Derek Price, author of the nationally syndicated " Cargazing" colum that appears in the Herald-Banner, reflects on a USA Today article naming the cars best suited for traveling with dogs .

Kim Saenz, director of the Hunt Regional Emergency Centers in Commerce and Quinlan, reflects on a story about a new program led by Texas A&M in which telemedcine kiosks are placed in rural communities, such as Cameron, north of Bryan-College Station.

Emily Glass, co-owner of The Venue at Two-Nineteen and former Sulphur Springs mayor, comments on the $750,000 Texas Parks and Wildlife grant received by the city for improvements at Pacific Park on the city's east side. Sulphur Springs voters have also approved a bond issue for the project, pushing the total value of planned improvements to the park at $2.25 million. Also, plans have been revealed for the new Senior Citizens Center in Sulphur Springs.

Charlie Alderman, Commerce ISD superintendent, says Commerce High School reopens today (Monday, August 31) and Commerce Elementary School will reopen Tuesday, September 1. The schools closed last week because at 10 percent of students had a "close contact" with someone who had tested positive for the coronavirus. The new standard set by the school board will be that the schools will close if one percent of students test positive for COVID-19.

Alice Reese, Herald-Banner movie critic, says numerous new movies will be released in theaters this weekend. One of them is "Bill and Ted Face the Music," a sequel to "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure" from 1990, with original stars Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter. Also new this weekend are "The Personal History of David Copperfield" and "The New Mutants."

Kim Saenz, director of the Hunt Regional Emergency Centers in Commerce and Quinlan, reflects on an article describing the stress that emegency-room nurses and other personnel are feeling after months of working during the coronavirus pandemic. The article recommends that nurses be required to reveive regular counseling.

Greenville Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Byron Taylor says L-3 Communications is offering $500,000 in grants to non-profit organizations . The deadline to submit an application is August 26. Also, Greenville Fire Rescue is providing free COVID-19 testing from 9 a.m.- 2p.m. at the Fletcher Warren Civic Center.

Lori Cope, director of CASA (the Court-Appointed Special Advocates) of Hunt County says the number of new cases they've received since the start of the coronavirus pandemic has dropped sharply. She says last year from March 15-August 15, CASA had 32 new cases, but this year the number was 18. However, they expect that to change as school starts again, and teachers become aware of children who are in abusive situations. CASA volunteers monitor children in foster care and act as their advocates in

Hunt County Historical Commission chairman Carol Taylor contrasts the effects of the current coronavirus pandemic to the devasting 1918 flu outbreak in North Texas. Many closings occurred then, and people were urged to wear masks.

Steve Killian, superintendent of Cooper Lake State Park , says attendance is up this summer at the park compared to last year, despite ... or perhaps, because of ... the coronavirus situation. In fact, Cooper Lake is among the top 10 state parks in attendance this summer. Steve says the park has various ways of helping families enjoy the park even though the organized programs led by park rangers are not taking place for the time being.