A Look Back at the Year 2019 in Roscoe

Bruce Robison & Kelly Willis at the July 4th free concert and street dance.

Reviewing highlights of the previous year from the town’s perspective has become a year-end feature of the Roscoe Hard Times, so I will continue it here, even if it is a week later than usual this time around.

As we all know, Roscoe’s footprint is always greater than one might expect for a community its size, and like Garrison Keillor’s fictitious Lake Woebegone, we all tend to see it as a place “where all the women are strong, all the men good-looking, and all the children above average.” That being the case, let’s take a look at some of the happenings that characterized Roscoe in 2019.

Festivals and the Music Scene

In the past few years, Roscoe has become regionally known for its city celebrations and live country music performances, often by some of the best-known singers in the business. This year the City sponsored two major festivals, the Independence Day Celebration on July 6, and the West Texas Wind Festival in October. Both events drew large crowds with live music, street dances, street vendors, and fireworks shows.

Johnny Rodriguez at the West Texas Wind Festival (7:29)

The July 4th celebration this year began with the Lions Club Pancake Breakfast followed by the July 4th Parade down Broadway. Street vendors set up shop in Old Town Park and on Broadway and Cypress Street, and the Museum entertained many visitors. At the baseball field, mud vehicles from various cities tried their luck at getting through the local blackland mud, and in the evening the husband and wife team of Bruce Robison and Kelly Willis entertained the crowd at the free concert and street dance. The fireworks show put on by the Roscoe Volunteer Fire Department concluded the city-sponsored festivities, although many continued the celebration at the free live music and dance at the Lumberyard.

The West Texas Wind Festival was held on an almost perfect day for the weather. The sun shone bright, skies were clear, the breeze was light, and the afternoon temperature in the mid-seventies. The Plowboy Mudbog was in progress at George Parks field, while street vendors sold their wares downtown. In the evening, the feature performer was country great Johnny Rodriguez, who followed the opening Jarrod Morris band. Once again, the Fireworks Show officially closed the evening.

Tracy Lawrence used the Lumberyard as a backdrop for his American tour video.

In addition to the City festivals, Roscoe’s reputation as a major regional venue was once again highlighted by the live performances of several nationally known country and western artists and groups at the Lumberyard. Notable performers this year included Jamey Johnson, Joe Nichols, Neal McCoy, The Kentucky Headhunters, Tracy Lawrence, Wade Bowen, Stoney LaRue, Little Texas, and Gretchen Wilson.

This is just a part of the crowd that came to pledge allegiance with Neal McCoy.

In August, Neal McCoy led a large group of Roscoe residents and kids in pledging allegiance to the flag at Memorial Park while broadcasting the event live over his Facebook page.

The scene at Vickie's Gifts during  Christmas Open House.

City businesses also prospered this year, especially on the annual Christmas Open House Sunday in November, which kicks off the Christmas shopping season. This year’s turnout may have been the largest ever as downtown businesses were full of shoppers.

Roscoe School

Robotics instructor Dan Boren explains 3-D printers to West Virginia bigwigs.

Roscoe Collegiate’s prominence on a national scale continued for its innovations in education and the impact they are having, especially on rural schools. In January, all the top educators in West Virginia flew in to see Roscoe’s program up close. These included West Virginia University’s President, Provost, Dean of Agriculture, selected profs and others, two community college presidents, the State Superintendent, State Treasurer, a State Delegate and other prominent officials and administrators, as well as the National 4-H Council President and CEO, who flew in from Washington. 

They were shown as much of Roscoe’s program as possible in one day and went away impressed with the school’s initiatives and the abilities and enthusiasm of its students. They have since adopted Roscoe’s P-20 program and adapted it for use in rural schools in two West Virginia counties with more soon to follow. 

In February, Roscoe Collegiate was one of only four schools mentioned in the Texas Education Agency’s annual report. It was featured for its P-Tech programs (such as Edu-Drone, Edu-Weld, and Edu-Make It) which provide professional certifications and for its partnerships with Western Texas, Texas Tech, and Texas A&M that connect high school to career and college. In April, the school’s P-20 program was featured in a national report on significant innovations in public education along with three other schools from New Orleans, Atlanta, and Silicon Valley. At the Spring STEM Advisory Meeting, Hamlin and Throckmorton representatives attended with plans to adopt Roscoe’s program, and Van Horn has also adopted Roscoe’s P-20 approach.

