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ZAWIYAH, Libya For the first timein months, witnesses in Tripoli report-ed heavy fighting across the capital lateSaturday, even as rebel forces claimedto have encircled the city by taking ma-

jor towns to its east, west and south.Rebel leaders in Tunis and eastern

Libya hailed the beginning of a newuprising in the capital against Moam-mar Gadhafis rule. And after monthsof rebel offenses that crumbled orstalled despite heavy support from a

NATO airstrike campaign, it markedthe first time since the uprising beganin February that the rebels threatenedQaddafis ultimate stronghold.

We are coordinating the attacks in-side, and our forces from outside areready to enter Tripoli, said Anwar Fe-kini, a rebel leader from the mountain-ous region in western Libya, speaking

by telephone from Tunis.If you can call any mobile number

in Tripoli, you will hear in the back-ground the beautiful sound of the bul-lets of freedom.

Phone calls to several Tripoli resi-dents from different neighborhoodsconfirmed widespread gunfire andexplosions. And there were reports offrequent NATO jet overflights and air-strikes a common accompanimentto the drumbeat of the rebel advancein the past week.

But in an audio message broadcaston state television, his second in aweek, Gadhafi rebutted claims of reb-el gains, saying his forces had beaten

back the Tripoli uprising within hoursand announcing military successes inthe same cities rebels had claimed toseize Saturday.

He gave the date and time severaltimes to confirm that he was speakingas events were unfolding.

IN WACO

BRAZOS LIVING

119 years serving

In God we trust

Waco Tribune-HeraldSunday, Aug. 21, 2011Sunday, Aug. 21, 2011the Heart of Texas

Single copy $1.60Single copy $1.60

Staff photo Duane A. Laverty

Trella Hughes (left), librarian at McGregors McGinley Memorial Library, accepts a donation of books Friday from patron

Barbara Klein. The library could lose as much as $4,000 in funding from the county, as well as grant opportunities, if itsaccreditation is pulled.

Volunteers inJoplin, Mo.,are working toorganize andreturn thousandsof photos blownaway by thetornado in May.

High: 104Low: 80

TODAY

INDEX

INSIDE, 3A

Business 7B

Classifieds 10B

Farm & Ranch 6B

Horoscope 12B

Local & Texas 1B

Lottery 9A

Neighbor Plus 4B

Obituaries 2B

Opinion 10,11A

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FOR PLAYOFFS

SPORTS, 1C

THE UNINSURED

LOCAL & TEXAS, 1B

Have books, need money

The McGregor public librarywill lose its state accreditationwithout more funding, and it islooking to the county to fill thegap.

The McGinley Memorial Li-brary, housed in the former RitzTheatre in downtown McGregor,is falling short of a state require-ment for local funding.

Funding from local govern-ments must meet at least halfof the states recommended percapita spending level for libraryvisitors for a library to keepstate accreditation. The libraryis about $1,500 short of that goal,and the target will increase by

another $500 for the upcoming

fiscal year.The library is on probation

because it fell short of the localfunding benchmark set by thestate in the 2010-11 fiscal year.The library was warned by the

state that it will lose its accredi-tation Oct. 1 if the situation doesnot change.

The facility can remain openas a public library without state

accreditation, but it will meanthe library will lose access to

some grants and programs thatcover necessities.

Since 2000, the county has giv-

en each of the five rural librar-ies Hewitt, McGregor, Moody,

Mart and West $4,000 a year foroperating expenses.

But the McLennan County

Commissioners Court moved

last week to strike the McGregorlibrarys share in the prelimi-nary 2011-12 fiscal year budgetbecause of the states accredita-tion warning.

McGregor City Secretary An-

gelia Sloan said the city plansto increase its library contribu-tion by $2,000 to $11,000 in the

2012 budget in an attempt to helpsave the accreditation.

But Trella Hughes, McGregorslibrarian, said the county dollars

still are needed to keep the ac-creditation. She will petition thecommissioners court Tuesday to

restore and increase funding tothe library.

I dont want the county tothink Im complaining or un-grateful, because we really do

appreciate the money that they

have given us, and weve workedwell with them over the years,Hughes said. But we really needthem to give a little more.

