San Jacinto County News - Breakout

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Special to the News-Times

AUSTIN — Dr. Audrey Young, a member of the Texas State Board of Education representing District 8, played a pivotal role in the recent textbook approval process under Proclamation 2024.

This procedure involved the selection of textbooks for science, Career and Technical Education and economics courses.

Reflecting on her initial term and the challenges faced during Proclamation 2022’s Health curriculum selection, Young emphasized her commitment to ensuring educational content aligns with the values and standards of Texas. Her lone dissenting vote in the previous selection process demonstrated her dedication to representing the concerns of parents and educators in her district.

In anticipation of the science textbook approval, Dr. Young engaged volunteers from her district to form workgroups, reviewing content to ensure it resonated with Texas’s educational ethos. This groundwork, combined with broader reviews conducted by the Texas Education Agency, revealed that numerous textbooks proposed did not align with Texas values and educational standards.

The State Board of Education’s recent decisions, influenced heavily by a conservative majority, resulted in the rejection of approximately 37 percent of the textbooks submitted. This move signaled a strong commitment to preserving Texas’s educational integrity, prompting immediate reactions from publishers.

Under Young’s leadership as chair of the Committee on Instruction, negotiations with publishers ensued. She advocated for amendments that included labelling evolution as a theory and incorporating explanations of intelligent design in science textbooks. Three publishers agreed to these terms — SAAVAS, SummitK12, and StemScope incorporated the changes.

Additionally, Young addressed language concerns in health textbooks, ensuring terminology aligned with conservative values. Despite facing scrutiny from some board members, her approach underscored the importance of representing the views of her constituents.

The success of Proclamation 2024 is a testament to Young’s strategic planning and leadership. It underscores the board’s collective strength when working as a united front to safeguard the educational interests of Texas students.

Young said she extends her gratitude to the individuals who supported these efforts and invites more constituents to join her workgroup pool. This collaborative approach ensures that Texas students receive an education that truly reflects the state’s values and aspirations.

For more information and to participate in future workgroups, constituents are encouraged to fill out a form provided by Young’s office.

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San Jacinto County residents flock to the annual lighting ceremonies at the Courthouse Square.

By Tony Farkas
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Now that the turkey is carved and the shopping matches have toned down, it’s time for getting a little Christmas in our lives.

In San Jacinto County, there are two opportunities to ramp up the spirit.

On Saturday, the city of Shepherd will shine with A Hometown Christmas, sponsored by the Greater Shepherd Chamber of Commerce, which will have events, competitions, vendors and parades.

Events begin at 10 a.m. at the Shepherd Community Center with a volleyball tournament, and run until 4 p.m., when the line formation for the parade begins. From 4-6 p.m., floats and parade entries will be judged.

The parade, which starts at 6 p.m., lines up on Liberty Street near City Hall and the Shepherd Library. It will turn onto Loop 424 and proceed to Shepherd Middle School.

For information, call (210) 995-7420 or visit greatershepherdchamberofcommerce.org. Vendor and entry forms are available.

Then on Dec. 9, Coldspring will host its own Hometown Christmas, sponsored by the Coldspring Chamber of Commerce, which begins at 9 a.m.

The events include a gingerbread house construction contest, a city block full of vendors, live entertainment, food trucks, a kids’ zone and pictures with Santa.

The parade will kick off at 6 p.m., with judging beginning at 4:30 p.m.

For information, call (936) 653-2184 for visit coldspringtexas.org. Vendor and entry forms are available there.

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The Browder House is beautifully furnished with many antiques and is located in Coldspring on the Square.Courtesy photo

Did You Know
By Yvonne Cones

I hope everyone had a blessed Thanksgiving. We really are in the holiday season now. Don’t forget to enter the parade in Shepherd or Coldspring. Vendors can call the Chamber offices to sign up or go online to print out a form.

This week I was working on my laptop when I saw a stream of police cars chasing a vehicle past our house. Traveling at high speed a long line of cars sped past, I later learned they were going at 80 miles an hour from Shepherd Police Chief Clint Headley who later gave me the rest of the story.

This story was reported by Channel 13 but they missed an important part. The drug traffickers being chased by Splendora Police Department had thrown out of their car a large 55-gallon garbage bag which had landed in a ditch. A resident of Shepherd saw this and went out to see what it was.

The chase was ongoing but the bag had not been seen by the police. The resident had a look inside and saw it was full of bags of drugs. They immediately took this to City Hall who phoned our Police Chief. He told me that after he connected with the Splendora PD, they wore masks and gloves to examine the contents which was full of cocaine, fentanyl, marijuana and other drugs.

