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Broncos scrimmage
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The Clarendon Enterprise - Spreading the word since 1878.
A Donley County Salary Grievance Committee more than tripled the salary of Precinct 3&4 Constable Randy Bond when it met last Thursday, August 10, rejecting the $1,236 figure set by the Commissioners’ Court and calling for a new annual salary of $3,804.
The unanimous decision of the nine-member committee is binding on the commissioners’ court. A less than unanimous decision would have meant the commissioners only had to “consider” the committee’s decision.
Bond ran unopposed for the vacant constable’s office as a Republican in March of 2022, had no opponent in last year’s general election in November, and took office in January.
County Judge John Howard stated during the committee meeting that the constable’s salary had been reduced in fiscal year 2022 following former constable Doug Wright’s resignation in February of 2021. Howard said Bond knew what the salary was when he ran for the office.
Bond filed legal action against the Donley County Commissioners’ Court seeking a “reasonable salary” for his office in March 2023 but dropped his action in April.
Bond told the committee last week that he was seeking a reasonable salary.
“All I need is a salary that’s reasonable to run this office,” he said.
In a letter to the county, Bond sought a salary of $45,000, which is the same as a Donley County Sheriff’s Deputy.
County Clerk Vickie Tunnell asked Bond during the meeting why he needed a full deputy’s salary when the constable only covers half the county.
“I deserve a deputy’s salary,” Bond said. “How am I expected to do my job?”
During the meeting, Howard asked Bond why he had quit as the county’s chief deputy if he wanted a deputy’s salary. Bond replied that he had stepped away from law enforcement after working a double murder in Howardwick.
During the course of the committee meeting, it was discussed that while Bond’s salary is only $1,236 per year, he still receives health insurance through the county as a county official. However, county employees have to pay about $200 per month of the insurance premium, effectively wiping out his salary and resulting in Bond having to write a check back to the county to cover the insurance.
After consulting with County Treasurer Wanda Smith, the committee unanimously approved a motion by County Tax Assessor Kristy Christopher to set Bond’s salary at $3,804 plus related taxes and retirement costs.
Members of the committee were Judge John Howard, Sheriff Butch Blackburn, County Attorney Landon Lambert, County Clerk Vickie Tunnell, County Treasurer Wanda Smith, County Tax Assessor Kristy Christopher, and members of the public Natrona Barton, Pauline McAfee, Jimmy Hampton, and Melissa Hatley.
City Manager Brian Barboza of Knox City will take over as Clarendon’s new city administrator October 2 following last week’s regular meeting of the City Council.
Aldermen concluded several months of searching for the next administrator with a unanimous vote on August 10 to offer the job to Barboza , who was an early finalist for the job in January. He will succeed City Administrator David Dockery, who will retire at the end of this fiscal year.
Barboza , is an alumnus of Clarendon College; and, in a letter to city officials accepting the position, he expressed his pleasure at being offered the job and said he looks forward to coming to Clarendon.
“I am delighted to have been selected to serve as the City Administrator for such a fine city like Clarendon,” Barboza wrote. “The opportunity to return to Clarendon, not as a student but, in a leadership role in the community to serve the citizens and help shape the visions of the Mayor and City Council is an honor. I am looking forward to being a part of shaping the community’s future and achieving great things and calling Clarendon home.”
In other city business, the council approved an amendment to Ordinance 501, increasing water and sewer rates by three percent effective October 1, and also approved a measure to increase gate fees at the Citizens Convenience Center by 50 percent following increases in charges by Waste Connections.
A proposal from Cater Sand & Gravel was accepted to replace the wooden posts on the awning at 104 S. Kearney with square steel tubing was approved.
Aldermen approved a request to close Fourth and Gorst streets near the Donley County Senior Citizens for the August 19 Senior Thang.
A bid was approved to treat and repair the wood façade of the Burton Memorial Library.
Following new state legislation forbidding cities from enacting minor curfew ordinances, the city council repealed Clarendon’s minor curfew ordinance.
A resolution was approved to allow the city to receive money from the state’s opioid settlement fund.
In his administrator’s report, Dockery updated the council on the progress of downtown revitalization, the eastside paving project, and the aquatics center. Dockery particularly praised the managers and employees of the aquatics center for a great season and an exceptional job.
