Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!  Here’s hoping you’re enjoying this special holiday with family and friends.  I’m also hoping you were a good boy or girl this year and Santa didn’t bring you switches or lumps of coal.  If you got a new BB or pellet gun, as I did, please let me remind you to be careful.  Those things can put your eye out! 

Whenever I think about Christmases in Roscoe back when I was a kid, I remember several things, some of which have changed over the years.  There are many aspects of Christmas that could be talked about (visiting relatives, church, Christmas Dinner, etc.), but I’ll confine this discussion to just the Christmas tree itself and the gifts under it. 

In my entire childhood, we never bought a Christmas tree.  Instead, four or five days before Christmas, my daddy would ask my brothers and me if we were ready to go out and get one.  We’d jump in the car and head out to the ranch country south of town, where we drove around looking for a suitable cedar tree that had a pleasing shape and was the right size for our living room.  When we spotted one that we thought was perfect, we’d get out and Daddy would saw it down with his handsaw. 

Then, we’d bring it back home where Daddy would get a couple of one by four pieces of wood about a foot long and nail them in an X shape to the bottom of the tree.  By this time my mother would have gotten out all the Christmas decorations from a box in one of the closets.  She’d put a cloth skirt around the bottom of the tree, and that evening after supper, we’d begin the decorations.  We kids would cut out strips of colored paper and glue them together in a ring shape and make paper chains that we hung around the tree.  We also made strings of popcorn by getting needle and thread and stringing them together one after the other. We also decorated the tree with long strings of chinaberry seeds.  The seeds were star-shaped if you looked at them from the top and had holes through their centers, which made them perfect for stringing. My mother would dye them different colors by cooking them in a pot with food coloring.  We also had other homemade tree decorations--Indian eyes of God, snowflakes, and so on.  There were also some store-bought lights and ornaments that were used from one year to the next, along with the thin aluminum strips that were supposed to be icicles. 

Then gifts were put under the tree, which we kids would pick up and shake in an attempt to determine what they were.  We tried to do this when our mother was busy with something else, because if she caught us doing it, she’d make us quit and run us out of the living room. 

On Christmas Eve, right after supper, we’d go in and open all the gifts we’d received from one another and from relatives.  But the best gift of all was always the one that Santa brought, and we didn’t find out what that one was until Christmas morning.  We kids would try to sleep lightly that night in hopes of seeing Santa, but somehow we never managed to stay awake long enough to do it.  We knew he’d been there, though, because the snack we’d left him would be eaten, and the hung stockings were full of nuts, fruit, and peppermint candy canes.  And of course there would be that grand gift under the tree.  It might be a BB gun or a bicycle or an electric football game.  But whatever it was, it usually took up all our attention for the rest of the day. 

In short, some of the traditions of family Christmases are just as they’ve always been while others have changed, sometimes drastically.  But for a kid it’s still one of the most—if not the most—special time of the year, and that is unlikely ever to change.

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PLOWBOYS PLACE FOUR ON ALL-DISTRICT FIRST TEAM

Shelton Toliver (10) made All-District as a wide receiver.

There are four Plowboys on this year’s 7-1A, Division II, All-District first team: quarterback Cutter Davila, wide receiver Shelton Toliver, defensive end Sebastian Benivamondez, and utility player Jesus Leanos.

Max Nemir was named as one of the district’s two defensive newcomers of the year.

Rafael Aguayo and Jesus Leanos made the second team on both offense and defense.  Aguayo made it as a receiver and inside linebacker, Leanos as a receiver and cornerback.  Zack Longoria made honorable mention as a defensive tackle.

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ROSCOE FFA HOLDS ANNUAL STOCK SHOW

A good crowd was on hand Saturday at the Ag Barn to witness the 2013 Roscoe FFA Stock Show.  Both elementary and high school students showed off their animals to the judges and many came away winners. 

