The Hopkins County Echo (Sulphur Springs, Tex.), Vol. 106, No. 51, Ed. 1 Friday, December 28, 2001 Page: 4 of 4
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4 — THE HOPKINS COUNTY ECHO, Sulphur Springs, Texas, Friday, December 28, 2001
COMMUNITY NEWS
\RKILLY SPRINGS
By Bobby McDonald
Pretty paper, pretty ribbon ... over-
flowing the garbage can, stuffed behind
the cushions on the couch, and
wrapped around the chair legs in the
dinning room. Someone even used the
linen closet in the hall for a trash recep-
tacle. it sounds a lot like Christmas.
Aunt Sylvia is in a huff ‘cause she
was allergic to the pine resin in the gar-
land you had woven around the clock
on the mantle and she wanted a Deluxe
Lady Norclco Razor instead of the
Lady Norelco. The deluxe model had
a long handle on it so that she could
reach those “hard to reach places.”
After all. she had told you that it was
on page 357 in the catalog. “How stu-
pid could you be." It sounds a lot like
Christmas.
Dear Old Uncle Fez, the traveling
hardware salesman from Atlanta that is
in his seventies, came in with his sev-
enth wife, a belly dancer from Philadel-
phia who can play "Rudolph, The Red-
nosed Reindeer" while popping her
bubble gum. They are expecting twins
in May and really going to increase the
literacy of the world. It sounds a lot
like Christmas.
Cousin Ted, the body piercer from L.
A., and Cousin Alice, the missionary
from the Congo, were mistakenly seat-
ed by each other at the dinner table and
got into a healed discussion about body
parts that no one wanted to hear about,
it sounds a lot like Christmas.
You stayed up half the night putting
the "some assembly required” bicycle
together and Junior has already ran it
into the tree in the front yard. While
the cherry pie was burnt on one side
and the dressing tasted quite similar to
wall-paper paste, dear old Aunt Martha
went to carve the turkey and you had
forgot and left the plastic wrapped giz-
zards in the center. It sounds a lot like
Christmas.
You have already confiscated the bat-
teries from the cute little red fire engine
that has the siren that is so, so very
loud, and Little Tommy is bawling and
you have a super migraine headache. It
sounds a lot like Christmas.
Then, there is your best friend Sally,
who doesn’t have children, that is on
the phone wanting you to go with her
and fight the traffic at the After Christ-
mas Sale on Friday. Lord, give me a
break.
Take heart. It is about 10 and one-
half months before the Christmas sea-
son of 2002 will “kick-in” and by that
time, you will have recovered from the
over-charged credit cards and zero bal-
ances. Believe it or not, you will get
excited once again about the annual
event and actually look forward to see-
ing all those relatives once again. That
is the magic of Christmas.
Seriously, I hope all of you had a
wonderful Christmas and it is only
about two weeks until school starts
back again. Hang in there. There is a
light at the end of the tunnel that isn’t a
train.
With Christmas 200I behind us, it is
time to make plans for a brand new
year. It is time for us to sit down with
pencil and paper and start making those
resolutions that we want to accomplish
in 2002. Me, I have got to lose some
weight. I need to clean off my desk
before tax season arrives, and my clos-
et looks like a disaster zone. Who cares
if by February 1st all of these resolu-
tions will be broken? Hey, isn't it the
thought that counts?
I fear that most of you are just like
me. It is 365 days until this time next
year and will we really be any different
a year from now? Hopefully, each of
us will find some time to enhance our
lives with something meaningful in the
next year, something that really mat-
ters. We can always get in touch with
that friend from college that we have
been wondering about and re-establish
Reports from our area correspondents
a relationship. We can take the extra
effort and go by the nursing home and
visit that dear old man that would give
us a dime as a child to buy candy, or
perhaps that dear .old lady that served
as a surrogate grandmother when ours
was so far away.
2002 is the perfect opportunity to
heal the wounds of some friendship
that has gone sour, or extend an olive
branch to someone that might be in
need of a friend. It is the perfect time to
go visit your grandmother, tape
recorder in hand, and record those
events in her life that you will cherish
always. It is the time to make a new
commitment to God and vow to live
closer to his plan in the next year. It is
time to reach out and touch the lives
of others in this community. How about
it? I’m game if you are. And, we will
all be a better person this time next
year.
The end of a year is always the per-
fect time to reflect on the previous year.
I think we can all say that 2001 has
been a most memorable year in our
lives. We will never forget the events of
September I Ith and the way our lives
have changed. Hopefully, the horren-
dous acts of terrorism have shaped our
lives for the better and we have a
stronger resolve for the principles of
our country. Sure, we have all been
affected financially and most certainly
our sense of security has been shaken,
but hopefully each of us has stopped
and realized just how very lucky we
are to live in America. Hopefully, we
have shown our pride as true Ameri-
cans and embraced a life that is
enriched with the many, many bless-
ings that we have to enjoy. God Bless
America, and Thank God, I have been
afforded the opportunity to be born in
this country.
