Breckenridge Texan

By Carla McKeown/Breckenridge Texan

Everyone coming into Breckenridge from the west will be greeted by a new welcome sign — and photo op — located on the edge of the Country Club’s golf course, thanks to the efforts of the Breckenridge Downtown Development Council, along with the Texas State Technical College’s welding department and other donors.

TSTC welding instructor Stephen Hope, left, and BDDC chairman J.B. Sparks are proud of the work the TSTC welding students did on the new Breckenridge welcome sign. (Photo by Tony PIlkington/Breckenridge Texan)

On Tuesday morning, members of the BDDC were joined by other community leaders to celebrate the completion of the welcome sign, which is one of four such signs planned for Breckenridge. The BDDC is a 13-member advisory committee of the Breckenridge Economic Development Corporation and was organized several years ago to help restore downtown Breckenridge and beyond.

“This isn’t about the BDDC; it isn’t about one particular group or person. … This could be a beacon for Breckenridge,” J.B. Sparks, BDDC chairman, said to the group gathered at the sign. “We cannot do anything as a community alone, but we can do things together. That takes the role of County, the City, the EDC, local business people, nonprofits. We all have to work together to be successful. So today I just would like the focus to be about: We can’t do it alone, but we can do it together.”

The plan for the welcome signs first came about in 2022. Local business owner and designer Katherine Parker Post worked with the BEDC and the BDDC to create the design for the sign.

TSTC welding instructor Stephen Hope and welding students at the college worked on the metal portions of the sign, which includes the word “Breckenridge” arched over a gate featuring the Buckaroo logo. The sign also features the words “Home of the Buckaroos,” a small silhouette of a pump jack, and stone pillars on each side, which were built by local contractor Alexis Reyes.

The sign was designed with a concrete foundation and lights, with the intention that local residents, as well as visitors and passersby, could stop and take a photo in front of the sign, making it social media-friendly. To get to the sign for a picture, drivers can pull over onto the road that goes to the country club and enter the golf course through a small gateway to the southwest of the sign.

An identical sign is planned for the southwest corner of the “Graham Y” at the intersection of U.S. Highway 180 East and State Highway 67, Sparks said. Additionally, two smaller signs are planned for the north and south entrances to the community, near the school district’s bus barn and near the City’s water plant.

The sign on the west side of town was funded through donations from Stephens County and the Rotary Club of Breckenridge, Sparks said. Also helping with the project were Johnny Wade with Resist-All Electric, who donated the labor for the electric work; TSTC; and the City of Breckenridge, which assisted with getting a 9-1-1 address assigned to the large sign.

Now that the first sign is completed, Sparks said he will start raising funds for the sign on the east side of town.

The setting sun illuminates the new Breckenridge sign on the west side of town. Located on the edge of the Country Club’s golf course, the sign was designed to not only welcome everyone to town, but also to be used as a photo op for locals and visitors. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)

Cutline, top photo: A group of community leaders, including members of the Breckenridge Downtown Development Council and others, gathered Tuesday morning at the new welcome sign on the west side of Breckenridge to celebrate its completion. Pictured from left are Michael Roach, Kristi Williams, Maylun Vanwinkle, Cassie Griffith, Katherine Parker Post, J.B. Sparks, Cynthia Northrop, Stephen Hope, Skeeter Shook and Dude Ezell. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)