News Staff

Almost time for New Year’s resolutions. So, if you want to lose weight and eat healthier, the Macon County Health Deparment wants to help. They’re planning a Family Winter Wellness Challenge from January 9 – April 6th.

It’s a 12-week challenge designed to get you moving and to build more healthy habits for you and your kids. Each week the staff will send out a newsletter with recipes and other tips, and you can join a private Facebook group to also get help and encouragement. It is free to sign-up online at the Macon Health website.

Some good news about prices. AAA says the average price for gas in Missouri is below $3 bucks at $2.95 a gallon.

That’s down 15-cents in the past week. But…that discount hasn’t arrived in Adair county. We are still at $3.40 a gallon, according to AAA, which is the same as the national average.

Sullivan county: $3.29, Macon county: $3.24 a gallon.

This Friday at Noon, Kirksville city hall will close to the public because of a staff meeting. City utility payments can still be put in the drop box at City Hall. Those payments will be processed when they re-open for regular business hours next Monday.

Again, Friday at noon, city hall will close for the afternoon.

Donations to the local united way are up. United Way of Northeast Missouri has been raisng money since September. So far, they’re running $16,000 ahead of last year.

Eleven local groups will benefit from the money being raised, from the Adair county Y, to Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, and Hospice of Northeast Missouri

A Missouri man convicted of killing a St. Louis area police officer was put to death Tuesday night.

37 year old Kevin Johnson died from a lethal injection. A pastor was in the death chamber with him, reading the Bible and praying as he died.

When Johnson was 19, he killed officer William McEntee because he blamed the McEntee for the death of his younger brother who had a seizure when officers tried to arrest Johnson.

Johnson later ambushed officer William McEntee — shooting him multiple times.

The Missouri State Patrol says eight people died in wrecks during this year’s Thanksgiving holida, which ran from last Wednesday evening through Sunday night. That number is down from 12 deaths last year.

There were no boating crashes or boating fatalities, but there were two drownings. The patrol reports 414 wrecks in all, with 115 hurt. The patrol says that 113 were arrested for driving while impaired and they made 25 drug arrests.

Sunday morning wreck in Scotland county on Route D. A woman from Greentop suffered minor injuries. The patrol says 32 year old Candy Rowland ran off the road, hit an embankment, and turned over.

A Kirksville teenager was hurt Saturday night just after 8:30 when he ran off the road in his pick-up and flipped over on Igloo Trail. The 16 year old’s name not given by the patrol. He was taken to Northeast Missouri Regional Medical Center with minor injuries.

A fatal wreck early on Thanksgiving near Kirksville. The state patrol says 39 year old Timothy Chambliss of Forsyth, Ga ran off the road on HIghway 63 about 4:30am. He hit an embankment in his Honda Civic and flipped over.

The wreck report says that he was not wearing a seat belt.

Nice honor for a Kirksville youth soccer coach. Coach Matt Heeren is this year’s National Award winner for U.S. Youth Nice honor for a Kirksville youth soccer coach.

He coaches both boys and girls for Northern Missouri Futbol Club in Kirksville.

The state is handing out more than $400-million dollars to help communities with drinking water, wastewater, and storm run-off.

Novinger will get $4.9 million for drinking water and about $200-thousand to improve water lines. Unionville also gets 5 million for stormwater. And Macon gets more than $3 million for stormwater work. The money came from the federal government’s American Rescue plan.