Three graduating classes from the Llano Independent School District got together in July at the historic Dabbs Railroad Hotel, 112 E. Burnet St. in Llano, to enjoy a meal, share memories of times gone by and rekindle a few friendships. Staff photos by Karen Bailey

From the class of 1950, (front, left) Dorthy Ratliff Reeves, Hudson Long and Geneva Hahn; (back row, left) Margaret Mangum, Peggy Johansen, Charles Upton and Leroy Enstemaker.(Photo 1)

From the class of 1951, (front, left) Doloris Hill, Tooter Meeks, Tommie Fenstemaker, Ladon Tinsley and Frances Fain; (back row, left) J.R. Otto, Lane Tow, Rose Lee Myers, Dolly Warden, Walter Wallis and Eddie Farris.(Photo 2)

From 1952, (front, left) Louise Christian, LaVerne Brewer Gilbreath and Anna-Beth Overstreet Fain; (back row, left) Mac McCormick, J.H. Smith, Lee Fry, Carl Herridge, Jim Alexander, Larry Farris and Nelson Raines. (Photo 3)

KINGSLAND — A town hall meeting to discuss the possible incorporation of Kingsland is Aug. 23 at the Kingsland Branch Library.

"It will be a very important meeting," resident Rhonda Coker said. "It will be an information-sharing event."

The gathering is 6:30 p.m. at the library, 125 Polk St.

Organizers want to increase awareness of the issues related related to the possible conversion of Kingsland into an incorporated city, said Shelly Comerford.

"They are many people in Kingsland who don’t know what is happening," said Comerford, an organizer and owner of The Natural Way, 3929 RR 1431.

For more, call her at (830) 385-6833.

MARBLE FALLS — The national debt and deficit are two of the most crucial challenges facing the United States, but U.S. Sen. John Cornyn remains optimistic about the future.

That’s the message Cornyn, the former Texas attorney general, told a rapt audience Aug. 18 during a luncheon address to the Marble Falls Noon Rotary Club.

Even as the nation struggles with recession and a jobless rate at more than 9 percent, the Texas Republican believes America still has a bright future, he said.

“We have challenges that confront our country, but I don’t believe America is in decline,” he added. “I am still optimistic about America.”

Cornyn focused mostly on fiscal issues during his address to the club earlier at River City Grille, 700 First St.

Because of federal overspending and soaring debt, every American man, woman and child owes Washington about $46,000, Cornyn said.

“We are in for a big problem. The worst thing we can do is ignore it,” he added.

Also, about 40 cents of every dollar going to Washington comes from money borrowed from other countries, including “Communist China,” the senator said.

“That means we are at their tender mercies — and their (China’s) interests may not coincide with ours,” he added.

Economic analysts estimate the national deficit is about $1.5 trillion, and the cumulative national debt is about $14.4 trillion, Cornyn said.

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen recently cited fiscal woes as America’s “biggest national security challenge,” the senator added.

Cornyn sits on several key Senate committees, including Armed Services, Budget, Finance and Judiciary, as well as subcommittees on energy, natural resources, infrastructure and health care.

Recently, President Barack Obama and Congress negotiated a deal to raise the debt ceiling by $2.4 trillion through the next two years.

“I think it was the best we could do under a bad set of circumstances,” Cornyn said. “Frankly, we need to do much better.”

As part of the debt-ceiling deal, Congress recently appointed the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, with six Senate members and six U.S. House of Representatives members evenly divided by party, Cornyn said.

By Nov. 23, the committee must find a way to reduce federal spending by $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years, he added.

“But that number is really small when you’re talking about $14.5 trillion in debt,” Cornyn said.

Also, the senator criticized the Obama health-care reform program as a “huge, unfunded mandate.”

The program will cost about $27 billion at the state level, Cornyn said.

However, Democrats and Republican alike have contributed to the deficit and debt during recent years, he added.

A balanced budget amendment to the Constitution can stop the flow of red ink, said Cornyn, a former Texas Supreme Court justice and ex-Bexar County state district judge in San Antonio.

