South St. Louis County (Sept. 9, 2019) – Dr. Aamina B. Akhtar, an infectious disease specialist and veteran of the Mercy Hospital South medical staff, has been named chief medical officer of Mercy Hospital South. She will begin her new role Sept. 16

Dr. Akhtar will be a key liaison to the medical staff, focusing on quality, service and stewardship. She also will have responsibility for quality, safety, risk, medical staff services and case management.

“We’re pleased and honored to have Dr. Akhtar accept this position,” said Sean Hogan, president of Mercy Hospital South. “She has been active for more than 14 years at Mercy South and St. Anthony’s Medical Center through her participation in various committees, and she is well respected and well liked by our clinical staff. I’ve seen her leadership in action on the medical executive committee.”

In addition to the medical executive committee, Dr. Akhtar has served on numerous medical committees including the quality and safety committee.

Dr. Akhtar graduated from Saint Louis University Medical School in 1998 and went on to complete a residency in internal medicine at Saint Louis University Hospital, a residency in pediatrics at Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital and a fellowship in infectious disease at Saint Louis University Hospital. After completing her fellowship, she joined St. Anthony’s Medical Center in 2005.

“I chose to stay at St. Anthony’s and now Mercy South because our community of doctors, nurses and our many co-workers is so amazing,” Dr. Akhtar said. “The willingness to work together and the dedication to care has been gratifying; it’s truly been a positive atmosphere. To that foundation, Mercy brought an affiliation that really helped us gain some assets that we didn’t have before. Now, we’re starting to excel in the areas we’ve always wanted to, and the community is starting to see it, too.

“I think this is a special time to be in a leadership role because of all the dynamic progress we’re making,” she added. “It’s exciting to be able to sustain what we’re doing and to move forward with changes and positive applications of health care that can benefit the community we serve. I value this opportunity to work on the leadership team and on physician relationships, together from both sides, to help further the health care we provide.”

Born in Pakistan, Dr. Akhtar came to the United States with her family when she was one year old. She grew up in Montana and her family moved to Carlinville, Illinois, in the 1980s. She now lives in Town and Country with her husband and their three children.

​Dr. Akhtar succeeds Dr. Charles Rehm following his retirement.

Fenton has opted in again for this year's tax-free event! Stay local and shop in Fenton - why fight the crowds going anywhere else??? State of Missouri, St. Louis County & City of Fenton sales taxes will be waived on eligible "back to school" items!

Purchases of clothing, school supplies, computers, and certain other items defined by the statute are exempt from sales tax for this time period only. Only purchases for personal use qualify. Internet purchases qualify for the sales tax holiday if the transaction is completed during the holiday. Delivery can occur after the holiday if the purchaser pays in full during the sales tax holiday.

The statute exempts and specifically defines clothing, personal computers, and school supplies as follows:

1. Clothing - any article of wearing apparel intended to be worn on or about the human body including, but not limited to, disposable diapers for infants or adults and footwear. The term shall include, but not be limited to, cloth and other material used to make school uniforms or other school clothing. Items normally sold in pairs shall not be separated to qualify for the exemption. The term shall not include watches, watchbands, jewelry, handbags, handkerchiefs, umbrellas, scarves, ties, headbands, or belt buckles. Each article of clothing must have a taxable value of $100 or less.
2. Personal Computers - a laptop, desktop, or tower computer system which consists of a central processing unit, random access memory, a storage drive, a display monitor, a keyboard, and devices designed for use in conjunction with a personal computer, such as a disk drive, memory module, compact disk drive, daughterboard, digitalizer, microphone, modem, motherboard, mouse, multimedia speaker, printer, scanner, single-user hardware, single-user operating system, soundcard, or video card. Personal computers and computer peripheral devices cannot exceed $1,500.
3. School Supplies - any item normally used by students in a standard classroom for educational purposes, including but not limited to, textbooks, notebooks, paper, writing instruments, crayons, art supplies, rulers, book bags, back packs, handheld calculators, graphing calculators, chalk, maps, and globes. The term shall not include watches, radios, CD players, headphones, sporting equipment, portable or desktop telephones, copiers or other office equipment, furniture, or fixtures. The value of each school supply purchase is not to exceed $50.  In addition, school supplies shall also include graphing calculators valued at $150 or less and computer software having a taxable value of $350 or less.

The week-long Christian Day Camp at Fenton United Methodist Church in conjunction with Heartland Camps, a Presbyterian ministry from Kansas City was a fantastic experience for the 24 children who attended. The weather was close to perfect for the camp held June 10-14, 2019. Most of the activities were outside on the multi-acre property. The camp was guided by 5 Heartland staff and assisted by 24 adult volunteers from the church.

