Talent Abounds in Hopkins County By Johanna Hicks
As I write this week’s column, I’m surrounded by 4-H Project Show entries – photography, art, sewn items, baked goods, metal work, leather work, wood work, needlework, horticulture, and more. We have some very talented youth, and every October, our 4-H members have the opportunity to exhibit they handiwork as part of the National 4-H Week kick-off.
The public is invited to view the entries at the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension office in Sulphur Springs, 1200 W. Houston Street, Monday thru Friday, October 8 thru 12, from 8:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Our young people have worked hard and they are to be commended for taking the effort to enter their items.
On similar note, all Hopkins County residents are invited to enter items in the 2018 Hopkins County Fall Festival Creative Arts contest. Our Hopkins County youth will be out in full force to enter items. I’ve already heard from some of 4-H members and area schools who are planning to have entries from students. Kuddos to North Hopkins, Sulphur Bluff, and Sulphur Springs for sharing the information with students. (I apologize if other schools have also promoted the event. These three are the ones of which I’m aware.)
The Creative Arts Contest registration will take place on Thursday, October 25 from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. and Friday, October 26 from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. at the Sulphur Springs High School Conference Center. Doors will be closed for judging which will start at approximately 10:00 a.m. Following judging, the conference center will be open for public viewing of the entries until 5:00 p.m. on Friday, October 26, and again on Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 1:25 p.m. Pictures of Best of Show winners will be made at 1:30 p.m., after which all entries may be picked up.
As a reminder, the age divisions are children (ages 10 and under), youth (ages 11 to 19), adults (ages 20 to 69), and older Texans (ages 70 and up). There is also a division for Assisted Living and Nursing Home residents. Entry categories are: art, bake show, clothing, creative crafts, food preservation, handiwork, holiday/seasonal, horticulture, photography, quilts, and woodworking. Under each category are several classes, so there is a potential for each person to enter numerous items!
If you would like more information on the Creative Arts Contest, there are several ways to get it. You may drop by the Extension Office and pick up a copy, or you may go tohttp://hopkins.agrilife.org, or go to the Fall Festival website and click on forms.
Fall Festival Arts & Crafts Show
Even though the deadline to submit applications to have a space in the Arts & Crafts Show was October 8, you still have an opportunity to get your application to our office. Only a handful of indoor spaces remain, and we don’t want to leave anyone out. A few spaces under the outdoor covered north entrance remain, as well. All items sold must be hand-crafted. Exhibit space determines the cost. Senior adults get a slight price break.
This is a highlight of the Hopkins County Fall Festival! Exhibitors have beautiful, unique handmade items for sale, and I’m always amazed at the variety and quality of the merchandise. If you want to get a jump-start on your Christmas shopping, this is the perfect opportunity to do so!
Christmas Joys
The 45th annual Extension “Christmas Joys” program is another highlight of the year! If you plan to attend and have not signed up, now is the time to do so! The event will take place on Monday, November 5, at the Southwest Dairy Museum, but please don’t call them – call the Extension Office to sign up at 903-885-3443. The 1:30 session is full with a waiting list, and as of this writing, only 23 seats remain for the 5:30 session.
We have some great ideas to share with you – from sewing, to crafting, to decorating, to baking, to celebrating! All attendees will receive a goody bag along with a booklet of all the instructions, recipes, and tips shared in the demonstrations. The Southwest Dairy Museum will once again provide sampling of their cheeses, dip mixes, and party mixes. The cost is $5, payable at the door. If you have signed up, but for some reason cannot attend, please contact us so we can call the next person in line.
Closing Thought
“Don’t let rules get in the way of a teachable moment” – Dr. Douglas Steele
Recipe of the Week – Honey-Chipotle Pork Tacos
1 pound pork loin, trimmed and sliced into ¼ to ½ inch strips
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon chipotle pepper sauce
½ cup chopped white onion
½ cup chopped tomato
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
½ cup chopped, fresh cilantro
Juice of 1 lime
½ cup nonfat sour cream
Corn tortillas
1) Place pork in bowl. In separate bowl, combine olive oil, honey, and pepper sauce. Pour mixture over pork and stir to coat. Marinate at least 10 minutes.
