3-26-14 Lamar Democrat (Includes Progress)

Whatever there be of PROGRESS in life comes not through adaptation but through DARING. ~Henry Miller

©2014 Serving Lamar, Golden City, Lockwood, Jasper, Sheldon, Mindenmines and Liberal for 144 years. Incorporating The Daily Democrat, Golden City Herald & Lockwood Luminary.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26, 2014

6 SECTIONS, 42 PAGES

Visit Our Website For Breaking News Updates, Obituaries & Events

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Drug Take Back event planned for April 26

The Drug Take Back Box is always available at the Lamar Police Department, 1106 Broadway, for those wishing to keep prescriptions out of the water supply and out of the hands of youth. A special day has been set aside to take unused or expired medications, either prescription or over the counter, and will be held Saturday, April 26, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Please put all medications in a plastic garbage bag, minus the bottles. This will help with packaging and transport to the incinerator. No needles or inhalers please.

INDEX

SECTION A Correspondents ........................ 2 Friends & Family ...................... 3 Friends & Family ...................... 4 School......................................... 5 School......................................... 6 SECTION B Records ...................................... 2 Records/Legals .......................... 3 Legals.......................................... 4 Classifieds .................................. 5 Area News ................................. 6 SECTION C: Community Historical Society...................... 2 Lamar Greenhouse ................... 3 Wildtree ..................................... 4 Wilson Farms ............................ 5 Neighbors .................................. 6 Retired Teachers ....................... 7 Lamar Democrat....................... 8

Lamar West Elementary staff and students began this school year enjoying all the benefits of the Lamar R-1 renovation and remodeling. It was great to step into the school year with central air and central heat, all new windows and an asbestos free facility! The school has four sections of third, fourth and fifth grade. Lamar West's mission for the district is to provide a quality education for all students that will impact their lives with meaningful purpose and successful direction. They believe teaching their students to be

SECTION F: Health Health Department .................. 2 Environmental Services ........... 3 BCMH .................................4 & 5 Generations ............................... 6 Reavley Dentistry ..................... 7 Clinics ........................................ 8

are a high achieving school and like all other schools they are concerned about those that are not meeting a level of proficiency. The staff implemented an after school tutoring program than provided over 90 elementary students with six weeks of small group. Parents were extremely supportive, providing transportation four afternoons a week! Traditional programs and activities have been a huge celebration this school year at West! Mr. Pommert, elementary music instructor, led three fine performances in the West

gym; the PTO Talent Show was a smashing success and Kara Morey was the West Spelling Bee champion for the second year in a row! Coach Fry and his Hoops for Heart fundraiser collected over $10,000 for the American Heart Association… amazing! And, finally, West Elementary Prime Time Read In on the second Friday of March was the 27th annual Read In! Wow! Mike Kelley promoted the West Prime Time Read In as a model for the state of Missouri. It is now recognized statewide! So much to be proud of at West Elementary!

Barton County Business Expo 2014 Melissa Little/Lamar Democrat Left, a tent was set up on the north lawn of Memorial Hall to raise funds for Truman Area Transportation Services (T.A.T.S.). They were able to raise $500 on Friday.

SECTION D: Economics LBT ............................................. 2 Super 8 ....................................... 3 Bull Insurance ........................... 4 BC Electric................................. 5 Thorco Industries ..................... 6 SECTION E: Government City of Lamar ............................ 2 Parks & Rec ............................... 3 Fire Department ....................... 4 County Government ................ 5 Police Department.................... 6 City Employees ......................... 7 LBT ............................................. 8

respectful, responsible and ready for their daily purpose is imperative. Staff is committed to teaching academics, social/emotional skills, physical education and the fine arts, all integrated with the world of technology. Staff has participated in the most intensive professional development the past two years including various book studies, in-service days and summer literacy institutes at the University of Arkansas. They are working towards raising their literacy and math scores in all populations of the school. They

Melissa Little/ Lamar Democrat Right, Barton County Chamber's Business Expo, held on Friday, March 21, was well received with 25 vendors. Area businesses were able to network and raise funds for organizations along with the many raffles that were held throughout the day.

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2A • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

correspondents Coonfoot & Vicinity By LOUISE OTT Coonfoot & Vicinity Peeking out the door this early Monday morning, I still have ice on the ground on the north side of the buildings. I sure will be glad to see more sunshine. Gary and Judy Nelson, Michael Nelson and Ella Mae Turpen enjoy going to dinner on Sunday at a restaurant. Arbry Winans, Ray and Tristan, Ray and Nicole Winans and Elvin Winans Jr. and Durella were visitors of Marie Winans. Jane Moss baked cookies and took some to Louise Ott. Kenneth Dee and Esther Archer enjoyed dinner on Sunday with George Straw. Vanessa and Nathaniel Hudson and Louise Ott enjoyed pizza at George Straws on Thursday, to help Louise celebrate her birthday. Glen and Karen Moll called on Louise Ott Sunday after church. Remember the big bridge south of Alba is now open. It's so nice to go straight through, instead of detouring to other roads to get to 96 Hwy. Steve Patterson, pastor of Alba Friends Church non-profit organization, appreciates any donation from anyone. Call him on his cell phone at 417-7933308 or his home phone, 417-525-6107 and he will tell you days he's open for lunches at 212 Main in Alba.

Sheldon By DARLENE SHERIDAN Beverly Morgan returned to her home in Springfield after spending a few days here visiting her son, Monte and Becky Morgan and daughter Cheryl Bogart and family. The area had a very cool Sunday after a very pleasant week. The temperature dropped after a chilling rain Saturday night that continued Sunday morning when the area saw a light snowstorm. This weather kept many home from church. Bob and Kathy Clampett left Sunday for their home in Texas, after spending several days with her parents, H.C. and Betty Lathrop, and other relatives. Plans are well underway for the 2014 Sheldon High School Alumni. The date is May 24, with dinner at 6:30 p.m. The host will be the class of 1964. Emma Leanne Stockdale, new daughter of Jason and Whittney, of Joplin, was honored with a baby shower at the Sheldon Christian Church

on Sunday afternoon, March 16. Emma is the granddaughter of Marilyn Stockdale and the late John Stockdale of Sheldon. Sheldon City Library Board met Saturday, March 15 and plans were made for a family fun event for May. The 2014 officers of the Sheldon Old Settlers Picnic are hosting a chicken dinner on Sunday, March 23. Reservations must be made, as the chicken will be brought from Chicken Annie’s. Tickets are available at Sheldon businesses or from Cody Claflin at 321-0122 or Katlyn Logan 684-2144. Friends were pleased to hear that Mary Ann Clark is doing fine following heart bypass surgery on Monday at St. Luke’s Hospital in K.C. The Sheldon Jolly Senior Citizens met Tuesday for the monthly dinner. The dinner of corn beef, cabbage and Irish soda bread was served by Phyllis Sprenkle. The business meeting followed dinner. Reports were given on sick members and cards were signed. An afternoon birthday meeting will be April 1.

For-getme-nots By GAIL LEAMING What a week and I even ended up with a cold for the weekend. We drove to St. Louis and spent the night with Russ and family to pick up Ron’s anniversary gift. Russ found it on eBay, so Ron was tickled as he has been looking for it for a year. Then we drove on to Hannibal and then north to Navoo, Ill. What a change is was for me. I had gone up there almost 20 years ago with Kamala and Anastazia, but the RLDS and the LDS have really built it back from the ransacked town of yesteryear. The temple was beautiful and what a sight from the Iowa side of the river. Must have been a good site to build, as there is a Lutheran and Protestant church built on the same hill. The temperature was freezing and they still had snow on the ground. We were told that the Mississippi River was frozen hard enough to walk across until two weeks ago. Then we went to Kansas City so Ron could sleep in this one hotel he used to love to sleep in when he was a driver. Now we had bought a new mattress last year and Ron just hates it. A truck driver knows the best beds. He said the one on Front St. and the one in New Mexico were the best and he wanted to know the name of the mattress that he slept on. It ended up that this hotel had changed hands and mat-

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tresses. No satisfaction for Ron on this trip. On Saturday night we went to the Methodist Church in Avilla to a ham and bean feed and Crawford and Co. for entertainment. I am truly sorry for those that didn’t come, because the fellowship was great and the food!!! What can I say. There was so much and every dessert you could imagine. Then we went on to Red Oak 2 for a good time there. The Crawfords came to that one too. Sunday we went to Stone’s Throw to see the The Great Tuna play. It was a good play, but the people we were with made it even better. Kamala Leaming, Carl Sheets, Carol McVey and Larry and Jean Ehrsam. Such a good time! Ron and Lyndel Wood even managed to squeeze a dog trail on Saturday. Those two won second with the help of their dogs, of course. Ron is going to have to go up on the roof and put a screen around the stove pipe. It takes less than a day for the starlings to start a new nest in the stove. While we were on our trip the cat must have had a hay day. There were bird

feathers everywhere in the house, where he had kept his self fed and entertained by getting them out of our little stove and having a party. Every day Ron has to burn a little paper in the stove just to clear them out. It is either up on the roof or turn the cat loose again. Austin Harshaw got our pastures and hay fields rolled while we were gone and even sold a little hay. So sorry to hear of the passing of Gerald Piepenbrink and sorrow of the family. Sending prayers to Beth (Ziler) Spruce and get well wishes. Have a good week to all.

Maxine's Musings By MAXINE MORIN Hey! I am thinking that it might really be “Spring”. I see gardens plowed, ready for the seeds to be planted. In my earlier (much earlier) days, I raised a garden. When green beans were ready I canned several quarts to have during winter weather. “Happy Birthday” to

CLUB NOTE LAMAR COUNTRY CLUB WINTER BRIDGE CLUB

Kathy Jenkins was the hostess on Tuesday, March 18. Norma Harris won first, with Margaret Wattenbarger coming in second. The hostess on March 25 will be Gloria Kurtz and Sondra Riegel will be the hostess on April 1.

CHANGE CLUB A few more healthy tips from the Change Club, Vegetables Vegetable or bean soups go towards your daily vegetable target. Choose lower sodium versions. Try crunchy vegetables, raw or lightly steamed. They make a

great snack or side dish. Veggie sushi is an easy way to add some vegetables. Order sushi rolls with cucumbers, mushrooms, asparagus, and/or carrots. Make each meal colorful by adding red, green, yellow, or orange vegetables to your plate. Buy vegetables that are easy to prepare. Pick up pre-washed bags of salad greens, baby carrots or celery sticks. Make a mini pizza using a portabella mushroom for the crust. Top with tomato sauce, veggies, and low-fat mozzarella cheese, and broil. Vary your veggies by adding a new vegetable to a different meal each day. Plunge asparagus quickly into boiling water to blanch--then add to a pasta salad or serve as a side dish. Green bean, broccoli, or spinach casseroles are a quick and easy way to serve vegetables--make

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several “Show and Tell” items passed around for all to see. Guests present were Anna Crockett, Jazmine Wescott, Joan Sheets and Elaine Reynolds. The next meeting will be at Denny's on April 17, at 9 a.m. I remember Elaine R. when we attended a “duct tape” purse class at the high school. Elaine is a cheerful lady, plus being talented. The Rebekah Circle held its March 17 meeting at 11 a.m. President Donna Wescott extended a welcome to the nine ladies present and one guest, Beula Miller. Hostess Nedra Divine used green napkins and favors of cups filled with assorted nuts, plus candies. Following lunch, Donna opened the business meeting. Each lady answered roll call by reading St. Patrick's Day verses made by Betty Gideon. Betty also presented Maxine with a St. Patricks pin for her wedding anniversary. The next meeting will be April 21, at Denny's. May the Lord bless our military troops and keep them safe. Until next time...

them healthier with low- having them on hand-fat ingredients. fresh, frozen, and canned Use dark leafy greens, (choose no-salt-added). like romaine lettuce and spinach, to make salads. Add red and orange veggies for extra color and nutrition! Add pureed vegetables, like carrots, sweet potatoes, and beans to soup for a thicker, heartier texture. Vegetables go well with a dip or dressing. Try low-fat salad dressing with raw broccoli, red and green peppers, celery, or cauliflower. Don't feel like cooking? When eating out, look for the vegetarian options on your menu as an easy way to meet your veggie goal. Make it easier to include plenty of vegetables in your day by always

(Reference to his years as a rancher in Dakota territory.)

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Donna Letton. She will celebrate her 80th birthday with an evening reception on March 28, at the First Christian Church. “Happy Birthday” to Tom Duncan, who celebrated his 93rd birthday with an open house on Monday, March 23, at Truman Healthcare in Lamar. The Fiber Arts Guild met Thursday, March 20, at Denny's. Guild President Patsy Yount welcomed the 19 ladies present. Breakfast orders were turned in and Loeta Thompson gave prayer. Peggy Phipps presented each lady present with a home baked cupcake with green frosting. Roll call was answered with “Signs of Spring”. Minutes and the treasurer's report were read. Breakfast was served. The program chairman for March, Beula Miller, chose Elaine Reynolds to present the program. Elaine gave directions on designing ornaments. Various shapes of clear ornaments were painted on the inside with colorful designs on the outside, complete with hangers. She had several on display, very intriguing designs. There were

“There were all kinds of things I was afraid of at first, ranging from grizzly bears to “mean” horses and gun fighters; but by acting as if I was not afraid, I gradually ceased to be afraid.”

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Editor - Melody Metzger Sales - Melissa Little Sports Writer - Chris Morrow Ad Design/Composition - Heather Gerths Staff Writer - Richard Cooper Correspondents - Darlene Sheridan, Gail Leaming, Louise Ott and Maxine Morin Dade County Reporter - Carolyn Head Publisher - Lewis County Press LLC

OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF BARTON COUNTY TITLE of this newspaper transfers to the reader when each issue of the newspaper leaves the newspaper office at 100 East 11th Street, Lamar. ERRORS should be reported immediately as the LAMAR DEMOCRAT can be responsible for only the first incorrect insertion in advertisements. The DEMOCRAT cannot be liable for errors in advertisement to a greater extent than the cost of space occupied by the item in the advertisement. PUBLISHER’S LIABILITY FOR ERROR: The publisher shall not be liable for slight changes or typographical errors that do not lessen the value of the advertisement. The publisher’s liability for the other errors or omissions in connection with an advertisement is strictly limited to publication of the advertisement in any subsequent issue or refund of any monies paid for the advertisement. INDEMNIFICATION: The advertiser and/or advertising agency agrees to defend and indemnify the publisher against any and all liability, loss or expense arising from claims of libel, unfair competition, unfair trade practices, infringement of trademarks, copyrights, trade names, patents or propietary rights or violation of rights of privacy, resulting from the publication of the advertiser’s advertisement. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to LAMAR DEMOCRAT, P.O. Box 458, Lamar, Missouri 64759.

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Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

3A

Friends & Family

Raders travel to Florida for spring training Little – Baughman engagement Frank, Maxine and David Rader traveled to Florida on Monday, Feb. 24, leaving at 9 a.m. on Allegiant Airlines, flying out of the Springfield Branson Regional Airport and arriving at the Orlando Sanford International Airport. Upon their arrival to Florida they rented a black Chevrolet Impala from Alamo for the two weeks they would be there. They stayed at the Liki Tiki Village in Kissimmee, Fla., for six nights. Tuesday, Feb. 25, they went to eat at Taco Bell, Wednesday, Feb. 26 they ate at The Sizzler and Thursday, Feb. 27, they ate at Denny's. Friday, Feb. 28, they enjoyed the all you can eat fish fry from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Shipwreck Sally's, that was located at the Liki Tiki Village. Saturday, March 1, they ate at Wendy's.

Sunday, March 2, they went to the ESPN Wide World of Sports at Champions Stadium to see the Atlanta Braves play a spring training baseball game against the Detroit Tigers. After 10 innings there was no score, so the game ended tied with the Tigers 0, Braves 0. The Raders then went to the Marriott Royal Palms in Orlando, Fla. for a week. Monday, March 3,

they got to see the Braves play the New York Mets at the ESPN Wide World of Sports at Champions Stadium. The Mets beat the Braves, 6-2. Tuesday, March 4, they returned to the stadium to watch the Braves play the Washington Nationals. The Braves beat the Nationals, 8-4. Friday, March 7, they ate at the Golden Corral and on Saturday, March 8, they ate at an English

restaurant called Fish and Chips. Sunday, March 9, they stayed at the Springhill Suites by Marriott in Sanford, Fla., for one night and ate dinner at Denny's in Sanford. Monday, March 10, they again boarded Allegiant Airlines at the Orlando Sanford International Airport and arrived at the Springfield Branson Regional Airport at 2 p.m.

Berry graduates basic training

Crying out for help

By JACK SLADE cult to face, or even make Cornerstone Southern it through the day. That's Baptist Church when you know that they are not coping well at all. Living through a tragedy How about you? How are of any kind can be a trau- you coping? Are you feelmatic experience. You can ing depressed? Experiencfeel as if your life has been ing panic attacks? Having shattered, that nothing trouble sleeping? Lashwill ever be the same...that ing out in anger? Isolatpeace and joy could never ing yourself from family be possible again. You and friends? Any or all of may battle powerful feel- these symptoms may be ings of shock, hurt, confu- a normal first step in the sion, fear, worry and even healing process for you, anger. This is a normal but if you are having diffiand necessary response to culty moving beyond this any tragedy and/or loss, step please seek the right a part of the process to- kind of professional help wards healing. However, for your healing. A pastor, for some grief can be- professional or counselcome complicated and if ing can help in moving left unchecked, can turn forward and getting to the into depression. One of right place for you. Otherthe warning signs is when wise, you may begin to rea person finds it too diffi- spond in unhealthy ways

Air Force Airman Trenton M. Berry graduated from basic military training at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, San Antonio, Texas. The airman comleted an intensive, eight-week program that included training in military discipline and studies, Air Force core values, physical fitness and basic warfare principles and skills. Airmen who complete basic training earn four credits toward an associate in applied science degree through the Community College of the Air Force. Berry is the son of Randy Berry and Debbie Long, Lamar. He is a 2009 graduate of Lamar High School.

Kyla Beth Little and Joshua Lee Baughman, both of Dayton, Virginia, announce their engagement. Kyla is the daughter of Rod and Karen Little of Dayton. Grandparents are Ray and Doris Little of Lamar, Missouri and Richard and Ella Mae Cooper of Lamar and the late Ivan McKee. Joshua is the son of Lee and Traci Baughman of Dayton. The bride and groom-to-be both graduated from Turner Ashby High School in Bridgewater in 2008. Kyla earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in elementary education from Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg. Joshua earned a bachelor’s degree in fisheries science from Virginia Tech. Kyla is a third grade teacher at Luray Elementary School. Joshua is a water treatment plant operator for the city of Harrisonburg. A June 21 wedding is planned.

that can have a lifelong effect such as becoming bitter, giving up on life, turning to drugs, alcohol or even considering suicide. Don't hesitate to reach out in your cries for help. Your family and friends are depending on you, just as you are undoubtedly looking to them for encouragement and support. Start by setting up some time with a pastor or counselor to guide your spirit toward wellness. Above all, don't give up! Truly with God's help, and your willingness, you can make it! Taking your Life back... 1. Does it seem as if you just can't be comforted or relieved from your despair? If so, pray to God and tell Him what you need. Be completely honest about the way you are

feeling and ask Him to guide you in finding the help you need. But don't stop there. Tell someone you trust that you need to overcome your grief. Perhaps God will use that person or someone else to guide you to a person, place or a sincere godly friend that can help. 2. Be sure to talk to a doctor about any physical symptoms (severe headaches, dizziness, chest pain, anything) that have changed, this is very important. Anything you may be experiencing can be a result of this event, tragedy and the stress caused by it. It is important to care for your body as you journey towards healing your life. It can be done. "With God all things are possible”. 3. Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Him

who strengthens me." What encouragement does this scripture give to you as you think about the journey to the healthy life and wellness that is before you? Additional readings:

Psalm 34:18, Proverbs 13:12a, John 16:33. "Be Gracious to me, O Lord, for I am in distress; my eye is wasted away from my body also. For my life is spent with sorrow" (Psalm 31:9-10a).

By ROB WILSON Lamar First Christian Church

Are you ready for Heaven? Not in the sense of “Ready, set, go” as to the beginning of living in Heaven, but in the sense that you’ve been in training so that you can live in Heaven. Is Heaven ready for you? Has your heart been transformed enough in this life that you would “fit” into Heaven? It’s hard to answer, isn’t it? Life transformation (growing up to be like

Christ) seems to be an elusive and fickle thing. But so is farming. Farming seems so unpredictable and so dependent on the hand of God; and yet there is food on the table… so it can be done. Truly it is a partnership. God does what only He can do: He gives the soil. He brings the rain. He provides the sunshine. He makes the seed grow. He produces the harvest.

The farmer is to do all that he can do: He prepares the soil. He plants the seed. He harvests the crop. Getting ready for Heaven is a lot like farming; a partnership between you and God; God does what only He can do: He’ll change your heart. He’ll make you grow. He’ll produce fruit. You are to do all that you can do: You’ve got to be real with Him, you can’t pretend away your failings or blame others. You can’t run away from Him; you have to stay talking, listening, obeying Him. You have to deal with your character defects as He instructs you. You must put your will towards His. And when we do those see READY, page 6A

Ready, set, go!

“Ready, set, go!” – These are the words uttered on many school playgrounds around the world to begin a race. Even on some television game shows – we still use these words to mark the beginning of a contest, game or chase. Let me pose a deep and significant question:

Pastor’s note By MARK TURNBOUGH Lamar United Methodist Church One comic talked about his lack of faith, “I'm waiting for God to show me a sign, like a large Swiss bank account with my name on it”. Did you ever notice how often our desired signs and prayer requests are self-serving? We want God to do what we want. Jesus always wants to do what we really need. That Swiss bank account would eventually belong to someone else, as will ours. We leave this life absolutely penniless and naked. No exceptions. Jesus wants to give us His riches and His life forever. That cost Him a great deal. Christians talk about that, especially this time of year, at your local church. It's a great place. Enjoy it!

4A • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Friends & family

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Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Metzger’s Mutterings

By MELODY METZGER I made an amazing discovery the other day... I actually still have a memory! Mankind has so much on their minds now days that sometimes most of the things we have learned over the years flies out the window. Can't you just visualize a nice puffy pink healthy brain sprouting luxurious white wings and flying off into the horizon, only to return sporadically. I'm sure I'm not the only one that feels that way and

it seems with age, it just keeps getting worse and worse. I have always been extremely fortunate to not remember the bad parts of my life, only the good. That's just the way I'm wired. It's probably a coping mechanism, as there have definitely been some pretty low times that I don't want to relive for any reason. I have never been one to dwell too long on anything and seeing the glass half full, I usually am grateful that only the good things in

my life stick out. The meaning of memory is the process in which information is encoded, stored and retrieved. Another meaning is something remembered from the past; a recollection. The first part of that definition makes me feel like a computer and in a way, I guess when it comes down to it, that is what our brains are. God made a wonderful creation with mankind, giving us the ability to have a memory. What other creature on earth does? Just like mankind is the only creation of His that he gave the ability to speak. Wonder if He ever questions that act? The other evening I was watching something on

PBS regarding Bob Dylan and there were several musical artists that were present to perform his songs. The backup band had one particular person that I knew I had seen before, but just couldn't place. This is not uncommon, happening quite often, but this time I actually remembered correctly and was extremely proud of myself. I had thought and thought, and thought

some more, and still could not think of where I had seen him. Then literally just like a light bulb going off, I remembered him from watching Saturday Night Live in the 1970's! To verify my find I opened up the old laptop and pulled up Google to begin the search. Wouldn't it be nice if our brains did work like a computer in that capacity? That when we wanted

to recall something we could just go to “find” and enter in whatever it is we are looking for. Or for that matter, if there is something we want to forget we could just “undo” and it would be gone, only to be retrieved when needed. Just think of the gigabytes our brain would have to have in order to store everything

Dear Editor: I am looking for the family of my cousin, Evelyn Shockey. I haven't been able to contact her lately. She has two daughters,

Paula Dumm and Sharon Quigley, but I don't know if they lived near their mother. I am helping a cousin update our family history only back to our grand-

parents. If anyone knows the girls please have them contact me by phone or write me. I'd really appreciate it. Anna Mae Mueller, Willow Springs

Letter to editor

see MUTTERINGS, page 5A

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

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Golden City STAR Students Eagles sixth grade finishes undefeated

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

5A

School

STAR Students at Lamar East Primary for the week of March 24 are, third row, left to right, Corey Mitchell, Riddick Gordon, Sarinity Begley, Jacob Hearting-Dines; second row, Andy Price, Jayla Perez, Draden Crockett, Ricky Sewell; first row, Madison Markley, Helena Baker, Christopher Castro, Dakota Hutton, Halen Lock.

It's business as usual at Lamar R-1 DR. ZACH HARRIS Lamar R-I Superintendent

Pictured are, back row, Arlo Stump, Trey Evans, Ann Parker (great aunt and stat keeper), Trenton Evans, Ben Wilhelm; front row, Matthew Weiser, Talon Besendorfer, Eliab Cifuentes.

Pictured are, back row, Arlo Stump, Coach Josh Willis, Trenton Evans, Lehman Julian; front row, Talon Besendorfer, Eliab Cifuentes and Trey Evans.

Mutterings, continued from page 4A we have been taught, or learned, from the time we were born. Anyway, back to my Google search. Sure enough I typed in bandleaders for SNL in 1970 and up came GE Smith and a picture of who I was thinking of. Ah, success... what a wonderful feeling! I actually

thought of something, remembered it, verified my memory was correct and had the answer all in five minutes, thanks to the handy laptop. The internet is a wonderful thing, especially if used for knowledge and good. Now I know that memory loss is normal and that it is inevitable that it will happen to each and everyone of us. I am an avid reader and puzzle worker, which from all I've read is supposed to help keep memory loss at bay. My husband even has a little Nerf gun that he can shoot me with to get my attention because I get so caught up in what I'm doing that I tune everything else out. Who knows if it is doing me any good at keeping my brain fresh, but I enjoy doing it so will continue to do so with the hopes that the experts know what they are talking about!

It is that time of year when I find myself reflecting on how fast the school year has gone. I often get asked, “How are things at the school going?” A question that I truly enjoy being asked, as it gives me an opportunity to “brag” about our students and staff. Although, at times, I find it difficult to express exactly how things are going due to the large number of activities taking place in our district. Everything from new standards to building projects, to the many programs that our students continue to show success in, there are simply a lot of great things happening at Lamar R-I! Phase 1 of our building process began the day after school was out for the 2012-13 school year and continued through September. This phase included asbestos removal, removal and replacement of the current suspended ceiling, new tiles, internet/phone lines and floor resurfacing. This phase also included removal of carpet and old tile floors throughout the high school and LCTC, as well as various roof replacements. We started the school year with various renovations still being completed. We were able to start school on time, but the renovations still in process made a memorable beginning of the year for our students! Phase 2 of our building process began in November. Phase 2 included the demolition of the 1936 building that included our middle school band room, gymnasium and eighth grade science classroom. Students and staff watched the demolition and cleanup from their classroom windows. As I walked the halls, I couldn’t help but reflect on the many lives that had been impacted in those classrooms. I encouraged teachers and students to take a moment and observe the demolition, as this was truly a historic time for Lamar. In the midst of the construction it is business

The Rhapsody Show Choir, as well as kindergarten students, gave presentations this past year to the Lamar R-1 School Board.

as usual at Lamar R-I. Our students continue to achieve in the classroom, as well as in the numerous activities throughout the district. January 26 through February 1 was Missouri’s School Board Recognition Week. Our board members provide leadership for academic programs and achievement, district funding, school facilities and many other critical issues. Our school district appreciates their continued support and leadership! This year at our board meetings we have had presentations from our Rhapsody Show Choir, kindergarten class, Career and Technical Center and Spanish class,

as well as presentations on integrating technology into the classroom. Our ongoing building project at the middle school is really taking shape, please drive by sometime and take a look at the progress. At the March 13 board meeting, the board approved selling the bricks the district saved from the 1936 building for $5 per brick. More details will follow once a process to purchase has been established. April 8 is Election Day and there are several school board candidates, including the three incumbents, running for election. The reorganization of the school board

will be held on April 17, at 6:45 p.m. Although we have missed eight days of school due to inclement weather this year, we still plan to start summer school on time. Tentative summer school plans have been made to provide a summer school program from May 27 through June 27 from 7:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. As we are almost into April, summer will be here before we know it. I want to thank our students, teachers, board members and community for your continued dedication to our students and encourage you to strive to maintain a great place for our kids!

Lamar High School is a busy place this spring! This year the junior class had the opportunity to tour both a fouryear university and a community college. During the fall they visited MSSU and this semester they visited

Crowder College. These trips allowed students to see what each college has to offer, along with learning about financial aid opportunities. On Wednesday, March 12, juniors and seniors had the opportunity to hear from Paul Sundy, a LHS graduate that has become a successful entrepreneur. He told students to never give up and to learn from failure. The freshmen and sophomores also had a motivational assembly. The message came through a three screen multimedia presentation encouraging students to “Dream, Dare, Do.” Students will participate in a program called “Safe and Sober” on March 28. The message is to encourage students to take the pledge to be safe and sober.

The junior/senior prom will take place on Saturday, March 29, at The Ramsey in Joplin. Students are currently working on pre-enrollment for next year, along with enrollment for summer school. Summer school will be in session from 7:45-12:45, May 27-June 27. Students will be offered classes to help them accelerate, as well as classes for credit recovery. In addition, seniors are working on scholarship applications. Many scholarship opportunities are available. Students and/ or parents can contact the counseling center for more information about any of these items. The high school recently received a mobile laptop cart containing 30 laptops available for teachers

Lamar High School is a busy place this spring

see BUSY, page 6A

6A • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

SCHOOL

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Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Lamar Career Technical Center has experienced a great year By DR. TRACI PATTISON

It has been a great year at Lamar Career & Technical Center. February, March and April is contest season and our student organizations have done very well. There were 18 students who qualified for State DECA March 16-18, at Lodge of the Four Seasons. Twenty students qualified for State SkillsUSA to be held at Linn State on April 3-5. FFA contests started in March and continue through April. At the area banquet held in February, five students received their Area Proficiency Awards and four students received their Area Degrees. LCTC has four students who will receive their State FFA degrees at the state convention held April 24-25. Lamar Career & Technical Center serves students from nine high schools: Dadeville, Greenfield, Golden City, Jasper, Lamar, Liberal, Lockwood, Sheldon and Stockton. Students may choose classes in Agriculture, Auto Mechanics, Business, Carpentry, Drafting, Graphic Design, Health Occupa-

tions, Marketing, These students will be Machine Tool, representing LCTC at the State Welding and SkillsUSA contest in April. Anna WoodworkAndrews, Dylan Inman, Marshall ing. We are very Hudson, Ashton Kirkpatrick, proud of our Kathryn Pierce (Liberal), John students and the Rice, Caleb Luthi, Trent Morgan, success they have Johnathan Seaton, Johnna Catohad this year. On Schwan, James Tabor (Jasper), May 1, we will Avery Rosenthal (Golden City), host our LCTC Ryan Luthi, Clayton Buzzard, Awards Night Simeon Harvey (Jasper), Jealisy at the Lamar Foster, Josie Kaderly and Mark Middle School Sutton (Stockton). Cafeteria from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Each program will paced, high-technology recognize outstanding field. Students learn the students, seniors will be basic elements of good inducted into the Na- design, simple tips and tional Technical Honor techniques to make their Society, scholarships will designs stand out and be awarded and students computer design using will also be recognized state-of-the art 27” iMacs for their participation in while learning QuarkXDECA, FBLA, FFA and Press and Adobe IllustraSkillsUSA. The staff is tor. Design skills include looking forward to this print layout production, evening! image reproduction and This is the second year digital photo manipulaof the Graphic Design tion. Additional topics program and it contin- include Adobe Photoues to grow. In Graphic Shop and InDesign, shop Design, students learn management, designing skills necessary to pro- and printing actual jobs, duce their own t-shirts, organizing production car decals, magnets, projects, vinyl applicabusiness cards, banners, tion and heat transfer imstationery, posters, an- ages. Students will leave nouncements, CD covers, this program with the menus, brochures and skills necessary to enter more. The printing and the workforce or contindesign industry is a fast- ue their education.

Ashton Kirkpatrick, Josie Kaderly and Johnna Cato-Schwann are students in the Graphic Design program. Each one is holding a sign they created using the large format printer and the vinyl printer.

Area Proficiency Award winners include Tony Morgan, Ethan Lawrence, Jade Morgan, Trent Morgan, Ryan Luthi.

Area Degree winners include Chad McKibben, Caleb Luthi, Coltin Divine and Tony Morgan.

