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Hartzler discusses opioid epidemic, transportation and broadband with Missouri lawmakers (AUDIO)

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A congresswoman who represents a large portion of central and western Missouri traveled to Jefferson City this week to meet with state lawmakers from her district.

U.S. Rep. Vicky Hartzler, R-Harrisonville, meets with Missouri lawmakers on February 4, 2019 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Congresswoman Hartzler’s office)

U.S. Rep. Vicky Hartzler, R-Harrisonville, says it makes sense to join forces with state lawmakers, since they both serve the same constituents.

“And I feel so honored that so many of our state reps and senators from the Fourth District came to spend a little time discussing issues that impact both at the federal level and state levels,” Hartzler says.

More than a dozen state lawmakers from across the sprawling Fourth Congressional District met this week in Jefferson City with Congresswoman Hartzler. She says numerous topics were discussed during the “Working Together for Missouri Summit.”

“Such as the opioid crisis, the need for rural broadband, need for affordable, accessible health care, transportation, infrastructure,” says Hartzler.

Governor Mike Parson, a Republican, says about ten Missouri school districts currently lack access to high-speed broadband. The governor calls that “unacceptable.” Hartzler says broadband continues to be a big issue in rural areas.

Governor Parson has also proposed a $350 million infrastructure plan, aimed at repairing or replacing 250 bridges across the state. The state Department of Transportation (MoDOT) says more than 900 Missouri bridges are in poor condition.

Congresswoman Hartzler’s district includes Columbia, Moberly, Sedalia and Fort Leonard Wood. She represents all or parts of 24 counties. Hartzler, who serves on the House Armed Services Committee, supports GOP President Donald Trump’s border wall.

“Because 90 percent of the heroin that is ending up in our districts and people are overdosing and dying, is coming across the southern border,” Hartzler says.

She tells Missourinet the overwhelming majority of her constituents favor the wall.

Hartzler says 70,000 Americans died from drug overdoses in 2017 and adds that Congress has approved $10 billion in funding for states to fight the opioid epidemic.

State Sen. Ed Emery, R-Lamar, and State Reps. Chuck Basye, R-Rocheport, Robert Ross, R-Yukon, Glen Kolkmeyer, R-Odessa and Donna Pfautsch, R-Harrisonville, were among the lawmakers who participated in Monday’s meeting.

Click here to listen to Missourinet news director Brian Hauswirth’s full interview with U.S. Rep. Vicky Hartzler, which was recorded on February 4, 2019 at the Statehouse in Jefferson City:

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Missouri man killed in Syrian suicide blast

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A St. Louis man is among four Americans killed this week in a suicide bombing attack in Syria. Governor Mike Parson says a Pentagon official called to inform him that Scott Wirtz died in Wednesday’s attack.

Missouri man killed in Syrian suicide blast

“Scott died bravely, serving our nation in a dangerous part of the world. For that, we are grateful,” says the Republican governor and U.S. Army veteran. “We want to thank his family for his service. We also ask all Missourians to join in prayer for the family and other brave men and women that are serving our country.”

Wirtz, 42, was serving as an operations support specialist and civilian member of the Defense Intelligence Agency. Operations support specialists manage, guide, and oversee human intelligence collection operations enabling DOD to meet national security information requirements.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of this patriot,” says DIA Director Lt. Gen. Robert P. Ashley, Jr. “This is a stark reminder of the dangerous missions we conduct for the nation and of the threats we work hard to mitigate. As President Lincoln described on the fields at Gettysburg, this officer gave the last full measure of devotion.”

The other Americans killed were two U.S. military members and a civilian contractor there to support Operation Inherent Resolve, the U.S.-led coalition battling the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq. They were killed when the suicide bomber on foot detonated an explosive vest at a restaurant in the northern Syrian city of Manbij as they were having lunch after a meeting with local military officials.

Wirtz served in the U.S. Navy and as a Navy SEAL. His military awards and decorations include the SEAL Insignia, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Rifle Marksmanship Ribbon and Pistol Expert Medal. His DIA awards include the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Global War on Terrorism.

According to St. Louis television station KSDK, Wirtz was a 1995 graduate of DeSmet Jesuit High School in St. Louis County.

ISIS has claimed responsibility for the bombing.

