Stories from Tuesday, August 31, 1999

The Internet is alive with the sounds of music. A few weeks ago we talked about the explosion of MP3 files. Today I want to talk about the boom of Internet radio. No longer are you limited by what's available on your local airwaves. A growing number of radio stations are simulcasting their programs online. According to some industry analysts, the number has doubled from last year to more than 2,260...

What do you think is the secret to The Mini Page's success? I think The Mini Page has been successful because we have always kept our focus on producing a high-quality publication that is educationally sound. We do very thorough research on all the subjects we cover, and because of The Mini Page's reputation, we have access to excellent sources. ...

KANSAS CITY -- Three decades ago, an elementary school teacher in Raleigh, N.C. was looking for materials to use to teach her students about Thanksgiving. "As I looked, I found myself wondering why the newspaper didn't have a special section just for children where kids could read bite-sized bits of information of special interest to them," said Betty Debnam, an educator with 11 years of classroom experience,...

SIKESTON -- Under the lights at VFW Memorial Park Tuesday night, nearly 150 people in the grandstand stood and cheered wildly as a bus followed a wailing police car into the parking lot and onto the baseball field. The noise grew even louder as the bus disgorged 14 excited young baseball players who dodged somersaulting cheerleaders to gather in an aw-shucks knot on the pitcher's mound...

An outbreak of grass fires and no expectations of rain have led the Cape Girardeau County Commission to restrict burning for at least the next two weeks. Dry conditions are responsible for at least 10 fires around the county the past week, said Gerald Jones, presiding commissioner...

The Board of Regents will hold a series of public forums this fall as it prepares to update Southeast Missouri State University's strategic plan. The regents and top administrators are scheduled to hold 13 meetings throughout the school's service region from mid-September through mid-November. School officials said they want public input on how the university can better meet the educational, economic and cultural needs of the region...

An industry that has operated in Cape Girardeau since soon after the turn of this century will close by year's end. Florsheim Shoe Co., which once occupied a multilevel structure on North Main and is now in a modern plant at Southwest End Boulevard and Southern Expressway, announced Monday it will close by late December...

I decided to try a trick that has always worked before. I washed my car. I've done everything but a rain dance, and still there hasn't been a single drop of rain hit the grounds of Southeast Missouri for more days than I can count. Oh, how I wish it would rain -- and I don't think I'm alone...

If you want free roses from Knaup Floral on Wednesday, you better get there early. People begin lining up for the annual Good Neighbor Day rose giveaway at the shop at 838 William at about 7 a.m., said owner Kathy Landewee. The 10,000 roses they will give away are expected to be gone about an hour after the shop's 7:30 opening, Landewee said...

The Cape Girardeau Board of Education voted to leave the school district's tax rate unchanged during a special meeting Monday. The board also approved changes amounting to about a $1 million increase funds to the Vocational Career Center under construction near Silver Springs Road...

Southeast Missouri State University president Dr. Ken Dobbins isn't much for fanfare. When he became the school's 17th president, he didn't want an elaborate inauguration, and he won't get one. Rather, the university will hold a convocation at 3 p.m. Dec. 10 with a procession in academic robes in Academic Hall Auditorium...

Plans for completing improvements to the interchange known as Center Junction are moving ahead. Key to the project is the capture of sales-tax revenue from development at the intersection. Local developer Jim Drury stands ready to guarantee repayment of interest on bonds up to $1 million, if the dedicated sales-tax revenue he projects doesn't prove sufficient to meet these interest payments...

Earlier this month, a state appeals court overturned a conviction under Missouri's new methamphetamine law, touted at the time of its passage last year as one of the toughest in the nation. A three-judge panel of the Western District Court of Appeals in Kansas City ruled that a defendant's mere possession of a gallon of toluene, a bottle of Liquid Fire, four bottles of pseudoephedrine, one bottle of ephedrine and an air tank were not criminal under the circumstances...

To the editor: I read with some amusement W.T. Woods' recent letter to the editor. His inaccurate and one-sided attack on Republicans is typical of the tactics of the present-day Democratic Party. Promoting class hatred seems to have served the purposes of the Democrats very well over the years, but the tactic is really a pathetic one...

Southeast Missouri State University football coach John Mumford is the first to admit that the Indians won't be able to simply overwhelm most of the opponents on their rugged schedule with sheer physical talent. But Mumford said he definitely believes there is a way for the Indians to win their share of games this season...

Kelvin "Earthquake" Anderson was all smiles Monday as he showed off his impressive Grey Cup championship ring. "Now I need one for the other hand," he said with a laugh. Anderson, Southeast Missouri State University's all-time leading rusher who is in his fourth season as a star in the Canadian Football League, was in Cape Girardeau for a visit with friends and former coaches at Southeast...

Southeast Missouri State University had a league-high 12 Ohio Valley Conference Medal of Honor winners for the 1998-99 school year. The Medal of Honor is given annually to the student-athlete who receives the highest grade-point average in a conference-sponsored sport...

MARBLE HILL -- The annual Woodland Volleyball Tournament, featuring seven local high school volleyball teams, will begin tonight and run through Friday. First-round matches tonight feature second-seeded Leopold vs. No. 7 Greenville at 6 o'clock and No. 3 Bell City vs. No. 6 Notre Dame at 7:30...

Southeast Missouri State University's women's cross country team, which has been solid over the years, will look to take the next step this season. And what a giant step it would be. The Otahkians' mission is to unseat Eastern Kentucky as Ohio Valley Conference champion, but that certainly won't be easy since the Lady Colonels have won the past 17 OVC titles...

Notre Dame High's softball team used a big start to roll past visiting Perryville 11-1 in a five-inning, run-rule game Monday. The Lady Bulldogs scored nine first-inning runs and never looked back as they improved their record to 2-1. The Lady Pirates fell to 0-2...

THEBES, Ill. -- Funeral for Daniel G. Seip of rural Thebes will be held at 10 a.m. today at Jones Funeral Home in Tamms. The Rev. Gene Hart will officiate. Burial will be in Mount Zion Cemetery near Thebes. Seip, 57, died Sunday, Aug. 29, 1999, in Marion Memorial Hospital...

SIKESTON -- Funeral for Charles "Sonny" Bryant of Sikeston will be held at 1 p.m. today at Ponder Funeral Home. The Rev. Dolan Rogers will officiate. Burial will be in Memorial Park Cemetery. Bryant, 59, died Saturday, Aug. 28, 1999, at Baxter County Regional Medical Center in Mountain Home, Ark...

SCOTT CITY -- Frances Marie Heisserer, 75, of Scott City died Monday, Aug. 30, 1999, at her home. Amick-Burnett Funeral Chapel in Scott City is in charge of arrangements.

ADVANCE -- Narvel L. Pinson, 74, of Advance died Monday, Aug. 30, 1999, at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. Morgan Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Lygia D. Whitelaw, 78, of Joliet, Ill., died Saturday, Aug. 28, 1999, at Salem Village Nursing and Rehab Center in Joliet. She was born Oct. 22, 1920, in St. Louis, daughter of William and Pauline Slaughter Temple. She married Donald Whitelaw, who preceded her in death...

Barbara Revelle, 59, of Chesterfield died Monday, Aug. 30, 1999, at Delmar Gardens West in Chesterfield. She was born April 9, 1940, in Cape Girardeau, daughter of Raymond E. and Eva L. Hager Revelle. Revelle had been a certified nurse assistant at nursing homes...

Fred W. Withrow, 85, of Cape Girardeau died Monday, Aug. 30, 1999, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. He was born Nov. 5, 1913, at Blodgett, son of Frank M. and Eva May Withrow. He married Mae Alta Harris Jan. 12, 1941, at Sikeston. She died April 26, 1998...

Son to Gregory Alan and Michelle Lei Hengst of Cape Girardeau, Southeast Missouri Hospital, 6:21 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 22, 1999. Name, Ethan Scott. Weight, 7 pounds 2 ounces. Second son. Mrs. Hengst is the former Michelle Hohler, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Koch and Mr. and Mrs. John Hohler of Cape Girardeau. Mr. and Mrs. Hengst are employed at Kenneth E. Foeste Masonry Inc. He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Chester Hengst of Cape Girardeau...