Dozens of people arrived Saturday at the former site of The Landing, which burned down in a catastrophic fire Sept. 15, for a recognition service to support its proprietors, Tom and Della Bedell. The event included speakers and live music, a presentation of resolutions honoring The Landing from the House and Senate, and ended with an announcement from Jeremy Bedell that his family planned to rebuild the landmark resort.
The Bedells said they’re in the initial planning stages and don’t have a time frame yet when the property may be able to reopen. Organizers wanted to show their support for the Bedells and provide a concrete gesture of solidarity for locals. The last few years have tried Van Buren’s spirit, starting with a destructive flood in 2017, the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and now losing a symbol of the community.
“So, (we) just wanted to encourage Tom and Della that they are a big piece of who we are as a community, instrumental with all of our businesses and everything that we do. And in a tangible way, love on them and show them our support,” said coordinator Crystal Johnson.
“They specifically asked us not to use the term vigil,” she added, since it had a connotation of loss. “... That’s why we kind of changed it on our the Facebook posts, the face of the event to recognition service.”
Pastor David Truncone of First Assembly of God church said, “(We) definitely want to keep our eyes on the future and keep moving forward, and that’s what tonight’s about.”
After the fire, Truncone and Johnson said the community rallied together and poured out support for the Bedells on social media. There was also real-world support for employees who had just lost their jobs. Joe Chapman, director of McSpadden Funeral Home, got in touch with Missouri Highlands Healthcare CEO Karen White to make sure those personally affected had crisis management resources to help process the tragedy.
“It’s the same as losing a family member or a dear friend when a business burns, especially one like this,” said White.
“It touches everybody. It definitely has more of an impact than people realize,” confirmed Missouri Highlands Healthcare psychologist Kim Barnes.
Truncone opened the recognition service and thanked the Bedell family and their staff for making The Landing a pillar of the community, as well as the firefighters who tried to save it.
“You have our prayers, you have our support,” he told Tom and Della Bedell.
After raising a new flag on the property and a live music performance, Johnson and county commissioners Ron Keeney and Lynn Murdick introduced Steve Bubanovich and Ryan Gill. Representing the Missouri House of Representatives and the State Senate, respectively, Bubanovich and Gill presented resolutions from both bodies praising the Bedells for economically and socially enriching Carter County.
Tom and Della Bedells’ son, Jeremy, then announced plans were already underway to rebuild The Landing as a modern destination and restore local employment.
“We will be back,” he promised.
After the event, Tom Bedell said he and his wife were overcome by all the support they received.
“We are overwhelmed and humbled by the outpouring of support, you know, not only from the community and the surrounding area, but just from so many of our customers and past employees.”
Realizing how much The Landing meant to Van Buren was one of their reasons for choosing to rebuild.
“When we realized the impact that The Landing had on the area, and all of our customers and so forth, we just felt that we really needed to come back,” he said.