Fundraiser for For

Brody Shelby at St. Jude Children’s Hospital. (Special to Branson Globe) Benefit to help Forsyth child and family scheduled for February 13

By K.D. Michaels, Staff Writer

The residents of Forsyth are rallying around a local child with an upcoming benefit. A chili supper and silent auction are slated for February 13 to raise money to help the family of Brody Shelby.

Nine-year-old Brody, the son of Chad and Bobbie Shelby, was diagnosed in 2015 with an anaplastic ependymoma brain tumor. Brody battled hard and beat the cancer. He remained cancer-free until December of 2020, when he was diagnosed with a different type of brain tumor, a glioblastoma, stage 4, which is also affecting his spinal fluid.

Erin Wyman, a first-grade teacher in the Forsyth School District and a friend of the family, is heading up the fundraising event.

“Brody and his family are currently in Memphis, Tennessee, fighting this battle, and need our support more than ever,” noted Wyman. “They are in St Jude’s, in the middle of doing 25 radiation treatments. Bobbie, Brody’s mom, will not be able to return to work after they return from Memphis, so this will be a real financial strain for the family. Brody also has three siblings—Bryce, Baylie and Berklee.”

The benefit will be held on Saturday, February 13, at the Taney Center, located between Forsyth and Taneyville. The chili supper and silent auction will begin at 4 p.m., with a live auction set for 6 p.m.

“We also have a bank account set up at Branson Bank, if anyone would like to make a donation that way,” Wyman explained. “The account is titled ‘Donations for Shelby Family’. We also have been selling ‘Team Brody’ shirts and bracelets to raise money for the family.”

For more information on the benefit or to make a donation contact Erin Wyman at 417-251-2046.

Register for quicker COVID-19 vaccination

By Gary J. Groman, Independent Writer

Lisa Marshall, Director of Taney County Health Department (TCHD), said they are grateful for community partners that understand the importance of vaccinating Taney County residents with the COVID-19 vaccine. The Taney County Health Department (TCHD), the Branson School District, and Cox Medical Center Branson are working in partnership to expand the access to and the number of COVID-19 vaccinations given to Taney County residents. She adds that everyone is working together to “bring vaccines to our community as quickly as possible.”

The partnership announcement points out that those currently eligible for vaccines include the Phase 1A group (healthcare workers), Phase 1B Tier 1 and 2 groups (first responders and high-risk individuals including those 65 and older). It also points out that both the TCHD and Cox Medical Center are requesting vaccine weekly and scheduling clinics as quickly as it becomes available.

The first steps in getting the vaccine should be to register with either the Taney County Health Department on the Taney County COVID-19 Vaccine Waiting List through www.TaneyCountyHealth.org or Cox Medical through https://www.coxhealth. com/covid/vaccine/. When vaccine becomes available, those who have registered and are eligible will receive an individual notification to set up a specific appointment by date and time along with instructions on what to bring. A separate registration is necessary for each different person, i.e., husband and wife should register separately.

My wife and I have had our first shot and will receive our second shot on February 19. For us, the process started with registering on the Taney County COVID-19 Vaccine Waiting List through www.TaneyCountyHealth.com. A few days later, we received an email with a link to set up an appointment and telling us what to bring. In our case, there was a two-day time window.

As requested, we arrived at the vaccination site about five minutes before our appointment with our masks on, insurance and Medicare cards, and picture IDs. We didn’t have the signed consent form, which was attached to the bottom of the email notification, so we had to fill it out on site. About 30 minutes later, including a 15-minute observation period after receiving the shot, we were in the car heading home. There have been no adverse reactions.

For more information on receiving a COVID-19 vaccination, please contact the Taney County Health Department at 417-334-4544 or through their website, at www.taneycohealth.org.

2021 Branson Home Show rescheduled

The 25th Annual Branson TriLakes Building and Home Show has been postponed from the original dates of February 12-14 until May 14-16, 2021. According to President/CEO Scott Earls, owner of The Vacation Channel and producer of the Branson Home Show, “We have a responsibility to our vendors, our visitors, and our team to produce a show that is safe for all to exhibit and to attend.” Earls went on to say, “We have listened to the ongoing reports of the expansion of COVID-19, and the hybrids of this same disease, and feel that even though we would have many safeguards in place, the risk is still too great until comprehensive vaccinations have been administered to the general public.” Earls further stated, “Many of our exhibitors attain 50 percent to 80 percent of their annual sales from leads and contacts generated at the Branson Home Show; they depend upon our show and marketing efforts to generate the

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