Stories from Thursday, August 26, 1993

Welfare in this nation is a nightmare ... bloated, expensive and, worst of all, offering little hope of extrication to those on its rolls. President Clinton, to his credit, wants to reform the system. With a mess this big, it takes a certain level of chutzpah just to say the words. However, audacity alone won't serve this mission. And invention may be useless in Mr. Clinton's vast project if the economy is not in shape to accommodate his wishes...

The Lutheran Flood Relief Task Force will hold a training session today on how to pump out flooded basements. The training session will be held at 7 p.m. at St. Andrew Lutheran Church, 804 N. Cape Rock Drive. "We are going to focus on training volunteers and homeowners to safely pump water out of the basement," said Jim Hicks, task force chairman...

Southeast Missouri Hospital's Dennis B. Elrod, M.D., Obstetrics and Gynecology Center will host its 13th annual Maternal-Newborn Symposium Sept. 11 at the University Center at Southeast Missouri State University. The event will feature a variety of presentations of interest to physicians, nurses and health professionals whose medical focus is pregnancy, childbirth and neonatal period...

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has provided the Cape Girardeau Public Library, 711 N. Clark, with copies of a 90-minute tape entitled "Information for Flood Victims." The video contains information about assistance available to victims of the flood...

JACKSON -- Girls interested in joining Girl Scouts for the 1993-94 school year may register at the Jackson City Pool Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon. "Scout Splash" is a swimming party and registration. Admission is a non-perishable food item or cleaning supplies. Registration for the Girl Scout program is $6...

The Illinois Department of Corrections wants to get on with its chore of selecting a site for a planned $60 million super-maximum prison. "We don't want to string it out, said Nick Howell, a spokesman for the department. "We intend to run a very efficient evaluation process, and we'd like to have a site selected by mid-October."...

Mary Burton knows when it is time to leave. Burton, the executive director of the Cape Girardeau County chapter of the American Red Cross, said Wednesday that the agency is reducing its operations now that the floodwaters are receding. The Red Cross is cutting back on its emergency response vehicles, those red and white trucks that have become a fixture in many Mississippi River towns this summer delivering meals in Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois...

Although they have not yet had the opportunity to review the changes in detail, the co-chairmen of a joint legislative committee on wetlands believe changes announced this week in federal wetlands policy will help ease some of the confusion and frustration that have troubled many landowners...

The Cape Girardeau City Council voted Wednesday to place on the April 5 ballot two measures that would fund nearly $19 million in sewer improvements. Voters will decide whether to fund the sewer work by extending an existing quarter-cent capital improvements tax through the year 2020...

Due to temperatures soaring past the 90 degree mark, the first day of classes at Cape Girardeau public schools today will be cut short. Elementary students will be dismissed at 11:30 a.m. and secondary students dismissed at noon, said James Englehart, director of secondary education...

JACKSON - The first day of school in the Jackson School District went smoothly for the 3,700 students and faculty, said Superintendent Wayne Maupin. "Traditionally, we always have a good start of school; however, this year appears to have been exceptionally smooth in spite of the hot and humid weather," said Maupin. "In my six years as superintendent at Jackson, this year's start of school was as good as the past five, if not better...

JACKSON -- The Auxiliary of Lutheran Family and Children's Services of Southeast Missouri will present the second biannual quilt show Sept. 4 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The show will be held at St. Paul Lutheran school gymnasium on West Adams Street. Internationally recognized quilt designer, Laura Crewes Lewis, will work on her current quilt in the morning and discuss her work. At 1:30 p.m. she will speak on "What Quilt Show Judges Look For," followed by a question and answer period...

When Barbra Jackson came to Cape Girardeau to lend her expertise as a human resources director for the American Red Cross, she was "shocked" to find virtually no black skilled volunteers in the area. She was even more surprised to learn that the Cape Girardeau chapter of the NAACP was unaware of a written agreement between the agency and the Red Cross pledging one another's support during times of crisis...

The heat wave affected some classes at Southeast Missouri State University Wednesday afternoon. Power in four university buildings was shut off from 2:30 to 4:45 p.m. in accordance with an interrruptable power agreement with Union Electric. Under the agreement, the university cuts back its normal 4,950 kilowatts to 2,500 at the utility's request. The university has two generators capable of producing 1,300-1,400 kilowatts, but the difference necessitates shutting down power to some buildings...

While students and teachers are sweating it out in classrooms around the area, those at St. Vincent de Paul grade school in Cape Girardeau are enjoying newly air-conditioned classrooms. "We're just cool," said Principal Rita Fisher. Ten of the school's classrooms received air conditioning over the summer; the whole school is now cool...

Gerline "June" Browning, 69, of Meridian, Miss., died Wednesday, Aug. 25, 1993, at Anderson Hospital. She was a native of Randles. Survivors include two brothers, Herbert Thomas of Fieldon, Ill., Everet Thomas of Jerseyville, Ill.; three sisters, Lena Fair of Jerseyville, Sadie Huffman of Cape Girardeau, and Dorothy Sumner of Hartford, Ill...

Son to Tech. Sgt. and Mrs. Kevin Robinson of Howard Air Force Base, Panama, base hospital there, 10 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 24, 1993. Name, Kaff Dillon. Weight, 10 pounds 10 ounces. Second son. Mrs. Robinson is the former Susanne Richards, daughter of Junior and Gail Richards of Clarksburg, W. ...

Grace Marie Fry, 90, of Houston, Texas, died Wednesday, Aug. 25, 1993, at Golden Age Manor in Houston. She is a native of Cape Girardeau. Ford and Sons Sprigg Street Chapel is in charge of arrangements.

PERRYVILLE -- Funeral service for Stephen C. Knapp of Perryville will be held at 7:30 tonight at Young and Sons Funeral Chapel. Jack Hamper will officiate. Friends may call from 5-9 p.m. Knapp, 43, died Tuesday, Aug. 24, 1993, at his home. He was born Dec. 13, 1949, in Nashville, Ill., son of William and Cassie Lee Calhoun Knapp. He and Carole S. Naeger were married Aug. 21, 1971...

Funeral service for the Rev. Clarence E. Garner of Pleasant View, Tenn., was held Tuesday at Madison Funeral Home in Madison, Tenn. The Rev. Harvey Meeks officiated, with burial in Forest Lawn Cemetery at Madison. Garner, 81, died Saturday, Aug. 21, 1993, at Belcort Terrace Nursing Home in Nashville, Tenn...

JACKSON -- Henry C. Vasterling, 99, of Jackson died Wednesday, Aug. 25, 1993, at the Jackson Manor Nursing Home. He was born Jan. 23, 1894 at Burfordville, son of Henry Vasterling and Christine Reinecke. He married Anna Reitman on Dec. 28, 1929. She died on June 27, 1988...

CHAFFEE -- Mary Margaret Souders, 88, of Chaffee, died Wednesday, Aug. 25, 1993, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. She was born march 17, 1905, at Sikeston, daughter of Warrick Willard and Malinda Nazarene Fisher Bradley. She married Albert E. Souders, March 26, 1926. He died Oct. 1, 1946...