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McDowell Gold Jubilee Celebrating music makers Sharing memories Summers of yesteryear Gypsy Vanners Horses with a presence
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From the publisher’s desk
J
ust the mention of the Fourth of July conjures many happy thoughts for me, dating back to childhood — such as the smell of hamburgers and hot dogs grilling over charcoal, and the sight of fireworks exploding in the night sky.
Watermelon was just as integral an Independence Day staple. Each year, on July 3, my family would attend the celebration in Southwest City, and I would feast on all the watermelon I could handle — usually donated by local bankers or politicians.
Growing up, my uncle would make delicious homemade ice cream each year at our family’s Independence Day gathering. It was the only time of year I had it — and still is. Every now and then, unfortunately, my responsibilities prevent me from making the short drive to Anderson to attend our family gathering, but I’m usually able to convince someone to set aside a cup for me.
Three years ago, I attended my first Freedom and Fireworks celebration in Monett. After an exhaustive search of South Park, I finally asked a Chamber employee about the whereabouts of the watermelon. I was dismayed to learn that there was none.
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Since then, Connection Magazine has donated watermelon to the Freedom and Fireworks celebration. We will do so again this year, as we believe it is our patriotic duty. Please stop by our table to say hi and enjoy a slice (or several) on us. We love meeting our readers. While burgers, dogs, watermelon and ice cream are a given, these items alone do not a Fourth of July cookout make. In this month’s edition, we feature Independence Day recipes that are sure to please even the most discriminating palates at your gathering.
Community
Ties
McDowell GolD Jubilee celebrating music makers SharinG MeMorieS Summer of yesteryear GypSy VannerS Horses with a presence
In this month’s Healthy Connection, Lisa Buck writes that it is important to know, appreciate, and reflect on the food you eat. While our busy schedules may tempt us to inhale
a quick meal, slowing down may be the key to a more healthful life. Summer is in full swing, and Murray Bishoff talked to local residents about their favorite memories of summers past, while Meagan Ruffing provides tips on surviving long road trips with your children this vacation season. I look forward to visiting with you over a slice of watermelon this Fourth.
Jacob Brower Publisher, Connection Magazine
A magazine dedicated to Southwest Missourians
On the cover: Photo by Christy O’Neal
Jacob Brower is publisher of Connection Magazine, The Monett Times and Cassville Democrat. He is president of the Missouri Associated Press Media Editors (APME) and serves on the Missouri Press Association’s board of directors. He can be reached at jwbrower@yahoo.com. Follow him on Twitter @jwbrower, and on Instagram @jwbrower1
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Features 12 | Road trip success
41 | Musical healing
Make your summer trip a blast by keeping structure and fun in tact
18 | Join right in
The McDowell Jubilee is a foot stompin’ good time for the entire family
25 | Remember when
Summertime has always brought back memories of yesteryear
36 | Chocolate Horse Farm
Artistic expression used as therapy
44 | Seeing the sound
Sign language bridges the communication gap
46 | Artist’s touch
Dr. Rebecca Burrell brings art to life through art enrichment classes
50 | Quilters gone mad
Victorian Crazy Quilts are all the rage
Gypsy Vanners are a sight to behold
Connection Magazine | 7
Photos by Pamela Dorton of Verona
Contents 10 17 32 34 53 56 59 64 66 8 | July 2017
Proud Parent contest Cutest Pet contest Recipes: Fourth favorites Bottles & Brews Community Calendar Submitted Photos Familiar Faces My Connection Parting Shot
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P r o u d pa r e n t
Are you a proud parent? If so, take this opportunity to show off that cute kid of yours. We invite you to share a photo of your child to be featured in Connection’s very own proud parent cutest kid contest. Email your child’s photo to connection@monett-times.com. Photos should be sent in the original JPG format at the highest resolution possible. Remember to include your child’s name, parent’s name, age, city and your contact information. The contest is open to children ages 10 and younger. The photos submitted will be used for the sole purpose of this contest.
Amelia Grace Montez, 2, of St. Charles, is the daughter of Nathan and Stephanie Montez, the granddaughter of Steve and Becky Hilton of Monett, and the great-granddaughter of Floyd and Polly Lillegard and Leon and Norma Hilton, all of Monett.
10 | July 2017
Congratulations,
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Happy one kid at a time
12 | July 2017
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Road trip essentials
for every family
In an effort to make road trips easier on all parents this summer, I have included five basic but necessary tips you will need to know for the next time you hit the road with your family. Being in the car for any amount of time with kids can be a challenge, now add to that hours upon hours of racking up miles in your minivan and you’ve got yourself an equation for instant boredom. Long rides in the car pre-kids meant catching up on my latest read or writing letters to long distance friends. Those days are long gone and have been replaced with the inevitable task-master that is the passenger seat person. Can I just go ahead and admit right now that I am the first one to raise my hand when it comes to being the driver? That way I know I am at least spared from having to be my children’s referee and snack time server. I am a team player, though, and so I plan accordingly. I plan for when I am in the driver’s seat and my husband is not and vice versa. That brings me to step number one: the ground rules.
Set the ground rules for the car ride:
1.
I stay home with my kids so, naturally, I am the parent who usually lays the ground rules anyway. It’s no different when we’re in the car. Before we even pull out of the driveway, I turn around in my passenger side seat and I say the following (feel free to repeat after me), “Here are the rules when you’re in my car. No yelling, no hitting, no spitting, no screaming, no foul language and no whining. You will also say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ when talking to your dad or I.” Then I have my kids repeat them back to me. Do my kids still do these things? Yes, of course. But not telling them anything and setting no rules is a recipe for disaster. If you know how you want your ship sailed, then say it. You will be better prepared for the outcome when things don’t go as planned. After I tell my kids the ground rules, I also tell them the consequences if they break them.
Tell your children the consequences
2.
so there are no surprises when you start taking things away. I’ve always been told that consequences should be tied to the offense so the child understands cause and effect. For example, if I gave my kids each a lollipop in the car and one of them threw it on the ground to be silly or one of them started spitting I would take the lollipop away and throw it in the trash. If my child started screaming at me because she was upset about that, I would
take it one step further and tell her no more sweets for the next hour (or whatever time frame works for you when you’re in the car). Things run much smoother on road trips when you’re all confined to a tiny area for long periods of time when everyone knows the expectations. Use whatever it is that your kids seem to get riled up about and think about what their consequences might be before it even happens. That way you will be one step ahead of the game and less likely to lose your cool.
Connection Magazine | 13
altanaka | fotolia.com
themed travel rewards
3.
Use a reward system.
Grab some inexpensive $1 items at the store and put them in a bag up front. For every hour or two hours that your kids can sit in the car quietly, give them something from the bag (take it one step further if you have time and wrap each item individually). Your kids will be so excited about getting surprise trinkets they’ll think this car ride adventure is the best thing ever! If you want to drag it out a bit more especially if you have a super long car ride — maybe
14 | July 2017
10-plus hours — get a few rolls of quarters and hand these out each time you catch your kid doing something good. This can be something as simple as saying thank you without being prompted to do so or it might be a big thing like saying they’re sorry for something mean they said to their sister. Whatever your reward system is, use it.
Have an arsenal of games, coloring books, crayons and toys on hand
4.
when your child complains of boredom. I always buy brand new coloring books and brand new crayons for each one of my children when we take a road trip. We have a ton of each at home but there’s nothing quite like something that is brand new and just yours. I give each child a flat cookie sheet pan with a few magnets so they can rip out a page from their coloring book and have something hard to place it on. I then hand out a Ziploc bag full of crayons to each child (this cuts down on fighting with who gets what color) so they have their very own set of crayons. I also bring a pack of plain white paper and stickers when they get tired of coloring but still want to do something creative.
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5.
Cut yourself some slack on the movie thing.
I used to be really uptight about how many movies my kids watched when we were in the car and it only lead to more fights and lots of crying. On our last road trip, I decided to play movies indefinitely, backto-back, to see what happened. My kids ended up coloring a lot more and falling asleep. It worked like a charm. Stock your car full of their favorite movies and grab some new ones at a Redbox when you stop for gas. Get rid of the guilt when it comes to your kids and electronics in the car. There you have it! A few simple things that have helped my kids and I make it through some pretty long car rides. Use these tips the next time you hear, “Are we there yet?” You never know, you might just get to crack open that book you checked out from the library.
Meagan and her three children are heading out for their longest road trip ever this summer. Follow her on her crazy adventure back home to Massachusetts at MeaganRuffing.com where she’ll be blogging from the Berkshires.
Cutest pet
Meet Rhett. Rhett belongs to Elisha McNabb of Cassville.
July’s winner! If you think your furry or feathered friend is the cutest in the area, let us know! We invite you to share a photo of your pet to be featured in Connection’s Cutest Pet contest. Email your pet’s photo to connection@ monett-times.com. Photos should be sent in the original JPG format at the highest resolution possible. Remember to include your pet’s name, city of residence and your contact information.
Connection Magazine | 17
Bryan Ozbun smiled down at his daughter, Kate, as her young voice rang out in the McDowell Gold Jubilee hall on familiar gospel songs.
Jumpstarting the
Jubilee Old-time music fans, players rally twice a month in McDowell
A view of the hall in the old McDowell school, offering around 200 seats for fans who gather for the McDowell Gold Jubilee. 18 | July 2017
Ozbun and players
T
he 1972 Staples Singers song begins, “I know a place/Ain’t nobody cryin’/Ain’t nobody worried/C’mon, I’ll take you there...” Down in McDowell, southeast of Monett and east of Purdy, there’s an old school building, its main room is lined with theater seats facing a small, not very deep stage. It’s a place like that. On the second and fourth Saturdays of the month, when McDowell is little more than a sleepy hollow, electric lights blaze onto the roadside sign on the east side of Highway VV. Down a long driveway that leads over gully, this most unlikely of spots becomes a beehive of activity. A back door leads into the main hall, where all eyes focus on the stage at the far end. Come in through a side door, and acoustic music, pickin’, strummin’, bows flying, voices with a distinct twang harmonizing, will greet you. That’s the rehearsal and jam room, a wood addition built around the original stone exterior of the school.
