Stories from Saturday, September 1, 2007

The differences between Republican and Democrat politicians are negligible. The primary goal of both is to protect their seat in government. However, their approaches to achieve this goal are very different. The Republicans' approach is "Let them eat cake, if they can afford it, but they can't have any of ours and we control the price." In this instance "them" and "they" mean middle/working class Americans, and "we" and "ours" mean the Republicans' rich and influential friends and party leadership. ...

SIKESTON -- Tamara Faris and Brandon Redden are the parents of their first child, a son, born at 12:36 a.m. July 21, 2007, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. Braydon Keith-Jackson Redden weighed 7 pounds, 14 ounces, and was 20.75 inches long...

NEW MADRID -- On a cool, breezy evening where the New Madrid County Central Eagles unveiled a tribute monument to fallen teammate Brad Colbert, they perfected the night by defeating the St. Pius Lancers 20-6. New Madrid's offensive speed and quick defense was too tough for the St. Pius squad to handle as the combination of senior quarterback Leslie Williams and sophomore running back Lennies McFerren combined for 214 of the Eagles' 348 total yards from scrimmage...

BALLWIN -- Parkway West scored twice in the final two minutes to put away a pesky Poplar Bluff team 31-14 Friday night. The Mules trailed 17-14 midway through the fourth quarter and were driving when senior Jared Osborn was stacked up by a pile of Longhorns and had the ball stripped away...

SIKESTON -- Gov. Matt Blunt congratulated Sikeston as the DREAM Initiative's newest designee and offered remarks on the program during a special visit Friday morning at City Hall. Area residents, local officials and state legislators filled all available seating and stood in the aisles in Council Chambers to hear Blunt's comments on Sikeston's participation in the program...

NEW MADRID -- Mr. and Mrs. Gene Bennett have announced the engagement of their daughter, Jennifer JoAnn Bennett, to Jeremiah Scott Anderson, son of Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Anderson of Sikeston. A 1995 graduate of New Madrid County Central High School, the future bride graduated from Stage One Beauty School in 1996. She is a stylist at Attitudes Styling Salon...

BENTON -- Perry and Kim Grimes of Nacogdoches, Texas, have announced the engagement of their daughter, Lauren Michelle Grimes, to Douglas Gerard Felter of Bettendorf, Iowa. He is the son of Zeno "Sam" and Jolene Felter of Benton. The future bride received a bachelor of science degree in animal science from Texas Tech University in 2005, and is pursuing a master of science degree in meat science at the University of Nebraska...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Tommy and Linda Loomas have announced the engagement of their daughter, Scarlett Brittany Loomas, to Shaun Hanschen, son of Darrell and Cheryl Hanschen of Jackson. A 2002 graduate of East Prairie High School, the future bride is the granddaughter of Thomas Loomas, Beatrice Tripp and the late Almeta Loomas and Carnell Tripp. She received a degree in sociology from Wellesley College in 2006 and attends Southeast Missouri State University...

SIKESTON--A golden wedding anniversary celebration in honor of the Rev. and Mrs. Larry Davis will be from 3-5 p.m. Sept. 8 at Trinity Gospel Church fellowship hall in Sikeston. Davis and the former Elizabeth Ann Lee were married Sept. 15, 1957, in Chaffee...

CHARLESTON - Richard Logan, an independent pharmacist who practices at L&S Discount Pharmacy in Charleston, has received special recognition by the AmerisourceBergen Drug Company. In a recent newsletter published by the company, Dr. Logan was announced as the recipient of this year's Good Neighbor Pharmacist of the Year for the North Region...

SIKESTON -- Jeanetta Wray Monan, 74, died at 6:45 a.m. Sept. 1, 2007, at her daughter's home in Essex. Born March 11, 1933, in Lamar, Ark., daughter of the late William Thomas and Vanda Harris Holland, she was a housewife. She was a member of Shady Acres Church of Christ...

