Edward Verdell Wagner of Waldron, Arkansas went to be with his Lord and Savior, Monday, July 5, 2021 at his home. Verdell was born October 4, 1940 to Walter D. and Trulie (Sparks) Wagner in Waldron, Arkansas.
Verdell was a member of the Friendship Pentecostal Church of God. His passion was wolf and fox hunting. He was a member of the Scott County Fox and Wolf Hunter’s Association.
Verdell leaves behind to cherish his memory, three daughers, Sherry Byford and husband Rick of Waldron, AR, Melissa Jones and husband Clyde of Craborchard, KY, Darlene Cagle and husband Mark of Waldron, AR., one son, Marvin Wagner of Waldron, AR.. Papa will also be missed by his ten grandchilden, Travis, Kari, Billy, Johnny, Danny, Matthew, David, Jacob, Stephen, and Makenzi and numerous great-grandchildren. Verdell is also survived by two sisters, Anna Reynolds of Waldron, AR.,Leverda McCafferty of Charleston, AR., three brothers, Carl Wagner of Waldron, AR., Mondale Wagner of Waldron, AR., and Donnie Wagner of Waldron, AR..
Verdell was preceded in death by his wife, Carolyn Wagner, parents, Walter D. and Trulie (Sparks) Wagner, sister, Ledora Martindale and brother Archie Wagner.
Verdell’s life celebration will be 10:00 a.m. Thursday, July 8, 2021 at the Lamb Cemetery. Interment will follow the graveside service. Arrangements are being entrusted to the Heriage Memorial Funeral Home in Waldron, AR..
Verdell’s pallbearers will be Grandsons.
Verdell’s visitation will be Wednesday, July 7, 2021 from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Heritage Memorial Funeral Home Chapel where Verdell’s family will receive family and friends.
The 2021-2022 basketball season for the Mansfield Lady Tigers will be seeing a new handler on the court. After many years head coaching the Lady Tigers, Coach Joshua Bryan made to hard decision to step down so he could put more time and focus into his family. Stepping up to take his place will be Ethan Bowman. Along with head coaching the Lady Tigers, Bowman, 22, will also be teaching history as well as assistant coaching track.
After graduating high school in his hometown of Ozark, Bowman went on to play college basketball at the University of the Ozarks in Clarksville. While at the U of O, Ethan earned a Bachelor of Science degree majoring in Physical Education with a minor in Health Science. “This will be my first official coaching job in public school,” expressed Coach Bowman. “I spent the past three years during college as the director and head coach of the Arkansas Wolves travel basketball program. A program that has become nationally recognized and has helped 25 student-athletes earn college athletic scholarships!From my own experience playing college basketball as well as being the head coach of a high-level travel program, I feel prepared to start this job at Mansfield as the head coach of the girls’ basketball program.”
There were many things that played a factor in Bowman’s decision to come to Mansfield. “I’ve always been intrigued by Mansfield and the potential that the school and town have to be special. I really wanted to be able to be a part of what makes Mansfield such a great place. My wife Mallory Bowman (Ward) and her family are from Mansfield and I’ve really gotten to learn about Mansfield’s past through them especially in girl’s athletics.” With the top-of-the-line achievement of last year’s Lady Tiger teams, Ethan is no stranger to what he’s acquiring. “I am taking over a girls basketball program that has seen great success this past season. The Jr High won the District Tournament and the Sr High played really well in conference play and made the Elite 8 in the 2A State Tournament. With that being said, there are definitely high expectations. Our program is going to be built on work ethic, discipline, togetherness, and toughness.”
“We will be a defensive-minded, mentally and physically tough team. Our goal for this upcoming season is to compete for the Conference, Regional, and State titles. As I said earlier, there are high expectations but I believe that this team is truly capable of achieving that as long as we buy-in and understand what it takes. More than anything, I want them to understand and know that regardless of wins and losses, I truly care for them. Not only as a student and player but as a person as well. I want them to leave my program better than when they came in and to be prepared to be successful in life outside of the gym!”
