Stories from Monday, October 14, 2013

By MICHELLE FRIEDRICH Associate Editor Sheriff Mark Dobbs predicts it will be a "giant step backward" for law enforcement in Butler County if the sheriff's department loses its portion of general revenue funding in the 2014 budget. With the Butler County Justice Center to be paid off in December, the sheriff's department is expected to see an influx of more than $450,000 next year in revenue from the quarter-cent sales tax...

By DAVID SILVERBERG Associate Editor A 20-year facility maintenance plan for seven county buildings has been presented to the Butler County Commission by Smith & Co. engineers of Poplar Bluff, Mo. This report summarizes existing facility conditions and provides the county with an expected maintenance forecast through 2034...

By SARABETH WALLER Staff Writer A Poplar Bluff, Mo., man accused of striking a pedestrian with his vehicle and fleeing the scene will not face charges related to the death, according to Butler County Coroner Jim Akers. Jason Thomas Eppinette, 26, of the 500 block of North Sixth Street was struck Monday morning by a red car while attempting to cross West Pine Street near Maverick Glass. He died later that day due to injuries sustained in the accident...

By PAUL DAVIS Outdoors Editor VAN BUREN, Mo. -- With the federal government shutdown approaching its third week, residents and business owners in Van Buren and surrounding Carter County are really feeling a pinch to their bottom line. "To me, it's just nonsense and tragic," Carter County Presiding Commissioner John Bailiff said of the shutdown and it's effect on the citizens of his county...

By DONNA FARLEY Staff Writer The instructional path at Eugene Field Elementary will be determined by its students, as staff look to make data-driven decisions in reading and math instruction. "The focus of our goals this year is to let the data show us the way," Principal Jennifer Taylor told the Poplar Bluff R-I Board of Education during a special workshop meeting Thursday to review district and building performance...

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. - If you've been putting off cleaning out the spare room or finding a new home for that old chair, now's the time to do it. The Animal Welfare Alliance (AWA) has reached an agreement with the new Consignment Mall of Poplar Bluff, at 1901 Sunset, just off Westwood Boulevard...

By CAROLYN SMITH Staff Writer Tickets go on sale Sunday, Oct. 20, at 10 p.m. for the ever-popular "Christmas at Our House" dinner theater presented by the West Point United Pentecostal Church of Doniphan, Mo. Cost of tickets are $20 for adults, $10 for children, ages 5-10, and $5 for children, ages four and under. Reservations can be made on line and payment is required at that time...

Tony and Deborah Arnold, of Poplar Bluff, Mo., announce the engagement of their daughter, Courtney Rae Arnold of Jonesboro, Ark., to Andrew John Thrasher, also of Jonesboro. Thrasher is the son of John and Debra Thrasher of Poplar Bluff. The wedding is scheduled for Sept. 13, 2014, at First Church of God in Poplar Bluff...

Bill and Sandy Arnold of Poplar Bluff, Mo. announce the engagement of their daughter, Amber Renee Lampston, also of Poplar Bluff, to Isaac Michael Rush of Ionia, Mich. Rush is the son of Terry Rush of Ionia and the late Judy Rush. The bride-to-be is a 2009 graduate of Poplar Bluff High School and is employed by the Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center...

For more than 40 years, the US foster grandparents Program, based in Sikeston, has provided seniors like Ward with the opportunity to play a large role in classrooms throughout the region. The Foster Grandparents, which is funded by the Corporation for National and Community Services, visit the kindergartens and local elementary schools in Sikeston, Poplar Bluff, East Prairie and Fisk, where they provide assistance to the teachers and students...

The Missouri Association for Family and Community Education (MAFCE) of Butler County will sponsor Family and Community Leadership (FCL) training Thursday at the First United Methodist Church, 500 N. Main St., Poplar Bluff, Mo. Registration will start at 8:30 a.m. with classes starting at 9 a.m. Topics include Effective Presentations, Effective Leadership, Character Counts, and All Stressed Up and a Million Places to Go. Closing and presentation of certificates will be at 4 p.m...

Where's the Tea Party? Has everybody noticed the Rhino Party caved in on spending on the debt ceiling. Is there a Tea Party around here in Butler County? If not, it's time to go the Libertarian Party. Thank you. Bring back downtown I want to commend the parade they had the other day. ...

By GEORGE F. WILL "'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor less.'" -- Lewis Carroll, "Through the Looking Glass" WASHINGTON -- The marble friezes above the Supreme Court chamber depict 18 great lawgivers, including Moses, Solomon, King John and William Blackstone. ...

By CAROLYN SMITH Staff Writer Wednesday, Oct. 16, will mark the 55th anniversary of birth of National Boss's Day, so if you are one who is blessed with a good boss mark your calendar so you won't forget to let your boss know how much he or she is appreciated. ...

Douglas Shouse GREENVILLE, Mo. -- Douglas B. Shouse, 40, of Williamsville, Mo., died Friday, Oct. 11, 2013, at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, Mo. Visitation will begin at 11 a.m. Monday at Morrison-Worley Funeral Chapel in Greenville, Mo. Funeral services will follow at 1 p.m. Monday in the funeral home chapel. Burial will be in the Chapel Hill Cemetery near Williamsville...

