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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Top Stories
Tuesday, December 17, 2002
Christian Home seeks items for Christmas dinner
By ROSIE FLORES
Staff Writer
PECOS, Tues., Dec. 17, 2002 -- Plans are underway for the Pecos Christian
Home's Annual Christmas Dinner at the Reeves County Civic Center, but
some "goodies" are still needed to complete the annual event.
The Christian Home sponsors the yearly event, and is asking for help from
the community to make the Christmas dinner a success. The dinner is scheduled
for 10 a.m. until 2 p.m., Christmas Day at the Civic Center.
"We still need turkeys, green beans, yams, desserts and dressing," said
Christian Home Director Bruce Dury.
He said that everything is coming together, however they need at least
10 more turkeys and other side dishes in order to be prepared for the number
of people expected to take advantage of next week's dinner.
"This year we don't have a Santa Claus planned for the event," said Dury.
"But if somebody else wants to do that, we'll be happy to have them."
Dury said that they are expecting at least 300 people. "We served 327
during the Thanksgiving Dinner and expect more or less the same number during
the Christmas event," he said.
Dury added that they would accept the turkeys either cooked or frozen.
"If they want to cook the turkey and bring it by that would be great,"
he said.
Volunteers are also needed to help with serving the dinner and delivering
meals with the "Meals on Wheels" program.
"We need to have lots of volunteers," Dury said.
About 96 people are on the Meals on Wheels Program and individuals to
deliver the meals to the homes are needed.
Dury said anyone wishing to volunteer just needs to show up before 10
a.m., Christmas morning, at the Civic Center in order to prepare for the
day.
First thing on the agenda is to deliver the Meals on Wheels meals to the
96 homes.
Dury said that they would rather have too much food prepared than not
enough and if they are able to get all the donations they need then "no one
will go hungry."
He added that the dinner is not only for the needy but everyone.
"Just about anybody that wants to come out and eat is welcome," he said.
"It's for everybody."
Anyone who would like to donate turkeys or desserts can drop them at the
Christian Home at 1201 S. Elm St., or call 445-2049.
Jail escape earns Perez 5-year term
PECOS, Tues., Dec. 17, 2002 -- A Pecos man who escaped from the Reeves
County Jail while serving time on another offense was sentenced to five years
in prison after pleading guilty to the escape charge in 143rd
District Court on Friday.
Steven Perez, 32, of Pecos, was accused of escape when he walked away
from the Reeves County Jail in early March.
Following the recommendation of District Attorney Randall W. Reynolds,
Visiting Judge Paul McCollum sentenced Perez to the five-year term.
"Perez capture and sentence came after a thorough investigation and diligent
effort on the part of the Reeves County Sheriff's Office," said Reynolds.
Perez is believed to have escaped from the jail before 9 a.m., on March
8 when he was supposed to have been working in the front portion of the building.
However, he was not noticed to be missing by jail personnel until 9½
hours later.
Reeves County Sheriff Arnulfo "Andy" Gomez said that Perez was a trustee
cleaning floors in the office portion of the jail when he decided to make
his escape.
"He was up here, up front and he could have just walked out the front
door," he said.
Following an investigation led by Reeves County Sheriff's Deputy Michael
Dominguez, Perez was located at a home in Odessa where he was recaptured
on Sept. 11.
"He looked really surprised to see me," said Dominguez the day after the
arrest. "The first thing he told me was gee, I was going to turn myself in,
Mike."
Perez was transported to the Ector County Jail following his arrest and
was returned to Pecos on Sept. 12. He was indicted by the Reeves County grand
jury in October and pled guilty on Friday.
In other business on Friday before McCollum, who was presiding in the
absence of District Judge Bob Parks, who was in Austin on judicial matters,
seven felony pleas were heard following recommendations by Reynolds.
Armando Burrola, 39, was sentenced to one year in a state jail for fleeing
from police officer Cesario Urias, Jr. on May 11, 2002, while using a vehicle.
Diana Munoz Rodriguez, 38, pled guilty and received two years of probation
for her part in cocaine possession case.
Glen Ford Cameron, 48, was sentenced to serve one year and six months,
probated for three years, following his plea of guilty to possession of cocaine.
The drug was discovered in Cameron's home following the execution of a search
warrant on Sept. 4, that had been requested by Pecos Police Investigator
Paul Deishler.
Joel Ramon Fuentes, 36, was sentenced to serve one year in a state jail
for his conviction for a forgery occurring on Sept. 9, when Fuentes passed
to Cecil Lee, a forged check, on the account of Roberto Ornelas.
Maria Guadalupe Mendoza, 31, received three years of probation and a $2,000
fine for passing a forged money order on Aug. 19, to Gina Lujan. Aurora Aragon
had purchased the money order and did not authorize the act.
Patricia Soto, 38, was sentenced to a eight-year probated sentence for
delivering cocaine to Rick Ornelas Ortiz on April 2. The cocaine was in an
amount of one gram or more, but less than four grams, and the case was investigated
by the Trans Pecos Drug Task Force.
