Monday, December 6, 2010

Cowboy Christmas Ball

Looking for something fun to do this holiday season? Slip on your boots, grab your partner and get ready to dance (or just listen) to the legends of Western Swing!  The Knox Prairie Events Center in Goree Texas is hosting a Cowboy Christmas Ball on Dec. 17th at 8 p.m.

Come and enjoy an evening of Bob Wills music.  Listen to Leon Rausch, Tommy Allsup, Bobby Koefer, Jimmy Young, Steve Ham, Ginny Mac, Terry Thompson, Ronny Dale Shultz, George Uptmor, Wendell Sollis, and Ron Ellis. Tickets are $30 and can be purchased from the City of Goree at 940-422-5306 or visit http://cityofgoree.blogspot.com/



Don't miss your opportunity to hear living legends.  Bring your friends for an early Christmas treat.  Tickets are going fast, so call today and get your tickets reserved. 

This is a spectacular event right in our own backyard. We hope you will support it!  The City of Goree has done a great job bringing you a fantastic event. If you want to see more things like this, show your support by sharing this information with all your friends on Facebook or Twitter. http://cityofgoree.blogspot.com/

Friday, November 12, 2010

"Under One Fence, Waggoner Ranch Legacy" Book Deputes in Truscott, Nov. 22

The public is invited to a book signing event for Wyman Meinzer on November 22, 2010, from 5-8 pm at the Circle Bar Ranch Lodge in Truscott, Texas.

Hosted by the Knox County Visioning Group and the Circle Bar Ranch, this event is a must see! Meet renowned wildlife photographer, Wyman Meinzer, and hear about his new book "Under One Fence, the Waggoner Ranch Legacy".

For more information, visit www.wymanmeinzer.com and www.thecirclebarranch.com or call Jimi Coplen at 806-254-2067.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

KCVG Has Made it to Facebook


A quick search of Knox County Visioning Group and the click of the "like" button will keep you up to date on the happenings of the KCVG via facebook.  We hope you will "like" us and become a friend on Facebook so we can continue to communicate.  Thanks in advance! Oh, and share this news with your friends who use facebook! 

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

The MEC!

Yesterday I took a tour of the MEC in Munday, Texas.  Did you know that Munday had a place called the MEC? It is the Munday Events Center. It is a wonderful space (roughly 4700 square foot with central heat and air) for hosting events. Many of you may know it as the Young Farmers Barn, used for stock shows, etc.  And, they will continue to host stock shows....and much much more!

The walls of the barn have been insulated with a spray on insulation, then covered with a wood siding. The floors are concrete. Tables and chairs have been added. It still boasts a large concession stand area and plenty of parking outside.

 


The Knox County Visioning Committee will be hosting the 2010 Job Fair at the MEC on November 8th from 6-9 p.m. Businesses looking for employees need to get signed up.  The public will be invited to come and tool through the showcase of businesses who are looking for employees.  Applications and interviews can be done on the spot, or set up for a later date with individuals. It's a time to let people know you need an employee and make a match with a qualified applicant!

We will also have various agencies there to talk to businesses and potential employees about services they can offer them.  It's a great time for businesses to make a connection with the public and find employees.

For more information on the job fair, contact Jimi Coplen, KCVC Director at 940-459-4121 or jimiedc@srcaccess.net.  And, if you need to book the MEC for your event, call Mark Reed!

Have a great day!

Friday, October 1, 2010

Work, Live and Thrive in Knox County

Where did October come from? I don't mean literally, I mean how on earth did it get here so fast? The time-speed thing does not make me happy, but this cool weather is awesome. Now is the time to do all the things we put off because the weather was too hot!

The Knox County Visioning Team is doing just that! The board of directors met yesterday to take care of some business and plan the 201o Job Fair! The tentative date is Nov. 8th and location is still being determined. This will be an adult job fair. Anyone looking for employment, thinking of changing jobs, or just moving to the area, should attend the job fair. It will be free of charge to the public.

Area businesses looking for employees can set up a table with a representative from their organization. There will be a small set up fee of $25. Sponsorships will also be available.

