Trinity County News - Breakout

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Your librarian has learned that the library has to have 7,500 books in our collection to be accredited by the Texas State Library and Archives Commission. At this moment we have 4,512 books and need to add 3,000 more to our collection.

As this is very important to have this accreditation, your librarian is going to accept any donations of hardback books that are in good shape. The plan is to have this done by September 30.

Our New Building Fund balance is $5,551.43. Our 1 Million Pennies Fund Drive is still going strong. Please save your pennies for the library. The new building will need some shelves and other items, and this will help to get some of those items.

•Plans are in process to have a game day at least once a month when we move to the new library. Your librarian is asking for board game donations. Board games that are sitting on your shelf would be a wonderful donation to the library and give you room to store something else.

•Our children’s volunteer, Kim, would like to have any coffee cans (not plastic) and lids that you can save for the library. Shoe boxes are also needed. These will be used for activities for the children.

•The library still has a few volumes of the “Journey to Jubilee, Groveton, Texas.” These books were donated to be used for a fund raiser and are for sale at the library. They will be for sale at $50 each. We have sold a few and still have some available.

•Your librarian would like to have any feedback as to activities that the community would want to try. These would be initiated after the move to the new location. I would like to try and have family game time and workshops. Please give me your ideas. This is your library. You can call, come by or email the library at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to reply.

•The library offers copy services and fax services and Notary Public services.

If you are aware of any person that is homebound and cannot get to the library but would like to have books to read, please call the library. We will work on a time for delivery and pickup of books if someone shows interest. This is your library. Please let me know how I can be of service to you.

Our hours of operation are Monday through Friday from 1 to 6 p.m. The library will be closed from Dec. 23 through Jan. 3, 2023.

Story time is at 5 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The library phone number is (936) 642-2483, and the location is in the rock building just east of the courthouse.

Cathy Czajkowski is director of the Groveton Public Library.

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While we were sleeping last night, Trinity County firefighters were battling 200 acres of fire in the Groveton area, around Highway 355 and 356. I cannot imagine the exhaustion and frustration these gentlemen must be feeling right now.

We need to earnestly pray for them and their families. We also need to pray for more rain and cool weather and do whatever we can to support their endeavors. Give donations, if you can, to all the local fire stations.

•This week we have several events taking place in our community and surrounding cities, so, support each group when you can. First, we have the Trinity County Memorial VFW Post 6899 Auxiliary Fundraiser on Saturday at 400 Caroline St. at 11 a.m.

Come and enjoy a fun day with barbecue, cornhole, auctions, music, and more for the whole family. Live music by Jesse Rose, a 50/50 raffle, a meat raffle, and a beer garden for the adults, with water events for the children Is the agenda for this day.

Most of all, please come to support the Trinity Lions Club’s project to help raise money for the Veterans with a huge collection of Coca-Cola Memorabilia for sale from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. at this event. All proceeds from this event benefit the Veterans of VFW Post #6899.

•On Sunday in the Brookshire Brothers parking lot, the Knights of Columbus is hosting a blood drive for the community from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

•Sept. 22-23 is the 74th Annual Trinity Community Fair Association’s Fair and Livestock Show. They will begin setting up next weekend, and if you have not entered your item requests and vendor applications by this weekend, you may find yourself out in the “cold,” I mean the “heat.” Call Kim Tullos for more information at (936) 661-1568.

•On Sept. 26, First Methodist Church of Trinity is hosting Dinner with Friends from 4-7 p.m. Please call Laura for information and menu at (936) 594-3826. Public invited and donations welcomed.

•Westwood Shores subdivision’s second yearly garage sale is Sept. 29-30 on FM 356, about three miles east of Trinity. It starts at 8 a.m. each day and ends at 5 p.m.

•On Sept. 30, Sebastopol Congregational Methodist Church will host a singing at 6 p.m. The church is located on FM 356 across from the new Lawrence gas station, and the public is invited to attend.

