This Week

Oscar Auker of Clarendon will perform during the 19th annual National Cowboy Poetry Gathering being held January 25 through February 1, 2002, in Elko, Nevada.

Poets and musicians, ages 11 to 87, from fifteen western states will be featured on six stages during the Gathering.  Each year thousands of fans travel to this small Nevada cow town in the dead of winter to celebrate ranching and cowboy culture.

Auker is an 11-year-old cowboy living with his family on the JA Ranch near Clarendon.  Oscar has been reciting poetry for as long as his mother can remember.  In June of 2002, he performed for the first time at the Cal Farley Boys Ranch Youth Gathering.

Oscar performs his own poems, classic cowboy poems, and his personal favorites from cowboy poets Red Steagall and Larry McWhorter.  Like most cowboys, Oscar prefers to be on horseback chasing cows, but he also enjoys reading and helping around the ranch with chores.

For more information about the Gathering, call 1-888-880-5885.  An Internet cybercast of the NCPG’s key speakers and performers begins January 29 and concludes February 1, 2002.  Log on to www.westernfolklife.org for an in-depth look at the Gathering schedule or to hear audio clips from past events.

A local girl came away with only minor injuries after a three-car accident just after noon December 20.

Christine Holden, age 17, was northbound on Koogle Street when southbound Mary Ann Humek of Irving, 29, failed to yield the right of way while attempting to turn left onto Third Street, according to a report from the Donley County Sheriff’s Office.

Humek’s 1990 Ford F-150 struck Holden’s 1999 Pontiac Grand Am in the left front quadrant. Humek in turn was struck from behind by Jeannie Lea Clark, 41, driving a 1995 Lincoln Towncar. Clark was following too close behind Humek, the report said.

Local emergency personnel responded quickly, and Holden was transported by the Associated Ambulance Authority to Northwest Texas Hospital in Amarillo as a precaution. She was treated and released and suffered only minor injuries, her family said.

One citation was issued to Humek as a result of the accident.

American Electric Power (NYSE:AEP) has completed the sale of two of its Texas retail electric providers (REPs) to Centrica, a leading provider of retail energy and other essential consumer services.

Plans to sell the two REPs – Mutual Energy WTU and Mutual Energy CPL – were announced in April.  The transaction received approval from the Public Utility Commission of Texas and clearance under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act from the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice.

The immediate cash proceeds from the transaction are valued at $185 million, which includes $146 million in the customers and $39 million related to the access to AEP’s customer relationship management and billing arrangement systems.  The funds will be used by AEP to retire outstanding debt and strengthen its balance sheet.

In addition to the immediate cash proceeds, the transaction includes two-year power supply and back office agreements.  The transaction also includes an earnings-sharing arrangement opportunity and protects the company against downside exposure.

Mutual Energy WTU and Mutual Energy CPL sell retail electricity to more than 810,000 residential and small commercial customers in south and west Texas.  These customers are served at the “price to beat,” a statutorily defined rate for customers with a peak demand of one megawatt or less who do not switch to competitive providers.  Full customer choice began in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) on Jan. 1, 2002.

“AEP’s strengths are in the wholesale energy markets and in the efficient operation of electricity transmission and distribution systems,” said Tom Shockley, AEP’s vice chairman and chief operating officer. “Building the business design necessary to be successful in a competitive retail market like Texas requires a special focus, which Centrica has with its background in retail marketing.  AEP’s resources are better focused on our strengths and strategy.”

As part of the transaction, Centrica assumes the obligation to serve those customers who choose the “price to beat” and gains the “West Texas Utilities,” “WTU,” “Central Power and Light” and “CPL” brand names.  Centrica also takes provider of last resort (POLR) responsibilities as defined by Texas regulations.

This transaction does not affect AEP’s ownership of its power plants in Texas and its transmission and distribution network that delivers electricity to customers.  AEP also will continue to serve customers with electric demand greater than one megawatt.

