SPORTS Jefferson College baseball outlook 29
Jefferson County
Vol. 26, No. 29 Thursday, March 5, 2020
Sew far,
sew good
New quilting store
in county taps
growing industry
By Gordon Bess
For the Leader
Christy Zawodniak’s life has
gone to pieces.
Pieces of fabric, that is, which
she sews together to make quilts.
Zawodniak, 47, of rural Hills-
boro, has transformed what had
been her hobby into a robust new
business, the Cottage Grove Quilt
Co., which caters to an extensive
community of quilters throughout
Jefferson County and beyond.
Cottage Grove opened its doors
Feb. 14 at 200 S. Main St. in De Soto.
Based on the store’s initial
See QUILTING, Page 26
County health officials say risk for
coronavirus is low, but they’re ready
By Katelyn Mary Skaggs
For the Leader
Jefferson County Health Depart-
ment officials say they are prepared if
anyone in the county tests positive for
the coronavirus, also known as CO-
VID-19.
However, the flu is a higher threat
to county residents right now, the of-
ficials said.
“We are still considered a low risk
for community transmission for corona-
virus at this time,” said Jeana Vidacak,
public health preparedness coordinator
for the Health Department.
NEWS De Soto Library goes fine-free 2
‘Once a week but never weakly’
www.myleaderpaper.com 636-931-7560
Decision
time
State’s voters
go to polls to
pick presidential
preference
By Steve Taylor
For the Leader
Missourians will head to the polls
March 10 to vote for the candidate they
support for their party’s nomination in the
upcoming presidential election.
The Missouri Presidential Prefer-
ence Election – it’s not officially called a
primary election but serves that purpose
– will include the names of 33 candidates
across five political parties who are seek-
ing – or were once seeking – their party’s
nod to run for president in the November
general election.
Christy Voters who choose a Democratic
Zawodniak
See ELECTION, Page 27
As of Tuesday, no cases of coro-
navirus had been reported in Missouri,
according to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention.
However, in the U.S., there had been
60 cases of the coronavirus reported
across 12 states, including in Illinois
and Wisconsin, according to the CDC.
In addition, there had been nine
deaths linked to the coronavirus, all
in Washington, according to health of-
Diversity tribute
Gordon Bess photo
ficials.
Vidacak said symptoms of the coro- Earl Cook, former Festus mayor and longtime community supporter, center, speaks to
navirus are similar to flu symptoms. the crowd at Saturday’s Cultural Diversity Luncheon. Cook learned at the event that
he wil be inducted into the Festus R-6 School District’s Hall of Fame. It was among a
See CORONAVIRUS, Page 26 number of honors announced at the event. Read more on Pages 6-7.
Eureka Wednesday, March 25, 2020
8 a.m. - Noon
Victorian Gardens
Eureka
Leader Publications
EXPO GRAND TIMES 636-931-7560
8 Jefferson County Leader
Italian restaurant
opens in De Soto
A new eatery called Bella Cucina
has opened in De Soto.
The restaurant, which serves
classic Italian food like pizza, pasta and
submarine sandwiches, is located at 48
Jefferson Square where Bistro at the
Square used to operate.
Bella Cucina is owned by Tom and
Michelle Womble of Farmington. The
Wombles also run Mario’s Italia, an
Italian restaurant in Farmington.
The Wombles have 10 employees
at the De Soto location, which has been
open since early December.
“It’s going well. The community
is pretty happy, and we enjoy seeing
everybody,” said Craig Womble, the
Wombles’ son, who manages the
restaurant, which seats 140 people.
Womble said pasta is the restaurant’s
big seller.
“We make our own sauces and dough
from scratch,” he said.
The restaurant, which offers both
dine-in and carryout, is open Thursday
through Sunday. Hours are 4-8 p.m. on
Thursday; 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday
and Saturday; and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on
Sunday.
Womble said the restaurant was
remodeled and the kitchen was redone.
--Mary McKinstry
SOM Trailers to carry
Bloomer brand
SOM Trailers, owned by David
Walther of Pevely, has been selected to
represent the Bloomer brand of equine
trailers. Bloomer Trailers are built in
central Texas.
Officers named
Current officers of the Jefferson County
Association of Educational Office
Professionals, from left: Doryce Gobble,
treasurer; Lisa Hoffman, secretary; and
Judy Turney, president. At right is Erin
Bergmann, outgoing president.
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Dieb employees
collect 12,500 items
Dieb Enterprises Inc. in Hillsboro held
a toy, food and personal care drive
during November. The employees
collected more than 12,500 items.
Three employees collected the most
items: Lauren Whitehead, left, Rachel
Gibbs and Donna Lyeki. The items
will benefit the Hillsboro Food Pantry
ProActive Chiropractic helps Crisis Nursery and Jefferson County foster care
program.
ProActive Chiropractic, which has offices in Arnold and Festus, recently raised
$25,215 for St. Louis Crisis Nursery. The clinic donated new patient exam fees
toward the nursery, which works to prevent child abuse and neglect. Front row
from left: Sharon Boyd; Bethany Skaggs; Bonnie Define of the St. Louis Crisis
Grant provides
Nursery; and Lynette Mayfield. Second row: Brian Greunke and Melanie Kies. Third speakers at school
row: Jennifer Stephens and Donna Klug. Back: Daniel Skaggs and Bev Bratton.
The Hillsboro Primary Hawks PTO
obtained a $2,000 Walmart Foundation
New Dollar Tree store opens in De Soto grant on behalf of Hillsboro Primary
School to buy outdoor speakers.
A new Dollar Tree opened Feb. 27. and beauty essentials, toys and books. “They should be installed by the
The 9,000-square-foot store is at 12949 The new location also includes end of March,” said Crissy Mann, a
Hwy. 21 in De Soto. Dollar Tree’s recently introduced Snack Hillsboro Primary kindergarten teacher
Dollar Tree stores are open seven Zone, an expanded offering of beverages, and the school’s PTO president. “These
days a week and offer an assortment of candy and snacks. are needed to help communicate with
merchandise priced at $1 or less. The The store will have 12 to 20 students playing on the playground. One
merchandise includes seasonal decor, employees. time, there was a lockdown and someone
household products, greeting cards, party Store hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. had to run outside and tell them to come in
and craft supplies, dinnerware, food, Monday through Saturday and 9 a.m. to because there were no outside speakers.”
teaching and school necessities, health 7 p.m. Sunday. -- Kevin Carbery
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2012 Chrysler 200. .................$4,950
2007 Dodge Dakota...............$4,950
2008 Hyundai Tucson ...........$4,950
2006 Chrysler PT Cruiser ......$2,950
2011 Dodge Nitro ....................$6,500
2006 Chrys. Town & Country ...$3,950
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Thursday, March 5, 2020 Business Jefferson County Leader 9

Gordmans spares Festus man releases

Crystal City store
By Tony Krausz
For the Leader
The parent company of the Gordmans
department store has announced that it
will close its locations in both Fenton and
Arnold, leaving the Crystal City store as
its only one in the St. Louis region.
Stage Stores, the Houston-based
buyer of assets from the bankrupt Gord-
mans company, said in an email that
it will continue to operate the Crystal
City store, 110 Twin City Drive, but
will close its other five stores in the St.
Louis area.
Stage will close Gordmans in Arnold,
235 Arnold Crossroads Center; in the
Gravois Bluffs Plaza in Fenton, 687 Gra-
vois Bluffs Blvd.; in St. Charles, 1355 S.
Fifth St.; in Fairview Heights, 81 Ludwig
Drive; and in O’Fallon, Mo., 2259 Hwy.
K, according to the email.
The company did not provide dates
for when the stores will close.
The Crystal City location will be
the only Gordmans to remain open in
Mosher Bay
book on motocross
Keith Geisner of Festus recently performing at
released a book, “Finding No. 49
the area.
The Crystal City location opened
and America’s Forgotten Motocross The Gathering
Team,” through Archway Publishing.
June 27, 2019. The location previously The book deals with Geisner’s
Room
housed the Peebles department store, and research into the history of his
it was one of 74 Gordmans stores Stages Harley-Davidson dirt bike and its
Friday, March 6th
opened last year. connection with the factory’s short- 6 - 8:30 p.m.
The Arnold location opened in July lived motocross team.
2014. The book is available, in $10 Cover Charge
The St. Louis-area Gordmans had
hardcover or softcover or as an includes food.
survived a previous round of closures by electronic book, at amazon.com and
Stage in 2017, the year Gordmans filed Bring your own wine!
Barnes and Noble.
for bankruptcy. At that time, a Chester-
field location was closed. 116 N. Main, De Soto
“As is common practice in the retail
industry, Stage Stores reviews its store
fleet on a regular basis to ensure we
remain competitive and best positioned
to provide options to our guests,” the
company said in its recent email.
Stage operates other department
stores under the names of Bealls, Goody’s,
Palais Royal, Peebles and Stage.
Gordmans offers name-brand cloth-
ing, home decor, footwear, gifts, ac-
cessories, fragrances and other items,
according to the written statement.

Karen Wicks, left, Jefferson College’s executive director of development, and Julia
Hampton, vice-president of the Jefferson College Foundation Board, present the
Outstanding Faculty and Staff Achievement Awards to, from left: Vivian Aubuchon,
Katherine Donahue, Daniel Modglin, Carleen “Charlie” Roberts and Tasha Welsh.

