Eating and reading are my two favorite things to do,” boasts Wendy Pace, a gourmet cook and avid reader who blends her culinary and literary passions into every aspect of her life. It’s only natural then that this 38-year-old Kirkwood mom of two, who is a local food broker and the wife of the director of the St. Louis County Library, coordinates a unique Jewish reading group called “Cook and Book,” which heats up regularly at Congregation Shaare Emeth in Ladue. (more…)

Missouri is famous for many things: the pony express, Gateway to the West, Mark Twain, and, of course, caves, to name a few. The Show Me state is also on the map for something not as proud, but rather abominable: puppy mills. (more…)

Canned food drives are plentiful these days. Everywhere you go—at school, temple, grocery store, post office, library, retirement center, shopping mall, movie theatre, and even the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra—a barrel devours your donation of black bean soup or beef stew like an empty belly starved for nourishment. In desperation to fill the sparse food pantries and ease the burden on government support, a can of tuna is as valuable as gold these days. (more…)