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Kemp man dies in US 175 wreck
Monitor Staff Reports
ATHENS–A car wreck on U.S. Highway 175 claimed the life of a Kemp man
Monday.
According to a Texas Department of Public Safety report, Wesley Harris
Germany, 55, of Kemp was driving a 2007 Ford Mustang eastbound about
five miles west of Athens when he entered a curve on the wrong side of
the road.
A westbound 2005 Chevrolet Tahoe driven by Jenny Morris Magouyrk, 51, of
Jacksonville veered to the right in an evasive move, but was still hit
on the front left side.
The Tahoe overturned, landing on the driver’s side on the north side of
the roadway, the report said.
The head-on collision occurred just after 2 p.m.
Magouyrk was airlifted from the scene to the East Texas Medical Center
in Tyler. Her condition was unknown at presstime.
Germany died at the scene.
Authorities are still investigating what caused Germany to cross the
center line.
Shelter remains open
By Pearl Cantrell
Monitor Staff Writer
SEVEN POINTS–The Humane Society animal shelter in Tool with remain open
as long as it can, board treasurer Jerry Hazilip told The Monitor Monday
following a meeting at the Dairy Queen in Seven Points.
Lack of cash flow is keeping the animal shelter on the brink of closure,
Hazilip said.
Average monthly expenditures total $5,610, while the average monthly
income is only $3,694, he reported.
The shelter has been running a nearly $2,000 monthly deficit since
January, he said.
“If it weren’t for the help of the community,” Hazilip said (citing
Wal-Mart’s generous monthly donation of pet food), “we’d be $2,000
deeper in the hole.”
Should the shelter close, the Henderson County animal shelter in Athens
has indicated it would take the county’s animals.
Henderson County referrals totaled 35 animals over the past six months,
but that doesn’t count another 256 animals brought in by individuals
living in the county, acting president Tamara Rhodes added.
Absorbing the county’s animals would mean the Athens shelter would have
to discontinue its animal control program, she said.
Preliminary talks with Kaufman County, which doesn’t have anywhere else
to bring its animals, are focusing on boosting the drop-off fee from the
current $10 per animal.
Dallas County charges $55 per animal, Rhodes reported.
The shelter also accepted animals from the cities of Seven Points, Tool,
Log Cabin and Trinidad, accounting for 250 animals.
The shelter accepted 807 animals from Kaufman County, with another 204
animals being dropped off by individuals from Kaufman County.
The city of Kaufman contributed 121 animals, Mabank 101, Crandall 65 and
Kemp 33.
Another 10 animals were drop-offs from individuals from Van Zandt,
Dallas and Ellis counties, totaling 1,882 animals for the first six
months of the year.
This year, Henderson County donated $10,000 to the shelter, and Kaufman
contributed $12,000. Area cities combined to contribute about $600 a
year, Rhodes said.
Mabank city administrator Louann Confer said the city appreciated the
shelter and pointed out the city has a contract for $10 per dog.
Mabank is one of the few cities with a contract, Rhodes said.
“We want to see this facility remain open,” Confer said.
A slight fee increase would probably be accepted by the city, but $55
per dog was too much, she added.
Confer also assured the board a 55-gallon drum of bleach was due to be
delivered as a donation.
Community members batted around fund-raising ideas, from monthly
mail-outs to setting up automatic payments for those willing to donate
on a regular basis, selling pet cemetery plots and monthly events.
Establishing a friends group solely dedicated to fund-raising was also
suggested.
Gene Holland said tapping into property owners associations should bring
results, because they are concerned about stray animals in their
neighborhoods.
Looking beyond current fiscal needs, the board should also be planning
to get the fencing repaired and look at expanding, Rhodes said.
“We need more money and volunteers if we are to remain open,” she
concluded.
Two more people were installed as board directors.
Joni Walker, a former teacher/athletic director with extensive contacts
in Forney and Ennis, and Donna Busby both volunteered to sit on the
shelter’s board of directors.
Charlotte Gish, a former board member, offered a report on last year’s
accomplishments.
The shelter board:
• started collecting information.
• improved relations with the Friends of the Animals.
• started volunteer orientations.
• conducted a health review and implemented the improvements the
inspector recommended.
• went through an IRS audit.
• procured help with spaying and neutering services from Friends of the
Animals.
• formed friendships that can be built on to make further progress.
“I just felt the community needed to know,” Gish concluded.
Kemp Eco station dedication held
By Barbara Gartman
Monitor Staff Writer
KEMP–A lively crowd of approximately 45 dignitaries and area residents
showed up Tuesday for the official opening and dedication of the Kaufman
County Precinct 4 Eco Station.
Kaufman County officials, citizens and members of the Greater Cedar
Creek Lake Area Chamber of Commerce gathered for a ribbon-cutting and
the station’s official opening ceremony.
The convenience station is located just off U.S. Highway 175 at
Plainview Road in Kemp.
Marilyn May, executive director of the Environmental Co-op in Kaufman,
said the Eco-station came about with a $100,000 matching grant provided
through the North Texas Council of Governments.
She thanked the employees of Precinct 4 for their work on the station.
Precinct 4 Commissioner Jim Deller also thanked the employees, adding it
was their dedication – starting with the heat in October, 2006, through
the heavy spring rains until its completion and celebration Tuesday –
that made the facility possible.
The need for a convenience station in Southeast Kaufman County was
established in a study by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality,
he said.
Deller thanked May for her tireless work in seeing that all details and
paperwork were completed and correct and done in a timely manner.
Starting from the time the grants were first sought, the station has
been a three-year project.
Deller explained the land, a five-acre tract with sloping hillsides, was
purchased with the convenice station in mind.
“It saved a lot of excavating that would otherwise have been needed,” he
said.
The Eco-Station itself is built on about 2½ acres of the tract, he
explained.
In addition to the trash compactor where citizens can drive up and
unload trash, there are other convenient and environmentally friendly
facilities.
An open dumpster will hold large items, such as furniture and
appliances.
Newspaper, plastic, glass, tin cans, cardboard and aluminum is accepted
for free recycling, with dumpsters clearly marked for those items.
A household hazardous waste facility accepts oil-based paints, thinners,
home repair products, pool and yard chemicals, craft and hobby supplies,
old batteries and fluorescent lights
The station hours are from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
For information, call operations manager Brenda Murphy at (903)
498-4135.
 GBC
fire department
hosts fish fry
fund-raiser
Monitor Photos/Kerry Yancey
Chris Hitchcock carefully coats
catfish fillets with breading after soaking them in a mustard marinade.
Monitor Photo/Kerry Yancey
Randy Kuykendall (left) and Greg Romano pull out frying baskets to check
the cooking progress during a fish fry fund-raiser at the Gun Barrel
City fire station Saturday.
Monitor Photo/Kerry Yancey
Volunteers and firefighters hand out catfish and fixings to visitors
during a fish fry fund-raiser at the Gun Barrel City Fire Station
Saturday. The event generated more than $600 for the department.
Monitor Photo/Kerry Yancey
Lakeview Elementary fifth-grader Mackenzie Yaws grabs a bite of
watermelon during a fish fry fund-raiser at the Gun Barrel City
Volunteer Fire Department Saturday. |