Stories from Monday, December 29, 2014

Weather in the first three months of the year had residents longing for spring. A storm dumped 4-6 inches on Poplar Bluff in early February and in early March a record 3-5 inches of sleet was buried under 5-7 inches of snow. It forced the closing of schools for days at a time causing parents to scramble to find care for their children...

By DONNA FARLEY Staff Writer Nearly $11.6 million in general fund spending is planned under the 2015 budget that will go before the Poplar Bluff City Council for approval Monday. The general fund is expected to be in the black by $48,000, however revenues rely heavily on a predicted growth in sales tax collections that would be the highest seen by the city in the last decade...

By DONNA FARLEY Staff Writer More than 90 percent of all general fund spending for the city of Poplar Bluff will pay salary and benefits to employees under the proposed 2015 budget. About 80 percent of general fund spending was devoted to personnel costs in the original 2014 budget...

By DAVID SILVERBERG Associate Editor Furnaces ran more, people wore heavier coats earlier and snowfall was deeper as Poplar Bluff had only six days with above normal temperatures in November. "It was the second coolest November in Poplar Bluff with an average temperature of 39.5 degrees," said Bryan Peake, a climatologist with the Midwestern Regional Climate Center in Champaign, Ill...

By DAVID SILVERBERG Associate Editor One year after organ donor Jessica Hicks died, liver recipient Thomas Hart rejoiced in the birth of his daughter. "I wanted to name her Jessica after my hero Jessica," said Hart, who resides in Doniphan. He sent a Facebook message to Hicks' mother, Virginia Porter, expressing his naming intention and asking her to be present for the birth...

Charles Edward (Boots) Gambill NEELYVILLE, Mo.--Charles Edward (Boots) Gambill, 85, of Doniphan, passed away Thursday, Dec. 25, 2014, in the St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. He was born June 26, 1929, at Torch, to the late William and Clara (Reynolds) Gambill...

Naomi Marie Goff POPLAR BLUFF, Mo.--Naomi Marie Goff, 77, of Poplar Bluff, died Saturday, Dec. 27, 2014, at Westwood Hills Health and Rehabilitation Center. Naomi was born April 17, 1937, in Wayne County to the late Clarence and Esther Wilson Keele...

Marian Duley DEXTER, Mo.--Marian Duley, 87, of Dexter, and the daughter of the late Roy Loper and Cordelia Meldrum Loper was born Jan. 18, 1927, in Bay City, Mich. and departed this life Thursday, Dec. 25, 2014, at the Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center...

Let's heal and move on The incident in Ferguson just happened. Nobody planned it. Nobody could have predicted what occurred. The police are at risk every tour of duty. No one person should be blamed for this. I do wonder the reaction if the officer had been killed. ...

Helen A. Long COLUMBIA, Ill,-- HELEN A. LONG, nee Miller, 76, of Dupo, Ill., was born March 28, 1938, in Doniphan, and died Thursday, Dec. 25, 2014, at Touchette Regional Hospital, Centreville, Ill. She was preceded in death by her husband, Harvey Long; her parents, James and Violet, nee McDonald, Miller; and her former husband, Bill Kenner...

Tracey Anne (Silkwood) Walker POPLAR BLUFF, Mo.--Tracey Anne (Silkwood) Walker, 52, of Poplar Bluff, died Friday, Dec. 26, 2014, at Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center. Tracey was born March 23, 1962, in Poplar Bluff to Ed and Mary Felts Silkwood. She was a registered nurse and of the Baptist faith. She enjoyed golfing, gardening, landscaping, collecting Petosky stones and spending time with her Sheltie dogs. She treasured her family and friends and her adopted home, Charlevoix, Mich...

Poplar Bluff Senior High School has released the names of their Students of the Month for November. Ninth grade Leah Jackson, daughter of Doug and Angie Jackson, enjoys rodeo barrel racing and pole bending, and hanging with friends. She is involved in the Mule Barn. Jackson would like to attend Murray State on a rodeo scholarship and she hopes to continue to rodeo and do something in the veterinary field...

Mark Allen Baugus NEELYVILLE, Mo.--Mark Allen Baugus, 47, of Naylor, passed away Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014, at his residence. Visitation and funeral were held Saturday, Dec. 27. Burial was in the Gum Cemetery. Fowler-Sullivan Chapel of Neelyville was in charge of arrangements...

By PATRICK J. BUCHANAN The celebrations in Havana and the sullen silence in Miami tell you all you need to know about who won this round with Castro's Cuba. In JFK's metaphor, Obama traded a horse for a rabbit. We got back Alan Gross before his Communist jailers killed him, along with an American spy, in exchange for three members of a Cuban espionage ring. Had we left it at that, the deal would have been fine...

By BEN CARSON Like many other Americans, I have always had a desire to travel to Israel and visit firsthand the many historical sites of spiritual significance. I was recently afforded the opportunity to fulfill that desire and was not disappointed...

Darryl McDowell MALDEN, Mo.--Darryl Joseph McDowell, 45, of Malden, died Thursday, Dec. 25, 2014, in an automobile accident south of Malden. Visitation will be at 6 p.m. Monday at Landmark Pentecostal Church. The funeral will be at 1 p.m. Tuesday at Landmark Pentecostal Church with burial in Rosewood Cemetery in Malden...