2) While pork is marinating, combine onion, tomato, jalapeno, and cilantro. Squeeze lime juice over the mixture and refrigerate until ready to use.
3) In a large skillet over medium heat, cook pork 5 to 7 minutes on each side, or until internal temperature reaches 145°F.
4) Serve the pork on corn tortillas, topped with onion-tomato mixture and 1 tablespoon sour cream. Makes 8 servings.
Per serving: 200 calories, 8 g total fat, 40 mg cholesterol, 18 g carbohydrate, 14 g protein, 1 g fiber
Food Truck Friday Event #2
The second #foodtruckfriday event hosted by the Sulphur Springs ISD High School was a success. A few improvements and additions from lessons learned during the first event helped everyone take part. Improvements helped spread out the lines, serve more efficiently, and provided an even wider range of food and price options.
The SSISD School Cafeteria Staff even joined in. Their booth provided a few healthy items for students wanting lighter options. They also found their niche in State Fair type food with with addition of Turkey Legs. Their greatest contribution was the preparation of a extra special meal for student who could not join their classmates outdoors. An Asian inspired cafeteria meal was tough for students to resist.
Student Council President Alexis Lopez was noticeably relived when the last of the food vendors arrived thus assuring enough food for all three lunch waves. During the first #foodtruckfriday some trucks did run out before the event was complete. The Students with perhaps the biggest appetites, the Wildcat Football Team, are in the last lunch group.
Cooperation between the SSISD Board, Administration, Staff, and Students is clearly evident. With so many moving pieces, it is impressive that these events go so well.
Game Day: Lady Cat Volleyball Hosts Texas High
The Lady Cats’ volleyball team has a very important match Friday (October 5) in Wildcat Gym against Texas High as the Lady Cats attempt to fight their way back into the district race. The Lady Cats started out with three straight losses in district play.
On Tuesday night (October 2), the Lady Cats got their first district win of the season, 3-0 at Mount Pleasant. Texas High is 4-0 in district play. This match marks the end of the first half of district play. The Lady Cats already have a win over the Lady Tigers this season. The two teams met in a Wills Point tournament on August 18 and the Lady Cats came out on top. The Lady Cats ended up winning that tournament. The Lady Cats enter the Texas High match with a season record of 25-10.
The varsity match with Texas High Friday in Wildcat Gym begins at 5 p.m. Freshmen and JV matches will follow at around 6:30 p.m.
Game Day: Wildcat Football Hosts Forney
The Wildcats’ football team hopes to improve their district standing as they play host to the Forney Jackrabbits Friday night (October 5) at 7:30 p.m. at Gerald Prim Stadium. The Wildcats are 3-0 for the season and they have a 2-0 district record with wins over Terrell and Royse City. They are just a half game behind first place Corsicana because the Tigers have won one more district game than the Wildcats.
Forney comes in with a season record of 1-4. They have lost their four games by a total of 16 points. The Jackrabbits are 1-2 in district play with a win over North Forney and losses to Terrell and Royse City. This is only the third meeting between the Wildcats and Jackrabbits going back to 1956. The Wildcats lead the series 2 games to zero with wins in 2004 and 2005.
The Forney Head Football Coach is Aaron Woods. He’s a first year head coach in his first year at Forney. He had previous stops as an assistant coach at Cedar Hill and Waxahachie.
The Wildcats Football Coach is Greg Owens, in his thirteenth year here. His record with the Wildcats is 85-59. Coach Owens says keys to victory Friday night will be physical play, especially at the line of scrimmage and also protecting the football and tackling well.
Wildcats Football against Forney will air live on KSST Radio. We will also videotape the game for replay later on Channel 18 on Suddenlink Cable.
