The Final Shots

The Blue Springs girls basketball team fell 58-52 in the Class 5 sectional to undefeated Hickman Mills.

On the Money: Finding the best price on gas

By Chuck Myers
McClatchy-Tribune News Service(MCT)

It's become a broken record over the past several years: Gas prices are going up - again.Finding the lowest gas price in your area can prove challenging. A spin on the information highway before heading out on the paved roads, however, might save you time, effort and a bit cash at the pump.Several good Web sites provide drivers with comparative gas prices information in specific areas. Here are a couple of those locales:- Automotive.comwww.automotive.com/gas-prices/index.htmlCheck gas prices in a specific area by selected a state or by entering a zip code.- FuelMeUp.comwww.fuelmeup.comLocate gas prices in a specific area by city and state, or zip code.- GasBuddy.comwww.gasbuddy.comSelect a U.S. state or Canadian province to begin search for lowest local gas prices by zip code.- GasPriceWatch.comwww.gaspricewatch.comUse an interactive map to find gas stations and prices in your area, or enter zip code or street names for price results.- Motor Trendwww.motortrend.com/gas (underscore) pricesDig for lowest gas prices by searching down through a state, county and city.(c) 2008, McClatchy-Tribune Information Services

FORD, GM, TOYOTA SELL FEWER CARS IN FEBRUARY

By Shawn Langlois
MarketWatch(MCT)

SAN FRANCISCO - Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp. and Toyota Motor Corp. on Monday all reported declines in February U.S. sales, reflecting the tough climate for consumers during the persistent housing slump and credit crunch.Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford said that it sold 196,681 cars and trucks last month, down 6.9 percent from 211,150 a year earlier. Another drop in fleet sales offset a strong showing on the retail side from the Focus sedan and the Edge crossover.November 2007, which marked the end of a yearlong losing streak for Ford, was the last time the maker of the Blue Oval brand reported a year-over-year increase.Ford's longtime best-selling F-Series pickup saw a 4.9 percent drop to 52,548 trucks, with demand stung by the decline in construction. Overall, trucks fell 5.6 percent while cars declined 9.3 percent.There was one more selling day in February 2008 than during the same period a year ago.The automaker also cut its second-quarter production plans by 10 percent to 730,000 to reflect the current economic weakness.The industry is in a "crisis, but a crisis is both good news and bad news," Dave Cole, Chairman for the Center for Automotive Research, said. "Crisis is bad news because it's very, very uncomfortable, but it's good news because it helps create a sense of urgency to make the fundamental changes required." Analyst Itay Michaeli pointed to the weak housing market, Ford's "relatively older product lineup" and worsening consumer credit as just some of the hurdles the company faces in 2008.General Motors reported a 12.9 percent decline in light vehicle sales to 308,411 cars and trucks. The car side fell 1.2 percent while light trucks dropped 19.2 percent. Cadillac, boosted by its car lineup, was the only GM brand to show a year-over-year improvement. Saturn took the biggest hit, down 33.4 percent.Chevy, GM's flagship brand, saw sales drop 11.2 percent to 166,166 cars and trucks.GM also cut its second-quarter production forecast 5 percent to 1.08 million vehicles."We think there's going to be a lot of stimulus in the economy in the second half of the year, and we're banking on that," GM sales analyst Mike DiGiovanni said in a conference call following the results.The company also named Frederick "Fritz" Henderson president and chief operating officer and Ray Young chief financial officer. Most recently, Henderson served as vice chairman and chief financial officer, while Young served as group vice president of finance.Elsewhere, Chrysler also blamed a pullback in fleet business for its 14 percent drop in sales to 150,093 vehicles even as the car side came in with a 9 percent increase. Truck sales dropped 22 percent.Toyota reported that February U.S. sales fell 2.8 percent to 182,169 vehicles, down from 187,330 last year.The Japanese giant's Toyota-brand division posted sales of 160,892 cars and trucks, down from 164,812 last February, while its luxury Lexus division saw a decline to 21,277 units from 22,518 a year ago.Sales of the Corolla sedan dropped to 21,202 vehicles from 28,321 last year, and Camry sales increased to 34,914 vehicles from 32,148 a year ago.Honda Motor Co. posted an improvement from a year ago, selling 115,397 vehicles compared with 110,026 in February 2007. Both the car and truck side handed in gains. Sales in the luxury Acura division, however, declined.Nissan Motors said sales rose 1.2 percent to 86,219 vehicles from 85,218 a year earlier. Nissan brand sales climbed to 76,151 from 75,514 while Infiniti division sales also gained to 10,068 from 9,704.Car sales increased to 42,012 from 41,249 while truck sales dropped marginally to 34,139 from 34,265 during the period.Separately, Daimler AG said sales climbed 7.3 percent to 18,564 vehicles. Sales of C-Class vehicles gained 49.5 percent to 5,781 units from a year ago.However, sales of the E-Class saw a drop of 16.6 percent to 2,547 units and S-Class sales fell 28 percent to 1,533 vehicles.The industry raised incentives by 8.4 percent from a year ago, bringing the level of promotional spending back to where it was before automakers vowed to move away from the strategy that tends to erode profits and devalue brands, according to Edmunds.com."To combat this soft market, automakers are once again putting remarkably generous dollar amounts on the hoods and ironically reestablishing consumer expectations that they will be offered dramatic deals," Edmunds.com analyst Jesse Toprak said. "It's a car-buyer's market, and that will likely be true for months to come."General Motors showed the biggest increase to $3,315 per car from $2,694 a year ago, thanks mostly to the Saab and Cadillac brands.Chrysler spent the most overall at $3,579 per vehicle, with Ford not too far behind at $3,297.All three Japanese carmakers raised their spending as well. Nissan's incentives jumped to $2,159 from $1,788 a year earlier, while Toyota and Honda spend more than $1,000 each.(c) 2008, MarketWatch.com Inc.

