Cuba Free Press
Cuba News

Parks board considers possible upgrades to Cuba soccer fields

Cuba Parks and Recreation Board member Roslind Reiner said on Oct. 13 that she talked with Noel and Amy Hendrix, of the Cuba Soccer Program, who had a few requests to improve the soccer fields in …

Application for animal control grant approved

Cuba Animal Shelter Supervisor Sarah Butler told the Board of Aldermen on Oct. 6 that the group was nominated for a Benefiting Animals through Responsibility and Compassion (BARC) grant. “What …
A groundbreaking ceremony was held Oct. 8 for three houses being built to help heal in mind, body and spirit.

The Freedom 13 breaks ground in Bourbon for first healing camp

The Freedom 13 broke ground on Oct. 8 on three new houses at its very first of 50 healing camps. The nonprofit organization was founded by Mark and Jaclyn Schmitz after their son, Marine L. Cpl. …
Crawford R-2 News
Cuba’s R-2 District School Board met for the first time during the 2026-2027 school year Sept. 29 and heard various updates from administrators and its student representative about how the school …
Allison Heads and Seth Adderly were crowned Cuba High School Homecoming queen and king on Oct. 2 in front of a full Wildcat Pride stadium before this year’s Homecoming football game against …
Various Cuba R-2 School District administrators, board members and staff expressed excitement for the new school year and applauded the recent renovations on campus during the Aug. 19 meeting. …
Public hearing set for water and sewer rate increase in Bourbon
It was announced on Sept. 15 by Bourbon City Clerk Stacy Blake that, after calculations by the Department of Natural Resources, they produced a spreadsheet showing how much the city must raise its …
Bourbon to post no-thru truck traffic signs on Route 66
Mayor Sky Huddleston suggested on Sept. 15 that the city post no-thru truck traffic signs on Route 66. Over the past few meetings, the board has made it abundantly clear that the city cannot …
Crawford R-1 News
Bourbon High School band students on Sept. 15 presented the Bourbon School Board with complimentary tickets to their Missouri Music Educators Association conference performance. The band was one of six high schools in Missouri selected to perform, which will be on Jan. 29, 2027, at the Tan-Tar-A Conference Center.
Bourbon School District programs continue to improve support of student success
Bourbon High School Principal (BHS) Casandra Haar announced on Sept. 15 to the Crawford County R-1 Board of Education (BOE) that when looking at the End of Course (EOC) assessment scores, English 2 …
Bourbon R-1 settles on standard Hudl package
Crawford County R-1 Board of Education on Aug. 17 revisited a June 16 discussion regarding a Hudl subscription, eventually reaching a compromise as officials prepare to cut spending. Discussion …
Steelville Star-Crawford Mirror
Steelville News

Fourth annual Witches Night Out set for Oct. 23 in Steelville

Witches Night Out, a community block party that has become an annual Halloween tradition in Steelville, is returning to town for its fourth consecutive year on Friday, Oct. 23. Festivities will take …

Local educators brace for cuts in state funding

The Missouri State Board of Education voted Sept. 15 to approve a budget that falls $270 million short of what is needed in fiscal year 2028 to fully fund schools across the state. Calculations for …

City considers policy change for after-hours utility shutoffs

The Steelville Board of Aldermen discussed potential changes to city policy regarding after-hours utility shutoffs at their Oct. 5 meeting. Under current municipal utilities policy, if a …
Steelville R-3 News

School District approves Meramec Music Theatre contract with STARCO, hears updates on building renovations

The Steelville R-3 School District Board of Education on Oct. 15 approved a new contract between the school district and the Steelville Arts Council for the use of the Meramec Music Theatre. The …

Steelville R-3 approves $6M bond sales for facility improvements

At its monthly meeting on July 23, the Steelville R-3 Board of Education unanimously voted to approve a resolution authorizing the sale of $6 million in general obligation bonds. The funds from the …

Steelville Aldermen hear updates from city engineer, public works

City Engineer Terris Cates updated the Steelville Board of Aldermen on July 6 about funding and proposed projects. Cates said that the Spring Street bridge at Hoppe Spring Park will be made into …

Saint James Press
St. James News

Friends of the St. James Cemetery to host veterans memorial fundraiser

The Friends of the St. James Cemetery is hosting a community fundraising event to help raise money for a new veterans memorial, which will be located in a yet-to-be-determined part of town. The …
St. James High School Theater Students (from left) Autumn Keane, Alissa Tolie, Kasidee Hart, Katie Smith, Aaraya Secatero, Cami Kossuth, Jackson Engelbrecht (center) Megan Michel and Gwenny Daniels rehearse for “Dead Air: A Horror Trilogy” a series of radio drama-style performances of The Twisted Tales of Edgar Allen Poe, Frankenstein and Dracula. Students will perform live voice acting and live foley sound effects for all three dramas. Performances for “The Twisted Tales of Edgar Allen Poe” and “Dracula” are on Nov. 12 at 7 p.m. “Frankenstein” will be the following day, Friday, Nov. 13 at 7 p.m.

