News

A local group hoping to revitalize the North Ward Park will have an organizational meeting next week.

Anyone interested in helping or providing input with this project is urged to come to the meeting Monday, April 2, at 7 p.m. at the True Church of God in Christ.

The park was established with the generous donations of playground equipment from the City of Clarendon and the public school system, and Mrs. L.B. Matheson generously allowed the community to use the land.

Improvements have been made to the park by various volunteer organizations over the last few years, but more extensive work needs to be done if it is to be a fun, safe place for the community to enjoy.

Several church and civic organizations have expressed interest in working on the park, and Monday’s meeting will be used to organize and evaluate what needs to be done. It is hoped that a committee or task force will be formed which not only will oversee the initial phase of improvements but also the continued care and long-term improvements that will need to be done.

Organizers hope this might be the beginning of a community-wide effort to provide fun, safe, family-oriented places for local children to play.

To help in any way or for more details, contact Alton Gaines or Jay Gage.

He was a man who loved his community, and in return, the community loved him. Last week, the community had to say goodbye.

Homer Morrison “Flip” Breedlove died Friday, March 23, 2001, in Clarendon. He was 91.

Mr. Breedlove was born April 18, 1909, in Smithville, Texas. He was a graduate of Texas A&M and was a three-year letterman on the Aggie football squad. After college, he moved to Clarendon in 1935 and married Dorothy Lois Phelps here on January 21, 1947.

Mr. Breedlove’s lifelong service to this community began as soon as he moved here and became the County Agent of Donley County, a position he filled for 31 years. He spoke of his days with the Extension Service in a 1999 interview with Mary Beth Nelson for the Enterprise.

“One of the most important things to me was my work with farmers, supplying new information and helping them develop new and better farming methods. My 4H club work with the boys was real important to me, too.”

Nelson wrote that Mr. Breedlove also extended his talents and interests to the area of champion livestock and that among his numerous memorabilia of past activities, some of his most treasured are many pictures of boys with whom he worked and the grand champion animals they raised.

World War II interrupted Mr. Breedlove’s county agent service, and he served approximately 2½ years in the 140 Tank Destroyer Division of the United States Army in Virginia

Following his retirement from the Extension Service, Mr. Breedlove was the Agricultural Representative at the Farmers State Bank for ten years and was associated with the Southwest Life Insurance Company for several years before his retirement.

He was a longtime and beloved member of the First United Methodist Church in Clarendon.

For more than 20 years, Mr. Breedlove was in charge of the July Fourth barbecue held on the courthouse lawn. He served several terms as Clarendon’s mayor from 1970 to 1977.

In a 1972 article in The Clarendon Press, the late Boo Lowe wrote: “Flip has more friends than most anyone because of a quality that is an intricate part of his personality. He has considered everyone he has ever met to be his friend. Longtime friends say they have never heard Flip say a bad word against anyone.”

In 1999, Mr. Breedlove was named the Pioneer Man of the Year by the Clarendon-Donley County Chamber of Commerce.

Mr. Breedlove was preceded in death by a son, “Little Flip,” and a brother, Robert L. Breedlove. He is survived by his wife, Dorothy Breedlove of Clarendon; two sons, H. Mack Breedlove and wife, Jeanette, of Austin and Mike McCleskey and wife, Judy, of Mount Pleasant; three grandchildren, Mark Breedlove, Lisa Davis, and Brandon McCleskey; and a great grandchild, Dallas Davis.

Cremation was under the direction of Memorial Park Crematory in Amarillo. Arrangements were under the direction of Robertson Funeral Directors, Inc., of Clarendon.

Memorial services for Mr. Breedlove were held at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 25, 2001, in the First United Methodist Church with Rev. James Ivey Edwards officiating.

The service was marked by upbeat singing by the congregation because, as Rev. Edwards said, “Flip hated ‘draggy’ music.” In a salute to Mr. Breedlove’s passion for his university, “The Spirit of Aggieland” and “The Aggie War Hymn” were played at the conclusion of the service.

