Small Town Tragedy

Tuesday morning amid clashes of loud thunder and downpours, my home town is reeling from a violent murder-suicide in the local grocery store Monday evening about 5:00 p.m.

A male perpetrator entered the grocery store, asked to speak with the store manager, shot the manager with a handgun and turned the gun on himself. Although the details of the encounter are sketchy at this point, it is reported that the meeting took place in the manager's office.

The local police department is located at City Hall, the block immediately behind the store. Customers probably were first aware of the tragedy upon arrival of the police. It is unlikely there were eyewitnesses to the tragedy, although some reports say shots were heard in the store.

This story lead sounds like the makings of a movie thriller, but when it is close and personal, it casts a shadow of disbelief and grief over a small community of 2000+ citizens. This is life and death tragedy for two families, a group of employees and a small community, NOT a movie.

The grocery store is 2.5 blocks from my home. I was taken by surprise as Husband and I were away from the scanner, eating supper, when the calls began.

When an event of this magnitude breaks in a small community, city officials' phones ring constantly. Our community has no local communications, but relies on cable TV stations, radio stations and newspapers in nearby communities.

I am no exception as alderman for the ward in which the tragedy happened. Phone calls and e-mails flooded in. I was busy squelching rumors and dispensing what information I knew. No, there was no one loose on foot.....but you should lock all your doors regardless, every day. Yes, two persons are dead...the store manager and one other person (later I learned the identity of the other person).

While investigation of the incident is still ongoing, a few facts are established. The store manager is dead as is the perpetrator, a husband of a former employee.

What provoked such violence is speculative at this point. There appears to have been managerial differences between the store manager, and the assistant manager, wife of the perpetrator. Her status appears to be former assistant manager, having left her position recently, if preliminary information is accurate.
Reader comments to the local article in The Baxter Bulletin cast some light on an ongoing personnel conflict in the store, but other comments are crude and cruel.

The unemployed assistant manager is now a widow and head of household with two dependents all in grief and shock. She is a member of a large family native to the area.

The store manager was a widower close to retirement. Details of surviving family are not known yet.

How could such a tragedy have been avoided? Does the small grocery chain upper management bear any responsibility? It is rumored the assistant manager allegedly requested transfer to a different area store, but upper management seemingly ignored the request, letting the differences continue to simmer.

Employees carry home their work-related difficulties, discussing their point of view of situations with their spouses and others. Usually, the situations correct themselves in numerous peaceful ways, acceptance, other employment, transfers.

Something went terribly, tragically wrong on Monday at 5:00 p.m.

Below are some additional news links.
The Ozarks First.com
Springfield (MO) News Leader

IT'S THE QUACKER PATROL SQUAD!

Today provided one of life's little pleasures, an unanticipated moment, at least for this old lady (old beating heart, but often metaphorically young at heart.)

Thursday was one of those days. I had a flu shot on Wednesday, even though I had chronic bronchitis. My physician OK'd the shot. Its effect plus other meds did not make for a "feeling well" day Thursday (nor Friday).

After stopping at City Hall to pick up city related mail and small stipend for the previous month's work, I made a pass by the bank drive-thru to cash the check. Then I drove to an overlook to make the "landmark on Bull Shoals Dam" shots for FOTO FRIDAY before returning home.

I did not lock my SUV for the short photo session.

Once home I decided to count my cash--OOPS-- $5 short. I called the bank, but the drive-thru teller, a friend, left for the day. The friendly teller who answered my call said the teller balanced for the day. Short of breath, I left the house to the SUV twice to see if it slipped out of the envelope. NOPE!

However, I reasoned if some one was going to steal $5, why not take the whole $45 envelope? It was all there for the taking.

Friday I vegetated with laptop and TV. However, my friendly teller called to tell me she had realized the shortage after I drove away; my $5 was safely in an envelope awaiting another drive-thru by me. NOT FRIDAY!

Saturday, I trekked to the SUV for a trip to WalMart and a few needed groceries for Life Group Potluck.

Bad news! the Start Battery was DEAD (this is a Hybrid). I had not shut the driver's door after Thursday's searches . Husband charged it up and I completed my shopping. However, I noted the backup camera and sensors were non- functioning.

Saturday and Sunday are not days to search for an automotive electronics expert, so it was the main task for today, Monday. With two phone calls I found an expert in Mountain Home, about a 30 minute round trip from home.

Access to his location was difficult, requiring a left turn across a 2-lane US highway with an intersection. The proprietor gave me directions to his business which avoided the potential traffic hazards with which I was familiar.

I knew the directions but seldom used the route; today I did. There were several photo ops along this route. I had my recently purchased "car camera" with me (Canon PowerShot A1000IS).

However, I continued to my destination. The expert fixed the problem in less than 30 minutes. I hardly understood a word he or his lovely wife said, but he only charged me a minimum fee. I profusely thanked them.

Knowing I would return the same route, I turned on the Canon. One spot was a beautiful large pond with many geese and ducks. I thought I saw two swans but they were so far away, I'm not sure. I doubt swans could winter here.

Safely parking the car, I stepped through a multitude of down feathers--must be shedding time--toward the pond. Geez! these ducks were not timid. I was besieged withraucous quackery, no doubt thinking I brought afternoon treats. The geese stayed on the opposite side of the pond, not accessible with vehicle or camera.

Two sets duck scouts waddled out of the water in a hurry to check me out, followed by two small patrols marching in duck squad formation.

This photo op stop made my otherwise mundane day! I paused to enjoy the moment with the quackers. I'm sure the ducks expected treats, but I had none.

I proceeded further up the street, turned around and came back by the quacker squadron lined up along the road with puzzled looks. Glad they weren't armed, or I might have been in trouble.

Then I stopped to make a scenic rustic post and hay bales I spotted as I turned on to the busy US highway toward home.

[The pond is worth a second trip with NIKON and the longer telephoto!]

PHOTOS [I gotta learn how to place captions one of these days]

Top to Bottom: (1) Rustic Post + Round Hay Bales; (2) Quacker Scouts #1; (3) Quacker Scouts #2; (4) Quacker Patrol Squad #1; (5) Quacker Patrol Squad #2.

I hope these photos will enlarge with click or double click. I tried a new technique in placing them.

Foto Friday - Fall Color

Fall Color is beginning to inch into my area of Arkansas. Fifty miles from here near Harrison the sumac brush has already displayed the brilliant orange to deep red leaves. A second trip only two weeks later, the seed heads had formed and the color was brown and dead.

Bountiful rainfall and relatively cooler summer temperatures may account for earlier-than-normal color and may predict peak color earlier than last two weeks of October. Highway 7 from Missouri line through Hot Springs, AR is the nationally known tourism trek in Arkansas. I doubt I will make any of that long trek through the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains this year.

Here are a few photos of early Autumn color in my area of North Central Arkansas.

▲Nandinas are changing to their seasonal colors

and soon will have traditional red berries.

▲Nandinas- color in flux
▲What kind of Japanese Maple do I have? This small tree (now a shrub but hopefully will grow into small tree) seemingly has two kinds of leaves!!
▲ Another view of same Japanese Red Maple (Weeping feathery leaf)

▲PortaPot Pit Stop on Bull Shoals Dam
A road construction project in progress for several months has necessitated the placement of a PortaPot for convenience of workers. Its arrival and bright color has amused locals. The inconvenience of one way traffic light controlled traffic is less amusing. [Plan to get a better shot of this amusing landmark when I have some good light. Lots of clouds and rain have reined photography efforts.]