Grain Valley News
  • Home
  • About
    • Submit Your News
    • Contact
  • News
    • Voter Resources
    • Online Puzzles
  • Community
    • Events Calendar
    • Kindness Awards
    • 2023 Garage Sale Directory
    • Parade
  • Job Board
  • Best of Grain Valley
  • Support
    • Advertise
    • Become A Sustaining Member
  • Business Directory Submission Form
  • Home
  • About
    • Submit Your News
    • Contact
  • News
    • Voter Resources
    • Online Puzzles
  • Community
    • Events Calendar
    • Kindness Awards
    • 2023 Garage Sale Directory
    • Parade
  • Job Board
  • Best of Grain Valley
  • Support
    • Advertise
    • Become A Sustaining Member
  • Business Directory Submission Form








​news

​Looking Back: Homer M. Clements

2/17/2022

 
by Marcia Napier, Grain Valley Historical Society
     Homer Clements will probably best be remembered as the coach for Grain Valley’s only undefeated football team. Ironically, the feat was accomplished in the fall of 1928 (1928-29 school year) which was also Coach Clements first year as the Superintendent of Schools.
     I cannot tell you when he first came to our school, but I do know that he was the superintendent for four years – 1927-28, 1928-29, 1929-30 and 1930-31. He was also the Superintendent in Buckner, and he taught in Lone Jack and Greenwood before becoming Jackson County Superintendent in 1940.
     Homer McKinley Clements was born in Lone Jack, Missouri, on September 20, 1901 to Milton and Lottie Clements. He graduated from the University of Kansas and received his Master's Degree from the University of Missouri. On December 26, 1926, he married Nellie Fae Johnson of Buckner, Missouri. They had two daughters.
     My dad always referred to Mr. Clements as his favorite teacher, but I’m thinking he was probably his favorite coach. While the football team was not overly successful following their undefeated 1928 season, dad was the Eagles’ quarterback and had a lot of stories about the “trick plays” Coach Clements taught them. I think the rules were probably pretty vague in those days adding to the chaos from the uneven and sometimes muddy and poorly marked football fields.
     In 1940, Homer Clements followed LeRoy Blackburn as Jackson County School Superintendent, a position he held for 22 years. During his tenure, the schools underwent reorganization. In 1949 the 86 community and rural schools in Jackson County were reduced to 14 districts. Grain Valley went from Consolidated District No. 3 to Reorganized District No. 5.
    After nearly 40 years in public education, Mr. Clements retired and like many retired educators, he spent 4 years in the Missouri House of Representatives on behalf of Missouri’s 12th District.
     For more than 39 years, the Clements family lived on his wife’s family farm near Buckner. Farmer Clements grew trees. In his later year’s he also served as president of the Missouri Christmas Tree Producers Association.
     Mr. Clements was long gone from Grain Valley when I was a student, but I do recall buying Christmas Trees at Santa’s Tree Farm! 
Picture
​The 1928-29 Freshman Class
Mr. Homer Clements, Superintendent
In the photo Mr. Clements is on the far right. At only 28 years of age, he did not look much older that his students.
Photo credit: Grain Valley Historical Society

Picture

Comments are closed.

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Burton Kelso
    Business
    Cathy Allie
    Celebrations & Transitions
    Census
    City Of Grain Valley
    Columnists
    Community Profile
    Covid19
    Covid-19
    Economic-development
    Education
    Elections
    Financial-health
    Fitness
    Food Inspections
    Good News
    Good-news
    Grain-valley-assistance-council
    Grain Valley Fair
    Grain Valley Historical Society
    Grain-valley-partnership
    Grain Valley Schools
    Health And Fitness
    Health-and-fitness
    Home And Garden
    Jackson County
    Kindness Awards
    Ld
    Letters
    Local News
    Looking Back
    Lorne-meinershagen
    Missouri House Of Representatives
    Missouri Senate
    Musings From The Middle
    Neighborhood View
    On-the-job
    Pets
    Police Blotter
    Quick-news
    Rdn
    Recreation
    Sally-whitaker
    Seniors
    Senior-send-off
    Sports
    State Of Missouri
    Technology
    Tracey-shaffer
    Transportation
    University Of Missouri Extension
    Waynes-world

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018

Grain Valley News

Grain Valley News is a free community news source published weekly online. 
(c) 2023 Grain Valley News

Contact Us

PO Box 2972
​Grain Valley MO 64029

Privacy Policy
Picture