Celebrating 126 Years of Serving the communities of Devine, Natalia, Lytle, Bigfoot, and Moore in Medina, Frio, and Atascosa Counties
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By Kayleen Holder
Editor
Brothers Emilio and Gael would love nothing more this Christmas than to be welcomed into their forever family, together.
As experts point out, sibling bonds are often some of the longest and most enduring relationships we have. For children in care, those bonds can provide a sense of identity and emotional safety, according to Children’s Home Society.
Sadly, according to a 2022 report by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, more than two-thirds of children in foster care have a sibling in care, and studies show that up to 75% of those siblings are separated.
If adoption is in your heart, and you have room for two, meet these two great kiddos looking for a family…..
Emilio who is 10, likes building things such as car and robot models. It’s a hobby that leads to his dreams of growing up to be a scientist someday.
And on the topic of science, Emilio is also fascinated learning about the solar system.
Emilio also loves to read, especially about the ocean and ships.
At school Emilio does very well academically as he enjoys the learning process, with science being his favorite class.
He also enjoys attending the boys and girls club.
Emilio would like his future family to know he loves pets, and he would like to have a dog of his own someday, if at all possible.
Emilio enjoys going out to eat with Chick -Fil – A and McDonalds topping his list of favorites.
Big brother Gael, who is 12, is a sweet and loving child who is energetic and outgoing.
He enjoys bike riding, basketball, playing soccer, along with his passion for singing and dancing.
Gael is a very caring, attentive, and well-mannered pre-teen who loves spending time with his little brother and wants them to be adopted together.
When it comes to his education, Gael enjoys attending school where he plays football and interacting with his classmates. He does very well academically and was, in fact, selected to participate in the STEM program.
If you think you could be a forever family for these siblings or another Texas child, please call 1-800-233-3405 for more information or visit www.adoptchildren.org where you can find a schedule of online public information meetings, and learn about the foster/adoption program.
You can also view the www.heartgallerystx.org website, where South Texas children have their portraits along with individual personal stories they wish to share, with their future forever family.
City Administrator David Jordan, left, and Mayor Butch Cook preside during the Dec. 16 Devine City Council meeting. Photo by Anton Riecher.
By Anton Riecher
The Medina County Emergency Services District No. 2 board of commissioners received an update during its Dec. 17 meeting on progress in audit work to trace funds missing in an embezzlement scandal that brought major changes to local emergency response management during the past year.
ESD2 bookkeeper Nancy Pepper also reported progress by accountant Karl Goering of Armstrong, Vaughn & Associates in providing a further breakdown on nearly $11,000 in misappropriation in the year 2022-23, which includes a lot of Amazon purchases, at least $500, noted in an ongoing fraud investigation involving the Devine Volunteer Fire Department. $10,500 was in payroll, for a total of $11,000.
An audit by…LOGIN TO CONTINUE READING at www.devinenewsmembers.com. You will get instant access to our full E-edition, and begin getting the newspaper delivered to your home next week for $36 a year in Medina County. Support important local city, county, and school news like this!
Increasing water and sewer rates is “never a fun decision to make but it is the right decision for the city,” McLiney said.
Students at St. Joseph Catholic Church put on a beautiful Nativity play this past week. They are Kassandra Fajardo (Mary), Christopher Tapia (Joseph), Slade Whitley (Prophet), Inn Keepers Mason Cordova, Isaias Mendez, Jayden Palacios, Shepherds- TJ Buvinghausen, Ivan Iglesias, Jacob Casias, Kings- Marcus Gomez, Weston Leal, Carter Stewart, Angels- Jacklyn Guajardo, Lainey Cordova, Sam Steubing, Sophia Palacios, Jackson Weeks, Donkeys- Millie Null, Aaron Aguilar, Sheep Laura Steubing, Cows- Penny Null, Anthony Aguilar, Extras- Reese and Riley Haass, Stage Hands- Andi Haass, Quay Ortiz, Zach Ortiz, Natalia Gutierrez, and Emma Martinez, Narrator Bianca Villanueva. Photo by Adrian Reyes.
I’ll be home for Christmas…
After 40 long days away, Pvt 2 Elijah Amir Gomez of Devine, arrived home this Saturday for a 2 week holiday block leave from Army Basic Training. As you can tell, his mom Sopheila Zori is so grateful to have her soldier home.
