Polk County News - Breakout

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From Enterprise Staff

Today’s issue of the Polk County Enterprise, as well as the Dec. 29 issue, will be special double issues because the two Sunday issues that fall on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day will be cancelled to allow our staff and carriers more time to celebrate the holidays with their families.

The two special double issues will include year-end reviews, stories, pictures, recipes, events, inserts, special new year ads, puzzles and games.

“I know I speak for our entire team when I say how grateful we are to both our owner, Alvin Holley, and our publisher, Kelli Barnes, for making this decision,” Polk County Enterprise Editor Emily Banks Wooten said. “I feel certain this break will allow our team to rest, reflect and recharge for the new year. As we usher in 2023, our goal is to continue to be your number one news and advertising source.”

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From Enterprise Staff

Habitat for Humanity of Polk County recently moved its ReStore to downtown Livingston in the old Sears building located at 321 N. Beatty Ave. The ReStore is a nonprofit home improvement store and donation center that sells new and used building materials, appliances, new and gently used furniture, and home accessories at a fraction of the retail price.

“The location has been a dream of the organization since 2020. When it became available again, we knew we had to jump at the opportunity,” Habitat’s Executive Director Amy Borel said.

The building required substantial clean up and prep work before Habitat could begin moving in. The previous tenants had left a considerable amount of garbage and the building needed to be brought up to code.

“It really took the coordinated effort of many people to get the building move-in ready. We are just so very thankful to the volunteers, local government, small businesses, the board, and our employees for putting hundreds of hours of hard manual labor into prepping the store,” Borel said.

Sheriff Bryon Lyons and Deputy Paul Cain provided hard working crews of inmates on several occasions.

“We owe a debt of gratitude to Sheriff Bryon Lyons and his crews of inmates for their help. They did a great deal of the heavy lifting and gave our volunteers and employees a break. They also did a good deal of clean up, helped strip the floors, and painted the inside of the building,” Borel said.

Work on the building has included stripping the floors, fresh interior paint, updated electrical, new ceiling tiles, and general clean up. The ReStore staff and the Board of Directors hope the new location, along with the updates, will encourage more people to visit the store to shop and donate. Donations from the store support the Habitat mission while also diverting reusable materials from landfills. Local donations are vital to the success of the organization.

“COVID negatively impacted our organization as well. We’ve spent the better part of the last two years trying to recover. The new location will hopefully make more people aware of our organization and will remember Habitat for Humanity when they are looking to donate gently used items,” Borel said.

Habitat for Humanity of Polk County is the local affiliate for Habitat for Humanity International and builds homes for hard-working low-income families who are unable to qualify for traditional mortgages. Habitat homeowners help build their own homes alongside volunteers and pay an affordable mortgage.

Habitat for Humanity of Polk County is funded through local donations to the ReStore and volunteer efforts. To shop, donate, or volunteer, visit www.habitatpolkcounty.org or call the ReStore at 936-328-8529.

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From Enterprise Staff

The Thursday, Dec. 22 and Thursday, Dec. 29 issues of the Polk County Enterprise will be special double issues because the two Sunday issues that fall on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day will be cancelled to allow our staff and carriers more time to celebrate the holidays with their families.

The two special double issues will include year-end reviews, stories, pictures, recipes, events, inserts, special new year ads, puzzles and games.

“I know I speak for our entire team when I say how grateful we are to both our owner, Alvin Holley, and our publisher, Kelli Barnes, for making this decision,” Polk County Enterprise Editor Emily Banks Wooten said.

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Lidia Merino was sworn in as a new board member at Thursday’s regular meeting. Photo by Brian Besch

By Brian Besch
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The Goodrich ISD school board met Thursday evening to hear a financial report and swear in a new board member.

Business manager Sarah Fulcher gave a finance report, saying that money has been transferred from one district account to another to take advantage of a better rate.

“Our Lone Star Investment right now, the percentage of our interest is .00327 and on our First State Bank it is .00209, so it is way lower,” Fulcher said. “Last month, when we looked at our interest we were earning, we had about $2.8 million in that account, and we only earned $5,927 in interest. In the Lone Star investment, we had $1.9 million and earned $6,241. So, we had (less) money and were earning more interest. So, what we did this week was transferred $1 million from First State Bank into Lone Star Investments, so that the interest rate in our money is smarter. It only takes the click of a button to move it back if interest rates change.”

In maintenance and operations, The roof for the auditorium is scheduled to go on Dec. 28-30. If it has not been completed by that time, work will continue over the weekend to ensure the project is done by the time students and teachers return. Surveillance video cameras have been purchased in the amount of $32,500 for 60 cameras. They are expected to be installed within 30 days. A few busses will be sent over to East Texas Fleet Services for preventative maintenance over the holidays. 

Lidia Merino was sworn in to take over Position 2 on the board. That spot was vacated last month when the board accepted the resignation of Jennifer Pickett.

The board approved a staff incentive bonus of $500 for all employees. The bonus has been approved in the past during Christmas time, according to Goodrich ISD Superintendent Daniel Barton.

“When we look at what we budgeted as far as our revenue, we were going to end up with approximately $150,000 extra, as far as taxes and because of our extra kiddos that we gained this year,” Fulcher said. “For all staff to get the $500 bonus, it would be $26,374.25. That is with taxes and everything; that is our total cost. We would hand it out before we went for Christmas. It is one of the ways we would like to use the extra money.”

There have yet to be applications submitted to fill the role of board member Position 5. That position was vacated in the death of former member Bobby Bridwell.

Goodrich ISD has now set their vision mission and beliefs. The vision is empowering all students to pursue excellence. The mission is to ensure that all students are college, career and military ready citizens of exemplary character. Some of the beliefs include respecting all stakeholders, valuing instructional time, making decisions collaboratively, providing positive affirmation, and maintaining high expectations for all.