The final results are as follows:

Heifers
        Grand Champion – Jaci Alexander
        Reserve Champion – Jaden Alexander

Steers
        Grand Champion – Kristen Johns (Charolais)
        Reserve Champion – Kamren Fisher (Cross)
        Junior Showmanship Award – Kristen Johns

Sheep
        Fine Wool Champion – Ty Fullwood (Heavy Weight)
        Fine Wool Reserve Champion – Dillon Freeman (Light Weight)

        Fine Wool Cross Champion – Kristen Johns
        Fine Wool Cross Reserve – Kristen Johns

        Black Champion – Ty Fullwood
        Black Reserve Champion – Kristen Johns

        Grand Champion – Ty Fullwood
        Reserve Champion – Kristen Johns

        Junior Showmanship Award – Kristen Johns
        Senior Showmanship Award – Dillon Freeman

Goats
         Light Weight – Emma Lee Pulattie
         Medium Weight – Christian Diaz
         Heavy Weight – Chasity Diaz

         Grand Champion – Christian Diaz
         Reserve Champion – Emma Lee Pulattie

Swine
         Duroc Champion – Dillon Freeman
         Duroc Reserve – John Ruben Herrera
         
         Hampshire Champion – Kaylee Palacios
         Hampshire Reserve  – Max Nemir
 
         White OPB Champion – Justin Herrera
         White OPB Reserve – Tagen Adkins
 
         Black OPB Champion – Tucker Adkins
         Black OPB Reserve – Hunter Anglin
 
         Cross Champion – Justin Herrera
         Cross Reserve – Hunter Anglin

         Swine Grand Champion - Justin Herrera
         Swine Reserve Champion - Kaylee Palacios
         Junior Showmanship Award - Hunter Anglin
         Senior Showmanship Award - Dillon Freeman

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PLOWBOYS AND PLOWGIRLS IN EULA TOURNAMENT THIS WEEKEND

The Plowboys and Plowgirls will both resume their basketball seasons by playing in the Eula tournament this weekend.  

The Plowboys’ first opponent will be Graford at Clyde High School at 10:30am on Friday.  If they win, they will play the winner of the Stamford-Comanche game at 4:30pm on Friday at the Clyde Auxiliary Gym.  If they lose, they will play the loser of the Stamford-Comanche game at 3:00pm in the Clyde Auxiliary Gym.  If they win their second game, they will play in the Eula Middle School Gym on Saturday.

The Plowgirls’ first game is at 10:30am on Friday with Hamlin in the Eula Middle School Gym.  If they win, they’ll play the winner of the Stamford-Cisco game at 4:30pm on Friday in the Eula High School Gym.  If they lose, they’ll play the loser of the Stamford-Cisco game at 3:00pm on Friday in the Eula High School Gym.  If they win either of those games, they’ll play again on Saturday.

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WEATHER REPORT

There will be no white Christmas this year, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. 

It rained on Friday night, a little more west of town than in Roscoe itself.  Roscoe weatherman Kenny Landfried recorded a total of .55” at his weather station on the east side of town.  It was enough to leave puddles in the streets all over town.

Other than that rain, though, the rest of the week has been pretty normal for this time of year.  Skies were sunny or partly cloudy, and highs were in the fifties except for Sunday, when it got up only to 42°F.  Lows were in the upper twenties or the thirties. 

The forecast is for more of the same through the weekend.  The high temperature today should be only around 48°, but temperatures will be slightly warmer through the weekend with highs in the upper fifties and lows in the low to mid thirties.

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Plowboy Shelton Toliver is All-State Second-Team Selection

Shelton Toliver (10) makes one of his 17 catches against De Leon.

Wide receiver Shelton Toliver, who had 78 receptions for 987 yards and 17 touchdowns for the year, has been selected to the Associated Press Sports Editors Class 1A All-State second team.  Toliver’s catches and open field runs for TDs were a familiar sight for Plowboy fans this year. 

The only other player from Roscoe’s district to make first or second team was Javier Rocha, a tackle from Albany, who also made second team.  On the honorable mention list were six players from Albany and one from Hamlin.

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ROSCOE FFA STOCK SHOW ON SATURDAY

The annual Roscoe FFA Stock Show will be bigger and better than ever this year with a large number of animals in competition for honors and awards.  The show will begin at 10:00am, this Saturday, December 21, at the RCHS FFA ag barn west of town, just off the I-20 West service road. 
 
First to be judged will be the steers and heifers, followed by sheep and goats.  Then, after a lunch break in which the Roscoe FFA will be serving meals for $5 or $6 dollars, the show will resume with judging of the various breeds of swine.  This year’s judge is Phillip Allen from Gordon.
 
