Find inspiration, supplies and fun at nine quilt shops along Highway 36

For 10 years, quilters have enjoyed the ultimate creative road trip in northern Missouri. Their quest is to hit each participating shop on the Missouri Highway 36 Quilt Trail. You can join the fun in 2024.

Traveling from Hannibal to St. Joseph, Missouri’s Highway 36 is nicknamed “The Way of American Genius.” Mark Twain, Walt Disney, J.C. Penney, the home of the Pony Express and other innovations and inventors all can be traced back to this stretch of road. It’s no surprise creative types can still find inspiration along this route through the quilt trail.

The quilt trail was started a decade ago to help quilting enthusiasts find these small-business shops that are a bit off the beaten path, according to Cheryl Bowling, owner of Stitch and Clip Quilting in Lentner. “We’ve pulled in a lot of people from other states, and we have a nice following now,” she says.

This quilt block kit from Stitch and Clip Quilting in Lentner is one of the nine kits available on the trail this year.

From Lenter to Lathrop, you can visit nine shops in nine towns to collect quilt kits and stamp your passport brochure, which are available at any of the shops. During your visit, you can purchase a custom block kit to create your own unique masterpiece. The 2024 trail kicked off on April 1 and lasts through Oct. 31. This year the theme is “Tea Time with Friends,” which inspires the design for each of the quilt kits. Past years have included themes such as baskets, churches and garden party.

Visitors from across the state and globe trek the trail each year, says Effie Sickal, owner of Macon Quilts in Macon. “We see visitors who visit a few shops in a day or do an overnight trip and do the whole thing,” she says. “I’m flabbergasted by where people come from. We’ve had shoppers from as far away as Spokane, Washington, and Nova Scotia.”

Participants who make a quilt from all nine blocks will be entered to win prizes. Kelly Jones, owner of Cuts and Bolts Fabrics in Chillicothe, says her favorite part of the trail is seeing the final quilts participants create from the nine block kits. “Everyone’s personality is different and whether you’re a quilter or painter your personality comes out through your art,” she says.

Since 2020, participants who complete the trail have earned a commemorative charm.

Last year, Vicky Edwards of Richmond won the first-place prize. She and her husband were taking part in the larger All Missouri Shop Hop, which includes around 100 quilt shops, and decided to focus on the Highway 36 trail. “I had never been on the northern part of the state near Hannibal,” she says. “So, this was a good excuse to visit there. My husband and I had a lot of fun.”

Vicky’s advice is to schedule plenty of time at each stop to visit with the owner and fellow customers. Also, use the trail as a way to challenge your quilting skills to make something unique. “I like to make unusual quilts,” she says. “Each shop had made a quilt that was on display to give you ideas.”

For the fifth anniversary of the quilt trail, participants who completed all the stops received a quilt charm. This year the charm features a tiny tea pot. “Some people get their passports just to get the charm,” Cheryl says.

Whether you win one of the prizes, add a charm to your collection or just hit a store or two, plenty of fun awaits you on the long-standing Missouri Highway 36 Quilt Trail. “I’ve never seen a quilt trail go this long,” Kelly says. “People are enamored by the fact we have so many quilt shops within the four or five hours.”

Plan Your Route

1. Quilting Farmstead, 2511 SE Wilson Road, Lathrop, 816-377-9062
2. Missouri Star Quilt Co., 114 N. Davis St., Hamilton, 888-571-1122
3. Cuts & Bolts Fabrics, 24 S. Washington St., Chillicothe, 660-240-0120
4. The Quilt Shoppe, 10650 Highway B, Wheeling, 660-659-2469
5. Fabric Chateau, 112 N. Main St., Brookfield, 660-258-8225
6. Sew Creative, 407 E. Patterson Ave., Salisbury, 660-388-6287
7. Macon Quilts, 23581 U.S. Highway 63, Macon, 660-651-4901
8. Sewn @ 701, 508 S. Baltimore St., Kirksville, 660-988-6823
9. Stitch and Clip Quilting, 3140 Hixson Road, Lentner, 660-651-0942

IF YOU GO

Pick up your Missouri Highway 36 Quilt Trail passport brochure at any of the nine shops. At each store, you’ll receive a stamp and can buy a block kit. The 2024 theme is “Tea Time with Friends,” and the photo to the left is the inspiration quilt on display at Stitch and Clip Quilting featuring all nine block kits. Participants who make a quilt from all nine blocks will be entered to win prizes. The trail runs until Oct. 31. Contact the shops to confirm hours or if you are traveling with a large group.

Originally Appeared Here

Teenager Anna Prater delivers with her debut novel

Writing the great American novel is on the bucket list for many people. Few get it done. That’s what makes Anna Prater’s achievement so remarkable. The Poplar Bluff teenager started writing her first novel when she was 15 and saw it published on her 18th birthday.

“I’ve seen people talk about it, like saying they want to write something,” Anna says. “But, you know, they never got around to it.”

This past December Anna’s first novel, “Familiar Strangers,” became a reality. She self-published the book through Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing service.

One person who wasn’t surprised to see her achievement was her father, Dusty, who is a lineman for Ozark Border Electric Cooperative and also a co-op member. “She’s always needed something to keep her busy,” he says. “She’s been like that since she was little bitty. Her mind is overactive. Writing is kind of what she does.”

“Familiar Strangers” was written for the young adult genre. It tells the story of a teenage girl, Cici Greene, who walks into her room one day and finds her boyfriend sitting on her bed. No big deal, until the reader discovers the boyfriend died, and Cici blames herself for his death.

She introduces the plot with these lines: “I used to find the phrase ‘my past haunts me’ a bit dramatic. A little over the top, especially for mundanities. But now, my past is sitting by my window. Haunting me. Literally.”

