The halls of Dexter High School were a little … well, - nerdy on Tuesday.
It’s Homecoming Week 2011 this week, and the student body celebrated on Tuesday with Super Nerdy Nemesis Day. And bold black eyeglasses taped together, “high rise” jeans, odd combinations of clothing, suspenders, look-alikes for television character Steve Urkel and interesting wardrobe combinations.
Wednesday is Super Side Kick – or Twin Day at DHS and T.S. Hill Middle School as Homecoming Week continues. The students at Southwest and Central schools are celebrating Wednesday with Crazy Hair Day.
Homecoming Week activities will kick it up a notch on Thursday with the Lady Bearcats’ home volleyball DIG PINK game to raise awareness and funds to fight breast cancer. A silent auction will kick off the special evening of Bearcat volleyball at 5 p.m. in the lobby of the Bearcat Event Center.
The Lady ‘Cats will don special pink uniforms as they meet the Poplar Bluff Mules on the BEC court. The junior varsity match-up begins at 6 p.m., following by the varsity game.
Homecoming 2011 activities include:
Thursday
- Super Fashion Disaster Day (Mix & atch or Crazy Hay Day) at DHS; Rick & Roll Day at Middle School; Camo & Animal Print Day at Central and Southwest.
- DIG PINK Volleybal game against Poplar Bluff; 6 p.m. in the BEC
- SUPER BEARCAT DAY - Wear your Red& Black and show your school spirit!! (At DHS, Middle School, Central & Southwest)
- Fellowship of Christian Athletes Breakfast at 7:20
- DHS Pep Rally at the BEC during seventh period
- HOMECOMING 2011 TAILGATE sponsored by ontgomery Bank & County Wide Insurance; begins at 4:30 on Brown Pilot Road between Faith Lutheran Church and the Dexter School Administrative Offices.
- Presentation of the Homecoming Court and crowning the 2011 Homecoming Queen in pre-game festivities on Bearcat Field in Charles Bland Stadium; 6:30 p.m.
- Kickoff of the 2011 Homecoming game againt Caruthersville, 7 p.m.
- Fifth Quarter festivities with music by The BUZZ, at Faith Lutheran Church parking lot.
- Bearcat Booster Club Dodge Ball Tournament & Mr. DHS contest; 6 p.m. in the DHS Gym
By Kim Lacy, SMT Writer
On a much-anticipated day in April, a dream came true for Greg and Kara Lummukka: Ian Gregory was welcomed into the loving arms of his parents. Their journey to get to that day on April 8 began when Greg and Kara were dating and talking about their future together - adoption was very important to Kara and Greg. To give a child a loving home was foremost in this decision, and Greg knew from being adopted himself what impact they could have on a child that needed a family.That plan was set into motion during their first year of marriage - the process of adopting a child - by deciding which agency to work with. Kara tells about it being not such a hard process, but very time consuming. She noted that they had months and months of paperwork and waiting to tackle.
Kara and Greg decided to make a beautiful video for birth mothers to review that would show them what they had to offer as a family. Too many times birth mothers that choose to give their child up for adoption have a stigma attached to them - this should not happen, as this is a very selfless and difficult decision. Greg and Kara will be forever grateful for this young woman’s decision.
The Lummakkuas were at the hospital within hours, and were whisked away to the NIC unit to see their new arrival. After a few days in the hospital and a seven to ten day wait for the paperwork to be processed was all that stood between taking the newborn home.
Some adverse conditions extended the waiting period into 21 days in a hotel room, but Kara’s parents were able to come and stay a few days. Luckily, this was when all the flooding was going on in the area, so the family was lucky to miss out on that.
Tense sometimes but they did great and were able to bring Ian home to Missouri.
The joy he brings daily now that he is part of this great family with his bright eyes is beyond compare. Ian is a cherubic, happy, and very loving baby; he grins constantly and it’s not much of a stretch to say he knows how very fortunate he is to have the Lummukkas to call Mommy and Daddy!
By Annabeth Miller, ShowMe Times Editor
The times they are a-changin’.
After years of the Dexter Veterans Day Parade moving east on Stoddard Street to the City Administration Building for a special program, the parade will transition to a community observance at the Bearcat Event Center with all the students in Dexter school participating.
Delores Bailiff, representing the Daughters of the American Revolution, attended Monday evening’s meeting of the Dexter Board of Aldermen to discuss the changes. The DAR organizes the Nov. 11 observance of Veterans Day.
Mrs. Bailiff told the board that following this spring’s Honor Tour Send-Off for World War II veterans at the BEC, several people approached the DAR about making the transition from a downtown parade to a community ceremony.
“This will allow all of the students to attend and participate. I think they need to see and listen and learn,” she said. The aldermen and Mrs. Bailiff discussed the enthusiasm and attendance at the Honor Tour ceremony, and how important it was for the students to learn of the sacrifices made by America’s veterans.
