75¢
Hazen holds Trunk or Treat on Saturday. (See p. 6.)
Volume 120 Number 44 - USPS 225-680
Serving all of Prairie County and the Grand Prairie
Wednesday, November 3, 2021
Community Calendar of Events Tuesday November 2 Senior Citizen Bingo Hazen Senior Citizen Center 12:00 p.m. Thursday November 4 Des Arc Eagles vs Clarendon Lions Eagle Field 7:00 p.m. Friday November 5 Carlisle Bisons vs England England Field 7:00 p.m. Sunday November 7 Sand Hill Cemetery Association Meeting 2:00 p.m. Sand Hill Missionary Baptist Church Monday November 8 Biscoe EHC Meeting First Baptist Church Fellowship Hall 10:30 a.m. Tuesday November 9 Quorum Court Meeting Annex Building 6:00 p.m. Thursday November 11 Veterans’ Day De Valls Bluff City Council Meeting City Hall 6:00 p.m. November 18 Hazen City Council Meeting City Hall 6:00 p.m.
Community events brought to you by Hazen Chamber of Commerce
and the Please call F&M Bank (255-3042) or The Grand Prairie Herald (255-4538) to list events.
Bishop of Arkansas visits Tollville... The Bishop of Arkansas came to visit Saint Peters Episcopal Church in Tollville recently. The congregation had a wonderful breakfast and a morning service. Bishop Larry Benfield and Father Mark Nabors performed five confirmations: Macie Sickel, Scott Medlock, Dean Taylor, Carrie Beckwith, and Jon Beckwith. The priests also presided over two reconfirmations: Mamie Sickel and Chris Sickel. (Austin Foot, Senior Warden, provided the picture of the congregants with the Bishop.)
Des Arc School Board to restore home ec building At the October 25th school board meeting, plans were begun for restoring the old Home Economics building. The board authorized Superintendent Dr. Marc Sherrell to sign papers to apply for a grant. The architectural firm Schelle and Associates was hired to prepare the needed plans for the restoration. The building has been listed on the State and National Historical Registry which was the
first step in the restoration process. Some things that will help with grant approval include: a promised donation of a new roof by Aaron Stuckey, the fact that it is on school property and will be used by the school, it is in “good” condition according to the architect, and the plan is supported by the community. The architect has estimated the cost to be around $227,214 (which includes the cost
of the roof). The board also approved a motion authorizing Dr. Sherrell to apply for a grant to build a safe room on campus. The board accepted the resignation of cafeteria worker Krysty Wyatt. A motion was approved to hire Sheila Rogers as her replacement and to hire Katrina Dillehay as a substitute cafeteria worker. Present at the meeting were Superintendent Dr. Marc Sherrell; Board
Members Johnny Reidhar, Sylvester Holloway, Stewart Morton, Charlie Brown, Jordan Smith, Billy Hinson and Drew Widenar; High School Principal Michael Strothers; Elementary Principal Cheryl Holland; and District Treasurer Natasha Richards. Concrete eagles to be placed on the fence posts at the football field were finally located in Judsonia. They are
$100 each and 3 extras will be included. Johnny Reidhar volunteered to buy the eagles and be reimbursed by the school. People who have reserved the posts will then purchase them from the school. It will take approximately 7 months for the eagles to be erected. Due to the Thanksgiving holiday the November board meeting will be November 29th.
Carlisle Council votes to repair courts By Debbye Harrison The Carlisle City Council met October 12 with one Council Member, Jon Plafcan, absent. Several citizens brought issues before the Council. Tim Campbell and Randy Shoemake, volunteers with the new tennis team formed at the high school, asked the Council to restore the tennis courts so that they will be acceptable for team use. Some of the primary concerns are the limbs that are a threat to players and the court. The surface is uneven and needs total repair. The trench that was dug to stop the tree roots from growing under the court and eventually causing it to split was never filled with concrete. Therefore, the barrier that was supposed to be in place is not, and the tree roots are creating damage. Further, some of the lights are out. Shoemake explained that he had been on the first Parks and Recreation Committee. That group had been instrumental in getting the tennis court built. It was built with grant money. One of the stipulations of that kind of money is that those projects are kept in good repair so that in the future the city will be deemed worthy to receive more grants. The tennis courts would not meet that requirement as they are now. After some discussion the Council passed a resolution to have the limbs cut and to have Campbell and Shoemake submit quotes for repair of the lights and the total re- surfacing of the courts. Connie Medsker, the pharmacist at Medsker’s Pharmacy, asked for the Council to consider ways
that the city might help with a start-up which will provide the infusion of antibodies to prevent hospitalization for COVID. If the infusion can be given quickly enough, it can be a contributing factor to keeping patients at home and a shorter recovery period. The facility has to meet strict guidelines and requires a nurse or pharmacist on duty fulltime. Equipment would include recliners and medical supplies such as IV poles and sanitary and hygiene regulated facilities. At this time there is no building available and the front of the pharmacy would have to be used. However, that would mean that the infusions could only be done after store hours. When asked what the costs might be, Medsker told the Council she would be able to get them a final figure in a few days. At that time her best estimate was $25,000. “There is no such facility closer than Little Rock and this would be a great help to the people of this town and surrounding area,” she said. Mayor Ray Glover brought up the Legislative Audit which he said has been a recurring problem. Angela James, Administrator, explained that she took over the books from Trudy Drye, but did not have full understanding of municipal bookkeeping systems. She and the Mayor believe that the problems that are on the audit are bookkeeping errors and not any misuse of funds. Amy Parker has offered to help James. Parker was a former legislative auditor. With her help and advice from current auditors, James believes
that these corrections can be made and the audit can be rectified. Sherry Rollins, Carlisle Librarian, announced that a new website for the library is underway and should be ready soon. She has also had help from the Master Gardeners, and they plan to return. The library keeps a full schedule of activities for children and adults. These activities are posted on the website or
may be obtained at the library. Mayor Glover thanked Rollins and commended her for her hard work. Ronnie Ashmore, Parks and Rec Director, was on sick leave. It was reported that both Little League and Football were underway. For the first time the Civic Center was used for a Celebration of Life occasion. Johnny Raper has been hired as the Electrical
Inspector for Carlisle. He also serves Hazen. This will help move inspections along and keep progress going for builders. The Fire Department made an urgent request to get air packs that will pass inspection. The last purchase made was for refurbished ones and these cannot be recertified. If something is not done soon, the fire department will be out of state compliance.
Des Arc girls top in pageant... At the Miss Lick Skillet pageant in Brinkley on October 9th two girls from Des Arc won titles in the Teen Miss category. Callie Baxter was crowned Teen Miss and Lily Hinson was named the 1st Alternate.
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