Stories from Sunday, October 17, 2010

SIKESTON -- Mary Taylor, 66, died Oct. 15, 2010, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. For the complete obituary and more stories from the Standard Democrat, click here to log on to the electronic edition...

GLENDORA, Calif. -- Betty Orr Emmons, 86, died Sept. 3, 2010, in Glendora. For the complete obituary and more stories from the Standard Democrat, click here to log on to the electronic edition.

SIKESTON -- Jeannette "Jan" Elizabeth Steck, 72, of Sikeston, died on Thursday, Oct. 14, 2010, at her home. For the complete obituary and more stories from the Standard Democrat, click here to log on to the electronic edition...

CHARLESTON -- Going in to Friday night's matchup against their county rival, the East Prairie Eagles had a chance to do something that has never been done before. And they weren't about to let that opportunity slip away. "We knew coming in that it's never been done," East Prairie Connor Scott said. "We talked about in pre-game and we wanted to make history."...

NEW MADRID -- Getting a big boost from special teams and defense Friday night, Fredericktown snapped its two-game losing streak with a 57-36 win over the New Madrid County Central Eagles. Scoring back-to-back on a kickoff and fumble recovery, the Blackcats were able to quickly take 24-point lead early in the third after the Eagles had closed to within 10...

SIKESTON -- With all the talk surrounding a potential undefeated matchup with Cape Central, Sikeston coach Kent Gibbs was hoping his team didn't overlook the Perryville Pirates in the first week of district play on Friday night. Afterall, while Sikeston was preparing to take on the winless Pirates, Cape Central and Farmington were about to tangle in a pivotal district clash...

MOREHOUSE -- Fairy tale miniatures are a big hit. When Melissa Massey, a member of the Parent Teacher Organization for Morehouse Elementary, saw a collection of dioramas depicting scenes from fairy tales on display at the Advance Labor Day Picnic, she immediately thought of an audience that would love to see them...

SIKESTON -- Domestic violence victims in the Sikeston area will now have more services available to them than ever before. Bootheel Counseling Services recently received a grant from the Missouri Foundation for Health which allows the agency to work closer with the House of Refuge and encourage victims of domestic violence or intimate partner violence to get the help they need...

Staff Reports news@standard-democrat.com DEXTER -- Two police officers were injured and a suspect is in custody following a vehicle pursuit in Dexter early Saturday morning. At 12:58 a.m., a Dexter Patrol officer attempted to stop a pickup truck for a city ordinance violation, according to a news release from the Dexter Police Department. The driver failed to yield, and a pursuit initiated...

SIKESTON -- September 5 is a day Justin Mercer will likely never forget. Not only was it the most intense day of fighting the Army specialist faced during his nine-month deployment in Afghanistan, he was also struck in the head with a bullet. "This particular mission had been planned once or twice in the past," said Mercer, who was released and returned home to Bertrand earlier this month. ...

SIKESTON -- Justin Mercer never thought he would serve in Afghanistan. The 25-year-old Bertrand resident, who has achieved the rank of specialist, joined the U.S. Army in November 2005. "Iraq was the hot zone there, and I joined knowing I would probably go there," said Mercer. As his father had also served in the Army, Mercer knew he always wanted to join, and did so after two years of classes at Southeast Missouri State University...