Vehicle wrecks on steps

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12.10.2015
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County to house up to 700
undocumented children
15 DAYS TO CHRISTMAS
HHS relocation to Lakeview Camp in Maypearl could begin this morning
BY SHELLY CONLON
MANAGING EDITOR
Lion
tamers
The Lady Indians cooled
off Ennis’ top girls varsity
basketball squad with
a road district win on
Tuesday at Ensign gymnasium. | SPORTS
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Bush
Anywhere from 300 up to 700 undocumented children could be entering
Ellis County borders as early as today,
Pct. 3 Commissioner Paul Perry said
Wednesday evening.
In the past two days, Perry and
County Judge Carol Bush learned
the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services would be sending
the children to two locations in Texas,
one in Rockwall and another near
Maypearl at the Lakeview Camp and
Retreat Center near Maypearl, Perry
said. The camp falls within Perry’s
precinct.
Perry said he found out through the
grandchild of Mark
and Susan Pannill
a federal government responsibility,
not the county. Bush said she found
out about the situation during a
SEE CHILDREN, PAGE 5
Perry
Courthouse crash
grandchild of Mark
and Susan Pannill
FFA goes
to State
grandchild of Mark
and Susan Pannill
WHS students compete
at a state level leadership
contest. | PAGE 9
WAXAHACHIETX.COM
/MULTIMEDIA
grandchild of Mark
and Susan Pannill
Car rams
courthouse
See how emergency crews
responded to an
unusual incident
at the courthouse
Wednesday.
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John Ellis, 75,
Red Oak
PAGE 14
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Dec.
10
7 p.m.
Lung cancer
seminar at Baylor
Scott & White
Medical Center
Waxahachie.
Photos by Scott Dorsett/The Daily Light
-
Vehicle wrecks on steps
BY ANDREW BRANCA
DAILY LIGHT STAFF WRITER
Ellis County’s historic
courthouse in Waxahachie was
damaged during a one-vehicle
wreck Wednesday afternoon.
Emergency responders were
dispatched at 2:43 p.m. to the
a vehicle on the courthouse’s
front steps.
A Cadillac sedan left the
roadway and jumped the sidewalk to the courthouse plaza,
continuing along the sidewalk
and coming to rest on the steps
of the northwest corner of the
courthouse.
Waxahachie Mayor Kevin
Strength was at the courthouse at the time and heard
the incident take place from
County Judge Carol Bush’s
we were doing some work
together. We heard one crash
and looked out the window,”
Strength said. “This guy had
pulled up on the sidewalk on
the courthouse (lawn) and had
rammed the steps.”
Strength said he didn’t know
if the act was done deliberately
or whether the driver had suffered a medical issue.
Bush said she thought the
sound she had heard was coming from an accident that may
have happened at the intersection near the courthouse, not
on the steps.
“We were in a meeting in my
child of Judd and
Heather McCutchen
Judd and Heather
McCutchen
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sound. I looked out of the window and didn’t see anything
because I was looking on the
side facing the old bank building. So I saw nothing. Perhaps
within in a minute or
SEE WRECK, PAGE 14
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CHILDREN
border for some reason,
and he was wearing out
his Rolodex and trying to
conference call early Tuesday evening, she said. She
received an email from
-
emphasizing Barton, who
represents Ellis County,
is trying to protect that
county. No statement has
been released by Barton at
this time.
The children are expected to be mostly male and
ages 12 to 18 from Central America, added Ellis
County Sheriff Johnny
Brown,
who said
he found
out at
5 p.m.
Wednesday. At
7 p.m.,
Brown said
he hadn’t
Brown
had any
time to set
up a security plan and was
in the process of calling all
of the local law enforcement agencies to inform
them of the children.
Bush said she was not
informed whether the children crossed the border
illegally. She stressed she
was told that they were
unaccompanied minor
children, she said.
“That’s a concern because teenagers in Guatemala are not teenagers in
Ellis County,” Perry said,
adding his understanding
is they are all from that
FROM PAGE 1
in. The conference call was
to brief her on the possibility of a large number of
“unaccompanied minors”
who might be coming to
the county, she said.
“I asked the country of
origin and I was told that
the majority of them were
Central American children. The Border Patrol
of unaccompanied minors
from Central America,”
didn’t specify the exact
origin of the undocumented children. “Of course,
they had the responsibility then to turn them over
and to house them and
care for them until they
were processed through
the system and placed
with either family members, sponsors or worked
through the immigration
process.”
“We’ve issued no invitation whatsoever for this.
It is being imposed upon
us. Based on my conversation with U.S. Congressman (Joe) Barton, they
are being brought up
from the facilities on our
SHANNON
FROM PAGE 3
Investigators were
busy scouring the jihadi’s
ISIS membership card
or a souvenir Al–Qaeda
prayer cap so authorities
can determine a cause.
That reluctance is willful
blindness. All it takes is a
copy of the Koran and the
would be jihadi is good
to go. When Muslims get
“radicalized,” searching
for an additional motive
isn’t necessary when they
go all jihadi on you. It’s
part of the package.
Yet if these attacks
really have nothing to do
with the so-called “religion of peace,” why does
the appeasement chorus
immediately head for a
mosque? That smacks of
FUNT
FROM PAGE 3
No matter what emerges
regarding the two shooters’ ties to radical Islamic
groups, the availability of
guns, especially militarystyle weapons, must be
addressed.
In the words of Pope
Francis, “You pray for
the hungry, then you feed
them. That’s how prayer
works.”
Yet, thanks to the Daily
News, the issue of prayer
stereotyping.
