Report from the Bates County Commission

December 10, 2025 The Bates County Commission met with Presiding Commissioner Jim Wheatley, Northern Commissioner John Gray and Southern Commissioner Trent Nelson present.
The Commissioners sat down to discuss Patricia Pike stepping down from the Bates County Senior Services Board, effective immediately. John made the motion to appoint Annette Schwander to the board to finish out the two-year term. Trent seconded the motion. All were in favor. Motion carried. No
opposition.

December 15, 2025 The Bates County Commission met with Presiding Commissioner Jim Wheatley, Northern Commissioner John Gray and Southern Commissioner Trent Nelson present.
Judge Julie Highley met with the Commissioners to confirm where invoices should be sent and discuss corrections that are suggested to be made to the Opioid Applications.
Trent made a motion to pay Linda Howard for the Employee Meeting Dinner. Jim seconded the motion. John was absent at the time of discussion. All were in favor. Motion passed. No opposition.
Trent also made a motion to pay the Township Cart Funding. Jim seconded the motion. John was absent at the time of discussion. All were in favor. Motion passed. No opposition.
Kyle Osborn, with Fountain City Tinting, met with the Commissioners to discuss darker windows in the courthouse. There have been a few complaints about light and heat coming through the windows during work hours. While discussing which tint they felt was best, Trent suggested that Gary and Kyle get the opinions of the ones that are dealing with the issue. Gary took Kyle to the courthouse to gather the opinions of the workers, and it was decided that they were going to go with a 5% tint on the windows.
Trent made a motion to accept the proposal from Federal Protection regarding the Security Cameras involving the Court House. They will be moving the cameras on the interior and adding an updated camera to the Court Room, as well as three new exterior cameras. John seconded the motion. All were in favor. Motion carried. No opposition.
Jacob and Caitlyn Lacy, with KW Southland Partners, came in to discuss a title issue on 80 acres outside of Adrian. Coffelt Land and Title deeded out and split up the 80 acres backwards and each 40 acres is now in the wrong party’s name. Caitlyn and Jacob wanted to make sure that their client with one 40-acre half would not get stuck with late fees or penalties since this is not their fault, when it comes to owing/paying property tax. They are working with the Assessor’s Office and the responsible parties to try and get this error corrected.

Gusty winds ahead

Obituary - Alice Cummings

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Alice Annette Cummings, who departed this world peacefully at the age of 86, at St. Luke's East in Lee's Summit, Missouri. A graveside service will be held on Tuesday, December 23, 2025, at 11:30 AM at Freeman Cemetery in Freeman, MO. Prior to the service, family and friends are invited to gather for visitation at Atkinson Funeral Home in Harrisonville from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM. Memorial contributions are suggested to Harrisonville Animal Shelter.

A complete obituary will be posted when it is available.

Rich Hill Senior Spotlight Jaiden Rivera

 

Miami County Wanted Wednesday

 

Community Food Pantry volunteer spotlight Sue Creech

December Volunteer Spotlight

This month we are shining the spotlight on volunteer Sue Creech! Sue is from Appleton City and has been a volunteer with the Community Food Pantry of Butler for over 6 years. She currently volunteers as a shopper, helping to select and pack orders for our neighbors when they visit us, making sure they get a variety of food to help get them through each month.

A note written by Sue herself:

Outside of volunteering at the food pantry, I volunteer at my niece's daycare and also at the daycare in Appleton City, MO. I help with my grandchildren. Volunteering at the food pantry gives me a reason to get up and keep moving. My favorite part of volunteering here is shopping for the clients and knowing that they are appreciative of what they receive. It might surprise people how much that is needed, the number of clients the pantry serves each month, and that by volunteering, the pantry is able to purchase more food for clients. By volunteering, I realize how blessed I am. The Bates County food pantry does a good job of giving nutritious food to their clients.

We are so thankful and glad to have Sue on our volunteer team, she is a great lady and an awesome volunteer. We are so lucky to have her assistance every week, helping us combat food insecurity in our community. Sue, you are awesome!

Reward upped in cattle death investigation

 

We are issuing this update regarding the cattle deaths in the Walker area. We are now offering a $10,000.00 reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons that are responsible for this crime. Investigators believe the shooting of the cattle appear to be a small caliber weapon.

Any information, no matter how small it seems, could be the key to solving this case. Please share this post widely to help us bring these criminals to justice.

How to report a tip anonymously: contact Vernon County Dispatch at (417)667-6042 or visit our website at www.vernoncosheriff.org/crime-tips

The Vernon County sheriff's office is asking for the citizens assistance on investigating cattle being shot east of Nevada off of 54 Highway. We have been able to recover some evidence. Sheriff Buehler is asking the public if they have seen or know of anything please contact Vernon County Sheriff's office we will keep you anonymous. This is an ongoing investigation so we are limited on what we can release.

Sheriff Buehler says" I will not tolerate this" we are a rural community and farms and ranches sustain the life and lively hood of a good portion of the population in Vernon County. "I will not leave any stone unturned"

Courtesy Vernon County Sheriff's Office

Appleton City Senior Spotlight Hailyn Oehring