Category: Health & Lifestyles

McKinney, TX — After Governor Greg Abbott and Brooke Rollins’ press conference on the growing threat of the New World Screwworm, Republican Agriculture Commissioner candidate Nate Sheets released the following statement:
“The New World Screwworm is not just another ag issue—it’s an existential threat to our cattle industry, our rural economy, and the price of beef for Texas families,” said Sheets. “Every day of delay risks billions in losses, permanent damage to ranching operations, and devastation for small producers. Texas needs an Agriculture Commissioner who will act the moment a threat emerges—not weeks or months later after political pressure mounts.”
The New World Screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite once eradicated in the U.S., was detected in early July just 370 miles from Texas. Experts warn it could spread rapidly if not stopped, putting every livestock sector at risk and driving up grocery prices nationwide.
Today’s plan from Abbott and Rollins included five major steps:
Building a $750 million domestic sterile fly production facility in Edinburg to triple output and end reliance on Panama and Mexico for supply.
Investing $100 million in new technologies like novel traps, lures, and modular fly units to accelerate response.
Expanding border surveillance by increasing mounted patrol “tick riders” and the USDA Beagle Brigade.
Unprecedented coordination with Mexico to halt animal movement in infected zones and improve surveillance south of the border.
Cross-agency federal action with FDA, USDA, DOE, and EPA to fast-track treatments and innovations.
“I applaud Governor Abbott and Brooke Rollins for taking swift action on this critical threat and look forward to working with them as Texas’ next Agriculture Commissioner to keep our herds safe and our cattle industry strong,” Sheets said.

Franklin Wanjura, Jr. and Pam Wanjura accept a donation check from Randy Garcia, President of Lytle State Bank for the 1st Annual Wreaths Across America ceremony for the Lytle Community. The ceremony will be held at all 3 of the Lytle Cemeteries: Lytle Community Cemetery, Masonic Cemetery and the Concepcion Cemetery.
“Franklin and I have helped with the Devine Wreaths Across America program for the last few years, and wanted to do this for our community. So together with other volunteers, we are working to cover the 210 wreaths that are needed for the 3 cemeteries,” stated Pam Wanjura. “We started back in January of this year going through records and talking to family members to find out if anyone had served that is buried in the three local cemeteries. It has taken a lot of time and patience.”
The wreaths are $17.00 each and the Ceremony is slated for December 13, 2025 at 11:00 am.
If you would like to donate to the Wreaths Across America, the Lytle group will be at Lytle State Bank on Friday, August 15th, or you can contact Efrain Vasquez at sergeantmajorpain88@gmail.com or Pam Wanjura at pamwan@sbcglobal.net.
Please make checks payable to: Wreaths Across America; ID TXLTCC, P.O. Box 249, Columbia Falls, ME 04623.

(Washington, D.C., July 9, 2025) – Yesterday, Mexico’s National Service of Agro-Alimentary Health, Safety, and Quality (SENASICA) reported a new case of New World Screwworm (NWS) in Ixhuatlan de Madero, Veracruz in Mexico, which is approximately 160 miles northward of the current sterile fly dispersal grid, on the eastern side of the country and 370 miles south of the U.S./Mexico border. This new northward detection comes approximately two months after northern detections were reported in Oaxaca and Veracruz, less than 700 miles away from the U.S. border, which triggered the closure of our ports to Mexican cattle, bison, and horses on May 11, 2025.
While USDA announced a risk-based phased port re-opening strategy for cattle, bison, and equine from Mexico beginning as early as July 7, 2025, this newly reported NWS case raises significant concern about the previously reported information shared by Mexican officials and severely compromises the outlined port reopening schedule of five ports from July 7-September 15. Therefore, in order to protect American livestock and our nation’s food supply, Secretary Rollins has ordered the closure of livestock trade through southern ports of entry effective immediately.
“The United States has promised to be vigilant — and after detecting this new NWS case, we are pausing the planned port reopening’s to further quarantine and target this deadly pest in Mexico. We must see additional progress combatting NWS in Veracruz and other nearby Mexican states in order to reopen livestock ports along the Southern border,” said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins. “Thanks to the aggressive monitoring by USDA staff in the U.S. and in Mexico, we have been able to take quick and decisive action to respond to the spread of this deadly pest.”
To ensure the protection of U.S. livestock herds, USDA is holding Mexico accountable by ensuring proactive measures are being taken to maintain a NWS free barrier. This is maintained with stringent animal movement controls, surveillance, trapping, and following the proven science to push the NWS barrier south in phases as quickly as possible.
In June, Secretary Rollins launched a Bold Plan to combat New World Screwworm by protecting our border at all costs, increasing eradication efforts in Mexico, and increasing readiness. USDA also announced the groundbreaking of a sterile fly dispersal facility in South Texas. This facility will provide a critical contingency capability to disperse sterile flies should a NWS detection be made in the southern United States. Simultaneously, USDA is moving forward with the design process to build a domestic sterile fly production facility to ensure it has the resources to push NWS back to the Darien Gap. USDA is working on these efforts in lockstep with border states – Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas – as it will take a coordinated approach with federal, state, and local partners to keep this pest at bay and out of the U.S.
USDA will continue to have personnel perform site visits throughout Mexico to ensure the Mexican government has adequate protocols and surveillance in place to combat this pest effectively and efficiently. 

