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Death toll goes up

The total number of dead Arkansans this past week was 19.

Last week, it was 17, and the week before that it was 5.

The total number of dead Arkansans is now at 12,564.

Covid toolkit
There’s now a one-stop shop to learn about vaccination sites and other Covid related information. Click here to learn more.

If you don’t want to get sick and die, there’s some things you can do:
Get vaccinated
Get boosted
Wear a mask
Avoid crowds

The Headlines

ICYMI: Fidelity upgrades in Maumelle
Upcoming meetings: The North Little Rock School Board will meet tonight while the Maumelle City Council will meet next Monday night.
Upcoming events: North Little Rock will have its Christmas parade this Sunday. For details, check out the flyer below.

White Christmas: White Christmas will be staged at Argenta Community Theater this month. First show is Wednesday, Dec. 7 and concludes Saturday, Dec. 17. To buy tickets, click here.

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Happy birthday to us

We probably should have bought a cake.

Cake is good for almost any occasion but it seems especially appropriate on birthdays and ArkansasNewsroom.com is celebrating one.

For 2, in fact. The switch for the site was flipped on Nov. 30, 2020, and today, yesterday, when you probably read this, the site turned 2 years old.

The terrible 2s as they say.

It has been a journey. Some mistakes were made along the way, but part of the process is learning from those and not repeating them.

There’s also been some real accomplishments, with one very notable recent example in the Maumelle candidate forum held back in October.

Hundreds of people attended, thousands of people watched either live or on delay.

We are especially indebted to Neal Moore, who moderated the forum and donated his time to do so. We also thank First Baptist Church of Maumelle for hosting and also providing the technical support for the forum to be streamed.

There’s also been hundreds of newsletters published in the last two years with thousands of articles on local news and sports and the community coverage that has been missing in Maumelle and North Little Rock since the Monitor and Times were closed.

Going forward, the promise is to keep doing more of the same as we look to new technologies and ways to deliver the local coverage that you, the reader, keep coming back for.

If you want to drop us a line, and tell us what we’re doing wrong or right or something you’d like to see on the regular, shoot us an email at arkansas@substack.com and, if it doesn’t go to spam, we’ll do our best to respond promptly.

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A Very Merry Maumelle is back

Now in its fourth year, A Very Merry Maumelle holiday decorating competition has returned for this holiday season.

First, you have to get everything out of the attic and unboxed. Then you have to decorate. Perhaps with 25 inflatable Christmas decorations.

Once those steps are complete, the home has to be nominated before noon on Dec. 14, with judging and awards to follow on the evening of Dec. 16.

Winning homes will receive a sign.

Categories include:

Light up Maumelle
Truly Traditional
Mayor's Choice
People’s Choice

For more information, or to nominate a home, click here.

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Steve Mosley: On the Nov. 21 City Council meeting

Maumelle City Council member Steve Mosley writes in response to a reader’s question about previous coverage. His comments have been lightly edited and formatted for publication.

I'd like to address Chad Gardner's comments that he made in his Nov. 21 Council Report from last week regarding my sponsored resolution to put a question on the Presidential Primary general election ballot in March 2024 that would allow residents to decide whether we would have Pit Bull and such related dogs in Maumelle.

First, this proposed question for the voters was not for a special election where this would be the only thing on the ballot. Basically, it would just be an additional item to be voted on along with the Presidential Primary items and whatever else might be voted on at this March 2024 general election.

Secondly, Mr. Gardner's report omitted certain context and history of why we might be considering legislation to put the Pit Bull question on the ballot for voters to decide. As a brief perspective, Mr. Gardner and 4 other Council Members (Mazzoni, Williams, Tierney, and Shinn) voted 5-3 in April 2021 to lift what had been a long existing ban on Pit Bull and related dangerous dogs here in Maumelle. They pointed to certain changes that they made in the City's Animal code as being able to provide a safe environment despite the introduction of such dogs. Subsequently, we had a severe Pit Bull attack 3-months ago in August of 2022 that resulted in the death of a pet dog and significant injuries to the owner. After this attack, I introduced legislation to reinstate the ban to see if the 5 Council members might have had regrets about lifting the ban. As it turned out, this legislation failed with the same 5 making the difference. However, we then had an impromptu discussion at our Oct. 17 Council meeting about allowing voters to decide the issue at the next general election, and the Council displayed some serious interest by voting unanimously (without Mr. Gardner being present) to have the City Attorney look into the matter. As such, my introduction of the resolution in the Nov. 21 meeting to add the Pit Bull question to the March 2024 general election ballot was not something I did in a vacuum or with stubborn determination as Mr. Gardner's report seemed to imply. Essentially, I had reason to believe that the Council might, in fact, be ready to give the residents the opportunity to decide the issue and put it to rest.

