Breast cancer video created by men
PINE BLUFF — Seven men from the Pine Bluff and Little Rock areas recently filmed a video tribute dedicated to and honoring those affected by breast cancer, according to a news release. “Embracing the Survivor’s Journey” is a poetic tribute written by Dedric L. Jones, a minister, gospel recording artist, educator, film writer and book author from Pine Bluff. “This power packed three-dimensional tribute was scripted to speak to the hearts of those who have been impacted by breast cancer in three ways,” according to the release. “First, there are those who are breast cancer survivors; second, there are those who have lost loved ones from breast cancer; and third, there are those who are currently enduring the battle.” Jones and other men in pink set out on a quest to round out this Breast Cancer Awareness Month by filming the tribute. Jones wanted to communicate a piece that would impact communities, state and nation.
— PINE BLUFF COMMERCIAL
Bridge repair set near Monticello
MONTICELLO — Repairs to an Arkansas 83 bridge will cause a temporary highway closings, according to the Arkansas Department of Transportation. Crews will close part of Arkansas 83 between Rose Hill Cutoff Drive and Allen Drive. It will remain closed through Nov. 2. The closing will allow crews to remove the old bridge deck, place reinforcing steel and pour new concrete. Local traffic can use Rose Hill Cutoff Drive and Allen Drive to detour around the closing. Heavy truck traffic will have to use U.S. 425 and Arkansas 54 between Monticello and Star City to detour around the closing. Motorists will be directed by advanced warning signs, barricades and portable traffic signals, the Highway Department said.
— ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
Veterans group honors Arkansan
TEXARKANA, Texas — As a show of support for fellow veterans past and present, a local veterans group is planning to help honor a veteran who, up until now, has been missing for 79 years. Members of Texarkana Chapter No. 278 Vietnam Veterans of America plan to attend the local funeral of U.S. Navy Fireman 1st Class Samuel Cyrus Steiner, who served aboard the Battleship USS Oklahoma and has, up until recently, been classified as Missing in Action since the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor. VVA President Greg Beck told VVA members last week the funeral for Steiner’s recently returned remains will be held at 9 a.m. Nov. 21 at East Funeral Home, 602 Olive St., in downtown Texarkana. Steiner, who was born on April 4, 1921, in South Dakota and raised in Arkinda, Ark., a few miles north of Winthrop, received Navy assignment to the Oklahoma in October 1940.
— TEXARKANA GAZETTE
Sheriff’s funding bid notes covid-19 jobs
LITTLE ROCK — Pulaski County Sheriff Eric Higgins is asking for an increased budget to pay for new positions related to covid-19. That is the only major change to the budget, according to Higgins, who said he will not ask for more funding to deal with maintenance issues in the jail. Higgins told the Quorum Court during a special meeting Sept. 1 about multiple equipment issues within the jail, including outdated and unreliable locks and out-of-order door-control panels. The sheriff’s enforcement, detention and detention-medical department budgets are scheduled for a Quorum Court discussion Nov. 5.
— ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
Race disparity seen in breakfast-eating
LITTLE ROCK — Children of color eat breakfast less frequently than their white peers, a National Center for Health Statistics report said last week. The review of data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2015-18 found that overall, 84.5% of white children ages 2-19 ate breakfast on a given day, but only 77.8% of Black children did. Also, compared with white children, a smaller proportion of Hispanic children ate breakfast. Breakfast consumption increased with family income level. Children whose families earned less than 100% of the poverty level were the least likely to eat breakfast. For children who ate breakfast, cereal was the food most frequently consumed, followed by pancakes, waffles and French toast. Arkansas has one of the nation’s highest rates of food insecurity for children, though state-specific data was not included in this review.
— ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
Police’s response to protests touted
NORTH LITTLE ROCK — The Arkansas State Police presented the Police Department with a plaque of appreciation Monday for its work during protests earlier this year. Bill Bryant, the director of the state police, said he wanted to thank the North Little Rock Police Department for its immediate response when called to action by Gov. Asa Hutchinson to “form a unified law enforcement front” in June. The department received the award during Monday’s City Council meeting. Demonstrations were held in late May and early June at the state Capitol building after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
— ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE