Will Reece

On Tap | From Drexel With Lavender

Turkeys meander beside a burbling creek, and blackberry bushes flourish outside a former woodshop. Life is a little different at the region’s latest brewery — in Drexel, Missouri. “We’re like a farm winery, just with beer,” says Will Reece, who co-owns the Miami Creek Brewing Company (14226 Northwest County Road 14001, Drexel) with his wife,…

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prescription drugs

Take 5 For Your Health

Frustrated Jackson County Lawmakers Enact Their Own Prescription Drug Monitoring Plan Frustrated by the Missouri Legislature’s failure to enact a statewide prescription drug plan, Jackson County last week joined St. Louis and St. Louis County in enacting its own plan, hoping it will cut down on painkiller abuse and addiction. Missouri is the lone state…

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old state hospital building in St. Joe

Playing Catch-Up with Missouri Mental Health

When Missouri’s second mental hospital opened in the late 19th century, State Lunatic Asylum No. 2 in St. Joseph was designed to provide lots of natural light and fresh air. Yet as war and economic calamity frayed the nation’s psyche, over-crowding swamped the hospital’s lofty goals. The census of the St. Joseph facility peaked at…

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A sign and hot chicken salad.

Hot Chicken Turns Up The Heat on Fried Chicken in KC

The Nashville Hot Chicken trend is heating up in Kansas City as the spicy cousin to fried chicken. Hot chicken popping up on local restaurant menus, including Third Street Social (123 SE 3rd Street, Lee’s Summit) and Lucky Boys (1615 Genessee Street, Kansas City). Local lore in Nashville, Tennessee, points to the family of Andre Prince,…

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Save The Ruby Slippers: Smithsonian Seeks Funds To Preserve Dorothy’s Shoes

Dorothy’s ruby slippers could use a little more magic these days — or at least some conservationist TLC. The famous shoes from The Wizard of Oz are among the most popular items on display at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. But they’re showing their age, and the museum is asking the public to…

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Dr. Khan

A Force for Refugees

It was during daily walks from her lecture hall to hospital rotations that Sophia Khan first experienced poverty. Born to a wealthy family in Karachi, Pakistan, Khan was a second-year medical student in her homeland when she discovered that the unsheltered groups waiting outside the hospital were poor people wanting to be near their loved…

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The exterior of Donutology.

The Haunted Bell Tower Bash & Other Weekend Possibilities

The haunted carnival is in town for one night only. The fourth annual Haunted Bell Tower Bash is a mash-up of a dance, circus, and costume contest. The benefit for Social Heart is at the Arts Asylum is from 7 to 11:59 p.m. Saturday at The Arts Asylum (1000 E 9th Street). They’ll have aerial…

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A conductor and student wind ensemble

Sympathetic Vibrations | A Windstorm of Student Talent

For Steven Davis, who serves as the chair of large ensembles at the UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance, a student performance next week highlights the conservatory’s greatest strengths — a partnership with city’s performing arts community, collaboration with guest performers and composers, and original music from the conservatory’s acclaimed composition program. That performance will take…

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Title reading: Which BBQ is for you?

Go With the Flow | Which BBQ is For You?

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A man and woman laying on a sofa as part of a play, "The Way We Get By."

The Weekend Starts Today

October 23, believe it or not, is TV Talk Show Host Day. Celebrated on Johnny Carson’s birthday — look him up, millennials — it’s a day to show our appreciation for all those who sit and chat. Because, apparently, a bunch of rich, famous and powerful media types need even more praise. To mark the…

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