January 30, 2025 • 43 mins
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to the Roy West Radio Show on AM five
sixty klv I. I am your guest host for today's show.
My name is Debbie Bridgeman, and today we are going
to be talking to several people. We'll be kicking off
the show with Energy Texas, seeing what's going on with
those guys. Then we'll be heading over to the Greater
Beaumont Chamber of Commerce and we'll be finding about their
(00:24):
pickleball tournament. Also, we've got Mollie Moore with the nachus
River Festival and that big event is on the way,
and we'll finish it up. We'll be Dancing with the
Stars the Junior League of Beaumont and we'll see one
of the couples and what they have going on as
they prepare for their big event. But to kick things off,
we're gonna visit with Paul Blackburn with Energy Texas.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
How are you, Paul?
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Living the dream? Debbie one day at a time, how
are you doing today?
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Doing great?
Speaker 1 (00:53):
So for anyone who doesn't know Paul Blackburn, what is
your title and just in a sentence or two, what
do you do for Energy Texas.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
I'm the customer service manager for Energy Texas in the
Beaumont area. Mostly I manage key accounts, our large commercial accounts, cities,
key stakeholders in the area. And what I do is
it's just everything, you know. I try to make sure
(01:22):
all of our customers are taken care of any questions
they may have or answered, and be out in the
community as much as possible to make sure we're connecting
with all of our customers.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
So Entergy Texas, I mean, we love energy because we
love having our power on. We I know you guys
power life. Tell me a little bit about, you know,
the recent snowstorm that we had and how did you
guys prepare in advance for that storm.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
So we learned quite a bit from URI in twenty
twenty one. We're always you know, doing SWAT analysis after
big storm events. What can we take away? What can
we be more prepared for next time? We did really
well considering you know, our peak.
Speaker 4 (02:09):
I believe peak.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Outages for Beaumont was at like one forty which is
not much at all. We had most of them back
home within a couple of hours, even though the roads
were kind of slick. But I got five and a
half inches of snow at my house. Debby, I'm not
sure how much you got, it was quite a bit. Yeah,
it was way more than we're accustomed to in Southeast
(02:32):
Texas for sure. So but ways we prepared when we
knew that this was going to be an event. Obviously,
we're looking, you know, a week ahead, and we're constantly
making sure that at every level, whether it's at our
power generation plants, our transmission lines, our distribution lines and substations,
(02:56):
that we're you know, maintaining those as best as possible.
We are doing inspections, we're keeping everything up to date
so we don't have the as much risk as of
a catastrophic failure for key equipment that could impact our
customer base. So you know what we did when we
knew that the temperatures were going to be below freezing,
(03:19):
we insulated a lot of key equipments and lines at
the power plant level to make sure we could keep
all of our plants working optimally to deliver that power
to all of our industrial, residential and commercial customers.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
And you guys did a fantastic job.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
I know, it wasn't so much the snow, but just
the ice that accumulated on the roads that was making
it hard for a lot of customers just to even travel, Like,
I know that was the best thing is stay off
the roads. You know, snow was not the only thing
that Energy has to face. You know, there's been hurricanes,
there's been bad weather. You guys have been really just
(03:57):
highlighted at the response after Hurricane Bear doing such a
fantastic job to get everybody restored as soon as possible.
So I mean basically, you guys are prepared three hundred
and sixty five days a year for whatever the weather brings.
Speaker 3 (04:14):
Yes, yeah, absolutely, And you know during hurricanes, we know
there will be outages. Everyone like, no one's a stranger
to hurricanes down here. I've lived in Southeast Texas for
the vast majority of my life, so we're not strangers
to hurricanes. We know the drill. But we will bring
(04:37):
in contractors early. We'll stage them in key areas so
as soon as it's safe to begin restoration work. That's
exactly what we're doing because at the end of the day,
we want to minimize the amount of time that our
customers are going to be out. Just because we know
that when a hurricane comes through, there will be out.
It just does not mean we want them to be
(04:58):
off a minute longer than they have to be, so
you know, we're definitely putting all the right personnel in
place to bring all of our customers back back online
as quickly as possible.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
And what I love is on social media seeing all
the love for the line workers and the plant workers
and especially Bolivar Boliver, you know, has has so many
new upgrades and reliability improvements, and the people down there
are so appreciative, and I love seeing all of their
positive responses to Energy online. And what I also liked
(05:32):
was you guys went to Arkansas to help when they
had some bad weather recently, and the Energy Texas post
was shared by so many people in the Arkansas area
saying thank you to our crews going in assisting.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
So I know it's it's mutual.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
So whenever there's something going on that's with one of
our neighbors, Energy Texas is there to help.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
Absolutely all the love to our line. And I'm I've
got a biased opinion. My dad was Alignment for forty years.
He worked for Energy for forty years, retired with Energy,
he was Alignment that entire time. I think they have
the most important job at the company. You know, obviously
(06:16):
we couldn't do it without them. But mutual assistance is
a big deal. So you know, not only do we
send Cruise to Arkansas when we're anticipating they're gonna have
some bad weather to help out in any way we can,
We've also sent cruise to recently this past summer, we
sent Cruise to Virginia and Georgia and Florida for Hurricanes
(06:40):
Milton and Helene to help with restoration efforts over there.
And the whole point of that is a mutual assistance
program is we're all at the end of the day,
you know, we're all together in this right and we
want to help out our neighbors whenever possible. And we
know that if we were to get it hit hard
(07:01):
like that, we could count on our neighbors to come
and help as well.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
I love that sharing the love.
Speaker 1 (07:07):
Now, let's switch gears just a little bit and let's
talk about our bills. We don't like getting a bill,
but it's necessary, and you know, I love that Entergy
Texas has so many options for customers in case you're
having a bad month, or in case you know your
summer bill is so much higher than your winter bill.
(07:27):
So what are some of the options for people in
terms of making sure that they're able to pay their bill.
Speaker 3 (07:34):
That's a great question. So we have several different options.
One great option that we have is called levelized billing,
and it's really for customers who are on a fixed income.
That way, in the dead heat of the summer or
the cold cold of the winter, if they have an
electric heater, they're not going to get this huge bill
(07:56):
that's twice what they would normally expect. So with levelized billing,
will essentially, you know, take like a running twelve month
average and will have the pretty similar bill every single month,
so you won't get a huge jump in your bill
when it's super hot or super cold. But it's not
just for our customers who are on a fixed income
(08:19):
or on low income. It really could be for anyone
who wants to have a pretty good idea of what
their electric bill is going to look like, regardless of
how much they need to use electricity, you know, So
levelized billing is a great option for really any of
our customers who are interested in having a pretty consistent
(08:40):
monthly bill for their electric use. Now you could get
a whole bunch more information through my energy app or
on our web page Energy Texas dot com or by
calling our one hundred number. Our customer service agents are
certainly happy to you know, to run down all the
(09:04):
nuts and bolts as it pertains to each individual customer
what it would look like if they were on levelized billing.
And of course, if you you know, see me out
in the wild, I'm happy to talk each customer.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
Through it individually as well.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
So we've got levelized billing, we have a deferred payment arrangements.
Life happens, you know, we're all human. You know, crazy
things happen all the time. Maybe your car breaks down
and you've got to take it to the shop, and
I don't know if you've had to experience this recently, DeBie,
but the cost of everything is pretty high right now, yeah, right,
(09:40):
so you know, maybe you had to spend an extra
fifteen hundred dollars to get your car repaired and you
weren't expecting that. Well, if your electric bill is two
hundred dollars and you're like, I just spent fifteen hundred,
I wasn't anticipating, maybe I won't be able to make
my electric bill payment this month.
Speaker 4 (10:01):
Well, if you call our call center.
Speaker 3 (10:03):
Talk to them you can request a what we call
a deferred payment. We can push that out a little
bit more, give you some time, because ultimately we don't
want to turn anyone off. We want to work with
all of our customers through the ups and downs that
that life's going to throw at us.
Speaker 1 (10:18):
Right, So we've got just about a minute and a
half left, But just touch on the my Energy app
as well, because that's a great resource for customers.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
It is a great resource for customers and not just
for you know, finding out information about levelized billing and
you know, looking at your account, you can really get
granular with your account and see like how much you're
using per day and if you remember yesterday what the
temperature was and what you had your thermostat at, you'll know, okay,
(10:48):
I can anticipate this much usage per day and what
does that mean for a dollar amount?
Speaker 5 (10:53):
Right?
Speaker 3 (10:54):
But also you can track outages. You'll get alerts that say, hey,
you know you're you're out at your house. We're dispatching
someone there on the way. Here's what we've found and
this is about how long it's going to take for
you to be turned back on. Just so we can
keep you in the know. You can also submit street
(11:15):
light out tickets. You know, if you're if the street
light right outside your house is not working, if it's blinking,
or if maybe somebody hit the pole, God forbid, you
can turn that into it's a It's a great way
to stay connected with it with Energy Texas. We also
have a link to our storm center on the My
Energy app. The storm center is so pivotal for all
(11:38):
customers to check out because we're not just talking about
the hurricanes and the winter storms, but how can customers
be prepared. We're going to tell you how we are
staying prepared to take care of you, our customer, but
how can you the customer be prepared to weather the storm,
so to speak, in any situation.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Well, Paul, thank you so much, so much to get
information for Entergy Texas. And thank you to you and
of course all the lignemen and the plant workers for
everything that you do to continue to power life for
Southeast Texas.
Speaker 2 (12:09):
So thank you for being on the show.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
Thank you for having me, Debbie. I'll look forward to
seeing you soon.
Speaker 1 (12:14):
Sounds good, and we'll be right back with the Roy
West Radio Show on AM five sixty klv I. And
we're back with the Roy West Radio Show on klv
I AM five sixty. I am your guest host, Debbie Bridgeman,
and for our next segment, we have the director of
(12:36):
Leadership Programs for the Greater Beaumont Chamber of Commerce and
the Beaumont Chamber Foundation. Please welcome Chris Parton.
