Stories from Tuesday, April 16, 2019

An Ursuline Sister of Mount Saint Joseph in Maple Mount, Ky., who ministered in Poplar Bluff, is celebrating a jubilee of religious profession this year. Sister Cecelia Joseph Olinger is celebrating her 60th year as an Ursuline Sister of Mount Saint Joseph. ...

GREENVILLE, Mo. — Michael E. Johnson, 54, of Greenville, died Sunday, April 14, 2019 at St. Francis Medical Center, Cape Girardeau, Mo. Visitation will be from noon - 2 p.m., Thursday, April 18 at Ruegg Funeral Home, Greenville chapel. The funeral will follow at 2 p.m. also in the Greenville chapel. Burial will be in Greenville City Cemetery. Online condolences can be made at www.rueggfuneralhome.com...

Described as an amazing part of the staff and invaluable part of the Special Education Department, Traci Durham-Allen was selected to represent the Early Childhood Center as the 2019-20 Teacher of the Year. “Traci shows so much compassion to her students and helps push them to achieve all that they can,” fellow Early Childhood Special Education teacher Michelle Caswell said. ...

STEELVILLE, Mo. — A Cape Girardeau man preempted his upcoming murder trial by pleading guilty Monday to a lesser charge in connection with the 2015 shooting death of a man found laying next to his overturned all-terrain vehicle. Having earlier been granted a change of venue from Wayne County, Michael D. Burkman pleaded guilty to the Class A felony of second-degree murder before Circuit Judge Kelly Parker in Crawford County, according to Casenet...

DEXTER, Mo. — Travis Clay Davis, 37, died Friday, April 12, 2019 in Jackson, Mo. Visitation will be from noon until 2:30 p.m. Thursday, April 18 at the Lighthouse Christian Center in Dexter. The funeral will follow at 2:30 p.m. at the Lighthouse Christian Center with Rev. Tim Russell and Rev. Mike Jameson officiating...

A Poplar Bluff Junior High student has returned home from Jefferson City with an award no other youth in the state of Missouri has had the distinction of receiving. Emma King was named Missouri Junior Youth of the Year by the Missouri Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs. She is the first ever to receive this award...

Officials with the Sioux District of the Boy Scouts of America are gearing up for their third annual Corporate Pinewood Derby events, which, according to District Executive Michael Dineen, are the local organization’s largest annual fundraiser. “This is our biggest fundraiser this year, and we’re shooting to raise $20,000,” said Dineen, who noted the event doubled in size from its first year to the next...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — The Missouri Supreme Court handed down an opinion Tuesday affirming the conviction of a Van Buren man who had sought to set aside his 2009 conviction and death sentence for killing a Missouri State Highway Patrol sergeant. In an opinion, written by Judge George W. Draper III and joined by five judges, the court found Circuit Judge Kelly Parker did not err in denying relief to Lance Shockley’s various claims raised in his most recent appeal...

Voters may have an opportunity in August to vote on an effort to four-lane Highway 67 south to the Arkansas state line. The 12-mile project would be paid for through an existing sales tax and with what community leaders hope will be the addition of state and federal money...

Entering his third term as a Twin Rivers R-X Board of Education member, Billy Watson was voted as board president during Tuesday evening’s meeting. Serving as vice-president last year and a time before, Watson said it was the natural progression for him to move to the helm of the board...

City firefighters responded at 10:24 p.m. Monday, April 15, to a report of unauthorized burn at the intersection of Tremont and 14th streets. It was investigation only. ———— City firefighters responded at 9:13 p.m. Monday, April 15, to assist emergency-medical-services personnel in returning a patient to his home at 641 Lindsay St...

Wind blowing through the pine trees at The Camp/The Forest sets in motion a relaxing experience for anyone wanting to get away from the hustle and bustle of a hectic life and enjoy a day, night or an extended period of fun. Located approximately five miles from Wappapello Lake, 10 miles from Poplar Bluff and an easy drive from anywhere in Southeast Missouri, The Camp offers a family-friendly atmosphere with outdoor activities in a laid-back environment...