Stories from Tuesday, May 20, 1997

The Rev. Andrew Pratt, the other half of the team, brought science and religion together for students at Southeast Missouri State University. Danielle Kipp of Van Buren discussed a point with her teachers in the science and religion class at Southeast...

SCOTT CITY -- Dee Richards enjoys building educational foundations. She's been in the building business since she started teaching first-graders at Scott City Elementary School 27 years ago. "I believe first-grade teachers lay the foundation for the rest of a child's school career, so we have to make sure that foundation is strong," said Richards, who is married to Cape Girardeau Central High School Principal Gerald Richards. ...

CYBERTIP: Interested in learning more about the Internet? SEMissourian.com is sponsoring a free one-hour lecture introducing the Internet on May 29. On June 5, hands-on training sessions will be held from 10 to noon and repeated from 7 to 9. The hands-on sessions cost $5. ...

Residents of the Woodland Hills Subdivision north of Lexington Avenue squared off at Monday's Cape Girardeau City Council meeting over whether the city should extend Kent Drive to connect with Lexington. City officials decided they will study the matter...

MARBLE HILL -- When Matt Forir is working he can close his eyes and imagine the world he is trying to discover. In that world dragonflies are a foot long, turtles have horns growing from their shells, and crocodiles skim quietly across a stagnant pool toward unsuspecting baby dinosaurs...

Some old friends were in town last weekend, bringing old memories with them. The fellas were in town last weekend. A mutual friend of ours was getting married. Ironically, she was marrying a childhood friend of mine whom I hadn't seen in years. It seemed just like old times...

Members of the Cape Girardeau Board of Education want a committee studying graduation requirements to take another look at changes it has proposed. Board members voted to table a proposed policy change that would reduce the number of physical education requirements from the current two units to 1.5 units. The change would also raise elective requirements from seven units to 7.5 units...

SCOTT CITY -- The Scott City Chamber of Commerce will have a luncheon meeting at noon today at Rhodes Family Restaurant, 3508 W. Nash Road. The speaker will be Retta Miller, marketing officer for Union Planters Bank. First Financial Bank in Scott City will change over to Union Planters on June 13. Miller will discuss that move...

SIKESTON -- Several reports of a tornado touching down near Sikeston during a furious rain storm Monday afternoon could not be confirmed by the National Weather Service. According to the weather service and initial reports from the Sikeston Department of Public Safety, funnel clouds were reportedly seen northwest of Sikeston around 3:30 p.m...

SCOTT CITY -- The cable guy made a house call Monday night to the Scott City Council meeting. Kevin Goetz, chief engineer for Falcon Telecable, told the council that cable problems that have plagued the Scott City area might begin to clear up by July 1...

Some of Cape Girardeau Central High School's best were recognized Monday night by some of the people who know them best: their teachers. Forty-one students received People's Choice awards for their achievements during a ceremony in Central Auditorium. Each student was chosen by a faculty sponsor for their efforts towards excellence in academics, athletics and social achievement this year...

State Rep. Pat Secrest, R-Manchester, will speak Friday at the luncheon meeting of the Southeast Missouri Area Pachyderm Club. The 93rd District representative will talk about workers' compensation legislation. The meeting begins at noon at Port Cape Girardeau Restaurant...

State officials, both in the highway patrol and in the transportation department, are cautiously optimistic about statistics for the first four months of 1997 that show a drop in the number of traffic fatalities in Missouri. This drop is on the heels of the increases during 1996 in highway speed limits, which some experts feared would produce a higher number of fatalities...

Whether or not any impropriety occurred, the fact that a former executive director of the Illinois Gaming Board was personally involved in the selection of riverboat casino operators in East St. Louis adds to the murky depths of gambling in our neighboring state...

Since 1962 the Elks Mobile Dental Units have rolled through Missouri towns to give primary dental care services to those who otherwise would never see a dentist. Monday, a unit stopped at the Cape Girardeau Elks Lodge and will remain there until July 10...

Missouri high school athletics recently survived a test of its unity. In a vote to separate private and public state championships, Missouri's 567 high schools definitively said, "United we stand." Among voting to separate individual sports championships, voting generally ran at least 2-1 against...

Strawberries aren't a major crop in Missouri. They aren't even listed in Missouri Farm Facts, a publication of the Missouri Agricultural Statistics Service that summarizes the state's farm products. "There are a number of small patches of strawberries throughout the state," said Dave Enslie, agriculture statistician. "But we don't keep statistics on them."...

Southeast Missouri State University executive vice-president Kenneth Dobbins says the school wants to move as quickly as possible in its search for a new head men's basketball coach. Ron Shumate, Southeast's head men's basketball coach the past 16 seasons, was fired last week amid an ongoing NCAA investigation into the Indians' program...

SCOTT CITY -- The first two games of the Class 2A, District 2 baseball tournament went as expected, but odds are neither winner expected quite the battle it got from the tournament's bottom two seeds. In the first game at Scott City Park Monday between No. 3 Kelly and No. 6 East Prairie, East Prairie's Ben Marshall took a no-hitter into the fifth inning, but Kelly scored two runs in the fifth and one in the sixth and won 3-1 despite only three hits...

