Cherokeean Herald (Rusk, Tex.), Vol. 164, No. 21, Ed. 1 Wednesday, July 17, 2013 Page: 6 of 16
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6A
■ Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Cljerokeeaij Herald ■ thecherokeean.com
RAINFALL_
continued from pg. 1A
drought index between 600-
700.
Only three counties in the
state are at the highest levels
on the drought index: El Paso,
Brazoria and Lee counties.
There is a 40 percent chance
of rain Wednesday, a 30
percent chance Thursday and
20 percent chances on Friday
and Saturday.
Every little bit helps
In and around Cherokee
County, the recent rains
have helped — slightly — but
officials say more is needed
to help raise the county from
its drought risk.
“I recently saw a report
that said, on average, we’re
10-12 inches behind normal
rainfall levels for the year,”
said Aaron Low, Cherokee
County Agrilife ag and natural
resources agent.
“We’re needing significant
rain to even reach a normal
year status. It hurts even more
because we’ve already needed
a year with excess rainfall to
help reestablish forages and
trees and improve tree health.
“Rain has been spotty most
of the year. Some have been
blessed with rain here and
there, while others seem to be
dryer and experiencing more
drought stress.”
Through June, Cherokee
County has seen a total of
18.67 inches of rain. June
served as Cherokee County’s
wettest month in 2013, with
5.34 inches falling during the
month.
January marked 4.24
inches, February saw 3.23
inches and March yielded 2.31
BOWMAN_
continued from pg. 1A
for approximately 80 East
Texas newspapers.
Mr. Bowman’s books
spanned all aspects of East
Texas, including community
and county histories, folklore,
travel, restaurants and coun-
try cafes, East Texas expres-
sions and idioms, hangings
and lynchings, home rem-
edies, East Texas rivers, the
Alamo, ghost towns, historic
murders, biographies, busi-
ness histories, the Indians
of East Texas and a series of
books on “The Bests of East
Texas.”
In Lufkin, Mr. Bowman
served as a member of the
Lufkin City Council for 15
years, as chairman of the
Lufkin/Angelina County
Chamber of Commerce, as
a member and chair of the
Board of Trustees for Angelina
College, as chairman of the
Angelina and Neches River
Authority, chairman of the
Angelina County Historical
Commission, secretary for
the Deep East Texas De-
velopment Association, the
Pineywoods Economic Part-
nership and the Texas Forest
Industries Council.
He also served as director
of Red River Radio in Shreve-
port, La., the Chamber of Com -
merce in Tyler and the East
Texas Chamber of Commerce
ETECH_
continued from pg. 1A
and the commission and bonus
plan offered for this position
is generating a great deal of
interest. With Etech’s best in
class benefits package, this is
easily one of the best jobs in
East Texas.”
Rusk civic and business
leaders were excited about the
new positions at Etech.
Rusk Mayor Angela Rai-
born said, “Etech has a great
partnership with the city of
Rusk. They are an asset to
our community, providing
jobs and career opportunities
for citizens. I am excited for
their expansion.”
Charles Hassell, president
of the Rusk Economic De-
velopment Corporation said,
“Rusk Economic Develop-
ment Corporation is honored
to have Etech here. We are
excited about the recent an-
nouncement of Etech’s new
inches of rain.
A total of 2.22 inches fell
in April and May was the
county’s driest month with
1.33 inches.
Should rains continue in
this vein, Cherokee County
will receive approximately
37.34 inches of rain for the
year — 12 inches lower than
last year’s 49 inches but 7
inches higher than 201 l’s
30.19. It’s an improvement
- but county officials say it’s
only a start.
“Historically, in a normal
year, the county receives
around 52 inches of rain,”
said Kim Benton, Cherokee
County Agrilife horticulture
agent. “We’d have already
had approximately 25 inches
of rain in a normal year. It’s
better than it was, but not as
good as it needs to be. We’ve
seen cattle ponds getting
lower, but the rains we just
received will help.”
Still feeling effects
While the weekend’s rains
will help, the county’s flora
and fauna are still feeling the
effects of the 2011 drought.
In 2011, the county had
seven months of less than two
inches of rainfall, including
August’s 0.76 inches.
“It’s a cumulative effect,”
Ms. Benton said. “You can
see it when you look at the
greenery. You see wilting
on the trees. We’ve had
so many years in drought
conditions and we’ve never
really recovered from that.”
The last strong year for
rainfall was 2004, when the
county received approximately
63.5 inches for the year. All
except two months received
more than three inches of rain.
That number was cut in half
in 2005 with 32.89 inches,
including a low of 0.02 inches
of rain in October of that year.
The numbers rose in 2006
with 44.65 inches and 2007
with 51.86 inches, but then
went into a steady decline.