By Murray Bishoff
This is the McDowell Gold Jubilee. Fans of music of the hills, old-time gospel and traditional country music know this place. It’s the raw real thing, the “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” incubator, where performers are as likely to wear overalls and boots as not, certainly no ties and suit coats here. If you’d like to perform, you go over to one of the organizers, Kenny Lewsader, who runs the sound board, or his wife, Missy, and have your name added to the chalk board listing hanging near the stage. “It’s always very interesting,” said Missy Lewsader. “You never know who is going to come or what the music will be like. Young people don’t know anything about this.” When Bryan Ozbun and his young daughter Kate crossed the stage, and Bryan announced Kate picked the song set, the uninitiated may have wondered, until they broke into “Heaven Came Down and Glory Filled My Soul” and Albert E. Brumley’s “I’ll Fly Away,” practically the National Anthem of oldtime gospel music.
Performing on the stage of the McDowell Gold Jubilee, from left, are: Wayne Clevenger on mandolin, Tony Hinkle on fiddle, Kate and Bryan Ozbun.
Connection Magazine | 19
Ninety-year-old fiddler Paul “Red” Thomas and Ron Fearn jamming with the Flyin’ Buzzards.
“It frees your soul. It’s a good recharge. It’s joyous music, fun, upbeat.” - Ron Fearn, guitarist for Flyin’ Buzzards
John Richter brought feeling to Marty Robbins “Singin’ the Blues” with backing by Tony Hinkle on fiddle at left and Roger Kaiser on guitar at right. Beverly Ozbun sang at the McDowell Gold Jubilee backed by fiddler Arnold Wayne at left and Roger Kaiser on guitar at right.
Wayne Clevenger on mandolin and Tony Hinkle on violin on the stage of the McDowell Gold Jubilee.
20 | July 2017
Nor is it all church, though to this audience, the old music is sacred in its own way. John Richter took his turn, singing Marty Robbins’ “Singin’ the Blues” and Stonewall Jackson’s hit “Don’t Be Angry With Me Darlin’.” Marcelene Craig, a “regular” at the Jubilee, brought back those classic melancholic country songs. Her set, accompanied by an assortment of the acoustic musicians on hand, included “Ashes of Love,” “Hello Trouble” and “Forbidden Wine.” She sang with a lilt in her voice, a distinctive country inflection not heard on the radio these days, and a straight-from-the-heart delivery reminiscent of a young Kitty Wells or an old Loretta Lynn. “I’ve been doing this about 35 years,” Craig said. “I come here every time if I’m not sick. We have to keep the old songs going so we don’t forget.” Most of the time the stage is filled with instrumentalists. Almost no one had sheet music, except Bryan Ozbun’s daughter. The featured performer called out a key and everyone played along, improvising as they went. Guitars, percussion, an occasional mandolin or a fiddle all added texture and depth to the musical line. Some of it is slow. Much of it is lightning speed. “Bluegrass is a lot faster than rock n’ roll,” said Ron Fearn, guitarist for the Flyin’ Buzzards, who also played that night. “You can take any music and play it in bluegrass style, like the Everly Brother’s ‘All You Have To Do Is Dream,’” a standard on the Buzzards’ play list. Fearn made no bones about his love for the Gold Jubilee. “After a long week with not much chance to play, this is what I look forward to,” he said. “It frees your soul. It’s a good recharge. It’s joyous music, fun, upbeat. It usually leaves people with a good feeling.”
When it was their turn, the Flyin’ Buzzards, the only professional group on the schedule, played for fun and for the chance to promote their summer gig at Roaring River State Park. Fearn, Duwayne Blevins, John Amos and Wayne Clevenger used their forum to paint pictures of a bucolic America, with songs like John Prine’s “Paradise” about Muhlenberg County, Kentucky, Hank Williams’ “On the Bayou,” Mark Brinkman’s “Beyond the Rain” and Flatt and Scruggs’ “Roll In My Sweet Baby’s Arms.” For 37 years, the McDowell Gold Jubilee ran under the direction of Bennie and Betty Henderson. Partnering with their predecessors and nurturing the event, they supported the experience that attracted both players and the audience alike. When they retired, it looked like the end. However, Kenny and Missy Lewsader just couldn’t let it go. Kenny remembered, “There was a time if you didn’t get here by 5 p.m.,
you couldn’t get a seat.” “They were going to shut down the place,” Missy Lewsader said. “Where were all the musicians going to go? We had to keep it going.” Closed in May 2016, the Jubilee came back in October under the Lewsaders. They become the third managers of the event. It started in the early 1960s. Raymond and Norma Clevenger, the parents of Wayne Clevenger, the head of the Flyin’ Buzzards, were the original organizers. “My husband played music,” Norma Clevenger said. “Our house wasn’t that big. We had the store in McDowell at the time. Somebody suggested we use the school in McDowell,” which had been empty since the consolidation into the Purdy school district. “My husband and J.D. Rickman asked the Purdy school board if we could use it,” Norma continued. “They said that was fine, as long as we kept it clean and didn’t have any drink-
The concessions area stayed busy at the McDowell Gold Jubilee, giving those in attendance a chance for refreshment or something to munch during the show.
Connection Magazine | 21
ing or dancing. We were just going to do it once a month. It just went over so big we started having it twice a month. We named it the McDowell Gold Jubilee and put up the sign that’s still there. It was so popular there were nights we couldn’t get the store closed to get down there. We sold the store after eight years.” Wayne Clevenger remembered the first night, New Year’s Eve in 1960. He said the performers had been playing in their homes, and simply didn’t have the space to manage all who wanted to hear them. Over time, the school building physically changed to accommodate the performances. The hall had divided with a folding wall in the middle, the stage located on one half. The room now used for concessions had been walled off for a coat closet, where the children had stashed their lunches. Seats for performances for years had been long pews, brought in from a number of churches. “It’s been a good place for family fun,” he said. “So many kids learned to play down there; the Rickmans, the Blacks, Latshaws and Rollers. Lonnie Dunn had his grandson, Gary Cook, playing down there when he was young. Now he plays with Spur of the Moment. J.D. Rickman’s great grandson, Brandon, now plays in the Lonesome River Band and travels all across the country. I could go on and on about all who have played there.” It doesn’t take much imagination to leap back many decades standing in that room, to a time when it seemed like everyone could play an instrument. The theater seats in the hall are by no means new, and the lighting, except on stage, is pretty dim. A great deal of gray hair can be seen around the audience. In the back practice room, warming up with the Flyin’ Buzzards, was Paul “Red” Thomas on the fiddle. At 22 | July 2017
Flyin’ buzzards
The Flyin’ Buzzards in performance at McDowell. Pictured, from left, are Dwayne Blevins on bass, stand-in Tony Hinkle on fiddle, Ron Fearn on guitar, John Amos on banjo and Wayne Clevenger on mandolin.
90, Thomas is one of the last of the performers who played live on the air in the Golden Age of country music. “I’ve played here about 40 years,” Thomas said. “This is about the only place I know of where you can still hear this music. I’ve been playing over 75 years. When I first started, in 1949 and the early 50s, every place had a honky tonk. I’ve played everywhere, at square dances at McCord Bend in Galena and even at Polish weddings. My favorite music is traditional, good country music. That’s all I’ve ever played. My dad played fiddle – he was pretty good, too – and my mom played organ. “I had a 15-minute radio show on KRMO [the Monett radio station]. I worked for Lewis Hyde at his filling station in Monett at the time. He’d let me off work to play every day, then I’d go back to the job.” Thomas later worked in construction in both Springfield and Joplin. He went on to work at Jumping-Jacks Shoes for 10 years and Justin Boot before retiring. He always came back to his fiddle. Thomas said he couldn’t
play that well any more. A stroke had taken away the strength in the wrist and elbow of his bowing arm. But he still played, still shared the 1,000 songs in his memory, and shared the stories. He’d even tell you about a fellow fiddler back in the day who made the rounds playing an instrument made in the 1700s that had the stamp of the famed Guarneri family of Italian violin makers. “I played with Al and Tom Brumley [the sons of Albert E. Brumley] over 50 years ago at Hillbilly Land, run by Jack Johnson, in Eagle Rock,” Thomas said. “I played many times with Gene Haddock and Bill Greer. I played for the Stella Senior Center for 15 years. I played with every group you can think of. I enjoyed it.” Kenny Lewsader asks for a love offering to help cover the electric bill. The concessionaire keeps the proceeds from whatever she sells. He hopes to organize some fundraisers next summer to begin addressing concerns with the building. One part had considerable termite damage. A back corner has dropped three inches, straining
the rest of the structure. And then there’s the outhouses out back, since the school never had modern restrooms. Wyatt Clevenger said he was very glad to see the Lewsaders step up to continue the tradition. He knew that he could not manage the additional responsibilities and his playing gigs, though many pressed him to pick up the mantle. “I think it’s quite good for the community,” he said. “Many people still travel a long ways there to play.” The Jubilee is located on Highway VV, off Highway Z at Pleasant Ridge, south to close to the intersection with Highway C. Concerts begin at 6:30 p.m. on the second and fourth Saturdays. There is a summer break prior to restarting in the fall. Updates on schedules are available by calling the Lewsaders at 417-461-4697.
A side view offers a sense of the rustic nature of the McDowell Gold Jubilee, having changed little in the past 50 years.
∞
Connection Magazine | 23
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Sweet summer memories What made summer such a special time growing up?
