Greetings, friends... We start this message as our Mom did in her first article for the Joplin Independent almost 15 years ago and we imagine she would have wanted nothing more than to still be ...more

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Terry Osborne of Neosho, a legal nurse consultant, will be joining a 20 member task force responsible for recommending a statewide system for identification, intervention, and delivery of support ...more

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Dr. Ashley Broce, pictured, a southwest Missouri native who specializes in internal medicine, recently joined Freeman Primary Care at Webb City Neighborhood Care. She will work alongside Dr. Heath ...more

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The Missouri Association of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons (MAOPS) recently named Dr. Larry McIntire, pictured, Freeman Ear, Nose and Throat Program Director, Physician of the Year at the ...more

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Dr. Kerry Sachetta has been named the new assistant superintendent of operations and Brandon Webb has been named human resources director, according to an announcement from Joplin Schools. Both ...more

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Local resident Emma Frogge, pictured, has joined the United Way as the director of Success by 6. She brings experience fundraising and networking in the Joplin business community along with a ...more

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Local women were honored recently at the Annual Awards Banquet of Soroptimist International (SI) of Joplin. The Live Your Dream Awards were presented to two women who are primary wage earners for ...more

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Jo Mueller of Joplin, executive director of the George A. Spiva Center for the Arts until her recent retirement, has been selected to receive the Leadership in the Arts award from the Missouri Arts ...more

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James Karl Lipscomb of Joplin has been selected as the artist who will create the fourth project in the Art in Public Places Project sponsored by the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce (JACC). The ...more

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Joplin Council Member Melodee Colbert-Kean has been chosen president of the National League of Cities. She will assume the role at the annual Congress of Cities and Exposition that currently is ...more

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Patrick McKenna, pictured, the recent deputy commissioner for the New Hampshire Department of Transportation, has been named the new MoDOT director. He will take office on December 7, 2015, ...more

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Working on a new album release with Boxcar Willie Jr., pictured at left, is artist/producer Gary Smith, pictured at right, of Nottingham Studios in Springfield. Containing mostly original music, the ...more

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Dr. Charles Curtis, a mathematics professor, and Terry Marion, professor of business administration and management, were presented the Outstanding Teacher awards during the Fall 2015 faculty meeting ...more

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Jade Morgan of Lamar, an agriculture student at Crowder College in Neosho, was one of four Missouri students to be part of a larger national group to participate in the 2015 New Century Farmer ...more

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The Board of Directors of the George A. Spiva Center for the Arts is forming a search committee after the announcement by Jo Mueller's retirement as director, effective September 19, 2015. "Since ...more

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DETROIT The American Civil Liberties Union announced a settlement in its lawsuit filed on behalf of Shoshana Hebshi, a mother of two who was pulled off an airplane at gunpoint, arrested, ...more

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Chris Cotten, pictured, director of the Joplin Parks and Recreation, has announced that he has accepted a similar position with the city of Normal, Illinois. He will stay in Joplin until the ...more

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Laurel McKean, pictured, a 19-year veteran, has been named assistant district engineer for the Missouri Department of Transportation's southwest district, including the counties of Jasper, ...more

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DR. AL CADE (1960-2015) Joplin Missouri Southern State University recently lost a longtime faculty member, senior administrator and good friend with the death of Dr. Alfred R. Cade, dean of the ...more

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YOKOSUKA, Japan A 2012 Warsaw High School graduate and Joplin native is serving aboard the U.S. Navy destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62), living and working at the Navys forward-deployed base south of ...more

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James Furgerson, pictured, has been named fire chief, according to an announcement by Joplin City Manager Sam Anselm. He had been serving as interim fire chief since Mitch Randles retirement in ...more

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Jeanine Poe, Maple Leaf Festival committee chair, is shown with Bill Barksdale, recently selected as the 2014 Maple Leaf Grand Marshal. CARTHAGE The Maple Leaf committee has selected Bill ...more

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Mr. and Mrs. Jack L. Kennedy of Pittsburg, pictured, will mark their 50th wedding anniversary on August 8, 2014. They were married August 8, 1964, at St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Pittsburg, ...more

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Geoffrey Kunkler, pictured, a Joplin native, has become the new studio manager of Phoenix Fired Art. He returns to his home town accompanied by his wife Tiffany who finished her Master of Fine ...more

