Stories from Thursday, April 16, 2020

SIKESTON — Eva “Lois” Matthews, age 92, a resident of Sikeston, died Tuesday, April 14, 2020, at The Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau, Mo. Lois was born July 2, 1927, in Kuttawa, Ky., to Edgar and Anna E. White Hammond. She has lived most of her life in Sikeston where she was a member of the First United Methodist Church. ...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Maurice Deondraye Brooks, 45, of Kansas City, Mo., passed away on April 3, 2020. Maurice was born in Jefferson City, Mo., on Feb. 3, 1975, to Clarence and Sandra (Harris) Brooks. He grew up in Sikeston, where he enjoyed playing football and basketball in school.

SIKESTON — Linda Jean Hampton, 67, died April 15, 2020, at the Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. Born Sept. 12, 1952, at Spring Valley, Ill., daughter of the late Hubert Lucas and Mary Metcalf Lucas, she had lived in Sikeston a number of years...

SIKESTON — This week marks National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week and several agencies locally and statewide are celebrating their employees. This weeklong event honors the thousands of men and women throughout the United States who respond to emergency calls for assistance, dispatch emergency professionals and equipment and render life-saving, pre-arrival instructions to citizens of our great nation...

SIKESTON — The number of positive coronavirus cases in Scott County has seen another significant increase. According to the Missouri Department of Health and Scott County Health Department Thursday afternoon, there are now 41 positive cases in Scott County, up from just 14 positive cases just six days ago...

SIKESTON — It was brief and there was no physical contact, but a Sikeston woman who turned 102 on Wednesday was touched more than ever by a birthday celebration given by family and friends. Despite social distancing and a stay-at-home order, Alma K. York was able to see family and friends and hear their birthday wishes from her front porch Wednesday afternoon...

Independent contractors and self-employed individuals in Missouri have been finding it hard to process unemployment claims, even though the federal government has temporarily extended benefits to those workers during the coronavirus outbreak. But the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations’ Division of Employment Security (DES) is still encouraging the self-employed, gig workers, and independent contractors whose businesses have been impacted by the coronavirus to apply for unemployment assistance.. ...

Employees at Health Facilities Rehab Services gave back to the community Wednesday by handing out free bag lunches and also delivering the bags of lunches to local healthcare offices.

O’FALLON, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Thursday extended Missouri’s statewide stay-at-home order through May 3, but pledged that the next day “people are going to go back to work” so the state’s economy can begin to recover from the coronavirus shutdown...

SIKESTON — Aileene Norman, 84, died April 15, 2020. Born Aug. 12, 1935, daughter of the late Tyrus Henry and Julia Weakley Walters, she worked in the Sikeston High School cafeteria for 25 years and was a member of Illinois Avenue Baptist Church. On July 15, 1954, she married the late George Alfred Norman, who preceded her in death on Aug. 15, 2011...