The Greatest of These is Love

There is a beautiful chapter in the Bible that speaks of love. And it’s found in First Corinthians, Chapter 13. The chapter ends with this verse which reads, “Three things will last forever-faith, hope, and love-and the greatest of these is love.”

Evelyn Kitchens who attends the First Baptist Church in Port O’Connor has great skill in giving love away. Anyone who walks into the church’s sanctuary on Sunday morning is met by Evelyn who loves to warmly greet you with a church bulletin, and if you’d like, a warm hug as well! Not only does Evelyn greet people at her church, but she greets people at Tuesday’s Senior Citizen Luncheon at the Port O’Connor Community Center. It’s just as Evelyn says, “People will be greeted the same way they are at my church.” Evelyn also serves those who cannot serve themselves.

Evelyn was born in Berry, Texas which is 10 miles east of Corsicana. She and her husband James were married in 1958. James was a mechanic. He also served in the National Guard. In fact, his unit in the National Guard was responsible for the evacuation of Palacios before Hurricane Carla hit the Gulf Coast. Evelyn was a keypunch operator. Together they ran a garage for Volkswagen repair.

After liquidating their business, they pursued woodworking in Port O’Connor. James passed in 2015. Since then, Evelyn has been retired and wants to continue living in POC. Commenting about her life in Port O’Connor Evelyn stated, “I’m staying here because of my church, my church family, and my friends.”

Evelyn’s faith is very important to her. Evelyn proudly said, “We (my husband and I) accepted Christ in this church in 2013.” You can easily tell that church is very important to Evelyn as well!

Pictured above is Evelyn (at left) with fellow church goer Mary Tavenier. Evelyn is proud of the fact that she will be 86 March 15, 2024.

The Intercoastal 4-H club had their monthly meeting November 5th. Last month was a busy month for all 4-H’ers. The 2023 Calhoun County Livestock Show was a success! We even had some of our very own Clover Kid members participate in the Clover Kid stuffed animal show. All of our members appreciate all of the gratitude from our supporters! We would all like to give a special thank you to the POC Service Club and Bell Boats for their generation donation to each of our exhibitors! Our next meeting will be December 3rd at 6:30 pm at the POC Community Center. Feel free to join us!

2023 Calhoun Co. Livestock Show Intercoastal 4-H Club Member results

Trevon Ragusin – 7th place Turkey
Christina Ragusin – Reserve Champion Turkey
Orion Ragusin – 5th place Turkey
Rainey Ragusin – 4th place Turkey
Rylie Ragusin – 11th place Roaster
Nickolas Ragusin – 9th place Roaster
McKenna Guevara – 6th place Roaster
Madden Guevara – 3rd place Roaster
Christopher Richter 10th place Roaster
Kolt Leiker – 8th place Roaster
Reid Thomas – 8th place Market Swine
Waylon Thomas – 9th place Market Swine
Bryce Sandy – 5th place Market Goat
Dalton Garner – 3rd place Market Goat
Waylon Garner – Clover Kid Show Participant
Vivian Kipp – Clover Kid Show Participant
Rhys McCauley – Clover Kid Show Participant
Thank you again to everyone for all the support, and congratulations to all the exhibitors!

The Trunk or Treat event on October 28th was a spooky success with the “Ghost Busters” taking the first-place prize home once more. The Chapman, Hodges and Metzler families from Lockhart and Port O’ Connor outdid themselves again, this year, to make this their fourth year to win. The winner of the Dog Costume Contest was Sunni. Sunni looked very frightening symbolizing “Jaws” on the end of that fishing line as Wild Bill pulled in the big one. Thank you to everyone who came out and participated!

The December Toy Run will be held Saturday, December 2nd. These boats make the trek, regardless of the weather, from Freeport loaded down with toys and bikes for the kids of Port O’ Connor and surrounding areas. The boats usually arrive around 2:30 so please make plans to come down to Clark’s and witness a great display of the Christmas Spirit. This group conducts fundraisers throughout the year to provide these amazing gifts. This year they are conducting a raffle so please go to their website and get your raffle tickets. htttps://poctoyrun.net/raffle

Saturday evening, December 2nd, around 6:30, the Lighted Boat Parade will get under way at the little jetties and move down the ICW to just past Scurlock Street.

The boat parade is open to all boats that meet the minimum US Coast Guard Safety requirements. There is no fee to enter, and plaques will be awarded in several categories, Best Overall, Most Spirited, Most Unique, Best Commercial, Best Large Pleasure, Best Medium Pleasure, and Best Small Pleasure. If you are interested in participating in the parade, please go to www.portoconnorchamber.com/local-events/lightedboatparaderegistration to register online.
The Annual Chamber of Commerce Board election will be held on December 11th. All members can submit votes in person on the 11th, by mail or by email. Each member is afforded a vote for the five open positions. Four current members will be seeking re-election Darla Parker, Brent Hart, Dawn Ragusin, and Steven Guevara. Terri McGuire has decided not to seek another term.

