The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 102, No. 4, Ed. 1 Sunday, January 9, 2022 Page: 4 of 16
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School places, people we knew in 52
the school bought
M
in small groups, chatting until the by to thank her.
good that several business people class graduated, but the old audito-
WHERE WE STAND
2022
2021
7.
Q
Q
TODAY IN HISTORY
<
No federal pay raise, but a small bonus
(DISCERMNING
talking ly checks. I assume they’re respon-
READER
I have the in- NATE the 80 cents back to the gov-
53-8%
Less gun violence
But, wait, he and the Commander 80 cents wisely.
READER ADVISORY BOARD
Accounting
Circulation
first bell rang. A beautiful new au-
ditorium would be built after our
I know, I thought, I’ll telephone
Speaker of the House Paul Ryan.
will show a surge for the coming
year because of a change in “de-
ductions or additions,” according to
wouldn’t take my call. Besides, I
wouldn’t want to bother him on his
dual controls for drivers education.
In the first paragraph, I remem-
bered Memorial Stadium as one of
our favorite places. Our auditorium
was another place we enjoyed. Be-
fore school started every morning,
we would gather in the auditorium
.281-425-8056
.281-422-8302
’51, was a good example of her ex-
cellent rapport with students. For-
merly shy with little confidence, Do-
nis became a better student, a better
person, in Mrs. Farrar’s class. Sadly,
he was killed in action in Korea, but
the last person he visited was his
speech and drama teacher. He came
they’re
about.
This week’s question: “Do you consider yourself a
religious person?” Respond at www.baytownsun.com
Olive Pruett, my journalism teach-
er, was a lot like Lady Jane: tough.
As sponsor of the campus newspa-
3.2%
Better shopping
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Baytown Sun Weekly Survey
Last week, readers were asked, “Which of the following
is your greatest wish for our community in 2022?”
a year) with which to do God’s
work. Every little bit helps, right?
Moreover, that leaves us 72 cents
to spend elsewhere each month.
Come to think of it, thank you,
Big Government. We’ll spend the
One City, One Baytown
City and economy
financially healthy
In this One City, One Baytown series of articles, I’ve
done my best to share about many of the important projects
Wanda Orton is a retired manag-
ing editor of The Sun. She can be
reached at viewpoints@bayt ownsun.
com, Attention: Wanda Orton.
ALERT: This column was fist pub-
lished on Jan. 10, 2016.)
_
WANDA
ORTON
Brandon Capetillo has served as Baytowns mayor
since 2018.
Fortunately for Wife Margie and Christmas/New Year’s/ Ground Hog
me, our monthly retirement check Day vacation.
sible for other retirees’ payments
also, but I’m not sure.
Right away one of those recorded
messages I HATE so much informed
me the wait time would be “41 min-
utes.” You kiddin’ me?
Still, this was important. Not only
could I find out about “deductions or
additions,” but I’d also offer to DO-
eminent in an unselfish effort to help
pay down the national debt, which I
think I mentioned currently stands at
$18 trillion.
Being a patriotic American, I
First and foremost, I want to thank
you, the American taxpayers, be-
cause, by a strange twist of fate, I’ll
be getting an expansive increase in
my United States government retire-
ment check this year.
No, this increase is not coming
by way of a Cost Of Living raise.
Heavens to Betsy Ross, we’re $18
trillion in debt, and there are other
pressing problems in society that
excuses ... I want stories! ’
See why working for Baytown
Sun managing editor Preston Pend-
ergrass turned out to be easy for me?
I had already been to boot camp in
Mrs. Pruett's class.
in process or coming to our great city. I
wrote about the USS Texas battleship, San
Jacinto Mall, hotel and convention center,
Garth Road reconstruction. Animal Ser-
vice and Adoption Shelter, utility cus-
tomer service office, and the Public Safe-
ty Complex. If you missed any of these,
please check out the city’s social media
channels, our official city website, or The
Baytown Sun website.
