Virginia Lee Bailey Gates was born on April 29, 1950 in Kellogg, Idaho. She passed away on Friday, June 10, 2022 in Natalia, Texas at the age of 72.
She is survived by her sister Velma Ward of Spokane, WA; Brother James Bailey of Spokane, WA; Daughters, Leigh Anne Watkins, husband Shawn of Natalia, TX; Jolinda Arroyo, husband Chris of San Antonio, TX; 5 grandchildren, Bryan Watkins, Justin Watkins, Jassmyne Watson, Jacob Arroyo and Austen Watkins.
She is preceded in death by her Parents Leonard and Leota Bailey and Brother Dale Bailey.
Virginia was a wonderful mother who was always there for her children. She loved camping and vacationing with her family. She enjoyed coaching at the beginning of her career and teaching English for over 50 years until her retirement. She touched the lives of everyone she ever met.
Visitation will be held on Monday, June 20, 2022 from 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm at Hurley Funeral Home – Devine, 303 West College Ave, Devine, Texas 78016. Funeral Service will be held on Tuesday, June 21, 2022 at 10:00 am at Hurley Funeral Home. Burial will follow at Lytle Community Cemetery.
For personal acknowledgements, please visit www.hurleyfuneralhome.com
Arrangements entrusted to Hurley Funeral Home – Devine, 303 West College Ave, Devine, Texas 78016.
Author: admin
Margaret Ann Sandoval
Margaret Ann Sandoval passed away on June 06, 2022 in Devine, Texas at the age of 36 years old. She was born in Hondo, Texas to Eloy Saldana Sr. and Maria Mata on July 01, 1985.
She was married to Edgar Flores Sandoval and had two children.
She was a devoted housewife and loving mother.
Margaret Ann Sandoval is preceded in death by her mother, Maria Mata.
Margaret Ann Sandoval is survived by her father; Eloy Saldana Sr. , spouse; Edgar Flores Sandoval, daughter; Naitzia Sandoval (Nayeli) , and son; Edgar Enrique Sandoval Jr. , sisters; Delores Mata Saldana- Edgar Castilleja / Devine, Texas ; Tiffany Ann Mendoza / Nicole Mendoza/ Leming, Texas ; brothers; Eloy Mata Saldana Jr.-Krystalle / Devine, Texas; Leo Mata Saldana – Anna Perez / Lytle, Texas; Luis Mata Saldana- Mary/ San Antonio, Texas and numerous nephews and nieces.
Visitation will be at St. John Boscoe Catholic Church in Natalia, Texas, Thursday, 6/16/2022 at 6:00 p.m. and Rosary will follow at 7:00 p.m.
Funeral mass will be held at 10:00 a.m., on Friday, 6/17/2022 at St. John Boscoe Catholic Church in Natalia, Texas.
Burial will follow after to Longview Cemetery in Big Foot, Texas.
Services provided by Franklin Funeral Home.
Natalia First Baptist hosts Vacation Bible School June 13-17
Uvalde…evil incarnate.
Decided to put the Commissioners Court update on hold for a week or so. The Devine News Reporter does a great job of in-depth reporting and stealing what little thunder I have to offer so, I’m gonna rant if KK will print it.
Uvalde…evil incarnate. Enough said. Even with a Law Enforcement and SWAT training background, I was not there and have no discussion or points of emphasis to offer. My opinions will remain with me.
Guns. I have my share. They tend to sit where they are placed and the only change that they undergo is that their temperature changes with the room temperature until they are taken in hand. At this point, depending on the handler and his/her intentions, they become a weapon for good or evil.
Laws. There are laws on the books that, if followed, will prevent the misuse of guns. Why do we need more gun laws if the ones we have are not being followed and ENFORCED? Criminals have no regard for laws pertaining to guns and will get one no matter how many laws are passed. If you have guns in the house, educate your children on their use and the consequences of their misuse.
Schools. Schools are an institution for learning. We need to go back to “old school”. Teachers are entrusted with educating our children. Let them teach. If your child does not learn and achieve academic standards, they should fail. Sometimes, failure is a learning tool. Let the school discipline when needed. Some of your kids need a good old fashioned whippin sometimes. This is something that is almost non-existent nowadays.
Mommy and Daddy. You need to realize that Little Johnny and Mary are different people at home than at school. They have learned that they are not responsible for their actions and can get away with talking back, disrespecting elders and doing whatever suits them at the time and if they are disciplined, they call Mommy and Daddy and tell on the teacher for being mean to them. Let the school do its job. There is a difference between discipline and abuse. If they are brats at home, they are brats at school…probly worse.
Cell phones. I do not believe that children of any age should be allowed to carry their phones while at school if the school is secure. It is a major distraction and a detriment to their learning. You cannot change my mind.
On last week’s Commissioners Court meeting that involved several School Board members and Superintendents….have not heard from either school district in my area about any roundtable discussions about school security. I offered to sit in and be a representative from Commissioners Court but, I am not going to organize, chair or decide on when to discuss school safety.
I have children and grandchildren who are educators. They have done well and agree with me on the sad state of schools nowadays. Guess Sandy and I did something right.
On a positive note, we got to go to Annapolis, Maryland this past week and watch Rooster (his mama calls him Andrew) graduate from the Naval Academy. Extremely proud of this young man. His mama and daddy did a good job raising him.
Way to go Chad!
I published a children’s book recently, one of my life long dreams. It is illustrated by a young man in California who is battling a terrible disease called A-T. My niece, Audrey, also battles this rare disease. This summer, I had hosted an Art contest for A-T kids and families and Chad was one of our winners. I was in awe of how many hours and how hard he worked to color his sea creatures, and that sparked the idea to write a story to go along with his illustrations and make a book.
He is over the moon excited and so am I. Chad’s most ambitious dream is to see scientists find the cure for A-T, so we decided to chase that dream too, by donating all profits from the book to the AT Children’s Project. Because A-T is such a rare disease, the ATCP is one of very few funding sources of A-T research. In fact, it was started by a group of parents whose children had A-T.
When your family is faced with such a dark diagnosis, it is easy to get hung up on statistics and the doctor’s devastating prognosis. But A-T warriors like Chad inspire all of us and remind us that no disability can put a limit on how far you can chase your dreams. You can do whatever you set your mind to, as long as you work hard at it.
This weekend, I got some exciting news. Chad’s mother, Louise, sent me a picture of a huge front page article in Chad’s hometown newspaper. I was so excited! It is so fun to be on the receiving end of a front page story! I could just hear Chad’s smile as I saw that huge front page story in California. It was a good reminder that while the news business can be a stressful one, especially when it comes to politics, that what we do is important. Because we get the opportunity to be that huge smile maker….to give people like Chad the special honor they deserve.
If you know a local person who is an inspiration, please feel free to reach out to us. I love those stories.
If you would like to buy the book written by me and illustrated by Chad, you can find it at TheBookPatch.com by searching for my name or the title “Hello! From the Great Blue Sea.”
Be proud to “Fly the U. S. Flag”
This past week was a semi-busy one, since it didn’t actually begin until Tuesday afternoon when I got in from my fun trip to visit with my granddaughter and her family. Luckily, there weren’t any meetings that will be this coming week! Wednesday, I did my unpacking and laundry and Thursday, my sister and I went shopping in Victoria, we had been trying to do that for months and we had an awesome time together. She found several things she was looking for in the clothing line, and I found a cute blouse and a couple of other things, but no white sandals were to be found anywhere and that was the main thing I wanted, I guess I’ll just have to figure out how to wear the ones I have!
Friday afternoon a friend and I sold raffle tickets at the hospital and did fairly well, and Saturday was a little more of the same thing. However, since it was Tom-Tom in Yoakum, we got to see at least part of the parade, since we were near the line-up area. There were lots of beautiful floats! After we finished selling tickets, I went out to the park for a while to see if anything interesting was going on. It was pretty much as usual with the same types of booths selling jewelry of one type or another, tee shirts etc., which you see at any type of commemorative gathering.
