AMARILLO GLOBE-NEWSFRIDAY, MAY 20, 2016650,000 MONTHLY READERS

IN PRINT AND ONLINE FINAL n 75 CENTSVOLUME 107, NO. 196

V I D E O S , S L I D E S H O W S , B L O G S A N D M O R E A T A M A R I L L O. C O M

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WORD OF THE DAY: Definition, see A2florid

InsIDE: Local: Eighth candidate applies for Amarillo City Council seat. a2

ADVICE a10 | BUSINESS a9 | CALENDAR a2 | CLASSIFIED b5 | COMICS a8 | CROSSWORD a6, a10 LOttERy a2 | MOVIES a6 | OBItUARIES a4 | OPINION a11 | SPORtS b1 | WEAthER a12

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Morley Safer, who helped create CBS News, dead at 84. A6

LADY BuFFs FALL shoRtsouthern Arkansas eliminates

No. 1 Wt from CWs. B1

A fter four years of work, from many of different ages and

means, the crop at Gruver will finally be harvested to-night. And what a bumper crop it is.

There’s 33 of them, in black cap and gowns, who will walk through the com-mons of the gymnasium, the aisles along the seats on the home side, onto the floor and finally to a temporary stage.

“We have been talking about this

for four years,” Gruver super-intendent Troy Seagler said, “and sometimes kids grow numb to the fact you’re telling them money is tied to this.

“So it’s going to hit home to them when they graduate and actually see that dollar amount and what all of this is about.”

What’s happening in Gruver, 85 miles north of Amarillo, is not happening

anywhere else in the country — a local corn crop paying college or vocational school tuition for up to

four years for all graduating stu-dents.

“College is a huge financial burden to undertake,” said Raquel Whitehead, a single mom whose daughter, Kailey, is class salutato-rian, “and this definitely lifts that burden.”

It’s been chronicled before, these Gruver Farm Foundation Scholar-ships. It’s a matter-of-fact descrip-tion to an idea that is equal parts inspiration, dedication and perspira-tion.

see GRUVER, A6

Gruver’s first bumper crop ready to walk

Globe-News Staff

The Republican-led House cast a convincing 277-147 vote Wednesday to approve a $602 billion defense policy bill that could mean a huge amount of money for two Amarillo area contractors, Bell Helicopter and Pantex.

“Our area makes signifi-cant contributions to our na-tion’s security. The first job of the federal government is

to protect its citizens, and I’m proud to represent an area that is dedicated to doing so,” Rep. Mac Thornberry,

R-Clarendon, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, told the Amarillo Globe-News on Thursday.

“This bill provides for the procurement of two more V-22’s than the President re-quested, and helps ensure that employees at Pantex and Bell can continue making such unique and important contributions to our de-fense.”

Thornberry is the chief ar-chitect of the legislation.

For Amarillo the bill in-cludes about $2.8 billion for Bell Helicopter’s V-22 Osprey and helicopter pro-grams, including the pro-curement of 18 new Ospreys and 26 new AH-1Z/UH-1Y helicopters for the Marine Corps. Much of the work for those aircraft will be per-formed in Amarillo, Thorn-berry said.

It also provides $9.6 bil-lion in funding for nuclear weapons activities — includ-ing those performed at Pantex Plant, which is a $316 million increase to the budget request.

Thornberry’s bill autho-rizes military spending for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1, and seeks to halt a decline in the combat readiness of the U.S. armed forces by purchasing more weapons and prohibiting further cuts in troop levels.

But in a 17-page statement on the policy bill, the White House detailed its opposition to numerous provisions and said President Barack Obama would veto the legislation if it reached his desk.

see DEFENSE, A6

Bell Helicopter, Pantex Plant

likely to benefit from $602B defense bill

Jon Mark Beiluejon.beilue @amarillo.com

REVELATIONS AT HELIUM ROAD HEARING

NEW SPiElbAuER DEVElOPMENTS

Newly revealed evidence came to light at the bond reduction hear-ing for Jeremy Spiel-bauer on

Thursday which showed that Spielbauer had pur-chased plane tickets to New York City before his arrest, had threat-ened multiple times in the recent past to shoot others and had told a family member that he was worried about Robin Spiel-bauer being dead on the night of her murder, April 7, 2014.

Spielbauer was arrested on April 20 after a grand jury in-

dicted him for the alleged murder of his ex-wife, Robin Spielbauer, on Helium Road more than two years ago.

In the bond reduc-tion hearing Thursday, Bill Redden, investigator for the Randall County District Attorney’s office, said they had sealed the indictment for Spielbauer because he was carrying around

pistols, using cocaine and was acting erratically and they were concerned for the safety of offi-cers and Spielbauer.

see CONFESSIONS, A7

Plane tickets, threats and confessions revealed in court

By AAron DAvis / aaron.davis@amarillo.com

Thornberry

WANT MORE? Read previous Spielbauer case reports on amarillo.com.

Provided Photo

Brennyn Seagler, left, and Kennedy King pose in the wheel well of a combine that was partially responsible for har-vesting the college tuition of the 33 graduating students.

n FARREN: Prior to the morning of the 8th of April, was there any evidence anyone was looking or concerned for Robin?n REDDEN: No.n FARREN: Are you aware that on the night of the 7th, Mr. Spielbauer shared with ty Miller words to the effect that he was concerned that Robin was dead.n REDDEN: yes.

Randall County District Attorney James Farren questioning investigator Bill Redden on the witness stand about a conver-sation between Jeremy Spielbauer and his friend, Ty Miller, on the night of Robin Spielbauer’s murder, April 7, 2014.

QuESTiONS uNCOVER TAlk ON NiGHT OF MuRDER

INSIDESee A7 for develop-ments from the court hearing.