2016 Dairy Festival Milking Contest Winners
On Saturday, June 11th, the annual Dairy Festival Milking Contest took place. There were three categories of competitors: Dairy Festival contestants, the contestants parents, and the visiting balloon pilots.
In the Dairy Festival category, Emma Boyett placed third, Lauren Helm placed second, and Sadie Evans placed first. In the Parents category, the parents of Tahtiana King, Kyshia and Marcus Johnson, placed third. The parent of Anne-Marie Winborn, Jennifer Lansou, placed second, and the parents of Story Thompson, Holly and Jason Thompson, placed first. The winners of the Balloon Pilot category were announced at a separate breakfast event held on Sunday morning.
The Coronation Pageant will take place Saturday, June 18th, at the newly renovated Hopkins County Civic Center Auditorium. The 57th Annual Coronation Pageant is the first event scheduled to be held in the new auditorium. There are two days left to buy tickets in advance from contestants. For more information, you may contact Pam Black at (903)-439-4327.
Grand Jury Issues New Indictments in June
Indictments were handed down Monday by a Hopkins County Grand Jury. Among the indictments was a need to re-indict all the cases from the last grand jury in order to fix a technical issue. Along with the re-indictment were a number of new indictments.
The 41 new indictments not sealed include:
Michael Lyle Gall, 29, was indicted for Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon. In April of this year, Hopkins County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to an assault in progress on County Road 4508. Upon arrival, Sgt. Paul Fenimore spoke with the female involved who stated that Gall had assaulted her with a walking cane hitting her about the head trying to make her have a seizure. Gall was found to have in his possession a glass pipe commonly used to smoke methamphetamines and a set of scales in his bedroom.
Three were indicted individually on one count of burglary of a habitation and two counts of burglary of a building. The three were Chase Alan Harrison, Ashley Gale Wade, and Lance Allen Worden who were working together. Hopkins County Sheriff’s Office Investigators worked quickly to solve a burglary case and arrested three individuals on Thursday, May 12, 2016, in connection with the incident that occurred two days prior. According to information given to KSST at the time of the arrest by Criminal Investigator Dennis Findley, Chase Alan Harrison, 23, had previously lived at a residence located at 6151 State Highway 19 South and was aware that the current property owners would be out of town on May 10th. With this knowledge, Harrison and cohorts Ashley Gayle Wade, 27, and Lance Allen Worden, 26, burglarized the property. The trio broke into the home and several buildings stealing multiple pieces of property including a boat, an electric range, various tools and other items. Investigator Findley told KSST that the boat has since been recovered and returned to the victims. The other items are believed to have been pawned off and the search continues to recover the property.
Darien Tre Sims was indicted for burglary of a habitation. Sims, 23, was arrested in April of this year on a charge for Burglary of a Habitation. Sulphur Springs Police Department officers responded to a residential burglary on the 600 block of Houston Street where they learned that the resident had observed subjects inside of her home before the subjects fled the scene. Officers located Sims walking around the 500 block of Connally Street. The victim identified Sims as a suspect.
Billy Carl Chapman was indicted on one charge of attempting to take weapon from a peace officer and one count of Burglary of a Habitation. Chapman, 27, was arrested in April after an altercation with Hopkins County Sheriff’s Deputies. Chapman’s mother made a 911 call to report that her son was “tearing up the house.” When law enforcement arrived on the scene, Chapman verbally requested for the deputies to hand over their weapons. Chapman then charged the deputies and attempted to take their guns, wrapping his arms around one deputy. Cpl. Todd Evans then deployed a taser that struck Chapman in the chest and dropped him to the ground. Chapman was then placed in handcuffs and escorted to a patrol unit. In May, a call to a disturbance at a residence on CR 4131 in the Cumby area was answered by Cumby police and Hopkins County Sheriff’s officers. At the residence, they found and arrested Chapman highly intoxicated. According to the residents who called in the complaint, Chapman had kicked in the kitchen door and was standing in their kitchen when they first encountered him. The resident fired a weapon at the floor to scare Chapman away. It didn’t work. Instead, Chapman fought with the resident. According to the resident, Chapman struck him and stole two bottles of medication from the residence and started walking away. When arrested and transported to Hopkins County jail, Chapman was uncooperative and threatened the arresting officer.
