April 27, 2016 Issue

If you’ve driven by the Mason Industrial Park in Mason recently, you might have noticed dirt moving as Central Texas Electric Co-op begins the process of relocating our Mason branch office. Members near our Fredericksburg office may have seen work beginning of expanding our Gillespie County operations facility. Over the course of the next year, construction crews will be working to develop a brand new facility on 10 acres at 1881 East State Highway 29 in Mason and doubling the size of our ope ...

Larry Henderson Larry Ernest Henderson, age 71, of Voca, Texas, passed away Friday evening, April 22, 2016, in Brady, Texas. He was born August 13, 1944, in Brady, Texas, to Ernest Oliver Henderson & Leah Violet (Passmore) Henderson. Larry married Shirley Lindsey on May 26, 1977, in Brady. He worked for Oglebay Norton Industrial Sands for 30 years, retiring in 2001 as Regional Manager.

With the district tournament finishing on Wednesday and the regional tournament starting a week later, it was a hectic time for the Mason Tennis Team. However, it was time well spent as thirteen of the sixteen regional qualifiers advanced to the state meet to be played May 16-17 in College Station. Mason totally dominated at the district tournament as they won first and second in every division but one at both JV and varsity levels.

On April 1st, Mason High School reached a milestone point in its development of a grape growing curriculum for students interested in this rapidly expanding Texas industry. Justin Scheiner, Assistant Professor and Extension Viticulture Specialist & Department of Horticultural Sciences at Texas A&M University has been working closely with local grape grower, Dan McLaughlin, and with the instructor, Lance Rasch.

All Hill Country residents and visitors are invited to come and see our “Nature on Display” this weekend at the sixth annual Wings Over the Hills Nature Festival in Lady Bird Johnson Municipal Park in Fredericksburg. This naturally wonderful weekend will offer all members of the family an opportunity to learn about our flying critters, but also about wildflowers, snakes, and mammals that we sometimes take for granted.

We would like to thank the community for their continued support of Mason Young Life! And for all those who attended our spring fundraiser! Over a hundred community members joined us for a beautiful evening last Sunday at Selah Springs Ranch. Guests relaxed, chatted with friends, and enjoyed appetizers as they overlooked the beautiful San Saba River. After a brief welcome and introduction, everyone enjoyed a delicious steak dinner with all the fixin’s and buttermilk pie for dessert, catered b ...

Cattle Stampedes and Spring Fundraisers Over the weekend, my phone started "dinging" as I got multiple messages; but, I had to take a second look when I saw the subject line: Cattle stampede. It seems that a load of bulls from out west had decided that they didn't like the holding pen they'd been placed into for evaluation.

Mason High School’s annual induction ceremony for the National Honor Society will be Tuesday, May 3rd at 5:30 in the evening in the Mason High School Auditorium and the public is invited to attend. To be eligible for membership consideration, students must have a cumulative grade average of 93. Additionally, potential members must meet high standards of leadership, service, and character.

On the 1st of May, we celebrate Loyalty Day. The Mason VFW post 8554 will have a ceremony on the 3rd at 1:30 p.m. to remember this date in our history. On the 8th of May, we remember the V-E day . This is the victory over the Axis powers in Europe during World War II. Mason VFW Post 8554 will have a rememberance on the 10th at 1:30 p.m .

Discover how artists see and interpret the beautiful Texas Hill Country at the juried Exhibit and Sale, Hill Country Visions at the Llano Fine Art Guild & Gallery April 15th- 30th. This juried Art Exhibition and Sale showcases over 45 works of art in oil painting, acrylic painting, digital painting, mixed media, ceramics, and fabric needle sculpture. Featuring the work of Annette Bennett, Carole Boyd, James Edscorn, Sylvia Ewing, Lynda Hallmark Gammage, Karen Johnson, Ira Kennedy, Jean King ...

The Hill Country Astronomers (HCA) will meet at 6:30 p.m., Monday, May 2, at the Hill Country University Center, 2818 East US Hwy 290 in Fredericksburg. Mark Ward, club vice-president, will present a program on the upcoming Mercury transit to occur on May 9th. The program will include tips on how to safely observe and photograph the sun and phenomena such as planetary transits.

When: Saturday, April 30th Time: Registration starts 10 AM / Lunch 12:30 Where: Hext School House, Hext Texas Want More Info?: Sent email to [email protected] or call Loma Surber 325-206-0603 or Terri McWilliams 210-275-5657 FRIDAY 10 AM Volunteers meet at the Hext school to clean up the building! We will hang up the Wall of Memories Frame that will hold all the photos our members that bring their 8x10” photos of Hext loved ones and great photos of Old Hext. 6 PM Camp Fire Social! Come arou ...