“We’ll need your assistance, Mr. Banken, at sounding the sirens at 11 a.m.,” Mrs. Bailiff said to Dexter Fire Chief Al Banken.
Mrs. Bailiff explained that since the students will be participating, the ceremony would need to begin earlier on the morning of Nov. 11 to accommodate the school lunch shift schedules.
Mayor Joe Weber expressed the support of the city in the new project, and indicated that the police department would assist with traffic and other essentials, and that other city offices would be available to assist as needed.
Veterans Day originally was Armistice Day, marking the end of hostilities of World War I, when the Armistice was signed “at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month” in 1918. The day evolved to a day to honor all of America’s veterans and officially became Veterans Day in 1954.
“Colleges like these are special places,” said Nixon. “Staff and supporters at these institutions believe they are the best because they are the best for their communities. There is no place where the connection between the classroom and the workforce is more direct than at Missouri’s outstanding community colleges. I applaud the team at Three Rivers for their work in this effort to help get people back to work and grow the Missouri economy.”
At the Sept. 21 meeting of the college’s board of trustees, president Devin Stephenson announced that Three Rivers had been selected to receive almost $2 million in federal grant money from the Department of Education, as part of the Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP). The grant allots about $1.4 million to pay for six personnel positions, $90,000 for equipment, $400,000 for software and supplies, and $100,000 for training.
“Get ready for a transformation,” said Stephenson. “This type of grant is the largest that the Department of Education awards. Only 33 other institutions in the entire nation will receive this award this year. We will use these funds to develop innovative curriculum and enhance support services for students. This will help us complete our Academic Resources Commons, which will include all learning labs, tutoring programs, learning resources, and the Student Support Services program, in addition to the Rutland Library and the Public Computing Center.”
The college received word on Monday that the institution would also receive $1.1 million in funds from the Department of Labor under the MOHealthWINs proposal, which refers to Workforce Innovation Networks and a statewide plan among community colleges to retrain unemployed workers to enter or re-enter the healthcare field.
“To keep up with the ever-increasing demand, Missouri needs more healthcare workers, plain and simple,” said Nixon, during his visit to the Three Rivers’ Nursing and Allied Health Center. Nixon viewed the state-of-the-art simulation mannequin lab funded by a previous Training for Tomorrow grant.
“The MoHealthWINs program will invest $20 million dollars of competitive federal grant money into a statewide effort to train 4,600 Missourians for healthcare jobs and careers. We competed against all the other states for this money, and because of the hard work of our community colleges and local officials, we were able to perform at a very high level. Many states got nothing. Missouri put forward a strong application and we won,"Nixon said.
With the funds from MoHealthWINs, Three Rivers will invest over $1 million in training programs in Southeast Missouri to help an estimated 200 to 400 people earn healthcare-related certifications, which could eventually lead to nursing degrees. Examples of such certifications would be insulin administration, certified nurses’ assistant, and certified medical technician.
It’s a journey they have been anticipating; it’s a goal they have been working toward for months.
The Dexter Competition Cheer Team is leaving this weekend for the University of Missouri campus in Columbia where it will compete in the Missouri Cheerleading Championships. The Dexter squad will compete in Class 4 Small on Sunday at the Hearnes Center on the Mizzou campus.
Team members include seniors Taylor Martin, McKenzie Mitchell, Rilee Jones, Sydnie Rinehart, and Miranda Warner; juniors Sydney Graves, Jessica Norman, Brooke Stoker, and Brooke Duckworth; sophomores Alyssa Spear, Tayler Allen and Madison McGowen.
“We’ve been working hard on the routine,” coach Michelle Kirkley said recently. Kirkley and Laura Stone are coaches of the competitive team. The girls have been fitting practice time around studies and activities. Among their practices this fall, they have had a practice session at the conclusion of every Dexter home volleyball game.
The journey began late spring, as the girls began working on their new routine. The squad placed in the Southeast Regional championship in July and qualified to compete at state.
Kirkley explained that the “small” does not designate the size of the school, but rather the size of the squad. Squads with 12 or less girls are classified as small; squads with more than 12 are large.
“Sikeston is in Class 4 as we are, but they are a large squad,” she said, explaining that the Sikeston team has 24 members; Dexter has 12. “At competition Sikeston fans cheer us on, and we yell for them, too.”
The Class 4 Small category includes Dexter, as well as Monett, Festus, St. Francis Borgia, Hillcrest, Buffalo, Republic, Mexico, Odessa, Benton, Perryville, Grandview, Lafayette, Marshfield, Moberly and Platte County.
Plans call for the girls to perform their routine on Saturday morning prior to their 10:30 departure from the Bearcat Event Center. Following the presentation to family and friends, the girls will begin their journey to Columbia.
The awards presentation for Class 4 will be held at 2:30 p.m., Sunday in the Hearnes Center following the competition.
Photo Above: The Dexter Competitive Cheer Team will compete this weekend in the Missouri State Cheerleading Championships in Columbia. (Photo courtesy of Amy Ellinghouse)
