The Record Newspapers - Hometown News For Orange County, Texas

THE LISTA’S GREAT FIRE LOSS

We were sad to learn that fire had destroyed Pete and Lori Lista’s home last Wednesday. The house was located on Ollie Road in Orangefield. The call came to the fire department about 3:00 a.m. We understand Lori was at the beach in their R.V. Pete was home alone. Thank God he was awakened by a smoke alarm and was able to get out. Makes me wonder why unlucky or bad things happen to good people. Pete and Lori are the salt-of-the-earth folks who are kind and generous. I personally know that Pete is helpful to old folks. The house and contents were a total loss. Pete said “His Pop’s hand-carved chair from the 1935 Warwick Hotel, letters and Christmas card to Mom and Pop from President Roosevelt, Mom’s passport from England, and tons of family treasures and photos from both families. One hundred years of history gone.” Pete says he’s heartbroken but alive. What is so sad is all those personal items can never be replaced or handed down. Over time they will recall things that were lost that they are not now aware of. Like many other local people I’ve lost a lot of collectables in several hurricanes but nothing like losing to a fire when everything is lost. After a hurricane you can pick up the pieces, after a fire you have nothing but ashes and memories. I really do feel for the Lista’s on the loss but thank God for that fire alarm. For years Pete has been the owner of Coastal Landscaping and one of the great people that will do to ride the range with.

TRUMP AND 18 FRIENDS INDICTED IN GEORGIA

Donald Trump and 18 allies  were indicted Monday by an Atlanta-area grand jury on state criminal charges stemming from their efforts to overturn the former president’s 2020 electoral defeat in Georgia. The sweeping 41-count indictment includes 13 charges against Trump and accuses him of being the head of a “criminal enterprise” to reverse the election. Trump’s lawyers John Eastman and Rudy Giuliani, as well as former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows are among the defendants. The 19 defendants have until next Friday, August 25, to voluntarily surrender to Georgia authorities, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis said Monday. Trump is now facing four separate indictments at the same time that he’s running for president in 2024. He denies any wrongdoing and says they are politically motivated. He continues to blame everyone from the judges, prosecutors, even FBI, for all of his grand jury indictments.

REMEMBERING ‘SUE’ COLLINS

Cora ‘Sue’ Collins, age 88, of Bridge City, passed away August 12. Funeral services will be held at St. Paul Methodist Church, Saturday, August 19. Visitation will be at 11:00 a.m., service at 12 noon. If you ever met this wonderful, friendly lady you would never forget her. Sue never met a stranger. Start up a conversation with Sue and you would learn she could filibuster with the best of them. We had known Sue and Don since the 1950’s. As neighbors, our children grew up with Debbie, Mike and little Patty. They were raised, along with the Melder’s, in what was called ‘Collinsville,’ on Gilmer and Lake. Sue and her sister-in-law JoAnn Collins, who lived next door, were like Thelma and Louise. (One side story.) In earlier years, I stopped daily at Dick Bevins’ Texas Grocery to pick up items like milk, etc. Most often I would run into Sue. She loved to talk and if you asked her a question she recited the entire book. I also liked to talk, that made for a long visit. When I got home and was asked why I was late, “Ran into Sue at Bevins,” I would say. It became a standard joke whenever I was late to say, “Ran into Sue.” She was a great person and we lived in fun times, all scratching for a living while raising youngsters. I hadn’t seen Sue in a long time but through the years I remembered her with fondness. She loved her family and she will surely be missed. Please read her obituary, it tells her story.

CONDOLENCES

We were sorry to learn of the passing of J. Meritt Ayers, age 89, a longtime Orange All State insurance agent. Jay was always most active and had plenty “Big Boy” toys. He was quick on his feet with just the right one-liners. His great personality always came through. I never heard an unkind word about Jay Ayers. Funeral service will be held at 2:00 p.m., Wednesday, August 16, at Claybar Funeral Home in Orange. Our condolences to Judy and his family. Please see obituary.

TURNING BACK THE HANDS OF TIME

10 Years Ago-2013

At 8:15 a.m. on Aug. 6, 1945, a B-29 bomber dropped the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima and another on Nagasaki, Japan, killing 90,000 Japanese. The Japanese had built up an army of several million soldiers and had vowed that 395 thousand U.S. soldiers would be killed. President Harry Truman ordered the dropping of the two bombs in a move to end WWII. At the time the U.S. was the only nation with the bomb and could have taken over the world. There are still many of us around who recall that day 78 years ago this week.***** Last week several local people attended the funeral service for Coach ”Chief” Wilson held in College Station. Darrell Segura and Troy Woodall picked up Johnny Miller in Dayton. They brought the large state championship trophy for a presentation to Chief’s son, Rusty. The trophy was later returned to the Bridge City High School trophy case. Those spotted were Harry Chester, Chief’s nephew, Steve Sanders, Warren Ducote, Rodney Jaynes, Chief’s son-in-law, Dr. Chuck Majors, Ben Esterling, Kent Buford and many other former players coached by Chief. Amazingly, Chief’s church family had no idea that he had ever been a football coach. On the other hand, his football family had no idea about his church involvement. A witness says it was like Chief had lived two lives. No one seems to know if he was buried or cremated; his body was not at the service.

