Stories from Friday, June 3, 2016

By MICHELLE FRIEDRICH Associate Editor VAN BUREN, Mo. -- An area assistant prosecuting attorney will serve as Carter County's acting prosecutor during June. The vacancy, which is being filled by Ripley County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Kacey Proctor, is the result of the recent retirement of Ernie Richardson...

By JONATHON DAWE SEMO News Service BLOOMFIELD, Mo. -- Some tense moments arose during cross examination from Chris Hicks' attorney Dan Ward as day two of his attempted murder trial played out. Perhaps the most memorable testimony of the day was delivered by Brandy Hicks. She was formerly married to Chris Hicks, and faces the same charges as her ex-husband - although she was offered reduced charges in exchange for her testimony...

By PAT PRATT Staff Writer Boys and Girls Club of Poplar Bluff has officially kicked off its award-winning sixth annual Summer Learning Program, an event designed to reduce learning loss while school is out of session. Youth development professionals and AmeriCorps volunteers during the next 13-weeks will work with hundreds of students in daily two-hour learning sessions. This year's theme is "Full STEAM Ahead," an acronym for science, technology, engineering, arts and math...

By DONNA FARLEY Staff Writer VAN BUREN, Mo. -- John Crider lost his mother to colon cancer, so the Carter County, Mo., man knows the importance of regular screenings. And his tests had always been clear. But at 58, Crider went to the doctor with some health concerns. Exactly four years after receiving his last all clear, Crider was told the doctors had missed something. He had the same disease that had claimed his mother's life...

By MIKE JENSEN Publisher Sikeston Standard Democrat Most Americans this week hopefully paused and pondered the significance and meaning of Memorial Day. Artist and activist John Sims has a different tradition. The Florida-based civil rights and reparation advocate uses the truly American holiday to push for the removal and destruction of all Confederate flags through his Burn and Bury project. (We'll get to that later.)...

By PATRICK J. BUCHANAN In his op-ed in The Washington Post, Chris Grayling, leader of the House of Commons, made the case for British withdrawal from the European Union -- in terms Americans can understand. Would you accept, Grayling asks, an American Union of North and South America, its parliament sitting in Panama, with power to impose laws on the United States, and a high court whose decisions overruled those of the U.S. Supreme Court?...

White teenage unemployment is about 14 percent. That for black teenagers is about 30 percent. The labor force participation rate for white teens is 37 percent, and that for black teens is 25 percent. Many years ago, in 1948, the figures were exactly the opposite. ...

Trailing 3-1 and down to their final two outs, Mike Anagnostopolous and the Mules had just enough left in the tank Wednesday night. Ronin Rice kept it close and Anagnostopolous used his speed to drive in the game-winner as Poplar Bluff rallied past Wayne County for a 4-3 walk-off win to kick off the summer season...

I was asked the other day where someone could go catch some bass, and given all the high, muddy water in the local lakes and streams, the answer came easy - farm ponds or Duck Creek's Pool 1. Pretty much everything else is a no-go until the water comes down...

VAN BUREN, Mo. --Ozark National Scenic Riverways will offer several activities on June 4 and 5 in celebration of National Trails Day and the National Park Service Centennial. On June 4, the Scenic Rivers Stream Team Association will sponsor a cleanup day on the Jacks Fork River followed by a barbecue supper at the Alley Spring picnic area. ...

Wilma Lea Commuso VAN BUREN, Mo. -- Wilma Lea Commuso, 95, of Maryland Heights, Mo., formerly of Van Buren died Wednesday, June 1, 2016. Visitation will begin for the public at 10 a.m., Saturday, June 4, at the McSpadden Funeral Home in Van Buren, with the funeral services following at noon in the Funeral Home Chapel. Officiating will be Rev. Ron Robinson. Burial will be in the Van Buren Cemetery in Van Buren...

Its getting to be that time of year again. The nights are getting hotter, the humidity is rising, the spring peepers are out in full force and the thunder of bullfrogs can be heard in farm ponds, rivers and lakes around the state. Frog season is coming, so let's take a moment to review the regulations...

Nadine J. Cartwright BLOOMFIELD, Mo. -- Nadine J. Cartwright, 83, of Bloomfield died Tuesday, May 31, 2016, at the Golden Living Center in Bloomfield. Visitation will be from 5-8 p.m. on Thursday, June 2, at the Chiles-Cooper Funeral Home in Bloomfield. ...

Juanita Main DONIPHAN, Mo. -- Juanita Main, 89, of Doniphan, Mo., passed away Tuesday, May 31, 2016, at Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center in Poplar Bluff, Mo. Mrs. Main, daughter of Andrew and Ida (Martin) Richmond, was born Jan. 16, 1927, in Naylor, Mo. She was a housewife. Mrs. Main enjoyed sewing, quilting, gardening and tending her plants. She was baptized April 1, 1955, and was a member of the General Assembly & Church of the First Born...

Six Poplar Bluff golfers qualified Wednesday for the 2016 Missouri Amateur Championship. Jake Robertson, Nick Woolard, Nathan Woolard, Bobby Godwin, Tyler Norton and Billy Pyland all shot a 76 or better to secure one of 13 spots available at Wednesday's qualifier, which is one of six leading up to the Amateur on June 21-26 at Jefferson City Country Club...

Greenville R-II High and Junior High Schools honor rolls: Seniors Jon Alexander, Collten Alwes, Benjamin Becker, Leslie Becker, Noah Berrong, Brenden Cate, Matthew Clinton, Ty Clubb, Justin Darnell, Jacob Dorris, Morgan Faries, Kylie Francis, Amy Gipson, Anthony Hudson, Rye Huff, James Hughey, Cody Jackson, Alichia Johnson, Dakota Lee, Brianna Leonard, Amanda McDaniel, Grant Miller, Itzel Montes, John Norton, Cheyenne Rains, Kayla Scherr, Autumn Scott, Makenzy Smith,Sara Stovall, William Studdard, Christa Sutton, Morgan Taylor, Aaron Thurston, Sarah Tibbs, Trynton Tompkins, Kelsey Toombs, Harley Trammell, Cora Walk, Jacob Weaks, Austin Wilbanks. ...

Carolyn Kay Nenninger MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- Carolyn Kay Nenninger, 70, of Poplar Bluff, Mo., passed away Sunday, May 29, 2016, at her home. Born in Corning, Ark., on March 26, 1946, she was the daughter of Leon Chilton and Gladyse Loretta Emery Clifton...