Roscoe Featured on MSNBC, NBC Nightly News

Carl Childers walks with an NBC Newsman through the modules at the gin.

As predicted earlier when an NBC News film crew came to town about three weeks ago, Roscoe was featured this week in news segments on MSNBC and NBC Nightly News. Although one crew shot the same footage for both networks, the segments were not identical. The one on MSNBC came off as being more political, and the one on NBC Nightly News less so and a bit more mainstream as editors for each network handled the available material differently.

The local people involved in the interviews were told that the segments would be broadcast soon, but at the time no one knew exactly when that would be.

The MSNBC segment aired on Friday, February 23, and the one on NBC Nightly News on Sunday evening right before the Olympics and was thus seen by a much larger audience. The focus on both segments was the Roscoe Wind Farms.

If you missed them, don’t worry. They are still available online. The MSNBC segment is available by clicking here and the NBC Nightly News one by clicking here.

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DR. AND MRS. J. W. YOUNG, Sr., HONORED AT MEMORIAL PARK CEREMONY

Direct descendants of Dr. and Mrs. Young stand at the monument after yesterday's ceremony.

Dr. and Mrs. J. W. Young, Sr., and family were honored in a ceremony held yesterday at Memorial Park in downtown Roscoe. A monument to the couple had been placed there by the City on February 12, and yesterday’s event was the formal dedication of the monument. Direct descendants along with spouses, partners, and friends were there, and so were several local residents who came to pay their respects.

Edwin Duncan gave a brief account of the couple’s lifelong service to the Roscoe community as well as the contributions of their descendants, and Mayor Pete Porter issued a formal proclamation designating February 27, 2018, as Dr. J. W. Young, Sr., and Iona Kearse Young Day in the City of Roscoe. Framed copies of the proclamation were distributed to all the direct descendants on hand.

The monument will now be a permanent reminder of the good works they did during their lives for the City and people of the Roscoe area along with the monument to George Parks, the only other individual so honored at the Park.

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SCHOOL MEETING MARCH 5-7 TO FEATURE TOURS, INTERVIEWS, AND OTHER INFORMATION-GATHERING ACTIVITIES

A three-day meeting designed to provide information about RCISD’s innovative programs and its P-20 system of education will begin with school tours on Monday morning as representatives from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the U. S. Department of Education (USDE) will learn as much as they can about the successful initiatives developed by the school in recent years.

These two government agencies are interested because Roscoe’s school is dealing with problems that are common to rural schools everywhere, and the agencies are interested in successful strategies that can be replicated elsewhere.

There will be interviews with representatives of several different agencies, universities, and school districts. Teachers, parents, and students as well as others will also provide input.

Last week’s meeting at RCISD with U.S. Representative Jodey Arrington had to be called off because of the icy rain that fell on the day he was scheduled to come, making the roads treacherous.

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LONG SLEEVE RELAYS CANCELLED, VARSITY OFF TO ACU RELAYS FRIDAY

Plowboy and Plowgirl varsity track teams didn’t open their season last week after all as the Hamlin Long Sleeve Relays were called off because of the weather. Instead, they’ll participate in their first meet on Friday when they go to Abilene to compete in the ACU Wildcat High School Open, a meet that begins 12:00 noon.

The Junior Varsity Boys start their season in Anson tomorrow in a meet beginning at 3:30pm.

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TXDOT MEETING TUESDAY ON I-20 & US 84 ROSCOE INTERCHANGE

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) meeting for public comment on alternatives for proposed improvements in Roscoe for the I-20 and US 84 interchange will be held at the RCHS Cafetorium on Tuesday, March 6, from 5:00-7:00pm.

The meeting will be in an open house format for the public to meet the project team, learn about the proposed project, review the proposed alternatives, ask questions, and provide comments on the proposed project.

This project is being considered to improve safety and traffic flow through the interchange. The proposed project would potentially re-align a portion of I-20 main lanes and frontage roads, provide direct connections between I-20 and US 84 mainlanes, and update ramp configurations along I-20. Maps showing the proposed project's location will be available for review at the open house.

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LUMBERYARD KICKS OFF SPRING SEASON WITH BLACK LILLIES FRIDAY, RANDY ROGERS SATURDAY

It’s been a long winter, and life in Roscoe has in some ways been in hibernation, but all that begins to change this weekend when the Lumberyard kicks off a new season of live performances with some of the best musicians and groups in the state. And all of that begins Friday evening with a performance by the always interesting Black Lillies.

The Black Lillies.

The Black Lillies are an Americana band from Knoxville, Tennessee, who have been around since 2009. They are led by Cruz Contreras and originally made an impact on the Tennessee music scene with their album Whiskey Angel, which was nominated for the tenth annual Independent Music Awards in 2010. The following year they produced 100 Miles of Wreckage, which peaked at no. 11 on the Americana radio charts. Their third CD, Runaway Freeway Blues (2013) was on in the Americana Music Association’s top five for over five months, and their most recent album, Hard to Please, reached #30 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart. Popular singles include “Same Mistakes” and “Smokestack Lady.”

The Randy Rogers Band.

Then on Saturday, it’s back to Red Dirt with the return of the Randy Rogers Band. This Texas-based band got its start in San Marcos in 2002 and has kept its lineup intact since then. It has reached the Top 5 of Billboard’s country albums chart with each of its last three studio releases, including 2016’s Nothing Shines Like Neon. The group recently completed a new album, set for mid-2018 release, at Nashville’s historic RCA Studio A.

Other albums include Rollercoaster (2004), Just a Matter of Time (2006), Randy Rogers Band (2008), Burning the Day (2010), and Trouble (2013), along with two other live albums in addition to Homemade Tamales (2014).

The band’s top singles include “Too Late for Goodbye,” “In My Arms Instead,” “One More Sad Song,” “Kiss Me in the Dark,” “One More Goodbye,” and “Satellite.”

Opening band is Aaron Einhouse beginning around 8:00pm with the Randy Rogers Band taking the stage at about 9:30. For reservations or more information, contact the Lumberyard at 325-766-2457.

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WEATHER REPORT: FINALLY, SOME PRECIPITATION

Rain in my driveway this morning.

It wasn’t a lot, but the total of .58” that fell in the icy rain last Wednesday was welcomed because of the almost total lack of precipitation in the last few months. And I woke up to find we've got another small amount this morning. As I speak, a light drizzle is still falling. Maybe the moisture will be enough to prime the pump, so to speak, and generate more in the near future. Some areas got as high as three-quarters of an inch while others got somewhat less, but it was all sorely needed and, if nothing else, caused the county-wide burn ban to be lifted for a while. Right now, forecasters are giving us another possibility this coming Sunday when the chance for rainfall goes up to 50%.

The weather was cold on Wednesday and Thursday with highs of 34° and 36° respectively. Friday’s high was warmer at 47°, and Saturday’s even more so at 66°. Since then, we’ve had warmer weather culminating in yesterday’s high of 76°.

The forecast is for highs in the sixties and seventies for the rest of this week and into the next. The only rain in the forecast is the aforementioned 50% on Sunday.

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