Stories from Friday, February 24, 2017

A convicted pedophile with ties to Carroll County was arrested last weekend in the Philippines and will be deported, an official there said. Cody Dean Turner, now 38, pleaded guilty in Carroll County’s Western District in 1999 to multiple counts of first-degree sexual abuse, court records indicate, and was sentenced to seven years’ probation. A press release issued this week by the Philippines’ Bureau of Immigration says the victim in that case was a 9-year-old girl from Holiday Island...

The Friends of the Berryville Library invite everyone to join them at the Berryville Library at 104 Spring St. for an Open House on Friday, March 3. Free coffee and doughnuts will be served from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. The Open House is part of the Greater Berryville Area Chamber of Commerce’s First Friday Coffee Series. Daylight Donuts and the Carroll County Master Gardeners will be helping with refreshments for this event...

The Western Carroll County Ambulance District Commission has a big decision to make, and citizens in and around Eureka Springs hope to have a say in it. On Tuesday, Feb. 21, citizens addressed the commission about its decision to request bids for the Western District’s ambulance service. The commission agreed in late 2016 to put out bids for the service instead of renewing the contract with Eureka Springs Fire & EMS, which has provided the service since the commission was established...

Here is a personal exercise for you, an experiment of sorts that will reveal more about how impressionable you are than maybe you wish to know. It only takes a few easy steps. Tomorrow morning, as you plan to start your day normally, tune in the most vile, angry, obnoxious talk-radio personality you can find. Listen to him or her all the way to work or school, taking to heart every single word...

Standardized testing will soon look very different at Green Forest Schools. The Green Forest School Board voted at its Monday meeting to approve the purchase of 300 Chromebooks, 10 Chromebook charging carts and Google management licensing from White River Services and Solutions for approximately $84,264.52...

Loaves & Fishes Food Bank of the Ozarks accepted a large land donation on Feb. 10. Mary Trimble donated 7.5 acres of land to the food bank. This isn’t the first time Trimble has helped the food bank out. In 2006, she donated 2.5 acres of land on Bunch Springs Road. That donation made it possible for the food bank to move into a new building. Trimble said she enjoys helping out the food bank...

Steve and Sharon Stafford of Green Forest, along with their family, have committed $100,000 to support the construction of Arkansas Children’s Northwest. Steve Stafford is chairman and chief executive officer of Anstaff Bank, which last announced a $250,000 gift to Arkansas Children’s.  ...

Paying for school lunches just got a lot easier at the Berryville School District. The Berryville School Board voted at its Tuesday meeting to approve the food services department’s request to use eTrition Easy School Pay, an online system that allows parents to make school meal payments online and monitor their children’s nutrition...

A Green Forest man was killed Monday afternoon in a two-vehicle accident on Arkansas Highway 412. According to a preliminary report from the Arkansas State Police, Bobby Johnson, 32, of Green Forest was driving a 1991 Chevrolet westbound on Highway 412 at 3:47 p.m. Monday when it was struck by a 2011 Buick driven eastbound by Melinda Jones, 53, of Van Buren. The report said Jones’ vehicle crossed the double yellow line before striking Johnson’s vehicle...

The Berryville School District is building its plans for a new high school, and an architect has been selected. The Berryville School Board voted at a special board meeting on Thursday to hire Lewis Architects Engineers of Little Rock to plan and design the construction of the new high school...

Spring cleaning is just around the corner, and the city of Berryville is offering residents a helping hand. Mayor Tim McKinney announced the dates for the city’s spring cleanup, when the city will haul off bulky items, bundled limbs and bagged leaves, at Tuesday’s meeting of the Berryville City Council...