Local News – Friday, May 20th, 2022
The 137th Graduation Ceremonies of the Salem R-80 High School will be held this evening at 7:00 at the Salem High School Football Field. After the procession of 139 graduating students, the National Anthem will be performed by the chamber choir. Assistant Principal Tori Snitker will then present the Senior Class Citizenship Award, the Best All-Around Boy and Girl Award, and students who earned the Missouri Seal of Biliteracy. Principal Marty Anderson will introduce five Salutatorians: Shanna Hawkins, Faith Pace, Dylan Seabaugh, Lesley Myree Steinbarger and Lori Terrill. Principal Anderson will also present the nine Valedictorians: Lizbeth Blanco, Andrea Bray, Emily Cloud, Jaden Flores, Collin Heavin, Brooke Plank, Makayla Raether, Sierra Rusco and Denise Stoner. Anderson will recognize the A Plus students, students who are entering the military, as well as those entering the work force and going to college. Diplomas will then be awarded to the Class of 2022 students followed by the recessional. The graduation exercises will be streamed live on KSMO Media which includes on Twitch, the KSMO Stream Facebook page and on KSMO’s YouTube page. These are all accessible by going to the KSMO Radio website and clicking on the button on the KSMO Homepage. A direct link to the Salem R-80 Graduation Exercises has been put on the Salem R-80 web site homepage at www.salemr80.org that will stream on Twitch. There is NO charge to stream the services.
The Dent County Commission met for their regular meeting Thursday morning at the courthouse. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley was absent due to prior commitments. During public comment Bob Parsons, on behalf of the Dent County Junior Livestock Committee, asked if the county would haul approximately 10 loads of chips to The Commons for the 4-H/FFA Expo July 13th to 16th. The Commission agreed to the request. In the road report District One Commissioner Wes Mobray said that weather permitting grading would be done on Dent County Roads 5510 and 6250, while rock would be added, and grading would be done on county roads 5170 and 6460. He also noted that brush would be cut on county road 2470. District Two Commissioner Gary Larson echoed Mobray’s comments about weather permitting as he reported that grading would be done on Dent County Roads 2220, 2320, 2540, 2500, and some of 2150, plus materials would be added to county roads 2120 and 2150. Larson went on to say that brush would be cut on county road 4330, plus his district has finished the Conservation Rock application. He said the total for rock was about $15,000 and he was completing the notification letter and mailing it to MDC. Presiding Commissioner Darrell Skiles reported that the June 8th meeting with the Administration Commission on the sales tax withholding issue has been continued at the request of Department of Revenue. He said that the county was agreed with the postponement, and it may not be needed at all. Dent County Treasurer Denita Williams was in with the CART receipts for May. She said that $68,287.13 was received, which was up by $1009.48 when compared to May of 2021. She said that year-to-date CART receipts are up $23,628.90 or 8.27%. The next meeting of the commission will be Monday morning at 9:00 and the meeting is open to the public.
The Missouri Department of Conservation encourages Missouri hunters to apply for elk-hunting in May. MDC will offer five permits to hunt bull elk in Missouri this fall with at least one permit allocated for qualifying area landowners and the remaining permits for the general public. Only Missouri residents who will be at least 11 years of age by the first day of the hunt for which they are applying are eligible to apply for elk and bear permits during the application period of May 1st through the 31st. All permits will be assigned through a random drawing. For elk hunting, MDC has designated a nine-day archery portion running October 15th through the 23rd and a nine-day firearms portion running December 10th through the 18th. The five permits will be for bull elk and will be valid for both portions. MDC will require a $10 application fee for elk-permit applicants. Those selected will then be eligible to buy a permit at a cost of $50. All elk-hunting permits, including those allocated to approved area landowners, can be used on public or private property in Carter, Reynolds, and Shannon counties, except the refuge portion of Peck Ranch Conservation Area. The allowed hunting methods for each season portion will be the same as for deer hunting. The permits will allow for the harvest of one bull elk with at least one antler being six inches or greater in length. Apply for the elk-permit random drawing by May 31st online at mdc.mo.gov/buypermits, through MDC’s free MO Hunting app, through a permit vendor, or by calling 1-800-392-4115. Results of the elk-permit random drawing will be available online by July 1st.
The Salem Acoustic Jam will be held this Saturday at the Creative Arts Center at 6:30 due to the Memorial Day Holiday weekend next week. Come on out, bring your instrument and join in, or just come to listen to the music and tap your feet. All types of music are played, and whether you are a beginner or seasoned pro, everyone is welcome to participate and there is NO CHARGE to attend.