Wouldn’t a halal grocery or kebab shop do just
as well?
But that’s just it. The
problem IS the religion.
The wife is described as
“very religious” and after
the marriage the husband
became “religious,” too.
That means it’s time to
watch out.
By comparison, when
and daughter–in–law
have embraced Christianity the result is less dangerous for the surrounding community. Cleavage
will probably disappear
and dad will have to cancel the HBO subscription,
will remain stable.
Where are the mosques
that announce they
cooperate with the FBI or
local authorities? Where
could become an issue in
itself. If so, that would
be a complete distortion.
Prayer isn’t the thing, hiding behind prayer is.
When confronted any
day now by interviewers
and debate moderators
asking about the News
front page, there are two
approaches politicians
might take:
(a) There’s nothing
wrong with prayer! How
awful that anyone would
use a tragedy to take away
not only our right to defend ourselves with guns,
country, but wasn’t sure
how someone could know
for sure. “They’ve been
exposed to things and do
things that the average
teenager in this county
has probably not learned
how to do. That doesn’t
mean I don’t believe in
compassion, and I do want
to state I believe in compassion for the citizens
of Ellis County. We don’t
burdened by this. This is a
federal government initiative.”
From what he’s heard,
Perry said the federal
government will be taking care of the cost and
the children will not be
going to any Ellis County
schools. The situation will
be handled at the facility,
which could possibly house
the children for at least
two months, Perry said.
But the facility is not
secure because the facility
is handling detainees who
have committed an unlawful act by coming across
the border, Perry said.
Though there is supposed
to be one adult for every
eight children, Brown is
concerned about how wide
open the camp is, he said.
“My major concern is,
and it’s not all of them,
is you’re going to have
some of them that already
have family members in
the United States. Some
are the imams that invite
anti–terror experts into
the mosque to conduct
classes on how to spot
radicals and avoid having
your family or friends
radicalized?
As former FBI Counterterrorism Agent John
Guandolo told Breitbart
News, “Since 9/11, ‘we
collectively have received
nearly zero help from the
[Moslem] Community.’”
The ostensible reason
for these grovel–thons is
always to head Islamophobia off at the oasis. So
after repeated terrorism
incidents where is this
dreaded backlash? Other
than drastically increased
damage deposits at rental
agencies when bearded
men wearing prayer caps
pick up an SUV, it’s not
happening.
Jews are assaulted in
of them could leave the
property,” Brown said,
emphasizing the children
wouldn’t have any money
or food if they left. “Desperate people tend to do
desperate things.”
Perry said he has full
faith the facility employees have the best interest
at heart for the children,
but this is an initiative
controlled by the federal
government.
“We’re having to rest
on their assurances, and
those who have rested on
federal assurances have
often been disappointed,”
Perry said.
The Daily Light tried to
reach out to the marketing
coordinator at Lakeview
at 4 p.m., but was told
to call back in an hour.
The Daily Light returned
the call and received no
answer, and was awaiting a response as of press
time. Bush said a 700-bed
facility being utilized, so
it is possible the amount
would be from 400-700
children, a mix of both
male and female.
“The typical populations run two thirds male,
a third female,” she said.
“But there would be adequate supervision at the
facility for both genders.”
Bush asked HHS
resources would need to be
provided, and she said she
anti–Semitic attacks at
almost four times the
rate Muslims experience
“hate crime” incidents.
Yet Obama can’t even be
bothered to attend Sunday’s National Menorah
Lighting ceremony. He
sends a staffer and rushes
off to the Kennedy Center
to attend a party.
Beyer summed up this
administration’s atti-
was told the federal government would be meeting
all the children’s needs.
She emphasized there is
no expectation that county
resources will be expended
to supervise or to care for
these children.
It’s also unclear whether
the children will be able to
interact with anyone outside of the camp because
there are still too many
unanswered questions,
Perry said, adding Barton is continuing to ask
situation. As of press time,
the Daily Light was not
able to reach Barton for
comment.
However, State Rep.
John Wray said he thinks
the HHS didn’t notify Barton either. Wray found
out late Tuesday afternoon
from Waxahachie Mayor
Kevin Strength, he said.
“I’m concerned that the
facility they will be at
is not really secure. I’m
concerned that some of
these folks are 17-18 years
old, and have backgrounds
we’re not certain about,”
Wray said at about 8 p.m.
Wednesday. “I understand
this may be a 21-day
holding term and after 21
days they won’t be here,
but that could be extended
period of time and that’s
troubling as well.”
told the stay would also
be about 21 days during
the call. Wray added he
was informed the children
have been possibly health
screened and emphasized
he wasn’t alerted by
the HHS, and is unsure
state level.
“We’re looking into
ways to make sure it
doesn’t become any type of
permanent arrangement,”
Wray said. “I was taken
around to mentioning
San Bernardino, “It’s just
another unfortunate data
point.”
There’s a good chance
it won’t be the only “data
point” as long as this
administration and this
mindset rules.
HODGES
FROM PAGE 2
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Join in the festivities
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but also our right to pray!
Or...
(b) We extend our
prayers because we
genuinely sympathize and
care. But we don’t stop
there. It’s time to cast
aside partisan politics and
take meaningful action
to curb the gun epidemic
in America. That’s what
the victims deserve, along
with our prayers.
off guard by it like anyone
else, and I am continuing
to investigate.”
As of press time, the
Daily Light was currently
waiting for a response
Though Perry said he
wouldn’t go as far as calling the children refugees
because they don’t have a
current legal status, Bush
said otherwise.
“I am sure they could be
characterized that way because HHS has referred to
them as refugees as well,”
Bush said.
