The annual Senior Expo in Festus will offer many fun activities and helpful information including games, live music, vendors and guest speakers.
Catered toward people 50 and older, the expo will be held from 8 a.m. to noon Wednesday, June 24, at the Jefferson County YMCA, 1303 YMCA Drive. Admission is free.
The event will offer free coffee and doughnuts while supplies last, courtesy of Leader Publications.
More than 35 vendors will be on hand to provide information to seniors on products, services and other items of interest. Multiple vendors will hold drawings for prizes that will be announced later during the expo.
Two bingo sessions will take place, giving attendees a chance to win prizes like “I Love the Leader T-shirts or gift cards to local businesses and restaurants. Attendees who play the first bingo session are asked to hold back from playing the second session due to limited seating.
Returning expo favorites J.B. Louis and the Legends band will return to play a mix of country and rock classics.
Leader Publications will hold four more expos this year.
Leader advertising manager Katelyn Mary Skaggs said she hopes attendees have the most fun ever at the expos and to see some people returning.
“If you haven’t been to an expo, they really are just days of community camaraderie, getting together and making sure you know what’s going on in the community,” she said.
“Also all the vendors are there to help you. It’s a great opportunity to just find the resources; if you need to talk to someone in person… they’re there in person and ready to talk with you.”
Speakers
The expo will feature three speakers:
■ Maureen Menendez, YMCA fitness instructor. She will lead a chair yoga mini class for seniors to participate in. This workout will show seniors the basics of a gentle yoga class the YMCA offers. Standing to participate is optional, and chairs will be provided.
■ Joseph Thurman, Jefferson College history teacher and host of the Jefferson County Minute podcast. He will speak to seniors about the history of Selma Castle, a location in Jefferson County. The monument dates to before Jefferson County was established.
■ Tim Krysl, vice president of the Museum of Unity and Hope. He will talk about the history of the museum project and how it became a reality along with a project update. He also will discuss the importance of building the museum.
Grand prize
Attendees may register at the Leader booth for a chance to win the grand prize: an Ashley Nerviano Recliner Zero Wall Recliner from Genuine Appliance and Furniture in Festus. The chocolate-brown recliner has a value of $599 and features a one-pull reclining motion, reinforced frame and metal seat box and polyester upholstery. People are asked to enter the drawing just once, and the winner needs to be present to win.
Schedule
8 a.m. – Doors open; free coffee and doughnuts will be served while supplies last. Vendors will provide information about a wide selection of goods and services, and some will offer giveaways and freebies. Attendees are encouraged to bring pre-printed address labels to make entering drawings, filling out forms and requesting information a lot easier.
8:30 a.m. –YMCA fitness instructor Maureen Menendez will lead a chair yoga class, demonstrating exercises that anyone can do from their seat. The class will be held in the gymnasium.
9 a.m. – The first session of free bingo will be held in the gymnasium. YMCA properties director Ted Luhrs will call the session. Participants will have the chance to win various prizes.
9:30 a.m. – Joseph Thurman, Jefferson College history teacher and host of the Jefferson County History Minute podcast, will share history based upon the Selma Castle.
10 a.m. – The second session of free bingo will also be in the gymnasium, giving participants another chance to win various prizes. Jefferson County YMCA executive director Rebecca Bishop will call the session. Participants will have the chance to win various prizes.
10:30 a.m. –Tim Krysl, Museum of Unity and Hope vice president, will speak about the history behind the museum project and its importance to the area.
11 a.m. – The grand prize winner and other prize winners will be announced.
11:15 a.m. – J.B. Louis and the Legends band will perform in the gym.
Noon – Expo closes
Upcoming senior expos
The following four senior expos are planned from 8 a.m. to noon on a Wednesday over the next several months.
■ West Side Senior Expo, July 22, at Northwest High School in Cedar Hill.
■ Arnold Senior Expo, Aug. 19, at the Arnold Eagles Hall.
