Stories from Tuesday, September 5, 2000

This "Financial Focus" column is prepared by Edward Jones Investments, headquartered in St. Louis. Jones includes branches throughout the nation, including Cape Girardeau and Jackson. Do you plan to work during your retirement years? Some 80 percent of baby boomers expect to do just that, according to a survey prepared by the American Association of Retired Persons. If you're in that group, then you'll be interested in a law recently passed by Congress and signed by Bill Clinton...

Picadilly's is coming to The Crossroads, a retail and professional complex at Independence and Kingshighway. The new business, owned by Becky Kies and Kerrie Foley, will open Thursday. The new gift shop will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday...

The Drury Co. has become the area distributor for Blue Maxx, an insulated concrete forming system. The Blue Maxx wall system is manufactured by AAB building System, and has been used in more than 19,000 residential, commercial and agriculture buildings in the United States...

A grape-growing seminar will be held Thursday at the Shawnee College Anna Extension Center at the Choate Mental Health Facility at Anna. Dr. David Ponce, a grape grower and winemaker, will discuss grape growing and winemaking potential in Southern Illinois...

American consumers went on a buying binge in July, racking up spending twice as fast as their incomes grew. That drove down the nation's personal savings rate to the lowest point recorded. After spending cautiously during the spring, consumers splurged last month, increasing their spending by a brisk 0.6 percent, the biggest jump since February, the Commerce Department has reported...

Americans, feeling secure in their jobs and the economy, feverishly snapped up new homes in July, sending sales soaring by a surprising 14.7 percent, the biggest boost in seven years. The Commerce Department has reported sales of new single-family homes surged at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 944,000, the highest level in four months...

Sheri Dost, sales director with Mary Kay Cosmetics, was recently honored by the company's National Queens Court for outstanding annual sales. Dost, who has been with the company 14 years, received a carat diamond and amethyst ring and her sixth Mary Kay Car during a recent convention, held at Dallas, Tex...

Tim Caldwell of Tamms, Ill., Rhonda Carter of Dexter, Mo., and Dan Rushing of Metropolis, Ill., have been recognized by the Country Companies for insurance sales and service. The company's "All-Star" awards are presented each year. The Country Companies have more than 1,200 agents in 10 states...

Debra K. Johns, a staff accountant with Schott & Van de Ven, Certified Public Accountants, recently attended a corporate and partnership tax returns workshop at Memphis, Tenn. Johns, a staff accountant at the Cape Girardeau office, works one day a week in the company's Marble Hill, Mo., office...

Bruce Jansen, manager of Chaffee MFA AGri Services Centers, and employees of the center have been recognized for commitment to area farmers during the cooperative's managers meeting in Columbia recently. The agriservices center was honored for its largest ton increase of plant food products during the past fiscal year. The store increased its plant food sales by 2,517 tons...

Dr. Scott H. Hardeman recently completed his otolaryngology residency at St. Louis University Hospital and is in practice with Midwest Head and Neck Surgery, Inc. in St. Louis. Hardeman is a graduate of University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine. He is the son of the Rev. and Mrs. Howard Hardeman, Patton, Mo., formerly of Cape Girardeau...

Instant Internet is simple. You buy the equipment, hook it into your television and plug it in. Presto! Instant Internet and e-mail capability. It may not be quite that simple, but WebTV is offering easy-to-use, on-(TV)screen interactive programs within minutes...

When John stepped out of the woods, his mother gasped with joy. She ran to him and held him close. "John! It's been three years," she cried. "You are 13! Almost a man." John's eyes stung with tears. "Mother! Father!" he whispered. He looked over at the little girl. "Sarah! Oh, I have missed you all so much." He was drenched and his teeth chattered...

Delta Growers Association, a cooperative of about 280 growers from Mississippi, Scott and New Madrid counties and Cargill, an international marketer, processor and distributor of agricultural, food, financial and industrial products and services, have agreed to form a new 50-50 joint venture at New Madrid...

The 2000 Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce Industrial Appreciation Dinner will held at the Show Me Center Oct. 4. The Industrial Appreciation Golf Tournament, to be held at Bent Creek Golf Course Oct. 2, will kick off activities leading up to the presentation of the Commitment to Excellence (Industry of Year) Award...

The Small Business Development Center will conduct counseling sessions at Cape Girardeau, Sikeston, Perryville and Malden in September. The counselor, Gil Degenhardt, will be available Sept. 20, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce office. The counseling sessions (about an hour) are free. Call 335-3312 for appointment...

Dr. John Hinni of Cape Girardeau has been reelected to serve as president of the Community Counseling Center's Governing Board of Directors. Officers of the board were elected recently. Bob Neff of Cape Girardeau is vice president, Mary Ann Otto of Ste. Genevieve is secretary of the board, and Charles Hacker of Perryville is treasurer...

