Stories from Saturday, June 6, 2015

By MICHELLE FRIEDRICH Associate Editor Poplar Bluff Police Patrolman Bob Larkins recently learned he needs to find a "new normal" as he will never be the same person he was before Dec. 12, when he had to use lethal force to stop an armed suspect. "No matter what happens in law enforcement, I still have to raise my children and love my wife, and I was doing a ... poor job of doing that because I didn't know how to deal with the situation," said Larkins...

By BARBARA ANN HORTON News Editor Rockabilly fans will have an opportunity Saturday to enjoy Narvel Felts, as well as contributing to the restoration of the historic Rodgers Theatre in Poplar Bluff. The concert featuring Felts and the opening act, Double Edge of Memphis, Tenn., will begin at 7 p.m...

By PAT PRATT Staff Writer The Second Annual American Hearth Association Butler County HeartChase will take place 9 a.m. Saturday at Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center (PBRMC). According to PBRMC, the event offers a creative way to have a good time and contribute to an important cause. Be it building a literal food pyramid, learning a quick exercise routine or learning Hands Only CPR, HeartChase is guaranteed to be a lot of fun for all involved...

By MICHELLE FRIEDRICH Associate Editor Editor's Note: This is the last in a series of stories concerning officer-involved shootings and their impact on our local law enforcement community. Protocols were implemented last year after officers with both the Poplar Bluff Police Department and Butler County Sheriff's Department had to use deadly force in the course of their duties...

The Mo-Ark Christian Service Camp located outside of Naylor on Ripley County Road 142-E38 will begin Saturday with a one-day camp for Grades 1-2. The following two weeks, they will provide camp for kids in junior and senior high (grades 7-12) and juniors (grades 3-6)...

DEXTER - Ed Kleiman, a Messianic Jew who grew up in St. Louis, will be sharing the story of how he overcame drugs and alcohol at Sweet Prospect General Baptist Church in Dexter on Saturday and Sunday. There will be a breakfast and two hour prayer and teaching session starting at 8 a.m. Saturday with an evening session starting at 7. Then Kleiman will deliver the Sunday message titled "Our Hears Desire & Prayer."...

By ELEANOR C. HASENBECK Staff Writer The First United Methodist Church is trying to combat churchgoer's busy summer schedules with it's seasonal Thursday night service, "The River Gathering." "Sundays are just getting harder," said Adam Fears, the Methodist Church's youth and young adult pastor, who coordinates the service...

By GEORGE F. WILL WASHINGTON -- Does any stricture of journalistic propriety or social etiquette require us to participate in Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders' charade? Is it obligatory to take seriously his pose of being an "independent" and a "socialist"? It gives excitable Democratic activists a frisson of naughtiness to pretend that he is both. Actually, he is neither...

By CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER WASHINGTON -- About a decade ago, a doctor friend was lamenting the increasingly frustrating conditions of clinical practice. "How did you know to get out of medicine in 1978?" he asked with a smile. "I didn't," I replied. "I had no idea what was coming. I just felt I'd chosen the wrong vocation."...

How did he get all that money? Do you know as somebody who spent their life working in Poplar Bluff, barely made a living, barely had a roof over their head. I'm just curious when watching this deal on the TV -- this Representative Dennis Hastert of Illinois. ...

Esther J. Burns DEXTER, Mo.--Esther J. Burns, 84, of Dexter, died Tuesday, June 2, 2015 at Southeast Health Center of Stoddard County in Dexter. Visitation will be from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. Saturday at the Assembly of God Church in Bloomfield. Funeral services will follow 1 p.m. at the Assembly of God Church P.M. with Rev. Dwight Hensley officiating. Burial will be in the Bloomfield Cemetery...

James Lee Warren DEXTER, Mo.--James Lee Warren, 59, of Bloomfield, died Wednesday, June 3, 2015. A graveside service will be conducted at 3 p.m., Monday, at the Missouri State Veterans Cemetery in Bloomfield. Arrangements are under the direction of the Rainey-Mathis Funeral Home in Dexter...

After helping to claim Poplar Bluff's first-ever state title in track and field, seniors Jabreuna Brimlett and Jessenia Ellis have decided to remain teammates in college. The pair signed their letters of intent to join the Murray State University program on Thursday...

COLUMBIA, Mo.- $19 million in Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grants are available to rural communities this year, the USDA announced. Missouri Rural Development State Director Janie Dunning announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is accepting applications for its Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) grant program. DLT provides increased access to education, training and health care resources in rural areas...

Richard S. "Dick" Brumitt DONIPHAN, Mo.--Richard S. "Dick" Brumitt, 88, of Doniphan, died Wednesday, June 3, 2015 at his residence. Visitation will begin at 1 p.m. Saturday, June 13, at the First United Methodist Church in Doniphan followed by a 3 p.m. memorial service in the church sanctuary...