In May, as in recent years, most of the RCHS seniors, 26 this time around, received their Associate Degrees from Western Texas College along with their high school diplomas. Also, a former student, Jose Rangel, became the first to complete the P-20 program as designed when he received his Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from Angelo State University. Dr. Rangel, a 2013 graduate of RCHS and Western Texas College and a 2016 graduate of Angelo State, was a first-generation college student, who now becomes a standard bearer for Roscoe’s P-20 program.

Texas Tech and West Texas A&M initiated new programs allowing students to earn their bachelor’s degrees in Roscoe. While the Texas Tech program, ITeachTech, is geared for students with associate degrees wanting to earn bachelor’s degrees and teacher’s certificates in Roscoe, the WTAMU program, Innovation U., is for any adults wanting to pursue bachelor’s degrees in various majors while receiving local mentoring and advising support.

Also, beginning this month, the school is adding a competency-based option through Brandman University, a fully accredited online university based in California. This addition provides a flexible and affordable option for adults with some college but no degree. For more information, contact Morgan Martin, Dean of Continuing Education for Collegiate Edu-Nation at mmartin@roscoe.esc14.net or 806-549-5842. 

Just recently the school purchased the Main St. Antiques building to house these new programs. These developments combined with those of recent years keep RCISD at the heart of educational progress in the state and country.
 

Homecoming royalty: Football Sweetheart Sadie McCambridge & Football Beau Junior Martinez.

In October, RHS and RCHS exes gathered to celebrate Homecoming for the first time since 2016. A large group attended and enjoyed the festivities, get-togethers, and football game—not the bonfire, though, which was rained out.

Other annual city festivities such as the Easter Egg Hunt in Old Town Park, the Christmas Parade, and visits with Santa at the Community Center, as well as the Trades Days Sales, free Thanksgiving Dinner, and other Community center events provided entertainment for Roscoe residents and others.

The Cotton Crop and the Weather

This year's dryland cotton.

This was an interesting year for the weather. Perhaps the first sign came at the onset of spring, when Injun Robert performed the traditional “Sunrise Wind” ceremony by lighting a fire shortly before dawn and then at sunrise observing the direction of the rising smoke. According to the Plains Indians who once lived in this area, the wind’s direction at the appointed time foretold the success of the coming year’s crops. Each direction predicted a certain outcome, but nothing in the legend as handed down foretold what would happen if there was no wind at all—which is exactly what Injun Robert saw at the moment of sunrise. In the morning calm, the smoke went straight up! With no guidance from the past, there was nothing to do but wait until this year’s crop was in to find out what that meant.

And now we know: smoke rising straight up foretells an average crop. And here’s why we can call it average. On Monday morning, the Central Rolling Plains Coop gin produced its final bale of the 2019 season, making a grand total of 62,284 bales. This year was the thirteenth for the gin, which opened in 2007, and in those thirteen years it has produced a grand total of 818,971 bales. Divide that total by 13, and you get the yearly average, which is 62,998. The two figures are very close when you consider that the number of total bales has varied from 9,966 in 2011 to 111,598 in 2017.

However, there was nothing average about the weather as the year progressed. The record rains from the previous October had produced an abundance of underground moisture for the coming crops, so there was plenty of optimism as the year began. In a wet April, about four inches fell (officially 3.91”), and then in May the area got nine more inches (officially 8.94”), making it the second wettest May in Roscoe since official records began in 1936. Only May of 1982 with 10.92” had more.

All the normally dry playa lakes in farmers’ fields were full, and the county’s permanent lakes—Trammell, Sweetwater, and Oak Creek—all had water rushing over the spillway. In fact, with a couple of scattered showers in early June, the fields were so wet that many farmers despaired of getting all their cotton planted before the crop insurance deadline of June 21.

As it turned out, though, once the rain stopped, it really stopped. June was unusually dry with an official total of less than an inch (officially .78”), and so were July (.43”) and August (.11”). In fact, after a light shower on July 8, most area farms got no more measurable rainfall between then and September. Normally, such a dry spell would cause major damage to dryland cotton, but the underground moisture turned out to be enough to avert disaster, and many were surprised to see the crop turn out as well as it did. However, it could have been better if not for this year’s early freeze in October. So, although the weather was unusual in the way it progressed—an overabundance of rain in the spring followed by an unusually dry summer—the yield turned out to be average.

