Stories from Wednesday, February 27, 2019

BeTween Initiative is a local group focused on improving self-assurance in young adolescent girls by providing resources and instruction not readily available. The organization is hosting its first event Saturday — The BeTween Initiative — at the Osage Centre in Cape Girardeau...

Southeast Missouri counties and the State of Missouri as a whole have benefited economically from the federal Supplemental Nutrition Program, a new study shows. The program, commonly referred as food stamps, provided more than $30.5 million in assistance to low-income residents in Cape Girardeau, Bollinger, Perry and Scott counties combined in fiscal 2018, according to a study from the Missouri Budget Project...

In 1936, Victor Green published a guide book for African-American travelers in a segregated United States. Titled “The Negro Motorist Green Book,” or simply “The Green Book,” it contained information on where African-American families could find a place to eat, buy gasoline, stay overnight, without being harassed...

ST. LOUIS -- The United Methodist Church, America's second-largest Protestant denomination, faces a likely surge in defections and acts of defiance after delegates at a crucial conference Tuesday rejected a move to ease the faith's ban on same-sex marriage and ordination of LGBT clergy...

Today is Wednesday, Feb. 27, the 58th day of 2019. There are 307 days left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On Feb. 27, 1951, the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, limiting a president to two terms of office, was ratified. On this date: In 1801, the District of Columbia was placed under the jurisdiction of Congress...

Bill Maher, the progressive elitist pseudo-comedian and leftist political pundit, thinks middle America wants to be just like him. On his Real Time monologue last week, Maher took aim at red state conservatives with an elitist view that unmasks what the left truly thinks of flyover state Americans...

A Mass is celebrated at Old St. Vincent's Catholic Church in the morning, as local residents recall Holy Family Catholic Church and its school, which served the black population of Cape Girardeau for two decades; officiating is the Rev. Willis F. Darling, C.M., 87, the founder of the church...

Earlene C. Shirrell, 87, of Cape Girardeau died Sunday, Feb. 24, 2019, at Fountainbleau Lodge. She was born Sept. 1, 1931, in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, to Ollie Vernon and Edith Rose Crockett Crossen. She and Cletis H. Shirrell were married Dec. 26, 1954, at Cape Girardeau. He preceded her in death Oct. 24, 2015...

Barbara Shelton, 78, of Jackson died Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2019, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. She was born March 12, 1940, in Thebes, Illinois, to Edward and Lura Coplin Foutch. She married Thurman L. Shelton Jr. on March 4, 1960. He preceded her in death March 18, 2008...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Johnnie Louis Reckert, 71, of Perryville died Monday, Feb, 25, 2019, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. A memorial service will be at 1 p.m. Saturday at Calvary Baptist Church. Young and Sons Funeral Home in Perryville provided the arrangements...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Russell C. Hickam, 74, of Perryville died Thursday, Feb. 21, 2019, at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday and from 6:30 to 8 a.m. Saturday at Young and Sons Funeral Home. Funeral will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at Grace Lutheran Church in Uniontown, Missouri, with the Rev. Paul Winningham officiating. Burial will be in the church cemetery, with military graveside honors provided by American Legion Post 133 and Delta Team...

Donald Couch, 66, died Monday, Feb. 25, 2019, in Cape Girardeau. Visitation will be from 10 a.m. to noon Thursday at Coplin Family Funeral Home of Bismarck, Missouri. Funeral will be at noon at the funeral home, with the Rev. Mike Barton officiating. Interment, with full military honors, will be at Odd Fellows Cemetery in Bismarck...

SALEM, Ore. -- An Amtrak train traveling from Seattle to Los Angeles with 183 passengers got stranded in the snowy mountains of Oregon for at least 36 hours, putting a strain on passengers as food, patience and even diapers ran short. The train came to a stop after crew members spotted trees on the tracks. Railroad officials decided to keep the passengers onboard instead of letting them scatter in a town of 3,200 people dealing with its own problems -- a blackout, snow and debris-covered roads...

KANO, Nigeria -- Nigeria's president was poised Tuesday to win a second term in Africa's largest democracy after urging voters to give him another chance to tackle gaping corruption, widespread insecurity and an economy limping back from a rare recession...

PESHAWAR, Pakistan -- Pakistan accused India of launching an airstrike on its territory early Tuesday, while India said it targeted a terrorist training camp in a pre-emptive strike killing a "very large number" of militants. The overnight raid was the latest escalation between the nuclear-armed rivals since a deadly suicide bombing in the disputed Kashmir region earlier this month killed more than 40 Indian soldiers. ...

WASHINGTON -- A federal appeals court Tuesday cleared AT&T's takeover of Time Warner, rejecting the Trump administration's claims the $81 billion deal will harm consumers and reduce competition in the TV industry. The ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington approves one of the biggest media marriages ever. ...

LONDON -- Britain's bumpy journey out of the European Union took a major turn Tuesday, as Prime Minister Theresa May handed the steering wheel to Parliament, giving lawmakers the power to slam on the brakes and divert Britain away from a disruptive and chaotic Brexit...

WASHINGTON -- Thousands of accusations of sexual abuse and harassment of migrant children in government-funded shelters were made over the past four years, including scores directed against adult staff members, according to federal data released Tuesday...

WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump is threatening to veto two Democratic bills expanding federal background checks on gun purchases, saying they do not sufficiently protect gun owners' Second Amendment rights. The House is expected to vote this week on separate bills requiring background checks for all sales and transfers of firearms and extending the background-check review from three to 10 days...

WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, is expected to give a behind-the-scenes account of what he will claim is Trump's lying, racism and cheating, and possibly even criminal conduct, when he testifies publicly before a House committee Wednesday, according to a person with knowledge of the matter...

WASHINGTON -- Under pointed questioning from senators, the top U.S. general for homeland defense said Tuesday he sees no military threat coming from the southern border with Mexico, but his focus in on "very real" threats from China and Russia in the north...

WASHINGTON -- Democrats ignored a veto threat and rammed legislation through the House Tuesday that would stymie President Donald Trump's bid for billions of extra dollars for his border wall, escalating a clash over whether he was abusing his powers to advance his paramount campaign pledge...

SAN FRANCISCO -- Torrential rain from a winter storm that has also dumped heavy snow in mountainous areas prompted California authorities to urge thousands of residents to evacuate a town north of San Francisco. Residents of Guerneville, population 4,500, were told to evacuate homes and businesses because the Russian River was expected to overflow Tuesday night when it reaches 32 feet...

WASHINGTON -- The number of homes being built in December plunged to the lowest level in more than two years, a possible sign developers are anticipating fewer new houses to be sold this year. The Commerce Department said Tuesday housing starts fell 11.2 percent in December from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.08 million. This is the slowest pace of construction since September 2016...

WASHINGTON -- Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told Congress on Tuesday the U.S. economy should keep expanding at a solid, though somewhat slower pace this year. But he warned of growing risks, including a global slowdown, volatile financial markets and uncertainty about U.S. trade policy...

NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- Bacteria lodged deep in Ella Balasa's lungs were impervious to most antibiotics. At 26, gasping for breath, she sought out a dramatic experiment -- deliberately inhaling a virus culled from sewage to attack her superbug. "I'm really running out of options," said Balasa, who traveled from her Richmond, Virginia, home to Yale University for the last-resort treatment. "I know it might not have an effect. But I am very hopeful."...

WASHINGTON -- A House committee voted Tuesday to subpoena Trump administration officials over family separations at the southern border, the first issued in the new Congress as Democrats have promised to hold the administration aggressively to count...

HANOI, Vietnam -- President Donald Trump is paying a courtesy call on his Vietnamese hosts while North Korea's Kim Jong Un was expected to take in some sights today before the leaders open their second nuclear summit with a one-on-one meeting and private social dinner...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley on Tuesday doubled down on his apprehension about voting for President Donald Trump's nominee to a high-profile appeals court, despite pushback from conservative groups. Hawley listed his concerns in a letter to Neomi Rao, who Trump nominated to replace Brett Kavanaugh after he was appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court...

O Lord Jesus, may we focus on what is right in your eyes. Amen.

Richard Kirkpatrick, 87, of Cape Girardeau, formerly of Benton, Missouri, died Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2019, at Bertrand Nursing Center in Bertrand, Missouri. Arrangements are incomplete at Amick-Burnett Funeral Chapel in Benton.

Mary Belle Headrick, 91, of Jackson died Monday, Feb. 25, 2019, at Arbors at Cape Girardeau. Arrangements are incomplete at Ford and Sons Funeral Home in Jackson.

Daughter to Chaz Marshall and Kara Jeanine Keeton of Matthews, Missouri, Saint Francis Medical Center, 3:41 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 3, 2019. Name, Cassidy Kaylee Ann. Weight, 5 pounds 13 ounces. Third child, first daughter. Ms. Keeton works for Carr Textile and is the daughter of Jamie and Gary Keeton of Matthews. Marshall is the son of William Marshall of Sikeston, Missouri and Lydia Marshall of Bertrand, Missouri...

Hey Jackson peeps. Pop quiz: 1. What three famous Marvel Comics Book characters have a direct relationship with your city? 2. What are the names of the comic book artists who created these characters? If you didn't know the answers to those questions, don't feel bad. I didn't either until several months ago. I'm not, after all, a comics book aficionado. But I do know quite a bit about Jackson, or at least I thought I did, having lived in the county seat for 20 years or so...

The Jackson High School FBLA Chapter has completed a project where they make cards for the residents of the Jackson Manor Nursing Home. Every card is hand made and hand delivered to the patients at the nursing home. The chapter has ensured that the following holidays are included: Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentines Day, St. ...

On November 12, 15, and 16, the Jackson Chapter of Future Business Leaders of America students participated in this years American Enterprise Project. This project was meant to inspire young kids in the Jackson School District to become interested in creating their own businesses in the future. ...

On Wednesday, February 20, 2019, Jackson High School FBLA hosted a Skills Fair for the senior class and a Career Fair for the junior and sophomore classes. During the Skills Fair, local community businesses presented professional development skills to students that are not learned in the classroom. ...

PRESS RELEASE—IMMEDIATE BIOGRAPHY PUBLISHED JANUARY, 2019 Stephen F. Huss, Ph.D. (314) 379-8660 e-mail: sfhuss@gmail.com Website: www.sfhuss.com Rediscovering Thomas C. Fletcher, The Lost Missouri Governor Although he had been the first Republican Governor in the history of the state, the first native-born governor, the last Civil War governor, the first Reconstruction governor, an internationally-respected attorney, the friend of at least five U.S. ...