Stories from Wednesday, April 25, 2001

The Marmaduke Lady Greyhounds improved to 11-3 on the year with a 12-2 win over the Manila Lady Lions last week. Shelly Priest led the Greyhound scoring with a grand slam home run. Brooke Grigsby, Tiffany Wallace, Priest and Alana Brannon all notched three hits apiece in the win...

A musical song and dance number "Swinging Safari," by Rector High School's Stage XVIV group, will highlight the school drama department's annual Academy Choice dinner and program Friday night, April 27. Today (Wednesday, April 25) is the deadline for the purchase or reservation of tickets. Those who wish to attend the dress-up evening of celebration of the 2000-2001 theatre season may call 870-595-1444 or (after 10 p.m. ) 870-595-3377 to place orders. The ticket price is $15...

The King is coming to town, and a Cadillac limousine will deliver him Friday, May 18, to the door of the Rector Community Center. He looks like Elvis, moves like Elvis, sings like Elvis and has the heart of Elvis, but he's really Rector's own Michael Smith, who is quickly gaining a reputation as one of the best Elvis impersonators around...

The top graduating seniors in Clay and Greene Counties were honored Thursday night at the Peoples Bank sixth annual Academic All Star Banquet held in their honor at the Paragould Country Club. The students and their families were treated to a delicious meal and received words of praise and encouragement lauding their academic achievements...

Rector's Relay for Life team has been hard at work preparing for Clay County's third annual Relay for Life event, which will officially kick off at 10 a.m. Saturday with a survivors walk and victory lap at Heritage Park in Piggott. Called WRECK (Walking Rectorites Encouraging Cancer Knowledge), the team is chaired by Michele Haley, who began early this year and has worked extremely hard to be sure the Rector team is among the top, if not at the top, of teams raising money to help the work of the American Cancer Society.. ...

Marmaduke civic leader James Doyne Rasberry died Saturday, April 21, at Baptist East Hospital in Memphis at age 77. Rasberry was one of the founders of the Marmaduke Fourth of July Picnic, the Marmaduke Mayfest and the community's citywide yard sale, was active in Boy Scouts and helped obtain the community's Little League ballpark and lights. ...

George C. Hardin, 74, of Marmaduke died Saturday, April 21, in Little Rock. He was born Oct. 5, 1926, in Boydsville to the late Ben Thomas and Pearl (Taylor) Hardin. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his first wife, Veneda (Bradsher) Hardin, on July 7, 1995...

David Neal Shelton, 37, of Rector died Monday, April 16, 2001, at his home. He was a sanitation engineer for Shelton Sanitation and was a life-long resident of Rector. He was born Dec. 28, 1963, in Kennett, Mo. Shelton was an outstanding athlete at Rector High School, earning all-state honors as a second baseman. He was the leading hitter on his high school team. He earned a baseball scholarship to Arkansas State University, where he played as a right fielder...

Berl Lynn Vaught, 81, of Paragould died Thursday, April 12, 2001, at Paragould Nursing Center in Paragould. He was born Sept. 18, 1919, in Greene County to the late James Franklin Vaught and Luna Mae (Adams) Vaught. He was a carpenter, a member of the Air Force in World War II, and was of the Baptist faith...

Rubel Estis Anderson, 90, of North Little Rock, formerly of Rector, died Monday, April 16, 2001. He was born Oct. 15, 1910, in Essary Springs, Tenn., to the late John Lee and Buleah Duncan Anderson. He grew up in Rector and graduated from Rector High School...

Kathleen Dale Lynch, 95, of Dallas, Texas, a native of Rector, died Monday, April 16, 2001, in Dallas. She was born Aug. 9, 1905, in Rector to the late William E. and Nora Trammell Lynch. She was baptized in Hickman, Ky. She graduated from Hume-Fogg High School in Nashville, and attended business school preparing for her career. She started in the Veterans Administration then transferred to the legal council as legal secretary...

Martin Spencer Parsons, 79, of Grand Blanc, Mich., a native of Knob, died Thursday, April 12, 2001, at Genesys Health Park. He was born Feb. 10, 1922, in Knob to the the late Lena and George Parsons. After serving in the U.S. Army during World War II, Mr. ...

Behind the pitching of Kyle Pruett, the Rector Cougars advanced to the 3AA-North district baseball tournament finals with a decisive win over the Buffalo Island Central Mustangs. Pruett only gave up a total of only two hits to the Mustangs in Monday morning's first round game, which saw the Rector boys shut out Buffalo Island by a score of 8-0...

Rector senior Matt Mills has been named to the Arkansas High School Coaches Association's State All-Star basketball team. As a member of the all-star team, Mills will compete in the annual all-star game which will be played on Thursday, July 26 at the Farris Center at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway...

Hannah Massey and Toby Morris each went four for four in the Rector Lady Cougars' 14-4 win over the Buffalo Island Central Lady Mustangs last week in Rector. The Lady Cougars pounded out a total of 21 hits and scored in each of the five-inning game's frames...

The Rector Cougars ended their regular season on Wednesday afternoon with a 7-0 shutout over Marmaduke at the Jeremy McDaniel Sports Complex in Rector. The day was also Player-Parent Recognition Day. Nine seniors were honored and introduced with their parents...

A large crowd is expected for the Rector Area Chamber of Commerce annual banquet, to begin at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 26, at the Rector Community Center. A record number of tickets have been sold. Ticketholders are reminded that The Old School Bluegrass Band will begin playing at 6:30 p.m. in the center's multi-purpose room...

