Stories from Sunday, June 4, 2006

There is nothing so frustrating as finding trash strewn all over the lawn. Or an empty hole in the spot where a flower bulb was planted the day before. With the onset of warm weather in Southeast Missouri comes the wildlife welcome wagon -- squirrels and deer in the garden, raccoons in the garbage cans, ants in the picnic basket and a host of other critter problems...

HE SAID: "You can wear my pajamas, honey." Oh, yeah. You read it right. Perhaps the six most feared words in the weekend trip vocabulary. Callie and I had just made the 2-hour trip to Van Buren, Mo. It was a late Friday night, and we had just said our good-nights to Callie's parents. We were staying in my in-laws' camper outside their house, getting ready for bed...

When Chautauqua rolls into town in about two weeks, organizers hope the weeklong event will hold a special appeal for area residents. "We hope the sheer novelty of it will really draw people," said Dr. Joel Rhodes, Southeast Missouri State University history professor and member of the local Chautauqua organizing committee...

I wrote last year at about this time how, because he doesn't compete in the high-profile sports of football or basketball, track and field athlete Miles Smith flies under the radar when it comes to recognition by area fans. I still feel that way -- and I still feel it's a shame, as I wrote last year -- because Southeast Missouri State's junior sprint sensation continues to stamp himself as one of the most accomplished athletes in not only school but local history...

WILDWOOD, N.J. -- The Lollipop and The Starlux. The Shalimar and The Caribbean. The Imperial 500 and The Tangiers. With garish neon signs, multicolored exteriors and sweeping deck overhangs, the "Doo Wop" motels of the Wildwoods are the architectural equivalents of a Vitalis-slicked pompadour...

NEW MARKET, Va. -- Remember the clumps of iris and daffodils you saw flowering along rural roadsides while on that cross-country trip last year? The brilliant poppies and butterfly weeds blooming in interstate medians? Real dazzlers, weren't they? And that's exactly what they're supposed to be -- eye-openers. Think of them as attention-getting, accident-preventing displays for drowsy drivers...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A crash on Interstate 70 killed four members of a family, sending shock waves through the local labor and education communities. Among the dead were Beverly Garrett, head of the local federal government employees union and a United Way board member, and her niece, Anita Gibbs, principal of Askew Elementary School. Also killed in the crumpled Ford 500 were Garrett's mother, Beulah Hunter, and aunt, Elois Jeans...

ST. LOUIS -- The owner of a fireworks distribution company has pleaded guilty in federal court to illegally shipping explosives and other fireworks components. Frederick A. Ellis, owner and president of PyroWorks LLC, pleaded guilty Friday on six misdemeanor counts of illegally shipping banned substances through the mail. The case was investigated by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission...

GOLCONDA, Ill. -- The Illinois Chapter of the Trail of Tears Association will hold its summer annual membership meeting and program today at 1:30 p.m., at the Historical Society Building in Golconda. It will be hosted by the Pope County Historical Society...

CHICAGO -- A U.S. air marshal removed himself from a Southwest Airlines flight Thursday after dropping a clip of bullets on the floor just before the plane was to leave Midway International Airport, an airline spokeswoman said. The marshal arrived at Midway on a flight from Philadelphia and he was boarding the Southwest flight bound for Kansas City when the clip fell to the floor, scattering bullets, Southwest spokeswoman Whitney Eichinger told the Chicago Tribune for a story on its Web site...

Ai Miyazato idolizes Annika Sorenstam. To win her first-ever LPGA Tour title, though, the young Japanese star will have to hold off the woman who has 67 titles. Miyazato shot a 5-under 66 on Saturday and leads by one heading into today's final round in the ShopRite Classic...

WASHINGTON -- Social Security numbers and other personal information for nearly 17,000 Medicare beneficiaries could have been compromised when an insurance company employee called up the data on a hotel computer and then failed to delete the file. An auditor for the Department of Health and Human Services' inspector general came across the information a few weeks later when using the same hotel computer in Baltimore, Medicare officials disclosed Friday...

ST. LOUIS -- Chicago has been playing without its All-Star first baseman for more than a month. The Cardinals are concerned they might be without theirs for a while, too. Aramis Ramirez hit a grand slam in the second inning to spark the Cubs in an 8-5 victory Saturday...

