May 19, 2021 Issue

The Emergency Services Commissioners of North Blanco County Emergency Services District No. 1 held a regular meeting on Monday. President David O’Bannon called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m., and all commissioners were present. Reports of Service Providers – Johnson City VFD “The Fish Fry was a great success, and we did really well.

By Tricia Hartmann JCISD Trustees met in the LBJ High School Commons for a regular meeting on May 10. President Shelly Wenmohs called the meeting to order at 6 p.m., and all members were present. Recognitions, Public Comments Diane Hudson recognized several students for Visual Arts competitions. Hudson said that the Visual Arts program has performed very well at Regionals, and four students also won at Area and State.

Kaitlyn Arvesen, Valedictorian of LBJ’s class of 2017, will be graduating from UT Austin on Saturday May 22nd, 2021 with a 4.0 GPA and a Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering. For the past year she has had an internship with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab and will continue to work there full time on the Europa Clipper project which is searching for signs of life on one of Jupiter’s moons.

The music was sometimes called Oompah -the “oom” from the thumping cadence of the tuba rattling the air and the ‘pah” from the lilting tones of the trombones, trumpets and accordion jumping in on the offbeat. Not only could you hear the music a half-mile away, you could feel the deep notes of the tuba vibrate in your chest. And the music was surprisingly easy to dance to, even for a klutz with 2 left feet and the rhythm of a corpse.

Armed with an easel, paint, and a set of blank canvases, artists trickled across the Highland Lakes, determined to capture a glimpses of the area the good old plein air way. On Sunday, May 2, artists from across the country gathered to begin their week of celebrating Marble Falls, Horseshoe Bay, and the surrounding areas with the 14th Annual Paint the Town Festival.

Driftwood— Last week, the House gave final approval to Senate Bill 45 by Senator Judith Zaffirini (D-Laredo), which would provide protections against workplace sexual harassment for employees at small workplaces. The bill squeaked through a midnight deadline on Thursday night, was finally passed 104-25 Friday afternoon, and is now on its way to the Governor’s desk.

The U.S. Postal Service is asking all homeowners to inspect and repair their mailboxes during Mailbox Improvement Week, May 16–22. “Repairing suburban and rural mailboxes improves the appearance of our community and makes delivering and receiving mail safer for our carriers and customers,” District Manager Steven Hernandéz says. “The Postal Service makes this annual request because of the wear and tear that occurs to mailboxes every year.

Pedernales Electric Cooperative (PEC) is committed to modeling environmental stewardship and promoting conservation through its educational and community outreach programs. This summer, PEC is launching Camp Save-a-Watt, a new and exciting way for the cooperative’s youngest members to learn about energy conservation. This free, online summer camp runs June 1 through July 30, and is available for children in kindergarten through second grade. Using age-tailored activities, campers will le ...

I know, a lot of folks might be saying to themselves right now, “Well, I could certainly live without them.” It is interesting how much animosity we have toward some of the smallest critters in our world. It has even crept into our language. When something bothers us or gives us some concern, we don’t say that it “birds us” or “fishes us”, or “mammals us”, we say that it “bugs us”. So, let me try to set the record straight about bugs, or more properly, insects.

The number of traffic accidents decreased in 2020, but the number of Texans killed while not wearing a seat belt increased by 16%, according to the Texas Department of Transportation. In 2020, 1,073 fatalities were attributed to not wearing seat belts, up from 926 fatalities in 2019. Buckling up reduces the risk of dying in a traffic accident by 45% for people in the front seat of passenger cars and 60% for people in pickups, according to TxDOT. “This past year we have all been reminde ...

Explore a prehistoric world through the eyes of a soaring pterosaur at the Science Mill’s newest interactive experience, Jurassic Flight 4D, which opens Saturday, May 29 during the museum’s Jurassic Experience event, an all-ages day of dinosaur activities at the Johnson City science museum. Using an immersive VR headset and motion board, Jurassic Flight lets visitors explore a prehistoric world through the eyes of a soaring pterosaur.

By Marty Garcia  Market Days is making a comeback after a year of pandemic restrictions kept the city park empty of events and gatherings. The second market this year will be this weekend, May 22 and 23, in Memorial Park at 105 E. Main St, and is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

By Tricia Hartmann JCISD Trustees met in the LBJ High School Commons for a regular meeting on May 10. President Shelly Wenmohs called the meeting to order at 6 p.m., and all members were present. Recognitions, Public Comments Diane Hudson recognized several students for Visual Arts competitions. Hudson said that the Visual Arts program has performed very well at Regionals, and four students also won at Area and State.

Kaitlyn Arvesen, Valedictorian of LBJ’s class of 2017, will be graduating from UT Austin on Saturday May 22nd, 2021 with a 4.0 GPA and a Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering. For the past year she has had an internship with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab and will continue to work there full time on the Europa Clipper project which is searching for signs of life on one of Jupiter’s moons.