Dynamic connections can be made and two problems can be solved in one place. Businesses can find good employees and local folks can find great jobs! So, be watching area newspapers and this blog for more information. For more information, email me at jimiedc@srcaccess.net.

Happy Fall!

Friday, September 24, 2010

Catch the Vision!

Welcome to The Scoop!

This is my first blog entry as the new Knox County Visioning Committee Director. With big shoes to fill, I hit the ground running last week, September 15, 2010.

It has been exciting to hear about the various programs that have taken place since the inception of the Visioning Committee. Truthfully, I've followed the group for the past few years. Believe it or not, the undertaking of a county-wide community development group is almost unheard of. But, as forerunners, Knox County is leading the way and has been a model for how to work together across the state of Texas.

The Visioning Committee met on Thursday, September 16, 2010 at the Knox City Community Center. These meetings are held monthly. Representatives from each community come together to tell what is happening in their community as well as discuss ways to prosper the county as a whole. I recommend anyone interested in this county to carve out some time and come to a meeting. The next meeting will be October 21, 2010. Location to be determined.

The Visioning Team has some exciting projects on the horizon. First, they will partner with Lorrie Coop and the Texas Agrilife Extension Service to hold a forum in the near future. Citizens will be invited to come and discuss what they feel is needed in the community. This is an important time and perfect place to share your ideas for the community. This was done in 2004 and many of the issues presented have been accomplished.

The Visioning Committee will use the new information to gain insight on valuable projects for the future. The Extension Service will use it to do their plan of work for the county. The date has not been set, but we hope to accomplish it in early November.

Next, the Visioning Committee will continue to develop tourism materials...this time, in the way of an audio CD. Some visitors come to Knox County as part of a group tour, but many come as individuals and are not sure where to begin their "site seeing" tour. The committee is looking into ways to put together an audio CD of all the interesting places in the county. This CD will give the listener incredible history about the various locations. The travelers can take the scenic tour at their leisure, and feel like they have a personal tour guide riding in their vehicle. (If anyone in Knox County can help the committee get these CDs produced, please contact me.)

This is all I will tell you for now! Keep visiting The Scoop for more information, or come to one of our meetings. We look forward to seeing you! I personally look forward to meeting you and hearing your vast ideas for sustaining the community. Feel free to stop by my office in the courthouse at Benjamin.


Saturday, March 27, 2010

A year already?

Dear KCVC friends,

Consider this your first installment in my new, and continuing, personalized just for you, Knox County travel, adventure and event guide. After all how sad will it be if the whole world discovers our wonderful real ranch country home before you do?

Whether you are interested in fabric, quilts, old fashioned nostalgia, great sales or just the punch and cake.... or even if you’re not into any of those, it is BIG news that one of our new businesses in the bustling metropolis of downtown Benjamin, population conservatively under 200, has its first anniversary next week!

Having a new business open in Benjamin was noteworthy, having it become a recognized stop for tour groups and individual travelers and adopted by our heritage tourism friends on the Real Ranch Country Travel Map, distributed by the Texas Historical Commission, Lubbock Convention and Visitors Bureau, and the Fort Worth Convention and Visitors Bureau is amazing!

The successful first year of Front Porch Quilts is a great stepping stone for all of Knox County as we build on our efforts to bring folks in to discover, and spend some time and money with us in our unique home place!

So, I'm passing along to all of you this invitation to join the ladies at Front Porch Quilts, in celebrating with cake and punch Saturday, April 3rd, any time between 10 am and 2 pm. If you've never been in the store, now’s a great time to see what all the tourists are so excited about! It’s easy to find, no GPS needed, just look for the old west store front on the South side of Hwy 82, east of the flashing light.

And, while you are in Benjamin, how many of you have never been to our wonderful museum, just across the road, had a fresh sandwich at BJ's (um the very best picnic fare anywhere!) or visited the unique and very successful Santa Fe on the Brazos where you can also see the work of our own Official State Photographer? Imagine, a day of tourism adventure right here in your own backyard! And just in case you use up that whole quarter tank of gas, 2 gas stations right here on the highway, so you can surely make it back home before sundown!

