Per UIL guidelines, attendance at all athletic events will be limited to 50% capacity, which for us is about 525 seats on the home side. Considering that we have a number of fans stand along the fence, we will sell a maximum of 550 tickets.
All tickets will be sold prior to the games. There will be no tickets sold at the gate.
Tickets may be purchased at the Howe High School office, and ticket sales will end at noon on Fridays.
All tickets will be $5 – adults and students.
A maximum of 4 tickets will be available to families of players, band members, and cheerleaders on Mondays and Tuesdays. Tickets will go on sale to the general public and students on Wednesday. Participants can purchase additional tickets for family members on Wednesday.
Reserved seating will be available and may be expanded into the adjacent sections if necessary to accommodate social distancing requirements. Preference will be given to past reserve seating holders and parents of HS players, band, and cheerleaders. Contact Heidi Debner at 903.745.4406 or debner.heidi@howeisd.net to reserve your seats.
Reserved seats are $25 per seat for the season. However, please note – you are still required to purchase a ticket for each game.
Everyone must have a ticket to enter the stadium – including reserved seating, district pass, and senior citizen pass holders.
Tickets for away games will also be pre-sale only. The same purchasing protocols will apply for home and away games, but limits may be adjusted up or down based on stadium seating capacities.
Only adults will be allowed to stand along the fence. Students/children will be required to sit in the stands.
JV and Middle School Football
Tickets for all sub-varsity football games will be sold at the gate as usual. However, the 50% capacity and social distancing guidelines will still be in effect.
Volleyball
Per UIL guidelines, attendance at all athletic events will be limited to 50% capacity.
For high school non-district games, tickets will be sold at the gate as usual.
For high school and middle school District 11AAA games, all tickets will be sold prior to the games. There will be no tickets sold at the gate.
More detailed protocol for district game ticket sales will be detailed in the near future.
KXII-TV ran a story last week that claimed the City of Howe owes the City of Sherman $300,000 after not paying their sewage bill for 15 months. Howe City Administrator Joe Shephard denied that accusation with the following statement to the Howe Enterprise, “A recent news broadcast would lead the listener to believe Howe has not paid the sewer bill from Sherman for over 15 months. The facts are, from February 2019 through July 2020 the citizens of Howe have paid Sherman $907,047. Sherman charges us for not only sewage, but for rainwater that enters the system. This is one reason your water/sewer bill is so high. The huge amount we, the citizens of Howe, pay Sherman is almost one-third (1/3) of the City’s total annual $3.3 million budget.”
Shephard told KXII that the rates only go up every time it rains. That’s because in Howe, like all other cities, the rainwater seeps into the same pipe as all the sewage, and all of that goes to Sherman to be treated. The City of Howe pays on the amount going through the pipe.
“So, we’re billed per gallon, that runs through this meter,” Shephard said to KXII. “So, when it doesn’t rain, our normal bill is about $30,000 but when we get big rain, it could go up to $80,000, $90,000 to $100,000 and that is what puts us behind.”
Fifty to one hundred-year decisions frighten the death out of community leaders. Before marrying a decision with long term effects, every plausible defection must be reasonably calculated in that decision. To fix a short-term problem, do you make a long-term decision that could set back a community 50 years? The joint sewer contract with the City of Sherman will go down as one of the most disastrous decisions in the history of this community. Some say it was only the beginning of a 4-year period of head scratching decisions by former city council members.
According to a 1968 Howe Enterprise edition, the City of Howe was initially approached by the City of Sherman during the time Sherman was trying to obtain a grant to enhance the sewer treatment plant on FM 1417. For Sherman to qualify for the grant, they needed Howe’s population to qualify. In the original 1968 agreement, Sherman provided Howe citizens wastewater treatment at a maximum of $0.14 per 1,000 gallons. In March of 1986, Howe was paying a flat rate of $487.50 per month, or $0.60 cents per customer. According to the original 1968 contract, Howe was limited to 250,000 gallons per day. Due to rain infiltration, Sherman maintained that the levels of infiltration were as high as 600,000 gallons and in March of 1986 filed suit against Howe for breach of contract.
Sherman cited expansion in both cities from 1968 to 1986 along with the Clean Water Act of 1972 for the need to improve their sewer system. At the time of the lawsuit, Sherman was in the middle of an $18.5 million expense updating their facility.
Former Howe City Administrator Dick Britton told the Howe Enterprise in March of 1986, “Sherman’s suit is based on distorted fact and is no more than a devious attempt to weasel out of our longstanding agreement.”
Britton noted then that Howe offered Sherman to increase its monthly fee by $500 per year for four years, making their annual payments jump from $6,000 to $25,000 per year. Sherman, he said, refused to consider the offer, instead wanting $60,000 to $70,000 annually from Howe.
Howe hired John Hill, a Sherman attorney, to represent the City of Howe in the case and soon afterward, Jerry Kirby resigned his seat as Mayor of Howe leaving Mayor-Pro-Tem Marion Allison in the seat until an election. Ray Bledsoe was eventually elected mayor in April of 1987. City Administrator Dick Britton soon left.
Howe had filed a countersuit on October 10, 1986 stating, among other things, that the contract was part of a series of agreements that give Howe part ownership of the sewer treatment plant. Howe also sought damages if the contract was declared void.
“I sat in that courtroom for five days when Sherman sued us,” said Bledsoe in a 2016 interview. “The judge got up and said, ‘I’m going to dismiss the jury. He said, ‘That contract is not worth the paper it’s printed on’ (referring to the 1968 contract). The judge instructed Howe to pay Sherman for sewer and for Sherman to not discontinue service and for each city to come to an agreement. Bledsoe stated that he worked with Sherman’s David Gattis and Howe would pay Sherman $3,000 per month on a temporary basis.
