News

NOTICE! Due to the extreme heat and the unusually dry conditions, ALL activities scheduled for July 4^th at The Commons have been cancelled. The City of Salem Fireworks Display has been postponed indefinitely, but the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce Parade will be held Wednesday, July 4th starting at 6:00 PM from the old fairgrounds and conclude at the Dent County Courthouse.

Missouri Governor Jay Nixon spent part of his day Saturday surveying the damage done by a wildfire burning in the Mark Twain Forest. More than 550 acres are involved in a fire in Iron County near Bixby. A helicopter from Arkansas is dropping water on the blaze. There are no evacuations at this time. It has been reported that the blaze is over 50% contained at this time. Governor Nixon has directed the Missouri National Guard to be ready with supplies and personnel to support firefighting operations if needed. USDA Forest Service’s Eastern Area Type 2 Incident Management Team has also been brought in to assist managing Mark Twain National Forest wildfires.  The incident management team is composed of experienced federal, state, and local fire and emergency response personnel from 20 states in Forest Service’s Eastern Region, which stretches from Missouri north to the Great Lakes states east to Delaware and up to Maine. Given current fire conditions, predicted hot and dry weather in the days ahead, and no precipitation in the forecast, additional resources, including the incident management team, were ordered. The team will assist Mark Twain National Forest, as needed, during this high fire danger period, ensuring that firefighting resources are managed effectively, and timely and accurate information is provided. 

The Salem R-80 Board of Education held their regular meeting Thursday evening at the administrative boardroom. At the meeting, new Superintendent Steve Carvajal reported that the Rotary Club plans on installing a pavilion at the football field adjacent to the restrooms for the selling of food items. He also said that the roof work at the White House building at the school has been completed and the conversion to natural gas is about 50% completed. Assistant Superintendent John McCulloch went on to report that the administration is still looking to beautify the campus where possible, and that a Tiger logo will be installed on the gym lobby floor with the leftover Senior Class money. William Lynch Principal Kriste Crocker reported that 310 children from Kindergarten through 7^th grade attended summer school and that did include about 60 kindergarten children who attend William Lynch School for the first time. Senior High Principal John Smith indicated that 14 or 15 students attended summer school and received credit for high school courses. The board approved the Board of Education committee assignments before approving a transfer of $362,812 into Fund 4 for capital projects. The board approved a non-resident student from Northwood R-4 to attend the Salem R-80 district and also approved the Developmental Preschool Building Lease. The board approved the continued support of $10,000 for the Salem TCRC for adult education and also workshop use. The board approved updated job descriptions for the Federal Programs Director position and the grounds for summer program. Superintendent Carvajal stated that Allied Bus would no longer be providing in-house financing and the board approved making the change to an outside financial service for bus purchases and leases. The board policies were then approved before five resignations were accepted. Resigning were Assistant Junior High Principal John Johnson, Process Coordinator Krista Barnes, 7^th Grade English Teacher Francis Bay, 6^th Grade Math Teacher Linda Hagen and Tammy Davidson as the Assistant Girls Softball Coach. The board then went into closed session.

An accident occurred at 12:06 Sunday afternoon in Texas County on Highway 60 about a mile east of Cabool that took the life of two Mt. Grove individuals. According to the highway patrol report, 89-year old Rose Gochal of Mt. Grove, while driving a 1995 Chevy van, failed to yield at the crossover, drove onto the highway, and was struck in the side by a 2012 Dodge truck driven by 35-year old James Sorrell of Urbana. The impact caused the Dodge to strike a 2001 Pontiac Sunfire driven by 49-year old Kevin Enderle of West Plains. Rose Gochal and an occupant in the Chevy, 64-year old Raymond Gochal of Mt. Grove, were pronounced dead at the scene by Texas County Coroner Thomas Whitaker at 1:30 and their bodies were taken to the Elliot Gentry Funeral Home in Cabool. Enderle suffered moderate injuries and was taken to the Ozarks Medical Center. James Sorrell and three occupants in the Dodge from Urbana, 25-year old Karrie Sorrell, 9-year old Cameron Adams, and 3-year old Brieanna Sorrell, suffered moderate injuries and were also taken to the Ozarks Medical Center. An additional occupant in the Dodge, 5-year old James Sorrell of Urbana, suffered serious injuries and was flown by Air Evac to the Mercy Hospital. Everyone involved was wearing a seat restraint at the time of the accident. All three vehicles were totaled and removed from the scene by Cabool Towing.

Sports [TOP]

The 7th & 8th grade FOOTBALL CAMP will start Monday, July 9th at 9:00 AM and will continue thru Friday, July 13th. Campers should meet at the Salem High School Weight Room on July 9th for registration and the start of camp. The 9th through 12th grade FOOTBALL CAMP will start on Monday, July 9th at 5:30 PM and will continue thru Friday, July 20th with a Team Camp Scrimmage. The cost of either camp is $25. If you have any questions, call Coach Bill Schuchardt at 729-6644.

Allen Craig hit a two-run homer and Yadier Molina added a solo shot as the St. Louis Cardinals edged the Pittsburgh Pirates, 5-4, to avoid a three-game series sweep. Matt Holliday and Shane Robinson also drove in runs for the Cardinals, who snapped a three-game slide. Jake Westbrook (7-6) allowed four runs on nine hits and a walk over six innings to earn the win. The Cardinals will start a four-game series with the Rockies and you can hear that game on KSMO Radio at 6:40.

Drew Butera's three-run homer in the eighth proved to be the difference as the Minnesota Twins survived to take a 10-8 win over the Kansas City Royals to wrap up a four-game set. Irving Falu had three hits and drove in four while Eric Hosmer added three hits and scored twice for the Royals. Bruce Chen (7-7) was tagged for six runs on six hits with a walk and five strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings to take the loss. The Royals start a four-game series with the Toronto Blue Jays tonight.

Four Cardinals were selected to play in the 83^rd MLB All-Star Game, set for July 10^th. Rafael Furcal and Carlos Beltran were selected as starters, while Yadier Molina and Lance Lynn were also selected. Beltran was also selected to participate in the Home Run Derby. Kansas City designated hitter Billy Butler was selected as a reserve and is the Royals’ lone representative. Cardinal third baseman David Freese and Royals’ closer Jonathon Broxton are among the five players vying for the final roster spot on each team through online fan voting.

Obituaries   [TOP]

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