Stories from Tuesday, February 25, 2020

James Wilson Sullivan, 84, of Mt. Vernon, passed away at 10:45 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 22, at the Missouri Veterans Home in Mt. Vernon. No services are planned at this time. Arrangements are under the direction of Fossett-Mosher Funeral Home in Mt. Vernon...

David Schmidt, 69, of Mt. Vernon, passed away on Thursday morning, Feb. 20, at his home after a long illness. Memorial services will be held at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 29, at Summit Baptist Church. A private family burial will be held. Visitation will be held from 2 to 3 p.m. prior to the service...

Kenneth Packwood, 90, of Verona, died Saturday, Feb. 22. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 26, at McQueen Funeral Home in Wheaton. Burial will be at Maplewood Cemetery in Exeter.

Pamela Jean “Pam” Mitchell, 57, of Wheaton, died Monday, Feb. 24. Memorial services will be held at a later date. Cremation arrangements are under direction of McQueen Funeral Home in Wheaton.

(June 15, 1919-Feb. 20 2020) The Kadar and Anderson families announce the peaceful passing of their adored mother and “gra-gran” at 2 a.m. on February 20, 2020. Sophia, born third, of 5 children, in Rittman, Ohio, to Andrew Klosterman and Susana Prcina Klosterman, is preceded in death by her son, Donald, and 2 grandchildren. She is survived by her children, Nancy (John), Gordon, Kevin, David (Connie), 3 grandchildren, 19 great, grandchildren, and 4 great great-grandchildren...

A hot start with timely response propelled the Pierce City basketball team to a 59-50 upset of East Newton in the district quarterfinal at Aurora on Monday. “I thought we came out ready to play tonight,” said Matt Street, Pierce City coach. “It may have been one of our best rebounding games of the year, and that was huge because East Newton was a tall team.”...

Prior to the MSHSAA State Wrestling Championships, Monett Coach Daryl Bradley said that he was taking eight point-scorers to Columbia. It took every one of them for the Cubs to overcome a 16.5-point deficit on the final day to move from being down 125-108.5 to ultimately claim the 2020 Class 2 state championship with a 149.5-142 over Odessa...

With three wrestlers advancing to the championship round and state titles within reach, the Monett wrestling team sent all its positive energy to support Joey Semerad, Gunnar Bradley and Wesley Merriman in the hopes of claiming individual titles. Semerad was first up on Saturday night. A year after dropping a title chance, he made the most of the situation by winning his third championship...

Live old-time music will be offered at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 28, at the Clio Community Center, Highways 37 and 248, next to the Clio Cemetery. Music is offered on an open mike basis so performers are welcome. Lawrence and Barry County Democrats will hold a joint monthly meeting at 7 p.m. ...

A piece of art of children praying, their silhouettes filled by colored rolls of magazine paper, brought in $1,500 at the live auction Saturday night as part of St. Lawrence Catholic School’s annual fundraising dinner.

A bald eagle takes off upstream toward the Roaring River Hatchery.

After two months of gains and two more months of near even receipts, sales tax revenues to bi-county cities and counties hit a bump in the road in February, with a notable drop of 4 percent compared to a year ago. Most every recipient felt the pinch, especially Monett. ...

With only two meetings left before the April election, Purdy City Council members opted to let Mayor Pro Tem Brian Bowers lead sessions and proceed with plans to move city hall. In February, council members accepted the brief resignation letter from Mayor Bo Prock, who moved outside the city limits. ...

Members of the Barry-Lawrence Regional Library board recently reviewed preliminary site plans for the proposed Monett Branch/Regional Office building. The branch will be approximately 19,000 square feet, and house a garage, maintenance, and technical services, as well. The administrative offices will be located on the second level. Estimated cost of the project is just under $8 million...

As local legends go, not many in Barry County can compare to the folklore surrounding Jeanne Wallace, also known as the “Mountain Maid.” On Feb. 26, 1940, Barry County lost arguably one of its most interesting residents in a tragic fire, but to this day, her life continues to inspire and entertain local residents...

A year after its original expected completion date, the Roaring River Hatchery spring project is wrapping up, aiming to be done by summer if rains hold off. Paul Spurgeon, manager of the hatchery, part of the Department of Natural Resources, said there is only one part of the project left, a box needing to be placed at the mouth of the spring cave...

Members of the Barry-Lawrence Chapter of Crime Stoppers are warning area residents to be vigilant when it comes to their vehicles, as multiple thefts of property have been reported. Det. Dave Haskins, with the Monett Police Department, said several cars had been either stolen or broken into in the past several weeks, with items such as wallets, purses, electronics and guns stolen from them, as well...

A former Monett paraprofessional has pleaded guilty to a lower felony stemming from sexual contact with a student charges filed in 2017. Loryn Barclay, 27, formerly of Monett, pleased guilty on Friday to harassment against a person younger than 17 years old, a class D felony...