Barry County
25 earn Silver Spoon awards in 2024
The Barry County Health Department has announced 25 of the 231 food establishments in Barry County will receive the 2024 Silver Spoon award. The award is presented to food establishments in the county for demonstrating excellence in public food safety.
Thang wins Purdy Spelling Bee
On Jan. 28, Purdy Elementary held its annual Spelling Bee. The winner was Solomon Thang, a fifth-grader from Abigail Buntin’s class. The runner-up was Kiya Lee’Jace Atkins. The other participants were: Bildad Chan, Thayer Friely, Mark Jenkins, Win Htet, Kaden Rosewicz, Violet Adams, and Thierry Thigpen. The Spell Master was Susan Funkhouser.
Michelle Hilburn: Best books guide for children, teens
Building strong reading skills and cultivating a love for books is key in nurturing a lifelong passion for reading. I believe that there is a perfect book for every reader, and if someone doesn’t enjoy reading, they simply haven’t discovered the right book yet.
News Briefs, Feb. 5
The Barry County Democratic Central Committee will meet on Tuesday at 6 p.m. at The Pirate Sand Bar & Grill in Eagle Rock, located at 32573 Hwy.
Scoreboard, Feb. 5
The Cassville boys basketball team (4-13) has only seven games left before Class 4, District 12 action in Monett, and four of the seven games have Big 8 implications. The Wildcats are two weeks removed from a fifth-place finish at the 40th Annual Spokane Invitational, falling 59-52 to Strafford in the opening round, but rebounding with wins over Southwest and Ash Grove to take fifth.
Bird’s eye view
Bald eagles can be found at Roaring River State Park currently. Two eagles were spotted on Friday afternoon, one across the river from the CCC Lodge, and a second in Zone 3 across the river from the pollinator area. On Saturday, the Roaring River Nature Center will host an event for visitors to learn all about bald eagles and search for these magnificent birds along Roaring River. More information may be found at: https://mostateparks.com/event/108101/bald-eagle-days. Kyle Troutman/ktroutman@cassville-democrat.com
Kyle Troutman: Opportunities within the new
Last week, I sat down with Sheriff Danny Boyd to talk about his next four years. It was unlike any law enforcement interview I’ve done before for one major reason — location.
Through the Years, Jan. 29
30 YEARS AGO: METHODS OF REMOVING SNOW — The order of the day beginning Thursday morning was getting snow from some unwanted places. In the instances shown here, the places were parking lots, entrances to businesses and sidewalks at county offices. In the photo at left, Lonnie Yarnall uses one piece of snow removal equipment that was made available for some of the smaller parking lots that contracted for the service. In the middle, John Starchman makes the wet snow fly with a snow shovel, accomplishing the entrances of a couple of businesses. At the right, Johnny Gautney of the courthouse staff, puts a new snow blower, belonging to the county, to the task of clearing side-walks. For large locations and heavier tasks, there was equipment of about every description and horsepower up and down the roads, streets and parkways of the area. Many of the earlier removal chores were accomplished while it was still snowing. Sunshine and traffic both hitting major roads and streets later Thursday morning helped eliminate much of the cover. Rural roads were another problem after they drifted to depths of six feet in some locations. Democrat file photo
Sheriff: ‘We’re fully staffed’
Following an election year with a new jail under construction, Sheriff Danny Boyd said his Office is hitting the ground running in 2025. Staving off challengers in a four-candidate race — ultimately winning the August Primary Election by 48 votes among more than 6,000 after a hand and machine recount — Boyd said for the next four years in office, transparency and increasing service are his key goals.
Barry County sales tax dips in January
Sales tax revenues for Barry County cities and county government entities got off to a slow start for 2025, with lower receipts for almost all recipients. The seven Barry County cities and the county received $1,398,694.40, a drop of 8% from last January.
