Meet Family Nurse Practitioner Nikki Collins Now at CHRISTUS Clinic
Nikki Neal Collins decided to go into the nursing profession right out of high school, and got her first job in the office of a medical clinic while in college. She spent several years in the Metroplex area completing her studies and becoming an RN, and she was soon began her career as a registered nurse. She worked in a variety of settings, from labor and delivery to other more specialized practices, and through this period, she realized that she actually liked interaction with the patients she saw. She realized that a few more years of college would put her in the career she sought as an advanced practice nurse, so she went back to school with a goal of obtaining a degree as an FNP. She is now so glad she did so, and that she has been able to come back to her home community!
Nikki is employed at CHRISTUS Clinic, and works in the Family Practice office of Dr. Guelde seeing patients of all ages, from babies three months old to Geriatric patients. She will be seeing patients in the Quitman Clinic on Mondays and Wednesdays, and in the local office on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.
‘Christmas in the Park’ Opens for Two Nights, November 30, December 7
Heritage Park will be totally festive when it opens for the holiday season for two separate nights of tours. On Saturday November 30 and Saturday December 7, enjoy the delights in store for you and your family, as you ‘step back in time’ into a Victorian world filled with the Spirit of Christmas! The experience is sure to put you in the mood for holiday celebrations of your own. Cost to attend is very reasonable, only $3, which allows the Hopkins County Historical Society to offer memorable events in the historic park throughout the year.
Winnsboro Woman Arrested On Hopkins County Warrant
A 31-year-old Winnsboro woman was arrested in her hometown on a felony Hopkins County warrant. Deputy Dan Turrentine took Heather Rochelle Drew into custody in Winnsboro at 3:05 p.m. Nov. 14 and transported her to Hopkins County jail, where she was held on a warrant for manufacture or delivery of 4 grams or more but less than 200 grams of a Penalty Group 1 controlled substance, according to arrest reports.
Drew remained in Hopkins County jail Friday morning, Nov. 15, according to jail reports. The arrest marks the second time this year she has been jailed locally. She was also arrested Jan. 10 for manufacture or delivery of 4 grams or more but less than 200 grams of a Penalty Group 1 controlled substance; she was released from jail Jan. 11 on $30,000 bond on the charge, according to jail reports.
Local Senior Citizens Crowd the Srs. Center for Chili
When Texas Chili is served, there’s usually a packed house! That was true in Sulphur Springs on Thursday November 14, 2019 when the annual Crockpot Chili Contest got off to a lively start inside the Senior Citizens Center at 150 MLK Drive. Nineteen pots of chili were entered, and after the five judges turned in their scores, the top three cooks and five honorable mentions were announced. Karon Weatherman, Director of the Seniors Center, also gives credit to Murray-Orwosky Funeral Home for supplying the certificates and trophies and to cookoff sponsor East Texas Physical Therapy.
1st Place – Vickie Pickel
2nd Place – Judith Beck with Wesley House/Wesley Oaks
3rd Place – Shelby Romans with Hopkins Place
Honorable Mentions were:
Tina Cox and Terri Campbell McDow with Rock Creek
Jimmie Bell and Fay Pool
Leslie Deann Forshee with Heritage Hospice
Paula Moody
Mary Ann Stephens with Signature Dialysis
Our Judges were: Enola Gay Mathews, Mike Patterson, Tyray Demarcus Smith, Price Orwosky and Jennifer Scroggins
Thank you to everyone that cooked Chili and to everyone who helped me clean everything up!
