News

By SANDRA BRAND Times Editor There were tears of relief and tears of sadness at the Osceola Courthouse late Thursday night as a jury of 10 women and two men decided the fate of one man... sending a message that gun violence will not be tolerated in Osceola...

Chief Virgil L. Green Sr., a 20-year Police Chief veteran has been appointed the City’s new Chief of Police by Mayor Sally Wilson after the current Chief Ollie Collins reported his retirement at the end of October. “After conducting a three-month long national search which attracted almost 20 applicants from various areas, it became clear to us that Chief Green is what Osceola needs at this time. ...

Turrell Police Chief and Luxora police officer Perry Jennings is being investigated for an alleged sexual assault. Turrell Mayor Charles Webster issued the following statement Monday. “Police Chief Perry Jennings has been suspended pending the outcome of an investigation by the Crittenden County Sheriff’s Office.”...

Lefaye King Jr., 18, of Osceola was arraigned Tuesday in Blytheville’s district court on first-degree murder charges, after police say he fatally shot 19-year-old Demarcus Robinson on Saturday in the 200 block of Lakewood in Blytheville. King turned himself in to Blytheville authorities on Monday. He was given a $200,000 cash only bond, with the condition if he makes bond he must wear an ankle monitoring bracelet...

The Keiser City Council has appointed Rick Creecy to the office of Mayor. Creecy replaces former Mayor Eddie Gardner who resigned his position effective Sunday, Oct. 10. The council appointed Creecy as outlined by Arkansas law. The Arkansas Code Annotated states: In cities of the second class, (which Keiser is) the procedure is as follows under Arkansas Code. ...

The Arkansas Medicaid population has a low rate of COVID-19 vaccinations and Mississippi County is among a small number of counties with more than 10,000 clients who remain unvaccinated. According to Amy Webb, chief of communications and community engagement at the Department of Human Services in Little Rock, only 33 percent of eligible Medicaid clients in the state have been vaccinated against COVID-19...

Construction work to remove and replace the Highway 151 Bridge over Ditch No. 13 near Blytheville means temporary closure and detours, according to Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT). Weather permitting; the contractor will close Highway 151 south of Blytheville at the Highway 148 and County Road 246 intersections beginning at 8 a.m. Monday, Oct. 11. The closure will remain in place until the work is finished...

The City of Keiser will soon have a new mayor. Mayor Eddie Gardner, who was elected in 2018, tendered his resignation Sept. 27, and said resignation will become effective Sunday, Oct. 10. There appears to be some confusion on the method of replacing the mayor. However, Arkansas law is clear on this procedure...

Osceola was unable to locate an opponent to play Friday, so for the second time in three weeks the Seminoles will be sidelined. Osceola did receive credit for a victory and 13 tiebreaker points when Palestine-Wheatley cancelled the game due to low numbers of available players...

The Osceola School District will hold flu clinics on Monday, Oct. 11 and Wednesday, Oct. 13. A flu clinic will be held Monday at North Elementary and Carroll Smith Elementary Schools. The next flu clinic will be held Wednesday at the Osceola Middle School and Osceola High School...

During Monday afternoon’s Efficiency Committee meeting, Mississippi County justices of the peace questioned whether Mississippi County Assessor Harley Bradley should be paid personally by the drainage districts for assessment work, and they heard concerns about inequities in drainage taxes, with some parcels being charged 10 times more that similar ones...

WASHINGTON – Thursday, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo announced the Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding a $2.8 million CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to the City of Osceola, to make water and wastewater improvements to support the region’s growing steel sector. This EDA grant, to be matched with $955,405 in local funds, is expected to create 100 jobs and generate $2 billion in private investment...

A promise is a promise and a sacred bond between fellow soldiers. One Vietnam soldier was able to keep his promise this week - some 53 years after it was made. George Isler, of Albany, Ga. served with the Golf Co. 2nd Battalion 9th Marines during the Vietnam War. He served along with two men, who would become good friends, Bruce Kerns and Joel Crockett, of Osceola, Ar...

Two area residents have been appointed to the Arkansas State Plant Board. Governor Asa Hutchinson has appointed new members to the Arkansas State Plant Board to fill positions left vacant under an Arkansas Supreme Court ruling earlier this year. Among the new members are David Gammill, of Tyronza, and Travis Senter, of Osceola. ...

Southern Tenant Farmers Museum (STFM) officials will host a celebration honoring the 15th anniversary of the center, Wednesday, Oct. 6. The event is from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. at the STFM, 117 S. Main Street, Tyronza. The Southern Tenant Farmers Museum is a part of the Arkansas Heritage Sites of Arkansas State University...

The boil order for the towns of Wilson and Marie has been lifted.

