FISHING ORANGE COUNTY
Sports
OUTDOORS
Kaz’s Korner
Capt. Chuck Uzzle
Commentary
Capt. Dickie Colburn Page 1B
Page 3B
Caroline Brewton
Hunting & Fishing
Feature Columnist For The Record Page 2A
Page 4B
H The Home Of Seattle Seahawk Earl Thomas III H
County Record
TheRecordLive.com
Vol. 56 No. 46
The Community Newspaper of Orange, Texas
Week of Wednesday, March 4, 2015
Orange County represented in Austin lorem property taxes. Legislators said it’s been a good and busy session in the House and Senate and the budget is in such condition where they can some things they haven’t been able to before. Some met with the wind-
storm insurance committee who will put forth a budget in a couple of weeks. John Barton, former district engineer for the Texas Department of Transportation in Beaumont and who is now deputy director of public transportation for Tx-
DOT in Austin, spoke on state transportation and safety matters. “He’s in a position to help the area,” Fillyaw said. Tracy Byrd of Beaumont provided entertainment at the Golden Triangle evening event
Trash-Off volunteers work Sabine . . .
while Rich Courville, also of Beaumont, catered gumbo and jambalaya. “There was a good turnout for our function on Monday night,” Fillyaw said. “We had governmental officers attend. It was a really good effort. “It definitely makes and impression with these kind of numbers (in attendance). It helps our efforts.”
A group shot of attendees at the Golden Triangle Days in Austin 2015. This session had more than 350 in attendance which is the largest representation every from the Golden Triangle. Those attending said it was a very productive session.
David Ball
For The Record
The Golden Triangle area was well represented at this week’s Golden Triangle Days in Austin 2015- very well represented. Bobby Fillyaw, director of the Orange County Economic Development Corporation and GTDA attendee said this session had the largest attendance
ever, more than 350, this time around. Ida Schossow, director of the Greater Orange Area Chamber of Commerce and attendee, said the session was a very productive one. Fillyaw said attendees spent time with State Rep. Dade Phelan, State Sen. Robert Nichols, State Rep. Joe Deshotel and State Sen. Brandon Creighton and learned about the budget process, health care issues, and plans to reduce school ad va-
Katie Fusilier Rather
Rather represents LSC-O during assessment conference Staff Report
For The Record
There was trash to be found at the 20th Annual Community Trash-Off held on the morning of February 28 at the City of Orange Boat Ramp. The event was presented by Invista and sponsored by Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center. There was perhaps more of a sense of urgency this year to clean up the Sabine River due to the Bassmasters Elite Tournament to be held there on March 1922. Many volunteers showed up on a chilly Saturday morning to do the work. Pizza from Papa John’s, Pizza Hut, Little Caesar and Mazzio’s was also served to the volunteers. RECORD PHOTO: David Ball
Home sales are going steady in Orange County such as this new start in Bridge City. Existing homes are selling well too. In fact, there’s a need in some markets for new mid-range homes to be built. RECORD PHOTO: David Ball
Economic Development
Home Sales Healthy In Orange County David Ball
For The Record
It was reported last year in the The Record that many residents were moving to the Orangefield area. Now Orangefield has some company as home sales are steady in Bridge City and in Mauriceville, according to real estate agents. Wilma Horner, a broker with Re/Max, said sales in Bridge City have been doing well. She attributes the success to favorable interest rates and people who have a desire to live there. “They want to move here because of the school district, and that it’s a good communi-
ty,” she said. “They’re coming from everywhere to move here and they’re moving all around the area.” Horner believes the housing market has rebounded nicely from a small slump from five years ago. She added, however, that lesson has taught her to never take anything for granted. In addition to residents moving into existing homes, Horner said there are also new homes being built in the county. Buyers are from a wide range of occupations as well. “It’s a great community and we welcome anyone. Any of HOME SALES Page 3A
The 2015 winners of the school-level competition held March 1 at Little Cypress-Mauriceville High School (Left to Right): Connor Alexander: 2nd place, Interpretive Reading; 1st place Vincent Hale, Interpretive Reading; Spencer Johns: 1st place, Declamation; Aaron Rose: 2nd place, Declamation.
Johns, Hale take first in Stark reading contest Staff Report
For The Record
Little Cypress-Mauriceville High School students Spencer Johns and Vincent Hale earned first place in Declamation and Interpretive Reading, respectively, at the school-lev-
el finals of the 111th Miriam Lutcher Stark Contest in Reading and Declamation, a scholarship program sponsored by the Nelda C. and H.J. Lutcher Stark Foundation. On Sunday, March 1, Little Cypress-Mauriceville High School students competed in
the local-level contest, which was coordinated by Melanie Claybar, Little Cypress-Mauriceville High School teacher and school director for the Stark Reading Contest. Johns won first place in Declamation STARK READING Page 2A
Katie Fusilier Rather, Director of Institutional Effectiveness at Lamar State College Orange (LSC-O), recently had the opportunity to be a presenter at the 15th Annual Texas A&M Assessment Conference. In response to the conference theme “Celebrating Fifteen Years,” Rather and copresenter Dr. Beth Wuest, Associate Vice President of Institutional Effectiveness at Texas State University, San Marcos, developed their poster presentation to focus on the “Top 15 Tips for Creating a Culture of Assessment.” Attendees of the conference were invited to reflect on the current state and future of higher education and accountability during the Feb. 23 presentation. The conference also served as an opportunity for the exchange of ideas and interaction among colleagues regarding their experiences with assessment at their institutions. Rather’s presentation and attendance at the conference garnered insight and new knowledge of assessment methods and techniques to positively affect the assessment and continuous improvement efforts at LSC-O. Texas A&M University began hosting the Annual Assessment Conference in 2000 to gather and discuss assessment practices. Since then, the conference has grown beyond a small, regional conference to hosting over 600 attendees each year and welcoming participants from across the United States and around the world.