Stories from Friday, January 4, 2019

Southeast Missouri State University's 2018 PRIDE Award will honor Jim McGill, chemistry professor and director of the Jane Stephens Honors Program at Southeast. The Provost's Research, Instruction and Development for Excellence (PRIDE) Award recognizes a faculty member who has demonstrated excellence as a teacher, an extraordinary level of scholarship and service and whose overall accomplishments are especially noteworthy...

The expense of operating an indoor aquatic center could total more than twice what it costs to annually operate Central Municipal Pool, Cape Girardeau city officials said Thursday. But they cautioned that's only a ballpark figure and any concrete numbers can't be calculated until there is a final design...

Sikeston, Missouri native -- pastor, barbecue restaurant proprietor and barbershop owner -- Byron Bonner's plate may look full to some, but he wouldn't have it any other way. Bonner sat content at the ordering window inside of his latest endeavor -- across the street from where he used to sell drugs, he said -- at Tru-Que at 402 Good Hope St. in Cape Girardeau on Wednesday afternoon and explained how God changed his life for the better...

Old Town Cape has received a $10,000 grant from the Missouri Humanities Council in support of the Ivers Square United States Colored Troop Statue at Common Pleas Courthouse in downtown Cape Girardeau. The namesake, Ivers Square, honors the memory of Pvt. James Ivers, 56th U.S. Colored Infantry and his wife Harriet...

Today is Friday, Jan. 4, the fourth day of 2019. There are 361 days left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On Jan. 4, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson delivered his State of the Union address in which he outlined the goals of his "Great Society."...

NEW YORK -- Stocks tumbled Thursday on Wall Street, with technology companies suffering their worst loss in seven years, after Apple reported iPhone sales in China are slumping. The rare warning of disappointing results from Apple reinforced investors' fears the world's second-biggest economy is losing steam and trade tensions between Washington and Beijing are making things worse...

BEIJING -- China's burgeoning space program achieved a lunar milestone on Thursday: landing a probe on the mysterious and misnamed "dark" side of the moon. Exploring the cosmos from that far side of the moon, which people can't see from Earth, could eventually help scientists learn more about the early days of the solar system and maybe even the birth of the universe's first stars...

DALLAS -- Not many CEOs dress up as Elvis Presley, settle a business dispute with an arm-wrestling contest, or go on TV wearing a paper bag over their head. Herb Kelleher did all those things. Along the way, the co-founder and longtime leader of Southwest Airlines also revolutionized air travel by practically inventing the low-cost, low-fare airline...

WASHINGTON -- Cheering Democrats returned Nancy Pelosi to the House speaker's post Thursday as the 116th Congress took office and ushered in a historically diverse class of freshmen ready to confront President Donald Trump in a new era of divided government...

SAN FRANCISCO -- Netflix said 45 million subscriber accounts worldwide watched the Sandra Bullock thriller "Bird Box" during its first seven days on the service, the biggest first-week success of any movie made for the company's nearly 12-year-old streaming service...

NEW YORK -- Susie Kim said she thinks the women gamers are out there. As general manager for a championship esports team, she would know. She's not surprised none of them are on her roster. The Entertainment Software Association reported this year 45 percent of U.S. ...

WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump made a surprise appearance in the White House briefing room Thursday on the 13th day of the partial government shutdown, as he continued to dig in his heels over his promised border wall. "Without a wall you cannot have border security," Trump said, insisting he has never had as much support on any issue as he has gotten in the past week. Trump left without taking questions, as did his staff...

CHICAGO -- One of the most powerful and longest-serving City Council members in Chicago history appeared in federal court Thursday on a charge he tried to shake down a major fast-food restaurant chain seeking city remodeling permits. Alderman Ed Burke, 75, is charged with one count of attempted extortion for conveying to company executives in 2017 they'd get the permits only if they signed on as clients at Burke's private property-tax law firm in Chicago, a 37-page complaint unsealed Thursday states.. ...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Republican Eric Schmitt took the oath Thursday as Missouri's attorney general, pledging to pursue issues such as the opioid epidemic and vowing neither he nor his staff would use a message-deleting app on work phones. Missouri Chief Justice Zel Fischer gave Schmitt, 42, the oath of office in the Jefferson City Supreme Court building as his wife and three children surrounded him...

NEW YORK -- Behind Apple's disconcerting news of weak iPhone sales lies a more sobering truth: The tech industry has hit Peak Smartphone, a tipping point when everyone who can afford one already owns one and no breakthroughs are compelling them to upgrade as frequently as they once did...

A letter to the editor lamented that Missourians were "misled" after they overwhelmingly passed a constitutional amendment that placed limits on lobbyists, changed how we redistrict or reapportion our voting districts, and placed limits on campaign contributions. ...

When it comes to the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament, the Cape Girardeau Central Tigers are on quite a run. The Tigers dominated Jackson 57-26 in the championship game, earning the school's second straight tournament title and third in the last four years. ...

