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Obituary: Marquita Sue Hattabaugh (1954-2026)

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1:43 pm

Obituary: Marquita Sue Hattabaugh (1954-2026)

Marquita Hattabaugh, 71, passed peacefully on March 26, 2026, at her home in Elm Park, Arkansas, surrounded by the loving family she cherished so deeply. Born on September 14, 1954, in LaFollette, Tennessee, to Gene and Verla (Richmond) Bullock, Marquita was a woman of extraordinary grace, unwavering faith, and a heart that overflowed with love for Jesus and her family.

Marquita graduated from Waldron High School in 1972, where she was proudly crowned Miss Waldron High School. She went on to graduate from Arkansas Vo-Tech in 1974, where she was not only honored as Miss Vo-Tech, but also distinguished with the prestigious Secretary of the Year award – a testament to her dedication, excellence, and the quiet strength she carried throughout her life.

That same year, 1974, she married the love of her life, Steve Hattabaugh, and together they built a home filled with faith, laughter, and a love that never wavered. She was a devoted member of the Waldron Church of the Nazarene, where she served her Lord faithfully – whether helping in her church, participating in mission trips, or simply being a shining example of Christian love to all who knew her.

Marquita was a proud and passionate supporter of causes close to her heart, including the American Heart Association, World Vision, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Shriners Hospitals for Children, and the March of Dimes. She believed deeply in giving, in serving, and in making the world a little brighter for those in need.

She was never happier than when she was surrounded by her family – whether on a cherished family vacation, on a mission trip serving others, on a shopping trip with the ones she loved, or simply gathered together in the warmth of home. She loved Jesus above all things, and that love poured into every corner of her life. Strong, courageous, and steadfast in her faith, Marquita lived as a true servant of God and a blessing to everyone she encountered.

Marquita is survived by her beloved husband, Steve Hattabaugh; her sons, Trevor Hattabaugh (Courtney), Shay Hattabaugh (Brandy), and Chase Hattabaugh (Shannon); her grandchildren, Madison Moses, Bryar Hattabaugh, Treven Hattabaugh, JR Powell, Brooke Hattabaugh, Paisley Jeffrey, Walker Johnson, Townes Johnson and Reese Place; her great-grandchildren, Hunter Moses, Brentley Moses, Addalee Hattabaugh, Ritalee Moses, Mylee Grace and Tinslee Moses; her mother, Verla Bullock; her mother-in-law, Joyce Hattabaugh; her sisters, Denise Thompson (Mike) and Gina Epperson (Tracy); and a host of extended family and dear friends whose lives she touched in immeasurable ways.

She was preceded in death by her father, Gene Bullock; her beloved son, Garris Hattabaugh; father-in-law, Sherman “Sonny” Hattabaugh; her niece, Cheyenne Epperson; and her cousins, Kelly Langley Jr., Karen Hunt, Pandora Bray and Teresa Henson.

Visitation will be held on Monday, March 30, 2026, from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Heritage Memorial Funeral Home in Waldron, Arkansas.

A Celebration of her life will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, at Waldron First Church of the Nazarene, with Reverend Wally Beckman and Reverend Jeff Wilkinson officiating.

Entombment will take place at Freedom Cemetery at a later date.

Pallbearers will be Trevor Hattabaugh, Shay Hattabaugh, Chase Hattabaugh, Dustin Moses, Treven Hattabaugh, and Bryar Hattabaugh.

Her honorary pallbearer will be Garris Hattabaugh – carried always in love, never far from her side even now.

Arrangements are entrusted to Heritage Memorial Funeral Home, Waldron, Arkansas.

In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests that memorial donations be made in Marquita’s honor to one of the following organizations:

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Memorial Giving 501 St. Jude Place Memphis, TN 38105

Arkansas Children’s Hospital P.O. Box 2222 Little Rock, AR 72203

March of Dimes P.O. Box 5141 Boone, IA 50950

World Vision P.O. Box 9716 Federal Way, WA 98063

Marquita Sue Hattabaugh leaves behind a legacy not measured in years, but in the love she gave freely, the faith she lived boldly, and the lives she made better simply by being in them. She will be missed beyond all words, and loved beyond all time.

“Well done, good and faithful servant.”

Family and friends who are unable to attend are invited to join her Celebration of Life via webcast on her memorial webpage.