•Oct. 5-7 is the First United Methodist rummage sale held at the Fellowship Hall inside the church at 131 N. Elm St. from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Thursday and Friday; and 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Saturday. For more information call Laura at the church office at (936) 594-3826.

•Oct. 10 at the Community Center is Scholarship Night at 6 p.m.

•Oct. 15-31 is the annual Halloween Pumpkin Patch, located downtown on Highway 19 North at the First Methodist Church of Trinity lot.

•On Oct. 15, Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church, 401 Prospect Drive, is hosting its annual Fall Festival on Saturday, from 11 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. Food, music, games and vendors will provide great prizes and performances for the community.

Some of the prizes to be won are gift cards worth $2,000, $1,000 and $500, a 65 inch screen TV, a 22-inch Blackstone griddle, and much more. For more information, please call Melinda Fitzgerald at (832) 525-5636.

•The next two events I will elaborate on more as I have not promoted them as much in the last few weeks as I have others.

SAAFE House’s yearly purse bingo will be held this year on Oct. 21 at the Trinity Community Center, 640 S. Robb Street, next to McDonald’s on Highway 19, with doors opening at 5:30 p.m.

This is a wonderful event that benefits a great cause and gives away great prizes donated by the community. The Purse Bingo, which is in its eighth year, was started as Denim to Diamonds Fundraiser and has since blossomed into a gorgeous, fun night, with designer purses and fabulous prizes from the community.

The much-sought-after prize, the Taste of Trinity Dining Out Wheel (provided by me and Bobbie Stephens), is a collaboration of Trinity local businesses and food vendors. The SAAFE House Fundraising Chairman, Tammy Farkas, who does a great job for this organization, has promised us some new food gift cards. Yum.

In addition to purses, gifts, and food donations, we are grateful to the community for supporting Rana Wingo and SAAFE House for more than 20 years to benefit our children and women. Tickets are $50 each and tables are $400, which seats 8 people.

Please RSVP by Oct. 16 to Rana at (936) 594-6415 or Tammy at (936) 294-5547. You can also go to safehouse.org/events to purchase tickets.

•The second event that I am going to expound on is the Trinity County Veterans Wall of Honor Society Fundraiser that started 16 years ago. My neighbor, Bill Reeves, and his friends started this project, and it has become a yearly tradition that everyone knows is held on the last Saturday of Oct. no matter what. Come rain or shine, the Wall of Honor Society is a major fundraiser for our Trinity community and county which benefits our veterans greatly. The date is Oct. 28.

The prizes are great, the food is great, and the music is great. If you would like to support our veterans, please come to the Scheelbillies Saloon at 5665 FM 356 from noon until 6 p.m.

To purchase raffle tickets for the great prizes, please contact Bill Reeves at (936) 661-7107, Tom McCrory at (936) 577-8689 or Randy Barclay at (936) 933-0953. The 10 Raffle prizes are:

1st Prize: Austrian Mauser30-06 Rifle MOD K-98

2nd Prize: Smith and Wesson 40 Cat Pistol MOD SD$0 VE

3rd Prize: Blackstone Tailgater T550 Grill and Griddle.

4th Prize: Complete Package of “$100 Frenzy” Texas Lotto Scratchers

5th Prize: $250 Brookshire Brothers Gift Card

6th Prize: $300 Cash (In memory of Bobby Buckalew)

7th, 8th, 9th, Prizes: $200 cash each, donated in memory of long-time members.

10th Prize: $100 Harbor Freight Gift Card

Pulled pork and fried Lake Livingston catfish and all the trimmings can be enjoyed for $10. Pulled pork sandwiches are $5 each.

The live auction features many valuable items, including handmade quilts and other items, and the live auction is handled by Asset Marketing Pros, David and Liz Drake.

Trinity County Wall of Honor Society is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization aiding area veterans, active duty personnel and their families. Membership is always free. See you at Scheelbillies on Oct. 28.

