10-05-2023 Post Telegraph

Tiger Nation celebrates

It’s Homecoming Week at Princeton R-5 School District

Post-Telegraph staff report

The Princeton R-5 School District is holding its annual Homecoming this week, with special themed dress-up days, coronation of royalty, bonfire, a parade and the Homecoming dance.

Coronation was scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 4 at 8 p.m. at the Eddie Allen Field/Jim King Track complex during the annual community pep rally and bonfire. (We bring this up because local Post-Telegraph print subscribers, and those who get our online version, get their papers on Wednesday.)

Queen candidates are Grace Kelly, Faith Siemer and Emma Walkup, and king candidates are Talan Holt, Evan Houck and Kelby Thomas. All are seniors.

See Homecoming, Page 16

Princeton

First pitch delivered at new Princeton Softball Field

Roeslein group secures $80 MM

Special to the Post-Telegraph ST. LOUIS, Mo. A partnership of 13 public and private entities led by Roeslein Alternative Energy (RAE) finalized an $80 million grant from the federal government’s first pool of funds from the U.S.D.A’s Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program. The funding will be used in a fiveyear pilot project in Iowa and Missouri called “Horizon II” to demonstrate a “Climate-Smart Future for Corn, Soybean, Livestock, and Renewable Natural Gas Production.”

The Horizon II project will enhance climate-smart markets, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and improve carbon

See Roeslein grant, Page 16

Scurlock tourney to be held Oct. 7

It’s the first big event for the new Derry Sports Complex. Mercer softball team to play the first-ever game on Princeton’s new baseball field

PRESTON COLE ---- Princeton Post-Telegraph

PRINCETON Seedings and first-round pairings for Princeton High School softball’s annual George Scurlock Memorial Tournament have been announced. The event, named in memory of the late George Scurlock, the Tigers’ first softball coach, is scheduled to be played on both fields at the new Derry Sports Complex, located just north of the intersection of U.S. 136 and Route FF in northwest Princeton.

Action begins at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 7.

Surrounded

Top-seeded Gallatin (10-3 at the start of the week) will play No. 8 Mercer (8-9) in the first game to be played

See Scurlock Tournament, Page 16

2023 PHS Homecoming royalty candidates

HEATHER HALL/Special to the Princeton Post-Telegraph

High School’s 2023 Homecoming royalty candidates are shown here. All the students are seniors. From left: FRONT - queen candidates Emma Walkup, Grace Kelly and Faith Siemer; BACK - king candidates Kelby Thomas, Talan Holt and Evan Houck.

TERRI KELLY/Princeton Post-Telegraph

by the 2023 Princeton Tigers (dark uniforms) and members of the 1991 and 1994 Tigers, former assistant coach Danny Shew prepared to deliver the ceremonial first pitch last Monday (Sept. 25) before the Princeton/Milan game on the brand-new Princeton Softball Field.

PRINCETON SOFTBALL: Tigers lead, fall behind, then rally

Debut on new field a success

Princeton comes back from 2 runs down to beat Milan

PRESTON COLE

Princeton Post-Telegraph

PRINCETON What does a first date and the first game on a new softball field have in common?

Both are much more fun if things go well. Ask the Princeton softball team. The Tigers finally got to play on their new home field last Monday (Sept. 25), and after taking a quick 3-0 leead, then had to rally to defeat former Grand River Conference foe Milan 6-5.

Princeton (10-5 going into a scheduled 6-game week) got the Wildcats out 1-2-3 in the top of the first inning, got a 3-run round in its half of the inning. Addy Henke got the first hit on the new Princeton Softball Field, scoring Macey Lewis and taking third base on a throw home.

Grace Kelly then singled and after taking second base, Emma Walkup got the first extra-base, multiple-RBI hit on the new field with a double to right field for a 3-0 Tiger lead.

Milan tied the game in the top of the second, and added two more runs in the third to go ahead 5-3.

Faith Siemer drove in Walk-

up in the bottom of the third to cut the gap to 5-4, and Princeton got what proved to be the winning runs in the fifth. Kelly ripped an RBI double to center to score Henke, and Kelly scored when Walkup reached on a Wildcat error, putting the Tigers in front 6-5.

Milan threatened in the top of the sixth, but Princeton ended the game with an 8-2-5 double play after the Wildcats put the tying and lead runs on base with one out. Center fielder Kelly threw out the lead runner at home, and catcher Walkup alertly threw to third baseman Siemer, who applied the tag on the trail runner to end the game.

Hannah Meighen relieved starting pitcher Kelsey Goodin in the top of the third after Milan had taken the lead with no one out. She gave up just three hits over the final 5 innings for the win.

Princeton 13, Putnam 8

UNIONVILLE The visiting Tigers scored in each of the final 5 innings, starting with a 6-run third, for a win over Putnam County last Thursday (Sept. 28).

After a scoreless first two innings, Princeton got the scoring started in the top of the third.

Grace Kelly and Walkup got 2-RBI doubles in the top of the third. Meighen got an RBI on an infield out, and Evan Boxley’s sacrifice drove in the final run as the Tigers went up 6-0.

The host Midgets got a run in their half of the third, and the Tigers lost Grace Kelly with what looked to be a minor knee injury. She was replaced by Kaydence Stockman in the lineup, and Celia Stiles in the field.

Princeton scored what turned out to be the winning run during a 3-run top of the fourth. Henke hit a home run to dead center, then Siemer drove in Stockman with a single on which PC made one of its 7 errors. Siemer scored when Riley Clark reached third on an error, putting the Tigers up 9-1.

Putnam got a run back in its half of that inning, but Audrey Kelly made it 10-1 in the top of the fifth.

The Midgets rallied with a 5-run round in the bottom of the fifth to pull to within 10-7 with one out, before Meighen shut the door on that rally.

Each team scored in the sixth - Princeton on an RBI single by Clark - and the Tigers pulled away with a 2-run seventh.

Boxley scored on a misplayed bunt from Audrey Kelly. She reached third on a sac fly from Henke, and ended the scoring on an errant throw.

Goodin got the win in the circle, and Meighen got a save with 21/3 innings of relief.

Siemer went 3-for-5 for the Tigers, while Henke, Grace Kelly, Walkup and Stockman got two hits each.

• Trenton’s Avery Clark threw a 4-hitter as the Bulldogs shut out Princeton 7-0 in the second game on the new field.

MERCER SOFTBALL: 10-run inning gives Cardinals trophy

Tri-County rolled in final HDC game; Mercer takes third in league tourney

Cardinals 2nd in league race

PRESTON COLE

Princeton Post-Telegraph

BETHANY Mercer softball got a 10-run round in the bottom of the sixth inning Saturday afternoon, leading the Cardinals to a 14-5 win over Grundy County in the third-place game of the HDC Conference Tournament.

dinals’ cause. Meanwhile, Cardinal pitcher Makenzie Hagan didn’t issue a free pass and her defense made no errors behind.

East Harrison 11, Mercer 8

East Harrison scored 8 runs over the final 3 innings to topple Mercer in the tournament semifinals Saturday morning.

