Archives of Community

What’s in Your Bag?: Kayla Johnson, mom and registered dietitian

One can tell a lot about a person and their life by the items they carry with them: the stage of life they’re in, what they value, the belongings they consider necessities.  We wanted to get to know local women better through the contents of their bag. So, we invited them into our photography studio […]
9 months ago

meet along the way: Ethel Priest

By Jasmine Jones This story was first published as “Community Cookbook: Rosettes, by Ethel Priest from St. Paul Lutheran Church in Jackson” in the February 2024 issue of The Best Years. Cooking has and always will be a big part of Ethel Priest’s life. She says she makes most of her food from scratch, because […]
10 months ago

meet along the way: Carol and Tony Glueck

This story was first published in the September 2023 issue of The Best Years as “Racing Moto-Trials: Couple passes love for sport to son, grandchildren.” When Tony Glueck started riding moto-trials bikes in the late 1970s, he didn’t know he would pass on his interest in the sport not only to his son Joshua Glueck, […]
10 months ago

meet along the way: Shirlee Wilson and Fred Jones

This story was first published in the Winter 2023 issue of mind + body as “‘Sugarhouse:’ Local couple creates feature-length film to share message of hope.” Wife and husband filmmakers Shirlee Wilson and Fred Jones of Jackson co-directed their first feature-length film “Sugarhouse” in Perry and Cape Girardeau Counties in Southeast Missouri, as well as […]
10 months ago

meet along the way: Donna Gales

By Diane Beck This story was first published as “Faces of Southeast Missouri: Donna Gales” in the January 2024 issue of The Best Years. Donna Gales earned a degree in floral design from the American Institute of Floral Design and went on to become head spokesperson for the American Floral Society (AFS), traveling around the […]
11 months ago

meet along the way: Sue Jones

This story was first published as “Community Cookbook: Fruitcake Recipe, by Sue Jones from Jackson” in the December 2023 issue of The Best Years. By Jasmine Jones Sue Jones spent her childhood on a farm located off of Highway 72 in the Fruitland/Jackson area. Those years on the farm were full of wholesome adventures: Jones […]
11 months ago

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 […]
1 year 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 year 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 year 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 […]
1 year ago