County Catch-22

Commissioner Ben Per-ry, whose precinct includesMcGregor, said he hopes to con-vince the court to grant the li-brary some emergency fundsthis year to meet the currentthreshold. Doing so would keepthe accreditation in place, whichhe said is required for the coun-ty to give the library money inthe future.

Its a Catch-22 because theylllose their accreditation becausewere not funding enough, but

By Regina DennisTribune-Herald staff writer

McGregor library faces loss of accreditation without county funds

Heavy fighting reported in Libyan capitalBy Kareem Fahim

and David D. KirkpatrickThe New York Times

New mapdrawn upby countyofficial

The county now has two redistrictingplans to weigh one prepared by a setof law professors and another drawn by acommissioner determined to boost the mi-nority voting power in his precinct.

The county hired Baylor UniversityLaw Professors Mike Morrison and DavidGuinn to redraw the fourcounty commissioner pre-cinct lines to account foran increase in county resi-dents recorded in the 2010U.S. Census.

But Precinct 2 Com-missioner Lester Gibson,whose precinct has the

largest minority popula-tion, offered his own planfor the court to consider as well.

His proposal aims to predict the futuremigration of minority communities inPrecinct 2 and keep them together. Andthe Democrat acknowledges wrapping hisprecinct lines around the most potentiallyDemocrat-voting residents.

By Regina DennisTribune-Herald staff writer

See GIBSON, Page 9A

GOP chairmanwants Skeensresignation

A local GOP chairman became the latestofficial to call on McLennan County TaxAssessor-Collector Buddy Skeen to resign.

McLennan County Republican Partychairman Joe Hinton said he hopes Skeenwill consider steppingdown in light of a seriesof newspaper articles thathave detailed Skeens ex-tensive real estate activityand the tax offices sales ofmarked-down governmentvehicles to individualsclose to Skeen.

Whether its buyingand selling trucks, or buying and sellinghouses, all this stuff, it doesnt smell good,Hinton said.

And when somebodys in a position tobe responsible for very large sums of mon-ey, theyve just got to be incredibly careful

By Michael W. Shapiro

Tribune-Herald staff writer

See RESIGN, Page 8A

See LIBYA, Page 9A

See LIBRARY, Page 8A

Skeen

Gibson

The New York Times Bryan Denton

Rebel fighters survey the damage of the citys mainsquare in the strategic oil refinery town of Zawiya onSaturday. Rebels encircled Libyas capital as its resi-dents continued to flee.

COMMISSIONERS COURT

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SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 20118A WACO TRIBUNE-HERALD

of how its handled, he said.This guy needs to think

hard about resigning, Hin-ton added.

Asked about calls for hisresignation Friday, Skeen de-clined comment.

The Texas Rangers beganinvestigating the longtimetax assessor-collector in July,after McLennan County Audi-tor Stan Chambers reportedSkeen hadavoided pay-ing $1,375 ofsales tax ona personaltruck pur-chase in Feb-ruary.

Accordingto a court doc-ument, Skeenadmitted to a Ranger that heclaimed a tax office vehiclehed just sold as a trade-in,knocking down the sales taxon his truck purchase.

A few days before the inves-tigation became public, Skeenannounced he had signed pa-perwork to join the Republi-can Party.

McLennan County Demo-cratic Party chairwomanKaren Petree has alreadysuggested that Skeen resignor retire.

I just dont see how he cansurvive, Hinton said, buta lot of people say he wontquit.

Skeen was first elected in1988 and hes up for re-elec-tion next year.

Hed have to have an awfulgood story and be extremelypopular to survive the allega-tions made against him andget re-elected, said TerrellBlodgett, a retired professorat the University of Texas-Austins LBJ School of PublicAffairs.

Blodgett, a former Waco

city manager and a localgovernment expert, saidthe whole thing even ifhe hasnt done anything ille-gal doesnt pass the smelltest.

mshapiro@wacotrib.com757-5707

RESIGNFrom Page 1A

Hinton

now we cant turn aroundand fund them anymore be-cause theyre not accredited,Perry said.

According to the TexasState Library and ArchivesCommission, the McGregorlibrary has a target servicepopulation of 7,559. The com-mission set the minimumrequired per capita spend-ing at $3.85 per person, or$29,102 for the current fiscalyear.

