RECOLLECTIONS

50 Years Ago Pea Ridge Graphic Vol. 3 No. 13 Thursday, March 28, 1968

If no further school dismissals are necessitated by bad weather, the school closing date will be on May 24 — two weeks later than originally scheduled. Unlike some schools of the area, Pea Ridge schools have not been closed by flu epidemics this year, but have had to deal with about two weeks altogether of ice and snow too dangerous to allow bus transportation. Meeting in regular monthly session, the School Board also touched briefly on the matter of some soil washing on the campus during the snows and rains of recent weeks. The short public session followed a lengthy executive session barred to the press and the public.

Are there as many as 30 persons in Pea Ridge who would like to hear some concrete, down-to-earth facts on “what to do when the doctor is not coming?” If so, Billy Sisco, Pea Ridge Civil Defense director, told a gathering at City Hall he will be glad to arrange a medical self-help course through the Civil Defense. Sisco pointed out that Red Cross courses in first aid tell what to do if the doctor is not coming. Anyone, at any time, could find himself in such a situation in the event of a national or area or local disaster, if the disaster were such as to render numbers of persons in need of medical help at the same time. All ages, from teenagers to the elderly citizens of a community should be interested in such a course, Sisco said. There is no charge for taking the course, he said.

United States Representative John Paul Hammerschmidt of Arkansas’ 3rd District was given a high rating of 83 percent for his voting record during the First Session of the 90th Congress (1967) by the Americans for Constitutional Action. Americans for Constitutional Action is the non-partisan political organization which last year honored 149 Republican and Democrat members of the United States Congress for their notable voting records in support of legislative measures which serve to sustain, strengthen and defend the spirit and principles of the Constitution of the United States as defined by the Founding Fathers of our Republic.

40 Years Ago Pea Ridge Graphic-Scene Vol. 13 No. 13 Wednesday, March 29, 1978

Participation by local business people in the Pea Ridge Chamber of Commerce has reached a low ebb, Chamber president Sammy Spivey said recently. He issued an invitation to all operators of businesses in Pea Ridge and the surrounding area to attend

a chamber meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday at City Hall. Spivey noted that most business people willingly pay membership dues but are reluctant to attend meetings and work on projects sponsored by the chamber. He said involvement of the member is necessary if the organization is to function. All members of the area business community are invited to attend chamber meetings the first Thursday of each month.

Pea Ridge School Board officers were re-elected by unanimous vote at the board’s monthly meeting Monday night at the school administration building. In other business, the Board heard a report on an inspection visit from a state Department of Education official; discussed new contracts for principals; sold an old bus and tabled a bid for a new bus; approved plans for the junior prom and senior class trip; approved use of the gym by Alpha Nu sorority for an All-American Redhead basketball game; and approved use of school ground by Beta Alpha sorority for the Pea Ridge Community Fair.

A free, lifetime pass to the most beautiful stopping off spots in American is available to persons age 62 or above. If you have reached that magic age and would like your free pass to those national parks, monuments and recreation areas which charge entrance fees, it is yours for the asking. The Golden Age Passport is issued free to citizens or permanent residents of the United States who are 62 or older and it admits not only the permit holder but any persons accompanying him or her in a single, private noncommercial vehicle such as a car, pickup, motor home or motorcycle.

30 Years Ago The TIMES of Northeast Benton County Vol. 23 No. 13 Thursday, March 30, 1988

The Pea Ridge Board of Education approved a resolution Friday evening to refund a bond issue that will save the district nearly $68,000 over the life of the loan. Superintendent Bill Alvarez said that the refunding will “probably bring our debt service down to 36 or 37 percent.” The superintendent and board members have said that they hope to get the debt service percentage to below 30 at some point.

If you need to get in touch with Sam Spivey between now and the end of June, you might find him at Sisco Funeral Home or at home. More than likely, though, he’ll be at Pea Ridge Day Field doing any number of things that must be done to have a successful Little League season. Spivey is once again in charge of the program. Spivey said the the Babe Ruth field “was developed around 1970 or 1971 by a group of interested parents.” There are five acres owned by Pea Ridge Little League, Inc. “The duties and responsibilities are passed on from one group of officers to the next, one year to the next.” Spivey said that there were about 150 youngsters in the program last year.

A spokesman for the Arkansas Highway Department in Little Rock said last week that bids for the improvement of Arkansas Highway 265 will be opened on April 7 at 10 a.m. Bill Stanton, public affairs officer for the department, said that there had been some question about whether the bids would be opened on that date because of problems involving rightsof-way acquisition. Stanton said, “There was such an interest in getting this done as soon as possible, that we went ahead and advertised for bids.” He said that it generally takes from 30 to 45 days from the time the contract is let to the time that construction can begin. The work will include straightening some of the roadway, replacing a bridge and paving.

20 Years Ago The TIMES of Northeast Benton County Vol. 33 No. 13 Thursday, April 2, 1998

John King, head coach of the Pea Ridge Blackhawk baseball team, said it is too early to get a feel for what kind of team he has this year but he is hoping for many more games like the first two of the season. King said, “I can see us finishing anywhere from fourth to first in the conference out of five teams. I think anybody in the conference could win.”

Jeremy Reidel, an eighthgrader at Pea Ridge Middle School, will complete in the Arkansas Geography Bee in Russellville on Friday, April 3. Jeremy qualified for the State Bee by not only winning first place in the Pea Ridge Middle School GeoBee held in January, but also by having one of the top scores in the state on a written geography test which was designed and scored by the National Geographic Society, sponsor of the National Geography Bee.

St. John’s Regional Medical Center in Joplin, Mo., has announced a new Catholic ministry developed to serve needs of area communities, including Seligman. St. John’s MedMobile is a 36-foot mobile coach that will take primary, preventive services on the road. The MedMobile’s first months of service will be offered in Joplin, Noel, Granby and Seligman. The service will be multi-generational and multi-cultural, especially targeting the medically under served women, children and older adults in rural southwest Missouri.

10 Years Ago The TIMES of Northeast Benton County Vol. 43 No. 13 Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Fires around northeast Benton County kept firefighters running for the past week. Firefighters from the Northeast Benton County Volunteer Fire Department responded to six fire calls last week, two of which were structure fires. Pea Ridge firefighters responded to four. In northeast Benton County, when there is a structure fire, usually three departments are called to assist one another. Depending on the location, that can be NEBCO, Pea Ridge, Little Flock and Avoca. Arkansas has the seventh highest rate of fire death in the nation.

Heather Wade couldn’t have asked for a more eventful 11 months after being named the senior girls’ basketball coach at her alma mater. In her first season, Wade directed the Pea Ridge Lady Blackhawks to a 20-7 record, an 11-game improvement from a year ago, and the school’s first state tournament appearance since 1989. Wade had some help, too. Her former coach, longtime Pea Ridge basketball coach and current athletics director Larry Walker, served as her assistant on the bench. Together they guided the Lady Blackhawks to places not seen since Walker was on the sideline, and recently the Benton County Daily Record named Wade its 2008 High School Girls Coach of the Year.

Pill and homemade cigarette in the hands of an 11-year-old male student resulted in quick action by emergency personnel Monday afternoon at Pea Ridge Upper Elementary School. “Pea Ridge police were called to the upper elementary school in reference to a child possibly in possession of unidentified pills,” said Police Chief Tim Ledbetter. “At least six different types of pills were in question, ranging from Ibuprofen to prescription pills,” Ledbetter said. “They were taken into evidence to be further positively identified.” The student was cited into the Benton County Juvenile Court system and released to his parents pending further investigation, Ledbetter said.