“I think we need to put Congress under the same strategy a business or family must live under,” he added.

The Senate failed to pass a balanced budget amendment by one vote 14 years ago, Cornyn said.

In 1997, the deficit was $107 billion, he recalled.

“How much more compelling is a balanced budget amendment today when the deficit is $1.5 trillion?” Cornyn asked.

Under a balanced-budget amendment, the United States could have enough money to spend during wartime, provided lawmakers adopt certain “triggers” and the “right threshold,” Cornyn said.

Other means to control federal spending include the adoption of reasonable regulation, incentives for small businesses, tort reform and other polices that have been or can be adopted in Texas, he added.

“We are going to create a predicable business environment in Texas, and I am trying to do everything I can to make Washington more like Texas,” Cornyn said.

During a talk with reporters after his address, Corny praised Gov. Rick Perry, a fellow Republican, who recently announced his presidential candidacy.

“I would be pleased to see Gov. Perry do well, and I think he will do well,” Cornyn said. “We know he is a good campaigner. I think the most important part (of the Perry campaign) is to show the policies we have in Texas are policies that can be translated to the federal level and create more employment.”

raymond@thepicayune.com

MARBLE FALLS — A grassfire Aug. 17 about five miles east of town left firefighters already busy trying to control an earlier blaze stretched thin, officials said.

Crews monitoring the remnants of a massive fire near Texas 71 and U.S. 281 in south Burnet County received a call for a new blaze near Camp Peniel about 11 a.m., nearly 15 miles away.

Firefighters have been rushing to the 71/281 blaze and flare-ups four miles south of Marble Falls since Aug. 12. Some have stayed there overnight.

“We definitely didn’t need this (1431 fire),” said Mike Phillips, assistant chief of the Marble Falls Volunteer Fire Department at the Herbert Ranch command center near 71/281.

The Aug. 17 call involved a fire at 6716 RR 1431 East, just outside the Christian youth camp. No injuries and no evacuations were reported at the blaze.

The fire only involved about 4 acres, but firefighters said resources were already stretched thin due to the 370-acre blaze at 71/281 that continues to smolder.

Officials said a spark from crews cutting rebar for a guardrail may have triggered the blaze on 1431.

Several Marble Falls volunteers, Granite Shoals Fire Department and United States Fish and Wildlife Service units were at the Herbert Ranch fire, which flared up again Aug. 16 around 4 p.m.

The first responders at the 71/281 blaze near the Foxwood subdivision used bulldozers to cut a wider line when the fire rekindled by crossing fallen trees. Fire crews used a back burn to contain the blaze once more, robbing it of fuel.

Meanwhile, Phillips began requesting assistance from other agencies, including Cottonwood Shores, to go to 1431.

Burnet County has a north and south fire task force made up of departments in those areas. Both can be called to assist in any part of the county and even in the region when needed.

“We had guys from the south side (of Burnet County) on that fire all night and I knew they were all tired,” said Terry White, chief the Marble Falls volunteers. “So I had the north (Burnet County) task force activated for this fire.”

This is not the first time such a strategy has been used, especially as the state’s worst drought in decades continues with triple-digit temperatures.

During a wildfire that scorched 470 acres about two miles northeast of Burnet Aug. 8, units from both the south and north task forces rushed to the blaze, as well as agencies from outside Burnet County.

White said situations such as the one encountered Aug. 17 can strain resources and personnel.

The Camp Peniel fire, however, was contained to some degree by manmade boundaries including RR 1431 and a road and dirt parking lot, White said.

Since May, firefighters have battled three blazes in Burnet County involving 250 acres or more.

On May 29, units battled the 280-acre Summit Ridge blaze just east of Burnet. Officials said at the time sparks from a train may have triggered that conflagration, which led to the evacuation of thousands.

The cause of the Aug. 8 fire was undetermined, but Burnet County Emergency Management Coordinator Jim Barho said there was a report of a trailer dragging a chain and throwing sparks.

As for the cause of the Aug. 12 Herbert Ranch blaze, officials said a bird struck a high-voltage line and fell to the ground, which started the fire.

