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Glasscock County News
‘Burnout’ Affecting Local EMS
Glasscock County Judge Wilburn Bednar said the county faces a problem with ‘burnout’ among its Emergency Medical Service volunteers. Bednar’s remarks came at the Feb. 10 meeting of the county’s commissioners’ court. He suggested that the county pay $50 for each ambulance run to each EMS person who makes the run. He said, “For whatever reasons, the same few people make almost all the emergency runs,” and are consequently getting burned out. He said some compensation might help the problem. He added that the compensation would not jeopardize the volunteers’ protection from liability afforded by the Good Samaritan Act. Currently, the county does not pay volunteers at all, and they have not asked to b e paid. The county pays for training and provides the funding for equipment and operations for EMS and volunteer fire departments. Also, the county provides an annual appreciation dinner for volunteers. Pay Per Run Would be Token Gesture Commissioner Mark Halfmann said there were three EMS runs in one day in early January. The court discussed the time EMS volunteers must spend getting and keeping certification, and County Treasurer Alan Dierschke said efforts to bring new people into the program haven’t been successful. The commissioners agreed that $50 per person per run would not be adequate compensation, nor would it be enough to bring new people on board, but they said it would be a token of the county’s appreciation. The court took no official action in the matter, but agreed that Bednar would check further into the Good Samaritan Act and would determine how much other area counties are paying their volunteers. Halfmann said, “We have an excellent bunch [of EMS volunteers] now and we sure want to keep them.” County to Acquire Town Lots The county court voted to purchase three town lots from Tony Ramirez for $1,000 each and to condemn and take over three adjacent ones. The county will pay past due school taxes on the three lots it is condemning. After these actions, the county will own all the lots that touch Gold Street immediately east of the post office in the block just south of Highway 158. Bednar said he estimates that the process will cost $1,500 in attorney’s fees and approximately $300 for school taxes. The court discussed plumbing problems in the building that houses the sheriff’s department, jail and the deputy’s apartment. Bednar said there is lots of “chat” (a fine, caliche-type rock) in the water lines, clogging fixtures and damaging valves. Apparently, Bednar said, the material got into the lines during the community centers’ construction when some water lines had to be lowered. Halfmann said in-line filters in the jail had been by-passed at some point in the past, adding to the problem. Deputy Keith Barnett reported that Quality Plumbing in Big Spring estimated a cost of $2,800 (labor only) to replace all 26 valves. Commissioners asked Barnett to get another repair estimate. Precinct Four Polling Place Changes The court voted to change the polling place for Precinct Four from the Methodist Church to the Senior Citizens’ Building to provide more room. Bednar said an entrance to the seniors’ building would first have to be made handicapped accessible. After a closed session to discuss personnel matters, Bednar said a retired county employee who comes back to work for the county and works more than 900 hours per year must temporarily forego his/her retirement income and must pay into the retirement system again. The court declined to set a rule that county employees not be allowed to drive or pull vehicles belonging to others, but said the practice should be avoided whenever possible. This was after the county agreed to pay for repair to a privately owned trailer that was damaged while being pulled by Glasscock County Ag Agent Steve Sturtz. County in Market for Used Water Truck The court also voted to advertise for bids for a used water truck for Precinct Three. Commissioner Hugh Schafer said the cost would probably be somewhere between $26,000 and $40,000. Dierschke reported that the third bond payment ($126,000) for the community center would be due in March. He said the county’s cash reserves are now at $244,000. He also reported that the county historical committee (Helen Wilkerson, Mary Jo Cope and Dierschke) had met with Brenda Edwards of TexStone quarry regarding stone for a historical and veterans’ monument to be located on the corner near the old jail. He said the group would meet this week with a stonemason. Commissioners voted to adopt a resolution that English be the official language of government in the U.S.A. Commissioner Michael Hoch said given the budget crunch facing the state, it is unlikely that funding will soon be available for courthouse restoration, and said the county needs to move forward with a new courthouse roof. He asked Dierschke to get an estimate from Kirby Hartman.
Briefly
• Glasscock County Senior Citizens will meet February 18. Bring fingerfoods, dips and chips. At the March 4 meeting, there will be a potluck meal. Everyone is asked to bring a dish. Meetings are at 6 p.m. at the Senior Citizen’s Building, and anyone 50 years or older is invited to come.
• The Community Choir will begin practice for an Easter Musical and Drama Feb. 23 at 5 p.m. at the First Baptist Church. Anyone who can make a joyful noise and likes to fellowship with others in the community is invited to participate. The program will be presented April 13 at 7 p.m. at the Community Center. For more information, contact Donna Donica 354-2430 or 354-2626.