Mercer got 10 hits in the game, 3 by Maddi Fisher, but the Cardinals made 6 errors behind Hagan.

The teams split 4 games during the regular season.

Mercer 16, Tri-County 2

PRESTON

slides safely into home plate with one of the 10 second-inning runs the Cardinals scored during their HDC Conference victory over Tri-County last Thursday (Sept. 28).

Mercer’s

Mercer (8-9 overall) trailed 3-1 after 41/2 innings before scoring three runs in the bottom of the fifth to take its first lead, 4-3. Grundy (7-11) got the lead back with a 2-run sixth, but the Cardinals used their big inning to secure the victory.

Mercer got 9 hits during the game, and used 4 walks and 6 Panther errors to held the Car-

Mercer got pairs of runs in each of the first 3 innings and added a single tally in the bottom of the fifth to take a 7-3 margin. East Harrison (8-8) pulled to within 7-6 with a 3-run fifth, and took the lead with a 4-run outburst in the top of the sixth, 10-7. Each team added a run in the seventh as the Bobcats won their fourthstraight game.

MERCER Winless Tri-County was able to get a 2-0 lead in the top of the first in the teams’ final HDC league game of the season. The Mustangs’ good fortune ended an inning later, as Mercer scored 10 runs in the bottom of the second and cruised to a 16-2 blowout last Thursday (Sept. 28) in 41/2 innings via the 10-run rule.

The Cardinals got just 5 hits

See Mercer, Page 3

PRESTON COLE/Princeton Post-Telegraph Tiger catcher Emma Walkup’s first-inning double drove in two runs and was the first multiple-RBI hit struck on the new Princeton Softball Field last Monday (Sept. 25).

COLE/Princeton Post-Telegraph

Gracie Rogers (#16 in white)

Strange things happen on road

Teams combine for 1,000+ yards, but host Warriors win the important battle - points

PRESTON COLE

Princeton Post-Telegraph

ALBANY, Mo A couple of strange things happened before and during Friday night’s West Grand River Conference on Albany’s Homecoming night.

The most important thing, however, wasn’t at all strange. Princeton picked up 398 yards of total offense. Problem, Albany gained 607 yards345 rushing, 262 passing - and handed the Tigers their second-straight setback, 72-26.

More on reality in a moment. We got to get to the strange stuff first.

In Missouri, even in 8-man play, schools employ a 5-person officiating crew. Albany had such a crew hired, but only four men showed up. One didn’t quite make it - he was busted by local police near Albany while allegedly driving a motorcycle near, if not above, 100 mph. According to one report, the gentleman spent the night comfortably housed in the Gentry County Jail.

That led to a strange thing during the game. After the Warriors (5-1, 4-1 WGRC) scored on a 25-yard run and a 2-point conversion, Tiger quarterback Clay Evans threw a lovely, 28-yard pass to Corbin Powell for an apparent touchdown. Apparent, as in all four officials didn’t see Powell catch the pass and carry it into the end zone, and after a chat they decided to “no call”

the play. Princeton (2-4, 2-3 WGRC) didn’t score on that series.

But let’s be honest here: In the end, it really didn’t matter once Albany unleashed its balanced offense.

The teams combined for nine TDs in the second quarter. The Tigers got a 47-yard strike from Evans to Tyler Coffman, and scoring passes of 25 and 30 yards to Powell, plus a 2-point run by Evans after the latter play.

Albany got scoring plays of a 25-yard pass, a 20-yard run, a 74-yard pass, a 77-yard run and a 36-yard run, plus three 2-point runs, to take a 50-20 halftime.

Princeton scored first in the third quarter on Evans’ 10-yard scamper, but the Warriors got a 34-yard TD pass (and 2-point run) and a 30-yard run to send the game into turboclock mode with 5:53 left in the period, with Albany now up 6426. The Warriors added a scoring run and 2-point run to end the scoring midway through the fourth quarter at 72-26.

Evans, who had a hand in all of Princeton’s scoring, passed for a career-high 263 yards and three touchdowns, and ran for a career-best 70 yards and a score.

According to Princeton’s statistics, freshman Elliot Mercer ran for 156 yards for Albany. Chase Cline passed for 262 yards and five TDs for the Warriors.

The teams combined for 1,005 total yards.

in the game, but used 7 walks, stole 7 bases and had a rash of hit batters (the exact number wasn’t available).

Mercer finished second in the HDC title race with a 6-2 record, behind Gilman City’s 7-1 mark. East Harrison beat Gilman City on Saturday for the HDC Tournament title.

Pattonsburg 10, Mercer 6

WINSTON Trailing 6-3 after 41/2 innings, Pattonsburg scored 5 runs in the bottom of the fifth and added 3 more in the sixth to get a non-conference win last Tuesday (Sept. 26).

Each team scored 2 runs in the first and one in the second, but Mercer got 2 more in the third to go up 5-3. The Cardinals added another run in the top of the fifth for their 6-3 lead, before the Panthers (13-6) exploded for 5 runs in their fifth, and added 2 more in the sixth.

Pattonsburg is hosting Winston in a co-op this season, after the roles were reversed during the 2022 campaign.

PRINCETON FOOTBALL: Official arrested before game, TD “disappears”

TERRI KELLY/Princeton Post-Telegraph Princeton’s Tyler Coffman (center) picked up yardage against Albany’s defense.

Mercer softball From Page 2

PRESTON COLE/Princeton Post-Telegraph

Princeton softball coach Mike Schmidli (third from left) and his captains met with their Milan counterparts and the umpires before the teams played the first game on Princeton Softball Field last Monday (Sept. 25.

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SERVICES

I CAN HELP YOU STOP SMOKING!

Russell Jennings 706 Prichard Princeton, MO 660-748-4860 9-21-2023/9-12-20-24bPC

Boyer Land Company LLC

Aaron Franklin, Sales Agent Princeton, MO 64673 660-748-6314

YOUR REAL ESTATE SPECIALIST!

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GUNS

WOOD’S GUN SHOP

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9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday 1-5-2023-ufnP+C

ANIMALS FOR SALE

For Sale - Pomeranian puppies. One male cream, one female white. Have shots. Been wormed. Have APR registered. 660-953-0260. 9-28-2tbP+C

STORAGE UNITS

For Rent - Storage unit. Elm Street Storage, Princeton. 660-748-3619. 10-5-ufnbP+C

FARM EQUIPMENT

For Sale - JD 24WS wire tie square baler. $1,800. Dee Hobbs, 660-748-5660. 10-5pPC

LEGAL NOTICE

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF MERCER COUNTY, MISSOURI PROBATE DIVISION

DEBORAH L. CULBERTSON, KENNETH E. MEINKE, and TERRY L. MEINKE, Petitioners

vs.