Ready, continued from page 3A

things, we will long to hear the words of Jesus, “Ready or not, here I come!” because we have been transformed to live in Heaven. A new life in Christ really isn’t fickle… it’s fantastic!

Drive Carefully! School’s

Open!

Busy, continued from page 5A

Paul Sundy, a Lamar High School graduate that has become a successful entrepreneur, spoke to the high school students, encouraging them to never give up and to learn from their failures. to use with students in their own classrooms. This has been a huge asset. The laptop cart has been in use every class period since it was delivered! An academic banquet will be held on Saturday, April 26, to recognize students that have earned a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5. Students who qualify will be invited to attend with two family members to celebrate this honor. Each department will also be recognizing their outstanding students. LHS has a new club, The 28 Club. The 28 Club is for students that scored a 28 or bet-

ter on their ACT. All students who qualify will be receiving a special t-shirt to recognize their accomplishment. The LHS Academic Team hosted a tournament for area schools with competition on Monday, March 24, Tuesday, March 25 and Thursday, March 27. Prelims were on Monday and Tuesday, with finals on Thursday. Rhapsody, the high school show choir, received first place last Saturday, in their final competition of the school year. There will be another opportunity to see them perform at the Dinner Cabaret, along with the Concert Choir, on Saturday, April 5. There

will be two show times at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m., in the high school gym. They will be serving chicken cordon bleu. Contact Mr. Hargrave for ticket information. The band just returned from their Disney vacation and competition. They had a great performance and received excellent feedback from the clinicians. The students had a wonderful time and are very grateful they were given the opportunity to go there. Graduation for the class of 2014 will be held on Sunday, May 11, at Thomas O’Sullivan Stadium. The senior assembly will be on Thursday, May 8, in the high school gym.

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

2014

Section B

Good Samaritan Shop experiences change and growth

The last year has been one of change and growth for The Good Samaritan Shop. Throughout the year food drives and donations have helped provide food and clothing, as well as other household items, to families in need and the thrift store continues to provide these household items at garage sale prices year round. In turn, the proceeds from the sale of these items help provide a monthly food allotment to help nourish Barton County families in need of assistance. According to Ivy Atwood donations have become a major source of funding for The Good Samaritan Shop. “With the continued reduction of food from the USDA, donations are becoming more necessary to maintain the level of service we are able to provide to our patrons.” According to the USDA Economic Research Poverty Percentage Chart, Barton County ranks 20th out of 28 counties in the state of Missouri, with an 18.6 percent poverty ranking. The Good Samaritan Shop notes that there is a steady increase in families requesting assistance and are currently serving close to 700 families each month, up from around 630 in 2012. The Good Samaritan Shop’s fundraising efforts were successful and they received matching grants from Walmart’s Hunger Challenge project, which is sponsored by

Ozark Food Harvest. The funds are used strictly for food purposes. The holiday food drives were also successful and the yearly Christmas Project served 703 families. The amount of USDA commodities have decreased and generally run out within one week of delivery. This makes the need for donations increasingly necessary. A very generous anonymous donation has enabled The Good Samaritan Shop to make some much needed renovations. The interior of the store has not been changed since 2002 and the old paint and carpeting had become dilapidated. The store is currently in the process of completely remodeling the interior, which includes new paint, carpeting, and vinyl flooring. A new sign has also been added to the exterior of the building and features The Good Samaritan Shop logo. A new storage building has been purchased as well and will facilitate larger purchases of food. Both of the storage containers are also being renovated to remove rust and repaint and seal the exteriors. The exterior of the building will receive new paint and sealer as well. Pat Neely, manager, and all of the staff and volunteers would like to express their gratitude for all of the donations received throughout the year, which permits The Good Samaritan Shop to continue to grow with Barton County and provide services to those in need.

Tri-State Water Coalition still holds “Grandma Has out hope for using Grand Lake To Go Away” By RICHARD COOPER Democrat staff writer

MOUNT VERNON-The TriState Water Coalition still hopes that water may be purchased from Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees to help meet future water needs across the coalition’s membership area. The proposal has the blessing of the Grand River Dam Authority (GRDA), which is an Oklahoma agency that controls the Grand River waterway. The waterway includes three hydroelectric facilities and two reservoirs, one of which is Grand Lake. However, there is a barrier that must be overcome before any water can be purchased. That is an Oklahoma law that prohibits the purchase of any Oklahoma water for removal from the state. The only way that prohibition can be overcome is through the Oklahoma legislature repealing the law. Some members of the coalition feel there is a slight

possibility that could happen. In its quarterly meeting, March 19, the coalition discussed acquiring water from Stockton and Table Rock lakes in Missouri and from Grand Lake in Oklahoma, if that becomes possible. The water from Grand Lake would eventually be recycled back to the lake since the Spring River watershed is one of its main tributaries. The coalition is going about meeting future water needs in phases. A study has been made showing that the region represented by the coalition is rapidly approaching a time when water demand in the area will equal the supply available. That time is 2035. After that year, there will be a continually growing shortage of water. Such a crisis would be greatly accelerated by a severe drought. Realization of the impending crisis is Phase 1. Phase 2 is adopting a policy that will deal with the crisis before it arrives. Phase 3 is implement-

ing that policy, which includes purchasing water from Stockton and Table Rock lakes, and Grand Lake if that becomes possible, and piping it to cities and other areas of need. At one time, the coalition was looking into construction of small lakes around the region, but that approach has largely been abandoned due to the cost of land acquisition and the probability of being forced to use eminent domain to compel reluctant landowners to sell. Legal costs and the amount of time required would likely skyrocket. The Tri-State Coalition retains its name even though its former Kansas members have dropped out. Among the Missouri members are Springfield, Joplin, Mount Vernon, Webb City, and Lamar. City Administrator Lynn Calton represented Lamar at the March 19 meeting.

children's book signing to be held A book signing for “Grandma Has To Go Away” by Nancy E. Hughes will be held on Saturday, April 12, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at For-All Bible Center in the Northpark Mall in Joplin. “Grandma Has To Go Away” is written for children who have experienced the loss of a loved one. Gracie's mother shows her a gift from Grandma that will comfort and give them hope as they miss her in the days and weeks ahead. The original music and song are inside the

book. This book is an excellent addition to church and school libraries, as well as in the homes of children ages four through 12. Hughes lives in Lamar. She is currently putting the finishing touches on a series of children's books including “Lola B. and the Skinned-Up Knee” and “There's A Deer in the Forest”. Hughes also writes weekly devotions and blogs on her website at www.nancyehughes.com.

Public Service Commission Concrete poured for 18th Street bridge approves new infrastructure surcharge for MGE

Lamar Democrat/Richard Cooper Lots of concrete was poured, late last week, but the 18th Street bridge on Gulf remains closed. City Administrator Lynn Calton says it should be open in about a week to 10 days if the weather cooperates. A decision is yet to be made on the width of the paving over the bridge. Just the middle 24 feet, or the full width? It will depend on the resurfacing that will eventually be made on Gulf.

JEFFERSON CITY-The Missouri Public Service Commission has unanimously approved a request filed by Missouri Gas Energy (MGE) to authorize a change in MGE’s current infrastructure system replacement surcharge. The surcharge first appeared on customers’ bills in April, 2004. The change in surcharge reflects infrastructure replacements made by the natural gas company since January, 2013. These costs for natural gas pipeline replacements and

relocations are not currently included in MGE’s rates. The current replacement surcharge is $0.96 a month. As a result of the commissions’ approval, the surcharge will be increased to $1.22 a month. The increase became effective March 21, 2014. MGE provides natural gas service to approximately 507,500 customers in western Missouri including the communities of Lamar, Lamar Heights, Golden City, Lockwood, Sheldon, Jasper, El Dorado Springs, and Stockton.

County line bridge replacement project moving toward bid phase By RICHARD COOPER Democrat staff writer

LAMAR-The first of four aging county bridges to be replaced by the Barton County Commission has taken a significant step toward becoming a reality. Steve Brown of Great River Associates of Springfield, the engineering firm selected to design the bridge, presented final plans to the commission, March

17. The commission approved the design, and Brown will pass them on to the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) for final approval. After that, the commission will be able to advertise for bids to construct the new bridge. Presiding Commissioner Mike Davis said he is hopeful that bids will be sought in the latter part of May. That would mean a bid opening in June. Da-

vis speculates it will take three months to construct the bridge. The bridge to be replaced is located about two and one-half miles west of Missouri Highway 43 on Northwest 100th Road and spans Drywood Creek. The new bridge will be 65 feet in length and 28 and one-half feet in width. Since 100th Road is also the Barton/ Vernon county line, the commission anticipates that Vernon County will

share half of the cost of the project. The bridge is one of four replacement bridges the commission is planning to build in 2014 under the Bridge Replacement Off Road System (BRO). Eighty percent of the cost of BRO bridges is paid by MoDOT with 20 percent coming from county funds. The other three bridges on the list for replacement are located on Northwest 30th Road, Northwest 20th Road, and Southwest 90th Road.

2B • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

RECORDS

BRIEFS

All briefs are also posted on the calender at www.lamardemocrat.com.

THE BARTON COUNTY LIBRARY WILL be closed Monday, March 31, for staff training. They will reopen at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, April 1. THE RETIRED EDUCATORS OF THE Barton County Area will meet Wednesday, April 2, in the Lamar First Christian Church Fellowship Hall. The guest speaker will be Lee Shaver, who will speak about his trips to South Africa. Breakfast will be available at 8:30 a.m., the business meeting will begin at 9 a.m. Please remember to bring non-perishable items for Nathan’s Place. LIBRARY FRIENDS WILL HOLD A book sale on Monday, March 24 through Saturday morning, April 5, at Memorial Hall in Lamar. The book sale will benefit the RIF program. Book donations are welcome. A FREE MOVIE MATINEE WILL BE shown at Mary K. Finley Library on Monday, April 7, 1 p.m. Call the library at 417-682-5355 for movie title and details. Anyone over 18 is invited to attend. Refreshments will be served. THE DRUG TAKE BACK BOX IS available at the Lamar Police Department, 1106 Broadway, for those wishing to keep prescriptions out of the water supply and out of the hands of youth. A special day has been set aside to take unused or expired medications, either prescription or over the counter, and will be held Saturday, April 26, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Please put all medications in a plastic garbage bag, minus the bottles. This will help with packaging and transport to the incinerator. No needles or inhalers please. GOLF CART LICENSES EXPIRED ON January 1 and the grace period was until January 7. They can be renewed at the Lamar Police Department. The cart must be present for renewal. TICKETS FOR THE LAMAR TIGER football night to be held Saturday, April 19, 6:10 p.m., when the Springfield Cardinals take on the Arkansas Travelers are available at the Lamar High School office for $11 each. All seats are on the first base line. Proceeds from ticket sales support Lamar athletics and activities. WEST ELEMENTARY SCHOOL’S second annual “Read-In Fundraiser” has kicked off. This year’s theme is “What Does the Tiger Read?”, based on the popular song, “What Does the Fox Say?” Pledge sheets are in the hands of students until the deadline date of Wednesday, March 26. The funds will be utilized for books and reading technology in the West building. COPIES OF A PETITION TO IMPLEMENT under protest the Common Core Curriculum can be found at the offices of the Lamar Democrat, Barton County Farm Bureau and Roger Blaser Insurance or online at http://www.ipetitions.com/ petition/petition-to-implement-common-corestate-standard/?utm_medium=social@utm_ source=facebook@utm_campaign=button. LAMAR WINTER SPORTS RECOGNITION Night will be held Friday, March 28, 6 p.m., in the West Elementary gym. Student athletes participating in inter sports will be recognized. The Lamar Booster Club will serve tea and cookies. The all sports benefit auction will take place immediately following. THE 2014 LAMAR FREE FAIR DATES have been set for August 16-23.

LAMAR POLICE REPORT

The following calls were made by the Lamar Police Department: * A forgery case was reported March 10 to the police department. It was reported that two forged checks had been stolen from a vehicle while it was in Joplin. The checks were cashed at Cash Savers. During the investigation it was determined that the location of this incident was actually in Baxter Springs, Kan., at a Cash Savers located there. The victim was instructed to call the Baxter Springs Police to make the formal report. * Officers were dispatched March 11 to the 800 block of Gulf St. on the report of a peace disturbance. The peace disturbance was related to the barking of a dog. A summons was issued to the dog’s owner. * A burglary was reported March 12 in the 700 block of Cherry St. The reporter indicated that they were about to move into a residence located there when they noticed that someone had broken out a basement window and had entered the resi-

dence. Nothing was reportedly stolen from the residence, but a window was broken out. * Arrested March 12 on a Felony Probation and Parole warrant was Adam Joseph Crockett, age 26, Lamar. Crockett was taken to the Barton County Jail where he was turned over to jail staff. * Arrested March 12 on a municipal warrant issued on a charge of failure to appear was Machelle Leigh Oliver, age 45, Lamar. Oliver was transported to the Barton County Jail where she was processed and incarcerated due to not being able to post a bond. Later the next day a bond was posted and she was released to await a court date. * Arrested March 13 on two Barton County warrants for failure to appear on two minor traffic charges was Joshua Lynn Smith, age 23, Lamar. Smith was taken to the Barton County Jail where he was turned over to the jail staff for processing.

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Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

DEATHS & PAID MEMORIALS

DON HOLDER JERICO SPRINGS-Services were held at 2 p.m. Saturday at Daniel Funeral Home for Donald Dwane Holder, 65, Jerico Springs, who died Sunday, March 16, 2014, at Fayetteville VA Hospital. Burial was in Hall Cemetery, near Jerico Springs. Memorial contributions may be made to the DAV or Patriot Guard. The obituary may be viewed and condolences sent online at www.danielfuneralhome.net. Survivors include his wife, Rose Holder; three sons, Michael Holder and Dawn Smith, Plasttsburgh, NY, Matthew Holder and fiance Kristina Windmer, Pittsburg, Kan. and Marvin Ayers and wife Stephanie, Sheldon; a daughter, Michell Burton and husband Wayne, Stockton; a brother, Elton Holder and wife Judy, El Dorado Springs; two sisters, Betty Young and husband Joe, Clever and Patty McCrery and husband Marvin, Jerico Springs; grandchildren, Colby and wife Maggie, Cassie and husband Nathan, Kayla and husband Gary, Kelcey, Seth, Kary, Samantha, Joseph, Tristian, Christopher, Leonardo, Luke and Orin; a great-granddaughter, Trinity Obert; many nephews and a large extended family. He was preceded in death by a brother, Carol Wayne Holder and a great-granddaughter, Isabella Marie Wallen. Mr. Holder was born Dec. 18, 1948, at Jerico Springs, to Loyd and

Mary (Barnett) Holder. After graduating from Nixa High School he entered the U.S. Army, serving in Ninnhoa, Vietnam. Completing his three year term, he returned to Missouri to embark on a career that included many years as a heavy equipment mechanic, nine years as a trucker, several years as a supervisor at Thorco Industries in Lamar and retiring after 14 years as a supervisor at Pennington Seed in Geenfield. He was known for his skill as a mechanic and many will remember him as the owner/operator of Don’s Shade Tree Auto. He was a talented woodworker and an avid outdoorsman, whose perfect day would include family and fishing. He married Rose Achor on Feb. 18, 1970, at Nixa.

RITA LEE EMBRY LAMAR-Services were held at 2 p.m. Thursday at Konantz Warden Funeral Home for Rita Lee Embry, 79, Lamar, who died Monday, March 17, 2014, at her daughter’s home, following a lengthy illness. Ministers Rob Wilson, Justin Braker and Mike Gage officiated. Burial was in Memory Gardens. Music was “Nannan” with Jesse and Hope Sheldon, vocals; “I Can Only Imagine”, “On The Wings

Of A Dove” and One Day At A Time”, with Mike Gage and Andrea Braker, vocals, and Jacque Gage and Becky Payne, pianists. Pallbearers were Jimmy Ballard, Jones Braker, Wes Budd, Paul Laemmli, Cade Payne, Judd Payne, Danny Sheldon, Jesse Embry Sheldon and Micah Sheldon. Honorary pallbearers were Steve Gilkey, John Gilkey, Tom Reed, Tom York, Dan Embry, Don Lucietta and Ron Tucker. The obituary may be viewed and condolences sent online at www. konantzwarden.com. Survivors include a son, Luther John Embry, Ft. Scott, Kan.; a daughter, Barbara Lee Embry, Lamar; a brother, Guy Shanklin, Grand Junction, Colo.; grandchildren, Becky Payne, Lamar, Justin Braker, Newton, Kan., Amanda Shelton, Mexico, Mo., Cassie Laemmli, Jefferson City, Dr. Erica EmbryBallard, Columbia and Alexa Metcalf, Ft. Scott, Kan.; 12 great-grandchildren; two great-greatgrandchildren and her lifetime friend, Nell Finley-Voorhees. She was preceded in death by two brothers, a sister and one son, Gary Wayne Embry, who died in 1986. Mrs. Embry was born Dec. 15, 1934, in Colorado Springs, Colo., to David “Dump” and Alice (Sewell) Shanklin. She was a homemaker as well as a waitress at the Blue

Top Cafe for several years and was administrator of the Harry S Truman Birthplace until her retirement. She was a member of the First Christian Church in Lamar. She married Perry John Embry on Feb. 2, 1950. He preceded her in death in 2012.

JUNE CLEMENTS LAMAR-Services were held at 10:30 a.m. Friday at Konantz Warden Funeral Home for Waunita “June” Clements, 83, Lamar, who died Tuesday, March 18, 2014. Minister Mike Gage officiated. Burial was in Lake Cemetery. Musical selections were “Amazing Grace” and “How Great Thou Art”. Pallbearers were Bud Maupin, Gary Fast, Kyle Fast, Matt Whyman, Trevor Maguire and Dan Whyman. Honorary pallbearers were Ray Little, Jim O’Neal, Larry Kuhn, Gary Frieden, Lyle “Bud” Clements, Dean Blaser, Kent Harris and Clark Harris. see DEATHS, page 3B

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

www.lamardemocrat.com

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

3B

Records/LEGALS Deaths, continued from page 2B

Memorial contributions may be made to Nathan’s Place. The obituary may be viewed and condolences sent online at www. konantzwarden.com. Survivors include her husband, Joyce Clements, of the home; two daughters, Janet Maupin and husband Bud, Lamar and Jill Fast and husband Gary, Lamar; four grandchildren, Stacy Maguire and husband Trevor, Charlotte, NC, Julie Whyman and husband Dan, Lamar, Kyle Fast, San Francisco, Calif. and Samantha “Sammy” Fast, Joplin and four greatgrandchildren, Lauren, Matt and Miles Whyman, Lamar and Jayden Maguire, Charlotte, NC. She was preceded in death by two sisters, Trula Mae Storm and Leo Storm and four nephews. Mrs. Clements was born Sept. 13, 1930, in Lamar, to Manford and Amanda (Green) Burkhart. She married Joyce Clements on Aug. 27, 1949 in Bentonville, Ark. and they were blessed with

two daughters, rearing them in a loving Christian home. June took great delight with her family and friends. She loved to sew and was a member of the Vita Vota Extension Club and a longtime member of the Lamar First Christian Church.

TRUSTEE’S SALE IN RE: David K. Guinn, and Beth Guinn, Husband and Wife Trustee’s Sale: For default in payment of debt and performance of obligation secured by Deed of Trust executed by David K. Guinn, and Beth Guinn, Husband and Wife dated December 5, 2005 and recorded in the Office of the Recorder of Deeds of Barton County, Missouri as Document # 2005-2271 the undersigned Successor Trustee, at the request of the legal holder of said Note will on Wednesday, April 2, 2014 between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., (at the specific time of 4:55 PM), at the West Front Door of the Court House, City of Lamar, County of Barton, State of Missouri, sell at public vendue to the highest bidder for cash the following described real estate, described in said Deed of Trust, and situated in Barton County, State of

Missouri, to wit: ALL OF THE SOUTH 30 FEET OF LOT FOUR (4), AND NORTH FIFTY FEET OF LOT FIVE (5), IN BLOCK ONE (1), OF FINKS ADDITION TO THE CITY OF LAMAR, BARTON COUNTY, MISSOURI. to satisfy said debt and cost. MILLSAP & SINGER, P.C., Successor Trustee 612 Spirit Drive St. Louis, MO 63005 (636) 537-0110 File No: 101189.040214.322165 FC Notice Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. §1692c(b), no information concerning the collection of this debt may be given without the prior consent of the consumer given directly to the debt collector or the express permission of a court of competent jurisdiction. The debt collector is attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. 3-12,19,26,4-2-4tc

Legals

HAROLD “PETE” WILKE LOUISBURG, Kan.Services were held at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Miami Presbyterian Church in Miami County for Harold “Pete” Wilke, 95, Louisburg, who died Monday, March 17, 2014, at his home. Rev. Fred Daniels officiated. Burial, with military honors, was in Louisburg Cemetery, Louisburg. Arrangements were under the direction of Mullinax Funeral Home – Drexel Chapel. Memorial contributions may be made to the Miami Presbyterian Church or Louisburg American Legion, John P. Hand Post 250.

NOTICE OF FILING OF FINAL SETTLEMENT AND PETITION FOR DISTRIBUTION

Online condolences may be sent at www.mullinaxfuneralhome.com. Survivors include a son, Gerald and wife Maryetta, Lamar, Mo.; a daughter, Francine and husband Brent, Ponca City, Okla.; grandchildren, Marisa Bruno and husband Anthony, Killinghall, England; Rachel Iverson and husband Greg, Tulsa, Okla., Syneva Colle, Nashville, Tenn., Stefni Colle, Los Angeles, Calif. and Jacob Colle and Josiah Colle, Ponca City, Okla. and great-grandchildren, Benjamin and Ethan Bruno. He was preceded in death his parents; wife Geraldine; brother Herman Wilke and sisters Frieda Good, Bertha Bodenhamer and Helen Elliot. Mr. Wilke was born Jan. 23, 1919, in St. Louis, Mo., to Herman and Whilminna (Jaeger) Wilke. Soon after the family moved to a farm near Louisburg where he resided for most of his life. He attended a country school before graduating from Louisburg High School. He spent six years in Texas

and California, serving in the Army Air Force as an airplane mechanic during WWII. In 1941 he married the late Geraldine Ring. Mr. Wilke would have wanted to be remembered first of all as a farmer. He loved working on the land. He also worked 23 years for the Louisburg Post Office and was a life member of the American Legion Post 250.

TO ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE ESTATE OF HAZEL FLANIGAN, Deceased: You are hereby notified that the undersigned Personal Representative will file a Final Settlement and Petition for determination of the persons who are the successors in interest to the personal/real property of the decedent and of the extent and character of their interest therein and for distribution of such property, in the Probate Division of the Circuit Court of Barton County, Missouri, on April 10, 2014 or as may be continued by the Court, and that any objections or exceptions to such Final Settlement or Petition or any item thereof must be in writing and filed within twenty days after the filing of such Final Settlement. JAMES V. NICHOLS 206 West 10th Street Lamar, Missouri (417) 682-6003 PAUL FLANIGAN Personal Representative 3-12,19,26,4-2-4tc

the Circuit Court of Barton County, Missouri. The business address of the Personal Representative is 178 SE 30th Road, Lamar, MO 64759, and whose attorney is Henry S. Clapper, whose business address is CLAPPER LAW FIRM, LLC, 103 N. Main Street, PO Box 215, Galena, Missouri 65656 and whose telephone number is 417.357.0315. All creditors of said decedent are notified to file claims in the probate division of this court within six months from the date of the first publication of this notice or if a copy of this notice was mailed to, or served upon, such creditor by the personal representative, then within two months from the date it was mailed or served, whichever is later, or be forever barred to the fullest extent permissible by law. Such six-month period and such two-month period do not extend the limitation period that would bar claims one year after the decedent’s death, as provided in section 473.444, RSMo, or any other applicable limitation periods. Nothing in section 473.033, shall be construed to bar any action against a decedent’s liability insurance carrier through a defendant ad litem pursuant to section 537.021, RSMo. Receipt of this notice by mail should not be construed by the recipient to indicate that he necessarily has a beneficial interest in the estate. The nature and extent of any person’s interest, if any, can be determined from the files and records of this estate in the Probate Division of the Circuit Court of Barton County, Missouri. Date of decedent’s death was January 17, 2014. Date of first publication of this notice is March 12, 2014. s-Charles D. Curless, Judge of the Probate Division of the Circuit Court of Barton County, Missouri 3-12,19,26,4-2-4tc

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF BARTON COUNTY, MISSOURI PROBATE DIVISION In the Estate of Martha Joan Reed, Deceased. Estate Number 14B4-PR00012 NOTICE OF LETTERS TESTAMENTARY GRANTED TO ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE ESTATE OF MARTHA JOAN REED, deceased: On February 21, 2014, the Last Will and Testament of the decedent having been admitted to probate, Laramie Todd was appointed Personal Representative by the Probate Division of

NORMA JO ISENHOWER HARLINGEN, TexasThe Isenhower family will receive friends at 10 a.m. on Saturday at Daniel Funeral Home in Lamar for Norma Jo Isenhower, 88, formerly of Lamar, who died Monday morning, Feb. 24, 2014, surrounded by her family in her home in Harlingen. A memorial service will follow at 11 a.m., officiated by her grandson, Pastor Jason Smith. Burial will be in Lake Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to Mason Vineyard Community Church, P.O. Box 40, Ma-

son, Ohio 45040. many nieces and nephCondolences may be ews. shared at www.danielfu- He was preceded in neralhome.net. death by his parents and his brother-in-law, Larry GERALD Tracy. Mr. Piepenbrink was PIEPENBRINK born Aug. 18, 1941, in GOLDEN CITY-Ser- Lockwood, to Eldor W. vices were held at 11 a.m. and Vera Lucille (CumTuesday at Faith Lutheran mings) Piepenbrink. He Church in Carthage for spent his entire life in the Gerald William Piepen- Golden City/Lockwood brink, 72, Golden City, area and was a graduate of who died at 6:15 a.m. on Golden City High School. Saturday, March 22, 2014, He completed three years at his brother’s residence of college. He had his in Golden City. Pastor own woodworking busiTimothy Buelow offici- ness, making clocks, Purated. Burial was in Zion ple Martin birdhouses Lutheran Cemetery in and other wood products. He worked for Schrieber Meinert. Pallbearers were Ed Cheese Plant in CarEvatt, Michael Tra- thage and Golden Busicy, Adam Smith, Paul ness Forms in Golden Piepenbrink, Jeff Piepen- City for many years. He brink and Steven Smith. also served in the weather Arrangements were un- watch in Golden City. der the direction of Pugh His faith was of upmost importance to him. He Funeral Home. Memorial contributions was a member of Faith may be made to Faith Lutheran Church in CarLutheran Church in Car- thage and served as an thage, in care of the fu- elder, usher and being in charge of the sound sysneral home. Survivors include a sis- tem. He also loved music ter, Reta Tracy, Mt. Ver- and played banjo and guinon; a brother, James tar for the Spielers Polka Piepenbrink and wife Band with others from Emma, Golden City, and the Friestatt area.

by Deed of Trust executed by EUGENE D. SADLER and HELEN J. BYRNSADLER, husband and wife, dated June 3, 2003 and recorded on June 18, 2003, in the Office of the Recorder of Deeds of Barton County, Missouri, in Deed of Trust Book 492 at Page 294302 and conveying to the undersigned Trustee the following described property, situated in the County of Barton and State of Missouri, to-wit: A tract of land located in the South Half of the Southeast Quarter of Section 10, Township 33 North, Range 33 West, Barton County, Missouri, further described as follows: Beginning at a point on the North right of way line of Highway “V” a distance of 1281.32 feet West and 30 feet North of the Southeast corner of said Section 10, thence North 05 degrees 55 minutes 44 seconds West a distance of 930 feet, thence South 84 degrees 04 minutes 16 seconds West a distance of 281 feet, thence South 05 degrees 55 minutes 44 seconds East a distance of 930 feet, thence North 84 degrees 04 minutes 16 seconds East along the North right of way line of Highway “V” a distance of 281 feet to the point of beginning. Subject to easements, reservations and restrictions of record. at the request of the legal holder of said note and in accordance with the provisions of said Deed of Trust, the undersigned Trustee will on Thursday, April 10, 2014 between the hours of 9:00 o’clock a.m. and 5:00 o’clock p.m., at 1:30 p.m., sell said property NOTICE OF at public vendue to the TRUSTEE’S SALE highest bidder for cash at Default having been made the West front door of the in the payment of the note Barton County Courthouse described in and secured in the City of Lamar, Barton

County, Missouri, to satisfy said note and costs. Bryan Breckenridge, Trustee NOTICE Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1692c(b), no information concerning the collection of this debt may be given without the prior consent of the consumer given directly to the debt collector or the express permission of a Court of competent jurisdiction. The debt collector is attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. 3-19,26,4-2,9-4tc IN THE 28TH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT COURT, BARTON COUNTY, MISSOURI Judge or Division: JAMES R BICKEL In the Interest of AMJ BRANDI MCINROY, Juvenile Officer, Plaintiff vs. TIFFANY LEIGH JOHNSON, Mother and TRAVELL ALDRICH, Father Defendants Notice Upon Order for Service by Publication Termination of Parental Rights The State of Missouri to defendant, Travell Aldrich, father of the above-named juvenile. You are notified that an action has been commenced against you in the Circuit Court of Barton County, State of Missouri, at Lamar, the object and general nature of which is the termination of your parental rights in and to the above-named juvenile. You are further notified, pursuant to Section 211.462.2 RSMo., of your right to have counsel, and if you request counsel and are financially unable to employ counsel, counsel shall be appointed by the Court. The names of all the parties to said action are stated above in the caption hereof and the name and address of the plaintiff is Brandi McInroy, Juvenile Office, 100 W. Cherry, Ste. 9, Nevada, MO 64772. You are further notified that, unless you file an answer or other pleading or shall otherwise appear and defend against the aforesaid petition within forty-five (45) days after the 19th of March, 2014, judgment by default will be rendered against you. Witness my hand and seal of the Circuit Court at 2:44 p.m. on March 13, 2014. s-Karen Hines Clerk 3-19,26,4-2,9-4tc IN THE 28TH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT COURT, BARTON COUNTY, MISSOURI

see LEGALS, page 4B

4B • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

LEGALS

Legals, continued from page 3B

www.lamardemocrat.com

Judge or Division: JAMES R BICKEL In the Interest of KP BRANDI MCINROY, Juvenile Officer, Plaintiff vs. CRYSTAL KAY LYNCH, Mother and JONATHON PAUL PLUMMER, Father Defendants Notice Upon Order for Service by Publication Termination of Parental Rights The State of Missouri to defendant, Jonathan Plummer, father of the above-named juvenile. You are notified that an action has been commenced against you in the Circuit Court of Barton County, State of Missouri, at Lamar, the object and general nature of which is the termination of your parental rights in and to the abovenamed juvenile. You are further notified, pursuant to Section 211.462.2 RSMo., of your right to have counsel, and if you request counsel and are financially unable to employ counsel, counsel shall be appointed by the Court. The names of all the parties to said action are stated above in the caption hereof and the name and address of the plaintiff is Brandi McInroy, Juvenile Office, 100 W. Cherry, Ste. 9, Nevada, MO 64772. You are further notified that, unless you file an answer or other pleading or shall otherwise appear and

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

defend against the aforesaid Witness my hand and seal petition within forty-five of the Circuit Court at 3:17 (45) days after the 19th of p.m. on March 13, 2014. March, 2014, judgment by s-Karen Hines default will be rendered Clerk against you. 3-19,26,4-2,9-4tc

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

www.lamardemocrat.com

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

5B

Classifieds Classifieds

Cards of Thanks The family of Larry Cox would like to thank each and everyone for the kindness that was received during our time of loss. Thank you for all the visits at the hospital, thoughts, prayers, flowers, food, cards and the overwhelming support. Your kind expression of sympathy and friendship will always remain in our memories. A special thank you to Daniel Funeral Home, Dr. Alden, Barton County Memorial Hospital, Lamar Church of Christ, Lamar Elks and the employees of Cox & Son Lumber. Russell mix. Answers to Razmataz. Any information please call 417Alcoholics Anony- 214-4397 or 417-884mous meets every 0222. Sunday, 5 p.m., in the basement of Lamar Services Offered Memorial Hall, 1104 Broadway. All meetings are nonsmoking. Appliance Repair. Appliance parts. Miller’s Narcotics Anonymous Country Corner. 417Meetings - Wednes- 884-2684. days, 7:30 p.m., 1104 Broadway, Memorial House Cleaning. Have Hall Basement. openings daily, weekly, biweekly or monthLost & Found ly. Residential, commercial. Move ins, move outs. We clean it Lost – Mostly white and all – wall to wall. Referblack Chihuahua/Jack ence available. Free esSpecial Notices

timates. Call Tina, 417- 1mo exp., Same Day 262-2321. Pay! Free Health Ins, Close Out Sale – All No CDL? Free Train- front load Washer/DryEmployment ing! www.trailiner.com. er pairs – Pedestals included. Regularly $1895 USDA – The Barton to $2695, now any pair Drivers: Growing County Farm Service $1495. Miller’s Country Fleet! Earn $800 - $1000/ Agency has a vacancy Corner, 417-884-2684. wk, Weekly Weekend for a full time temporary Home Time! Truck w/ position. The open ap- Save On Heating Bills. microwave & fridge! plication period is from Cabinet infrared heatCompany Paid Health Wednesday, March 26, ers. Low price – top Ins, Vacation, Holidays 2014 to Friday, April 4, quality. Miller’s Country & More! CDL-A, 2yrs 2014. Grade potential Corner, 417-884-2684. Experience Required. will be based on educa1-888-992-4038 ext 105. tion, work experience, "Publisher's notice: All agriculture knowledge real estate advertised Drivers: Excellent and background. Please herein is subject to the Home Time. Great Pay contact Kelly Beason at Federal Fair Housing & Benefits. Dry Van, the Barton County Farm Act, which makes it ilFlatbed and Intermodal Service Agency, 417- legal to advertise any Divisions. You Choose! 682-3571, for informa- preference, limitation, Refreshers Welcome. tion on applying for the or discrimination be$1,500.00 Sign On Bo- position. USDA-FSA is cause of race, color, renus. CDL-A 1 yr Exp. an Equal Opportunity ligion, sex, handicap, 866-374-8487. Provider and Employer. familial status, or national origin, or intenDrivers, Solo, 3 or 6 day tion to make any such runs, up to $0.44CPM, Miscellaneous For Sale preference limitation, Free Health Ins. Same or discrimination. We Day Pay. 800-769-3993 will not knowingly acfor Details, www.trailin- Appliances: Mostly cept any advertising for new. Some used. Also real estate, which is in er.com. appliance parts. Miller’s violation of the law. All Drivers, $60,000+, Country Corner. 417- persons are hereby inCDL-A, $2500 sign on, 884-2684. formed that all dwell-

Need to send or receive a fax?

