Jack Cottrell, Margaret Bishop are Oldest People at Allendale 4th of July

Around 800 people were at the 2026 version of the Allendale Fourth of July Breakfast Saturday as a threatened rain did not materialize. The balloon rides that were promised were canceled due to forecasted weather Friday night, but that did not materialize either, as it all missed the area to the north, hitting Iowa instead.

Jack Cottrell of Grant City was the oldest man as he was still everywhere at 96 years young. Margaret Bishop of Mount Ayr was the oldest woman at 95. Roeh Miller, at four weeks old, was the youngest girl; she is the daughter of Dylan and Chelsea Miller of Allendale. Indiana Wall, son of Lincoln and Molli Wall of Blockton, was the youngest boy. Joe Olney of Abbeville (LA) was the farthest away, coming from 950 miles away.

Paul Myers, whose brother was killed in Vietnam, raised the flag. He and other veterans were recognized, including, but not limited to Roger Knight, Dick Snethen, Jim Coulson (long-time Sheridan mail carrier), Jack Cottrell, Lee Mincy, Bill Tracy, Kyle Dignan, Ron Richards, Will Brown, and Charles Kreitlow.

Some political candidates spoke. Casey Scott, Democratic candidate for Second District House Representative, said she wanted to be a voice for working mothers in the legislature who work 2-3 jobs as well as try to raise kids. She wanted to see full funding for public schools and to reverse what she called the broken promises of the state, which she says underfunds the school drastically in violation of the Missouri Constitution.

Ms. Scott said she also wanted to be an advocate for healthcare; she said that too many people were being forced to make choices between finances and medical care, delaying care until a medical emergency such as a terminal cancer that spread throughout the body or some other terminal illness.

She said that many people lost their jobs due to inadequate healthcare and that many veterans were struggling to access the system in order to get benefits they were entitled to. She said there were groups that were more than willing to help veterans, but they were all running on shoestring budgets and could not replace a fully functional veterans healthcare system. “People keep telling me it’s time for a change,” she said.

Melissa Percell, Republican candidate for Worth County Clerk, said that if elected, she would put her 20 years of experience to work for the county and promised transparency to the people.

Brandon Allee, Republican candidate for Worth County Clerk, said that he was asked to run following the retirement of Roberta Owens and that it would be hard to fill her footsteps, but that if elected, he would work hard for the people of Worth County.

Brandon Harvey, Republican candidate for House District 2, said that his background in banking, ag, and commercial business qualified him to be the next state representative. He pledged to fully fund rural schools and to work for good roads and bridges and adequate water supply.