Pvt Gomez, a 2024 Devine HS graduate, is serving in the Army National Guard -stationed at Fort Leonardwood, MO as he undergoes Basic Training. Pvt Gomez said he is proud to “serve and defend the nation that provided my family with the opportunities and freedoms they didn’t have before.”
Proud parents are Michael Gomez and Soheila Zori, of Devine.
Special thank you and Merry Christmas to Pvt Gomez, and all of the men and women serving in the Armed Forces, and their families, who have made so many great sacrifices for us all.
By Anton Riecher
What one Devine city council member referred to as a “$32,000 gamble” to restore the city’s long dormant L.C. Martin water well to operation has apparently paid off.
Chuck Jones with Converse-based Advanced Water Well told the council at its Dec. 16 meeting that the company has completed the rehabilitation project and is now waiting to install either a new or repaired submersible pump.
“We did our typical running a brush down it and jetting out all the fill as well as we acidized the well to recede all the iron bacteria in the formation,” Jones said.
The council voted…LOGIN TO CONTINUE READING at www.devinenewsmembers.com. You will get instant access to our full E-edition, and begin getting the newspaper delivered to your home next week for $36 a year in Medina County. Support important local city, county, and school news like this!
By Melody Riou
UIL Academics is a wonderful program for students to be involved in. Academic competition for younger students has been around since 1913, with the under age ten categories beginning in 1921.
The program of academic competition for elementary, middle school and junior high officially became “A+ Academics” in 2008. A+ Academics includes 20 different events for grades 2-8. These events span the curriculum – they are designed to complement and expand upon what students learn in the classroom, both through learning specific subject knowledge, and through learning skills that are valuable in many disciplines. Approximately 3,000 Texas schools participate in A+ Academics, competing in more than 300 district meets each year.
On December 5th, our UIL students competed in Floresville for our annual UIL competition. Our kids competed against other students from Floresville, Pearsall, Carrizo Springs, Uvalde and Somerset. Devine won the UIL meet for the 12th year in a row. We are so proud of each and every team member.
People feel most cared about when others do thoughtful things for them. A group of fourth and fifth grade students under the direction of their teacher Lee Davis at Devine Intermediate decided that Christmas was a good time to share their thoughtfulness and do something kind for someone. Kindness is all about showing you care.
The group of students decided to make a poster with thoughtful wishes for someone. The poster was full of Christmas wishes for Bobbie Dubose. Their goal was to demonstrate the power and importance of being kind. Their kindness expressed and nourishes personal and community connections. Thank you for doing such a kind thing!
The Huajilla Area Retired Teachers and Staff held its annual holiday social on Monday, December 15, at Triple C Restaurant in Devine with a luncheon and activities.
President Earline Schlortt welcomed the 40-plus members and guests. Members serenaded the November and December birthday celebrants. Schlortt then introduced special guest and 20-year Devine Elementary retiree, Bobbie DuBose, 91 years young, who is among the few original members of the Huajilla group.
Schlortt recognized Huajilla’s past presidents Lewis Stroud, Irene Rodriguez-Dubberly, and Jim Rigby, presenting them with beautiful poinsettia plants.
President Schlortt then introduced special guests, Eddie Gentry from the Bluebonnet Children’s Center; Roxanne Carter, director of the St. Jude’s Ranch for Children; and Sgt. Mark Esquivel who represented Medina County’s Brown Santa. Each gave a short summary of their services for children, especially those children who suffer abuse or have been removed from the parents’ home due to other circumstances which put the children in danger. These organizations provide for the safety of children and each representative thanked HARTS for their contributions of books which the children keep for their own. Additionally, they reiterated that the books provide children not only an escape through reading but provide learning opportunities to children who otherwise may not have access to books that they can keep. The Southwest Family Life center was unable to attend the meeting, and their books will be delivered to them.
Members then participated in a gift exchange game, but all participants walked away with a gift. There was a drawing for remaining gifts and winners were Tommy Fillinger and Irene Cox.
After the meal, Brenda Prestage conducted a contest for the group, asking 10 questions related to Famous Duos, Foods, Sit Coms and Geography. Each category had a winner, and despite some talking and sharing responses, and the fact that members realized that either they did not know the answers, or the answers were unretrievable from their memory bank, the competition was sharp, but the overall winner was Claire Coffey.
Prior to adjournment, Earline Schlortt announced the January 26,2026, at Sammy’s Restaurant in Castroville.
