Ashlyn Tubbs

A California man escaped injury during a single freightliner rollover that occurred July 29 about two miles west of Clarendon.

According to Department of Public Safety Trooper Chad Simpson, Jose Quinones, age 50, from Long Beach, Calif., was traveling northwest bound on US 287 at 7:59 a.m. in the inside lane, and the outside lane was closed and barricaded with construction barrels.

The left wheels of the freightliner traveled off the roadway and into the muddy center median, and the left wheels dug into the mud, pulling the freightliner into the center median. Quinones overcorrected while steering to the right, sliding the freightliner sideways across the northwest bound lanes of US 287 and rolling onto its left side into the north ditch.

Perry Harrision of Bismarck, Illinois, told the Enterprise that he witnessed the accident.
“He got into that construction area and lost control,” Harrison said. “I’ve never seen anything like it before in my life.”

In order to free Quinones from the vehicle, the Clarendon Volunteer Fire Department had to cut him out. Simpson said Quinones suffered no injuries, and no citations were issued.

Responding to this accident were DPS, Donley County Sheriff’s Office, Associated Ambulance Authority, Clarendon VFD, and the Texas Department of Transportation.

All Natural Beef. It’s what’s for dinner at the 3-H Beef Ranch.

The Gene and Kathy Hommel family are in their ninth year of raising and selling USDA Certified All Natural Angus and Charolais Beef on their certified USDA All Natural Age and Source Ranch.

Each calf born on their ranch is under the All Natural Program, meaning they are personally cared for all the way through harvest and are never given growth additives, hormones, or antibiotics.

“These cattle are under strict guidelines,” said Gene, owner and manager of 3-H Beef Ranch. “You can’t give them anything that will leave residue in their system. Once a calf is doctored from a sickness, it can’t go back into the program.”
Gene cooked up the idea to grow and sell All Natural Beef about 11 years ago.

“I just wanted to get premiums and grow the best product we can produce,” Gene said. “There is a new market for it, and we decided we wanted to tap into that.”

To get into the program, the USDA had to audit the Hommels’ management system.

“They check records of when you turn your bulls out, when the first and last calf is born, how you identify calves you doctored, your cattle handling techniques, pens, water, working facilities and grass management,” Gene said.

“There’s a standard for everything you do when raising these cattle.”

The Hommels first marketed their all natural cattle through the US Premium Beef and Myers programs, but last year they decided to get a label and package their own brand of beef.

“Packaging our own beef is a way to take advantage of our genetics and what facilities we have,” Gene said. “It’s been a challenge getting our own label though.

You have to prove everything on it, even that we have five generations in our
family.”

In order to follow one of the many rules, the Hommels have to substitute paddles for hot shots and incorporate new techniques for handling their cattle.

“In the USDA guidelines, it says that ‘cattle must be handled quietly and firmly to avoid unnecessary distress or pain’,” owner and bookkeeper Kathy said. “There is even a certain way we have to put them down if we can’t get them well, like a
Hospice Center.”

Each animal in the program has an Electronic Identification (EID) tag that keeps record of them from their birth to when they are packaged.

“We have been EID tagging our cattle for several years now,” Kathy said. “Gene has truly been on the cutting edge of everything new that has come out.”

The EID tags and the All Natural Program helps consumers know exactly where their beef comes from and what processes the animal has been through up to harvest.

“Some people don’t trust big corporate organizations,” Kathy said. “They hear about beef on the news and then they want to know where it came from, and most people trust home-grown beef and the records we keep.

“We don’t cut corners, and our family works hard to produce a safe product that we can place on our table and one you can place on yours.”

The 3H Beef Ranch’s All Natural Beef brochure says that their healthy beef “emphasizes safety, quality, tenderness, flavor, and marbling.”

“Gene has heart problems, and since we started eating All Natural Beef he hasn’t had anything wrong,” Kathy said. “I know it has everything to do with Prayers, but
I also believe that it has something to do with our healthier diet.”

Gene and Kathy stress that their All Natural Beef is just an option, and they respect other beef production programs.

“We want to promote this positively,” Kathy said. “We also grow beef that isn’t All Natural, and if it was true that it is bad for you, then we wouldn’t be alive right now.”

The Hommel family is now in their 77th year in the cattle business through six generations. They plan to continue their legacy in the cattle industry through their All Natural Program.

“We want to pass this down,” Kathy said. “Gene’s granddad was very into passing the beef business down to our family. We want to make this size operation work so we can pass it on to our kids and grandkids.”

When Multiple Sclerosis disabled Jim Robinson from climbing into a saddle, he knew his “cowboying” days were over. But his memories live on.

As he put down the reins for good, Robinson picked up a pen and within a year complied his short stories into a book called Memoirs of a Texas Cowboy.

“Since I can’t do anything anymore, I wanted to pass my story on,” Robinson said. “I
don’t know if I’ll forget or not later, but I wanted to get it down so people could read it because it’s not that way anymore.”

Robinson will sign copies of his book on June 19 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Burton Memorial Library during a book signing event hosted by the Friends of the Library.