WASHINGTON – Thursday, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo announced that the Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding a $2.8 million CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to the city of Osceola, to make water and wastewater improvements to support the region’s growing steel sector. This EDA grant, to be matched with $955,405 in local funds, is expected to create 100 jobs and generate $2 billion in private investment...

The Greater Blytheville Area Chamber of Commerce, the leading business association serving the Blytheville region, announced last week that it has changed its name to Mississippi County Regional Chamber of Commerce. The change comes after a new member expansion program, which was recently held, nearly doubled the organization’s size and attracted members from all areas of the county. ...

According to the Mississippi County Sheriff's Office, a body found last week in the woods near Burdette, has been identified as Anthony Hannaford, of Blytheville. The Arkansas State Crime Lab has positively identified Hannaford who was discovered on the edge of a farm, 1.5 miles south of East State Highway 148...

During the Sept. 21 Planning and Development Committee meeting, Mississippi County economic developer Clif Chitwood reported the county is putting together incentive packages to potentially lure two separate $150 million solar projects. One would potentially be outside of the Blytheville city limits, while the other would potentially be outside of the Osceola city limits...

The Mississippi County Police and Safety Committee voted in favor of closing the juvenile detention center in their Sept. 20 meeting. The closure will go into effect Oct. 3. “We’ve already talked to Craighead County’s sheriff and he’s agreed to help us as much as he can and Crittenden County also,” Mississippi County Sheriff Dale Cook said. “If they’re full, then [Daryl] Turner will have to locate another one of the nine facilities to take that person.”...

The Osceola Fire Department recently received a grant from Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway. The grant money was used to purchase three AED’s and one foam Pro Pack. Michael Garriga (third from left), executive director of state government affairs, is pictured with members of the fire department and the new equipment. Also on hand was Osceola Mayor Sally Wilson...

The boil order for the towns of Wilson and Marie are still in affect. It is asked residents to boil any water used for cooking and drinking.

DENSO, a leading mobility supplier, is looking to fill more than 50 open positions at its Osceola facility. It will host a walk-in hiring event on Wednesday, Sept. 29. The hiring event will be held from 9 a.m.-11:30 a.m. and from 3-5 p.m. There are no appointments required to attend. Attendees can apply, interview and be hired on the spot. Attendees can also participate in a gift card raffle...

Due to COVID-19 concerns, the Rivercrest School District has canceled the 1970 football halftime recognition ceremony scheduled for Oct. 8. The district hopes to honor the team later.

The Osceola verse Corning Senior High Football game scheduled for Friday, Sept. 24 has been cancelled due to COVID within the Corning Football Program. The junior high game scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 23 is still going to be played as scheduled. The Seminole will try again next Friday night as they travel to Piggott...

By SANDRA BRAND Times Editor While construction continues on the new Hotel Louis on the Wilson Square, The Lawrence Group is moving full speed ahead with the master plan. In their own words, “Wilson is not your average Delta town. With love for learning, culinary arts, regional culture, and community deep inside its roots, Wilson has become a bustling hub for folks near and far looking to experience something out of the ordinary.”...

By MARK BRASFIELD Concord Publishing The City of Osceola is in the final stage of acquiring Violet Cemetery. Monday night, Osceola Mayor Sally Wilson told the Osceola City Council attorney Richard Rhodes will be submitting information to the judge. In the meantime, the council agreed to budget up to $2,750 from the general fund to maintain the cemetery for the remainder of the year...

There is a new man of steel in Osceola. He has purchased a home in the community and is busy at work in the world’s first LEED certified steel mill, located out by the Mighty Mississippi. United States Steel Vice-President Daniel R. Brown, a 27-year veteran of the steel industry, was named Chief Operating Officer of Big River Steel in July of this year. Brown replaced former BRS Chief Executive Officer David Stickler who has taken on a new role with U.S. Steel...

By SANDRA BRAND Times Editor The Osceola Police Department will be allowed to “restructure” their Drug Task Force officers. The DTF board, led by Second Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney Keith Chrestman, held a zoom meeting Wednesday morning and voted unanimously to terminate Osceola’s current Memorandum of Understanding. The motion was made by Osceola Police Chief Ollie Collins and seconded by Mississippi County Sheriff Dale Cook...

Rivercrest School District will take sealed bids for eight tailgating spots for the 2021 football season. The tailgating spots will be numbered one-eight. Each spot is 16 feet wide and will be located north of the home bleachers against the fence. Sealed bids will be accepted for each spot. The highest bid will get first choice of spots. The second highest bid will get second choice, etc...

The Town of Wilson is being placed under a boil order. City officials ask residents to boil any water used for cooking and drinking. The city will announced on its Facebook page as soon as the boil order is lifted.

Rivercrest School District has announced beginning Monday, Sept. 20 the district will begin monitoring students' temperatures. Bus riders will have temperature checks before getting on buses. Bus monitors will be available to take temperatures, distribute masks, and provide support for social distancing. Bus rider swill not be denied transportation...

