Category: Events

Kathleen Calame
Publisher, The Devine News
Crews for AEP Texas have been busy working around Devine the past few months upgrading infrastructure by replacing aging electric poles and wires, doing enhanced vegetation control by aggressive tree trimming and cleaning along power line right of ways, as well as adding new technologies. All to improve overall grid reliability for South and West Texas customers, aimed to shorten outages due to extreme weather, and reduce wildfire risks. They also aim to strengthen the grid for faster power restoration and greater resilience.
In Devine they are upgrading poles and the feeder wire between the substations. Devine is part of a very important corridor with large transmission lines to Pearsall which feeds a lot of power to West Texas and Laredo. Work can be seen on Colonial Parkway, Brown, and main streets Hwy 132 (Teel Drive), and West Hondo Ave (Hwy 173), to name a few.
The area has experienced a lot of population growth, and the $318 million dollar 3-year resiliency plan should help address that and as well as help crews bounce back quickly after a storm with the hardened infrastructure and new technology. The following press releases give additional details:
AEP Texas Advances Resiliency Plan for Stronger Electric Grid
September 22, 2025 AEP Texas continues to make progress on its three-year resiliency plan to strengthen the electric grid and improve its resiliency and reliability for customers across South and West Texas. Contractors have successfully replaced 765 poles and restrung miles of wire in the last few months, and continue focusing on vegetation management.
With engineering efforts nearing 90 percent completion for this year’s projects, the number of active crews will expand to 55 by the end of the year. This ramp-up supports AEP Texas’s 2025 goal of replacing 3,700 poles and 76 miles of wire to meet resiliency standards.
Another area of the resiliency plan focuses on vegetation management. AEP Texas continues its focus clearing vegetation in its rights-of-way to reduce outages caused by tree contact. “Over the next three years, more than…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!

Tuesday, 01/13/26, The Current Events Club had their monthly meeting hosted by Sarah McAlpin, Judy Eaddy, Cathy Mechler, Miriam Lopez, Debbie Randall and Sessie Franceschini. The program for the day was an overview of events held by the Driscoll Public Library given by Stacy Pyron. Many events are open to the public and some are held for age specific. They have crafting after hours, Lego club, planner club, story time for children, and sit & stitch.
The meeting attendees also held discussion how Wreaths Across America went in December. The wreaths were removed on January 10th.
The next meeting will be February 10, 2026, if you are interested in attending, please contact Linda Kreinhop 713-562-7504.

By Anton Riecher
By a 4-0 vote, the Lytle City Council amended the drought fee utility rate schedule originally passed in August to discourage high usage during periods of mandatory water restrictions.
City Administrator Zachary Meadows told the council at its Jan. 12 meeting that the city staff grew concerned that the amounts charged in the lowest tiers of the drought fee schedule might have an adverse effect on customers.
“It really wasn’t fair across the board when you really look at the numbers,” Meadows said. “What I really think the main objective tonight should be is coming up with a more equitable charge across the board.”
A drought fee is an additional fee imposed by a city-owned water utility on customers during severe water shortages, designed to discourage high water usage and enforce conservation. Under Stage 4 restrictions, the fee for between 3,001-to10,000 gallons is $25, rising by tiers to $250 for over 100,000 gallons.
Under the amended structure proposed by Meadows the drought fee for 3,001-to-10,000 gallons of water used would drop from $25 to $5. From 10,001-to-25,000 gallons the fee will drop from $30 to $10. However, the additional charge for 25,000-to-50,000 would increase from $40 to $50 with further increases in the next four ascending tiers in the schedule.
Meadows said the drought fees are the result of mandatory pumping restrictions invoked on municipalities by the Edwards Aquifer Authority due to ongoing drought conditions.
“We are told we can’t use as much water and if residents and businesses continue to use more water we are going to go over (the restrictions) and we have to…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!

to feature Medina River watershed project, restoring health of land and vegetation

