Cool shelter offered
Due to the current extreme heat condition, First United Methodist Church of Mabank is opening its Family Life Center Gym from 8 a.m to 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from 8 a.m. to noon Friday, for those in need of a cool place to spend some time. When the temperatures sore to 100 and above, come and watch movies or play games in the air conditioned gym. For information call (903) 887-3691.

Master Gardener
The Henderson County Master Gardeners summer workshop on favorite perennials is set for 6:30 p.m. Thursday (today), at The Library at Cedar Creek Lake, Seven Points. For information, call Master Gardeners at (903) 675-6130 or visit the web at http://henderson-co-tx-mg.org.

MISD on-line
Mabank ISD on-line registration for returning students now through Thursday, Sept. 8. Parents may log in through Family Access and complete registration steps on MISD webpage www.mabankisd.net.

Kemp yearbooks
From now through the opening of school, Kemp students may pick up their 2011 year books at their individual campuses. Seniors should go to the high school office and see Ms. House for their yearbooks. For information, visit daniel.sue@kempisd.org.

Westside Seniors
The Westside Senior Center is open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. today and every Thursday, at the Cedar Creek Bible Church Activities building, located at 700 North Seven Points Boulevard (one mile north of the traffic light in Seven Points). Seniors 55 and older are invited for refreshments, games, exercise and fellowship. A light lunch is served. For information call (903) 340-9672.

Cowboy church VBS
The Rope, Catch and Ride for Christ Cowboy Church Vacation Bible School is set for 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. through Friday, Aug. 12. Location is north on SH 198 to right on CR 2807. Cowboy church is on the right and looks like a red barn. For information call Vickie Pyle at (903) 880-2695.

Presbyterian VBS
The First Presbyterian Church in Mabank is hosting PandaMania Rules (where God is wild about you), based on Psalm 139, Vacation Bible School, from 9 to 11:30 a.m. through Friday, Aug.12. The event is for age 5 through fifth grade. Children and adults are asked to bring canned food and other nonperishable items for the Mabank Area Good Samaritans.

Free kid’s movie
The Tri-County Library offers free movies for children at 1 p.m. each Thursday. Today’s movie is “Andre” provided by Family Video and shown in the library community room at 132 E. Market St., Mabank. For information call (9030 887-9622.

Children in Need
The Mary Queen of Heaven Catholic Church Outreach, Malakoff, will again distribute school clothing. Parents or guardians should contact the parish office at (903) 489-2366 for the necessary appointment. Office hours are 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m. Thursday through Friday. Include number of children and sizes. Distributions are 4 to 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 12 and from 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday, Aug. 13.

Caribbean Casino
Paws & Claws Caribbean Casino night is set for 6 to 11 p.m. Friday, Aug. 12, at Cain Center in Athens. The event is hosted by the Humane Society of Cedar Creek Lake and the Henderson County Humane Society. For information, call (903) 887-2234.

VZ senior citizens
The Van Zandt Senior Citizens Club is hosting its monthly dance at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 12, at the Henderson County Senior Citizens Center in Athens. Joe Walenta and his Ranch Hands will provide country and western music for dancing. Everyone is welcome.

Electronic drive
Free electronics recycling drive is set for 8 to 11 a.m., (only, due to the heat), Saturday, Aug. 13, at 1100 Airport Road, Terrell (about a mile east from SH 34).
Items include all consumer electronics, free collection of TV and computers, small appliances, ink & toner cartridges, all types of batteries, and all types of land and cell phones.
For information, call (972) 524-0007.

Rootseekers meeting
The Rootseekers Genealogical Society will meet at 7 p.m. Monday, Aug. 15, at the Tri-County Library, Mabank. Vernon Wagoner will speak on tombstones. Meetings are open to the public.

WCR meeting
Ryan Bokros, social media addict, is the speaker for the Monthly breakfast for the Henderson County Women’s Council of Realtors at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 17, at the Cedar Creek Country Club. For information or to RSVP call Lajean at (903) 880-6628.