And while we’re on the subject, I wel-
come you to like and follow the city’s
1,
L
। 4-5%
Seasonal weather without extremes
Sunday
January 9, 2022
12.8%
More courteous driving
| 19.9%
Less traffic gridlock
5-8%
Additional attractions and improvements to area
fonnation right in
front of me. 80 CENTS!
I bet you’re envious.
Because I wanted to get an ex-
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need the money far more than we planation of what “deductions or
a- 4
retirees do.
Like placing shrimp on a treadmill
to study their (the shrimps’) metabo-
lism. Cost: $3 million.
Nice, huh?
(NON-EDITOR’S NOTE: For
something under $100,000 per year,
I still do this column weekly, put-
ting as much as two or three hours a
week into it. Therefore, I’m official-
ly “semi-retired.”)
Social Security payments for 2016
also remain static.
So, to repeat, my fellow Ameri-
cans, there’ll be no Cost of Living
increases in either federal retirement
or Social Security checks this year.
(If all goes well, 2016 is scheduled
to end sometime in late December.)
official Facebook (@BaytownCityHall) and Twitter (@
CityOfBaytown) pages. We’re working hard to keep you
informed, so let’s keep the respectful conversation going.
In this last article in the series, I wanted to share about
the financial health of our city. You’ve heard about a lot of
exciting projects coming to Baytown, and at one time or
another, you may have thought to yourself, these are all
great projects, but how is the city going to pay for it all?
And, will I be stuck with the bill?
I’m pleased to report that the City of Baytown is as
healthy as ever, and reaping the benefits of an equally
healthy local economy. I’m optimistic, but don’t just take
my word for it, consider the words of the Government Fi-
nance Officers Association, who recently recognized the
city for excellence in budget setting and financial report-
ing. And consider the words of the Standard and Poor, who
recently awarded the City with a powerful AA credit rating.
Others are taking notice of our thriving economy as well.
People have been spending money in Baytown, and our
sales tax revenue has risen by 21% in the last four years.
Did you know that more than half of this is paid by non-res-
idents?
I hear every day how worried residents are about paying
their property tax bills, and your city council is committed
to keeping these as low as possible. For four years in a
row, the City has cut the property tax rate, which is now
4.5% lower than what it was when we started cutting. At
the same time, consumer prices - or inflation - have risen
by 10.6%. But we’re not done cutting. Look for further cuts
again in the future.
I hope you’ve seen that the tremendous investment in
the future of Baytown has come from many who believe in
this great city. From visitors and residents to investors and
industry partners, Baytown is thriving because of people
like you who care about this city. If you’d like to continue
sharing your vision for Baytown, please don’t hesitate to
get in touch at mayor@baytown.org.
I don’t care. All
I know is, we’ll
be getting an in-
crease in 2016.
The amount?
Try 80 CENTS
per month.
Would I lie?
Seventy years ago Robert E. Lee
High School graduates lined up for
diplomas at one of their favorite
places, Memorial Stadium. This was
our last lineup at the stadium - as
students — but most of us would be
back — as Gander fans - lining up for
tickets to various sports events. Once
a Gander, always a Gander!
Memorial Stadium was built about
two years before we entered high
school. A construction boom, in the
aftermath of World War II, brought
improvements in the school district
and throughout the area. While we
were at Lee, a new cafeteria emerged
on the site where the first football
stadium, Elms Field, once stood.
Speaking of the cafeteria, we were
fortunate to have Nettie Laird as our
cafeteria manager. The food was so
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outspoken and conscientious.
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rejected, any deposit will be
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© 2021. All rights reserved.
On this date:
In 1788, Connecticut became the fifth state to ratify the
U.S. Constitution.
In 1861, Mississippi became the second state to secede
from the Union.
In 1945, during World War II, American forces began
landing on the shores of Lingayen Gulf in the Philippines
as the Battle of Luzon got underway, resulting in an Al-
lied victory over Imperial Japanese forces.
In 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, in his State
of the Union address to Congress, warned of the threat of
Communist imperialism.
