©2012 Wayne County Journal-Banner - 101 West Elm St., Piedmont, Missouri 63957

Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012

Kyra Garrison, center, was crowned Clearwater High School Homecoming Queen Friday night. She was one of 10 candidates that vied for the crown. The queen, who represented the Junior Class, is the daughter of Darren and Lori Garrison of Piedmont. First runner-up was Eleanor Hasenbeck, at left. She represented the Art Club. Catherine Hurt was second runner-up; she represented the Senior Class.

Drug Task Force Makes Three Arrests

The SEMO Drug Task Force arrested three Wayne Countians last week on felony drug charges. Ralph McAtee, 42, of Silva; Edward A. Sloan, 25, of Piedmont; and Angela P. Whitaker, 20, of Piedmont have been charged with possession of a controlled substance.
Edward Sloan and Angela Whitaker were arrested on Friday, Jan. 27, after officers from the Drug Task Force executed a search warrant at a residence the couple shared with Whitaker’s 2-year-old son. During the search, officers found two plastic bags containing a white powdery substance that field tested positive for methamphetamine, according to a probable cause affidavit written by Missouri State Highway Patrol Trooper John J. West.

For the rest of the story, see this week's newspaper

Presidential Preference Primary Election Tuesday

Missouri’s presidential preference primary election will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 7, just as it has been every four years since 2000. Election officials are anticipating a very low voter turnout.
Because state Republican party officials have said they will ignore the election results. Instead, they will allow only Republicans who show up at a caucus meeting on March 17 to decide how Missouri’s delegates to the national convention will be distributed.

For the rest of the story, see this week's newspaper

Clearwater Students Build Robot, Compete in FIRST Tech Challenge

A group of tech-savvy Clearwater High School students have spent the last several weeks building a robot. Last Saturday, they entered their robot in a regional FIRST Tech Challenge competition in Cape Girardeau.
The FIRST Tech Challenge is a nationwide robotics competition involving teams of up to 10 students between the ages of 14-18 in grades 9-12. Each team designs, builds and programs robots for a tournament-style competition.
Clearwater was one of 37 schools that took part in the Cape Girardeau event. This was the first time CHS had participated in the robotics event. Ben Diesel, a CHS graduate and a current student at Southeast Missouri State University, learned of the competition and convinced school officials to form a team.
The mission of the competition is to inspire young people to be science and technology leaders by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, engineering and technology skills, that inspire innovation, and that foster well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication, and leadership.

For the rest of the story, see this week's newspaper

Journal-Banner Planning Section
Urging People to ‘Think Local, Buy Local’

The Wayne County Journal-Banner is excited to announce plans for an important special section, “Think Local, Buy Local.” The section will be published Thursday, Feb. 23.
The newspaper will spotlight the following communities: Piedmont, Greenville, Patterson, Williamsville, Mill Spring, Des Arc, and Annapolis. It will include interviews from mayors, civic leaders, county officials, and chamber of commerce officials to find out what new projects will be in the works for 2012 and to get their thoughts and ideas on what the year will hold for their towns and for Wayne County.
The year each community was established and how it was named will be included in “Think Local, Buy Local.” Each community’s claim to fame and an iconic image will be included. The newspaper staff will visit each community to conduct man-on-the-street interviews.
The newspaper staff requests your help with the section. You are asked to give us your thought on what should be your community’s claim to fame and iconic image. To give input, you can email kimg@waynecojournalbanner.com or call the newspaper at 223-7122.
This section will kick off a year-long campaign in the Journal-Banner to remind our readers the importance of shopping local. Through this section, we can encourage area residents to support the small businesses that are the lifeblood of communities and are dedicated in providing the goods and services we all rely on.
The local businesses not only provide needed goods and services, they also provide jobs for area residents. We must all work together to keep our residents working and to sustain the local economy.
When $100 is spent at a locally owned, independent business, $68 returns to the local community. This means local businesses prosper, local tax revenues increase, and quality of life improves.
“As a native Wayne Countian, who moved back about three years ago to my hometown of Patterson after 30 years spent in Cape Girardeau, I’m impressed every day with the community spirit I see in our little towns,” said WCJB advertising director Susan Eaton. “In every town in Wayne County, you can find groups of hard-working individuals who selflessly donate hours of their precious time and considerable amounts of their hard-earned money to help their neighbors and try to preserve a sense of community in their hometown. And our locally owned, independent businesses and service providers are the foundation on which this community spirit is built. They are extremely generous in giving donations to and supporting all of our non-profit groups and helping with fundraisers for our schools and benefits for families in need. And I think it’s very important that we show our support for these local businesses by shopping and buying local whenever we can.”