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Concerned Friends of the Renn Family — Cole County, Missouri
Community Petition & Request for Action (Renn Memorial Park Land)

To:

Cole County Commission and relevant committees (including Parks Committee), with courtesy copies to the County Counselor, Trustee/Trust Committee, and Missouri Attorney General (Charitable Trust oversight).

Purpose of this petition (plain and non-adversarial)

We are Cole County residents and community members seeking preservation of the donor-intended public benefit (the park purpose) and an orderly, transparent process. We ask County officials and the trustee to pause irreversible action while material document and authority questions are clarified.

What we believe is happening

Public statements and later court language have used terms like “rejected” and “sole and absolute discretion” in ways that members of the public understand as authorizing immediate sale. However, community review of the certified trust pages and meeting records suggests key terms are being summarized, not quoted, and that the County’s action was framed as declining an opportunity rather than rejecting an executed lease. Selling now would create irreversible harm.

Our specific requests (actions officials can take now)

• 1) Place this matter on the next public agenda as a dedicated item and allow public comment.

• 2) Record-clarify the County action: Was it a decline of a lease opportunity, a rejection of conveyance, or both? Please memorialize the decision in minutes or a brief letter.

• 3) Request a voluntary pause on any disposition (auction/listing/closing steps) for a short defined window (e.g., 30–60 days) while the below items are completed.

• 4) Produce or identify the core documents the public should rely on: the certified trust excerpts governing the park purpose, reversion, and savings clause; the consent judgment and any exhibits; and meeting packets related to lease/conveyance discussions.

• 5) Governance step: If an advisory committee is required by the trust structure, we request it be convened and that at least two seats be filled from credible concerned residents and/or long-time family friends who will steward the park purpose.

• 6) Nonprofit implementation path: We request discussion of a practical path to implement the intended 501(c)(3) operator, including a temporary fiscal sponsorship bridge if needed.

• 7) Charitable-trust oversight: We request confirmation that the Attorney General has been informed as appropriate and that charitable safeguards have been considered before any irreversible sale.

What we are offering (to make this workable)

We can provide volunteers, a basic maintenance and stewardship plan, and experienced nonprofit administrative support (including potential fiscal sponsorship) so the park purpose can be implemented without burdening the County. We are asking for cooperation and clarity—before irreversible disposition occurs.

Friends of the Lawrence J. Renn, Jr. Memorial Park visit the Cole County Commissioners 1-20-2026 https://www.youtube.com/live/nROgDMGWHDc?si=ApFTKFdFqSMk3lcI

Friends of the Lawrence J. Renn, Jr. Memorial Park visit the Cole County Commissioners 1-13-2026 https://youtu.be/BVJ7tHcZZb4​ 

https://www.komu.com/news/midmissourinews/land-set-for-auction-despite-late-cole-county-owners-ask-for-it-to-be-a/article_e2701931-0965-43f3-bd5d-907e21219220.html​

 https://fb.watch/EvZV3OBHXZ/?fs=e

Todd Miller Hawthorn Bank Start at 40:00 minutes 6-25-2024  https://www.youtube.com/live/oeOC4RbZ7rg?si=TrgsfT1oM6yl3Gux

 Mark Knapp asks about the confusion start 44:00 minutes 10-22-2024 https://youtu.be/YrVn259m9L4