PHOENIX -- The Dallas Mavericks headed to the NBA finals for the first time in the franchise's 26-year history. Dirk Nowitzki shook off an awful start to lead a Mavericks' second-half comeback that beat the Phoenix Suns 102-93 on Saturday night to win the Western Conference finals 4-2...

DENVER -- Chinese ballet dancers in Vail. Jazz in Aspen and bluegrass in Telluride. When ski slopes become blanketed with grass and wildflowers in the summer, the towns in the mountains west of Denver stay bustling with crowds looking for an unusual mix of culture and outdoor experiences...

WASHINGTON -- Is Tuesday's date -- 6-6-6 -- merely a curious number or could it mean our number is up? There's a devilishly odd nexus of theology, mathematics and commercialism on the sixth day of the sixth month of the sixth year. OK, it's just the sixth year of this millennium, but insisting on calling it 2006 takes the devil-may-care fun out of calendar-gazing...

Children like to be outdoors in the summer, especially in the yard or at the beach. But what about the rainy days? Or the long hours in the car getting to one of those utopias? Maybe the craving for soil or sand could be satisfied with a good book. A brother and sister build their own boat and go on an adventure -- using a map provided by sturdy and salty sea captain Bart -- that takes them by a whale who waves with his tail and to a private island. ...

LONDON -- A raid on an east London house where anti-terrorism police shot and wounded a man was prompted by fears that a suspect had built a bomb designed to release a cloud of toxic chemicals, British police said Saturday. Officers, many in protective clothing, were still conducting a detailed search of the row house where two brothers were detained Friday, police said. Police also searched the workplaces of the two men Saturday...

ST. LOUIS -- State clean-air officials hope changes likely to be made to the vehicle emissions tests in the St. Louis area will make it harder for people to cheat the program. St. Louis area residents must have their vehicles tested for emissions because the air doesn't meet federal standards for ground-level ozone...

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- A lawyer who had several relatives among 24 Iraqis allegedly slain by U.S. Marines last fall and is representing kin of other victims complained in a videotape Saturday that American compensation paid to the families was inadequate...

To the editor: ArtsCape 2006, sponsored by the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri, was an enormous success. On May 20, thousands of people of all ages filled Capaha Park to celebrate the arts. So many people have told us how much they enjoyed the festival and that it truly offered something for everyone. Dedicated arts council board members, community support and the assistance of our many sponsors and volunteers made this year's ArtsCape festival possible...

Spending to save; High-calorie menus; Kids aren't hungry; Bannerless byway; Healthy backfire; Something to hide?; Behavior tactic; Speaking English; Photograph litterers; Rigged elections; Where we live; Unctuous motives; Football tithe; Catching speeders; Public employees; No sacrifice; Local fuel; Arthritis pain

Marcy Mattern and Micah Emmons of Cape Girardeau announce their engagement. She is the daughter of Terry and Pat Kepley of Washington, Ill., and John and Marsha Mattern of Peoria, Ill. Emmons is the son of Don and Mary Sue Emmons of Cape Girardeau. Mattern is a 1995 graduate of East Peoria Community High School. ...

Gerald Lyle Sielert, 90 years of age, of Cape Girardeau, died Friday, June 2, 2006, at Chateau Girardeau. A private service for the family will be held in Ames, Iowa, with the Rev. Cindy McCalmont officiating. The body will be cremated, and burial will be in the Ames Municipal Cemetery...

Alfred W. Kaiser, 93, of Gordonville died Friday, June 2, 2006, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. He was born Sept. 25, 1912, in Friedheim, son of Henry and Louise Dickman Kaiser. He and Delpha Koch were married Sept. 29, 1940, in Gordonville...

Anna Elperina and James Michael Higgins were married June 4, 2005, in a morning ceremony at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church by the Rev. J. Friedel, and again later in an evening ceremony by Rabbi Joseph Rosenbloom. The bride is the daughter of Mila and Aleksandr Elperin of Creve Coeur, Mo. The groom is the son of Mike and Mimi Higgins of Cape Girardeau...