From that point in the 300-page book, Anna has the reader hooked. She skillfully feeds the reader just enough details to keep interest high. Along the way, she reinvents the way a ghost interacts with the living. But Anna is quick to point out this is not a ghost story — it’s more of a story that just happens to have a ghost in it.

The themes explored in the book are typical of what today’s teenagers must deal with: finding love, suffering loss, living with a broken family and just facing life’s constant heartbreaks. It’s an easy read, with extensive and well-crafted dialogue. Her characters are funny, wholesome and believable because Anna drew from her own experiences in writing it. In fact, some readers see her reflected in the book’s pages.

Anna reported on the book’s release through her Instagram account:

“I started writing this book three years ago, 2021. If you had told 2021 me that she would be publishing this book, she would have laughed in your face. Like SNORTED.”

Anna’s family, which includes Dusty, mom Maggie and younger sister Addy, weren’t allowed to read the book until it was ready to print. “She wouldn’t let us see it,” her dad recalls. “She wouldn’t answer questions or tell us anything about it. Then to see something that size — I was extremely shocked. It’s pretty amazing.”

Anna’s reluctance to share the book stems from her constant rewrites that saw the plot change direction over time. “It’s just one of those things that kind of happened,” Anna says. “It wasn’t even supposed to be a novel. It was supposed to be a short story. But it just kept building until I had a book.”

Anna did share the budding novel with some of her friends, who offered feedback that helped her rewrite the manuscript and overcome some of the roadblocks in the plot. She let it simmer for a while, but then got back to writing after reading stories online of authors getting their books published.

While navigating the complexities of self-publishing, Anna continued to polish the book, completely changing the ending from her early draft. “I don’t plot out my books,” she says. “I kind of have a vague idea and just run with it. So, I had no idea what was even going to be at the end. I kind of figured out the characters along the way.”

She chalks up her writing skills to constant practice — she’s been known to write all night — and from reading. Her favorite author is Stephanie Garber, who writes young adult and fantasy books.

No one-trick pony, Anna is already close to completing her second novel, which she has titled “Bad for Business.” She says this one will have completely different characters and will be more of a romance novel with some action thrown in as well.

“I’ve told people if they liked ‘Familiar Strangers’ to completely throw all of that out,” she says. “I can’t write the same thing twice very well. This is totally different, a more upbeat kind of book.”

Anna plans to start college in the fall but is undecided on the path her future will take. One thing is certain: Look for more novels by this young author in the years to come.

Anna’s debut novel is available under her pen name, Anna Grace, on Amazon.com in print and Kindle versions. It can also be ordered through BarnesandNoble.com.

Originally Appeared Here

Former hospital transformed into memorial park

The idea started as an individual statue on a soon-to-be vacant lot. Joe Davis, Jeff Clements and other community members in Lamar wanted to honor veterans and community members on the 3.2 acres that once housed the community’s memorial hospital. They quickly learned that with the unwavering support of their community, a sole statue would just be the tip of the iceberg. More than $450,000 and countless volunteer hours later, a testament to courage and sacrifice occupies the site on the north side of Lamar.

The Barton County Memorial Park was dedicated in September 2022 and pays homage to all veterans — specifically the 69 Barton County men who lost their lives in World War II — and those who were cared for and worked inside the Barton County Memorial Hospital from 1949 through 2007.

Following World War II, county leaders wanted to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice by building a memorial hospital. “The nearest hospital was 30 minutes away in Carthage so that was something this area needed,” says Joe, president of the Barton County Memorial Park board and local historian.

After it became apparent assistance from the federal government wouldn’t be coming, residents answered the call. Voters passed a pair of bonds and more than 2,000 citizens donated an additional $75,000. The cornerstone was laid on the two-story, 25-bed Barton County Memorial Hospital in 1948.

The facility opened one year later and the hospital was an anchor in the community according to park board member and veteran Gordon Godfrey. “Nearly everyone has some sort of memory of the hospital,” says Gordon, who was born in the hospital. “This park is a great way to honor our veterans and anybody that had anything to do with the hospital.”

A new hospital was constructed in 2007 just off of nearby Interstate 49. The original building — which was now in the middle of a neighborhood — had served the community for nearly 60 years, and sat vacant for more than a decade.

The building was slated to be razed in 2019. Joe, Jeff and Gordon all live a few blocks from the old hospital and wanted to find a way to preserve the memories and tributes held within those old walls. The county owned the land, so Joe and others approached the county commission about the land. “We just asked them to consider keeping this area a memorial to those 69 guys before they turned them into lots for houses,” Joe says. “After some convincing and neighborhood canvassing we came up with a plan and they granted us permission.”

The new park board incorporated that year and the hard work of fundraising, grant writing and planning began. “The timeline just developed as we went,” Joe says. “At first, we thought maybe a statue in the middle or something. One thing led to another. One idea led to another. The community just kept supporting us and the project grew to what it is now.”

The park is once again an anchor of the community. The 69 Barton County men who died in World War II are commemorated on the park’s southwest corner. Newly replaced sidewalks feature benches and form a trapezoid that is filled with 69 markers listing each man’s name, rank, branch and date of death. In front of the markers is a replica of the plaque that listed all 69 men inside the hospital and the Stars and Stripes flies over the markers atop the original 50-foot flagpole from 1949. “That’s our most important part of the park,” Joe says.

Other areas of the park include a Walk of Honor with engraved granite pavers, which leads to the War Memorial featuring seven granite triangle monuments. Six are engraved with a description of a major U.S. conflict and its effects on Barton County and the seventh is a history of the site. The monuments are surrounded by six flags, each representing a different military branch. Other spots in the park include the original 1948 hospital cornerstone, a World War II-era Sherman tank, a pavilion dedicated to the nurses and the anchor from the U.S.S. Peacock.

