News

**UPDATE 6:30 p.m.** FISK — Authorities say the victim recovered Tuesday morning from a submerged car in St. Francis River is a Dexter woman whose family reported her missing more than four months ago. Stoddard County Coroner Kenny Pope identified the woman as Crystal Marie Brown-Hart. Identification, he said, was made based on the clothing she was wearing and the personal identification that was on her, as well as the recovery of her Mitsubishi Lancer. Family members reported the 39-year-old missing April 11 to Butler County authorities. She had last been seen in the Dexter and Poplar Bluff areas. The investigation subsequently was turned over to the Dexter Police Department. A witness reported Brown-Hart left a Township Line residence in Poplar Bluff between 3-3:30 a.m. April 10, en route to Dexter. She left alone, driving a black four-door Mitsubishi Lancer.

“When I fly to Vancouver on Sept. 29, I will not be home again for seven months,” relates Tim Moore of Dexter. “This will be my longest cruise to-date. We will depart from Vancouver and cruise the Inside Passage, Alaska, with Ports of Call in Ketchikan and Juneau.”...

BLOOMFIELD — The Stoddard County Commission renewed its code of ethics at Monday’s meeting at the Government Building. The county made no changes to the previous code that was established April 24, 2017. The code must be updated every two years. The code says every elected county official and every person running for a county office must disclose potential conflicts of interest regarding personal gain while executing his or her duties...

With the impending closure of Progressive Industries, the Stoddard County Sheltered Workshop board and the Senate Bill 40 board met in an open roundtable to put the past behind them and work together for the good of the Sheltered Workshop and its clients...

The Dexter R-XI School District expects most of the work at Charles Bland Stadium to be completed by the Bearcats’ home opener against Ste. Genevieve on Aug. 30. Assistant Superintendent Gavin Miller said that the concession stand, restrooms, stadium seating and the field will be ready...

NAYLOR — The search for a missing Naylor toddler ended tragically Monday night when she was found in a pond on the family’s property. Reese Ainley, 3, was pronounced dead at 7:20 p.m. by a doctor at Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center, according to Missouri State Highway Patrol Cpl. J.T. Wilson...

An 18-year-old Advance resident was injured in a two-vehicle crash at 10:20 p.m. Thursday on Highway 25 at Highway K, six miles south of Advance. According to the report, Krista L. Sanders, 26, of Dexter was operating a 2011 Kia Forte southbound when it crossed the center line and struck a 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix being driven northbound by Kaylee S. Wisdom...

BLOOMFIELD — A Dexter father appeared in court Thursday on child endangerment and abuse charges after his two young children recently tested positive for methamphetamine. Raymond Edward Hoppe, 55, was formally arraigned by Associate Circuit Judge Joe Satterfield on two Class D felonies of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child and two Class D felonies of abuse or neglect of a child...

Every year, community members and thousands of visitors come to the small town of Puxico to celebrate Puxico Homecoming. Carnival rides, corndogs and goat burgers are just a few of the staples that put this event in the spotlight for so many. The Puxico Homecoming started in 1937 by the mayor at the time. ...

Little Phoebe Ao recently visted her great-grandparents, Harold and Ruth Gibson in Dexter. She couldn’t believe her eyes when she saw the zucchini her aunt Hannah Gibson grew in her garden in Springfield. Phoebe is the daughter of Frank and Jansen Ao of Orlando, Florida...

A Dexter man pleaded guilty Tuesday afternoon to recklessly causing the death of a local teenager who was killed in a June 2018 boat collision on Black River. Accompanied by his attorney, Dan Moore, Braden Parker Bollinger appeared before Presiding Circuit Judge Michael Pritchett for a plea/trial setting in his case...

