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Dickie Colburn: Fishing See Page 6B Cooking With Katherine See Page 8A
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Record TheRecordLive.com
Vol. 51 No. 29 Week of Wednesday, October 26, 2011
The Penny Record of Bridge City and Orangefield • Founded 1960
Bayou Bowl Scholarship Banquet, Mon. Nicole Gibbs
For The Record
Spaghetti is on the menu when Cardinals and Bobcats dine together for the Bayou Bowl Scholarship Banquet hosted by the Bridge City Chamber of Commerce, Monday, Oct. 31. The banquet is a community event that raises scholarship money for a Bridge City and Orangefield senior athelete. The guest speaker will be Mike Defee, longtime area football referee. Mike is currently calling games in the Big 12 Conference. It is the third year that the chamber has hosted the banquet to be held at the Orangefield Elementary cafeteria at 7 p.m. Tickets are $12 each and
can be purchased at a Bette’s Gift Shop, located at 2011 Texas Avenue in Bridge City, or Trophies by Lee, located at MCINNIS 9123 Stonewood in Orangefield. Nominees for the scholarships are chosen based on good sportsmanship on and off the field. Raffle tickets for footballs that have been autographed by each football team will be sold at the next home game. The proceeds will be applied toward the scholarships. Please find the tables where the tickets will be sold and participate in this fundraiser. The footballs will be given away at the
Bayou Bowl Banquet. “The banquet is designed to bring our communities together for an evening of levity and goodwill,” said McInnis. “At the same time we are raising money for scholarships and showing our appreciation and recognition to our local athletic programs.”
The chamber awards two $1,000 scholarships from the banquet. Recipients for 2010 were Bridge City lineman Shane Stankus and Orangefield quarterback Quinton Evans. A friendly rivalry surrounds the Bayou Bowl that began in 2000 when UIL district re-
alignment re-assigned Bridge City from Class-4A to Class3A. The change pitted the Cardinals with district repercussions against the neighboring Orangefield Bobcats. The banquet begins a week of Bayou Bowl activities that has become a tradition among high school football fans in
the annual get-together. The finale comes on Friday, Nov. 4 when the Bridge City-Orangefield Rotary Club awards the Buzzie Gunn Trophy immediately following the game. The Penny Record newspaper came up with the gameBAYOU BOWL PAGE 3A
Mosquitoes have Orange County ‘under siege’ Penny Leleux
For The Record
Although mosquitoes were not on the agenda Monday, Patrick Beebe of Orange County mosquito control spoke on behalf of a resident, Poland Guillot, when the court opened for discussion items not on the agenda. “He made me promise I would come to the court and ask a question, so I told him I would. His question was due to the present mosquito situation which is extremely bad. Everyone in this room knows that,” said Beebe. “He wanted to know if I or this court could ask that a federal judge waive the restrictions on the use of residual materials used by mosquito control operations or public health programs.” After a short discussion, Thibodeaux told Beebe if Guillot called again, tell him, “That’s a congressional issue to be taken up in Washington by changing the bills that support the EPA,” said Thibodeaux. John Dubose said, “I appreciate that judge, but I also
Inside The Record • SHERLOCK BREAUX Page..................... 4A • Obituaries Page......................7A •Dicky Colburn Fishing..................6B • Kaz’s Korner Joe Kazmar...........4B • CHURCH NEWS Page......................7B • CLASSIFIED ADS Page......................9B
appreciate the fact that Patrick is doing all he can with what he’s allowed to use and it’s not working. It’s not working as DUBOSE effectively as it needs too. We’re getting absolutely killed with phone calls about mosquitoes.” County Attorney Doug Manning said, “On the commercial side, the concentrations on some of the pesticides we have to apply are weaker than some of the things you can buy at Home Depot for personal applications. You can buy and mix-up a product and put on your lawn that’s many times stronger than he’s allowed to spray. Our hands are tied. “It’s one of those things that kind of upsets me because we’re all here and we see the big pink elephant in the room and congress and our state government wants to ignore it because they’re not as burdened with mosquitoes in Austin as we are down here. It doesn’t affect them.” Commissioner Precinct 2 Owen Burton said many people get worried when those products mention West Nile Disease and other things carried by mosquitoes. “Fortunately to date, we have not detected any disease activity in the county through collections we have had,” said Beebe. “I contacted all the surrounding counties and parishes and we’re all under siege, Cameron, Calcasieu, Jefferson County, Chambers, Houston, it’s a coastal thing. It was brought about by those high tides. The full moon didn’t help. “We’re all in the same boat right now. Everybody is wide open and trying to do all they can. It just doesn’t seem to be enough right now,” said Beebe. Orange County kept its burn ban in place on the recommendation of Jeff Kelley, Emergency Management director. The week’s rain “didn’t even wiggle the needle on the KBDI,” said Kelley. “We are at what the 7-14 day prediction COUNTY BUSINESS PAGE 2A
Jeremy Norton (right), a Bridge City native, reenacts a fight scene with Larenzo Lamas. Norton’s first passion was football until knee injuries and surgeries left him unable to play. He found his new passion for theater while attending Lamar University.