EISD Fish Camp
The Eustace ISD Fish Camp is set for 1 to 4 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 18, in the high school auditorium. The Primary School Meet the Teacher is set for 3 p.m. For new students and 3:30 for returning students, Thursday, Aug. 18 in the Primary School Cafeteria.

Tool blood drive
The city of Tool is sponsoring a blood drive from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 20, at the Oran White Civic Center in Tool. If you give blood you get a buy-one-get-one-free voucher for a Texas Rangers ball game ticket and are automatically entered to win VIP tickets to a Rangers home game this season, thanks to the Texas Rangers and Fox Sports Southwest.
For information, call Makenzie Blaser at (903) 432-3522.

AL shrimp dinner
The Sons of the American Legion, Post 310, is hosting a shrimp dinner Saturday, Aug. 20, with cole slaw, hush puppies, dessert and tea. Proceeds benefit the scholarship fund.

EISD Bulldog Bash
The Eustace High School Bulldog Bash and Meet the Teacher event is set for 6:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 22, in the old gym cafeteria.

Kaufman market
Master Gardeners join local growers at the Kaufman County Farmer’s Market selling vegetable plants. Hours are 8 a.m. to noon Saturdays and 4 to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through the first two Saturdays in November. The market is located at 3001 S. Washington St. (southwest corner of FM 1388 and SH 34).

Immunization change
The Texas Department of State Health Services in Henderson County is changing the way it provides immunization for adults & children to appointments only, the first four Wednesdays of each month as of July.
For appointments and information, call (903) 675-7742. Please don’t wait until the last minute to have your child or yourself vaccinated.

Senior Center opens
The Mabank Senior Center at the Ballpark is now open from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday at 405 W. Walnut, the old YMCA building. It is looking for volunteers for the Kemp Meals on Wheels route.
If you can spare one hour a week, you could make a difference in a senior’s day. For information, call Lisa Stinnett-Smith at (903) 887-0067.

Teen account set
An account has been opened at at First National Bank in Kemp for Alyssa Olivarez, 14. She was diagnosed with Burkitts lymphoma.

Back pack round-up
The youth of St. Peter Lutheran Church in Gun Barrel City are collecting 200 back packs for local underprivileged students. Please drop donations off at the church building on Sunday mornings, or call (903) 217-5622 for pick up.

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Water restored to Kemp ... for now
Kaufman County issues disaster declaration
By Barbara Gartman and Pearl Cantrell
Monitor Staff Writers
KEMP–Kemp ISD athletics and band programs shifted over to the Mabank High School campus Tuesday, after being suspended Monday due to the absence of water in Kemp.
In addition, Mabank city workers were digging trenches to extend a water line from Mabank to Kemp.

Monitor Photo/Barbara Gartman
Television news crews Monday have cameras rolling while city residents come to fill containers with potable water brought in from Fort Worth. Walmart also sent an 18-wheeler filled with bottled water, and Mabank and West Cedar Creek water utilities also donated bottled water for Kemp residents over the weekend.
 

