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Thursday, October 2, 2014
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Ladies roar out 2-0 as district starts
Volume 51, Number 24
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High Performance Art Page 1B
Springtown, Texas 76082
City Administrator Mark Krey to resign at year’s end By Natalie Gentry Springtown City Administrator Mark Krey tendered his resignation at the Sept. 25 city council meeting. Krey closed the meeting by providing Mayor Doug Hughes and each council member with a copy of the letter stating that his last day as a city employee will be Dec. 31. “It has been a challenging and rewarding time, however the end of my tenure in this position is rapidly approaching,” Krey wrote. “The Lord has been very generous with his blessing of LuAnn and me and as a result it is time for me to return to a field that I truly love as well as slowing down a bit. “This is not a decision I’ve made lightly,” Krey told the council. “It is
something my wife and I have been considering for the last year or so.” Krey informed the council that he will begin a career in private investigation. This transition will take him back to solving crimes as he did during his time in law enforcement. “Having three 30-year-old cases in Fort Worth solved recently has re-inspired me in that direction,” Krey said. Although I’ll be on the dark side this time. “My family and I love and appreciate this community and the people who make it what it is.” he wrote in his letter. “We have had and look forward to having many, many more wonderful times and life events here.” Krey’s time with the city is one of
progress and growth. Among the many projects Krey has coordinated are the completion of the new water treatment plant, the reconstruction and resurfacing of approximately half of the existing streets in the town, the completion of the Veteran’s Memorial Park, the creation of the Tabernacle Committee and phase one of the renovations to this key community asset, the construction of the SplashPad, and the completion of the new Parker County court annex building. From infrastructure to commerce to recreation, Krey has had a hand in the evolution of Springtown over the last seven years. Mayor Hughes spoke for the council as he responded to Krey’s announce-
Springtown City Administrator Mark Krey presented the council with his resignation at the Sept. 25 meeting. Photo by Natalie Gentry ment. “We truly appreciate [Krey’s] service to the city as both police chief and city administrator for a number of years,” Hughes said. “I know ev-
eryone on the council will miss [him]. And we thank him for all of his work. “The time he has been here has been wonderful and these are going to be some big shoes to fill.”
Springtown ISD hosting local band competition Eight high schools coming here Oct. 4
The Sound of Springtown will host its first-ever band competition Oct. 4 at Porcupine Stadium. Photo by Mark K. Campbell
by mark k. campbell The First Annual Sound of Springtown Marching Showcase kicks off at 1:25 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 4 at Porcupine Stadium. J.B. Perry, Springtown ISD director of fine arts/ UIL, told the Optimist Club that he hopes this gathering of eight schools will be the first of many competitions SHS will host. “Hopefully, it will begin a tradition,” Perry said. “We’re off to a good start.” The eight bands that will perform their UIL state programs include Glen Rose (which will begin the competition), Godley, Alvarado, Stephenville, Castleberry, Royce City, and Brewer. Perry said each performance will be viewed by a trio of judges. One will come down and give each school a “clinic” for five minutes. “For many bands,” Perry said, “this will be their first performance under pressure of an audience and judges.” Not only will each band receive judges’ critiques, but all will receive a video of their performance and a rating. “The critique is the main thing,” Perry said. Bands will play until 5 p.m. then will return for the finals at 7 p.m. A rating of 1 through 5 will be issued; a 1 is a first division accolade. In the evening competition, the bands will be vying head-to-head in a point system. Perry said the Sound of Springtown Marching Showcase has attracted three quality judges. All have prior UIL experience: Jim McDaniel from Frisco ISD, Jonathan Hooper of Tarleton State University, and Greg McWilliams from Waller High School. “It’s going to be some good entertainment,” Per-
ry said. Because Springtown is the host, the Sound of Springtown will perform but will not be in competition with the other schools. The event is actually “three competitions in one,” Perry said. Aside from the bands, schools’ drumlines will vie at old Porcupine Stadium – playing 10 minute programs – and colorguards will compete at the middle school. The event is a fundraiser for the band program, he said. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for children. Concessions are also going to the SISD band program. The Sound of Springtown is in a state competition year. SOS will take to the field in Glen Rose the next week before returning to the same venue to attempt to qualify for state. If SOS qualifies with a Division 1 rating, the next stop is the Area round in Cedar Park in the Leander ISD in Central Texas. Perry said 20-24 bands will be in contention there. The top 10 advance to the finals with the best “three or four” moving on to state for the two-day battle in the Alamodome in San Antonio Nov. 3-4. SOS has reached the state level in 2004, 2006, and 2012. “The kids are excited about going back,” Perry said. “They want to keep that record up.” He noted that the group practices hard, meeting at 6:45 a.m. to work. SOS, around 130 members strong, will perform at halftime of this week’s football game against Brownwood, expected to be a large crowd. Perry said the entire SISD band program from grades 6-12 is between 450 and 500 students.
Parker County pair arrested for theft There’s an app for that By Natalie Gentry A Parker County woman and man are facing multiple charges after being arrested Sept. 24 by Parker County Sheriff’s deputies. Mary Daniels and Bowie Farr have been charged with theft of materials/ copper wiring, theft of property, and burglary of a building. Sheriff’s deputies arrested the pair after responding to a call regarding a person with a weapon. A red 2001 Chevrolet Impala was spotted near a barn located in the 1700 block of McVoid Road in Springtown by a person arriving for work at approximately 9:30 a.m. that morning. He told authorities he did not recognize the vehicle. According to the Parker County Sheriff’s Office, when the property owner arrived at the location, he discovered an unknown female squatting behind the barn, while an unknown male attempted to reach the Impala. The property owner reportedly dialed 9-1-1 and held the trespassers at gunpoint until law enforcement arrived.
Mary Daniels
Bowie Farr
Deputies determined that Daniels and Farr were in the process of stealing approximately $2,000 worth of property, including a fence charger, propane regulator, trailer ramp, metal pipe, and roughly 300 feet of copper wire. When questioned by deputies, Farr said he had permission to be on the
property and to retrieve the materials. Deputies were able to quickly discredit the statement. It was later discovered that both Farr and Daniels had entered the home and taken copper. Additional charges of burglary of a habitation – a second degree felony – were filed against both suspects.
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by Natalie Gentry It’s going to get a little more difficult for Springtown students to hide bad grades from their parents, because Springtown Independent School District (SISD) launched its new and free app at the beginning of the school year. Before the app, some components of students’ profiles have been available online for parents’ viewing through systems such as Skyward and My School Bucks; and the app isn’t meant to replace these components. The app is designed to put a large amount of information at parents’ fingertips, including student’s grades, cafeteria account balances, and more. The app also reads news shared on SISD’s Facebook pages and RSS feeds. It’s an information hub for all those invested in Springtown’s schools. Numerous schools and districts throughout the country are beginning to offer similar apps as a way of connecting parents to schools. Sections in the app include: news, sports, calendar, notifications, Facebook, Twitter, superintendent, directory, settings, Skyward, and My School Bucks.
The smartphone app is available for both Android and iPhone platforms and is customizable to each student. Parents and guardians are given individual login identifications and passwords and can opt to receive news and notifications from the schools their children attend. The service is free for download.
Springtown ISD now offers a free app to help parents and community members keep connected to school news. The app is available for both iPhone and Android operating systems.
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