In light of COVID-19, many events across the state have been cancelled, schools have shut down, and a huge number of Missourians are social distancing and staying home.
While you’re cooped up in your home, you may be desperate to find ways to stay busy. Are your kids out of school? We have you covered with virtual entertainment and education. Craving food from a local restaurant? Most are offering takeout and innovative ways to keep you safe and satisfied. Looking for a way to support local businesses? It’s all below.
*This list will be continually updated.
Giving
You can host your own virtual food drive to help those who are in need. Step-by-step instructions can be found here.
Big Muddy Adventure’s Quarantine Island Benefit
Big Muddy Adventure’s founder, Michael F. Clark is raising money for the Gateway Resilience Fund, which supports independent businesses in St. Louis.
This fund will provide short term monetary relief to employees and owners of independent bars, restaurants, and shops in the St. Louis area.
Gateway Resilience Run & Ride – through June 26
This is another great way to give relief to employees. The Gateway Resilience Run & Ride is a collaboration between The Gateway Resilience Fund and Big River Race Management. It is a virtual run or ride that participants can complete on their own where and when it is convenient for them. Participants will receive a custom limited edition t-shirt, finisher medal, and incentives/offers to patronize local businesses all over the St. Louis region.
You can donate water to those in need by dropping it off on the patio of the coffee shop from 11 AM–7 PM.
Mother’s Brewing Company, Springfied
One of Missouri’s largest breweries has teamed up with Community Foundation of the Ozarks to create a fund to help service industry workers who lost their job during this time. They are donating $1 for every six pack of Step Dude Cans sold and $1 for every order filled from the Tap Room by carry-out or drive-up. You can donate to Mother’s Industry Support Fund here.
The Food Bank for Central & Northeast Missouri
The food bank is working with partners and schools to keep everyone fed during this time. They are accepting donations to their COVID-19 response and donated food along with healthy volunteers.
Hamilton Street Baptist Church, Kirksville
The church is still hosting the Mobile Food Pantry on Saturdays. You can donate to their cause here.
Entertainment and Education
St. Louis’ Home of Education, Art, and Culture
Every Sunday at 9:30 am, HEC Media’s Spotlight program airs on channel 11. It showcases the city’s best contributions to education, art, and culture.
Enjoy virtual story time with all of your favorite librarians! You can watch all the videos here. You can also stream virtual conversations with your favorite authors at HECMedia.org.
Visit Educate.Today for free livestream videos that will help you teach at home.
Every Saturday evening at 6 pm on Zoom, Facebook and O I C Radio, O I C Studios presents The Quarantine Series with discussions, interviews and live performances from regional and independent artists. Check out the lineup here.
Enjoy on-demand performances, public online dance work outs, classes, podcasts, and more!
Classical Music and Fine Arts station 107.3
Listen to The Slatkin Shuffle when host Leonard Slatkin as he plays random selections from the nearly 10,000 tracks on his iPad and shares anecdotes about the eclectic collection of songs in his playlist. Or tune into Musical Ancestries, a quarterly program designed to teach school-aged children about world music. Listen to The Caribbean Broadcast online here and Musical Ancestries: West Africa online here.
St. Louis Aquarium at Union Station
Have fun with the whole family and virtually visit the St. Louis Aquarium and watch the “QuaranStream” live on Facebook Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, 10–11 a.m. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, different topics will be discussed during Facebook Live videos. The St. Louis Aquarium Foundation is also hosting an essay contests for grade K–12. Winners for each age group will receive tickets to the St. Louis Aquarium and St. Louis Wheel, valid when these attractions reopen. Find more information here.
Every Monday, the National Tiger Sanctuary will go live on Facebook where one of the animal care experts will highlight special animals and their species. To watch, follow them on Facebook, join the event, and set a reminder so you can be ready to ask questions and interact with the animal experts.
Explore the Show-Me State without leaving the comfort and safety of your home. Learn about different towns in Missouri and find out what makes them special with our Missouri Life TV episodes on MissouriLife.com and YouTube.com/missourilife. You can even start planning your future trips.