All unknown heairs, spouses,, devisees, grantees, assignees, donees, alienees, legetees, beneficiaries, distributees, administrators, personal repesentatives, guardians, mortgagees, trustees, and legal representatives, and all other persons, corporations, or successors claiming by, through or under Eva L. Meinke

Respondents

Case No. 23AI-PR00020

NOTICE OF HEARING

To all persons who claim any interest in the property of Eva L. Meinke, deceased, as an heir of said decedent or through any heir of said decedent:

You are hereby notified that a petition has been filed in the above court by Deborah L. Culbertson, Kenneth E. Meinke, and Terry L. Meinke, for the determination of the heirs of Eva L. Meinke, deceased, and of their respective interests as such heirs in and with respect to the following described property owned by said decedent at the time of death, to-wit:

An undivided one-third interest in and to:

That part of the following described tract of land lying East of State Highway “P”. Thirty-one acres of the East side of the Southwest Quarter of the Northwest Quarter of Section Thirty-two (32), Township Sixty-six (66) North, Range Twenty-four (24), all situated in Mercer County, Missouri. AND An undivided one-third interest in and to:

Seven and one-half acres off the South side of the Northwest Quarter of the Northeast Quarter; Northwest Quarter of the Southwest Quarter of the Northeast Quarter; Fifteen (15) acres part of the East Half of the Northwest Quarter, commencing at the Southeast corner of the

Southeast Quarter of the Northwest Quarter, thence West 25 5/19 rods, thence North 95 rods, thence East 25 5/9 rods, thence South 95 rods to beginning, all in Section Thirty-three (33), in Township Sixty-six (66) North, of Range Twenty-five (25) West of the Fifth Principal Meridian.

Petitioners’ attorney is Robert Cowherd of Chapman and Cowherd, P.C. whose business address is 903 Jackson Street, Chillicothe, Missouri 64601.

You are hereby required to appear to answer said Petition on October 19, 2023 at 9:30 o’clock a.m. in the Probate Division of the Circuit Court of Mercer County, Missouri, at Princeton, Missouri, at which time and place said Petition will be heard. Should you fail therein, judgement may be entered in due course upon said Petition.

Julie Humphrey

Deputy Clerk, Probate Division, Circuit Court of Mercer County, Missouri DATES OF PUBLICATION

September 14, 2023

September 21, 2023

September 28, 2023

October 5, 2023

NO HUNTING

NOTICE - Hunting and trespassing with dog and/or gun, trapping or fishing on land owned or leased by the undersigned is strictly forbidden. You are hereby warned to keep off these properties. Trespassers will be prosecuted.

No tresspassing for any reason on land that we own or lease. John & Linda Baughman. 9-28-23-52tpP+C

No hunting or trespassing on any land owned by Bill and Peggy Heck

9-15-22-52tbP+C

No hunting, fishing or trespassing on property owned, leased or rented by Joe and Victoria Ryan

4-27-23-52tpP+C

Absolutely no hunting or trespassing on Highland Farms land owned and operated by Dixie Berger, Joe Berger & Steve Berger. 5-19-22-52tpP+C

Absolutely NO TRESPASSING, including but not limited to hunting, fishing, hiking, mushroom hunting and drones on land owned and/ or rented by FRJ Family Farms, LLC and Roberta Zimmer. 3-23-23-52tpP+C

Absolutely no hunting or trespassing on land owned by Barbara & LeRoy Hider

10-13-22-52tpP+C

NO HUNTING OR TRESPASSING on any land owned by LAKE MARIE PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATION. 7-28-23-52tpP+C

No hunting, trespassing or fishing on property owned, leased or rented by Howard or Joe Don Pollard 4-21-22-52tpP

Absolutely no hunting or trespassing on Choate property at any time. 3-30-23-52tpP

Absolutely no hunting with guns or dogs, fishing, or trespassing on land owned by Berndt Farm and Berndt Twin Lake Inc 11-10-22-52tpP

No hunting or trespassing on Cox family property - Andy and Donna Cox, and Robert and Tina Cox. 12-3-20-104tpP

2022 COLA

From Page 13

you also need to take the cost of Medicare Part B into consideration. The Medicare Trustees forecast Medicare Part B will increase in 2024, but by how much has not yet been determined.

The COLA increase will be announced around October 13th, 2023, and the cost of Medicare Part B toward the middle of November 2023. Therefore, it will be a couple more months before the actual COLA increase will be known, than almost another month to find out how much the cost of Medicare Part B will increase. You will receive the full COLA, but it will be reduced by any increase to Medicare Part B.

John Grimaldi is an editorial contributor with the Association of Mature American Citizens.

POST-TELEGRAPH RETAIL OUTLETS PRINCETON

Casey’s General Store

EverCare Pharmacy

Hy-Vee Clinic Pharmacy

Snappy’s Store

Post-Telegraph Office

MERCER Hour Place

Mercer

Hometown Market

SOUTH LINEVILLE

Randy’s Short Stop SINGLE COPY PRICE 75¢

Most permit prices OK’d

JOE JEREK

Special to the Post-Telegraph

JEFFERSON CITY The Missouri Conservation Commission gave final approval at its September open meeting to adjust prices for most hunting, fishing, trapping, and commercial permits offered by the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC). The price increases will take effect Feb. 29, 2024.

Most MDC permit prices have remained the same for the past 20 years. MDC proposed the permit price adjustments in an effort to keep up with rising costs of goods and services it uses to manage its more than 1,000 conservation areas along with nature centers, shooting ranges, fish hatcheries, and other facilities.

MDC received initial approval on its proposed permit price adjustments from the Commission at the Commission’s May 19 open meeting. MDC then offered a public comment period from July 4 through Aug. 2, where it received about 250 public comments along with feedback on the proposals from numerous conservation-related groups and organizations.

Missouri is home to more than 1 million anglers, 500,000 hunters, and several thousand trappers. MDC issues nearly 2.6 million hunting, fishing, and trapping permits each year.

On average, most resident hunting and fishing permit prices would be adjusted by about $1.

“Compared to other states, Missouri permit prices are still in the middle-to-lower end of the scale and will still be a bargain,” said MDC Director Sara Parker Pauley. “The average price of a resident firearm deer permit for surrounding states is $54 compared to Missouri’s new price starting in 2024 of $18.”

Not all permit prices will increase. Based on public comments and other feedback received, MDC will not raise permit prices for resident and nonresident daily fishing permits, annual trout permits, and resident and nonresident fur dealer’s permits.

Some of the new permit prices starting in 2024 will be:

• The price of a resident hunting and fishing permit will go from $19 to $20.50. The average price for surrounding states is $42.47.

• The price of a resident small game hunting permit will go from $10 to $10.50. The average price for surrounding states is $26.57.

• The price of a resident trapping permit will go from$10 to $11. The average price for surrounding states is $29.38.

• The price of a resident spring turkey permit will go from $17 to $18. The average price for surrounding states is $47.69.

• The price of a resident firearm deer permit will go from $17 to $18. The average price for surrounding states is $54.06.

• The price of a resident antlerless deer permit will go from $7 to $7.50. The average price for surrounding states is $24.21.

