News

COLUMBIA, Mo. — The MFA Oil Foundation has awarded a grant to the Poplar Bluff Trails Coalition to assist with purchasing trail kiosks, signs and tools. MFA Oil Senior Director of Employee Engagement and Culture Tom May described the MFA Oil Foundation as “a program that allows our company to give support back to the rural communities that are the foundation of our business. ...

“If you’re active in your community, you love what you do, you have a voice and have a story. They want to hear from you. They want real, down-to-earth people, people with kids, people who are messy, people who are 25 and still going to college. They love real life,” said Breandrea Hampton, who has been named Miss Missouri for the Miss America Strong pageant...

DONIPHAN — Independence Day is taking on a special significance this year for West Point Pentecostal Church as the congregation celebrates its freedom from a $1.2 million mortgage. The payoff happened last week, exactly one year (to the day) since the fundraising drive began, but only a few months after Pastor Chuck Carr had told his congregation, “I feel that God is going to help us pay off this property in a year or less.”...

Rena Payne, a 2022 graduate of Poplar Bluff High School, and Jenny Casteel, a 2022 graduate of Twin Rivers High School were selected to receive the local Donna Moulton Scholarship from the P.E.O. Chapter MF. Payne is the daughter of Benjamin and Christina Payne. She will attend Three Rivers College, where she will study elementary education...

Five healthy habits could be the secret to a longer life for many people. According to a study by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, individuals who adopt the habits by the age of 50 may live seven or more years longer than those who don’t. And, those healthy habits may also help prevent chronic conditions like cardiovascular disease, cancer and type 2 diabetes...

Neelyville R-IV cheerleaders haven’t allowed COVID to dampen their spirit. While the district has only been able to hold home camps since the start of the pandemic, the youth are making the most of the training, with hopes that away camps will be available next year...

Linda Kush is retiring from the dog boarding business, but you can’t keep a good dog down — Kush plans to keep training and performing with pups for years to come. “It’s a great business and I love the dogs being with the dogs, and some of them I’ve watched watch them grow up since they’re puppies. And I’m not going to say I won’t miss it, but it’s time,” she said...

The Dunklin County Sheriff's Department has issued an Endangered Person Advisory for a missing person incident that occurred at 38702 Highway WW, north of Campbell at 11 a.m. Thursday. Mary Ruth Blevins, 50, is a white female, 5-4, 110 pounds with brown hair, blue eyes and wearing unknown clothing...

“Freedom isn’t free, people paid the price, a lot of people paid the supreme price for our freedom,” said 37-year Army veteran Phil Crow. “Desert Storm, going over there, made me appreciate the freedoms that we enjoy here in the states. I wanted to kiss the ground when we got back from Saudi Arabia. It was a great feeling to touch down in St. Louis, to be back in America,” continued Crow, of Dexter...

Fairgoers gather for a variety of activities: entertainment, tractor and truck pulls, demolition derby and seeing animals. This year, the Butler County Fair will be short. The Butler County Fair Board announced this year the Butler County Fair is shaping up to be a one-day event. The county was without a fair from the late 1970s, when the Jaycees stopped organizing the event, to the mid-1990s when a group of volunteers and business leaders revived the fair...

City officials will reopen a downtown parking lot Friday, just in time for July 4th celebrations in Downtown Poplar Bluff. Demolition of the former parking garage is complete and the lot has been re-striped, said city manager Matt Winters. The stairway to Main Street will remain closed until a handrail and fencing can be installed, Winters said. The hope is to have that completed soon...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri voters will have to show photo identification to cast a regular ballot in the November election as a result of a law signed Wednesday by Gov. Mike Parson that caps a nearly two-decade-long push by Republicans for stricter voting requirements...

The R.W. Huntington Municipal Pool in Poplar Bluff will host a grand opening Tuesday to celebrate the completion of recent pool and facility renovations. The event will start at 1 p.m. and giveaways will be held during the day, according to Lanny Corcimiglia, park department director. Giveaways are expected to include pool toys and candy...

