Stories from Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Elsie Jane Wiegel, 60, El Dorado Springs, Mo., passed away on Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2008, at St. John's Health System, Springfield, Mo., following a lengthy illness. She was born Feb. 5, 1947, in Vernon County, Mo., to John Alfred Radspinner Sr. and Martha Florence Evans Radspinner...

William E. Neill, 84, Nevada, Mo., died Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2008, at Barone Alzheimer's Care Center, Nevada. Family information and funeral arrangements will be announced later by Ferry Funeral Home.

A print that I have had the opportunity to view my entire life is The Lone Wolf. This is a snow scene with blue sky of a wolf looking down from a hill at some buildings. Many readers will remember this popular picture, while younger readers may not be acquainted with it...

American elections are nothing if not amusing; solemn rituals laced with equal measures of irony and hypocrisy, with a touch of absurdity thrown in for taste. The victory speeches alone are worth the price of admission. Take for example the statement of Mitt Romney after he'd been declared winner of the Michigan caucuses: "Tonight is a victory of optimism over Washington-style pessimism," he said...

The Nevada girls and boys varsity basketball teams split their opening games in the 2008 Nevada Tiger Basketball Classic, with the Lady Tigers playing their best game of the season to easily beat the Lamar Tigers 49-31 and the Nevada Tigers losing to the Kansas City Southeast Knights 60-51...

Saying he had accomplished virtually everything he set out to do as governor, Republican Matt Blunt announced Tuesday he would not seek a second term as Missouri governor this November. The 37-year-old Blunt, Missouri's second youngest governor, said he wanted to stay home with his wife and child...

The final draft of Vernon County's proposed 2008 budget was made available for public viewing Jan. 18 by the Vernon County Commission-ers Office. After around two weeks of deliberation county officials have crunched all the numbers and figures regarding the projected revenue and spending for this year...

Christmas 2006 Joyce Newby and her four granddaughters spent some quality "Grandma time" sharing Jason F. Wright's book "Christmas Jars." The book tells of outcomes from acts of sacrifice and charity. The girls, ages nine through 14, were moved by the book and after discussions of how they could act on their thoughts, they voted to save some money in their own Christmas Jars to give to a local charity...