Stories from Saturday, October 10, 2015

Construction in Monett has taken a rather unexpected upswing this year. Building Inspector Wade Ennes and Assistant Inspector Justin Hohensee have been swamped in work and barely able to keep up with demand. Ennes told the Monett City Council he had issued 16 permits for new houses by mid-September, a number that has since grown to 20. Ennes' office issued two permits for new single-family homes in all of 2014...

By Murray Bishoff times-news@monett-times.com The Ozark Festival Orchestra (OFO) will hold its first full concert of its 36th season at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 25 at the new Monett High School Performing Arts Center. The performance will include several firsts for the OFO in its new home...

The Monett football team shook off a slow start and rolled to a 35-3 non-conference win over Clinton Friday at Burl Fowler Stadium. The Cubs' defense twice forced goal-line turnovers to stump the Cardinals' offense. Monett's Cameron Witt picked off a Jacob Goucher pass at the 1-yard line on Clinton's initial drive of the game. In the second quarter, senior John Saunders forced a fumble, also on the 1-yard line, that was recovered by Alex Turner to prevent the visitors from entering the end zone...

PIERCE CITY --It was under less-than-usual circumstances, but Pierce City's seniors made their last home game count, defeating visiting McAuley in an eight-man contest, 44-6. The Eagles (2-5) started scoring early and didn't stop until the fourth quarter. Pierce City led 22-0 at the end of the first quarter, en route to a 36-0 lead at halftime. The Eagles tacked on 8 more points in the third quarter for good measure...

Next week the Monett Healthy Schools/Health Communities Initiative will launch its Walking School Bus program, running Monday through Thursday. "A walking school bus organizes parents and students to walk to school together," said Alex Severs, wellness coordinator for the Monett school district. "It brings families and friends together to be active, socialize, get to school with adult supervision and have fun."...

Representatives of Missouri Enterprise and the Workforce Investment Board gathered at PlayPower in Monett on Oct. 2 to recognize National Manufacturing Day with Monett's industries. Dusty Cruse and Tracy Kelly from Missouri Enterprise, an organization that provides training for manufacturers, made presentations of banners to 20 businesses, recognizing their contribution to the state's economic base and to the employment base in Monett...

A portion of Monett electric customers faced a power outage on Thursday, with electric crews restoring service within 40 minutes. According to Aaron Burdett, electric department foreman, an arrestor on a utility pole in the 600 block of North Lincoln failed around 7:30 p.m. ...

Crews for Vaughn Dirtworks were busy this week excavating the lot at the northwest corner of Scott and Eighth streets for a new parking lot for Monett Middle School.

The sixth annual Monett FFA chili supper and benefit auction will be held on Oct. 10 at the Scott Regional Technology Center in Monett, beginning at 6 p.m. The bluegrass band Ripplin' Creek will perform. A silent auction is also planned. The Freistatt Village Board of Trustees has rescheduled its monthly meeting to 7 p.m. on Oct. 15 at the Freistatt Community Building...

Empire District Electric Company has filed a request with the Missouri Public Service Commission to adjust the fuel adjustment charge (FAC) on the bills of its electric customers. For a residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity a month, Empire states that its requests will result in the FAC decreasing by approximately $1.51 a month. The proposed change would take effect in December...

Ribbon cutting ceremonies conducted by the Monett Chamber of Commerce were held on Aug. 22 at the Edgewood Creamery on Farm Road 1090, north of Purdy. Melissa Fletcher cut the ribbon for the creamery, which will participate in the Chamber's Festival of Flavors this year...

The Monett Chamber of Commerce held ribbon cutting ceremonies on Aug. 15 for Gold Dragon Taekwondo, located at 600 Dairy St., Suite F in Monett.

Officials at Monett Elementary School have chosen students demonstrating the characteristics of being polite and respectful as Students of the Week for Oct. 5.

JOPLIN -- Cynthia Salas of Purdy is one of five students from Missouri Southern State University's Plaster School of Business to enter the 2015-16 NASBITE International Student Case Competition as the defending champions. The five-member team is working on a 20-page analysis that involves the Ohio-based Cleveland Whiskey, which is looking to expand globally, specifically into Singapore. ...

Phil and Carolyn (Gripka) Gollhofer will be celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary with a dinner and dance at Hickory Hills Country Club in Springfield with family and friends.

For the first time in five years, Monett's softball season ended without winning a district title. While raking the dirt in the pitcher's circle after the Lady Cubs' 8-7 loss to Carl Junction, junior pitcher Haley Williams fought back the tears and disappointment in how the season ended...

The Verona volleyball team heads into the district tournament on Oct. 19, aiming for a district title in Miller. The Lady Wildcats, 13-14-2, earned the No. 5 seed in the Class 1, District 8 tournament. Miller High School will host the event this season...

The Purdy volleyball team has earned a No. 3 seed in the district tournament, which opens play on Oct. 19. The Lady Eagles, 13-7-5, will have the added advantage of playing at home in the Class 1, District 7 tournament. School of the Ozarks (26-2-1) is the No. ...

This weekend represents the end of the autumn festival season with Apple Butter Makin' Days in Mt. Vernon. The Mt. Vernon event has beaten the odds on weather issues more often than not, and this looks like another spectacular year for the biggest, oldest and best community festival in the bi-county area...

Dear Editor, It was Harry Truman who famously said "If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen." Well, it seems that some of our so-called "leaders" in Jefferson City cannot stand the heat, and I think it is time for them to get out of the kitchen...

Dear Editor, It's hard to believe that the Mt. Vernon Community Theatre (MVCT) summer musical, Bye Bye Birdie, was two months ago. The actors, musicians, crew and staff have returned to their schools and jobs in Springfield, Nixa, Joplin, Dunnegan, Nevada, Carthage, Monett, Aurora, Miller, Webb City, Republic, Marionville, Greenfield and Mt. Vernon. When a show ends, it's bittersweet to know that you could never bring together that exact group again...