Stories from Friday, April 1, 1994

PERRYVILLE -- Albert H. Moll, 70, of St. Charles, died Wednesday, March 30, 1994, at St. John's Mercy Hospital. He was born Feb. 1, 1924, in Mascoutah, Ill., son of Ado and Mary Weilbacher Moll. He and Marilyn Richert were married Jan. 29, 1947. She died Feb. 22, 1976...

To the Editor: I cannot and I must not stay silent any longer. Why? Why? Why are our churches not speaking out concerning the dangers of gambling? Have we as Southern Baptists forgotten the Great Commission? Have we forgotten the vows of our Church Covenant? Have we forgotten our Christian values?...

A one-day, hunter education class will be presented Saturday at the Cape Girardeau VFW Post 3838. The day-long course, sponsored by the VFW and Missouri Department of Conservation (DOC), will start at 8 a.m. and will conclude no later than 7 p.m., with a lunch break from noon to 1 p.m...

JEFFERSON CITY -- There may be a few places in Missouri where illegal hunting and fishing still are entrenched traditions and no one thinks much of it. But judging by the number of calls to Missouri's Operation Game Thief (OGT) hot line last year, those benighted spots are becoming fewer and farther between...

Tuesday's election will initiate Cape Girardeau's transition to ward representation. Three new council members will be elected from Wards 1, in the northeast part of the city; Ward 2, on the city's east side; and Ward 6 on the west part of town. A new mayor will be chosen at large...

Dear Editor: When I was a boy one of my friends had a real slot machine which was played with artificial coins. I learned early in life why slot machines were called "one arm bandits." Chris could set the machine to pay off often or seldom. The machine never gave back as much as we put into it. The machine always won! The only questions were, "how much?" and "how quickly?" would it win what we put in...

To the Editor: During the past two weeks I have received three telephone calls from pollsters wanting to know 1. If I was registered to vote, and 2. If I was in favor of riverboat gambling. My response was, yes I was a registered voter and, yes I was in favor of riverboat gambling on one condition -- that we would legalize prostitution also...

To the Editor: I am so pleased with your editorial on Saturday, March 26, in regards to the real meaning of the season of Easter. It truly tells what Easter is all about. This is of course a subject that was taught in ALL schools in the early history of our country. ...

Dear Editor: In a recent radio program I heard many references to President Clinton's objections to GRIDLOCK. Perhaps someone should explain to our president that the Constitution established our two (or more) party system to provide for GRIDLOCK. If everyone agreed with the president, then we would have only a one-party system, which as we all know is communism or perhaps fascism. ...

CHAFFEE -- Department of Natural Resources officials fought to stop a gasoline leak in Chaffee late into the night Thursday. Wink's Convenience Store on South Main Street in Chaffee was closed to business and circled with police tape after the leak was isolated Thursday afternoon...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Graveside service for Ruby Pearl Hopgood of Collierville, Tenn., will be held at 2 p.m. today at East Prairie Memorial Park Cemetery. The Rev. Paul Lathum will officiate. Friends may call at Shelby Funeral Home from noon to 1:30 p.m...

Daisy Hobbs, 104, of Cape Girardeau, died Thursday, March 31, 1994, at Cape Girardeau Nursing Center. Ford and Sons Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

BENTON -- Marvin Cecil Ratledge, 91, Benton Route 1, died Thursday, March 31, 1994, at Jackson Manor in Jackson. He was born Aug. 1, 1902, at Cardwell, son of George W. and Ada Campbell Ratledge. He and Venna Lois Wiley were married Sept. 26, 1923, in Piggott, Ark. She died May 18, 1983. He then married Ethel Bollinger June 7, 1986. She died in February 1992...

Mary C. Heim, 89, of Clinton, N.Y., formerly of Cape Girardeau, died Wednesday, March 23, 1994. She was born May 3, 1904, in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada, daughter of Thomas and Ella Quigley McRae. She married Fritz Heim in 1945, who died in 1977...

James Daniel Morrison, 61, 1828 LaWanda, died Thursday, March 31, 1994, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. He was born Jan. 2, 1933, in East St. Louis, Ill., son of Daniel and Inez Hammond Morrison. He and Clara Pinkston were married June 23, 1956, in East St. Louis...

Graveside service for Edna Crawford of Rushville, Ill., was held March 10 at Rushville City Cemetery. The Rev. Michael Smith officiated. Roby Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements. Crawford, 88, died Tuesday, March 8, 1994, at Culbertson Memorial Hospital in Rushville...

PERRYVILLE -- Jeffrey Anthony Taylor, 34, of Perryville, died Wednesday, March 30, 1994, at Perry County Memorial Hospital. He was born May 18, 1959, in Kansas City, son of Valentine J. and Doris M. Kelley Taylor. Taylor was a forklift operator at Gilster-Mary Lee. He was a memberof St. Vincent's Catholic Church and Knights of Columbus...

