Marissanne Lewis-Thompson
Afternoon NewscasterMarissanne Lewis-Thompson joined St. Louis Public Radio October 2017 as the afternoon newscaster and as a general assignment reporter. She previously spent time as a feature reporter at KRCU in Cape Girardeau, where she covered a wide variety of stories including historic floods, the Bootheel, education and homelessness. In May 2015, she graduated from the University of Missouri with a Bachelor of Journalism degree in Convergence Journalism. She's a proud Kansas City, Missouri native, where she grew up watching a ton of documentaries on PBS, which inspired her to tell stories. In her free time, she enjoys binge watching documentaries and anime. She may or may not have a problem.
-
Western Illinois landowners and farmers are needed for a survey about the challenges they face on their land. The Illinois Extension’s survey will turn the feedback from landowners in Adams, Pike, Brown, Hancock and Schuyler counties into educational programming and resources to help them. -
The Quincy Gems, a collegiate summer baseball team, is not returning next season. The team’s owners, Jimmie and Julie Louthan, made the announcement on Tuesday. The couple cited sacrificing family time and a difficulty providing affordable seasonal entertainment.
-
The rare lemon cuckoo bumblebee bee was recently spotted in a Belleville garden by an amateur citizen scientist. The bee’s population has been on the decline, but this recent sighting could mean good news for rare bee species and bumblebees in the region.
-
Safe Connections is expanding its violence prevention program to third through fifth graders. The program will focus on conflict resolution, bullying, consent and boundaries, as well as healthy relationships.
-
St. Louis is getting its very own Safe Haven Baby Box. The box is a secured incubator that new mothers in crisis can leave their newborns in if they are not able to care for the child. This is the only Safe Haven box in Missouri. The box will be installed at Mehlville Fire Protection District Station 2.
-
Pregnant and postpartum women in the WIC program can now get free prenatal vitamins from the St. Charles County Department of Public Health. Clients can get a six-month supply at the department’s Health Services Clinic during nutritional counseling appointments.
-
A new St. Charles City-County library policy requires anyone under 18 to have a parent or guardian present to sign up for a library card. The library’s board approved the policy following new rules from Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft. It creates a certification process for state-funded public libraries to adopt policies for age-appropriate reading materials.
-
Balloon artists from St. Louis and around the globe are descending on a northern Colorado town this week to participate in a one-of-a-kind event. It’s called the Big Balloon Build. Artists are building a larger-than-life world out of biodegradable balloons to raise awareness about child abuse.
-
Astrobiologist and astronomer Aomawa Shields has spent many years studying the universe beyond our solar system and researching newly discovered planets that have the potential to support life. Last month, she released her new memoir “Life on Other Planets: A Memoir of Finding My Way in the Universe.” Shields will be at the St. Louis Science Center on Monday to talk about her work and book.
-
A free fresh produce program is returning to select St. Louis County Libraries this week. The St. Louis County Library’s Florissant Valley, Lewis and Clark, and Weber Road branches are offering 50 boxes of fresh produce every Thursday.
-
Many Missourians are not aware that some kinds of birth control are legal in the state. That’s according to findings from a Right Time survey. The survey found that more than 50% of Missourians do not believe or know that emergency contraception is legal.
-
The weekend’s storms led to damage including blocked roads, power outages, downed trees and two deaths.
