🌱SLAM Closes Due To COVID + Market Accused Of Food Stamp Fraud

Good day, people of St. Louis! It's me again, Helen Eckhard, your host of the St. Louis Daily.

First, today's weather:

Breezy; brief p.m. showers. High: 40 Low: 35.

Here are the top 3 stories in St. Louis today:

1. The St. Louis Art Museum announced that it will be closed until Feb. 1 due to the recent surge in COVID cases. Programs at the museum that were scheduled for January have been canceled and more information regarding the return of these events will be announced later this month. The museum stated that during this closure they will continue to offer virtual programs and find ways to strengthen procedures to safely reopen. (KMOV.com)
2. Federal prosecutors say an East St. Louis market has been used to commit $1 million in food stamp fraud. According to a forfeiture filing released Thursday, several people associated with the East Side Meat Market have been redeeming Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program funds for cash, liquor, and cigarettes. The filing is seeking the forfeiture of thousands of dollars that were acquired through the fraudulent use of EBT cards. (STLtoday.com)
3. St. Louis County prosecutors have charged a Glasgow Village man with breaking into 15 vehicles and stealing four guns. The incident occurred last October near St. Louis Lambert International Airport, where multiple people reported someone had broken windows on their vehicles. 20-year-old Tishon Wordlaw told police he had broken into the vehicles and was charged with 15 counts of first-degree property damage and four counts of stealing a firearm.(STLtoday.com)

Today in St. Louis:

• Mystery Lover's Book Club At Carondelet Branch Library (10:00 AM)

From my notebook:

• The St. Louis County Police Athletic League is hosting a Black History Month Trivia Night and you can participate! There will be cash prizes and more on Saturday, Feb. 19. (Facebook)
• This Saturday, Jan. 8, Stéphane Denève conducts the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in a program of firsts: the first symphony of Brahms, the first published piano concerto of Beethoven, and the first St. Louis performance of Detlev Glanert’s “Brahms-Fantasie.” (Facebook)
• St. Louis County Parks is collecting trees again this year to be recycled! They will be used to create fish habitats or mulch. Please remove all decorations from your tree and drop it off at Bee Tree Park, Spanish Lake Park, Queeny Park, or Creve Coeur Park. (Facebook)

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Now you're in the loop and ready to head out the door this Saturday! See you all tomorrow for another update.

— Helen Eckhard

About me: Helen Eckhard is a marketing assistant at Lightning Media Partners. She is a self-professed logophile who is currently pursuing her master’s degree in library science. Outside of work, you can find Helen constructing crossword puzzles, knitting, or devising increasingly crafty ways to kill off characters in her mystery novels.