Your World Today

Dent County Prosecutor Andrew Curley released reports from Circuit Court held in Dent County Monday in front of Judge Megan Seay. In the first case, Jennifer Smith of Salem pled guilty to two counts of felony stealing charges. She was sentenced to serve seven years under the Section 559.115 program as requested by the prosecutor. Justin Parker of Salem then pled guilty to domestic assault in the 2nd degree as a prior and persistent felony offender. Parker was sentenced to serve ten years under Section 217.362 which is a long-term treatment program. According to Curley, both dispositions occurred with the advice and consent of the victims in each case. Also on Monday in the Dent County Circuit Court, Judge Megan Seay sentenced Mark Graham of Salem to serve seven years in the Department of Corrections for a charge of assault in the third degree on a law enforcement officer.

The Salem Park and Recreation Board will be meeting tonight at the Salem Community Center@The Armory at 5:30 in the Rotary Room. The agenda includes a presentation from People Centric about “getting the most out of the board.” Kyle Williams will also discuss the Frisbe Golf Course before any other business isaddressed. The meeting will then be adjourned. The Salem Park and Recreation Board meeting is open to the public.

Six Missouri Veterans Commission (MVC) Missouri Veterans Homes have received “Best in Class” Customer Experience Awards from the Pinnacle Quality Insight for 2022. The Missouri Veterans Homes in Cameron, Cape Girardeau, Mexico, Mt. Vernon, Warrensburg and St. James have won this award for three consecutive years. In all seven Veterans Homes, these six and Missouri Veterans Home in St. Louis, they ranked highest with cleanliness, dignity, respect, and safety and security. The organization also received a 100% resident satisfaction rating. The Pinnacle national average is 76.1% in this category. Pinnacle is a customer satisfaction measurement firm with 26 years of experience in post-acute healthcare; they conduct over 150,000 phone surveys each year and work with more than 2,500 care providers. During the telephone survey, veterans and their family members are asked open-ended questions and to rank facilities in specific categories. The Missouri Veterans Commission operates seven state Veterans Homes, five State Veterans Cemeteries, and the Veterans Services Program. The Commission is committed to providing high-quality, compassionate care for Veterans, seamlessly integrated with the Veteran community, emphasizing a culture of transparency and excellence. For more information about the Missouri Veterans Commission programs, call 573-751-3779 or visit http://www.mvc.dps.mo.gov/>.

The team at Current River State Park invites the public to participate in the joy of bird-watching at the park’s annual event from 9:00 to 10:00 in the morning on Friday, February 18th. Those interested in attending should meet at the Ninebark Trailhead at 9:00 for a short walk through a forested river bottom to look for nuthatches, woodpeckers and many more birds. Participants should bring binoculars and favorite field guides if available, and if not, there will be a limited supply of binoculars and some field a limited supply of binoculars and some field guides available for use. Dress for the occasion and wear shoes for hiking. This walk will be on natural material and can be uneven with the possibility of downed trees. For more information, feel free to contact Connie Weber at connie.weber@dnr.mo.gov or 573-751-1224. Current River State Park is located on Highway 19, approximately 23 miles south of Salem and approximately 15 miles north of Eminence.

The Dent County Commissioners met Monday morning for their regular meeting. In the road report, District 1 Commissioner Wes Mobray indicated that brush would be cut on Dent County Road 2400 and materials would be added to county roads 2470 and 2480 where damaged culverts had been replaced. Mobray said crews will continue to replace damaged culverts this week. District 2 Commissioner Gary Larson stated brush would be cut on county roads 4350 and 4353 while materials will be added to county road 4055. Larson said a crew will be servicing Grader #32 and another crew will be patching chip and seal roads. Presiding Commissioner Darrell Skiles reported all three commissioners attended the CCAM required training last Wednesday through Friday. He said a number of commissioners went to the capital last week to visit with representatives. Skiles said he would be attending a broadband meeting this afternoon at the City Hall Council Chambers. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley said she balanced with the collector and assessor on all collections, abatements, and add-ons for the month of January. She said filing for county offices will begin on Tuesday, February 22nd and that will be the same day that absentee voting will begin for the April 5th Municipal Election. She said the four finalists in the ”I Voted” sticker art contest, have been determined and the public can vote on their favorite in the county clerk’s office through February 23rd at the courthouse. At the last meeting. Commissioner Larson stated he checked the emergency generator at the Oak Grove Baptist Church, and it worked OK. The commissioners also discussed the county policy handbook when there is inclement weather. The policy will now state when the commissioner’s close county buildings due to inclement weather or other conditions, full time employees will be compensated in accordance with the county policy regarding paid holidays. This new policy was approved by a 3-0 vote by the commission. Dent County Collector Shannon VanKirk updated the commission on the January collection turnover of $177,641.00 from her office. The next meeting of the Dent County Commissioners will be Thursday morning at 9:00 at the courthouse and the meeting is open to the public.

