Stories from Saturday, July 16, 2011

Jamie LeeAnne Bastow and Arik Slade Williams were married on July 4, 2011, at the groom's home in Nevada. Vows were soleminized by Gerald Wiltshire. Parents of the bride are Rowann Bastow of Nevada and the late Jim Bastow. Jamie is the granddaughter of Margaret Davis and the late Clyde Davis, and the late Roderick and Ida Fay Bastow...

Erin Mychael Lewis and Drew Gregory Mannen announce their engagement and upcoming marriage. Erin is the daughter of David and Debbie Lewis of Fort Scott, Kan. Maternal grandparents are Marlyn Sauerwein and the late Bill Sauerwein; paternal grandparents are Lucille Lewis and the late Joe Lewis, all of Fort Scott...

Gene and Bonnie Patton, of rural Hume, Mo., observed their 65th wedding anniversary July 14, 2011. The Pattons were married in Lebanon, Mo., at West Liberty Baptist Church, with the Rev. Henry Long, Gene's uncle, officiating. Gene and Bonnie will celebrate later this summer with their children and grandchildren...

Roland Wayne Bell, 90, of Rich Hill, Mo., died Wednesday, July 13, 2011, at Mercy Health Center in Fort Scott, Kan. He was born Aug. 22, 1920, in rural Rich Hill, Mo., the son of Lewis and Sylva Lee (Goodrum) Bell. He attended school at New Home country school and graduated in 1937 from Rich Hill High School...

Robert Joseph Norris, 83, of Chilhowee, Mo., passed away Tuesday, July 12, 2011, at Western Missouri Medical Center in Warrensburg, Mo. Robert was born Sept. 1, 1927, in Nevada, Mo., to Floyd and Elizabeth Taylor Norris. He married Ruby Haner on March 23, 1948, in Bentonville, Ark. Robert was employed by Jack Cooper Transport Company in Kansas City, Mo., and also Cooper Plumbing in Blue Springs as an equipment operator. He retired from Cooper Plumbing in 1989...

Ashley Fitzpatrick and Daniel Wyatt of Rich Hill, Mo., and older siblings Daniel, Skieler and Katlynn Wyatt, and Jude Terry are proud to announce the birth of their son and baby brother, Seth Dean Wyatt. Seth was born at 7:24 a.m., Sunday, May 1, 2011, at Nevada Regional Medical Center. He weighed 7 pounds, 15 ounces, and measured 21 inches...

July 1 Joshua Maxon was arrested for shock incarceration. No bond. Danny Devore was released to Adrian Police Department. Misty Mace was released on $187.50 bond. Christopher Sauerwin was released on $2,500 bond. Irs Smith was released to Jasper County...

Except for e-mail, Bronaugh Schools have been in a communications blackout since late July 6 or early July 7, when a lightning strike knocked out their telephone system. Superintendent Patricia Phillips Thursday night got the school board's permission to advertise for bids for the installation of new phones to be integrated with intercoms in the elementary school, junior high and high school...

FORT SCOTT, Kan. -- Award-winning photographer, author, and creative director John Shearer will be the recipient of the "Gordon Parks Choice of Weapons Award" at the eighth annual Gordon Parks Celebration of Culture and Diversity Oct. 7-8 in Fort Scott...

Belinda Beisly was found dead in her rural Vernon County home on July 15, 2009; no one has been arrested or charged in the homicide and the case has been unsolved for two years. On Friday, the two-year anniversary of the discovery of Beisly's body, Sheriff Ron Peckman held a press conference at the Vernon County Jail to provide an update on the progress of the investigation...

One-year-old Paxton Baer of Harwood, Mo., enjoys his first ever watermelon at the Vernon County Youth Fair on Friday. Producers Grain hauled in a stock tank full of melons on Friday afternoon and young and old alike snatched a piece and found some shade in which to savor the sweet treat...

They talk of Harry and Ron and Hermoine, and several others, in fact, as if they were old friends; they're characters from Harry Potter's mystical world, and most of the fans at Thursday's midnight premiere of the final Harry Potter movie have literally grown up with them...