D (USPS156-140) Vol. 133, Number 17 DeWitt, AR 72042 • 16 Pages • 2 Sections • 75 cents
AROUND THE COUNTY
SPRING SHOPPING EXTRAVAGANZA
MS Eight Graders Visit Parkin Archeological State Park
Serving Arkansas County, County Arkansas Since 1882
Story and Pics on Page B1
Thursday, April 23, 2015
New Solar Power Plant Coming to Arkansas County
By Terrye Seamon
Multi-family sale and select vendors will be at the Arkansas County Fairgrounds Exhibit Building on Saturday, May 2nd from 7am-1pm! There will be second hand items including furniture, men & women’s clothing, home decor, toys, kitchen items, and shoes. Vendors include: 31 Bags, Scentsy, Nerium, Plexus, It Works, Mrs. Carla’s Sweet Things, Thrive Life, Monat Hair Products, Makeup Erasers, and Faith Baptist Church will have baked goods.
CHICKEN LUNCHEON AND SILENT AUCTION
Faith Baptist Church is having a chicken luncheon and silent auction Sunday, April 26th at 11:30 a.m. til? Cost per plate is $8 dine in or carry out. Menu is grilled chicken, smoked rice, green beans, rolls, dessert and tea. All proceeds to benefit Faith Baptist Youth Ministries.
ANNUAL PCCUA DEWITT FFA CRAWFISH BANQUET
The Annual PCCUA DeWitt FFA Crawfish Banquet will be held April 28th at 6:00 p.m. at the Arkansas County Fairgrounds Exhibit Building. Tickets are $20 and may be purchased from an FFA member, PCCUA DeWitt front office, or by calling 946-3506 ext.1600 There will be silent and live auction items and door prizes!
DEWITT FAMILY FITNESS NIGHT
DeWitt Public Schools will once again be holding our Annual Family Fitness & Science Night on Thursday May 7th, 2015 from 5:00 - 7:00 pm We are once again looking for people/organizations to have Exhibit Booths and to run an activity station. We invite you to do one or both! There is no cost to participate and this event is open to ALL families in the DeWitt School District. Please respond ASAP if you would like to participate in our event this year.
Chamber Scholarship Recipients Lizzy Bronson, Chamber President Darren Caldwell and Riley Poor
“Arkansas County is going to be the home of one of the largest solar powered facilities in the state,” Arkansas County Judge Eddie Best told the DeWitt Chamber of Commerce at their monthly luncheon April 16. Best said that the facility will encompass 500 acres south of Stuttgart with an expected completion date sometime in 2019. He also noted that the project will create job opportunities in the area for two to three years during construction as well as five or six permanent positions once it is completed. “I am excited about it,” Best said. The chamber also honored two high school scholarship recipients, Riley Poor and Lizzy Bronson. Both recipients expressed their gratitude to the chamber for their recognition. Bill Rasco Scholarship recipient Riley Poor said, “College is very expensive, and with the Bill Rasco Scholarship I am going to be able to pay for some of my college education. I am so proud of that.” Lizzy Bronson, recipient of the Wilbur Botts Scholarship said, “I realize that you had a lot of applications to pick through and a lot of essays to read, and I am so beyond honored that you selected me.” Carolyn Turner, vice chancellor of Phillips Community College DeWitt Campus reported to chamber members that the Higher Learning Commission, the institutions accreditation agency, will be on the DeWitt campus next week and meeting with students as well as a community group during their visit. DeWitt School District Superintendent Lynne Dardenne briefed
chamber members on the district’s progress of installing additional fiber optic cable in order to increase bandwidth. Dardenne said that the weather inhibited the fiber being installed before PARCC testing started on May 10. Despite the delay, Dardenne said, “We have been successful in testing all of the students with very few issues and problems. The fiber is going in at all of the buildings now.” She explained that the additional fiber should increase the district’s current bandwidth of 2 to 6 Megs to 50 Megs per campus. “That should boost things astronomically for us,” Dardenne said. Concerning the construction of the district’s new middle school, Dardenne announced that the district will be publicizing for bids for construction of the building during the next few weeks. Right now she said plans are to open bids May 12. Dardenne also addressed the recent publication of School Performance Report Cards released by the Arkansas Department of Education. Dardenne said, “DeWitt fared much better than many other districts throughout the state. We do have some room for improvement and we will continue to try and strive to make those improvements decreasing those achievement gaps between certain groups of students and general improvement overall.” Information on how to access that information will be posted on the district’s website for those who are interested. DeWitt City Mayor Ralph Relyea announced that the city has just applied for two grants to fund the
repaving and repair of the walking trail around the lake at the DeWitt City Park. He said that it will probably be late summer before the city knows if they will receive the grants. He also announced that the city’s newly elected park commission is sponsoring a chicken salad sandwich fundraiser May 21 from 11 A.M. to 1 P.M. at the DeWitt Community Center. Proceeds from the fundraiser will go toward beautification projects such as purchasing new playground equipment at the park. Darren Caldwell, administrator of DeWitt Hospital and Nursing Home, reminded those in attendance of the hospital’s 7th Annual Spring Fling Blood Drive Tuesday, April 21. “Our goal is 100 units,” Caldwell said. He noted that approximately 65-70 people have already reserved their appointments. Caldwell also announced that he is involved in a project concerning the city’s caboose. Caldwell explained, “The current location has been granted to the city to use. Due to some ownership changes, it will no longer be available to us in its current state.” Caldwell said he is currently in communication with the property owners and is working on a plan as to how to handle the property. He told the chamber that he should have something final within the next 30-45 days to bring before the chamber for their consideration. During the financial report, DeWitt Chamber of Commerce Treasurer Gena Jennings reported that the general fund balance for the month of April is $3,570.63.
Class of 2015 The 2015 Graduation Edition of the DeWitt Era-Enterprise is in the making! Deadline for ads and pictures is May 7th. The Edition will be in your newspaper, May 21st!
For more information, please call 870-946-3933 email: manager@dewitt-ee.com or come by the office 140 Court Square