Lexi Maxwell, a Texas Forest Service wildland urban interface specialist, said the conditions are so bad right now that it doesn’t take much to get a fire started.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, the Highland Lakes — and most of Texas — remains under an exceptional drought.

According to officials, Texas is in the driest 10-month period in more than a century since data has been collected.

daniel@thepicayune.com

MARBLE FALLS — The vitals continue looking good for a proposed $200 million hospital complex with City Council’s approval this week of a zoning request and site plan.

Meanwhile, at least one businessman is urging Marble Falls officials to cut the police force by half and hold off on buying a new fire truck to save money until the city’s financial picture improves.

During the meeting Aug. 16, the council unanimously approved Scott & White Healthcare’s application for a planned development district for the future Lake of the Hills Regional Medical Center on Texas 71 just west of U.S. 281.

The council also approved the site plan for a medical clinic, which is the first phase of the project. Construction starts in 2013.

“We are glad to be this far,” said Mayor George Russell.

The Temple-based nonprofit plans to build a new medical facility on more than 110 acres.

The clinic will operate on a septic system until new wastewater lines are built, said Caleb Kraenzel, the city development services director.

More site plans will be required for each additional phase of the project, he added.

The entire medical facility — estimated to cost about $200 million — will also include an imaging center and ambulatory services by 2016, as well as an in-patient hospital tower by 2020.

Also during the meeting, the council conducted the first public hearing on the proposed budget and property tax rate for fiscal year 2011-2012, set to begin Oct. 1.

Discussions related to the budget and city finances prompted former councilman, mayoral candidate and local businessman Russell Buster to suggest the council adopt a “common-sense policy on economic response” for future budget expenditures.

For instance, the coming purchase of a new fire truck for $500,000 could have been avoided if the fire department had not overused the current fire truck, Buster said.

“We are allowing spending on things way too quick for who we are,” he added.

Furthermore, the city could save $1 million annually if the Police Department is reduced from 28 to 14 officers, Buster said.

“I want y’all to think about what you could do with $1 million,” Buster added. “And, I want the citizens of Marble Falls to pay attention to the budget. Otherwise, they could get steamrolled for additional expenses they should not be incurring.”

In the meantime, spending had to be cut by about $2 million to balance the budget, there is a hiring freeze for city staff positions and no tax increase is expected, officials said.

Nevertheless, the budget leaves the city with a general fund balance of only $3,352, City Manager Ralph Hendricks said.

In addition, the city’s general reserve fund dwindled recently to $625,000, far below the recommended amount of more than $2.1 million, he added.

“Our reserve fund is still not at the point where we need it to be,” Hendricks said.

Mostly likely, the city will have to find more revenue during the next budget cycle, he added.

“Unless the economy takes off like a rocket,” Hendricks said. “However, we don’t have any indication of sales tax collections growing.”

Another reading of the budget is Sept. 16. Final adoption is required no later than Sept. 20, Finance Director Margie Cardenas told the council.

The council moved on to discuss the proposed tax rate of 64.35 cents per $100 of property valuation for the new fiscal year, which doesn’t change from the current rate.

Originally, the council voted 5-2 to maintain the current rate for 2011-2012 during the Aug. 2 meeting.

At the time, Russell and Hurst dissented over concerns about reserve funds, among others.

During the most recent meeting, Councilman John Packer wondered if a higher tax rate should be considered.

“I’m OK where we are — I’m just curious,” Packer said, adding later in a reference to the fund balance: “I just hate having only $3,000.”

“I agree,” Councilwoman Jane Marie Hurst said. “If we keep cutting (spending) — it is not going to work.”

However, Councilman Ryan Nash voiced opposition to a tax rate increase.

“I don’t think it is the right thing to do,” Nash said.

Instead of raising the rate, the council could collect more revenue from other sources, such as water or sewer fees, Nash added.

Additional hearings would be required Aug. 23, Sept. 6 and 13 if a higher tax rate is proposed, Cardenas told council members.

“I am real uncomfortable about re-opening this discussion,” Russell said.

