AREA MEN AMONG ACADEMY GRADUATES OF HIGHWAY PATROL

SIKESTON - Two area men are among the 35 troopers who graduated last month from the 64th recruit class of the Missouri State Highway Patrol Academy in Jefferson City. The new officers began their training Jan. 1, and reported to their new duty stations July 1, the patrol said.

Trooper Timothy E. Crowe, 26, was born in Cape Girardeau and grew up in Chaffee. He is assigned to Houston, in Troop G, in southern Missouri.

Crowe graduated from Chaffee High School and received his degree in criminal justice from Southeast Missouri State University in 1987.

Prior to his appointment to the patrol Jan. 1, Crowe was a deputy sheriff with the St. Charles County Sheriff's Department.

Crowe is married to the former Tracy Denbow. They have one son, Adam, age three.

Trooper John A. Sampietro Jr., 22, of Sikeston, reported to his Troop E duty station at Portageville. He was born in Memphis, Tenn., and grew up in Sikeston. He is a graduate of Sikeston High School and attended Memphis State University in Memphis.

Prior to his appointment to the patrol, Sampietro was a public safety officer with the Sikeston Department of Public Safety.