Archives for February 2018

The City of Howardwick is in disarray following the resignations of two aldermen before last night’s scheduled city council meeting.

Aldermen Eric Riddle and Mac Miller turned in their letters of resignation yesterday afternoon, February 13. The move leaves the city without a quorum to conduct business.

Mayor Greta Byars and Aldermen Robert Brewster and Doc Holladay remain in office, but there are now three vacancies on the council as Alderman Shelly Williamson also resigned in December.

Despite not having a quorum Tuesday night, but with Brewster and Holladay in attendance, Mayor Byars proceeded with the city’s regular meeting, leading the invocation and Pledge of Allegiance, allowing a report to be presented on the annual audit, and discussing city business with citizens before Donley County Sheriff Butch Blackburn arrived and stopped the meeting.

As of Tuesday, only Holladay had signed up for the city’s scheduled election this spring for three city council positions. Sign-ups technically continue until this Friday. However, City Secretary Tammy Jordan raised the point Tuesday night that the city council had not yet issued the Order of Election and now without a quorum it cannot do so.

The Enterprise will have more on this developing story in its February 22 edition.

 

The Clarendon Chamber of Commerce recognized Theresa Shelton with the 2017 Saints’ Roost Award for her lifetime of service and commitment to the community during the annual Chamber Awards Banquet last Thursday, February 8.

Man of the Year honors went to Roy Bertrand, and Mary Shields was named the Woman of the Year. Floyd’s Automotive Supply was named the Business of the Year.

The Saints’ Roost Award is the highest honor given annually by the Chamber to recognize a lifetime of volunteering and community service. Shelton’s service has focused on Little Dribblers, the Clarendon Country Club, and two decades of school functions, including class parties, sports banquets and proms. Whatever the project, she is the first to say yes, the first to show up, and the last to leave.

Two of the community’s biggest events – the Saints’ Roost Celebration Rodeo and the Clarendon Arts Festival – happen, in large part, because of her efforts. She exemplifies the best qualities of what it means to be a good citizen: dependable, hardworking, and selfless.

The Man of the Year for 2017 is Roy Bertrand, for his volunteer service across several organizations. He has been a volunteer fireman here for almost 30 years and has served his church tirelessly as a music leader, council president, and on the finance council. He also takes care of the maintenance and mowing for St. Mary’s church, park, and cemetery and cooks for all the church fundraisers. He has spent 20 years working for TxDOT and received the TxDOT “Extra Mile Award and Veterans Life Saving Award” in 2002 for his service at a train fire. He’s been involved in Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, school activities, the college ministry, baseball concessions, and the courthouse lighting, and is well known for his BBQ and lending a hand when needed.

Mary Shields is the Woman of the Year for 2017. She has worked tirelessly for the last 12 years to make sure the Donley County Center Citizens Center is running properly and stays open. She is dedicated to helping more than 86 elderly and disabled citizens get food on a home delivery route, who otherwise may not have gotten a hot meal at all. Another 40 or more citizens eat in-house at the center. She has been called a “bright light of hope” in the community that never seems to dim even when things get tough.

The Chamber of Commerce named Floyd’s Automotive Supply as its Business of the Year and recognized the Floyd family as well as new owners Nathan and Tamra Floyd. The business was opened as First Supply in 1976 by Basil and Leitha Smith. It was later purchased by Bobbie and Eddie Floyd, and their sons – Jimmy, Lynn, Keith, and Johnny – all worked there. Johnny eventually took over the business and oversaw its move from 120 W. Third to its present location at 317 W. Second; and the business grew from three employees to ten employees. The business continues to serve the people of Donley County after 42 years.

The Chamber also recognized outstanding youth from Clarendon and Hedley.

Hannah Hommel was named the Young Woman of the Year from Clarendon. She has been involved in CHS student government for four years and is vice president this year. She has been instrumental in sponsoring and bringing blood drives to the community and played a part in the school’s recycling program. She has been involved in basketball, softball, and track and was named to the All-District basketball team as a junior. She has also been very active in 4H and has received the Bronze, Silver, and Gold Stars; the I Dare You Award, Outstanding Young Female, and Outstanding Senior Awards. She also has been active in FFA, where she has served as a chapter officer and received the Star Greenhand and Star Chapter awards. She is an example of hard work and courage to other students.

