News

Five sixth grade Graham Junior High School teams presented over $6,000 this week to area nonprofits they sponsored in the Graham Chamber of Commerce Hot Chocolicious Competition.

During the Hot Chocolicious event, teams of junior high students were set up on the downtown square with booths selling hot chocolate and other various goodies in support of area nonprofits.

The teams met Wednesday, Dec. 13 for the finale event at North Central Texas College. The students this year raised a total of $6,350.23.

Filing for seats open in the March primary election ended Monday in Young County. Young County Sheriff and Young County Precinct 3 Commissioner had more than one candidate file for the positions.

National, state and local seats are up for election during the primaries. The first day to file for an office up for election was Saturday, Nov. 11. The deadline to file for primary candidates was 6 p.m. Monday, Dec. 11.

While Christmas is around the corner and gifts will be given to many in the community, one nonprofit in Young County continues to look for support. With the Humane Society of Young County being overcapacity for months, the organization is looking for assistance.

The nonprofit shelter is currently housing 71 animals: 34 dogs and 37 cats. The shelter’s capacity for dogs is 24 and it has been overcapacity, according to HSYC Director Shelby Brogdon.

One of the primary challenges faced by the shelter in 2023 has been the treatment of animals in the county.

The city of Graham Charter Review Working Group will consider six proposed charter amendments Thursday.

The group is developing a proposed list of changes to present for council consideration which, if approved, will be included within a charter amendment election.

In October, the Graham City Council approved a committee to review the city of Graham charter, which was last amended 32 years ago in May 1991.

The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) recently announced Graham ISD was awarded $85,000 through the Local Food for Schools (LFS) grant program.

LFS supports local and regional food systems, with a focus on historically underserved and small businesses, according to TDA. The state agency awards a total of $22.3 million and individual districts can receive up to $250,000 based on enrollment.

A contested book will remain on the shelves of the public library after this week’s unanimous city council vote to uphold an earlier decision by the library board.

Prior to the Thursday, Dec. 7 meeting, Graham City Council members received a copy of “We Need to Talk About Vaginas: An IMPORTANT Book About Vulvas, Periods, Puberty and Sex!” The council had the option to ratify, amend, or overturn the November library board decision.

In coordination with local, state and national agencies, the Young County Sheriff’s Office held a meeting this week regarding school safety throughout the county.

Sheriff Travis Babcock led the meeting Tuesday, Dec. 5 which discussed safety plans each school district in the county has in place and coordinated efforts among emergency personnel in Graham, Newcastle and Olney.

The city is continuing mitigation efforts following the rupture of a sodium hypochlorite storage tank at the Graham Water Treatment Plant in November. The estimated mitigation cost covered by insurance is $200,000.

Graham City Manager Eric Garretty and Public Works Director Randall Dawson updated the Graham City Council during their meeting Thursday, Dec. 7.

“The cleanup at the water plant is still underway from the incident we had back in November,” Dawson said. “They have excavated all the soil and should start disposing of that this week.”

The Graham Chamber of Commerce opened online Grahammy award nominations this week for those who have gone above and beyond in service and commitment to the community, or in promoting local commerce.

The organization annually honors members of the community and businesses through the awards ceremony held in conjunction with the Graham Chamber Banquet.

Winners are chosen based on nominations from the community. All nominations are reviewed by a committee consisting of chamber board members who select the final winners.

City council is considering whether or not to overturn a recent library board decision to retain and reshelve a contested book as part of Thursday’s meeting.

The Library of Graham Advisory Board voted Thursday, Nov. 9 in favor of keeping “We Need to Talk About Vaginas: An IMPORTANT Book About Vulvas, Periods, Puberty and Sex!” The book is currently set to be relocated to a yet to be determined area of the library.