Window boxes bring out container gardening

By Norman Winter
McClatchy-Tribune News Service (MCT)

Container gardening has exploded in popularity with about 47 percent of American households admitting to some form of container gardening.There are a lot of great reasons to garden in containers, in addition to the fun. Compared to fighting tight, heavy clay in the landscape, it's also easier to provide a good environment when it comes to soil or planting mixes for your plants.One form of container gardening starting to increase in popularity is the window box planting. I recently visited a decorating store that was full of reproduction paintings. One painting obviously done in Europe in the 1800s really caught my eye. The narrow streets were lined with window-box plantings and created an almost festive look. It was clear that even way back then, people knew a lot about design using thrillers, fillers and spillers.The reasons that people garden in containers vary, but almost half claim to garden for decoration. They want to enjoy the beauty of the flowers and have them enhance the appearance of the home's outdoor environment. So it makes sense that the window box is seeing a revival, too.The rules for window boxes are similar to other types of container planting. Other than making sure you have holes in the bottom of your container or box for drainage, the most important consideration is a good, lightweight potting mix. It seems like wherever you look there are ads promoting the $1.49 special for a 40-pound bag of potting soil. As you pick it up, it even feels like you are getting 60 pounds for the same price.Truthfully, this heavy product seldom yields happiness with container-grown plants. It is prone to holding water, which will inevitably prove fatal to your flowers.Good lightweight potting soils are usually not sold by the pound but by the cubic foot. Though the bags are twice as large as the $1.49 special, they are easy to pick up and load. Many have controlled-released fertilizer mixed in. These bags are more expensive, but you will need fewer of them, and in the end you will have thriving plants.Window boxes actually can be wooden boxes, brick and mortar boxes, or containers resting in iron frames. The end result, with flowers hanging over the rims, will be beautiful no matter what the boxes are made of.You can stick with the recipe of "thriller, filler and spiller" for your window box, although I think the spiller takes on a slightly more important role.The thriller plant (usually the tallest and planted in the middle) reaches out and grabs your interest with its texture or incredible beauty. In a window box, it can be a tall, colorful flower, or it can be a plant giving a grass-like texture, such as an African iris, a soft rush or an actual grass.Spiller plants fall over the edge and can give a strong vertical element in the container if allowed to reach several feet. Here you might try a variegated vinca like Wojo's Gem, English ivy or even a sweet potato. You also can have blooming spillers like trailing verbena.The filler plants may be greenery, colorful foliage or even flowers like Diamond Frost euphorbia, but they fill up the pockets in between the thriller and spiller plants.Remember that as you water daily during the summer, your window boxes will quickly leach their nutrients, meaning you need to fertilize more often.Container gardening - whether it's in window boxes or large pots - allows you to be the Monet of your project. Have fun.(c) 2008, McClatchy-Tribune Information Services