Returning to the Roots: Farmhouse Ranch Blends Dairy, Education, and Legacy in Scott County

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Returning to the Roots: Farmhouse Ranch Blends Dairy, Education, and Legacy in Scott County

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Resident Press (Lavaca, Charleston, Paris edition) 4/1/26 Vol. 5 No. 13

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Resident Press (Lavaca, Charleston, Paris edition) 4/1/26 Vol. 5 No. 13

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Resident Press (Scott & So. Sebastian County edition) 4/1/26 Vol. 8 No. 13

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Resident Press (Scott & So. Sebastian County edition) 4/1/26 Vol. 8 No. 13

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Greenwood Resident 04/1/26 Vol. 6 No. 13

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Greenwood Resident 04/1/26 Vol. 6 No. 13

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GG’s Roots & Remedies Brings Natural Wellness and Local Goods to Huntington

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GG’s Roots & Remedies Brings Natural Wellness and Local Goods to Huntington

What began as a personal journey toward better health has grown into a thriving homestead business rooted in natural living and community connection.

Gus and Gina Gustafson have not only found a home in Huntington, but have also established what they describe as the retirement homestead they once only imagined.

For Gina Gustafson, the path to launching GG’s Roots & Remedies started with a search for alternatives. Frustrated with medications that left her feeling worse, she began researching more natural approaches to wellness.

“GG’s Roots & Remedies was created to help people be healthier and feel better,” Gustafson said.

Her research led her into the world of tinctures, salves, and herbal remedies. What started as a personal solution soon caught the attention of others.

“Neighbors began asking me to make them something, and it just grew from there,” she said.

As demand increased, it quickly became clear the business had outgrown the family home. After considering smaller options, the Gustafsons ultimately chose to expand with a new modular building to house the growing operation.

Today, GG’s Roots & Remedies — Rooted in Nature, Made with Intention offers a variety of handcrafted products, along with goods from other local producers.

Among the offerings are fresh baked bread from Jennifer Briley, local raw honey from Yeakley Bee Company, raw milk from the Farmhouse Ranch at Persimmon Hill, Heavenly Blessings goat’s milk products, organic eggs, and more.

The business reflects more than just a marketplace—it represents a collaborative network of local homesteaders.

“This is a community of farm stand operators,” Gustafson said. “We aren’t competing against each other—we want to help one another.”

GG’s Roots & Remedies is located at 811 W. Clay St. in Huntington. More information can also be found on Facebook at:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61586642043280

As the homestead continues to grow, the Gustafsons’ effort stands as an example of how small-scale agriculture, natural living, and community partnerships can come together to create something lasting in rural Arkansas.

State Capitol Week in Review from Senator Terry Rice

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State Capitol Week in Review from Senator Terry Rice

LITTLE ROCK — The Arkansas Legislative Council recently voted to approve a contract worth up to $12 million to offer the Classic Learning Test (CLT) in high schools across the state for the next four years.

The contract is between the Arkansas Department of Education and Maryland-based Classic Learning Initiatives LLC. The contract begins on July 1 and ends in June 2030, with an extension available through June 2033.

Like the ACT or SAT, the CLT is a standardized test used for college admissions in the United States to measure high school students’ readiness for college. According to the CLT website, the test is “…designed to serve students from a variety of educational backgrounds…our assessments emphasize timeless academic skills and promote critical and logical thinking.”

According to Classic Learning Initiatives, the Classic Learning Test provides a more comprehensive measure of academic formation, accomplishment, and potential and offers a better test-taking experience: “By including reading passages from classic and historical texts, CLT exams offer a unique opportunity to engage students with the influential authors and ideas that have shaped history and culture.”

Its reading and writing passages draw heavily from classic literature and major historical authors such as Homer, Plato, Aristotle, Dante, Chaucer, and John Wyckliffe; early modern writers such as Erasmus, Shakespeare, and Thomas Hobbes; and late moderns such as Jane Austen, Charles Darwin, Fyodor Dostoevsky, J.R.R. Tolkien, Langston Hughes, and Mark Twain.

The CLT suite of tests is also approved for annual testing requirements for homeschool students and those using Education Savings Account funds.

