People

Photography by the Marions Peggy Terzopoulos and Nick Rasmussen exchanged traditional vows in a minimal, non-denominational ceremony at the Atrium on Tenth, with the bride's second cousin presiding. For the theme, Peggy says, "I wanted a…

Photos by L.G. Patterson When spring is in the air, love is in the air. And we wanted to share some love stories.  So we asked you to nominate some of the cutest couples in Columbia, and you came through! Sixteen of the cutest CoMo…

You’d think the last thing chefs want to think about once they're off their kitchen clocks is food. And you'd be partly right: Turns out the local toques featured in our Foodie Four each have a different culinary creation or gastronomic…

Sophie Cunningham usually knows better than to pay attention to the chatter on social media, but following Missouri’s loss at South Carolina on Jan. 28, she couldn’t help herself. This was three weeks after Gamecocks fans started…

What started as a tomato rescue project — yes, you read that right — in 2015 is now an heirloom seed and plant business providing Missourians..

As a former art history professor, and now adjunct at the University, Julie Plax has a great appreciation for the ancient and the antiquated. It was this love that led her after many years to purchase one of Columbia’s oldest homes — and…

This summer, when parents were forced to realize that the coronavirus pandemic would derail Columbia Public Schools’ status quo well into the fall semester — if not well into 2021 — they were faced with a practically impossible task: Get…

When it comes to a traditional buffalo style wing there is no other option in Missouri than CJ’s hot wings in downtown Columbia. If you don't think they have the best wings in CoMo than one has never touched your lips. Once you’ve had…

It was a friend who first planted the seed for the idea. After hearing how much fun Jacob Leffert had growing pumpkins, RJ Bechtold decided to plant a patch himself, and got permission from his Dad to use a one-acre plot behind his family’s…

As Columbians battled their way through the stay-at-home order, personal quarantines, working from home with their spouses and schooling their kids over the past several months, one thing stood out. Well, several people and businesses stood…

Michele Spry takes giving back to heart. The business she and her husband Brandon run, Midway Electric, Inc., is a Partner in Education with Midway Heights Elementary School and she’s also involved with Central Missouri Honor Flight and…

When not working her day job at Flat Branch Home Loans, Jessica Robertson-Capell volunteers as president of the nonprofit Armani’s Angels. She manages the organization with a board of eight other women, all of them volunteering countless…

“In closing, this is an incredible place at an incredible time ...” For one pregnant pause, Eliah Drinkwitz gathered himself at the podium. This wasn’t unfamiliar territory; after all, he’d given a speech a lot like this just 359 days…

People J’den Cox Hometown hero J’den Cox easily captured Columbia’s heart with his winning moves on the wrestling mat, first for Hickman High School and then at the University of Missouri, where he was a three-time NCAA Division I…

When you think of baked goods in Columbia, Uprise Bakery and bleu probably come to mind. But there is a much smaller — okay, a one-person — bakery you should be considering. Julie Hutton, owner of Frenchy Treats, bridges the 4,000-mile gap…

What do spine surgery and camping gear have in common? A lot, according to Josh Hendershott. The spine-specialist turned inventor launched a line of pocket-sized camping gear in 2017 and recently one of his products was featured on…

Although Columbia may be considered a small town by many, it has no shortage of people bettering the community. There are far more than 10 people making a difference in Columbia, but we chose to include the following ones because they are…

Stephen Paul Sayers became a bestselling author on the dare of a teenager — specifically, the prodding of his own daughter. An associate professor of physical therapy in the School of Health Professions at MU, Sayers didn’t seem a natural…

Melanie Prather Studer was sick of what she didn’t know. The Columbia native and mother of three sons had just successfully shuttled her eldest into his first year of high school, and already she could feel the pressures of college,…

A tiger cannot change its stripes — and that’s certainly true for Kelly Bryant, a former Clemson Tiger and now MU football’s senior quarterback. Bryant committed to University of Missouri on Dec. 5 and this fall will be his first season…