RSS 2.0 NEWS FEEDSRed River Valley VEterans Memorial
Posted 07.31.09 at 11:03 AMThe future Red River Valley Veterans Memorial at Love Civic Center in Paris, Texas, is for veterans who lost their lives in wartime and who were from the Red River Valley area, including the Texas counties of Lamar, Delta, Red River, and Fannin and the Oklahoma counties of McCurtain and Choctaw. The memorial area will also honor veterans who were fortunate enough to come back home and those who are currently serving the United States in our Armed Forces.
Donors of $1,000 or more will be listed on the granite wall at the entrance to the memorial, and 1’ x 2’ granite pavers will be sold for $300 each and will be engraved with the name of the veteran, the branch of service, and the conflict in which he or she served or the year, if served during peace time. Eligible veterans include those who have served honorably, or those currently serving,, in the U.S. Armed Forces or its Allies from the Texas Revolutionary War to the present time.
The organizers of this worthy project say the memorial is to remind future generations that the freedom we enjoy was not free. It was purchased, in wartime, by great sacrifice and agony on the part of lost or injured veterans and their grieving families back home, and in peace time by veterans who put their lives and careers “on hold to serve their country.
For further information, or to see a colorful brochure of the future memorial, see Doug Weiberg (903-784-4563) who conceived of this wonderful idea. Others speaking for the memorial include Chet Hilyer (903-785-3622), Shannon Barrentine (903-784-6964), Don Wall (903-784-3161), and Don McCaskill (903-
982-6171).
Friends of the Sam Bell Maxey Historic Site
Posted 07.30.09 at 1:54 PMAn interesting and beneficial organization in Paris, Texas, is the Friends of the Sam Bell Maxey Historic Site, now the property of the Texas Historical Commission, and I am currently serving the first of a two-year term as president of the Friends. The House is currently undergoing an extensive restoration process, having deteriorated to a degree during the lengthy hiatus between ownership by Texas Parks & Wildlife and the new owners, hereinafter known as the THC. The Friends have soldiered on during this difficult transition period, but are happy to see the lawns manicured once again under the able work of George Harder and see the architects at work accessing the damage to the house which must be addressed and repaired before painting.
Our Friends board consists of the following: Daisy Harvill, President; Jeanette Bender, Phyllis Bryan, Secretary; Carl Covert; Judy Gibbons, Treasurer; Martha Stephens; Betty Ann Entzminger; Brady Fisher;
Judy Martin; Armand Frank; Caroleen Thornton; George Kimbrough; Laura Carrington, Vice President; Arvin Starrett; Devon Mason; and honorary members, Dr. and Mrs. William deG. Hayden.
Members of the Friends receive a free tour of the Maxey House during the year of active membership and a 10% discount of book store purchases. The book store is to be located in the offices which are now housed in the former book store that was once operated by the Friends, but is now operated by THC. An individual membership is $10; a family membership is $25; an organization or small business is $50; and a corporate membership is $100. Members also get an informative newsletter, “Generally Speaking,” published twice a year. The fall issue will feature an article on women of the Maxey family, written by Amanda Reed, who has done extensive research in Aikin Archives, as well as the Maxey House records.
Memberships may be mailed to Daisy Harvill at 2255 E. Cherry St. #12, Paris TX 75460, or Judy Gibbons, 595 Laurel Lane, Paris TX 75460. Money raised by the Friends is used exclusively to assist the governing entity of the Maxey House (now the THC) with expenses. Projects pending include a donation to the Red River Valley Veterans Memorial in honor of U. S. Senator Sam Bell Maxey, who served in the War with Mexico; a contribution toward the possible acquisition of adjacent land for a driveway and parking space; and a future film production of the house to be used in numerous ways to promote the site.
The public is invited to an event sponsored by the Friends in the Parlor at the House on August 20 at 6 p.m. Patsy Davis (Mrs. Norman Davis) will show a DVD tour through the Lamar County Historical Museum. Light refreshments will be served afterward, and Friends memberships will be available to all who are interested. All Friends and prospective Friends are invited to come and bring a friend.