The Young Man of the Year from Clarendon is Andy Davis, who has been very involved in athletics during his time at CHS. One of his coaches says of him: “There is no quit and no slacking in him. He does things the right way and does them 100 percent whether it is a game or practice.” He is a member of the National Honor Society, was named first team all-district tight end and linebacker in foortball and was also named to the Academic All-District Team. He exhibits leadership among his classmates and has been an example of the school mottos of “Family” and “Unity.”

The Young Man of the Year from Hedley is Caylor Monroe, and he has been very active in many extracurricular activities. He has participated in basketball, football, tennis, and golf, and he was golf regional qualifier twice. He also ran cross country. This young man has been in UIL and has advanced to regionals. He is in NHS and is the senior class president. He is active in the Hedley FFA and has been on various LDE teams. He volunteers with the Bread of Life food pantry and is a member of the First United Methodist Church in Clarendon.

Kallie Lindsey is the Young Woman of the Year from Hedley. She has been very active in sports, student government and other organizations. She has participated in basketball, advanced to regionals in track, advanced to regionals in tennis, and served as a football manager. She is on the yearbook staff and is a member of the FFA and NHA and has participated in One Act Play. She is passionate about helping others and has had a hand in many community service activities. She is vice president of her class, president of the NHS, and Sweetheart of the Hedley Lions Club, and was this year’s homecoming queen.

This year’s Chamber banquet followed a Denim & Diamonds theme and was catered by Great Western Dining. Approximately 200 people attended the event, which was held in the Bairfield Activity Center.

World travelers Dusty and Nikki Green were the keynote speakers for the evening. The couple lives at Howardwick and star and produce in the PBS series “Two for the Road.” Their presentation featured photos and video shot from around the globe, and Dusty discussed how good people are everywhere and the thrill of traveling. He also talked about the value of the local community and the Texas Panhandle and their love for “home.”

Tables were sponsored by Clarendon College, The Clarendon Enterprise, the City of Clarendon, Herring Bank, the Donley County Senior Citizens Center, Floyd’s Automotive Supply, Flying ‘A’ Tack, Pilgrim Bank, and Shelton & Shelton Law Offices. Nikki Green selected the Enterprise table as having the best table decoration reflecting the banquet’s Denim & Diamonds theme. Ella Estlack received a tiara for the award.

This year’s corporate sponsors were Broken Road Junior, The Clarendon Enterprise, Greenbelt Electric Coop., Greenbelt Water Authority, GreenLight Gas, Lowe’s Family Center, Pioneer General Contracting, and Two for the Road.

Only a few days remain in the sign-up period for local offices, and, as of Tuesday, only one board is poised to have an election while another has no candidates at all.

Of the seven local governments with board positions available this year, the Clarendon College District is the lone board with enough candidates to have an election. With three positions up this spring on the Board of Regents, incumbents Edwin Campbell and Jerry Woodard have filed for re-election, and Tommy Waldrop and Lance Wood have also signed up.

The City of Hedley, with four aldermen’s positions and the mayor up this year, has had no candidates at all sign up yet.
Of the other entities, two have enough candidates to fill all the positions available, and three are still needing one or more people to sign up.

The City of Clarendon has had all its incumbents file for re-election. Those are Aldermen Beverly Burrow, Larry Jeffers, and John Lockhart.

Hedley ISD’s Board of Trustees also has its incumbents – Dana Bell and Carole Ward – signed up to run again.
Clarendon ISD has two trustee positions up this year, and incumbent Wayne Hardin is the only candidate so far.

The City of Howardwick, with three aldermen’s positions coming up, has only incumbent Doc Holladay signed up. (Related: “Howardwick in disarray”)

At the Donley County Hospital District, incumbents Jan Farris (Place 4), Nikki Adams (Place 5), and Mark C. White (Place 6) have signed up for their seats on board of directors. No one has signed up yet for the Place 7 seat.
All local boards are elected at-large, but hospital board candidates must file for a specific place on the ballot. Filing continues through Friday, February 16. Elections are scheduled for Saturday, May 5, 2018.

Clarendon High School sent 26 students to the Canadian Invitational Academic Meet last Saturday, and the Spelling and Vocabulary team again placed first.

