[Marshall, Texas, April 14, 2020]

In a joint effort, the City of Marshall under the direction of Mayor Terri Brown and Harrison County under the authority of County Judge Chad Sims have today, both issued a Second Amended Declaration of Local Disaster and Public Health Emergency Related to Communicable Disease to extend the timeframe to safeguard our community from the coronavirus (COVID-19).

Under these amended orders, residents of the City of Marshall and Harrison County are still permitted to perform essential duties for their families; including obtaining medical supplies, visiting a health care provider, obtaining supplies they need to work from home, grocery shopping, engaging in outdoor activities while maintaining social distancing, and to perform work defined as an essential service. Citizens at a high risk of illness from COVID-19 and people who are sick are urged to remain in their residence except to receive medical care.

As of 4:00 p.m. on Monday, April 13, 2020, the positive COVID-19 testing data includes:

Total Positive COVID-19 Cases in Harrison County             31*

City of Marshall Positive Cases                                                   24

Harrison County Positive Cases                                                  7

*The Overall Count includes two casualties.

Gender

Male – 12

Female – 19

Age 0-19 –  0

Age 20-39 – 9

Age 40-59 – 7

Age 60+ – 15

“We understand the increase in positive COVID 19 cases can be concerning to residents. A number of these positive cases were diagnosed as a result of previously reported positive case investigations.   We urge residents to continue to stay home to reduce your risk of exposure,” stated Jennifer Hancock, Director of the Marshall – Harrison County Health District.

[Marshall, Texas] In a joint effort, the City of Marshall under the direction of Mayor Terri Brown and Harrison County under the authority of County Judge Chad Sims have today, both issued a Second Amended Declaration of Local Disaster and Public Health Emergency Related to Communicable Disease to extend the timeframe to safeguard our community from the coronavirus (COVID-19).

Under these amended orders, residents of the City of Marshall and Harrison County are still permitted to perform essential duties for their families; including obtaining medical supplies, visiting a health care provider, obtaining supplies they need to work from home, grocery shopping, engaging in outdoor activities while maintaining social distancing, and to perform work defined as an essential service. Citizens at a high risk of illness from COVID-19 and people who are sick are urged to remain in their residence except to receive medical care.

As of 4:00 p.m. on Monday, April 13, 2020, the positive COVID-19 testing data includes:

Total Positive COVID-19 Cases in Harrison County                 31*

City of Marshall Positive Cases                                               24

Harrison County Positive Cases                                              7

*The Overall Count includes two casualties.

“We understand the increase in positive COVID 19 cases can be concerning to residents. A number of these positive cases were diagnosed as a result of previously reported positive case investigations.   We urge residents to continue to stay home to reduce your risk of exposure,” stated Jennifer Hancock, Director of the Marshall – Harrison County Health District. 

On Thursday, April 9, 2020, the City of Marshall City Commission approved an Ordinance consenting to the Amended Declaration of Local Disaster Proclaimed for the City of Marshall by the Mayor on March 31, 2020, and any Matters Incidental or Related to said Declaration.

On March 13, 2020, the City of Marshall suspended all events in city facilities and parks beginning March 16, 2020, and lasting until April 15, 2020. This safeguard included events at facilities, such as the Marshall Convention Center, Memorial City Hall, Marshall City Arena, Marshall Visual Arts Center, Marshall Main Street downtown, Community Centers and all-league events in parks.

As a further action, the City of Marshall implemented further modified operations for city facilities to protect the health of our staff, citizens, and visitors on March 17, 2020. The departments included the Water Billing Department, Municipal Court, Marshall Public Library, Oaklawn Golf Course and all Marshall city playground equipment.

On March 31, 2020, Harrison County Judge Chad Sims and City of Marshall Mayor Terri Brown confirmed the third diagnosed case of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in Harrison County. In response, Judge Sims and Mayor Brown are both issued Mandatory Shelter in Place orders effective at 11:59 p.m. on March 31, 2020, until April 13, 2020, which has now been extended by today’s actions.

The City of Marshall Emergency Management Team will continue to meet with leaders from Harrison County, Marshall – Harrison County Health District, CHRISTUS Good Shepherd Health System – Marshall, and City of Marshall leaders to monitor this fluid situation on an ongoing basis and provide notices to residents.

In order to safeguard our community from more cases, citizens are urged to follow all orders by the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC), Executive Orders by Governor Greg Abbott, Harrison County, and the City of Marshall Second Amended Declaration of Local Disaster and Public Health Emergency Related to Communicable Disease.

1.         Restrict physical contact and publicly used areas.

2.         Maintain Social Distancing with a safe distance of six (6’) feet between individuals.

3.         Every person in Texas shall avoid social gatherings in groups of 10 or more per Executive Order of Governor Abbott.

4.         Residents should not visit nursing homes, retirement, or long-term care facilities unless to provide critical assistance.

5.         In accordance with the CDC, people shall avoid eating or drinking at bars, restaurants, and food courts, or visiting gyms or massage parlors. Residents may still utilize drive-thru, pickup, or delivery options through the Executive Order.

