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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Top Stories
Wednesday, April 2, 2003
Volunteers needed for annual 'Texas Trash-Off'
By JENNIFER GALVAN
Staff Writer
PECOS, Wed., April 2, 2003 -- As part of the 'Don't Mess with Texas Trash-Off'
campaign, Pecos and other Texas communities will be participating in a statewide
cleanup this Saturday.
"There are more then 100 communities will be participating," President
for Keep Pecos Beautiful Committee, Michael Benavides said. "And we just
happen to be one of them."
In a press release sent out by the Texas Department of Transportation,
more than 1,300 groups are expected to participate in the April 5 effort.
It is one of the nation's largest single-day cleanups, TxDOT officials said..
Benavides said that the cleanup in Pecos would begin early Saturday morning,
with volunteers meeting on South Eddy Street.
"It will start at 7:30 a.m. at the Odessa College parking lot," Benavides
said. "I think I can say this with out getting in trouble ... the parking
lot will become our headquarters from now on. It is a good central location."
He said that he went out on Tuesday and looked at possible areas for
this weekend's cleanup.
"One area was off the access road out by the Farm Labor Housing," Benavides
said. "That area I think would fill up 11/2 dump trucks."
He said the area, which is visible to drivers on Interstate 20, is filled
with bags and beer bottles that need to be picked up.
Other areas scheduled for clean-up include in front of Wal-Mart and by
the Pecos Nursing Home, both of which are littered with trash bags.
"Residents of the nursing home don't want to see that when they look
out of the nursing home," Benavides said.
TxDOT said in 2002 one million pounds of trash was picked up by more
than 70,000 Adopt-a-Highway and Keep Texas Beautiful volunteers all across
Texas, making it one of the most successful years in Trash-Off history.
"This annual Don't Mess with Texas Trash-Off brings people across the
state together to clean up our roadsides and take pride in Texas," said
Glen Larum, Texas Department of Transportation Public Information Officer
for the Odessa District.
Though there are other events going on that same day, including the Reeves
County Health Fair and the opening of the Little League Baseball season,
Benavides hopes that he will have some volunteers to help with the effort.
"I need all the volunteers I can get for most of the morning especially,"
Benavides said.
With some help, he added that they would get done sooner allowing everyone
else to enjoy the other events going on that same day.
"I would like to go to the health fair and take my kids and wife," Benavides
said. "It will be after we are done."
So far he has asked some church members, youth groups and local organizations
to participate in the cleanup but hopes that they come because they want
a better Pecos.
Local labor force, jobs decline with unemployemnt
By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer
PECOS, Wed., April 2, 2003 -- The number of jobs and the number of workers
declined in Reeves County in February, while the county's jobless rate declined
slightly from January, according to figures released last week by the Texas
Workforce Commission.
Unemployment fell from 14.5 to 13.7 percent, as the jobless rate remains
well above the same time a year ago, prior to the closing of the Anchor
Foods plant in Pecos. While the plant has reopened under ownership of TransPecos
Foods, the number of employees is about 500 fewer than in late 2001, when
the closing was announced, and the numbers released by the TWC still reflect
the effect of last May's shutdown, along with a loss of other jobs during
the last 12 months.
Reeves County had 5,939 workers in February and 812 without jobs, the
TWC said. A year ago, there were 6,400 workers in the county and 499 without
jobs, and an unemployment rate of 7.8 percent. There were 774 fewer jobs
in Reeves County in February than at the same time in 2002, according to
the commission's numbers.
Compared with January of this year, the number of workers has dropped
by 125, while the number of jobs dropped by 60, which allowed the jobless
rate to fall eight-tenths of a percent.
Unemployment in the Town of Pecos City was higher than in Reeves County,
but was down nine-tenths of a percent. The city's jobless rate fell from
16.4 to 15.5 percent, as Pecos lost 104 workers and 46 jobs, falling to
4,683 people in the labor force with 727 unemployed. The city's unemployment
rate in February of 2002 was 8.9 percent, with 5,000 workers in the labor
force and 447 without jobs.
Area-wide unemployment was down .1 percent, while Texas' jobless rate
for February fell from 6.8 to 6.6 percent. Ector County (Odessa) reported
a drop of .4 percent last month, from 7.5 to 7.1 percent, while Midland
County's rate rose from 4.4 to 4.5 percent.
Ward County unemployment dropped 1.4 percent, from 9.9 to 8.5 percent,
as the number of jobs held stable while the labor force declined. Pecos County
saw a slight increase in its labor force and employed workers, which kept
the jobless rate at 6.1 percent, and Winker County's rate fell from 9.8
to 9.3 percent, as it also offset a drop in jobs with a decline in the county's
labor force.
Meeting to discuss issues for seniors scheduled
PECOS, Wed., April 2, 2003 -- The Area Agency on Aging of the Permian
Basin will be holding four town meetings focusing on the needs of the aging
population throughout the region.
The group will be in Pecos, at 1:30 p.m., Monday, April 14, at the Reeves
County Hospital, 2323 Texas St.
The agency hopes to increase local involvement and participation in the
planning process; assess the capacity of local communities to meet the Area
Agency's needs of the increasingly aging population, identify issues and
un-met needs and answer questions.
The meetings will be specific to the needs of individuals age 60 and
over. Individuals and professionals are welcome.
The Area Agency on Aging is funded by the Texas Department on Aging.
Weather
PECOS, Wed., April 2, 2003 -- High Tuesday 92. Low this morning 57. Forecast
for tonight: Partly cloudy. Slight chance of showers or thunderstorms. Lows
in the lower 50s. Southwest winds 10 to 20 mph. The chance of precipitation
is 20 percent. Thursday: Windy. Mostly sunny. Highs in the mid 80s. West
winds 20 to 30 mph. Thursday night: Mostly clear. Lows near 50. Friday:
Mostly sunny. Highs in the lower 80s. Saturday: Mostly clear. Lows in the
mid 40s. Highs in the mid 80s.
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
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Copyright 2003 by Pecos Enterprise
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