Jubilation, jostling and job changes were news themes from April through June as a group jostled to get signatures for a new school district, principals and others got jobs or lost jobs and events like Easter egg hunts and festivals brought jubilation to those who attended.
And sequestration — the automatic federal budget cuts — made everyone jumpy.
APRIL
• School district dreaming: Jacksonville took one step closer to getting its own school district as a feasibility study claimed that the city could finance its own district.
• Tasty benefit: The Taste of Lonoke County event helped raise funds for the Lonoke County Safe Haven Shelter.
• Easter eggs: Sherwood and other area communities, churches and civic groups sponsored Easter egg hunts for children.
• Big splash: Jacksonville’s Parks and Recreation Depart-ment was named Therapeutic Recreation Program of the Year for its pool lessons and Natural Resources Programs of the Year for its youth fishing programs.
• A “no-brainer:” During a speech at a fundraiser in Cabot for the Open Arms Shelter, that’s what Gov. Mike Beebe called his decision to expand Medicaid.
• Let’s drink to that: A bill allowing communities with dry areas to vote on the issue to allow or not allow alcohol passed the state Legislature and was signed into law by the governor.
• Tax stays: Cabot voters extended the city’s one-cent sales tax to pay for numerous projects, including a new library and a highway interchange.
• Cities’ reach shortened: A bill signed by Gov. Beebe limited a city’s developmental control from five miles beyond its city limits to just one mile.
• Squadron buys toys: The 19th Equipment Maintenance Squadron from Little Rock Air Force Base collected nearly $2,000 worth of toys for burn patients and others at the Arkansas Children’s Hospital.
• Lonoke exit work starts: Construction work started on a $7.8 million I-40 interchange at Hwy. 89 on the northwest side of Lonoke.
• Flippers flop: Jason Wilkinson, a two-time president of the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce, and former C-130 pilot Grant Exton, both of Austin, filed bankruptcy and owed local banks and investors hundreds of thousands of dollars when their idea of flipping houses flopped.
• Plastic payments: The Lonoke County Quorum Court approved the idea of letting residents pay taxes, fines and marriage-license fees with credit cards.
• Keeps electric provider: A grassroots Sherwood group that pushed for a special election after the council decided to let North Little Rock Electric continue to provide energy to the city faced a rival grassroots group that agreed with the council.
• Sherwood wants to leave too: Sherwood city council passed a resolution supporting the idea of breaking away from PCSSD and forming its own independent school district.
• In praise of food: Food Network’s star Maneet Chauhan stopped in at North Pulaski High School, praising the culinary program and its students.
• Just a sliver: Only Lonoke really benefited from the $130 million the state made available for school construction by receiving $1.1 million for heating and air repair at the primary school.
• Sweet strawberries: About 2,000 enjoyed the annual Cabot Strawberry Festival despite the threat of rain.
MAY
• In praise of food: Food Network’s star Maneet Chauhan stopped in at North Pulaski High School, praising the culinary program and its students.
• Just a sliver: Only Lonoke really benefited from the $130 million the state made available for school construction by receiving $1.1 million for heating and air repair at the primary school.
• Sweet strawberries: About 2,000 enjoyed the annual Cabot Strawberry Festival despite the threat of rain.
MAY
• Cabot roast: Bobby Doyle, a longtime educator and director of the Special Olympics, was roasted at a benefit hosted by the Cabot Education Foundation, which provided 80 scholarships for Cabot students this year.
• Mrs. Arkansas: Quynci Joyner of Jacksonville was crowned Mrs. Arkansas International and competed in the Mrs. International contest in Chicago in July.
• Make-A-Wish book: Cabot’s Sharon Hawkins published “Once upon a Wish,” a book about her son, Dakota, who died at the age of 15 after a long battle with leukemia.
• WWII vets get wish: More than 80 World War II veterans, all over the age of 80, flew free of charge to Washington to see the memorial dedicated to them. They all enjoyed a one-day whirlwind trip.
• Perfect attendance: Cabot senior Talen Evans went through kindergarten, primary school, middle school and high school — 13 years in all — without missing a day.
• North Little Rock wins: By a 2-to-1 margin, Sherwood residents voted to keep North Little Rock Electric as the electric company for about 7,500 Sherwood customers.
• Losing 11 days: Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel made it clear that the sequester will cut 11 days of work and pay for civilian workers at Little Rock Air Force Base. Furloughs began in July.
• Going to the dogs: The Beebe School Board approved a program that placed a therapy dog in Badger Elementary as a way to encourage students to improve academically and socially.
• Not running: House Speaker Davy Carter (R-Cabot) decided not to run for governor as the office was being vacated by Gov. Mike Beebe. Both are term-limited.
• Improper comments: Jacksonville District Judge Robert Batton was reprimanded by the state’s Judicial Discipline Commission over remarks he made about a black defendant.
• Historic gas station: The Roundtop Filling Station in Sherwood was placed on the state’s list of places that most need preservation. It was estimated that it would take $150,000 to restore the building.
• Beaver bounty: The Lonoke County Quorum Court, which had previously increased the price of beaver pelts to $30 to keep the beaver population under control, lowered the reward to $20 because officials believed trappers were bringing in pelts from other counties.
• Double-digit growth: Austin led area cities in population growth based on new census figures. The small community near Cabot jumped up 23 percent in two years.
JUNE
• New fire station: Cabot broke ground on a new $1.2 million fire station off Hwy. 5 between Greystone and Magness Creek. (See page 1A for an update.)
