clayton
A nod to the vintage Clayton neighborhood of Claverach Park: it’s official, the lovely subdivision (if it’s even fair to call it a subdivision), has been named to the National Register of Historic Places as of the National Park Services posting April 22. This is reason to celebrate, and in fact, the leafy neighborhood was toasted at City Hall last night (May 10). Well, it was recognized, at least; we doubt there was an open bar. The timing is perfect since Claverach Park is approaching its century mark. The first indentures were recorded June 13, 1921, and soon thereafter the land was platted and graded for lots, roads and utilities, and homes built. Doesn’t look bad at all for being almost 95 years old! In fact, it’s kept its figure and even aged gracefully into it. You can’t say that about too many doyennes.
eureka
They’re howling with joy at the Endangered Wolf Center in the hills of Eureka: A federal agency, that for decades dragged its feet when it was supposed to have been completing a plan to save the endangered Mexican gray wolf, pictured above, must now present a scientifically viable plan by November of next year. The quintessential wolf of the Southwest, the lobo, was all but extinct in the wild when those that remained—as few as five!—were rounded up and taken into a captive breeding program in 1980. Two years later, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service started drafting a document that was supposed to have formalized a survival plan. But it finally took a recent federal court action to force the agency’s hand. Earthjustice, the Endangered Wolf Center and several other wildlife conservation organizations brought a lawsuit in 2014 to help save this nearly extinct animal, which some have called ‘the sentry of the Southwest.’ But ecosystem be damned, some ranchers say, as they routinely shoot, trap and poison these wolves. A program of information and good science must be in place for the wolf to survive, according to the Endangered Wolf Center, since killing them has continued after several dozen captive-bred Mexican wolves were released. Long demonized in popular culture, the wolf is essential to the circle of life; this variety once was plentiful in the regions of the Grand Canyon and southern Rockies. At the end of last year, the count was only 97. “We need more wolves and less politics,” a conservation official noted. Amen to that.
During 15 years in practice in the ER, Dr. Agnes Scoville realized how difficult it is to deliver the right dose of oral medication to a baby. They do that crying thing; sometimes, it’s shrieking, especially when they feel awful. And they tend to squirm around so much. (We know, right?) Then she had a baby of her own and invented a product that is the first offering from her startup, Scoville & Co. Pacidose is a delivery system that marries a hospital-grade oral syringe to a standard pacifier. Voila! For her brainchild, Scoville won third place at the InnovateHer: Innovating for Women Business Challenge in Washington, a Small Business Administration (SBA) competition in March in which the SBA partnered with Microsoft. The top three finalists took home a total of $70,000 … of which the Kirkwood mom and physician’s take was 10 grand. In only its second year, the competition got a nod last month from Forbes … and now, even the tony Town&Style! Pacidose looks to be a surefire way to mellow out a baby, whether you’re a mom, doc or other caregiver. What’s more, says Scoville, it addresses a longstanding problem that research has confirmed: 50 percent of babies get the wrong dose of medicine orally. Pacidose delivers the precise amount from a soft ‘binkie’ nipple to the back of the tongue, not to be spit up all over a bib or mom’s new silk blouse. By now, you may have seen the product around town. It is available at dozens of pharmacies in the region, mostly in Schnucks and Dierbergs supermarkets. Not that they will put the good doctor out of business in the ER, but future Scoville & Co. products may help parents avoid midnight trips to the ER and daytime urgent care visits with their babies. For the time being: suck it up, kiddos!
ladue
Stand up and cheer, students, teachers, staff, parents and anyone else with reason to holler for Ladue Horton Watkins High School! Each year, U.S. News & World Report releases its list of best high schools in America. This year, LHWHS was ranked third in Missouri and 346th nationally. In Missouri, 528 high schools were ranked, with LHWHS being the highest among public schools and coming in third for all schools, right behind Lincoln College Prep in Kansas City (1) and the city’s Metro Academic and Classical High School (2). Trailing LHWHS in the next two top spots were Clayton High School (4) and Marquette Senior High in Rockwood School District (5). The study’s parameters are based on student-to-teacher ratios and how prepared students are for college upon graduation. Test scores considered include Advanced Placement (AP) exams, along with end-of-course exams. Rankings may shift a bit, once subsequent information is considered. (‘Dewey Defeats Truman’? Not on our watch.) Ladue School District has more than 4,100 students and serves all or part of 10 communities, including Creve Coeur, Crystal Lake Park, Frontenac, Huntleigh Village, Ladue, Olivette, Richmond Heights, Town & Country, unincorporated St. Louis County and Westwood.
Grand Center is about to become even more grand. A new public ‘parklet,’ Academy Arts Plaza, will soon grace the Grand Center District. Situated diagonally across from Powell Hall and adjacent to The Grand Center Arts Academy, the 14,000 square feet of greenish space at the corner of Grand Boulevard and Grandel Square will be transformed into a dynamic and innovative public park, officials say. Construction is slated to begin in mid-summer, with completion before year’s end. Forum Studio, in collaboration with Land Collective and Grand Center constituents, led the design. Features include a series of seating terraces as well as an amphitheater and harvest tables to accommodate larger groups of patrons and provide outdoor dining space for nearby restaurants. Designed for use throughout the day and evening by students of the Arts Academy, employees and residents of Grand Center, and patrons of the district’s many arts venues, the park should encourage planned and impromptu performances and public gatherings and also allow quiet reflection in a crowded urban environment. Gateway Foundation will loan the new spot its whimsical, 17-foot tall Nijinski Hare bronze by Barry Flanagan … a playful interpretation of Russian ballet dancer Vaslav Nijinsky that some have dubbed Kung Fu bunny or ninja rabbit … which Blues fans may recognize from its latest installation in Triangle Park across from Scottrade Center downtown. Grand Center Inc. donated the land. Construction will be funded with monies earmarked for the Metro Parks Sales Tax Fund, with significant support from the Dana Brown Charitable Trust and an anonymous donor. We love us our anonymous donors, whoever the heck they are.