By Annabeth Miller,
ShowMe Times Editor

Now in its 20th year, the annual Fourth of July Parade for kids will be held tomorrow morning, July 4. The annual parade will begin at 10 a.m. from the corner of Elm and Vine streets in Downtown Dexter.

The “just for kids” parade was started 20 years ago by Janice Barney, Lisa Greer and Jean Rahm. The parade leadership has passed to a new generation, as Kristi and Jason Banken now host the holiday parade.The Bankens began hosting the parade six years ago, and have continued to build upon the Independence Day tradition.

 The parade will follow its traditional route down Elm Street to Stoddard Street with kids on bicycles, tricycles, wagons, scooters, skates, on foot, or in strollers (most anything non-motorized).

The youngsters will gather on the steps of the U.S. Post Office on Stoddard Street to salute the flag with the Pledge of Allegiance, sing a few patriotic songs, and pose for photographs for all the parents and grandparents in attendance

The parade will get moving again, east down Stoddard Street to Poplar Street, where it will turn south at the First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) back to Vine and turn west and return to Vine and Elm. And end in the Bankens’ front yard.

Children are invited to participate; they may walk or bring their bikes and other means of transportation for the parade. Parking will be available for grownups in the city parking lot on Vine Street across from the Dexter Municipal Building.

Photo Above: A soggy group of patriotic kids pose with Uncle Sam (aka Jason Banken) during the 2011 July 4 parade. Rain dampened - but did not stop - last year's event. This year's parade is set to begin at 10 a.m. this Wednesday (ShowMe Times archive photo by Annabeth Miller)

By Annabeth Miller,
ShowMe Times Editor

This summer’s heat wave and drought are affecting more than just folks in Southeast Missouri –Mother Nature’s creatures are feeling the heat as well.

A fish kill occurred over the weekend at the Dexter Fishing Lake. But Conservation Agent Mark Reed of the Missouri Department of Conservation said Monday morning that what occurred at the local lake is a “natural event” for this time of year and extreme heat conditions.

Reed said the fish fill was a natural phenomenon – a result of the oxygen levels in the pond decreasing due to the heat .

“The water holds and retains less oxygen when it is warmer,” Reed said. Fish kills “stink – there’s no two ways was about it. “

Reed said the local city pond, for instance, has a “good algae bloom” – and the algae plants will make oxygen.  However, a combination of warm water not retaining oxygen and lower water levels and other factors most likely led to this weekend’s kills. Reed said most likely the fish died Saturday night, and began to float to the surface by Sunday morning.

“We’ll probably see more of these at area lakes and ponds,” he said. “I don’t this what happened at the Dexter pond killed everything. But we will have to wait and see; we’re going to have to ride this out.”

Reed said a fish kill like this does not necessarily wipe out a fish population in a pond. However, the condition of the fishing lake probably won’t be fully known until this fall. Reed said a fisheries biologist would come in and examine the lake to decide if is needs to be restocked for fishing.

“Fish kills always look bad. It’s unfortunate – a real shame. We may continue to see fish kills – we’ll just have to wait and see,” he said.

Reed said the fish are not the only wildlife affected by the heat wave. For instance, he said quail get most of their daily moisture from the early morning dew on plants. With the heat and humidity, there hasn’t been any dew in the area, and quail are having to find alternative sources for water.

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You can post anything for sporting events and church news and fundraisers. We love to help share these stories to help the community. We love pictures too; so if you send them in we will post them. Or even send us a link to a photo you want on the website. We also can put up engagement, wedding, and baby announcements. You can send in the story and photos and we will post them for no cost.  

We are here to help the area stay in the new with local news. So if there is anything you think people should read about in the area that is local news, sports, church activities, announcements, or just photos please don’t hesitate to send them in so we can post them.

ShowMe Times Staff Writer

Dallas Buchanan of Puxico and his wife Marla Buchanan, who works at County Wide Insurance, recently went to Branson for his Charlie Company Reunion. The Buchanan’s and other members of the troop stayed in the Savannah House Hotel in which the Company had a fun filled weekend planned out for them. The reunion is once a year and almost all of the veterans attend.

On the first night they all had a nice dinner and reminisced on old times and caught up on what everyone had been up to over the past year. The second night there was a fish fry and a band from Oklahoma City that had them all dancing the night away. On the last night of their stay they ate up the left overs, had a rifle auction, and said their good byes until next time.

Dallas said, “It was a real good time. During the day the men sat and talked and the women shopped. Then at night we ate and had a good time.”  

The Charlie Company was apart of the battle of Xa Cam My which was fought over two days from April 11-12, 1966. During the battle 134 men from the Charlie Company and 3 other divisions were ambushed by the Viet Cong.

We thank these good men for everything they have done for us and hope they all enjoyed their weekend reunion!