College Foundation presents five awards

The Jefferson College Foundation adjunct faculty; Daniel Modglin, systems
recently presented its annual Outstanding analyst, classified professional staff;
Achievement Awards to college faculty Carleen “Charlie” Roberts, associate
and staff who were nominated from four professor of veterinary technology,
employee constituent groups. faculty; and Tasha Welsh, director of
The recipients were: human resources, certified professional
Vi v i a n A u b u c h o n , a s s i s t a n t staff.
professor of biology, faculty; Katherine As part of the recognition, each
Donahue, instructor, HVAC program, recipient also received a $250 stipend.
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26 Jefferson County Leader
Quilting: New store owner says quilting is a $4 billion industry in U.S.
Continued from Page 1
throng of customers, it appears Zawod-
niak has tapped into a booming market-
place.
“People think of quilting as it was
with their grandmas, where they would
sit there with a group of people and just
make these little blocks and little squares
and sew (them) together,” Zawodniak
said. “It’s not that way anymore. It’s a $4
billion industry and people actually travel
all over for quilting.”
The travel element is a key plank
of her business strategy, as she hopes to
draw quilters from far and wide, attracted
not only to the store’s fabrics, supplies
and sample quilts but also to expert
instruction on quilting techniques. The
store also is a haven for quilters to come
together in a distinct community.
“We ran this business for five years
out of our basement,” Zawodniak said.
“We have grown year-over-year. We’re
real excited to bring this to De Soto.”
She foresees quilting groups form-
ing caravans to the city and generating a
significant economic boost for businesses
on or near Main Street. Quilt guilds are
scattered throughout the area, includ-
ing groups in Arnold (the Jefferson Star
Guild), Festus (the Scraps and Patches
Guild) and Farmington.
“It’s not just (quilters in) De Soto,”
she said. “Quilters get in cars and they
travel. There will be buses here and
people may think, ‘What do you mean,
buses?’ Quilters always love bus trips. It’s
this thing we do. Every guild, just about,
(that) I’ve been involved in, they have a
bus trip. They rent a big bus from Huskey
or some other bus company, fill it up with
60 women, and they check out and go
visit all these little shops just like ours.
“Those people need a place to eat and
they need a place to go shop so they can
buy other stuff. It’s going to be a good
economic impact for De Soto, I believe.”
At least one customer who came
to the grand opening Feb. 14 proved
Zawodniak’s point about quilters love
for traveling. Claudia Weiss, 64, of Park
Hills drove up that morning and was one
of the first people in the door.
“It’s great to have a quilt store closer
to home that’s not a big chain,” said
Weiss, who previously had shopped at
chain stores in St. Louis. “This will be
on our stop any time we go through (to
Coronavirus: Health officials say hand-washing helps avoid virus spread
Continued from Page 1
According to the CDC, symptoms,
which may range from mild to severe,
include fever, cough and shortness of
breath. Symptoms may appear two to
14 days after exposure.
Vidacak said, just like with the flu,
people should take precautions to avoid
spreading the coronavirus.
“Wash your hands; cough into your
elbow,” she said. “If you’re not feeling
well, stay home from work or school.”
While it’s important to be aware of
News
Christy Zawodniak, center, cuts a ribbon to open her new Cottage Grove Quilt Co. at
200 S. Main St. in De Soto.
the north). You’ve got to support small
businesses as much as possible because
people don’t realize how expensive
fabric is.”
The timing for opening the new store
could hardly have been better, with the
Missouri State Quilters Guild holding its
annual meeting/spring retreat March 27-
29 at the YMCA Trout Lodge in Potosi.
Cottage Grove will host a trunk show
for the state group, with De Soto’s Just
Be Kind Cafe (426 S. Main St.) catering
the event.
“We’re always looking for ways to
partner with other businesses here in
town,” Zawodniak said. “(The state con-
vention) is going to be a neat endeavor.
Quilting is an amazing business. Quilting
is worldwide. I have Facebook quilting
friends from all over the world. I follow
quilters in Russia, the far east, wherever.”
Colors and classes
Cottage Grove’s spacious showroom,
in a century-old building that once housed
a Ben Franklin “five-and-dime” store,
could rival any paint store for color and
variety. Zawodniak said she stocks 400-
500 bolts of fabric and hopes to increase
that to 3,000 or more as the business
grows. She also offers “long-arm” sew-
ing services on a state-of-the-art machine
manufactured in West Plains by the Gam-
mill Quilting Machine Co.
the coronavirus, Vidacak said Jefferson
Countians have a higher risk of contract-
ing the flu.
“We’re still in the flu season and
that is really still our biggest concern,”
she said.
If the county sees a positive case
of coronavirus, the Health Department
would handle the case like any other
disease, Vidacak said.
“Even though it’s new, it’s the exact
same process that we do every day with
all kinds of other different pathogens,”
Gordon Bess photo
“It’s an industrial-size machine that
sits on a 14-foot table,” she said. “It runs
on a (computer-assisted design)-based
computer system. It actually runs itself.
It’s a daunting little task, but that’s what
we quilt our quilts on.”
The store holds regular classes for
all skill levels, from beginners to master
classes.
“Some of the classes are sequenced;
most classes are project-based, like how
to make a T-shirt quilt, or making stuffed
animals,” she said. “We’ll have youth
classes in the summer, divided into age
groups, in June and July.”
Zawodniak, a certified instructor
through Studio 180 Design, said she
plans to start conducting Facebook Live
tutorials soon.
“We’re pretty high-tech here,” she
said. “A lot of our (1,645) followers
are from all over the United States, and
even afar. Our intention is, now that
(quilters have) learned some basics, help
them build their skill sets, increase their
knowledge. By doing that, it’s going to
also increase our sales, because they will
turn to us to buy what they need.”
The class menu also embraces Za-
wodniak’s desire to foster community
among quilters.
“We want to be a place for people
to come and sit and sew,” she said. “We
host Grief Share and Sew, once a month.
There are so many people who, when they
she said. “For us, it really is normal
operations. I mean, this is new; we’re
learning about it as we go, but our pro-
cess is the same for any other or any
other investigation we do.”
Vidacak said information about a
positive test result of any disease, like
measles or the coronavirus, is reported
to the Health Department by local pro-
viders or by the Missouri Department of
Health and Senior Services.
“Our role is to look at that case and
kind of go out from there to see who
Thursday, March 5, 2020
lose someone, need somehow to recon-
nect with humanity. Some people turn
to quilting. We have found that it helps
(people) get out in the real world again
and somehow find healing, basically one
stitch at a time.”
The store also sponsors a monthly
Quilts of Valor group.
“Quilts of Valor is a foundation that
was started to wrap a quilt around every
veteran and every current (military) ser-
vice member,” Zawodniak said. “So far
they have awarded over 200,000 quilts to
service members past and present. We’ll
be a drop-off point for them – a Quilts of
Valor shop.”
Growth plans
Last November, Zawodniak left a
20-year career as a financial analyst in
the corporate world – including five years
as a contract worker at Boeing in St.
Louis – to take the plunge into full-time
entrepreneurship. She took up quilting 11
years ago, just as a hobby.
“I thought, ‘Well, I’ll take a quilting
class (since) I’d always had an interest
in it; I’ll give it a try.’ And it just clicked.
I just took it and ran with it, and fell in
love with it.”
She has two full-time employees in
the store and plans to hire more as the
store grows. She also is quick to point out
that quilting is not exclusively a female
enterprise.
“Men quilt too,” she said. “There are
a lot of men who long-arm quilt.”
And then there are men like Ben
Earnest of De Soto, who waited patiently
in the checkout line at the grand opening,
clutching a block of fabric and other items.
“I’m here for my wife,” he said.
For men who tag along when their
wives or girlfriends visit the store, there’s
a “man cave” of sorts with comfortable
chairs and televisions tuned to sports
channels.
It’s all in Zawodniak’s grand design
to become a go-to destination for quilters
and their families.
“Our grand opening exceeded our
expectations by far,” she said. “We were
surprised and blessed at the turnout
from the local De Soto community and
the broader quilting community. We are
looking forward to future community
partnerships to grow the fabric arts in
the region.”
that person had contact with,” she said.
Vidacak said the Health Department
has a team of three people who are avail-
able 24 hours a day if a positive case is
reported.
The team includes Vidacak, epide-
miologist Dylan Steigerwald and public
health investigative nurse Tara Edmond.
“Our role as public health, in any
sort of outbreak, we do investigation
and surveillance,” she said. “So, we do
this on a daily basis with all kinds of
different diseases.”
 West Side Vol. 7, No. 52
Golf Guide 2020
Pages 25-29
Arnold-Imperial Vol. 25, No. 38
Jefferson County Vol. 26, No. 39

‘Once a week but never weakly’

636-931-7560

Reporting for duty Back

www.myleaderpaper.com Thursday, May 14, 2020

By Tony Krausz
For the Leader
in biz
Rock firefighter returns to work after recovering from coronavirus

Firefighter and Paramedic Mike

Douglas was surprised when he found out
he had contracted COVID-19.
He was even more surprised by how
long it took for him to be able to return to
work at the Rock Community Fire Protec-
tion District.
“It was frustrating,” said Douglas,
who was told he tested positive for the
coronavirus April 1 and was unable to
return to work until April 27. “I really
wanted just to get back.”
Douglas, 30, of Barnhart remained
home for 27 days with his wife, Samantha,
and their 3-year-old son and 11-month-old
daughter because a cough associated with
the virus lingered for nearly two weeks
after all his other symptoms were gone.
“He was ready to come back to work
two weeks prior to when he did,” Rock
Fire Deputy Chief Kevin Grimshaw said.
See DOUGLAS, Page 13
Some open all the way,
others put a toe in
By Steve Taylor
For the Leader
Jefferson County’s stay-at-home
order and restrictions on restaurants and
bars ended on May 4. What’s happened
since then has been – well, difficult to
define.
“It’s all over the place right now,”
said Todd Tracy, executive director of
the county Economic Development Cor-
poration.
County Executive Dennis Gan-
non, whose recent executive order with
Health Department Director Kelley
Vollmar lifted the restrictions in favor of
guidelines issued by Missouri Gov. Mike
Rock Community Fire Protection District Firefighter and Paramedic Mike Douglas.
See BUSINESSES, Page 16

Arnold Farmers Go on a trip every week with new ‘Travel Corner’

Market draws Since we can’t get out much these

crowd, two more toThankfully,

days, it’s even more important than ever
go wandering in our imaginations.
Grand Times, Leader Pub-
markets to open handy solution. for seniors, offers a
lications’ magazine

The Arnold Farmers Market opened
for the season on May 9, and the Cedar
Hill and De Soto markets are set to open
this coming weekend, with a fourth market
expected to open in June.
Based on the attendance at the Arnold
market’s opening day, county residents are
interested in buying farm-fresh food and
are willing to follow new rules put in place
to stem the spread of COVID-19, market
manger Teresa Kohut said.
She said at least 500 customers
See FARMERS MARKETS, Page 12
More than 90 photos were sub-
mitted to the annual Way to Go travel
photo contest, sponsored by Grand
Times. The winning photo, submitted
by Steven Williams of Imperial, is
featured on the cover of the magazine
in today’s paper.
Since so many good photos were
entered, the Leader plans to feature one
a week in a special “Travel Corner” on
Page 2 of the paper, starting May 21.
Thanks to all who shared their travel Craig and Barbara Dexter of Imperial snapped this selfie during their October 2019
photos – and take heart; we’ll be back to honeymoon trip to Europe. “This is us with the iconic Tower Bridge in London,” Barbara
wandering before you know it. said. The photo was among more than 90 submitted to the Way to Go photo contest.

