News

Hailey Byrd placed 9th with her Angus heifer at the annual Houston Livestock Show. Caitlin Cox placed fifth with her Santa Gertrudis heifer at the Houston Livestock Show. Bryce Ridenour’s Simbrah placed 9th at the Houston Livestock Show.

Judy Kent, Vice President, and Becky Reaves, secretary of the Titus, Camp, Morris, Upshur Board of REALTORS, received donations for the Northeast Texas Child Advocacy Center at the March meeting. The Advocacy Center is non-profit and provides a child-sensitive environment for evaluation of child abuse in our Northeast Texas Counties.

The Justiss Family was recently honored at the 64th annual sale of the Northeast Texas Hereford Association for dedication and commitment to the association. Adron Justiss, founder of Justiss Ranch, LLP was a charter member of the association and served the association in various ways. Present owners, Sheila Justiss and Madron Hartley, continue as members of the association and raise and sell Registered Polled Herefords, Registered Salers, and a cross of the two breeds.

Members of the Justiss family, from left, are Barbara Metch, Vice- President of the Northeast TX Hereford Association, Boyd Clary, Tyler Theobald, Madron Justiss Hartley, Sheila Justiss, The family was joined by Scott Stewart, right, President of NETHA, for the recognition.

By: Toni Walker

Editor

news@steelcountrybee.com

The Legacy Event Center held their Third Annual Art Show over the weekend. Local and artists brought their works to be judged in categories including still life, animals, portrait, landscape, floral and more.

This year offered a new genre for competition in photography. The division were Adult, Youth-Junior High, and Youth-High School. Judging the photography portion was Cassi Clower, who earned her Bachelor’s degree from Texas Women’s University in 2011. She has taken numerous photography classes, and enjoys traveling the country, capturing nature through her lens.

By Toni Walker

Editor

news@steelcountrybee.com

Students everywhere wish for the opportunity to step before the class and teach. One local high school student had that opportunity, and was able to teach the teachers.

Cross Allen is a senior at Daingerfield High School. He has been involved on the math team since he was in sixth grade. Allen has competed at all levels of Texas Math competitions, and his prowess is in Calculator. Allen was third in state in 2015 in that competition.

By: Toni Walker

Editor

news@steelcountrybee.com

The Daingerfield City Council meeting on March 14 opened with a discussion into the future of the Old Seed Mill, or Cotton Gin.

Mr. Don White, representing Life Church, pastors First Assembly in Mount Pleasant, and helped start Life Church, after purchasing the vacant church building across from Brookshire’s. The church, pastored by Shelby Crump, also purchased adjoining land beside the church property, which they have cleared out, in preparation of a new building in the future. The reason for White’s visit to the council was to discuss possibilities for the Old Seed Mill, or Cotton Gin, located at Toby Street and Linda Drive.

By: Toni Walker

Editor

news@steelcountrybee.com

In January, Daingerfield Junior High School was named as one of seven campuses chosen to take part in a best practices case studies project by the Texas Education Agemcy. On March 16, the Case Study committee visited Daingerfield Junior High, meeting with Principal Linda Rhymes and other staff members.

Deborah Brennan, with Region 13, and Coco Masengale, with the American Institutes for Research, were both extremely pleased with their visit. Brennan stated the reasoning behind Daingerfield Junior High selections, saying “All the schools chosen are near schools with similar demographics that are struggling. Daingerfield Junior High should be struggling, based on those around them, but they are not. They are beating the odds. We are here to find out how and why.”

Daingerfield Junior High School recently competed at the Regional Math meet at Queen City. In a close meet, DJH outscored Queen City, Atlanta, Hughes Springs, Spring Hill, Paris, Ore City, McLeod, and Pewitt for the division II Regional crown. In the nine meets Daingerfield has competed in this year, they have finished first in five of them, and second in the other four.

Individuals placing in the top five and bringing home a trophy form the Regional Meet are as follows. In Number Sense, Daingerfield had the first place team, Eighth grader Justice Dorman placed first and was crowned the regional champion. In seventh grade, Laura Carter placed third, and Natalie Beasley placed fourth. Sixth grader Haley Lewis placed fifth.

By: J. Leslie Riseden Special Contributor to The Steel Country Bee

When Hughes Springs voters go to the polls on May 7, they won’t be voting for City Council seats. City Secretary George Fite announced at the regular council meeting March 15 that the seats currently held by Lee Newsom, Genneter Ellison and Ryan Watkins are up for re-election, and the three incumbents are running unopposed. As such, their names will not appear on the May 7 ballot. Voters will still decide on two school board slots (currently held by Robyn Shelton and Van Hall) as well as a proposed increase in sales tax.

In other city business, the Council voted unanimously to accept the recommendations of the selection committee to approve proposals submitted by Grantworks to provide grant administration services and KSA Engineering for engineering services, in connection with the city’s downtown revitalization grant through the Texas Department of Agriculture.

By: J. Leslie Riseden

Special Contributor to The Steel Country Bee

With unanimous approval, the Hughes Springs Independent School District voted to present to the Texas Education Agency a revised school calendar that will end the school day at 3:30 p.m. instead of the current 3:10 p.m. This revised schedule, presented by Superintendent Sarah Dildine at the regular meeting of the Hughes Springs ISD Board on March 14, will include 169 instructional days instead of the present 173. The new school calendar also includes a teacher’s work day at the end of each six week period, as well as additional minutes for unplanned early release for student events, competitions and celebrations, without the need to use “weather days.”