Science @ Home features new online content, including videos on planting lettuce and singing goblets, Astronomy Facts of the Day, Science Center collections, and more!
First Fridays get a virtual spin! Tune in live to watch artists, musicians and more show off their amazing talents from the comfort of your home! 100% of ArtsKC’s proceeds go to the featured artists.
St. Louis Cardinals
Activities from their award-winning Cardinals Academic Program (CAP) will be offered online at cardinals.com/cap. Students may also bring one of their completed worksheets to the Cardinals Hall of Fame and Museum for one free child’s admission to the museum with one paid adult admission once the museum reopens.
Take a virtual tour through the Saint Louis Art Museum’s expansive collection. Listen to Audio Guides online, watch videos of exhibitions and collection features and read through their blog posts.
Take a one-of-a-kind virtual tour that explains the economy, and your role in it, in a fun and interactive way.
Forest Park
The beauty of Forest Park is now brought straight to your home. Head to ListenForestPark.org to enjoy the sounds of the many different areas in Forest Park including Kennedy Forest, Picnic Island, and The Emerson Grand Basin. You can also find virtual tours on their Instagram TV and Facebook accounts.
Speckled Frog Toys & Books, Columbia
Join a virtual show and chat every Wednesday until May 27. Dress up is encouraged!
Dugan’s Paint & Flooring, Sedalia, Laurie, and Osage Beach
Get a head start on your spring projects. Dugan’s Paint & Flooring is offering free delivery on orders of $45 or more. If you’re in Sedalia, call 660-826-0142, Laurie residents call 573-374-7100, and Osage Beach residents call 573-348-9017.
Ragtag, Columbia
While they had to close their curtains, the independent theater has found a way to still satisfy people stuck at home. They are now offering virtual theatrical experiences for three films, Bacurau, Corpus Christi, and Saint Frances. You can also still purchase gift cards and memberships online.
Take a docent-led, architectural tour of the Central Library using their mobile app.
The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis
This St. Louis Theatre made the difficult decision of cancelling the rest of its seasons to ensure everyone’s safety. But they have now found a creative way to entertain people across the entire state. The Cake, a humorous and heartwarming play, will be shown through an online stream for $35. It’s a fun way to spend the day and support the arts!
Arts KC Go, Kansas City
This guide to Arts and Culture is now offering virtual content, including concerts, exhibitions, tours, and workshops that will be live streamed.
The humane society is now offering curbside adoption in an effort to find all of the animals a safe home at this time. Adoption fees are also reduced at this time.
Take a virtual tour of the Log Cabin Museum in O’Fallon, Missouri
The St. Louis Earth Day Festival has been rescheduled to Sunday, October 18th in Tower Grove Park in St. Louis, but there are still plans to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day through a Virtual Festival during the week of April 18-26.
Although Kansas City’s botanical garden is they will now be offering home garden Q&As with horticulture staff, weekly educational activities for kids, and beautiful updates from the Gardens. To see the new content, follow their social media.
Take a Virtual Cherry Blossom Tour and head to their website for a series of videos provided by their staff.
The International Photography Hall of Fame
The International Photography Hall of Fame is offering it’s newest exhibition, Masterworks: Highlights from the IPHF Collection as a virtual tour.
The Trolley Run in Kansas City
Originally scheduled for April 26, this year’s Trolley Run is now a virtual run. Participants will pick their own routes and run times, then share their run with others via social media. The run benefits the Children’s Center for the Visually Impaired. Now you can be anywhere in the state to participate!
Dickerson Park Zoo in Springfield is asking people to write letters to animals which are read to the animals live on the zoo’s Facebook page. Send your letters to jpowell@dickersonparkzoo.
The Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau
Enter a coloring contest today for your chance to win two bundles of four free passes to Wonders of Wildlife National Museum & Aquarium. Download a coloring page and enter here.
Join Show Me Missouri: Conversations about Missouri’s Past, Present, and Future for a virtual lecture on April 2nd. During this time, the Missouri Humanities Council and the State Historical Society of Missouri will continue to offer programs for free online.
