Stories from Tuesday, October 31, 1995

PERRYVILLE -- Getting used to the nuances of American life didn't pose a problem for Diana Augustin, a 17-year-old German student. She's visited the United States twice through an exchange program at Perryville High School. So she already knew that all Americans don't listen to country music or that American homes do have basements, which were some common questions among her peers...

Yvonne Fath-Thomas students made her queen for a day as a surprise for her birthday. Fath-Thomas teaches second grade at St. Vincent de Paul Grade School in Cape Girardeau. During the party, her students tried to guess things about their teacher, where she was born, her favorite book and favorite food, and how old she was...

It didn't take long for Hedda Tegnemo to adjust to life as a high school senior in America. She came with no expectations so that nothing could disappoint her. Tegnemo, 18, is an exchange student from Blomstermala, Sweden, and attends school in Jackson...

Trick or treaters can "shop" for Halloween goodies from 6 to 8 tonight at West Park Mall. The mall has been hosting its Halloween party for about five years now, said Suzanne Yoder, marketing director. "We'll get about a thousand" trick or treaters, Yoder said, adding the crowds get bigger when the weather's nasty...

Southeast Missouri State University's next president likely will be recruited by the search committee or its consultants. Consultant Allan Ostar told the search committee Monday that most finalists for university presidents nationwide are recruited; they don't just apply on their own...

Higher education has suffered for the past 50 years because no one has taken responsibility for its actions, George Russell, the president of the University of Missouri system, said Monday. "To know what we've been doing in the last four years, you have to understand what has happened in higher education in the last 40 to 50 years," Russell said at a Cape Girardeau Rotary Club meeting...

For the past 259 days, the Weather Pet has brought a bit of cheer to the daily forecast on Page 1 of the Southeast Missourian. Starting today, area students will be drawing their versions of the weather forecasts, and these color pictures will appear each day at the top of Page 1...

Candy pandemonium. How else can I explain buying 10 bags of Halloween candy at the grocery store last week. It started out as a simple trip to the supermarket. Joni sent me on my way with our 3-year-old daughter, Becca, and instructions to buy some food so we could avoid starvation...

I AM a patron of the Riverside Regional Library and hope it is kept in its present location, which I feel is much better than moving it to the city park. I have never found parking at the present library to be a problem. If we are to spend $1.5 million to $2 million for a new library we need to give thought as to what this will do to our tax assessment. ...

President Clinton has threatened to veto the GOP budget bill so often that he probably will reject the bill "just for the heck of it," U.S. Sen. Christopher "KIt" Bond said Monday. If the president vetoes the bill, Bond predicted Republicans will be willing to work with him to reach a compromise budget plan...

Finding the perfect house or apartment is hard to do, but making it affordable is sometimes even more difficult. Under a newly developed program, Perryville soon will have 46 affordable housing units. Sikeston will get 20 Earlier this year, the two cities were approved for affordable housing loans through a new program sponsored by the Missouri Housing Development Commission...

Several state legislators will discuss their views on welfare reform and other topics during a public forum Friday at Southeast Missouri State University. The forum will run from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Missouriana room of University Center. It is sponsored by the Missouri Association of Social Workers and Southeast's social work department...

Cape Girardeau Central High School students say the school district needs to do a better job of telling about positive happenings at school. Students offered those and other suggestions Monday at a meeting of the Vision Planning Committee, which was appointed by the Board of Education to collect suggestions for improving the school district...

John Weimer's 1978 MG sports car won first place in its category at three car shows this fall: River City Rodders show Sept. 23, Riverboat Open Car Show in Cairo, Ill., Oct. 7, and the British Car and Motorcycle Festival at Memphis, Tenn., Oct. 14. "It was a total mess when I got it," said Weimer, of Cape Girardeau, who spent 18 months rebuilding it. "I drive it everywhere," said Weimer. "I didn't build it as a show car."...

Slightly more than 50 years ago, on July 20, 1945, the new president of the United States stood in the heart of a recently defeated adversary. Harry Truman, in Europe for a meeting with our wartime allies at Potsdam, attended a flag-raising outside the Berlin headquarters of General Dwight Eisenhower...

