Stories from Wednesday, January 11, 2006

A Piggott man was arrested at his residence on Saturday, Dec. 31, after the Piggott Police Department received reports from two businesses in town that they had received counterfeit bills on Friday, Dec. 30. In the investigation, officers retrieved $300 in counterfeit money from the businesses...

The Piggott Senior Mohawks were outscored in conference action when the team traveled to Walnut Ridge on Tuesday, Jan. 3, to face the Bobcats. The Bobcats squeezed by the Mohawks with a final score of 53-49. The Bobcats maintained a slim lead throughout the game: 14-10, 29-27 and 43-40, but the lead was enough to secure the victory...

The Junior Mohawks traveled to Walnut Ridge to face the conference foe Junior Bobcats on Tuesday, Jan. 3, and came home with a 47-34 win. The Junior Mohawks led the game with quarter scores of 8-7, 19-16 and 30-19. "We played well," coach Paul Seegraves said. "We were a little rusty due to the Christmas break, but we played well enough to get the win."...

The 2005 Fall Sports Awards Reception was held at the Piggott High School Cafeteria on Saturday, Jan. 7. The event was hosted by the Mohawk Booster Club and the Volleyball Booster Club. There was an extremely large crowd of parents, grandparents, students and faculty on hand to celebrate the athletes from the fall sports rosters at Piggott High School. ...

Elsie Mae (Morrow) Parrish, 96, of Corning died Monday, Jan. 2, at her home. She was a homemaker and helped on the family farm. Her hobby was raising irises in her flower garden. She was married to F.E. Parrish on April 3, 1926. He preceded her in death...

K. D. Driver, 69, a resident of Dover, died Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2006, at his home. He was born Dec. 28, 1936, at Eastland, Texas, to D. M. and Esther Mae Moore Driver. He was a building contractor and owned Driver Construction. He enjoyed gardening and feeding the birds and animals. When not working, he could be found at Dewayne's Bar-B-Q & Grill visiting with his friends...

Mary Lou Goodman, 78, of Rector died Sunday, Jan. 8, 2006, at Arkansas Methodist Medical Center in Paragould. Born April 24, 1927, in Traverse City, Mich., she was a member of the Fifth and Pine Church of Christ, a homemaker and had lived in the community 10 years...

Mary Sue Cummings, 73, of the Clay Healthcare Center in Corning died Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2006, at the Arkansas Methodist Medical Center in Paragould. She was of the Church of Christ faith. She attended church at Greenway and Corning. She was preceded in death by her parents, Harrison and Opal (Davis) Cummings...

Timothy Scott McDougal, 43, of Bismarck died on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2006. He was born on April 9, 1962, in Portland, Maine, the son of Reginald and Esther McDougal. Mr. McDougal was a city carrier for the U.S. Postal Service. He was a member of the Caddo Valley Congregation of Jehovah's Witness...

Doyne Dewayne Runyon, 67, of Piggott died Friday, Jan. 6, 2006. He was born Aug. 15, 1938, in Pollard to the late John and Katherine Runyon. He was disabled and was of the Church of God faith. Survivors include one brother and sister-in-law, Bobby and Sarah Runyon of Piggott; one uncle and aunt, Euvon and Maxine Foster of Michigan, and several cousins...

James Sidney Coyle, 73, formerly of Piggott, died Sunday, Jan. 1, 2006, at Sutter Tracy Community Hospital in Tracy, Calif. He was born on Dec. 23, 1932, the son of the late Thomas and Thelma Coyle of Piggott. Mr. Coyle worked as a maintenance mechanic for Southern Pacific Railroad, International Harvester and Laura Scudders. He served in the U.S. Army as a surface-to-air missile crewman stationed in California...

Floyd J.D. Brown, known as "Peck" by family and close friends, died at the Piggott Hospital on Friday, Jan. 6, 2006, at the age of 75. He was born Aug. 16, 1930, in Kennett, the son of the late Dewey and Gladys (Kirby) Brown. Mr. Brown was a local farmer for many years. He was of the Church of Christ faith and was baptized on July 22, 2004...

Owen Wesley Davis, 79, of Rector died Saturday, Jan. 7, 2006, at NEA Regional Medical Center in Jonesboro. Born July 12, 1926, in Holcomb, Mo., to the late Thomas Davis and Brooksie Lee Miller, he was a farmer and cattleman, a World War II veteran and a member of the Alexander Baptist Church...

Roy Rudolph Huffman, 84, of Piggott died Friday, Jan. 06, 2006, at the Westwood Hills Nursing Center in Poplar Bluff. He was born Sept. 14, 1921, in Greenway, the son of Clarence Mack and Erma (Bell) Huffman. He served his country during World War II and was honorably discharged with the rank of Staff Sergeant...

As the Piggott School Board began its search for the district's next superintendent, the Chamber declared its second Ag Expo a success and band director Tracy Meadows received Kiss FM's "Rockin' Apple Award" and the Senior Mohawks basketball team accepted a honorary "Rockin' Apple" from DJ's Ali King and Brandon Baxter on behalf of coach Matt Sutfin. These are among other notable stories of 2005...

A former city clerk-treasurer and long-time employee of the Piggott School District, Jean Doty-Owen, died on Tuesday, Jan. 3, at the age of 68 at her home in Piggott. Doty-Owen was elected city clerk-treasurer in a run-off election in November of 1986. She served the city in that capacity until she lost the election in 1998...

Teachers presented approximately 403 medals to students honoring their achievements on the Arkansas Benchmark Exam, the End-of-Level Literacy Exam and End-of-Course Algebra and Geometry Exams and one lucky student also walked away with a brand new Gateway laptop during the academic awards rally at 9 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 6, in the Piggott High School Gymnasium...

