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Ted Tritt Announces Candidacy for Arkansas Senate, District 26

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10:11 am

Ted Tritt Announces Candidacy for Arkansas Senate, District 26

Paris, AR –Ted Tritt is announcing his intention to run for the Arkansas State Senate District 26 seat Special Election in the Republican Primary. This was the seat held by the late Senator Garry Stubblefield, who passed away on September 2, 2025. The district covers portions of Franklin, Johnson, Logan, and Sebastian Counties.

When asked why now, and why this race, Mr. Tritt remarked that “I have had many people reach out to me asking that I run for the State Senate seat, rather than State Representative. After much thought and consideration, I decided to do so. My goals are the same: to work hard to be a voice for the people and to work with other members of the Legislature to help the State of Arkansas. I look forward to visiting with people across the district, asking for their vote and support, as well as learning about issues that are important to them.”

Tritt was born in Ozark, Franklin County, and raised in Logan County, where he still owns the family homeplace. As a young man, he worked for local farmers in a variety of roles, but most enjoyed spending part of each summer in Cross County, helping relatives plant row crops. In 1979, he began his career in the oil industry with a Gulf Oil Company distributor, managing commercial, retail, and wholesale accounts. He later became Operator and Manager of the Paris branch of Littlefield Oil Company.

In 1987, while continuing to run the fuel business, Tritt and his family launched several private ventures. Over time, they built and operated a fuel station and service center and a hardware and farm supply store. After selling these businesses and with his children grown, Tritt returned full-time to the fuel industry, where he spent the next two decades working across the Southeast United States and in Caribbean markets.

“District 26 has always been home and is my home. I would be honored to represent our communities in the State Legislature,” Tritt said. “With my business and civic background, I have the experience to be an effective Senator. Everyone deserves to be heard. That is the job. I want to bring people together to strengthen our economy, protect our hospitals, and create opportunities so that families don’t have to leave home to find good jobs. My goal is never to lose focus on the quality of life that our families enjoy.”

Tritt has been deeply involved in his community for many years. He served as Board Chair of the North Logan County Chamber of Commerce and chaired its Industrial and Business Development Committee. He completed Leadership Logan County as well as a Community and Economic Development Leadership program at the University of Arkansas. Working alongside leaders like Rep. Frank Willems, Lloyd George, and Charlie Selman, he helped make Mount Magazine State Park a reality.

Tritt also served as Chair of the Arkansas River Valley Area Council (ARVAC) and was a founding board member of Helping Hands. His commitment to service extends to volunteering with Make-A-Wish and Special Olympics. In 2000, he hosted a business delegation exchange from Ukraine, strengthening ties between Arkansas and international partners.

During his campaign, Ted Tritt will work to protect the needs and desires of local stakeholders by committing to voting no to the current Franklin County Prison site, while also committing to finding needed solutions to our current Department of Corrections (DoC) challenges. His policies will grow industries and strengthen local economies so people can work and prosper here at home. Part of that growth will be an emphasis on expanding traditional and vocational training to meet workforce needs. Protecting rural hospitals and addressing rising insurance costs are also at the heart of his plans. Along with that, improving and strengthening access to mental health services across the state is a priority. With these goals in mind, Ted Tritt is deeply committed to strengthening communities across Franklin, Logan, Scott, and Sebastian counties.

“I look forward to visiting with people across the district, asking for their vote and support, and learning about the issues that matter most to them,” Tritt said. “This campaign is about service, responsibility, and a shared commitment to the future of our home.”

Logan County’s 22-Mile Veteran Walk

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Hunting incident report reinforces continued need for treestand safety

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Hunting incident report reinforces continued need for treestand safety

By Randy Zellers

Cooler weather has many deer hunters heading to the woods to set up their hunting stands for the coming archery opener on Sept. 27, and the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission wants to remind all hunters to double-check all of their equipment before they climb into a tree and always wear a safety harness when they leave the ground. According to the recently released Fiscal Year 2025 Hunter Incident Report, 11 of the 17 reported hunting accidents in Arkansas were the result of treestand falls.

With more than 307,000 hunting licenses sold last year, 17 injuries requiring medical assistance beyond first aid reinforce the fact that hunting is a safe, enjoyable outdoor pursuit. In the eyes of the AGFC’s Education Division, any injury while enjoying the woods and waters of The Natural State is one too many, especially when most could be avoided with a few simple precautions.

According to Joe Huggins, Hunter Education Program coordinator for the AGFC, only two of the 11 victims involved in falls from treestands were wearing safety harnesses, and those two harnesses were not attached to the tree at the time of the fall.

“That time transitioning from a ladder or step into the stand is one of the most critical times to be wearing a harness, but that’s also when some people temporarily disconnect their harness from the tree to adjust it to the higher level of the platform,” Huggins said. “There are special safety ropes called lifelines that allow a person to stay connected throughout the climb and transition, and we strongly encourage hunters use one of those to ensure they’re attached to the tree from the time they leave the ground until the time they return at the end of the hunt.”

