Archives for February 2010

A Pampa man escaped life-threatening injuries just after noon last Wednesday when the concrete truck he was driving overturned.
Department of Public Safety Trooper Chad Simpson said Benito Chavez, age 50, was traveling at an unsafe speed for the curve he was entering while southeast bound on FM 2162, also known as the JA Ranch Road. Simpson said the man then overcorrected while steering and the loaded Pampa Concrete truck rolled over onto its left side and top and slid into the south ditch.
During the accident the mixer drum severely damaged highway surface, creating a crater several inches deep, and came loose from the truck itself.
Simpson said the damage required the immediate attention of the Texas Department of Transportation to fix the roadway.
The Clarendon Volunteer Fire Department extracted Benito, and he was transported by the Associated Ambulance Authority and airlifted by LifeStar for treatment in Amarillo. His condition at press time was not known, but Simpson said Benito did not have life-threatening injuries. He was wearing his seatbelt.
In addition to the fire department, ambulance service and DPS, those responding to this accident were the Donley County Sheriff’s Office, TxDOT, and several Good Samaritans.

Two new Crestline Commander ambulances are expected to arrive at the Associated Ambulance Authority on March 18.
The ambulances cost a total of $252,000, which will be partially paid for with the help of a $35,000 grant from the Texas Department of State Health and $24,000 that the ambulance service has saved for the purchases. The sale and trade-in of two older ambulances will provide about $10,000, and the balance will be covered by a five-year note.
“Everyone on the hospital board is thrilled about the new ambulances,” Donley County Hospital District Administrator Anna Howard said. “We’re ready for them to get here.”
The need for the new ambulances is due to two of the present units’ mechanical problems and constant malfunctioning. All three ambulances are out of warranty, so repairs to them require out of pocket fees.
“The board figured it would be cheaper to go ahead and get the new ambulances,” Howard said. “The 2004 ambulance that will be traded in has been malfunctioning since 2005, and it actually has been a part of a litigation process because of continuous malfunction.”
Another reason the hospital board decided to purchase the ambulances now is because new emission laws and requirements going into effect starting in 2011 are going to cause ambulances to go up in price by $5,000-8,000 per unit.
“We decided it would be more economical to go ahead and get the ambulances now because of the increased cost of ambulances in the future,” Howard said.
Over the past seven years, the number of calls to the ambulance station have gradually increased from 553 total calls in 2003 to 749 in 2009. From the beginning of this year, there have already been 104 ambulance calls.
“Usually January and February are our slow months,” Howard said. “If it keeps it up, then we could very well get into the 900s, which is a large amount for a small rural ambulance department.”
Howard said the increase in calls is possibly due to the economy.
“People can’t afford to go to the regular doctor to take care of routine illnesses, so they wait until it gets really bad, and then call emergency vehicles to treat their sickness,” Howard said. 
The rise in calls has caused two, even three ambulances to be out running at the same time.
“The two new units are a necessity,” Howard said. “It has become a regular thing that both ambulances are running together. We need two ambulances that don’t malfunction due to this increase in yearly calls.”
The Ambulance Authority is looking forward to the new ambulances arrival.
“We’re just waiting patiently waiting now, hoping the units don’t break down before the new ones get here,” Howard said.

Voters will celebrate Texas Independence Day next Tuesday by heading to the polls and casting ballots in party primaries.
Polling places for the Democratic Primary are as follows: Precinct 101 – Clarendon College Bairfield Activity Center, Precinct 102 – Howardwick City Hall, Precinct 201 – Donley County Courthouse Judge’s Office, Precinct 301 & 302 – Hedley Lions Club, and Precinct 401 – Burton Memorial Library.
Republican polling places are: Precinct 101 – Clarendon College Bairfield Activity, Precinct 102 – Howardwick City Hall, Precinct 201 Donley County Courthouse Commissioners Courtroom, Precinct 301 – Assembly of God Fellowship Hall, Precinct 303 – Hedley Senior Citizens Center, and Precinct 401 – Church of Christ Family Life Center.
Early voting for both parties continues at the County Clerk’s office in the Courthouse Annex through this Friday.  As of Tuesday morning, 96 Republicans had cast early ballots, and 23 Democrats had voted.
Local Democrats have one contested race on their ballot. Colleen Owens and Doug Wright are vying for the party’s nomination for Pct. 3&4 Justice of the Peace.
Donley County Republicans have two contested races on their ballot this year. Incumbent Donnie Hall is being challenged by Mitchell Martin for the nomination to run for County Commissioner of Precinct 2.
Three men – Joe Hall, Dan Sawyer, and Bill Spier – are seeking the Republican nomination to run for County Commissioner of Precinct 4.
Other candidates on the Republican ballot include Denise Bertrand for Pct. 3&4 Justice of the Peace, Janette Gail Wagner Cox for County/District Clerk, and incumbent Wanda Smith for County Treasurer.  Tom Stauder also appears on the Republican ballot to continue as party chairman.
Balloting next Tuesday will be held from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Check your voter’s registration card to see what precinct you should vote in.