The Texas Water Resources Institute, TWRI, invites stakeholders to a public meeting on implementation of the Medina River Below Diversion Lake Watershed Protection Plan, WPP, on Jan. 22 in Castroville.
The meeting will be from 1-3 p.m. at the Braden Keller Community Center, 1410 Amelia St.
Light refreshments will be provided.
“This meeting will highlight progress on the Riparian Restoration Demonstration Project in Castroville Regional Park, an important component of implementing the WPP,” said Mary Michael Zahed, TWRI program specialist, San Antonio. “Restoring degraded vegetated areas along the river, known as riparian zones, is one of our priorities.”
Meeting highlights-Local residents, landowners, city and county officials, nonprofit partners, and all interested individuals are encouraged to attend.
The agenda will feature a guest presentation by Clay Thompson, director of conservation and stewardship, Green Spaces Alliance of South Texas, on how the alliance supports the WPP through land conservation, community engagement and education.
Stakeholders will also be invited to participate in the design of a Medina River WPP logo.
“Our progress depends on collaboration,” Zahed said. “Every voice at the table helps strengthen the watershed protection plan and ensures we move forward with strategies that benefit both the river and the people who rely on it.”
Watershed basics-A common question is what a watershed is, Zahed said. A watershed is an area of land that drains or “sheds” water into a specific waterbody. All bodies of water have a watershed, and every person lives in a watershed.
Residents in the region can visit medina.twri.tamu.edu and use the watershed boundary map to find out if they live in the Medina River Below Diversion Lake Watershed. Even if they live outside the boundary, anyone interested in supporting the health and water quality of the Medina River is considered a stakeholder and is welcome to participate.
Funding for this effort is provided through a federal Clean Water Act Section 319(h) grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, administered by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board.
TWRI is a unit of Texas A&M AgriLife Research that brings together expertise from across The Texas A&M University System.
For more information, contact Zahed at mary.lipfordzahed@ag.tamu.edu or 979-314-8092.

Devine High School juniors Melenie Cardenas, Esteban Mendoza, and Margarita Vizcarra have teamed up this year for their STAR (Students Taking Action with Recognition) event in FCCLA. They have two goals: to raise awareness about domestic violence and to educate their community.
Vizcarra stated, “Our project, Break the Cycle, can be found on Instagram at @BREAK_THE_CYCLE_AND_SPEAK_UP, where we share updates on everything we are doing for our FCCLA project. We would greatly appreciate your support with a follow — we have already reached 227 followers, and every new supporter helps us spread awareness.”
The team would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to our local sports nutrition store,
KickStart Nutrition (kickstartnutrition_devine), for helping them spread awareness and collaborating with them by offering purple drinks during No Violence November (November 17–30, 2025). Thanks to this partnership, 100 purple beverages were sold to support their cause.
They also sincerely thank Devine Middle School for allowing them to present to the 8th-grade students on December 11, 2025, where they discussed domestic violence and the importance of knowing right from wrong. The trio presented to 120 students, making this an impactful experience for the team. They will be presenting to Mrs. Outlaw’s FCS classes in January and doing an activity where students receive a handout listing five things they could say to someone experiencing domestic violence.
Thanks to these collaborations, the group has successfully completed two major events and is planning additional ones for the Spring semester.

