Have you ever met a person who had such conviction in what she was doing, you felt moved? When you looked at this person, did you feel she was right where she needed to be, doing what she was supposed to be doing? Many of your know that perfectly describes hometown rocker, Candy Coburn.

If you were to ask her many fans across the country how they would describe Candy, their response would be, “She is infectious!”

From the moment she hits the stage, you sense Candy is not your run-of-the-mill chick singer. Maybe it’s because she doesn’t count on her good looks to engage the crowd, but relies on her energetic delivery, true-to-life lyrics, and a show that rocks. Perhaps it is the signature green guitars she uses for every performance. Whatever it is, it’s easy to see why Candy and her music are undeniably contagious.

Born in Kentucky then raised in southern Missouri while spending summers in Texas with her father, Candy’s introduction to music came from her grandmother’s old record player and 8-track player. While Candy was growing up, gospel music played along with the sounds of the Glenn Miller Orchestra, Loretta Lynn and George Jones. She would listen as her grandmother sang along, encouraging Candy to do the same.

While she grew up on gospel and loved it as well as country music, it was country music that stole Candy’s heart. As a child, she remembers watching her first CMA Awards show and getting a certain feeling in her stomach, one that said, “Man, I want to do that!” But it would be years before she was able to do her own music her own way. As all life journeys go, there were a few bumps along the way, a few detours, and several wrong turns; but all of these are necessary to make the outcome so much richer.

After high school, Candy landed a music scholarship to the University of Missouri and enrolled as a music major with a minor in journalism. There she studied opera, but a tenacious Candy wanted more. Her voice teacher told her that if she wasn’t doing opera, she would be wasting her talent. It wasn’t long before the teacher made her life miserable. She did not want her to branch out in a new direction. Don’t ever tell Candy she cannot do something, because she will work it until it happens!

Discouraged at first, she quit school, got a job and played with a couple of bands, along with a killer worship team in church. But with that never-quit attitude that drives her, Candy went back and finished at the University of Missouri with a Theater degree.

After college, Candy says, “I started playing guitar and wrote my first song. I was never told this entire time, ‘Hey, you need to learn to write a song and play an instrument.’ I tell everyone I know who wants to be in this crazy business, spread your wings….learn to play instruments, write, explore….go for it, reach out!!”

Candy will jokingly tell you she could write a book about how to not do things in the music business. She has been through every band drama you can think of; she has slept in cheap hotels where no normal person would dare step foot; she has driven all night to a gig only to find it had been canceled. She has lost more money than she cares to remember and she has been told “no” so many times that a normal person would have said “yes,” to giving up sooner. But she keeps going.

“This thing is unbelievable to me. When people get my music and it makes a difference in their lives…man, I never thought I’d get to see that happen in my life. It makes me feel like I am doing something good. I have these female fans who, when I met them, were bummed out, didn’t feel like they had a lot to give. But they hear something in my songs and it is something they can plug into and be a part of and believe in," she said. "Writing and recording the Susan G. Komen for the Cure anthem, ‘Pink Warrior,’ is without question the high point of my career. The song I wrote with some good Nashville friends is touching so many people, it amazes me. I have cancer survivors come up to me at shows and thank me for that song.”

The song, which can be downloaded on iTunes and 30 other sites, is a hit for survivors and many others all across the U.S. This song after 3 years is still a hot download!!

Candy’s story is distinctly hers and it is real. With as many hurdles as she has been through, one would have expected her to quit a long time ago. Fortunately, Candy doesn’t understand the concept of giving up. She has this innate ability to soften even the hardest of hearts. Candy’s music makes her fans believe with conviction and faith that dreams can and really do come true in God’s time.

Candy has always been a media darling. Her interviews are always fun and receive raves from radio and TV personalities. The year 2010 was a high point with live interviews from Washington DC on CNN, a visit to the nationally syndicated “Better TV” (Better Homes and Garden) show, then topped off in October on the #1 rated “Fox and Friends” where she performed two songs live on the air.

Candy has recently released a new CD entitled "LUCKY," produced by major Nashville producer Joe Scaife (Montgomery Gentry/Gretchen Wilson). It is available at iTunes, Amazon.com and other sites. All profits from one of the singles, “Pink Warrior,” goes to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Why? Because Candy is not only infectious…she cares!

NOW AT www.texasroadhouse.com you can download her national release single, “Do you Want It” This song is being supported by Texas Roadhouse! When you go to the Texas Roadhouse webpage, it’s all 100% free, no registration, it’s FREE!!

Watch for more every day on Candy’s webpage!! (http://www.candycoburn.com/home/)

By Annabeth Miller,
ShowMe Times Editor

August 27, 2010. It was just another ordinary day.

It was just before noon on that hot day. Kids had been in school classrooms for about a week. The first home football game of the season was that night.

And Jerry Kiger was doing his job – installing new bulbs in the stadium lighting at Charles Bland Stadium. He was climbing the southeastern-most pole when his life changed.

"There's a piece of angle iron welded onto that pole because there used to be a junction box there. So, when you climb or descend that pole, you have to take your harness off to get past it," he said. Kiger removed his harness and was maneuvering around the extension.

He'd been climbing the poles at the football stadium since he was 19. This time, however, something went wrong.

“I got up there and I don’t know – dehydration set in and probably old age, and I didn’t have the strength I used to have, I guess,” he said. His gear was caught as he made his descent. He fell 40 feet, managing to not hit a concrete pad by inches.

The inventory of injuries is mind-boggling. Shattered right heel. Broken left leg. Three vertebrae broken in his back. Broken sternum.

Despite the injuries, Kiger said he’s “pretty okay.”