ORAN, Mo. -- Emma L. Schlosser, 76, of Oran died Saturday, June 3, 2006, at her home. Arrangements are incomplete at Amick-Burnertt Funeral Chapel in Oran.

McCLURE, Ill. -- A memorial for Kenneth E. Darnell, 65, of Kingston, Tenn., formerly of McClure, will be held at 2 p.m. today at McClure Baptist Church. Darnell died Oct. 14, 2005, at his home in Kingston. He was cremated. He was a retired supervisor with D.M. White Construction. He was a veteran of the Air Force, serving in the Vietnam War...

Annie Mae Lattin, 75, of Cape Girardeau, formerly of Cairo, Ill., died Friday, June 2, 2006, at Fountainbleau Lodge in Cape Girardeau. She was born on Nov. 17, 1930, at Columbus, Ky., daughter of Rufus and Myrtle Berry Summers. She and the Rev. Josh Dowell were married in 1952 in Cairo. In 1960, she married the Rev. Willie Lattin. He died in 1985...

Theresa Rochelle Diebold and Ryan Christopher LeGrand were married Aug. 13, 2005, at St. Augustine Catholic Church in Kelso, Mo. The Rev. Oliver Clavin performed the ceremony. Organist was Betty Ressel of Kelso, aunt of the groom. Vocalists were Rebecca Kluesner of Scott City, sister of the bride, and Bob Ressel of Benton, Mo., cousin of the groom...

Mark and Sherry Snider of Dexter, Mo., announce the engagement of their daughter, Sarah Elizabeth Snider, to Jeremy Lee Heise. He is the son of Debbie and Tony Pickett and John and Jane Heise of Cape Girardeau. Snider is an attorney with the firm of Bradshaw, Steele, Cochrane & Berens, LC...

More than 50 children gathered at the pond in Capaha Park on Saturday to participate in the 17th annual Cape Girardeau Parks and Recreation Youth Catch and Release Fishing Day. Winner of the biggest fish was Allen Carver, who reeled in a 17 3/4-inch catfish that weighed 2 1/2 pounds. Hunter Hodgkiss landed the littlest fish, a 2 3/4-inch bluegill that weighed 1/10th of a pound. Each received a tackle box...

Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Peetz Jr. of Jackson were honored with a surprise dinner in celebration of their 40th wedding anniversary. The event was held April 22, 2006, at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Jackson. Hosts were their sons and daughter-in-law. Peetz and the former Elsie Nitsch were married April 16, 1966, at the United Church of Christ in Jackson, by the Rev. ...

KELSO, Mo. -- Mr. and Mrs. Paul L. Robert of Kelso were honored with a dinner and dance May 28, 2006, at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Jackson. Hosts were their children and grandchildren. Robert and Lolly Welter were married May 30, 1956, at St. Augustine Catholic Church...

Mr. and Mrs. Stan Popp of Cape Girardeau celebrated their golden wedding anniversary May 20, 2006, with a social event at Celebrations Restaurant. Hosts were their daughters and sons-in-law. Popp and Shirley Suedekum were married May 20, 1956, in Gordonville, by the Rev. G.B. Seboldt. Members of the wedding party in attendance were Marjorie Suedekum, Jean McHenry, Bernice Smith and Bill Haman...

Mr. and Mrs. Leonard Vogel of Cape Girardeau celebrated their 60th anniversary with a reception and party May 21, 2006, at Saxony Village Manor. The couple hosted the event. Vogel and the former Inell Mason were married May 24, 1946, at First Methodist Church in Rule, Texas, by the Rev. Lloyd Hamilton...

ORAN, Mo. -- Alfred and Phyllis Darlene Pearson of Oran announce the engagement of their daughter, Jennifer Lyne Pearson, to Jesse Cole Rush. He is the son of Rita J. Rush of Dyersburg, Tenn., and the late Ronald J. Rush. Pearson is a 1995 graduate of Oran High School. She received a bachelor of science degree in child development from Southeast Missouri State University in 1999. She is a targeted case manager in children's services at Bootheel Counseling Services in Sikeston, Mo...

