75¢
HHS students “Get Real.” (See page 6.)
Volume 121 Number 12 - USPS 225-680
Serving all of Prairie County and the Grand Prairie
Wednesday, March 23, 2022
Carlisle Council informed Community of buildings’ destruction
Calendar of Events
Monday March 21-25 Spring Break for all School Districts Wednesday March 23 Spring Break Candy Hunt Hazen Public Library Ages 0 - Pre-K 11:00 a.m. Kindergarten to 2nd - 2:00 a.m. Pre-register by calling 870-255-3570 Thursday March 24 Food Distribution Hazen Methodist Church Drive Through 10:00 a.m.12:00 p.m. Monday April 4 Biscoe City Council Meeting Tuesday April 5 Master Gardeners clean-up day at the Fairgrounds 11:30 a.m. Tuesday April 12 Prairie County Quorum Court meets in Des Arc Courthouse Annex 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.
By Debbye Harrison Mayor Ray Glover announced to the Carlisle City Council that most of the buildings on the west end of Main Street are due to be torn down since many of them have their roofs collapsing at its March 15 meeting. Council members Jon Plafcan, Mike Walker, Anne Anderson, Larry Flynn present. Kevin Kegley and Todd Turner were absent. Glover said that the Merle Norman and Fred’s buildings are going to be demolished by Randy Phillips and the owner will give him the property in exchange. Sitting next to the Winrock Building, which is in good shape, is a small building belonging to the city. This building was at one time the office for the Carlisle Independent. When the newspaper moved, Cone
and Betty Magie gave it to the city. The Council tabled the motion to have this building torn down until an inspection for asbestos could be completed and future plans for the use of the property could be secured. Baseball season begins April 2. There are 140 students signed up. The first home game is April 11. Mike Stuart reported on the continued effort to settle the insurance claim for the fire truck hit by an 18 wheeler on the interstate. The cost of repairing the damages have been extremely slow in being estimated. Meanwhile, the price for a new or good used truck continue to rise. During this time the Carlisle Fire Department has had to rely on assistance from the Lonoke Fire Department for fires that exceed their current equipment.
Sanders campaigns in Des Arc On March 17, a campaign fundraiser for Republican candidate for Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders was held at the home of Mr.
and Mrs. Darrell (Dare) Saul III in Des Arc. Approximately 90 people attended. Sanders and her husband took time to greet the guests and
gave a speech about her plans for Arkansas if elected Governor. Finger foods were provided by Lanan Lisko catering.
Hazen School board tables four-day school week After a brief statement by Hazen School Board President Vicki Skarda in which she asked that the board table the vote on going to a four-day school week until more research could be done. The vote for the change was on the agenda for that night, but the board eventually agreed to wait until January of 2023 to decide on the issue. The meeting was held in the high school gymnasium on Monday, March 14, with all members present. Skarda said that the
school needed to be “run like a business”, but she added “we need to do a lot more discussion” about the fourday week. Mason Sickel agreed, saying, “Each student needs to vote on it.” Sickel said that he had spoken with people at the school in England and that although the England administration was happy with a four-day week, parents and students were not as enthusiastic. Debbie Carlyle said that she would “go by what my zone wants.” Skarda told the board that “Janan Sickel has
put tons and tons of work into this,” and thanked her for her effort. Superintendent Donnie Boothe informed the board that the district had been re-zoned by the Arkansas Secretary of State so that the school would be in compliance with the Federal Voting Rights Act of 1965. This has resulted in the loss of two of the zones, from seven to five, but Boothe said that the two board members who would lose their seats would be made “at large” members of
the board and retain their positions. All of the board members will have to campaign for their positions this coming November, according to Boothe. A resolution approving the re-zoning was passed by the board. A map of the new zones is not presently available, but it will be published in this paper when the school receives it. Boothe presented copies of the school calendar for 2022-23 which the teachers voted on and which was proposed by the Personnel Policies
Committee. The board voted to approve it. Boothe also recommended that the regular school bus route driver pay be increased by $5.00 per trip effective March 1, 2022. The increase will only continue until the last student day of this school year, and Boothe told the board that his office is working on finding ways to get the cost of driving under control. Boothe said that the number of bus routes had been reduced to five. The recommendation was passed. (Continued on p. 4)
Stuttgart Baptist Health Medical Center designated 2022 top hospital STUTTGART, Ark. – Baptist Health Medical Center-Stuttgart announced it has been recognized as a 2022 Top 100 Rural & Community Hospital. Compiled by The Chartis Center for Rural Health, this annual recognition program honors outstanding performance among the nation’s rural hospitals based on the results of the Chartis Rural Hospital Performance INDEX™. “We are honored to be recognized by The Chartis Center for Rural Health for our commitment to quality patient care,” said Kevin Storey, president of Baptist Health Medical CenterStuttgart. “Ultimately, we do not seek to earn awards, but it is nice to be recognized for the efforts our team puts forth in caring for our patients every day.” “Despite unprecedented adversity rural providers continue to display resiliency and a steadfast commitment
to their communities,” said Michael Topchik, national leader with The Chartis Center for Rural Health. “Honoring the Top 100 is one of the highpoints of our year. We are delighted to recognize the exceptional performance and innovation of this year’s recipients, particularly in light of the extraordinary challenges facing America’s rural health safety net.” Over the course of the last 12 years, the INDEX has established itself as the industry’s most comprehensive and objective assessment of rural hospital p e r f o r m a n c e . Leveraging publicly available data, the INDEX is trusted by rural hospitals, health systems with rural footprints, hospital associations and state offices of rural health across the country to measure and monitor performance across a variety of areas impacting hospital operations and finance.
New Postmaster... Ross A. Sisson is now serving Carlisle as its new Postmaster. He has been with the United States Postal Service for seven years.
68° 47°
9%
74°
64°
9%
5%
54°
42°
65°
42° 5%
70° 48°
4%