Stories from Tuesday, September 15, 2015

During Monett's 41-7 win over Mt. Vernon on Friday, the spotlight shined brightly on senior wide receiver Jonah Paszek. His stat line was what most receivers' dream of, two catches for 112 yards, two touchdowns. He also intercepted a pass on defense...

New operations challenges, including recovering from a crippling lightning strike, provided issues addressed by Barry-Lawrence Ambulance District board members. A lightning strike on Aug. 18 destroyed the computer server used to run the billing program and generate reports. ...

The Monett High School Performing Arts Center opened with a ribbon cutting and a concert on Thursday before a three-quarters capacity audience. "The dream of putting an auditorium back into the school system has been 42 years in the making," said Superintendent Brad Hanson. "This is truly a celebration."...

COLUMBIA -- The Monett Times won the prestigious state-wide General Excellence award and 34 other honors at the Missouri Press Association's annual convention Saturday. Full print editions of The Times were judged by out-of-state journalists and ranked amongst other Missouri small dailies, leading to the honor. The Times won seven other first-place honors in the competition...

Last month, Pierce City School Board members approved installation of a thermoplastic roof membrane system (TPO) to portions of the high school and elementary school campuses. Now, board members entered into a lease-purchase plan to pay for the estimated $280,000 in improvements over a 10-year period, with the option of paying the debt off early...

Plans for the third annual Monett Alternative Gift Fair are underway with a new online application form. The one-page form, Accessed through the gift fair's Facebook page, will eliminate much of the work for participants. The deadline for submission is Oct. 15. The Gift Fair will be held Saturday, Dec. 5 at the Monett Area YMCA...

Thirteen teams turned out to compete at the annual Spud McCracken Memorial Horseshoe Tournament at the Wheaton Barbecue, held across the street from the city park. First place honors went to Dale and Mark Brattin, while second place was won by last year's champs, Ronnie Senseney and James Savage. Taking third was Matt and Joe Hickman. Top competitors received cash and T-shirts...

Three local teenagers suffered minor injuries Sunday in a wreck at 5:30 p.m. on Highway 97, three miles southwest of Monett. According to a Missouri State Highway Patrol report, Katelyn Mitchell, 16, of Pierce City, was driving a 2009 Mercury Milan northbound on Highway 97 when her vehicle ran off the right side of the roadway, struck a ditch and overturned...

Monett-based Jack Henry and Associates (JHA) has released its SymXchange for general use. A product of JHA's Symitar division, SymXchange is a services-based programming interface that enables credit unions and third-party vendor partners to more easily access and personalize data...

Monett R-1 wellness program and Healthy Schools/Healthy Community Initiative will be again hold its fall Walk to School Week through Friday. This event will be very similar to the Walk to School Week in April, starting from three designated locations: MES, North Park, Cox Monett Hospital to CPE/MMS/MIS...

Marriages: Licenses issued at the Lawrence County Courthouse Taylor James Sutton, 22, Ash Grove, to McKaylah Marie Potter, 19, Ash Grove, Aug. 14. Dalton Wayne Brollier, 20, Aurora, to Kelsie Cox Henry, 21, Aurora, July 31. Franklin Theodore Silfee, 50, Monett, to Teresa Lynne Clark, 51, Monett, Aug. 15...

It is easy for Pierce City Coach Brad Hocker to rattle off things that when wrong in Friday's 28-0 loss to Diamond: too many turnovers, mental mistakes, injuries and, not to mention, the nearly 45-minute delay that occurred as they tried to get the lights to come on at Don Keebaugh Stadium...

The Monett swimming and diving team continues its push for aquatic excellence today in Springfield. The Cubs are spurred on by a seventh-place finish in the 15-team field of the Monett Invitational on Saturday. According to Monett Coach Dan Janssen, the event was more of a focus on his team and how much his swimmers improved individually...

Beulah "Lenora" Edmonds Sapp, 92, of Horseshoe Bay, Texas, formerly of Shell Knob, died Aug. 19. Services will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 19, at Painter Cemetery, Shell Knob, under direction of Fohn Funeral Home, Shell Knob.

Mary Alice Bright, 91, of Miller, died at 3:01 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 13, at her home. Funeral services will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 17, at New Home Baptist Church in Everton. Burial will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, Sept. 18, at Greenlawn Cemetery in Mountain View...