“Flip Breedlove,” Mrs. Lowe wrote, “brings to mind a quotation from Fuller – ‘The real difference between men is energy. A strong will, a settled purpose, an invincible determination can accomplish almost anything; and in this lies the distinction between great men and little men.”

Surely, Flip Breedlove was a great man.

In memory of his commitment and love of Texas A&M University, a memorial scholarship will be established.  The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be sent to the Flip Breedlove Scholarship Fund, c/o Herring National Bank, PO Box 947, Clarendon, Texas 79226, or make a donation to your favorite charity in his name.

The money jar of Turkey King candidate Vic Jeter disappeared over the weekend, forcing the popular banker into second place and plunging the election process into further controversy.

Election judge Linda Gray said Jeter’s jar was secure when she left Duckwall’s at 5 p.m. on Friday, but it was stolen over the weekend. A new jar will be glued to a big rock and ready to receive votes by Wednesday of this week, she said. In the meantime, voters who wish to support Jeter can give their money directly to the store’s clerks.

Recent high jinks by the Jeter campaign have aroused suspicion that the candidate himself may be a culprit. Last week, Jeter was reported to have threatened to steal the jar.

“I think he might have been involved,” Gray said. “I know he was in the store this weekend, and he did tell me that some boys were wanting to steal [the jar] for him.”

Jeter’s feathers appeared ruffled by the accusations, and he flatly denied any wrongdoing.

“I haven’t seen it, I didn’t take it, and I don’t know who did,” he said. “No one has contacted me claiming responsibility.”

Jeter vowed to find the real jar-nappers and said the jar wasn’t “really stolen.” Denying any knowledge of who took it, he promised the jar would be returned after the election is over and that the money would be returned to the turkey coffers even if he has to pay it himself.

While proclaiming his innocence, Jeter seems to know a lot more than he lets on. The former front-strutter tried to deflect attention from himself to – of all people – the Girl Scouts. He said a local Girl Scout troop had said they would take the jar under the auspices of going door to door with it to collect votes. Once they had the jar, Jeter claims the scouts were going to ask him for $50 to make it “disappear.”

While he seems to have the support of popular opinion, Jeter said he doesn’t really want to be the King Turkey.

“The crown needs to go to a local dignitary,” he said. “Whoever is the king should be someone who will carry the title with great honor, and that ain’t me.”

Jeter brushed off comparisons to H. Ross Perot’s bid for the presidency. In 1992, Perot told CNN’s Larry King he would only run if the people wanted him to.

“This [election] isn’t about what the people want,” Jeter said. “It’s about who has the most money. I represent the poor, the weak, the old, and the decrepit.”

Gray, however, said there was no reason for anyone to believe anything Jeter said.

“I really think he should be hauled in for questioning,” she said.

Neither Gray nor Jeter think any of the other 11 king candidates were involved in the jar’s disappearance. But Gray did say the turkey race has made a lot people do things they wouldn’t ever do otherwise.

“You look at people like [County Judge Jack] Hall, [insurance salesman Walt] Knorpp, and [car dealer Trey] Chamberlain. I think any one of them would really want to march down Kearney Street as the king of the festival,” Gray said.

Regardless of the voting method, the fact remains that Mayor Tex Selvidge is now the leading candidate with $31.62 as the election enters its sixth week. Jeter is in second place with $26.60, and other minor candidates continue to trade places.

One Duckwall’s clerk claims she saw a woman put $5 in Jeter’s jar before it was stolen. If that’s true, Jeter would be within 2¢ of Selvidge. It’s possible that if all the votes were counted, Jeter would be ahead.

Meanwhile in other Turkey Strut Festival news, County Commissioner Ernest Johnston sent a wooden turkey to Clarendon College’s Joel Zehr last week. City Librarian Carolyn Blackerby claims Zehr hauled the turkey to the library where he threatened it with bodily harm if it ever came back to roost in his yard.

