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OCT. 30 – NOV. 5, 2025
Serving, empowering and advocating for equity in St. Louis since 1928
Vol. 97 No. 29 COMPLIMENTARY
stlamerican.com
St. Louis could face hunger crisis
Kehoe orders $15 million for food assistance By Alvin A. Reid St. Louis American Thousands of St. Louis families could face empty shelves and empty stomachs beginning Saturday if federal food
assistance stops because of the ongoing government shutdown, though Gov. Mike Kehoe has announced more than $15 million in emergency state funding to help offset the blow. Kehoe on Wednesday directed $10.6
million from the Senior Services Growth and Development Fund to Missouri’s Area Agencies on Aging to ensure seniors continue receiving meals, and authorized an early $5 million distribution from Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds to support food banks across the state. He said the state is working to “expe-
dite additional funding sources” to help at-risk residents but cannot fully replace the halted federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. With Congress deadlocked over a stopgap spending bill, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has warned that funding
See SHUTDOWN, A12
Pursuing inclusive excellence WashU community backs rejection of Trump compact limiting diversity efforts
By Sylvester Brown Jr. St. Louis American
Photos by Wiley Price / St. Louis American
Vernon Warlick, 74, sits quietly while fishing in Fairgrounds Park Lake in late September.
A park for everyone New nonprofit launches to restore Fairground Park
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By Ashley Winters St. Louis American newly formed nonprofit is working to restore Fairground Park, once called the crown jewel of north St. Louis. Its mission is to repair years of neglect, reconnect the park with its history and build a stronger, more inclusive future. For a community battered by poverty, crime, disinvestment — and most recently a devastating tornado — the park represents both a painful past and a chance at renewal. Mary Wheeler-Jones, co-founder of Fairground Park for All and a lifelong resident of the surrounding community, says the organization’s mission is about more than fixing up a park, it’s about unity. “It’s time for us to stop looking at St. Louis in pieces — northside, southside,” she said. “This is a regional park, and
See PARK, A12
Washington University faculty and student groups already were voicing strong opposition to a Trump administration proposal linking federal funding to diversity limits when the university confirmed it would reject the plan — a move that has fueled broader debate about political influence in higher education. The proposal unveiled Oct. 1, would condition access to federal research funding on universities’ agreement to scale back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, restrict international student enrollment, freeze tuition for five years and define gender based on “biological
See WASHU, A12
City awards $1.14M in grants Funds will support community-led plans
By Ashley Winters St. Louis American
Photos by Wiley Price / St. Louis American
Local residents enjoying the newly-restored basketball court in Fairgrounds Park.
New gathering spaces, greenway connections and small business incubators are coming to several St. Louis neighborhoods, fueled by $1.14 million in city grants supporting community-led plans. The Neighborhood Plan Implementation Awards, announced Wednesday by the city’s Community Development Administration (CDA), will support projects in Skinker DeBaliviere, the West End, Downtown, Downtown West, Covenant Blu-Grand Center, JeffVander-Lou and St. Louis Place. Funded through the city’s Economic Development Sales Tax, the initiative helps neighborhoods move from planning
See GRANTS, A13
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HEALTH
B1 - Living It A2 - Editorial B2 - Sports A3 - News line s B4 - Party A4 - Local New B7 - Sites & s A5 - Busines Sounds s A7 - Health B8 - Classified t A9 - Hotshee Kids A10 - Healthy A11 - STEM
HEALTH
Clinic serves uninsured and underinsured St. Louisans
Every Sunday, volunteer physicians accept walk-ins. Dental services are offered twice a month, and an optometrist sees patients there monthly.
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