Is it just me or does it seem like it was yesterday we were ringing in 2023? The summer came and went and now Thanksgiving and Christmas are quickly approaching. As we look forward to January 2024, we will kick it off with our annual membership drive. If you would like to renew or join you can do so on our website at
www.portoconnorchamber.com.

Stay tuned as we plan for the 2024 Crawfish Festival and other fun events!

It is time once again for the Adopt a Christmas Angel program in Port O’Connor, to provide Christmas gifts for our less fortunate children. This is how the program works: From now until December 1, you can pick up paperwork at POC Hardware. This consists of a numbered envelope containing the “vital statistics” for your chosen child – age, gender, grade, clothing sizes, shoe size, and coat size. Shoe and coat sizes will only be available if your child needs these items. You do not need to purchase any toys. The Toy Run, another annual Christmas program, provides these.

The Adopt A Christmas Angel committee recommends a spending limit of $100 per child. If you would like to participate but feel that you cannot afford this amount by yourself, enlist a friend or two to split the cost, and share the fun of shopping and wrapping, along with the glow of knowing you have helped a child have a nice Christmas. After you have shopped for your Angel, wrap the gifts, place them in a bag, and put your Angel’s number on the bag (not on the gifts). Please take your gifts to POC Hardware Store by December 14. The store will keep the gifts until time for their delivery/pick-up. The employees at the hardware store are most gracious in helping to complete this project each year, and they have an alarm system which keeps everything safe.

If you want to participate but are unable to do the shopping, you may let Judith at the POC Hardware know. Santa’s elves will be glad to help. Help these children to have a Merry Christmas and it’s very likely that your Christmas will be even merrier!

If You Need To Put A Child On This Year’s Angel List:

Angels will be accepted until November 30. Do not wait until the last minute! This is a large program and it takes numerous people to get it up and going. You should contact Judith at the POC Hardware (983-2708) during the store’s business hours. Strict confidentiality will be maintained. Even the kind souls who adopt these angels do not know the identity of the child. The parent or guardian only may put a child on the list and make arrangements. The child must live in Port O’Connor and be between the ages of one year and sixth grade. School-aged children must attend Port O’Connor School. Do not put relatives’ children on the list unless they live with you.

You will need to furnish the child’s age, grade and clothing sizes. You may also include any special interest that your child may have. Please use this program if you need, but do not abuse it. If you have used the program in the past, and if you can, maybe this year you can adopt an angel.

Senior Citizen’s Christmas Luncheon: Please join us for the Service Club’s Annual Senior Citizen’s Christmas Luncheon on Friday, December 1, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. at the POC Community Center. The Service Club Ladies will treat everyone to beautiful Christmas decorations, lively Christmas music, a delicious multi-course meal, door prizes, wonderful Christmas Spirit, and lots of fun, laughter, and visiting with friends, neighbors, and loved ones! All Senior Citizens are welcome! If you are unable to attend due to health issues, please call or text Diane Cooley at 903-467-6335 by November 29, 2023 so that arrangements can be made for delivery.

Memorials: In honor of Steven Duane Clark, beloved son of Kenneth and Grady Jean Clark, the Service Club made a memorial donation to the POC Cemetery Association.

Intercoastal 4H Honors: The Club honored 14 members of the Intercoastal 4H Club at their November meeting for their hard work and dedication to their County Fair projects. Receiving congratulations and cards containing cash from the Service Club were: Bryce Sandy, Christina Ragusin, Christopher Richter, Dalton Garner, Kolt Leiker, Madden Guevara, McKenna Guevara, Nickolas Ragusin, Orion Ragusin, Reed Thomas, Rylie Ragusin, Sailor Ragusin, Trevon Ragusin, and Waylon Thomas. The ladies of the Service Club are proud of these fine young men and women, and wish them well in their future endeavors!

POC Elementary Student Honors: The Club honored 41 Port O’ Connor Elementary Students by presenting them with $1 Coins for making all A’s; all A’s & B’s; and having Perfect Attendance for the first 9 weeks of school. Congratulations to these hard-working students for their academic achievement- the kadies of the Service Club are proud of them all!

Farmers Market: The Service Club appreciates your ongoing support at our Booth at POC’s Farmers Markets, the next one being Saturday, December 9, 2023 from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 Noon at King Fisher Beach Pavilion. Please come check out our homemade baked goods and treats, potted plants, hand crafted items, “Service Club Cookbooks“, “POC- End of The Road” License Plate Covers, and raffle tickets of $5.00 each for a beautiful handmade quilt. There is something for everyone, so please stop by!

Service Club Meetings: The Club’s next meeting will be on December 7, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. at the POC Community Center!! All ladies are welcome!

Garage Sales: The Club is already preparing for our Spring Mega Garage Sale scheduled for April 6, 2024, and is gratefully accepting your generous donations of household, kitchen, and decorative items; small appliances; clothes; shoes; toys; children’s and baby items, etc. Due to limited space, we cannot accept furniture at this time, and we can never accept mattresses of any kind because we are not allowed to resale them. For information, please contact one of the Service Club Ladies listed below:

Alane Haardt- 281-416-6028
Nancy Ladshaw- 830-832-0510
Marie Hawes- 361-676-3093
Nan Burnett- 832-276-5948