The Lamar Democrat will send or receive. $2.90 for the first page and $1.00 each additional page

ings advertised are vada. Starting at $365. available on an equal op- 417-667-2633. portunity basis". Sheldon Apartments Nice 1 bedroom apartMobile Homes for Rent ments, furnished or unfurnished. All utilities paid. Starting at $370 Are You Ready To per month. Call 417Move? We have 2 bed- 667-2633. room trailers and houses ready to rent. Two Homes For Rent rental references a must. 682-2636. 3 Bedroom, 2 bath Apartments for Rent home for rent. Prefer no pets. Deposit required. 603 Truman, $475 Vacancy - Scottsdale month. Karen, 417-667Apartments - Senior 1745. Citizens Housing. Call 682-3589. Mo. TDD 2 Bedroom, 1 bath 1-800-735-2966. Equal home for rent. Prefer no Opportunity Hous- pets. Deposit required. ing. Handicapped units 710 Truman, $500 available. Located at month. Karen, 417-66717th and Lexington. 1745. 1 Bedroom Apartment nicely furnished or unfurnished. Pool, rec room and laundry. Free cable/HBO, water and trash. Short leases available. $200 security deposit. No pets! In Ne-

Acreages

For Sale – 13 Acres M/L outside of city limits of Greenfield. 417-6822676.

6B • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Area News

www.lamardemocrat.com

Burglary at storage unit west of Lamar

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Time to treat henbit and chickweed

LAMAR-Now is the time to treat for henbit and chickweed according to Jill Scheidt, an agronomy specialist with University of Missouri Extension. “Herbicides are most effective when applied to weeds under two inches in height or diameter,” said Scheidt. “Winter annual weeds henbit and chickweed in wheat fields can cause up to 37 percent

yield loss.” Scheidt says to apply herbicides, like Harmony Extra, before these weeds flower because after flowering the seeds have already dropped. “Harmony is recommended to control henbit and chickweed in wheat fields and is most effective when applied at temperatures of 60 degrees or more,” said Scheidt. To learn what Scheidt

had to report about aphids and septoria in wet wheat fields this week subscribe to Extension’s field crop scouting report. Sponsors of this weekly field scouting report are University of Missouri Extension and Barton County Extension. To receive the report by telephone, contact the MU Extension Center in Barton County, (417) 682-3579.

The Barton County Sheriff 's Office received a call on Sunday, March 16, in reference to an individual at a storage unit business just west of Lamar off Highway 160. The reporting party advised that it appeared as if the person was removing items from the storage unit and that he was getting ready to leave. The reporting party believed the subject was

stealing from the unit and did not have any rights to being on the property. The person reporting the crime followed the suspect and was able to give the dispatcher key information in the case, which included a description of the vehicle and license plate number. The suspect turned southbound on Hwy. 49 and the reporting party

continued to follow the suspect at a safe distance. Deputies was able to located the vehicle and conducted an investigative stop, finding stolen items in the vehicle. Taken into custody for the stealing case was a Justin A. Rankin, age 35, Joplin. An arrest warrant was served on Rankin and he later posted bond from the Barton County Jail.

NEVADA-Vernon County inmates began working at the Vernon County Recycling Center Monday morning, March 17, with the start of a new program aimed at helping people sentenced to jail repay their housing cost and gain a workers program certificate from the sheriff ’s of-

fice upon completion of the program. Vernon County Sheriff Jason Mosher said they had been looking for new programs to help inmates get a better start when they are released from jail, “I think this is a great program to get started and it puts some of the inmates in a con-

structive environment.” and then will go back to work day. Inmates will wards their housing bill The sheriff also said no the jail at the end of the also receive credit to- for their time worked. inmates with violence related charges will be eligible at the moment because inmates selected for this program are placed on “work release”, which means they will be under the supervision of the recycling center supervisors while working

GREENFIELD-Mayor George Wynes called the Greenfield City Council meeting to order on February 19, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Those present besides Wynes were Jack Pugh, Vicki Lollar, Cathy Harrington, Bob White, Beth Wright and attorney Allen Rose and his wife Sherry. Minutes from the February 5 meeting were unanimously approved as read, as well as a unanimous vote to approve the payment of monthly bills. Jeremy Boyd asked the council for a water bill adjustment because of a

frozen water line. He has no sewer to adjust. This would be a one time only adjustment down to a regular bill. Pugh made the motion to make the adjustment, seconded by Lollar with four yes votes following. After discussion it was unanimously voted on to sell the I-beams from the building on Allison St. for scrap metal prices. The building known as the “cheese plant” is in very bad condition. The council agreed that the tin needs to be secured on the roof, with the outside being cleaned up. Police Chief Larkin will send a

letter regarding the problem. Wright made a motion, seconded by Pugh, to move forward with the demolition of the stack house on Shouse St., followed by four yes votes. A notice will be published to start the process. After much discussion it was unanimously voted to have Attorney Rose get a restraining order from the circuit court on the Joy Church, after Chief Larkin does an investigation on the shelter for the homeless. With no further business the meeting adjourned.

GREENFIELD-Presiding Commissioner Randy Daniel called the Dade County Commission meeting to order at 9 a.m. on March 10. Also present were Eastern Commissioner Dallas Maxwell and Western Commissioner David Rusch.

Darren Condron with MoDOT met with the commission regarding bridge inspections. The certificate of members was received from the extension office, as well as the minutes from their February meeting. The March 3 minutes were unanimously approved

as read. The commission traveled to check on a bridge on N. Dade 41 and W. Dade 102 and then checked on a culvert on S. Dade 181 and E. Dade 156. The meeting adjourned to meet again on March 17.

Vernon County inmates begin working at recycling center

Greenfield City Council discusses various structures

Dade County Commission travels to check on bridges

Mixed bag of statistics in January unemployment By RICHARD COOPER Democrat staff writer JEFFERSON CITY-Statistics may be used to explain most any economic situation, and by juggling them the outcome can be skewed to reflect a particular point of view. For example, the January unemployment rate in the four Missouri counties that surround Barton County increased in all four. Only Barton County remained unchanged. However, Barton County was well over a percentage point higher than any of the other four. Perhaps mixed is the best word to use in describing January’s figures. Jasper County came in with the lowest January rate of 5.7 percent, but it was 0.7 of a percentage point higher than December’s 5.0 percent. Jasper County did it by losing 1,932 jobs while shedding 1,629 workers from its labor force. Had the labor force not shrunk so much, Jasper County’s unemployment rate would have been much higher. Vernon County added 258 jobs in January, but that was offset with a growth of 360 workers in the labor force. The resulting unemployment rate of 5.8 percent was up from an even 5.0 in December. Cedar County had a

good month of January, adding 175 jobs. However, an expansion of 200 job seekers to its work force gave it an unemployment rate of 5.9 percent, up from 5.7 percent in December. Dade County experienced a loss of 26 persons from its labor force, but almost double that number (51) lost their jobs in January. Consequently, the Dade County unemployment rate went from 5.3 percent in December to 6.0 percent in January. Barton County’s addition of 26 new jobs was offset by a growth of 29 in its labor force. Therefore, its unemployment rate remained static at 7.3 percent. Missouri’s unemployment rate in January was up a fraction from 5.9 percent in December to 6.0 percent in January. The national rate was down a fraction from 6.7 percent to 6.6. In neighboring Kansas, the statewide unemployment rate continued to edge slowly downward . From 4.9 percent in December, the state posted 4.8 percent in January. However, the three counties on the state line nearest Barton County could not muster the downward trend of the rest of the state. Crawford rose 0.7 of a point to 5.5 percent.

Cherokee also posted 5.5 percent, up a fraction from December’s 5.4, and Bourbon County jumped to 5.2 percent, compared with December’s 4.4.

Section C

• Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Lamar youth tops Community Betterment awards

towns with a population of 4,000 to 6,000. The Lamar Community Betterment Project book was an outstanding overview of the many great programs that impact the community. The Lamar adult projects included Plaza Take 2, presented by Pat O’Neal; Barton County Memorial Hospital - C.A.R.E Childhood Asthma Resource and Education, presented by Chelle Gardner and Nico Linsteadt; Mary K. Finley Nathaniel Hawes, Tony Morgan, Alison Hawes, Lia Yeghoyants, Library project, presented by JuHannah Moyer, Tinsley Rutledge, Kenna Roland and Clayton lie Potter, Carol Darrow, Kristy Winslow represented Lamar. Elaine Davis, Tersea Hawes and Heckman and Trent Roby, library Melinda Morgan were adult sponsors. A special thank you to the staff; H.E.A.R.T. Higher Educamany business that offered items for the Lamar silent auction tion Access Route For Teens, prebasket including Barton County Electric Cooperative, Barton sented by Tracey Keutzer, AOK County Chamber of Commerce, City of Lamar and 10th Street Youth Program and the Yard of the Community Farmers’ Market vendors. Thank you to everyone Month Project, presented by Lendi for making Lamar a better place to live, work and raise families. Davis, Barton County Master Gardeners. The Lamar youth projects Twenty-nine communities and 13 individuals were included The MOHOCOLA “Missouri 4-H Home honored at the Missouri Community Betterment Grown Community Leaders projects of commu(MCB) conference at Lake Ozark. The awards banquet nity gardens located at Lamar Enterprise and Barton was the highlight of the 50th annual conference, which County Memorial Hospital and Invest An Acre - Emassists communities to improve their quality of life. powering Youth to End Hunger” through community Nearly 325 volunteers, community leaders and youth project work. Youth and adult leadership awards were from across the state were in attendance. awarded to Kenna Roland and Deborah Snedigar. Lamar youth received first place in Category 5, The Lamar community was recognized by the MCB with the Lamar community receiving third place in for what they described as an exemplary job of project

CHiPs is about God

At Church for Imperfect People (CHiPs) their aim is straightforward: reaching anyone who does know Jesus Christ, pointing everyone to Jesus and serving the Barton County community. CHiPs focuses on the big things. What is really important to God? At CHiPs they believe it is not the clothes one wears, the car one drives or the place one may live. In a time where so many things are fake CHiPs is a relaxed place for learning about God where anyone and everyone can feel included and welcomed. CHiPs is a setting where one can learn about Jesus - a place of shelter from a hectic world. At CHiPs they love imperfect people because God does. You see, CHiPs is about God. It's a place for the hurting, the confused and those who are just missing “something” in life. Church for Imperfect People (CHiPs) is a safe place where one won't be judged. It’s a home to connect with genuine people and become a family in Christ. So what's it like? Well, it is not preachy, stiff, churchy, formal or uncomfortable. The best way to describe CHiPs is laid-back and caring. From the moment one walks in they will see that they’ve made the right choice. One is greeted by friendly faces and sincere smiles. When it comes to church what one wears doesn't much matter. CHiPs understands that a suit and tie or a dress is not more spiritual than a pair of jeans. God reminds us, "People look at the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart" (1 Sam. 16:7). The experience lasts one hour filled with live, high energy music from the band, followed by great teaching. Often the messages make one laugh, but without a doubt they are meaningful and based on God’s Word - the Bible. They give those attending things to think about and are a comfort as they face their busy week.

completion and by going the next step beyond volunteerism by placing emphasis on encouraging leadership with creative thinking and problem solving. Lamar has proved that they are what MCB is all about. Local adults and youth work together on projects, from planning to project completion. There is a strong commitment to assessing planning and implementing goals that positively affect the entire community. Lamar is very passionate about their community and its people. The Lamar youth were recognized for their ability to demonstrate compassion, their understanding and their positive resolve to make a difference in the community. The MCB judges were impressed with how this group’s projects showcased the highest level of planning, preparing and sweat equity from all the youth involved. These youth have tackled important social issues like hunger, poverty and poor nutrition. They take the lead in their community’s planning process. They identify their own projects, set goals and implant them to the end. They set the standard of what youth community betterment is all about. Thank you to the Lamar community for the many hours of hard work that fulfills the mission of Lamar Community Betterment. To help make Lamar a better place to live, work and raise families. If your organization would like to learn more about Lamar Community Betterment contact Elaine Davis 682-3579 or attend a meeting the second Wednesday of each month in the Wolf Center. New members are welcome at all times to join under the umbrella of Lamar Community Betterment’s 501c3.

Clover Kids - where the fun is!

What kind of stuff does CHiPs do? From passing out free water bottles at the Lamar Fair to weekly life groups to a shuttle bus providing transportation to church, CHiPs seeks to serve. A few other things they’ve done include free oil changes for single women and widows, a yearly free Christmas photo and a weekly life café at church where one can grab a coffee and snack and chat. While they are not “all about the numbers,” they are thrilled that 37 people have reported making a decision to follow Christ since CHiPs began on September 9, 2012. They are thrilled because they know that following Jesus is a life-changing, life-saving decision. What about babies, preschoolers, kids, teens? Yep, they’ve got them and the people who love them. For children and youth, CHiPs provides fun, food and place where kids know the ChiPs is happy to have them. From birth to teens, there is something going on. Sunday mornings, birth to high school meet. Sunday nights middle schoolers meet from 5 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. and senior high youth from 6:30 p.m. to 7:45 p.m., at Nathan’s Place on the west side of the Lamar square. Contact Ricky Fast, children and youth pastor, at 417214-0145 for more information. “We’re all about trying to remove as many roadblocks as possible for people just to show up,” says pastor Erick Burton, “In fact, one of our core values is that we will do anything short of sin to reach people who do not know Christ.” Would you like to join them? You won't regret it. Church for Imperfect People (CHiPs) meets on Sundays at Thiebaud Auditorium in Lamar with 1st Experience from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 am and 2nd Experience from 11 a.m. to 12 noon. Anyone wish questions or just wanting to talk can call Erick Burton at 417-214-2499. Come as you are!

Barton County 4-H Clover Kids enjoying “Down on the Farm” were Trey Shaw, Andrea Wood, Henry Ball, Cora James, Abigail Diggs, Annabelle Crabtree, Ryan Davis, Addison Brown, Cooper Trout, Brodie Wilson and Cooper "Bob" Burchett, with camp counselors Hannah Moyer, Nate Cable, Jackie Neher, Kenna Roland, Jacob Russell, Tai Thrasher and Rose Compton. Clover Kids, ages five through seven years, are the perfect group to introduce 4-H to, they are fun and enthusiastic. Special activities are designed to help youth learn how to get along and share with others, explore different interests, learn basic life skills, build self-confidence, learn how to communicate effectively and be a part of a group. The Barton County 4-H Teen Leaders planned "Down on the Farm," an exciting day camp that helped them learn more about life on the farm. Registration began with crafts and activities to leaning more about a day on the farm. Camp opened with the Pledge of Allegiance and 4-H Pledge, followed by farm songs including Old Mac Donald and all the farm animals, Alice the

camel who is really a horse of course and chickens dancing. Next it was time to meet and feed the animals. The Winslow family brought the animals to the campers so they could enjoy milking a goat, learning about chickens that lay green eggs, holding soft rabbits, feeding bottle goats and bucket calves, followed by several horseback rides. A barbecue was the highlight for lunch before leading games in the field. Campers had potato sack races, scooped corn and soybeans, moved tractors and finished with planting small greenhouses with a variety of seeds for each camper to take home. The closing session of camp featured the Clover Kids with a short program prepared for family members to enjoy.

The Clover Kids participated In County Achievement Day, where they practiced giving demonstrations, public speaking and judging areas. They also shared their projects at the Lamar Fair Extension demonstration booth. The Lamar Fair had a special area just for the Clover Kids. Each member was able to enter project work they had done through club meetings. Projects included arts and crafts, animal, gardening, photography and foods. The Barton County 4-H Clover Kids are Trey Shaw, Andrea Wood, Henry Ball, Cora James, Abigail Diggs, Annabelle Crabtree, Ryan Davis, Addison Brown, Cooper Trout, Brodie Wilson, Cooper "Bob" Burchett, Marcy Miller, Ella Harris and Kinder Standley.

AOK has been empowering young people since 1999 Youth development programming continues at About Our Kids (AOK), Inc. Executive Director Jerod Morey continues working hard to sustain agency programming, as well as community and youth relationships in a time of uncertain funding. Other staff members include Betty Beerly, financial manager; Zachary Morey, after school and summer camp director; Ben Selby and Thomas Pomerleau, Nathan's Place youth enrichment specialists; Elisha Morey, after school youth enrichment and nutrition specialist and Shelby Vankirk, after school youth enrichment specialist. Nathan's Place continues to offer a safe hangout area for young people in grades 6-12 on week days when school is in session, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. and during the summer from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. All services are free of charge and include wireless internet access, state-of-the-art fitness equipment, nutrition education, sport and recreation tournaments, an indoor basketball court, a major sound system, pool tables, foosball, video game access, service learning opportunities, laundry and shower facilities and much more. In addition, Nathan's Place serves a healthy meal Monday through Friday at 5 p.m., free of charge, to whomever shows up to join the usual 30-35 hungry youth. The Wolf Building is still the base of operations for youth development for grades K-5 after school from

2:50 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and during the summer from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Programming includes nutritious snacks and meals, physical education and recreation opportunities, nutrition instruction, character education and development, sensory integration skills and activities and much more. All AOK activities are supervised by professional, certified staff. State subsidies are welcome. Current after school fees are $7 (3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.), $10 when school is released early and $12 for a full day. Summer camp fees will be $12 for a full day or $7 for half a day. Part time campers are welcome and are only charged when they attend. More information for AOK programming can be found at www.aokyouth.org. Accomplishments of AOK this past year include receiving $20,000 from the Walmart Fighting Hunger Together grant via community facebook vote. A refrigerator and freezer for Nathan's Place, as well as countertops, commercial cookware, a dishwasher and additional signage for promotions were included in this grant. AOK also received $3,865 through Ozarks Food Harvest's Strategic Strengthening Partners Investment program in conjunction with the Missouri Foundation for Health, giving them the ability to purchase gas ranges and a new hood for the Wolf Building. They successfully completed a three year Department of Education Carol M. White Physical Grant, served more than 275 individual

campers in grades K-5 at the Wolf Building, served more than 700 individual VolunTeens in grades six through eight at Nathan's Place and served 20,063 healthy meals and snacks to Barton County youth. AOK's future was threatened last October when no grant applications were awarded. This was distressing news as AOK has largely been supported by federal, state and local grants for 14 years. As a result, since January 2014 AOK's activities have relied completely on generous community support, while seeking future funding. Fundraising efforts continue as AOK cares for and feeds area youth. Community members, businesses and friends of AOK can assist AOK financially, no matter how big or small, by donating online at www.aokyouth.org or by contacting 417-682-6002. To stay up to date with AOK programming, needs and opportunities to help community youth, visit their website or follow them on facebook or Twitter. About Our Kids, Inc. (AOK)'s corporate center is located at 208 W. 10th St. in Lamar. AOK consists of After School/Summer Camp at the Wolf Center, 801 E. 12th St., Lamar, and Nathan's Place at 1005 Gulf, Lamar. This youth development organization employs two full time and four part time workers. The after school/summer camp can be reached at 6810559; Nathan's Place at 681-0982 and the corporate office at 682-6002, or by email at www.aokyouth.org.

2C • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

HISTORICAL SOCIETY

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Another year in history The dedicated volunteers who keep the Historical Society office open Monday through Friday afternoons. Clockwise from bottom center, Carol Calton, Mike Short, Beth Brisbin, Pauletta Orahood, Patty McKay, Sharon Nelson, Billy Strong, Willis Strong, and Joe Davis.

By Pauletta Orahood LAMAR-It was another year of examining the rich history of Barton County for the Barton County

Historical Society. Quarterly programs were given in January, April, July, and October during 2013. The programs dealt with the History of Highway 71, Forty-five years of the

Historical Society, the South Side of the Square, and Barton County Implement Dealers. Books have been printed for some of the programs and are available for purchase.

The preparation of programs for quarterly meetings is an ongoing work. Requests from people across the country are researched by the nine volunteers at the society. One hundred twenty years of newspapers on microfilm is one of the invaluable resources used to answer those requests. A recent donation has been received to enlarge that col-

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

lection in the near future. Other projects that keep the volunteers busy are indexing will books, organizing school reunion pictures, and cataloging obituaries. The society commemorated the 125th anniversary of the laying of the courthouse cornerstone on October 8. Cookies with the October 1888 date and a decorated cake resembling the original courthouse were served by the historical society. The society is currently working on a hardbound History & Family Book that will be published by Acclaim Press in Morey, Missouri. No book like it has ever been published about Barton County and the people who call

it home. Everyone is encouraged to submit their family history in 500 words or less along with a photo to be included, all free of charge in the book. It will be a keepsake to be passed down to future generations. Assistance in writing family histories can be obtained by contacting the Historical Society at 682-4141. The museum is open for free tours Monday through Friday, 1-4 p.m., except for holidays. Membership is a mere $6 per year or $100 for a lifetime membership. The Historical Society office and museum are located in the basement of the Barton County Courthouse with entrance on the west side.

MOHOCOLA 4-H Teens meet long term goal Left, University of Missouri Extension Nutrition Educator Lydia Kaume helps 4-H member Allison Hawes and the Lamar Enterprise employees learn more about following recipes and measuring ingredients to make their cooking project successful.

Right, 4-H Teen Leader Nathaniel Hawes helped the Lamar Enterprise employees finish up a more nutritional pizza with lots of chopped fresh vegetables. For 20 years Cooking Matters has been empowering individuals with skills to stretch food budgets and cook healthy, nutritious meals. Founded in 1993 the program has helped more than 120,000,000 families on low income budgets stretch food dollars and still enjoy healthy nutritious meals. The Cooking Matters

hands on cooking courses were recently provided to Lamar Enterprise employees by University of Missouri Extension professionals Lydia Kaume and Theresa Dalby of Barton County and Saralee Jamison of St. Clair County. The nutrition educator's team provided two hour classes for six weeks to the 12 employees enrolled. A

series of lesson plans covering meal preparation, shopping tips, food budgeting and nutrition education were provided weekly. The participating employees practiced fundamental skills, including proper knife techniques, reading ingredient labels and making healthy meals on a $10 budget. Each week the participants were pro-

vided staple ingredients to recreate the recipes at home. On graduation day each employee received a cooking matters guidebook, recognition certificate and a tote containing utensils to make meal preparation easier at home. Barton County 4-H MOHOCOLA (Missouri 4-H Home Grown Community Leaders Project)

partnered with Lamar Enterprise as an expansion of the recent community gardens projects. Alison, Nathaniel and Therese Hawes attended each meeting, assisting with food preparation and clean up. The recent community gardens projects has provided a variety of vegetables over the summer for employees to

take home with them. The cooking classes met a long range goal of the MOHCOLA 4-H team for these individuals to be more self-sufficient by learning cooking skills. The program also met requirements for community service and personal development. The 4-H members enjoyed helping the employees learn more about nutrition.

sion. Resources included pedometers, student activity books, teachers’ guide, instructional material, parent newsletters, assessment and evaluation tools and classroom activity cards. Chronic Disease Self-Management Chronic Disease SelfManagement is a sixweek health management workshop for adults living with a chronic condition and their family members. It was developed by Stanford University by the Patient Education Research Center. Organizations involved in implementing this program include health educators and leaders from Barton County Memorial Hospital, Barton County Health Department and Missouri Foundation for Health. The average number of participants is 78. Participants learn pain management strategies, ways to communicate to friends and family, types of exercises and their role in chronic disease management and ways to break the symptom cycle. Learners divulged into a book titled, “Living a Healthy Life with Chron-

sponded that they are “more aware of what kind of health choicIn the es…to make” and “the University importance of nutriof Missouri tion labels when shopExtension ping for healthy foods.” Cooking Families of the particiMatters class, pants also benefit from Tom Wallace the course when they is pictured as prepare family meals. he stirs the Learners are given free ingredients recipes and ingredients to make a to make new healthy healthy, recipes. County resieconomic dents are able to budpizza. get better and maximize resources with the knowledge received from the course. ic Conditions,” as they Men’s Health engaged in discussions Men’s health programabout managing fatigue, ming is underway. Unistress, anger, fear, frus- versity of Missouri Extentration and depression. sion conducted surveys The role of nutrition in and utilized focus groups chronic disease manage- to initiate the development was of topic as well. ment of a men’s health After completing the pro- initiative. This goal of this gram, participants were initiative is to increase equipped with the knowl- awareness on the imporedge and motivation to tance of a healthy lifestyle become more physically within the male populaactive members of the tion. Several meetings community. Cooking Matters Program Cooking Matters is a program offered through partnership with Share Our Strength and Operation Food Search that is designed for families with limited resources. The average number of participants is 67. Handson cooking experience with nutrition education allowed participants to develop skills to prepare healthy recipes with price consideration. Within the six session course, participants also learned about meal planning, food safety and nutrient content of foods by reading nutrition facts labels. When asked how the course has affected their life, participants re-

have taken place to address men’s health issues, while taking the opportunity to learn the types of educational resources that would be appealing to this audience. Research behind this program ensures that resources are used in the most effective fashion since specific programs for this population have not been developed previously. Nutrition and Health in the Media Print media has been used to not only provide readers with evidence-based nutrition and health information, but also to promote programs. To this end, the Lamar Democrat has published several articles. Professional nutritional advice is commonly highlighted on the KSN television network to educate surrounding counties. Cable TV is also used to announce upcoming health programs.

Nutrition and health annual report

Health and nutrition education programming is aimed at providing evidence based information and skills that help individuals and families make healthy choices in the area of nutrition, physical fitness, disease management and overall health of all Missourians. Some of the programs offered by the University of Missouri Extension include: Stay Strong, Stay Healthy “Stay Strong, Stay Healthy” is a 10-week exercise program designed to help men and women over age 40 improve strength, flexibility and balance by participating in eight strength training exercises plus warm-up and cool down sessions. The average number of participants was 20. Fitness level was assessed before and after the series to evaluate physical improvement. Participants stated that the program, “….increased motivation to strength train,” with the accountability from other attendees. Physical and emotional status heightens as participants also find improved “…balance and pain level” and “…improved mood (by) meeting other people.” One hundred percent of participants stated they felt healthier, stronger and had more energy as a result of this program. Individuals involved in the program learned how to strength train safely in their homes, to avoid injuries and how to do more for themselves, their families and communities. Jump Into Action Jump Into Action is a team-taught, schoolbased program to help

fifth-grade students make healthy food choices and be more physically active. When tested and evaluated by a team at Baylor College of Medicine, it was found to be effective in improving nutrition and physical activity related behaviors. It was developed specifically for Missouri by a team at the University of Missouri Department of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology. Lessons allow the students to learn about goal setting and provided them with knowledge to make their own healthy decisions about fruit and vegetable, milk and fiber intake. The students are given pedometers to track their activity level and are encouraged to replace 60 minutes of sedentary activities with physical activities every day. This program enhances the community by growing a healthier generation of people that can understand cause and effect relationships of food choices and physical activity habits. Liberal Elementary School adopted this program, receiving resources from the University of Missouri Exten-

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

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LAMAR GREENHOUSE

Lamar Greenhouse & Florist looks forward to a great spring Lamar Greenhouse & Florist, one of the longest, continuing businesses in Barton County, offers floral, bulk seed, garden, perennials, annuals, shrubs and some trees. Last year was a tough year for the greenhouse due to the weather not cooperating in the spring, making it hard for gardeners to get out and plant. They are looking forward to a great spring,

with warm temperatures for planting. They are also excited for some of the new things that are going to be offered in the near future. The greenhouse began improvements to the outside of their building last year and plan to continue this year, both inside and out. Lamar Greenhouse & Florist has many things planned for 2014, including new product

offerings, more unique personalized floral arrangements and new gardening products, as well as a more extensive selection of perennials, shrubs and a few trees. They are also working on a new website and are very excited to get it done. Those at Lamar Greenhouse & Florist love the small town atmosphere, where everyone is family and they know almost ev-

eryone that comes in. The greenhouse has six employees, with each one playing a huge role in making the company succeed. They are all active in many community organizations and are dedicated to helping others. Stop by the Lamar Greenhouse & Florist at 103 E. 9th St., or give them a call at 417-6826565.

MOHOCOLA Teens provide leadership and community gardens

Cafeteria workers at Barton County Memorial Hospital use freshly grown produce in their meals at the hospital. Barton County Memorial Hospital was excited to have four community garden beds and fresh produce to their facility. Project coordinators Sherry Gastel and Jane Scott accepted the plants. The project is an addition to their green project. The gardens include corn, broccoli, cabbage, tomatoes, peppers, green beans and squash. The fresh produce is used in the cafeteria to enhance the salad bar and meals for staff and residents. The Barton County 4-H Teen Leaders kicked off their 2013 MOHCOLA Community Garden project March 21, at Lamar Enterprise. It was cold on the day the teens had planned for this spring break project. The core team has been working on making a difference in various aspects of poverty. Since 2010, the MOHOCOLA core team has received $4,400 in federal dollar grants and has generated over $76,600 in community cash, in-kind ad volunteer contributions. In 2012, 200 youth contributed 1,800 hours and 50 adults contributed 800 hours of service on community projects.

Southwest Missouri has been identified as an area with food insecurity so it’s time to move beyond hunger! The Barton County Food Pantry feeds 620 families monthly. This number led the MOHOCOLA teens to a series of meetings with representatives from Lamar Enterprise and Barton County Memorial Hospital. The youth proposed building community gardens for the employees at Lamar Enterprise to grow vegetables that provide food for their needs. BCMH saw an opportunity to fill a need by using their community gardens as a part of the Plane Tree program. The gardens

will provide fresh vegetables for the cafeteria and employees as there is an abundance. The most important word in “Community Garden” is not garden! The success of any project is community partnership. MOHOCOLA core team members, University of Missouri Extension workers, 4-H volunteers, Master Gardener volunteers, City of Lamar workers and representatives from both organizations worked together on this project. The group met March 21 and put together the raised garden beds inside Lamar Enterprise. The City of Lamar delivered soil and the project quickly took shape. Realizing the weather might not hold, a call to Legacy Farm and Lawn brought a tractor and loader to help fill the beds, while the rest of the team headed to BCMH to fill beds there with wheelbarrows and shovels.