Most treestand falls resulted in broken bones, specifically damage to the victims’ hips or vertebrae, both of which can be life-threatening or life-changing.

“In my career, I’ve seen where people have been paralyzed or killed from falls as short as 5 feet,” Huggins said. “It may not seem like much of a distance, but if you’re unprepared and fall in an awkward position or on equipment, it can cause major damage.”

For the second year in a row, at least one reported treestand fall came from someone using a tree saddle, a device that substitutes for a traditional platform stand. Saddles are seen by some hunters as being a safer option because the user is essentially tethered to the tree while hunting, but improper use of the equipment can still result in a fall. According to the incident report filed last hunting season, the user involved in the saddle-hunting fall had just completed attaching his final climbing stick to the tree and was reaching back to get his foot platform when he heard a “pop” and his lineman’s belt disconnected from the tree, causing him to fall 25 feet to the ground. Huggins believes user error was involved in attaching the belt to the saddle with a carabiner. The victim was not wearing an additional safety harness during the incident.

A single fatality was reported last year. A person who was hunting coyotes in June shot at what he believed to be the back end of a coyote in dense vegetation, but it turned out to be another person who was gathering berries. The victim died at the scene from the injuries sustained.

Huggins points out that additional injuries may have occurred throughout the hunting season, but these were the only ones reported where the victim was actively hunting at the time of the injury.

“We know of a few other incidents, one well-publicized in January, where duck hunters were involved in boating accidents,” Huggins said. “They were not recorded in the Hunter Incident Report as the victims involved in these accidents were traveling to their hunting destination and not yet hunting. They were, however, reported in the AGFC’s 2024 Boating Accident Year-End Report published earlier this year. It’s still highly doubtful that any incidents regarding serious injury or fatalities are not reported to the AGFC.”

The 2025 Hunting Incident Report is available at the AGFC’s Hunter Education web page, www.agfc.com/huntered.

Obituary: Bubba Milling (1954-2025)

Obituaries

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5:33 pm

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Dana (Bubba) Milling, of Tate, Arkansas, passed away peacefully on September 18, 2025, in Fort Smith, Arkansas at the age of 71.

Bubba was born on June 29, 1954, in Fort Worth, Texas, to Truman Herman Milling and Lola Mae (Jones) Milling. From the very beginning, Bubba had a big heart and a kind soul.

Bubba was a hard worker and a dreamer. He founded Longhorn Mechanical and proudly owned and operated it for 50 years. His dedication to his craft and the relationships he built along the way left an indelible mark on everyone who knew him.

He is survived by his loving wife of 24 years, Dottie Davis of the home; his devoted mother, Lola Mae Milling of Fort Worth, Texas; his sisters Diane Craig and husband Brian of Fort Worth, Texas, and Paula Allen and husband Jay Allen of Ruidoso, New Mexico; his cherished stepdaughter Tanya Roden and husband Randy Roden of Horatio, Arkansas; grandchildren Leah Parks and her husband Dustin Parks, and Wyatt Roden; and great-grandchildren Jessie Sawyer and Landon Sawyer, who were the lights of his life. Bubba will be missed by all that knew him and the many whose lives he impacted including a host of nieces, nephews, extended family, friends and friends who became family he loved dearly.

He was preceded in death by his father, Truman Herman Milling, who no doubt welcomed him home with open arms.

Bubba had a passion for the open road and a love of riding his Harley motorcycle. Some of his happiest moments were spent on long rides with his friends, sharing laughter, freedom, and the simple joy of the wind on his face.

A Celebration of Life honoring Bubba will be held at Heritage Memorial Funeral Home Chapel on Friday, September 26, 2025, at 2:00 p.m., with Pat Ray Biggs officiating. Arrangements are being entrusted to Heritage Memorial Funeral Home in Waldron, Arkansas.

Bubba will be remembered for his strength, and the way he made everyone feel like family. His memory will live on in the hearts of all who were blessed to know and love him.

Resident Press (Lavaca, Charleston, Paris edition) 9/24/25 Vol. 4 No. 39

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Charleston Sends Heavener’s Wolf Pack Packing

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Charleston Sends Heavener’s Wolf Pack Packing

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Scout Stubbs to Perform National Anthem at Town Hall

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Scout Stubbs to Perform National Anthem at Town Hall

The upcoming Meet the Candidates Town Hall Forum on November 18, 2025, will open on a high note—literally. Attendees will be treated to a special performance of the national anthem by Scout Stubbs, Republican candidate for State Representative in District 42.

For Stubbs, the anthem is more than a song—it represents a journey that began when she was just 15 years old. Looking for a talent to showcase in a pageant that offered scholarship money, Stubbs—who had never sung in public nor received any formal training—decided to take a leap of faith and sing.

