Stories from Thursday, February 27, 2003

At the Marked Tree Chamber of Commerce meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 25, President Steve Wilcoxon announced his resignation and the Chamber Board elected Keith Steele to serve as interim president. Wilcoxon told the Chamber that "after quite a bit of deliberation," he has accepted an employment opportunity with Summit Bancorp, Inc. in Arkadelphia...

With the district tournaments now complete throughout Northeast Arkansas, local teams now turn their attention to their respective regional tournaments being played this week. In the Class AAA Region 2 Tournament, played at Newport High School, teams from the 2AAA, 3AAA-North and 3AAA-South begin their chase for a spot in the state tournament next week at Prescott. ...

James Aubrey Sitz, 68, of Marked Tree died Monday. Sitz, the owner of Hi Tech Auto Center, is survived by his wife, Jo Ella Sitz of Marked Tree; three daughters, Lynn Mager of Plano, Tex, Joan Wright of West Plains, Mo., Leigh Harding of Memphis; two sisters, Marilyn McIlvain of Memphis, Mary Ann Fisher of West Memphis and one brother, Giles Sitz West of Memphis...

Martha "Marty" Owens, 49, of Rosharon, Texas, formerly of Marked Tree, died on Monday, February 17, 2003 at her residence. Born in Marked Tree, Ark. and of the Baptist faith, she was preceded in death by her parents James and Lorene Hargo, and two brothers, Tommy and Ricky Hargo...

The Etowah/Lepanto Lions Club will hold the second annual beauty pageant on April 12, 2003 at the EPC Cafetorium in Lepanto. The pageant starts at 1:00 p.m., with the registration starting at 12:00 p.m. The age divisions for the pageant include boys 0-23 months and 2-5 years, as well as girls 0-12 months, 13-23 months, 2-3 years, 4-5 years, 6-8 years, 9-11 years, 12-15 years and 16+...

The Jonesboro Seventh Day Adventist Church is holding a Chili Dinner and Silent Auction Fundraiser to benefit the Literacy League serving Craighead and Poinsett Counties. The fundraiser will beheld at 11 a.m. -- 6 p.m. on March 16 at the 7th Day Adventist Church located at 302 Steele Ave in Jonesboro. For more tickets and information, contact the Literacy League at...

An opinion and voice, no matter how small, has the right to be heard and considered as a valid point of reason. This is exactly what the students of East Poinsett County High School have been doing. On Feb. 12, the EPC Student Council and senior American Government classes attended a protest rally outside the Arkansas State Capitol to voice their opinions on the current controversial issue of school consolidation. ...

The snowfall that hit our area this week has played havoc on area travelers, traveling on the roadways throughout Poinsett County. Law enforcement officials told the Tri-City Tribune Wednesday that there were several minor wrecks in the Tri-Cities area, but no injuries reported...

Dr. Cindy Landry visited Marked Tree and EPC elementary schools on Friday, Feb. 21 for the first annual "Give Kids a Smile" Day. Landry and her staff dropped in on grades 1-3 at EPC Lepanto and K-1 at Marked Tree. Kindergarteners at EPC-Lepanto visited the dentist's office for a tour and educational program. She plans to visit K-1 grades at EPC Tyronza in March...

"Marked Tree Bank, in an effort to assist our activated Armed Services personnel, would like to make their families aware that those who have loans with the Bank, as well as other creditors, may be entitled to assistance through an interest rate reduction," said Sherry London, Marked Tree Bank Vice President...

Author John Grisham was in Blytheville last Monday at That Book Store to autograph copies of his latest legal thriller, King of Torts. Grisham found it hard, if "not downright impossible," to stay on the topic of his new book, as members of the press quizzed him about his soon to be released Hallmark Hall of Fame movie, A Painted House. The made-for-television movie, based on Grisham's best selling 2001 novel, is slated to air on CBS April 27...

A pair of EPC girls basketball players were recently recognized for their accomplishments this season, when they were named All-District for the 2002-2003 season. The district announced this week that Lauren Hale and Holly Hinton received the honor last Saturday night, during the finals of the tournament in Valley View. ...