BCMH Press Release: New Physician Assistant at Family Care Clinics

Bates County Memorial Hospital (BCMH) is pleased to announce Abigayle McGrew, PA-C has joined the staff of Family Care Clinics. Abby sees patients in collaboration with Dr. James Patterson at High Street Family Care Clinic in Butler, Mo.

“Growing up [in Butler], I enjoyed being a part of a small-town community and knew I wanted to spend my life here,” Abby said. Early in her high school career she also knew she wanted to go into medicine, and her ultimate goal was to practice in a rural community. She discovered the physician assistant (PA) profession while shadowing and observed how PAs were fluid among specialties and worked closely with physicians as part of a team.

Abby graduated from Missouri State University in 2019 with a Master’s of Science in Physician Assistant Studies. While she was completing her studies, she worked in the laboratory at BCMH. She also gained experience working as a PA in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery as well as a rural walk-in clinic in El Dorado Springs. Abby is board certified through the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants.

“I am thankful to come back home to serve my community as a PA,” Abby said. “As a provider, I enjoy taking care of patients of all ages and backgrounds. I believe in shared decision making between provider and patient to ensure the plan we come up with is the best for all involved. I work to always improve my knowledge and skills to ensure that the people I am caring for are receiving the best care that I can provide. I am thankful to be a part of the BCMH team and give back to the community that helped shape who I am and get me to where I am today.”

Abby and her husband Daniel live just outside of Butler and are expecting their first child in June. They look forward to raising their daughter where they both grew up. Learn more by visiting https://www.bcmhospital.com/clinics/family-care-clinics/ or call Family Care Clinics, rural health clinics of BCMH, at 660-200-3627.

Obituary - Brandon Michael Boyd

Brandon Michael Boyd, age 29, of Belton, Missouri, passed away on Monday, April 3, 2023.

Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, April 11, 2023 at Cullen Funeral Home, 612 W. Foxwood Dr. Raymore, Missouri 64083. Visitation will begin at 4:00 p.m. followed by a funeral service at 5:00 p.m.

Brandon was born in Fort Worth, Texas on April 30, 1993.

Brandon attended college at Eastern Gateway Community College where he was part of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and a sorority member of Gamma Sigma Alpha with a perfect 4.0gpa. His future plans included becoming an engineer. He was excelling in his career as an inspector at Honeywell in the Kansas City area.

Brandon was joined in marriage with his wife, Amanda, on September 12, 2012 in Windsor, Missouri. Brandon loved to take Amanda out to Dave & Busters or axe throwing, or any other fun adventure. In life, he very much enjoyed playing with his dog Rosie, playing video games (especially Minecraft) with his boys and Call of Duty, and had a passion for the fish tank at home that he spent years putting together.

Brandon and Amanda had three beautiful children whom Brandon loved and adored.

Brandon was preceded in death by his mother, Brenda Boyd; and two infant twins who passed at 12 weeks gestation that he always believed were a boy and girl who he named James and Abigail.

He is survived by his wife, Amanda Boyd; sons, Ethan, Corbin, and Dylan Boyd; father and stepmother, Seth and Penny Boyd; sister, Tara Endsley (Michael) and their daughters Taylor and Ragen; mother-in-law, June McGuire (Michael); sister-in-law, Rebekah Silver (Asa) and their children, Asher and Aiden; brother-in-law, Jeremy Ruff; brother-in-law, Jacob Ruff and his children, Hannah and Jackson; as well as many friends.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be given to Brandon’s family at the following link: https://gofund.me/3ac337ec

Arrangements: Cullen Funeral Home, Raymore, Missouri 816.322.5278

MDC congratulates a young hunter who harvested an all-white wild turkey

Kansas City, Mo. – Turkey hunters tell stories, and Chayson Emmons has one worthy of a lifetime. Emmons, 7, harvested his first wild turkey on April 1 during the Spring Youth Season, and the gobbler was all white, rather than the usual black with a touch of brown.

The young hunter from Blue Springs shot the turkey with help from his father and a friend at the Missouri Department of Conservation's (MDC) Settle’s Ford Conservation Area south of Kansas City.

“I saw something white moving across a field, and I thought, is that a cat?” said David Emmons, the hunter’s father. When he realized it was a turkey, he helped Chayson get ready to shoot with his .410 shotgun.

Their hunting buddy, Justin Youngblood, was hidden 10 yards behind and giving hen turkey calls. The white turkey gobbled back at the calls a few times. When it got close, Chayson fired, and the turkey dropped. Chayson was excited that he had bagged a turkey. His guides were amazed.

“We were looking at it, and we were stunned,” David Emmons said. “I’ve got it at the taxidermist now.”

