KSST Radio Celebrating 68 Years of Broadcasting Excellence
You are invited to the KSST Studios on July 23rd, 2015.
We will be rededicating the current KSST Studio after 50 years of service.
The festivities will be from 4 – 7 pm.
Guided tours will be available.
Browse our growing digital library of photos taken over the past 68+ years.
Please come by and get your souvenir photo taken in the ‘Bradford Memorial Broadcast Museum’.
Light refreshments will be provided. KSST 68 Years
Back-To-School Bash at Como-Pickton CISD
Kay Handlin is going into her fourth year as Superintendent in the Como-Pickton CISD. The school district is observing it’s 50th year anniversary as a consolidated system of Como and Pickton schools. Kay’s career in education began in Hughes Springs, Texas, and she held administrative positions in Malakoff and Marshall before taking this post in Hopkins County. First day of school for students for the 2015/2016 term is August 24th.
About 800 students are expected for class. Students and their parents can attend a Back-To-School Bash starting at 10 am on August 22nd where they can meet the teacher, pick up schedules, drop off school supplies and enjoy free hot dogs and cold drinks.
State Seeks to Dismiss Lawsuit Over Birth Certificates
State Seeks to Dismiss Lawsuit Over Birth Certificates
![BirthCertificate-Passport_jpg_312x1000_q100[1]](https://www.ksstradio.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/BirthCertificate-Passport_jpg_312x1000_q1001.jpg)
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Wednesday asked a federal district judge to dismiss a lawsuit that claims a state agency violated the U.S. Constitution by denying birth certificates to U.S.-citizen children of immigrant parents.
Attorneys with Paxton’s office said that the Texas Department of State Health Services, which is being sued by 17 families living in Cameron, Hidalgo and Starr counties, has sovereign immunity under the 11th Amendment and cannot be sued in federal court because it has not waived that right, according to court documents.
The immunity extends to interim DSHS Commissioner Kirk Cole and State Registrar Geraldine Harris, who are also named as defendants in the suit, Paxton’s office argues.
A spokesperson in Paxton’s office would not discuss the filing further, saying the “motion speaks for itself.” A spokesperson for the health agency was not available to comment.
Attorneys with the Texas Civil Rights Project and Texas RioGrande Legal Aid sued the agency in May on behalf of six U.S. citizen children and their parents, who are undocumented immigrants from Mexico, Honduras or Guatemala. In an amended June filing the number of plaintiffs rose to 17 families.
The families claim that the agency is violating the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause by denying birth certificates to children who are, in fact, U.S. citizens.
Local vital statistics offices, which are overseen by DSHS, have refused to accept what the families argue were once acceptable forms of IDs for non-citizens, including passports and Mexican matrícula cards issued by the Mexican consulate offices throughout Texas.
“Such refusal is de facto based on the immigration status of the Plaintiff parents. The lack of a birth certificate, in turn, is causing serious harm to all plaintiffs,” the June filing states.
According to the DSHS website, non-citizens can request birth certificates if they have two secondary forms of identification, including a Mexican voter registration card or a foreign ID card with a photo of the applicant. Foreign passports are also acceptable if they have a valid U.S. visa, which attorney Efrén Olivares said excludes his clients because they are undocumented.
The families also claim the state is improperly enforcing immigration laws, a responsibility belonging to the federal government.
In a statement to the Texas Observer this month, a DSHS official said the agency accepts several forms of ID to verify identity but not the matrículas consulares because the documents used to obtain them are not verified by the “issuing agency.”
The issuing agency is the United Mexican States, attorney Olivares said.
“I would be curious to see if a similar ID issued from Canada” received the same response, he said.
Olivares and lead attorney Jennifer Harbury also argue that if the state changed its policy, it did so without alerting the public or going through an official process.
According to the court filings, plaintiffs Diana Hernandez and Javier Reyes, Mexican citizens who moved to Texas more than a decade ago, received birth certificates for their children in 2009 and 2010 after showing their matrícula cards. They tried again in January after their third child was born and were denied.
Harbury said Wednesday afternoon that her team would file a response after reading the state’s motion. The problem appears more widespread than just the families in the lawsuit, she said.
“What I know is there is a very large number of people who are afraid to come forward,” she said.
This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at http://www.texastribune.org/2015/07/22/state-asks-court-dismiss-lawsuit-over-birth-certif/.
One Day Childcare Workshop at PJC-Sulphur Springs Campus
Paris Junior College will hold a childcare workshop for continuing education credit on Saturday, August 1, at the Hopkins County Civic Center from 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
Partially funded by Workforce Solutions of Northeast Texas, the workshop includes a certificate for eight hours of continuing education as well as lunch and a gift. The cost is $20 and registration will be conducted at the PJC-Sulphur Springs Center located at 1202 W. Houston Street.