Miller Grove Volleyball Team Earns Another Trip to Regional Tournament
The Miller Grove Volleyball Team is headed to the Regional Tournament for the third year in a row. The Lady Hornets earned the trip with 3-0 win over Sulphur Bluff in a Regional Quarterfinal match in the Main Gym at Sulphur Springs High School Tuesday night (November 12). The score was 25-13, 25-19 and 25-14. Miller Grove went through district play with a perfect 14-0 record and improved their season record Tuesday to 29-13. Coach Ana Billingsley said her girls showed up ready to play. She said they hit some spots with low momentum in the second set but they fought back to speed up the game and were able to finish. For the Lady Hornets, Alexis Green had 20 kills and 13 service points. Katie Williams had 8 kills and 10 assists. Lainy Burnett had 7 kills and 2 blocks. Lauren Bullard had 8 assists and 10 service points. Harli Watson had 10 digs. Jaylah Roberson had 8 digs. Kylee Saldana had 2 kills. The Lady Hornets face Trinidad in the Regional-Semifinals in Fort Worth at Billlingsley Field House at 5 p.m. on Friday evening. Miller Grove defeated Trinidad in the playoffs last year at the Regional Tournament.
Pictures courtesy of Ana Billingsley.
Commissioners Court To Canvass Nov. 5 Votes At Special Friday Meeting
Miller Grove VFD Recognized, Houston-Rosemont Street Building Bid Selected At Previous Court Session
Hopkins County Commissioners Court have scheduled a special session Friday morning primarily to canvass the votes from the Nov. 5, Constitutional Amendment Election.
The court, during the 9 a.m. session, is also scheduled to consider approving a participating entity services agreement for the Statewide Automated Victim Notification Service.
Houston-Rosemont Building Project
During their regular meeting this week, the Commissioners Court accepted a bid from Mark Baird to construct a new building on county property at Houston and Rosemont Streets. Three bids were submitted; Baird’s bid of $73,300 was the lowest. County staff will work to have everything out of the current building by Thanksgiving. The building will then be razed during December, with a goal for construction to start in January, or as close to that as possible.
The building will be used primarily by Hopkins County Sheriff’s Office by inmates skilled in mechanics or who are interested in learning certain shop skills, for work on county vehicles and equipment. Commissioners will be able to drive or send over county apparatus to be worked on in the facility.
Commissioners are expected to discuss the move more during upcoming work sessions, the first of which will be held on the third floor of Hopkins County Courthouse immediately following Friday’s special called meeting.
Donations
Also at their meeting Monday morning, Nov. 11, Hopkins County Commissioner Court accepted two donations.
- Precinct 2 Constable Bill Allan donated some roofing material he had left over from roofing his house. The materials will be stored until ready to use for future county projects, according to Hopkins County Judge Robert Newsom.
- Benson Brothers also donated an ambulance style truck that will be utilized by the county for fire department and emergency management purposes, according to Newsom.
Miller Grove VFD Recognized
Also during the Nov. 11 meeting, Hopkins County Fire Chief Andy Endsley and the Commissioners Court recognized Miller Grove Volunteer Fire Department for 43 years of service to the county. As part of HCFD’s 20th anniversary celebration, one volunteer fire department is being recognized each month for their contributions to the community.
MGVFD Captain/Treasurer Ray Sparks was present to receive the framed proclamation urging “all citizens to applaud the outstanding efforts of the Miller Grove Volunteer Fire Department, to recognize the dedication in their perseverance to provide protection for each citizen and their property and, offer heartfelt appreciation for the servanthood of each one.”
MGVFD was founded in 1976. The department’s first known apparatus was a chassis cab truck with 250-gallon tank purchased by the Hopkins County Commissioners Court with Octave Woods serving as commissioner. Miller Grove Fire Chief Ernie Weaver attended a CPR course as required to qualify as a recipient of the truck for the Miller Grove VFD.
Weaver, an agriculture instructor at Miller Grove ISD, along with his ag students and members of the community, responded to all calls for assistance, operating by citizens band radios. The MG fire department housed the one-ton chassis cab at the ag shop at MGISD, resulting in lowering insurance rate for the school district.
The department has since moved from the school to its own facility, a fire station with living quarters and a full kitchen. In 2018, the department dropped its ISO rating from 9 to 6 to create an insurance cost reduction for residences within 5 miles of the station.