Compost was donated by a local farmer and added to each bed. In a matter of a few hours 10 community garden beds were filled in preparation for the upcoming planting season. Changes happened with grassroots initiatives: community involvement, empowerment with education and skills, volunteers, mentors, organization, goals,

4-H Teen Leader Trent Morgan helps with the plants that are read to be planted in the community garden project. objectives and financial support. The community gardens will be now be owned by each organization. The employees will be the workers, youth will be providing plants. The MOHOCOLA “Missouri 4-H Home Grown Community Leaders Project “ funded these community garden beds from a $2000 grant

that is now in its fourth year. The core team will continue working with various organizations, evaluating and researching the needs of poverty in Lamar. The community gardens will now be owned by each organization. Youth will be providing plants and seeds as the employees become the workers.

Healing Waters launched in 2013 the community. The business was launched in the fall of 2013. Healing Waters offers Truestar supplements, Wild Tree, nutritious, organic products and Shaklee skincare and cleaning products. According to Peg Miller of Healing Waters she is looking forward to growth and expansion in all areas Healing Waters is in in 2014. Miller enjoys dothe business of offering ing business in Lamar, health and wellness to believing it to be a small,

friendly community that is very supportive of small business. Miller went on to say, “I was a secondary language instructor for my professional career. Now that I have retired from public education I still am involved in teaching. Teaching others about wellness is so important to me”. For more information call her at 417-214-0834 or stop by 500 Reavley Dr. in Lamar.

First Christian puts emphasis on ministry in 2014 By BEN BUNTON Lamar Democrat

First Christian Church in Lamar spent 2013 in “A Year with Jesus,” a yearlong sermon series covering the life of Christ. They will be spending 2014 with “IGO,” which stands for Intentional, Generous and Opportunistic. “With IGO, we are communicating that everyone has a ministry. Every week we are going to present a different kind of ministry and challenge people to find their ministry and be intentional, generous and opportunistic about it,” said Senior Minister Rob Wilson. Wilson said that the

goal of First Christian was to grow their people. He said that the way to do this is by getting people into small groups and getting them involved past Sunday mornings and getting them serving in the community. Mike Gage, the associate minister, celebrated 25 years with the church in 2013. To honor his service the church granted him a 28 day sabbatical. During this time he visited seven churches, including three in St. Louis and one in Owasso, Okla. Gage is in charge of worship on Sundays. He is always trying to recruit new people to help lead worship from the stage.

He wants to get the young and old involved in worship, representing a broad spectrum on the stage. “2014, new people and new instruments,” said Gage. As far as new instruments, he was talking about a percussion instrument he built called a jingling johnny, also known as a stumpf fiddle. It was made famous in worship circles by a band called Rend Collective Experiment, in their song Build Your Kingdom here. Gage also went on a short term trip to Austria in 2013 with Jacque Gage, Leisa Blanchard and Cathy Bunton. The group visited TCM Internation-

al Institute outside of Vienna, Austria. Stoney Capehart, the youth minister, is trying to get junior high and high school kids to connect with one another and with the church. He does this in a variety of ways, from mission trips to church camps. In 2013 the youth group went on a mission trip to Cookson Hills in Kansas, Okla. They also went to camp at CYOKAMO, in Alba and YouthQuake in Como, Colo. These events all involved getting to know each other better, as well as building a personal relationship with God. For 2014 the plan hasn’t changed much for Capehart. He is still trying to connect the youth group members to each other and to church. He says this is what a Biblical community looks like. “I’m trying to build the kids here up, and they’ll go out and bring more in,” said Capehart. He has many activities planned for the youth group in 2014. They are planning on going to Voice of the Martyrs, in Bartlesville, Okla. over spring break, as well as camp at CYOKAMO and YouthQuake during the summer. He will also continue to lead Sunday Night Life on Sundays and Loft on Wednesday nights. Evan Clements, the children’s minister, is ex-

cited about some new changes that are about to take place in the Children’s Ministry. “Safety concerns are a big thing in our society right now and we have upped our safety around here,” said Clements. “We have a new computerized check-in system. When parents come in they will go to the computer and find their child, enroll them in a class. It will then print out two stickers, one for the parent, one for the child. The sticker will have the child’s information, parent’s name, any special needs, any allergies and a number. The parent’s tag will also have that number. They will present that tag when they are picking their child up, so that way

we are not allowing just anyone to pick up a child.” Clements said another thing that he is excited about is the Take it Home Sundays, which brings parents into the Sunday school class and gives them ideas about how to bring their faith home with them and instill that faith in their children. It teaches things like how to lead family devotion and how to pray with your kids. Clements also said that he is looking forward to continuing programs such as VBS and camp at CYOKAMO. In 2013 First Christian said goodbye to Denzil Divine, who retired after 5 1/2 years. The church hired Tula Irwin in her place.

4C • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

WILDTREE

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Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Wildtree offers products for quicker and more healthy meals

Wildtree offers the highest quality herbs, spices and culinary blends that are free of preservatives, additives, fillers and promote a healthy lifestyle. Chris Kremp, Wildtree team leader, believes in the value of making cooking a quicker, easier, more healthful project for those who are short on time. Wildtree also offers adventure for those who wish to be more creative in the kitchen. Did you know the average family's eating habits over the course of a week generally look like this: one to three days a week families are going out to eat because it's convenient;

two days a week families are eating leftovers or taking the easy way out with grilled cheese or Ramen noodles and only two to three days a week are families taking the time to sit together and have a home cooked meal. With a desire to help people eat healthier, Wildtree was founded on the premise that food should be natural, nutritious, delicious and easy to prepare. Wildtree's products are made with the finest ingredients available and contain no preservatives, additives, MSG or dyes. The medical community has recognized informa-

tion that has been believed to be true for many years within Wildtree. While they do not advocate that their products cure illnesses, they can assure consumers that helping children eat natural, nutritious foods that do not aggravate existing medical conditions or food allergies and sensitives, was the driving force behind the product. Wildtree just announced the introduction of “Simple. Healthy. Dinner”. on a monthly basis. The program contains the following: eight amazing yet simple, complete recipes all under 600 calories, Step by Step image breakdowns for each recipe and a “bundled” product number for all the products to make all eight recipes, and there will still be product leftover to make more meals! Kremp offers Freezer Meal Workshops and Home Tastings. A Freezer Meal Workshop is a group of people with a menu of

Compton Irrigation was started back in 1965 and has been working closely with area farmers for over 40 years. With that being said, keeping up with the changes is very important to the company. They can offer the newest technology available such as Variable Rate Control and GPS. Compton Irrigation is a Valley pivot dealer, along with other products such as pumps, motors, traveling guns, K Line irrigation for pastures and Hydrogen Injection systems. Not only are these some of the products they sell, they also service them. Every year Valley Irrigation holds its annual sales meeting, keeping the dealers informed on new and upcoming products. This year a new proof span wire has been made available for farmers.

With the theft of copper wire so high, this product helps with the ownership of stolen span cable, in turn helping in the aid of prosecution of the thief. The Soil Pro 1200 moisture monitor will be coming out in the spring of 2014. A new way to manage watering from the root, the new Wireless Pump Connect allows farmers to wirelessly control pumps from the center pivot central panel, eliminating time consuming trips to pump sites or trenching to install wire. They have the latest in control panels and trackers for controlled monitoring of pivots. Pivots can be run from either ones phone or computer. They are also introducing the Hydrogen Injection System that will cut fuel bills by 10 to 30 percent. This works on all types of

vehicles, farm equipment and stationary engines. Over the past few years the area has seen drought, so the demand for pivots was high last year. That continues still today. It's early in the year and business is continuing to be steady. Compton Irrigation's servicemen have been updated on their training, going to service school for three days each year. They are ready to go! Lamar is the Compton's hometown and this farming community has been for many years. Compton Irrigation started one day when Carl wanted to water his crops and now he helps all in the need for irrigation. Carl and Margaret Compton have two sons, Robert and Larry Compton, who aide with the running of the irrigation business, as well as with the farm.

By BEN BUNTON Lamar Democrat

mower companies and over 20 other parts suppliers. Their stock also included over 100 chainsaw bars and 150 chainsaw sprockets, as well as a 50 year collection of antique chainsaws and small gas engine parts. These parts and supplies were all damaged or destroyed in the fire in May of 2012. 2013 was a year of rebuilding for Compton Machine and Repair. A new sheet metal roof and sidewalls were added, as well as new electric supply lines, to repair what was damaged in the fire. They also sorted through all of the fire damaged inventory and equipment. The forecast is looking good for Compton Machine and Repair in 2014.

They are looking for a good solid year of business after a slow 2013, due to the fire. There are plans to continue the clean up and reorganization, as well as restocking the parts supply. A late spring finish completion of the repair of their radiator service equipment should allow for the radiator repair portion of the business to return. Compton Machine and Repair is located at 801 W. 13th St. in Lamar, just east of Orscheln Farm and Home.

recipes designed to make eight to 10 family sized meals for participants to take home and put in their freezer. These meals can then be defrosted and prepared at ones convenience. The meals average in price from $2.50 to $3.50 per serving. Kremp has developed a team of four active recruits all located in the four state area. With Wildtree being relatively new to the four state area, there is ample possibilities in developing a larger team, with those team members developing teams of their own. Kremp is always thinking “hiring” and for an investment of just $49.95 other individuals could also own their own personal business. No more middle man! The company offers yearly incentive trips and currently Kremp is “tracking” to earn the all inclusive, all expenses paid trip

for four to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic for 2015. With Kremp beginning in March of 2013, she came up just short for the 2014 trip to Puerta Vallarta, Mexico, having only 10 months to track instead of 12. Kremp will be attending Wildtree's National Convention in July and already is eagerly awaiting the returning fall product line and new products that will be introduced. Plans are underway for Kremp's Wilderness team to be involved with the local area farmers markets and chamber of commerce special events. Pairing Wildtree products with locally raised fruits, vegetables and meat sources sounds delicious! It's a win-win solution for the area “Shop Local” campaign and will help boost the local economy. Kremp has also used her business for a few success-

ful fundraising opportunities for area not-for-profit organizations. Currently she is working with Jerod Morey of AOK to provide a monthly fundraising opportunity in order to help them serve the at-risk children in the community with regular meals. They will offer workshops and tastings at designated times, with a percentage of the retail cost going directly back to AOK. Not only do the children receive a warm meal, but with it being healthy and nutritious, these children get better sleep and it gives them the energy to focus in school. Now, let's get the family cooking together again! You can order directly on Kremp's website, www. EATHEALTHY2BWEALTHY.mywildtree.com or contact her directly at 417-682-1765 and she will be glad to help you.

MU Extension services

Compton Irrigation works closely with farmers

2013 was a year of rebuilding for Compton Machine and Repair A fire in May 2012 destroyed and damaged most of Compton Machine and Repair, but the business that started in 1964 is still here. Compton Machine and Repair specializes in parts and service for all makes of small gas engine power equipment. They also do light auto repair, welding and fabrication, truck, tractor and trailer repair, as well as electric equipment repair and chainsaw service and sharpening. The business started in 1964, where they accumulated a stock of over 100,000 parts from six major small gas engine companies, three chainsaw companies, two lawn

By JILL SCHEIDT rounding counties utiMU Extension Agronomy Specialist lized the service; the number of participants Weekly crop scouting has grown from 12 to 72 program informs pro- since the program began in 2010. The weekly ducers of pest threats The Crop Scouting messages begin in March Program enables farm- and end the November 1; ers to know what pests monthly crop updates are they need to be look- given from November to ing for weekly in their February. The cost to sign fields. Jill Scheidt, MU up is $35/year, discounts Extension agronomy are available when three specialist, scouts fields or more phone lines are in Barton County and signed up and paid for at surrounding coun- the same time. Contact Jill ties weekly, looking for Scheidt at the extension weed, insect and disease office for more informapests in wheat, corn and tion. soybean fields. She also Grain bin tour grows in looks for other concerns popularity in the field that may The tour started in 2011 have been caused by and was held again in environmental or nutri- 2013. In 2011, MU State Specialists ent deficiency factors. Extension Wayne Bailey and Laura Once scouted, Scheidt Sweets spoke on insects contacts state and other regional extension and diseases in grain bins; specialists to research working grain bin operathreshold levels and the tions were visited at the most effective treatment Howard Overman, Eric options. Scheidt also Lawrence and Jerry Davis alerts producers how farms; 72 attended. environmental factors In 2013 the new grain can play a role in yield elevator at Liberal Seed outcomes, as well as en- and Farm, owned by vironmental conditions Marti Bunton, was visited. to watch for to identify Regional ag engineering pests that may invade a specialists Bob Schultheis row crop field. This in- and Kent Shannon eduformation is delivered cated farmers on moisture to producers via a two equilibrium, what size minute telephone mes- bin to build and grain bin sage delivered at noon safety. on Wednesdays, it is The MOHOCCLA 4-H also sent to the produc- Teen Leaders also iners’ email with pictures formed producers about of pests, along with any charts or guides mentioned in the phone message. In 2013, 72 producers in Barton and sur-

Invest An Acre. In 2013, 125 producers attended. Wheat tour has record attendance The Barton County Wheat Tour has occurred yearly since 2009 at the MU Wheat Variety Test Plots on the David Sheat farm. Producers attend the meeting to get a first-hand look at varieties of wheat grown in the County. MU Extension regional and state specialists speak on topics related to the current year and future wheat crop. “The number of participants varies greatly on the weather”, said Scheidt. “If the weather is good and people are thinking about harvest, numbers are around 30. This year however, rain was in the forecast and the largest crowd, 125 producers, in the history of the wheat tour attended” said Scheidt. A month after the MU test plots are harvested, result books are sent to local extension offices where producers can obtain the book to help them make decisions for the upcoming season. 87th Soils and Crops Conference always a hit The soils and crops conference is always well attended. The extension office and Barton County Soil and Water Consersee EXTENSION, page 5C

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Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

5C

WILSON FARMS Wilson Farms Greenhouse & Produce has much to offer Wilson Farms Greenhouse & Produce is located at 984 West Dade 2 in Jerico Springs and currently has three full time and four to five part time seasonal employees. Wilson Farms Greenhouse & Produce offers over 30,000 square feet of greenhouse and high tunnel space for growing a wide variety of flowering annuals, as well as a large selection of perennials. They also have all the popular garden vegetable plants and several varieties of herbs available. Two thousand plus hanging baskets are made yearly, along with combination planters of various sizes. Memorial Day planters are created yearly. A full line of bulk garden seed is available in any quantity that is needed. Also available are Berger professional potting mixes. Fresh garden produce is grown. Tomato plants start in December to be transplanted in the high tunnel in early March, then ripe tomatoes are ready to enjoy in late May. Sweet corn, tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, cabbage, peppers, watermelon, cantaloupe and much more are available throughout the growing season. Sweet, juicy Missouri peaches are available from June through September and northern

Missouri apples in September and October. Farm raised all natural grass fed beef is available year round. No hormones or antibiotics are given to cattle used for beef. Calves spend their entire lives in the pasture, being fed salt and mineral supplements to maintain their heath. Hay, along with a little Non-GMO Corn, is fed in the winter. The end result is lean, nutritious, good tasting beef at a reasonable price. Hardy Belgium Mums are started in June to be ready for sale in the fall, along with other fall flowers and decorations. Cole crop vegetable plants are also available for fall planting. The greenhouse serves both retail and wholesale customers. Most products are sold at the farm to retail and wholesale customers, with some wholesale customers calling in orders to be delivered to their door. Plants and produce are taken to farmers markets in Lamar, Carthage and Springfield. Wilson Farms was established in 1981 and has grown over the years to a diversified family farming operation. They began in 2007 with the purchase of Martin's Produce & Greenhouse. 2013 brought about an-

Extension, continued from page 4C vation District work together to coordinate the conference. State and regional MU Extension specialists come to Thiebaud Auditorium in Lamar to educate producers with current, research based information. Topics such as Understanding GMOs and Cover Crops are presented. The program usually lasts from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and includes lunch from Chicken Mary’s in Pittsburg, Kan. (courtesy

of local banks in Lamar and the Missouri Soybean Association). In 2013 there was a late snowstorm that kept some people away, but 55 still battled the conditions to attend. In 2014, a large number, 102 people, attended. “This program is always well attended, I believe that is due to the quality of information that is presented; of course the good food helps too,” said Scheidt.

other sizable expansion, with the purchase of Martin’s Greenhouse. This added 80 acres, of which 50 acres can be irrigated and have been in produce production the past several years. A greenhouse, high tunnel, vegetable packing shed and additional cooler space are on the property. 2013 included several new plant varieties and colors. They started growing their own rhubarb plants and sweet potato slips. The results were amazing as far as quality and customer satisfaction. Overall, 2013 was a good year with sales going strong. The owners are farmers, so they are always optimistic about the growing season. Several new plant varieties are offered, along with old time favorites. A variety of fruit and shade trees will be added, along with blackberry, blueberThank You I would like to thank Barton County 4-H, local producers and local businesses that help make these programs happen; without support these would not exist. So thank you for your continued support of MU Extension in Barton County. I hope we can continue to bring relevant, reliable, research-based information for 100 more years to come!

ry and raspberry plants. Weather permitting, they will add a pumpkin patch, as well as a corn maze and petting zoo in the fall. They are also working on accepting SNAP cards for vegetable plants, seed, vegetable produce and beef sales. Watch their ads for more details. The greenhouse is centrally located between

Milford and Jerico Springs, just ¼ mile off C Hwy. They are located about 18-20 miles from Lamar, Golden City, El Dorado Springs, Stockton, Greenfield and Lockwood. This location allows them to serve a large customer base. Mike and Tammy Wilson, along with son Jonathan and wife Sarah, own and operate the greenhouse. Jonathan works part time for his uncle, John Kremp, farming and running a dozer for J&J Dozing, but still helps, especially during winter months. Jonathan's wife Sarah works full time at BCMH and helps out part time in the greenhouse and farmer's market. Tammy's mother, Patty Kremp, and sister, Kristy Runion, also help

in the greenhouse when needed. Doyle Robinson helps with produce and greenhouse production, along with greenhouse maintenance. Debra Fitzpatrick and Karen Ski work in the greenhouse and help with produce when needed. The Wilsons attend Immanuel Lutheran Church, where Tammy teaches Sunday school to first and second graders and Jonathan is an usher. They would like to thank all their loyal customers for the continued support and look forward to seeing everyone throughout the growing season. Come by or give them a call anytime. Hours are Monday through Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and Sunday, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Phone 417-398-2505 or 417-682-1604.

Graves at Nigh Cemetery date back to 1800's Nigh Cemetery is a peaceful place set between pastures and the edge of a wood. Driving from Truman St., the cemetery is located 1 ½ miles north of Lamar. Watch for the large marble sign. No one knows the date of the first interment at Nigh, but some of the earliest graves date back to the 1860's and 1870's. The cemetery is named after the Nigh family, who donated the land. An organizational meeting for the cemetery was held in November of 1920 to provide an organization to oversee the cemetery's care. Those gathering were Mr. and Mrs. M.L. Cass, F.M. Foster, Mr. and

Mrs. William Fisher, A.E. Bollinger, W.E. Whittlesey and Mrs. E. Whittlesey. The first directors were W.E. Whittlesey, Fred Foster, M.L. Cass, Mrs. W.E. Whittlesey, William H. Fisher and Will Beall. William Fisher was elected president, Fred Foster, treasurer and Mrs. W.E. Whittlesey, secretary. Many in the community have donated time and money over the years to

maintain and care for the cemetery. Those donations are very necessary and so appreciated. If you are interested in making a donation toward the upkeep of Nigh Cemetery, or to purchase a burial plot, contact one of the association officers. Plot prices are very reasonable. Contact Jim Cochran, president, at 417-682-2419 or Jill Pugh, secretary-treasurer, 417-884-2836.

New storage, employee for Seed and Farm Supply By BEN BUNTON Lamar Democrat Seed and Farm Supply in Liberal was founded by Don and Irene Thomas in 1976. Since its humble beginnings 38 years ago, the company has expanded, a lot. Marty Bunton, the current owner of Seed and Farm, says that while the company has expanded, their goal is still the same. “The customer is the most important,” said Bunton. “We just want to help Barton County farmers feed the world.” The past year was a year of massive growth for Seed and Farm. A new elevator leg was erected, along with grain bins, adding roughly 500,000 bushels of new storage to the business. The expan-

sion has opened up more places to dump grain, allowing the farmer to get back to the field faster. Along with the added storage, a new seed handling system was put in place in the past year. Three Asgrow bulk bins were put in place to help free up storage, as well as make the process of treating seed at getting it to the customer faster. Kyle Montee is in charge

of the bulk seed service at Seed and Farm Supply. Montee has been involved in agriculture his entire life. He believes that the new seed handling equipment will help speed up seed service. Seed and Farm also completed two commercial grain bin installations in 2013; one in Lockwood and one in Garden City. Bunton sells grain bins at Seed and Farm, offering storage from Sukup, Brock and MFS. Storage isn’t the only new thing around Seed and Farm. Bunton hired a new grain merchandiser, Boone Hardy. He will work alongside Sarah Robertson, helping customers sell their grain. “We are constantly looking for ways to help the customer,” said Robertson. “Seed and Farm is a one-stop-shop. There aren’t many places that offer everything we do, including anhydrous ammonia, all at the same place.” “We can help anyone, no matter what size of operation that they have,” said Hardy. When asked what makes Seed and Farm special, Russ Massa said, “It’s like a step back in time, all while being the most progressive agriculture business in the county. We try to keep all aspects of the business as up to date as possible.”

6C • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

NEIGHBORS

www.lamardemocrat.com

Meet Your Neighbors

The farming lifestyle has given Leann and Bruce Barker the opportunity to cultivate strong family values, develop lifelong friendships and to be part of the challenge of providing an adequate worldwide food supply. By Ben Reed I love my job! I love my job! I love my job! You guessed it. Not only was I able to get out of the office to meet some of our really top notch neighbors Bruce and Leann Barker, I got…wait for it…some fresh baked chocolate chip cookies. And were they ever good. My two favorite four letter words have to be “free food.” Not just a couple of cookies mind you, I got to take home a doggy bag filled with chocolate chip cookies. Now I ask…who could possibly have a better job that includes getting to take home free food? When I drove into the driveway of Bruce and Leann Barker’s, I was immediately taken back by the neatness of the farm. There was a beautiful brick home, two red and white metal machine sheds like you would see in the Farm Journal magazine, a really neat painted pipe corral just like I have always wanted and not even any of the gravel in the driveway was out of place. It is farms like the Barkers that inspire me to go home and grab a hammer and a handful of nails, a paintbrush or maybe to just strike a match and start all over. You can’t get much more native than Leann. Her Jones family linage has deep roots in Barton County. In fact, if you look out her kitchen window her childhood home is visible less than a mile away. Bruce, on the other hand, is an Iowa transplant. He moved to Barton County with his parents when he was four years old. Both Bruce and Leann

attended school in the Liberal School system. Leann was a 1973 graduate of Liberal High School and attended Pittsburg State University, where she received her degree in education. Bruce, on the other hand, attended 11 years in Liberal Schools but in 1968 he attended his high school senior year at Enterprise Academy in Enterprise, Kan. This is a private Christian school operated by their church. Bruce’s parents thought it was important for all of their kids to have a Christian based education. Bruce also attended one year at Union College in Lincoln, Neb. Union College is a private Christian college where both of Bruce’s parents attended and also where they met. After his freshman year Bruce transferred closer to home to attend Pittsburg State University. In 1971 Bruce officially joined into the family farming operation. In addition to the farm responsibilities, the Barker family had also obtained the Allis Chalmers dealership in Liberal. “Dad wasn’t sure there was enough to keep us busy all year long, so we set up and sold machinery during slack times on the farm,” laughs Bruce. But when it was farming season, it was Bruce’s dad and brother that primarily managed the machinery business and Bruce would be in charge of getting the crops planted. Bruce said, “I got to spend many a long days in the fields pulling a six row planter. It sometimes seemed like it would take forever before all the crops would get planted.” So here is a good question. Just how did Bruce

and Leann meet? Well, anyone from the Liberal area knows if you’re really serious about going courtin’ you have to be able to cruise up and down the Main Street of Liberal. Everyone usually starts at the north end, heads south, makes a U-turn before crossing the railroad tracks and then proceed back north. This process was repeated until you found someone to talk to or until the gas tank got low. Kids would then pull into the Liberal Lumber Yard parking lot and just sit and talk for hours. And sure enough it was one of these Liberal Main Street adventures where Bruce and Leann first met. It wasn’t long after that first Main Street meeting a date was made for a pizza dinner and a movie. Although it very well could have been one of those love at first sight occurrences for Bruce, I did

happen to uncover the fact that Leann was an accomplished tractor puller. She pulled a stock 200 Allis Chalmers tractor and has several trophies to back up her pulling credentials. So this got me to thinking what Bruce could have been thinking when he actually got up the nerve to ask Leann out on that first date. He may have thought, “Wow! Not only is she good looking, but she knows how to drive a tractor and she also drives the brand that we sell.” It had to seem like a win win situation for a farmer like Bruce. Regardless of what Bruce might have been thinking, that first date has turned into a 40 year and counting marriage. With the 40 years of marriage came two daughters. Daughter Valerie and her husband David Biggs live in Austin, Texas. Valerie is a patent attorney and David works as a realtor.

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Youngest daughter, Kari and husband Joe Meadows, are farmers. They also have a two year old daughter, Kasyn. I spotted some little girl toy evidence that Kasyn may spend some really fun times at Grandma and Grandpa Barker’s house. Leann smiles when she said, “The farm was the best place ever to raise a family. Where else can kids get to learn how to drive when they are only eight or ten years old?” Both Valarie and Kari made use of their agriculture backgrounds by participating in FFA in high school. Leann sincerely believes that midwest farm values taught both of their daughters a good work ethic that continues to benefit them both in their respective jobs today. Upon entering their home it is immediately evident that Bruce and Leann are extremely

proud of their family. Many walls hold several portraits of their children and of course the only granddaughter. Of course it doesn’t hurt that Leann has a sister that is a professional photographer. Although it wasn’t mentioned, I’m sure Leann may get a family discount rate on the exquisitely framed family photos. Maintaining a steady family relationship is of the upmost importance to the Barkers. Once a week they have their daughter and family over for a family supper. Once in a while the spring planting season or the fall harvest may interfere, but according to Leann the meal is just packed and taken to the field to keep their family bonding time intact. While farming is a way of life for the Barkers, they also know that farming is see NEIGHBORS, page 8C

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

www.lamardemocrat.com

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

7C

RETIRED TEACHERS

Retired teachers struggle to preserve retirement system By RICHARD COOPER

The retired teachers of Barton County, officially known as the Barton County Area Retired Educators Association (BCAREA), held nine breakfast meetings during 2013 in the Fellowship Hall of the Lamar Christian Church. At each meeting, they brought nonperishable food items to be donated to Nathan’s Place. Guest speakers from a number of organizations provided insight into many aspects of life in Barton County. Linda Talbott described the history of the Barton County

Health Department and the many services that it provides. Retired Lamar Police Sergeant Greg Evans shared many of his experiences in teaching Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) to fifth graders for 18 years and serving as School Resource Officer for 12 years. State Representative Mike Kelley spoke on a number of topics, including mandated student testing as well as school building security. Teresa Moore, Barton County public administrator, described the many legal tools available to her office in dealing with the needs of persons incapable of making

crucial decisions on their own. Judd Chesnut, manager of Lamar Enterprises and Recycling Center, told of the center’s growth and its aggressive recycling program. The October meeting included guest retirees from Dade County, Nevada, and Carthage who came to hear newly elected Missouri Retired Teachers Association (MRTA) president, Marilyn Skipper. She stressed a theme of achieving 25,000 members of MRTA by 2015, thereby giving the organization more political clout in protecting retirement benefits. Walter Cochran of Nevada, president of the

Missouri Retired Teachers Foundation (MRTF) was also present at the October meeting to stress the need for supporting the foundation in raising funds for beneficial causes. The membership of BCAREA was saddened by the death, September 19, of one of its most faithful and dedicated members, Vincil Warren. He had been a teacher for over 40 years, and had served as president of BCAREA for 27. As MRTA moves into its 54th year, it finds itself engaged in a struggle to protect teacher retirement benefits. There is a well financed national

movement aimed at trimming all public employee retirement plans, converting them from current designated benefit plans to designated contribution plans. Simply put, 401(k) plans. The teacher retirement fund is PSRS/ PEERS, the largest of the four public employee funds in Missouri with assets of nearly $29 billion. MRTA’s first priority is protection of teachers’ retirement benefits, and so far it has been successful in preventing the General Assembly from making any changes. It has done this through demonstrations of strength in numbers (currently 22,000

members), letters, e-mails, and telephone calls to legislators, and influence by registered lobbyists. MRTA Executive Director Jim Kreider, skilled in the political arena, has led the struggle to protect retirees’ benefits from his office at MRTA headquarters in Jefferson City. He stresses that MRTA is also protecting the future retirement of currently active teachers. He sternly cautions that the struggle to protect retiree benefits will not go away and urges MRTA members to stay the course. His two themes are “strength in numbers” and “the world is run by those who show up.”

eral and Maneval's, Jasper. To date there have been $600 in monetary donations that have been matched by Monsanto. The teen leaders hope to increase that number with the fall harvest. This projects Is not limited to the farmer. Any community individual or organization can make a donation that will go to the SW Missouri Food Bank and return back to Barton County. The organizations served by the SW Food Bank in Barton County are Good Samaritan Food Bank and the AOK. Good Samaritan currently serves 620 plus families. AOK "About Our Kids" serves meals to youth on a daily basis at Nathan’s Place.

The Invest An Acre program is sponsored by ADM, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, Monsanto and Feeding America. Monsanto has committed to match donations na-

tionally dollar-for-dollar, up to $675,000 this year. For information call the 4-H office at 682-3579 or visit www.investanacre. org or 4h.missouri.edu/ programs/hunger.

not have enough nutritious food to eat and 4-H members want to change this. The Invest An Acre donations will go to the SW Ozark Harvest Food Bank, where for every dollar donated, $10 worth of food is provided back to the Barton County com-

munity. The process is simple; farmers can make a donation from proceeds of their harvest at the grain elevator where they do business. Pledge cards can be filled out at any time during the growing season, at harvest or at the time of delivery to the elevator. Elevators receive tax-deductible donations from farmers and send them to Feeding America, a nationwide network of food banks. Every dollar donated by farmers goes back to the food bank serving the region where they live, including food pantries in their communities. The elevators in Barton County include MFA, Lamar; Seed and Farm, Lib-

Invest An Acre... Will you help Barton County?

4-H clubs are reaching out to ask farmers to Invest an Acre and fight hunger. 4-H members are seeking donations from area farmers for the program as part of a 4-H Revolution of Responsibility campaign. More than one in five children in Missouri do

Lamar Seventh Day Adventist Church stays active in the community

Bible studies and weekly prayer meetings, community missions and singing and visiting with all the special people at the local nursing homes have been

the activities of the Lamar Seventh Day Adventist Church over the past several years and they will continue to do so in the coming months.

Sabbath afternoons at Truman Healthcare, Bristol Manor and Maple Senior Living are highlighted twice a month. The residents enjoy the conversations and songs with the children. Along with other community organizations, food items were collected throughout Lamar from generous citizens for the Good Samaritan to keep their pantry full. The first mission project for this year will be to help prepare Camp Heritage for the coming sum-

mer camps for children, teens and families. More local mission projects are planned. The church is glad to have their pastor, Abel Hagan, and family in Lamar. Sabbath school begins at 9:30 a.m. every Saturday morning and church is at 11 a.m. Prayer meetings and Bible study are at 7 p.m. on Wednesday evenings. All are welcome to join them at the Lamar Seventh Day Adventist Church at 713 Broadway, to praise the Lord who loves us all.

