Band banquet
Jerald Dalton “Jerry” Askew
Jerald Dalton “Jerry” Askew, 87, of Amarillo, died Thursday, May 9, 2024, in Claude.
Services were held on May 14, 2024, in Robertson Funeral Directors Saints’ Roost Chapel in Clarendon with Curtis Odom, officiating. Burial followed in Citizens Cemetery in Clarendon.
Arrangements are under the direction of Robertson Funeral Directors of Clarendon.
Jerry was born November 27, 1936, to William Dalton and Mary Helen Henderson Askew. He married Karen Janelle West on June 1, 1955. He had worked in ranching for many years and was a truck driver prior to his retirement. He had been a resident of Amarillo the past 18 years. He loved square dancing, going to car shows and air shows, and playing with his grandkids and great grandkids. He was a very devoted caregiver to his wife for many years. He was a Baptist.
He was preceded in death by his parents; and his wife on June 25, 2022.
He is survived by his children, Danny Askew and wife Terry, Andi Odom and husband Curtis, Leigh and Cathy Askew; his grandchildren, Dale Askew, Katie Andrews, Dalton Askew, Jarod Hudgens, Alex Tidwell, Barry Askew, and Bayleigh Elder; 13 great grandchildren and his sisters, LaReece Miller and Ronda Brown.
Early morning fire destroys Clarendon home
The Clarendon Volunteer Fire Department responded to a house fire in the 800 bock of Johns Street in the early morning hours of Thursday, May 2, and the property was a total loss.
Fire Chief Jeremy Powell said the department was dispatched at 4:43 a.m. and arrived on the scene within about six minutes to find the home of Terry Sims fully engulfed.
Sims had made it out of the house, and Powell said it was likely that the fire had been burning 15 or 20 minutes before the call went out. Fire fighters worked to keep the fire from spreading to other nearby structures.
CVFD responded with four trucks and 12 firefighters and had the blaze knocked down by 5:15. They remained on the scene until 7:30 a.m.
Powell said the house was burned so badly and so completely that the department was not able to determine a possible cause.
Red Cross personnel were contacted to help Mrs. Sims following the loss of her home.
Christ’s Kids needs summer volunteers
The Christ’s Kids Ministry is in need of volunteers to help with the summer lunch program.
There will be volunteer meetings May 13 and May 16 at 7 p.m. at the ministry, 416 S. Kearney, for those interested. You only need to attend one meeting to get the information you need.
For more information, contact Felicia Atkinson at 806-205-1096 or Bobby Ellerbrook at 806-662-7650.
Sheriff lists phone numbers for office
The Donley County Sheriff’s Office would like to inform the public that in the event of a phone outage, a cell phone is available to reach the sheriff’s office.
Sheriff Butch Blackburn says 911 will always be available, but for administrative calls people can usually dial 806-874-3533 or 806-874-3534. However, in the event of a landline outage, the department has a cell number, 806-277-0414, people can call for administrative purposes.
City should skip acting on Sanctuary proposal
The hardest thing for anyone to do is often standing up for what is right when it is unpopular to do so. That’s the position the Clarendon City Council will find itself in Thursday night, May 9, when the subject of abortion will again be on the city agenda.
Abortion is illegal in Texas, and that isn’t going to change in the foreseeable future. Nationally, the Supreme Court now holds that abortion is a matter left up to the states, which is what President Trump wants, and that also is unlikely to change. But that’s not keeping activist Mark Lee Dickson from his crusade to “ban abortion” by getting cities to pass ordinances to become “Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn.”
The proposed ordinance Dickson sent to Clarendon city officials last month is 17 pages long, declares abortion to be unlawful except to save the life of the mother (rape and incest are not exceptions), bans abortion in the city, prohibits abortions being performed for Clarendon residents anywhere in the world, prohibits the sale and possession of certain drugs in the city, and seeks to prevent people from coming through Clarendon to get an abortion. Enforcement of the ordinance is basically left up to citizens policing each other and filing lawsuits against each other and/or abortion providers. That’s the short version. The entire proposal is posted on our website here: https://www.clarendonlive.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/SCFTU.pdf. I encourage you to read it.
It is a far-reaching ordinance which seems to vastly overstep the city’s authority, but at the end of the day, it probably doesn’t even matter. The legality of abortion has been and will be decided by state and federal authorities. So, what’s the purpose behind all this?
Dickson is a longtime anti-abortion activist. According to his movement’s website, 69 cities have passed ordinances to “outlaw abortion” and become Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn. Two of those cities have since reversed that action. He even has a bigtime attorney who has represented President Trump and who promises to represent the city if it gets sued. If Clarendon passes the Dickson ordinance, it will be just another notch in his belt. The real consequence though is the division the proposal creates in the community, the introduction of partisan politics into local government, and the waste of taxpayers’ money and resources as city employees deal with the drama Dickson brings to town.