Funding targets

The library has to have

at least half that amount,

$14,551, come from local gov-ernment sources. The city of

McGregor for 2010-11 budget-

ed $9,000, plus utilities andin-kind services that cannot

be counted towards the per

capita spending, while thecounty gave $4,000, for a total

of $13,000.

Grants and donations fromlocal residents and business-

es cant be counted toward

the states per capita spend-ing requirements.

A commission official noti-fied Hughes in an Aug. 4, 2010,

email that the library would

be on probation through thecurrent fiscal year for failing

to reach the $14,551 in fund-

ing.In the 2011-12 fiscal year,

the library needs to meet a

$3.97 per capita threshold ofat least $15,005 to keep its ac-

creditation. With the citys

decision to increase its fund-ing to $11,000, the library

needs at least $4,000 from the

county.Theyve given us the same

$4,000 every year since thecounty first started funding

the rural libraries in 2000,

Hughes said. Its helped us,but at the same time theyve

never increased it, and wereally could use the extrahelp.

When the commission-ers voted unanimously lastweek not to give the countysusual $4,000 to the McGregorlibrary, it increased the fund-

ing for the four other librar-ies to $5,000 for the upcoming

fiscal year.County Judge Jim Lewis

said the countys contractrequires the libraries to beaccredited in order to receivefunding.

But a Sept. 29, 2009 let-ter from Lewis office to

McGregor library board pres-ident Tom Kirk states that

libraries have to be recog-nized by the state of Texas asa public library, as well as

have a state-certified librar-ian and provide free access

to all services in order to re-ceive county dollars.

Hughes said even withoutthe accreditation, the librarywill still be recognized as a

public library by the state.The accreditation status is

what qualifies the library forstate funding, grants and oth-

er discount programs.For example, Hughes said

without the accreditation,the library will lose its E-rate discount, which covers80 percent of the telephone,electrical and Internet costs.That program is worth about

$3,000 a year.Lewis contends the county

has to use accreditation asa benchmark to determinewhether a library has metstate standards to operate.

If we dont follow the con-tract, then theres no need in

having a contract, be it the li-brary or any other services,

Lewis said. A person in an-other part of the county couldsay Why are you spending

my money over there?Its a city of McGregor

library, even though theyserve other people. The coun-

ty cant be the answer to ev-erything.

Perry noted the city of Mc-

Gregor already foots most ofthe librarys budget.

Community hangout

Friday morning, fouryoungsters manned the

computer stations at thefront of the library, check-ing emails and surfing theInternet. Most of the com-puters were purchased withmoney the library receivedfrom the state or grants fromcompanies.

A lot of the mothers workin the daytime, and many

of the kids are at that stagewhere theyre too old for aday care, but too young stillto be at home alone, so theywill come here in the sum-mer time or after school,Hughes said. Its a safeplace for them to be on thecomputer or do their home-work.

Hughes is the only paidstaff member. Local teenag-

ers volunteer to help withlibrary programs during the

summer, in addition to ahandful of adult volunteers.

Hughes said without coun-

ty funding or accreditation,the library will be in a bind

financially, but it will notclose anytime soon. Instead,

it will have to lean moreheavily on support from thecommunity, and be more ag-

gressive in hunting grantsthat do not require accredi-

tation to cover the fundinglosses.

The library is also havinga book sale on Sept. 18 that ithopes will generate funds tobuy new books.

We have too many peoplein the community who love

the library and would dowhatever they can to see itstay open, Hughes said.

We may not be able tokeep buying books everymonth like we are now andwe might have to rely onbook donations . . . but werestill here.

rdennis@wacotrib.com757-5755

LIBRARYFrom Page 1A

Staff photo Duane A. Laverty

Patrons use public computers inside McGregors McGinley Memorial Library on Friday. The library is planningon staying open even if the state pulls its accreditation.

At JOHNSON ROOFING

We believe in America and proudly stand behind t he men and women of our armed fo rces.

254-662-5571

sponsored by the patriots at

Voices of Valor, which features Central Texasveterans, runs every other Sunday, alternating with aMedal of Honor winner. To suggest a story of a Central

Texas veteran, email voicesofvalor@wacotrib.com.

