CHRISTMAS PRESENT – Kailey Dominguez received her grand prize from the Christmas on
SANDERSON – What a difference a year and a half makes. The Sanderson High School Band got a standing ovation Tuesday in the annual
Christmas Concert at the High School Auditorium.
In the spring of 2008, the school board was seriously considering discontinuing the
band program. Then it found Eric Cooksey, a Sanderson native teaching in
School children from kindergarten through high school performed Tuesday but it was the full band, 29 members
strong, that got the biggest applause.
Cheers joined the applause after the band performed the “Ukranian Bell Carol” and there was
a standing ovation when the concert was over.
“I was pretty pleased,” Cooksey said after the concert. “When you are in the trenches,
it doesn’t seem very promising. But when students step up as they are prone to do, it’s very rewarding.
“We did get some work done,
didn’t we?” he said.
For Sanderson music fans, the future appears bright since two thirds of the senior band is in the seventh and
eighth grades.
The evening started with about 60 Sanderson Elementary students performing nine familiar Christmas tunes under the direction of Sandy Breckinridge.
Then Cooksey brought out his band students starting with fifth graders, then fifth and sixth graders combined.
Concert brings cheers
Brewster County Judge
Val Beard
P. O. Box 1630
Alpine, TX 79831
432/819-2412
Brewster County Sheriff Ronny Dodson
201 W. Ave
E.
Alpine, TX 79830
432/837-3488
County Commissioner
Ruben Ortega
P. O. Box 233
Marathon. TX 79842
432-294- J 096
Marathon
ISD Superintendent Conrad Arriola
N. 5th Street
Marathon. TX 79842
432/386-4431
Terrell County Judge
Leo Smith
P. O. Box 4810
432/345-2421
Terrell County Sheriff
Clint McDonald
P. O. Box 320
Sanderson, TX 79848
432/345-2525
Terrell County
ISD Superintendent
Gary Hamilton
P.O. Box 747
Sanderson, TX 79848
432/345-2515
‘Cowboys’ defeat ‘Colts’
MAESTRO ELIJAH – Sanderson third grader Elijah Carrasco conducted the Elementary School choir at the Christmas Program Tuesday night.
The youngest performers sang “Winter Wonderland,” “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” “Come on Ring Those Bells,” “Angels we Have Heard,”
“Silent Night,” “Away in the Manger,” “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “Jingle Bells.”
Sales tax still off in county
Texas
Comptroller Susan Combs said last week the county took in $11,672.32 as its 1.5-cent share of the tax, down 83.62 percent from the
same period a year ago.
Jones team wins state
By KIM RAPP
Production Manager
ABELINE – Vance Jones, who was the last Sanderson Eagle coach to take a football
team to the state finals, set several records as his Garden City Bearkats beat Strawn 122-88 to win the state title Saturday.
The score
was the highest combined total ever in a championship game, Jones said.
Drug testing rescinded
SANDERSON – An action by the
“I think we got the cart before the horse,” County Attorney Marsha Monroe told commissioners. “Our insurance
carrier, which is the Texas Association of Counties, does not approve of the testing. They consider it an invasion of privacy.”
News Leader staff
to be off for Christmas
SANDERSON – If your paper does not come next week, don’t call the News Leader office to complain.
We may not be here.
The paper will be off next week so staff can enjoy some time off with their families.
We will be back in circulation,
but not till next year. The next edition of the News Leader will be published on Friday, Jan. 1, 2010.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. See you next year.
Sanderson Tourney today
By ANNA La FLEUR
News Leader Writer
SANDERSON – The Sanderson Tournament opens today, Dec. 18, with 17 teams
lining up for action in both
The Junior High School Eagle boys lost 27 to 34 against
School Board adopts dyslexia plan
SANDERSON – The Terrell County School Board Monday adopted campus and district plans to comply with
state law and a new plan for dealing with dyslexic students.
Sanderson Elementary Assistant Principal Tanna Lowrance said the plan
sets up a committee to consider ways of dealing with dyslexic students.
At least one
will be contested
SANDERSON – There now is at least one contested race in both Democratic and Republican
Primaries in
Michelle Marquez told the News Leader this week she will run for the Democratic nomination to
Place 2 County Commissioner against incumbent Della Fuentes, who filed earlier.
By KIM RAPP
Production Manager
SANDERSON – The Cowboys beat the Colts Sunday. No, it wasn’t the Dallas Cowboys or the Indianapolis Colts,
but they were Cowboys and Colts nonetheless.
