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2022 MCDONALD COUNTY DIRECTORY | 29 by Suzanne Rhodes - Special to MCDONALD COUNTY DIRECTORY Sims Corner Church, like so many churches of America in bygone years, is a vibrant center of community life in Pineville, Missouri and throughout McDonald County. Pastor Monty Muehlebach explains that the people "have a rich history of close family and deep roots to the hills and hollers of this section of the Ozarks. Here you will find a sense of true American patriotism, and you will also find very diverse cultures that have recently integrated into the county." Among those cultures are Laotians, who've been coming for the past 15 years to buy or build new chicken and turkey barns, and newcomers from South America, Myanmar and Somalia who work at the Tyson chicken processing plant in nearby Noel. "I believe there are 17 different languages alone spoken in Noel," Monty explained, who wants to help "by putting our resources to work and helping those that need help, whatever it looks like." The church was founded in 2016 and is an offshoot of Simsberry Chapel dating back to 1905. The chapel "started down in the holler and moved to its current location in 1914, which is the site where we hold services today." The congregation had been meeting in the old Sims store but now worships in the fully restored Simsberry Chapel. Serving the community is the heartbeat of Sims Corner Church, and besides holding services and weekly meals for its members and visitors, it sponsors a wide range of events, such as "farmers to families" food distributions and the Saturday farmers market which runs from April to October. "We host a fall festival, and Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. All these events are free to the community and also free to vendors who participate. It's all about helping your neighbor and bringing the community together." One of the most unique events the church supports is the Wildhorse Ministry run by the Paul Daley family of Trout, Louisiana. This year marks the fifth year Sims Corner has been involved. Monty explained his church's role: "We supply a young horse that is only broke to lead, then Paul and his family work the horse in a round pen, all the while explaining the plan of salvation." The event is held at Whispering Pines arena in Pineville. "I'm also working with them to put on one in Buena Vista, Colorado; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Decatur, Texas and Pilot Point, Texas. We also have music and free food off Cowboy Catering's Chuck Wagon." Monty and horses go together. He trained as a farrier/blacksmith at Heartland Horseshoeing School in Lamar, Missouri. Monty owns and operates Cowboy Catering in Jane, Missouri. The website gives this colorful description: "Cowboy Catering Company was created out of a burning desire to light a fire, cook up burnt ends, smoke meats, and gather folks together to enjoy what God so loves… BBQ!" He explained that he uses his business "as another ministry tool for the community. Not only do we give free caterings to all the events mentioned, we also do other free caterings for other organizations when we can," Monty said. "God called me to Sims Corner, and I felt impressed by the Holy Spirit to 'feed my sheep' as you read in John 21:15. I realize that while we do feed the physical body, it's the spiritual feeding that truly matters. I love to see others get the vision of what God is doing here and see what talents they bring and how God uses them to not only personnel growth but how the community is strengthened and brought closer together." Serving the Community Is Pineville church's heartbeat