Stories from Tuesday, July 2, 2013

MOSCOW (AP) -- NSA leaker Edward Snowden's best chance of finding refuge outside the United States may hinge on the president of Venezuela, who was in Moscow on Tuesday meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela told Russian reporters on Tuesday that his country has not received an application for asylum from Snowden and dodged the question of whether he would take Snowden with him when he left. ...

LONDON -- Serena Williams joined a growing list of marquee names eliminated early at this wild and unpredictable Wimbledon. The defending champion and five-time Wimbledon winner failed to close out a see-saw third set Monday, dropping the last four games to Sabine Lisicki of Germany and losing 6-2, 1-6, 6-4 in the fourth round. The result ended Williams' career-best 34-match winning streak...

In observance of Independence Day, the Cape Girardeau County Commission will not be in session Thursday. The county commission is scheduled to meet again at 9 a.m. Monday. Pertinent address: 1 Barton Square, Jackson, Mo.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Gov. Jay Nixon vetoed a pair of bills Monday that he said targeted imaginary problems pertaining to federal holidays and United Nation's policies, but which he said could have been costly to local communities. One of the vetoed bills would have banned public entities from restricting celebrations or discussions of federal holidays...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon enacted a law Monday putting an immediate halt to a controversial policy under which his administration had been making electronic copies of birth certificates and other personal documents of people applying for driver's licenses...

Southeast Missouri State University students may begin registering for 2013-2014 parking permits beginning Monday, according to a news release from the university. Registration for 2013-2014 parking permits begins at 8 a.m., the news release said. At that time, students may apply online at portal.semo.edu, or they may complete a paper application that is included in the University's billing packet. The packet will be mailed to students early this month...

An Oran, Mo., man was badly hurt when his Corvette rear-ended a semi-truck on South Kingshighway in Cape Girardeau on Monday, a police spokesman said. Cape Girardeau Police Department spokesman Darin Hickey said police were still working to determine why the Corvette driver slammed into the back of the semitrailer at a stoplight at South Kingshighway and Southern Expressway about 11:20 a.m. Hickey declined to release the names of those involved...

Thursday trash collection in Cape Girardeau and Jackson will be altered in observance of the Fourth of July holiday. In Cape Girardeau, trash normally scheduled to be collected Thursday will instead be picked up Wednesday. The transfer station and recycling center at 2007 Southern Expressway will be closed during the holiday...

The Cape Girardeau Fire Department is investigating the cause of a fire that damaged a house early Monday morning. About 3:15 a.m., the fire department responded to a report of a house fire at 1005 S. Sprigg St., according to a news release issued by battalion chief Fred Vincel. ...

ROCKVIEW, Mo. -- The Missouri Department of Transportation awarded a contract for an emergency bridge replacement on Route M in Scott County. The bridge collapsed May 25 after the collision of a Union Pacific train and Burlington Northern Santa Fe train...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Gov. Jay Nixon vetoed legislation Monday that would have altered Missouri's penalties for underage youths trying to sneak into casinos with fake identifications. Nixon said the bill would have weakened laws that keep minors out of casinos, though the industry had promoted the measure as a greater deterrent to underage gambling. Missouri has barred people younger than 21 from the gambling floor since its first casinos opened in 1994...

Name almost any community, civic or veterans organization known in Cape Girardeau, and there's a good chance Kenneth Bender at one time was a member, if he isn't still. Since the 1950s, he has been among the ranks of the chamber of commerce and the country club, the public library and historical museums and societies. He led the formation of a local bank and a retirement community. He stayed dedicated to community involvement...

A late spring and the second-wettest June in Cape Girardeau history have slowed planting this year, but most Southeast Missouri farmers have their crops in the ground at this point, a Farm Service Agency spokesman said. "The plantings across the state certainly have been slowed down, but the reports that the National Agriculture Statistics [Service] put out today show that in the southeast portion of the state ... planting is almost complete," said Mark Cadle, FSA's state executive director...

WASHINGTON -- Nearly 2 in 3 uninsured low-income people who would qualify for subsidized coverage under President Barack Obama's health-care law may be out of luck next year because their states -- including Missouri -- have not expanded Medicaid...

Editor's note: The following story has been edited to correct the spelling of Frank Nickell's last name. The Cape Girardeau City Council made progress on the future of a restaurant tax, leaning toward placing it on a ballot whether to fund the building of a police station...

Mau smiling away at the camera.

Bella Mae being cute for a treat!!!!!

