Stories from Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Saturday night the old kitchen at the Pollard picnic grounds was alive with activity as the community came together to remember Grover "Goob" Baker. Under the guise of a community potluck supper, the event was planned to honor Baker and his family, and to unveil two commemorative benches. ...

Over 20 pilots from four states visited Piggott this past weekend for the annual spring Fun-Fly at Mayo Field. This year marked the 13th time the Piggott Radio Control Model Club has hosted the event, and organizers are already making plans for next year's effort...

Members of the Piggott City Council met for a special meeting Tuesday at noon, and approved a measure that will fund the hiring of a local economic development director. The action came at the request of the Economic Development Corporation, and efforts to fill the post are now getting underway...

The outcome of the May 20 election for the position of Clay County sheriff and tax collector will not change following a requested recount held Thursday, May 29, at the Clay County Courthouse in Corning. Gerald McClung was declared the winner following a nearly five hour process...

Times News Staff 1968 The re-vamped Piggott Swimming Pool re-opened 40 years ago this past week. The Jaycees have re-painted the building and the Jaycettes made new curtains for the dressing rooms. This year's lifeguards are Mike Faucett and Link Fuller...

Have you ever been in the belly of a fish? Well, okay, have your ever felt like you were in the belly of a fish? You know, in a situation where you felt trapped and there was no escape We get like that sometimes. Maybe not when we're young and invincible. But, in later years, when our lives get tangled and convoluted ...

Samuel Beauford Miller, 63, of Pollard died Tuesday, May 27, 2008, at St. Bernards Regional Medical Center in Jonesboro. He was born Oct. 18, 1944, in Kennett, the son of the late J.B. and Mattie McCamey Miller...

Tom Gower, 72, of Pollard died Monday, June 2, 2008, in the Piggott Community Hospital. Funeral services are set for 2 p.m. Wednesday, June 4, in the Hoggard and Sons Chapel with Kevin Murray officiating...

The Army War College Foundation's Foundation News spring 2008 publication features Rector native George Barker in its Spotlight on the Board. Barker, a graduate of Rector High School and co-founder of the RHS Helping Hands Foundation, joined the Army War College Foundation Board of Trustees in July 2006. ...

It's official. Rector is one of eight Arkansas cities which have joined the Arkansas Downtown Network (ADN) of communities dedicated to revitalizing historic commercial areas, Main Street Arkansas director Cary Tyson announced Friday...

The possibility of annexing several nearby homes into the city limits was a much-discussed topic during Monday night's Rector City Council meeting. The council heard from alderman David Freeman, the chair of a committee currently examining the possibility of an annexation proposal. ...

The outcome of the May 20 election for the position of Clay County sheriff and tax collector will not change following a requested recount held Thursday, May 29, at the Clay County Courthouse in Corning. Gerald McClung was declared the winner following a nearly five hour process...

Rector Elementary School's top students were recognized during the school's annual Honors Day program held May 21 in the RES multi-purpose room. Receiving awards as top sixth grade honor students were:...

Seventy-three Rector High School students were kept safe on prom night thanks to generous giving from those in the Rector community. The 2008 Project Aftershock after-prom party followed a western theme. Johnny Cole of Paragould was the caller for square dancing, and there were participants for stick horse racing with cash prizes. According to a witness, "it was very entertaining to watch."...

It's quite exciting for Rector to have a "hometown boy" as general manager of KAIT-TV, Channel 8, in Jonesboro. Tim Ingram received a warm welcome recently as guest speaker at the Rector Lions Club and he expressed gratitude to the community for the way it has supported him in his school years here and on into his television career...

Perhaps it has come down to the wire and, absent any gross chicanery or hitherto undisclosed scandal, the Democrats will have a nominee -- and, if the fates are kind -- a running-mate as well, all within the first week or two in the new month of June, 2008. ...

Have you ever been in the belly of a fish? Well, okay, have your ever felt like you were in the belly of a fish? You know, in a situation where you felt trapped and there was no escape We get like that sometimes. Maybe not when we're young and invincible. But, in later years, when our lives get tangled and convoluted ...

John N. Speer, 77, of Oak Park, Mich., a native of Rector, died Sunday, May 4, 2008, at his home. He was born April 5, 1931, in Rector, to the late John H. and Ida Speer. He retired from Consumers Power after 42 years. He enjoyed hunting and fishing...

Cleatus Luster Crain, 96, a charter member and deacon of White Oak General Baptist Church in Rector, died Sunday, June 1, 2008, at NEA Baptist Memorial Hospital in Jonesboro. Born April 3, 1912, to Arthur and Maudie Huffstutler Crain in Dunklin County, Mo., he was preceded in death by his parents; his wife of 74 years, Mary Anna Farmer Crain; two sons, Ralph E. ...