Stories from Wednesday, June 19, 2013

A Washburn woman was killed in a two-vehicle crash on June 18 that closed down Highway 37 north of Purdy for a number of hours while emergency workers responded to the scene. According to a Missouri State Highway Patrol report, Charlene M. Vanderpool, 79, of Washburn, was driving her 1999 Subaru Forester south on Highway 37 at 2:20 p.m. when she crossed the centerline and struck a 2001 Freightliner head on...

The FBI and area law enforcement agencies are searching for a Monett man in connection with the armed robbery of a Great Southern Bank branch in Springfield on June 14. Joseph K. Meierotto, 49, of Monett, was formally charged with bank robbery in the U.S. District Court in Springfield on June 18 after he was identified through bank surveillance photos...

Kornerstone, Inc., formerly located behind Bridgeway Plaza in Shell Knob, has relocated its offices to Shell Knob School. Kornerstone, in operation for 15 years, primarily served Shell Knob clients but has subsequently expanded to assist people in Barry County with abstinence education, a teen mom program and in obtaining their GEDs...

The Barry County Commission has authorized Great River Associates Engineering, with offices in Springfield, to conduct an evaluation and to digitally map stream crossings and existing box culverts in Barry County. According to Presiding Commissioner Cherry Warren, the move is designed to ensure safety of first responders having to travel through designated Mark Twain National Forest land in response to an emergency call...

A large crowd turned out for the Cassville Chamber of Commerce's First Friday Coffee, hosted by Les Jacobs Ford on June 7. The local dealership provided breakfast and coffee and gave away two car details in a drawing. Due to busy summer schedules, there will be no First Friday Coffee events held in July or August. Democrat Photo by Lisa Schlichtman...

Vendor Pam Conrad sells a variety of items from jellies and dog treats to jewelry and decorations at the Garden Sass Farmers Market, which takes place every Saturday on the square in Cassville from 7 to 11 a.m. On July 20, the market will be featuring a berry pie contest. Democrat Photo by Joshua Boley...

A variety of vintage and modern vehicles gather the second Saturday of every month throughout the summer at the Barry County Museum for the Cassville Cruisers cruise-in. The club will host cruise-ins until November, weather permitting. Democrat Photo by Joshua Boley...

After the tragedy surrounding this year's Boston Marathon, running has taken a greater significance in the city of Boston. The One Run for Boston, the first nonstop, coast-to-coast 300-leg relay ever attempted in the United States began on June 7. Each runner will make a contribution to the One Fund Boston via their entry fee. Proceeds from the event will go to help those who were affected by the Boston Marathon tragedy...

The Irwin-Easley Post #118 baseball team stormed back from a 4-1 deficit to claim a 5-4 American Legion victory over McDonald County Post #392 at Cassville's Wildcat Field on Wednesday, June 12. Brett Nickle crushed a one-out triple in the bottom of the seventh inning, and Jordan Fisher raced home to score the winning run to cap the dramatic comeback...

Although the high school baseball season has ended, accolades and awards have started to roll in for area players. Purdy's Cameron Terry and Austin Hancock gathered the most prestigious awards, being named to the Missouri High School Baseball Coaches Association All-State team...

Brent Whitley, a seventh grade homeschool student from Cassville, has earned a position on the Missouri State National Junior High Rodeo team and will be traveling with fellow teammates to Gallup, N.M., to compete at the ninth annual National Junior High Finals Rodeo (NJHFR) June 23 through June 29. ...

C.L. and Donna England, of Wheaton, are pleased to announce the engagement and upcoming marriage of their daughter, Kaitlin Nicole, to Cameron Bryce McCurdy, son of Robin McCurdy and Raelene McCurdy. Kaitlin is a 2011 graduate of Wheaton High School and will graduate from Crowder College School of Nursing in December. ...

The Hudson, Doty and Stockton family reunion will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on June 22 at the Clio Community Building. Those who plan to attend are asked to bring a dish. For more information, call Pat Newman at 417-622-4593. The annual reunion of the Bennett and Fly families will be held on Sunday, June 23 at the Monett Senior Center building at 405 Dairy Street. A basket dinner will be served at the noon hour. Group singing is planned, and all relatives and friends are invited...

Members of Cassville High School's Class of 1963 gathered together for their 50th reunion. Pictured in the front row, from left, are: Patricia Hull Pennington, Bonnie Craig Delando, Mary Lou Hinson Nelson, Frederick Dalton, Shirley West Brewen and Carolyn Skelton Buttry. ...

Cassville High School student Jordan Shore, pictured above, received a Crowder College Director's Scholarship in the amount of $800 during the Scott Regional Technology Center Recognition Night on May 2. The technology center also awarded 122 Passport awards, which are presented to students who successfully complete on of the 15 career and technical programs, achieve a B average in their program area with no more than six days absent in a program year and were recommended by their instructors. ...

All branches of the Barry-Lawrence Regional Library will offer summer reading club (SRC) programs during the months of June and July for all ages. The Barry-Lawrence Regional Library District's Summer Reading Program is designed for youth from birth through high school as well as adults...