Yes, Microsoft is ready to release another version of Windows on Sept. 19. I have been running this production version for a good while, and all I can say is WOW. This version is what Windows 98 should have been in the first place. I have been hard-pressed to make this version crash using all kinds of non-mainstream applications. Take a long sigh of relief if you were considering upgrading from Win98 to Windows 2000, as this can be a painful process...

For all but a few months of her life, a baby girl from Chaffee, Mo., has been at the center of a court battle pitting grandparents' rights against parents' will. So far in Missouri courts, the grandparents are winning. Cape Girardeau Circuit Judge John Grimm decided in January 1999 the state statute governing grandparents' rights to see their grandchildren was constitutional and applicable to the case of Robert and Linda Cabral of rural Bollinger County...

Tom Runnels, sculptor, artist and author, who practiced his artistic crafts in a remote little corner of his native Bollinger County known as the Cat Ranch, will remain in that little corner of his world forever. Runnels, 67, died Sunday at Marble Hill, Mo...

You won't find anything good about Proposition A on Missouri's billboards. The billboard industry is fighting the November ballot issue with the very thing the initiative petition measure wants to restrict -- billboards. Signs against Proposition A recently went up on billboards around the state. The billboard industry is campaigning against the measure. Billboard companies have donated sign space to get out their message...

A Perryville, Mo., man drowned and five people died on Cape Girardeau area highways over the Labor Day weekend, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol. Roger A. Brewer, 32, of Perryville drowned Sunday afternoon in the Mississippi River near Ste. Genevieve, Mo., after yelling several times for help, police said...

Missouri teachers can cut their student loan interest rate by more than half by enrolling in a new state program. More than 500 Missouri teachers have enrolled in the new rate reduction program announced by Gov. Mel Carnahan two weeks ago. The program is a new initiative designed to attract and keep teachers in Missouri schools...

Leslie Thorne, 11, joked around with her brother, William, 12, while their family took a break from the Muscular Dystrophy Association's 35th annual telethon Monday. William, who learned he had muscular dystrophy when he was 7, said he is a lot like other kids. He dreams of being a singer when he grows up...

It takes a few phone calls to Cape Girardeau to remember just how utterly miserable South Floridians are. I noticed the rude, impersonal behavior the minute I arrived here 10 months ago. Everybody here notices it, but they apparently don't believe they're part of the problem. They just go about their daily lives, communicating with a simple system of points and grunts...

A suspect was jailed Monday in connection with an armed robbery of an area convenience store. The Cape Girardeau County sheriff's office, in a news release, reported that a man entered the Smith Stop Convenience Store on Route K, displayed a knife and fled with cash Monday afternoon...

Cape Girardeau Central High School product Talley Haines has been promoted to the Class AAA Durham (N.C.) Bulls by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays' organization. A 1995 Central graduate, Haines joined the Bulls Monday for their season-ending game with Charlotte, N.C. He will also participate with the Bulls when they begin their International League playoffs Wednesday...

Cassie Gross hurled a three-hitter as the Cape Girardeau Central High School softball team posted a 4-1 home win over Ursuline Academy of St. Louis Saturday. Gross walked two and fanned five as Central improved to 6-3. "She threw well and again we played pretty decent defense," said Central coach Amy Blattel. "And our bats came alive today."...

Notre Dame High School's junior varsity volleyball team defeated Sikeston 15-3, 15-10 Friday to claim the Bernie JV Tournament title. Sommer McCauley accounted for five points and two aces in the championship game, while Erin Pfau also served for five points...

Southeast Missouri State University's women's cross country team opened its season in impressive fashion over the weekend as the Otahkians rolled to the title in the Memphis Invitational that featured seven Division I squads and a few lower-division teams...

Southeast Missouri State University's women's soccer team wrapped up an impressive showing in the Ball State Cardinal Classic over the weekend by routing Youngstown State 9-0 Sunday. The Otahkians, who defeated Western Illinois 4-1 Friday, went 2-0 in the tourney. Southeast is now 2-0-1 on the season...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Euvoin Dozier, 60, of Sikeston died Sunday, Sept. 3, 2000, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. He was born April 8, 1940, in Fayette County, Ala., son of Nokie and Maylene Tidwell Dozier. He worked at Bunny Bread in Sikeston 30 years before retiring...

James Miller Wallace of Cape Girardeau, formerly of Charleston, Mo., died at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau Friday, Aug. 18, 2000. He was born Dec. 9, 1915 at Kennett, Mo., son of Milton W. Wallace and Mary Elizabeth Baker Wallace. He married Marion Kroemmelbein. She died in 1991...

