CR110619

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KAZ’S

Orange County

FOOTBALL

FEARLESS FOOTBALL FORECAST

HIGHLIGHTS Gerry L. Dickert Page 1 Section B

Page 1 Section B

ORANGE COUNTY

Outdoors

FISHING

HUNTING & FISHING

Capt. Dickie Colburn Page 1 Section B

Capt. Chuck Uzzle Page 3 Section B

County Record TheRecordLive.com

Vol. 60 No. 23

The Community Newspaper of Orange, Texas

Week of Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Orange County honors Stout, awards HOT funds Dave Rogers

For The Record

Orange County Commissioners approved $258,000 in hotel occupancy tax funding and recognized a local treasure Tuesday. Cedric Stout of Bridge City, one of a handful of living sailors who survived the Japanese attack on Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor Naval Base nearly 78 years ago, turns 98 years old this week. At their weekly meeting in downtown Orange, commissioners declared Tuesday “Cedric Stout” Day to honor the father of nine who was aboard the U.S.S. Utah when it was strafed and sunk by

Japanese torpedo bombers at sunrise Dec. 7, 1941. The surprise aerial attack that killed nearly Gothia 2,500 sailors and civilians brought the United States into World War II as Congress declared war the next day. “He’s one of the very, very few people that’s alive that served at Pearl Harbor,” Orange County Judge John Gothia said. “It’s good that we’re honoring him. Imagine the changes he’s seen in 98 years.” The Greater Orange Area

Chamber of Commerce ($100,000) and the Orange County Economic Development Corporation ($50,000) took home the lions’ share of the county’s HOT funds, which should go without saying. The EDC won the money for billboard advertising. The county collects HOT

funds as a tax on hotel and motel room nights to spend on organizations and activities that bring visitors to town to stay in hotels and motels. The Lutcher Theater won a $40,000 grant while the Heritage House Museum landed $15,000. Orangefield’s Cormier

Museum was granted $8,000, while Music By The Stars landed $7,500. Both Gulf Coast Cajuns and HamFest each won $6,000 grants. The commissioners granted $5,000 each to Cowboy Church Pro Rodeo, Friends of the Orange Depot, Texas Star Musical Festival and Orange Lions Club.

Q’ing For A Cause was granted $3,000, as was the Orange County Livestock Association. In other business, the county approved monthly treasurer’s reports that noted $331,000 in interest earned for the month ended COUNTY BUSINESS Page 3A

Heart of Orange County’s ‘Grumpy Old Men’

Tax foreclosures online sale Dec. 3 Larry Johnson For The Record

The next online auction for tax foreclosure properties will be held on Tuesday, December 3. The County moved to online sales over the summer to reach more bidders and to make the sales more accessible to local bidders. Orange County tax sales online can be found at: https://orange.texas.sheriffsaleauctions.com and can be accessed from any internet capable device. Karen Fisher, Orange County Tax Assessor Collector, stated, “We are really pleased with how our transition to online sales has gone and have gotten a great response from everyone who has participated. The registration process is straightforward and the fact that it is accessible from your phone, tablet or laptop 24/7 is a real plus.” The online service is offered through nationally recognized Realauction, LLC and the service is at no charge to the County. Ms. Fisher went on to say, “Working with Realauction and Linebarger, our tax collection law firm, has been a pleasure and everyone in-

Fisher

volved has worked to make this transition as smooth as possible. We are very happy with the service and the re-

sults.” The upcoming sale in December will have roughly 30 properties for sale and it should be posted on the web site in the next week or two. Ms. Fisher encourages interested individuals to check out the website and familiarize themselves with how it works. “The web site has a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section and a lot of great information about the process. There is also direct, toll-free numbers you can call with questions and some great research tools that assist in getting information about properties you might be interested in.” If bidders have questions regarding the use of the online auction site they should direct those to: customerservice@realauction.com or to speak with a customer serONLINE TAX Page 3A

Front Row in red aprons (Left to Right): John Scofield, Judge Pat Clark, Felix Anderson, & Wayne McCray. Other Knights of Columbus (Left to Right): C.J. LeBlanc, John Badeaux, Rodney Clark, Jackie Anderson, Roland Wolfford, and John Lucia.