The Purdy Future Business Leaders of America Chapter competed at the Missouri Southern State University Business contest held on April 3. Students who attended are pictured in the front row, from left: Russell Gonzalez, Lucas White, Kelton Mattingly, Mattie White, Jayse Henderson, Megan Schilly, Brittany Hayes and Chelsea Mareth. ...

Four Cassville FBLA students will be California-bound in June to participate in the FBLA National Contest at Anaheim, Calif. Students and their project awards, are pictured above. From left, are: Brianna Robertson, business communications; Emily Speakman and Ali Hanson, e-business website; and Callie Woods, partnership with business report. The four participate at the competition from June 27 through July 1...

Several Cassville High School band students recently competed in the MSHSAA State Music Festival at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Eligible students were able to compete and receive ratings on individual solos and small ensembles. Students gain state eligibility by competing at the district level and receiving a I, or superior, rating. ...

Cassville High School recently released the names of students who achieved the second semester honor roll. Students are listed below by grade and achievement level. Honor Roll Freshman: Kiana Banks, Cheyenne Black, Zachary Boley, Colton Bowman, Kaylyn Burton, Abigail Calhoun, Brett Cochran, Alesha Cousins, Leigh Cox, Jeffrey Crum-pler, Zachary Denton, Parker Dunker, William Edmondson, Danny Burns, Zane Everett, Elissa Grif-fin, Noah Hadlow, Andrew Hare, Madison Horner, Tyler James, Madison Ja-mieson, Kane Kellner, Al-len Lambel, Callie Meek, Devin Messbarger, Karlie Moore, Nicholas Orask-ovich, Brianna Renfrow, Jessica Roberts, Dustin Sims, Trever Supulver, Dakota Townsend and Pao-fue Vang.. ...

Three people were injured in recent area wrecks. A Purdy woman was injured in a single-vehicle crash at 12:45 p.m. on Friday, June 14 on Farm Road 1090 about three miles south of Monett. According to a report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the crash occurred when the driver of a 2006 Ford Escape, Georgia T. Denney, 75, of Purdy, ran off the left side of the road and struck a utility pole and a fence...

The Purdy community is preparing for the second annual Purdy Festival, which will be held on Saturday, July 20. The Purdy Festival committee activity schedule includes free carnival rides, water activities, a petting zoo for the kids and many different types of booths set up by the local school clubs and churches...

The Cassville Democrat welcomes Joshua Boley to its newspaper staff as a summer news intern. Boley will be a senior at Missouri Southern State University in Joplin, where he is majoring in mass communication with an emphasis in photojournalism. He also serves as editor-in-chief of the Chart, MSSU's student newspaper...

Commerce Bank and Commerce Bancshares Foundation presented Verna Fry, Cassville Branch Library children's coordinator, with a donation on May 9. Pictured above, from left, are: Mike McCracken, Commerce Bank president; Fry; and Debra Mitchell, Commerce Bank vice president...

Thursday, June 20 SUPPORT GROUP: The Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) group of Cassville meets at 8 p.m. at 1308 Harold St. in Cassville. For more information, call 846-4044. SUPPORT GROUP: Anyone who is concerned about a friend's or loved one's drinking is invited to attend the Cassville Al-Anon Family Group, which meets at 8 p.m. at the United Methodist Church in Cassville...

Barry County 4-H members participated in a wide variety of public speaking and knowledge contests on June 11 at the Barry County Courthouse as part of the Barry County 4-H Achievement Day. Contests in traditional public speaking endeavors included "Prepared Public Speaking" where youth memorize a five- to seven-minute speech on any topic and "Extemporaneous Speaking" where a topic is drawn the day of the speech and then a five-minute speech is developed...

The annual Purdy Livestock Show will be held in conjunction with the Purdy Festival on Saturday, July 20. The event will be held in the air-conditioned elementary school gymnasium. Registration will be held one hour prior to the show with the exception of the hog show. Registration for the hog show will be at 7 a.m. There is no entry fee for any of the events...

The 2013 Barry County Fair will be held at Rockin' P Ranch Rodeo Arena on Highway W in Wheaton on Friday, June 28 and Saturday, June 29. "We got a late start this year," said Ernest Ray, Barry County Fair Board president. "We hope to see the community come out to support the kids." ...

By Lisa Schlichtman With just a few cautious snips of the scissors, Sharayah Seymour traded her waist-length shiny brown tresses for a stylish short summer hair style that now falls just below her ears. The Cassville 9-year-old was not making a fashion statement, but instead, chose short hair over long to provide wigs for children who have no hair...

Mercy Hospital Cassville opened a new helipad with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and blessing on June 13. The event took place at the site of the new helipad, which is located just north of the hospital near the emergency room, and included hospital staff and executives as well as community members and dignitaries from companies and organizations that helped complete the project...

