ATM Theft Attempt Reported At Sulphur Springs Bank
An ATM theft attempt was reported Friday morning at Red River Credit Union. The ATM was damaged but no money was taken, according to Sulphur Springs police and Hopkins County sheriff’s reports.
Just before 6:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 7, authorities received notification that an alarm had been triggered at Red River Credit Union on Gilmer Street in Sulphur Springs, according to Sulphur Springs Police Lt. Pat Leber.
A monitoring company representative reportedly alerted bank personnel after the alarm was triggered, then, they contact law enforcement, according to Leber.
Upon arrival, officials found the outside of the ATM damaged, rendering it out of service until repairs can be made, but the unit remained intact at the location along with its contents, according Leber.
A construction truck, determined to have been stolen from a new road construction site on State Highway 11, had apparently been used to try to break into the ATM. The attempt failed, Leber reported.
The truck was abandoned and recovered; sheriff’s investigators are working the stolen truck case. Police are investigating the ATM theft attempt case.
Investigation is ongoing and in early stages. Authorities are working with the employees at the financial institution see if any surveillance video for the site is available, police reported.
The incident marks at least the third time in less than 4 months area authorities have worked a theft case involving stolen vehicles and an ATM theft attempt.
On Nov. 19 a stolen van was driven into the front entrance of Pilot Travel Center on Hillcrest Drive in Sulphur Springs around 3 a.m. and an ATM was loaded into the van by three masked people. The van was found abandoned a short time later on Rockdale Road; the van was determined to have been stolen from Dallas, according to Sulphur Springs police.
Early Nov. 22, a truck stolen from Sulphur Springs was reportedly used in two attempted ATM thefts in Rains County, one unsuccessful attempt at an Emory bank and another in Alba. Two suspects, viewed on surveillance video, reportedly abandoned the stolen pickup in Rains County after getting it stuck. The truck was reportedly registered to a Sulphur Springs resident, who claimed to be unaware the truck was missing. Sulphur Springs police investigators at that time said, based on preliminary investigations, they did not believe that the Rains County cases were related to the Nov. 19 smash and grab case at Pilot Travel Center.
KSSTRadio.com publishes Sulphur Springs Police Department reports and news. The Police Department is located at 125 Davis St., Sulphur Springs, Texas. Non-emergency calls can be made to (903) 885-7602.
If you have an emergency dial 9-1-1.
The Sulphur Springs Police Department continues to serve its citizens with pride in its overall mission and will strive to provide the best possible police force in the 21st century.
If you have an emergency, dial 9-1-1
The Hopkins County Sheriff’s Office is located at 298 Rosemont Sulphur Springs, TX 75482. You can reach them for non-emergency matters at (903) 438-4040.
Fishing Guide is Passionate About Teaching Kids to Fish
Jimmy Reardon may be young, but he’s already a licensed fishing guide with a non-profit organization geared toward education about fishing. And for the second year, he’s pitching in with the annual Kids Fishing Day in Sulphur Springs which is actually known as the Larry Buster Memorial Trout Fishing Derby. Set for Saturday February 8, 2020, it’s a community service project that Jimmy is dedicated to supporting, plus he says it’s a lot of fun seeing kids smile when they catch “a whopper!”
During the KSST Good Morning Show on February 7, 2020, Jimmy talked about growing up fishing and how that was all he really wanted to do. Fishing and hunting with his dad was a big plus for him during his youth. So, before high school graduation, he formed a non-profit organization designed for teaching kids to fish, and now at age 18, he is “giving back” to the community as well as fishing for a living with his guide service. Jimmy fishes daily somewhere, spending hundreds of hours on lakes and rivers all around Northeast Texas.
“Lake Fork is known as the best bass fishing lake in the world, and it’s probably true! I’m still angling for a double-digit catch but when I do, that will be a big thrill for me. Lake Bob Sandlin is a little lower-pressure than Fork, but fishing there is great for large mouth bass and crappie. During the Texas High School Bass Fishing Association’s State Tournamant, we fished Sam Rayburn Reservoir and our team went out for the five biggest bass we could catch that day. A lot of schools have started entering student fishing teams. You can learn something everywhere you fish! When you go to Texhoma, it looks like an inland sea. It’s best known for small-mouth bass and the Stripers that fight like deep sea fish. And Texhoma’s got largemouth bass, too but they’re generally not as big as Lake Fork’s. Then there’s river fishing, and that’s a beast unto itself. Rivers possess a changing attitude, and the river sport fish like gar and others are always moving upriver or downriver and passing through their territory. Their habits and habitats are not as predictable as with lake fish. Every day is a new day on the rivers, but really, no two fishing days are ever alike, anywhere you fish. You can spend hours in study and research, and using your electronics on the boat and just observing, but you always run across something new to you”.