But as Mr. Gardner reported, the resolution was voted down by Mr. Gardner and others in the 5 member group at our Nov 21 Council meeting, and thus at this point, there is currently no opportunity for Maumelle residents to vote on this safety issue. As such, despite at least 1 pet death and human personal injuries at this early juncture (which indicate lifting the ban was not a good idea), Mr. Gardner's experiment with dangerous dogs continues.

Looking forward, this slim, 5 Council Member majority held together again this time, but there likely will be additional, significant Pit Bull related incidents and, thus, additional calls to overturn their controversial 2021 decision to lift the ban. In a community like ours that promotes its walking trails and outdoor family activity, let's just hope the next incident is not a resident fatality.

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A Christmas project still worth doing

Christmas is coming fast, so it is time to remember the reason for the season and help others.

Kelli Reep, director of communications at Methodist Family Health, said the facility’s annual Angel Tree program is back.

“Right now, we have about 85 kids left who have not yet been sponsored,” Reep said “It costs about $150 to fulfill each child’s wish list so if anyone would like to contribute funds, we can do the shopping. If they would prefer to choose a child’s wish list themselves, they can visit ChristmasatMFH.com and see the lists available. If they shop from that list, the items will be directly shipped to us, and we’ll take care of everything from there.”

Indeed, if you click here, you’ll see three options to pick from.

Choose a child’s list (all items on the list can be purchased for $150 or less) and purchase the items on that list
Pick and choose items to send
Contribute to the Methodist Family Health Foundation, which provides for the necessities of the children and families in our care throughout the year.

It is important to remember that if you pick a list, Amazon does the delivery and that could be delayed depending on logistics and such.

“We work to provide all the kids in our care whose families need assistance with Christmas with gifts,” Reep said. “Sometimes, we have kids in our outpatient counseling who are in need, and we provide gifts for their siblings as well. Whether it is gifts or funds to make those possible, whatever people feel moved to do in their hearts will help the children we serve feel valued and loved this season.

“Regardless of their situation – abandoned, abused, neglected or struggling with psychiatric, behavioral, emotional or spiritual issues – every gift someone gives them includes dignity and acceptance. That’s what we all want deep down.”

That’s true. Dignity and acceptance.

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Basketball: And the ball is tipped

High school basketball is going to have a bit of a different look this season, partly because of conference realignment but also because there’s been some notable coaching changers.

First up, on the conferences.

Maumelle Charter and Central Arkansas Christian are both in 3A this season and next. Both the Falcons and the Mustangs are in the same conference.

And, technically, for now at least, in the same city of North Little Rock.

So cross-town rivalry?

Sure, why not.

The two schools play on Dec. 9 in what should be a highly anticipated game at Maumelle Charter. The return trip to Mustang Mountain is Jan. 24.

Overall, the conference realignment seems like a good thing as Baptist Prep and Mayflower are also in the league. Lamar is a legit powerhouse in girls basketball and most every school is an easy drive.

Also beats going to Bigelow.

In 5A, Maumelle has some familiar faces with Parkview and Sylvan Hills in the conference but the 5A-Central also gets the double duo of Litlle Rock Catholic and Mount St. Mary’s, as both schools moved down a class. Moving up a classification is eStem, the Little Rock charter school that generally plays its game at the Arkansas School for the Deaf.

In terms of travel, this conference might be the most compact as six of the schools are in Pulaski County with Beebe and Vilonia both being close.

Should also be some exceptionally good hoops as Maumelle, Jacksonville and Parkview are perennial powerhouses.

