Stories from Saturday, September 19, 1998

Ringing in the Jewish New Year isn't done with bells and whistles but with the awakening call of the shofar, a ram's horn. Sounding the shofar begins the call to reflection and repentance for Rosh Hashanah, a holy Jewish day. Jews around the world will celebrate Rosh Hashanah beginning at sundown Sunday. Those in Cape Girardeau number so few that services are rarely held at the B'nai Israel Synagogue along South Main Street...

It's a banner year for Cape Girardeau's downtown, whose merchants have installed 75 banners identifying the area as a "Historic Riverfront District." The banners feature drawings of the Common Pleas Courthouse, a riverboat and the words "Historic Riverfront District."...

PERRYVILLE -- A new higher education center could be operating in St. Mary's of the Barrens Seminary buildings as early as next summer or fall. That's the assessment of Dr. Dale Nitzschke, Southeast Missouri State University president. Nitzschke has discussed the issue with Perry County civic leaders and the Congregation of the Mission, the Catholic organization that owns the seminary buildings...

Twenty-five years after the United States withdrew from Vietnam, Cape Girardeau Dr. Robert Sacha still wears a prisoner of war-missing in action bracelet. The name on Sacha's bracelet is Maj. Robert Miller, an Air Force pilot captured in Laos 30 years ago, on Aug. 28, 1968...

Attendance has been booming at the 143rd annual SEMO District Fair. Through Thursday, 60,104 people had attended the fair at Cape Girardeau's Arena Park, and it had two days to go. "That's 5,493 people ahead of last year," said Pete Poe, president of the fair board...

Karry Brant estimates she sells 800 to 900 funnel cakes a day during the SEMO District Fair. That's a lot of fried dough and powdered sugar. Brant, who runs Sivori Catering's concession stand, said her 30 years of peddling funnel cakes and soft drinks at the fair have won her legions of loyal customers...

About a year ago, I made a personal commitment to improve my participation in my church and community. I wanted to look inside myself to see what was there spiritually and to consider the best ways to improve my Christian walk. I figured that by doing that, I also would improve my relationships with my family and community...

Legislative updates, emerging trends of "cutting edge" chambers of commerce, regional planning, economic development and a number of other topics will be on the agenda of the Chamber of Commerce Executives of Missouri fall conference today through Tuesday in Cape Girardeau...

I'M TIRED about of hearing about Clinton. I'll never forget him pointing his finger at the Americans and saying, "I never had sex with that woman, Ms. Lewinsky, never." And what does he do now? He's saying he did. I can't forgive it. I don't think the American people should, and he does not set a good example for our children. Something needs to be done...

There's something reassuring in the fact two men have been charged in the murder of Gina Dawn Brooks, the Fredericktown 13-year-old who disappeared nine years ago. The Brooks' disappearance could have easily been forgotten in a dusty stack of unsolved cases. But several law enforcement officers have kept up the investigation after all these years...

Investors in a proposed Cape Girardeau ambulatory surgery center withdrew their application moments before the Certificate of Need hearing in Jefferson City last week. The proposed $5.6 million Mississippi Valley Surgery Center had been at the center of heated debate in recent months...

To the editor: During a recent trip to Philadelphia, my wife took advantage of a few hours of free time to visit the sites that commemorate our nation's birth. Afterward, she called me, and we talked for a long time about what it all meant, particularly in the context of the current troubles with the president. ...

To the editor:Peggy O'Farrell's column certainly does not reflect the high standards set by your newspaper. Her shallow and inane comments regarding the Zippergate situation demonstrate either a complete lack of knowledge or a calculated attempt to mislead people from the real issues at hand.Ms. O'Farrell should refrain from writing about serious issues -- perjury, obstruction of justice -- and stick to trivial matters, which would seem to be her forte.Bill SullivanCape Girardeau...

To the editor: I am not defending Mr. Clinton, but am I the only person in this community who thinks that little Miss Monica owes an apology to Hillary Clinton? Or that sexually explicit material should not be allowed on a Web site? After all, young people see it too...

Dr. Joseph Lanni has been appointed director of institutional research at Southeast Missouri State University. Lanni has been serving for the past year as a research fellow in the post-secondary education statistics division of the National Center for Education Statistics in the Office of Educational Research and Improvement. Lanni replaced Dr. Fred Snider, who retired...

