Our region will see at least $5 million in improvements in 2022 just from grants awarded over a three-month period this summer.
Street paving, education, a new rural firehouse and many more projects benefited from these awards between May 1 and July 31.
Many of these grant applications were made with the assistance of Ozark Foothills Regional Planning Commission, a non-profit that was created to help its member cities and counties solve problems. It covers Ripley, Carter, Reynolds, Wayne and Butler counties.
“I think the services of the OFRPC are invaluable, not only to the city of Poplar Bluff, but to the entire five-county region they serve,” said Matt Winters, Poplar Bluff city manager. “Poplar Bluff and the other cities and counties they serve do not employ staff with the expertise that the staff of the OFRPC has.
“Their familiarity with state and federal funding programs is very beneficial in assisting us in identifying potential grants and strategies for securing those grant funds.”
OFRPC was active in more than two dozen 2021 awarded grant projects, according to its website, including a pedestrian bridge in the city of Doniphan, low water crossing improvements for the city of Van Buren, digital mapping efforts in Wayne County, and paving projects in Qulin, Ellsinore and Broseley, among others.
For the city of Poplar Bluff, a grant-funded generator for the new police department was placed two weeks ago at the facility under construction on Shelby Road.
In spring 2022, the city will go out for bid on paving projects funded with a grant awarded in June. This grant will allow gravel streets, a longtime point of contention for some residents, to be paved in the areas of Abington, Bradley, Center, Clare, Clyde, Marion and North Riverview.
Both projects and others were made possible with the help of OFRPC.
Other significant stories in May through July were:
May 1
• Lil’ Black River Cafe earns Best Rural Missouri Restaurant title from “Rural Missouri” magazine and chef/owner Alan Porter shares with the Daily American Republic how the Poplar Bluff High School culinary program introduced him to the field.
May 5
• Author and business owner Chantelle Becking is announced as the 2021 speaker for Women Aware.
• Three Rivers College basketball players Chaylea Mosby and Myia Yelder are selected for the NJCAA All-American team. The Raiders reached the final four for the first time in the program history after an undefeated regular season and finished fourth overall in the final national rankings.
May 6
• Poplar Bluff Police Department shares information about the disposal of a grenade, which was turned in among donations for a local resale shop.
May 7
• The city of Poplar Bluff is approved for $750,000 in Missouri Department of Economic Development grants for stormwater projects and emergency equipment.
May 8
• A portion of the Poplar Bluff School District trap team splits from the district to form an independent club and hosts its first event.
May 11
• After 94 years, a memorial is placed May 8, in downtown Poplar Bluff, at MOARK Regional Railroad Museum, in memory of the nearly 90 people killed in the 1927 tornado.
• The Three Rivers College Raiders win the Region XVI Championship on May 8, in a 4-1 game against Crowder.
May 12
• A shooting May 11 leaves three people injured. The incident occurred on Mary Street, between Garfield and Alice streets. One person was air lifted to St. Louis for treatment and two were treated locally.
• Westwood Baptist Academy wins the 2021 MCSAA baseball state championship on May 11.
• Witnesses report 15-20 shots fired May 12 in an incident near the intersection of Garfield and Mary streets. Four people are injured, including one seriously.
• Ricky Dewayne Davis Jr. pleads guilty to the 2018 shooting death of Janice Thomas, and charges related to the injury of two other people in the incident. He is ordered to serve 30 years each on five charges, to run concurrently.
May 14
• Saint Francis Health Center marks the opening May 13, of Saint Francis Clinic on Physicians Park Drive, announcing further expansions to come.
• Boys and Girls Club of Poplar Bluff announces plans to offer summer programs for Twin Rivers and Neelyville students.
May 15
• Dexter Dennis, 32, of Poplar Bluff is arrested on charges related to shootings that occurred May 13 and May 14, in the areas of Ferguson Grove Park and the 1000 block of Fairmount. Four people are injured.
• Rick Naegler is named the new chief executive officer of Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center.
• Richard Bascom is charged with tampering with a witness in Dunklin County.
May 18
• The Three Rivers College Raiders softball team wins the District J Championship series May 16, advancing to the national tournament to be held May 25-29, in Yuma, Arizona.
May 20
• Walter William Knox, 37, of the 9300 block of Highway C is arrested on suspicion of arson in relation to a house fire May 16 in the 1100 block of Nooney.
• The Ellington Whippets win the MSHSAA Class 2 District 2 championship.
May 21
• Ollie’s celebrates a grand opening May 19 in Mansion Mall.
May 22
• Poplar Bluff Police Department investigates a fourth shooting in 11 days, after an incident in the area of South Broadway and Victor Street.
June 1
• Three Rivers College softball team returns home May 30, after reaching the elite eight in the NJCAA World Series in Yuma, Arizona.
• Memorial Day services are held May 31, at the Poplar Bluff Veterans Wall.
June 2
• Poplar Bluff police officers recover $16,000 worth of methamphetamine, ecstasy and marijuana from a vehicle while responding to a disturbance May 31 in the 1700 block of Illinois Avenue. One person is arrested in connection with the recovery.
June 3
• Friends speak about their grief at the loss of longtime newspaper hawker Kevin Dean, who died May 27.
• Mask requirements are removed effective June 1 for the 36th Judicial Circuit, essentially bringing the courts back to normal, according to Presiding Circuit Judge Michael Pritchett.