She continued by saying
any time there’s a large
tion, natural concerns
are raised. “That is why
I asked those questions
about how is this is going
to somehow burden our
resources or our community because there was
not a lot of notice in this,”
Bush said. “Certainly, I
understand that they are
not obligated to give us
notice, but if there was an
expectation that we would
need to step in and assume some responsibility I
wanted to make sure that
we were given the proper
made clear what the expectations were.
“As far as concern, yes,
there are some things we
need to be prepared for
in the sense if there is an
emergency situation, like
like (the county has) had
or there needs to be any
type of evacuation. It is
good to know the number
of children that we would
be dealing with to be able
to plan adequately for any
emergency responses that
would be necessary. I am
not anticipating anything
like that, but as a community we want to be
prepared.”
Rita Hodges is the Ellis County
Extension Agent-Family & Consumer Sciences, Texas A&M AgriLife
Extension Service. Visit Rita at the
[email protected]. Educational
programs of the Texas A&M AgriLife
Extension Service are open to all
people without regard to race, color,
religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, genetic information or veteran
status. The Texas A&M University
System, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the County Commissioners
Peter Funt is a writer and speaker.
His book, “Cautiously Optimistic,”
is available at Amazon.com and
CandidCamera.com.
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‘Hachie
faces
Hawks
children and 200 workers to enter
the facility as soon as Friday.
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Church groups
agreed to aid
refugee children
Jessica Aguayo, 12,
U.S. Rep. Joe Barton
(R-Ennis/Arlington) said
Thursday during a phone
sion was made to house
Jesse Aguayo, 14,
in Ellis County.
He added he tried to
temporary housing of un“The government doesn’t
want to keep them on the
nied minors
to turn
themselves
in at the
said Ellis County Sheriff
Johnny Brown during a
day.
they learned late Tuesday
and Wednesday the U.S. DeBose
Department of Health and
younger to Lakeview Camp near May-
Barton
-
and fear for their life.
WAXAHACHIETX.COM
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Safety at
Lakeview
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Barton:
The law
needs
to be
changed
Ellis County Sheriff Johnny Brown
speaks about security at the Lakeview Camp and Retreat Center during
a press conference as county of-
SPORTS
12.11.2015
have a right to stay in this
-
-
SEE CAMP, PAGE 8A
Lana Gober, 7,
history and the rest are
turned over to the Department of Health and
SEE BARTON, PAGE 8A
VIDEO REPORT | WEB
Simon Moe, 12,
WAXAHACHIETX.COM
/OBITUARIES
Davona Jackson, 38,
Waxahachie
Debbie Baxter, 57,
Sue Ann Claud, 64,
Waxahachie
John Ellis, 75,
PAGE 10A
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Dec.
12
8-10 a.m.
Pancakes with
Santa benWaxahachie.
Landry Edwards, 11
months,
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CAMP
these kids for about 21
days,’” DeBose said.
“What would happen in
these 21 days is 40 to 60
percent of them would
be returned back to their
point of origin, where
they came from. Some of
the other kids who have
family here would be
allowed to move in with
family here somewhere in
the state.”
Different processes will
take place based on where
the children are from,
what experiences they
brought with them and
how they checked out,
DeBose said. According
to a previous Waxahachie
Daily Light article, it’s
unclear from where in
Central America the chil-
FROM PAGE 1A
anticipated to arrive
Thursday, said Rick
DeBose, Superintendent
of the North Texas Assemblies of God.
“I want to make sure
the citizens of Ellis
County know we have it
under control and that we
have everything secure
and there are no fears at
this point,” Brown said,
adding if the status of security changed, residents
be in charge of security
outside of the building, he
said. The law enforcement
agency has made contact
with surrounding agencies as well, including
Maypearl’s police department and the Department
of Public Safety. The
HHS and BCFS will also
make sure the children
are immediately up to
date on immunizations
and that they’re protected
for health purposes and
other other purposes.
“They shared with us
that they would bring a
strong security force to
keep the kids safe and
to keep us safe,” DeBose
said. “I appreciate the fact
that our sheriff said he
would rather take responsibility of our county and
our citizens himself. He’s
come forward to prepare
a strong force and strong
support staff of his own
and emergency medical
services onsite, he said.
The camp is one of the
North Texas District of
Assemblies of God ministries, DeBose said, adding
three days ago facility ofwould like the opportunity to participate with
the Baptist Child and
Family Services to house
children at the camp, who
were in the middle of being transitioned to their
from the camp out.”
With those things in
connected to HHS to help
children who come across
the border and are turned
over to HHS.
“They asked us ‘Because there are so many,
we need a place to house
REAGAN
FROM PAGE 3A
they’re the ones who are
getting killed by ISIS in
the biggest numbers.
Many Trump Yahoos
are just as confused about
what conservatism really
is.
If one more person
comes up to me and says,
“I loved your father and
I’m supporting Donald
Trump,” I may hit him.
Trump is nothing like
my father. My father
united people. That’s why
he won elections. Trump
doesn’t unite anyone but
confused white people.
agreed the camp could
house and feed the children during the 21-day
period.
“We feel very comfort-
Republicans are always
the minority party. The
only way we ever win
a general election is by
bringing people together
– Ronald Reagan Democrats and conservative
Latinos, blacks, Asians
and Muslims.
Yes, there are conservative Muslims. Or
at least there were. In
2000, nearly 80 percent of
American Muslims voted
for George W. Bush.
If the Republican
Party nominates Donald
Trump, it’s certain that
Hillary will become the
next president and we’ll
all lose.
