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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-12-13 Euless Articles DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE OF ,I ,11.-I FOR CITYCVCL CITYATTN'Y SUTTER ,lICKA,I11E BROWN YOUNG ANLVIAL CVTR ,IIcDO.VALD COLLINS W RHODES GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN LIBRARY REF HIRTSELL D.aTEDISTRIBUTED / //3 / / ( D,aTEOFARTICLE/ //i VEIVSP.IPER �P ��4k,}1Acll�� cc,/.1 Firefighters Battling Blaze In Euless December 7, 2011 Texas - Firefighters were battling a three-alarm fire on Wednesday that collapsed part of the roof at the Regency by the Vineyards apartment complex. Firefighters were being pulled out of the structure at 8 a.m. for safety reasons, said Vernon Gilmore, a fire investigator with the Euless Fire Marshal's office. No injuries were reported in the fire, Gilmore said. Firefighters received several calls concerning the fire about 7 a.m. Units from several cities responded to the fire at the complex, located in the 2400 block of Texas 121, Gilmore said. Written by Fort Worth Star-Telegram DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE / OF I MA FOR CITY CVCL CITY ATTNY SLITTER AICKAMIE BROWN YOU.VG AVLIt-IL CNTR ,t1cDONALD COLLINS W. RHODES GETCHELL LIBRARY A&WIN LIBR,ARY REF II-IRTSELL DATE DISTRIBUTED /,t7R/1 3 I I I DATE OF ARTICLE/ /0 /1 ;VEWSPAPE4Glivt.i/1C) ( Night of Wonder Christmas is a time for the community to gather together.6 Stones is bringing the community together in the spirit of Christmas through a Night of Wonder.,Nrgh, Wonder will include a craft time with the kids making Christmas cards for their parents.The parents will be outside,gathering the gifts,meal box,and frozen turkey. HEB!SD has identified needy students and their families to participate in this gathering."This is the third year 6 Stones has initiated this project.The first year 6 Stones we had 1300 students,last year 2300,and this year over 3000."stated Scott Sheppard,Executive Director of 6 Stones.There are currently about 523 more kids to adopt. To volunteer,donate,or pick a child or family to buy gifts and clothes for,people are asked to log onto %form Ntght0Mcnder org.Upon filling out the donation form. donors will receive an e-mail with clothing sizes,a fun gift idea and an identification tag for each child.The suggested spending amount is$35 to$50 for each child for clothing and a fun item.The unwrapped gift items should be placed in a black trash bag.Attach the identification tag for that child and return the bag to 6 Stones.Food donations needed for this project include: canned vegetables,brown gravy,mixed fruit,broth,and stuffing. Scott Sheppard,Executive Director of 6 Stones,stated,"We want to bless these families.We have mothers who said they have no way to keep their lights on." Shepherd remembered one year when a lady told him,I came down here with no expectations,just kids having fun.I have to give you something back.She handed me a crumbled up bunch of bills. I did not want to take the money but she insisted. When I straightened the bills out,it was six dollars in one dollar billls." This was a very touching moment."It is more blessed to give than to receive,"stated Shepherd. The 6 Stone borne web site states,"6 Stone es Mission Network is a local nonprofit/501(c)(3)working with a coalition of churches,nonprofit agencies and other entities to assist in meeting the needs of people in the Hurst, Euless,Bedford community. 6 Stones is all about serving others," 6 Stones is located at 209 N.Industrial, Suite 233,on the 2d floor,in Euless,Texas. 6 Stones can be contacted at 817-868-7400. Many citizens,companies and churches have donated to Night of Wonder.Barnes and Noble at North East Mall is having a Christmas Book Drive to assist in this project.Other companies and churches assisting include:AT&T,Bames,&Noble,City of Bedford,City of Euless, City of Hurst,DFW Plastics,From the Heart,HEB ISD,iTZ,Kids Beach Club,Life Outreach International,LUCAS Funeral Home,My Credit Union,North Hills Hospital,Optimist Club,PODS,Supply Depot,Target,Tom Thumb,The Thompson Group Classic Chevrolet,TXU Chevrolet.TXU Energy,Vasquez Family Chiropractic,121 Community Church,Calvary Baptist Church,Centro Restauracion,First Baptist,Bedford,First Euless.First Hurst,First Nazarene Church,Euless, First United Methodist Church,Euless.Metroplex Chapel,North Euless Baptist.Restoration Church,Shady Oaks Baptist Church,The Mission,and Trinity Baptist Church. All donations are much appreciated. DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE / OF 3 ,LIAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY SUTTER AICKAMIE BROWN YOUNG ANIMAL GVTR MMIcDONALD COLLINS W. RHODES GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN ��11 LIBRARY REF HARTSELL DATE DISTRIBUTED / Q /13 / f I DATE OF ARTICLE / p? //Q( / / I NEWSPAPER DMN Our Garden of Angels in Euless gives loved ones of homicide victims a place to remember happier times i ,' 'r • E. i ,, i ,. ' e '''' ,f .b, i �' • 4 ,m ' - I . Ar 4-q„4- 1 a t 440. I 40, 1` i. 4 :: _el ...14 , . 