The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 96, No. 92, Ed. 1 Sunday, May 8, 2016 Page: 4 of 18
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4 A The Baytown Sun
Viewpoints
Sunday
May 8, 2016
Mother’s Day
In I9I4, President Woodrow Wilson signed a procla-
mation designating Mother’s Day, held on the second
Sunday in May, as a national holiday to honor mothers
It’s a nice annual occasion to thank your mother for
everything she did for you over the years. It should
certainly not be the only occasion in which you offer
her thanks for all she has done.
She deserves so much more than that.
From preparing meals and doing laundry to cleaning
house and kissing scrapes to make them better, moth-
ers provide the energy that keep families going.
Mothers arc our first teacher, whose words still play
in our heads, even after she’s gone.
The best way to celebrate mom is by giving her a day
off from worrying about you, telling her you love her,
and that everything is going just wonderfully, thanks.
Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Re-elect Wayne Smith
this letter is intended to provide support for state
Rep. Wayne Smith in the primary runoff election on
May 24. Wayne and I have been friends for years, and
l know him personally to be an honest, honorable, and
a practical man who has superbly represented District
128 in the Texas Legislature.
When l learned last summer that Briscoe Cain
planned to challenge him, I was concerned that our
representation would be compromised. Mr. Cain chal-
lenged Dennis Paul in District 129 in the last cycle and
has since relocated to our district to challenge Wayne,
a longtime Baytonian. I’m writing to tell you that Mr.
Cain will not represent District 128 well, and does
not have the experience to do the job. His allegiance
stands firmly with others, outside of our district, and
his funding comes from a PAC in Midland. He is not
the right man for the job.
Wayne fought for our country in Vietnam and un-
derstands the meaning and demands of public ser-
vice. Wayne owned a business for 25 years, meaning
he understands the importance of low taxes and less
red tape. As a civil engineer, Wayne is unequivocal-
ly the most qualified man when it comes to import-
ant issues that are unique to the Texas coast, such as
transportation, infrastructure, hurricanes and coastal
flooding. We must keep his voice in Austin because of
his knowledge of local business, regulations, and the
needs of our community.
During the primary election, I noticed that Mr. Cain
was misrepresenting facts about issues and misleading
the voters about Wayne Smith. For example, he spread
a smoke screen saying that tolling the Fred Hartman
Bridge was in play and that he would prevent such an
action. Seeing this pattern, I sought out some informa-
tion on where his money came from and whether he
was being truthful about all of the in-district grassroots
support he was getting. When I obtained his campaign
finance records, what I found was more deception
from Mr. Cain. There were occurrences where he was
not disclosing where contributions had come from,
and to whom expenditures were sent. I filed com-
plaints with the Texas Ethics Commission, they ruled
that the complaints had merit and gave Mr. Cain 10
days to respond. I don't personally know Briscoe Cain,
but he knows who I am, and, instead of correcting his
mistakes, Mr. Cain is now seeking $10,000 for each
complaint I filed.
Do you want a state representative who runs to sue
someone every time the going gets tough? Do you
want a state representative who purposely omits infor-
mation in an attempt to deceive voters? Do you want a
representative who attacks voters?
For quite some time Wayne Smith has proven to be
a good friend to our area, and a tireless champion for
the things we care about. Now, more than ever, it’s im-
portant that we hold up our end of the friendship and
get out to vote for him on May 24 (Early voting runs
May 16-20).
Spencer Carnes
Baytown
Baytown Sun Survey
Where should GCCISD hold
graduation ceremonies:
Houston 0.0 %
Beaumont 9.1 %
Stallworth Stadium 43,2 %
Baytown needs larger 47.7 %
venue for such events
This week’s question: Who would you rather see
as president for the next four years?
Register your view at www.baytownsun.com
TODAY IN HISTORY
On this date:
In 1886, Atlanta pharmacist John Pemberton began
selling the original version of Coca-Cola, which he’d
invented.
In 1945, President Hany S. Truman announced on
radio that Nazi Germany’s forces had surrendered,
and that “the flags of freedom fly all over Europe.”
