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Randy Kirby photos
Queen Alysa
Alysa Cairer was crowned Miss Pettis County 2009 on opening night of the Smithton Town and Country Fair, Thursday night, July 9 at Smithton School. She is the daughter of Glenn and Deborah Cairer of Smithton. Runner-up and Miss Congeniality was Taryn Klein, of Smithon. She is the daughter of Jeff and Stacey Klein of Smithton. The Smithton Fair continues through Saturday.
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Sedalia Showcase to feature ProEnergy August 20
By Randy Kirby
Managing editor
EDSPC is gearing up for its annual Sedalia Showcase, this time featuring a major manufacturer that has relocated its corporate headquarters to Sedalia.
ProEnergy Services, LLC, will be in the spotlight this time, reflecting a return to manufacturing as the focus of the event, scheduled for Aug. 20. Previous events placed the showcase spotlight on education and health.
The local business community has been invited to attend, with close to 600 invitations mailed out, said Economic Development Sedalia-Pettis County Executive Director Linda Christle.
Jeff Canon and John Stevens are expected to make a presentation to those attending. The event will include a ribbon-cutting ceremony and lunch., as well as tours of the nine buildings, situated on 19 acres in north Sedalia.
The EDSPC Board of Directors will attend the Governor's Ham Breakfast that morning at the Missouri State Fair. They will be joined by Sedalia Mayor Elaine Horn and Pettis County Presiding Commissioner Rusty Kahrs.
A company announcement will be made at the MEC Building also that morning at 9:45 a.m., Christle noted.
At 3:30 p.m., a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Furnell Landmark Building will be held at Fifth and Ohio, followed by a Streetscape presentation by City Administrator Keith Riesburg.
The Showcase will conclude with a VIP dinner on the fairgrounds that evening.
Christle noted that staff members of the Boys and Girls Club of West Central Mo., Inc., will be assisting with the events that day.
The Board of Directors met for their quarterly meeting July 8 at EDSPC offices, 3615 W. Broadway.
EDSPC recently switched its website provider from Civic Plus to New Age Graphics and Crystal Tech. KCP&L offered to pay for half the cost of the transition, Christle noted. The move will save quite a bit of money in monthly fees, she added.
Christle is not a big fan of leasing equipment, the board learned. "You can buy a maintenance contract (on a piece of equipment), and at the end of the day, you own that equipment. With a lease, you pay rent, and you don't own anything," she explained.
"The board is not a fan of leases, either. So I'm following the board's direction," she said.
The organization recently added an intern to its office staff. Ken Denham is a senior at UCM.
Christle also has been searching for a replacement for Stephanie Mayes, who left in June to join a family business. That position is expected to be filled by mid-August.
Responding to a prospect's request for information in a timely and fact-filled manner is crucial, Christle noted. "I give my staff 48 hours," she said, adding that she frequently contacts Sedalia Community Development Director John Simmons for info. "He has 24 hours to get back to me, we have 24 hours to put the proposal together and get it out," explained Christle.
"You've got to have a quick turnaround; you've got to get on their radar, because if you delay ... 48 hours to us seems like nothing, but when you're waiting for it (it seems a lot longer)," she said.
Each proposal is unique, with companies requesting very specific information. Several entities could be involved when responding to one proposal. "You don't include anything that is negotiable; they want to know the (exact) price. If you don't have a price, it will be thrown right back at you," Christle noted.
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Randy Kirby photos
Learning how to swim
The American Red Cross is offering its third and final swim lesson session of the summer starting July 27 at Liberty Pool. To sign up, call Sedalia Parks and Rec at 826-4930 or the Red Cross at 827-0618.
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City announces street closures
The Sedalia Street Department will be making repairs to the following streets July 14 - 15, and will be closed during repair: Third Street from Limit to Park; Tenth Street from Thompson to Winchester; and Olsen Drive north of 10th Street.
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Justice grant to add five new radar units to SPD patrol carsBy Randy Kirby
Managing editor
Honoring longtime employees and welcoming potential new ones was part of the City Council's agenda Monday night.
Robert Harvey, who served 23 years with the Sedalia Fire Department, and Gary Walkup, who served 24 years with the Sedalia Street Department, appeared in person to receive their award. They were two of eight employees who received special or service awards.
Other special awards went to Terry Ford for 27 years of service to the Street Department, and Bill Dotson who served 33 years with the Water Pollution Control Department.
Not present but recognized with service awards were Sedalia Fire Department members Melvin Lange for 35 years and Kyle Rupe for five years; Eric Franken for 10 years with Parks and Recreation, and Melissa Culp for five years with the Finance Department.
Two applicants for the Sedalia Police Department were approved, pending successful completion of psycological and physical testing.
Shawn Coleman and Benjamin Schnakenberg will be added to the list to fill two sworn vacancies at the department. They were deemed the top available candidates.