Nick Oakley, MDC scientist and wild turkey management biologist, viewed photos of the bird and determined that it was a wild turkey, not an escaped domestic turkey. The turkey had a leucism condition. Its feathers were all white, but it was not an albino. The black beard and smaller size of the waddles and rough scales on the leg are in line with a wild bird.

“All-white leucistic birds are extremely rare, only one or two are reported each year or two,” Oakley said. “The white coloration is caused by a lack of pigmentation in the feathers due to a genetic condition.”

MDC staff have seen this bird and a few other white turkeys at Settles Ford in past years. Besides the leucistic condition being unusual, an all-white coloration makes it harder for wildlife to evade predators.

“The survival rate for young turkeys (poults) is already low,” Oakley said. “But being all white would certainly make it more difficult to evade predation."

On a day of firsts, Cass County Agent Landon Leonard in his first year of MDC service visited with the successful hunters. To help them celebrate, he issued Chayson a Sonic Drive-In citation, given to youths for kids caught practicing good behaviors in the outdoors, good for a free ice cream cone.

Chayson said that after he shot, he worried that it was a white duck. But then the hunters approached it and saw the black beard of an adult gobbler.

His first thought was “Oh my goodness,” he said about the excitement. “I thought, I may never see that again.”

El Dorado Springs High School names new basketball head coach

On behalf of the El Dorado Springs School Board and High School, we would like to introduce our new High School Boys' Basketball Head Coach, David Rogers. David has been part of the district for the past two school years and is married to HS Volleyball Coach, Ashley Rogers. David has two boys, Colt (5th) and Dawson (K).

David is originally from Montana and met Ashley while working at Stockton R-1 School District. He is currently in his 14th year of education and 17th year of coaching. He has spent time teaching in Buffalo, Stockton, and Clinton School Districts.

David has coached multiple sports throughout his tenure and has basketball head coaching experience at Clinton High School, where most recently he coached their girls to 21-5 record and a conference championship in 2021.

Coach Rogers states, "I am extremely excited and grateful for this opportunity to lead this program. I am looking forward to opportunities we will have and to help these young men grow on and off the court. I am excited about the future and the great things to come. Go Bulldogs!"

Congratulations and welcome Coach Rogers!

78 year old Pleasant Hill woman arrested for bank robbery

On Wednesday, April 5, 2023, at approximately 3:20 pm, Pleasant Hill Officers were dispatched to Goppert Financial Bank, 2100 N. Hwy 7, Pleasant Hill, in reference to a robbery in progress.

While responding to the scene, officers were provided with a description of the suspect and the suspect vehicle. 

Officers were able to locate the suspect vehicle traveling south on Hwy 7 near the area of Timber Street. Officers conducted a traffic stop of the vehicle and took the female driver into custody.

The suspect, a 78-year-old Pleasant Hill woman, was taken into custody without incident and is in custody pending formal charges. A search warrant was served on the suspect vehicle where evidence linking the woman to the bank robbery was located.

Chief Wright commends the officers for their heads-up police work and to the bank staff for following their safety protocols and providing a great suspect/vehicle description.

At this time there is no further information to be released. The suspect’s identity will be released once charges are issued.

Update:

https://www.midamericalive.com/2023/04/update-78-year-old-pleasant-hill-woman.html

Way to go Madison and Benjamin

Congratulations to Madison Wilson, Appleton City High School and Benjamin Tucker, Clinton High School for being selected to attend the Cooperative Youth Conference and Leadership Experience (CYCLE) in Jefferson City.

They were selected as finalists in Osage Valley's Youth Tour Essay contest and will attend this action-filled three day event in July.

The conference provides high school students from across the state of Missouri opportunities to learn first-hand about state government, the cooperative form of business and being a leader.

Obituary - John Henry Litle

John Henry Litle age 90 of Garden City, Missouri formerly of Harrisonville, Missouri departed this life Tuesday, April 4, 2023 at his home surrounded with family and love.

Funeral services will be held Saturday, April 8, 2023 at 3:00 p.m. at the Antioch Southern Baptist Church, Harrisonville, Missouri. Burial will be in the Garden City Cemetery, Garden City, Missouri.

The family will receive friends Friday, April 7, 2023 from 6:00p.m. - 8:00 p.m. at the Dickey Funeral Home, Harrisonville, Missouri.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Antioch Southern Baptist Church Memorial Fund and may be sent in care of Dickey Funeral Home, P.O. Box, Harrisonville, Missouri.

A complete obituary will be posted here as soon as that information becomes available.

Way to go!

Osage Valley Electric Cooperative would like congratulations to Case Melzer, Harrisonville High School and Izetta Person, Rich Hill R-IV School District for being selected to attend the Washington DC Youth Tour. 

Case and Izetta were selected as finalists in Osage Valley's Youth Tour Essay Contest and will spend a week touring monuments and museums, visiting legislators, and hearing from some great motivational speakers while meeting other Youth Tour students from across Missouri and the US.