Columns | Sedalia Democrat

When the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) recently granted Presidio Environmental a permit to construct a landfill and recovery facilities in the La Monte area, it brought what looks … more

By Doug Kneibert Contributing Columnist | 6/11/26

Tall shoe tale

I began wearing high heels when I was a teenager. I wanted to look older and, more important, taller. I also wanted to be like my mother, who wore high heels every day to school. … more

By Deborah Mitchell Contributing Columnist | 6/11/26

Legislative victories strengthen Missouri agriculture

The 2026 legislative session proved to be productive, with lawmakers passing 100 bills in total, out of nearly 3,000 bills that were filed. Keep in mind, it takes countless hours and minds to sift … more

By Mark Figenbaum Guest Columnist | 6/11/26

How do your memories taste?

One of my favorite things about food is how even one smell or bite can become a time machine. It happened last week when a friend, who knows my guilty pleasures, gave me a box of Cap’n Crunch … more

By Gwen Rockwood Syndicated Columnist | 6/8/26

My other alarm clock is a train

Some mornings, the thing that wakes me up is the distant sound of a train’s horn as it moves through the railroad crossings blocks away from my bed. I call these trains my other alarm … more

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Telephone companies providing service in 1904

Alexander Graham Bell was granted a patent for the invention of the telephone in March 1876. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, telephone service in Sedalia was provided by … more

By Rhonda Chalfant, Contributing Columnist | 6/8/26

Why this 'comfort movie' is still driving

Buford T. Justice is the Smokey in the Smokey and the Bandit movies. No one knows what the T. stands for. Buford is the sheriff of Portague County, Texas. He has one son, Junior, who he can’t … more

By Sherry Broyles Contributing Columnist | 6/4/26

Lying leads to moral rotting

My first job in the USA was selling books door to door during the summer after two semesters at the University of Missouri. In a small Midwestern town hundreds of miles from here I knocked on … more

By P.C. Thomas Sedalia Bible Academy | 6/4/26

Blessings abound

I was ready to write about the Supreme Court’s disgusting decision in the Alabama case. After all, the Supreme Court doesn’t just overturn its own three-year-old decision, offering no … more

By Deborah Mitchell, Contributing Columnist | 6/4/26

The power grid doesn’t work in pieces

Most of the systems we rely on every day receive attention only when something breaks. We don’t talk about roads when traffic flows, or water systems when the tap turns on. These systems fade … more

By Scott Rupp Guest Columnist | 6/4/26

City projects can now be viewed with interactive maps by hovering over the ‘Grow’ tab on the City of Sedalia website.

Sedalia launches maps website to improve public access

Residents, businesses and visitors now have a new way to explore city projects and community information thanks to the Monday, June 1 launch of the City of Sedalia’s new interactive maps website. … more

By Chris Howell chris.howell@sedaliademocrat.com | 6/2/26

Interrogating the kitchen robot

Here’s a transcript of a conversation I had last week with the software robot, Alexa, who lives in our kitchen. Me (eating breakfast and looking out the window): “Alexa, what’s the weather … more

By Gwen Rockwood Syndicated Columnist | 6/1/26

Those nostalgia feelings

Not long ago, someone asked me why most of the writings in both my books and my columns are in the nostalgic genre; I told them it is because I am following one of the sage writing tips I received a … more

By Jack Miller Contributing Columnist | 6/1/26

More about what Sedalians ate in 1904

Last week’s column described the Sedalia Milling Company that produced flour and meal, Dolph’s Grocery Store and Hall and Maltby‘s Grocery Store, and Wood Dale farm whose owner Nick Gentry … more

By Rhonda Chalfant, Contributing Columnist | 6/1/26

Senior Center prepares for fourth gala

It’s always a pleasure to speak to the Sedalia Senior Center about its annual fundraising gala. This year, Director Machele Thierfelder and Liz Rooks, president of the Center’s advisory board, … more

By Faith Bemiss-McKinney, faith.bemiss@sedaliademocrat.com | 6/1/26

Hair shedding scoring beef cattle

I recently attended a workshop entitled “Heifer Retention with Intention” which focused on selection and development of beef replacement heifers. One interesting aspect of the program was … more

6/1/26

Alford bill aimed at foreign acquisitions

In February I wrote a column about the Chinese national who was arrested for spying at Whiteman Air Force Base, home of the only B-2 wing in the Air Force. The war in Iran has shown, more than … more

By Doug Kneibert Contributing Columnist | 5/28/26

Deja Vu

Texas Republicans elected Ken Paxton as their candidate for the Senate, a man who has been indicted for securities fraud, was accused by some of his employees of “abusing his office to help an … more

By Deborah Mitchell Contributing Columnist | 5/28/26

Summer school

My kids and I have a tradition we’ve maintained since they were just out of kindergarten: we do summer school. But not the kind where you get on a yellow bus and spend a couple extra weeks at the … more

By Liz Schleicher Contributing Columnist | 5/28/26

A case against the cork

In this column, I intend to destroy one of the wine commandments that experts, real or self-styled, live by. There are many “things” about wines that have come up from the dark ages that … more

By Bennet Bodenstein Contributing Columnist | 5/28/26