North Little Rock stays in the 6A-Central but in a move to cut travel, this conference will only have seven members as Jonesboro enters the league but Fort Smith Northside stays in the nine-team 6A-West.

A sensible move by the AAA.

As for coaches, Johnny Rice retired from North Little Rock after going out on top and winning a state championship, while Grover Garrison returned to Maumelle and will be the girls basketball coach at the school.

The leagues

3A-5
Atkins
Baptist Prep
Central Arkansas Christian
Dover
Lamar
Maumelle Charter
Mayflower
Perryville
5A-Central
Beebe
Catholic / Mount St. Mary’s
eStem
Jacksonville
Maumelle
Parkview
Sylvan Hills
Vilonia
6A-Central
Bryant
Cabot
Conway
Jonesboro
Little Rock Central
Little Rock Southwest
North Little Rock

Maumelle Charter boys

Record so far: 3-7

Upcoming games

Tuesday ... at Dover ... 6 p.m.
Dec. 8 ... Glen Rose ... 7 p.m.
Dec. 9 ... Central Arkansas Christian ... 4:30 p.m.
Dec. 13 ... at Mayflower ... ... 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 16 ... at DeWitt ... ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 3 ... vs. St. Joseph ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 5 ... at Episcopal ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 6 ... vs. Perryville ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 10 ... at Lamar ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 13 ... vs. Baptist Prep ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 17 ... vs. Atkins ... 5:30 p.m.
Jan. 20 ... vs. Dover ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 23 ... at Sacred Heart ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 24 ... at Central Arkansas Christian ... 4:30 p.m.
Jan. 27 ... vs. Mayflower ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 31 ... at Perryville ... 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 3 ... vs. Lamar ... 7 p.m.
Feb. 7 ... at Baptist Prep ... 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 9 ... at Atkins ... 5:30 p.m.

For the roster, click here.

Keep an eye on: Four seniors return for Maumelle Charter as the Falcons fly into 3A and get some nearby rivalry games as a result

Coach: Josh Sensabaugh (7th season)

Maumelle Charter girls

Record so far: 4-6

Upcoming games

Tuesday ... at Dover ... 7 p.m.
Dec. 8 ... at Palestine-Wheatley ... 7 p.m.
Dec. 9 ... vs. Central Arkansas Christian ... 7 p.m.
Dec. 13 ... at Mayflower ... 6 p.m.
Dec. 16 ... at DeWitt ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 3 ... vs. St. Joseph ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 6 ... vs. Perryville ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 10 ... at Lamar ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 13 ... vs. Baptist Prep ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 17 ... at ... Atkins ... 5:30 p.m.
Jan. 20 ... vs. Dover ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 23 ... at Sacred Heart ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 24 ... at Central Arkansas Christian ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 27 ... vs. Mayflower ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 30 ... vs. Carlisle ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 31 ... at Perryville ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 3 ... vs. Lamar ... 7 p.m.
Feb. 7 ... at Baptist Prep ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 9 ... vs. Atkins ... 7 p.m.

For the roster, click here.

Players to watch: The roster has no seniors, so Maumelle Charter has a young team this season.

Coach: Logan Dahlke (2nd year)

CAC boys

Record so far: 5-6

Upcoming games

Friday ... at Drew Central ... 7:45 p.m.
Saturday ... at ... McGehee ... 7 p.m.
Tuesday ... vs. Atkins ... 5:30 p.m.
Dec. 9 ... at Maumelle Charter ... 4:30 p.m.
Dec. 16 ... vs. Dover ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 06 ... vs. Mayflower ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 10 ... at Perryville ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 13 ... vs. Lamar ... 4:30 p.m.
Jan. 17 ... at Baptist Prep ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 20 ... at Atkins ... 5:30 p.m.
Jan. 24 ... vs. Maumelle Charter ... 4:30 p.m.
Jan. 27 ... at Dover ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 31 ... at Mayflower ... 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 3 ... vs. Perryville ... 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 7 ... at Lamar ... 5 p.m.
Feb. 9 ... vs. Baptist Prep ... 7:30 p.m.