Kira Weatherton again medaled, coming in 2nd, and she was joined on the medal stand by Shylee Morrow, who placed 3rd. Kailee Osburn and Angelina Araujo rounded out the first place team.

Senior Alex Bilbrey came away first in Current Issues & Events and Philip Monds placed 2nd in Mathematics to finish the medalists for Clarendon.

Brandalyn Ellis placed 5th in Ready Writing with Philip Monds placing 6th in Ready Writing, Matt Boyd placed 4th in Editorial Writing, and Marquis McGuire came in 6th in Science and 2nd in Physics to round out individuals who placed in the top six at the meet.

In addition to the Spelling team’s placement, the Number Sense team of Gavin Word, Shylee Morrow, Mattee Johnson, and Sophie Bilbrey came in 2nd, and the Math team of Philip Monds, Harmond Drenth, Kira Weatherton, and Trenton Smith placed 2nd as well.

The meet was a large one, with Clarendon, Borger, Dalhart, Canadian, Fritch, Stinnett, Spearman, Stratford, and Gruver all taking part. Students and sponsors now turn their attention to preparing for district competition in March the week after Spring Break.

Local cities’ sales tax revenues rose this month when Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar distributed February allocations last week.

Clarendon posted its first gain of the calendar year, coming in with $42,304.75, which is an increase of 9.6 percent over the same period last year. That brings the city’s calendar year-to-date total up to $72,227.92, up 5.13 percent.

Hedley also saw a slight boost this month with revenue of $1,172.25, up 0.71 percent from last February. That city is now ahead 33.63 percent for the year-to-date at $1,962.37.

Howardwick’s February allocation of $1,244.19 was up 140.32 percent from the same period last year, boosting that city’s year-to-date total 73.33 percent to $2,351.02.

Statewide, Heger distributed $911.9 million in local sales tax allocations for February, 6.2 percent more than in February 2017. These allocations are based on sales made in December by businesses that report tax monthly; October, November and December sales by quarterly filers; and 2017 sales by businesses that report tax annually.

Clarendon College spring enrollment is the highest spring enrollment in the school’s 120-year history with 1,451 students enrolled.

Total enrollment settled at 1,451 following the 12th class day last Wednesday. That’s up 4.2 percent from the spring 2017 enrollment of 1,393.

Several factors have contributed to the increased number of students.

“Our growth this semester is due to increased enrollment in our dual credit programs, distance education and the implementation of new programs on the Clarendon campus,” CC President Dr. Robert Riza said. “I am happy with the hard work and commitment of our faculty and staff to continue to increase enrollment each year.”

Clarendon College has worked over the past few years to increase course offerings at service area dual credit high schools and ensure students have the opportunity to graduate high school with college hours or a credential in hand that will allow them to go right to work.

“We hope to continue to provide opportunities for our service area and build on the success we’ve seen in the last four years,” Riza said.

The fall 2017 report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center reveals that community colleges collectively experienced one- to three-percent declines in enrollment each year for the past three years.
Clarendon College has seen an increase in each of those years, and the college has set records for enrollment every semester for the past 12 months.

Dual credit enrollment is at 583 compared to 564 in spring 2017. Enrollment at the Jordan and Roach correctional units is at 143, up from 134 last fall; and distance education is at 139, up from 125.

Enrollment on the home campus in Clarendon is 305 compared to 246 last spring.

The Clarendon College Pampa Center has an enrollment of 199, down from 245; the Childress Center is at 43 students compared to 53 last fall; and the Amarillo Center is at 39, up from 26.

Clarendon Chamber of Commerce officials reported Tuesday that tickets for this week’s Awards Banquet have sold out, and a full house is expected in the Bairfield Activity Center Thursday evening.

No tickets will be sold at the door for the event, which features a reception and silent auction at 6 p.m. followed by the banquet, entertainment, and awards at 7 p.m.

Dusty and Nikki Green, Howardwick residents who star and produce the PBS series “Two For The Road,” will be the headline entertainment, and the Chamber will honor three of Donley County’s top citizens with the Saints’ Roost Award and Man and Woman of the Year as well as the Business of the Year and also recognize outstanding youth from Clarendon and Hedley high schools.

Several table sponsors will be competing to see who has the best decorations reflecting their business and featuring the banquet theme of “Denim & Diamonds.”

Two hundred people are expected to attend Thursday’s banquet.