Archives for June 2008

AUSTIN – The Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) Monday approved financial assistance to the Panhandle Groundwater Conservation District (District) in the amount of $1,000,000 from the Agricultural Water Conservation Loan Program to provide financing for an agriculture water conservation program.

The District will utilize the funds to provide loans to purchase center pivot irrigation systems.

The District’s jurisdictional area covers all or parts of nine counties in the Panhandle of Texas. These counties are Carson, Gray, Donley, Roberts, Armstrong, Potter, Hutchinson, Hemphill and Wheeler. The area covers 6,378 square miles of 4,150,136 acres. The District has 967,000 cultivated areas of which 281,500 are irrigated.

Principal crops in the District are wheat, grain sorghum, corn, and sunflowers.

TWDB is the agency charged with collecting and disseminating water-related data, assisting with regional planning, and preparing the State Water Plan for the development of the state’s water resources.

COLLEGE STATION – Grocery stores and restaurants should be approached like major appliance outlets – with thorough research and planning.

That’s according to Dr. Jenna Anding, Texas AgriLife Extension Service nutrition specialist, who said rising food costs can be cut with thoughtful study.

More than $3,600 is spent each year per person on food, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“That’s like buying a plasma television for each person in your family,” Anding noted. “Wouldn’t you know everything about a major expenditure like that before you buy it?”

About half of a person’s annual food bill is for grocery purchases while the other half is for eating out, the USDA reports. But Anding said people need to assess where their money is being spent in order to make informed choices about where to cut.

“If you can, keep track of all your grocery receipts, your receipts from eating out,” she said. “Do that over the course of a month, and you’ll get a better idea of how much you are really spending on food.”

Anding said individuals and families also should determine how much to budget for food – something many people may not have realized is needed.

“It might be interesting to know where your money is being spent. Are you spending the majority of your food dollars on crackers, cookies, dessert? Are you spending a lot of it on perishable foods that may go to waste?” she asked. “If you don’t know how much money you’re spending, odds are you don’t know where you are spending that money.”

Some things to consider when making changes, Anding suggested, include whether to buy convenience foods or pre-prepared foods or to make food from scratch.

Instant rice costs 27 cents per serving while long grain white rice costs 6 cents per serving, she noted.

“The more someone has to prepare it for you, the more you are going to pay for it,” she said. “So, instead of instant rice, can you cook your own rice?”

Another revelation from examining receipts may be that a lot of non-food items are purchased at a grocery store. Anding said these items might cost less at discount stores.

“You might want to look at the kinds of food you are buying. If you are buying a lot of national or name brands, maybe you can try some store brands,” she said. “There are a lot of private label store brands that are really good quality, and they taste good.”

Another thing to do, she said, is look for sale items and use coupons.

“If you can keep track of what items you need and what coupons you have, then when you hit the store, if it’s a good deal and you have a coupon, then you might be able to save some extra money,” said Anding, noting that one shouldn’t buy an item only because of the coupon.

“Even if you have a coupon, you still might be able to get a better deal looking at a private label or a store brand.”

Other ideas:

Keep a list of items that are bought on a regular basis and track how much those items cost. That will help you recognize a bargain if you see those items on sale elsewhere.

Cut back on things like snack foods, chips, and cookies.

Scale back on sodas to opt for less expensive iced tea (brewed at home) or water.

Buy fresh fruit in season at a lower cost to take the place of a sweet snack.

Stick with traditional grocery stores and supermarkets for many items, but also explore discount stores, farmers’ markets, bakery thrift stores, and dollar stores for best buys.

 Plan well to use what you buy. Some research has suggested that as much as 25 percent of our food goes to waste.

Get others in the family involved. That way, they’ll be more likely to accept what you are cooking.

“The most expensive food you will ever buy is the food you throw away. If you are throwing away that cantaloupe that cost you $2 last week, you are throwing away $2,” Anding said.

“And the $2 here and $3 there, that adds up.”

She suggested doing periodic inventories of food on hand, moving older items to the front of the refrigerator, freezer, and pantry. That way, the older food gets used before it goes to waste.

“When I go to plan my meals for the week, I look at what I have on hand. And if I have a package of ground beef or chicken or some fish, those are the things I am going to use first because those are the things I’ve already paid for,” she said. “Use them first and then finish out the rest of your meal.

“It is going to take a little time, but if you think about how much money we spend on food, over the course of a year, it is worth the investment,” she added.

“Take a little bit of time each week to sit down, plan your meals in advance, look at what’s on sale at the grocery store, look at what you have on hand. Then you are using your time to help plan more nutritious meals and hopefully save some money when you are shopping for food.”

The Clarendon Enterprise received the top award for newspapers of its size during the Texas Press Association’s 2007 Better Newspaper Contest this past Saturday in Arlington.

The local paper claimed its second state Sweepstakes award after competing in a field of 21 other newspapers of similar circulations in Division 9.

“We’ve always said that it’s a team effort that allows us to win these awards, and this year was a great example of that,” said publisher Roger Estlack. “Each of our staff members contributed to one or more first place awards.”

The Enterprise earned first place plaques in four categories. The paper won in Advertising with work done by Julie Shields, Ashlee Estlack, and Roger Estlack. Anndria Kidd’s photos earned the first place plaque in the Feature Photo category.

