Babies from one day to twelve months old were showcased during the annual Baby Show held Thursday evening at the DeKalb County Fair.
The winners are as follows:
Girls (1 day to 3 months)
Winner- Danica Hope Collier, daughter of Matthew Collier and Brittany George of Alexandria
Runner-up- Kyleigh Brooke Bain, daughter of Latroya Bain of Smithville.
Boys (1 day to 3 months)
Winner- Nathan Izayah Dowell, son of Nathan and Jayme Dowell of Smithville
Runner-up- Conner Bradley Talley, son of Brad and Carrie Talley of Alexandria
Girls (4-6 months)
Winner- Jolene Eve Stover, daughter of Jason and Erica Stover of Lancaster
Runner-up- Isabella Faith Rackley, daughter of Gordon and Jessica Rackley of Smithville
Boys (4-6 months)
Winner- Brownie Johnson, son of Bradley and Kristan Johnson of Dowelltown
Runner-up- Camden Lee Mackie, son of Jeff and Tiffany Mackie of Smith County
Girls (7-9 months)
Winner- Cali Beth Agee, daughter of Kevin and Jennifer Agee of Smithville.
Runner-up- Taylor Grace Patterson, daughter of Timmy and Mary Patterson of Smithville
Boys (7-9 months)
Winner- Christopher Corbin Southard, son of Brian and Michelle Southard of Smithville
Runner-up- Preston Lee Miller, son of Billy and Dyanna Miller of Smithville
Girls (10-12 months)
Winner- Annyiah Kensley Hicks, daughter of Wayne and Amanda Hicks and Danielle Staggs of Smithville
Runner-up- Madison Rae Haley, daughter of Brittany Haley and Shelby Anderson of Alexandria
Boys (10-12 months)
Winner- Bobby Cripps III, son of Bobby Cripps, Jr. and Amanda Cripps of Hickman
Runner-up- Austin Reid Rollin, son of T.J. Rollin and Aquilla Rollin of Alexandria.
Twins (1 day to 12 months)- Austin and Lilliana Vickers, children of Brandi and Kevin Vickers of Liberty.

Nine year old Destiny Danielle Franklin of Smithville was crowned Little Miss Princess at the DeKalb County Fair Wednesday night.
Franklin is the daughter of Jennifer Franklin and Charlie Ware.
She succeeds the 2007 Little Miss Princess, 9 year old Mary Elizabeth Murray, daughter of Angel Brown and Dwight Murray of Smithville.
First runner-up in the pageant was Kyra Paige Agee, the 8 year old daughter of April Davis and Donny Agee of Smithville.
Eight year old Caitlin Leigh Tyree of Liberty was the second runner-up. She is the daughter of Josh and Carrie Tyree..
Third runner-up was Brooklynn Estes, the 7 year old daughter of Shanna and Chris Bogle of Dowelltown..
The title of Miss Congeniality went to Hailey Nicole Glass, the 9 year old daughter of Doyle Glass and Debbie Glass of Alexandria.
Seven year old Abigail Hope Taylor was named Miss Photogenic. She is the daughter of Ken and Cindy Taylor of Smithville
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The 2008 DeKalb County Fair Miss Sweetheart is 11 year old Taneah Brook Cantrell of Smithville
Cantrell is the daughter of Scott and Tammy Cantrell.
She succeeds the retiring Miss Sweetheart, 13 year old Chelsea Lewis of Smithville, daughter of Jimmy and Gina Lewis.
The first runner-up in the pageant Wednesday night was Sarah Elizabeth Edwards, the 12 year old daughter of Clay and Tena Edwards of Liberty. Edwards also received the title of Miss Congeniality.
Zoe Elaine Whaley was the second runner-up. She is the 12 year old daughter of Celia and Scott Whaley of Smithville. Whaley was also named Miss Photogenic.
12 year old Brittany Wilkerson, daughter of Michelle Cantrell and Sean Wilkerson of Smithville, was the third runner-up.

DeKalb Telephone Cooperative (d/b/a DTC Communications) will host its annual meeting on Sept. 13, 2008, at the DeKalb County Fairgrounds in Alexandria.
Directors will be elected in three exchanges, including the Milton (273), Norene (286), and Woodbury (563) exchanges.
Voting for directors will take place at the cooperative’s annual meeting on Saturday, Sept. 13. Thursday, Sept. 4, will be the last day to make changes to your membership for the 2008 election.
Only DTC members may vote, and each member must present identification. For a single membership, only that individual may vote. Either member of a joint membership may vote, but not both. In the case of a business membership, a business affidavit is required.
Individuals interested in becoming a candidate for a director’s position must meet the qualifications as defined in the bylaws and submit a petition by 5 p.m. on July 30, 2008.
For questions regarding membership and voting guidelines, refer to the by-laws section included in the current DTC phone directory.