Comments: 0 | Read & Comment »Distinguished Service Award
Posted 07.28.09 at 10:22 AMParis Junior College awards the coveted Distinguished Service Award to a worthy student at the spring graduation ceremony each year. This award has an interesting history which few of our students realize today . Our late President Emeritus, Louis B. Williams, was the first recipient of this award in 1935, but Sam Weiss, a prominent Paris business man and civic leader, instigated the award and donated it to the college.
Weiss came to Paris in 1927 and generated the enthusiasm necessary for the establishment of a Boys’ Club. He also served the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts for many years and was widely active in the American Legion. He initiated the organization of a Paris, Texas, unit of the Salvation Army and promoted the first program in Texas for a county-wide modern highway system for his home county. His interest in highways resulted in the development of an interstate through Paris which connects the Texas Gulf Coast with major cities from Chicago to New York.
In 1967, Weiss himself was awarded the “DSA” by Mrs. Paul Landers, the 1966 recipient, and Louis B. Williams, the first recipient. Henry Braswell, also a former recipient, made the presentation.
Honoring Weiss that day were these former recipients of the award: Miss Pat Webb, Mrs. Wallace Finfrock, Mrs. Gary Griffith John, Henry Braswell, Dr. Harold Hunt, Mrs. Paul Landers, Mrs. Dudley Hughes, Jr., Nancy Lenoir, the Rev. Mike Walker, Mrs. Troy Owens, Mrs. O. B. Howard, Judge and Mrs. Albert S. Broadfoot representing their late son Albert S. Broadfoot, Jr., Louis B. Williams, Weldon Strain, Mrs. R. C. McWherter, Dickson House, Fred Allen, Mrs. Larry Walker, and Mrs. Morrison George.
All distinguished alumnae, but one bears note. Mrs. Wallace Finfrock (1953 recipient) is Mary Margaret McLemore, the daughter of the late Dr. J. R. McLemore, president of Paris Junior College. Dr. McLemore is credited with guiding PJC successfully through the Great Depression and the Second World War at great personal sacrifice to himself. Such was his love for this college. He was known for encouraging financially suffering students to stay in school and even for finding the means for them to do so. Thanks to Dr. Mac, as he was called, and Sam Weiss, there is still a Paris Junior College and there are still talented, hard-working students receiving the DSA every spring and going forth to successful careers.
Comments: 0 | Read & Comment »Chamber of Commerce Minutes
Posted 06.03.09 at 2:37 PMThe archives at Paris Junior College houses the Lamar County Chamber of Commerce Minutes from 1918 - 1942. Being interested in the years of World War II in Paris, I pulled the 1942 minutes to learn that the “War Committees” included Air Raid Warning, USO Fund Drive, Home Defense Guard, War Price & Rationing Board, War Recreation Council, Homes Registration Office, Rents Stabilization
Committee, Paris & Lamar Co. Health Unit, Rubber Conservation, Draft Boards
#1 & #2, V.D. Clinic, Civilian Defense Council, American Red Cross, and Malarial Control.
I know that malaria was a problem in Paris during the forties because my brother had it when he was a teen. He was sent home sick by the Paris High School Band Director, and it recurred over the years for some time. We’ve almost come full circle because, now, we fear West Nile Virus.
The Civilian Defense Council alone, headed by Sam M. Weiss, covered Air Warnings, Chemical Warfare, Enlistments, Fire Prevention, Food, Business & Industrial Plants, Liaisons, Emergency Medical Services, Morale (headed by J.R. McLemore), Law Enforcement Police, Publicity, and Transportation.