The park isn’t just a place for reflection; it’s also a community hub. It hosts annual signature events such as the Willie Graham Memorial Car Show (May 4), Memorial Day Ceremony (May 27), Antique Tractor Show (Aug. 24 during the Lamar Free Fair) and Veterans Day Candlelight Ceremony (Nov. 11).

Last year was the inaugural Veterans Day ceremony which highlighted the importance the park has to those in the community. They decided to put approximately 750 candles throughout the park before turning out the lights and reading the names of all 757 veterans represented in the park through memorials and engraved pavers.

“We weren’t sure how long it was going to take us to set up all these candles for the ceremony and if we’d have enough help,” Gordon says. “Then all of a sudden we had volunteers practically tripping over each other. It was the highlight of the year for sure.”

The park was built and is maintained entirely through the nonprofit board via donations, fundraisers, grants and selling engraved pavers and bricks to be installed in the park. Joe says that communal spirit and shared purpose only further the original reason for the hospital.

“It was important for us to keep this as a memorial; that’s the whole reason the hospital was built,” Joe says. “The whole community came together to build and fund the hospital decades ago. It’s a special place. I’m thankful the community came together again to build this park.”

For more information on the park or to learn about donation opportunities, call 417-295-1020, email bcmpark108@gmail.com or visit lamarmo.com/bcmp. The park is located at 108 Gulf St. in Lamar.

Originally Appeared Here

Get your fiesta on with these Mexican-inspired dishes

Baja Fish Taco Bowls

• 2 bags tri-color quinoa
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 white-fleshed fish fillets (5 to 6 ounces each)
• 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon lime zest
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin, ground
• 4 cups baby kale, packed
• 1 ripe avocado, thinly sliced

Prepare quinoa according to package directions.

In large skillet over medium heat, heat oil. Season fish with Cajun seasoning and salt. Cook 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until fish is lightly browned and starts to flake. Set aside.

In small bowl, stir yogurt, lime zest, lime juice and cumin to make a lime crema.

In medium bowl, toss quinoa with kale. Divide between four bowls. Top each with fish, sliced avocado and dollop of crema.

Substitutions: Use taco seasoning or chili powder in place of Cajun seasoning. Use arugula or baby spinach instead of kale.

recipe courtesy Success Rice

Chipotle Chicken Flatbread

• 2 flatbreads
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 clove garlic, diced
• 4 chicken tenders, cooked and cubed
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup ranch dressing
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chipotle seasoning
• 2 tablespoons cilantro leaves, chopped

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Place parchment paper on baking sheet and add flatbreads. Sprinkle cheese on flatbreads. Top with garlic, chicken and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Bake 16 minutes until cheese is melted.

In small bowl, mix ranch and chipotle seasoning.

Drizzle ranch dressing on flatbread and sprinkle with cilantro leaves.

recipe adapted from Butter Your Biscuit

Mexican Mashed Potatoes

• 3 pounds russet potatoes (about 9 medium potatoes),
• peeled and cubed
• 6 bacon strips, chopped
• 1 package pork chorizo
• 12 ounces crema Mexicana
• 1/2 cup butter, cubed
• 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 cup Oaxaca or queso quesadilla, shredded
• 1/2 cup sour cream, for topping (optional)
• 3 scallions, chopped

In Dutch oven, add potatoes and cover with water. Bring to boil. Reduce heat; cook, uncovered, 10 to 15 minutes, or until tender.

In skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until crisp. Drain on paper towels, chop into small pieces and set aside. Remove bacon grease from skillet and cook chorizo over medium-high heat, 6 to 8 minutes.

Drain potatoes; add to pan. Mash potatoes, gradually adding crema Mexicana, butter, onion powder, salt, garlic powder and pepper. Transfer to greased 13-by-9-inch baking dish; sprinkle with cheese, chorizo and bacon. Refrigerate, covered, up to 1 day.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Remove potatoes from refrigerator and let stand while oven heats. Bake, covered, about 30 minutes. Uncover; bake 10 minutes, or until heated through.

Drizzle with sour cream and chopped scallions.

recipe courtesy Cacique

Mexican Cinnamon Cookies

• 4 sticks butter, room temperature
• 4 cups self-rising flour, plus additional for coating
• workspace
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup sugar
• Topping:
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 4 teaspoons cinnamon

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

In bowl, combine butter, 4 cups flour and cinnamon. Add egg and sugar then knead into ball.

Spread additional flour on counter and cut ball into six sections. Roll each section into 24-inch ropes then cut into 1-inch pieces and place on cookie sheet.

Bake 10 minutes.

To make topping: In bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon.

Roll warm cookies in mixture and let cool on rack.

recipe courtesy Cookin’ Savvy

Originally Appeared Here

Cardiac Mountain Outfitters offers unique way to fish Ozark streams

by Kyle Wayne Stewart  |  info@ruralmissouri.coop

The blue heron stood low on a branch jutting from the shoreline. It had been following the boat for the last quarter-mile, keeping a safe distance, preening occasionally and taking flight almost inaudibly every 75 yards or so. Now, it craned its neck and looked with curiosity as the oars stirred circles in the spring-fed waters pushing the boat ever onward downstream.

With every stroke, the sunburned trout tattoo on fishing guide Damon Spurgeon’s forearm would become animated — its fins flexing as he plied the oars — swimming in permanent display just below the cuff of his rolled-up shirtsleeve.

