Cassville

FFA engages youth at Food for America
Isabelle Gabriel and Zarah Hunter color on a palette at the Cassville FFA’s Food for America event on Friday, where high school students made presentations on animals, fishing, farming and more.
Thanks for Fridays
How many people does it take to put on a home football game? Fall Fridays are sacred to Wildcat Nation, and to make the experience the best it can be, many volunteers and school staff work year-round. Lance Parnell, Cassville athletic director, said there’s a lot that goes into the four or five Fridays the Wildcats get to play at home each year, not counting any postseason contests.

Cassville Pantry launches ‘Bless Your Neighbor’s Table’ campaign
The holiday season is a time for family, love, and gratitude, a time to gather around the table and share blessings. Yet, for too many neighbors in Barry County, the table remains empty, said Janet Mills, Cassville Pantry director.
Dakoda Pettigrew: The meaning of the Declaration
The rain was falling with misty, unrelenting force as President Calvin Coolidge rose to deliver the greatest speech of his life. It was Monday, July 6, 1926, and the rain beat the president’s face as he stood before a crowd of 35,000 on the grounds of the Sesquicentennial Exposition in Philadelphia, the birthplace of American independence and constitutionalism. “Despite a fine drizzle, which became a heavy downpour,” The New York Times reported the next day, “the crowds patiently lined twenty miles of streets to pay their respects” to a man whose cool and quiet demeanor hid a patriotic intellect that could not be contained.

Haven of the Ozarks Pet of the Week
Gin is such a beauty. This sweet girl is about two years old and weighs in at 50 pounds.

Miss, Mr. Merry Christmas candidates announced
Cassville’s Miss and Mr. Merry Christmas candidates for 2024 have been announced. Front row, from left: freshman Samantha Baugus, daughter of Sam Baugus and Jessica Minor, of Cassville; junior Joei Blankenship, daughter of Clit and Bobbi Blankenship, of Jenkins; senior Lauren Sparkman, daughter of Gamon Sparkman and the Late Shelley Sparkman, of Cassville. Back row: freshman Will Finch, son of Mark and Paula Finch, of Cassville; sophomore Caleb Pyle, son of Joei Pyle and Christy Butler Pyle, of Cassville; junior Cash Gray Smith, son of Weslie and Jamie Johns, of Cassville; and senior Jonathan Cole Cash, son of Daniel Cash and Jona and Robert Anderson, of Cassville. Not pictured: sophomore Savannah-Lynn Connor. Candidates will be raising money to donate to the Barry County Neighborhood Center’s Share Your Christmas Program. Kyle Troutman/ktroutman@cassville- democrat.com

Through the Years, Nov. 27
40 YEARS AGO: FIRST PLACE PARADE ENTRIES — The floats pictured above and below received first place recognition in Cassville’s Christmas parade here Saturday evening. Each received $150 first prize money from the sponsoring Chamber of Commerce.

Fly fishing group angles at Roaring River
Eight-year-old Harper Lester, left, of Cassville, accepts a bowl of chili from Sharon Yoker, fellowship coordinator for the Southwest Missouri Fly Fishers Club, at a club gathering at Roaring River State Park on Saturday.

Donnie Spears: Peace and comfort
This devotional and directory is made possible by these businesses who encourage all to attend worship services. The thing every one of us looks for in so many different places and different ways today: true peace.
News Briefs, Nov. 27
The Purdy Christmas Parade will be on Dec. 7 at 10 a.m., with line-up at the Purdy High School parking lot by 9:30 a.m.