COUNTY LIFE
Saint Jo twins don’t let life’s circumstances define them
Jamie and Jessica Hurd received awards at the recent Saint Jo High School Awards night. (Photo by Barbara Green)
By BARBARA GREEN
Twin sisters Jamie and Jessica Hurd are typical high school seniors who blush when you ask about boyfriends and ecstatic to cheer on their baseball team in the playoffs.
They make good grades, are well liked and have jobs to help make their own way. However, the outcome could have been much different without the help of a family member and their own perseverance to rise above circumstances that saw them living in a homeless shelter and at one point in their family car; and where their parents were in jail and unable to care for them.
The pair could have easily become an unhappy statistic, but instead they are thriving and excited for what the future holds after graduation.
Family life
The identical twins were born Jan. 23, 2000 in Muenster to Julia and Bryan Hurd. Their childhood was fraught with instability as the parents attempted to provide for their young family.
The children recall spending a lot of time with their grandfather, Earl Hurd, who lived in Forestburg. They attended Forestburg School until they started eighth grade at Saint Jo. The girls recall their grandpa’s large garden and riding horses as special memories from that time, “he took good care of us,” exclaims Jessica.
Jamie recalls her father was in and out of their younger years spending time in prison for drug related charges. While talking about this missing figure is obviously painful, Jamie says struggling to provide made both her parents go the wrong way.
“In order to provide they thought they had to do wrong things, that was the situation. Desperation, yes,” explains Jamie.
Jessica recalls at one point their mom was in jail and they were living in Nocona with their dad and brother, Justin, five years their senior.
“Our dad was not really there much, so our brother provided a lot for us,” she said.
The trio of children stuck together taking care of each other. Jamie says Justin took care of them as much as he could at his age helping get them to school. They are still very close.
As the children grew times got tougher. The girls with their mother ended up in a homeless shelter in Wichita Falls where they lived for a period of time. One day they just left the shelter, but they still had no where to go.
Read the full story on this Saint Jo graduates in your weekend News.
In recognition of National Adoption Awareness Month this November, Texas Community Counseling and the Heart Gallery of Northwest Texas are partnering to bring resources to Montague County families.
The two organizations will host an adoption, foster care and kinship care resource fair on Nov. 14 at the United Presbyterian Church of Montague County Fellowship Hall, located at 300 W. Nelson St. in Bowie.
The resource fair will run from 10 a.m. to noon, bringing together local agencies and service providers to answer questions and share information about support available within the county.
Read the full story in the Thursday Bowie News.
Members of the Montague County Historical Commission invite the community to join them on Nov. 14 for a Rolling Bus Tour.
This tour will cover the cemeteries in the south west corner of Montague County. You will have the opportunity to stroll through some of the cemeteries, others the bus will stop and Commission member Calvin Durham will tell the history of the cemetery.
The bus tour will meet at the Old Jail in Montague at 9 a.m. and return at approximately 3 p.m. The tour will include a sack lunch, a brochure of each cemetery visited and a book “This Soil will Grow Grapes” written by Melvin Fenoglio.
The cost of the tour is $20 for adults. There is no charge for children under 12. The commission members strive to preserve the history of the county and to share as much of it as possible with our citizens. You can RSVP by calling 940-841-2674 or 940-872-1007. Please leave a message with your name if there is no answer.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), will conduct a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System at 1:20 p.m. on Nov. 17.
FEMA’s emergency alert system is a national public warning system made up of thousands of radio, TV, cable and satellite and wireline video providers. Through the EAS, the President can address the American people or share life-saving information with the public during a national emergency.
FEMA is required by law to conduct a nationwide test of the public alert and warning system at least once every three years. These tests allow FEMA to identify technical or operational issues before the system is needed during an actual emergency.
FEMA and the FCC are sharing the test date in advance because it is important the public understands what to expect on the day of the test.
At approximately 1:20 p.m. (Central time), on Nov. 17, all the electronics providers will interrupt normal programming to relay a test message.
This message will state: This is a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System, issued by the Federal Emergency management Agency, covering the United States from 1:20 to 1:50 p.m. This is only a test. No action is required by the public.”
When the test is concluded, normal programming will resume.
FEMA and the FCC are coordinating with stakeholders, including participating communications providers as well as federal, state, tribal and territorial agencies to prepare for and conduct the test.
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