• The price of a youth resident antlerless deer permit will go from $3.50 to $3.75. The average price for surrounding states is $24.21.

• The price of the daily trout tag will go from $4 to $5 for adults and stay at $3 for youth. The Commission also rescinded the ‘$5 for 5 trout pilot’ at Maramec Spring Park based on public input. At all trout parks the daily limit is four trout with a statewide possession limit of eight trout.

Those under 16 and 65 years of age and older remain exempt from small-game hunting permits and annual fishing permit requirements. Daily trout tags and an annual trout permit are still required.

It’s a girl!

9-28-23-52tpP+C

No hunting or trespassing of any kind without permission on land owned by Diane Houk and Jenny Bomgardner.

Absolutely NO TRESPASSING, including but not limited to hunting, fishing, hiking, mushroom and drones on land owned and/or rented by KRW5 Trust (Keith or RaeLynn Weaver) 10-5-23-52tbP+C

MERCER COUNTY RESIDENTS WITH PRINCETON, MO., OR MERCER, MO., ADDRESSES CAN SAVE $12 A YEAR WITH A P-T SUBSCRIPTION. CALL 660-748-3266 FOR INFORMATION! (ALL SUBSCRIPTIONS COME DUE IN MARCH) WE NOW HAVE AN ONLINE VERSION OF THE POST-TELEGRAPH! Log onto WWW.NORTH MISSOURI.COM to subscribe!

The Bright family zoo in Limestone, TN says that its newborn giraffe is lucky to have been born “in captivity.” Giraffes use their spots for camouflage and this baby female giraffe was born without spots and, in fact, is perhaps the only spotless giraffe on the planet. David Bright explained that “being solid colored, she may not be able to hide quite as well.” Tony Bright told reporters “the international coverage of our pattern-less baby giraffe has created a much-needed spotlight on giraffe conservation. Wild populations are silently slipping into extinction, with 40% of the wild giraffe population lost in just the last 3 decades.

Government debt is a most fearful evil

PAUL HAMBY

Special to the Post-Telegraph

MAYSVILLE, Mo. Across our state tens of thousands of new college students just got their first credit card. Most will spend too much with little knowledge of the real world regarding income and the true cost of borrowed money.

Banks issue these credit cards simply based on the fact that a student enrolled in college. They are not worried about the risk, the banks want to create a lifelong customer who will likely never get out of debt. Spending then becomes a habit of what one wants rather than what one can afford.

The Bible says in Proverbs 22:7, “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender.” Spending can be an addiction. Easy credit fulfills this Bible verse.

A study of how people spend confirms that folks spending cash (or checks) are more disciplined than when using credit cards.

The next level of irresponsible spending is when one is spending other people's money. That is inherently why government is inefficient.

In Washington, we have a situation where ‘the rich’ have convinced or bribed the “Rich Men north of Richmond” (Congress) to not just tax and spend, but also to borrow and spend.

Congress just passed a shortterm resolution to stop gap borrow enough money to keep the federal government operating for a few more days. Republicans have the majority in the U.S. House. Republican Speaker Keving McCarthy was able to negotiate a deal with the democrats by giving them all the additional spending they asked for. All Missouri congressional representatives voted yes, along with Sen. Josh Hawley.

The only Missouri “no” vote was from Sen. Eric Schmidt.

LIBERTY THOUGHTS

The manufacturers of military weapons, aka the rich, have convinced Congress to send $113 billion in cash and military assets to fight the Ukraine war, yet we are broke and our military is weakened.

Thomas Jefferson proposed a federal amendment that would have taken away the power to borrow money from the federal government. It did not pass.

Missouri passed a state amendment very much like Jefferson proposed. Our amendment requires a balanced budget - preventing legislators from creating debt by spending more than our income. Missouri’s income and spending must be balanced. Spending deficits are not allowed.

Jefferson warned; “The accumulation of government debt is a most fearful evil.” George Washington said “Loading future generations with debt is morally unacceptable … ungenerously throwing upon posterity the burden which we ourselves ought to bear.” Andrew Jackson agreed with Washington and paid off the national debt on Jan. 1, 1835

The national debt is the cumulative total amount owed for loans borrowed in your name by the U.S. government. It does not include commitments made for things like unfunded Social Security and Medicare. One of the telltale signs about how bad things are is the ratio of debt to GDP. In 1929, it was 16%. That ratio steadily rose until 2000, when it was 55%. Today it is 123%.

Government spending is like a runaway train. We are heading for a crash.

But that Ukraine money continues to flow and 100% of it is borrowed money

See Fearful debt, Page 16

MERCER COUNTY 4-DAY WEATHER

National Weather Service - Pleasant Hill/Kansas City, Mo.

Time of forecast: 10 a.m. Monday, Oct. 2

Thursday, Oct. 5: Sunny; 74/49

Friday, Oct. 6: Sunny, windy, cooler; 61/39

Saturday, Oct. 7: Sunny, unseasonably cool; 60/41

Sunday, Oct. 8: Sunny, warmer; 70

Forecasts reflect daytime high and overnight low temperatures. Weather forecasts change often. Check local radio, weather radio, or the NWS website (www.weather.gov) for the most recent updates.

PRINCETON POST-TELEGRAPH MISSION

STATEMENT

THE FIRST AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment for religion, or prohibiting the free exercise there of; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people to peacefully assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

A college’s demise reflects the decay of Western civilization

JOSEPH LOCONTE

Special to the Post-Telegraph

Editor’s note: This article first appeared in National Review GROVE CITY, Pa. Earlier this semester, the King’s College in New York City announced it was canceling classes for the fall semester, laying off most of its faculty and staff, and struggling to recover its recently revoked academic accreditation. The fate of Manhattan’s most prominent Christian Evangelical college - a school rooted in the political and literary canon of Western civilization - is uncertain.

Nevertheless, the decline of the King’s College is bound up not only with the ills of higher education, but also with the deeper cultural crisis affecting America and the West. Having served as a professor of history at King’s for more than a decade, I am aware of the college’s challenges and self-inflicted wounds. But if the college fails, its failure cannot be blamed exclusively on the impact of Covid-19, rising crime rates, declining enrollment, or tangle-footed leadership. Something much deeper, and more debilitating, is at work: a collective indifference about the remarkable inheritance of our Judeo-Christian civilization and our moral obligation to preserve it for each generation.

On the political and cultural Left, this indifference often amounts to contempt. Western civilization, we are told, is a conceit. Our traditional beliefs and institutions are merely a social construction: tools of the oppressor against the op-

FAITH & FREEDOM

pressed. The United States, as the lead country in the West, is the embodiment of all its failings.Thus, courses on Western civilization have virtually disappeared in higher education, and the history of the United States is retold as a tale of unremitting racism and exploitation.

Not just the Left

It is not only the radical Left, however, that ignores our inheritance in the ideals and institutions of the West.Today there are voices on the political and religious Right that seem unaware of this legacy and its impact on the American political order. National conservatives, among others, portray the liberal tradition - from John Locke to James Madison - as morally toxic. In doing so, they fail to grasp how Christian ideas about freedom, forgiveness, charity, equality, and justice were able to permeate our culture - and how easily these ideas become corrupted or discarded.

