Bella receives help from friends and family and welcomes anyone who’d like to help out to contact her mother through their Web site: CansforCanines.org.

Bella’s mother, Jackie said Planet Beach Tan in Waxahachie has helped with collecting the cans.

Karen Kay Esberger, historian for the Historical Society, expresses similar sentiments. “For me, it is genetics. I started work on the family tree when I was 12. I’ve always saved articles out of the newspaper,” she said.

For both women, much of Midlothian’s history played out in front of them as they grew up here. The Midlothian Area Historical Society, founded on September 6, 2007, is the latest historical organization in Midlothian attempting to preserve history. Because the club is so young, a permanent meeting place has yet to be established. Laughing, Judith said, “We are somewhat homeless, meaning we have no entity we can call our own, like a museum where we could meet. Right now, we meet the first Tuesday of every month at Citizens National Bank on Ninth Street. Our purpose is mainly to save Midlothian history. We have had several important buildings torn down over the years, and so we don’t want that to happen again. We also work with other organizations and with the city. One of the city’s goals is to save history.” The Historical Society works in harmony with the city’s historical advisory board in preserving Midlothian.

One of the more interesting areas of Midlothian’s history is the journey of the log cabin that now resides downtown. Judith recounted the story. “The log cabin started out as a home and became a school on its original location. It has been a barn, too. A private citizen moved it to his property, because he could see how it was deteriorating. He wanted to preserve it. For seven years, Mr. and Mrs. Jack Anderson collected authentic furnishings for it. That was in the late ’60s when they retrieved it, and the building stayed on their property until the 1990s. When he died and she was going to move away from the property, Mrs. Anderson donated the cabin to the city because she wanted the building taken care of. That is when it was moved to its current site with all of its belongings. The roof needs work, but we will have to get more money before we can finish it. The gentleman doing the work is a noted log cabin authority in the state of Texas. His name is Bill Marquis, and he’s had to go to Louisiana and East Texas for the logs he is using to repair the cabin.”

The Historical Society conducts interviews with some of the senior citizens in town to get their memories and real-life experiences in Midlothian. There was a unifying message heard in most of the interviews. Karen stated, “One thing most of the senior citizens mentioned in their interviews was the sense of community and working together here. The community as a whole worked together to get things accomplished.” One example of the community pulling together to accomplish something is the Midlothian Civic Center located on Main Street. It was built by those who lived here.

“The men would come home from their jobs and go down there and clean brick,” explained Judith. “The wives would make food and take it down there to them. Everyone contributed their time and labor in their area of expertise, like wiring or bricklaying.”

“The saddest part is where those bricks came from,” Karen added. “When they were tearing down those schools, one of the board members bought all the bricks for one dollar. They took them down to the Civic Center to use.”

The bricks Karen refers to were from old school buildings demolished to make way for newer schools. Midlothian’s original school buildings were a high school, grammar school (six, seventh and eighth grades), a primary school and a separate school building for African American students. In the 1950s, the school district added a gym for athletic needs. Almost immediately after the gym opened, it was determined that the old grammar school needed to be replaced. The students from the grammar school moved into the gym for classes for one year, during which time the new grammar school was constructed. Then the razing of the high school was next, and those students went into the gym for a semester. The gym is still standing next to J.R. Irvin Elementary School. Because of its age, the gym needs to be renovated.

Judith acknowledged the Historical Society’s role. “The gym is one of the structures that we are working to save, because it is the first gym the city and school district had. It was built from material gathered at WWII sites at Camp Bowie and Camp Swift. It was such a good gym when it was first built that it was used for the regional basketball playoffs. The gym had a lunchroom, kitchen and a band room. Our grant writing committee is in conference with the city and the district. They have determined that it can be repaired, and it is just a matter of appropriate funding at this time.” The society solicited signatures from people who are anxious that the gym be saved, and they have over 1,000 signatures so far.

Another project the group is busy with is the restoration of the fence surrounding Kimmel Park. “That fence dates back to 1916. It still stands but needs help. Mr. Jim Berman, the current parks board director, is working diligently to get everything into place and back in shape within five years. He wants to celebrate the centennial of the park there in 2015,” Judith stated.