A total of 429 police contacts were made during a DWI checkpoint on June 8 at the intersection of Highways 37 and HH south of Purdy. The effort was a cooperative enforcement effort involving the Barry County Sheriff's Office, the Southwest Missouri DWI Task Force and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD)...

CHS Class of 1993 to host reunion The Cassville High School Class of 1993 will hold its 20-year class reunion on June 29 at the Cassville Golf Course clubhouse. Activities start at 5 p.m. with a group photo at 6 p.m. and a barbecue dinner at 6:30 p.m. ...

Run will light up the night Sno-glo is added to Friday Squared schedule By Lisa Schlichtman A new event has been announced for the Cassville Area Chamber of Commerce's upcoming Friday Squared on July 12. A Sno-Glo 5K run and walk will be held in conjunction with the Christmas in July theme...

June 1 marked the beginning of Governor Jay Nixon's 100 Missouri Miles Challenge. The initiative continues until the end of the year and is aimed at getting Missourians outside and healthy, according to the events website, www.100missourimiles.com. Taking up the governor's challenge is Cassville couple Kerry and Heather Hays. ...

Cowboys and cowgirls from across the four-state area will gather at the Bill Hailey Arena in Cassville on Friday, June 21 and Saturday, June 22 for the 71st annual Cassville Rotary Rodeo. Sanctioned by the IPRA and ACRA, this year's rodeo will feature bareback, saddlebronc, bull riding, calf roping, team roping, steer wrestling, cowgirl barrel racing and cowgirl break-away roping. The popular calf scramble for children under 10 also will return...

Officials with the United States National Forest Service are requesting the public's help in identifying and reporting individuals who are vandalizing the Mark Twain National Forest in the Barry County area. "There has been a combination of vandalism in the forest," said Jenny Farenbaugh, a ranger with the Ava/Cassville/Willow Springs District. ...

With good weather, area residents may expect the return of a Cassville landmark, McDonald's, by the end of September. According to Bill Matthews, co-owner of the Cassville franchise, the restaurant will be quite a bit bigger than its predecessor, that burned on March 10, just prior to a grand re-opening to celebrate the facility's recent remodel...

A Friday afternoon in the summer became anything but lazy for Monett firefighters on June 14. A major fire erupted at the Hydro Aluminum plant in the Monett Industrial Park around 3:45 p.m. that resulted in six fire departments responding. The fire developed in the insulation of the roof in what had been used as the paint building. Built in the mid-1980s, the structure has been out of use since October 2012 when Hydro shut down its extrusion operations...

Fasco hosted its first Safety Expo on June 13. According to Vickie Senters, health and safety coordinator for the facility, the goal of the expo was to introduce employees to the emergency response personnel in the community and promote safety. "We are wanting to promote safety here and at home with our employees," Senters said...

Rodeo food During the Rotary Rodeo's run on the American Legion Grounds, there wasn't much regulation regarding the food being served. But when health regulations came to the community, the club was no longer permitted to bark the selling of hamburgers. There was some regulation regarding this, so the type of food quickly became Rotary burgers...

In the wake of the Moore, Okla., tornado that struck at the heart of that community by leveling two schools, Cassville R-4 School District patrons can rest a little easier when sirens sound, knowing their students will soon be able to seek refuge in two FEMA-rated shelters...

Dear Editor: As was recently reported in our local paper, Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar signed an order in January 2013 declaring the entire White River watershed a National Blueway. This action was done without notification to the governments of the counties affected, without notification of the state representatives, without notification of our federal elected representatives, and without notification of those living in the affected area...

Dear Editor: On June 13, nearly 100 concerned citizens attended a meeting with the Barry County commissioners to hear a presentation about the White River Watershed National Blueway (WRWNB). Despite protest from many western states, Ken Salazar, head of the Department of Interior, issued "Secretarial Order 3321" that created this program. ...

Etta Fletcher Van Zandt, 100, passed away June 11, 2013, at Cassville Mercy Hospital. She was born July 26, 1912, in Ash Township, Barry County, to Melvin and Etta (Hill) Fletcher. She was united in marriage to Oscar Allen Van Zandt June 21, 1929. She was a long-time member of the Maple Grove Church of Christ, a homemaker and boarded the school teachers of the Maple Grove Rural School...

Rev. John Vernon Rose, 76, of Washburn, passed away on Monday, June 10, 2013, at Freeman West in Joplin. He was born on March 24, 1937, in Cassville, son of Lennis Jefferson and Velma (Fletcher) Rose. After high school, he enlisted in the Navy where he served in the Korean Conflict. ...

Duane Sholes, 82, of Cassville, passed away on Monday, June 17, 2013, at Benchmark Healthcare of Monett. He was born on July 21, 1930, to William and Grace Sholes in Tekonsha, Mich. He enlisted in the Marines and served in the Korean Conflict. On Dec. 4, 1954, he was united in marriage to Cynthia Bradd in Jackson, Mich. He served as a deputy warden for the state of Michigan Prison System until his retirement in 1981. Upon retirement, they moved to Cassville, where they built their home...