For more information, contact RCHS ag instructor and FFA director, J. J. Caswell, at 325-766-3327 during school hours.

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ROSCOE CHRISTMAS PARADE THIS SATURDAY

The annual Roscoe Christmas Parade will be this Saturday, December 21, starting at 2:00pm.  It will begin on east Broadway and end at the Community Center.  Line-up is at 1:30pm at the 300 block of East Broadway.

Entries are encouraged, and no prior notification is necessary.  Just show up at the line-up and join in.

Santa Claus will be on hand at the Community Center, and there will be free cookies and drinks.  For more information, call Felix Pantoja at 325-514-8384.

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SWEETWATER COMES FROM BEHIND TO DEFEAT PLOWGIRLS, 43-33

The Sweetwater varsity girls came to Roscoe on Friday for a game not originally scheduled and managed to come away with the win by overtaking the Plowgirls with a strong fourth quarter surge to win 43-33. 
 
The Lady Mustangs took the early lead and were ahead 12-9 at the end of the first quarter.  However, by halftime the Plowgirls led by four, 21-17.  They maintained their lead through the third quarter, and at the end of three, the score was Roscoe 31, Sweetwater 28.  However, the Lady Mustangs pulled away in the fourth, winning by ten, 43-33.

High scorer for Roscoe was Eva Aguayo with 15.  Sunshine Saddler had 6 points and Selena Perez 4, while Whitney Williams, Mia Herrera, Sam Ortega, and Shelby Brown all had 2.
 
The Plowgirls are now off for the holidays and will resume with the Eula Tournament on December 27-28.

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PLOWBOYS LOSE THREE, WIN ONE

The Plowboys lost two games in the Blackland Divide Invitational Tournament this past weekend before getting their first victory of the year over Rotan, 46-34.  They then fell to Haskell last night, 44-38.

The Plowboys came close on Thursday in the opening game of the Blackland Divide Invitational Tournament, but were unable to come away with the victory and fell to Anson, 43-42.

The Plowboys jumped out to a 12-9 lead in the first quarter and were ahead at the half 26-21.  But Anson pulled to within two, 37-35 by the end of the third quarter, and finally overtook Roscoe in the fourth to win 43-42.
 
High scorer for the Plowboys was Jesus Leanos with 15 points, followed by Javier Leanos with 9.  Anthony Ortega had 7 points, Cutter Davila 4, Chase Cathey 3, Kevin Lavalais 3, and Shelton Toliver 1.

Their next game against Hawley was also a loss, 52-45.  In that game Jesus Leanos had 14 points, Javier Leanos had 13, Lavalais 11, Davila 3, and Luis Villa, Ortega, and Cathey all had 1.

Then on Saturday they beat Rotan 46-34 for their first win.  In that game, Jesus Leanos had 24, Javier Leanos 10, Lavalais 4, Davila 4, and Ortega 2.

Then last night the Plowboys fell to Haskell 44-38.  Jesus Leanos had 20, Javier had 8, Villa 6, and Lavalais 4.
 
The Plowboys are now 1-7 on the year.  They will next play in the Eula Tournament on December 27-28.

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REMEMBERING RAY PRICE

Ray Price at the Lumberyard in October 2012.

Local folks were saddened to learn of the death this week of country music legend Ray Price. Price, who played at the Lumberyard last year, was the consummate southern gentleman.  After putting on a great show, he hung around afterwards to sign autographs, pose for photos, and talk with everyone who wanted to meet him.

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DOWN MEMORY LANE: ROSCOE’S TRADES DAY DRAWINGS

(This originally appeared in the December 22, 2010, posting of the Hard Times.)

The approach of Christmas takes me back to an earlier time in my life and reminds me of the Christmas Trades Day Drawing that used to be the Grand Finale of the year for the Roscoe Trades Day Association. 

Anyone living in or around Roscoe in the 1950s will remember the weekly Trades Day drawings that were held in the open area where the Roscoe State Bank now stands.  Every time you bought something from a participating Roscoe merchant—and that was practically all of them—you got a yellow ticket for every dollar you spent. So, if you bought something for $5.25, the merchant was supposed to give you five yellow tickets, but they would always round up and give you six. Each ticket had a number on it with a detachable stub.

