New hangar opens at Conway airport
A new maintenance hangar at the Conway Regional Airport is now open for business. The City of Conway provided about 40% of the $920,000 construction project using grants from the Arkansas Division of Aeronautics. Conway Aircraft, an aircraft maintenance company, provided the remaining 60%.
The company is operating its business out of the 10,000-square-foot headquarters and will provide a full range of aircraft engine maintenance and repair services as well as inspections, avionics, installation and repair.
"Without the support of Mayor [Bart] Castleberry, the City Council, the Airport Advisory Committee and the state Division of Aeronautics, we would not be here today," said Dana Wills, who co-owns Conway Aircraft with her husband, Robbie Wills.
Walt English will lead the Conway team with Aaron Bulmanski as the assistant director of maintenance. Avionics partners include Al Hosier and Bill Schrieber of ABS Avionics Inc., an FAA-certified repair station.
"We committed to the city to bring a first-class maintenance and avionics facility to Conway and that's exactly what we've done with this well-respected team," Robbie Wills said.
EMS chief retires in Pope County
After nearly 17 years as Pope County Emergency Medical Service director and over 31 years working for Pope County EMS, Doug Duerr recently retired.
Duerr said he is stepping down to pursue other interests and spend more time with family, which includes two granddaughters.
He began his career with the department in 1990 as a volunteer rescue technician then became a full-time emergency medical technician for Pope County in 1993. .
"Soon after volunteering and working alongside the paramedics and EMTs, I realized that EMS is what I wanted to do," Duerr said.
He was promoted to EMS director in 2005.
Duerr was a member of the Governor's EMS Advisory Council for more than 17 years, first appointed by Gov. Mike Huckabee in 2005.
"I have been a part of many positive changes for EMS in the state of Arkansas," Duerr said. "Statewide trauma and stroke programs were implemented to name a few."
In the span of his career, it was the covid-19 pandemic that was his greatest challenge, Duerr said.
"From the loss of loved ones, friends and co-workers, it has been a difficult two years for everyone," he said. "I am very proud of our staff for the manner in which they have endured and persevered during these difficult times and continued to provide quality service to the citizens of Pope County."
Texts to alert on Conway outages
Conway Corp., the city-owned utility company, recently launched its new text message outage notification system, spokesman Jeff Matthews said.
Customers with a text-enabled numbers assigned to their Conway Corp account will automatically be enrolled in this service or customers can also enroll by texting ENROLL to (501) 450-6000.
Alerts will be sent within 10 minutes of a confirmed outage.
Additional features will be added in the future, including the ability to report an outage and to check account balances.
Conway's schools honor 6 workers
Six Conway Public School District employees were recently recognized for their outstanding work and commitment to the district. The new "Employee of the Year" awards are given to one staff member from each department in the district.
Winners include Al Credit, an afternoon bus aide and custodian at Conway Junior High School; DeAna Tyler, who works in the cafeteria at Marguerite Vann Elementary School; Juanita Darkis, a special education paraprofessional at Ruth Doyle Middle School; Gail Furlow, a custodian at Julia Lee Moore Elementary School; Martha Longing, a bookkeeper at Conway Junior High School; and Claudia Courtway, a social worker at Courtway Middle School.
"These six individuals exemplify what it means to be a 'Staff Committed to Excellence,'" Superintendent Jeff Collum said. "They represent all our core values in their important work each day. They make us proud to be Wampus Cats."
Criteria for the distinction includes having three years of professional work experience in the Conway School District and 70% attendance, as well as displaying the district's core values and going above and beyond to perform work duties.
An overall district Employee of the Year will be chosen from the six winners and announced at the district's convocation in August. The winner will receive a $500 prize, courtesy of Coleman's Office Supply.
ATU to renovate residence hall
Arkansas Tech University announced recently that external renovations will be made to Caraway Residence Hall with the help of an $857,492 grant from the Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council.
The funds will allow the university to replace roof decking and tiles at the residence hall. The university will provide matching funds of $218,730 to repair and replace doors and windows.
"Arkansas Tech University is grateful to the ANCRC for its continued partnership in preserving historical structures on our Russellville campus," Dr. Robin E. Bowen, ATU president, said. "This grant will help ensure that one of ATU's most visible buildings will maintain its beauty and functionality into a second century of service."
Caraway Hall -- which serves as sorority housing for 88 university students each semester -- opened in the spring of 1935. The colonial style structure was named in memory of the late Sen. Thaddeus H. Caraway. The hall was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.