In 1987, the White House released a January 1986
memorandum prepared for President Ronald Reagan by
Lt. Col. Oliver L. North showing a link between U.S.
anns sales to Iran and the release of American hostages
in Lebanon.
In 2003, U.N. weapons inspectors said there was no
“smoking gun” to prove Iraq had nuclear, chemical or
biological weapons but they demanded that Baghdad
provide private access to scientists and fresh evidence to
back its claim that it had destroyed its weapons of mass
destruction.
MEMBER
•• 2021
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SAHCER
ANDREWS MONEEL
5YNDLATTON
-2022-
A A
BRANDON
CAPETILLO
he stomped on my ed us to study and finish assignments
foot, trying to hit on time. We also agree, in our gab
the brake when he sessions, that we learned to love
thought I was driv- learning from Lady Jane. (Her away-
ing - or, rather div- from-school nickname).
ing — into the creek Speech and drama teacher Clare
instead of going Farrar was another inspiration, and
over the West Main from her, we learned to love the
bridge. After that theater arts and to overcome stage
happened, I hope fright. Donis Roden, in the class of
know Nettie Laird invented banana/ we would use the vacant space as a
blueberry cream pie?) shortcut from one class to another.
Another Laird on campus was Mrs. The stage was unusually big because
Laird’s son Alton. Along with James originally it was designed to be com-
“Slick” Ellis, he coached and taught bined with the cafeteria.
driver’s education. As one of his High achievers in the class of ’52,
driving students, I was Mr. Laird’s mentioned in the previous column,
worst nightmare. It turned out OK. were motivated by excellent teach-
He got a tractor from the school bam ers. At our reunion gab sessions,
and pulled the drivers education car Jane Mitcham tops the list of teach-
out of a big mud hole. Another time, ers who rarely gave A’s, who expect-
additions” refers to — and possibly stayed on the OPM line. But after
make a donation — I decided to do a hearing roughly 714 times that I
bit of government probing. I’d make could go to their website, I finally
some calls and get a succinct picture gave up after 25 minutes, 26 sec-
of why I was getting an 80-cent in- onds. Really.
crease. Their loss. (No wonder we have
After all, I certainly earned my this huge debt.)
federal checks after working 16 So a decision was made in a Joint
years as an Assistant Congressional Conference between Wife Margie
Executive (ACE) and was due an and me. We’d keep our 80-cent in-
explanation. crease.
My first thought was to phone Think of the things we can do
Commander Obama. He’d know with the extra dough.
why I was so blessed with the 80 For example, if we tithe 10 per-
cents per month hike. cent to St. Joseph Catholic Church,
Then I remembered he was In Father Edmund Eduarte will have
Hawaii at the time and probably another 8 cents per month (96 cents
took their lunch break at Lee High rium was impressive, too. Located per, the Gander Gazette, she expect-
School. Not with us, though. Mrs. in the middle of the main building, ed everyone on the staff to work hard
Laird made them wait until our lunch it was huge. The stage was so big and quickly and get it right.
hour was over and we had cleared that during the day, when an as- I can hear her now, banging her fist
out. Then they could eat. (Did you sembly program wasn’t being held, on the desk: “Stories! I don’t want
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information we received from your have become big buds since agree-
United States government by way of ing on a new $1.1 trillion budget, Jim Finley is a retired managing
your United States Postal Service. and Paulie may be in Hawaii, too. editor of The Sun. He can be reached
Don’t ask. I can’t totally figure That left the OPM (Other People’s at viewpoints@baytownsun.com,
out what “deductions or additions” Money), which oversees my month- Attention: Jim Finley.
e
JIM
FINLEY
4A encmoummam Viewpoints
Uhe Maptowun Sun
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Bloom, David. The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 102, No. 4, Ed. 1 Sunday, January 9, 2022, newspaper, January 9, 2022; Baytown, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1468508/m1/4/?q=Lamar+University: accessed June 2, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Sterling Municipal Library.