The county received 40.25
inches in 2009, 38.18 inches
in 2010 and 30.19 in 2011.
“As the effects of the drought
were prolonged and the
temperature stayed so hot,
there was massive stress on
our plants,” Ms. Benton said.
“That was why we lost so many
trees (after 2011). They didn’t
have the energy stores — they
barely had life to send up any
new sprouts.”
The drought also affected
area cattle producers, with
many of them having to sell off
parts — or all — of their herds.
“We were having to get hay
from out of state to sustain
herds,” Mr. Low said. “Most
of it was reasonably priced
and affordable, but it was
the shipping and freight that
forced most producers to at
least cull their herds severely.
“Since then, a lot of cattle
producers have tried to
rebuild, but due to the lack
of cow numbers and the law of
supply and demand, the price
to do so has gone up, making
it a bigger struggle. A lot of
producers are struggling to
get back to where they were,
and when you throw the
prices of cows, fuel prices and
the economy in general, that
makes it even more difficult.”
in Longview.
He served as chairman of
Lufkin’s Centennial Com-
mission in 1982, received the
Ralph W. Steen East Texan
of the Year by the Deep East
Texas Council of Govern-
ments in 1982 and was one
of the founders of the South-
ern Hushpuppy Cookoffs in
Lufkin.
He was also one of the found-
ers of the Pineywoods Founda-
tion of Lufkin, which serves
East Texas with charitable
contributions. He served as
secretary and administrative
trustee of the foundation since
its creation in 1982.
Mr. Bowman also organized
the Ottis Lock Endowment
for the East Texas Historical
Association and served as its
chair until 2008.
He and his wife also per-
sonally funded a number of
historical endowments, in-
cluding the Best of East Texas
Award, given annually to East
Texas historians since 2006,
and funded a series of annual
books on East Texas history
by other authors.
Mr. Bowman was the old-
est son in the family of Elvis
Weldon and Annie Mae Bow-
man of Diboll, graduated
from Diboll High School in
1954 and from Tyler Junior
College in 1956. In 1986, he
was chosen as Alumnus of the
Year at TJC.
His professional career
included service in the news-
paper field, the forest products
industry, and the oil and gas
industry.
He worked for the Diboll
Free Press, the Tyler Courier-
Times Telegraph, the Lufkin
Daily News and the Hous-
ton Chronicle before joining
Southland Paper Mills, Inc.
in 1966 as its first public
relations manager. He also
worked for St. Regis Paper
Company at Lufkin before
joining Delta Drilling Com-
pany of Tylerin 1982 as public
relations manager before re-
turning to Lufkin in 1985 to
found his own company with
his wife Doris.
Survivors are his wife,
Doris; two sons, Neil of Pear-
land and Jimmy of Lufkin;
his daughter-in-law, Ginny
of Pearland; two grandsons,
Scott and Matthew of Pear-
land; a sister, Dicy Cun-
ningham of Dallas; and two
brothers, Larry of Diboll and
Billy of Montgomery.
In lieu of flowers donations
may be made to the Bob Bow-
man Journalism Scholarship
at Angelina College, P.O. Box
1768, Lufkin 75902-1768.
Gipson Funeral Home is in
charge of arrangements.
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
SNAPSHOT: 9-year rainfall comparison
63.5
51.9
49.8
44.7
41.6
40.3
38.2
32.9
30.2
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
SOURCE: CITY OF RUSK, REPORTING STATION FOR NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
Mr. Low said that 2012’s
rains helped a bit, but 2013
represented a slight step back.
“Last year was pretty good
and people tried to build back
up, but we’re seeing a similar
situation this year as we did
in 2011,” he explained. “We’re
not producing the amount
of hay that we need to be
producing and we’re seeing
drought stress. Ponds and
creeks are going dry.
“A lot of our hay meadows
were permanently damaged
and needed a lot of replanting
last year, but we’re entering
another bad year. We’re
seeing more drought stress
on forages and trees that are
already stressed are feeling
more. We’ll see larger tree
loss if this drought period
continues.”
Fighting the drought
Ms. Benton said gardeners
and homeowners could take a
few steps to help their likely
drought-stressed plants.
“Especially for trees that
lived through 2011, you need
to make sure you water your
trees every four weeks,” she
said.
“Generally, they need at
least an inch of water every
four weeks. In the winter,
when the tree is dormant, it’s
different, but around their
active growing season, they
need water or rain every four
weeks.”
Ms. Benton also said that
preparation in the spring
would go a long way in
protecting trees once the
summer heat waves hit.
“People should fertilize in
the spring with a nitrogen
fertilizer,” she said. “That
will make them less prone to
diseases or insect problems
when the heat hits.
