Local youths place well in Range, Wool & Mohair judging contest
by Anthony Munoz,
County Extension Agent
You couldn’t have asked for a better day to have a contest than this past Saturday for the Eldorado Divide Range, Wool, & Mohair Contest. The numbers were a little down from previous years; however, the competition was still fierce. Range and Wool judgers came from around the areas to participate in the range and plant identification portion in the morning, while others arrived in the afternoon for the wool and mohair judging. Participating in this year’s contests were Dalton Buchholz, Franklin Buchholz, West Ramon, Garet Swinford, Charli Swinford, Samantha Lozano, Jackie Lozano, Andrea Meador, Ivie Kate Mynatt, Emmie Grace Mynatt, and Austin Albin.
The range and plant identification portion of the contest was held out at the Whitten Family Partnership Ranch just west of town. There participants had to evaluate ecological sites and develop management decisions, as well as assess plotted range health and identify 20 different plant species. Competing as a senior team were Dalton Buchholz, West Ramon, Garet Swinford, and Charli Swinford. In the intermediate division we had Franklin Buchholz and Austin Albin competing as individuals. Andrea Meador, Jacquelynn Lozano, and Samantha Lozano made up the junior team. The senior team wound up in the 3rd place with a score of 668. The junior team came in 2nd place with a score of 407 right behind the Kendall County team. Placing individually in the intermediate division was Franklin Buchholz with a score of 298, while Andrea Meador came in 3rd place in the junior division with a score of 174.
The District 7 Range Contest is held in conjunction with the Eldorado Divide Contest. Tabulated scores are evaluated for both contests. The top two senior teams qualify for the state contest that will be held in Lubbock this summer. The Schleicher County senior team won 1st place with Garet Swinford placing 1st individually, Dalton Buchholz 2nd, Charli Swinford 3rd, and West Ramon 4th. In the junior division Franklin Buchholz placed 1st, Andrea Meador placed 2nd, Austin Albin placed 3rd, Samantha Lozano placed 4th, and Jacquelynn Lozano placed 5th.
The wool/mohair contest included the judging of 2 wool classes, 2 mohair classes, a 20 mohair fleece rail, and a 20 wool fleece rail. The Schleicher County senior team made up of Dalton Buchholz, West Ramon, Ivie Kate Mynatt, and Garet Swinford placed 2nd in both wool and mohair with scores of 953 and 987. Franklin Buchholz placed 2nd in the intermediate wool division with a score of 312. Emmie Grace Mynatt had an awesome contest by placing 1st place in both the wool and mohair contests.
LCRA pursues eminent domain claim against three local properties
 Work crews are busy erecting steel lattice towers that will support 345-kilovolt electric transmission lines extending southwest from the Big Hill station, some 13 miles north of Eldorado on CR 431, to a station near Comfort in Kendall County. From there, power generated by wind farms across West Texas will be connected to the state power grid.
Abilene firm selected to build new county swimming pool
The new county swimming pool complex is a step closer to being built.
The Schleicher County Commissioners Court met Thursday, May 3, 2012, to review construction bids from five companies with engineer Tom Brown of Naismith Engineering.
Ultimately, Alantis Aquatic Group of Abilene was awarded the bid to build the pool . The company’s winning bid came in at $1,173,783.
As part of its bid, Alantis sought an extra 60 days to complete the project, pushing the completion date back to March 30, 2013. In return for the extension, Atlantis agreed to install a SplashTacular Slide which is approximately one-third larger than the slide previously selected for the project. The company will also provide a safety pool cover, water feature systems including an “Under-brella,” which were included in the bid.
The county agreed to purchase and haul soil and aggregate material needed for the project.
It was noted that Atlantis employs the “shotcrete” method of constructing pool walls in which a mixture of concrete and other material are sprayed onto the pool walls.
A final contract for the project will by signed by the commissioners in a few weeks, allowing work to begin.
As yet, no decision has been made regarding construction of a pool house. The commissioners are considering allowing the county to act as its own general contractor on that portion of the job.
Meanwhile, Tom Brown advises the county can proceed with construction of the park project surrounding the pool facility.
Schleicher County received $500,000 in grant funds from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and issued a bond to help fund the remainder of the pool/park project.