Mason, Texas: Mason County Habitat for Humanity formally dedicated its 15th home on Friday, April 15th at 2 p.m. Yes, they have done it again and in record time. This year’s Habitat Partner and new home owner is Stephanie Martinez, a preschool teacher and assistant Director at Steady Steps. Ms. Martinez and her family received the keys to their new home in a tearful, but very joyful, ceremony attended by about sixty friends and community members. It is obvious that Ms.

The Fine Arts Association of the Hill Country is gearing up for their annual Art Show and Gala, to be held at the Eckert Center in Mason, Friday, May 6 and Saturday, May 7. The Gala will take place from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Friday evening, May 6. Refreshments and wine will be served, along with music and dancing. Member artists from this organization covering the northwestern four counties of the Hill Country will display their work.

The Fredericksburg Chorale under the direction of Mark Hierholzer will present Johann Sebastian Bach’s Mass in B minor on Saturday, May 7 at 3 PM. The performance will take place at the Mansefeldt Sheep Barn, 1532 Cherry Spring Road. The performance will be accompanied by Hierholzer on the piano and Sheila Kraus on flute. Bach’s B minor Mass, completed in 1749, just a year before his death, is considered to be perhaps the greatest musical achievement of Western culture.

Baltimore, MD (January 16, 2016) - Artist Danny Kamerath (formerly of Kerrville and now Mason) has been selected as a winner in the 2016 NICHE Awards for his piece entitled "Where Mary Hids Her Woes" in the Furniture: Cabinetry category. Only 180 entries out of more than 1,600 submissions were named as finalists in this year's competition.

Mason County 4-H Shooting Sports Club traveled to Brownwood on April 16 for the Brownwood Extravaganza. The club is sponsored by the Texas Agrilife Extension Service and many local sponsors who contribute to the club to purchase equipment and supplies for the students. The nine shooters competed in six disciplines. The shooters and their placings are: L-R Selah Farmer, Sydney Renfroe won 2nd place air pistol silhouette, Graci Weber won 2nd place 22 rifle silhouette, Millie Marquart won 1st plac ...

The Texas Book Festival has awarded the Mason Co. M. Beven Eckert Memorial Library a $2,500 grant. This grant will help enhance the library’s current books on CD collection. The library experiences quite a demand for audiobooks and provides them in both downloadable and CD formats. The grant will allow the library to purchase current best sellers that will rejuvenate the aging collection. Laura Bush, a former librarian and an ardent advocate of literacy, founded The Texas Book Festival in 199 ...

The Mason Lions Club met Tuesday, April 19th, for it’s weekly luncheon meeting. There were 36 members and 2 visitors in attendance. “Boss” Lion Joel Kuykendall mentioned the district 2A convention this coming weekend in San Angelo. We are allowed 6 delegates. To date only 4 have signed up. Prayers were asked for Lion Charles Pluennecke who is in the hospital. Lion Chad Schmidt was responsible for the program and introduced Steely Smith, daughter of Shayne and Jim Bob Smith.

April has been a fun month at the library. We hooted with laughter at Jerry Barlow’s anecdotes and one-liners and were awed by his skill in Celtic fingerstyle guitar and his wonderful singing. Then last night author Reavis Z. Wortham signed books, read an excerpt from his Red River Mysteries, and told us about them and his syndicated columns and other writing.

I’m not saying it was aliens, but it was aliens Roswell, New Mexico. 4 July 1947 – On the anniversary of America’s Independence from whoever we’re independent from, random ranchers, who were sitting on their porches drinking from Mason jars, reported seeing something strange in the sky. William Woody, standing outside with his father on that fateful evening, said he saw a ‘brilliant object’ plunge to the ground.

There is about five months and a week or two left of the “Pile-of-Ticking!” I’m trying real hard not to let it get to me, but my patience is running thin. I choose to ignore as much as I can. But, when the world is in such a mess and they talk about bathrooms?

He Always Had Time... It is a truly organized, purposeful and committed man who recognizes the best time to “retire,” to turn in his car keys and to admit it when living alone independently finally is no longer possible. One such person was the colorful J. M. (Densey) Denson. An insurance agent for almost a half century, he sold his business in 1969, ready to assume what amounted to volunteer full-time service at Mineral Wells’ First Baptist Church, where he was a member ...