Mikey Shoemaker, age 11, scored all 18 points on four touchdowns,
as the Cowboys of Terrell County Rec football shut out their rival, the Colts 18-0. One score was called back on a holding a holding
penalty, however.
School jobs reach ‘punch lists’
SANDERSON – School projects being built with proceeds of a $14 million bond issue approved last year
are nearing completion and some “punch lists” common to all construction jobs have begun taking shape.
Superintendent Gary Hamilton
said the stairs going into the new high school classrooms being built just south of the junior high school building on
Santa Claus shares letters from kids
NORTH POLE – Santa Claus received some letters from children in kindergarten in Sanderson and
wanted to share them with News Leader readers.
They are printed here, not corrected for spelling errors.
Dear Santa.
I want a
Dora kitchen cupcake maker and a real Pink Phone wih stas and a laptop and a real crown.
Love Kylie.
The company earlier announced acquisition of oil and
gas properties in the
By ANNA La FLEUR
News Leader Writer
SANDERSON – Christina & David Valles will have visitors for Christmas.
Son John David Valles and
family will come calling from
Jennifer
& Daniel Stein will be here from
Another visitor will be David’s brother Roland
Valles from
Dale Busch and family are headed south for the holidays.
I was asked not to mention the family members because it
would take too long. They said they are happy just being the Busch family.
The family will leave this week for their home in
Puerto Escondido, Oax., where they will vacation until after the first of the year.
SANDERSON – The
Cameron Baker, this year’s 4-H Club president, appeared before County Commissioners Court Monday
to express appreciation for the support.
Teachers are qualified
but are they qualified?
SANDERSON – All teachers in the Terrell County ISD are “highly qualified,” but are they
also “highly qualified?”
The federal No Child Left Behind law requires school districts to report on teachers who are “highly qualified”
to teach students.
1942 beacon fixed
SANDERSON – A rotating beacon at
Airport Manager C.D. Curry told Commissioners Court Monday the beacon, which has to be left on all
night, failed recently but it has been repaired.
'Posada' greets the season
SANDERSON – La Posada, Spanish for "the inn," is a nine-day celebration with origins in Spain beginningDecember 16 and ending December 24.
It is a yearly tradition for many Catholics, primarily in Latin America, and symbolizes the trials
which Mary and Joseph endured before finding a place to stay where Jesus could be born, based on the passage in the New Testament,
the Gospel of Luke 2:1 to 9.
Light up your home tonight
SANDERSON – Judges will be snooping around your home or business tonight and tomorrow, trying to find out
who has done the best job of Christmas decorating.
The Chamber of Commerce will give $25 each to the best home decoration and the most
brightly decorated business.
SANDERSON – “Great progress” is being made on the issue of county maintenance on
The county took a tiny step toward a solution Monday with the approval of a contract with Koch
& Koch of D’Hanis to survey the road from State Highway 349 to its end but County Attorney Marsha Monroe said both sides had made
“great progress” in negotiating a settlement.
Photo by Ryan Rosas
STANDING O – The Sanderson High School Performance Group, under the direction of Eric Cooksey, got a standing ovation
Tuesday after performing at the annual Christmas Concert. The band has made major strides since Cooksey took over the program at the
start of the 2008-09 school year.
I BELIEVE – Rev. John Carnagey of
TINY TREE – OK, it’s just a pine cone but to Amaris Martinez it’s a real Christmas tree. Amaris decorated the tree for the Marathon
Public Library’s Toddler program last week at the library. The next program will be at 11 a.m. this Wednesday, Dec. 23. Parents
are asked to have their children bring a white t-shirt or sweatshirt to paint on.
SCORING CHAMP – Mikey Shoemaker headed down the sidelines for one of his four touchdown runs as the
GOTCHA – Chuy Lopez brought down Cody Hilton in last Sundays Terrell County Rec. football game in The Pit. The Cowboys and the Colts
will face off again at 2 p.m. Sunday. The boys in third through fifth grade play by modified Six Man Football rules.
REFRESHMENT – Justin Flax got a cold drink during halftime at the
WHAT ROAD? – Independence Creek was tranquil when the News Leader took this picture last summer. But the road that crosses at this
point was gone. Heavy rains can swell the creek, filling it bank to bank, and making it difficult to maintain a road across it. A
heavy downpour Sept. 11, 2008, completely washed out the crossing.
Stock to aid SandRidge acquisition
CENTURY PROGRESS – The $1.1 billion SandRidge Energy/Oxy Petroleum “Century Plant” 37 miles north of Sanderson continues to take shape.
The plant, near
WHAT NEXT – Evie Brower of
