Erinshire in the Gap 4.25.09

Erinshire in the Gap

April 25, 2009

I got there just as the "gates" were open...

THIS YEAR WAS A TREAT!!!! for all the senses!

Amy and the crew at the Buffalo Gap Historical Village had every corner

readied for the 100s of visitors to this annual event!
Stages and sound crews, along with videographers and photographers, all were preparing the stages for their performers.

.... and once again... the "village gardener" answered all my questions

amidst his Eden of heirloom vegetables and flowers.

(YEAH... I even got a little bunch of his hard-to-find replicating onions...

I'd looked everywhere!)

I only saw a couple of the performers for this year... But
Slim Chance and the Bagpipe group were amazing as usual....
all that I missed was my partner and a dance floor!
In a "Willie Nelson" picnic atmosphere,

all the people began to gather in the sun and wind of a West Texas April afternoon.

I got to see the people who anticipated the entire day... places secured,

they camped on the grounds in readiness for an

absolutely excellent exploitation of their senses.
Click below to hear 30 seconds of an entire afternoon into evening.

If you missed it this year... I'm sad...

BUT

Make sure, to be there early next year!

We'll be looking for ya!

Jim Ned Valley Chamber Banquet April 09 : Colt McCoy guest speaker!

Colt McCoy

"back home again"

to talk about supporting our home town advantage!

What Happened at the Spring Banquet

The Jim Ned Valley Chamber of Commerce had a great spring banquet, Saturday, April 11, at the Jim Ned High School, with our hometown hero and Jim Ned High School grad, Colt McCoy, present as guest speaker.

Colt spoke on "What Makes a Great Community?"

and expounded on the three areas that made Jim Ned a great community --

the people, education, and faith.

The chamber honored community members for their contributions to the Jim Ned community, which includes the smaller communities of Buffalo Gap, Lawn, Tuscola, Cedar Gap, Moro, Lemon's Gap, Rogers, Bradshaw, Guion, Elm Valley, the Canyons, Ovalo and even Possum Trot!

Honorees given special awards were:

Outgoing Jim Ned CISD Superintendent: Kent LeFevre, 30 years at Jim Ned, 14 years as Superintendent

Jim Ned CISD School Employee of the Year for each of the four campuses:

Buffalo Gap Elementary - secretary Marcie Tutt Lawn Elementary -

teacher Jennifer Willis Middle School -

secretary Carolyn Golson High School -

teacher Bobbidee Thompson

Community Volunteer of the Year: Genny Abercombie

Business Leader of the Year: Super S Foods Store

Also appreciated were the nominees in the above categories, who were asked to stand as his/her name was announced:

School employees: at Buffalo Gap Elementary -

Sue Harris and Nan Egger at Lawn Elementary -

Kathy LeFevre and Rosie Ortega at the Middle School -

Steve Bryant and Mike McClure

at the High School - Debbie Cook and Jan Pearce

Community volunteers: Tim Brannon Bob Eisenberg Maxine Poindexter

Business leaders: The Jim Ned Journal Carpenter's Interiors

Colt McCoy spent six years of his youth in Jim Ned schools,

played sports, especially football,

and brought Jim Ned into the limelight as a gifted quarterback under the coaching of his father, Brad McCoy, now at Graham, Texas.

Colt is now finishing up his junior year at the University of Texas

and is known across football America and beyond for being the star quarterback for the UT Longhorns. He was a runner-up for the 2008 Heisman Trophy, much to the chagrin of local fans, who view him as the best of the best.

Colt McCoy did a wonderful job at the banquet greeting old friends and old and new fans

as they moved through the food line for a delicious dinner of rib-eye steaks and chicken cooked by Big G's Steak and Barbecue of Tuscola.

Colt also made many fans happy when

he signed their Longhorn souvenirs for them

- helmets, stuffed animals, pictures, magazines, and Longhorn shirts.

More than 300 fans came from as far away as Roswell, New Mexico, and the Dallas/Fort Worth area for the event.

The Jim Ned Valley Chamber of Commerce promotes the economic, civic, and cultural well being of the Jim Ned communities.

(Thanks Grace for this contribution to the blog... courtesy of the Jim Ned Journal Newspaper)

JNVCC Christmas Luncheon at Cedar Gap Farms

We surely do thank our outgoing officers of 2008!

Amidst the twittering of hundreds of finches, redbirds and jays, Earlene Hutto welcomed us to her National Audubon Bird sanctuary in Cedar Gap.

