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Front Page Headlines

Commissioners Hear Tax Protest

By JON AWBREY, Publisher

At a special meeting of the Comanche County Commissioners Court Tuesday, one Comanche County citizen voiced his concerns regarding the proposed increase in the county tax rate.

The proposed increase to .644470, up from last year’s .6120, resulted in a rather subdued reaction from Comanche County resident Charles Grimsley.

“They just keep raising it every year on us,” said Grimsley, a retired schoolteacher. “Pretty soon I won’t be able to live in the house.”

Grimsley also questioned the appraised value of his property.

“It’s gone up every year along with the taxes. I’ve been here nine years, and it’s [increased] without fail.”

County Judge James Arthur characterized the increase in the tax rate as keeping “our head above water,” and commissioners laid the blame for the increase on mandated public spending.

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School Board Adopts Budget

Special to the Free Press

The regular monthly meeting of the DISD Board of Trustees was held on the final day of the month, as the Board prepared to adopt the 2009-2010 district budget.

The first step in the budget adoption process was the approval of the 2009-2010 district salary scale. The district salary scale as adopted by the Board included pay raises for all employees, with teachers receiving their annual step increase and the $800 state mandated pay raise. Other positions on the salary scale received their step increase and a percentage increase of the state mandated pay raise. Maintenance, custodial, and cafeteria employees were given a 4% pay increase.

The Board then reviewed the final budget presented for adoption. The budget as presented is a positive net balance, with the district ending the 2010 fiscal year with revenue exceeding expenditures by $4329.00. The budget includes allocating $500,000 in current year monies toward the construction of the new high school building. Rather than allowing these monies to go directly to fund balance, they will be used during the current year to defray construction expenses and to keep the district’s debt on the project as low as possible.

Overall, the district is projected to draw in $6,696 fewer dollars in local revenue for the operation portion of the budget. This decrease is due to a small loss in property values that was experienced for the coming tax year. State revenue for the district will increase by approximately $227,000. A large portion of the increase in state revenue will be used to pay for mandated pay increase for teachers and staff.

While the district held the budget tight for the new school year, no program suffered any cuts. …

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

DHS welcomes new face Chris Fullagar

By LAURA KESTNER, Editor

CHRIS FULLAGAR. The new DHS secretary.

She doesn’t get as many hugs as she did at her old job, but other than that Chris Fullagar said she’s truly enjoying her new job as secretary for the DeLeon High School.

Fullagar, who spent the past five years at the DeLeon Elementary School office, said she misses the little ones and all those hugs, but the older students have really welcomed her to the high school.

“There are really sweet kids here,” Fullagar said. “Everybody’s just been so nice and welcoming, including the faculty and staff.”

As she talked to students and teachers and answered phones last Friday, all without missing a beat, Fullagar seemed to be a natural at multi-tasking. And though she laughingly agreed that at times she feels like an air-traffic controller, Fullagar said she’s up to the challenge -- and is, in fact, having fun.

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Middle Trinity proposes rate,

watches district water usage

By JON AWBREY, Publisher

During the course of nearly three hours, the Middle Trinity Groundwater Conservation District Board of Directors unanimously voted to adopt a tax rate of 1.5 cents per hundred for the coming year, settling on the same rate the board adopted last year.

The board also unanimously adopted a budget for the year 2010.

Differing from last year, however, is the debt that the district incurred to build a new office building, which caused some discussion of raising the tax rate to 1.62 per hundred.

MTGCD General Manager Joe Cooper reported that the district had a one time opportunity to raise the rate, saying that the district’s inclusion of Bosque County would increase the district’s status to that of a regular taxing entity, rather than a small taxing entity, next year.

The move from a small taxing entity to a regular taxing entity will subject the district to new rules, …

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

Inventor Ancil Hill Remembered

DeLeon Welder Produces First Self-Propelled Peanut Combine

By JERRY MORGAN

Don Beavens, who lives in Groves, in the Port Arthur area, was not born or schooled in DeLeon, but he still regards it at his sentimental home town. "I think everything I learned in life, that mattered, I learned here in DeLeon," he said in a recent interview.

THE DELEON COMBINE. Ancil Hill, wearing his engineers cap, standing in front of his creation, the first self-propelled peanut combine.

Don's mother, Gladys Nabors Beavens, was originally from DeLeon. Beavens' father was a band director from Austin, who met his mother while touring through the area with his band. Their romance blossomed as he stayed in DeLeon and helped with the peanut harvest while his band returned to Austin.

Although Don grew up in Port Arthur, he spent most of his summers with relatives here in DeLeon. "My brother Richard and I rode the train by ourselves when we were just seven and six years old.

We had a tag around our neck and the porters got us to where we were going. We rode from Port Arthur to Houston, changed trains and went from Houston to Waco, changed trains again and rode to DeLeon.