Trump is in the process
of killing what’s left of my
WHITEHEAD
FROM PAGE 3A
seemingly innocent to the workings of the
world, may actually harbor generations’
worth of information passed down by its
ancestors.”
inherited generations of fears and experiences on human beings. As the Post
reports, “Studies on humans suggest that
children and grandchildren may have felt
the epigenetic impact of such traumatic
events such as famine, the Holocaust and
the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.”
In other words, fear, trauma and compliance can be passed down through the
generations.
Fear has been a critical tool in past
fascistic regimes, and it now operates in
our contemporary world — all of which
raises fundamental questions about us
as human beings and what we will give
able. We feel very safe.
For the most part, these
are just kids who have
cumstances,” DeBose
said. “The fact is that
our government chose
to allow them to come
across the border, and not
immediately send them
back. That we brought
them in and said we’ve
got to now do something
with them, we didn’t feel
like there was anyway we
could turn them away and
not care for them and feed
them. We have the beds
that are empty and the
food that can be served
and processed here, and
it’s our slowest time of
year, so we were very
available. So we jumped
on it and we’re honored
to give these kids a place
to live for the next three
weeks. We pray for these
the permanent direction
and help they need and
for what they need in the
future. I know, as they’ve
told us, many of them will
return home, but we pray
that while they’re with
us, they’ll have a good experience that will change
their lives forever.”
DeBose went on to say
initial media reports and
social media posts may
of fear in the community,
adding he’s been disappointed by some of the
response to the situation.
“We do not believe
there’s a reasonable fear.
We do camps all the time
and in many ways this
is like a camp, and in
other ways we see this is
father’s GOP. He spends
most of his time throwing
people off the Republican
bus, not inviting them on
it.
way to stop Trump. It has
to nominate a real Republican, a real conservative,
who can unite the party
around its core principles
and show the country that
Republicans are nothing
like the Donald.
If the Party of Lincoln
can’t dump Trump and go
back to its conservative
roots, by next fall we’ll
be hearing my father say
from his grave, “I didn’t
leave the Republican
Party, they left me.”
very different. We see the
differences, and we know
there are some things we
have to do differently,” he
said. “As far as keeping
the kids active and busy
and moving forward, and
feeding them and giving
them a safe environment, we can do that. And
thanks to our sheriff, we
know we’ll keep the line
safe between here and the
rest of the community.”
Other responses have
been ones of compassion
or a need to help, he said.
Every call his receptionist
received Thursday morning had been by someone
wanting to help the children however they could,
he said. He said churches
interested in helping the
children should email the
North Texas District Assemblies of God, but the
the details of exactly how
people can help.
The North Texas District of Assemblies of God
will go through a reimbursement process for
housing the children, and
BCFS will be in charge of
what the children do during their stay as well as
bringing trained leaders,
translators, counselors
and workers, he said. All
together, the camp houses
about 1,000 beds, and
with workers, DeBose
said he expects possibly
800 beds to be used.
DeBose emphasized
the housing agreement
was for 21 days only, and
Brown said off-duty ofwill be working to keep
the facility secure will
have their salaries paid
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for by BCFS.
“My issue was the short
notice and not having
time to prepare in a better fashion than being
up to midnight last night
calling all of my federal
in the different cities and
trying to get something
set up,” Brown said. “I do
feel it’s imperative in our
BARTON
FROM PAGE 1A
Human Services (HHS).”
Barton said HHS has
contracted with a numthe country to assist with
caring for the unaccompanied minors until their
immigration hearing, and/
to live with the states or
a sponsor for the child to
live with, both of which
depend on the outcome of
the hearing.
In the case of the refugee children arriving in
Ellis County, Barton said
the contract was awarded
Child and Family Services
(BCFS), which receives
$500 per child, per day.
BCFS then contacted
North Texas Assemblies of
God, requesting a partnership to house the children
for up to 21 days at its
Lakeview Camp facility in
Maypearl.
“Those kids will only
be in Ellis County for 21
days. I have assurances of
that from the Secretary of
Health and Human Services,” Barton said. “Under
the current laws, there is
nothing anyone could do
to prevent it. But we can
all act responsible at the
local level and make the
best of it and I’m working with my colleagues in
the House to make sure
the law is changed and
prevent this from happening again.
“I am very disappointed
in the way the Obama
county and if something
is going to go on in our
county, then we should
probably be a part of it’s
security team to help
ensure the safety of its
citizens. ”
Requests for farther
information from the HHS
not been returned as of
press time.
and the people I represent
in the 6th district of Texas.
There was no public meeting organized in advance
locally, and no ability to
protest the decision. My ofago, and at my insistence,
“My priority remains to
ensure the safety of my
constituents. I will continue to work closely with
federal, state and local
situation for the next 21
days. I am also working
to prevent a reoccurrence
and to change the law.”
Though the undocumented minors are
screened at the border,
Barton said there is a
danger that not all are trypersecution in their own
country.
“The Obama administration is referring to them
as victims — children age
13-17 — while portraying most as young girls
who are victims of all
sorts of depravation,” he
said. “When I went to the
border, I saw mostly young
teenage men — some
looked to be in their 30s.
All came into the country
illegally. I don’t want this
to become a pattern of
practice.”
Barton said he plans to
tour the Lakeview facility as soon as he arrives
back in the district and
will continue to work with
both local and federal law
enforcement to ensure the
security of community.
up in order to perpetuate the illusions of
safety and security.
In the words of psychologist Erich
Fromm:
“[C]an human nature be changed in
such a way that man will forget his longing for freedom, for dignity, for integrity,
for love — that is to say, can man forget
he is human? Or does human nature
have a dynamism which will react to the
violation of these basic human needs by
attempting to change an inhuman society
into a human one?”