He will sign alongside locals authors Debra Kuhl, Delbert Trew, and Ronnie Ward and seven other Panhandle authors including Jodi Thomas, Terry Burns, Debbie Elliot Upton, Harry Haines, Gerald McCathern, Phyllis Miranda and Grace Ann Schaefer.

“I read Jim’s book and just loved it,” librarian Jerry Shields said. “We encourage everyone to attend this event because we have so many authors coming, and hope a big crowd is present.”

Although he never thought he would be an author, Robinson has had two stories published in an Albuquerque magazine and also attended meetings held by the Panhandle Professional Writers Association to help him get started on his book.

The first part of Memoirs of a Texas Cowboy takes place south of Lubbock, where he spent his childhood. The rest of the book is spent at Davis Camp on the JA ranch, where he had a lease for 40 years.

“That was a nice time in my life,” Robinson said. “I saw a lot of sights you can’t see from the highway and smelled smells most people won’t ever know about. I covered lots of country and most of it from horseback.”

One of the sights that Robinson writes about is an Indian campsite, where he discovered mysterious holes dug deep into the ground.

“Some of the Indian holes in the ground were 20 feet deep,” he said. “I hope that someone will tell me what they were for because I’ve never figured it out and no one has been able to tell me.”

He also saw things that strengthened his faith.

“When you see a calf take its first breath, you know someone designed that, it didn’t come from a gorilla or something,” Robinson said. “Someone gives the calf their instinct to go get their first drink of milk, and it’s a miraculous sight.”

The last time he got to see these sights was in 2004, one year after he was diagnosed with MS.

“I always thought that Band-Aids, heating pads and Bengay were all you needed, but it didn’t turn out that way,” Robinson said. “Working cattle, getting up and out, and all the things you see and smell while on horseback are now just memories to me.”

Even though MS took away the lifestyle Jim loved, he has learned to accept it.

“I’ve worked with lots of people with MS, and Jim has a great attitude towards it even as bad as things get,” said Michael Thompson, Robinson’s physical therapist.

Robinson’s book has allowed him to get out of the house and travel in order to sell it.
“I’ve been nearly everywhere in the Panhandle selling my book,” Robinson said. “I also plan to go to Canadian, Denton, Ft. Worth, and College Station.”

Memoirs of a Texas Cowboy is 53 pages long, and simple to understand. It is suitable for readers of all ages. If you are interested in purchasing it, you can contact Jim
Robinson or visit www.xlibris.com, or www.amazon.com.

“My book is for everybody,” Robinson said. “That’s why I left out all the colorful cowboy language. It’s just about what people did and things I saw.”

He also has an idea for a second book.

“I plan to write about the good ole days,” Robinson said. “The time before video-games or computers.”

Now that he is an “old-timer,” as he refers to the older cowboys in his book, Robinson shares these words of knowledge with young people:

“Follow your dreams,” he said. “My mom and dad told me not to cowboy because it did not pay very well, but if you’re happy with what you’re doing, then that’s good enough. Even if it is not financially rewarding, do what you love.”

Six CHS students will compete in the state academic UIL competition this week on UT’s campus.

Juniors Ashlyn Tubbs will compete in feature writing, and Kelsey Mullins will compete in editorial writing.

Juniors Dominique Brady and Laura Howard will compete in spelling as will senior Tony Sisomsouk and freshman Maritta Brady.

Ashlyn placed 1st in features at the Regional meet; Kelsey placed 2nd in editorials; Dominique placed 1st in spelling, and her teammates helped to win the 1st place spelling team award.

Bernice Ende from Trigo, Montana, leads a nontraditional lifestyle.

Inspired by watching black and white westerns such as Hop Along Cassidy and John Wayne when she was a child, the 56 year old former ballet teacher is a “longrider,” traveling thousands of miles each year on horseback and calling a tent home.

Last week, Ende’s current 2,700 mile journey from London, Texas, to Montana led her to Clarendon, and she made her temporary home at the Clarendon rodeo grounds.

“I would like to say thank you to the community for their hospitality and to Joe Neal Shadle for opening up the Cowboy Church and making sure I had everything out here,” Ende said.
“Everyone has been so helpful.” 

During her stay, Ende made a guest appearance at the monthly Friends of the Library meeting on April 14 and shared her experiences.

“I think she’s an amazing woman,” Librarian Jerri Ann Shields said. “Anyone who sleeps with her dogs and horses is amazing.”

Ende’s previous rides include 3,000 miles in 2009, 3,000 miles in 2008, 5,000 miles in 2006-2007 and 2,000 miles in 2005. This will be her fifth time to cross the Rocky Mountains.

“On my first ride I was so afraid I wasn’t gonna make it because I had no place to go,” she said.

“But this is my life. It doesn’t matter about getting to the end anymore. It didn’t change until about 700 miles into this. The journey takes you, not you take the journey. There is no going home. For me, this is home.”

From Clarendon she will go onto McLean, Wheeler and Allison, and then into Oklahoma.

“I’ve been in the state of Texas for three months,” Ende said. “This state is huge! My pockets are bulging with hospitality from my stays here. It has definitely been a chapter of its own coming through Texas.”

