News

The effects of the Oct. 10, 2022 hail storm that pummeled Fort Stockton are still visible today, including on each campus of the Fort Stockton Independent School District. The FSISD Board of Trustees on May 22 heard an update from King Adjusting on the state of those claims, and the news wasn’t good.

With the impending retirement of Pecos County Extension agent Karan Hefelfinger, the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension office is welcoming a new addition to the staff. The Pecos County Commissioner’s Court approved the hiring of Elaine Haby at its May 22 meeting.

Five days of testimony and 90 minutes of deliberation led to a not-guilty verdict in the trial of Justin Ferrell Woodward on May 9. Numerous law enforcement officers, private citizens, forensic scientists, and crime scene analysts testified in the trial.

AUSTIN – Six bills authored by Senator César J. Blanco of El Paso have received approval by both, the Texas Senate, and Texas House of Representatives, and await the Governor’s signature. This group of bills includes: · SB2261 which provides better hands-on training for Department of Family and Protective Services caseworkers. DFPS caseworkers are crucial in protecting children and families from abuse and neglect. By ensuring caseworkers have better hands-on training, they can better serve our most at-risk kids and families.

The Center for Land Stewardship and Stakeholder Engagement at Boaderlands Research Institute (BRI) at Sul Ross State University has streamlined its application process for cost share conservation programs. Cost share programs reimburse a percentage of the overall cost of qualified conservation practices to selected landowners.

The Sul Ross State University La Frontera Research Institute for STEM mobile lab is headed to the Alley Oop Festival in Iraan June 2-3. The Friends of the Pecos River, a non-profit organization dedicated to river stewardship, is sponsoring the lab at the event. Alley Oop, named for the comic strip created in Iraan by V.T. Hamlin while he was living and working as a map maker in the oil fields, was resurrected a couple of years ago after a decade-long hiatus. The festival promises a parade, pageant, tournament, dancing, fireworks, vendors and more. The mobile STEM lab delivers educational, hands-on, entertaining activities directly to students. The lab is the result of a collaboration between SRSU’s Noyce Scholars en la Frontera program and the Science Mill Museum in Johnson City. All components of the lab fit neatly in the van and allow for a few people to quickly set up the displays, most of which remain on carts that are wheeled into the van on its builtin ramp and are then strapped into place. The mobile program benefits future STEM teachers and others by introducing future careers and digital literacies to educators, parents, college students, K12 students and the public. The Friends of the Pecos River was formed in 2020 with a primary focus in Texas from Imperial to Sheffield. According to FPR, this section suffers from long-term proximity to the oil patch, regional groundwater depletion and persistent drought. The river’s health has consequences for people and wildlife around it and the waters downstream. Their mission is “to enhance water quality and quantity in this piece of the Pecos River through community engagement, educational programs, landowner outreach, collaborative research and restoration projects on public and private lands.” For more information or to book the mobile lab, email noyce@sulross. edu. For more information about Alley Oop, call 432-302-1429 or 432-302-1317. For more information about FPR, email info@friendsofthepecosriver. org.

The Fort Stockton Mayor and City Council recognized the accomplishments of the Big Bend Open Road Race, as well as Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month and Community Action Month during its May 8 meeting. Mayor Chris Alexander read three proclamations, starting with Motorcycle Safety Month.

It’s official. The Fort Stockton City Council canvassed the results of the May 6 general election at a special meeting May 15, declaring Ruben Falcon the winner for city council Place 2 and Jerome Chavez the winner for city council Place 1.

Precinct 3 Commissioner Mickey Jack Perry and his crew have been working to improve the Iraan Pecos River Park, and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has taken notice. The Pecos County Commissioner’s Court on May 8 voted to apply for a Habitat and Angler Access Program (HAAP) grant through the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, which will help provide more amenities at the park.

ALPINE – A California man pleaded guilty in a federal court in Alpine last week to charges related to drug trafficking. According to court documents, Adrian Arturo Solis, 30, of Sylmar, California was traveling to Houston on Feb. 9, 2023, to conduct a drug transaction when a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper stopped him and his co-conspirators for exceeding the speed limit by 20 mph. When the DPS trooper recognized drug paraphernalia in the vehicle and observed a passenger attempt to conceal a pistol under his leg, he ordered all the occupants out of the vehicle.