It has been dubbed the best celebration the city has ever hosted. This year’s Independence Day Spectacular was nothing short of a blast!
The Mansfield/Huntington Chamber of Commerce pulled out all the stops this year with great giveaways, including a grill, cooler, and many other amazing prizes. There were plenty of activities to entertain the kiddos, too, a giant fire hydrant sprinkler, and face painting.
(photo courtesy of Kevin Jolley)
One didn’t have to look far to see a post-COVID crowd enjoying the company of their family, friends and neighbors. From the food to the music, attendees enjoyed a wonderful evening.
Mansfield/Huntington Chamber of Commerce would like to thank to each of our sponsors, including: West Fraser, Chambers Bank, Todays Bank, Farmers Bank, River Valley Feed, Cvs, Simple Simmons, Resident Press, Mark Mitchell Contractors, Martin Funeral Home, Dave’s Small Engines, Mama’s Log House, Goines Concrete, Heartland Pharmacy, A+B Pallet, Darlene Boyd, Baker Counseling (Matt and Tara Baker), D+V Home Improvements, and Sonic.
The chamber also extended their gratitude towards the Mansfield and Huntington Fire Departments, Chief Michael Smith, and Huntington Mayor Gary Lawrence. Also, the Mansfield School District, the City of Mansfield, Jason and Lesli Baggett, John and Angela Byers, Jeremy Holland, our spectacular DJ, and members of the Chamber of Commerce who worked so hard to make this event a success!
Coaches Max Washausen and Matt Chandler with a few Sr High players during summer practice
The Cedarville Sr High Pirates held 2020 captive in the hull of their edge-of-the-seat football season. The Pirate faithful watched Cedarville end their season with a 4-3 in conference record and a 7-4 overall record along with a State Playoff appearance. Two of those three conference losses were by merely two points each to perineal powerhouses Charleston and Greenland. Those losses were heartbreakers but falling by a combined four points away from home to top tier teams showed Pirates fans that Cedarville is beginning to catch the high tide of the football seas.
Going into the 2021-2022 football season, Cedarville aims to solidify themselves as a year in year out team to be taken seriously. They’re in luck then because there’s no program in the 3A-1 looking past the Pirates on the schedule. Opponent coaches know that they have to pre-plan for All-Conference and All-State running back Darryl Kattich who ran rampant over defenses in every game. But what’s worse for those coaches is that Cedarville is returning 11 players from the 2020-2021 season along with a whole slew of talented players to boot. Cedarville’s Head Coach, Max Washausen, loves the fact that his talented offense is already giving fits to other coaches as well.
“With Cody Dickens, Darryl Kattich, Hayden Partain, Bruce Turney, Hayden Morton, and Colton Arnold, I believe we have one of the best backfields in 3A.” A backfield is great, but Cedarville has the intangibles most other teams don’t have to go along with their star-studded offensive backfield. Leadership and experience. “We have a great group of seniors who lead by example. That along with a great mess of juniors and sophomores means we have something special. I really enjoy coaching this team. I think we all have a mindset that we are going to prove all the doubters wrong and Cedarville football is going to do something really special this season.“
But offense is only one part of the game. The Pirates will also be returning with their cutthroat defense that has the capability to shut down offensive drives. That defense last season didn’t allow long drives and ate up the turnover category. Cedarville’s defense held opponents to a mere 10 points in their non-conference games and stood strong against conference foes throughout the season also. Although they’ll have to shut down the big play ability better this season with their defensive line, that’s something Coach Washausen believes is within their grasp.
“One of my goals this year as head coach is to have a dominant offensive/defensive line. We can do it. We are undersized and we will have a line by committee but we have a lot of heart. That desire to succeed and heart to play in our players is a foundation that we can build upon.” Leading the way for the line by committee will be the double bacon cheeseburger buffet lineup of linemen Tyree Mongold, Nathanial Smith, Luke Mallow, and Jace Baker. Other teams may have bigger linemen on their roster, but these boys are H-U-N-G-R-Y!
But wait, there’s more. There are Pirates onboard Cedarvilles ship that Coach Washausen has expressed can be game-changers this season. Lane Hightower, Levi Hightower, Bradlee Blankenship, Colton Arnold, Braxton Bentley, and Darien Skinner have each caused Coach Washausen to raise his eye patch up for a second look. They will be counted on heavily with the schedule ahead of Cedarville in 2021. Although it is a repeat of 2020 with the only change being the home and away columns swapped, it is still no smooth sailing lineup. One key positive of that schedule though is that the Pirates will have an opportunity to avenge their two-point losses to Charleston and Greenland as they welcome both teams to Pirates Cove this season.
“Overall, last year was another year of improvement with our 7-4 record. We have improved our record for four consecutive seasons. A two-point loss to Charleston and a two-point loss to Greenland kept us from our first outright Conference Championship in school history. That was last year though. We have our eye on that Conference Championship this year” concluded Coach Washausen.
There are many ways to evaluate a person. One of the most accurate is to watch and listen to them laugh. A person who laughs well is probably a good person.
I’ve always enjoyed hearing, re-telling, and laughing at a good (clean) joke. In doing so, I’ve learned two things:
Number one: If you can learn to laugh at yourself, you can go through life with a smile on your face. I set myself up once for a call from “Belinda’s Massage Parlor.”
“Vestal, I just called to thank you for coming by Saturday night, and let you know that I found your socks.” The people and co-workers who pulled that on me really got a laugh out of it, but I laughed almost as hard as they did, and I told them it was so funny that if I had thought of it, I would have done it myself.
Number two: If you dish it out, you have to be willing to take it. I was telling “Okie” jokes once to a guy from Oklahoma, and he asked me if I knew what a pretty woman was called in Arkansas. I said no, and he answered, “a tourist.” (Sorry ladies, I know it’s not true, but it is funny.)
I’ve always tried to give “equal billing”. For example, version one: God was talking to Adam – “I know it’s lonely here with just the animals for company, but I will make you a helper, a woman. You will love it, Adam. She will be beautiful, practically worship the ground you walk on, do all kinds of things for you and with you.” Adam replied: “I know one thing God, there ain’t no free lunch, so what will this cost me?” God replied: “Well Adam, an arm and a leg.” Adam said: “God, what would I get for a rib?”
Example two: God was talking to Eve, “I know it’s lonely here Eve, but I have plans to make a man for you. He will be the most handsome man on earth, will love you, provide for you and protect you. However, there is one drawback.” Eve said, “O God, what’s that?” God said, “you will have to let him think I made him first.”
One final thought: Having a sense of humor is a good thing, all the way around. Not having a sense of humor is just plain sad.
Magazine Mountain has more than its share of stories to be told. One of the most unusual involved an airplane crash that occurred right after WWII.
With the mountain rising abruptly 2,500 feet above the surrounding countryside, Magazine has had its fair share of airplane accidents. Flying by altimeter, pilots feel safe at flying 2,000 feet above sea level only to discover, often fatally, that the mountain has an elevation topping 2,800 feet.
On the night of November 17, 1947, a B-25 flying out of Camp Barksdale, Louisiana departed on a relatively short trip to Chicago, Illinois. Mr. Herbert Lindroth, an air force mechanic, was given leave to travel along in order to visit his parents who lived in a Chicago suburb.
(photo courtesy of Wikipedia)
November of that year was unusually cold and it was sleeting and foggy as the crew reached Arkansas. Residents in Havana reported that the plane was seen circling and apparently lost at about 6 p.m. Shortly afterward, Mr. Lee Apple, who lived on Magazine, heard a crash and saw flames in the distance. He and a passing motorist rushed to the scene as quickly as possible, a difficult task since the terrain was very rugged and steep. They were soon joined by several farmers and businessmen from Havana. It was a scene of nearly total destruction with parts of the large plane scattered and burning across a wide area. Sheriff Earl Ladd and the State Police arrived shortly thereafter, and a search for the bodies began. It was noted that the crash occurred only a few hundred yards from the site of a fatal crash that occurred two years previously.
The plane struck the mountain with such force that it had sheared off a huge oak tree and had uprooted two others. Parts of the plane, clothing, and bodies were scattered over an area more than one hundred yards in length. Two bodies were quickly discovered, burned beyond recognition. Three others were discovered soon afterward, the watches on their arms frozen in time at 7:15, the presumed time of the crash. It was assumed the sixth body must have been thrown a great distance away and the men gave up the search for it until morning.
Newspapers across the nation reported the information and sent photographers to the site. The bodies were left in place on the mountain until Air Force personnel arrived the next day and the search for the sixth man continued without success.
Forced to work late on Friday at his job as an aircraft mechanic, Herbert Lindroth arrived at Barksdale just in time to see the plane on the runway. Realizing that the military craft was not going to wait on him, he left to enjoy his weekend in Shreveport. When he returned to barracks on Sunday, he scared the daylights out of his friends who thought he was an apparition. His squadron officer quickly figured out the details and got the search in Arkansas called off. The names of those killed were: Capt. William F. Wilson, 29, Strong City, Kansas; Capt. Albert C. Frese Jr., 27, Brunswick, Georgia; Lt. Robert O. Pabst, 24, Milwaukee, Wisconsin; 2nd Lt. Ed D. Ward, 27, Chicago, Illinois; Pf. James H. Miershma, Grand Rapids, Michigan; Pfc. William E. Wesley, Muskegon, Michigan.
The sixth man, Mr. Herbert Lindroth is still very much alive and today (2015) lives in Bland, Missouri where he loves to repeat the story of his demise complete with the newspaper clippings of his own obituary from November 1947.
Pictured: Chloe Morrow, Coach Jarrod Remer, and Katie Oden
After 10 years at Cedarville assistant coaching football and head coaching girls track, Coach Jarrod Remer will be going from Pirate to Pointer as he leaves Cedarville and heads to Van Buren. Although Coach Remer is excited to take on his new Van Buren coaching roles in football and girls track, the many relationships he has made in the Cedarville community are what have made this decision a difficult one. “I want to start off by saying that I have LOVED my time at Cedarville, especially getting to coach these amazing young ladies. It has been fun watching several of them develop their skills from 7th-12th grade.And a special thank you to the administration at Cedarville for always supporting me as a teacher and a coach.”
Responding to the news of their coaches departure was Lady Pirates, Chloe Morrow who stated, “Thank you for always caring for us so much and putting so much time and effort into us! You were a great coach to have!” and Katie McBroom who said, “I’m so thankful I had you as my track coach all my years through jr high and sr high! You helped me accomplish so much, and I couldn’t have done any of it without you!”
Coach Remer concluded, “We have made many memories over the years, from track meets where it’s spitting snow to this past season where we medaled in every event we entered at the State track meet. And there are countless others too numerous to list. To my Athletes: Have the confidence in yourselves that I always have in you. Don’t be afraid to try new things. We learn more from our failures than our successes. I love you all and will miss you very much!”
Cedarville football coaches, Matt Chandler, Max Washausen, and Remer
The Arkansas Department of Agriculture is notifying the public that a new invasive grass species, Cogongrass, has been confirmed in Arkansas for the first time.
For several years botanists and land managers have been on the lookout for Cogongrass (Imperata cylindrica) in southern Arkansas. This aggressive species, native to Southeast Asia, has spread rapidly across the Deep South over the past few decades. Cogongrass is considered one of the worst invasive species in the world, causing both economic and ecological damages that impact forestry, agriculture, rangeland, and natural ecosystems.
