Notice of Meeting of the Governing Body of The City of Devine
NOTICE OF A SPECIAL LIVE STREAM MEETING OF THE DECINE CITY COUNCIL. GO TO CITYOFDEVINE.COM AND CLICK ON LIVE MEETINGS.
Notice is hereby given that a Special Meeting of the governing body of the City of Devine will be held on the 2nd day of February, 2023 at 6:00 p.m. at the Dr. George S. Woods Community Center, 200 E. Hondo Avenue, Devine, Texas at which time the following subjects will be discussed, considered or action taken:
Discuss and consider for the Council to move forward with a Bond Election and to select projects.
Look at that smile! Submit your kiddo’s photos for next week.
The Medina County Jr. Livestock Show is coming up, and they are excited to announce there will be two new sales this year added to the schedule—a yearling colt sale and a youth showcase competition and silent auction. The Yearling Colt Sale will be held at 1 pm on Friday, January 27. The Colt event consists of several areas of competition for the horse and student exhibitors. These colts have been owned and worked with by the exhibitors for the past 10 months; getting them saddle-ready, gentled, and ready for ranch work. All are registered quarter horses and 10 will be shown and sold. The Youth Showcase consists of competitions in baking, canned goods, art, sewing and photography. Winning items will be sold in silent auction on January 28. The Commercial Heifer Sale will be held on Friday, January 27 at 5 pm. The premium sale will be Saturday, January 28 at 11 am. A Silent Auction Youth Home and Art Project event will be ongoing with sales from 10am-2 pm on Saturday. *All show events are open to the public free of charge. *Buyers at the premium auction who wish to enter the Buyer’s Corral and hospitality area must commit to donating a total of $500 premium auction exhibitors *Colt sale, Commercial heifer sale, Premium auction, and Youth Showcase Silent Auction are all separate sales
One Sunday in January I was serving as a Church Parking Lot Attendant. My friend, The Turkey Meister, leads this effort at our Church. He calls that role The First Impressions Team. Which probably sounds a bit classier than the title I used. It was brisk that day, and the wind was probably blowing at 20+ mph with a pretty good “bite” to it. One of our older ladies walked up, kind of “leaning into” the wind and commented she sure hopes it warms up soon. This lady is small in height/ build and that NE wind was pushing her around pretty good. Upon the conclusion of the Morning Worship Service, the wind had picked up even more and after descending the stairs and rounding the building’s corner, it came close to knocking her off her feet! I won’t repeat her comment that time. Let me just say it did not reflect any improvement of her opinion of the weather conditions! Less that 48 hours later one of my good friends from Church texted me to say that the 80-degree mid -day temperature was just WAY too hot for this time of the year. Now this fellow is the physical opposite of the previous person mentioned above. A former Defensive Lineman in college who became a Football Coach, one of his legs probably weighs more than that lady. I commented I was going to write a story about weather and dedicate it to him. Those two extreme opposite perspectives reminded me of a Tale from back when I was spending a good bit of time out at the Home Place as a kid working with my Grand Dad. You could find me starting at a pretty young age glued to his side whether in the fields, pastures, or cattle pens. Of course, none of those places are much fun to be in come July and August or December and January. I was often either cold as an ice cycle or burning up and drenched in sweat. Not surprisingly, sometimes I would whine about the weather. After a complaint or two, Charlie Rosenauer would stop whatever we were doing, take off his hat, and look me sternly in the eye. “Boy”, he would say. “Do you really think the Good Lord needs your help with the weather”? Of course, such an admonition would put me back in the right frame of mind plenty fast and I would mumble “No Sir”. “Okay. Then get back to what you are supposed to be doing and let GOD be GOD.” That was the end of that conversation, and it was best NOT to bring up the topic again for a while! Far be it from me to speak in such a way to the fine lady or my good coaching friend. But the reminder for me is that any of us can spend a bunch of time focusing on stuff we simply CANNOT control. One of my finest Mentors in a long line of some excellent ones, had a saying that comes to my mind while writing this Tale. Long ago gone from this Earth, I still remember he would often tell me : “Don’t fret on trying to fix things you can’t fix. Just try your best to do the right thing as often as you can with those things you can do something about”. I reckon that is good advice even today. And last time I looked, one of those things we don’t have much say about is trying to fix the weather!
What happened in Lytle last week? I’m glad you asked: Lytle PD officers handled 59 calls for service for the week ending on Sunday January 22. Your officers conducted 88 traffic stops, those stops resulted in 74 citatIons and 14 warnings. Property Crimes: We only had one possible property crime reported. A Main St. resident reported his .380 handgun was missing. Arrests: Officers made three arrests last week: #1 – A 16 year old male juvenile was detained for assault causing bodily injury (family violence). He was transported to the Atascosa Co. Juvenile Detention Center.
