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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Top Stories
February 3, 1999
Rec board discusses plans at first meeting
By ROSIE FLORES
Staff Writer
PECOS, Feb. 3, 1999 - The newly-formed Community Sports and Recreation
Department board held their first meeting Tuesday evening to discuss the
framework for the program.
The group is comprised of members representing Reeves County, the Town
of Pecos City and the Pecos-Barstow-Toyah ISD, the three entities involved
in the project.
County Judge Jimmy B. Galindo told board members that he and recreation
department director Nora Geron had put together a business framework. "We
want to share the overall framework we have come up with and highlight
all the important areas," he said.
Geron stated that this will be a recreation and wellness program. Recreation
being the participation in activities done during leisure time to relax,
educate, exercise and invigorate the body and mind.
Wellness is the total approach to maximizing one's potential in the
physical, intellectual, occupational, social, spiritual and emotional well
being.
Galindo stated that the draft of the program given to board members
is just a preliminary one, and can be changed or modified according to
input provided from the board members.
"We will provide an analysis of the needs of individuals," said Geron.
Geron stated that a self-analysis will be done on the individual at
the Reeves County Hospital including a stress test, urine and SMAC for
a small fee. "This is voluntarily, it will be up to the individual if they
want this particular analysis," he said.
"I'm hoping that you can help us get these people in this program,"
Geron told the board members.
She said that the main objective is to get Pecos healthy, out of the
hospitals, and the second objective is doing something for the youth.
"There's not much for our kids to do after school and on weekends. We
want to get them away from the television on Saturdays mornings and into
doing something healthy," said Geron, who coached the Pecos High School
volleyball team for 17 years before retiring in 1996.
After-school activities will be provided for youngsters in grades 7-12
and Saturday mornings will be for children in kindergarten through sixth
grades, according to Geron, who provided a "tentative" schedule of the
activities that will be provided through the program.
"And this schedule can change according to the needs and the input we
receive," she said.
Geron stated that if something is not on the schedule that someone would
like, if it's feasible it will be looked into.
Men's softball, girl's softball and touch football are the programs
that are currently active and the new department will be there to help
with those programs. "We want to enhance those programs that are already
working, not tear them down," she said.
Geron stated that she would also like to see all those that want to
participate in a program do so. "If there is a fee and one youngster can't
afford it, we want to find a way for that youngster to participate anyway,"
she said.
"We won't turn anybody away," Geron said, while adding that in the case
where there are awards given out to teams and individuals, there will have
to be a charge to help fund those programs.
Walking will be a self-paced program, where individuals fill out cards
and awards will be handed out for the number of miles completed.
"Once again, this is just a draft, it can change and it will if that
is what the people want," said Galindo.
Office space in the old gym at the Pecos High School will be provided
for Geron. "I talked to our maintenance director and he's hoping we can
complete this office by March," she said.
Galindo stated that he has also spoken to PHS assistant principal Victor
Tarin about the smaller gym and has been getting estimates on how much
it will cost to build racquetball courts in that area.
Other activities were discussed during the meeting, such as gymnastics
and fundraisers to help fund the different programs.
"The majority of the people who participate in the programs such as
T-Ball, softball and the other programs usually don't mind the fee," said
Johnny Terrazas. "I don't think it will be problem there," he said.
"There's always one child, though, who can't afford those $10 and I
don't want to turn him away, so we'll find a way for him to participate,"
said Geron.
Galindo stated that the group will meet once again at 5:15 p.m. next
Tuesday and every Tuesday until March and until all items can be covered.
"We can take this draft and expand on it, or delete, whichever you want
to do, until we get a fixed strategic plan," said Galindo.
Police expect no new charges in Ortiz death
By ROSIE FLORES
Staff Writer
PECOS, Feb. 3, 1999 - Autopsy reports on a hit-and-run victim who died
just before Christmas revealed that he died from a blunt force injury to
the head and also had acute bronchial pneumonia, according to investigator
Freddy Contreras, who added that no further charges were expected in the
case.