Voices of ValorHonoring our men and women in uniform

By ROBERT GAMBOA

Special to the Tribune-Herald

. orris Barker, born and raised in Electra, Texas,

. was drafted and assigned to the Army Artillery

. Corps but not for long.

. Barker decided he was destined to serve in the

Army Air Corps and requested a transfer. He was assigned to

the 726th Bombardment Squadron, 451st Bombardment Group(Heavy), 15th Air Force.

Barker was assigned to the tail gunners hole with two 50-

caliber guns, squeezed into a very small compartment in a

freezing cold, unpressurized cabin. He would always be on a

mission of destruction, to kill or be killed.

Stationed in Castelluccio Airfield, Italy, in 1944, the 726th

attacked such targets as oil refineries, marshalling yards,

aircraft factories, bridges, and airfields throughout Europe.

They prepared the way for and participated in the invasion of

Southern France Aug. 15, 1944.

Seven days later, the 726th was assigned the bombing

mission over Lobau oil storage installations near Vienna,

Austria. The 19-year-old Staff Sgt. Barker, a seasoned combat

veteran of six previous missions, would fly as tail gunner on the

Dreamer for this flight.

Each member of the B-24 flight crew was issued a survival

kit containing a chocolate bar, a map, silk thread, an ampule

of morphine, a prayer and some blue seal silver certificate

currency. The currency was to buy your way out in case of

capture by the locals or the enemy sympathizers.

Barker recalled that the mission was to be flown without the

benefit of fighter protection. Losses could be high. A ferociousGerman counter attack was expected. This mission would be

etched in tail gunner Barkers mind forever.

The early liftoff from Italy was filled with 451st B-24

bombers from the 724th, 725th and 727th Squadrons joining

the 726th and several other bomber groups. The flight was

typical: Take off, climb 25,000 feet, get on course, fly over the

Adriatic Sea, the Alps, through Austria.

At about 10 a.m. over Hungary, swarms of Focke-Wulf

190s, the Luftwaffe fighters, began attacking in groups of ten

or more without regard for losses. The Messerschmitt 109s

also joined the destructive assault on the formation, inflicting

heavy damage on the squadrons.

Morris saw three Me 109s beginning to circle from the rear

when suddenly two zeroed in on his aircraft. Morriss firing

took them out, but the third plane hit its target.

The B-24s No. 2 engine was left blazing and bullets ripped

the entire aircraft. The pilot battled for control of the craft.

Ordered to abandon ship, Barker bailed out in time to see the

aircraft tail blown apart and two explosions destroy the aircraft.

His seventh mission was quickly coming to an end.

Two of the crew were killed in the explosions. Another died

when he bailed out but his chute didnt open. Barker and the

others bailed safely but were captured upon landing.

Barker and most of his crew spent the remainder of WWII in

Stalag Luft IV, Gross-Tychow, Poland, until Feb. 6, 1945. The

Russians, U.S. Allies, were closing in on the area surrounding

Stalag IV, which held up to 17,000 POWs.

On that February day, the Germans began moving all the

prisoners in an attempt to escape the Russians. Barker and the

other POWs were marched for 86 days in knee-deep snow,

sleeping in filthy barns and being fed twice a day with whatever

the Germans could force from the local farmers.

Barker was ultimately repatriated May 3, 1945.

He retired as a personnel manager for General Electric

and continues to work in various veteran organizations,

especially those related to POWs. The Waco resident recently

was elected National Commander, American Ex-Prisoners of

War Association.

The 451st Bomb Group was one of the most highly

decorated groups in the 15th Army Air Force. It was also one of

the most battered: In 216 m issions, 135 B-24s were lost.

sponsored by the patriots at

Staff photo Duane A. Laverty

A native of Electra, Morris Barker served as a tail gunner in a B-24 during bombing runs as part of the 726th Bom-

bardment Squadron, 451st Bombardment Group. After his plane was shot down down by German fighters on Aug.22, 1944. He was held as a prisoner of war until May 3, 1945.

German attack fast, furious

Imprisoned and on the run

Announcing theretirement of

J. Clay Sawyer, M.D.from the practice of medicine

effective September 1, 2011.

Records will remain with

Dr. Duttons office.

It has been an honor and

a privilege to serve

as your physician.