The Police Department and Pettis County Sheriff's Office hope to share in an Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program that will allow the purchase of five new radar units for Sedalia Police at a cost of $3,000 each, and $9,292 for a "digital monitoring system" for the Sheriff's Office.
The total amount of the grant is $23,232. A formal application was to have been filed on Tuesday by Commander John Rice.
A bid for pea gravel was awarded to Mike Smasal for $14.23 per ton for use by the Street Department.
The Council approved bids on used and obsolete equipment. Staff recommended accepting the high bid on each item, most of which were trucks, mowers and various pieces of construction equipment.
Midwest CompuTech was chosen as the low bidder for on-site IT support for the city at a cost of $38,001.60 for three days per week coverage.
The second closest bid was $55,296 and came from Midwest technology Connection for the same coverage.
First Ward Councilman Tony Arbisi abstained from the vote.
The City repealed a handicapped parking spot at 1920 S. Osage, as the residents who originally requested the space have moved away.
A request for a handicapped spot on Hogan street was referred to the Citizens Traffic Advisory Committee for review.
Donna Lewis was appointed to the Board of Appeals for a five-year term. Chris Patton was appointed to the Planning and Zoning Commission to fill out the term of Jamie Barnett, which ends June, 2010.
The City also approved the dedication of a sanitary sewer main and lift station at the new Smith-Cotton High School site.
The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Sedalia City Council is July 20.
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Boys & Girls Club receives $6,000 grant for 'Summer Servings'
It is estimated that more than 12 million children who qualify to receive a free or reduced-price lunch during the academic year may be deprived of this vital meal during the summer months when school is out. To help combat that trend locally, Boys & Girls Clubs of West Central Missouri is the recipient of a little extra help in the form of a $6,000 Summer Servings grant through a partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) and the Walmart Foundation to ensure that Club members have access to nutritious meals and snacks this summer.
"With the current economic downturn, we've seen a decline in resources while simultaneously receiving a record number of requests from families and children in need many of whom have never had to ask for public assistance," said Brett Barth-Fagan, Executive Director, Boys & Girls Clubs of West Central Missouri. "This grant from the Walmart Foundation is greatly appreciated as it comes at a time when so many families are struggling to provide their children with healthy meals this summer. We are able to step up and help our families during these hard economic times."
Through support from the Summer Food Service Program and the Walmart Summer Savings grant, the Boys & Girls Clubs of West Central Missouri is providing a free lunch and snack to all youth ages 6 to 18 at two of the Sedalia Club locations. The food is served at the Clubıs Downtown facility located in at 314 S Washington and at the Parkview Elementary location at 1901 S New York Ave. The Club also serves a lunch for youth at the Sedalia Housing District located at 500 Welch Ct. from noon to 12:30 p.m. Lunches are available to any youth in the community and to eligible disabled adults over 18 at any of the three sites serviced by the Boys & Girls Club.
The collaboration between the Walmart Foundation and BGCA, is an example of how private-public partnerships can help alleviate some of the nationıs pressing problems, by combining efforts from corporate, non-profit and governmental sectors to ensure that Americans have access to wholesome meals.
"We continue to see the impact that the economy is having on our neighbors they are stretching their budgets and looking to us for help in our stores and through our giving," said Margaret McKenna, president of the Walmart Foundation. "Hunger relief is a cause that enables our companyıs strengths to work for the greater good. From supporting summer feeding programs to donating food, weıre committed to doing all we can to help end hunger for our nationıs children, parents, homeless and all who have found themselves in need."
The Walmart Foundation is working with BGCA to provide wholesome meals and snacks to more than 93,000 children, who may have otherwise gone without food over the summer. Boys & Girls Clubs of West Central Missouri is one of 350 local Boys & Girls Clubs receiving assistance to aid the increasing number of Americans who lean on hunger relief organizations to provide for their families during difficult financial periods.
The funds provided by Walmart are part of its ongoing commitment to help people live better by fighting hunger and supporting U.S. food banks. With a new commitment to providing healthy, summer meals to children who receive free or reduced-price lunches during the school year, the Walmart Foundation is donating $7.8 million to expand its hunger relief efforts, of which BGCA is one of the beneficiaries.
The Summer Program of the Boys & Girls Clubs of West Central Missouri is hosted in two locations: Parkview Elementary and the Downtown Club at 314 S Washington. The Boys & Girls Club provides program opportunities for over 2,000 boys and girls each year. During the summer, the Club is open Monday Friday, 6:30 a.m. 6:00 p.m. Youngsters interested in joining the Club, learning more about summer programs or other youth programs can contact the Boys & Girls Clubs of West Central Missouri, 660.826.8331, toll-free 877.242.9260 or visit www.bgckids.com..
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