The roar of high performance engines and the smell of fuel and dirt fill the night air. On a dirt oval sits the number 17 Sprint car driven by a tall blond young man. That driver is 15-year old Hayden Brinkley, of Bono. While many teenagers are passionate about hunting and fishing, the Westside High School sophomore spends his weekends pursuing his passion, Sprint car racing, on dirt tracks all across the region...

An Osceola man was sentenced to 30 years in prison last week after pleading guilty to the murder of two-year-old Kei’Derrion Love. Quinton Hoskins pled guilty to murder in the second degree in connection with the May 1, 2019 death of his girlfriend’s child...

An Osceola man has been arrested and issued a $50,000 bond after issuing a death threat to Police Chief Ollie Collins. Antonio Watts, 32, was charged with felony terroristic threatening in the first degree and harassing communications. At approximately 11 a.m., July 16, Watts called the police department and left a message for the Chief of Police on his voicemail. Police say the message was a death threat...

By SANDRA BRAND Times Editor Jackie Bryeans has lived in the same house on South Main Street in Luxora since 1962 and the current condition of her hometown brings tears to her eyes, especially the lot next door. The 81-year-old told The Times she has had a very hard life and never felt the need to complain. However, she has grown tired...

By STEVE KNOX Times Staff After nearly 60 years in the automobile and tire business veteran Osceola businessman Jim Ross has closed his tire store on North Walnut. When asked why, Ross replied, “After 60 years and being 85 years of age, it was just about that time.”...

Family Dollar opened its new store in Osceola on Friday. The store is located in the shopping mall next to its sister company, Dollar Tree, on Keiser Avenue. The shopping chain closed its previous store location following damage from a leaking roof in 2017. ...

The annual South Mississippi County Relay for Life Survivor and Luminaria Ceremony will be held Friday, Oct. 9 in downtown Osceola. The event begins at 6 p.m. and will conclude at 9 p.m. The event will include the distribution of meals for cancer survivors, a survivor walk around the Osceola Courthouse Square and the lighting of luminaries donated in honor or memory of those who battled cancer...

The Mississippi County Sheriff's Department is asking for the public's help in finding Mya Arrigo. Arrigo is a 14-year-old white female, measuring 5'8 and weighs 120 pouncds. She has brown hair and blue eyes. She was last seen approximately 2 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 14 getting into a black sedan or truck on East State Highway 312 in Blytheville, Ark. She was wearing shorts and a "Rugrats" hoodie...

LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Director Austin Booth announced last Thursday at a special press conference that the AGFC will make changes to existing water management schedules on three of Arkansas’s popular wildlife management areas to protect critical habitat for wintering waterfowl...

Roy Hendrix, 66, of Gentry, Ark., formerly of Keiser, Ark., died Tuesday, Sept. 7, 2021. Born April 22, 1955, in Black Water, Ark., he was a member of Gentry First Assembly of God, where he enjoyed serving the Lord. He was a volunteer with the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management where he served as a Ham Radio Operator. ...

Mississippi County native and well known rapper, Lamont Brandon Rogers, has died as the result of multiple gunshot wounds he received Sunday Sept. 5 in Boise, Idaho. The Ada County Coroners Office confirmed to The Times Tuesday afternoon that Rogers, born Nov. 14, 1992, had been brought to their facility...

June 24, 1954 In September of 1902 there came to Osceola a newly-married couple – A.S. Rogers and his beautiful bride, fresh from the town of LaGrange, where he had taught in the Lee County High School. His first trip out to look the situation over is a vivid memory to Mr. ...

Osceola native Clovis Hodge, Jr. lost his live last week in what officials are calling a senseless act of violence. According to the Memphis Police, Hodge was shot Wednesday, Sept. 1 in the 3200 block of Benjestown Road in Frayser. Upon arrival, police found Hodge shot inside a white van. Hodge was pronounced deceased on the scene by Memphis Fire Department Paramedics...

When radical Islamic terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners on Sept. 11, 2001 and employed them as weapons against innocent Americans, we were instantly shocked and outraged. Those emotions, and others, washed over us in waves in the hours, days and months that followed...

The Brotherhood organization held a cookout and give-away Saturday. During the event, members of the organization presented Jerry Brown and Curtis Hunter with a Lifetime Membership Award. The plaques were in honor of their service and commitment to the Brotherhood...

Dyess City Hall will be closed until Monday, Sept. 13. Water bill payments can be submitted online at www.dyesswaterworksar.com. Checks and money orders can be mailed to 108 Center Dr., Dyess, AR 72330. For questions call, 870-764-2101.

Arkansas Department of Health has announced the state of Arkansas has 2,453 new cases of COVID-19 in Arkansas. There were 11,723 additional doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered.