The ceremonies will be held this Friday, Nov. 16, at 4 p.m. at the Advance R-IV Elementary School Cafeteria located at 33790 State Highway 91 North in Advance, Mo. All servicemen and the general public are encouraged to attend the event.
SPC Burnett died on Nov. 16, 2011 at the age of 21 as a result of injuries he received from a roadside bomb incident while serving in Operation Enduring Freedom in Kandahar province in Afghanistan. He was a member of the 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Fort Wainwright, Alaska.
SPC James Burnett, Jr. was a highly decorated soldier with many awards and decorations that include the Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal with Bronze Service Star, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon NATO Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge, Combat and Special Skill badge, Basic Marksmanship Qualification Badge (Bar, Weapon: Rifle (Inscription: Rifle), Expert), and the Overseas Service Bar.
Senator Rob Mayer will be on hand as one of the speakers for the event. Senator Mayer was responsible for sponsoring the legislation to name this section of Highway 25 in Stoddard County as the "SPC James Burnett, Jr. Memorial Highway" in honor of the soldiers dedication and sacrifice for the cause of freedom.
Aleshia Flowers
PTO is extremely active in the Dexter Public School system. This year Central Elementary PTO has donated funds for classroom projectors, paint for the playground, and other magnificent extras to help improve the school.
PTO is always willing to assisting with various functions such as the School Lunch Week and the DARE formal to name a few. SMT would like to send out a special thank you to the parents who volunteer their time, talents, and hard-earned dollars to support our schools through wonderful organizations such as PTO!
Jessica Snider SMT Writer
Many stores downtown will be participating in the event along with many other stores that are not located in the downtown area.
This is the perfect time to start marking things off your Christmas list! Many stores and businesses run sales throughout the event that are too great to pass up!
Along with sales, many businesses in participation have hot chocolate, apple ciders, cookies, etc ready for their customers to enjoy!
You'd hate to miss out on some of these great sales, so don't forget to venture out tonight and visit some of the local businesses who are participating!
Well, it’s that time of the year again when Christmas trees are going up and the panic filled search for gifts has arrived. It’s also a great time to get a picture taken with Santa Claus! This will be the fourth year of Claus for a Cause and the founder and photographer, Julie Dodd, will be coordinating this exciting and successful event.
Claus for a Cause is a charity event that donates all its earnings to the selected charities. This year’s charities happen to be the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) and the 18 Fore Life Foundation. Not only are these major charities getting a gift for the holidays, but so are you! You can get your picture with Santa Claus taken by Julie Dodd and Amy Ellinghouse on Sunday, November 18th at the Trinity United Methodist Church in Bloomfield. Santa Claus is only sticking around from 3:00 to 5:00pm but there are no appointments needed. The photo packets run from $10 to $25 but all the money will go towards the charities that Claus for a Cause donates to. This is also the third year that you are able to order a Claus for a Cause t-shirt along with your photo packets.
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The founder of this fantastic organization was inspired in 2008 when her and her friend, Amy Ellinghouse, went to Memphis to be a part of a photography workshop. The duo was immediately inspired by photographer Sandy Puc, who started her own charity called “Lay Me Down To Sleep” that provides free hospital portraits to families that had recently lost a baby. Puc encouraged the attendees at the workshop to use their photography skills to do something similar to what she was doing.
Months after the workshop, she talked about the idea of taking pictures with Santa and giving the profit to charity with her good friend, Amy Stubenrauch. Both of her friends’ daughters were diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, which made the choice of choosing one of the charities a little less difficult. Her mother-in-law, Effit Dodd, and her aunt, Debbie Triplett, both fought against breast cancer and are both 18 Fore Life recipients. Dodd was certain that the two charities to donate to during their first annual Claus for a Cause in 2009 were the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the American Cancer Society (ACS).
“I have a passion for helping people and a love for children, as I am in my fifteenth year of teaching Kindergarten,” Dodd explains. “I can’t think of a better way to raise money for charity than doing two of the most favorite things I love to do!”
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In the past three years, the Claus for a Cause organization has donated a tremendous amount of money for charity: nearly $10,000! In 2009, they raised $500 for the American Cancer Society and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. In 2010, they nearly earned seven times the amount of money as the year before, earning $3,500 for the same charities. In 2011, they decided to donate $6,800 to both the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the 18 Fore Life Foundation.
Dodd and a couple of her close friends are excited to be a part of running this event for the fourth year and they thank everyone for coming out and participating and for the support of this year’s sponsors. Both Dodd and Ellinghouse are thrilled to be offering their talents to take the memorable pictures at this year’s event. They are expecting a great turn out and hoping to raise even more money than they have in the previous years. Be sure to stop on by and support this great cause that offers tremendous donations and hope to many of these large and worthwhile charities.
Wreaths Across America began almost twenty years ago and for the past four years, Bloomfield’s very own Missouri State Veterans Cemetery has participated. This year’s event will officially take place on the third Saturday of December (December 15th) and will begin at 11:00am. The Patriot Riders take great pride in hosting this event for the fifth year in a row. The wreaths placed around the cemetery is much more than a decoration, but it is a symbol of honorable and memorable soldiers that have served in the Marines, Air Force, Army, Prisoners of War (MIA), and the Coast Guard.
Wreaths Across America has a motto of “Remember, Honor, Teach” and has been placing wreaths in honor of lost loved ones and patriots in numerous cemeteries in all fifty states and 24 offshore locations such as Normandy Beach. Worcester Wreath Company of Harrington, Maine, started this tradition over twenty years ago when the business owner, Morrill Worcester, decided to place excess wreaths from his factory on the graves of the men and women in the Arlington National Cemetery. This trend eventually caught on as more and more cemeteries and areas began to participate. As of now, the Wreaths Across America foundation has placed over 670,000 wreaths.
Missouri State Veterans Cemetery in Bloomfield is proud to be a part of this meaningful occasion. Throughout the previous years, the community has played an important part of this event. It is estimated that the cemetery is in need of 1,800 wreaths to be bought so that they will be able to place one wreath on each and every grave. To support this cause, you can purchase a single wreath for $15, order the family bundle and get 4 wreaths for $60, or use the small business bundle and get 10 wreaths for $150. For every 2 wreaths that are ordered, the company sends a third one for free, making the goal of 1,800 easier to reach.
You can order your wreath by picking up an order form at the Dexter Chamber of Commerce, Bloomfield City Hall, the Veterans Cemetery office, or the Train Depot/Museum in Dexter. The deadline to purchase a wreath for this event is November 26th. When ordering, be sure to add a Group ID Number (MOPGTW01) so that the Veterans Cemetery will get an extra wreath from your order! For more information on the upcoming event, you can contact the Fundraising Leader, Theresa Wright, at 573-421-1142 or visit www.WreathsAcrossAmerica.org.
