Stories from Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Hectic schedules and hurried breakfasts don't have to be part of the morning routine when students start back to school this fall, according to Renette Wardlow, human development specialist, University of Missouri Extension. "Organization and good communication are a must in busy families with school-aged children. ...

BRONAUGH -- School board members reviewed buying a school bus, taking bids for a new telephone system and setting the 2011-'12 property tax rate. With Andy Brannan absent, the panel accepted Superintendent Patricia Phillips' proposal to view buying an "off-lease bus," or an otherwise new one used for a year by a leasing company, to replace a 1996 Bluebird with a troublesome engine...

Students are headed back to schools throughout the area -- classes began at St. Mary's School in Nevada yesterday; Nevada R-5 schools begin classes tomorrow, and on Friday, activity steps up at Cottey College as well. That means more pedestrians, more students driving on Nevada's roads, an increase in traffic near schools and an increase in enforcement by Nevada police in areas near schools, particularly marked school zones...

When Delia Lister got the call in late May that tornado cleanup volunteers working in Joplin had found an injured, starving raptor amid the destruction, she had to make a difficult decision. Even though Lister, director of Pittsburg State University's Nature Reach, had been forced to eliminate the Raptor Rehabilitation program five years ago due to a decrease in funds, she couldn't just turn her back on the animal -- or the educational opportunities it would provide for students...

Karen, left, and Christine Briz, from the San Francisco, Calif., area, are greeted by Dr. Judy Rogers, Cottey College president, at the 2010 Welcome Cottey Picnic at the Franklin P. Norman City/County Center. This year, the event is slated for 6-8 p.m., Saturday, at the same location. Area organzations and businesses offer information at the event, which is free and open to the public...

Trevor Jackson, left, and William Sandow, both 20 and from Weaubleau, are getting a good workout jumping bicycles Tuesday afternoon at Nevada City Skate Park, where temperatures were 95 degrees under fair skies. Weaubleau is 50 miles east of Nevada in Hickory County...

James Bert Thompson, 68, of El Dorado Springs, Mo., died Sunday, Aug. 14, 2011, at his home. He was born Jan. 15, 1943, in Plain Dealing, La., the son of James Bert and Thyra Cordell (Jenkins) Thompson. Private cremation arrangements were entrusted to the Lewis-Hoagland Funeral Home, Schell City, Mo...

Justin and Leslie Gilmore of Nevada, Mo., and older sisters Annabelle and Kayla, are proud to announce the birth of their daughter and baby sister, Journey Roanne Lee Gilmore. Journey was born at 2:28 a.m., Wednesday, July 20, 2011, at Nevada Regional Medical Center. She weighed 7 pounds and measured 19 and 1/2 inches...

August 2 James L. Reiff, Nevada, speeding 54/40, no valid operator's license. Peggy Lou Swaggerty, Stockton, Mo., speeding 53/40, no child restraint. Caleb M.L. Wiles, Webb City, Mo., no license plates. Michelle R. Williamson, Prairie Grove, Ark., speeding 86/70...