By CONNIE WILMER

“Helping the community” is how Jonathan responded when asked about what scouting means to him.
Jonathan Baumert has been in scouting since he was 8-years-old.  At age 11, he became a Boy Scout.  Jonathan is a student at Dalhart High School and is the son of Peter and Denise Baumert of Dalhart.

By ASHLEY ELERICK

According to research conducted by the American Cancer Society, Dalhart and Muleshoe have the highest occurrences of cancer in the Texas Panhandle, and are among the highest cancer rates state-wide. Professors and graduate students with the Human Sciences and Agricultural Sciences programs at Texas Tech University will be in Dalhart next week recruiting volunteers to participate in an 18-month study to determine the community health risk of Dalhart.

By AMY SCHNIEDERJAN

I had the honor of interviewing a delightful couple this week by the name of Les and Imogene Katen. The purpose of the interview was to find out more about a replica of the XIT Ranch Headquarters that Imogene created with plastic canvas embroidery. However, as is the custom of just about every interview I experience, I finished the interview with much more than the details about a beautiful 3D replica of the XIT Headquarters. I came away touched by the story of this remarkable couple from Upstate New York, who came to Dalhart because of the kindness of  people who live here, and who firmly believe – come wind, hail, drought, or dare we say it, rain – that Dalhart, Texas, is the best place to live in all the country.

By ASHLEY ELERICK

Matt Kimbrow has been singing and playing music since his early childhood. Now considered one of Texas’ hottest rising country music stars, Kimbrow has made a career of his natural born talents.
The singer/songwriter is based out of Fort Worth, and was discovered in 2009 after being heard in a local honky-tonk by Ryan Fussell, who founded Winding Road Music.

By ASHLEY ELERICK

The 2011 XIT Rodeo Queen candidates gathered at the XIT Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram dealership Tuesday, July 12, to promote this year’s rodeo and reunion, which will mark the event’s 75th anniversary.

By ASHLEY ELERICK

The July 20 hearing for Colorado State Senator Suzanne Williams will be rescheduled for a later date, according to information provided by Hartley County Justice of the Peace Edwyna Womble on Thursday, July 14.
Williams has been charged with four misdemeanor traffic violations for her involvement in the December 26 wreck, which resulted in the death of Dalhart native Brie Gomez.

By AARON GRAVES

Wednesday night, I carried a kitchen chair out on the front lawn and took a seat. I noticed my neighbors also venturing out. We did not want to miss it.
Rain. True, it was a “six inch rain,” rain drops that fell six inches apart. I stayed outside for half an hour and barely got wet. However, even if it only registered as a “trace” on the official report from the National Weather Service, it was refreshing.

By ASHLEY ELERICK

After several months of construction, the St. Anthony’s expansion is almost complete. According to St. Anthony’s building committee member and second grade teacher, Stacy Batenhorst, the construction project is expected to be completed in August, just in time for the new school year.

By WARREN SLAUGHTER
Special to the Texan

The water drainage woes for residents living near Jefferson Street and north of First Street came a little closer to being solved. After meeting in executive session during their regular meeting Tuesday to discuss the needed land purchase, the Dalhart City Council reconvened in open session and held the first reading of Resolution 2011-05. This resolution authorizes the Dalhart Economic Development Corporation (DEDC) to provide funding for land acquisition for Jefferson Street Drainage and to provide partial funding for base and paving on Jefferson Street. The second reading of this resolution will be held at the city council’s next meeting on August 9.

“Give me eight minutes”

By REV. JUDI WIEGMAN

Last night at church, Pastor Brown began his devotional in the fellowship hall with these words; “give me the next eight minutes, and I’ll be done.”  Then, he read Romans 12:1-2; “Dear brothers, I plead with you to give your bodies to God. Let them be a living sacrifice, holy—the kind He can accept.  When you think of what He has done for you, is this too much to ask? Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but be a new and different person with a fresh newness in all you do and think.  Then you will learn from your own experience how His ways will really satisfy you.”

By PAUL HENDERSON

The severe drought conditions in the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles and eastern New Mexico are, according to authorities, one of the worst, in terms of the depth and expanse of conditions, in decades.  Dan Byrd, meteorologist with the National Weather Service, says, “This is an unprecedented drought situation, in terms of how widespread it is and the depth of the drought. We haven’t seen anything like this for the state overall since the early 1900’s.”

By ASHLEY ELERICK

Texas Department of Transportation Highway Project Manager Ofelia Garbalena recently provided an update on the Dalhart Highway 87 project. According to Garbalena, 90 percent of the dirt work on the road base has been completed, and workers are currently in the process of laying hot-mix.

By ASHLEY ELERICK

Despite the fact that most Texans are in favor of legislation banning texting while driving, Gov. Rick Perry recently vetoed a bill that would outlaw texting while driving for all Texas residents, calling the legislation “a government effort to micromanage the behavior of adults."

By ASHLEY ELERICK

According to information provided by Dalhart Assistant City Manger James Stroud, there are several courses of action residents experiencing problems with trash in their alleys may take. While the City of Dalhart governs ordinances concerning city alleys, it is a homeowner’s responsibility to see that alleys are kept clean and free of debris as well.

By AMY SCHNIEDERJAN

Talk to anyone about Dalhart’s Main Street in the 30’s, 40’s, or 50’s, and they will almost always mention the De Soto Hotel in some part of their memories. It may seem strange to write an article on a building that is no longer standing; in fact, the building hasn’t been a fixture on Main Street for just about fifty years. But count back fifty years prior to the final razing of the De Soto in 1961, and you’ll find a premiere hotel in a burgeoning western town on the plains – a hotel that was the only sweet luxury between Fort Worth and Denver –and a place where cattle deals were made, fine dining was experienced, and the citizens of Dalhart socialized.