As we fast forward 30 plus years, Then-Howe Mayor Jeff Stanley told the city council in the August 2016 council meeting, “Our normal bill from Sherman is a little over $22,000 (per month) and recently they have been $60,000. This month should be closer to normal, but we haven’t had many of those in the last couple of years (due to the amount of rain).
Although the city adjusted the wastewater contract services budget expense from $310,400 in 2016 to $550,000 in 2018, they did not pass the bill on to the citizens. The adjustment would result in an increase of roughly $10-$15 per household.
“We’re not asking for an increase from the citizens,” City Administrator Joe Shephard told the council the same night. “We’re just using funds from other places to cover that. We’re not increasing the rates.”
The best news for Howe citizens is that the city is currently in the stages of working with Tomlin Investments to create a wastewater treatment facility to move away from the Sherman Agreement. Howe’s future home development and commercial development growth depend a lot on how much capacity the current infrastructure can handle before a new necessary plant can be in place. The facility is designated for location at Blythe Road near US Highway 75.
Revised Supply Lists: Visit the HISD web site for revised supply lists for both Remote and On-Campus Instruction. Look on the white pop up when you first visit the HISD web page.
August 4 8th Grade Bash Parent Meeting 6 pm at the HMS Cafeteria. Parents only. Bring a mask and pen. This is an overview of the Bash planning and fundraising activities.
August 14 6th Grade Orientation Howe MS Cafeteria: 1 adult with each student with masks. We will provide information, introduce some of our staff and release students to put supplies in their lockers. Report to cafeteria. Park in gym parking lot. 3 sessions and online information available:
8:30 (students last name A-I)
9:45 (students last name J-Q)
11:00 (students last name R-Z)
August 17 iPad pick up at the HMS Cafeteria: Student and one parent only w/ mask. iPad insurance is $40. If at all possible please attend by these times based on your last name.
Students all Grades A-F 9:00-10:30
Students all Grades G-L 10:30-12:00
Students all Grades M-R 1:00-2:30
Students all Grades S-Z 2:30-4:00
August 17 HMS Meet the Teacher Night: One parent / adult per student with masks. No siblings please. Attend by last names. Enter through the cafeteria to pick up schedule.
Students all Grades A-I 5:30-6:15
Students all Grades J-Q 6:15-7:00
Students all Grades R-Z 7:00-7:45
August 19 First Day of School for both Remote and On-Campus Instruction
Press release from Grayson County Sheriff’s Office
On July 26, 2020, at approximately 5:39 pm, Grayson County Sheriff’s Office Deputies were dispatched to the 1700 Block of Scoggins, Road, Tioga, Texas in reference to shots fired with injuries. Upon Deputies’ arrival on the scene, Emergency Medical Responders were performing life-saving measures on Charles Dewitt, a 24-year-old male from Tioga. Life-saving measures were unsuccessful and Mr. Dewitt was pronounced deceased at 6:09 pm. Investigators began their investigation and determined the shooting took place after a verbal argument between Mr. Dewitt and the homeowner, John Crockett III, 30 years of age. After interviewing and collecting evidence, Crockett was placed into custody for murder and transported to the Grayson County Jail. Crockett’s bond has been set at 500,000.00. The investigation is on-going.
The University Interscholastic League (UIL) announced today that schools in Class 1A-4A will start practices and games while Class 5A-6A will start practices Sept 7th and games on September 24th. Sherman and Denison are affected in the Class 5A-6A, while other surrounding small schools will start on time.
While football always grabs the headlines, this affects all fall sports with volleyball getting the big jump on Aug. 10 for first games while cross country and tennis begin competition on Aug. 17.
UIL Press Release below
The University Interscholastic League (UIL) is presented modifications to the 2020-2021 UIL calendar and updated COVID-19 risk mitigation guidelines, set to take effect August 1, 2020.
The modifications to the 2020-2021 calendar differ by activity and conference and can be found on the UIL website and in the chart below. These adjustments reflect the public health situation at this time and the varying numbers of COVID-19 cases across different geographic areas of the state. This plan provides a delay for schools in highly-populated metro areas, primarily conferences 5A-6A, given the challenges with COVID-19 those communities are facing, while providing schools in other areas, primarily 1A-4A, an opportunity to start seasons on schedule. Acknowledging the situation is not always clear-cut and that COVID-19 affects every community differently, the plan also allows for local flexibility and encourages districts to plan for possible interruptions in order to complete district seasons.
Additionally, the COVID-19 risk mitigation guidelines for the 2020-2021 school year can be found at this link. This includes guidance around face coverings, general operations and protocol for individuals confirmed or exposed to COVID-19, congregate settings (band halls, locker rooms, etc.), practice and rehearsal activities, spectators and media, and concession stands and food service.
These guidelines are in addition to guidance issued by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and intended to be implemented along with TEA guidance, which applies to UIL academic activities and extracurricular non-UIL activities.
With the understanding that not all schools will be able to start at the same time, this plan allows for schools to make playing decisions at the local level, and the UIL will work directly with schools that have scheduling issues not addressed in this plan to allow them flexibility to complete as many contests as possible.
“Our goal in releasing this plan is to provide a path forward for Texas students and schools,” said UIL Executive Director Dr. Charles Breithaupt. “While understanding situations change and there will likely be interruptions that will require flexibility and patience, we are hopeful this plan allows students to participate in the education-based activities they love in a way that prioritizes safety and mitigates risk of COVID-19 spread.”
UIL will continue to work with state officials and monitor CDC and other federal guidance to determine any potential modifications that may become necessary.
