Stories from Friday, January 8, 2021

Wednesday, Jan. 6, marked the Feast of the Epiphany, a Christian celebration that goes all the way back to the fourth century A.D., but also one that many Christians may be unfamiliar with. Mike Malone, a lay preacher and member of Holy Cross Episcopal Church in Poplar Bluff, explained what the Epiphany means to him and millions of other believers around the world...

Didn’t get your second relief check yet? You aren’t alone. While the IRS and Treasury have distributed the bulk of the anticipated $164 million in second-round of relief payments for Americans faster than the first time, millions have not gotten payments yet or found hiccups in the distribution...

BUTLER COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT Ryan Patrick Bowerman, 23, of the 600 block of Main Street was booked at the Butler County jail Thursday, Jan. 7, on a warrant for third-degree domestic assault. _ Victoria Nicole Brooks, 28, of Doniphan was booked at the Butler County jail Thursday, Jan. 7, on a failure to appear warrant for false police report...

Rickey “Rick” Eugene Helton, 65, of Poplar Bluff, Missouri passed away Thursday, Jan. 7, 2021 at Southeast Hospital in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Rick was born Dec. 6, 1955 to Ervin and Vivian Helton in Poplar Bluff. He married Rachel Whitehead June 6, 1975, in Poplar Bluff...

The Poplar Bluff High School Class of 1959 will meet for lunch at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday at Castello’s Restaurant. All class members, spouses and guests are invited to attend. Any questions, please call 686-1019 or 718-5900.

Poplar Bluff Parks and Recreation Board will meet at 5 p.m. Monday, Jan. 11, in the Park Department Office. The board will approve the minutes of the previous meeting. Anyone in the audience who wishes to address the board may do so at this time. Other items on the agenda include:...

Lucas Edington, broker/owner of Mossy Oak Properties Mozark Realty, has announced Jenny Elliott as the Top Producer and Lister for December. As a lifelong resident of Southeast Missouri, Jenny Elliott knows the area and the people who live here well, and absolutely loves both. ...

CAPE GIRARDEAU — Saint Francis Healthcare System is pleased to welcome Gilbert L. Kukielka, MD, FACC, FACP, FSCAI, interventional cardiologist, to Cape Cardiology Group. Dr. Kukielka is an experienced cardiologist who joins Saint Francis from Marietta Memorial Hospital in Ohio, where he practiced General and Interventional Cardiology and served as Director of Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory...

FISK, Mo. — Jean Ann Crum-Ragsdale, 82, of Piggott, Arkansas, died Friday, Jan. 8, 2021 at St. Bernard’s Medical Center in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Mrs. Ragsdale was born Sept. 1, 1938 in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, daughter of the late David Darrel and Lillian Marie Owens...

Library The Poplar Bluff Municipal Library District will meet at 4 p.m. Jan. 11 via Zoom. Items on the agenda include an update on the Ridgel renovations, bylaws annual review and a closed session. Parks The Poplar Bluff Parks and Recreation Board will be held at 5 p.m. at the park office...

When I was asked to share my favorite photos from the last year, I knew it was going to be a tough task — not because there were so many to pick from, but instead because there were so few. With an ongoing pandemic and change in roles at the Daily American Republic over the last couple years, I just don’t get a chance to pick up the camera much anymore...

Anna Marie Goade, 69, of Poplar Bluff, Missouri entered the presence of Jesus Jan. 7, 2021 in Poplar Bluff. Anna was born Jan. 28, 1951 to the late William and Edna May (Kirkhart) Sherman in St. Louis, Missouri. Anna was the custodian at Temple Baptist Church, where she was also a member. ...

BLOOMFIELD — A Bernie man has been found competent to proceed on a charge of abandonment of a corpse, according to an order issued Thursday by a Stoddard County judge. The order reportedly had to be entered by Associate Circuit Judge Joe Satterfield before Corey L. Gill can undergo a “pre-trial psychiatric examination on the issue of criminal responsibility.”...