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Family medicine physician Joel Kraft, M.D., pictured, has been welcomed by INTEGRIS Grove Hospital after being its chief resident. He joins the practice of Kyle Schauf, MD. and will begin seeing ...more

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Joni Houghton of Neosho, pictured, has been named the new University of Missouri Extension education program assistant for Newton County. A career 4-H member, Houghton was hired to develop and ...more

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Laela Zaidi, pictured, was awarded Missouris Young Democrat of the Year. The presentation by Doug Brooks, chairman of the 32nd Democratic Senatorial District, took place at the Jefferson Jackson ...more

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Exposure to the legislative process at a young age can either turn you off or really get its hooks into you, according to Aaron Deslatte, pictured. For him, it was the latter. A former ...more

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Nancy Good of Joplin, pictured, will be presented the Drum Major for Service Award, the highest honor offered by the Corporation for National and Community Service. The presentation will take place ...more

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Joplin People tend to be particular about the beer that they drink, says Dr. Charles Yeager, pictured, an assistant professor of geography at Missouri Southern State University who admits to ...more

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Donna Whitehead has been named the executive director of the Wildcat Glades Conservation & Audubon Center by the center's board of directors. Whitehead, the center's former business manager, served ...more

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Karen Fink, pictured, agriculture division administrative assistant at Crowder College, recently was elected to the Missouri Community College Association Board of Directors at the MCCA annual ...more

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Wanda Sue Billingsly, pictured, former director of the Missouri Southern Foundation, died Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2013, in Joplin. Mrs. Billingsly, 89, was the widow of the late Dr. Leon Billingsly, ...more

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Ike Skelton, pictured, a Democratic congressman from Missouri who was ousted in 2010 by Tea Partyer Vicky Hartzler after serving his district for more than 30 years, died on Monday, Oct. 28, ...more

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Nicholas (Nick) Heatherly, P.E., C.F.M., pictured, has been hired as the public works director for Joplin, according to an announcement by Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr. He will start on October ...more

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Happy Birthday, Bob Dole Kansans love Bob Dole. We are drawn to his humor. We know him from his presidential campaign, for his work on behalf of the disabled. Many more still know him for his ...more

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Staff Sergeant (SSG) Michael Byers, a local soldier from Diamond will receive the Soldiers Medal for life saving heroics during an EF5 tornado that struck Joplin on May, 2011. The Soldiers Medal is ...more

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Olive Sullivan, pictured, of Pittsburg, Kansas, an assistant professor of communications at Missouri Southern State University-Joplin, has a poem included in one of the 15 books chosen for the ...more

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WASHINGTON, DC A ceremony took place at the White House to award the Medal of Honor, the nations highest military award for bravery, to Father Emil Kapaun, pictured, a Kansas priest who served in ...more

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Longtime Missouri Southern State University professor Terry Marion, pictured, is the recipient of the 2013 Governor's Award for Excellence in Education. He will receive the award on April 3, 2013 ...more

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WASHINGTON D.C. U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO) announced recently that he will serve as the Ranking Member of the Commerce Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, ...more

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In view of the horrific accident that recently occurred on Interstate 44, it is always good to hear that people were saved from potentially life-threatening injury thanks to a Good ...more

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Russ Lewis, pictured, has been appointed curator of The Dr. Michael J. Clarke Museum of Ozarks Scouting, according to an announcement by Dr. Clarke. Lewis had formerly served as a cabinet ...more

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Linda Knodel, pictured, vice president and chief nursing officer of Mercy's Springfield, Missouri region, was named president-elect of the American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE) for ...more

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JOPLIN The Missouri Southern State University community reacted with sadness today to news of the death of Chuck Surface, pictured, a presiding member of the MSSU Board of Governors and veteran ...more

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Staff and students in Dr. Scott Cragin's marketing strategy class at Missouri Southern State University-Joplin are shown gathered around Andy Williams while working on a project involving the now ...more

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Nothing like the spirit of youth to knock on 9500 doors and still smile about it. Although running unopposed in the August primary, Democratic candidate James M. Owen says he was able to garner over ...more

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(Photo courtesy of Gera Irwin, Creative Lifetime Memories) Savana Quinn Smith, 11, pictured, the daughter of Kirstie and Brady Smith, will attend the Junior National Young Leaders Conference in ...more