During the first week of September at Rector High School, seventh grade president Daniel Blackshare called a meeting about Hurricane Katrina. Daniel and some other seventh graders felt a need to do something about the people who were affected by the hurricane...

Foods, products and colorful costumes from around the world will greet visitors to the 2006 Economics Business Fair at Rector Elementary School, which this year follows the theme "International Trade." The school's gifted and talented department students are honing their economics skills for the annual event, set for Thursday, Jan. 19, in the school's multi-purpose room. The fair will be open to the public from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Rector students also will visit the fair...

The Rector City Council agreed to purchase a Ford Explorer SUV for the Rector Police Department during its meeting Monday at city hall. Mayor Ron Kemp, aldermen Cam Cate, Mac Manchester, David Freeman and Glenn Leach, recorder/treasurer Lowell McKenney, city attorney Kim Dale and city superintendent Todd Watson were in attendance...

The Marmaduke Greyhounds topped county rival Crowley's Ridge Academy, 61-44, in the opening round of the Kell Classic at Swifton this past Saturday. Marmaduke held the advantage throughout: 17-10, 33-16 and 43-34. A hot start by junior guard Ben Jordan helped the Hounds set the tone early. Jordan connected on three three-pointers in the first quarter as he scored 11 points in the opening frame...

The Lady Cougars fell in a heartbreaking overtime loss at home to the Riverside Lady Rebels this past Monday, 66-62. Rector held a slim lead near the end of regulation, but Riverside rattled off five unanswered points to tie the game up at 57, forcing the extra play...

It was an up and down week for the Rector Cougars. The Cougars played an outstanding game at home Tuesday night in an upset win over Brookland and then fell hard to a powerful Buffalo Island Central on the same court Friday. The victory over Brookland avenged a couple of 15 and 25-point losses earlier in the season to the Bearcats...

Doyne Dewayne Runyon, 67, of Piggott died Friday, Jan. 6, 2006. He was born Aug. 15, 1938, in Pollard to the late John and Katherine Runyon. He was disabled and was of the Church of God faith. Survivors include one brother and sister-in-law, Bobby and Sarah Runyon of Piggott; one uncle and aunt, Euvon and Maxine Foster of Michigan, and several cousins...

Mary Sue Cummings, 73, of the Clay Healthcare Center in Corning died Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2006, at the Arkansas Methodist Medical Center in Paragould. She was of the Church of Christ faith. She attended church at Greenway and Corning. She was preceded in death by her parents, Harrison and Opal (Davis) Cummings...

Mary Lou Goodman, 78, of Rector died Sunday, Jan. 8, 2006, at Arkansas Methodist Medical Center in Paragould. Born April 24, 1927, in Traverse City, Mich., she was a member of the Fifth and Pine Church of Christ, a homemaker and had lived in the community 10 years...

Mary Evelyn "Jackie" Colvin, 78, of Rector, formerly of Florida, died Monday, Jan. 9, 2006, in Paragould. Born Sept. 9, 1927, in Flora, Ala., to the late Cleveland and Jewell Scott Cobb, she was a homemaker and of the Assembly of God faith. She was married to John Tillman Colvin, who preceded her in death in 1973...

Roy Rudolph Huffman, 84, of Piggott died Friday, Jan. 06, 2006, at the Westwood Hills Nursing Center in Poplar Bluff. He was born Sept. 14, 1921, in Greenway, the son of Clarence Mack and Erma (Bell) Huffman. He served his country during World War II and was honorably discharged with the rank of Staff Sergeant...

Cletis Presson, 92, of Rector, died Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2006, in Rector. She was born Oct. 31, 1913, in Rector to the late Dewitt and Auda Huckabay. A homemaker, she had worked as a cook at Lafe High School and was a member of Antioch Baptist Church in Rector...

Floyd J.D. Brown, known as "Peck" by family and close friends, died at the Piggott Hospital on Friday, Jan. 6, 2006, at the age of 75. He was born Aug. 16, 1930, in Kennett, the son of the late Dewey and Gladys (Kirby) Brown. Mr. Brown was a local farmer for many years. He was of the Church of Christ faith and was baptized on July 22, 2004...

Elsie Mae (Morrow) Parrish, 96, of Corning died Monday, Jan. 2, at her home. She was a homemaker and helped on the family farm. Her hobby was raising irises in her flower garden. She was married to F.E. Parrish on April 3, 1926. He preceded her in death...

Owen Wesley Davis, 79, of Rector died Saturday, Jan. 7, 2006, at NEA Regional Medical Center in Jonesboro. Born July 12, 1926, in Holcomb, Mo., to the late Thomas Davis and Brooksie Lee Miller, he was a farmer and cattleman, a World War II veteran and a member of the Alexander Baptist Church...

Rector School Board members discussed construction issues in a meeting Monday night. Superintendent Rob Louder explained a recent problem with one of the contractors. "The preschool has hit a little snag," he explained. "The heating and air people haven't been to the site in a few weeks, but I called Danny McDaniel and he took care of it. They were here bright and early this morning."...

Two tremendously talented young actors at Rector High School, seniors Will Mobley and Joel Boyd, will take on the challenge of portraying all 20 characters when they star Friday, Jan. 20, in "Greater Tuna," at the Rector Community Center. A high school audience will see the show at 1 p.m. that day, with a community performance following at 7 p.m. Those who want more information or tickets may call the RHS drama department at (870) 595-1444...

The Marmaduke Lady Greyhounds advanced to the second round of the Kell Classic at Swifton this past Saturday with a 62-45 victory over Swifton. Marmaduke trailed 9-5 after the first quarter, but battled back to take a 22-15 advantage at the end of the first half. The Lady Hound lead grew to 42-30 after three quarters...