“Anyone who consciously
wants to save their trees needs
a rain gauge at their house
and needs to be cognizant
of what’s going on with your
trees and plants.”
As rains roll through,
officials are hoping for a
wetter finish to the year to
start the healing process.
“We’re all hoping that the
drought conditions don’t get
us too bad,” Ms. Benton said.
“I hope the rains will even it
out a little.”
“Hopefully, we’ll be able to
break the drought cycle and
have a good year,” Mr. Low
said.
RUSKISD
continued from pg. 1A
being moved into renovated
quarters formerly used by
the home economics program
at the high school. There are
12 students involved in the
program.
Cost to renovate these
quarters will be up to $93,523.
This cost will come from the
current school budget.
Salary for beginning bus
drivers was set at $12.50
per hour with a cap of $15
an hour.
The board approved an
amendment for the current
budget. The amendment will
include extra expenses for
upgrading security at the
junior high and renovation
of the weight room.
The board will meet on Aug.
12 for the regular meeting
and on Aug. 29 to adopt the
budget and set the tax rate.
Following an executive
session the board approved
the resignations of five
teachers and two non-chapter
21 persons.
Resignations were accepted
from Stephanie Branch
and Patrick Gow, teachers/
coaches; and Tera Collins,
Andrew Marchetti and Craig
Wilcox, teachers.
Non-chapter 21 persons
resigning were Tiffany
Wilbourn, diagnostician and
Tammy Waldron, LSSP.
Employed were Steve
McQueen and Donald Shirey
II, teachers/coaches; Brittany
Harris, teacher/band
director; Anthony Garner,
Andrew Marchetti, Ashley
Boyett, Julie Henry, Sunnye
Hickman, Krystin Lucas,
Heather McCoy, Alanna
Mehlenbacher and Kasi
Williams, teachers; and Betty
Kyle and Jo Henderson-
Tussing, diagnosticians.
Roll call
Attending the meeting
were Board President Rodney
Hugghins; Vice-President
Britt Patterson; Secretary
Frances Long; and Jeff
Johnson, Roy Cavazoz and
Dana Young. Bruce Bradley
was absent.
COMMISSIONERS COURT_
continued from pg. 1A
don’t call it reserve; they call it a rainy day
fund,” County Auditor L.H. Crockett said.
Justices of the Peace Tony Johnson, Precinct
2 and Phillip Grimes, Precinct 3, appeared
before the court. They asked for raises for
their clerks and extra gas money.
The other two JPs, Brenda Dominy, Precinct
1, and Vera Foreman, Precinct 4, made similar
requests in writing to the commissioner.
Constables Jack White, Precinct 2, Eddie
Lee, Precinct 3 and Jamie Beene, Precinct 4
met with commissioners on Monday. Lynn
Kelley, Precinct 1, was on vacation and did
not appear. He had sent his requests to the
court earlier.
The constables asked for money to attend
conferences and training, more oil and gas
funds, vehicle maintenance and training am-
munition. All are spending their own money
for purchases such as training ammunition.
Mr. Kelley had asked for $500 for furniture in
his office and $3,000 for travel. Mr. Lee also
asked for a reserve deputy.
Attending the meeting were Judge Davis;
Commissioners Traylor, Steven Norton, Kath-
erine Pinotti and Byron Underwood; County
Clerk Laverne Lusk; and County Auditor
Crockett.
partnership with a major
insurance carrier that will cre-
ate more than 100 new jobs in
Rusk and Nacogdoches. Under
Matt Rocco’s leadership they
have proven to be an outstand-
ing business leader in the com-
munity and we look forward
to Etech’s future expansion.”
Rusk Chamber of Com-
merce executive director Bob
Goldsberry expressed his
excitement over the Etech
announcement. “Anytime you
can add new jobs to a com-
munity it is a good thing. We
are looking forward to this
addition.”
Etech provides more than
2,500 employees in eight
locations worldwide. Call
centers are located in the
United States, Jamaica and
India. Texas facilities include
Dallas, Lufkin, Nacogdoches
and Rusk.
-< Kanesha
Holman of
Palestine explains
the process of
obtaining an
insurance license
to Rusk Mayor
Angela Raiborn,
left. Etech account
leader Ben Johnson
is at right. Ms.
Holman is a part of
a class receiving
training at Etech
to fill positions for
a contract with
a major health
insurance carrier.
A total of 100
persons will be
hired in Rusk and
Nacogdoches to fill
the positions.
Coming soon: fall football outlook
Advertising space now available! Call (903) BQ3-2257
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Gonzalez, Terrie. Cherokeean Herald (Rusk, Tex.), Vol. 164, No. 21, Ed. 1 Wednesday, July 17, 2013, newspaper, July 17, 2013; Rusk, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth614702/m1/6/: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Singletary Memorial Library.