Stories from Wednesday, May 30, 2018

MALDEN, Mo. - Rubie L. Holloman, 80, of Poplar Bluff, Mo., died Friday, May 25, 2018 at Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center. Visitation will be at 11 a.m., Saturday, June 2 at Bradshaw Funeral Home in Malden. The funeral will follow at 1 p.m. at the Bradshaw Chapel with Rev. Chandler officiating. www.bradshawfh.com...

MALDEN, Mo. - Martha Catherine Jackson, 77, of Gideon, Mo., died Friday, May 25, 2018 at Gideon Care Center. Visitation will be at 6 p.m., Thursday, May 31 at Bradshaw Funeral Homes, Inc. in Malden. The funeral will be at 1 p.m., Friday, June 1 at Bradshaw Chapel in Malden and burial will be in the Missouri Veterans Cemetery in Bloomfield, Mo. www.bradshawfh.com...

DEXTER, Mo. - Leon Watkins, 74, of Puxico, formerly of Essex, died Monday, May 28, 2018 at his residence. Visitation will be after 10 a.m., Friday, June 1, until time of services at noon at the Duck Creek Baptist Church near Puxico with Bro. Buck Cruse of Puxico officiating...

By PATRICK J. BUCHANAN After being sworn in for a fourth term, Vladimir Putin departed the Kremlin for Annunciation Cathedral to receive the televised blessing of Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church. The patriarch and his priests in sacred vestments surrounded Putin, who, standing alone, made the sign of the cross...

> With its unofficial observance dating back to the Civil War, this Memorial Day represented the 47th year we have set aside the last Monday in May to officially recognize those Military Members lost in service to the United States of America. The freedoms so many American's can, and rightfully should, exercise this Memorial Day would have never been possible without the sacrifice so many of our nation's young, our nation's brave, have made in honor of defending those very freedoms...

By STEPHEN MOORE T.S. Eliot famously wrote that April is the cruelest month, but when it comes to America's fiscal picture, nothing could be further from the truth about this April. The latest government numbers confirm that last month was a blockbuster for growth, federal revenues and deficit reduction...

Amy McLean and Stephanie Knoppe have built 1st Class Realty and Property Management from the ground up with a focus on the fundamentals -- reliable, customer-driven service. For owners who need property management services, that means handling everything from screening prospective renters, to juggling repair work and even evictions, if necessary...

Furry friends in the area waiting to find their forever home will now be able to lounge in style and comfort thanks to the Nestle Purina facility in Bloomfield. Twenty employees from Purina rallied together to construct, paint and deliver dog houses and blankets in celebration of PetCare Pride Day...

CAMPBELL, Mo. -- Amy VanderBol, 34, of Campbell died Tuesday, May 29, 2018, at her residence. Visitation will be from 11 a.m. to noon Saturday at Landess Funeral Home in Campbell. The funeral service will be at noon in the funeral home chapel with Rev. Bruce Vinson officiating. Burial will be in the Woodlawn Cemetery Landess Addition. Landess Funeral Home of Campbell is in charge of arrangements...

For Heidi Hansing, the last three years felt as if she were moving backward. "Nothing in my life was what it seemed," Hansing says of her divorce after 22 years of marriage. "Everything had changed." For 30 years, Hansing had served others, beginning in the Army when she was 17. Later, she raised a family and served as a city council member in League City, Texas...

VAN BUREN, Mo. - Billy Ray Grant, 77, of Ellington, Mo., died Sunday, May 27, 2018 at his residence. Visitation will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at McSpadden Funeral Home in Van Buren. The funeral will follow at 11 a.m. in the Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Ron Robinson officiating. Burial will be in the Van Buren City Cemetery. Online condolences: www.mcspaddenfh.com...

DONIPHAN, Mo. -- Barbara Jean Hastings, 76, of Doniphan died Monday, May 28, 2018, at Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. Visitation will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 2, 2018, in the Edwards Funeral Home at Doniphan. The funeral service will follow at 11 a.m. in the funeral home chapel with Brother Steve Sanders officiating. Burial will be in the Lone Star Cemetery in rural Ripley County, Missouri...

Johnny Quentin Miller, Jr., 44, of Longview, Texas, formally of Poplar Bluff, Missouri died, Wednesday, May 9, 2018 at his residence. Visitation will be from 10-11:00 a.m. Saturday, June 2, 2018 at Moore Funeral Service in Poplar Bluff. A Celebration of Life will be held immediately following visitation at 11 a.m. in the Moore Funeral Service Chapel...

PIEDMONT, Mo. -- Bobbie J. Browne Sr., 77, died Tuesday, May 29, 2018, at his son's home near Annapolis. Arrangements will be announced by Morrison-Worley Funeral Chapel at Piedmont.

O'FALLON, Mo. -- The Malden Green Wave entered Tuesday's Class 3 state semifinal looking to inflict big damage with its bats before the Holden Eagles could implement their small-ball attack. "We've been waiting for a big game offensively," Malden sophomore Shay Amoss said. "We hadn't put a complete game together offensively in the playoffs. Today we put the ball in play, good things happened and things fell our way."...

Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens announced Tuesday that he will step down from office Friday, abandoning a monthslong effort to stay in office as he faced felony criminal charges and threats of impeachment by the state Legislature. Hours before Greitens' resignation, a Cole County judge had ordered a Greitens-linked nonprofit, A New Missouri Inc., to turn over documents to lawmakers seeking to determine whether Greitens or his supporters broke campaign-finance laws...

A Doniphan man preempted his upcoming murder trial by pleading guilty Tuesday afternoon to a lesser charge in connection with the 2016 shooting death for his testimony in the case. Accompanied by his attorney, Ted Liszewski, Matthew Brandon Bruce appeared before Presiding Circuit Judge Michael Pritchett after the state, represented by Special Prosecutor Steve Sokoloff, filed an amended information with the court, charging the 31-year-old with the Class B felony of voluntary manslaughter...

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. -- A Poplar Bluff woman was sentenced to three years in federal prison Tuesday afternoon for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine after authorities intercepted a shipment being sent to her. Jo Anna Woley was sentenced to 36 months on the felony of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine by U.S. District Judge Stephen Limbaugh Jr., according to Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Tim Willis...