Citizens of Noxapater have lobbied for some time regarding the a trail along the back side of the JW Young/Mollie Estes Park. This trail borders the Noxapater High School baseball field. The crushed rock there presently was becoming overgrown with grass, soon to be swallowed up by Mother Nature. Mayor Sammy Carter mentioned this issue at least twice over the summer. Carter had been approached by a Woodman of the World insurance agent with ties to Noxapater, who offered $500 to go toward purchasing this particular type of gravel to redo the pathway. Carter then priced the gravel - initial estimates were north of $6,000.00. In a town with a small tax base and a tight budget, this seemed almost impossible. Carter went back to his contact, Tori Earls. Earlsí connection to Noxapater is through the Asa Thomas family. She had also become acquainted with another Thomas family friend, Nadine Kirk. Kirk, working behind the scenes, was instrumental in making introductions and in presenting the problem to Earls initially. Earls went back to work looking for other ways to help provide more funding for the project. She talked with other Woodmen agents who were able to pledge money along with her initial $500 promise. All total, Earls was able to put $2,500.00 toward the purchase of the crushed gravel. Next, a call went out to members of the community to help spread the gravel once it was delivered. Brandon Burrage or Burrage Construction would donate his time one Thursday recently to make sure this cost was not incurred by the town. The town was expected to have to put some money with the Woodman Life pledged amount. However, when Bakerís Ready Mix delivered the first load of gravel, Burrage went to work on the project. They soon discovered that they would not need subsequent loads. Burrage also donated time and his equipment to work on the Noxapater baseball field that day. The Town of Noxapater would like to thank Ms. Earls, Jerry Thomas (who assisted Burrage in spreading the gravel), Ginger Phillipson, Nadine Kirk and any others who help connect the Woodman Life agency with Mayor Carter in order to find a way to make these repairs without a serious ding to the townís budget. Tori Earls of Woodman of the World Life Insurance, recently helped provide gravel to a trail/walkway at J.W. Young Park. Pictured left to right: Jerry Thomas, Tori Earls, Noxapater Mayor Sammy Carter, Ginger (Thomas) Phillipson, and Brandon Burrage, who donated his time to help spread the gravel. Not pictured: Nadine Kirk.