Just before Memorial Day, local groups of American Legion and VFW placed flags at each end of town, north, south, east and west, it is so beautiful to come into town from any side and see those flags flying.
Tuesday of next week, June 14th, is Flag Day and here is a little information for you about the flag.
Have you ever wondered in what order the states came into the Union? Who actually designed the first flag? Why does it have 13 stripes? How many stars were on the first flag? Which were the original 13 states? When was Texas admitted as a state?
Legend has it that Betsy Ross, a widowed seamstress was the one who made the first flag from a sketch given her by George Washington. She is said to have changed the number of points on the stars from six to five and then made the first flag in 1776. However, history has proven that it is just that, a legend.
A second legend claims that John Hulbert designed it a full year before Betsy Ross is supposedly did. This flag had 13 stripes and 13 stars in honor of the 13 original colonies.
These colonies were: Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina and Rhode Island. They all became states between December 7, 1787 and May 29, 1790.
The First Flag Law was passed by congress on June 14, 1777, giving this country an official national flag, consisting of 13 stripes alternating red and white, and a union of 13 white stars on a blue field.
Congress on May 1, 1795, adding two stripes and two stars in recognition of Virginia and Kentucky, passed the Second Flag Law. This 15-striped, 15-star flag is the second version of the national flag.
The Star Spangled Banner was written as a poem in the Baltimore Patriot newspaper. Frances Scot Key composed the verses while viewing the battle of Fort McHenry during the war of 1812. It became our national anthem on March 3, 1931. (This flag is in the Smithsonian Museum. It is not being restored it is being preserved. The size of this flag, 30 X 42 ft, is astounding, considering the time and place that it flew.)
The Third Flag Act was passed on April 4, 1818 and created the third official version of the flag. Navy Captain Samuel Reid proposed that the flag contain 13 stripes to represent the 13 original colonies. At that time it was decided that a star, represent ting a state, would automatically be added to the flag on the Fourth of July after ea territory was admitted. The flag in 1818 consisted of 13 stripes and 20 stars.
On July 4, 1846, the 10th official design of the Stars and Stripes was created with the addition of Texas into the United States.
June 14, 1861 was the first recorded observance of Flag Day, which was the anniversary of the First Flag Law and took place in Hartford. Connecticut. Bernard Cigrand is generally given the credit for helping to promote Flag Day.
On July 4, 1877, the centennial of the First Flag Act, the 38th star was added honoring the admission of Colorado into the Union. This created the 20th official design of the Stars and Stripes.
The entry of New Mexico and Arizona into the Union on July 4, 1912 created the 25th official design of the flag with the addition of its 47th and 48th stars honoring these two states.
From 1912 until 1959, the flag had 48 stars and 13 stripes. In that year, Alaska became the 49th state and the 16th official design of the flag was created. The following year, on July 4, 1960, Hawaii was admitted to the Union and a 50-star flag became the 27th official design. At 12:01 a.m., a 50-star flag was raised over Ft. McHenry by presidential order in honor of the victory described in the national anthem.
Red White and Blue Layered Salad
1 package, 3-ounce cherry gelatin
1 package, 6-ounce lemon gelatin
1 package, 3-ounce raspberry gelatin
1 small can crushed pineapple, drained well
1 can, 14½ ounces blueberries, drained
1 cup sour cream (1/2 pint)
2 cups milk
3 cups boiling water
Bottom layer: Dissolve cherry gelatin in 1 cup boiling water; cool at room temperature; add pineapple, pour into bottom of dish. Size of dish or mold isn’t mentioned, but I would use a 9×13 glass dish.
Middle layer: Dissolve lemon gelatin in 1 cup boiling water, cool at room temperature. Beat sour cream and milk together. Combine cooled lemon mixture and sour cream mixture. When bottom layer is firm, but slightly sticky to the touch, gently pour or spoon on the middle layer.
