Butler Chamber Featured Business of the Month, Max Motors

Celebrating Our Business of the Month: Max Motors

The Butler Area Chamber of Commerce is proud to recognize **Max Motors** as our Business of the Month! From their beginnings right here in Butler in 2006 to becoming one of the fastest-growing dealerships in the Midwest, Max Motors is a true "homegrown" success story.

Known for their "Max Transit" concierge service and an expansive inventory of Ford, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram vehicles, they provide big-city options with the hometown heart you can only find in Butler. More than just a dealership, the team at Max Motors is a steadfast supporter of our local schools, community events, and the overall spirit of our town.

Whether you are looking for a new ride or expert service, stop by **1108 W. Fort Scott St.** to congratulate the team and see why they’ve been a local cornerstone for nearly 20 years. Thank you, Max Motors Butler, for your continued investment in making Butler thrive!

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State Farm Athlete of the Week

We are so excited to announce this week’s C & S Graphics and Kellie Davidson State Farm Agent athlete of the week, from Adrian, sophomore Elijah Hubbard. Elijah was nominated by his head baseball coach Tanner Pitts after their big win against conference rival Warsaw where Elijah had 4 RBI’s and 2 runs scored going 3 for 5 at the plate. Coach Pitts stated “Elijah is an exceptional student and person. He is the epitome of what it means to be a Blackhawk and to have Blackhawk pride. He is one of the most kind and respectful students. The win against Warsaw was a big win for our program, and Elijah was a big contributor to that win.” Elijah is a four sport athlete for Adrian, participating in football, basketball, track and baseball. He states currently football is his favorite. When we asked him what it takes to excel as an athlete he stated “I’ve been blessed with talents and I give all glory to God each time I get the opportunity to compete. It’s all about doing the extra little things and getting 1% better each day. Going to practice and putting in the work, but also taking care of your body, stretching, icing and doing those things outside of practice that make you more successful.” Elijah is just a sophomore, but when we asked him his future plans he stated he has hopes of competing at the collegiate level in football and majoring in sports medicine/physical therapy once he graduates. It was such a pleasure meeting Elijah. We wish him and the Blackhawks the best of luck as they continue to compete this season.

Pictured left to right: Kellie Davidson, State Farm; Elijah Hubbard, son of Don and Christina Hubbard; Coach Tanner Pitts; Cody Morris, C & S Graphics

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Special firefighter training held in Rich Hill this week

Several area firefighters attended the "Air Monitoring For Fire Department Operations" training on Tuesday evening in Rich Hill. This session was provided by the Bates County LEPC

We would like to extend a special thank you to the Bates County LEPC for bringing this valuable training to our area. Additionally, thank you to the Bates County Memorial Hospital for hosting the session in your facility.

Departments that attended were Amsterdam Fire Department, Butler, Missouri Fire Department, Dolan-West Dolan Fire Protection District, Foster fire department, Rich Hill Missouri Fire Department and Rockville Fire.

Lastly thank you Kraig Bone for always providing top notch training.

Courtesy Rich Hill Fire Department

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Little Apple news

April 1, 2026

The 2026 AC Kindergarten enrollment and screenings will be held on April 9. Call the Elementary Office for an appointment at 660-476-2161. If your child will be 5 before August 1st, now is the time to begin thinking about Kindergarten enrollment requirements. The following items are required for enrollment: immunization records, state issued birth certificate, social security card and proof of residence. Your child can receive the immunizations that are needed to attend Kindergarten anytime on or after his/her fourth birthday? You do not need to wait until age five. They encourage you to have your child fully immunized now and bring the immunization record to school on the day of Kindergarten screening. If you have questions regarding required immunizations, please feel free to contact Nikki Piepmeier, School Nurse, at 660-476-2161, option #7.

Growing In Grace Community Center’s April 4 community dinner menu is potato soup, chicken noodle soup, chili, cornbread, salad bar and dessert. Music will provided by Mike McEwan and daughters and Heather Parks.  Join them from 3:00-6:00 p.m.

AC Ministerial Alliance invites everyone to their Holy Week Worship services.  Maundy Thursday service will be 6:00 p.m. April 2 at AC Christian Church with Pastor John Yates.  Good Friday service will be 6:00 p.m. April 3 at AC First Baptist Church with Pastor James Damon.  Holy Saturday service will be 4:00 p.m. April 4 at AC Holy Trinity Church with Pastor Aaron Koch (there is an elevator at the east entrance).  Easter Sunday service will be 7:00 a.m. At the AC Worship Center with Pastor John Yates and Rockville River of Live with Pastor David Hill.

AC Worship Center will have a Resurrection Celebration. They would love to have you join them Easter Sunday, April 5 for their Sunrise Celebration service at 7:00 a.m. on Easter Sunday at 107 West 4th.  Free coffee and refreshments will follow 

Montrose VFW Post 8820 offers the 2026 Poker Run on April 25. Pre-register now until April 4. $25 is due at registration. $10 extra hand. Registration on the day of is 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. First car leaves out at noon. Proceeds go to memorial benches for the front of the building. To pre-register, go to the Montrose VFW 8820 Facebook page. Contact Post Commander Jason Brashears at 660-492-9894 for more information.