2 – Officers responded to a report of a driver that was asleep behind the wheel of a moving vehicle! Ofc. A. Lopez made contact with person and he woke up and sped off towards La Coste. After a short pursuit he was taken into custody. The suspect had four active felony warrants and was in possession of a loaded firearm (which is a no-no since he is a convicted felon). He was booked into the Medina Co. Jail.
3 – A traffic stop by Sgt. Hanson on S. Somerset St. resulted in the driver being arrested for DWI. The driver was booked into the Atascosa Co. Jail.
In other news: On Monday, January 16, officers responded to a single vehicle accident on IH-35. Sadly, the driver did not survive. He was the sole the occupant. On Thursday, January 19, officers assisted Medina Co. S.O. with a pursuit that resulted in a “bailout”. Of the 10 that fled, 4 were apprehended. The incident occurred at IH-35 and FM 3175. On the personal side…… I took the three oldest kids over to Beaumont last weekend for a youth conference. In true Southeast Texas fashion it was cold and rainy, it took me a few minutes to remember what rain was.
This past week slowed down a bit by the time the weekend rolled around. My sister and I did a couple of things together, including having supper on Friday, with my niece and her husband. They had to leave early Saturday to return to their home in north Texas and we had a great visit. They had also invited my sister’s daughter and her husband; pizza was the order of the day and it was very good. My sister took fruit salad, her daughter brought a delicious chopped salad, and I took dessert. (Real simple, cake taken out of my freezer!). Saturday was noodle making time at the Family Center of our church. Our ladies’ group, Catholic Daughters of the Americas is having their annual chicken fried steak fundraiser this coming weekend and we always have a “Country Store”, where we have baked goods, canned goods and homemade noodles. All the bags of noodles always sell quickly, if you are working there and want some, we all know to have them on hold until we can pick them up. My sister and I with some help this year from others will be making the cole slaw, just as we have done for several years. It’s still hard for her to do some things, as she had neck surgery in November and has to wear her brace for another couple of weeks. My personal biggest news is that I have a brand-new great-grandson! He was born early Saturday morning in Colorado, and when I spoke with my granddaughter, they had not yet named him! This week will see me back on the road to Devine for bunco, I didn’t realize how much I missed bunco and seeing my friends until the pandemic hit us and now I think I enjoy it more than ever! We have talked about baking cakes in the past but hopefully there are a few new readers who will enjoy this weeks column. When is the last time, or have you ever baked a cake from scratch? When I was growing up, cake mixes didn’t exist. All cakes were baked from scratch. Cake mixes came out after WWII, with Betty Crocker bringing out a Chocolate Cake mix for the first time in 1947. The lady I talked with didn’t have any information as to whether they were the first to come out with a cake mix or not, but, I’d bet a nickel they were. Since I couldn’t find an 800 number for either Duncan Hines or Pillsbury, I couldn’t check any further. A cake from scratch is not hard to make. It just takes a little longer than a box mix. My two favorite recipes were in my Betty Crocker Cook Book. There were two which Mother had also used and I learned to make them while I was still in school. The recipes in this book give you a choice of two ways to mix the cake, one by creaming the sugar and shortening until light and fluffy, and adding eggs, one at a time and mixing well, then adding the dry ingredients alternately with the milk; and the other by sifting the dry ingredients and then adding the shortening and eggs. Each page also has several variations of each cake, using the main recipe and then adding nuts or fruit to the batter. The following two recipes are both from the Betty Crocker Cook Book, (ninth printing, first edition), which I received as a shower present before I married. The one is called Light Golden Cake and the other is called Rich Golden Cake, the main difference between them is the amount of eggs used.