“The transition from AEP to Centrica will be seamless for customers, since little will change from the customer’s perspective,” Shockley said.  “The name of the electricity supplier will remain the same, even though the owner has changed.  The price-to-beat rates and responsibilities will remain the same.  The wires bringing electricity to the customers will still be owned by AEP, and we will continue to be responsive to customers’ needs for service connections and restoring power after outages.”

American Electric Power owns and operates more than 42,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the United States and select international markets and is the largest electricity generator in the U.S.  AEP is a leading wholesale marketer of energy commodities, utilizing its energy expertise and risk management skills to make optimal use of its generation, natural gas pipeline systems, natural gas storage, coal mines, and inland barge fleet.  The company is based in Columbus, Ohio.

By Carrie Helms, Clarendon Enterprise
 
Lions Bobbie Thornberry and Jimmy Johnson look over the 40 holiday food baskets the Clarendon Lions Club delivered to local families last week.  The club was just one of several organizations and businesses demonstrating good will toward their neighbors this year.
 
Every child goes to sleep on Christmas Eve hoping that Santa will come down the chimney with a big sack of goodies and fill the house with toys and gifts for Christmas morning. But many children, even in Clarendon, wake up to just a cold and hungry morning like any other.

Fortunately, local businesses and organizations worked hard this holiday season to ensure that no one went without this Christmas.

“Every child should have something for Christmas,” said Linda Gray, General Manager at Duckwall’s in Clarendon. “Toys for Tots is a great way to benefit kids in the community.”

Toys for Tots began seven years ago with Chamberlain Motor Company and has become a yearly tradition to be carried on by Suna AutoMall.

“All the toys go to kids in this community; that’s the reason we do it,” receptionist Vicki Sloan said. “It makes children happy who wouldn’t have Christmas otherwise.”

Duckwall’s and Suna AutoMall collected the toys, and Panhandle Community Services wrapped and delivered them to local children.

Panhandle Community Services has sponsored an angel tree for children in the community for almost ten years.

“We put up the tree the last week of November,” Robbie Hill of PCS said. “In two weeks, all 58 angels had been taken off the tree.”

Each child, ranging in age from birth to elementary school, receives a new pair of shoes, a shirt, and pants; and Lions Club members put together a basket of food for their families.

“We get the food for the baskets and the names of the families from PCS,” Lion Jimmy Johnson said. The Lions Club buys a turkey for each basket, then assembles and delivers them to families in need.

“All the Lions deliver them to the homes,” Johnson said. “Most of the people who receive the baskets are very appreciative.”

One of those appreciative families is Larinda Brown and her three children.

“The kids really appreciate the gifts,” Brown said. “It is nice that my kids get to see the true meaning of Christmas and the spirit of giving.”

Keith and Cherie Floyd of Floyd’s Motor Company and Body Shop have been busy elves repairing old bicycles to be distributed to children in the community.

“This is the second year we have done this,” Cherie Floyd said. “Last year we collected 20 or 25 bikes, and this year we already have more than 40 bikes.”

The Boy Scouts volunteered their time to help get the bikes in working order.

“We couldn’t have done it without the boys,” Floyd said. “Steve Carter and Carl Draper have been a big help.”

Floyd’s delivered bikes to a list of 15 or more children on Christmas Eve.

“We deliver them on Christmas Eve so the parents can do what they want with them,” Floyd said. “We have plenty of bicycles for any child who needs one. Every child should have a bike.”

Children are not the only ones in need this holiday season. Residents at the Medical Center Nursing Home had a chance to have their Christmas wishes fulfilled with the help of the Angel Tree at Duckwall’s.

“We have been doing the Angel Tree for four years,” Gray said. “You take an angel off the tree with that person’s specific needs written on it.”

Duckwall’s and the Medical Center Nursing Home handed out the gifts at their annual Christmas party on Thursday, December 20.

 “It helps the residents because they cannot go shopping for themselves,” Gray said. “They get so excited, and it is something easy that the community can do to help make their Christmas special.”

Every year the youth from the First Baptist Church in Clarendon fill shoeboxes with gifts for children who visit the Ministry Center Clothes Closet and Food Pantry on Saturday mornings.