Request for Sealed Bids; City Seeks Bids for 50 Acres of Property on CR 4738; Packet Download, Location
The City of Sulphur Springs is requesting sealed bids for 50 acres of property located at County Road 4738, Hopkins County, Texas, (https://maps.google.com/?q=33.202966,-95.752240) being described as follows:
All the right, title and interest of the City of Sulphur Springs in that certain tract or parcel of land situated in Hopkins county, Texas, about 9 miles Northwest from Sulphur Springs and being 50 acres of the East side of 107 acres being part of the Wm. Irwin Survey, the 107 acres described as follows:
Beginning on the South line of a 320 acre survey in the name of Henry Russell 136 varas
West from the S.E. corner of said Russell Survey;
Thence East passing said Russell Survey and tracing the South line of a tract of 31 acres of the said Irwin survey heretofore conveyed by J.G. Wellborn and S.H. Wellborn to R. Carpenter in all 686 varas
Carpenter’s S.E. corner a bois d’arc stake in prairie;
Thence South 882 varas a bois d’arc stake in prairie;
Thence West 686 varas a bois d’arc stake in prairie;
Thence North 882 varas to the place of beginning.
Being the same 50 acre tract conveyed by deed from J.M. Springer to L.D. Hamm dated December 20th, 1912, of record at Vol. 99, Page 540, Deed Records of Hopkins County, Texas;
SUBJECT TO THE FOLLOWING:
Subject to the following reservation in Deed from Floyd D. Hamm et al to James Virgil Teaver and wife, Kay Teaver, dated February 5, 1983, filed for record February 10, 1983, under Clerk’s file No. 722: “Save and Except, and there is hereby ·reserved unto Grantors, their heirs and assigns, an undivided one-half (1/2) of all of the oil, gas and other minerals in and under and that may be produced from the above described property, together with the right of ingress and egress at all times for the purpose of mining, drilling exploring, operating and developing said lands for oil, gas and other minerals and removing the same therefrom.”
Bids must be submitted on Bid Pack forms provided by the City of Sulphur Springs, Texas. Bid packets may be picked up at City Hall, 201 N. Davis Street, Sulphur Springs, Texas or at the City business office at the City of Sulphur Springs, 125 S. Davis St., Sulphur Springs, Texas 75482. You may also download a bid packet from the City Website, at https://tinyurl.com/yato7scd. Bids not properly marked and opened by mistake will not be considered. Bids received after due time fixed for the bid will be returned unopened. Alternate bids will not be considered.
Successful bidder shall be required to pay, in addition to the purchase price of the property, all costs of closing, including preparation of closing documents, seller’s policy of title insurance, any costs for surveying or appraisals, and any other closing cost.
The offered property is sold in an “AS IS” condition and no representations or warranties are made as to the suitability of said property for any purpose. The successful bidder shall have no claims against the City of Sulphur Springs for any loss or damage incurred as a result of any latent condition of the property. The acreage reference is a reference only, and no warranty is made as to the actual number of acres contained within the boundaries of said property. The bid submitted shall be a lump sum bid only and shall not be adjusted for any shortfall in actual area of said property upon survey.
The City of Sulphur Springs is exempt from state and federal excise taxes. An exemption certificate will be issued upon request of the successful bidder.
The City of Sulphur Springs reserves the right to reject any and all bids and to waive informalities in bidding. In case of lack of clarity in stating prices, the City reserves the right to consider the most advantageous bid thereof, or reject the bid.
Bids shall be submitted to Jody Price at the business office at 125 South Davis Street by 10a.m. November 1, 2018. Please contact Marc Maxwell at 903.885.7541 for additional information. Bids will be publicly opened and read aloud at 10:15 a.m. November 1, 2018, at City Hall located at 201 North Davis Street.
Video Presentation: A Walk to Remember
The “Walk to Remember” in the Gardens at Christus Mother Frances Hospital in Sulphur Springs surpassed their $10,000 goal for the Terrific Tuesdays Alzheimer’s Respite Program. During the annual Walk, for 2019 program funding ended with final donations sending the total to over $14,000.