Diana Sheridan takes over helm of district conservationist

and Lawrence County NRCS Field Offices working with grassland, cropland and water quality management issues. Her primary goal for the Barton County office is that it will continue to run efficiently and effectively in providing a first Diana Sheridan has been rate program serselected as the new NRCS delivery vice to Barton district conservationist for the Barton and Jasper County County landowners. She also Field Office service area. wants to ensure that landowners By Ben Reed are made aware of all the available federal and state Diana Sheridan has conservation programs. been selected as the While all programs are new NRCS district con- strictly on a voluntary baservationist for the Bar- sis, there are many practon and Jasper County tices that can receive an NRCS Field Service incentive or cost share Area. Although the title payment once the pracmay be new, Sheridan is tices have been implenot necessarily new to mented by the landowner. Barton County. Many Sheridan’s time will be local farmers may re- split equally between Barmember when she ton and Jasper counties. previously worked in Her normal office hours the Lamar Field Office for Barton County will be from 2005 to 2008 as a on Tuesdays and WednesNRCS resource conser- days. Diana is looking vationist. forward to the opportuSheridan is a 10 year nity of working with and NRCS veteran. She has meeting many new Barhad extensive conserva- ton County landowners tion work experience and renewing old friendwith the James River ships from her previous Basin Watershed Proj- work experience in Barect and in the Greene ton County. County, Barton County

8C • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

LAMAR DEMOCRAT

www.lamardemocrat.com

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Many changes... same great product! By MELODY METZGER Lamar Democrat

As many know the Lamar Democrat was sold to Lewis County Press this past year. Past owner Doug Davis purchased the newspaper in 1985, after being sent to Lamar earlier by Boone Newspapers in an attempt to revive the paper. That is exactly what he did and the paper thrived under his tutelage for many years. Doug's wife Rayma was later added and she was still in charge when the paper sold last year. Lewis County Press took over on May 1, 2013. Lamar locals Melody Metzger, Heather Gerths and Melissa Little are responsible for the production of the newspaper, with Richard Cooper and Chris Morrow contributing on their end. Metzger is editor of the paper and the one in charge of daily operations. She began working for the Democrat in 1984. Before moving to Lamar she was employed by the Dallas Time Herald newspaper in Dallas, Texas, as well as the Joplin Globe, giving her 35 plus years experience with newspapers. She also has her Bachelor of Science from MSSU, but she has always bled ink and newspapers are her first love. Heather Gerths is also a lifelong Lamar resident and graduate of Lamar High School. She began her work with the Democrat when she was in high school and after a short hiatus away, the Democrat was extremely fortunate to have her return. She is in charge of laying out ads and is very proficient at what she does. She is also in charge of composing special pages and is extremely knowledgable in all areas of computer design. Melissa Little came to

the Democrat this past year and has been a huge asset. She too is a Lamar High School graduate and has worked at various locations in the community since. With Melissa's help the newspaper has shown an increase in advertising, as well as special pages that she is responsible for selling. She is married to Brian Little and has two daughters, McKinley, 7, and Emily, 19 months. Richard Cooper was originally from Barton County and resided in Sedalia for several years before returning home. He is a retired school teacher who has a wonderful rapport with city and county officials. He is a proud alumnus of Kan-

sas State University and is also a published author. Chris Morrow has been with the Democrat the last 20 years, both full and part time. His name has appeared above stories ranging from city and county government to feature stories, but in recent years the bulk of his contributions have been found on the sports page. He is the recipient of multiple journalism awards over the years and is also a graduate of MSSU. He owns and operates his own insurance agency in Webb City and is also a

Neighbors, continued from page 6C a serious business. They understand that land is the primary source of their business and it needs to be protected. A grain crop rotation of corn, wheat and soybeans is utilized in an effort to provide a crop residue cover that assists in the prevention of soil erosion. Waterways and terraces have also been constructed to further control storm water runoff during severe weather events. On acres that are not utilized for crops, the Barker’s have a cow/calf beef herd operation. Bruce says that he has seen some dramatic changes in agriculture since he began farming in the 70’s. “Everything is bigger and a whole lot more technical,” says Bruce. He says the tractor he drives today is hooked up to a GPS auto steering system and the only reason it even needs me to ride along at all is to just push a button when it’s time to turn and make

the next pass back. Bruce smiles when he says that he has thought about taking up some kind of hobby to pass the time, especially in the fields that have the really long rows. This year Bruce is considering implementing variable rate soil sampling and fertilization on some of his fields. This practice could actually save money by applying more or less fertilizer across the field as required by the soil sampling. It has not been all about the farm for Leann. In addition to helping on the farm, Leann had a fulfilling career in elementary education. She taught her first three years in the Bronaugh School District and 25 years in the Liberal School system before retiring in 2010. Leann taught primarily in the second and third grades and has many fond memories of her students. Leann remarked, “In all the years that I taught school I was able to always find some good in all kids. Some you might have to dig a little deeper to find it, but basi-

published author. This year the paper was fortunate to have Ben Bunton, a senior Missouri State University student, who is interning for the semester. He has aided with the production of the newspaper in various

ways. One of the changes that came with the transition was going from a twice a week paper to once a week. By doing so, the paper was able to offer a larger product, full of pertinent community news.

The main change this past year was probably the move from the paper's location of 900 Gulf to 100 E. 11th St. This took place in July of 2013. Unfortunately many still do not realize we have moved and are confused when trying to find us. We are now at this location and plan to stay as it is a very nice fit, with each of us having found our niche. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:15 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. To speak to Melody call 417-6825529, ext. 60; Heather at ext. 61; Melissa at ext. 62 and Richard at ext. 63.

cally there was good in every single wone of them.” So when Bruce isn’t farming and Leann isn’t teaching, what do they like to do for fun? Almost all of their hobbies involve horsepower in some fashion or another. Bruce is a licensed pilot and keeps his planes...yes I said planes… in one of his nearby machine sheds. They can actually take off from their farm and travel to wherever they would like, providing there is a landing strip in place at the end of trip. If they are not flying, both Bruce and Leann are licensed motorcyclists and they enjoy taking road trips. The Barkers have actually traveled to about 46 of the 50 states and have not ruled out going to the last four. If they are not flying or cycling, they might be found water skiing, which requires a boat with plenty of horsepower. And if that isn’t enough horsepower, Bruce became a movie star when he drove a team of mules pulling a wagon in the Civil War movie,

“Ride with the Devil”. I suppose that was actually mule power, but a really close first cousin to horsepower. Bruce and Leann are more than grateful for choosing agriculture as their lifelong occupation. They have thoroughly enjoyed their lives on the farm and have never regretted their decision to farm. They are proud of the fact that they are part of the effort that provides one of the safest food sources to the world. They sometimes are bothered when groups try to attack agriculture in an effort to tarnish the image of farmers. Regardless of any negativity, in their hearts Bruce and Leann know the challenges farmers have faced and the successes that have been made in providing an adequate food supply to a steadily growing world population. I believe a phrase that might best describe Bruce and Leann Barker would be “Strong Moral Fiber.” As individuals, their reli-

gious faith is strong and unyielding. As parents, they would make whatever sacrifice needed that would help their children or grandchild succeed. In business, they would do what is right regardless of the circumstances. In friendship, self-interests would be put aside to help lift up those in need of a helping hand. I have found that people of “Strong Moral Fiber” do not have to necessarily have to state what their values are... it is just always there, obvious for all to see. Bruce and Leann Barker are certainly some of our very best salt of the earth Barton County neighbors. If you have not met them, I would suggest that you need to put it on your bucket list of things to do. They are exceptionally friendly folks and I guarantee you will enjoy your visit. And who knows... if you do catch them at home, there could very well be a batch of fresh baked chocolate chip cookies on the kitchen table.

Section D

• Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Journey with Thorco through the years

In the 1880’s a 23 year old man named Frank Thorpe was working for the Baker-Ridenour wholesale grocer as a traveling salesman. While traveling to different grocery stores he noticed the need for some kind of rack or stand for the grocer to display his wares. In the mid 1890’s he had made several crude wire displays that never caught on with his customers. But one finally did; a wire scoop used to get potatoes out of the sacks or the bin, a slow and dirty job done with your hands up until then. For the next five years he traveled up and down the Frisco line peddling his new potato scoop to his customers. By 1899 business was so good he was able to quit his job and devote all of his time to making wire fixtures. He turned the barn behind his house at 1306 Gulf in to a make-shift factory. He named his company the Best Yet Wire Factory. By 1910 Frank Thorpe had employed half a dozen men including Foreman Albert Hayes. He had also expanded his line of wire products to include displays for brooms, paper bags, fruit and tablets. A 1911 article appearing in the Lamar Democrat stated that Colonel Thorpe had at least 40 different pieces of machinery in his barn, all of

which he made himself. By 1930 business was very good. When the need for a bigger place arose he didn’t have to look any further than down the street. Situated next to the railroad tracks and a stone’s throw from his own house, the old mill turned out to be a perfect location for his ever expanding business. With a new location came a new name. Now known as F M Thorpe Manufacturing the former mill would be the plant’s main location for the next 60 plus years. Frank Thorpe died in 1945. His son Frank Jr., who had been with the company since 1927, sold the business to Jim Allen and Kenny Howard in 1967. Now known as Thorco, Howard and Allen would propel the company’s business upward towards the 21st century. In 1972 a 20,000 sq. ft. satellite plant was built on 160 highway with a 40,000 sq. ft. expansion shortly after that. By 1980 the old mill that had seen its fair share of productivity for almost a century was now being used as Thorco’s prototype department, cardboard warehouse and main office, employing less than 20 employees. In 1992 it was decided to move all offices and departments (except plating)

to the newly expanded facility on 160 highway. This basically ended the need for the office by the train tracks. Kenny Howard was quoted in a copyrighted story by Melanie Huonker published by Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc. in 2013, "I was in this building for 25 years, so it's dear to my heart and that's when we were really expanding the business and having a good time doing it," said Kenneth Howard, former Thorco building owner. “We bought the company in '67, Jim Allen, my partner and I. We had 27 employees, and as time went on we kept expanding and expanding," said Howard. The company was bought by Marmon Group in 1990. In 2005, Product Finishing Magazine published an article about Thorco and its painting process changes, “In its manufacturing processes, Thorco relies primarily on the fabrication of wire, sheet metal and some tubing. Until a few years ago,

many of the company’s products were electroplated. However, in an effort to meet customer demand for more colorful products, Thorco made the switch from electroplating to powder coating. Today, all but a small portion of the company’s products are powder coated (a handful of parts are outsourced to a local plating shop). Thorco’s Lamar facility has two 12-gun automatic powder coating lines (from suppliers Nordson and Wagner) with manual touch-

up for hard-to-reach areas. The company works with as many as 20 colors (provided by Georgiabased TCI Powder Coatings), though a handful of colors account for the large majority of work.” Berkshire Hathaway purchased a majority share of Marmon Holdings in 2008. * A special thank you to Joe Davis, Barton County Historial Society, for providing information and accounts for this article.

LIBERAL-The Jaxie Brown Bed and Breakfast is located in the alley behind The Flower Cart Cafe, 136 S. Main, in Liberal. The lodging was built in 2012 and offers a kitchenette, bedroom and bath. The fridge, microwave, sink and seating make for a very functional

kitchen. A queen size bed and bunks complete the bedroom. The roomy bathroom features a generous sized shower. Breakfast is available upon request. Jaxie Brown has housed guests from both coasts and many states in between. Who comes to Liberal and why, one

might wonder. Weddings, reunions, graduations, funerals, hunting, new babies and business are just some of the reason folks have come, stayed at Jaxie and left their compliments and names in the guestbook. “I love company”, Mary explained, “and that is the first

reason I wanted a bed and breakfast. Also, it just made sense to me, that with the only other lodging in Barton County being located across the road from each other in Lamar, that we could use a bit of lodging in Liberal”. Mary's plan in 2014 is to work

harder on marketing and advertising for the Jaxie Brown B&B. Anyone interested in a tour or for more information should call 417-843-3453. More of what's happening at 136 S. Main can be found on facebook at “Mary's Flower Cart Cafe”.

Jaxie Brown Bed and Breakfast welcomes visitors Barton County Chamber makes staff and building changes in 2013 By DeAnna Ross Executive Assistant

Our mission is to “Promote progress in Barton County through business and community development.” The Barton County Chamber of Commerce provides a unified voice for the business leaders of Barton County, advocating the needs and desires of area businesses, promoting them and the communities of Barton County in the hopes of creating a brighter future for all. In 2014, the Barton County Chamber of Commerce is proudly celebrating 20 years of representing the businesses of Barton County and improving area quality of life. In 2013, the chamber saw a changing of our entire staff, the remodeling of our building’s exterior, and the expansion of our business hours that had been 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Our new hours became 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and we stayed open during lunch hour to better serve our members’ needs. Our staff attended several networking and educational conferences for training in the use of our office technology and general chamber operations. The Barton County Chamber brought motivational speaker Kirk Elmquist to Barton County schools and to our membership. We provided scholarships to students at all three Barton County school districts, participated in community groups such as Beta Gamma, PTO, Rotary, Community Betterment and Community Theater. It also commissioned the construction and placement of the first of three different community pride projects, the Tigers State Champs sign located next to Interstate 49 at Lamar. Our staff reviewed the list of community events hosted by the chamber, improving and expanding on some (for example, Wyatt Earp’s Fallfest and Shop Where Your Heart Is/Small Business Saturday) and eliminating others which no longer adequately represented, served, or directly competed with our members’ businesses (for example, Red Whites & Foods Wine Tasting and the chamber’s yearly chili luncheon). Our efforts to promote shopping local during the month of November 2013 (Shop Where Your Heart Is/Small Business Saturday) resulted in the collection of 1,223 receipts from local businesses revealing that shopping locally resulted in $1,565.22 being col-

Astra Ferris, DeAnna Ross and Amy Willhite. lected in tax monies for the betterment of our streets, parks, law enforcement, and so much more. In the interest of cooperation and improved business climate, the chamber welcomed Economic Director John Adams of the Barton County Community Development Cooperation into the office at 102 West 10th Street in Lamar as well as onto the website, BartonCounty.com. This move has allowed both organizations to share their connections with local, state, and national business leaders, creating a united front in the fight for a better Barton County. Speaking of BartonCounty.com and other internet resources, BartonCounty.com started out 2013 as a rarely visited site, not ranked very highly by search engines, with only a few thousand visits. After many changes and improvements, the website’s member directory alone boasts well over two million hits. That’s more than two million people who searched for businesses in Barton County using the chamber’s website. Additionally, the chamber’s Facebook page quadrupled their number of likes in 2013 and has become an active and informative resource for Barton County. You can find the chamber on Facebook at www. facebook.com/bartoncountychamber. We started 2013 with 207 members of the chamber of commerce and ended with 271. We believe this increase in our membership numbers reflects the improving business climate in Barton County, as well as a positive response

to the changes which have been implemented in our organization. It is the mission statement of the Barton County Chamber to continue to work toward progress for our communities with a focus on business and community development. It’s our sincere belief that 2014 will bring continued improvement to our members’ businesses with our assistance in areas of promotion, education, networking, and tourism. In 2013, the chamber did away with our “Fair Share” membership investment system and implemented a “Tiered Membership” system. This will allow our members to invest with the chamber at a level they feel most comfortable, rather than based on a number of employees or other factors. The system is easy to communicate with and to understand. It also provides more benefits to our membership than had been previously available. Also in 2014, we’re looking to partner more closely with Missouri State Parks for our Truman Days event, expanding and improving it in much the same way as what we have done with Wyatt Earp’s Fallfest (formerly Apple Days). The chamber of commerce will also be rolling out a new mobile phone application which will better serve our members and the community at large. To ensure that all of our members have a voice in the nomination and appointment of our board of directors, the chamber will be improving the method by which board members are nominated and voted onto the board

during 2014. Members will now be allowed to make nominations and cast their votes on board seats in the weeks leading up to our annual banquet. BartonCounty.com (a website run by the chamber of commerce) will become more of a hub of information for all the communities of Barton County, featuring information from the Community Development Corporation, the county commission, and the cities we serve. This year the chamber will begin its second community pride project, similar to the one we did for Lamar, which was the State Champs sign on I-49. Barton County is a great place to do business because we are centrally located in the United States. We can boast about enjoying life in small town America, but also be confident that we are within driving distance to bigger cities and all the opportunities they offer. We’re an ideal place for new entrepreneurs and manufacturing facilities, but we also take great pride in being the breadbasket of America. Farming is our legacy, and it continues to carry us forward when all other things become uncertain. We’re a community of faithful, hardworking, and hopeful people who not only have a “show me” attitude, but also one that says, “No matter how many times you knock us down, we’re gonna get back up.” As our famous native son, President Harry S. Truman once said, “The Buck Stops Here.” Nowhere else in the world is that better understood than in Barton County. It is not the work of others which will improve the place we call home. We know, looking into the future, that it is only through our own hard work and unyielding commitment to success, that we will achieve the “progress” we seek. Officers are Astra Ferris, executive director; DeAnna Ross, executive assistant; Amy Willhite, Special Events coordinator; Cindy McFadden, board president (representing business and industry); Andrea Hollstein, president elect (representing business and industry); Kathy Macomber, treasurer (representing members at large); Jeff Tucker, ex-officio member (representing the county commission); Lynn Calton, ex-officio member (representing city of Lamar); board members, Dave Sorrick, Mindenmines; Kyle Morey, Golden City; Sally Fast, Liberal and board members Jill Fast and Brian Griffith (business/industry).

2D • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

LBT

www.lamardemocrat.com

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Lamar Bank & Trust Company is proud to serve the area

Lamar Bank & Trust Company is proud to serve Lamar, Barton County and the surrounding area. Year 2013 was filled with great community events and bank sponsored trips. The LBT travel club visited the Hot Air Balloon festival in Albuquerque and three buses of Tiger fans went to St. Louis to see the Lamar Tiger football team win a third state championship. Lamar Bank & Trust Company is more than a bank. It is a community minded business providing financial expertise, local donations and employees that live and volunteer in Barton County. Now is a great time to consider banking with Lamar Bank & Trust Company. LBT is the only locally owned and operated full-service financial institution dedicated to Barton County. Founded in 1925, Lamar Bank & Trust Company exists to

serve the citizens of Lamar and the surrounding area. LBT offers a full line of personal and business accounts including online banking, cash management and a full range of loan products. In 2013, LBT experienced steady growth and remained financially strong as the national economy continues to show signs of improvement with reduced unemployment and improved housing markets. Mobile Banking was introduced in 2012. “Go Mobile” creates another way for LBT accountholders to do their personal banking. Apps are available for Android & iPhone users with access also available from a mobile browser. Pay bills and manage your account safely and securely from anywhere. The LBT website www.LBT.com provides users with online banking, promotion information, new account options and a large selec-

tion of calculators. LBT’s facebook page offers current information, pictures and contests. Lamar Bank & Trust Company is proud to support local schools. Tiger Pride Visa Check Debit Cards and Tiger Pride checks are popular products designed to show community pride and benefit Lamar schools. The bank donates $5 to Lamar schools for every card purchased. 2013 graduates of Barton County schools received $50 when opening a checking account and all Lamar eighth grade graduates were offered $20 to open a Savings 101 account. Lamar Bank & Trust Company offers a full range of loan products from all types of personal loans, auto loans, farm loans and mortgage products. A first-time homebuyer program is available. A new home purchase, new home con-

struction or home improvement loans are available with variable and fixed rate options. LBT provided several activities for families in 2013. Customer Appreciation Day, Sept. 27, produced the largest lunch crowd ever. New in 2013 was the $1 donation to the Backpack Snack meal program to receive a t-shirt. The program received over $1,500 in donations from this event. Kids love to save at LBT as part of the Sammy the Saver Kids Club. Activities include pictures with the Easter Bunny, Santa Claus and a swim party in August at the Lamar Aquatic Park. Kids and adults can use the lobby coin machine to save time when depositing coins. LBT employs 26 fulltime and six part-time employees. Employees are active in all areas of the community and serve on various boards and civic

organizations including LIFE Foundation, Barton County Chamber of Commerce, Metro Club, Rotary and many others. LBT is a proud supporter of Relay for Life, library summer reading program and the Backpack Snack Attack food outreach program. Additionally, employees of LBT created “Casual for a Cause” where employees pay to wear blue jeans on Fridays. The bank made a $10,000 donation to the Plaza Rescue Fund in support of the upgrades required to keep the plaza/ drive-in theater open. The LBT Travel Club is planning great trips for 2014. A March trip includes the New Dinner Theater in Overland Park, Kan. Club members will travel to St. Louis May 21-23 for springtime activities such as Cardinal baseball, a city-guided tour and great food. Bartlesville, Okla. will be

the trip in September to see the Frank Phillip’s museum. This year the weeklong trip will be to Nashville and Memphis. Tour the Country Music Hall of Fame, visit the Grand Ole Opry, Graceland, Loretta Lynn’s home and other points of interest. The final trip will be the November 19 to see The Hughes Brothers Christmas show in Branson. The board of directors and employees would like to express their deepest appreciation for people who do business at Lamar Bank & Trust Company. The staff of LBT invites those needing a bank to consider the many options available. LBT is dedicated to the future growth and support of the local economy. By building relationships and staying abreast of technology, LBT is proud to offer “A Better Way to Bank.” Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender.

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

www.lamardemocrat.com

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

3D

SUPER 8

TripAdvisor names Lamar Super 8 as top bargain hotel By BEN BUNTON Lamar Democrat

If you’re planning to travel chances are you will get online to figure out exactly what there is to do at your destination. Many websites are dedicated to helping you figure out what you should do, where you should go and where you should stay. TripAdvisor is one of the most popular of these travel sites. TripAdvisor

relies heavily on reviews and ratings from their users. According to their website, “TripAdvisor [is] the world's largest travel site. Browse over 100 million candid reviews, opinions and photos of hotels, restaurants, attractions and more - all by travelers like you. You'll also find low airfares, free travel guides, worldwide vacation rental listings, popular forums with advice about virtually every des-

tination and more.” With 100 million reviews one would think that it would be hard to make something stand out, especially in Lamar, Mo. The people over at the Lamar Super 8 have managed to do it, despite the odds. Listed at number 10 on TripAdvisor Best of 2014 Bargain hotels, the Lamar Super 8 adds to its already extensive list of awards. “This is the biggest honor we have received outside of Super 8,” said Gina Little, who co-owns the Lamar Super 8, along with her parents, Lon and Virginia Frieden. There are 217 reviews of the Super 8 in Lamar, 187 of which have been given a five bubble (TripAdvi-

sor uses bubbles instead of stars), or “Excellent” rating. 27 have given four bubble, or “Very good” rating, and the remaining three reviewers have given a three bubble review, or “Average.” There are no reviews that have rated the hotel “Poor” or “Terrible.” The most common complaint for the three lowest ratings was that the plush-top mattresses were too soft. “I think that for every person that stays with us, we are extremely appreciative, and for every person that stays here we try to give them the kind of service that we want to receive, if we were the consumer to stay at another property,”

said Little. “We feel very strongly that cleanliness, well maintained rooms and outstanding customer service is what every guest deserves, regardless if it is an economy property or a deluxe property.” Little said that the reason the Lamar Super 8 has received so many awards is due to excellent employees that take pride in their work. “Without our employees we wouldn’t be able to have any kind of property here at all,” said Little. “They are our backbone. They are what keeps the hotel standing up and being able to open the doors the next day.” The Lamar Super 8 is not a stranger to awards. They have received The

Top 8 Properties award multiple times, signifying that they are one of the top eight properties out of more than 2,000 properties in the world. They have received the Paul Schulte Award for being the number one property in the Super 8 franchise. They have also received the Pride of Super 8 every year since they have been open. “The Pride of Super 8 is something that I tell all of my friends to look for if they are going to be staying in a Super 8 property. That is based on reviews given by previous customers, surprise inspections and cleanliness. You can see the award signified on the Super 8 website,” said Little.

Lamar Laundromat offers new service of wash, dry and fold

The Lamar Laundromat located at 300 E. 12th St. (Hwy. 160) in Lamar is a coin operated laundry and wash, dry and fold. Lon and Virginia Frieden and

Gina Little purchased the laundromat in February of 2013 and are pleased to announce their new service of wash, dry and fold. They now do the laundry

for you – simply drop off your laundry between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. and pick it up the next day at the same time. Your clothes will be washed, dried and

folded. 2013 was a great year and they are looking forward to a great 2014 and beyond with the new wash, dry and fold next day service that was added March 1. The owners of the Lamar Laundromat would like to thank all of their loyal laundromat patrons for their business. They love Lamar and have always enjoyed serving local people and businesses in Lamar. They also appreciate all of their employees and the great job they do in daily maintenance and cleaning of the laundromat.

Wilson Body Shop LLC offers full service automobile collision repairs and refinishing. They are celebrating their 10th anniversary of full time operation this year. Wilson Body Shop opened on a part time basis in 2000 and became a full time business in 2004. They have the equipment and facilities to repair all makes and models of cars and trucks, with modern painting facilities. Wilson Body Shop has added equipment to meet changing environmental standards regulating the operation of these facilities. Business has grown steadily over the past 10 years and owners Tracy

Wilson and Judy Moore thank all of their customers for their support. They know that much of their business comes from referrals from satisfied customers, as well as repeat business. In the body shop repair business, they know that their customers would rather not have a need for their services, because that means they have been in an accident; however, Wilson Body Shop appreciates them trusting them enough to make the repairs to their cars and trucks that will allow them to forget that the accident happened. Over the past 10 years they have developed excellent relationships with the insurance companies

that insure their customers' cars and trucks and work with those insurers on behalf of customers to deliver top quality repairs. The insurance agents in the community recognize that they are a local business that takes good care of their insureds and they appreciate referrals from those agents. Wilson Body Shop knows that their customers choose them to make their repairs. They are not chosen by the insurance companies. Wilson Body Shop wants to take this opportunity to thank their customers for their support and they look forward to serving them and many new customers in 2014. Those at Wilson Body

Shop have found that Barton County is a good place to do business. They are members of the Barton County Chamber of Commerce and appreciate the events they sponsor and the networking opportunities the chamber provides. Wilson Body Shop has local vendors that they work with in Lamar that help them to obtain parts, materials and contract services in a timely manner, so they can complete repairs and get their customers back on the road in as short a time period as possible. Wilson Body Shop, LLC is located at 564 SW 8th Lane in Lamar and can be reached by phone at 417682-5460.

Wilson Body Shop, LLC celebrates 10th year in operation

4D • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

www.lamardemocrat.com

BULL INSURANCE

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Bull siblings offer insurance services The sibling duo of Andrea Hollstein, doing business as Farmers Insurance, Andrea Hollstein agent, and Kevin Bull, doing business as Bull Insurance Agency, both conveniently located just off of the northwest corner of the square at 907 Gulf St., Lamar experienced a successful year due to growth and favorable weather conditions. Throughout the year many new companies have been added to both agencies. Andrea Hollstein Insurance Agency now has a broader portfolio of companies to accommodate a variety of healthcare needs, wheth-

er it is group insurance, Medicare supplements or individual family plans. Andrea is a certified agent for the Affordable Care Act. Needless to say, this has been a challenge as there are still numerous and ongoing changes and issues with the Affordable Care Act. Although all

health insurance policies are now guaranteed issue without regard to health conditions, there are still a number of issues to be dealt with which require a high level of expertise, which Andrea has. Kevin has also experienced positive growth, especially in commercial

Fast Eddie Hot Rod at 902 Broadway in Lamar offers automotive collision repair, service and restoration. Fast Eddie opened March 5, 2005 and has expanded its services considerably over the past five years. The latest diagnostic equipment has been purchased, as well as cool and flush and transmission flush equipment.

New frame equipment will be added in 2014. 2013 showed a growth of about five percent for Fast Eddie; however, they are already ahead of last year's sales numbers in 2014. Some of the reasons Fast Eddie Hot Rod believes this is a good area to be in business is because of the loyal customers, great chamber of

commerce and the fact that Lamar is always looking for new business. Brian Brewer stated, “We at Fast Eddie Hot Rod have a great group of passionate and skilled employees. As the owner I am very proud of our team”. Call them at 417-6810125 for all of your automotive needs.

Don't be surprised if you see pixie dust twinkling around Brenda Miller. Miller, who works for Family Fun Travels, joins an elite group of travel industry professionals who have attained a special knowledge of the Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World Resort, Disney Cruise Line, Adventures by Disney and Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa. As a graduate of the College of Disney Knowledge, Miller became part of this elite group. Anyone who plans to visit any of the Disney destinations will benefit from Miller's added expertise. “The College of Disney Knowledge has taught me how to add more value to each Disney itinerary so that I can help make every client's magical dreams come true,” said Miller.

“2013 was my first full year with Family Fun Travels and Disney. I've had a great time helping people plan their vacations. Disney makes sure all of their agents have the latest information on specials and any changes going on within their parks or cruise line. I help my clients book as much or as little as they want to, up to and including the resort/ cruise, dining, tickets and flights. Every client is different and every vacation is different. Disney has such a broad range of choices. I know we can find something to

Fast Eddie Hot Rod experiences sales growth

Miller has busy year with Family Fun Travels

Brenda Miller fit your family's Disney wishes and budget.” Miller can be reached at 417-214-0198 or bemiller@pixius.net to begin planning your magical vacation.

Roger Blaser Insurance prides itself on customer service On August 4, 2013, , Roger Blaser Insurance, LLC marked its four year anniversary as an independent agency. This year has brought many changes and learning experiences, with new insurance carriers being added. They now have the opportunity to offer their customers more choices when considering their insurance needs. The agency provides coverage which ranges from Medicare supplements, personal and group health insurance, life insurance, personal and business auto, home and farm, workers compensation and business owner policies. All of these companies have been researched by the Allegiance group and have been found to be top rated, as well as financially stable. Roger has been involved in the insurance business for 30 years. The agency is staffed by Ann Blaser, Roger's wife, and Cheryl Givens. Ann has 20 years of insurance experience and is also a real estate

broker and has an adjoining office, which houses Blaser Realty. Roger and Ann have a son, Max, who graduated from law school in May 2011 from the University of Tulsa, Oklahoma. He now resides in Springfield with his wife Tara Blaser and they are expecting their daughter, Brecklyn, this summer. Cheryl has been with the agency for a little over two years and is an insurance agent, as well. She has three children that attend the Lamar schools and are active in several local organizations including Lamar Tiger Sharks Swim Team, Lamar Tigers Football Program, Lamar Tiger Pride Marching Band and the First Christian Church Children and Youth activities. Combined, the Blaser family has over 50 years of experience in the insurance business. The last year has been very hard on the economy in the Lamar area. Families are struggling under the financial stress of these current economic

times. With 2014, those at Roger Blaser Insurance pride themselves on customer service. As they head into the new year, their main concern is to ensure their customers have the right insurance coverage at a price they can afford. As an independent agent, they can assure their customers of prompt, personalized service and attention from someone they know and trust. Whether you own a home, business or farm, having the right coverage will ensure the protection needed at the time it is needed. Roger Blaser Insurance wants their customers to feel secure in their coverage choices and confident in the agency that represents them. Please stop by their website at www.blaserinsurance.com or contact their office at 417-682-5267 for a no cost, no obligation personal insurance review. Roger Blaser Insurance, LLC is located at 201 W. 10th St. in Lamar.

lines as he now has access to more markets than ever before. This allows him to tailor each insurance package to each customer’s unique and individual needs. Kevin also makes it a point to stay abreast of what is trending in agribusiness in order to keep his farm clients properly advised and up to date with their farm insurance program. Kevin and Andrea take pride not only in working in this community, but investing in this community. Andrea currently sits on the board of directors of the Barton County Chamber of Commerce and is president elect for the coming year. She is a member of the Rotary Club and Beta Gamma. She and her husband Mark, along with daughters Ani age 13 and Milliena age 17 months, are actively involved with the Church For Imperfect People. Andrea is

in charge of the nursery school and Mark plays guitar in the worship and praise band. Kevin and his wife Katie, and children Sadie age 4 and Vance age 2, attend Oakton United Methodist Church where Kevin serves on the board of trustees and also plays guitar in the praise and worship band. Katie enjoys teaching children’s Sunday school. Kevin is currently vice president of the Lamar Lions Club and will be president for the second time in July 2014. Kevin is a member of the Lamar Country Club and enjoys playing golf and the camaraderie associated with club activities. Kevin and Andrea are blessed to have two outstanding licensed staff members who both do an excellent job serving customer needs. Amanda Jeffries, wife of Nic Jeffries, along with their children are members of Oakton United Methodist Church. Amanda enjoys keeping up with all her children’s extracurricular activities, as well as being

a member of Beta Gamma. Jill Coble who joined the agencies in 2013, is the wife of Nick Coble. They, along with their two daughters, are also members of Oakton United Methodist Church. Jill enjoys helping at the church as needed and attending her daughter’s school activities. Needless to say, the agencies are made up of four very active young families. They are here to be a part of the community, stay a part of this community and invest in this community’s future. Good examples of this would be the taking of the opportunity to be involved with various youth organizations including Barton County 4-H, Lamar Tiger Pride Program, Barton County Friends of the Fair and the Lamar Schools Athletic Department. The agents and staff appreciate the past and current support and opportunity to serve the Lamar and surrounding communities in the coming year.