“I always had an affinity for animals,” observes Brenda Collier of Dexter. “I guess I got it from my dad because he was forever bringing in squirrels, racoons, rabbits — whatever he found that needed help.” On her mother’s farm in rural Dexter, Collier, with help from her husband Kevin, cares for a variety of animals. Some were purchased, but many have been rescued — saved from dire situations of neglect or imminent death. Others have simply appeared...

Exterior work is nearing completion, and the finishing touches are in the works for the interior renovations at Dexter High School. The renovation of the high school, as well as improvements to the middle school, both elementary schools and the football stadium were made possible when voters approved a $15 million bond issue in April...

A Dexter man was killed shortly after 6 a.m. Sunday in a one-vehicle accident on Highway 114, a quarter mile east of Dexter. According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the victim was Casey J. Perry, 38. Perry was driving westbound when his 2010 Kia Soul ran off the right side of the roadway and struck an embankment, troopers said. The vehicle reportedly overturned and caught fire...

Preparation for the Dexter High School football season begins Monday, Aug. 12. Students should report to the weight room at 8 a.m. Practice will begin at 5 p.m. All high school students must have completed a physical by 5 p.m. that day. Practices will be at 5 p.m. Monday through Friday for the weeks of Aug. 12-16 and Aug. 19-23. Weightlifting will be at 8 a.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday both weeks...

Weston Zoll, a 2019 graduate of Bernie High School, has been selected to receive the Joyce Petty Overby Scholarship, administered by the Community Foundation of the Ozarks. Zoll, the son of Brandee and Donald Zoll, will attend Missouri University of Science and Technology this fall to study geological engineering. After college, he plans to pursue a career in oil or natural resources...

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Wappapello Lake has announced the annual duck blind drawing and registration will be held August 17, at 1 p.m. at the Bill Emerson Memorial Visitor Center. Anyone wishing to participate must be registered prior to 1 p.m. ...

Everyday life is going to get easier for Dexter resident Jeff Hull. Hull will soon move into his new home on West St. Francis Street. Hull is a disabled veteran of the United States Army. Hull is a 2001 graduate of Puxico High School and served in the Army infantry from 2001 to 2004. His service included a year in Iraq...

Puxico Mayor Rick McLean stated he would sign a proclamation declaring the city of Puxico a Purple Heart City at the Puxico Board of Aldermen July meeting. The proclamation honors the service and sacrifice of the nation’s men and women in uniform, wounded or killed by the enemy while serving to protect our freedoms. McLean asked that the aldermen also sign the proclamation...

The Dexter Board of Aldermen approved an ordinance to add handicapped parking to Poplar Street downtown and started the review of a proposed medical marijuana ordinance. The board approved the addition of handicapped parking on Poplar Street in front of the First Christian Church. The ordinance goes into effect immediately and violators could face a fine of $50.50 to $225...

Tips from the public led Dexter Police to the man suspected of breaking into the Dexter Animal Shelter. Matthew Parris, 34 of Dexter, was arrested as a result of the investigation. According to Dexter Police a break-in occurred at the animal shelter in the early morning hours of July 31. The suspect did not take anything or harm any animals in the facility. The suspect eventually left the facility after damaging the dog door on the exterior door unit and looking around inside...

Registration has begun for Dexter Parks and Recreation youth sports programs. Tackle football is open to boys or girls entering the fifth and sixth grades. DPR has joined a league that includes the Chaffee, Jackson, Kelly and Perryville school districts...

First Midwest Bank on Business 60 hosted the First Friday Coffee for August. The first Friday of each month the chamber sponsors the first coffee event and it is hosted by a different Chamber member each month. Blake Horton of First Midwest Bank takes a photo with his mother Tracey Horton of First Missouri Bank of SEMO as she celebrates her birthday at this months event...

Sue Edwards and Tyson saluted the area's finest at the seventh annual Back the Blue event at the Hickory Log restaurant. Members of the Dexter Police Department, Stoddard County Sheriff's Department and Missouri State Highway Patrol were honored were certificates of appreciation and a meal paid for by Tyson Foods...