Rick McDaniel, 65, of Mansfield passed away Saturday, February 6, 2021 in Fort Smith. He was born November 10, 1955, in Fort Worth, Texas to Geral and June (McMurray) McDaniel. He was a 1973 graduate of Van Buren High School, retired after 30 years with Dixie Cup, a Member of the Mansfield City Council, treasurer of the Mansfield Chamber of Commerce, on the Mansfield Planning Commission, a Master Mason of Reid Lodge No. 163, owner of McDaniel Embroidery, and his favorite “job”, being Santa. Rick loved the city of Mansfield and was a pillar of the community. He never met a stranger, and was loved by everyone that knew him; he had the most infectious laugh and smile, and gave the best hugs.
He is preceded in death by his parents; an uncle, Jimmy McMurray; a cousin, Toney McMurray; and a nephew, Kaleb Pearson.
He is survived by his wife, Sharon of the home; a daughter, Megan Atchison and husband James of Wister, Oklahoma; three sons, Chris McDaniel and wife Crystal of Barling, Kevin McDaniel and companion Ashlee of Fort Smith, and Nick Ronzzo and wife Laura of Raytown, Missouri; a sister, Dean Davis of Fort Smith; a brother, Tony McDaniel and wife Linda of Van Buren; eight grandchildren, Gavin, Landon, Brea, Brody, and Brooklyn McDaniel, Chasidy Atchison, and Hunter and Colten Ronzzo; along with a host of aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends.
Services will be held privately but will be live-streamed at 10:00 a.m. Thursday, February 11, 2021, at the Edwards Van-Alma Funeral Home Facebook page. Cremation is under the direction of Edwards Van-Alma Funeral Home of Van Buren.
The City of Mansfield and the entire community suffered an unthinkable loss with the sudden passing of Councilman Rick McDaniel on Saturday, February 6.
McDaniel, 65, and his wife Sharon had four children and eight grandchildren. McDaniel retired after 30 years with Dixie Cup in Fort Smith. He served for over a decade on the Mansfield City Council, on the city’s planning commission, and as Secretary and Vice-President of the Mansfield/Huntington Area Chamber of Commerce. Lastly, perhaps McDaniel’s most prominent role, the city’s Santa Claus.
McDaniel was a Master Mason of Reid Lodge No. 163, and a vendor at Rags n’ Roses in Greenwood, AR. He enjoyed doing embroidery work. In fact, if he wasn’t spending time with his family, or serving his city, McDaniel was at his machine designing and creating personalized items.
McDaniel poured his heart and soul into anything he did. Often funding projects benefitting the community out of his own pocket. He served humbly, and proudly. No doubt, this pillar of the community will be missed by many. He will simply be irreplaceable, and his passing is a tremendous loss.
“When I think of Rick, not only do I think of him as a fellow councilman, but I think of him as a friend,” shared constituent Sheri Hopkins. “He was always a friend to all who knew him, always eager to help and he loved Mansfield. He always wanted what was best for our town and its citizens. He will be greatly missed.”
*Editor’s note: I echo the sentiments of those who mourn the loss of this amazing civil servant. I was blessed to call him a friend over the years and witnessed firsthand his kindness and generosity. Rick and I spoke often, in fact, we had just been cutting up and carrying on right up to the hours before he passed. One of my last texts to him read: Me: You sure make life fun. (Referring to the goofiness of the day.) Him: If you can’t have fun in life, why live at all. That was a good sum of his life. He loved his family, his community and was extremely devoted to both. He loved a good laugh, a sound I hope never fades from my memory. From his attempted hand modeling of his flavored water during Facebook lives, to his quirky nicknames. He loved to have fun. Thank you Rick for the memories. Until we meet again my friend.
Anytime two high-powered teams face each other, it’s nearly always a barnburner. But when it’s the Hackett Jr Lady Hornets and the Booneville Jr Lady Bearcats, you know it’s going to be a nuclear hot game. The Lady Hornets and the Lady Bearcats faced each other on Thursday, February 4, and boy howdy did they light up some flames.
The Booneville arena was buzzing with questions about each team as they battled closely in the first quarter. The action pushed more towards a defensive front in the second quarter as both teams played aggressively. Neither team could get the upper hand on the other and went into halftime toe-to-toe. Only the Lady Hornets and Coach Adams knew what was said in the locker room but when Hackett hit the floor in the second half, the Hornet faithful could see that this was not going to be Booneville’s night to upset the Lady Hornets.
