August 26, 2010

Is this what a disaster shelter looks like? Maybe, but not in Blanco County! First, we don’t have the resources to open a big shelter like this, and second, nobody would ask us to. A shelter here would look a lot different from these endless rows of cots. It might just be smaller, or house emergency workers instead of evacuees, or it might not be for overnight stays at all.

The softball tournament fundraiser that was scheduled for this weeked has been postponed to a future date. We will let you know when it will be held as soon as possible. The busy end of summer has not allowed for the turn out we were expecting. Funds are still being raised towards the purchase of the Eagle run though tunnel.

Johnson City Masonic Lodge #561 presented three Johnson City graduates with scholarships. The recipients were Kelya Jureczki, Bryant McDowell, and Megan Marks.

Earlier this week Tex Riley announced his candidacy for Blanco County Judge, an elected position that will be voted upon in the forthcoming November 2 general election. Tex filed his formal declaration for write-in candidacy Monday. The county judge may preside over cases involving criminal, civil, probate, guardianship, juvenile, and mental health law, and Tex notes that his extensive legal background makes him well qualified to serve as Blanco county judge.

The first men’s soccer tournament held in Blanco County was hosted at Pedro Mancha’s ranch in Blanco, Texas. Teams from Burnet, Blanco, Johnson City and Georgetown competed against each other. The team from Georgetown came away with the Championship rights for this tournament. The Georgetown team has a few Johnson City members on it: Hector Lopez, Cristobal Trejo, and Carlos Molina. Taking second place was the team from Johnson City and third place was Blanco. ...

Red River, New Mexico – Members of the Pod On The Pedernales followed the call of the chili trail and the desire for cooler temperatures to northern New Mexico on Saturday. The town of Red River was host to Hot Chili Days and Cool Mountain Nights. A Larry Joe Taylor music festival was held in conjunction with CASI’s Four Corners Regional Open Championship. Daily temperatures ranging from the mid-forties up to eighty degrees and performances by top singer-songwriters were ...

Well, here we are at our porch. We have a tenant, Ethel Moreland, who has moved closer to her family. We really miss her as she was a good friend to many here. We have another tenant, Joyce Segura, who has moved to be close to her family as well.

Can you believe it’s been nearly a year since the planet Neptune was discovered? My how the time flies. OK, so it’s been 164 Earth years, but it’s but only been one Neptunian year. When Neptune was discovered in 1846, it was located just inside the western border of the constellation Aquarius.

I got up Thursday morning, made a few phone calls, and we were on our way. New Braunfels, here we come! Quilt Haus was having a sale. We had been told about the sale on several occasions and how great it was going to be. They had over 2000 bolts of fabric on sale ranging from $3.88 to $5.88 per yard. We arrived a little early and decided to set in the car until a line started to form.

*****Johnson City’s own Eric Pianka was featured on KRLU-HD this past Tuesday evening. Eric was in Australia hunting and doing experiments with Sand Lizards. He caught and attached cameras to lizards to study what lizards see from their point of view. Kind of exciting to turn on the television and see someone you know isn’t it?

In Blanco County, you can count on two things in the month of August – a heat wave, and the Fair and Rodeo. There’s not a Blanco County Fair and Rodeo that would be complete without the accompanying parade as well. I would have submitted an entry into the food exhibit if it weren’t for the fact that I had already broadcasted the news of my ongoing jelly debacle.

Congratulations to all the girls who participated in the Queen Contest this year. The winners are (left to right): Third Runner Up Jessie Rios, Second Runner Up Kelly Wright, First Runner Up Shelby Conlon, and Queen Morgan Moreland.

Serving as a local elected official is one of the most demanding—and often thankless—tasks a citizen can perform. City officials can be called upon day and night. They are subject to constant criticism, and almost everything they do will be wrong in someone’s opinion. Many officials spend their own money to campaign for election; most receive little, if any, pay for the job. City Council Members for Johnson City receive a mere $15 for each meeting they at ...

Stonewall, Texas—Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park will celebrate the 102nd anniversary of President Johnson’s birth on Friday, August 27. This free celebration begins at 10:00 a.m. with the laying of a wreath on his gravesite in the Johnson family cemetery on the LBJ Ranch. The wreath will be placed by representatives from Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio, followed by remarks by Colonel Richard Murphy, Commander, 12th Flying Training Wing.

The LBJHS Class of 1979 held their 31st Class Reunion during the 80th Annual Blanco County Fair and Rodeo. Pictured from left to right are: Leonora Hernandrez Rodriguez, Laurie Smith Stephens, Marcy Gliddon Koyl, David Debo, Tanis Schmidt Schlebach, Lavonda Dahmann Renfro, Rodney Hartmann, Jan Haley DeLeo, Tony Stevenson. Not pictured Shelton Coleman.

Howdy! Welcome to the 2010 Blanco County Fair & Rodeo! Can you believe this is the 80th anniversary? 80 years ago, as our county’s first fair and rodeo was happening, there were other events going on in the world. Pluto was discovered and labeled as the ninth planet. The cartoon Betty Boop makes her first appearance in the cartoon Dizzy Dishes.

Over 1,000 people visited the Exhibit Hall on Friday and Saturday during the Blanco County Fair last week. Visitors viewed contest entries and visited booths sponsored by agencies that serve Blanco County. In the Home Canned Products competition the results are: Best of Show: Kevin Farmer, Grape Jelly Brenda Haynes, Dill Pickles Ball Fresh Preserving Awards, Adult Division: Laura Wilson, 1 ...

If you want to try planting bluebonnets that turn Hill Country fields a hue that rivals the sky, make your plans now. But beware — this flower is willful enough to make grown men weep, or at least go gray or bald while trying to coax the blooms out of the soil. Other wildflowers might be a bit easier to grow than bluebonnets are, especially if you follow the directions of John Thomas, founder of Wildseed Farms.

James L. Homer, Jr., 76, passed away August 24, 2010 in Austin, TX. He was born in Galveston, TX to James L. Homer, Sr. and Lucille Outlaw Homer. Mr. Homer was preceded in death by his parents, daughter, Nancy Homer and infant son, Nicholas Homer. He is survived by his loving wife of 52 years, Barbara Goodman Homer; three sons, Jeff Homer and wife Annette, Chris Homer and wife Melissa, and James Homer, III and wife Laura; seven grandchildren and two great grandchildren. Visitati ...

Mary Alice Barker passed away on August 20, 2010 at the Live Oak Medical Center in Blanco, Texas at the age of 96. She was born on June 13, 1914 in Anson, Texas to Cliff and Birdie Tarver. She is preceded in death by her parents, her husband, Horace Damon Barker, sisters, Eunice Jackson and Mavis Gainey and infant sister, Birdie Jane. She is survived by her son, Delman Barker and wife, Anna, her daughter Betty Woolsey, all of Blanco, grandson Damon Barker of Nevada, grandd ...

Blanco County Sheriff's Office Reports These reports were filed between Jul. 30 and Aug. 6. Jul. 30 • City Park. 12:21 AM. Suspicious Vehicle • Unknown. 12:43 AM. Traffic Stop • 301 N. Winters Furr St., Johnson City. 3:09 AM. Follow Up • 818 Lindeman Ln., Blanco. 7:38 AM. Medical Emergency • 314 Skaggs Rd., Johnson City.

Jim and Penny Caldwell, of Split Rock Research Foundation, will give a profound presentation of their discoveries while living in the Persian Gulf this coming Saturday, August 28, 7:00 PM, at the First Baptist Church, 1200 W. 4th Street, Blanco, TX. Little did they know, as they struck out on a family vacation that they would be living "life on the edge"

Preliminary counts of 692 students headed back to class at Johnson City Independent School District on Monday morning to being the 2010-2011 school year. Meet the Teacher night was held last Thursday for Elementary and Middle School. This helped the students get situated and understand the process of the first day better. High School students were allowed to pick up schedules the whole week prior to classes starting.

There are different types of leaders in this world, just as every person has a different definition for leadership. The Johnson City FFA Chapter Officer Team had a chance to find their very own definition of leadership, at the 4th annual officer retreat, hosted by Mr. Lindy Segall at his Capstone Ranch in Hye Texas. The leaders of next years FFA Chapter (Zach Denton, Noel Porter, Shania DuBose, Chandler Wagner, Slater Sultemeier, Melinda Holdridge, Kendra Smith, Kelly Wrig ...

The Lady Eagles hosted Lampasas and Canyon Lake last Tuesday. They played extremely tough against Lampasas beating them in 5 games: 25-20, 25-23, 15-25, 18-25, and 15-13. Incredible set/hit combinations were seen by Adrienne Pabon (12 kills) and Kaitlyn Hubbard (5 kills) during the game. Meredith Neely had also had fantastic serving to start each of the games (4 aces). The same night saw the Lady Eagles playing Canyon Lake.

Whether it is the excitement of live pari-mutuel horse racing, the thrills of the carnival and midway, the music, the displays of agricultural and home products, livestock competitions or the colorful parade, the 122nd Gillespie County Fair Thursday through Sunday, Aug. 26-29, offers activities and events for the entire family. Set for the Gillespie County Fair Grounds in Fredericksburg, the "oldest, continuous county fair in Texas"

The Texas Academy of Career Training (TexACT) will be commencing classes on August 30, 2010. The brand new career school, located at 706 4th Street in Marble Falls , will be offering both day and evening courses for Nurse Assistants. At the conclusion of the 80 classroom hour course, students will take the state exam and qualify as Certified Nurse Assistants.