The keen observer may notice tree leaves have begun to turn color. more

At a recent ceremony honoring service to Missouri and to the state’s judiciary, 154th District Rep. David Evans of West Plains, who previously served as presiding judge for the 37th Judicial Circuit, was honored by Missouri Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary Russell for his contributions to protecting and improving the fair and just administration of justice in Missouri.   more

Arkansas Methodist Medical Center (AMMC) Family Practice & Urgent Care officials in Paragould, Ark., have welcomed Dr. Melissa Wright, board-certified family medicine physician, to its primary care team of providers. more

Officials with U-Haul Company of Missouri announce that Winona Hardware Store, 9160 N. Highway 19, has signed on as a U-Haul neighborhood dealer to serve the Winona community.  more

Crystal Quade, Democratic candidate for governor and a resident of Springfield, will visit West Plains on Friday. more

ShenanigansFest aims to bring local and national talent to the rolling hills of Ozark County this fall and, depending on its success, in the years to come and at expanded venues. The Oct. 14 festival is an all-ages daylong event with camping, food trucks, a beer tent and children's activities. more

The Howell County Commission will meet at 10 a.m. Monday in regular session. The meeting will take place in the conference room on the second floor of the county office building, 35 Court Square in West Plains. more

The Thayer Chamber Commerce will host the Thayer Fall Festival from 3 to 7:30 p.m. Oct. 12, centered around the Whistle Stop Stage downtown in the Oregon County community just north of the Arkansas state line. more

Howell County Commissioners are slated to meet with a representative of the sheriff’s office Thursday for a grant conference. more

The Willow Springs and Eleven Point fire departments will hold their annual Fill the Boot Drive from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday in Willow Springs. Funds raised will benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association. more

The 39th annual Ozark Black Gold Walnut Festival in Alton will kick off this year's walnut buying season on Oct. 5, and will celebrate over 70 years of the local Strain/Mills family history of buying black walnuts. more

Chapter 1218 of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) will host an open house during Bear City Fall Festival from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 5 at the EAA hangar, 810 Bryan St. in Willow Springs. more

The Willow Springs Chamber of Commerce has 50th anniversary commemorative T-shirts for sale to celebrate 50 years of the Bear City Fall Festival. more

The Willow Springs Chamber of Commerce has announced the events planned for the Bear City Fall Festival, set for 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 5 in downtown Willow Springs. more

The Baxter County, Ark., Sheriff’s Office is asking for the public’s help in locating a missing youth from Gassville. more

The September meeting of the Willow Springs City Council included a discussion of how public safety and law enforcement response is handled on the stretch of highway from the south to the north junctions of the U.S. 60/63 bypass. more

A West Plains man who barricaded himself in his home Thursday when officers arrived to arrest him for the alleged rape of an underage girl is now facing additional felony charges related to the incident: resisting arrest for a felony and being a fugitive from out of state. more

Glen E. Trantham, 75, Koshkonong, was the victim of a fatal UTV crash at 5:10 p.m. Friday on east U.S. 160, 4 miles west of Thomasville in Oregon County, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol. more