PCRTA members enjoy potluck lunch

Polk County Retired Teachers’ Association (PCRTA) members enjoyed a potluck lunch and fellowship during the December meeting. PCRTA members also brought socks and underwear to be donated to the …

Christmas Carols

First and second-graders from Livingston ISD’s Creekside Elementary School sang Christmas carols during Wednesday’s meeting of the Livingston Lions Club. COURTESY PHOTO
Santa Claus riding Christmas sleigh with reindeers on winter holidays. Xmas character in sleds with gifts. Flat vector illustration of North sledges, deers and presents isolated on white background.

Still more holiday activities on tap for all

Santa Claus will be at Miss …

Advisory board appointments on agenda

The Livingston City Council will discuss and consider possible action on the appointment of directors for the Main Street Advisory Board terms beginning Jan. 1, 2025 and ending Dec. 31, 2026 during …

County preparing for upcoming legislative session

In preparation for the upcoming 89th session of the Texas Legislature which convenes in January, the Polk County Commissioners Court will consider action on several resolutions during its regular …
All around East Texas

2025 Texas Fish Art Contest opens for entries

AdobeAI_STOCK Illustration

ATHENS — The Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center has opened the Texas division of Wildlife Forever’s 2025 Fish Art Contest for entries. The Fish Art Contest, accepting entries until …

Certificate pay must be included on budget requests

The biggest takeaway from a discussion of the county’s certificate pay policy during the Nov. 26 regular meeting of the Polk County Commissioners Court was to read your emails and respond …

Free disaster legal assistance for Texans available

AUSTIN — Free legal assistance is available to Texans who were affected by Hurricane Beryl. Texans with disaster-related legal issues may receive free legal assistance by calling the State …

Helping Hand

On Nov. 26, the Republican Women of Trinity County gave a donation met with Charles Lee of the Groveton Senior Center to donate a check for the Meals on Wheels program.   COURTESY PHOTO

Opinion
For weeks now, I’ve been singing “Wake me up when November ends” to the tune of “Wake Me Up When September Ends,” the 2005 hit by the rock band Green Day. Several …
What a weird year it’s been, right? If you’re erring on the side of hopeless about the body politic devolving into full-blown “Idiocracy,” then there has been a silver …
I’ve let everyone know several times that part of my daily ritual includes scanning news feeds, but there is another part that I enjoy even more. My youngest daughter likes to walk with me …

Four arrested in SJC on drug charges

COLDSPRING — On Nov. 22, the Walker County Sheriff’s Office Special Response Team along with Huntsville Police Department SWAT members, responded to 1000 block of Harrell Road in …

Paxton sues firms over energy costs

AUSTIN — Attorney General Ken Paxton sued BlackRock, State Street Corp. and Vanguard Group, three of the largest institutional investors in the world, for conspiring to artificially constrict …

Sports & Recreation
Trey Jones of Big Sandy shoots on the run.

Tourney time!

Defense stings ‘Jackets Big Sandy basketball took a 44-22 win over Chester Friday afternoon in a game where their defense shined. “The first half was pretty bad. I thought we …

Groveton volleyball players make all-district

GROVETON — Nine members of the Lady Indian volleyball team were named to the all-district team. Aubrey Alexander was named Setter of the Year, while Jannett Bautista was named Server of …
The Trinity Lady Tigers continue to tear up the hardwood, winning two games while losing only one during the Thanksgiving break.  COURTESY PHOTO

Lady Tigers season record moves to 10-3 with two more wins

The Trinity Lady Tigers continued their winning ways, going 2-1 over the Thanksgiving break. After downing Mount Enterprise 38-21 on Nov. 25 and Leon 41-37 in overtime on Nov. 26, the Lady …

Lady Pirates fall to Lady Jacks despite improved efforts

SHEPHERD — For the second time in a week, the Lady Pirates faced off against the high-powered offense of the Diboll Lady Jacks. Unfortunately, the outcome mirrored their previous matchup, with …

More than 1,500 bills filed as session approaches

Texas lawmakers last week filed more than 1,500 bills ahead of the next legislative session, which begins Jan. 14. The Houston Chronicle reported the proposed measures cover a range of topics ranging …

Our responsibility: making America healthy again

As the Agriculture Commissioner of one of the country’s largest farming and ranching states, I am excited that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has joined President Trump, lending his powerful voice to …

Bite by Bite

A couple of soups sure to delight and nourish

White Bean-Sausage Soup

I’ve been trying to increase my protein intake for health and dietary reasons. Funny thing is, when I think of proteins, I automatically think of eggs, cheese and different kinds of meat, …

Obituaries
Billy Lynn Rollins
Memorial visitation for Billy Lynn Rollins, 75, of Livingston, Texas, was held Saturday, December 7, 2024, from 1-3 p.m. in the Cochran Funeral Home Chapel in Livingston, Texas. Billy was born …
Sara Sheffield
Sara Lou Sheffield, 94, of Spurger passed away peacefully on December 1, 2024. Born to William Asa and Mattie Horn, she lived in Tyler County most of her life. She worked many years as the …
Kimberly Duncan
Kimberly Diana Duncan was born on September 5, 1966 in Baytown, Texas and passed away on November 30, 2024. The greatest treasure in Kimberly’s life was her love for Jesus. It was like her …
Mollie Parker
Mollie Marie Parker was born on December 9, 1943, to Walter and Jesse Graham of Colmesneil, Texas. She was the fifth child of what would eventually be 15 children. In 1963, at the age of 19, she …
Jimmy Rawls
Jimmy Ray “Cooter” Rawls, 76, of Colmesneil passed away November 23, 2024. Born in Woodville to Edward and Viola Rawls, he lived in Tyler County all of his life. He was a loving …
Outdoors

A dream finally realized

As a boy we fished a great deal in southeast Oklahoma where there has long been good number of Choctaw Mule foot hogs, decedents of the original stocking that came with the Choctaw people when they …

Big Woods Trail photo winner announced

Elton Gish of Lumberton submitted the winning photo for the Big Woods Natures Trail’s Photo-of-the-Month for November. He spied these small flower-like mushrooms growing along the trail and …

Christmas shopping for the outdoor person

For the past 39 years, I’ve devoted a column to help folks shop for those useful but sometimes hard to find gifts for the sportsmen (and women) on their Christmas shopping list. Many of the …
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