People of all ages are invited and encouraged to attend That Senior Thang this Saturday, August 19.
Barbecue Chickens will start coming off the grill at 1:00 p.m. as the first act of the third annual fundraiser for the Donley County Senior Citizens Center. It’s first come, first served this year with half chickens available for $8 each or whole chickens available for $15.
The main Thang begins at 5:00 and continues until 9:00 at the intersection of Gorst and Fourth streets.
The Thang will old-fashioned family fun for people of all ages. There will be a full concession with everything from BBQ sandwiches, hot dogs and Pulled pork sandwiches to homemade ice cream and watermelon and a County Store full of home baked goodies.
Free street games will include hoops, prize ducks, toy car races, corn hole, ladderball, marbles, and face painting.
Come try your luck at Chicken Drop Bingo, the Silent Auction or the 50/50 Raffle. For the more adventurous player, there will be Straw Tower Building, Two-on-Two Basketball, Jalapeno Eating, Watermelon Seed Spitting, and Wheelchair Races. Put your team of four together and compete at Water Balloon Volleyball, Texas Skis, or the Balloon Blast. Winners take half of the entry fees.
The Donley County Senior Citizens invites everyone to come join the fun. Remember to BYOC (Bring Your Own Chair).
August is planning time for local governments as they begin the process of setting budgets and tax rates for the coming year with notice being given in the pages of The Clarendon Enterprise.
Clarendon College will hold a Public Budget Hearing on Thursday, August 17, 2023, at 5:30 p.m. in Bairfield Activity Center and also a Public Hearing on Tax Increase the same day and place at 5:45 p.m.
Hedley CISD will have a Public Meeting to discuss its Budget and Proposed Tax Rate at 6:00 p.m., on Monday, August 21, 2023.
The City of Clarendon will have a Public Budget Hearing on Thursday, August 24, 2023, at 5:30 p.m.
Donley County will have a Public Hearing on its Proposed Budget and a Public Hearing on Tax Increase on Monday, August 28, 2023, at 9:00 a.m.
Clarendon CISD will also have a Public Meeting to discuss Budget and Proposed Tax Rate at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, August 28, 2023.
Watch the Enterprise for more public notices about local government operations.
By William Melhado, The Texas Tribune
(Editor’s note: This story contains explicit language.)
U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Amarillo, threatened to beat up a state trooper and take down the Carson County sheriff in the next election after deputies detained the congressman at a rodeo outside of Amarillo in July, according to a sheriff’s incident report released last week.
The report said that Jackson screamed profanities at deputies who were trying to clear the area for emergency medical workers to attend to a teenager who was having a seizure. Deputies asked the former White House physician to step back four times before they put Jackson in handcuffs, according to their reports. (See video footage here.)
After the congressman was released, he demanded Carson County Sheriff Tam Terry call him and investigate the incident. During that call, Terry, a Republican, said that Jackson warned him that he would “bury me in the next election.”
The events described in the report starkly contrasted with the congressman’s public statement just days after the July 29 incident. A spokesperson for Jackson said at the time that he was detained amid a “very loud and chaotic environment” and was released as soon as law enforcement realized he was trying to help. Notably the statement said Jackson was sitting “in the stands during the entire rodeo, in full view of the assembled crowd, and was not drinking.”
But according to an account from Chief Deputy J.C. Blackburn, the GOP congressman was seen drinking backstage of the rodeo event. A Jackson aide disputed that in a statement Friday.
“Congressman Jackson was not drinking and was prevented from giving medical care in a potentially life-threatening situation due to overly aggressive and incompetent actions by the local authorities present at the time of the incident,” said Kate Lair, a spokesperson for Jackson. “Again, he was asked to help the teenager when no other uniformed medics were present. Congressman Jackson, as a trained ER physician, will not apologize for sparing no effort to help in a medical emergency, especially when the circumstances were chaotic and the local authorities refused to help the situation.”
The sheriff’s report, released to The Texas Tribune in response to a public information request, includes several accounts from deputies detailing what happened at the White Deer rodeo. After a teenager collapsed at the event, onlookers began to gather around her and EMS asked Department of Public Safety Trooper Young to clear the crowd, which included Jackson who said he was helping assist the patient. The report did not include the first name of many law enforcement officials present at the scene.