Chicken & Eggplant Parm Bake Eggplant Parmesan is one of mine and my sister’s favorite dishes. My sister (Judy) shared this recipe with me and it happens be to what we order nearly every time we have a chance to go an Italian Food Restaurant. You can serve with garlic bread and a salad you will have a complete “Italiano” meal. 1 lb.

With the sunny skies and occasional rains, Mason is looking green and fresh and the temperatures have stayed very pleasant for the many outside activities we all enjoy. There are several fundraisers in the coming weeks that would benefit from your support as well, so check your schedule and include those that you wish to enjoy.

April is almost in the books. Time flies when you are having fun. We have enjoyed having my brother, Fred Jordan, and his son, Mitch Jordan, visiting this week. They have been working on their Mason house. We all agree that this working in the yard gets harder the older we get. Our daughter, Tina Ceynowa, and her children John and Amber and our granddaughter Megan went to Austin Saturday for Monster Mash.

It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature. Actually, it’s not possible. She knows all. Remembers all. Gives all. And taketh all. Nature is like music. Arias. Crescendos. Acoustic strumming. Symphonic storms. Humming harmonies. Drum beats. Sonatas. Rap and jazz. Nature. You can’t leave home without it. You may not notice it. But it never leaves you. As poet Kenneth O. Hanson put it: “There is room for a garden everywhere.” It’s all around us. We can increase our awareness. Learn about gard ...

Bluebonnet CASA is hosting its annual Crawfish Boil on May 7, from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. at Granite Ranch in Roosevelt. A $30 ticket purchase includes a delicious authentic Cajun crawfish boil, hamburgers and roasted pig. This fundraiser includes a performance by 29 East Rock and Blues band. John Gammit will be on bass and vocals, Noel Bullard on guitar and vocals, and Mark Wheeler on drums.

We invite the entire community to visit our Book Fair in the Mason Elementary/Jr. High Library. You will get the chance to purchase best sellers, Newbery and Caldecott Medal-winning books, chapter books, picture books and hundreds of other items only available at the Scholastic Book Fair. We also invite you to support the “Give the Gift of Reading” program at the Book Fair.

It’s that time of year again! Time to renew your community band calendar. This year we unfortunately are having to increase our price a little bit. After years of seeing the production costs rise and our profit margin shrink we have decided to increase the price on the calendars. This year the calendars will cost $10 each.

It’s that time of year again! Time to renew your community band calendar. This year we unfortunately are having to increase our price a little bit. After years of seeing the production costs rise and our profit margin shrink we have decided to increase the price on the calendars. This year the calendars will cost $10 each.

We invite the entire community to visit our Book Fair in the Mason Elementary/Jr. High Library. You will get the chance to purchase best sellers, Newbery and Caldecott Medal-winning books, chapter books, picture books and hundreds of other items only available at the Scholastic Book Fair. We also invite you to support the “Give the Gift of Reading” program at the Book Fair.

On April 1st, Mason High School reached a milestone point in its development of a grape growing curriculum for students interested in this rapidly expanding Texas industry. Justin Scheiner, Assistant Professor and Extension Viticulture Specialist & Department of Horticultural Sciences at Texas A&M University has been working closely with local grape grower, Dan McLaughlin, and with the instructor, Lance Rasch.

With the district tournament finishing on Wednesday and the regional tournament starting a week later, it was a hectic time for the Mason Tennis Team. However, it was time well spent as thirteen of the sixteen regional qualifiers advanced to the state meet to be played May 16-17 in College Station. Mason totally dominated at the district tournament as they won first and second in every division but one at both JV and varsity levels.

The Mason High School UIL Academics Team won the 2A Region IV Championship on Saturday, April 23rd, in Corpus Christi. The achievement marks the first time in MHS history that the Academic team has won the whole regional tournament. In addition, by placing among the top three competitors in their events, 12 students advanced to compete in the UIL State Tournament that will be held in late May. Steeley Smith began MHS’s run of success by enduring six hour-long rounds of debate to place 2nd in ...

We invite the entire community to visit our Book Fair in the Mason Elementary/Jr. High Library. You will get the chance to purchase best sellers, Newbery and Caldecott Medal-winning books, chapter books, picture books and hundreds of other items only available at the Scholastic Book Fair. We also invite you to support the “Give the Gift of Reading” program at the Book Fair.