BABY GIRLS, BOYS CONTESTS Winners have been named in the SEMO District Fair's Baby Girl and Baby Boy contests. The contest for girls was held Tuesday and the boy's contest was Wednesday. Girls 3 to 6 months -- First place, Natalie Dickerson, daughter of Dale and Robyn Dickerson of Jackson; second place, Kaitlyn Stone, daughter of Thomas and Victoria Stone of Cape Girardeau; third place, McKenzie Belt, daughter of Robert and Lisa Belt of Oran...

PADUCAH, Ky. -- The towboat, Eddie Touchette, sank in the Ohio River near Golconda, Ill., early Friday. The towboat, with two off-loaded asphalt barges, struck a submerged lock wall from old Lock 51 and started sinking about 5:20 a.m. The towboat came to rest on the submerged lock wall and is barely visible...

"Worldwalker" Steven Newman will be the featured speaker during a Common Hour presentation Wednesday at Southeast Missouri State University. Newman will speak at 12:30 p.m. in Academic Auditorium. The presentation is titled "Around the World in Four Years" and is being sponsored by the president's office at Southeast...

State Rep. Marilyn Williams, D-Dudley, has been named to the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute Advisory Committee by Missouri Agriculture Director John L. Saunders. Williams will help determine studies for the institute to perform on behalf of the agriculture department. The institute specializes in running economic models to test the effects of public policy on agriculture...

The third quarter burned Jackson again. After coming from behind to take a 14-12 halftime lead over Perryville Friday night, Jackson came out flat in the third quarter and paid for it with a 18-14 loss to the Pirates at Jackson. "Just one quarter's been dragging us down," Jackson lineman Spencer Hobeck said. "We didn't come out prepared."...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Scott City High football coach Terry Flannigan attributed his team's sluggish start in Friday night's game at East Prairie to its mindset that "we thought we could go in there and conquer the world." After Scott City reduced its sights to the game at hand, the Rams bumped up their defense in the second half and ran away with 35-0 victory...

MURRAY, Ky. -- Southeast Missouri State University's golf team, coming off a second-place finish in its own meet to open the season earlier this week, is off to a fast start in the Murray State Invitational. The Indians shot a 36-hole total of 576 Friday to lead the 11-team field. Saint Louis is second at 579 while Eastern Kentucky is third at 581...

PERRYVILLE -- St. Vincent High's softball team picked up its first win of the season Friday when the Squaws rallied past visiting De Soto 13-11. Elaine Brown's bases-loaded triple in the bottom of the seventh inning lifted the Squaws, who are now 1-7...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Violet Branum Brown Long, a resident of East Prairie, died Friday, Sept. 18, 1998, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. She was 69. She was born Dec. 1, 1928, in the Sugartree Ridge Community in New Madrid County, daughter of Churchill and Ruth Schneider Branam...

A memorial service for retired Cmdr. Byron W. Mercer of Pensacola, Fla., will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday at Azalea Trace Auditorium. Chaplain Jim Hansen will officiate. Burial will be at a later date in Barrancas National Cemetery. Cedar Hill Chapel in Pensacola is in charge of arrangements...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Michelle Leeann Woodworth, 7 weeks, died Thursday, Sept. 17, 1998, at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. She was born July 31, 1998, in Sikeston, daughter of Phillip Eugene and Catrina Koch Woodworth. Survivors include her parents of East Prairie; a sister, Angelicia Woodworth of the home; paternal grandparents, Phyllis Woodworth of Anniston, Clyde Woodworth of Benton Harbor, Mich.; maternal grandparents, Angie Koch of Anniston, Jim and Michiline Koch of Chicago; paternal great-grandparents, Albert and Margie Bailey of Anniston and Mary Brown of Benton Harbor, Mich.. ...

BREWER -- Glennon H. Abernathy, 68, of Brewer died Thursday, Sept. 17, 1998, at his home. He was born Oct. 19, 1929, in Perry County, son of Thelburn and Lucille Lyle Abernathy. He and Tokoe Oshiba were married Jan. 26, 1967. Abernathy served 24 years in the U.S. Navy...

SCOTT CITY -- Funeral for Willis E. "Shorty" Lange Sr. of Scott City will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday at Amick-Burnett Funeral Chapel in Scott City. The Rev. Terry Eades will officiate, with burial in Lightner Cemetery. Friends may call at the chapel after 5 p.m. today...

