Stories from Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Shelby C. Briggs, 73 of Rogers, Ark., passed away Dec. 15, 2013, in Bentonville, Ark. She was born Aug. 10, 1940, in Cassville, the daughter of Ruben and Ester Anderson Dick. She graduated high school from the School of the Ozarks at Pointe Lookout, and Beauty School in Springfield...

Bill J. Gunnels, 84, of Cassville, passed away on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2013, at the Red Rose Health and Rehab in Cassville. He was born on Feb. 20, 1929, in Seligman, son of James Monroe and Cleo Mae (Murry) Gunnels. He grew up in Seligman and was a graduate of Seligman High School, Class of 1946 with the distinction of having perfect attendance from the first grade through the 12th grade. ...

Max A. McNabb, 72, of Washburn, passed away Monday, Dec. 9, 2013, in Mercy Hospital, Rogers, Ark. He was born Dec. 3, 1941, in Cassville, the son of Aubry and Marie (Weathers) McNabb. On April 6, 1963, he was united in marriage to Joyce L. "Sue" Dye, who survives...

Charles Seward De Lay, 67, of Shell Knob, passed away Monday, Dec. 16, 2013, in Cox Medical Center South, Springfield. Arrangements will be announced by Fohn Funeral Home, Shell Knob.

Denise Ann Foster, 50, of Arkansas, passed away in her home. Memorial services will be held at a later date in His Way Fellowship Church, Gateway, Arkansas. Pastor John Ledenham will conduct the services. Cremation arrangements are under direction of Fohn Funeral Home, Cassville...

Richard W. Rose, 77, of Carthage, passed away Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2013, at his home in Carthage, He was born Nov. 23, 1936, in Kansas City, a son of the late William Lafayette Rose and Irene Opal White Rose. He graduated from East High School in Kansas City. ...

Billy Blaine "Bill" Gowen, 89, of Wichita, Kan., formerly of Washburn, passed away Friday, Dec. 13, 2013, in Wesley Hospital, Wichita, Kan. He was born June 14, 1924, in Washburn, the son of William D. and Mable (Webb) Gowen. On June 21, 1953, in Cassville, he was united in marriage to Norma Jean Baker, who survives...

Helen "Luarana" Shrum, 73, of Washburn, passed away Sunday, Dec. 15, 2013, at her home. She was born April 8, 1940, in McDonald County, near Powell, the daughter of Charles and Jewell (Dalton) Poe. On Dec. 22, 1956, she was united in marriage to Roy Lou Shrum, who preceded her in death on May 1, 2003. Also preceding her in death were her parents; two brothers, Bob Poe and Bill Poe; one granddaughter, Jessica Pettengill; and one great-granddaughter...

The Purdy Eagles basketball team knew they had a tall task in front of them when the East Newton Patriots invaded the Eagles' gym on Monday, Dec. 16. Despite a gallant effort by Alex Mareth (22 points) and Brent Cornman (19 points), the Eagles fell 64-49...

The Monett Lady Cubs coaxed 25 points out of the cold rims at Cassville on Thursday, Dec. 12, and escaped with a one-point win over their Highway 37 rivals. It was a frustrating loss for the Lady Wildcats. Low score, great game. With only a single field goal to show for an entire quarter's work, Cassville's girls had the look of a fighter on the ropes. But coach Chris Shore's team battled back from the 5-2 deficit to claim a 14-13 lead at halftime...

Led by Zack Hyde's 31-point outburst, the Pierce City Eagles boys basketball team defeated the Wheaton Bulldogs, 70-43 on Dec. 10. The two squads were happy to get on the hardwood and battle after weather delays, but it was the Eagles who were the sharpest on their home court...

50 Years Ago Dec. 25, 1963 Mrs. Olin Brattin's Cassville kindergarten class had a surprise visit from Santa Claus last week. Students poised with Santa for a picture. The class member are: Jerry Utterback, Tracy England, Will Rudd, Kevin Miekley, Tommy Price, David Hubbard, Chuckie Coones, Julie Hutton, Carl Craig, Danny Buchanan, Jill Stephens, Everett Henbest, Janice Petty, Skip Sanford, Jerry Fox, Deana Duncan, Kevin Leeper, Marilyn Stringer, Bret Shepherd, Kevin Hyslip, Bobby Chappell, Sally Blythe, Vicky Lebow, John Allard, David Henbest and John Robert Thomas.. ...

