Stories from Saturday, May 13, 2006

Approximately 30 members of local church groups demonstrated in front of Cape Girardeau City Hall on Friday in what they're calling a "battle cry," for a reclamation of Christian values among teens. The nationwide movement aimed to unite more than 100,000 people nationwide at city hall protests decrying pornography, sex and violence in the media...

Amos Nelson was surprised to answer his phone Thursday only to be given a lecture. "A guy calls up and starts right in by trying to tell me the difference between a grant and a loan. He said with a grant I don't have to pay the money back," said Nelson, 84...

A woman missing for seven hours in Union County, Ill., was found safe but disoriented near the campsite where she was last seen. Laurie Yates, 35, of Cobden, Ill., camped Thursday night with her husband and 9-year-old son at a state forest near Jonesboro, Ill., according to Union County Sheriff Jim Nash...

The starting salary for new teachers in the Cape Girardeau School District would increase to $25,253 in the next school year under a salary plan proposed by superintendent Dr. David Scala. The plan would boost starting pay by 3.1 percent or $753, he said. Other salary steps would increase too...

In a crowded, near-silent room, one voice over a police radio called out the names of 17 fallen heroes. At the 11th annual Law Enforcement Memorial Service, the names of the officers from Southeast Missouri who have died in the line of duty were read one by one...

ST. LOUIS -- Mark Mulder was kicking himself in the dugout for giving up a game-tying home run in the fifth inning when Jim Edmonds came to his rescue. Edmonds hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the inning, restoring order for the St. Louis Cardinals in a 5-3 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night...

By Thomas L. Bock The U.S. Senate knows it is coming: an up-or-down vote on the Flag Amendment. All of a sudden, congressional staffers in 34 offices are trying to trivialize the issue -- much ado about nothing -- to justify a no vote by their respective bosses. Justifying the vote that would kill this amendment is hard work...

NEW YORK -- Elizabeth Casanola carries her cell phone everywhere -- even through the metal detectors at her school. The high school senior puts the phone under her pants by her waistline, where she knows she won't be patted down. Or she smuggles the phone into school in pieces -- the battery separate from the main body...

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia -- Nine bombs exploded across Ethiopia's capital Friday, killing four people and wounding dozens in what police said was a coordinated attempt to discredit the government. No group immediately took responsibility for the blasts, which focused on government-owned companies and public transportation. But the bombings could point to growing militant opposition to the government...

ILADO, Nigeria -- The stark outlines of white skeletons lay against a beach charred black by fire. In a nearby mangrove swamp, other bodies floated alongside dozens of gasoline-filled plastic jerrycans twisted by the heat. As dozens of scorched corpses awaited collection, grim-faced rescue workers swung others into a mass grave...

ST. LOUIS -- Ameren Corp. shut down its Callaway nuclear plant early Friday morning after unusually high vibrations were detected in the facility's power turbines. The episode did not pose a danger to the public and was not an emergency, according to Ameren and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which regulates the plant...

DOHA, Qatar -- Olympic champion Justin Gatlin broke the 100-meter world record Friday with a time of 9.76 seconds at the Qatar Grand Prix. The American sprinter lowered the mark of 9.77 seconds set by Jamaica's Asafa Powell on June 14, 2005, in Athens, Greece...

ST. LOUIS -- The Saint Louis Art Museum will keep a 3,200-year-old mummy mask unless it gets more proof it belongs to Egypt. The museum won't meet a Monday deadline set by Egyptian antiquities authorities to return the mask, museum director Brent Benjamin said Friday. He noted that the Supreme Council of Antiquities never officially gave the museum a deadline...

BAYONNE, N.J. -- Wielding a pair of scissors, a woman who helped raise more than 400 foster children over 27 years snipped a ribbon to christen the world's largest cruise ship Friday while it docked near the Statue of Liberty. "I name this ship the 'Freedom of the Seas.' May God bless her, Royal Caribbean and all who sail upon her," 56-year-old Katherine Louise Calder said in the ceremony televised live on NBC's "Today."...

