North Hopkins Stew and Auction
The annual North Hopkins Stew and Auction is to be held on April 26th in the NH Cafeteria. Complementary stew will be served starting at 6 pm followed by the live auction. The auction will feature items built by students throughout the year as well as items that were donated by local businesses in support of the schools FFA program. Over the course of the year the students have worked diligently to complete many projects and are excited to show case their hard work.
The North Hopkins FFA Chapter attends numerous competitions and events during the year. Such as Career Development Events, Ag. mech. Shows, Leadership Development Events, and livestock shows. They are able to attend these events due to the support and generosity of their community and their support at the Stew and Auction.
The North Hopkins FFA implores you to come out and enjoy free chicken or beef stew and support their growing chapter.
HC Master Gardeners Present A Basic Home Vegetable Gardening Workshop through the Extension Service
Gardening is for everyone. Learning to do it right gives high yields in produce and in satisfaction! Hopkins County Extension Agent Mario Villareno and Master Gardener Robert Suson will be on hand as Master Gardener Susie Faltachek presents the program to interested persons assembled at the Extension office on April 24, 2018 at 7pm. Cost of the workshop is $10.
The most seasoned gardeners are usually the ones who consistently use smart, simple skills that work, like selecting the right site for your garden placement. Vegetables need a lot of sun! Veteran Northeast Texas gardeners know already that weather can be very unpredictable here, and often a garden planted too early can get “bitten” by a late-Spring frost. What should you plant in your garden? That depends…on the size of your plot, type of soil, amount of shade and many other factors. How much should you water? You can learn the answers to these and other frequently asked questions during the workshop. And if you miss the workshop, you can get your answers from the Hopkins County Extension office any time of year, including other topics like container gardening, raised-bed and “lasagna” gardening.
As a Master Gardener, Susie Faltachek had an opportunity to expand her area of expertise and she selected Vegetable Gardening as her project. She gathered a group of nine Master Gardeners to act as volunteers in the community training project. Upon completion, she will have earned a Certified Vegetable Gardener rating. These types of opportunities and more are available through the Hopkins County Extension office as part of the Texas Agri-Life Extension Program.
Robert Suson is a Master Gardener who believes in butterflies. On his property, he leaves space for milkweed to flourish so that it cans serve as a host plant for Monarch butterflies, and he encourages others to do so. Sulphur Springs is on the edge of the migration path of Monarchs heading to Mexico. We can passively assist in this miracle of nature by not robbing them of their required habitat for a few short weeks during the Spring. Other types of butterflies require other types of vegetation. Find out more about these and join the Master Gardeners in their efforts.
On the morning of Saturday April 28, the Master Gardeners will perform community service with the annual Plant Swap, to be held on the parking lot of Bright Star Vet Clinic at 744 Gilmer Street, across from Brookshire’s. Bring any seedlings or cuttings you’d like to swap, or just come and get healthy plants, cuttings and seedlings grown by these seasoned gardeners. A small donation toward the chapter’s work in the community is appreciated. For more information, contact the Extension office at 903-885-3443.
Robert Suson and Mario Villarino
One Dead, Three in Critical Condition Following Accident Monday Afternoon
April 24, 2018 – One man is dead, as of Tuesday morning, and a mother and two children are in critical condition following a one vehicle accident on State Highway 19 north of Sulphur Springs and just north of the White Oak Creek bridges, according to Justice of the Peace Brad Cummings. Cummings told KSST News that as the accident was investigated it was thought there would be four fatalities but the quick work of EMS and the short distance to the local hospital was a factor in saving lives. Tim Kelty, a hospital board member and resident of northern Hopkins County, stated that new equipment purchased recently for Hopkins County EMS also factored in the event.
A Tahoe with eight passengers traveling at approximately 70 miles per hour and pulling a small, homemade trailer went off the roadway and flipped several times ending top side down in three (3) feet of water in a creek, according to Cummnigs. Rescue efforts retrieved the 8 from the wreckage and it was thought that four, a man, his wife, and their two children were dead at the scene. However, Cummings said the four were revived by EMS and by hospital staff locally. The man and his wife were flown to Tyler, where the woman remains in critical condition and the man died Tuesday morning. The two children were transported to Children’s Medical Center, where they remain in critical condition.
The accident occurred between 4:30 and 5 p.m. Monday afternoon. The occupants of the vehicle are from the metroplex.
While Winning, Losing Benitez Represented SSHS Wildcat Tennis Well
Wildcats Tennis Coach Tony Martinez said senior Alex Benitez represented Sulphur Springs very well at the Regional Tennis Tournament last week in Allen. Coach Martinez said Benitez did that while winning and losing. Other than Benitez, only a girl from Greenville won a first round match while Texas High and Hallsville came up empty. In round two, Benitez was paired up with Michel Zobel, a German exchange student, with Midlothian and the #1 seed in the tournament. Coach Martinez said Zobel will be a Division 1 player at some college someday. Despite the 6-0, 6-0 score, Coach Martinez said Benitez played some of his best tennis and kept a good attitude throughout the match. He said Benitez left the court satisfied that he had done his best against someone who was just better than he was.
Coach Martinez said Benitez is leaving a legacy as he departs the team. Coach Martinez called Benitez his volunteer assistant coach who would hit with anyone on the team while encouraging them. The Wildcats will also lose senior Jasmine Cruz. Coach Martinez looks forward to working with the players coming back next season and with some new freshman coming to high school.
