Stories from Saturday, July 6, 1996

To the editor: I find it impossible to believe, after more than a year of incessant attacks on our nation's environmental-quality laws, that the leaders of the GOP are ready to turn over a new, greener leaf. But that is exactly what Gary Lee ("GOP buffs environmental image," The Washington Post, June 17) seems to think...

To the editor: During Riverfest weekend, my husband and I took our three children, ages 7, 5 and 2 1/2, for a tour of St. Vincent's Seminary. As a lifelong resident of Cape Girardeau, I had always wanted to see the magnificent structure that overlooked the Mississippi for so many years, a silent witness to the many changes that have taken place over the course of time. ...

Jackson has joined the mural business. A submission by Jackson resident Grant Lund, an art professor at Southeast Missouri State University, was chosen as the winning design entry out of a field of 19. He won $1,000 for his work from the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri...

Cape Girardeau's kindergartners will attend classes longer this fall with all-day programs. And, starting next year, they will be a little younger. A new law will move back the birthday cutoff date for enrollment from to Aug. 1 from July 1 for the 1997-98 school year. Currently, only children who turn 5 by July 1 are eligible to attend kindergarten...

They had already shipped their sleeping bags and towels. Outfitted with one carry-on bag each, 40 members of the St. Vincent's and St. Mary's Catholic youth groups piled into their cars on Friday to catch a flight to Phoenix, Ariz. The group's final destination, a Navajo and Hopi Indian reservation in Tuba, Ariz., is where the youths will stay while they complete a seven-day mission trip. ...

Jo Ann Emerson will run for her late husband's 8th District congressional seat, Republican Party insiders said Friday. Sources in the party said Emerson, 46, will officially announce her candidacy Tuesday or Wednesday in Cape Girardeau. Her campaign will carry the theme: "Team Emerson. Join Us Now."...

JACKSON -- Though some jail inmates may be called trusty, Cape Girardeau county jail administrator Lt. Michael Morgan trusts no one who wears an orange jumpsuit. "Trusty is a bad word for these people," he said. "Everybody who comes in here is deemed untrustworthy."...

In the fall of 1989, the Berlin Wall was pulled down by hordes of happy Germans. Though widely assumed by westerners that this was done as a symbol of the fall of communism and the right to engage in public vandalism that all free and democratic nations enjoy, that was not actually the case...

SIKESTON -- Funeral service for Joyce Elouise Jones of Sikeston will be held at 11 a.m. today at Ponder Funeral Chapel. The Rev. James Beaird will officiate, with burial in Garden of Memories Cemetery. Jones, 62, died Thursday, July 4, 1996, at Missouri Delta Medical Center...

Daughter to Dynesha Deanne Swan of Jackson, Southeast Missouri Hospital, 6:51 a.m. Thursday, June 27, 1996. Name, Alexis Brooke. Weight, 6 pounds 6 ounces. First child. Miss Swan is the daughter of Dennis and Barbara Swan of Jackson. Daughter to Michael L. ...

BURFORDVILLE -- Ruby M. Kuntze, 79, of Burfordville, died Friday, July 5, 1996, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. She was born Jan. 15, 1917, at Burfordville, daughter of August and Pauline Macke Biester. She and Otto T. Kuntze were married Jan. 5, 1944, at Tilsit. He died March 15, 1989...

JACKSON -- Pearl E. Jaco, 89, of Summersville, died Wednesday, July 3, 1996, at his home. He was born April 6, 1907, in Perry County, son of Wesley and Nancy Niemann Jaco. He and Gladys E. Estes were married July 5, 1930. Jaco had been a timber worker. He was a member of Praise Assembly Church in Summersville...

GRASSY -- Stephen W. Weakley, 40, of Grassy, died Thursday, July 4, 1996, at his home, following an illness. He was born Dec. 7, 1955, at Wyatt, son of Chester and Dorothy Baker Weakley. He and Joyce Bumgardaner Baker were married Dec. 18, 1995. Weakley was a mechanic at Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. of Ocean Springs, Miss., prior to his illness...

