Tuesday, May 23, 2006

The VFW National Home for Children is served by Lipan Country's Roy Ator (Update: $3.5 Million was collected!)


Roy Ator of Lipan has the pleasure of serving on the Board of Trustees of the VFW National Home for Children located in Eaton Rapids, Michigan.

During the upcoming Memorial Day period, General Motors' GM, Pontiac and Buick divisions will be donating $100 from each US car and truck sale for the benefit of the VFW National Home for Children. Several million dollars will be raised for the Home's facilities. Since 1925 the Childrens Home has been serving the children and families of our nation's veterans and active duty military members.

Roy, a submarine veteran, along with several of his family have a long tradition of serving in the US military. On the Lipan Telephone Company's Local Subscribers Web Pages Roy proudly shares some highlights from his Navy career.

Roy serves the National Childrens Home representing Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Arkansas (District 10). He serves on the facilities and finance committees of the Board.

Roy's son, Richard Ator, is the current president of the Lipan Independent School Board.

........Roy, we salute you!

To the right is a residences sponsored by the VFW Department of Texas built in 1927.

Sunday, May 21, 2006

AudioBlogger feature being tested.


this is an audio post - click to play.. Gee-wiz, this has potential! Imagine calling in game scores!
By the way, W5FFJ were my father's Ham Radio call letters. Blogging is a way of hamming it up, don't you think?

Monday, May 15, 2006

Lipan's Monthly Bluegrass Session gets Dallas Morning News "Getaway" Spotlight



(Some of our photo's taken at the May 6th jam session.)

TEXAS TALES' well known writer, John Pronk, visited Shelly's Market for Lipan's "First Saturday Bluegrass Jam Session" hosted by new owner Shelly Mills. Former owner Billy Green started this now monthly tradition, and all its fans look forward to it continuing.

The following is John Pronk's article appearing in the Dallas Morning News "Getaway" section Sunday May 14, 2006.

"LIPAN – At Shelly's Market in Lipan, you'll find canned soup on aisle two, baby food on aisle three and bread on aisle six. But the jam's here only once a month, and it sticks to the whole front of the store.

We aren't talkin' Smucker's, though. We're talking pluckers. It's a bluegrass jam session, and it has been a monthly tradition for five years. It's where you'll find guitars, five-string banjos, fiddles and basses. They emerge from cases and are tuned, finger picks positioned on hands and lawn chairs adjusted to suit. At this free concert, you bring not only your own instrument, but your seating arrangements as well.

While most big grocery stores play recorded background music by the likes of Henry Mancini or Herb Alpert, at Shelly's Market the music's live, loud and strictly Flatt and Scruggs, Stanley brothers and Bill Monroe, to name a few.

Shelly Mills just bought the grocery and grill in this small town about 90 miles west of Dallas, but she was aware of this musical tradition held on the first Saturday of each month. And even though it means staying late after a day of running the grocery, Shelly's glad to do it. "We sell home-style hamburgers off our grill, Cokes and snacks, but even if I didn't make a nickel, it would be worth staying late, just to hear the music," she says.

And late it can be, with the music going on for hours. Billy Green used to own the grocery (many folks still call it Billy's Market), and he along with Joe Bass and members of his band, the Double Mountain Boys, were instrumental in bringing the instrumentalists here. "I wanted something to pep up this sleepy little town," says Mr. Green, who isn't a musician but certainly is a devotee of high-powered bluegrass music.

What started as just a few musicians grew and grew. Sometimes as many as 50 people are playing all at once. There's no one age group in attendance. You might see a 3-month-old future fan gently rocked to the music in great-grandpa's arms. Most of the pickers are amateur musicians and use these sessions to learn new songs and licks on their instruments. The other night, the store was full as the lawn chairs were armrest-to-armrest, and nearly 80 people packed the front of Shelly's.

Naturally, there was a spill on aisles two and three, but that was simply the extra audience members spilling over into the grocery aisles. Those who prefer congregate outdoors in front of the store talking music, weather or football and admiring one another's antique guitars or new fiddles.

"It's as much a social gathering as a musical one," says Shelly, and she wants the tradition to stay alive as long as folks will come.

You can't beat the admission price: free. Or the show's length: 6:30 p.m. sometimes until 11 p.m.

And rest assured that the evening always ends on a high note."

The next First Saturday Bluegrass Jam Session will be June 3. This is Lipan's Homecoming Weekend. Come and join the fun!

Sunday, May 14, 2006

A "Monumental Work" by local historian, Tim Sears. (Order form included below.)


EVERGREEN CEMETERY INSCRIPTIONS
LIPAN, TEXAS

FOR SALE ON MAY 26


Lipan Historian, Tim Sears, announces that his 27 year project is completed. Evergreen Cemetery Inscriptions for Lipan, Texas is available for purchase. The inscriptions include dates of birth and death, maiden names, names of spouses, names of parents, marriage dates, and military service. Cost is $30 which included shipping. Shipping will begin May 26.

Orders may be sent to Tim Sears, 830 E. Briar Ridge Drive, Brookfield, WI 53045.

Family Tree Outline Descendant Reports are also available for $10 per family surname. Specify Family Surname.
Order Form below. Click on form to enlarge, then print:

Evergreen Cemetary - A few photos of unique tombstones taken by Tim Sears

In Tim Sears' Inscription study, he lists 1700+ inscriptions related to more than 400 primary surnames.




Friday, May 05, 2006

USDA-Texas "Weekly Hay Report"

With the excellent rain over the last 6 weeks, hay prospects in Lipan Country may be better than average. Here is the Texas Department of Agriculture Hay and Grazing Hotline website.

For North, Central and East Texas, the USDA-Texas Weekly Hay Report is:

Alfalfa: Premium to Supreme quality small squares 6.00-8.00 per bale FOB barn. Premium to Supreme quality large squares 160.00-170.00 delivered; Good quality large squares 140.00-160.00 delivered.

Coastal Bermuda: Small squares 5.00-6.00 per bale FOB barn. Large rounds 45.00-80.00 per roll FOB.

Wheat Hay: small squares 4.00 per bale FOB field. Large rounds 55.00 per roll FOB.

Also, I wonder if the Internet Hay Exchange, linked off the TDA Hay and Grazing Hotline website, is useful in terms of local buying & selling purposes.