To read this story, sign in or register with your email address. You’ll get two more free stories, plus free newsletters written by our reporting team.

You’ve read all your free stories this month. Subscribe now and unlock unlimited access to our stories, exclusive subscriber content, additional newsletters, invitations to special events, and more.

Register Subscribe

Tap the picture and read the story.

A charcuterie board and wine at The Vineyard Market in Ozark, with text reading "Make Ozark your next culinary field trip"
A Black English Labrador retriever sits next to a sign for the Greene County Juvenile Justice Center
Newly trained workers preparing for the opening of Whataburger in Republic in December 2022.
Annie Leibovitz pauses to consider her answer during an audience Q-and-A at the opening of "Annie Leibovitz at Work" at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023 in Bentonville, Arkansas.
Kim Paige, workforce development specialist at the Missouri Job Center, shares remarks at a roundtable discussion on Sept. 13.
Two women modeling Cider Days on Historic Walnut Street T-shirts
Bob Atchley, Senior City Planner for the City of Springfield, explains about the city's HOME-ARP funding
Chain link fence topped with barbed wire surrounds the former Litton Systems manufacturing plant site.
James and Lisa Tillman, Huey Magoo’s franchise owners, talk about their plans to open five stores in the Springfield region while seated inside the restaurant on East Sunshine on Sept. 7, 2023.
A photo illustration with a man playing mini golf next to a rocket ship obstacle and a headline reading "At Fun Acre, nostalgia is par for the course"
Rotolo di zucchini from Amici, an Italian restaurant in Springfield, Missouri
A photo illustration showing a screengrab from a video of two people passing each other in a stairwell, along with the booking photo for Rostell King
A photo illustration of Missouri State University President Clif Smart, reading "Clif Smart Announces Retirement"
Abigail Cool talks about her suffering domestic and religious abuse at the hands of her husband and the leadership of churches they belonged to in the past.
A photo illustration including the Kobe Club Burgers sign, a wagyu burger and a basket of french fries.
A hand holds a cell phone next to a car's steering wheel
Marijuana-infused gummi candy
Architect's rendering of the proposed new Pipkin Middle School
Rob Yanders, wearing a gray T-shirt reading "Thunder Basketball," smiles while coaching basketball players
Stephanie Reid talks about some of the bureaucratic difficulties of running their four short-term rental properties.
From left: Chea Nguyen, Ratamak Nguyen and their daughter, Angel, 4. The family owns and operates Lucky Time in downtown Springfield.
Isaiah Buse sits at the desk in his office at the Houston Herald
A group of women poses for a photo on a bridge during a group cycling ride
A white Jeep with Vehicle with an expired Missouri temporary tag
Screenshot of the "In Our Town" podcast
A slice of avocado toast from Lindsay's Kitchen at 14 Mill Market
Larry Hairston stands next to his shoeshine chair. He's wearing a hat and a black apron that reads "Brand New Shine"
A purple-hued mocktail in a glass with the Tie & Timber Beer Logo printed on the side of it
Andrea Hanson and her daughter Daylie Allen watch as Andrea's son, Christopher Luttrull fights for position during a qualifying heat.
A group of eight people pose for a photo during a previous Park Day celebration
Carol Grantham cleans up around a large pine tree that came down in her front yard on South Kelly Ave.
A roller derby bout in Jordan Valley Ice Park
Bridgette Cummings, owner of Healthy Edge, serves customers
Families pick up backpacks during last year's Back to School Bash.
Two actors on a stage, rehearsing a play
Springfield-Greene County Library outreach specialist Rob Manning watches ten-year-old Xavier Davis study the cover of "Miles Morales: Spider-Man."
The Cordon Rouge sandwich from The Sandwich Scene
A mother, father and small child sit on a beach at Lake of the Ozarks
A girl names Polly poses during a past Fashion Forward event.
Booths and tables in the rec room at the Rare Breed Youth Outreach Center
Argentina Portugal performs with fire in "Paranormal Cirque."
Nine kayaks and a canoe sit on the banks of Lake Springfield, as two kayakers paddle by in the water
A concrete sign reading "Central Bible College, Founded 1922"
A burger and fries
Aaron Schekorra packs orders for his business, OwnYourPride.com.
A man seeds a row of sunflowers on a farm
Looking east on East Battlefield, toward the intersection with Lone Pine
Two women watch as the instructor in a cooking class demonstrates how to make croissants
Two actors on a stage, rehearsing a scene from "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
Screenshot of the "In Our Town" podcast
Cassell Vineyards' stone building with tables set up on its patio for an event
A wooden azumaya, which means pavilion or pagoda
A woman poses next to a teal building with red and white striped awnings
A restaurant patio table set with breakfast dishes and drinks
A woman and man dressed as clowns
A trio of musicians — holding a fiddle, a banjo and a guitar — pose for a photo outside the United States Capitol.
A northern snakehead fish