Alderman Shawn Bolerjack, the Finance Committee and Capital Improvements Committee Chairman, has called for a joint meeting of the Finance and Capital Improvements Committees to be held at the Wilson Family Center at 1000 West International Street on this evening at 6:00. The committee will review the City of Salem budget process and a review of the fiscal year 21-22 budget and capital improvement projects. The meeting will then be adjourned. The joint meeting of the Finance and Capital Improvement Committee is open to the public.

The report released by the Dent County Sheriff’s office for the week of February 7th through the 12th. On Wednesday February 9th, deputies were dispatched to Dent County Road 6497 for a reported domestic violence incident. During the course of the investigation, a 55-year-old Jadwin man was arrested and placed on a 24-hour hold at the Dent County Jail. The next day on February 10th, a deputy was dispatched to the Dent County Jail for a report of property damage. During the course of the investigation, a 33-year-old Salem man, who was an inmate at the jail, was charged with damage to jail property. Then on February 11th, a deputy conducted a traffic stop on Highway 72. During the course of the stop, an 18-year-old Bunker man was arrested for driving with no valid driver’s license and operating a motor vehicle without maintaining financial responsibility. He was transported to the Dent County Jail where he was fingerprinted, issued two summons and released. Later that day, a deputy conducted a traffic stop at S. Hickory and Franklin Street. During the course of the stop, a 40-year-old Salem man was arrested for the possession of a control substance except for 35 grams or less of Marijuana or Synthetic Cannabinoid. The man was transported to the Dent County Jail where he was fingerprinted and released, pending formal charges by the Dent County Prosecuting Attorney.

Missouri State Parks will be launching an enhanced online reservation system beginning at 7:00 TOMORROW. In order to complete the upgrade, Missouri State Parks will NOT be accepting new reservations, changes or cancellations until Tuesday morning. This includes online reservations at icampmo.com, phone reservations through the call center and reservations made at a state park or state historic site locations. State parks and historic sites will be open under normal, off-season operations during this time. The new reservation system will offer many new features including the ability to buy and send Missouri State Parks eGift Cards. Interactive park maps and multiple photos to preview campsites. Easy-to-use search function, showing results up to 70 miles from your search area. The ability to reserve shelters online and the ability to sign up for tours online. As part of the new reservation system, there will be a $2 decrease in reservation fees for reservations made online and a $.50 decrease in reservation fees for reservations made through the call center. Beginning Tuesday morning, making an advanced reservation for campsites and group tent areas will result in the following nonrefundable reservation fees, $6.50 for reservations made online at icampmo.com and $8 for reservations made through the call center at 877-422-6766. Same-day reservations for campsites are accepted and do not incur a reservation fee. For reservations made with an arrival date beginning Sunday, January 1st, 2023, camping rates will increase $2 per night for basic and electric campsites; and $3 per night for electric and water 50 AMP and sewer, electric, and water 50 AMP campsites. For questions related to these changes, email moparks@dnr.mo.gov or call 800-334-6946. For more information on state parks and historic sites, visit mostateparks.com. Missouri State Parks is a division of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

An accident occurred Saturday afternoon at 1:25 in Phelps County on County Road 8360 about a mile and a half west of Highway 63. According to the highway patrol report a 2003 Dodge Ram Pickup driven by 50-year-old Sheridan Blackwell of Rolla, was traveling westbound and traveled off the right side of the roadway and struck a tree. Blackwell suffered serious injuries and was transported to University Hospital in Columbia by Air Ambulance. He was wearing a safety restraint at the time of the accident. The Dodge sustained extensive damage and was removed from the scene by C&C Towing.

Healthy Dent County is planning to begin another Project RISE program that will empower individuals and offer support as they strive to lead their families out of poverty.  The goal is to have a new cohort of families begin this spring. This program will address root issues keeping families in poverty and work toward developing strategies to overcome these challenges and sustain long-term change.  Project RISE will help provide the tools and resources to solve-problems, create new habits and provide a forum for networking and creating healthy dialogue with mentors, experts and others who have found ways to achieve additional success. Families accepted in the program will work on reducing debt, improving credit scores, increasing income, strengthening confidence and gaining hope. Only 4-7 families will be selected for this two-year program, and they must meet these requirements: must have stable housing; they must reside in Dent County; and most importantly, the participants must be ready, willing and open to make changes to find new opportunities. To make this project a success, Healthy Dent County will work with social service agencies, churches, health care and employment specialists and community leaders. The wealth of knowledge from these professionals will be invaluable to improving the lives of these families for generations to come. Ms. Lacey Walker, Administrative Professional with Healthy Dent County, will serve as the coordinator for this program. There are a number of ways you can partner with Healthy Dent County on this project that includes referring families, volunteering to help make a presentation at one of the 16-weekly classes, sponsor a weekly meal by providing food or donating $150, or by sponsor a family by donating $250. All donations to Healthy Dent County are tax deductible. For more information on Project RISE or to determine a family’s eligibility, please contact Lacey Walker at 729-8163 or e-mail her at lacey@salemcommunitycenter.org.