Stories from Friday, December 31, 2010

VILLA RIDGE, Ill. -- Dallas Ray Owens, 74, died Dec. 29, 2010, in the Eastside Hunting Lodge in Villa Ridge. For the complete obituary and more stories from the Standard Democrat, click here to log on to the electronic edition...

This past year was a special one in Sikeston as we celebrated the 150th anniversary of our founding. This sesquicentennial celebration was low-key compared to the massive centennial celebration in 1960 but it was successful nonetheless. There's little way of knowing just exactly what lies ahead for our community but, rest assured, the path will be filled with both challenges and opportunities...

NEW MADRID -- J.W. Moore Jr., 62, died Dec. 28, 2010, at the Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. For the complete obituary and more stories from the Standard Democrat, click here to log on to the electronic edition...

SIKESTON -- Benjamin Blaylock, age 26, died Dec. 29, 2010, at his home in Sikeston. For the complete obituary and more stories from the Standard Democrat, click here to log on to the electronic edition.

MURRAY, Ky. -- Marie Lassiter, 85, died at 4:45 a.m. Dec. 28, 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 -- Mary Ann Pazdera, 66, died Dec. 30, 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...

SIKESTON -- For many, New Year's Eve is about hitting the town to celebrate the past and to welcome the year to come. But law enforcement officials are reminding those who go out to do so safely -- and make plans to have a designated driver. "One of the main things that we look for on New Year's Eve is drinking and driving," said Sgt. Jim McMillen, public information officer for the Sikeston Department of Public Safety. "We're going to have more officers out, as we do every year."...

MARSTON -- Olly Onene Curtis, 94, died Dec. 30, 2010, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. For the complete obituary and more stories from the Standard Democrat, click here to log on to the electronic edition...

Christy M. Hency, circuit court clerk; and Jamie Burger, presiding commissioner, sign their commissions after being sworn in to office Thursday. This is Hency's first full term in office -- she was appointed to the position in December 2009. following the resignation of Pam Glastetter...

CHARLESTON -- Fees at the county-maintained Oak Grove Cemetery are going up in 2011. Mississippi County Commissioners approved a new fee schedule for the cemetery during their regular meeting Thursday. County Clerk Junior DeLay said he was advised by local funeral home directors that fees at the Oak Grove Cemetery were "quite a bit less than other cemeteries."...

Megan Wagner, daughter of Kristi Stevens and Danny Wagner, is the Standard Democrat Calendar Girl for the month of January. Wagner, winner of the 2010 Miss Sikeston contest, plans to attend Arkansas State University in the fall and major in exercise science...

SIKESTON -- Over the past year reports of harmful effects from fake marijuana use are skyrocketing across the nation, and Southeast Missouri isn't exempt from the life-threatening trend. "We know there are some locations in Southeast Missouri that are selling the synthetic marijuana products," said Sgt. ...

SIKESTON -- The use of fake marijuana among teens and young adults is widespread across the nation, but there are things adults in their lives can do to possibly prevent danger from hitting close to home. Synthetic marijuana, commonly known as K2 or spice, is a mixture of herbs and spices that are sprayed with a psychoactive chemical and sold as a legal marijuana substitute in shops and via the Internet...

BENTON -- With only one office in the Scott County Courthouse open today, officials are working to ensure security. Collector Mark Hensley's office is the only one that will be open, due to the New Year's holiday. During their meeting on Thursday, county commissioners spoke to law enforcement to arrange walk-throughs and other preventative measures...

SIKESTON -- The Standard Democrat will combine the Friday, Dec. 31 and the weekend/Sunday, Jan. 2 edition of the paper to give our employees time to spend with their families during the New Year's holiday. Regular publication will resume Monday with normal business hours of 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m...

O'FALLON - Just about every opponent Sikeston faces has bigger, stronger and taller players. But it simply does not seem to bother the Bulldogs as they counter those disadvantages with superior speed, quickness, depth and skill. Sikeston needed everything in their arsenal on Thursday as the Bulldogs toppled Wentzville Holt, one of the St. Louis area's best teams, 78-68 in the championship game of the St. Dominic Christmas Tournament...

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- Otto Porter lived up to the hype in his final high school game on the Show Me Center floor. The Scott County Central senior scored 30 points and grabbed 15 rebounds to lead the Braves to their third consecutive Southeast Missourian Christmas tournament title Thursday...

BLOOMFIELD -- Looking for their first Bloomfield Christmas Tournament championship since 2004, the Dexter Bearcats saw their title hopes quickly disappear in the fourth quarter Thursday night against the defending champion Kennett Indians. After building up a five-point lead entering the final frame, the Bearcats saw the Indians fight their way back to a tie before taking the lead for good with just over five minutes to play in Kennett's 58-48 win...

BLOOMFIELD -- Shrugging off Wednesday's 60-47 loss to Kennett in the semifinals, the Portageville Bulldogs rebounded Thursday night with a strong 62-48 to claim third-place in the Bloomfield Christmas Tournament. "I thought our kids responded well," Portageville head coach Jason Irby said. "We got good minutes off the bench from some kids and that helped out...