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Missouri hunters donated nearly 350,000 pounds of venison to food banks this season

Missouri hunters donated nearly 350,000 pounds of venison to food banks this season
Missouri Department of Conservation

America's economy may be doing well, but that doesn't mean hunger still isn't a major issue. In the state of Missouri, one in seven adults and one in six children are struggling with hunger.

That's 865,400 people.

Over the past decade, the number of people in Missouri experiencing hunger has more than doubled, the largest increase in the entire country. This hasn't been helped by a 2016 law that prohibited most able-bodied adults without dependents from receiving food stamps.

This change in the law has put an extra burden on food banks.

"If the SNAP benefits aren't coming, then you start to rely on food pantries," Conner Kerrigan with Empower Missouri said according to KRCG TV. "Well, if you're like in a rural area, it's probably hard to travel to a food pantry and you have to put gas in the tank in order to do that."

The problem is that the amount of food donated to the food banks hasn't increased by much since the law passed.

One group that's doing its best to help feed Missouri's hungry are hunters.

via Kai Hendry / Flickr

Missouri deer hunters donated nearly 350,000 pounds of venison to pantries and food banks this hunting season, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) said in a news release.

While shooting animals seems like a pretty lame way to have a good time, at least the deer meat is going to help the most vulnerable.

The hunters donated the meat to Missouri's Share the Harvest program which provides "lean, healthy" venison to help feed hungry Missourians. According to Good Housekeeping, venison has a third of the amount of fat found in beef, and less calories than chicken.

"Venison is richer in protein than any other red meat, which means that it satiates the appetite really well, keeping you fuller for longer," nutritionist Naomi Mead says.

via Missouri Department of Conservation

"Hunters started Share the Harvest because they saw a need in their communities and hunters remain the driving force behind this popular program that helps feed our fellow Missourians who are in need," MDC director Sara Parker Pauley said in a statement.

"We sincerely thank the thousands of deer hunters who support Share the Harvest, along with the many participating meat processors and sponsors who help make it possible," Pauley continued.

Over 100 meat processors throughout the state packaged and ground the donated meat for free before it was handed over to the food pantries.

"We greatly appreciate the hunters, processors, and sponsors for their support of Share the Harvest," CFM executive director Tyler Schwartze said in the news release. "The donated venison stays in the local areas where the deer were harvested so it truly is helping out neighbors in need."

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1991 blooper clip of Robin Williams and Elmo is a wholesome nugget of comedic genius

Robin Williams is still bringing smiles to faces after all these years.

Canva via wikicommons and flicker

Robin Williams and Elmo (Kevin Clash) bloopers.

The late Robin Williams could make picking out socks funny, so pairing him with the fuzzy red monster Elmo was bound to be pure wholesome gold. Honestly, how the puppeteer, Kevin Clash, didn’t completely break character and bust out laughing is a miracle. In this short outtake clip, you get to see Williams crack a few jokes in his signature style while Elmo tries desperately to keep it together.

Williams has been a household name since what seems like the beginning of time, and before his death in 2014, he would make frequent appearances on "Sesame Street." The late actor played so many roles that if you were ask 10 different people what their favorite was, you’d likely get 10 different answers. But for the kids who spent their childhoods watching PBS, they got to see him being silly with his favorite monsters and a giant yellow canary. At least I think Big Bird is a canary.

When he stopped by "Sesame Street" for the special “Big Bird's Birthday or Let Me Eat Cake” in 1991, he was there to show Elmo all of the wonderful things you could do with a stick. Williams turns the stick into a hockey stick and a baton before losing his composure and walking off camera. The entire time, Elmo looks enthralled … if puppets can look enthralled. He’s definitely paying attention before slumping over at the realization that Williams goofed a line. But the actor comes back to continue the scene before Elmo slinks down inside his box after getting Williams’ name wrong, which causes his human co-star to take his stick and leave.

The little blooper reel is so cute and pure that it makes you feel good for a few minutes. For an additional boost of serotonin, check out this other (perfectly executed) clip about conflict that Williams did with the two-headed monster. He certainly had a way of engaging his audience, so it makes sense that even after all of these years, he's still greatly missed.

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Honest barbershop owners return stolen Olympic gold medal to US women's volleyball player

A gold medal is priceless.

via Anaheim Police Department

Noe Hernandez and Maria Carrillo, the owners of Noel Barber Shop in Anaheim, California.

Jordyn Poulter was the youngest member of the U.S. women’s volleyball team, which took home the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics last year. She was named the best setter at the Tokyo games and has been a member of the team since 2018.

Unfortunately, according to a report from ABC 7 News, her gold medal was stolen from her car in a parking garage in Anaheim, California, on May 25.

It was taken along with her passport, which she kept in her glove compartment. While storing a gold medal in your car probably isn’t the best idea, she did it to keep it by her side while fulfilling the hectic schedule of an Olympian.

"We live this crazy life of living so many different places. So many of us play overseas, then go home, then come out here and train,” Poulter said, according to ABC 7. "So I keep the medal on me (to show) friends and family I haven't seen in a while, or just people in the community who want to see the medal. Everyone feels connected to it when they meet an Olympian, and it's such a cool thing to share with people."

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Carson Daly and his wife sleep in separate beds. Here's why a 'sleep divorce' isn't so bad.

It's a problem a lot of couples face.

via Unsplash

Co-sleeping isn't for everyone.

The marital bed is a symbol of the intimacy shared between people who’ve decided to be together 'til death they do part. When couples sleep together it’s an expression of their closeness and how they care for one another when they are most vulnerable.

However, for some couples, the marital bed can be a warzone. Throughout the night couples can endure snoring, sleep apnea, the ongoing battle for sheets or circadian rhythms that never seem to sync. If one person likes to fall asleep with the TV on while the other reads a book, it can be impossible to come to an agreement on a good-night routine.

Last week on TODAY, host Carson Daly reminded viewers that he and his wife Siri, a TODAY Food contributor, had a sleep divorce while she was pregnant with their fourth child.

“I was served my sleep-divorce papers a few years ago,” he explained on TODAY. “It’s the best thing that ever happened to us. We both, admittedly, slept better apart.”

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