The Mercedes Enterprise (Mercedes, Tex.), Vol. 52, No. 40, Ed. 1 Thursday, October 5, 1967 Page: 1 of 20
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The Merce
Mercedes, Texas, 78570, Thursday, October 5, 1967
556 3RD STREET
C I TY
nterprise
Vol. 52 No. 40
Price 10c
Clean-up Contract Due, OEP Funds Sought
m m S mmmI
Officials Now Surveying
Hurricane, Flood Losses
ENTERPRISE STAFF PHOTO
BUSY MAKING FRIENDS THIS WEEK — City’s insecticide fogging machine,
above Sunday on east 10th Street, is helping fight swarms of mosquitoes, a
pesky, health-hazard aftermath of Hurricane Beulah and her flood. Army ae-
rial spraying covered the City Wednesday morning, helping ease the fogger’s
seven-day attack schedule.
A quick clean-up is in
prospect for Mercedes.
City officials conferred
Tuesday and Wednesday with
representatives of the US
Army Corps of Engineers
and the federal Office of
Emergency Planning, with
federal financial assistance
in a three-week, city-wide
get-back-to-normal project
as the goal.
OEP disaster assistance,
for which City Commission-
ers will apply, can cover
as much as 75% of the cost
of cleaning up after Hurri-
cane Beulah and her flood.
That assistance includes
work in the following cate-
gories:
Debris clearance
and
DISTRICT’S DAMAGES OVER $5,000
Beulah Revises School Calendar, Move-in
Hurricane damage to local
public schools will cost $5,
000 to $6,000 to repair, es-
timates School Superinten-
dent N. K. Fitzgerald. “But
we feel fortunate to have
escaped that lightly”, he ad-
ded.
During the hurricane and
flood period, schools lost se-
ven classroom days. They
will be made up in a re-
vised school calendar being
prepared this week. A total
of 175 school days are re-
quired, and should be
achieved, if at all possible,
before June 1, without re-
quiring Saturday class time,
according to the Texas Ed-
ucation Agency.
Beulah has caused delay of
plans to move into a new
Mercedes high school class-
room building. It now
appears, said Mr. Fitzgerald
that the job of moving may
be accomplished on October
16 or 23. There was no
hurricane damage to the buil-
ding, but contractors were
unable to stay on the job
during the storm period.
Tutorial classes, schedu-
Football Season Resumes,
Raymondville at Mercedes
, ‘No contest' was the rule
on the Mercedes-Falfurrias
football game, but Tigers
get back into the schedule
with a positive test this
Friday night. They meet
Raymondville BearKats at
8 p.m. at Tiger Stadium.
The Falfurrias game, ori-
ginally set for September 22
at Falfurrias was postponed
by Beulah until September
29 and then was cancelled
by the flooding that follow-
ed at Falfurrias.
A nine-game schedule is
probable for the Tigers,
each game being played ac-
cording to the original sche-
dule, but one week later.
Freshman Eddie Torres,
who stepped into the quar-
terback spot at Brownsville
in the last contest, back on
September 15, will start for
the Tigers this Friday.
Backs working with him are
Roy Rodriguez at fullback,
Saul Pineda at tailback and
Jaime Perez at wingback.
Offensive starters in the
line are ends Tirso Garza
and Isidro Robles, tackles
Bobby Martell and Rolando
Bono, guards Sam Montgo-
mery and Lindley Lentz and
center Larry Schwarz.
Raymondville brings its
seventh graders to town
Thursday for a game at 5:30
p.m., followed by an eighth
grade contest at 7. Tiger
B teamers play that same
evening at Raymondville at
7:30.
led to start September 25,
will begin October 9.
The hurricane damage
loss estimate includes $1,
575 for repair of roofs at
Taylor elementary school,
the gymnasium Tiger Sta-
dium dressing rooms.
Broken windows were re-
ported at the high school,
Stadium fieldhouse, junior
high and at Taylor, Travis
and Kennedy elementary
schools. All principals re-
ported some water damage,
and most had roof damage,
though not extensive.
School re-opened last
Thursday morning after a
seven-day hurricane vaca-
tion, with approximately 370
students and nine teachers-
absent. Attendance was al-
most normal on Friday.
“We were all extremely
proud of the way local stu-
dents pitched in to help in
every way possible during
the hurricane and the flood
threat”, said Mr. Fitz-
gerald. “They sand-bagged,
patrolled levees, cleared de-
bris, prepared food and did
everything anybody could
find for them to do”, con-
tinued the Superintendent,
“And everybody involved
was proud of them and
appreciative of their fine
help.”
