Stories by Leeanna Walker
RSSCOMMENTARY: 3rd Friday Brings Back Memories
MAIN STREET EVENT OFFERS GOOD CHANCE TO GET OUT OF THE HOUSE
ROGERS — As dusk fell, the hummingbirds flitted around the feeders and zipped from tree to tree. Next, the fireflies — lightning bugs to many of us — arrived as dark fell, bringing back memories of childhood past. And there sat my friend Debbie and I on my front porch taking it all in as we chatted. We were having us a retro sort of an evening. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: A World Fraught With Realities
WHATEVER YOU DO, PAY OFF YOUR LOANS
ROGERS — The high schoolers are headed off to college or the military or, gasp, to a job. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Loss And Near Loss: Sad Time For Area
SPECIAL PLACE IN WRITER’S HEART FOR PEOPLE WHO CLIMB INTO UNIFORMS TO PROTECT US EVERY DAY
ROGERS — For a split second, the video took my breath away. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Rogers A Great Place For Families To Live
CITY HAS FOOD, SHOPPING, EVEN SOME ATTRACTIONS FOR THOSE SEEKING AN AFFORDABLE VACATION
ROGERS — Many a moon ago, I remember having a conversation with an acquaintance about the beauty of the area. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Walking In Rogers Could Be Easier
CITY PLANS SIDEWALK REHAB PROJECT
ROGERS — Finally — with emphasis on “finally” — someone at City Hall listened to me. I know this because, two years ago this month, I wrote a column decrying the condition of sidewalks in the city, especially those downtown. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Proposed Jail Changes Would Be Good
YOU CAN NEVER FIX IT SO ALL PRISONERS EVENTUALLY PAY THEIR JAIL BILLS, BUT PERHAPS THIS IS A SOLUTION
ROGERS — Keith Ferguson is retiring as sheriff this year. He’s going out with a bang, not a whimper, if proposed changes come to pass. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: All A Girl Really Wants Is What’s Fair
MOST MEN IN WASHINGTON DON’T THINK WOMEN NEED A SAY-SO WHEN IT COMES TO THEIR HEALTH CARE
ROGERS — This just in: I think I will run for office and my platform will be men’s health care. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Catching Up On The News
POLITICS, WAR, WEATHER, ALCOHOL MAKE HEADLINES
ROGERS — Did you miss me? Well, whether you did or not, I am back. Continue reading...
Drive-By Shooting Reported
SPRINGDALE — Police are investigating a drive-by shooting reported on Braxton Drive on Friday night.
Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: $5 Million Short? Schedule A Fundraiser
COLUMNIST BELIEVES A CONSERVANCY SHOULD BE ESTABLISHED TO ASSURE THE WELL-BEING OF LAKE ATALANTA
ROGERS — City officials are $5 million short. Let’s schedule a fundraiser — or 10. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: ‘Regionalism’ Is The Word These Days
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS COUNCIL NEEDS TO MAKE SURE COMMUNITY LEADERS ARE ON SAME PAGE
ROGERS — It’s all about regionalism. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Merry Christmas, And Happy Holidays, Too
CHECK OUT SPOTIFY ONLINE FOR HOURS OF NIFTY HOLIDAY MUSIC YOU MIGHT OTHERWISE NEVER HEAR
ROGERS — And so it is Christmas. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: YMCA Opens In Rogers
FACILITY NOT QUITE THE STUFF OF MOVIES, VILLAGE PEOPLE TUNE
ROGERS — We have a new YMCA in Rogers. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Columnist ‘Mad As Hell’ At Dumb Laws
LET COUNTY INMATES DO WORK ASSISTING NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS, IN SPITE OF NEBULOUS STATUTE
ROGERS — Do you remember the movie “Network”? Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: ‘If I Had A Gazillion Dollars’
LANE HOTEL RENOVATIONS ON TOP OF WRITER’S WISH LIST
ROGERS — Do you ever play “what if?” Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Clinton’s Economic Advice
FORMER PRESIDENT CALLS FOR COOPERATION, NOT CONFLICT
ROGERS — Ah, irony. The economic news remained bad, and yet, there I was, in the midst of thousands of people in Houston’s George R. Brown Convention Center, trying to spend money faster than the next person. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Troop Talk Politics As Usual
COLUMNIST’S MESSAGE TO POLITICIANS: BUG OFF, BRING THEM HOME
ROGERS — American troops will be out of Iraq by the end of the year. That’s a good thing to a person who compiles a daily list of the war dead. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Possible vs. Possibilities
GOING THROUGH OPEN DOOR OF THE NEW LOGO
ROGERS — “Where Possible Lives.” That’s it. That’s the new brand for the city of Rogers. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: It’s Built, But Will They Come?