“He said he would make sure the turkey wouldn’t be seen again,” Blackerby said.

Also, local resident Vernon Watkins had his picture taken with a turkey in his yard last week. The photo was published in the Amarillo Sunday News-Globe, and Watkins has reportedly been dragging the picture all over town, showing it to everyone he meets.

Anyone can have a turkey put in someone’s yard for a birthday, anniversary, or gag gift for a $5 donation to the Tourism Council. Call Carolyn Blackerby at the Burton Library at 874-3685 for your order and delivery.

The election for Donley County’s King Turkey continues, and pictures of all 12 turkey candidates are on money jars at Duckwall’s. The winner will be the turkey with the most money at the end of the contest.

The king will be crowned during the Turkey Strut Festival on April 21-22.

Money raised goes to the Donley County Tourism Council to help promote our fair county. Vote early and vote often.

The $2.9 million renovation of the Donley County Courthouse is now underway.

Workers from Environmental Reconditioning of El Paso began removing asbestos from the 1890 building Monday morning.

The abatement process is being overseen by Sun City Analytical, also of El Paso.

Sun City’s operations manager, Hector Diaz, says the abatement crews will be working in 10-hour shifts, four days a week. The company has 30 calendar days to complete the removal of asbestos and bat guano and encapsulation of lead paint in the courthouse.

The crew will work on the asbestos all this week, which Diaz says is mostly contained in the flooring and in some insulation in the basement.

Removal of the guano is scheduled to start next week. Crews will reportedly remove the malodorous stuff using vacuum cleaners and then sterilize the building using a chlorine solution.

Lead paint on the ceilings will largely be encapsulated.

In other courthouse news, the commissioners’ court agreed last Monday to auction any salvage or surplus property resulting from the renovation project. A date for the auction and the items to be sold have not been determined.

Commissioners also agreed to look into the possibility of more state funding for the project. The Texas Historical Commission reportedly has a limited amount of funds to make small additional grants to counties having already received approval for courthouse grants.  
To learn more about the restoration of the Donley County Courthouse, click here.

Clarendon Mayor Tex Selvidge is running unopposed in his re-election, but five candidates are vying for two seats on the board of aldermen.

Incumbent Michael Tibbets, Carl Draper, Bill Holden, Bob Watson, and Jim Wright have all filed to run for city aldermen.

The filing deadline passed Wednesday, March 21, at 5 p.m., but citizens still have until Monday, March 26, to file as a write-in candidate.

In other races around the county, incumbents Reneé Betts, Jim Shelton, and Marvin Thompson are each seeking re-election to the Clarendon ISD Trustees.  

With three seats available in the City of Hedley, Jim Lollar, Abby O’Neal, and incumbent Bruce Howard have filed for the board of aldermen.

As of Tuesday in Howardwick, Billy F. Woods has filed to run for mayor. Mike Rowland and Dewey Linley are running for the board of alderman.

The Donley County Hospital District has three seats up for election on the Board of Directors. Incumbents Don Thornberry, Nelson Christie, and David Strange have all signed up to run for re-election.

Jason Sargent, Jan Farris, Mark Montgomery, and Carole Ward have filed to run for Hedley CISD board.

Elections are scheduled to be held on May 5, 2001.

This turkey found himself on the wrong side of the law last weekend and ended up in the Donley County Jail. He was charged with trespassing near the local radio station and was held for two days before being released. 

Photo courtesy Jondel Moffet
 
Turkey King candidate Vic Jeter clung to his lead this week despite further allegations of election tampering.

Just one week after Jeter was suspected of redistributing votes among his opponents, the local banker was accused of threatening to abscond with his voting jar. Election judge Linda Gray said Jeter came by Duckwall’s Sunday and made the threat.

“He said, ‘I’m gonna steal that jar before I leave here,’” Gray reported.

