• McDonald’s restaurants across the Ozarks are collecting cans in exchange for coffee through Nov. 26. Customers who donate one item for Ozarks Food Harvest will receive one free Mc-Cafe beverage. Since 2008, McDonald’s of the Ozarks has collected more than 232,000 pounds of food — 194,000 meals — from community members through Cans for Coffee.
• As America prepares to honor its veterans on Nov. 11, Drury University’s photography students are offering to take free portraits of veterans and families. Dates are available from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Thursday (today) and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. Those interested can contact Rebecca Miller, coordinator, at 417-873-6337 or email her at rmiller01@drury.edu.
• Around the county: The Licking Police Department has new officer — Loki, a canine whose handler is Cpl. Pat Burton. Training was conducted in Michigan over three weeks. The dog is certified to find all major narcotics.
A film shot in the West Plains area had its premier at a festival in Indianapolis. “Tatterdemalion” is the story of an Army veteran who returns home to the Ozarks to look for her brother and finds an abandoned boy in the woods.
• At Licking, a new senior center is about to open. It will be closed next week and an open house is planned from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 11.
• Deer are active, and you don’t have to look any further than the law enforcement reports to see a jump in calls to accidents where motorists struck a deer.
Two Salem teens were injured in a crash Sunday east of Licking when a deer appeared in front of their vehicle.
• A popular Halloween event returned to downtown Houston on Tuesday night. Merchants and other organizations sponsored activities along Grand Avenue and Lone Star Plaza. Merchant Fawn Bell is the organizer.