Those weren't elves scattering about Big Spring Friday, but they definitely qualified as Santa's helpers.
Volunteers with the Hometown Christmas program capped their third annual effort Friday, fanning out across the area, delivering Christmas presents to needy families and children.
Sixty families and about 400 people — roughly twice the number helped in 2011 — received gifts through the program this year, said volunteer Kathy Johnson.
Howard County commissioners voted unanimously Friday to adopt a road use agreement in hopes of sharing the mounting cost of rural road maintenance made necessary by the ongoing boom in the oilfield.
The court — with Precinct 1 Councilwoman Emma Brown absent — voted in favor of the agreement, which has been in the works for several months now, with the fees tacked on to county permits.