SOUND OFF

Do you think teens need to practice what to do in emergency driving situations, or should they be taught how to avoid those types of situations?

Let us know your thoughts. Call the Journal’s Rant & Rave line at 816-282-7020.

Supporting our institutions of higher learning

COMMENTARY By Matt Blunt
Special to the Journal

When I ran for governor I promised to make education my highest priority. I fought to change the old way that had allowed education funding to become a pawn in budget battles. Students, teachers and classrooms suffered under the way things were. When education was just an afterthought, education funding was cut and withheld to cover out-of-control spending in other areas. We kept our promise never to cut or withhold education funding. In fact my budgets represent the largest increase in education funding without a tax increase. Over the last three years we have put Missouri students first. It is my goal for students in Missouri to know that they can receive a world class education in Missouri and that the opportunities available at Missouri colleges and universities will serve them well through life. Higher education is an investment and students who choose to attend a college or university in Missouri can be assured that they will receive a high-quality education that has a good return on their investment. With cooperative and productive relationships with higher education officials and presidents across the state, we secured a historic higher education package that will provide Missouri students with unprecedented assistance in attending quality higher education institutions in Missouri. We have more than doubled scholarship funding for students, have increased funding for higher education and are providing $335 million for state-of-the-art learning centers for students through my Lewis and Clark Discovery Initiative. One of the higher education institutions that is benefiting from the changes we have enacted is the University of Missouri system in Columbia, Kansas City, St. Louis and Rolla. The University of Missouri is one of the nation's largest and most prestigious public research universities, with more than 63,000 students on four campuses. They are on the cutting edge of forward-looking research in field such as the life sciences, and a partner in our efforts to help students learn and apply skills in math, engineering, technology and science. I am looking forward to working with its new president, Gary Forsee, who I believe shares my commitment to the University of Missouri and higher education in our state. His leadership capabilities and deep roots in Missouri will bring valuable expertise and experience to the four campus system and I believe he will serve our state and students well. The Missouri General Assembly recently passed two important priorities for the system, my funding proposal for the Ellis Fischel Cancer Center at the University of Missouri-Columbia and the University of Missouri-Kansas City's Pharmacy and Nursing Building with the passage of House Bill 2019. The Ellis Fischel Cancer Center will receive $31.2 million from the Lewis and Clark Discovery Initiative to help deliver high-quality, comprehensive cancer care in a new, state-of-the-art facility and help to increase the capacity of cancer clinics to accommodate projected increases in new cancer patients due to an aging population. The University of Missouri-Kansas City will receive $15 million through the initiative to provide needed space for new educational and instructional areas in nursing and pharmacy with enhanced student services and state-of-the-art classroom and clinical simulation laboratory spaces. Through the Lewis and Clark Discovery initiative we are also completing important projects at UMR, UMSL and UMC's agricultural research facilities. University of Missouri students are also benefiting from the Access Missouri Scholarship program we created to level the playing field for scholarship applicants and ensure that Missouri's neediest students receive the support they need to make an investment in their future. The Access Missouri Scholarship program is providing more than 38,000 students with scholarships including 8,074 University of Missouri students, and has distributed more than $51 million in needs-based assistance so far this school year. Of course, in addition to its many achievements in academic excellence, the University of Missouri is also home to the Mizzou Tigers who had a tremendous season winning the Big 12 North Championship, defeating the Kansas Jayhawks to earn a national No. 1 ranking and beginning this year with a victory over Arkansas at the Cotton Bowl. Missouri is home to many great colleges and universities such as the University of Missouri System. To support these institutions of higher learning we have changed the policies of the past by ending the education funding cuts and withholdings and supporting the students who attend these colleges and universities.Matt Blunt, Missouri governor, is a guest columnist for the Journal. To respond totoday's commentary, call theJournal's Rant & Rave line at816-282-7020, or send comments via the Internet atwww.bluespringsjournal.com.