As we ponder the events of 2001,
let’s hope that each of us has begun to
realize just how important friends and
family are in our lives and that each of
us has a responsibility to make our own
little part of the world a better place to
live.
When reflecting on 2001, I am
reminded of the many, many Christmas
cards I received from each of you who
took the time to remember me and the
writing of this column. Thanks for the
many uplifting messages and words of
encouragement. They will be treasured
always.
Then, I was reminded of the great
outpouring of love for Emeri Shearer
that this community expressed when
Martha Jo Shearer called me this week
to express her thanks to everyone.
Emeri has a long, long battle in life,
but the Shearer family has been uplift-
ed by the many, many expressions of
love and care from everyone in Reilly
Springs and Hopkins County. Now,
isn’t that what life is all about?
Brenda Allen of Yantis traveled to
Reilly Springs this past week for a
Christmas party with her friends Debra
Stribling and Marilee Fisher. You know
when this group gets together, anything
can happen. Reports are that they
behaved themselves and the party went
well.
Lexie Stribling called to inform me
that Santa Claus did come to Reilly
Springs and “left just what I wanted.”
Lexie, of course, is one of those die-
hard believers of the magic of Christ-
mas, at 4 years old. Just another reason
for Christmas.
How many of you heard the Reilly
Springs Christmas that was broadcast
from the “History Files” on Christmas
morning? KSST director Bill Bradford
played a 1950’s broadcast from the Joe
Shelton Store and featured Joe and Bob
Shelton wishing everyone a Merry
Christmas from Reilly. Man, did that
bring back pleasant memories of
Christmases past. What a rich, rich her-
itage we have in this community.
Speaking of heritage, I got a very
nice Christmas card and letter from
Nell and A.C. McAfee of Yantis this
past week. They reminded me of many,
many events that have transpired in the
Reilly Springs community through the
years. Of course, Nell is the former
Nell Attlesey and a native of this com-
munity. Her and Ardell continue to
“plug along” and inspire others, despite
health problems. Give them a call and
brighten their day when you have the
opportunity.
I was told that Blake Fisher is the
new “beef eating champion” of the
community. It seems that Lacy Ross
and a host of other friends were din-
ning at East Fork the other night and
bet Blake that he could not eat the 48
oz. steak with all the trimmings. Well,
you guessed it. He ate the whole thing
and was asking “Where’s the beef?”
when he finished. Such is the appetite
of a growing 15-year-old boy.
Blake will celebrate his 16th birth-
day on Monday, so watch out for him
on the highway. It is official driver’s
license time. Maybe that is the reason
that Santa Claus left several of us in
the community road signs for our
places. Look for the new signs to be
installed that read “Fisher Lane,” “Stri-
bling Place,” and “McDonald Way.”
I talked to the former Ashton Bailey
in the bank this week and she reported
that the Baileys saw Santa Claus and
had a wonderful holiday. Vera Harring-
ton was found driving her sled to Wax-
ahachie and spotted giving gifts to Car-
oline and Elizabeth. Oh yeah, she did
visit with Mitzi, Mary, and Larry, too.
The Christmas season has come and
gone in Reilly Springs, and all of us
have many, many things to be thankful
for. We truly are a blessed people and
have many things to look forward to in
2002. Let’s all continue to make a
resolve to count our blessings and
make a difference in the lives of others.
Until next week. Happy, Happy New
Year and God Bless America and those
who protect it.
Local
woman
helps
NYC
rebuild
Continued From Page One
said gruffly, ‘What’s this all
about, why are you sending
money all the way from
Texas?’” Davis recalled.
"It’s like this,” she replied. “I
have 3 kids and they played
sports all their lives and loved
it. There are a lot of kids up
there who need a place to play
on and I am just doing my part
to see that they get it.
"They got my check and the
lumber was to be delivered on
Wednesday We talked back and
forth most of the day until all
arrangements were made. It was
great to be helping in the plan-
ning stage."
Davis told her fiancee what
she wanted for Christmas that
day. She wanted him to help
pay for the lumber she had just
written a check for.
"He laughed and said 'OK."’
Davis said.
Virginia Hew out of Dallas-
Fort Worth International Airport
the morning of Thursday. Dec.
13, on the way to New York
City and a meeting with
Brokovich. construction crews
and ABC project managers.
“We got there Thursday after-
noon and I wanted to go straight
to the [project] site even though
it was starting to get dark in
New York,” Davis said. “There
were construction crews work-
ing like bees and the head of the
construction project was sup-
posed to meet me at the soccer
fields.”
