Stories from Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Veda B. Handly, age 101, of Rich Hill, passed away Feb. 1, 2008, at Adrian Manor Nursing Home, Adrian, Mo. Graveside services will be held today, at 1 p.m., at Grand Center Cemetery, in Waldo, Kan., The family suggests memorial contributions to that Kern Senior Center, in care of Heuser Funeral Home...

Waylon Shook, 24, of Nevada, passed away on Monday, Feb. 4, 2008, in Nevada. He was born on July 29, 1983, in Osceola, Mo., to Richard Wessley Shook and Coeta Faye Barker Shook. Waylon came to Nevada at a young age. He graduated from Nevada High School, in 2002, and spent one year at the Motorcycle-Marine Institute in Phoenix, Ariz. ...

Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon says some Missourians are getting calls asking for their Social Security numbers, supposedly to process a tax rebate. Because rebates may be coming from the federal government as part of an economic stimulus plan, identity thieves appear to be trying to trick consumers into providing personal information. The person often claims to be with the Missouri Department of Revenue or with the Internal Revenue Service...

The Nevada City Council will be taking a second look at two ordinances when they meet tonight. One ordinance would waive the building permit fee for the new county jail; the second ordinance would allow a gourmet food store located on, or within one block of the Nevada Square to sell packaged wine and other liquor...

Chamber CHOICES team leaders will spend two days in early February with all eighth grade students at the Nevada Middle School, gearing them up for making some great CHOICES in outlining their personal career and educational goals. On Thursday and Friday, Feb. 7 and 8, team leaders from the Nevada/Vernon County Chamber of Commerce will spend their day with the eighth grade science classes at Nevada Middle School...

Just five days after allegedly being forced to shoot a Nevada man during a traffic stop, Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper Larry Stoddard returned to his duties in Cedar County. On Jan. 26, Stoddard pulled over Patrick Ellis, 30, behind the Viking's Office Bar just south of Stockton, Mo., on Highway 39, at approximately 1 a.m. ...

First off, could we get some help for Angelo R. Mozilo? Mozilo, the former head of Countrywide Financial, is being kicked out on the street with a measly $112 million severance package, despite having successfully presided over the destruction of the nation's largest independent mortgage lender...

As we celebrate Presidents' Day in 2008, we are in the midst of campaigns to select Democratic and Republican nominees for president. Recognizing that George W. Bush's candid discussion of his faith played a key role in his electoral success in both 2000 and 2004, both Democratic and Republican candidates have frequently emphasized how their faith has helped make them who they are and how it influences their policies. ...

The 2008 Tri-County Eighth Grade Boys Basketball tournament kicked-off Monday evening at the Nevada Middle School, with the number one seeded Nevada boys easily out-scoring the number eight seeded Joplin North Middle School team 55-16 in the final game of the night...

The Cottey Comets lost to Region XVI opponent St. Louis Community College-Meramec Magic 67-75 in a game marked by four ties and three lead changes. The loss drops the Comets season record to 13-6 and 4-3 against Region XVI teams. Comets head coach Dave Ketterman said that they missed a lot of shots at the rim, that just did not go in...

Lavon Clark, 71, of Nevada, passed away on Sunday, Feb. 3, 2008, at Christian Health Care, in Nevada, following a lengthy illness. She was born Dec. 23, 1936, in Southwest City, Mo., to James Paul Gann and Essie Oleta Morton Gann. She married Willis Clark, on June 7, 1957, in Carl Junction, Mo. He preceded her in death on Jan. 14, 2008...

Russell Arnold Robb, 72, of Nevada, passed away on Saturday, Feb. 2, 2008, at St. John's Regional Medical Center, in Joplin, following a lengthy illness. He was born March 7, 1935, in Walker, to Arthur Glen Robb and Grace Agnes Godsey Robb. He married Patricia Ann Smith on June 4, 1979, in Miami, Okla., she survives of the home...