Duckwall’s employees hid the jar from Jeter’s sticky fingers and thus preserved the integrity of the voting system for the time being.

Some analysts say the Jeter campaign is one of the most corrupt in the history of the Turkey Kingdom.

“I think it’s just terrible,” Gray said. “We’ve always had a peaceful election. I don’t know what his problem is.”

The shenanigans may have cost Jeter some points, however, with the ever-popular Mayor Tex Selvidge closing the gap between himself and the frontrunner. This week’s Enterprise / Gobbler Poll showed Jeter leading Selvidge by just $1.42. Last week, Jeter led by a margin of $4.55.

Car dealer Trey Chamberlain, insurance salesman Walt Knorpp, and County Judge Jack Hall maintained their third through fifth place positions without making great strides in the poll. Other minor candidates traded places, but Maurice Risley continued to hold firm in last place with $2.28.

Meanwhile, one of the turkeys making its way around the county found itself on the wrong side of the law Saturday night.

Jondel Moffet reported the turkey was “fowling” the area and consorting with unsavory characters near the KEFH radio studios. The bird resisted a citizen arrest and refused to talk, but a tag on its neck said, “To Delbert, From Jim R.”

The turkey was booked into the Donley County Jail on charges of trespassing where it was held for two days. Sheriff Butch Blackburn said the bird “meant no offense” and was “well behaved” while doing time.

Unconfirmed reports said the bird was actually placed on suicide watch due to being depressed over being so ugly.

The bird was released on its own recognizance Monday and was doing community service at the Burton Memorial Library at press time.

In an unrelated matter, one of the wooden turkeys has apparently flown the coop. It was last seen in Don Stone’s yard before it disappeared last Thursday.

Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Judy Burlin is hoping the bird will turn up and is asking whoever took the poor creature to “just please bring it back.”

Burlin says Stone is not considered a suspect in the bird’s disappearance. “He really liked that turkey,” she said.

Anyone with information on the lost fowl can call the Chamber or the Library.

The election for Donley County’s King Turkey has entered its fifth week, and pictures of all 12 turkey candidates are on money jars at Duckwall’s. The winner will be the turkey who has the most money at the end of the contest. Cast your vote today to make your voice heard.

The king will be crowned during the Turkey Strut Festival on April 21-22.

During the contest, anyone can have a turkey put in someone’s yard for a birthday, anniversary, or gag gift for a $5 donation to the Tourism Council. Call Carolyn Blackerby at the Burton Library at 874-3685 for your order and delivery.

New rules this week limit a turkey’s roosting time in a yard to 48 hours. Citizens who find a turkey in their yard must pay $5 to have it removed and can put it in someone else’s yard for another $5.

Money raised goes to the Donley County Tourism Council to help promote our fair county.

The Clarendon Board of Aldermen met in regular session March 13 at 7 p.m. in the Board Room of City Hall.

Carolyn Blackerby, representing the Donley County Tourism Committee, read the proclamation for the Spring Turkey Strut Festival set for April 21 and 22. The proclamation was passed by the county commissioners.

The Clarendon Economic Development Corporation Board presented tax abatement agreements to be reviewed for compliance. The aldermen approved the EDC board’s recommendation to rule that Kidd’s Texaco/Carquest is in compliance with the use of 43.5 percent of the intended funds allocated and Clarendon Outpost is in compliance with the use of 95.3 percent of the intended funds allocated.

The abatement allowances were made based on actual dollars spent on improvements and numbers of new jobs created.

An abatement agreement with Meeka-L, Inc., was canceled. That company had planned to build an extended living facility near the nursing home, but the deal did not come to fruition.

The city investment policy was approved as written.

The board considered new Christmas decorations for Kearney Street and approved the purchase of six eight-foot angles and six eight-foot stars to be alternated on both sides of the street.

In other city business, employee reports were heard from Librarian Carolyn Blackerby and City Superintendent Jim Roberts. The possible need to use City Park for this year’s July Fourth celebration was discussed, and the aldermen considered placing yield signs on Hawley Street at Wood Avenue.

