What Everyday Reader Features Does The News Leader Offer?

The News Leader (newsleader.com) is the local news site for Staunton and Virginia's central Shenandoah Valley, and beyond its news and sports reporting it carries a set of daily reader features: obituaries, a crossword, horoscopes, Virginia Lottery results, contests, comics, and shopping/deal content. Most of these appear on the homepage or are reachable from its navigation, and some — particularly the eNewspaper — sit behind a subscription.

Obituaries

Obituaries for local community members are a standing feature of the site, listed alongside the main news sections. They are the place to check for death notices and funeral information for people in the Staunton and wider Shenandoah Valley area. If you are looking for a specific notice, use the site's search or the obituaries section rather than scanning the homepage, which rotates fresh stories constantly.

Puzzles and Games

Daily crossword

The homepage surfaces a daily crossword, including a "get a little help with a clue" prompt for that day's puzzle — useful when you are stuck on a single answer. The crossword is presented as a daily item, so the puzzle changes each day.

Horoscopes

A daily horoscope is published as well, framed by date (for example, a horoscope for a given Sunday). Like the crossword, it is a recurring daily feature rather than a one-off article.

Lottery Results

The News Leader publishes Virginia Lottery results, including Powerball and Pick 3 Night drawings, with the draw date in the headline. These are straightforward results posts — the winning numbers for a specific drawing — so if you are checking a ticket, match the date in the headline to your ticket's draw date. Note that national jackpot coverage (for example, Powerball and Mega Millions jackpot amounts) also appears in the trending and shopping areas, but the Virginia-specific results are the local draw posts.

Contests, Comics, and Shopping

• Contests: The site runs a contests section, and promotional nomination campaigns appear on the homepage (for example, a "Nominate Today!" call tied to an awards program). Contests are grouped under their own navigation area.
• Comics: A comics section is listed among the site's features.
• Shopping and deals: A shopping area carries product and deal content, such as generator discounts, event streaming guides, and travel or packing recommendations. This is commerce content rather than local reporting, so treat prices and availability as subject to change.

What Sits Behind a Subscription

The site shows subscription signals — "subscribe" and "subscription" appear in its pricing-related links — and the eNewspaper is listed as a distinct feature. In practice this means:

The site does not state a specific price or free-access guarantee in the material available, so check the subscription page directly for current terms before assuming any content is free.

A Practical Way to Use the Site

If your goal is a daily routine rather than following the news:

1. Open newsleader.com and scan the homepage feature strip for the day's crossword and horoscope.
2. Check the lottery results post if a Virginia drawing applies to you — confirm the date matches.
3. Use the obituaries section or site search for a specific name.
4. Go to the contests or comics sections directly if the homepage promotion has rotated out.
5. For the eNewspaper, expect to go through the subscription flow.

The main friction point is that homepage features rotate quickly, so anything not in a dedicated section (crossword, horoscope, lottery results) is easier to reach through search or the section menu than by scrolling.