Growing up, I loved being on the lake so much, I actually wondered, ‘can I fish for a living?’ Well, I think I can, at least for now. I’m off to a start anyway as a guide. But my passion is still with the kids’ experience at catching fish. That’s a reward in itself”. Find Jimmy Reardon at JDRfishing Adventures online, on Facebook and Instagram, and at [email protected].
Texas A&M Commerce Rodeo Team Competes in Athens
The TAMUC Rodeo program will be competing in Athens, TX this weekend. The Trinity Valley Rodeo will be held at the Henderson County Fair Complex just outside of Athens.
Performances will begin at 7:30 p.m. each evening at The Henderson County Fair Park Complex with slack beginning at 12 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday.
All proceeds generated by the rodeo are given back to the students to further their education.
General admission tickets are $5 each and may be purchased on the night of the performance at the gate. Free admission to children 12 and under and TVCC students with an ID.
Future Rodeo Dates Include:
- February 21 – 22 at the Hopkins County Civic Center
- March 13 – 14 at Texas A&M
- April 3 – 4 at Hill College Hillsboro
- April 17 – 18 at Wharton County Junior College
CTE: SSHS Floral Design Class Provides Chance To Learn Job Skills, Be Creative
Students in the floral design class at Sulphur Springs High School, not only learn valuable job skills, but find new creative outlets in the plant science class as well.
“I think floral design brings out people’s creativity. Like, you have some students that don’t speak much; they’re not outgoing. But, you give them an assignment to make an arrangement or something and they can be really creative and you’d never know. But now you do,” junior Kerie Wright said of the floral design class.
“It’s really creative,” senior Kailea Gardner agreed. “It’s definitely using your mind if you know you have a creative side.”
“Even if you really don’t like drawing and doing all that type of stuff I would really recommend taking this class. It’s not just drawing, it’s building things and going out to the city and helping people,” junior Selena Sanchez said.
“It’s fun to do too. If you just got out of a different class and you’re all stressed out, this really relieves that stress, because you get to just take your time and use your mind and make what you want to do,” Gardner said.
“It’s not just for girls. Guys do it too. We have a lot of athletes that do floral design and they really enjoy it,” Wright said.
The course is designed for students interested in careers in floral design, agriculture communications, farm management, financial planning or a landscape design. Other students also enroll in floral design to obtain an art credit, and and end up learning much more than they anticipated.
“Personally, I thought it was going to just be like ‘oh, the mum’ and that’s it,” Sanchez said.
“That’s what people usually talk about, making the homecoming mums or little design things. But, we’ve done a lot more,” Gardner said.
“Floral design gives us a lot of opportunities to have hands-on experience, like coloring, building things, especially flowers, projects and stuff like that,” Sanchez said.
Plant basics is are also part of the class. Wright said she was surprised by how little she actually knew about plants.
“I thought they were all somehow similar, but they are very different,” Wright said.
Students did learn to arrange flowers, including the importance of knowing about certain bacteria. They also learn the business side of it, skills they tested at an area competition against students from other schools such as Como-Pickton.
The floral design students will have another chance to test their skills at an upcoming contest. Competition, however, is more than arranging flowers. Competitors are tested on their knowledge plants and their background, then advance to arrangement. Those opportunities can sometimes pay off in scholarships, Sanchez noted.
The floral design class is one of the career and technology courses students take as part of the plant science endorsement track.
Freshmen can take principles of agriculture, and food and natural resources. As sophomores, they can take the floral design class or can use it to fill a fine arts credit. Students on the plant science program then as juniors can take either horticulture science or advanced floral design. Seniors then have the option of applying for a practicum in agriculture, food and natural resources or advance plant and soil science (the latter also can be taken as a science credit).
Students who complete the course work satisfactorily have the opportunity to test for industry certifications: Texas State Floral Association Floral Design Certification Level I and II.
“We would be certified in arranging things. So, if we wanted to earn money in college we could work a floral job,” Wright said.
“There’s another one coming up that we’re going to do, so if we wanted to do a business it would help us with that,” said Gardner.
Sanchez is not interested in going into the field, but thinks “it’s a really good thing to learn, just have your certification, especially us getting out of high school.”
“For me personally, I didn’t think I would like it. I took the class because I needed an art credit, but I really enjoy it. I feel like if I needed something to do, I would do this on the side because it brought out my creativity. I fell like if anybody else would take this, they would enjoy it,” Wright said.
** KSST Radio is helping SSHS celebrate Career and Technical Education Month by featuring interviews with students highlighting a few of the programs offered at school. Check out KSSTRadio.com and our YouTube Channel for more CTE features.
Lady Cats Softball First Scrimmage Thursday Canceled
The Lady Cats Softball Team’s first scrimmage of the season with Gilmer has now been officially canceled due to the weather.
The teams had hoped to scrimmage Thursday, February 6, after a postponement Tuesday. The Lady Cats first scrimmage of the season will now take place in Rockwall Saturday, weather permitting.