The sun was over the ridge and the oars had been in the water for a little over an hour. Damon rested the oars in their locks, droplets falling from the worn wooden blades and rejoining the river. He dropped the anchor to hold the drift boat in place, 2 yards from the confluence of where the cold water of Maramec Spring feeds into the larger and more well-known Meramec River. The mist rising off the water carried a hint of magic and mystery.

“This has been a great spot for some excellent browns and some really nice rainbows,” Damon says. “We’ve been catching a lot of them right in this pocket along the bluff face.”

Although Damon has guided fishing trips for several species all over the state, his favorite one to target is trout. “Trout tend to live and do well in beautiful places and these habitats often make fishing more personal,” he says. “More times than not, you can see the fish in the clear waters, and it becomes a process of diagnosing which applications work or don’t work. It’s a lot like a game of chess when you’re fishing for trout.”

It wasn’t long before his promise proved true. A 15-inch rainbow trout sucked down a half-inch, copper-headed fly — pulling and thrashing against the pressure on the line once it realized its mistake. The trout put up an admirable fight but soon found its way into Damon’s net and then the successful client’s hands for a few photos before being placed back in the river and swimming off. “It’s so nice to just be able to be out on the water and get people on some really good fish,” he says.

Damon, who lives in Rolla but works as a pipefitter in St. Louis during the week, has been guiding fishing trips on the Meramec River under Cardiac Mountain Outfitters since 2018. The Intercounty Electric Cooperative member grew up in the St. James area, spending much of his youth fishing the Meramec with his father and grandfather, so, in many ways, this venture is a lot like coming home.

Cardiac Mountain Outfitters gets its name from “Cardiac Hill,” the imposing Ozark hillside that lines the northeastern side of the Meramec River Valley, which Damon became intimately acquainted with while fishing as a boy with his grandfather.

“It’s called Cardiac Hill because going down the hill is easy but going back up will really test your cardiovascular health,” Damon says. “The other side is known as ‘Suicide Hill,’ so I thought Cardiac Mountain had a better ring to it. Jokes aside, my grandfather was instrumental in instilling my love of flyfishing, and fishing in general, so I wanted to pay homage to him in the name of my guiding service.”

What makes Damon unique among many fishing guides in the Show-Me State is that instead of guiding in a traditional motorized boat, johnboat or jet boat, he navigates the Ozark streams in a ClackaCraft drift boat that he manually rows downriver. Piloting a vessel more akin to something you would see on the Western rivers of Colorado, Montana and Wyoming than in the Heartland, Damon received quite a few raised eyebrows of fellow fishers when he first started out. But it wasn’t long until he knew he was on to something.

“With a drift boat, you get a really smooth ride and plenty of room in the boat to fish compared with a canoe or kayak,” Damon says.

Damon Spurgeon has been guiding fishing trips on the Meramec River through his business, Cardiac Mountain Outfitters, since 2018. The Intercounty Electric Cooperative member grew up in the St. James area, spending much of his youth fishing the Meramec with his father and grandfather, so, in many ways, this venture allows him to grant others fishing memories that last a lifetime.

Additionally, with the smaller, man-powered vessel, anglers can access different streams and parts of the river that they otherwise wouldn’t be able to reach in a traditional fishing boat. “Drift boats are still relatively scarce in this area,” he says, “so it provides a unique experience that most anglers haven’t been able to enjoy in Missouri.”

Most of Cardiac Mountain Outfitters’ trips begin at Maramec Spring Park just outside of St. James before drifting roughly 10 miles downriver to the Scotts Ford Access near Steelville. With the Meramec’s reputation for being one of the most biologically diverse rivers in the country, fishing trips with Damon typically begin with targeting rainbow and brown trout throughout the first half of the day before targeting smallmouth.

Although Damon has guided fishing trips for several fish species all over the state, his favorite one to target is Missouri’s trout population. “Trout tend to live and do well in beautiful places and these habitats often make fishing more personal,” he says. “More times than not, you can see the fish in the clear waters, and it becomes a process of diagnosing which applications work or don’t work. It’s a lot like a game of chess when you’re fishing for trout.”

While the guiding business is not Damon’s main occupation, it’s his way of sharing the splendors of the Show-Me State with others, whether they live nearby or in states across the country.

“Missouri, as a whole, provides opportunities for any type of fishing you can imagine,” Damon says. “Throughout the state, we have just incredible opportunities to catch world-class native fish and even rainbow and brown trout, which have traditionally always been thought to only be available in the western states. My goal is to just spread the word fishing in Missouri can be just as good, if not better, than anywhere else in the country.”

For more information on Cardiac Mountain Outfitters or to book a fishing trip, call Damon Spurgeon at 573-263-9776 or follow the business on Facebook.

Stewart is a freelance writer from Jefferson City.

Originally Appeared Here

Sunny Bunny Easter Eggs are filled with love by happy people

Photos by Sara Schafer and Angie Jones-Wheeler

Fifty egg bottoms are lined up on a board. With a quick grab and plop, each egg is filled with a single piece of candy. The tops are added with a sharp snap and that Easter egg is ready to be the centerpiece of an Easter egg hunt anywhere across the country. Many happy hunts start here in Marshfield with Sunny Bunny Easter Eggs and SWI Industrial Solutions.

This year, more than 13 million Easter eggs will be filled, assembled and shipped by the SWI Industrial Solutions team, which includes individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Beyond Marshfield, the non-profit business has a sister location in Monett and is headquartered in Springfield. “We are the happiest place to work in Monett, Springfield and Marshfield,” says Dave Dunn, SWI Industrial Solutions general manager.

