Stories from Tuesday, January 16, 1996

A recent member survey by the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce yielded a list of concerns nearly identical to those of a year ago. Economic development, creation of new jobs, retention of existing ones, K-12 education, availability of skilled workers and crime issues are the six top concerns. In the list, the top two are flipped from last year. These issues were followed by the new Mississippi River bridge and transportation issues, health issues and city growth...

Son to Tim and Becky Stone of Jackson, Southeast Missouri Hospital, 3:08 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 6, 1996. Name, Austin Wade. Weight, 8 pounds 4 ounces. Mrs. Stone is the former Becky Green, daughter of Marie Green of Jackson and the late Norvel Green. She is an X-ray technician at Regional Primary Care. Stone is the son of Garry and Paulette Stone of Jackson. He is an electrical/mechanical worker at Dana Corp...

Legislation to make English the official language of Missouri government is again making the rounds in the General Assembly. Bills introduced in both houses of the Legislature would mandate the use of English-only in all state documents. "I think we need to specify that this legislation is about state government," said Rep. ...

MILLERSVILLE -- Betty Dee Gilder, 67, of Millersville, died Sunday, Jan. 14, 1996, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. She was born Oct. 28, 1928, in St. Louis, daughter of William H. and Ella W. Reid Walker. He and Earl W. Gilder were married July 29, 1947...

Tuesday, Jan. 16, 6 p.m. Vocational-Technical School, Room 214 Old business Response to reconsider a weighted grading system Early intervention liaison New Business, Action items Investment account resolution Fund transfer Policy updates Computer bid for lunchroom computers...

A volunteer kick-off meeting for Riverfest 1996 will be held Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at Port Cape Girardeau. The meeting serves to recruit people who want to be part of the Riverfest celebration and to gather ideas on how to make the event better. Riverfest will be held June 14-15 in downtown Cape Girardeau. The theme is "Mississippi Magic."...

An adult adoptee who recently searched, located and reunited with her birthmother will speak at this month's Adoptive Family Group meeting. The group meets Saturday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at St. Andrew Lutheran Church, 804 N. Cape Rock Drive. The speaker, Jane Kester-Koppenaal, will provide an overview of her experiences. She will talk about the discovery of her biological heritage and identity and will tell how she is processing that experience, blending two identities into one...

Three generations of the Limbaugh family will discuss "Communication and Jurisprudence: A Three Generational Perspective" when they present the first Joseph H. Low, Jr. Lecture Jan. 29. The lecture is scheduled for 4 p.m. in the University Center Ballroom at Southeast Missouri State University. Admission is free and open to the public...

ANNA, Ill. -- A Jonesboro man sustained major injuries in an accident early Monday. Michael R. Haynes, 47, of Jonesboro was eastbound on Wing Hill Road, 1.7 miles east of Highway 51 in rural Anna, at about 2:45 a.m. when his pickup truck ran off the right side of the road into a ditch, according to the Illinois State Police...

Vision 2000 will hold its seventh annual Awards of Distinction ceremony Monday. "The Awards of Distinction are given to people who have helped achieve the goals and objectives of Vision 2000 throughout the past year," said Mary Spell, outgoing chairman of the organization. "It salutes individuals and groups who have supported Vision 2000 and added to the quality of life in Cape Girardeau."...

Community Counseling Center Foundation will hold the third annual Doctor-Lawyer Basketball Game Feb. 15 at Cape Girardeau Central High Field House. Tipoff is 7:30 p.m. Proceeds will benefit people with mental illness by providing improvements and equipment for services provided by the center...

The Rev. William Bird, a longtime minister in Cape Girardeau, hopes to become a catalyst for change and reconciliation in the city. He has filed for a three-year term on the Cape Girardeau Board of Education. Bird joins incumbents Bob Blank and Steve Wright in seeking three, three-year seats on the board. In addition, voters will choose one person to fill a one-year board term. Incumbent Harry Rediger and Jacqueline Sproat have filed for that seat...

It is said that those who do know history are doomed to repeat it. It might also be said that lawmakers who don't know history are doomed to enact bad legislation. So it is with the latest proposal to limit the royalties members of Congress may receive from books they publish...