June Brandt
Ah, summer. “My dad bought 40 acres and we paid for it in one year with the berries we picked. - June Brandt
By Murray Bishoff
June Brandt, 87, who grew up in the Exeter area, recalled the joy of getting out of school, but that was about the only freedom she recalled. “I was the oldest of five children,” she said. “My parents had no one to leave me with, so I have to go with my parents to the barn and learned how to milk by hand. “In summer we had to go to the strawberry and blackberry patch. We got $8 a gallon for blackberries. My dad bought 40 acres and we paid for it in one year with the berries we picked. When we were done picking our berries, we had to go pick the neighbor’s.”
Lorena Wells
Lorena Wells, 84, who spent her first 11 years in rural Oklahoma before moving to Rocky Comfort, recalled the stream ran through the family farm and she could go swimming every day. One of the fun parts of summer was going to Ridgley on Tuesday nights where Abe Green put out a tarp and showed movies on the Nickel Rush. “People would come out for that from all over, people you’d never seen before, and you’d wonder where they came from,” Lorena recalled.
Connection Magazine | 25
Louise Abramovitz Louise Abramovitz, 84, grew up near Wentworth and also recalled the long days of picking berries for a cent and a half a quart and then going down to the creek “to wash off the chiggers.” One of her summer chores was baling hay with a stationary horse, which she tended, while others brought in the hay. “Our father couldn’t afford to buy new shoes,” Louise said. “In the summer, we’d save them so they would be OK in the fall. That’s why my big toe is so bent, because I had to wear shoes that were too short. We’d make our own shoes out of pasteboard and tied them with binder twine so we could walk through the weed stickers in the back yard.”
Louise saw summer at least as a break from the 2-1/2-mile walk to the Fairview School, south of Wentworth. For entertainment, she recalled the family would huddle around a battery-run radio to listen to the Grand Ole Opry on Saturday nights. They couldn’t listen long after that or the battery would run down. Lorena and Louise both recalled summer as a break from the rigors of winter, when it might get so cold that the ladle would freeze solid set in the water bucket on top of the stove. Louise said autumn was also difficult, for that was the time to butcher the hogs and grind the sausage, and scraping the hide until it was paper thin. June observed people went to bed a lot earlier in those days, none of this staying up until 10 p.m. as people do today.
Betty Brandt
26 | July 2017
Betty Brandt grew up on a farm east of the Gardner Orchard off Highway 37, where the Monett and Purdy school districts divided. The family windmill was on the Monett side and the home was on the Purdy side, so she took the bus to Purdy. Her sister, Maybelle, was nine years older and didn’t want to play much, so Betty ended up spending a lot of time to herself. She remembers her summer activities as a child included making mud pies and playing with a push toy made of a metal ring off a barrel that rolled attached to a board and a handle. “My dad traded a BB gun to get a bicycle for me,” Betty recalled. “I could ride but not far. We were afraid of the gypsies who lived nearby.” Betty’s sister worked with her father in the field, loading hay bales. Betty lacked playmates as a youngster. The one family trip to Monett made every week for the weekly drawing was their big fun. She recalled milking the cow. When she reached age 12, she could pick berries for Alfred Justice, and got to keep the money. “I was saving to buy a wrist watch,” Betty said. “I’ve still got it in the box at the bank.”
When she got older, she went over to the nearby home of her cousins, the Thomas sisters — Barbara, Roberta and Mary Ruth. They would play house and dress up in old clothes. They would get together with a neighbor, Dennis Cuendet, and go sit by a pond north of the Cuendet farm. They would gather around and eat eggs boiled by Betty’s aunt, that were stored in pickled beet juice that had turned purple.
Lori Balmas Lori Balmas, director of the Monett Senior Center, had a simple formula for what made summer. “Playing outside and going to the pool,” Lori said. “That’s what we did here. You just looked forward to that last day of school, and you knew it was summer.”
Linda Sitton Linda Sitton grew up in the 1950s and early 1960s in the Bonne Terre, Fredericktown and Sullivan area in eastern Missouri. “Summer meant being out of school and slumber parties,” Linda said. “In a small town, you could run around everywhere. You could run around outdoors in jammies. It mean bike riding and swimming pools and TPing people’s trees. “When we rode our bikes, we went to a swinging bridge in Fredericktown. We’d never think about it being dangerous. If we would wade through water, we could get to this little island and we’d stay there for hours.” Every year, Linda said she would go to Girl Scout camp and had a wonderful time. Even as an adult, when she would go to retreats at camp with other adult Scout leaders, she said it was still just as much fun. When her four children were growing up in Monett, the big adventure was going to the swimming pool in the summer. Three of them liked it so much they all became life guards. “We always went on vacation, especially trips to Minnesota,” Linda said. “They all want to do it again, one more time.”
Luetta Burton Luetta Burton grew up in Aurora. Her summer fun was playing on a wood swing she had in a tree, and another on the front porch. “I remember lying in the grass on a blanket reading a book, running around barefoot, going to the swimming pool, catching fireflies, playing Mother May I, Red Light Green Light and tag,” Luetta said. “I was a professional grasshopper catcher to go fishing with. “I really enjoyed the hot weather. You couldn’t wear shorts to school back then. In summer you could wear shorts and thongs for shoes.” Luetta had chores, like gathering the eggs and bringing in the firewood. Until her mother died when Luetta was 8 years old, she would help her mother in the kitchen. Since she was the youngest, her sister was eight years older and her brother was 11 years older, Luetta had “extra privileges” as the youngest. One of her fondest memories is driving the tractor as a girl, sitting up high, wearing a straw hat, as the others loaded the hay bales.
Connection Magazine | 27
Gale Huffmaster Gale Huffmaster, who turns 80 in September, recalls living in what is now the north part of Monett. Across the road was John Schultz’s farm, located north of Nellie Street. “We all worked,” Gale said. “My buddies all had jobs. If I didn’t work, I felt left out. The work ethic was a little different then.” Schultz had around 20 acres that he planted in strawberries. Gale recalled helping to put out those plants, setting the runners and “getting the pleasure of picking.” “They let school out according to the strawberry season,” Gale said. “They’d send school buses a round to pick up pickers. We were really tied to the farm then. “My parents had a strawberry patch. I hated that. It was different when you were with your buddies than when you were with your mother. That didn’t make the evenings go well.” Gale seized onto a number of other jobs that came his way. He gathered hay with the Avondet brothers. When it came time to shock the bearded wheat and oats that a binder would cut, he picked and stacked the bundles, then pitched them onto a wagon to go to the thrashing machine. “I mowed yards big time,” he recalled. “That was a source of income. We used a reel mower then that you pushed. If you hit a tree root, oh my,
28 | July 2017
it would jar you to the bone.” When he wasn’t working in his younger years, Gale got together with his friends across the field, Wesley Thomas and the Hilton brothers. They got on their bicycles and rode everywhere, not getting any rides from their parents. A fun night would be riding into the IOOF Cemetery to play hide and seek. “Us boys — we were 11 or 12 — would walk to Pierce City a couple times a summer,” he said. “We’d pick up beer bottles and shot everything else with our BB guns. We brought the bottles back to where First State Bank is now on Cleveland, where the Krueger filling station was. He had a bar in the back and we’d sell the bottles to him.” Gale and his friends enjoyed playing baseball. For a bat they took a “club looking thing” with a steel rod in it that the railroad switchmen used. If the metal was sticking through the wood, Gale said it send a jar through the hitter. “Out where I was, there was really no one else around,” Gale said. “Dad had control of the radio. At night, about an hour before I’d go to bed, I had my little chair in the living room and I would read. I traveled to a lot of places in a book. There wasn’t anything else to do. Today I’m still a big reader.” When he got to high school, the summer between his freshman and sophomore years, Gale was hired to work in the stock room for the Vaisey Bristol Shoe Company, which made Jumping-Jacks shoes. Company men liked him so well they let him work unsupervised on weekends and evenings, even when he was in college. “I worked as many hours as I wanted. I was just a kid, mind you, and I
filled in for the night watchman when he was on vacation and even for the janitor. I learned I didn’t want to do that job for the rest of my life. When I graduated from high school, I had saved some real money. That’s how I went to college.” Gale’s family did have one other summer tradition. When his father got vacation time from the Frisco Railroad, they went on vacation, frequently to Colorado. A frugal family, Gale recalled his mother packed a cooler and a Thermos and they would eat on the side of the road. “One time we stopped at a restaurant and we all ordered pie,” he said. “The waitress asked my father and my uncle if they wanted their pie ‘a la mode.’ They had never heard that before and talked about it all the way home.”
I traveled to a lot of places in a book. Today I’m still a big reader. - Gale Huffmaster
Jon Suit Jon Suit, who came to Monett as a fourth-grader in the 1953-54 school year, looked forward to swimming at the city pool, and playing baseball. “Most of the boys were in Little League,” Jon said. “The sponsors donated T-shirts and hats. They put me in as a catcher. I wasn’t good enough to play Legion ball, which started about the same time as football started, which I did play.” Like others of his generation, Jon picked strawberries and recalled a truck went around pulling a trailer, on which the pickers would climb. He took on a number of summer jobs, including caddying on the sand greens at the Monett golf course. He did that as young as age 10. “I always worked,” Jon said. One dominant memory of summer for him was the heat and humidity before air conditioners.
“It was often hotter inside than out, and you were lucky to have one oscillating fan,” Jon recalled. “You wouldn’t get comfortable until the evening when it started to cool off.” When he got older, Jon landed one summer in the ultimate cool place: the Monett Ice Plant. He found the work more arduous than glamorous. He had the 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift. He had to pull the 300-pound blocks of ice onto the floor, push them into the chute then stack them in the storage room. Sometimes he helped the Armour meat packing plant with its regular order of crushed ice to preserve their product. The downside for the ice plant, he found, was trying to sleep through the heat of the day and having nothing to do at night during his off hours. Many spoke about the freedom they had, riding their bikes around town without concern. “You didn’t lock your house or your car in those days,” Jon said. “You’d leave your windows up. No one had anything worth taking anyway.”