SEDALIA -- After the first day of state golf competition, Jackson stood eighth out of 16 teams in Class 4A with a four player total of 321 for 18 holes. Lebanon leads the 4A field with a 303. Jefferson City is second with a 311. Sikeston is 16th with a 359. The final round of all classifications will played today...

BENTON -- The 1996 season was a banner year for Terry Johnson and the 1997 season has started out in the same manner. Johnson, of Benton, picked up his third Modified Feature win of the year Saturday night. He has three wins in four starts. Kent Bailey was the strongest contender of the night on the dry-slick surface. Bailey led the field half the race until a slower car came onto the track as the caution flag waved and collected the leader...

A major improvement goal for the City of Jackson became a reality Monday night when aldermen and the Missouri Department of Transportation agreed to improvements at Route D and U.S. 61. Mayor Paul Sander said the improvements were at the top of his list of goals. "We have been working toward this goal for over a year," he said. "We would hope this project in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Transportation would be completed by the start of school in August."...

Pansy LaVerne Gross, 75, of Cape Girardeau died Sunday, May 18, 1997, at St. Francis Medical Center. She was born Aug. 31, 1921, in Cape Girardeau, daughter of Silas Malford and Effie Mae Groves Helderman. She and Carl Gross were married June 22, 1940, in Cape Girardeau...

Funeral service for Joyce O. Meyer will be held at 10 a.m. today at McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson, with the Rev. John Owen officiating. Burial will be at 2 p.m. in Woodlawn Cemetery at Campbell, with the Rev. Jay Wilkens officiating. Meyer, 90, died Saturday, May 17, 1997, at Chateau Girardeau...

Graveside service for Charles Frank Reeves of Cape Girardeau will be held at 11 a.m. today at Fairmount Cemetery. Ford and Sons Mt. Auburn Chapel is in charge of arrangements. Reeves, 78, died Saturday, May 17, 1997, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. He was born Oct. 14, 1918, in Charleston, son of Odie and Ora Scott Reeves. He was raised by his father and stepmother, Odie and Mittie Parker Reeves He and Lydia Nations were married Aug. 30, 1941, in Milton, Fla...

CHAFFEE -- Graveside service for Winifred "Winnie" Wilson of Tampa, Fla., was held April 24, 1997, in Garden of Memories Cemetery in Tampa. Dr. R. Earle Rabb officiated. Wilson, 78, died Sunday, April 20, 1997, enroute to Tampa Hospital. She was born Oct. 12, 1918, in Chaffee, daughter of Fred and Vera Endicott French. She married Jack Lucas in 1942, in Montgomery, Ala. He preceded her in death. She later married Bill Wilson, who also preceded her in death...

MOREHOUSE -- Funeral service for Police Chief Ronn Gosnell of Morehouse will be held at 10 a.m. today at Watkins and Sons Funeral Chapel in Morehouse. The Rev. Rick Krietemeyer will officiate. Burial will be in Memorial Park Cemetery at Sikeston. Gosnell, 38, died Friday, May 16, 1997, at St. Louis University Hospital...

Hilda L. Scherer, 90, of Cape Girardeau died Sunday, May 18, 1997, at the home of a daughter in Perryville. She was born Feb. 27, 1907, at Glennon, daughter of Hugo and Zeta Stickler Hebenstreit. She and Felix Scherer were married Jan. 15, 1924, at Jackson. He died June 26, 1986...

Funeral service for Daisy Mae Smith, 1101 Bloomfield, will be held at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Ford and Sons Sprigg Street Chapel. The Rev. JoAnne McCauley will officiate, with burial in Lorimier Cemetery. Friends may call at the chapel Wednesday from 12:30 p.m. to service time...

JACKSON -- Grace Lucille Overbeck, 85, of Fenton died Sunday, May 18, 1997, at her home. She was born Jan. 21, 1912, at Jackson, daughter of William and Ella Johnson Lowes. She and Harlan Overbeck were married April 21, 1931, at Benton. Overbeck worked at International Shoe Co. in Jackson, and was an inspector at Lowenbaum Dress Factory from 1940-77. She was a member of New McKendree United Methodist Church...

DEXTER -- Glena Fortner, 81, died Monday, May 19, 1997, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Watkins and Sons Funeral Home at Dexter is in charge of arrangements.

Bryan J. Hutson, age 18, of 2973 Old Cape Road, Jackson, MO., died May 10, 1997 at Southeast Missouri Hospital. He was born May 26, 1978 in Covina, Calif., son of Gary and Chyrl Brown. He graduated from Sikeston Senior High School. He is survived by his mother and stepfather, one brother and his grandparents...

PERRYVILLE -- Francis "Dale" Layton, 59, of Perryville died Monday, May 19, 1997, in Memphis, Tenn. He was born Dec. 3, 1937, in Perryville, son of Harold and Mary Flossie Brewer Layton. He married Marilyn Strong on June 5, 1989, and she preceded him in death on Oct. 8, 1995...