WASHINGTON, DC – US Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Clarendon) this week introduced legislation aimed at reducing and simplifying the amount of paperwork in the nation’s health care system.

The bill is called The Health Care Paperwork Reduction and Fraud Prevention Act.  The measure would establish a bipartisan commission to review the health care system and consider, among other things, whether government agencies should be required to use standardized credentialing and billing forms (which private sector insurance companies would be encouraged to use as well).

The bill is in part the result of meetings Thornberry held with area doctors over the past 12 months and a series of town hall meetings on health care he is holding this year. 

“I’ve heard a lot of different concerns and complaints about the Nation’s health care system,” Thornberry stated.  “But one concern that seems to stand out is the overwhelming amount of forms and paperwork that doctors and patients have to fill out. 

“It is truly incredible.  Today in America, if a doctor wants to treat a person who happens to be on Medicare or Medicaid, they have to contend with over 132,000 pages of rules and regulations.  Over 132,000 pages!  That’s over 10 times bigger than the US tax code, and we all know how complex that is.  In fact, if you have a hard time figuring out your taxes on April 15th, you probably have a good idea of what most doctors have to put up with every day. 

“Health care is by no means an easy issue.  But there’s got to be an easier way of doing things when it comes to the forms and paperwork people have to fill out.  My bill’s intended to look at ways to help solve some of the problems in this area which doctors and patients currently face.”

In addition to establishing a commission to look into these problems and report back within a year on possible solutions, Thornberry’s bill would also provide immediate assistance by, among other things, establishing a toll-free number for doctors to call if they have questions about billing or need any other information related to Medicare.  The ultimate goal, Thornberry said, was to look for ways to reduce the federal paperwork burden on the Nation’s doctors and patients – something which physicians in the 13th Congressional District agree needs to be done.

“The volume of regulations is so huge and so grotesquely convoluted as to be unknowable,” said Dr. James W. Godwin of Wichita Falls.  “The law needs to be simple enough, logical enough, and pertinent enough to daily life that compliance is simple and straightforward.”

Dr. Sheryl Williams of Amarillo agreed.  “I love seeing patients,” she stated, “but lately the paperwork – endless dictation with the proper number of case history elements to support the proper federal code – makes the practice of medicine less than satisfying.”

A bill currently before the Texas Legislature would slightly broaden the powers of the Donley County Hospital District and assist the district with meeting its long-term goals.

House Bill 2488, introduced last week by Rep. Warren Chisum, would amend the district’s enabling legislation to allow the hospital board to issue revenue bonds to restructure debt and to permit the district to lease office space to the Texas Department of Human Services. 

The bill was being considered by the House County Affairs Committee at press time.

“When we got the vote of the people in August 1998, it was a mandate to provide services to the people of Donley County,” said district administrator Alan Graham, referring to an election in which local citizens voted 348 to 216 to prevent the hospital board from selling the Medical Center Nursing Home.

Since that vote, the district has paid off the bonds issued in 1971 to build the Medical Center and has undertaken a $1.4 million renovation of the 30-year-old facility.

Graham said the district had planned to pay for the renovation with revenue from the state’s tobacco settlement, which was expected to be more than $200,000 per year. But the district only received approximately $20,000 from the tobacco fund last year, and that amount may be lower this year.

With the renovation nearing completion this month, the district’s construction note is up for renewal on June 30, 2001. The district is paying interest of one under prime on the note, which was 8.5 percent a couple of weeks ago, Graham said. By restructuring the debt with general obligation tax revenue notes, the district could get a lower interest rate – perhaps less than five percent. The bonds would be set up on a 15-year payout.

“This will give us a way to manage the debt now that we don’t have the resources we had anticipated,” he said.

