Category: Top News Stories

Devine Lions Club President Lewis Stroud donates box fans to Project Breeze. Accepting the fans is Police Chief Joe Brown. If you would like to contribute, or are in need of a way to keep your home cooler, contact the Devine Police Department about Project Breeze.

By Anton Riecher
A proposed city budget of $5.865 million for fiscal year 2026-2027 was presented to the Devine City Council during the first of a series of budget workshops scheduled throughout the summer.
During the budget workshop interim financial assistant Cassandra Maldonado reviewed general fund and the sewer and water fund proposals for the coming year.
“This workshop focuses on the city’s major operating funds and highlights the financial strategies , capital investment and policy decisions included in the budget,” she said.
Also, in a special city council session following the workshop, the council unanimously approved posting a notice of intention to issue city certificates of obligation not to exceed $2.750 million to cover urgent infrastructure repairs including water system lift stations and the wastewater treatment plant.
Council also voted unanimously 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!

By Anton Riecher
During the special session of the Devine City Council regarding issuance of certificates of obligation for infrastructure improvements, Jack McLiney of SAMCO Marketing Capital, financial consultants to the city, explained that the financing could be done with no impact to the city tax rate.
“What we have here before us today is the notice of intention resolution,” McLiney said. “This is not a commitment to borrow money. It is merely the first legal step in the process of a bond sale.”
One lift station near the golf course included in the improvements was described as on “life support,” while another was…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 Kayleen Holder
Editor
Craftsman Collision Center is kicking off with a huge Grand Opening party this Saturday from 10 til 1 pm in downtown Devine. They are located at 512 E. Hondo Avenue. They will be giving away lots of great stuff for adults and kiddos too, so bring the family out! They will also have DJ Reggie Pena there to get the party started.
FREE FOOD & DRINKS….
You can find FREE BBQ Sliders from Get Some BBQ (first 125 free), snow cones from Addy Snowcone (first 150 free), and Bobby Contreras’ famous lemonade (first 50 free)
DRAWINGS
They will be giving away 13 great prizes. Simply check in at the front desk to show that you liked or followed their Facebook page, to get 2 tickets to put in the drawing. Among the many prizes are a large TV, ice chest, detail kit, and Milwaukee tools!
ENTERTAINMENT
They will doing a public walk through at 11:30. DJ Reggie will be there from the time things kick off til it winds down. They will also have some cool hot rods to look at while you are there!
See their weekly ad for details and specials throughout the next few months.

Prestenbachs pursue stem cell treatment for baby Everett

By Kayleen Holder
Editor
Roughly 300 million people across the globe are battling a rare disease, and about half of them are children. Battling a rare disease brings with it a unique set of challenges, as families are left to research and seek out off-label treatments–many times internationally. Such is the case for this South Texas family pursuing a stem cell treatment for their son Everett, 2 years old, who is living with a rare genetic disorder as well as spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy.
The rare genetic disorder that baby Everett has is so rare that it doesn’t even have a name per say.
“It’s a chromosome abnormality,” said his mother Sarah Prestenbach. “Deletion of 5, and duplication of chromosome 7.”
Everett is one of only two known cases of…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!

The City of Lytle invites residents and visitors to celebrate the 250th Anniversary of the USA at their annual 4th of July Fireworks Display at the John Lott Park on Saturday, July 4 starting at 6:00 p.m. It’s a FREE event, a community tradition filled with patriotism, family fun, and a spectacular evening show lighting up the South Texas sky.
Food will be available via multiple food trucks. Music via a DJ will lead into a night-time spectacular. Helpful tips for attendees: Bring lawn chairs or blankets. Arrive early for the best viewing spots. Stay hydrated and dress for warm weather. No glass bottles allowed.

By Anton Riecher
A new ambulance substation in Natalia is coming closer and closer to reality as the Medina County Emergency Services District No. 4 board of commissioners voted 3-to-0 at its June 24 meeting to approve borrowing $700,000 on a 10-year note to finance the project.
The vote followed shortly after groundbreaking ceremonies featuring the board and the Natalia City Council held at the proposed construction site.
Board president Steve Smith said the prefabricated building itself has already been ordered with delivery expected in the next six-to-eight weeks.
“Our target is”…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!

New World Screwworm (NWS) is a parasitic fly that poses a serious threat to livestock, exotic livestock, fowl, and exotic fowl in Texas. NWS flies lay eggs in wounds or soft tissues of live warm-blooded animals; the larvae hatch and burrow into living tissue, leading to the painful condition NWS myiasis. As the infestation worsens and the wounds become larger, it can cause serious injury, secondary infection, and can be fatal if not treated.
NWS is recognized by the United States Department of Agriculture as a foreign animal disease that has poses a threat to U.S. agriculture, wildlife, public health, and the economy.
On January 29, 2026, Governor Greg Abbott issued a statewide disaster proclamation for all counties in Texas due to the threat NWS poses to the state’s livestock industry, economy, and the potential for widespread and severe property damage for Texas. Governor Abbot has renewed the proclamation each month since.
On June 5, 2026, Governor Greg Abbott issued a new statewide disaster proclamation for all Texas Counties in response to a detection of NWS in Texas.
The Texas Animal Health Commission (the “Commission”) is authorized under Chapter 161, Texas Agriculture Code, to establish movement restrictions against all or a portion of a state in which an animal disease exists to protect livestock, exotic livestock, domestic fowl, and exotic fowl in this state from the disease.
As specified in…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!

The City of Devine is having a Budget Workshop at 6pm on Monday, July 6th at the Devine Community Center. After that, they are also having a Special Meeting at 7 pm that evening to:
-Consider and act upon approving appointing Terry Page as the Data Center Consultant for the City of Devine.
On his resume, it states Page presently works as the Principal Program Manager for Microsoft. Among the accomplishments listed on his resume, it states that Page is currently leading a $450M, 48MW build on a 120 acre site in Castroville. He also led early works on the 200 acre greenfield campus in Medina County.
He is closing a 28.8MW build on a 22 acre site in San Antonio. He led a $1.2Billion SAT Data Center campus development across 180 acres including 5 hyperscaler buildings among many other developments.
Also on the agenda is to consider and act upon a resolution authorizing and approving publication and posting of notice of intention to issue the city’s certificates of obligations and other matters in connection there with.

By Matthew “Moose” Lopez, Sports Editor
He’s back! Retired postman Oscar Del Toro of Natalia has once again completed the historic Pony Express trip. An impressive feat that dates back to the early colonization of the western frontier in the 1800’s.
The Pony Express was an attempt to expedite the postal system and saw mail carriers travel more than 1,800 miles in ten days on horseback in order to deliver letters at a rate not yet seen in the budding civilization of the United States. Today, the tradition is kept alive and performed every June in order to preserve the rich history of the old west and to the…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!