Ironically, both the progressive Left and the new Right fail to comprehend the crucial educational task of transmission.

As the American Founders put it in the Northwest Ordinance (1787): “Religion, morality and knowledge, being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged.”

This helps to explain the plight of the King’s College. Its students tend to be risk-takers, and the setting of New York City separates the wheat from the chaff pretty quickly.

Since its move to Manhattan in 1999, the college has sent its graduates into the fields of law, journalism, finance, business, education, and the arts. Many have gone to top-tier graduate and professional schools, such as Harvard, Yale, New York University, Columbia, Northwestern, and the University of Chicago. They are some of the most entrepreneurial, mission-oriented young people you will meet. And their sense of vocation, refined in the crucible of New York City, is nurtured in an academic environment where the cultivation of the mind - alongside the cultivation of Christian character - is taken seriously.

Thus the question: Where are the conservative and Christian foundations and philanthropists who understand the critical role of education in cultural renewal? Where are they investing their treasures? More and more of it is going into political campaigns: The idolization of politics now cuts across partisan lines.

Where are the resources?

In the 2020 presidential election, for example, conservative and Republican donors gave the Trump campaign a staggering $1.96 billion - and to what effect? Just 1% of that amount - nearly $20 million - would reopen and reinvigorate the King’s College overnight. Ten percent, roughly $200 million, could create a flagship Christian research institution with state-of-the-art facilities in New York City. It would establish a beachhead of intellectual

See Civilization, Page 6

(What we try to do every week)

“Gentlemen, we are going to relentlessly chase perfection, knowing full well we will not catch it because nothing is perfect. But we are going to relentlessly chase it because in the process WE WILL CATCH EXCELLENCE.”

Coach Vince Lombardi

Civilization

From Page 5

and spiritual sanity in one of the most strategic cultural centers in the world. Often it requires the perspective of those deprived of the achievements of our liberal democratic tradition to appreciate its unrivaled importance to human flourishing. Yeonmi Park, who escaped from North Korea at the age of 13, describes her bizarre experience after arriving in the United States and moving to New York City. In an essay for the Free Press, she explains that she wanted to free herself of the mental outlook of the typical North Koreanthe habit of not being able to think for herself. But she found that The New York Times, The Washington Post, National Public Radio, and her education at Columbia were of no help to her.

Why? Because of the drumbeat of self-loathing that she encountered in the liberal media and in her circle of progressive friends. She identified the Western canon as her lifeline:

“It wasn’t the education I received at Columbia, or following the Ameri-

can press, that helped me. I was reading old books. . . . I started to believe, as I still do now, that the only way to think for yourself is to ignore the mainstream media, and largely forget the daily news cycle, and connect instead with the great minds of the past, who know all of our problems better than we do ourselves. There is a reason why the great books of Western civilization are all banned in dictatorships.”

Park is talking about the humanities: the disciplines of history, literature, politics, philosophy, economics, the arts, and religion. These subjects once formed the lifeblood of our greatest academic institutions. They were the safe harbor where the most important questions could be asked and debated: questions about justice and virtue, about politics and the good society, and about the meaning and purpose of our mortal lives. It is through the study of the humanities that the collective wisdom of the West in grappling with those questions is transmitted. Loss of appreciation for the humanities

This has been the mission of the King’s Col-

lege, in a city that seems increasingly cut off from the spiritual inheritance of our Judeo-Christian civilization. The school has been sustained financially by a relatively small group of generous donors. Its struggles reflect the fact that too many conservatives are as detached from the value of its educational purpose as is the woke Left. With a handful of wonderful exceptions, we cannot depend on the current leadership in the conservative Christian community to appreciate the depth of the problem.

More than 40 years ago, Charles Malik, the Lebanese diplomat and an Arab Christian, saw it clearly. He issued a challenge to evangelicals during a speech at the dedication of the Billy Graham Center at Wheaton College. “If Christians do not care for the intellectual health of their own children and for the fate of their own civilization,” he asked, “a health and fate so inextricably bound up with the state of the mind and the spirit in the universities, who is going to care?”

Caring about the Christian university is caring about

young people

To care about the Christian university is to care about our young people - which requires a supreme commitment to caring about the future. Historically, this was the motive force behind the transformation of the Greco-Roman world by the teachings of Jesus and his disciples. Tom Holland, a classical historian and the author of Dominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World, has acknowledged his own surprise at “what it was that made Christianity so subversive and disruptive” of the ethical norms and assumptions of classical culture. “So profound has been the impact of Christianity on the development of Western civilization,” he writes,“that it has come to be hidden from view.” There are in the West today powerful forces dedicated to keeping Christianity’s impact hidden in the shadows. But the Christian academy, like no other institution, can chase away the shadows with light: the light of young minds illuminated by truths that have built and sustained our civilization over the centuries.

A civilization that does not care very much about these things gets exactly what it deserves.

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Bears will be bears

In that old yarn it was Goldilocks who broke into the home of the three bears. In the case of Brian of Kings Beach, Calif., it was a sleepy old bear that broke into his apartment, ate his food, wrecked his TV set and then took a nap on his bed. It was all caught on his Ring camera while Brian was out boating with friends on Lake Tahoe. Apparently the bears are out in numbers in the Lake Tahoe area; they have been visiting not only Brian’s apartment but have been caught by video surveillance cameras in several stores in the area.

CAINSVILLE MELANIE CHANEY

Jonell (Crouse) Stokes of Georgetown, S.C., visited Victor and Dixie Seymour over the weekend. Others joining them for Sunday dinner were Scott Seymour of Lamoni, Iowa; Tracy and Tracy Seymour of Norwalk, Iowa; Conner Seymour and Maddie McCarty of Des Moines, Iowa; and Megan Seymour of Ankeny, I0waa.

Mina Hickman will be celebrating her 84th birthday. She currently resides at Crestview, Room 423, 1313 South 25th, Bethany, MO 64424.

The 11th Annual Dog and Gun Trading Day will be held Oct. 14 in Cainesville at 1108 Enterprise Street starting at 8 a m. There are still flea market spots available. If anyone has any questions, they can call 660-425-0634.

Monita Fair has been moved to Pearl’s II Eden for Elders in Princeton. Her birthday is Oct. 11. If anyone would like to know the address it is as follows: Pearl’s II Eden for Elders, 611 North College St., Princeton, MO 64673.

Several people attended

the wedding of Ronnie Miles and Miranda Zerbe on Saturday, Sept. 30 at a farm located east of Mt Moriah.

Herman and Melanie Chaney attended the Pattonsburg Car Show on Sunday, Oct. 1.

Isaac and Shyanne Chaney met Grady McLain, Breanna, Ellie, and Kelly at the Kansas City Renaissance Festival on Sept 30. They had a great time.

The Cainsville senior class is having a gun raffle. Only 150 tickets will be sold. Contact a senior or the school for more Information.