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO -- (July, 1, 2013) -- John's Pharmacy has become one of the first pharmacies in the nation to reinforce safe medication use by providing its patients with on-demand access to prescription-specific videos through MedsOnCue. Solidifying its position as a care innovator, the new MedsOnCue service strengthens the close relationship between pharmacists and patients by adding a unique digital component to the education experience...

the combination of the sun & the cloud made a reflection of the cloud

Today is Tuesday, July 2, the 183rd day of 2013. There are 182 days left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On July 2, 1963, President John F. Kennedy met Pope Paul VI at the Vatican, the first meeting between a Catholic U.S. chief executive and the head of the Roman Catholic Church...

Son to Jennifer R. Rhymer and Michael W. French of McClure, Ill., Saint Francis Medical Center, 3:12 a.m. Tuesday, June 18, 2013. Name, Ryland Michael. Weight, 6 pounds, 10 ounces. Second child, first son. Ms. Rhymer is the daughter of Patricia Rhymer of McClure. French is the son of Dixie Bevel of Olive Branch, Ill...

Randy Volkerding, 54, of Cape Girardeau, died Sunday, June 30, 2013, at Heartland Care and Rehabilitation Center. He was born July 25, 1958, in Cape Girardeau, to Nelson and Dorothy Reisenbichler Volkerding. Randy graduated from Parkview School in Cape Girardeau and worked at V.I.P. Industries in Cape Girardeau more than 20 years. He was a member of Trinity Lutheran Church...

Ida Lorene Talley, 81, of Cape Girardeau passed away Monday, July 1, 2013, at her home. She was born Nov. 11, 1931, in Millersville, daughter of Steve W. and Meta Peters Sawyer. She and Donald W. Talley were married June 4, 1949. Lorene was employed by W.T. ...

Mary Catherine Edwards Schwieger, 82, of Cape Girardeau passed away Sunday, June 30, 2013, at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. She was born Jan. 31, 1931, at Olmsted, Ill., daughter of Charles Owen and Jacoba Knupp Edwards. Mary Catherine was an active member of Maple United Methodist Church and the adult Sunday school class. Her hobby was growing potted plants on her deck...

ADVANCE, Mo. -- Glen Alford Probst, 75, of Advance passed away Saturday, June 29, 2013, at his home. He was born March 2, 1938, in Cape Girardeau, son of Pearl and Alma Riley Probst. Glen and Helen Shirley were married March 17, 1959, in Lincoln, Neb. She preceded him in death Jan. 3, 2000...

ULLIN, Ill. -- Carol Jean Jones Miller, 71, of Ullin, formerly of Cairo, Ill., died Sunday, June 30, 2013, at Daystar Care Center in Cairo. Graveside service will be at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday at Green Lawn Memorial Gardens in Villa Ridge, Ill., with the Rev. Matt Graham officiating...

DEXTER, Mo. -- Cathy LeMaster, 55, of Dexter died Saturday, June 29, 2013, at Southeast Hospital in Cape Girardeau. She was born May 20, 1958, in Peoria, Ill., to Donald and Aloha LeMaster. Survivors include her mother, Aloha LeMaster of Iberia, Mo.; a son, Eric Lamb of High Ridge, Mo.; a daughter, Vanessa McNeely of Fenton, Mo.; two brothers, Ken LeMaster of Olean, Mo., and Steve LeMaster of Midwest City, Okla.; three sisters, Evelyn Tabor of Iberia, Christine LeMaster of Doniphan, Mo., and Sherri Johnson of Otego, N.Y.; and two grandchildren, Skyler and Autumn McNeely of Fenton.. ...

ANNA, Ill. -- The Rev. Herman C. "H.C." Lawrence, 84, of Anna died Saturday, June 29, 2013, at the Illinois Veterans Home in Anna. He was born May 14, 1929, in Pocahontas, Ark., son of Jack and Marie Rogers Lawrence. He married Elizabeth Abernathy on July 23, 1954...

Ivan Leo Johnson Sr., 87, of Cape Girardeau, formerly of Marble Hill, Mo., passed away Sunday, June 30, 2013, at the home of a daughter in Cape Girardeau. He was born Aug. 10, 1925, in Gravelton, Mo., son of Clarence Leo and Beulah Oleta Whitener Johnson. He first married Wilma Marie Abernathy. Later he married Jo Miinch...

MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- Alba "Shorty" Dye, 74, of Marble Hill died Saturday, June 29, 2013, in a vehicle accident near Marble Hill. Visitation will be at 6 p.m. today at St. John Catholic Church in Leopold, Mo. A memorial Mass will be at 7 p.m. today at the church. Burial will be at 11 a.m. Saturday in Hillcrest Cemetery at Fulton, Mo...

After 35 years in the education field, Vince Raddle is retiring from his post as director of elementary education for the Cape Girardeau Public Schools; all but three of those years have been spent with the Cape system. Robert A. Boudreau tells music fans to imagine they are aboard the Count Counterpoint II barge on the Mississippi River, as his American Waterways Wind Orchestra presents a concert at the Capaha Park band shell in the evening; low water in the Mississippi River grounded the group's tour just north of Mound City, Ill.. ...