We are at a critical crossroads in
American history, and we have a choice:
freedom or fascism.
Let’s hope the American people make
the right choice while we still have the
freedom to choose.
Constitutional attorney and author John W. Whitehead
is founder and president of The Rutherford Institute.
His new book The Freedom Wars (TRI Press) is available online at www.amazon.com. He can be contacted at
[email protected]. Information about The Rutherford Institute is available at www.rutherford.org
Sudoku puzzles
Each puzzle is divided into nine sections, and each section has nine blank squares. Fill in
all 81 squares on the puzzle with numbers 1 to 9. You may not repeat any numbers in any
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use each number 1-9 only once in each horizontal line of nine squares, and in each vertical
column of nine squares. The puzzle is completed when you correctly fill every square.
Answers will appear on page 10A.
Sudoku Puzzle #3841-M
Sudoku Puzzle #3841-D
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© 2009 Hometown Content
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CMYK
TUESDAY
WA X A H AC H I E T X .CO M
DAILY LIGHT
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/SPORTS
12.15.2015
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‘A need to serve’
COUNTDOWN
TO CHRISTMAS
10 DAYS TO CHRISTMAS
Community reaches out to aid refugee children
BY SHELLY CONLON
Earning
respect
SPORTS
WAXAHACHIETX.COM
/NEWS
MANAGING EDITOR
Some Ellis County residents want others to know
there’s nothing to fear, but
fear itself when it comes
to the 500 unaccompanied
children expected to be
housed inside Lakeview
Camp and Retreat Center
for the next 18 days.
As of noon Monday,
about 400 refugee teenagers between 13-17 years
of age had arrived at
the camp from Central
America, after surrounding themselves at the
south Texas border, said
Congressmen Joe Barton
SEE REFUGEES, PAGE 6
5 hurt in wreck
Purr(fect)
Show
PAGE 7
WAXAHACHIETX.COM
/MULTIMEDIA
Rep. Barton speaks
about refugees
Crash forces closure of Highway 287
BY ANDREW BRANCA
DAILY LIGHT STAFF WRITER
VIDEO REPORT | WEB
WAXAHACHIETX.COM
/OBITUARIES
Rebecca Brewer
Wilna Boone
Five people were transported to
an area hospital by ground ambulance after a two-vehicle accident
Saturday night. Emergency crews
were dispatched at 8:05 p.m. to
southbound U.S. Highway 287 at
Cleaver Road.
An SUV with a single occupant
entering the main lanes of southbound U.S. 287, failed to yield right
of way and was struck by a passenger vehicle with three occupants,
one of which was a child, traveling
south on U.S. 287, responding Waxastated. The call presented several
logistical standpoint, said Battalion
Chief Don Alexander with the Waxahachie Fire Department.
“We had challenges. CareFlite had
a lot of calls throughout the county
that had hit all at one time. We initially had one ambulance respond.
Then they were trying to get other
ambulances to me,” Alexander said.
SEE WRECK, PAGE 7
Steven Morris
Max Smesny
PAGE 12 AND 7
TODAY’S EDITION
/WHAT TO DO
Dec.
15
7 p.m.
FUMC to host Christmas meal
BY ANDREW BRANCA
delivered may register by
DAILY LIGHT STAFF WRITER
First United Methodist Church of Waxahachie
will be serving a free
Christmas dinner for the
community from noon to 1
p.m. Dec. 25.
Those wanting to take
part may enjoy the meal at
the church, pick up a meal
or have meals delivered to
them at their home. Those
wanting to have meals
Registration for the meal
began Monday and ends at
4 p.m. on Friday.
“The First United Methodist Church, every year,
feeds about 800 people
in Waxahachie and Ellis
County. It is free food. It
is mostly for people who
need a meal and don’t
have place to go on Christmas. We do deliver up to
six meals per family,” said
FUMC’s event publicity
chairwoman Jane Ann
Ship. “My favorite part
is being able to go in on
Christmas Eve morning
and on Christmas morning and being able to help
cook and serve and just
know that I am doing one
little part to touch the
community.”
The menu for the meal
will include ham, sweet
potatoes, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes,
fruit salad, rolls and a dessert. Diabetics will have
the option of a sugar free
dessert.
Shipp said the meal
takes hundreds of volunteers to put on each year,
with helpers serving in
many roles such as cooking, delivering meals and
cleaning up.
“We need lots of volunteers. I would say 100-plus
volunteers. We have
COUNTDOWN TO CHRISTMAS
SPONSORED BY:
SEE FUMC, PAGE 7
CMYK
Follow us on Twitter & like us on Facebook | 12.15.2015
PAGE 6 | WAXAHACHIE DAILY LIGHT
WAXAHACHIETX.COM/NEWS
REFUGEES
FROM PAGE 1
(R-Ennis/Arlington), after
taking a tour of the facility. Barton was only one
of several Ellis County
people who visited the
camp Monday morning.
The others came from
a local Boy Scout troop
and church group. The
children started arriving
Friday afternoon, three
days after state, county
informed of the situation.
Matt Authier, a Waxahachie ISD school board
member and youth leader
of Central Presbyterian
Church in Waxahachie,
said he and his pastor
joined together Sunday
morning in prayer, hoping for an opportunity to
help the children. That
night their prayers were
answered after Nick Taylor with Boy Scout Troop
assembling beds for the
children, he said.
“Personally, dating back
two months, aside from
my relationship with my
church, I had been trying
IRC (International Rescue
Committee) to help Syrian
refugees in the Metroplex.