What started with a single strand of lights over 50 years ago has grown into a labor of love shared with the Shell Knob community and others. In 1950, Loya Ray bought the first string of Christmas lights for the family home, located north of Shell Knob one mile east of Hwy 39 on 76E. Subsequent years and two generations found the family adding more lights in what has become a family tradition. Lights are turned on nightly on Dec. 1 through Dec. 31 each year. Submitted photo...

On Dec. 19, 1953, Louis Ray Burleson and Marilyn Louise Hancock were married in Kansas City. This week, they will celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary. They met in Cassville in August of 1953 at the John Hancock Diner, where Marilyn was working for her uncle as a waitress and Ray delivered milk products for the local dairy. ...

Democrat Photo/Zucca First place winners in the residential division James and Donna Brant, who live at 108 W. 14th St. in Cassville, are the winners in the Holiday Lighting Conest. As first place winners, they will receive a $20 gift certificate to the BBQ Station and a sign to display in their yard...

The annual Cassville Area Chamber of Commerce banquet, set for 6 p.m. on Jan. 11, 2014, at Cassville High School, will feature Branson comedian Jarrett Dougherty. Dougherty, who performs at the Pierce Arrow Theater in Branson, will offer a family-friendly performance...

Thursday, Dec. 19 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...

Democrat Photo/Kerry Hays Cassville High School will hold its annual Mr. and Miss Merry Christmas coronation ceremony in the high school gymnasium at 11:50 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 20. The 2013 Mr. and Miss Merry Christmas candidates are pictured above. ...

Mustard herb Very few, if anyone, in this area has ever called turnips a herb of the mustard family, but there it is in the dictionary for a definition. This time of the year is ideal for turnips, and this season has produced some really nice ones. Not being the gardening type, after having given up after a couple of successive failures, it might even be possible for me to grow turnips. However, some very successful gardeners in the area experienced failures this past growing season...

The City of Cassville launched a new website last week with the ability to pay water bills online introduced as an important feature of the application. The website also includes links to city departments and various other organizations within the community. Steve Walenksy, public works director, sees these additions as a real benefit to city residents...

From mid-December through New Year's Day, local lae enforcement officials will be out in force as part of the annual nationwide "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" crackdown on drunk driving. The crackdown, which will include high-visibility enforcement throughout Cassville, will run from now through Jan. 2, 2014...

Purdy aldermen approved a merit bonus for city employees at the December city council meeting. Mayor Steve Roden told aldermen, "You can't give a Christmas bonus with tax dollars." Roden proposed merit pay in the form of a $25 gift certificate that coincidentally fell at the end of the calendar year. Aldermen liked the proposal and approved the expenditure...

Staffers at Herrin Animal Hospital took a few moments from treating clients to look over a few of the donations for their 14th annual Toy Drive, to benefit OACAC's Barry County Neighborhood Center. Area residents dropped off new, unwrapped gifts at the animal hospital, along with several other collection locations in Barry County, to benefit approximately 19 families and 436 underprivileged children. ...

Judicial Center closed for holidays The Barry County Judicial Center in Cassville will be closed on Dec. 25 in observance of Christmas. Library to close for holidays All branches of the Barry-Lawrence Regional Library will close on Tuesday, Dec. 24 and Wednesday, Dec. 25 for the Christmas holiday. The library system will also be closed on Jan. 1, 2014, for New Year's Day...

Women of Cassville United Methodist Church hosted their 11th annual Tinsel Tea to benefit the church's food pantry, serving approximately 175 guests during the fundraising event. Stacy Runnels, who coordinated this year's event, said a total of 20 tables were decorated in various themes to celebrate the holiday season...

By Melonie Roberts Inclement weather may have hampered the original schedule of this year's Cassville Area Chamber of Commerce's Christmas Parade, but event organizers took a deep breath and pushed the date back nearly two weeks, to 6 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 20...

Barry County Share Your Christmas, which is organized by the Barry County OACAC Neighborhood Center and Share Your Christmas committee members, will serve 172 families and 436 children this year. "The numbers are up from last year," said Gail Reed, Barry County OACAC director. "We're seeing a lot of new families with young children that I think are just having a hard time making ends meet."...

Kyle Lane Bowman, 23, of Seligman, passed away Monday, Dec. 9, 2013, at his home. He was born Oct. 5, 1990, in Springfield, the son of Jim Bowman and Mary (Box) Bowman. Survivors include: his mother, Mary Squires, of Seligman; grandparents, Ray and Donna Bowman, of Exeter; two sisters, Tiffany Bowman and her fiance, Eli Gunden, of Seligman, and Casey Hollingsworth and her husband, Shelby, of Cassville; and one brother, Joey Griffith and his wife, Aundrea, of Ozark, Ark...