Roger Estlack

Sign ups start next Monday, February 19, for people wanting to run for local offices.

Six governments in Donley County have positions opening this year. Positions are elected at-large.

The City of Clarendon will elect a mayor and two aldermen. The two-year terms are currently being held by Mayor Tex Selvidge and Aldermen Bobbie Kidd (filling the late James Owens’ term) and Michael Tibbets (filling the term of Kent Womack.)

The City of Hedley has three aldermen seats open. Those positions are currently held by Bruce Howard, Shauna Monroe, and Jim Roberts.

Two positions are up on the Howardwick Board of Aldermen. Those are the seats held by Shirley Ariola and Mike Rowland (filling the term of Bob Hall.) Mayor Margaret Pettit’s term is also up this year.

Clarendon CISD will elect three members of the Board of Trustees to three-year terms. Jim Shelton, Reneé Betts, and Marvin Thompson currently hold those seats.

Three positions will also be filled on the Hedley School Board. The terms of Mike Wallendorff, Jan Farris, and Carole Ward are expiring.

The Donley County Hospital District will hold elections for three seats on the Board of Directors for two-year terms. The positions of Place 1 – Don Thornberry, Place 2 – Nelson Christie, and Place 3 – David Strange all expire this year.

Citizens can apply to run for these positions through March 21, 2001.

The Hedley High School Math/Science teams competed Saturday at Coronado High School in Lubbock in the “Hub of the Plains” UIL Invitational Meet involving 52 schools of all classifications.  Again, they were very successful in their competitions.

 The Number Sense team placed 3rd among 1A schools with Lauren Hill 2nd in class 1A and Dustin Knowles 4th.  The Math team was 2nd among 1A schools with Lauren Hill again placing 2nd and Lana Wallendorff 3rd.  The Calculator team was 3rd place among 1A competitors with Lauren Hill capturing first place and Samuel Howard 4th place; and in the freshman division Brittney Bennett and Treva Rowland placed 1st and 2nd.  The Science team was first place among all 1A and 2A teams, placing second in the small schools division (1A-3A) to Seminole.  Lana Wallendorff placed first among senior competitors and was the small schools chemistry champion.  Lisle Rowland and Lauren Hill were 2nd and 3rd among 1A contestants, and in the freshman division Lacey Wallendorff was first among small school competitors.

Hedley now sets its sights on District competition at Clarendon College after spring break.  They have a good chance to send a large contingent to the Regional UIL Meet at South Plains College in Levelland on April 20th.  Last year the Math, Number Sense, Calculator, and Science teams all won district championships, and the teams are anxious to see if they can defend their titles.

The Clarendon FFA Chapter will be trying to organize a local FFA Alumni Chapter. 

The purpose of the chapter will be to contact former FFA members and sign them up.  The membership dues will be $10.00, and the dues received will be used to create scholarships for local FFA member graduating seniors.

This will be a great way to reward deserving FFA members for all their work and accomplishments during their years of FFA membership.

The Alumni Chapter members will be invited to the annual Clarendon FFA Fish Fry, which is held in September.  Other meetings will be established during the year. 

A set of officers will be elected to help set up activities for the coming year and to set the qualifications needed for the scholarship applicants.

If you are interested in joining the Clarendon FFA Alumni Association and would be willing to help contact former FFA members, contact Mr. Edwards at Clarendon High School, 874-2076, or stop by the Clarendon Ag Building.

This will be a great way to get many former FFA members involved in activities that can be very rewarding for our local FFA members.

The Panhandle Livestock Association (PLA) will convene for their 86th annual convention at the Ambassador Hotel in Amarillo on February 10, 2001.

The PLA will host a panel of speakers to discuss the future of water rights in Texas.  The groundwater panel will begin at 9:30 a.m. and will continue until 11:30 a.m. 

The panelists include Jack Hunt, CEO of the King Ranch; Paul Terrill, partner of Hazen and Terrill attorneys in Austin; C.E. Williams, General Manager of the Panhandle Groundwater Conservation District; Charles Bowers, Chairman of the Panhandle Groundwater Conservation District; and Steve Stevens, a representative of Mesa Water, Inc.

