Stories from Friday, May 24, 2019

Navy veteran Robert McFarland lived in the woods near Bacon Park for years after his discharge. He later connected with Veterans Administration services, which helped place him with a variety of temporary housing units. Today, McFarland, 47, is one of the residents of Poplar Bluff Villas, a new group of housing complexes on Eugene Boulevard owned by the Missouri National Guard Foundation...

A veteran who served in two wars and worked with nuclear bombs during his time with the Air Force will speak Memorial Day during a ceremony in Poplar Bluff. Activities to celebrate and honor members of the Armed Forces have been scheduled both in Poplar Bluff and at the Missouri State Veterans Cemetery in Bloomfield...

Wet weather this spring has left farmers drowning in frustration over their inability to plant crops. During planting season it’s unusual to find a farmer indoors, but Butler County farmer Larry Duncan was near his home phone Thursday afternoon. Wet ground makes it easier to interview farmers. Duncan’s normal working hours during planting season begin at daylight and end about 9 p.m...

Have you heard the saying ‘like father. like son; like mother, like daughter?’ It is amazing how often our children act just like us. This became real to me one day when I was mowing and my 3-year-old son at the time got his little play mower and followed me around the yard pretending he was mowing just like dad. ...

Swim season is here. The Poplar Bluff R. W. Huntington Pool opens Friday. Take advantage of all the city pool has to offer. Admission is $2 for youth 17 and younger; adults 18 and older is $3. Open swim hours are from 1-5 p.m., seven days a week. Pool parties may be booked by contacting the pool at 686-8651. ...

Marriage licenses recently recorded at the Butler County Recorder of Deeds Office include: Jessie Marie Buckhanan and Timothy Carlos Whitworth Jr., both of Poplar Bluff; Kailee Elizabeth Ware and Marshall Evan Silcox, both of Red Oak, Texas; Jodi Lynn Cherven and Donald Keith Nely, both of Poplar Bluff;...

NEELYVILLE, Mo. — Doris Mae (Stewart) Garcia, a resident of Doniphan, Mo., passed away Sunday, May 19, 2019. Memorial service will be in the Kingdom Hall of Jehovahs Witness, May 24 at 7 p.m.

Clara Ollinger, of Bloomfield, Mo. has been named to the Truman State University, in Kirksville, Mo., President’s Academic Honor Roll for the spring 2019 semester. To qualify for this list, an undergraduate student must attain a semester grade point average of 4.0 and must complete 12 semester hours of credit...

This year I proudly co-sponsored HB 1006, a measure that prohibits Missouri from doing business with companies that boycott Israel. Here are the remarks I made on the House floor in support of the bill, which passed the House: “I had the honor of visiting Israel about eight years ago. We were traveling with a team of people, and I went to Jerusalem and was close to the King David hotel. About a block from me, a suicide bomb went off and killed 12 people. It was a terrible thing...

Divorces recently finalized in Butler County Circuit Court include: Lacey L. Johnson v. Ronnie R. Johnson; Linda J. Ballard v. Eddie E. Ballard; Euclid V. Turner III v. Kristi L. Turner; Mark Clark v. Tamara Clark; William Lopez v. Jessica Lopez;...

City firefighters responded at 5:03 a.m. Friday, May 24, to an alarm at Moore Funeral Service, 1100 Iron Bridge Road. According to the report, upon arrival nothing was showing. The alarm panel was showing water flow, but after checking the building, firefighters found nothing...

NEELYVILLE, Mo. — Annette Dawn Hinkle, 47, died in Columbia, Tenn. Services will be officiated by Pastor Chuck Carr with burial following in the Pope Chapel Cemetery, Doniphan Mo.

BLOOMFIELD, Mo. — Alma L. Lewis, 95, of Bloomfield, 95, died May 24, 2019 at the Cypress Point Skilled Nursing Center in Dexter, Mo. Visitation will be from noon-2 p.m. Tuesday, May 28 at the Chiles-Cooper Funeral Home in Bloomfield. The funeral will follow at 2 p.m. with the Rev. Ronnie Stevens of Bloomfield officiating...

Blane Keel refers to the students he works with as his “kids” even though most are adults with families. “Education makes better citizens,” says the MERS Goodwill Poplar Bluff Excel Center director. Eight of the Poplar Bluff center’s students are slated to receive their high school diplomas during a graduation ceremony Tuesday evening. ...

VAN BUREN, Mo. — Nine months after construction began, work continues on a new Highway 103 bridge at Big Spring, and if contractors can get enough days without rain, the new structure is expected to be complete in late September or early October. “Mother Nature has been a challenge,” said Robertson Contracting’s Project Manager, David Stinson, who noted the temporary “work road,” or access pad installed by crews, has been flooded many times, delaying progress...

MALDEN, Mo. — Bobby Dement, 86, of Malden, died Friday, May 24, 2019 at Ridgeview Living Center in Malden. Visitation will be from 1-2 p.m. Monday, May 27 at Landess Funeral Home in Malden. The funeral will follow at 2 p.m. in the funeral home chapel with Rev. Tom Zych officiating. Burial will be in Stanfield Cemetery in Clarkton, Mo...

As sirens were wailing warnings tornadoes were heading into Jefferson City, Rene Sisk, formerly of Poplar Bluff, thought it was her alarm clock so she kept pushing it away. She wasn’t ready to go to work at Sonic. “I was asleep when the first sirens and text messages to take cover went off late Wednesday night,” said the 2018 graduate of Poplar Bluff High School...

Visitation will be noon Saturday, May 25 at Bradshaw Funeral Home in Malden. The funeral will follow at 1 p.m. in the funeral home chapel with Pastor Andy Evans and Dennis McGinley. Burial will be in Stanfield Cemetery in Clarkton, Mo. Online condolences: www.bradshawfh.com

As the rain gently falls throughout the Ozark landscape, my mind wonders to the day rapidly approaching, which modern society considers the departure of spring and the welcoming of the summer vacation season. With the bright eyes, joyous giggles and impatient pleadings to detour to the local swimming hole from children non-relenting, I can sparsely remove the memories of my youth, and these times, from my mind...

An East Prairie artist who has gone from the simplest point-and-shoot snapshots to award-winning wildlife photographer in the past four years will have the featured show in June at the Margaret Harwell Art Museum. “Through the Lens of Clay Gurthrie,” will open with a reception from 1-4 p.m. Sunday, June 2 at the museum. The show will be open through June 30...

The following cases were disposed of in Municipal Court in May. Dollar amounts may be fines, court costs or any combination of the same. Beth Marie Devault, 28, Puxico, peace disturbance, $82. Timothy Ray Dugger, 38, Doniphan, stealing, $307...