For Jack Davis, who turns 89 in
Jack Davis September, summer was time for adventure. Jack recalled growing up “on the edge of town,” on what is today known as Eisenhower Street, but had no name in those days. His father, “Doc” Raymond Davis, who ran the Davis and Brothers grocery store, particularly enjoyed horses. “We had all kinds of animals — horses, chickens, ducks, geese, pigs and sheep,” Jack said. “I had to milk the cow. The poor cow suffered. Sometimes I didn’t milk her before noon.” Jack spent a lot of time with his friends, several of whom lived on Frisco: Richard McCall, Bob Hubbard and L.E. Lines among them. He admitted his parents probably had little idea of some of the things they got into, crawling through the city storm sewer system and climbing the water tower at South Park next to the Casino. He vividly recalled the old swimming pool at the park, which had a 12-foot deep end on the south side and a tower to climb to jump in. “Typical boyhood adventures,” Jack called them. “We had a fraternity. There were about eight of us, probably juniors and seniors. We did all kinds of things together.” The year Jack was a high school senior, he and Jim Sperry, along with Dick Callaway and Eddie Dawson,
Connection Magazine | 29
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who were two years younger, decided to visit some girl friends in Paris, Texas. “Jim had an old Chevy flatbed, which didn’t have a body other than a frame and two seats, and no hood over the engine,” Jack said. “We built a covered wagon out of it. Dick’s sister was an art major at the University of Arkansas and she decorated it for us. We left to visit those girls. Got as far as Granby and the truck broke down. We got it fixed — I don’t remember how — and we completed the trip. We were gone for most of a week. “In 1948, L.E. Lines owned an old Ford convertible. He and I drove to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. I was just out of high school and he was still in it. It was quite an adventure. We’d drive till we got tired. We had sleeping bags and we’d just sleep anywhere.” That spirit of adventure extended to Jack’s summer job his junior and senior years in high school. He signed up to help the custodian clean the junior and senior high schools. In addition to the floors, Jack got to clean the windows on the outside of both buildings, working on a hoisted platform. “I was the only one who would do that,” Jack recalled. But it was summer, a time when anything was possible. Memories well made never grow old.
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Recipes
Fresh Southern Peach Cobbler
Boston Baked Beans Ingredients
Ingredients 8 fresh peaches - peeled, pitted and sliced into thin wedges 1/4 cup white sugar 1/4 cup brown sugar 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice 2 teaspoons cornstarch 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 cup white sugar 1/4 cup brown sugar 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces 1/4 cup boiling water
Mix together: n 3 tablespoons white sugar n 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Directions n Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. n In a large bowl, combine peaches, 1/4 cup white sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon juice, and cornstarch. Toss to coat evenly, and pour into a 2 quart baking dish. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. n Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine flour, 1/4 cup white sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. Blend in butter with your fingertips, or a pastry blender, until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in water until just combined. n Remove peaches from oven, and drop spoonfuls of topping over them. Sprinkle entire cobbler with the sugar and cinnamon mixture. Bake until topping is golden, about 30 minutes.
32 | July 2017
American Potato Salad Ingredients 5 pounds red potatoes 6 eggs 2 cups mayonnaise 1 onion, diced 2 green onions, thinly sliced 1 small green bell pepper, seeded and diced 3 stalks celery, thinly sliced 2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
Directions n Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add potatoes, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until tender but still firm. Drain, cool and cut into cubes. n Place eggs in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Cover and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool, peel and chop. n In a large bowl, combine chopped potatoes and eggs. Mix together mayonnaise, chopped onion, green onion, green pepper, and celery. Season with salt and pepper, then mix well. Cover, and refrigerate for several hours or overnight. .
2 cups navy beans 1/2 pound bacon 1 onion, finely diced 3 tablespoons molasses 2 teaspoons salt 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 1/4 teaspoon dry mustard 1/2 cup ketchup 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 1/4 cup brown sugar
Directions n Soak beans overnight in cold water. Simmer the beans in the same water until tender, approximately 1 to 2 hours. Drain and reserve the liquid. n Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. n Arrange the beans in a 2 quart bean pot or casserole dish by placing a portion of the beans in the bottom of dish, and layering them with bacon and onion. n In a saucepan, combine molasses, salt, pepper, dry mustard, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil and pour over beans. Pour in just enough of the reserved bean water to cover the beans. Cover the dish with a lid or aluminum foil. n Bake for 3 to 4 hours in the preheated oven, until beans are tender. Remove the lid about halfway through cooking, and add more liquid if necessary to prevent the beans from getting too dry.
Source: AllRecipes.com
Please everyone at your Fourth of July gathering with these summertime cookout staples.
Pulled Pork BBQ Ingredients 3 tablespoons dry barbecue rub, or more as needed 1 (3-1/2) pound bone-in pork shoulder blade roast 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring, divided 1 cup water, divided 3/4 cup barbecue sauce, or as needed salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste 12 soft white hamburger buns 3/4 cup barbecue sauce, divided
Directions n Preheat oven to 210 degrees F. n Sprinkle dry rub generously on all sides of pork roast and place meat into a heavy pan or Dutch oven. n Pour 1/4 teaspoon of liquid smoke flavoring into each of two 6-ounce ramekins; fill ramekins with 1/2 cup water each. Place ramekins into the Dutch oven on either side of the roast. Place lid onto Dutch oven. n Roast pork in the preheated oven until very tender, 12 hours. Remove roast from Dutch oven, place onto a work surface (such as a cutting board), and separate the meat from the bone using your fingers. Discard any large pieces of fat. n Roughly chop pork with a large knife or cleaver; drizzle with 3/4 cup barbecue sauce. Season with salt and black pepper.
Awesome Pasta Salad Ingredients
Garlic Corn on the Cob Ingredients 12 ears corn, husked and cleaned 12 tablespoons butter, divided 1/4 cup garlic powder
Directions n Preheat grill for medium heat, or preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. n Place each ear of corn on a separate square of aluminum foil. Place 1 tablespoon of butter on each one, and sprinkle with garlic powder. Wrap ears tightly with the foil.
1 (16 ounce) package fusilli (spiral) pasta 3 cups cherry tomatoes, halved 1/2 pound provolone cheese, cubed 1/2 pound salami, cubed 1/4 pound sliced pepperoni, cut in half 1 large green bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces 1 (10 ounce) can black olives, drained 1 (4 ounce) jar pimentos, drained 1 (8 ounce) bottle Italian salad dressing
Directions n Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente. Drain, and rinse with cold water. n In a large bowl, combine pasta with tomatoes, cheese, salami, pepperoni, green pepper, olives, and pimentos. Pour in salad dressing, and toss to coat.
n Place ears of corn on the grill or in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes, turning over occasionally.
n Spread about 1 tablespoon barbecue sauce onto each bun and pile pork on buns to serve.
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B o t t l e s & br e w s
Captain Morgan LocoNut
Just in time for summer, Captain Morgan’s LocoNut is a blend of Caribbean rum, coconut liqueur, spices and natural flavors. The bottles mirror coconuts, and even smells like the equator-found fruit when scratched. LocoNut is best served chilled.
Not Your Mom’s Iced Tea
A spin off from the Not Your Father’s Root Beer, Not Your Mother’s Iced Tea is an homage to the matriarch of the family, offering a sweet taste perfect for relaxing on the porch in the summer. Brewed with tea from India and lemon juice, the drink is lower than its Small Town Brewery siblings in ABV, at only 5 percent. On BeerAdvocate.com, it has an 83 out of 100 score with 10 ratings.
Guinness Rye Pale Ale
A new offering in the area, Guinness Rye Pale Ale is a citrusy brew utilizing flavors of grapefruit an peach, with a bit of peppery spices. It was created by brewers at The Open Gate Brewery as a holiday gift, but was later moved to mass production. BeerAdvocate. com, it has an 81 out of 100 score with 168 ratings.
34 | July 2017
Golden Road Ride On IPA
A California brew harkening the dog days of summer, Golden Road Ride On IPA is packaged in cans and has notes of melon and pine, changing the pace from a traditional IPA. On BeerAdvocate.com, it has an 85 out of 100 score with 38 ratings.
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Connection Magazine | 35
Gypsy Vanner horses having blue eyes are considered to be good luck in the gypsy culture. Horses with white hair on the outer ear and dark hair on the inner ear are also considered to be good luck.
36 | July 2017
a breed apart Local couple works to raise awareness of Gypsy Vanners
T
he nomadic lifestyles of the Gyspy culture, or Travelers, may be appealing to some, and reviled by others. In many countries, Travelers have seen prejudice and persecution, their homes burned when they tried to settle into various communities. They packed their belongings into horsedrawn covered wagons, called vardos, and camped each night at the edge of villages. Pulling the vardos were sturdily built horses, known variously as the Gypsy Cob, Gypsy Horse, Coloured Cob, Gypsy Vanner, Tinker Horse or Irish Cob to do so. “These horses, Gypsy Vanners, were bred to be sturdy enough to pull
By Melonie Roberts
a heavily laden cart or wagon all day, thrifty enough to thrive on whatever forage was available along the road at the evening campsite, yet quiet and even tempered around children,” said Carol Dunbar, owner of 15 Gypsy Vanners on 80 acres that comprise the Chocolate Horse Farm in Mt. Vernon. The farm is also home to three Gypsy-Arabian crosses, two Quarter Horses and one Annie-mule. One of the original stallions, Talbot’s Sparky, is still standing today. “When I first discovered these horses, I was living in a village in England and the community held a deep dislike and disrespect for the gypsies there. They were looked down on as thieves. At the time, I
Sparky, a stud at the Chocolate Horse Farm in Mt. Vernon, was one of the first Gypsy Vanners brought to the United States from England by Carol and David Dunbar. Sparky has all of the characteristics of the classic Gypsy Vanner breed.
didn’t know any gypsies, but no one had anything nice to say about them.” Dunbar discovered the Gypsy Vanner breed while driving down a lane in England. “I saw them behind a hedgerow, and these six horses came up to see me,” she said. “They were gentle and curious. Horses don’t normally act that way. I was hooked.” That quick introduction led her to Tom Price, a well-known gypsy in England.
