September 9, 2009

Jerry Ayer has been fielding calls all day, every day since the news broke about a possible chupacabra that came into his possession a little over a week ago. Ayer, owner and instructor of Blanco Taxidermy School and master taxidermist, received the ‘chupacabra’ from a student, Lynn Butler, in exchange for lessons on duck mounting.

At its regular meeting on September 8, 2009, Blanco County Commissioners ratified the resolution by the Board of Directors of the Blanco County Appraisal District to “purchase land, construction of an appraisal district office facility, construction of improvements and for a permanent loan and establishing an effective date and compliance with the Texas Open Meetings Act.” Judge Guthrie read a letter from the Court’s attorney indicating that the process leading to the approval of the bui ...

Before the blooms of this years Lavender Festival faded, the Blanco Chamber of Commerce conducted an in depth review of what has become a signature event for the community. The success of The Lavender Festival is the direct result of the considerable effort put forth by the Chamber and its many dedicated volunteers.

Eight years after the horrific attacks on US soil, the memory of those who perished lives on. Keep Blanco Beautiful erected the Liberty Garden Bench Memorial in 2002, so that the citizens of Blanco would have a place to remember all of those lost that day. Please visit the KBB Liberty Garden Bench Memorial for the September 11, 2001 victims and their families.

Glennie Berry, a long time resident of Blanco County, died recently and left a colony of over 100 cats that she had been feeding, watering and caring for. She left no one to care for the cats after she died. The cats were her pets. Many beautiful and healthy cats are in this colony, including Abyssinian mixes. When the Blanco County Cat Coalition learned of the situation, they implemented the Humane Society program of “Trap, Neuter and Return (TNR)”.

PEC Press Release - Representatives of Pedernales Electric Cooperative and Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative met at a Sept. 4 meeting in Bastrop, Texas, at Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative headquarters to pass four resolutions relating to Texland Electric Cooperative and Texland Electric Company. “We are pleased to be making progress in putting matters related to Texland to rest, so we can focus on running PEC, which is our top priority,” said Kathryn Scanlon, Texland board president and Pede ...

On September 1, 4-H members of Blanco County all got together for the 4-H Big Bash at the Johnson City Show Barn. New and old members all came together to register for the 2009-2010 4-H year. Members with Record Books and Projects from the previous year were able to collect their pins and learn about District Judging.

September 12, 2009 •Blanco State Park – Stars in the Park! - Join the San Antonio Astronomical Society for viewing the night sky. The society will have telescopes set up to look through and a slide show in case of clouds. Please bring a flashlight to use after the event. Set up begins at 7:00pm; viewing begins as soon as it is dark.

Stonewall, Texas — Two special family friendly activities will highlight the weekend of October 10 and 11 at Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park. The park’s Friends group is sponsoring a family fun run on Saturday, October 10, beginning at 9:00am and also a bike tour hosted by Luci Baines Johnson, President and Mrs.

The sound of oompah, the aroma of sizzling bratwurst, and the cries of Prosit! once again herald the arrival of Oktoberfest in Fredericksburg, Texas, October 2, 3, & 4, 2009. For three full days, the whole world is invited to sing, toast and dance at one of Fredericksburg’s favorite festivals, celebrating its 29th Anniversary!

“Swine flu won’t kill you, but it will unlock the door and leave it open for the real killer to come in.” “That killer is almost always pneumonia,” said Jim Bowen, a retired virologist from Austin and former vice president at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. “That’s why you watch for fever and other symptoms returning after the flu should have ended, because it may mean the flu is over but pneumonia is taking hold, and that can be fatal.” Bowen told the M&Ms’ meeting at t ...

Vallone Real Estate has moved to the Historic Blanco Court House on the Blanco Square, which makes us part of the Heart and Hub of Blanco! We are really excited about this new location. Paragon C&D Builders will also have an office at this location. We will be able to truly help you put the pieces together in your real estate and construction needs. This has been a goal of ours and we were finally able to do it.

The Yucca Garden Club kicked off their new year in a meeting at the Blanco Library on September 2. Founded in 1948, the Club continues to focus on improving the city and educating its members. The new officers are President Pat Ryan, Vice President Gwen Risinger, Secretary Linda Lyons, Treasurer Nina Wilson and Historian Lola Dowdy.

“Discipline is the foundation upon which all success is built. Lack of discipline inevitably leads to failure.” – Jim Rohn In the last article I discussed my wonderful new job at the Spring Branch Store. It’s been just over a week since I’ve been thankfully employed there and boy have I learned a lot in that time.

In Matthew 8:1-3 a man approached Jesus, believing in his heart that Jesus could heal him, and even said “you can heal me, if you’re willing. So Jesus did. The man received his healing because he believed Jesus could. He just wasn’t sure if Jesus was WILLING. “1 Large crowds followed Jesus as he came down the mountainside.

What is the fear of the Lord? Why should we have the fear of the Lord? Should a Christian (Born again Believer) have the fear of the Lord? Is there any benefit in fearing the Lord? Please pray with me that our Father, in the name of Jesus would reveal the value, knowledge, and understanding of the fear of the Lord.