Presented by Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, in partnership with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, Child Care Licensing, the workshop will cover the following topics:
– An Introduction to Inclusive Child Care: All Children Belong in a Natural Environment
– Supporting Peer/Social Interaction in your Child Care Daily Routine
– Activity-based Support for Children with Different Developmental and Functional Needs
– Toileting Strategies for Children in the Inclusive Child Care Setting
– Strategies for Caring for Children with Challenging Behaviors
– Strategies for Caring for Children with Sensory Integration Issues
– Strategies for Partnering with Parents of Children with Special Needs and Gaining Support from Other Parents with Children in Child Care
– Emergency Preparedness for Children with Special Needs
Additional topics will include:
– Crafts for the Holidays
– Van Driver Safety Training
– SIDS/Shaken Baby
All registrations must be received and processed by 5 p.m. on Monday, July 27. No refunds will be given after 11 a.m. on Tuesday, July 28. Alternates may attend, but no new registrations will be accepted on the day of the workshop.
For more information about the workshop or to register call 903-885-1232 in Sulphur Springs, 903-782-0447 in Paris, 903-454-9333 in Greenville or 800-232-5804.
THE HANGING JUDGE – JULY 23, 2015 by Eddie Trapp
Eddie Trapp
From my ledger. Thursday, July 30, 1987. Our youngest, Greg, is in the Boy Scouts and the troop is camping at Camp Pioneer near Mena, Arkansas. I got on my 750 Honda and drove that way to help Scoutmaster Marion Miller. On the way I stopped at a store north of Clarksville near Red River and asked some of the older men if they knew any Trapp’s in the area. They directed me back toward Clarksville a few miles to a fire tower and Sidney Trapp’s place. Sidney is my third cousin and we had a good talk. Just before Christmas in 1926 Sidney’s young sister, Pollie Oma Trapp, went to a gas station with her dad, Land Lott Trapp. The place was near Red River. Pollie sat in the car while Land Lott filled it up with gasoline. During the filling, Land Lott decided to light a cigarette, striking the match on his pants on the back part of his leg. Within seconds the entire car was on fire. Pollie died on Christmas Eve, 1926 and Sidney told me of the tiny Albion Cemetery just off of Highway 37 near Red River. Pollie and several more of my relatives are buried there. I stopped by the cemetery on my to the scout camp.
On north to Idabel, Broken Bow, and Smithville where I tuned east to Cove, Arkansas. North of Cove toward Hatfield with not a care in the world. As I topped a hill there sat State Trooper Simmons in his patrol car. I waved as I went by, happy I wasn’t speeding but then I saw his red lights in my mirror. What have I done wrong? He walked up to me and I got off the Honda. I couldn’t help but grin as I asked him what was wrong. You got to wear a helmet in Arkansas. Since Texas doesn’t have a helmet law I had not even thought about it in Arkansas. The ticket was $32 and he told me to go to the Mena Courthouse and pay it the next morning. On to camp about dark.
July 31, 1987. Friday. Sausage, biscuit, gravy, and grape juice for breakfast. To mountain man class with Greg. They shot black powder muzzle loaders, made lye soap, made fire with flint and steel, and made bullets for muzzle loaders. At 11:00, I drove to Mena and was careful to wear my helmet. Had trouble finding the courthouse and finally ran across a deputy that gave me directions. Court was in session and I sat out in the audience. Six men, two women, and me, counting the judge. Each person had a stack of papers and was discussing the cases one at a time. Only me and two more out in the audience. A man at the railing was a bondsman I think. They would flip to page so and so and discuss a case. The judge would look at the others and say, “What do you think we should do with him?” They would shrug their shoulders and the judge would say, “Let’s just suspend his license.” I got the idea he was a “hanging judge.” A little after twelve he asked me if I was one of the ones he had “paper” on. I told him I didn’t know but Trooper Simmons told me to come up here and act real nice and maybe get my fine reduced. He asked me to approach the bench. I explained about Texas not having a helmet law and I never thought Arkansas might. Besides, I was just a few miles inside the state line.
In my defense I mentioned about teaching school, driving a bus, and no tickets at home. He never cracked a smile when he said, “I’ve got three friends that got seat belt tickets in Texas lately. We don’t have a seat belt law. I think turnabout is fair play.” I dropped my head and knew I was another victim of this hanging judge. After fifteen seconds he showed a slight grin and said, “Besides, I don’t like the way Texas whups up on us in football each year.” I saw a glimmer of hope.