Connection Magazine | 37
Carol Dunbar, of Chocolate Horse Farm in Mt. Vernon, checks on her “boys,” a group of Gypsy Vanner horses originally shipped over from England. Vanners are known for their stockily-built bodies, abundant feathering on their legs, manes and tails, their even temperament and their innate intelligence.
“I spent four days on his property looking at horses,” she said. “The love he has for them is amazing. He doesn’t write anything down, but he can tell you the name of each of is horses, how many babies each has had and if she is a good mama. He was the first person willing to talk to us.” Eventually, the couple bought three yearlings and upon their return to the United States in 2001, settled in upstate New York. “We had a vet look at them while they were in quarantine and he said, ‘Oh, you have Vanners.’ That’s the first time we knew what they were. I’d only heard them called Cobs, which designates a heavy type of horse.” Two years later, the couple imported three fillies from the same breeder, and in 2005, their first foal, Gypsy Rose Lee, was born. Aside from building their small herd of unique horses, the couple be-
38 | July 2017
came involved in forming a registry, outlining the characteristics, conformation and standards expected for the breed. “We started educating buyers and breeders on what constitutes a good horse,” she said. “Some breeders in the U.S. and England are downsizing. Their horses are smaller framed, but maintaining the same conformational statistics. We decided we were going to stick with the traditional Gypsy bloodlines. Our other stallion is conformationally correct, but he’s energetic, which is like the difference between a lap dog and a hunting dog. We don’t know what [other bloodlines] have been infused into some of them.” Some of those infusions were deliberate. “The first Gypsy Vanners were solid colors, until World War I, when the government confiscated all solid col-
Oliver Twist, a Gypsy Vanner, was donated to a therapeutic riding facility in Missouri to serve former military personnel in need of equine therapy.
ored horses across the countryside for the war effort,” Dunbar said. “That effort deprived the gypsy of their only means of getting around.” At that point, color was introduced to ensure the horse would never again be attractive as a war horse. Today’s Vanners can contain gray, red, brown or black and white colorations.
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Connection Magazine | 39
“For the past 20 years, breeders in England have found a market here in the States, which has assisted in establishing a breed of horse that, so far, few know anything about,” Dunbar said. Other cross-breeding efforts are not as fruitful. “When you cross a Vanner with other breeds, one of the first things you lose is the feathers [on their legs],” Dunbar said. One thing Dunbar does know is there are a few things Gypsies consider fortunate when it comes to Vanners. “Blue eyes are considered good luck,” she said. “And a horse that has white hair on the outside of its ears and dark hair on the inside is also considered to be good luck.” The Dunbars moved to Mt. Vernon and established Chocolate Horse Farm in 2010. There they began building their Vanner horse herd. “We didn’t intend to start a business,” Carol said. “When we first brought them home, the intent was not to make more babies. But people are fascinated with them. We decided, after the first few foals, we were going to need more mares. It was a couple of years after that we started breeding for business purposes.” Dunbar said there is a purpose to their breeding program. “We want to preserve the Vanner breed, as it came to us, for generations to come.” Chocolate Horse Farm is located at 14402 Lawrence 2145 in Mt. Vernon. For more information, visit ChocolateHorseFarm. com.
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40 | July 2017
Hobbs, one of the first foals born at Chocolate Horse Farm in Mt. Vernon, is now 3 years old. Owners David and Carol Dunbar are planning to use Hobbs as a stud to see what kind of foals he throws, hoping he continues to produce offspring that meets the conformity standards set forth by the Gypsy Vanner Horse Society.
Laura is one of the original six Gypsy Vanners horses to be shipped from England to upstate New York in 2003 after Carol and David Dunbar moved back to the United States. Carol discovered the unusual breed while living in England for a year.
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M
usic and art have a way of reaching the intellect and touching the psyche when nothing else can. Music also has been scientifically proven to affect neuron connections in the brain, affecting memory, mood and motivation. So it’s no surprise that clients at the Music & Creative Arts Center in Monett have grown from eight to over 100 since opening its doors in 2003. Founded by Michael Cassity, PhD, MT-BC, president and CEO of Music Therapy Services, Inc., the center has been offering therapeutic services to individuals in Barry and Lawrence counties with developmental disabilities for nearly 15 years. Cassity, who brings 35 years of expertise in the music field to the center, singlehandedly brought music therapy to this area of the state, and says it’s By Julia Kilmer
making a difference in the lives of families, who face daily challenges that those without disabilities take for granted, such as dressing, eating, shopping and communicating. “When the parents see the effects, and the guardians, and how therapeutic services are for their children — it just keeps growing,” said Cassity. “Many of the clients are intellectually and physically-impaired, or are on the autism spectrum. We use music [and art] to help individuals of all ages with developmental disabilities. They respond extremely well to our services.” Cassity, who has been involved with music therapy since 1972, says he found his niche. “I’ve been very successful in music therapy because it fits my talents and ability,” he said. “I was a professional musician before I went into music therapy. I heard about music therapy,
The Music Therapy & Creative Arts Center in Monett has a warm, welcoming atmosphere and beautiful decor that reflects the therapeutic services it provides, which are making a difference in the daily lives of families.
and decided that would be the perfect field with my interest in psychology and music. At that time, only eight universities in the country offered a masters in music therapy.” As a musician, Cassity learned functional skills, and the language, of music. A professor once told him, ‘You’re learning the music of the people.’ “You have to know a client’s music preferences so you can establish a relationship with them,” he said. “Most songs have three chords, so it opens up a lot of things therapists can play.” Cassity established the first music therapy program in Oklahoma at Southwestern State University, where he served for 20 years. In Springfield, he also started a program at Drury University, which he oversaw for 12 years, before establishing the center, which has allowed scores of families to Connection Magazine | 41
Michael Cassity, PhD, MT-BC, president and CEO of Music Therapy Services, Inc., plays one of several instruments available at the Music Therapy & Creative Arts Center in Monett he established in 2003, which provides therapeutic music and art sessions for developmentally disabled clients in Barry, Lawrence and Taney counties.
The Music Therapy & Creative Arts Center, on Third Street in Monett, provides therapeutic music and art sessions to developmentally disabled clients, which have been proven to pay huge dividends in the daily lives of clients and their families. The services are evaluated on a regular basis by parents, who are first-in-line to see a difference in their child, who consistently rank services at the highest levels.
Art Educator Jan Jenkins, a retired art teacher from Monett schools, helps clients with a project during an art education session at the Music Therapy & Creative Arts Center in Monett. Jenkins said the sessions help developmentally disabled clients with socialization skills and other areas, but are also about clients trying new things, enjoying themselves and experiencing art, which creates positive ripple effects in other areas of their daily life. Jenkins uses a mediums such as paint, chalk, oil pastels, crayons and markers to interest clients.
42 | July 2017
access the benefits of music therapy. Cassity said he enjoys handling the day-to-day administrative tasks at the center. “All I do is make sure it grows and offer the best program we can,” he said. “I’ve always enjoyed therapy. When I saw the kids benefiting and how grateful the parents are, it makes it all worthwhile.” Four music therapists use musical instruments during individual and group sessions, to help clients meet personalized objectives on their IEPs (Individual Education Plans). Services are funded by partnerships with local counties and grants. “It’s considered an essential service [by the counties],” Cassity said. The organization also has a satellite center in Cassville, and opened a Branson location in 2012. Board-certified Music Therapist Kaiti Rutledge, MT-BC, says the therapy works because music is very motivational, and makes connections in the brain. “I have seen really amazing things happen — with behaviors and speech clients didn’t have before, and making progress in school,” said Rutledge. “All of a sudden, they’re able to add and subtract without even thinking about it.” Rutledge said implementing music, which clients enjoy, helps them retain information easier. “If they’re singing a song, it’s a lot more fun to add and subtract,” she said. “We all learned our ABCs, days of week, counting and body parts through music and songs. We take that same concept and apply it to all parts of life, so music will generalize to other settings. Music sticks in our brains. Anything a speech, occupational or physical therapist does, we do. It is totally different than a music
lesson; it is true therapy.” In 2014, the center began offering art services, employing three art educators. “It’s officially art education because we couldn’t find art therapists in this area,” Cassity said. “But the parents call it art therapy because they think it’s very therapeutic. Fine motor skills especially are improved. They make pretty intricate projects.” Art Educator Jan Jenkins, BFA, a retired art teacher from Monett schools, says art sessions help socialization skills in group settings, but it’s really about clients trying new things, enjoying themselves and enjoying art, which then creates positive ripple effects in their daily living. Jenkins uses a variety of mediums such as paint, chalk, oil pastels, crayons and markers. “I want it to be something they can be successful in, and to foster a love of art,” Jenkins said. “It’s a way of expressing themselves. They are very proud of what they do.” Cassity says happy parents are proof the services work. “We know this because we use parents as a measuring stick,” he said. “They know their children better than we do. We have a list of adaptive skills and parents rate them from a 1, being no effect, to a 5, extremely effective, and we get all fours and fives every year.” Parents witness significant improvement in communication skills, self-esteem from achievement, selfconfidence, motor skills, social skills, cognitive functioning, ability to follow directions, impulse control, attention span, communication and
Dr. Michael Cassity, founder of the Music Therapy & Creative Arts Center in Monett, which provides music therapeutic music and art services for developmentally disabled clients, points out a speciallydesigned guitar used in music therapy services at the center. Cassity said therapists connect to and establish a relationship with their clients through songs they like and enjoy, and many songs can be played with only three chords.
expression, stabilized behavior and vocalization — all areas that make a world of difference in daily interactions. But there is one other area, and probably one of the most important, that is improved: “They just seem happier, since they are doing something meaningful in life,” Cassity said. “The services are a blessing to clients, and parents witness the effects personally. That’s the power behind it.” That power continues to resonate, as local schools are now showing an interest in the center’s services. Cassity invites neighboring counties or organizations interested in establishing music therapy programs to contact him at 417-693-2188 or 417-489-4599. People may also obtain more information by visiting the center’s website at MusicTherapyAndCreativeArtsInc.com.
∞
Connection Magazine | 43
The sound of silence
Members of the deaf community often feel isolated in a speaking world
Imagine
,
if you can, never hearing the wind rustling throughout the leaves of a tree, a whippoorwill calling its mate at dusk, the laughter of a child, or the crash of a wave landing on a beach. Imagine never hearing a single sound from the day you were born. “Members of the deaf community feel very isolated in the hearing world,” said Marla Townsend, a case worker for Preferred Family Healthcare in Aurora. “I have a client I call “Little Miss Sunshine,” and she is the inspiration behind starting the group Deaf Friends. I hope to get members of the deaf community, their family and friends together once a month to socialize, learn American Sign Language and have a place to express their personal goals and achievements. It’s to let them know they are not the only ones out here and having these same issues.” 44 | July 2017
Townsend is relatively new to ASL herself, having to learn the basics in order to communicate with her client. “It is learning a whole new language,” she said. “I’ve discovered there are several deaf students enrolled in area schools, but only one in Monett, one in Verona, one in Aurora. In school, they are very isolated. In this area, there are very few places they can go to enjoy any kind of recreational activities, socialize and be with others who speak ALS. We’re not only wanting to help integrate members of the deaf community into the mainstream, but heighten awareness on the limitations deaf individuals have when attempting to communicate with someone outside the deaf community.” ASL is a fairly simple form of communication, as evidenced by the world-famous western lowland gorilla, Hanabiko, “Koko,” who has mastered more than 1,000 signs. While critics believe her responses are conditioned training, Koko has been
able to come up with some unique interpretations for everyday items, such as a ring. According to her handler, Francine Patterson, nobody had taught Koko the word for “ring.” When referencing the item, Koko combined the words “finger” and “bracelet,” hence “finger-bracelet.” Likewise, when Koko’s adopted kitten, All Ball, a gray Manx, was hit and killed, she reportedly signed “bad, sad, bad,” and “frown, cry, frown, sad.” Patterson reported also hearing Koko making a sound similar to human weeping. Koko, who met and interacted with late actor Robin Williams, also mourned his passing when she heard the news, becoming very somber, with her head bowed and her lip quivering. Koko requested and has since adopted a total of four more kittens. Townsend and Kathleen GlasgowShannon, who works for the Lawrence County Tax Board for the Developmentally Disabled, recently came up with the idea of providing a safe place for mem-
“Little Miss Sunshine,” left, a nickname Marla Townsend, right, has given her client, teaches Townsend how to communicate in American Sign Language, believed to be the fourth most commonly used language in the United States. Townsend is the program coordinator at Preferred Family Healthcare in Aurora, and has had to learn basic ASL in order to communicate with her client.
Hanabiko, “Koko,” is a female western lowland gorilla known for having learned a large number of hand signs from a modified version of American Sign Language. According to Francine Patterson, her handler, she can use more than 1,000 signs. Although critics believe Koko’s use of ALS is a product of conditioning.
bers of the deaf community to gather and socialize. More importantly, they hope area professionals, such as law enforcement officials, physicians, firefighters and ambulance personnel will consider sending representatives to attend the meetings as well. “If a deaf person is detained and handcuffed by law enforcement, he just lost his ability to communicate,” Townsend said. “In another major city, a deaf man was recently shot and killed because he couldn’t comply with the officer’s spoken commands. Members of the deaf community are not deliberately trying to disobey, but if they can’t hear a
By Melonie Roberts
command, they can’t respond appropriately. That is tragic and we don’t want it to happen here. There are very few emergency responders who speak ASL and can communicate with members of the deaf community.” Townsend’s client has served as an ambassador for the deaf community by visiting the library, local Head Start classes and the senior center to teach basic signs. “The children loved her,” Townsend said, “and she loved teaching the kids. There were a lot of requests for the signs for butterflies, animals and family member relationships, like ‘mom’ or ‘dad.’ They were very curious and there was a
lot of interaction between her and the children.” Townsend also cautions that, unlike typical television portrayals, just because people can use sign language, it does not automatically follow that they can read lips. “There is obviously a need for some awareness and education,” Townsend said. Deaf Friends group meets at 5 p.m. the last Thursday of each month at the LCDD Community Center, located at 403 E. Elm St. in Aurora. For more information, call Townsend at 417-678-0123.
∞
Connection Magazine | 45
Wheaton native uses
elements of art to prompt thought, bring about change
W
hether art mimics life, or life, art, Wheaton native and Creative Educator Rebecca Decocq Burrell, Ed.D., has found a unique way to apply art to life in a multidimensional manner that has the potential to enrich and change lives. Burrell uses her unique talents and insights, along with art and its related elements of color, lines, texture and shape, to bring fresh perspectives to life circumstances, opening windows to viewpoints one might never have considered. Like her business, Creativity Unlimited, her creativity is expanse, creating a mental 3-D effect that pops the consciousness with multidimensional thought. Give her a paintbrush or a colored pencil and she can create a beautiful piece of art, but give her your time, and she may just use it to rearrange a mind set, stir a soul, or touch a life. “Ethereal reality,” as she describes it, is her current body of work, which involves
46 | July 2017
analyzing the concepts of what one envisions. While that may sound a little deep, be assured, her teachings can be applied in a very concrete way. “It’s about designing one’s reality,” Burrell said. “I’m more interested in the person as a work of art.” Burrell shares highlights from one of the group sessions she taught graduate students at Drury University for 16 years. “Creativity is not just doing paintings, it’s how we express ourselves and our ideas,” Burrell said, “whether that be through visual arts, writing, photography, poetry, or music. Your life is a masterpiece, what are you creating? The class is about developing personal and professional creativity through the liberal arts. I was asked to design a new graduate class by the director to connect our graduate students and see what kind of difference they could make for the residents of the Missouri Hotel. “So it’s about bringing the arts to help those who are marginalized in so-
ciety, and helping them envision their reality as to what could be possible. It’s a model program that any one of the students could put into effect wherever they’re teaching.” Burrell has also taught a course called Building Community through Art, and holds seminars through her business and studio, Creativity Unlimited. An impressive education, from which much of her artistic insights flow, follows her, including a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Missouri State University in art and business, a master’s in secondary administration and a doctorate in educational leadership with studies in the Graduate School of Education at Harvard. Yet Burrell gives credit for much of her insight and creativity not to Harvard, but her small town education in Wheaton, which made an indelible imprint upon her consciousness and which she calls a “rich, multidimensional education and learning environment” that people often underestimate. At age 4, Burrell remembers making
By Julia Kilmer
Dr. Rebecca Burrell teaches one of her group sessions to graduate students at Drury University. Burrell has a unique way of sharing various elements of art to provoke thought and open windows into fresh, new viewpoints that have the potential to bring about individual and community change.
Creative educator:
‘Your life is a masterpiece, what are you creating?’ her first drawings in the one-room school house she attended with children in upper grades, along with a social psychology course taken during her senior year taught by a Mr. Simmons. “There were about seven of us in the class, and that’s what really piqued my interest and probably why I’ve enjoyed graduate classes and doing seminars was from that small group setting,” Burrell said. “We had no text book; he brought resources to us and it was an unusual exchange of ideas and thoughts and discussion. That was ahead of its time. It was he who told me one afternoon, ‘You will do well in college,’ and it was that kind of encouragement that gave me a vision early on.” Burrell has also provided services to CoxHealth, creating angels out of simple materials like Christmas wrapping paper for patients who are recovering
from serious illnesses and offering them encouragement. “I will make a paper angel at bedside [for them],” she said. “It’s a diversion for them. If one can take a little time for healing and change one’s thoughts and focus for a little bit, it is beneficial. It’s using art as a mode toward making people feel better.” Burrell has also taught her concepts in
For the year 2014, Creative Educator Dr. Rebecca Burrell chose a cardinal to grace the cover of her personally-made New Year’s cards.
Along with using art to offer new insight to life and bring about positive change through her community work and seminars, Creative Educator Dr. Rebecca Burrell is an artist. Shown is her painting titled Ethereality — A Glimpse Beyond, which is part of a current series of paintings focused on ethereal reality and envisioning the world and landscapes beyond. “It’s an imaginative ‘beyond’ scape,’ said Burrell.
group sessions with psychiatric patients to help bring about meaningful change, using art to prompt participants to think about their thoughts, choices and their overall life composition. Burrell teaches participants in her Art of Designing Your Reality session, that if one does not like the life composition they have created, they can revise it. “The focus is to empower participants,” Burrell said. “If your life is a canvas, we’ve been painting all along, since we arrive, and there are others who have been helping us paint along the way — our parents, grandparents, schools … but we are a work in progress and the colors [on your canvas] are your thoughts, behaviors, decisions and choices. “Now, if you do not like your painting, you can review what has been your strengths, gifts, from a period of time or a single event, and can rework it. We can’t change what we’ve painted, but we can reflect upon it and let it guide what we paint in the composition next. We are not making art in the group, but
48 | July 2017
Shown is an owl on the front of Dr. Rebecca Burrell’s personallymade New Year’s cards to celebrate 2015.
the individuals around the table are the works of art.” In all of her sessions, Burrell invites participants to think beyond the limits of what they have been taught. “I say to my students and when working with groups, ‘I not only expect you to think outside the box, I expect you to design the box out of which you think.’” According to Burrell, we’re all making our mark on a larger composition called life, have a brushstroke in the work, and the ability to create and change things as we go. “We’re artists of living well and contributing to the larger work of the community as a studio,” she said. “All of us are a work in progress; we continue to create.” Burrell still has family in the Wheaton area, including her sister Jeanie Decocq. For more information about Burrell and her services, she can be reached by email at dr.rburrell@gmail.com
∞
Shown are Christmas angels made by Creative Educator and Artist Dr. Rebecca Burrell in 2015 for patients in the oncology unit at Cox South Hospital in Springfield. Burrell makes the angels for patients recovering from serious illnesses as volunteer coordinator of the hospital’s Partners in Creative Care program, which she developed and implemented. The program received the Extraordinary Program Award in 2000 from the American Society of Directors of Volunteer Services, for the nontraditional methods by which the program applied the arts to comfort patients’ spirits. Burrell uses simple materials like Christmas wrapping paper and tinsel to make the 13inch tall angelic symbols, which bring patients encouragement. The program began in 1995.