19 Years Ago-2004

Buffalo invade Bridge City and residents who were up early Saturday morning were treated to the sight of a small herd of buffalo. The buffalo, from Louisiana, swam across Lake Sabine and the Intracoastal Waterway before roaming the streets of Bridge City. Orange County animal control officer Will Winfree, with some volunteers, rounded up the rogue heard. The three bulls and five cows weren’t quite full grown according to Winfree. The buffalo were loaded up in a trailer and returned to Gray Ranch in Louisiana. ****** Debbie Fusilier’s son David Jr. and her mother Helen McCardle both celebrate birthdays this week. *****Spotted celebrating at Van Choate’s Cajun Cookery were Judge Pat and Rosalie Clark and their crew including mom and dad. Also seen were Commissioner Owen and Nelda Burton, Richard and Ruth Corder, Roy and Phyl Dunn and Judge Pete Runnels, Constable Parker Thompson and Judge Carl Thibodeaux.

47 Years Ago-1976

Fire destroys Howard’s Supermarket in Bridge City. The blaze was discovered Aug. 15 at 2:45 a.m. The Howard Morse family operated the store. Bill Townes was recently hired as general manager. He thanked fire chief Richard Solomon, fire marshal Bill Kihni and all the firemen for saving the adjacent stores. A new 12,000 square feet store will be rebuilt on the spot and will be called “Big Red Pantry.”*****A.J. Judice and wife Lois are now making their home on Cow Bayou their permanent residence. He promised city officials he wouldn’t cause any trouble.

A FEW HAPPENINGS

Last Saturday, J. B. Arrington, everyone’s friend, was presented his 70th year Masonic pen by the Masons. Through all these years he has lived the life put forth by the Masons.***** Dr. W. Mike Kelly, superintendent at Bridge City ISD, will have some bragging rights on Monday. The high school's new CTE (career and technical education) Building will have a grand re-opening of for the Cosmetology Lab. The lab is the first to open for students in the building, which was constructed with money from the bond issue. The high school will have a come-and-go open house from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Meet the Cardinals will then begin at 6:45. It's a perfect time to see the new facilities and meet the Cardinals. And speaking of Cardinals, football season is here and the big Bayou Bowl between Bridge City and Orangefield is coming up. There will be a special community wide Bayou Bowl for players and fans of the Cardinals and Bobcats on Sunday from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Bridge City Community Pavilion.*****Congratulations to Christopher Ward, who was honored by the local Madison Lodge of the Masonic Order with his 40 year service pin.*****The local CCA (Coastal Conservation Association) had a full crowd at their annual banquet last week held at the Orange County Convention and Expo Center. Lou Moore, a longtime organizer of the event, was there and looking good after his recent health battles. Mike Lemoine and his Spanky's crew catered the event with Mike's special grilled steaks. Gary Stelly, a longtime supporter was there. And of course, Al Granger and Rodney Townsend, who seem to be everywhere these days, were there.*****Travel has slowed down as schools start back up, but when you're retired, it doesn't matter. Longtime friends Rosalie and Karl Eason, plus Cindy and Ambrose Claybar, headed to Galveston for sights and food.*****Kent and Sue Hannegan were seeking cooler temperatures and went on an Alaska cruise.*****LSCO had a graduation luncheon at the Brown Estate for the recent graduates of the court-reporting certification program. Veteran court reporter Christy Smith is the director of the program with Rene Mulhollan as adjunct instructor. The graduates included Kyndall Harrison, whose grandmother is Mickey Litton Gisclar, is a well-known local court reporter. Mickey got to go to the luncheon, along with Kyndall's mom, Brooke Harrison. Kyndall's official graduation was on her 21st birthday.*****And speaking of birthdays, a lot of happies go out across the county. Judy Lynn White, who showed off her singing voice with Orange Community Players during the Broadway for Funds show, celebrated. Not only was she singing but her great-granddaughter, Zelda Vasquez won the hearts of the audience with her version of 'Tomorrow.' Roderick Robertson celebrated his birthday with buddies and a round of golf at Eagle Point Golf Club.*****Pat Caillavet got a Tucker shirt for her birthday when she traveled to Houston to see the Astros with husband, Phillip.*****Others making another orbit around the sun included Liz McKee, Paris Greer-Petterway, Beverly Simon, Hector Vela, Detra Alexander King, Myra Sanders, Rebecca Flickinger, retired judge Dennis Powell, David Bryan, Phyllis Hennigan, Clint Ray, Britney Rushing, Jessica Hargis, car racer Chase Murray, Betsy Batchelor Bland, Jerrid Scales, Mark Ricks, and community tree-saver Sandra Cash.***** Congratulations to Judge Carl Thibodeaux and Micah, celebrating their 58th anniversary on August 21. Time flies. It was just the other day Carl was 58, serving as County Judge.*****Carolyn and Gary Martin marked their 55th wedding anniversary this past while, while Ronnie and Cara Naizer had their 31st. Thomas and FeLica Conway hit the five-year milestone and celebrated by traveling to Atlanta, Georgia, for a special vacation including time at the hotel spa.*****Gina Simar Yeaman watched Heston Cheshire grow up and this past week, she was a hostess for a wedding shower for his bride-to-be. O course, mother of the groom, Lori Ardoin, was there. Heston and Ashley Eby will soon be traveling with family and friends to Mexico for a destination wedding.*****Last Saturday Judge Chad Jenkins was busy preparing a meal requested by wife, Wendee, for her birthday. Chad prepared a brisket and all the trimmings, including coleslaw. The boys arranged for the cake and at 1:00 p.m. Wendee was crowned family monarch for another year.*****Orange County lost one of the great educators last week after the death of Ken Wernig. He was a longtime teacher and then principal. He later left as an administrator to become a teacher again and his former students say that was his true calling. Many adults now call him their all-time favorite teacher.*****Another person lost this past week was the country fiddler, Shoji Tabuchi. Though he became known for entertaining in Branson, Missouri, for years, he had a special place in Orange. He played a couple of times at the Lutcher Theater and always said he loved coming here because of the fishing.*****And speaking of the Lutcher Theater, season tickets have been on sale for the upcoming season with individual tickets going on sale soon. A lot of famous stars have been on stage at the theater since it opened in 1980.                        

