Nick’s Picks | Veterans, Mission Gateway, Big Sonia and More …

The National World War I Museum and Memorial.

Shutdown Deal on the Way Is America’s longest government shutdown about to end? It could be over by the end of the week, after a group of eight Democrats agree to join Senate Republicans in a vote to reopen the government, at least through January. The deal comes without a guaranteed extension of health care…

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Two Documentaries In The Works About KC’s Historic Northeast

Holy Rosary Catholic Church, at 526 Campbell St., in Kansas City, Missouri, is a symbol of the longstanding Italian presence in the city's North End. It is part of a parish founded in 1891. (Chase Castor | Flatland)

Those seeking to find Kansas City’s Italian-American community can start at Holy Rosary Catholic Church. Inside, at 526 Campbell St., stand statues of canonized historical figures — Frances Xavier Cabrini and Francis of Assisi among them — venerated by the immigrants who worshipped on this very spot upon their late-19th-century arrival. Inscribed on the walls…

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Kansas City Looks to Build On History of Philanthropy

The 2025 Big Slick fundraiser in May generated more than $4.5 million, a record amount. (Children’s Mercy Hospital)

It started with a conversation on a Lake of the Ozarks dock. Comedian Rob Riggle was describing his recent visit to Kansas City’s Children’s Mercy Hospital.  “He had hosted the hospital’s annual Red Hot Night fundraiser [in 2009] and they had taken him on a tour,” Julie Riggle McKee, Riggle’s sister, said recently. Like anyone…

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Volunteer ‘Gravers’ Search For Plots After Online Inquiries

Robert Franke stands for a photo with a map and a brush for clearing gravestones at Forest Hill Cemetery, off Troost in Kansas City, Missouri. Franke gathers users’ search requests at findagrave.com to generate a list of names and info he uses to locate the grave sites. (Chase Castor | Flatland

Six years ago, Robert Franke’s heart doctor suggested he get more exercise. Some would have received that news and headed to the golf course or pickleball court. Franke headed for the closest cemetery. There he pursued his new calling as a Find a Grave volunteer — or “graver,” as some of them refer to themselves…

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