After a lengthy discussion about why the Sulphur Springs School Board just arbitrarily rotates members to the president’s position, the board voted unanimously for a motion that keeps all of its officers on board for another year. The vote came during a special meeting after last Saturday’s election.

The board canvassed election returns, which saw incumbents Jason Dietze and Don Sapaugh reelected to the board.

Trustee Clay Johnson questioned why the board rotated members through the presidency each year. Superintendent Mike Lamb said he had never seen such a system at any of his stops in Lindale, Huntsville or Forney. He expressed more of a comfort level if he knew the board leadership wouldn’t be changing every year.

Johnson’s proposed slate of officers approved by the board for the next year turned out to be exactly like the current slate with Dietze as President, Kerry Wright as vice-President and Don Sapaugh as secretary.

In other business, the board voted to go paperless at board meetings converting to a computerized agenda and board book known as Board Book.

Fire did some damage to the east side of a business building in Como Thursday night. The blaze was reported a few minutes before 11 p.m. Thursday night at Custom Shutters located along State Highway 11 East.

A county firefighter said firemen made an interior attack and were able to confine fire damage to the east side of the building. He said there was smoke damage through the structure.

Hopkins County was joined by firefighters and equipment from Como, North Hopkins, Pickton and Brinker fire departments.

County Fire Investigator Mike Matthews is investigating the cause of the fire and was on the scene Friday morning.

Sulphur Springs and Hopkins County welcomed in a new industry at a groundbreaking Tuesday. The industry is Thru Way Trailers. They will be located on Pioneer Parkway in the Pioneer Business Park located west of CMH Road between Main Street and the I-30 Service Road just west of Sulphur Springs.

Thru Way Trailers is a Canada-based company that has been in business more than twenty years. Since they do a lot of business south of the United States, they were in the market for a location in the southern part of the U.S. and chose Sulphur Springs. They are expected to initially employ about twenty-five people at the Sulphur Springs site.

Retiring Sulphur Springs School Superintendent Patsy Bolton kept a promise to her granddaughter and read a poem at her retirement reception Wednesday afternoon that ended with “I quit”. It was in keeping with Ms. Bolton’s wishes to have an upbeat reception so she didn’t get emotional.

A large crowd, including her childhood best friend Janet and many of her ex-students, came and went.

Ms. Bolton called her career a wonderful experience and ended by saying, “thank you all”.

Ben Vos, the coordinator of Sulphur Springs Work Camp, says there is still room for another twenty to thirty youths and adults for this year’s camp, which runs June 3-6. Work camp is like taking a mission trip without leaving town.

Vos says the goal this year is to prepare and paint twenty houses in the community. Vos says last year 400 workers and 100 other volunteers painted 25 houses.

To register for work camp, contact Vos at 903 348-0375 or online at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Cost is $75 for youths in grades six through twelve and $25 for adults.

Maxwell says the Conference For New Urbanism stressed stepping back and rethinking processes that have been in place sixty years. Maxwell says strict zoning by use has created sprawl that he says can’t be sustained economically.

The opposite approach, he says, is to loosen codes allowing lots of flexibility. For example to allow retail at the ends of residential blocks. Maxwell says the result is a denser development with less cost per acre. This is the direction he says he hopes to take the city in years ahead.

Hopkins County Historical Society member Rick Wilson demonstrated Dutch oven cooking Saturday at Folk Festival to publicize his Dutch oven classes and other cooking opportunities in the park.

Saturday Wilson concentrated on breads. To celebrate the past, Wilson cooked up Johnny Cakes popular more than a century ago and made of corn meal, flour, sugar, eggs and milk. He also did dinner rolls, loaves of bread made with various herbs, jalapeno corn bread and a peach cobbler just for Historical Society workers.

Susan McCary is very knowledgeable about cakes and their histories. She shared her knowledge of cakes popular mostly from the 1700s to about 1930 at Folk Festival in Heritage Park Saturday.

Ms. McCary says cheesecake is one of the oldest known cakes. She says Greeks made them 1,000 years before the birth of Christ. Ms. McCary also spoke of Canadian War Cakes during World War II and about cakes associated with Stephen F. Austin, Sam Houston, Martha Washington and others.

Sulphur Springs Fire Investigator David James talked with several people Monday including the homeowners, as he investigates Saturday’s fire that destroyed a vacant one-story house at 529 Connally Street. James said the cause of the fire is still under investigation. He noted the fire didn’t leave a lot to go through.

A remodeling crew was adding a front porch to the residence when they saw fire up in a wall of the structure. James noted some electrical wiring in the home might go back to the 1920s.

Mary Lou Foster has been a school nurse in Sulphur Springs for twenty years, the last twelve at high school. She says he loves her job. Wednesday was National School Nurse Day. As for what she sees on any day, Ms. Foster says it depends on what is going around. She says the past two years have been light for the flu.

Her signs can be seen around high school from time to time promoting hand washing or proper cough techniques.

Forrest Gregg MVP Award winners were football and track star Cody Clayton along with basketball and soccer player Reagan Humphrey and track and cross country athlete Ayana Taylor who shared the award for girls at the Sulphur Springs All-Sports Banquet Monday night.

James Cameron Fighting Heart Awards went to soccer standout Adriana Ortiz and football and baseball star Justin Owens.

MVP awards went to athletic trainers Danesha Peoples and Keelie Wiser, volleyball seniors Gracie Cable, Alissa Doughtie and Melinda Escobar, the football senior class, girls cross country’s Ayana Taylor and Madison Ramirez, boys cross country Carter White, girls basketball Reagan Humphrey, boys basketball Will Roland, girls soccer Adriana Ortiz and Diana Sanchez, boys soccer Tony Bravo, powerlifting Josue Leon, girls tennis Mallory Martin, boys tennis Kade Koon, girls golf Kirstie Wallace, boys golf the whole team, girls track Ayana Taylor, boys track seniors Johnathan Carlisle, Cody Clayton, Dadrian Smith and Kendrick Daniels, softball seniors Gracie Cable and Katie Dougan and baseball players Kris Ford and Justin Owens.

The Hopkins County Chamber of Commerce is now accepting entries for their annual Ice Cream Freeze Off coming up on Saturday, June 9 at 4 p.m. on the first Saturday of Dairy Festival.

Chamber President Meredith Caddell said information was sent out to last year’s participants last week. She stressed it is free to enter freezers of ice cream. Again categories will include former winners in Super Scoops, adults in Big Dips and children in Little Dips. Ice creams may be plain, chocolate or vanilla; fruit, just one fruit and novelty.

Recipes must be included with entry forms. Those just wishing to sample the ice creams can get an all-you-can-eat cup for $3 at the event.

The area Marine Corps Detachment #1357 recently began a program to provide locations where a person can retire their old flag properly. Attorney Tommy Allison says there are currently six collection boxes in Sulphur Springs and three more in the area. Locations include City Hall, Northeast Texas Janitorial Supply, the Chamber of Commerce, County Clerk’s Office, the Hospital and at the Senior Citizens Center.

There are also locations in Mt. Vernon, Commerce and Cumby.

Allison says the collected flags will be disposed of in an appropriate ceremony.