Salute your special graduate

in the May 21 Leader!
Call 636-931-7560 today!
2 The Leader
Website for young children teaches basic skills
By Steve Taylor
For the Leader
Magical Molly can’t make the coro-
navirus pandemic disappear, but she can
help parents teach their young children
some basic skills.
Magical Molly is the virtual alter-ego
of Gina Whitener, who started a series
of how-to videos for her students in the
De Soto School District about six years
ago.
Whitener, 55, of Herculaneum is
an occupational therapist at Athena
Elementary School and helps students
with special needs, including many on
the autism spectrum.
“Traditionally, an occupational thera-
pist helps you do whatever you need to
do to do your job,” she said. “In a school
setting, the children’s job is learning, so
we teach them communications skills,
handwriting, sensory activities, coping
skills so they don’t have a meltdown in
their classroom.”
Whitener said Magical Molly videos
are an outreach of her work.
“Some of my parents were asking
me to help them follow through
at home the same things I was
teaching their children at school,
so I started posting videos on
a YouTube channel,” she said.
“While they were developed
with special-needs children in
mind, I’d say parents of pre-kin-
dergartners through first-graders
will find them useful.”
The early videos involved
teaching children how to write
each letter of the alphabet. Since
Whitener linked the YouTube channel
with her own website, kidzskillz.com,
Magical Molly has branched out.
“I’m probably best known for my
shoe-tying video,” she said. “That’s had
2.7 million views.”
Some of the subject matter isn’t for
those with a weak stomach, like the one
on nose-picking.
“No, it’s not a how-to video,” Whit-
ener said. “It teaches children that they
have germs on their fingers and that when
you put your fingers in your nose, then
Happy 16th Birthday!
Ethan Scott Lucas
May 17th
Remember...this is
yours one day!
Love,
Oma & PaPa
News
Video magic
Gina Whitener onscreen as Magical Molly.
Her YouTube video about tying shoelaces
has had almost 3 million views.
eat your boogers, you’re really eating
germs.”
While Whitener said she takes re-
quests, she doesn’t fill them all.
“I’ve been asked to make a video on
wiping butts,” she said. “I didn’t really
want to do that, but there are other very
good videos you can search for online on
the subject.”
She said some of the handwriting
videos aren’t necessarily what’s being
taught in mainstream classrooms.
16 • 16 • 16 • 16 • 16
“When I’m teaching kids to write,
especially with children with autism, it’s
a matter of you want them to keep their
pencil on the paper as much as possible,
because the more a kid picks up the pen-
cil, the more they can get off track. But
they find this method useful once they
move on to learning cursive. I took bits
Martin Alan
Morgan III
Son of
Krystle
(Burlage)
Morgan
and
the late
Martin
Alan
Morgan, Jr.
6 lb. 3 oz., 19 1/4 inches
April 12, 2020, 5:16 p.m.
Thursday, May 14, 2020
and pieces of other programs and put “My daughter-in-law, Jessica, has
them all together. been instrumental in this from the begin-
“The whole reason I developed this is ning. It started out as an idea to make a
that handwriting programs are expensive, book on handwriting, and, when she was
and I wanted to put something good out a graphic arts student in college, she said,
there for free. And I think this is good.” ‘I can make that look really professional.’
Whitener has plenty of experience in I was really pleased with that, and eventu-
teaching young children. ally, she designed a website for me that
“I’ve been doing this for 31 years we’re both really proud of.”
now,” she said. In addition to dozens of short vid-
Before starting in 2008 in the De Soto eos for children, the website, Whitener
District, Whitener worked for eight years pointed out, includes resources for par-
with the former Jefferson County Special ents and teachers.
Services Co-op, and she has worked for “There’s a section on there that has
the Special School District of St. Louis links to sites that includes good informa-
County and the Judevine Center. tion for parents on how to talk with their
“I started volunteering with the Ju- children about COVID-19,” she said.
devine Center when I was 16, and I’ve Whitener said with stay-at-home
worked with geriatric patients as well at orders and school closures turning many
St. Louis University Hospital.” parents into homeschool teachers, many
Whitener said she created the Magi- of them have found KidzSkills and Magi-
cal Molly persona when she was working cal Molly. “This past month, I’ve had
with the co-op. 2,000 new subscribers to the YouTube
“I was at Festus one day, and I was channel,” she said.
asked to come into one of the kindergar- Homeschooling parents, Whitener
ten classrooms wearing a hat and cape to said, should definitely consider turning
give a lesson on writing letters. I started to the internet to enlist help.
as Magical Gina, but Magical Molly “Even in my classroom, the kids now
sounded better.” say, ‘I want to watch the video.’ I tell them
Her recent videos, Whitener that I’m the same person in the video, but
said, have strayed from the Molly they say they want to watch the video
character. And there will be more rather than have me tell them in person.
videos to come, she said. That’s the way kids now learn.”
Whitener said her videos
Inside
have become a family affair.
“In the early days, my son,
Dylan, was the one taking the
videos, and my husband, Jeff,
edits them. I’ve been trying to Business............................... 6-7
get my daughter, Emily, who’s a For children ............................ 8
talented singer, to come up with Editorial ............................ 18-19
music that would help make children Obituaries......................... 20-24
learn. Nuptials.................................. 24
Sports................................ 31-32
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Chloe Jett Classified ......................... 32-39
Homes .................................. 32
Turning 16 is special to
you but you are special Notices.............................. 34-37
to us every day! We are
proud of you and love you Help wanted...................... 37-39
with all our hearts.
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4 The Leader
Seek and you shall find
Meat is available for those who know how to work the local sources
By Steve Taylor
For the Leader
Fresh meat is poised to become the
new toilet paper of the pandemic.
Meat shortages are a logical pre-
diction, given that meat-packing plants
around the country are hot spots for CO-
VID-19, tied to the close quarters and lack
of social distancing in those facilities.
As a result, supermarkets are limit-
ing the amount of meat consumers may
buy at one time in an effort to stave off
hoarding, as has happened with toilet
paper, disinfectant, diapers, baby wipes
and other items.
However, Jefferson County consum-
ers may consider another option: Think
small.
Instead of heading to the big-box
supermarket or discount store, head to a
small grocery or meat market or bypass
the middleman directly and buy your
meat at farmers markets.
Tom Kolisch, an owner of John’s
Butcher Shoppee, 503 N. Mill St., in
Festus, said he’s heard there might be a
meat shortage just around the corner but
said his store is well positioned for it.
“I think it’s because we have better
relationships with our distributors than
the big stores might,” he said. “On Easter
Sunday, for example, I was on the phone
at 11 at night placing an order. Every day,
I’m constantly looking for deals.”
For the average consumer, deals on
meat might be tough to come by in the
near future, Kolisch said.
“I think for the next couple of weeks,
it might be tough to get everything you’re
looking for. It shouldn’t be a problem for
us, because we’re very well stocked. But
the prices are going up. That’s not us;
that’s the distributors passing on their
costs,” he said. “From what I hear, a lot
of the meat processors are having trouble
getting enough people in to work. I would
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Tom Kolisch staffs the fully stocked meat counter at John’s Butcher Shoppee, 503 N.
Mill St., in Festus.
say it’s not necessarily going to be that
you can’t find what you’re looking for,
but what are you willing to pay for it?
“What you might see shortages in
are cuts that have to be boned, such as rib
eyes and sirloins,” he said. “Other cuts,
such as pork steaks, pork loins and ground
beef, there might not be a shortage, but
again, what will you be willing to pay?”
Kolisch said his store, considered an
essential business and open through the
pandemic, has a limit of 10 customers in
the store at any time.
“We’re also bleaching our surfaces
and doors regularly and encouraging our
customers to practice social distancing
while they’re in the store,” he said.
In an effort to ward off panic-buying,
Kolisch said his store limits purchases to
10 pounds of any particular item.
“You can come back the next day
and buy another 10 pounds, but we want
to make sure everybody has a chance to
get some,” he said.
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Farmers markets
With weather getting warmer, farm-
ers markets are opening, and because
vendors at markets typically offer their
own products rather than rely on whole-
salers and meat-processing facilities,
they are poised to help consumers who
are having trouble finding items on their
shopping lists.
“I think the meat vendors at our mar-
ket, as well as our other vendors, will be
able to fill gaps in the food supply chain,”
said Teresa Kohut, manager of the Arnold
Farmers Market, which opened for the
season on May 9 and will operate every
Saturday through the summer and early
fall at Arnold City Park.
She said she expected at least two of
the 19 vendors on May 9 to be hawking
fresh meat.
“We’ll be selling beef and pork and
poultry and eggs – pretty much all things
that people want,” she said. “How long
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they’ll be available, I don’t know. But I
expect most of our vendors to do well.”
The Arnold market’s meat vendors
are Tri-Point Farm from Hillsboro and
Yesteryear Meats from Jackson.
Kohut encouraged shoppers to check
out the market’s Facebook page, which
has a list of the week’s vendors and ways
to contact them.
The De Soto Farmers Market will
open this coming Saturday with an ex-
pected 10 vendors at its location at 520
N. Main St.
“Two of them will be selling meat,
perhaps a third,” said market master
Cara Ahern. Oak Grove Valley Farm and
Pierce County Farm, both from Hillsboro,
will be the vendors, she said.
“I understand they’ve already been
taking a lot of pre-purchase orders,”
Ahern said.
Both Ahern and Kohut said they
would entertain more meat vendors, if
space is available, to fill in the slack from
empty meat coolers at supermarkets.
“We give priority to our sponsoring
vendors, but anyone who is selling meat,
we would definitely try to find a place for
them if we can,” Ahern said.
Kohut said vendors who sell staples
are given priority at her market as well.
“We’re assigning spaces giving
priority to sellers of meat and produce,
eggs and honey and also vegetables and
fruit. While it’s still early in the season,
we’ll have plenty of vegetables on hand.
We also will have vendors selling bread,
pastries and desserts, because we all need
those things, too.”
Kohut said she hopes more people
will consider the options farmers markets
provide.
“Patronizing our vendors at the farm-
ers market is a chance to support our local
food suppliers, which is very important,”
she said, “as well as supporting our local
economy.”
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6 The Leader Business Thursday, May 14, 2020