By Julie Storer Advancing through four grueling rounds of Visual Arts Scholastic Event (VASE) competition LBJ High School students Neely Burrier and Wesley Porter emerged as Gold Seal winners whose works will travel the state for the next year on display. Burrier’s painting “Sensory Overload” won the Gold Seal in Division 2; Porter’s photo “Top Notch” topped the field in Division 1.

The art-based team of students from LBJMS competed in the VASE Middle School event with students from across the region enrolled in a high school Art course for credit while in 8th Grade. Like their high school counterparts these students compiled a gallery’s-worth of original works which caught and held the eye of jurists at the event.

LBJMS student Briley Sralla out-shot her challengers in the Air Rifle and Smallbore events of the 2021 USA Shooting Junior Olympic Nationals at Hillsdale College in Michigan last weekend. Sralla – pictured on the stand accepting one of her two gold medals and sighting in on the target during competition– trains with Hill Country Rifle Shooting.

I was recently reading some biographies of some of my ancestors and came across an account of Edward and Emma Powell Payne. They were born in England in the 1830’s and were married in 1854. Having been converted by some missionaries it was their desire to cross the great waters and join with other believers near the shores of the Great Salt Lake.

What makes America Great? For me first and foremost, is our Constitution. The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States protects freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and the freedom to petition the government. The First Amendment was added to protect us from the tyranny of dictatorial governments, from being silenced or censored, from persecution for expressing ourselves and to protect our religious freedoms.

The music was sometimes called Oompah -the “oom” from the thumping cadence of the tuba rattling the air and the ‘pah” from the lilting tones of the trombones, trumpets and accordion jumping in on the offbeat. Not only could you hear the music a half-mile away, you could feel the deep notes of the tuba vibrate in your chest. And the music was surprisingly easy to dance to, even for a klutz with 2 left feet and the rhythm of a corpse.

Armed with an easel, paint, and a set of blank canvases, artists trickled across the Highland Lakes, determined to capture a glimpses of the area the good old plein air way. On Sunday, May 2, artists from across the country gathered to begin their week of celebrating Marble Falls, Horseshoe Bay, and the surrounding areas with the 14th Annual Paint the Town Festival.

Driftwood— Last week, the House gave final approval to Senate Bill 45 by Senator Judith Zaffirini (D-Laredo), which would provide protections against workplace sexual harassment for employees at small workplaces. The bill squeaked through a midnight deadline on Thursday night, was finally passed 104-25 Friday afternoon, and is now on its way to the Governor’s desk.

The U.S. Postal Service is asking all homeowners to inspect and repair their mailboxes during Mailbox Improvement Week, May 16–22. “Repairing suburban and rural mailboxes improves the appearance of our community and makes delivering and receiving mail safer for our carriers and customers,” District Manager Steven Hernandéz says. “The Postal Service makes this annual request because of the wear and tear that occurs to mailboxes every year.

Pedernales Electric Cooperative (PEC) is committed to modeling environmental stewardship and promoting conservation through its educational and community outreach programs. This summer, PEC is launching Camp Save-a-Watt, a new and exciting way for the cooperative’s youngest members to learn about energy conservation. This free, online summer camp runs June 1 through July 30, and is available for children in kindergarten through second grade. Using age-tailored activities, campers will le ...

I know, a lot of folks might be saying to themselves right now, “Well, I could certainly live without them.” It is interesting how much animosity we have toward some of the smallest critters in our world. It has even crept into our language. When something bothers us or gives us some concern, we don’t say that it “birds us” or “fishes us”, or “mammals us”, we say that it “bugs us”. So, let me try to set the record straight about bugs, or more properly, insects.

The number of traffic accidents decreased in 2020, but the number of Texans killed while not wearing a seat belt increased by 16%, according to the Texas Department of Transportation. In 2020, 1,073 fatalities were attributed to not wearing seat belts, up from 926 fatalities in 2019. Buckling up reduces the risk of dying in a traffic accident by 45% for people in the front seat of passenger cars and 60% for people in pickups, according to TxDOT. “This past year we have all been reminde ...

Explore a prehistoric world through the eyes of a soaring pterosaur at the Science Mill’s newest interactive experience, Jurassic Flight 4D, which opens Saturday, May 29 during the museum’s Jurassic Experience event, an all-ages day of dinosaur activities at the Johnson City science museum. Using an immersive VR headset and motion board, Jurassic Flight lets visitors explore a prehistoric world through the eyes of a soaring pterosaur.

By Marty Garcia  Market Days is making a comeback after a year of pandemic restrictions kept the city park empty of events and gatherings. The second market this year will be this weekend, May 22 and 23, in Memorial Park at 105 E. Main St, and is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.