To the editor: Amid the general fare of right-wing news and commentary presented by the Southeast Missourian, it has been pleasing to see over the last few weeks some voices of reason appearing in the letters column. To coin a phrase, "Some folks know the cost of everything and the value of nothing." Protecting human health and our environment may have some cost, but these are items that have ultimate value, both for those alive now and for future generations. ...

Gambling remains very much in the forefront around Missouri. For example, revenue reports indicate riverboat gambling operations are generating more revenue for the state than predicted, although there don't seem to be any offsetting moves to reduce the tax burden in other areas. In effect, the extra state revenue is a bonus for the state coffers -- money that wasn't anticipated in the budgeting process...

Meanwhile, Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar has proposed a graduated state tax for riverboats in that state, one that would take a bigger bite from gambling operations that are doing well and less of a hit from boats that are struggling. Currently Illinois takes a flat 20 percent from the adjusted gross receipts of all the boats. ...

To the editor: I am writing to acknowledge the loss to the community of a unique and quietly influential man. With the death of John Wiseman, the musical and cultural life of Cape Girardeau is poorer, for John was, in the truest and best sense of the word, an amateur -- one who engages in an activity for the love of it rather than for gain or self-aggrandizement...

To the editor: A special thank you to the Southeast Missourian and staff writer Laura Johnston for the write-up on me and an old World War II buddy, Arthur Gruber of Ottumwa, Iowa. We served together stateside and then on Iwo Jima and Okinawa. It was great to get together after 50 years. I have also been corresponding with another buddy, James Harkins of Taylor, Texas...

JACKSON -- Gertrude Alice Grayson, 72, of Jackson, died Monday, Oct. 30, 1995, at her home. She was born Feb. 6, 1923, in West Plains, daughter of John C. and Margaret B. Martin Doran. She and Thomas H. Grayson were married May 17, 1941. He died Jan. 26, 1988...

BLOOMFIELD -- Leo Stroud, 74, of Bloomfield, died Sunday, Oct. 29, 1995, at Dexter Memorial Hospital in Dexter. He was born Aug. 31, 1921, near Gray Ridge, son of Kelly and Florence Capps Stroud. Stroud had lived in Morehouse and Bloomfield all his life. He attended Link Church near here...

JACKSON -- Irene S. Kasten, 105, of Jackson, died Sunday, Oct. 29, 1995, at Jackson Manor. She was born Oct. 5, 1890, near Fruitland, daughter of John N. and Alice Jane Sloan Short. She and John Kasten were married June 6, 1920. He died March 25, 1949...

Terry L. Exler, 43, of Cape Girardeau, died Monday, Oct. 30, 1995, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. Ford and Sons Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

MARBLE HILL -- Owen A. Snyder, 65, of Marble Hill, died Sunday, Oct. 29, 1995, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Ford and Sons Funeral Home in Cape Girardeau is in charge of arrangements.

SIKESTON -- Funeral service for Marion Caldwell of Sikeston will be held at 3 p.m. today at Watkins and Sons Funeral Home in Dexter, with the Rev. Mike Quillman officiating. Burial will be in Triplett Cemetery near Dexter. Friends may call at the funeral home from noon to service time...

CAIRO, Ill. -- Beulah M. McAlister, 81, of Cairo, died Monday, Oct. 30, 1995, at her home. Barkett Funeral Home in Cairo is in charge of arrangements.

MATTHEWS -- Frederick Junior Butler, 64, of Matthews, died Sunday, Oct. 29, 1995, as a result of an accident near here. He was born May 19, 1931, in Marston, son of Fred Buck and Pearl Alice Butler. He first married Margie Cross. He later married Carolyn E. Eastep June 15, 1966, in Flint, Mich...

PERRYVILLE -- Harriet M. Fiala, 86, of Perryville, died Saturday, Oct. 28, 1995, at Perry Oaks Nursing Center. She was born Feb. 16, 1909, in Perryville, daughter of William H. and Julia Pouyer Valleroy. Fiala was a licensed practical nurse 27 years, retiring from Perry County Memorial Hospital...

DEXTER -- Alfred Acord, 75, of Dexter, died Sunday, Oct. 29, 1995, at Dexter Memorial Hospital. He was born Nov. 2, 1919, near Morehouse, son of Van and Ida Webb Acord. He and Betty Snider were married June 9, 1951, in Piggott, Ark. Acord moved to Dexter in 1959 from Charter Oak. He retired from Swift and Co., where he worked 16 years. He was a member of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and veteran of the U.S. Army...