When I heard of families
resettled there, I emailed
those folks and asked if I
could help,” Authier said.
“Mainly, I just wanted
to be there when they
TOY RIDE
FROM PAGE 2
coming, Havner said.
coming here, we would
have to stop on the side
stepped out of the car to
Monday that the security
see a smiling face, and
of the county was under
hug. My Christianity
control and that children
has a huge role in that,
within the facility are “not
but aside from that even,
a threat to the county,” he
it’s just compassion for
said during a press conferyour fellow human being.
ence at the camp’s front
We’re in a time that it
gate. He toured the facilseems politics has taken
ity with camp and county
precedence over relationships within your church
concern that because the
and your religion, and
camp was wide open, it
also with your neighbor.
There’s a context of fear
the location secure and
that prohibits you from
keep the county safe.
going out and showing
“The problem is not
that compassion, and
a problem at this facilgiven those opportuniity. The issue really is
ties our church has a long
that our national policy
history
in some ways
with
encourages these
PHOTO
refuyoung men and
SLIDESHOW
gees.
women to come
See more photos
With the
into this country
with this story at
Syrillegally, and then
waxahachietx.com be allowed to
ian refugees,
stay, while their
that was tough, because a
refugee status is being
whole lot of politics play
determined,” Barton said.
into those decisions. So,
“That’s an issue to be setwhen these folks from
tled in Washington, and
Central America literally
given the disagreement of
landed on our front doors,
people like myself, it’s not
a couple miles from our
an issue that we’re going
houses, we just jumped all to settle anytime soon.”
over that.”
For 21 days, as of last
Friday, the camp will
last Wednesday, residents
be closed to house the
teenagers, 28 of which are
reactions ranging from
female, Barton said. He
outrage and racism,
stressed that the camp
philosophical and politiwill not house the chilcal discussion, to a call to
dren beyond the contracthelp the teenagers and
ed time frame.
a call for more security
“I am very appreciative
within the county.
of the way the camp is
With security one of the
being run, of all the local
biggest concerns, Barton
personnel and the job of
reassured residents again
what Sheriff Brown — he
and his deputies — are
doing,” he said, adding
he appreciated the efof the road and wait for police escorts from each city,”
he said.
Contact Bethany Kurtz at 469-5171450 or email bkurtz@waxahachietx.
com. Follow her on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/BethanyKurtzMidloMirror or on Twitter @bethmidlomirror.
FEHLER
role you will play in making the way for Christ in
this world.
one prayer at a time. As
we await the moment of
our Savior’s birth as a
community, consider what
Rev. Dr. April Fehler, Associate Pastor
at First United Methodist Church in
Waxahachie.
FROM PAGE 3
LETTERS
FROM PAGE 3
for these men and women
and their families. Please
act now to stop this constant attack on our men
and women in uniform.
In the 2016 National
Defense Authorization
Act as passed by Congress, TRICARE prescription co-payment levels
will be increased for the
forts of the county commissioners and county
judge Carol Bush. “In the
history of these sites in
Texas in the last several
years, only three people
have attempted to leave
the camp. Initially, it was
a serious concern, but
after talking to the sheriff
and to the operators of the
camp, I don’t think there’s
a problem with people
trying to leave the camp
and commit some sort of
crime.”
He didn’t know whether
the words appreciate and
understand could be interchanged, but politically,
he said he could appreciate the concern.
“The fear, and the
amount of fear, and the
amount of response from
that fear has worried me
with some of the comments I’ve read, which
most people have seen
by now,” Authier said,
referencing reaction on
social media sites. “My
approach to life is that I
serve a God who is far bigger than the boundaries
of this country and so, if
he’s telling me to love my
neighbor as I love myself,
and that neighbor is all of
a sudden a lot closer than
they have been before, I
feel a need to serve that
person. I don’t want the
government to get in the
way of me being able to
serve that neighbor, but
I understand there’s also
laws we need to abide by
and that folks coming into
our country need to abide
by. So, it’s an incredibly
polarizing topic, and you
third time in four years.
Come on! I am a member
of the Air Force Sergeants
Association, and AFSA
and the Military Coalition
have repeatedly pointed
out to DoD and Congress
other DoD healthcare areas that are actual waste,
and that have never been
enacted. And I know that
military members and
their families have earned
can see that. You have
seen that.”
About 16 people from
Maypearl and Waxahachie churches and
parent leaders with the
Boy Scout Troop were
ushered into a covered
area to build bunk beds,
he said. For the protection
of the children inside the
camp, no photography or
videography or recording
is allowed at this time,
according to U.S. Department of Health and
Saturday. The camp has
about 1,000 beds, and
about 800 are expected to
companied minors from El
Salvador, Guatemala and
Honduras and the 200
workers expected to help
them.
“On my way in, we
were stopped by a line of
children going from what
I assume were their sleeping quarters to go have
breakfast. It was about 8
a.m., and so we saw them
line. They looked like kids
— smiles on their faces
and they looked hungry.
They probably had just
gotten a good sleep for the
being bussed up from
no-telling-where,” Authier
said, emphasizing the facility looked peaceful and
calm and he wasn’t allowed to interact with any
of the children. “Then on
the way out, we saw about
80 kids playing soccer and
further down toward the
camp, you could see about
100-150 kids doing out-
would never consider. I
strongly feel that these
further co-payment cuts
need to be stopped.
I need your help to stop
further TRICARE prescription co-payments. I
hope you’ll agree with me
that military members
deserve better than this
from our national leaders
that they have already
“paid” enough for this
door activities. It showed
me humanity. I thank
God it happened in Ellis
County, and to see those
kids have a place that’s
out of the hustle and
bustle of the downtown
Waxahachie area or downtown Dallas area, they
have room to move around
and be free and be kids. It
looked like recess at any
junior high you drive by in
Waxahachie, honestly. It
gave me hope.”
observation by saying
so far everything was
running smoothly, and
the Ellis County Sheriff ’s
patrolling on the outer
perimeter of the camp, he
said.
For further coverage on
the unaccompanied children housed at the Lakeview Camp, visit www.
waxahachietx.com. Those
what volunteer opportunities exist should email the
North Texas District of
Assemblies of God, which
runs the camp.
“I know no matter what
I saw or what the media
publishes, or what churches say, there’s going to
be a fear factor out there
because it’s an unknown,”
Authier said. “The best
you can do as the general
public as you drive by is
look to your right or left
and try to get a glimpse
of what’s going on. It was
quiet. It wasn’t chaotic.
The one interesting thing
is how well equipped they
are from a professional
SEE REFUGEES, PAGE 7
nation through service
further TRICARE cost
Please respond to this
letter because, as a voter,
I am very interested in
what actions you plan to
take on my behalf on this
matter.
Steven Sumner,
Haslet, Texas
serving this nation in
ways that most citizens
CMYK
12.15.2015 | Follow us on Twitter & like us on Facebook
WAXAHACHIE DAILY LIGHT | PAGE 7
WAXAHACHIETX.COM/NEWS
Waxahachie cat show packs expo center
BY MIKE SACKETT
DAILY LIGHT CORRESPONDENT
Residents packed the
Ellis County Youth Expo
Center on Saturday to
view domestic cats of all
breeds during the Turkish Van Cat Club’s annual
show.
This is the eighth year
for the Waxahachie show,
allowing exhibitors to earn
show points.
“The cats at this show
are in competition with
cats all over the world
for top cat show points.
We have had show people
from Russia and European
countries at past shows.
This year we had two
entries from Mexico,” club
president Kerry Dolan
said.
Besides an international entry group, the
Waxahachie show had two
cats currently high in the
international ranking.
Reeve Dolan, a youth
exhibitor at age 12, was
showing Zoom Purr in the
household class.
WRECK
FROM PAGE 1
“I actually called for mutual aid from Midlothian
and we also had (CareFlite) air launched to get
some EMS on scene.”
Alexander added that
before the mutual aid
arrived three ambulances
responded from other
areas. Both CareFlite’s
helicopter and Midlothian
Fire Department’s ambulance were disregarded
OBITUARIES
FROM PAGE 12
Cheryl; daughter Elizabeth Vinecourt; son-in-law
Edward Johnson; granddaughters Sierra and
Whitney Johnson, all of
Waxahachie; and numerous friends and family.
A memorial service will
be held at 7 p.m. Dec. 21
at the First Evangelical
Church, 6347 Interstate
35 S., Waco, TX. 76706.
William Cecil
Windham
Feb. 24, 1924Dec.10, 2015
May resident and
former Italy resident
William Cecil Windham,
91, passed away Thursday, Dec. 10, 2015 at the
Comanche County Medical Center. He was born
Feb. 24, 1924 in Italy to
William Hardy and Katie
Irene (Hogan) Windham.
He married Mary Beth
Hutchins on April 28,
1950 and she preceded
him in death on Sept. 18,
2012. William served in
the U. S. Army. He was
employed with USDA as
a soil conservation inspec-
“Zoom Purr was a rescue
cat that my mother found
in Kansas at a show. We
all liked him and he came
home with us,” Reeve said.
Presently Zoom Purr is
ranked 35 internationally
For some cats, it’s best
to spay or neuter them,”
Kerry said. “For the purebred cats, it’s a beauty
pageant.”
Show judge D’ann
Kovic traveled for Plano
to be one of the 14 show
of the show on Saturday
judges. Kovic, who is in
morning.
her 18th year
“We enof judging,
PHOTO
courage the
wore a Snoopy
SLIDESHOW
youth to be
Christmas
See more photos
active and
sweat shirt
with this story at
show. It’s a
because it is
waxahachietx.com her favorite
lot like 4-H
and FFA and
Christmas
some of these kids, their
shirt and to be a bit difcat is their project,” Kerry
ferent.
said.
“When judging, I look
The purebred cats
for overall balance of the
are shown by breed and
cat with respect to the
whether they are a short
breed. I look for coat texor long hair animal acture, thickness and how
cording to the Internawell the cat related to me.
tional Cat Association
There is no aggressiveness
(TICA), who sets the rules allowed. This is a disqualifor showing.
“Pure bred must have
The Turkish Van is the
their claws, but they must pure breed of cat and
be trimmed. We do show
where the club gets it’s
purebreds in an altered
name, Kerry said. Several
class meaning they have
cub members own Turkish
been spayed or neutered.
cats.
before arriving.
When crews arrived on
scene all the occupants
were able to get out on
their own. The southbound lanes of U.S. Highway 287 were completely
shutdown for about 10-15
minutes to ensure the
safety of the occupants
and emergency crews
working the scene. One
southbound lane was then
reopened. The northbound
opened throughout the
call. Alexander said there
tor.
Survivors include his
children, Malcolm Windham, Sam Duke and Sandra Hightower and several
grandchildren. There are
no services scheduled
at this time. To view an
obituary or sign the guest
book, please visit www.
bozemitchellmckibbin.
com.
Arrangements are
under the direction of the
Boze-Mitchell-McKibbin
Funeral Home 511 West
Main St., Waxahachie,
Texas. 972-937-2211.
