City Boy - Country Boy, In Balance?

"One final paragraph of advice: do not burn yourselves out. Be as I am - a reluctant enthusiast....a part-time crusader, a half-hearted fanatic. Save the other half of yourselves and your lives for pleasure and adventure. It is not enough to fight for the land; it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it’s still here. So get out there and hunt and fish and mess around with your friends, ramble out yonder and explore the forests, climb the mountains, bag the peaks, run the rivers, breathe deep of that yet sweet and lucid air, sit quietly for a while and contemplate the precious stillness, the lovely, mysterious, and awesome space. Enjoy yourselves, keep your brain in your head and your head firmly attached to the body, the body active and alive, and I promise you this much; I promise you this one sweet victory over our enemies, over those desk-bound men and women with their hearts in a safe deposit box, and their eyes hypnotized by desk calculators. I promise you this; You will outlive the bastards." - Edward Abbey

Evergreen Cemetary at Sunrise

LVFD Fish Fry Sept 23rd.

Lipan Volunteer Fire Department Fund Raiser
Drawing for: Ruger Standard M77 Mark II. The winner gets to choose the caliber, and pick it up at Pigeon Road Gun Store in Stephenville, USA.

Drawing Sept. 23 at the Fish Fry Lipan Fire hall. Tickets $2 each 6 for $10.

Contact Richard Ator for more information: reator@lipan.net

Ator GU #1H Barnett Shale Gas Well being drilled east of Lipan

Devon's Ator GU (Gas Unit) #1H began being drilled Thursday by Felderhoff Bros' #4 Rig. Drilling will take 2 to 3 weeks.

Lipan Country Drilling Report

School Budget proposes $ ???,000 increase for "Repair" of Fund Balance. Stage set for a good school year!

On the new Lipan ISD website is posted the proposed 2006-2007 tax rate required to fund the school year budget .

After reviewing all this with Superintendent William Stokes regarding expected collections of state and local tax revenue, he is reasonably confident that a meaningful increase to the General Fund Balance will occur. Largely because bus fuel and electricity costs are such wild cards, the superintendent is reluctant to commit to a full $100,000 building of the depleted reserve fund. However, he anticipates the board will target over $50,000 in the final approved budget.

The current anticipated fund balance of $275,000 at the start of the September 1 fiscal year is half of what the state of Texas requires for Lipan ISD to be taken off their financial "watch list." With the Board's ongoing commitment, this deficiency should be removed over the next three school years rather than the next two as previously hoped.

As the school year is beginning, there are 285 students enrolled. This represents a small but encouraging increase over small declines seen in the recent few years. With the new high school facilities, the energy of a new superintendent, the seasoned leadership on the board, the improvement to the faculties' compensation, and the deep commitment of the Lipan Country community - all these factors combined set the stage for a positive new school year.

Anniversary of School Fire Approaches

First Baptist Church in Lipan said "WWJD?", and "Walked The Walk!"

Will Lipan ISD benefit from higher property appraisals? Will the trustees budget any increase in General Fund "Unrestricted Fund Balance" to . . .

. . .communicate to the Superintendent and staff their requirement to recover the school's still weak financial position over some specific time period? Or, will the many pent-up needs this year be too pressing to address future stability? Any initiative will come from the Board because a new superintendent will rightly be focused on the immediate needs that suport the classroom. See blog viewpoint from this past spring.

Hood County School Property Tax Appraisals Announced:

*Lipan ISD $77,100,000 vs. $68,700,000 previous year. $8,400,000 increase @ $1.50 per $100 = $126,000. Given the state funding formulas, what will be the real increase in revenue to LISD for the upcoming school year which begins September 1st?

*Tolar ISD $114,800,00 vs. $86,900,000.

*Granbury ISD $3.14 billion vs. $2.72 billion.

Total County values $3.35 billion, up $510 million. That increase includes $128 million from the new natual gas business values at Jan 1, 2006.

Histories of Lipan by Tim Sears and Carl Dean Ator

First: Found on the Hood County Texas Genealogical Society site , (click "Historical Notes", then enter "Lipan" in the "search" box) I enjoyed reading this for the first time. It is a must read for anyone interested in Lipan's future! Tim begins, and printed here with his permission...

"Nestled in a small valley in northwest Hood County is the town of Lipan, Texas. Lipan is named for the Lipan Apache Indians who once roamed the Southwest.

Lipan is surrounded by small creeks including Crockery Creek, Kickapoo Creek, and Weaver Branch. The valley has come to be known as Kickapoo Valley with Kickapoo Falls as a distinctive landmark. These creeks eventually empty into the mighty Brazos River.

For many centuries this tranquil valley was home to native American Indians from several tribes including Wichita, Apache, and Comanche tribes and to bountiful wild game of deer, turkeys, raccoons, rabbits, squirrels, etc. The creeks ran year round; the wooded land provided for the needs of both man and beast.

About 1853 the first known white settlers of the area were . . ."-

Be sure to read on. Thanks, Tim!

Another history: In 1948 Carl Dean Ator wrote a colorful history that I especially like regarding Lipan's school buildings. It's also on the Hood County Genealogical Society site and is found by searching for "Ator". Carl wrote:

"Having a truly inspiring, appealing, and romantic history, Lipan, Hood County, Texas dates its existence as far back as 1870. At this time, the thriving little community was known as "Crossroads," due to the fact that the road running from Weatherford to Stephenville crossed with the Granbury-Palo Pinto Road at the present site of Lipan."

High School to be ready for fall term. Superintendent William Stokes officially begins today July 17 (see Carl D.Ator '48 school history above)

Enormous amount of information about Lipan Country on the NCTCOG Website

Almost everything you ever wanted to know about Lipan Country and the surrounding communities:

NCTCOG's website
Interactive Map by the NCTCOG
Population estimates
City of Lipan
Lipan ISD profile

Cody Chandler named LHS Basketball Coach

Click Lipan Basketball Blog for more:

Lipan High's Tommy Bleeker Retires! BOOOO !

Actually we are happy for him, but a big hole in the heart of Indian fans will have to heal. His fantastic basketball career places him among Texas' most successful coaches! Many had speculated that this might be the year for Coach Bleeker to retire. The last fantastic four years along with the previous 12, have placed a ceremonial royal "capstone" on his career. He leaves Lipan with an exceptionally strong basketball program and memories to share for years to come. Thanks for it all! Best wishes, Tommy and Carol!