Stories from Sunday, July 4, 1999

A few Sundays back we honored and celebrated our fathers. Contrary to the popular misconception, Father's Day was not established by greeting card companies to sell more cards. A "father's day" was first proposed in 1909 by Mrs. John B. Dodd who wanted to honor her father, William Smart. ...

While the business may be new, the face will be distinctly familiar to anyone who has maintained any type of water craft in the Jackson area. George Dickerson opened George's Marine at 1005 S. Hope (Hwy 25 South) June 10. Dickerson, though, had fixed boat motors and done other marine-related repair work, for 20 years at B & B Marine in Jackson...

25 years ago: 1974 Because nearly 60 percent of serious situations that confront police occur at night, Jackson Police Department gathered Wednesday for night firing range practice, something unique for Southeast Missouri law enforcement and most of nation; 10 of department's 11-man force fired at police firing range here with .38-caliber pistols and 12-gauge riot shotguns; those participating agreed that firing in darkness is completely different situation; none of officers had ever done it before.. ...

NEWBURY, Ohio - Tim Henderschott of Schaefer Water Centers has/received a service recognition award from Kinetico Incorporated, a leading manufacturer of water treatment systems. The Service Star Awards Program encourages service professionals at authorized Kinetico dealerships to increase their knowledge in the service and installation of Kinetico equipment through advanced training and professional certification through the Water Quality Association, the industry's trade organization. ...

The Jackson Municipal Band will hold a holiday concert tonight at 8 p.m., at the band shell in the city park. It will precede the 9:30 p.m. fireworks display. Steve Schaffner, one of the area's premier country fiddlers and a string instructor for the Cape Girardeau Public Schools, will be featured. He has traveled with such stars as George Jones, Tammy Wynette and Ronnie Milsap...

Why was Andrew Jackson struck on forearm with a sword by a British officer during the Revolutionary War? Last week's question: According to former JHS football coach Paul Weber, what did he immediately begin doing upon seeing the football field for the first time after taking the job?...

GORDONVILLE -- Harvey Brase has been a familiar face around Gordonville fore more than 20 years. Last week he finally received recognition for his many contributions. The long-time city marshal, Brase has served the city in a variety of ways, including mowing, helping with city projects and helping organize the annual Fire Department picnic. He retired this summer after 20 years with the city...

For Paula Andrews, Cheryl Fortner and Crystal Stacks, singing Christian music has been a lifelong activity. Despite their longstandign ties to Gospel music, hwoever, the speed of their recent success has left them amazed. Less than two years after Andrews, Fortner and Stephanie Odle formed "From the Heart," the group appears to be ont eh verge of major success...

Dr. Ron Anderson's reign as superintendent of Jackson R-2 Schools has begun in good fashion. "It's been real enjoyable so far," Anderson said Friday. "It's been a time to get around and meet staff and a time to kind of get organized. It seems like I've spent most of my time meeting with individuals or administrators, as well as a couple of teachers."...

To the editor: It was my privilege and honor to attend services at Old St. Vincent's Church June 25 to pray for peace in America. One by one, each state and every soul who lives there were remembered in prayer. What a wonderful thing to do. After the service, I thought how sad that only 21 people attended. My glass being half empty, I quickly determined in my own heart to remember what God can and will do with 21 souls who were kneeling in fervent prayer for our nation and its people...

IS THERE no justice left in the world? You know, the family of Debra Poch really didn't need to hear again on TV that she was drinking alcohol. Do any of you all drink alcohol? Do any of you all come in at 12 o'clock at night? No one will ever know what really happened to Debra Poch, but some day justice will be done because God knows...

The signers of the Declaration of Independence, one writer reminds us, "were men of means, well educated. But they signed the Declaration knowing full well that the penalty would be death of they were captured. Five signers were captured by the British ... and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army, another had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the ... War...

President Clinton announced this week that the national budget surplus will be more than $1 trillion over the next decade. He took the opportunity to call for paying off the entire $5 trillion national debt over the next 15 years. At first glance the idea has the kind of surface appeal that debt reduction always has. On closer inspection, however, this should be seen for what it is: a trap for the unwary, a fool's errand...

I would venture that most Missourians who have served on a state board, commission or advisory group have also participated in what, for want of a better description, is reinventing the wheel. Granted, that's a broad statement but there must be written, somewhere in the bureaucratic bible, a commandment requiring state and federal agencies to reorganize themselves every biennium or quadrennium. ...

Three years ago this summer, it was my great honor to address the state convention of the American Legion. In the course of those remarks I told the following true story to my disbelieving audience: An acquaintance of mine, a newspaper publisher of Democratic persuasion in a distant part of Missouri, found himself selected for his congressman's screening panel to review candidates for admission to our military academies. ...

