Stories from Saturday, June 16, 2012

Johnna R. Meek, of Fort Scott, Kan., passed away at her home Thursday, June 14, 2012. She was born July 9, 1934, in Fort Scott, the daughter of John Ray and Iva Eathel (Hencey) Price. She married Charles Meek in 1974, and he preceded her in death in 1993...

Nathan and Ashlie Neal of El Dorado Springs, Mo., and older brother Taiten, are proud to announce the birth of their son and baby brother, Treven John Neal. Treven was born at 3:40 p.m., Wednesday, June 13, 2012, at Nevada Regional Medical Center. He weighed 9 pounds, 14 ounces, and measured 22 inches...

More than 300 children have signed up for the Nevada Public Library's Summer Reading Program, Dream Big! Read! Children from kindergarten to fifth grade will participate in activities that will include programs on stargazing and moon lore, owls, space exploration, nocturnal animals, a pajama story time, a magician and more. For the first time, the library is welcoming teens to a program for older youth...

Announcement is made of the engagement and approaching marriage of Ashley Elizabeth Aden and Nicholas William Schultz. The couple will be married on Saturday, June 30, 2012, at 2 p.m., in Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Springfield, Mo. Ashley is the daughter of Steve and Christy Gray, Nevada, and Scott and Melissa Aden, Waldo, Ark. Nicholas is the son of Kenneth and Susan Schultz of Springfield...

In the fallout from the recent redistricting ruling by the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan., Sen. Bob Marshall and Rep. Caryn Tyson made their feelings known at a Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce coffee earlier this week. Marshall, R-Fort Scott, is still in District 13, but it has been redrawn. ...

RICH HILL -- Long known as "Famous for the Fourth," this south-central Bates County town is going all out for the Fourth of July again this year with an attempt to set a Guinness World Record for the highest price ever paid at auction for a single pie...

FORT SCOTT, Kan. -- A local skatepark is expected to get a new addition soon, thanks to a donation from the Modern Woodmen of America Youth Service Club. Through the sale of T-shirts and concessions, about 15 kids from the local club recently raised $500 for the James B. Tedesco Memorial Skatepark, located parallel to U.S. Highway 69 between the Third and Sixth Street catwalks. The sale was held during the skatepark's grand opening in early April...

The Knights of Columbus Council No. 855 in Nevada will host its 11th annual golf tournament on June 23 at Frank E. Peters Municipal Golf Course in Nevada. The one-day tournament is open to men and women golfers and starts at 8 a.m. The tournament will be played in a three-person scramble format. There will be a closest-to- the-pin contest on each of the four par three holes. Entry fee includes free range balls and drawings for prizes. Carts will be available to rent for $15...

A bridge on Route V South in northwest Vernon County reopened Friday after a rehabilitation project. Missouri Department of Transportation Public Information Officer Bob Edwards said the deck -- the part motorists drive over -- had to be replaced. However, the rest of the span was in "decent shape," Edwards said...

Teacher contract negotiations for the upcoming school year continued Friday morning with discussions focusing on salaries and recouping lost salary steps. Fort Scott National Education Association members met with USD 234 district officials in an attempt to reach a monetary agreement regarding contracts for the coming school year...

Annual cross-country bike race has check-in in Fort Scott, passes through Nevada