Wildcats Defensive Coordinator Alex Guerra More Comfortable in Second Year on the Job
Wildcats Football Defensive Coordinator Alex Guerra is in his second year with the Wildcats. He admits he feels more comfortable in this his second year. Coach Guerra says he has an awesome defensive staff with every member returning this season. He says he also is more comfortable in his second year with the players. Coach Guerra says building the defense this year is not difficult with the players and coaches he has. He says a lot of guys played some last year. Coach Guerra says it all about putting kids in the right position. Concerning sharing players with the offense, he says that is all about conditioning. He says small schools have been doing that for years. Coach Guerra says he and Offensive Coordinator Matt Young do a great job scheduling players. Concerning this year’s Wildcats defense, he says his number one players have been great and his number two’s are coming around. He says some of the backups have stepped up and others are beginning to surprise him. Coach Guerra says he’ll see how they do Thursday in the first scrimmage at Liberty-Eylau. He says defensive coaches have added stuff for the defenders to do this season and he says he wants the players to get better at doing those things. Monday’s (August 19) workout was the hottest so far this season for the Wildcats who hit the field shortly after 5 p.m., an hour earlier than they have been. The temperature hovered near 100 degrees as the athletic trainers worked hard to see that that players were drinking lots of water and were handling the intense heat.
Lady Cats Volleyball and Wildcats Team Tennis Play on Tuesday Game Day
There is volleyball and team tennis on this Tuesday (August 20) game day. The Lady Cats Volleyball Team is on the road to play a match against always tough Forney. There will be freshmen and JV matches at 4:30 p.m. with the varsity match at 6 p.m. The Lady Cats got a win over the Lady Rabbits last season here at home. The Lady Cats come into the match with a 10-5 season record.
Meanwhile Wildcats Team Tennis will play host to Pleasant Grove for a non-district match at the Wildcat Tennis Center. The match is scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m. The Wildcats lost a close competitive match to Pleasant Grove here at home last year. The Wildcats have a 1-9 season record coming into the Tuesday match.
SSHS Students Start 2019-20 School Year With Games, Inspirational Messages
Sulphur Springs High School students started their first day of school for the 2019-2020 school year with games and informational messages, and for a few gift card prizes.
“Basically, the staff wanted to do something nontraditional for the kids. We feel relationships and building relationships is something we excel at here at Sulphur Springs High School. It’s important for us to connect with the kids here,” said SSHS Principal Derek Driver.
The theme for the back to school bash was “Future Ready.” Several students organizations participated in the program, along with inspirational speakers from the community, school and district.
Members of the SSHS Wildcat Band, Blue Blazes and cheerleaders lined the path into the assembly, welcoming students as they entered.
Community members spoke to the students about life advantages and things they can do to be future ready, with a goal of impacting student lives. Among the presenters were Israel Lewis, Joel Tiemeyer, Jeff Cravens and Carrie Nuckolls and Bryson Bullington. Superintendent Michael Lamb joined the cheer squads in leading chants to get the students pumped up about the new school year.
“It was very uplifting morning, a positive start of the first day of school,” said Sulphur Springs ISD Assistant Superintendent Rusty Harden.
SSHS teacher Jordan Owens served as maser of ceremony for the occasion, and Jonathan McGraw oversaw games, with students and staff competing for gift cards. Drawings were scheduled throughout the day for other gift cards donated for students as well.
The Student Council, Blue Blazes, cheerleaders and drum line had active roles in the program.
Driver offers thanks to the community members and school organization sponsors who helped make the event a success. He extends great appreciation to all of the businesses that donated funds to the program, including Chik-fil-A, Alliance Bank, City National Bank and Joe Bob’s.
NextLink Breaks Ground On Sulphur Springs Site
Sulphur Springs and Hopkins County officials and community members welcomed NextLink to town Tuesday morning.
The Texas-based high speed Internet and phone company kicked off construction of a Sulphur Springs location in Heritage Business Park beside Armorock and across from Load Trail.
