Stories from Tuesday, August 9, 1994

Plans for this weekend's Black Family Reunion in Cape Girardeau remain on target, organizers say. Fund-raising efforts continue, as details are made final. The reunion will be held Friday through Sunday at Cape Girardeau's Arena Park. Benjamin Hooks, former executive director of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, will be guest speaker, and the muscial groups Commissioned and Guess will perform...

JACKSON -- Desma Reno and her son Jonathan traveled to Washington, D.C. last week to tell people about their desire for universal health-care coverage. The Renos were among riders on the Health Security Express, a caravan of buses traveling across the country to persuade Congress to pass health-care reform...

After discarding a contentious development plan last month, Rendrag Development Corp. will bring a different proposal to the Cape Girardeau Planning and Zoning Commission Wednesday. Dr. Robert Gardner, who owns Rendrag, said the new plan incorporates changes that he hopes will placate residents who opposed the first proposal...

As the parents of a 2-year-old, Joni and I are constantly repeating ourselves. It isn't that we want to be stuck in the playback mode. It is just that once is not enough when it comes to our daughter, Becca. Talking to her is like reading the same book over and over. You know the punch line, but does she?...

SCOTT CITY -- The Southeast Missouri Regional Port Authority is about to become owner of six miles of railroad track between Scott City and Cape Girardeau. The port's executive director, Dan Overby, said at a meeting Monday of the port authority Board of Commissioners that negotiations with Union Pacific Railroad for the sale of its Cape Deau branch line are nearing completion...

When it comes to issues, the Whitewater hearings, health care and a $32 billion anti-crime bill are foremost on Senator Christopher "Kit" Bond's mind. Bond, R-Missouri, was at the Cape Girardeau Municipal Airport Monday to speak about those topics. Bond said there is far more to discuss about the Whitewater hearings than the recent hiring of independent counsel Kenneth Starr, who replaced Robert Fiske...

PERRYVILLE -- Perryville public schools plan to formalize a long-standing commencement practice with an official board policy. For years the district has allowed students who will finish graduation requirements by Sept. 1 to participate in graduation exercises, said Paul Turner, assistant superintendent...

SCOTT CITY -- Lula Catherine Purcell, 97, of Leadwood, died Sunday, Aug. 7, 1994, at Mineral Area Regional Medical Center. She was born Dec. 23, 1896, in Wilford, Ark., daughter of Will and Mary Gilliam. She first married Frank Cruse, who preceded her in death. She later married Charles C. Purcell, who also preceded her in death...

DEXTER -- Graveside service for W.G. "Griff" Frank of Dexter was held Monday at Hagy Cemetery, with the Rev. Vyron Yount officiating. Watkins Funeral Home at Dexter was in charge of arrangements. Frank, 84, died Saturday, Aug. 6, 1994, at his home. He was born Feb. 6, 1910, near Dexter, son of Wilson and Thursia Vaughn Frank. He and Katie Monroe Richard were married May 10, 1947. She died June 23, 1976...

Birdie Flo Macke, 102, of Farmington, died Thursday, Aug. 4, 1994, at Presbyterian Manor in Farmington. She was born Feb. 26, 1892, in Thebes, Ill., daughter of Charles and Daisy Stevenson Tinsley. She married Alvin Macke, who died Oct. 15, 1961. Survivors include a son, Robert Macke of Baytown, Texas; three grandchildren, and several great-grandchildren...

SIKESTON -- Bardis C. Dismuke Sr., 73, of Sikeston, died Monday, Aug. 8, 1994, at his home. He was born June 22, 1921, in Monett, Ark., son of George and Jessie Loren Newton Dismuke. He and Joann Ewing were married July 22, 1939, at New Madrid. She died Jan. 26, 1975...

CHARLESTON -- Funeral mass for Rita Farrington of Charleston will be held at 10 a.m. today at St. Henry's Catholic Church. The Rev. James Reynolds will officiate, with burial in Calvary Cemetery. McMikle Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements. Farrington, 82, died Sunday, Aug. 7, 1994, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau...

JACKSON -- Funeral service for Donald "Mike" Butler of Jackson will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Ford and Sons Mt. Auburn Chapel in Cape Girardeau. The Revs. Otto Steinhaus and David Griffin will officiate, with burial in Memorial Park in Cape Girardeau...

JACKSON -- Albert J. Heise, 91, of Jackson, died Monday, Aug. 8, 1994, at Jackson Manor. Arrangements are incomplete at Ford and Sons Funeral Home in Cape Girardeau.

PERRYVILLE -- A memorial mass for Lynn Edward Prost Zoellner of McMurray, Pa., will be held at 7 p.m. Friday at St. Mary's of the Barrens Church. Zoellner, 48, died Tuesday, July 26, 1994, at his home. He was born Jan. 4, 1946, at Perryville, son of Clyde F. and Vivian Prost Zoellner. He and Jeanne Hughes were married Jan. 29, 1971...