Samuel Wilson's name DOES appear in most encyclopedias, but not where you'd expect, under "Wilson." Try "Uncle Sam." Samuel Wilson was a farmer and a businessman, and history tells us it was Wilson who may have been responsible for the "Uncle Sam" designation that symbolizes the United State...

Southeast Missouri State University's president and fund-raising chancellor aren't overpaid, says the head of the school's Board of Regents. "We are pretty frugal," said Don Dickerson, board president. The regents approved the fiscal 2000 budget last week, including salaries for its top two administrators...

It is hard to miss the steamboats when they come to town. Their tall stacks rising above the flood walls, paint a pleasant picture of life the way it used to be on the Mississippi River. It is a piece of American history that seems only natural to celebrate during the July 4th weekend...

Cape Girardeau residents kicked off Independence Day celebrations a day early Saturday with a parade and a host of activities at Arena Park. Numerous activities and several bands are scheduled for today. A fireworks display will begin at 9 p.m. Parade marshal and U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson led the two-day community celebration with a motorcade from Capaha Park to Arena Park...

Splash, splash. Oh, what a relief it is to have a pool. It's a great way to cool off on a Fourth of July weekend. Joni and I had a pool party Saturday. But this wasn't a party for adults, it was a splashing good time for our children and friends' children...

State Rep. Marilyn Williams, D-Dudley, will participate in a national legislative assembly. Williams will serve on the Assembly on Federal Issues Agriculture and International Trade Committee of the National Conference of State Legislatures. "The relationship between the federal government and states is at a critical point in history," Williams said. "NCSL and the states have fought hard over recent years to protect the rights of states."...

Mary Miller, president of the Rotary Club of Cape Girardeau, was among 18,000 Rotarians and guests from 125 countries to gather in Singapore for the 90th annual convention of Rotary International. Miller attended sessions, panel discussions and workshops about international humanitarian projects. The sessions focused on literacy, poverty, hunger and Rotary exchange programs...

The city engineering department did not have to look too far to find a replacement for a supervisor's position as they promoted one of their engineers. Melanie Gertis will take over the job of Civil Engineer II Tuesday. She will be in charge of the city's design office and will take over the duties for City Engineer Mark Lester when he is out of town...

Getting around Cape Girardeau will be a little more complicated in the next three weeks. Effective immediately, Independence Street will be closed to east bound traffic from Sprigg Street to Middle Street. The road will be closed for sewer overflow repairs...

How often in our lives do we have the opportunity to really touch the life of another person? Imagine the profound effect it would have on your life to be immersed in a new and different culture on the other side of the world. Now, imagine having the opportunity to provide such an experience to someone from another country...

At the annual meeting of the Missouri East Conference of the United Methodist Church, William Hughes Davault was named Outstanding lay Person of the Cape/Farmington District. The conference met in Columbia June 10-13, with all ministers and an equal number of lay persons, to conduct the business of the church. At this time and Outstanding Lay Person was recognized from each of the seven districts of the conference...

DEXTER -- The unemployment level in Stoddard County remained steady during May, according to figures from the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. The state agency said the jobless rate in Stoddard was 4.6 percent in May, the same rate that was posted in April. Stoddard has seen a slight improvement in the number of people working since March, when the unemployment level was posted at 4.9 percent...

As the month of July unfolds the Milky Way regains its dominance in the sky. Around midnight this month the Milky Way stretches from the southern horizon to the northeast. While the ancient Greeks thought the Milky Way was cosmic milk or smoke, we know that we are living in a flattened disk of a galaxy and we are seeing it edge on from our location. As we look in this direction we see an enhancement of stars, gas, and dust which makes up the Milky Way...

Fewer and fewer fires over the past four years in Cape Girardeau is allowing firefighters to do more in other areas, said Dan White, Fire Department chief. Other emergency requests for assistance have increased, and the department is seeking new equipment and advanced training to handle them, White said...

VALMEYER, Ill. -- The McDowell Capahas were eliminated from title contention Saturday with a 3-2 loss to Fairview Heights in a first- round game of the eight-team Valmeyer Tournament. In a pitchers' duel that saw each team muster just five hits, Fairview Heights broke a 2-2 deadlock with a single run in the eighth inning...

Southeast Missouri State University's all-time leading rusher is ready to once again wreak havoc on the defenses of the Canadian Football League. Kelvin "Earthquake" Anderson is about to enter his fourth season in the CFL as he and the Calgary Stampeders begin the 1999 campaign Wednesday against Saskatchewan...

BALLWIN -- Kirkwood gave Ford & Sons Cape Legion a rude sendoff at the Ballwin Tournament Saturday, completing a winless weekend for the local team with a 15-5, six-inning rout. Cape Legion finished the tournament 0-3 and fell to 14-15 on the season...