Business notes
LaChance Vineyards
opens in Kimmswick
LaChance Vineyards, which is
based in De Soto, has added a second
location. On May 5, LaChance opened
a winery and restaurant at 6035 Second
St. in Kimmswick – in the building that
long housed the Old House restaurant and
later served as the home to other eating
establishments.
The Kimmswick location will have
a limited lunch menu to begin with,
but dinner service will be added later,
LaChance announced on its Facebook
page. The business also said on Facebook
that because the Kimmswick location is
a restaurant no outside food is allowed.
The winery will be open from 11
a.m. to 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays
and from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.
LaChance Vineyards, at 12237 Peter
Moore Lane in De Soto, resumed its nor-
mal schedule May 6, after having limited
hours and service because of COVID-19.
The vineyard is again open from 11
a.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesdays, Thursdays
and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Fri-
days and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturdays.
A limited lunch menu will be avail-
able at the De Soto location, as well as
dinner by reservation only from 5-8 p.m.
on Fridays.
Lionberger recognized
Firm gives face shields to first responders
By Tony Krausz
For the Leader
Sinclair and Rush Inc., a dip-
molding manufacturing company in
Arnold, has donated 500 plastic face
shields to first responders throughout
Jefferson County, the Rock Com-
munity Fire Protection District an-
nounced.
Rock Fire personnel picked up
the donation on April 17 and kept 100
face shields for its 60 firefighters. The
other 400 shields were sent to the Jef-
ferson County Emergency Operation
Agricultural businesses
can apply for loans
The U.S. Small Business Administra-
tion is accepting Economic Injury Disas-
ter Loan applications on a limited basis
specifically to agricultural businesses.
The application is available at www.
sba.gov/disaster.
Only agricultural business applica-
tions will be accepted at this time. Agri-
cultural businesses include those engaged
in the production of food and fiber, ranch-
ing and raising of livestock, aquaculture
and all other farming and agricultural
related industries. Eligible businesses
must have 500 or fewer employees.
Center in Herculaneum to distribute to
other county agencies, said Ron Harder,
spokesman for Rock Fire.
Harder said the face shields are worth
more than $1,500 and will help protect
first responders and minimize the spread
of the COVID-19 coronavirus.
“(Sinclair and Rush) said if we need
more, they will go into full production
and make as many as we need for first-
responders,” he said.
The Sinclair and Rush website
says the company designed and
started manufacturing what it calls
VisiGuard Face Shields in response
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Harder said the good thing about
the shields is that even though they
are disposable, they are an all-plastic
product, so they can be decontaminated
and used again, if needed.
“There are other face shields
with foam on the front of them, and
they are harder to (decontaminate),”
Harder said. “The ones that Sinclair
and Rush made are all plastic, so they
are easier to (decontaminate) and if
we get to a point where we have to
reuse them, they could easily be (de-
contaminated).”
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Wally Lionberger, an American
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Wally Lionberger tion was deter-
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results of customer satisfaction surveys. “The Missouri Wildlife Rescue Center is so thankful to Meramec Valley Bank for all their help,
Lionberger has owned the agency support and guidance securing the Wildlife Center’s PPP Loan.”
since October 2004.
The Wildlife Rescue Center is a nonprofit helping people help local wildlife since 1979
Mercy ranks among through wildlife rehabilitation and public education. Learn more at mowildlife.org
top health systems
Mercy Hospital Jefferson in Crystal
City recently was awarded an “A,” the top
grade, from the Leapfrog Group, for the
seventh straight reporting period.
The patient safety advocacy group
considers safety standards at more than
2,600 hospitals around the country and
assigns each a letter grade.
Factors included in the scores, is-
sued twice a year, include prevention of
medical errors, infections and other harm
caused to patients. Meramec Valley Bank is here for you. We are processing Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)
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12 The Leader News Thursday, May 14, 2020

Farmers markets: More markets to open this week

Continued from Page 1

showed up to shop at the market, which

is near the entrance of Arnold City Park
on Bradley Beach Road. The market is
open from 8 a.m. to noon every Saturday
through mid-October.
“We were really pleased with the turn-
out, and most people were very compliant
with the rules of the market,” Kohut said.
“We were worried about that a little bit,
anytime you have something that is dif-
ZOOM BREAKFAST
ferent and a change, you kind of worry.”
Kohut said everyone in the market
had to wear a mask, and only 38 custom-
ers were allowed inside the market at one Alayna, left, and Aaron Hampton were among the vendors selling produce at the Tuesday, May 19
Arnold Farmers Market on Saturday, May 9. It was the first market in Jefferson County
time. In addition, only 19 booths, about
to begin operating this season.
Join us at your computer 7:30 a.m.
half what the market can accommodate, Login info will be sent by member
were set up to allow for social distanc- “(Mary Schultz of Southern Yankees to social-distancing guidelines. message and invitation closer to
ing, vendors wore masks and bagged the Soaps) told me she had the best day she Melissa McAlpine said the De Soto meeting date.
products for the customers, who were not ever had,” Kohut said. “We had vendors market, which previously could accom-
allowed to handle the merchandise. sell out of merchandise, and vendors say- modate 27 vendors, will limit it to 10 for Guest Speaker:
“We feel like that having it be as safe ing this was the best day they have ever the time being. Chad Miller - The Miller Group
of an environment as possible in these had. It was really good.” The Cedar Hill market typically has Topic: Security When Working Remotely
times really brought more people out,” Kohut said last year’s market brought five to six vendors, so customers should
Kohut said. “I think people were happy in $6,480 despite having to relocate the not see a reduction, said Ray Underwood, Arnold Chamber
to see us take their safety very seriously.” market to the Arnold Recreation Center the market manager. membership is a valuable
Kohut said while there was a steady for a while because of flooding at the park. Both the Arnold and De Soto markets resource in building your
flow of customers on opening day, she only have hand-washing stations, and McAlp- business...particularly after
saw about seven people needing to wait More coming ine said customers will be required to wash this rude interruption!
outside the entrance at one time. their hands before entering.
“Most people can make that shopping
route in about 10 to 12 minutes,” Kohut
The Cedar Hill Farmers Market, 810
S. Industrial Drive, is scheduled to open
Kohut and McAlpine said customers
will be asked not to touch the produce, and
Join Today!
said. “It was constantly moving.” Friday. It will be open from 3-7 p.m. each instead, someone at a booth will bag the
Kohut also said most people didn’t Friday through Oct. 30, market manager items customers purchase. 636-296-1910
have a problem with wearing masks to Ray Underwood said. director@arnoldchamber.org
the market. The De Soto Farmers Market will See FARMERS MARKETS, Page 14
“We held tightly to our rules, while begin operating Saturday. It is located at
still being helpful and friendly with our 520 N. Main St. and is open from 8 a.m.
customers,” she said. “If someone didn’t to noon through Oct. 31.
know (about the mask requirement), some- The Hillsboro Farmers Market, which
one could go in (to the market) and buy normally opens for the season on the
one for them, or I saw there were times in second Wednesday in May, has not set an
the parking lot when a customer said to opening date. Market manager Carmelita
someone else, ‘I have these masks that are Davidson said she hopes to see the market
still wrapped, you can take these.’” open in June.
Kohut said the Arnold market won’t
have as many crafters and artisans this sea- New way of operating
son, since priority will be given to vendors
who will sell food, the managers said. Like the Arnold Farmers Market, the
However, food cannot be prepared on others will have new rules to follow.
site, and there will be no entertainment or All the county’s farmers market man-
places set up for customers to sit and hang agers had to submit a plan to the Jefferson
out at the markets. County Health Department to ensure they
Kohut said meat vendors, Tri-Pointe operate as safely as possible because of
Farms and Yesteryear Meats, and vendors the pandemic.
who sold baked goods reported strong The De Soto markets also will have
sales. fewer vendors than usual in order to adhere

