HOMETOWN HEROES TO BE HONORED OCT. 31

Twenty-five area residents will be honored for outstanding volunteerism and humanitarian achievements at the third annual Hardee's Hometown Heroes awards ceremony Tuesday, Oct. 31.

Dr. Bill Atchley, interim president of Southeast Missouri State University, will salute the honorees in a ceremony that starts at 11:30 a.m. at the Holiday Inn in Cape Girardeau. The ceremony is open to the public. Atchley will be the keynote speaker and present awards.

Awards will be presented in 17 categories, ranging from health care to community service. Honorees were nominated by the public from a region ranging from Cape Girardeau to Carbondale to Paducah.

Kay Blanchard, volunteer coordinator for the American Red Cross in Cape Girardeau, is one of the honorees in the community service category.

More people in the community need to get involved, Blanchard said.

"There's so much out there for us to do. It's just hard to imagine, some of the things you get into," she said. "We need more people. If you could see some of the things that happen, I think your heart would break. That's what happened to me."

Other honorees in the community service category are Melvin Gateley, Bonnie Gerecke, Capt. Robert Gauthier, Donna Hanschen, John Mehner and Rev. Miles White, all of Cape Girardeau; William Beasley of Paducah; Mary Nell Chew and Odessa Meeks of Carbondale and Paul McKnight of Herrin.

In the animal welfare category, Jhan White of Cape Girardeau will be honored. Tatiana "Toddie" Adams of Benton and Dr. Randall Shaw of Cape Girardeau will be honored for educational contributions. Mike Murphy of Cape Girardeau will receive an award in the environmental awareness category. Randy Crowell of Murphysboro will be honored in the handicapped support category.

Dr. Carolyn Green and Dr. Stephen Luigs of Paducah and Nancy Mosley of Cape Girardeau will be honored for health care contributions. Connie Coleman of Paducah and Barbara Kempster of Scott City will be recognized for helping children. Angelia Crowell of Paducah will recognized in the honesty category. William Wickham Jr. of Cape Girardeau will be recognized for public safety improvement. In the senior citizen category, Mary Francis Harris of Paducah and Jo Nelle Lingo of Cape Girardeau will be honored.