Jim and Laura Crofutt hosted their youngest son and daughter-in-law from California, as their son was purchasing land here in Missouri

The CWF of the Christian Church met Sept. 21 with Linda Mattinson as hostess and worship leader. The project is collecting paper goods and non-perishable foods for holiday boxes. Six members and one guest were in attendance.

Sunday, Oct. 1 dinner guests of Lila McLain were Kay Thomas of Bethany, and Sierra,Kaylynn, Berkeley and McK-

enley Wolf.

There is a varsity softball game at Ridgeway on Thursday, Oct. 5. The Bobcats won the HDC Conference Tournament in Bethany on Saturday, Sept. 30, There will be no school on Monday, Oct, 9. There are junior high basketball games at Ridgeway versus Gilman City on Oct. 12.

All the news is appreciated. Let me know stuff for next week!

LAND TRANSFERS

Friday, Sept. 22

• Alicia Nelson to Caden Ashford.

Monday, Sept. 25

• Heather Stark to Jason Stark.

• Mercer County Collector et al to Jeffrey Lees (2 transactions).

Wednesday, Sept. 27

• Javier Rodriguez Reyes to Michael Yount.

• Danny Lewis Owen to Gooseranch, LLC (3 transactions).

• U S Bank National Association to Jeremy Arnold.

• John J. and Madelyn I. Ross Trust to George Nicholas Morris and Robin Morris.

• Design Place Farms, LLC to George Nicholas Morris and Robin Morris.

MARRIAGE LICENSES

All persons listed are Missouri residents unless otherwise listed.

Friday, Sept. 22

• Justin T. Sharp and Sidni M. Nordyke, both of Mercer.

• Ronald G. Miles and Miranda J. Zerbe, both of Cainsville.

MERCER CO. FOOD PANTRY

Located in the basement of Princeton United Methodist Church.

Second and fourth Tuesday: 9-10:30 a.m.

Other Tuesdays: 4:30-5:30 p.m.

Note: Persons can pick up their food in the church basement. At present, social distancing will be observed, and masks are recommended but not mandatory.

CORRECTIONS

& CLARIFICATIONS

The Princeton PostTelegraph strives for accuracy and fairness in all of its news stories and photo captions. If you feel we have made an error, please contact us at 660-7483266 or posttele@grm. net (email) to request a correction. If it is found we are in error, we will be happy to publish a correction or clarification.

Hydorn, Schweizer to wed

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Matt and Michael Hydorn of Princeton announce the engagement of their daughter, Megan, to Declan Schweizer, son of Steven and Macon Schweizer of Gallatin.

Megan received her degree in nursing from North Central Missouri College in 2020 and is employed with Cameron Regional Medical Center. Declan is a 2019 graduate of NCMC and is employed with CR Seeds and Services LLC in Winston.

The couple is planning an October wedding to take place at the Schweizer family farm in Gallatin.

SCHOOL FOOD

All menus subject to change.

PRINCETON

Breakfast is available to all students. It is served with a choice of 1% white milk or skim chocolate milk. Cereal is available as an option every day except where noted. Fruit and juice are available every day. Nutri-grain bars are available on select days.

Monday, Oct. 9: Pop Tart, yogurt.

Tuesday, Oct. 10: pancakes, sausage patty.

Wednesday, Oct. 11: french toast sticks.

Thursday, Oct. 12: mini bagels, cinnamon cream cheese.

Friday, Oct. 13: biscuits, sausage gravy. Lunch is served with the choice of 1% fat-free white milk or fat-free chocolate milk. Students in grades K-5 have the choice of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or the menu entree. Students in grades 6-12 have the option of a chef salad or the entree every day unless noted. All bakery items are whole wheat or whole grain. Fruit is served with lunch.

Monday, Oct. 9: BBQ chicken sandwich or cheese pizza, baked beans, coleslaw.

Tuesday, Oct. 10: sweet and sour chicken or chicken strips, egg rolls, brown rice.

Wednesday, Oct. 11: chicken noodle soup or tomato soup, grilled cheese, steamed broccoli.

Thursday, Oct. 12: hot beef sandwich or breaded chicken patty, mashed potatoes with brown gravy, green beans.

Friday, Oct. 13: tenderloin sandwich or fish sandwich, baby carrots,

french

fries, dessert.

MERCER

Breakfast is served with orange juice and white or chocolate milk. Cereal is an optional entree.

Mondays: egg entree. Tuesdays: cereal, toast. Wednesdays: breakfast roll. Thursdays: sausage, pancakes. Fridays: biscuits, gravy.

Lunch is served with milk. A salad bar and fruits and vegetables are available every day, except where noted. Students in grades PK-6 will have the choice of option A or a chef salad. Students in grades 7-12 will have the choice of either option or a chef salad.

Monday, Oct. 9: (a) chicken nuggets; (b) creamy chicken, biscuits; peas and carrots.

Tuesday, Oct. 10: (a) salisbury steak; (b) hamburger; mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, roll.

Wednesday, Oct. 11: (a) grilled cheese; (b) meatball sub; sun chips.

Thursday, Oct. 12: (a) pizza dunkers; (b) turkey sandwich; corn.

Friday, Oct. 13: (a) sloppy joe, chips; (b) nacho supreme; refried beans.

CAINSVILLE

Breakfast is served with fruit, juice, and milk.

Mondays: breakfast burrito, cereal, toast.

Tuesdays: french toast with syrup and peanut

butter, turkey sausage. Wednesdays: cereal, toast, hash brown patty, scrambled eggs. Thursdays: pancake, turkey sausage. Fridays: biscuits, gravy.

Lunch is served with milk. Fruits and vegetables are available every day, and students are required to have at least one cup of either on their tray.

Monday, Oct. 9: no school.

Tuesday, Oct. 10: mini corn dogs, peas.

Wednesday, Oct. 11: salisbury steak, mashed potatoes, green beans.

Thursday, Oct. 12: vegetable soup, grilled cheese.

Friday, Oct. 13: burritos, corn.

CORRECTIONS

& CLARIFICATIONS

The Princeton PostTelegraph strives for accuracy and fairness in all of its news stories and photo captions. If you feel we have made an error, please contact us at 660-7483266 or posttele@grm. net (email) to request a correction. If it is found we are in error, we will be happy to publish a correction or clarification.

TIGERS! CARDINALS!

If

Princeton Homecoming attendants

Meow

A 13-year-old cat in Missouri that goes by the name of Kit Kat has broken a Guinness World Record for its jump-roping skills, skipping nine times in 60 seconds. No, Kit Kat didn’t do it all by himself, his owner Trisha Seifried handled the rope. Who said that you can’t teach a cat new tricks? In fact, Ms. Seifried says "by 6 months old Kit Kat was jumping rope in front of huge crowds of people, helping to bust myths that cats can't be trained."

they’re playing, we’re bringing you the best coverage you’ll find!