Young ordered Jackson to step back and moved him back. According to Deputy Alexander, Jackson pointed to Young and said, “I’m going to beat that mother fuckers’ ass!”
The congressman later told Terry that in his attempt to care for the patient, he thought it was safe to put a gumball in the patient’s mouth as a way to elevate her blood sugar. But in an exchange included in the report between Terry and White Deer EMS provider Kimberly Thomas, Thomas says that the gum presents a choking hazard to patients having a seizure, and that most gum is sugar free and thus would not address low blood sugar.
Due to Jackson’s extremely agitated state, in which he continued to yell profanities, deputies brought him to the ground and placed the congressman in handcuffs, according to the report. Officers then escorted Jackson out of the rodeo grounds and removed the handcuffs, while he continued to scream profanities at Trooper Young. After the congressman was released, his wife, Jane Jackson, approached the deputies and demanded their information before their group got into a Black SUV and left the scene.
Later that evening the Sheriff Terry received a text from dispatch that read, “Congressman Ronny Jackson wants a phone call tonight referencing something that happened at the rodeo.”
When Terry called Jackson at the provided number, the congressman said he was “fucking pissed” about the incident, and said the deputies had used bad judgment. He demanded an investigation and consequences for the deputies involved. After threatening to “bury” the sheriff in the next election, Jackson ended the call with the phrase, “Game on,” Terry wrote in the report.
Law enforcement officials have not yet released footage of the incident, but Terry’s report said that he has reviewed tapes and agreed that the deputies’ actions were justified.
Jackson was first elected in 2020 to represent the 13th Congressional District, a deeply conservative district in the Panhandle. He is one of Trump’s staunchest allies in Congress and a vocal booster of his 2024 comeback campaign.
He served as White House physician for both Barack Obama and Donald Trump before becoming a congressman. In 2018, he was nominated by Trump to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs. But Jackson withdrew from consideration amid allegations of professional misconduct, including drinking on the job and overprescribing medication.
A 2021 investigative report by the inspector general for the U.S. Department of Defense found that Jackson disparaged employees, engaged in “alcohol-related misconduct” and made sexual comments about a female employee under his supervision.
The report also found that Jackson took sleeping pills during official travel and cited witness testimony that he was drunk while on duty during a presidential trip to Argentina. But the inspector general was unable to corroborate those claims and noted that there was no policy against the use of Ambien during long overseas flights.
At the time, Jackson denied the allegations in the report and called it a “political hit job” that “purposely left out key facts.”
This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2023/08/11/ronny-jackson-rodeo-altercation/.
The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.
Clarendon Cub Scout Pack 437 is asking any interested parents or other adults to consider signing up as Den Leaders for the coming year.
Cub Scouts is open to kids in Kindergarten through fifth grades. Activities include camping, fishing, archery, BB gun shooting, the Pinewood Derby, the Raingutter Regatta, and much more! Cubs also learn about citizenship, patriotism, first aid, outdoor skills, woodworking, nature, sports, and physical fitness all while maintaining an emphasis of doing their duty to God and Country.
Pack 437 is chartered by the First Methodist Church in Clarendon and has provided opportunities for fun, learning, and character development for more than 60 years.
To learn more about volunteering as a Cub Scout leader, contact Gaylyne Manns at 806-207-0037 or Roger Estlack at 806-662-4689.
Doris Faye “MeMa” Salmon passed away peacefully on July 31, 2023, at the age of 88, surrounded by family.
Doris was born on June 21, 1935, to John Henry and Stella Crawford in Clarendon. She attended Clarendon High School.
In 1951, Doris met Richard Salmon and after a short romantic courtship they were married in 1952. They had 4 children, Jane born in 1952, Larry born in 1955, Morgan born in 1956, and Susie born in 1957. In 1961 they moved to Amarillo.
After the death of Richard Salmon in 1974, Doris lived at times in Dallas and Florida with her daughter, Jane. In 1993, Doris met her soul mate Billy Morg and moved to the farm in Brice, Texas until his death in 2011, after which she moved back to Amarillo.
