AREA

DEATHS Gary R. “Shorty” Randolph

Gary R. “Shorty” Randolph, a 76-year-old Trenton resident, died at 10:25 p.m. Monday, Aug. 16 2021 at Saint Luke's Hospital on the Plaza in Kansas City.

Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m., Monday Aug. 23, 2021 at Resthaven Mortuary in Trenton. A family visitation will be held from 6 to 7 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 22, 2021 at the mortuary.

Burial will be at Resthaven Memorial Gardens, North of Trenton.

Mr. Randolph was born Oct. 2, 1944 in Tempe, AZ, the son of Raymond and Marjorie Ellison Randolph. He was a member of the Iowa National Guard from 1965 to 1971 and retired from the Trenton Municipal Utilities in 2007. He was a member of Trenton Elks Lodge No. 801, Trenton Masonic Lodge No. 111 and the Knoxville, IA racing community.

Mr. Randolph is survived by a daughter, Kim Randolph and her companion, Gerald Huffstutter of Trenton; two grandchildren, Erica Zang and her husband, Will Zang and Eryn Howe and his companion, Samantha Lynch; three great-grandchildren; Makayla Mejia, Maclin Howe and Carson Kasinger, all of Trenton; three brothers, Ronnie Randolph and his wife, Vicky of Ogden, IA, Jim Randolph and Dennis Randolph, both of Clarinda, IA; and several nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents; a daughter, Karen Rae Randolph; a brother, Terry Randolph; and two great- grandchildren, Nora and Tripp Zang.

Memorials may be made to Green Hills Animal Shelter and left with the Mortuary.

Online condolences may be left at www.resthavenmort.com.

FUNERALS Carl Eugene Vandel

Funeral services for Carl Eugene Vandel were held at 2 p.m., Wednesday, Aug. 18, 2021 at Resthaven Mortuary of Trenton. Rev. Ron Ratliff officiated.

Mr. Vandel, a 71-yearold resident of Trenton, passed away at 8:34 a.m., Saturday, Aug. 14, 2021 at Hedrick Medical Center in Chillicothe.

Special recorded music included “There Will Be A Day”, “Go Rest High on That Mountain” and “Just Breathe.”

Burial was in Elmwood Cemetery north of Milan.

Commission Agrees To Abatement, Makes Board Appointment

The Grundy County Commission agreed to abate anassesment and made an appointment to the ServeLink Board during its meeting on Tuesday.

Grundy County Clerk Betty Spickard said the commission agreed to abate an assessment for a trailer that had been removed from property owned by Roy Carpenter in Wilson Township. In addition, Trenton resident Phyllis Jackson was appointed to serve on the ServeLink Board from June 2021 to June 2024. She replaces L.D. Gibson, who resigned from the board.

Commissioners tabled a concrete bid, submitted by Joe DeVorss for work on the north side of the courthouse and met with a representative of CFS Engineering, who wanted to introduce himself and indicated an interest in the request for quotes on a nine-bridge county project.

The commission will meet again Tuesday at the courthouse. Items on the agenda for that meeting include an 8:30 a.m. meeting with Lindsey Chaffin of Great River Engineering, a 9:30 a.m. meeting with Ambulance Director Steve Tracy, a 10 a.m. meeting with Aaron McVicker of McClure Engineering and an 11 a.m. meeting with Shelby Berkemeier of the North Central Missouri Business Facilitation Group, who will provide an update on the activities of that organization.

CARD SHOWERS

A card shower has been requested for Betty Gardner, who will celebrate her 95th birthday on Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021. Cards may be sent to her at 101 W. Main St, Laredo, MO 64652.

NORTH 65

CENTER MENUS

Monday- Baked ham, hashbrown casserole, mixed vegetables, rosy pears, whole wheat bread.

Tuesday- Roast beef, roasted potatoes, carrots, house salad, apricots, hot roll.

Wednesday- Pulled pork on a bun, pasta salad, buttered peas, blueberry cobbler, applesauce.

Thursday- Chicken fried chicken, potatoes Romanoff, catalina blend veggies, pineapple, homemade bread.

Friday- Salisbury steak, mashed potatoes and gravy, scalloped corn, orange slices, whole wheat bread.

MWSU Spring Grads Named

Area residents were among those earning degrees from Missouri Western State University at its Spring 2021 graduation ceremony.

The university conferred a total of 455 undergraduate and graduate degrees and certificates in the Spring 2021 semester. Graduates came from 17 states and seven foreign countries. Among those earning degrees were Jacob Aaron Trickel, Bachelor of Science in Computer Science, Computer Information Systems; and Stephanie Janee Wright, Bachelor of Fine Arts, Studio Art, both of Trenton; and Joanna Marble, Bachelor of Social Work, of Gallatin.

R-T Photo/Ronda Lickteig

Just in time for the fall semester, North Central Missouri College cut the ribbon on the Anchor I residence hall during a ceremony held Wednesday afternoon. The new hall will house 16 students, eight on each floor, with students having their own sleeping area and sharing a common kitchen and social area. An identical building, Anchor II, will open on Sept. 1, with the location of the halls to be called “Pirate Plaza.” Students will be moving into the residence halls on Saturday, Aug. 21. Students Get “Brighter” Start

Students in Grundy County are getting a “brighter” start to the school year as Bright Futures Trenton hosted a back to school event that featured backpacks, school supplies, clothing, hair cuts and other items needed to help begin the 2021-22 school year.

