San Jacinto County News - Breakout

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(Top left) Allyson Moses captures the audience. (Bottom left) Greg, the sax player of the Do Yo Thing Band says music is a universal language. (Top right) International Recording Star “The Lady Songbird Jinda”. (Bottom right) Volleyball was in hot competition. Photos by Charles Ballard

SJNT staff

SHEPHERD — San Jacinto County residents were treated to fun, games, fireworks and inspirational music during the Shepherd Chamber of Commerce’s Independence Day Explosion on Saturday.

Chamber President Yvonne Cones said the day was blessed with no rain, a great band and singers, and Chamber board member Brenda Myers was amazing with the kids games.

The American Legion opening flag ceremony was stirring, Cones said, and DJ Joe and his wife Tina LeBlanc always are wonderful.
Cones said the event could have had more people showing up; those that missed the day missed the fireworks, a 20-minute long display that capped off the day’s events.

Neck and neck in the sack race.

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Emmitt Eldridge took a second hat as Emergency Management coordinator, to go along with his duties as Coldspring Fire Chief. Photo by Tony Farkas

By Tony Farkas
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COLDSPRING — Emmitt Eldridge is there to help, and in more ways than one.

Eldridge, who currently serves as chief of the Coldspring Fire Department, was named Emergency Management coordinator for San Jacinto County three weeks ago as former director Judy Eaton retired.

Eldridge will continue to be the Coldspring Fire Chief, a position he said prepared him for his new role, as people in this position tend to have a background in fire or EMS.

That role, he said, is to help the county prepare for any type of emergency situation, whether it’s man-made, natural or even nuclear.
“We do training, then make sure that the county has resources and shelters in place,” he said. “I then coordinate with commanders of any situation to ensure they have the necessary resources as well. Then we work toward getting the county back to normal.

“We help residents find funding to replace homes after a hurricane or get cleaning supplies to help after a flood,” he said.

OEM coordinates with Red Cross, Texas A&M AgriLife, Trinity River Authority, local fire departments, the Sheriff’s Office, TxDOT and more to get help where it’s needed, Eldridge said. For instance, his office was the leaders in making sure that county residents had ample supply of clean drinking water during the COVID pandemic; and in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, given that San Jacinto County had some of the highest amount of damage in the state, the OEM lent its assistance and expertise in recovery.

Eldridge said that as coordinator, he plans to respond to more emergencies to provide support. Additionally, the county has a

HAZMAT trailer that hasn’t been used in years that he plans to get up and running.

He also plans to improve emergency notifications to county residents.

“We currently use Facebook as our main notification outlet, but the county does have a text messaging system that needs to be used,” he said.

Also, he plans to push a program call STEAR — State of Texas Emergency Assistance Registry — which will be primarily used for disabled, medically fragile or other functional limitations. The county will maintain this list, and in the event of an emergency, emergency response personnel will know where people are and what assistance or resources they need.

“We have zero people on the program,” he said. “Our county is a member, but we need people to sign up.”

Eldridge said he is currently working on updating wildfire mitigation and hazardous material response, and in the future, will do more training and education, particularly in the schools.

To sign up for the STEAR program, visit Steer.tdem.texas.gov or call 211.

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Courtesy photo Members of the Houston Humane Society, along with Constable Sam Houston, help retrieve the 33 animals being cared for by an elderly couple. The dogs had been dumped along the roadways of San Jacinto County. Courtesy photo

By Tony Farkas

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Constable Sam Houston and Deputy Pete Sparta are needing help with animals.

The Precinct 3 constable said that San Jacinto County has seen a proliferation of dumped dogs, and it has caused numerous problems, stretching county resources and even putting strain on county residents.

Houston said the county is serious about enforcing animal control laws, and wants to raise awareness.

Sparta said that last week, their office had an elderly couple come in with a problem with dogs.

“A lot of dogs had been dumped in the county, and (this couple) have been trying to rescue them over the last few months,” Sparta said. “At the time they had more than 30 dogs, and they needed our help.”

The constables reached out for assistance from area shelters, and the Houston Humane Society came to help rehome the animals, and the agencies are looking for other avenues of adoption as well.

“We need everyone to know they need to get their dogs spayed and neutered,” Sparta said. “We need to secure their dogs, and we need people to know that animal cruelty will not be tolerated. We hope the people come together to keep our animals safe, and we want to stop the problem before it gets out of hand.”

Sparta said his office will follow up to make sure this doesn’t happen to the couple again.

“We probably get 10 to 12 calls a day regarding dumped animals, and a shelter has been under construction by San Jacinto County for more than a year and is not completed,” he said. “We need more resources.”

One such call led to an arrest of a Cleveland man.

Sparta said his office received several complaints from area residents regarding possible animal cruelty.

“We received reports of dogs being buried on the property, and when we went to investigate, found the animals to be in deplorable conditions,” he said. “We then contacted the Houston Humane Society for help, and the suspect surrendered the animals.”

Seven pit bulls were taken for treatment, however one of the animals died due to starvation.

Kenneth McCarthy, 22, of Cleveland, was charged with cruelty to non-livestock animals.

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By Tony Farkas
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SHEPHERD — The nation’s independence will be observed in style at the Shepherd Chamber of Commerce Independence Day Explosion.

The festivities start at 11 a.m. Saturday with the American Legion flag ceremony, followed by welcoming remarks from Shepherd Mayor Charles Minton.

The Community Center will be open at 9 a.m. for vendor setup.

DJ and MC Joe Leblanc will be playing throughout the day, but live entertainment courtesy of T&S Management, Marketing and Promotions will be offered as well by Jinda Harris, Allyson Moses and The Do Yo Thang Band.

Author Tamisha Crowley will be there with her latest offering.

There will be cornhole and volleyball tournaments and vendors both inside and outside at the Community Center. There will be a patriotic costume contest for adults, young people and pets. Fireworks will be at 9 p.m. courtesy of Shepherd City. Vendors may call the Chamber if they wish to be part of this event, as places are filling fast.

The Shepherd Library will be selling buttons using a new button maker. You may bring a copy of a photo of, pet, child, loved one, etc., to have a personal button made in front of you or choose one of the many fun buttons on sale for $2 each.

There are many bake sales with a variety of delicious items to choose from. Earl Brown, previous mayor of Shepherd, will talk to hopeful recruits for correctional officer jobs and a financial advisor will also be there. Other items include crafts, items, toys, gadgets and more.

For information, contact the chamber at (936) 628-3890.