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(USPS156-140) 6 0) V Vol.l 133, 33 N Number b 3 DeWitt, AR 72042 • 16 Pages • 2 Sections • 75 cents
Annual Coon Supper Held in Gillett
Serving Arkansas County County, Arkansas Since 1882
Story and Photos on Pages A8 & B1
Thursday, January 15, 2015
Best of DeWitt: Outstanding Youth of the Year
AROUND THE COUNTY
By Terrye Seamon
DEWITT CHAMBER BANQUET
The DeWitt Chamber of Commerce “Best of DeWitt” Awards Banquet will be held January 29th at 6:30 pm at the DeWitt High School Cafeteria. The guest speaker will be Steve “Wildman” Wilson, who is the Public Affairs Coordinator with Arkansas Game & Fish. Tickets are $15 and available from Chamber members and various businesses around town. For more information contact Scarlett at PCCUA 946-3506 ext. 1620
18TH ANNUAL BILL SANDERSBO PIPER BENEFIT BASS TOURNAMENT
The 18th Annual Bill SandersBo Piper Benefit Bass Tournament will be held Saturday, March 28, 2015 on the Arkansas River, Pine Bluff Regional Park. To register contact the Area Agency on Aging, at 870-543-6300 or toll free 1-800-264-3260 or by email: sstichert@aaasea.org or jwallace@aaasea.org. Entry forms will be online also at aaasea. org
E VANGELIST JAMIE COULTER COMING TO CHURCH OF THE LIVING GOD
Everyone is invited to join us at, The Church of The Living God. Location: Gander Street in Gillett, AR. Time and Date: January 24, 2015 at 6:00 p.m.
MLK DAY CELEBRATION
MLK Day Celebration by Lively Stone Church in Stuttgart will take place onMonday, January 19. Kickball for youngsters at J.B Bryant Park will start at 12 Noon. Parade at 4pm starting at Farmers & Merchants Bank on Main and ending at Holman School where Guest Speaker Dr. Karen Mathis will address the group at 5pm.
seems to be an exception. West is proving that a 21-year-old can successfully take on the world and do it with style. West, who earned an associate degree from Phillips Community College of the University of Arkansas DeWitt Campus in graphic communications, is currently working on her four-year degree in applied technology on line through the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith. During her time on the PCCUA DeWitt Campus, West was actively involved in various activities of campus life, most of which were service oriented. Her resume ranges from working on parade floats to taking the lead on various committees and working on annual activities hosted by the college such as the career fair, back-toOutstanding Youth of the Year Elizabeth West school orientations and the Mardi Gras ball, just When we are 21, we think we are in- to name a few. vincible and attempt to take on the One activity West can be extremely world. Unfortunately after a few failed proud of is serving as a student amattempts, reality sets in and we quickly bassador. She was an integral part of learn our rightful place in the universe. the first group of student ambassadors That is not the case with this year’s PCCUA organized and has set the bar Best of DeWitt Outstanding Youth of pretty high for future ambassadors. the Year, Elizabeth “Lizzy” West, who “She and a couple of other student am-
bassadors have been good at helping me see things from a student’s perspective rather than an administrator’s perspective,” Carolyn Turner, vice chancellor of PCCUA DeWitt Campus, said. And the accolades do not stop there. Scarlet Lamb, compressed video and IAE Center coordinator at the DeWitt Campus, said, “I am so glad she got this. She has been a wonderful ambassador and has done everything I have asked of her…if she hasn’t already volunteered to do it.” Diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at 13-months-old, West has faced many challenges throughout her 21 years, one of which was challenging Arkansas’ Medicaid policy. According to her mother, Virginia West, Elizabeth West was a plaintiff in a lawsuit filed this summer when, due to cost, she was denied a $300,000-a-year drug to treat her disease. Even though her battle with cystic fibrosis is ongoing, West still continues to meet her challenges head on. “She’s my little angel. She’s a fighter and she’s pulled through,” West’s mother said. West will be honored at the DeWitt Chamber of Commerce’s Best of DeWitt Banquet January 29 at the DeWitt High School cafeteria. The guest speaker will be Steve “Wildman” Wilson from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. Tickets are $15 and will be available at the banks, at PCCUA DeWitt Campus and from any DeWitt Chamber of Commerce member.
Open House at Professional Athletics ◄
Carlee Cox in new studio
Professional Athletics is a new facility where kids of all ages can join to learn cheer and tumbling. Carlee Cox along with her parents, Jeremy and Tina Cox, will be the owners and operators of the cheer and tumbling studio. Jeremy stated that Carlee has been cheering and tumbling since the age of 4. Carlee loves it and is now ready to teach the skills that she has learned and mastered to the next group of soon to be cheerleaders and tumblers. Carlee will teach the younger groups and her personal cheer/tumble coach and trainer, Ryan Salami has agreed to teach at the facility also. There will be a registration and open house Saturday, January 17th from 10 a.m. till 2 p.m. For more information, please call Jeremy at 501-5294999 or Tina at 870-946-9398. Professional Athletics Cheer and Tumbling is at 138 Court Square located beside Cox Hometown Realty in the old Lizzie’s Building.
Registration and Open House 138 Court Square 946-9398
• This Saturday from 10:00am until 2:00pm • Classes will be offered for Ages 4 and Up • New State of the Art Equipment (Tumble Track, Dismount Mat, 2 Tumble Strips/Spring Floors) • Professional Coaching • Positive Learning Environment
CALL JEREMY • 501-529-4999 OR TINA • 870-946-9398 WITH ANY QUESTIONS
Registration THIS SATURDAY from 10:00am to 2:00pm