Since the Historical Society does not have a building to permanently house items of historical significance, they are showcasing such items in display cases around town. “We want to get our name out, so we’ve started to ask people if we could put a display case in their building. We call them our mini museums,” Judith explained.

The Historical Society works tirelessly to proudly preserve and maintain our history. Judith exclaimed, “We are so proud that others want to come here and live.”

Written by Betty Tryon.

When you want to read about people who love their families, friends and neighbors, just turn to your new community magazine, WeatherfordNOW. Weatherford residents will soon receive the premier issue of WeatherfordNOW, the newest addition to a growing publication group known as NOW Magazines. In this full-color magazine, which will be mailed monthly, free of charge, to each physical address in Weatherford, you will find good stories about good people: your friends, your neighbors, maybe even yourself! We are proud to be a part of your community. We are 100 percent supported by our advertisers, and to them, we say, “Thank you.” We, in turn, encourage our readers to support our advertisers.

NOW Magazines is an independently owned company started in Corsicana by Publisher Connie Poirier. Under her strong leadership and vision, it has grown to include nine magazines: Corsicana, Weatherford, Burleson, Ennis, Mansfield, Red Oak, Waxahachie and Southwest (which includes Cedar Hill, DeSoto and Duncanville).

We hope you enjoy flipping through these pages and learning more about your community. In this issue, we have featured some of the “movers and shakers” in town, as well as some neighbors you may not yet know. I am excited to learn more about the heart of Weatherford and look forward to meeting you. Feel free to e-mail me or call me — I welcome your feedback and story ideas.

Melissa Rawlins — WeatherfordNOW Editor

Produced by Marshall Hinsley

He knows that alcohol kills more kids than all other illegal drugs combined and that, even when used with supervision, it can cause permanent damage to developing brains. That’s why Ross and four other Ennis community leaders have joined up as spokespersons for the Ennis Safe Homes Network this summer. The Safe Homes Network is a pledge program that educates adults on how to provide a safe environment for youth, especially by keeping alcohol out of the hands of kids. Underage drinking is a leading cause of teen deaths, accidents, alcoholism, and academic failure, yet adults are the number one source of alcohol for kids. In fact, approximately 70% of secondary students say that alcohol is easy or very easy to get.

Throughout July and August, IMPACT Ennis members will be promoting the Safe Homes Network and encouraging adults to set boundaries and provide consistent parental monitoring, especially when it comes to alcohol and other dangerous substances. Ennis residents will see familiar faces carrying this message around town in the form of billboards, newspaper ads, posters, handouts, and a public service video. All will have the opportunity to sign the pledge and appear in the Safe Homes directory.

The Ennis Safe Homes Network is just one strategy of the IMPACT Ennis community coalition to reduce underage drinking in Ennis. To learn more about Ennis Safe Homes, visit www.ennissafehomes.com.

Appearing in the Safe Homes video are: Ross Jones, Jane Mize, Booker Washington, Mateo Martinez, Betty Honza, Madison Betik, Reagan Holley, Bailey Betik, Taylor Dodson, Aaron Jacek and Matt Loper.

The video was produced by Marshall Hinsley of Blue Sky Media. The superhero photos are by Ennis photographer Rosalyn Todaro of Roz Photo.

Learn more about her work and see the birds that she cares for in our exclusive online video.

Visit Wings of Love Bird Haven, Inc. online at bird-haven.org.

Reposted:  3/1/11.

Coordinator Tracee Franklin hosted the event at Big Thrift in Waxahachie and contributed entry fees to local charities. Participants learned from skilled artists all the ins and outs of altering old jeans and other donated garments into refreshed, fashionable wear.

For additional information, see:
http://www.swaporamarama.org/

http://www.bigthriftstore.com

Written and produced by Marshall Hinsley

Written and produced by Marshall Hinsley

Rick and Pam Daniels of Midlothian don’t worry about high water bills — they harvest the rain to keep their lawn and garden lush and green.

— Written and produced by Marshall Hinsley.

Rick and Pam Daniels of Midlothian don’t worry about high water bills — they harvest the rain to keep their lawn and garden lush and green.

— Written and produced by Marshall Hinsley.