Contreras stated that he had received the official autopsy report recently
on the cause of death of Jesus Olivas Ortiz, 57, who died on Dec. 24 in
Odessa Medical Center following an accident four days earlier.
Ortiz was the victim of a hit-and-run accident on Sunday, Dec. 20, in
which he was struck by a vehicle on U.S. 285 (North Cedar Street), about
2 a.m.
A passing motorist found Ortiz lying in the northbound lane of U.S.
285 just north of the railroad tracks just after 2 a.m. He stopped and
protected the victim while police and an ambulance were summoned.
Rebecca Ann Campos, 33, was charged with failure to stop and render
aid to Ortiz after police determined her vehicle had struck Ortiz. She
later turned herself in to authorities.
Campos failed to give her name, address, vehicle registration number
and name of her liability insurance carrier to anyone at the accident scene,
and did not assist Ortiz, who was in need of medical treatment, according
to an indictment returned by a 143rd District Court grand jury last month.
Campos' bond was set at $5,000.
"At this time there is no further evidence that other charges will be
filed," said Contreras. "She struck him and she had the right of way and
there are no other charges that we can charge her with," he said.
It had been reported that Ortiz may have been attacked and left in the
roadway prior to the accident, but other injuries were not listed on the
autopsy report received by Contreras.
New TxDOT engineer began career in Pecos
Paul Henderson has returned to the office where his engineering career
began in 1963 — the Texas Department of Transportation's Pecos office.
Henderson is the new area engineer, coming off a 20-year career building
highways as a chief engineer with the U.S. Department of Interior's Bureau
of Indian Affairs.
"It's like coming back home," Henderson said, noting that he spent the
first five years of his road-building career in the Pecos office. He is
a Crane High school graduate, and his wife, Edna, graduated from Alpine
High School.
District Engineer Jose E. Morales named Henderson to succeed Doug Eichorst,
who was transferred in November to the Midland Area after two years in
Pecos. He will oversee all highway construction and maintenance in Reeves
and three adjoining counties - Ward, Winkler and Loving.
Henderson, who set the survey control points for the Interstate 20 and
10 interchange during his first stint in Pecos, transferred to TxDOT's
Fort Worth District. In 1978, he was named the Bureau of Indian Affairs
highway engineer in Gallup, N.M. and built the first four-lane undivided
highway on the Navajo Reservation.
He was transferred to Anadarko, Okla., in 1981 where he served as the
Bureau of Indian Affairs' Area Engineer for 18 years, overseeing construction
and maintenance for 1,460 miles of highway in a four-state region, including
Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. He retired from his federal post
in January.
Henderson earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering in
1972 from the University of Texas at Arlington and was licensed just two
years later.
The Hendersons have seven children and nine grandchildren.
Grant OKed for new park in Balmorhea
By PEGGY McCRACKEN
Staff Writer
Balmorhea and the Texas Parks and Wildlife have teamed up to build
a community park in the southeast area of town.
City Secretary Jeannie Clark said this morning that the TPW grant of
$63,000 is the only one the city has applied for recently.
Along with private donations, the city of Balmorhea and the Texas Department
of Criminal Justice will provide matching funds in the form of labor, equipment
and materials, for a total project cost of $126,000.
The park, to be located on .8 acre of land, will have three covered
picnic tables, a picnic pavilion with a grill, a multi-purpose court for
shuffleboard, volleyball and basketball.
Children will have a playground with covered bench swings. Adults can
also enjoy pits for horse shoes and washers.
A one-mile walking trail will access the fishing pond, xeriscape garden,
utilities and landscaping.
State Sen. Frank Madla announced the grant this morning, congratulating
all those who worked so hard to make the project a reality.
Weather
PECOS, Feb. 3, 1999 - High Tuesday 59; low last night 27. Tonight, partly
cloudy. Low in the upper 30s. Northeast to east wind 5-10 mph. Thursday,
mostly cloudy. High in the mid to upper 60s. southeast wind 10-20 mph.
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 1999 by Pecos Enterprise
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