Arron Michael Lewis was born in 1981 on a colder than average Tuesday in Ruston, Louisiana. He was the only child of Ivan and Marjorie Lewis, a couple who had been married for less than two years at the time of his birth. They divorced seven years later. In January of this year, Lewis described … Continue reading Accounts of the Accused
Tag: Arkansas
Remembering the Matriarch
Carl Carter Jr. laughs a lot, and his father says he gets that from his mom. “He’s always been a joyful kind of guy,” Carl Carter Sr. says of his first son. “He has the same smile his mother had, except hers was a little bigger.” Carl Jr. says he can’t help but laugh when … Continue reading Remembering the Matriarch
Culturally Connected
Adrian Alvarez legally immigrated to the United States in 1982, and although he came here in search of a better life for his family, he came here alone. His wife, Reyna, and two sons remained behind in Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico. They joined him three years later. It is a story played over and over in … Continue reading Culturally Connected
The Time is Now
Braelond Simmons could have been the perfect statistic. The J.A. Fair High School graduate’s father died 12 days after his sixth birthday. He and his two younger siblings were raised by a single working mother in Little Rock’s John Barrow neighborhood. His family lived in poverty. Their house was burglarized repeatedly. “We saw things, and … Continue reading The Time is Now
On the Mat
It turns out, mortuary schools don’t have cheerleading scholarships. So when Stacey Kohles had to choose between her two life ambitions — cheer and funeral science — the young adult landed on the mat. Although she dabbled in dermatology, psychology and dreamed of opening a flower shop, the Fort Smith native eventually started Arkansas Cheer … Continue reading On the Mat
Growing Health
Arkansas may be the top producer of rice and poultry, but food isn’t always widely available to its residents. The state is ranked No. 1 in the country for senior hunger, says Jerry Mitchell, executive director of the Area Agency on Aging of Northwest Arkansas. Some 13 percent of residents ages 60 and older live … Continue reading Growing Health
Looking Like Spring
The winter of 1947-48 was long and miserable in Northwest Arkansas. It was the season the Razorbacks tied 0-0 with the LSU Tigers in what would later be dubbed the Ice Bowl. Temperatures dropped to 14 below in Gentry, and March brought over a foot of snow instead of spring rains and flowers. By the … Continue reading Looking Like Spring
Breaking the Taboo
Vagina. Does the word make you uncomfortable? It makes a lot of people uncomfortable. But why? After all, the vagina is a human body part just like any other. It’s an organ that connects the uterus to the outside world. It’s part of sexual intercourse. Babies come into the world through it. It’s a source of … Continue reading Breaking the Taboo
Hangin’ with Rodney
Rodney Carrington is brash, raw and has a bit of a mouth. But more than that, he’s honest. The comedian is traveling next week from his home just outside of Tulsa, Okla., to the John Q. Hammons Center in Rogers for a night of stand-up that he calls “truthful comedy.” “This act is all new, … Continue reading Hangin’ with Rodney
Identity: a Discovery
Amy Tan didn’t expect to be a best-selling author. “I sent two or three of my stories to the New Yorker, mostly to get that rejection letter that would signal to end that story and begin a new one,” she said. “I would pin that rejection letter on my bulletin board. I had a whole … Continue reading Identity: a Discovery
Allison Carter Fanney 