112-billion dollars worth of programs and projects have been approved around the nation. sandy>> nbc's lisa myers has a close look on how what money is being spent. lisa myers>> it is the first stimulus project greenlighted in the country ...replacing this crumbling bridge over the osage river in rural central missouri. critics dubbed it a " bridge to the middle of nowhere" ... nats -- bang bang but in struggling miller county, that $8.5 million bridge means jobs. the company run by kevin helton and his dad was hired to dig out a new road to the bridge. kevin helton helton sand and gravel>> áááá 2:23:09 we've hired ten people, just for this here. it's people who was on unemployment. this helped bring them out of unemployment and get them back on their feet.(9) mike verslues was one of 20 workers hired by another company to build the bridge itself. he'd been unemployed five months. 5;54:38 the opportunities just weren't there -- i woulda went went to work. i looked every week. there just wasn't nothing there to do. so it was just waiting. (10) it's also meant at least eight more jobs at a nearby steel mill. and that all translates into more business up the road at the red oak inn. wes horton red oak inn owner>> 7:29:15 the guys doing the dirt work, eat 1 or 2 meals a day here. a few days they'd eat three. (6) wes horton says the community needs the help. "our president commented on tv here awhile back that people of new york outta go the midwest where they live on $75,000. well, they ought to come to miller county, where we live on $30,000." lisa myers nbc news>> based on a formula, federal and state officials estimate that 240 jobs will be saved or created by the bridge project. but those estimates seem very unlikely. and while it may be possible to count jobs created, figuring out how many jobs are saved is an imprecise science. nats -- whrr in fact, at delong's, where the steel bones for the bridge are made, workers had hoped for much more from the stimulus. bob bachta>> "we've been somewhat disappointed.// it was a good first move but it needs to be followed up by an expansion in the public and private sector. nats -- bang bang even though it's not as much as advertised, federal money is stirring hope ... where there hasn't been much. lisa myers, nbc news, washington dc ic>> it's time now for a check of sports. sandy>> news 25's lee hall has scores and highlights...