Tonight’s Lady Cats Softball Game is Postponed
Tonight’s Lady Cats Softball game has been postponed. The game is tentatively slated for Monday April 13th, 2015.
Hannah Kirby’s Team – Voting Instructions
Fort Hood Victims to be Awarded Purple Heart Medals
by Patrick Svitek, The Texas Tribune – April 9, 2015
Texas’ top elected officials are convening Friday at Fort Hood to help award Purple Heart medals to victims of the 2009 shooting there, the culmination of a years-long push to make them eligible for the decoration.
Fort Hood officials plan to present more than 40 Purple Hearts and its civilian version, the Defense of Freedom Medal. The recipients are scheduled to be revealed three hours before the 9 a.m. ceremony.
Gov. Greg Abbott is set to attend the event as well as members of Texas’ congressional delegation who championed legislation paving the way for the awards. The lawmakers include U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, and U.S. Reps. John Carter, Bill Flores, Roger Williams, Michael McCaul and Louie Gohmert.
Thirteen people were killed and dozens more wounded in former Maj. Nidal Hasan’s rampage on Nov. 5, 2009, at the military base in Killeen. He was sentenced to death in 2013 for the shooting spree.
Federal authorities initially classified the incident as workplace violence, and victims and their supporters spent years trying to convince the government to call the act terrorism so they could qualify for the Purple Heart and benefits that come with it. Hasan has said he planned the attack as a way of protecting Muslim insurgents abroad.
The victims received a major boost last year when Congress passed a defense spending bill that included a provision backed by Texas legislators expanding the eligibility requirements for the medal. In February, the Army said it was ready to give the Purple Heart to the victims.
Cruz, a 2016 presidential candidate, reiterated his belief Thursday that the recognition is long overdue.
“This attack was a clear act of radical Islamic terrorism, conducted on American soil — the original decision to designate it ‘workplace violence’ and deny these honors was a betrayal of the sacrifice of each of the victims,” Cruz said in a statement. “We can never undo the events of that day, but we can properly honor the courageous patriots who protect our nation and remain forever grateful for them.”
Here are the names of those being honored:
Purple Heart (Wounded in Action)
Maj. Randy Royer
Capt. Dorothy Carskadon
2nd. Lt. Brandy Mason
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Christopher Royal
Staff Sgt. Michael Davis
Staff Sgt. Alvin Howard
Staff Sgt. Eric Jackson
Staff Sgt. Shawn Manning
Staff Sgt. Paul Martin
Staff Sgt. Joy Clark (Nelson)
Staff Sgt. Thuan Nguyen
Staff Sgt. Miguel Valdivia
Staff Sgt. Patrick Zeigler, Jr.
Sgt. Alonzo Lunsford, Jr.
Cpl. Nathan Hewitt
Spc. Keara Torkelson (Bono)
Spc. Logan Burnett
Spc. Dayna Roscoe (Ferguson)
Spc. Grant Moxon
Spc. John Pagel
Pfc. James Armstrong
Pfc. Mick Engnehl
Pfc. Jonathan Sims
Pvt. Joseph Foster
Pvt. Najee Hull
Pvt. Amber Gadlin (Bahr)
Defense of Freedom Medal (Wounded in Action)
Kimberly Munley
Purple Heart (Killed in Action)
Lt. Col. Juanita Warman
Maj. Libardo Caraveo
Capt. John Gaffaney
Staff Sgt. Justin DeCrow
Staff Sgt. Amy Krueger
Spc. Frederick Greene
Spc. Jason Hunt
Pfc. Aaron Nemelka
Pfc. Michael Pearson
Pfc. Francheska Velez
Defense of Freedom Medal (Killed in Action)
Michael Cahill
This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at http://www.texastribune.org/2015/04/09/fort-hood-victims-be-awarded-purple-heart-medals/.
Tira News by Jan Vaughn
The North Hopkins Cemetery Association will hold a business meeting Monday, April 13, 2015 at 7:00 p.m., in the cemetery chapel. All interested parties are encouraged to attend.
Michael McNiel came to spend Easter with his parents, William and Joyce Dodd. He, Rob, Brad, Tanya, Trenton, and Matthew Dodd, Jayden Lawwill, Alyssa, Gavin, and Ethan Shelton were there for Sunday lunch and an Easter egg hunt. Alyssa, Gavin, and Ethan attended Easter services at Tira United Methodist Church, with their great-grandmother.
