BEAUTIFUL DAY IN DOWNTOWN WINNSBORO

By
Maryann Miller

Perhaps to make up for all the nasty weather throughout the month of October that made participation in some of the Autumn Trails events a bit of a challenge, the last weekend was spectacular weather-wise. Saturday, the 24th, was a glorious day with beautiful blue skies, a warm sun and gentle breezes, and a lot of people came out to enjoy the sunshine and watch the annual Antique Car Parade.

After the parade, the visitors stayed for sidewalk sales that were going on all over downtown, as well as a mini-health fair by Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Winnsboro, churches selling food and drinks, and a booth for the High School Green Team. Becky Poe, one of the math teachers, was there with Caitlyn Johnson and Kimalee Wilson. Ms. poe said the purpose of the team is to teach kids about being responsible for the environment. "And we're here today to encourage local residents to use curbside recycling."

Kimalee, (center) is a senior at WHS and she said she will try to use what she learned when she goes off to college. She will graduate in December and go to Texarkana Community College.

Caitlyn, a junior, has been on the Green Team since last year. "It has really made me more aware of what we can do to save the environment," she said.

This year the parade was filmed by MYTX Cable Television (My Texas Television) out of Tyler by Alex Price, producer of the program "Young Country" (not to be confused with "Young Country Reporter" from Channel 7 in Tyler) The show will air in about 4 weeks, (Nov 21) on Saturday at 5:00pm. The show is sponsored by Ladles to Linens, Copperleaf Day Spa, Bells Pharmacy, and State Farm Insurance.

Lyndi McCulloch, who owns, Ladles to Linens, is pictured here going over some notes before her interview with Alex Price. She was excited about the show and hopes that it helps to bring more people to Winnsboro. "We just need to do all we can to let folks know what a wonderful place this town is," she said.

MYTX TV can be seen on Direct TV, channel 18 & 19. On cable it is channel 15.

Part of the fun of watching the parade is sharing a piece of the curb with other folks who are excited about the cars. I was lucky to be around some kids who loved all the cars, especially the ones that had folks tossing out some candy. There were also two very nice young girl scouts, (L-R: Sasha Moore & Allexis Whitworth) who are with troop 3611. They were encouraging people to go down to the bake sale the troop was having, but they were also really enjoying the parade.

Diana Rychlik, pictured here with her daughter, Sarah, is the troop leader. She said the troop is pretty new and right now has 5 member ages 8-11. "They are all Junior Girl Scouts," she explained. "And we are always looking for more members."

The troop meets at Diana's home, and anyone who is interested in joining can call her at 903-347-0771. "Not just for Junior Scouts," she said. "People can contact me for other age groups, as well."

In addition to a lot of neat cars, the parade also had some celebrity guests. Bill and Star, who were on the Greatest American Dog television show were there and their frisbees were a great hit. To see more about Bill and Star visit their Web site.

Queen Autumn Trails, Hailey Mills, had her own personal bodyguards.

As always, there were lots of Model T and Model A Fords in the parade, but there were also a couple of unusual cars, including this 1973 Austin 1100, owned by Wes and Starla Stewart from Fate, Texas. Wes did all the restoration and they enjoy taking the car around to shows. "It drives really well," Wes said. "We've taken it on short jaunts, but also longer ones of 200 miles or more. We're never had a problem with it."

Wes is an avid collector of British cars. He also had a 1975 Mini and a 1952 Sunbeam Talbot. "We go to a British show about once a month," Wes said. "We were at the Texas State Fair and have been at shows at White Rock Lake in Dallas, and some in Houston."

"It's a real fun social group," Starla said. "And getting together with friends is part of the fun of having a classic car.

Some other cars of great interest included souped up engines, monster passengers, and a classic Cadillac, owned by Alex Price.