Stories from Saturday, February 20, 2016

This week, the Monett Chamber of Commerce hosted a Regional Career Fair at the City Park Casino. The event was well attended. Employers handed out lots of applications and were very hopeful they would find new employees. At the opening, the hall was flooded with people and the line went out to the front door. Both Southwest High School and Wheaton sent a busload of students up to see what opportunities their students could find...

Former Monett track and basketball standout Angela (Beckett) Johnson is one of seven recipients of the Wynn Award from the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. The award recognizes outstanding high school and college athletes throughout Missouri and will be presented on March 23 at the Women's Sports Luncheon held at University Plaza Convention Center in Springfield...

On Monday, Southwest High School hosts the Class 2, District 12 girls basketball tournament. Miller (14-9) earned the No. 1 seed, followed by Purdy (17-5) as the No. 2 seed. Pierce City (12-12) and Southwest (12-11) were voted the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds, respectively...

With a 76-34 victory over Exeter on Thursday, the Purdy girls basketball team won its 13th consecutive game of the season, but more importantly, the victory gave the Lady Eagles a third straight Ozark 7 Conference title. Purdy begins district play on Monday at Southwest High School with a 7 p.m. tip against McAuley Catholic...

Alyssa Kennedy, Monett girls basketball coach, had an spirited conversation with her Lady Cubs team following a 46-23 loss to East Newton. Her message was simple -- do not forget what you have accomplished, and do not stop fighting. Before the team's setback on Thursday, Monett has shown growth as a unit, scoring 38, 42, 53 and 46 points in a string of games...

The Class 2, District 12 boys basketball tournament opens Tuesday at Southwest High School. The eight-team field features a total of five schools from Barry and Lawrence counties. McAuley Catholic (15-4) earned the top overall seed and plays No. 8 seed Wheaton at 4:30 p.m...

Nine students of the Scott Regional Technical Center Chapter of Missouri Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) joined over 300 high school marketing students from southwest Missouri at the annual District Career Development Conference held Feb. 3 at Missouri Southern State University in Joplin...

Monett Middle School students packed the school cafeteria on Thursday for the annual Science Fair.

John Heese will celebrate his 90th birthday on March 3. Heese was born March 3, 1926, in Violet, Texas, the second of nine children born to Ben and Hilda (Maywaldt) Heese. He grew up on a farm in Texas where he developed a life-long love of working the land...

The Pierce City Senior Citizens held their annual Valentine dinner Saturday evening.

Rebel's Bluff Troupe will present the small town comedy, "Leona, Love Thy Neighbor, Too," written by Gary Ray Stapp, at 7 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday at the Mt. Vernon Arts and Recreation Center, 822 W. Mt. Vernon Blvd. The Ozark Festival Orchestra will perform its pops concert, "Broadway Hit Parade," with music from "Phantom of the Opera," "My Fair Lady," "Fiddler on the Roof," "Les Misérables," "West Side Story," "Chicago" and "Wicked" at 3 p.m. ...

The Barry County Commission has enacted a burn ban, effective immediately and continuing through Feb. 26. Commission members have enacted the ban in an effort to protect the grasslands and crops lands, as well as provide protections for the county's watershed areas...

Police cars in Pierce City now bear the slogan "In God We Trust," thanks to community donations.

It may still be February, but with temperatures in the 70s this week, the urge to get outdoors spread contagiously.

Monett-based Jack Henry and Associates has released its quarterly cash dividend for the quarter for stockholders of record as of March 2. The dividend will be $.28 per share, a 12 percent increase. The company increased its dividend by 14 percent in February 2015...

The public works superintendent for the city of Purdy has been charged with first-degree statutory sodomy relating to alleged sexual incidents with a minor occurring over the past year. Teddy McIntire, 56, of Purdy, was charged with the felony on Friday and is being held at the Barry County Jail on a $40,000 bond. ...

A total of 300 job seekers packed into the Monett City Park Casino on Thursday for a Regional Career Fair, hosted by the Monett Chamber of Commerce. Jeff Meredith, Chamber executive director, said 100 people poured through the event in the first 15 minutes. ...

Monett senior Torri Lynn Davis was crowned Rose Homecoming Queen Friday before the Cubs' varsity basketball game against East Newton.

A change in state law may have contributed to a big shift in activity at the Monett office of the Children's Center, the local child advocacy center. The number of children seen by child advocates, interviewers and forensic staff fell by more than half. Leaders in the organization cannot explain the numbers, the first time the center has seen a serious downturn in the number of children served, other than differences that naturally develop from year to year...

A Cassville man was injured Friday in a wreck at 5:54 p.m on Highway 37 at Farm Road 2090. According to a Missouri State Highway Patrol report, Zachary Hall, 21, of Cassville, was driving a 1992 Chevrolet Silverado northbound when he attempted to overtake a vehicle and did not see a 2002 Toyota Sienna, being driven by Jaqueline Cooper, 80, of Purdy, stopped in the passing lane to make a left turn, hitting the van...

Two people were injured Friday in a wreck at noon on Intersection of Highway 37 and Farm Road 2090. According to a Missouri State Highway Patrol report, Jerry Clark, 45, of Cassville, was driving a 2001 Saturn SL southbound on Highway 37 when a 2002 Pontiac Grand Prix, being driven by Ruby Pozniak, 84, of Purdy, failed to yield, entering the intersection westbound from Farm Road 2090 and struck Clark's vehicle...