Top layer: Dissolve raspberry gelatin in 1 cup boiling water, cool at room temperature, add drained blue berries, pour and spoon over middle layer, when it is firm, but slightly sticky to the touch. Refrigerate until serving.
This is an older recipe that I found in a box with some stuff of my Mother’s, and it doesn’t have amount of servings nor any nutritional information. I would assume that a 9×13 would probably make 12 large servings, or 15 smaller servings.
“Old Fashion” Beer Run
It’s that time again; the weeks just keep flying by. Here is what went on in the 7-day period that ended on Sunday, June 5th: Officers managed 48 calls for service, it was nice to have a little slowdown. Officers conducted 93 traffic stops of those stops 69 citations were issued and 24 warnings were given. It looks like since officers had fewer calls to manage, they had more time to focus on traffic enforcement. It works out that way sometimes.
There was only one person arrested last week. A 24-year-old female was booked into the Atascosa Co. Jail on a charge of Assault Causing Bodily Injury to a Family Member.
There were four property crimes reported last week: #1 – $900 worth of baseball equipment was taken from an unlocked vehicle on Wisdom Rd. #2 – The back door to an abandoned farmhouse on FM 2790 was kicked in, nothing appeared missing. #3 – A suspect took off with 2 12-packs of beer from the Dollar General. That’s a good “old-fashioned” beer run; it’s nice to see some things don’t change. #4 – H.E.B. Plus reported that a man walked out of the store with a basket full of stuff valued at approx. $200. If we catch that dude, I want to talk to him. I would love to figure out how he can fill a whole basket and it only is $200.
It was not too bad of a week. We are looking at a long, sweltering summer; maybe our crooks will take a sabbatical until it cools down.
Don’t forget the 4th of July Fireworks at John Lott Park. The event is shaping up nicely, you can stop by for the show at dark or show up a little early, enjoy food trucks, and live entertainment.
Last week, on Tuesday and Wednesday, I attended the Texas Div. of Emergency Management annual conference in San Antonio. I guess the last one was in 2019, thanks to COVID. Mayor Gonzalez, Matt Dear and Ofc. David Lopez also attended. We attended seminars, met with vendors, and made professional connections. We also got free pencils and little bottles of hand sanitizer. Keeping the city prepared for emergencies, both man-made and natural, is no easy task. We are constantly trying to improve and enhance our preparation, response, and recovery abilities.
I then took a couple of days of leave and headed out with the family to visit my wife’s sister and her family in Livingston, TX. We attended a homeschool conference in the Woodlands. We attended seminars, met with vendors, and made connections. We also got free pencils and little bottles of hand sanitizer.
So, one conference to help me with my job in the city and then one to help me in my role as a father. With both having 20 oz. bottled soft drinks for $4.50.
Teresa “Terri” Lea Blevins
Teresa “Terri” Lea Blevins, 60, of Lytle, Texas, left this world on May 17, 2022. Terri passed peacefully at home, surrounded by her loved ones.
Terri was born on February 3, 1962, to Leslie Blevins and Norma “Suttor” Blevins, in Offutt AFB, Nebraska. Terri spent most of her life in Lytle, Texas, raising her two children, Cassy Harvey and Leslie Aguinaga and her granddaughter, Dakota Blevins.
Terri loved horses, trail rides, country music and above all her family. She spent countless hours as a young teenager, selflessly caring for her ill mother. She was a devoted daughter, mother, sister, grandmother and aunt. She had a gentle spirit and the bluest eyes. Her laughter was infectious and her love limitless.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Leslie and Norma Blevins; brother-in-law, Ken Lee; and her beloved dog’s, Sassy and Missy.
Terri is survived by her daughter’s, Cassy Harvey and Leslie Aguinaga; grandchildren, Dakota Blevins, Rowdy and Cashlynn Harvey, Nevaeh, Tristyn, Sophia, Addaleigh and Zayven Aguinaga; great-grandchildren, Jaiden and Malakai Hunter; sisters, Cindy Montes and Bernie Lee; brothers, Jimmy Cooper, Edgar Blevins and Wayne Blevins; and numerous nieces and nephews
Anyone wishing to sign the online guestbook, share memories or issue condolences to the family, may do so at www.hurleyfuneralhome.com
Arrangements under the direction of Hurley Funeral Home, 14822 Main Street, Lytle, Texas 78052.