Then on Friday afternoons at four o’clock, William Haney and one of his “soda jerks” from the drug store would set up a table just outside the south wall of the Boys Club hall and put on top of it a big turning “squirrel cage” type barrel made of wood and chicken wire.  They also hooked up a mike and speakers for Mr. Haney to do the announcing.  While this was going on, a huge crowd of Roscoe and country folks would gather with tickets in hand, filling the lawn area where the bank and its parking lot now stands.  Someone then put all the ticket stubs accumulated from sales all over town that week into the barrel, which was turned over and over. 

Then a kid randomly selected from the crowd opened the little door, reached in, and drew out a stub.   Mr. Haney would announce the amount of the prize and then call out the numbers on the stub, and all assembled would carefully check through their tickets.  The lucky winner would yell, “I’ve got it!” and go up to the table to collect the prize.  On normal weeks there were three—first $10, then $15, and then to top off the day, a $25 prize. Of course, this was in the ‘50s, so $10 was a substantial amount of money, enough to make anyone who won it feel like it was their lucky week. The prize money wasn’t cash but trades day script redeemable in any participating store, but since practically all the Roscoe businesses participated and since people did most of their shopping in Roscoe, the coupons were as good as cash. 

When the weekly drawing was over, people didn’t throw their yellow tickets away because you could trade in fifty yellow tickets for one red ticket, and the red tickets were used for the Grand Finale drawing of the year that took place the week before Christmas. The Roscoe Times office handled all the tickets, so when merchants ran out of yellow ones, they came around to the Times Office to get more. Also, as Christmas approached, people came to the Times Office and “cashed in” all their yellow tickets to get the red ones.

The biggest prize ever given away at one of the Trades Day drawings was a brand spanking new Chevrolet. This would have been around 1955 or 1956.  Back then, Bill Pollard had his Chevrolet dealership on the northwest corner of Main and Broadway, just east of the Coffee Bar and across the street from Kirby Smith’s filling station. He did a thriving business, not just in Roscoe, but for the whole area. In fact, he was so successful that his dealership outgrew Roscoe, and he moved to Big Spring and was successful out there for many years.

Anyway, I don’t remember who won the new car, but it was the Grand Prize at the red-ticket Christmas drawing that year, and I believe the winner was some farmer from south of town, maybe Champion. Whoever it was, I remember folks saying that it went to a deserving person, someone that everybody liked and who didn’t have a lot of money.

The drawings went on for several years after that, but there was never again any prize as big as that one. I think in later years, the grand prize at the Christmas drawing was something like $100, but again, that was a lot of money for those days.

--o--

† DARRELL THOMASON

Darrell Dewayne Thomason, 63, passed away at his home on Monday, December 16. He was a resident of Roscoe.

His body will be cremated and no services are planned at this time.

Mr. Thomason was born on January 9, 1950, in Brownfield. He is survived by his daughter, Brandi Egger and her husband, James, of Roscoe and his brother, Tommy Thomason, of Rowlett, Texas. Darrell was preceded in death by his wife, Vickie Wells Thomason.

Online condolences may be expressed at www.mccoyfh.com.

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Winter Storm Hits Hard

Thawing began when the sun came out yesterday.

For the second time in just a little over three weeks, the Roscoe area was once again slammed with a major winter storm that sent temperatures plummeting and forced people to make major changes in their normal activities.  Roads were icy and treacherous, schools were closed, games were called off, and people generally stayed inside as much as possible for most of the past week. I’d be willing to guess that more chili, stew, and cornbread were made during this past week than at any time in the past six months, or maybe even longer. 

The weather was actually the result of two cold fronts that came one right after the other.  The first blew in in the wee hours of last Thursday morning with high winds and rapidly falling temperatures along with freezing drizzle and sleet.  The high that day—34°F—actually came at midnight as temperatures continued to drop throughout the day as the front moved through. Daytime temperatures were in the low twenties with wind chills in the mid to low teens, and the entire Big Country was under a Winter Storm Watch through Saturday. 