At present, the Miller Grove Volunteer Fire Department has 13 members –Chief Justin Block, Captain/Treasurer Ray Sparks, Training Coordinator Doug Lewis, Assistant Treasurer Bob Flecker, Head of Maintenance Spencer Wicks, Secretary Dianne Wicks, and firefighters Wade Honicutt, Trey Lester, Steven Mayfield, Jimeray Hoffman, Bryan Thorton, Jay Hoffman and Kyla Block (as junior cadet) — and five fire apparatuses.
Lady Cats Basketball Wins First Game of Season as They Split Two Games in Bells Tourney
The Lady Cats Basketball Team won their first game of the season in dramatic fashion as Lady Cat Nylah Lindley rebounded a missed shot and hit a follow shot that just beat the buzzer to give the Lady Cats a 58-57 win over Cooper in a Bells Invitational Tournament game Thursday (November 14). Cooper had taken the lead in the last minute before Lindley’s heroics. The Lady Cats win spoiled a nice Cooper comeback. The Lady Cats opened strong in the game and had a 21-9 first quarter lead. The Lady Cats expanded the lead to 17 at the half, 35-18. After the halftime break in both the third and fourth quarters, the Lady Cats had trouble protecting the basketball. Numerous turnovers and some sharpshooting by Cooper allowed the Lady Bulldogs to get back into the game. Cooper trailed by only 5 after three quarters, 46-41 and took the lead early in the fourth quarter. Twice Cooper had three point leads in the fourth quarter. The Lady Cats did just enough to win. Freshman Kenzie Willis led the Lady Cats with 24 points including three three-point baskets. Freshman Addisyn Wall had two three-pointers and scored 8 points. Sophomore Hannah Cordell had 7 points. Junior Lindley and freshman Serenity Lewis both scored 6 points. Junior Bre’Asia Ivery had 4 points and senior Kate Womack had 3 points. Earlier in the day at the tournament, the Lady Cats lost to Pottsboro 65-37. Pottsboro is preseason ranked #23 in Class 3A. The Lady Cardinals scored the first nine points of the game and led 17-8 after one quarter. They expanded their lead to 30-17 at the half. The Lady Cats continued to trail by only nine points into the third quarter. Then Pottsboro blew open the game hitting some big three pointers. Their third quarter lead was 51-27. Cordell led the Lady Cats with 10 points and Willis had 7. Lindley scored 6 points. Womack and Wall had 4 points each. Lewis, senior Latavia Smith and sophomore Jasmine Taylor all had 2 points. With a split in pool play Thursday, the Lady Cats will now go into the Silver Bracket for second place teams in each pool. The Lady Cats play Friday at 10:15 a.m. in the new Bells Gym against the second place pool team that will be either Howe, North Lamar or Aubrey. The Lady Cats are now 1-3 for the season.
Cattle Losses Because of Blood Borne Disease by Mario Villarino
Developed by Dr. Mario A. Villarino, County Extension Agent for Agriculture and Natural Resources Hopkins County, Texas
Recently I have visited several cattle producers with cases of anaplasmosis in their herd. Anaplasmosis is an infectious disease of cattle that causes destruction of red blood cells. The disease is caused by a minute parasite, Anaplasma marginale, found in the red blood cells of infected cattle. It can be transmitted from infected animals to healthy animals by insects or by surgical instruments. Anaplasmosis outbreaks are related to the lack of a control program, the ratio between anaplasmosis carriers and susceptible animals in the herd, and the amount of vector transmission. Animals with anaplasmosis become weak, abort, reject exercise and potentially die. Anaplasmosis is spread by the transfer of blood from an infected animal to a susceptible one. Primarily, the transmission is “mechanical”—that is, it is transmitted by the mouth part s of biting insects contaminated with A. marginale-infected blood or by contaminated instruments used by human beings. Three biting insects (horse flies, stable flies, and mosquitoes) are known to transmit anaplasmosis mechanically by carrying A. marginale-infected RBCs from diseased cattle to susceptible cattle. In general, if more than 5 minutes elapse between the time when an insect bites a diseased animal and the time it bites a susceptible animal, anaplasmosis is not transmitted. The disease is more likely to be transmitted by insects when cattle gather together, making it easier for insects to bite several animals in a short period of time. Anaplasmosis spreads easily between herds when neighboring cattle congregate under shade trees along fence lines. Control of biting insects, especially the large biting flies, can often be frustrating and is generally not a practical, reliable method for totally preventing transmission of anaplasmosis. However, applications of insecticides that reduce the biting insect population will substantially reduce the number of clinical anaplasmosis cases occurring in a herd. Periodic spraying and dipping, as well as forced use of dust bags and back rubbers, are common methods of insecticide application for beef cattle. The elimination of carriers of anaplasmosis requires the use of antibiotics inject or by mouth. Consult a large animal veterinarian for diagnostic, treatment and prevention of anaplasmosis in your herd.