Rebecca Brewer
Sept. 22, 1945Dec.r 12, 2015
Midlothian resident
Rebecca Brewer, 70,
passed away quietly at
9:35 a.m. Saturday, Dec.
12, 2015 at her home with
her sister, Janice, holding
her hand. Her longtime
care-companion, Cathy,
was present in home. She
were also some communication issues on the call
CareFlite.
Alexander said with
the issues that came up
there was no delay in
transport and patient care
people were transported
by ground ambulance to
Baylor Scott and White
Medical Center at Waxahachie.
Members of the Waxahachie Police Department
was born Rebecca Evans,
the seventh of 11 children
born to Addie Velma and
Reverend Frank A. Evans.
Survivors include her
three children, Judy Gail
and Bill Larkin, Mike
and Veronica Smith, all
of Waxahachie, and John
Smith, of Midlothian;
seven grandchildren and
seven great grandchildren,
Ashley, Andrew and wife
Brook, Austin, Laura and
husband
Dustin,
John, Brook
and husband Ross,
Clayton and
wife Courtney; great
grandchildren, Mia,
Brewer
Paisley,
Parker,
Blain, Steele, Atticus and
August; siblings, Delores
Poag and family of Chickasha, Oklahoma; the Rev.
Bob James and family of
Newcastle, Oklahoma,
Kenneth Evans family, of
East Texas; Marvin Carlisle, of Wills Point, Martha and E. V. Medders and
family, of Broken Bow,
“The Turkish Van breed
is considered a pure breed
that has not been crossbred. The breed began in
Turkey and is shown in
the purebred class,” Kerry
said.
Several of the exhibitors
came with their household breed pet otherwise
known as a HHP. These
have recently been allowed by the TICA.
“Many people start
showing with HHP cats
before advancing to the
purebreds. HHO cats are
recognized internationally and have their own
points system,” Kerry
said.
During the morning,
the exhibitors were bust
grooming and preparing
their cats for the show
ring. Many of the cats
played with the brushes
their handlers were using for grooming. Other
were using their paws to
push away the wipes for
cleaning eyes, ears and
mouths.
“If you plan to show
ers remained on scene for
about 45 minutes before
returning to the station.
Additional information,
including the severity of
injuries was unavailable
at presstime.
Daily Light photojournalist Scott Dorsett contributed to this report.
Follow Andrew on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/AndrewBran
caWDL or on Twitter at www.twitter.
com/AndrewBrancaWNI. Contact
him at andrew.branca@waxahachi
Oklahoma; Carolyn and
Kent Tramel and family,
of Longview; Phillip and
Debbie Evans and family,
of Blue Spring, Missouri;
Don and Toni Evans and
family, of Heath, Janice
and Charles Wright and
family, of Midlothian; and
Sherry Neal and family, of
Norman, Oklahoma.
Rebecca was preceded
in death by her husband
Calvin Brewer; son, Brian
; sisters Mary Carlisle, Jo
Anna James; brother Ken-
a cat, you start out with
them very early a kitten.
Sometimes you have to
use a toy to distract them
but usually they learn to
cooperate,” said Breanna
Bergquist who lives in
Austin. Her entry named,
Dragon was busy pawing
a feather while Bergquist
-
ing touches.
An after their appearance in the ring there is
the reward. For international supreme grand
champion cat Jovan Tony
Stark-Iron man, his reward is a baby food desert
spoon fed by his owner,
Francis Harshaw.
FUMC
before. Then on Christmas
morning we do the mashed
potatoes and the hot rolls.
Then we do all of the
assembly on Christmas
morning. By the time noon
rolls around we are ready
to begin to serve.”
Shipp said everyone is
welcome to come out to the
church to enjoy the meal.
The meal will be served in
the FUMC’s Family Life
Center, which is located
on the back portion of the
church’s campus.
For more information
about the meal, or to
make a reservation, or
to volunteer, the church
FROM PAGE 1
volunteers to help cook,
people that help clean. We
have people who help set
up and people that actually come in that are drivers
that deliver the meals. So
it is quite an assembly line
that is going on to serve
that many people,” Shipp
said. “We do need volunteers that are willing to
come in either Christmas
Eve morning from about 8
a.m. to noon or Christmas
day. What we do on the
day before is we prepare
the Green Bean Casserole, the sweet potatoes;
we layer the ham in all of
the pans. We do most of
the prep work on the day
REFUGEES
FROM PAGE 6
view. There were adults
almost every 100 yards.
There were at least two
people to a group that
were watching what
was going on. We drove
through it pretty quickly,
but you could see they
neth Dale Evans; mother
Addie Velma Evans;
father and the Rev. Frank
A. Evans; grandson Aaron
Garcia and numerous
other relatives.
Visitation for family
and friends will be 2 to
4 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 15,
2015 in the chapel of the
Boze-Mitchell-McKibbin
Funeral Home. Funeral
services will follow 4 p.m.
Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2015.
To view an obituary or
sign the guest book, please
at 972-937-4400. First
United Methodist Church
at Waxahachie is located
at 505 W. Marvin Ave.
were well-equipped. I’d
like to tell the public to let
these 21 days play out and
this group that’s charged
with doing what they’re
supposed to do and what
they’re called to do, they’re
handling it very well.”
Like the Waxahachie Daily Light &
Midlothian Mirror on Facebook and
follow both on Twitter. Contact the
visit www.bozemitchellmckibbin.com.
Arrangements are
under the direction of the
Boze-Mitchell-McKibbin
Funeral Home 511 West
Main St., Waxahachie,
Texas. 972-937-2211.
CMYK