Speaker 4 (12:44):
Thank you, Debbie. I'm glad to be here.
Speaker 1 (12:46):
So you guys have a pickleball event that's coming up,
and I believe this is the very first time that
the Chamber has done something like.
Speaker 5 (12:53):
This first annual BCF pickleball game.
Speaker 4 (12:57):
You've got to be there.
Speaker 5 (12:58):
I'm going to throw out some terminology if you're not
a pickleball player, stay out of the kitchen. Okay, that's
apparently pickleball terminology. But on February twenty eighth, we're going
to have our first day of the tournament. It will
actually be from six to nine pm on Friday. Saturday
will be seven am to six pm, and then we
(13:18):
have a Sunday one to seven pm. If you are
a pickleball player, this is definitely where you want to be.
My understanding is we're reaching out all the way to
Louisiana to get participants to come and join us. We're
expecting about one hundred and fifty participants. We're sitting on
fifty registrations already so far, and so we want to
keep that rolling. As as you said, and I said,
(13:41):
this is our first time to give this a shot,
so we really want a good showing and we want
to do our best to make this a entertaining tournament
for everyone.
Speaker 4 (13:50):
We will have a.
Speaker 5 (13:52):
Food truck out there so you can have something to eat,
and we would also like to make sure we think
our sponsors. We've got Energy supplying us with T shirts.
Speaker 4 (14:01):
We have.
Speaker 5 (14:03):
Court sponsors Dana Johnson, Team Cobb, Chiropractic, Sabine, Credit Union,
Stifle Investments, Our Stifle Investment excuse me, Manu School Supply
Iten Equipment, American Valvenhydrant, First Security, Bank, Guild or Real
Estate Guild, Mortgage Rate, Credit Union, Bechtel. We've got a
lot of court sponsors out there, and so we want
to go ahead and make sure we do a very
(14:24):
good job for our sponsors as well. We're looking for
a presenting sponsor, and we also would like to thank
American Air Systems for being our podium sponsors. So you're
going to see a lot of signs up there showcasing
the people that help us put this on this year.
Speaker 1 (14:39):
Wow, it sounds like you're off to a great start.
So for anybody that's interested, are there different skill levels?
Are their age groups? Like who can sign up?
Speaker 4 (14:49):
Anybody can sign up.
Speaker 5 (14:50):
We are doing it skill level, so you have male singles,
female singles, male female doubles, you have male doubles, female doubles,
so you have all age groups. It's mainly based on
skill and everything on the registration page will direct you
toward the right thing that you need to sign up for.
(15:12):
So that's pretty self explanatory in the registration page, and
we'll give.
Speaker 4 (15:16):
You a contact to make sure you can get a
hold of that as well.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
And of course i'm sure there's a nominal fee for
anyone to sign up because it is basically a fundraiser.
Speaker 5 (15:25):
Well exactly, there is a fifty dollars registration fee and
then you can play as many different types of the
tournament as you'd like. If you are a male singles
player but you're also part of a doubles team, you
would just do a ten dollars charge to go ahead
and sign up for those different various events. So registrations
fifty bucks and then ten bucks on top of that
for how many other events you want to participate in,
(15:45):
and we would certainly encourage you to go ahead and
show off your talents in whatever area that you can do.
Speaker 4 (15:51):
So we're excited about that.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
You know, pickleball just seems to have really exploded over
the last couple of years and.
Speaker 2 (15:59):
It's the rate.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
So I think this is fantastic now, you know, we
talked about it's a fundraiser, So for anybody, A lot
of people know the Greater Beaumont Chamber of Commerce, but
the foundation, like, so, what are some of the things
that you guys do.
Speaker 5 (16:11):
Well most everyone?
Speaker 4 (16:13):
Or I think that since I'm involved, and I think.
Speaker 5 (16:16):
Most everyone's most familiar with Leadership Beaumont, which is our premier.
Speaker 4 (16:21):
Hosting group.
Speaker 5 (16:22):
And so Leadership Beaumont's a nine month program and it
actually invites young professionals to go ahead and be part
of a group to create something. Every group's hope is
to have something that is lasting. If you've ever heard
of Fireworks Downtown, that's a Leadership Beaumont program that came
to fluition. If you've ever heard of COSA, if you've
(16:44):
seen bike Lanes now downtown. These were a group of
young professionals and Leadership Beaumont that got together and made
this a reality. Ways to improve the community, which is
what Leadership Beaumont is all about. I guess I'm most
proud to say that Leadership Beaumont is the oldest leadership
program in the state of Texas. Houston has them, Austin
has them, Waco has them, l Paso has them, but
(17:07):
we were the very first.
Speaker 4 (17:08):
In the state of Texas, and so I'm very proud
of that.
Speaker 5 (17:10):
And I think Leadership Beaumont graduates, if you talked to
any of them, yourself.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
Included, I was going to say Class of twenty twenty.
Speaker 5 (17:16):
Three best class ever. Yeah, grade well, and so I
think everyone you run into thinks their class is the best,
but of course I know that mine is. So the
reality here is very proud graduates through many many years.
That started all the way back in nineteen seventy one
where a group of people got together with a Junior
League of Beaumont and they created this Leadership Baumont group
(17:40):
and so it's been every year since then.
Speaker 4 (17:42):
So we're very proud of that.
Speaker 5 (17:44):
Some of the other programs Junior Leadership In fact, this
after this radio interview, I'll be preparing to take a
group of eighth graders, excuse me, eleventh graders to the
Jefferson County Courthouse. We're going to learn a little bit
about the judicial system today.
Speaker 4 (17:57):
And so we take.
Speaker 5 (17:59):
Eleventh graders who are soon to be your new leaders
in the city as they grow up, and we teach
them about the judicial system, teach them about economic development.
Recently toured the art studio that's on Franklin I think
right near the chamber down here, and so we expose
them to things that are a possibility for them not
(18:19):
only to be a part of, but also to volunteer
for and things like that. So we want them involved
in the communities so as they do progress, they want
to stay here. They want to be part of this
community as we grow.
Speaker 2 (18:31):
I love it. I love it. And the kids that
she'll be with. What school are they from.
Speaker 5 (18:36):
They're from a variety of schools. BID's represented by three
different schools. We have Legacy Christian Academy, we have Harmony
Science Academy, and so we want to bring all these
schools together so that they like minded kids can get
to know each other from different schools and create some
friendships and grow that together.
Speaker 1 (18:54):
I absolutely love that because you know, nowadays kids they
may think they want to go to college for or
they may think this is the career they want, and
there's a lot of opportunities in our community where they
can go and firsthand, go to a plant, go to
the courthouse, go somewhere and see is this something I
really want to do? You know, I really encourage kids today,
find your passion, do something that you want to get
(19:17):
up for in the morning, and go to work and
make a difference in the community.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
So thank you.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
I think the junior program is fantastic. Now you also
do something with the alumni. I know just this past
week you had a lot of pies flying around. I
guess we just have to wait for the pictures on
that one.
Speaker 5 (19:34):
Well, and we actually had a lot of fun. Huge
thank you to our pie recipients. Kevin Reid, Lee Potter,
Elton Hollis, Jonathan Kellis, Paul Coaster, David Thornhill and Derek
McWilliams all volunteered to go ahead and have some pies
tossed in their face, which was a lot of fun.
We also did a little music bingo and things like that.
(19:55):
At Brentwin Country Club. It's always wonderful to get alumni
together that they can go ahead and visit with each other,
see where they've been in the last couple of years,
and just have a good time together. So we had
We had a really good time and made a really
big mess. So that was a lot of fun for
everyone who was throwing the pie. Maybe a little less
fun for those that were receiving the pie, but nonetheless
(20:16):
really good night of fun.
Speaker 1 (20:17):
Well, I love how the Foundation has so many programs
going on. I'm a part of the Women Entrepreneurial Network
and we had the Remarkable Women Lunch a couple of
weeks ago, and our next event is the Dress for Success,
and we're going to be given tips, you know, for
for women that are business owners or want to be
a business owner on you know, how do you dress
(20:38):
for an interview? How can you quickly change from your
work clothes into an evening event. So it'll be it'll
be really it's a lot of fun. Got a lot
of celebrity models that'll be out there, so.
Speaker 4 (20:49):
It'll be cool.
Speaker 5 (20:50):
That's going to be on April eighth, and so it'll
be at the Holiday and plaza. We did recently have
one at Mcmlagante where we're Bernice Dyson Trail Brazer Rewards
was given to Sherry Arnold. We had the outstanding businesswoman
that was Reta Hurt and we showcased three young ladies Ms.
Vona Castellon, Maryon Walker and l Zane Kali County. I'm
(21:12):
sure I butchered that last name, but Elsa's Grill which
is a wonderful place to eat, but showcase those ladies.
They were doing a phenomenal job in our community and
so we wanted to go ahead and say thank you
and let people hear their stories as to how they
got where they got.
Speaker 4 (21:29):
So that was a very good afternoon too.
Speaker 5 (21:30):
But yes, we're looking forward to Dress for Success and
like I said, it's coming on up on April eighth.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
I'm excited.
Speaker 1 (21:36):
So we're about to wrap up, but tell us once
again about the pickleball tournament. How can people sign up
and how can people be a sponsored?
Speaker 5 (21:44):
Easiest way is to go ahead either call the chamber
here at eight area code four oh nine eight three
eight sixty five eighty one and ask for Mike Simpson
or if they just like the email it's m I
K E s I, M P S O N. Mike
Simpson at bm COC dot org and he is our
(22:04):
sponsorship guru and he can hook you up with all
the opportunities that are available there. Like I said, we
are still looking for a presenting sponsor. We would love
to have that and if we can go ahead and
get everything underway. And that's true for anything that you
want to do. If you're curious about any events here
at the Chamber, you can always go to www dot
BMTCC dot oorg and you can go ahead and look
(22:28):
at our events page and everything that the Chamber does.