The Lady Hornets’ ferocity was wilder and their passes more precise. Slowly but surely Hackett started pulling away from the Lady Bearcats and never looked back taking the 22-13 conference victory. Lady Hornet Alex Bunch led with 8 points and 6 rebounds followed by Alona Rothwell with 4 points and 7 rebounds. Unfortunately, this was the end of the road for the Jr Lady Hornets who ended their 2020-2021 basketball season with a tied 9-9 total play record.
Hackett Jr Lady Hornets head coach, Broc Adams concluded, “What a great way to finish the year with a season finale win against Booneville. In a year full of craziness, this group came to work every day and gave everything they had! I was very proud of the way my girls handled their year. Between injuries and quarantine, there were so many times that they could have made excuses but they didn’t! We were a fairly young team so it was good to get some 7th and 8th graders significant minutes that will help them next year. We only had a couple of games this year that really got away from us, other than that we were in every game and competed really well! This group of girls was so much fun to be around and coach and it was such a joy watching their improvements this year! Now for a great offseason and to come back even better next year!”
The Mansfield Jr Lady Tigers have been the team to beat all season. With talent oozing from all corners of the team, the Lady Tigers ran rampant over their opponents leaving all challengers hung up in the nets. On Friday, February 5, the Lady Tigers headed north to Mountainburg to take on the Dragons in their own fiery cave. The outcome was another W in the record books for Mansfield giving them an undefeated conference season and the #1 Seed for the District Tournament.
Cole Smith
With the Jr Lady Tigers clawing at the floor and the Lady Dragons spitting fire, it was time for tip-off. Although Mountainburg couldn’t go toe to toe with the Lady Tigers, they did put some worry in the Tiger Faithful sitting in the stands as they held Mansfield to an 8-3 score in the first quarter. The Lady Dragons were able to frustrate Mansfield which wound up causing multiple missed shots and missed rebounds by the Lady Tigers. Mansfield slowly built their lead but wasn’t able to pull away from the Lady Dragons like they have been used to doing all season against opponents. The Lady Tigers seemed to be caught stale by the tail as they went into halftime with a 27-3 lead.
Raine Hecox
Mansfield came out of the half with a chip on their shoulder and went to work on the Lady Dragons. The Lady Tigers played a few minutes with their starters then swapped out for second string to start mining away at Mountainburg. For some programs, this would be a major flaw with so much of the game left to play. Not for Mansfield though. Mansfield’s fresh bodies attacked the Lady Dragons from all sides flipping the script on them as it was now Mountainburg who was getting frustrated and making mental mistakes. The Lady Tigers defense stuck to Mountainburg like gum on the bottom of a shoe as they closed out the third quarter with a 33-10 lead. Mansfield was fireproof as their offense and defense began to click leaving the Lady Dragons blue as Mansfield endeavored to persevere and charged to a 47-16 victory.
Kynslee and Kaylee Ward
Kynslee Ward and Alyson Edwards tied with 9 points each for the Lady Tigers followed by another double-up of Harlie and Shelbie Fuller with 8 points apiece. Kaylie Lowery landed with 6 points while Presley Curry jumped for joy with 3. And with 2 points each was Kaylee Ward and Cole Smith. The season finale win brings the Jr Lady Tigers to a 13-1 overall record and an undefeated 5-0 conference record. It also gives the Jr Lady Tigers the 2A-4 Conference Championship which is their second consecutive conference title after winning the 3A-4 title last season.
Harlie Fuller
For some of the freshmen on the team, this makes their fifth consecutive championship dating all the way back to their little league days. Mansfield has one more goal left to complete for the season and that is to win the District Tournament. The Lady Tigers hold the #1 Seed in the Tournament and will host the winner of the JC Westside vs Magazine game on Thursday, February 11 at 6:00 pm in The Jungle.
The Waldron Sr Bulldogs have nailed down the title of 3A-4 Conference Champions. With three games left in the season, the Bulldogs needed just one win to secure their second consecutive conference championship and they did just that on Friday, February 5 in Charleston.
The Bulldogs came out firing as they opened the first quarter on an 11-0 run. Braden Williams got the first basket of the game as he cut through the lane and received a pass from Gada Wagner. Jaden Hutchens followed suit with a three-point basket and then a steal and lay-up from Caden Fuller set the score at 7-0. Isaac “The Real” Villarreal logged his signature three and converted the 4-point play, after being fouled.
With the Bulldogs 11-0, Charleston’s Trenton Goodson got the Tigers on the board in the paint. Villarreal hit his second three-pointer of the game giving the Bulldogs a 14-2 lead. Goodson added a free-throw for Charleston before Hutchens connected on his second three-pointer of the night, extending the Bulldog’s lead to 17-3. Waldron added a lay-up by Wagner and two free throws by Fuller to then make the score 21-3. Charleston ended the quarter on a 4-0 run, with baskets from Brandon Scott and Goodson, to make the score 21-7 at the end of the first quarter.
Charleston launched the second quarter with a free-throw from Brevyn Ketter but Villarreal turned around and netted the next five points for the Bulldogs upgrading the score 26-8. The two teams spent the next few plays exchanging three-point baskets as Bryton Ketter scored his first points of the game and Jaden Hutchens hit his third triple of the night. Brandon Scott issued a three for the Tigers to make the score 29-15. Villarreal was next in line as he hit his fourth three-pointer of the night, giving the Bulldogs a 17-point lead. Blow after blow, Waldron and Charleston laid into each other on the hardwood sending the score into halftime 38-20 Bulldogs.
Charleston got the ball rolling to start the second half of the game by scoring the first four points behind Goodson and Brevyn Ketter to cut the Bulldog’s lead to 14. Jaden Hutchens answered right back with a floater in the lane as Villarreal kept the 3’s party going by delivering his fifth three of the night to get the lead back to 19. Waldron’s Bryson Bailey got in the points column after making a lay-up that finally decided to fall after rolling around the rim a few times. He completed the three-point play giving the Bulldogs the upper hand of 50-41. Dalton Curtis dispatched a three for the Tigers to cut the lead back to 16 but Isaac Villarreal hit back-to-back threes to end the third quarter 56-34 Waldron.
Gada Wagner opened the fourth quarter with a lay-up followed by Caden Fuller with a basket of his own. Ketter hit a two-point for Charleston but the Bulldogs broke the press and Villarreal scored at the rim. Jaden Hutchens sealed his fourth 3-pointer of the night to the Bulldog total, making the score 65-36. With minutes left in the battle, Fuller added a free throw for the Bulldogs while Hutchens forked over the final two for the Bulldogs making the score 68-38. Ransom Merchecka furnished two free throws and Trenton Goodson unleashed 2 more points for Charleston ending the game with a Bulldog 68-42 victory.
Waldron’s Coach Joshua Brown stated, “Words can’t express how proud I am of each individual on our basketball team. I’m not just talking about the 6 or 7 who play the majority of the minutes. I’m talking about each individual who comes to the gym each and every day and works their tail off to make this team better. One through nineteen. Every single one of them!” Coach Brown added, “Our job isn’t finished. We still have goals that we want to attain. Our goal was to win championships, plural. So if we want to do that we can’t be complacent where we are.”
The Bulldogs moved to 19-5 on the season and 11-1 in the conference. Waldron will host Booneville on Tuesday, February 9, and Hackett (the Bulldogs Senior Night) on Thursday, February 11. Charleston will be at home against Hackett on Tuesday, February, 9 and travel to Danville on Thursday, February 11. The Bulldogs will have the #1 seed in the District Tournament and will play at home on Thursday, February 18, 2021, at 6:00 p.m. Should they win that game, they will host the finals on Saturday, February 20, 2021, at 4:00 p.m.
BOX SCORE
Team
1st Quarter
2nd Quarter
3rd Quarter
4th Quarter
FINAL
Waldron
21
17
18
12
68
Chalreston
7
13
14
8
42
Waldron: Isaac Villarreal (26), Jaden Hutchens (22), Caden Fuller (9), Gada Wagner (6), Bryson Bailey (3), Braden Williams (2)—68
Beekeeping isn’t simply a hobby you can decide you’re going to start one day in your backyard. If you happen to have the idea, a lot of preparation and education must come before you start the process. Don’t let that overwhelm you and discourage you from this wonderful and enjoyable hobby, though. Instead, start here today by reading this article covering everything you need to know before you start beekeeping.
Outline Why You Want To Be a Beekeeper
Many people become beekeepers for an assortment of reasons. Your personal reason will help you, and motivate you, to get started. For example, if you merely want to do it as a backyard hobby, you’d go about it much differently then if you were going to use it as a business. A beekeeping business has a lot more to it! Knowing what you want out of this experience will help pave your path to success.
Take a Look at Your Budget
Determine how much money you’re willing to spend on this. Again, if this is just a hobby in your backyard you won’t need every tool and piece of equipment to get started. Yes, there are crucial components such as the beehive itself, and a veil and gloves—however, there are items that, depending on your budget, you can buy at a later date. For example, you don’t need to purchase a beekeeper suit at the beginning considering you can tape your long sleeve shirt to your gloves. Do your research to find out just exactly what you need to get this venture going.