“My parents were shocked and a little leery,” Stubbs recalled. “They first heard me rehearse in the car on our way to the pageant.” To everyone’s surprise, she not only performed with confidence, she won. That victory sparked a new dream.

Stubbs went on to work with a music producer to record 10 original songs, which were compiled into a CD sold locally in her hometown of Batesville and for a time on Amazon. While still in high school, she landed her first paying gig at a coffee shop, competed in singing contests, and even traveled overseas to perform—including a country music festival in Germany.

Perhaps the highlight of her early career came when she was asked to open for country music legend Merle Haggard in Batesville. “That was the thrill of a lifetime,” Stubbs said.

Her passion eventually led her to pursue a Music Business degree in the Nashville area. Though the competitive market there was tough to break into, Stubbs gained invaluable experience in the entertainment industry, including a stint as a publicist for TNA Wrestling, where she worked alongside household names like Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair.

Life eventually brought Stubbs back home to Arkansas, where she and her husband built a successful chain of retail stores from the ground up. Today, she’s a homeschooling mom of two, a small business owner, and now a candidate for state representative—channeling the same determination that once fueled her music career into public service.

Her campaign centers on smaller government, lower taxes, protecting Second Amendment rights, supporting the unborn, fostering business growth, and preserving Arkansas’ rural conservative way of life.

As Stubbs steps up to the podium on November 18, she’ll take the stage as she first did as a teenager—sharing her voice. Her rendition of the national anthem promises to set a heartfelt and patriotic tone for the evening’s forum.

Greenwood Resident 9/24/25 Vol. 5 No. 39

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Resident Press (Scott & So. Sebastian County edition) 9/24/25 Vol. 7 No. 39

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“Just Roll with It” Serving up Recipes and Humor

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“Just Roll with It” Serving up Recipes and Humor

Hello everyone! It’s raining in the River Valley. I have a funny story to tell, and please don’t think I’m making fun. I have permission to tell this story, and I’m not making fun of plus-size folks—I am one of them.
My niece is dating the nicest man. His name has been changed to protect the innocent, so let’s call him Jimbo. He used to be a big guy and has since lost a lot of weight. The incident I’m going to tell you about is what helped him make the decision to lose it.
He and his wife were on a trip, and she booked him an excursion that happened to be ziplining. Have you ever seen a big guy zipline? First of all, you have to walk upstairs forever just to get to it. Jimbo finally sat down and said, “I can’t make it.” One of the people with him told him, “There are only five steps left.” He decided he could do five steps.
He finally made it up to the platform, completely out of breath. Then they tried to put the harness on him, and he said, “They had to make two trips to the barn to get a harness big enough to fit me.” He thought that was the worst of it. But when they pushed him off, he made it halfway across before coming to a dead stop. He couldn’t move—just stuck like a tick.
He said, “What could I do but just hang there until they got help?” Finally, two guys worked their way out to him and pulled him the rest of the way over. Did I mention there was an audience watching? People waiting to zipline couldn’t go because Jimbo was stuck. He said, “It was the worst thing ever.”
When he finally got down and made it back to the hotel, his wife asked, “How was it? Did you have fun?” His response: “Don’t talk to me!” When he told the story, it was so funny we were rolling with laughter. He said, “I will never zipline again.” And for me? There is no way I would even attempt to zipline—ever.
The only thing that would have made the story funnier would have been if they had called the fire department to get Jimbo down. I fell through the front porch once, and that was an ordeal for sure. I did not want them calling the fire department, though—it took a while to get rescued!
On another note, my husband loved peanut butter, and so does my son. If I ever opened the jar and found a big glob missing, I knew my son had gotten himself a big spoonful. This reminds me of a great dessert recipe:
Nutter Butter Peanut Butter Lush
Crust:
1 (16 oz) package Nutter Butter cookies
1/2 cup melted butter
Filling:
8 oz cream cheese (softened)
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup milk
Pudding Layer
1 (3.4 oz) box instant chocolate pudding mix
2 cups cold milk
Topping
1 (8 oz) container whipped topping
Optional garnish: crushed Nutter Butter cookies, Reese’s Pieces, or chopped Reese’s Cups
Instructions
Prepare crust: Crush cookies until fine, add melted butter, mix, and press into a 9×13 baking dish. Refrigerate while preparing the other layers.
Peanut butter layer: In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add peanut butter, powdered sugar, and milk. Beat until light and fluffy, then spread evenly over the chilled crust.
Pudding layer: Whisk together pudding mix and cold milk for about 2 minutes. Pour pudding over the peanut butter layer and spread evenly.
Topping: Add whipped topping and garnish as desired. Keep refrigerated.
Have a blessed week and enjoy the cooler temps!

R

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