Stories from Monday, June 12, 2006

Roger Flynn East's name can't be found on the wall at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. His parents in Cape Girardeau still say Roger died serving his country. While the federal government never acknowledged the cancer he developed was a result of Agent Orange exposure, Dorothy East has a letter from Sen. Kit Bond thanking her for her son's "ultimate sacrifice."...

Nothing about the way Melissa Mackey acted or looked made her appear like a crack addict. Melissa was in a grand mood, or at least she appeared that way, laughing and mingling in the nave of St. Mary's Cathedral in Cape Girardeau. The service had just ended, and the priest was preparing a baptismal font for two families...

Their students' ACT scores are higher than the statewide average. They have more teaching experience and have fewer students drop out of school than the statewide average. Their students are twice as likely to go on to a four-year college after high school than other students in Missouri...

An American crow found in Cape Girardeau County has tested positive for West Nile Virus, the Cape Girardeau County Health Center announced Monday. Charlotte Craig, director of the health center, said Cape Girardeau is the 9th county in Missouri where West Nile has been identified this summer...

CBS "Early Show" weatherman Dave Price will broadcast weather segments live Wednesday morning on the Mississippi River front in Cape Girardeau. The segments will be filmed between 6 and 8 a.m. at the intersection of Broadway and Water Street as part of the show's Great American Vacation giveaway...

CARUTHERSVILLE, Mo. -- Evidence of the devastating April 2 tornado surrounded the Celebration of Hope church service in Caruthersville on Sunday. A concrete foundation is all that remains of St. John's Episcopal Church at 110 W. 19th St., the location of the community church service...

Weekly, I check the business licenses at city halls in Cape Girardeau, Jackson and Scott City. I checked Cape Girardeau's new business filings last week and have a few updates for you with a couple links to stories I've written about in the past. First, let's start with the Cinnabon and Carvel's ice cream update. ...

ST. LOUIS -- Tye Hill is thinking like a player who has to prove himself instead of a first-round pick who has a guaranteed job. The St. Louis Rams' cornerback was on the field after the final minicamp ended on Sunday, working on his ball skills. Hill said he's only following the advice of the Pro Bowlers he's trying to cover in practice, wide receivers Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce. ...

Se Ri Pak hit a utility club from about 200 yards within 3 inches of the cup on the first playoff hole to beat Karrie Webb and win the LPGA Championship in Havre de Grace, Md. Pak atoned for a three-putt bogey on the 18th hole in regulation with the spectacular second shot on that same hole to beat Webb, who was trying to capture the second leg of the Grand Slam...

Some say it resembles a drag race and others say it has slowed traffic down to a pleasant urban bustle. When the subject is Main Street traffic and the opinions are those of downtown merchants, strong sentiments cut both ways. "Traffic has gotten very chaotic. You take your life in your hands crossing the street down here. Generally our customers do not like it, and we have advised them to direct their complaints to city hall," said Judith Ann Lang of Lang Jewelers at 126 N. Main St...

Jackson woman a leader in at-home business Denise Kirk of AtHome America in Jackson was recognized as a top leader in the company with high team sales recently. Kirk has been a part of the company since 1997, offering her home-decorating and home-based business opportunity services to the Jackson area. ...

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Bill Healy held the future in his pocket. The senior vice president of Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Inc. whipped out a tiny hard drive about the size of a Wheat Thin. The drive's label claimed a capacity of 1,000 gigabytes -- more than 100 times greater than today's models that can hold 8,000 photos or 2,000 songs...

Thieves used to break into as many as five cars a week in the parking garage at Los Angeles' Union Station. Then the Metropolitan Transportation Authority came up with a simple solution: They put a security officer on a Segway Human Transporter. "The first day that one of the security officers was on the device was pretty much the last day there was a break-in," said Robin Blair, a transportation planning manager for the MTA, which owns about 20 Segways...

Summer is no vacation for the police. Complaints and incidences of violence increase when hot weather returns. Jackson will combat crime this summer by putting two officers on bicycles, the better to sneak up on criminals. Cape Girardeau also has a bicycle unit and this summer will deploy a special tactical shift that will stake out hot spots where crimes frequently occur. ...

Bears and lions; More roses, fewer tales; Golf-cart danger; Comparing atrocities; Abortion money; Drug education; Tourism slogan; Veteran is hurt; Ethanol research; School money; Roadside beauty; No more memorials; For the tourists; Perturbed taxpayer; Harm's way; Find Osama; Disgusting comment; Running the lights; Ethanol caution; Bill the doctors; Money conflict

Earl W. Peetz, 79, of Jackson, passed away Sunday, June 11, 2006, at the Missouri Veterans Home in Cape Girardeau. He was born Dec. 20, 1926, in Gordonville, son of Joseph and Wilhelmena "Minnie" Voges Peetz. He and Dorothy Marie Maag were married on Nov. 23, 1949. She passed away Aug. 16, 2000...

ALTENBURG, Mo. -- Charles E. Wachter, age 56, of Altenburg passed away Saturday, June 10, 2006, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. He was born Oct. 27, 1949, in Cape Girardeau, son of Otto O. "Chip" and Lillian Haertling Wachter. He and Retha Stueve were married June 2, 1973, in Frohna, Mo...