JACKSON -- Alma L. Barks, 80, of Jackson, died Sunday, Oct. 29, 1995, at her home. She was born Jan. 3, 1915, at Millersville, daughter of Pete and Ida Schrock Sawyer. She first married Truman Seabaugh Sept. 30, 1932, who died Jan. 5, 1980. She then married Jacob Barks June 26, 1982. He died Nov. 4, 1990...

Angie Lange, 18, of Cape Girardeau, died Monday, Oct. 30, 1995, in Cape Girardeau. McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson is in charge of arrangements.

Carroll P. Foster Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3455 will sponsor its 25th annual Veterans Day parade at 3 p.m. Nov. 11 in Anna, Ill. Marching units, drill teams, color guards, clubs, churches and merchants are invited to participate. For information, contact Chester Spears, parade chairman, at 426 E. Jefferson; Anna, Ill. 62906, or call 618-833-8059...

Contestants from around the area are being accepted for the 1996 Miss Missouri Teen All American pageant. The pageant will be held Jan. 20-21, 1996, in St. Louis. The 1996 event is a preliminary competition for the Miss Teen All American pageant. Applicants must be 13-19 years old by August 1996 and never married. ...

Daniel Strohmeyer of Cape Girardeau recently received the Thomas P. Daly Scholarship from Quincy University. Strohmeyer, a freshman, is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Gerald F. Strohmeyer of Cape Girardeau. The scholarship was founded in 1982 by Bernard H. Willer in memory of Daly. It is awarded to an incoming or current student in good academic standing...

Brandon Swanner was recently named the October Youth of the Month by the Exchange Club of Cape Girardeau. Swanner is a senior at Scott City High School and has a 4.0 grade point average. He is a member of the Future Business Leaders of America, National Honor Society, speech team, student council, science club, Key club and Boy Scouts...

Marv Herzog and the Bavarian Band of Frankenmuth, Mich., will perform a benefit concert and dance for Notre Dame High School. The dance will be held Nov. 3 at the Bavarian Halle in Jackson. Doors open at 7 p.m. and music begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $7.50 per person in advance and $8.50 at the door. They can be purchased by contacting Bob Hency at 334-6618, Mike Westrich at 545-3450 or the Notre Dame Development Office at 335-3416...

Timothy Paul Mayfield and Stan Clark were named Students of the Month by the Cape Girardeau Elk's Lodge No. 639. Mayfield, 17, is the son of Joe Mayfield and Barbara Mayfield, both of Cape Girardeau. He is a senior at Cape Central High School. He is a member of the National Honor Society, Young Life, football, wrestling, and track teams. He has a 3.74 grade point average...

Five Southeast Missouri residents recently enlisted in the military. They include Shawn D. Holmes and Mark H. Taylor, both of Marble Hill, Jamie D. Talley and Damon H. Birmingham, both of Cape Girardeau, and Jason E. McTurnan of Bloomfield. Holmes, a 1993 graduate of Woodland High School in Marble Hill, recently enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. He is the son of John C. and Carole L. Holmes of Marble Hill...

The Cape Girardeau Central High School Marching Tigers won second place in their fifth and final competition of the season. The band placed second in the blue division, which included seven other bands, and second overall in a field of 33 bands. The Tigers won the trophy for Outstanding Musical Performance and placed second in General Effect. ...

The Delta Rho chapter of Beta Sigma Phi in Hayti is sponsoring its annual Christmas beauty pageants. Contestants can enter the Miss Jingle Bell, Junior Miss Christmas Belle or Miss Christmas Belle pageants. Each contestant must wear a holiday dress in red, green, gold, white or silver...

The Arts Council of Southeast Missouri is looking for people to construct outdoor light displays for the "Holiday of Lights" exhibit. The exhibit begins Nov. 22 at the Cape County Park North and ends Jan. 3. Displays will be lit from dusk to 11 p.m...

For the 10th consecutive year, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is sponsoring a spelling bee. Registration for the bee is open but forms should be returned by Nov. 10. The spelling bee is conducted by local schools and winners advance to a semi-final round...