Stories from Monday, April 29, 1991

The National Weather Service says the swollen Mississippi River at Cape Girardeau will continue to fall slowly until mid-week. A slight rise is expected Wednesday, but at this time forecasters are not predicting any significant increase. The river crested here Wednesday at 31.7 feet...

Cliff Irwin doesn't grow a garden in order to save money to put fresh vegetables on the dinner table. "I do it more or less as a hobby," said Irwin. "I like to see things grow, and I get a good feeling knowing that I can step into my garden and pick a ripe tomato or some other vegetable...

Michael Aide, chairman of the Department of Agriculture at Southeast Missouri State University, is overseeing a videotape project designed to help property owners combat flood problems. Aide said Sunday the video will document water problems in Cape Girardeau, tell why the problems are occurring, what the city administration is doing to alleviate them, and what individual residents can do to improve drainage on their property...

Sanford N. McDonnell, chairman emeritus of McDonnell Douglas Corp., will present the address at Southeast Missouri State University's spring commencement May 11. Degrees will be awarded to 652 undergraduate and 57 graduate students during the ceremonies in the Show Me Center...

The Southeast Missourian asked people what they thought about current U.S. military involvement in Iraq and the establishment of safe haven settlements for Kurdish refugees. Kelly Kenser: "I think we're doing the right thing. Since we won the war, we should be able to set the rules. We are not being too tough on Iraq, because we could have done worse."...

Cape Girardeau Fire Department investigators said the Thursday night fire at Dushell's Furniture Store, 2103 William, was probably caused by a careless smoker. Authorities said there was no indication the fire was of suspicious origin. The fire started in a storage area at the rear of the one-story building. Officials said at least one box-spring and mattress was destroyed, and nine other combination box springs and mattresses were partially damaged by the fire...

Allen Gathman, associate professor of biology, has been elected chairman of the Faculty Senate at Southeast Missouri State University. Ronald Clayton, assistant professor of art, has been elected vice chairman. Gathman replaced former Chairperson Alberta Dougan...

President Bush acknowledged in his address last week unveiling his new education policy that the time for talk is over. Unfortunately, talk is mostly what his policy amounts to: talk about setting national standards, talk about school choice, talk about establishing model schools...

It has been 30 years since President John Kennedy implored Americans not to ask what their country could do for them, but what they could do for their country. This passage from his inaugural address was not just a call to action in a dynamic time, it symbolized a spirit we embrace as Americans. ...

Zeno Kapfer, 78, of the Missouri Veteran's Home in Cape Girardeau died Friday, April 26, 1991, at the Veteran's Home. He was born Sept. 6, 1912, at Oran, the son of Oswald and Margaret LeGrand Kapfer. He was a member of St. Mary's Cathedral in Cape Girardeau, and the Disabled American Veterans Chapter 1 of St. Louis. He graduated from the St. Louis College of Barbers in 1933 and was a self-employed barber in St. Charles for more than 35 years...

WHITEWATER -- William "Pete" Tolbert Jr., 62, of Whitewater died Sunday, April 28, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeu. He was born May 29, 1928 in Delta, the son of the late William Tolbert Sr. and Lula Moore Tolbert. On April 26, 1952, he married Janet Bartels, who survives of the home...

"The Life and Legacy of Prehistoric Farmers in Southeast Missouri" will be the topic when the annual Thomas Beckwith Memorial Lecture Series resumes at 2:30 p.m. Sunday at Southeast Missouri State University Museum in Memorial Hall. The museum, along with the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, will present a slide lecture by Patrice Teltser, Southern Illinois University assistant professor of anthropology...