The following information was released by the office of federal prosecutor Catherine Hanaway for defendants who appeared in federal court this week before U.S. District Judge Catherine D. Perry. SENTENCINGS: Name: Napoleon A. Bustamante, aka King Arthur XIII...

Circus in Scott City moved from park Due to logistical problems, the Culpepper and Merriweather Circus in Scott City today has changed locations. The circus will now set up at the city Public Works Department grounds off Main Street, instead of the city park. Signs will be posted directing visitors. For more information, call 264-3187...

RALEIGH, N.C. -- A second round of DNA testing in the Duke University lacrosse rape case came back with the same result as the first -- no conclusive match to any member of the team, defense attorneys said Friday. Attorney Joseph Cheshire, who represents a team captain who has not been charged, said the tests showed genetic material from a "single male source" was found on a vaginal swab taken from the accuser, but that material did not match any of the players...

Cape Girardeau...

Dennis; Schniedermeyer; Kennedy; Knotts; McMullin; Phillips

Cape Girardeau...

The City of Roses Music Festival began 10 years ago as a gleam in musician Bob Camp's eye. He fashioned it after the Memphis Crossroads Festival. The first year R&B legend Rufus Thomas headlined and 30 bands performed. More recent festivals have eschewed headliners while presenting nearly 90 musical acts...

25 years ago: May 13, 1981 The Jackson Board of Education has rejected a proposal by the Jackson Community Teachers Association calling for an average 12 percent increase in teacher salaries for the 1981- 1982 school year; board members questioned whether the district could afford the salary increases...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Wilma A. Wills, 78, of Perryville died Thursday, May 11, 2006, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. She was born Dec. 19, 1927, in Perry County, daughter of Louis A. and Christina Schwein Geringer. She and LeRoy E. Wills were married May 17, 1952. He died Dec. 31, 1987...

Pauline E. Heberlie, 74, of Ste. Genevieve, Mo., died Wednesday, May 10, 2006, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. She was born July 2, 1931, in St. Louis, daughter of Leo and Freida Johnson Reid. She and Dennis P. Heberlie Jr. were married Nov. 25, 1950...

MOUND CITY, Ill. -- Nina M. Rushing, 96, of Marion, Ill., formerly of Mound City, died Thursday, May 11, 2006, at Fountains Nursing Home in Marion. She was born Oct. 19, 1909, in Villa Ridge, Ill., daughter of Wesley Jackson and Ida Frances Hitchcock Mathis. She married Forrest D. Rushing, who died March 15, 1970...

EDMONTON, Alberta -- Jason Smith, Ales Hemsky and Jarret Stoll scored third-period goals as the Edmonton Oilers rallied for a 6-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Friday night, tying the Western Conference semifinal series 2-2. Smith took a pass from Sergei Samsonov from the corner, skated in alone on Sharks goalie Vesa Toskala and beat him with a backhand deke 2:57 into the third period to give the Sharks their first lead after trailing 3-1 midway through the second period...

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Finally, a close one in the Eastern Conference semifinals, and Dwayne Wade gets knocked out of the game. Fortunately for the Miami Heat, he bounced back as usual -- then helped them win it. Wade scored 30 points, half in the final 4 1/2 minutes, and added 10 assists and seven rebounds to lead the Miami Heat over the New Jersey Nets 103-92 on Friday night in Game 3 of the best-of-seven series...

Annika Sorenstam failed to the make the cut in a golf tournament for the first time since 2002 Friday, shooting a 2-over-par 73 in the second round of the Michelob Ultra Open in Williamsburg, Va., on a course that has always frustrated her. The women's top-ranked player had made 68 consecutive cuts before struggling for a second straight day...

Praise for taxi drivers; Cutting the weeds; Take action on oil; Human beginning; Safer tractors; Ready to perform; Harassing parents; Catch the hoodlums; Bio-fuel alternative; Container refund; Pets being killed

Playing without its six suspended players, Central won its final regular season game 8-0 on Friday against visiting Scott City. The win moved Central to 20-5 overall and 9-1 in the SEMO Conference. Central assistant Terry Kitchen filled in for coach Steve Williams, who also was suspended...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- It's still far from a certainty, but a proposed toll bridge over the Mississippi River at St. Louis made its first move toward reality Friday as Missouri lawmakers gave their consent. Legislation given final approval by a 134-23 House vote would allow the estimated $910 million bridge to be built with a combination of federal and private funds. Under the public-private partnership, private investors could charge tolls to recoup their costs for the bridge...

