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Cub Reporter: Happy birthday to the best Mom
This Tuesday is my mom’s birthday. So, in honor of her, I would like to write my column to show appreciation for everything she does and has done for me and my family.
My mom spends countless hours working to help provide for my family and I. She puts food on the table and works tirelessly to make special memories with me and my sister. She’s taken us on vacations to locations all around the country and world, making memories with my sister and myself that we are sure to never forget. Beyond her dedication to us, she devotes herself to our community. She actively gives back through her place on City Council and by helping with the Mulkey Theatre.
Despite her busy schedule and numerous responsibilities, she always finds time to show up for me and my sister. Whether it be school events, sharing meals, or simply spending time together, she always makes time for us.
My mother’s unwavering care and devotion to my family and the community is nothing short of remarkable. She is a role model, and I am grateful for the love she gives me and the sacrifices she makes and has made for me.
My mom is a wonderful mother, a community leader, and an incredible person. She is the best mom I could ever ask for.
Happy Birthday, Mom. I love you and hope you have the best day!
Patty Browning
Services for Patty Browning were held on Monday, January 27, 2025, at the Kurt Pierce Athletic Facility in Lamesa, TX with Brad Thompson, officiating and Mark Hackett, leading singing. Visitation and viewing will be at the Lamesa Church of Christ at 11:00 am. Burial was held Tuesday at Citizen’s Cemetery in Clarendon.
Patty Browning, born July 31, 1945, in Hereford to Harold and Naveta Browning passed away in Lamesa on January 21, 2025. She leaves behind a legacy defined not only by her accomplishments but also by the profound love she held for her family.
Patty attended school in Vega where she earned her high school diploma in 1963. She furthered her education at Lubbock Christian College and Abilene Christian College graduating with a degree in physical education in 1967. Patty spent her first year of teaching in Newark, Delaware. She began her teaching and coaching career, along with her twin sister, Tippy Browning, in Lamesa in 1968. They taught and coached together the remainder of their careers until retirement in 2015. After retirement from coaching, Patty continued to work producing the high school yearbook.
Patty was a dedicated teacher and coach who enjoyed many accomplishments. She appreciated all her teams, from the beginning to the end of her career. She was blessed to have four teams reach the state volleyball playoffs with the 1986 team winning the state championship. She achieved a record 900 career wins and along with her twin sister, Tippy, was recognized by the Texas House of Representatives and the Texas Girls Coaches Association in 2015. Patty was also a mentor to some of her former players who earned teaching degrees and became coaches.
Patty’s family, friends, and people who knew her were inspired by the courage, strength, and faith she demonstrated on a daily basis. Faced with pain every day and night, Patty never complained or felt pity for herself. She faced every day with a positive attitude and achieved her goals. When someone commented about her adversity, she would say, “It is what it is,” as she continued to work. Patty’s strength of character, strong work ethic and sense of humor will be forever missed, but her memory will continue to inspire those who knew her.
She was predeceased by her parents Harold and Naveta Browning, brother Bill Browning and his wife Susan, Brother-in-law Marvin Thompson, and nephew Lynn Thompson.
She is survived by her sisters Tippy Browning, Sue Thompson, brother Sam Browning and wife Linda. She is also survived by her niece, Hali Thompson, who shared a special relationship with her aunts Patty and Tippy. Many other nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews are left to cherish her memory.
The family would like to thank Hospice of Lubbock and their compassionate care team who attended to Patty and her family during this time.
Sign the online guestbook at www.robertsonfuneral.com
Donald Eugene “Jack” Eads
Donald Eugene “Jack” Eads, 90, of Clarendon passed away on Tuesday, January 21, 2025, in Memphis.
Funeral services are scheduled for 2PM Friday, January 24, 2025, at First Baptist Church of Clarendon with Rev. Lance Wood officiating. Burial will follow in Citizens Cemetery.
Viewing will be held at the funeral home on Thursday, January 23rd from 8 AM – 6 PM with family receiving friends for visitation from 4 – 6 PM.
Arrangements are by Robertson Funeral Directors of Clarendon.