ROGERS ALSO OFFERS ATTRACTIONS TO CRYSTAL BRIDGES VISITORS
ROGERS — There is a lot of folderol and fiddledeedee going on about museums right now. Well, one museum anyway. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Encourage Creative Thought
DON’T WORRY ABOUT WHY TWO PLUS TWO EQUALS FOUR; JUST ACCEPT IT
ROGERS — I wonder if I could get through school today. Continue reading...
PEOPLE & PLACES
Williams Marks 98th Birthday Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Votes Counted As Benton County Turns
ELECTION COMMISSION NEEDS TO IDENTIFY ISSUES, STREAMLINE BALLOT TABULATION PROCESS
ROGERS — Some things never changed. In Benton County, one of those things is apparently how long it takes to count votes. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Time To Commit To Lake’s Future
ATALANTA NEEDS CARE AS ‘GEM’ OF CITY PARKS
ROGERS — Now that the election is over, I have a thing or two to say about the plans for Lake Atalanta. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Reinvigorate Downtown
TIME TO GET MOVING ON DRAWING CROWDS TO HISTORIC ROGERS
ROGERS — Frisco Festival is over. Downtown is pretty much beautified. So where do we go from here? Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Looking Back And Forward
GIFFORDS’ SHOOTING, DICTATORS’ EXIT MARK EVENTFUL YEAR
ROGERS — Well, here it is September, almost. It is so close you can see it from here. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Skepticism Beneficial
COLUMNIST SPENDS TIME LOOKING UP STATEMENTS FOR TRUTH
ROGERS — We all get them. They are email or Facebook posts making perfectly plausible statements — that’s why they get passed along. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: ‘Extreme’ Couponing Craze
LOWELL WOMAN ACCUSED OF STEALING 185 COPIES OF MORNING NEWS
ROGERS — Really? You didn’t know taking newspapers for which you did not pay is theft? Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Politicians Blink So They Can Get Re-Elected
WASHINGTON DECIDES TO KEEP ECONOMY FROM FAILING BY TEMPORARILY AGREEING ON FINANCIAL PLAN
ROGERS — I told you someone would blink. Well, maybe not each of you, but I told some people the politicians in Washington would blink and a plan would be hammered out to prevent the country from defaulting on its financial obligations. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Hot, Hot, Hot — That’s The Talk Of The Town
AIR CONDITIONING HAS MADE US SOFT
ROGERS — What are people talking about? The short answer: The heat. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Space Exploration: ‘To Infinity And Beyond’
GOVERNMENT SHOULD CONTINUE TO PROVIDE FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR NASA MANNED SPACE FLIGHT
ROGERS — There she was: Atlantis, strapped to a rocket on her launch platform. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: In Review: Six Months As Mayor
A LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
ROGERS — Dear Greg, Just thought I’d check in and see how that mayor’s gig is going now that you have been on the job six months. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Reality Television Is Real Life? Get Real
JUDGE’S NEW JOB IS ‘LAST SHOT’
ROGERS — Would you do a reality television show? I’m fairly certain I wouldn’t. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Branding Effort Is Bland So Far
ROGERS HAS A PULSE
ROGERS — She said: “Honey, let’s go visit that place. Oh, you know the one. They call themselves ‘the economic pulse’ of Northwest Arkansas.” Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Booze In Stores Means Revenue For Government
IN SUPPORT OF BECOMING WET COUNTY
ROGERS — “But there’s booze in the blender/And soon it will render/That frozen concoction that helps me hang on.” Ah, the musical stylings of one Mr. James Buffett. Who else could sing so poetically of tequila and lime? Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: City Needs Storm Shelters
TORNADO RAISES AWARENESS OF SAFE ROOMS
ROGERS — There I was, all set to bask in the glow of the Jimmy Buffett concert I attended last weekend in Dallas. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Save Now, Graduates, But Follow Your Heart
EDITOR OFFERS UNSOLICITED ADVICE
ROGERS — It was only a couple of months ago that I sat in her car seat while her dad worked to strap it in properly. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: When Toilet Paper Comes In Handy
BATHROOM ITEM GIVES WAY TO BONDING AT WOMEN’S HIGH SCHOOL REUNION
ROGERS — There we were: a group of women of a certain age sitting in a circle with toilet paper in our laps. Welcome to my class reunion. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: What Does It Cost To Be The ‘Best’?