Other features of the weather for 2019 gleaned from Kenny Landfried’s official records include the following facts: the hottest day of the year was August 27 at 108°F, the coldest March 5 at 13°. The last spring freeze was April 1, when it fell to 31°, and the first fall freeze was October 30 at 31°, followed by a low of 16° the next day. However, some farms experienced a freeze two weeks earlier that damaged the cotton. The spring was unusually mild. April had only two 90°+ days (April 10-91°, April 22-90°), May only one (May 29-91°), and June only one before June 15 (June 9-93°). However, there were 22 days after that when the temperature reached or surpassed 100°—1 in June, 4 in July, and 17 in August.  

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Buster Welch checks out his new statue. (Photos by Ruth Ann Welch Williams)

In December, local rancher and cowboy Buster Welch was honored in Fort Worth with a statue in the Will Rogers Coliseum of him riding his famous horse “Peppy.” The event recognized his lifelong impact on the world of cutting-horse breeding, training, and competition. He will also be featured in an upcoming documentary on cutting horses and their development in the American west. This video is a trailer for it:

 

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The Roscoe Wind Farm

Unlike in previous years, the Roscoe Wind Farm was not a major news topic on the national level, but an article carried by the USA Today newspapers in January did mention that it is still the world’s third-largest wind farm and still the largest one in Texas, beating out the Horse Hollow Wind Farm in Taylor and Nolan Counties, the Capricorn Wind Farm in Sterling and Coke Counties, the Sweetwater Wind Farm in Nolan County, and the Buffalo Gap Wind Farm in Nolan and Taylor Counties.

The article is available online here.

In short, there is plenty going on in Roscoe, and the town enters the new year in good shape. With continued forward thinking, hard work, community spirit, and a little bit of luck, it should continue to prosper as we move into the coming year and decade.

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PLOWGIRLS FINISH THIRD AT ANSON

The Plowgirls have been busy since Christmas, playing five games. They finished third in the Anson Tournament on December 27-28, defeating Borden County 37-33, a team they had lost to earlier, losing to Roby 38-31 and Anson 39-19, and then defeating Roby 37-31. 

Then on Friday night, they lost to Coahoma in a game played at Howard College in Big Spring.

Plowgirls 37 – Borden County 33
 
Scores by quarters:
Plowgirls             9          15        27        37
Borden County  8          16        24        33

Individual Plowgirl scoring: Carson Greenwood 9, Cameron Greenwood 8, Shauna McCambridge 7, Layla Herrera 7, Riley Sheridan 4, Mia Lavalais 3.

Roby 38 – Plowgirls 31
 
Scores by quarters:
Roby                  12        21        28        38
Plowgirls            2          9        25        31

Individual Plowgirl scoring: Cr. Greenwood 12, Lavalais 11, Herrera 4, Kaylea Perez 2. Cm. Greenwood 2.

Anson 39 – Plowgirls 19

Scores by quarters:
Anson                7         24        37        39
Plowgirls          3            5        16        19

Individual Plowgirl scoring: McCambridge 6, Cr. Greenwood 5, Herrera 5, Cm. Greenwood 3.

Plowgirls 37 – Roby 31 

Scores by quarters:
Plowgirls          12        21        30        37
Roby                  12        21        24        31

Individual Plowgirl scoring: Herrera 9, Cr. Greenwood 8, Cm. Greenwood 8, Lavalais 8, McCambridge 2, Sheridan 2.

Coahoma 65 – Plowgirls 33

Scores by quarters:
Coahoma          23        29        49        65
Plowgirls             6        17        22        33

Individual Plowgirl scoring: Cr. Greenwood 11, McCambridge 9, Cm. Greenwood 7, Herrera 4, Lavalais 2.

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PLOWBOYS PLAY SIX GAMES, WIN ONE

Zack Jordan takes a shot against Hermleigh last night.

At the Anson basketball tournament on December 27-28, the Plowboys went 1-3, defeating the Big Spring JV 45-26 and losing to Anson 41-26, Wellington 70-23, and Wylie JV 53-26. Then on Friday they lost to Coahoma in an away game 49-42 and last night fell to Hermleigh at home 53-49.

Here are the scores by quarters for each game followed by individual Plowboy scoring:

Anson 41 – Plowboys 26

Scores by quarters:
Anson               8          25        35        41
Plowboys          3            9        14        26

Individual Plowboy scoring: Antonio Aguayo 8, Junior Martinez 6, Jake Gonzales 6, Zachary Parrott 4, Juan Pablo Leaños 2.

Plowboys 45 – Big Spring JV 26

Scores by quarters:
Plowboys          10        27        35        45
Big Spring JV     3          5        13        26

Individual Plowboy scoring: Brayan Medina 18, Parrott 13, Aguayo 6, Leaños 5, Martinez 2, Gunner Helm 1.