CLAYTON, Mo. — A Wayne County teenager pleaded guilty Wednesday to first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the shooting death of his younger brother. Williem A. Taylor, 18, of McGee pleaded guilty to the Class A felony of first-degree murder and the unclassified felony of armed criminal action Wednesday before 21st Circuit Court Judge Joseph Walsh III in St. Louis County...

The life of a building that has served the Poplar Bluff community for over 75 years is over. In the interest of public safety the city was forced to bring down the historic building on 211 Main St. “Unfortunately it wasn’t salvageable,” said City Planner James Sisk. “We would have loved to have saved it. It just wasn’t possible.”...

Sing, swim, celebrate Independence Day, join a grand opening ceremony or take in a free gun cleaning class with this week’s MAIN EVENT. Area residents have a variety of activities open to them over the next week, with a little something for everyone...

A Poplar Bluff man has been officially charged with kidnapping and three other felony counts in connection with an incident last week where he allegedly assaulted and kidnapped his girlfriend. Keaton D. Rexroad, 18, of the 200 block of Century Drive is charged with the Class A felony of first-degree kidnapping and three Class E felony counts of first-degree property damage, third-degree assault and third-degree domestic assault...

The Poplar Bluff R-I School District approved the employments, resignations and retirements of multiple employees at its June 23 meeting. Retirements of approved certified personnel and supplemental duty personnel were Julie Carda-Coleman, help desk teacher at PBHS; and Charles Gearheart, art teacher at Eugene Field and Lake Road elementary schools. Their departures were effective at the end of the 2021-2022 school year...

“This is very well deserved, Mr. Burdin pushes all of his students to find their best,” said colleague Julie Cloud. Teacher of the year Brad Burdin has been an educator at the Neelyville district for five years. Burdin started as a fifth grade ELA and Social Studies teacher, then taught sixth grade for three years, finally ending up instructing seventh and eighth grade English this past year...

The Southeast Missouri Transportation Service (SMTS) has been negatively impacted by the rising fuel costs the past few months. Just as thousands upon thousands of Americans have been forced to tighten their figurative belts, so has the SMTS — which offers local and long-distance transportation services for those in need...

The students of I’m A Citizen Too hosted around 30 members of the Army, Navy, Coast Guard and Air Force at their annual Veterans Banquet this week — perhaps their largest crowd yet. Former teacher Jan Desgranges, the founder of the IACT summer program, organized the June 28 luncheon at Poplar Bluff Junior High School alongside her daughter, former teacher Kathy Pattillo. ...

The Independence Day Celebration for Downtown Poplar Bluff will begin at 9 a.m. on Monday, July 4 with the traditional parade sponsored by Fox Radio. The evening firework display is scheduled to begin around 9 p.m. “Briggs and Stratton have sponsored $15,000 of the $20,000 needed for this year’s event,” said Morgan McIntosh, Director of Downtown Poplar Bluff. “This year is the most expensive so far, in the past, it’s been less, so we’ve had to try to find more sponsors.”...

Twin Rivers school district is now one of 128 districts in the state of Missouri that has adopted the four-day school week, according to the Missouri State University College four-day school week resource center. A special session was held Monday night to adopt the new calendar for the 2022-23 school year...

An electric vehicle (EV) charging station is giving juice to cars and the local economy, according to Greater Poplar Bluff Area Chamber of Commerce president Steve Halter. “Until now, visitors have not had an option for an EV charging station in Poplar Bluff. We are excited to offer this additional service (at no cost) and believe this service will help attract more people into our city even if they are just passing through, which in turn will help our local businesses,” he said in a statement...

CIRCLE CITY — A 24-year-old Poplar Bluff woman was seriously injured in an ATV crash on Frank Street at 5:30 p.m. Friday, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The MSHP reports that Ashley McDonald, 24, of Poplar Bluff was operating a 1995 Polaris Trail Boss four-wheeler westbound when it ran off the right side of the road and overturned...