Wrecks on I-20 slowed and sometimes completely stopped traffic, particularly in and around Eastland County, and all over west Texas country roads were treacherous with patchy ice.  TxDOT issued one warning after another for people to stay off the roads as much as possible, and the advice was generally heeded.  I-20 had as little traffic on it as I have seen since my return to Roscoe over three years ago. 

On Friday, the high temperature was 23° and the low was 17° with wind chills between 0° and 5°, and Saturday was pretty much the same with a high of 19° and a low of 13°.  On Sunday the sun came out and temperatures rose in the afternoon to 46°.  The relief from the cold was brief, however, as the second cold front hit Sunday night.  This one came with freezing fog, which was unusual in that it came with a brisk breeze along with the low visibility.  The fog froze to wires and tree branches, creating a winter wonderland effect with a thin coat of ice on everything. 

Monday was cold and gloomy dropping down to 17° that night, but yesterday morning the sun finally came out and by yesterday afternoon the temperature once again rose into the mid-forties, and there was a general thawing.  Last night’s low was 32°, and today should get up to the upper thirties, but tomorrow should be back into the mid forties with a 20% chance of rain, and Friday should get up into the sixties and end—for a while at least—the bitter cold we’ve been experiencing lately.

Precipitation for the week varied from less than a tenth up to about .3" depending on the area.

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CITY COUNCIL MEETING

City Manager Cody Thompson addresses the Council.

At its monthly meeting in City Hall last night, the Roscoe City Council tended to some routine matters and received updates on the progress of the water treatment plant, the funds for the upgrade to water and sewer lines, and the proposed dates for the 2014 City Festivals.

City Manager Cody Thompson reported on the latest monthly meeting he held with the contractors of the water treatment plant.  Everything is proceeding as planned but the project is currently about two weeks behind schedule due to the recent inclement weather. 

The Young Farm Estates, currently at work on the sewer line, is in a similar situation regarding the weather delays.  Another four to six weeks is projected for its completion.

The $1,021,110 loan for the water and sewer upgrade will be deposited in the Bank of Texas and when expended checks will be written to the Roscoe State Bank for deposit before checks are written to payees.

The proposed dates for the 2014 City Festivals are these:
    
                    Spring Fling                             Saturday, April 20
                    Fourth of July                         Friday, July 4
                    West Texas Wind Festival    Saturday, October 18

Police Chief Felix Pantoja requested and received permission from the Council to hold a Christmas Parade down Broadway on Saturday, December 21.  The parade will begin at 2:00pm.

Pantoja also introduced new City Police Officer Steven Spencer to the Council.

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AGRIUM MOBILE DISPLAY TEACHES ELEMENTARY STUDENTS ABOUT GROWING CROPS

Kids check out the multimedia learning aids in the Agrium Mobile.

Roscoe Elementary students are learning about the elements that plants need to grow in a multimedia approach presented by the Agrium Seed Survivor display in front of the Elementary School.  It was there yesterday and will be back again today before moving on to Colorado City on Friday. 

Learning about water, lights, nutrients, and growth works through six interactive stations in the mobile. Students from grades 1-6 learn what plants need to survive and can then plant a seed to take home and grow. 

The display was developed in 2005 in Calgary, Alberta, and is led by Canadian Alex Choiniere, who is aided by retired schoolteachers Deitra and Sherryl McCrory.

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RCHS TALES OF DERRING-DO: ROSCOE’S EIGHTH GRADERS WRITE A BOOK

Roscoe’s eighth graders have written a book, which has been published and is now available for sale.  Each eighth grader interviewed one or two third graders and wrote a short story about them.  The editors, English teacher Kelly Sexton and teacher’s aide Carol Parsons, then compiled all the short stories into a book entitled RCHS Tales of Derring-Do. 

It is now available for sale for $7 per copy.  It will soon be available on Amazon.com but can be purchased now by filling out a form available at Roscoe Elementary School.  A form is also available on the Roscoe Homecoming Facebook page.  Proceeds from the sale of the books will be used to create a similar project next year.

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PLOWGIRLS DEFEAT ABILENE HAWKS 61-20

Shelby Brown (5) shoots in last night's game against the Hawks.

The Plowgirls, playing in their first game in a week after the Highland Tournament had to be called off because of the weather, easily defeated the Abilene Hawks, a team made up of home-schooled kids, in the RCHS Special Events Center last night. 