DALLAS -- Jerry Stackhouse and Josh Howard led the Dallas Mavericks past the Miami Heat four points at a time. Shaquille O'Neal managed just five points in the worst playoff game of his career. Any way you add up those numbers, the marvelous Mavs are halfway to their first NBA title...

Edwin George Thiele, 81, of Jackson died Sunday, June 11, 2006, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. Friends may call from 4 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson. Parish prayers will be at 7 p.m., followed by a rosary led by Bishop Timon Council 6405 Knights of Columbus in Jackson...

ST. LOUIS -- Public health advocates say Missouri and many parts of the St. Louis region don't have enough smoke-free environments. Missouri has passed 122 smoking ordinances, compared to just 49 in Illinois. Pat Lindsey, who leads the Tobacco Free Missouri Coalition in St. Louis said there's still much more to be done...

NEW YORK -- "Jersey Boys," the fast-moving musical biography of pop icons Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, won best musical Sunday at the 2006 Tony Awards, while "The History Boys," Alan Bennett's wise, witty and warmhearted dissection of British education, was named best play...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Almost a third of the sex offenders in the Kansas City area ignore registration laws and don't live where they are reported to, according to a newspaper report Sunday. Many of the missing in three area counties were rapists, child molesters and repeat offenders, The Kansas City Star reported...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Wilma Catherine Grojean, 78, of Sikeston died Saturday, June 10, 2006, at the Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. She was born Sept. 23, 1927, at Benton, Mo., daughter of Andrew and Agnes Welter LeGrand. She and Theon Francis Grojean were married Jan. 20, 1945, in Houston, Texas. He died Oct. 1, 2002...

LONG POND, Pa. -- Rookie Denny Hamlin never turned a lap at Pocono Raceway before this weekend. Well, not in reality, anyway. So for his first career Nextel Cup win, the 25-year-old owes some credit to the makers of his video game. "They got every tree on the site, everything's mapped out perfect," Hamlin said Sunday after winning the Pocono 500. "Visually, I know where my letoff points are."...

GRIFFIN, Ga. -- Most people work to eat, but for food scientist Anna Resurreccion's employees, eating is their work -- at least on a part-time basis. Resurreccion periodically convenes taste panels to evaluate the texture and taste of foods ranging from shrimp to peanut butter to steaks...

KELSO --Vandalia (Ill.) Freight ended the 22nd annual Kelso Klassic much better than it started. After opening the fast-pitch softball tournament with a 2-1 loss to the Memphis Posse, Vandalia stormed back with eight straight victories to win the title...

25 years ago: June 12, 1981 In an apparent last-ditch effort to move circuit court files from Cape Girardeau back to Jackson, to provide circuit clerks at Jackson and to establish a probate court at Jackson, state Rep. Marvin E. Proffer has won passage of an amendment to a Senate bill that cleared the House late yesterday; the Jackson Democrat's effort at again getting the circuit court records moved back to Jackson brings criticism from county officials...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Eleanor A. Willenbring, 95, of Perryville died Saturday, June 10, 2006, at Monticello House in Jackson. She was born Feb. 4, 1911, at Montrose, Mo., daughter of Bernard and Minnie Ann (Cook) Bettels. She and Frank Leo Willenbring were married June 1, 1933. He died June 10, 1986...

ANNA, Ill. -- Ruby Ligon, 93, of Anna died Sunday, June 11, 2006, at her home. Arrangements are incomplete at Crain Funeral Home in Anna.

Bonnie L. Lipke, 92, of Jackson died Saturday, June 10, 2006, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. Funeral arrangements are incomplete at McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson.

CAIRO, Ill. -- Edward S. Hill Jr., 80, of Dallas, formerly of Cairo, died Thursday, June 8, 2006, at Walnut Place Long Term Care Facility in Dallas. He was born Dec. 10, 1925, son of Edward S. and Pauline Feutz Hill. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He attended Mighty Rivers Regional Worship Center in Cairo and retired from Texas Instruments...

Lucille Eva Daniels, 92, of Scott City died Sunday, June 11, 2006, at the home of her daughter in Scott City. Arrangements are incomplete at Amick-Burnett Funeral Chapel in Scott City.

Harry J. Humphrey, 89, of Cape Girardeau died Saturday, June 10, 2006, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. Arrangements are incomplete at Ford and Sons Mount Auburn Chapel.

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Tina K. Luckey, 43, of Perryville died Saturday, June 10, 2006, at Missouri Baptist Hospital in St. Louis. She was born April 11, 1963, in Perryville, daughter of Eldon and Jodean (Roberts) Pingel. She was a teacher aide in the Perryville School District 32 and a member of the Missouri State Teachers Association...

Physical signs n Change in sleeping patterns Behavioral signs SOURCE: Join Together, from www.drugfree.org...

Cape Girardeau...

Cape Girardeau...

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The killing of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi raised hopes that Iraq's slide toward civil war or sectarian disintegration could be arrested, but there are signs that Shiite-Sunni antagonism may now be too deeply rooted. Al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian-born Sunni Muslim, played a key role in stoking Shiite-Sunni tensions the past three years, ordering hundreds of bloody attacks against Iraqi Shiites and issuing vitriolic tirades seeking to deepen a religious schism that dates back 1,400 years...