I was interested in exploring the “Defense Recreation Council.” What did they do? Well, they met in the “Blue Room” of the Gibraltar Hotel on March 23, 1942, with the following persons present: Mrs. J. M. Caviness, A. L. Edmiaston, George N. Robinson, J. G. Brunson, J. A. McGill, Sam M. Weiss, A. G. Mayse, Mrs. T. D. Wells, W. N. Furey; Raymond Berry, J. R. McLemore, J. V. Berglund, and Louis B. Williams. Raymond T. Forsberg of the Federal Security Agency was also present.
Forsberg reported that during the “last war,” civilians were allowed to put recreation centers within the camps, but it was not satisfactory. This time the Army says they will take care of the soldier while he is on the post, and the people can do their part to keep him happy while he is in the community. He said that while there will be from 30,000 to 35,000 men in the camp, there will not likely be over 5 or 10 thousand in the town at one time. (Imagine that many soldiers in downtown Paris.)
At the camp, there would be a large field house, 7 motion picture theatres, and 4 or 5 service clubs. Each regiment would have a recreation hall accommodating about 300. They hoped to have entertainment groups from the city come out and put on shows at these halls.
He said that the churches possibly could do more good than any one other single agency. He also said the young men who would be in the camp would have left “fine homes, wives, sweethearts, good jobs, and all associations, and deserve the best that Paris has to offer. “They do not like special ‘soldier entertainments,’ but prefer to be included in regular civilian affairs.”
He mentioned African Americans, about 18% of the soldiers in the camp, which is about the number of a single regiment or 30,000 persons. He recommended that a representative from these men sit with the Defense Recreation Council and plan with them.
Oh, wow, I can see it in my mind’s eye. Has there ever been another time in Paris when the people were so busy, so civic-minded, so energized and patriotic? 5 or 10 thousand soldiers downtown at one time?
PJC in 1949
Posted 05.13.09 at 3:04 PMI viewed the 20-minute Paris Junior College 1949 recruiting film which was found not many months past residing in a long unused closet in the library. It’s fascinating to us older alumnae and long time Paris residents. I didn’t attend PJC in 1949, but I knew some of the teachers and administrators who appear in the film. I especially remember Dean Burton Mason, a dignified and quiet-spoken man who had the best interests of students at heart. In the 1949 Galleon, he said that “something for nothing is an uncertain dream,” but “something for something is a working reality.”
“When a normal American relies on his own efforts, he has a strong chance of earning about $3,000 a year for forty years, $120,000. As he earns, he becomes a dependable citizen.” Such was the American dream in 1949.
According to the Galleon, absenteeism was Mason’s chief concern.
Then there was Dr. J. R. McLemore, speaking to prospective students from his office and handing them diplomas at graduation. My father, J. B. Harvill, idolized Dr. McLemore as one of the most intelligent and good men that he’d ever known. I think of him as the man who nursed PJC successfully through the Depression and War Years, at great cost to himself both physically and financially.
He loved the college so much that he made great personal sacrifices for its welfare
during these trying times in our history.
Myra Fuller, English teacher, was there, young and vigorous, dedicated to her profession—the woman with whom I rode countless miles on horseback. However, perhaps the greatest thrill, for me personally, was seeing Mrs. Troy C. Thompson, known as “Sugee” Thompson, our choral director, tall and slim, directing her choir vigorously. If there’s a heaven, these wonderful teachers are up there, still teaching. I’ve no doubt about it.
Another personal thrill, for me, was seeing the PJC homecoming parades passing in front of the old R. F. Scott Building on the northeast corner of the plaza and then Woolworth’s. Why I haven’t seen Woolworth’s in anything but my dreams for years! The young people were thronging the sidewalks so thrilled over the parade and the upcoming football game. The girls were clad in pretty sweater sets and matching skirts. What a different world we live in today. Students don’t have the same time to interact, but to me, it seems like they “make do” with their laptops. They can interact online nowadays. Is it the same, I wonder? What have we lost? I guess what we have now is better than what we had in 1949, or so I’m told, yet many of those same innocent-looking “kids” were veterans, and with all the advances in technology—and as bad as all wars are—I wouldn’t think that much of anything compares to going ashore through the blaze of gunfire at Normandy.