BREAUX BIRTHDAYS

A few folks we know celebrating in the coming days. Aug. 16: Happy Birthday to Gwen Boehme and Joe Sanders. Pop Star Madonna turns 65 today. *****Aug. 17: Brenda Gage, Jordan New, Nancy Finchum, Shandi Conner celebrate. Happy Anniversary to Ken and Carolyn Hillsten on their 60th wedding anniversary. The Orange couple were married in 1963 in Polo, Illinois.*****Aug. 18: Carolyn Ward and Ian MacCammond are a year older. On this date in 1984, Chester Holts, Orange County’s longest serving sheriff passed away at the age of 86.*****Aug. 19: Celebrating today are Linda Tibbitts, Ryan Prejean, Ted Shensky, Braydon Denison, Brett Johansson.*****Aug. 20: Our longtime friend Tammy Davis celebrates today. Also Kelsie Matlock, Melinda Ja’arah, Sarah Byers and Dorothy Lee.*****Aug. 21: Happy Birthday to Karen Fisher, Mariellen Jacobs, Johnny Montagne, Mike Johnson Connie Forse, Jason Delano and Kimberly Hubbard. Former county judge Carl and Micah Thibodeaux celebrate 58 years of wedded bliss.

CAJUN STORY OF THE WEEK

On a beautiful spring morning towards the end of da school year, four Abbeville High School boys, Roy Lee, Bobbay, Gomez and Tee-Mac decide dem dat dey would skip morning classes and go fishing. After lunch dey reported to da teacher Ms. Trahan dat dey had a flat tire dem.

Ms. Trahan smiled and said, “Well you couldn’t help dat but you missed a test dis morning.” “I will give you a test now.”

Da boys felt relieved dem.

Mrs. Trahan say, “Take a seat apart from one anotter, take out a sheet of paper.” Wit a smile da teacher axe, “Ready?” Den she said, “I’m going to axe da first question, “Which one of dem tires was it hanh?”

(Editor’s note: Old teachers are wiser than youngsters think.)

C’EST TOUT

DALTON’S BIKE TO STURGIS RALLY

Our friend J.W. Dalton and wife, Becky, Orange County residents, made the 1390-mile round trip to attend the 10 day Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, the largest motorcycle rally in the world, held annually in the Black Hills and Sturgis South Dakota. It was started by local Indian dealer Pappy Hoel in 1938. Since its beginning, private area businesses have thrown events such as races, concerts, and rides, and have made and continue to make the Sturgis Rally what it is today. This year, 2023 marks the 83rd annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. While most local people hauled their bikes in trailers and road them in parades, etc, the Dalton’s made the entire trip on their bike. J.W. said it was fun. They enjoyed the sights and food along the way. However, it was a hard trip and some people got sick. The heat in one place was 124 degrees. He said Becky is tough and didn’t get sick like many of the other women did. (Editor’s note: I’ve known her since she was a teenager as Len and Millie Harper’s daughter. She ‘s Harper tough like old Granny Harper.)*****Gotta go, thanks for your time. Please read us cover to cover and make it a habit to check us out daily on our website, TheRecordLive.com. Also when you can and please shop our family of advertisers. Take care and God bless.