A couple poses for a photo
Connecting Grounds Lived Experience Cohort member T.J. Potter holds the lid while Alex (left) dumps water into a refill station near National Avenue Christian Church.
A vintage-looking tintype-style photograph of a mother and her son
Some of the performers at Ozarks Pridefest ride in the parade that kicked off the celebration of LGBTQ pride in Springfield on June 10, 2023
Purple and yellow wildflowers grow in the front yard of a yellow house
Screenshot of the "In Our Town" podcast
Exterior photo of a Target store
A boy and a girls look through trays of Lego bricks
A woman stands in front of a brick wall
A man adds toppings to a tray of doughnuts
A woman sits at a table, making an American flag from pieces of glass
A young boy sits on the floor, playing a xylophone
A pile of compost
A dish of chicken salad sits on a blue-patterned tablecloth
Logo for "Living in Fear"
A woman wearing a shirt that says "Still I rise" poses in front of a black backdrop
A man in a blue plaid shirt stands in front of a yellow brick wall
A digital painting of a person crouching, with their head in their hands. They're surrounded by three children and a dog
Country music legend Dolly Parton sits at a table, meeting a fan
A group of teachers pose for a picture with a high school student. He's holding a sign that says "I'm going to Fly SPS."
Screenshot of the podcast "In Our Town"
Metal "fish" on display in an art gallery
Architect's renderings of brownstone-style apartment buildings
A flaming margarita, with two bottles of beer tipped upside down in it
A Springfield police officer stands in front of his patrol vehicle
A woman poses for a photo in a dark room with a spotlight on her face
Exterior photo of the Hotel of Terror haunted house in Springfield
A woman poses for a photo standing next to a staircase
Rows of seed packets sit on wooden shelves
Two women pose with a stack of board game boxes
Logo for "Living in Fear," a special investigation by the Springfield Daily Citizen
A woman in a black sweatshirt reading "Arrow Creative Reuse" stands in front of shelves of art supplies
A long row of split rail fencing runs through a green field, under a blue sky with puffy white clouds.
Screenshot of the "In Our Town" podcast
A salmon filet sits on a bed of mushroom risotto
An empty lot with green grass and a gravel drive
Gorilla Snacks X Irish Stout indica-hybrid 'flowers' from Sinse Cannabis.
A man in a suit stands behind a podium, giving a speech
Interior photo of an SUV with a deflated airbag resting on the steering wheel
A group of eight people poses for a photo in front of a brick wall
A teacher is surrounded by students holding up fake beards that look like his
Exterior photo of the former Boyd elementary school building
Traffic moves along East Sunshine Street between National Avenue and Glenstone Avenue, passing a mix of commercial and retail storefronts, many of them vacant or dilapidated
Three small beer glasses sit in a wooden cupholder
Screenshot of the podcast "In Our Town"
A man in a blue polo shirt sits behind a desk, facing the camera
A plate of ravioli sits on a table, surrounded by bread and wine
Two fans sit in the stands of a stadium, watching a baseball game
Two hikers look at a waterfall in the woods
A woman shoots off a confetti cannon
Students, teachers, administrators and others cut the ribbon to the new Jarrett Middle School.
A pink Quonset hut
Photo of a pond in a Japanese stroll garden
A man leans on a restaurant counter, holding a plate of Jamaican food.
A man carries a wooden crate filled with onions
A man poses for a photo in front of guns displayed on a wall
Connecting Grounds Pastor Christie Love and Anthony Carmichael talk to a homeless woman still in her tent.
A man smiles at the camera as he poses for a photo
A small bluff in the woods with a waterfall running down it
Logo for the podcast "In Our Town" next to a picture of Tom Carlson
A band performs on stage
A Reuben sandwich and french fires sit on a white plate
A principal stands in a school cafeteria, talking to students
A group of eight candidates sit at a long row of folding tables
A woman in a restaurant kitchen prepares a sushi roll
Exterior photo of Cabos Bonitos Grill & Cantina
A mother watches her child board a yellow school bus
A bluff with a waterfall running through the middle
A group of men, seated in chairs, sing a hymn
A woman stands in front of a 20-foot-tall pile of rocks
A screenshot of the In Our Town podcast
A woman sits behind a desk, laughing
Exterior photo of a brick building with a sign that says The Dive on Patton
Five men fish in a river
A woman holds a book titled "Safe & Secure Schools"
A family of five poses with trophies
A silver metal tap sticks out of a black walnut tree
A walking path winds through a park, next to a creek
Coffee beans sit in a scale next to bags of Equip Coffee
A plate of tacos, chips and salsa sits on a table at a restaurant
Logo for the podcast "In Our Town"
A barber cuts a customer's hair
A woman scoops red and yellow popcorn into a clear bag
A hospital worker pushes a patient transporter down a long hallway
A man and woman, dressed in cosplay, sit on a stage at a comic con
A group of people listen to a speaker at a panel discussion
A teacher gives instructions to their class