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14 The Leader
Douglas: Rock Fire continues safety precautions
Continued from Page 13
pains, shortness of breath and everything
else, but there is no one particular patient
that I was told had it and exposed me,”
Douglas said. “It could have been a num-
ber of people or multiple people who I was
exposed to.”
On April 7, Gov. Mike Parson directed
the Missouri Department of Labor and
Industrial Relations’ Division of Employ-
ment Security to implement an emergency
rule that allows firefighters, police and
other first responders to receive workers
compensation if they are diagnosed with
COVID-19 or are quarantined because of
it. The rule created the assumption that a
first responder was exposed to the virus
while on duty.
Farmers markets: De Soto, Arnold allow pre-orders
Continued from Page 12
McAlpine said the De Soto market
only allows customers to enter at the west
side of the market and exit on the east side
of the area. She said all other entry and exit
points will be roped off.
She also said vendors will be asked
to have two employees at each booth with
one designated as a bagger for the produce
and another one handling transactions.
“We are hoping this goes off without
a hitch,” McAlpine said.
She said the De Soto market raised
Stange Law Firm, PC
Divorce presents many financial
concerns, but it can be especially wor-
rying for business owners. Individuals
invest more than time and money in
entrepreneurial endeavors. They also
put in a generous amount of blood,
sweat and tears to bring their aspira-
tions to life.
With your marriage ending, your
business may feel like your center of
gravity right now. The worry that you
may lose control of it in the divorce
may be keeping you up at night. Here
is a breakdown of the most common
options for dividing business assets.
The method appropriate for you
will depend on a number of factors,
including how much of your busi-
ness qualifies as marital property,
how involved your spouse is in your
endeavor and what precautions you
took ahead of time.
Options for asset division:
• Keep the business and buy out
your spouse. Unless a prenuptial
News
“I immediately called (Douglas) and
said we need to put this in as work comp,”
Grimshaw said. “They accepted the claim.
That was good for him because he didn’t
have to worry about using his own per-
sonal time.”
Coming back
Douglas said Rock Fire employees are
taking every precaution to try to prevent
anyone from contracting the virus.
“We are very meticulous about wash-
ing our hands,” Douglas said. “We try
to keep anything that could have been
contaminated outside. We don’t bring
anything into the living area that could
harm us. We are constantly taking show-
ers, washing hands and changing clothes. I
about $7,000 last year.
The Arnold and De Soto markets
also have systems in place for people to
pre-order food and have it taken to their
vehicle when they arrive at the market.
Kohut said information on how to pre-
order is on the Arnold Farmers Market’s
Facebook page. There will be a designated
parking lot at the Arnold market for people
to receive their pre-ordered items.
McAlpine said people may go to the
De Soto Farmer’s Market’s web page,
gethealthydesoto.org, and pre-order their
food. When at the market, customers who
3 Ways Business Assets Can
Be Divided In Divorce Proceedings
agreement or other legal contract
exists that locks your spouse out
of the business, at least some
portion of your business is going
to qualify as marital property.
That being said, the cleanest way
to divide property and keep your
business to yourself is to buy out
your spouse’s interest.
• Sell the business. If you there is
no way to buy out your spouse-
and working with them as a
business partner is not a viable
option, you may consider sell-
ing the business and splitting the
proceeds. Obviously, this is not
ideal for someone who wants to
continue in the business. But if
negotiations do not go as you
hope, this is a possible plan B.
• Share the business and the in-
come. Peaceful co-ownership is
rare but works for some spouses
who part amicably. It allows
both spouses to benefit from the
business in an ongoing capac-
Thursday, May 14, 2020
guess the precautions we took did help, be-
cause no one else was diagnosed with it.”
Grimshaw said along with Douglas
never developing serious complications
from the coronavirus, a silver lining from
his experience was that Rock Fire em-
ployees saw that their safety measures are
effective in preventing the spread of the
disease and that people can recover from it.
“It is a bad virus, but the good part of it
is, here is an example of someone who had
it. He let it run its course. He didn’t need to
be hospitalized, and he was able to come
back to work, and he didn’t infect anybody
20% OFF
else at work,” Grimshaw said. “(Douglas)
is an excellent paramedic. He is one of the
best we have. He is a good guy, and we
CBD, Kratom,
were really glad to get him back. He adds
a lot to the team, that is for sure.”
Glass &
Vaporizers if
you mention
pre-order will be directed to drive to the
market’s office and barn to have their order
placed in their vehicle.
“You will not even have to get out of
your car,” McAlpine said.
this ad!
Kohut said vendors interested in
taking part in this year’s Arnold Farmers
Market may call her at 636-275-6989. 2745 High Ridge Blvd.,
McAlpine said vendors may visit
the De Soto Farmers Market’s website to Suite 2
see how many booths are available each High Ridge, MO 63049
Saturday and to contact the market about herbalmedzinfo@yahoo.com
participating.
-- Tony Krausz
Paid Advertisement
ity. However, this option might
include emotional challenges
along the way.
Spouses with complex assets,
like businesses, may have more to
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Stange Law Firm, PC limits their
Here to Help You
practice to family law matters includ-
ing divorce, child custody, child sup-
Rebuild Your Life™
The choice of a lawyer is an important decision that should
port, paternity, guardianship, adop- not be based solely upon advertisements. Kirk Stange is
tion, mediation, collaborative law responsible for the content. Principal place of business 120
South Central Ave, Suite 450, Clayton, MO 63105. Neither
and other domestic relation matters. the Supreme Court of Missouri/Illinois nor The Missouri/
Illinois Bar reviews or approves certifying organizations or
Stange Law Firm, PC gives clients specialist designations. Court rules do not permit us to ad-
24/7 access to their case through a vertise that we specialize in a particular field or area of law.
The areas of law mentioned in this article are our areas of
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16 The Leader
Businesses: Many businesses using caution before opening to public
Continued from Page 1
Parson, agreed.
“I get the impression it’s been a mixed
bag, but most places I’ve seen I think are
doing the right things,” he said. “I haven’t
been out much this week, but I went to one
restaurant and I was very encouraged by
what I saw. There weren’t a lot of people
there, but the tables were spaced out,
maybe two or three times what they could
have been, so there was lots of space. The
servers were wearing masks and while
they weren’t wearing gloves, were setting
drinks down using a disposable napkin.
They were using disposable menus.
“I felt safe there, but it was still kind
of odd, maybe because it was my first
time out in a while. But in the end, people
are going to go out to eat and shop where
they feel safe and I believe most business
owners will take that to heart.”
While some restaurants, bars and
businesses classified as “non-essential”
reopened as full-service establishments
last week, many took a more cautious ap-
proach, Tracy said.
“Most businesses I’ve talked with
are taking this seriously,” he said. “They
don’t want to cause another shutdown, and
they’re willing to put into place practices
that don’t just meet CDC or state or county
guidelines, but will exceed them. They
want to be part of the solution.”
Gannon said he has heard the same
message.
“Good operators make good deci-
sions,” he said.
Tracy said he’s not surprised many
independently operated restaurants have
not rushed to reopen their dining rooms,
given that the state guidelines call for
social distancing between diners.
“Some restaurants and other business-
es have moved to a carry-out and delivery
model that can sustain them for some time,
because they knew they wouldn’t be able
to reopen dining at full capacity,” he said.
“Some of the smaller restaurants that rely
primarily on sit-down dining in small
rooms, they’re not sure how they’re going
to be able to reopen. Those who found
for one reason or another that curbside or
delivery could not or would not meet their
needs, they’re really struggling right now.
“The restaurants that can’t get a fair
amount of people in their dining rooms
once they space their tables out or can’t
generate enough income to keep their
lights on, the prospects aren’t bright in
the near future.”
Tracy said it will take some time for
independent business operators to sort
things out.
“For the larger regional or national
chains, they may have internal policies that
are typically more stringent than the ones
dictated by state or county government,”
he said. “They may require their employ-
ees to wear masks, for instance. But the
moms-and-pops are struggling with how
they’re going to deal with whatever the
new normal is going to be.”
Some businesses hurting
The gradual reopening of the coun-
News
“I’m fascinated by how businesses
have been able to not only live with the
challenges the world presents, but find a
way to meet those challenges.”
Todd Tracy, executive director
Economic Development Corporation
ty’s economy is not a panacea for some
businesses, Tracy said.
“From what I understand, I don’t
believe there are any plans for many of
the bars in the county to reopen soon,”
he said. “Social distancing doesn’t really
lend itself to a bar or tavern business,
but it’s possible that some resourceful
owners will figure something out.
“Anything dealing with tourism or
banquet halls or meeting venues, they’re
likely to face tough times in the weeks
ahead. Many of them are reporting that
people who had booked events in the
summer or fall are canceling them.
They’re not really sure of what recovery
in the times of social distancing is going
to look like.
“On the other hand, I’ve heard of
one meeting hall that is taking events
canceled in May and June and rebooking
them in August and September. No one
really knows how that will play out, but
it’s a positive sign.”
Nonprofit organizations that rely on
membership dues and fundraising events
also will face a steep hill to recovery,
Tracy said.
“They’re hurting right now, and
looking at the future, they’re not look-
ing at a good future for the rest of 2020.
Hillsboro canceled its Homecoming
Festival. A lot of other cities have can-
celed their events, or are at least are
considering canceling them. The Jef-
ferson County Growth Association is
considering canceling some of its events
as well. And the loss of those events will
definitely affect retail sales.”
Others doing well
Tracy said not every business has
suffered during the pandemic.
“Grocery stores and home improve-
ment stores haven’t seen a decrease in
traffic. I’ve heard that sales in some of
these stores might be up as much as 800
percent, but once we get a look at sales
tax numbers, we’ll have a better view of
that,” he said.
Sales tax receipts in Jefferson County
that reflect sales from mid-March through
mid-April, indicate a small increase over
the same period last year.
Tom Kolisch, an owner of John’s
Butcher Shoppe, 503 N. Mill St., in
Festus said his store’s business bears out
what Tracy has heard anecdotally.
“It’s been extremely crazy. I would
say we’ve never seen business like this
before. It’s been very good,” he said. “For
a while, we were the only store in town
that had pork steaks, regular steaks and
ground beef, and word gets around.”
Businesses find ways to cope
Tracy said he expects some busi-
ness owners will find innovative ways
to match supply and demand.
“I’ve been a student of business
my entire life, and I’m fascinated by
how businesses have been able to not
only live with the challenges the world
presents, but find a way to meet those
challenges,” he said. “I think there will
be positive changes that come about be-
cause of this. The allergy season aside, I
think the social isolation has meant that
overall, except for the virus, we as a
society have been healthier because we
haven’t been spreading other diseases
around. But in the end, people aren’t
going to go where they don’t feel safe.
We’re going to find a lot of thought
and a lot of innovation as we progress
through this.”
Ways to adapt to social distancing
standards may be one of those innova-
tions, Tracy said.
“I heard the other day that Mc-
Donald’s, which does a lot of testing in
Europe, is looking at new ways to prac-
tice social distancing in a line. Instead
of having an X taped on a spot on the
floor, they’re looking at a 6-foot round
circle. The idea is that customers don’t
feel as restrained in a large circle as they
do having to stand on an X. There’s no
doubt that businesses will come up with
ways to deal with this, because the sense
is that the virus and the precautions to
prevent its spread aren’t going away any
time soon.
“There will be challenges for cer-
tain. If we’re talking about possibly
having 20 percent unemployment, that
will have a large effect on the economy.
Businesses struggling to survive this
summer may not be around next summer.
But really, so much of this is so early in
the process that it’s hard to predict how
it’s going to be on the other side – once
we get there. I think we’ll know more
by the end of the summer.”
Hair stylists in demand
Jeni Woolsey, owner of the Rustic
Roots Salon and Spa, 4670 Gravois Road,
in House Springs, said she was happy her
“non-essential” business could reopen
on May 4 after having been closed since
March 21.
“We were super busy before we
were shut down,” she said. “We had a
lot of pre-bookings that we had to can-
cel during the shutdown, and we started
rescheduling them for May 4 and after,
so we’ve just got started on those. Right
Thursday, May 14, 2020
now, we’re booking three to four weeks
out in advance.”
Woolsey said the time off has taken
its toll on the customers of the salon,
which also offers nail and spa treatments.
“Their roots are showing; they’ve got
long hair,” she said. “They’re desperate
for a haircut. We’re putting in a lot of
work on them.”
Woolsey said for the most part, her
clientele has been easy to work with.
“Some are wanting to come in right
away, while we have others who say they
can wait a couple of weeks if they need
to because they know we’re very busy,”
she said.
Woolsey said the six women who
work at the salon as independent contrac-
tors were able to make it through the last
few weeks because of changes to unem-
ployment insurance that covered them.
“We all were laid off,” she said. “We
did OK during this, not great, but OK
because of government assistance. We’re
thankful for that.”
Woolsey said her salon is complying
with state guidelines.
Employees have to wear face masks,
she said, while masks are optional for
customers.
“It’s at the customer’s discretion. We
have a lot of older clients who are wearing
masks, but we don’t insist,” Woolsey said.
“Our stations are at least 6 feet apart, so
we’re complying with those rules.”
For the time being, there will be no
waiting area in the salon.
“We explain that our clients will have
to wait out in their cars and we’ll come
out and get you when the chair is free,”
she said. “Because we’re by appointment
only, that’s been working out well so far.”
Blue Owl goes curbside
Another business that reopened last
week after a long shutdown is the Blue
Owl Restaurant and Bakery, 6116 Second
St., in Kimmswick.
However, owner Mary Hostetter said
after considering a complete reopening,
including dining room service, she took
a more conservative route.
“We were going to open (the dining
room), but I had a change of heart after
talking with some of my employees and
customers. The main reason why we’re
not reopening the dining room is because
of the safety of my employees, who are
like family to me. One of my employees,
who has been caring for a grandson with
diabetes, said she didn’t want to have to
choose between money and her family. I
told her she shouldn’t have to. Another
employee is caring for an elderly mother
and didn’t want to take the risk of bring-
ing home the virus.
“Because we couldn’t be fully
staffed, I chose to reopen the Blue Owl
after seven weeks for curbside service (on
May 5),” Hostetter said. “Since we’ve
been closed for so long, the kitchen was
empty and I thought this would be a good
way to ease into it. We’ve had a lot of
See BUSINESSES, Page 17
Thursday, May 14, 2020 News The Leader 17

