ALFRED & MARY HELEN PAX

 

 

Across the Fence

 

By Arvord Abernethy

 

It may seem strange that I would be telling you about Alfred and Mary Helen Pax as they both grew up here in Hamilton County . Alfred is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Willie Pax and Mary Helen is the daughter of Rev. and Mrs. Sam Drake. They have been away so long and have now retired and moved back that you will want to renew your acquaintance with them.

 

On Tuesday in August of 1947 Alfred and Mary Helen were united in marriage by her father, Brother Drake. The next day was spent in packing their belongings in the car for their move to Balmorhea , Texas , where Mary Helen had a position teaching school. They arrived their on Friday afternoon. She attended a faculty meeting that night and started teaching on Monday morning. This made up their honeymoon week.

 

Mary Helen began teaching the first grade and remained with that grade most of the 32 years she taught there. By that time she was teaching the children of some of her first pupils. During these years she earned her master’s degree in teaching from Sul Ross University at Alpine.

 

During much of this time Alfred drove a truck for the Pecos Valley Southern Railroad; a local line that runs from Pecos to Balmorhea to serve the agricultural needs as well as a large commercial gravel pit.

 

There has been a large amount of irrigation in the Pecos Valley in past years. Do you remember those delicious Pecos cantaloupes? Much of that irrigation has ceased now. The water table has dropped some, but a big reason is that due to government regulations, farmers was having to pay much more for natural gas to run their irrigation pumps than users on the east coast paid for Pecos area gas after it was piped to them. Alfred said that there used to be 14 gins between Balmorhea and Pecos and now there are two.

 

The Paxs knew that they wanted to retire in Hamilton County , so they bought the J. T. Anglin farm in 1965. They built the first unit of their home in 1971 and would spend some of their vacation time here. They have since completed their nice brick home. As I walked through the house, I was impressed with the nice large size of the rooms, closets and baths. A large fireplace adds a cozy comfort to part of the house.

 

As we sat in the dining section of their attractive kitchen area talking and munching on a sandwich of toast made from special home baked bread and homemade mustang grape jelly, Boots, their cat hopped up on the outside window sill and called for his supper. They said that he did that every afternoon right at 5 o’clock .

 

Brother Drake set them out a large peach orchard a few years back and it is now of bearing age. They did not have any peaches this year, but did put up enough in their freezer last year to tide them over. There is room enough in the orchard area for a good garden that can be irrigated, and they are putting it to good use.

 

Alfred has built a new barn which gives room for storage and shed room for his cattle. And speaking of his cattle, they are butterball fat as though he was getting them ready for a fat stock show. They are now operating Brother Drake’s farm, so some of their stock are on it.

 

Everything added up to an enjoyable visit with the Paxs.

 

If you have been out at night lately you have noticed that big harvest moon hanging in the sky, and maybe now and then you would see a witch and her broom be silhouetted against it. A sniff of that crisp, cool air, in which you could almost smell pumpkins, reminded you that fall with all its beautiful colors would soon be with us. If you want to get a preview of those colors of yellow, brown and red, drive by the telephone office and look at their pretty flowers and grounds. Bobby Thompson can be given credit for much of that beauty.

 

Evidently all those local people who went to the Huntsville Prison to see the rodeo conducted themselves in a respectable manner as they were all permitted to come home.

 

 Shared by Roy Ables

 ACROSS THE FENCE