• Latest enrollment figures for GCISD are: 150 in grades K–6, down 10 from a year ago; 50 in junior high and 94 in high school. The total of 144 in grades 7-12 is down 9 from a year ago.
• The GCISD School Board, meeting in regular session Feb. 10 with Cecelia Schwartz and Tina Flores absent, voted to extend the contracts of Elementary School Principal Brad Jones and Counselor Doug Conner for one year each.
• The St. Lawrence Polka Club is having its annual dance March 1 from 7 p.m. until 11 p.m in the St Lawrence Hall. The Jodie Mikula Band from Ennis will provide the music. There is no admission charge and everyone is invited.
• Project Graduation thanks those who supported the recent chicken dinner fundraiser, which was a great success.
• Anja Hein, a fifth-grader at Talent Elementary School in Talent, Oregon, has chosen Texas for her class project. She wrote the Glasscock County News to ask that people send her postcards and information about their part of Texas for a report she is writing. If any readers would like to send her information, her address at the school is: Mrs. Black’s Class, 37 W. Wagner Ave., P.O. Box 296, Talent, Oregon 97540.
Weather Spotter Class Scheduled
A SKYWARN Spotter Training class will be held Feb. 13 from 7 - 9 p.m. at the Glasscock County Community Center. SKYWARN training classes are for everyone. They are designed to train state and local law enforcement personnel, firefighters, emergency medical service personnel, and the amateur radio community. They are also for any person interested in becoming a SKYWARN spotter or for a family wanting to develop a severe weather safety plan. A SKYWARN spotter volunteers his or her time watching for potential severe weather in approaching thunderstorms, and then reports this information back to either the National Weather Service or local officials. For more information, call Pat Vesper, warning coordination meteorologist, NWS, Midland, at 915-563-5006, ext. 223 or Kenny Batla, Glasscock County Emergency Management Coordinator, 354-2665.
In The Spotlight
• Michelle Fuchs was named to the 2002 Cross Country Academic All-Big 12 Team. As a first team honoree, she met the requirements of maintaining a grade point average of 3.2 or better while participating in 60% or more of the scheduled Cross Country meets. Michelle, a junior accounting major at Texas A&M, is the daughter of Dennis and Barbara Fuchs.
• Garden City junior high and high school students recently excelled in a number of academic and athletic events, the results of which are in From the Schoolhouse..
• GCISD has named its Students of the Month for February: second grader Colton Belew, son of Bart and Charlene Belew; fifth grader Noemi Gonzalez, daughter of Martha Fraga; eighth grader Cade Halfmann, son of Larry and Kim Halfmann and Tyler Bednar, the freshman son of Sandy and Jimmy Bednar.
• Chelsea Schwartz was among sixty-eight Senior Belles who were presented by the Midland Symphony Guild at the Winter Wonderland Gala Ball. The Belle’s have performed four years of community and symphony service. From the SchoolhouseBooster Club News
Saturday, Feb. 22 will be a busy day at the Garden City schools. We are hosting a junior high track meet, a high school track meet, a junior high TMSCA meet and a one-act play festival. Also, the tennis team is entered in the Forsan tournament and there is possibly a basketball play-off game. The coaches have asked that anyone interested in helping at any of these events, primarily the track meets, please contact any one of them at the school.
Halfmann Wins Poster Contest
Kate Halfmann won the Glasscock County Soil and Water Conservation District 2002 poster contest. She will be recognized at an area conservation award program on March 27 at Wall. Ever Martinez placed second in the contest and Noemi Gonzalez was third. Allen Jansa presented ribbons to all who participated. This year’s theme was “The Gift of Trees”, and the GCSWCD thanks both Ms. Kujawski’s and Ms. Cook’s 5th grade classes for participating.
UIL Academic Team Results
Team results for the January UIL Academic Meet in Andrews were: Accounting team placed 1st. Team members were Jessica Hoch, who placed 1st, Leslie Jansa 3rd, and Guillermina Tenorio was 6th. Computer application team placed 1st. Team members were Kim Webb, who placed 3rd, Samuel Sanchez 4th, and Noemi Guerrero 6th. Reta Bell coached both of those teams. Science team members were Kim Webb, who placed 4th, Noemi Guerrero 5th and Kati Gully 10th. Linda Jones and Randy Gartman coached the science team.