The Plowgirls jumped out to 12-4 first quarter lead, which by halftime had increased to 31-7.  At the end of three it was 43-13 and by game’s end 61-20.

High scorer for the Plowgirls was Sunshine Saddler with 20, followed by Eva Aguayo with 10.  Shelby Brown had 9, Sam Ortega and Mia Herrera both had 5, and Ashton Payne and Dani Dean both had 3.

Next up for the Plowgirls in the Roscoe Tournament this weekend.  Their first game is at 10:30am on Friday with Hamlin in the Eula Middle School Gym.  If they win, they’ll play the winner of the Stamford-Cisco game at 4:30pm on Friday in the Eula High School Gym.  If they lose, they’ll play the loser of the Stamford-Cisco game at 3:00pm on Friday in the Eula High School Gym.  If they win either of those games, they’ll play again on Saturday.

--o--

PLOWBOYS FALL TO TLCA 55-41

Jesus Leanos makes 2 of his 16 points against TLCA last night.

After a one-week break because of the cancellation of the Highland Tournament due to inclement weather, the Plowboys were back in action again last night at the RCHS Special Events Center.  Unfortunately, they fell to TLCA (Texas Leadership Charter Academy) of San Angelo 55-41.

The first quarter ended with the score tied 13-13, but by halftime the Eagles had pulled ahead 25-19, and they never trailed again after that.  The score at the end of three was 41-31.

High scorer for the Plowboys was Jesus Leanos with 16 points, followed by Javier Leanos with 12.  Anthony Ortega had 5 points, Kevin Lavalais 4, Dillon Freeman 2, and Chase Cathey and Cutter Davila both had 1.

The Plowboys next game will be in the Roscoe Tournament, which will be this weekend.  Their first opponent will be Graford at Clyde High School at 10:30am on Friday.  If they win, they will play the winner of the Stamford-Comanche game at 4:30pmon Friday, at the Clyde Auxiliary Gym.  If they lose, they will play the loser of the Stamford-Comanche game at 3:00pm in the Clyde Auxiliary Gym.  If they win their second game, they will play in the Eula Middle School Gym on Saturday.

--o--

† JIM RAYBURN

James Troy Rayburn, 65, of Milton, Florida, passed away December 2. He was born November 23, 1948, in Roscoe, to Gene and Camille Rayburn. Jim was preceded in death by his parents, his paternal grandmother, Mary Elizabeth Rayburn and his maternal grandparents Troy and Callie Norris.

Jim was a member of the First United Methodist Church of Roscoe. He graduated from Roscoe High School in 1967 and attended Howard County Junior College before being drafted into the Army in 1969 where he was a Hawk missile specialist stationed in Key West, Florida. He worked as a custom cabinet builder in Florida for over thirty years and loved to hunt and fish.

Jim has been under the care of his former wife, Sandra Rayburn, for the past year and is survived by his sons Troy Rayburn and Chris Rayburn, step-son Josh Smith, and grandchildren Madison Grace Smith and Braelyn Rayburn, all of Milton, Florida.

Jim is also survived by his sister, Beth Weathersby and husband Russell of Tuscola; brother, Gary Rayburn and wife Becky of Midland; niece, Jamie Reich and husband Nathan of Tomball; and nephew, Jacob Rayburn and wife Michelle of Katy.

A private family service is planned at a later date. McCoy Funeral Home of Sweetwater is in charge of arrangements. 

--o--

† PAN McKAY

Funeral services were held yesterday for Mary Frances “Pan” McKay, 85, of Henrietta, Texas, who passed away on Wednesday, December 4.

Mrs. McKay was born on January 7, 1928, in Fort Worth to Hanks and Beulah (Walker) Wood. She was the wife of the late John R. McKay of Henrietta, former Superintendent of Roscoe ISD.

Pan graduated from Paschal High School in Fort Worth and attended North Texas State University where she majored in physical education and teaching. Pan also received a Masters in Library Sciences from North Texas State.

Pan was a member of First Baptist Church Henrietta where she was active in many ministries including Missions, Operation Christmas Child, Lottie Moon, Girls in Action (GA) and Women’s Missionary Union (WMU). She was also active in League of Women Voters, Retired Teachers Association, Alzheimer’s Association, AARP, various Librarian Associations and many other activities. She sang in the Midwestern Oratory Chorus and also worked at the Clay County Museum for many years.