However, the mayor indicated he would consider scheduling a session Aug. 23 to discuss the rate.

“I will take this under advisement and see where it will go,” Russell said.

Councilwoman Sharon Pittard Aug. 2 championed maintaining the rate at the current level.

“Every (tax) increase is a decrease in what citizens have,” Pittard said at the time.

She was not at the most recent council meeting.

According to city officials, each 1-cent increase above the current and proposed rate of 64.35 cents produces about $57,000 for city coffers. Also, the rate of 64.35 cents produces about $965 for each property valued at $150,000.

Also during the meeting, the council:

• Awarded a contract of more than $470,000 to Nelson Lewis Inc. for the Avenue H wastewater line improvement project.

• Awarded a contract of more than $4.2 million to Archer Western Contractors for improvements to the existing wastewater treatment plant, pending approval by the Texas Water Development Board.

• Did not extend a temporary moratorium on temporary banner signs.

raymond@thepicayune.com

LLANO — After spending two weeks hitting each other, the Llano High School football team was eager to hit someone else. The Sonora Broncos fit the requirement.

The two teams met in a controlled scrimmage Aug. 13.

Sonora scored two touchdowns on five drives with another one called back because of a holding penalty.

"We did some things well. We made some mistakes, which I knew we would  because we’re a young team, and that’s a good outfit over there," head coach David Yeager said. "Sonora has done a good job. They coach well over there, and they got some good players, so it’s not quite the same thing as going against the JV B team in practice. We needed to see that. We needed to be exposed in some areas, and we’ll break them down, we’ll get better. Coaches will identify the spots we got to get better at."

The Broncos used a variety of running plays, including some off the Slot-T offense and the spread.

The Llano faithful reacted in disappointment when the Bronco quarterback escaped to avoid a 10-yard sack. Instead, he turned upfield for a 4-yard gain.

"I’m disappointed in a couple of the big plays defensively, but we were there to make plays," Yeager said. "They just went up to make a heck of a play, and that happens. I’d be more concerned if they were scot-free wide open, but we were there. They went up and made a play, but we’ll make the play next time. I thought we gave good effort, good attitude. That’s the most important thing."

The Yellowjackets stayed in their base defense, preferring to show their blitz packages and stunts.

"I want to really focus on excentuating the finishing part of the play," Yeager said. "We were in position and sometimes their good athletes, and maybe we got out-athleted in some spots. I don’t know. But again, we probably won’t ever go into a game and just play base defense. Some of the stuff they were doing with the jet-sweep motion, we’re going to come off the edge and hit in the mouth. But I  didn’t want to do that today.

Once the Yellowjackets got the ball, they knew what to do.

Junior quarterback Rhett Brooks made Sonora pay for pass rushes by moving the pocket on designed rollouts or handing the ball to running backs Story Touche or Zach Baker.

He also hit Issac Hutto, Taylor Sorensen and Wil Siegenthaler on several passes.

One 35-yard pass to Hutto was the result of a broken play when Brooks bought some time and went to his right. He threw to Hutto, who was by himself near the Sonora 5.

Brooks later scored when he dived in from the right side.

"I thought he did a lot of good things," Yeager said. "I think he’s going to be able to keep plays alive with his head and his feet and make some things happen in open space, which will be fun."

The coach also was pleased with the way his other players performed, noting the big catches from Hutto and the explosive running of Baker.

The Yellowjackets will play at San Antonio South Somerset at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 18.

jfierro@thepicayune.com

MARBLE FALLS — Firefighters battling a 370-acre blaze this weekend found themselves facing rough terrain and high temperatures before bringing the wildfire under control after three days.

“It was really difficult for a couple of reasons,” said Terry White, chief of the Marble Falls Area Volunteer Fire Department. “First it was a night fire that actually intensified after the sun went down — which is rare. Usually after the sun goes down the humidity goes up and a fire gets less intense. And then there was the terrain. There were rocks out there the size of our (brush) trucks.”

MARBLE FALLS — Problem Child lived up to its name for its competitors.

