News

Due to recent drought and dry conditions, Young County has declared a local disaster and enacted an emergency burn ban, prohibiting all outdoor burning.

Young County Judge Win Graham signed an official declaration order Thursday, Oct. 10 for the burn ban, which will be active for a period of not more than seven days.

The burn ban was enacted due to drought and extremely dry conditions over the past several days, which has resulted in multiple fires becoming active in different areas of the county.

The opportunity to reconnect with a loved one who passed away is something that many could only dream of and something that the Lindley family in Graham recently experienced. 

It was a simple bathroom renovation job that led to the family discovering a handwritten note tucked behind a mirror from their daughter, Amber Lindley, who passed away 12 years ago at 18 years old. 

Celebrating its 10th anniversary as a living history event, Fort Belknap Days will return to the fort in Newcastle with reenactors and more on display for both students and the public.

The event is sponsored by the Friends of Fort Belknap, Young County Historical Commission and the Fort Belknap Living History Association. The public day for the event will be held Saturday, Oct. 26, starting with a flag ceremony at 9:30 a.m. and ending with a retreat at 4:30 p.m. 

Ten thousand ducks will soon travel down the Firemen’s Park pond to Salt Creek during the Rotary Club of Graham’s seventh annual Duck Derby. 

The event will be held from 2-6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 19 at Firemen’s Park, with duck sales open online at duckrace.com/graham. 
As of Monday, Oct. 7, the derby had sold 2,101 rubber ducks, or 21% of its 10,000 goal. Ducks are sold online for one for $5, five for $25, 12 for $60 and 20 for $100.

In a little over two weeks, the polls will open for the November general election with federal, state and local races on the ballot.

Early voting will be held Monday, Oct. 21 through Friday, Nov. 1. In Young County, early voting will be held 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 21-25, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 26, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 27 and 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 28 to Friday, Nov. 1.

Early voting locations will be the Young County Annex at 417 Second St. in Graham and the Olney Community Library and Arts Center at 807 W. Hamilton St. in Olney. 

After narrowing down the list of potential superintendent candidates, the Graham ISD Board of Trustees is set to conduct interviews next week.

Four special meetings of the GISD board are scheduled next week with the only item in executive session to interview candidates for the superintendent position. The meetings are set for 5 p.m. Monday, Oct. 7 and at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 8-10 at the Graham ISD administration office at 400 Third St.

After being arrested in January on five counts of possession or promotion of child pornography, Austin Navarez-Cantu took a plea this week for 10 years deferred adjudication. 

Navarez-Cantu, 27, was sentenced Wednesday, Oct. 2 to deferred adjudication community supervision for a period of 10 years in each case of online solicitation of a minor - distributing materials, with lesser offenses included. 

The second suspect in an Olney aggravated assault that occurred in May took a plea deal this week for eight years deferred adjudication.

Patrick Rater, 32, and Summer Krick, 22, were arrested Saturday, June 8 and extradited back to the state following an aggravated assault which occurred Wednesday, May 15 in Olney. 

Krick took a plea deal Wednesday, Sept. 11 of seven years in prison and Rater accepted a plea deal Tuesday, Oct. 1 for eight years deferred adjudication. Both were facing the charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

An Olney man accepted a plea deal this week on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon from a February 2023 offense.

Damaion Maurice Fleming Jr., 32, accepted a plea Wednesday, Oct. 2 of five years deferred adjudication community supervision. Conditions of his community supervision include 320 hours of community service and not possessing or purchasing a firearm.