With Sunny Bunny Easter Eggs, employees of SWI Industrial Solutions fill eggs with candy or small toys. The eggs are made in Harrison, Arkansas, and filled at warehouses in Marshfield (pictured here), Springfield and Monett. The eggs are engineered to be easy to assemble and click tightly together. The unique design allows nearly any person, regardless of their ability, to assemble the eggs, says Dave Dunn, general manager of SWI Industrial Solutions. Beyond eggs, the team provides subcontracting work for many companies. This can include anything from shrink-wrapping products to sorting hangers to organizing food products into smaller or larger quantities. That variety, paired with repetitive tasks, keeps employees happy, says Winfred Jones, SWI Industrial Solutions plant manager in Marshfield. “I could not sit there and do the same thing all day long, but they love and thrive on the repetitiveness,” he says. “Very seldom do you see them make a mistake, and 99% of the time everyone is happy.”

Smiles abound across the workshop floor as the 70 employees in Marshfield select candy, snap eggs shut and toss them into a box — then repeat. Coworkers joke, listen to music and catch up on weekend plans as they make their way through box after box of eggs, which will be purchased by churches, civic groups and individuals in quantities of 250 up to several thousand.

In one day, the team can package 70,000 to 100,000 eggs, which is good because daily sales can range from 240,000 to 400,000. “I could not sit there and do the same thing all day long, but they love and thrive on the repetitiveness,” says Winfred Jones, SWI Industrial Solutions plant manager in Marshfield. “Very seldom do you see them make a mistake.”

Winfred would know. For 43 years he’s been the first one in the door each day to greet his coworkers and solve their problems — big and small. “I was one of nine kids, and my youngest sister had Down syndrome and worked here for like 25 years before she passed away,” he says. “I got to bring her to work every day.”

For four years, Mandy Archie has served as the warehouse manager in Marshfield, working alongside Winfred. “It is a job you look forward to coming to because you know the employees are here and they’re going to depend on you,” she says.

The purpose of SWI Industrial Solutions and its subsidiary, Sunny Bunny Easter Eggs, is to provide meaningful employment for those with any level of disability. Dave says through their jobs his team learns life skills and earns money by doing manufacturing and light assembly work. They also find purpose for their lives and build lifelong friendship with their coworkers.

“It’s their socialization, their friends are here,” he says. “Winfred and Mandy are their big brother and big sister, their principals and their bosses. This is pretty much like any other job, you have to want to be here, you’re not assigned here. The whole key here is that employees have to be number one, no question. Business is number two. If employees want to work out in the community, we want them to do that. But then if that doesn’t work out, we want them to come back here.”

Each employee at SWI is assigned to a job based on their preferences, interests and strengths. For instance, some employees may fill 50 eggs a day while others do 1,200 eggs in a day. Team members work alongside people with and without disabilities.

Employees who require a ride are picked up and dropped off by one of the company’s four bus routes organized throughout the county. Salaries are based on the responsibility, skills needed and performance.

Because of this focus on employees, SWI Industrial Solutions attracts a massive amount of business for eggs and beyond. For nearly 60 years, the 300 team members across the business’ three locations have excelled in sub-contracting work for many companies. On any given day, employees could be filling bottles of odor-killing spray for hunting, sorting hangers, sewing bug screens for vehicle windows or packaging cans of fried onions for distribution.

Their jobs, Dave says, span major companies such as McCormick, 3M and O’Reilly Auto Parts to niche markets such as Dead Down Wind to small startups that just need help with Amazon fulfillment and warehousing needs. In Marshfield, the business operates in a 90,000-square-foot facility, which is just slightly smaller than the 95,000-square-foot facility in Springfield. The Monett building includes 60,000 square feet.

The variety of products, paired with repetitive tasks, keep employees happy to clock in for their 6-hour shifts each weekday. Employees range in age from early 20s to mid-80s, and some have worked for SWI for two, three and even four decades.

SWI Industries was created as the Springfield Workshop in 1966 by a few parents who wanted to provide opportunities for their children with disabilities. That mission and focus has stayed true six decades later.

“We laugh and have fun, and that’s what it’s all about here,” Winfred says. “Everything is about our employees and making their lives better.”

You can learn about Sunny Bunny Easter Eggs and SWI Industrial Solutions at sunnybunnyeastereggs.com and swiindustrial.com. If you’d like to support the business or schedule a tour, contact Dave Dunn at ddunn@springfieldworkshop.com.

Originally Appeared Here

Online farmers market brings  food to the people

Your doorbell rings and the dog barks, announcing a visitor. Just beyond the threshold, a friendly “hello” greets you, along with the colorful bounty of straight-from-the-garden vegetables. Bags of produce soon fill your arms and the smell of homemade bread makes you smile. Getting groceries has never been easier.

The idea of the Little Farm Store was born out of a passion for good food. It’s what prompted Ryan Goolsby and his family to move to Missouri from Alaska nine years ago. “I was really wanting to have an orchard and you can grow anything here,” Ryan says.

His family settled on 88 acres near Mansfield and began building a greenhouse and planting fruit trees. They established a microdairy, grew several gardens and added horses, goats and geese to the farm. The next step in establishing a food network business would require the help of their fellow farmers.

“I had this idea for a local grocery delivery for a while,” Ryan says. “Farmers markets can be a really hard way to make money. It can be successful for some people, but it takes so much time. And if I know one thing about farmers, they are always behind and needing more time and wanting to be in their gardens.”

By creating an online farmers market, Ryan now brings the local farms to the customer’s door and saves time for farmers and shoppers alike. The Little Farm Store consists of several farms across the Ozarks. “I’ve never known an area to have so many homesteaders,” Ryan says. “It seems pretty unique.”

Currently, more than 30 vendors list their products for sale on the store’s website. From there, customers browse and buy local products to be delivered to their homes or the nearest drop point.