Speaker 4 (22:31):
It's a rolling page and you can see everything that
happens there.
Speaker 1 (22:34):
Fantastic Chris, thank you so much for being part of
the show.
Speaker 4 (22:37):
My pleasure.
Speaker 1 (22:38):
Thank you, and we'll be right back with the Roy
West Radio Show on AM five.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
Sixty k lv I.
Speaker 1 (22:49):
Welcome back to the Roy West Radio Show on AM
five sixty k l v I. I am your guest host,
Debbie Bridgeman, and we've heard from Entergy Texas, We've talked
to the Greater Beaumont Chamber of Commerce, and now we're
going to be talking about the nachus River Festival with
Molly Moore.
Speaker 2 (23:04):
Welcome to the show.
Speaker 6 (23:06):
Oh thank you so much for having me, Debbie.
Speaker 1 (23:08):
So for anyone that's not familiar, just in a nutshell,
what is the nachus River Festival.
Speaker 7 (23:14):
The Nature's River Festival is a festival that's held every spring.
This is our seventy seventh year. It was started in
nineteen forty nine with the Chambers Wonmont Chambers of Commerce.
They had a meeting and they wanted to start something
to shine a light on Beaumont and on the youth.
And so this festival celebrates seniors in high school and
(23:36):
we have princesses and they have escorts that are seniors,
and then we have visiting duchesses from surrounding areas. And
so this year we have ninety eight princesses. Every high
school is participating, and that includes ninety eight escorts, and
then we have thirty visiting duchesses.
Speaker 6 (23:56):
So it's a really large year. We're super excited.
Speaker 7 (24:00):
I was in the Nature Server Festival when I was
a senior in high school. It's just a very time
honor tradition here in Beaumont, and we're one of the
longest running festivals in Texas. So we're just really proud
of the things we've done and giving back to the
community too, because we provide scholarships to nine of the
kids that participate in the Nature Shur Festival.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
So it is a big fundraiser to help with the scholarships.
And you guys have is this the first year to
be doing a five K?
Speaker 7 (24:30):
No, this is actually I believe it's our six or
seventh year. We had to cancel one year due to COVID,
but we've been doing this since our seventy second year.
That was the first year we did it, So wow
to say it's about six our sixth run to organize,
and we've had a lot of support from the community.
Last year we had over four hundred runners, so we
(24:52):
are a growing run. We're getting our feet wet, learning what.
Speaker 6 (24:57):
The community needs.
Speaker 7 (24:58):
But it's a really fun day for kids for families and.
Speaker 6 (25:02):
We're having that on February twenty second.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
Wonderful. So how can people sign up and get involved?
Speaker 7 (25:08):
So on our website Naturesriverfestival dot com, we have a
five K page. On that page, it gives you all
of the details about our run, but also about sponsorship opportunities.
We still have some spots left for our T shirt,
so if anybody's interested in that, you can go to
our website and to sign up. There's a link to
take you to run sign up some run signup dot
(25:30):
com and you sign up there. Right now, we have
a special so until February fourth, we have five dollars
off for our run.
Speaker 6 (25:38):
So if you go sign up.
Speaker 7 (25:40):
Today or before February fourth, you get a discount, and
then at February fourth, I'll go up to five dollars more.
Speaker 6 (25:49):
So it's a really fun run.
Speaker 7 (25:50):
We have a kids one mile run at eight thirty
in the morning and the kids just love this. We
have tons of kids that come out to do this run.
And then at nine o'clock we'll do the five k
run walk. So if you're not a runner and you
don't want to runner five k, you can also walk
our five k. So it's for everybody. It's for all
(26:11):
family members. And once it's over, we have face painters,
We're going to have food and drinks, so it's also
a party, so.
Speaker 6 (26:20):
Come and enjoy the day.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
It's usually really great weather wonderful.
Speaker 1 (26:24):
So let me ask you about the girls that are
chosen as the princesses. So when you know, like I know,
if you're applying for a scholarship, you have a certain application.
When they do they apply to be a princess or
are they chosen and do they fill out like a
scholarship application at that time or is that separate like
kind of what is the process.
Speaker 7 (26:46):
So if you're interested in Nature Server Festival, we actually
visit all the schools, or we try to get and
visit all the schools to explain what Nature Driver Festival
is to whoever does.
Speaker 6 (26:55):
Not know what it is.
Speaker 7 (26:58):
But we take anybody who wants to register to be
a princess. There is a registration fee, but you can
register online and we take registrations in the fall, So
for year seventy eight, next year, we'll do a recruitment
in the fall and then we usually have our deadline
in November. But the registration is online and it's anyone
who wants to participate. There's no nomination, nothing like that.
(27:21):
It's a community wide event. We want all girls to
participate who would like to. There is a four hundred
dollars fee to do the registration, but that covers everything,
all the expenses, her ball seat, everything that is included.
So the only extra cost is to buy your dress
because the princesses wear a white gown. Our website gives
(27:42):
a lot of pictures so you can kind of get
an idea of what to expect. But the princesses sign
up and then they select an escort, so they choose
who they want to escort them. We also have other opportunities,
so if an escort does not get asked to bear
them with someone, if there's someone who's interested in in
Nature's River as an escort but it has not been
(28:03):
asked by a princess, and then the duchesses is.
Speaker 6 (28:06):
The same thing.
Speaker 7 (28:07):
So if you have a niece or someone a family
friend that lives outside of Beaumont. We've had duchesses come
from as far as California, New York. So if they
have it tied to Beaumont or a tied to a
family friend and want to celebrate their junior or senior
year and come to this ball, they are welcome to.
So all of that is on our website natures Rifestival
(28:29):
dot com. You can go to the registration forms. They're
not going to be up yet for seventy eight, but
that's the process of how princesses get involved, and then
once we have our princess list and our escort list
duchesses as well and duchess escorts, then they are eligible
to apply.
Speaker 6 (28:44):
For one of our nine scholarships.
Speaker 7 (28:47):
Seven of them are through a essay process, so they
fill out an essay and apply that way, and they
can take seven of those scholarships to whatever college they're
going to and their thousand dollar one thousand dollars scholarships,
and then a Lamar University we have two scholarships with
them and that's twenty five hundred dollars and those are
(29:09):
selected through an application process at Lamar.
Speaker 6 (29:12):
So once you become a princess or an escort, a
duchess or a duchess escort.
Speaker 7 (29:17):
Then you apply through the Nature's River Festival Lamar Scholarship
and then those are awarded the night of our coronation
on April twelfth.
Speaker 6 (29:25):
Nice.
Speaker 1 (29:25):
I mean, I know, it's a super big deal and
you guys have those girls doing parades and everything. It's
not just one thing. I mean, it's like a year
long kind of celebration. So it's quite an honor for
the princesses and the duchesses and the escorts and everybody involved.
And I love seeing the pictures, you know, when they're
(29:46):
posted online. Everybody just looks so beautiful and so nice
and dressed up. And I guess there's some like etiquette,
maybe training or something that goes along with that too.
Speaker 5 (29:57):
Well.
Speaker 7 (29:57):
Yes, I do believe that through the Nature's River Festival,
these princesses and escorts, duchesses and duchess escorts are all
learning about networking, they're learning about etiquette and before they
go off to college, they're also learning about the interview process.
So the Royal Court is selected through an interview process
that we do the weekend before the coronation, and that's
(30:20):
how the Queen, the ladies in waiting are all selected.
The other scholarships are selected through and the different process.
But I do believe that this interview that they do
is might be the first interview they've ever had before
they go off to college, so it's a great.
Speaker 6 (30:35):
Experience for them.
Speaker 7 (30:36):
We also have a lot of community partners, so we've
been very lucky to partner with the Junior League of Beaumont,
the Symphony, we have joined with the Heritage Society, the
macfad and Wardhouse also the links their group, and we
have been able to have these separate events with them,
and at each event they have the opportunity to meet
(30:57):
these groups, to meet these wonderful full community members and
network with them. So our hopes is that they go
off to college and then they come back to Beaumont
and you know, stay here and you know, reinvest their
lives back into the community.
Speaker 1 (31:13):
And I love that you guys provide that opportunity for
the networking because it seems that you know, our kids today,
they spend a lot of time doing their networking on
their phone, which really isn't networking, but the face to
face and building relationships is so important. And the fact
that y'all are providing that opportunity for the kids, because
you're right, some of them have maybe never been through
(31:34):
an interview process and you know, just little things like
how to conduct, how to the eye contact, and you know,
what to wear, what not to wear, stuff like that.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
So that's that's really good.
Speaker 1 (31:45):
So again, it's you're an honor to be a princess,
but it is more than just a one time event.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
It's a whole big program we do.
Speaker 7 (31:53):
We have a lot of events, but we also really
like to say this is a family event, so it's
a way to really sell upbrate your child before they
go off to college. I think it's really special for
these parents and families to have a night special for
them that all the family is included, so it's a
family affair. They're all there to see. They're precious child,
(32:15):
you know, presented. It's just it's very heartwarming to see
because I know that these are memories that they'll have
for a lifetime, because I remember when I was in
it and it was just such a happy moment for
me and for my family. So we just want to
encourage that and we want to be holding these families
to have a great night and then keep on to
these memories for a lifetime.
Speaker 1 (32:37):
Fantastic. We've got about ten seconds left. Remind us again,
when is the five K and how can people register?
Speaker 7 (32:43):
It's on February twenty second, and you can register on
Natures River Festival dot com.
Speaker 6 (32:49):
We have a five K page.
Speaker 7 (32:50):
You just click on that and then it will tell
you all the information you need to know and all
of our dates are on there as well for our
parade and our coronation and so just peruse our webs
everything you need to know is on there if you
want to learn more about princesses and escorts and our scholarships.
Speaker 2 (33:05):
All right, Molly Moore, thank you so much for being
a part of the show.
