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TUESDAY, APRIL 19, 2022
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TRENTON
REPUBLICAN-TIMES ©Honeycutt Media, LLC
12 PAGES
Established Sept. 4, 1864 - 158th Year - No. 65
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BRIEFS VFW Event Is Planned
Joseph L. Norton VFW Post No. 919 is continuing its effort to make major renovations to the VFW Hall and will host a ham and beans lunch on Wednesday, April 20. The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m at the VFW Hall, located at 919 Washington St. The event will feature beans, ham, cornbread, Jello salad, dessert and a drink. The cost is $10 per plate and those attending are invited to eat in or carry out their order. All proceeds will be used to help renovate the local VFW Hall.
Laredo Alumni Reunion Set
The Laredo School Alumni Reunion will be held the afternoon of Saturday, May 7 at the school. The event, which will be held from 2 to 4 p.m., is for all past graduates, classmates and friends. Dessert, including homemade pies, will be served and those planning to attend are asked to RSVP to a board member to help with planning for the amount of food that will be needed. To RSVP, contact Marlene Engleman, 660-359-7674; Linda Urich, 660-654-3035; Kathy Waits, 660-286-6200; or Kay Thomas, 573-219-1038.
City Committees Plan Meetings
Several committees of the Trenton City Council will hold meetings Tuesday at city hall to reorganize, with the utility committee planning to hold its regular monthly meeting. The administrative committee will begin the evening at 6 p.m., followed by the economic development committee and the finance committee, all of which will meet to elect chairmen. The Utility Committee will follow the other three meetings and will elect its chairman, hear department reports, review the monthly financial reports and hear a report from Utility Director Ron Urton. All of the meetings are open to the public, with the Utility Committee meeting able to be accessed by Zoom at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84455284093.
Walk Against Hunger
The Easter Bunny was out in full force over the weekend, with multiple egg hunts held for area youngsters at parks and churches, as well as the inaugural Easter egg hunt for dogs that was held at Moberly Park. Saturday’s weather was perfect for the events, but rain and even a touch of snow on Sunday thwarted some outdoor plans for the actual holiday.
Families and Friends of the Developmentally Disabled in Grundy County will hold its annual Walk Against Hunger on Monday, April 25 at C.F. Russell Stadium. The event will run from 5 to 6 p.m. and will involve patrons stopping by the stadium to drop off donations in a participant’s backpack. All proceeds will be divided equally between Bright Futures Trenton and Backpack Buddies of Grundy County.
Art’s Alive Program Is Sunday
R-6 Hears Concerns From Patrons Newtown-Harris Board Takes Action On Personnel The Pleasant View R-6 and Newtown-Harris R-3 boards of education held meetings recently, with the R-6 board hearing from several concerned patrons and the NewtownHarris Board accepting two resignations. Pleasant View R-6 Several patrons met with the Pleasant View R-6 Board of Education during a meeting held Tuesday, April 12, to discuss the existence of mold in a classroom and to ask the board to reconsider a personnel decision. According to information provided by Superintendent Rebecca Steinhoff, the board agreed to allow each person to have a time limit of five minutes to speak during the public comment portion of the meeting. Megan Devorss, Emily Cox and Tiffany Haffner all spoke about their concern that there has been mold in the third/fourth/fifth-grade classroom as well as their support for the reconsideration of offering Kelli Urton a teaching contract for the 2022-23 school year. Jennifer Roberts also spoke to the board, but only in regard to the board reconsidering the offering of Mrs. Urton a contract for the 2022-23 school year. The board heard a presentation from First Onsite Restoration on the mold concerns in the classrooms. It was reported that testing has shown the air quality in all the areas of concern are within the healthy range. A copy of the test was given to each
person in attendance. Air quality tests that were conducted by Brandon Spencer, a certified water restoration technician, also showed that the air quality in all of the classrooms was within a healthy range. The public was informed that they could reach out to Spencer at any time for questions concerning his testing. Billy Wilson spoke about the air purifiers the school put in place last year using COVID funds. There are a total of 12 machines placed in various areas of the building that help kill bacteria and/or mold in the air. A discussion was held on replacing the ceiling tiles in the kitchen this summer. A bid was received from Creative Ceilings, Inc. to install a new drop ceiling at a cost of $20,000 and board members voted to approve that bid. Under new business, the oath of office was given to Danny Westcott and Laurie Frisbie, who were reelected in the April 5 election. Board officers were elected and include Westcott, president; Damien Little, vice president; and Jack Bethards, treasurer. With the new board seated, they took up the issue of salaries, with the board voting to increase the base teacher salary by $1,000 to $32,500. In addition, non-certified staff will see a 50-cent per hour increase with all staff members being eligible to move up a step in the pay scale. The vote was 6-0, with Jack Bethards abstaining. The board approved a field trip request for students in sixth through eighth grades. The students will travel to Kansas City on Friday, April 29, where they will visit the Truman
Presidential Library and Museum, Arabia Steamboat Museum, the World War I Memorial and Museum and Kauffman Stadium, where they will visit the Royals Hall of Fame and stay for a baseball game and fireworks. The trip is expected to last from 7 a.m. until about midnight. In other business, the board heard teacher reports from Connie Olmstead, art instructor, and Japheth Busick, physical education instructor. A discussion was held on health insurance bids, with no action taken, and MSBA policy updates were approved. Board members also approved an early-out at 12:30 p.m. on April 27 to allow staff members to attend a professional development assembly presented by Gerry Brooks in Milan. Mrs. Steinhoff gave an update on COVID and said the extra funding for COVID testing is no longer available. Several future dates of importance were shared with the board, including track meets, Easter break, KEYS graduation (10 a.m. May 5) and eighth grade graduation, which is scheduled for 6 p.m. May 6. Following a closed session, the board voted to approve the resignation of preschool paraprofessional Cassie Shoop and the transfer of fifth grade teacher Sara Rayl to preschool paraprofessional for the 2022-23 school year. The board also voted to set Mrs. Steinhoff’s salary at $72,000 for 2022-23 school year. Bethards left the meeting and the board voted to rehire all non-certified employees for the 2022-23 school year. The board has scheduled its next [See Boards, Page 4]
Art’s Alive will present the Angstrom Brass ensemble in a performance set for 2 p.m., Sunday, April 24 at the Trenton R-9 Performing Arts Center. “Angstrom Brass: Artisanal Sounds for the Modern Ear” is “a chamber ensemble that curates exceptional instrumental art music experiences, melding the distinctive timbres of the various brass instruments into a cohesive musical voice.” This is the first Art’s Alive event to be held in the PAC and member Dan Maxey said it provides an opportunity for a large audience to be involved in the group’s latest offering. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students and can be purchased in advance at Hy-Vee or the day of the show at the PAC. Doors will open at 1:30 p.m., with no reserved seating.
'I Will Win': Greitens Undeterred In Missouri Senate Race Candidate Remains Confident Amid Investigation Into Assault Accusations ST. LOUIS (AP) — Eric Greitens stepped aside as Missouri's governor in 2018 amid a scandal involving accusations of blackmail, bondage and sexual assault. As he at-
WEATHER ALMANAC Day: High/Low Rain Thursday 59/33 — Friday 55/40 — Saturday 55/37 — Sunday 43/34 .09 Barton Campus Sunday 41/32 .11
tempts a political comeback this year with a U.S. Senate bid, his ex-wife has said Greitens physically abused her and one of their children. It once took far less to end a political career. But at a recent meeting of the St. Charles County Pachyderm Club in a largely Republican area of suburban [See Greitens, Page 6]
Expect warmer temperatures by the end of the week