(oh yes... there were a couple of rascally squirrels causing a bit of a raucous outside the windows as we enjoyed our luncheon)
We attended to the end of the year business which included accepting our new board and officers for 2009. Thank you Dale for remaining another year in our presidential position.
You've done an exceptional job!
We will miss Amy as our treasurer, but hopefully we can get her to return after a sabbatical from at least this one of her many responsibilities in our community. GREAT JOB!!!

The surroundings were perfect and we got to see what one of our members offers this community daily in her haven for birds just East of 83/84 after the Cedar Gap Cemetery.
If you've not visited the Cedar Gap Farms, be sure to take your family out for an afternoon of bird watching. Chairs are set around the completely windowed cottage so that you can see birds of every color from any angle. I also noticed that there were binoculars available for those who forgot that important accoutrement in the birding world.

Fall/Winter is a wonderful time for our fine feathered friends. The leaves from the trees have fallen and their food supplies are not so readily available. This lends itself perfectly for the feeders and bird baths to be loaded with these thankful creatures.

Yes Earlene.... I do think today was a success, thank you for offering and hosting the JNVCC.

...your little tin sign says just what my heart repeats often this special time of year...

Peace On Earth...

and might I add....

GOOD WILL TO MEN!

Cookies and Santa... a perfect Match!

Santa arrived at the Buffalo Gap Gym last night!

and yes,

you'll see in the following video the proof positive that Santa advocates and supports

the Buffalo Gap Volunteer Fire Department!

Before his arrival, contestants dropped off their entries for the

cookie contest.

"decorate a cookie with the meaning of Christmas"

Many were more than willing to test the edibility of the entrants
All the cookies won... but one took the grand prize offered by
the Buffalo Gap Community and Business Association
(soon to be the newest members of the JNVCC... WELCOME)
Little brothers can be the chef's most avid supporters as is testimony below!
Thank you judges for doing the hard job of deciding!

Santa may need a bigger lap for such sweet little ladies!

This is the winning entry... the 2nd grade baker says this about her cookie

"Christmas is about Jesus, and I put a cross on one side and a star of David on the other,

That is CHRISTMAS to me"

and now for a look at the unique and

personally Jim Ned Valley Santa

Entrance....

May your HOLYdays be blessed with the PEACE of the SEASON,

brought only by the REASON for the SEASON..

JOY to all!

You might be from the Jim Ned Valley if Santa arrives in the Volunteer Fire Department Vehicle!

Only in our little Jim Ned Valley???

or maybe not???

You might know you are from the wonderful little towns of the Jim Ned Valley

IF

Santa arrives for the holidays riding on the NEW Buffalo Gap Volunteer Fire Dept vehicle!

THANKS Y'ALL!!!

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

May we all know that this is a season of HOPE, JOY and PEACE!

"SCALPED"....for the PRIDE OF THE TRIBE!

Just had to include some rather memorable moments from the Pep Rally of the Playoff game. These are truly dedicated people who will allow themselves such sacrifice and humility for the PRIDE OF THE TRIBE!

what a principal???

allowing a new meaning to "taking scalps" of the ones who are your biggest fans????

(these are VIDEO... be sure to click for a 30 sec. glimpse of the shenanigans)

It was a fun run for the "golden football"... and it ended too soon

BUT

There's always next year!

GO INDIANS!

Playoffs at JNHS... the Cinderella team of the Jim Ned Indians vs. the Clyde Bulldogs! "WE READY FOR YOU!"

Jim Ned Indians certainly are the Cinderella team of the 2008 class 2A playoffs~

After last week's 21-20 victory they come to this game pumped for success!

Dads, Brand Jones and Glen Gibbs deliver an inspiring message to the warriors of the

mighty Jim Ned TRIBE!

You each have a warrior's heart!

Moms wearing feathered or glittering crowns had their own brand of entertaining encouragement with a lively skit of good overcoming evil!


... and although they pretended to the the "wicked" ones, I was assured that they were merely pretending the role of "L" for losers...

the defeated Clyde bulldogs of tonight's foray.

And last but not least...
ONLY a CONFIDENT DAD could be the "fairy God mother" who grants these young men's
greatest wish of the moment!
May all your dreams come true as you, dressed for COLD football weather, set out on this unexpected and highly anticipated
evening of fun in San Angelo Texas
under the West Texas stars.


"We are ready for you!"
Let's prove it!!!!!