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Connection Magazine | 49
Women get
Pictured is a completed sample of a Crazy Quilt block in a Christmas theme. Seams between irregularly shaped swatches of material are disguised with lace, beads, embroidery and appliquĂŠd pieces.
crazy
at local library
Novice quilters learn history behind Victorian Crazy Quilt
50 | July 2017
By Melonie Roberts
N
ovice quilters taking lessons at the Monett Branch of the Barry-Lawrence Regional Library recently learned how to make a Victorianstyle Crazy Quilt block, which can be joined with a multitude of others to be displayed as a wall hanging or on a quilt rack. Smaller blocks can be made into a lap robe or pillow, depending on the crafter’s choice. “Victorian quilts like these were popular among rich women in the later 1800s until about 1920,” said Cheryl Willis, one of the instructors for the monthly quilting class. “A full-size Crazy Quilt could take 1,500 hours or more to complete. All the work was done by hand.” Willis said crazy quilting became a national fashion amongst urban, upper-class women, who incorporated a wide variety of rich fabrics and multiple textures pieced together from hundreds of different fabrics such as velvet, satin, brocade, tulle, or silk and embellishments that could include buttons, lace, ribbons, beads, or embroidery. “These quilts were rarely, if ever washed,” Willis said. “The delicate quality of the fabrics used would not withstand multiple washings. These were once-in-a-lifetime quilts, and they were taken care of extremely well.” The appeal of the Crazy Quilt, according to Willis, is the way it feeds an individual’s need to create. “You’re naturally going to want to touch something with texture and bling,” she said. “The fabrics we have available today, such as sateen, velveteen and other mock materials, are more durable than those manufactured in the 1900s or earlier.”
Cheryl Willis, quilting instructor at the Monett Branch of the Barry-Lawrence Regional Library, displays a Crazy Quilt block she crafted from recycled fabrics and embellished with black ribbon roses.
Joni Otto, right, another quilting instructor, demonstrates to Elizabeth Stapleton, left, the process of crafting ribbon roses.
Modern fabrics utilized now include crepe de chine, damask, dress weight velvets, lace, linen, organza, satin, silk, taffetta, velour or voile. They may even come from old ties, children’s outgrown clothing, bridesmaids’ dresses and other outdated evening wear or old curtains. Embellishments can range from metallic charms and glass beads from the craft store, to bits of lace, ribbons, intricate embroidery or cross stitched pieces, tatted pieces, doilies, beads and buttons.
Many quilters begin with a theme, such as animals for a child’s quilt, a romantic, heavily embellished Victorian-style piece for a wedding gift, a table runner as a housewarming gift, as tributes to a loved one’s hobbies, in memory of a deceased family member, as a tactile tribute to a favored children’s book, a family heritage quilt or a special occasion gift. Quilters started with a muslin square backing piece locked in an embroidery hoop and pinned an irConnection Magazine | 51
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regularly shaped swatch of fabric to the surface. Joni Otto, the other class instructor, then led participants through the processes of creating ribbon roses and daisies directly on the fabric. Using the “stitch and flip” method, a second piece of fabric, right sides facing together, is sewn along the edge of the first and then opened up to lay flat on the backing material. The process continues, with various fabrics in vibrant colors, until the block is covered. The random seams are covered with bits of lace, intricate embroidery stitches or patterns, fabric flowers, appliqués, beads, buttons, charms and other bits of ephemera that add what Willis calls “eye candy” to the final project. Unlike other quilts, Crazy Quilts have no batting because they are often weighty enough with just the embellishments. The back is typically a single piece of fabric basted to the back of the quilt block or quilt top. Once basted, quilt is tied to the backing at seam corners and the edges are permanently bound. Quilters wanting additional instruction are invited to stop by the Church of Christ, located at Ninth and Sycamore in Monett, on open sew days, where Willis can answer questions. She is there from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Tuesday, through Thursday on the second, third and fourth weeks of each month. Quilting instruction will continue at 1 p.m. the first Wednesday of each month at the Monett Branch Library, located at 213 Sixth St. For more information, the library’s website at visit http://www2.youseemore.com under the events tab.
∞
Community calendar
Photos captured by Wiley Miller in south Florida.
J u ly 2017 July 1
Monthly Dance hosted by the Cassville
Senior Center will be held from 7-10 p.m. Finger foods are welcome. Admission is $4. For more information, call 417-846-3024.
July 3
Monthly dance at the Monett Senior
Center.
Independence Day celebration lunch
at the Cassville Senior Center begins at 11 a.m.
July 4
The Monett Chamber of Commerce
will sponsor a Freedom & Fireworks event. Rides are open from 1-9 p.m., with unlimited wristbands for $10 in advance, $15 after July 1. Musical performances start at 3 p.m., with Mark Chapman Band headlining at 8 p.m.
The Shell Knob Fire & Thunder Fire-
works Display will be held with fireworks shot over Table Rock Lake, east of the Shell Knob Bridge. The display starts at dark, approximately 9:20 p.m.
July 5
Blood pressure checks by Ozark Meth-
odist Manor, 10:30 a.m. to noon, at Central Crossing Senior Center.
Blood Pressure checks at the Cassville
Senior Center begins at 10:30 a.m.
July 6
The Grief Support Group, which nor-
mally meets the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of each month at Oak Pointe of Monett, will meet this month on July 6 due to the July Fourth being Tuesday this month. The site is 1011 Old Airport Road from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. For more information call Kathy at 417235-3500.
Paint Class begins at 9 a.m. at the Cass-
ville Senior Center, 1111 Fair Street, in Cassville. Call 417-847-4510 for more information.
July 8
The Seligman Chamber of Commerce
will sponsor a dance at the Seligman Chamber Event Center on Highway 37, beginning at 7 p.m. No alcohol or smoking. Under age 18 admitted free. For more information, call 417-6623612.
July 12
Grace’s Foot Care will begin at 9 a.m.
at the Cassville Senior Center, 1111 Fair Street. Call 417-847-4510 for an appointment.
July 15
The Seligman Chamber of Commerce
will sponsor a dance at the Seligman Chamber Event Center on Highway 37, beginning at 7 p.m. No alcohol or smoking. Under age 18 admitted free. For more information, call 417-6623612.
July 18
Grace Health Services will be held at
the Central Crossing Senior Center in Shell Knob by appointment. Call 417858-6952.
July 20
The July Birthday Lunch will be served
at the Central Crossing Senior Center. Entertainment will be by the Shell Knob Strings.
Paint Class begins at 9 a.m. at the Cass-
ville Senior Center, 1111 Fair Street, in Cassville.
The Alzheimer Support Group will
meet at the Central Crossing Senior Center in Shell Knob beginning at 2 p.m. For more information, call 417858-6952.
July 21
The Monett Senior Center will be hav-
ing their monthly Birthday Lunch and Special Bingo.
July 22
The Seligman Chamber of Commerce
will sponsor a dance at the Seligman Chamber Event Center on Highway 37 beginning at 7 p.m. No alcohol or smoking. Under age 18 admitted free. For more information, call 417-6623612.
July 24
Nell’s Nails will be held by appoint-
ment at the Central Crossing Senior Center in Shell Knob by appointment. Call 417-858-6952.
Connection Magazine | 53
Photo captured by Wiley Miller in south Florida.
July 26
WIC will be at the Central Crossing
Senior Center. Call 417-847-2114 for an appointment.
Nell’s Nails will begin at 9 a.m. at the
Cassville Senior Center, 1111 Fair Street, Cassville. Call 417-847-4510 for an appointment. Walk-ins are also welcomed.
July 27
The Pierce City Senior Center monthly
dance will be held at the center.
July 28
OJ’s Cookout will be held at the Central
Crossing Senior Center in Shell Knob.
Nell’s Nails will be at the Monett Senior
Center. For an appointment call, 417235-3285.
Monthly Birthday Lunch will be held at
the Cassville Senior Center, 1111 Fair St.
July 29
The Seligman Chamber of Commerce
will sponsor a dance at the Seligman Chamber Event Center on Highway 37, beginning at 7 p.m. No alcohol or smoking. Under age 18 admitted free. For more information, call 417-6623612.
GROUPS Grief Care Support, sponsored community
support by Integrity Hospice, is held the last Thursday of every month at 10 a.m. in Marionville at Methodist Manor, 205 South College Ave. in the Alice Lounge. The care group is for anyone experiencing grief through loss. The Aurora Diabetes Support Group
meets the third Wednesday of each month at Mercy Hospital in Aurora in the private dining room from 4-5 p.m. It is free and open to the public. There is no meeting in December. The Parkinson’s Support Group meets at
2 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church, 1600 N. Central in Monett on the second Thursday of every month. No charge to attend. Call 417-2693616 or 888-354-3618 to register. The Grief Support Group meets the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of each month at Oak Pointe of Monett, 1011 Old Airport Road from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. For more information call Kathy at 417-235-3500. Celebrate Recovery meets at 7 p.m. at
the Golden Baptist Church on Hwy. J in Golden every Monday of each month. Dinner is served at 6:15 p.m. This is for anyone with hurts, habit or hang-ups.
54 | July 2017
The Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) Group
of Cassville meets at 8 p.m. at 1308 Harold Street in Cassville on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays every month.
