From the President

Have you noticed how County Progress has grown lately? This last issue seemed a lot bigger than the previous one with a great deal of information and advertisement.
I can remember before the magazine was in existence when we received only a pamphlet with several pages and no advertisement. This pamphlet explained or called attention to laws that advised judges and commissioners as to some of the attorney general’s opinions, as the current articles do. It was a handy way of learning county officials’ rules and regulations and about fellow county officials.
We certainly appreciate those who started the magazine and kept it going, including: Wichita County Judge B.D. Sartin, who launched County Progress in March 1924, Wendell Mayes, Ruel McDaniel, John Blake, Clark and Melba Coursey, and their sons, Pat and Sam Coursey.
We’ve come a long way since those early pamphlets. Becky Frost, business manager, Julie Anderson, editor, and Amy Brittain, advertising manager, are amazing assets to this magazine. The rest of the staff, Katie Kaufman, art director, and Tammy Wishard, writer, also do an outstanding job.
The research and information included in each issue must require a great deal of time and careful attention to many varied details. Pictures on the cover of different courthouses in the state are so vivid. I once had the opportunity and privilege to visit almost all the courthouses in the state, and some of these really stand out in my memory. Every month as I read my magazine, I try to remember if I can identify where I’ve seen the cover before.
Timely information and pictures from each area and association, along with advertisement from vendors that come to these conferences, are well placed throughout the magazine. I also enjoy the individual stories some have contributed. I try to keep track of each issue, re-reading material and using the magazine as a readily available reference.
I would like to give H.C. Zachry, the current publisher, two thumbs up for hiring the three ladies that head up the staff at County Progress. In fact, I think they really need a big raise, too! What a wonderful team. I like to think of Julie, Becky, and Amy as my beautiful daughters, and this is straight from the heart, guys. A big “thank you” for all you do.
As you wake and go through your day, please give thanks to our Lord and Savior for all the great blessings and love we receive each and every moment. Pray for those who are ill and suffering, and for our troops who are putting their lives on the line for us everywhere. God bless each and every one of you. May your days be filled with joy.
Gilbert Pargmann, President CJCAT