Stories from Wednesday, September 2, 1998

Central High School will hold Back-to-School Night Thursday at 7 p.m. Teachers will hold abbreviated class periods, and parents will be able to follow the class schedule. Teachers will discuss course content and provide information relative to the class in which students are enrolled...

September is National Rice Month, so it is a good time to focus on this versatile grain. Rice is suitable for breakfast, lunch, or dinner as the entree, side dish, or as a desert. Rice is a staple in the diet of two-thirds of the world's population, and is the basis for many of the cultural foods that are popular in the U.S. ...

If you're like me, discovering a new food is always exciting. But I learned recently that rediscovering an old food can be almost as much fun. I came to this realization earlier this summer when I was experimenting with ice cream recipes for this column. ...

An infant's drowning last month has prompted Cape Girardeau County officials to warn parents and grandparents that 5-gallon buckets can be deadly hazards to small children. Kiana L. Willis, 10 months, drowned July 30 at her home at 632 Good Hope after falling into a 15-inch high, 5-gallon bucket filled with mop water...

SIKESTON -- Motorists traveling along Route HH north of Sikeston will experience a temporary bypass at the St. John's Ditch bridge beginning Thursday. The bypass will allow a contractor to remove the bridge and complete construction of a large box culvert. A portion of the culvert has been completed, and motorists using the bypass will be driving on the new structure, Missouri Department of Transportation officials said...

Cross Trails Medical Center has received $200,000 in federal funding to open a third primary care clinic. Officials of the not-for-profit organization are scouting for a Stoddard County location, said Vickie Smith, Cross Trails' administrator. The organization operates clinics in Marble Hill and Cape Girardeau...

JACKSON -- Jack Piepenbrok, an 11 1/2-year member of the Jackson Board of Aldermen, has submitted a letter of resignation effective Tuesday. Piepenbrok said he did not want to comment on his resignation beyond his statement in a letter to Mayor Paul Sander...

BENTON -- A Benton woman has teamed up with the National Rifle Association in an effort to stop the parole of the woman she says is responsible for killing her brother. Jayme Martindale Kolwyck of Benton approached members of the NRA in May and asked them to help her mount a petition drive and letter-writing campaign to stop the parole of the woman who was convicted in the death of Kolwyck's brother, Randy Martindale, in New Madrid in 1994...

Wall Street came roaring back on Tuesday. Dow Jones industrials rose more than 280 points in a late buying spree that followed Tuesday's 512-point rout. It was another day of wide swings. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 143.41 as trading began, retreated to a loss of 138.77, then shot up and down in spurts to finish the day at 288.36, at 7,827.43...

Only eight people attended a public forum at Central Junior High School Tuesday night, but they expressed opinions about the qualities they want in the next Cape Girardeau schools superintendent. Integrity, innovative thinking and the ability to work well with staff and the community were qualities most often mentioned during the forum, which was led by a three-member team from the Missouri School Boards Association...

He calls her "Courtney." I call her trouble waiting to happen. The Other Half and I made a pact before we married three years ago. We'd be trusting of each other. We'd have friends of the opposite sex without becoming suspicious of each other. We'd talk openly and honestly about our feelings toward others and work them out together...

To the editor: I sure was interested to read Jon Terrell's Aug. 28 letter to the editor. It made me want to do some investigating. Do you know what I found out? Jon Terrell is Tony Heckemeyer's nephew, the son of Tony's sister, Penny, who works on his campaign. What a coincidence...

The City of Roses music festival held last weekend could become a major fun event for the area. Certainly the musicians who participated enjoyed the opportunity to share their musical talents with their friends, press and the audiences. Started by a group of the younger area musicians ... ...

Southeast Missouri State University officials have to be pleased by the news. First-day enrollment edged up to surpass the 7,900 mark. The numbers should continue to increase gradually until the official census day in late September. The university hopes to top the official enrollment figures of 8,234 last year...

Southeast Missouri State University wants to tap the state's purse strings for more than $78 million in operating funds in fiscal 2000. On Thursday, the Board of Regents is expected to authorize school officials to submit the budget request to the Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education. Submission of the budget request to the coordinating board is the first step in the annual budget process...

Indians open season Thursday night at home vs. Truman State. The 1997 football season for Southeast Missouri State was long and arduous. The spring and summer of 1998 have flown by and now the 1998 football season is upon us. Our football program has shaken off the '97 season, which in the beginning was full of promise. This promise of an exciting season was due to the acquiring of several talented I-A transfers, as so many other programs have done...

Henken makes smooth transition into Southeast's lineup in four-set win over SLU. There is no doubt considerable pressure in trying to replace Tuba Meto, one of the premier volleyball players in Southeast Missouri State University history. But if Tuesday night's season-opening match is any indication, then Amy Henken should be up to the challenge...

Last season, Jackson High's Nathan Windeknecht scored 20 goals, establishing a school standard. If the Indians' season opener is any indication, that record may fall. Behind Windeknecht's hat trick, Jackson beat Cape Girardeau Central by a historic, 4-0 margin Tuesday at Lou Muegge Field...

Johnson repeats as Cape Girardeau C.C. champion Mark Johnson repeated as the men's champion at Cape Girardeau Country Club with a one-stroke victory over Jason Crowell. Johnson fired a 71 on Sunday to overtake Crowell, who shot an even-par 70 on Saturday to take a three-stroke lead into the final round...

DONGOLA, Ill. -- Charles Polach Sr., 82, of Dongola died Tuesday, Sept. 1, 1998, at Union County Hospital in Anna. Hileman and Parr Funeral Home in Jonesboro is in charge of arrangements.

