News

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Hoisting the Colours!
Lifting the Scandinavian colors, a red field with a dark blue Nordic cross outlined in white, are Ennis freshman Eli and his dad David Espedal, during a World Cup match in Dallas. Erling Haaland scored the game-winning goal in the 86th minute as Norway edged Ivory Coast, 2-1. The 6’5 Viking wears No. 9 and is hugely popular.
Browse and buy original art at ECAA Summer Show
Browse and buy original art at ECAA Summer Show
Art lovers and collectors will have the opportunity to purchase original works from Ellis County artists during the Ellis County Art Association’s Sizzling Summer Art Show July 17-22 at the Beaudry Gallery in downtown Waxahachie. The exhibit will feature landscapes, portraits, wildlife, still life and other subjects in oil, watercolor, pastel, photography and three-dimensional art.
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Palmer ISD swelling, adds classrooms, staff
Palmer opened a new elementary school in 2015 for 397 students in pre-kindergarten through fourth grade. The Janie Barron Campus features state-of-the-art library, classes and an underground storm shelter. This summer the 65,000 square-foot school has been forced to add six classrooms for the fall as enrollment surged over 500 in the most recent year.
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Officials respond to Zajic arrests
Interim County Judge John Wray issued a statement on June 29 in response to citizens requesting he act on the misdemeanor retail theft arrests of recently elected County Commissioner Matthew Zajic, of Ennis.
Beyond the Bookshelves
Beyond the Bookshelves
After years of planning, construction, and temporary relocation, the Ennis Public Library is now marking one year in its renovated home. The renovation, which transformed the library between 2023 and 2025, was designed to create more opportunities for visitors of all ages.

Around Town

Around Town
Around Town
Audition for Theatre Rocks Ennis performing arts group, Theatre Rocks, will be hosting auditions for five parts in the upcoming adult comedy, The Cemetery Club. Director Bill Rhoten has openings for five parts – four women and one man, ranging in age from 50-70.
Around Town

ECAA Youth Art Show displays young artwork, gives scholarship

Around Town

ERSPA to Hold April Meeting

Around Town

Care Services Opens New Garden

Around Town

Ennis Regional Medical Center Welcomes New Hospitalists

Sports

Ennis Baseball Field, including new 40-foot-tall, infield backstop. Courtesy Photo/EISD Athletics
Kostiha talks facility upgrades
Second-year Ennis Athletic Director Joe Kostiha confirmed summer progress on work projects to district facilities. As previously reported, a new gym floor at Alamo has been installed.
photosbylezley.com
Marley Cole
Ennis volleyball players will report to preseason camp on August 1 under veteran Head Coach Kelly Henderson. One sure-fire leader is Marley Cole (No. 11), shown here leaping to block a shot at the net.
Jordan Southerland photosbylezley.com
Maypearl VB hires Southerland
Former Ennis Volleyball Assistant Coach, Jordan (Briggs) Southerland, was introduced as the new varsity head coach at Maypearl, where she starred in high school. In recent years, she was an assistant varsity and junior varsity head coach at Ennis, and brings 18-years of experience to the ‘Pearl.
QB Chris Martinez hands the ball to Wenderius Jones in a game last year. Chris McGathey Photo
Heat & hope rise on gridiron
When the summer turns hot and windless as a furnace room, the start of football practice is around the corner. High schools nationwide will soon hit the gridiron with optimism high for a better season than a year ago.
Volleyball District Alignments
Class 5A District 15 Team Overall Midlothian* 28-15 DeSoto* 20-13 Midlo Heritage 15-24 Cedar Hill 13-17 Ennis 13-20-2 Corsicana 12-15 Lancaster 11-21 Crandall 9-17 *Playoff Qualifier 2025 2026 Playoffs vs D16 (Waco) Class 4A District 12 Team Overall Hillsboro* 27-13 Godley* 20-16 Kennedale* 18-18 Wax. Life* 10-22 Alvarado 10-27 Ferris 9-16 Venus 5-27 *Playoff Qualifier 2025 2026 Playoffs vs D11 (Dallas) Class 3A District 16 Team Overall Grandview* 33-11 Rio Vista* 27-13 Palmer 26-13 Blooming Grove* 21-17 Maypearl 19-23 Keene* 16-16-1 Whitney 14-20 Rice 10-23 *Playoff Qualifier 2025 2026 Playoffs vs D16 (Grand Saline) Class 2A District 13 Team Overall Italy* 20-7 Frost* 15-13 Dawson* 17-16 Itasca* 13-17 Hubbard 2-19 *Playoff Qualifier 2025 2026 Playoffs vs D14 (Crawford) Class 1A District 18 Team Overall Abbott* 26-6 Avalon* 24-10 Aquilla 8-20 Bynum 6-16 Milford 2-8 *Playoff Qualifier 2025 2026 Playoffs vs D17 (Blum).

