25 years ago
AUGUST 1, 1979
Grant Avery, 24-year-old chief teller of the Peabody State Bank, was shot to death after an extortion attempt and kidnapping Sunday night at Peabody. Avery's brutal death marks the eighth murder in Marion County since January 1977. During the past two and a half years, two people have been murdered in Florence, two near Tampa, two at Goessel and one at Burns.
Julie Hett is the first girl from Marion County to win the title of Tri-County Fair Junior Miss since 1974 when Beverly Backhus of Tampa wore the crown. En route to her title, Hett was the pose and appearance competition winner and was selected winner of the judge conference. She received a tiara, bouquet of roses, $100 cash, $75 in gift certificates, and a Hallmark photo album.
A large group of friends attended a dinner at Kingfisher's Inn Saturday evening in honor of Mrs. J.P. Hoffman. Hosts for the occasion were Mrs. G.J. Goodsheller, Mrs. Homer Reinke and Mrs. Roger Hannaford. Among the guests were Mrs. Hoffman's great-niece Nancy Purnell, who had come to help Mrs. Hoffman move to her new home in Massachusetts.
Bea Martinez is pictured holding an 8-pound 16-inch zucchini she grew in her garden at 220 West Santa Fe. Bea's zucchini is the largest entry to date in the annual Marion County Record produce derby.
A group of Pilsen CYO members went to Newton Sunday to play softball. Among those going were Ed Klenda, Marlene Dvorak, Becky, Randy, and Jeff Jirak, Bob and Mary Vinduska, Mary Klenda, Steve and Tammy Olsen, Darrin Makovec, Lori Reznicek and Julie Bina.
Dr. Elmer R. Gooding, son of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Gooding of Tampa, has been appointed assistant provost at Arizona State University, Tempe, Ariz. Gooding has been associate dean and director of the graduate programs at ASU's College of Business Administration since 1975. Before joining the ASU faculty, Dr. Gooding was an instructor in economics at the University of Kansas.
