Archives for January 2009

By MaryRuth Bishop, County Agent

The Donley County Livestock Board will be hosting the 2009 Stock Show this Saturday, January 10.

Youth from Donley County 4-H, Hedley Future Farmers of America (FFA), and Clarendon Future Farmers of America will compete for top honors in Lambs, Goats, Heifers, Steers, Gilts, and Barrows. The stock show will be held at the community center beginning at 8:00 a.m. with the lamb show and progressing through the day.

A concession stand will offer burgers, sandwiches, sodas and candy for everyone with the funds going into the buyers’ club. The buyers club is made up of individuals who have donated money to help support youth during the sale.

If you are interested in donating to the buyers club, please contact a member of the Livestock Board or any stock show participant. For donations of over $100, you will receive a Buyers Club cap. All money given to the buyers club is used to support the stock show participants.

The stock show sale will begin at 6:00 p.m. with a free BBQ meal for parents, buyers, and exhibitors. Following the meal will be the presentation of showmanship awards for senior and junior levels in each animal division. The sale will conclude the evening.

4-H and FFA Clubs do more than teach young people how to raise and tend animals. Through the animal project, they learn the importance of agriculture, keeping records, nutrition, and responsibility. Club members learn how to conduct business meetings, participate in various programs, and become an active member of their community. This can have an impact on the rest of their lives as well as our communities. The 4-H and Future Farmers of America (FFA) complement each other by offering the opportunity for members to develop lifelong skills. Please support these youth on Saturday.

Three local cases were settled in district court resulting in sentencing on December 22, 2008, according to District Attorney Luke Inman’s office.

Donda Simpson was placed on deferred adjudication for a period of two years for forgery. Pursuant to a plea agreement with the State, Simpson is required to pay a fine and restitution for this offense in the amount of $2,200, among other regular conditions of probation.

Simpson was indicted for forgery by a Donley County Grand Jury in October of 2008. In exchange for Simpson’s plea of guilty to the state jail felony offense of forgery, the state agreed to dismiss other pending forgery offenses in the 100th Judicial District.

If Simpson violates the terms of her probation, she could face up to two years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, State Jail Facility.

Kaleb Shadle was placed on deferred adjudication for a period of three years for evading arrest in a motor vehicle. Pursuant to a plea agreement with the state, Shadle is required to pay a fine and restitution for this offense of almost $2,000, among other regular conditions of probation.

Shadle was indicted for evading arrest by a Donley County Grand Jury on November 10, 2008. If Shadle violates the terms of his probation, he could face up to two years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, State Jail Facility.

Sylester Thomas was placed on probation for a period of two years for possession of marijuana. Thomas was sentenced to two years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, State Jail Division; but that sentence was probated for a two-year period.

Thomas was indicted by a Carson County Grand Jury on August 28, 2008. Pursuant to the plea agreement with the State, Thomas was convicted and placed on probation for the offense, where he is required to pay a $2,000 fine, restitution of $140, and $313 in court costs.

“All fines imposed on defendants in this district go directly to the county where the offense occurred,” said 100th Judicial District Attorney Luke Inman. “It is a form of punishment to the defendant, which in turn benefits the counties in this district when they are imposed.”

Inman prosecuted each of the cases for the State of Texas with the Honorable Judge Stuart Messer presiding.

State officials have closed the Seventh Street Bridge at City Park, but the bridge’s age and historical significance may save the structure from being replaced.

Clarendon City Administrator John Webb said the city barricaded the 100-year-old bridge after receiving a letter from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) last month.

“We received a notice on December 16 and closed the bridge immediately,” Webb said. “People then started driving through the creek bed, and we put up crossties to stop that.”

TxDOT Childress District Bridge Engineer Charles Steed said in the letter to Mayor Chris Ford that the firm of Kimley Horn & Associates recommended the “bridge be closed due to the overall weak condition of the bridge.”

The Seventh Street Bridge was built in 1908 by the Valley Bridge Company of Leavenworth, Kan., according to City Superintendent Jim Roberts.

Longtime residents will recall the bridge used to have a wooden deck until it was replaced with a deck of metal runners several years ago.

