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Nursing Home Visits Bring Smiles

By LAURA KESTNER, Editor

LENDING AN EAR. Justin Grimshaw, 11, one of Becky Jones’ Gifted and Talented students at Perkins Middle School, spent some time listening to Betty Barnes,83, re-living old memories last week at DeLeon Nursing and Rehab. While Grimshaw visited with Barnes, his classmates were visiting with other residents inside.

STUDENTS MAKE GIFT OF TIME. Members of Becky Jones’ Gifted and Talented class at DeLeon Intermediate and Perkins Middle School have volunteered recently to help residents with activities, including “brain stimulation” games at DeLeon Nursing and Rehab. Pictured above are some of the students and residents engaged in a rousing round of “Beach Ball Bop.” Also pictured, (standing, left to right), Carrie Martin, activities director, Michelle Miller, social worker and Becky Jones. Also visiting the nursing home on a regular basis are members of Becky Pair’s Skills for Living class.

For the past few months, students from the Gifted and Talented class and the Skills for Living class at DeLeon Intermediate School and Perkins Middle School, have made regular visits to DeLeon Nursing and Rehab.

These visits have provided educational opportunities and community awareness for the students, and fun and fellowship for the residents.

“The students bring so much enjoyment to the residents,” said Carrie Martin, activities director at the nursing home. “I think sometimes it brings back memories of their own children.”

Martin said that the interaction also brings much needed stimulation. One of the games the students and residents play is called “Beach Ball Bop” and involves passing a ball while remembering a string of words and phrases.

“It seems to me that a lot of the kids really have an awareness of the resident’s needs for interaction,” said Becky Jones, teacher for the Gifted and Talented class. “And the residents are starting to recognize the students when they arrive, and they always have such big smiles on their faces.”

Jones said that although some of the students play games with a group of residents, several of them are spending time talking to the residents, or more importantly, just listening.

On a recent visit, Gifted and Talented student Justin Grimshaw spent quite a bit of time listening to resident Betty Barnes share old memories, while Mason Hodges walked and talked with another resident. “And Baxter Krug did a lot of the arts and crafts stuff so the residents could do Valentines,” Jones said.

Jones also noted that student Meagan Tamporello “has brought a lot back from these visits” and has even become aware of other ways she can become involved in community service.

For full article, subscribe to the DeLeon Free Press. E-mail edition is only $20/year.

Commissioners Reject NRCS Watershed Erosion Control Projects

By JERRY MORGAN, Reporter

COMANCHE -- After accepting well over one million dollars in Federal Emergency Management Agency aid for 2007 flood damage recovery work, Comanche County Commissioners passed on an offer by the National Resources Conservation Service for another half million in flood damage related assistance.
The problem with the latest offer, as the Commissioners noted, was the expensive conditions attached.

The Commissioners Court met at a regularly scheduled session on Monday morning, March 23. Judge James Arthur conducted the meeting with Commissioners Jimmy Dale Johnson, Sherman Sides, Gary Underwood and Kenneth Feist attending.

The first order of business was for County Clerk Ruby Lesley to read the minutes for three recent Commissioners meetings on March 9, March 12 and March 16. All were approved as read on unanimous votes.

NRCS Watershed Erosion Control Projects

The first item of new business was to discuss NRCS emergency watershed grant projects. David Gregory, an employee in the Comanche County office, reviewed the grant projects with the Commissioners Court.

A total of 15 NRCS projects are planned to prevent watershed erosion damage at county road crossings. The county will be required to make a cash contribution equal to 25% of the $500-600,000 estimated total cost.

The NRCS offers to engineer, conduct the bid letting, manage and inspect the contractor work on the projects. The county will not be allowed to perform in-kind work for the 25% cost matching requirement, and will be required to purchase the new culverts needed in some of the projects.

Gregory noted that other counties had been able to obtain grant funds from the Office of Rural Community Affairs to cover the 25% cost matching requirements.

He added that the NRCS needed to know whether, or to what extent, the county wished to participate in the projects, noting later in response to questioning that it could decline entirely without any penalty.

For full article, subscribe to the DeLeon Free Press. E-mail edition is only $20/year.

Fetus Discovered at Wastewater Treatment Plant

DeLeon Police confirmed this week that a human fetus was discovered last Friday at the DeLeon Wastewater Treatment Plant.

The fetus was discovered by a city employee during routine maintenance at the plant.

“It did definitely go through the sewer system,” said Chief Ralph Dickey. “But it could have come from anywhere in the city -- a service station, the motel, or a home.”

Chief Dickey said that the fetus was transported to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office where an autopsy will be performed.

“We would like to try to determine if this was a natural occurrence,” Dickey said, “or if it was drug induced, or if some sort of physical thing caused it. Of course, it could have come from someone who didn’t even know they were pregnant -- we can’t assume it was foul play.”

Dickey said that DNA testing would be done, but he noted that “without something to compare it to” he didn’t expect those particular tests to provide any answers.

“But this was something we needed to investigate,” Chief Dickey said, “so we will proceed.”

Danny Owen, the Mayor of De Leon, has a personal website.

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Scott Hall has creating an Internet website with history & photos of our town.

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