JONESBORO, Ill. -- Gladys Marie Newton Perkins, 94, died Friday, Sept. 18, 1998, at Jonesboro Healthcare Center. She was born April 26, 1904, in Gale, daughter of Harvey and Lou Gehring Garrett. She and William Ernest Newton were married in 1923. He died in 1962. She later married James Perkins in 1966, who died later that year...

DEXTER -- N.W. Persfull, 82, of Dexter died Friday, Sept. 18, 1998, at Crowley Ridge Care Center. He was born Oct. 24, 1915, in Pocahontas, Ark., son of Sam and Ada Vandergriff Persfull. He and Helen Mae Smith were married Sept. 9, 1935. She died July 9, 1990...

COLUMBIA -- Stella Marie Goza, 70, of Columbia died Wednesday, Sept. 16, 1998, in Columbia. She was born Jan. 8, 1928, in Meta, daughter of Frank and Mamie Lebert Finke. She is survived by a son, Michael Goza of Winchester, Ky.; four daughters, Cheryl Goza and Debbie Baltzell, both of Columbia, Laura Bullock of St. ...

CAIRO, Ill. -- Elizabeth "Liz" Bogle, 72, of Cairo died Friday, Sept. 18, 1998, at Jewish Hospital in Cincinnati, Ohio. She was 72. She was born Jan. 30, 1926, in Yazoo City, Miss., daughter of Malcolm and Iretta Thornton McLellan. She was an operator for the Illinois Bell Telephone Co. for many years. She was a member of the Cairo Baptist Church, the VFW Ladies Auxiliary and Beta Sigma Phi Sorority...

ANNA, Ill. -- Paul Watson, 78, of Anna died Friday, Sept. 18, 1998, at Memorial Hospital in Carbondale. He was born Dec. 25, 1919, in Anna, son of Thomas and Effie Caraker Watson. He and Adonis Brimm were married Aug. 19, 1939. Watson retired as manager of a grain elevator. He was a member of Anna Heights Baptist Church...

Carolyn Bryant Holmberg, a native of Cape Girardeau and resident of Boulder, Colo., died Thursday, Sept. 17, 1998, at Boulder Community Hospital. She was 54. She was born April 8, 1944, in Cape Girardeau, daughter of Horace and Lucille Kirchhoff Bryant. She married Norman Holmberg on Aug. 24, 1973, in Crockett, Texas...

Daughter to Kelli Jean Henson and Ralph Lee Carmack of Anna, Ill., Southeast Missouri Hospital, 11:18 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 12, 1998. Name, Kelsi Rae. Weight, 6 pounds. Ms. Henson is the daughter of Kerry and Connie Wills of Wolf Lake, Ill., and Bob and Joy Henson of Grand Tower, Ill. She is employed in the pharmacy at Wal-Mart in Anna. Carmack is the son of Iretha Carmack of Anna and Robert Montoya of Kansas City. He is employed at City Care Center of Cobden in Cobden, Ill...

Roasted chicken is a staple ingredient for a Rosh Hashanah meal in many Jewish families. Other dishes include a holiday hallah, mixed green salad with raspberry vinaigrette dressing and plenty of desserts like poached pears in wine sauce. There is no salt on the table during the meal since the emphasis is on sweet dishes. Recipes compiled from wire services and Lynne Margolies of Cape Girardeau...

The annual Southern Missouri Catholic Gathering will be held Sept. 26 and 27 at Notre Dame High School on Route K near Gordonville. The Gathering is sponsored by the Catholic Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau. Maureen McCann, president of the Dallas, Pa., regional community of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, will be the speaker. She will talk about "Tending the Soul: Discipleship."...

The Christian Women's Club will begin its fall Friendship Bible Coffees. People interested should call the study leaders for specific times and sites. The Bible studies are informal discussions on various topics and open to all denominations. The groups meet in homes at different times throughout the week...

Coping with crisis, loss and grief aren't easy. Centenary United Methodist Church, 300 N. Ellis, wants to offer help through a new evening course. "Growing Through Crisis" is an 11-session course designed to help people deal with grief, loss and cope through crisis times. It is not limited to members of the church; everyone is invited to attend...

Juggling work schedules, vacations and other obligations sometimes makes it difficult to find time to attend worship service. So Faith Evangelical Free Church wants to offer some help to members of the community. Beginning at 8 p.m. Monday, a new weekly worship service will be held at the church, 5303 Old Cape Road between Cape Girardeau and Jackson. It's called CLAY, an acronym for Christ Lovingly Accepts You, and is an informal service that will be held each Monday...