In December, President Donald Trump announced that ISIS had been defeated in Syria and all 2,000 U.S. troops would be coming home from there.

Copyright © 2018 · Missourinet

Tennessee-based airline to begin commercial jet service from Fort Leonard Wood to St. Louis Lambert

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(Reporter Gerard Knehans at Missourinet Waynesville affiliate KJPW Radio contributed to this story)

Officials in south-central Missouri’s Waynesville and St. Robert announced on Tuesday that Contour Airlines will be launching commercial jet service from Fort Leonard Wood next month.

A Contour jet flew to the Waynesville-St. Robert Regional Airport (WSRA) for the January 8, 2019 press conference about commercial jet service at Fort Leonard Wood (photo courtesy of the Sustainable Ozarks Partnership)

Tennessee-based Contour will be flying daily from the Waynesville-St. Robert Regional Airport (WSRA) to St. Louis Lambert International Airport. Contour chief executive officer Matt Chaifetz says passengers will enjoy comfortable seating.

“Service will begin on February 12. We’ll be offering 12 weekly roundtrip flights on an ERJ-135 regional jet with 30 seats all featuring the amount of leg room that you’d get in first class on a major airline,” Chaifetz tells Missourinet Waynesville affiliate KJPW Radio.

Chaifetz says introductory fares will begin at $29 each way for tickets purchased before January 22. He says the flight from Fort Leonard Wood to Lambert will be 24 minutes.

Chaifetz and St. Robert’s mayor held a Tuesday press conference to make the announcement.

Missouri House Majority Whip Steve Lynch, R-Waynesville, also attended the event.

Chaifetz says the airline will provide safe, fast and affordable flights.

“We’ll have two daily departures (from WSRA) Monday through Friday,” says Chaifetz. “The first departure will be at 7:25 in the morning and the second departure will be at 2:45 in the afternoon, and we will have two inbound flights on Sunday through Friday.”

Contour will replace Cape Air at the Waynesville-St. Robert Regional Airport. Chaifetz says Cape Air handled about 8,000 flights in 2018.

“We want to make sure that we get the airport across the 8,000 passenger threshold and we think we can do that. In all of our market that we serve we’ve seen a major increase in passenger traffic as a result of our reliability, the aircraft being used and our fare structure,” Chaifetz says.

Contour serves six states, and its website emphasizes that passengers receive a complimentary first checked bag and one carry-on item.

Economic development leaders in the region say the new commercial jet service will benefit the Fort Leonard Wood area’s tourism industry.

The nonprofit organization “Sustainable Ozarks Partnership” says more than 150,000 visitors travel to the Fort Leonard Wood region annually to attend military graduations.

Fort Leonard Wood’s website says it trains about 82,600 military and civilians annually. The website notes it’s home to the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and now trains for the U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School as well as the U.S. Army Engineer School.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

SE Missouri sailor could have been one of the first to sacrifice life at Pearl Harbor

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Friday is Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day and people around the country and in Missouri are paying respects to those who sacrificed their lives during the surprise military strike by Japan against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

A young sailor who lost his life during the attack is being remembered during a ceremony in southeast Missouri’s Cape Girardeau.

19-year-old Lloyd Dale Clippard was the first World War II causality from the town.  He was on the USS Utah when it was bombed during Pearl Harbor.

Matt Hampton is the Senior Vice Commander at VFW Post 3838, which is founded under Clippard’s name.  He thinks the young sailor was not only the first causality from Cape Girardeau but arguably one of the very first to die in the surprise bombing.

“According to the timeline the USS Utah was one of the very first ships to be hit in Pearl Harbor,” Hampton said. “Like everybody else he had no idea what was going to happen, and it would be neat today to be able to ask his spirit what was going through his mind. I would love to know that but unfortunately, we can’t. He is still there. He is still at Pearl Harbor in the hull of that ship and will never come home.”

Even though his body was never found Hampton says the city of Cape Girardeau still held a memorial service for Clippard a few weeks after the attack at the Teacher’s College, which is now Southeast Missouri State University.

“A lot of people thought the great war World War I was over and there would never be another war like it,” said Hampton. “Well then this attack occurred and it’s stirring up old feelings, and for a lot of those veterans, those memories are starting to come back. It has a lot of impact to think here we are honoring somebody, and this just happened, and this is somebody from our hometown. This is someone who was from here, born here, raised here, went to school here. It’s not just a face on a wall, he was one of us.”

