Stories from Thursday, August 11, 2011

For 81 years, people from, and with ties to, the town of Greenway have gathered on the first Saturday in August for the annual Greenway Picnic. With the ultimate goal of raising the necessary funds for the Mitchell Cemetery, the day-long event combines not only a pleasant homecoming, but also furthers a worthy cause...

A tragic weather-related accident claimed the life of a Rector man Monday, Aug. 8. William Arnold, 71, was pronounced dead by Clay County Coroner Paul Hoggard in what is believed to have been a case of electrocution by lightning. According to Clay County Sheriff Gerald McClung, Arnold was one of three men working in a field north of Hargrave Corner at approximately 9 a.m. ...

Soon, the sounds of bells will once again be heard echoing through the halls in the Piggott Public Schools buildings. Once more, students will fill the halls and classrooms as school begins on Monday, Aug. 15. Teachers have been back at the elementary and high school campuses for much of the past few weeks...

The 2011-12 school year is about to get underway in the Rector School District, with a full day classes set to begin Monday, Aug. 15. Students and teachers have been making preparations for weeks, as the days of summer vacation are rapidly drawing to a close...

We often give advice and take it, too. Erma Bombeck said you should never have more children than you have car windows. And never lend your car to anyone to whom you have given birth. President Harry Truman said he found the best way to give advice to your children is to find out what they want and then advise them to do it...

March 4, 1933, was a banner day for this youngster, for that was Inauguration Day for "Mister Roosevelt," as my mother came to call him. This eager youngster sat at the family radio, listening to his magic words telling us that our only fear was fear itself. We didn't know what there was to be afraid of, and so I asked my mother if she could explain. "There's a Depression which is causing some of the people in this country of ours to be short of jobs and money and for many of them to be poor."...

"All the gold may be in California, but the Cash is in Jonesboro tonight," said a devoted fan during the first annual Johnny Cash Music Festival held at the Arkansas State University Convocation Center on Thursday, Aug. 4. The Cash family and a wide variety of country music stars provided over four hours of continuous entertainment during the concert. Over 7,000 tickets were sold for the event...

Lloyd "Doc" Franklin Dickens, 59, of Campbell, Mo., died Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2011, at Twin Rivers Regional Medical Center in Kennett. Mr. Dickens was born Feb. 7, 1952, in Campbell to the late James D. and Lorene Haynes Dickens. He worked at Federal Mogul as a machine operator for 30 years and was a member of the Beechwell General Baptist Church in Campbell...

Dalton Leroy "Red" Moffitt of Campbell, Mo., died Sunday, Aug. 7, 2011, at the Piggott Community Hospital in Piggott, Ark. He was born Dec. 13, 1923, at Conway, Ark., and was one of 10 children born to the late Oscar and Maggie Matchett Moffitt of Fagus, Mo. He was a retired bar and liquor store owner and a veteran of the United States Navy during World War II. He was also a lifetime member of the Piggott VFW as well as the American Legion...

Mr. Ira G. "Woody" Woodward, Jr., age 84 years, of Jefferson City, Mo., died Friday, Aug. 5, 2011, at St. Mary's Health Center. Woody was born Sept. 19, 1926, in Clay County, Ark., the son of Ira G., Sr. and Angie Thraham Woodward. He was married on Jan. 12, 1944, in Kennett, Mo., to Clara M. Jackson...

Shirley Jean Stone, 81, of Piggott, Ark., passed away Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2011, at the Twin Rivers Regional Medical Center in Kennett, Mo. She was born on May 20, 1930, in Carryville, Ark., and was the daughter of the late William Arthur "Otto" and Ruth E. Coyle Peterson...