Tag Archives: ozarks

Sid McConnell, of Niangua, Missouri, has been a frequent blood donor at Community Blood Center of the Ozarks since 2002. In December 2020, he suddenly became a blood recipient when he underwent a quadruple bypass. While in the hospital, Sid noticed the “Thank The Donor” tags and learned how easy it would be to send […]

Jessica Bower’s face lights up when she talks about her son, Joshua. “He is so strong-willed. He’s such a joy. He’s an amazing human being,” she says of the smiling boy who she and husband Jamie welcomed into the world August 6, 2017. “Can you believe it? We get to experience the rest of our lives with him. People […]

Twenty-eighteen has been a big year for 18-year-old Kelsie Mitchell. She was one of nine valedictorians graduating from Springfield’s Kickapoo High School, served on student council’s Cabinet leadership group, and was a member of the National Honor Society. And she has made plans to attend Truman State University in the fall. But just eight years ago, her main accomplishment was survival. “That’s […]

“Every door we passed had a sign on the outside that read, ‘Chemo in progress,’” said Laura Winstead as she remembered being admitted to Cox Hospital in Springfield for what her physician said would be a couple of nights for tests. “My husband and I just looked at each other as I had a slow […]

Aaron Pearson does not remember the bullet entering just below his left eye at 1:30 a.m. January 26, 2015. Breaking his jaw. Causing him to lose his eye. Lodging in his brain. Causing a traumatic brain injury. Leaving him lying in a pool of blood on the grass where fellow officers found him. Being rushed […]