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Thursday, October 25, 2007	De Leon Free Press — De Leon, Texas 76444	Volume 117, No. 17

Front Page Headlines

Early voting began this past Monday at the Comanche County Courthouse and the DeLeon City Hall, for the November 6, 2007 elections, and will continue through Friday, November 2.

Here in DeLeon, voters will be asked to elect a council member to fill Place 3, a position created by the death of former Councilman Benny Morris earlier this year. Avery Carlisle and Marion Quade are the only two names on the ballot.

Voters wishing to cast their ballots on 16 proposed Constitutional amendments will need to travel to the Comanche County Courthouse to do so. Election Day voters will be able to vote on both the State Constitutional amendments and the Council Place 3, here in DeLeon. >>Full Story & Voting Locations<<

By Jerry Morgan, Reporter

COMANCHE -- The controversy over whether the extension of CR 430 is a county maintained road or not was resurrected in Commissioners Court at their Monday, October 22 meeting. The restricted burn ban was reinstated beginning in November (see picture below) and further study on the details of required development permits was scheduled.

The Commissioners Court meeting was conducted by Commissioner Garry Steele, acting as President Pro Tem. County Judge Arthur was absent due to a medical appointment. Commissioners Kenneth Feist, Bobby Schuman and Jimmy Dale Johnson were present and participating.

Other county officials present at various times included County Clerk Ruby Lesley, County Auditor Joey Boswell, Sheriff Jeff Lambert, County Treasurer Billy Ruth Rust, Emergency Services Coordinator Ray Helberg and his assistant, Trish Grimshaw. >>Full Story<<

The regular monthly meeting held on October 22, 2007 of the DeLeon ISD Board of Trustees focused on district and campus programming for the current school year, as well as facility renovations during the year.

As a portion of the consent agenda, the district’s administrative team reviewed campus and district improvement plans for the current school year. Judd Gibson, elementary principal, discussed the progress being made at the elementary and new programs that have been started for the school year. He introduced the Board to the Teachers Encouraging Kids to Succeed in School (TEKSIS) Troops program, designed to provide positive feedback to students who are not getting support at home to encourage them to focus on their school work. >>Full Story<<

Beth Riggs and three others missed picking two games last week, and they were the best showing among our panel of pigskin contestants. Riggs beat out last week's winner, Brad Sanders, and Kelly Moore and Don Carruth on the tiebreaker, and thus won the $50 weekly prize.

The triple loss contestants who came close included Rocky Atchley, Lana Coker, Lorrie Dyson Couch, Bill Burns, Alan Sadberry, Steve Baker, Billy Warren, Nicole Davis, Carolyn Frasier and Todd Morris. >>Full Story<<

By Tim White, Sports Editor

The DeLeon Bearcat football team defeated Perrin Whitt by a score of 26-25 in Perrin last Friday night to go 2-1 in district play and find themselves in third place, one game behind first place Gorman and Tolar.

The key to the win was the offensive and defensive lines. Quarterback Clayton Stokes had time to stand in the pocket and pick out receivers. Running backs were able to find holes and round the corners for good yardage. >>Full Story & Picture<<

SUPERIOR BAND. This past Saturday, the Might Maroon Band participated in UIL Competition at Brady High School. The band received a Superior Rating from all three judges. The band was selected to advance to the Area Marching Contest, which will be held in Belton, Saturday, October 27. There is a $4 admission charge for this competition, and the time had not been announced as of press time. Congratulations, to Mr. Miller and all band members, and good luck at Area. (For further information, call the school at 893-6222.) Photo courtesy of numerous band parents.

RESTRICTED BURN BAN STARTS NOVEMBER 1. County Commissioners voted to reinstate the restricted burn ban to begin next week on November 1. Anyone in the DeLeon area desiring to burn outdoors on an after that date is required to call County Dispatch at either 893-2424 or 893-5710. You should not call 9-1-1, however, and earlier compliance with calling before burning is encouraged. The first frost of the season occurred on Tuesday morning, October 23, almost a month earlier than normal. After the unusually wet spring and summer, there is a heavy growth of native and pasture grasses, which when combined with the early frost and seasonal winds means the area is in store for a bad wildfire season. Above, Comanche fireman are seen working on a Friday afternoon wildfire at CR 413 that reportedly resulted from an unattended brush fire and high winds. Volunteer fire departments from DeLeon and Promontory were called to assist in the large fire.

FALL FESTIVAL KING AND QUEEN CONTESTANTS.

The candidates for the Fall Festival King and Queen are (left photo, left to right) Austin Koonce and Allison Martinez (freshman class); Austin Johnson and Kaitlyn Wilkerson (sophomore class); and Jorge Hernandez and Jessica Flores (junior class). Senior class representatives (right photo) are Ashley Davis and Josh Beaty. The Fall Festival, originally scheduled for this Saturday, has been postponed until Saturday, November 10, due to the band competition this Saturday and the FUMC Harvest Festival on November 3.