Briefs

SIKESTON CHAMBER HOLDS RIBBON CUTTINGS

SIKESTON, Mo. -- The Sikeston Area Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting to mark the opening of Ultimate Flooring at its new location at 2014 E. Malone Ave. The chamber also held a May 12 ribbon cutting for the new Family Dollar Store at 2009 W. Malone Ave. Aimee Harper is the store manager.

HIRTZ & DUNCAN CUTS RIBBON

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- The Greater Poplar Bluff Area Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting to officially open Bill Hirtz and Trudy Duncan Insurance Services at 2701 Holly Trail, Unit 1.

KENNETT BANK RANKS IN TOP PERFORMING BANKS

KENNETT, Mo. -- Kennett National Bank ranked No. 81 among 4,316 companies with total assets under $5 billion, according to an annual survey by SNL Financial Inc., the industry's leading independent data source. Kennett National Bank was one of only four Missouri banks to make the top 100; no other banks in the comparable asset size range headquartered in Southeast Missouri made the list. Banks were ranked in six core financial performance metrics that focus on profitability, asset quality and growth for the 12-month period ending Dec. 31, 2011.

GREEN THUMB OPENS TEMPORARY LOCATIONS

Green Thumb Flower Works opened with temporary locations in Cape Girardeau and Jackson. The business, owned by Rick Hoffman of Hoffman Family Fire Works, has locations at Town Plaza, next to Quiznos in Cape Girardeau, and on Jackson Boulevard next to the Branding Iron in Jackson. Both locations are open daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and sell hanging baskets, potted plants, tropicals and more.

CANDLE SHOP CUTS RIBBON

BONNE TERRE, Mo. -- The Bonne Terre Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting April 25 for Scentful Memories, 34 W. School St. in Bonne Terre. The store, owned by Stephanie Thurman, sells a wide range of candles, wax and candle holders.

CONSIGNMENT SHOP OPENS IN SENATH

SENATH, Mo. -- Take 2 Boutique opened at 300 S. State St. in Senath. Sarah Layne and Martha Layne own the consignment shop.

ALTENBURG HARDWOOD RECOGNIZED FOR SAFETY

ALTENBURG, Mo. -- The Missouri Department of Labor welcomed Altenburg Hardwood Co. as a member of the Missouri Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP) for its excellent workplace safety record.

CIE GETS INNOVATOR AWARD

The Douglas C. Greene Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Southeast Missouri State University received a 2012 Innovator Award from the Southern Growth Policies Board. The CIE's Operation JumpStart program expansion into the 252 counties in the eight states served by the Delta Regional Authority region was chosen as the top program in Missouri. Innovator Awards are presented annually to one organization in each of Southern Growth's 13 member states to recognize initiatives that are preparing Southerners to meet the workforce needs of a globally competitive business sector. Dr. James Stapleton, executive director of the CIE, will accept the award at Southern Growth's 2012 Chairman's Conference on June 25 to 26 in Chattanooga, Tenn.

HOOKED ON SCIENCE GETS WEBSITE AWARD

PADUCAH, Ky. -- The Hooked on Science WebChannel, www.hookedonscience.org, earned a Best Education Mobile Website award in the Web Marketing Association 2012 Mobile Web Awards. Websites are selected based on creativity, impact, design, content, interactivity, ease of use and use of the medium. Jason Lindsey is executive director and founder of Hooked on Science.

YVONNE'S RESTAURANT OPENS IN CAPE

Yvonne's Restaurant opened at 1015 N. Kingshighway in Cape Girardeau. Owner Yvonne LeGrand previously owned Yvonne's in Benton, Mo., for nine years. The restaurant offers homestyle daily specials as well as salads, burgers, wraps, grilled sandwiches, catfish, pizza and desserts. Yvonne's serves breakfast all day.

USA VETERANS TO OPEN BAR AND GRILL

USA Veterans of Cape Girardeau will open a bar and grill in an effort to raise money to help other veterans. The group purchased a building at 519 Good Hope St. and will call it Trail of Tears Bar and Grill. Funds from the bar and grill will also help support the organization's emergency fund, which helps veterans in need and their families. The building was most recently home to The Pink Squirrel nightclub, but most know it as the former Ed's Bar, which occupied the building for more than 50 years.

OLD TOWN CAPE LAUNCHES ONLINE DIRECTORY

Old Town Cape and Element 74 launched an online business directory to help customers find what they're looking for in downtown Cape Girardeau. The directory of downtown businesses can be found at www.oldtowncape.org/newdirectory. The directory is divided into sections for dining, shopping, exploring, night life, lodging, venues, beauty salons, worship and other services. Each business listing now features the address, phone number, location on Google maps and any social media sites. Visitors to the site can also look up a business using a search feature.