Today's investment landscape looks far different than that of a few years ago. In March 2009, just following the height of the economic crisis, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had fallen to about 6,500. But throughout now, in early 2014, the Dow has hovered near the 16,400 mark - a gain of more than 150 percent in less than five years. "Of course, we're certainly not predicting these same types of returns over the next few years," says Pat Barr. "But at Edward Jones, we stress the importance of staying invested in all types of markets, good, bad or in-between. We believe that investors should buy quality investments, hold them for the long term and make adjustments, as needed, in response to changes in their lives. "Big news events happen every year, and this

year 2013 was no exception, with the government shutdown, the Syrian civil war and countless other national and international headlines. Obviously, some events may discourage investors. However, we encourage our clients to look past the headlines and keep their focus on their long-term objectives." Edward Jones provides financial services for individual investors in the United States and, through its affiliate, in Canada. Every aspect of the firm's business, from the types of investment options offered to the location of branch offices, is designed to cater to individual investors in the communities in which they live and work. The firm's 12,000-plus financial advisors work directly with nearly seven million clients to understand their personal goals

- from college savings to retirement - and create long-term investment solutions that emphasize a well-balanced portfolio and a buy-and-hold strategy. Edward Jones embraces the importance of building long-term, face-to-face relationships with clients, helping them to understand and make sense of the investment options available today. Headquartered in St. Louis, Edward Jones ranked No. 4 overall in Fortune magazine's 2014 100 Best Companies to Work For ranking. Visit their website at www. edwardjones.com and their recruiting website at www.careers.edwardjones.com. Follow them on Twitter @EdwardJones. Member SIPC. Fortune and Time Inc. are not affiliated with and do not endorse Edward Jones products or services.

Edward Jones: Investors' patience is often rewarded

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

www.lamardemocrat.com

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

5D

BC ELECTRIC

Barton County Electric shares information regarding EPA regulations

Barton County Electric Cooperative wishes to share this information with its members and all electric consumers about EPA regulations proposed for coal plants. The following is the straight talk on the EPA issue through questions and answers.

address carbon dioxide emissions. According to U.S. Rep. John Dingall, key author of the Clean Air Act, “Using the Clean Air Act to limit carbon emission will result in a glorious mess.” In addition, the administration is bypassing Congress, which has to answer to voters, to enact regulaQ: What exactly is EPA tions through an agency doing? that does not answer to A: EPA is using the voters. Clean Air Act to reduce greenhouse gas emissions Q: What do the regulafrom coal-fired power tions for new coal plants plants through new regu- require? lations utilities will have A: These regulations to meet. The regulations will make it economiare so stringent they will cally impossible to build effectively end the use of new plants to meet future coal for electricity gen- generation needs. All new eration. plants will be required to utilize a “sequestration” Q: What is wrong with technology to capture using the Clean Air Act and store carbon dioxfor these regulations? ide underground to meet A: The Clean Air Act the new stringent emiswas never intended to sion limits. According

to a 2012 Congressional Budget Office report, engineers have estimated this technology would increase the cost of producing electricity from new coal-based power plants by 75 percent. The problem is that this technology is not commercially available, forcing us to pursue higher-cost generation options for our future demand needs. This would translate into higher electric bills for you.

Q: What is the concern for existing coal plants? A: EPA will propose new regulations for existing coal plants in June 2014 and will implement these regulations by June 2015. Stricter emission regulations translate into higher costs, regardless of the extent of the regulations. Coal accounts for approximately 75 percent of our electric co-op electricity generation. (It is 80 percent statewide for all utilities.) Numerous problems will arise if regulations go into effect: • Higher electric rates • Job loss • Economic downturn • Businesses shutting down • Stranded Investment Q: What have you done to clean up the air? A: Missouri’s electric co-ops have already spent $1.1 billion to remove up to 90 percent of emissions from coal plants. Electric co-ops have invested mil-

lions of dollars into energy-efficiency programs so that our power plants will run less and future demand for additional power will be reduced. Based on five years of investment, projected lifetime electricity savings of those efficiency measures will be enough to power 65,000 homes for one year.

Q: Why don’t you switch to renewable resources? A: Electric co-ops in Missouri already purchase electricity generated with renewable energy sources. In the month of September 2013, 17 percent of the power generated was from renewable sources (including wind and hydro). Coops helped pioneer wind power in Missouri by agreeing to buy the entire output of four wind farms in northwest Missouri and a fifth in Kansas. We currently have 600 megawatts of wind capacity from the five wind farms, and we expect to begin receiving power from a sixth wind farm located in Oklahoma in the fall of 2014, bringing the total to 750 megawatts. Much as we love these renewable resources, the reliability of the electric grid requires large baseload plants that burn coal or natural gas. This is because renewable resources are intermittent in nature - wind farms only generate when the wind

blows; hydropower stops flowing when water levels drop. Baseload power plants must be ready to come online as renewable resources drop off.

western United States from China. In addition, any reductions in carbon dioxide emissions from power plants can be nullified by natural events, such as volcano eruptions Q: Aren’t there other and forest fires. ways to generate electricity besides coal? Q: Why are electric cooperatives so concerned A: Yes, and we use about this issue? them. The next best thing to coal is natural gas. We A: Missouri’s electric have three major com- cooperatives serve many bined cycle natural gas of the most economically power plants, along with disadvantaged people in several smaller gas plants the United States, includused for periods of high ing a high percentage of demand. Coal is the most unemployed, underemaffordable and abundant ployed and fixed-income generation source we Americans. We also serve have, with more than 200 many farms and small years in domestic coal re- businesses that cannot serves. Coal prices have afford drastic increases remained affordable and in electric bills. Electric stable; meanwhile the cooperatives by their very natural gas market has nature have a deep conbeen very volatile and cern for their communiprices have varied drasti- ties. Our employees live cally from a low of $1.89 where we serve. We know per million BTU to a high our members and when of $10.79 per million they suffer, we suffer with BTU. In addition, many them. For this reason, we Americans rely on natural can not sit still and accept gas to heat their homes. If regulations that threaten the electric utility indus- to dramatically increase try were to switch from electric bills. coal to natural gas, prices would likely increase, fur- Q: What can I do to ther hurting consumers. help? A: You can visit www. Q: Will the EPA regula- action.coop where you tions lower carbon diox- can quickly and easily ide emissions? send a message to EPA A: That is doubtful. If saying “work with electric we don’t burn coal for cooperatives on a comelectricity, it will go to mon-sense solution that China, where there is less balances energy needs regulation. It takes only a and environmental confew days for carbon diox- cerns.” If you don’t have ide emissions to reach the Internet access, call us or beaches of the stop by the office and we will help you send a message. Together, we can make a difference! You don’t have to be a member of Barton County Electric or an electric cooperative to send a message to the EPA.

McManis Insurance provides sales and services to the community McManis Insurance Association, LLC, located at 128 W. 10th St. in Lamar, provides insurance sales and services to the community. McManis Insurance began in July of 1972 and is consistently adopting new companies to handle their clients needs. Although they did not change their services, they did add GuideOne insurance compensation. An increase in agency volume was seen last year and considering the economy and lack of city growth in new jobs, McManis feels it was a good year. At some point in 2014 the agency will be expanding their health insurance and federal health insurance programs. The company is working to expand by providing a life and health insurance specialist. Lamar is a small town, where most everyone is known and Gary McManis believes that factor makes it easier to work in the community. Jean Lacky is the insurance company's only full time employee and she has developed into a complete and knowledgeable insurance agent. She can be reached at 417682-3131.

6D • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

THORCO INDUSTRIES

www.lamardemocrat.com

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

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Section E

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CDC continues new business attraction and retention and expansion of existing businesses

By JOHN ADAMS CDC Economic Development Director The Barton County Community Development Corporation, reorganized in 2009, is a 501(c)4 organization whose mission statement is, “To advance the economic well being of the citizens of Barton County, Missouri by encouraging the expansion and attraction of businesses and industry into Barton County, and to promote

economic development there through education, communication, information gathering, and community cooperation.” We have three primary focus points in achieving our mission statement throughout Barton County, which are, (1) New business attraction, (2) Current business retention and expansion support, (3) Expand existing area entrepreneurship and innovation, along with inspiring and helping find and nourish new entrepreneurs with their ideas and dreams through education. National statistics indicate that annually there are only approximately 400 significant new business/industry site developments all across the United States. The CDC was recently developed in 2009. Then, in 2010 when Director Rob Harrington was hired, they had only two site projects occur. The following 2011 had only another two projects. By June 2012, CDC had one project

develop under the interim director, Jim Horton. Then, John Adams was hired in August 2012 as the director of Barton County CDC and became very busy with eight projects starting in August 2012 through December 2012, totaling nine for 2012. The following year, 2013, was another busy year for Adams and the CDC board with almost as many new potential attraction projects involving manufacturing, food processing, call centers and retail distribution, and agriculture. At the end of 2013, we were fortunate to attract a new business, Independent Diesel Services, locating in Lamar Heights just south of the Lamarti Travel Plaza. They are planning to start their business sometime in April 2014, weather permitting. They will initially employ eight to 10 people and hopefully grow to 20-25 employees as their success continues. They will provide a wide range of services for Interstate 49 diesel

truck rigs and some area agriculture diesel units. CDC is still working hard on the large manufacturing project for the city of Lamar, and with possible Missouri state incentives and positive foreign investment, we could see activity later this year. CDC also has two or three other potential projects at this time involving manufacturing, assembly, and agriculture economic involvement. Adams expects more potential projects to become involved with in 2014. What this means is that the overall national economy is still improving, and therefore more business attracts are likely for our region. More importantly, this illustrates that Barton County CDC is now effectively recognized in the economic arena with their improved “brand site awareness” at the local, regional, state, national, and international levels. All of this necessary high profile involvement for CDC does take substantial

time, personnel, activity, and involvement with many site selector and consultant groups. As a non-profit business, Barton County CDC understands and appreciates the importance of the moral support and generous financial contributions from their Barton County stakeholders. Their gifts allow John Adams, CDC director, to undertake the many potential new business attraction projects and related industry activities, support our efforts in current area business retention and expansion, and encourage any potential entrepreneurs to fulfill their dreams throughout the year. However, remember that CDC’s economic focus also includes engaging in current business retention and expansion activities and projects. A good example of this is Adams’ assisting Red Neck Blinds in their expansion of their Lamar facility. see CDC, page 7E

Airport improvements finished in 2013, nuisance structures become challenge for 2014

were $15,005,112. At the same meeting, water and sewer rates were increased, a seven percent A project spanning 13 hike in water rates, and years of delays and frussewer rates going from trations finally reached 100 percent of the water the finish line in 2013 charge to 120 percent. with the announcement The city continued that the improvement of to provide financial Lamar Municipal Airsupport to the Barton port was complete. That County Community was the message of City Development CorporaAdministrator Lynn tion (CDC) but shied Calton at the city counaway from a three-year cil meeting of October 21. The show piece of the Seated from left are councilman Judd Chesnut, councilman Mike Hull, mayor Keith Divine, city commitment. Instead, project is a new 4,000 attorney Steven Kaderly and city clerk Traci Cox. Standing from left are councilman Bill Talbott, contributions would be foot runway, numbered councilman Max Simmons, councilman Steve Gilkey, councilman Tom Shields, councilman Joey on a six-month basis. 17/35. The numbers are Bronson, councilman Harold VanDeMark, city administrator Lynn Calton and chief of police and However, if the CDC continued to receive compass readings when assistant city administrator Ron Hager. support from other enlanding on the new strip, 17 signifying a heading of 170 was submitted for a Communi- charge the cost to the owner’s and the city park. Occurring tities of local government in at about the same time was a the amount pledged, the city degrees when landing south- ty Development Block Grant to taxes due on the property. bound and 35 signifying 350 pay most of the cost of demol- Two individuals who devoted suggestion by Calton to econ- would also contribute the same degrees when landing north- ishing it. However, in October, many years of service to the city omize on the rehabilitation amount ($180,000) for the next bound. The construction was Assistant City Administrator retired in 2013. Linda Zaerr by milling the street’s surface three years as it contributed done by Emery Sapp Construc- Ron Hager reported that the completed 41 years in January rather than a complete rebuild, during the three previous years. application had been denied working in the front office of thereby avoiding the relocation The council does not have tion of Columbia. At first, the new runway was since Lamar didn’t score high city hall and was given a retire- of sewer and water lines. All of an acting mayor, or mayor pro limited to daylight use only un- enough for the competitive ment reception by city officials this is in preparation for the tem, who would serve in the til the runway lights could be grant. Another application has and all employees. The other expected arrival of Polymer- event the mayor is unable to atretiree was councilman Kent Wood Technologies to occupy tend a council meeting. An efinstalled. That was completed been submitted. in early February, 2014, and Removal of nuisance struc- Harris, who stepped down in the vacant former O’Sullivan fort was made to fill the vacanlike the airport’s other runway, tures continued to be a pain- April after 18 years represent- complex of buildings at the cy during the first meeting of the lights can be turned on fully slow process in 2013. In ing the Second Ward. A diligent south end of Gulf. Officials of 2013, but the proposal received or off from a pilot’s cockpit if March, the council moved on watchdog on city expenditures, Polymer-Wood Technologies, four votes of support, one short three structures at 204 Gulf, Harris didn’t depart the coun- including CEO Evan Daniels, of a majority. So, the post will properly equipped. Calton added that the airport 1501 Broadway, and 103 West cil chamber until well after his appeared before the city coun- continue to remain vacant. can now be used by small twin 15th by awarding a contract successor, Mike Hull, took the cil in May to assure the city that As the city progresses into engine aircraft and small busi- for their demolition. A struc- oath of office. He distributed they were coming and were 2014, it looks toward economic ness jets. The only thing that re- ture at 1401 Poplar was on the a list of 13 recommendations currently seeking funds from development. Polymer-Wood mains to be done is a final walk ground by mid-March, but to the new council, address- overseas investors. In August, Technologies apparently is through inspection by the avia- debris removal was delayed ing many of the long term and Daniels and some of his col- coming, but when? The CDC’s tion division of the Missouri by wet ground at the site. The expensive challenges that the leagues made a brief and un- economic development direcDepartment of Transportation eyesore at 1801 Gulf was down city faces. There was a personal announced walkthrough of tor, John Adams, says he has by December, but a huge pile handwritten message to each the building complex to assess several active possibilities, but (MoDOT). A problem that remained of stones still had to be re- councilman that accompanied their needs. It remains unclear he is bound to confidentiality unsolved throughout the year moved. Following negotiations the list of recommendations. if Polymer-Wood Technologies about them at this time. The was the Gilkey building on the with the owner, removal must Hull may find that in succeed- will be able to begin production methane powered generator at northeast corner of the city be completed in April, 2014. ing Harris, he will have some of their product, Gorilla Door, Prairie View landfill continues later in 2014. to produce electricity vital for square. The structurally un- A dilapidated house at 1700 very large shoes to fill. sound old building is propped Grand continued to be a prob- The bridge at 18th and Gulf In June, the council adopted a economic expansion. The city up by five supports to keep lem going into 2014. The coun- was removed in November as budget for fiscal 2013-14 with a and county are ready with a it from collapsing onto 10th cil elected to hire someone to the start of the rehabilitation projected surplus of $324,649. skilled labor force when the exStreet. In April, an application complete the demolition and of Gulf Street between 12th Total estimated expenditures pansion occurs. By RICHARD COOPER Democrat staff writer

Changes are made at Lamar License Office

Another year has gone by and new changes have come to the Lamar License Office. New driver's license equipment has been received and licenses are now mailed to customers, instead of getting them on the spot. A new federal regulation has changed medical certification for commercial driver's licenses. All holders of CDL's must present their license at a local license office and certify whether they are exempt or required to have a medical card. If a medical card is needed, it must be presented and the doctor's information is entered in the computer. Failure to do this will result in the license being downgraded. Personal property taxes are now online and can be looked up if someone neglects to present a receipt for new plates or renewals. Some people are under the impression

that sales tax can be paid without presenting the title to the license office. This is not the case. If a vehicle is bought from a dealership, they usually mail the title to the owner within two weeks. The staff of Lamar License Office values their customers and are there to help in any way to resolve issues with titles, plates and driver's licenses. A Customer Appreciation Day is held the first Wednesday of April. Heather Dunlap is a devoted wife and mother and active in her children's school activities. Brittany Haag is a dedicated mom of four and busy with church activities. Joyce Moser is a mother and wife and has been the agent of the license office for 8 ½ years. The Lamar License Office is open Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and the Pictured are, seated, Joyce Moser and standing, Brittany Haag, last Saturday of the month from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon. For information call 682-3555. left, and Heather Dunlap, right.

2E • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

CITY OF LAMAR

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Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

www.lamardemocrat.com

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

3E

PARKS & REC Parks & Recreation involved in myriad of activities including extensive tree planting

A formal ceremony to rededicate the Memorial Avenue trees in Wheeler Park was held in November, with the park board and many of the donors and family members attending. By Marsha Doyle Lamar Parks & Recreation Director LAMAR-It seems this Progress issue article always starts the same each year, or almost the same, “2013 was a very busy year for Lamar Parks & Recreation Department.” That must be because it continues to be the case every year. It seems we get busier and busier, and time flies by at a lightning pace. Suddenly, it’s March again, and time to report what this department has done to help keep Lamar such a great place to live, work, and raise families. Reporting first about the parks and the park board, Jennifer Ogden was welcomed onto the board in March of 2013 and has proven to be a knowledgeable and valuable team member. With board member Jay Brubaker moving out of the area, DeWayne Kirkpatrick was added to assume that position at the November board meeting. The park board takes the job very seriously, and this group is not a group that just plans, they are genuine

doers. Park board members have been seen trimming plants and trees, laying out playground equipment, planting, and watering. Chris Elswick, chair, spent hundreds of hours watering new trees over the summer. Board members help make the park the beautiful asset it is in the city. One critical decision the board made was to plant perennial plants and shrubs instead of the large number of annuals. Choosing colorful and blooming shrubs and ornamental grasses, they have consciously reduced the cost, labor, effort, frustration, and often delays of getting annuals planted in the spring. With drip irrigation added, watering will be easier and more water efficient. The major change needed at Wheeler Park was doing something about the Memorial Avenue trees. The soft maples just were not thriving there, so the difficult but right decision was made to take them out and plant hard maples that are better suited. The transition was made in a matter of two

days, and new trees were in place before bad weather hit. A formal ceremony to rededicate the memorial was held in November with the park board and many of the donors and family members attending. More great effort went into rebuilding portions of the stone creek bed (also known as Honey Creek). Marlin Nissley, the mason doing the work, had assistance from every city department at one point or another, but mostly from the street department with their big equipment. Thanks to the huge joint effort between departments, he was able to repair several large sections last summer with more planned for 2014. Eventually, it will all be repaired, clean, and beautiful, ready to stand for 100 years. Rubber mulch under several pieces of play equipment in the park was added for fall zone safety. It has proven to be a lot of maintenance and very expensive for the amount of playground that needs covered. The park board will be asking the city council to put solid rubber core surfacing on the playgrounds. It has the needed fall protection, will be ADA compliant, and be similar in appearance to the playground at the West Elementary School. The expense would need to be budgeted and submitted for bids as all major projects are. It has yet to be seen what

that outcome will be, but watch the newspaper for developments. Several large cedar trees had to be removed from around the park. These trees were old and majestic until one looked very closely and saw the disease and decay. It is regrettable that a tree ever needs to come down, but the fact is they do on occasion need to be removed. The reader can be assured, though, that for every tree taken down, one or more is planted in its place. Variety is key to a healthy forest, whether urban or natural, which is why the tree nursery south of the animal shelter was started. These trees are purchased from the Missouri Department of Conservation’s George O. White nursery as saplings in bundles of 25. A variety of trees is brought in, potted, cared for, and allowed to grow a couple of years. Usually about 60-70 percent of the saplings survive, and because we don’t usually need 25 of the same tree, half are sent to the square for adoption into the community at Truman Day and Fall Fest. In 2013, the park board adopted out 180 such trees to the community. Any money received from the $10 requested donation goes back to buy trees for the park. Major additions took place in the Thiebaud Auditorium this past winter that our staff is still adjusting to. A very generous local business, which wants to remain anonymous for now, donated a new state of the art sound system and video projection system. It is digital and very sophisticated. The new video includes a giant screen motorized to raise and lower on the stage. The community enjoyed some of the new technology during the Lamar High School football semifinals, thanks to the efforts of Representative Mike Kelley for setting it up, and his partner Ann for running it. Approximately 200 people

watched the game via the web projected onto the big screen. ChiPs, the church that meets in Thiebaud Auditorium, was given 10 pieces of stage lighting that they in turn donated to the auditorium. They added some video features and lights of their own, so that the whole light and sound capability of the auditorium was updated and made very current. It is a remarkable example of the city, business, and church all partnering to give the people an up-to-date facility that all can use and enjoy. Tech classes for those who need to use the equipment for their group’s functions have begun and will continue through spring. Contact the Parks & Recreation office if you need to be on that list. The parks & recreation director reported to the city council that attendance over the past summer was down at the Lamar Aquatic Park compared to 2012 by 33 percent. This was largely due to 2012 being the third hottest summer on record, a good thing for pool business, versus 2013 being one of the coolest and wettest in recent years, a bad thing for pool business. Add to that a new water park opening in Joplin attracting some of the business the Lamar Park gets from surrounding areas, and attendance was down from 2012. On a more positive note, however, comparing to 2011, attendance was about on par. In 2013, the Lamar Aquatic Park began using new swimming lessons materials and taught 45 more kids to swim than the previous year. Lamar Aquatic Park became an authorized Starfish Aquatics center, using their highly professional guard training systems. Overall attendance is up, and we welcome swimmers year round. The first ever Dive-In movie night was held at the pool with an outstanding partnership between the parks depart-

see PARKS, page 5E

women members each year. The group has been awarded numerous state awards and achievements. The Barton County women added men associates to their county bylaws; however, they are not able to vote. The objectives of the club are to inform the public through political education, support objectives and policies of the Republican National Committee and to work for the election of Republican party nominees in order to promote the principles of freedom, equality and justice, on which the government of the United States was founded. Officers for a two year term, 2014-2015, are, Maxine Rader, president; Glenda Epple, vice presi-

dent; Kristina Crockett, treasurer; Billy Strong, parliamentarian; Kathleen Dimond, secretary; Barb Parrish, chaplain; Linda Shomin, membership and all members aide with public relations. Yearly dues are $20 for women and $5 for men associates. Dues can be sent to Treasurer Kristina Crockett, 342 SW 60th Rd., Lamar, MO 64759. Six monthly meetings are held by the club, with booths at Harry Truman's birthday, Golden City Harvest Days, the Lamar Fair, Liberal Prairie Day, as well as other events needed to inform the public of Republican events. The 4th District spring meeting will be held this year on April 5, in War-

saw. The MoFRW State Convention is scheduled for June 6-8 in Columbia and MoFRW will have a day booth on August 14, at the Missouri State Fair. The Barton County Central Committee and Barton County Federated Republican Women & Men Associates work together for the presidential primary, August primary and general election. The second Lincoln Day is on the calendar for Saturday, April 12, 6:30 p.m., at Thiebaud Auditorium in Lamar. The cost will be $15 per person. For information on Lincoln Day contact Barton County Republican Central Committee Chairman Maxine Rader at 417-682-5288. Vote – you have a voice in government!

ment and ChiPs church, who supplied equipment and volunteers. It was fun and free, and we may plan another one in 2014. Planned for 2014 are more swimming lessons with registrations being taken as of May 1. Also planned are adult swimming lessons, Mommy and Me, tot and toddler days, and a home schoolers swim gym. Lamar Community Theatre falls under parks & recreation although it carries membership in Community Betterment as well. Community theatre was active in 2013, producing “First Kisses” for their first ever dinner theatre, then “Long Live Rock and Roll” as a summer children’s production. They rounded out the year with a Christmas variety show and holiday bazaar, featuring local talent and local vendors. The planned production of “The Odd Couple,” though postponed, is not a dead issue. After difficulties are overcome, that production may yet get its airing, so eagerly anticipated by cast, crew, and playgoers. So what can be said of the city lake. It’s wet and still there. It is still restocked every winter, the last being in December 2013. The fish still bite and the caretaker doesn’t. Fishing is still one of the cheapest and most relaxing forms of entertainment in the outdoors. Day permits for a boat and fishing are still just $5. Annual permits are only $25 for a boat and fishing or $10 for fishing only. Kids under 12 don’t need a permit when with mom, dad, or grandparents. Barton County residents over the age of 65 are free. However, a state fishing license is required. Also, a state license is required when anyone is purchasing a local permit. If you never have checked out the lake, you should. By the way, we want you to feel at home when around the lake, but remember

Republican women work to inform community of Republican candidates Barton County Federated Republican Women, the official club name, received a new charter in May of 2000. Women in the county have been involved in Republican politics for many years and earlier clubs later disbanded. The Republican club women are members of district, state and national events, with the club striving for 30

Barton County Federated Republican Women officers in 2014 and 2015 and, left to right, Kristina Crockett, treasurer; Kathleen Dimond, secretary; Glenda Epple, vice president and Maxine Rader, president.

4E • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

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Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

FIRE DEPARTMENT Lamar Fire Department comes into 2014 with trained firefighters and tested equipment

ture fires, motor vehicle fires and accidents, and natural vegetation fires. We also pressure tested all three-inch hoses, and the four pumpers are tested each year during one of our drills. We visited several commercial properties, churches, and schools over the year.

At the present, our three main pumpers are models from 2009, 2002, and 1997, all Freightliner trucks with 1,500 gallons per minute pumps, 1,000 gallon water tanks, each carrying 1,800 feet of three-inch hose, four 60-minute self-contained breathing apparatus with four spare bottles, and other various equipment. The department also has a 1986 reserve pumper and a 1938 truck for use in parades. Additional equipment includes a 2000 tanker with a 2,600 gallon tank, two brush trucks, and a rescue van that carries our thermal imaging camera, extra self contained breathing apparatuses with bottles, testing equipment, blowers, and other miscellaneous equipment. During 2013, we added a 4 x 4 Gator with a water tank and pump for off road incidents. We continue to offer our

rural memberships, and we appreciate the support of all the members we have. If you live in our service area and are not a member, please call 6825512 with any questions you may have. Non-members should be aware that they are billed at much higher rates. Another reminder is that based on our ISO Class 6 rating, those who live within five miles of our station will find that most insurance companies provide coverage at a reduced rate. The Lamar Fire Department has good working

relations with other area fire departments and appreciates the valuable assistance we get from them. Other agencies that we work closely with include the Lamar Police Department, Barton County Ambulance, Barton County Sheriff, and the Missouri State Highway Patrol. As we look to the year ahead, we plan to keep our equipment updated and fully maintained, and continue to train so we can safely respond to citizens needs with a department that operates at maximum efficiency.

cropland fields by constructing grassed waterways and terraces. The district has future plans to erect more signs in other locations across the county. A conscientious effort is being made to remind The Barton County Soil and Water Conservation landowners that District has plans to place a series of new highway technical service signs to promote conservation awareness. John Kremp, and conservalandowner and Ben Reed, district manager, stand by tion programs are the first sign erected in Barton County. available through the local Barton throughout the county. County Soil and Water By Ben Reed The first sign was placed Conservation District ofIn an effort to promote on the John Kremp farm fice. Barton County Soil and on Highway 160, six miles It was an exceptionally Water Conservation Dis- north of Golden City. John good summer and fall last trict awareness, new dis- has been persistent in his year for farmers to install trict signs are being erect- efforts to slow down the erosion control practices. ed on major highways effects of soil erosion on The district’s annual state

cost share allocation was quickly utilized by landowners in the construction of waterways, terraces and ponds. Once the annual district allocation was depleted, a percentage of the next fiscal year’s funding was made available on January 1 to landowners to begin new practices. Although payments could not be made until after July 1, landowners and contractors appreciated the opportunity to continue construction work while there was good weather conditions and before fields were planted to a spring crop. The Barton County SWCD has excellent participation in all state and federal cost share programs. In 2013, farm-

ers utilized $362,418.00 in state cost share funds on 203 different conservation practices. Barton County farmers have been diligent in their efforts to protect the resources of their farming operations. Understandably, farmers recognize the importance that natural resources have on their livelihood. They are committed to controlling soil erosion, improving soil productivity and protecting water quality. District leadership is provided by an elected board of supervisors. The current members of the board include Leon Phipps, chairman; Mark Peterson, vice chairman; Elmer Fast, treasurer; Jill Scheidt, secretary and Joe Pace, member. The Barton

County SWCD employs three full time positions: Ben Reed, district manager; Ed Weaver, district technician and Karen Cleveland, district program specialist. In addition to the district staff, the Natural Resources Conservation Service provides District Conservationist Diana Sheridan, Resource Conservationist Mark Clements and Soil Conservation Technician Brian Williams to provide service to area farmers. The SWCD, NRCS and FSA staff will be hosting the annual Customer Appreciation Day scheduled for May 21. All farmers are invited to stop by for a free lunch and to discuss any USDA or district conservation programs.

Harry S Truman Birthplace has had several changes throughout 2013. Beth Bazal became the park historic site specialist. Bazal has been at the site since 1997. The Harry S Truman Birthplace is now within the Southwest Historic Management Unit. This includes Battle of Carthage, Osage Village, Truman’s Birthplace and Nathan Boone Homestead. The unit is overseen by David Roggensees. Truman Birthplace held two special events throughout 2013, including Truman Days in May and a Christmas Workshop in December. Truman Days included old fashion games and crafts. Judy Domeny Bowen provided Ozark folk music. The Christmas workshop included several Victorian Christmas crafts. Visitors were able to make orna-

several events and proj- Staff will continue to cre- programs throughout the ects for 2014. For Truman ate additional educational year. Days they will work in conjunction with the Barton County Chamber. A reenactment of Truman’s 1944 vice-presidential acceptation speech reenactment will be held. Harry would be 130 years old this year and the site has been open to the public for 55 years. A Truman impersonator providing the speech will also be available throughout the day. The day will focus on events and activities of 1944. Mark your calendars now for May 11 to help celebrate. Staff is conducting research for new exhibits for the smokehouse and wayside markers about the mule barn and Lamar and Barton County history. The outdoor exhibits will provide information for the public when the site is closed.

The Lamar Fire Department. Front row, left to right, Rick Heinen, training officer; Bill Clements, assistant chief; Bill Rawlings, chief; Larry Beatty, captain; and J. R. Johnson. Second row, Travis Lybeck, Mark Cherry, Jeremy Belcher, Junior Johnson, Bob Bronson, Steve DeWitt, and Kevin Neher. Third row, Ken Reinert, Sr., Caleb Braker, Scott Potter, Don White, Shane Bass, and Don Pittsenbarger. Not pictured, Chris Bowman, Joey Bronson, Stephen Cato, Terry Garfield, Jim Martin, Jason Neher, Ben Phillips, Tom Ryan, Dayne Shoff, and Corey Timmons. By Bill Rawlings, Chief 38 city calls and 32 ruLamar Fire Department ral and mutual aid calls. Based on our year end LAMAR-The Lamar report, we logged about Fire Department is cur- 650 man hours on fire rently staffed with three calls and many additional full-time firemen/drivers/ hours on training, pumpengineers, 24 paid-per- er and hose testing, and call type firefighters, and other related activities. one volunteer firefighter. Training and drills inIn 2013, we responded to clude operations at struc-

Three full time driver/engineers take care of the day to day operations of the fire department and Memorial Hall. They are Dayne Shoff, Scott Potter, and Ken Reinert, Sr.