Keeping our kids safer at school

COMMENTARY By Brian Yates
Special to the Journal

Too often in the media, we hear of teachers having inappropriate relationships with their students. Last week in the capitol, my colleagues and I in the Missouri House approved a bill that would play a key role in increasing the safety of our children while they are in school. House Bill 1314 will give parents peace of mind by ensuring that inappropriate conduct by faculty or staff will be dealt with more quickly and with stricter guidelines.Under current Missouri statutes, when a school employee is reported as a possible child abuser, the school board receives reports from the juvenile officer investigating the case as well as from its own investigator, after which the board determines whether the claims of abuse are substantiated. Only then would the claim be reported to the Children's Division of the Missouri Department of Social Services. Under HB 1314, any allegation of sexual misconduct would have to be reported to the Children's Division within 24 hours of school officials receiving the complaint, so that it can be dealt with immediately.The bill also creates the Office of the Child Advocate, which offers mediation services when allegations of abuse arise. And if a school district allows an employee to resign after a claim of abuse has been filed, the district must disclose the allegations to any district that hires that employee in the future.Communication between teachers and students also is addressed in HB 1314. By Jan. 1, 2009, all districts must have a policy in place that outlines when verbal and non-verbal communication would be deemed inappropriate. Policies must also be established governing a teacher's use of social networking sites, such as MySpace and Facebook, and any work-related Web site would be prohibited unless it is readily available to parents and school administrators.Sexual misconduct in the second and third degrees, and sexual contact with a student on school property are added to the list of offenses that would cause a teacher's license to be revoked or denied. Non-certified school employees who are required to have a background check prior to employment would have to be re-checked every year. And most importantly, the 20-year statute of limitation on sexual offenses involving a person 18 or younger would be repealed.I am hopeful that this legislation will pass through the Senate without opposition. This bill will protect children at school and stop the cycle of abuse that can occur when school employees don't receive thorough investigation or move to a new district.This weekin the capitolMany thanks to Stephanie Roush and Mayor Don Reimal of Independence for coming down to Jefferson City to visit in support of Missouri tourism, and to Keith Asel of Commerce Bank for stopping by my office. Thanks also to James Freeman, Kathy Hofmann, Ron Williams, Steve Arbo, Brian Scott and Bob Hadley of the city of Lee's Summit for their recent visit.If you have any questions or comments about this week's report or any other issue, write to me by mail at my capitol office, call 573-751-0907 or e-mail Brian.Yates@house.mo.gov.Brian Yates, District 56 state representative, is a guest columnist for the Journal. To respond to today's commentary, call theJournal's Rant & Rave line at 816-282-7020 or send comments via the Internet at www.bluespringsjournal.com.

Disney flair coming to Chapman Farms?