KELSO, Mo. -- Michael and Renee Murphy of Puxico, Mo., announce the engagement of their daughter, Amy Murphy, to Randy Essner. He is the son of Norman and Dorothy Essner of Kelso. Murphy is a 1997 graduate of Puxico High School. She received a bachelor of science degree in nursing from Southeast Missouri State University in 2002. She is a registered nurse in the Intensive Care Unit at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau...

Kelly and Nancy Mills of Springfield, Mo., announce the engagement of their daughter, Katie Lee Mills, to Brian Gregory Spencer. He is the son of Ted and Sherry Spencer of Sparta, Mo., formerly of Cape Girardeau. An Aug. 5 wedding is planned at Sparta Church of Christ...

25 years ago: June 4, 1981 The Cape Girardeau Police Department may get into the polygraph business; last night, the city council gave first round approval to an ordinance that could lead to city police polygraphists administering polygraph examinations to employees of Farmers and Merchants Bank as a service requested by the bank, and making the service available to other businesses in the city...

Jim and Retha Fanning of Grandin, Mo., and Alton Clark of Piedmont, Mo., announce the engagement of their daughter, Tara J. Clark, formerly of Cape Girardeau, to Brent Wynn. He is the son of Terry and Teresa Wynn of Hartville, Mo. Clark is a 1998 graduate of Southeast Missouri State University. She is a registered nurse at Cox Medical Center South in Springfield, Mo. She formerly worked at Southeast Missouri Hospital...

About 30 youths competed in the annual Hershey's Track and Field Youth Local Meet, sponsored by the Cape Girardeau Parks and Recreation Department and hosted by Central Junior High. Event winners qualified for the state meet, June 30 in Jefferson City, Mo...

Spam king settles with Texas, Microsoft...

n A suicide attacker blew up his car bomb at the main market in the oil-rich southern city of Basra on Saturday, killing at least 15 people and injuring 30, police said. The explosion occurred in the late afternoon when a large number of people were in the square, police Capt. Mushtaq Kadhim said. Hundreds gathered around the blast site, which was drenched in blood and the charred remains of several vehicles...

Pope joins youths in St. Peter's Square for rally; Iran : Breakthrough in nuclear talks possible

MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- A one-car accident in Bollinger County on Saturday injured a Marble Hill man, the Missouri State Highway Patrol said. The driver, Joseph Long, 22, suffered serious injuries and was transported by air ambulance to Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau, the patrol said...

Cape Girardeau...

Cape Girardeau...

The decision by the Cape Girardeau County Commission to ask voters in the August primary to approve a half-cent sales-tax increase leaves barely two months to persuade taxpayers that the extra revenue is needed and that it will be put to good use. The commission proposes to use the revenue for roads and to upgrade the sheriff's department. ...

NEW YORK -- For the third straight summer, Stacey Weiss will be sending her 11-year-old twin boys to Camp Echo in Burlingham, N.Y. But even though they'll be away for eight weeks, Weiss can keep tabs on her children through photos on the camp Web site...

The scent of tobacco lingered in the air, beer was being served and Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" belted from the jukebox. Not a typical Saturday morning at the Arena Building. Players young and old alike packed the Cape Girardeau venue on Friday and Saturday for the American Poolplayers Association local team championship eight-ball tournament...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A portion of a former two-lane highway bridge that was being demolished collapsed Saturday, killing one member of the construction crew and injuring another, police said. The accident occurred about 1:30 p.m. as one portion of the old bridge fell onto a lower section, said officer Darin Snapp, spokesman for the Kansas City Police Department. Snapp said the victim's identity was being withheld, but that he was about 40 years old and lived in the Kansas City area...

RAMADI, Iraq -- Marine Capt. Andrew Del Gaudio walked down the battered staircase, past the dusty American flag strung from a wire fence in the hall, past the windows crammed with sandbags that obscured daylight and the world outside. In the ground-floor corridor of Government Center, Marines rested on cots and worn sofas, some smoking in silence as they waited to head out on a mission. ...

ATLANTA -- Women with advanced breast cancer soon may have another treatment option: A novel experimental drug delayed the growth of tumors nearly twice as long as standard chemotherapy did in patients who had stopped responding to Herceptin, doctors reported Saturday...

