Submitted by
Dee Loflin, SMT Manager/Editor
Jefferson City, Missouri - Sunday and this morning’s severe weather across much of Missouri reminds all of us about the importance of being ready to respond quickly to threatening weather and potential natural disasters, The State Emergency Management Agency encourages Missourians to take time on Wednesday, April 30, to raise their level of preparedness for severe weather and a major earthquake as part of “America’s PrepareAthon!,” a national campaign which designates April 30, 2014 as the first National Day of Action. The event is being organized by theFederal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
America’s PrepareAthon! provides preparedness guides and resources to help workplaces, schools, houses of worship, community-based organizations, and other community groups to practice specific preparedness activities necessary to stay safe before, during, and after an emergency or disaster. The idea is that when Americans prepare and practice for an emergency in advance, it makes a real difference in their ability to take immediate and informed action, which, in turn, enables them to recover more quickly.
Web pages have been created for Missouri and other states, with information on specific hazards, including understanding risks, how to prepare and protect your home and property in advance, how to create an emergency kit, how to evacuate, ways to stay in communications with family and friends following a disaster, health and sanitation techniques following a disaster, and links to additional resources for:
· Flooding
The FEMA America’s Preparathon! website can be found at: http://www.community.fema.gov/connect.ti/cfghome/grouphome. Also, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has compiled tips for how to prepare to care for pets if a natural disaster occurs.
Other preparedness resources are available on the SEMA website and include earthquake preparedness resources and the StormAware website, which features videos that demonstrate how to seek shelter from a tornado in specific types of structures, along with videos on flash flooding safety, tornado sirens and weather radios. The site also links users to severe weather alerting services across the state.
Dee Loflin, SMT Manager/Editor
A number of factors have contributed to the decline of the monarch population in recent years. Unusually hot weather in the spring of 2012, unusually cold weather last spring, and the loss of habitat throughout the Great Plains have combined to create hardships for the insects. Higher grain prices in recent years have resulted in more land being cultivated for crops and more weed-free farming techniques have reduced the number of milkweed plants in most agricultural fields. Several milkweed species are still common in Missouri, but in highly agricultural areas the plants can be too scarce to support migrating monarchs.
Monarchs lay their eggs on milkweed plants, of which Missouri has 17 native species. Caterpillars emerge from the eggs and feed on the leaves and stems. After feeding and growing for about two weeks, the caterpillar forms a chrysalis and pupates (transforms from caterpillar to adult butterfly). The adult butterfly emerges from the chrysalis after about 10 days. Adults live from 2 to 6 weeks and die after mating and laying eggs. The entire life cycle of the first three generations lasts 6 to 8 weeks each and four generations occur each year. The adult butterflies of the fourth generation migrate to Mexico and live until they lay eggs on their way back north the following spring. So the monarchs that you see moving south in the fall are four generations removed from the ones that headed north in the spring.
Planting milkweeds, especially in areas where they are currently scarce, can help monarchs be more successful in rearing new generations. Milkweeds are appropriate for use in home landscape plantings and several species are popularly used, especially by gardeners who enjoy helping monarch butterflies. Several milkweed varieties grow well in Missouri and range from 2 to 6 feet tall in a variety of colors. These include marsh milkweed, purple milkweed, common milkweed, and butterfly weed.
Nurseries that sell native plants often sell seeds and potted plants of those species. For a list of suppliers, see the Resource Guide on the Missouri Prairie Foundation’s Grow Native website at this link: grownative.org/resource-guide/. For a free brochure on the topic of butterfly gardening, email Pubstaff@mdc.mo.gov, or mail your request to Publications, Missouri Department of Conservation, PO Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180.
For a high-resolution photo to accompany this story, visit mdc.mo.gov/node/27655.
Submitted by
Dee Loflin, SMT Manager/Editor
Dexter, Missouri - The American Cancer Society Relay For Life of Stoddard County, set to begin at 4:00 pm, May 2nd through 2:00 am, May 3rd at West City Park in Dexter, is a celebration of cancer survivorship and a fun way to raise the vital funds needed to help find a cure for cancer. The event will celebrate the lives of so many local residents who have survived cancer, while offering the hope of finding a cure.
“The Opening Ceremony will begin at 6:00 pm with a survivors’ lap where cancer survivors and their caregivers will take a victory lap around the track. The involvement of local cancer survivors is proof of the progress that has been made in improving cancer survival rates and the quality of life following cancer treatment,” said Shanna Gilberto, Community Manager, for the American Cancer Society. A candlelight ceremony also takes place to honor cancer survivors and remember those who lost the fight against this disease. The candle lighting will begin Friday night at approximately 10:00 pm, luminaria bags for the ceremony can be purchased at the event.
Relay For Life is an overnight community event bringing together teams of families, friends, churches, neighborhoods, and businesses – all with the same goal of conquering cancer. Teams of walkers keep a continuous presence on the track throughout the night, walking in shifts to raise funds for the American Cancer Society.