Sponsored by state Sen. Jim Dotson, who represents District 34 (which includes parts of cities of Bella Vista, Bentonville, Centerton and Hiwasse in Benton County), and state Rep. Keith Brooks, who represents House District 78 (which includes portions of Pulaski, Perry, and Saline Counties), Act 724 of 2025 mandated Arkansas public and charter high schools to offer the CLT along with the ACT and SAT.

The cost will cover students’ testing fees. The online forms of the Classic Learning Test and its ninth and 10th grade version cost $34.50, while paper forms cost $44.50.

The actual amount that Arkansas will pay Classic Learning Initiatives will depend on how many students take the Classic Learning Test instead of the ACT or SAT.

More than 300 higher education institutions nationwide accept the Classic Learning Test for admissions. U.S. service academies have also announced that they would accept the exam for the 2027 admissions cycle. Currently several Arkansas colleges and universities accept the test, including The University of Arkansas, The University of Central Arkansas, Harding University, John Brown University, the University of the Ozarks, Williams Baptist University, Ecclesia College, Crowley’s Ridge College, and Arkansas Tech University.

The Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarship recognizes the CLT, with a qualifying score of 58, which is roughly equivalent to a 24 score on the ACT.

Farmers, consumers may be riding the egg price waves in the coming months

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9:40 am

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Farmers, consumers may be riding the egg price waves in the coming months

By Mary Hightower
University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Egg prices are heading upward from their February dip, but consumers should get used to a price rollercoaster, said Jada Thompson, poultry agricultural economist for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.

In February, prices declined to their lowest levels since 2023.

“Since then, they’re back up, likely due to Easter demand,” Thompson said on Tuesday.

“The story with egg prices now is in the uncertainty,” Thompson said. “We know there is seasonal demand, but with Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza rolling around and biological lags in replenishment, farmers really don’t have a lot of control when it comes to planning and egg placements.

“They and consumers just have to ride the waves, and those waves have been bad these past few years,” she said.

The Economic Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in its March outlook that table-egg production in January 2026 totaled 656.7 million dozen, up 2.2 percent from January 2025. The increase was the result of a 1.8 percent higher average layer inventory and a 0.4 percent higher lay rate.

However, HPAI claimed 2.8 million commercial egg layers in January 2026, and “while this is down month to month, it is still a year-over-year increase of 2.9 percent,” ERS said in its report. “In the month of February, an additional 9.5 million commercial table-egg layers were lost to HPAI, primarily in Pennsylvania, but also in Wisconsin and North Carolina.”

ERS said it revised its table egg production forecasts downward for both the first and second quarters of 2026.

“Fewer eggs tighten supply and can drive prices up,” Thompson said. “The change in those prices will depend on how many HPAI cases we get throughout the year. Nobody likes it, but we’ll have to wait and see the supply and demand working in real time.”

To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit uada.edu. To learn more about ag and food research in Arkansas, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station at aaes.uada.edu.

“Just Roll with It” Serving up Recipes and Humor

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9:39 am

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“Just Roll with It” Serving up Recipes and Humor

Hello everyone! Beautiful days in the River Valley!! The Chamber of Commerce sponsored a huge Easter egg hunt at the City Lake Park in Mansfield Saturday, and the weather was perfect. We had around 3,000 eggs, and there were a lot of kiddos there. A good time was had by all.
I went to lunch with my big kids, Jacob and Loren. We went to Cheddar’s and had the best time. We always sit and visit awhile since I don’t see them often. Jacob decided to give us a geography quiz. He knows I’m not smart, so why does he always want to ask me questions like that? I don’t know north, south, east, or west, so why does he want to make me look bad? If I asked my husband for directions, he would say go south, then turn due north??? Okay, Christopher Columbus, just give me a restaurant as a marker and quit acting like I know what you mean—like turn at the red barn or by McDonald’s or something easy.
When we got married and moved to Owego, New York, I was driving down the road and everyone was waving and honking. I had heard New Yorkers were not friendly, but these folks were very friendly. I’m driving down the street, and when I get to the end and notice the one-way sign, I realized I was driving the wrong way down a one-way street—so that explained why they were waving and honking.
I learned something else about New Yorkers—they could not understand Arkansas “hick” language. I could not order at a drive-thru; they never could understand what I wanted. It was so frustrating. When Chuck was with me, he had to order for me. They just loved to listen to me talk. When we would go to California to visit Chuck’s family, they would always say, “Say something so we can listen to you talk.” They loved it and would just laugh. I’m glad I could entertain them—it didn’t bother me a bit.
Here’s just a little funny to end on. When we went to Nashville, my niece Kelly went with us. She had lost weight and was walking in front of me wearing black leggings. Let me tell you, her legs looked so skinny I hollered, “Are those your legs, or are you sitting on a chicken?” My brother thought that was hilarious—we laughed and laughed. If you see Justin Weaver in a pair of shorts, ask him that same question. He has the skinniest legs I have ever seen in my life.
Y’all have a good week and get your eggs colored for Easter. This is another dessert for Easter—very light and tasty.
Twinkie Strawberry Cheesecake
Line the bottom of a 9×13 pan with Twinkies.
You can buy strawberries with sugar (frozen), let them thaw, and spread them over the Twinkies.
You can buy a 24-ounce tub of Philadelphia no-bake original cheesecake filling, or you can make your own using two 8-ounce cream cheese packages, two cups of sugar, and some vanilla. I just guess at my cream cheese filling recipe. Spread this evenly over the strawberries.
Top with a tub of Cool Whip, and you can decorate with sliced strawberries on top.
Sooo easy—you can buy everything and don’t have to mix anything up.
Have a great week and have a happy Easter!

