Archives of Community

Focus in the Moment: Self-defense with black belt Veronique Bayer

By Karey Schaitel When Veronique Bayer was 8 years old, she begged her parents to take her to the martial arts studio near their house. Her dad agreed to take her to taekwondo classes if she agreed not to quit until she received her black belt. “Eight-year-old me did not really understand what I was […]
3 weeks ago

meet along the way: Dr. Sheila Long

By Jasmine Jones This story was first published as “Faces of Southeast Missouri: Dr. Sheila Long” in the November 2023 issue of The Best Years. “Think outside the box.” It’s a phrase Dr. Sheila Long says she tells her students constantly, a phrase that embodies her own teaching methods and daily life. Long is an […]
1 month ago

meet along the way: Anna Marie Berkbuegler

This story was first published as “Faces of Southeast Missouri: Anna Marie Berkbuegler” in the October 2023 issue of The Best Years. Anna Marie Berkbuegler has been all the way up and down the Mississippi River as a cook on a riverboat. She has traveled on the Ohio River, from Pittsburgh on down. And she […]
1 month ago

meet along the way: Rosemary Berry

By Jasmine Jones This story was first published as “Community Cookbook: Cooked Cheese, by Rosemary Berry from Fruitland” in the October 2023 issue of The Best Years. Rosemary Berry says it’s been an “interesting life.” She was raised in Sedgewickville, Mo., but as the wife of an Air Force pilot, she lived all over the […]
2 months ago

meet along the way: Pat Schaaf

By Jasmine Jones This story was first published as “Community Cookbook: Pat’s Pastries recreates nostalgic small-town bakery experience in the August 2023 issue of The Best Years. Pat Schaaf says when you make pastries from scratch, they will never be perfect. She says you could roll the dough out precisely, measure everything and use a […]
2 months ago

meet along the way: Gracie Aguirre

By Jasmine Jones This story was first published in the September 2023 issue of The Best Years. Gracie Aguirre grew up in Durango, Mexico, where she says everyone knew everyone. As a child, Aguirre enjoyed “rolling all over town” on her bicycle and playing volleyball, but she spent most of her after-school hours working at […]
2 months ago

meet along the way: Becky Brown

By Amanda Flinn This story was first published in the August 2023 issue of “The Best Years” as “Faces of Southeast Missouri: Becky Brown.” Becky Brown grew up on her family’s farm near Olive Branch, Ill. While the farm harvested wheat, corn and soybeans, her grandfather’s garden was her personal favorite. As he walked through […]
4 months ago

meet along the way: Shirley K. Davis

This story was originally published as “The Pie Angel: Local woman blesses people with homemade food and hospitality” in the May 2023 issue of The Best Years. It seems everyone who knows Shirley K. Davis has a story about the ways the “Pie Angel” has touched their life. For example, she cooked for disaster relief […]
4 months ago

meet along the way: Taffy McMullin

By Jasmine Jones This story was originally published as “Community Cookbook: Barbecue Brisket, by Taffy McMullin from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Cape Girardeau” in the May 2023 issue of The Best Years. Taffy McMullin grew up on a farm between Sikeston, Mo., and Dexter, Mo., with her mother, father and 14 […]
5 months ago

Home is a Purple School Bus: Local couple embraces tiny living

By Jasmine Jones When Kara and Evan Steffens drive by a schoolyard full of buses, Evan points at the rows of yellow and jokingly exclaims, “Look at all those houses!” It’s because the couple has transformed a 68-passenger school bus, which they bought in September 2020, into their full-time home. Many people said the couple […]
7 months ago