Next he asked me if I knew why Jesus wasn’t born in Texas. I saw then that I had a good chance of getting my ticket reduced. I told him I didn’t know the answer to the Jesus born in Texas question. Well, he explained that first off, they couldn’t find three wise men, and second, they couldn’t find a virgin. There were still several people hanging around listening and they couldn’t hold it any longer. We all went to laughing, even the judge, and I knew things were getting better. I asked the court recorder if she got that and she said she did. When everyone quit laughing the judge said he would throw out the ticket to keep my record clean but I would have to pay $22 court cost. He made me promise I would holler for Arkansas this year then told me to go to the sheriff’s office to pay the fine. I got lost in Mena again and by the time I got there the judge and all his group were already there. The judge grinned at his secretary when I walked in and he told her, “Tell you what, let’s throw out the whole thing.” We were all grins as we shot the breeze a while before I headed back to Camp Pioneer.
Two crooks charged twenty blind guys a thousand dollars each to take them to the beach for a few days. The crooks dumped the men on the beach then retired to a nearby bar. They feared the men would get bored and decided to take them a soccer ball to pass the time. The blind guys complained that they couldn’t see the ball to play soccer. About that time a donkey with bells around its neck walked by. The crooks looked at each other and got an idea. They rushed to a store and bought a lot of little bells and fastened it to the ball. Back to the bar for the crooks. Shift changed and a new bartender came in. Said she didn’t know what the world was coming to. She just saw twenty blind guys kicking a poor old donkey.
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Local Dixie Baseball Team Readies for World Series
The Sulphur Springs 14 and under Dixie Baseball All-Stars recently captured the State Championship winning five out of six games. After their lone loss in the one game where they didn’t hit the ball well according to their coach Jason Burchfield, the Sulphur Springs team won impressively 12-2 in the championship game. The local Dixie team is now headed to the World Series in Aiken, South Carolina August 1-5. The Sulphur Springs’ team opens against North Carolina at 4 p.m. on Saturday, August 1. Coach Burchfield says the team’s strength is their pitching depth but he adds they also hit the ball well almost every game.
City Repairs Water Leak at Celebration Plaza
Not the kind of activity City Manager Marc Maxwell wants at Celebration Plaza but a water leak forced city crews to break up sidewalk and walkway to repair the problem. Manager Maxwell talked to KSST News Wednesday afternoon.
Wildcat Season Football Tickets on Sale August 10-14
The big week for Wildcats’ football season ticket holders and those that would like to be is August 10-14. High School Administrative Assistant Dwayne McMeans announced the dates in a recent letter to season ticket holders. Price for the five-game home season ticket package is $50.
The first two days of season ticket week, Monday and Tuesday August 10-11 are for current season ticket holders only to renew tickets. Tickets not renewed Monday or Tuesday will be open to the general public later in the week. Wednesday August 12 is a day only for season ticket holders who have renewed their tickets to seek upgrades. Then tickets that are left will go on sale to the general public Thursday and Friday August 13-14.
All the season ticket activity will take place at a new location this year, the High School Conference Center. Office hours for season ticket week will be 8:45 a.m. until noon and then 1 p.m. until 5 p.m. The office will be closed from noon until 1 p.m. each day. Patrons are asked to enter high school from the Connally Street entrance and follow signs to the Conference Center.
This years home schedule includes the season opener against Rockwall Heath on Friday, August 29. Other home games include the Homecoming game against Whitehouse and district games against Mt. Pleasant, Pine Tree and Marshall. The Wildcats first scrimmage this year will be at Prim Stadium against Liberty-Eylau on Friday, August 14. They will also scrimmage at Royse City on Friday, August 21.
“Aloha from Hawaii” Concert Saturday Night
Ned Spencer, Enola Gay, and Josh Davis
“Aloha” is a greeting that means both hello and goodbye, and the “aloha spirit” is a welcoming spirit of good will for all.
Josh Davis’ “Aloha from Hawaii” concert this Saturday night will carry the spirit of Elvis Presley’s historic 1973 “aloha” concert. Joining Josh will be Ned Spencer, a fellow Elvis Tribute artist, and KSST’s Enola Gay as emcee.
Country music singer Miss Billie Jo Ferguson will also be on the show. Come in your favorite Hawaiian wear! Doors open at 7pm for concessions and seating, and the concert will begin at 8pm. Tickets are $15 by phone at 903-885-3955, and tickets will be available at the door. The concert will be held at Josh’s home stage, the Sulphur Springs Antique Gallery Auction, 1130 East Shannon Road.
Miss Billie Jo Ferguson
Miss Billie Jo Ferguson
Next month, Josh will compete as a finalist in the 2015 “Ultimate Elvis” Tribute Artist Contest in Memphis, TN during “Elvis Week”.