Coach Talk: Hammack on Wildcat, Carrillo on Lady Cat Verses Mt Pleasant
Hammack on Mount Pleasant Win
Wildcats Baseball Coach Jerrod Hammack said he always feels good when Ryan Humphries is on the mound for the Wildcats. Coach Hammack was on KSST Radio and Cable Channel 18’s Saturday Morning Coaches Show last Saturday (April 21). Humphries got his third district shutout last Friday, 7-0 over Mount Pleasant. He has shut them out twice this season. Coach Hammack said the offense got off to a slow start. Dawson Draper changed all that when he hit the first ever home run at new Wildcat Park. Draper was 3 for 3 and he also hit a double. Coach Hammack said when Ryan is going well on the mound and the Wildcats put together some good at bats, the Wildcats can beat anybody. Coach Hammack called Humphries a bulldog warrior. Coach Hammack said he’s beginning to get a feeling about new Wildcat Park that it’s a place where the Wildcats will find success. He said with the win, the Wildcats continue to control their own destiny. The win gave the Wildcats an 8-2 district record. They are one game back of first place Hallsville and one game ahead of third place Texas High. Texas High plays at Hallsville Tuesday night. The Wildcats are 15-9 for the season. The Wildcats play host to the Greenville Lions Tuesday night at Wildcat Park. The Wildcats won the first district game against the Lions, 8-2 in Greenville. Coach Hammack said he will start either Pacen Edwards or Jaxon Chaney against Greenville. Saturday the Wildcats were scheduled to face Rowlett on the road in a non-district game. That game was canceled due to rain.
Carrillo on Mount Pleasant Win
After the Lady Cats’ softball team defeated Mount Pleasant, 7-5 to clinch the district championship and the district’s #1 seed in the playoffs, a bi-district rematch with Lovejoy was set up. The two teams have met twice in recent years with Lovejoy winning both series. Lady Cats Softball Coach David Carrillo, on KSST Radio and Cable Channel 18’s Saturday Morning Coaches Show, said this year’s Lady Leopards team is quite different from last year’s senior laden team. He is telling his team that they must bring their A game to the field to win. Coach Carrillo is also encouraging his team to enjoy the playoffs and have fun. He wants his team to play with confidence and he said the Lady Cats want some payback after losing last year. This year’s bi-district schedule calls for game one at Lovejoy Thursday night at 7 p.m. Game two at Sulphur Springs Lady Cat Park Friday at 7 p.m. Game three, if necessary, will be at Royse City Saturday at noon. The district championship the Lady Cats won outright is Coach Carrillo’s first sole championship here. His 2009 Lady Cats team shared the district championship with Texas High. The last step to the district championship was not an easy one. Mount Pleasant kept battling to the end having the tying run at the plate in the top of the seventh inning. Coach Carrillo said the key moment for the Lady Cats was the bottom of the third inning. The Lady Tigers had just gone ahead, 3-1 with two runs in the top of the third. After a fiery dugout speech by Coach Carrillo intending to light a fire under his team, the Lady Cats responded. They tied up the score before a single out was made. They added two more runs for good measure and went back up, 5-3. The Lady Cats later added two more runs that would turn out to be the difference.
Six Year Sentence when Probation Revoked
Tina Valerie Darlin Boles, 38, was sentenced to six (6) years when her probation was revoked Monday afternoon in Eighth Judicial District Court. Boles was on probation for a 2012 conviction of Possession of a Controlled Substance Penalty Group 1, more than 1-gram but less than 4-grams, a Felony 3.
Boles was also sentenced to six years by Wood County District Court last month.
Probation Revoked and a Five Year Sentence
April 23, 2018 – Monday afternoon in Eighth Judicial District Court, Shelby Lynn Lyons, 34, was sentenced to 5 years when her probation for Tamper/Fabricate Physical Evidence with Intent to Impair, a Felony 3 was revoked. The charge dates back to January, 2016.
Shelby Lynn Lyons
Former University of Memphis, University of Tennessee Basketball Player Sentenced in Eighth Judicial District Court
Former University of Memphis Tiger and University of Tennessee Volunteer basketball player, Cornelius “Scooter” McFadgon, 35, of Memphis, Tennessee and Dallas, Texas will serve 20 years for possession of Marijuana and 20 years for Possession of Cocaine following his plea in Probation Revocation cases heard in Eighth Judicial Court Monday. The sentences will run concurrent. McFadgon was arrested in June, 2014 when 2.5 pounds of cocaine and 193 pounds of Marijuana were found in the SUV he was driving.
McFadgon also played in the European Basketball League averaging 11.6 points per game for Upea Capo d’Orlando.In 2017, McFadgon was arrested on drug charges in 2018 in Memphis, Tennessee
Jason Ricketson, then a Lieutenant with the Sulphur Springs Police Department and now Patrol Captain, said at the time he believed the drugs were picked up in Dallas or Houston.
Simpson Sentenced to 25 Years in TDJC
In an agreement between the District Attorney’s office and Larry Wayne Simpson, 46, of Commerce, Eighth Judicial District Court will sentence Simpson to 25 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, according to Matt Harris, Assistant District Attorney. Simpson entered a guilty plea for Possession of a Controlled Substance Penalty Group 1 more than 4-grams but less than 200-grams in the agreement.
Simpson was the driver of an older Chevrolet passenger car that failed to stop at a designated point, a stop sign, at the intersection of Frisco Street and Main Street in Cumby last July. A traffic stop by Cumby Police was initiated at that time. Although the driver and passenger in the vehicle stated there was nothing illegal in the vehicle but that proved to be false.
The Cumby officer asked for consent to search the vehicle but was denied. He asked the driver, Larry Wayne Simpson, 45, of Commerce to step out of the auto. During a Terry Frisk, Simpson tensed when the officer touched his right front pocket. He admitted to a bag being in that pocket but did not reply to the numerous requests asking if there were weapons or drugs in the pocket. Simpson was arrested for the traffic violation and a property inventory of his personal belongings followed. The black bag in his pocket concealed a large amount of a white crystal like substance believed to be Methamphetamine was found in the bag.
