Changing hands: Figueroa will be chamber’s youngest and first Hispanic president
TAKING OVER – Rafael Figueroa, owner of Figueroa Insurance Agency in De Queen, will become the next chamber of commerce president during the organizations annual membership banquet next month.
While the 2012 De Queen/Sevier County Chamber of Commerce Banquet will officially mark the end of President Angie Walker's term, the event will also mark the official first day of incoming president Rafael Figueroa, who at only 26-years-old will become the chamber's youngest president, as well as the first Hispanic to take the position.
Figueroa, owner of Figueroa Insurance Agency in De Queen, will officially take over during the banquet on Feb. 21. Although he was born in Mexico City, Mexico, Figueroa has lived in De Queen since he was a year old and considers Sevier County his only home.
"I went to school here, graduated from here, married here and had my kids here and there's no other place I'd like to be," said Figueroa.
Figueroa will take over the chamber with a wealth of business experience, despite his relatively young age.
His mother and father operated a dairy distribution company in Mexico City, and while it provided the family with a decent living it also brought them much stress. Figueroa said his father would be regularly robbed on his way to or from work.
"He got tired of having everything he earned stolen from him, so he decided to move the family to the United States," Figueroa explained.
After moving to the U.S., his parents started working at Pilgrims' and eventually raised enough money to open a new business in De Queen, a furniture store on Stilwell Avenue.
For Figueroa, his parent's entrepreneurship instilled him with a sense of pride for small business owners and the work it takes to be one.
"Helping them at an early age really helped me develop a love to do work with my own hands and to make money for myself," he said.
To read the complete story, please see the Jan. 26 edition of The De Queen Bee.
Jan 26, 2012, 10:34
Backup could be on its way for local trooper
Backup could finally be on its way for the state trooper tasked with patrolling Sevier County's highways on his own since last summer.
Sevier County has been staffed with a solitary Arkansas State Police trooper since August, though local law enforcement officials are expecting another will be hired before the end of the year.
De Queen Police Chief Richard McKinley said the state police has started taking applications for a new Sevier County state trooper, including one application from De Queen police officer Ernesto Echevarria.
"Hopefully we'll have one later this year, maybe around October, because we have noticed our work pick up some since [Trooper J.D. Jones'] been on his own," McKinley said.
The Sevier County state police unit lost two of its three troopers last year to retirement and another job.
"J.D. is doing his absolute best out there but there's times he can't be out there or can't make it the scene on time," said McKinley.
McKinley added that there is a correlation between state police coverage and the number of accidents on the roads. "If there are more citations written, there end up being fewer accidents on the road," he said. "Having troopers patrol our highways makes them safer, and really reduces the number of accidents."
To read the complete story, please see the Jan. 26 edition of The De Queen Bee.
Jan 26, 2012, 10:32
Vonderrick Smith granted mental evaluation
A De Queen man accused of killing his infant child was granted a mental evaluation during his pre-trial last week, possibly delaying his trial until the spring.
Vonderrick Smith, 22, was charged last year with the fatal beating of his six-week-old son Kason in February 2011. Prosecutors have charged Smith with second-degree murder.
During his pre-trial Smith’s lawyers were successful in getting Sevier County Circuit Court Judge Charles Yeargan to grant Smith a mental evaluation.
The court also issued a gag order to all participants in the case. Such orders are commonly used to limit potential jurors’ speculations or preconceptions during a future trial.
Ninth West Judicial Prosecutor Bryan Chesshir, who is heading the prosecution, said he could not comment on the case with the gag order in effect.
In an interview last December, Chesshir did say a mental evaluation on Smith could postpone the trial until May or longer.
To read the complete story, please see the Jan. 26 edition of The De Queen Bee.
Jan 26, 2012, 10:29
TURK TOUR – De Queen and Sevier County community leaders recently toured SWEPCO’s new Turk power plant in Fulton. The state-of-the-art, 600-megawatt power plant is over 80 percent complete and should be online by the end of the year, according to plant manager Tim Gross. The tour group also met several plant employees from Sevier County. Pictured from left to right are De Queen Mayor Billy Ray McKelvy, Sevier County Judge Greg Ray and economic officer and state representative hopeful Fonda Hawthorne.
Jan 26, 2012, 10:23
First National Bank announces closing of De Queen's downtown branch
First National Bank's branch in downtown De Queen will be closed this spring as part of an effort to cutback across the bank's service region, according to a release issued Jan. 19.
"This decision has not been taken lightly or without considerable research and earnest debate," said Tony Bob Ray, the branch's regional president. The branch's last day will be March 30.
The press release stated the decision was made during a review of expenses at the bank's branch locations.
"It is incumbent on us to use prudent business practices, just as it is for any business. These practices include due diligence in many areas of our business including continued monitoring of transaction counts and overhead expenses with regard to all physical locations. This due diligence has brought us to the difficult decision to close the bank building located in downtown De Queen."
First National Bank's Collin Raye location will remain open.
To read the complete article, please see the Jan. 19 edition of The De Queen Bee.