JEFFERSON CITY -- Hunters have from July 1 through August 15 to apply for youth deer hunts sponsored by the Missouri Department of Conservation. The Conservation Department administers two hunts especially for youths age 11 through 15. The hunts will take place Oct. 30 and 31 at August A. Busch Memorial Conservation Area (CA) and Weldon Spring CA. Both hunts take place in St. Charles County, but they are open to youths statewide...

Woodlands are fragile. This statement might seem odd to people who think of woodlands as rugged and indestructible. And without man's intervention, they generally are. Fires, disease, tornadoes and rainstorms all have an effect but forests are adapted to these naturally occurring stresses...

JEFFERSON CITY -- The Missouri Conservation Commission recently approved rule changes that affect a wide range of activities. Among these is a provision allowing Missourians to kill mountain lions under certain circumstances. In January, Missouri recorded its first confirmed sighting of a free-living mountain lion since before the turn of the century. ...

Helen Arnold Howard, 79, of Fruitland died Wednesday, June 30, 1999, at St. Francis Medical Center. She was born April 20, 1920, in Blodgett to William Newton and Lula E. Hampton. She was married to Clarence Howard Jan. 11, 1941. Howard was a member of the Order of Eastern Star in Sikeston. She worked for the Division of Family Services in Cape Girardeau County from 1971 to 1979. From there, she went to work for the Division of Aging in Cape Girardeau County until 1985 when she retired...

Alice M. Schnaare, 87, of Collinsville, Ill., formerly of the America community, died Friday, July 2, 1999, at the Maryville Manor in Maryville, Ill. She was born July 9, 1911, to Walter and Nettie Orm Jackson. She was married to Walter Schnaare. She was a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Collinsville...

SIKESTON -- E. Ferrell, 82, of Sikeston and formerly of Charleston, died Saturday, July 3, 1999, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Arrangements are incomplete at McMikle Funeral Home in Charleston.

DONGOLA, Ill. -- Calvin A. Brown, 77, of Dongola died Friday, July 2, 1999, at Vencor Hospital in St. Louis. He was born Dec. 3, 1921, at Dongola, son of Everett and Rosa Kesler Brown. He was married on Aug. 19, 1950, to Martha Schultz. He was a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church and attended Campground Cumberland Presbyterian Church. ...

SCOTT CITY -- Scott Edward Ussery of Springfield, Ill., formerly of Scott City, died Thursday, July 1, 1999, in Salem. He was 28. He was born Sept. 8, 1972, in Cave City, Ky., son of Floyd and Patsy Bagwell Ussery. He was a graduate of Scott City High School and had worked as a concrete finisher at C&M Concrete...

VILLA RIDGE, Ill. -- Vera Lucille Lackey Parrott Albright of Cairo, formerly of Mounds, died Saturday, July 3, 1999, at her home. She was 77. She was born June 17, 1922, at Olmsted, daughter of the late Alfred and Lucy Casper Lackey. She was a homemaker and a member of the First Southern Baptist Church in Cairo...

PERRYVILLE -- Fayette (Faye) J. LaRose of Perryville died Saturday, July 3, 1999, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. She was 78. She was born Aug. 24, 1920, in Kaskaskia Island, Ill., daughter of Francis and Clara Lipscomb Buatte. She was married to Valmer LaRose on Aug. 10, 1942...

Dr. Floyd King Wright Sr., 83, of Cape Girardeau died Friday, July 2, 1999, in St. Louis. He was born June 2, 1916, in Sabine County, Texas, son of Joseph Lambert and Emma Neal Wright. He was adopted by Ralph and Dollie Smith King. He and Janie Merle Muckleroy were married June 6, 1941, in Nacogdoches County, Texas...

Mary Dicie Hampton, 81, of Sikeston died Saturday, July 3, 1999, at the Sikeston Convalescent Center. She was born Jan. 22, 1918, in Sikeston to Frank and Bessie Lee Curtner Grimes. She and J.W. Hampton were married June 24, 1977. She is survived by two sons, Jerry Hampton of Sikeston, Dale Hampton of New Madrid; three grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren...

Gilbert P. Schattauer, 78, of Pocahontas died at Southeast Missouri Hospital, Saturday, July 3, 1999. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson.

Police Chief Richard Hetzel calls the past year a successful one for Cape Girardeau police, thanks to community support. Considering an ongoing investigation by the FBI into department practices and the anger of many residents over an altercation with police in early June, Hetzel's view might seem strange. However, he said it is backed up by a vast majority of residents...

I have said, in the presence of friends and assorted acquaintances, that I thought our town should have a totem pole. I've watched expressions and listened to comments. Some facial expressions have told me they think ~it an odd idea. Some smile tolerantly as if they've heard one more wild, foolish, eccentric suggestion. ...