In 1973, militant American Indians who’d held
the South Dakota hamlet of Wounded Knee for ten
weeks surrendered.
Thought for Today: “What you see is news, what
you know is background, what you feel is opinion."
— Lester Market, American editor (1894-1977)
ThitJaytown Sun
EDITORIAL BOARD
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1301 Memorial Drive. Baytown
Janie Gray
Jim Finley, Jay Eahbaeh
M.A. Bengtson
David Bloom
Mike Wilson
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Play the ‘name game’ in pop quiz
To see how well you remember
names, take this pop quiz.
1. Who was Nelson McElroy?
2. Who owned the Grand Cleaners
on North Main?
3. Who managed the Britton-Cra-
vens Lumber Co. when the Brit-
ton-Cravens residential section was
developed?
4. Who was Fahy Godfrey?
5. Who was Buck Turner?
6. Who was Bernice Giddings?
7. Who was Otis Baughman?
8. Who was Julian Spring?
9. Who was Joe Speck?
10. Who was Bill Castleman?
11. Who was James Chamberlain?
12. Who was J.C. “Jake' Burkett?
13. Who were the two brothers who
ran a clothing store on Texas Avenue?
14. Who pioneered vocational edu-
cation at Robert E. Lee High School
and Lee College?
15. Howard E. Brunson and John
Brunson were pioneer businessmen
but were not in the same business.
What did they do?
And the answers are.
1. Nelson McElroy. was the
Baytown Chamber of Commerce
manager from 1946 until his death in
1963. A former teacher, he served as a
major in the Air Force during World
Warll.
2. E.D. Williams owned and man-
aged the Grand Cleaners on North
Main. His brother, B.B. Williams, was
WANDA
ORTON
a developer and for-
mer city engineer.
3. Bob Van De-
venter was the Brit-
ton-Cravens Lumber
; Co. manager who
planned and devel-
oped the first streets
in Britton-Cravens
residential section,
starting with Utah
and Alabama in the 1940s.
4. A businessman in old Baytown,
Fahy Godfrey owned an insurance
agency on Market Street.
5. Buck Turner had a Chevrolet
dealership on North Main.
6. Bernice Giddings was a member
of a longtime Cedar Bayou family and
the wife of J.D, Giddings, executive
vice president of the Kilgore Sand,
Shell and Gravel Co. Like her father,
John M. Kilgore, Bernice was a prom-
inent civic and church leader.
7. Otis Baughman ran the Rhythm
Music Co. on South Ashbel at West
Pearce. His business was a haven for
music lovers who enjoyed playing
records in soundproof booths before
buying them.
8. Julian Spring was an optometrist
with an office on South Ashbel.
9. Joe Speck managed Earthman
Funeral Home.
10. Bill Castleman was a port dis-
patcher at the Baytown Refinery
Docks. Wife Geraldine, known as
Queenie, taught English at Baytown
Junior High before joining the faculty
at Robert E. Lee High School.
11. James Chamberlain taught his-
tory and civics at Lee College before
his death from polio in the worst epi-
demic in Baytown’s history in 1952.
12. Jake Burkett directed the Rob-
ert E. Lee Band, and one of his prize
students was Charles Forque, a future
director of the band. Burkett’s wife,
Mary Lou, taught English at REL and
was a published poet and playwright.
13. Brothers Sam and Leon Paine
owned and managed Paine Bros., a
clothing store in the 200 block of Tex-
as Avenue. The business, originally
known as Sumner’s Dry Goods, was
founded by Mose Sumner.
14. W.F. Muller could be called
the “Father of Vocational Education”
in the school district for establishing
job-oriented classes. His wife, Lela,
taught at Horace Mann Junior High.
15. Howard Brunson was the “pic-
ture show man,” owner of several
movie theaters and the namesake ol
the Brunson Theater on Texas Ave-
nue. His brother. John, was the “gro-
cery store man," owning a store in old
Baytown at the comer of Market and
Minnesota.
Wanda Orton is a retired managing
editor oj The Sun. She can be reachea
at viewpoints@baytownsun.com. At-
tention: Wanda Orton.