By Russ Pulley
Special to the Journal

Blue Springs may see a project that echoes Disney's famous Celebration subdivision in Orlando, which would be built in the Chapman Farms development in the south side of the city.The City Council on Monday approved rezoning and concept plans for nearly 200 acres at M-7 and Wyatt Road to pave the way for new proposals from developer Tom Williams. He is planning projects for two tracts: a 160-acre project called The Village of Chapman Farms at the southeast corner and catty-corner on the northwest, a 60-acre project called Chapman Woods Village.The Village project was to include restaurants and retail buildings along Missouri 7 and Wyatt Road. In a second tier from the highway would be two-story buildings with first-floor commercial space and residences or offices above. Still farther back would be 110 brownstone-style row houses for single-family residences. Also it would include "mansion home" apartments, which externally have the appearance of an estate house, but inside contain four to six units. That project totaled 469 dwelling units and 710,000 square feet of commercial space.Prices for the row houses could run from $150,000 to $600,000, said attorney Kim Roam, speaking for the developer.Farthest from the highway, the developer intends to add traditional-style neighborhood housing, with alleyways and rear-entrance garages.In Chapman Woods Village, there would be a community for senior citizens, with 20 single-family cottages, duplexes and assisted-living apartments and a skilled-nursing facility. It also includes 57 row houses, some duplexes, office buildings and retail.Councilwoman Sissy Reed praised the project, saying it would be an exciting addition to the city. "Not subdivisions that all look alike," she said.The other council members agreed they liked 90 percent of the overall plan, but disagreed on technical points of the zoning request, throwing the council into several hours of debate.Council members Shelia Solon, Ron Fowler and Lyle Shaver had serious misgivings about using Central Business District zoning as a choice to allow construction of the row houses. Another concern was whether the city could require phasing to assure that businesses were built as well as the housing. It cannot.Solon suggested that multifamily zoning was more appropriate, saying the overlay concept plan also being considered Monday night would still allow the row houses.Solon, Fowler and Shaver voted against the Central Business zoning, causing a tie when Jeff Quibell, Sissy Reed and Joe Stubblefield voted for it. Mayor Steve Steiner broke the tie, approving the zoning.Williams, to persuade the council to support his plan, said it was in Chapman Farms' best interest to complete the entire project. The retail component allows the developer to make the most money, he said.Williams said previous projects by other developers that didn't live up to expectations were haunting the Council, but he would deliver what was being promised."Your goal for a quality project and our goal for a quality project is the same," Williams said. "Our reputation is at stake, but more importantly, our pocket book is at stake."

Blue Springs rocker still cookin' on 'Idol'| Friends, family not surprised by Cook's success in talent competition