■ Farmington Area Senior Expo, Sept. 16, at the Mineral Area College Tech Center.
■ Eureka Senior Expo, Oct. 28, at the Timbers of Eureka.
Directions
From I-55, driving north:
- Take exit 175 toward Festus.
- Turn right onto Veterans Boulevard.
- Turn right onto West Gannon Drive.
- Turn right onto YMCA Drive near the Quality Inn.
- Turn right into the parking lot.
From I-55, driving south:
- Take exit 175 toward Festus.
- Turn left onto Veterans Boulevard.
- Turn right onto West Gannon Drive.
- Turn right onto YMCA Drive near the Quality Inn.
- Turn right into the parking lot.
From Hwy. 21, driving north:
- Take Hwy. A exit and turn right.
- Continue to Festus and turn right onto West Gannon Drive.
- Turn right onto YMCA Drive near the Quality Inn.
- Turn right into the parking lot.
From Hwy. 21, driving south:
- Take Hwy. A exit and turn left.
- Continue to Festus and turn right onto West Gannon Drive.
- Turn right onto YMCA Drive near the Quality Inn.
- Turn right into the parking lot.
From Hwy. 61-67, driving north:
- Turn left onto Veterans Boulevard.
- Turn left at the second light onto West Gannon Drive.
- Turn right onto YMCA Drive near the Quality Inn.
- Turn right into the parking lot.
From Hwy. 61-67, driving south:
- Turn right onto Veterans Boulevard.
- Turn left at the second light onto West Gannon Drive.
- Turn right onto YMCA Drive near the Quality Inn.
- Turn right into the parking lot.
Joseph Thurman, a history instructor at Jefferson College, writes and hosts the “Jefferson County History Minute” video podcast.
Speaker to discuss parts of Jefferson County history
Jefferson County holds some rich and lengthy history.
Joseph Thurman, Jefferson College history teacher and host of the Jefferson County History Minute Podcast, will share some of that history as the featured speaker at the Leader’s Festus Senior Expo.
The expo will be held June 24 at the Jefferson County YMCA, 1303 YMCA Drive.
“I teach courses in U.S., European, world, African American history, so a little bit of everything,” said Thurman, who has been teaching at Jefferson College since 2004 and has taught many different courses.
Thurman has been hosting the Jefferson County History Minute Podcast since March 2025 and was inspired to create the podcast on Jefferson County history from other history video podcasts.
“If you go on my YouTube (web page), you’ll see there are other sort of similar formatted types of video podcasts, like History in a Minute; the Missouri Historical Society does a really cool one on St. Louis history,” he said. “(Jefferson College) has a television recording studio there on campus, it just seemed a perfect fit, and I thought Jefferson County has such an incredible history.”
There are currently 17 episodes of the Jefferson County History Minute. Thurman said he would like to release episodes more frequently, but they are released when time allows.
“I hope to do them a little bit more frequently, but sometimes other projects kind of take away from that, so we continue to produce them,” he said. “I have a lot of great help in the television studio with people who help produce and edit them to really make them look good.”
In some of the most recent episodes of the Jefferson County History Minute, Thurman talks about Freemasons, Dr. B. Ray Henry and Dr. Charles McClain.
Thurman said at the senior expo, he will discuss “Selma Castle,” a mansion in Selma that has a lengthy history.
“One of the things we have going at the college right now is we recently received a grant from the Missouri Humanities Council to create a traveling history exhibit, and the subject of the exhibit is going to be slavery, the Civil War, and Reconstruction in Jefferson County, and through the course of that research, we’ve been doing a lot of work on this place just south of Festus that a lot of people know as Selma Castle,” he said. “Some people call it Kenneth Castle, but that mansion, which is now privately owned, and the surrounding area that is known as Selma, has a very long history in the county, going all the way back to before even Jefferson County even actually existed.”
Thurman said he has never spoken at a senior expo but has participated in many other presentation events.
