Stories by Annette Beard

Traffic congestion solutions sought Solutions to traffic congestion at several intersections in town, especially near the school buildings during school drop-off and pick up times were presented by Mayor Nathan See to school officials a... January 25, 2023

Population growth in city affects all schools Population growth in the city and school district with rising costs of construction were the major topics shared by Mayor Nathan See and school superintendent Keith Martin to School Board members at a... January 24, 2023

YCB players cheer Blackhawks Members of the third-grade Youth Competitive Basketball team cheered for the varsity Blackhawk boys Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023, before playing ball during the varsity half-time game. See page 1B for more ... January 24, 2023

City Council moves start time up one hour City Council meetings will begin at 6 p.m., one hour earlier than 7 p.m. as previously. Council member Ginger Larsen, during the Tuesday, Jan. 17, City Council meeting, said: "I'm concerned about why ... January 24, 2023

Long life of service celebrated Keith Escue, center, was joined by his son, Doug and his wife, Laura, from Santa Fe, N.M.; grandsons, Nathan Escue and his wife Amy of Mahomet, Ill. (right) and Samuel Escue of Santa Fe, N.M. (far lef... January 24, 2023

Shed destroyed Pea Ridge Fire Department was joined by members from Avoca, Little Flock and Northeast Benton County fire departments shortly before midnight Thursday, Jan. 19, 2023, in extinguishing a structure fire... January 24, 2023

One injured; one cited Arkansas State Police and Pea Ridge Fire-EMS Department personnel were dispatched to a two-vehicle head-on collision at 8:50 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 18, on Arkansas Highway 72 near Jac's Ranch. According... January 24, 2023

Pea Ridge Blackhawk AAO Pea Ridge Blackhawk AAO Photographs courtesy of Heather Renfro Pea Ridge Blackhawk AAO sixth-grade boys is coached by John Dye and Nathan Nwachuku. January 24, 2023

Helping one another Several people stopped to help Margot Tibbs when her car ran off the driveway into the ditch in front of the post office on North Curtis Avenue Monday, Jan. 9, 2023. Watching oncoming traffic, Ms. Tib... January 17, 2023

Time to file for School Board One of five seats on the Pea Ridge School Board is up for election this year. Each of the five seats is held for five years with one becoming available every year. As the Pea Ridge School District pop... January 17, 2023

New area opened for old cemetery The old Pea Ridge Cemetery is full and is being enlarged. Members of the Cemetery Board recently cut down trees separating two acres owned by the board to provide more lots. "We have two acres here," ... January 17, 2023

Water meters for construction cost Changing the city's cost and policies for renting water meters to construction companies was discussed at length in the City Council Committee of the Whole meeting Tuesday, Jan. 10, resulting in chang... January 17, 2023

Williams named to All-State Cheer Passionate about cheering, willing to learn and serve, Lacy William persevered even when she didn't get selected for the seventh-grade cheer team. This year, as a junior, she was the only Blackhawk ch... January 17, 2023

Strong winds exacerbate hay fire High winds and dry hay bales combined to spread a fire on East Harris Road outside of Pea Ridge Monday afternoon. Avoca, Pea Ridge, Rogers fire departments were initially dispatched to the scene as th... January 17, 2023

Family togetherness enjoyed Sunday afternoon's mild temperatures provided a good opportunity for a walk (and ride) around the neighborhood in Standing Oaks for Kaytlyn and Brandon Bulen, their children Oliver, 5, and Gracie, 2, ... January 17, 2023

New personnel positions created New teaching positions for the 2023-2024 school year were approved as were creating two new custodial positions to begin immediately at the recently School Board meeting. School Board members approved... January 17, 2023

Hawks declaw Tigers Pea Ridge basketball photos TIMES photograph by Annette Beard Blackhawk junior Ben Wheeler, No. 1, makes a slam dunk. The Pea Ridge Blackhawks defeated the Prairie Grove Tigers 68-45 Tuesday,... January 17, 2023

