Big Bang! Bolivar County sees rush to purchase guns and ammo

By Michael Simmons
The Cleveland Current Managing Editor

Anytime there’s a presidential election you’re going to see a rise in firearm sales in general,” Tim Thompson of Bill’s Custom Automatics, Inc. in Shelby said.

During the week prior to the November 2008 election, the FBI saw a spike in background checks for firearms throughout the country. According to Billy Estok of the FBI’s CJIS Division, there were 1,529,635 background checks in November 2008 compared to the 1,079,923 done in November 2007. There was also approximately an 80 percent increase for December 2008, compared to the year before, a 77 percent increase for January’s numbers, and an 81 percent increase for February. “It makes the public uneasy,” Thompson, who has 18 years of gunsmith experience, said.

Chuck Willard, manager of The Outdoorsman in Cleveland has seen a similar spike. “People are buying more high-capacity handguns more than anything right now,” he said. Many experts say that President Obama’s administration, which can be viewed as anti-gun rights, see the increase in sales attributed to pending legislation which could place added security measures on the sale of guns and also ban certain types.

Cross Crowe - Eight-year-old hog hunter

By Charlie Capps III
The Cleveland Current Contributing Writer

Imagine being eight years old, 55 inches tall and facing a wild hog that outweighs you by 150 pounds or better. It is not an attractive situation to be in whether you are young or old, but Cross Crowe loves it.

Crowe’s parents are Beth and David Crowe of Drew. His father is a veteran hunter who is bringing his children up to know hunting. Cross and his father went hunting a week ago today at Caulk Island on the riverside for hogs and were successful.

The family incorporates dogs in their hunts. He and his father have their own hog dogs, which are Catahoulas. “I’ve got one dog that hunts hog and her name is Dotty. She’s a really good dog,” said Cross. “Her momma’s name is Patches and she is a really good dog, too.”  Interestingly, they train these dogs themselves with the use of hog catch pens.

Fire victim died while trying to escape

Cause of Monday fire in Shaw remains undetermined

By Michael Simmons
The Cleveland Current Managing Editor

SHAW — Investigators have ruled out foul play and arson in a Monday blaze that left one dead here.
“There was no sign of foul play to the body and we have not been able to find any reason to suspect arson based on the evidence,” Dasel Moorhead, Bolivar County’s arson investigator, said. “There’s a lot of rumors flowing around and that’s what they appear to be — rumors.”

Moorhead, who is also a criminal investigator with the Bolivar County Sheriff’s Department, said the fire at 211 Peeler Ave. was reported at approximately 12:40 a.m. and the house was fully involved by the time firefighters responded. Reed Abraham, assistant chief for Battalion One of the county’s volunteer fire department, said, “The primary fire had progressed to the point there was no saving the building.”

Gang threats

Officers cautious, but label as hoax

By Michael Simmons
The Cleveland Current Managing Editor

Text messages and emails circulating throughout Bolivar County and the rest of the state warning people of impending gang violence instilled fear amongst the population on Thursday.

The message warned people that it was the week for gang initiations and they would be targeting women and children at Wal-Mart stores throughout the region. Many referenced shootings that have already occurred in areas like Clarksdale and Indianola.

Although Cleveland Police Chief Buster Bingham didn’t disregard the message, he believes it to be a hoax and has seen similar rumors in his 24 years in law enforcement..

Nat McKnight Farms

There are not many chances for a young man to get into the farming business these days unless they get a start in a family farming operation.

By Charlie Capps III
The Cleveland Current Contributing Writer

Some young men find their way into farming through hard work, time and creating the right associations with lenders and other crucial members of the agricultural infrastructure. Nat McKnight is one of these men who have found their way down the path to farming success.

McKnight comes from a farming family, but he wanted to make something that was his own. He farmed with his father for a few years while he was going to college where he got a business management degree.

McKnight said, “I grew up on the farm and always enjoy being around the farm and the equipment.” The experience that enlightened him was when he began working for Jimmy Sanders Inc. as a field consultant.

Volunteering for the American dream

Polish couple finds home in the Delta while providing service to the county

By Michael Simmons
The Cleveland Current Managing Editor

When Dr. Alina Kukawa was six years old, she dreamed of coming to America. Growing up in Poland, which at the time was in the communist bloc, seemed unreachable.

“It was not very easy to go to America if you wanted to,” she said with a Polish accent and hint of southern twang mixed together.
“I said I will visit America; it was important to me.”

As an assistant professor of physics at Delta State University and director of the planetarium, Kukawa accomplished her dream and now calls Cleveland home. The journey, however, saw the accomplishment of other dreams along the way.

Remembering Margaret Wade

By Chance Wright
The Cleveland Current Sports Editor

Lily Margaret Wade has been called the “mother of modern women’s basketball.” Her love for the game really began to grow as a forward on the Delta State Lady Statesmen 1929 basketball team. She played three years before the university cut the program.

Later in life she would describe this unfortunate decision by saying, “We (the players) really did not have a choice.

The administration thought the game was too rough for young ladies, so we burned our uniforms.” With one year left in school, Wade put her focus on earning a college degree She started playing semi-professional basketball for the Tupelo Red Wings of the old Southern Conference. A terrible knee injury shortened her playing career two years later, but not before she led her team to the Southern Conference Championship.