Speaker 6 (33:08):
Thank you so much, Debbie.
Speaker 1 (33:10):
All right, we'll be right back with the Roy West
Radio Show on AM five sixty klv I. And we're
back with the Roy West Radio Show on AM five
sixty klv I. I am your guest host, Debbie Bridgeman,
and we are talking dancing with the stars right now
the Junior League of Beaumont, the big annual event, Couple
(33:32):
number eight is in the house. West Brussar Junior and
Meg Brown. Hey, guys, how are you doing today? Hi?
Speaker 5 (33:39):
Good?
Speaker 6 (33:40):
How are you?
Speaker 5 (33:40):
Hi?
Speaker 8 (33:41):
Doing good?
Speaker 1 (33:42):
All right, So just real briefly because we want to
learn about the couples. Wes, just in a sentence or two.
Speaker 2 (33:47):
Who are you? What do you do? What's going on?
Speaker 8 (33:51):
I'm a born and bred Beaumont boy, grew up here
working in construction, and I now build boats and barges
along the Gulf coastal, on the Inner coastal and port
doctor nice.
Speaker 2 (34:04):
All right, how about you?
Speaker 3 (34:05):
Meg?
Speaker 9 (34:07):
Well, I've been in Beaumont for about maybe ten to
fifteen years now. I'm a nurse practitioner. I work for
a local company that we see we see people in
their homes, so we do primary care in the home,
and I'm also a Junior League sustainer.
Speaker 2 (34:21):
Nice.
Speaker 1 (34:22):
So this event basically is an annual event with the
Junior LEAGA Beaumont. Meg, why don't you start and just
tell us briefly what is this event all about. We
know it's about dancing. We know you got your stars,
but what is the event and why are we doing it?
Speaker 4 (34:37):
Yeah?
Speaker 9 (34:37):
So this event is one of the major fundraisers for
the Junior LEGO Beaumont. And all the money that's raised,
that's brought in through sponsorships or donations, our votes, all
that money is put towards grants that we where the
Junior League opens I think in the fall in the spring,
and nonprofits across the area can apply for these grants.
(34:59):
So basically, we're, you know, receiving this money and we're
putting it back into the community.
Speaker 2 (35:04):
Nice.
Speaker 1 (35:04):
So, Wes, how are those dancing shoes? What do you
what have you been doing to prepare?
Speaker 8 (35:09):
Oh my goodness, I've had to get in shape and
I have lost some weight I mean, so there's there's
some good to this. I'm having fun. I'm having fun.
We have a fun choreographer and uh, just just dancing dancing.
Speaker 1 (35:30):
So, so you guys visited Spindletop Rotary Club a couple
of weeks ago and we got a.
Speaker 2 (35:36):
Little teas of your performance.
Speaker 1 (35:39):
I guess you guys have still been practicing since that time.
Are we feeling real confident going into this event?
Speaker 4 (35:46):
Yeah?
Speaker 9 (35:47):
I think so, you know, we we we just finished
the Stephanie just finished choreographing the whole dance, and so
now it's just polishing.
Speaker 2 (35:57):
All right.
Speaker 1 (35:57):
And I know that it's kind of a secret. We
don't want to give anything away. But the event, as
you said, Meg, it does help raise funds for the
Junior League Beaumont, and it is a big event that's
going to be held at the Civic Center and people
can buy tickets and support it. But it's also a
good a good way for you guys to get out
into the community and people are voting.
Speaker 2 (36:19):
So how can people vote for you guys?
Speaker 9 (36:23):
Well, on my Facebook page, I post a lot about
our length to go directly to us and vote, but
definitely you can go to the Junior Leaga bomat website
dancing with the Stars tab and then it has all
the couple's lists, but you want to scroll over in one, three, seven,
go down to eight and just click that's.
Speaker 1 (36:40):
Right, couple number eight. And so the big event is
coming up in March, right, yes, yes, So if wes,
if somebody wants to get tickets and come out and
see you guys strut your stuff, how's the best way
to get tickets?
Speaker 8 (36:56):
The Junior League at Beaumont, they've just sent them out
in thes to a lot of people in the community
by mail, but also on their website you can go
on and sign up for a sponsorship or buy a table.
So the best way is to get a group together
and buy a whole table.
Speaker 2 (37:15):
Definitely.
Speaker 1 (37:15):
So let me ask you this, And we've all heard
about the Junior League's event. We've seen a lot of
our friends get up on stage. How did you guys
get roped into this? When when you saw them coming,
did you run or were you like all right? Finally, like,
how did you how did you get enticed to be.
Speaker 2 (37:31):
One of one of the dancers.
Speaker 9 (37:35):
Well, I've said this before. I've been wanting to be
a dancer for for for many years, probably I think
since they started this Dancing with the Stars fundraiser. And
so when Megan called me, I was, I was on it.
I think I said yes before she finished her sentence,
how about you, Wes.
Speaker 8 (37:50):
Well, it was a surprise, it really was.
Speaker 4 (37:54):
I was.
Speaker 8 (37:54):
I was at a luncheon at the Junior League of
Beaumont for an awards ceremony. I was there representing the
Shorky Center, which I've been on the board of for
over twenty years, and we're part of the nonprofit community
and we all sort of worked together in the in
the Beaumont area, and we received an award, a monetary
(38:14):
award from from Junior League. And I got in the truck,
I thanked everybody, shook hands, got in the truck, headed home,
and got the call. I really couldn't turn them down
after I had the check in my pocket.
Speaker 2 (38:27):
You know, well, that's what I was going to say.
Speaker 1 (38:29):
I mean it all like I think, you know, like
you said, the nonprofits are like a community. So yes,
you know, Junior League supports Shorty Center and so here
you are able to give back, and Meg, you have
your own nonprofit. So how does that kind of tie
in with the Junior League.
Speaker 9 (38:45):
Yeah, yeah, you know, my year serving as an active
really taught me lessons of not only being a good volunteer,
but being a good leader in the community. And through
that I saw a need and that's how I developed
my five oh one c nonprofit Period Power Entry, And
basically since it's inception in twenty nineteen, I have Junior
League volunteers help me build period packs which we delivered
(39:08):
to the schools and really just kind of help me
talk about this need in the community through the Junior League.
Speaker 2 (39:15):
That's nice. I love it.
Speaker 1 (39:16):
I love how you guys are involved in supporting the community,
just like the Junior League. Is there any event that
the Junior League does outside of Dancing with the Stars
that you guys have participated in, supported, sponsored, or just
really think it's pretty cool?
Speaker 9 (39:33):
Well, you know, Christmas just passed, but you can start
planning right now for next December. But they have their
annual Main Street Market, which is another big fundraiser that
they do at the Civic Center and you can do
all your shopping at one stop.
Speaker 6 (39:45):
So that's always my favorite.
Speaker 2 (39:47):
Nice what about us, I've.
Speaker 8 (39:50):
Never really been that involved with the Junior League, I
guess because it's main it's it's only women invited. But here.
In the last few years as president of the Shorky Center,
I've gotten involved with more nonprofits and has seen what
(40:10):
they do for our community, and I'm really impressed with
the way they identify specific needs in the community and
form a plan and they attack it. They're the best
of the best in Beaumont.
Speaker 2 (40:24):
Love it, Love it.
Speaker 1 (40:24):
Well, we've got about a minute left, so Wes, one
more time. Where do we go to get tickets?
Speaker 8 (40:30):
Go to the Dancing with the Stars Facebook page Dancing with.
Speaker 2 (40:34):
The Stars Texas Perfect and Meg? What couple are we
voting for? Number eight?
Speaker 3 (40:45):
Night?
Speaker 2 (40:46):
Best of luck to you guys, couple Number eight.
Speaker 1 (40:49):
Wes and Meg Dancing with the Stars, Junior League of Beaumont.
Thank you so much for being a part of the
show today. We appreciate you, guys, and good luck at
the big event.
Speaker 4 (40:58):
Thank you, Thank you.
Speaker 1 (41:00):
All right, and we'll be right back to wrap up
with the Roy West Radio Show on AM five sixty
klv I. We're back with the Roy West Radio Show
right here on AM five sixty KLVI. I am Debbie
Bridgeman and I have served as your guest host Today
we kick things off with Energy Texas. Paul Blackburn was
(41:20):
our guest, talking about restoration efforts after the big storms
like the snow that we just had, also assisting neighbors.
So if Arkansas, Louisiana, Florida needs help, Entergy Texas is
on the way. They also have resources to help with
your utility bill like level billing, which helps you pay
the same amount each month so you can better manage
your bills. So go to Energy Texas dot com. You
(41:43):
can also download the my Energy app. You can use
that app to report an outage manager bill, you can
see your usage, also get tips to keep you and
your family prepared and safe. We also talked with Chris
Parton with the Beaumont Chamber Foundation. They have a pickleball
tournament coming up. It's their first time to do this.
That'll be on February twenty eighth. Go to BMTCOC dot
(42:05):
org to sign up or to be a sponsor at
the event. We also talked with Mollymore with the nachus
River Festival. That big event is every year in April,
a big tradition in Beaumont, and they have their five
k run coming up Saturday, February twenty second. The early
registration discount ends tomorrow, February third. There will be a
(42:27):
price increase on Tuesday, so make sure you sign up today.
Natchisriverfestival dot com for the five k on the twenty
second of February. And we just heard from Meg Brown
and Westbrustar Junior. They are couple number eight with Dancing
with the Stars. It's the big event the Junior League
of Beaumont puts on every year. It will be Friday,
March seventh at the Beaumont Civic Center. Go to Junior
(42:49):
League Beaumont dot org to get your tickets and couple
number eight Meg and West. As always, a big shout
out to Roy West for always being a strong advocate,
forgiving where you live and making Beaumont the best city
ever to work, live and grow again. Have a great
day and thank you for listening to the Roy West
Radio Show on a M five sixty k l v
(43:11):
I
Welcome to the Roy West Radio Show on AM five
sixty klv I. I am your guest host for today's show.