By Adam Russell
Production expectations are good for Texas cotton, but low prices may stymie positive outcomes for growers.
John Robinson, Ph.D., Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service economist in the Texas A&M Department of Agricultural Economics, said growing conditions are much better than in recent years due to drought, but prices are low and could decline further.
In 2022, Texas cotton growers experienced widespread crop losses, Robinson said. Two out of three acres planted with cotton were abandoned due to unrelenting drought.
Subsequent years produced below-average results for growers, he said. In 2023 and 2024, winter and springtime rains provided decent planting conditions before arid weather set in. High temperatures and little to no rain led to lower yields in dryland and irrigated fields, while late-season rains delayed harvests in some areas and hurt lint quality.
“Most cotton growers across Texas have taken a punch in the gut the last few years and are looking for that season to make up for it,” he said. “Conditions around the state should provide that kind of optimism, but unfortunately, the other important profit factor – prices – are pretty weak.”
Cotton prices slide
A June 30 report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated national cotton acreage would be 10.1 million acres, down 10% compared to last year. Cotton acres in Texas, the nation’s leading producer, were expected to be down over 4% — 5.7 million acres compared to 5.95 million acres in 2024.
Robinson said low prices, coupled with wet weather and delayed plantings in the Mississippi Delta region, likely factored into the decline. The lower acre estimates did not result in a price boost at market.
Before the report was released, there were some expectations that cotton plantings could be closer to 9 million acres.
Cotton prices have taken a…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 Joseph Ramon
Devine News Intern
Over 65 cattle ranchers and farmhands gathered at Graff 7A ranch in Hondo Texas to hear updates from the Medina County Farm Bureau and Texas A&M Agrilfe Extension on New World Screwworms.

Dr. T.R. Lansford, the deputy executive director and assistant state veterinarian for Texas Animal Health Commission, gave the presentation explaining what New World Screwworms (NWS) are, why they are a threat, how they can be combated and what is being done to prevent the spread to Texas.
Screwworm maggots are the larvae of the fly that attack living flesh of mammals. Livestock and deer are most susceptible but there are reported cases of NWS attacking birds, companion animals, other wildlife, and on very rare occasions humans.
The life cycle of the NWS begins with adults aged 10-14 days which will lay eggs in the cattle. Eggs can be laid in an open wound, reproductive tract, sinuses or even ear canals. Within hours these eggs will hatch into larvae which will start burying themselves into the tissue. Larvae spend about 5-7 days inside the animal or in the tissue and then they come out, and pupate into the ground. After 6-8 days, they emerge from their cocoon into adult flies and repeat the process. The entire cycle is normally 18 days in hot climates, but in colder areas it can slow down and take as long as 60 days.
When it comes to transmission of this disease it is not contagious from animal to animal through contact. For this disease to spread, it requires a fly. The NWS can be masked by other types of maggots or flies that enter the wound to feed on tissue that has become necrotic as a result of damage done by the screwworms.
The primary method of eradication is the Sterile Insect Technique. This method is done by releasing sterilized adult male flies into female populations. Female NWS only mate once, so through this method NWS have been eradicated before during the 60’s in the United States.
It would be very impactful to the economy of livestock production, wildlife production and the general economy at large if there was a reintroduction of the NWS into the United States. The U.S. has made substantial efforts to remain NWS free such as financially supporting the creation of a sterile NWS plant in Mexico to eradicate the populations that appear there and prevent the spread into the U.S.. The estimated benefits of remaining free of NWS are $3.7 billion to the general economy in the United States.
There would potentially be a large amount of livestock and deer deaths. In 1935, there was an approximate loss of 180,000 cattle in Texas alone, according to Lansford . During the infestation, it was estimated that 80-90% of fawns died from NWS infections. The estimated impact on the Texas economy if there is another infestation is $1.8 billion based on the losses incurred during the infestation in 1976, adjusted for inflation.
When checking for screwworm infestations one of the signs is a strong foul odor. Monitor behavior, frequent head shaking could also indicate an infestation in the sinuses or ear canals. If these infections are not treated they typically result in death in 7-10 days, according to the presentation.
If there is an infestation discovered there are several forms of treatment to remove the infestation. There is a topical treatment that can be applied called permethrin pesticides. Systemic options are only available through a veterinarian. In addition, consider treating with betadine and otodine solutions. These will help dry up the wound and heal faster.
There are 2,200 confirmed cases of infestation in Mexico, the closest being an infestation in Oaxaca as of the week before this presentation. To prevent the spread U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Brook Rollins, has closed the borders for importation of cattle, horses and bison into the U.S.. The USDA announced a five pronged approach to stopping the spread into the U.S. which includes: stopping the pest from spreading in Mexico and ensure we are full partners in eradication, protect the U.S border at all costs, maximize our readiness, take the fight to the screwworm, and innovate our way to eradication.
“We need to inform all the cattle producers and the wildlife people that the screwworm situation was bad back in the ‘60s. I mean, it’s devastating to the livestock industry. And now to the wildlife industry. People need to be aware of what’s out there and what might be coming, and what to do about it if it gets here.” said Ronnie Muennink, president of the Medina County Farm Bureau. “ I grew up when screwworms were around, and the treatment is a daily thing. You have to watch your animals constantly, and treat immediately, because the death rate is in 7-14 days.”
If you have a suspicious case, contact the Animal Health Commission, USDA, or your veterinarian.
For more resources on screwworm information go to the USDA, Agrilfe Extension, and the Animal Health Information websites.

