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12/20/2024

2024 is in the books for the Amarillo Tribune and we couldn't have had a better first 6 months. We were able to share over 200 local stories produced by local journalists to more than 50,000 people in 2024. Thank you Amarillo! We'll be back in 2025 and better than ever.

Gateway to Success Inc. has named Adrian Meander and Judge Titiana Frausto as Amarillo’s 2024 Black Man and Woman of the...
12/20/2024

Gateway to Success Inc. has named Adrian Meander and Judge Titiana Frausto as Amarillo’s 2024 Black Man and Woman of the Year.

Keith Grays, an organizer of the award, said that while the award is meant to honor the recipient, it is also meant to show younger Black people role models in the Amarillo community. In 2023, Joseph Peterson Jr, an Edward Jones financial advisor, and Stephanie Goins, an annual giving officer at the Amarillo Area Foundation received the recognition.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/20/promoting-greatness-gateway-to-success-inc-names-black-man-and-woman-of-2024/

The City of Canyon Commission approved a $14 million bond election at its Dec. 10 meeting. If Canyon residents approve t...
12/20/2024

The City of Canyon Commission approved a $14 million bond election at its Dec. 10 meeting. If Canyon residents approve the bonds at the May 3 general election, the money will be used to improve public safety buildings.

As we previously reported, population growth in Canyon has increased the number of public service calls to the police and fire stations, and the City is expanding those departments to meet that need. The bond projects listed on the meeting agenda are interior and exterior improvements to the former Gold Star building the police department is moving into; interior and exterior improvements to the current Fire Station #1; a new fire department training classroom and barn; a burn house; fire station physical training space and parking lot; and redevelopment of the Planning and Development and Public Works departments’ current location.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/20/city-of-canyon-begins-steps-toward-a-14-million-bond-election/

In recent weeks, the Amarillo Tribune has worked to explore the issue of overcrowding in the Potter County Detention Cen...
12/19/2024

In recent weeks, the Amarillo Tribune has worked to explore the issue of overcrowding in the Potter County Detention Center and the factors that helped create the problem. When we sat down with Potter County Sheriff Brian Thomas in October, he suggested that violent crime was a major contributor and that Potter County as a whole was inherently more violent than Randall County and other counties in Texas that are dealing with overcrowded jails.

Thomas said 90% of the violent crime that happens in Amarillo happens in Potter County, estimating that 80% of Potter County citizens rent while most of Randall County citizens own their homes. “Poverty breeds crime,” he said.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/19/hybrid-gangs-poverty-addiction-boredom-contribute-to-amarillo-violent-crime/

The Amarillo Area Foundation announced on Wednesday that Executive Advisor and former President and CEO Clay Stribling, ...
12/19/2024

The Amarillo Area Foundation announced on Wednesday that Executive Advisor and former President and CEO Clay Stribling, 56, died after battling cancer. The AAF invited the media to speak with Keralee Clay, AAF interim president and CEO, about Stribling’s legacy.

“He loved this area, and I think he showed that in his work in a quiet, steady way. He was not one who came in and said, ‘Let's do big, splashy changes.’ He was one who methodically looked at things and strategically looked at things. But in the 13 years that he did that, big changes happened,” Clay said.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/19/clay-stribling-didnt-dictate-his-legacy-he-just-lived-it/

After two hours of deliberation in an executive session during a Special Board Meeting Tuesday, the Amarillo College Boa...
12/18/2024

After two hours of deliberation in an executive session during a Special Board Meeting Tuesday, the Amarillo College Board of Regents announced Dr. Jamelle J. Conner is their selection to be the next president of AC.