City water pressure was restored to most residents in Kemp Tuesday morning. A boil water notice is still in effect until the water can be verified safe to drink and expected to remain in place until Thursday or Friday.
For more than two weeks, residents on Kemp water have been asked to boil their water — when they had it.
But finally, Tuesday the problems came to an end — for the time being, mayor Donald Kile said.
“Everybody has decent water pressure, and we’re in the process of getting our towers refilled,” he explained.
“It will be a while before samples are taken and returned,” Kile said, adding that once the samples are sent to the laboratory, it will be two to three days before the results are known.
“However, they know what we have been going through, so they plan to try to rush the testing,” Kile added.
The extreme heat and dry, shifting earth has taken a heavy toll on the old water lines in the city and major breaks have emptied the water towers.
“The breaks just kept coming and we couldn’t catch up,” Kile said. “We have had 14 breaks in two weeks on our eight-inch main lines.”
County declares disaster
The seriousness of the situation was magnified when Kaufman County Judge Bruce Wood declared a State of Disaster for Kaufman County Monday — resulting from the total loss of the water supply in Kemp.
The State of Disaster lasts for seven days unless extended by county commissioners.
Kaufman County emergency management director Steve Howie updated commissioners on conditions in Kemp during the commissioners’ regular meeting.
He said word of the city of Kemp’s problems has gone out to other agencies.
Howie said he stayed in Kemp until 9 p.m. Sunday and worked until after midnight getting word out.
“So far, the city of Mabank and West Cedar Creek (Municipal Utility District) have donated tankers of non-potable water for animals and for flushing,” he said.
“The city of Mabank also donated 5,000 cases of drinking water and Walmart sent in an 18-wheeler loaded with bottled water,” Howie explained.
Tankers of potable water from the city of Fort Worth were also on hand.
“Tankers filled with water will be there until the situation is under control,” he said.
Monday, the tankers and Walmart’s 18-wheeler were lined up in front of city hall, helping citizens fill containers with water.
Maintenance workers with the city of Kemp have put in a lot of hours repairing the ancient lines, city staff reported.
Kemp’s water tower started refilling with water Monday night and by Tuesday morning, some areas of Kemp reported having water service.
Once the water supply is returned, residents will be told to continue boiling their water for drinking, cooking and making ice until lab tests return verifying the water is safe for consumption.
But watering the lawn, or any other “luxury” use of water will be forbidden for a time as the city is in a Stage 5 of its drought contingency plan.
Publicity
The city has been the object of several television news reports, including Channel 5, 8, 11 and 39.
Its problems began more than two weeks ago when a major break occurred near the water tower.
After the repairs were completed, another major line broke.
“The first two were so big, we weren’t able to keep the tower full,” Craig Old, with the water department explained.
From then on, the old eight-inch mains, some installed as far back as 1977, continued to break.
Heat, fluctuating pressure in the lines, and the constant shifting of the soil took a toll that simply could not be anticipated, Old said.
Tuesday, eight Mabank city workers were working to extend the water line from Mabank to tie in to Kemp’s system.
Mabank utility director Ronnie Tuttle said the 3,900 foot-extension with its own shut-off valve should be ready to feed water to Kemp late Wednesday or early Thursday (today).
Another four Mabank city workers worked along side Kemp workers to help repair the breaks in the city’s water lines Monday and Tuesday.
He added that he received a call from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality late Sunday asking about the possibility of a backup connection from Mabank for the city of Kemp.
“They’re (TCEQ) not making us do this. We’re doing this as good neighbors,” Tuttle stressed.

No-growth budget considered
By Pearl Cantrell
Monitor Staff Writer
MABANK–Mabank City Council members learned revenues for next year are expected to be flat, despite sales tax collections increasing up to 4 percent the first seven months of 2011.
Kaufman County released its certified tax values this month, showing property values with little to no growth and with nearly $2.5 million worth of it under protest.
“It’s going to be a slim year,” mayor Larry Teague noted during a regular city council meeting, Aug. 2.
All was not gloom and doom however. It was also noted that next year, sales tax from the new expanded Family Dollar store will start coming in and that the expansion of JIT, manufacturer of business logo items, will be providing a few more jobs in the city.
In other business, council members:
• adopted a vicious animal ordinance giving the Animal Control Officer and police chief authority to determine whether an animal on private or public property meets the definition of vicious animal.
• authorized the mayor to enter into interlocal agreements as needed with Henderson or Kaufman County, the city of Gun Barrel or Mabank Independent School District.
• discussed the need to set budget workshops for FY 2011-12.
• approved a contract to subsequently purchase 1.34 acres located at 1506 S. Third St. at the request of the Economic Development Corporation.