Latest News
Hope's Gate Thrift Store is now open at 201 E. Butler St. in Wylie. The store carries clothes, accessories, home decor and much more. Photo Allison LaBrot Local thrifters now have a place to shop closer to home. The newly opened Hope’s Gate Thrift Store offers a...
The Murphy City Council has approved a sweeping update to the city’s comprehensive financial management policies, aligning purchasing thresholds with new state law, strengthening reserve requirements and clarifying procedures for public improvement acceptance and...
Applications are now open for Collin County residents who wish to serve as commissioners on Emergency Services District 1, created by voters in the Nov. 4 election. County Administrator Yoon Kim said at the Monday, Nov. 17, meeting of the Collin County Commissioners...
Santa will once again be spreading holiday cheer aboard a fire truck beginning Monday, Dec. 8. The Murphy Fire Department will soon be helping Santa Claus spread holiday cheer by giving him a tour of most neighborhoods next month. Santa will depart at 6:30 p.m....
Murphy has used both proactive and reactive methods to reduce the amount of water lost from the city’s distribution system, Public Works Director Donald Reese said. In a presentation to the Tuesday, Nov. 18, City Council meeting, Reese said the loss of 285 million...
Sports
Plano East's Brendan Gillum jumps in the air as he gets to the ball first during Tuesday's home game against Prosper Rock Hill. Photo by Andy Redmond / C&S Media By David Wolman [email protected] Tuesday marked another big step in the journey for the Plano...
Plano East sophomore outside hitter Grace Pinegar hits the ball around the hands of Prosper Rock Hill freshman Hayden Thomas for a point during a District 6-6A volleyball match at Plano East on Tuesday, Sept. 17. The Lady Panthers defeated the Lady Blue Hawks in three...
Plano East senior forward DJ Hall announced Monday, Sept. 16 that he has committed to playing men's basketball for Texas State. Hall helped to lead the Panthers to a perfect 40-0 record and the school's first-ever team state championship earlier this year. File photo...
Plano East senior quarterback Jackson Hays, pictured in previous action, threw for two touchdown passes in a 44-21 win for the Panthers over Princeton on Friday. Photo by Roosevelt Joubert / C&S Media By Seth Dowdle [email protected] MURPHY – The District...
Plano East junior Simone Heard, pictured in previous action, recorded 16 kills in the Lady Panthers' 25-19, 25-21, 25-13 road win over McKinney Boyd on Tuesday, Sept. 10. Photo by Tina Lopez / Murphy Monitor By David Wolman [email protected] Trailing 17-13 in...
Education
The 15th Texas Court of Appeals (COA) has thrown out injunctions that had blocked the Texas Education Agency from releasing school accountability ratings for the 2023-24 school year. The TEA is expected to release the ratings Aug. 15. “It is time for local courts to...
Taking a measured approach and asking a lot of questions, Wylie Independent School District administrators rolled out its final school opening plan at a special called session of the school board last week. The plan sticks with an original proposal to start...
With the caveat that things could change, Wylie Independent School District administrators reviewed for school trustees the plan to reopen schools next month while following safety protocols that address the COVID-19 health crisis. The plan rollout was made at a...
The anticipation as to what the start of the 2020 school year will look like is finally here. Parents of PISD students learned Friday, July 17 that school will start Aug. 12, only it will be in a fully remote learning environment for at least the first month of...
Two teens are showing their community that you’re never too young to start making a difference. Murphy resident Sanjana Pemmaraju and Plano resident Ronak Shah, both rising seniors at Plano East Senior High, know what it’s like to watch a family member battle cancer....
Life & Style
Rangerettes, past and present, along with member of the Greenville High School Flaming Flashes, attended the May dedication ceremony honoring Gussie Nell Davis with a historical marker on the square in Farmersville. Courtesy photo On a warm spring afternoon in May,...
Parties are highly anticipated events come the holiday season. Office parties, gatherings with friends and family celebrations are just some examples of the many soirees that dot the social schedules of millions of people between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day....
Thankfulness manifests itself in many ways and this Thanksgiving, families who have adopted children are especially full of gratitude. Perhaps it’s no coincidence that Thanksgiving and National Adoption Month coincide with each other. For Farmersville residents Rachel...
There’s something magical about Christmas lights. The way they twinkle and seem to dance before our eyes. Colorful holiday displays can lighten the heart of even the biggest Grinch this time of year. How can one not be happy when there is so much beauty that lights up...
Thanksgiving is a big travel holiday and the sheer volume of cars on the road during the holiday week can make traveling a challenge. In 2017, AAA projected 50.9 million Americans would journey 50 miles or more from home on Thanksgiving. Here’s a few tips before you...
Opinion
Columnist John Moore cuts and bales hay on the homestead he shares with his wife. A remnant of the hard work he was taught growing up. Courtesy John Moore Hard work has a way of shaping a person that no shortcut or modern convenience can replicate. In an era when many...
A few weeks ago, The New York Times ran an article noting that with the U.S. preoccupied by the coronavirus pandemic, Black Lives Matter protests, and massive unemployment, “its competitors are moving to fill the vacuum, and quickly.” Russia, China, North Korea, Iran....
Iconic ranches, farms and small towns sustain about 3 million Texans — a population larger than the City of Houston’s. The sense of community, plentiful open space and great quality of life — all found in places like West Texas and the Panhandle — have sustained...
Most people know that when there is a fire or medical emergency—or a global pandemic—first responders help keep us safe. What may be surprising for many Texans is that many of these first responders are there because of a local emergency services district, or ESD. As...
Roughly one in four American workers has filed for unemployment since the pandemic began. To stem the historic tide of unemployment, policymakers quickly put together a series of legislative packages to help companies keep their workers on payroll. An often-overlooked...