Hampton said he has a goal of honoring every single veteran from Cape Girardeau County on the anniversary of their deaths.

There’s a Friday Pearl Harbor ceremony in Cape Girardeau, an event that has taken place for more than three decades.  It’s a collaboration between the local American Legion Post, local Marine Corps. League and The Disabled American Veterans.

Missouri soldier shares first-hand account of Alaskan earthquake

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Photos courtesy of Marc Lester/Anchorage Daily News

U.S. Army Captain Matthew Rigdon, a 2007 graduate of Seckman High School in eastern Missouri’s Imperial is among the soldiers who experienced Friday’s 7.0 magnitude earthquake in Alaska. Rigdon is stationed at a base near Anchorage, where the quake occurred.

Rigdon is with the 4th Brigade Combat 25th Infantry Division and lives off-base with his wife and two-year-old daughter. He says he was finishing breakfast on base when the mess hall kept shaking.

“The shaking continued and then it actually intensified. That’s kind of when we made the eye contact and thought without words we need to get out of here,” he says.

Rigdon then began checking on his company, including some soldiers who were in the air on drills, trying to get in some “jump” time when the earthquake hit.

When Rigdon was able to make his way home, he says water had been shut off in his neighborhood because of a broken main and the natural gas line was also turned off as a precaution. According to Rigdon, his house sustained damage from the quake and he and his wife had quite a mess to clean up.

An Alaska Army National Guard Black Hawk helicopter departs Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, to conduct an aerial site survey after the earthquake. (Photo courtesy of Balinda O’Neal Dresel/Army Guard)

“At the end of the day, just thankful that no one was seriously injured and as far as we know, no one had been killed from the earthquake. So, we’re really thankful for that,” he says.

Rigdon has been stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson for the past two years.

By Matt Baer of Missourinet affiliate KJFF in Festus

Former Missouri Senator Bond reflects on President George H.W. Bush’s legacy

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A former Missouri senator who spent 24 years on Capitol Hill praises former President George H.W. Bush, who died Friday in Houston at the age of 94.

Former Missouri Governor and U.S. Senator Kit Bond (file photo)

Former U.S. Sen. Kit Bond describes his Republican colleague, President Bush, as a “special person.”

“We lost a true statesman, an outstanding president, a brave war hero and a great communicator,” Bond says.

Mr. Bush served eight years as President Ronald Reagan’s vice president from 1981 to 1989, before being elected president in 1988 and serving one term. Bond tells Missourinet he introduced Vice President Bush, when he spoke at Westminster College in mid-Missouri’s Fulton in 1986.

“It was a great opportunity to bring in a vice president of the United States and talk about his tremendous record,” says Bond. “Very few people have ever had the preparation for the office of presidency that he had.”

Bond notes Mr. Bush served as a Texas congressman, ambassador and CIA director, before becoming vice president and president.

Mr. Bush, who served as president from 1989 to 1993, made numerous trips to Missouri during that time. He rode in the Fourth of July parade in southwest Missouri’s Marshfield in 1991, and spoke at the Show-Me State Games in Columbia in 1992.

Vice President Mike Pence describes former President Bush as a great leader who made a “great difference in the life of this nation.” Senator Bond also emphasizes that Bush was a war hero.

“Shot down in the Pacific, he enlisted just as soon as he was old enough, youngest team leader,” Bond says.

Bond notes Mr. Bush landed in the Pacific Ocean during that World War II incident, before being rescued by a submarine.

Bond says he first met Bush in 1968 in Washington, when Bond unsuccessfully ran for a U.S. House seat in northeast Missouri. Congressman William Hungate, a Democrat, beat Bond that year with about 52 percent of the vote.

Kit Bond was elected governor in 1972 and served his first term from 1973 to January 1977. He lost a 1976 re-election bid to “Walking Joe” Teasdale, but defeated Teasdale in 1980.

Bond was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986 and served four six-year terms until he retired in January 2011. He was in the Senate for the entire Bush presidency from 1989 to 1993.

