Champion News

Vietnam Veteran Sargent Gary Lee Proctor passed away back in January. On the occasion of his 75th birthday, Saturday April 26th, he was given full Military Honors in his family resting place, the Denlow Cemetery. The American Legion Honor Guard provided the 21-gun salute and the bugle Taps, and two young Airmen from Whiteman Airforce Base conducted a beautiful and solemn flag ceremony. As an Avionics Branch test equipment monitor for the CIA Ravens in Thailand, Gary was described by his superiors as “an extremely talented young technician showing extraordinary technical abilities contributing directly to the extremely high reliability of the operation.” Back here he was just known as a great electronics and television technician and a good friend who loved to hunt and fish.

Skyline fourth grader Holden Johnson will have his birthday on May 1st just before the last days of school. Dovie Dooms and Brenda Lee Mastin have both been out of school for a while, but they share a birthday on May 2nd. Springfield Champion Linda Heffern celebrates on May 6th. Kenneth Anderson comes to the Vanzant Jam and will have that birthday song sung to him there on May 8th. That is also the big day for Susan Klepac, a generous supporter of The Champion News and for Shirley Crouch and second grader Dahlia Winter. Happy Birthday all you charming May flowers.

Helen Batten reminds us of the Second Saturday Skyline Swap Meet coming up on May 10th. From 8 a.m. to noon at the corner of 76 and C in the Brushy Knob Church parking lot you can find chickens, rabbits, goats, garden plants, crafts, whirly gigs, baked goods and bird houses. She says she will have some walnut kernels, and some folks will set up yard sale tables. This is the second year for this spring and summer event. Thanks, Helen, for getting it going again.

This week we thank Tom Peters for sharing the McClurg Jam, “Waiting for a Train,” “Boys Around the World,” “The Beaus of Oak Hill,” “Oh Danny Boy,” “Rocky Road to Jordan” and others. The first Wednesday Porch Jam of the new year has happened out on the Wide Veranda. It is about time. The Square was busy with MO Dot crews in their big trucks and fancy equipment stopping in for lunch. They have been working on WW Highway.

Kaitlyn McConnell drove through the construction to sit a spell on the porch. She had been to Ava interviewing an octogenarian and thought about other old folks out on the Bright Side. Somehow, she had missed the whole episode of Fred the Firefighter and his “baaaaaaad” attitude toward firefighting as was reported on a number of local television stations and even some as far away as Joplin. Fred was the handsome goat who accompanied the Skyline VFW Fire Chief for hours as he and many others struggled to control the biggest fire Douglas County had ever seen. An epic poem by a local Champion who also executed a dramatic reading thereof detailed the hours of hard work and dedication by firefighters and Fred alike. Kaitlyn was surprised that she was already well acquainted with Skyline’s Fire Chief and more so to learn that the recipe for the raisin walnut pie she brought to share was one Vergie Smith, the Fire Chief’s aunt, had shared in an old Skyline VFD Cookbook. The recipe will be included in the Ozark Pie Project cookbook that Kaitlyn is putting together. This pie was called “Champion Raisin Pie” and was thought to have acquired its name from the popular brand of raisins. It turns out that three brothers started growing raisins. They got good at it and decided to put them in little boxes and pouches and share them with the world. Fifty years later the second and third generation family members still continue to grow what the three brothers started there on their small farm in California. Ernest, Krikor and Kenny served as owners, operators, managers and laborers. With help from family, friends, and their loyal ranch dog Ruby, they were able to grow that small farm into something much bigger–like Champions—Looking on the Bright Side!