Stories from Thursday, February 11, 2016

By PAT PRATT Staff Writer Poplar Bluff Junior High School student council members on Saturday braved the icy waters of Lake Boutin for the 2016 Poplar Plunge, raising $671 to benefit Special Olympics. During the Polar Plunge, now in its 10th year, teams don silly costumes and jump in the chilly water located at Trail of Tears State Park near Cape Girardeau, Mo...

By DAVID SILVERBERG Associate Editor Several of the early Three Rivers College personnel, who are members of the Downtowners (which was the original location of the college), were honored between the Lady Raiders and Raiders basketball games Saturday night....

By PAT PRATT Staff Writer For nearly 60 years the Poplar Bluff Technical Career Center's (PBTCC) practical nursing program has graduated medical professionals, making it the oldest public-school-based nursing curriculum in Missouri. Established in 1957, the program originally was located in the basement of the old Mark Twain school. The program was moved in 1968 to the current PBTCC campus and since then has provided careers for countless students and quality nurses for the community...

By DONNA FARLEY Staff Writer The box from the U.S. Army may have arrived more than 45 years late, but it still brought tears to the eyes of one Poplar Bluff, Mo., veteran. Spc. Sterling Tyner was nominated for the Bronze Star after carrying a wounded soldier out of a heavy firefight near the Demilitarized Zone during the Vietnam War. His bravery and commitment were recognized by field commanders for the determination to never leave a fellow soldier behind enemy lines...

By DAVID SILVERBERG Associate Editor Family members of the original board members at Three Rivers College were among those recognized during the second annual Raider Reunion celebration in a packed Bess Activity Center Saturday night. The event, which was part of TRC's 50th anniversary celebration, also recognized the alumni, faculty, staff and leadership of the college...

Halter certified after training On Feb. 2, Steve Halter, president of the Greater Poplar Bluff Area Chamber of Commerce, received certification as an Economic Development Finance Professional (EDFP) from the National Development Council (NDC). Certification is a designation given to individuals who successfully complete intensive economic development finance training series that is conducted by NDC. ...

By GEORGE F. WILL WASHINGTON -- When Huck Finn asked Tom Sawyer what a Moslem is, Tom said a Moslem is someone who is not a Presbyterian, which is true, but not the whole truth. Donald Trump says he is a Presbyterian ("I drink my little wine ... and have my little cracker"), which apparently was not good enough for enough of Iowa's evangelicals...

Breanna Kanell is Sacred Heart School's 5th Grade February student of the month. Breanna lives with her parents, Jeffery and Mary Kanell and her two sisters Kailee and Rylee. Breanna loves laughing and telling jokes with her family. Breanna likes English, but her favorite class is math and she enjoys it because her teacher Mrs. ...

By MIKE JENSEN Publisher Sikeston Standard Democrat We American taxpayers are on the verge of shelling out $400,000 to help the state of Minnesota persuade young Somali refugees not to join ISIS. The money is just a drop in the bucket of the $50 million Obama administration program to fight domestic terrorism...

By STEPHEN MOORE With the first real votes being cast in the presidential race Monday, this is an opportune moment to do some last-minute comparison shopping on the candidates' tax reform plans. On this issue there's a lot to cheer about. All the Republican candidates have crafted plans that would slash tax rates for everyone and most would vastly simplify the thousands of pages of IRS tax code...

KENNETT, Mo. (AP) -- Nine-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow returned to her hometown of Kennett to surprise the teachers at her alma mater, Kennett High School, with a $21,600 donation for classroom supplies. During an all-school assembly featured on the "Today" show's "Show Heart Today" series Monday, Crow announced she was "adopting" all the school's teachers through AdoptAClassroom.org with a $600 donation each...

By MARK BLISS SEMO News Service CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. -- Missouri's high-school students would have to pass a civics exam, similar to the U.S. naturalization test, to graduate from high school under a bill proposed by state Rep. Kathy Swan, R-Cape Girardeau...

The application deadline for Three Rivers College's day and evening nursing programs in Poplar Bluff, its LPN-to-RN bridge program in Poplar Bluff, and its practical nursing program in Kennett is now approaching. The application deadline for all four programs is March 1...

By BRIDGET BROWN SEMO News Service SoutheastHEALTH has announced the closing of Southeast Health Center of Reynolds County and its related clinics in Ellington and Van Buren. Operations will cease effective March 11. According to a news release, SoutheastHEALTH recently was informed by state Medicaid officials of a $6 million liability owed by Advanced Healthcare, the hospital's previous owners...