Mayor Offers
Thanks for Help
Agencies and individuals
who helped avert a serious
flood situation here last
week “are too numerous to
mention”, says Mayor John
W. Bowe, “But I want all
who participated to know
that City of Mercedes of-
ficials are deeply apprecia-
tive of their help.”
He indicated that he will
have more to say publicly
on that subject at a later
date.
Band Boosters’
Memberships Out
Monthly meeting of the
MHS Band Boosters Club
was conducted Monday at the
Band Hall. Mrs. Noa Sisk,
president, presided.
Band Booster membership
tickets were distributed.
Protective, health
sanitation measures
Streets, roads and bridges
Dikes, levees and drain-
age facilities
Public buildings and re-
lated equipment
Public utilities
Actual extent of damage
in the city in those areas
is being catalogued by Corps
and OEP personnel this
week, accompanied on sur-
vey tours by Bill Savarino,
City Parks Director who has
been appointed by Mayor
John W. Bowe to head the
city’s OEP clean-up project,
and by Marvin Roberts, Fire
Marshal and City Building
Inspector.
At the same time, Mr.
Savarino is receiving bids
from area contractors for
the total city clean-up job.
These bids were submitted
to City Commissioners at a
special session Wednesday
night.
Bidders were Dodds and
Wedegarten and Ballenger
companies of San Benito, La-
guna Construction of Rock-
port, and Marchant Bros, and
J, E. Riley of Mercedes.
Work may begin next Mon-
day and extend for two or
three weeks, depending on
contract terms and opinions
of official inspectors.
Local residents must, un-
der federal regulations, mo-
ve all their debris to their
street or alley property
lines, since the contractor’s
crews will not be permitted
to enter private property.
In a footnote to the clean-
up story, officials suggest
that individuals know and
trust the contractors they
engage to make hurricane
repairs to their homes and
businesses.
WEATHER
SECTION 3
Enterprise Section 3
is a compilation of Hur-
ricane Beulah and flood
pictures, a production
sponsored as a public
service by Hidalgo
County Bank and Trust
Company. Extra copies
are available at the
bank.
Sept.
H
L
Rain
27
88
72
.29
28
73
58
29
77
55
30
Oct.
82
56
1
84
60
2
84
69
.31
3
84
71
.38
Total Rainfall: 25.33
Tax Statements Out A Little Bit Late: Beulah
Hurricane Beulah made a
dent in plans to get city
and school district tax bills
in the mail for Mercedes
residents. Loss of three of-
fice days beat the usual
pre-October 1 mailing of
tax statements.
But those statements are
in the mail this week.
Anselmo Sanchez, asses-
sor-collector for the joint
office for the city and school
taxing units, said some bill
for 1967 taxes were mailed
Monday of this week, some
were mailed Tuesday and
more were on the way Wed-
nesday.
He said the “most help-
ful message” he could con-
vey to the taxpaying public
was that renditions are
mostly unchanged and that
taking advantage of the per-
centage discounts for early
payment “would benefit ev-
erybody”. Taxpayers get a
3% discount for payment of
taxes in October, 2 2% dis-
count for payment in No-
vember and a 1% discount if
they pay their taxes in De-
cember.
Mr. Sanchez and office
helpers mailed out 5,000
combined city and school
tax bills and 1,500 separate
school district tax bills. To-
tal billing for the city was
$207,628 and for the school
district was $282,100. Both
units tax at $1.75 per hund-
red dollars of valuation.
T axable property valua-
tions increased for both tax-
ation units, from $16,092,
100 to $16,144,020 for the
school district and from $11,
742,005 to $11,919,077 for
the city.
Annual Covered
Dish Supper
Mercedes 4-H Club will
meet at the Livestock Show-
grounds clubhouse Monday,
October 9, for an annual
covered dish supper. A114-H
members and their members
are invited.
Speaks At
FFA Session
E. M. Albright, principal
of Mercedes high school,
was guest speaker at an MHS
Future Farmers of Ameri-
ca meeting Monday night.
He spoke on “Changing
Times”.
Saul Pineda conducted the
business meeting. Commit-
tees were appointed for the
annual Sun Valley Horse
Show, the only FFA money-
making project of the year.
Billy Joe Ervin is chair-
man of the trophy ads com-
mittee.