By Miranda Wycoff
The Journal Staff

Each week Blue Springs native and "American Idol" contestant David Cook has impressed both fans and the judges with his talent and creativity. In week one he made "Happy Together" by the Turtles a rock tune and on Tuesday, as judge Randy Jackson put it, he "made a slightly 'emo' song out of a very pop Lionel Richie song," and the judges loved it. "David, that was a very brave thing to do - and I loved it," said the panel's harshest critic, Simon Cowell.But to his friends, family and former teachers, Cook is just showing what he can do."Having seen David perform in the past, he's equally capable in all genres," said Cook's stepfather, Grenvell Foraker on Tuesday. "He can do things other than just rock - and do them well."Although Foraker has only known Cook since he and Cook's mother began dating while Cook was in high school at Blue Springs South, Foraker knows him well enough to know he has the experience, the talent and the stage presence to succeed in "American Idol.""He has the experience, he's been singing since the second and third grade and he truly enjoys performing," Foraker said. "And he's a very talented and capable musician.""American Idol" viewers know that Cook can sing and play the guitar, but Foraker said Cook's musical capabilities have exceeded even Foraker's expectations. A few years ago Cook put together a small album and on one song Cook played almost all the instruments himself - including the piano - Foraker said. Foraker did say that Cook hired a percussionist to come and record that portion of the song for him."I didn't even know he knew how to play the piano," he said. "He's pretty adept with instruments."Cook's interest in music really began in the second grade with a teacher Cook credited in his official "American Idol" biography - Fredalyn Gentry of Thomas Ultican Elementary.In high school Cook built on that love of music and performing as a cast member for several musicals - including "Singing in the Rain" and "West Side Story" and as a member of the debate team.Cook even qualified for the National Speech Tournament in both his junior and senior years of high school, said Cook's former forensics coach, Georgia Brady."His creativity and stage presence were incredible from the beginning," Brady said. She said as a junior he made it to the semi-finals at the national tournament performing humorous children's poetry and his senior year he and his partner, Ben Williams, performed a duo interpretation, "Greater Tuna.""Every time I think of that performance I laugh out loud - it was hilarious," Brady said. In high school and throughout college at Central Missouri State University in Warrensburg, Mo., Cook was the lead vocalist in the Kansas City-area band, Axium. After graduating from Central with a bachelor of science in graphic arts management in 2006, and after Axium "ran its course," Foraker said David moved to Tulsa to play with the Midwest Kings, a Tulsa-based band."He's a bright young man," Foraker said, "And he can adapt quickly to whatever situation he finds himself in."And perhaps that ease to adapt is what helped him succeed at the "American Idol" auditions in Omaha.Foraker said that originally Cook was just going to Omaha to be there for his younger brother, Andrew. "Actually, it was Andrew who had an interest in going to Omaha to audition and David came up to be supportive of Andrew," Foraker said. But the boys' mother, who has been in Los Angeles for each of David's "Idol" performances, encouraged Cook to audition, too. "I'm not sure David even had an interest in "American Idol" until he had success in Omaha," Foraker said. But even though Andrew didn't see his "Idol" hopes come to life in Omaha, he has been supportive of his brother's success every step of the way - helping to organize David Cook watch parties at Central and doing everything he can to get people to vote, Foraker said. And so far, Cook's fans, and of course his talent, have taken him far in the popular singing competition.But as the weeks go by and more contestants are voted off, the performance arena gets more serious."Right now on 'American Idol' they are performing in a relatively small studio, and here in the next few weeks they will be moving to a very large venue," Foraker said. But that should actually help Cook along, he said. "I've seen David perform in large venues before and he is very capable of taking it on," Foraker added. "I'm absolutely confident he will handle it with ease and he won't be intimidated by it."And for Cook, Brady said, the more people watching, the better."David thrived in being in front of an audience," Brady said. "And he was also willing to try new ideas and see if it would work in a performance." And that was evidenced by Tuesday night's rendition of "Hello.""You usually have to take some risks to experience success," Brady said."American Idol" airs at 7 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays on Fox.

Driving course helps educate new teen motorists

By Brett Dalton
The Journal Staff

Losing control of one's vehicle for any reason is often unpredictable and almost always a little bit scary. But it's how the driver reacts in that situation that could be the difference between a minor miscue and a serious accident.Later this month, the Precision Driving Center on the campus of Metropolitan Community College-Blue River in Independence will host the Tire Rack Street Survival school, a one-day course aimed at teaching teenagers how to handle potentially dangerous circumstances on the road.The program, which is offered nationwide and authorized by the BMW CCA Foundation, will take place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, March 29. The course costs $60 per student. Mark Dalen, lead instructor of the course, said on Tuesday there are 13 spots still available for the March 29 course.Dalen said the program will include some classroom instruction, but the main focus of the course is giving students hands-on experience in loss of vehicle control. He said the students will drive their own vehicles through activities that will induce skidding, hydroplaning and other loss-of-control situations. He said the students will perform the activities at relatively low speeds and will be taught the proper way to correct one's vehicle.Dalen said the purpose of the course is to help teen drivers learn how to manage potentially dangerous situations without overcorrecting their vehicles. He said overcorrecting is often the cause of many serious accidents, such as the accident in Lee's Summit on Feb. 27 that left three teenagers with serious injuries."Everybody is going to lose control of his or her vehicle at some point," Dalen said. "But, with new drivers especially, some people have no experience in how to properly react in those situations. Often times on the road something minor will happen, a teen driver will overcorrect and that is when the loss of control happens. So we're teaching skills on how to deal with that situation."Dalen said the course is offered in a safe manor, as it takes place on the driving center's skid pad, an open, paved surface with nothing around the students could hit, such as light poles or trees. He said the skid pad also will be covered in water during the course which will teach students how to handle hydroplaning.Dalen said the open area at the Precision Driving Center allows for "three to five times the space you would actually need." He also said the facility "was built for this kind of training."The students, who will be accompanied in their vehicle by instructors, also will be taught skills in emergency lane change, Dalen said. That aspect of the course will provide lessons on how to properly swerve in either direction, if necessary. Dalen said that drill is conducted by having the driver approach three lanes and at the last second, the instructor will say which lane to take - left, right or straight ahead. "That part is important," Dalen said, "because a lot of drivers - young drivers, especially - don't know how hard they can swerve. Many will end up swerving too hard and lose control."To squash any concern students or their parents may have about what Dalen called "the 'R' word," he said the course in no way teaches students how to race on a highway or any other road. He said the course is strictly for educational and safety purposes."We're teaching them to drive safely and get out of trouble," Dalen said. "We just might save a few lives and help teen drivers avoid major accidents."For more information about the course or to sign up to attend, visit Street Survival's Web site at www.streetsurvival.org.

