Stories from Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Win, win: Chocolate and Usual Suspects (11/18/09)
It won't be Sheryl Crow, but it may be the next best thing. Sheryl's dad, Wendell Crow of Kennett, and other members of the popular band The Usual Suspects, will be featured at the Clay County Arts Council's 2009 Night of Chocolate, set Saturday night, Dec. 5, at the Rector Community Center...

Council seeks to tie past and future (11/18/09)
In an effort to combine the past with the future, the City of Rector hopes to receive grant funds to renovate a building which is part of the town's history. In a special meeting Monday night, council members David Freeman, Teresa Roofe and Laverne "Mac" Manchester approved a resolution allowing the city to apply for a $50,000 general improvement fund grant from the Arkansas Department of Rural Services. ...

ASU to ring in holidays with Blind Boys of Alabama (11/18/09)
The Fowler Center Series presents its fourth event of the 2009-10 season at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 8. Gospel Music Hall of Fame legends the Blind Boys of Alabama will present their Christmas show, "Go Tell It On the Mountain," at Riceland Hall, located in Fowler Center, 201 Olympic Drive, in Jonesboro...

Laying it on thick (11/18/09)
A crew from Delta Asphalt in Paragould works on resurfacing of Fordyce Street as part of this year's street project undertaken recently by the city. Approximately 11 blocks were resurfaced this year, with the majority being in areas that were experiencing major structural issues. ...

World War II vet among those at ceremony here (11/18/09)
As area veterans were honored last week in an impressive program at Rector High School, 92-year-old James McKeel of Rector was alone in representing the dwindling number of living World War II veterans...

Stirring program honors veterans (11/18/09)
Heroes past and present were honored in a fitting tribute on Veterans Day 2009 at the Rector High School gymnasium. The Rector student body was attentive and responded appropriately at the annual event, a behavior which received favorable comments at the conclusion of the program by RHS principal Wade Williams. "I am really proud of all of you," Williams told the students...

JP Jeffress dies at 54 (11/18/09)
Longtime Justice of the Peace James Dudley "Tadpole" Jeffress, 54, of Greenway, who had served 23 years as a member of the Clay County Quorum Court, died Monday, Nov. 16. Also a former mayor of Greenway, Jeffress worked for Veal Oil Company for 19 years and farmed most of his life. ...

Annual Thanksgiving Service slated at community center (11/18/09)
Residents of Rector no doubt believe there is a lot to be thankful for in this community. The opportunity to express that feeling will come once again at the ninth annual Rector Community Thanksgiving Service at 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 22, at the community center...

New family business opens in Rector (11/18/09)
Rector has something new for hungry residents and visitors. Big Mouth BBQ and Catering, owned by Terrill and Stephanie Fowler and Josh and Jennifer (Fowler) Jackson, opened Thursday, Nov. 5, in the PC Plus parking lot across from Rector Memorial Park on Highway 49...

Safe room nears completion (11/18/09)
Construction is nearly complete on the Marmaduke School District's new safe room. The school began preparations for the new facility immediately after an April 2006 tornado rocked the small community. ...

Slow start for Cougars (11/18/09)
It's been a sluggish start to the season for the Cougars, but coach Matt Mills has his team working hard to be ready down the stretch. "We're working hard and getting better every day," Mills said. "We've got all the tools; it's just a matter of putting it all together."...

Lady Cougars coming together in early part of the season (11/18/09)
It was a tough night at the charity stripe for the Lady Cougars Monday night at Armorel. Rector came up short, 50-42, in a contest which saw the blue and white-clad visitors connect on just 12 of 29 free throws...

Loving without full understanding (11/18/09)
"But you can love completely without complete understanding." Those are the words of author Norman Maclean in his autobiographical novel, "A River Runs Through It," which also was made into a brilliant film by Robert Redford in 1992...

Tears (11/18/09)
A sonnet by Maynard Lee Sisler They lurk, to nourish old and untold griefs, Erupting at memory's beck and call, Or yet the high and poignant wall of "TAPS," Thus we know catharsis, with our beliefs That somehow they will help us get through all...

Gary Alan Gray (11/18/09)
Gary Alan Gray, 55, of La Vernia, Texas, passed away Oct. 29, 2009. He was preceded in death by his parents, Pat B. Gray and Joan Twitty Gray, and a brother, Pat Gray II. He is survived by his wife, Arlene, of the home; a sister, Lee Ann Gray of Warner Robins, Ga., and cousins, Rosie Akers and Leland Blackshare of Rector, Ark., as well as many loving friends...

Dickey Allen Graves (11/18/09)
Dickey Allen Graves of Kennett, Mo., formerly of Rector, died Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009, in Kennett at the age of 45. Born March 24, 1964, in St. Louis, he was the son of Cleta Sanders Graves Terry and the late Virgil Graves. He was preceded in death by his father; grandparents, Clyde and Alma Graves and Elic and Margie Sanders; an infant nephew, and a brother-in-law, Eugene Robinson...