Bluebonnet CASA is hosting its annual Crawfish Boil on May 7, from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. at Granite Ranch in Roosevelt. A $30 ticket purchase includes a delicious authentic Cajun crawfish boil, hamburgers and roasted pig. This fundraiser includes a performance by 29 East Rock and Blues band. John Gammit will be on bass and vocals, Noel Bullard on guitar and vocals, and Mark Wheeler on drums.

If you’ve driven by the Mason Industrial Park in Mason recently, you might have noticed dirt moving as Central Texas Electric Co-op begins the process of relocating our Mason branch office. Members near our Fredericksburg office may have seen work beginning of expanding our Gillespie County operations facility. Over the course of the next year, construction crews will be working to develop a brand new facility on 10 acres at 1881 East State Highway 29 in Mason and doubling the size of our ope ...

Baltimore, MD (January 16, 2016) - Artist Danny Kamerath (formerly of Kerrville and now Mason) has been selected as a winner in the 2016 NICHE Awards for his piece entitled "Where Mary Hids Her Woes" in the Furniture: Cabinetry category. Only 180 entries out of more than 1,600 submissions were named as finalists in this year's competition.

The Fredericksburg Chorale under the direction of Mark Hierholzer will present Johann Sebastian Bach’s Mass in B minor on Saturday, May 7 at 3 PM. The performance will take place at the Mansefeldt Sheep Barn, 1532 Cherry Spring Road. The performance will be accompanied by Hierholzer on the piano and Sheila Kraus on flute. Bach’s B minor Mass, completed in 1749, just a year before his death, is considered to be perhaps the greatest musical achievement of Western culture.

The Fine Arts Association of the Hill Country is gearing up for their annual Art Show and Gala, to be held at the Eckert Center in Mason, Friday, May 6 and Saturday, May 7. The Gala will take place from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Friday evening, May 6. Refreshments and wine will be served, along with music and dancing. Member artists from this organization covering the northwestern four counties of the Hill Country will display their work.

When: Saturday, April 30th Time: Registration starts 10 AM / Lunch 12:30 Where: Hext School House, Hext Texas Want More Info?: Sent email to [email protected] or call Loma Surber 325-206-0603 or Terri McWilliams 210-275-5657 FRIDAY 10 AM Volunteers meet at the Hext school to clean up the building! We will hang up the Wall of Memories Frame that will hold all the photos our members that bring their 8x10” photos of Hext loved ones and great photos of Old Hext. 6 PM Camp Fire Social! Come arou ...

The Hill Country Astronomers (HCA) will meet at 6:30 p.m., Monday, May 2, at the Hill Country University Center, 2818 East US Hwy 290 in Fredericksburg. Mark Ward, club vice-president, will present a program on the upcoming Mercury transit to occur on May 9th. The program will include tips on how to safely observe and photograph the sun and phenomena such as planetary transits.

Discover how artists see and interpret the beautiful Texas Hill Country at the juried Exhibit and Sale, Hill Country Visions at the Llano Fine Art Guild & Gallery April 15th- 30th. This juried Art Exhibition and Sale showcases over 45 works of art in oil painting, acrylic painting, digital painting, mixed media, ceramics, and fabric needle sculpture. Featuring the work of Annette Bennett, Carole Boyd, James Edscorn, Sylvia Ewing, Lynda Hallmark Gammage, Karen Johnson, Ira Kennedy, Jean King ...

On the 1st of May, we celebrate Loyalty Day. The Mason VFW post 8554 will have a ceremony on the 3rd at 1:30 p.m. to remember this date in our history. On the 8th of May, we remember the V-E day . This is the victory over the Axis powers in Europe during World War II. Mason VFW Post 8554 will have a rememberance on the 10th at 1:30 p.m .

Mason High School’s annual induction ceremony for the National Honor Society will be Tuesday, May 3rd at 5:30 in the evening in the Mason High School Auditorium and the public is invited to attend. To be eligible for membership consideration, students must have a cumulative grade average of 93. Additionally, potential members must meet high standards of leadership, service, and character.

All Hill Country residents and visitors are invited to come and see our “Nature on Display” this weekend at the sixth annual Wings Over the Hills Nature Festival in Lady Bird Johnson Municipal Park in Fredericksburg. This naturally wonderful weekend will offer all members of the family an opportunity to learn about our flying critters, but also about wildflowers, snakes, and mammals that we sometimes take for granted.