WASHINGTON -- The Senate Judiciary Committee chairman says he's prepared to force telephone company executives to testify about the White House's eavesdropping program if the Bush administration doesn't fully cooperate in drafting new rules on what's allowable...

River Heritage Quilters' Guild meets today The River Heritage Quilters' Guild will meet at 6:30 p.m. for a social hour followed by a 7 p.m. meeting today at the Cape Girardeau Senior Center, 921 N. Clark Ave. This month's program will be "Crazy Quilts" by Zella Rowe. Plans are underway for the biannual Quilt Show held Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 at the Arena Building in Cape Girardeau. For more information, visit www. riverquilters.bravehost.com...

Lynisha Thomas, 14, is in Nacoasha Davis' group at the Cape Girardeau Boys and Girls Club. So far Thomas has made a lot of new friends -- at least five -- and likes Davis because "She's sweet. She knows how to start fun." This is Thomas' first year at Boys and Girls Club summer camp and it's her choice whether she comes. She chooses to come because she likes it...

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran said Sunday that it accepted some parts of a Western offer aimed at getting Tehran to drop its nuclear program, but it rejected others while calling the central point ambiguous. In its first specific comments on the incentive package, Iran said the key issue of uranium enrichment -- a process that can make nuclear fuel for a power plant or fissile material for an atomic bomb -- needed clarification...

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip -- An Israeli airstrike killed two Hamas militants Sunday and Palestinian militants bombarded southern Israel with homemade rockets as a 16-month-old cease-fire unraveled and the two sides moved closer toward a broader conflict. ...

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- A "stench of despair" hangs over the Guantanamo Bay prison where three detainees committed suicide this weekend, a defense lawyer who recently visited the U.S. jail in Cuba said as calls increased Sunday to close the facility...

LOS ANGELES -- The animated comedy "Cars" raced to first place at the weekend box office with a $62.8 million debut, maintaining the Disney-Pixar cartoon brand's undefeated record with a seventh straight hit. If the numbers hold when final figures come out today, "Cars" would have the third-best opening in the Disney-Pixar cartoon series, just ahead of "Monsters, Inc." but behind "The Incredibles" and "Finding Nemo," which both debuted at about $70 million...

MILWAUKEE -- The Milwaukee Brewers decided not to let Scott Rolen beat them. David Eckstein and Jim Edmonds took care of that. Edmonds doubled twice and had two RBIs, and Eckstein and Rolen each scored twice to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 7-5 victory over Milwaukee on Sunday...

Signs for wireless Internet are easily spotted on Cape Girardeau storefronts as businesses take notice of the the demand for a constant Internet connection. Shannon Davis, owner of 11 area McDonald's restaurants, implemented wirless Internet, or Wi-fi, into his Cape Girardeau locations four years ago to draw more customers and stay ahead of the technology curve...

WASHINGTON -- Two cases of mad cow disease in Texas and Alabama seem to have resulted from a mysterious strain that could appear spontaneously in cattle, researchers say. Government officials are trying to play down differences between the two U.S. cases and the mad cow epidemic that has led to the slaughter of thousands of cattle in Britain since the 1980s...

TAMPA, Fla. -- Most of Florida's west coast was under a tropical storm watch Sunday as the first named storm of the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season spun over the Gulf of Mexico, threatening to bring heavy rain in the next few days. In the evening, Tropical Storm Alberto had maximum sustained wind near 45 mph, up 10 mph from early in the morning, but it was not likely to grow into a hurricane, the National Hurricane Center said...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Stuck between a rock and a hard place. Backed into a corner. A lose-lose situation. The proverbial Catch-22. Such cliches could aptly describe what legislators have done to about 180 school districts. A bill awaiting the governor's approval makes various changes to education law and easily won support in both the House and Senate. But the underlying bill has a provision that makes many school officials bristle...

PARIS -- Unflappable and unbeatable against anyone else, Roger Federer looked helpless at times Sunday, his bid for a fourth consecutive Grand Slam title disappearing in the clouds of clay kicked up by Rafael Nadal. Over and over, for three hours and with the temperature at 90, Nadal scampered and skidded his way to reach seemingly unreachable balls. Going long stretches without a mistake, No. 2-ranked Nadal beat No. 1 Federer 1-6, 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (4) to win his second straight French Open title...

GELSENKIRCHEN, Germany -- They're surrounded by the tightest security, quizzed about lukewarm support back home and constantly questioned over whether they can reprise a surprisingly successful run in the last World Cup. Must be the Americans, still strangers in the land of soccer and hoping to prove that Yanks can hang in the world's No. 1 sport...

The Scott County American Legion baseball team won the Charleston wooden bat tournament on Sunday, defeating Sikeston American Legion 7-5 in the championship game. Blake Dirnberger went 3-for-3 for Scott County (7-3), which had 10 hits overall. Six of the hits came in a seven-run second inning. Aaron Jenkins and Rusty Hendricks each added two hits...