June 4
• Kaitlyn Baucom, 14, of Poplar Bluff earns a spot in the National Junior Beta Competition for her artwork. The event was to be held June 29-July 2 at Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
June 5
• Babita Patnaik heads up a fundraiser for COVID-19 relief in India.
June 8
• The Poplar Bluff City Council votes June 7 to extend the residency requirement for city employees to within 45 miles of the Butler County boundary. The vote is 5-2, with representatives Robert Smith and Chris Taylor against the proposal.
June 9
• After multiple shooting incidents in the weeks prior, dozens gather June 8 for a meeting to discuss a Neighborhood Watch program.
June 11
• Haven House Director Mary Ann Allen is honored June 10 for her 34 years of service to the domestic violence shelter, which also opened a new outreach center.
June 12
• It is announced the United Gospel Rescue Mission would close for a short time due to a COVID-19 outbreak among its residents.
• Teddy B. McCombs, 61, of Neelyville drowns June 11 in a boating accident on Glen Holland Lake, near Doniphan.
• Logan Bell, an alumni of Poplar Bluff High School, earns All-American honors for javelin throwing as a student at Missouri Southern State University.
June 15
• The 300-mile bike ride, the Big BAM, makes its first trip through Southeast Missouri, bringing more than 150 riders to Poplar Bluff by the morning of June 14.
June 18
• The city of Poplar Bluff receives a $500,000 grant from the Missouri Department of Economic Development to pave gravel streets, including Abington, Bradley, Center, Clare, Clyde, Marion and North Riverview.
June 19
• McDonald’s north plans a new building on Highway 67, with the previous location to be torn down.
June 22
• Multiple celebrations are held June 20 in Poplar Bluff for the newly created federal holiday, Juneteenth.
• Circle Fiber announces a plan to construct a fiber network in Poplar Bluff.
• Three Rivers College rodeo team members Cole Skender and Holden Moss finish in the top five in bull riding at the College National Finals Rodeo in Casper, Wyoming.
June 23
• Three people are stabbed and one person was arrested in a June 22 incident on Lester Street. Irvan L. Hendrix, 30, is charged in relation to the incident.
June 29
• Curtis L. Walker, 35, of Poplar Bluff is sentenced June 28, to 75 years in prison for second-degree murder and other charges related to the 2014 death of Salvador Ramirez of Poplar Bluff.
July 2
• A former Poplar Bluff Medicaid provider agrees to pay $150,000 for falsely billing for services that weren’t provided. Brook Fears, who owned and operated Shady Oaks Retirement Home, filed 148 false claims, according to the Missouri Attorney General’s office.
• Three Rives College receives a $750,000 grant from the Missouri Department of Higher Education to expand its commercial driver’s license program.
July 3
• Six area counties receive $3 million in grant funds from the Community Block Development program to pay for a variety of projects, including road paving and computer labs, as well as a new firehouse in the Ellsinore Rural Fire Protection District.
July 7
• Poplar Bluff Fire Chief Ralph Stucker announces he will retire effective Aug. 1, after more than 30 years as a firefighter.
July 8
• Poplar Bluff officials share that the first case of the COVID-19 Delta variant had been confirmed in Butler County.
July 13
• Clean up begins in the Dexter area after the first EF-2 tornado to hit the region in 50 years touches down July 10, damaging SoutheastHEALTH of Dexter, homes and other properties.
July 14
• Gov. Mike Parson signs into a law July 13 a bill targeting copper thefts. The bill was sponsored by Rep. Hardy Billington (R-Poplar Bluff) and set additional requirements for transactions involving scrap metal.
• Edgar O. Racanec Sacach, 38, of Memphis, Tennessee, drowns July 12, while trying to cross the Current River in Carter County.
July 16
• The Autry Morlan team takes home the Poplar Bluff Parks and Recreation Department’s Junior League Tournament title July 15 at McLane Park.
July 17
• Former Daily American Republic staff member Michelle Friedrich is honored by the Southeast Missouri Press Association for her two decades of service.
July 20
• Poplar Bluff Industries makes a move to expand the Poplar Bluff Industrial Park with the purchase of 54 new acres of adjacent property for future development.
• Butler County Reserve Deputy Tom Burns is honored for 25 years as a volunteer deputy.
July 21
• Poplar Bluff student Kaitlyn Baucom takes second for her artwork in the National Junior Beta Competition at Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
July 22
• The local NAACP makes plans to resume meetings in Butler County.
• The Southeast Missouri School of Archery of Poplar Bluff takes seven archers to the S3DA Outdoor Field Archery Nationals in Ohio and everyone finishes in the top 20 of their division.
July 27
• Donald A. Raymer, 31, of the 1700 block of Garfield Street is charged with first degree sexual abuse after he is accused of inappropriate contact with a juvenile at a local retailer.
June 28
• Thomas Ridenhower, 57, of Poplar Bluff is fined $85,000 by a federal judge for failing to disclose a large purchase of ginseng.
July 29
• Mike Moffitt is named the new chief of Poplar Bluff Fire Department.
July 30
• Residents in Stoddard County voice concerns after money given to Morgan-Sifford Funeral Home as advance payment for funerals is reported to have disappeared.
July 31
• Retiring Poplar Bluff Fire Chief Ralph Stucker is honored at an event at the Black River Coliseum.
• The Daily American Republic announces the finalists for its Difference Makers event to be held in August.