Floyd and Martha Payton’s daughter, Regina Payton, from Victoria visited from Thursday afternoon until Sunday morning. They attended the Maundy Service on Thursday night at the Tira United Methodist Church, which was a combined service, of Tira and Sulphur Bluff churches. Martha shares, “Our special guests were Rev. Dr. Victor and Mrs. Mary Casad. Rev. Dr. Victor is our UMC East District Superintendent.” She adds, “Easter Sunday service was blessed with members of a family gathering and one visitor from the community, with forty-eight in attendance. We are very appreciative of our Pastor David Larkin and his lovely wife Charolette Larkin.”
Mick and Linda Petty spent Sunday in Dallas with their daughter and son-in law, Tara and Mike Owens, and his mother Dorothy. Linda comments, “We had a great lunch of smoked brisket, done very nicely by Mike. Tara and Mike have been doing some remolding of the house they bought recently and have added a swimming pool. They are pretty talented at remodeling and landscaping. Everything looks great.”
Debbie Dicus reports that they had a great Easter. She says, “Our granddaughter and her boyfriend from Houston came up – had most of our kids and grandchildren over on Saturday for a meal and Easter egg hunt with the little ones. Our granddaughter, Amanda Osorio, and her husband, Jose, could not be there, because they were at the hospital having Anna Maria Osorio. So excited for them and this new bundle of joy!” Congratulations on the new addition to the family!
Chanse Fite and Michael Hrabal are coaching the “Orange Crush” softball team that consists of Hadlee Hrabal, Harley Perez, Kaitlyn Myers, Tracy Smithers, Rachel Davidson, Stevanna Buchanan, Rayna Butler, Cadence Lester, Addison Jones, Sarah Corley and Daylee Fite. The team is 2-0 right now and looking great. Judy and Randy Roberts, Daylee Fite, Aysha Day, Lesley Owens and Addey attended church with Sherry and Powell on Sunday and then came over for Easter Dinner in Tira at Sherry and Powell’s home. Family and friends had a great time.
Morgan Joslin helped with the North Hopkins Beta Club Easter egg hunt at Cooper Lake State Park on Saturday. His sister, Jaidyn Joslin participated in the hunt, along with other area children. That afternoon the kids celebrated Easter with Malcolm’s family. On Sunday, Tiffany, Morgan, Kenden, and Jaidyn joined us for Easter lunch.
Jim and Sandra Vaughn, of Broken Bow, Oklahoma, are spending a few days camping at Cooper Lake State Park. Jim accompanied Chip to the Oilfield Christian Fellowship on Wednesday, where Chip shared a devotional message with the group.
Laiken, Rylan, and Brailon Joslin and Tiffany went to Beaumont on Tuesday to pick up Rylan and Brailon’s sister, Dixie. She is spending a few days with Landon, Laiken, and the boys. On Wednesday, Rylan’s birthday, they enjoyed snow cones, playing at Kids Kingdom park, and riding bicycles. They had a good time fishing on Thursday.
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].
MADD Receives Donation for Annual Walk
The Mothers Against Drunk Driving Association received a donation of $1,500 from Alliance Bank today April 9, 2015. The donation will be used for MADD’s annual walk coming up in the fall. The walk is part of a fundraiser, of which Alliance Bank is a sponsor.
The MADD walk will be September 26, 2015. The event will start with entertainment at 5:30 p.m. and the walk will begin at 7:00 p.m. The theme for walk is “Glow Walk”, where participants will wear glow sticks, hoops, strings, lights and other such items.
Severe Thunderstorm Watch for Hopkins County
The National Weather Service has issued severe thunderstorm for Hopkins County in effect until 10pm CST this evening for the following areas in Texas this watch includes 21 Counties in North Central and Northeast Texas. Area counties affected including Delta, Rains, Van Zandt and Hopkins.
CASA Recognized for 25 Years of Service
The Court Appointed Special Advocates group was recognized yesterday, April 7, for their service to help represent and care for children who have been removed from their homes due to neglect or abuse. The reception in which CASA was recognized also served to mark their 25th year as a non-profit organization.
“This was our 25th year of serving children,” Executive Director Gina Law said. “And in the non-profit world, that’s a long time to still be serving children and still be a strong voice in the community. So, I thank my board members, I thank past board members, and I thank the volunteers for allowing us to be able to say that we’ve been here 25 years.”
Since the beginning of 2015, CASA has helped 75 children during adoption, custody battles, and various other court cases. CASA was established in 1990 by Patsy Johnson. Starting with Johnson and three other women, Barbara McKenzie, Judy McAlister, and Kay Allison. The four founders were part of the regional board of Child Protective Services back in 1980 before being given permission to begin CASA. It originally began as the Hopkins County CASA. It now includes both Rains County and Franklin County. At one time, Titus County was included, but Titus County CASA has become independent. Hopkins County CASA had a rough start with its first goal to educate people on child abuse and CASA’s mission to help children. The four founders were eventually able to step back and hand control of CASA over to others, making Hopkins County CASA self-sufficient.