Jack was born in Collingsworth County, Texas, on July 13, 1934, to William Artford and Alene (Lindsey) Eads. He graduated from Wellington High School. In 1953, Jack moved to Clarendon where he met and married his wife of 69 years, Genella Mooring, on July 1, 1955. He was an employee for the City of Clarendon until 1958 when he went to work for the Texas Highway Department. He retired from TXDOT in 1992 after 34 years of service. He stayed busy after retiring helping with Eads Furniture and was a member of the First Baptist Church. He served many years as Trustee, on the Equipment and Facilities Committee, Budget Committee, and volunteered anywhere needed.
Jack loved fishing and was very active for several years. He loved the mountains of Colorado and the gulf coast. There were lots of wonderful memories made at these places.
Jack was also very active with his children and grandchildren’s activities. He worked tirelessly with the Bronco and Band Booster organizations. He also served on the Donley County Appraisal Board, Hochheim Insurance Board of Directors, and Donley County Bass Club and was a former member of the Clarendon Volunteer Fire Department.
Jack was preceded in death by his parents, Art and Alene Eads.
Survivors include his wife, Genella of Clarendon; son, Eddy Eads (Holly) of Clarendon; daughter, Andrea “Andi” Hostenske (Dale) of Plano; 9 grandchildren, Lindsey Eads (Kelly), Lacey Eads, Lt. Col. Seth Schoellhorn (Natalie), Sidni Schoellhorn, Garrett Bains (Tamara), Jon McGlaun (Brittany), Scott Hostenske (Kristene), Brian Hostenske, and Pam Stutler (Kevin); 15 great-grandchildren; and 2 great-great grandchildren.
Memorial donations can be made to First Baptist Church Clarendon, PO Box 944, Clarendon, TX 79226 or the Saints Roost Museum, PO Box 781, Clarendon, TX 79226.
Editorial: Two coaches who left lasting impressions
Clarendon alumni lost two great men over the past month, both of whom made a lasting impact on our community in their own way. Jack Hall and Don Beck are two guys who influenced your editor and countless others during their lifetimes.
& Editor
Jack Hall was no stranger to Donley County with roots in Alanreed and a coaching career that spanned three decades. At Clarendon Junior High, Coach Hall never really got too worked up over much, but he expected discipline on the field or in PE class. He was usually happy and smiling, but still he had his paddle at the ready should you need some “encouragement.”
Coach Hall, along with Coach Kirby Hatley, did their best to teach us the fundamentals of football, basketball, and track and field. Much of that didn’t really sink in for a nerd like me, which led to my stellar career as a Colt and Lady Colt manager my eighth grade year alongside Michael Morrow and Anthony Cole. I think Coach Hall appreciated my talent off the court. Lord knows I didn’t have any on the court.
While molding young minds in junior high is a legacy in itself, Coach Hall left his mark in a much more permanent way after his retirement from education and his appointment as Donley County Judge in 1997. He took office just as the state was starting to care about its historic courthouses, and Donley County’s temple of justice was in a sad state that’s hardly even possible to imagine today. Its third-floor tower and dormers had been gone since the 1930s, its plumbing and electrical systems were below standards, it reeked of bat crap, and it was basically falling apart. Judge Jack Hall led the county as a champion of preservation and saved the 1890 courthouse.
It was not an easy task. Critics of the courthouse project have largely become fans of the Jewel of the Plains or at least become very silent. It wasn’t that way in the midst of the project though when opposition was staunch and vocal. Judge Hall was undeterred. He never lost his cool in any debate. He calmly explained things and extolled the benefit of the courthouse preservation grant. “You’re going to give me 85 cents, and all I have to do is put up 15 cents? I’ll take that deal every day,” Hall would say, simplifying the math for anyone to understand.
Several times I’d ask him if he thought the project was going to happen, without fail his response was: “I just don’t see it any other way.” After the Courthouse was rededicated in 2003 in all its restored glory, Hall would continue to be its biggest champion, and you could see the pride bursting forth every time he led visitors on tours of the building.
Jack Hall was a friend and a hero for Donley County. His legacy will endure as long as the 1890 Donley County Courthouse stands.
