Stories from Tuesday, March 22, 2016

Elizabeth Ann O'Connell, 95, of Monett, went home to be with her Heavenly Father March 20. Born Oct. 1, 1920, in Monett, she was the daughter of the late John Michael O'Connell and Willie Lee (Hall) O'Connell of Monett. Elizabeth was educated in Monett public schools graduating in the Class of 1938. ...

Silverio S. Benavidez, 66, of Rocky Comfort, died at 7:30 a.m. Monday, March 21. Memorial services will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, March 24, at Ridgley Baptist Church. Cremation arrangements are under direction of McQueen Funeral Home in Wheaton.

Duane Eugene Garoutte, 68, of Mt. Vernon, died at 12:26 p.m. Saturday, March 19, at Mercy Hospital in Springfield. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, March 25, at Round Grove Baptist Church. Burial will follow at 1 p.m. at the Missouri Veterans Cemetery in Springfield...

Elizabeth Meisinger, 72, of Joplin, former concertmaster for the Ozark Festival Orchestra, died at 11 p.m. March 18 at her home following an extended illness. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. on March 24 at the Thornhill-Dillon Mortuary in Joplin. Burial will follow in the Lake Cemetery in Lamar...

Raymond Lloyd Bass, 72, of Shell Knob, died at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, March 20. No services are scheduled at this time. Cremation arrangements are under direction of Fohn Funeral Home in Cassville.

The Monett softball team earned statewide recognition for its achievement in the classroom by the Missouri High School Fastpitch Coaches Association for 2015-2016 season. Of the 43 schools honored, the Lady Cubs finished fifth with a 3.72 GPA. Bolivar finished first with a collective GPA of 3.77...

Monett Coach Michael Calhoun said before the baseball season started, he had depth at the pitcher's position, and tonight, that depth will be unleashed. The Cubs (2-0) are sending senior John Saunders (0-0) to the bump for his first varsity career start against Pierce City (1-1) at 5 p.m...

The Monett Ministerial Association will hold its last Lenten Services at noon on March 23 at the Monett Community Church, 2101 E. Cleveland, with Jeff Robertson from Countryside Christian Church speaking. A light lunch will follow the service. The Purdy kindergarten teachers will host their annual Kindergarten Round-Up today to welcome next year's kindergarten students and their families to Purdy Elementary. ...

Several items in Saturday's Whitetails Unlimited banquet live auction were sold strictly to benefit the Catch a Dream Foundation.

A crew for Southard Construction has started laying the 12-inch pipeline to connect the water well at the Monett Regional Airport to the city system.

The Monett Board of Education authorized a contract with the architectural firm Sapp Design Associates and is in negotiations with Anderson Engineering for future building work. In looking at future building projects, especially plans for adding a storm safe room at Central Park Elementary School, school officials continued discussions with its partners on recent projects. ...

Barry County has officially been designated as a Certified Work Ready Community. The designation, considered an important national milestone in demonstrating local workforce readiness, was announced in a special ceremony held Friday at the Monett Chamber of Commerce. ...

Vernon Allen Rainsburg, 74, of Seligman, died Sunday, March 20. Services will be held at a later date. Cremation arrangements are under direction of Fohn Funeral Home in Cassville.

Weeks after the Monett City Council announced a request for additional funds to cover the cost of adding two more dispatchers to the communications center serving Lawrence County, the City of Aurora has proposed an alternative, looking to take over the central dispatching and 911 service six months after Monett began the service...