A Jackson real estate agent unable to fill his office building with tenants has sparked a firestorm of protest over his request to change the building's zoning to better suit market demands; Gerald W. McElrath, who owns a commercial building with three offices at 810 E. Jackson Blvd., has asked that the tract be rezoned a local commercial district...

NEW YORK -- The Queen of Soul will get a royal tribute from Alicia Keys, Patti LaBelle, Kelly Clarkson and more this month. The Recording Academy and music mogul Clive Davis will put on the special concert -- "Aretha! A GRAMMY Celebration For The Queen Of Soul" -- on Jan. 13 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. The event will broadcast later in 2019 on CBS...

Patsy Joyce Welker, 88, of Marble Hill, Missouri, passed away Thursday, Jan. 3, 2019, at Southeast Hospital in Cape Girardeau. She was born March 7, 1930 in Gravel Hill, Missouri, daughter of the Late Rupert and Grace Seabaugh Leslie Sr. She and Loren Welker were united in marriage Nov. 15, 1947, and he passed away Sept. 1, 1996...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Liston Mitchell, 88, of Chaffee passed away Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2019, at Chaffee Nursing Center, surrounded by his loving family. He was born Aug. 19, 1930, in Jackson to the late Liston and Iva Hutchason Mitchell. He married Coradell Parks on March 30, 1951, and she survives of the home...

Carl C. Mayfield, 98, of Sedgewickville died Thursday, Jan. 3, 2019, at Missouri Veterans Home in Cape Girardeau. Visitation will be from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday at McCombs Funeral Home and Cremation Center in Jackson, and from 10 to 11 a.m. Monday at Sedgewickville United Methodist Church...

Virgie Mae Kraust, 88, of Cape Girardeau died Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2019, at her home. She was born May 28, 1930, in Delta to Leo and Beulah Survace Simmons. She and Yewell Kraust were married Jan. 14, 1950, at Piggott, Arkansas. He preceded her in death June 27, 2000...

Stacey Elaine King, 49, of Cape Girardeau died Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2019, at Southeast Hospital. Visitation will be from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday at Ford and Sons Sprigg Street Funeral Home. Funeral will follow at 1 p.m. Monday at the funeral home, with the Apostle Adrian Taylor Jr. officiating. Burial will be at Lorimier Cemetery in Cape Girardeau...

Cora Elizabeth Grigsby, 95, of Cape Girardeau passed away Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2019, at Saint Francis Medical Center. She was born May 14, 1923, in Cairo, Illinois, to the late George Thomas and Doris Marie Borgard Jarrett. She and Gerald Grigsby were married June 1, 1946, in Paducah, Kentucky...

BELL CITY, Mo. -- Mildred Marcella Finney died Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2019, at her home in Bell City. Mildred was born Feb. 11, 1949, in Chicago, daughter of the late Joseph and Ruth Tanner. She married William Hudson "Pete" Finney on March 3, 1966, and survives of the home...

Virginia Irene Essner, 93, of New Hamburg, Missouri, died Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2019, at Southeast Hospital in Cape Girardeau. She was born April 4, 1925, in Benton, Missouri, to Anton A. and Christine C. Strack Diebold. She married Herbert Anton Essner on May 7, 1946, in Benton. He preceded her in death Jan. 20, 2004...

John T. Bower, 84, of Cape Girardeau died Thursday, Jan. 3, 2019, at Ratliff Care Center. He was born Oct. 29, 1934, in Ava, Illinois, to Grover and Gladys Talbott Bower. He and Barbara Stoffel-Hahs were married Aug. 11, 1967, at Cape Girardeau. He served in the Air Force...

BLODGETT, Mo. -- Christine Bollinger, 89, of Blodgett died Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2019, at her home. She was born June 17, 1929, in Osceola, Arkansas, to Louis Franklin and Estie Lee Simpson Stowers. She married Roy L. Bollinger on Jan. 13, 1948. He preceded her in death March 14, 2008...

A recent comment cherry picked roundabout statistics to suit their side of the issue. In being pro-roundabout, the caller must ignorantly ignore the statistics proving higher pedestrian and bicycler accident rates at roundabouts versus traditional intersections. ...

Lord Jesus, may we serve others and show them your love. Amen.

Daughter to Robert and Katie Lange of Jackson, Southeast Hospital, 8:36 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018. Name, Ellis Catherine. Weight, 8 pounds, 2 ounces. First child. Mrs. Lange is the daughter of Patty Burrus of Cape Girardeau. She works at Belladona Salon & Spa. Lange is the son of Jerry Lange and Kaye Lange of Oran, Missouri. He is employed by Beck's Hybrids...

Let's all take a moment of silence, breathe deep and realize we're temporarily in the clear when it comes to spending holidays with the extended family. But you can still take part of the clan for a cruise this weekend for multiple stops at family-friendly events throughout Southeast Missouri...