Last month, city council members had only a few days before their regular meeting to be introduced to the Sanctuary ordinance. They heard from a couple of people who properly filled out the public comment forms, and then the council prudently took no action on the ordinance to learn more about it. Before this month’s agenda was even set, the city was bombarded with emails and phone calls – some of them hateful in their tone – seeking to get the item back on the agenda. City employees have been put under immense stress as they try to deal with this issue, they have had to take time away from their other duties, and legal opinions have been sought. How much has this cost the city already in terms of money and lost productivity?
Abortion has nothing to do with running the City of Clarendon. We elect our mayor and city council and then they hire employees to do important things that affect our daily lives. Their priorities are to make sure the streets are fixed, see to it the trash is collected, maintain a water system, and provide a host of other city services. At this time, they should be making sure the aquatic center is ready to open in a few weeks, working on implementation of the next downtown revitalization grant, figuring out how to deal with the TxDOT’s upcoming replacement of the US 287 bridge at Kearney Street (and relocation or replacement of the sewer line there), stopping vandals from destroying the rock walls of our city park, and the list goes on and on. These are the things that the city council should be focused on instead of wasting their time on an issue that the city literally has no control over.
But instead of dealing with our real city issues, Dickson and his followers are hijacking the city agenda, forcing people to take sides, creating stress where it is not warranted, and, in some cases, behaving in a markedly un-Christian manner. Sowing the seeds of division and hatred are not how Jesus would act. If you want to minister from a point of love and compassion and promote alternatives to abortion, that’s one thing. But if you want to whip up controversy, start acting hysterical, and ignite arguments between our residents, then you just need to take that show down the road. What would Jesus do? Not this.
Thursday’s city council meeting is scheduled to be held at 5:30 p.m. in the Mulkey Theatre. The city is expecting a large crowd to attend. Abortion is probably the single most controversial issue in America, with vocal groups on both ends of the spectrum and many people landing in some shade of gray in the middle. Regardless of what comments are made at the city meeting, it is unlikely that anyone will change their personal position on the issue.
The challenge for the city council is to remember that they represent all the citizens of Clarendon, regardless of their personal position on this issue, and to also be mindful that this is not a pressing matter requiring the city’s attention. There will be pressure to pass this ordinance, but the appropriate thing is for no action to be taken. Keep partisan politics out of our city business and let our council and city employees get on with the business of serving our community.
Close call
Summer is coming!
Broncos win Bi-district title
By Sandy Anderberg
Clarendon senior Harrison Howard took the mound in the Broncos’ Bi-District opener against West Texas in Amarillo at Palo Duro High last week and made easy work of the Comanches shutting them out 8-0.
Howard went wire to wire from the mound posting 16 strikeouts in the game. It took Howard 100 pitches in the seven innings which consisted of 63 pitches in the strike zone.
In their first at bat, Easton Frausto got on board first on a single to left field. Jared Musick grounded out before Levi Gates singled to left field and scored Howard. A quiet second inning led to one score and the Broncos were on top 3-0.
Another two runs were collected in the fourth when Howard slammed a triple that scored Mason Sims and Musick. The Broncos went wild in the fifth inning as they took advantage of several errors made by WT and left the inning with three more runs to get the win.
Along with his triple, Howard had one single, three RBIs, one run and a stolen base. Frausto had two singles, one RBI, one run, and one stolen base, while Levi Gates added a single, RBI, and one run. Bryce Williams and Mason Allred collected one run each and Allred had one RBI.
The big test came in the second game. With a game up in the best two out of three, the Broncos were in a good spot, but the Comanches were not finished and began the game full on. They were able to gain the early edge scoring two runs in the first inning on a double and a line drive single to center field. Musick got the call and was able to strike out the next two batters to end the inning.
A determined West Texas team went on to score two runs in the next inning, then proceeded to stop the Broncos after only four batters in the third.
It was the bottom of the fifth before the Broncos began to turn the game around in their favor. Allred, Williams, and Grant Haynes were hit by pitches to load the bases. Sims was able to slam a hit to the shortstop who turned a double play to pick off Williams at second. Allred was able to reach home plate to put another run on the board. With WT leading by five, things looked bleak for the Broncos. With a possible game three on their minds, the Broncos went to work to avoid a third game in the series.
In their next at bat, Gates’ single to right field advanced Musick and put a Frausto run on the board. With bases loaded, Haynes reached base on an error. With two outs and down to runs, the Broncos turned up the heat at the plate with a walk, a Shane Hagood single, and two more base on balls. Howard was able to send a hard-hit ground ball to left field that scored Hagood and Frausto to take the lead.
Gates then knocked down a single to center that scored Musick for the final run of the game. Frausto sealed the win from the mound with a WT ground-out, strike-out, a walk, and another ground out for the win.
The Broncos will play Sudan in the Area Round in Floydada Thursday, May 9, at 5 p.m. Game two will be held on Friday, May 10, with a game three immediately following if needed.
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