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TRINITY — When Roy Trow was sent off to France during World War 1, it may never have occurred to him that he would never come home. In June 1918 while fighting in Belleau Wood, Roy would succumb to his injuries.

Interred in an American cemetery in France, the 20-year-old Roy reached his final resting place in Cedar Grove Cemetery.

In 1947, a group of Trinity veterans voted to form an American Legion post to assist local veterans and their families in times of need. In recognition of his sacrifice, the group voted to honor the hometown hero by naming the new post the Roy Trow American Legion Post 314, receiving their national charter later that year.

With the passing of a generation of World War II and Korean War veterans and our aging Vietnam veterans, membership has continued to decline to the point where the few remaining post members voted to close the Trinity Post 314.

In September, the Texas Department of the American Legion will recommend to the American Legion National Commander to officially cancel the charter of the Roy Trow American Legion Post 314.

This action shall forever erase 75 years of the storied and historic legacy of the American Legion in Trinity.

American Legion 7th District Commander Steve Storey said, “This, unfortunately is a pattern we see across the Nation. The gap between our aging Vietnam veterans and our working, family- oriented OIF/OEF/Iraq/Afghan veterans has created a vacuum in membership.”

Storey said posts are more than membership; it is veterans knowing there is a place they can go and share the comradery with the only people who understand their wants, needs, and struggles.

Nearly half of all those who served receive some form of service-related cash or non-cash benefits from the Veterans Administration. For the rest, veteran organizations like the American Legion are their only source of assistance during times of need or want.

Legionnaires are building wheel-chair ramps, providing food, assisting with travel to medical appointments, and the most important service — sitting down and visiting with a veteran. Being a Legionnaire is not about the dues, or the monthly meetings, or a bar, it is about fulfilling our sense of obligation that we as veterans have and our continued desire to help shipmates in need. It is about teaching our youth the meaning of having sacrifice and citizenship.

On Sept. 27, at 6 p.m. at the Trinity Community Center Annex, 640 S. Robb St., Storey will hold a final meeting in an effort to stop the closure. All veterans and their families with a genuine desire to save the legacy of the Trinity American Legion are invited to attend.

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Many youth in Trinity County partake of the benefits of 4-H, which starts a new year of events this month. Courtesy photo

Special to the News-Standard

The 2023-2024 4-H year officially kicked off Sept. 1, with early enrollment beginning Aug. 15.

Trinity 4-H of the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service is excited to welcome new and returning members to another year of 4-H programming and opportunity.

This organization is a club for youth ages 8 to 18 in grades 3 through 12. All youth can join 4-H for $25 each and will select one or many projects to participate in from the categories of agriculture and livestock, family and community health, leadership and citizenship, natural resources, and STEM.

Community service, leadership, and scholarship opportunities are also included in the offerings of this program that reaches more than 550,000 youth in Texas each year.

“The start of the new 4-H year is such an exciting time in our program,” Texas 4-H Youth Development Program Director Dr. Montza Williams said. “We hope to see members take advantage of every opportunity that 4-H has to offer this year, and we hope to see new members begin their journey in this life-changing program.”

Not only do youth gain knowledge in the topic area of their choice, but life skills like communication, teamwork, citizenship, giving back, and working hard are obtained along every step of the way.

“According to past members, one of the most common 4-H benefits is friendship,” Williams said. “Friendship in your county, your district, your state, and even your nation. 4-H is rich in the opportunity to make friends who are interested in the same things you are.”

The new 4-H year is not only exciting for members, but for 4-H volunteers as well. The Texas 4-H program thrives on adult volunteers, with more than 30,000 registered and background-check-approved volunteers, annually.

“The volunteers are what make this program accessible to all youth,” Dr. Williams said. “We are incredibly thankful for the work our volunteers do across the state and encourage adults that have a skill to share to reach out to their County Extension Office about becoming a 4-H volunteer.”

The Trinity AgriLife Extension Office, or Stacye Tullos, County Extension Agent, can be located at 223 W. First St. in Groveton, via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by phone at (936) 642-1421.