Opinions

Some like it hot; what's up with them?
Some like it hot; what's up with them?
I wonder how hot it is on Mercury in the summertime. Mercury, as you know, is the closest planet to the sun and therefore the hottest. The Deep South, as you know, comes right between it and Venus giving us the number two status in the solar system for heat production. Or so it seems, in the summertime. I remember the summers of my childhood 40 years ago. The heat was different in the 1960s--it was everywhere. You had little or no air conditioning with which to compare the outside air, so you merely looked for the coolest place outside. I can tell you where it was: under the mimosa trees in the morning, in the back bedroom which was shaded by magnolias at noon, in the cool spray of sprinklers in mid-afternoon and under the sheltered carport before suppertime.
Am I a flight risk?
Am I a flight risk?
For some reason, the idea of flying has strangely passed me by. Oh, it’s not that this intrepid reporter hasn’t flown enough times to shake the wits out of me, because being strapped-in over 75 times has yet to do the trick.
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Catch the wave!
Patriotism has been exploding on the world scene over the past month, and while I don’t care much for soccer, the spirit of the millions who’ve travelled to the USA has been nothing short of inspiring. I find myself watching games daily and cheering for every goal. TheWorldCuphad48teamsqualifytoplaythreematches each. The bottom 16 have now been sent home. Each day a few more win and advance while those who come up short are knocked out. Besides the USA, my favorites are chosen on a whim. Whoever scores goes nuts and celebrates like the next contestant on the Price is Right. Of course, the zealots of the scoring country go bananas, and the cameras zoom in to witness the costumed maniacs. What’s not to like?
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The Fourth of July: It wasn't a party
When I look back to the Fourth of July during my earliest years, it wasn’t a party. There were no computer-generated displays of fireworks.
Scattershooting at moving targets
Scattershooting at moving targets
Who would’ve ever thought that cleaning up the 2,000-footlong reflecting pool that connects the Lincoln Memorial to the Washington Monument would go from stagnant-to-sparking and then suspiciously return to a massive algae bloom days later?

Obituaries

Sam David Ventura
Sam David Ventura
Sam David Ventura, Jr., 86, of Ennis, Texas, entered the presence of his Lord and Savior on Saturday, June 20, 2026. Born in Dallas, Texas, on February 1, 1940, to Sam David Ventura, Sr. and Frances Ventura, Sam lived a life marked by faith, hospitality, and love for his family. Sam graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School before attending the University of Houston and later Southern Methodist University. In 1960, he married his high school sweetheart, Joanne Penfold, beginning a lifelong marriage that would span more than 65 years.
Cleatus Dale Fletcher
Cleatus Dale Fletcher
Cleatus Dale Fletcher, 73, of Kiester, Minnesota, passed away peacefully on March 20, 2026, surrounded by family. He was born on July 1, 1952, in Dallas, Texas, where his life’s journey began and the values of faith, family, and kindness first took root.
Corene Wesley Haney

Corene Wesley Haney, 80, of Waco, Texas, passed away peacefully on Sunday, April 19, 2026, surrounded by the love of her family after a brief battle with cancer.

Adolph R. (Eddie) Miller, Jr.
Adolph R. (Eddie) Miller, Jr.

Adolph R. (Eddie) Miller Jr., age 92, passed away peacefully at home March 26, 2026 surrounded by family.

Clarence Bernard Laza
Clarence Bernard Laza

Clarence Bernard Laza, 77, passed away on Monday, March 30, 2026, at the VA Hospital in Dallas, Texas. Born on February 25, 1949, to Joseph R. and Anna M. (Bednarik) Laza, Clarence was raised in Ennis, Texas, where he attended St. John Catholic School and Ennis High School. On January 15, 1977, he married Dorothy Jelinek, and together they built a home and family in Alma, Texas.

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