6.         Regularly wash hands with warm soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

7.         Avoid touching eyes, nose, or mouth.

8.         If soap is not available, use at least a 60% alcohol-based hand sanitizer.

9.         Avoid close contact with people who are sick. All persons should remain in the home if one person in the home exhibits symptoms.

10.       An essential errand should be conducted by only one adult from the household. All other family members should remain sheltered at home.

11.       CDC recommends wearing a cloth face mask in public. The mask will fit snugly, be secured with ear loops, and be able to be laundered and machine dried often. A mask should not be placed on children under age 2, anyone who has trouble breathing, or unable to remove the mask without assistance. A mask with multiple layers of fabric should allow for breathing without restriction. The cloth face coverings recommended are not surgical masks or N-95 respirators as those critical supplies that must continue to be reserved for healthcare workers and first responders.

Total testing data will be released on Wednesday, April 15, 2020, by the Marshall – Harrison County Health District.

By George Smith

There are people in our society whom too few people think about, much less care about.

It is sad and even loathsome.

What have you done, will you do today and into the future to make a positive difference in some’s  life without expectations of some form of “prid pro pro”?

I haven’t thought of this in years but the memory hit me this morning.

Twenty-five years ago, I was the new publisher of the Las Cruces Sun-Times in New Mexico. In learning about the town, I was shocked to discover Dona Anna County had the highest per capita homeless population in the nation!

Why? It boiled down to three key factors: Good weather year-round (it only rained an average of 28 days a year); a benevolent population that were tolerant of those less fortunate than themselves; and, a benign city and county government that cared not if a disproportionate percent of the population slept in parks, parking lots fields or under bridges.

Every day driving my 5.6 miles to work,
from my isolated hacienda on a golf course, I saw numerous men, women and children panhandling by the roadside, at traffic lights, in parking lots of convenience stores.

One day, not out of a revelation of do-goodliness, but out of a focused business need — I wanted to increase circulation — I, and several of my managers, solicited and signed up more than 20 homeless people to sell newspapers in specific locations.

The deal was simple: Sell papers as independent contractors for 50 cents; the contractor kept a quarter. They all had to fill out contractor forms and were responsible for taxes. The deal was not catch-as-catch-can: in the contract, they acknowledged they were representatives of the paper and could be dismissed under certain conditions, moral and at the discretion of management. We bought the all collared shirts with the Sun-Times logo and told them to go forth, smile amd make money.

The paper’s circulation jumped 15 percent the first month of the experiment and I was a corporate hero.
But not in Las Cruces.

I was summoned to a meeting in the mayor’s office and lambasted for  causing a nuisance by selling newspapers around town, “causing problems at traffic lights” and other areas.

I pointed out the homeless that had been panhandling at traffic lights were now employed and offering a service.
And, they were earning more money to spend in local businesses.

They put me on double-naught secret probation but let me continue the program. Within a year, several of those homeless hawkers were full-time employees of the paper.

Point?

The only point is sometimes people need help. Maybe, just maybe, you can be an integral part of the solution to a problem.

Many of us have a little extra time to think in this era of social distancing. Use a little of the time to think what you can do help others…now and in the future.

Stay safe.

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By George Smith

Coronavirus.  COVID-19.

I know some people who are not taking this pandemic seriously. They are flirting with disaster of the most personal kind.

BobJean and I are among the lucky ones. We live of County Road 31, off State Highway 73 in big-time rural Nevada County, Arkansas. 

Our house is at the end of a dirt road and at the end of a 220-yard lane. If you come to our house, you are looking for us or you are lost.

Our intent is to keep this highly infectious disease away from the house on Bedspring Ridge and stay healthy.

To achieve that end, we go to town only when we have to, wearing gloves and masks and wiping down everything we might touch outside our realm of isolation. 

We even wipe down the mail with Clorox wipes, UPS or FedEx packages, too, outside and contents. We used to save grocery sacks for friends; now, we dispose of them.   

Following the advice from a website, we have a “dirty” and “clean” side of our large countertop island. Groceries or other items brought in are put on the dirty side and unpacked; all items are washed and/or wiped down with sanitary wipes and placed on the “clean” side. After all items are put away, the entire counter is wiped down with Clorox wipes.

When I go check on my aunt and uncle, I wear gloves and touch nothing. I take them food occasionally and make sure the containers have been wiped down. 

Overkill? Who knows. But at our age —fast approaching 73 and 75—and with certain medical conditions, why take a chance?

Being a “semi-colon” people (you know, when you hit a semi-colon in a sentence…it means you ain’t done yet!) we have a ton of living to do. We have places to see, grandkids to hug and spoil, ideas to be explored and college students to inspire us to keep living and sharing. 

And, we have each other. After being separated for more than four decades — from being young and stupid (me) to finding each other again was like winning the lottery of life.

This time of our life is too good, to precious, to throw it away by being hard-headed or neglectful or forgetful.

Be smart. Stay safe. Stay healthy.

We are all valuable cargo and our time to live is…right now.

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