Soil and water district promotes conservation awareness

Truman Birthplace's exciting events and projects ments and snow globes. Birthplace staff provided several programs to local schools. Each month throughout the school year a different program is presented to Miller’s third and fourth grade students. In May, the students visit the birthplace for their annual field trip. Staff also provided programs to Liberal fourth grade, Lamar second and fourth grades, Sheldon Summer School, Mt. Vernon fifth grade, participated in Vernon County History Day and Homeschool History Day at MSU in Springfield. Harry S Truman Birthplace has two full-time employees, Bazal and Jeffreys, park maintenance worker. The birthplace is staffed with five parttime employees: Louise Caruthers, Joann Dykes, Hannah Oeltjen, Hailey Braker and Laron Aber-

nathy. The birthplace participated in the State Park Youth Core in 2013. Four youth were provided a job throughout the summer. Through this program youth assisted with painting outbuildings, building a fence around the property, created an herb bed for interpretation and created additional educational programs to be used for school groups. The birthplace was visited by 5,964 individuals. Several foreign countries including Scotland, Denmark, China, Korea, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Bhutan, Czech Republic, Canada, Germany, Ukraine, Sweden, Thailand and Finland visited the site. In 2013 a period hip tub was added, as well as replacing the floor runners throughout the downstairs. Truman Birthplace has

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

www.lamardemocrat.com

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

5E

COUNTY GOVERNMENT

New office holders and new employees appeared in county government in 2013 By Judy I. Fast Barton County Commission Secretary

A new District 2 commissioner was welcomed to Barton County government in 2013 as Jeff Tucker filled the seat occupied by Bonda Rawlings, who retired after serving most of the term to which the late John Stockdale had been elected in November, 2008. Following Stockdale’s unexpected death on March 6, 2009, Rawlings was appointed by Governor Jay Nixon to fill the vacancy until the next general election. In that election, Rawlings was elected to fill the remainder of the unexpired term. Tucker was soon to learn much more about his new office as all three commissioners attended an annual training session in Jefferson City in February sponsored by the County Commissioners Association of Missouri (CCAM). Another newly elected official took office in 2013. Barba Parrish replaced Frances Cato as county Collector/Treasurer. For Cato, it was the conclusion of 42 years of service in the Collector/ Treasurer’s office, and a retirement reception was held in her honor. Early in the year, the commission acquired a truck cab chassis which would be used for emergency management purposes. The Ford truck was purchased from within county government, from the Barton County Ambulance District. The month of March was marked by bridge inspection of all bridges

The Barton County damage was assessed at $200,000. Not all of the county sustained damages. The areas most affected were the northwest and central parts. Two new full time employees were hired Barton County officials standing from left are Barba Parrish, collector-treasurer; in June, fillKathleen Dimond, recorder of deeds; Ivan Frieden, assessor; Kristina Crockett, county ing two vaclerk; and Teresa Moore, public administrator. Seated from left are Jeff Tucker, District cancies in 2 commissioner; Mike Davis, presiding commissioner; and Dennis Wilson, District 1 the courthouse work commissioner. force. They on township roads 20 or ble for construction of the entrance of the building. were Brittanica Born as more feet in length. Ray bridges were held during The failure of an old deputy collector/treasurer Dingman of the Missouri 2013. Actual construction bridge on Southwest 80th and Robin Brous as perDepartment of Transpor- will begin during 2014. Road created an urgent sonal property clerk in tation (MoDOT) was the A breakfast meeting situation that required the assessor’s office. attention. The new plat books arinspector and was accom- with township officials immediate Construction rived at the end of Nopanied daily by a mem- was held April 16 at Party Bennett ber of the commission or Oasis for planning road did the concrete work vember and are for sale someone from the com- maintenance work for the and Oden Enterprises of in the commission office year. CART money was Wahoo, Neb. delivered for $30 per copy. Also, the mission’s office. On April 8, 2013, the distributed to all town- and installed pre-cast slab commission has an abuncommission started the ships to finance the work. decks to complete a new dant supply of weather process which would CART money is derived bridge on the site. radios. They receive lead to the construction from the tax on motor fuel Heavy rains forced the broadcasts directly from replacement of several the National Weather Serof four new (replace- sales within the county. ment) bridges on town- The commission decid- culverts on township vice in Springfield and ship roads. Eighty percent ed to advertise for bids for roads. The county road are invaluable in keeping of the cost would come printing a new plat book and bridge crew began abreast of the locations working of severe thunderstorms from MoDOT under the for the county. Influenc- replacement, Bridge Replacement Off ing the decision was the when weather permitted. and tornadoes. They are Road System, commonly completion of require- In the meantime, repre- priced at $24 apiece. known as the BRO pro- ments on U.S. 71 to make sentatives of the Federal The county’s road and gram. The old bridges to it a part of the Interstate Emergency Management bridge crew was kept Agency (FEMA) arrived busy during 2013 with be replaced are located Highway system. on Northwest 30th Road Attention was given to to assess the amount the following: nine culin Central Township. the exterior of the court- of damage done by the vert repairs, three bridge Northwest 100th Road in house and the grounds downpours. repairs, 21 brush and deLeroy Township, South- in April. The lawn was On July 18, the governor bris removals, six ditcheast 115th Lane in Gold- sprayed for weeds and declared Barton and other ing and road buildups, 12 en City Township, and then reseeded. A local counties eligible for public polymer coated culvert Southwest 90th Road in bee keeper was sum- assistance for emergency replacements, one plastic Nashville Township. Con- moned to remove a per- work to repair or replace culvert replacement, 10 ferences with the contrac- sistent swarm of bees roads and bridges dam- culvert extensions, one tors who will be responsi- from around the north aged by the heavy rains. Oden bridge project, five

pre-cast bridge projects, three concrete culvert replacements, and seven miscellaneous jobs. When the crew is not in the field working, they are doing maintenance projects and pouring pre-cast concrete bridge slabs at the county maintenance barn. The crew also installs all the 911 signs (county road identification signs) and bridge weight limit signs throughout the county. A total of 55 of these signs were replaced in 2013. Barton County employees. Road and Bridge, Buddy Kelsey, Tom England, and Randy Morey. Brush cutter, Bill Taylor. Road and Bridge secretary, Judy I. Fast. Deputy County Clerk, Nikki Brand. Voter registrar, Holly Hutchins. Deputy Collector/Treasurers, Brittanica Born, Dean Sullivan, Ona Mullinax, and Joy Armstrong. Deputy Assessor, Jeanie Gastel. Personal Property clerk, Robin Brous. Field representative, Kyle Berry. Deputy Recorders of Deeds, Lisa Cunningham and Jody Trenary. Public Administrator secretary, Crystal Thomas. Prosecuting Attorney secretaries, Linda Higgins and Diane Helms. Courthouse maintenance, Denise Thompson. Grounds and maintenance, Robert Lehman.

Parks, continued from page 3E

Indian dancing was just one of the activities featured at the 10th Street Community Farmers’ Market. that alcohol is not permitted on the site. Also, the geese seem to feel too much at home, so don’t feed them. You could be fined. The Moore Pavilion is utilized heavily for covered parking, sometimes for auctions, and is the site of the new and improved 10th Street Community Farmers’ Market. The operators of the market received a grant to install curtains on the west side of the pavilion to help with shade and wind. The market will open in April and continue operating into November. The big event in the pavilion for 2013 was the Earth Day celebration. A large number of vendors and a lot of entertainment made the day a success with everyone becoming earth friendly. Add to that the foods, the 6,000 pounds of electronic recycling, and the hundreds of visitors, and you have the biggest celebration of the year in the pavilion. It was quite a success in all aspects. Though it will be somewhat different in 2014, watch for Earth Day information and Master Gardeners plant sale information. Summer ball registration has already started with practices getting underway in April. Games begin on May 19. Check out a ball game in the Lamar parks this year, and root, root, root for your home team. Have a great summer ahead, and like the Lamar Parks & Recreation Department, keep moving and stay active.

6E • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

POLICE DEPARTMENT

www.lamardemocrat.com

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Lamar Police Department is so much more than a police department The mission of the Lamar Police Department is keeping the city’s population safe. That is obvious. However, in accomplishing that mission, the department is involved in a myriad of activities so numerous that the public is unlikely to be aware of all of them. There are warnings of scams and frauds that threaten the public’s well being. These are augmented with classes in fraud and crime prevention at the Barton County Senior Citizens Center. A school resource officer builds a trust of law enforcement among students and works with the school administration in handling student problems when they occur. Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) is taught to fifth graders as a pro-active approach to keeping children free of the drug culture. Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.) is a similar pro-active program aimed at preventing gangs from developing among students. In the spring comes bicycle safety to ensure that children ride safely, and Fish With a Cop for pure outdoor fun. Then, there is Shop With a Cop in December, which gives children the opportunity to shop at Walmart for Christmas gifts for themselves and their families with gift cards made possible by generous donations from businesses, organizations, and individuals. In 2013, participating children came from every community in Barton County as well as Lockwood and Jasper. In his year end report to the Lamar City Council, Chief of Police Ron Hager observed that shoplifting remains a serious problem in the community, with Dollar General, Family Dollar, and Walmart being hardest hit. However, he added that video is a

friend, and a lot of the cases that were prosecuted were put together through the use of video. Then, he quipped, “It is amazing what some people will steal.” Hager noted that DWI arrests hit a 10-year low in 2013 with only 19 arrests, but he qualified the figure when he observed that it may have been skewed downward because of newer officers in the police department. He explained further that it takes a lot of experience to see, stop, and arrest the intoxicated driver. As officers gain more experience in detecting such drivers, DWI arrests are likely to rise. Disturbances rose by 53 incidents in 2013 as compared to 2012. Hager added that responding to a disturbance can be one of the most dangerous calls for a police officer, and many times they are deadly. Misdemeanor arrests were up by nearly 50 over 2012 to a total of 316, or a monthly average of just over 26. Hager credits his men for their hard work in this category since a majority of the arrests were due to warrants issued by municipal court for failure to appear or pay a fine. Selecting a few other police call totals from 2013 finds burglary 24, about the same as in 2012, auto theft 6, down from 11 in 2012, fire/arson 14, down from 23, domestic disturbances 232, exactly the same as a year prior, and citizen assistance 3,775, the third highest over the last 10 years. Citizen assistance is one of the most valuable services provided by the police department. It includes helping those who have fallen, providing assistance during ambulance calls, and a myriad of other services in meeting the needs of the general public. There were 115 auto accidents

investigated, only a slight increase over 2012. In the category of FYI, the most accident prone location in the city is the intersection of 12th & Gulf, and if injuries are involved, it is usually whiplash. Animal control is another vital service provided by the police department. It involves not just collecting animals running at large, but also finding their owners, if possible. Those with no owners are eligible to be adopted out, which is the most rewarding part of animal control. Assistance from local animal lovers has been a vital contribution to the success of the program. Marilyn Selvey and Karen

Simmons have been cited by the animal control division for especially valuable volunteer work. Both ladies are carrying on the tradition of their late mother, Trula Cain, who devoted much of her life to animal welfare. Animal control has the good fortune of working with a state of the art animal shelter, and it is heavily used. Statistics from 2013 show that at one time or other the shelter had 152 dogs and 35 cats. Of that total, 54 dogs were adopted out and nine cats. Many were returned to their owners. An examination of the “non traditional” animals picked up during the course of

the year shows there were three armadillos, one bird, one fox, four opossums, one rabbit, 14 raccoons, one skunk, one snake, and one squirrel. Although not a part of the police department, the Truman Area Transportation Service (T.A.T.S.) is generally identified with it since Chief of Police Ron Hager is director. The service provides safe, reliable transportation to the citizens of Lamar and Barton County. This allows individuals to remain independent in their own homes while at the same time supporting the local economy. It is heavily used. In 2013, ridership totaled 25,917 with a

monthly average of 2,160. Breaking the figures down further, there is an average of 104 rides per day or a new ride every six minutes. T.A.T.S. service area is a three mile radius of the city of Lamar. However, medical trips for the elderly and disabled who have no other means of transportation are provided county wide. In his summary of police department activity in 2013, Hager says, “I continue to feel that Lamar is an excellent place to live and raise a family. The crime rate is low, but it does exist, and we at the police department will continue to take care of business on your behalf.”

By RICHARD COOPER into the $5,000 contribution. Another restriction Democrat staff is limiting the financial writer commitment to one year LAMAR HEIGHTS- rather than a three-year A $5,000 entry in the commitment as preferred 2014 budget of Lamar by the CDC. Heights signifies con- The 2014 budget for Latinued support for the mar Heights is a surplus Barton County Com- one with income exceedmunity Development ing estimated expenses by Corporation (CDC). $100,520. However, the board of Lamar Heights was aldermen has put re- among the five entities in strictions on how that the cost-share arrangemoney is to be uti- ment with the Missouri lized. It must be spent Department of Transon “hard assets” such portation (MoDOT) for as office furniture and adding exit and entrance equipment, and Lamar ramps to the 30th Road Heights must approve overpass on I-49, making those purchases each it a full interchange, and time the CDC dips for construction of a 1st

Street overpass across the interstate. Rather than spreading the payments over a 10 year period, which was allowable, Lamar Heights opted to make a single lump sum payment of $491,635, hoping to avoid paying interest on the payment to MoDOT. This was partially successful in that the city had to pay $10,442 interest on the first year of the contract since the payment was made one year after signing the agreement with MoDOT. The 1st Street overpass is scheduled to be built in 2014. Lamar Heights enters 2014 with a new city clerk.

Long time clerk Marguerite Buzzard retired at the end of 2013 and has been replaced by Vicki Pugh, CPA. Hereafter, meetings of the board of aldermen will be held in Pugh’s offices at 22 Northeast 1st Lane. A new business has located in Lamar Heights. Independent Diesel Services has purchased a 6,000 square foot parcel of land to the immediate south of the Lamarti Travel Plaza and is constructing a metal building to house its operations. The new business will serve the needs of diesel tractor-trailer rigs traveling on Interstate 49.

Lamar Heights continues support of CDC, but with restrictions

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

www.lamardemocrat.com

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

7E

CITY EMPLOYEES

City of Lamar Employees

Administration Front row, Lynn Calton, city administrator, and Ron Hager, assistant city administrator. Back row, Traci Cox, city clerk, and Coby Fullerton, deputy city clerk.

Building & Maintenance Department Greg Coats, building inspector, and Steve Moore, maintenance.

Electric Department Jim Martin, foreman; Kevin Lee; James Carothers; Mick Fast; Judd Davis, and Brett Davis.

Parks & Recreation Front row, Mike Withers and Nick Fanning. Back row, Marsha Doyle, Parks & Recreation director, and Spencer Lybeck.

Sanitation Department Jason Bronson, John Charlton; Josh Workman; and Tommy Forst, foreman.

Street Department Front row, Wes Budd, Herb Overstreet, and Louis Howell. Back row, Ethan Kendall; Louis Sinnett; Terry Roby; Norman Schipull, foreman, and Greg Strong.

Truman Area Transportation Service Front row, Charlette Griffitt; Ron Hager, Chief of Police; and Pam Moore. Back row, Gary Salisbury, Ginnie Keatts, Donal Keithly, and Mary Fowler.

Utility Office Deana Baker, Sandra Phipps, and Lisa Buzzard.

Water Department Norman Schipull, foreman; Brian Miller; Zach Fanning, and Cory Harrison. Not pictured, Ted Nance.

CDC, continued from page 1E Adams and the CDC board has taken the lead with area leaders in establishing Barton County, Missouri as a Missouri Work Ready Community that will stimulate the county’s economy by developing a work force that will encourage existing businesses to expand and will also attract new industry to our community. Adams became involved with the 10th Street Community Farmer’s Market organization in 2013 and worked with them to receive a $20,000 USDA grant, which will allow several improvements in their operations. You will see many of these occur in the 2014 season. Remember, it takes a total team effort to “go over the goal line and score.” Please become part of our team! Some of our past and current Team Member Capital Contributors and Stakeholders are: • City of Lamar • Barton County board of commissioners • Barton County Electric Cooperative • Barton Mutual Group • City of Lamar Heights • City of Liberal • Lamar Bank and Trust • Heritage State Bank • Metropolitan National Bank • Barton County Chamber of Commerce • Barton County Memorial Hospital • Thorco Industries • Versacourt International • Walmart • Professional groups • Private businesses • Private individuals CDC Image

We have always strived to have a consistent CDC image which is, show a unified message; allow transparency of our actions; stimulate a broad involvement of county government councils and boards; encourage various county business leaders to become more supportive; maintain a strong state, regional, and national business awareness; and make sure that our project involvement activity is both consistently positive in our use of any social media and advertising. Target audiences We will focus and direct an assortment of various economic development methods as we get involved with site selectors and consultant agencies on the federal, state, and regional economic levels during their business and industry projects. In addition, we will continually work closely with other important target audiences such as city councils and elected officers, county commissioners, trade associations, all elected officials, state economic development departments, private businesses, and private individuals in our county community. Communications channels and events There are several county and community groups that I have agreed to personally provide with regular reports and updates, keeping them informed on our various economic projects and activities progress. Media support will be used to effectively communicate project progress

when appropriate, using radio, television, newspaper articles, and letters and opinions. Some of the events throughout Barton County that I will be attending are industries, county fairs, festivals, farmer’s markets, business expos, business tours, school career tech center events, and area farms. We have an active and informational website, www.bartoncountycdc. org, which is used by many of the target audiences interested in placing a new business, relocation, or adding a distribution center. We are now in the process of reviewing and improving on several aspects of our site without interrupting its actual function. Special projects Missouri state certified site - We are still looking at the economic cost and time needed to accomplish this certification. If Barton County’s site is certified, we would then appear at the top of the list for every site selector, consultant, and company official looking to put in a new business or industry in Missouri. This would be an immense help in getting more economic projects for Barton County. FTZ (foreign trade zone) - This is a catalyst for economic growth in the 23 approved counties in Missouri, of which Barton County is one. This is an approved federal economic incentive program to enhance the capability of local companies to compete successfully in international trade through importing

and exporting goods and services. This would be very helpful as part of the attraction to any business/industry that imports significant amounts of material and/or components. We have expectations that at some point Barton County will have a business or industrial park area that will qualify at the necessary import dollar level needed for a foreign trade zone qualification. Economic development partners Over the past three years, the CDC has become involved with several partner groups which give us national, state, and regional presence. This is beneficial and necessary in our “unique branding” process. These are: MOPAR (Missouri Partners) - Barton County is involved with this professional active group, which is financed by the Missouri Department of Economic Development, and acts as the marketing arm and handles many of the front line inquiries from international and national site selectors and consultants. They will then contact John Adams directly with pertinent information that will allow us to submit a site proposal in Barton County when appropriate. Joplin Regional Partnership Initiative - This group has a specific focus on marketing with specific site selector, consultants, and company officials who are looking at our southwest Missouri region. Again, once the specific information as to site requirements is gathered, John Adams will

Water Plant Josh Munday; Rick Hornbeck, foreman; and Davis Strickland. submit a site proposal for Barton County when appropriate. MEDC - The MEDC is the administrative and lobbying group focused on impressing our Missouri state representatives and senators, along with our governor, of the overall need for economic development financial support. SEDC - The SEDC is the oldest and largest economic development group representing 17 southeastern states, which includes Missouri. Adams was elected in late 2013 to the SEDC board of directors for a one-year term as the assistant director of Missouri. So, the potential opportunities for new business location, current business retention and expansion, and educating and inspiring entrepreneurs during 2014 looks very positive for Barton County CDC. Please remember the biggest reasons for this substantial increase in potential for all of these projects are, (1) Barton County CDC has finally developed an international, national, and regional recognition with site selectors, consultants, and company officials. (2)

The Lamar City Council and administration have taken the initiative by adding several properties into the city of Lamar and worked out all of the basic infrastructure requirements and agreements which are so critical to have in place, so as to be ready quickly to construct a new building to company blueprint specifications requested by a new business or industry. (3) The close proximity of these properties to our new Interstate 49, along with adjacent railway systems, puts us up at the top of many business and industry site selectors, consultants, and company officials’ lists. (4) When we do achieve our Missouri state site approval and certification on our selected site, we will have even greater recognition with new businesses, site selectors, and consultants. John Adams has his office at 102 West 10th Street in Lamar, Missouri, which is located in the upstairs area of the Barton County Chamber of Commerce building. His office phone number is 417-681-2500 and website is www.bartoncountycdc.org.

8E • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

LBT

www.lamardemocrat.com

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Section F

• Wednesday, March 26, 2014

BCMH’s Surgery Department plays major role in quality care close to home

The BCMH Surgery Department is part of the reason that receiving quality care close to home in BCMH’s Critical Access Hospital is a great place to be if you have medical or surgical needs. Since the opening of the new hospital six years ago the surgery department has continued to increase the utilization of the space allotted to surgery. With additional physicians coming to the Med 1 Clinic, the hospital is able to of-

fer more variety in the surgeries that are performed there. In the past year they have seen the return of Julie Yaryan CRNA to provide anesthesia needs. She is also proficient in giving lumbar epidural spinal injections to those suffering from lower back problems. Julie lives locally and spends a lot of her time at the hospital. Husband and wife team Brett and Michelle Boice is available to perform gynecological pro-

cedures including laparoscopic, abdominal and vaginal procedures. Working together as a team in surgery gives the hospital the best of their talents and experience. They work with the community supporting the local football team and other activities. Michelle also sees patients at the Lockwood and Golden City Clinics. Working with Dr. Justin Ogden MD has given the surgery staff the opportunity to become skillful using a large variety of specialty instrumentation in replacing total knees, hips and an extensive variety of fractured bones and related problems. Performing arthroscopic procedures on shoulders and knees adds to the variety. Fractured hips can be repaired in several different procedures depending on the type of the break in the bone. Some patients can bear weight almost immediately after sur-

gery and others require several weeks of healing before putting weight on the extremity. This is where having the advantage of Inpatient and Outpatient Physical Therapy in house, where they work closely with Dr. Ogden to make recovery as complete and comfortable as possible. In addition to orthopedics Dr. Jeffrey Haste DPM does a variety of surgeries to correct problems of the feet. He also sees patients in the clinic. Dr. Xavier Jenkins MD, a general surgeon with a practice in nearby Pittsburg, Kan., comes one day a week or as needed to perform surgeries and see patients in the Med 1 Clinic. He performs a variety of needed procedures including removing gallbladders laparoscopally, hernia repairs, colon resections appendectomies, as well as other procedures. He works closely to coordinate patient care with the hospital’s medical staff at BCMH. The hospital is pleased to be able to offer endoscopy procedures. Currently they have three physicians qualified and performing both upper and lower endoscopy. Those include Dr. Eric Miller DO, Dr. Daniel Barnes MD and Dr. Xavier Jenkins MD. The majority of these procedures are done with anes-

thesia provided by Julie Yaryan CRNA. Arrangements are being made to add the ENT specialty of Dr. Nathan Box, DO to the Barton County Memorial Hospital Surgical Department. He will be performing tonsillectomies, removing adenoids and placing tubes in ears, along with other procedures. He will be seeing pediatric and adult patients. Some of the outpatient services at the hospital are also performed in the surgery department. The nursing staff works closely with local and patient physicians from as far away as Kansas City and St. Louis to give IV fluids, medications and other treatments that allows patients to stay at home and receive the care they need. The hospital’s nurses are very dedicated to the entire surgical process from admitting patients, working during surgery with them and providing post-operative care until they are ready for discharge or to be admitted to a room. One of the things that the hospital is especially proud of is the very low number of post-operative infections that surgery patients have. So the next time you need a surgical procedure, consider the community hospital at Barton County Memorial.

OMA focuses on total body wellness in 2013 Celebrating 15 years in Lamar “I can't believe it's already been 15 years,” said Dr. Erik Miller when speaking about his time in Lamar. He moved to Lamar in October of 1998 and shared office space with Dr. Sprenkle as a Freeman employee. In January 2005, Dr. Miller went independent and opened the doors of Ozark Medical Associates, LLC at its current location. “So much has changed, both in medicine and personally, since I started in practice here, yet at the same time it seems like a blink of an eye”, said Miller. “I'm so glad we made the move here. Lamar has been a great place to raise our family and also to build a business”. At Ozark Medical Associates, LLC, total body wellness is always in the forefront. OMA offers horizontal therapy from Hakomed. With this therapy, mild electric impulses (via electrodes) are sent into the patient's body at the pain site during the treatment, to influence the body's response to pain. Any patient that experiences chronic pain and/or suffers from a circulatory disorder may benefit from treatment with horizontal therapy. Patients can expect to see four

major benefits: 1) instant temporary pain relief, 2) improve the condition, 3) rehabilitate muscles and 4) provide maintenance therapy. The frequency and duration of the treatments depend on a number of factors including the type of ailment, the severity of the ailment and the treatment site on the body. Generally, treatments take between 10 minutes and one hour per session. In conjunction with horizontal therapy, OMA also offers massage therapy through consultant Jennifer Bean, a licensed massage therapist from Nevada. She provides Swedish massage, neuromuscular massage and hot stones massage to her clients. Appointments for a Friday afternoon massage may be made by calling the office. Gift certificates are available. Nutritional supplements play an integral role in enhancing peoples health. In 2013, Dr. Miller continued to build on the base that he started the previous year to give his patients a sound foundation to a healthier lifestyle. The nutritional products that Dr. Miller recommends are supported by solid science and

commitment to high manufacturing standards. At OMA, their goal is to implement preventative medicine as well as restoration to good health. In 2013, OMA also focused on education as Dr. Miller worked with several physician assistant (PA) students from The staff at Ozark Medical Associates consist of, left to right, Melanie Missouri State Bogart, Angie Cook, Opal Davis, Susan VonCanon, Marsha Miller, Sandy University in his Rook, Brenda Miller and Dr. Erik Miller. office throughout the year. Dr. Miller enjoys call the Lamar office. with an emphasis on health having students rotate through In addition to Dr. Miller, the promotion and disease prevenhis office. “Having the students OMA staff includes Brenda tion and a focus on primary keeps me sharp and current. Miller, human resources co- care and a return to people oriPlus, they are a great help with ordinator; Susan VonCanon, ented, rather than disease oripatient care,” said Miller. A full LPN; Opal Davis, billing co- ented care. slate of PA student rotations are ordinator; Marsha Miller, re- He specializes in adult interplanned for 2014. ception; Melanie Bogart, clinic nal medicine and provides care Dr. Miller branched out his tech; Sandy Rook, reception/ for the entire family. In addipractice in 2009 when he be- office tech and new to the OMA tion to his office practices, Dr. gan seeing patients bimonthly staff in 2013, Angie Cook, med Miller performs EGDs, coloat Nevada Urgent Care (NUC). tech. noscopies and stress tests at He now sees patients in Nevada Dr. Erik Miller is an osteo- Barton County Memorial Hosalmost every Friday. To make pathic physician. This philoso- pital. He provides senior care at an appointment to see Dr. Mill- phy of medicine takes a holistic er at the NUC Clinic, please approach to health and disease, see WELLNESS, page 8F

BCMH works with asthma control

In 2009 Barton County Memorial Hospital was awarded a CALM grant from the Missouri Foundation for Health to fund their Childhood Asthma Resource Education (CARE) program. This is a free program offered to all children in Barton, Cedar and Dade counties that are afflicted with asthma and chronic respiratory illnesses. The hospital will work in conjunction with the child’s doctor and

school nurse to insure proper medication technique, asthma self-management skills along with in-home environmental checks to help to identify triggers for your child. Asthma can be life threatening, but can be controlled with education and proper treatment. In the past four weeks, due to asthma related symptoms, has your child had difficulty breathing or wheezing due to exercise or at rest? Are they waking at

night coughing or missing school? Are they having difficulty performing daily activated, or have had to use their rescue inhaler greater than three times in four weeks? If so… Ask your child’s doctor for a referral for asthma education through the hospital’s CARE program. To contact a Certified Asthma Educator at BCMH you may call 681-5196 or 681-5197.

Truman Healthcare strives to make residents feel welcome Truman Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center, located at 206 W. 1st St. in Lamar, has been doing some refurbishing in order to make their residents feel welcome and at home, which is something their 110 employees strive to do. This past year Truman started offering open dining for lunch on Wednesdays, along with a newly renovated lobby and dining rooms. Wood floors have been laid throughout the building and new nightstands have been put in all rooms. Open dining is also offered every day at breakfast, as well as a salad bar three days a week. Truman now has nurse managers for each hall. With this title comes the responsibility of monitoring the hall they are assigned to and taking care of any resident or staff issues promptly. In 2013 they had 90 admits and out of those 90, 54 residents were discharged to home after attending a rehabilitation program. This is very exciting for Truman. Some make ask why they are so excited about discharges. Well, those at Truman Healthcare strive to help their residents get stronger with tender loving care and therapy so they are able to return home. It is so exciting to see the residents get to that point when they can return home after working so hard, knowing they accomplished what they had been working toward. For information call them at 417-682-5718.

2F • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Health Department

www.lamardemocrat.com

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Growing up safe and healthy in Barton County

The staff of the Barton County Health Department. Front row (seated), left to right, Rhonda Overstreet, Judy Gastel, Glenda Epple, Bev Thatch, Lajuana McIntyre, and Linda Talbott, administrator. Second row, Barbara Wolf, Carol Davis, Debbie Sheat, and Bonnie Brous. Third row, June Marrone, Lynn Fowler, Jane Mayden, Shawn Watson, Lori Taffner, Cathy Williams, and Susie Shepley. Not pictured, Gerri Douglas, Kelly White, Paula Buchanan, and Charlotte Watson. Barton County Health Department (BCHD) has been serving the area since 1966. During these 48 years many changes have taken place, but the philosophy remains the same. Local public health departments are the backbone of the public health system in Missouri. The health department carries out essential public health services to promote health and protect the public. Good public health services are essential to the state’s economic devel-

opment goals, as people must remain healthy to be productive workers and entrepreneurs. Another goal of public health is to help children grow up safe and healthy. There are a variety of services provided by the local health department aimed at disease prevention and health improvements for the community. Tracing the source and spread of food or water borne disease outbreaks and communicable diseases are vital functions

of the health department. Immunizations for children and adults, flu vaccinations, STD testing, TB testing, lead testing, blood pressure and blood sugar screenings are a few other services offered. They also offer by appointment lab blood draws for self paying clients who are not covered by Medicare or Medicaid. Other services by appointment only include family planning clinics that provide pap testing and birth control options

Barton County Memorial Hospital earns ACR accreditation BCMH has been awarded a three-year term of accreditation in mammography as the result of a recent review by the American College of Radiology. The ACR gold seal of accreditation represents the highest level of image quality and patient safety. It is awarded only to facilities meeting ACR Practice Guidelines and Technical Standards after a peer-review evaluation by board-certified physicians and medical physicists who are experts in the field. Image quality, personnel qualifications, adequacy of facility equipment, quality control procedures and quality assurance programs are assessed. The findings are reported to the ACR Committee on Accreditation, which subsequently provides the practice with a comprehensive report they can use for continuous practice improvement. To achieve the ACR Gold Standard, the hospital’s personnel have gone through a rigorous review process and have met specific qualifications. It’s important for patients to know that experts in advanced diagnostic imaging oversee every aspect of the ACR accreditation process. Technologists must also complete continuing education every three years as well as a minimum number of procedures performed every two years. During your mammogram pro-

Kelly Malle performs a mammogram on a patient at Barton County Memorial Hospital. cedure, the technologist will check for adequate but diagnostic compression or tightness, symmetrical breast images as well as other visual checks to assure your exam is of the highest quality. According the American Cancer Society one out of every eight women will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. This year a breast cancer will be diagnosed every three minutes and breast cancer is the leading cause of death in women from ages 15-54. There has been a lot of controversy regarding routine mammography recommendations however the American Cancer Society and the American College of Radiology recommends a mammogram every year after age 40, with a baseline screening between the ages of 35-40. With breast cancer being one of the most com-

mon forms of cancer in women in the United States, it is comforting to know that you can receive the highest quality care in the radiology department at Barton County Memorial Hospital.

to women of child bearing age and Show Me Healthy Women, which is a breast and cervical cancer screening program done in conjunction with family planning. This program is for women ages 35 to 64 who do not have health insurance and who meet financial guidelines. Public health preparedness for emergencies that could impact the health of the community is just another vital service of BCHD. Significant training and preparation has been provided for the health department’s staff to be ready to respond and serve the community in the event of an emergency. There is a great need for volunteers to have on stand-by in case any emergency occurs. If anyone would like to volunteer, please contact the health department. The Environmental Public Health Specialist (EPHS) serves the public by actively inspecting restaurants, schools, grocery stores, convenience stores and temporary food ven-

dors and providing food safety certification classes to anyone in the county working with food sold to the public. When a food item is recalled the EPHS notifies the affected merchants and ensures the product is removed from shelves. The health department specialist also inspects lodging facilities, childcare facilities and onsite wastewater treatment systems. Another service of BCHD is the Women, Infant and Children or WIC program. WIC is celebrating 40 years this year across the nation. The USDA Special Supplement Nutrition Program known as WIC began in Missouri in 1974 and in Barton County in 1981. By 1984 all Missouri counties participated in the WIC program. WIC serves pregnant, breastfeeding and post-partum women, as well as, infants and children through their fifth birthday. Income is based on 185 percent of poverty level, so a family of three qualifies for WIC if their annual income is $36,131 or below. Following a health and nutritional screening, qualified WIC participants receive nutrition, education, medical referrals and nutritious foods each month. Barton County Health Department continues to be one of the few health departments in the state to offer home health services to the community. The year 2013 was a year of challenges and changes for the Home Health Agency. With the implementation of the new health care laws and the financial cutbacks, home health agencies across the nation have struggled to remain open. Since 1982 BCHD Home Health Agency has been assist-

ing area residents to reach their health care objectives with professional assistance as efficiently as possible in their own homes. The BCHD Home Health staff has a passion for their jobs. They understand the trust needed from a family when asking for assistance with the needs of a loved one and take this responsibility very seriously. The home health staff provides care for all their clients with consideration as to how they would want their own families treated. A check at the Medicare Home Health Compare website will show BCHD Home Health consistently ranks high in ratings. Their highly qualified nursing staff has an average of 22 years of nursing experience in home health care. BCHD Home Health has an American Nurses Association Certified Home Health Nurse on staff. Home health aides have an average of 10 years in home care experience and the therapy staff has over 20 years of home health care experience. Whether it is skilled nursing or rehabilitative services from physical, occupational and/or speech therapy, the health department staff is ready to assist patients to their highest level of independence and help them obtain all their goals. BCHD Home Health also offers in-home services through the title programs and some private pay services. Remember home is where our story begins at BCHD Home Health Agency. For more information regarding BCHD Public Health or Home Health services please call 417682-3363.