For the roster, click here.

Players to watch: Grayson Wilson and Jacob Henry are coming off very good football seasons and are, respectively, a sophomore and freshman. Three seniors also return.

Coach: Matt Hall

CAC girls

Record so far: (1-5)

Upcoming games

Tuesday ... vs. Atkins ... 7 p.m.
Dec. 9 ... at Maumelle Charter ... 7 p.m.
Dec. 16 ... vs. Dover ... 6 p.m.
Friday 7 ... at Tournament ... 2 p.m.
Jan. 6 ... vs. Mayflower ... 5 p.m.
Jan. 10 ... at Perryville ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 13 ... vs. Lamar ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 17 ... at Baptist Prep ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 20 ... at Atkins ... 5:30 p.m.
Jan. 24 ... vs. Maumelle Charter ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 27 ... at Dover ... 6:30 p.m.
Jan. 31 ... at Mayflower ... 6:15 p.m.
Feb. 3 ... vs. Perryville ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 7 ... at Lamar ... 7 p.m.
Feb. 9 ... vs. Baptist Prep ... 6 p.m.

For the roster, click here.

Players to watch: Senior Riley Bryant, a 5-foot-11 wing, is back for her fourth year as a starter. Bryant is also a high academic achiever and has a 4.36 GPA along with a 33 on the ACT.

Coach: Steve Quattlebaum (27th year)

Maumelle boys

Record so far: (4-2)

Upcoming games

Thursday ... vs. Episcopal ... 4 p.m.
Monday ... vs. Watson Chapel ... 7:45 p.m.
Dec. 13 ... vs. Beebe ... 7 p.m.
Dec. 16 ... at Vilonia ... 7 p.m.
Dec. 17 ... vs. Mills University ... 3:30 p.m.
Jan. 3 ... vs. eStem ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 6 ... at Sylvan Hills ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 10 ... vs. Parkview ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 13 ... at Jacksonville ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 20 ... at Catholic ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 27 ... vs. Vilonia ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 31 ... at eStem ... 7 p.m.
Feb. 3 ... vs. Sylvan Hills ... 7 p.m.
Feb. 7 ... at Parkview ... 7 p.m.
Feb. 10 ... vs. Jacksonville ... 7 p.m.
Feb. 10 ... at Parkview ... 7 p.m.
Feb. 17 ... vs. Catholic ... 7 p.m.
Feb. 24 ... at Beebe ... 7:30 p.m.

For the roster, click here.

Keep an eye on: Cayden McGee is a senior and was a starter last season. He's already put up some highlights this year, as you see below.

Coach: Michael Shook (12th)

Maumelle girls

Record so far: (2-6)

Upcoming games

Friday ... at Mills University ... 6 p.m.
Dec. 8 ... at Cabot ... 7 p.m.
Dec. 10 ... vs. Greenbrier ... 1 p.m.
Dec. 13 ... vs. Beebe ... 6 p.m.
Dec. 16 ... at Vilonia ... 7 p.m.
Friday 8 ... vs. White Hall ... 3:20 p.m.
Jan. 3 ... vs. eStem ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 10 ... vs. Parkview ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 13 ... at Jacksonville ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 20 ... at Mount St. Mary ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 24 ... at Little Rock Christian ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 27 ... vs. Vilonia ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 31 ... at eStem ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 2 ... vs. Sylvan Hills ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 7 ... at Parkview ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 10 ... vs. Jacksonville ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 17 ... vs. Mount St. Mary ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 21 ... vs. Little Rock Christian ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 24 ... at Beebe ... 6 p.m.

For the roster, click here.

Keep an eye on: Five seniors are back for new coach Grover Garrison.Former coach Calli De Los Santos left to be the head junior high coach in Conway, where her husband is also an assistant football coach. Garrison is a former Maumelle coach, who, in addition to his basketball duties, will also run the track program. He was previously the head track coach at Sylvan Hills. And Garrison led that program to five state titles.