MARBLE HILL -- Glen F. Burk, 92, died Sunday, Jan. 14, 1996, at Bond Nursing Care Center in Marble Hill. He was born Sept. 4, 1903, at Glen Allen to Franklin and Caroline Sitze Burk. On Sept. 12, 1924, he married Fern Bollinger, who died Oct. 22, 1988...

Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon has outlined details of his plan to phase out the St. Louis area's court-ordered school desegregation. The proposals would affect city students who attend suburban schools and county students who attend city magnet schools. In exchange for ending the state's participation, the attorney general is offering extra state aid for three years to help pay for additional city schools...

America's blacks have made progress since the murder of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 28 years ago, a black educator said Monday. But King's dream of racial equality and harmony hasn't been fully realized, said the educator, Mark Stansbury...

SIKESTON -- U.S. Rep. Bill Emerson told farmers attending the Rural Restoration Conference Monday that a year's extension of the 1990 Farm Bill is possible. "We still have a budget battle," Missouri's 8th District congressman said by telephone from his office in Washington. "That could go on all year."...

JACKSON -- The last time Jackson passed laws to regulate subdivisions, Lyndon Johnson was president. Jackson has changed considerably since then; the once-quaint town now contains prime real estate for people who want to live in Cape Girardeau County...

Babyhood changes everything. Parents don't just lose sleep because they're up at 3 a.m. feeding the baby. Their wardrobe also changes. Your clothes are accessoried with formula-stained burp cloths. You walk around the house with those things draped over your shoulder like a badge of courage...

I WANT to comment about Hillary Clinton's book about how to raise children, "It Takes a Village." I wonder if the village could be Waco. I wonder what chapter she tells about how to put gas down on little Christian children and burn them up down in Waco. Isn't it ironic how somebody who's pro-abortion would write a book about how to raise children? This is ridiculous...

DUDLEY -- Mabel C. Harmon, 90, died Sunday, Jan. 14, 1996, at Lucy Lee Hospital in Poplar Bluff. She was born April 16, 1905, in Dudley, daughter of William Henry and Allie Maher Wood. She and Walker C. Harmon were married Sept. 24, 1922. He died Nov. 6, 1984...

ELCO, Ill. -- Thomas B. Williams, 82, of Elco, died Sunday, Jan. 14, 1996, at Jonesboro Healthcare Center. He was born June 28, 1913, in Elco, son of George T. and Flora Ellen Sims Williams. Williams, retired as a power use adviser with REA. He was a member of Elco United Methodist Church, Dongola Masonic Lodge, and served on the Alexander County School Board several years...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Graveside service for Sam Taylor Jr. of East Prairie will be held at 10 a.m. today at Dogwood Cemetery. Richard Farquhar will officiate. Shelby Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements. Taylor, 65, died Friday, Jan. 12, 1996, at his home, following a brief illness...

MOUNDS, Ill. -- Sandra Ann Rogers, 57, of Mounds, died Saturday, Jan. 13, 1996, at her home. She was born Oct. 1, 1938, in Flint, Mich., daughter of Raymond and Clara Bell Town Kerley. Rogers had lived in the Mounds area 18 months, moving from Flint...

TAMMS, Ill. -- Barbara Ann Baker, 68, of Tamms, died Sunday, Jan. 14, 1996, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau, Mo. She was born Sept. 9, 1927, in Crookston, Minn., daughter of Al and Dagny Marie Gustoffson Ergeson. She married Harold Vance Baker, who died in 1992...

URBANDALE, Ill. -- Juanita Jane Whitaker, 63, of Urbandale died Monday, Jan. 15, 1996, at her home. She was born April 10, 1932, at Cairo, Ill., to Lloyd and Minnie Fair Hafford. She was a member of Urbandale Community Chapel. Survivors are her husband, the Rev. ...

MINER -- Funeral service for Mary Alice Brantley of Waynesville, formerly of Miner, will be held at 10:30 a.m. today at Nunnelee Funeral Chapel in Sikeston. The Rev. Mike Cartwright will officiate, with burial in Garden of Memories Cemetery. Brantley, 73, died Saturday, Jan. 13, 1996, at her home...

He was born May 13, 1935, at Bell City, son of William Henry and Virgin Minnie Slinkard White. He and Dortha Baker were married Sept. 5, 1959. White was employed at Tim's Food Mart in Oran. He was a member of Oran Chamber of Commerce, Chaffee Masonic Lodge 615, Chaffee VFW Post, and Shrine Club in Cape Girardeau. He served in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War...