0 .. _. ... .. i r{ t j h --1 aii T. i k. - t At. t 4 ..; 1 .. ten, Brad Loper/Staff Photographer Carolyn Barker-Maifeld founded Our Garden of Angels as a memorial for the victims of homicide. — More than 100 white crosses fill a small patch of land in Euless — a sight easily missed by drivers speeding past on FM157. — A woman stands at the corner of the sea of crosses. She won't walk through them. She doesn't need to. She already knows all of the names and stories by heart. — Carolyn Barker founded Our Garden of Angels as a memorial for homicide victims from across Texas. DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE 4; OF -3 MAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY SUTTER MCKA,THE BROWN YOUNG ANIMAL CNTR ,VIcDONALD COLLINS W RHODES GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN LIBRARY REF HARTSELL DATE DISTRIBUTED (::q 13 I I/ DATE OF ARTICLE /c) c2 NEWSPAPER DMN The memorial was started at the place where police discovered the body of Barker's granddaughter, Amy Robinson, in February 1998. "She was the light of my life," Barker says, describing Amy. "We put a cross down by the spot her body was found. That is where her soul went up to heaven." Raised by Barker, Robinson had Turner's syndrome, a chromosomal condition that can cause learning disabilities, but had just moved out on her own at age 19. She was riding her bike to the Kroger grocery store in Arlington where she worked when two men she knew from the store offered her a ride. They put her bike in the car and drove her down to Mosier Road, near the Fort Worth-Euless border. The men, Robert Neville and Michael Hall, tortured Amy, shooting her over and over with a pellet gun before killing her with a rifle shot to the head. One of her killers said they did it "just for the adrenaline rush." Amy was missing for 17 days before the police recovered her body. "When they started the trial of Michael Hall, they [Amy's killers] wanted to be celebrities, and I thought, no, this isn't about them," Barker says. "Amy should be the one remembered." Barker set out to ensure she was. Barker mentioned the idea of setting up a permanent memorial at a support group meeting, and soon four other crosses joined Amy's. Barker said Amy never liked being by herself, and the garden reflects that part of her personality. Now more than 100 crosses stand in the garden, a gruesome story behind each one. Barker can tell them all, and Amy isn't the only family member present. Barker points to a name across the garden from Amy: "Debra Massey 1959-1982." "That was my daughter," Barker says. "She was killed by her husband, but he only got 10 years. Justice was not served." Massey was Barker's first child. She left behind two children of her own. "Nothing surprises me anymore," Barker says. She points to a cross near the highway. DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE 3 OF 3 .1/2I YOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY SUTTER MCKANHE BROWN YOUNG ANIMAL CNTR McDONALD COLLINS W. RHODES GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN LIBRARY REF HARTSELL 1 DATE DISTRIBUTED I of 1 / DATE OF ARTICLE / ( -2/ // NEWSPAPER DMN "That's Amy Wingfield, the nurse killed in McKinney," she says. "Her parents come visit every Christmas." She points to another. "That's Brett Curlee. He was a newspaper reporter for the Star-Telegram," Barker says. "And that's Patrick Nunnelley. His aunt is on our board. He used to be involved out here. He's probably happy to be remembered in the garden." Patrick's mother, Kim Segale, also believes wholeheartedly that Patrick is glad to have a cross in the garden. Patrick's family has close ties with the garden. His sister has sung at many of the cross dedication ceremonies, including Patrick's, and Segale runs its Facebook page. "It was just weird how it all happened," Segale says. "Five months before Patrick was killed I put the Facebook page up. I thought it would be good for the families. ... It also just gives you a place to talk," Patrick was shot and killed in July 2010 while defending a friend. He was 23. One month later, he had a cross in the garden. "Before Patrick's passing, the garden gave me an appreciation for life," Segale says. "But after, it's made me realize how short life is. We don't know when it's our time." After spending so much time at the garden and after experiencing tragedy herself, Segale believes the place helps bring a sense of peace. She says that Barker has helped create a safe haven for her and other families of victims. "The whole place gives me a proudness of Carolyn [Barker]," Segale says. "The garden is one thing you don't want to see grow, but it's kind of taken on a life of its own."