Her companions on her journeys are Hart, a 14-year-old paint gelding that replaced Hope, her former mare after she recently broke her shoulder and had to be put down; Essie Pearl, a three-year-old Fjord packhorse; Claire, a nine-year-old dog of “unknown origin,” and Francis, a three-month-old West Texas cattle dog. Both dogs get the privilege of riding on Essie Pearl in a box.

“Both my dogs are ditch puppies,” Ende said. “When I found Claire I took her out of the ditch, and then I began teaching her how to ride in a wheelbarrow and bicycle basket, so riding on the horse was nothing.” 

Ende dedicates her rides to her mother.

“In honor of my mother, I have five siblings who I stay in touch with by riding,” she said. “All of my routes take me to see my sisters.”

Her gear and possessions she travels with include a tent, sleeping pads, wool blanket, sleeping bag, food department, Coleman burner, one spork, one knife, tin cup, vet supply, toiletries, water bottles, rain gear, ponchos, two sets of clothes, and riding and reading material.

Food found in the “Lady Longrider’s” diet consists of a tortilla with cream cheese and vegetables, coffee and meat cooked with her portable Coleman burner, and wild plants and berries.

“Some of the plants I eat include lambsquarters, nettles, watercress, dandelion greens, and pecans,” Ende said. “I eat a lot of all those things, and of course all the wild fruits.”
While there are those who would suffer from withdrawals when isolated from technology, Ende actually enjoys it.

“I love not having everything,” Ende said. “I don’t use a phone but about four times a month, and I’m experiencing the amazing diversity in our country that you cannot find on TV.”
Ende walks about ten miles a day and rides an average of 20-25 miles on a good day.

“It’s so physically demanding, and I hope I have another five years in me,” she said.

“I sleep on the ground, and everyday I’m packing hundreds of pounds on and off the horse, not to mention walking and encountering the heat and cold.”

Ende said that a critical part of longriding is learning how to accept help and not caring what others think of you.

“Longriding has been a teacher to me,” she said. “At first I was afraid to ask for water at houses, but since I first did it I’ve never been turned down.

“It’s humbling being in the presence of people who care about you riding and who want you to continue.”

According to Ende, other requirements include mental perseverance and faith.

“You find out what you’re made of when a storm comes around and your holding on to your tent telling yourself you’re going to stay,” she said.

Ende has discovered that enduring these hardships is worth it.

“When you live your life at four miles an hour, something changes in you,” she said. “When you travel by car, you travel fast and smooth. But when on a horse, you have a view and your elevated 12 feet off the ground and can see all around without watching where to go. There’s just a quality of life that comes from the horse.”

Out of all the places she has traveled to, the desert scene is one of Ende’s favorite. In order to cross a desert she must follow storms and drink out of puddles.

“In the desert there is no one in any direction, and there are coyotes howling and birds singing, and you’re around a fire,” she said. “It’s the most wonderful feelings of contentment and satisfaction, and it’s embracing.”

Ende said the only reason she rides is to “bring smiles to people’s faces.”

“It’s not about me, it involves all of us,” she said. “It’s about our country, sharing stories and the goodness in our people. It’s a reminder of living a simpler life and of not being afraid to find your passion in life.”

Thousands of people have told Ende they wish they were a longrider and want to join in on her journeys.

“It is a romantic image, but it’s not easy,” Ende said. “It’s not a once in a lifetime dream for me; it’s my life.”

It all started with a duct tape wallet.

From there, Clarendon High School senior Jadon Thornton decided to create himself an entire tuxedo out of duct tape, qualifying him for a chance to win a $3,000 scholarship through the “Stuck at Prom” contest sponsored by Duck brand duct tape.

“I’ve been planning to do it since I was a freshman when I found the scholarship by typing ‘weird scholarships’ in on Google,” Thornton said. “Honestly, I didn’t think I would do it, but making duct tape wallets motivated me.”

Thornton said the tux was constructed with 16 rolls of duct tape, which cost him about $86. He also made a vest, tie, and hat.

“I didn’t wear the hat because it made me look like Willy Wonka,” Thornton said.

According to Thornton, Charlie Smith from the Clarendon Outpost helped him build his sticky tux. They worked on it a week before prom five hours a night, and it was not completed until 3 p.m. the day of prom.

“My friend Jeff Powell, and I tried making one at first, but it was a disaster,” Thornton said. “There would have been absolutely no chances of it getting done if Charlie wouldn’t have
helped.”

Smith worked for four summers at the Oklahoma Shakespearean Festival making handmade costumes, so he was up to the challenge.

“For the tux, we basically just cut newspaper in the pattern ofpants and sleeves and put it together as such,” Smith said.

 “If he wouldn’t have called me only four days until prom, we could have gotten more detail in or maybe some vents in it somewhere.”

Thornton definitely regrets not adding vents to the tux.

“A lot of the first questions people asked me was if I was hot,” Thornton said. “It was so hot it was ridiculous. It was kind of like a sauna.”

Thorton will find out if he won the scholarship on or about July 27.

“I really hope Jadon wins,” Smith said. “If he does, that will be awesome.”