• Director steps down: Cabot Chamber of Commerce Director Billye Everett announced her retirement after leading the chamber for seven years.
• Vertac still in the news: A federal judge ruled that the old Vertac site must still be monitored for contaminants even though the site is clean and home to the new police department and training facility.
Less money: Military officials said 650 civilian workers at Little Rock Air Force Base would lose 20 percent of their pay by being furloughed for 11 days.
• Big jump: Marc Sherrell, an assistant principal at Blytheville Primary School, was hired as the new principal of Lonoke High School.
• A Cabot North Belt: Cabot Mayor Bill Cypert continued to push his plan to bring the North Belt farther north and connect it with Hwy. 5.
• School leaders ousted: The Jacksonville Middle School principal Don Booth and assistant principal Sharon Hawk were fired, but officials with the Pulaski County Special School District never explained why.
• Base big bucks: Despite talks to end sequestration and a weak economy, LRAFB added $963.5 million into the central Arkansas economy last year — up from the previous year.
• New VA home: Jacksonville began its efforts to become the site of a new home for a veterans by pledging to donate 57 acres.
• New wing leader: Col. Patrick Rhatigan became the new commander of the 19th Airlift Wing at LRAFB as Col. Brian Robinson was promoted to brigadier general and transferred to Scott AFB, Ill.
• Efforts fall short: Efforts to collect enough signatures to support a Jacksonville school district fell short and were not presented to the state Board of Education as planned. The petition had enough signatures later that summer.
• Negative results good: The Cabot School District, in its first year of random drug testing, checked nearly 500 of its 1,600 high school students and only 13 tests were positive.
• Respected JHS principal leaves: Henry Anderson, who was principal of Jacksonville High School for two years, left for a Little Rock position. The district brought Bill Barnes out of retirement to run the school.
• First responder honored: Another name was added to Jacksonville’s Fallen Heroes Memorial Garden. Police Capt. Bill Horn, who died on duty in 1982, was added to the memorial alongside Fire Capt. Donald Jones, who was killed while on duty last year when a driver ran him over while he was responding to an accident on Hwy. 161.
• New hospital head: Cindy Stafford became chief executive officer for North Metro Medical Center.
• Range gets more funds: The Jacksonville Advertising and Promotions Commission allocated $230,000 to pay for construction of the $3 million sports-shooting range on Graham Road.
• Rough start for FestiVille: Heat and rain kept the crowds away from the Jacksonville Parks and Recreation’s attempt to revive an annual festival after the city’s chamber of commerce canceled Wing Ding.
• Pay raise: The Sherwood City Council voted to give city employees a 3 percent raise after reviewing the budget.
• Bond issued for projects: Cabot finalized the sale of $42 million worth of bonds that will be used to fund parks and other recreation projects, a new library and an interchange.
• Deadly shooting: Two Jacksonville police officers were placed on administrative leave while the department reviewed their actions in the shooting death of a man they said threatened them with a knife.
• Big jump: Marc Sherrell, an assistant principal at Blytheville Primary School, was hired as the new principal of Lonoke High School.
• A Cabot North Belt: Cabot Mayor Bill Cypert continued to push his plan to bring the North Belt farther north and connect it with Hwy. 5.
• School leaders ousted: The Jacksonville Middle School principal Don Booth and assistant principal Sharon Hawk were fired, but officials with the Pulaski County Special School District never explained why.
• Base big bucks: Despite talks to end sequestration and a weak economy, LRAFB added $963.5 million into the central Arkansas economy last year — up from the previous year.
• New VA home: Jacksonville began its efforts to become the site of a new home for a veterans by pledging to donate 57 acres.
• New wing leader: Col. Patrick Rhatigan became the new commander of the 19th Airlift Wing at LRAFB as Col. Brian Robinson was promoted to brigadier general and transferred to Scott AFB, Ill.
• Efforts fall short: Efforts to collect enough signatures to support a Jacksonville school district fell short and were not presented to the state Board of Education as planned. The petition had enough signatures later that summer.
• Negative results good: The Cabot School District, in its first year of random drug testing, checked nearly 500 of its 1,600 high school students and only 13 tests were positive.
• Respected JHS principal leaves: Henry Anderson, who was principal of Jacksonville High School for two years, left for a Little Rock position. The district brought Bill Barnes out of retirement to run the school.
• First responder honored: Another name was added to Jacksonville’s Fallen Heroes Memorial Garden. Police Capt. Bill Horn, who died on duty in 1982, was added to the memorial alongside Fire Capt. Donald Jones, who was killed while on duty last year when a driver ran him over while he was responding to an accident on Hwy. 161.
• New hospital head: Cindy Stafford became chief executive officer for North Metro Medical Center.
• Range gets more funds: The Jacksonville Advertising and Promotions Commission allocated $230,000 to pay for construction of the $3 million sports-shooting range on Graham Road.
• Rough start for FestiVille: Heat and rain kept the crowds away from the Jacksonville Parks and Recreation’s attempt to revive an annual festival after the city’s chamber of commerce canceled Wing Ding.
• Pay raise: The Sherwood City Council voted to give city employees a 3 percent raise after reviewing the budget.
• Bond issued for projects: Cabot finalized the sale of $42 million worth of bonds that will be used to fund parks and other recreation projects, a new library and an interchange.
• Deadly shooting: Two Jacksonville police officers were placed on administrative leave while the department reviewed their actions in the shooting death of a man they said threatened them with a knife.
