Power upgrades seen

CLIFTON – Electric service outages on the Texas/New Mexico Power line from Fort Stockton to Sanderson are a concern to company officials and, while a battery or generator backup is not in the immediate plans, the company has spent more than $1 million on improvements, a company official said this week.

Jim Cosper, director of operations for central and west Texas, and District Engineer Titus Akinode responded to questions from the News Leader about outages that occur when thunderstorms rage along the 65-mile line.

By ANNA La FLEUR

Production Manager

SANDERSON – Leopoldo G. Calzada, aka Polo, was born August 7, 1910, in Sanderson and remains the oldest man in Terrell County.

Polo was the second of a dozen children.

Saint James Festival here

SANDERSON – Saint James Catholic Church will host the 28th annual St. James Festival this weekend.

It starts tomorrow with a 12- hour softball tournament starting at 8 a.m. A concession stand will be available with food, snacks and drinks for sale.

The Saint James Celebration of Mass will be at the church at 10 a.m.

Texas to get 250 troops

WASHINGTON – Of the 1,200 National Guard troops to be deployed along the US-Mexico border, announced in May, 250 will be assigned to Texas.

The Departments of Home-land Security and Defense announced this week that the deployments to the Southwest border will begin Aug. 1.

SANDERSON – To call the Sanderson school superintendent’s office, call 432/345-2515. To get the high school, call 2515. The Junior High is at 2515. And so are all the other schools and offices in the district.

Terrell County Independent School District this week inaugurated its new telephone system that routes all incoming calls through the business office at the 2515 extension.

LUBBOCK – Two 2010 Sanderson High School graduates got one more chance to put on a uniform and compete in their favorite sports Saturday.

Sarah Sivils donned a basketball jersey and competed at the Six Man Football all star basketball game at Texas Tech University here.

New school year gets close

SANDERSON – To many, it may seem the 2009-10 school year just ended for the Terrell County Independent School District. But the new school year is already just around the corner.

Football “two a day” practices will begin in just more than a week, Aug. 2, and band rehearsals also will begin the next week.

FORT DAVIS – There now is an opportunity for mobility-impaired visitors to the McDonald Observatory here to peer into the heavens from a new telescope at the Frank N. Bash Visitors Center.

The Wren-Marcario Accessible Telescope, or WMAT, was dedicated last week.

It is designed to be 100-percent wheelchair accessible and will provide sharp views of the Moon, planets and deep-sky objects.

Kids get ‘all painted up’

SANDERSON – Jessica Harkins took on 23 kids into her home last week for her summer art camp.

The camp lasted all of last week for elementary school aged kids.

Attending the class were Abbagayle Roberts, Laycee Low-rance, Alaina Stutes, Elaina Sanchez, Josie Harrell, Elizabeth McClellan and Kate Roberts.

4-H building ordered

SANDERSON – The Terrell County 4-H Youth Advisory Board has approved the final payment on a building for the much-awaited 4-H livestock pens on West Oak Street.

The pens are for 4-H participants to store their show animals and have somewhere to care for them.

Lowest grade rule changed

SANDERSON – Teachers in Terrell County Independent School District will no longer have to give a grade of at least 50 percent to a failing student after the School Board meeting Monday.

The board agreed to accept the new policy recommended by the state.

‘Mini-Cheer Camp’ set

SANDERSON – The Sanderson High School varsity cheerleaders will host a “Mini-Cheer Camp” next month for girls age four and up interested in learning the art.

Registration will be from 2 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, July 28 at the high school.

The camp, at a location to be determined, will be Aug. 10 through Aug. 13.

OKLAHOMA CITY – SandRidge Energy, Inc., of Oklahoma City and Arena Resources, Inc., of Tulsa jointly announced last week that stockholders of each company had approved a merger of the two.

SandRidge stockholders approved the issuance of Sand-Ridge common stock to Arena stockholders and the increase the number of authorized shares of its capital stock.

FORT STOCKTON – Lexy Gonzalez was crowned 2010 Miss Fort Stockton at the annual Water Carnival Saturday at Comanche Springs Swimming Pool.

Terrell County School Superintendent Gary Hamilton was a judge in the Miss Fort Stockton event and his wife Beth judged in the Junior Miss pageant.

TxDOT seeks public input

ODESSA – The Texas Department of Transportation will conduct a public hearing here next month to get citizens’ view of what they want to see in transportation projects for the next quarter century.

The second round of such meetings will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 5, at the TxDOT office at 3901 E. US Highway 80.

SANDERSON – A tree stood in front of the Walter Falk house on West Pine Street here for 100 years but it is standing no more.

Falk, who died in 2007, said he loved it here and decided to keep his 100-year-old home.

“My front porch in Sanderson is my favorite place in the whole world,” he often said.

ALPINE – Erin K. Smith of Sanderson will show her work at the Francois Fine Arts Gallery at Sul Ross State University Monday, July 25, through Saturday, August 7.

“Trousseau: a Collection of New Ceramic Work” features functional ceramic tableware by Smith, a graduate student at Sul Ross State University.

Smith will receive her Master’s degree earlier the same day.

Inspired by wood, leather and tile work from the arts and crafts movement, as well as vintage fabrics, Smith said she aims to emphasize the beauty of handmade functional objects and their intimate relationship with the user.

Budget woes told

SANDERSON – Low interest rates, declining property values and looming questions about the state’s “Robin Hood” finance scheme all threaten the budget for Terrell County Independent School District’s coming school year.

Leo Smith on panel

SANDERSON – Terrell County Judge Leo Smith said this week Gov. Rick Perry has appointed him as a member of the Permian Basin Regional Review Committee.

He replaces Judge W.E. Bednar of Garden City, who retired.