Coming Up:
City Secretary Recognized For Earning Texas Registered Municipal Clerk Certification
Sulphur Springs City Secretary Gale Roberts will be recognized in January at the Annual Texas Municipal Clerks Election Law Seminar in Frisco for completing the Texas Municipal Clerks Certification Program.
Roberts over the last four years has not only been diligently working at her post at City Hall, but has also been studying and taking the course work needed to become a Texas Registered Municipal Clerk.
TMCCP is the only university-level professional education program for city clerks and city secretaries In Texas, and is the third oldest of such programs In the country. It is administered by the Texas Municipal Clerks Association. Inc., located at the University of North Texas. The certification program is recognized by the International Institute of Municipal Clerks.
Successful completion of TMCCP requires approximately 200 hours of individual home study and online homework; examinations over each of four courses; and attendance at eight 2-day seminars.
Roberts began work in the courses in January of 2015 and completed the course work for all four classes on Oct. 25. She received official notification this month that she is now officially qualified to use the Texas Registered Municipal Clerk designation.
Course 1, Public Management and Administration, is designed to sharpen managerial and administrative skills and provide an understanding of the scope of public administration. Records management, office communications, time management, and more general skills such as planning, organizing, directing and controlling are focused on.
Course 2, Understanding the City and Local Government Law, is designed provide a better understanding of how sociological and political nature of the community affects local administrators. Sections on municipal court administration and on Texas local government law help the improve knowledge and skills in serving the city council and providing administrative support to the municipal court. Information related to general law and home rule regulations, annexation, planning and zoning, and open meetings law is presented. This course also provides experience in using the Texas Municipal Law and Procedure Manual.
Course 3 is Context of local Government Finance, Revenue Sources, the Local Budget, Budget Cycle, Public Funds Investment and Ethics. Methods of the local government finance process, including budgeting and
revenue analysis, accounting and financial reporting, cash and debt management, and selected issues in financial management are covered. There is also a section related to the Public Funds Investment Act, which governs the investment of government funds in Texas, and offers a practical section on ethics for the purpose of providing local government officials with guidelines and strategies to build public trust and to hone their skills in exercising ethical judgment.
The final course required for TRMC certification is entitled Motivation, Public Relations, Supervision, Election Laws. This course concentrates on
skills such as media communication, motivation, and personnel management. A section on election administration emphasizes the city
secretary’s responsibilities in that area, and provides experience in using the Texas Municipal Election Law Manual.
The 69th Texas Legislature adopted H. B. 2092, which gives State sanction of the program and provides that certification will be issued to each person who successfully completes the program. H.B. 2092 also requires persons who certify in Texas to re-certify every five years.
Re-certification requires an additional 80 hours of professional development course work, including attendance at six 2-day seminars and a selection of educational opportunities to earn points towards re-certification.
Currently, hundreds of municipal clerks are enrolled in TMCCP and are working toward certification or re-certification. As of 2018, only 880
enrollees had completed the extensive certification program, according to the UNT.