"Sometimes we rode the Doodlebug, not all the time, but most of the time. Mother would send us with a shoebox lined with wax paper and full of fried chicken and bread. That's what we had to eat on our way to DeLeon. We learned to stick with the engineers. They would give us an oil gun and showed us where to oil the wheels. We enjoyed every bit of it. We thought we were big then.

"Every time we came to the depot in DeLeon, it seemed like it was Ancil that picked us up. He would take us to grandmother's house, Annie Nabors, who lived on Reynosa. Her eight children included four boys and four girls, my mother being the youngest girl. There was my uncles Clyde, Lee, Fred and Roy, all of whom I believe played football in DeLeon. The girls were Katie, Clara, Lillian and my mother.

THE HILLS. Ancil and Clara Hill.

Don's earliest recollection of visiting at Ancil and Clara's farm was in 1938 when he was only around two. He rode in a horse drawn wagon as the maize was being harvested, and was later given a bath in a washtub to get all of the "itch" washed off. Kerosene lamps were still being used for home lighting in those days, and a hand pump in the kitchen provided the only source of running water. An outhouse provided the other necessities.

"When I came to DeLeon, especially in the summertime, and I spent most summers here, I came here as a worker for whoever I was staying with. I would stay with the Otwells, Rufus Otwell, out at his dairy. I learned how to hate cows, mainly because I didn't know anything about them.

"Coy Otwell had a cafe in town and Wayne was the cook,” Beavens said. “We slopped the hogs with any food that was left over. I hoed peanuts in Lee Nabors' fields. I was also there when they were building Nabors Lake.

"I remember driving across the dam on a D-8 dozer with Derwin Nabors driving it, and he would turn the thing around on that narrow dam. I was also there when they built the swimming pool out there.

"My brother, Richard (one year older) and I came up here and worked wherever we were needed, or wherever they wanted to put us. Later, I kind've graduated to Ancil and his shop."

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Thom Clayton Edges Riggs in Football Contest

Grades improved slightly in Week 1, the second week of our contest, with the average grade improving but still remaining in the "F" category. The average contestant still missed slightly more than 6 games.
The top pickers were definitely better, however, with two picks only missing a single game. Last week we only had a single three-miss pick.

Thom Clayton and Beth Riggs only missed picking correctly on a single game. Clayton's tie breaker total points guess was considerably closer to the actual total score, however, and he takes the $50 weekly prize.
In the close but no cigar group we had Carolyn Frasier, Jason Killebrew, Andy Quinn and Aaron Riggs, each missing only two games each.

Early's loss to Wall was the week's top source of misses, followed closely by DeLeon's loss to Milano,
both missed by four out of five contestants. Brownwood's win over LaVega and Baylor's defeat of Wake Forest also surprised many.

Wins by Cisco, Goldthwaite, Gustine and Tarleton were all popular and correct choices, where more than nine out of ten got it right.

The number of contestants is growing as more and more want to contend for the $50. Hopefully the grades will continue improving. Good luck next week!

Coming Events

Call 893-6868 if you have an event to list

Proctor VFD Fundraiser

The Proctor Volunteer Fire Department will hold their annual Fish Fry Fundraiser this Saturday, September 12, at the Proctor Community Center beginning at 5:30 p.m. For more information on the menu, door prizes and drawing for a new lawnmower with trailer, call 254-842-1348.

Gorman Peanut Festival

The Gorman Peanut Festival is scheduled for this Saturday, September 12, with fun, food, and a full day of activities scheduled downtown.

An Evening With Elvis

A Las Vegas evening with ELVIS is being presented by CARE (Community Animal Rescue Effort) Sept 12 at 7 p.m., rounding out the days events after the Gordon Tractor Pull. Elvis tribute artist R J Quick takes the stage at the old Gordon Gym for 2 hour starting at 7 p.m. with rock & roll, ballads and country & western music. For more information, call 254-672-5501 or 817-929-5355.

GED Classes

GED preparation and English as a Second Lanquage (ESL) classes began Tuesday, September 8, 2009 at the DeLeon ISD Administration Building on Texas Street at the west entrance. Classes will meet Mondays and Tuesdays from 6 to 9 p.m. Call 254-893-6271.

Cloverleaf Square Dancers Offer Lessons

Beginning Tuesday, September 15, at 7 p.m. the Cloverleafs will host beginning square dance lessons at the Rotary Building, 136 E. Blackjack, in Dublin. The first two lessons are free. For further
information, contact Pat Jones at 254-445-2330, or Ray Piner at 254-445-2240.

Antiques Road Show

The first ever DeLeon Antique “Road Show” is scheduled for Saturday, September 19, 2009, downtown. The Heritage Appraisers, a well-known and respected Dallas firm, will do up to three appraisals per family, for free. This service will be offered on a first-come, first served basis. There will also be booths downtown featuring everything from antiques and collectables to garage sale items. For more information, call Linda Levens at 254-893-2083.

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

Open Danny's website by Clicking Here

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

Click Here to visit his website

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