CLARKTON -- Rose Edda Smart, 54, died Aug. 30, 2007, due to injuries sustained in an auto accident near Kennett. Born June 21, 1953, in Chicago, Ill., daughter of the late W.L. and Jennie Rose King Williams, she was a member of the Solid Rock Church in Clarkton...

CLARKTON -- Virgil Lee Smart, 82, died Aug. 30, 2007, due to injuries sustained in an automobile accident near Kennett. Born Oct. 4, 1924, in Gideon, son of the late Artie B. and Willie Ann LaFonte Smart, he was a member of the Solid Rock Church in Clarkton...

CARUTHERSVILLE -- On the running of Eli Jackson and Gaviland Bland, the Sikeston Bulldogs made the debut of varsity head coach Kent Gibbs one with great success. Sikeston erased a frustrating 2006 season Friday night by rolling past Caruthersville 34-20 as its top two rushers combined for 332 yards and five touchdowns in the 2007 season-opener. The Bulldogs also commanded a 451-254 edge in total offensive yards...

SPRINGFIELD - Bradley S. Gregg, a former Sikeston resident, is now a senior accountant with BKD, LLP's Springfield office. Gregg graduated magna cum laude in 2005 from Southeast Missouri State University at Cape Girardeau with a B.S. degree in business administration. The son of Debbie Wilburn of Sikeston, he provides tax services for nursing facility clients...

The Sikeston Area Chamber of Commerce would like to thank the following 2007 Rodeo Run sponsors: Randy's RX, SEMO Health Network, YMCA of Southeast Missouri, Foot and Ankle Centers of Southeast Missouri, Sterling Health Care Services, Ponder Funeral Home, Sikeston Rotary Club, Sikeston Imaging Center, Missouri Bootheel Regional Consortium Inc., Home Advantage, Health Facilities Rehab Services, Missouri Delta Medical Center Radiology Group and Dr. ...

The local KB Toy Outlet, located at the Sikeston Factory Outlet Stores, is working with Missouri Delta Medical Center to provide toys to children who are having surgery or arrive in the emergency department. Donations are obtained from customers who shop at KB toys. ...

ST. LOUIS?- Fred Finnell, base pilot supervisor for the Sikeston Air Evac Lifeteam crew, was selected as the 2007 Regional Pilot of the Year Aug. 11 during the company's regional awards banquet in St. Louis . The awards banquet honored employees from the company's St. Louis region, which includes bases in Missouri , Illinois , Indiana and Iowa...

DEXTER -- Friday's game between Ste. Genevieve and Dexter rivaled that of a video game as both teams put up gaudy stats, but when the dust settled the state-ranked Dragons held off the young Bearcats 40-35. The two teams combined for more than 850 yards of total offense with most of it coming through the air. Ste. Genevieve's highly -touted junior quarterback Kory Faulkner passed for 446 yards on 40-of-49 passing with six touchdowns...

Gov. Matt Blunt deserves the praise of all Missourians for his long-awaited crackdown on illegal immigration in our state. First, Blunt ordered Highway Patrol agents to check the immigration status of every person they arrest. The next day, he directed the Missouri Department of Economic Development to increase their oversight of contractors who receive any state tax credit or funding...

SIKESTON - Mr. and Mrs. Bill Shuppert of Sikeston are parents of a daughter born Tuesday night at Sikeston General Hospital. --- SIKESTON - Seventy-two members of the Fowler family and their friends were present at the annual Fowler reunion Sunday at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Oral Wittaker of Chaffee...

Meredith Nowell is the Standard Democrat Calendar Girl for September. Miss Nowell, one of the 12 finalists in the American Legion Cotton Carnival's Miss Sikeston Contest, is the daughter of Tom and Laura Ann Green and Rick and Cindy Nowell. She attends the University of Mississippi, where she is pursuing a degree in business...

PORTAGEVILLE -- Farmers in the Southeast Missouri area have a big advantage, said John Marshall Jr. After all, they get a firsthand look at developing research that goes on at the University of Missouri's Delta Center. On Friday, researchers flaunted their latest research to a crowd of farmers, students and businessman at the 46th annual Delta Center Field Day...