Mrs. McKay was preceded in death by her parents and her husband John.

She is survived by two sons; Rick McKay and wife Paula McKay of Falls City, Texas and Joe McKay and wife Cheryl McKay of Cedar Park, Texas; one daughter, Melinda McKay of Groesbeck, Texas; six grandchildren, Alison McKay-Longworth and husband Blake Longworth, Travis McKay, Emily McKay, Mary Abel and husband Andy Phifer, Holly Hungerford-Kresser, Jennifer Hungerford; and three great-grandchildren, Benjamin Phifer and Liam and Landon Kresser. 

--o--

City Hires New Full-Time Police Officer

Officer Steven Spencer

The City of Roscoe now has a new full-time police officer.  He is Steven Spencer, originally from Sulphur Springs, who comes to Roscoe after two and a half years duty for the Quitman Police Department in east Texas.  He was sworn in by City Secretary Donna Parker on Monday and is already on the job.

He was selected from an array of candidates by Roscoe Police Chief Felix Pantoja as the applicant with the best credentials for the position.  Besides his work with the Quitman Police, Spencer has been in law enforcement since 2008 and before that worked for several years as a paramedic and firefighter.

His move to west Texas comes after his wife Lisa, a radiological technician, accepted a position with the Texas Department of Health’s office near Dyess Air Force Base.  The Spencers have four children, ages 16, 13, 10, and 6.  They are not sure yet where they’ll be living as they are still looking for a place to live.    

Roscoe’s part-time police officer, Les Soles, has now retired.  The City’s reserve officer, who can be called upon when needed, is Barry Thomas of Sweetwater. 

Police Chief Pantoja also reports that District Attorney Ann Reed has provided the Roscoe Police Department with $10,000 from drug seizures for a new officer’s in-car computer and a new video system for Pantoja’s patrol car to replace the old one, which was broken and no long usable.

--o--

NICE CROWD ENJOYS THANKSGIVING DINNER AT THE COMMUNITY CENTER

Thanksgiving Dinner at the Community Center. (Photos courtesy of Robert McBride)

The Thanksgiving Dinner at the Community Center last Thursday was a big success.  Besides providing a venue for Thanksgiving Dinner for many people who might otherwise have gone without, the food was good, those attending had a good time, and the donations amounted to $400. 

The money, along with the profits recently made from the Community Center tamale sale, will be used to repair and upgrade the Community Center’s restrooms.

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COMMUNITY CENTER TO HOST TWO FREE MOVIES SATURDAY EVENING

In remembrance of the Day of Infamy on December 7, 1941, the Community Center will show the movie Pearl Harbor, starring Ben Affleck, on Saturday evening, December 7 at 8:30pm.  That movie will be preceded by one for the kids, Shrek Forever After: The Final Chapter, which will begin at 6:00pm.

Admission to both is free of charge, but don’t forget to bring some money for the concession stand as drinks, candy, and snacks will be available.

--o--

PLOWGIRLS STOP LADY GORILLAS 51-34

Selena Perez (32) takes a shot against Trent.

If any of the Plowgirls ate too much turkey on Thanksgiving, you’d never know it by the way they played last night as they outhustled a scrappy Trent team to win by a margin of 17 points.  The Plowgirls led all the way, jumping out to a 13-8 first quarter lead and then leading at halftime by nine, 23-14.  They increased their lead to 36-20 at the end of three, and then finished off the Lady Gorillas in the fourth for a 51-34 victory.

High scorer for the Plowgirls was Eva Aguayo with 17 points.  Selena Perez and Sunshine Saddler both had 8 points, Samantha Ortega 6, Shelby Brown and Whitney Williams both had 4, and Aston Payne and Mia Herrera both had 2.

The Plowgirls are now 4-2 on the year.  Next up is the Highland Tournament, which runs from Thursday through Saturday.  The Highland girls are ranked number one in the state for Class 1A-II in the TABC (Texas Association of Basketball Coaches) poll, so folks can look forward to some good basketball there this weekend.

--o--

GORILLAS MAUL PLOWBOYS 54-42

Kevin Lavalais (12) shoots from the corner.