On the awards committee
are Rolando Marroquin, Noel
Fernandez and Mario Rodri-
guez. In charge of arena
preparation are Bobby Key,
Joe Gonzales, John Wade,
Larry Bandemer and Billy
Joe Ervin. Gatemen are Joe
Barbosa, Darell Jones, Cat
de Leon, Joe Salas and Bob-
by Van Burkleo. In charge
of concessions are Roy Ro-
driguez, Jimmy Wade, Ja-
mes Massey, Wally Prado
and Buck Rodriguez.
Selected as FFA Sweet-
hearts are Gilsie Knapp,
who will be the unit’s Cover
Girl contestant, and Yolanda
Ortiz, Blue Jean Queen con-
testant. They will represent
the chapter at other school
events during the year.
ENTERPRISE STAFF PHOTO
HELP IS EXPECTED SOON ... city crews contin-
ued clean-up operations, but a contractor is expect-
ted to move in for the total clean-up job. Residents
are to stack debris at street and alley lines, as
Capisallo Street picture above illustrates.
CHURCHES UNITE FOR RELIEF
Warehouse Set Up
For All in Need
Through combined efforts
of both ministerial alliances
of Mercedes a central down-
town warehouse is being es-
tablished from which to dis-
pense clothing, furniture and
bedding to needy hurricane
and flood victims.
All churches of the com-
munity, whether members of
either alliance, or not are
invited to participate. Pre-
sidents of the two groups
announcing warehouse plans
are the Rev. Leo Tripp,
First Presbyterian Church,
and the Rev. Fernando Pa-
dilla, El Principe de Paz
Presbyterian Church.
They said that the ware-
house will be located in the
Rippert Building, arranged
by Mrs. H. J. Menton, owner.
Lighting and electricity are
to be contributed by Central
Power and Light Company.
The project will be
operated in cooperation with
the local Salvation Army
Service Unit, any warehouse
items not distributed here
to be retained for later dis-
tribution by the Unit. The
Red Cross, headquartered
in the Urban Renewal Agency
office, also will participate.
Persons willing to make
contributions are asked to
take the items to the Texas
Avenue warehouse, begin-
ning Thursday morning of
this week. Clothing, furniture
blankets, quilts, sheets
pillows and pillowcases are
the principal items, re-
quested.
Distribution will not begin
until the donations are inven-
toried, probably not until
Saturday.
Then, a person needing the
assistance may go to the
nearest church — whether
a member or not — receive
a form signed by a repre-
sentative of the church, take
the form to the central
warehouse and pick up what
is needed, if available.
“We want to help people
in need”, said the minis-
terial association presi-
dents, “no matter who they
are, or what their race or
religion.”
First items to go into the
relief warehouse stock will
be the personal clothing and
household furniture of the
late Mrs. W. B. Bradbury,
who left her estate to the
Texas Scottish Site Hospital
for Crippled Children and the
First Presbyterian Church
of Mercedes.
•i: 1 ■■ •
,
„ -
1109 ......___________________
ENTERPRISE STAFF PHOTO
HOW THEY KEPT THE GAP FROM WIDENING — When this Arroyo floodway
gap was pushed open by flood waters early last week a Mercedes flood threat
was relaxed and Harlingen got high water. The controversial IBWC flood con-
trol levee sectionwas protected from further collapse by 1, 600 tons of crush-
ed car bodies, placed as the picture taken last Sunday indicates.
TREE’ REHEARSALS BEGIN
Last year's ‘Singing Christmas Tree’ singers,
and any one of high school age or above interested
in singing with the group this year, are alerted for
the first rehearsal scheduled for Sunday afternoon,
October 15, at 2:30 p.m. at Mercedes high school
auditorium.
Citizens from every segment of Mercedes
cooperated in the presentation last year, insuring
the success that it was. Now, in spite of the ten-
sions and pressures of the past two weeks and the
possible stress to come, plans are underway toward
another community-wide production of the Mercedes
‘Singing Christmas Tree’.
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ENTERPRISE STAFF PHOTO
CLEARING STORM DEBRIS A PRIMARY TASK—Neighborhood Youth Corps-
men and city trucks combined to help with the job of removing mountains of
tree and brush debris strewn around by Hurricane Beulah. This group was
photographed Saturday at a South Missouri Street site.
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The Mercedes Enterprise (Mercedes, Tex.), Vol. 52, No. 40, Ed. 1 Thursday, October 5, 1967, newspaper, October 5, 1967; Mercedes, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1105826/m1/1/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Library.