Obituaries for the Jan. 18, 2023, edition of the Pea Ridge TIMES Marion Lee Cooper Marion Lee Cooper, 95, of Pineville, Mo., died Jan. 8, 2023, in his home. He was born Sept. 20, 1927, in Powell, Mo., to John Absolum Cooper and Lilly Mae DeWitt Cooper. He was a Un... January 17, 2023

OPINION: Parenting, grandparenting changes o’er time The title of this column is from the column I wrote for many years for the Benton County Daily Democrat (which became the Benton County Daily Record in 1988). The title was intended to be a double ent... January 17, 2023

Lady Hawks fall to Tigers Game Photos TIMES photograph by Annette Beard Lady Blackhawk head coach Heath Neal instructs junior Leah Telgemeier near the end of the game Tuesday. The Lady Blackhawks hosted the Prairie Gr... January 17, 2023

Jr. High students awarded Awards for the fall semester at Pea Ridge Junior High School were presented to students Friday, Jan. 13, 2023, in a program in the gym. Jr. High cheerleaders performed after academic awards were prese... January 17, 2023

Collision Center ribbon cut City officials joined a ribbon-cutting ceremony Monday morning for Bob Maloney Collision center on Slack Street. This is the first build from the ground up for Bob Maloney Collision, which will staff ... January 17, 2023

Fire Department begins new era under Chief Bowen Passionate about firefighting and serving the public, Clint Bowen wants the public to recognize the value of the Pea Ridge firefighters and medics. "Whatever call we go on, we want to leave these folk... January 10, 2023

Snow days are fun Storytime at the Pea Ridge Community Library is held at 11 a.m. Wednesdays. This past Wednesday, Leslie Vest read books about snowmen, snow days and snow ball fights. January 10, 2023

Structure destroyed by fire Pea Ridge firefighters were aided by firefighters from NEBCO, Little Flock and Avoca fighting a fully involved blaze on a structure on Capt. Miller Boulevard shortly after 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023... January 10, 2023

Planning Commission reorganizes officers In a meeting that last barely a quarter of an hour, Planning Commission members approved a home occupation request and appointed officers of the commission. There was no one from the public to speak a... January 10, 2023

Council names Neil to Ward 2, seat 2; Bowen named interim fire chief Beginning the year with a special City Council meeting and an executive session, Pea Ridge City Council members agreed to appoint Jeff Neil to the vacant City Council seat -- Ward 2, position 2. This ... January 10, 2023

First Council meeting with six members held Pea Ridge City Council met with six seats for the first time in the history of the city on Tuesday, Jan. 3. Looking over information to be acted up were council members Jeff Neil, Cody Keene and Steve... January 10, 2023

Council Committee of the Whole meetings to be monthly The Pea Ridge City Council meets on the third Tuesday of each month and occasionally has specially-called meetings and committee of the whole meetings as needed. Mayor Nathan See has initiated monthly... January 10, 2023

Local news is paramount to TIMES For more than 58 years The Times has published the news of northeast Benton County -- Pea Ridge, Garfield, Gateway. For many of those years, it was published out of the house and, later, barn owned by... January 10, 2023

Incident does not pose threat to community Pea Ridge Police and emergency personnel from the Fire-EMS Department were dispatched to a residence in the city for a physical disturbance in progress about 1:25 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3.As a result of a... January 3, 2023

Planning director position created, Grady hired A new position has been created in the city, as a response to the demands placed on city officials with the extreme increase in building in the city limits. The new position -- Planning Director -- wi... January 3, 2023

Grady has passion for planning Jessica Grady began as Planning Director Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023. Although she'll be a new face in City Hall, she is not new to Pea Ridge. She and her husband live in Standing Oaks and her parents have ... January 3, 2023

Broken water line fixed Pea Ridge Water Utilities employees worked Thursday, Dec. 29, 2022, repairing several water line breaks. One leak was in a main line along Ark. Hwy. 94 in a pasture just north of Tucks Chapel Road. January 3, 2023

