April 8, 2020 Issue

As of Monday morning April 6, 2020, there have been 6,812 persons diagnosed as positive with the virus and 127 deaths reported in 152 of the 254 Texas counties by the Texas Department of Emergency Management and the Department of State Health Services. The Governor continues to inform elected officials throughout the state of various orders and declarations out of his office.

When the Mason County Food Bank opened on March 30, the shelves were stocked and volunteers Ann Cornelison, Juanita Keller, Scott Zesch, Bruce Lemberg, Mark Lemberg, Kim Jackson, Mark Huerta, Ryan Jordan and the Guice family were trained and ready. Two hours later, shelves were bare, and volunteers were road weary! In order to meet the community’s needs on April 1, 2020, Olin and Gloria Williams made a special trip to the Concho Valley Food Bank and brought a truckload of canned fruit, ve ...

The Mason County Food Bank was open on March 30 In response to emerging needs due to Covid19. On that date there was more demand for service than in recent history. The Food Bank will be open again on April 13 from 3:00 to 5:30. Delivery will be through curbside pick-up to maintain social distancing. April food pantry dates: April 13, April 27.

As we move into the first full week of April, and look ahead to several more weeks of staying at home and adjusting our social interactions to reduce the possible exposures to air-borne viruses, we can all agree that life is temporarily changed from anything we have ever known before.

Mason, TEXAS – April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and Bluebonnet CASA is raising awareness of the need for more dedicated members of the community to step up and become CASA volunteers, and help break the cycle of abuse and neglect, through supporting children and families. CASA volunteers, or Court Appointed Special Advocates, are everyday people from all walks of life who are recruited and specially trained to advocate for children in foster care and provide a consistent, r ...

Our front doors may be closed, but you can still “order-up” some great reads! Pick a “menu” number from below and we will prepare a bag for you filled with some surprise books! 1. The Regular: 2 Mysteries and 1 Non-fiction sandwiched between 2 Literary Fictions 2. The Southwestern: 3 Western Fictions sandwiched between 2 Texana 3.

Our front doors may be closed, but you can still “order-up” some great reads! Pick a “menu” number from below and we will prepare a bag for you filled with some surprise books! 1. The Regular: 2 Mysteries and 1 Non-fiction sandwiched between 2 Literary Fictions 2. The Southwestern: 3 Western Fictions sandwiched between 2 Texana 3.

The Mason County Republican Women’s Home Tour scheduled for April 18th has been postponed, due to the state wide request to ‘stay home’. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and we look forward to greeting you and your friends soon. A new date will be advertised when it is known.

Experts are telling us it is not a question of IF Covid 19 virus will reach our area, but when! Hill Country Medical Center is trying to get ahead of demand by asking for individuals to make face masks in advance of the need. You don’t need to be a finished seamstress to help.

As of Monday morning April 6, 2020, there have been 6,812 persons diagnosed as positive with the virus and 127 deaths reported in 152 of the 254 Texas counties by the Texas Department of Emergency Management and the Department of State Health Services. The Governor continues to inform elected officials throughout the state of various orders and declarations out of his office.

When the Mason County Food Bank opened on March 30, the shelves were stocked and volunteers Ann Cornelison, Juanita Keller, Scott Zesch, Bruce Lemberg, Mark Lemberg, Kim Jackson, Mark Huerta, Ryan Jordan and the Guice family were trained and ready. Two hours later, shelves were bare, and volunteers were road weary! In order to meet the community’s needs on April 1, 2020, Olin and Gloria Williams made a special trip to the Concho Valley Food Bank and brought a truckload of canned fruit, ve ...

The Mason County Food Bank was open on March 30 In response to emerging needs due to Covid19. On that date there was more demand for service than in recent history. The Food Bank will be open again on April 13 from 3:00 to 5:30. Delivery will be through curbside pick-up to maintain social distancing. April food pantry dates: April 13, April 27.

The Mason Volunteer Fire Department regrets to announce that we will be postponing our annual BBQ supper that was initially set for Saturday, May 2nd. We hate to do this; but, with the increased risk of COVID-19, we thought that it would be in the best interest for the health and safety of our great community that comes out to support us.

There is so much that we are struggling through right now. Many struggle with isolation, others fear loss of income, and other even fear the future. Many are wrestling with loneliness and grief. I know that there are those who are introverts by nature, but even then, we are a species that is more social than not.

