Over a hundred students from California, Tipton and Jamestown gathered Wednesday at First Baptist Church as part of American Legion County Government Day.
Events began at 8:30 a.m. with the presentation of colors, pledge of allegiance, an introduction of legion members and a history of the national anthem before the national anthem recitation.
An introduction of county officials followed. Those on the itinerary were: Kenneth Kunze, Noland Porter, Greg Robinson, Melissa Hentges, Aaron Martin, Michele Higgins, Roberta Elliott, Cheryl Duvall, Marty Ramsdell, Shayne Healea, Cher Caudel, Tony Wheatley and Sarah Jones.
The guest speaker was James Shipley, a WWII Tuskegee airman. Lunch was held following Shipley's speech. The students ended the day with a tour of the county offices, which began at the Moniteau County Courthouse.
Bryant Carpenter, Seth Gibson, Mitchell Moon and Reese Wood, of Tipton, and Audrey Pickering, of California, were all on hand as 2016 Boys and Girls State delegates. The delegates led a mixer following the introduction of county officials.
School staff present was teacher E.H. Hirschvogel and principal Matt McDannold, of Jamestown, teachers Ben Wilson and Jason Gatlin, of California, and teachers Ralph Martin and Jeremy Cobb, of Tipton.
"The day seemed to go very well," said event coordinator Jeanne Edwards. "Jim Shipley was an excellent speaker who held the students' attention with his stories. I'm grateful he was able to speak to the students.
"The county officials were very gracious to take time to speak to the students, often encouraging them in their future careers and in performing public service. The students were attentive and presented a good appearance. They represented their schools well. It's a day when all the students learn something new."