“By the end of the day you’re hurting,” he explained. “It’s getting better. In the past month or two I’ve noticed lots of improvement. It’s amazing.”

He says he’s noticed that it’s easier to climb into the back of the truck, even though he’s not jumping out with the ease he once did.

“Things are coming back,” he said. It’s going to take just a little bit longer, but when there’s 11 screws and a plate in your foot --- you’re not supposed to have steel inside your bone.”

All-in-all, Kiger said things are getting back to what would be ‘normal’ for a guy with his own business, and a family that includes his wife Karen, daughter Jackie who’s in seventh grade and a high school sophomore Wyatt.

He’s looking forward to being on hand for the Bearcats Jamboree Friday night, and to watching Wyatt play football, and to those volleyball games and other school activities he missed last year.

One memory that stands out during his recovery was about month after the accident and he attended his daughter Jackie’s volleyball game at T.S. Hill Middle School.

“I was in a wheelchair,” he recalled. “They stopped the game and everybody stood up and clapped when I came into the gym,” he said. “That kinda puts things in check. No one had seen me in three weeks, and I go in there to see my daughter play volleyball. The game stopped.”

Kiger also credits good friends and good customers to helping the family make it through a unique year. He says “good, loyal customers” stood by his company while he was out of pocket, and he’s very appreciative of their support.

“It’s been a life-changing experience,” he said. “There are a lot of things that just aren’t as important as they used to be. As long as you’ve got family then everything else can go on down the road. Friends and family.”

“Life is good.”

It was a great night to be outside for a while, and a great night for parents, faculty and students to gather at Richland Schools for its annual Open House.

Parents had the opportunity to visit the classrooms and speak to their students' teachers as the new academic year begins. Hotdogs were grilled outside and everyone got the chance to enjoy being together.

The first meeting of the Richland PTO (Parent-Teacher Organization) will be held at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 23 in the school cafeteria.

Organizers report that at the first meeting officers will be elected and the group's agenda for the upcoming school year will be discussed. Membership fee if $5 and all parents are invited and encouragaged to participate.

Photo Above: Everyone had a good time Tuesday evening at the annual Richland School Open House. Hanging out together were (from left) Ashland Wheeler, Abigail Wheeler, Richland Music Teacher Amber Duley, and Alesia Eaton . (SMT Photo by Annabeth Miller)

By Joe Schneider, ShowMe Times Contributing Writer

Independent filmmaker Brittney Greer of Dexter, Missouri has been working to create a film entitled Left Alone. Greer studied at Missouri State University where she claims to have met like-minded people that wanted to make movies without Hollywood's unfriendly costs.

The film is about Annabelle (played by Brittney's cousin, Gabrielle Greer) who is asked to house-sit for a weekend. When she starts to hear strange noises and things begin disappearing, Annabelle realizes that she might not have been as alone as she thought.

Brittney describes the film as being a B horror movie reminiscent of horrors of the 80s and 90s. The film does feature violence and blood, but is not devoted to gore. Brittney hopes that Left Alone is something that everyone can enjoy.

Although there was no major funding, a crew of five has managed to nearly complete a feature length film. Greer says that the film is currently being edited. She expects the film to premiere in Springfield some time in the fall.

She says that movie-making is rewarding, if difficult work. Since Gabrielle Greer lives in St. Louis and could only shoot in Springfield on weekends, the production was crammed into long sessions including a marathon thirteen hour shoot. Brittney says that the stress and long hours are worth being on set, where she feels in her element.

While she is not a professional filmmaker yet, she aspires to make movies full time--Brittney has been "obsessed" with television and film her entire life.

Greer says that everything started when a friend approached her with script ideas. The same friend, Jason Brasier of Willow Springs, MO, then helped Greer start the production company American Wasteland Entertainment which is responsible for producing Left Alone. Brittney says that they hope to "give people like us a chance to have their work seen and to be paid for doing what they love."

Brittney Greer is the daughter of Debbie Snider and Stacy Greer both of Dexter. She is a 2004 graduate of Dexter High School. Gabrielle Greer is a former student of Dexter schools and is a 2009 graduate of MICDS in St. Louis and is the daughter of Matt and Lisa Greer, formerly of Dexter now living in St. Louis.

Check out American Wasteland Entertainment and Left Alone on Facebook and go to www.leftalonefilm.com in order to see the film's progress. Greer says that after the premiere and a few showings, the film will be released online. Look out for Left Alone this fall to support local art.

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Facebook Page: Left/Alone Film

TRAILER VIDEO OF LEFT/ALONE Film

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Please take a moment and show Brittney that "Hometown" support by clicking this icon and going to their Facebook page and clicking "LIKE". It's a real way we can show her that we are proud her success in chasing her dream.

Every morning this week they have been diligently learning – learning the music, learning the formations, learning how many steps to take between point A and point B.

The Dexter High School Marching Bearcat Band has been working hard this week to prepare for the fall field show. Band instructors Scott Rybolt and Jim Wade, and drum majors Kendra Stevenson, Joseph Greer, and Lauren Dudley are ready to lead the Marching Bearcats onto the field.

The music this fall will come from the hit rock band Chicago and will feature some of the group’s hit songs. Included will be “25 or 6 to 4,” "Make Me Smile," and more. Chicago is the first American rock band to chart Top 40 albums in five decades.

As a culmination on their pre-start of school rehearsals and to unveil the 2011 field show, the Marching Bearcats will perform at 6 p.m. Friday night on the Band Practice Field.

The Band Practice Field is near T. S. Hill Middle School, behind the school tennis court. It is suggested that those wishing to see the show arrive by 5:45 p.m. to allow time to walk back to the practice field before the 6 p.m. performance.