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Community volunteer JoAnna Derfelt, pictured, has been named to the Board of Directors for Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland. She is an attorney with the Derfelt Law Office and assistant ...more

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JOPLIN Michelle Dimza, pictured, of St. Louis has been named Outstanding Graduate by the Missouri Southern Alumni Association. The award was formally announced at the Honors Convocation on April ...more

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Lamar - Former Missouri Representative Ed Emery has announced his candidacy for Missouri State Senate in the newly formed 31st District comprising Barton, Bates, Cass, Henry and Vernon ...more

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UPDATE: Jospeh Newman, the president of the ProMusica Board of Directors, released the following news today (Mar. 28, 2012): "As of March 22, 2012, Kelli Clevenger will no longer be acting as ...more

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Rudy Farber of Neosho and Grace Nichols of St. Charles switched roles as Farber took on the position of chair of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission. "I want to thank Grace for her ...more

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Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas received international attention even before it opened last November, but it is only the most recent example of Alice Waltons influence ...more

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Dr. Glenn Coltharp, pictured, has been chosen as the new Crowder College vice president of academic affairs, according to an announcement by Dr. Alan Marble, Crowder president. His selection was ...more

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Dr. John Groesbeck, pictured, has been named Dean of the Robert W. Plaster School of Business Administration at Missouri Southern State University-Joplin, according to an announcement made today by ...more

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Dr. Todd Redfearn, pictured, a chiropractor from McKinney, Texas, has joined the team at the Carlson Chiropractic Center, according to an announcement by Melissa Miller, spokesperson for the ...more

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NEOSHO - Graduating with a 4.0 grade point average is a big accomplishment, and completing the nursing program at Crowder College with a 4.0 is what Denisa Simpson, pictured, a December 2011 ...more

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Dave Woods, pictured, market development manager for The Joplin Globe and JoplinGlobe.com, will attend the Maynard Institute for Journalism Education's Media Academy. It will be held January 9-14 ...more

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Local videographer Dustin Lattimer, pictured, a Joplin native, has joined the Sunrise Media Group, Inc. as the firm's production associate. He will be assisting with video and audio production ...more

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Cary McKee, has been named the new director of Church Army Branson, according to a release by their board of directors. The appointment was made October 28, 2011, and follows the resignation of Steve ...more

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Craig A.Tankersley of Webb City, pictured, has rejoined the staff of Southwest Missouri Bank (SMB). He will be a vice president/lender at the 32nd and Indiana branch. Tankersley, 40, got his ...more

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The Joplin High School Marching Band will perform tonight at the home of Joplin Police officer Gabe Allen. Allen was chosen as a weather channel "Epic Christmas" hero and will receive a holiday home ...more

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Lynn Whaley Vogel of St. Louis, pictured, has been elected president of The Missouri Bar for 2011-2012. Her selection to lead the 30,000-member organization recently was made during the 130th ...more

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Kate Massey has been named executive director of Rebuild Joplin, according to an announcement by Kim Vann, executive director of Bright Futures of which Rebuild Joplin is an initiative. Massey will ...more

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JOPLIN - Missouri Southern State University Vice President for Development and Executive Director of the Missouri Southern Foundation Dr. Mark Parsons has accepted the position of vice chancellor for ...more

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Heartland Crime Stoppers is asking for help in locating Bobby J. Bennett and James P. Jones. Bennett is a DWI-Alcohol-Aggravated Offender and Jones is wanted for theft and two counts of 1st Degree ...more

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Blake Mertens, general manager of energy supply at Empire District Electric Company, will join the board of directors for the Wildcat Glades Conservation & Audubon Center beginning March 2011. A ...more

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James Berglund, a graduate student at Missouri State University in Springfield, was presented a check for a $10,000 fellowship today (Feb. 16, 2011) by the Missouri Department of Transportation ...more

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Bishop James V. Johnston has announced that Fr. Frederick J. Lutz, pastor of St. Mary's parish in Lamar, has been granted his request for retirement from the responsibilities of active ministry as a ...more

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Don Emge has announced that he will be stepping down as executive director of Catholic Charities of Southern Missouri, effective February 28, 2011. Emge has served as executive director since the ...more