“Some kids who come in here probably don’t even have running water, much less gifts under the tree,” seventh grader Austin Howard said. “It is always good to do something nice for someone else, especially at Christmas.”

Many of these businesses and organizations work non-stop all year long to keep the Christmas spirit alive.

Over the last year, the Ministerial Alliance of Clarendon spent close to $4,000 helping people in the community with financial difficulties.

“We help people pay for utilities and for their heating during the winter months,” Alliance president Rev. James Ivey Edwards said. “Part of the money was spent buying food and gas for stranded travelers.”

Panhandle Community Services is active in four counties and involved in charitable services including helping people in the community with rent, paying utility bills, and weatherizing homes.

“We provide transportation around town and take a bus to Amarillo three times a week,” Hill said. “People can make donations of money or food or volunteer to help all year long.”

The Lions Club is a service organization that makes annual contributions to many organizations including the Bronco Band, the Junior Livestock Association, Girls Town, and Clarendon College. The club also has a program to buy eye exams and corrective lenses for local school children in need.

“People can get involved by donating food or cash money,” Johnson said, “or by joining in an organization like Lions Club.”

The Ministry Center is open every Saturday morning from 10 to noon distributing clothes and food and accepting donations.

“When you clean out your closets and cabinets, please don’t throw it all away,” Jean Ledbetter of First Baptist Church said. “We are always in need of children’s clothes, coats, and shoes or canned food.”

The Christmas Spirit is alive and well in Clarendon, especially for the families who have received gifts of love from charities like these.

“It feels good to know that there are people out there who really care about families who need help,” Brown said.

With an infusion of cash from two recent grants, Donley County Commissioners began consideration of adding more work to the restoration of the 1890 Courthouse during a called meeting last Thursday.

The scope of the project had been cut drastically last year when the only bid for the job came in over budget. But with additional funds now available through a $185,000 supplemental state grant, the county is reconsidering some of the deleted project goals.

Sandstone replacement and rehabilitation is the first area the county is looking at. The original bid included approximately $250,000 to address stonework which has deteriorated or failed over the last 112 years. Funds raised through local efforts and from a successful $50,000 challenge grant will likely be directed to address the most critically needed stonework.

“I am very concerned about the stonework around that main entrance on the east side,” said County Judge Jack Hall. “I also want to look at fixing that original cornerstone. It’s very important that those men’s names be there.”

The cornerstone is badly deteriorated from time and the elements, and the names of the original builders and 1890 county officials are in danger of being lost.

Architect Chris Hutson will look at using either cast stone or real stone in rebuilding banisters on either side of the main entrance. Builders will salvage and re-use as much original stone as possible.

“Matching the color of the stone will be the biggest challenge,” Hutson told the court. “Fortunately there is a variety of colors in the building.”

The original quarry for the sandstone in the building has never been identified.

Other additional work being considered includes cleaning and restoration of the artwork on historic vault doors, rehabilitation of the stained glass window in the main corridor, exterior lighting, restoring wood floors in first floor offices, window coverings, sidewalk repair and replacement, and further restoration work on theatre seats in the district courtroom.

County officials also discussed the November collapse of a chimney on the northwest side of the courthouse.

An engineering report after the accident gave no single cause of the collapse but rather pointed to a possible combination of factors, which includes width and condition of existing masonry, weather, and a lack of temporary bracing.

Construction supervisor Stephen Dodge said Phoenix One workers had been concerned about the chimney and had put in more rebar than was called for as well as partially filling the chimney flue with concrete for additional strength.

Unlike most chimneys on the building, the one in question transitions to one side – in a stair step manner – as it goes through the attic, and as a result the center of it shifts approximately 10 inches to one side. While all other chimneys in the building are two-bricks wide on all sides, the failed northwest chimney is two-bricks wide on three sides and one-brick wide on the fourth side. This condition was unknown until after the accident, and it is that side that carries the most weight and was where the chimney failed to support the 20,000 pounds of brick above it.

An engineer has recommended additional bracing as well as lowering both north chimneys from 22 feet to 17 feet to reduce weight and wind pressures.