MU Extension in St. Clair County is offering a Tomato Grafting Workshop April 9, 2026 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the St. Clair County Library in Osceola. Ramon Arancibia, Horticulture Specialist, will be sharing his vast knowledge of essential tomato and fruit tree grafting techniques. The workshop is designed to provide hands-on grafting experience as an approach to control soilborne diseases and improve crop yield. By grafting scion plants with desirable fruit characteristics onto rootstock plants that have disease resistance, stress tolerance or vigorous root system characteristics, grafted plants combine beneficial traits from both the scion and rootstock plants. There is no cost to attend the workshop but registration is required by contacting the Extension office at (417) 646-2419 or come to the office at the courthouse Tuesday-Thursday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. 

 

The A.C. Spring City Wide Garage Sale dates are set for April 24 & 25. Permits are $5 and can be purchased at City Hall beginning Monday, April 6 through Tuesday, April 21. Permits to set up in the City Park are $25 for the pole shelter, $15 for the stage, $10 for lawn permits and these fees cover both days. Park permits can also be purchased at City Hall on a first come, first served basis and cannot be reserved by phone. Maps will be available at Food Fair, Casey's, Fika and Powell’s True Value beginning Thursday afternoon. House of Joy Ministries will be at the City Park on Saturday from 3:00-5:00 to collect donations, but may leave earlier if the trailer is full. For questions, please contact Dianne Foster at 660-679-1125.

AC PTO is collecting Food Fair receipts and Best Choice UPC labels until April 30.  Food Fair receipts need to be from January, 2026 to the present.  If they are older, they cannot be submitted.  Please send them with students or place them in a plastic bag or envelope and drop them off in the Elementary School Office, St. Clair County State Bank with Janet Payton or Little Apples Learning Center by Friday, January 27. This on-going fundraiser raises a substantial amount of money for PTO to use for the children's classroom trips and teacher requests for supplies. Please keep collecting through the summer.  The next collection date will be in September.

The Knights of Columbus will have their monthly pancake and sausage breakfast at the Knight’s Hall in Montrose on Sunday, April 12 from 8:30 – 10:00 a.m.  Treat your family to a hot breakfast you don’t have to cook or clean up.  A free will donation will be greatly appreciated

The Annual "Little Ladies Dance" will be held Saturday, May 2 from 6:00-8:00 p.m. at the Appleton City School Commons Area. Any preschool age to 6th grade Little Ladies from Appleton, Hudson, Montrose and any other surrounding schools are invited to bring their best dancing partner out for a night of dancing. The theme this year is "Pretty In Pink". Admission (at the door) per couple is $20, with an additional $5 per extra family member. 

The Appleton City High School Alumni Luncheon will be held Saturday, May 23, 2026 at 11:30. They are missing a class contact for the classes of 2016 and 2021.  Reservation/meal is $15 in advance $20 at the door. , Mail reservations to Patty Purvis Young, 101 E. 3rd St., Appleton City, MO 64724. Please include class year and names for each person attending.  

Ellett Memorial Hospital Appleton City offers outpatient specialist services for April, 2026. Call 660-476-2111 for appointments. Wednesday  April 1 – Upper GI, Colonoscopy-Dr. Namin, Friday April 3 – Dermatology- Dylan Timmerman, PA,  Friday, April 10 – Orthopedic-Dr. Gray,  Tuesday  April 14 - Rheumatology-Dr. John,  Wednesday  April 15 – Upper GI, Colonoscopy-Dr. Namin,  Thursday  April 16 – Podiatry – Dr. Pace,  Wednesday   April 22 – Orthopedic- Dr. Gray, Wednesday April 22 – Ophthalmology,   Dr. Soni, Friday April 24 – Dermatology- Dylan Timmerman, PA,   Tuesday  April 28 - Rheumatology-Dr. John, Thursday  April 30– Neurology- Dr.- Shoaib

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Appleton City city-wide cleanup set for April 28th - 30th

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Can't prounounce La Cygne? Life just got easier!

After years of proud service—and even more years of explaining how to pronounce it—the La Cygne Police Department has made a bold and necessary change.
In an effort to reduce confusion, eliminate awkward pauses, and avoid future pronunciation attempts such as “La Sig-nee,” “La Signe,” and “La Zigzag”… we are officially rebranding.

 Welcome to THE SWAN POLICE DEPARTMENT
That’s right. Simple. Elegant. Majestic. Easy to spell. Hard to outrun.
While our name may have changed, our mission remains the same:
 • Protect and serve

 • Maintain community safety
 • Gracefully glide into action when needed

We will not be focusing on French pronunciation moving forward. Instead, officers will now be trained in:
• Advanced honk-based communication
• Aggressive waddling tactics
• Strategic pond surveillance
All patrol units will be referred to as “S.W.A.N.s,” and sirens will be replaced with a firm but respectful honk honk.
We appreciate your understanding during this transition and remind residents:
 In a society full of silly geese… be a SWAN.

Happy April Fools’ Day from your (newly feathered) Swan Police Department!

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Obituary - Ruby Burris

Funeral services for Ruby Burris of Belton, Missouri will be 1:30 p.m. Friday, April 3, 2026 at Schowengerdt Funeral Chapel (660-679-6555) in Butler, Missouri. Visitation prior to services 1 - 1:30 p.m. Friday at the Schowengerdt Chapel. Burial in Belton Cemetery, Belton, Missouri. Contributions to the American Lung Association. Online condolences www.schowengerdtchapel.com.

A full obituary will be posted at a later date.
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Storms return tonight

Storms are expected to begin this afternoon and continue through the overnight.

Which brings the threat of some flooding especially in areas that got rainfall last night & this morning.

Be weather aware this afternoon & evening. As always, have several ways to receive weather alerts.

Follow this page or YouTube @660weather for livestream coverage of warnings.

-Greg@660weather

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