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Ardina Moore of Miami, Oklahoma, pictured, chairperson of the Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma Cultural Committee, is one of eight women who will be inducted into the Oklahoma Womens Hall Of Fame on April ...more

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George Washington Carver National Monument is pleased to announce that George Washington Carver Birthplace Association (CBA) has selected Krista L. Stark as their new director and development ...more

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The Joplin Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) has announced the hiring of a director of sales. Lenny Brubaker, pictured, assumed the role last September. Brubaker's previous experience ...more

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MITCH RANDLES, JOPLIN'S NEW FIRE CHIEF City Manager Mark Rohr announced recently that Mitch Randles has been selected as the Joplin Fire Chief. Randles will assume this position immediately. He ...more

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JOPLIN - Brenda K. Barger-Saunders of Joplin, pictured, is one of the recipients of The Pearson Prize For Higher Education. A respiratory therapy major at Missouri Southern State University, she ...more

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Carthage Timothy T.J. Teed (pictured), a councilman for the city of Carthage, officially will be announcing his candidacy for Jasper County Presiding Commissioner. The event will take place on the ...more

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Springfield - The Progressive Party of Missouri recently announced that they were not able to accumulate the 10,000 valid petition signatures necessary for an unrecognized party to get placed on the ...more

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JEFFERSON CITY - St. Louis attorney Kenneth H. Suelthaus was sworn in recently as the newest member of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission. Suelthaus took the commission oath from ...more

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JOPLIN - Judy Stiles, pictured, general manager of KGCS-TV at Missouri Southern State University, is among the 15 most influential women of 2010, according to an announcement by the Joplin ...more

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Joplin Area Catholic Schools (JACS) has announced the appointment of Renee Motazedi, pictured, as their development director. She begins her official duties July 1, 2010 after having been interim ...more

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Lisa Walser, pictured, a native of Miami, OK, has become the new community relations coordinator for the Independent Living Center, a private, not-for-profit corporation devoted to meeting the ...more

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Kerstin Landwer of Joplin, pictured, is the new executive director of development of the Greater Ozarks Chapter of the American Red Cross, Joplin office. With more than 12 years of service at ...more

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Ezekiel "Zeke" Tarrant, senior biology and biochemistry major from Joplin, has been appointed by Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon as the new student representative to the Board of Governors at Missouri ...more

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WASHINGTON Jason Klumb of Kansas City today (Feb. 24, 2010) takes over as the regional administrator of the General Service Administration's Heartland Region, one of 11 regional divisions ...more

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JOPLIN - Dr. Delores Honey, pictured at left, assistant vice president for assessment and institutional research at Missouri Southern State University, was recently presented the 2009 ATHENA Award ...more

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Lynne Duffield of Joplin, pictured left, a junior nursing major at Missouri Southern State University, will receive a $2,000 Missouri League of Nursing scholarship. Dr. Mari Beth Linder, head ...more

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Adam Roy, 18, pictured left, a member of Boy Scout Troop 10 of Joplin, was cited recently at an Eagle Scout Court of Honor held at the First Presbyterian Church of Joplin. Only two percent of the ...more

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Don Emge, a native of St. Paul, MO (correction made), has accepted the position of Director of Catholic Charities of Southern Missouri. The announcement was made by Ray McMenamy, president of the ...more

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When Jennifer Youngs, pictured, soprano and mother of four, sang as Clorinda in La Cenerentola at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., she was five months pregnant. "My son Noah kicked every ...more

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Dr. Jerry Williams of Joplin, pictured left, assistant vice president for lifelong learning at Missouri Southern State University, was elected president of the Missouri Distance Learning ...more

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Rudy Farber of Neosho became vice-chairman of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission, the governing board that oversees MoDot, after the seat was vacated by David Gach of St. Joseph. ...more

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Hampton Williams of Carthage, pictured right, the son of Thomas L. and the Honorable M. Keithley Williams will be following in his parents' footsteps. In August he will attend the University of ...more

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Missouri Progressive Party co-chair Midge Potts, at left, is shown with US Senator Claire McCaskill, a Democrat who successfully campaigned to break the chain of Republican victories by defeating ...more

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Oxford Hospice announces the addition of Rev. Dr. Bill Christman, pictured, as hospice chaplain, with responsibility for meeting the spiritual-care needs of patients and families facing ...more