“We are glad to have NextLink here to contribute to our community. They are going to become good neighbors and become our friends. They are already working around here,” said Clay Walker, vice president of Sulphur Springs-Hopkins County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors.
“We just want to congratulate you on your new endeavor here. We can’t wait to have you become a part of our city and community. We’re so glad you’re here,” said Sulphur Springs Mayor Pro Tem Erika Armstrong.
Janice Melton with Rep. Dan Flynn’s office expressed congratulations to the NexLink representatives on Flynn’s behalf, on the start of their new location. She noted the tower support provided by NextLink will be “a great asset to the Sulphur Springs area.”
Hopkins County Judge Robert Newsom called NextLink and the services they will provide in rural areas the realization of a years’ long dream of many in Hopkins County. He encouraged the business officials to contact city and county officials if they can be of assistance.
NextLink was awarded a $281 million Connect America Fund grant in 2018 from the FCC to expand high speed Internet and voice services to under-served rural communities in Texas and five other states.
The company’s network is mainly to the northwest and southwest of the Metroplex but is creeping east and NextLink is obligated to build a network to span from Sulphur Springs to the Oklahoma border down to the Gulf Coast. The company has 6 years to build the rest of the network supported by the grant, according to Paulette Couch, NextLink facilities manager, and Mike Johnson, Connect America Fund Project manger.
“We have some towers going up west of town and we’ll eventually begin building out,” Johnson said.
It will take a few months to get the infrastructure in, but NextLink construction workers, as well as some tower climbers and installers are ready to go to work building and training others in their efforts to bring high speed Internet service to the Sulphur Springs area.
Couch said for those who are curious, NextLink should have limited service available by the end of the year, likely starting south of Sulphur Springs.
Those interested in working for the company may click the careers option on the NextLink website. While prior experience is helpful, it is not required to work for the company; they will offer training, according to Couch.
Those interested in obtaining the Internet service can obtain more information on the website as well.
DBA ‘Brick Street Market’ Opens in Downtown at 8am on Saturday September 21
The merchant members of the Downtown Business Alliance invite you to celebrate Sulphur Springs at the Brick Street Vintage Market coming up on Saturday September 21, 2019. Find out all the exciting details below!
The one-day Brick Street Market will be open on Saturday September 21, 2019 to offer street shopping, tastings, trunk showings, live music and an arts, crafts, antique and vintage decor market. In fact, Brick Street Market invites all local residents and out-of-town visitors to discover and enjoy the fun demonstrations as well as the local brewery, winery, galleries, retail and boutiques, and 17 different specialty food shops, restaurants, cafe’s, coffee shops and ice cream shops located within a half-block of Celebration Plaza, downtown Sulphur Springs! Brick Street Market is an annual outdoor event put on by the Downtown Business Alliance. Maps and other printed information will be available at the Information Center located inside The Magic Scoop General Store at 210 Connally Street.
There will be a Best-Decorated Bicycle Contest which is open to the public. The prize is $100! Just bring your decorated bicycle and enter it! More vendors are also needed, and there is a $50 prize for Best Decorated Vendor Booth. If you would like to be a vendor, please contact sulphurspringsdba.com/vintage-market.html to sign up and pay booth fee. Many other surprises await visitors in the form of coupons, discounts and gift bags. For exciting details, go to sulphurspringsdba.com.
In addition to the shopping aspect of Brick Street Market, visitors are encouraged to take in the annual Lone Star Heritage Quilt Show going on nearby from 9am til 3pm on Saturday September 21 at The Roc, 115 Putman Street. (also open Friday September 20 from 9am til 5pm) Located just 2 blocks from Brick Street Market, it’s in pleasant walking distance. Also, while visiting downtown Sulphur Springs, feel free to see the historic Hopkins County Courthouse and Veterans Memorial Park, the Open Water Fountain Park and the famous Glass Restrooms. Your invitation is also the slogan of the Downtown Business Alliance, “come to Sulphur Springs for the day, the night or the rest of your life!”
