The Businesses and People Who Back ORWFD
More Stuff about
Old River-Winfree
Old River-Winfree Community News
March 2009
March 28, 2009
Did you know this was happening in Texas?
Judge Rules 'Under God' May Stay in Texas Pledge of Allegiance
Dallas — A federal judge has dismissed the claims of a parent who wanted to remove the words "under God" from the Texas pledge of allegiance recited each morning by public schoolchildren.
U.S. District Judge Ed Kinkeade ruled Thursday the state pledge may continue to reference God because the national pledge and four other states reference God or divine grace in their pledge, The Dallas Morning News reported Friday.
"A voluntary recitation of the Texas Pledge of Allegiance simply does not coerce students in the same way a school-sponsored prayer might," Kinkeade wrote in his opinion.
David Croft had argued that inserting the words were unconstitutional and amounted to a violation of separation of church and state. He and his wife, Shannon, sued on behalf of their three children who are enrolled at the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District. Previously, the Crofts unsuccessfully sued after an elementary teacher told one of their children to keep quiet because a minute for silence after the pledge was a "time for prayer."
A provision that took effect September 2003 changed the way schools start their days in Texas. Children are now allowed to "reflect, pray, meditate or engage in any other silent activities" for one minute after the state and national pledges of allegiance have been recited. A federal appeals court ruled last week that the law is constitutional.
March 24, 2009
Mayor, Joe Landry, City Secretary, Linda Murphy, City Councilwoman, Colleen Fontenot, and Spencer Carnes of Carnes Engineering, traveled to Anahuac to attend Commissioner's Court today. They represented Old River-Winfree City Government in regards to the distributions of funds for Hurricane Ike relief.
City of
City of
City of
These communities will be fully responsible for
the allocation they receive and will contract directly with ORCA for the
projects within their incorporated jurisdiction.
They will submit an application directly to ORCA for projects
they have chosen. They will
select their own design engineer and grant consultant if they desire.
They will be responsible for the administration and expenditure
of funds to insure of conformance to CDBG requirements.
The City of Beach City
and the City of
| Public Entity | Project Costs | % of Total Costs |
| City of Anahuac | $10,450,000.00 | 12.99% |
| City of Beach City | $1,700,000.00 | 2.11% |
| City of Cove | $1,259,000.00 | 1.57% |
| City of Mont Belvieu | $6,711,264.00 | 8.34% |
| City of Old River | $4,090,000.00 | 5.08% |
| TBCD | $15,931,478.00 | 19.80% |
| CLCND | $13,314,108.00 | 16.55% |
| Chambers Hospital | $2,500,000.00 | 3.11% |
| $1,435,000.00 | 1.78% | |
| Chambers County | $23,050,000.00 | 28.65% |
| Total | $80,440,850.00 |
| Chambers County | $ 18,534,655.00 |
| 6,000,000.00 | |
| CLCND | 6,000,000.00 |
| CC Hosp. Dist. #1 | 2,500,000.00 |
| Winnie Hosp. Dist. | 1,435,000.00 |
|
City of |
6,000,000.00 |
|
City of |
4,071,375.00 |
|
City of |
2,479,926.00 |
|
City of |
1,030,048.00 |
|
City of |
766,434.00 |
| Total | 48,817,448.00 |
Should a city not use
all of the allocation provided, those funds will return to the
March 17, 2009
Sheriff Joe LaRive Issues Appeal to
Citizens in Fight Against Crime
Responding to the increased number of citizens wanting to assist law enforcement officials and build a stronger partnership in the fight against crime, Sheriff Joe LaRive today announced that Chambers County Citizens are being invited to become Associate Members of the Sheriffs’ Association of Texas.
Membership invitations will go out in the mail over the next several weeks. Associate Member funding allows the Sheriffs’ Association of Texas to provide critical training, technical resources, and legislative support on key criminal justice issues to law enforcement officers across the state.
In addition, dues will be used to support crime prevention and awareness programs, promote public safety, fight drug abuse, provide addition training for sheriffs and their deputies, and provide scholarships for children of law enforcement officers.
Contributions to the Sheriffs’ Association of Texas are tax-deductible. “The Associate Membership Drive helps provide the funding which is vital to our mission of making our communities safer places to live, work and play,” said Sheriff LaRive.
The Associate Membership Program was created to provide citizens with an opportunity to lend their support to more effective law enforcement and to better help local Sheriffs protect the lives and property of citizens.
“During these economic times, the need for building stronger public-private law enforcement partnerships continues to escalate, and programs such as this continue to grow in importance,” said Sheriff LaRive. “I encourage every citizen receiving a membership appeal to consider joining forces with us by becoming an Associate Member. It is a valuable investment in our future.”
