nietzel,…

Read More >
A reporter and videographers talking to seated family members

Five Years Later, Families of Blast Victims Still in the Dark

ATCHISON, Kan. — Five years later, the hurt is still raw for the families of six men killed when a grain elevator blew up on the banks of the Missouri River here. For them, it could have happened yesterday. “You wake up in the morning, and then you realize it’s not a bad dream —…

Read More >
ice cream in beer snifters

Halloween Celebrations Galore & Other Weekend Possibilities

The Power & Light District is hosting Dead or Alive! Saturday. The massive costume party, which kicks off at 7 p.m., is free. You can also buy a drink package for $25. Watch the movie, “Halloween,” on the big screen on the KC Live! stage at 7:30 p.m. Sunday. The zombie theme is a big one,…

Read More >
A woman and the words "comedy's truth"

Commentary | The Untapped Power of Humor

Gil Scott-Heron was incorrect. The revolution will be televised. Because, apparently, pop culture is the only way to get through to people. This weekend, Tom Hanks was the guest host for Saturday Night Live. He played a Trump supporter in a skit called “Black Jeopardy” where he competed for prizes with black contestants, a black…

Read More >
Milk cartons in a bin.

Food Program Gap Can Put Entire Families At Risk

Chantelle DosRemedios was pregnant with her second child when she and her husband both lost their jobs in Rhode Island. Like millions of others, she depended on a federal program designed to aid in early childhood development to keep her children fed. Moms and kids who qualify can participate in a federal program called Women,…

Read More >
A woman with a 10-string double violin.

The Weekend Starts Today

With Halloween on Monday, this weekend will be wild. Believe it or not, though, there are plenty of events around town that don’t require candy corn and a scary costume. Live football, unfortunately, isn’t among them. Our Chiefs, following a solid home win against the Saints, are on the road against the Colts. Most of…

Read More >