Flags replace candy canes Street Department employees Hagen Schader (in the bucket) and Sawyer Varner took candy cane Christmas decorations off the street light poles and placed American flags on the poles Friday, Dec. 23, 202... January 3, 2023

OPINION: Life continuum seen in forefathers The cycle of life symbolized in the seasons -- birth/spring, childhood and young adult/summer, middle age/autumn then elderly and death/winter -- seems to spin faster the more years one lives. Birth a... January 3, 2023

Sub-zero temps froze pipes, plant Several days of below zero temperatures and strong winds causing extremely cold wind chills wreaked havoc for city and school facilities this past week causing both school and city personnel to work o... December 28, 2022

Fire Chief Powell resigned Pea Ridge Fire Chief Jared Powell has resigned.Powell submitted his letter of resignation dated Thursday, Dec. 22, to Mayor Jackie Crabtree and mayor-elect Nathan See.According to the letter, Powell s... December 28, 2022

Marts, Osowiecki honored Courtesy photograph Jeff Marts was named Volunteer Firefighter of the Year by his fellow firefighters and Ben Osowiecki was awarded responder of the year for responding to the most calls as a voluntee... December 28, 2022

OPINION: ‘Christmas Eve gift’ shouts family tradition "Christmas Eve gift!" That was the routine greeting in my family for generations as we answered the telephone (LONG before cell phones) or the door on Christmas Eve. And, the goal was to be the first ... December 28, 2022

Martinez leaves legacy After a nearly two-year battle with a rare cancer, former Little Flock Police Chief Jesse Martinez died Wednesday, Dec. 14. Martinez, 48, who served the Little Flock Police Department for 23 years, wa... December 20, 2022

Police officers bless children with shopping Fifteen children from the Pea Ridge schools were treated to a shopping expedition for Christmas thanks to members of the Pea Ridge Fraternal Order of Police and Pea Ridge Police Department. There was ... December 20, 2022

Retirement celebration replete with smiles and tears Smiles and tears, pats on the back, handshakes and hugs flowed in abundance Friday afternoon as community residents, city employees and neighboring officials stopped by to wish Mayor Jackie Crabtree w... December 20, 2022

Budget cuts discussed for Library, Fire For the second time in five weeks, City Council members met in a Committee of the Whole to review and discuss the budgets being presented by city department heads. The draft of the amended budget pres... December 20, 2022

OPINION: Finding joy in anticipation, in giving, serving The joys of Christmas do not have to be limited to December. Finding joy in giving, in serving is delightful and a blessing to the giver and the receiver. Anticipation is part of the fun of Christmas.... December 20, 2022

Gifts, food offered as service to community More than 2,000 toys and gift items were donated for the gift giveaway according to Jennifer and Jimmy Harvey, directors of the Loaves and Fishes food pantry at The Ridge Church, Pea Ridge. "We lost c... December 20, 2022

Joyful, swinging Christmas tunes ring out The Pea Ridge High School Blackhawk Band presented its Christmas concert under the direction of band director Chris Shelby Tuesday, Dec. 13, in the PRHS Performing Arts Center. Pieces performed includ... December 20, 2022

Sweet potatoes and marshmallows Recipe from the kitchen of Dorris Mounce Sweet potatoes and marshmallowsRecipe from the kitchen of Dorris Mounce4 large sweet potatoes1 stick butter1 c. sugarpinch salt4 eggs1 can evaporated milk1/2 c. pecans, choppedmarshmallowsBoil four go... December 20, 2022

Letters to Santa Letters to Santa    TIMES photograph by Annette Beard      TIMES photograph by Annette Beard      TIMES photograph by Annette Beard&nbs... December 20, 2022

Officer Apple memorial unveiled Under a gray cloudy sky Monday, Dec. 12, Pea Ridge Police Chief stood just a few feet from where Pea Ridge Police Officer Kevin Apple died 534 days before -- Saturday, June 26, 2021. Hahn opened the c... December 13, 2022

Stories by Annette Beard

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