On March 19th, the Mason County Republican Convention was held at the library. Delegates for the upcoming state convention were nominated and voted upon. Elected to represent Mason County as delegates are: Robert McDonald, Vicki Enrique, Susan Lannoy and Will McCann. Alternates are: Bruce Lehmberg, Kendrah McDonald, Oscar Durham and Jan McCann. The 2016 Texas Republican Convention will be held in Dallas on May 12th through May 15th.

In the haste get all of the Adolph Reichenau descendants in the picture and mentioned in the article two weeks ago in the News, Ann Reichenau Burgess and Hal A Reichenau were accidently left out of the picture and mention of the Great Grandchildren of Adolph A. Reichenau in attendance. Their father, Milton Adolph Reichenau was named after his Grandfather Adolph A.

Walter M. Tuckness Walter Milton Tuckness of Junction, TX, who passed from this life on Friday, April 22, 2016, was born in Mason, TX, on February 8, 1935, to Robert Lee and Myrle (Ward) Tuckness. Milton graduated from Junction High School in 1955, joining the U. S. Army before finishing school. He spent the remainder of his military service in Germany. While working in Ozona after discharge, he met and married Juanita Oathout and her son David, whom he later adopted.

Michael Patrick Shanley On Monday, April 25, 2016, Michael Patrick Shanley peacefully “slipped the bonds of earth” at his home here in Mason, in the company of his beloved wife, Gail, family members and friends. Mike was born in Brooklyn, NY on August 27, 1947, and lived on Long Island until he joined the Army in October 1966.

Larry Henderson Larry Ernest Henderson, age 71, of Voca, Texas, passed away Friday evening, April 22, 2016, in Brady, Texas. He was born August 13, 1944, in Brady, Texas, to Ernest Oliver Henderson & Leah Violet (Passmore) Henderson. Larry married Shirley Lindsey on May 26, 1977, in Brady. He worked for Oglebay Norton Industrial Sands for 30 years, retiring in 2001 as Regional Manager.

It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature. Actually, it’s not possible. She knows all. Remembers all. Gives all. And taketh all. Nature is like music. Arias. Crescendos. Acoustic strumming. Symphonic storms. Humming harmonies. Drum beats. Sonatas. Rap and jazz. Nature. You can’t leave home without it. You may not notice it. But it never leaves you. As poet Kenneth O. Hanson put it: “There is room for a garden everywhere.” It’s all around us. We can increase our awareness. Learn about gard ...

April is almost in the books. Time flies when you are having fun. We have enjoyed having my brother, Fred Jordan, and his son, Mitch Jordan, visiting this week. They have been working on their Mason house. We all agree that this working in the yard gets harder the older we get. Our daughter, Tina Ceynowa, and her children John and Amber and our granddaughter Megan went to Austin Saturday for Monster Mash.

Chicken & Eggplant Parm Bake Eggplant Parmesan is one of mine and my sister’s favorite dishes. My sister (Judy) shared this recipe with me and it happens be to what we order nearly every time we have a chance to go an Italian Food Restaurant. You can serve with garlic bread and a salad you will have a complete “Italiano” meal. 1 lb.

He Always Had Time... It is a truly organized, purposeful and committed man who recognizes the best time to “retire,” to turn in his car keys and to admit it when living alone independently finally is no longer possible. One such person was the colorful J. M. (Densey) Denson. An insurance agent for almost a half century, he sold his business in 1969, ready to assume what amounted to volunteer full-time service at Mineral Wells’ First Baptist Church, where he was a member ...

There is about five months and a week or two left of the “Pile-of-Ticking!” I’m trying real hard not to let it get to me, but my patience is running thin. I choose to ignore as much as I can. But, when the world is in such a mess and they talk about bathrooms?

I’m not saying it was aliens, but it was aliens Roswell, New Mexico. 4 July 1947 – On the anniversary of America’s Independence from whoever we’re independent from, random ranchers, who were sitting on their porches drinking from Mason jars, reported seeing something strange in the sky. William Woody, standing outside with his father on that fateful evening, said he saw a ‘brilliant object’ plunge to the ground.

April has been a fun month at the library. We hooted with laughter at Jerry Barlow’s anecdotes and one-liners and were awed by his skill in Celtic fingerstyle guitar and his wonderful singing. Then last night author Reavis Z. Wortham signed books, read an excerpt from his Red River Mysteries, and told us about them and his syndicated columns and other writing.

Cattle Stampedes and Spring Fundraisers Over the weekend, my phone started "dinging" as I got multiple messages; but, I had to take a second look when I saw the subject line: Cattle stampede. It seems that a load of bulls from out west had decided that they didn't like the holding pen they'd been placed into for evaluation.