The event was held Thursday, Aug. 12 at various locations around the county and saw 268 students in the Trenton R-9 School District receive backpacks and supplies along with 30 students from the Spickard R-2 District and 38 students from Grundy R-5. In addition, the Laredo R-7 School District purchased supplies and backpacks for all students as well as a Laredo Tigers t-shirt. A total of 37 of those students were able to pick up supplies on Aug. 12.

Like-new clothing, as well as new underwear and socks, were provided to 165 adults and students, while 196 students were the recipients of the 344 pairs of new shoes that were distributed. Recycled gym shoes, provided by students at the end of the 2020-21 school year, were distributed to 116 students. Forty-three students will go back to school looking stylish thanks to free haircuts that were given at the event and 225 adults and students received like-new Trenton Bulldog apparel. A total of 350 hygiene items such as shampoo and soap were distributed to 116 students.

The event came together after months of planning and over 420 volunteer hours were provided by community members on Aug. 12 alone, not to mention the hours put in planning, collecting items, setting up, etc. Businesses and local organizations also worked to make the event successful, with Trenton Cinema providing a free movie to 235 students. The business also gave away 290 free drinks, popcorn and candy. The Trenton Kiwanis Club/Trenton Hy-Vee cookout served 100 students and adults and 80 people attended the free swim party at the Trenton Family Aquatic Center, sponsored by Bright Futures Trenton.

Bright Futures Trenton co-coordinators Terri Critten and Lynn Griffin also recognized TMS art instructor Sheridan Mounce, who took pictures throughout the event; Jon Guthrie and the THS football players/FCA, who helped move resources and put up banners; KTTN radio, which donated free

Photo Courtesy of Bright Futures Trenton

There were plenty of smiling faces at the Grundy County Back to School Event, held Thursday, Aug. 12. The event was sponsored by Bright Futures Trenton with the help of volunteers throughout the county. tickets to various events; and the churches and organizations that opened their doors for the event, which included First Christian Church, First Assembly of God Church, First Baptist Church, Rissler Elementary School, Grundy R-5 Elementary School at Humphreys, Laredo R-7 School, Spickard R-2 School, Trenton Cinema, Wesley United Methodist Church (storage), BTC Bank of Trenton (for allowing space for planning meetings) and the Trenton Park Department. In addition to Mrs. Critten and Mrs. Griffin, members of the 2021-22 planning team who made sure this year’s event was a success, were Chris Hoffman, Dave Miller, Leslie Woodard, Taylor Ormsby, Kristi Harris, Cara McClellan, Christy Tolson, Chris Small, Marjorie Keuhn, Misty Foster, Adriane Todd, Terry Holtzclaw, Daniel Gott, Kara Helmandollar, Anna Muselman, Linda Crooks, Jon Guthrie, Amy Oberman, Trisha Sharp and Jennifer Dyer.

Utility Committee Hears Preliminary Report

The Trenton Utility Committee will recommend the full city council move forward on a preliminary engineering report for improvements to the city’s water treatment system.

The committee met Tuesday evening and reviewed the PER, submitted by AllState Consultants of Marceline. The scope of the project includes not only an upgrade to the clarifier but also improvements to the reservoir and river pump stations including the replacement of piping under the floors. The projected cost for the clarifier portion is estimated at $1,789,600, while the river pump station portion is estimated at $300,700 and the reservoir pump station portion is projected to cost around $513,100.

The city will need to decide if it will do the project as design/build or design/bid/build, with the latter seeming to be the preference of the committee. It was discussed that a rate increase will likely need to be considered to help pay for the project.

The committee also voted to recommend to the council that it accept a bid for tree trimming from Asplundh at a cost of $151.45 per hour for a two-man crew, with 165 hours budgeted for a total of around $25,000. Also recommended will be the approval of a lime sludge removal bid from Mid-West Injection, which was for $53.50 per dry ton. A total of $100,000 is budgeted for the cost of the removal.

Water/Wastewater Supervisor Kenny Ricketts told the committee that work continues on the manhole installations along Ninth Street, where eventually a liner will be placed under the roadway to bring longevity to the sewer without digging into the highway. Manholes are being placed on both the north and south sides of the road so the liners can be put in place later.

Electric Distribution Supervisor Brad Griffin said employees in his department are continuing to install the new AMI meters. He noted that it was discovered that a phase was missing at Cross Hall, probably since 2019, that was resulting in about onethird of the usage from that building not registering. He said that will amount to around $2,000 per month in revenue. Comptroller Rosetta Marsh said about 500 of the 800 meters that have been purchased are installed and another 800 were purchased out of the current fiscal year budget. The 1,600 meters will be about one-half of what is needed and the others will be purchased over the next two years. Water department crews have installed about 100 of approximately 500 new water meters for the new AMI system.

Steve Reid, water treatment plant supervisor, said his department has been clearing brush from the lagoon and Wastewater Treatment Plant Supervisor Bob Hutchinson reported that one main plant pump is getting repaired and other equipment needs are being delayed due to supply availability.

In his report, City Administrator/Utility Director Ron Urton said a streetlight will be installed at each end of the new 17th Street Bridge, and he is waiting to order materials for water distribution work at Second and Kitty streets until an easement is received from a second property owner. He said registration and a funding request application for American Recovery Act funds has been submitted but it will likely be several weeks before funds are available.

The committee is scheduled to meet again at 6 p.m., Monday, Sept. 20.