Double rainbow found in spring's grab bag of surprises

By Darla Buckhannon

Happy birthday to Andrew Montgomery, Deana Grey, Meg Powderly, Ian Hemingway, Courtney Scheeter, Tonya King, Jonah Hendrix, Dave White, Bertie Evans, Kirk Hemingway, Ryan Dysinger, Jerry Ayers, Rhonda Bramlett, Katherine Phillips, Daniel Pepple, Tom Cunningham, Kevin Dudley, Lindsay Phillips, Sherrin Rains, Gary Hester, Liz Hartman, Diane Curry, David Little, Terry Boese, Mark McKinley, Layton Tenkhoff, Andy Proffer, Zachary Wachter, Debbie Mirly, Richard Hinkebein, Angela Rehm, Patsy Tenkhoff, Shannon Dannenmueller and Kim Shell.

Happy anniversary to Kenny and Ginny Ruiz, Charlie and Marcella Westrich, Don and Kathy Leggett and Jim and Janie Fowler.

Lots of exciting things happening in the area! The wide ranges of temperatures had us basking on warm days followed by cool, windy days! After a hard rain last Monday we were blessed with a glorious double rainbow! This week we will get to enjoy a full moon often referred to as Flower Moon, Seed Moon, Wildcat Moon and Moon When Geese Return in Scattered Formation.

Coming events

General Baptist Church is holding its annual Spring Yard/Bake Sale on Friday and Saturday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 5th and Helen streets. The youth will be selling chili dogs.

The Senior Center is seeking good sellable items for their fundraising yard sale. Items can be dropped off weekdays 8 a.m. to noon. The sale is 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday and 7 a.m. to noon Saturday.

The Daughters of St. Ambrose are sponsoring a bake sale at 8 a.m. Saturday in front of Whitaker Hardware.

We will miss Dr. Bradley Bader who closed his office after 31 years of dentistry in Chaffee. Records can be picked up 10 a.m. to noon Friday.

A lucky roll

Katelyn Evans of Benton says that she and her grandmother have been lucky finding four-leaf clovers. They found one in both 2001 and 2013 and two in both 2015 and 2016! This should be a stellar year!

Some readers commented they were singing the song "I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover" for days.

And the winner is ...

Winners of the "Anything Flowers" photo contest sponsored by Painted Wren Gallery are onpage 2C. The next contest is "Fourth of July" with a deadline of June 30. Visit their Facebook page to view photos.

Project 'Charlotte'

There is a fun read in last Monday's TBY section of the Southeast Missourian about a couple with strong Chaffee ties. Chris and Rhonda Wessel are featured along with "Charlotte," their 1966 Shasta Airflyte camping trailer.

Nature's glory

The birds are pairing up and building nests. Bird lovers are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the hummingbirds and rose-breasted grosbeaks!

The fields and yards are covered with violets and henbit, but the trail around Tywappity Lake is especially pleasant this time of year. We saw lots of flowers such as May Apples and more trillium than we have ever seen this early. We also saw Bellwort and Yellow Adders-Tongue.

The crappie are biting and the fishermen are happy. Whether it is at area lakes or traveling out of state, we love it when they return with a cooler full of fish. Drop by Whitaker and check out the tow behind Rock-it fish scaler!

Tradition threatened

We always stop at Diebold Orchards in Benton when we drive in from Texas to stock up on honey and vegetables. When we dropped by a couple of weeks ago, a cashier told us they would be closing in a week or two. We were told this past week they will be open the next couple of weekends. We hope things get worked out so they will stay in business. We all have special memories of going to Diebold, and their absence would leave a huge void for many.

We wonder what would happen with their acres of orchards. We always look forward to the varieties of peaches, and in the fall, the mums and pumpkins.

If the property was located in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, a developer would be salivating. It seems that any vacant property is vulnerable to developers. While we nature lovers see it as green areas, developers see another green!

Reminders

To parents and students: Briggs and Buckhannon RN scholarships deadlines are April 12. Call Meleia Sides at Chaffee High for applications.

Remember to tell those special people in your life that you love them -- those three words mean so very much.

Please email your news to darbuck2@airmail.net or leave a message at (573) 887-6430 or (214) 207-7839.

And then ...

Then there are high hopes for Diebold.