City officials had expected the bridge to be replaced under TxDOT’s “off system” program through which the state pays 90 percent of the cost of a new city or county bridge.

State officials have previously told the city they will present several designs to the Board of Aldermen so they can select a bridge that complements City Park.

But Steed said this week that replacing the bridge might not be a simple process.

“The age and the fact that it is a pony truss bridge makes it historically significant,” Steed said. “That causes problems for us getting an environmental document (necessary to replace the bridge) approved by the federal government.”

Because of these factors, replacing the bridge will take until 2011 at the earliest, Steed said.

The city could elect to make necessary repairs to reopen the bridge to vehicle traffic. It’s also possible the bridge could be converted to pedestrian traffic and another crossing be installed for vehicles.

Steed said if the city wants to keep the Seventh Street Bridge for historic or aesthetic reasons, responsibility for the bridge would fall back on the city. He also said it is possible that state engineers could find a method to improve the bridge without replacing it.

The Seventh Street Bridge was one of four “structurally deficient” bridges in Donley County listed on a 2007 report from the state. Following that report, the state hired a firm to do a structural analysis of the bridge, which resulted in last month’s letter.

The same 2007 report listed the Rosenfield Street Bridge on the north side of town as structurally deficient. Steed says that bridge – a 1940 Warren truss bridge – is also historically significant but is in better condition that the Seventh Street Bridge.

Work on the Rosenfield Street Bridge may not come until 2012 or 2013.
The other two bridges on the 2007 report were the Lelia Lake Creek Bridge on CR X, which has been improved, and the Rock Creek Bridge on FM 291, which has not yet been worked on.

WASHINGTON – Acting Agriculture Secretary Chuck Conner announced that USDA has begun issuing payments to tens of thousands of farmers and ranchers across the country who suffered losses because of natural disasters.

“Numerous agricultural producers suffered financial hardships in recent years because of floods, wildfires, tornadoes and other weather-related disasters,” Conner said.

“These funds will provide assistance to producers affected by these disasters.”

USDA is currently processing about $1 billion in payments under the Crop Disaster Program, the Livestock Compensation Program, and the Livestock Indemnity Program.  Sign-up for these programs is ongoing.  The programs provide payments to agricultural producers who suffered crop, livestock, and feed losses in 2005, 2006, and before Feb. 28, 2007.  But, producers must choose one year for which to receive payments.

The Crop Disaster Program (CDP) provides benefits to farmers who suffered quantity and quality losses from natural disasters and related conditions that happened in 2005, 2006 and for 2007 crops if the crop was planted or prevented from being planted before Feb. 28, 2007.  At this time, USDA is only compensating producers for quantity losses under this program. Payments for the quality losses will not be distributed until early 2008, after sign-up for quality loss.

The Livestock Compensation Program (LCP) compensates livestock producers for feed losses resulting from natural disasters that occurred between Jan.1, 2005, and Feb. 28, 2007.  Producers who suffered losses caused by blizzards that started in 2006 and continued into 2007 are eligible.

Producers in primary or contiguous counties that were declared secretarial disaster areas or counties declared presidential disaster areas between January 1, 2005, and February 28, 2007, are also eligible.

Additionally, USDA will soon issue more than $11 million to Alabama, Florida, Idaho, Mississippi and Oklahoma through the LCP Catfish Grant Program.  Alabama will receive $3,121,477.94; Florida $34,879.25; Idaho $6,968.00; Mississippi $8,123,840.88; and Oklahoma $5,651.10.  USDA also approved the following six states to receive funds through the Catfish Grant Program: Arkansas, California, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana and Texas.  USDA will distribute funds to the six states after they conduct sign-up and submit requests for payments.

The Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) compensates livestock producers for livestock losses between January 1, 2005, and February 28, 2007, that were caused by natural disasters, including blizzards that started in 2006 and continued into 2007.  Producers in primary or contiguous counties that were declared secretarial disaster areas or counties declared presidential disaster areas between January 1, 2005, and February 28, 2007, are also eligible.

Farmers and ranchers can apply to receive benefits through these and other disaster programs by visiting their local FSA service center.  Find more information at: http://disaster.fsa.usda.gov.