Upon reaching the field,
Davis found that production
pictures were in the making.
The field was full of celebrities.
New York Jet players, and
Job market locally fares
better than most of Texas
Virginia Davis of Sulphur Springs (right) and Erin Brockovich stop for a picture during
the construction and filming of “Challenge America with Erin Brokovich: The Miracle
in Manhattan,” which airs on ABC Friday night. Davis supplied all the lumber for the
project to rebuild an amphitheater in New York City.
police officers who had been
working that day. Brokovich
walked on the field and climbed
on top of a front-end loader sur-
rounded by the workers and had
pictures made.
“I was asked to join in and
have my picture made with
them." she said. “As the erew
broke up. Erin approached me
and we just hit it off. She is so
down to earth and so caring. We
talked and talked until someone
whisked her away for some oth-
er job. She really worked hard
that week, as well as all the
crews. I learned that they were
working around the clock."
On Saturday. ABC filmed
Brockovich and Davis while
they were sitting on the bleach-
ers under construction with lum-
ber supplied by Davis.
“The scene was supposed to
depict our first meeting, even
though we had talked a lot dur-
ing those three days,” Davis
said "We had to pretend we
didn't know each other
“I was asking her if she had
wom her longhandles under that
thin jumpsuit they made her
wear and she said. ‘Yes.’ when
the TV man asked us to stop
talking so they could shoot. We
laughed then got down to busi-
ness."
Davis said for years she had
heard that people in New York
were rude, caustic and obnox-
ious. but her visit offered a dif-
ferent perspective.
“With the exception of one lit-
tle incident, everybody was
super, super nice and very car-
ing," she said. "The ABC repre-
sentative did not like where we
were staying so she had us
moved to a different hotel. The
construction workers on the site,
they were really protective and
calling constantly to make sure
we were all right because you
can get lost there with so many
people and you don’t know who
you are looking for."
Only one untoward event
occurred, according to Davis.
“We were trying to grab some
souvenirs real quickly while we
were getting some pictures
developed,” she said. “The
shopkeeper and his employee
were really getting into a verbal
altercation.”
The reason for the altercation.
Davis explained, was because
the employee was talking to
Photo Courtesy of Virginia Davis
someone else and not waiting on
her.
Overall, Davis said the expe-
rience was very rewarding, but
also very tiring. Television
crews, construction crews and
almost everyone else involved
were working almost around the
clock for six days in an effort to
meet the challenge deadline.
Paul Reaney. an ABC produc-
er, expressed the network’s
appreciation for Davis' effort.
“I wish I had more time to
spend with you," he wrote in an
e-mail to Davis. “Unfortunately
1 was trying to be in ten differ-
ent places at the same time so
we could capture all the excite-
ment on camera. Your generosi-
ty was surmounted only by your
dedication to fly out to see your
wood and the project in person.
It will be a very special show,
made all the more special
because of people like you.”
The whole experience was
very tiring. Davis said, but so
very gratifying to see.
“People pulling together like
that and doing something posi-
tive for the kids and victims of
9-11, I was just happy to be a
part of it.”
Former SS resident to carry Olympic torch
Continued From Page One
and 315 this year.
The jobless rate is far better
than a decade ago, however.
Unemployment in the city of Sul-
phur Springs reached a high of
11.1 percent in February and
March of 1992 when as many as
791 people were out of work.
The unemployment rate in the
county was slightly better than
the city of Sulphur Springs with
3.9 percent of the work force, or
546 people, seeking jobs in a
labor force of 14,031.
Hopkins County unemploy-
ment rate peaked early in 1992
with a rate of 9.4 percent, which
indicated as many as 1,373 were
unemployed
A year ago, unemployment
stood at 3.9 percent of the avail-
able labor force compared with
the same rate of unemployed last
year with a labor force of 14,772.
In 1999, the county had a total
labor force of 15,609 of which
615, or 3.9 percent of the labor
force was looking for work.
The rest of Texas has sustained
more signifeant job losses in
recent months. The number of
working Texans across the state
fell by 6,800 in November after a
27,800 drop — the biggest in
more than a decade — in Octo-
ber.
The Workforce Commission
attributed the earlier decline to
ripple effects from the Sept. 11
terrorist attacks, which hurt trav-
el-related companies, such as the
three Texas-based airlines, hotels
and theme parks.
In November, the state’s avia-
tion industry lost another 3,500
jobs, manufacturing employment
fell by 4,900, and construction
added 400 jobs — its weakest
November showing since 1992.
Texas added 3,100 retail jobs
in November, the largest monthly
gain in any major industry, which
could indicate that holiday shop-
ping is stronger than previously
expected.