They told him the street value was at least $200,000. The traffickers were arrested when they wrecked their car near the Trinity River Bridge. They appeared to have only a small amount of marijuana on them. The quick-thinking resident who handed the garbage bag to Chief Headley was the hero of the day.

Last week I sent a photo of Dale Everitt and George Garrett saluting the flag on Veterans Day. Unfortunately, George’s elbow was all that was shown of him. So, here he is this week. George was the President of the Coldspring Community Center and is a community minded man who is always there to help whenever he can.

San Jacinto Animal Shelter is having a volunteer animal opportunity for all dog lovers. This involves walking the dogs within certain hours. In the morning it is from 7:30-9:30 a.m. and from 4-6 p.m. Other duties like laundry and cleaning can be done outside these hours.

If you have time, this is a great way to help the Shelter, get to know other like-minded people and help this very worthy cause. Dogs are up for adoption. They are all given shots and if not fixed have that done before they are allowed to be adopted.
They will have a chip inserted too and all is done to make sure they are healthy and ready for their new home. This week Moose was adopted by the Bunting family. Burl and Siena with their children Darin Paul and Presley took Moose home. He looks very happy.

To be a volunteer, call Sandra Houston at (281) 450-3676 or Stephanie Hewitt at (832) 767-8673.

The Browder House is a member of Coldspring Chamber of Commerce. This charming house is now a short-term rental available through VRBO and AirB&B.

Built in 1928 it has remained in one family’s hands ever since and has undergone continuous updating. Located on the Courthouse Square in Coldspring, it is close to Lake Livingston, Sam Houston National Forest and you can walk to the restaurants and shops around the Courthouse Square. It is a gem of a place to stay and enjoy the lovingly furnished and decorated house.

You can go to the website or Facebook page or contact Debbie Womack at (936) 215-1330 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I have been inside this lovely house and think it is a wonderful place for a reunion or rest, or just a get away from it all place.

Shepherd Public Library is raffling some great prizes. There is the Time Machine from the summer program along with a large stuffed dinosaur, a giraffe, also stuffed and a warm you up package of a heater, blanket and more. Call into the Library to buy a ticket if you have not yet bought one outside McClains Super Store or any other place where volunteers from the Friends of Shepherd Library are selling them. Call Terri, the director, at (936) 628-3515.

Shepherd City Council declared the re-election of Curtis Ainsworth, Ray Marrs and Mark Porter. All three ran unopposed and continue to serve on the council, with Porter remaining Mayor Pro Tem. 

Have you ever been to The Den? This is a club just north of the Shepherd exit to Highway 59. The Den is a member of Shepherd Chamber of Commerce and is a lively place especially when DJ Karaoke Joe is working there.

Joe LeBlanc, owner of DJ Services, plays there every week on Fridays from 8 p.m.-midnight. It is non-stop dancing and singing. Joe is a great MC as I know because he is our Chamber DJ for events when he is not booked for a wedding or birthday or some other event.

Joe is also a board member of Shepherd Chamber, and is vice president. The Den serves great food and drink of course and is a great place for parties like birthdays and other celebrations.

Joe also plays every Thursday at American Legion Post 402 at 6380 Highway 190 in Livingston. Look for him on Facebook.
Coldspring Chamber is linking with East Texas News for their annual Best of San Jacinto County contest. Go to this link and vote for your favorite businesses. You can vote for Joe on there too. www.easttexasnews.com.

Contact the Shepherd Chamber of Commerce at (210) 995-7420 or the Coldspring Chamber at (936) 653-2184.

Yvonne Cones is president of the Shepherd Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Coldspring Chamber of Commerce.

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Mark Porter, Curtis Ainsworth and Ray Marrs were sworn in as council members by Mayor Charles Minton. Courtesy photos

By Tony Farkas
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With three council members running unopposed for re-election, the Shepherd City Council canceled its election at its meeting on Nov. 13.
Mark Porter, Curtis Ainsworth and Ray Marrs took their oaths at the meeting, administered by Mayor Charles Minton.

Certificates were issued in lieu of the election; canceling the election saves the city money.

In other business, the council:

• denied a discount rate for Lisa Henderson regarding renting the Community Center;
  
• denied a rate increase request for Centerpoint/Entergy;
  
• denied a request from Mike Rose to abandon an easement on Second Street as his property is only one of four lots connected to easement;
  
• approved the current tax roll from the San Jacinto County Appraisal District;
  
• cast its votes for Melodie Arrendell for a board position with the San Jacinto County Appraisal District;
  
• appointed Council Member Mark Porter to fill a vacancy on the Economic Development Counci;
  
• hired Anthony Whitten as a full-time police officer, replacing Mark Gustafson; and
• •hired Carolyn McCurry as utility/court clerk, replacing Monique Wilder.