“We started out with mostly bread, cheeses, sauces and meats,” says Renee Cleveland, Ryan’s partner. “But now it’s grown to include a lot of seasonal produce too.” Depending on the time of year, there is often a smorgasbord of vegetables and fruits, including homegrown tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, eggplants and peaches. A lot of what’s in a usual grocery store is available through the Little Farm Store. There are locally sourced dairy products, coffee, jams and even ice cream. “We also have soaps and lotions; anything you’d expect to find at a farmers market,” Ryan says. And he continues to reach out to more farmers with various products to add to the online store.

Every Monday, Ryan gathers the weekly orders and sends them to the farmers. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays all the food comes to the Little Farm Store headquarters in Seymour. “My supply route starts in Cabool and goes to Fordland and sometimes down to Ava. Some farmers bring me their products, and I go get others,” he explains.

Ryan delivers orders to people’s houses or drop-off locations at businesses in Mountain Grove, Springfield, Hartville, Mansfield, Seymour and Ava. “On Thursdays, I go out on delivery toward Mountain Grove. I head in the opposite direction toward Springfield on Fridays. Then on Saturday, I breathe,” he jokes. It’s not uncommon for him to drive close to 500 miles per week. “It all depends on how many stops, where I’m going and if I forget something.”

Shannon and Jana Lee from Rogersville have been ordering from Ryan for more than a year. Shopping at the Little Farm Store reminds them of their childhoods, where life was farm-to-table all the time. “Finding a source for raw milk where we don’t have to drive very far is great,” Jana says. “My husband’s grandparents had a dairy, and he grew up around their farm.”

“I’m amazed at the way Ryan sources products and connects people,” adds Hannah Townsley, another customer of store and member of Se-Ma-No Electric Cooperative. “I hadn’t had an authentic croissant in ages, not since I lived in French-speaking West Africa. Who would have thought that I’d find them again in Seymour and could get real French pastries delivered to my door?”

As the local food community grows, Ryan has also begun offering the occasional tour of the farms that provide the store products. He wants customers to have a chance to meet the growers behind the food they’re buying. “One thing that’s missing from the online market is interacting with the farmers,” he says. “And, in my experience, farmers love to talk and share what they know.”

Ryan has hosted a few events and tours at his family farm -— Pleasant Valley Farms — which is one of the vendors for the Little Farm Store. He’s also organized tours at other vendors’ homesteads, including a recent event with Air2Ground Farms in Squires, their main pork supplier. The owners, Rich and Shelley McGlamory, spent the afternoon showing the guests their farm, which is home to lambs, cows, chickens and pigs. The walking tour ended with a meal provided straight from their farm.

“We love healthy, nutritious, homegrown food,” Shelley says. “When we retired to Missouri after my husband spent 25 years in the U.S. Air Force, we started growing our own food and a little bit extra for everyone else.” Soon after, they met Ryan at a local farmers market and have been selling their meat through the website ever since.

Ryan sees most of the farmers weekly as he checks in to see what’s available or not. He understands the ebb and flow of seasonal items because he is a gardener himself. Most of what he does on his farm involves permaculture and perennials.

“I call myself a lazy gardener. I want to plant something one time and never have to plant it again,” he says. Today, his orchard contains more than 80 trees bearing apples, pears, plums, nectarines and cherries. He and Renee spend countless hours in the gardens and his parents mostly manage the Jersey herd.

“I’m a firm believer that health will increase with a greater diversity of food,” Ryan says. Through the Little Farm Store and his once-a-week home deliveries, they hope to establish a regional food system that can be viable all year round. “As much as I like avocados and think they’re worth importing, I don’t think we should be importing everything else we can grow here,” Ryan says. “Instead of shipping all of our salads from California, we can promote fresh food right here that will have more nutrition, better flavor and more variety.”

The Little Farm Store is proof a group of farmers working together can make quite a difference. “We want to help people improve the way they eat and think about food,” he says.

To learn more about the Little Farm Store, visit littlefarmstore.com, or contact them at 417-929-1338 or info@littlefarmstore.com.

Kaiser is a freelance writer from Hartville.

Originally Appeared Here

Following his first stint in Maryville, Ben had a short-lived career in the financial world. “I woke up not feeling fulfilled,” he says. “I needed to be making a difference in people’s lives, and coaching was how I could do that. I told Coach Tappmeyer I wanted to try this coaching thing and he thought I was crazy.”

He spent two years at Northwest as a graduate assistant and four years at Emporia State in Kansas as an assistant coach before he was tapped to succeed his mentor in Maryville in 2009. While the team was below .500 for Ben’s first two seasons, he knew his vision included hanging banners in Bearcat Arena.

“Early on, we really had to sell them on our dream that we were going to win championships,” he says. “We started to get lucky with some great players that came here and worked hard and eventually that culture recruits itself. We’re able to get the kids we want because the kids we want are attracted to our work ethic and culture.”

Northwest Athletic Director Andy Peterson says Maryville is the perfect spot for their programs to recruit. That includes offering a big-campus experience in a small town that’s close enough for Mom and Dad to drive to for the games.

“This is naturally a blue-collar area with lots of hard-working rural kids,” says Andy, who both played and coached for the Bearcats. “I hear we’re in the middle of nowhere, but we’re kind of in the middle of everywhere. It’s about two hours to Des Moines, Omaha, Kansas City or Lincoln. Some kids might not want to stay close to home to play, but they don’t want to go 9 hours away either.”

Andy was an assistant on the Bearcat team that brought home that first national championship from South Dakota after beating Fairmont State 71-61, just a few months after the Northwest football team did the same. As the team passed around the trophy covered in confetti, he was equal parts excited and relieved.

