Stories from Sunday, December 19, 2004

SIKESTON - Donna Eftink has joined the staff at Skin Medics as a clinical esthetician. A skin care specialist licensed by the state of Missouri, Eftink began her work at Skin Medics on Oct. 13 under the supervision of Dr. Ken Stone. She offers assessments of skin care needs and recommends skin regimes that address those needs. ...

The 2005 Vacation Planners are here, just in time for you to start making travel plans for next year and they are loaded with so much to do you won't want to leave the state. The planner is designed to help visitors plan and create lasting memories while vacationing right here in the Show-Me-State. ...

FRIEDHEIM - Cecil James and Elizabeth Rose Jones Jr. are the parents of their second child, first daughter, born at 5:20 p.m. Nov. 11, 2004, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Mehalley Ann Jones weighed 8 pounds, 8 ounces and was 20-inches long...

BENTON -- After a slow start, Kelly got its act together to blow past Woodland on Friday night at Kelly High School. The Hawks (4-3), behind a decisive 26-point second quarter, broke open a close game en route to a 73-44 victory over the Cardinals (3-5)...

SIKESTON - The Sikeston Bulldogs improved to 4-3 on the season with a 71-64 home victory against SEMO Conference foe Notre Dame on Friday. Sikeston led by as much as 22-8 in the first quarter but Notre Dame (2-5) never went away as they trailed by as little as two points in the third quarter, but never could take the lead...

EAST PRAIRIE - The East Prairie Eagles rolled to their fifth win of the season Friday night with a convincing 71-36 victory over the Richland Rebels. The Eagles have only two losses. Richland falls to 2-4. The Eagles played nine players in the contest and all of them scored. Preston Shoemaker led all scorers with 17 points and was joined in double figures by Ben Walters' 16 and Mitchell Winchester's 15...

JACKSON - The Jackson boys basketball team remained unbeaten Friday night with a 64-49 victory against Kennett. The Indians enjoyed a 43-28 advantage in the second half that made the difference. Jackson (7-0) was led by its two guards. Senior Jack Puisis scored 16 points and hit two 3-pointers, while junior Trey Stone led the team in scoring with 17...

CARUTHERSVILLE -- Going into Friday night's game at Joe Parkinson Gymnasium, the Caruthersville Tigers knew their work would be cut out for them with the talented Charleston Bluejays coming to town. Needless to say, the fur and the feathers really flew as the Tigers pulled off their biggest win of the season by beating the Bluejays 84-76...

GRAVOIS MILLS - David Lee Campbell, 51, formerly of Sikeston, died at 6:20 p.m. Dec. 11, 2004, at his home. Born May 6, 1953, in Stoddard County, son of Virgil Campbell of Fairdealing and Christine Brannon Campbell of Gravois Mills, he was an auto body mechanic and had also been employed by Danny Lambert Construction...

SIKESTON - Lillian "Feedie" Ancell Braden, 72, formerly of Orange, Calif. died at 6:05 p.m. Dec. 13, 2004, at the Sikeston Convalescent Center. Born Sept. 17, 1932, in Sikeston, daughter of the late Lynn Ancell and Edith Jeanette Carter Ancell Ford, she was registrar for the Orange (Calif.) Unified School District. ...

SCOTT CITY - Glenn Elbert Crews, 72, formerly of Parma, died at 1:14 a.m. Dec. 17, 2004, at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Marion, Ill. Born Feb. 22, 1932, in Risco, son of the late Oscar B. and Fletta Scott Crews, he was a retired riverboat pilot and veteran of the U.S. Army...

CHARLESTON - Amos Phillips, 77, died at 6 a.m. Dec. 17, 2004, at the Clearview Nursing Center in Sikeston. Born June 29, 1927, in New Madrid County, son of the late William Lottie and Ida M. Black Phillips, he lived in Mississippi County most of his life. A U.S. Navy veteran of World War II and retired farm truck driver, he was of the Protestant belief...

The Sikeston High School cheerleaders put on a Christmas show at halftime of Friday night's game against Notre Dame.

EAST PRAIRIE - The boardwalk trail at Big Oak Tree State Park near East Prairie is closed temporarily for reconstruction. According to information provided by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, the current boardwalk will be removed and will be replaced with a wider and more sturdy steel boardwalk to be constructed in sections. The new boardwalk will follow the same path as the old one, resulting in little or no disturbance to the natural setting of the park...

SIKESTON - Pvt. Ulis Foister and his brother, George Foister, Seaman 2-c, are home on furlough visiting their sister, aunt and grandmother. Pvt. Foister has been stationed at Camp Robinson, Ark., and Seaman Foister has been serving in the Pacific. SIKESTON - Committing a host of errors the Sikeston Bulldogs went down to defeat for the third time this year as the Jackson Indians nipped them 52-51. Sikeston pulled the "B" game out, winning 51-27...

JEFFERSON CITY - Bill Burch of Sikeston will serve on the Appellate Judicial Commission. Burch's appointment was announced by Gov. Bob Holden. The Appellate Judicial Commission accepts applications and selects three candidates to fill judicial vacancies on the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals, without regard to political affiliation. The governor can only appoint one of the three candidates...

This is for the two little boys who come along after school on Dec. 9 and tore the Christmas lights off the little post out here in the yard in the 900 block of Stanford Street. I know one of your names and you are going to be reported. Don't you know it's against the law to destroy property? Those people spent a long time out there working on those decorations and there was no sense in both of you doing what you did to them. ...

I think elected officials often hold bad news until after an election cycle. And it just makes sense. If voters were bombarded with negative news just prior to an election, you and I both know the results would be different. But those who control the information often control the outcome. So what else is new?...

SIKESTON -- Heather Carmack of Sikeston admits when it comes to communicating with her husband, they're pretty lucky. Even though Carmack's husband, Sam, is stationed in Iraq -- and will be over the holidays -- she's still able to "see" her husband, thanks to technology...

SIKESTON - "Matthews The Historic Adventures of a Pioneer Family" by Edward C. Matthews III is about, as one might expect, the Matthews family. "The book originally started out as a very small project," Matthews said, specifically for his sons, Edward Calvin Matthews IV and Jonathan Lee Matthews. "I wanted them to always have that family history with them."...

SIKESTON - Hunter Acres Caring Center was designated gold status in the Primaris Quality Partner program. Only 38 Missouri nursing homes - less than 7 percent of all facilities in the state - were named a gold partner, which is the highest level of recognition given in the program...

SIKESTON - Ask Pat and John Irions about their specialty in the catering business and they won't talk about a dessert. They won't mention a main dish or fancy hors d'oeuvres. The specialty at Trisha's Catering is customer service. "The goal for all our catered functions is to provide exactly what the customer needs and wants," said Mrs. Irions. "We take the worry out of the event so the customers can enjoy themselves and entertain their guests."...