Stories from Friday, August 23, 2019

In life, it seems more and more that we are encountering more and more boorish people. We are encountering people with a chip on their shoulder and are just daring you to knock it off. I know that there are days that I am a grumpy old man. I know that there are days that I have as the old saying goes, “Awoke on the wrong side of the bed.”...

The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and return kindness. I looked it up and this is what the dictionary says “gratitude” is. It’s much more than these 13 words suggest. I could not find happiness until I figured this one word out. I could not live the life that God wanted me to live without truly having gratitude for the people, things and talents that He has blessed me with...

MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL Michael K. Hollowell, 60, of Poplar Bluff was arrested at 4:39 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 22, on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine), no insurance, no seat belt and speeding. He was booked at the Butler County jail...

City firefighters responded at 3:39 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 22, to a sounding carbon monoxide detector at the 1001 Pershing St. residence owned by Bill Wiles. According to the report, Wiles told firefighters he had replaced the battery in the CO detector, but it still was chirping...

MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL Jestin L. Smith, 37, of Neelyville was arrested at 9:10 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 20, on suspicion of two counts of possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine and marijuana), unlawful use of a weapon and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was booked at the Butler County jail...

City firefighters responded at 5:26 p.m. Monday, Aug. 19, to a report of a grass fire at the intersection of Relief Street and Grand Avenue. According to the report, firefighters used five gallons of water to put out a small grass fire beside the street...

Latricia Ann Griffin, “Mz. Purple” 44, of Mesa, Ariz., died Aug. 16, 2019 at her home in Mesa, Ariz . Visitation will be from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 24 at Fowler-Sullivan Funeral Home in Poplar Bluff. The funeral will follow at 1 p.m. in the Fowler-Sullivan Funeral Home chapel with Bishop Johnny Williams and Bishop Ronnie Webb officiating. Burial will be in Bacon Pasture Cemetery in Butler County...

DEXTER — Shirley Ruth Tate, 82, of Kansas City, Mo., died Aug. 21, 2019 at the Kansas City Hospice House in Kansas City. Visitation will be from 12:30 - 2 p.m. Monday, Aug. 26 at the Rainey-Mathis Funeral Home in Dexter. The funeral will follow at 2 p.m. in the chapel with Rev. Dr. Tom Bass officiating. Burial will be in the Missouri State Veterans Cemetery in Bloomfield...

**UPDATED 3:11 p.m.** A Poplar Bluff woman may face charges after she allegedly stabbed her boyfriend Thursday night when she “figured out” he was leaving her for good. Arrested was Annette Sue Russell. She was charged Friday with two Class B felonies of first-degree assault, two unclassified felonies of armed criminal action and the Class E felony of unlawful use of a weapon.

A Poplar Bluff man was arrested Friday afternoon after his recent indictment on charges in connection with the shooting death of his girlfriend. Michael Joseph Choate was arrested without incident at about 3:45 p.m., Butler County Sheriff Mark Dobbs said...

The Poplar Bluff R-I school board approved a change to the tax levy at it’s monthly meeting Thursday night.

For many of the people who came out Thursday to honor the first group of Difference Maker finalists, it was about recognizing those who do not seek that recognition.

BROSELEY — Lee Lewis has been farming in eastern Butler County his entire life, carrying on a tradition at Gator Hole Farms his grandfather started more than seven decades ago.

The line-of-duty shootings of a deputy and state trooper near Van Buren were sobering reminders of the sacrifice that law enforcement officers make for us every day. I join the rest of our community in giving thanks that both survived and are expected to recover. As Southeast Missourians, we respect and appreciate our police officers while other parts of the country often vilify them for doing their jobs. In the General Assembly, I will support any measures to ensure our heroic public servants have the tools necessary to perform their duties.

The Washington Post ran an article last weekend on Poplar Bluff.