Light Golden Cake 2¼ cups sifted Softasilk (cake flour) 1½ cups sugar 3 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt ½ cup soft shortening 1 cup milk 1½ teaspoons flavoring 2 eggs Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease and flour two 9-inch round or square cake pans or a 9×13 pan; set aside. Sift together dry ingredients. Add shortening and a little over half of the milk and flavoring. Beat 2 minutes. Add remaining milk and eggs. Beat 2 minutes. Pour into greased and floured pans. Bake until cake tests done. Cool. Frost as desired. Rich Golden Cake 2¼ cups sifted Softasilk (cake flour or 2 1/8 cups Gold Medal flour) 1½ cups sugar 3 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 2/3 cup soft shortening 1 cup milk 1½ teaspoon vanilla 3 eggs Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease and flour two 9-inch round or square pans or one 13×9 pan. Sift together the dry ingredients, add shortening and a little over half of the milk and vanilla; beat 2 minutes. Add remaining milk and the eggs; beat 2 minutes. Pour into prepared pans; bake until cake tests done. Frost as desired. Easy German Chocolate Cake 1 box German chocolate cake mix 3 eggs 1 cup water (scant) 1 carton sour cream (8-oz) 1 can coconut pecan frosting Mix together cake mix, eggs and water, stir in sour cream. Pour into microwave safe tube pan. Drop frosting by spoons full into the batter. Microwave on High for 15 minutes rotating pan after first 9 minutes (unless you have a turntable). Cool about 3 to 5 minutes and then turn out onto serving plate. German Chocolate Upside-Down Cake 1 box German Chocolate Cake mix Eggs, oil, water to make cake 1 cup coconut 1 cup chopped pecans 1 lb. powdered sugar 8-oz package cream cheese 1 stick butter Lightly grease a 9×13 pan. Cut waxed paper to fit pan and grease paper also. Sprinkle pecans and coconut into pan. Mix cake according to directions on package; pour over coconut and pecans. With mixer, mix together powdered sugar, cream cheese and butter. Drop by spoonfuls over cake mix. Bake at 350ºF until cake is done. Cool in pan about 5 minutes, turn onto serving platter. Peel off the waxed paper. Serve either warm or cold. The following recipe was displayed as part of our hospital décor for fall. I have made it several times, and everyone always enjoys it. Delicious Apple Pie Cheesecake 2 medium to large Granny Smith apples, peeled cored and sliced (you may take steps to prevent the apples from darkening, but I do not feel it’s necessary) * 1/3 cup granulated sugar ½ to 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 package (8-oz) cream cheese at room temperature ¼ cup granulated sugar 1 large egg (lightly beaten) ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 1 prepared graham cracker crust (10-inch) ** 1/3 cup quick cooking oatmeal (not instant) Preheat oven to 375ºF. Whisk 1/3 cup sugar and cinnamon in a separate bowl and set aside. Using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese ¼ cup sugar together in a bowl until smooth, add egg and vanilla and mix until evenly combined. Place apples in the graham cracker crust, sprinkle sugar/cinnamon mixture over apples, sprinkle oatmeal over sugar/cinnamon mixture. Pour and spread cream cheese mixture overall. Bake in preheated oven until top is just beginning to brown, about 40 minutes. (If it seems to be browning too quickly, turn the heat down to 350ºF). Cool on wire rack for 1 to 2 hours, refrigerate until completely set, 3 to 4 hours. Also, if you rinse the apple slices with lemon juice/water or lemon-lime soda, be sure to drain them well before using. **I haven’t tried it, but I feel that a 9-inch crust would work just fine, because the apples settle a bit as they bake.
We got some new chickens so it’s been kind of egg-citing around our house to say the least. These hens have a mind of their own, that’s for sure. We have our fake ceramic eggs and plans, making little nesting boxes for them to lay eggs, but they have other ideas. They are flying up to roost in our trees at night, and then getting all sorts of creative when it comes to finding a spot to lay their eggs. So far we’ve found 6 eggs, out of what I estimate to be 18 eggs hidden in our field, based on each hen laying 1 egg a day. So I guess that makes the score about 6 to 12, hens winning. I’m a little exhausted of this non-stop Easter egg hunt, but Tucker is loving every minute of it. He even insisted that we make a “treasure map” of our property, showing where all the eggs we found were hidden. It’s a pretty confusing map so far!
Nelda Elise Franks, age 95 of Devine, Texas entered eternal rest on Sunday, January 15, 2023. She was born on May 4, 1927, in Tilmon, Texas to parents, Arthur Benton and Nona May Jackson Franks. Nelda is preceded in death by her parents; sister, Imogene Taylor; brother, Vores W. Franks. She is survived by her children, Joel Bryant Kirkpatrick III, Robbie Louise Roberts and husband, Richard, Nancy Lynn Thetford, Steven Glen Franks and wife, Nancy; brother, Harold D. Franks and wife, Helen; numerous grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nephews, and nieces. Visitation was held on Thursday, January 19, 2023, 5:00 P.M. until 9:00 P.M. family to receive friends between 5:00 P.M. and 7:00 P.M. Primrose Funeral Services Chapel Devine, Texas. Graveside service was held held on Friday, January 20, 2023, 11:00 A.M. Jeffrey Cemetery located Farm to Market Road 713, 10 miles east of Lockhart, TX and 1 mile West of McMahan, TX. Services will conclude at the Cemetery. Anyone wishing to leave condolences, share memories, or sign the online guestbook may do so at www.primrosefuneralservices.com Arrangements are under the direction of Primrose Funeral Service 303 W. College Ave., Devine, Texas, 78016, (830) 663-4445. Email info@primrosefuneralservices.com
The City of Devine will hold a public hearing at 5:05 p.m. Monday, January 30th, 2023 at City Hall to review and discuss issues regarding a large grant the city received. The grant was designated for a Sewer improvement project and those attending the public hearing will hear a report on the performance of the activities which were completed under the grant. The explanation will include discussion of the actual use of the Block Grant and those present will be invited to comment. Devine City Hall is located at 303 South Teel Drive in Devine.
