Sunday, September 5, 2010
By Pearl Cantrell
Monitor Staff Writer
KEMP–Kemp schools were on lockdown briefly Tuesday, while law enforcement tried to take an armed fugitive into custody.
The lockdown lasted no more than five minutes, Kemp school superintendent Dr. Peter Running told The Monitor.
“At no time were the students in danger,” he added.
Kaufman County Constable Bryant Morris, out of Kemp, requested the schools go on lockdown while officers chased down the fugitive.
Officers took Kemp resident Cory Dell Cosby, 31, into custody shortly after lunch, Morris said.
“We were looking for him in connection with a car burglary the night before at the Cedar Creek Country Club, where a firearm was taken,” he told The Monitor.
When officers sought him at the home of his grandmother at the Kemp Apartments near the Primary School Campus, he ran out the back and went into the woods, Morris said.
“The chase didn’t last long,” he added. Cosby was caught behind the Baptist church there.
Officers located two firearms on Cosby, one reported stolen by the Athens Police Department and a second believed to be from the car burglary at the country club, Morris said.
Cosby is being held without bond at the Law Enforcement Center in Kaufman on numerous charges, including burglary, evading arrest and felon in possession of a firearm.
Cosby also has numerous traffic violations.
Running said the schools went into lockdown very efficiently.
“I was so proud of our people. One phone call and it was done,” he told The Monitor Thursday morning.
“What’s going to happen next?” he asked, citing the string of seeming emergencies the schools have had to face recently.
Thursday afternoon, a water main break in front of the junior high caused that campus to cancel sub-varsity volleyball matches that evening.
Mabank schools hold 10th Spirit Week
Mabank Education Foundation named beneficiary this year
Monitor Staff Reports
MABANK–The 10th annual Mabank Independent School District Spirit Week is set to begin
Tuesday, Sept. 7.
Students, employees and community members are preparing for an exciting and rewarding
year, as they do all they can to boost resources for the education of Mabank students now
and in the future.
Monitor Photo/Pearl Cantrell
Spirit Week coordinator Tonya Chapman (left) and Mabank ISD Superintendent Dr. Russell
Marshall hold a quilt commemorating 10 years of fund-raising through Spirit Week
activities. Also shown are Spirit Week campus coordinators (from left) Chelsea
Capehart/Central Elementary, Rhonda Manning/Mabank Junior High, Jennifer
Williams/Southside Elementary, Cris Cary (right of Marshall)/Mabank High School and Vickie
Cowin/Mabank Intermediate. Missing from photo is Courtney Smith/Lakeview Elementary.
The week-long, community-wide fund-raising effort is designed to raise money for a
designated charity and this year’s event benefits the Mabank ISD Educational
Foundation.
In past years, the district has raised nearly a quarter of a million dollars with the
generous support of the surrounding communities.
Funds benefitted such deserving organizations as the American Red Cross, the
Veteran’s Memorial at Cedar Creek Lake, the American Cancer Society, the Make-A-Wish
Foundation of North Texas, Kidd’s Kids, the American Diabetes Association, Habitat
for Humanity, the Muscular Dystrophy Association and the Children’s Miracle Network.
“I have always said this was such a great experience for our district and
community,” Spirit Week coordinator Tonya Chapman said.
“But this year is especially awesome, as it marks our 10th year. When we started in
2001, I would never have imagined accomplishing what we have so far,” she added.
A new element this year is the sale of a quilt created to commemorate the 10 years of
community service and generosity.
“Rhonda Manning, junior high coordinator for Spirit Week, came up with the idea to
have the quilt made from the T-shirt themes of each Spirit Week,” Chapman said.
“It is a beautiful quilt and truly represents what we have done in the past,”
she added.
The quilt will be on display at each district campus.
Two different events set for Tuesday will kick off Spirit Week.
MHS Yearbook and Business Professionals of America organizations will host the sixth
annual Spirit of Charity Golf Tournament at Cedar Creek Country Club in Kemp.
“The golf tournament has been a great source of income for our fund-raising,”
Chapman said.
Sponsorships for prizes and holes are available. For information, call Cris Cary at (903)
880-1600.
The annual Spirit Week Kick-Off Rally is from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 7, at the high
school.
The rally is free and features performances, bake sales, contests, games, food and sale
items, just to name a few, she said.
“The carnival-like atmosphere of the rally makes it a wonderful event for the entire
family,” Chapman said. “It’s a super way to start the week’s
activities and to raise money.”
For information, call Chapman at (903) 880-1640.
Kemp mayor Matt Gassle appreciates the help
KEMP–I would like to take a moment to thank the rest of Cedar Creek Lake for their
generosity and support of my community during this water crisis, and acknowledge some
local heroes.
A special thank you to Big City Crushed Concrete, Buy-Lo Auto Supply, Brookshire’s of
Seven Points, Danny and Shirley of Kemp DQ, Glenn from the Kemp Subway, Gun Barrel City,
The City of Mabank, David’s Supermarket of Seven Points and Kaufman, the Weber
family, West Cedar Creek Lake MUD, Becker-Jiba WSC, and the numerous other donors and
volunteers from every corner of the lake for their very generous spirit of giving.
Because of these amazing people, our community’s needs were met, and we made it
through this emergency.
A huge thank you to the volunteers at the Kemp Fire Department. Chief Beavers and his team
organized the bottled and non-potable water distribution, activated the CodeRed system,
and ensured the community’s needs were met as quickly as possible.
Thanks to Dianna Clemmo, Norma Liggins, Billy Teel, Melanie Weber and all the folks at the
Kemp Business and Civic Association for delivering notices to customers and ensuring our
elderly and special needs populations received drinking water.
Thanks to the Kemp ISD student volunteers who helped deliver drinking water, and my
apologies to the Kemp ISD students and parents for the inconveniences they endured. Thanks
to Eustace ISD and the citizens of Eustace for their efforts in relocating the football
game.
Thanks to our media partners: NIXLE Alerting System, 95.9 KCKL and 1410 KLVQ, 106.9 The
Ranch, 99.5 The Wolf, NBC 5, CBS 11, TXA 21, Channel 8 News, Fox 4, and The Monitor for
all the support in keeping our residents informed. Also a special thanks to our Facebook
posters. The citizen feedback posts were invaluable to helping the City better understand
the immediate needs and community concerns.
Thanks to the City’s office employees and Kemp Police Department, and thank you to
Kaufman County for the use of a 4,000-gallon tanker, which was used to flush the toilets
at the Senior Citizens Center, TCEQ, the Texas Department of Health Services, and the
Texas Water Development Board for their assistance, guidance and support. I also
appreciate every member of the Kemp City Council who stepped up to provide expertise,
guidance, and helping hands.
Most of all, my sincerest thanks and gratitude goes to the fine group of men and women in
the Kemp Public Works Department. These amazing people have been working 24 hours a day,
seven days a week to keep up with the plant operations and leak repairs. They have
sacrificed family time and sleep to overcome great obstacles. They have once again proven
that this team is – hands down – the best team to ever serve this City. They are
passionate, innovative and dedicated.
In my biased opinion, they have set a new standard in Public Works in the Cedar Creek Lake
area.
The City of Kemp may have been in short supply of water, but through God’s grace we
were blessed with an abundance of heroes.