TSMCA Meet Results
Results from the Junior High School Texas Science and Math Coaches Association meet in January at Colorado City were:
Team results: Math Team 2nd. Team members were: Taylor Niehues, Colton Schwartz, Wade Jansa, Amy Multer Science Team 3rd. Team members were: Taylor Niehues, Colton Schwartz, Wade Jansa, Emily Gully Calculator Team 3rd. Team members were: Taylor Niehues, Colton Schwartz, Wade Jansa, Amy Multer Number Sense Team 3rd. Team members were: Taylor Niehues, Colton Schwartz, Wade Jansa, Emily Gully
Individual results: Taylor Niehues: 1st in Math, 1st in Science, 2nd in Calculator, 4th in Number Sense. Colton Schwartz: 2nd in Math, 2nd in Science, 6th in Number Sense. Wade Jansa: 2nd in Math, 8th in Science, 6th in Calculator, 2nd in Number Sense. Amy Multer: 3rd in Math, 9th in Calculator, 10th in Number Sense. Whitney Kellermeier: 5th in Math. Other students attending were Sam Long, Brittney Chudej, and Jason Flores.
BPA Students Advance to State Competition
Business Professionals of America students competed in Area IV, Region 2 Competitive Events in Pecos Feb.1. Competing with schools from 1A to 5A, the following 21 students took the top six places at the contest. The top three places in each event advance to the state competition, March 6-9, in Corpus Christi. Fundamental Accounting: Megan Niehues placed 1st, Amanda Hirt 2nd Advanced Accounting: Anna Flores placed 1st, Leslie Jansa 2nd Computerized Accounting: Brecklyn Hughes placed 3rd Spreadsheet Applications: Daniel Martinez placed 1st Keyboarding Productions: Tyler Bednar placed 1st, Trey Hillger 4th Fundamental Word Processing Skills: Cory Multer placed 3rd, Brandi Halfmann 5th Advanced Word Processing Skills: Terri Branham placed 4th Integrated Office Procedures: Viviana Gamboa placed 4th, Morgan Kight 5th Desktop Publishing: Samuel Sanchez placed 5th, Keith Batla 6th Basic Office Systems & Procedures: Krystal Sullivan placed 5th Advanced Office Systems & Procedures: Lisa Eggemeyer placed 3rd, Allison Jansa 5th Database Applications: Kim Webb placed 1st C++Programmer: Noemi Guerrero placed 1st Prepared Speech: Amanda Henson placed 2nd Administrative Support Team: Samuel Sanchez, Brecklyn Hughes, Leslie Jansa, and Allison Jansa placed 2nd; Daniel Martinez, Keith Batla, Lisa Eggemeyer, and Anna Flores placed 3rd Coaches were Cory Richardson, Jerry Cannon and Reta Bell.
UIL Academic Teams Take 1A Sweepstakes
Garden City UIL Academic Teams participated in the 2003 Texas Tech Red Raider Invitational Meet in Lubbock Jan.25, and walked away with the 1A Sweepstakes. The following teams placed:
Accounting, team placed first overall: Jessica Hoch 2nd, Leslie Jansa 3rd, Guillermina Tenorio 4th, Megan Niehues 5th, Anna Flores 6th. Coached by Reta Bell Calculator Applications, team placed first overall: Megan Niehues 1st, Blake Chudej 2nd, Daniel Martinez 3rd, Morgan Kight 5th. Coached by Jerry Cannon Computer Applications, team placed first overall: Noemi Guerrero 1st, Daniel Martinez 2nd, Samuel Sanchez 3rd. Coached by Reta Bell Computer Science, team placed first overall: David Neufeld 1st, Yessina Martinez 2nd. Coached by Jerry Cannon Mathematics, team placed first overall: Noemi Guerrero 2nd, Megan Niehues 3rd, Viviana Gamboa 4th, Tyler Bednar 6th. Coached by Jerry Cannon Feature Writing: Natalie Hoelscher 3rd. Coached by Linda DeWitt Headline Writing: Natalie Hoelscher 3rd. Coached by Linda DeWitt Number Sense: Megan Niehues 3rd, Tyler Bednar 6th. Coached by Jerry Cannon Science: Noemi Guerrero 4th. Coached by Linda Jones and Randy Gartman Spelling & Vocabulary: Brandon Reyes 3rd. Coached by Linda Frysak
Junior High Basketball Teams Post Winning Seasons
Seventh Grade Girls: Record: 12 – 0; Robert Lee Tournament 2 – 0. Team members: Mikela Barton, Whitney Kellermeier, Amy Multer, Halie Schaefer, Analisa Gonzales, Michelle Gonzales, Brittney Chudej, Lyza Lopez and Elia Briseno. Seventh Grade Boys: Record: 6 – 5. Team members: Eric Hirt, Bo Eggemeyer, Nick Sanchez, Wade Jansa, Ryan Alvarado, and Doug Cmerek. Eighth Grade Girls: Record: 13 – 1; Water Valley Tournament Champs. Team members: Julie Hirt, K’Lann Niehues, Marissa Schwartz, Katie Schmitz, Erin Hirt, Lauren Plagens, Maryann Trevino, Victoria Ortiz, Emily Gully. Eighth Grade Boys: Record: 13 – 1; Garden City Tournament Champs. Team members: Evan Jansa, J. R. Medrano, Taylor Niehues, Chase O’ Brian, Blaine Walker, Jared Bradford, Cade Halfmann, Jason Flores, Alex Halfmann and Justin Pierson.