Back in Amarillo, Doris reconnected with her life-long church, Washington Avenue Christian Church, where she deepened her Christian faith and enjoyed wonderful fellowship.
Doris was a kind, caring and loving mother to all of her children, raising all 4 of them to go on to accomplish great things. She was a strong woman who faced every challenge in her life with courage and dignity. Family came first and was above all else to Doris, a value she instilled in all those around her. Mom was our biggest cheerleader and our constant supporter. Our mother was a source of inspiration to us all and she will be deeply missed by everyone whose lives she touched.
Doris continued her love and dedication to family with her 7 grandchildren and 13 great grandchildren. Doris was so proud of her large extended family and loved them all dearly.
She was predeceased by her husband, Richard, her soul mate, Billy Morg, her parents John Henry and Stella Crawford, and her brother, John Wesley Crawford.
She is survived by her 4 children, Jane (late husband Franz) Maenner, Larry (Ginger) Salmon, Morgan (Pamela) Salmon, and Susie (Mike) Wing: her 7 grandchildren, Brandon (Lindsey) Wing, Micah (Charles) Carden, Ashley (Josh) Ashley, Barrett Salmon, Meredith (Bret) Errington, Taylor (Janice) Salmon, and Logan (Tara) Salmon: her 13 great grandchildren, Walt, Wyatt & Morgan Wing; Ryah, Clara, Emry & Calem Carden; Field & Swayze – Kate Ashley; Penny Rose & Henry Salmon; and Colby & Pacey Salmon.
Our family is so grateful for the loving care our Mom received from the kind and dedicated care providers in the last year of her life.
Visitation will be held on Friday, August 11, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Boxwell Brothers Funeral Home, 2800 Paramount Blvd., Amarillo, Texas 79109.
Funeral Service will be held on Saturday, August 12, 2023, at 10:30 am, Washington Avenue Christian Church, 3800 S. Washington St., Amarillo, TX 79110.
Burial will be held on Saturday, August 12, 2023, at 2:00 pm, Citizens Cemetery, Clarendon, Texas.
Richard “Rick” Glenn Benton, 66, of Clarendon, passed away on Tuesday, August 1, 2023.
Private family graveside services will be held in Citizens Cemetery in Clarendon.
Cremation and arrangements are under the direction of Robertson Funeral Directors of Clarendon.
Rick was born on November 17, 1956, in Lynwood, CA, to Benjamin Carl and Jo Anne (Sibley) Benton. Rick grew up in Clarendon and briefly lived in Amarillo where he graduated from Amarillo High School. Rick was a licensed electrician and a true jack of all trades. He also did carpentry, stucco, and anything else in construction. He was always fixing or building something in his spare time.
Although Rick moved around throughout his life, Clarendon was always his home. He spent several years in Canyon while caring for his mother. Rick also loved his faithful companions, his dogs.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Benjiman Benton and Jo Anne (Sibley) Benton Brown; stepfather, Frank L. Brown, Jr.; and aunt, Wanda Root.
He is survived by his uncle, Harold Root of Canyon; step-brother, Timothy Frank Brown and wife Paula of Pampa; cousins, Dan Root and wife Natalie of Canyon, and Gena Richardson and husband Jerry of Canyon; several nieces and nephews; and many extended family members.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to a local church of one’s choice.
Heaven found another angel. Ann Stepp went to be with the Lord at the age of 83 on July 17, 2023.
She is survived by her husband of 66 years, John Wayne Stepp. Sister; Sue Gabbert. Daughters; Denise Pozzi (Zane). Carrie Spence (Jeff).
Grandchildren; Brittany Pozzi-Tonozzi (Garrett), Travis Spence (Veronica), Brooke Pozzi-Smith (Blake). Great Grandchildren; Jaedynn, Haley, Chris, Bryce, Taylor, Aubrey Spence, Tinley Tonozzi, Sloan Smith and many nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents and her grandson Dillon Spence.
Funeral service were held on Monday, July 31, 2023 at Grace Memorial Chapel, 8819 US Hwy 87N, Victoria, Texas with Scott Weatherford, officiating. To leave a comforting message or to share a fond memory, please visit www.gracefuneralhome.net.
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