A full agenda of entertainment is planned, including music, team fundraising activities, fun theme laps and contests all night long. Relay For Life is a handicapped-accessible event.
Funds raised during Relay For Life help support the American Cancer Society’s mission of eliminating cancer by helping people stay well, by helping people get well, by finding cures, and by fighting back.
Helping you stay well. Finding cancer early can mean the difference between life and death. The Society helps you take steps to prevent cancer or detect it at its earliest and provide the most up-to-date information about how to reduce your cancer risk by healthy lifestyle choices. Contact 1-800-227-22345 or cancer.org for more information.
Helping you get well. Having cancer is hard. Finding help shouldn’t be. The Society is in your corner, around the clock to guide you through your cancer experience. The Society can help patients and their families make informed decisions about care, find moral support from others who have been there and offer practical solutions to daily challenges.
Finding cures. The Society funds and conducts groundbreaking research that helps scientists understand cancer’s causes, determine how best to prevent it, and discover new ways to cure it. The Society is the largest private funder of cancer research.
Fighting Back. Cancer is not just a health issue, but a political issue. The Society advocates for people to have access to critical cancer screenings and follow-up treatment – regardless of income. Some examples include: increasing government funding for cancer research, establishing smoke-free policies, and improving access to affordable, quality healthcare.
Relay For Life of Stoddard County would also like to invite all survivors to join us as we celebrate life at our annual Cancer Survivor’s Dinner. The dinner honoring local survivors will be held on Tuesday, April 29th at 6:00 pm, at the Lighthouse Church in Dexter, MO. Survivors and a guest are invited to join us for dinner, entertainment, and door prizes. Please RSVP to Nikki Finch, by calling 573-614-1401.
Submitted by
Dee Loflin, SMT Manager/Editor
Dexter, Missouri - A special luminaria ceremony during the American Cancer Society Relay For Life of Stoddard County remembers those lost to cancer and honors those who have battled and won. The luminaria candle lighting to represent these individuals is on Friday, May 2nd at 10:00 p.m. at Dexter West City Park.
Anyone desiring to purchase a luminaria may do so by contacting Courtney White at 417-861-6500. Each luminaria candle is $5.00 and can be In Memory Of or In Honor Of a loved one.
“It will be beautiful when all the bags with candles are illuminated around the track,” said Jennifer Hartlein, Event Co-chair. “We hope to sell enough to light the entire walking track.”
Relay For Life is a fun-filled, overnight event. Teams of eight to 15 members gather with tents and sleeping bags to participate in the largest fundraising walk in the nation. Relay For Life unites friends, families, businesses, hospitals, schools and churches ... people from all walks of life. Teams seek donations prior to the Relay, all with the goal of supporting a cure for cancer.
Relay For Life officially begins at 4:00 pm on May 2nd. Stoddard County cancer survivors will kick off the Opening Ceremonies at 6:30p.m. with the official survivors’ lap; then the rest of the participants will join the fun. Information about purchasing a luminaria, forming a team or walking in the survivors’ lap is available by calling 573-334-9352. For information on cancer, call the American Cancer Society’s 24-hour help line at 1-800-227-2345 or visit cancer.org.
The American Cancer Society combines an unyielding passion with nearly a century of experience to save lives and end suffering from cancer. We save lives by helping people stay well by preventing cancer or detecting it early; helping people get well by being there for them during and after a cancer diagnosis; by finding cures through investment in groundbreaking discovery; and by fighting back by rallying lawmakers to pass laws to defeat cancer and by rallying communities worldwide to join the fight.
Written by
Dee Loflin, SMT Manager/Editor
Dexter, Missouri - The Spark of Hope Relay for Life Team will host their 5th Annual Community Fair and Spring Fest Pageant which will be held this Saturday, April 26th from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. at the Stoddard County Fair Grounds in Dexter, Missouri.
Support local vendors and crafters and most of all; support the Stoddard County Relay for Life, which will be held on Friday, May 2nd from 4 p.m. – 1:30 a.m.
Each booth will be charged $20 and will be donated to the 2014 Stoddard County Relay for Life on behalf of the Spark of Hope team.
There will be a variety of vendors to show from. Several home-based businesses have already signed up. Younique, Papparazzi Jewelry, Scentsy, and Origami Owl to name a few.
They will also be hosting a 50’s style Pageant by Jill Miller Worley. Entrance fee is only $30. Just contact pbpageants@hotmail.com for more information.
If you love old cars and trucks there will be a Gary Don Dowdy Memorial Car, Truck, Tractor & Motorcycle Show hosted by the Kenady-Hanks American Legion Post 59 of Dexter. If you would like to enter the car show contact Eric Smith at 573-718-8756 or dextercarshow@gmail.com.
For more information contact Team Captain Jamie Mays at 573-421-4173 or dextercraftfair@yahoo.com. They all have a Facebook page. Just click HERE.