WADMALAW ISLAND, S.C. -- Green-yellow tea plants reach into the distance at the Charleston Tea Plantation as a green harvester slowly makes its way down one row, gently cutting the youngest leaves from atop the bushes to make them into American Classic tea...

PODGORICA, Montenegro -- Montenegro's parliament declared independence from Serbia for the tiny Balkan republic Saturday, forming Europe's newest country and dissolving the last vestiges of the former Yugoslavia. The assembly adopted a declaration of independence, verifying the results of a May 21 referendum in which Montenegrins supported a split from Serbia by a slim margin. ...

KABUL, Afghanistan -- Backed by warplanes, U.S. and Afghan troops recaptured a town from suspected Taliban rebels in heavy fighting as violence across southern Afghanistan left at least 35 militants dead, officials said Saturday. The Afghan government, meanwhile, announced a shake-up of the country's top police commanders Saturday after the worst anti-foreigner riots in years shook the capital. Kabul's police chief will be replaced, along with 85 others across the country...

WASHINGTON -- If the chips fall right for Democrats and their party seizes control of the House, President Bush's agenda on Capitol Hill would fall into the hands of some of his most dogged opponents. It's not just would-be Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California, but a boatload of Democrats newly running committees who would determine what legislation gets debated and which programs and agencies get scrutiny...

TORONTO -- Canadian police foiled a homegrown terrorist attack by arresting 17 suspects, apparently inspired by al-Qaida, who obtained three times the amount of an explosive ingredient used in the Oklahoma City bombing, officials said Saturday. The FBI said the Canadian suspects may have had "limited contact" with two men recently arrested on terrorism charges in Georgia. About 400 regional police and federal agents participated in the arrests Friday and early Saturday...

WASHINGTON -- When Donald H. Rumsfeld became defense secretary in 2001, he posted a chatty list of rules to live and work by on the Pentagon's Web site. "Rumsfeld's Rules," as they were called, are long gone now. But two of them in particular resonate during this time of war and recrimination...

Central track and field coach Lawrence Brookins had a number of reasons to be happy about the 2006 track season. The Tigers girls finished sixth in the Class 4 state meet, and the boys placed ninth. "We represented Southeast Missouri well," he said. "I'm extremely proud of these kids."...

Thinking back on her championship track season, Nicole Jackson has a hard time holding back the tears. And they're not all filled with joy. "I've had a rough season," Jackson said Thursday. That's not a word she throws around loosely. The 17-year-old Central junior was shot seven years ago and was a passenger in a car accident on Interstate 55 two years ago...

Plaza Tire Capahas manager Jess Bolen said before the season that he believes pitching will be the strength of his team this summer. If the first two games are any indication, Bolen's assessment will be accurate. The Capahas recorded their second shutout in as many days Saturday, rolling past the visiting Valmeyer (Ill.) Lakers 7-0 at Capaha Field...

U.S. Sen. Jim Talent stressed his bipartisan efforts in Washington even as he painted Democratic challenger and State Auditor Claire McCaskill as a tax-and-spend liberal during his re-election rally in Cape Girardeau on Saturday. The noontime visit to Cape Girardeau was part of a two-day, eight-city tour of the state to kick off his re-election campaign. The tour was scheduled to end Saturday evening in Hannibal, Mo...

BANTUL, Indonesia -- The Mount Merapi volcano spewed lava and hot clouds Saturday and a strong aftershock hit the region, sending fear rippling through the southern Indonesian area devastated by an earthquake only a week ago. The mountain's lava dome has swelled in the past week to 330 feet, raising fears that it could collapse, said Subandriyo, a government scientist who uses one name. ...

The Republican primary for county clerk is a "family feud" that will end when the winner is declared Aug. 8, a supporter of one candidate said last week. Large signs proclaiming support for candidates Kara Clark and Paul Sander line all the major roads in Cape Girardeau County, with some standing side by side. That competition for prime space is mirrored in the two camps' rivalry for supporters prominent in area politics...

CARUTHERSVILLE, Mo. -- A fan blew hot, humid air through Aaro Hayes' Federal Emergency Management Agency mobile home one day last week. The mobile home's air conditioner quit the day after FEMA officials delivered the home to her lot Tuesday. "It could be worse," Hayes said as she fanned herself on an 88-degree afternoon...