Jesus said, "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted" (Matthew 5:4). After King David's adultery and murder God sent a prophet to the King to rebuke him for his sinful ways. It was only then that David came to repentance. In Psalm 51 the King speaks of his sin and pleads for forgiveness.

Dear Editor, Wouldn’t it be great if everyone in Blanco County who didn’t have health insurance did? Wouldn’t it be great if we all had health insurance like the Congress awards to themselves? Wouldn’t it be great if a 45 or 50 year old guy with a wife and two kids happened to lose his job and still had health care coverage?

Dear Editor, I would like to respond to the September 2nd letter from Mr. Charley Pemberton. Mr. Pemberton, I don’t know you or anything about you, except you seem to come from the far right fringe. Well, I’d like you to hear from the far left fringe (although I really look at myself as a centrist or middle of the roader). Not everyone agrees with you, Mr.

Dear Editor, I would like to respond to Mr. Charley Pemberton’s inane and vitriolic letter of Sept. 2nd. I would ask Mr. Pemberton “Where have you been for the last 8 years?” We have had a government that conducted illegal wiretapping, secret CIA bases, extraordinary rendition (the process of extraditing prisoners to countries that allow to extreme interrogation methods), refused to answer congressional inquiries (Cheney’s refusal to reveal his “secret” energy policy board) and spen ...

Travis Bailey, Meagan Brown, Samantha Primeaux, Abbey Weaver, Jacob Hallenberger, Eleanor Kirkscey, Allen Strandtman, and Briar Koehl attended the Championship Debate Group Summer Institute at Concordia University in Austin to sharpen their skills in extemporaneous speaking, Lincoln-Douglas debate, and team policy debate on July 26-31. Russell Kirkscey, BHS debate coach, was pleased at the students’ performance.

The Panther volleyball team hosted Lago Vista Tuesday, September 1 at the high school gym. The Freshman girls began the afternoon with a tough battle; losing 15-25 and 21- 25. The next match brought a victory for the JV squad, with a 25-22 and 25-21 final score. The Varsity played the final match of the night.

After opening the 2009 season with a disappointing loss to Canyon Lake, Blanco returned home and picked up their first win of the year against the visiting Luling Eagles. The Panther ground game proved to be too much for the Eagles, as the Panthers racked up over 400 yards on 58 carries with Senior Layton Dworaczyk leading all rushers with over 300 yards. The first quarter of play set the pace of the game with the Eagles and Panthers trading scores all night.

Last week I had the distinct honor of being the master of ceremonies at Ryan Rammell’s Eagle Scout court of honor. Ryan is a tall, fine-looking recent graduate of Smithson Valley High School where he was a percussionist in the band. He has successfully reached Scouting’s highest pinnacle—The Eagle. When he became a Boy Scout he took an oath, a promise, that “On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; to help other people at all times; t ...

I'm not sure where to start with this movie. It's a great revenge/thriller flick, but it's also a very disturbing movie; there are parts you might need to just turn away. This entire movie (the last 20 seconds excluded) is just too realistic to view as just another movie. We all know there are sicko's out there and some of us don't want to be reminded.

Births September 5, 1969 Mr. and Mrs. Fred Hensley of San Antonio are the proud parents of a baby girl, Connie Lee, born August 29, 1969. She weighed an even 8 pounds. Paternal grandparents are Ernest Hensley of Blanco and Mrs. Ray Turner of Houston. The maternal grandparents are Mr. and Mrs. Leonard Smith of Blanco. Creek Walk helps local groups September 11, 1980 The October 12 Creek Walk, sponsored by the Blanco Chamber of Commerce and the Hill Country Artists, provides an opportunity for l ...

AUSTIN -- Officially, the Texas Youth Commission provides services to delinquent youths, ages 10 to 19, through programs and facilities that administer constructive training for rehabilitation. The troubled agency has been through a series of leadership changes following allegations of sexual abuse by overseers and mismanagement. Now, there will be a new leadership team.

AUSTIN – Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples is encouraging families to apply for the Texas Department of Agriculture’s Family Land Heritage program. The program recognizes and celebrates farms and ranches that have been in continuous agricultural production by the same family for at least 100 years or more. “Texas has a rich heritage of land ownership and stewardship,” Commissioner Staples said.

Low water levels, Mercury and Trihalomethane notices, and hard water (so hard that you can see your dishes and faucets change appearance before your very eyes). Does your water smell musty or rotten? And last, but not least, is your water safe to drink? These are just a few of the questions being raised by many residents in the Hill Country area. As the water tables are dropping, the organic levels are becoming more concentrated and the water just “doesn’t taste or smell as great as it use ...

AUSTIN – Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has reached a settlement that will provide defrauded investors more than $20 million from a phony investment plan whose assets were frozen by the state. The frozen funds will largely be returned to teachers and retirees who were promised additional financial security and larger returns on their investments.

AUSTIN – Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, a coalition of state attorneys general and the U.S. Department of Justice today resolved a lengthy civil Medicaid fraud investigation into Pfizer, Inc. As a result, more than $1 billion has been recovered for state Medicaid programs and several federal programs. Texas’ Medicaid program will recover $55 million in a state-federal government share. According to investigators, Pfizer deceptively marketed its antipsychotic drug Geodon, its arthritis ...