Stories from Wednesday, September 4, 2002

SIKESTON - Marilyn Gail Sexton, 56, died at 1:32 a.m. Sept. 2, 2002, at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. Born Dec. 3, 1945, in East Prairie, daughter of the late Leamon "Bud" and Opal Lyons Markland, she was a waitress for area restaurants in Sikeston and had also been associated with the Meals on Wheels Program. She was a member of Living Grace Fellowship Church in Sikeston...

POCAHONTAS - Dorothy Mae James, 70, formerly of Bradley, Ill., died at 9 a.m. Sept. 3, 2002, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Born Dec. 13, 1931, at Randles, daughter of the late John Henry and Rose Emily Breese Bonds, she retired as a sewing machine operator for Thorngate Ltd. in Chaffee and was a member of the First General Baptist Church in Chaffee...

SIKESTON - Lowell E. Webb, 91, died Sept. 1, 2002, at Missouri Delta Medical Center. Born May 30, 1911, in Hartville, he was the son of the late Jesse F. and Bertha Webb. The Webb family moved to New Madrid County near Parma in 1922 and he served in the U.S. Navy from 1930-1934...

JERSEYVILLE, Ill. - Roger Blake White, 35, formerly of Dexter, Mo., died Sept. 3, 2002, at the Arbor Place Residential Care Center in Dexter. Born Sept. 3, 1967, at Columbus, Ga., he was the son of Linda Faye Tilley White of Dexter and the late Roger Dale White...

Congress is back in session which means less campaigning and more micro-management. The session will most certainly be brief to allow the politicians to hit the campaign trail prior to the upcoming November elections. We'll just call this the lull before the storm...

SIKESTON - Landon Christopher White, son of Dwight and Cindy Hampton White, died shortly after birth Aug. 29, 2002, at Cardinal Glennon Hospital in St. Louis. Survivors in addition to his parents include: one sister, Abby White of the home; paternal grandparents Bill and Mary White of East Prairie; and maternal grandparents, Ronald and Lois Hampton of Sikeston...

Officers with the Sikeston Department of Public Safety read the names on the Sept. 11 Memorial Wall Tuesday night at Nunnelee Funeral Chapel. Over 3,000 names of individuals that perished at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and in Flight 93. The memorial will be at the chapel through Thursday then be moved to Veteran's Park until Tuesday night...

Marilyn Grant works on the Red Pepper display at the Depot Tuesday morning. The Red Pepper exhibit will open Friday to celebrate the Sikeston High School pep club's 75th anniversary.

SIKESTON -- Since June fans have been glued to their television sets waiting to see who of the 10,000 aspiring pop stars will snatch the sought-after title of American Idol. Last week the competition narrowed to two. Last night, they voted for the winner. And tonight, one person will be named American Idol...

CHARLESTON - When Charleston and Kennett met in last year's season-opener, there was arguably as much talent on the field as any two teams in Southeast Missouri. But after all the smoke cleared from 2002 graduation, Charleston and Kennett were each left with just one ace in the hole...

BERNIE -- Sikeston opened the 2002 volleyball season on a high note Tuesday night, beating area powerhouse Bernie on the road in three sets. It's the first time the Lady Bulldogs have defeated Bernie in recent memory, if not the first time ever. "It's the first time in recent history for sure," said Sikeston coach Steve Beydler. "From what I've been told, it's the first time ever, but I can't say for sure. It's quite an accomplishment, especially in Bernie."...

SIKESTON -- Sikeston's soccer team hosted the annual Red and Black soccer scrimmage on Tuesday, in preparation for the upcoming season. The two teams were split between varsity and junior varsity players. "It was mainly just for fun," explained Sikeston coach Derrick Long. "We had a little cookout with the parents."...

The 2002 high school football season kicks off on Friday night with several intriguing matchups. In the Northern Division of the SEMO Conference, heavyweights Sikeston and Jackson smash helmets in a battle between two of the area's top teams. The Indians lost several key skill players to graduation, while the Bulldogs were hit hard on the line. Instead of Jackson's speed against Sikeston's size, it's going to be the other way around this year...

ELLSINORE -- The Sikeston Lady Bulldogs softball team equaled last season's win total in just their third game of the year. With a 13-1 road win against East Carter County, Sikeston is now 2-1 on the season and look to keep improving on the season...

SIKESTON - A group of friends of Mrs. R.A. McCord gave her a surprise birthday party and handkerchief shower Wednesday afternoon at her home on West Gladys. SIKESTON - The Young Married Department of the First Baptist Church Sunday School surprised Mr. and Mrs. Carl Heuiser of Dexter with a housewarming last Tuesday evening. The Heuisers recently moved to from Sikeston to rural Dexter...

Does SpeakOut ever have reprints of comments that have been made in the last four months, from May through June and July? If it does, I would like to see some. I would like to cut them out and put them in a scrapbook. With the volume of SpeakOut calls that come in, there would be no time or space to rerun specific comments. ...

BENTON - Bad dogs beware: The Sikeston Area Humane Society will now investigate complaints of vicious animals and animal cruelty throughout the county. Scott County commissioners approved an agreement with the humane society during Tuesday's meeting by which they will contribute $1,000 in return for the services...

Here are last week's racing results from local tracks. BENTON -- Sikeston racer Jerrod Hull picked up his first feature win on the year in the KFVS 12 Winged Sprint cars at the Auto Tire and Parts Racepark. The win netted Hull the $2,000 first place prize...

CHAFFEE - The Sikeston Lady Bulldogs tennis team won its first match of the year with a 7-2 road victory against Chaffee on Tuesday. Sikeston had some troubles with Chaffee's top four singles, but No. 5 Chelsea Gilliland and No. 6 Jamie Davidson each rolled through Casey Guzman and Shelby Rice respectively 8-0...