Carae Martez Williams was indicted on one count of burglary of a habitation and one count of unlawful possession of a fire arm by a felon. Carae Martez Williams, 21, a Calvert Street resident was arrested om April for burglary of a habitation and for possession of a firearm by a felon. The resident at 621 Houston Street called Sulphur Springs Police Wednesday morning to report a man in her home looking for a weapon. She said the man was wearing a camo jacket. As SSPD approached the residence, Officer Miller spotted a subject that matched the description walking on Locust Street near Van Sickle. He made contact with Williams and patted him down for officer safety. The weapon was located in the waistband just above Williams’ front pocket. Williams told the officer he was a felon and had been released in 2014.
Patricia Lynn Rogers was indicted on one count of theft of property over $2,500 but less than $30,000. Her husband Ryan Bennett Rogers was indicted on one count of theft of property more than $2,500 but less than $30,000 and one count of theft of property under $2,500 two or more times. Ryan Rogers, 40, and Patricia Rogers, 33, of Fruitvale, were booked into Hopkins County jail after they took an item that had been parked on the side of a Hopkins County road. That item had a tracking device on it. After taking the device the man and wife began their journey home only to have Sheriff’s deputies begin a pursuit. The pair turned down a dead end road near Lake Fork, where they were arrested. This is not the first time the pair was thought to have taken an item from Hopkins County. According to Sheriff Elect Lewis Tatum, Van Zandt County deputies found a trailer that had been taken from Hopkins County parked in the Rogers’ front yard. At that time, they told Van Zandt authorities they did not know how the trailer had come to be in their yard.
Joshua Dewayne Timmons was indicted for arson.
Anthony Bernard Sanders was indicted for theft of property, two or more times.
Alyssa Rachelle Romo was indicted for abandonment/endanger of a child.
Karen Catherine Locke was indicted for assault of a public servant.
Jacob Randall Lively was indicted for theft of property under $2,500, two or more times.
James Edward Kizer, Jr was indicted for forgery of a financial instrument.
Katie Rean Young was indicted for credit card or debit card abuse.
Jose Gonzalez-Ramirez was indicted for fraudulent use/possession of identifying information.
Indicted for possession of a controlled substance more than 4-grams and less than 200-grams was Christopher Paul Starrett.
Edward Isaac Ruschenberg was indicted for possession of a controlled substance more than 1-gram and less than 4-grams.
Amanda Newman Smith was indicted for manufacture and delivery of a controlled substance more than 1-gram and less than 4-grams.
Indicted individually for one count manufacture and delivery of a controlled substance: Joe Perez, Jr.
Indicted individually on one count each for possession of a controlled substance less than 1-gram:
- Noah Drake Eaton
- Stacy Lynn Rawls Burkham
- Paris Javon Murray
SSPD Reminder to Lock Your Vehicle
With summer comes the reminder from the Sulphur Springs Police Department to lock your vehicle and take your valuables into your residence when parking the vehicle for the night. Unlocked vehicles have produced the majority of car burglaries in recent weeks.
Summer evenings are conducive to the burglary of unattended vehicles, even when they are parked in a driveway next to the house, according to Jason Ricketson, Patrol Captain for the SSPD. Ricketson said burglaries are occurring in various parts of the city with no one area more prone to the be victimized.
When one sees suspicious activity or suspicious individuals in the neighborhood, Ricketson encourages a call to local law enforcement. He also reminds all that when shopping in Sulphur Springs and/or in another city, always hide valuables, conceal purchases, and lock your vehicle.
“You are only a victim if you leave your car unlocked,” he stated.
3 Queen’s Contestants on KSST Radio
TRIO OF DAIRY FESTIVAL CONTESTANTS LAUREN HELM, ALEXIS HOWARD AND SADIE EVANS
As their busiest week of preparation got started, three young ladies competing for the title of Dairy Festival Queen appeared on the Good Morning Show with Enola Gay. Contestants # 1,2 and 3 talked about their experiences with float building, cow milking and riding in the Parade, as well as putting the final touches on their talent presentations. Sadie Evans plans to sing “No Good Deed” from the musical “Wicked”, Lauren Helm will be signing to “Revelation Song” by Kari Jobe, and Alexis Howard will perform a lyrical dance to “Garden” by the Christian rock band needtobreathe. All eight contestants will compete for the crown during the Queen’s Pageant on June 18, 2016 at 8pm in the newly-completed auditorium of the Hopkins County Regional Civic Center in Sulphur Springs, Texas.