St. James High School class to perform classic horror trilogy as live radio play

Theater students at St. James High School are preparing to perform a series of popular horror stories reimagined as a live-performance radio play. The production, titled “Dead Air: a Horror …

St. James Utility Board provides update on water quality

St. James Utility Board members heard updates Oct. 14 from public works officials regarding ongoing water quality and water service infrastructure issues. St. James Public Works officials are …
St. James R-1

St. James 5th Annual Tiger Trot set for Saturday

The St. James R-1 School District’s 5th Annual Tiger Trot Thanksgiving 5k run/walk and 10k run on Nov. 29 is all about exercise, community spirit and raising money for a good cause. Funds from …

St. James R-1 school board filing opens Dec. 9

Filing opens on Dec. 9 for the April 2026 municipal election. The St. James R-1 Board of Education has three seats up for three-year terms. The three board of education seats are currently held …

St. James R-1 receives grant for district, community engagement

The St. James R-1 School District was awarded $17,263 from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources as part of the 2025 Non-playground Scrap Tire Grant. The district will use the grant to …

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Obituaries
Donald “Don” E. Wynn
Donald "Don" E. Wynn, formerly of Pilot Knob, Missouri, was born February 25, 1944 in Carlinville, Illinois to Raymond Francis and Martha (Hinthorne) Wynn and passed away Wednesday, September 23, …
Theodore William Woodruff
Theodore “Ted” William Woodruff of Creighton, Missouri was born on January 15, 1944 in Cuba, Missouri to Teddie and Marie (Furry) Woodruff and passed away on Friday, September 25, 2026 at the age …
Gary Thomas Scott
Gary Thomas Scott of Oskaloosa, Kansas, previously of Cuba, Missouri, was born April 17, 1956 in Washington, Missouri to Joseph Thomas Scott and Sadie B. (Loeb) Scott and passed away Sunday, October …
Terrie Alan Palmer
Terrie Alan Palmer of St. James, Missouri was born July 23, 1967 in Ottumwa, Iowa to James LaVerne Palmer and Dora Jane (Hayworth) Palmer and passed away Thursday September 24, 2026 at the age of 59 …
Elsie Elizabeth Merrill
Elsie Elizabeth Merrill was born on April 2, 1945 in Haley, Idaho and passed away October 6, 2026 at the age of 81 years. She enjoyed the outdoors and fishing at Lake Scioto in St. James. She …
Rhonda Gale Lafferty
Rhonda Gale Lafferty of Bourbon, Missouri was born on June 3, 1962 in Marshall, Missouri to James and Anna Belle (Rose) Butts and passed away Friday, September 25, 2026 at the age of 64 years. …
Sports
St. James quarterback Owen Spurgeon (left) looks to throw a pass against Owensville.  Patrick Lonning (center) takes a carry behind blocking from Gavyn King.  Steven Holt (right) makes a tackle on an Owensville running back.
Losing streak ends, but not for Tigers as they are defeated 26-12
The streak is over. Unfortunately for the St. James High School football squad, it’s Owensville’s; not the Tigers’. The frustrations continued for banged-up St. James last week, as …
State tournament qualifiers from the St. James High School girls’ golf team are (from left) freshman Hallie Kleffner and senior Jolie Roark.
Roark, Kleffner give SJT state qualifiers for four consecutive years
Even though it’s no more than an infant compared to other programs around the state, the St. James High School girls’ golf squad will continue to rub elbows with the big girls this year at the …
STJ volleyball seeded sixth for District 9
The St. James High School volleyball team has been seeded No. 6 for this week’s Missouri Class 3 District 9 Tournament, which begins Tuesday at Cuba High School. St. Clair (17-8-2 entering …
Tiger runners second at Owensville Invitational
The St. James High School boys’ cross country team finished second to the host school in the Owensville Invitational, held Tuesday, Oct. 13. Owensville captured the boys’ team crown with 42 …
Jolie Kleffner and Hallie Roark advanced to the Class 2 State Tournament.
Roark, Kleffner advance to Class 2 State Tourney
Two members of the St. James High School girls’ golf squad advanced to the Missouri Class 2 State Tournament through their performance at the District 1 Tournament, held Monday, Oct. 12 at Wolf …
Kirrah Drennan catches a pitch during St. James’ District game versus Notre Dame.
Lady Tiger softball falls in district opener
The season came to an end for the St. James High School softball team Wednesday, Oct. 14, as the fourth-seeded Lady Tigers lost to fifth-seeded St. Louis Notre Dame 11-9 in the first round of the …
Cardinals cross country competes in Owensville and Cuba, heads into postseason competition
Steelville High School’s cross country meets ran in a pair of meets on Oct. 13 and Oct. 19 in Owensville and in Cuba. The Cardinals competed in Oct. 13 Owensville Invitational and in the Cuba …
Steelville senior Maggie Bunch tips the ball over the net past a Bunker defender during the Lady Cardinals Oct. 15 match.
Lady Cardinals win on senior night, set to host districts at the high school
Steelville High School’s volleyball team capped its regular season with a victory Oct. 15 over Bunker on senior night. Prior to the game, Steelville’s six seniors Maggie Bunch, Gracie Mae …
BMS girls basketball wins Bland A Team Tournament championship
Some new hardware returned to Bourbon Oct. 16 following the Lady Warhawks’ 44-25 victory over Hermann in the championship game of the Bland A Team Tournament. The Bourbon girls’ A team was …