In the photo (l-r) - Back row: Chamber Administrative Assistant Mari Martinez, Chamber Treasurer Crystal Moroney, Santa Claus, Miss Friona Kitzy Welch, Middle row: Little Miss Arribelle Hernandez, City Manager Lee Davila, Chamber Board Member Manuel Toledo, Front row: Mayor Greg Lewellen.
Parmer County Commissioners Court met in special session on Monday, December 19, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. in the County Courtroom of the Parmer County Courthouse in Farwell, Texas. The meeting began with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag and Texas Flag.
There were no comments from the public during the open forum. Minutes from the December 12th meeting were read and approved. Commissioners approved the payment of the accounts payables as presented by County Treasurer Sharon May. The Treasurer's Payroll Report was also approved.
Aspen Fleming of the Friona EMS, Cesar Marquez of the Bovina EMS, and Debbie Weir of the Lazbuddie EMS submitted requests for needed equipment. Commissioners approved a LUCAS (Lund University Cardiac Assist System) CPR machine for each of the three EMS organizations for approximately $18,000 each. A quantity discount is possible since the County will be purchasing a total of four machines. Approval was also given for 2 sets of bunker gear for Bovina at a cost of around $2,000 and a 1-year payment of $6,000 towards a First Responder Kit for Lazbuddie EMS. ARPA funds will be utilized for all the purchases and payments.
Commissioners also approved ARPA funds in the form of "Premium Pay" for county employees. The one-time $1,000 payments are in recognition of work performed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Elected officials are not qualified to receive the payment.
Revisions of the Vacation Pay-Out Policy were discussed and approved. Employees may now carry over 2 weeks of vacation time plus 40 hours of work time. Also, for vacation time to be deemed "denied", an employee must make two or more requests with each request consisting of a different vacation time during the year.
John Gurley's resignation as Emergency Management Coordinator was approved as of December 31st and Sheriff Eric Geske was appointed the fill the vacancy as of January 1, 2023. Sheriff Geske has completed the necessary training for the position. Also, Bonds were approved for Parmer County elected officials and employees.
Commissioners approved the following individuals to serve on the Parmer County Historical Commission for two-year terms: Chairman Gladys Spring (Bovina), Richard Carson (Bovina), Wendy Carthel (Friona), Tommy Fulcher (Farwell), Gay Goettsch (Farwell), Hollis Horton (Friona), Bonnie Howard (Farwell), Joe Bob Mann (Friona), Mary Lee Mitzelfelt (Farwell), Don Spring (Bovina), Sharon White (Friona), Teresa Ancira (Farwell).
Parmer County Sheriff Eric Geske informed the Court that the Parmer County Law Enforcement Center is currently housing 34 inmates of which 8 are paying customers from Deaf Smith County and 7 are paying customers from Dawson County.
The next regular meeting on January 9th was rescheduled for Friday, January 6th.
All meetings are open to the public. Information in this article is only a summary.
Last Call - This edition is the last Friona Star for 2022. It has been a long-staning tradition to take the last week of the year for vacation and to get ready for a new year. The Friona Star office will be closed from Friday, December 23rd through Sunday, January 1st. We will open again on Monday, January 2nd. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
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About Santa Letters - All of the Santa letters from Primary and Elementary students were mailed to the North Pole a couple of weeks ago. We are hopeful that we have included every one of the letters in the paper this week. We try to present the letters exactly as written and without any editing. Go Big Red!
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Small World News - On December 1st, Governor Greg Abbott announced his new senior staff leadership team. One of the new hires was Shayne Woodard who began serving as Director of Legislative Affairs on December 15th. Shayne is a FHS graduate, a graduate of Texas Tech University with a B.S. degree in Agricultural Economics and a former Tech Student Body President. "The upcoming legislative session will require a formidable staff within the Office of the Governor, and I am pleased to announce this experienced team of talented individuals who will help our office achieve great things for the people of Texas," said Governor Abbott.
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Next Edition - The January 5th edition of the Star will feature highlights from the local stock show. There will also be a "In Memory" listing of those who passed away during the past year.
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A Teachable Event - Parmer County Retired Teachers and School Personnel will meet on Tuesday, January 10th at 12 noon at Melissa Randolph's home, 2177 Highway 60, Friona. Following a cornbread and soup luncheon, Lee Davila will speak about upcoming city updates, including the Community Center, which is used by the entire county.
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Time 2 Laugh - (1) What do you call a rooster staring at a pile of lettuce? A chicken sees a salad. (2) Why aren't koalas actual bears? They don't meet the koalafications.Source: https://www.rd.com/list/short-jokes.
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Trivial Pursuit - Nostalgic college students in the 1960s began to informally trade questions and answers about the popular culture of their youth. After writing trivia columns, Columbia University students Ed Goodgold and Dan Carlinsky created the earliest inter-collegiate quiz bowls. They tested culturally (and emotionally) significant yet virtually useless information. The students dubbed the tests trivia contests. They later published Trivia (Dell, 1966), the first book treating trivia in the revolutionary new sense. This book also achieved a ranking on the New York Times bestseller list.
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Public Library
18 days open
292 e-visits
414 in-house visits
9 new patrons
312 items circulated
9 new items added
Book Shop open 7 times
$95.00 in sales
Police Department
166 calls
2 arrests
19 citations
76 warnings
95 stops
2,298 miles driven
EMS
10 transports (911)
12 transfers
2 calls at Prairie Acres
16 non-transports (911)
0 no patient or disregard
6 standbys
46 total service calls
Volunteer Fire Department
Nov. 2 Wreck sent 2 trucks & 5 firefighters
Nov. 10 Wreck sent 3 trucks & 9 firefighters
Nov. 10 Grass Fire sent 3 trucks and 10 firefighters
Nov. 19 Shed Fire sent 3 trucks & 9 firefighters
Nov. 22 Grass Fire sent 2 trucks and 10 firefighters
Nov. 24 Wreck sent 4 trucks and 14 firefighters
Nov. 30 Wreck sent 5 trucks and 12 firefighters