Contestant # 1 Sadie Evans, age 17, is a 5’9″ blue-eyed blonde. She is the daughter of Jason and Angie Evans, and granddaughter of Roger and Rita Wright and Donnie and Pam Evans. During her career at Sulphur Springs High School, she has received the Rotary Youth Leadership Award and holds the offices of Student Body President, Parliamentarian of Class of 2017 and Secretary of Thespian Society. She is in National Honor Society, is the anchor for Dare to Dream and has been cast in leading roles in theatrical productions for the past 6 years. Sadie has been working with a vocal coach for two years and performs at Oprys, plays guitar, dances and writes songs. After high school, she plans to attend Belmont University in Nashville to earn a degree in Musical Performance and Songwriting. During the first weekend of Dairy Festival, Sadie won First Place in the Contestant Cow Milking Contest and attributes that to her family dairying background! If you notice the large Holstein cow statue in front of the Hopkins County Dairy Museum in Sulphur Springs, it was donated by Sadie’s great grandmother Dorothy Hinton and family in honor of her late great-grandfather Wayne Hinton, who was a dairy businessman in Hopkins County.
Contestant #2 Lauren Helm is age 17, is 5’3″ with brown eyes and brown hair. She is the daughter of Jonas and Melanie Helm. She enjoys off-road racing with her dad, running, playing soccer, babysitting and helping with a Special Education class. This summer she plans to go on Mission trips to Austin, Texas and to Costa Rica. After high school, she wants to go to college and major in Psychology to become a children’s counselor. She is active at First Baptist Church and attends Sulphur Springs High School. Her activities in school include National Honor Society and Key Club. She was named Academic Athlete, Varsity Soccer team Captain, soccer MVP, cross-country MVP, and 2nd team cross-country All-District. Lauren placed second in cow-milking after a tie with another contestant, which resulted in a milk-off!
Contestant #3 Alexis Howard, age 16, is 5’4″, has green eyes and brown hair. She is the daughter of Genny and Michael Howard, and is a Sulphur Springs High School senior. She has been in dance instruction since age 2 and loves to perform ballet, tap, jazz and hiphop. Her dance instructor is Kristen Lewis of the Ardis Centre for Dance. In high school, she is a National Honor Society member and enjoys art classes. She is active with The Way Bible Church. Alexis plans a nursing career. She would like to become an RN like her mom and work with children and teens with cancer.
All the 2016 contestants are students at Sulphur Springs High School, and are going into their senior year. The Dairy Festival Queen tradition begin in Hopkins County in 1959.
Is The Bermuda Triangle Real?
The Bermuda Triangle is a large area of ocean between Florida and Puerto Rico, and Bermuda.
Over the past few centuries, it’s thought that dozens of ships and planes have disappeared under mysterious circumstances in the area, earning it the nickname “The Devil’s Triangle.” Occurrences of such mysterious events like sudden disappearing of vessels and aircraft have left everyone puzzled. Mysterious disappearing of ships and airplanes led people to believe in the presence of supernatural powers in the Bermuda Triangle region. some of the mysterious happenings include…
- A pair of Avro Tudor IV passenger aircraft: 1)the Star Tiger was lost on January 30, 1948, 2) the Star Ariel on January 17, 1949.
- The disappearance of the SS Marine Sulphur Queen on February 4, 1963.
- The paranormal experience of airplane pilot Chuck Wakely in 1964.
- The disappearance of expert yachtsman Donald Crowhurst on June 29, 1969.
Many people think that the weather being bad has a lot to do with the disappearances, but it turns out that the Bermuda Triangle is no more dangerous than other similarly storm-prone areas. I honestly don’t know what really happened. Nobody has yet to find out what really happened in those times as well. There is also known to be a large deposit of methane (water ice containing interstitial methane) on the seafloor in the region of the Bermuda Triangle. Sudden melting of large deposits was known to occur. These could release enough methane into the water, that upon reaching the surface, the density of the water would be suddenly decreased. This could possibly cause a large ship to sink suddenly without warning. No scientist around has yet to find out what really happened with the mishaps.
I personally think that maybe the Bermuda Triangle is a myth and also the strange disappearances are just from natural causes. The methane is less likely to be in that area because then fish and other living organisms won’t be able to survive. Maybe the weather and the fact that the water is deep in that area or even that the waves are too much for the boats and other objects to handle. Nobody still knows where all these ships and planes end up, there was a couple of investigations but nothing was ever found. But I guess the mystery continues on and on for many more years as people continue to wonder what really happened.
Story and Photos by Molly Clegg, HS Intern
Dairy Classic Sale set for Thursday
The Dairy Classic Sale, sponsored by the Northeast Texas Livestock Association, will be held Thursday, June 16 at the 1:o p.m. at the Sulphur Springs Livestock and Dairy Auction. Funds raised from the Sale will be used to support local youth and future dairy farmers. The Sr. Dairy Show, which took place Saturday, saw Braden Lennon from Hopkins County 4-H win Grand Champion. Baylee Bowen from Como-Pickton FFA won Reserve Grand Champion. Breanna Bowen from Como-Pickton FFA won Showmanship, and Elida Miller from Hopkins County 4-H won Top Jersey.
