Community digest 4/24/03

Civil War Round Table to meet Sunday

The Cape Girardeau County Chapter of the Civil War Round Table will meet at 2 p.m. Sunday in the Fellowship Room of Hanover Lutheran Church, 2949 Perryville Road in Cape Girardeau.

The program speaker will be Mike Hahn, who will discuss the sinking of the steamboat Sultana. The little-known event was America's greatest maritime disaster with over 1,700 lost, more than the Titanic. Guests are welcome. For more information, contact Rob Weeks at 335-8361 or Mike Hahn at 334-1928.

Friends of the Park Day set for Saturday

The 18th annual Friends of the Park Day will be held from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at Capaha Park. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. Individuals or organizations interested in improving the quality of Cape Girardeau's parks may contact Brock at 335-5421. T-shirts for all who participate will be provided by local sponsors. Participants will also receive a sack lunch from Schnucks and Pepsi.

Steamboat Classic to hold annual race Sunday

The 19th annual Steamboat Classic Triathlon will be helld beginning at 9 a.m. Sunday at Central Municipal Pool in Cape Girardeau. This continuous three-event race consists of a 500-yard swim, a 15.5-mile bike ride and a five-mile run through commercial and residential areas of the city. Call Doug at 335-5421 for more information.

Tuesday morning is story time at Riverside library

The Riverside Regional Library in Jackson will have a preschool story time beginning at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday. The theme is summer reading.

Grand opening at arts center this weekend

The Center for The Arts at 127 W. Main St. in Jackson will hold its grand opening celebration from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. The center is a non-profit creative learning center offering instructional classes for youth and adults in drawing, watercolors, oils, crafts, pottery, theater and more.

The grand opening will feature artist demonstrations, chalk drawing, children's crafts, refreshments, face painting, a gallery showing and more.

Art Expressions 2003 holds a family event

The annual Jackson R-2 Art Expressions 2003 will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday at the Jackson Senior High Multipurpose Building. Artwork from Jackson R-2 kindergarten through senior high students will be on display.

Hands-on centers for jewelry creation, model magic finger puppets and weaving will be available Saturday. Guest artist Craig Thomas will be drawing portraits. Doug Baltz, Gallery 127 owner, will exhibit his art and Kelly Hughes, co-director with Baltz at Jackson Center of the Arts, will work with potter Julie Bricknell in a hands-on clay center.

Painting demonstration, auction plannedSaturday

From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, area artist Douglas Baltz will try to complete 10 36-inch by 24-inch paintings at Art Expressions 2003 held at the Jackson Senior High Multi-Purpose building. Baltz' paintings will be sold at a silent auction.

Baltz has also donated "Let Freedom Ring" for a charity art raffle. Tickets are available at the Center for the Arts and Gallery 127 at 127 W. Main St. in Jackson. For more information contact the Center at 979-3684.

Alpha Phi Omega will be rocking for St. Jude's

Alpha Phi Omega is teaming up with Walgreens and Hutson's Furniture for the fifth annual Rock-a-thon. Beginning at noon Friday, members of Alpha Phi Omega will be rocking in chairs outside Walgreens drug store for 24 hours to raise money for St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital. Donations of spare change would be greatly appreciated.

REACH to sponsor video program Monday

The REACH Creation Science Support Group (Revealing Evidence and Answers for Creation Using Hermeneutics) is sponsoring a video program from 7 to 8 p.m. Monday at the Cape Girardeau Public Library. A video titled "Did God Really Create in Six Literal 24-Hour Days?" will be shown. Refreshments and door prizes will be presented.

Future topics will include "Is There Evidence for a Worldwide Catastrophic Flood?"; "Is There Really A God?" and "Why Is There Death and Suffering?"

Arts center fund-raising sale begins today

The Center For The Arts, a nonprofit organization promoting art and artists in Southeast Missouri, will hold a three day fund-raising sale from 2 to 5 p.m. today and from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Among the items for sale are antiques, furniture and handmade pottery.

Jackson chamber to hold breakfast meeting Friday

The Jackson Chamber of Commerce's business breakfast and general membership meeting will be held at Reflections Restaurant, 532 W. Main St. in Jackson at 7:30 a.m. Friday. Please sign up in advance by calling the chamber at 243-8131. A program on mentoring and the election of new board members for the Chamber and JIDC is on the agenda.

University seniors featured in art exhibition Friday

An opening reception planned for 4 to 6 p.m. Friday at the Southeast Missouri State University Museum will feature students' artwork associated with their majors.

Majors in the department of art participate in this annual keystone exhibition. Bachelor of Fine Arts students enrolled in the "Senior Exhibition" class -- Art 450 -- take an active role as curators for the exhibition and installing the works in the Museum's galleries. The exhibit will feature the work of nine students and will include painting, sculpture, graphic design and drawing.

Beckwith Memorial lecture held this evening

The Annual Thomas Beckwith Memorial Lecture will begin at 7 p.m. today at Southeast Missouri State University in the University Museum galleries. Admission is free and open to the public. Dr. Leslie Stewart-Abernathy will be the featured speaker. The topic of this year's lecture is "Ghost Boats on the Mississippi: Discovering Our Working Past." Stewart-Abernathy is an archeologist with the Arkansas Archeological Survey.

Jackson Tire Center supports MS research

For the fourth consecutive year, Jackson Tire Center teamed up to raise funds to help the fight against multiple sclerosis.

A crew of 22 representatives of Jackson Tire Center were at the garage at 7 a.m. March 31 to detail 15 automobiles. They raised $1,000 at this event.

Jackson Tire Center invited patrons to join its walk team to participate in April 13's Multiple Sclerosis Walk. A check for $3,063 was presented at this year's Multiple Sclerosis Walk.

PWP to rent Big River Grand Prix for Saturday

Parents Without Partners will rent Big River Grand Prix for a private party of driving go-carts and playing putt-putt golf from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. From 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. a potluck dinner will be held at a private home in Cape Girardeau. Call 334-0797 for more information.

-- From staff reports