Businesses: Order for 800 Piecakens boosted business News briefs

Continued from Page 16
people this week tell us that they’re glad
we’re back and they’re happy we chose
curbside.”
She said the Kimmswick operation
has 37 employees, including 10 full-time
staff members.
Hostetter said two employees are
parking lot greeters.
“They direct drivers who have placed
orders for the bakery where to park,” she
said. “There are different places for those
who are getting restaurant orders and who
have called ahead, and another place for
those who haven’t called ahead. They
bring the orders out to the cars.”
Hostetter said a few outdoor tables –
properly spaced – are available for those
who wish to enjoy their takeout alfresco,
but wait service will not be available.
Hostetter said when the Jefferson
County restrictions on restaurant and bar
operations were announced in March, she
decided against curbside service.
“What I kept coming back to was
that the appeal of the Blue Owl has been
the quaint atmosphere and the friendly
service, and those elements would be lost
if we just went curbside. In order to make
it work, we would have to bring in enough
at least some of the
way.
“Seven weeks
go by, and no in-
come’s coming in,
and I’m trying to
pay the bills, trying
to let my suppliers
know I’m trying to
do something,” she
said. “I had to do Mary Hostetter
something, so I de-
cided to try curbside. We’ll see how that
goes, and hopefully we’ll make enough
to pay the bills, help my employees pay
their bills, and we can ease into a (full)
reopening.”
Hostetter said when the dining room
is reopened, seating will be reduced from
48 tables inside and outside to just 23
tables.
“My goal is to reopen the dining
room on May 19, which is the same day
at the restrictions are supposed to be
lifted in St. Louis County. But we’ll just
play it by ear. If coronavirus cases start
spiking up again, that will play a part in
that decision.
“But it’s going to be different,” she
said, “and I believe it’s not going to be
the same as it once was for a long time.”
“They had three weeks to make 800
of them – a lemon cake with icing on the
bottom, a strawberry swirl cheesecake in
the middle and a strawberry rhubarb pie
on the top. They did it, so they were able
to stay open with their 12 employees,”
Hostetter said. “Kim (her daughter, Kim
Hostetter, who manages the store) had to
hire some people in to help because they
were working in shifts. They also bake
desserts wholesale for local restaurants,
so they’ve been doing OK.”
Mary Hostetter said she hopes other
business operators will take the social dis-
tancing standards as seriously as she has.
“We don’t want this to come back
again. It’s been hard enough for us to
have to close down once,” she said. “I
don’t think many of us will be able to do
this again.”
Tracy said he believes many mer-
chants feel the same way.
“I think most business owners know
that things are not going to be what they
were before this started for some time,
if they ever will be,” he said. “They
realize change is here, and most of the
people I’ve talked with are willing to do
whatever they can do to not go through
another shutdown.”
Dittmer man drowns
in Big River mishap
A Dittmer man drowned in a boating
mishap on the Big River.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol
reported that Tim Fults, 64, was canoeing
on the Big River near Big Bend Road at
12:30 p.m. May 3 when he became sub-
merged in the water for unknown reasons
and drowned.
He was not wearing a safety device
such as a life jacket or personal flotation
device, the report said. -- Leader staff
Car reported stolen
Pevely Police are investigating the
theft of a car from outside a home in the
1000 block of Oak Trail in Pevely. The
car was stolen April 23.
“The 42-year-old Pevely female vic-
tim stated her maroon 2012 Kia Sorrento
was stolen from her driveway sometime
between 3:30 a.m. and 4 a.m. April 23,”
Capt. Larry Miller reported. “”It is un-
known if the vehicle was locked or not.”
Anyone with information about the
theft is urged to call Pevely Police at 636-
475-4498. -- Leader staff

Art
revenue each day to pay for expenses and
labor, and I didn’t think it would be able Business sweet for business sponsored by
to happen.”
However, once she received confir- Hostetter’s other location, the Blue

mation that the Blue Owl was eligible for
a Payroll Protection Plan loan through the
Small Business Association, Hostetter
said some of her concerns were allayed.
“A lot of my worry about being able
to pay our employees was answered,”
Hostetter said. “I started calling people
back on Monday, April 20, and we started
clearing everything out of the restaurant
and cleaning it. We scrubbed, we sani-
tized, we painted. Everyone worked very
hard to make sure everything is perfect.
They’ve done everything I’ve asked of
them. They’ve been terrific.”
She said she was eager to reopen,
Challenge
Owl Sweet Shoppe in House Springs,
also reopened this week for curbside
delivery. It, too, had been closed to the
public during the shutdown, although
employees kept busy there baking to fill
online orders. • Join us each weekday at www.myleaderpaper.com
“They’ve been doing a lot of bak- as we reveal a fun, easy art project for you to complete
ing,” Hostetter said. at home.
Over the last few weeks, she said, • Submit a photo or video (20-seconds or less, please)
that shop has been filling a contact for Zac of your project to news@leaderpublications.biz
Young, a Food Network personality and
pastry chef whose company temporarily
with subject line Leader Art Challenge.
lost its supplier for his trademark Piecak- • Each week, one lucky artist will be chosen at random
en, a combination cake-pie-cheesecake to receive a $20 gift card from a local business.
delicacy.