My name is Debbie Bridgeman, and today we are going
to be talking to several people. We'll be kicking off
the show with Energy Texas, seeing what's going on with
those guys. Then we'll be heading over to the Greater
Beaumont Chamber of Commerce and we'll be finding about their
(00:24):
pickleball tournament. Also, we've got Mollie Moore with the nachus
River Festival and that big event is on the way,
and we'll finish it up. We'll be Dancing with the
Stars the Junior League of Beaumont and we'll see one
of the couples and what they have going on as
they prepare for their big event. But to kick things off,
we're gonna visit with Paul Blackburn with Energy Texas.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
How are you, Paul?
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Living the dream? Debbie one day at a time, how
are you doing today?
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Doing great?
Speaker 1 (00:53):
So for anyone who doesn't know Paul Blackburn, what is
your title and just in a sentence or two, what
do you do for Energy Texas.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
I'm the customer service manager for Energy Texas in the
Beaumont area. Mostly I manage key accounts, our large commercial accounts, cities,
key stakeholders in the area. And what I do is
it's just everything, you know. I try to make sure
(01:22):
all of our customers are taken care of any questions
they may have or answered, and be out in the
community as much as possible to make sure we're connecting
with all of our customers.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
So Entergy Texas, I mean, we love energy because we
love having our power on. We I know you guys
power life. Tell me a little bit about, you know,
the recent snowstorm that we had and how did you
guys prepare in advance for that storm.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
So we learned quite a bit from URI in twenty
twenty one. We're always you know, doing SWAT analysis after
big storm events. What can we take away? What can
we be more prepared for next time? We did really
well considering you know, our peak.
Speaker 4 (02:09):
I believe peak.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Outages for Beaumont was at like one forty which is
not much at all. We had most of them back
home within a couple of hours, even though the roads
were kind of slick. But I got five and a
half inches of snow at my house. Debby, I'm not
sure how much you got, it was quite a bit. Yeah,
it was way more than we're accustomed to in Southeast
(02:32):
Texas for sure. So but ways we prepared when we
knew that this was going to be an event. Obviously,
we're looking, you know, a week ahead, and we're constantly
making sure that at every level, whether it's at our
power generation plants, our transmission lines, our distribution lines and substations,
(02:56):
that we're you know, maintaining those as best as possible.
We are doing inspections, we're keeping everything up to date
so we don't have the as much risk as of
a catastrophic failure for key equipment that could impact our
customer base. So you know what we did when we
knew that the temperatures were going to be below freezing,
(03:19):
we insulated a lot of key equipments and lines at
the power plant level to make sure we could keep
all of our plants working optimally to deliver that power
to all of our industrial, residential and commercial customers.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
And you guys did a fantastic job.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
I know, it wasn't so much the snow, but just
the ice that accumulated on the roads that was making
it hard for a lot of customers just to even travel, Like,
I know that was the best thing is stay off
the roads. You know, snow was not the only thing
that Energy has to face. You know, there's been hurricanes,
there's been bad weather. You guys have been really just
(03:57):
highlighted at the response after Hurricane Bear doing such a
fantastic job to get everybody restored as soon as possible.
So I mean basically, you guys are prepared three hundred
and sixty five days a year for whatever the weather brings.
Speaker 3 (04:14):
Yes, yeah, absolutely, And you know during hurricanes, we know
there will be outages. Everyone like, no one's a stranger
to hurricanes down here. I've lived in Southeast Texas for
the vast majority of my life, so we're not strangers
to hurricanes. We know the drill. But we will bring
(04:37):
in contractors early. We'll stage them in key areas so
as soon as it's safe to begin restoration work. That's
exactly what we're doing because at the end of the day,
we want to minimize the amount of time that our
customers are going to be out. Just because we know
that when a hurricane comes through, there will be out.
It just does not mean we want them to be
(04:58):
off a minute longer than they have to be, so
you know, we're definitely putting all the right personnel in
place to bring all of our customers back back online
as quickly as possible.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
And what I love is on social media seeing all
the love for the line workers and the plant workers
and especially Bolivar Boliver, you know, has has so many
new upgrades and reliability improvements, and the people down there
are so appreciative, and I love seeing all of their
positive responses to Energy online. And what I also liked
(05:32):
was you guys went to Arkansas to help when they
had some bad weather recently, and the Energy Texas post
was shared by so many people in the Arkansas area
saying thank you to our crews going in assisting.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
So I know it's it's mutual.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
So whenever there's something going on that's with one of
our neighbors, Energy Texas is there to help.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
Absolutely all the love to our line. And I'm I've
got a biased opinion. My dad was Alignment for forty years.
He worked for Energy for forty years, retired with Energy,
he was Alignment that entire time. I think they have
the most important job at the company. You know, obviously
(06:16):
we couldn't do it without them. But mutual assistance is
a big deal. So you know, not only do we
send Cruise to Arkansas when we're anticipating they're gonna have
some bad weather to help out in any way we can,
We've also sent cruise to recently this past summer, we
sent Cruise to Virginia and Georgia and Florida for Hurricanes
(06:40):
Milton and Helene to help with restoration efforts over there.
And the whole point of that is a mutual assistance
program is we're all at the end of the day,
you know, we're all together in this right and we
want to help out our neighbors whenever possible. And we
know that if we were to get it hit hard
(07:01):
like that, we could count on our neighbors to come
and help as well.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
I love that sharing the love.
Speaker 1 (07:07):
Now, let's switch gears just a little bit and let's
talk about our bills. We don't like getting a bill,
but it's necessary, and you know, I love that Entergy
Texas has so many options for customers in case you're
having a bad month, or in case you know your
summer bill is so much higher than your winter bill.
(07:27):
So what are some of the options for people in
terms of making sure that they're able to pay their bill.
Speaker 3 (07:34):
That's a great question. So we have several different options.
One great option that we have is called levelized billing,
and it's really for customers who are on a fixed income.
That way, in the dead heat of the summer or
the cold cold of the winter, if they have an
electric heater, they're not going to get this huge bill
(07:56):
that's twice what they would normally expect. So with levelized billing,
will essentially, you know, take like a running twelve month
average and will have the pretty similar bill every single month,
so you won't get a huge jump in your bill
when it's super hot or super cold. But it's not
just for our customers who are on a fixed income
(08:19):
or on low income. It really could be for anyone
who wants to have a pretty good idea of what
their electric bill is going to look like, regardless of
how much they need to use electricity, you know, So
levelized billing is a great option for really any of
our customers who are interested in having a pretty consistent
(08:40):
monthly bill for their electric use. Now you could get
a whole bunch more information through my energy app or
on our web page Energy Texas dot com or by
calling our one hundred number. Our customer service agents are
certainly happy to you know, to run down all the
(09:04):
nuts and bolts as it pertains to each individual customer
what it would look like if they were on levelized billing.
And of course, if you you know, see me out
in the wild, I'm happy to talk each customer.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
Through it individually as well.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
So we've got levelized billing, we have a deferred payment arrangements.
Life happens, you know, we're all human. You know, crazy
things happen all the time. Maybe your car breaks down
and you've got to take it to the shop, and
I don't know if you've had to experience this recently, DeBie,
but the cost of everything is pretty high right now, yeah, right,
(09:40):
so you know, maybe you had to spend an extra
fifteen hundred dollars to get your car repaired and you
weren't expecting that. Well, if your electric bill is two
hundred dollars and you're like, I just spent fifteen hundred,
I wasn't anticipating, maybe I won't be able to make
my electric bill payment this month.
Speaker 4 (10:01):
Well, if you call our call center.
Speaker 3 (10:03):
Talk to them you can request a what we call
a deferred payment. We can push that out a little
bit more, give you some time, because ultimately we don't
want to turn anyone off. We want to work with
all of our customers through the ups and downs that
that life's going to throw at us.
Speaker 1 (10:18):
Right, So we've got just about a minute and a
half left, But just touch on the my Energy app
as well, because that's a great resource for customers.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
It is a great resource for customers and not just
for you know, finding out information about levelized billing and
you know, looking at your account, you can really get
granular with your account and see like how much you're
using per day and if you remember yesterday what the
temperature was and what you had your thermostat at, you'll know, okay,
(10:48):
I can anticipate this much usage per day and what
does that mean for a dollar amount?
Speaker 5 (10:53):
Right?
Speaker 3 (10:54):
But also you can track outages. You'll get alerts that say, hey,
you know you're you're out at your house. We're dispatching
someone there on the way. Here's what we've found and
this is about how long it's going to take for
you to be turned back on. Just so we can
keep you in the know. You can also submit street
(11:15):
light out tickets. You know, if you're if the street
light right outside your house is not working, if it's blinking,
or if maybe somebody hit the pole, God forbid, you
can turn that into it's a It's a great way
to stay connected with it with Energy Texas. We also
have a link to our storm center on the My
Energy app. The storm center is so pivotal for all
(11:38):
customers to check out because we're not just talking about
the hurricanes and the winter storms, but how can customers
be prepared. We're going to tell you how we are
staying prepared to take care of you, our customer, but
how can you the customer be prepared to weather the storm,
so to speak, in any situation.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Well, Paul, thank you so much, so much to get
information for Entergy Texas. And thank you to you and
of course all the lignemen and the plant workers for
everything that you do to continue to power life for
Southeast Texas.
Speaker 2 (12:09):
So thank you for being on the show.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
Thank you for having me, Debbie. I'll look forward to
seeing you soon.
Speaker 1 (12:14):
Sounds good, and we'll be right back with the Roy
West Radio Show on AM five sixty klv I. And
we're back with the Roy West Radio Show on klv
I AM five sixty. I am your guest host, Debbie Bridgeman,
and for our next segment, we have the director of
(12:36):
Leadership Programs for the Greater Beaumont Chamber of Commerce and
the Beaumont Chamber Foundation. Please welcome Chris Parton.
