LC RECORD

Missouri Press Association WEDNESDAY

General OCTOBER 19, 2022

Excellence
2019 | 2020
2021 | 2022

VOL 4 ISSUE 8 4

INSIDE
Dan & Joa
n True

Chamber chooses Dan True

COMIC CONVENTION
as Christmas parade Grand Marshal
SEE PAGE A8
November 19th Parade
Theme Holly Jolly Christmas
WINDSOR BREAKS RECORD
SEE PAGE A9
INDEX
A LOOK BACK...............Page A10
CALENDAR....................Page A2
CLASSIFIEDS.......Page A11
COMICS ........................Page A14
FAITH...................Page A13
SPORTS ..................Page A9
BY LAURA VALENTI
When Dan True stopped on a No-
vember Saturday in the early 1970s to
help his friend, Ed Russ, direct traffic
for the floats coming onto Elm Street,
it was his first time to see a Lebanon
Christmas Parade. He could never
have imagined then what that sim-
ple gesture might lead to as he and
another friend, Lynn Stowe became
the co-chairs of organizing that same
parade for the next many years.
“Lynn would direct the dignitaries
at the beginning of the parade each
year and get them on the move and I
would line up the floats, putting out
flags with numbers on them,” Dan
True explained recently, comfortably
seated in one of the conference rooms
at Cedarhurst, Lebanon’s newest in-
dependent and assisted living center
for seniors. “There was always dis-
cussion as to which should come first,
the Lebanon High School Band, the
dignitaries and then the Ft. Leonard
Wood Army Band joined in so we
had to consider that, just all kinds of
things,” he added with a smile.
For this year ’s Christmas extrav-
aganza, which will take place on
Saturday, November 19, Dan True,
retired founder of True Construction
of Lebanon has been named the 2022
Parade Marshal.
When asked what his duties might
be, he again smiled and said, “ride
in a car and wave to the folks along
the way.”
Dan True came to Lebanon in 1978
as an engineer with the highway de-
partment. It wasn’t long after that,
that Bill Willard convinced him to go
into the construction business.
“Bill Willard was a dear friend,”
he continued. “It would be fair to say
that without Bill Willard, True Con-
struction would never have existed.”
Over the years, True Construc-
tion has been involved in multiple
commercial projects including con-
struction of or additions to Justice
Furniture, Tracker Marine, Detroit
Tool, and the Lee (Blue Jeans) Ap-
parel company amongst others. “We
were all about commercial construc-
tion. We even ended up doing some
projects out of state, like for the Lee
Company, when we worked on a
building for them in Sulphur Springs
in northeast Texas.”  And while Dan
True has long since retired from the
business, True Construction contin-
ues under the leadership of two of
Dan’s sons, Gary and Danny True Jr. 
See ‘PARADE’/ page A5

DEATHS Mercy Charity Bash

Raymond G. Blackburn raises money for
Curry Cancer Center
Kathleen Marion Stretton
Jeanette K. Beerman
James David Bledsoe
Shadel’s Colonial/Lebanon
Wayne Lee Light STEVE SMITH
Holman-Howe/Lebanon SSMITH@LACLEDERECORD.COM
Sonya Sue Parish
Hedges-Scott/Camdenton Hundreds in the Lebanon community gath-
Helen Louise Turner
Cantlon-Otterness & Viets/
ered Saturday evening for fine dining, cocktails,
Buffalo entertainment by Jason Pritchett and an auction
Danny Lee Joiner at the 2022 Mercy Health Foundation Lebanon
Day/Marshfield Charity Bash. The sold-out event took place at
Michael Thomas Fox Wall Street Cattle Company, which also raised
Jessica Nicole Bradford
Billy Lloyd Tallant
the beef for the dinner.
Felipa “Cristy’’ Bonilla “We’re very excited that tonight our event
Memorial Chapel/Waynesville is sold out. That means we’ll have incredible
Pamela Jo Adair support from our community, which will be a
Gorman Scharpf/Springfield great benefit to our patients that most of all are
Stephanie Ranae Plotner
Birmingham-Martin/Vienna
battling cancer,” said Karen Simpson-Neasby,
executive director of Mercy Health Foundation
Lebanon. “Proceeds from this event will help
enhance our services at the Curry Cancer Center
right here in Lebanon. All funds raised tonight
www.holmanhowe.com will stay right here in our community.”
According to the foundation, after a neces-
See Pages A2 - A4 sary break during the COVID-19 pandemic,
organizers wanted to keep the Charity Bash
NEWS TIPS? event local.
“Our health care heroes have gotten such
contact our news staff great support from our community during the

417-717-TIPS
editor@laclederecord.com
• all tips must include
pandemic that it only felt right to make this LCR Photo/Shelby Atkison
year ’s bash a chance for us to give back,” said The long-anticipated placement of the helicopter and tank at Lebanon’s
Simpson-Neasby, executive director of Mercy Veteran’s Memorial Park began Monday near the Cowan Civic Center.
Health Foundation Lebanon. “Everything from

Helicopter and tank on

contact phone number
our auction items to our food, location and even
flowers are coming from local vendors.”

See ‘CHARITY BASH’/ page A5

display at Veterans Memorial
STEVE SMITH lize the helicopter Grenada, Panama
SSMITH@LACLEDERECORD.COM blades and to install and the Gulf War.
spotlights for the The M4A3E8 is
A helicopter and
displays and lights one of the most
t ank were placed
on the helicopter,” mass-produced ver-
@LacledeCountyRecord on display in Leba-
he said. sions of the main
non’s Veterans Me-
The display con- U.S. armored vehi-
morial Monday.
sists of a Cobra cle of the World War
The display will
AH-1 helicopter II period.
be officially dedi-
and a General Sher- This model was
cated in a Veterans
man U.S. Army Me- used in the Korean
Day ceremony.
dium tank M4A3E8. War and briefly in
City of Lebanon
The AH-1 Cobra the Vietnam War.
Communications
is an attack helicop- Members of the
Manager Derek
ter developed for Lebanon-area Veter-
Gean said the dis-
the U.S. Army to use ans Memorial Board
play is now basical-
@lacledenews ly complete.
in the Vietnam War. and City leaders
For several decades, have been working
ONE DOLLAR “Our facilities
the AH-1 formed for more than a de-
team will be work-
LCR Photo/Shelby Atkison the core of the US cade to make the
ing over the next
The 2022 Mercy Health Foundation Charity Bash Army’s attack heli- displays a reality.
took place Saturday with a sell-out crowd. The event several days and
copter fleet, seeing
benefitted the Curry Cancer Center in Lebanon. weeks to stabi- See ‘VETERANS’/ page A5
combat in Vietnam,