How Much Time Beekeeping Takes
Beekeeping might not be the way to go if you don’t have the time to invest into it. It’s not something that you can ignore. A lack of care or attention to the hive could directly cause lack of food, disease, and more for the bees. Don’t let this be the case. If you can’t handle the time commitment, don’t do it.
Starter Hives Versus Kits
There are to ways to get started on this beekeeping adventure: starter hives and bee kits. They are different; however, you can decide which one is best for you. A starter hive is the more expensive of the two, however, you’re given both the hive and the thriving colony at once. The bee kit, on the other hand, is cheaper. You only get the queen along with an army of workers or drones. With the bee kit you have to set up vacant hives before introducing bees. Please do an abundance of research before deciding which option you want to start with!
Beekeeping is a great and beneficial way to connect with nature. If you’re considering starting beekeeping, that’s wonderful! It’s our hope this information covering everything you need to know before you start beekeeping gave you a foundation to work off of.
Arresting Agency – Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office: Casey Jo Bryant of Hartford was booked into the Sebastian County Detention Center on February 5 at 6 p.m. and released on February 5 at 8:32 p.m. Bryant was charged with criminal trespass and theft of property <$1k.
Tom Carey East of Mansfield was booked into the Sebastian County Detention Center on February 3 at 10:10 p.m. and released on signature bond February 4 at 2:18 a.m. East was charged with disorderly conduct – obscene language or gesture.
Stephanie Ann Elmore of Huntington was booked into the Sebastian County Detention Center on February 2 at 1:48 a.m. and released on legally sufficient bond February 2 at 10:44 a.m. Elmore was charged with petition to revoke – felony.
Mary Elizabeth Morton of Hartford was booked into the Sebastian County Detention Center on February 3 at 10:51 a.m. and released on signature bond February 3 at 1:38 p.m. Morton was charged with failure to appear – class A misdemeanor.
Arresting Agency – Bonanza Police Department: Christopher Ray Fraize of Bonanza was booked into the Sebastian County Detention Center on February 1 at 9 p.m. and remains at the SCADC. Fraize was charged with two counts of failure to appear – class B misdemeanors, contempt – willful disobedience (failure to pay fine), and contempt (failure to comply with a court order) – class A misdemeanor.
Arresting Agency – Greenwood Police Department: Richmond Euel Holmes of Waldron was booked into the Sebastian County Detention Center on February 3 at 1:28 p.m. and released on signature bond Febraury 3 at 5:32 p.m. Holmes was charged with contempt – willful disobedience (failure to pay fine.)
Arresting Agency – Fort Smith Police Department: Heather Marie Shelly of Hackett was booked into the Sebastian County Detention Center on Februay 1 at 2:22 p.m. and remains at the SCADC. Shelly was charged with two counts of failure to appear – class C felonies.
**The charges against those arrested are allegations and the cases are still pending in the courts.**
As the end of the basketball season, now just six days away, approaches, the Paris senior boys and girls teams made the long trip to southwest Arkansas to play the Cossatot River Eagles in a pair of conference match-ups. Cossatot River is a consolidated school district that comprises the former Cove, Wickes, and Umpire school districts. The district is located approximately 20 minutes south of Mena on US Highway 71.
Resident Press Photo
So, the Eagles and Lady Eagles made the little more than two hours drive to play at Cossatot. Earlier in the season, the Paris boys defeated Cossatot in Paris, and the Lady Eagles lost their game that same night to the Cossatot Lady Eagles. Both Paris teams have played well over the past two to three weeks, including a pair of victories on Tuesday night at home over Charleston.
Resident Press Photo
The Lady Eagles, who continue to improve with each game, played well, but continued to struggle against the shooting guards of Cossatot who are very good with the outside shot from anywhere around the three-point arc. Paris played better against them defensively than they did in their first meeting, but the sharp-shooting Cossatot guards proved again to be too much for Paris. Paris was within two points of Cossatot with less than one minute to play in the game, but the Eagles eventually fell to Cossatot, 53-47.
Resident Press Photo
But in the Lady Eagles game, there continued to be much to be excited about the future of this team as they have shown over the past few weeks how good they can be. It will be important for Paris to focus on the Cedarville Lady Pirates who will visit Paris on Tuesday night. Paris played competitively with Cedarville in their first meeting, and the Lady Eagles are playing better now than they were when the two met earlier in Cedarville. Tuesday’s game with Cedarville will be another measure of how much improvement the team has made, and a victory over the Lady Pirates would be huge for the Paris girls program. The game will be Jadyn Hart’s last regular season home game appearance, and she deserves a big crowd to come and support her and to thank her for her effort and great play throughout her career.