Like Christmas Cookies
Had a great time this past weekend with some new friends and our families. We went to the San Antonio Aquarium which is an AMAZING place, and if you’ve never been, here’s your sign. It’s kind of like an aquarium, a zoo, an arcade, and a bouncy castle playground all in one.
Anyway, with it being Christmas and all, we got chased around by the Grinch a little bit while we looked at the Stingrays and the Sharks, took a picture of the kids in a shark’s jaws, and tried our hand at “glow in the dark” ping pong. That was interesting, because my first reaction to there being glow in the dark ping pong was “oh great…I can hardly hit the ball in the light,” but somehow it actually seemed a little easier.
The next day we did breakfast and Playdough time. And I will say if you’ve never had your children create you out of Playdough, you should try it. You might be surprised at all of the interesting features they see in you! Later we all went to Devine Acres. One of my favorite parts there was seeing all of the boys (little and big) try their hands at the “tractor pull”, which is literally an old tractor with a rope tied to it. We also enjoyed our encounter with the Goat Races, fishing (though the perch were a little stubborn), played a little Tether ball while the kids scoured the playground, Dino Paintball, and we even got to run through the “snow” machine on our way out in 80 degree weather! I feel like from the time I left my house to when I arrived at Devine Acres, the temperature rose by 10 degrees so I was pretty dang hot. But still, walking through the snow on our way out was pretty magical. For a moment, I almost stopped sweating when I saw that beautiful bubble “snow” coming down!
As we went to sleep last night, me and Tucker said our prayers, our normal prayers. And then we started saying our “made up” prayers from the heart, and it was a cute one. He was saying “Thank you God for the bestest family in the whole wise world” and then followed that up by proceeding to thank God for a whole laundry list of very practical things….It went a little something like this: “God, thank you for cups. Thank you for trash cans. God, thank you for tooth brushes and tooth paste…” and that’s when I lost it. I had held my breath through a list of things, but when he thanked God for toothbrushes, a snicker burst out of me. It didn’t phase him too much though. He was serious about this prayer for very practical things. He just reached over and covered up my mouth while he continued.
It’s only a few days til Christmas now, and I have to say around this time of year, I am always wishing it was a little farther away. The preparation and excitement of getting ready for Christmas day is more than half of the fun. My daughter has the ceiling of our hallway lit up like a runway for Santa’s sleigh, and every morning I listen to Christmas music without anyone accusing me of being crazy, and our living room tree and fireplace with the stockings just make me smile. Every day I look forward to Christmas morning, but I don’t want it to end. I like looking forward to it.
I will admit, we have baked WAY too many Christmas cookies this year, and decorated them with WAY too much icing, but everything about it is just too fun. Speaking of that, you might be surprised what your face looks like as a Christmas cookie decorated by your children too. It’s always fun to see what they come up with.
I guess that’s the best part about kids, seeing and listening to the silly stuff they come up with and the sweet things they do. Kids are kinda like Christmas cookies…they are just too fun and too sweet…and the more the merrier!
By the time most of y’all get this paper, you will be just about finished celebrating Christmas, and hopefully you have most of the mess cleaned up also. My family will be with me on Saturday the 27th. My youngest granddaughter and her three boys spent part of the weekend with me this past week. We made some cookies; and they decorated them using the cookie paint that I told you about a couple of weeks ago. Their dinosaurs were really cute and different!
This week, my thought was to give you something a little different, so instead of a bunch of recipes, I’m going to give you the story of the Partridge in a Pear Tree. Most of you have probably already heard of it, but when someone sent it to me last year, I hadn’t heard it before.
1. The partridge in a pear tree if Jesus Christ.
2. The two turtle doves are the Old and New Testaments.
3. Three French hens stand for Faith, Hope, and Love.
4. The four calling birds are the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
5. The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of The Old Testament.
6. The six geese a-laying stand for the six days of creation.
Seven swans a-swimming represent the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit: Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership and Mercy.
8. The eight maids a-milking are the eight beatitudes.
9. The nine ladies dancing are the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self Control.
10. The ten lords a-leaping are the Ten Commandments.
11. Eleven pipers piping stand for the eleven faithful disciples.
12. The twelve drummers drumming symbolizes the twelve points of belief in the Apostles’ Creed.
So, there is your history lesson for today.
And now, I would like to wish each and every one of you a very Merry Christmas and a very Healthy, Happy New Year!