In cases heard before Judge Parks on Dec. 6, Frank Matta Rivera was sentenced
to 10 years in prison for burglary, in connecting with a burglary on June
19.
On that date at 10:25 p.m., Officer Helen Vernon and Sergeant Armando
Garcia with the Pecos Police Department responded to a suspicious persons
call reported by a concerned citizen to the area of First and Mesquite streets.
Upon their arrival, the officers located a television near the railroad tracks
and Rivera hiding in some brush nearby.
After further investigation, a television remote control was found in
Rivera's pocket. The next morning, an open door was discovered at a residence
in the 1000 block of East Third Street and subsequent investigation by Investigator
Olga Lopez and Lieutenant David Davis revealed that a television had been
taken, the same television that was located near Rivera the night before.
"This arrest and conviction was the direct result of the initial actions
of an alert citizen and the quick response by Vernon and Garcia," said Reynolds.
`I hope our citizens will be especially vigilant during this holiday season
and contact the Pecos Police Department or Reeves County Sheriff's Office
any time they see something that appears suspicious or not right."
Hospital board to discuss expansion plan proposals
PECOS, Tues., Dec. 17, 2002 -- The Reeves County Hospital District Board
of Directors will met in the Classroom today at 6 p.m. to discuss plans for
the hospital's expansion project and deal with other routine items of business.
Discussion and action will be taken on the selection of contractors to
submit proposals for the expansion project, and the contract to revise hospital
charges master will also be done by the directors.
In other business, board members will review the minutes from the previous
meeting and will receive reports from the Hospital Auxiliary, Medical Staff
and Administrator.
Under the consent agenda, the directors will hear on the monthly tax report,
financial statements and budget amendments and the payment of bills.
Times combined for Alzheimer's support meetings
PECOS, Tues., Dec. 17, 2002 -- The Pecos "Daytime" and "Evening" Support
Groups for the Greater West Texas Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association
have combined for 2003 to simply be called the Pecos Alzheimer's Support
Group.
The group will meet at the Senior Center on the second Thursday of each
month, at 4 p.m.
The next meeting will be on Jan. 9. Anyone interested in learning more
about Alzheimer's disease or is involved with caring for someone with Alzheimer's
is urged to attend.
Crockett's canned goods drive aiding food bank
PECOS, Tues., Dec. 17, 2002 -- Crockett Middle School students have collected
over 600 canned good items to be donated to the Santa Rosa Food Bank, as
part of a competition between teachers in four classes of seventh and eighth
grade students.
"Everybody does a canned food drive for Thanksgiving, but nobody does
one for Christmas," said Jim Workman, whose science class collected the bulk
of the 600 canned goods that will be sent to the food bank. "We wanted to
help out the food bank, and for the students, they get a feeling of self-worth
and gratification to help out, plus they like the competition between the
classrooms."
The competition involved the sciences classes of Workman, Betsy Sikes,
Jerry Workman and Gaston Tarango. Workman said of the cans collected, his
students brought in 519 cans of various food items that will be given to
Santa Rosa's Food Bank.
Local food banks have been suffering through a shortage of items during
the holiday season, due in part to the layoffs earlier this year at the Anchor
Foods plant when new owner McCain Foods closed it. The onion processing plant
has resumed operation under the TransPecos Foods banner, but with about 30
percent of the previous workforce of 700 employees.
Father Ben Flores said earlier this month that the Santa Rosa Food Bank
is looking for meat items such poultry, fish, brisket, turkey and ham along
with canned goods items.
Flores said that they try to provide people with these meat items so that
they may also celebrate the holidays in a special way.
"They are no different then us during the holidays," he said.
Volunteers of the food bank, Yvette Romo and Estella Lira both said that
they tend to run out of rice, bean, flour and sugar more often due to the
fact that they distribute these items to all of the house holds.
"Everyone gets those items," Romo said.
Along with the Santa Rosa Food Bank, other local food banks are operated
through the North Temple Baptist Church, and the Church of Christ.
Kenneth Winkles, a member of the North Temple Baptist Church, said in
early December that their food bank, which is open every two weeks, has run
out of items at times.
"We have had to turn people away because we have run out of boxes to give
out," Winkles said.
Weather
PECOS, Tues., Dec. 17, 2002 -- High Monday 76. Low this morning 52. Forecast
for tonight: Partly cloudy. Lows in the lower 40s. West winds decreasing
to 10 to 20 mph. Wednesday: Partly cloudy. Windy and cooler. Highs
in the mid 60s. West winds increasing to 20 to 30 mph. Wednesday night:
Mostly clear. Lows 30 to 35. Thursday: Sunny. Highs 55 to 60. Friday:
Partly cloudy. Lows near 30. Highs 50 to 55.
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.
Copyright 2002 by Pecos Enterprise
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