Timepiece: The Golden Age of TV

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6:37 pm

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by Dr. Curtis Varnell

Visiting my Oklahoma grandmother for a weekend was a treat. She could actually pick up, believe it or not, six televisions stations with her antennae. Heck, we didn’t even have a T.V. until I was around ten and we got one channel, CBS. Saturday mornings at grandmas was a smorgasbord of cartoons. All my favorite stories and characters that I still remember like they were dear and best friends; which they were in my young, easily imprinted mind. The Hanna-Barbara cartoons were some of my favorites. Let’s see, there was Deputy Dawg, Yogi Bear, the Jetson’s and, of course, The Flintstones. My favorite was the Roadrunner; the little underdog always got the best of that Wiley coyote. In the afternoons, I could always locate my favorite Tarzan or Jungle Jim movies and set entranced in front of the T.V. Babysitting we five kids must have been easy back then; of course Roger could never sit still more than ten minutes so grandma had to keep an eye out for him or he would be taking spark plugs out of her car or seeing which facet worked best on her milk cow.

The shows were entertaining but what I remember most were the commercials. Saturday morning’s it was all breakfast cereal. I can still remember the characters and lines. Everyone knew Corn Flakes were made in Battleship, Michigan, that Fruit Loops were for kids, and that Tony the Tiger absolutely loved Frosted Flakes. Later in the 60’s, NASA made the first space drink just for astronauts and kids- TANG. The price of it was so astronomical you had to be an astronaut to afford more than a taste of it. 7-Up introduced the Uncola, Pepsi developed the taste test, and R.C. and peanuts were sold as a pair. Beech-nut was a popular chewing gum but Double Mint gave you double the fun and pleasure. Never mind that both were made by the same company; the goal was to get you to remember the jingle and buy the product.

We could all sing along, Plop, Plop, Oh What a relief it is!! My Bologna has a first name, it’s O S C A R !! Later, Wendy’s came out with the even more popular granny repeating, “Where’s the Beef?” Commercials were sometimes more fun than the show.

In the afternoons, Burma Shave and Gillette competed to sale you razor blades and shaving equipment. Every cigarette known to man hypedtheir wares; I even saw Barney and Fred describing smoking an entire pack of Winston. Winston competed with the Marlboro cowboy, the Lucky Strike gentleman, and the cool taste of Salem. Desi Arnaz smoked one cigarette after another on I Love Lucy. I guess that wasn’t too unusual for that age since they handed out Skoal to us at agri and FFA school events.

In the 60’s, instant coffee became a fad. We could hear the perking of Maxwell house and watch Juan Valdez gather Folgers but that wasn’t enough. We needed everything quickly-thus instant coffee you simply dumped into hot water. No matter it tasted like warmed over mud; it was fast, hot, and black. When in Costa Rica, the farmers explained to me that they drank their best coffee, sold the second best to Europe, and sent the rest to America because we would drink anything. In fact, instant coffee was often made from the ground up hull of the coffee bean, the stuff they discard in other countries. Ah, what advertising and T.V. can do for us Americans!

R

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