Charles Bryson, retired U.S. Department of Agriculture botanist, detected a patch of Cogongrass in Helena-West Helena alongside Highway 49. The Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, the Arkansas Department of Agriculture’s (Department) Plant Industries Division and Forestry Division, and the Arkansas Department of Transportation were informed of the finding and met onsite on June 16 to spray the invasive plant population with herbicide. Botanists with the Arkansas Department of Transportation conducted surveys along Highway 49 and other roads in the area and detected no additional Cogongrass populations. The agencies are planning to conduct annual surveys along this and other routes coming into southeastern Arkansas from Mississippi. They will also monitor the site and conduct additional herbicide applications as needed over the next few years.
Cogongrass has bright green leaves with serrated margins and a distinctive white vein that is slightly off-center from the middle of the leaf. It has no true, above-ground stem and the leaves emerge directly from stout, creeping rhizomes (underground stems). Cogongrass spreads rapidly from these rhizomes to form distinctive and very dense circular patches which expand in size every year and can displace all other species on the ground. It is also one of the few warm season grasses that bloom immediately after coming out of winter dormancy. A fact sheet with more information and photos is available here.
Any sightings of Cogongrass in Arkansas should be reported to Paul Shell, the Department’s Plant Inspection and Quarantine Program Manager, at paul.shell@agriculture.arkansas.gov or 501-225-1598.
On June 17, the Federal Imported Fire Ant Quarantine was expanded in Arkansas by adding Logan, Prairie, Sebastian, and White Counties. The addition of these counties was based on surveys conducted over several years by the Arkansas Department of Agriculture in coordination with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Populations of fire ants were found throughout these counties. The quarantine is in place to prevent the movement of invasive fire ants into areas that do not yet have them. Items regulated by the quarantine include nursery stock with soil or potting media, grass sod, hay, straw, soil, and used dirt moving equipment.
Businesses in quarantined counties may still be able to move these regulated items into non-quarantined areas if they have set up a compliance agreement with USDA and the Arkansas Department of Agriculture. These agreements outline the steps that must be taken in order to move these items while not moving fire ants. Those who hold a compliance agreement are issued a stamp that shows receivers, as well as regulatory officials, that the commodity has been treated or handled in a manner that prevents fire ants from being moved into a non-quarantined area. For information on fire ants and compliance agreements, contact Paul Shell at 501-225-1598 or paul.shell@agriculture.arkansas.gov.
Tim Starr has announced his candidacy for Scott County Sheriff in 2022. Starr, who is running as an Independent, stated that he will serve all citizens of the county.
Starr’s family has strong ties to Scott County. His father, Bill Starr, was the owner of Starr Hardware on Main Street and was very active in promoting Waldron and Scott County as a great place to live, make a living and raise a family. His mother, Judy Star, is the daughter of Thurman and Roxie Atchley of Keener. Starr’s sister, Rachel Langley, is a lifelong resident of Scott County.
Scott County is one of the largest counties in the state. Larger in land surface area, with a scattered population. “It deserves and needs the presence of a strong, effective police force,” stated Starr.
He added that he believes the sheriff can assist in providing the climate for attracting jobs and growth through the effective management of the facilities of the county.
“The Scott County Sheriff’s office must provide for the safety and security of the citizens if we are to assist the county in becoming what we all hope it to be,” said Starr.
Starr is a graduate of Waldron High School, the Basic Arkansas Law Enforcement Academy, and has attended dozens of workshops for Law Enforcement Officials. He has served as Police Chief at Mountainburg, Central City, and Hackett.
He is currently employed by the Yell County Sheriff’s Department under Sheriff Bill Gilkey, a twenty-three tenure as Sheriff.
“I am a believer in training for law enforcement officials,” Starr stated. “I am a certified law enforcement instructor and an instructor for the use of the taser.”
Adding, “serving as Police Chief has given me the invaluable experience in working with budgets, supervising deputies and employees. This has prepared me to run for office. I understand budget constraints and working to develop maximum visibility of the law enforcement personnel. I know the value of cooperating with other enforcement officials. I believe Scott County deserves the best law enforcement and I want the citizens to know I will be available, visible, and with my best ability, work to provide a great place for people to live in Scott County.”