The job market still appeared
to be stronger in Texas than in
the nation as a whole, which had
5.7 percent unemployment in
November.
The numbers were adjusted to
smooth out predictable seasonal
patterns in hiring, which econo-
mists say gives a better picture of
the job market. Before adjusting
for seasonal trends, Texas unem-
ployment rose from 4.9 percent
to 5.2 percent in November.
TNT arrests five in series of
drug busts prior to Christmas
By KERRY CRAIG
From Staff Reports
Karen Boles White of Boise,
Idaho, formally of Sulphur
Springs, has been chosen as a
torch bearer for the Salt Lake
2002 Olympics. Her parents,
Bobby and Helen Boles, nomi-
nated Karen for the hooor
through Gober Merrell Owe—
let ***' wftKF
The torch will pass through
Boise on Jan. 25 and 26 oa the
way to Salt Lake City. Seventy-
five people will have the hooor
of carrying the torch in the
Boise area
“I am very humbled and hon-
ored to have the opportunity to
be a part of the Olympic Torch
Relay," said Karen, a 1984 grad-
uate of Sulphur Springs High
School. “It seems to have a very
special meaning this year with
all that has happened in our
nation. This is a chance of a life-
time and I plan to enjoy every
minute of it."
Karen. 36, lives in Boise with
her husband. Karey. and their
four children. Zane. 13:Stacy.
11; Thlon. 6; and Collin, 3.
Her parents nominated Karen
because they feel she is a true
inspira-
tion to all
mothers
through
her vol-
unteer
efforts
and as an
athlete.
She is an
active
volunteer
at the
local ele-
mentary
school,
and the junior
high
Karen
White
school. She
is also a runner who participates
in many local races and finished
her first marathon in July in San
Francisco. The "Race for the
Cure” is one of her favorite
events, because all of the money
raised goes to help breast cancer
research.
She is also an avid ice hockey
fan and has played on organized
teams for four years — this year
on a men's team in Boise. She
plans to coach her son Talon’s
team this season. She's also a
soccer mom — daughter Stacy
plays in the Greater Metro divi-
sion in Boise
A series of drug busts in the
days just before Christmas result-
ed in five arrests, the confisca-
tion of a quantity of drugs and a
mobile drug lab.
TNT Task Force officers and
Hopkins County sheriff’s officers
executed a search warrant
Wednesday, Dec. 19, at a resi-
dence at 511 Woodlawn Street
and took two people into custody
on drug charges.
Arrested were Jason Jiminez,
on a charge of possession of
cocaine, and another man for
possession of marijuana.
Task force officers said the
search warrant climaxed a two-
month investigation of the resi-
dence and the mm arrested.
Bond for Jason Jiminez was set
at $25,000 on this charge of pos-
session of cocaine.
Bond was set at $1,000 for the
other man on the chfgpe of pos-
session of marijuana.
On Dec. 20, task force officers
executed a search warrant at
1027 Church Street and took a
man and wife into custody after
finding a quantity of nuffjjpana
in the residence.
Scon Allen Cooper and Jen-
nifer Cooper were both charged
with possession of more than
four ounces, but less than five
pounds of marijuana after offi-
cers found about one-half pound
of the substance in the residence.
Task force officers began an
investigation about three months
ago after receiving numerous
calls regarding the possible sale
of drugs at the residence.
After learning that children
were possibly being left alone in
the house with the contraband,
officers decided to bring the
investigation to a halt with a raid
on the house.
The children were in the house
at the time officers made the
arrests and were later released to
other family members.
Scott and Jennifer Cooper were
released from the county jail after
posting bonds of $5,000 each on
charges of possession of marijua-
na, a state jail felony.
A Cookville man, Riley Col-
lier, was arrested after police,
sheriff’s officers and task force
officers were involved in a traffic
stop in the 100 block of Linda
Drive.
A quantity of a substance
thought to be methamphetamine
was found in the man’s vehicle
along with a large quantity of
precursors, or materials used in
the manufacture of a substance.
Officers said there were enough
of the components for the manu-
facture of methamphetamine in
the vehicle to consider the vehi-
cle a mobile drug lab.
Collier was jailed on charges of
manufacture of a controlled sub-
stance and charges of possession
of a controlled substance. Bond
cm the charge of manufacturing a
controlled substance was set at
$130,000 and bood of $25,000
was •« on the charge of posses-
sion of a controlled substance.
i
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Keys, Scott & Alsobrook, Bruce. The Hopkins County Echo (Sulphur Springs, Tex.), Vol. 106, No. 51, Ed. 1 Friday, December 28, 2001, newspaper, December 28, 2001; Sulphur Springs, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth780622/m1/4/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Hopkins County Genealogical Society.