Rains County Leader (Emory, Tex.), Vol. 114, No. 10, Ed. 1 Tuesday, August 14, 2001 Page: 1 of 16
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Bains Countu Leader
Your Hometown Newspaper Since 1887
PRICE 5001
| Vol. 114, Issue 10-1 Section, 16 Pages
EMORY, TEXAS - TUESDAY, AUGUST 14, 2001
NEWS BRIEFS
Rains Fire Prevention District meeting
The Rains County Rural Fire Prevention District Board of Directors
will hold a special meeting on Thursday, August 16, at 1:30 p.m. at the dis-
trict office in the fire station in Emory, at which time the following items of
business will be considered and acted upon.
1. Call meeting to order.
2. Discuss and take necessary action on Ambulance Service Contract.
3. Set next meeting date and adjourn.
Meet-the-Wildcats Night
The Rains Wildcat Booster Club will sponsor a Meet the Wildcat night
this Friday, August 17th at Wildcat Stadium beginning at 7:30 p.m. Every
Wildcat fan is invited to meet the coaches, football players, volleyball play-
ers, cheerleaders and cross country team. FREE hot dogs, drinks and pop-
corn. Booster Club memberships, ads for the football program, and Wildcat
Spirit. T-shirts, caps and many other items will also be available. Show your
Wildcat pride. Come out and support the athletic program and the Wildcat
Booster Club.
County fair season passes on sale
Season passes to the 2001 Rains County Fair are now on sale at sever-
al locations throughout the county. Passes are available at the First National
Bank of Emory and at their Alba branch, also at Hall’s Pharmacy in Emory
and Randy’s Grocery in Point. Adult passes are $12, children, four to twelve
years of age, are $8 and children three years of age and under are admitted
free. The fair opens September 10 and runs through Saturday, September
15, with pageants, music, singing, midway rides and fun for the whole fam-
fy
Fair Association meeting August 14
The Rains County Extension Program Council and Rains County Fair
Association will meet on Tuesday, August 14, at 7:00 p.m. at the Rains
County Fairgrounds exhibit building in Emory. Extension activities will be
discussed and plans finalized for the Rains County Fair, which is scheduled
for September 10 - 15. All interested citizens arc invited to attend. For addi-
tional information, contact the Rains County Extension Office at 473-2412.
Football season tickets available
Reserve tickets for the upcoming 2001 Wildcat football season will go
on sale beginning Wednesday, August 15, at the high school office for last
year’s season ticket holders. The general public will be allowed to purchase
tickets beginning Monday, August 27.
Season tickets for the five home games this year are $20. General
admission tickets for all Wildcat home games will be $4 for adults, $2 for
students and $5 for single reserved game tickets. All tickets at the gate will
be $5. Tickets will be on sale each week of the season until Friday at 2:00
p.m. Home games this year include Eustace, Kemp, Bonham, Winnsboro
and Pittsburg. School office hours arc from 8:00 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.
Looks like great things are ahead for the Wildcats this year so get your
tickets early and avoid the rush.
Meet-the-Teacher Night at Rains
Rains Junior High and High School will hold “Meet-the-Teacher
Night” in conjunction with “Meet-the-Wildcats” on Friday night, August
17, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. All parents and students are invited to attend. A
meeting of the students in the Gifted and Talented, Title I, and Dyslexia pro-
grams will be held from 6:00 to 6:30 p.m. bn the same night. We look for-
ward to meeting the parents of our students.
Rains Historical Society to meet
The Rains County Historical Society will meet at 7:00 p.m. Monday,
August 20, at the Heritage Center on Hwy. 276. Everyone interested in the
preservation of the history of Rains County and the continuing development
of the Heritage Park should consider joining the society.
Rains County Fair Queen Pageants
Applications for the 2001 Rains County Fair Queen Pageants can be
picked up at Country Flowers and Gifts. The deadline for applications is
Tuesday, August 21, 2001. Pick up your application today.
Genealogical Society meeting
The Rains County Genealogical Society will meet August 23 at 7:00
p.m. in the Meadows Room of the Rains County Public Library. The guest
speaker will be Jennifer Hill. The topic of her speech will be “Preserving
Family Heritage.” She will touch on scrap-booking. Please attend the meet-
ing and bring a friend.
The Rains County Genealogical Society is continuing to sell books.
They have the 1904 Rains County Leader, 1912 Rains County Leader, 1916
Rains County Leader and 1900 Rains County Census. These books are $20
each plus $3 shipping and handling. They Chose to Teach is also available.