County Judge Charlie Bradley presided over last Thursday’s meeting with Commissioners Matt Brown, Kirk Griffin, Johnny Mayo and Lynn Meador in attendance.
The next meeting of the Schleicher County Commissioners Court is slated for 9 a.m. on Monday, May 14, 2012 in the first-floor meeting room of the county courthouse.
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4-Hers shine at District 7 Round Up
 by Anthony Munoz County Extension Agent
The 23 counties of the West Central Extension District had over 100 youth participate in the District 7 4-H Round-Up. The Round-Up was held at the West Texas Training Center in San Angelo on Saturday, May 5. Those individuals or teams who placed first and second in Educational Presentations, Share-the-Fun, or Swine Skill-a-thon competitions, ages 14-19, will have the right to represent the district in the State 4-H Round-Up held in Lubbock on June 11-14.
Schleicher County was well represented at the contest with 11 youth participating. In the Junior Division of Educational Presentations, Codee Meador and Kiely Johnson brought home 2nd place in the Health category. In the Clothing & Textiles category, Logan Moore and Ashlyn Porter came in 2nd place. Placing 1st and receiving Division Champion honors were Andrea Meador and Benjamin McGee with their Open/Family Consumer Sciences category skit of “Pumping Iron with Popeye”.
In the Fashion Show event, senior 4-Her Ivie-Kate Mynatt showcased her outfit in the Construction Casual category which she received 1st place with. In the natural fibers cotton category she received 3rd place. Also competing in the fashion show was Ashby Ragsdale. Ragsdale received a 3rd place in the Construction Casual category with her dress. In the natural fibers wool category she received 1st place.
Both Mynatt and Ragsdale will be showcasing their outfits at the state competition. Senior 4-Her Kairos McCollum did a terrific job in the Share-the-Fun Vocal category in which she placed 4th with her song “So Small”.
There was also a Range & Pasture Grass Identification Division in which Logan Moore, Andrea Meador, Jacquelyn Lozano, and Samantha Lozano participated in. The team received 1st place while individually Logan Moore came in 1st, Andrea Meador in 2nd, Samantha Lozano in 3rd, and Jacquelyn Lozano in 4th. All of these participants did a fantastic job this year and represented Schleicher County 4-H very well.
Educational programs of the Texas AgriLife Extension Service are open to all citizens without regard to race, color, sex, disability, religion, age, or national origin. Individuals with disabilities who require an auxiliary aid, service or accommodation in order to participate in a meeting or program are encouraged to contact the Schleicher County AgriLife Extension office at (325) 853-2132.
Do you know where to cast your primary ballot?
 Primary voting in Texas is happening later than normal due to the now resolved battle over the state’s redistricting plan.
Early Voting begins May 14th in the Republican and Democratic Primaries at the Schleicher County Memorial Building.
County Election Administrator Brenda Mayfield notes that Early Voting will continue through May 25th.
Election Day for the two primaries is Tuesday, May 29, 2012.
There are a few changes this year in the county’s polling places. Those polling places are:
• Precinct #1 Methodist Church Education Building
• Precinct #2 Memorial Building
• Precinct #3 Catholic Church Head Start Building
• Precinct #4 Schleicher County ISD/AEP Building
Locally, there are no contested races as County Attorney Clint Griffin, Tax Assessor-Collector Jeanne Snelson and County Commissioners Johnny Mayo in Precinct #1 & Kirk Griffin in Precinct #3 are running on the Democratic ticket.
Sheriff David Doran is running on the Republican ticket.
President Obama has no serious challenger on the Democratic ticket and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has effectively secured the Republican nomination for president, leaving little question about the top of either party’s ballot.
Perhaps the race drawing the most interest in Schleicher County and the Concho Valley is for 51st District Attorney where Assistant D.A. Allison Palmer is facing San Angelo attorneys Nathan Butler and Andrew Graves in the Republican Primary. There is no Democratic candidate for the office.
Likewise, incumbent State Representative Harvey Hilderbran is being challenged by Cary Wise in the Republican Primary while no Democrat filed for the office.
Evidence from YFZ Ranch jump starts new investigations in Utah
County Attorney Brock Belnap of Washington County, Utah, told reporters Monday that his office is conducting a number of criminal investigations in and around Hildale, UT, the long-time headquarters of the Warren Jeffs’ FLDS Church.
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