From small town to big screen Darla Daigle
For The Record
For many the typical story of “Small Town Boy Makes it Big” has become a cliché, but the adventure that brought Jeremy James Douglas Norton on the clear road to fame is far from typical because Jeremy is far from typical. Born and raised in Bridge City, Norton graduated from Bridge City High School in 1995. He played football here and went on to McNeese where he also participated in the sport. Hits to the knees and three surgeries to repair the injuries ended his football playing days. After coming back to attend Lamar University, he found a new and greater passion; theater. “I fell in love both with making mov-
ies and acting. I devoured it,” Norton said. “I grew up in Bridge City, played Little League and football. It’s a great town full of blue collar workers. I learned a good work ethic. It’s still my home at heart.” For this small town boy that hard work ethic is starting to turn gold as his career in the acting field is starting to take off. “I know every aspect of the movie making process,” he said. “I have worked as a light man and an actor. I took every conceivable class to learn about it all at Lamar. “ He graduated from Lamar in 2002 but is still one of the students theater professor and local film makers use in the festival and competition or teaching productions. The oldest of three
children, he says his parents, Jerome and Margaret Norton, and siblings have been, “A great supporting cast. After I couldn’t play sports I got a little depressed. ” Another member of that supporting cast has been his high school sweet heart and wife, Susan (Bennett) Norton. “I know this will sound strange but I was fortunate enough to have a bad accident that changed my way of thinking,” he said. The freak accident involved a simple stunt gone wrong, but caused head injures and some post traumatic stress issues. “When things like that happen you it puts your whole life in perspective. You SMALL TOWN, BIG SCREEN PAGE 3A
County gives Pearl Burgess special day Penny Leleux
For The Record
She was taken completely by surprise at commissioners court Monday when Orange County Judge Carl Thibodeaux proclaimed Thursday, Oct. 27 as “Pearl Burgess-Stanfield Day.” “I’ve written proclamations and we’ve passed them for the last 17 years,” said Thibodeaux. “This is one of the most interesting stories I have read. When I read this proclamation you’ll realize the historical value of Mrs. Burgess and the historical value to Orange County of her family.”
Burgess’ family fills the pages of Dr. Howard Williams’ book, “Gateway to Texas.” Pearl’s copy has bookmarks BURGESS scattered throughout the volume indicating her family’s mark on Orange History. Born at home in Brunner on Oct. 27, 1918, Stanfield was one of six children born to Oscar Olivia (Poole) Myers and Henry Carlyle Myers. Her family tree has been traced back to Europe and also includes Osage Indians native
to America. “Some of my family met the Mayflower,” she said in an earlier article on her life. “I am proud of my heritage.” A true tomboy, Burgess loved to hunt, shoot marbles and could “split a top” as well as any of the boys, if not better. Both of Burgess’ grandfathers were Orange County judges and so was her greatuncle. Not all of her family history is glorious. Her grandfather, was shot and killed in a dispute with another meat market owner in the infamous “Meat War.”
Myers was not the only member of Stanfield’s family to die by the gun. The legend of the Poole brothers reads like a western “shoot ‘em up.” Three brothers, all shot to death in unrelated instances and different times. In 1936, Burgess’ cousin, Ed O’Riley, the chief of police was gunned down by a Baptist preacher named Edgar Eskridge. “I don’t know why my preacher is always saying, ‘Pearl, behave yourself,’” she said laughing Monday. Pearl married Billy Burgess PEARL PAGE 2A