SHOOTING RANGE TO OPEN IN LEADINGTON

LEADINGTON, Mo. -- An 11,000-square-foot indoor shooting range will soon open on Flat River Road in Leadington, the Park Hills Daily Journal reported. J.R. McDowell and his father are finishing construction on the structure, which they hope to open in late June or early July under the name Ozark Thunder, said Pat McDowell, owner of McDowell Seamless Siding & Windows in Farmington, Mo. The facility will feature 12 shooting lanes, an area for gun and ammunition sales and a training room where meetings and weapon training classes can be held.

NARS DAYCARE ACCREDITED

The Missouri Accreditation of Programs for Children and Youth awarded a certificate of accreditation to NARS Daycare@Work, 2102 William St. in Cape Girardeau. The Daycare@Work program will now be included on the Missouri Accreditation website, which serves as a guide to parents seeking a high quality program for their children. It can be found at www.moaccreditation.org.

TRUCKING COMPANIES RECOGNIZED

Several local trucking companies were recognized as part of the Great West Casualty Co.'s 2011 National Safety Awards. Awards are presented based on year-end preventable accident results, and companies may receive platinum, gold, silver or participatory awards. Jerry Lipps Inc. of Cape Girardeau received a gold award, Genesis Transportation Inc. of Cape Girardeau received a silver award, Hull Trucking of Old Appleton received a platinum award, SEMO Express LLC of Sikeston, Mo., received a silver award and Breeden Transportation Inc. of Sikeston received a platinum award. More than 625 companies across the country participated in the program.

CAP AMERICA RANKED IN TOP 10

FREDERICKTOWN, Mo. -- Counselor Magazine, a leading publication in the promotional products industry, ranked Cap America No. 5 in its list of the top 10 fastest growing suppliers. Cap America has been in Fredericktown since it began in 1985, but has grown to 200-plus people with additional offices in California and China.

EDWARD JONES HONORED BY MONEY MANAGEMENT

Financial services firm Edward Jones was named Advisory Solutions Firm of the Year by the Money Management Institute as the firm that most exemplified overall excellence and contributed to the long-term success and sustainability of the wealth management industry. The award was presented at the institute's annual Gateway to Leadership Awards Dinner held recently in Chicago.

TWO JOIN BOLLINGER CHAMBER

MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- The Bollinger County Chamber of Commerce added two new members: Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland and Cato Computer Repair, owned by Gordon Cato, in Greenville, Mo.

POP'S PIZZA OPENS PARTY ROOM

Pop's Pizza opened a party and game room at 401 N. Clark Ave., next door to the Cape Girardeau restaurant. The room has video games, skeeball, pinball, air hockey, pool and a jukebox. Hot dogs, nachos, soda and pizza by the slice will be available.

BAETJE CHEESE NOW AT PRIMO VINO

Baetje Farms cheeses are now available at Primo Vino, 1610 N. Kingshighway, Suite 105 in Cape Girardeau. Steve and Veronica Baetje of Bloomsdale, Mo., produce the farmstead artisan goat cheese.

SAFARI PARK OPEN DAILY

Lazy L Safari Park, 2763 County Road 618 in Cape Girardeau, is now open daily. The walk-thru zoo will be open daily through Labor Day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with the zoo closing at 7 p.m.

CITIZENS ELECTRIC TO RELOCATE IN PERRYVILLE

STE. GENEVIEVE, Mo. -- The Citizens Electric Corp. board of directors voted to approve building projects for new headquarters and two service facilities in Perryville, Mo., the Ste. Genevieve Herald reported. CEC headquarters are currently at 150 Merchant St. in Ste. Genevieve. Although no timetable has been given, CEC expects to move out of its Ste. Genevieve location to a parcel of 40 acres it owns near Highway 51 in Perryville. The new headquarters will include a hardened structure to help protect CEC's systems and personnel in the event of a major disaster, a meeting space that can hold all of CEC's employees, and space to serve as a staging area for restoration efforts. Plans also call for the relocation of a maintenance facility, currently located on five acres on Industrial Drive in Ste. Genevieve, to a larger site near the intersection of Highway 32 and Interstate 55. Cooperative Building Solutions of St. Charles County was selected as the general contractor on all three projects.

NORANDA OPENS NEW CHANGE HOUSE

MARSTON, Mo. -- A grand opening and ribbon cutting were held May 4 for Noranda's new $4 million change house, the Sikeston Standard Democrat reported. The 20,000-square-foot building has locker room, shower and restroom facilities for all of Noranda's employees at the plant.