Stories from Wednesday, February 28, 2001

The Rev. Roger Leveillee likes the woody smell of fire burning and delighted in the task of burning palm leaves in preparation for Ash Wednesday, which today marks the beginning of Lent for many Christian traditions. The dried palm leaves were burned Tuesday morning in an outdoor stairwell at St. Mary's Cathedral, away from the blowing wind and any traffic. Vibrant orange flames shot from the pan as more leaves were placed on the pile...

Cape Girardeau Fire Chief Dan White resigned Monday to become fire chief in Bentonville, Ark. His last day on the job will be April 13. The city has not named an interim fire chief, and officials say they will immediately begin a search for a permanent chief...

Cape Girardeau Central High School principal Randie Fidler will end a five-year career with the school district after his contract expires this summer. Schools superintendent Dr. Dan Steska said a board of education motion to rehire Fidler failed in a 5-2 vote following lengthy discussion in a closed meeting Monday night. Fidler was the only one of the district's administrators not rehired following annual reviews of evaluations by the school board...

The U.S. Department of Education has awarded a $921,000 grant to Southeast Missouri State University's School of Polytechnic Studies. The money will be used to equip the new $8.5 million, 58,000-square-foot Otto and Della Seabaugh Polytechnic Building, which is scheduled to open in August. The building, which is taking shape north of the Towers complex, will house the university's industrial technology department...

State Senate President Pro Tem Peter Kinder will speak at the 31st annual Lincoln Day dinner in Cape Girardeau on March 10. Kinder heads up the first Republican-controlled Missouri Senate in 53 years. The annual Republican gathering, hosted by the Cape Girardeau County Women's Club, will begin at 6:30 p.m. at the A.C. Brase Arena Building...

New buildings Additions and remodels...

JACKSON, Mo. -- A judge refused Tuesday to dismiss a lawsuit accusing the Cape Girardeau County Commission of illegally spending money to develop planning and zoning regulations. Scott County Associate Circuit Judge Hense Winchester ruled the lawsuit can proceed and ordered county officials to file a formal response to the suit within 15 days...

Bill Clinton is a gifted politician whose greatest contribution was erasing budget deficits, but his character flaws led him to squander his opportunity to be a great president. George W. Bush benefits from comparison but can't even get on the cover of Time magazine because of controversy about Clinton's departing pardons. Meanwhile, questions about his own character related to alcoholism await answer in the crucible of the presidency...

The caretaker of the 72-year-old Marquette Hotel pledged Tuesday that she will renovate the building's lobby after years of frustration at being unable to attract a serious buyer for the property and a looming city-imposed demolition deadline. Carol Bullock, daughter of property owner Ruby Bullock, said she was inspired by the estimated 500 people who came to an open house in the building's lobby Jan. ...

The flood gate at Themis Street will close today, but the Cape Girardeau riverfront's gatekeeper doesn't expect it to be shut long. "You can't hang your hat on what the river will do," said Andy Juden, head of the Main Street Levee District. "But usually when it rises fast, it falls fast."...

Area Lutheran school officials said enrollment gains and continued financial support from area congregations are cause for celebration. Lutheran schools in Cape Girardeau, Jackson, Alten-burg, Perryville, Farmington and Farrar in Missouri, along with a school in Chester, Ill., will hold a rally Sunday in Perryville to kick off national Lutheran Schools Week activities...

JACKSON, Mo. -- The Jackson Lady Indians know they can beat University City. Because on Jan. 12, they did. If Jackson (19-6) can duplicate that 75-63 performance tonight (8:15 p.m. tip-off) at the Civic Center in Farmington, the Lady Indians will be one game away from the Final Four...

The Southeast Missouri State Otahkians battled fiercely, but could not deny the Tennessee-Martin Lady Skyhawks, who defeated Southeast 68-63 in a first-round matchup of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament at the Show Me Center on Tuesday. The Otahkians (14-13, 9-7), seeded fourth and winners of the two previous meetings with the fifth-seed Lady Skyhawks( 13-15, 6-10), held leads of as much as eight points in the first and second halves, but could not put away Tennesee-Martin...

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. -- For more than 39 minutes Tuesday night, Southeast Missouri State University's men's basketball team did just about everything right in its attempt to earn a berth in the semifinals of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament. But after playing so well for most of the way, a shaky final 55 seconds of regulation helped Austin Peay force overtime and the fourth-seeded Governors went on to hand the fifth-seeded Indians a crushing 72-70 defeat in a first-round OVC tourney game played in front of 3,372 fans at the Dunn Center.. ...

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. -- Austin Peay forward Trenton Hassell, who averages 21.6 points a game, was named the Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year on Tuesday. Hassell, a 6-foot-5 senior from Clarksville, ranks third in scoring and is in the top 15 in eight league categories. He was selected by OVC coaches and sports information directors...

BLOOMFIELD, Mo. -- Notre Dame and rival Scott City will meet at 8 p.m. Thursday in the semifinals of the Class 2A, District 2 boys basketball tournament Thursday night after both teams posted blowout first-round victories Tuesday night. Notre Dame used a 21-7 advantage in the third quarter to pull away from Puxico 83-51.The Bulldogs had four players in double figures including Jonathan Ressel with 18, Doug Schaefer with 12, Mark Rubel with 11 and Scott Wittenborn with 10...

Daughter to Wayne and Gail Craft of Perryville, Mo., Perry County Memorial Hospital, 7:25 a.m. Monday, Feb. 19, 2001. Name, Holly Nicole. Weight, 6 pounds 13 ounces. Third child. Mrs. Craft is the former Gail Gosnell, daughter of Jack and Judy Gosnell of Cape Girardeau. She is a nurse practitioner. Craft is the son of Jack and Betty Craft of Cape Girardeau. He is a deputy sheriff...

Two Dunklin County residents and one man from Butler County pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine, the U.S. attorney's office reported. None of the three individuals' crimes were related, said Abbie Crites-Leoni, special assistant U.S. attorney...

JACKSON, Mo. -- Evelyn L. Lewis, 86, of Jackson died Monday, Feb. 26, 2001, at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. Friends may call at Cracraft-Miller Funeral Home from 4-8 p.m. Friday. Funeral will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home...

Carol Jean Grayson, 49, of Cape Girardeau died Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2001, at St. John's Mercy Hospital in St. Louis. She was born Oct. 1, 1951, in Cape Girardeau, daughter of Clyde and Violet Lacy Wareing. Grayson was a graduate of Central High School. She had worked at Kroger, Pet City Distributors, and most recently at Patrick Cleaners...

EAST PRAIRIE, Ill. -- Funeral for Jackie Lee Wilmurth of O'Fallon, Ill., will be held at 3 p.m. today at Shelby Funeral Home in East Prairie. Jon Archie will officiate. Friends may call at the funeral home from 11 a.m. until service time. Wilmurth, 55, died Sunday, Feb. 25, 2001, at his home...

ORAN, Mo. -- Blanche Marie "Sally" Asmus, died at 4:18 a.m. Feb. 27, 2001, peacefully at her home at 804 State Highway W in Oran. Sally was born Feb. 10, 1939, to Joseph L. Spalding and Mary J. Enderle Spalding of Benton. On July 15, 1961, at St. Denis Church in Benton, Rev. Fr. Holmes performed the wedding ceremony in which she married her beloved Alfred Charles Asmus, who survives of the home...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Desiree Autumn Monier of Perryville died shortly after birth Sunday, Feb. 25, 2001, at Perry County Memorial Hospital. Survivors include her parents, Rodney J. and Teresa M. Winschel Monier of Perryville; a brother, Brett Monier of the home; maternal grandparents, Douglas and Alberta Winschel of Highland, Mo.; paternal grandparents, Merlin and Elizabeth Monier of Perryville; and maternal great-grandparents, Herb and Ethel Winschel of Apple Creek, Mo...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Irene Yount, 76, of Sikeston died Monday, Feb. 26, 2001, at Miner Nursing Center. She was born Dec. 19, 1924, at Catron, Mo., daughter of John and Siner Moss. She and Elbert R. Yount were married July 4, 1944. Yount worked in housekeeping at Missouri Delta Medical Center and for Shuffit Nursing Homes. She was a member of Murray Lane Baptist Church...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Milton Parker, 67, of Sikeston died Thursday, Feb. 22, 2001, at Missouri Delta Medical Center. He was born Sept. 15, 1933, in Winona, Miss., son of Anthony and Bertha Parnell Parker. He and Mary Williamson were married in 1952. Parker retired from Canedy Sign Co., where he worked 30 years. He was a member of and usher at Pilgrim Rest Missionary Baptist Church in Canalou, Mo. He had lived in Missouri since 1955...

I AM growing tired of the liberals' approach to energy policy. On one hand they do not want any domestic exploration or drilling to take place, then they raise a ruckus because senior citizens can't pay for their heating bills. You can't have it both ways...

A novel defense has emerged for Bill Clinton's tawdry last-minute rash of pardons. Some defenders are maintaining that since Clinton didn't grant a pardon in every case, he must not have been acting improperly in the ones he did grant. I'm not making this up. James Carville, on the "Today Show," argued that since many people with a lot of money tried unsuccessfully to obtain clemency, Clinton must have carefully weighed each application on its merits...

The Southeast Missouri State University students who are fighting to save the Marquette Hotel in downtown Cape Girardeau should be applauded for their enthusiasm. They found a cause to believe in, and they took on considerable research in addition to their studies at Southeast. They looked into other restoration projects and made an eloquent report to the city council last week...

The ST. LOUIS CARDINALS' plan for a new baseball stadium is the subject of this week's chamber of commerce First Friday Coffee at 7:30 a.m. Friday at the Show Me Center. Cardinal president MARK LAMPING will make the informational sales presentation with (I hope) artist's renderings of the project and estimated costs and benefits...

The state education bureaucrats descended on the Cape Girardeau School District this month and awarded the district full accreditation for another five years. Congratulations to the educators and administrators who earned that accreditation and, in the process, improved the district since its last review in 1996...

To the editor: Many pastors took heart to your words in the lead editorial of Feb. 21 titled "Churches trying to make strong marriages." As president of the Ministerial Alliance this year, I want you to know of our appreciation of your attention to our concern for improving marriage and family life in Cape Girardeau...

The nasty weather last week must have kept some of you inside because we have several great pieces of mail to share with you. There is a nice variety of recipes, so let's get right to those. From a recent request for pineapple recipes comes a response from Altenburg, Mo. Lillian Werner shares a baked pie that is delicious...