Piggott's first round baseball district tournament game, scheduled for Monday afternoon , was postponed due to rain. The game was rescheduled for Tuesday afternoon. Semi-finals and finals will be played on Wednesday. The tournament is being held at Pocahontas...

The Piggott Junior Mohawk track team fared well at their first meet of the year last week at the Redskin Junior Relays in Pocahontas. On the girls squad, the group of Kristen Wallace, Michelle Wallace, Jennifer Wallace and Jenna Stender placed second overall in the 3200 meter relay with a time of 13:42...

The Piggott City Council voted Monday evening to pursue seeking professional aid in researching the city's utility insurance policies and premiums. During the regular utilities meeting, the council reviewed a proposal by Tonya Coomer of Shelter Insurance for boiler and machinery coverage at the power plant and substation...

Statewide programs were not the only measures to receive legislative approval during Arkansas' 83rd General Assembly. Clay County will see an economic benefit to numerous local projects. Under general improvement funding, scheduled to begin July 1, state monies will go to boll weevil eradication, the Boydsville Lake Project, Corning Community Center, and the state tourist information center north of Corning...

Although the Arkansas General Assembly is in official recess, legislators may still be called back to Little Rock to tie up loose ends before May 14. "I think we had some major accomplishments during the session," said State Rep. Travis Boyd of Piggott...

"I think we will reflect on it as a positive session," said State Senator Tim Wooldridge of Paragould in discussing the 83rd Arkansas General Assembly. The legislature was dominated by the issues of teacher payraises, CHART tobacco settlement distribution, and keeping nursing homes afloat in light of severe federal Medicaid cuts...

Henry E. "Johnny" Tanner, 81, of Piggott died Sunday, April 22, 2001, at Twin Rivers Medical Center in Kennett. He was born Jan. 15, 1920, in Piggott, the son of the late George William and Eva Elizabeth Hampton Tanner. He married Margaret Fisher on Sept. 5, 1942. To this union two children were born. She preceded him in death in 1972...

Mary Lois McPherson, 89, of Hendersonville, S.C., and Hobe Sound, Fla., died Wednesday, March 7, 2001, in Stuart, Fla., of congenital heart disease. Services were held Saturday, March 10, at Hill Funeral Home in Grand Blanc, Mich., with burial in Evergreen Cemetery...

Alma L. Holifield, 78, of Pollard died Sunday, April 22, 2001, at St. Bernards Regional Medical Center in Jonesboro. She was born March 7, 1923, in Pollard, the daughter of the late Arthur and Louisa Morgan Crews. She married Melvin Holifield on Oct. 7, 1939. To this union two sons were born...

Clyde Lamp, 75, of Piggott died Friday, April 20, 2001, at his home. He was born May 29, 1925, in Carryville, the son of the Samuel and Lena Myers Lamp. He married Alice Lee Vaughn on March 20, 1953. To this union one daughter was born. He was a lifelong resident of the Piggott area and a member of the Church of Christ. He served in the Army in the Korean Conflict...

Edna Alene Vaughn, 88, of Piggott died Tuesday, April 24, 2001, at the General Baptist Nursing Home in Campbell. She was born Oct. 28, 1912, the daughter of the late Gus and Necy Fultz Roofe. She married Jake L. Vaughn on Aug. 4, 1931. To this union two daughters were born...

Nadine Millikan, 85, of McDougal died Saturday, April 21, 2001, at Piggott Community Hospital. She was born Feb. 25, 1916, in Boydsville, the daughter of the late Will and Renee Sennett Young. She married Charlie Millikan in March 1933. He preceded her in death in 1974...

James Smith, 74, of Tullahoma, Tenn., died Sunday, April 15, 2001, at the Life Care Center in Tullahoma. He was born Aug. 31, 1926, in Piggott, the son of the late Zelmer and Luda Brandon Smith. He was retired from General Motors in Michigan, where he and his family resided for many years...

Marmaduke civic leader James Doyne Rasberry died Saturday, April 21, at Baptist East Hospital in Memphis at age 77. Rasberry was one of the founders of the Marmaduke Fourth of July Picnic, the Marmaduke Mayfest and the community's citywide yard sale, was active in Boy Scouts and helped obtain the community's Little League ballpark and lights. ...

The past week has been an exciting one for the Piggott tennis teams. For the first time in Piggott High School tennis history, a player has made it to the state tournament for four years in a row. Courtney Carrens, a senior, teamed up with Meagan Swann to take the district champion doubles crown to earn her fourth consecutive state appearance. Swann will be making her third straight trip to state. Overall, the girls team finished as the 3AAA North district runner-up...

Lori Russell, of Piggott, was recently selected to participate in the Willow Creek Women's Hospital Top 25 basketball event in Fayetteville. The event was sponsored by Arkansas Athletes Outreach. Russell was one of 44 girls in the state of Arkansas selected to participate in two days of high level basketball activities at Greenland High School in Fayetteville...

Joel Coomer and Michael Hoggard combined to finish second and third, respectively, overall and helped lead Piggott to the regional golf tournament title last Wednesday at Sugar Creek Country Club. Coomer fired a 75 while Hoggard carded a 76 in the play-four, count two format...

The third annual Relay for Life will officially kick-off at 10 a.m. Saturday with the survivors walk and victory lap at Heritage Park in Piggott. Chairman Donna Seal said persons can still sign-up for the walk and are encouraged to come and participate in the many activities scheduled throughout the day...