Honor Rolls Announced (Third Six Weeks)
Secondary School
• The “A” Honor Roll: seventh grade — Mikela Barton. Wade Jansa, Amy Multer, Whitney Kellermeier, Lyza-Ann Lopez, Halie Schaefer; eighth grade — Cade Halfmann, Taylor Niehues, Colton Schwartz; ninth grade — Tyler Bednar, Tracy Eggemeyer; tenth grade — Megan Niehues, Amanda Hirt; eleventh grade — Anna Flores, Noemi Guerrero, Amanda Henson, Jessica Hoch, Brecklyn Hughes, Allison Jansa, Leslie Jansa, Morgan Kight; twelfth grade — Guillermina Tenorio.
• The “A—B” Honor Roll: seventh grade — Brittney Chudej, Analisa Gonzales, Michelle Gonzalez, Eric Hirt, Nick Sanchez, Cutberto Tenorio; eighth grade —Jared Bradford, Chance Burks, Sergio Guerrero, Emily Gully, Alex Halfmann, Erin Hirt, Julie Hirt, Evan Jansa, K’Lann Niehues, Chase O’Brien, Victoria Ortiz, Justin Pierson, Katie Schmitz, Marissa Schwartz; ninth grade —Katie Gully, Garrett Kellermeier, Cory Multer, Shaun Maxie; tenth grade — Terri Branham, Brandi Halfmann, Timothy Schniers; eleventh grade — Blake Chudej, Stacy Gully, Dora Martinez, Savannah Smith, Kim Webb; twelfth grade —Linda Branham, Marianne Halfmann, Lisa Hoelscher, Drew Plagens, Angela Schraeder and Patricia Sullivan.
Obituaries
• Marie Clifton, 77, of Garden City, died Jan. 24 at Mountain View Lodge in Big Spring following a short illness and was buried in Mason. She was born in 1925 to Frank and Naomi Bailey in San Angelo and married James Evert Clifton in 1941 in Menard. They lived most of their lives in the Mason-Menard area. She had lived in Glasscock County since 1973. She was a member of the Church of Christ in Garden City. She was preceded in death by her husband, parents, a sister, Shirley Diehl, and a daughter-in-law, Darlene Clifton. She is survived by three sons and daughters-in-law, Frank and Betty Clifton of Garden City, Earnest and Carolyn Clifton of Sterling City and Wayne and Shirley Clifton of Waco, a sister, a brother, 27 grandchildren and 28 great grandchildren.
• Mary Dimple Cox Currie, 100, died Feb. 3 in Midland and was buried in Garden City Cemetery. She was born in 1902 in Tulia to Marietta and Samuel Cox. She grew up in Glasscock County, graduated from Garden City High School and attended Texas Women’s University. She married Stephen Calverley Currie in 1923 and they made a home together on their ranch in Glasscock County until his death in 1970. She was an active member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Garden City until she moved to Midland in 1971 and joined the First Presbyterian Church. She was preceded in death by her husband; brothers Lee Cox, Phin Cox, John Cox and Jim Will Cox; sisters Kitty Lemmons, Henrietta Doll Long, Mae Ratliff and several nieces and nephews. Survivors include one son, James Richard Currie and his wife Jimmie; two granddaughters, Cynthia Currie Howard and Darla Currie Taylor, 5 great-grandsons, special friends Alicia and Mike Ochotorena and others.
Thanks to Newsletter Helpers
Many thanks to the reliable volunteers, without whom this newsletter would not be possible: Mary Jo Cope, Laura Huitt, Scott Cope, Marion Axe, Ethel Trotter, Kay Gilstrap and Carmen Johnson. Thanks to Editor Without Joe Melanie Calverley this newsletter would not be. All our thanks go to her. The Staff
Next Issue Date and Deadline
The next issue of the Glasscock County News will be March 12. The deadline for that issue is March 10, but earlier material is helpful. Send information to: P.O. Box 98, Garden City, TX 79739; phone or fax: 915/354-2221; e-mail: gcnews201@aol.com. The Glasscock County News is published by Joe Melanie Calverley, P. O. Box 98, Garden City, TX, 79739. Phone or fax: 915/354-2221; e-mail: gcnews201@aol.com; web site: http://wscope.com/glasscock/
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