“In my visits that I’ve had at the college and with the Amarillo community, I just really felt connected to everyone. I really felt like this was kind of where I was led to be, and so when I heard that announcement, I couldn’t be more pleased,” Conner said in a Zoom interview following the meeting.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/18/dr-jamelle-j-conner-selected-as-ac-president/

The Amarillo Hospital District Indigent Care and Funding Priorities Committee met Monday to review the JO Wyatt clinic’s...
12/17/2024

The Amarillo Hospital District Indigent Care and Funding Priorities Committee met Monday to review the JO Wyatt clinic’s audit information for the previous five years. Director of Public Health Casie Stoughton said, typically, this audit information would be reviewed annually; however, the committee was knocked off schedule because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“While we did get behind, and it’s nice to be caught up,” Stoughton said, “The silver lining is, it is nice to be able to look at several years in a row to see what those trends look like.”

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/17/cancer-screenings-decline-at-public-health-clinic/

Facing a crowded room, Kayla Mendez, Amarillo Independent School District Board of Trustees vice-president, began the fi...
12/17/2024

Facing a crowded room, Kayla Mendez, Amarillo Independent School District Board of Trustees vice-president, began the first motion of the evening Monday night during the AISD Board’s special meeting.

“I motion…” Mendez said. After a heavy sigh, Mendez began again.

“I move to approve the closing of Park Hills Elementary and assign Park Hills students to George Washington Carver Elementary, George Washington Carver Early Childhood Academy and Rogers Elementary as presented by the administration, and further move to approve the related attendance zone boundary changes as presented by the administration to be effective the 2025/2026 school year,” Mendez said.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/17/three-amarillo-elementary-schools-will-close/

Thanks to a $25,000 grant from the Mary E. Bivins Foundation, the Amarillo Public Library’s Memory Cafè can purchase ne...
12/16/2024

Thanks to a $25,000 grant from the Mary E. Bivins Foundation, the Amarillo Public Library’s Memory Cafè can purchase new equipment to help enhance the program.

Established by Program Specialist Cynthia Hunt, who wrote the proposal that earned the program the grant, the Memory Cafè is designed to combat social isolation in those with dementia and their caregivers. The Memory Cafè offers activities and social interaction through music, games, puzzles and other activities that promote brain health and memory retention.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/16/amarillo-public-librarys-memory-cafe-receives-25000-grant/

Potter County Commissioners are getting guidance from citizens about alleviating issues at the Potter County Detention C...
12/13/2024

Potter County Commissioners are getting guidance from citizens about alleviating issues at the Potter County Detention Center. The eleven Jail Expansion Committee members—including five Potter County citizens— gave their first recommendations to the Commissioners Court on Monday. Committee member Wendi Swope said the committee was unanimous in feeling that something is needed to expand the jail and address its issues.

“Right now, we recommend that the court consider allocating funds to provide renderings and a cost analysis for a 288-bed expansion of the Potter County Jail,” Swope said.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/13/potter-county-commissioners-consider-how-to-alleviate-jail-issues/

BSA launched its new High-Risk OB Flight Team with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday afternoon. With this addition to t...
12/12/2024

BSA launched its new High-Risk OB Flight Team with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday afternoon. With this addition to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) Transport Team, the team will be able to transport high-risk obstetric patients across the Tri-State region, including those with preeclampsia, preterm labor, postpartum hemorrhage, and more.

Thousands of Potter and Randall County residents chose not to vote on items across the ballot in the Nov. 5 election. St...
12/12/2024

Thousands of Potter and Randall County residents chose not to vote on items across the ballot in the Nov. 5 election. Still, the participation rate was particularly low for Propositions D and E, with a high of 14% of voters in Potter County choosing not to take a stance on Prop E.

“It’s quite possible here that some folks decided ‘I’m going to vote no on these, and I’m not really sure about these last two, so I’m just going to skip it,’” Dr. David Rausch, West Texas A&M University’s Teel Bivins professor of political science said.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/12/going-over-the-unders-many-amarillo-voters-skip-down-ballot-props/

During a 45-minute discussion at Tuesday’s Amarillo City Council meeting, the council considered establishing formal pro...
12/11/2024

During a 45-minute discussion at Tuesday’s Amarillo City Council meeting, the council considered establishing formal protocols around their use of George Hyde of Hyde Kelley LLP. In July, Mayor Cole Stanley said the council hired Hyde Kelley LLP, a Texas-based law firm out of Austin, to give the council a second opinion on the proposed Sanctuary City for the Unborn ordinance.

Since then, Hyde has been tapped to offer legal advice on several other issues for the council, including public information requests, charter amendments, the AEDC and the legalities of erecting a monument of the Ten Commandments at the new City Hall. Stanley said the council initially budgeted $95,000 for the procurement and use of Hyde, then budgeted $250,000 for contracting with Hyde or outside legal counsel for the 2024/2025 fiscal year.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/11/amarillo-city-council-considers-protocols-around-use-of-outside-counsel/

The Amarillo City Council met for its last regular meeting of the year on Tuesday. The public comment section lasted aro...
12/11/2024

The Amarillo City Council met for its last regular meeting of the year on Tuesday. The public comment section lasted around 40 minutes and was mostly dominated by citizens speaking against a monument to the Ten Commandments that the current sitting council members are considering donating to be installed at the new City Hall.

As we previously reported, Councilmember Place 4 Les Simpson asked to consult with the First Liberty Institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to defending religious freedom, before the council took action on the monument. Simpson told the Amarillo Tribune after the meeting that the council wasn’t able to meet with the Institute in an executive session before Tuesday’s meeting but that they should be able to meet with them ahead of the next regular meeting on Jan. 14, 2025.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/11/highlights-from-final-regular-city-council-meeting-of-the-year/

The finalists in Amarillo College’s presidential search participated in separate open forums to discuss their visions fo...
12/11/2024

The finalists in Amarillo College’s presidential search participated in separate open forums to discuss their visions for the college with the community. Dr. Frank Sobey presented on Monday, and Dr. Jamelle J. Conner presented on Tuesday. Both forums began with a 20-minute presentation from the finalist, followed by a question and answer session.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/11/highlights-from-the-ac-presidential-finalists-forums/

The Amarillo Code Blue Warming station was activated for the first time Tuesday night. It provides a safe place for unho...
12/11/2024

The Amarillo Code Blue Warming station was activated for the first time Tuesday night. It provides a safe place for unhoused people and their pets to go on nights when Amarillo is experiencing extreme cold weather. Volunteers offer rides to the shelter, and community members can text 806-414-2243 with a location and description of a person they think might need help, and a volunteer will check on that person.

However, the local non-profit that organizes the Code Blue Warming Station needs funding for facility renovations and to offer those services to the local unhoused population through the upcoming winter season.

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/10/code-blue-warming-station-organization-seeks-funding-to-meet-community-need/

Defendants CBS Broadcasting Inc. and CBS Interactive Inc. filed two motions Friday to dismiss the $10 billion lawsuit fi...
12/09/2024

Defendants CBS Broadcasting Inc. and CBS Interactive Inc. filed two motions Friday to dismiss the $10 billion lawsuit filed against them last month by President-Elect Donald Trump, claiming the venue is improper. The lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of Texas, Amarillo Division, presided over by U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk.

The lawsuit concerns an interview with then-Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris aired by the CBS program “60 Minutes” and alleges CBS engaged in “unlawful acts of election and voter interference through malicious, deceptive, and substantial news distortion calculated to (a) confuse, deceive, and mislead the public, and (b) attempt to tip the scales in favor of the Democratic Party as the heated 2024 Presidential Election – which President Trump is leading – approaches its conclusion …”

Read more here: https://amarillotribune.org/2024/12/09/cbs-files-two-claims-to-dismiss-trumps-10-billion-lawsuit/

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2024 is in the books for the Amarillo Tribune and we couldn't have had a better first 6 months. We were able to share over 200 local stories produced by local journalists to more than 50,000 people in 2024. Thank you Amarillo! We'll be back in 2025 and better than ever.

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