Obituary - Grover Cleveland “G. C.” Shores

Grover Cleveland “G. C.” Shores, 80, Peculiar, Missouri, died Wednesday, December 24, 2014 at his home. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Saturday, December 27 at the Atkinson Funeral Home in Harrisonville with visitation from 10:00-11:00 a.m. Burial will be in West Union Cemetery. (A complete obituary will be posted when available).

Obituary - Ronnie Wayne Baskin

Ronnie Wayne Baskin, 50, Peculiar, Missouri, died Monday, December 22, 2014 at his home. Memorial services will be held at 7:00 p.m. Monday, December 29 at the First Baptist Church in Peculiar, with visitation from 5:00-7:00 p.m. (A complete obituary will be posted when available).

Vernon County Sheriffs Office Press Release: Man sets camper on fire while still inside

Camper on fire in Horton

A call of a suicidal subject making threats to family members escalated late Wednesday night when the subject refused to come out of a camper that was next to a residence in the Horton area. According to a press release form the Vernon County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were dispatched to the call around 8:30 Tuesday evening to deal with a subject that was reportedly making threats to family members who were close by. The subject had locked himself in a camper and refused to come out and was reported to have knives and a firearm with him. The subject also told deputies that “the shooting would start” if they tried to come in. Vernon County Sheriff Jason Mosher said a certified hostage negotiator was called out to the scene as well as a Crises Intervention Officer to try and talk to the subject in the camper. The Sheriff said after a couple of hours of attempting to get the subject to come out, the subject yelled that he was going to end it now. The Sheriff said the subject then grew quiet and they could not make contact with him after that. “At that point we could not wait any longer. We didn’t want anyone else getting hurt but we also didn’t want the subject to hurt himself.” The Sheriff said the team then deployed some pepper spray through a window in an attempt to get the subject to come out. It did get him to unlock and open the door but he still refused to come out. The Sheriff said at that point they knew he had not harmed himself yet so they could go back to waiting and talking. Mosher said while deputies again started trying to talk the man into coming out of the camper he yelled he was not going to and then started a fire inside the camper. 

“When we saw the flames we started yelling for him to come out and he refused so we then had to try and go in after him. The Sheriff said during the altercation the subject who was armed with two large knives, threw a knife at deputies when they tried to enter the burning camper, and then started swinging a knife at them after that. The Sheriff did confirm that less lethal ammunition was then used on the subject and the subject was removed from the burning camper.

“This was a critical case where we nearly lost a life, but the training and the use of less lethal ammunition we have made available to the deputies gave them the ability do their job and keep everyone alive.” The Sheriff said the subject was taken to the hospital out of routine for a follow-up but said there was no major injuries to the subject. “We lost a camper to a fire, but they saved a life and that’s what counts” said Mosher.

Vernon County Sheriffs Office Press Release: Christmas for kids with Angel Tree and Sheriff‏

Sheriff calls Angel Tree a “very successful” event:

 Deputy Greg Prough, Sheriff Jason Mosher, Deputy Tycher Blakely just getting ready to feed the children

Christmas for children from the Vernon, Cedar, and Barton County areas was made just a little bit brighter when they received presents, food, and some goodies at the Angel Tree event held at the Church of the Nazarene on Saturday. Angel tree, a prison fellowship ministry, provided Christmas presents with help from the community to children who have a parent in a county jail or prison. But providing them with a gift was not all that was accomplished. When the children arrived, they were greeted by uniformed deputies who each took a child through the line of food that had been cooked by the Sheriff’s Office and helped them fix a plate. The deputies then sat and ate with the children before they received their presents. According to Vernon County Sheriff Jason Mosher, his office decided to combine their Christmas Dinner for Families event with the Angel Tree program after his office was contacted by Angel Tree early in December. “This was a great way to show the children in our community that we are not the bad guys and that we really do care,” said Mosher. 

A deputy giving one of the children a Christmas present during the event

The Sheriff said people from all over the county donated food and money for the event including 54 Café who donated $250 for the purchase of food items and Buzzes BBQ who donated containers for take home meals. “Not only did we have plenty of food for the children and their families who brought them in, but we had lots of food that we were able to send home with them,” said the Sheriff.  Mosher said deputies and their families helped cook the food Saturday morning and they even brought their own children down to eat and play with the other children during the event. The Sheriff is calling this a “very successful” event and hopes to be able to participate again next year. Not only is it an extremely valuable program for these children, but it is a great event that deputies and their families can participate in. Mosher said these kids have all had some type of hardship in their lives, but on that day, each child left with a smile on his or her face.

