Stories from Wednesday, October 17, 2001

The Arkansas Public Service Commission is concerned that natural gas ratepayers in Arkansas may not be prepared for what could be another winter of high gas bills. The concern stems from recent news stories which have reported the current market price of gas is much lower than it was last winter...

The Cougars lost a tough one in a game where they had good field position and the chance to score several times. Penalties plagued the Cougars as they fell to the Marked Tree Indians, 28-6. The game was really a lot closer than the final score would convey...

Lillian L. "Tib" Mays, 88, of Rector, died Saturday, Oct. 13, 2001, at her home. A lifelong resident of Rector, she was born April 24, 1913, to the late Robert and Alice Miller. She was a homemaker and a member of the Fifth and Pine Church of Christ...

Edgar Leon (Bud) McGee, 89, of Rector died Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2001, in the Regional Medical Center in Jonesboro. He was born Oct. 31, 1911, in Hayti, Mo., the son of the late Walter and Ida Sanders McGee. He married Stella Halter on Nov. 13, 1935. To this union one son was born...

Denver Leon Easton, 74, of Paragould, a native of Clay County, died Sunday, Oct. 14, 2001, at his home. A retired policeman, he was born Oct. 2, 1927, in Clay County to the late Gilbert and Lucy (Duffel) Easton. He served as Paragould Police Chief from 1975-78 and in more than 10 years with the Paragould Police Department also worked as a patrolman and with the criminal investigation division. He also worked as a deputy with the Greene County Sheriff's Department...

The Arkansas State Highway Commission has opened bids for a project to improve a Clay County road, according to Commission vice chairman J.W. "Buddy" Benafield and Clay County Judge Gary Howell. The project will construct a pre-cast bridge on County Road 72, which crosses Big Slough Ditch. The J.W. Githens Company of Poplar Bluff submitted the apparent low bid of $342,897.20...

Wade Castleberry is pleased to be the new general manager of Delta Cotton Co-op in Marmaduke. Originally from England, Ark., he has been managing co-ops for eight years. Castleberry said he became the manager at Delta Cotton because he was looking for a change...

The sounds of jazz and blues legend Joe Lee, the smells and tastes of delectable chocolate desserts and the visions of local artists will delight all of the senses for those attending the Clay County Arts Council's kickoff event Saturday, Dec. 15, at the Rector Community Center...

The life of Michael Morgan Taylor, brother-in-law of the former Connie Ellis of Rector, ended tragically on Sept. 11, 2001. He worked in the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. "Terrorism took Michael from his family and friends, but our memories of his life overshadow the cowardly acts of a few," family members said...

The Jr. Cougars fell to as-yet-undefeated Salem last week. Coach Lance said, "Salem just out-hit us. We had a couple of early turnovers and we didn't play defense really well. They were real aggressive on defense and put a lot of pressure on our quarterback."...

A Piggott High School alumni basketball game has been scheduled for Saturday, November 3 in the PHS gymnasium. The game will follow a black/white scrimmage of the Piggott High School basketball teams which will begin at 6 p.m. Entry fee for the alumni game will be $5 per player...

It looks like the end of a rivalry. At last Monday night's Rector School Board meeting, it was announced that the Rector Cougar football team would drop Piggott from their schedule. After the Arkansas Activities Association announced the 2002 classification realignments, class 3AA grew by two schools -- Hughes and Turrell. With ten teams in the conference, there was room for only one non-conference game...

Fans too young to see Lou Holtz coach Arkansas from 1977-83 now can say they saw vintage Holtz. They just saw it in another's vintage. Sans Lou's trademark tantrums, Houston Nutt "outHoltzed" Holtz last Saturday in Little Rock. Before 53,514 at War Memorial Stadium plus a national CBS audience, Nutt guided the Razorbacks to a 10-7 SEC victory over Holtz's unbeaten, ninth-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks...