Stories from Thursday, August 1, 2002

NEW MADRID - Mr. and Mrs. Barry Mitchem have announced the engagement of their daughter, Angela Lynn, to Jermi Joe Redden, son of Mr. and Mrs. Dennis Redden of Benton, Ky. The future bride is the granddaughter of Ruth Cravens of New Madrid and the late Clement Cravens and Mr. and Mrs. Lindy Mitchem. She graduated in 2000 with a bachelor of science degree in exercise science from Murray State (Ky.) University and is employed by St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau...

I can't help but wonder if it was legal for the lawmakers in Congress to pass a law to vote themselves a raise the way they do. They should be ashamed to be so sneaky without the public realizing it, especially with the economy the way it is. To me, this action is pretty close to stealing from the public office. ...

SIKESTON - Mr. and Mrs. Frank Miller, who have occupied the Keith Collins home on Lake Street, have rented the apartment in the home of Mrs. John Fisher on North Kingshighway. SIKESTON - Miss Charlotte Ann Belsheim of St. Louis, daughter of the Rev. and Mrs. H.G. Belsheim of Sikeston, received the high honor last winter being selected to represent Deaconess Hospital School of Nursing in St. Louis, where she is a resident...

I cannot believe or even imagine the barbaric act of murder committed by a Chicago mob Tuesday night following what appears to be a simple automobile accident. But the episode clearly reinforces the notion that some people are not worthy of living within a civilized society...

SIKESTON - Byron Miller's days will soon be filled with sorting red beads from the green and blue ones, sharing a vacation story during show and tell, learning to distinguish a "C" and an "H" and playing with classmates at recess. Starting kindergarten marks an exciting time in a child's life, but it can also be a scary one. Before youngsters take that grown-up step, educators say there is plenty parents can do to get children - and themselves - ready for the big day...

MARSTON - Every individual who walks the survivors lap in Friday's New Madrid County American Cancer Society's Relay for Life has a story to tell. They can talk about their success in battling cancer and its impact on their lives. Those who know him will tell you that there is no one braver or more determined in that battle than Jeremy Ferguson. After making the lap last year in his power wheelchair, Ferguson will take part in that survivor's lap for the first time Friday on his own two feet...

CAPE GIRARDEAU - John and Connie Shanks of Bloomfield have announced the engagement of their "Russian granddaughter," Victoria Alexandrovna Vygodskaia, to Jon Kurka Rust, both of Cape Girardeau. The future bride is the daughter of Valentina Vygodskaia and Alexander Vygodski of Minsk, Belarus. ...

EAST PRAIRIE - Edward and Susie Moore have announced the engagement of their daughter, Terri Denese, to Cody Finley Archie, son of Linda and Lonnie Thurmond of East Prairie and Michael Archie of Union City, Tenn. A graduate of East Prairie High School, the future bride is employed in the admissions office at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston...

CHAFFEE - Kasie Lynn Williams and Mitchell Blake Dozier are the parents of their first child, a daughter, born at 3:40 p.m. July 5, 2002, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Ashgen Blake Dozier weighed 7 pounds and was 19-inches long. Maternal grandparents are Dale and Tammy Williams of Chaffee...

FERRIDAY, La. - Jimmy Miller, 93, died at 9 a.m. Aug. 1, 2002, at the Riverland Medical Center. Arrangements are incomplete at Shelby Funeral Home in East Prairie, Mo.

EAST PRAIRIE - Genevieve Haney, 69, died at 7:15 a.m. July 30, 2002, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. Arrangements are incomplete at Shelby Funeral Home.

SIKESTON -- Betty Brewer, 37, died July 31, 2002, at Missouri Delta Medical Center. Born May 3, 1965, in Lilbourn, daughter of Lattie Milligan Brewer of Sikeston and the late Clyde E. Brewer, she was of the Baptist belief. Survivors in addition to her mother include: one daughter, Misty Brewer of the home; two brothers, Chester Brewer and Lloyd Brewer of Sikeston; and five sisters, Linda McLean, Brenda Brewer, Patty Bohnert and Dianne Chadd of Sikeston and Myrtle Landnier of Gautier, Miss...

DEXTER - Pallbearers at services conducted Wednesday at Watkins and Sons Funeral Home for Dorothy E. Phillips, 88, who died July 27, 2002, were: Marion B. Phillips, Phillip Robinett, Roger Robinett, Allen Mortor, Joshua Phillips and Rick Acton.

MORLEY - Owen D. "Red" Wells, 76, died Aug. 1, 2002, at his home. Arrangements are incomplete at Amick-Burnett Funeral Chapel in Scott City.

LITTLE ELM, Texas - Elvis Dean Coleman, 51, died June 7, 2002, in Little Elm. Born Feb. 4, 1951, in Poplar Bluff, Mo., son of the late Elvis and Nina Grubbs Coleman, he had been a satellite technician for the Lockhead Martin, Aerospace Division and was a veteran of the U.S. Air Force. He was of the Baptist belief...

ZALMA - Allen Dickinson, 72, died July 30, 2002, near Zalma. Born Dec. 30, 1929, at McGee, son of the late Leslie Benjamin and Alma VanMatre Dickinson, he was a member of Shady Dell General Baptist Church at McGee and Zalma Masonic Lodge 545. A U.S. Army veteran of the Korean War, he was head sawyer at the Lemming Lumber Company in Cape Girardeau for more than 40 years before retiring...

CAPE GIRARDEAU - Lester L. DePriest, 73, died July 29, 2002, at St. Francis Medical Center. Born June 16, 1929, in Inkster, Mich., son of the late James and Claudia Turner DePriest, he was a distributor with Tom's Snack Foods for more than 35 years before retiring and was a member of Lynwood Baptist Church...

SIKESTON - The proposed 55-cent tax increase on cigarettes would be tough on smokers, but could make things much better for our children, according to pediatrician Kevin Blanton. Included with the tax hike is a provision that would increase Medicaid's physician reimbursement rates to match Medicare...

SIKESTON -- Get ready to saddle up and head back to the Old West when the Missourians ride into the Sikeston Jaycee Bootheel Rodeo Grounds Saturday. "We're just big kids at heart," Missourians Coordinator Mike Staggs said. "Everybody played cowboy and Indian games growing up. That's kind of what we're doing."...

SIKESTON -- The 2002 14-Year-Old Midwest Plains Regional Tournament begins on Friday, with a banquet at the Sikeston Junior High School. The event was originally scheduled to take place at the Field House, but was moved due to renovations. "We knew going in it was possible that the Field House wouldn't be done," said tournament director Charlie Miller. "We had the junior high as a backup all the way. We would rather have the Field House to feature that, but it just didn't happen."...

LEBANON -- The Sikeston 12-year-old district team is breathing a little easier after fighting from behind in the Cal Ripken State Tournament in Lebanon to win the state title. The team will now move on to the regional round in Boonville, facing seven other states for the right to go to the Little League World Series. Here is how Sikeston won state:...

SIKESTON -- First Midwest Bank took third place in the Rookie League this year, finishing with a record of 10-4. The squad then went on to win the year-end tournament, ending the season on a high note. "We had a pretty good season," said First Midwest coach Charlie Driskill. "At the end of the season, the kids that weren't hitting at the beginning started to come around. That's what it takes to win (the tournament). It was a team effort."...