Saturday morning and the mountain humidity is mounting, fog burning off from river lake below, hot late spring sun peeking through night clouds clearing as the minutes tick by. I’m still bemused by old turn-of-the-century tourist brochures touting the Ozarks’ “cooling summer breezes.” It’s only nine o’clock in the morning and I’ve already sweated through my shirt, confident it won’t be the last time today. Saturday morning markets are a lot of work. Just one year ago, State

For a lot of reasons, the place called S of O was the greatest thing that ever happened to me.

In one of my recent articles, we talked about the uniqueness of a Branson show and everything it contains. Always a gospel number, always a patriotic segment, and it is always interrupted by the hillbilly comedian.

Don’t own any such writings? No problem. That’s what libraries are for. There’s also a great selection at the Freedom Encounter Theater’s bookstore in Branson!

Teaching first-graders in an area after-school program a few years ago, I was surprised during a “when you grow up” lesson assignment to see how many, even at that young age, included being an online “influencer” in their future goals, albeit without actually using that word. “I wanna be a You-Tuber” showed up more than once; another young man wanted to create online cartoons; still another wanted to be a champion gamer. Asked why, most responded something like “So people wil

Night falls with the rain but the light in the room is warm and dim, the music moody, calming after an exhausting week. The sound of a baseball game echoes lowly. The dogs are making comfortable noises from rug and couch. As I sit at the kitchen table to write, again, the mind wanders. “I have an idea,” Dustin Burkett is saying. His earnestness is contagious, his talent inspiring. We are sitting at another kitchen table, cold winter light streaming, conversing about the Sta

Every day, our Soldiers pay the price of war and do their duty. And what a price it is, a price not only in lives lost but bodies, lives and families maimed forever, both physically and mentally.

Apparently, a lot of last-minute details were arranged so that Uncle Ike could attend the event.

If you’ve attended special events around the Branson area, you may have seen “Diskey the Wonder Dog” performing some amazing feats. Now readers can enjoy Diskey’s adventures in other settings, and pass her legacy on, thanks to a book series by her owner, Russ “Allright” Rosencrans. Thank you, Russ, for sharing your story of hope and healing. “I Wasn’t Done Yet” By Russ Rosencrans Most people look at retirement as the finish line. For me, it kept turning into a restart.

BY AARON GRAVETT “A man's heart deviseth his way: But the LORD directeth his steps.” Proverbs 16:9 When we were children, camping was such an adventure. The campfires, the swimming, the fishing, the stories told - they were vacations we remembered for life. Even though Tiffany and I are empty nesters, we decided to go camping for three days and two nights. We planned, got all the supplies, and then got all the packing done. Then as we loaded the car there was an excha

Kisspeptin research has indicated that this peptide plays a therapeutic role in fighting or managing fatty liver disease (NAFLD) by breaking down and eliminating adipose (fat) deposits in the liver.

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Philippians 2:5-8 Last Saturday was a day I had anticipated and dreamed of for years—my college graduation. It was

Shipping fertilizer over a huge landmass will never be as cheap or efficient as shipping by sea, but it is starting to lessen the global fertilizer shortage.

For many people approaching their senior years, declining memory is a primary concern. Whether you’ve noticed it yourself as you navigate daily life, or perhaps are a caregiver watching it happen to an elderly parent or other loved one, it is a frequent reality, estimated to affect at least 1 in 10 Americans. The good news, though, is that there is a proven way to help! On Wednesday, June 10, Kimberling Area Library and Senior Age will present “Introducing Stronger Memory

It is best not to estimate the countless gallons of coffee I’ve drunk in, say, the last 35 years, but just the same, I know it’s a lot.

At the April 24, 2026, meeting, the Board was presented with a cooperative agreement, unanimously approved by the CID Board, for the city to provide services to the CID beyond the basic municipal services that similar businesses and residents in Branson receive, for its approval.

On the trip back to Missouri, Johnnie had stopped the wagon for the night and took the mules to a nearby creek for water, leaving little Gertie and the family dog in the wagon. Suddenly he heard the dog barking and rushed back to the wagon to find two Indians about to steal Gertie. The dog is what had saved her.

As I started reading these columns by Ross over twenty years ago, I was always excited when he would mention my great grandfather Calvin Jones.

During my study of the Old Testament books of Ezra and Nehemiah, one thing that stuck in my mind was the list of sacrifices. “For the dedication of the house of God, they offered a hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and a sin offering for all Israel of twelve male goats, one for each tribe of Israel” (Ezra 6:17). That number pales in comparison, though, to the lists from King Solomon’s dedication of the first temple, described in I Kings 8, when the numbe

Peptides are amino acids that are short chain (two to 100) and are the building blocks of proteins and are considered “major messengers” in the body’s cellular control function, metabolism and hormone production. Some of the key functions of peptides are: 1) They are smaller than proteins so they are more easily absorbed by the body. 2) They occur naturally in our bodies and control blood pressure, immune function and digestion. 3) Types of peptides include insulin, c