Stories from Wednesday, June 5, 2019

My heart goes out to the people in our own state and across the country who have lost family members and homes to the recent tornadoes and floods. It seems we have had a lot of storms so far this year. We have been fortunate in Northeast Arkansas this year. It seems the tornadoes have gone around us. There was some very strong wind last week leaving damage to the Corning school. Thankfully, no injuries were reported...

Four words can make one feel much richer: appreciate what you have. Now, that’s much easier said than done. I’m sure we’re all guilty of hitting the Monday morning snooze button and wishing for another day off, as someone unemployed or underemployed hopes today is the day he or she finds gainful employment...

Monday afternoon, Blytheville basketball standout Winston Peace inked with Lyon College in Batesville. Peace was a staple for the Chickasaws since his sophomore season on both ends of the floor. “Growing up here in Blytheville has instilled in me a drive for more,” Peace explained. ...

Blytheville School District has something to be proud of in the Omer Chicks who have been competitive year after year in the Odyssey of the Mind program. Three teams earned a highly coveted spot to compete in Michigan at the World Finals again this year. ...

The first order of business at the Monday, June 3, Riverside School Board meeting was to elect officers for the coming year. Greg Douglas was elected board president and Mike Brickell was elected vice president. Len B. Nall was elected secretary. During the financial review, Superintendent Jeff Priest pointed out the district is within $65,000 compared to the same time last year. Expenses are within $6,000 of last year...

Manila City Council held a special called meeting Monday, June 3, and voted to extend an offer to Kasey Garrett to work for the city of Manila as a full time police officer. Council members discussed the bond issue that will be voted on in September. Mayor Wagner reminded council members of the Municipal League meetings on June 12-14...

Complying with a Freedom of Information Act request, the Blytheville Police Department released bodycam videos, 911 calls, medical records and other information on an incident that attorneys say left a man in a vegetative state on Sept. 29, 2018. Through attorneys Jim Harris and Zach Morrison of Law Offices of Harris, Morrison, & Thompson in Blytheville, Rayshawn Warren claims in a federal lawsuit that police crushed his trachea during an arrest last September...

Almost a year ago, a photo of a battered then 3-year-old Gosnell child went viral on social media, before police urged the public to delete the post for fear of it impacting the case against the perpetrators. On Wednesday morning, those responsible entered guilty pleas in Mississippi County Circuit Court...

Samuel Richard "Ricky" Sipes, Jr., 61, of Manila, passed from this life Tuesday, June 4, 2019. Born in Osceola and raised in Dyess, he was the son of the late Samuel Richard and Jewell Geraldine Hendrix Sipes and had been a Manila resident since 2015. Ricky had been a longtime resident of Dexter, Mo.; he had worked several years as a welder and was an avid fisherman...