By MEG BENSON SEMO News Service KENNETT, Mo. -- While Sheryl Crow is thrilled about the upcoming Kennett Crossroads concerts in her hometown of Kennett, there is something she has recently had to take care of first. "I've been spending almost all my time in Washington, D.C., for weeks and weeks now, and it's something I'm very excited to talk about," Crow said...

Delbert Ray McCoy CLARKTON, MO.--Delbert Ray McCoy, 76, of Clarkton, died Saturday, Dec. 27, 2014, at his residence. Visitation will be held at 1 p.m. Monday at Bradshaw Funeral Home in Malden. The funeral will be at 3 p.m. Monday at the funeral home chapel with burial in Mt. Gilead Cemetery in Clarkton...

Ernestine Webber CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo.--Ernestine Webber, 79, of Dexter, died Friday, Dec. 26, 2014, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau, Mo. Visitation will be from 5-8 p.m. Sunday at Watkins & Sons Funeral Home in Dexter. The funeral will be 10:30 a.m. Monday at Watkins & Sons Chapel in Dexter with burial in Hagy Cemetery in Dexter...

Rev. Patricia Smith DEXTER, Mo.--Rev. Patricia Sue Smith, 80, of Bloomfield, died Thursday, Dec. 25, 2014, at the St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. Visitaton will be from 5-8 p.m. Monday at the Watkins & Sons Funeral Home in Dexter. Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. Tuesday at the Watkins & Sons Funeral Home in Dexter, with Bro. Dave Gargus of Wingo, Ky. officiating...

Melvin Gaines MALDEN, Mo.--Melvin Gaines, 69, of Malden, died Thursday, Dec. 25, 2014, at his residence. Visitation was held from 6-8 p.m. Saturday at the Landess Funeral Home in Malden. Funeral service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Landess Funeral Home Chapel in Malden with Rev. Steve Fitzpartick and Rev. Harold Cater officiating...

A 45-year-old Malden, Mo., man was killed in a one-vehicle crash at 5:50 p.m. Thursday on County Road 222, two miles south of Malden. According to the report, Darrell J. McDowell was operating a 2000 GMC pickup eastbound when it ran off the right side of the road. McDowell reportedly then failed to negotiate a curve, which caused his truck to strike a utility pole...

Lateesha D. Craft, 35, of Poplar Bluff, was booked at the Butler County jail Friday on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance, possession of under 35 grams of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. Bonnie R. Dozier, 27, of Williamsville, was booked at the Butler County jail Friday on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance and a failure to appear warrant for stealing over $500...

BLOOMFIELD -- It was crowded inside the lane for fifth-seeded Twin Rivers in the first quarter against No. 12 Holcomb in a first-round Bloomfield Christmas Tournament game Friday. The Royals decided to challenge the Hornets with outside shots and they caught fire to pull away...

Preston Shaw Preston Michael Shaw, 25, of Poplar Bluff, Mo., passed away Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2014, at Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center. Preston was born Sept. 12, 1989, in Poplar Bluff. He graduated from Poplar Bluff High School and attended Three Rivers College with plans to attend medical school. ...

BLOOMFIELD -- Just like he talked about earlier this week, Bloomfield coach Jason Karnes said after beating Puxico on Friday night that the uptempo game would factor in his team advancing at the Bloomfield Christmas Tournament. The seventh-seeded Wildcats pulled away from a one-possession game to start the second half and beat Puxico 73-55...

Isaiah R. Johnson, 17, of Sikeston, was arrested 4:04 p.m. Friday on a Division of Youth Services warrant for suspicion of youth absconding and a failure to appear warrant for no seat belt. He was booked at the Butler County jail. _ Thomas Hays, 20, of Fisk, was arrested at 7:41 p.m. Friday near the intersection of Ninth and Maud on a Poplar Bluff traffic warrant. He was processed at the police station and released...

Nigeria, Abiodun Francis says, was having "issues." The current Poplar Bluff senior, whose friends call AB, wasn't safe in his native country. The government declared a state of emergency in May 2013 as it fought Boko Haram. Both are still active. Two months after the declaration, Boko Haram fighters attacked and set fire to a secondary school. The government closed all secondary schools until September...

In the two weeks since losing the SEMO Conference Tournament final, the Poplar Bluff Mules have gone to work preparing to build on their early-season success. "The last two weeks have been, by far, the best two weeks of practice my four years," Mules senior Chris Stocks said. "I can honestly say that every day at practice everyone is coming in and competing. That's what's great about it."...

BLOOMFIELD -- The runs were small, brief, and difficult to come by. After a low-scoring first half, No. 4 Bernie allowed six points in the third quarter to take the lead for good, beating fifth-seeded Twin Rivers 51-36 on Saturday to advance to the semifinals of the Bloomfield Christmas Tournament...

BLOOMFIELD -- It's called the Bloomfield Christmas Tournament. But there has been nothing Bloomfield about the semifinals since 1986. Until now. The Wildcats pulled a huge upset of second-seeded Malden on Saturday night in the quarterfinals as they took the lead on a late run in the second quarter and held on until the end for a 54-47 win...

BLOOMFIELD -- Lucas Moe had 14 of his team-high 20 points in the first half to propel Doniphan to a 16 point lead at halftime. The No. 14 Dons held the margin in the second half and won 66-47 to upset No. 11 Portageville Saturday to advance to the consolation semifinals at the Bloomfield Christmas Tournament...