Coach Don Beck made his mark in a different way. His obituary published last week chronicles his coaching career quite well. He came to Clarendon High School in the late 1980s at the tail end of that career as an assistant coach. Former athletes can tell you more about his coaching style and probably the meaning of the quote from him that went around my senior year: “If it ain’t pullin’, you ain’t doin’ it right!”
For me and many others Coach Beck’s impact came in the classroom. I loved history, but history class was something I just tolerated. It was often presented in boring textbook reading and memorization of dates and events. But my junior year was different with Coach Beck and US History. Coach Beck taught by lecture, much like a college class, but did so with a wit and insight that made history fun and entertaining.
Students of all backgrounds and learning levels knew their American history if they had Coach Beck. We were required to memorize and understand the Preamble to the US Constitution and the all-important line from the Declaration of Independence, which starts “We hold these truths to be self-evident…”
With his Texas-twang and his unique perspective, Coach Beck painted a picture or told the story in such way you’d never forget it.
Coach Beck on Cornado’s expedition through what is now Donley County and the Texas Panhandle in the 1500s: “Now people, when they got here, there weren’t no birds and there weren’t no squirrels because there weren’t no trees. All there was was a bunch of Indians running around naked hunting grasshoppers for groceries.”
The accuracy of his description of the flora, fauna, and native inhabitants of the Llano Estacado notwithstanding, Coach Beck immediately gave you the image of starkness of the Staked Plains and gave you a good chuckle at the same time.
Coach Beck on Irish immigrants helping build the transcontinental railroad: “The Irish had come to America because of the Tater Famine in Ireland. Now some people call ‘em taters; other people call ‘em pertaters.”
I could go on all day, but you get the picture. Some of Coach Beck’s observations probably aren’t politically correct today. But we didn’t care much about that in the Reagan years.
Coach Beck would retire for good not long after our class graduated in 1989, but he kept his connections to Donley County for a long time and was a longtime subscriber to this newspaper after I purchased it in 1995. His love of history and telling it as something more than facts and figures, was an inspiration, and his students loved the man.
Rest well, gentlemen. You ran the good race here on earth and left a mark that won’t soon be forgotten.
Don Phillip Beck
Don Phillip Beck died peacefully on December 13, 2024, at the age of 89 in Austin, Texas.
Don was born in Gruver, Texas, on August 16, 1935, to Ben and Bess Beck as the youngest of four siblings: Dick Beck, Beverly Torbert, and Barbara Tuggle. Don thought the world of his parents, who in turn were his biggest Friday Night Lights fans following him to watch over 20 years of coaching football games.
Don attended high school in Canyon. He attended West Texas State University from 1954-1958 where he played for the Buffaloes lettering in football, basketball, track and diving. The football team was mighty in his day when they got to play in the Tangerine Bowl in Orlando, Florida cementing a lifelong bond with his teammates.
His greatest achievement arrived after two years of attending West Texas State, when he spotted a lovely, talented young woman from Panhandle, Texas playing in a high school basketball game at Canyon High. He sought out Zelda Mae Weatherly who attended WT in the following fall and they were married February 17, 1956. They were rarely apart for the next 67 years. Zelda sat in the stadium bleachers as a successful coach’s wife for over 20 years in the Panhandle weather of Texas. Upon Don’s retirement, she followed him to the wilds of New Mexico, Montana, and British Columbia. Don had his faithful companion and support through it all, as she was willing to follow him wherever he went.
After graduating college in 1958, Don embarked on a successful high school football coaching career throughout the Texas Panhandle, Oklahoma, and Eastern New Mexico. Don would build a team every few years then be recruited to another town to coach and build their program. Don and Zelda moved more than 40 times through their lives together, many of them for Don’s coaching career. Don received many accolades throughout the coaching years such as South Plains Class AA Coach of the Year, Panhandle Hall of Fame Coach of the Year, and speaker at many coaching schools. Articles were published in the Texas football magazines with motivating and winning tactics he designed. Don led his teams to the playoffs seven times and had 11 district championships in track. He coached and taught history at Clarendon High School in the late 1980s.