Robert Donald Phillips Robert Donald Phillips, 94, passed away at his Bremerton, Wash., home early on the morning of Jan. 31, 2016. Robert was born in E. St. Louis, Ill., on April 15, 1921 to Donald Rollie Phillips and Mary Emily (Wantland) Phillips and was called "Buddy" by his family. ...

Rosita Braga Dunaway Rosita Braga Dunaway, 69, of Poplar Bluff, passed away Monday, Feb. 8, 2016 at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau, Mo. Mrs. Dunaway, the daughter of the late Teodirico and Eufracia (Pelicano) Braga, was born Aug. 24, 1946 in Bay Bay, Leyte Philippines. ...

GREENVILLE -- It worked against East Carter three days ago and the Neelyville Tigers needed it to work again in the semifinals of the Ozark Foothills Conference Tournament against the second-seeded Twin Rivers Royals. Out-numbered and out-sized, the Tigers played a game of control the pace of play Tuesday night. It worked well for the first half, but after an adjustment on defense the Royals were just too much to handle in the second half...

Deborah Holloway PUXICO, Mo. -- Deborah Holloway of Puxico died Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2016, at Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, Mo. Arrangements are pending with Morgan Sifford Funeral Home in Puxico.

Willie Lucas and Marcedus Leech scored all but six of Poplar Bluff's points through three quarters Tuesday night. The Mules turned an 8-point lead in the final minute of the third into a runaway 80-47 victory over South Pemiscot at Peters Gym with the rest of the team doing the majority of the scoring...

Retired teachers to meet Feb. 17 Butler County Retired Teachers and School Personnel will meet at 10 a.m., Wednesday, Feb. 17, in the Altrusa Room at Twin Towers. The program about aerobics will be presented by Terena Whitworth. All retired educators and school support employees are invited to attend...

James A. Reed DEXTER, Mo. -- James A. Reed, 86, of Dudley, died Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2016 at John J. Pershing V.A. Medical Center in Poplar Bluff. Mr. Reed was a farmer and a resident of Dudley. He was a veteran of the United States Army and served during the Korean War...

Glen Michael Perkins Glen Michael Perkins, 62 years old, of Clermont, Fla., passed away Friday, Feb. 5, 2016, at his home. Glen leaves behind his wife, Katherine Sue Perkins; his two sons, Glen Daniel Perkins and Michael Stuart Perkins; his five stepchildren, Kimberly Costley, Leslie Buck, Matthew Koontz, Phillip Koontz, and Adam Koontz; along with 16 grandchildren. ...

GREENVILLE -- The Doniphan boys basketball team won't deny it sometimes lives and dies on the 3. It's not always an ideal situation, but when the Dons are on from beyond the arc, good luck stopping them. Fifth-seeded Greenville found that out the hard way as top-seeded Doniphan knocked down a season-high 12 3-pointers, jumped out to a 20-point lead in the first quarter and never looked back on its way to a 67-42 victory in an Ozark Foothills Conference Tournament semifinal Tuesday night...

Charles "Charlie" Alan Fisher Charles "Charlie" Alan Fisher, 65, of Fairdealing passed away Monday, Feb. 8, 2016 at his home. Mr. Fisher was born Dec. 20, 1950 in St. Louis, Mo, to the late J B and Beatrice Fisher. Mr. Fisher was a member of Temple Baptist Church. He was a United States Army Veteran. He had worked as a mechanic and a contractor. He enjoyed playing the guitar, wood working, crosswords and fishing...

James A. Reed -- Dudley, Mo. Robert Donald Phillips -- Bremerton, Wash. Rosita Braga Dunaway -- Poplar Bluff, Mo. Glen Michael Perkins -- Clermont, Fla. Deborah Holloway -- Puxico, Mo.

ORAN -- Tim Hector sank five 3s for Bloomfield and finished with a team-high 20 points as Bloomfield won its 20th game of the season, 65-51 over Oran. Nathan Newell added 16 points for Bloomfield (20-3), which was up 10 points after halftime and sank five straight buckets. Newell added a bucket a few minutes later to cap the 13-0 run...

A small number of customers in Poplar Bluff were affected by a power outage overnight. Approximately 30-40 households lost power, according to Bill Bach, general manager of Poplar Bluff Municipal Utilities. The outage lasted around one hour and was caused by failure of a piece of hardware, which was replaced, Bach said...