Speaker 4 (12:44):
Thank you, Debbie. I'm glad to be here.
Speaker 1 (12:46):
So you guys have a pickleball event that's coming up,
and I believe this is the very first time that
the Chamber has done something like.
Speaker 5 (12:53):
This first annual BCF pickleball game.
Speaker 4 (12:57):
You've got to be there.
Speaker 5 (12:58):
I'm going to throw out some terminology if you're not
a pickleball player, stay out of the kitchen. Okay, that's
apparently pickleball terminology. But on February twenty eighth, we're going
to have our first day of the tournament. It will
actually be from six to nine pm on Friday. Saturday
will be seven am to six pm, and then we
(13:18):
have a Sunday one to seven pm. If you are
a pickleball player, this is definitely where you want to be.
My understanding is we're reaching out all the way to
Louisiana to get participants to come and join us. We're
expecting about one hundred and fifty participants. We're sitting on
fifty registrations already so far, and so we want to
keep that rolling. As as you said, and I said,
(13:41):
this is our first time to give this a shot,
so we really want a good showing and we want
to do our best to make this a entertaining tournament
for everyone.
Speaker 4 (13:50):
We will have a.
Speaker 5 (13:52):
Food truck out there so you can have something to eat,
and we would also like to make sure we think
our sponsors. We've got Energy supplying us with T shirts.
Speaker 4 (14:01):
We have.
Speaker 5 (14:03):
Court sponsors Dana Johnson, Team Cobb, Chiropractic, Sabine, Credit Union,
Stifle Investments, Our Stifle Investment excuse me, Manu School Supply
Iten Equipment, American Valvenhydrant, First Security, Bank, Guild or Real
Estate Guild, Mortgage Rate, Credit Union, Bechtel. We've got a
lot of court sponsors out there, and so we want
to go ahead and make sure we do a very
(14:24):
good job for our sponsors as well. We're looking for
a presenting sponsor, and we also would like to thank
American Air Systems for being our podium sponsors. So you're
going to see a lot of signs up there showcasing
the people that help us put this on this year.
Speaker 1 (14:39):
Wow, it sounds like you're off to a great start.
So for anybody that's interested, are there different skill levels?
Are their age groups? Like who can sign up?
Speaker 4 (14:49):
Anybody can sign up.
Speaker 5 (14:50):
We are doing it skill level, so you have male singles,
female singles, male female doubles, you have male doubles, female doubles,
so you have all age groups. It's mainly based on
skill and everything on the registration page will direct you
toward the right thing that you need to sign up for.
(15:12):
So that's pretty self explanatory in the registration page, and
we'll give.
Speaker 4 (15:16):
You a contact to make sure you can get a
hold of that as well.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
And of course i'm sure there's a nominal fee for
anyone to sign up because it is basically a fundraiser.
Speaker 5 (15:25):
Well exactly, there is a fifty dollars registration fee and
then you can play as many different types of the
tournament as you'd like. If you are a male singles
player but you're also part of a doubles team, you
would just do a ten dollars charge to go ahead
and sign up for those different various events. So registrations
fifty bucks and then ten bucks on top of that
for how many other events you want to participate in,
(15:45):
and we would certainly encourage you to go ahead and
show off your talents in whatever area that you can do.
Speaker 4 (15:51):
So we're excited about that.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
You know, pickleball just seems to have really exploded over
the last couple of years and.
Speaker 2 (15:59):
It's the rate.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
So I think this is fantastic now, you know, we
talked about it's a fundraiser, So for anybody, A lot
of people know the Greater Beaumont Chamber of Commerce, but
the foundation, like, so, what are some of the things
that you guys do.
Speaker 5 (16:11):
Well most everyone?
Speaker 4 (16:13):
Or I think that since I'm involved, and I think.
Speaker 5 (16:16):
Most everyone's most familiar with Leadership Beaumont, which is our premier.
Speaker 4 (16:21):
Hosting group.
Speaker 5 (16:22):
And so Leadership Beaumont's a nine month program and it
actually invites young professionals to go ahead and be part
of a group to create something. Every group's hope is
to have something that is lasting. If you've ever heard
of Fireworks Downtown, that's a Leadership Beaumont program that came
to fluition. If you've ever heard of COSA, if you've
(16:44):
seen bike Lanes now downtown. These were a group of
young professionals and Leadership Beaumont that got together and made
this a reality. Ways to improve the community, which is
what Leadership Beaumont is all about. I guess I'm most
proud to say that Leadership Beaumont is the oldest leadership
program in the state of Texas. Houston has them, Austin
has them, Waco has them, l Paso has them, but
(17:07):
we were the very first.
Speaker 4 (17:08):
In the state of Texas, and so I'm very proud
of that.
Speaker 5 (17:10):
And I think Leadership Beaumont graduates, if you talked to
any of them, yourself.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
Included, I was going to say Class of twenty twenty.
Speaker 5 (17:16):
Three best class ever. Yeah, grade well, and so I
think everyone you run into thinks their class is the best,
but of course I know that mine is. So the
reality here is very proud graduates through many many years.
That started all the way back in nineteen seventy one
where a group of people got together with a Junior
League of Beaumont and they created this Leadership Baumont group
(17:40):
and so it's been every year since then.
Speaker 4 (17:42):
So we're very proud of that.
Speaker 5 (17:44):
Some of the other programs Junior Leadership In fact, this
after this radio interview, I'll be preparing to take a
group of eighth graders, excuse me, eleventh graders to the
Jefferson County Courthouse. We're going to learn a little bit
about the judicial system today.
Speaker 4 (17:57):
And so we take.
Speaker 5 (17:59):
Eleventh graders who are soon to be your new leaders
in the city as they grow up, and we teach
them about the judicial system, teach them about economic development.
Recently toured the art studio that's on Franklin I think
right near the chamber down here, and so we expose
them to things that are a possibility for them not
(18:19):
only to be a part of, but also to volunteer
for and things like that. So we want them involved
in the communities so as they do progress, they want
to stay here. They want to be part of this
community as we grow.
Speaker 2 (18:31):
I love it. I love it. And the kids that
she'll be with. What school are they from.
Speaker 5 (18:36):
They're from a variety of schools. BID's represented by three
different schools. We have Legacy Christian Academy, we have Harmony
Science Academy, and so we want to bring all these
schools together so that they like minded kids can get
to know each other from different schools and create some
friendships and grow that together.
Speaker 1 (18:54):
I absolutely love that because you know, nowadays kids they
may think they want to go to college for or
they may think this is the career they want, and
there's a lot of opportunities in our community where they
can go and firsthand, go to a plant, go to
the courthouse, go somewhere and see is this something I
really want to do? You know, I really encourage kids today,
find your passion, do something that you want to get
(19:17):
up for in the morning, and go to work and
make a difference in the community.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
So thank you.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
I think the junior program is fantastic. Now you also
do something with the alumni. I know just this past
week you had a lot of pies flying around. I
guess we just have to wait for the pictures on
that one.
Speaker 5 (19:34):
Well, and we actually had a lot of fun. Huge
thank you to our pie recipients. Kevin Reid, Lee Potter,
Elton Hollis, Jonathan Kellis, Paul Coaster, David Thornhill and Derek
McWilliams all volunteered to go ahead and have some pies
tossed in their face, which was a lot of fun.
We also did a little music bingo and things like that.
(19:55):
At Brentwin Country Club. It's always wonderful to get alumni
together that they can go ahead and visit with each other,
see where they've been in the last couple of years,
and just have a good time together. So we had
We had a really good time and made a really
big mess. So that was a lot of fun for
everyone who was throwing the pie. Maybe a little less
fun for those that were receiving the pie, but nonetheless
(20:16):
really good night of fun.
Speaker 1 (20:17):
Well, I love how the Foundation has so many programs
going on. I'm a part of the Women Entrepreneurial Network
and we had the Remarkable Women Lunch a couple of
weeks ago, and our next event is the Dress for Success,
and we're going to be given tips, you know, for
for women that are business owners or want to be
a business owner on you know, how do you dress
(20:38):
for an interview? How can you quickly change from your
work clothes into an evening event. So it'll be it'll
be really it's a lot of fun. Got a lot
of celebrity models that'll be out there, so.
Speaker 4 (20:49):
It'll be cool.
Speaker 5 (20:50):
That's going to be on April eighth, and so it'll
be at the Holiday and plaza. We did recently have
one at Mcmlagante where we're Bernice Dyson Trail Brazer Rewards
was given to Sherry Arnold. We had the outstanding businesswoman
that was Reta Hurt and we showcased three young ladies Ms.
Vona Castellon, Maryon Walker and l Zane Kali County. I'm
(21:12):
sure I butchered that last name, but Elsa's Grill which
is a wonderful place to eat, but showcase those ladies.
They were doing a phenomenal job in our community and
so we wanted to go ahead and say thank you
and let people hear their stories as to how they
got where they got.
Speaker 4 (21:29):
So that was a very good afternoon too.
Speaker 5 (21:30):
But yes, we're looking forward to Dress for Success and
like I said, it's coming on up on April eighth.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
I'm excited.
Speaker 1 (21:36):
So we're about to wrap up, but tell us once
again about the pickleball tournament. How can people sign up
and how can people be a sponsored?
Speaker 5 (21:44):
Easiest way is to go ahead either call the chamber
here at eight area code four oh nine eight three
eight sixty five eighty one and ask for Mike Simpson
or if they just like the email it's m I
K E s I, M P S O N. Mike
Simpson at bm COC dot org and he is our
(22:04):
sponsorship guru and he can hook you up with all
the opportunities that are available there. Like I said, we
are still looking for a presenting sponsor. We would love
to have that and if we can go ahead and
get everything underway. And that's true for anything that you
want to do. If you're curious about any events here
at the Chamber, you can always go to www dot
BMTCC dot oorg and you can go ahead and look
(22:28):
at our events page and everything that the Chamber does.
