July 24, 2019 Issue

Waterways in the summertime can be very dangerous. Two of the recent accidents on Lake LBJ involved boating. The third was a medical emergency that resulted in death. On Wednesday, June 26, the Texas Game Wardens were called at approximately 9:30 p.m. to investigate a fatal boat accident. The crash occurred on the Burnet County side of the Colorado River arm of Lake LBJ.

On Wednesday, July 10 at 7:00 p.m., members of the Llano County Sheriff’s Office executed a narcotics search warrant at 855 Wood Forrest, Kingsland. Deputies seized approximately 10 grams of methamphetamine, firearms and paraphernalia at the residence, however the suspect/resident was not at home. The suspect, John Wesley Norris, 29 years old, was later located at the Packsaddle Motel on RR1431, Kingsland.

The 18th Annual Extension Banquet, sponsored by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service in Llano County and the Llano County Leadership Advisory Board, will be held Tuesday, August 6 at 6:30 p.m. at the St. James Lutheran Church Activity Center (Schorlemmer Hall) in Llano. The Leadership Advisory Board is composed of individuals who serve on committees which give direction to the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service’s programs in Llano County. This year’s speaker will be State Represen ...

Singing for a Cause Every third Tuesday of the month a group of songwriters get together at Texas Music Depot for a time of picking and lots of grinning. While there are some that attend each month, there is usually a guest writer that comes in and this past Tuesday it was singer/songwriter, Steve Brooks from Austin.

The Llano County Historical Museum is proud to present a special exhibit by Texas Humanities titled Citizens at Last: The Woman Suffrage Movement in Texas, which will be on display at the museum from August 21 – September 14, 2019. The exhibit commemorates the 100th anniversary when the 19th Amendment to the US constitution was passed by the US Congress in 1919.

On August 5, the Llano Chamber will hand out 75 goodie bags filled with items from local businesses to new employees of Llano ISD and Llano Christian Academy. If you would like to have something put in the bags, they must be in the Chamber by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 1.

Cathy Harding Bellars will present the monthly hands on palette knife demo at the Llano Fine Art Guild Monday, August 5. The demo cost is $5.00 and includes a potluck lunch at noon, provided by Guild members. The regular monthly meeting of the Llano Fine Art Guild is held at 1:00 p.m. Artist Statement: Creating has always been in my soul.

Blake Dillard, a senior at Tarleton State University, was awarded a $3,000 Scholarship from Hill Country Cattlewomen for the 2019-2020 academic year. The 2017 graduate of Llano High School is an Agricultural Economics Major and expects to graduate with a Bachelor of Science in May 2020. Blake is the son of Anna Greene and Lance Dillard of Llano. Blake was one of eight scholarship recipients selected by Hill Country Cattlewomen organization.

County Judge Ron Cunningham administered the oath of office on July 10, 2019 to Llano County Commissioner Mike Sandoval to start his second term serving as a member of the Texas Silver-Haired Legislature (TSHL) 2019-2021. Commissioner Sandoval was elected in 2017 and served as a member during his first term on the State Affairs Committee and the Operations Committees, has been elected Chairman of the State Affairs Committee for his second term (2019-2021) by its members on July 16 and unani ...

At present, we are needing a host family for Johnson, a 15-year-old student from Taiwan. We are looking for a family who would be willing to open their hearts and home to him, but also for any of our wonderful exchange students. For Johnson, he enjoys playing basketball and is the captain of his team.

Top Officials Attempt to Clarify New Hemp Law for Prosecutors Some district and county attorneys reportedly have begun to dismiss misdemeanor marijuana possession cases following the Texas Legislature’s passage of House Bill 1325, a law creating a legal path for the cultivation and marketing of hemp and hemp products. Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt.

By Terry Schroth Last Friday, Robinson's Vintage and Custom Woodworks was welcomed into the Llano Chamber of Commerce with the usual pomp and circumstance of the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Everyone there was impressed by the unusual collection of eclectic artwork and retro home goods this new little gallery has to offer. And yes, it really is a gallery.

Some of the cattle out in Pontotoc found themselves sharing their pasture last week with an Apache helicopter that had some engine trouble. The Apache, operated by the 302 Squadron working out of Fort Hood near Austin, had a mechanical malfunction during a training flight which prompted the crew to land the aircraft last Tuesday at the Dallas Miller Ranch. The 302 Squadron is a Dutch/US unit training large combined missions with ground forces from the Air Mobile Brigade and the Royal Nether ...

By Art Dlugach HORSESHOE BAY—Sonny Dykes visited the Rudy Davalos Horseshoe Bay Sports Club, July 19, and his appearance and knowledge certainly brought back memories of his late father, Coach Spike Dykes. Sonny now has that title at SMU, and, not surprisingly, he’s pretty pumped about the Mustangs in his second year on campus.

Is that Louisiana State-Texas game, on the first Saturday in September, shaping up as a beauty, at DKR Texas Memorial Stadium? These are teams recognized as favorites by magazine gurus like Phil Steele as worthy of Top Ten consideration, and Sam Ehlinger has been chosen as the choice for Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year. The Longhorns are coming off a dandy 10-4 season in Tom Herman’s second year as Head Coach.

You can’t do much better than learn from the best where volleyball camp is concerned. Head Coach Dee Heiner is prohibited by UIL rules to direct the participants, so, for the second year in a row, Al Bennett stepped in, August 16-18. Retired now, the Hall of Famer won four state championships in a 30-year run, 1988-2018, at Westlake. “The biggest change {in those three decades} have been the girls have changed dramatically—bigger, stronger and faster.” He identified a 6-4 player of ...

Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park continues its popular summer “Movies Under the Stars” series on Saturday, July 27, with the screening of “The Italian Job.” Starring Michael Caine in the leading role, this action comedy delighted audiences 50 years ago—including an audience at the LBJ Ranch. On August 7, 1969, former President and Mrs.

Ronald Ralph Spangenberg, 86 of Meadowlakes, Texas, passed away on July 17, 2019. He was born on February 9, 1933 to Ralph H. and Ruth (Schroeder) Spangenberg in Hawley, Pennsylvania. Ron attended Penn State University on a vocal scholarship and was a member of the Delta Chi Fraternity. He was proud to be named the Featured Vocalist for Penn State Dance Band.

Our friend, brother, and father Jerry Don Herrera went to be with the Lord on July 19, 2019 after a brief battle with cancer. Through it all he remained positive and never faltered in his faith in the Lord. He was preceded in death by his mother and father, Rosa and Margarito Herrera, and his brother Margarito “J.R.” Herrera. He is survived by 9 brothers and sisters: Maria Hernandez, Janie Nanyez, Rodrigo Herrera, Gennave Hernandez, Gloria Lemon, Ricardo Herrera, Elizabeth Doblado, Mi ...

Peggy June Schmidt, age 68 of Tow, Texas passed away on Sunday, July 7, 2019 at her residence. She was born on August 16, 1950 in Fort Worth, Texas to Sam Mills and Lucille (Edwards) Mills. Peggy married Richard Schmidt on June 18, 1971 in Burleson, Texas. Peggy and Richard were formerly residents of the Houston area then moving to Tow in February 1997.

J W “Jay” Spencer, 72, of Greeneville, TN, passed away early Wednesday morning at the James H. Quillen VA Medical Center, Mountain Home, TN. He was born June 7, 1947 in San Angelo, TX to the late William Dean and Addie King Spencer and grew up in Llano, TX until he joined the U.S.

Norma Kathryn Barnes, age 81, passed away peacefully on July 19, 2019. She was born June 16, 1938 in rural Indiana. She loved to tell stories about growing up on her grandfather’s farm. When she was in her teens the family moved to Texas where she proudly lived the rest of her life as a TEXAN.

Charles Edwin Hallmark, also known as Charlie, passed away Saturday, July 20, 2019 in Marble Falls, Texas at the age of 72. He was born on January 9, 1947 in Llano, Texas to Mix and Norma Hallmark. Charles married Barbara Sue Faught on July 8, 1966. They were married for 53 years and resided in Tow, Texas.

Those of us in the media often refer to photographs as ‘images’. This past week, I was looking through some ‘images’ I have in the form of color slides, film negatives, prints and digital images. As I was tackling the daunting task of organizing these pictorial records of my outdoor adventures, I often paused and reflected upon the day I snapped the shutter and captured that particular image.

Over the past few months I have been humanely trapping some of the neighborhood feral cats roaming in the East part of town. I quite often see new litters of kittens from these feral cats. Some of these cats have been killed by passing cars which is a hard way for an animal to die. Llano Police Officer/Animal Control Officer Kenneth Poe has been picking up these cats and finding them homes, mostly as barn cats. Recently I set up a monthly donation to the Llano Animal Rescue organization.

Top Officials Attempt to Clarify New Hemp Law for Prosecutors Some district and county attorneys reportedly have begun to dismiss misdemeanor marijuana possession cases following the Texas Legislature’s passage of House Bill 1325, a law creating a legal path for the cultivation and marketing of hemp and hemp products. Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt.

Those of us in the media often refer to photographs as ‘images’. This past week, I was looking through some ‘images’ I have in the form of color slides, film negatives, prints and digital images. As I was tackling the daunting task of organizing these pictorial records of my outdoor adventures, I often paused and reflected upon the day I snapped the shutter and captured that particular image.

Well here we are in the middle of a hot July! What to do in the garden? July in the garden Sow seeds: amaranth, black eye peas, corn, cucumbers, New Zealand spinach, okra, pumpkin, and squash (winter and summer). Fruit: Cantaloupe and Watermelon. Herbs: anise, basil, bay Laurel, catnip, cumin, horehound, lavender, oregano, perilla, rosemary, sage, Santolina, savory, sorrel, tansy, tarragon, and thyme. Transplant: eggplant, peppers, and tomatoes.

Some of the cattle out in Pontotoc found themselves sharing their pasture last week with an Apache helicopter that had some engine trouble. The Apache, operated by the 302 Squadron working out of Fort Hood near Austin, had a mechanical malfunction during a training flight which prompted the crew to land the aircraft last Tuesday at the Dallas Miller Ranch. The 302 Squadron is a Dutch/US unit training large combined missions with ground forces from the Air Mobile Brigade and the Royal Nether ...

FREDERICKSBURG - The Fredericksburg Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas invites all members of the community to get out of the heat and “Have a Ball!” This is a family event. Bring the children. Enjoy a fun, interactive evening making seed balls with native wildflower and grass seeds.

Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park continues its popular summer “Movies Under the Stars” series on Saturday, July 27, with the screening of “The Italian Job.” Starring Michael Caine in the leading role, this action comedy delighted audiences 50 years ago—including an audience at the LBJ Ranch. On August 7, 1969, former President and Mrs.