Stories from Thursday, October 4, 2007

PORTAGEVILLE -- Winford Clint Wiggins, 85, died Oct. 3, 2007, in Searcy, Ark. Visitation is from 6-8 p.m. tonight at Richards Funeral Home in New Madrid where services will be conducted at 10 a.m. Friday. Burial will follow in the Portageville Cemetery...

ORAN -- Herbert Joseph Hahn, 95, died at 4:50 p.m. Oct. 2, 2007, at The Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. Born Dec. 13, 1911, at the family home in Caney Creek, son of Joseph and Mary Barbara Gosche Hahn, he was a farmer in the Oran area until his retirement. ...

DUDLEY - James William Newton Gant, 86, died Oct. 2, 2007, at the John J. Pershing VA Medical Center in Poplar Bluff. Born Sept. 20, 1921, in Saltillo, Tenn., to the late Marvin Henry and Mary Jane Bell Gant, he lived for three years in Alaska, several years in Las Vegas and in various other states before moving to Dudley in 2005...

BLOOMFIELD -- Maudie Mae Burns, 91, died Oct. 2, 2007, at her home. Born Dec. 27, 1915, at Clines Island, to the late Roy Ottie and Myrtle Era Glenn Hoosier, she had lived all her life in the Bloomfield area and was a retired seamstress with Elder Manufacturing...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Mary Ellen Russell McCormack, 84, died at 7:20 p.m. Oct. 3, 2007, at East Prairie Nursing Home. Born Dec. 25, 1922, in East Prairie, daughter of the late Dick and Ophelia Bryan Russell, she was a member of the First Christian Church and had lived her life in East Prairie. In 1948 she was employed with Simpson Oil Company in Charleston, where she worked for 10 years. She later worked for Bock Oil Company and the MFA until her retirement in 1972...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Virginia Mae Galemore, 83, died Oct. 3, 2007, at her home. Born July 24, 1924, in Gideon, daughter of the late Rube and Mary Childers Hedges, she lived most of her life in Mississippi County and was a member of the First Baptist Church in East Prairie...

OZARK - Bernice Olene Risner, 79, formerly of Portageville, died Oct. 4, 2007, at Ozark Care Nursing Center. Born March 11, 1930, in Rogersville, Ala., she was the daughter of the late Nora I. Brown and Arnold Springer. On April 27, 1946, in Alabama, she married Willie T. "Bill" Risner, who preceded her in death...

DEXTER -- Pallbearers at services conducted Wednesday at the Watkins and Sons Funeral Chapel in Dexter for Jewell E. Orr, 84, who died Oct. 1, 2007, were: Mack Mullins, Tom Thrower, Larry White, Tommy Horton, Bill Allen and Mike Chapman.

DEXTER - Pallbearers for services conducted Wednesday at the Watkins and Sons Funeral Home in Dexter for Gary Gene Ross, 39, who died on Sept. 30, 2007, were: Kenny Cobb, Ed Huddleston, Steve Tilley, Darren Williamson, Dale Newell and Larry Evans.

Let's assume that future generations will look back at these times we're currently in and thank us for saving the environment so that they will still have fresh water, clean air and ample ozone to protect them from whatever lurks out there to bring them harm. Or, perhaps, those future generations will scratch their heads in amazement that we somehow believed that changing light bulbs would actually make a difference. Oh well, since none of us will be around, we're left to guessing...

NEW MADRID - The Sikeston Bulldogs (2-3) will be back in action Friday night as they head on the road for another tough test with the New Madrid Country Central Eagles (4-1). RECENT HISTORY Sikeston suffered their third straight loss of the season last week at the hands of a prolific state ranked opponent in the Farmington Knights. ...

STEELE -- Several subjects were arrested Tuesday as a result of an ongoing drug investigation. A search warrant was executed on Tuesday on North First Street by agents with the Bootheel Drug Task Force, ATF and Steele Police K-9. During the search, several baggies which contained illegal drugs were seized and several subjects were arrested, according to a Wednesday news release from Pemiscot County Sheriff Tommy Greenwell, who is also director of the Bootheel Drug Task Force...

BENTON -- The Scott County Sheriff's Department now has enhanced capabilities of investigators dealing with computer-related crimes, thanks to grant money. According to a news release issued by Sheriff Rick Walter, the 2008 Internet Cyber Crime Grant Program, administered through the Missouri Department of Public Safety and the Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement Grant Program, will allow the agency to conduct forensic computer investigations, as well as internet investigations...

Sikeston Kindergarten students Colton Ross, Mary Howard, Mallory Green and Kyrra Jamison react after their teacher Susan Kimball pours baking soda and vinegar together to make a volcano Wednesday afternoon. The students at the school got to see firsthand how to conduct science experiments during the "Messy Science Day."...

SIKESTON - Division 10 veteran C.J. Stevens has completed 25 years of service with the state highway department. SIKESTON - Clothing for Texas flood victims is shipped from a flood relief headquarters. Harry Ruckles, semi-retired businessman, is spearheading the drive to help victims of Hurricane Beulah...

In today's (Wednesday's) paper there was a picture and short article about a dart team called the Spear Chuckers. Back in the dark ages, when I was in high school, that was a racial slur about twice as bad as the "N" word. I'm surprised no one noticed, and I'm not sure I'd be proud to call myself a spear chucker at all...

Are the officers of our courts as guilty as the criminals? We hear on the news regularly of persons being killed by drunk drivers, only to find that they are in fact repeat offenders, who have been given "another chance" by a sympathetic judge. I would like to call your attention to the driving history of a 23-year-old, who is clearly a "persistent offender" who appeared for a fourth DWI arrest in less than five years in Scott County last week. ...

BENTON -- No matter what cards you draw, it will be a poker hand you can feel good about. The Bikers Helping Veterans Poker Run this Sunday isn't so much about the game itself as making life a little better for residents of the Missouri Veterans Home in Cape Girardeau, according to Tom McGowan and Cheri Parsons of T&C Motorcycle Parts in Benton, coordinators for the event...

POPLAR BLUFF - Eighth District Representative Jo Ann Emerson will speak before the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission regarding the Mississippi River Bridge in Mississippi County during their open meeting on Dec. 12. The meeting will be held at the Black River Coliseum in Poplar Bluff beginning at 9:30 a.m...

Wheatley BENTON - Sarah and Jerry Wheatley are the parents of their second child, first son, born at 9:36 a.m. Aug. 21, 2007, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Jerry Christopher Wheatley II weighed 9 pounds, 8 ounces, and was 21 inches long...

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The Sikeston Bulldogs soccer team was back in action Wednesday night as they went on the road to take on the Cape Central Tigers. The Bulldogs found themselves coming up a little bit with the final score 2-0. "I thought we played pretty well tonight." said Sikeston head coach Derrick Long, "We came out a little flat and gave up two early goals, but after that we settled well."...