News

Fairfield EMS recently named Rhonda Craig as their 2018 Star of the Year. Craig, of Wortham, became an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) in 2015 and began working for Fairfield and Teague EMS the same year.

“I have always wanted to pursue a career in EMS, but the timing was just not right with a husband and three kids,” said Craig. “So I waited until my kids were grown and decided it was my time. I wanted to make a difference in my community, by providing the best pre-hospital care.”

Craig is married to Kelly Craig and is mother to Cord and Kayla Samuels, Whitney and MD Tucker, Kately Craig, and special person Leonard Smith. She has three

Celebrating one year since their formation, the volunteer group of Freestone Medical Center enjoyed a lunch last Tuesday, Jan. 15, as they discussed their goals for their second year. There are 15 members in the group, with eight main volunteers. Two of the volunteers are in high school.

“The small group has been very good to work with,” said Coordinator Sherry Brackens.

The volunteers are set up in the front entrance of the hospital from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Monday-Friday to greet patients. Each volunteer has different responsibilities. Some serve breakfast in the hospital cafeteria from 7 to 8:30 a.m., while others care for plants.

Streets, bathrooms, and a new city hall were among the top projects discussed by councilmembers during a workshop Thursday night, Jan. 17. The council is considering taking out an almost $4 million bond for these projects – which comes with a possibility of raising the city’s tax rate.

Bond counsel attended the Tuesday night meeting to discuss the stipulations of a 20-year bond. See that article in the Jan. 31 edition. City Administrator Nate Smith advised the council to “get as much input [from the public] as you can.”

“This is something we’ll be paying for for 20 years,” said Smith.

Projects included:

Texas Wildlife Crime Stoppers are asking for the public’s help in identifying an individual responsible for illegally killing a deer in Freestone County. A $1,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest of the individual. Officials say only the head of the deer was taken, while the carcass was left to waste sometime between the evening of Nov. 22 and the early morning hours of Nov. 23. The poacher allegedly shot the whitetail deer without landowner consent from a high-fence property near the intersection of FM 1366 and FM 27, approximately five miles outside of Wortham. If anyone saw or heard anything about this crime, they are urged to call 1-800-792-GAME (4263). Operation Game Thief is Texas’ wildlife crime-stoppers program, a function of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Law Enforcement Division. OGT offers rewards

After Pct. 4 Commissioner Clyde Ridge voiced his concerns over an interlocal agreement, commissioners chose to table the item placed on the agenda by Freestone County Sheriff Jeremy Shipley during the first meeting of the year Wednesday, Jan. 2.

Groesbeck Police Department and Mexia Police Department have formed an Emergency Response Tactical Team and invited FCSO and several other agencies to join. The agreement is for assistance in the event of a large scale emergency.

“It could provide the necessary manpower to successfully handle an issue without depleting our own staff and allowing us to continue to handle our regular duties,” said Shipley.

Plans are being laid for the 5th Annual Iigurubando Con with six returning panelists and two new artists planned for the event later this month. This one-day fundraiser will aid Fairfield’s Grand Band from Eagle Land in transportation needs to their annual Disney World trip. Iigurubando Con is slated for 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 26, at the Fairfield Junior High School commons area. Tickets are $20 and can be paid in advance on the website or at the door.

Featured guests include:

One woman was taken via ambulance to a Waco hospital after an accident Thursday afternoon, Jan. 3, in front of Cole’s One Stop on FM 27 West. Patricia Guess, 61, was injured when witnesses say her vehicle hit 45-year-old Tammy Cochran, of Fairfield. Cochran was not seriously injured and Guess was reportedly home from the hospital by midnight, reports show. According to Fairfield Police Department, Cochran was crossing the bridge on FM 27, headed into town in her 2015 Ford Explorer when Guess hit the driver’s side door. “Witnesses said they didn’t know if the van stopped or just didn’t see her,” said Interim Police Chief David Utsey. Guess was driving a 2018 Dodge Ram van and reports show she is from the Spring area.

The Freestone County Sheriff's Office, Freestone and Limestone County DPS officers, and Freestone and Limestone County Game Wardens will be well-equipped into the new year with new trauma kits donated courtesy of Enforcer Educational Services with Kasey Allen and Tara Feltgen Wednesday, Jan. 2 at the Freestone County Courthouse.

Allen, with Enforcer Educational Services, will also work in the near future to make sure the Limestone County Sheriff's Department will receive these trauma kits also.

December was a busy month for everyone in town including the folks at the Fairfield Library. We sponsored a logo design contest which ended on Tuesday, Dec. 4, and was won by Fairfield Junior High School student Madysen Farris; continued the Book Bingo which just ended on Thursday, Jan. 3, and was won by Cathy Henry; had a great (freezing) time at our decorated campsite at the Fairfield State Park on Saturday, Dec.  8; hosted an Intro to Excel Adult Technology class on Thursday, Dec. 13; enjoyed Christmas at the Library on Friday, Dec. 14; as well as regularly scheduled Wednesday Story Times with Mary King. We hope that all our friends in the community enjoyed these events as much as we did.

Thanks to concerned family members one girl is safe and a 37-year-old Teague woman is being held in the Freestone County Jail on a $250,000 bond. Amber Michelle Parker, a Mexia ISD reading teacher, was arrested Wednesday, Jan. 2, after an investigation showed she was attempting to sell an underage female relative to multiple men in Morocco.

Justice of the Peace 4 Judge Shirley Mays originally set Parker’s bond at $25,000. Mays was unavailable for comment as of presstime Tuesday. No attorney has been listed for Parker.