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After 34 years of service, Richard Taylor, pictured, has retired from TAMKOs High Street manufacturing facility in Joplin. Richard has been a valuable member of the TAMKO team for many years, ...more

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Patricia A. Brock Loveland, pictured left, is the new municipal court judge, according to an announcement by the city of Neosho. She replaces Judge Dwight Douglas who is retiring. A lawyer ...more

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Charlie Davis of Webb city recently has declared himself a Republican candidate for the House of Representatives 128th district seat in 2010. With him, at left, is US Representative Roy Blunt ...more

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Rebecca Reddin, pictured here in Hong Kong, is not a stranger to the Orient. Joplin native Rebecca Reddin will be spending the next few months in China as part of a program at Truman State ...more

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Andy Roughton, pictured at right, has been appointed to the position of fire marshal according to an announcement by Joplin Fire Chief Gary Trulson. Roughton, previously a captain in the fire ...more

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JOPLIN - Anna Buckley of Neosho, pictured at right, a senior music performance/German major at Missouri Southern State University recently was invited to perform a keyboard part for a series of ...more

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JEFFERSON CITY - Gov. Matt Blunt recently announced appointments of members who will serve on several boards, commissions and councils. Among them several are from Joplin. Allen R. Shirley (R), ...more

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CRIME STOPPERS is asking for help in locating George Hill, pictured above. Hill is wanted on a US Marshall's warrant for a probation violation. He originally was on supervision for felon in ...more

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JOPLIN - Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt has appointed Ivy Love, pictured, senior French and Spanish major from Greenfield, as the new student representative to the Board of Governors at Missouri Southern ...more

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Paula F. Baker, CEO of the Ozark Center, is one of 13 civilians who, subject to Senate confirmation, will join several Missouri government representatives on a 24-member commission that will meet to ...more

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Phillip W. McClendon, pictured left, a senior pastor at Calvary Baptist Church in Joplin, has been reappointed to the Mental Health Commission by Gov. Matt Blunt. His new term will end on June 28, ...more

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Edward J. Hershewe, at left, is with outgoing MATA President Grant Davis after becoming the recipient of the Thomas G. Strong Award. It was presented to him at the 50th Annual Convention Banquet on ...more

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The Joplin Police Department announced that Corporal Gabe Allen received the Medal of Valor from the North American Police Work Dog Association during their annual national conference in Indianapolis ...more

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Missouri State Treasurer Sarah Steelman, pictured at right, visited the Life Choices Clinic in Joplin today to launch her campaign for the Republican slot for governor and to promote her "Life Is ...more

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(Photo compliments of www.walterbargen.com) JEFFERSON CITY - Gov. Matt Blunt today appointed Walter Bargen, pictured at left, as the state's first official Missouri Poet Laureate. Through executive ...more

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JEFFERSON CITY - Gov. Matt Blunt recently announced that Omar Davis will head the Department of Revenue and Todd Smith will replace him as the director of the Department of Labor and Industrial ...more

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An attorney at Lathrop & Gage, LC of Springfield has been appointed circuit judge for the 31st Judicial Circuit. Gov. Matt Blunt chose Michael J. Cordonnier, 50, to fill the opening created by the ...more

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JEFFERSON CITY - Based upon the unanimous recommendation of the Missouri Probation and Parole Board, Gov. Matt Blunt recently announced his decision to pardon Alicia Allison-Brown, Jesse Barnes, ...more

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Lonny Chapman, pictured remember-when, who went from Joplin to become a stage and screen actor and North Hollywood repertory theatre founder and artistic director, has died. He was 87. The Los ...more

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Bessie Mae Presley1923-2007 Bessie Mae Presley, 84, of Branson, passed away peacefully at Skaggs Community Health Center on Sunday, Aug. 12, 2007. The matriarch of Branson’s nationally ...more

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NEOSHO - Gov. Matt Blunt today announced Rudolph (Rudy) E. Farber (R) of Neosho will serve on the State Highway and Transportation Commission, marking the first time ever a Newton County resident ...more

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It was around two oclock in the morning. Missouri Southern State University alumnus T. Crowe (Terry) Semler was having problems with the thesis he was writing for his master's degree at the ...more

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