Now I don't want to overexcite you on your first foray around Knox County but if you're going North to get home any way, go ahead and make that 1 mile detour off Hwy 6 to see Truscott and the renovated, recreated, preserved, romantic heritage to be respectfully re-discovered there, view the old Bank and the Church turned Lodge, and if you still have a little adventurous spirit left in you follow the blacktop on out 5 or miles or so to the Truscott Brine Lake and see the salt, that's right I said salt, lake of Knox County. It's a naturally beautiful drive, with great improvements by the Corps of Engineers, that make it the ideal place to stretch your legs and picnic on that sandwich and cold drink from BJ's.

Going home by 82 East? Be sure to stop and see the National Historic and Natural Landmark, The Narrows and take in the fact that right here, where you live, are two phenomena. One is the fact that here is the continental divide of watersheds, one river sending water to the Mississippi and one to the Gulf of Mexico with just this narrow ledge of rough country between them, and two that every explorer, native culture and adventurer to the Southwest visited and noted this unique place, known for providing the best grass, the surest source of water, dependable hunting and winter shelter. Let your imagination soar, it’s better than any movie!

Alright, now that you are in the awe inspired frame of mind, take a southern turn on the FM Road to Rhineland and tour the Cathedral in the cotton field. The door is always open! And I'm personally putting up a $10 guarantee that you cannot visit and read the story of this place of worship hand built by German immigrant farmers and school boys persevering through World War, the Depression and the Dust Bowl, without a lump in your throat! I promise you'll leave with no excuses for not meeting your own goals! If you call ahead and get Dot Myers to come over and lead you through, it'll take a little longer, but you will experience one of the best stories in rural America.

Some of you will have to go South to get home and so will travel across Knox County's other National Historic Landmark the river bridge between Benjamin and Knox City. Stop and savor, it'll only take a minute. And you can tell your grandkids about it! This is one of only 3 known remaining bridges of this era and type in the United States. The one on Hwy 83 at Wellington, the only other still in use in Texas, is currently being torn down by TXDOT in the never ending development of 4 lane highways. This crossing of the Brazos has been featured in movies and books and is rumored to have been among the first places utilized for dancing to Bob Wills big band sound. That’s among the little known facts of Knox County, which you can learn by visiting the previously mentioned museum, much like the fact that Wills was, for a while, a Baptist preacher in Knox County, before rounding up the famous Playboys! Imagine! Oh and while your thinking about it, here's another fact, the bridge your standing on was the first one designed by an engineer of the Texas Highway Department, as it was called before becoming the mega giant agency Texas Department of Transportation.

If you are going home by a western trail, you surely already know that you are traveling everyday through true American history, the fabled real ranch country, made famous by dime novels, western movies and Remington paintings. About the only place left in the world where you can drive through miles and miles of God's scenery, Mama Cows, and native grass with only an occasional ranch entry, house off in the distance or occasional real working cowboy getting out of a pickup to interrupt the view. But, did you know you are living your life in the true setting made famous by the most widely read author in Europe, whose most famous work set a whole series of adventure novels, featuring an American Indian brave and his faithful sidekick the German adventurer turned cowboy, in the flats and breaks between present day Benjamin and Lubbock? This popular series also became the basis for the European version of early silent movies, then the first "talkies", western cowboy movies, and later a string of movies akin to our Clint Eastwood spaghetti westerns and finally a spoof series much like Mel Brook's Blazing Saddles, even an opera based on the adventures of Ole Shatterhand? It's true read all about it on the internet! Just don't expect to read the books, unless you can read German, Dutch or French. They were never released in the US.

Well, I'm afraid that is all the adventure and shocking revelations about Knox County you can handle for one Saturday's tour time. But tune in next week and we'll talk about what you can see and do on a short day tour to Knox City, Munday, Goree or Vera this spring!

Meantime, don't forget the original message here, get on out of the house next Saturday and help celebrate the successful first year of Front Porch Quilts!

Until next time,

Your trusty tour guide,
Remelle