Stories from Wednesday, September 12, 2007

CHARLESTON -- The Charleston Lady Blue Jays tennis team hosted the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs on Tuesday afternoon, handing the Lady Bulldogs a loss by a final score of 5-4. Sikeston's Jenni DeWitt was in usual form, taking care of Charleston's No. 1 Jade Schwieger, 8-0. At No. 2 singles, Sikeston's Campbell Moore was victorious over Allison DeField, winning by a score of 8-3...

SIKESTON -- Maybe the time the Cape Central soccer team spent Saturday while being stuck in an elevator at a St. Louis-area mall did wonders for the Tigers' ability to bond. On Tuesday, Cape Central displayed crisp passes and ballhandling skills that stymied the Sikeston Bulldogs during a 3-0 shutout at the Sikeston Sports Complex...

SIKESTON -- The younger children are when they begin reading, the more literate they will be and the more they will love books. That's what Ann Thompson, children's librarian at the Sikeston Public Library, believes. And that's why she is so enthusiastic about the family nights at the library for children ages 2 through second grade throughout the school year...

A break in the recent rains gave farmers another chance to return to their fields Tuesday to complete their corn harvest. Above is an aerial view of a Mississippi County farm.

SIKESTON -- Sikeston R-6 will continue its membership in the lawsuit that challenges the state's funding formula on the argument it's inequitable and inadequate. During its regular meeting Tuesday, the board approved its membership fee with the Committee for Educational Equality in the amount of $3,705.09...

The Russians have a problem. Ok, so the Russians probably have lots of problems but the one that has gained attention is their declining birth rate. And that has Russian officials concerned. So to combat this dwindling population, the Russians today (at this very moment in fact) are trying to solve that problem. Today is "Conception Day" in Russia and the entire population is being urged to do their part to increase the Russian population...

LILBOURN -- Diana Ervin and Samuel Cantrell are the parents of a son, born at 8:22 a.m. July 31, 2007, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. Samuel Ray Cantrell Jr. weighed 7 pounds, 6 ounces, and was 20.5 inches long. Maternal grandparents are Hubert Ervin and Mary Ervin...

This is to the people who called in about the cops in Bertrand. I understand your point of view, but kids shouldn't be in the road riding their bikes. And if they're that young, they shouldn't be by their selves anyway. I know you don't have a cop, but your kid shouldn't be out in the road. You should be out there watching them. You need a baby-sitter. I'm a mother myself and I watch my kids...

SIKESTON - High school notes: Announcement has been made of the appointment of Betty Waldman, senior, as drum majorette of the band. Carolyn Wilkinson, a junior, has been named head twirler. PORTAGEVILLE - Salisbury steak made of soybeans was on display at the New Madrid County Library during the Soybean Festival...

I'm sure that a lot St. Louis Cardinals fans, like myself, have become increasingly disinterested as the MLB season reaches the midpoint of September. How many chances are the Cardinals going to have to make their move before the Chicago Cubs or Milwaukee Brewers establish control? In the NL Central race this season, that answer may be without a limit due to the lack strength all three contending teams have shown...

BENTON -- Scott County sheriff's department and jail employees will decide for themselves if they want to become a union shop or not. Robert Hutchings, business representative for Teamsters Local 600, and Tim Meadows, the local's business representative, organizer and communications/research director, asked county commissioners during their regular meeting Tuesday to approve a measure by which the county's law enforcement personnel would become members of the Teamsters labor union...

The Sikeston Jaycees raised $16,000 which they donated to the local American Cancer Society office. This money helped purchase new wigs, turbans, prosthesis, mastectomy bras and nutritional supplement for women facing cancer in the Southeast Missouri area. ...

CHAFFEE -- Sue Reddish, 72, died at 9:30 a.m. Sept. 9, 2007, at her home. Born Aug. 11, 1935, in London, Ark., to Mildred Brown Davis of Chaffee and the late Graden Davis, she was the retired owner and operator of the Pancake House in Monteno, Ill., and later managed Sister's Restaurant in Chaffee. She was a member of the General Baptist Church in Randles and the Ladies Auxiliary of the Monteno American Legion...

DEXTER -- Ruth Ilene Shipman, 89, died Sept. 10, 2007, at the Central Gardens Residential Care in Dexter. Born Feb. 20, 1918, in Dexter, daughter of the late Lonis and Ruby Duncan Cook, she was co-owner and founder of Shipman's Market in Dexter. She was affiliated with the First Baptist Church in Dexter...

PULASKI, Ill. - Alma Mallory Delashman, 98, formerly of Charleston, Mo., died Sept. 9, 2007, at her niece's home. Born Dec. 9, 1908, in Macon, Miss., she was the daughter of the late Albert and Charlotte Ross Mallory. She had lived in Charleston for over 70 years and was a member of the Mercy Seat Missionary Baptist Church for over 40 years...

SIKESTON - Beverly A. Neubert, 80, died at 9:45 a.m. Sept. 10, 2007, at the Sikeston Convalescent Center. Born Dec. 13, 1926, in St. Louis, daughter of the late John Frank and Emma Mary Haas Good, she was a 1947 graduate of the St. John's Mercy Hospital Nursing Program. ...

I am an insomniac. I toss and I turn and before I know it the alarm is going off letting me know another day has arrived. There are some nights I even feel lucky to get a couple of hours of sleep and there are several reasons for this. One is I am the lightest sleeper on the planet. If a rabbit walks by outside my window I jump to attention and if the sun is up, I can forget any kind of sleep. Not to mention the snoring of my wife and animals that could keep even the deepest sleepers up...

MATTHEWS - Robert Matthew Sanders, three-month-old son of Robert and Jessica Sanders, died Sept. 10, 2007, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. He was born June 6, 2007, in Cape Girardeau. In addition to his parents, survivors include: two brothers, Dylan Curry of Matthews and Tyler Sanders of Benton; paternal grandparents, Ray and Darlene Sanders of Sikeston; maternal grandmother, Cindi Stobaugh of Matthews; paternal great-grandparents, Robert and Lucille O'Leary of St. ...

SIKESTON -- Grace LeAnn Louis Wynn, 92, died Sept. 6, 2007, at Missouri Delta Medical Center. Born May 14, 1915, in Penola County, Miss., to the late Richard and Lillie Washington Shaw, she moved to the Essex area in 1959 and then to Sikeston in 1984. She was a homemaker, a child care provider and a member of the Travelers Rest Missionary Baptist Church in Sikeston...