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n the heart of Orange, Texas, lurks a group called “The Grumpy Old Men.” This is a loosely organized band of Saint Mary Catholic Church men who are a segment of the Knights of Columbus, Council #1680. They are industrious, funny, and always ready to step up to assist the Church in any way needed. Those Knights, bearing the “Grumpy” descriptive title, know it is used with great affection and admiration. They can be recognized by their red aprons. The “Grumpy” group started years ago while lending a hand to Saint Mary School in preparing for its Spring Festival by readying the grounds, stage, and booths for that funfilled weekend. While working in the hot, Texas sun for many hours preparing for the Festival, there were probably a snarl or growl, or two, from those tired, hard-working men. When an inquisitive passer-by asked who they were, one of them quipped, “We are “The Grumpy Old Men.” Thus, their name was born. For their hard work, they were rewarded by the Church Altar Society ladies. They made them red aprons with their

label, “Grumpy Old Man”, emblazoned on the front. The Knights, and the part of them known as “The Grumpy Old Men, help with many other Church functions, cooking, making needed repairs, and various other odd jobs. What a blessing they have been to the Church over the years. Since most of the “Grumpy” men have wives in the Church’s Altar Society, these wonderful men do all the heavy work of getting the Parish Hall ready for the Altar Society’s Annual Holiday Gift Shop, which is held every November. They, and the rest of the Knights, are working hard helping with the Gift Shop again this year. The Knights are preparing the delicious food for the Luncheon that will be held during the Gift Shop. The two bands of men, the KC’s and the “Grumpys”, make the Gift Shop possible.. The public is invited to attend the Holiday Gift Shop and Luncheon. The Gift Shop hours are 9 A.M. to 2 P.M. on Thursday, November 14 th . Lunch will be served from 11 A.M. to 1 P.M. There will be shopping available for Christmas items, jewelry, a Silent Auction, delicious baked and cooked goods and much more.

Orange County’s ‘Lunch Bunch’ toasts local WWII vets Dave Rogers

For The Record

As has become an annual custom, more than a dozen Orange County World War II veterans were set to be honored at Wednesday’s Veterans Day gathering of the Lunch Bunch at Robert’s Meat Market. The men and women, all in their 90s, were there Nov. 5 to share good conversation, meals and birthday cake. The cake marked the 98th birthday of longtime Bridge City resident Cedric Stout, who was there at Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, when

the United States was catapulted into combat against the world takeover plans of Germany and Japan. Civic business and government leaders in attendance at Robert’s and other 11/11 remembrances celebrate the soldiers, sailors, Marines, Coast Guards, merchant marines and flyers of the “Greatest Generation” still among us as heroes. But while Stout and his cohorts often say, “the real heroes are the ones who didn’t

come home, the ones who gave it all,” Veterans Day honors all American armed forces veterans. The tradition of Veterans Day began after the end of World War I when Armistice Day began being celebrated to mark the peace agreement with Germany, which was enforced on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918. Armistice Day was declared a national holiday in 1938 and officially renamed

Veterans Day is officially observed Nov. 11 and most area government offices will be closed Monday to honor the sacrifices of all United States service members. RECORD PHOTO: Dave Rogers

CMYK

Veterans Day in 1954. More than 16 million Americans served their country during World War II and just more than 400,000 of them died during the war. The U.S. Veterans Administration reported that fewer than 400,000 American World War II vets remain alive. More than 20 call Orange County home. They are listed below: • J.B. ARRINGTON, 94, U.S. Navy, Orange: The owner of Orange’s J.B.’s Barbecue WWII VETS Page 2A


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