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

www.lamardemocrat.com

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

Environmental Services

Environmental services is about more than cleanliness

Below, the night staff at Barton County Memorial Hospital’s Environmental Services help to make the hospital amazingly clean every day.

Pictured is the day staff for environmental services at Barton County Memorial Hospital. These individuals are responsible for the every day cleaning of the hospital. What is Environmental Services at Barton County Memorial Hospital? The hospital’s Environmental Services Department is about more than just cleanliness, it is an integral part of the hospital team. Their work directly impacts not only daily operations of the hospital, but also patient satisfaction and outcomes. Creating a clean and safe facility builds confidence in hospital services and translates into improved patient satisfaction. The housekeeping and laundry staffs are ordinary people that do an extraordinary job. They take pride in what they do. Emerging infectious diseases, contagious viral strains

and antibiotic resistant ‘superbugs’ are major threats for healthcare institutions large and small. Knowledge of proper infection control measures within the healthcare setting is of paramount importance. The staff is trained to understand infections such as MRSA, C dif, influenza viruses and many other infectious diseases. They recognize that certain contagious infections require different cleaning procedures. So disinfecting, sanitizing and decontaminating surfaces, whether in the patient room, isolation room, emergency room or clinics can be enormously challenging. The Environmental Services

team works closely with the caregivers to provide an above average clean and comfortable environment for patients, staff and visitors. These Environmental Services specialists use the latest technology in products and equipment for cleaning more than 65,000 sq. ft. per day. Some areas are cleaned more than one time and more critical areas get cleaned three times a day. Laundry/linen is another essential part of Environmental Services; BCMH is one of the few hospitals in the area that operates their own laundry. The laundry staff follows a program that is high in effi-

ciency and low in environmental impact to clean an average of 16,000 pounds of linen per month. Barton County Memorial Hospital truly appreciates the role these people play in making the hospital a comfortable home away from home to many friends and neighbors in Barton County.

BCMH offers new outpatient service

Barton County Memorial Hospital is offering a new outpatient service called Pulmonary Rehabilitation. Pulmonary Rehabilitation consists of a team of health care professionals who provide patients with information and support they need to meet the day-to-day challenges of living with a chronic lung disorder. The hospital staff members work in conjunction with the patient’s physician to provide an individualized program designed to build endurance and strength in patients with reduced lung function or disease. Through individualized treatment consisting of education, nutrition classes, exercise, breathing retraining, support groups and the development of coping and support skills, this program is designed to control and reduce the symptoms and complications of pulmonary disease. Increased physical strength and endurance may help reduce hospitalizations and healthcare expenses for patients. The hospital’s goal is to improve the quality of life for patients and their families by restoring the highest possible level of independent function for patients, decreasing feelings of anxiety and depression and improving self-confidence. For more information please call 681-5191.

BCMH offers diabetes self-management training

Few diseases call for as much self-care as diabetes and have as much comprehensive information that patients must learn to successfully self-manage it. Since 2002 the American Diabetes Association has recognized the Diabetes Education Department program at Barton County Memorial Hospital. The program offers complete individualized

diabetes education and targeted nutrition counseling to a wide variety of patients. The staff of certified diabetes educators has developed diabetes education classes and individual sessions to help patients gain the everyday skills needed to manage diabetes successfully. Services include individualized assessment, interactive group education classes and self-man-

Diabetes education This past year has seen some changes in the Diabetes Education Department at Barton County Memorial Hospital. As some of you may know Nurse Educator Leisa Blanchard is back in school obtaining her nurse practitioner degree. One change has been moving the diabetes support group to Mondays, still at 5:30 p.m. and still at the ambulance district, and Leisa is still there to greet everyone.

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agement training. The goal of the Barton County Memorial Hospital Diabetes SelfManagement Program is to educate and empower patients to manage their diabetes to reduce complications and deaths associated with this disease. Whether just recently diagnosed or having lived with diabetes for many years, ongoing education and regular visits to a

Starting in July of 2013 the diabetes support group began meeting every other month. They now mail the newsletter monthly and it is also available by email at the BCMH website or by picking up a paper copy at the hospital. To receive a copy please contact the hospital to provide an address, an email address or access the BCMH webpage at www.bcmh.net and click on Classes/Events to find the newslet-

physician are essential to maintaining good health. The more one knows about their diabetes, the more effective they will be in managing it. Diabetes self-management training is covered by most insurance plans. Type 1, Type 2, gestational, pre-diabetes, newly diagnosed patients and patients who have lived with diabetes for years will find the assistance they need to create their own disease management plan. The hospital can help with blood glucose self-monitoring and evaluation, recognizing and treating low and high blood sugar, meal planning, weight management, exercise, foot care, Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM), starting insulin and insulin

ter. The second change in our department has been that Registered Dietitian Educator Jessica Houdyshell has assumed more responsibilities to assist Leisa with maintaining the best diabetes education for patients. For more information about this program or if you’re interested in diabetes education please contact the hospital at 417-681-5259.

pump therapy. Their registered dietitian can provide nutrition counseling and assessments and can tailor a program for any patient utilizing guidelines from the American Heart Association, the American Dietetic Association and the American Diabetes Association. Education is of key importance in managing diabetes. The Diabetes Self-Management Training classes provide information that is easily adaptable to one’s lifestyle. The four-session class includes information on healthy eating, being active, monitoring, taking medications, problem solving, reducing risks and healthy coping. A family member or support person is encouraged

to attend with the patient. The hospital also offers a wide range of community support services including a self-pay toenail clinic by appointment, a monthly support group meeting and a Diabetes Health Fair in the spring. For more information please call the Barton County Memorial Hospital Diabetes Education Department at 417-6815259. A physician referral is required to attend class. Transportation services are provided by Barton County Memorial Hospital for medical appointments at the hospital, hospital clinics and local doctor’s offices. Transportation appointments may be made by calling 417681-5185 at least 24 hours in advance.

Magen Combs joined the Barton County Memorial Hospital therapy team in the spring of 2012, providing inpatient and outpatient occupational therapy services. Occupational therapy works with patients/clients to ensure they are “Living life to it’s fullest”. Occupation is defined as the things that “we” want and need to do, everyday activities. An occupational therapist works to develop, recover and maintain the skills needed to perform daily activities that give meaning and satisfaction to the individual, increasing ones independence. Occupation therapists may adapt the environment, modify the task, teach new skills and

educate the patient and caregiver to achieve increased participation and increased performance in daily activities, restoring one’s independence. An occupational therapist works with individuals with physical, mental and developmental difficulties to restore their occupation. Occupational therapy works to restore ones health and wellbeing, creates structure and organizes time, brings meaning to life both culturally and personally and provides individuality. April is Occupational Therapy Awareness Month. For more information about the occupational therapy program call Magen Combs at 681-5184.

Occupational therapy works to ensure individuals can live life to its fullest

LED lights being installed in hospital parking areas By STEPHEN GILBERT Director of Plant Operations Barton County Memorial Hospital maintenance staff has begun to install LED lighting in the parking areas and in the outside wall fixtures. Some of the benefits of this type of lighting are very exciting for the future. One of the benefits includes a cost savings of up to 75 percent of the electricity used in metal halide streetlight. This off-

sets the additional cost of the LED lights and allows for a two to three year payback on the initial investment. With a 10 year life expectancy this new technology is exciting. Another benefit is that this type of bulb is completely recyclable and contains no mercury to go into the landfill at the end of its useful life. Lastly, an advantage of using LED bulbs is they do not attract bugs like compact fluorescents or metal halide bulbs.

4F • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

BCMH

www.lamardemocrat.com

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

www.lamardemocrat.com

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

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BCMH

6F • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Generations

www.lamardemocrat.com

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Managing generations in the workplace

By Sheila Boice Barton County Memorial Hospital Human Resources Director Today, US employers face a unique employment conundrum. There are currently four very different generations in the workforce, all with their own distinctive characteristics and challenges. As employers, supervisors, and managers, the keys to working successfully with each

generation are both flexibility and understanding. The following breakdown of the generations in the U.S. is generally accepted: Traditionalists, born before 1945; Baby Boomers, born between 1946 and 1964; Generation X, born between 1965 and 1980 and Millennials or Generation Y, born between 1981-1999. Traditionalists are also called the Silent Generation, the GI Generation or the Matures and are the oldest members of the workforce. They have a respect for authority, pride themselves on being hard workers and strictly adhere to rules and regulations as a whole. There are not many of this generation left in the workforce, as most have already retired, but the ones that are left can contribute greatly to an organization because of their experience. Baby Boomers are the large generation who be-

gan to be born after the soldiers returned from WW II until 1964. The youngest of this group turn age 50 in 2014 and has a huge influence in the workplaces of today. Boomers thrive on competition, are not afraid of confrontation and are team players, but also value personal fulfillment. They communicate best one on one and prefer feedback in the form of money or recognition. Baby Boomers have been slow to accept technological changes, but many have learned to text or use Facebook because of their grandchildren and/or work purposes. This large group, as they retire, will place huge burdens on Medicare and Social Security and their exit from the workplace will leave behind big gaps of knowledge and experience for their employers. Generation X: Since this group is the smallest,

many times its needs are overlooked by employers. Gen Xers grew up in a two income family and watched their parents attempt to have and do it all. As a result, this generation craves more of a work-life balance and feels less loyalty to their employer in some cases. This group is independent and entrepreneurial and desires immediate feedback. They demand mentally stimulating work with increased promotional opportunities, which may bump into the Boomer generation who are retiring later and staying in the workforce longer, decreasing the promotional chances of the Gen X members to some degree. Generation Y, or the Millennials, is the youngest generation in the workforce. They are also going to be the largest, being the children of the huge Baby Boomers fac-

tion. Like Generation X, they desire work and life balance and feel less loyalty to the company for whom they work. They are known for their “job hopping”. This group grew up multi-tasking, so their attention span tends to be much shorter than the adults before them and they have been around computers and the Internet for their entire lives, so they are very comfortable around technology, preferring to use social networking for their communication style. Millennials want instant feedback and recognition, often not wanting to “pay their dues” in the workplace for promotions and raises. They tend to speak their minds and have high expectations of their workplaces. Employers can assist their employees in the different generations by providing training and understanding by focus-

ing on the priorities of the different groups. For example, Traditionalists and Boomers may be more interested in retirement issues and benefits, Generation X on parental leave and dependent care and Millennials on a flexible schedule. Employers can also help the various generations embrace their differences, understand their characteristics and learn conflict resolution techniques that work for each group. Companies could use different types of communication and training techniques to ensure that all the different groups of employees get their needs met. As employers, we should always remember to acknowledge the skills and experience of the more mature employees, while respecting the talent and energy of the newer ones. For more information please contact Sheila Boice at 417-681-5299.

Remember that high quality care is close to home. No matter where you have a procedure done, if you need follow-up rehabilitation with physical, occupational or speech therapies, you can request to have it at Barton County Memorial Hospital. It is more convenient and individuals will also get a personal service from friendly familiar faces. The therapists are high-

ly qualified and eager to make sure that your treatment is tailored to your needs and desires. Often there are things that you may be dealing with on a daily basis without realizing that it is treatable and that physical therapy can help to improve your current condition. The rehabilitation department can provide training to improve balance, gait and safety. If you have a bothersome

shoulder or foot pain, ask your physician to write a referral for a physical therapy evaluation. If there is a chance you can have less pain or frustration in your day, why wait? If you have any questions that the hospital’s physical therapy department or occupational therapy might be able to treat, call Keith Frieling, physical therapy director, at 417-681-5187.

Girlfriends 24/7 Fitness Center is located at 101 W. 11th St., on the south side of the Lamar square. Girlfriends has been providing fitness to area residents for the past 1 ½ years and offers tanning, as well as a place to exercise. Equipment at Girlfriends is serviced

regularly and is in great working condition in a clean and bright atmosphere. This past year was their first full year in Lamar and they are thrilled with the number of ladies that want to stay active. Girlfriends plans to continue providing a place for ladies to come

and work out in a clean, comfortable setting 24/7 and to encourage them to keep moving. The owners of Girlfriends feels that Lamar is awesome, being a town with a big heart that wants to stay healthy! For more information on Girlfriends call 417529-3608.

BCMH Medical One Clinics High quality rehabilitation provide family practice and services close to home specialty services

Girlfriends 24/7 Fitness Center provides for area ladies

Medical One Clinic, owned by Barton County Memorial Hospital, provides quality family practice and a wide range of specialty care close to home. All of their providers are in one convenient location attached to the hospital. Joseph Wilson, D.O board certified family physician in Lamar for the past 20 plus years, joined the BCMH clinics in January 2011. He offers primary care to all ages, well child exams, women’s health, sports physicals, DOT physicals, initial Medicare physicals, diabetes care/education, geriatrics and routine or chronic care. John Alden, D.O has practiced in Lamar for 10 years and was previously in Lamar and Lockwood for four years and Mexico, Mo. for several years. He also offers primary care to all ages, well child exams, women’s health, sports physicals, DOT physicals, initial Medicare physicals, diabetes care/education, geriatrics and routine or chronic care. Dr. Alden is accepting new patients. Dr. Thomas Hopkins, Board Certified Family Practice Physician, practicing in Lamar since 2007, provides a full range of primary care services. These services include, but are not limited to medical conditions of both acute and chronic illness, in-office procedures, well child exams, sports physicals, DOT physicals, diabetes care/education, smoking cessation and geriatrics. Dr. Hopkins is currently accepting new patients. Trina Larery, Family Nurse Practitioner since 2008, provides a full range of primary care services to all ages. Services include well child exams,

women’s health, sport and DOT physicals and routine or chronic care. Trina is currently accepting new patients. On staff they have two gynecologists, Dr. Brett Boice and Dr. Michelle Boice. They offer routine well-woman exams, colposcopies, a wide spectrum of birth control including oral, injection and IUDs, hormone replacement therapy and tubal ligation. A number of GYN surgeries are routinely performed. Dr. Brett Boice and Dr. Michelle Boice are both accepting new patients. Dr. Justin Ogden, Orthopedic Surgeon, performs a wide range of orthopedic surgical procedures and has experience with sports injuries. He is skilled in hip and knee replacements, arthroscopic procedures, carpal tunnel release, rotator cuff repair, fracture care and injection therapy for arthritis. Dr. Ogden is accepting new patients. They also have specialists who hold clinics at Medical One on a monthly basis, close to home so one does not have to travel. * Dr. John Cox is a cardiologist who comes every Tuesday. He provides a wide range of cardiology services including diagnosis and treatment for diseases of the heart and blood vessels, heart attacks, heart failure and serious heart rhythm disturbances. * Dr. Christopher Andrew is a neurologist who comes every Wednesday. He offers services on a wide array of nervous system disorders including headaches, dementia, Alzheimer’s, diseases of the brain, spinal cord, nerves and muscles.

* Dr. Daniel Barnes is an internal medicine physician who comes every Wednesday. He provides endoscopy services which include EGD’s and Colonoscopies. * Dr. Mark Jarek and Dr. Anthony Tay are rheumatologists who each come twice a month. They provide a span of services related to rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, gout, lupus, pain, osteoporosis, fibromyalgia and tendonitis. * Dr. Xavier Jenkins is a general surgeon comes every Tuesday. He provides a wide variety of general surgery services and endoscopic services. * Dr. Edward Gwin is a pulmonologist that comes the second Monday each month. He provides a wide scope of pulmonary services and also specializes in sleep disorders. * Dr. Larry Kurt Midyett is a pediatric/adult Endocrinologist from St. Luke’s System in Kansas City. Dr. Midyett also has a nurse practitioner, Jillian Richard, who accompanies him to see patients on a monthly basis. This dynamic team offers diabetes management and treatment including insulin pump therapy, auto immune disorders associated with diabetes, celiac disease, precocious puberty, thyroid disease, along with cystic fibrosis and related disorders. Dr. Midyett is accepting new patients. BCMH strives to have a continuum of care among their patients and work toward the implementation of patient centered medical homes to align care in all the BCMH clinics. They want to provide care with an emphasis on preventative medicine and pro-active health.

Lamar Family Dentistry provides full range of services

Lamar Family Dentistry continues to provide the area with a full range of dental services, from preventive care to cosmetic and restorative procedures like tooth whitening, veneers, crowns and orthodontic treatment for children and adults. Jeffery O. Moyer, D.M.D. employs three registered dental hygienists and five staff members. The address of the practice is 805 Broadway and they can be reached at 417682-5871 or by email at www.lamarsleepdentist.com. Dr. Moyer is a gradu-

ate of Golden City High School and Oral Roberts University School of Dentistry. He purchased the dental practice from the late R.W. Dimond in 1983 and relocated to his present office in 1995. In July of 2012, he established a satellite office in Stockton, where he provides services every Tuesday. Stockton Dental Care is located at 201 W. Smith Dr. and their phone number is 417-276-5871. Dr. Moyer also provides Oral Conscious Sedation to treat those apprehensive patients requiring extensive treatment. February 7 of this year was set aside to provide

free oral healthcare to local children from lowincome families in observance of Give Kids A Smile, where approximately 20 children were examined and treated with services ranging from oral screening and preventive care to restorative procedures. Dr. Moyer and staff appreciate the chance to offer their services to the community and according to Dr. Moyer, “The people in this community are great to work with and make it a pleasure to be in the healthcare profession!” Give them a call for all your dental needs.

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

www.lamardemocrat.com

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 •

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Reavley Dentistry

Healthy teeth...a family affair

tors, medical doctors, nurses and the county health department to provide treatment and referrals to area professionals, when needed. Congratulations to Linda Bishop, dental assistant, for being a team member for 20 years as of January 2014! Linda has been a dedicated team member and has been a very positive asset to the dental group! Dr. Ted Reavley was recently honored in Pictured are, left to right, Wanda McCoy, Becky the 417 Magazine Harshaw, Dr. Ted Reavley, Linda Bishop, Carol August 2013 by beReavley and Devin Gariss. ing named one of Southwest Missouri’s Dr. Ted Reavley gradu- shaw, RDH, and assistants top dentists!! This Springated from the University Linda Bishop, Wanda Mc- field area list was based of Missouri at Kansas City Coy and Carol Reavley. on thousands of detailed School of Dentistry in Joining the hygiene team evaluations of dentists 1978. He is a member of in June 2013 is dental and professionals by their the American Dental As- hygienist Devin Gariss, peers! soc., MO Dental Assoc., RDH. The Reavleys are Dr. Reavley attended Southwest MO Dental blessed to have Devin, a the UMKC alumni conAssoc., International As- former patient, now be- ference that was held in soc. of Cosmetic Dentists come a team member! Dr. Kansas City in April 2013. and the Las Vegas Insti- Brian Reavley is treating Topics of interest were tute for Advanced Dental patients on several Satur- Antibiotics in Dentistry, Studies graduate. He has days a month including Medicine, Dentistry and committed his practice wisdom teeth extractions, Drugs, Building a Healthto serving his patients by while still working for Ac- ier You, Making Occlusal using current continuing cess Family Care in Cass- Concepts your Toucheducation techniques and ville during the week. He stone on a Daily Basis, the latest technology to brings with him assistants Challenges Facing Dental provide optimum dental Brittany Phillips, Olena Practices Today and Huhealth. He was assisted in Pomuran, Johnna Chavez man Papilloma Virus and this endeavor by his den- and Lindsey Forst. They its implications for the tal team, Rebecca Har- partner with chiroprac- dental practice.

The Dexis Direct Den- pulmonary disease and clude 4-H, Barton County tal Sensor x-ray has im- autoimmune disease. For Right to Life, Jasper FFA, proved visibility con- a healthier you, call for an Cystic Fibrosis, Good Sacerning various views of appointment to evaluate maritan, The Gideons Indental radiographs. It is your dental health. ternational, Girl Scouts, involve- K-LOVE, Multiple Sclea much faster approach Community to taking x-rays and with ment either through den- rosis Assoc. and Life less radiation than other tal personnel attendance Choices. This year the digital x-rays. They offer or donation to a cause to dental team chose to proa bleaching material, Lu- benefit all was considered vide gifts to a deserving mibrite, that is simple and to be of greater impor- family for the Christmas easy to use and is very ef- tance this past year. Give holiday season. fective in whitening teeth. Kids A Smile 2013 was a Their economic progThey continue to offer great success, serving 30 ress depends on you, the orthodontic services with students grades K-8. Do- consumer, when you enclear aligners, Clear Cor- nations were given to the trust your dental care to rect or Six-Month-Smiles, Lamar swim team, La- health care providers in short term ortho, for a mar football team, Lamar your community. Drs. Ted wear time of six to nine High, Middle and Ele- and Brian Reavley would months for older teens mentary schools for vari- like to thank you for your and adults. All of the ous programs, booster continued patronage and patients receiving short club and the chamber of trust during this past year term ortho treatment commerce back to school as they continue to prohave had great results! bash. County and south- vide patients with ExcelCall for a complimentary west area donations in- lence in Dentistry. consultation! There is a link between periodontal diseases (disease of the gums) and other systemic conditions that can negatively affect a person’s overall health and wellness. Bacteria associated with gum disease have been linked to heart disease, diabetes, stroke, arthritis, chronic Members of Dr. Brian Reavley's dental team are, left to obstructive right, Lindsay Forst, Brittany Phillips and Lena Pomuran.

Cardiopulmonary department offers various programs The Cardiopulmonary Department at Barton County Memorial Hospital offers many different programs for their patients. They have 16 licensed respiratory therapists and two certified asthma educators on staff. Respiratory therapy services are available 24

hours a day at Barton County Memorial Hospital. BCMH provides testing, diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders for adults and adolescents. They adhere to the highest standards of care in a state-of-the-art facility.

A sleep technologist is available for one-on-one care during the patient’s sleep study. Therapists are also trained in performing EEG’s (Electroencephalograms - a test that measures and records the electrical activity of the brain), which can be scheduled for either day

or night testing. The Pulmonary Function Lab at BCMH offers a wide range of pulmonary function testing (lung function) to assist physicians in diagnosing and managing patients with breathing problems and/ or lung disease. Pulmonary function tests help measure the different aspects of lung function and can help determine the cause of shortness of breath and may help confirm lung diseases such as asthma, bronchitis or emphysema. The tests are also used to measure how a lung disease is progressing or how serious the lung disease has become. Pulmonary function tests can also be used to assess how a patient is responding to different treatments. The hospital’s cardiac rehabilitation provides an individualized exercise program for patients who have had a heart attack, stents, by-pass surgery or heart valve replacement. The hospital also provides education to reduce risk factors for heart disease, dietary classes and tools for stress management. One might not have had a heart event yet, but still wants to exercise. The hospital provides a medically supervised exercise program for members of the community who just want to be healthier. Exercise is proven to help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

The cardiopulmonary staff at Barton County Memorial Hospital is here to serve you and of your cardiopulmonary needs. For more information please call 681-5195. The Echocardiography Lab provides ultrasound images of the inside of a patient’s heart so their physician has the information they need to care for the patient. Do you have a heart murmur, high blood pressure, heart valve disorder, CHF or chest pain? Ask your doctor; it might be time for him to look inside your heart.

The Stress Test Lab here at BCMH will assist individuals with all of their stress test needs. The hospital performs treadmill stress tests with nuclear imaging and echocardiography imaging. The hospital’s dedicated staff can also perform these stress test studies using medication for those unable to walk on the treadmill.

Nutrition Services at breakfast for employees Barton County Memo- and visitors. rial Hospital recognizes The hospital is extremethat good food is essential ly proud of the Nutrition not only for good health, but also as a source of pleasure, comfort and familiarity. Barton County Memorial Hospital allows patients to choose the foods they like (within their diet limitations) from menu selections and they strive to accommodate special requests as often as possible. Keeping employees in mind as well as patients, the hospital continues to expand their choices at meal times including salads, specialty soups and sandwiches, desserts and

Services staff for their dedication and enthusiasm for quality patient care.

Nutrition services are vital at BCMH

8F • Wednesday, March 26, 2014

www.lamardemocrat.com

Lamar Democrat, Lamar, MO

Clinics Golden City Clinic brings Lockwood Clinic – serving healthcare close to home the community since 1998 Golden City Clinic is located at 407 Main Street in Golden City and owned by Barton County Memorial Hospital. They are a certified Rural Health Clinic, serving patients of all ages. Office hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Tuesday through Friday; closed daily 12 noon to 1 p.m. for lunch and closed on Mondays. Rural Health Clinics (RHC’s) were established to improve access to primary care in underserved areas and address inadequate supplies of providers in rural areas. RHC’s use a team approach between physicians and nurse practitioners providing outpatient primary care services and basic laboratory services. Mandy Swink, FNP-C is the full time provider at Golden City Clinic. Mandy joined the clinic in December of 2013. Her previous experience included family practice, obstetrics, medical/surgical nursing and psychiatry. Mandy’s services include, but are not limited to well child checkups, eldercare, skin lesion removals, joint and muscle injections for pain, wound care, diabetes counseling, asthma control, DOT and athletic physicals, as well as treatment for acute illness and injuries. Thomas Hopkins, M.D. is the collaborating physician. He is a Board Certified Family Practice physician. Dr. Hopkins sees patients at Golden City Clinic every other Wednesday. His services include evaluation and management of chronic disease, minor surgical procedures, preventative

The staff at the Golden City Clinic are, left to right, Carol Scott, Kristen Wise and Mandy Swink. medicine as well as care for acute illness and injuries for patients of all ages. Dr. Hopkins has privileges at Barton County Memorial Hospital. The clinic feels extremely fortunate to offer gynecological services at the clinic. Michelle Boice, M.D., GYN sees patients on the first Tuesday of each month. Dr. Boice’s services include well woman exams, breast exams, pap smears, hormonal issues and contraceptive management. Dr. Boice performs gynecological procedures and surgery at Barton County Memorial Hospital. Kristin Wise is the medical office assistant. Before coming to the clinic Kristin worked as a medical office assistant for five years. Prior to that she served 10 years as an EMT for the Lockwood Ambulance Service, as well as having 10 years combined experience in healthcare in the nursing home and home health settings. Carol Scott is the clinic office coordinator. She transferred from the

Barton County Memorial Hospital radiology department to the Golden City Clinic in 2006 when BCMH purchased the clinic from Dr. P.W. Christiansen. Carol’s primary duties are scheduling, reception duties and record maintenance. Carol is a lifelong resident of the Golden City community. In an effort to provide essential medical care for all patients regardless of income, the clinic uses a sliding fee scale program. This program provides discounts to patients based on family size and income and is very beneficial to patients without insurance coverage or high deductibles. The clinic is accepting new patients. Walkins are welcome and will be worked into the schedule as quickly as possible, appointments are preferred. Call 417537-4311 to schedule an appointment. They continue to provide “Quality Care-Close to Home”.

A warm smile awaits visitors at Barton County Memorial Hospital

The Barton County Memorial Hospital Ladies Auxiliary donated a blood gas analyzer to the hospital. It is very likely that as one enters the doors of Barton County Memorial Hospital, on Monday through Friday, they will be greeted by the smiling face of a woman in a pink smock or a man in a burgundy one. These men and women are volunteers and members of the hospital auxiliary. They give their time to be on hand to assist all, answer questions or show visitors where to find the services they are seeking. They also will be found staffing the gift shop, which is their main fundraiser. The gift shop can provide visitors with seasonal items for personal decorating or assisting in finding just the right gift for a friend. They have on hand a great selection of scarves, purses, wall hangings and knickknacks. They also carry a supply of delectable candies from Richardson’s Candy House at various times of the year. The group also sponsors a number of other sales that help to provide funds for improvement projects. These may include the jewelry sale, scrub

sale, linen sale and book sale. These sales provide an opportunity for the community to purchase quality items at inexpensive prices and to contribute to the work of this worthwhile group at the same time. One may wonder why this group needs fundraisers. At times the hospital has needs that are not necessarily budget items, but are items that would add to the quality of care for patients or add to the beauty of the hospital. With the money raised through various projects these items can be purchased for the hospital. The most noticeable use of funds is the beautiful grand piano in the lobby. The auxiliary has completed their pledge or $5000 toward this instrument and has recently given a donation to have some new music added to its player function. Other recent gifts to the hospital have been a mattress for the sleep study lab, televisions for the emergency waiting rooms, a set of compression bandages for an arm or a leg for Lymphedema therapy

patients who cannot afford them and a Blood Gas Analyzer for the lab, which is a great aid in providing certain diagnosis. The auxiliary donated to purchase an analyzer for the hospital laboratory. They purchased an “OPTI” blood gas analyzer that provides the physicians with critical information about the amount of oxygen a patient has in their body. The instrument that it replaced was put into use in 2001. It is hoped the hospital gets several years of service from this one too. They are always looking for new members to join the auxiliary. Anyone that is interested may speak to any of the volunteers or contact Amy Neher at 6815107. The group has a monthly meeting on the second Monday at 2 p.m., in the cafeteria, where they make plans for upcoming events or allocations of funds. Consider giving a few hours of your spare time to volunteer with them.

The staff at the Lockwood Clinic consist of, left to right, Rhonda Singer, Candi Duncan and Debbie Johnson. The Lockwood Clinic is owned by Barton County Memorial Hospital in Lamar. The clinic was opened in October 1998, and approved as a rural health clinic in 2009. The clinic is conveniently located at 723 South Main Street in Lockwood, next door to the Lockwood Pharmacy. The clinic staffs a fulltime nurse practitioner, Debbie Johnson, who is available on a daily basis, Monday through Thursday. Nurse practitioners are trained through the nursing field, which means they are treating one’s illness as a part of their total well-being. NPs must have at least a master’s degree in nursing and are able to practice with autonomy; having the ability to treat patients on their own just as a physician would. Dr. Thomas Hopkins, Board Certified Family Practice Physician, works collaboratively with Debbie Johnson, RN, FNP-C and provides care for patients on alternate Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dr.

Hopkins, M.D. and Debbie Johnson, RN, FNP-C, have been with the Lockwood Clinic for five years now. The collaborative agreement allows the nurse practitioner to diagnose, treat and manage a full range of acute illnesses, chronic diseases, infections and medical conditions. They also order further testing and evaluation, provide counseling and education on health and disease management and may perform minor in-office surgical procedures. Dr. Hopkins then oversees the practice and consults on difficult cases. This relationship allows for those in rural communities to be able to access great care close to home, without having to travel. The Lockwood Clinic also provides gynecology services. Dr. Michelle Boice specializes in gynecology and provides care to patients on the third Tuesday of each month. Dr. Boice has been with the hospital for six years. Both Dr. Hopkins and Dr. Boice have privileges at

Wellness, continued from page 1F Truman Healthcare Nursing Home in Lamar. “I've enjoyed practicing in Lamar these past 15 years. With the diverse population in southwest Missouri I get to see a variety of people everyday, which keeps my job interesting and keeps me on my toes,” said Dr. Miller. He continued, “Lamar manages to keep its small town values, while providing many of the amenities of a larger town.”

Barton County Memorial Hospital in Lamar. These providers offer a wide range of services including, but not limited to primary care to all ages, well child exams, women’s health, sports physicals, DOT physicals, initial Medicare physicals, diabeties care/education, smoking cessation, flu, pneumonia and shingles vaccinations, foot care, geriatrics and routine lab work. Candi (Watson) Duncan, LPN, is the office nurse. Candi has been with BCMH for 21 years, 13 of which have been with the clinic. She was there the day the clinic opened and has been the backbone of the clinic ever since. Rhonda Singer is the clinic’s receptionist. Rhonda has been in Lockwood for 2 1/2 years and an employee of Barton County Memorial Hospital since November of 2006. She handles the filing, reception duties and scheduling for the clinic. Lockwood Clinic offers a sliding fee scale discount program for those patients without insurance or who have a high deductible on their insurance plans. Call for more information about this program. Office hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday thru Thursday; closed daily 12 noon to 1 p.m. for lunch and closed on Fridays. Walk-ins are welcome and will be worked into the schedule as quickly as possible. Appointments are preferred. Call today at 417-2325200.

OMA, LLC is located at 115 W. 12th St. in Lamar. The office is open from 7:30 a.m. to 12 noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Thursday. Every Friday morning Dr. Miller is at NUC, which is located at 111 N. Elm St. in Nevada. Dr. Miller is accepting new patients. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Miller, book a massage or obtain information about horizontal therapy, please call the office at 417-682-6622.