July 22, 2020 Issue

(Editor's Note: Last week, I had the pleasure of visiting with Fr. Red Blevins, newly arrived in Mason. I asked him to introduce himself to the Mason community.) Howdy, Mason County! I am Fr. Red Blevins and I am the new priest at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. Having grown up in a small town in Northeast Arkansas, I am excited to get out of the city and in many ways, return to my roots.

ger/july 22 profit share hcmh Fredericksburg business owners hold “profit share” weekend for hospital The Washburne family, owners of Side Street Hospitality in Fredericksburg, held a “profit share weekend” on May 29 in support of the Hill Country Memorial Foundation. A percentage of gross sales from Hoffman Haus, Tubby’s, Otto’s, La Bergerie, and Caliche Coffee were designated for the Foundation.

In the March, 2020, Primary election, there were 1,898 votes cast during early voting and election day. That is approximately 63% of the registered voters in Mason County. Of those, 1,673 were in the Republican Primary and 225 in the Democratic Primary. Both parties had one race each that required a runoff in July.

Hill Country Memorial has received the Women’s Choice Award recognizing its “Excellence in Safety” rating, according to Chief Clinical Officer Nikki Rivers. Only hospitals in the top 10% of the country are named Women’s Choice Award hospitals, the only designation that takes into consideration the preferences of women when selecting a hospital. “This is a great recognition,” Rivers said.

Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) transitioned the Youth Leadership Conference (YLC) to a virtual format this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The youth development event has been planting the seeds for the next generation of leaders for more than 50 years, growing into a much-anticipated summer conference for incoming high school juniors and seniors. “We were saddened to hear there wouldn’t be a face-to-face experience this year for our kids, but the virtual event allowed students to still e ...

(Editor's Note: In light of the recent concerns about the increases in valuation of agricultural property, we've asked the Chief Appraiser to explain the situation. In the interest of fairness, we've also asked for a response from some of those who participated in the recent valuation protests.) Appraisal season has been a rough year for MCAD and many other CADs across the state. This year we faced many challenges.

Even with the summer heat of the past couple of weeks, and the pleasant “cool” of this week, there are a number of things that are making progress at the City. At Monday’s City Council meeting the Contract was approved for the construction of the Water Treatment plant and the assorted facilities included in that project and it was approved to issue the Certificates of Obligation that will provide the funding for the construction of the new Landfill and the replacement of the Smith St Li ...

Jarrett Worrell of Mason recently attended the Jr National Hereford Expo in Kansas City, Missouri. Jarrett had a really good week. He was chosen as the Grand Champion Showman in the Junior Division. he competed against 120 other contestants for this honor. Jarrett was also awarded the Prospect Award. This award is chosen by a panel of judges that evaluated an application and written essay.

Desaree Bowie, a member of the Mason FFA Chapter, was recently recognized during the Virtual State Convention for receiving her FFA Lone Star Degree. The Lone Star Degree is awarded to members meeting a series of requirements through FFA participation and leadership. Three years of record books are evaluated at the local, area, and state level for approval.

Jarrett Worrell of Mason recently attended the Jr National Hereford Expo in Kansas City, Missouri. Jarrett had a really good week. He was chosen as the Grand Champion Showman in the Junior Division. he competed against 120 other contestants for this honor. Jarrett was also awarded the Prospect Award. This award is chosen by a panel of judges that evaluated an application and written essay.

We will start spraying between the hours of 7:30 pm and 9:30 pm. Please try to stay indoors during these times. This Product (Delta Guard) we are spraying is safe for animals and People. We want to thank everyone for their cooperation in advance in keeping Mason safe!!! Thursday July 23, 2020, we will spray south East side of Mason streets are: Spruce, East Rainey, Post Hill, Wilson Elm, Pecan, Wheeler, Coolidge, College, Bryan, Short, Moody, Westmoreland, Lee, Howard, Merrill, Reagan, Ma ...

The library will have our final virtual program, Dinosaur George, on July 22 at 2:00 PM. Go to our Facebook page (@masontexaslibrary) on the 22nd to find the information to login to Zoom and watch Dinosaur George. This is a zoom event, not a recorded video, so be sure to tune in at 2:00 so you don’t miss a moment.

We have had a long week of very hot weather. We need rain. My prayer is that this was our hot summer and the rest will be much milder, and of course, wetter. The Art United Methodist Church continues with Sunday morning worship at 11. The sermon is on You Tube also for those that don’t feel comfortable getting out.

Why Being a Clock Watcher is Okay! I grew up in a farm family. The clock, and even the calendar, meant less to us while we went about our work since we based our routines upon the sunrise and sunset, as well as the changing of the seasons. The clock only came into play as we relied upon timed irrigation cycles, as we worked in our school schedules, and as we became teenagers and tried to coordinate our social lives with those of our friends living in town. Then, for years, I worked in off ...

Back to School There are too many unknowns to make an informed decision about sending our children back to school at this time. We can NOT send our children back to school until there is a safe, reliable vaccine. We don’t know when that very important piece of the puzzle will happen.

We have had a long week of very hot weather. We need rain. My prayer is that this was our hot summer and the rest will be much milder, and of course, wetter. The Art United Methodist Church continues with Sunday morning worship at 11. The sermon is on You Tube also for those that don’t feel comfortable getting out.

Improvement on Silence… My late father, T. J. Newbury, was a grand story teller. Friends and neighbors in Early, TX, gave him high marks for joke-telling, and so do I. Usually, hearty “ho-ho’s” erupted when the punch line was unleashed, but on the rare occasions when silence hung heavy and listeners looked blankly as if ghosts had been seen, he had a back-up plan. At such times, he’d laugh at himself, contending that if he didn’t think the story to be worthy of eliciting con ...

Our final virtual performance will be today, July 22, at 2:00 PM. Dinosaur George will answer the question “What is a Dinosaur?” This is a zoom event, not a video, so look for the login information for zoom on our Facebook page (@masontexaslibrary). If you haven’t had the chance yet, it is not too late to sign your kids up for “Read for a Treat.” Kids in grades K-5 can still earn free Dairy Queen ice cream, courtesy of Mason Bank. New to the Library: DVDs: Dragonheart: 5 Movie ...

Easiest Fudge Recipe EVER! courtesy: Yummly This began life as a recipe that I stumbled across on the internet while looking for something else. It sounded quick and easy which is just what I’m always looking for to use in the Practical Baker column. I made it in the crock pot a couple of times, just as directed, and while the fudge turned out well, the hassle associated with cleaning the crock pot afterwards was more than I cared to deal with.

A Hairy Tale “Ring-tums !” That was friend Tex Luther’s reaction on seeing me walk into his living room to pick him up for our weekly luncheon date. With a groaning sigh I reluctantly turned around. Placing a gnarly knuckle on my neck, Tex, with a gleeful smile, briskly pushed it up against the grain of the freshly shorn locks. Watching all this with a quizzical look on her face, Tex’s wife Katie asked, “What childish game are you two old coots playing now?” As we both beg ...