The city is in search of a new tenant at the Smithville Golf Course and Swimming Pool.
The Smithville Aldermen voted Monday night 3 to 2 to accept bids on leasing the facility since the current tenant, Jimmy Lewis, has given his 30 day notice that he is giving up his lease and will be vacating the premises as of August 8th. However, the city will ask Lewis to stay on beyond August 8th rent free for the next month until the transition is made, possibly by the first of September.
Aldermen Tonya Sullivan, Willie Thomas, and Jerry Hutchins Sr. voted to accept bids. Aldermen Steve White and Cecil Burger voted no.
Alderman White said he preferred to hire someone to run the golf course and swimming pool temporarily for sixty days until the council had more time to do some thorough research on the city’s options. White made a motion to that effect, but it died for the lack of a second. “I feel like we need to find somebody to operate the course just temporarily for possibly 60 days to give us time to research it a lot better and see what our options are. I’d like to consider both sides of it, either rebidding or running it ourselves. I think we need time to make that decision wisely and not just jump into it.”
The plan is for the city to advertise for bids next week, open bids on August 18th, and make the transition by the first of September.
Mayor Taft Hendrixson said he and Alderman White recently visited the Old Fort Golf Course in Murfreesboro and spoke with the manager there on how that facility is operated. “That is a big 18 hole course but they lease from the V.A. their 9 hole course, which is basically the size of ours. They do not use carts, it’s all walk. I think, in their budget for next year, it’s about $225,000 to $230,000 to operate that 9 hole course and they’re projecting $160,000 in greens fees from that 9 hole course.”
Alderman Sullivan suggested that the mayor and alderman White may have broken the spirit of the law regarding open government by making that visit concerning city business without the knowledge of the other aldermen. Sullivan also asked the mayor and alderman White if meetings had been held with the Poss’s about taking over the golf course. “I’m not positive why there was a study done. There wasn’t a special called meeting to ask that a committee be formed. You and Mr. White just took it upon yourselves to go on and check something else out and I understand there’s been meetings with the Poss’s as well. We have open government in place and this board ought to be apprised of what’s going on. This is one board and we would like to have the same consideration as you (mayor) give to other board members and if there are going to be decisions made about this city’s business, we want to be invited. We want it to be open.”
Mayor Hendrixson said he and White were only collecting information during their visit to Murfreesboro and broke no laws. “I just made a trip over there. I called the man and asked him about it. Steve (White) was in here one day and he said if you’re going, I’ll go with you. Nothing was done. We just talked to the man. There was no decisions made and no deliberation on anything. I’ll be glad to go with anyone of you and talk with the man again. We went to collect information only and that is not against the law. If I go back I’ll invite every board member to go if they want to go.”
Both Mayor Hendrixson and Alderman White also added that no such meeting ever took place with the Poss’s.
Following the meeting, Alderman Sullivan sent WJLE an email to issue a brief statement about her comments referring to the Poss’s. In the statement, Sullivan said ” In regard to open government, I made a statement that the mayor had met with Mr. Poss about taking over the golf course. I would like to formally apologize for the misinformation. The Poss’s stopped me after the meeting and reported that the meeting did not happen.”
Jackie Rigsby, a former alderman and a chartered member of the golf course, addressed the mayor and aldermen with his concerns about the future of the facility. “I would sincerely hope that you people realize the importance that this golf course plays in this community and to think about who you might be going to put in there. Anybody is not going to be able to go in there and do the job that’s been done. Since I’ve been at the golf course, I’ve never seen it in as good a shape as it is today. The greens are good. The fairways are in good shape as we’ve had a good season for it. I would hate to see somebody go in there and not know what they’re doing and lose those greens. We lost the greens in the early 70’s. It cost over $100,000 just at that time to straighten the greens out. You say there are only two options (for the city to rebid the lease or take over the operation) but it’s my understanding that there is another option. You could lower the rent. It’s my understanding that Jimmy Lewis is willing to stay if the rent is lowered to where he can make a little money. I know the city has been collecting a lot of money off of this (golf course) and that’s good. But when a person is losing money they just can’t keep staying. You don’t make any money off the other parks. It’s all spent. You’re not making anything off of them. So if you’re making anything off of this, you’re still in better shape than you would be to let it go out and be ruined.”