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 SPORTS Fall sports still in flux 22
Vol. 26, No. 51 Thursday, August 6, 2020
Countywide
Tourism
Commission
forms
By Steve Taylor
For the Leader
Jefferson County is a destination spot
for tourists.
At least that’s the message the newly
formed County Tourism Commission
wants to spread.
The group, which eventually will
consist of an executive director and a
seven-person board, is an offshoot of the
Jefferson County Growth Association.
“I’ve been wanting to do this for
some time, but it never did happen,” said
Dan Govero, president of the Growth As-
sociation. “We figured there isn’t a better
time than now to get it started.”
The new group’s aim is to promote
Jefferson County to outsiders.
“We want to let people know about
events such as Twin City Days, our
wineries, our restaurants, our walking
trails and parks – anything that will draw
people in,” Govero said. “We’re looking
to bring people into the county who will
spend money here.”
He said the commission will work
See TOURISM, Page 13
Frozen in time
Historic restaurant/motel stands ready for its next owner
By Laura Marlow
For the Leader
Many Jefferson Countians recall hav-
ing a meal at Opal’s Restaurant, a fixture
along Hwy. 21 north of Hillsboro for the
last half of the 20th century. On the south
side of the property was a gas station,
and its above-ground tanks painted with
a hillbilly motif were a landmark.
The 6-acre property, which includes
Jefferson County
‘Once a week but never weakly’
Owen Gegg, 20 months, of Crystal City enjoys the splash zone at Kade’s Playground
in Herculaneum.
an old, four-room motel, a large pole barn
and a three-bedroom private residence, is
on the market.
It is listed with Sarah Jackson of
Realty Executives Premiere for $600,000.
Before the completion of I-55 in
the county in the 1970s, Hwy. 21 was a
major thoroughfare between St. Louis
and points south, and Opal’s was a hap-
pening place.
“Between St. Louis and Potosi, that
Election returns at myleaderpaper.com
www.myleaderpaper.com
Patty Meyer photo
was pretty much it as far as a place to
spend the night,” said the property’s cur-
rent owner, Bruce Howard, grandson of
founder Opal Howard. “There were a few
other restaurants, a bar in Hillsboro, but
there wasn’t much.”
Howard, 56, has been preserving the
property for the past five years, with an
eye to reopening the diner-style eatery,
See OPAL’S RESTAURANT, Page 12
636-931-7560
Getting
out
Area parks see
surge in visitors
By Tony Krausz
For the Leader
Parks throughout Jefferson County,
like others across the state, have seen a
significant increase in visitors, large-
ly because people are searching for
safe, recreational activities during the
COVID-19 pandemic, according to park
officials.
The Missouri Department of Natu-
ral Resources recently announced that
state park attendance rose 25.7 percent
in June compared to the same period
last year, and the DNR said campground
usage in June went up 14 percent com-
pared to June 2019.
While the exact number of visitors
to the nine Jefferson County parks or
the parks in the cities across the county
See PARKS, Page 16
Opal Howard in her restaurant in 1962.
2 Jefferson County Leader News Thursday, Aug. 6, 2020

De Soto chamber honors Hovis

By Mckenzie Knapp
For the Leader
The De Soto Chamber of Commerce
presented a Lifetime Achievement Award
to Dennis Hovis, who has been a local
business owner for more than 50 years.
Hovis, 71, of De Soto owned and
operated the Georgann Dress Shop for
55 years, as well as Hovis & Associates,
998 E. Gannon Drive, in Festus, where
he was the president for 35 years before
his retirement in January.
He was presented the etched-glass
award on July 14 at the Hovis & Associ-
ates office.
Typically, the award is presented at
the chamber’s annual banquet, but it was
canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The award is being given to ac-
knowledge your outstanding leadership,
your professional successes, your per-
sonal achievements and your dedica-
tion to family, friends and community,”
De Soto chamber board member Debby
Campbell told Hovis when she presented
him with the award.
“I can’t think of any more deserving
person than you,” Campbell said. “You
are an inspiration and role model. You are
Jefferson County Rodeo canceled for 2020
By Kevin Carbery
For the Leader
The 2020 Jefferson County Rodeo,
which already was postponed from June
to October, has now been canceled.
Event chairman Doug Goforth said
Monday the COVID-19 pandemic is the
primary reason organizers canceled the
popular event, held annually at the Jef-
ferson County Fairgrounds in Hillsboro.
Since other rodeos in the region
have been canceled due to COVID-19,
many riders who normally would have
competed in the Jefferson County event
decided not to take on the cost required
to be eligible to participate.
“Because there have been so few
rodeos, many riders have not purchased
their rodeo cards. You need to have a
Correction
AJ Transport of Arnold received
a loan of less than $50,000 under the
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ad-
ministered by the Small Business Admin-
istration. An incorrect amount was listed
in a story that ran in the July 30 Leader.
Because the company received a loan
less than $150,000, the Department of the
Debbie Campbell presents the
De Soto Chamber of Commerce Lifetime
Achievement Award to Dennis Hovis.
a blessing to our community. Thank you
for your service to the Jefferson County
community.”
Hovis said he wasn’t expecting the
award.
“My sons kind of set me up, which
was fine,” Hovis said. “I was very sur-
prised and humbled.”
Hovis has been inducted into the
De Soto High School Hall of Fame.
In addition, he has served on the
Ron Rigdon photo
Houston Herbert of College Grove, Tenn.,
at last year’s rodeo.
rodeo card to participate,” Goforth said.
Under the current conditions, Go-
forth said organizers felt they would have
a difficult time putting together a rodeo
worthy of those held in the past.
“We want to be able to provide a
quality rodeo,” he said.
Goforth said organizers were disap-
pointed they had to cancel the event.
“Definitely, this has been an unfor-
tunate year for the event,” he said. “We
would normally see 200 participants in
our rodeo.”
MELBA
636-337-6188
THEATRE
300 S. Main • De Soto
STARTS FRIDAY, August 7
boards for several local civic groups and
businesses, including the De Soto cham-
ber, Jefferson County Industrial Develop-
ment Authority, Mercy Jefferson Health
Foundation, Eagle Bank & Trust Co.,
Jefferson County Economic Development
Corporation and Pony Bird, Inc. He is
an advisory board member of Enterprise
Bank & Trust and was past president of
the De Soto chamber and the Economic
Development Corporation.
Hovis served on the De Soto City
Council and as mayor of De Soto twice.
He also is a member of First Baptist
Church of De Soto and serves as a deacon
and a finance committee chairperson for
the church.
Hovis, who was married to his late
wife, Kathy, for more than 50 years, has
two sons – Kevin Hovis of St. Louis and
David Hovis of De Soto.
Despite all his business success,
Dennis Hovis said he is most proud of
creating a family legacy.
“My biggest accomplishment is
creating a business (Hovis & Associates)
and seeing my sons and daughter-in-law
continue it and grow it,” Hovis said.
He said he appreciates the chamber
award.
Goforth said organizers plan to bring
back the Jefferson County Rodeo in 2021.
“Next year’s we’ll be back in June,
again,” he said.
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Business.................................11
Trivia .......................................11
Editorial ............................ 14-15
Obituaries......................... 17-21
Births...................................... 20
Sports................................ 22-23
Outdoors ............................... 23
Classified ......................... 24-31
Homes .................................. 24
Yard sales......................... 26-27
Auctions................................. 28
Help wanted...................... 27-31
School................................... 31
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Thursday, Aug. 6, 2020 Trivia Two Ways/Business Jefferson County Leader 11

Sports fan reflects on favorite St. Louis athletes

A
s the employee entrusted with
coming up with topics for the
survey that changes periodically
on the Leader’s website, I came up
with the recently posted “Who is your
favorite athlete ever from the St. Louis
area or from a St. Louis team?”
In it, I give 13 choices that include
14 people – the boxing brothers Leon
and Michael Spinks were a single entry
– plus an “Other” option if you prefer
someone not listed.
I tried to offer names of athletes
of different eras in baseball, football,
basketball and hockey, plus a couple of
athletes from other sports.
Many famous names were omitted
1960-61 school year attending Sumner
High School in St. Louis?
Trivia 4. Leon and Michael Spinks both won
Two boxing gold medals during the Summer
Ways Olympics of which year?
5. Which Ram was named MVP of Su-
per Bowl XXXIV?
Kevin Carbery
6. The Cardinals acquired Lou Brock
from which team in June 1964?
7. Which St. Louis-area athlete won
1. Who is third on the list of Cardinal heptathlon gold medals at the 1988 and
all-time home run leaders after Stan Musial 1992 Summer Olympics?
and Albert Pujols? 8. Pat McBride and Lori Chalupny are
2. How many goals did Brett Hull score considered two of the best athletes from
in the 1990-91 season to set the Blues’ St. Louis in what sport?
team record? 9. Future NBA star and, later, national
3. Which future tennis great spent the politician Bill Bradley played basketball for
which area high school?
10. Whom did the Cardinals trade to
the Phillies to get Rick Wise in 1972?
ANSWERS: 1. Ken Boyer, with 255,
trails only Musial (475) and Pujols (445)
with the team. 2. 86. He was fun to watch
during his glory years with St. Louis. 3.
Arthur Ashe. 4. 1976. 5. Kurt Warner. 6.
The Cubs. It’s still considered one of the
great steals in baseball history. 7. Jackie
Joyner-Kersee. 8. Soccer. 9. Crystal City.
10. Steve Carlton. I’m guessing had they
not done this they would have won at
least the 1974 division title if not more
during the next decade or so. Yes, I’m
still bitter.

We’ve
because of the space limitation. I hated
not naming Ozzie Smith, but I chose
to put up Stan Musial, Bob Gibson
and Yadier Molina, three of the most
popular Cardinals since the 1940s. I
even omitted my boyhood hero, Ted

Moved...
Simmons.
From football, I listed Dan Dier-
dorf, Marshall Faulk and Kurt Warner.
I asked for and got the No. 66 while
playing for my high school football
team in honor of Conrad Dobler, so I
regret that he was omitted.
I should have put in Marvin Barnes
from the old Spirits of St. Louis basket-

And Are Accepting

ball team, but how many people even
remember the Spirits? They were only
around a couple seasons. From hockey,
I would like to have included Brian Sut-

Essence Members
ter.
Oh, well. That’s why there was an
“other.” The topic of this week’s trivia
quiz is St. Louis sports.
For five more questions on the
topic, see myleaderpaper.com.
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He is a
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He and his wife, Lori, live in Festus.