Obituary - Chad Donaldson

Chad Donaldson

Chad Donaldson, beloved son, brother and friend of Belton, MO, passed away Monday, December 22, 2014 at the age of 36. Chad was born January 7, 1978 in Kansas City, MO. Survivors include his parents; Craig Donaldson (Laura); Jenny Donaldson (Eddie Hite); brother, John Donaldson; uncle, Jerry Muncy (Mary); aunt, Joni Seiffert, many friends and extended family. Visitation will be held on Saturday, December 27, 2014 from 11-12 PM followed by a memorial service at 12:00 PM at Bristol Hill United Methodist Church; 4826 County Line Rd, K.C., KS 66106. 

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to Lakeside Nature Center; 4701 East Gregory Blvd; K.C., MO 64132 in Chad's memory. To share a memory or to leave condolences, please visit www.maplehillfuneralhome.com.

Obituary- Bettie Sue Dines

Funeral Services for Bettie Sue Dines will be held at the First Baptist Church in Appleton City, Missouri on Saturday, December 27, 2014 at 10:00 a.m. The minster will be Reverend Mark Wilkerson.

Visitation will be held at Hill and Son Funeral Home in Appleton City, Missouri on Friday, December 26, 2014 between 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. Interment will be in the Appleton City Cemetery. The family suggest memorial gifts be made to the Appleton City Golden Apples.

Bettie Sue Dines, daughter of Cecil Theodore and Alta Dessie (Miller) Dines was born June 18, 1937 She passed away Monday, December 22, 2014 at Ellett Memorial Hospital in Appleton City, Missouri at the age of 77.

Bettie Sue was born on her grandparents’ farm southeast of Johnson City, Missouri. She remained in the area until she graduated from Appleton City High School in 1955 and went to college at Central Missouri State in Warrensburg, later going to Southwest Baptist College in Bolivar.

Bettie moved to Kansas City, Kansas in 1959 where she worked at Katz Drug, ABC Plumbing and Heating, and Midwestern Builders. After retiring from AMC Theaters in 2004, she moved back to Appleton City, Missouri.

Bettie was a member of First Baptist Church in Appleton City and also a member of Golden Apples, she enjoyed many trips on the OATS bus.

For a number of years, Bettie and her mom liked to create and make all kinds of jellies and breads together for craft shows. They made hundreds of jars of jellies and loaves of breads for these events. Dressed in her long red and white gingham dress, she became known as the “Jelly Lady”. Any of her recipes had something “special”, nothing plain. She also made Barbie and American Girl doll clothes.

Bettie was preceded in death by her parents. Survivors include siblings: Bill Dines, Jerry Dines (Debbie), Sally McSlarrow (Dan), Linda Roush (Charlie), Mike Dines, Andy Dines, Tom Dines (Kathy); numerous nieces and nephews; special friends, Larry Garrett and Dan Bost. She was very fond of her niece and nephew, Tim and Christina. She spent most holidays with them and their three children and also went on many trips with them.

Obituary - Joela N. Dains

Funeral Services for Joela N. Dains 84, of Rockville, Missouri will be held at 2pm on Friday, December 26th at the Hill and Son Funeral Home in Appleton City, Mo.

Visitation will be held on Friday from 12 – 2pm prior to the service at the chapel. Burial will be in the Rockville Cemetery in Rockville. The family suggests contributions to the Rockville Cemetery Association.

Have a happy and safe holiday season

Area residents are reminded of the steps they can take to be proactive against theft this holiday season. Local law enforcement officials remind everyone that taking a few precautions could keep your purchases safe. Officials say never leave packages in plain view in your vehicle. Instead, put packages in the trunk, or simply cover them with a blanket. Law enforcement officials also remind area residents not to leave empty boxes from items outside, where everyone can see them. If possible, break the boxes down, or dispose of them in another manner. 

Officials also say not to post holiday travel plans on social media sites, as this allows criminals to know when the residence will be left unattended. 

If you see anything suspicious this holiday season, call your local law enforcement to report the activity.