Hereford brand 04 01 17

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HerefordBRAND.com

| Saturday,

April 1, 2017 | Printed on recycled paper

APRIL FOOLS' DAY

Hereford BRAND Volume 116 | Number 79 WHAT'S INSIDE

Proudly Serving The High Plains Since 1901

Hereford Sports & Wellness facility gets name, boost From Staff Reports

Humane Society open house Page 6A

Lady Whitefaces play long ball Page 1B

Bowl for Kids Sake another big hit Page 6B

FORECAST

Today

Mostly Sunny High: 54º Low: 36º Sunrise: 7:35 a.m. Sunset: 8:11 p.m. Wind: NNE 16 MPH Precipitation: 20%

Sunday

AM Clouds/PM Sun High: 64º Low: 36º Sunrise: 7:34 a.m. Sunset: 8:12 p.m. Wind: NNW 11 MPH Precipitation: 10%

Monday

Sunny High: 75º Low: 41º Sunrise: 7:33 a.m. Sunset: 8:12 p.m. Wind: W 14 MPH Precipitation: 10%

HEREFORD HISTORY 20 years ago • April 1, 1997

Isaac Walker and Johnathan Keenan dazzled fans and foes alike this past season as members of the Whitefaces. The two combined to help carry the HHS program to its goal of making State playoffs for the second time in three years.

INDEX

© 2017 Hereford BRAND A division of Roberts Publishing Group

10 pages | $1.00

In the first meeting since its official beginning, the Hereford Sports & Wellness (HSW) Board of Directors emerged with a pair of announcements concerning its facility. HSW officially came to be on March 1 when Hereford and Vicinity YMCA and Hereford Sportsplex merged its their operations and offerings. The announcements from the March 21 board meeting had to do with the HSW facility at 500 E. 15th

St. – the former YMCA building. Arguably the most notable of the announcements was a $100,000 gift made to HSW by Garth and Susie Merrick. “We are extremely excited to be able to share this news with the community,” HSW president and CEO Jimmy Lackey said. “The Merricks have been generous supporters of the Hereford community for many years, and we are so grateful for their willingness to help further our initiatives at this time.” Lackey added the funds will be

used to aid planned renovations and maintenance at the 15th Street facility. In making the donation, the Merricks challenged other businesses and individuals to add to it to provide additional funding for planned upgrades at the former YMCA building. In addition to receiving funds for the building, the board announced a name to be put on it. Board members gave unanimous approval to naming the facility the Weldon Knabe Activities Center in

honor of former, longtime YMCA executive director Weldon Knabe. “To be able to honor Weldon in this process for his years of service to the organization is just wonderful and most appropriate,” Lackey said. HSW board chair Cindy Simons, the most recent former executive director of the Y, met with Knabe earlier this month to discuss the idea. As she said, true to his way, Knabe suggested the building be named in

Burn ban lifted

Bond meeting outdoes 2015’s

By John Carson BRAND Managing Editor

By John Carson BRAND Managing Editor

Hereford Independent School District (HISD) officials were overjoyed with every aspect of Thursday’s public meeting about its upcoming $45 million bond issue. The meeting – held at Amarillo College – was the first of three HISD will host to provide information and answer questions concerning the bond. “I thought it went well,” HISD Superintendent Sheri Blankenship said. “I was pleased with the turnout. I really appreciate the public attending to be informed. “I was very pleased with the questions that were asked. People are seeking information to be informed.” Blankenship said attendance at Thursday’s meeting was “triple” the “combined attendance” of the public meetings HISD held prior to its failed 2015 bond attempt. After opening the gathering by giving a brief overview and details of the current bond issues’ four segments – safety and security, an early childhood

PLEASE SEE HSW | 6A

HISD Superintendent Sheri Blankenship presents details of and the reasons behind the individual segments of a called $45 million bond during Thursday’s first public meeting on the issue. The crux of Blankenship’s message was encouraging people to register to vote and go vote, but vote informed. Voters will have their say on the bond in a Saturday, May 6 election. BRAND/John Carson development center, activity centers at all five HISD elementary schools, and a

new dressing and trainers’ learning facility – Blankenship opened the floor for

questions. PLEASE SEE BOND | 2A

Two days of mid-week rain provided more than enough moisture for officials to relieve the county’s burn ban. Deaf Smith County Judge D.J. Wagner announced Wednesday morning that the burn ban was lifted until further notice. “We had a lot of moisture fall this week,” Wagner said. “There was plenty enough moisture to lift the ban until further notice.” The county received its first significant rainfall of the spring on Tuesday and Wednesday when as much at 3 inches of rain fell. Hereford Assistant City Manager Steve Bartels reported that 2.25 inches of rain were recorded at city hall over the two-day span, but quickly added that rainfall at other collection sites around town saw as much as 3 inches reported. While welcome relief across the board, Hereford Fire Marshall and Emergency Management PLEASE SEE BAN | 4A

Eytchesons to begin ‘next chapter’ By John Carson BRAND Managing Editor

It was virtually 12 years to the day that Dan and Sharon Eytcheson came and went from Hereford Heritage Funeral Home. Community stalwarts in several ways since assuming ownership on April 1, 2005, the Eytchesons officially closed on the sale of their business to Steven and Diane Vredeveld of Grand Rapids, Mich., at 5 p.m., Thursday. “We are retiring,” Dan said Friday morning. “It was time to pass the torch. We wanted to retire and move onto the next chapter of our lives.” While news of the sale might come as a surprise to many, it was something that has been in the works for several years. The impetus, according to Dan, was the death of Sharon’s brother four years ago. “Being in this business, you know how fragile life is,” Dan said. “We wanted to spend more time with family while we all are still healthy.” Admitting they could have remained at Hereford Heritage “until we dropped,” Sha-

ron added their departure is “bittersweet.” “It was a God-thing that brought us here,” she said, “and I feel it is a God-thing for the people taking over. We’re sure the Vredevelds will carry on the tradition of service and caring established at Hereford Heritage.” While desiring to move toward retirement for several years, the current sale has been an approximate four-month process that culminated with Thursday’s closing. Although the new owners have technically assumed the reins at Hereford Heritage, Dan will provide assistance over the next four months to introduce the Vredevelds into their new community and assist with the transition of ownership. “We have loved serving families and the Lord in Hereford,” Dan said. “But it was time to move on. “Our biggest regret is leaving the community and people we love behind.” The Eytchesons, who have a combined 60 years experience in their industry – Dan 35 years and Sharon 25 – plan on spending most of their retirement traveling and visiting family out of a home base in southern Washington.

Sharon and Dan Eytcheson have announced their retirement and sold Hereford Heritage Funeral Home to Steven and Diane Vredeveld, who will be relocating to Hereford from Grand Rapids, Mich. Contributed photo


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