Graham said the hospital district has kept the same tax rate for three years, and he does not foresee any changes in that rate. The ten new beds added to the nursing home through the renovation are expected to generate a gross income of $240,000 per year with the district netting half of that.

“We’ve been able to update a 30-year-old facility, which was in need of a facelift and facing mounting infrastructure problems. And with the 10 beds, we will generate the revenue to pay for it without effecting John Q. Public’s tax bill.”

The new beds will be certified this month, and there is already a waiting list of potential new residents, Graham said.

Next on the hospital district’s agenda is a plan that would centralize all health services in Donley County in one location by creating a complex on the grounds near the Medical Center. The plan calls for three new buildings to be constructed on three acres south of the nursing home. These would include a new clinic, an EMS building, and a community services building, which would be available for lease to health service providers, the Texas Department of Health (TDH), and the Texas Department of Human Services (TDHS).

“These plans are nothing new,” Graham said. “We’ve been talking about doing this since 1998.”

The proposed new rural health clinic will be built by Dr. John Howard, whose current facility is not adequate to meet the growing needs of the people of Donley County. The district will either sell land or lease it on a long-term basis to Dr. Howard, who will construct a building between 3,500 and 4,000 square feet.

An adjoining facility would house the Associated Ambulance Authority and EMS personnel, which are now located in a temporary rented facility across from the fire station. Co-locating the EMS with the rural health clinic and new advances in telemedicine will offer the opportunity to provide expanded emergency medical services, Graham said. The EMS building will encompass approximately 3,000 square feet.

The proposed community services building would house Department of Health offices and immunization clinics, physical therapy services currently provided through an agreement with Collingsworth General Hospital, and Department of Human Services offices.

By law the district can lease space to provide medical services, but since TDHS – which operates Medicaid and food stamp programs for the state – isn’t a medical service per se, leasing space to that agency may have been called into question. HB 2488 will specifically allow the district to lease space to TDHS.

Graham said the EMS and community services facilities will be built with a grant from the Amarillo Area Foundation and with other funds on hand.

“We want to be able to provide adequate services to the people and visitors of Donley County,” Graham said. “That’s our commitment, and the time is right to do this.”

Dr. Howard has expressed satisfaction with the hospital district’s plans, calling them “forward thinking and planning at its best.”

Groundbreaking on the new buildings could take place this summer. An open house of the renovated Medical Center Nursing Home is slated for May.

The Donley County Hospital District was created by an act of the 61st Legislature in 1969.

The deadline to file for local offices is less than one week away and most local entities still had very few candidates as of press time.

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

Six governments in Donley County have positions opening this year. All positions are elected at-large within the respective cities or districts.

The Clarendon CISD office was closed for spring break this week. But as of last Tuesday, incumbents Reneé Betts, Jim Shelton, and Marvin Thompson are each seeking another three-year term on the Board of Trustees.

In the City of Clarendon, Mayor Tex Selvidge and Alderman Michael Tibbets have signed up to run this year, but no one had yet filed for the other open alderman seat. That position is currently held by Aldermen Bobbie Kidd (filling the late James Owens’ term).

With three seats available in the City of Hedley, only Bruce Howard has filed for re-election to the board of aldermen. Other expiring terms are those of Shauna Monroe and Jim Roberts.

In Howardwick, Billy F. Woods has filed to run for mayor. Dewey Linley and Alderman Mike Rowland have filed to run for seats on the board of aldermen. Alderman Shirley Ariola had not filed for reelection as of press time.

The Donley County Hospital District has three seats up for election on the Board of Directors. The positions of Place 1 – Don Thornberry, Place 2 – Nelson Christie, and Place 3 – David Strange all expire this year. Thornberry and Christie have both filed to run again.

One person, Jason Sargent, has filed to run for Hedley CISD board. The terms of Mike Wallendorff, Jan Farris, and Carole Ward are expiring.

Elections will be held on Saturday, May 5, 2001.

   Interested individuals should go by or call the business office of the board they are interested in for more information.