Marsha I Stiles - Community Outreach

10/04/2026

09/29/2026

Yes, this is real. Consumer Reports tested 48 packaged baby foods from 11 brands for heavy metals and plastic chemicals. Ge**er Rice Cereal averaged 63 parts per billion of inorganic arsenic, over the level Consumer Reports' scientists consider safe for a baby to eat every day. It was one of only two products flagged for arsenic, and by far the highest.

Consumer Reports' advice: limit Ge**er Rice Cereal to half a serving a day (a serving is a quarter cup).

Inorganic arsenic is the more harmful form of arsenic. The World Health Organization's cancer agency lists it as a Group 1 carcinogen, meaning proven to cause cancer in humans. To***co smoking and asbestos are in the same group. Rice soaks up arsenic from soil and water more than almost any other crop, which is why the pediatricians Consumer Reports spoke to say to skip or limit rice based cereals and choose oat, quinoa or wheat instead.

The FDA's limit for arsenic in infant rice cereal is 100 parts per billion, so Ge**er is under it. But that limit is not mandatory, and Consumer Reports has said for years that it is too high.

Ge**er told Consumer Reports: "All Ge**er products are safe as well as nutritious, including our rice cereal and rice-based snacks. These products meet all applicable FDA limits for heavy metals, as well as our own strict standards."

The good news from the same test: 96% of the baby foods were below Consumer Reports' level of concern for heavy metals, the best results they have ever seen.

Source: Consumer Reports, "We Tested 48 Baby Foods for Heavy Metals and Microplastics," published September 17, 2026. Full results at consumerreports.org.

09/27/2026

✅ YES on Amendment 3

09/21/2026

Election day is quickly approaching! Check out these important dates and make sure you don't miss out on the chance to make your voice heard.

Check your registration at: https://voteroutreach.sos.mo.gov/portal/

This election is far too important to miss, and it's never too early to make your plan to vote!

09/17/2026

A death notice is one of the few public documents that prints a person's full legal name, date of birth, place of birth, mother's maiden name and home town in one place.

That is most of what a bank asks for before it opens an account in that name.

As many as 2.5 million deceased Americans have their identity used each year. Roughly 800,000 of them are targeted deliberately, for one reason: a dead person never checks a credit report. The fraud can run for months before a family notices, and by then the accounts look seasoned and legitimate.

Here is the part nobody talks about. The funeral date and time is the most dangerous line in the whole notice. It tells anyone reading exactly when the house will be empty, and for how long. Police departments have warned about obituary-driven burglaries for years, and the notice does the surveillance work for free.

The other side of this is real. An obituary exists so people who loved someone can find the right notice and say goodbye. Strip out too much and an old colleague from three states away never knows it is the right person. The balance most funeral directors suggest: name the town, not the street. Month and year, not the full birth date. First names of survivors. Share the service details by phone, email or a private page instead of in print.

Then work the first week like a checklist. Report the death to Social Security and confirm it landed on record. Send a certified death certificate to every bank, lender and card issuer. Ask Equifax, Experian and TransUnion to add a deceased notice, which works like a permanent freeze. Pull the credit report once now and once again in three months.

Grief is the worst possible moment to be handling paperwork. It is also the exact moment this gets decided.

Source: AARP Fraud Watch Network guidance on obituary and bereavement scams; deceased-identity figures via the Identity Theft Resource Center.

Educational information only, not financial, tax, legal, or investment advice.