The price is $40 for a set of two books plus $3 shipping ana handling.
Please contact Genell Lankford, 391 FM 514, Point, TX 75472 if you are
interested in purchasing one of these books.
Elaine Nall Bay has completed the 1922 Rains County Leader. It will
be going to the printers in the near future.
Girl Scouts membership event
The Rains County Girl Scouts will have recruitment and re-registration
on Tuesday, August 28, at 6:00 p.m. at the Rains Elementary cafeteria. We
are looking for adult volunteers and their daughters interested in scouting.
Be a part of an organization that promotes leadership and provides many
opportunities for young girls and women. Girls in grades K-12 are welcome
to join. For more information, call Hilda Walthall at 473-3163 or Sandy
Jeffrey at 473-3118. Reported
Skidboot to perform at Rains Fair
Skidboot, the famous Wonder Dog, and his trainer, David Hartwig,
will perform at the 2001 Rains County Fair! This “top dog” will appear at
7:00 on Wednesday, September 12, and at 7:30 p.m. Friday, September 14.
The popular canine has appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and
The David Letterman Show and is booked for the State Fair of Texas every
year! Rains County is fortunate to secure Skidboot for this year’s fair, so
don’t miss these very exciting shows!
Fair exhibit spaces now available
The Rains County Fair will be held September 10-15. If you would
tact Todd and Becky Brumit, 473-2509 (for space inside the exhibit build-
ing) or Howard Emig, 473-3944 (for renting outside the exhibit building).
AARP driving program to be held
AARP will have the AARP 55 Alive Mature Driving on September 19
and 20 at 1:00 p.m. at the Rains County Public Library. For more informa-
tion, you'may call Margaret Mierzwik at 473-3342 or Mildred Robbins at
473-2722.
RISD proposes 90 tax decrease
by Bonnie Burch
Rains County Leader staff
Nine cents normally does not
sound like much money, but to the
taxpayers of Rains County it could
be welcome relief like a good sum-
mer rain.
The proposed RISD rate is
$1.5699, down almost nine cents
from $1.6598 in year 2000. The
Notice of Public Meeting to Discuss
Budget and Proposed Tax Rate,
which includes all 2000 versus
2001 comparison rates, can be
found on page seven in this issue.
The certified values used in
effective tax rate calculations are in
for Rains County, according to
Chief Tax Appraiser Linda Norell.
RISD’s certified value for 2001 is
$263,324,829, up $40,677,915 from
$222,646,914 in 2000. New values
account for $21,068,330, and reap-
praised values and other changes
account for $19,609,585. RISD has
proposed its tax rate for 2001 based
on those figures.
Superintendent of RISD David
Seago stressed that the figures on
the above-mentioned notice are
only proposed figures and subject to
change. The public meeting will be
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Leader photo by EARL HILL
PRESSING MATTERS — Carla Willingham puts a knife-sharp crease in
a pair of blue jeans at the new 4-D Cleaners operation which recently
opened in Emory
Cleaners opens in Emory
by Carolyn Hill
Rains County Leader staff
You know, they say, “Everything
old is new again?” Well, Jerry and
Sabra Daugherty have recently
opened a new business with shiny
new equipment in a newly remod-
eled building, and it’s taking quite a
few “of timers” back to the good
old days.
For the first time since 1972,
Emory has a cleaners that processes
all of the cleaning, laundering,
pressing and ironing on site.
Sometime in the mid 1950s
Hubert and Mildred Moore opened
a cleaning business on the square in
Emory. Their daughter, Peggy
Greene, recalls that for 16 years or
so, at two different locations, the
Moores kept the city cleaned and
pressed. In 1972 the Moores closed
the business and retired.
Hubert died in 1977, but Mildred
at 92 years young is as sharp as a
tack and lives in her own apartment
in Greenville.
The Daughertys opened for busi-
ness at 121 N. Dunbar Lane on July
23 after months of hard work, train-
ing and an investment of some
$150,000. They have four full-time
workers, and their two teenage
daughters often help out. They offer
24-hour turn-around service on
most cleaning items.