Funeral for Sherman E. Reed of Cape Girardeau will be held at 10:30 a.m. today at Lynwood Baptist Church. The Rev. Mark Anderson will officiate. Entombment will be in Memorial Park Mausoleum. McCombs Funeral Home in Cape Girardeau is in charge of arrangements...

CHARLESTON -- Rosie M. Jackson, 79, of Charleston died Sunday, Aug. 30, 1998, at her home. She was born Feb. 28, 1919, in Osceola, Ark., daughter of Jack and Roxanne Armstrong Simms. Jackson was a member of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Pastor Aide, Missionary Society, Mother Board, and Willing Workers Club...

Paul Herman Schaefer, 87, of Cape Girardeau died Tuesday, Sept. 1, 1998, at the Lutheran Home. He was born Sept. 30, 1910, in Cape Girardeau, son of August and Marie Held Schaefer. He and Elberta Laverne Lucas were married Jan. 28, 1937, in Cairo, Ill. She died May 17, 1997...

ADVANCE -- Kay Cox, 40, of Atwater, Ill., died Monday, Aug. 31, 1998, in Wilsonville, Ill. She was born Oct. 25, 1957, at Wood River, Ill., daughter of Oran and Eva Peters Wallace. She and Donald Cox were married Feb. 12, 1974, in Plainview, Ill. Cox was an accountant with H&R Block...

Ben R. Hoffmeister, 91, of Cape Girardeau died Monday, Aug. 31, 1998, at St. Francis Medical Center. He was born April 5, 1907, at Jackson, son of Henry A. and Minnie Voges Hoffmeister. He and Violet Simpson were married Aug. 7, 1939. Hoffmeister worked the family farm at Oak Ridge until retiring in 1988. He and his wife moved to Cape Girardeau in 1997. He was a member of Emanuel United Church of Christ in Jackson...

DELTA -- Eugene Halter, 77, of Delta died Monday, Aug. 31, 1998, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. He was born July 30, 1921, in Denver, Colo., son of William David and Victoria Brucker Halter. He and Barbara Foster were married Dec. 25, 1945...

SIKESTON -- Ira O. Woods, 89, of Sikeston died Tuesday, Sept. 1, 1998, at his home. He was born March 12, 1909, in Marco, Mo., son of Lins Ross and Lucy May Yates Woods. He married Louise O'Bryan Nov. 5, 1948, in Hernando, Miss. He served in the U.S. Army Air Corps in World War II. He was the owner and operator of the Park-A-Lot drive-in restaurant in Sikeston. He was the founding member of the Sikeston Fraternal Order of Eagles Aerie 3319. He was of the Baptist faith...

Daughter to Bradley W. and Melanie M. Shoaf of Sikeston, Southeast Missouri Hospital, 8:47 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 25, 1998. Name, Adison Nicole. Weight, 6 pounds. Second child, first daughter. Mrs. Shoaf is the former Melanie Taylor, daughter of Colie and Donna Taylor of Morley. Shoaf is the son of Ray and Finae Shoaf of Oran. He is an electrician at Noranda Aluminum...

SIKESTON -- Judge Marshall Craig, 91, of Sikeston died Monday, Aug. 31, 1998, at his home. He was born Feb. 10, 1907, near Hickman Mills, son of Robert Lee and Theodocia Cowherd Craig. He and Katherine M. Hudspeth were married June 9, 1935, at Grandview. She died Aug. 13, 1976...

SCOTT CITY -- Funeral Mass for Frank Louis Lindsey, Scott City Route 2, will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday at St. Joseph Catholic Church. The Rev. Pat Wissman will officiate, with burial in the church cemetery. Friends may call at the church after 5 p.m. today. Parish prayers will be at 7...

SIKESTON -- Mary Lou Miller, 73, of Sikeston died Monday, Aug. 31, 1998, at Clearview Nursing Center. She was born Sept. 8, 1924, in Roosevelt, Okla., daughter of Timothy Miggs and Martha Patterson Brumfield. Miller was a retired waitress. Survivors include a niece, Polly Sill of Aubrey, Texas...

John A. Rhodes, 94, of Cape Girardeau died Monday, Aug. 31, 1998, at Heartland Care Center. He was born June 28, 1904, in Grand Tower, Ill., son of Henry Thomas and Wilmoth "Minnie" Borders Rhodes. He married Hazel Qualls, who died Nov. 1, 1944. He later married Lela Wilson, who died Dec. 23, 1995...

JACKSON -- On Tuesday, the first day of her retirement, Val Tuschhoff was still there among the fabric samples that fill her old shop on the square. She promised the new owners she'd help them out for awhile. Slowing down is going to take awhile. For the past 15 years, Val's Upholstery has been a place people stopped to talk about having their chair re-upholstered or to talk about city business. ...

JACKSON -- Southeast Missouri Hospital's Jackson Outreach Services will sponsor an American Red Cross blood drive Friday. The blood drive will be held from 2 to 6 p.m. in the Community Room at Main Street Fitness center, 410 W. Main, in Jackson. The drive is dedicated to David Murphy, a Jackson resident who was diagnosed with leukemia in April of 1997. ...

A public hearing was recently held to hear comments concerning the 1998 property tax rate in Jackson. The council then passed the 1998 tax rate which was unchanged from last year's rate. The rate for residents living in areas annexed into the City prior to 1965 will pay .99 cents per $100 assessed valuation. This rate includes city library tax...

BENTON -- A greased pig chase, a pie-eating contest, a beauty contest and tug-of-war are among events planned for the 30th annual Benton Neighbor Days Celebration Friday and Saturday. The midway opens at 5 p.m. Friday, and skydivers will make and appearance at 6:30 p.m...