It wasn’t a pretty game in the RCHS Special Events Center last night.  After jumping out to a 13-8 first-quarter lead over Trent, the Plowboys still seemed to have the game in hand at halftime as they had played well and maintained a 22-20 lead.  

However, the third quarter was a disaster, as the Plowboys managed only 6 points the entire quarter while the Gorillas racked up a total of 25 to go ahead 45-28.  The Plowboys outscored Trent 14-9 in the fourth quarter, but it was too little too late as the Gorillas went on to win the game handily by a final score of 54-42.

Jesus Leanos was high scorer for the Plowboys with 25 points.  Anthony Ortega made 7 points, Luis Villa 4, and Kevin Lavalais and Javier Leanos both had 3.

The Plowboys will next play in the Highland Tournament, which runs from Thursday to Saturday.

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WEATHER REPORT: PRETTY NOW BUT BATTEN THE HATCHES

The contrast of this past week's weather with the ice storm and high winds of the week before was typical for west Texas.  Skies were blue and the temperatures balmy in comparison to what we had just been through.  The highs on Saturday and Sunday were in the sixties, on Monday the temperature climbed to 70°F, and yesterday it went all the way to 79° with a low last night of 58°.

Today should be more of the same with another high in the mid to upper seventies.  Unfortunately, that will all change late tonight as another killer cold front arrives.  The entire Big Country is under another Winter Storm Watch starting tomorrow afternoon and continuing through Friday.  The low tonight should be in the mid-thirties as winds shift to the northeast, and there is a 40% chance of rain after midnight.

Tomorrow will bring a 60% chance of freezing rain and sleet, and the northeast winds will blow 15-25mph.  The low tomorrow night should be around 16° with a wind chill of -1° to 5°.  On Friday there is a 20% chance of snow with highs in the upper twenties and a low Friday night of around 16°.  Saturday will be like Friday with similar temperatures and a 20% chance of sleet or frozen rain.

On Sunday the skies should clear with temperatures forecast to rise into the upper thirties with a low Sunday night in the upper twenties.  Monday and Tuesday are currently predicted to be about the same as Sunday—sunny but still quite cold.

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† DOROTHY HELEN WHISENANT BROUGHTON

Dorothy Helen Whisenant-Broughton, 79 of Converse, LA, passed away on Wednesday, November 27. A native of Roscoe, “Dotty” spent the majority of her life in Sweetwater and Abilene.

The eldest daughter of Sam and Lena Whisenant of Roscoe, she is survived by her sister, Floy Nell Gayle of Colorado City and husband Richard; brother Sonny Whisenant of Jacquin, Texas, and wife Judy and her two daughters, Teresa Broughton Rodgers of Converse and husband Thomas Sr., and Susan Broughton-Radosh of Cypress (Houston) and husband Chris.  Other surviving family members are a niece, Karri McNamara of Arlington and husband Michael, and nephew Alan Waddell of Pittsburg, Texas, and wife Mona.  She had five grandchildren, Gloria Rodgers of Converse, Thomas Rodgers, Jr. of Ft. Worth, Joey Ronemus of Ft. Worth, Sophia Cox (Ronemus) of Arlington, and Stephanie Rodgers of Downey, CA, and five great-grandchildren.

Plans for a memorial service in West Texas are pending.

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† ELVIRA GARZA CABALLERO

Elvira Garza Caballero, 86, died on Sunday, November 24, at Nolan Nursing and Rehab in Sweetwater.  Holy Mass of Christian Burial was at 2:00pm on Friday, November 29, at Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church with interment following at Roscoe Cemetery.

Ms. Caballero was born in Goliad on March 28, 1927. In 1946, she married Francisco “Frank” Caballero in Sinton. She was a member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church.

Survivors include sons Raymond Caballero of Hutto, and Manuel Caballero, Martin Jimenez, Frank Caballero, and Eddie Garza, all of Sweetwater; daughters Vera White of Lubbock, Patsy Palos of Garland, and Lupita Caballero, Suzie Garza, and Adella Soto all of Sweetwater, and  Frances Villegas of Roscoe; 25 Grandchildren; 15 Great-Grandchildren; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Frank Caballero on May 13, 2009, her parents, and her son, John Caballero.

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