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LAWRENCE COUNTY 138th Year, No. 11 • Our 7,115th Issue!
Mt. Vernon, Missouri • April 24, 2013
50 cents (includes tax)
Young man, old soul Bub Kleeman’s life cut short by boating accident at Stockton Lake, family remembers By James McNary Bub Kleeman and best friend, cousin Wade Brown went to Stockton Lake April 7, for a fishing trip that began like any other, but would ultimately end in tragedy. Bub and Wade, as many times before, were in their boat enjoying the day, when the boat unexpectedly capsized. Wade made his way to shore but Bub wasn’t as fortunate. Bub never made the shore. Stanley Zein “Bub” Kleeman II, of rural Lawrence County, died that Sunday at the young age of 20 years old. Bub Kleeman was born May 21, 1992, in Claremore, Okla., to Kirk and Kara (Smith) Kleeman. “We started calling him ‘Bub’ because his sister couldn’t say ‘brother,’” said his mother Kara. “Being named after his grandpa, he was going to wind up with a nickname anyway.” Bub spent most of his life in
the Miller area – he was country. “He was surrounded by family from a young age,” said his grandmother, Bonnie Kleeman. “A typical farm upbringing, country boys. He didn’t care to dress up – the dirtier the better.” Bub enjoyed fishing, hunting, mudding, old time rock-and-roll, and driving and working on old tractors and old trucks. He’d gained a reputation as a mechanic and tinkerer. He even studied at Red Rock College of Construction in Oklahoma City. “He had an old red hound, Bud,” said Mandy Kleeman. “I never saw a dog stick around with somebody so much.” “It’s an ugly dog, but I never said anything about it to him,” said Bonnie. Lyle Whittaker, vocational agriculture teacher at Miller High School, knew Bub, and his cousin Wade, from an early age, in school and at church. Bub was active in the Miller FFA program before he
graduated in 2010. Whittaker said Bub was saved and baptized about the time he was in sixth grade. “He’s just got an easy going, never-stressed-out personality,” said Whittaker. “I don’t think you could ever get him flustered.” “He was quiet, he may have been loud around his friends, but he was quiet,” said Bonnie. “He was kind of an old soul.” “Right after he got his truck, about when he turned 16, he put in a CB,” said Kara. “He and friends would just be on there and talk to truckers. What kid does that anymore when you’ve got Internet and cell phones? He didn’t like cell phones.” Bub, and his brother Ben or cousin Wade would often get into mischief, as brothers do. “They’d rent those Vespa scooters and go through the drive-through at McDonald’s,” said Kara. “He went to Sturgis even though
Submitted photos
Top left, Bub Kleeman in a recent picture. Top right, Bub as a child with his father Kirk, and sister Katey. Bottom, years ago, Bub, right, playing with brother Benjamin.
he didn’t have a bike,” Kara said, referring to the famous biker gathering in Sturgis, S.D. “He and Wade were supposed to spend a week and spent a whole month. He wasn’t afraid to just take off and go somewhere.” Funeral services for Bub Kleeman were April 11, to a packed house at Round Grove Baptist Church. Lyle Whittaker and Rev. Jay Hill spoke during the service.
His interment was at Red Oak Cemetery. Bub’s family believes there are lessons to be learned from his life. “Live to the fullest, he did,” said Kara. “Take care of your grandparents, stay close to them.” “Respect and love your family,” added Bonnie. “Love and respect,” said Mandy. “Do what you like to do, what you love.”
Mt. Vernon grad runs doomed Boston Marathon By Rosemary Henderson
Submitted photos
Moments before the bomb blasts, Maranda Cameron poses with her medal.
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Mt. Vernon High School graduate Maranda Cameron was up close when the bombs exploded at the Boston Marathon Monday, April 15, She said she was near the finish line when the first bomb exploded. At first, she thought it was a cannon, as Boston was celebrating Patriot’s Day and many people were dressed in period costume. In a few seconds, though, people started running and screaming, so she knew it was something bigger. In a written statement, Cameron shared some of her thoughts on the events of the week just past. “I haven’t watched so much news since 9/11, but this was SO personal. Boston was my dream. I
started marathoning two years ago this month with the hopes of qualifying for THIS Boston. When I started running I had my 2.5-year plan and that plan’s crown was Boston 2013. This attack was against my sister who volunteers at the finish line and her students who do. The attack was against my friends worldwide in the running community, runners who traveled from 90 countries, and against my passion. It was an attack against the dreams of so many runners and our loved ones who we couldn’t do without, there to cheer us on and support us. It was used to instill fear and spread hate. I am so relieved and shaken that they found this boy and he is still alive for questioning and can be brought to justice! Thank you,
Boston, for a job well done!!! I can’t wait to see you again next April. “Because of several injuries, I knew starting Monday that this would be my slowest marathon, but I didn’t care. I had made it there and I was using it to celebrate, a victory lap, to take in the course and enjoy the spectators whom I’d heard were the best anywhere. They were. Bostonians thanked us for running during the course, I wanted to run to be true to myself showing that nothing will keep me down forever. Running with a torn ligament and muscle in my right foot, I was sure I wouldn’t be able to finish until the time the bombs went off. But, miraculously, I made it 15 minutes before. God was pushing me forward and the crowds were
COMING UP: 4 Bluegrass and BBQ — Advance tickets are now available for a Bluegrass and Barbecue fund-raiser to finance repairs on the Adamson Cabin. The event will be from 4-8 p.m. Saturday, April 27, at the cabin. In the case of rain, it will be moved to Jones Memorial. Tickets may be purchased at the Mt. Vernon Chamber of Commerce or by mail at P.O. Box 406, Mt. Vernon. For more information or to volunteer, contact the Lawrence County Historical Society at adamsoncabin@yahoo.com or call Kathy Fairchild at 466-3076; Gary Daughtrey at 466-2893 or Mary Seneker at 861-7096. 4 Musical Auditions — Mt. Vernon Community Theatre will be holding auditions for the famous play Fiddler on the Roof, Monday, May 13 and Tuesday, May 14, from
6:30-8:30 p.m. The musical will be performed July 26-28 at the MARC. For more information, call 606-0242. 4 Volleyball tournament — Scheduled for Friday, April 27 in Miller. The cost is $100 per team. Each team member will receive a free T-shirt. For more information or to enter, call Turn 461-4025.
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exhilarating. IT may have been my slowest marathon by 45 minutes, but it was the most life-changing.” Cameron said there were around 20,000 participants in the marathon this year. The 2000 Mt. Vernon graduate said this was her first Boston Marathon, for which she trained several years. She qualified for this year’s marathon in 2011 in the Philadelphia (Pa.) Marathon. This was her fourth marathon since she started running them in 2011. She had some injuries last year, so only ran a half-marathon. She is the daughter of Mt. Vernon residents Sammy and Gayle Brown Cameron.
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