“It was this big sense of accomplishment to finally get over that hump and an affirmation we’re doing the right things and this isn’t a flash in the pan,” he says. “And from there Coach Mac has just become this savant and has led us on this incredible run.”

The Bearcats would go on to win three consecutive national championships from 2019-2022. Ben began this season with a winning percentage over .800 and more awards than can be listed here. However, for a coach rooted in the minutiae, details, intensity and process like Ben, the trophies and accolades aren’t the driving force.

“Winning is just the byproduct of what we do,” he says. “For me it’s the work we do in practice, our preparation and process — just working hard every day.”

Andy concurs: “He’s so into the grind. He probably doesn’t know what their record is or anybody’s stats. It’s created this mentality that has sustained success.”

Dray was first introduced to the university while he was an eighth grader in Kearney and his older brother was one of the first recruits Ben got to Maryville. He saw that success grow across his dozen years associated with the program — four years watching his brother, five years on the team and three years coaching.

The hard work kicked into high gear after their Sweet 16 departure his freshman year.

“We were on a mission, that was three straight years losing at that point,” says Dray, now a basketball coach in Brookfield. “That summer we just all worked our butts off. We’d have weights and then go for team runs around campus. We were all focused.”

Andy says the support the program — and entire athletic department — receives is community wide. “The university and the city are tied together,” he says. “We can’t talk about our university or teams and not talk about Maryville and what the community means to us. And they’re not going to talk about the city without bringing up Northwest Missouri State.”

Nearly five years after his last game as a player, Dray still remembers that support. “It’s a big campus, but a tight-knit community,” he says. “I’d walk into Hy-Vee for breakfast and the shoppers and workers were always asking how the team was doing and about our next game.”

Ben’s dedication to his culture and process has reaped rewards and accolades for Northwest’s players, coaches and fans. He says the formula isn’t a difficult one to understand, but demanding in practice.

“It sounds cliche, but it’s as simple as getting the right people and investing all of your time and efforts into them,” he says. “You have to put them in positions to be successful at what their greatest strengths are.”

“There’s an arms race in college athletics that we’re never going to be able to keep up with,” Andy says. “Almost all of our student-athletes are going to graduate and be professional teachers or farmers, not professional athletes. We have to make it more about the experience on campus and how you treat the kids and their parents.”

That combination of hard work in a great atmosphere has propelled Northwest basketball to the highest heights the program has seen with their eyes on hanging more banners in Maryville.

“You always have this drive of wanting to win, especially in the coaching realm,” Andy says. “But man, when it’s your alma mater. When it’s a place that literally changed your life and you work here now, that puts a different chip on your shoulder.”

For more information on Northwest Missouri State Basketball, visit www.bearcatsports.com.

Originally Appeared Here

The cool bags are individually opened in the clean room — where they wear masks and gloves to protect the process — and inoculated with organic mushroom spawn they buy from northern Wisconsin. The bags are moved to a warm, dark incubation room for two weeks allowing the spawn to take over the bag. They’re moved to a temperature- and climate-controlled harvesting room for one week.

“That’s when we go in with our baskets and harvest the mushrooms,” Ron says. “We bring them out and try and clean them up as best we can so everything we sell to a restaurant is eaten. Very little goes into the stockpot.”

The mushrooms are boxed and stored in a refrigerated room until they’re delivered the following day. While Eric is the brains of the growing and harvesting operation in Dixon, Ron, who claims to be retired, takes care of marketing and sales to restaurants primarily in cities along Interstate 44, including St. Louis.

“We get these mushrooms into restaurants within a day of harvest; our delivery days are long,” Ron says. “But, we’ll pick out three or four restaurants we’ve either touched before or are new to us and talk to them about our mushrooms when we’re out.”

The best days for Ron are when he meets with chefs or owners who have an affinity for mushrooms. “We’ve stopped at restaurants and just nibbled on raw mushrooms for 30 minutes with them before,” Ron says. “We were at Roberto’s Trattoria once and brought our mushrooms in and they got taken into the kitchen for the chef to prepare a dish for us to share together on the spot.”

Cold Creek — which is served by Gascosage Electric Cooperative — sells mushrooms to five-star hotels, top-end steakhouses and Italian eateries in St. Louis. They also supply more rural restaurants such as NaCl+H20 in Rolla, Missouri Hick in Cuba and Sybill’s in St. James.

Public House Brewing Co., in St. James and Rolla, uses Cold Creek’s mushrooms in pizzas, calzones and sandwiches. Executive chef Liz Cotterell says their mushroom-swiss burger has been so popular it will find a home on their everyday menu. “We believe in serving our customers the best local and high-quality ingredients we can get,” the chef says. “Cold Creek Mushrooms does exactly that: high quality and local.”

Eric also grows and sells pink oyster mushrooms, which are bitter and not meant to be eaten raw. Ron says as they cook, the bright pink mushrooms lose their color. “You cook them almost to the point of burning and they have a taste very similar to bacon,” he says.

They see the pink mushrooms fitting a niche for not only vegans and vegetarians, but the growing number of people with alpha-gal syndrome, which prevents them from eating meat.

Master gardener Stacy Amick Kramer, who has worked with Cold Creek on sustainable agriculture grants, lauds the team at Cold Creek for their advancements in rural farming. “There are both challenges and opportunities,” she says. “This is about as rural as it gets and you’re making products people love. Starting with the bagger Eric made. He researched, engineered, designed and built it.”

Cold Creek is working with Stacy on ways to fund projects diverting their spent mushroom substrate from landfills to gardens as a soil alternative or worm farms. “We want to research the spent mushroom substrate in gardening,” Stacy says. “Then figure out what’s the maximum amount we can utilize for a productive garden and to keep it out of the landfill.”