Circus Harmony is now offering private online classes. Head to their Facebook page for information on classes.
Tune in to watch the Peregrine Falcon nest box on a live video camera.
Food and Drink
Shortwave Coffee, Columbia
Get your coffee fix with Shortwave Coffee in Columbia. They are delivering not only coffee, but home brewing equipment as well. They’ve also teamed up with Boone Olive Oil Co. and Speckled Frog Toys to locally deliver olive oils, balsamic vinegars, pastas, toys, books, and board games directly to your home. Call 573-214-0880 to order. If you’re not local, order online and they will ship it to you immediately. Other coffee shops like the Coffee Ethic in Springfield are doing to-go and delivery orders with 50 percent of delivery sales benefiting the baristas.
The Quarry, Columbia
This cajun restaurant and bar in Columbia is offering takeout and delivery services, plus free sack lunches for children in need. If your child needs a lunch, direct message The Quarry on Facebook, and they will provide you with one. Beet Box, Como Smoke and Fire, and Broadway Diner are also offering free meals for children out of school in Columbia.
Bruno’s Italian Restaurant and Wine Bar, Springfield
The restaurant is open for takeout, and you can purchase wine and beer by the bottle. There is also an option to purchase a gift card and donate it back to the restaurant so it can be used for those in need.
Chris’ Pancakes and Dining, St. Louis
Chris’ Pancakes in St. Louis is offering delivery and curbside pickup. If you want to stay busy at home, take home a bag of their special pancake mix for $5. Doctors, nurses, and first responders also get 20 percent off with a valid ID badge.
CurbsideSTL, St. Louis
This website was created to help support St. Louis’ local and independent restaurants and retail businesses. Search by neighborhood to see what eateries and stores are open near you.
Adam Puchta Winery, Hermann
The Hermann winery closed its sales room, but is still offering curbside delivery for wine and food. You can also order all wines online to have them shipped straight to your door.
Logboat Brewing Company, Columbia
While some breweries are temporarily closing, many Missouri staples have found creative ways to reach their customers. Logboat Brewing Company is one of them. They have created a Brew Thru where you can drive through the parking lot, choose which beer you would like, and staff will place it in your car. Other breweries in Missouri like Perennial Artisan Ales and 4 Hands Brewing Co. in St. Louis, Broadway Brewery in Columbia, Border Brewing Company and Alma Mader Brewing in Kansas City, and Tie & Timber Beer Co. in Sprigfield are also offering to-go beers. (Broadway Brewery and Border Brewing are even delivering!)
This small eatery is offering curbside pickup directly to your car. It’s also located near the Katy Trail where you can take a social distant walk or bike ride.
Pi Pizzeria, St. Louis
Pick up your pizza kits here. Tag @pi_pizzerias & #pipizzakit on social media with photos of your pizza making for a chance to win a $100 Pi gift card!
Mission Taco Joint, St. Louis
Get your taco fix with Mission Taco Joint Taco Kits for $49.95 (feeds 4). Place order online, call-in for pick-up, or deliver through Doordash and Postmates.
Shopping
This online clothing store offers free shipping on all orders and they have been using their store and platform to help others in need. On 3.14 day, they donated 100 percent of their profits— $15,791.32—to STL Area Foodbank and Operation Food Search. They’ve recently said another big announcement is coming this week. Follow their instagram for more updates.
Root Cellar, Columbia
While the grocery store remains open, they have implemented more safety procedures. If you do not want to enter the store, call 573-443-5055 and staff will collect your items and payment and bring the groceries to your car. You can also sign up for the subscription boxes that are full of local food and get delivered to your front door.
There are also plenty of ways to support these small businesses in your community without spending money. Like and follow their social media pages and share their posts to give them more exposure. Leave the businesses a good review and spread the word.
This won’t be an easy time for local and small businesses in the state, but as we continue to see Missourians rally around them and provide support and hope, these businesses will see the other side.
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