Erin Wides
Reporter/MMJ
East Texas
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Erin Wides is a Reporter/MMJ.
Erin grew up in Saint Louis, Missouri (Go Blues, Go Cardinals!). In May 2019 she graduated from the University of Central Missouri with her bachelor’s degree in digital media production, with an emphasis in digital journalism.
While in college, Erin was the features editor for the award-winning school newspaper. She enjoyed telling stories involving the shakers, doers, and change-makers in the community.
She has worked as a Production Assistant at FOX4 in Kansas City and most recently worked as the Communications Associate for Eden Theological Seminary in St. Louis.
In her free time she enjoys playing soccer, watching TedTalks, and playing guitar.
Erin is excited for her next adventure in Texas and to better learn about and share the stories of East Texas.
If you have any story ideas or just want to talk, feel free to email her at ewides@ktre.com.
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The number of clients being seen at the Alzheimer’s Alliance of Smith County has increased more than 50 percent in the last year.
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“All I remember from that point was my wife telling me that I was gasping for air,” Cason said.
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Sometimes when setting resolutions and trying to incorporate change into your life it can be overwhelming to know where to start. Experts in the wellness field share ways to get started prioritizing yourself.
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Interventional cardiologist with UT Health East Texas Gaurav Patel, MD, RPVI, FACC said, “Cardiac arrest is when the heart stops beating, or the heart goes out of rhythm."
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Kwanzaa celebrations began on Monday and will go through January 1.
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Scratched, old or totally missing numbers on mailboxes create a delay when first responders are getting to an emergency.
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Inflation across the United States has slowed in the last month. In November, consumer prices rose 7.1 percent from a year ago. That’s down from 7.7 percent in October, and a peak of 9.1 percent in June.
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“What we don’t want to have happen is somebody who’s been through this traumatic event and they are mistreated or revictimized by the process. While we can’t prevent that in every single case, this is going to help make sure that we aren’t doing that as much as possible,” Faulkner said.
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To help make the holidays a little more joyous and filled with company, CampV hosted their Thanksgiving lunch for veterans and began transforming their campus with Christmas decor.
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This program is a partnership between the Smith County Bar Foundation, Lone Star Legal Aid, and Smith County Bar Association.
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They are some of the most crucial bodies on the field for East Texas HS football games: the officials.
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In 2020 fashion designer Romereo Brown Jr. started selling clothing and apparel through his brand, ‘Weird and Different.’
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Leslie Fossey-Rollings survived an automobile accident in 2016 and has had a very lengthy recovery.
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The prosecution called a school attorney representing Neches ISD to the witness stand, then the defense called an investigator with Anderson County Sheriff’s Office and the Neches ISD high school principal.
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Kimberlyn Ann Snider faces charges of official oppression and tampering with evidence related to a sexual assault of a child investigation.
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Kimberlyn Ann Snider faces charges of official oppression and tampering with evidence related to a sexual assault of a child investigation.
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Police say that they discovered a victim had been assaulted inside the residence. The victim was taken to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries.
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There were activities for the students to take part in as they gained an appreciation of their learning difference.
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The goal is to include every student in homecoming activities.
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Since 2007, October has been National Pitbull Awareness Month, the goal being to raise awareness and bust myths.
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“We want this to be a place where people can come, where people are loved and where people know that they are welcome for who God created them to be,” Pastor Kim Carney said of her UMC-affiliated church.
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In East Texas there are about 90,000 people in the deaf and hard-of-hearing community. There are only about 1,500 interpreters in the state to assist these individuals. “We are in a crisis. We do have a severe shortage of interpreters."
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A suspect believed to be involved in the death of a man over the weekend is in custody, according to Texas authorities.
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The group got to see what is happening there, on the ground, and spoke with those who live nearby in El Paso and Hudspeth County.
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Green Acres Baptist Church in Tyler and Harmony Hill Baptist Church in Lufkin were able to perform their ‘Circle of Praise’ concert for both cities.
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When the Food and Drug Administration announced last week that hearing aids would soon be available for purchase over the counter, one East Texas doctor expressed some concerns.
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“Nobody can afford to pay these increased rates, not to mention that they went up more than five percent without permission from the state,” Boyles said. But the city says money for updates has to come from somewhere or problems will get worse.
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Mayor Tammy Huff said the city hasn’t increased water rates since 2014, therefore have no funds to put toward a new well. The increase residents are seeing now will be used to pay the bond that will finance the new well.
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Every year about 200 thousand veterans leave the armed forces and transition into civilian life. Part of that includes finding a job.
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The Gun Barrel City Fire Department responded to a grass fire just before 5 o’clock, Tuesday, in the 11,000 block of County Road 4006.
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A week ago they put out a call to the community, the veteran wanted one hundred birthday cards for his big day, and Wednesday afternoon he received them. All of them.
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With temperatures in the low 100s this afternoon many chose to stay inside. However, if you have to be out there are a few things you should know.
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A former Van Zandt County chief deputy pleaded guilty in connection with an excessive force allegation Wednesday and is agreeing to a 44-month prison sentence.
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Camp Lighthouse empowers and brings experiences to those who are visually impaired in East Texas and surrounding areas.
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In an effort to cool down the inflationary economy, the Federal Reserve raised its key interest rate by three-quarters of a percent today.
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One firefighter suffered major injuries, while two other firefighters and two bystanders also suffered injuries in a Jacksonville hotel fire.
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In an effort to help lower suicide rates in East Texas, Tiny Evie Rocks and the Andrews Center are partnering to provide suicide prevention training in Smith County.
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Jacksonville police and fire personnel have responded to a large structure fire near the intersection of Austin and El Paso Streets.
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The program began in 2005 to fill the meal gap left when kids are home for summer and lose access to free and reduced meals.
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While the tragedy didn’t happen in East Texas, it can still have an emotional toll on students and children here.
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Children and grandchildren of Caroline Braun enjoyed cake and stories as she turned 103 today.
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COVID-19 pushed back the annual Run For The Wall, which is the world’s largest and longest organized cross-country motorcycle run of its kind, for two years.
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“Swimming is the first sport a child should learn. It is a life and death matter. There’s too many accidents that happen every year that are accidents that could be preventable,” said Gay Tyra, the Aquatic Specialist at UT Health’s Olympic Center.
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After a big, exciting week in Las Vegas where the top five contestants were mentored by Carrie Underwood, arguably the most successful of all the American Idol winners so far, fans hoped Tyler’s Fritz Hager III would make it to the AI finale next week.
This past weekend Fritz Hager earned a spot in the top five on the show after singing two originals.
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A new look is in the works at the Texas African American Museum in Tyler.
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Wednesday night on the Square, jeans were hung with messages of hope, stories from survivors, and statistics having to do with sexual violence.
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In Smith County notice for appraised property values went out in April. Residents are seeing their home value go up this year, but that number is used to determine how much you will pay in property taxes.
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They now have space for a full conference room with technology to go along with it, as well as a caregiver library, which they haven’t had before.
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Sunday morning, Cherokee County Sheriff Brent Dickson said a hostage situation in the Oakland area that ended with the suspect dead and the victim safe is still under investigation and that it started with a kidnapping.
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