CASA now has 12 board members and 19 volunteers. They receive funding from grants, donations, and state funding. Their ultimate goal is to keep helping children with any medical, psychological, and educational needs until there are none left to help.
Wildcats Seek Win Friday at Texas High
Wildcats Baseball Coach Jerrod Hammack expects his team to bounce back after a first loss in district play at Marshall Tuesday night. The Wildcats are tied for first with Hallsville with a 6-1 district record. The Wildcats play at Texas High Friday night.
Hammack said the Wildcats were disappointed with the loss which would have distanced them from all other district teams except Hallsville. He said the team allowed Marshall to hang around until they got the runs needed for the win. The locals loaded the bases several times but were unable to capitalize with runs. Hammack said Marshall is a tough place for the locals to win during the last three or four years.
Texas High is coming off a 6-0 win over Mt Pleasant Tuesday so Hammack expects the Wildcats to face difficulties. He said the Wildcats have won only three or four games at Texarkana in the past nine years.
Ross’ Arresting Officers Remain on Duty
Thursday morning Sulphur Springs Chief of Police Jay Sanders responded to a question asked during Tuesday night’s city council meeting. His response came following a meeting with City Manager Marc Maxwell. “Why are the three arresting officers still on duty while an investigation of the death of Chance Ross is being conducted?” This was the question asked by his brother, Chad Ross Tuesday night April 7th during the regular session of the Sulphur Springs City Council. Public comment, proclamations, and announcements, item 12 on the Council agenda, was moved to the fourth item for their consideration. The council provided center stage to Chad Ross, brother of the late Chance Ross. Chance Ross died while in custody of Sulphur Springs’ city police and the Hopkins County Sheriff’s deputies. He was incarcerated after having been tased repeatedly by officers during his arrest. Texas Ranger John Nance is currently investigating the cause of death, actions of the officers, and awaiting the result of an autopsy.
Chad Ross stated that the family had viewed video of his brother being brought into jail without a shirt and having burn marks on his shoulders that seemed to have been the result of his having been tased. Ross said his brother was handcuffed and escorted by three Sulphur Springs officers and that three county officers assisted those officers in stripping his brother of his pants and placing him in a cell.
City Manager Marc Maxwell and Mayor Freddie Taylor responded to Ross stating that the council could not respond while the investigation was being conducted. However, Maxwell assured the Ross family that he would meet with Chief of Police Jay Sanders Wednesday to discuss the matter of the arresting officers being on active duty at this time.
In his response given to KSST News, Chief Sanders stated that it is not an automatic response nor required, according to Sulphur Springs police policy, to place officers on administrative leave following an incident. He stated there were two things that he considered as he decided to not place on leave the three officers that arrested Chance Ross. Ross died during his incarceration in Hopkins County Jail. First, Sanders says that the internal investigation began shortly, within hours, after Ross’ death. Following the immediate investigation there was nothing that would lead the Chief to believe that the arresting officers did anything wrong. He stated that from information given him by Texas Ranger John Nance, who is also investigating the death, there is no evidence to contradict the earlier findings. Sanders said after viewing the video of available from the arrest and the incarceration, there is nothing shown to change his mind at this time. Sanders says he views the three officers as no danger to the community.
Sanders also said that he offered the officers time off and/or counseling during the decompression time that follows such an incident. None of the three chose to take time off.
Sanders says he hopes the autopsy will be completed, with the toxicology report, by the end of April. The JP that did the inquest was a Tyler JP and the body of Ross was sent to Tyler for the autopsy.
Click here for previous posts in this ongoing story.
Flakka – What You Need to Know
Flakka is an illegal street drug; the latest member of the ‘Bath Salts’ family. And it’s spreading just as fast as it’s older brothers.
Flakka is spreading north from origins in Florida and Texas. Flakka is a close cousin to compounds already declared illegal. Drug dealers are forced to be increasingly resourceful. ‘Remix drugs’, like Flakka, are the latest illegal drug ‘workarounds’.
Experts are concerned about Flakka’s effects. Reports show vast differences in quality, purity, and potency of this imported drug. The effect on the neurotransmitter Dopamine is the main cause of the bizarre effects on humans. In basic terms, Flakka prevents Dopamine from being removed from the nerve junctions, allowing affected nerve to continue to fire. This state of has been described as “excited delirium.”
There is little research on the actual affects of this chemical on the brain. Users are considered ‘Guinea Pigs’ as they are apparently willing participate in real-time drug research. Reported methods of use include e-cigarette ‘vapeing’.
On January 28, 2014, the US DEA listed Flakka as Schedule 1.
More information on Alpha-Pyrrolidinopentiophenone