Carl G. Meyer, 84, of Cape Girardeau died Monday, Sept. 4, 2000, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. He was born July 26, 1916, in Cape Girardeau, son of Charles H.W. and Cora Bingenheimer Meyer. He and Millie Rone were married Feb. 18, 1945, in Boston...

ANNA, Ill. -- Rollie E. Hill, 77, of Anna died Monday, Sept. 4, 2000, at Union County Hospital in Anna. He was born Jan. 1, 1923, in Cobden, Ill., son of Everett and Media Caraker Hill. He and Mabel Cook were married July 11, 1969. Hill was a retired ironworker and farmer. He was a veteran of the U.S. Navy Seabees in World War II. He was a member of the First Baptist Church in Anna, the Anna VFW Post No. 3455 and the Ironworkers Local No. 782...

BERNIE, Mo. -- Danny Bennett, 60, of Bernie died Sunday, Sept. 3, 2000. He was born March 15, 1940, at Shook, Mo., son of Virgil Marvin and Annie Laurie Moring Bennett. He was a truck driver. Survivors include a brother, Connie Bennett of Bernie; sisters, Evelyn Holtzhouser and Deloris Norden, both of Bernie, and Carolyn "Tootsie" Buckley of Malden, Mo...

CHARLESTON, Mo. -- Raymond Joseph "Joe" Burton, 43, of Charleston died Saturday, Sept. 2, 2000, at Barnes Jewish Hospital from injuries received in an automobile accident. He was born May 28, 1957, in St. Louis, son of Raymond and Mary Bea Clinton Burton. He and Jill Collier were married Dec. 30, 1983...

ANNA, Ill. -- Robert McNeill, 58, of Anna died Saturday, Sept. 2, 2000, at St. Joseph Hospital in Murphysboro, Ill. Friends may call after 9 a.m. Thursday at Lutz and Rendleman Funeral Home in Anna. Funeral will be at noon Thursday at the funeral home, with the Rev. Brent Gordon officiating. Burial will be in Paducah Memorial Gardens...

MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- Tom Runnels, 67, of Marble Hill died Sunday, Sept. 3, 2000, at Marble Hill. He was born March 10, 1933, at Marble Hill, son of Norman and Mary Fox Runnels. He and Sandra Back were married Aug. 25, 1961. Runnels was an artist. He was a member of the Hahn Chapel General Baptist Church. He was also a member of the National Rifle Association...

MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- The Rev. Buford Harold Sitze, 87, of Marble Hill died Saturday, Sept. 2, 2000. He was born Nov. 22, 1912, at Bessville, Mo., son of Rosewell and Effie Jane Goodson Sitze. He and Virginia Vance were married July 5, 1941. Sitze was ordained as a minister on Nov. ...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Roger A. Brewer, 32, of Perryville died Sunday, Sept. 3, 2000, in St. Genevieve County. He was born Feb. 22, 1968, at St. Louis, son of Carol Brewer Steven's. He was a member of the American Legion Boosters. Survivors include his mother; his fiancee, Dena Bauwens; a son, Lucas Brewer of Perryville; a brother, Mark Christisen of Perryville; and sister Patti Gilliam of Wurzberg, Germany...

MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- Lillian M Morrison, 82, of Sikeston died Sunday, Sept. 3, 2000, at the Sikeston Health Care Center. She was born Nov. 12, 1917, at Marble Hill, daughter of Frank and Fredericka Dora Filer Leadbetter. She and Robert Clifton Morrison were married April 22, 1939. He died Oct. 5, 1996...

GAINESVILLE, Mo. -- Thyra Edna Kinder, 85, of Gainesville died Saturday, Sept. 2, 2000, at the Gainesville Nursing Care Center. She was born Dec. 23, 1914, at Bell City, daughter of Thomas and Neda Cook. She and Pinkney S. Kinder were married May 16, 1936, at Bell City. He died May 7, 1987...

I AM calling about the school dismissals because of the extreme heat. I think this probably could have been avoided partially by waiting to begin school after Labor Day and letting the school year run through May. I think our children and teachers and the staff alike would all have been spared many headaches if we just could have started the school year a little later. We at least would have avoided two weeks of extreme heat...

Democratic vice presidential nominee Joseph Lieberman has introduced God and faith into the national discussion in this presidential campaign. For this apostasy, Lieberman has been admonished by Abraham Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League. Foxman issued his warning this week...

This last week saw House Speaker Dennis Hastert announce a pre-emptive capitulation on an important issue: The minimum wage. Hastert says the GOP majority will offer legislation boosting the minimum wage by $1 over two years, without making the issue contingent on two key tax cuts President Clinton opposes...

To the editor: I have watched Vice President Al Gore explain the Buddhist temple fund-raising incident about a half-dozen times on television the last couple of years. It's pretty much an uninteresting affair. Impartial investigators and prosecutors found no criminal activity...