Stories from Thursday, June 15, 2006

CHARLESTON -- Joseph T. "Joe" Groves, 77, died at 4:40 a.m. June 15, 2006, at the Charleston Manor. Funeral arrangements are incomplete at McMikle Funeral Home in Charleston.

CHAFFEE -- Mary M. Hahn, 91, died at 11:26 a.m. June 14, 2006, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Born Sept. 6, 1914, in Whitewater, daughter of the late George Burrette and Annie Margarete McCormick Kinder, he was a member of the Church of God in Delta and a volunteer at R.S.V.P. in Chaffee. He was a retired machine operator at Buckstein Pants Factory in Chaffee and later worked at International Shoe Co. in Cape Girardeau...

KENNETT - Hattie Mae Cullum, 85, died June 13, 2006, at the Twin Rivers Medical Center in Kennett. Born May 22, 1921, in Fisk, daughter of the late William and Lydia Shemoney McCarthy, she had lived in Parma all her life where she was a member of the Parma Church of God...

BLOOMFIELD - Vada M. Bruce, 90, died June 13, 2006 at her home near Bloomfield. Born Aug. 28, 1915, in McCalaster, Okla., daughter of the late Walter and May Moody Holman, she was a member of the United Pentecostal Church. On Oct. 17, 1935, she was married to Onus Bruce, who preceded her in death on May 7, 1987...

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Sereda M. Lindsay, 67, died at 3:45 p.m. June 12, 2006, at The Carie Arbours in Savoy. Born July 2, 1938, in Cape Girardeau, Mo., daughter of the late Eldon "Jake" and Sletta Mosley Hunt, she was a member of Salem Baptist Church and had worked in the Central Food Store at the University of Illinois for 27 years...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Elmer O'Neil Jackson, 64, died June 13, 2006, at the Sikeston Healthcare Center. Born May 23, 1942 in Barnes Ridge, near East Prairie, son of Louis Leonard Jackson of Clinton, Miss. and the late Violet Marie Wilson Jackson, he had lived most of his life in Mississippi and New Madrid counties. A retired farmer, he was of the Baptist belief...

DEXTER - Pallbearers at funeral services conducted Wednesday at Watkins and Sons Funeral Home in Dexter for Julius Dewayne Wasbutsky, who died on June 12, 2006, were: Robert Paul Lutes, Thomas Blake Hooper, Shane Austin Hooper, Kenneth Robert Landers Sr., Kenny Robert Landers Jr. and Danny Marcus Hays II...

CARUTHERSVILLE - A body discovered June 9 in Pemiscot County has been identified as an Arkansas woman. Authorities have determined the body located on County Highway 556 and 547 is Rosemary Rocket of Blytheville, Ark. Rockett was reported missing June 2 by family members...

Tyler White fishes at the Sikeston Sports Complex Wednesday. Temperatures continue to warm up today and by the weekend fishing and other outdoor activities may be limited as the chance for storms increases.

Billy Hammon, a Sikeston Public Works employee, spreads wood chips Wednesday morning at the Sikeston Sports Complex. The Parks Department installed three new pieces of playground equipment by the Clinton Building.

BENTON (SMNS) - A man accused of robbing a Scott County gas station waived his preliminary hearing Wednesday and was bound over to circuit court. Robert L. Bom, 44, of rural Benton was charged with first-degree robbery for the April 26 heist of Express Fuel, on Highway 77 near Benton. He is accused of implying he had a gun and threatening the lives of gas station attendants, Scott County Sheriff Rick Walter said...

SIKESTON -- Alex Elsey gave up his afternoon of swimming to visit residents at the Miner Nursing Center. But he didn't care. "I get kind of tired of swimming," the 12-year-old said while playing checkers with one of the facility's residents. A volunteer and another youth from the YMCA's Counselors-in-Training day camp sat at the table with him and the room around him was buzzing with the chatter of youth and residents who were also putting together puzzles and playing bingo...

Day camp and the Counselors in Training Program aren't all the YMCA has to offer this summer. Swimming lessons, basketball camp and a sports camp are planned. More details can be found below or get more information and register by calling 472-9622...

SIKESTON - Mr. and Mrs. L.H. Vick expect to move into their new home at 717 Kathleen St. the latter part of this week. 40 years ago June 15, 1966 DEXTER - Another step was taken in a long series for completion of the Dexter Memorial Hospital project. ...

I seen some one complaining about skateboarders in "Speakout" and would like to make a suggestion to the City of Sikeston and other communities about things like skateboarding, rollerblading, bicycles, teenage bands and other "out-of-the-norm" activities...

JEFFERSON CITY -- The Missouri Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association recently released the high school all-state baseball teams. Sikeston senior first baseman Tyler Baker joins an ever-growing list of all- state performers for the Bulldogs as he was named a second team infielder in Class 3. Since 1998, the Bulldogs have had at least one all-state baseball player every year except 1999...

SIKESTON -- The KIT League announced the Pitcher & Hitter of the Week Awards on Wednesday morning. Sikeston's Justin Rodgers was named as the Pitcher of the Week in the League after going 2-1 with a 3.66 ERA and striking out 11 while only walking 4. Rodgers pitched a gem on opening night against Farmington pitching 6.2 innings of shutout baseball...

ALL-STATE TEAMS The all-state baseball team as chosen by the Missouri Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association Class 4 First Team Pitchers: Jeff Rydman, senior, Oak Park; Josh Syberg, senior, Vianney; Josh Malin, senior, Hazelwood Central; Pat Doyle, senior, Oakville; Blake Wixson, senior, Hillcrest; Brad LaBruyere, jr., Central...

Kenneth Thomson died this week. The name probably is unknown to virtually all of you but Thomson - actually the company bearing his name - once owned this newspaper. Thomson was the Canadian billionaire who went on a buying binge in the 1980s and bought newspapers by the dozens. By the end of the '90s, Thomson and his company had sold nearly all of those newspapers in favor of electronic information gathering...

What I don't understand about the monkey deal is why are they being kept in the household? Monkeys aren't pets. They are wild animals. The monkeys deserve to be in their natural habitat. They're attacking people and everything else. Don't these people with monkeys understand? Monkeys aren't house pets! They're wild animals...

SIKESTON - Ronnette Oglesby is the mother of her first child, a son, born at 2:17 p.m. May 24, 2006, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. Ron'Nell Alexander Oglesby weighed 7 pounds, 13 ounces, and was 20 inches long. SIKESTON - Detasha Simmons and Anthony Taylor are the parents of their second child, second daughter, born at 1:51 p.m. May 25, 2006, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. A'nya Latrece Taylor weighed 7 pounds, 10 ounces, and was 20.5 inches long...