Stories from Friday, March 19, 1993

Funeral service for Rudy H. Gerecke of Bakersfield, Calif., was held March 16 at Christ the King Catholic Church in Bakersfield. The Rev. James Voytko officiated, with burial in Hillcrest Cemetery. Mish Funeral Home in Bakersfield was in charge of arrangements...

To the Editor: After nearly three weeks of silence, I must finally take to task the staff of the Missourian for its poor proofreading; the professors and/or students of Southeast Missouri State; or anyone knowledgeable enough to know the true facts for not speaking out...

To the Editor: Recently there was a publication of a veteran inquiring about Rep. Bill Emerson not doing his job representing the veterans. The person who wrote the letter indicated there were four veterans complaining about Mr. Emerson not doing his job. He did not mention my name but I was one of the four and I do not appreciate anyone involving me in their idiotic ideas...

The Show Me Center will host two extraordinary events this weekend, both of which impart excitement and inspiration. The success of the Mayor's Prayer Breakfast this morning and the Southeast Missourian Indian Alumni Shootout Saturday depends on a caring community. We are confident both will be rousing successes...

Organizers of the sixth annual Healthy Lifestyles Conference in Cape Girardeau, a symposium that will focus on efforts of rural communities to combat drugs, report significant community response. The conference, titled "Networking in Rural America: Strategies to Reduce Substance Abuse Among High Risk Youth," will be held April 15-16 at Southeast Missouri State University...

JACKSON - The Jacksonian chapter of the American Business Women's Association will sponsor a Jackson school board candidates forum at 7 p.m. Monday at R.O. Hawkins Junior High School Library on West Lane. Nine candidates are competing for three seats that will be filled April 6. Because of legislation approved last year by the General Assembly, school boards in Missouri are being enlarged from six to seven. Instead of two, three candidates will be elected to the board next month...

The National Weather Service says the potential for spring flooding on the Mississippi River as far south as Caruthersville is currently rated as minor to moderate. The advisory was contained in the weather service's latest spring snowmelt flood outlook...

To the Editor: During the campaign for governor last October, I made up my mind that Bill Webster's problems looked insurmountable and would interfere with his ability to be an effective governor, so I decided to support Mel Carnahan. That too has turned out to be a mistake and here is why I wish both candidates could have lost...

FRUITLAND -- A memorial service for Verona E. Smith of Fruitland will be held at 6 p.m. Monday at Cape Bible Chapel in Cape Girardeau. Hal Greene will officiate. Smith, 66, died Monday, March 15, 1993, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau...

Connie Mae Slinkard, 89, of Cape Girardeau, died Thursday, March 18, 1993, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. She was born Feb. 1, 1904, in Bollinger County, daughter of Matt and Rada Stevens Mungle. Slinkard worked at International Shoe Co. in Jackson a number of years, and in a dormitory kitchen at Southeast Missouri State University 18 years...

Zora O. Dossett, 102, 2514 Allendale, died Wednesday, March 17, 1993, at Chateau Girardeau Health Center. She was born July 29, 1890, in Graves County, Ky., daughter of A.A. and Mildred Barton Meadows. She and G. Frank Dossett were married April 19, 1910, in Metropolis, Ill. He died May 23, 1943...

CHAFFEE -- Thomas "Tommy" Hope, 70, of Chaffee, died Thursday, March 18, 1993, at Chaffee Nursing Center. He was born Nov. 4, 1922, in Johnston City, Ill., son of George and Lisa Dangerfield Hope. He and Ellen Gladys Chapman were married Dec. 24, 1947...

Son to Mr. and Mrs. Mike Brown of Essex, Southeast Missouri Hospital, 10:05 a.m. Wednesday, March 10, 1993. Name, Jerad Michael. Weight, 8 pounds 4 ounces. Second child, first son. Mrs. Brown is the former Marsha Lewis, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Roy Lewis of Bell City. She is employed by Division of Employment Security at Sikeston. Brown is employed by Richland Schools at Essex, and is the son of Helen Brown of Bell City...

Spring officially arrives Saturday, and for those who enjoy warm weather, it can't come soon enough. That's especially after record cold temperatures hit earlier this week, and generally colder than normal temperatures have held true during much of the month...

Imagine spending three days trapped inside a Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck with another person and a hungry cat. Put that truck on a deadlocked highway in Georgia and add about four feet of snow. Sound like the perfect way to end a spring break vacation? Randy Compton doesn't think so...

The proposed $25 million school bond issue drew much of the attention Thursday night at a forum for Cape Girardeau Board of Education candidates. About 60 people turned out for the forum at the Central Junior High School cafeteria. The event was sponsored by the League of Women Voters...

Nearly 40 people on probation for first or second driving-while-intoxicated offenses were made to sit Thursday night and listen to horror stories of families who have lost loved ones in automobile accidents. "We're not here to punish you, but rather to give you a second chance," said Christine Rich. A picture of her son, Bobby, rested on a table behind her. Bobby was killed by a motorist 11 years ago...

SIKESTON -- Country music stars Tracy Lawrence, Mark Chesnutt, Lorrie Morgan and Sammy Kershaw will headline the 1993 Bootheel Rodeo in August. The announcement was made Thursday by the Sikeston Jaycees, which sponsor the rodeo. Lawrence, Billboard's Best New Male Vocalist in 1992, will perform Aug. ...

Jim Dufek, an assistant professor of mass communication at Southeast Missouri State University, always held an interest in a modern slice of Americana televangelism. It's no surprise then, that the topic of his doctoral dissertation was the effect religious broadcasting has on local church attendance...

MARBLE HILL - Missouri State Auditor Margaret Kelly will present the results of her office's audit of the city of Marble Hill at a public meeting Wednesday night. The audit was requested last May after a group of citizens signed a petition asking Kelly to do the audit...

The Cape Girardeau County Chapter of American Family Association will host an informational question-and-answer forum on riverboat gambling April 18 at the Show Me Center on Southeast Missouri State University campus. "We're in the process of putting together a panel for the two-hour to four-hour session," said Donna Miller, president of the local chapter...

U.S. Rep. Bill Emerson, the ranking Republican member of the House Agriculture Committee, told the General Farm Commodities Subcommittee this week that President Clinton's economic package is detrimental to agriculture. "We have proved to the rest of the nation that agriculture is willing to pull its share of the deficit-reduction load; however, I now fear that President Clinton's economic plan sacrifices the economic health of our rural towns and communities to pay for increased spending in other areas of the federal budget," Emerson said.. ...

JACKSON -- Closure this week of the Golden Cat Corp.'s Oran production facility will end the operation of at least one and possibly both branch line railroads that served the facility, officials said. The affected lines are the Golden Cat Railroad and the Jackson & Southern Railroad, officials said...