Internal promotions and structural shifts ensure a seamless transfer of knowledge
(Hondo, Texas) – 1/12/2026 – Medina Electric Cooperative announces a strategic reorganization of its leadership team and the appointment of a new Chief Member Relations Officer, effective January 2. These changes are driven by a commitment to operational excellence and a strategic realignment of departments to better serve the cooperative’s growing membership following several key retirements.
New Chief Member Relations Officer Appointed
Leading a new team is Katie Kothmann Haby, who has been promoted to the recently created role of Chief Member Relations Officer. A veteran of the utility industry with 16 years of experience, Haby has spent the last 13 years at Medina EC, demonstrating a deep understanding of the cooperative’s mission and its members’ needs.
Under this new structure, communications, business development and member services will be consolidated under Haby’s leadership. This move is designed to streamline member touchpoints and ensure a cohesive strategy for community engagement and growth.
Strategic Departmental Realignment
To further optimize operations and prepare for the future, Medina EC is realigning several key internal functions.
Human Resources will move under the Chief Financial Officer, linking workforce development with long-term fiscal planning.
Safety will transition under the engineering department to further integrate safety-first protocols into technical workflows.
Facilities will move under operations, aligning physical asset management with field activities.
Honoring a Legacy of Service
The reorganization comes as Patti Taylor, Chief Administrative Officer, prepares for retirement after a distinguished 27-year career with Medina EC. Taylor is joined by several other dedicated team members also retiring this year; collectively these individuals represent over 176 years of industry knowledge and service to our members. Additionally, the cooperative is pleased to announce that Armando Castillo has been promoted to Manager of Southern Region Operations, filling a vacancy created by a concurrent retirement in the field.
“While it is bittersweet to see long-time leaders like Patti move into a well-deserved retirement after nearly three decades of service, we are incredibly excited about the future of Medina EC,” said Trey Grebe, CEO. “By promoting proven internal talent like Katie and Armando, and strategically grouping our departments, we are ensuring that our cooperative remains agile, efficient, and—above all—dedicated to the members we serve.”
Looking Ahead
These leadership changes represent Medina EC’s proactive approach to a changing energy landscape. By aligning member-facing departments under a single chief officer and integrating support services like HR and safety into core operational hubs, the cooperative is positioned for continued stability and enhanced service delivery in the new year.

Medina County Fire/EMS released the year-end report which includes service for ESD1, ESD4, ESD2 and ESD6.
In total, Medina County Fire/EMS responded to 3,183 emergencies. Of the total 3,183 calls, 60 were regarding grass/brush fires, 33 concerning residential fires, and 40 responding to vehicle/RV/machinery fires. With that, the departments average response time was 8.1 minutes.
ESD1, requested and we began providing transport EMS on May 30, 2025, responded to 2,110 total calls for the year. Of those calls, 1,422 were EMS responses excluding MVC’s. There were 688 Fire calls including MVC’s.
ESD2, requested, and we began providing fire response on October 1, 2025, responded to 66 fire calls.
ESD4, requested and we began providing transport EMS on October 31, 2025, responded to 390 total EMS calls.
ESD6, the department responded to 615 total calls, with 360 being fire calls including MVC’s and 255 EMS calls excluding MVC’s.
Overall, the Medina County Fire/EMS department experienced a year of significant growth through the increase of staff levels for fire/rescue and bringing the total to 4 of Medina County’s six primary ESD’s (4/6) now being covered by their personnel. (ESD1 Castroville/LaCoste area Fire/EMS, ESD2 Devine area Fire, ESD4 Devine/Natalia/part Lytle EMS area, ESD6 Hondo Fire).
Source: Medina County Fire/EMS.

(Hondo, Texas) – 1/5/2026 – Members interested in running for a position on Medina Electric Cooperative’s board of directors will need to complete an online petition with at least 30 valid signatures from members who have electric service in the voting district the potential nominee wishes to represent.
Online petitions opened on January 2 and close at 5 p.m. on March 2.
Medina EC is run by a nine-person board of directors elected by members who receive power from the cooperative. Each one of Medina EC’s three voting districts has a position open for election each year. Elections generally take place in September, and the petition and paperwork are the first steps to being considered as a candidate for the election. The board is responsible for setting operating policies for the cooperative and making decisions regarding the financial health and well-being of the organization.
For more information regarding the online petition process including deadlines, the link to the petitions and the required paperwork to be considered, visit MedinaEC.org/Nominee. Email MyCoop@MedinaEC.org or call 1-866-632-3532 ext. 1008 with any questions.