The Washington Post reports Wednesday morning’s funeral is set for 11 at Washington National Cathedral, a request of the Bush family. The newspaper reports Bush will lie in state in the Capitol Rotunda in Washington until Wednesday morning at 7.

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American Legion National Commander outlines 2019 priorities

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(This is the second in a two-part series from Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth about the American Legion)

The American Legion plans to ask Congress to change the law involving membership eligibility in the nation’s largest wartime veterans service organization.

American Legion National Commander Brett Reistad (left) with Jefferson City American Legion Post 5 Commander Jim Rosenberg on November 15, 2018 in Jefferson City (Brian Hauswirth photo)

American Legion National Commander Brett Reistad made the announcement during a recent visit to Jefferson City. He says the Legion has approved a resolution, calling on Congress to declare the time period from Pearl Harbor in 1941 to today as an open “war time” service period.

“Rather than having the independent periods like we have for Panama, Grenada, Desert Storm, Desert Shield,” Reistad says.

Legion membership is currently open only to men and women who served in active military duty during specific periods designated as “war time” by Congress.

For instance, World War II and World War II-era veterans who served from December 7, 1941 to December 31, 1946 are eligible. However, under current law, veterans who served from 1947 to 1949 are not eligible to join the Legion.

The Korean War-era dates are from June 1950 to January 1955, and the Vietnam War dates are considered to be from 1961 to May 1975.

The Lebanon/Grenada dates are from August 1982 until July 1984, and the Panama dates are from December 20, 1989 until January 1990.

Anyone who’s served from August 1990 until today is also eligible, under current law.

Reistad was elected national commander on August 30 and has been traveling around the nation, meeting with local posts and veterans. He spoke on November 15 to a packed house at the Roscoe Enloe American Legion Post 5 in Jefferson City.

Another top 2019 priority for the Legion is receiving a full accounting of all POWs and troops missing in action.

Commander Reistad says American Legion membership has decreased from 3.2 million in 1992 to about 2 million today. He notes many World War II veterans have died, since 1992.

“And to expect that we’re going to be able to bring young service members, young veterans into our posts to replace those numbers is not a real practical consideration,” says Reistad.

He says many veterans leaving the service are focused on starting their careers or going to school, as well as starting families.

Reistad says he’s been hearing about VA health care, as he travels the nation visiting with local posts and veterans. He tells Missourinet he’s been hearing from individuals about their experiences with the VA medical system.

“We try to take those questions and have them handled at the local level with the local VA’s,” Reistad says.

The American Legion does have department service officers in Washington, who are specially trained to provide information and assistance relating to the VA. The phone number to reach those service officers is (202) 861-2700.

The Legion was established by an act of Congress in 1919, which means they’ll be celebrating their 100th anniversary next year.

Copyright © 2018 · Missourinet

Missouri installation has largest Thanksgiving event in Department of Defense

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What’s probably the biggest Thanksgiving feast in Missouri takes place at south-central Missouri’s Fort Leonard Wood military installation.

Thanksgiving meals being served at Missouri’s Fort Leonard Wood Army installation

The base provides nearly 12,000 meals during its annual Thanksgiving lunch celebration. Combined with breakfast and dinner that are served daily, close to 30,000 meals will be served throughout Thanksgiving day.

More than 7,000 pounds of turkey is required to pull off the lunch event which takes place in 12 dining halls. In addition, 1,200 pounds of shrimp, 2,000 pounds of beef and 2,000 assorted cakes and pies are required for the meals.

The base’s Food Program manager, William Moffitt, describes the annual feast as the “Super Bowl” of meals and says plans take place four to six months in advance with the installation’s prime vendor.  “They need to plan out in advance through all their sub-vendors to make sure that they can supply us,” said Moffitt. “And with that amount of food, there’s a logistics process from the companies out there that actually supply the turkeys themselves.”

More than 400 food service employees prepare the food which is then served by the base’s leadership personnel, which Moffitt says is a traditional procedure within the armed forces. “All the leadership, all the commanders for Sergeant, Sergeant Majors, they’ll actually do the serving themselves, Moffitt said. “The food service contractor prepares all the food, but all the leadership will serve it to the junior individuals.”