HEATHER HALL/Princeton High School

Princeton Homecoming attendants, from left: FRONT - freshman Mikaylee Henke, sophomore Celia Stiles and junior Mady Tipton; BACK - freshman Gavin Stockman, sophomore Kole Lewis and junior Tyler Coffman.

Princeton class of 1973 holds reunion

COLA increase expected in 2024

JOHN GRIMALDI

Special to the Post-Telegraph

LADY LAKE, Fla. Calls have already started coming in asking what the cost-of-living increase (COLA) is going to be for 2024. When do I get the increase? There are news articles already making announcements of the current CPI, which is the CPI-U. This is the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, (U.S. city average). The CPI-U is used in federal legislation, such as the indexation of federal income tax brackets. Whereas the COLA increase for Social Security is based on the CPI-W. Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers.

The CPI-U is currently 3.2%, whereas the CPI-W at this point is 2.6

percent. This is based on comparing July 2022 to July 2023. The COLA is based on the average growth of inflation between July, August, and September of the prior year. This means the current CPI-W of 2.6% can go up or down when the average of those three months is determined.

The COLA is announced around the middle of October and will be applied to your December 2023

Social Security payment that you will receive in January 2024. (There is not always a cost-of-living increase as was the case in 2010, 2011 and 2016.)

Due to the declining inflation rate most economists are predicting a 2024 COLA increase between 2.7% and 3 percent. Whatever the COLA increase ends up being, See 2022 COLA, Page 4

SUBMITTED PHOTO

The Princeton High School class of 1973 held its 50-year reunion on Saturday, Sept. 16 at Fernwood. From left: SEATED - Curtis Slife; FIRST ROW - Randy Doss, Jo Applegate, Janet Hagan Brown, Randy Wolf, Merlin Hagan; SECOND ROW - Robin Campbell Knowles, Carol Fuhrman, Lois Stout Howard, Richard Waldron; THIRD ROWDavid Lambert, Debbie DeMoss Stevens; FOURTH ROW - Jerry McReynolds, Robert Delameter, Tom Delameter, Alan Beeson; FIFTH ROW - Gary Boyle, Terri McCulley Bevel, Mike Stiles, Steve Moore, Joyce Lowrey Meinecke, Kathy Allen Thompson;

TOP ROW - Kenny Meinke, Melissa Hamilton Wilson, Jim Peterson, Steve Gondringer.

New books at library

Special to the Post-Telegraph PRINCETON These new titles have been added to the Mercer County Library:

Adult fiction: California Golden, Melanie Benjamin; North of Nowhere, Allison Brennan; Out of Nowhere, Sandra Brown; Canary Girls, Jennifer Chiaverini; The Hike, Lucy Clarke; Good Bad Girl, Alice Feeney; The Secret Recipe of Ella Dove, Karen Hawkins; The Invisible Hour, Alice Hoffman; None of This is True, Lisa Jewell; Happiness Falls, Angie Kim; Tell Me What I Am, Una Mannion; Just Another Missing Person, Gillian McAllister; and The Breakaway, Jennifer Weiner.

Adult non-fiction: Pointing Dogs: How to Train, Nurture, and Appreciate Your Bird Dog, Steven J. Mudak; and Bird Dogs: How to Become a Better Hunter and Dog Owner, Scott Linden. Jerry and Tammie Brundage donated these titles in memory of John Rouse.

Axis 360 audiobook: After That Night, Karin Slaughter.

The Mercer County Library has also added to its large print, western, children’s, juniors, young adult, and Amish sections. Please remember that the library’s platforms - Axis 360, Libby, and Hoopla - are open 24/7.

Flu shots available

Special to the Post-Telegraph Wright Memorial Physicians’ Group in Trenton and Saint Luke’s Mercer County Clinic in Princeton announced they are currently scheduling influenza vaccinations for established patients.

Influenza vaccinations at Wright Memorial Physicians’ Group in Trenton and Mercer County Clinic in Princeton began Monday, Sept. 25. They can be scheduled any day, Monday through Friday, for established patients.

To schedule an appointment, call Wright Memorial Physicians’ Group at 660-358-5750, or Saint Luke’s Mercer County Clinic at 660-748-4040.

Tonight: Hazard plan to be held

Special to the Post-Telegraph

PRINCETON The public is invited to attend the first meeting to discuss the Mercer County Hazard Mitigation Plan. The Green Hills Regional Planning Commission has been contracted to assist in the development of this plan.

The meeting will be held from 5-6:30 p.m. tonight (Thursday, Oct. 5) in the basement of the Mercer County Health Department at 305 West Main Street in Princeton.

The purpose of hazard mitigation is to reduce the loss of life and prop-

erty during a hazardous event. The plan is being completed through a cooperative effort of Mercer County, the city of Mercer, the city of Princeton, the North Mercer R-3 School District, and the Princeton R-5 School District. Once the plan is developed it will be submitted to SEMA (State Emergency Management Agency) for review and comment, and then will be sent to FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) for final review.

The plan will ideally help increase coordination between local, state,

and federal agencies during times of disaster. In addition, by completing a hazard mitigation plan, Mercer County will be entitled to apply for future federal relief dollars to fund specific mitigation projects, designed to reduce and/or eliminate vulnerabilities resulting from disaster events throughout the county. For information, contact Amanda George at 660-359-5636, ext. 25, or amanda@ghrpc.org.

Kauffman recipients announced

Special to the Post-Telegraph

PRINCETON The latest recipients of scholarships from the Gene Kauffman Scholarship Foundation Inc. have been approved by the foundation’s Board of Directors. A total of 23 female graduates of Mercer High School and Princeton High School in Mercer County, Mo., have been awarded a combined total of $104,900.82 in scholarships for the all 2023 semester. Each recipient provided signed statements that they meet all criteria established for the program, the most unique of which is being a non-smoker.

The recipients are attending a variety of institutions in Missouri as required by the program. Institutions and the recipients attending each are:

• Central Methodist University: Brea Shipley.

• Missouri State University: Jazmine Main.

• North Central Missouri College: Makenzie Dunkin, Kylie Gannon, Kaydee Hill, Rebecca Kile, Lauren Krohn, Summer Martin, Rainey Michael, Tori Meinecke, Gillian Sapp.

• Northwest Missouri State University: Jillian Finney, Makayla Meyer, Jaden Purdun, Kasen Purdun, Aubrey Wilson.

• Truman State University: Morgan Eastin, Cortney Goodman.

• University of Central Missouri: Sara

Spencer.

• University of Missouri-Columbia: Lindsey Batson, Kaydee Cunningham, Megan Spencer.

• William Jewell College: Cheyenne Dinsmore.

The Gene Kauffman Scholarship Foundation Inc. is funded by a trust established by the late Edward “Gene” Kauffman of Princeton in Mercer County, Mo. He specified basic guidelines which include that scholarships are to be awarded to female, unmarried, non-smoking graduates of Mercer County high schools who have evidence of need. Additionally, the recipients must be enrolled for and pass at least 12 hours of credit in an accredited Missouri college or university and maintain a certain grade point average. Each recipients certified they meet the criteria as established by Kauffman and the Board of Directors.