Wellington 70 – Plowboys 23

Scores by quarters:
Wellington        23        41        53        70
Plowboys             5          9        14        23

Individual Plowboy scoring: Medina 9, Aguayo 7, Leaños 4, Helm 3.

Wylie JV 53 – Plowboys 26

Scores by quarters:
Wylie JV           10        16        37        53    
Plowboys            2        11        13        26

Individual Plowboy scoring: Medina 8, Leaños 7, Aguayo 6, Parrott 5.

On Friday, January 3, the Plowboys lost to Coahoma at Howard College in Big Spring.

Coahoma 49 – Plowboys 42

Scores by quarters:
Coahoma          12        24        34        49
Plowboys          14        21        28        42

Individual Plowboy scoring: Ryan Highsmith 14, Medina 11, Tristan Baker 6, Martinez 5, Hunter Anglin 5, Parrott 1.

Hermleigh 53 – Plowboys 49

Scores by quarters:
Hermleigh         17        28        37        53
Plowboys             8        16        28        49

Individual Plowboy scoring: Baker 12, Medina 11, Highsmith 11, Zack Jordan 9, Martinez 3, Aguayo 3.

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CENTRAL ROLLING PLAINS COOP GIN COMPLETES SEASON

The Central Rolling Plains Coop Gin completed its 2019 season on Monday, and the final bale was number 62,284. To show how this number compares with those of previous years, here are the totals from every year since the gin had its first season in 2007:

                                             2007           109,991
                                             2008             57,184
                                             2009             39,626
                                             2010             70,379
                                             2011                9,966
                                             2012             66,985
                                             2013              71,849
                                             2014             32,274
                                             2015              75,636
                                             2016              87,827
                                             2017             111,598
                                             2018              23,372
                                             2019              62,284

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WEATHER REPORT: MILD, SUNNY, DRY

The north wind had the flags flapping on Monday.

For the second week in a row, the area has experienced mild weather, especially for January. Highs have been in the fifties and sixties with lows in the forties down to the mid-thirties, but so far no ice, sleet, freezing rain, blue blizzards, or any of the other treacherous weather for which January is noted. The coldest weather 2020 has seen thus far is 34°F, which was the low on Saturday morning. Yesterday and Monday did have some strong wind. On Monday it was from the north and yesterday from the south-southwest, but those were the only blips in what has otherwise been some reasonably nice weather.

And the forecast is for more of the same as far as temperatures go. Today’s high is forecast to be 63°. However, it won’t be exactly nice outside as a strong south wind of 20-30mph will be blowing and will continue into the evening. Tomorrow, the winds will shift to the southwest and diminish a little but will still be noticeable. And the high will be around 72°. Friday will also have southwest winds and a high of 65° before a norther blows in Friday night and cools things off. Saturday will have northwest winds and a high of 53°, while Sunday will be back up to 64° as the winds shift back to the southwest.

In a nutshell, temperatures will remain warmer than usual and the area will experience the high winds for which it is noted. Any chance of rain is practically nil.

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† CAROL JANE UTLEY CORNOYER

Funeral services for Carol Jane Utley Cornoyer, 73, of Abilene, were held at 3:00pm Friday at Piersall-Benton Funeral Home in Abilene. She passed away on Tuesday, December 31, 2019.

Affectionately known as CJ, Carol was born on March 28, 1946, in Merkel to Virgil and Mildred Nixon Utley.  She was a graduate of Abilene High and worked in Commercial Insurance.  Carol had a love for life and enjoyed a good celebration, no matter the occasion.  She always remembered others and had a way about her that made others feel special.  She liked things to always be their very best, whether it was the interior of her house, her finely manicured lawn and garden, or just herself. She always dressed well, kept everything well maintained, and was the queen of her domain.  She courageously battled cancer, losing at last to complications from pneumonia.

Carol was preceded in death by her parents and her daughter Kelli Downing.  She is survived by her husband Larry Cornoyer III; daughter, Marci Downing and David Hall of Abilene; step-sons, Cody Cornoyer and Audra of Farmington, New Mexico, and Larry Cornoyer IV of Fort Worth; brother, Dennis Utley and Terry of College Station; grandchildren, Aerin Jones, David Darling and Sara Darling, plus the Conner family, Jamie and Pat, Patrick, Benjamin and Jennifer; as well as her precious great-grandchildren and her three beloved puppies.

Condolences may be offered to the family online at www.pbfuneraldirectors.com.

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