The sign-up period continues for citizens who might wish to serve as candidates for any of seven local boards holding elections this May.
The filing deadline for these offices is March 8, 2010; and the elections will be held May 8.
The City of Clarendon will hold an election to choose the three aldermen for two-year terms, and the City of Howardwick will also elect three aldermen for two-year terms.
The City of Hedley will choose a mayor and four aldermen. The mayor and two aldermen positions are full two-year terms. Two other positions are unexpired terms.
Three positions on the Clarendon ISD Board of Trustees are up this year. Those seats are three-year terms.
Two full terms and one unexpired term are up on the Hedley ISD Board of Trustees. The full terms are for three years, and the unexpired term has one year remaining.
The Clarendon College Board of Regents has three seats up for election this year. Those positions are six-year terms.
The Donley County Hospital District will select four two-year positions on its board, Places 4, 5, 6, and 7. All local offices are elected at-large, but hospital board candidates must sign up for a specific place.

County receives $82K for non-profit groups

Donley County Commissioners will soon decided what to do with almost $82,000 that until recently was just chilling in a bank account somewhere.

Becky Fuller, who is the director of the 100th Judicial District Adult Probation Department, presented a check to the county in the amount of $81,958.72 last Monday.
The money presented represents one-fifth of the donations collected prior to March 2008 through the 100th Judicial District Community Service Program from participants in lieu of performing community service hours. County Judge Jack Hall said the money had been being deposited for about 15 years without being distributed.

Qualified participants “could buy one of hour of community supervision time for $4,” Hall said. The option is only available to participants who are employed full-time and are current on their court-ordered fees.
Money collected since March 2008 has been donated quarterly to qualifying food programs in the 100th Judicial District, but the commissioners’ court will decide what to do with the more than $81,000 they received last week.

“We’ll be looking at that at our next regular meeting on March 8,” Hall said. “The only requirement is that it has to go to a non-profit organization that is not religiously affiliated.”

The five counties which make up the 100th Judicial District – Carson, Childress, Collingsworth, Donley and Hall – each received an equal portion of the collections

County Judge Jack Hall and Commissioners Bob Trout, Mark White, Don Hall, and Andy Wheatley with Becky Fuller, CSCD Director.

Early voting began Tuesday for this year’s Republican and Democratic primary elections and will continue through Friday, February 26.

Donley County Republicans have two contested races on their ballot this year. Incumbent Donnie Hall is being challenged by Mitchell Martin for the nomination to run for County Commissioner of Precinct 2. Hall announced early this week that, despite rumors to the contrary, he has not withdrawn from the race and is still a candidate.
Three men – Joe Hall, Dan Sawyer, and Bill Spier – are seeking the Republican nomination to run for County Commissioner of Precinct 4.

Other candidates on the Republican ballot include Denise Bertrand for Pct. 3&4 Justice of the Peace, Janette Gail Wagner Cox for County/District Clerk, and incumbent Wanda Smith for County Treasurer. Tom Stauder also appears on the Republican ballot to continue as party chairman.

Local Democrats have one contested race on their ballot. Colleen Owens and Doug Wright are vying for the party’s nomination for Pct. 3&4 Justice of the Peace.
Other candidates on the Democratic ballot include Brad Dalton for County Commissioner of Precinct 4, incumbent Jack Hall for County Judge, incumbent Fay Vargas for County/District Clerk, and incumbent Connie Havens for Pct. 1&2. Jean Taylor is also on the ballot to continue as her party’s chair.

Early voting by personal appearance for both parties is being held in the Donley County Courthouse Annex.
The Primary Election Day will be Tuesday, March 2.

Seven local boards seeking candidates

The sign-up period continues for citizens who might wish to serve as candidates for any of seven local boards that will be holding elections this May.

The filing deadline for these offices is March 8, 2010; and information can be obtained from the administrative offices of the respective entities. The elections will be held Saturday, May 8.

The City of Clarendon will hold an election to choose the three aldermen for two-year terms.

The City of Howardwick will also elect three aldermen. These officers each serve two-year terms.

The City of Hedley will choose a mayor and four aldermen. The mayor and two aldermen positions are for full two-year terms. Two other aldermen positions are unexpired terms.

Three positions on the Clarendon ISD Board of Trustees are up this year. Those seats are three-year terms.

Two full terms and one unexpired term are up for election this year on the Hedley ISD Board of Trustees. The full terms are for three years, and the unexpired term has one year remaining.

The Clarendon College Board of Regents has three seats up for election this year. Those positions are six-year terms.

The Donley County Hospital District will select four two-year positions on its board, Places 4, 5, 6, and 7.
All local offices are elected at-large, but hospital board candidates must sign up for a specific place.