Category: Howe News Bulletin

Howe- Funeral services for Billy Hugh “Bill” Roby will be held at 2:00 PM Monday, February 27 at Waldo Funeral Home. Rev. Roy Layman will officiate. Burial will follow at Hall Cemetery with Kenneth Holman, Robert Holman, Mike Call, Larry Roby, Danny Roby, and Gary Obrien serving as pallbearers. Mr. Roby, 84, passed away Thursday, February 23 at Wilson N. Jones Regional Medical Center.

Bill was born March 12, 1932 in Athens, Texas to the late Frank and Nina D (Hood) Roby. He served two years in the US Army. On July 18, 1964, Bill and Ruby were married in Dallas, Texas. Mr. Roby worked for Texas Instruments for 34 years, retiring in 1993. He had a knack for being able to fix or repair anything and enjoyed spending time with his grandchildren, hunting, gardening, and listening to classic country music. Bill was a true fan of the Dallas Cowboys and will be remembered for his great stories.

Mr. Roby is survived by his wife of 52 years, Ruby of Howe; four children, Stephen Roby and wife Terri of Pottsboro, Tim Roby of Howe, Kristi Cooke and husband Quay of Melissa, and Kyle Roby of Princeton; six grandchildren, Jared Roby, Jordan Roby, Jacob Roby, Mason Cooke, Cayden Cooke, and Norah Cooke; two sisters, Margie Trammell of Tyler and Joan Bedsole of Athens; brother, Jim Roby and wife Fay of Edom; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; two sisters, Irene Munster and Mildred Socia; and two brothers, Albert Howard Roby and Bennie Jack Roby.

Howe Police Sergeant Michael Hill has released the following statement regarding the death of local Howe businessman Kevin Frantz.

“We are investing the death of a 53-year-old Howe business owner.  The police were called after a family member couldn’t reach him.  The police forced entry into the business where they found the man.  Paramedics responded and found no signs compatible of life.  The Justice of the Peace was called and pronounced the man deceased.  Circumstances surrounding the man’s death are under investigation and awaiting an autopsy.”

Frantz was the owner of Frantz Repair Service at 120 N. Collins Freeway in Howe and once served as assistant fire chief for the Howe Volunteer Fire Department.  The Frantz family have been longtime business owners and supporters of Howe.

 

 

Longtime Howe civic leader, Linda Wall, recently discovered a map of the old Farmington community of the early 1900s.  The drawings show to be made by Harold Waller in 1983 along with many friends.  It was scanned by the Howe Enterprise thanks to TLD Design Consulting.

About 100 years later, the roads are in the same locations.  The very bottom line of the map is the current location of US Highway 75.  Just above that is Bost Rd.  Hall Cemetery Road is seen on the right side of the map with Hall Cemetery marked.

One interesting note on the map is the following description, “Helzie Douglas was shot by Hoot Adkins at Farmington Baptist Church and died a week later, Feb 25, 1925.”

 

 

PARIS – Texas Department of Transportation officials today announced that the temporary closure of a portion of FM 121 in Grayson County has been tentatively rescheduled for Feb. 6 due to a delay in relocating a power line. The planned two-week closure will affect traffic on FM 121 east of Massey Road and westward to Muncy Road, and is also dependent on favorable weather conditions.

During that time, contractor AK Gillis & Sons, Inc., will complete pavement work as part of the widening and improvement project currently underway along FM 121 from Gunter, Texas, to Van Alstyne, Texas. Traffic will be detoured to FM 902.

Message boards along FM 121 alerting drivers to the new schedule were updated today. If wet, inclement weather occurs the closure and road work may be postponed and rescheduled again, TxDOT officials said.

Those who travel frequently in this area may want to drive alternate routes while this work is underway. TxDOT officials asked drivers to pay special attention to all signs, barricades and traffic controls, and to reduce their speed as they approach work zones. They should also avoid distractions such as cell phones, eating, drinking, or car audio or navigation systems when driving.

 

According to a Howe Police Department press release, two of their officers seized over two pounds of methamphetamine during a traffic stop on U.S. Hwy 75 early Monday Morning.

Chief Carl Hudman reported that on January 23, 2017 around 1:13 am, Howe PD Detective Keith Milks and Officer Oscar Martinez stopped a vehicle on Northbound U.S. Hwy 75 for a traffic violation.  After speaking with the driver and passenger and noticing nervousness and conflicting travel plans between the two occupants, Milks asked for consent to search the car.  Officer Martinez, who is fluent in Spanish, translated for Det. Milks during the encounter.  The 25-year-old passenger claimed ownership of the car and granted the officers’ request to search.

Det. Milks found a large clear bag of a crystallized substance that he believed was methamphetamine secreted in an area under the car’s passenger side windshield wiper base.  After the officers removed the bag, they field-tested a portion of the substance and it tested positive for methamphetamine.  It had a total weight of 2.75 pounds.

Officers also seized a set of digital scales from inside the car, less than a gram of cocaine from the 27-year-old driver’s wallet and 1.4 grams of methamphetamine from the passenger.

Officers seized $1,871.00 in currency from the suspects and intend to file civil forfeiture proceedings against it.  According to Chief Carl Hudman “This is the largest drug seizure by Howe officers in many years, if not the largest ever.”  He estimated the street-value of the drugs to be anywhere from $90,000 – $100,000”.

Arrestees:

Pablo Garcia-Camacho

Guadalupe Oriz-Martinez