THOUGH ACCREDITATION IS NICE, IS IT WORTH IT?
ROGERS — “Be all that you can be.” That was a great slogan for the U.S. Army and those are good words to live by for any military or paramilitary organization. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: ‘Newsbies’ Provide Perspective
SPEAKING TO HIGH SCHOOL JOURNALISTS GIVES FLASHBACKS
ROGERS — There’s nothing like a visit with newsbies to give you a fresh perspective. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: The Hot, Cold And Windy City
EXPLAINING ARKANSAS WEATHER NOT EASY
ROGERS — Have you ever tried to explain April’s weather to a visitor to Northwest Arkansas? Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Who Will Serve For Four Years?
ROGERS CITY COUNCIL GETS SET TO DECIDE TERMS OF ALDERMEN
ROGERS — Members of Rogers City Council are thinking about who the lucky ducks will be that get a one-time, four-year term on that August panel. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Retirement Couldn’t Be That Bad
HAVING TIME OFF TO DO WHAT YOU WANT CAN BE ENJOYABLE
ROGERS — We have a new police chief in Rogers. James Allen just retired as chief of the Bentonville Police Department. By “just” I mean his retirement wasn’t even to be effective until Thursday. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Center Hours Should Benefit All
WORKING WOMAN FINDS IT HARD TO SCHEDULE WORKOUT
ROGERS — It’s March. You know. March: Cold in the morning, just plain hot in the afternoon, and you don’t know how to dress. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Letter Recommends Chief Characteristics
WRITER OFFERS A BIT OF ADVICE TO NEW MAYOR OF ROGERS
ROGERS — Dear Greg, Hope you are enjoying the mayor gig. I know you weren’t expecting an epic snowfall during your first six weeks in office. Did it make you question the wisdom of taking on the chief executive’s job for a city of 55,000-plus? Come, on. You can tell me. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Secret of Longevity? Live, Love, Laugh
MYTHS OF LIFE, LAUGHTER BROKEN DOWN IN STUDY
ROGERS — “The Secrets To A Long Life” blared the headline on the cover of last week’s Parade, which is inserted into this fine newspaper on Sundays. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Snow, Dogs, Fashion And Books
CLOSING OF BORDERS BIG LOSS TO OUR COMMUNITY
ROGERS — I have finally figured out why I don’t like snow, aside from the obvious reasons. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Festival Changes Require Consideration
EVENT IS IMPORTANT TO ROGERS AND TO DOWNTOWN
ROGERS — They’re talking changes. Not that change is inherently bad, but when people want to change something that has worked for a quarter of a century, well, you have to sit back and look at it with a critical eye. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Partisanship Takes A Back Seat
DATES OF THE UNION: WAS IT JUST A ONE-NIGHT STAND?
ROGERS — I actually watched a portion of the State of the Union address last week. I’ve never been much of a fan of this event, and spent eight years boycotting it. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Warning: Legislature In Session
EVERYONE MUST DECIDE WHETHER PROPOSALS ARE SENSIBLE OR NOT
ROGERS — The Legislature is in session — always a scary situation. You know how bad it is when you can’t decide if meeting every two years is too much, or not enough. Continue reading...
COMMENTARY: Cleaning: A Historic Experience
CHANGING CONFERENCE ROOMS LED TO DOCUMENT DISCOVERY
ROGERS — I can now report that the first beer in 40 years appeared in Rogers on Aug. 24, 1933. Then in 1944, Benton County voted to go dry by 90 votes, while the city of Rogers voted wet by 100 votes. Continue reading...
