Siloam Springs Herald Leader

News

Economic development agreement goes before city board The city board will consider the approval of an economic development agreement during its meeting on Tuesday night that would waive the cost of certain fees during the construction of a new facility that is underway for Ability tree. by Hunter McFerrin

Commission approves two-family subdivision proposal Despite some pushback from nearby residents, the city's planning and zoning commission approved a revised preliminary plat and a final plat for the first phase of the "Lawlis Ranch Subdivision" during their meeting on Tuesday night. by Hunter McFerrin

Wiggins' contract renewed for another year School board members voted to renew the contract of Assistant Superintendent Jody Wiggins through the 2019-2020 school year during Thursday's meeting. by Janelle Jessen

Hmong textile exhibit opening at JBU A national exhibit featuring traditional Hmong textiles will be on display at John Brown University from Feb. 21 through March 15. by Janelle Jessen

Board tours museum renovations Current and former city board members got a sneak peak inside the newly renovated Siloam Springs Museum building during a special tour on Tuesday. by Janelle Jessen

January city sales taxes increase slightly, county falls 60 percent Siloam Springs city sales tax receipts for last month showed a 4.7 percent increase when compared to January 2018. by Hunter McFerrin

School board filing period open The filing period is open for two Siloam Springs School Board positions up for election in May. Candidates interested in filing for the Zone 1 and Zone 5 school board seats have from noon, Feb. 13 to noon, Feb. 20 to submit their petitions to the County Clerk's Office, located at 707 S. Lincoln St. by Janelle Jessen

City seeks input on East Main Street design The city is encouraging all who are interested to attend a series of public input sessions that will take place later this month to gather feedback about the future design plan for the portion of East Main Street that lies between Maxwell Street and Lincoln Street.

Sports

Bowlers fare well at state tourney CABOT -- The Siloam Springs bowling teams competed in the Class 5A State Bowling Tournament at Allfam Bowling on Wednedsay. by Staff Reports

No. 23 Golden Eagles outmuscle MACU OKLAHOMA CITY -- John Brown's men saw its 18-point lead whittled down to two possessions in the second half, but a strong response rebuilt the 18-point lead as the No. 23 Golden Eagles earned a tough 83-67 win over Mid-America Christian (Okla.) on Thursday night inside the Gaulke Activity Center. by JBU Sports Information

MACU women win back-and-forth affair OKLAHOMA CITY -- The lead changed for the 12th time of the contest when freshman Marta Matamala stuck a corner triple to put John Brown women's basketball team up 55-54 with 2 minutes, 22 seconds remaining in the contest. by JBU Sports Information

Eighth-grade girls advance to I-49 Challenge finals ROGERS -- The Siloam Springs eighth-grade girls advanced to the championship game of the I-49 Challenge with a 33-29 victory over Bentonville Lincoln in the tournament semifinals on Thursday at Oakdale Middle School. by Staff Reports

Freshmen advance to regional tournament The Siloam Springs ninth-grade boys did something Thursday night that no other junior high boys team previously has done since the school re-joined the Northwest Arkansas Conference in 2010. by Staff Reports

Panthers come alive Siloam Springs' boys have been mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, but the Panthers aren't playing like it here lately. by Graham Thomas

Lady Panthers put up early fight Siloam Springs had its moments early against Little Rock Christian on Friday night, but ultimately the Lady Panthers were unable to slow down the Lady Warriors, who picked up a 68-37 victory inside Panther Activity Center. by Graham Thomas

Spring Sports Player of the Week Contest Get in on the excitement now as we anticipate the Spring Sports Player of the Week Contest to begin in early March.

Opinion

Letter to the Editor Follow Christ's teachings or else! by Oren Piper Siloam Springs

Perception of 'tax cut' equals win for Governor By the time this missive gets into ink and printed on the newsprint page you hold in front of you, Gentle Readers, the planned 2, 4, 5.9 tax plan conceived by Gov. Asa Hutchinson and staff, will likely be implemented. by Maylon T. Rice Columnist

Valentine's Day every day The first time ever I saw her face, I was mesmerized. She lit up the room with her big smile and her effervescent personality. I was smitten, dumbfounded. She was animated, glowing. I was a skinny kid wearing white socks and penny loafers, a white shirt with a pocket protector, and black framed eyeglasses. I was frozen in place like a young calf looking at a new gate, paralyzed like a deer in the headlights, caught like a kid with his hand stuck in a candy jar. And what a sweet treat she has been to me for five decades now! I hoped the moment I saw her that she'd one day be my wife. Two years later, we exchanged wedding vows. by Ron Wood

Valentine's Day thoughts Contrary to popular belief, Valentine's Day is not a celebration of romantic love, nor is it to commemorate the third century killing of St. Valentine by Roman authorities. There were actually at least three different St. Valentines, so those stories can get confusing. No, my theory is that Valentine's Day was invented to more sharply define the differences between men and women as to what constitutes love. Or, more simply, to prove that men stand no chance in winning the battle of the sexes. by Devin Houston Write On

The 'big' thing is reorganization of state agencies If recent history is any indicator when it comes to the legislative legacy of Gov. Asa Hutchinson, the state's chief executive's plan to reduce/realign/reformat state agencies will be dealt with sooner rather than later in this new 92nd General Assembly. by Maylon T. Rice Columnist

Are you scared yet? Once again, my son tells me of a movie he is certain will terrify me to no end. This latest cinematic gem is titled, Hereditary. I finally watched it on Amazon Prime and, once again, I am nowhere close to being frightened. I laughed at some scenes. I thought the editing was bad. Continuity issues were prominent. The characters were unlikable. My son was miffed when I told him my thoughts and accused me of watching it with the lights on. I didn't, but now wish I had, maybe I would have stopped dozing off. by Devin Houston Write On

Letter to the Editor - Calvert We are to follow Christ's teachings by Ben Calvert Siloam Springs

Waiting to be patient I had the bright idea on the coldest morning of the winter to go to the Arkansas driver's license office (Revenue Dept.) in Fayetteville to obtain my new photo ID, the one with the star. It can be used for federal identification while boarding an airplane. I figured, with the extreme cold (15 degrees), the wait wouldn't be long, right? Unfortunately, some other people had the same idea. As I took ticket number 84, I glanced at the board. They were serving number 44. Groan! by Ron Wood

Obituaries

Obituaries Brenda "Bren" James Balk

Obituaries Susan Arlen Bradford

Obituaries Lyle Dean Corners

Obituaries Freda Lou Remmer

Obituaries Janet Fay Myers

Obituaries Larry Leroy Bates

Obituaries Dura Ellen Farmer — Dura Ellen Farmer, 94, of Siloam Springs, Ark., died Sunday, Dec. 16, 2018, at the Earlene Howard Hospice Home.

Obituaries Herbert Ray Henderson