CHAFFEE -- Ethel "Ekkie" Von Kessel, 72, of Chaffee, died Thursday, July 4, 1996, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. She was born July 23, 1923, in Cape Girardeau, daughter of James Eldon and Della Mae Martin Wright. She and Karl Von Kessel were married Nov. 7, 1942. He died Dec. 8, 1989...

Hildagonda H. Fisk, 86, 144 Tomahawk, died Friday, July 5, 1996, at Fountainbleau Lodge. She was born June 5, 1910, in Inavale, Neb., daughter of Louis and Gretchen Schmidt Janssen. She and Leon S. Fisk were married April 3, 1945, in Los Angeles, Calif. He died Nov. 30, 1971...

PINHOOK -- James W. Cross, 78, of Pinhook, died Wednesday, July 3, 1996, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. He was born Oct. 27, 1917, in Marianna, Ark., son of James Homer and Rozetta Munutte Cross. He married Eva Smith, who died March 28, 1988...

Graveside service for Edgar W. Willer of Lake Ozark will be held at 1 p.m. today at Fairmount Cemetery. Hedges Funeral Home in Osage Beach is in charge of arrangements. Willer, 71, died Thursday, July 4, 1996, at his home. He was born Feb. 10, 1925, in Cape Girardeau, son of Edgar W. and Minerva Dossett Willer...

PUXICO -- Funeral service for Wilma Cousins McGowen Curtis of Lowndes will be held at 11 a.m. today at Watkins and Sons Funeral Chapel in Puxico. The Rev. Wiley McGhee will officiate, with burial in Rock Hill Cemetery near here. Curtis, 78, died Thursday, July 4, 1996, at her home...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Funeral service for Junior Maynard, East Prairie Route 2, will be held at 11 a.m. today at Shelby Funeral Chapel in East Prairie. The Revs. Don Campbell and Michael Maynard will officiate. Burial will be in East Prairie Memorial Park Cemetery...

SIKESTON -- Graveside service for James Mays of Sikeston will be held at 2 p.m. today at Garden of Memories Cemetery. The Rev. Pat Hogan will officiate. Ponder Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements. Mays, 67, died Thursday, July 4, 1996, at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Memphis, Tenn...

CAIRO, Ill. -- A portion of the Little Egypt Housing Development Corporation's low-income housing project was destroyed by fire Friday. Cairo firemen battled the fire -- which started about 5:30 a.m. -- most of the day, and saved the newer two-story complex which contains 17 apartments...

The Couple to Couple League will hold a two-day workshop on Natural Family Planning July 12 from 7:30 to 9 and July 13 from 9 to 3 at St. Francis Medical Center, Conference Room A. Jim and Margaret Shatz, certified family planning educators from Springfield, will coordinate the class. For more information, call Kathy Watson, 334-8895, or Maraget Shatz, (417) 890-7373...

GRPAHIC -- NEW ON THE SHELF Medications for everything from fixing heartburn to growing hair have become available over-the-counter in recent months. Rogaine, Zantac, Pepcid AC, Nicorette, and a variety of cold treatments and hydrocortisone treatments are available without prescription...

United Ostomy Association members will hold a picnic at Cape County Park Shelter 5 at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. Meat will be provided. Members attending are asked to bring a covered dish and their own plates, silverware and beverages. UOA's goal is to reduce the practical and emotional burdens on those who have undergone ostomy surgery...

Southeast Missouri Hospital will offer its Super Sitter classes for children ages 11 to 16. Classes will be held Tuesday and Monday, July 29 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Harrison Room at Southeast. Fee is $25, which includes handouts, lunch, a Super Sitter kit and certificate. Call 651-5833 to register or for more information...

A "Guide for the First Time Baby Sitter" will be offered Tuesday, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the St. Francis Center for Health and Rehabilitation, 28 S. Mount Auburn Road. The course is designed for youngsters in fifth grade or older. Fee is $5, which includes materials. To register or for more information, call 339-6970...