3-car accident claims life
~ ~ " ~~ Savannah was air-lifted to Chil-
by Carolyn Hill dren’s Medical Center in Dallas
Rains County Leader staff with serious head trauma and possi-
T \ . - .. £. ___ ... „ ble broken facial bones. Her condi-
A pleasant Fnday afternoon dnye j remains critica| Savannah.s
from Qu.tman to Rams County frjend Elizabeth was t rted to
turned tragic as a three-car accident eTMC in Quitman, where she was
just outside he Qu.tman city limits examjned and re|eased
claimed the life of Mark Fenter, 30, The driver of ,he Dodge tnick>
or Point. . James Purdy, 62, of Yantis, was
Fenter and his fiancee, Christy transported to ETMC in Tyler in
Blanton, her daughter Savannah, e0od condition,
six, and Savannah s friend Eliza- Funeral services for Mark Fenter
beth Isom also six, were making were Monday, August 13, at
plans for Savannah s seventh birth- tf,c Emory church of Christ. He is
day party on Saturday as they tray- the SQn 0/Ronnie and Nancy Fenter
eled north on Texas Hwy. 154. Ms 0f Emory. Nancy is an employee of
Blanton who was driving a 1996 thc Rab* QoJ Uader
Dodge Intrepid, failed to yield the
right-of-way, turned left onto FM /"<. ^ \ '''C'X
182 and was broadsided by a 1998 r \ ^ \ ^ ^ '
Dodge truck. According to a Texas WNs. n __ _
Department of Public Safety report, RAIN \ ^
the impact caused the Intrepid to \f\ ncinADT
roll on top of a 1998 Ford. i \ RILIrUKl
Fenter was pronounced dead at ss|jLA. ,
the scene by Wood County Precinct y V W
1- Justice of 'hp Pe-sre Alice Tom- r» Auo h ,0.20
erline. He was wearing his seatbelt, I ^ Aug. 11 .........trace
the report said. V Aug. 12 .........trace^aT
Ms Blanton, 30, of Quitman, was r\ Totaj for week.....0.20 V>
transported to East Texas Medical I ^ T , fof monlh .0.20 ’
Center in Tyler where she was later ^ v a.
released after being treated for mul- Total *<?r year • • • V25'83
tiple cuts and abrasions on her legs 1 \ . \ ; \ V i\
and face. v ^
held at 7:00 p.m. on August 23 in
the board room of the Admin-
istration Building located at 1759
W. U.S. Hwy. 69, Emory, Texas.
Seago explained that there are
three sources of revenue for school
districts in Texas - state, local and
federal. The state has a three-tiered
system, which follows:
Tier I - A basic allotment is
based on average daily attendance
(ADA). Seago explained that the
state does not pay on enrollment; it
pays on attendance. “A kid must
walk through the door," he said.
Tier II - A second allotment is
based on the weighted average daily
attendance (WADA). The WADA
allotment depends on the type of
student, such as special education,
free/reduced lunch, homebound and
dyslexic students.
Tier III - Two places to get
money with which to build are
Instructional Facilities Allotment
(IFA) and Existing Debt Allotment
(EDA). RISD did not qualify for
IFA because districts are ranked
according to wealth per pupil, and
Rains was too far down on the list.
The poorest districts are listed first.
The fact that Rains County resi-
dents voted for a bond issue in
February 2000 allowed the district
to receive EDA monies
Locally, the district receives
monies from local property taxes.
Those monies go into the Main-
tenance and Operations (M&O) and
Interest and Sinking Funds (I&S).
Those rates are listed on the above-
mentioned notice.
Federally, the district may
receive monies in the form of a
grant. Seago stated, “In order to
receive federal money, we are told
what to do with it afterwards. We
must dot every “I,” and cross every
“T.”
The superintendent said that it
takes the state one to one and one-
half years after school is closed in
May to decide either to take away or
give money to the district. “It takes
that long to audit the books and
review the figures in order to plug
everything back into the formula.”
He stressed that everything is decid-
ed by formula, and he gives his best
estimate in order to run the district.
The certified county figure for
year 2001 is $311,405,950, up from
$267,656,349 last year.
The factors for the increase are
$22,718,802 for new improve-
ments, new additions and personal
property and $21,030,799 for reap-
praised values and other changes.
The commissioners’ court has
been conducting budget workshops
for over a week in order to arrive at
a budget and set a tax rate. Judge
Bob Sisk said the process should be
completed by August 20, and
notices of tax hearings will be set
shortly thereafter.
County applies for
inspection permit
by Carolyn Hill
Rains County Leader staff
The Rains County Commission-
ers’ Court took a first step at its reg-
ular meeting Thursday, August 9. to
begin local permitting and inspec-
tion of septic tanks by the county.
