Fireworks and More.

The City Council Public Services Committee voted to recommend activities for the City 4th of July celebration during its regular meeting last Monday evening.

A new proposal, for a one day event preceding the fireworks display on the 4th, was presented to the Committee. The proposal includes a contract with Phillips-Ward & Associates of Joplin to help organized and oversee the activities for a fee of $12,000. The cost may be negotiable. The funding would come from the $15,000 allocated by the City and the approximate $22,000 that has been donated for the July 4 celebration.

The proposal designates Phillips-Ward as being responsible for event research, preparing a detailed time line for volunteers and city staff, a meeting with the volunteers, assistance with budget, design of all promotional information and advertising, and placing any advertising required. Advertising costs or supply costs would be the responsibility of the City. It is estimated that about 40 volunteers and City staff would be needed to execute the activities. A sporting activity, children’s activities, food vendors/festival and entertainment were listed.

The Special Services Committee, which oversees the Parks and the Golf Course, will face some interestin’ decisions for the upcomin’ budget process.

The recent implementation of the $1 per day surcharge for golfers is expected to generate somewhere in the neighborhood of $35,000 a year to go for golf course improvements. Figurin’ where to apply these funds to refurbish areas of the course should lead to some interestin’ discussion.

The golf carts are also on the table this year. Some type of replacement and/or stepped up maintenance plan for the four year old buggies will need to be put in place. The carts produce a good chunk of the revenue for the course so they will be addressed I’m sure. With the Fair Acres project in full swing, the Committee will be busy.

This is some fact , but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

Carthage
Printing
Services

by Donna Erickson

Sometimes, kids need to hear and see a concept dozens of times before it really sticks. Teacher Pat Roche of Atchison, Kan., suggests parents declare an "alphabet letter of the day" and do interesting activities with that letter. Here are some hands-on variations to try.

SALT WRITE - Pour a thin layer of salt into a tray. Help your child form the letter/word of the day with her finger. "Erase" and repeat several times.

LETTER SHOPPING - Have your child look for the letter of the day on food boxes and labels in your cabinets.

SOUND HUNT - Walk through the house or neighborhood with your child and name objects that begin with the sound of the letter of the day.

LETTER/SOUND COLLAGE - Help your child find and cut out pictures of words that begin with the sound of the letter of the day in the newspaper, magazines and junk mail ads. Glue the cut-outs on a piece of paper.

RAINBOW WRITE - Print the letter of the day on a piece of paper, using large letters. Let your child trace over the writing with crayons or water colors, saying the letter each time.

FOOD WRITE - Use Cheerios or Fruit Loop type cereals to arrange in the shape of the letter of the day. "Air trace" with pointer finger above the letter while saying it several times. Then eat!

COLOR WORDS - When your child starts forming words, print a word for a color on a piece of paper. Your child may draw or cut and glue pictures of objects which are that color. Print the object’s name under some of the pictures. Read them together.