Stories from Wednesday, December 31, 2008

There was good news to share Monday afternoon as the annual joint meeting of the Piggott City Council and Parks and Recreation Commission was held at the community center. The luncheon meeting is held each year as a courtesy to the council, as members of the commission present their annual budget. ...

Black River Area Development Corporation (BRAD) will begin accepting applications Monday, Jan. 5, for its Home Energey Assistance Program (HEAP) for low-income households in Clay, Lawrence and Randolph Counties...

Leon W. Underwood, 90, of Little Rock, died Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008. He was a native of Piggott, a World War II veteran and a recipient of the Purple Heart. He was preceded in death by his wife, Kathleen, and is survived by his wife, Betty Chapman Underwood. ...

Robert G. Webster, 79, of Springfield, Mass., died Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2008, at his home. He was born Sept. 30, 1929, in Detroit, Mich., and was the son of the late Paul Amos Webster and Ruth Marie (Pollard) Webster...

Rev. Edwin Runyon, 85, of Poplar Bluff, Mo., died Dec. 11, 2008, at his home. He was the son of the late Rev. S.I. and Myrtle (Burkhead) Runyon and was born July 1, 1923, at Pollard. He was married to Betty Hamilton on March 16, 1947...

Jimmie Williams, 48, of Ellington, Mo., died Monday, Dec. 29, 2008, in Ellington. He was born June 27, 1960, in Malden, Mo., and was the son of the late Homer and Wilma (Woodland) Williams. He also was preceded in death by his half-brother, Richard Kirby...

Dovie Oliver, 70, formerly of Rector, died Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2008, at her home in Jonesboro. She was born Jan. 31, 1938, in Bertrand, Mo., and was the daughter of the late John and Cannie (Haney) Estes...

I can't believe 2009 is here. It's time to make and break resolutions. I can't remember the last one I made or if I kept it. It probably had to do with striving to be a better person. I know it's hard to break old habits. Smokers can attest to that...

This week's edition is a "cusp" report, featuring the news from the last week of some years and the first few days of others… 1968 The Piggott school board voted to ask patrons for a 10-mil tax increase 40 years ago last week. ...

A group of dedicated former Mohawks turned out Saturday night for an alumni benefit basketball game at the PHS gym, with all the proceeds going to the Mohawk Booster club. And although the crowd was light, enthusiasm was high as the squads did battle on the PHS hardwood...

Few things in life carry the emotional weight of dealing with the loss of a close friend or loved one. For one man, part of such weight has been lifted after receiving closure to a death involving a friendship which sprang up during the horrors of war more than 40 years ago...

The last year, like so many others in a small, tight-knit community like Rector, has been filled with a full range of emotions. Time, the greatest of all equalizers, continued to play its role in the lives of all...

The holidays took a joyous turn for Barbi Terry of Rector, as she received the best gift she could imagine. "I had my boys home for Christmas," an excited Barbi exclaimed. "It was the best Christmas I could have had."...

A Marmaduke High School senior and a 2008 MHS honor graduate were killed Sunday, Dec. 28, when their truck was struck by a train at a railroad crossing on Greene County Road 815, just off Highway 49 north of Paragould...

Initial steps have been taken to create a new memorial in Rector that will appropriately honor veterans while also attracting attention throughout the region. Committee co-chairman George Barker, a native of Rector and a retired Maj. Gen. in the U.S. Army, led the initial planning meeting Tuesday afternoon at city hall...

For a team known for its shooting ability, the worst thing that could have happened in the Cougars' semifinal meeting with the top seeded Tigers from Armorel in the NEA Tournament did occur, as the boys from Rector struggled mightily with their outside shot, ultimately falling 64-42 at the ASU Convocation Center...

I can't believe 2009 is here. It's time to make and break resolutions. I can't remember the last one I made or if I kept it. It probably had to do with striving to be a better person. I know it's hard to break old habits. Smokers can attest to that...

We were sure, back in the summer of 2004, that we had witnessed something America had been missing for so many long years. We made a rash prediction to our skeptical spouse that we would be seeing a lot of this young man and we wouldn't be surprised if he became president some day soon. ...

Leon W. Underwood, 90, of Little Rock, died Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008. He was a native of Piggott, a World War II veteran and a recipient of the Purple Heart. He was preceded in death by his wife, Kathleen, and is survived by his wife, Betty Chapman Underwood. ...

Dovie Oliver, 70, formerly of Rector, died Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2008, at her home in Jonesboro. She was born Jan. 31, 1938, in Bertrand, Mo., and was the daughter of the late John and Cannie (Haney) Estes...

Howard Earl Williams, 80, of Kennett, Mo., died Friday, Dec. 26, 2008, at Heritage Nursing Home in Kennett. He was born Aug. 29, 1928, in St. Louis to the late Paul Howard Williams and Opal Fowler Williams. He was married Sept. 15, 1951, to Glenda Masterson, who survives...

Terry Kyle Huckabay, 18, of Paragould, a 2008 Marmaduke High School honor graduate, died Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008, in an accident near Paragould. Kyle was an avid baseball player, hunter and loved to fish. ...

Reba Cloe Nolen, 90, of Marmaduke, died Saturday, Dec. 27, in Paragould. Born Feb. 13, 1918, in Rector to the late Johnnie and Gertie Morris, she was retired from Brown Shoe Company. Also preceding her in death were her husband, A.W. "Bud" Nolen; three sisters, Marie Smith, Beatrice Craig and Mary King, and one step-daughter, Donna Starnes...

Colton Jeffrey Carr, 17, of Paragould died Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008, in an accident near Paragould. A senior at Marmaduke High School, Colton was president of the Marmaduke High School Future Farmers of America chapter and was a member of the MHS livestock team. He was of the Baptist faith. He enjoyed everything outdoors, including hunting, fishing and working on his truck. He touched many lives in his 17 years. He lived every day to the fullest and will be missed dearly...