Resident Press Photo
The Paris boys, fresh off of their win over Charleston, have made great progress and have also played very well over the past three weeks. In fact, Paris has made a run and has a chance to improve their district tournament seeding in the last week of the season against Cedarville on Tuesday and at Booneville on Thursday night.
At Cossatot, the Paris defense once again provided the energy to lead Cossatot from start to finish and complete the regular season sweep over the Cossatot Eagles. Paris did not show any signs of a let down after the emotional win earlier in the week over Charleston, which is a sign of maturity for the young Eagles team.
Resident Press Photo
Paris was beaten soundly by Cedarville in their first meeting, but like the girls team, the Paris boys are a much-improved team now than when they were when the Eagles traveled to Cedarville. Tuesday’s game with the Pirates will be the final home game of the regular season and the Eagles will wrap-up the regular season Thursday night at Booneville.
Both teams will likely be on the road on Saturday for the first round of the district tournament. Due to COVID precautions, the district tournament will not be held at one site. The tournament will be held on the schools’ individual campuses at the higher of the two seeds. The match-ups, times, and locations of Paris’s games will not be known until Friday and the completion of the regular season. As soon as the seedings are announced, Resident Press will publish a listing of games and their locations and times.
Resident Press Photo
In the meantime, please continue to wear your masks and take precautions to protect your own safety as well as that of the players and coaches. We are nearing completion of the high school basketball season, and none of us want to see a repeat of this time last year when the season was abruptly cancelled just before the state tournament finals.
Tuesday’s first game tips off at 6 p.m. at Paris Gymnasium. It will likely be the final night of basketball on campus, and both the Eagles and Lady Eagles need your support on this final home night. The players and coaches on both teams continue to work hard and they deserve your support.
Enjoy your Super Bowl Sunday, and I’ll see you Tuesday night at Paris Gymnasium!
Pictured: Mansfield High School, the 2020 Class 2A State Volleyball Champions, will honor it’s players and coaches with a ring presentation on February 11
The 2020 Mansfield senior high volleyball team treated themselves to the ultimate prize this past Halloween. On October 31 at the Class 2A State Volleyball Tournament in Hot Springs, the Lady Tigers took down conference rival Lavaca in straight sets to win Mansfield’s newest state title.
With Valentine’s Day arriving soon, the team will celebrate another holiday of sorts. Players and coaches will receive their state rings in the presence of family, friends, and fans in a ceremony three days prior to the holiday of love.
The ring presentation will take place at halftime of the Mansfield hosted junior high basketball game on Thursday, February 11. The approximate time schedule will be 6:30 PM.
Each individual member of the state championship team will be announced at the ceremony. Also involved will be some of the corporate sponsors and individual donors that contributed to the fundraising efforts to pay for the symbols of success.
Representatives of West Fraser Mansfield Sawmill, Today’s Bank, Farmer’s Bank, and the Mansfield Chamber of Commerce will assist in the distribution of rings as part of the corporate sponsor list. Other businesses that made contributions to the championship drive include Duck’s Body Shop, Owen Smith Trading Company Incorporated, Davis Iron and Metal, Davis Structural Steel, Custom Equipment Company, Captain J’s Seafood, 71 Express, and Walters, Gaston, Allison & Parker Law Firm.
Mansfield Superintendent Joe Staton, Principal Donnie Eveld, and Co-Athletic Director John Mackey will also be among the dignitaries present.
State Tournament MVP Brooke Wright hammers a kill shot at a home game during the 2020 volleyball season as teammates move into defensive position behind her. Wright, a senior, helped lead the team to the Class 2A State Title this past season
Mansfield Head Volleyball Coach Kaylie Pyles announced that there will be a restricted reception for the players and staff prior to the game at 5:15 PM in the MHS cafeteria. Due to Covid protocols, this meet and mingle time will only be open to invited guests with “Reception Vouchers”.
Some small refreshments and a highlight video featuring the players’ successful season will be part of this pre-game show.
Attendees are reminded that masks and social distancing must be strictly adhered to while in the Mansfield facilities. Those wishing to watch the actual ring presentation in the gymnasium must purchase a basketball game ticket. Those tickets should be readily available on the night of the game as Mansfield’s gymnasium even with restricted seating is large enough to accommodate most crowds.
Because this particular basketball competition will be part of the 2A-4 Junior High Conference Tournament, fans are reminded of the limitations imposed on local passes. No local or student discount passes will be accepted at the gate during post-season play. All tickets for game admission will be $5. AAA passes and senior citizen passes will still be honored.
