People, Places & Events

Santa’s helpers seek assistance
Monitor Staff Reports
SEVEN POINTS–The Seven Points Police Department is once again conducting its annual Blue Santa program.
This program provides gifts of toys to needy children who live on the west side of Cedar Creek Lake.
Santa’s helpers are asking for public support to ensure they have the funds to help those most in need, so it will be a Merry Christmas.
In this struggling economy, the need is greater than ever.
Together, this community can help relieve some of the pressure these parents feel at this extremely stressful time of year.
Monetary donations or new unwrapped toys are being received at the Seven Points City Hall.
For more information, call (903) 432-4610.

Tree type, placement important for future look
Monitor Staff Reports
GUN BARREL CITY–A little planning and careful selection can avoid a costly foundation repair from tree-root damage, Kaufman County urban forester Pam Corder told Cedar Creek Lake Kiwanis members Wednesday.
“Most trees are placed too close together, or in the wrong place, too close to the house,” Corder told a small group gathered for the club’s weekly luncheon.

Monitor Photo/Kerry Yancey
Kaufman County urban forester Pam Corder speaks to Cedar Creek Lake Kiwanis members about selecting and caring for trees at the club's weekly luncheon Wednesday.

After a couple of years in part-time service, Corder became the first full-time urban forester in the state Oct. 1, which won Kaufman County a special commendation from the Texas Forest Service.
As an urban forester, Corder’s goal is to have every large city in the county obtain official “tree city” status, which will help the county and cities obtain grants when they become available in the future.
Corder mostly works with children, but she also meets with groups and businesses looking to meet municipal “green” requirements.
“In Forney, each new addition requires every new house to have two trees in the front yard,” she said.
The problem is the yards are not nearly big enough for two trees, so they won’t ever do well, she explained.
When you look at a tree, multiply the spread of the canopy by three – that’s how much root space the tree needs, Corder said.
“People have misconceptions about a tree’s root system,” she said. “They think trees all have one big tap root that goes way down in the ground.
“Most of the time, the most important roots are within 12 inches of the surface,” she added.
If a tree is planted too close to the house, and root growth damages the foundation, it’s not the tree’s fault that it’s too close, she said.
“Most of the time, roots are trying to find water, and they go to where there’s a leak already,” she said. The leaking pipe is what leads to foundation problems, she pointed out.
Placing trees correctly is even more difficult with commercial properties, who often have very little space left for city-required “green belt” trees after putting the building and parking spaces in, Corder said.
“They have to put the trees in this little strip out in front, and they’re not ever going to do well, because they’ll be growing into the power lines,” she explained.
Most trees can’t stand to have more than one-third of their canopy trimmed back, so power-line trimmers often damage trees beyond their ability to recover, primarily because the trees were placed too close to the power lines, she said.
“When I visit with the developers, they say ‘I want it to look good now,’” she said. “Somebody is going to see that tree 45 years down the road, so you have to plant the right kind in the correct spot.”
In this area, there is a serious problem with mistletoe, which – despite its holiday connotations – is a serious parasite, and will eventually kill the tree, she said.
It may not be possible to trim back the tree enough to get rid of the mistletoe, Corder noted.
“You may face the question of whether or not to take the tree out and replace it with something that will do better,” she said.
Oct. 1, Corder met with most of the area’s school superintendents and elected officials to outline the field trips and seminars she can offer to students, many of them set at the Hidden Acres camp and retreat, located off State Highway 243 between Kaufman and Canton.
“Everything is correlated with what the teacher has to teach that day, as well as the TAKS test,” she said.
Field trips can be custom-designed to meet individual teachers’ needs at a cost of $7 per child, with parents and teachers free, Corder said.
For more information about field trips or other programs, contact Corder at (469) 285-3370, or e-mail her at pcorder@kaufmancounty.net.
In club news, members:
• were reminded of the club’s annual induction banquet, set for 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 22, at the Seasons Restaurant in Mabank.
• heard past president Dr. Jeanne Caillet report Brookshire’s is getting paperwork together for the club to participate in the annual holiday food basket program, with the Tyler-based grocery chain providing frozen chickens for needy residents.
• were reminded of the need for candy and bowls for the upcoming Halloween celebrations at the Mabank Pavilion Saturday, Oct. 31.
 

Come Adopt Us At The Humane Society of Cedar Creek Lake
The domino effect is a chain reaction that occurs when a small change causes a similar change nearby, which then will cause another similar change, and so on. My name is Domino, and I got my name not only because I’m black and white like a domino tile, but also because my outgoing, cheerful personality causes my doggie roommates to smile. This also causes our human friends to smile, which even causes the kitties in the cat room to smile. I am an 8-month-old male Pointer/Terrier mix. I love children, other dogs, and even get along great with kitties. I’ve had all my shots and am ready to be adopted. If you’d like to experience the domino effect, I am sure to put a forever smile on your face when you take me to my forever home. I currently live with a foster family, so if you would like to meet me, call my friends at the Humane Society of Cedar Creek Lake at (903) 432-3422 to make an appointment. You can also email them at dogshsccl@yahoo.com.
	We have many animals at the Humane Society of Cedar Creek Lake in Seven Points in dire need of a good home. Please call or stop by the Humane Society today and rescue one of these forgotten animals. The Humane Society of Cedar Creek Lake is located on 10220 County Road 2403 in Seven Points. For more information, please call (903) 432-3422 after 11 a.m. We are closed on Wednesday and Sunday.
For further information visit our website at petfinder.com