“Walk to Remember” Surpasses Target for Terrific Tuesdays 2019 Budget Goal
On a lovely Autumn evening, several dozen persons gathered for the “Walk to Remember” Alzheimer’s Walk in the Gardens at Christus Mother Frances Hospital in Sulphur Springs. Support is strong locally for the Terrific Tuesdays Alzheimer’s Respite Program. During the annual Walk, it’s $10,000 goal for 2019 program funding was surpassed with final donations, sending the total to over $14,000. Terrific Tuesdays Director is Tammi Reardon. Karon Weatherman and patrons of the Sulphur Springs Senior Citizens Center also provide support and encouragement for the program.
Cheers filled the air when the grand total of donations was announced! Major contributors were recognized and two special awards given based on amount of donations raised. The facility award, or Spirit Award, went to Wesley House/Wesley Oaks. The business/industry award, or Community Spirit Award, went to Saputo. Both entities are multi-year winners with a strong employee commitment to the cause of Terrific Tuesdays.
Jim Thompson gave a stirring talk on the importance of Terrific Tuesdays in his family. His mother, Lil Thompson, benefited from the program. Thompson is currently a member of the Alzheimer’s Support Group, a companion program of Terrific Tuesdays.
Various “mini-walks” at nursing homes and senior facilities yielded a large part of the total amount, and these funds came in mostly from individuals who walked at the facilities during September. Here’s a breakdown:
Sunny Springs Nursing and Rehab $1,381. Hopkins Place $700.
Sulphur Springs Senior Citizens Ctr $1660. Terrific Tuesdays $1,380
SS Health and Rehab $110. Rock Creek Health and Rehab $480.
Wesley House/Wesley Oaks $2,240 SS Imaging $160. Saputo $1,000.
A Quilt Raffle was also part of the fundraising. Jan Morrison made the quilt and Terrific Tuesdays Volunteer Karen Strickland was the winner.
Jake Gibson filled in for Gary Spraggins as music DJ for the Walk.
Commerce Woman Arrested for Meth in Drug Free Zone
A traffic stop in the 1400 block of Mockingbird Lane by a Sulphur Springs Police officer led to the arrest of Steffany Lynne Taylor, 32, of Commerce, a passenger in the auto. Following consent to search the vehicle a liquid substance that tested positive for methamphetamine was found in Taylor’s purse.
When the stop was made, the driver of the auto appeared nervous. The officer sought consent to search the vehicle and during his search, the officer asked permission to search Taylor’s purse. Other paraphernalia was in the purse as well.
Taylor is in Hopkins County Jail charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance Penalty Group 1, less than 1-gram in a Drug Free Zone, a Felony 3. She is being held on a $15,000 bond.
Tira News: October 5th, 2018
By Jan Vaughn
Joyce Dodd reported that we received some more bags of groceries for the Tira Food Pantry. We always appreciate the contributions. I want to express my appreciation to the council members who have been taking care of keeping the pantry stocked.
Chip, Tiffany, Jaidyn, and I met Landon, Laiken, Rylan, Brailon, and Slaiden Joslin and Laiken’s brother, Kasen, at Tejano’s in Cooper on Saturday evening. We were celebrating Laiken’s birthday, which was the week before.
The North Hopkins Alumni Homecoming is coming up on Saturday, October 13, Registration, visiting, and bingo will begin at 4:30 p.m. A barbecue meal be served at 5:30. The Monday Night Jam Band will provide dinner music. There will be a program honoring the Classes of 1968, 1978, and 1988 for their 50-, 40-, and 30-year reunion. Please help spread the word. All former North Hopkins students, staff, and their guests are encouraged to attend. The cost of the meal is $12.50, payable at the door.
I always need and appreciate input from my friends to help keep me informed of news in our community. If you have any news pertaining to Tira residents, past or present, please contact me, Jan Vaughn, at 903-945-2190 or 903-438-6688 or [email protected]