High school student killed in car wreck

By Brett Dalton
The Journal Staff

A Blue Springs teenager and one of the top debaters at Blue Springs High School died on Tuesday from injuries suffered in a one-vehicle accident along Interstate 70.At around 3 p.m. on Tuesday, 18-year-old Garrett Clark, a senior at BSHS, was exiting westbound I-70 at Woods Chapel Road when his 1999 GMC Sonoma left the left side of the exit ramp. According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Clark's vehicle traveled through the grassy shoulder, went airborne, struck a concrete bridge pillar and then struck a guardrail. Clark, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was pronounced dead at the scene.Brandon Brashear, a trooper with the MSHP who worked the crash, said it is unknown why Clark's vehicle left the exit ramp onto the grassy shoulder. He said witnesses reported seeing Clark's vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed before leaving the ramp. "We can't come up with any good reason that would cause him to veer off the ramp like that," Brashear said. Brashear said - although he was speculating - one possibility is Clark was driving at a high speed, saw traffic stopped at the stop light on Woods Chapel Road and began to veer left in an attempt to avoid contact with other vehicles. He added, based on the markings at the scene, Clark did not quickly swerve onto the grassy shoulder, but rather made a gradual veer onto it. Brashear said evidence shows Clark's vehicle's left tire left the roadway 46 feet past where the fog lines on I-70 and the exit ramp split, while the right tire left the roadway 107 feet past the split.Also, based on witnesses reports, Brashear said neither foul play nor a medical condition were factors in the crash.Just hours after the accident, many of Clark's friends, as well as his sister, Madison Clark, created a memorial group to him on Facebook, a social networking Web site. Jessica Hannaman, a Blue Springs South High School student who created the Facebook group, wrote on the group's page about Clark's sense of humor and joy for life."It (stinks) because less than three days ago I saw him and he was laughing and happy," she wrote Tuesday evening. "He turned everything into a joke and was really funny. It's not fair. It couldn't have been his time. It was too soon."Madison Clark, Garrett's sister, also wrote on the group's page and said she appreciates all the support her family has been receiving and said she will always remember how her brother grinned "like a little kid.""Garrett was my big brother and he was taken from us too soon," Madison Clark wrote on the Facebook group. "He will never be forgotten. We all have those memories of him laughing and we all have those memories of him being a big help. He had all the potential in the world. None of us will ever understand why he was taken from us at only 18."Garrett Clark was one of the top debaters and tennis players at BSHS.

Cuttin' a Rug

Dianne and Larry Plumberg of Blue Springs enjoy themselves on the dance floor at the John Knox Village Pavilion. The Plumbergs were part of the more than 300 dancers who attended the Journal's Senior Ball on Tuesday.