Coach: Grover Garrison (1st)

North Little Rock boys

Record so far: (1-0)

Upcoming games

Thursday ... Chickasaw Classic at Blytheville
Friday ... Chickasaw Classic at Blytheville
Saturday ... Chickasaw Classic at Blytheville
Dec. 9 ... Battle of the Bluff at Memphis
Dec. 10 ... Battle of the Bluff at Memphis
Dec. 16 ... at Conway Classic
Dec. 17 ... at Conway Classic
Dec. 28 ... Coke Classic at Fort Smith
Dec. 29 ... Coke Classic at Fort Smith
Dec. 30 ... Coke Classic at Fort Smith
Jan. 3 ... at Central ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 6 ... at Conway ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 10 ... vs. Little Rock Southwest ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 13 ... at Jonesboro ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 24 ... vs. Bryant ... 7 p.m.
Jan. 27 ... vs. Cabot ... 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 31 ... vs. Central ... 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 3 ... vs. Conway ... 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 7 ... at Little Rock Southwest ... 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 10 ... vs. Jonesboro ... 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 17 ... at Bryant ... 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 24 ... at Cabot ... 7:30 p.m.

For the roster, click here.

Keep an eye on: Tyler Frederick was a starter last season and the 6-foot-3 guard has already signed with Division II Arkansas-Fort Smith. While North Little Rock doesn't have two McDonald's All-Americans, this year's team has already done something last year's squad couldn't pull off -- beat Jonesboro.

Coach: Nathan Clayborn (1st)

North Little Rock girls

Record so far: 4-0

Upcoming games

Thursday ... Great 8 Tournament at Rogers
Friday ... Great 8 Tournament at Rogers
Saturday ... Great 8 Tournament at Rogers
Dec. 8 ... Fayetteville (at Bentonville) ... 5 p.m.
Dec. 9 ... Har-Ber (at Bentonville) ... 8 p.m.
Dec. 10 ... at Bentonville ... 11 a.m.
Dec. 13 ... at Nashville ... 6 p.m.
Dec. 16 ... Vashon (at the University of Missouri) ... 4 p.m.
Jan. 3 ... at Central ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 6 ... at Conway ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 10 ... vs. Little Rock Southwest ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 13 ... at Jonesboro ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 24 ... vs. Bryant ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 27 ... vs. Cabot ... 6 p.m.
Jan. 31 ... vs. Central ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 3 ... vs. Conway ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 7 ... at Little Rock Southwest ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 10 ... vs. Jonesboro ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 17 ... at Bryant ... 6 p.m.
Feb. 24 ... at Cabot ... 6 p.m.

For the roster, click here.

Keep an eye on: There's five seniors back for coach Daryl Fimple, who has guided the school to multiple state titles and has over 500 career wins. Fimple has a loaded team back that won a state championship last season. The coaching staff looks a little different this season as former assistant and top middle school coach Amber Tennission left for Maumelle. Worth watching is Katie Fimple, who plays like a young Mandy Smith but is a better shooter.

Coach: Daryl Fimple (17th)

Sports

Football: State championships to be decided

Five state titles will be decided this long weekend at Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium.

Of the most interest is the Class 5A state championship between Little Rock Parkview and Shiloh Christian in the Noon kickoff on Saturday.

Parkview is coached by Brad Bolding, who was previously at North Little Rock, and has the Patriots rolling.

North Little Rock beat Parkview, 28-27, in a dramatic double overtime classic on Sept. 16.

In 7A, Bryant goes for yet another state championship. This time against Bentonville on Friday night. Both teams beat North Little Rock this season.

In 6A, Pulaski Academy won a shootout against Little Rock Catholic to get a rematch against Greenwood in the late game on Saturday

You can view live states for each game by clicking here then click on the game of interest. All games will also be broadcast live on Arkansas PBS.

State finals schedule

Thursday: 8 Man- 7 p.m.: Rector vs. Izard County
Friday: 2A - Noon: Carlisle vs. Hazen; 7A -6: 30 p.m.: Bryant vs. Bentonville
Saturday: 5A - Noon: Shiloh Christian vs.Little Rock Parkview; 6A - 6: 30 p.m.: Greenwood vs. Pulaski Academy
Saturday, Dec. 10: 4A - Noon, 3A - 6: 30 p.m.

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