PRETORIA, South Africa -- The spelling and grammar need work, but the message has its own eloquence. A 10-year-old's note to Nelson Mandela, the prisoner who fought South African apartheid, or white racist rule, and became a global emblem of unity and humility, addresses him as "the greates president are land has ever had it is realy bad that you are in the hospital. But realy cool that you stopt apartit. you maid are land A beter place"...

Nominated by the Cape River Heritage Museum board of directors Marjorie was born June 13, 1925, in her ancestral home "Longview" in Cape Girardeau. She was the great-granddaughter of Col. G.C. Thilenius, who served in the Civil War in Cape Girardeau. ...

Nominated by Success By 6, United Way of Southeast Missouri Lillian Martin has served the Head Start program in the south part of Cape Girardeau for the last 29 years. She has been a home-based educator, classroom teacher and site manager for the Cape Girardeau program...

Nominated by Southeast Missouri Pachyderm Club I believe that Mary exemplifies exactly what servitude is, while presenting herself with the utmost dignity and humility. Mary has dedicated her life to serving those in need; from creating a preschool program and a baby wellness clinic in Cape Girardeau in the 1960s to leading the campaign to build a new chapel and multiuse facility at Mid American Teen Challenge in the 1990s. ...

Nominated by Jackson Rotary Club If you would ask Ross what he is most proud of, he would say his wife and children. Ross was a graduate of Central High School with a patriotic heart. He joined the military wanting to serve his country. Well, he got his wish...

Nominated by Cape Girardeau Noon Lions Club The Lions Club is proud to nominate Mr. Kenneth Bender for the prestigious "Spirit of America Award." Mr. Bender is a true war hero and we believe his love of community and country make him an excellent nominee for this award...

Nominated by Cape Girardeau SALT (Seniors and Lawmen Together) Council The cornerstone of the Spirit of America is "volunteer." Throughout history you will find volunteers who truly made the difference. This is the guiding principal for Doug Austin. ...

What a few days it was last week. First the Great Race, then the air show. For Cape Girardeau, this was a banner week that showcased the area. Chuck Martin, executive director of the Cape Girardeau Convention and Visitors Bureau, on Monday told us more than 5,000 people attended the Great Race. He said the turnout exceeded expectations...

To the parents of the teenage girls who white-shoe-polished our daughter's car windows: Be advised that we have photos and are aggressively pursing charges with the police for trespassing and destruction of property. This is a crime and will be prosecuted. We have leads and will determine who your daughter is. Kids are already talking. This is not a simple high-school prank, but one that destroys property and costs parents hundreds in the cost of the attempt to remove this substance...

The Cape Girardeau Police Department released the following items. Arrests do not imply guilt. DWIs Miscellaneous...

CAIRO -- Egypt's military issued a "last-chance" ultimatum Monday to President Mohammed Morsi, giving him 48 hours to meet the demands of millions of protesters in the streets seeking the ouster of the Islamist leader or the generals will intervene and impose their own plan for the country...

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama brushed aside sharp European criticism Monday, suggesting that all nations spy on each other as the French and Germans expressed outrage over alleged U.S. eavesdropping on European Union diplomats. American analyst-turned-leaker Edward Snowden, believed to still be at Moscow's international airport, applied for political asylum to remain in Russia...

WASHINGTON -- Spending on residential housing rose in May to the highest level in 4 1/2 years, helping to send overall construction spending higher despite a big drop in nonresidential activity. Construction spending rose 0.5 percent in May compared with April when spending was up 0.1 percent, the Commerce Department said Monday...

PRESCOTT, Ariz. -- In the firefighting world, "Hotshot" is the word given to those willing to risk their lives to go to the hottest part of a blaze. They are the best of the best, crews filled with adventure-seekers whose years of hard training ready them for the worst...

LAS VEGAS -- A heat wave smothering the West is rewriting the record books, likely tying a more than century-old record for the U.S. while putting Las Vegas through its hottest June ever. The National Weather Service said California's Death Valley National Park tentatively recorded a high temperature of 129 degrees on Sunday, which would tie the all-time June record high for the United States. ...

Lord Jesus, thank you that in you we find strength, for you are our fortress. Amen.

Diana Kantchev, a member of the Central golf team, placed first in the recent women's division at the Macedonian Open Golf Championship at St. Sofia Golf Course in Sofia, Bulgaria. Kantchev, 16, shot an 83 to win the individual stroke play event. She plans to play in the Bulgarian national golf championship in Pravets July 12-14 and in two more international girls' tournaments in The Netherlands and England...