The court has been wrangling
over the issue for quite some time.
Over a year ago, the Texas Natural
Resource Conservation Commis-
sion (TNRCC) notified the court
that it (TNRCC) was going up on
the permitting fee charged to home-
owners or homebuilders installing a
new septic system. The TNRCC
also told the court that a like fee
would be charged to the county, or
the county couid undertake to per-
mit and inspect the septic systems
themselves.
Thursday, County Judge Bob
Sisk told the court that the county
could add to its revenue by permit-
ting the septic systems through the
county treasurer’s office. He added
that the job Rains County Litter
Abatement Officer Lee Roland is
doing is great and has gained popu-
larity with the public. However,
Judge Sisk said that, with proper
training, Roland could take on the
added responsibility of inspecting
new septic systems.
The court voted to complete the
first step in the process and submit
an application to the state and the
TNRCC for local permitting and
inspection of septic tank systems.
Developer K. W. Shipp presented
a plat for Little Mustang South to be
approved by the court. After some
discussion regarding accepting the
road or not, two motions were
made. The first was to change the
current subdivision rules and guide-
lines to allow county road numbers
to be assigned on all inspected and
approved new development roads at
the time the plat is approved, pro-
vided the developer provides a sure-
ty bond to guarantee maintenance
of the road for the one-year waiting
period before final acceptance by
the county for county maintenance.
The motion passed.
The second motion was to accept
the plat for Little Mustang South
and to approve the road for the one-
year waiting period with the devel-
oper providing maintenance during
that time. That motion also passed.
In open forum, Rena’te Paroline
presented Sprint’s proposal on in-
stalling a phone system in the B&B
Building. Quotes of $14,124, if
Sprint pulled the wires, and
$12,358, if the wires were pulled by
mitted. The quotes were for cash
payment in full and did not include
a monthly maintenance fee of $103.
She also discussed a rent/lease
option and a capital lease-to-pur-
chase option which cost more in the
long run and did not seem to inter-
est the court. Ms Paroline gave a
rundown of the phone system's
capabilities and said Sprint person-
nel will train phone users upon
installation.
Judge Sisk told the court that
Verizon was due to survey the
building in the next few days in
order to present a quote to the court.
Chuck Witt, a businessman in the
county, requested that he also be
allowed to submit a quote. The
court consented.
Witt also requested the opportu-
nity to provide a quote on an
upgrade system and new phones for
the jail and sheriff’s office.
A list of 11 holidays to be ob-
served by county employees during
FY 2001-2002 was approved. The
approved holidays are Columbus
Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving,
Christmas, New Year’s Day, Martin
Luther King Day, Presidents’ Day,
Good Friday, Memorial Day,
Independence Day, and Labor Day.
Allen Prendergast spoke to the
court about the Rains County
Economic Growth, Inc. (RCEGI)
giving them an update on this past
spring’s Expo and the Farmers
Union centennial convention. The
convention is scheduled for next
March in the Dallas area and will
include a caravan of several thou-
sand conventioneers traveling to
Point, the birthplace of the Farmers
Union. Plans are under way for a
recognition ceremoney and celebra-
tion party with a well-known,
“name” entertainer. He asked for
the court’s support.
During committee reports,
Russell Ross, President of the Rains
County Fire District Board, told the
court that the board would be open-
ing bids on ambulance service in the
county during a special meeting on
Thursday, August 16, at 1:30 p.m.
Commissioner Gary Bishop up-
dated the court on the activities of
the Rains County Animal Shelter
Association. He said he planned to
call a special meeting of the board
sometime in August and suggest the
possibility of the association using
funds raised by the association to
purchase land on which to build a
shelter.
On other agenda items, the court:
• Voted to approve the changes to
the subdivision rules and guide-
lines as suggested by the com-
missioners and the Road and
Bridge Administrator and for-
ward them on to Hayter Engi-
neering for their analysis.
• Appointed Henry Wade to the
Rains County Library Board to
replace Mr. Thomas who
resignea.
Approved a motion to classify all
county roads in accordance with
the transportation code. Judge
Sisk asked that the commission-
ers complete their classification
see COUNTY page 2
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Hill, Earl Clyde, Jr. Rains County Leader (Emory, Tex.), Vol. 114, No. 10, Ed. 1 Tuesday, August 14, 2001, newspaper, August 14, 2001; Emory, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth767024/m1/1/?rotate=90: accessed July 15, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Rains County Library.