Norman E. "Gene" Crader, 65, 1616 Mississippi, died Wednesday, March 30, 1994, at his home. He was born June 23, 1928, at Whitewater, son of John Marshall and Fannie Slover Crader. He and Jo Ann Mullins were married March 27, 1949, in Cape Girardeau...

VANDUSER -- Nan Theiss, 96, of Vanduser, died Thursday, March 31, 1994, at Miner Nursing Center. She was born July 2, 1897, in Owensboro, Ky., daughter of Louis and Ammy Gilliland Wornica. She and Jack Theiss were married in 1924. He preceded her in death...

CHAFFEE -- Leland O. Harrell, 77, of Chaffee, died Thursday, March 31, 1994, at his home. He was born June 1, 1916, at Brownwood, son of Frank Otto Otis and Cecil Hindman Harrell. He and Loretta Brucker were married Oct. 22, 1941. Harrell was a retired conductor with Frisco Railroad Co. He was a member of St. Ambrose Catholic Church and its Men's Club, Chaffee Elks 1810, and Chaffee VFW Post 3127...

Five Cape Girardeau educators have been honored as the first Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce Educators of the Year. Honorees are Carol Reimann, elementary education; Tammy Sue Brotherton, secondary education; Joseph "Bud" Thompson, vocational education; Marjorie Engleman, special education; and Sister Mary Ann Fischer, administration...

When an elevator stops working or jams between floors somewhere in Cape Girardeau, trapping someone inside, firefighters typically are the first to hear about it. That's why Battalion Chief Mark Hasheider, training officer for the Cape Girardeau Fire Department, requested the services of a man who is as close to an expert on the topic as there is...

The Southeast Missouri State University Board of Regents hiked tuition Thursday and approved other fee changes while holding the line on room charges for the 1995 fiscal year. Tuition will be increased by $2 per credit hour for Missouri resident students and $4 per credit hour for non-residents students...

Cape Girardeau City Council opponents James J.J. Williamson and Frank Stoffregen have witnessed a dramatic increase in public response during their campaign as Ward 1 candidates. "The ward system gives everybody a feeling that they count and are not just a number," said Stoffregen, who will square off against Williamson in Tuesday's city council election...

The new movie "The Paper" displays its opening credits against a backdrop of the inner workings of an old-fashioned clock, its gears pushing rhythmically against one another. The last image before the closing credits is that of a clock. Those shots provide tidy and instructive bookends for a pretty good story. Billed as a film about a day in the life of a New York City tabloid, "The Paper" is really about time...

The Alaska House, whose members are prone to strong opinions and long-winded speeches, refused to honor someone with the same traits: Rush Limbaugh. A few liberal legislators said they signed on to the Limbaugh plaudit without reading it. They said they were tricked by its title, "Honoring Excellence in Broadcasting."...

Shirley Stennis-Williams, dean of education at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, has been named the dean of the College of Education at Southeast Missouri State University. Southeast's Board of Regents approved the hiring in closed session Thursday. Stennis-Williams will begin her new duties June 15 at a salary of $72,000, university officials said...

Trail of Tears State Park officially opens today for the 1994 season, but park officials said only limited services will be available in the electric campsite along the Mississippi River. "We were not able to repair all of the flood damage before opening day, but we decided to go ahead and reopen the electric campsite area and the day-use picnic area south of the electric campsites so the people could use that area," said Park Superintendent Herschel Price. ...

BENTON -- A new superintendent has been named for the Thomas W. Kelly Schools at Benton. Ron McSoreley will begin his duties at the school July 1. McSoreley currently serves as superintendent at Van-Far School District in Vandalia, Mo. He served as superintendent for the past eight years...

The Cape Girardeau County voter registration offices in Cape Girardeau and Jackson will be open Saturday for the casting of absentee ballots for Tuesday's elections. The offices, located at 44 N. Lorimier in Cape Girardeau and in the County Administrative Building at Jackson, will be open from 8-11:30 a.m. Saturday, said a spokesman for the offices...

Four students from Cape Girardeau Central High School have been selected to perform with the Colts Drum and Bugle Corps from Dubuque, Iowa. Josh Miller, contra-bass bugle, Justin Newberry, soprano bugle, Matt Shivelbine, baritone bugle, and Josh Lamar, soprano bugle, will compete with the corps throughout the summer. Newberry is also a soloist...

Astronaut Linda Godwin says she's looking forward to her second shuttle flight because "I am going to see so much more of the world." In a telephone interview from the Johnson Space Center, the Oak Ridge native spoke about her upcoming flight aboard the shuttle Endeavour...