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First day of school UAM’s Tolliver pictures signs with Chiefs 1B 3C ADVANCE-MONTICELLONIAN 75¢ WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 21, 2019 SERVING DREW COUNTY SINCE 1870 Snapchat threat brings increased DC security BY MELISSA ORRELL the campus for our Pirates. Drew [email protected] Central Middle School and High School students will report directly A handgun with the words to their buildings when they enter “Don’t go to school tomorrow” in the campus in the morning. Drew white lettering against a black back Central Elementary students will drop was received by an unnamed report to Morning Celebration. The Drew Central High School student safety of all our Pirates will remain early Sunday morning. a priority. We are asking that you The image was closely cropped respect the privacy of all involved cutting off the hand grip and the and refrain from posting addition- bottom tip of the barrel and was al comments as this is an ongoing pictured on a set of beige sheets. investigation.Thank you, Kimbraly The sender was unknown with an Barnes.” unfamiliar name. Meanwhile, the Monticello Po- On Sunday night at 6:10 p.m., lice Department—along with the Drew Central School District Su- Drew County Sheriff’s Offi ce—be- perintendent Kimbraly Barnes gan investigating. posted on this DCSD Facebook “This is the problem with kids page: and social media,” Monticello Po- “We are providing this informa- lice Chief Jason Akers said. “You tion in advance to all of you so you have to watch your kids on social will have the facts as we know them media.” at this time. A threatening message After investigating, law enforce- was sent to a Drew Central student ment are diligently working with ment determined the origin of the early Sunday morning regarding the school district to investigate snapchat was British Columbia, attending school on Monday. The this situation. On Monday, August Melissa Orrell/Advance-Monticellonian Canada. Monticello Police Department and 19, 2019, you will see a larger WATCHING OUT Drew County Sheriff ’s Offi ce deputies stand guard at Drew Central Monday. the Drew County Sheriffs Depart- presence of law enforcement on See THREAT Page 6A UAM heralds Childhood dream becomes lifetime passion achievements BY MELISSA ORRELL last stamp to his wife this week. BY HAROLD COGGINS [email protected] “The next thing you know an opening [email protected] came up and I put in for it,” said Wood. “There were only two or three people that Just before the fall semester iving in a rural community, Tom- put in for the job and took the test. I was the begins, 98 Drew County students my Wood and his fi ve siblings one that scored the highest and they tried have been named to either the Lwere a little amazed and perplexed by the mailman and exactly how his job me out and hired me. I have been here ever Chancellor’s List or the Dean’s since.” List for the spring 2019 semester at worked. The kids would always put the fl ag up thinking the mailman wouldn’t stop As Wood, his wife Ann, Postmaster Don the University of Arkansas at Mon- McNeil and others stood in the lobby of ticello. without them doing that and that was when and where the desire to be a post man and the Monticello post offi ce, the smiles were Those 98 were among 191 stu- tinged with sadness as Wood told his story dents to the Chancellor’s List and the love of the United States Post Offi ce and mail began. of dedication to a job that he has loved and another 296 students to the Dean’s still loves. List, according to UAM Registrar “I’ve always wanted to work for the post offi ce,” said Wood on Tuesday following “I hired on in Dermott (in 1980) and Sylvia Miller. transferred to Monticello,” said Wood Of course, Monticello had the the last sale of a stamp to his wife Ann, the post master for the Dermott United States “Around 1982.” majority of the Drew County stu- That is when Ann breaks in, “Eighty- dents honored, with 34 on the Post Offi ce. “It started out when I was one of fi ve children and we lived in the rural fi ve, no, ‘84.” Chancellor’s List and 50 on the Wood agrees with her, “That’s right, county and I would see the mailman pass Dean’s List. Tillar placed three of ‘84.” every day and I thought in order to get mail the Chancellor’s List and one of “Eight months before I started working the Dean’s List, while Wilmar had we had to have that fl ag up. So me and my there,” said Ann, referring to her