Cheers and Jeers

Cheers: To Arlington Mayor Jeff Williams for signing the National Wildlife Federation’s Mayors’ Monarch Pledge, a commitment of the municipality to educate its residents, encourage and participate in the restoration and enhancement of monarch habitat in the community. Bravo to Mayor Williams, Arlington City Council members and the Parks Department!

Cheers: To the Bedford Citizens Coalition for organizing informative, relevant presentations and educating the residents of Bedford. We should all be more active and interested in our local government as that is what directly affects us the most.

Cheers: To Texas Wesleyan University for not allowing guns on campus. True to the school’s motto: “Smaller, smarter.”

Cheers: To the six firefighters who responded to my oven fire on Christmas Day. They were prompt, courteous and effective. They saved my kitchen and more. Thank you so much.

Cheers: To Dr. Diego Marra for his patience and skill during the several hours of surgery required to remove all traces of skin cancer. Cheers also to Dr. J. Martin English, surgeon par excellence, and his team for a successful skin graft required to repair the cancer area.

Cheers: To the courteous drivers on Glenview Drive the day my yellow Lab jumped from my moving SUV. You stopped, waited and blocked traffic while I retrieved her. You, her guardian angels, saved her from a sad situation. P.S., Maggie no longer has open-window privileges. God bless you!

Cheers: To Sharon, an Albertsons employee, and an anonymous man who helped prevent a purse snatching in the store parking lot at McCart Avenue and Sycamore School Road on Dec. 23.

Cheers: To Veterans Moving America for teaming up with SafeHaven to move clients free of charge. Until now, SafeHaven had no consistent way of moving their clients or their belongings.

Jeers: To TV stations that direct viewers to “Forth” Worth. I have been unable to locate this place on the map.

Jeers: To local TV meteorologists. CNN reported a tornado in Navarro County on Dec. 26, but there was nothing on local stations until 15 minutes later.

Cheers: To whoever paid for our breakfast at Ol’ South Pancake House in Fort Worth. When we got up to pay, the waitress said our bill had already been taken care of.

Cheers: Dr. Jennifer Parsley and staff at I-20 Animal Hospital in Hudson Oaks for emergency surgery on Francis, our dog, Dec. 10-11. Cheers also to Drs. Talley and McKendric at Pet Western Animal Hospital in Mineral Wells for Francis’s followup care. Francis has made a full recovery and is doing well.

Cheers: To Symphony Arlington for an outstanding and thoroughly entertaining concert. Most appreciated was the narration by Robert Carter Austin, the solo clarinetist Brent Buemi, and the awesome performance of the musicians and conductor Jin Hyoun Baek.

Cheers: To theater teacher Deanna Davis for the production of Shrek at Haltom Middle School. The creativity with 200 students was quite amazing!

Cheers: To the group sitting by the fireplace at Tolbert’s Restaurant in Grapevine who paid for this Vietnam veteran’s lunch on Jan. 23. It’s heartwarming to be thanked for my service.

Cheers: To all the volunteer mentors at McLean 6th Grade Center! Thank you for your dedication and commitment to our students and the program. We love you!

Jeers: To SiriusXM for playing music from the 1950s and causing this 75-year-old to be singing “One-eyed, One-horned Flying Purple People Eater” and losing all my dignity. I hope no one was watching.

Jeers: To whiny Christians who fume when others don’t celebrate Christmas the way they think it should be celebrated. Remember: The anger of man does not accomplish the righteousness of God.

Cheers: To Cynthia Allen for her thorough Jan. 22 column on the Gabriel Project, which offers help and hope to pregnant women in crisis. It’s heartening to have the truth be known about the compassionate, giving side of pro-lifers.

Cheers: To Dr. Scott Thurman and his staff and USMD Hospital. Dr. Thurman successfully removed a kidney tumor using DaVinci robotic surgery and my recovery was a breeze. I appreciate his competency and bedside manner.

Jeers: To those complaining about Hooters restaurant in downtown Fort Worth. Get a life. You’re not the morality police.

Cheers: To Laura at the Aldi store in Pantego. After we locked our keys and my purse in the trunk, she made several phone calls to our friends for help. Cheers also to her husband, Melvin, who so kindly took us home to get a spare key.

Cheers: To the generous young couple who bought our dinner at the Cracker Barrel Old Country Store on Bowen Road in Arlington on Jan. 16. Thank you for serendipity.

Cheers: To Drs. W. Gordon Smyth, Meagan Anderson and Kelsey Daugette and the entire staff of Bowen Road Animal Clinic in Arlington for their excellent care of our Italian greyhound mix, Willie, during his all-too-brief stay with us here on Earth. Your caring and love for him blessed us tremendously.

Cheers: To the sweet young couple who paid for my lunch at Chili’s Grill and Bar on the U.S. 287 South service road on Jan. 27. You are a bright ray of sunshine and I appreciate your kindness. I hope to pass along this kindness very soon. God bless you.

Cheers: To Scott Bolin and Freeman Toyota for making my recent vehicle purchase easy and enjoyable. Everyone we dealt with at the dealership, including Derek Herndon, Jeremy Wiggains and Mike Keithley was extremely knowledgeable and professional. It was a pleasure doing business with them.

Cheers: To Jay of Window Cleaning Inc. in Weatherford, who fixed a torn screen in addition to cleaning the windows. Went above and beyond good service.

Cheers: To our neighborhood watchman, Dan Bodiford, who walks our street daily checking for suspicious activity and picking up trash. In World War II, Dan was a gunner-radio operator on a B-17 bomber who survived 34 missions over Europe. He recently was awarded France’s Legion of Honor medal for his contributions to the liberation of France.

Cheers: To Allyson and Karen Gourley with Texas Lone Star Estate Sales. Judy Kirby and I love to go to estate sales. The sale you had on a recent weekend was one of the best we’ve ever gone to. You were so pleasant and easy to work with.

Cheers: To Brooke Rogers, reporter at KTVT/Channel 11, for contacting Strider Bike Co. to replace a stolen bike meant for my grandson’s birthday. Cheers also to KXAS/Channel 5 for also showing video of the thief from home surveillance. The grandson enjoys the special bike immensely. The Mansfield police were prompt, considerate and professional — much appreciated!

This story was originally published February 5, 2016 at 5:49 PM with the headline "Cheers and Jeers."