-Mg«D>n uMSMK-UW
Photo unexpected Mother’s Day reminder
Like manna from heaven, there sud-
denly appeared on my Computer Box
a black and white picture of a stun-
ningly beautiful couple.
My mama and me.
(See lovely photo at far right.)
1 look divine in a sleeveless sweater
made all the more exquisite because of
its striped pattern. (Most likely in Ra-
zorback Red and White.)
Mama — or Veva Nell as she was
known back then — is just plain gor-
geous sitting there holding my hand,
probably so I wouldn’t fall.
Fall? Me?
Maybe.
I figure 1 was no more than 3 years
old when this picture was snapped in
the oilfields of Kilgore — deep in the
heart of East Texas — where I was
bom and lived the first four years of
my exciting life.
(NON-EDITOR’S NOTE: There
are some who probably feel I DID fall
seconds after the picture was taken,
bouncing my head off the floor, lead-
ing to a lifetime of silliness and inept-
itude.)
The picture only made me realize
how much I miss mama here in the
Mother’s Day season. Today marks the
15th Mother’s Day I’ve spent without
her.
I did love that woman. And the feel-
ing was mutual, I’m fairly sure.
The picture came from Michael Ray
Scarborough, my nephew, after my
cousin Veva Jo Sloma found it and
others somewhere.
Both Michael Ray and Veva Jo
live in West Columbia, which I've
tried hard not to hold against them all
these years. West Columbia being the
arch-rival of my Sweeny Bulldogs.
The picture had precious memo-
ries — some sad ones, too — clinking
around in my mind, where they are
stored forever.
Mama was a
sweetheart, but the
last 12 years of her
life were not always
easy after she was
widowed for the sec-
ond time.
She lived alone
in this nice house
on a large comer lot
in West Columbia
(what gives with this West Columbia
business?). We got down to see her of-
JIM
FINLEY
ten.
Fortunately, she had my sweet sis-
ter, Rose Nell Scarborough, Michael
Ray’s mom, to watch over her and take
care ot her needs. Rose was a blessing
from above.
My role was to keep her upbeat.
There’d be no sitting around feeling
sorry for herself. Not if 1 could help it.
As I’ve written before, more than
once when she was having a down
day, I told her if she didn’t straighten
up and fly right (remember that old
phrase?), I was personally going to put
her in a nursing home.
In BELLVILLE!
To which she would say, “Teeeeee
[same as T-Bone, my real namej, “why
Bellville?”
Simple, I’d reply, because it’s far
away and we won’t have to bother
with you.
She’d smile and show signs of im-
provement.
I also gave her grief about a baseball
bat she kept near her bedroom for pro-
tection. Sort of.
Problem was, she placed the bat
against the doorframe OUTSIDE of
her bedroom.
I often asked her what she was going
to do if she heard someone outside her
door. Are you going to ask the gangster
to hand you the bat so you can strike
him with it?
“Teeeeee!” was her response.
It must be noted that mama, who be-
came Gigi with the birth of her grand-
babies, and my papa, J.P., divorced
at the start of my senior year in high
school.
That was fun.
But she made the best of life as
one of the top beauticians in Brazoria
County, and never asked for a thing.
Ironically, Gigi died six months af-
ter Wife Margie’s mom, Annie Holub,
passed in 2001.
Annie, or Nannie as she became,
was so good to me that she was like a
second mom. (She actually loved me
more than Wife Margie did/does.)
Nannie was also widowed. Husband
Bill died when Wife Margie was just
11, but, like Gigi, she asked for noth-
ing, and was a precious gift from God
Ah, that old picture ...
Happy Mother’s Day, my angels.
Jim Finley is a retired managing ed-
itor of The Sun He can be reached at
viewpoints@baytownsun.com, Atten-
tion: Jim Finley.
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Bloom, David. The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 96, No. 92, Ed. 1 Sunday, May 8, 2016, newspaper, May 8, 2016; Baytown, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1066214/m1/4/: accessed April 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Sterling Municipal Library.