Meal-a-Day Needs a Friday Delivery Driver for Como-Pickton Route
Meal a Day has an opening for a volunteer delivery driver on the Como Pickton delivery route for senior shut-ins who live in that area. If you can drive a route weekly on Fridays, please contact Karon Weatherman. In order to learn the route, you can go with another driver to run the route and get acquainted with the stops. This route will take a couple of hours to drive. You should be finished by noon, as the Cooks try get the food ready by 9:30 am for delivery. All Meal-a-Day cooks, kitchen helpers and drivers are volunteers who love helping others. According to other Meal-a-Day volunteers ‘you will be blessed beyond words’. Contact Karon weekdays at (903) 885-1661, at the Senior Citizens Center at 150 MLK Drive in Sulphur Springs, or by email at [email protected]
New Stew Fest Market Promises Fashion, Ice Cream and More
The Stew Fest Market, held in conjunction with the World Famous Hopkins County Stew Festival, starts Friday October 25th, 2019. Vendors are signing up to sell their wares and promote their business in an area right next to the stew sites.
The Hopkins County Chamber of Commerce has grown the annual event each year. Last year saw a new record for the number of stew sites. Around 7,000 people attend the event, and some of them are gonna want dessert. They may even want a new pair of earrings.
Shaunda Clem of Callies Handcrafted Jewelry told KSST “We are excited about the new market. We have been setting up at [Celebration Market]… It’s going to be great!” Clem creates jewelry and fashions. Shaunda and her family have just recently began selling at area events.
The Magic Scoop General Store and Ice Cream Parlor is a fixture of the Downtown Dining District. They will be at the Stew Fest Market selling their homemade ice cream. Lara White Colby told KSST “We are so excited to be a part of the 50th Stew Festival! We think the [Stew Fest] Market is a great idea. It’s really fits our business.” Magic Scoop is contemplating a special flavor that compliments Hopkins County Stew. However, even vanilla will be a excellent choice.
The new Stew Fest Market will be just South of Kids Kingdom in Buford Park.
Wildcats and Lady Cats Cross Country Runners Use Opening Tri-Meet For Varsity Seeding
Wildcats and Lady Cats Cross Country Coach Ross Hicks used a tri-meet at Royse City against the Bulldogs and Mount Pleasant Saturday (August 17) to seed his teams and to determine varsity competitors for now. Coach Hicks said it was interesting to open the season against the expected top two district competitors. As it turned out, Coach Hicks said he was so busy making sure his athletes finished the chaotic race that he didn’t have time to keep track of the other two teams’ runners. Due to concerns with the ground at the Royse City cross country course, the coaches decided to move the 5K run to the Royse City High School track. Each Wildcat and Lady Cat had to complete 12 laps. Coach Hicks said he used the situation to teach the lesson of handling adversity when it arises. He said his athletes responded well. Coach Hicks said his top six Lady Cats finishers were senior Sydney Washburn, freshman Lainie Hurst, sophomore Jessica Yanez, freshman Emily Soto, senior Ashley Noe and Maurie Flecker. Wildcats order of finish was senior Christian Palomino first on the team and second in the race, second on the team sophomore Jose Mejia who was fourth in the race, third on the team Camden Fuller, fourth Alan Hernandez, fifth senior Kevin Yanez, sixth senior Ricardo Torres, seventh senior Kyle Chanel and eighth Evan Patrick. Coach Hicks said he entered 23 Wildcats in the race. He said seedings are not set in stone and he said others could rise to the top as the season goes on. The Wildcats and Lady Cats will compete in a Commerce meet, The Tiger Invitational, this Saturday. Coach Hicks said the meet will be much larger this year as seven other Class 5A schools will compete. District foes Mount Pleasant and Greenville are expected to attend. Coach Hicks said he would also be able to enter some middle school runners in the race.