To the Editor: Many of the good Protestant people I've encountered seem to have a misguided and miseducated view of exactly what Halloween is. All Hallow's Eve aka Halloween (October 31) and All Saints Day (November 1) roots lie in an ancient pagan festival of the dead. ...

Ina Lee Christie Ina Lee Christie, 78, of Poplar Bluff, Mo., died Thursday, Oct. 10, 2013 at her residence. Mrs. Christie was born June 9, 1935, in Butler County. She had worked as a bookkeeper and was a member of Living Word Baptist Church. Mrs. Christie enjoyed quilting, teaching sign language and helping with her church's deaf choir...

Gilbert Taylor Gilbert Taylor, 81, of Poplar Bluff, Mo., passed away Saturday, Oct. 12, 2013, at the Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center in Poplar Bluff. Mr. Taylor was born May 5, 1932, in Boydsville, Ark., to Jacob and Ruby Taylor. They preceded him in death...

Mildred Dahlgren Mildred Ann Dahlgren, 76, of Poplar Bluff, Mo., died Thursday, Oct. 10, 2013, at Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center. Mrs. Dahlgren was born Sept. 19, 1937, in Charleston, Miss. She was a member of First General Baptist Church and was a housewife who enjoyed playing bingo, fishing, cooking and canning...

Carla Blackwell DAYTONA BEACH SHORES, Fla. -- Carla Blackwell, 51, formerly of Poplar Bluff, Mo., died Saturday, Sept. 28, 2013, in Daytona, Fla. Carla was born Aug. 27, 1962, in Irving, Texas, to the late Jimmy and Saundra Howell. Survivors include her daughter, Summer Howell, and her son, Steward Blackwell ...

Pauline Ruble Raney FARMINGTON, Mo. -- Pauline Ruble Raney, 94, of Farmington, Mo., died Friday, Oct. 11, 2013. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Sunday at Cozean Memorial Chapel in Farmington and will resume at 7 a.m. Monday. The funeral service will follow at 10 a.m. Monday in the funeral home chapel. Burial will be at Mountain View Cemetery in Des Arc, Mo...

Gary Million PIEDMONT, Mo. -- Clinton "Gary" Million, 38, of Piedmont, Mo., died Thursday, Oct. 10, 2013. Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Monday at Ruegg Funeral Home in Piedmont, followed by the funeral at 7 p.m. Monday in the funeral home chapel...

The ace, closer and shortstop were all lost before the season started. The only starting left-hander pitcher went down in May. The cleanup hitter missed the final month of the regular season and another closer lost his ability to close games. Still, the St. Louis Cardinals finished the regular season tied with the best record in baseball and made it to a third straight National League Championship Series...

George Deering GREENVILLE, Mo. -- George F. "Sonny" Deering, 75, of Greenville, Mo., passed away Oct. 10, 2013, at Greenville Nursing and Rehabilitation in Greenville. George was born Feb. 6, 1938, to Clyde Deering and Audrey (Berry) Deering in Kime, Mo...

CHARLESTON -- It would have been easy to write off Dexter going into Friday's game against Charleston. With starting quarterback Peyton Pollock on the sideline the Bearcats were missing a large chunk of their offense from their one-point loss against New Madrid County Central the week prior...

CHAFFEE -- The marquee matchup of Week 7 didn't disappoint in terms of how close the game was and the history made. Malden entered hostile territory Friday night at state-ranked Chaffee with the SEMO South title on the line. The Green Wave missed two big scoring chances and didn't have much of an answer for Red Devils quarterback Peyton Montgomery as Chaffee won 28-18 to earn its first conference title since 1979...

In the second inning, East Carter's Andrea Kearbey hit the first over-the-fence home run of her life, but she was called out after the umpires ruled that she went to the dugout and didn't touch home plate. After the game, she went back to have a photo of her emphatically stepping on home, this time, with the Class 2 District 2 championship plaque under her arm...

Oran didn't really swing the bats to beat Naylor, it just kind of stuck the barrel out over the plate. Half of Oran's eight hits, as well as three RBIs, in the MSHSAA Class 1 District 1 championship Friday came off bunts. Add in four walks and six errors by Naylor and No. 2 seed Oran scored a lot more runs than it expected to win 8-1...

SPRINGFIELD -- The Poplar Bluff Mules netted two goals with under 15 minutes to play Saturday afternoon as they earned fifth place in the Brown Division of the 23rd Annual Kickapoo Shootout by beating Greenwood, 2-1. After a scoreless game for the first 60 minutes, Greenwood got on the board first...

FARMINGTON -- Trying to stop Bi Nguyen, the Farmington defense dared Poplar Bluff quarterback Kameron Misner to beat them Friday night. The sophomore did three times with his arm while twice plunging over the goal line himself in the Mules' 35-7 SEMO North Conference win...