Columns

Texas A&M AgriLIfe Extension of Van Zandt County hosted our “Friend to Friend” program which is a cancer prevention program Oct. 1 at the First Baptist Church Fellowship Hall in Canton.  Members of the committee hosting the event were Sally Mitchell, Mildred Rogers, Dr. Kris Ingram, Nancy Szabo, and J.J. Wilson.  FCS 4-H committee members joined in to assist with the event represented by Carolyn Davis and Debra Wood.

The day began with a luncheon which was a build your own taco salad bar along with a scrumptious dessert bar filled with homemade goodies.  Everyone in attendance received a gift bag filled with lots of valuable handouts to help raise awareness about early detection and prevention of cancer.  

Brad Blakemore, publisher of Van Zandt Newspapers L. L. C., recently announced the promotion of one employee and the hiring of a new employee at the company.

David Barber, a 34-year employee of Van Zandt Newspapers L. L. C., has moved from the advertising department to the editorial department and has been promoted to Senior Reporter for the company.

Barber began working at Van Zandt Newspapers L. L. C. on Aug. 10, 1982 as a reporter before moving advertising in 1983 where he remained until earlier this month.

He is a 1977 graduate of Van High School, a 1979 graduate of Tyler Junior College and a 1982 graduate of North Texas State University, now known as the University of North Texas in Denton where he received his degree in journalism while minoring in radio/tv/film and political science.

Cows, horses, pigs and chickens are some of the first animals that come to mind when you think of the farm. But when Miss Rhonda reads about the farm at preschool Storytime, there's no telling what might come up!

Come to the the Van Zandt County Library at 10 a.m. Friday, Oct. 21, 2016, and you will find out. Who knows, Old MacDonald may even make an appearance!

The October meeting of the Friends of the Library was really interesting. Members and guests learned about an event that happened near the end of the Texas War for Independence called the Runaway Scrape. Mayor Lou Ann Everett brought it to life with her narration.

The next big event for the group will be the Book Fair, Nov. 4 and 5. If you would like to donate books, please bring them in by Nov. 1. And there's always plenty to do, if you want to help; please leave your name and contact info with the librarians at the circulation desk.

Canton Herald – October 20, 1960: 

These articles have been: Hollis Judson James, 53, died at Baker clinic Oct. 15, a short time after being injured in a two-car accident on the Canton – Kaufman highway late in the evening. Mr. James and two other men, Glenn Howell of Wills Point and D. H. Cummings of Edgewood were riding in a pickup driven by Mr. Cummings which collided with a car driven by Elsie Guinn.  Funeral services for Mr. James were held Monday, Oct. 17, at 2p.m. at Eubank & Co. Funeral Chapel in Wills Point. Burial was in White Rose Cemetery under the direction of Eubank and company. Mr. James was born Dec. 16, 1906, near the Scott community, son of the late A. J. and Julia Riddle James. His entire life was spent in the vicinity.

The gentle breeze at evening time,

The summer’s heat near gone.

The ducks that land upon the pond,

Will soon be moving on.

The children are all back in school,

The day seem quiet again.

The beauty of the turning trees,

Such colors from within.

The gathering at the harvest time,

The fruit, the cotton and the corn.

The ball game of your favorite team,

Their colors to be worn,

God gave us this autumn beauty,

To bring happiness and peace.

To gaze at and remember Him.

This we can do with ease. 

First husband and I have worked with many puppies over the years, and up to now we've had really good luck.  We know what works in training and what doesn't, and much of the training involves speaking.  "Aaannhhh" is often heard when they try to bite ankles or tee-tee on the floor.  Many of them have gone on to happy homes and we are glad we were able to help them along.

Recently we were confronted with a challenge.  Last week FH took one of our dogs to Edom Vet clinic for a rabies vaccination and Doc Collins (many of you know him) took him outside to show him a new drop-off.  There, in the pen, was the cutest little puppy you would ever want to see.  Doc asked if we could take her in, and of course we would -- who could resist such cuteness?  Besides, what with our sterling reputation with pups, it would be a breeze.

Avoiding humongous helpings, measuring success  

The “eating out” industry is in a contest to see who can sell us the biggest sandwich, stuffed taco, loaded breakfast croissant or biggest helping on the largest plate, platter or basket. It’s OK, don’t get in a twit. There is a solution.

Order a glass of ice water with lemon, take out box, and request your meat and baked potatoes be cut in half. If they look at you strangely, tell them your health advisors told you this is what you need to have for your healthy lifestyle. That works in most situations.

Here is my helping (portion) system:

PALM SIZE: Cottage cheese, eggs, chicken, lean beef and pork, catfish, salmon or shrimp.

FIST SIZE: (a bit smaller than palm size) Whole grain bread, corn tortillas, fresh and fresh frozen fruits, root veggies like taters and sweet taters especially from east Texas. Avoid white bread and white flower. Stick with whole grain.

Canton Herald – October 13, 1960:   The Van Zandt County Farm Bureau will hold its annual convention Monday night, October 17, at 7:30 p.m. Guest speaker for the occasion will be Bob Lilly, legislative director for the Texas Farm Bureau. Mr. Lilly will speak on “How Farm Bureau Gets Things Done in Legislative Matters.”

            The purpose of the convention is to draw up resolutions. Adoption or rejection of resolutions is decided by majority vote. Adopted resolutions which pertain to County issues become the official policy of the County organization. Resolutions which are concerned with state and national matters become instructions to the delegates to the state convention. The number of voting delegates to this convention is decided by the number of Farm Bureau members within the County.

Aphids have landed in Van Zandt County.  The first issue we experienced were these white “fly like” bugs flying in hoards all around our area.   This little bug is actually the Asian Wooley Hackberry Aphid. Dr. Mike Merchant, urban entomologist and extension specialist, pointed out that control is probably not necessary unless the honeydew (aphid droppings, which may result in plant covered with black sooty mold) is becoming unacceptable, in which case they might try dinotefuran (Greenlight Safari) instead of the imidacloprid recommended below.

It is faster at getting into the tree or shrub. Both of these products are systemic in nature and get into the plant itself. This is how it controls the pest when it feeds on the plant. With this being said, make sure you are not treating something like a vegetable garden or some other edible plant. This is for ornamental use only.

State opts out of federal refugee resettlement program

Texas has acted on its threat to withdraw from the federal refugee resettlement program, Gov. Greg Abbott said on Sept. 30.

Texas had demanded enhanced FBI screening of individuals “from terrorist-based nations” and expressed resistance to the federal government’s request that the Lone Star State increase by 25 percent the number of refugees to be resettled.  An estimated 7,000 refugees have taken up residence in Texas in the past year.

The federal government did not respond to a Sept. 21 letter from the state refugee coordinator with the Texas Department of Human Services. The letter gave notice that the state would no longer participate in the program if the state’s concerns were not addressed.