Stories from Friday, March 15, 2002

The operating hours for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) toll-free registration line changed Friday to the new hours of 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. five days a week. Renters, homeowners and business owners who sustained damage during the late-January ice storm may apply for assistance by calling FEMA's toll-free line at 1-800-621-FEMA...

We've all made mistakes before. Some of us even get to put our names in black and white right below some of our bone-headed blunders for all the world to see. This week the Immigration and Naturalization Service committed a grande-sized boo-boo when it issued student visas to two of the hijackers involved in the Sept. 11 attacks...

Santa Fe Chiefs (23-5) Location: Alma County: Lafayette Enrollment: 141 Conference: I-70 Conference Record: 7-0 (1st) Head Coach: Gary Littrell (22nd yr., 443-184; 3rd yr., 70-16) Assistants: Dustin Danner, Bill Linn, Brock Dover Probable Starters Pos. No. Player Hgt. Yr. PPG RPG...

Friday, March 15 at Columbia BOYS Class A (Semifinals) Stewartsville (27-3) vs. Bell City (27-5), 12:25 SANTA FE (23-5) vs. Community R-VI (24-4), 2 - Class AA (Semifinals) Bishop LeBlond (27-2) vs. Lutheran North (23-7), 7:55 Elsberry (27-3) vs. Marionville (26-3), 9:30 ------------------------------ GIRLS Class A...

MEN NAIA Division I Tournament, Kansas City, Mo. (1st Round) Georgetown, Ky. 88, Rocky Mountain, Mont. 65 Oklahoma City 88, Houston Baptist, Texas 82 Azusa Pacific, Calif. 78, Spalding, Ky. 44 Auburn-Montgomery, Ala. 56, Southern-New Orleans, La. 55...

ALMA -- Former Missouri Valley College baseball and golf teammates Brock Dover and Brett Snow fell into a dream position: young coaches of an established program with a record of success. The brief, three-year record of softball at Santa Fe is a brilliant one: a 49-4 record under Gary Littrell, including two I-70 Conference Tournament titles. In fact, the Lady Chiefs had won their first 15 games against league foes before Crest Ridge bumped them off, 4-3, last April 24...

SWEET SPRINGS -- After going 27-7 over the previous three years, a young Sweet Springs softball team fell upon hard times last season at 2-7. Two major holes in the lineup will have to be filled, but seven starters return to give the Lady Greyhounds a patina of experience. However, seventh-year head coach Loretta "Redd" Rennison understands that much progress is needed...

ALMA -- Although it may or may not be fulfilled, Santa Fe has the markings of the proverbial "team of destiny." Perhaps none of the four Class A boys' basketball teams which play this weekend in the University of Missouri's Hearnes Center appeared less likely to be a participant in the Show-Me Showdown when the playoffs began than the Chiefs -- although they are the only one to have won their league, sweeping the I-70 Conference...

Russell L. Riley, 23, of Marshall, died Thursday, March 14, 2002, at his home. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday, March 19, at Sweeney-Reser-Wills Funeral Home in Marshall. Rev. Ed Chapman will officiate.

Gary DeWitt, 55, of Marshall, died Thursday, March 14, 2002, at his home. Arrangements are pending at Campbell-Lewis Funeral Home in Marshall.

Ina Pearl Barks, 42, of Slater, died Wednesday, March 13, 2002, at her home. Graveside services will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, March 18, at the Slater City Cemetery. Rev. Robert Sisney will officiate.

Sweet Springs teachers will get a pay hike averaging about 3.7 percent for the 2002-2003 year. The Sweet Springs R-7 Board of Education unanimously approved the increase with little debate during its monthly meeting Thursday evening. "We wish we could give a lot more, because we do have a very good staff here," noted the school board Chairman John Dohrman...

It was 50 years ago that six one-room school districts were consolidated into one district, creating the Orearville R-4 district. To celebrate its 50 years, the district will be hosting an open house at 6 p.m. this Saturday, March 16. Former and current students, faculty, staff and Board of Education members are invited to take part in a carry-in supper in the school gym. Those attending are asked to bring a dish of food and table service...

Home-bound Saline County senior citizens are jumping on the bandwagon to oppose the proposed state budget under consideration in the Missouri General Assembly. The budget under consideration would prevent a minimum of 658 people in the 13 counties covered by the District 3 Area Agency on Aging from receiving Meals on Wheels. ...

"Diversification, diversification, diversification," are the three keys to investing, Edward Jones investment representative Diane Dudenhoeffer advised a group gathered to hear her suggestions in the Marshall Habilitation Center's Spainhower Building ...

An unexplainable power outage was among the topics discussed when the Marshall Municipal Utilities Board of Public Works heard a number of reports at its regular meeting Wednesday. Jim Johnson, assistant electric production superintendent, reported that the outage, which occurred around noon Saturday, had been unexpected. He said for reasons that have yet to be determined the power plant's Unit 5 generator had gone off-line, causing an outage over much of Marshall...

The sale of the Tex Tech Industries Inc. facility in Slater to the Southern Felt Company, Inc. is a move by Tex Tech Industries Inc., not the Southern Felt Company Inc. to exit the non-woven filtration products business and the Slater facility produced 1.8 million linear yards of felt, not square yards as indicated in Thursday's edition of the Democrat-News...

The Saline County Commission approved a payment schedule for workers compensation insurance Friday morning, and will pay 50 percent of the premium in April, 20 percent in July and 20 percent in October, based on estimated costs, and the remaining 10 percent at year's end...

This past Tuesday night, a very special event was held as the Marshall Chamber of Commerce sponsored the second annual Academic Recognition Banquet at Marshall High School. During the evening, 234 Marshall High School students were honored for having a high grade-point average and doing well in the classroom...