job in Der- three on the Chancellor’s List and siblings, one would get down and I would Melissa Orrell/Advance-Monticellonian mott. seven on the Dean’s List. get up and we would raise that fl ag.” Wood smiles as he remembers the day Selection to the Chancellor’s Of course the mailman on the rural route AND THAT’S IT! Longtime Monticello postman Tommy Wood (left) sells his last stamp to his wife Ann before retiring 42 years after his U.S. Post Offi ce career started. he drove over to Dermott to visit his old List requires a grade-point average did not appreciate the kids raising that fl ag, friends on a whim. of 4.0 on at least 12 semester hours especially when there was no mail waiting ed.” time,” said Wood. “I went in (to the post “When I transferred over to Monticello of course credit at the 1000-4000 for him to pick up and he had none to deliv- Wood didn’t immediately get a job at offi ce), I was working a potato chip route I was married,” explained Wood. “When I level. The Dean’s List requires a er to the address. the post offi ce when he graduated high at the time and I would have to come in left Dermott I never did go back. So during GPA of 3.5 or higher, also on at “We had a knock on the door one day and school. Instead he served as a Paratrooper and sell it. He was there and I asked, ‘How the time I was working in Monticello, my least 12 semester hours of course the mailman stopped and asked my mama in the Army from 1972 to 1975 and then fi rst wife and I, we parted ways. During that credit at the 1000-4000 level. if the kids would quit raising the fl ag be- moved to Dermott where he had a potato does a man get a job like that’ “ time, they hired my current wife Ann who Those listing Monticello as their cause he kept having to stop with no mail,” chip route. What followed set into motion a 42-year hometown on the Chancellor’s List explained Wood. “That is where it all start- “Newt Bynum was the postmaster at the career that ended with the selling of that See DREAM Page 6A were Madison F. Arrington, Laura A. Briseno, Devin S. Burton, Jo- seph Busch III, Alondria R. Davis, Heather L. Dodd, Loida Garcia, Misty Nicole Garcia Ibarra, Re- HERE WE GROW AGAIN agen Elizabeth Gardner, Jake Tyler Two local college programs Harris, Lynda Allison Hawkins, Jordan N. Herbner, Jessy Ryan Hill, Jordan T. Jones, Madison receive national recognition Faith Knowles, Hunter R. Lane, BY HAROLD COGGINS the Master of Fine Arts in creative Emilee N. Lawson, [email protected] writing program accepts students William T. Leggett, Keldrick into three genre areas: fi ction, po- Janard Lesure, Dylan C. McClain, Not only does the University etry, or creative nonfi ction. The McKenzie D. McClain, Jennifer of Arkansas at Monticello have a non-residency requirement of the Marie McCoy, William W. Mc- grand presence in Drew County but program allows students to earn Coy, Rose M. Mencer, Jonathan D. two programs at the local institu- an affordable MFA tailored to their Powers, Cameron Seth Reynolds, tion of higher learning have recent- Amanda N. Roberts, Samantha G. lifestyles, according to the pro- Sanders, Carter B. Sled, Noah Lee ly received national acclaim. gram’s page on the UAM website. Smith, Leah Rae Sparkman, Jona- According to TheBestSchools. The MFA was also named No. than R. Stain, Miranda J. Straughn org, UAM has been named as one 2 in the list of the “10 Best Deals and Morgan Elizabeth Stroud. of the nation’s best online Mas- in Creative Writing Degrees” by Students listing Tillar as their ter’s in Creative Writing degree Great College Deals in 2017. hometown were Joseph A. Ear- programs for 2019. The website’s Plus, UAM’s social work pro- nest, Mary C. Prosser and Cedric team reviewed all accredited online gram has been ranked among the Germaine Ware, while students Master’s in Creative Writing de- best and most affordable programs listing Wilmar as their hometown Special to the Advance gree programs in the United States by SocialWorkDegree.org. Accord- were Emmalee May Goad, Ana C. UNIQUE BUSINESS The newly completed Rocking Horse Arena, part of the Arkansas Heart and Soul Therapeutic and UAM earned sixth place in a ing to a release from the online re- Equine Center, is located at 1314 Old Warren Road and is owned and operated by Becke Williams. The ribbon-cut- list topped by Harvard University. See UAM Page 6A ting ceremony for the horse riding arena was held Tuesday morning.

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