This panel is an attempt to keep landowners abreast of these issues which profoundly effect the ability of landowners to produce food, fiber, and a living from their land.

A luncheon will follow this meeting, with the general meeting and director’s meeting of the PLA following the luncheon.

The evening festivities will begin at 6:30 with a prime-rib dinner to be served and United States Representative Mac Thornberry will be the evening speaker, giving insight into the new administration in Washington and how it will affect our livelihoods.

A dance beginning at 8 p.m. with the Tiny Lyn Band will round out the day’s interesting issues and festivities. 

For more information, contact Jim Haley at 806-323-8433 or Jack Craft at 806-874-3747.

Demand for utility assistance exceeds the $456,000 available funds in the Panhandle, according to a recent press release.

Panhandle Community Services Executive Director Johnny Raymond says he is concerned about the large increase in families seeking assistance in paying their gas bills.

“Because the numbers of families already on our waiting lists, it became evident our funds would be exhausted by the end of February if the entire bill was to be paid,” said  Raymond. 

“There was no way we could assist the numbers; therefore, a decision was made to pay for half of the current bill for those families meeting the 125 percent of the required poverty guideline.  The family will have to make arrangements to pay the other half of the bill.”

Local PCS offices have available limited funds including the office in Clarendon.

The first priority is to assure the utility will not be cut-off.  Most utility companies are willing to work with families with payment schedules.  After providing income documentation and a copy of the current gas bill, PCS staff will notify the gas company of the amount of assistance to be provided.

Raymond stressed the need for individuals to contact the nearest PCS Office and set up an appointment.  Staff members are working as fast as they can in meeting the demand for assistance. 

 Every effort is being made so the greatest number of families qualifying for assistance will receive some  benefit.

Anyone wishing to make a donation toward the utility assistance can make their check payable to Panhandle Community Services, PO Box 32150, Amarillo, Texas 79120 or take the check to the local PCS office in Clarendon.  PCS is a 501-(c) (3) Community Action Agency,  and donations are tax deductible.

By Carrie Helms

The room is dark and dusty.  Sounds of power tools and of cracking wood echo off the walls.  He knows there is a great job to be done, and he is the only man who can do the job right.  With a little laugh and a big smile, Andy Roberts picks up his giant sledgehammer and goes to work.

The place is Main Street Ministry Center where 12 youth met last Saturday to lend a helping hand to the construction effort.  For almost a year, men have been working to pull up small portions of the hard wood floor to stack building materials.  That is until these youth cleared almost 500 square feet of flooring in one day.

“We got to the building at about 10:00, and by the time 4:00 came around, I was absolutely filthy,” Carrie Helms said.  “Austin Sears was tearing up floor with his bare hands, and it was great just to see stuff getting done.”

The building is divided into two parts. The front section houses the Clothes Closet and Food Pantry that are completed. The back section is still full of possibilities but designed mainly for youth activities.

“If we could just get more people down there every week, we could do so much work,” Megan Roberts said.  “It could be a great place for youth to get involved.”

That is the goal of the Ministry Center: to get people involved in work. 

The Center will be open every Monday from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. to accept food and clothing donations as well as Saturday mornings from 10:00 to 12:00.

The math and science teams at Hedley High School recently competed at the Texas Tech University Invitational UIL Academic Meet and posted excellent scores.  Fifty-four schools of all classifications competed at the meet.

The math team was paced by Lana Wallendorff, who won overall individual honors for schools 1A-3A.  The number sense team composed of Dustin Knowles, Lauren Hill, Lisle Rowland, and Aaron Bugg placed first among 1A schools.  Hill was fifth place individual at the meet for schools 1A-3A.  She also set a new school record in Calculator Applications at the meet.

The science team won the overall championship for schools of all classifications, with Lora Llewellyn winning the individual championship, Lana Wallendorff placing third overall, and Lisle Rowland placing fifth overall.

“We are very proud of the young people who took a Saturday to go and represent our school,” said Hedley science team sponsor Bruce Howard.  “They obviously competed very well, and it was good to see Hedley’s name out in front, especially against some larger schools.”

Hedley will next compete at the Coronado High School Invitational February 10.  District competition for all UIL events will be held late in March at Clarendon College.