Citizens not receiving a membership appeal or desiring more information can contact the Sheriffs’ Association of Texas at:
Founded in 1874, the Sheriffs’ Association of Texas is a 501(c)(3) non-profit professional and educational organization dedicated to the preservation of peace and the protection of the lives and property of the citizens of Texas. Mr. Steve M. Westbrook serves as the Executive Director. Headquarters are located in Austin, Texas. The Sheriffs’ Association of Texas does not make solicitations by telephone. If you receive a phone call from someone who uses the Sheriffs’ Association of Texas name, please report it to your local Sheriff or County/District Attorney.
March 15, 2009
Chambers County Sheriff's Deputy Nacheal Bonin has been selected as the new D.A.R.E. Officer for the school districts in Chambers County. Deputy Bonin is a life-long resident of Chambers County. She and her husband, Michael, have 3 children. Deputy Bonin recently attended a 2 week school at the Tennessee Highway Patrol D.A.R.E. Training Center in Nashville, Tennessee.
She is now certified to teach D.A.R.E. and work as a school resource officer. Deputy Bonin will be teaching D.A.R.E. at Barbers Hill, Anahuac and East Chambers. Pictured with Deputy Bonin are Chambers County District Attorney Cheryl Lieck and Chambers County Sheriff Joe LaRive, both big supporters of the program. Ms. Lieck's office recently made a generous donation to the Chambers County D.A.R.E. Organization to help jump start the program, which operates off of charitable contributions.
The Chambers County Deputies Association is sponsoring its first annual trail ride for Chambers County D.A.R.E., which has already caught the attention of D.A.R.E. Officials at the state level. "D.A.R.E. a Deputy to Ride Across Chambers County" will leave Winnie on Friday, April 17, 2009, and arrive in Mont Belvieu on Saturday, April 18, 2009. Everyone is invited to join in on the festivities at the Chambers County West Annex on Eagle Drive, beginning at noon that Saturday. So far, over $10,000.00 has been donated to this year's Chambers County D.A.R.E..
Donations may be mailed to Chambers County D.A.R.E., P O Box 998, Anahuac, Texas, 77514.
Want to advertize your garage sale for free? Just email all the particulars, and if you are a resident of Old River-Winfree, it will be put on the community calendar. We are all in this together and whatever it takes to help us and our families survive, we will help! Just e-mail info@orwfoundersday.com for information or to submit your event.
Join "Neighborhood Watch". No meetings, just communication. Report drug activity, underage drinking, four wheelers. Want to sign up? E-mail info@orwfoundersday.com
The Sheriff's Department's number to report the above is 409-267-8318. This is not the emergency number "911". Your call is anonymous. You don't have to put up with drugs, underage drinking, speeding, and 4 wheelers on your street. These are all against the law. Report it.
Through the efforts of the City Office in the
Hurricane Ike aftermath and applying for grant monies it led to J & S
Waste Water Treatment Plant on Woodland Lane in Woodland Acres being
sited with 8 Violations including sludge being pumped onto the ground at
the wastewater treatment plant.
In an e-mail written to the City Office, the Water
Quality Team Leader of the
Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality
conducted a compliance investigation
at the Woodland Acres wastewater treatment plant on February 11, 2009.
The investigation report is not complete at this time but documented was
approximately eight violations causing J & S to actively work on
resolving those violations. A finalized investigation report will be
sent to the City Office as soon as it is complete.
Old River-Winfree City Council and the Mayor's office are actively
working with Chambers County to obtain grant monies from $70 million HUD
allocations. There will be in the near future a forum or Town Hall
Meeting by the County for informational purposes. Old
River-Winfree citizens will be able to gather information on how to
apply for these funds through the County. More information will
appear on this page as it is known.
The funding is part of a package
of more than $6 billion Congress appropriated last year to help areas
affected by hurricanes, floods and other natural disasters in 2008.
Of Texas' $1.3 billion share, $814 million has been given to the
Houston-Galveston Area Council, representing local governments from 13
counties along the Gulf Coast. Galveston is getting more than $267
million of that, the largest chunk.
Others receiving relief funds are:
• The rest of Galveston County: $165.8 million.
• Harris County, excluding Houston: 140.7 million.
• Houston: $109 million.
• Chambers County: $69.7 million.
The area council set aside monies for the other counties under the
umbrella of the H-GAC. The remaining counties and the cities within them
must identify eligible housing and non-housing projects that conform to
CDBG guidelines before receiving funds.
Originally, the H-GAC proposed giving Galveston about $180 million and Houston $172 million. Harris County would have received about $86 million. The remaining $140 million would have been on a competitive basis.
County Judge
Jimmy Sylvia spoke out against the original proposal stating Houston
would be getting too large a share of the disaster funding.
A small portion of grant money is left for
community or county development.
Old River-Winfree City Council sent to the county a prioritized list of
municipal needs. The top priority on the List is the Caney Creek
Drainage Project engineered by Spencer Carnes of the Carnes Engineering
Firm. The Council is working with the County Grant Writer to
solicit grant monies to fund the project.
If you have any questions, please call the City Office at 281-385-1735.