Friday, August 21, 2020
We want to wish long-time Sabine Parish Registrar of Voters Kristi McCormick the best as she will be retiring on Aug. 29. She has distinguished herself as one of the state’s top Registrars and her work is second to none. “Retirement sounds so final,” she said, “so I am just moving on to the next chapter of my life.”
She has proven herself to be a strong person as she has succeeded in life and in her career. She is thankful that she has not had to leave Sabine Parish to find a professional career that she enjoyed and at which she excelled.
Ms. McCormick is a graduate of Florien High, as well as Northwestern State University. She began working in the Registrar’s Office on April 22, 1989. That was 31 years ago. At that time, she held the position of Chief Deputy and worked under Registrar Bettye Evans. On July 1, 1994, she was appointed Registrar and held the position for 26 years. During that time, she has been responsible for 117 elections. She has excelled in doing her job with utmost integrity and strength. Many elected officials have characterized the work she has done as outstanding and said she has “always been fair.” That says a lot. It does not mean she was always liked by both sides in an election, or maybe either side, but the key is she was fair – a most-coveted characterization of any public servant.
There’s no question Kristi has done her job with integrity, but she also had a hand in improving the work of her peers across the state. She served on the Registrar Board of Directors from 2000-2004 and in 2002-2003, she was the Vice President and in 2004 served as President. She also completed the study necessary for the Certified Elections Registration Administrator Certification. Kristi participated in her organization as an instructor to assist those who have been appointed to the Registrar position, helping others improve their performances and to avoid common mistakes made by those new to the role.
Kristi has two children, Blake Langton and Drayton McCormick. Blake and his wife Crystal have two children, Paisley and Ethan. Kristi calls them “perfect children” and they love spending time with their Gram, mainly because she loves and spoils them. Now that she is moving on, you can bet she will have two fellow travelers who are ready whenever their Gram says, “Let’s go.”
We want to thank Ms. McCormick for her many years of outstanding service and for just being a fine human being. We wish her the very best in retirement and may her time of enjoyment of life be fun-filled and long.
The legendary Country Music Great Bill Anderson will be on Tedd Dumas’ extremely popular “Open Line” radio program on Monday, Aug. 31, at 7:30 a.m.
Tedd asked me to join him in the interview with Bill, and I am happy to do so.
Anderson recently celebrated his 59th Anniversary as a member of the Grand Ole Opry. He has a new CD out, which he will talk about, and he will also discuss how the Coronavirus has changed his life. He is one of Nashville’s most prolific and most awarded songwriters and will probably tell a few stories of days gone by.
Be sure to listen. It will be a good program.
Wednesday in Observations we had a feature about Many High School Football Coach Jess Curtis and what a positive voice he is for not only Many High School, but for the entirety of Sabine Parish. Well, earlier this week, three television stations (two from Shreveport and one from Alexandria) came out to film the Tigers football practice. Way to go, Jess and the gang!
Some folks have inquired about Chris Tidwell taking over as Sabine Tax Assessor and Cindy Manasco leaving office early. We ran into Chris a few weeks ago and asked him about the matter, which has been kept very quiet, and he said it was true. Observations asked if he would supply a photo and some information about himself and the change in office and he said he would. Thus far, nothing. I have always thought Chris to be a man of his word.
A Many businesswoman was charged Aug. 13 with the theft of more than $130,000. Tiisha Ann Vines, white female, 47, of Noble was booked into the Sabine Parish Jail and arrested on two different counts. She has been released from jail on bond.
She was charged with access device fraud of over $60,000 from the Noble Baptist Church, according to officials at the Sabine Sheriff’s Department. The theft started last November and included credit card use and forgery. According to reports, she forged the name of her mother Katherine Vines, who was treasurer at the church.
The second charge was forgery theft in the amount of $70,000 from her boyfriend Todd Leone. He is in the logging business and she was keeping books for him.
She was also arrested on Jan. 9, 2019 on charges of theft for the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Department. The Sabine Office arrested her and she was transferred to Caddo.
If you know Jimmie Cheatwood of Converse, you know that he’s a talented fellow. I first met Jimmie and his lovely wife Betty when I had the Many Pawn Shop years ago. He made some duplicates of Country singer Johnny Horton’s “Ole Fireball” fishing lures, and they were outstanding.
Awhile back, I met Jeremy Cheatwood, their fine son who works at the Sabine Index. Following that reconnection with the family, I communicated with them on occasion.
During this Coronavirus plague, Jimmie has stayed in and has spent his time writing some Gospel songs. Among them are “Writing on the Stones,” “The Road of Life” and “Choices.”
Jimmie was born and raised in Saline to Willard and Faye Cheatwood. His father played several musical instruments and taught Jimmy to play the guitar, beginning when he was 12. As a youngster, when hayrides were popular, he played at a lot of them. He had family members who were part of a Gospel group called The Thomas Family. This singing group had a big influence on him musically.
He was certified as a tool and die maker and for seven years was Tool and Die Superintendent at the Sunbeam plant at Coushatta. Following that, he worked at International Paper Mill at Mansfield. Then after another 25 years with Brown and Root, he retired.
On the personal side, Jimmie met Betty Gail Ebarb and after about a year of courting, they got married. To this union was born two sons, Justin and Jeremy. They have lived in Converse for 37 years.
Before he retired, Jimmie felt working long hours at the mill hindered his service to God, his music and his hobby of making fishing lures, so retirement brought more time to devote to those endeavors. But after one year of retirement, he was diagnosed with arthritis of the spine and doctors said there was nothing they could do except prescribe pain medicine. “I told the doctors ‘I know someone who can heal me and that’s God,’” Cheatwood shared.
He continued his story, “I was down for three or four years using a walking cane and then I realized that healing wouldn’t be on my timetable, but on God’s. I prayed for healing for about a year. One morning I got out of bed and stood up straight with no pain. I thank God every day for His healing.” Jimmie said.
The Cheatwoods attend Hunter Magnolia Baptist Church where Jimmie plays the guitar in the church group called “Rock of Ages Band.” They also play at various singings and at different nursing homes.
Since COVID-19, the Cheatwoods have stayed at home and kept themselves safe. He concluded, “I have had plenty of time to serve God by reading my Bible and playing my guitar. I thank God for the recent songs he has given me to write.”
A collision between an eighteen-wheeler and a small sedan held up traffic along Hwy. 171 Bypass in Many for a while on Wednesday, Aug. 19.
According to bystanders’ reports, the sedan was turning from Fairground Rd. onto the Bypass and attempted to beat the oncoming large truck. The driver of the truck swerved to avoid impact, but caught the rear end of the car. The truck sustained crash damage on its front left tire and fender.
Initial information was that the two passengers in the sedan were relatively unharmed; one was reported to have suffered a cut.
Of most concern was the pregnancy of the person who was more seriously injured. She was being transported to Sabine Medical Center for an ultrasound to check the health of her unborn baby.
Prayers for the child and its mother that all is well.
That will do it for this Friday lagniappe edition of Observations. I welcome your thoughts and ideas for future articles. Send an email to robertrgentry@gmail.com or call (318) 332-8653. I’d love to hear from you. To print, save or send today’s column, click on the appropriate icon below. To read Observations of the last few years, scroll the pages below. To see older ones, visit our Facebook page. As always, thanks for faithfully reading.
-30-