The Texas Historical Commission, however, has thus far resisted giving permission to lower the chimneys and insisted the now decorative chimneys be fully restored. County officials have sent a letter to the THC asking them to reconsider this decision based on safety concerns.

Officials with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) last week outlined future plans for work in Donley County for the 2004-2006 fiscal years.

Speaking during a Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) meeting at the Bura Handley Community Building in Wellington last Thursday, area engineer Tracy Cain said $35.2 million will be spent per year in the TxDOT Childress District, which includes Donley County.

During fiscal year 2004, TxDOT plans to work on the concrete intersection at US 287 and Koogle Street in Clarendon. The work will involve strengthening the joints in the concrete and will cost $314,000.

In FY 2005, the northbound lanes of US 287 between Clarendon and Hedley will be overlaid at an estimated cost of $1.65 million. The same year will see the replacement of the bridge over Lelia Creek on CR 20 as part of the state’s off-system program at a cost of $285,600.

The next project in Donley County comes in FY 2006 when the Salt Fork bridge below the Greenbelt Reservoir will be removed. The $800,000 job will take the roadway back down to grade and will add a small drainage structure for the water that is allowed to flow from the reservoir.

District-wide the state will spend $5 million in FY 2004 to seal coat 300 miles of state highways. Cain said the goal is for every roadway to get a new surface every eight years.

Texas Comptroller Carole Keeton Rylander delivered $292.2 million in monthly sales tax payments to local governments this month.

Rebates to local cities were up over the same period last year.

Clarendon received $16,820.94, up 9.86 percent. Hedley’s rebate increased from $258.98 in December 2001 to $659.27 this year. Howardwick saw 5.68 percent increase for a rebate of $911.33.

December sales tax rebates include local sales taxes collected in October and reported to the Comptroller in November. The state’s share of sales tax reported during this period was $1.3 billion.

For details of sales tax payments, locate the Monthly Sales and Use Tax Allocation Comparison Summary Reports at www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/allocsum/compsum.html

By Carrie Helms, Clarendon Enterprise

Donley County resident Laban Tubbs is up in arms after two stray .30 caliber bullets from the shooting range at Clarendon Municipal Airport hit his barn and residence early last week.

Tubbs made a formal report with the Sheriff’s Office and asked the board of aldermen to investigate the situation after he discovered the bullet-holes Wednesday.

The Offense Report from the Sheriff’s Office reads that the officer observed “two bullet holes, one located on the side of the barn and the other on the roof of the residence. Both bullet holes indicated the direction of travel from the west.”

Tubbs, his wife, and two children have lived in their home located about three-quarters of a mile east of the airport shooting range for six years.

“If the shot that hit the roof had been any lower or to the left,” Tubbs said, “it probably would have gone through one living room window and out the other side.”

The family was not at home when the bullets hit the house and barn; but about a month ago, Tubbs heard a bullet pass by overhead when he and his 9-year-old daughter were outside.

“When it happened, I looked the house over but didn’t see any damage,” Tubbs said. “If anyone shoots above the berm, they are directly in line with my house.”

A sign is posted above the berm at the shooting range that spells out rules for safe shooting, but Tubbs suspects it had been used for target practice more than it had been read.

“Most of the people who shoot out there are very careful and conscious of where their bullets go,” Tubbs said, “but there will always be a few who won’t be so careful.”

Tubbs said he is uneasy now about his children being outside when people are shooting at the range.

“I told them if they hear people down there to come inside,” Tubbs said. “I don’t know what else to do.”

The Clarendon Board of Aldermen has called a meeting for Monday, December 30, at 7 p.m. to discuss closing the range.

“It looks like one person is going to ruin it for everybody,” Sheriff Butch Blackburn said, “Now it appears the city is going to outlaw it, and we will enforce it.”

According to Alderman Janice Knorpp, the opinion of the board seems to be that the range should not continue to operate.

“It should be closed,” she said. “It’s a wonder no one was killed.”

Tubbs is anxious for some change to be made quickly.

“Something needs to be done soon,” Tubbs said. “I appreciate the support the city council has given me, and I know they will do the right thing.”