Stories from Wednesday, November 21, 2007

City also getting new police officer By TIM BLAIR Times News Staff A laundry-list of business items, including end-of-year budget matters, dominated Monday night's meeting of the Piggott City Council. The body also officially endorsed passage of the upcoming local sales tax issue to benefit economic development, and hired a new police officer...

The Piggott Lady Mohawks, specifically the seventh grade team, had the honor of being the first to play a game in the new PHS gym last Thursday night as they took on the Brookland Lady Bearcats. On the night the girl's hosted all three of the Brookland squads, with the seventh grade and junior teams dropping their contests, while the senior Lady Mohawks notched their first win of the year in the nightcap...

The Piggott Mohawks went into Manila with mixed emotions last Friday night. The junior boys knew they had their work cut out for them with a big and talented junior Lion squad, while the senior boys were still trying to find their rhythm after losing an extra week to the football playoffs. In the end the young Lions roared to a 52-33 win, while the senior boys were handed a 47-40 win by the rusty Mohawks in the nightcap...

Erma Nell Parker, 80, of Piggott, died Friday, Nov. 16, 2007, in the Piggott Community Hospital. She was born March 2, 1927, in Holcomb, and was the daughter of the late William and Anna Johnson Byrd. She was united in marriage to Robert W. Parker on Oct. 8, 1949. The couple had one daughter...

Elsie Moore, 89, of Poplar Bluff, died Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2007, at Southeast Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Ms. Moore was born March 7, 1918, in Clarkton, to Charles Thomas and Sybil King Dickerson. She was a member of Langley Methodist Church, but attended Friendship Missionary Baptist Church in Harviell after moving to Poplar Bluff. She was a nursing assistant at Children's Hospital in St. Louis, prior to her retirement in 1971...

1967 Clay County sheriff Burness Dalton, along with deputies Troy Howell, Liddell Jones and Noal Turner, were kept busy 40 years ago this past week. They reported the arrest of two men for the burglary of Clovis Moore's gas station at McDougal, investigated two deaths (both of which were of natural causes) and removed a Success boy from his home due to malnutrition...

The Piggott Area Chamber of Commerce will host "Christmas Fest" and the annual Christmas parade, on Saturday, Dec. 1. A full slate of activities is on tap for the day, including a visit from Santa, and the public is encouraged to attend. From noon till 6 p.m. ...

An open house was held last Thursday, in the offices of Piggott Community Hospital Home Health, to mark the 25th anniversary of the program. The local home health service was started on Jan. 2, 1982 with one employee. Today there are 62 staff members caring for patients across the region, and branch offices have been established in Rector, Corning and Campbell. The primary service area is Clay County, the Missouri bootheel and portions of Greene County...

Elizabeth "Betty" (Crow) Crow Knoble, 89, of Rector, retired schoolteacher, librarian and former co-publisher of the Clay County Democrat, died Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2007, following a brief illness. She was born Nov. 16, 1917, in Centralia, Ill., to Clifford O. Crow and Bertha Bundy Crow...

Area soldiers with the 875th Engineer Battalion and 39th Infantry Brigade were honored and hundreds joined in giving thanks at Rector's seventh annual community Thanksgiving service held Sunday night at the Community Center. While many of the soldiers were unable to attend, 10 soldiers were present and were called to the front of the room to be recognized, receiving long ovations from the large crowd in gratitude for their service and sacrifices...

Clay County's budget for 2008 is now in place following unanimous approval during Monday night's Quorum Court meeting at the Piggott courthouse. Notable changes to the budget from a year ago include a five percent raise for elected officials, not including justices of the peace, and a 50 cent hourly raise for county employees. Also, the cost of health insurance has increased, with an additional 19 percent cost increase factored into the budget...

Almarita Sanders, 82, formerly of Rector, died Sunday, Nov. 18, at Greene Acres Nursing Home in Paragould. She was born Aug. 12, 1925, in Marmaduke to the late Bill and Sylvia (Heskett) Howell. She also was preceded in death by three sisters, Jewell Martin, Beulah Young and Irene Holifield; a grandson, Craig Darter, and her husband, Hershel Sanders, on Oct. 18, 2006...

The Rector Cougars and Marmaduke Greyhounds continued one of the area's most popular basketball rivalries Monday night, as the two teams met in junior and senior high play in Marmaduke. The rivals split the games, as Marmaduke claimed the senior high game, while the Junior Cougars pulled out the win...

The Lady Cougars came away with an impressive 71-39 win over Marked Tree Thursday night in Rector. The Lady Cougars were dominant throughout, leading 26-3; 39-16 and 56-32 throughout the first three quarters of play. The girls from Rector used spirited defense in the early going to put the game away early...