Warhorse Band Members Win Silver & Gold at State!!
On Saturday, May 27th DHS Band percussionists Andrew Kohlleppel and Diego Mendoza performed at the UIL State Solo & Ensemble Contest held at Hendrickson High School in Austin!! Both earned high level awards on the solos they had previously earned 1st divisions from the Region UIL level in February. Andrew, a junior, performed a Class One Snare Drum Solo entitled “Mean Man Matt” and earned a 1st division and a GOLD medal!! Diego, a sophomore, played a four-mallet Class One Marimba Solo entitled “Tucker”, earning a 2nd division and a Silver medal!! “Both students were well prepared and did a great job representing the Warhorse Band and Devine!! The UIL State Solo & Ensemble Contest is a very rigorous contest – and 1st division awards are usually far and few in between. Go Warhorse Band!” said Director Jeff Miller.
Sessions named Athletic Director for Devine
A Special meeting was hosted by Devine School Board members on Monday, June 6, 2022 to consider and hire a New Athletic Director, along with approving the Instruction Materials Allotment and TEKS Certification for 2022-23 School Year presented by Todd Grandjean. A 4-0 vote was passed by Henry Moreno, Keri James, Ali Buvinghausen, and Nancy Pepper to name Jim Sessions as the New AD.
Jim Sessions’ professional career spans from a secondary math teacher 1997-2003 to his present position as a technology applications teacher at Devine High School 2003-Present.
He has been an assistant coach in volleyball, cross country, track, golf, basketball, and softball. He was also the head softball coach in 2000-2004 and presently the Head Girls Basketball coach since 2003. Jim hit 400 wins this past year in basketball.
Sessions also has been the Technology/Hudl Specialists for Athletics from 2003 to present.
Sessions has been a Finalist for the Dean Weese Coach of the Year Award given by TABC in 2022.
His 25 years has been spent here in Devine teaching and coaching since 1997.
He is a former Devine athlete, and he continues to show a passion for his hometown and has helped maintain the tradition of success for those at Devine ISD, just like his parents Don and Gayle Sessions and sister Neva who all devoted their time and careers to Devine ISD. When asked how excited he was about his new position “I am VERY VERY excited to be given this opportunity by Dr Grandjean and the school board members.”
Sessions takes over from Chad Quisenberry who announced in March his retirement after 28 years with Devine ISD (1994-2022). Session’s mother Gayle Sessions was the DISD Girls Athletic Director back when there were two athletic directors, one for the girls and one for the boys in the Devine ISD.
Jim Sessions will take over the reins of the Athletic Director position to oversee the girls and boys athletic programs.
“I am proud of him and I know he will do everything he can to keep the Devine Athletic program successful and respected by the Devine community and area schools and coaches,” said his mother Gayle Sessions. Gayle coached in Devine 34 years (3 in MS and 31 HS) and became girls Athletic Director around 1980. She later gave up her successful position to move to Tennessee so she and Don could take care of her elderly parents, like she promised she would do.
Jim’s Notable Achievements:
25 years in education.
5 years as head softball coach.
5 consecutive years in the playoffs for softball with multiple playoff wins and one State Tournament appearance (Runner Up 2000).
19 years as head girls’ basketball coach. His first win this past year was his #400 win!
19 consecutive years in the playoffs for girls’ basketball with multiple playoff wins and six appearances in the Regional Tournament.
Finalist for the Dean Weese Coach of the Year Award given by TABC (2022).
Certifications include PE PK-12, Health Education 6-12, Mathematics 6-12, Technology Applications 8-12 and Principal EC-12.
Education: UTSA Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology (1997), University of North Texas Tech Apps Certification (2003) and Texas A&M Kingsville Masters of Science in Educational Administration (2013).