Devine, Texas – June 2025 – At the monthly Devine Lions Club meeting last week, Lion Lewis Stroud was awarded the Presidential Medal for Leadership by Lions Club International (LCI), earning the organization’s second-highest individual award. The recognition was announced by District 2-A2 Governor Rose Ann Barajas in the presence of Devine Lions Club membership.
A legacy of compassionate leadership. Lions Lewis Stroud, a dedicated member of the Devine Lions Club since 1985, has championed civic engagement, community fundraising, and youth outreach throughout his tenure. From club secretary to club president, his stewardship has lead to innovative service projects benefitting the visually impaired residents to supporting the Devine Police Department Silent Santa to celebrating local high school students at the monthly club meeting.
The Presidential Medal for Leadership is just one notch below the Ambassador of Good Will award. It honors LIONS who have shown profound initiative, inspired members, and contributed significantly to community welfare – all hallmarks of Lewis’s ongoing service.
Governor Rose Ann Barajas and Lions from District 2-A2 lauded Lion Lewis at the District Convention in April at the Historic Menger Hotel. “His leadership has changed lives,” shared Governor Rose Ann. Fellow Lions echoed the sentiment: “Lion Lewis always finds a way to turn compassion into action,” one club member remarked.
Upon accepting the medal, Lion Lewis humbly credited his club and the community of Devine, saying, “This honor is ours, not mine. It’s proof that when we work together, we can truly make a difference.” He pledged to use this recognition to spark new service initiatives – particularly for vision health and the youth in Devine.
LCI is a global service organization active in over 200 countries, dedicated to supporting vision, youth programs, disaster relief, and community development. Founded in 1917, awards like the Presidential Medal for Leadership span local, district, and international levels, celebrating Lions who demonstrate extraordinary leadership and lasting impact.
Lion Lewis Stroud’s receipt of the Presidential Medal for Leadership not only honors his past contributions – it also services as a beacon of hope for both current lions and aspiring community leaders. His story is a reminder that true leadership is rooted in service, and true achievements are shared with those around us.

The following programs are offered to Devine ISD students:

June 16 – 19 – Tennis Camp for grades 1 through 5 from 8 am to 9:30 am and grades 6 through 9 from 9:30 am to 11:30 am at the Tennis Courts. Cost is $55 and a t-shirt is included. Be sure to bring water, sunscreen and a cap. Please wear camp t-shirt on Thursday for pictures.
June 23 – 27 –Arabian Summer Basketball Camp for grades 1 through 3 from 1 pm to 2:30 pm and grades 4 through 9 from 3 pm to 4:30 pm at the DSAC Gym. Cost is $55 and a t-shirt is included. Participants will learn fundamental offensive skills such as dribbling, passing, shooting and defensive techniques will be stressed. There will also be time spent on dedication, school pride and Devine TEAM spirit.
July 14 – 17 – Mini Cheer Camp for Kinder from 9 am to 12 noon and grades 1 through 8 from 9 am to 3 pm at DHS Gym. Cost is $45 for Kinder and $65 for grades 1 through 8. Theme days will be: Let’s Glow Monday (Neon); Tiki Tuesday (Beach/Hawaiian); Workout Wednesday (Workout Clothes); and Super Slay Spirit Thursday (Maroon/Gold).
July 14 – 17 – Warhorse Football Camp for grades 3 through 6 from 8:30 am to 11:30 am at the Warhorse Practice Field. Cost is $50.