Each applicant must have successfully filed the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) by April 1 to be eligible for the fall 2023 and spring 2024 semesters.

Applications for the spring 2024 semester will become available Nov. 1. Students can pick up the application at the Princeton R-5 principal’s office or the North Mercer R-3 principal’s office. The scholarship application will also be available on each school’s website.

COMMISSION MERCER COUNTY COMMISSION

Monday, Sept. 25

• Minutes of the Sept. 18 meeting were approved.

• Bills were approved and paid.

• Commissioners and County Clerk Judy Hamilton signed a certified copy of order authorizing Collector/Treasurer Susan Moore to pay the following:

* $14.77 to Cardmember Services for supplies, and $84.09 to Dish Network for TV in the jail and Sheriff’s Office (money taken from Sheriff’s Special Fund #32);

* $190.25 to Pro-Tech for office supplies, and $820.60 to the Princeton Post-Telegraph for advertising (money taken from TMF Fund #34);

* $1,380.58 to Cardmember Services for conference expenses (money taken from Sheriff’s Training Fund #05); and

* $6,000 to the Mercer

County Council on Aging Inc. for food, consumables and meal delivery (money taken from Senior Citizens Tax Fund #46 per the group’s board’s request).

• Leanna Alquist spoke to commissioners about bridge replacement on Jewell Street. She asked if commissioners were closing the road and bridge permanently, or replacing the bridge. Presiding Commissioner Jerry Allen reassured her that the bridge is being replaced in 2024, and that they were not closing the road permanently.

• Hamilton presented Aggregate Astract Form 11A, Chapter 100 report, and Form 1309 Land and Personal Tax Aggregate Abstract that she submitted to the State Tax Commission.

• Commissioners received the certificate of training for Moore from the Missouri County Treasurers Association.

• The county received

reports of motor fuel tax, motor vehicle sales tax, and motor vehicle fee increases, totaling $56,447.74 from the Missouri Department of Revenue for the county’s use on Sept. 20.

• Commissioners were notified by the Marion Township Board of the death of Trustee Dean Henley on Sept. 16. They requested that current board member Jim Collier be appointed as trustee, and that Jim Clark be appointed as Collier’s replacement on the board. Both men will serve until the next township election in April 2025. Commissioners Allen and Cheston Easter voted to approve the requests; Commissioner Zachary Martin abstained because Clark is his father-in-law.

NCMC trustees approve construction of new Russ Derry indoor facility

Special to the Post-Telegraph TRENTON North Central Missouri College (NCMC) trustees recently approved plans presented to build a new indoor Russ Derry Practice Facility on the main campus in Trenton. The indoor complex will be located on the lot next to the current Derry Practice Facility across from the Ketcham Center on Lulu

Street. Nearly 90% of the funding for the project comes from private donations. The facility will primarily be used for Pirates softball and baseball teams, athletes, and coaches.

Alva Russell “Russ”

Derry was a native of Princeton, and played major league baseball with the New York during the 1944 and 1945 sea-

Kansas man pleads guilty to robbing NW bank

Special to the Post-Telegraph

KANSAS CITY, Mo. An Ottawa, Kan., man who was apprehended after he called a tow truck for his getaway car has pleaded guilty in federal court to robbing a Mound City, Mo., bank.

Marvin J. McWhorter III, 41, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays on Thursday, Sept. 28, to one count of bank robbery.

By pleading guilty, McWhorter admitted that he stole $4,445 from Citizens Bank & Trust, 904 State Street in Mound City, on Dec. 21, 2022.

According to his plea agreement, McWhorter approached a teller station at the bank and, while holding what appeared to be a handgun, directed the teller to give him all the money in the drawer. McWhorter ran out of the bank and got into a black Chevrolet Malibu with the word “CHEVY” in block white lettering across the top of the front windshield. Witnesses saw McWhorter drive away from the area.

The next morning, McWhorter called a St. Joseph, Mo., towing company to request a tow for the Malibu, which was in Forest City, Mo., about 13 miles southwest of Mound City. The tow driver picked up McWhorter at a nearby café and went to retrieve the vehicle.

A local public official, who had heard the vehicle description of the bank robbery suspect the day before, recognized McWhorter’s vehicle being towed and contacted law enforcement. The Holt County Sheriff’s Department then contacted the tow company. Dispatch contacted the driver of the tow truck by phone to confirm that he was towing a black Chevrolet Malibu, with the word “CHEVY” in block white lettering across the top of the front windshield, through Oregon, Mo. Dispatch also confirmed that McWhorter was with the tow driver in the tow truck. Dispatch directed the tow driver to pull over and wait for law enforcement to arrive.

When the tow driver pulled over, McWhorter attempted to take control of the tow truck. McWhorter fought with the tow driver and a passerby who witnessed the altercation and had stopped to assist. The tow driver and passerby were able to get McWhorter to the ground and hold him until law enforcement arrived.

When officers arrested McWhorter, they found in the tow truck a cooler-type bag that contained $3,813 taken in the bank robbery. Officers also found additional evidence in the Malibu, including a box of 9mm ammunition, but no firearm.

Under federal statutes, McWhorter is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregg R. Coonrod. It was investigated by the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the Holt County Sheriff’s Department, the Andrew County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Mound City Police Department, and the FBI.

sons, the Philadelphia Phillies during the 1946 season, and the St. Louis Cardinals in 1949.

“I am very excited about the approval of the Derry project,” said Nathan Gamet, NCMC athletics director. “This will add an entire new dimension to our baseball and softball programs and give us one of the top facilities in the region. This couldn’t be done without the support of Dr. (Lenny) Klaver (NCMC president), the NCMC Board of Trustees, the NCMC Foundation Board, and so many more. I am very grateful for the support we have here at NCMC and look forward to seeing this project get off the ground quickly.”

Kramer Contracting Company will construct the facility and features a 120-foot by 84-foot indoor practice area and a 60-foot by 60-foot foyer.

The building features a a Russ Derry memorial/trophy room, laundry and storage room, and a turfed practice field/hitting facility. The space would allow for softball and baseball players to have the space to practice indoors all year round and free up the Ketcham gym for basketball practice and public use.

“There are so many awesome new things happening for North Central as a whole right now, and the Derry project just adds to that wow factor,” said NCMC softball coach Sara Van Dyke. “We have been hoping for a new hitting facility for a while, and it is really neat that we are seeing that dream come to life. Our baseball and softball student-athletes put in a lot of work in the Derry now, so just having that space is huge for them and will benefit both programs for

years to come!”

Use for the current Russ Derry Practice Facility is not finalized, but ideas include renovations for the use of the Pirates golf teams and storage.

“We are very excited and grateful for the support of all those who have been involved in making this project possible: the donors, board members,

college administration, coaches, and community,” said NCMC baseball coach Donnie Hillerman. “The new practice facility will help with recruitment, player development, and team building for years to come.”

Donors for the Russ Derry Practice Facility have wished to remain anonymous.