Stories from Thursday, September 26, 2013

JEFFERSON CITY -- The number of Missourians who have taken the Governor's 100 Missouri Miles Challenge passed the 10,000 mark on Wednesday, and Gov. Jay Nixon and First Lady Georganne Nixon are encouraging them to continue logging miles in order to reach the goal of 1 million miles this year...

Roy "Bob" Yewell Moore, son of the late Perry Lee Moore and Edna Bell Young Moore, was born on April 30, 1928, in Essex, Mo., and died on Sept. 25, 2013, at Southeast Hospital in Cape Girardeau, Mo., at the age of 85. Mr. Moore was a member of the Dudley Community Church in Dudley, a former employee of the Fram Corporation in Dexter and a resident of Dexter. He was a veteran of the United States Army and served in the Korean War...

Mary Sue Robinson, daughter of the late Slater Nathanel Howell and Nancy Leoma Hooper Howell was born on Feb. 24, 1924, in Bolivar, Tenn., and died on Sept. 24, 2013, at the Cypress Point Skilled Nursing Center in Dexter at the age of 89. Mrs. Robinson was a homemaker, a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Dexter and a resident of Bernie...

As the Tuesday opening of online health-insurance exchanges creeps closer, those who will help advise people through the process -- called navigators and certified application counselors -- are finishing their training and getting certifications. The Affordable Care Act requires every American to have health-care coverage in 2014 or pay a tax penalty. ...

BENTON, Mo. -- A Scott City man will be arraigned in Scott County Circuit Court on charges related to the death of his mother, whose body was found last month in a burning vehicle. Neil Howland Jr. is charged with four felonies in connection with the Aug. 7 death of his mother, Cynthia Canoy of Scott City...

One of the most popular elements of Dexter's annual Fall Fest for the past few years has been the Pie Eating Contest, and this year's event looks to be better than ever. Heading up the contest for the October 12 event is Leslie Kyle of Young Real Estate LLC, who looks to add yet another division of pie eaters top the competition...

Walk MS, the signature fundraising event of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, is returning to Dexter this Saturday, Sept. 28 at West City Park. The local walk is one of two this weekend, with the second covering the Southern Illinois region. The Dexter event now serves the entire Bootheel and is expected to draw a significant number of visitors to the area to participate...

BLOOMFIELD, Mo. --Voters in Bloomfield may soon be able to decide for themselves if they think their city needs a full-time fireman. At the Monday night meeting of the Bloomfield Board of Aldermen, the board discussed the possibility of funding such a position and other fire department needs through a sales tax...

As part of their continuing commitment to ensure the safety of Dexter's students, the Board of Education this week accepted a bid from Boulder Construction Company out of Cape Girardeau to construct a connecting corridor between the senior high school and the vo-ag building. ...

Tiny visitors to Keller Public Library's weekly Story Hour on Tuesday, including Bronson Howard Menley, above, show they know when to "shhhhhhhhhh." Local optometrists Drs. Jennifer and Katie Mayberry took time out of their schedules at Dexter Family Eye Center to read selections that included, "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie."...

There is no greater time of year for us outdoor-folk than fall. The deer are moving about, the squirrels are cutting, the ducks are preparing for their migration down the Mississippi Fly Way, and the fish are gorging themselves! I've seen plenty of posts from people on Facebook about fall bringing hoodies, campfires, and football, and while I'm a proponent of all three, my thoughts are drawn more towards big bucks, mallard ducks, and plucking crappie from Reelfoot stumps! (The rhymes are free, you're welcome.). ...

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- St. Louis Zoo officials say the popular zoo could someday include a hotel, an indoor attraction such as an aquarium and many new animal exhibits. Zoo officials are scheduled to unveil preliminary plans Thursday for expansion into a former hospital site the zoo bought last October. The plans are simply a framework of possibilities and no funding or specific details are final...