Speaker 4 (22:31):
It's a rolling page and you can see everything that
happens there.
Speaker 1 (22:34):
Fantastic Chris, thank you so much for being part of
the show.
Speaker 4 (22:37):
My pleasure.
Speaker 1 (22:38):
Thank you, and we'll be right back with the Roy
West Radio Show on AM five.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
Sixty k lv I.
Speaker 1 (22:49):
Welcome back to the Roy West Radio Show on AM
five sixty k l v I. I am your guest host,
Debbie Bridgeman, and we've heard from Entergy Texas, We've talked
to the Greater Beaumont Chamber of Commerce, and now we're
going to be talking about the nachus River Festival with
Molly Moore.
Speaker 2 (23:04):
Welcome to the show.
Speaker 6 (23:06):
Oh thank you so much for having me, Debbie.
Speaker 1 (23:08):
So for anyone that's not familiar, just in a nutshell,
what is the nachus River Festival.
Speaker 7 (23:14):
The Nature's River Festival is a festival that's held every spring.
This is our seventy seventh year. It was started in
nineteen forty nine with the Chambers Wonmont Chambers of Commerce.
They had a meeting and they wanted to start something
to shine a light on Beaumont and on the youth.
And so this festival celebrates seniors in high school and
(23:36):
we have princesses and they have escorts that are seniors,
and then we have visiting duchesses from surrounding areas. And
so this year we have ninety eight princesses. Every high
school is participating, and that includes ninety eight escorts, and
then we have thirty visiting duchesses.
Speaker 6 (23:56):
So it's a really large year. We're super excited.
Speaker 7 (24:00):
I was in the Nature Server Festival when I was
a senior in high school. It's just a very time
honor tradition here in Beaumont, and we're one of the
longest running festivals in Texas. So we're just really proud
of the things we've done and giving back to the
community too, because we provide scholarships to nine of the
kids that participate in the Nature Shur Festival.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
So it is a big fundraiser to help with the scholarships.
And you guys have is this the first year to
be doing a five K?
Speaker 7 (24:30):
No, this is actually I believe it's our six or
seventh year. We had to cancel one year due to COVID,
but we've been doing this since our seventy second year.
That was the first year we did it, So wow
to say it's about six our sixth run to organize,
and we've had a lot of support from the community.
Last year we had over four hundred runners, so we
(24:52):
are a growing run. We're getting our feet wet, learning what.
Speaker 6 (24:57):
The community needs.
Speaker 7 (24:58):
But it's a really fun day for kids for families and.
Speaker 6 (25:02):
We're having that on February twenty second.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
Wonderful. So how can people sign up and get involved?
Speaker 7 (25:08):
So on our website Naturesriverfestival dot com, we have a
five K page. On that page, it gives you all
of the details about our run, but also about sponsorship opportunities.
We still have some spots left for our T shirt,
so if anybody's interested in that, you can go to
our website and to sign up. There's a link to
take you to run sign up some run signup dot
(25:30):
com and you sign up there. Right now, we have
a special so until February fourth, we have five dollars
off for our run.
Speaker 6 (25:38):
So if you go sign up.
Speaker 7 (25:40):
Today or before February fourth, you get a discount, and
then at February fourth, I'll go up to five dollars more.
Speaker 6 (25:49):
So it's a really fun run.
Speaker 7 (25:50):
We have a kids one mile run at eight thirty
in the morning and the kids just love this. We
have tons of kids that come out to do this run.
And then at nine o'clock we'll do the five k
run walk. So if you're not a runner and you
don't want to runner five k, you can also walk
our five k. So it's for everybody. It's for all
(26:11):
family members. And once it's over, we have face painters,
We're going to have food and drinks, so it's also
a party, so.
Speaker 6 (26:20):
Come and enjoy the day.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
It's usually really great weather wonderful.
Speaker 1 (26:24):
So let me ask you about the girls that are
chosen as the princesses. So when you know, like I know,
if you're applying for a scholarship, you have a certain application.
When they do they apply to be a princess or
are they chosen and do they fill out like a
scholarship application at that time or is that separate like
kind of what is the process.
Speaker 7 (26:46):
So if you're interested in Nature Server Festival, we actually
visit all the schools, or we try to get and
visit all the schools to explain what Nature Driver Festival
is to whoever does.
Speaker 6 (26:55):
Not know what it is.
Speaker 7 (26:58):
But we take anybody who wants to register to be
a princess. There is a registration fee, but you can
register online and we take registrations in the fall, So
for year seventy eight, next year, we'll do a recruitment
in the fall and then we usually have our deadline
in November. But the registration is online and it's anyone
who wants to participate. There's no nomination, nothing like that.
(27:21):
It's a community wide event. We want all girls to
participate who would like to. There is a four hundred
dollars fee to do the registration, but that covers everything,
all the expenses, her ball seat, everything that is included.
So the only extra cost is to buy your dress
because the princesses wear a white gown. Our website gives
(27:42):
a lot of pictures so you can kind of get
an idea of what to expect. But the princesses sign
up and then they select an escort, so they choose
who they want to escort them. We also have other opportunities,
so if an escort does not get asked to bear
them with someone, if there's someone who's interested in in
Nature's River as an escort but it has not been
(28:03):
asked by a princess, and then the duchesses is.
Speaker 6 (28:06):
The same thing.
Speaker 7 (28:07):
So if you have a niece or someone a family
friend that lives outside of Beaumont. We've had duchesses come
from as far as California, New York. So if they
have it tied to Beaumont or a tied to a
family friend and want to celebrate their junior or senior
year and come to this ball, they are welcome to.
So all of that is on our website natures Rifestival
(28:29):
dot com. You can go to the registration forms. They're
not going to be up yet for seventy eight, but
that's the process of how princesses get involved, and then
once we have our princess list and our escort list
duchesses as well and duchess escorts, then they are eligible
to apply.
Speaker 6 (28:44):
For one of our nine scholarships.
Speaker 7 (28:47):
Seven of them are through a essay process, so they
fill out an essay and apply that way, and they
can take seven of those scholarships to whatever college they're
going to and their thousand dollar one thousand dollars scholarships,
and then a Lamar University we have two scholarships with
them and that's twenty five hundred dollars and those are
(29:09):
selected through an application process at Lamar.
Speaker 6 (29:12):
So once you become a princess or an escort, a
duchess or a duchess escort.
Speaker 7 (29:17):
Then you apply through the Nature's River Festival Lamar Scholarship
and then those are awarded the night of our coronation
on April twelfth.
Speaker 6 (29:25):
Nice.
Speaker 1 (29:25):
I mean, I know, it's a super big deal and
you guys have those girls doing parades and everything. It's
not just one thing. I mean, it's like a year
long kind of celebration. So it's quite an honor for
the princesses and the duchesses and the escorts and everybody involved.
And I love seeing the pictures, you know, when they're
(29:46):
posted online. Everybody just looks so beautiful and so nice
and dressed up. And I guess there's some like etiquette,
maybe training or something that goes along with that too.
Speaker 5 (29:57):
Well.
Speaker 7 (29:57):
Yes, I do believe that through the Nature's River Festival,
these princesses and escorts, duchesses and duchess escorts are all
learning about networking, they're learning about etiquette and before they
go off to college, they're also learning about the interview process.
So the Royal Court is selected through an interview process
that we do the weekend before the coronation, and that's
(30:20):
how the Queen, the ladies in waiting are all selected.
The other scholarships are selected through and the different process.
But I do believe that this interview that they do
is might be the first interview they've ever had before
they go off to college, so it's a great.
Speaker 6 (30:35):
Experience for them.
Speaker 7 (30:36):
We also have a lot of community partners, so we've
been very lucky to partner with the Junior League of Beaumont,
the Symphony, we have joined with the Heritage Society, the
macfad and Wardhouse also the links their group, and we
have been able to have these separate events with them,
and at each event they have the opportunity to meet
(30:57):
these groups, to meet these wonderful full community members and
network with them. So our hopes is that they go
off to college and then they come back to Beaumont
and you know, stay here and you know, reinvest their
lives back into the community.
Speaker 1 (31:13):
And I love that you guys provide that opportunity for
the networking because it seems that you know, our kids today,
they spend a lot of time doing their networking on
their phone, which really isn't networking, but the face to
face and building relationships is so important. And the fact
that y'all are providing that opportunity for the kids, because
you're right, some of them have maybe never been through
(31:34):
an interview process and you know, just little things like
how to conduct, how to the eye contact, and you know,
what to wear, what not to wear, stuff like that.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
So that's that's really good.
Speaker 1 (31:45):
So again, it's you're an honor to be a princess,
but it is more than just a one time event.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
It's a whole big program we do.
Speaker 7 (31:53):
We have a lot of events, but we also really
like to say this is a family event, so it's
a way to really sell upbrate your child before they
go off to college. I think it's really special for
these parents and families to have a night special for
them that all the family is included, so it's a
family affair. They're all there to see. They're precious child,
(32:15):
you know, presented. It's just it's very heartwarming to see
because I know that these are memories that they'll have
for a lifetime, because I remember when I was in
it and it was just such a happy moment for
me and for my family. So we just want to
encourage that and we want to be holding these families
to have a great night and then keep on to
these memories for a lifetime.
Speaker 1 (32:37):
Fantastic. We've got about ten seconds left. Remind us again,
when is the five K and how can people register?
Speaker 7 (32:43):
It's on February twenty second, and you can register on
Natures River Festival dot com.
Speaker 6 (32:49):
We have a five K page.
Speaker 7 (32:50):
You just click on that and then it will tell
you all the information you need to know and all
of our dates are on there as well for our
parade and our coronation and so just peruse our webs
everything you need to know is on there if you
want to learn more about princesses and escorts and our scholarships.
Speaker 2 (33:05):
All right, Molly Moore, thank you so much for being
a part of the show.
