Families and friends of the county’s newly elected officials came to the Courthouse on the Square on New Year’s morning, dressed in their Sunday best for a swearing-in ceremony.

The orderly transition of power is as much a New Year’s tradition as sleeping off the revelry, watching the Rose Bowl game, or eating black-eyed peas.

DRC/Gary Payne

Hugh Coleman stands with his wife Bernadette and children Helena and Ben while being sworn in on Thursday as Detnon County Precinct 1 commissioner by District Court Judge L. Dee Shipman inside the Commissioners Courtroom at the Courthouse on the Square.

But for the officials, it also was a time to publicly thank family members, their staff and close friends for their support.

The county’s newest commissioner, Hugh Coleman, took his oath with his wife, Bernadette, and two children, Ben, 5, and Helena, 4, by his side.

Friends and family members came from as far as El Paso, his hometown, to watch as Coleman raised his right hand and swore to defend the U.S. Constitution.

Wearing her new Christmas dress trimmed with a scallop-stitched Peter Pan collar and a fat, red sash, Helena Coleman scanned the standing-room-only crowd, finally catching the eye of someone familiar in the balcony, smiling and waving.

“It’s pretty exciting,” she said.

Hugh Coleman defeated Cynthia White in the Republican primary and then Democratic Party candidate Phyllis Wolper on Election Day.

Two other officials were sworn in for the first time, Doug Robison, who replaced Vicki Isaacks as 393rd District Court judge, and Ron Smith, who took his first oath as constable for Precinct 6.

All five other constables, Sheriff Benny Parkey, 16th District Court Judge Carmen Rivera-Worley, Tax Assessor-Collector Steve Mossman and County Commissioner Bobbie Mitchell also were sworn in and signed their paperwork, including their bonds.

After removing the cover from Coleman’s name plate on the dais, County Judge Mary Horn invited Coleman to come be seated, and the crowd applauded.

The Commissioners Court had some business items after the half-hour ceremony, Horn said, but it would briefly recess so that the guests could leave.

“Having had little ones, I know,” Horn said. “They can only sit so long.”

PEGGY HEINKEL-WOLFE can be reached at 940-566-6881. Her e-mail address is pheinkel-wolfe@dentonrc.com.