Ledger James English was born on January 21st and flown to a larger hospital with a NICU. He weighed in at 5lbs. 4oz.
The English family was on vacation out of state when an emergency sent them to the hospital. Mrs. Brittany (Word) English delivered her baby prematurely and he was airlifted to another hospital to the Newborn Intensive Intensive Care Unit. Friends and family have launched a fundraising page to support the family in this trying time. Brittany and Garret English welcomed their new baby boy, Ledger James English, in Colorado on January 21st. He weighed 5lbs. 4oz. Baby Ledger is being kept in the NICU in Colorado while he continues to develop and grow strong enough to get back home to Wheeler, TX but with this comes many expenses including lodging, gas, food, etc. Brittany (Word) English is Devine graduate Class of 2010, and resides in Wheeler, Texas with her husband Garret. Proud grandparents are Darla and Jimmy Word of Devine, and Sam and Kim English, great-grandmas Dee Jenkins of Devine, Joyce Word of Victoria, and great-grandparents Charles and Barbara Gautney and Billy Joe and Faye Chancey. If you would like to help this sweet family you can donate on the Go Fund Me Page or drop off donations at The Devine News office on Monday or Tuesday or weekday afternoons. Please make checks to Brittany and Garrett English.
Link to the Go Fund Me: https://www.gofundme.com/f/garrett-and-brittany-english?utm_campaign=p_cf+share-flow-1&utm_medium=sms&utm_source=customer
In 1962 Archie Paige along with the help of the Medina County Trail Riders, decided to make another leg of the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo Trail Rides that promote and advertise the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo. Original members included Rodney Mangold, Marvin Hause, Babe Gilliam, and others. They originally began their trek at the international bridge between Laredo and Nuevo Laredo. At that time, the ride was approximately 210 miles long. Through the years, because of tick bans, and various other logistics, the trail ride now starts 10 miles south of Artesia Wells at the Oscar Moreno’s ranch. Current Trail Boss Jerry Chessher follows a long line of trail bosses. His father Jerry Chessher Sr, and his grandfather Jimmie Chessher were all trail bosses through the years, past trail bosses also included Missy Sultenfuss, Floyd McOsker, Roy Jarvis and Archie Page. This February the Laredo Trail Ride will celebrate 61 years of this grand tradition. We will be starting from Oscar Moreno’s Ranch once again with a kick-off party on Friday evening February 3rd and leaving Saturday morning Feb. 4th for our 1st night stop in Cotulla, TX; where there will be a dinner and dance at the American Legion grounds. The public is invited. The dance is from 7pm to 11pm and a $5 cover charge for the public. Music provided by DJ Rooster Rick Chavez. We will leave Sunday morning the 5th for our Dilley night stop, at the Dilley Lions Club. Monday night the 6th we will stop at the A&D Ballroom in Pearsall, TX for a dinner and dance, the public is invited. The dance is from 7pm to 11pm and a $5 cover charge for the public. Music provided by DJ Rooster Rick Chavez. Tuesday the 7th, we will stop at the N6 Farms outside of Lytle, Texas. Wednesday the 8th we will depart Lytle for our night stop at Country Gold Dance Hall for a dinner and dance with Paul Sanchez & Wrangler Country the public is invited. The dance is from 7:30pm to 11:30pm and a $10 cover charge for the public. Thursday the 9th we will be at the Morlandt Electric Co, and Friday we will be meeting South Texas Trail Riders for our final leg into the official Stock Show Grounds. Any young single cowgirls between 16 to 20 years old is invited to participate in our Laredo Trail Ride Queen Contest. We look forward to promoting the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo throughout South Texas and hope that community will come out to greet the Trail Riders and join us at our dinners and dances. For more information look us up on Facebook under Laredo Tail Ride.
