Stories from Wednesday, October 24, 2001

Anchor Packaging plants in both Marmaduke and Paragould are undergoing major expansion projects. Michael Gross, vice president of operations at Anchor Packaging, said the move will increase productivity and value of the factories. "We are relocating our blown film operation out of Paragould and into our Marmaduke plant and expanding the Marmaduke plant to accommodate the new operation there," he said. ...

Five area athletes have been nominated for the annual Wendy's High School Heisman Award. The students are Lindsay Bell and Chris Keen of Marmaduke High School, Toby Morris of Rector High School and Thomas Harris and Meagan Swann of Piggott High School...

Rector's youth football teams hosted Piggott last Tuesday in a rematch of the first game of the season. The Piggott A squad won by a score of 6-2 with the B team winning 14-0. Both teams met earlier in the season with Rector defeating Piggott for the first time in six years. it was only the second Rector win over Piggott in the last 12 years...

After opening the game with a strong first half, the Rector Junior High Cougars "didn't do so well" in the second half of last Thursday night's game at Walnut Ridge. The Junior Bobcats held on for a 28-12 win over Rector. "We played a good first half, but we just didn't do so well in the third and fourth quarters," coach Jason Lance said. ...

Rector High School football coach Wade Williams had little to complain about with the effort of his team in a hard-fought 14-12 conference loss to visiting Salem on Friday night. The Cougars suited up only 17 players for the game, but hung in right to the end against the favored Greyhounds...

Charlice Odean (Babb) McKay, 67, of 1017 S. Phillips, Rector, died Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2001, at Piggott Community Hospital. The daughter of the late Odes and Flossie Brackett Babb, she was born Sept. 18, 1934, in Maynard. She was a homemaker. Survivors include three sons, Jim Jones of St. ...

Rubie L. (Coleman) Landis, 89, formerly of the Rector area, died Saturday, Oct. 20, 2001, at the Senath Nursing Home in Senath, Mo. She was born April 30, 1912, in Murray, Ky., to the late John Robertson and Josephine (Garland) Robertson. She was a homemaker and lived most of her life in this community. She also was a member of the Antioch Baptist Church...

Pearl Holland, 80, of Kennett, Mo., a native of Rector, died Saturday, Oct. 20, 2001, at Kennett. A homemaker, Mrs. Holland was born Feb. 6, 1921, in Rector to the late Berry Crockett Young and Nancy Aley Johnson. She also was preceded in death by her husband, Charles Wesley Holland; three brothers, Robert Alvin Young, Finnis Franklin Young and Earl Berry Young, and one sister, Bessie Aline Bridges...

As Rector kindergarteners and first-graders file out into the parking lot, they are dwarfed by a huge, yellow machine. Instead of being afraid, however, they smile and giggle, hoping to be the first ones to climb up the big steps and sit in the seats that tower over their heads...

Rector city and school officials are encouraging parents to take their children trick-or-treating early in the evening next Wednesday, preferably before dark. The mayor, police chief and school officials noted that safety concerns should be paramount this year in light of the current situation in the nation...

The Clay County Quorum Court approved $10,000 as its portion to fund the salary of a county flood plain manager at Monday night's meeting in Corning. Under the proposal, Randy Lemmons, district conservationist with the Natural Resources Conservation Service, said the incorporated cities will also help fund portions of the salary on a per capita basis...

Marmaduke feared the worst Wednesday morning, Oct. 17, when an unidentified white powder was discovered at Randy's Service Center on Highway 49. Station owners Randy and Shirley Stanfill called police after mechanic Terry Nelson noticed the powder on the ground where a suspicious truck had been parked earlier. Because of recent events involving anthrax contamination, they suspected the powder might be dangerous...

The Marmaduke Lady Greyhounds defeated Bergman in Leachville by a score of 65-46 at the Tip-Off Classic at Buffalo Island Central. Brooke Grigsby led the Lady Greyhounds offensively with 21 points. Sister Beth Grigsby tallied 17. Heather Johnson added 15...