Revival to be held at Faith Tabernacle; Annual Pleasant Hill Day scheduled for May 28; Family Crusade to be held at First General Baptist ; Revival to be held at three area Baptist churches; Today; Sunday

"And where do you work?" people asked when my children were young. For then, I chose to stay home as a homemaker and mother. That was during the era when women assumed jobs outside the home so they could "feel fulfilled." Self-actualization was found through performing worthwhile pursuits that emphasized a mother's true talents and gifts. ...

LaDonia Beggs' family was going through a tough time when she joined a local Christian women's group nearly two decades ago. Today, the Jackson woman credits the local chapter of Stonecroft Ministries with helping get her through that struggle. Beggs now chairs the ministries' Christian Women's Luncheons each month in Jackson. She and others in the group are trying to recruit more women to boost declining membership...

Jerolynn McMahon always wore a dress and hat to worship at St. Rosalia Catholic Church when she was growing up in Greenfield, Pa. While she still won't wear jeans or shorts to church, McMahon, 63, often wears pants and, in summer, has gone without nylon stockings -- once unthinkable for women of her generation...

CAIRO, Ill. -- Cairo Mayor Paul Farris on Friday announced the appointment of a new city clerk and city attorney. The city attorney's job, filled on a contract basis by Alan McIntyre of Vienna, Ill., will now be held by Patrick Cox of Anna, Ill., who will be a full-time city employee, Farris said...

Of the five teams competing in the Class 1 District 1 girls soccer tournament in Perryville, Notre Dame is the only school to have previously won a district title. The Bulldogs will enter the tournament as the top seed, but several squads -- including the host Pirates -- will be contenders. Play begins today at the Perryville City Park with an 11 a.m. game between No. 4 St. Vincent and No. 5 Fredericktown. The finals are 5 p.m. on Tuesday at the Perryville Soccer Complex...

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia -- Nine bombs exploded across Ethiopia's capital Friday, killing four people and wounding dozens in what police said was a coordinated attempt to discredit the government. No group immediately took responsibility for the blasts, which focused on government-owned companies and public transportation. But the bombings could point to growing militant opposition to the government...

Call him crazy or call him a cock-eyed optimist, but Southeast Missouri State coach Mark Hogan still believes the Redhawks can make a late push to qualify for the Ohio Valley Conference tournament. "It's still there for us. I'm just waiting for us to put it together," Hogan said. "I still think we've got the team to get it together and get in the tournament...

Central's hopes of bringing home its first district baseball title since 2000 took a hit Friday, when the school announced that six players and head coach Steve Williams would be suspended for the district semifinal game Tuesday due to violations of Missouri State High School Activities Association guidelines...

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. -- Southeast Missouri State's softball season came to a close Friday as the Redhawks suffered their second consecutive shutout loss in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament. Sixth-seeded Eastern Kentucky bounced the fifth-seeded Redhawks from the six-team, double-elimination event with a 3-0 victory...

Since she began playing violin as a young girl, Cape Gir-ardeau native Liesl Schoenberger has heard her share of compliments, won her share of competitions and played with an array of elite classical music groups. She loves to play bluegrass fiddle, too...

The ex-wife of a man struck by a sport utility vehicle was charged with assault Friday as the driver of the vehicle. Valerie A. Brooks, 46, of 914 Old Cape Road, is accused of hitting her ex-husband with her Ford Explorer in the 1200 block of South Benton Street Thursday night...

BENTON, Mo. -- Few people in Scott County realize a monument to the veterans of the Great War, World War I, sits on the Scott County Courthouse lawn. For years the tribute to those who died in that conflict has gone neglected. Where water once ran in the fountains, weeds now grow. Where lights once illuminated the names of the dead, now there is darkness. Where the names of dead sailors once hung the plaque has fallen, leaving only a bare wall...