Another week of our new normal. I am ready to resume normal, whatever that was, activities. We need to get well at our house and not end up in Emergency rooms or hospitals. John is home again and we are hoping he is going to get better every day. I write this on Sunday evening.

Monday's regularly scheduled meeting of the City Commission was held in an almost empty Richard P. Eckert Civic Center. In addition to Mayor Brent Hinckley, Commissioners Annette Thomas, Hap Hedges, Sue Pledger and Robin Lee, only five others were in attendance to maintain COVID-19 meeting guidelines. The others attending were Charley Jordan and Kacey Ingleby of KHLB, Gerry Gamel of the Mason County News, City Administrator John Palacio and City Secretary Pattie Allen. Commissioner Robin Le ...

Mason, TEXAS – April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and Bluebonnet CASA is raising awareness of the need for more dedicated members of the community to step up and become CASA volunteers, and help break the cycle of abuse and neglect, through supporting children and families. CASA volunteers, or Court Appointed Special Advocates, are everyday people from all walks of life who are recruited and specially trained to advocate for children in foster care and provide a consistent, r ...

Our front doors may be closed, but you can still “order-up” some great reads! Pick a “menu” number from below and we will prepare a bag for you filled with some surprise books! 1. The Regular: 2 Mysteries and 1 Non-fiction sandwiched between 2 Literary Fictions 2. The Southwestern: 3 Western Fictions sandwiched between 2 Texana 3.

Lillian Bernice Pluenneke Jacobs was born to the late Harry and Hilda Pluenneke in Mason, Texas on June 11, 1926. She passed into the arms of the Lord on March 14, 2020. Lillian considered herself a Mason girl her entire life and instilled the love of the town and its people into all of her family.

There is so much that we are struggling through right now. Many struggle with isolation, others fear loss of income, and other even fear the future. Many are wrestling with loneliness and grief. I know that there are those who are introverts by nature, but even then, we are a species that is more social than not.

Even With COVID-19, Spring Still Happens! As bountiful spring rains continue, the beauty of the Mason County countryside just keeps getting more an more beautiful. Normally, we would be overrun with tourists and amateur photographers taking in all the grandeur of the landscape. In April of 2020, it's almost as if we're keeping this spectacular display to ourselves. Next week, our annual Spring Visitors Guide will be in the paper.

Kendal Award We would like to congratulate Kendal Hemphill-- who was unceremoniously dropped from this paper for poorly explained reasons-- for his multiple awards at the 62nd annual Texas Outdoor Writers Association’s annual conference held March 5-7 in College Station. He took 1st and 2nd place in Outdoor Fiction/Humor, First place in Outdoor News Reporting and second place in Outdoor Column.

Death Is a Part of Life Death has always been a part of my life. Raised on a ranch, I became acquainted with death at an early age. Animals would perish from illness or predators. They would also die from human hands. Pigs and calves were slaughtered. Chickens had their necks wrung. (Often by the most feminine of lady folks.) All so we could have meat on the table. Human death was no stranger to my childhood either.

French Bread Rolls CourtesyAllrecipes.com and JoCatlin These dinner rolls require very little effort on the part of the baker, and are rather crusty on the outside, while being soft and chewy on the inside. The original recipe, presented here, has you make 16 rolls from the dough. I’ve done it that way, and then I tried it with making only 8 rolls.

Our front doors are still closed, but our curbside service continues! We are staying busy with numerous calls and emails for books and DVDs. If you are having trouble signing in to reserve items online, then feel free to call us at (325)347-5446 during our regular hours. If you are not sure what you would like to read, we are more than happy to help you find the perfect book or DVD!

Life in the Slow Lane… Lanes don’t get slower than those to which we’ve all been assigned. Thoroughly “slowed down,” I am reminded of the old duffer stopped numerous times on the freeway who refused to accelerate to minimum speed. Finally, the officer said, “If you don’t start moving faster, I’m going to strongly suggest that you sign up immediately for offensive driving.” Like most everyone else, we are “sheltered in,” digesting material from both mass and social ...

Another week of our new normal. I am ready to resume normal, whatever that was, activities. We need to get well at our house and not end up in Emergency rooms or hospitals. John is home again and we are hoping he is going to get better every day. I write this on Sunday evening.