Roger Estlack received first place wins with Editorials on Gov. Perry’s community college funding cuts and the need for a city administrator and with Columns on the Texas Pledge of Allegiance and his father’s words of wisdom.

“I’m very pleased by the effort put forth by our staff,” Estlack said. “We have a tradition of putting out a great newspaper with only a handful of employees. We wouldn’t have the paper we have without the hard work of the people in the office and our correspondents.”

The paper also received a second place certificate in News Writing and a fourth place certificate for Page Design.

This is the second time the Enterprise has won the top award from the state press association. The first was in 2000.

The contest was judged by members of the Wisconsin Press Association.

This year 188 newspapers submitted 1,924 entries to the TPA contest in ten divisions. The awards were announced during the 129th annual TPA Summer Convention.

Office Director Anndria Kidd attended the convention and received the awards on behalf of the Enterprise. Estlack also attended the convention but could not be at the awards brunch.

Also at this year’s convention, Roy Robinson of the Graham Leader was named president of the state association. On Monday, he selected Estlack to serve as an appointed member of the TPA Board of Directors, a position the local editor also held under the previous president.

Members of St. Mary’s Catholic Church joyously rang in the completion of a three-year construction project this past week with a new 20 ft. bell tower.

“I’m thrilled,” said parish member and project chairman Chris Clifford. “This has been a project our parish has been working on for a while now, and it is good to see it finished.”

The bell was originally situated above of the church, which was built in 1892 as the Panhandle’s first Catholic church. More than 60 years ago, however, the bell was removed to Amarillo after a storm damaged the building.

Three years ago the bell was returned to Clarendon, but it was only installed on a temporary platform at ground level.

A generous donation of time by Earl Britten of Groom resulted in engineered drawings that were necessary to start the bell tower project. Mike Keotting of Keotting Construction in Amarillo constructed the tower.

Made of solid steel construction, the tower stands 20 ft. tall from the concrete base to the Celtic cross that tops the tower. Arches within the tower’s construction mirror those of the church’s windows, and the structure is painted light green to match the church trim.

The tower was built in Amarillo and then trucked to Clarendon, where members of the parish painted it along with the church bell. Keotting Construction erected the tower last Thursday, and parish members made final touches in the painting.

“A lot of people have worked hard to make this happen,” Clifford said.  “Support for the project has been tremendous.”

Clifford explained that Keotting, who often attends mass in Clarendon, donated much of the concrete work for the tower. Funding came through not only individual donations but also parish fundraisers. Chief among the fundraisers has been the concession stand at the city ballpark, which members of the parish have operated the past two years.

By MaryRuth Bishop, AgriLife Agent

Walk Across Texas teams in Donley County have completed their “travels” and are enjoying a healthier life. Walk Across Texas is a fun and flexible way to exercise. This year there were four teams who had gotten together with seven other people – friends, neighbors, coworkers, or family members – and started walking, or jogging, or even biking. They walked together and individually, outside on the college track and around town, however it fit into their schedule and lifestyle.

The exciting part is teams kept records of their walking, and all teams walked the 830 miles “across Texas” in eight weeks.

This year Texas AgriLife Extension Service volunteer Francis Smith helped get donations for a Traveling Trophy which will go from team to team each year. The trophy is sponsored by Outpost Pharmacy, and this year it will go to the Lowe’s Mileage Makers team. The team will have the privilege of displaying the trophy all year long. Other teams in this year’s walk were Country Chicks, Sixty Plus, First Steppers, and Happy Gardeners. All teams walked the 830 miles within the eight-week time period. Top walkers were Jim Sullivan, a member of the Lowe’s Mileage Maker team, and Andy Callis from the First Steppers team. We also would like to recognize our oldest walker, Ruby Jewel Hardin.

We are very excited that Paul Bivens of Outpost Pharmacy was willing to support the traveling trophy and the Walk Across Texas program in Donley County. By helping the citizens of Donley County have a healthier life, Outpost Pharmacy is also supporting the health and well-being of our communities and future.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 29 percent of American adults are not physically active at all, and 50 percent are not active enough to achieve health benefits.

Here’s what it costs: Direct and indirect costs of sedentary living are $150 billion. Estimated direct costs of obesity and inactivity together account for approximately 15 percent of U.S. health care expenditures. The medical care costs for people with chronic diseases account for more than 70 percent of the nation’s total medical care costs.

Now, think about this…“If 10 percent of adults began a regular walking program, $5.6 billion in heart disease costs [alone] could be saved.”

So, we know that public health recommendations suggest that everyone should have 30–60 minutes or more of moderate physical activity, such as brisk walking, on a daily basis. Many businesses have come to learn that regular fitness walking requires only a modest investment, yet it can lead to considerable bottom-line savings from reduced health insurance costs and increased productivity. A sustained reduction of just 10 percent in body weight can lead to substantial health and economic benefits. Conversely, these are some of the specific costs associated with remaining inactive and obese:

Obesity costs employers more than $12 billion each year in higher healthcare utilization/benefit claims, lower productivity, and increased absenteeism

About 9.1 percent of the nation’s total annual medical expenditures are attributable to obesity

Walking helps our community become stronger and healthier, which also supports our businesses as employees have less stress, more stamina, and an overall positive attitude.

For more information about Walk Across Texas, call 874-2141.