Because of the scheduling of military personnel, one of the dining halls served its Thanksgiving meals for the Noncommissioned Officer Academy on Tuesday. The other 12 dining facilities for various regiments and battalions as well as Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps detachments at the Army base serve the meal mostly simultaneously between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Thursday.

The installation’s 400 contract food workers spend several days preparing the meals with the process of thawing the turkey taking three days by itself. Cooking the turkeys starts between 1 and 2 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day.

The 2018 holiday meal cost is $9.10 for all visitors, except spouses and other dependents of service members E-4 and below, who pay the discounted rate of $6.80 per person. Service members are not charged. E-4 is a military pay grade, covering Specialists and Corporals. Private and Private First Class are ranks below E-4.

Moffitt said because of the Trump administration’s Grow the Army initiative, Fort Leonard Wood has received military personnel from other installations. “We’ve received some of those for the Grow the Army because we’ve had the capability to (expand operations),” said Moffitt.

He notes Fort Leonard Wood has the largest food program in the Department of Defense, followed by bases such as Fort Jackson in South Carolina and Fort Bragg in North Carolina.

Moffitt said he’s proud to serve with the team that provided more than 11.5 million meals to military service members this year.

“It is an enjoyable day seeing everyone slow down from the high intensity of training to pause, and reflect with family and friends,” Moffitt said.  “Seeing the looks of excitement, relief, and satisfaction on the faces of
trainees and their newly found friends/battle buddies after finishing this feast is a cool sight to see.”

American Legion National Commander speaks in Jefferson City

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(This is the first in a two-part series from Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth about the American Legion)

American Legion National Commander Brett Reistad (left) with Jefferson City American Legion Post 5 Commander Jim Rosenberg on November 15, 2018 in Jefferson City (Brian Hauswirth photo)

The commander of Jefferson City’s American Legion Post says it was a huge honor to have the Legion’s national commander speak in the Capital City last week.

Roscoe Enloe American Legion Post 5 Commander Jim Rosenberg says his members like to showcase the post. He notes Jefferson City has 1,349 members, making it Missouri’s second-largest Legion post behind Independence.

“Given our geographic location, we’re a lot smaller than St. Louis, Kansas City, (and) Springfield,” Rosenberg says.

He also notes Jefferson City’s Legion Post 5 has the largest riders chapter in the state.

Commander Brett Reistad spoke to a packed house Thursday night at Roscoe Enloe, which is located on Tanner Bridge Road.

Reistad outlined national issues facing veterans, like health care. One of the Legion’s top 2018 priorities is receiving a full accounting of all POWs and troops missing in action.

He also met one-on-one with some local members. Commander Rosenberg praises Reistad for visiting Jefferson City.

“I’ve talked to a few people about him. Everything is positive,” says Rosenberg. “Commander is a good person, best man for the job and we are really super proud to have him here.”

The American Legion is the nation’s largest wartime veterans service organization, with about two million members nationwide.

Rosenberg notes there were 36,101 American Legion members in Missouri, as of 2017.

Copyright © 2018 · Missourinet

Missouri soldiers deploy to Kuwait

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Family, friends and supporters have gathered today at a Missouri National Guard armory in Jefferson City to wish farewell to six soldiers heading to Kuwait. The unit will be overseas for an undisclosed time transporting soldiers and cargo.

Missouri soldiers deploy for Kuwait

During today’s sendoff ceremony, Chief Warrant Officer Matt Sandbothe of Jefferson City says being away around the holidays is difficult but a part of the job.

“It’s an emotional process for the whole deal,” he says. “We know about this at least a year prior. It’s an ongoing process that we just work with our families and prepare them as much as possible.”

Sandbothe has been deployed at least three times.

“It’s part of the family understanding that every military family goes through,” Sandbothe says. “We’re fortunate enough to have good people around us, good leadership around us. My family has been through it before. They understand what it takes.”

Jefferson City Mayor Carrie Tergin says her grandfather, who came to the U.S. as an orphan from Greece, has called America the best country on earth.

“When he would go back to Greece and visit and come home to America, he would kiss the ground. I want to thank you all for giving him the freedom to kiss that ground,” she says.

Other dignitaries there include Adjutant General Steve Danner of the Missouri National Guard and State Senator-Elect Mike Bernskoetter, R-Jefferson City.

Copyright © 2018 · Missourinet