The boat set a world record Aug. 14 at the Marble Falls LakeFest, finishing the 1,000-foot course in 3.39 seconds at 258 mph.

“We broke the record in every run,” owner Eddie Knox said. “There were different variations of it.”

Driver Daryl Ehrlich, who has been racing for Knox for three years, set the old record of 3.488 seconds two weeks ago when he drove Problem Child at the Inaugural General Tire Diamond Drag Boat Nationals in Wheatland, Mo. As a result, the boat was the Top Fuel Hydro winner.

“It takes a special individual for someone to sit in this rocket,” Knox said.

The boat is only a year old, and it’s very difficult to go at the speeds Ehrlich is able to in a short amount of time, Knox said.

“It’s very hard,” he said. “It’s never been done in the history of the sport. No one, obviously, has ever gone that fast.”

The reason is because not all courses are as long as Lake Marble Falls. Just like in a car, the faster a boat goes, the more distance it needs to apply the brakes. Because Lake Marble Falls has so much length, Ehrlich was able to go fast for a longer period of time.

“A lot of the other (courses) couldn’t handle it,” Knox said. “We have three big specially made parachutes.”

Knox said he has participated in LakeFest since 1994 and hasn’t had this kind of success here before Aug. 14.

“To be frank, it was unexpected,” he said. “The heat and humidity don’t translate into horsepower.”

jfierro@thepicayune.com

MARBLE FALLS — A large crowd wowed by drag-boat races on the “liquid-quarter mile” and the chance to beat a world record have officials already making plans for next year’s LakeFest.

Meanwhile, this past weekend’s annual drag-boat races are being hailed as a success, officials indicated.

“Weather conditions could not have been any better on Saturday (Aug. 13), and the crowd reflected that,” said Christian Fletcher, executive director of the Marble Falls/Lake LBJ Chamber of Commerce, which hosts the races.

The 20th edition of the annual drag-boat races held Aug. 12-14 on Lake Marble Falls featured a purse totaling more than $100,000, sponsored by Lucas Oil, officials said.

The popularity of the races had Fletcher predicting they will return next year to Marble Falls.

More than 100 minor illnesses including heat-related conditions were reported, and one boat driver was injured during a crash, officials said.

There are no figures yet for attendance yet for this year, but in the past LakeFest has attracted an audience of 9,000-12,000, according to the Chamber.

“We are not even close to being able to report (this year’s crowd size) with any measure of accuracy,” Fletcher said Aug. 15.

More than 100 drivers raced their boats at speeds of more than 200 mph over a  course on Lake Marble Falls at Lakeside Park.

One driver set a world record during the competition, which included several races extending more than 300 yards. Some have dubbed the course the “liquid-quarter mile.”

While piloting his boat  “Problem Child,” Daryl Ehrlich of Round Rock set the record, racing at 258 mph to a winning finish in about 3 seconds.

Cloudy skies and scattered showers near the lake kept temperatures below 100 degrees during Aug. 13, Fletcher said.

Also, many spectators watched the races beneath a large, sheltering solar-screen in Lakeside Park.

The screen helped reduce the number of people who needed medical attention, according to Johnny Campbell, operations director for Marble Falls Area EMS Inc.

“It helped out a lot,” Campbell said.

However, 100-degree temperatures returned Aug. 14 during the last day of the races.

“Sunday was substantially warmer, and we had a smaller crowd,” Fletcher said. “But Sundays (during Lakefest ) are nearly always lighter than Saturdays anyway.”

EMS personnel treated more than 120 attendees at the first-aid tent during the festival, Campbell said.

Most cases involved ant-bites, blisters, headaches and other minor illnesses, he added.

However, EMS did rush one driver to South Austin Medical Center for injuries  suffered during a boat collision Friday, he said.

The driver was released the following day, Campbell said.

“He was OK,” he added.

Also, EMS took one other patient to a medical facility during LakeFest.

“It may have been a cardiac-related event,” Campbell said. “We haven’t received any feedback on him yet.”

The majority of medically related incidents occurred on Aug. 14 during hot weather, he added.

raymond@thepicayune.com