PERKINS -- Paul Allen Menz, 68, of Perkins, died Sunday, Aug. 7, 1994, at his home. He was born Aug. 20, 1925, at Randles, son of Anthony and Mary Margaret Patterson Menz. He and Lavanda Kay James were married April 23, 1971. Menz was a retired farmer with Avra Cox Farms in Perkins. He was a member of VFW Post 3127 at Chaffee, and Advance Eagles Club. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II...

JACKSON -- Funeral service for William Thomas Minner of Jackson will be held at 1 p.m. today at McCombs Funeral Home. The Rev. Terry Culbertson will officiate, with burial in Russell Heights Cemetery. Friends may call at the funeral home from 8:30 a.m. to service time...

To the editor: John Bierk's guest column Aug. 6 ("A layman's proposal for arriving at truth in court") is an indictment of the adversarial system of justice. It is symptomatic of a growing mistrust of institutions that have generally served us well throughout our relatively short history. ...

The innocence or guilt of House Speaker Bob Griffin aside, Missourians are beginning to get a better look at the new industry they have admitted to their state. This new resident of the Show-Me State is a vast conglomerate of individual corporations, with headquarters in New Jersey, New York, Nevada and California, that cater to the human desire for easy money through an assortment of games running the gamut from poker to roulette...

The memories of last year's flooding are so vivid. It will take a long time for the horror and stench and disruption to fade away. Some anniversaries are pleasurable and are remembered from year to year with joy and anticipation. For those who experienced the 1993 flood up close, the passing of each year will be remembered with sorrow and pain, much like the death of a loved one or a tragic accident involving a member of the family...

To the editor: I wanted to take the time to shed some positive light on LDD. I am currently employed at LDD and have been for almost three months. LDD is a wonderful place to work! The atmosphere is positive and my co-workers are hardworking and easy to get along with. All of us here at LDD have worked very hard, and the company has continued to grow and prosper despite our much-publicized difficulties...

The board meets at 5 p.m. Wednesday at 61 N. Clark. Action items -- Salary and benefits recommendation pertaining to certified, classified and administrative personnel. -- Tax rate approval. -- Policy update. -- Plan of Professional Development Committee...

For the past half century, Smokey Bear has watched over the nation's forests and educated Americans on the importance of forest-fire prevention. Generations of Americans have grown up with Smokey, helping protect our forests from wildfires. Today, the nation joins in celebrating the birthday of the fire-fighting bear...

Since its inception in 1976, Southeast Missouri State University's KRCU radio station has undergone many changes. Until this year, when a 230-foot transmitter tower was erected, the station had only 100 watts of power, limiting its audience to parts of Cape Girardeau. The power was expanded to 6,000 watts this year. The station reaches into Perryville, Sikeston, Marble Hill and other area communities...

Shannon Hesse of Cape Girardeau, a student at Southeast Missouri State University, participated in the 1994 Summer Marine Science Program at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory in Ocean Springs, Miss. The laboratory, administered by the University of Southern Mississippi, offers field studies of plants and animals in their natural habitats as well as physical and chemical processes of marine and coastal environments...

Thomas W. Petzoldt, a 1994 graduate of Perryville High School, has received a $1,000 Curator Agriculture Scholarship to the University of Missouri. He received the scholarship in part based on his No. 1 rating in the state FFA forestry contest. He plans to major in forestry...

Registration for new students in the Oak Ridge School District will be held Thursday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Friday from 8 a.m. to noon. New students in kindergarten through six should report to the elementary principal's office. New students in grades seven through 12 should report to the high-school principal's office...

Rose City Christian Academy is offering a speed-reading night course with a guarantee. Participants will gain at least 100 words per minute or they may attend extra classes free. The course is held three evenings a week for three weeks. A free demonstration is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Saturday at Living Water Books and Gifts, 1415 N. Kingshighway. For more information call 335-7035...

Five Southeast Missouri State University students have received scholarships from the Society of Manufacturing Engineers St. Louis Chapter. The students will each receive $750: Violet Renee Burns, a senior industrial technology major from Jackson; Jennifer R. ...

Alison L. Nall has been awarded a Regent's Scholarship to Southeast Missouri State University. She also has been awarded $1,500 department-of-music and $1,000 Ewing scholarships. Nall, daughter of Bruce and Susie Nall of Cape Girardeau, is a 1994 graduate of Central High School. ...

Akiro Hirao of Cape Girardeau and Christopher D. Josephs of Scott City attended TIP, Duke University Talent Identification Program. The program was offered to students in Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma. TIP is a three-week summer residential program for academically talented youngsters on the campus of the University of Kansas-Lawrence. ...

The Southeast Missouri Music Academy, a non-profit organization under the auspices of Southeast Missouri State University's department of music, is gearing up for the 1994-1995 academic year. Area students in grades one through 12 are invited to enroll for instruction in all band and orchestral instruments, piano, organ and voice...