As the sports editor, Garret Von Netzer, of Amarillo Globe-News in 1978 stated, “Beck held the distinction of having been a winner at every stop on his excursion through coaching which spanned 20 years, including the last 16 as a head coach.
Don always credited hard working athletes and devoted coaching staff the key to the success equation.
The pinnacle of Don’s coaching career came with his selection as head coach of the North Texas All Star Team played in the Houston Astrodome in 1978. Brad, his son, an All- American High School superstar at the time was selected to play as a top high school senior in the state. Father and son proved to be an unbeatable duo. It was only the second time in history of Texas High School Coaching Association a father and son took the position of coach and player.
Don’s favorite movies were Westerns – Lonesome Dove and Paint Your Wagon – so it was fitting that he retired at 55 and hankered for the open sky. Don and Zelda pursued dreams of ranching in Texas, Montana, New Mexico and British Columbia. Don was a rancher and pioneer at heart. Their ranching years ushered in great memories with children and grandchildren who loved to listen to their stories. They learned the art of “weinee roasts and s’mores” on open pit fires and jeep rides. His final ranch purchase was in the backcountry of British Columbia. He found his heaven on earth with the coastal, snowy mountain range, beautiful valley and home to the wild horses and grizzlies that roam the country.
Don was never one to back down from challenges in either the playing field coaching, or the challenges of remote ranching. He was bigger than life and funny as well. He loved and respected nature and was crazy about dogs. Those around him said when they left this earth they wanted to come back as one of Beck’s dogs.
Don was a winner as a son, a man, a dad, a coach, a friend and most of all a husband. He took care of Zelda the best he could as long as he could as the two of them battled her Alzheimer’s when she passed October 2022.
Don had a contagious smile, a big heart, and was a “John Wayne” with his southern manners, Panhandle charm, and cowboy hat.
Don is survived by his daughter, Cindy Mott and her husband, Chris of Austin, their children Ryan and Rebecka of Austin, his deceased son Brad’s daughters, Rachelle Mullins of Canyon, Texas, Heather Flores of Roswell, New Mexico and Brittney Seaton of Cashion, Oklahoma, 13 great grandchildren and his sister Barbara Tuggle and husband Delmer of Amarillo, Texas.
A celebration service will be held February 8 at 1:30 p.m. at the J.A. Hill Chapel of West Texas A&M University, 210 26th St, Canyon, .
Donations may be made to a local animal shelter or rescue.
Betty Speed Bonacci
In loving memory of Betty Speed Bonacci who passed on January 12, 2025. She passed at home and was surrounded by family when she left us to be with our Lord and Savior.
Anyone who knew Mom, Nana, Grandma ‘Nacci, or Betty knew her family was very important to her. One of her favorite things was to cook and host big family dinners. She was our family glue. She was loved and we were blessed to have her on this earth for 90 years.
Betty was the daughter of Ed & Bertie Speed. Betty is survived by her son, Don White and wife Liz, her daughter Carol Bonacci Sandusky and husband Norman and her grandchildren Chooch & Megan White, Norman & Brandy Sandusky, Brandi & Mark Lamzik, Jennifer Sandusky, James White, Travis White, Leidy & Remberto Jaramillo, Maryury Abonia, and her great grandchildren Xander White, Sydney White, Dylan Sandusky, Miguel Jaramillo, Will Sandusky, Juan Jaramillo, Victoria Jaramillo and Renata Abonia.
A graveside service will be held in Clarendon at Citizen’s Cemetery on Friday, January 24, 2025, at 3:00 p.m.
A celebration of her life will be held at Moore’s Southlawn Chapel, 9350 E 51st St. Tulsa, Oklahoma on Wednesday, January 22, 2025, at 5:00 p.m.
A virtual service for friends/family can watch live or see the recording later on Mom’s obituary page at www.moorefuneral.com. The service should go live just before 5:00 p.m., Wednesday 22, 2025. Following the service, the service video will be uploaded to the website.
Betty was an amazing lady, she had a heart of gold and she will be missed so very much.
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