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12 Jefferson County Leader News Thursday, Aug. 6, 2020

Opal’s Restaurant: Property owner hopes to see a vintage diner on site

Continued from Page 1

but he recently decided the time has come

to sell instead.
“I had all sorts of hopes and dreams,”
he said. “I wanted to reopen it, but you
know, life just takes you in a different
direction sometimes.”
Howard would love to see someone
else take on the challenge, though.
“You’d be amazed how much traf-
fic goes up and down that road,” he
said. “I thought, if somebody wanted to,
they could build a clientele really fast.”

History
Opal Howard opened the restaurant
in 1958 and the motel was added in 1963.
“She was the chef and ran the place,
and it was mostly local waitresses she
hired,” her grandson said. “I was 19 when
I started working there in 1982; I used to Opal’s Restaurant in Hillsboro opened in 1958 and closed in 2001. It stands ready for a new restaurant.
drive across the (Sandy Creek) Covered
Bridge to get to work.”
The menu was hearty, home-cooked
food, and lots of it.
“It was cafeteria style,” Howard said.
“You picked up your tray and walked
along in front of the steam tables and
asked for what you want. We did bacon
and eggs or biscuits and gravy for break-
fast, then burgers or Salisbury steak or
stuffed peppers for lunch. We didn’t buy
anything pre-made; everything was from
scratch.”
Opal’s was something of a hangout
Bruce Howard, grandson of founder Opal
for locals, from students at the nearby Howard, at work in the kitchen.
Jefferson College to Jefferson County
The Opal’s Restaurant parking lot was full on this day in 1962.
Courthouse staff to senior citizens. wasted,” he said. “So I’m down to just
“We had our regulars,” Howard Sky’s the limit he said. “All the stoves, ovens, fryers, the mowing the grass.”
said. “One guy used to come in and get bar fridge, everything except the kitchen Howard hopes the next owner will
a bacon and grape jelly sandwich. The Opal’s closed for good in 2001, when fridge; I can’t get the parts I need for that.” reopen the restaurant as a vintage diner,
church crowd came in waves on Sunday the Howards decided to devote more time He said the old adage, ‘They don’t but acknowledges it has potential for other
mornings. to traveling. make ’em like they used to’ definitely ap- uses as well.
“The daily regulars would come in Bruce, who inherited the property plies to Opal’s. “I would have loved to open the motel
and sit around and talk, nurse a cup of after the 2015 death of his father, has “These old machines, they were good again,” he said. “But you could make it a
coffee for an hour or more.” been keeping up with maintenance and quality and they have just lasted,” he said. duplex or a single home, or even turn it
Opal stepped down in the late 70s, improvements ever since. “It has this terrific terrazzo floor. I just love into four separate offices.
turning over operations to some of her “I’d go at least once a week to work that floor, the way it helps maintain the “The new owner could make the place
employees. Her grandson said that led on things, and I put in a lot of time trying temperature in the whole building.” into an event venue, build a new restaurant
to a noticeable downturn in the business. to keep it usable,” he said. In recent months, however, Howard and use this one as a banquet hall.
“They tried, but they just weren’t as He replaced the HVAC systems and said he’s stopped making improvements, “It’s a sizeable piece of property. Your
invested in it, and they didn’t really know installed new windows in 2018, and has because of the uncertainty of the property’s imagination is the only limitation.”
what they were doing,” he said. “Also, I upgraded the plumbing and electrical future. “Suppose somebody comes in and For more information on the property,
think it was a lot more work than they systems over the years. buys it and decides to gut it or even take contact Jackson at realtyexecutives.com or
thought it would be.” “All the kitchen equipment works,” it down? That would be a lot of effort by phone at 314-496-4983.
In 1980, his parents, the late Leslie

BUSINESS & SERVICE

Howard and his wife, Elizabeth, bought
the business and, over the next two de-
cades, slowly turned it back around.

Card Directory
For a brief time in the 1980s, the
restaurant even went to 24-hour service.
“There are lots of stories from that
time – it was definitely an interesting
crowd,” Howard said. “Man, you could
really enjoy Halloween night, after the
bars closed.”
The Howard family ran the business Here’s H ELLO! m ®
State InFsuararnce and Financial Servic0es
Newcomer, Providing , Illinois 6171
as a family enterprise. Newly wed or New , Bloomington

My
We have Parent Home Office
fr
“Monday through Friday, Dad was merchants ee gifts for you fro
. Please m your lo ods
the morning cook, then again Saturday when we
may visit
phone an
d
cal Matt Wo 63050
you and b let us know Agent . Box 49, Hi
llsboro, MO
and Sunday evenings,” Bruce said. “He ring your
gifts. 10540 Hw y. 21 , P. O
6-789-4932

Card
was putting in probably 70-80 hours a 3532 • Fax 63
Teri 314-54 Off. 636-789- .biz
0-5 ds
573-747-63 178
week. I was the chef in the evenings, www.mattwoo e ®
bor Servic
and my brother, Curt, washed dishes. I 87 ood Neigh
24 Hour G
worked there until 1991.”
Thursday, Aug. 6, 2020 News Jefferson County Leader 13

Cedar Hill Park sees fourth water rescue this summer

The Cedar Hill Fire Protection Dis-
trict has received four water-rescue calls
at Cedar Hill Park this summer – the lat-
est at 4:45 p.m. July 29, when two male
teenagers got trapped in the Big River
current, Chief Mick Fischer said.
Fischer said he was the first to arrive
on the scene, at 4:46 p.m.
He said a woman had entered the
water to help the teenagers, but she, too,
got swept up by the current.
Fischer said a man who was at the
park when the incident occurred was able
to talk to the teenagers and woman and
get them to float to shore, and fortunately,
no one was injured.
Fischer said the district got only one
water-rescue call at the park last year.
“Usually we get one or two every
summer at that location,” he said. “I do
believe we are going to see more of these
types of calls down there.”
Fischer said with some local pools
closed because of the COVID-19 pan-
demic, he believes people are visiting the
park to cool off in the river.
He said he does not recommend
swimming at the Cedar Hill Park river ac-
cess, and the Jefferson County Parks and
Recreation Department advises against
it as well.
“It’s a nice place to sit on the beach
and enjoy the scenery or fish,” Fischer
said. “It’s not a good place to swim.”
One of the four water-rescue calls
at the park this summer was on July 5,
when Kasey Schmeiderer, 34, of House The Cedar Hill Fire Protection district has
Springs drowned while swimming there, been called to Cedar Hill Park four times
this summer for water rescues.
Fischer said.

Tourism: Groups to work together

Continued from Page 1
with existing tourism groups, like the
ones established in Arnold and Festus.
“The whole goal is to join in and
The parks department also advises local firefighters have responded to at
against swimming in the Big River at least five water-rescue calls this season.
Rockford Beach in House Springs, where -- Katelyn Mary Skaggs
David Hovis and includes Arnold City
Administrator Bryan Richison, who
will represent the various cities in the Tower Music and Leader Publications
county, business advisor Scott Seek and
Leader advertising representative Rob congratulate the 2019-2020

work together,” he said. “We want to
coordinate our efforts and promote the
entire county.”
He said the Tourism Commission
will put together a brochure featuring the
county’s tourism assets, place advertis-
MUSICIANS
Schneider.
Hovis and Schneider will represent
the Growth Association on the board and
Seek, a member of the Jefferson County
Parks Board, will represent parks and
recreation interests. Other members to

ing in tourism publications and come up
with other ideas to promote the county.
Those efforts, of course, will take
money.
“The state has money available for
tourism and there also are grants out
there,” Govero said, “but you have to
have a tourism commission in place.
They just don’t give you this money.
That also will be something the board
will do – identify sources of funding.”
Govero said the Growth Association
is helping to set up the commission as a
nonprofit organization under the Internal
Revenue Service guidelines, and is com-
ing up with bylaws, an essential step to
formally establishing it, but it will be a
stand-alone group.
It will share an executive director,
though.
Sharon Floyd, a part-time Growth
Association employee, is that organiza-
tion’s executive director and will serve
the same role for the Tourism Commis-
sion.
“I’ve been busy with the setup of
what we’re going to call the JCTC,”
Floyd said. “We’re still in our begin-
ning phases. But we’re really excited
for what’s to come.”
The initial board will be chaired by
OF THE MONTH
be appointed will be drawn from the
county’s wineries and breweries, an-
other from the hotel-motel industry and
the final one from restaurant owners,
Floyd said.
She said the board likely will meet
monthly, although it may have more
frequent get-togethers in the beginning,
and likely via Zoom online conference
calls during the pandemic.
Govero said the county has a lot
to offer.
“The Bottleneck Ridge Ride last
year brought in 600 people,” Govero
said of the annual bicycle tour of the
county sponsored by the Growth Asso-
ciation. “Of that, 80 percent were from
out of the county. But we saw them later
at wineries and restaurants, and we know Kylie Mitchell Josh Hollis Adam Mills
they came back later to the county. We
know. We saw them.” De Soto High Eureka High Crystal City High
Govero conceded that starting a
tourism commission in the teeth of a
pandemic might not be ideal timing, but
then again it may be.
“At some point, this is going to
be over and people are going to start
moving around again and wanting to go
places,” he said. “We’ll have everything
in place when that happens, rather than
having to start things at the last minute.”

Art & Science

sponsored by Alicen Dietrich Elizabeth Ganey Sydney Eaton
Hillsboro High Festus High Northwest High

Challenge Tune up your

skills this
• Join us at www.myleaderpaper.com summer with
as we reveal fun, easy art and science music lessons
projects for you to complete at home.
• Submit a photo or video of your project
to news@leaderpublications.biz
with subject line Leader Art & Science
Challenge. 360 Biltmore Drive
Zachary Perren Hannah Doyle Fenton, Mo.
• Each week, one lucky artist/scientist will be chosen at Grandview High Seckman High 636-343-2222
random to receive a $20 gift card from a local business.