The top 15 animals to be included in the Sale will be shown by:
Braden Lennon from Hopkins 4-H who won Grand Champion.
Baylee Bowen from Como-Pickton FFA who won Res. Grand Champion.
Machelle Allen from Hopkins 4-H.
Bayler Boatman from Sulphur Springs FFA.
Tripp Smith from Hopkins 4-H.
Spencer Brewer from Sulphur Springs FFA.
Breanna Bowen from Como-Pickton FFA who won Showmanship.
Jake Couch from Sulphur Springs FFA.
Matti Smith from Hopkins 4-H.
Elida Miller from Hopkins 4-H who won Top Jersey.
Hannah Pegues from Como-Pickton FFA.
Pilar Ortiz from Hopkins 4-H.
Cameron Matthews from Como-Pickton FFA.
Evan Pegues from Como-Pickton FFA.
Zia Miller from Hopkins 4-H.
PJC Presents Awards at LVN, AS in Nursing Ceremonies
A PJC vocational nursing perfect attendance award was presented to Malisa Beck of Sulphur Springs, above, during the pinning ceremony.
Paris Junior College vocational and associate degree nursing students received awards during pinning ceremonies held at the end of the spring semester.
Louisa Kessel, St. Joseph’s Community Foundation Executive Director, congratulated the pinning candidates and presented them with a rose at both ceremonies for PJC’s surgical technology, medical records coding and vocational nursing programs held that day.
In the vocational nursing ceremony, the Hopkins-Nicholas Award for outstanding performance in both classroom and clinical training went to April Hanson of Greenville. The award for highest grade point average went to Katie Harrington of Paris. Megan McAvoy of Greenville received the Metamorphosis Award for exhibiting the most growth through the entire vocational program.
Vocational nursing student perfect attendance awards went to Malisa Beck of Sulphur Springs; Debby Clanton of Ladonia; Liberty Minshew of Sumner; and Lauren Coursey, Katie Harrington, Alicia Harris, Haley Hostetler, Victoria Long, Tiffany Moore, Briana Schroeder, Collin Thomas, Angela Thompson, and Anna Watson, all of Paris.
At the associate degree nursing student ceremony, the Academic Achievement Award for highest grade point average went to Jackie Davis of Bigelow, Ark. The Outstanding Clinical Student Award was given to Regina Ford of Paris.
The Metamorphosis Award for exhibiting the most growth through the entire associate degree nursing program went to Nicki Dawson of Greenville. The Student Choice Award, chosen by peers for the student best representing the nursing profession, went to Angel Cox of Paris.
ADN perfect attendance recognition went to Jvon Davis of Lebannon, Ore.; Addie Elliott of Lake Creek; Tyra Frazier of Los Angeles, Calif.; Amy Leija of Spring; Karla Ugalde of Commerce; Jaycee Wilkerson of Petty; and Bailea Bankston, Kaity Edwards, and Colleen Halcomb, all of Paris.
The Edge Conditioning Program Welcomses 230 Athletes for First Day
Wildcats Football Coach and Athletic Director Greg Owens said 230 athletes turned out for the first day of The Edge conditioning program in the Multipurpose Building Monday morning. He said there were 125 high school boys, 30 high school girls and 75 middle school boys and girls. Coaches had no trouble putting the athletes through drills, exercise and weight lifting indoors while rain fell outside. Coach Owens called the turnout outstanding. He said the athletes were excited at the beginning but had their tongues hanging out at the end after six 100-yard dashes with brief breaks in between. Coach Owens offered some nutrition tips for parents of Edge athletes. He said for parents to be sure the athletes had something to eat before they arrived. After the two hour session, Coach Owens said athletes should drink at least one gallon of water throughout the day. He also recommended that right after The Edge, athletes should be given a protein bar, protein shake or chocolate milk. Coach Owens said the athletes gave a great effort Monday. He noted they would have to work through soreness as they get their bodies in shape. Coach Owens concluded by saying he loved the athletes’ attitudes and work ethic on day one. Middle School Edge will continue Mondays through Thursdays from 9:30 a.m. until 10:30 a.m. each day through June 30. High School Edge will continue Mondays through Thursdays from 8 a.m. until 10 a.m. each day through July 21.