The Lady Cats will be scrimmaging a couple of strong Metroplex programs, host Rockwall and also The Colony.
Scrimmages Saturday are scheduled to get under way starting at 10 a.m. The Lady Cats also have plans for scrimmages at Wylie East next Tuesday evening starting at 5 p.m. and at North Lamar with the Pantherettes and Gunter on Feb. 14 beginning at around 5 p.m.
The Lady Cats will open the regular season at their own three-day Sulphur Springs Tournament starting on Feb. 20.
The Lady Cats are coached by veteran Coach David Carrillo, in his 14th year as Lady Cats Head Coach.
KSST is proud to be the official Wildcat and Lady Cat Station. We broadcast Sulphur Springs ISD games year round live on radio. When allowed, we also broadcast games via our YouTube channel.
Blue Blazes Drill Team Working On Spring Show, Director Announces New Ticket Option This Year
When students returned from Christmas break in early January, the Sulphur Springs High School Blue Blazes Drill Team began to work on this year’s Spring Show.
Blue Blazes Director Christie McCullough, Wednesday at Jay Hodge Chevrolet, said the theme to this year’s show will be “Beyond the Velvet Rope.”She said it will attempt to provide a look at the lifestyles of VIP’s.
This year’s show will take place April 24-25 at the SSHS Auditorium.
Ms. McCullough said tickets would be available around the first of April this year, earlier than usual. She said there would again be on-line sales. General Admission tickets will be available.
Ms. McCullough said there would also be VIP tickets that were started the year the show was performed in the high school gym during renovation of the Auditorium. Those tickets include early admission to the show so seats can be picked out.
Ms. McCullough also announced a new type of ticket she called Platinum VIP tickets. This package includes tickets for both night’s show. She said other perks were being worked on but she promised it would be a good package. She said it would also allow admission to a special pre-show reception, that will feature hors d’oeuvres prepared by the Culinary Class at the high school. Ms. McCullough said the event would be a real experience and would include some VIP giveaways.
She thanked Jay Hodge Chevrolet for sponsoring the reception and for being a title sponsor for the Spring Show. Ms. McCullough explained the Spring Show is a community sponsored event.
She said it is considered a fundraiser for the Blue Blazes since they charge admission. Members of the Blue Blazes solicit program ads and sponsorships. Ms. McCullough said she appreciated all the show’s sponsors. She said “Oh, wow!” moments don’t come cheap and added they are getting more expensive all the time.
She said lots of students other than Blazes are involved in the production.
Bill Owens with Jay Hodge Chevrolet, whose daughter Aley is the Blue Blazes Captain this year, said the Blue Blazes put on a great show that he called a first class extravaganza that you would pay more to see somewhere else. Owens said Jay Hodge Chevrolet was glad to be a part of the Spring Show.
Kenny Chesney Chillaxin Ticket Giveaway: I
KSST and KRVA are giving away tickets to the Kenny Chesney Chillaxin Concert at AT&T Stadium.
Chillaxification 2020 kicks off Saturday, April 18 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas – and culminates Friday, August 28 with his 20th show at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass. Tickets are on sale at seatgeek.com.
Rules and Information:
The passes must NOT be resold!
Unclaimed passes will be dispersed by KSST.
Employees of KSST/KRVA can’t win.
Winner’s names and picture will be posted on Facebook.
Spring Clean Up Days For Sulphur Springs Announced
Those who need to to get rid of household items too big for regular trash collection will want to make mark April 13-18 on their calendars.
The City of Sulphur Springs Thursday morning announced Monday-Saturday, April 13-18, as Spring Clean Up Week for city residents. Hours will be 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The clean up is typically conducted 1/4-mile east of Flowserve.
A few guidelines have been established over the years so that Sulphur Springs residents will know what is and isn’t acceptable before they arrive.
Appliances are typically accepted, provided they do not have refrigerant. Those that do must provide documentation that the item has been inspected and refrigerant has been removed.
Paint, batteries, tires or other household hazardous wastes are also on the usual list of things that are not accepted.
2 SSHS Students, 1 Team Place In Top 10 At Regional HOSA Competition Contest
Sulphur Springs High School Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) students traveled to McKinney North High School on Jan. 31- Feb. 1, to compete in the Regional HOSA Competition.
(Sulphur Springs ISD photo)
Ten SSHS HOSA students competed. Eight placed in the top 10 in their respective categories either individually or part of a team.
Heather Bowen, Braely Vickery, Shelby McCormick, Brynna Irving, Avery Moss and Czhela Moya competed in Public Service Announcement and placed 6th out of 43.
Janiya Gatlin placed 9th out of 40 for Job Seeking Skills.
Harley Speed placed 8th out of 31 for Medical Photography.
Raydon McCormack competed in Researched persuasive speaking and Mason Elam competed in Clinical Specialty.
Sponsors are Brynn Smith, Brianna Williams and Deanna McCoy.
