Wednesday, April 23, 2025

If you’re hitting the road any time soon, make sure you keep track of your tolls. Better Business Bureau® (BBB®) has recently seen a wave of reports about phishing text messages that impersonate road toll collection services to trick people into paying for fake outstanding tolls.

This year, as is the case every year, safety is the most important component of Missouri’s spring turkey season.

A Sparta man is in custody in Douglas County after he allegedly rammed several police vehicles while being pursued by law enforcement. Steven Browning, 48, is charged with three counts of first-degree assault - serious physical injury or special victim, three counts of armed criminal action, one count of fleeing a stop or detention - causes physical injury, one count of possession of a controlled substance, one count of unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia, and one count of driving while intoxicated.

Nixa residents had the opportunity to see several service vehicles up close at the first annual Hands On Nixa, a service-learning project organized by the Nixa High School JROTC, on Saturday, April 12. About 1,000 people attended the event.

Christian County Deputy Sheriff and D.A.R.E. Officer Bill Whitaker officially retired on Wednesday, April 2, after a four-decade-long career in law enforcement. Whitaker got his start with the Springfield Police Department, and he transferred over to the Christian County Sheriff’s Office in 2009. In his retirement, Whitaker plans to spend more time with his grandchildren and catching up on projects around his house. He won’t completely disappear from law enforcement, however; he plans to remain with the Christian County Sheriff’s Office as a reserve officer.

That old wind just keeps on blowing and moving things around. When I look out and things look strange, it is because that was either in the backyard or maybe out in the field the day before.

The Sparta Park Board held their annual Easter Egg Hunt at Roller Park on Saturday, April 12. About 150 children vied for a share of 17,000 candy and prize-filled plastic eggs in the park. Participants took part in the egg hunt in one of five categories: Special needs, ages 0-1, ages 2-4, ages 5-7 and ages 8 and up. Those who found special tickets in their eggs were able to claim additional prizes. Children were also treated to a special visit from the Easter Bunny.

Congratulations to the EagleAir staff for being recognized in NBCU Academy's nationwide student broadcast news contest. Freshmen Alexander Eggleston, Scarlett Mahy, and Dusty Stewart won a 6th Place Finalist award for Outstanding Video News Report from the NBCU Academy contest called The Edit. The contest required students to create a video news package centered around the subject of "wellness," using the Adobe Express video editing app. Their news package focused on how students can balance screen time with overall health. The Edit Spring 2025 contest received submissions from schools across the United States, with registrations from over 600 teachers representing more than 23,000 students.