FARRAR -- Edna R. Versemann, 80, of Farrar, died Monday, Jan. 15, 1996, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. She was born May 30, 1915, in Perry County, daughter of John and Martha Mangels Lorenz. She and Edgar A. Versemann were married June 7, 1936...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Funeral service for Lillie May Irby of East Prairie will be held at 2 p.m. today at Shelby Funeral Chapel. The Rev. Stanley Triplett will officiate, with burial in Odd Fellows Cemetery. Irby, 84, died Monday, Jan. 15, 1996, at East Prairie Nursing Center...

CRUMP -- Arlene Gones, 53, of Crump, died Saturday, Jan. 6, 1996, in Chula Vista, Calif. She was born June 21, 1942, in Cape Girardeau, daughter of James D. and Opal Adam Limbaugh. She and Bob Gones were married in May 1982. Gones was a graduate of Central High School in Cape Girardeau. ...

CHARLESTON -- Grover D. Brownfield, 82, formerly of Charleston, died Monday, Jan. 15, 1996, at Bertrand Retirement Center in Bertrand. He was born Jan. 28, 1913, in Jackson County, Ark., son of Henry and Mary B. Brownfield. He and Vada Ann Sims were married Sept. 28, 1935. She died March 30, 1993...

Ellis A. Masters, 89, of Cape Girardeau, died Sunday, Jan. 14, 1996, at Deal Nursing Home in Jackson. He was born June 7, 1906, at Neelys Landing, son of Emmet and Eva Penny Masters. He first married Julia Miller, who preceded him in death. He and Lucy Rector were married in 1959 in Cape Girardeau...

MARBLE HILL -- Dolores "Dolly" Woodring, 67, of Marble Hill, died Monday, Jan. 15, 1996, at Jackson Manor in Jackson. She was born March 25, 1928, in Masontown, Pa., daughter of Eli and Mary Hunchuck Pansic Sr. She and Clarence "Woody" Woodring were married Sept. 30, 1947. He died June 9, 1993...

COBDEN, Ill. -- Barbara R. Smith, 61, of Cobden, died Monday, Jan. 15, 1996, at her home. She was born Oct. 4, 1934, in Cobden, daughter of Ernest and Gladys Hill Lence. Smith was a medical records librarian at Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center in Anna. She was a member of the Congregational Church in Cobden, and former member of Cobden Village Board...

JACKSON -- Andrew Jackson DeLay, 78, of Jackson, died Monday, Jan. 15, 1996, at his home. He was born Dec. 15, 1917, in Advance, son of David and Zelma Wright DeLay. He first married Esther Garner in 1936, who died Sept. 16, 1973. He later married Lois Warpen Nov. 2, 1974...

Amanda Taylor of Dexter recently earned a college scholarship for winning the slogan contest of the Missouri First Vote Foundation. Taylor entered the contest last spring and won a $250 scholarship. She is now a student at Southern Methodist University in Dallas...

Bryan Daume, a student at Cape Girardeau Central High School, recently won a scholarship from the University of Missouri-Rolla. The Miner Scholarship is a competitive award given to students who score the highest on a 50-question test on subjects like science, math and liberal arts...

Kathy Gilliland has been awarded scholarships totaling $3,000 from Rutgers University in New Jersey. She is studying modern dance and is a member of the touring University Dance Works. She is a 1992 graduate of Cape Girardeau Central High School and is the daughter of Newton and Jean Gilliland of Fruitland...

More than 200 students at Shawnee Community College in Ullin were recently named to the college's dean's list for the fall 1995 semester. Area students include: Chris Hickan of Alto Pass, Ill.; Tamatha Baggott, Candice Barker, Ashlee Beanland, Jamie Brimm, AnnMarie Caylao, Timothy Coffman, Amy Davis, Brenda Dirden, Amy Fitzgerald, Bart Hileman, Dennis Jerrell, Cathy Klasner, Terry Manus, Heather McLane, Timothy Merriman, Dona Middleton, Timothy Miller, Stephen Petty, Nicole Reeves, Holly Sadler, Melanie Stegle, Mike Summers, Tara Tucker, Melanie Weilmuenster, Judith Welker and Shannon Williams, all of Anna, Ill.; Terri Childs, Susan Oram, Michele Sheible, Ramona Stacy, Winnie Voss and Bobbie Worthington, all of Cairo, Ill.; Kevin Webb of Cape Girardeau; Marsha Bryars, Bobbie Dunigan, Sheila Francis, Teresa Jones and Bernice Kent, all of Charleston; Kent Aspen, Kimberly Fisher, Bradley Girtman, Jennifer Hankla, David Masden, Timothy Moloney, Jennifer Schildknecht and Brandi Yates, all of Cobden, Ill.; Timothy Corzine, Carla Lingle, Adam Sauerbrunn, Patricia Simms and Martina Terbrak, all of Dongola, Ill.; Melchelle Baker, Melinda Jones, Carmen Linebaugh, Tonya Warren and Patricia Witherspoon, all of East Prairie; Jill Dillon, Ginger Goodman, Tyler Hinkle, Lisa Livesay, Nikki Murphy, Robert Needling, Christopher Rhymer, Marc Sheffer and Andrea Wilson, all of Jonesboro, Ill.; Roslyn Bierbaum and Anita Smith of Mound City, Ill.; Angela Dillard, Yevette Hamilton and April Jackson, all of Mounds, Ill.; Joanna Haralambidis and Christopher McCain of Olive Branch, Ill.; Vyron Fodge of Sikeston; Jeannie Beasley, Barbara Carr, Charyl Holley, Kelly Naeger and Deena Williams, all of Tamms, Ill.; Bobbie Burns of Thebes, Ill.; and Emily Blackburn, Bonny Parker, Lisa Sampson and Sharri Wood, all of Ullin, Ill.. ...

Charles F. Thrower, a member of VFW Post 3838 in Cape Girardeau, has been appointed to serve as a member of National Safety Committee. VFW Commander-in-Chief Paul A. Spera selected Thrower for the position because of his achievements and service record...

Sparrowgrass Poetry Forum is offering $500 to the winner in its new "Awards of Poetic Excellence" contest. There is no entry fee but an anthology purchase may be required to ensure publication in the "Poetic Voices of America" anthology. Only one poem per entry is accepted. The poem must be 20 lines or less on any subject and written in any style. The contest ends March 31. Winners will be announced May 31...

James L. Fox and Susan L. Stricklin, both of Cape Girardeau, were awarded the Regents' scholarship to attend Southeast Missouri State University. The Regents' Scholarship is given to high school students who graduate in the top 10 percent of their class and earned an Enhanced ACT score of 27. The award covers full-time fees each semester...

Three students at Southeast Missouri State University were recently chosen as representatives for the school in the national Harry S. Truman Scholarship competition. Nathan Cooper, Justin Heinrich and Christopher Robertson were chosen for the competition...

Lindi Lynne Prindle of Oran will compete next weekend in the 1996 Miss Missouri Teen All American Pageant in St. Louis. The pageant is a preliminary for the Miss Teen All American pageant held in August. Prindle attends Oran High School and is a member of the Future Business Leaders of America, Beta Honor Society, Future Homemakers of America, and plays basketball, volleyball, softball and runs track...

Rachel Hirsch of Sikeston was recently named to the list of Who's Who Among Students in American Junior Colleges. Hirsch is a sophomore at Crowley Ridge College in Paragould, Ark. She is the daughter of John and Jeanne Hirsch of Sikeston and the granddaughter of Ralph Hirsch of Cape Girardeau and the late LaVerne Hirsch...

Elizabeth Remley, 11, of Cape Girardeau recently participated in the All American Quarter Horse Congress Horse Show in Columbus, Ohio. The 10-day show is the largest in the world, with more than 8,000 horses and 13,000 exhibitors participating in the classes ranging from traditional western riding to jumping and cart classes...

ORAN -- Laughter might be the best medicine but humor is the cure for crises in Darlene Pearson's classroom. Pearson, who teaches third grade at Oran Elementary School, uses humor to keep her classroom running at an even keel. And this is a technique she learned as a student from one of her teachers...

OAK RIDGE -- Build it and they will come. At least that's what school officials hope in the Oak Ridge District. With a 10 percent enrollment growth during the last four years, the district decided now was the time to expand. The district, which has an enrollment of 339 students in kindergarten through 12th grade, is in the midst of a $750,000 building project...