Anthony Gage Trapp and Kacie Malone were crowned Little Mister and Miss at the DeKalb County Fair Tuesday night.
Trapp is the four year old son of Tony and Amanda Trapp of Smithville and Malone is the six year old daughter of Sammy and Nancy Malone of Brush Creek.
They succeed the retiring Little Mister and Miss, Levi Katon Driver and Sarah Anne Colwell. Driver is the five year old son of Brad and Kelly Driver of Dowelltown and Colwell is the seven year old daughter of Trent and Christie Colwell of Smithville.
First runner-up in the Little Miss contest was 5 year old Monica Carlton, daughter of Amanda Carlton of Smithville
Second runner-up was 5 year old Makenzie Brooke Poss, daughter of Terri Poss of Smithville.
Four year old Graci Starnes was third runner-up. She is the daughter of Brandon and Joelle Starnes of Smithville.
Meanwhile, 5 year old Leah Brooke Davis was named Miss Congeniality. She is the daughter of Kerry and Glenda Davis of Smithville.
Four year old Haidyn Renee Hale of Smithville, daughter of Chad and Melissa Hale, received the title of Miss Photogenic.
First runner-up in the Little Mister contest was Ethan Evans, the 6 year old son of Sherry and Ricky Evans of Smithville
Four year old Jackson Dakota Hale, son of William and Becky Hale of Liberty was the second runner-up..
Third runner-up was Kasen Dwayne Johnson, the 4 year old son of Jason and Crystal Johnson of Smithville.

The DeKalb County Fair Association paid tribute to the late T.C. McMillen Monday afternoon in a brief ceremony commemorating his many years of dedication to the fair.
Members of the McMillen family, the Fair Board, and others gathered at the fairgrounds for the unveiling of a pictorial memorial and the official renaming of the Hilltop Arena in honor of Mr. McMillen, who served the fair in many capacities, including helping to prepare the grounds for various events.
Mr. McMillen passed away last October.
On behalf of the Fair Association, Ron Paschal offered the following tribute. “They just don’t make them like T.C. anymore. There’s never been a better man. There’s never been a more loved man than T.C. McMillen. Today marks a special occasion as we begin the 152nd DeKalb County Fair. We’re gathered to celebrate, reminisce, and also to be somewhat sad as we pay tribute to one of our special people, that operated in the background to make this arena up here on the hill work. T.C. wouldn’t want this fuss about him but he was a very special person. How many times would jobs small or large be mentioned and before you could turn around, T.C. would have the job completed. T.C. could take a perfectly good piece of ground. Tear it up for an event, and fix it back the next day better than it ever was to begin with. He could work all day and night and yet seem to never get dirty or lose his patience with anybody, especially any of us, who might ask for a last minute favor. Many people here today know of the quiet, unassuming generosity of T.C. McMillen. Psalms says ‘Happy are those who respect the Lord and obey Him. You will enjoy what you work for and you’ll be blessed with good things.’. That was definitely T.C.. He always worked hard and always enjoyed life. The Fair Board would like to thank each person who stepped up this year to try to fill his void. Even though it’s impossible, we want to thank you for doing that. T.C. is one who can never truly be replaced but this tribute will allow us to remember and have a place to honor him, this fine man, from now on. T.C., we love you and we miss you.”
McMillen’s grandson, Justin Rich, thanked the Fair Association for this memorial. “On behalf of my family, I’d like to thank everyone so much for coming out and showing your support and for all the donations and everything that’s made this possible. Pa wasn’t the type to take a lot of glory in anything but he would have definitely appreciated this. He was a man that led by example and we miss him. We ask that you take this memorial and when you look at it, celebrate his life and not mourn his death because he was so special to each and everyone of us. He loved this fair. He loved his family and he loved his friends. He enjoyed seeing each and everyone of them. Thanks again from the bottom of my heart and from my family for coming out and supporting us tonight.”
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The 2008 Junior Fair Princess of the DeKalb County Fair is 14 year old Kristen LaCole Smartt of Dowelltown, daughter of Aaron and Paula Taylor.
She succeeds the retiring Junior Fair Princess, 16 year old Whitney LaRay Moss, daughter of Greg and Wendy Moss of Alexandria.
The first runner-up was Martha Alan Webb, the 15 year old daughter of Alan and Lora Webb of Smithville. Martha Webb was also named Miss Congeniality.
Second runner-up was Arielle Corine Davis, the 13 year old daughter of Eddie and Beth Davis of Brush Creek.
14 year old Jasmine Marie Dimas of Smithville, daughter of Lynda Hamilton and Refugio Dimas, was the third runner-up.
Erin Cantrell Pryor, daughter of Edgar and Lori Pryor, was named Miss Photogenic.
The pageant Monday night featured twenty contestants.