Local News – Friday, May 22nd, 2020
There will be no Your World Today on Monday due to the Memorial Day holiday. Your World Today’s next publication will be Tuesday, May 26th. Have a happy and safe Memorial Day Weekend!
Memorial Day weekend has often been known as the official start of the summer season. The City of Salem Park and Recreation Department is happy to announce that the Alice Lou Craig Municipal Swimming Pool will be opening Saturday at noon, weather permitting. The cost of admission is $4.00 per child, $5.00 for adults and $4.00 for seniors who are 62-years of age and older. People attending the pool will find that there will be some added restrictions this year to the first phase of the “Show Me Strong Recovery” plan. Salem Park and Recreation Director Melissa DuBois said there will be no chairs or tables in the pool area for now and people should bring with them their own seating. She wants to let patrons know that families can congregate together, but those not in the immediate family will need to keep at least six feet away. She said the decks have been marked with the proper distancing at the diving board, slides and rock wall as well as at the concession stand. Also new this year at the front desk, patrons will be identified when they enter the pool area so that staff can maintain a count of the people in the pool. DuBois stated people will also be able to purchase family and individual pool passes at the front desk as well as book pool parties. Family Season passes are $160.00 for a family of four (two adults and two children) and the Individual Pass is $75.00. A private pool party is $150 for one hour and $200 for 1.5 hours and $250 for two hours. Pool parties can also be shared with another group to help save on costs. She also said people who are interested in swim lessons, the morning water aerobics class or the new class called “water babies” can find out more information at the front desk. Pool hours in 2020 are from noon until 6:00 PM Monday through Saturday and from 1:00 until 6:00 PM on Sunday. Remember that the pool will temporarily close if thunder or lightning is in the immediate area and will stay closed for 30 minutes from the last lightning strike or thunder clap. For more information about the pool, call 729-6228.
Captain Eddie A. Blaylock, commanding officer of Troop I, announces special enforcement operations during the 2020 Memorial Day weekend. The official counting period for this year’s holiday begins at 6:00 tonight and ends at 11:59 Monday night. Statewide, the Patrol will be participating in Operation C.A.R.E. (Crash Awareness Reduction Effort) during the extended holiday weekend. This means every available trooper will be on the road enforcing traffic laws and assisting motorists. Troop I will also participate in a 20-Mile Trooper enforcement project. This initiative assigns troopers every 20 miles along Interstate 44 within Troop I. Troopers will focus their attention on seat belt use, impaired drivers, distractive driving, excessive speed, and hazardous moving violations. Troopers will also be available to respond to motorist’s calls for assistance. Motorists in need of assistance or those who want to report a crime should call the Highway Patrol’s Emergency Assistance number 1-800-525-5555 or *55 on a cellular phone.
The Community Foundation of the Ozarks has awarded grants totaling $80,000 to support food needs, services for victims of domestic violence, educational technology improvements and emergency living expenses related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic across the region. The total amount of all Community Foundation of the Ozarks grantmaking for COVID-19 relief now comes to $1.75 million. This week’s grants from the COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund were supported with funds from White River Valley Electric Cooperative and the Sunderland Foundation, which made generous gifts to support proposals within their areas of interest. The COVID-19 Response and Recovery grants were awarded locally to the Dent County Service Unit of the Salvation Army in the amount of $5,000 to support low-income families with rent and utility expenses. This area is served by the Dent County Community Foundation. The Community Foundation of the Ozarks encourages anyone who is able to consider donating to a nonprofit in need or the CFO’s COVID-19 fund. Gifts can be made online. The CFO is covering processing fees for gifts made by credit card through June 30, 2020. For additional information on the Salvation Army Dent County Service Unit, please contact Sherry Lea at 573-729-8163.
The Memorial Day weekend is an unofficial start to the boating season. During the 2019 Memorial Day weekend, there were seven boating crashes which included two fatalities and three injuries. No one drowned over last year’s holiday weekend. Troopers arrested 10 people for boating while intoxicated over the 2019 Memorial Day weekend. This year’s counting period for the holiday weekend begins at 6:00 Friday night, May 22nd, and ends at 11:59 Monday night, May 25th. Missouri provides a variety of opportunities for boating. Please be courteous to others on the water, wear a life jacket, and obey the law regarding safe operation of a vessel and no wake zones. Causing harm to another person or their property with an excessive boat wake may subject you to enforcement action or civil liability. Always treat other boaters and property owners as you want to be treated. Boaters in need of assistance or who want to report a crime should use the Highway Patrol’s Emergency Assistance number 1-800-525-5555 or *55 on a cellular phone. Never operate a boat while you are impaired; never ride with an impaired operator. Watercraft operators must consider the effect their actions have on others: Share the waterway and use common sense, good judgment, and courtesy to ensure the safety of all. Life jackets save lives. Wear It!!