Campers (Kindergarten-6th Grade) participated in a variety of high energy, Christ centered ministry experiences. There were three teams with 7-10 youth, a staff leader, adult counselor, and a Jr. counselor (a high school youth). Each day began with a morning watch devotional time and then moved to a number of activities such as archery, crafts, a 25 ft. climbing wall, 9 square, and Gaga Ball. After a lunch provided by the church, they moved onto story time, water games, songs, worship, and a variety of indoor games and activities. There was a Youth Night for 7th-12th graders on Tuesday evening, a Camp-In Thursday night, and a Family Night.

This camp replaced the usual Vacation Bible School held at Fenton United Methodist Church for this year.  The eight hour, five day experience challenges children to grow socially, emotionally, and spiritually. Seeing campers who were afraid to try the climbing wall to climbing to the top 3 days later was heart-warming.  Pastor Porch said the fact that there were no absences of children for the week spoke to how much the kids enjoyed it. Fenton UMC is looking into building on this success for 2020.

FENTON, Mo.—Members of the Fenton Area Chamber business community joined Dr. William Carpenter, his staff, family and friends for a ribbon cutting to celebrate the grand opening of Revival Chiropractic in Fenton – 464 Old Smizer Mill Road.
 
According to the Revival Chiropractic website: “Our vision is to create some of the healthiest surrounding communities through neurologically based, scientific and specific chiropractic care. We focus on restoring life, happiness and health by enabling you to function at your physiological peak. Our mission is to educate and build healthy families and individuals for generations to come.”
 
Revival Chiropractic utilizes state-of-the-art technology and gentle techniques to help find the root cause of health issues/ailments, including but not limited to: ADD, ADHD, allergies, asthma, lack of energy, sleep issues, digestive conditions, and even infants with colic, trouble latching and acid reflux.
 
For more information or to schedule an appointment, call Revival Chiropractic at 636-492-1528 or visit www.chirorevival.com.

FENTON, Mo.—Members of the Fenton Area Chamber business community joined State Farm Insurance Agent Michael Davidson, his staff, family and friends for a ribbon cutting to celebrate the grand opening of his agency in Fenton – 127 Schneider Drive.
 
Michael is licensed in Missouri and Illinois with over 6 years of experience with State Farm; he also has a team of four licensed staff members. Products and services include: auto, home, property, business, life and health insurance. The agency’s mission is to help people manage the risks of everyday life, recover from the unexpected and realize their dreams.
 
"Our agency goal is to help all of our clients with their insurance goals and financial dreams... I promise to hold true to that and always act with integrity and help anyone that we can,” Michael said as he spoke to ribbon cutting guests.
 
To speak with Michael Davidson or a member of his staff or to set up an appointment, please contact the agency office at 636-343-8595.

FENTON, Mo. – The Fenton Area Chamber of Commerce recognized 11 recent graduates from the Fenton region with scholarships to continue their education at a membership luncheon this month. Since 1987, the Fenton Chamber has had the privilege of awarding 355 high school graduates with scholarship funds totaling over $300,000. The scholarship program is funded primarily through proceeds from major fundraiser events and contributions from members of the Fenton Chamber business community.
 
This year’s recipients include: from Rockwood Summit High School – Ryan Speckman and Nathan Voss; from Lindbergh High School – Achintya Benegal and Lindsey Wolf; from Northwest High School – Hunter Dickemper and Kamryn Graff; from Cor Jesu Academy – Kathryn Echele and Gabriella Krisanic; from Lutheran High School South – Madison Butterfield and Olivia Gravette; from Nerinx Hall – Leah Rampsott.
 
Funds awarded also included several special and sponsored scholarships:
Hunter Dickemper is the recipient of the Dobbs Tire & Auto Centers sponsored scholarship, awarded to a graduate who plans to attend Jefferson College and pursue a career in the automobile mechanics industry.
 
Kamryn Graff received the Ginny Goede Scholarship, established in 2002 as a tribute to Ginny’s untiring dedication to the Chamber, to helping others and to giving back to the community.
 
Olivia Gravette is the recipient of the inaugural Jeannie Braun Leadership Award, named in honor of the former FACC Executive Director for her 16 years of service to the organization.
 
Ryan Speckman received the Edward Jones – Matt Thomason sponsored scholarship, awarded to a graduate in pursuit of a career in the financial services industry.
 
Nathan Voss is the recipient of the Mia Hickman Memorial scholarship, awarded to a deserving student by Todd and Susan Hickman in honor of their late daughter Mia Hickman.
 
Lindsey Wolf received the Mercy Hospital South sponsored scholarship, awarded to a graduate in pursuit of a career in the healthcare industry.
 
This luncheon was sponsored by Edward Jones – Sean C. King, who presented the awards with Ginny Goede (The Jewelry Connection) and Missouri House Representative Shamed Dogan (District 98). Scholarship recipients, and invited guests, were in attendance to receive their awards and to be recognized for their many outstanding achievements.