To watch the Jefferson County History Minute, visit the college’s YouTube page at youtube.com/@JeffersonCollegeMO.
YMCA instructor to lead chair yoga class at senior expo
New to fitness?
Try out YMCA chair yoga, Rebecca Bishop, Jefferson County YMCA executive director, encourages seniors.
Fitness instructor Maureen Menendez will instruct a chair yoga class during the Leader’s Festus Senior Expo, which is scheduled for Wednesday, June 24, at the Jefferson County YMCA, 1303 YMCA Drive.
Shelley Otec, health and wellness director, said these classes are designed for active older adults.
“The chair yoga class is designed for our active older adults and anyone who maybe might have some physical limitations, but would still benefit from exercise,” Otec said. “It is chair-based, so they don’t have to worry about getting up and down off the ground.”
The class will be beginner friendly and focus on showing seniors how to stretch gently and to focus on balance.
Bishop said she hopes the senior expo and mini class will encourage seniors to inquire about a potential membership.
“For those unfamiliar with the (YMCA), we hope it’s just a nice taste of what we can do for them if they were to become members,” she said. “I know a lot of our members also attend (the expo), and they just want to come in and get that workout in that maybe they would usually do anyway.”
Bishop said some seniors may qualify for an insurance-based membership based upon their provider.
“Our instructors are very good at meeting people, making them feel welcome, and accommodating all abilities,” she said. “Anybody interested should give it a try, and then, while they’re here, if they have any questions for us about membership in general, make sure they stop by the front desk, we’ll have folks here to answer those questions.”
5-year-old corgi wins Leader photo contest
Lorrie Potter, 65, of Hillsboro won $100 for placing first in the annual “Picture Your Pet” photo contest sponsored by Leader Publications and Grand Times.
Potter’s winning photo is of her 5-year-old Welsh corgi, Rosey, playing with her favorite rope swing.
Lorrie Potter, 65, of Hillsboro took a picture of Rosey, her 5-year-old Welsh corgi. “You can often find Rosey absolutely delighted with her rope swing, her natural instincts to chase and playfully ‘nip’ on full display as she joyfully engages with her favorite toy,” Lorrie said.
The photo was taken because she thought it captured something Rosey really enjoyed.
“I wanted something in action, and she, she really enjoys a rope swing, and I just thought it was unique and something different,” Potter said. “To see her playing with it and grabbing it, while her little foot was up, I just thought it was cute.”
She plans to use the prize money to potentially buy a new lens for her camera to take more photos.
“It’s mostly just amateur for fun,” Potter said.
Elaine Rauhut, 69 of High Ridge won second place in the contest winning $75. Rauhut’s photo is of her 4-year-old macaw Gidget showing off her wings.
“We always call Gidget our little valley girl,” she said. “She definitely likes to show off, and I just happened to catch that photo… when she had her wings fluttering, her face was clear, saw that shot, and (thought) that is a cool picture.”
Elaine Rauhut, 69, of High Ridge sent a picture from April of her blue and gold macaw, Gidget, 4. “Gidget is shy but loves to show off her wings!” Elaine said.
Jennifer Brye, 50, of Festus placed third, winning $50 for her photo of her dog Dolly who died in March 2025.
“She had lots of energy, so we used to go on a morning three-mile walk every day,” she said. “That particular day she just stopped and laid down, it was so foggy out and cold she was just reflecting, looking out at the pond, and it was just a really cool picture. She wouldn’t even look at me, (it was) her moment.”
Jennifer Brye, 50, of Festus took this picture “on a cold, foggy January morning in Festus,” of her dog, Dolly, that died in March 2025. While on a walk, they paused to look at a pond. “This photo captures exactly how beautiful and deeply loved she was and how we’ll always remember her,” Jennifer said.
The photo contest was held in conjunction with the Leader’s Festus Senior Expo to be held from 8 a.m. to noon Wednesday, June 24, at the Jefferson County YMCA, 1303 YMCA Dr, Festus.
See more entries to the contest here:
