Stories from Sunday, November 23, 2003

BERTRAND - Louis Eugene and Laryssa Lynn Krauss are the parents of their fourth child, third daughter, born at 2:18 a.m. Oct. 14, 2003, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Caitlin Rose Krauss weighed 7 pounds, 7 ounces and was 20 1/2-inches long...

Now it's official. Sikeston residents will be asked to approve a 1-cent sales tax on the Feb. 2 municipal ballot to help finance some needed improvements to our community. To help taxpayers, the city council agreed to roll back property taxes by 21 percent and, the one-quarter cent sales tax currently in place for the Sikeston Area Higher Education Center will be eliminated and some of the proceeds from the 1-cent sales tax will help fund expansion there...

SIKESTON - The Sikeston Bulldog wrestling team may not have had a very glamorous dual record last year, but the season was considered a success nonetheless. Despite a 4-6 dual record, the Bulldogs sent six wrestlers to the state tournament, the most in head coach Chris Hodgkiss' four years at the helm. They also performed well in tournaments throughout the season...

SIKESTON - A coaching legend won't be pacing the sidelines at Sikeston High School football games anymore. Charlie Vickery, the Bulldogs' head coach since 1978, resigned his position recently after 26 years of running the show. He will also step down as the athletic director at the conclusion of the school year...

MALDEN - Ten Sikeston High School seniors were given physical examinations at the Malden Army Air Field Wednesday for their possible enlistment in the Air Forces. Those who took the examination included: Lee Matthews, Bert Moore, Billy Swacker, Tommy Roberts, Chris Porter, Bill Colwick, Billy York, Jackie Bill Foster Archie Alliston and Bob Mitchell...

I want to say thank you to the lady who gave me a lottery ticket. I was sitting at the gas station and she just came out and gave me one and said, "Here. Have a merry Christmas." There are still some good people in the world. It wasn't a winner, but it's not about that. It's the thought that counts...

CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. -- Sikeston native Tom Dawson finished tied for 72nd place in the Champions Tour's 2003 National Qualifying Tournament in Coral Springs, Fla. Dawson fired a 74 in the final round on Friday to end the tournament with a score of 300, which was 25 strokes off the lead...

ATLANTA - Eleven high school seniors, including nine of the top 115 prospects in the nation according to Perfect Game USA, have signed National Letters of Intent to play baseball at Georgia Tech next year. The recruiting class includes five pitchers, three infielders, two outfielders and one catcher...

Seven-year-old Ethan Cooper, left, poses with his spike buck along with his 11-year-old brother Trey Cooper and his five-point buck after a recent hunt. The two are the sons of Toni and Buddy Cooper of Portageville.

SIKESTON - A flag is more than just pieces of colored cloth sewn together. "It's a whole lot of symbolism," said Lt. Kenneth Darrell Wasson II. On leave from the U.S. Navy for the Thanksgiving holiday after serving in the Persian Gulf, at 9 a.m. Tuesday Lt. ...

SIKESTON -- Larry Gosche hasn't smoked a cigarette since July 22, 2002, and 487 days later, he couldn't be happier about it. On Thursday, millions of Americans participated in the American Cancer Society's Great American Smokeout, which calls on smokers throughout the nation to go smoke-free for the day and to consider giving it up for good...

Employees of Sikeston Public School District unload a pickup full of canned goods Friday afternoon. The Sikeston School District collected over 11,000 for the Community Christmas Campaign. The Middle School alone collected over 5,000 of the goods. Volunteers for the campaign are preparing for the December 17 delivery date...

MINER -- A Tennessee woman is in custody after robbing the Miner Branch of the First National Bank Thursday afternoon. At approximately 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Phyllis A. Hester entered and robbed the First National Bank at 2201 E. Malone Ave. Details of how she robbed the bank have not been released by law enforcement officials...

EAST PRAIRIE - Ann Fowler, 82, died at 6:15 a.m. Nov. 22, 2003, at the East Prairie Nursing Center. Arrangements are incomplete at Shelby Funeral Home.

DEXTER - Pallbearers at services conducted Nov. 21, 2003, at Watkins and Sons Funeral Home for Kenneth George Williamson, 76, who died Nov. 18, 2003, were Steve Gilliam, Alex Edwards, Bucky Edwards, Kyle Hux, Phillip Sanders, Travis Sanders, Chad Smith and Terry Sanders...

McMINNVILLE, Tenn. -- Dr. Sam Gisi Frissell, 50, formerly of Chaffee, Mo., died Nov. 20, 2003, at the Memorial Hospital in Chattanooga. Born Aug. 27, 1953, in Cape Girardeau, Mo., son of Venus Gisi Frissell of Ste. Genevieve, Mo., and the late Dan Frissell, he was a medical doctor and member of the Methodist Church in McMinnville and the Chattanooga Train Association...

SIKESTON - Jacqueline Ann Brown, 59, formerly of East Prairie, died at 2:05 p.m. Nov. 21, 2003, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Born May 6, 1944, in Wyatt, daughter of the late Jesse William and Lola Kathryn Mathis Brown, she lived in Mississippi and Scott counties most of her life. She was a beautician in Sikeston for several years, where she was also a member of the Old Bethel Baptist Church...

PORTAGEVILLE - A handful of community and MU dignitaries were on had recently to witness a check presentation from the SBC Foundation in the amount of $18,000 to the Southern TeleCenter at the MU Delta Research Center. The money was part of $9 million to non-profit organizations through the 2003 SBC Excelerator competitive technology grant program...