Communities across the country recognize those who help save lives in times of personal or national crisis during National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week, being observed locally April 14-20.

Shackelford County sheriff Ed Miller commended local 9-1-1 telecommunicators when he gave special recognition to one of the workers during Monday morning’s county commissioners meeting. 

“Our dispatchers take a lot of calls, and sometimes, they have to think outside the box,” said Miller.

The 13th annual Albany Classic Car Show is set to take place on Saturday, April 20, and everyone is invited to come downtown and enjoy the various body styles and polished chrome that reflect memories of yesterdays. 

Members of Shifters Car Club will once again serve as hosts for the show, and they are hopeful that a lot of cars will come as long as the weather is cooperative this year.

A total of 20 Albany tracksters qualified for the area meet in 18 events, helping the boys place second and the girls third at the District 8-2A Track and Field Meet held last Thursday here in Albany.

The top four places in each district event moved on to the area meet held yesterday in Mertzon. Results of the meet were not available at press time, but the top four winners from that meet advance to the Region I-2A Track Meet on April 26-27 at South Plains College in Levelland.

The Lion baseball team was edged out by a walk-off run on an error last Friday to drop their second district game against Haskell.

Albany was on the road Tuesday in Hamlin, bringing back a 15-0 win against the 1A Pipers.

The team will be off on Friday, but the annual fundraiser including a hamburger supper and long ball batting fundraiser will start at 6:00 p.m. with all proceeds benefiting the baseball program.

Members of the team are selling tickets for the hamburger supper, as well as gathering pledges for the batting competition.

The Lady Lion softball team split games last week against a couple of the 1A members of the district, as the second round of league action got started.

Albany traveled to Stamford on Tuesday, bringing back a 7-0 loss. Details of the game were not available at press time but will be reported next week.

The local team will host Haskell on Friday at 5:00 p.m. and will also be at home on Tuesday, April 16 to host the Hawley Lady Bearcats at 5:00 p.m.

The Lady Lions lost to Eula, 18-6, on April 2, falling behind early and never recovering.

Five Albany High School athletes will be competing in the regional tennis tournament next Wednesday, April 17 at Odessa College in Odessa.

District girls singles champion Sarah Beth Cotter, along with two second place doubles teams, will leave for Odessa next Tuesday, with games starting Wednesday morning. 

Cotter, a freshman, finished with the top spot after a first round bye and two subsequent perfect matches.

Taylor and Callahan counties will host a Wheat Field Day from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm on Friday, May 3 at various sites throughout the counties, beginning at the Taylor County plots located off Texas Highway 351 on County Road 521, also known as Mesquite Lane. 

The program is free of charge and includes a sponsored lunch at the Lions Club in Eula on Farm- to-Market Road 603. 

For further information and to RSVP by May 2, contact Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Taylor County 325-672-6048, or Callahan County 325-854-5835. 

Albany Sports Center sent a cheer team and two individual performer groups to compete at the Cheer & Dance/Drill Team America competition at SeaWorld, San Antonio last Saturday, April 6, and all three entries won awards in both their age group and in the overall.

“This was our last competition of the year, and the girls did very well,” said coach Kandi Ray. “The team won the elementary cheer division, got high point overall from among all of the elementary classes, and they were also the overall highest scoring team of the day from all age divisions!”

By Donnie A. Lucas

The seventh grade boys track teams captured the district championship last Saturday in Roscoe, with the eighth grade boys finishing in second. The two girls teams both took third place.

“The boys capped the season with some of their best performances of the year,” boys coach Ryder Peacock said. “Overall, I was very proud of their efforts. The seventh grade came out of nowhere to win the meet, and the eighth grade mile relay ran an impressive race under four minutes for second place.”

John Reames, age 85 of Albany, passed away Friday, April 5, 2019. Graveside funeral services were held Monday, April 8 in the Albany Cemetery with Rev. Jeff Pleasant officiating. Interment followed under the direction of Morehart Mortuary. 

John Douglas Reames was born June 1, 1933 in Albany, Texas to V.A. Reames and Grace Tankersley Reames. He grew up in Albany and graduated from Albany High School in 1950. Following graduation, He attended classes at Sul Ross University.