August 4, 2021 Issue

As the county’s budget comes into focus, a county official said that tax rates might remain the same even though thousands of dollars in increased costs have been added to the county budget for fiscal year 2022. Mason County Courthouse reconstruction and the jury trial that is expected in the case of a man accused of setting it ablaze earlier this year are two reasons behind the budget increasing by around $1.4 million when compared to fiscal year 2021. The proposed budget and tax rate do ...

On the evening of Tuesday, July 27th, the heroes of Mason County were recognized and honored at a dinner held by the Mason Community Foundation. In years past, this annual dinner honored the many volunteers in Mason County who help make life so much better for its residents. After the COVID pandemic, the fire at the Mason County courthouse and the extreme winter storm of 2021, the Foundation Board felt it was time to recognize the volunteers and workers who went beyond the usual expectations ...

Week two of Mason’s first-ever Science STEM career immersion summer camp, hosted by The Science Mill, was completed last week for the 6th-8th grades. This wonderful experience was made possible through a very generous donation to The Science Mill to benefit students from grades 3rd-8th. This year’s summer camps both had a secret agent theme where campers completed top secret missions centered on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) activities.

Two incoming seniors for Mason High School varsity football were recently named to a San Angelo Standard-Times Top-10 preseason watchlist for their respective positions. For the offensive lineman watchlist, the Punchers’ reliable Milam Mayfield had his name listed following a very successful 2020 season as a junior. Mayfield, who was a first-team All-District 14-2A Division 1 selection on both the offensive and defensive line, enters his senior season as one of Mason’s leaders in the tr ...

Two former Mason High School varsity baseball players were recognized late last week on the 2021 Texas Sports Writers Association Class 2A All-State Baseball Team. Punchers pitcher Colby Brown and second baseman Cody McBee, both Class of 2021 graduates at Mason, were selected as honorable mentions for Class 2A following outstanding seasons. Brown, who was the very reliable senior ace on the mound throughout the season for the Punchers, had a great 8-1 record in 17 games pitched.

Nathaniel Harold Jordan entered his heavenly home and reunited with his loved ones on July 31, 2021 at the age of 90. Nathaniel was born on October 16, 1930, to Marvin and Hattie Jordan. He was born in Hilda, TX then later moved to Art, and was raised on the family ranch that borders Willow Creek just south of Art in Mason County.

Gary Lee Garner was born on Sept 6, 1940 in Mason, Texas to Henry Melvin Garner and Ima Faye Allen. He passed away on Saturday, July 31, 2021. Gary first attended school in Streeter, TX. After one year he rode a bus to the school in Mason. His grandfather would sometimes be plowing his field in the afternoon.

Most transmissible diseases are caused by replicating organisms—especially bacteria and viruses. The development of antibiotics in the 1930s made many bacterial diseases easily treatable, and human deaths from bacterial diseases rapidly declined. Antibiotics are not effective against viruses, however. Instead, most viral diseases are controlled through vaccination, which stimulates our immune systems to destroy the virus before it can cause extensive harm.

Scientists divide the Natural World into numerous categories based on characteristics such as structure, function and reproduction. All living things are placed into one of two main categories, called kingdoms, as either a plant or an animal. In the plant kingdom, the great majority of all plants are placed into one of two divisions, the Gymnosperms (all conifers) and the Angiosperms which are all the flowering plants—the majority of all plants. Within the divisions, plants are grouped wi ...

We have two upcoming events for the month of August: our Retro Videogames for kids on the 11th from 1:00-3:00 and 6:00-8:00 and a program for adults, Fletcher Clark’s The Runaway Scrape on the 19th at 6:00. In song, verse, and lecture, songwriter Fletcher Clark will recount the event from Texas History. New to the Library: DVDS Brokenwood Mysteries Season 10 Cool Runnings Dream Horse Keeping Faith Season 3 Separation Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 Wrath of Man Fiction: (a ...

Sheila came across this recipe while cruising the internet, and she thought it sounded perfect for The Practical Baker. Simple, straight-forward, quick, and fast. I tried it and the resulting rolls were an absolute delight, and will become a regular guest at our dinner table. I think you'll like them, too. Ingredients: 1 cup water 2 tablespoons melted butter ½ cup milk 2 tablespoons honey 1 tablespoon active dry yeast 1 teaspoon salt 3 ½ to 4 cups all-purpose flour extra m ...

With summer in full swing some of you have an abundance of vegetables from your gardens. That is if the grasshoppers haven’t eaten your garden up! This dish is a delectable mixture of beef and vegetables. I am always looking for new ground beef recipes and this one was not a disappointment.

A popular religious slogan of recent years has been, “Christ is the answer.” I have no disagreement with that. However, to balance the picture we should remember that it can also be said, “Christ is the question.” Jesus was not just a giver of answers, he was also an asker of questions. “Have you noticed how often Jesus used a question, where we might have expected a statement?” observes J.

With a few scattered rainstorms and the heat of the summer, August has arrived. There are a few plants you can plant now, but September is the month you will be seriously planning for. Here are a few items that can be planted now: Snap and Lima beans, corn (through mid-August), cucumber, eggplant transplants, warm-season greens, pepper transplants, Irish potato (mid-month), Winter squash, and turnip (end of the month). Check your Vegetable Garden Planting Guide for September planting.

As I write this on Sunday evening, we are in the middle of a rain shower. It has thundered and rumbled all afternoon but this is the first shower. I understand they are scattered. We appreciate any rain we get. This morning as I watered my flowers, I noticed the cement planters by my back door were full of beautiful flowers.

1. Tax benefits. The U.S. Tax Code lets you deduct the interest you pay on your mortgage, your property taxes, and some of the costs involved in buying a home. 2. Appreciation. Historically, real estate has had a long-term, stable growth in value. Economists at Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the Mortgage Bankers Association, and the National Association of Realtors® forecast median prices will rise between 3 to 8% in 2021.

The first time I heard the term ‘via ferrata,’ I figured it was another one of those silly, foreign, off-brand religious things, like zen, or yoga. The kind of thing snooty people refer to in conversation while they’re ordering their grande, iced, sugar-free, low-fat, vanilla, soymilk latte espresso with a caramel drizzle.

On July 27 the Mason Lions Club met at Nachos for their weekly meeting. Any ladies or gentlemen who are interested in joining the Mason Lions Club and serving the Mason community need only ask any Mason Lion! The Lions welcomed Lion Will McCann's guests Amanda and Mike Reynolds and Dave Lampman. Fred Reyna of Llano was our guest speaker.