Speaker 6 (33:08):
Thank you so much, Debbie.
Speaker 1 (33:10):
All right, we'll be right back with the Roy West
Radio Show on AM five sixty klv I. And we're
back with the Roy West Radio Show on AM five
sixty klv I. I am your guest host, Debbie Bridgeman,
and we are talking dancing with the stars right now
the Junior League of Beaumont, the big annual event, Couple
(33:32):
number eight is in the house. West Brussar Junior and
Meg Brown. Hey, guys, how are you doing today? Hi?
Speaker 5 (33:39):
Good?
Speaker 6 (33:40):
How are you?
Speaker 5 (33:40):
Hi?
Speaker 8 (33:41):
Doing good?
Speaker 1 (33:42):
All right, So just real briefly because we want to
learn about the couples. Wes, just in a sentence or two.
Speaker 2 (33:47):
Who are you? What do you do? What's going on?
Speaker 8 (33:51):
I'm a born and bred Beaumont boy, grew up here
working in construction, and I now build boats and barges
along the Gulf coastal, on the Inner coastal and port
doctor nice.
Speaker 2 (34:04):
All right, how about you?
Speaker 3 (34:05):
Meg?
Speaker 9 (34:07):
Well, I've been in Beaumont for about maybe ten to
fifteen years now. I'm a nurse practitioner. I work for
a local company that we see we see people in
their homes, so we do primary care in the home,
and I'm also a Junior League sustainer.
Speaker 2 (34:21):
Nice.
Speaker 1 (34:22):
So this event basically is an annual event with the
Junior LEAGA Beaumont. Meg, why don't you start and just
tell us briefly what is this event all about. We
know it's about dancing. We know you got your stars,
but what is the event and why are we doing it?
Speaker 4 (34:37):
Yeah?
Speaker 9 (34:37):
So this event is one of the major fundraisers for
the Junior LEGO Beaumont. And all the money that's raised,
that's brought in through sponsorships or donations, our votes, all
that money is put towards grants that we where the
Junior League opens I think in the fall in the spring,
and nonprofits across the area can apply for these grants.
(34:59):
So basically, we're, you know, receiving this money and we're
putting it back into the community.
Speaker 2 (35:04):
Nice.
Speaker 1 (35:04):
So, Wes, how are those dancing shoes? What do you
what have you been doing to prepare?
Speaker 8 (35:09):
Oh my goodness, I've had to get in shape and
I have lost some weight I mean, so there's there's
some good to this. I'm having fun. I'm having fun.
We have a fun choreographer and uh, just just dancing dancing.
Speaker 1 (35:30):
So, so you guys visited Spindletop Rotary Club a couple
of weeks ago and we got a.
Speaker 2 (35:36):
Little teas of your performance.
Speaker 1 (35:39):
I guess you guys have still been practicing since that time.
Are we feeling real confident going into this event?
Speaker 4 (35:46):
Yeah?
Speaker 9 (35:47):
I think so, you know, we we we just finished
the Stephanie just finished choreographing the whole dance, and so
now it's just polishing.
Speaker 2 (35:57):
All right.
Speaker 1 (35:57):
And I know that it's kind of a secret. We
don't want to give anything away. But the event, as
you said, Meg, it does help raise funds for the
Junior League Beaumont, and it is a big event that's
going to be held at the Civic Center and people
can buy tickets and support it. But it's also a
good a good way for you guys to get out
into the community and people are voting.
Speaker 2 (36:19):
So how can people vote for you guys?
Speaker 9 (36:23):
Well, on my Facebook page, I post a lot about
our length to go directly to us and vote, but
definitely you can go to the Junior Leaga bomat website
dancing with the Stars tab and then it has all
the couple's lists, but you want to scroll over in one, three, seven,
go down to eight and just click that's.
Speaker 1 (36:40):
Right, couple number eight. And so the big event is
coming up in March, right, yes, yes, So if wes,
if somebody wants to get tickets and come out and
see you guys strut your stuff, how's the best way
to get tickets?
Speaker 8 (36:56):
The Junior League at Beaumont, they've just sent them out
in thes to a lot of people in the community
by mail, but also on their website you can go
on and sign up for a sponsorship or buy a table.
So the best way is to get a group together
and buy a whole table.
Speaker 2 (37:15):
Definitely.
Speaker 1 (37:15):
So let me ask you this, And we've all heard
about the Junior League's event. We've seen a lot of
our friends get up on stage. How did you guys
get roped into this? When when you saw them coming,
did you run or were you like all right? Finally, like,
how did you how did you get enticed to be.
Speaker 2 (37:31):
One of one of the dancers.
Speaker 9 (37:35):
Well, I've said this before. I've been wanting to be
a dancer for for for many years, probably I think
since they started this Dancing with the Stars fundraiser. And
so when Megan called me, I was, I was on it.
I think I said yes before she finished her sentence,
how about you, Wes.
Speaker 8 (37:50):
Well, it was a surprise, it really was.
Speaker 4 (37:54):
I was.
Speaker 8 (37:54):
I was at a luncheon at the Junior League of
Beaumont for an awards ceremony. I was there representing the
Shorky Center, which I've been on the board of for
over twenty years, and we're part of the nonprofit community
and we all sort of worked together in the in
the Beaumont area, and we received an award, a monetary
(38:14):
award from from Junior League. And I got in the truck,
I thanked everybody, shook hands, got in the truck, headed home,
and got the call. I really couldn't turn them down
after I had the check in my pocket.
Speaker 2 (38:27):
You know, well, that's what I was going to say.
Speaker 1 (38:29):
I mean it all like I think, you know, like
you said, the nonprofits are like a community. So yes,
you know, Junior League supports Shorty Center and so here
you are able to give back, and Meg, you have
your own nonprofit. So how does that kind of tie
in with the Junior League.
Speaker 9 (38:45):
Yeah, yeah, you know, my year serving as an active
really taught me lessons of not only being a good volunteer,
but being a good leader in the community. And through
that I saw a need and that's how I developed
my five oh one c nonprofit Period Power Entry, And
basically since it's inception in twenty nineteen, I have Junior
League volunteers help me build period packs which we delivered
(39:08):
to the schools and really just kind of help me
talk about this need in the community through the Junior League.
Speaker 2 (39:15):
That's nice. I love it.
Speaker 1 (39:16):
I love how you guys are involved in supporting the community,
just like the Junior League. Is there any event that
the Junior League does outside of Dancing with the Stars
that you guys have participated in, supported, sponsored, or just
really think it's pretty cool?
Speaker 9 (39:33):
Well, you know, Christmas just passed, but you can start
planning right now for next December. But they have their
annual Main Street Market, which is another big fundraiser that
they do at the Civic Center and you can do
all your shopping at one stop.
Speaker 6 (39:45):
So that's always my favorite.
Speaker 2 (39:47):
Nice what about us, I've.
Speaker 8 (39:50):
Never really been that involved with the Junior League, I
guess because it's main it's it's only women invited. But here.
In the last few years as president of the Shorky Center,
I've gotten involved with more nonprofits and has seen what
(40:10):
they do for our community, and I'm really impressed with
the way they identify specific needs in the community and
form a plan and they attack it. They're the best
of the best in Beaumont.
Speaker 2 (40:24):
Love it, Love it.
Speaker 1 (40:24):
Well, we've got about a minute left, so Wes, one
more time. Where do we go to get tickets?
Speaker 8 (40:30):
Go to the Dancing with the Stars Facebook page Dancing with.
Speaker 2 (40:34):
The Stars Texas Perfect and Meg? What couple are we
voting for? Number eight?
Speaker 3 (40:45):
Night?
Speaker 2 (40:46):
Best of luck to you guys, couple Number eight.
Speaker 1 (40:49):
Wes and Meg Dancing with the Stars, Junior League of Beaumont.
Thank you so much for being a part of the
show today. We appreciate you, guys, and good luck at
the big event.
Speaker 4 (40:58):
Thank you, Thank you.
Speaker 1 (41:00):
All right, and we'll be right back to wrap up
with the Roy West Radio Show on AM five sixty
klv I. We're back with the Roy West Radio Show
right here on AM five sixty KLVI. I am Debbie
Bridgeman and I have served as your guest host Today
we kick things off with Energy Texas. Paul Blackburn was
(41:20):
our guest, talking about restoration efforts after the big storms
like the snow that we just had, also assisting neighbors.
So if Arkansas, Louisiana, Florida needs help, Entergy Texas is
on the way. They also have resources to help with
your utility bill like level billing, which helps you pay
the same amount each month so you can better manage
your bills. So go to Energy Texas dot com. You
(41:43):
can also download the my Energy app. You can use
that app to report an outage manager bill, you can
see your usage, also get tips to keep you and
your family prepared and safe. We also talked with Chris
Parton with the Beaumont Chamber Foundation. They have a pickleball
tournament coming up. It's their first time to do this.
That'll be on February twenty eighth. Go to BMTCOC dot
(42:05):
org to sign up or to be a sponsor at
the event. We also talked with Mollymore with the nachus
River Festival. That big event is every year in April,
a big tradition in Beaumont, and they have their five
k run coming up Saturday, February twenty second. The early
registration discount ends tomorrow, February third. There will be a
(42:27):
price increase on Tuesday, so make sure you sign up today.
Natchisriverfestival dot com for the five k on the twenty
second of February. And we just heard from Meg Brown
and Westbrustar Junior. They are couple number eight with Dancing
with the Stars. It's the big event the Junior League
of Beaumont puts on every year. It will be Friday,
March seventh at the Beaumont Civic Center. Go to Junior
(42:49):
League Beaumont dot org to get your tickets and couple
number eight Meg and West. As always, a big shout
out to Roy West for always being a strong advocate,
forgiving where you live and making Beaumont the best city
ever to work, live and grow again. Have a great
day and thank you for listening to the Roy West
Radio Show on a M five sixty k l v
(43:11):
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