Caregiver Support Group meets at Oak
Do you have an event you would like to have featured in our calendar?
Email it to
darlene@cassville-democrat.com
Pointe of Monett from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on the first Wednesday of each month at 1011 Old Airport Road in Monett. For more information, call Kathy 417-235-3500. The Turning Point AA Group meets at 7
p.m. at the west corner of Mitchell Plaza on Hwy. 86 in Eagle Rock on Mondays and Tuesday every month. DivorceCare divorce recovery seminar and
support group meets at the First Baptist Church, 602 West Street in Cassville, at 6:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month. Call for more information, 417-847-2965. Cassville Al-Anon Family Group meets at 8 p.m. at the United Methodist Church in Cassville every Thursday of each month. Narcotics Anonymous meets at 8 p.m. the
first Tuesday of every month in the basement of St. Lawrence Catholic Church, located at the corner of Seven and Cale streets in Monett, 417442-3706. Narcotics Anonymous and Alcohol-
ics Anonymous group meets at 7 p.m. the
first Tuesday of every month at the First Baptist Church Activity Center, 618 Second Street in Washburn. 417-489-7662.
Cassville Senior Center, 1111 Fair Street Dominos every Tuesday and Friday at noon. Call 417-847-4510 for more information.
Monett Senior Center Regular events: Pinochle every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 12:30 p.m. Pitch every Tuesday and Thursday, 12:30 p.m. Bingo Monday through Friday, noon.
Central Crossing Senior Center, Shell Knob Regular events: Friends’ bridge every Friday. Call Quita at 417-271-9803 for details. Cards Galore every Friday with Pitch beginning at 9 a.m. Domino Poker, every day from 12:45 p.m. Mah Jongg every Monday and Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Line Dancing every Tuesday and Thursday from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Quilting for Charity every Wednesday and Thursday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Pinochle every Thursday from 12:30 to 3 p.m. Balance and flexibility class is held every Monday from 9:30 to 10 a.m.
Up-Scale Furnishings Top-Secret Pricing
(417) 858-4444
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Financing Available Through Wells Fargo 180 W. third Street • Verona 417-498-6487
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Mon. - thurs. 11 a.m. - 8:30 p.m. Fri. 10:30 a.m. - 9 p.m. Sat. 10 a.m. - 9 p.m. Sun. 10 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.
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Tiff City • 10703 W. Hwy. 76 • (417) 775-2700 Goodman • 120 N. Royhill Blvd. • (417) 364-4900 Lanagan • 308 S. Main St. • (417) 436-2606
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p h o t o f e at u r e
Christy O’Neal’s photos are also featured on the cover and page 66.
56 | July 2017
Su m m er Salute Photos by Christy O’Neal
Connection Magazine | 57
Standing Strong to Care Standing Strong to for Your Loved Care for One Your Loved One
Monday - Closed Tues. - Fri. 11-2; 4-8 Saturday - 4-8 Sunday - 11-2
“My staff and I eat at The Family Room Steakhouse in Monett quite a bit for lunch. The food is excellent. As a group we try a variety of items on the menu and their lunch specials are great! The service is fast, efficient and very friendly and we never have to worry about getting back in time to open the office!” Stephen Stidham, DDS.
Cassville Cassville Health Health Center for Rehab and Care Healthcare & Rehab 1300 County Farm Road Cassville, Missouri 65625 Ph: 417-847-3386 Fax: 417-847-5449 mmiller@advantagehcm.com melissa.miller@platinumhc.net
Stephen Stidham, DDS
“Come in today and enjoy the variety of menu items that we have to offer!” Specializing in weddings, anniversaries, birthdays and business events
10 E. Broadway • Monett, MO (Old Black Kettle)
417-772-7211 Catering Services Available
No event is too large or too small
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58 | July 2017
Visit our 600 Main Street office between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m, M-F
Mail a check for $28.75 to Subscriptions, P.O. Box 486, Cassville, MO 65625
Email darlene@cassville-democrat.com
Fa m i l i a r fa c e s
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7 St. Mary’s hosted its 30th annual festival on Sunday, June 4, in Pierce City. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
Maddy Flummerfelt cuddles with Charlotte Sloan Mark Chapman, with daughter, Roseanna, and wife, Kristi Chapman Natalie Andrews, Skylar Schmidt, and Lottie and Suzanne Sloan Colter Osborn with his son, Caiden Lanetta Higgins with her grandson, Jaxon Ray Sara and Jack Parrigon Stacy and Jenna Bowen Lisa Riott, Ed Lucke and Aliah Golubski
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11 The Trinity Lutheran Church in Freistatt held its annual picnic on June 9 on the grounds of Trinity Lutheran School.
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Donna Beckett, Virginia Setlik and Dorothy Heisner Darvin and Marty Toman Vickey, Helen and Ed Fritz Front: Karsyn Heseman, Isabella and Kailee Diaz. Back: Travis and Carrie Heseman, Briana Diaz Hershel Worm and Jim Gaddy Bob and Jan Bremer
7. Front: Kelly Gray, Miandra Schoen, Beverly Brown and Jamie Howard. Back: Roger and Renee Moennig 8. Lettie and Britt Schroeder 9. Connie Christen and Amanda Moennig 10. Philip and Melissa Wolf 11. Eli Spears and Emily Heseman 12. Steve Kleiboeker, Rock Conway and Fred Schoen
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4 1. Deanna Martin and Tiffany Barnes 2. Justin Gates and Bob Allen 3. Brittany Farris and Ben Crawford
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The Cassville Area Chamber of Commerce on June 9 sponsored a Business After Hours event, hosted by Hutchens Construction.
4. Kayla and Rick Ragsdale 5. Michelle Pilant and Blake Fields
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Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Verona held its annual Summer Fiesta on June 11 on the grounds of the church.
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Mary Campbell, Marilyn Ceselski and Jennifer Campbell Pablo Reyes, Jairo Hedrick and Patrick Reyes Marco (Jr.), America, Marco (Sr.) and Miduel Castillo
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Valerie, Beth and Gabriel Gutierrez Martha, Victoria and Alfanso Gutierrez Serenity Hedrick, Maria Sustaita and Lane Hedrick Courtney and Ashley Freiburger, and Lauren Sapiens Bob Litchy and Jerome Freiburger Daniel and Alonso Barrientos
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My connection
Dr. Ken and Ann Hall and Susan and James Thomas were in Kansas City recently for the induction of Jon Jackson into the University of Kansas Medical Center Hall of Fame. Jon is the brother of Ann and Susan.
Four lifelong friends recently traveled to Playa del Carmen Mexico for a few days of fun in the sun and took the “10 Influential Women” edition of the Connection Magazine. Pictured, from left: Lynn Schad, Marilyn Fare, Jerri Jasumback and Laura Beth Brechbuhler.
The Williams sisters recently traveled to visit Kelly Williams (brother) and Michael Beidler at their home in Warrenton, Va. While there, they toured the Shenandoah National Park and other local points of interest. Pictured above with the May edition of Connection, are (l-r): Tamra Sunby, Pam Dorton, Kelly Williams and Tracie Snodgrass.
ad list Acambaro Mexican Restaurant . . . . . 24 American Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Aire Serv . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 At The River Consignment . . . . . . . . . 35 Barry Electric. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Bennett-Wormington . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Cassville Health Center. . . . . . . . . . . . 58 Community National Bank. . . . . . . . . . 6
64 | July 2017
Cornerstone Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Cox Medical Centers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Crane Family Dentistry. . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Diet Center. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Doug’s Pro Lube. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Eastside Church of Christ. . . . . . . . . . 11 Edward Jones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Family Room Steak House . . . . . . . . . 58
First State Bank of Purdy . . . . . . . . . . 67 Fohn Funeral Home. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Four States Dental Care . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Freedom Bank of Southern Missouri.24 Friendly Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Guanajuato Mexican. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 J&J Floor Covering. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 J. Michael Riehn, Attorney . . . . . . . . . 49
This photo was taken late May at Mt. Rushmore. Pictured, from left, Lem Compton of Mt. Vernon, Sara Compton and Terry Peterman of Nevada, and Wanda Peterman of Rich Hill.
Sarah Dodson, left, and mother LaVer Sexton took Connection with them to Busch Stadium in St. Louis on May 21.
Local residents took Connection with them on a trip to Minnesota in late May. From left, Waylan, Liam and Manndi DeBoef; Duane and Gail Maphies; and Chuck Wiersch. They are from Monett and Springfield.
Ken’s Collision Center. . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Lackey Body Works. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Les Jacobs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 McKay Quality Roofing. . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Meek’s Building Center. . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Michael Carman Furniture . . . . . . . . . 55 Monett Main Street. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Ozark Methodist Manor. . . . . . . . . . . 52
Peppers and Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24 Purdy R-2 School District. . . . . . . . . . . 4 Race Brothers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Second Chances. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Security Bank of Southwest Missouri.16 Shelter Insurance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Smile Designers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Stanphill Sanitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Superior Spray Foam. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 TH Rogers Lumber Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 The Coffee Café. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 The Jane Store . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Trogdon Marshall. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 White’s Insurance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Whitley Pharmacy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Willis Insurance Agency . . . . . . . . . . . 31
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Pa r t i n g s h o t Photo by Christy O’Neal
“Here men from the planet Earth first set foot upon the Moon. July 1969 AD. We came in peace for all mankind.” –Neil Armstrong
66 | July 2017
301 MAIN • CASSVILLE, MO OFFICE (417) 847- 0052 • CELL (417) 455-3326 RESIDENTIAL and COMMERCIAL Tear Off • Metal Roofing • Re-Roof • TPO Vinyl Roofing
Quality Workmanship Reasonable Rates | FREE Estimates
We Work with ALL Insurance Companies AND Deductibles!!
Serving the Area since 1982 • TAMKO Heritage 30 Year Shingles • Owens Corning Duration 40 Year Shingles
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