Columnists
On the Brighter Side: So many questions
I read the other day an author announced that there was no God. Interesting as I looked out the window from my warm home and heard the wind blowing loudly and saw the snow coming down sideways, and I might add ferociously on a cold blustery middle of March day. How can that be? How…
Read MoreA Little Bit Like Home: The smell waiting at the bottom of the stairs
We didn’t call them potlucks. At our church, they were carry-in dinners. You could smell them before you ever reached the bottom of the basement stairs. The aroma would drift upward, meeting you halfway: baked ham, scalloped potatoes, vegetables in creamy sauces, and just enough sweetness from the dessert table to make a kid walk…
Read MoreMy Turn: Be careful what comes first
I’ve been fortunate over the past couple of years to be part of a group of like-minded local men who care about their families, each other, and their community. We started out by “reading” via podcast the Bible in a Year, narrated by Father Mike Schmidt, a Catholic priest. I spent a great deal of…
Read MorePearls: Spring is in the air, longer days and better outdoor conditions
It’s official: there’s no possible way to schedule everything that I need to do. The days are just going to have to get longer. Well, since that’s not going to happen, I suppose I’ll accept the daylight within the days becoming more abundant as my consolation prize. I’ll not go so far as to diagnose…
Read MoreMy Turn: The right team means everything
In my last column I told you to stay tuned for more news. I told you there would be good news and there would be sad news. By now, anyone who has been paying attention is aware of that news. On Monday, Feb. 16, Cobb Publishing reacquired The Forum and The Post from Garner Media.…
Read MoreFrueh Time: Strangers who became friends
One of my devotionals this week read, “I may send you strange visitors…Nobody must come and feel unwanted.” It made me think of a stranger, who became a co-worker, who became a dear friend many years ago. I didn’t like her from the minute I met her. She seemed a bit too pushy and bossy.…
Read MoreView from the Front Porch: Reflecting on my favorite toys
As a child of the 1970’s I grew up playing Midnight Ghost with my neighbors until dusk, riding bikes all over town and playing with some of the best toys ever made. Let me take you on a journey through some of my favorites that left a lasting impression on my heart. One of my…
Read MoreA Little Bit Like Home: Front of the line
Every once in a while, life hands you a moment that makes no sense at the time, but years later you can see the fingerprints of the people who made it possible. Twenty-three years ago, I was broadcasting from the Midland Empire Farm Show at the St. Joseph Civic Arena, where the hum of conversations…
Read MoreJon’s Journal: Taking the ‘sports’ mindset to news
My “interview” for managing editor of the Maryville Forum was less of interview and more of a discussion of where publisher Phil Cobb and myself hope to take the Forum in the future. He knows my background pretty well already with nearly a decade of working for the Forum. So let’s go behind the curtain…
Read MoreA Little Bit Like Home: The story continues
March 4 marks eleven years since we lost our son, Alex—eleven years since the day everything changed. He was 18—sharp, kind, funny. Playing #1 doubles on the tennis team. Working at Chick-fil-A, with prospects of becoming a junior manager. Dreaming about his next mission trip to Arizona with the youth group. He was planning his…
Read More