Ron and Eric are in the process of building more capacity to grow their mushroom operation further. Ron sees his rural location in Dixon as the perfect spot to expand in Springfield, Jefferson City and Columbia.

“This is a tremendous spot to be and we can connect with people from all over the world online and on YouTube,” Ron says. “We always keep our eyes open and we’ve played with other mushrooms. But right now we’re putting all our efforts into maximizing our production levels and the number of restaurants we serve.”

To learn more, visit www.coldcreekmushrooms.com or call 573-855-8312. It is one of 600 companies in the Buy Missouri initiative overseen by Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe. To find more Missouri-made products, visit www.BuyMissouri.net.

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Originally Appeared Here

Dessert artist crafts mouthwatering sweets and treats

For Ciara Kennell, Valentine’s Day is a series of numbers: 900 strawberries, 95 pounds of chocolate, 14-hour days and hundreds of happy customers. She wouldn’t have it any other way. Since 2021, Ciara has been making sweet treats through her home-based business, Chocolate Dippery.

At her home in the small town of Belle, Ciara’s tiny kitchen is a hive of creativity. Sprinkles of every variety and color, luscious strawberries, stacks of silicone molds and pounds of chocolate wait to be transformed into scrumptious and Instagram-worthy desserts. “I make the treats everybody loves dipped in chocolate,” she says.

Ciara Kennell, owner of the Chocolate Dippery in Belle, makes unique and beautiful sweet treats.

Ciara’s sweet-focused business actually started due to an unexpected hardship. She had spent more than four years in a job she didn’t like and unexpectedly lost it. Since Valentine’s Day wasn’t far away, the self-taught baker decided to make some chocolate-covered strawberries to sell. “I actually got a lot of orders for them, and then it just took off from there,” she says.

At first Ciara used the standard chocolate you buy at your local grocery store to dip her berries and other treats. They tasted good, but soon her creative side got the best of her, and she started blending multiple types of chocolate to see if she could make her goodies just a little different and tastier. It worked.

“I use two different brands of chocolate to get my unique blend,” she says. “That creates a silky-smooth bite. I use milk, dark and white chocolates, and they’re all three uniquely blended.”

Ciara started with chocolate-covered strawberries but what spearheaded her business was a tasty little treat she calls the cake pod. She had bought some cute silicone molds that created small discs, so she decided to try a small homemade cake filled with buttercream, covered in chocolate and pressed into the mold.

“I posted a video of them on Facebook and everybody wanted to try them,” she says. “Once they tried them, I got so many orders for them. Then they tried my strawberries, and everybody just fell in love with my little shop.”

Ciara offers the cake pods in the classic flavors of chocolate and vanilla and the more complex flavors of caramel pumpkin, cookies and cream and mocha espresso. They are often paired with chocolate-covered pretzels, cake pops, chocolate-covered Oreos and various berries coated in chocolate to make an eye-catching party box.

Another popular item is her crunch grapes, which are green grapes dipped in white chocolate and rolled in a strawberry crunch topping. “They are very popular, even if they are a bit unusual,” Ciara says.

Ciara creates custom cakes for all types of celebrations, such as the fun birthday cake above. Customers share an idea and then she takes it from there. Over time, Ciara’s customers have found her through word of mouth, Facebook posts and the pop-up events she attends.

Many of Ciara’s creations vary with the season. She’ll do hot cocoa bombs and hot chocolate stirrers at Christmas, fancy caramel apples for Halloween and shamrock-shaped sugar cookies for St. Patrick’s Day.

Chocolate Dippery treats can be customized for birthday parties, weddings, baby showers and anniversaries. Beyond her chocolate-dipped goodies, Ciara also crafts custom cakes. She’s created confectionery masterpieces that range from a Kansas City Chiefs football field to a hot pink Barbie cake with disco balls to an elegant two-tiered wedding cake adorned with real flowers.

Ciara’s treats can range in price from $12 to $65, depending on the quantity, size and personalization. For example, a half dozen cake pods cost $15 and a dozen chocolate-covered strawberries cost $40. Cakes range from $25 to more than $300. She continually tracks food trends and looks for inspiration online from other bakers. It just takes a tiny idea for her to marinate on and create something new and uniquely hers.

“I don’t really copy off anybody,” Ciara says. “Sometimes customers will send me an inspiration photo or two, and I go based off of that. But it is still going to be my own creation in the end.”

For the last three years, Ciara has run her business solo. During busy times, she hires a friend and her boyfriend to be extra sets of hands for making and delivering treats. Customers can pick up their goodies from her home in Belle, or she’ll make deliveries to Jefferson City, Rolla and Linn. “There’s people who come from an hour away to pick up stuff from me,” Ciara says.

As she reflects on her small business, Ciara says her customers have been the most surprising part. “I can’t believe all the customers I have and how loyal they are. My customers keep coming back — it’s amazing,” she says.

Ciara grew up in Belle and loves raising her daughters, Thara and Zayda, in the same place. “It’s good to be in a small town because of the sense of community,” she says. “Many of my customers are here; the community is great.”

While Ciara loves making all kinds of sweets and goodies, chocolate-covered strawberries are still her favorite. She is looking forward to helping make Valentine’s Day just a little sweeter for her customers. Last year she dipped 900 strawberries in just a few days — maybe this year she’ll top 1,000.

You can contact Ciara Kennell at chocolatedippery@gmail.com. Find her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/chocolatedipperylux.com. Treats can be picked up in Belle or delivered to Jefferson City, Linn and Rolla. She accepts payments through Venmo and PayPal.

Originally Appeared Here