2023 INDUCTEES
Erin Easterly
While at Fair Grove High School, she was a 4 sport athlete. She played basketball, volleyball, softball and ran track. In basketball, she was honored with Lady Eagle’s Most Valuable Player Award for 1997-98. In track she was a two time District Champion in discus (1996, 1998) and two District Titles in shot put. She was a three time All State in discus and All State in shot put her senior year. She was also All State in the shot put her senior season.
She was the New-Leader Athlete of the Week twice, KTXR Sportshake Athlete of the Week, and KSPR TV Athlete of the Week. She is also named in “Who’s Who in Sports All Star.” She joined Southwest Baptist University and played in three NCAA National Tournaments, including one “Sweet Sixteen” appearance. She lettered all four years in basketball at SBU and broke, or tied some of their women’s records.
She was also selected for “Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges.” At SBU she received their highest award “Life Beautiful” in 2002.
Charles Bradley Huff
Brad rode BMX bikes as a kid and started riding mountain bikes in 1996. As a junior at Fair Grove High School, he began riding a mountain bike to gain more endurance for running track. One year later, he was the 1997 Beginner Mountain Bike State Champion for Missouri.
In the fall of 1998, he purchased a road bike and by the next summer he was a member of the U.S. National Team. He was dropped on day one for his first international race in Japan but that made him all the more determined.
During his successful professional cycling career he raced for three teams: TIAA-Cref/Slipstream Sports, Jelly Belly Pro Cycling and Rally Pro Cycling.
He won the 2004 U.S. Track National Championships in what’s called The Madison.
He won the U.S. Elite Criterium and Pursuit Champion in 2005.
He was a two-time USPRO Criterium Champion (2006,2016)
He earned a 2007 UCI Track World Championship Bronze Medal inPalma de Mallorca, Spain
He won two gold medals at the 2007 Track Pan Am Championships in Carabobo, Venezuela.
He also was a 2008 Olympic Long List team member and missed making the Olympics by one spot.
He won multiple UCI road stages around the globe and earned countless U.S. Criterium wins throughout his professional career. Brad was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2022.
Portia Brayfield (O’Dell)
Portia was born in 1943 and attended FG schools 1st-12th grade. She graduated from Fair Grove in 1961 with plans to be a teacher. While obtaining her degree from Missouri State University (formally Southwest Missouri State University), she worked as a secretary at Fair Grove Schools.
She taught for 34 years, retiring in 2004. In her long career, she taught first, second, and fourth grades as well as Title One readers. She was also a cheer coach for a few years as well. Notably, Portia established the Parents as Teachers Program in Fair Grove. She devoted many years during and after her retirement serving young families in our town through this program.
Portia and her late husband, Jerry Brayfield, could be found at nearly every supporting event.
With two granddaughters teaching at Fair Grove Schools and great grandkids, Henry and Owen Ray, attending Fair Grove Schools now, she continues to be involved. Outside of school she serves as a member of the Senior Housing Organization and continues to support the Historical Society in a variety of ways. Her connections run deep and there are few in our town that would not recognize the name, Portia Brayfield.
Wayne Sharp
Wayne was born in 1931 and died in 1998. He attended Fair Grove School. He worked at the saw mill with his father as a young man. He worked for the Shelly Oil Company. He owned and operated an auto mechanic shop in Fair Grove for years. He owned and drove a Fair Grove School bus for 35 years. He serviced the school owned buses. He was a Fair Grove Fire Department volunteer for 35 years, where he was also the Fire Chief for 35 years. He serviced all of the Fair Grove fire trucks at no charge. He worked as a volunteer with the Greene County Sheriff Department and volunteered at the Fair Grove Police Department. He was a loyal member of the Fair Grove Lions Club. He was the first one to see the need for traffic control for our festival in the Fall and so he set it up along with handicap parking. Wayne received the key to the city in 1997. He was still going strong until cancer forced him to retire in 1997.
Dean Roper
A 1956 graduate of Fair Grove, he gained fame, especially in the Midwest, as a race car driver. He began racing in 1960 and was a five-time St. Louis area short track champion from 1967 to 1973.
Moving on to the national stage, he was a three time USAC champion from 1981-1983.
He then went on to score nine career victories in the ARCA series and was the winningest active driver in ARCA at the time he died of a heart attack during an ARCA race at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in 2001. (USAC and ARCA are minor league racing series that feed into NASCAR’s three main series.)