We’re Ready To Move!

After several months of busily obtaining and assembling needed documents, the POCSA is ready to submit a designed plot plan for the 1st phase of the Sports Complex of Port O’Connor to the Commissioners’ Court for approval. Currently, the proposed plan as drawn by Bernie Klein, a local architect will contain a baseball field, soccer/football field and a walking trail. These sporting areas will be located adjacent to the Community Center on County approved property. And, as the needs of our area become more apparent and diversified, other improvements will be added.

But support is needed from the members of our Community in order to obtain approval for these plans. Therefore, we are asking each person to sign the petition being forwarded all over POC by Sally Ragusin (that petite and bouncy redhead), and to write a letter to the Commissioners’ Court denoting your interest and approval of this project. Once approval has been obtained, the next steps will be applying for various grants to help fund this.

At the total completion of all phases, the Sports Area could contain baseball, soccer, football fields as well as even a basketball court and tennis too. Along with a mid-length walking trail designed for adults, could be a shorter one which would encourage the kids to be a little more active. And picnicking areas with tables and possibly even small bbq pits in a grassy area near a playground for younger children are under consideration. The full concept of the community benefit from this Sports Area has no limit, except its cost and the lack of commitment by our residents.

In order to make writing a letter somewhat easier, I have added a draft of a letter that an individual can use and personalize. Please use it and forward it to Calvin Ragusin, Vice President of the POCSA, who will then take all letters to the Commissioners’ Court. Calvin can be reached at 655-0498, and he will be happy to be of help. And possibly Shirley or I at the Library could be of assistance too.

Proposed Draft Of Sample Letter

To the Members of the Commissioners’ Court:

We in Port O’Connor are asking your help in supporting the proposed plans by the POC Sports Association (POCSA) to build a community accessible sporting area adjacent to the Community Center. We feel strongly that this type of a complex would be highly beneficial for our children as well as the many parents and other adults of POC. We need an area that the kids could go and play baseball or use a swing set while the parents enjoy a walking trail.

As the current plans are not too extensive for the first phase, we as residents will be able to support fully and whole-heartedly the planned money raising activities needed to partially fund this phase. As that portion is completed, we recognize that more support will be needed, but after seeing the successful completion and usage of this phase, we will, therefore, be able to dedicate our time in a more active manner.

Our children are our future, and if by being able to use a sports area to benefit each child’s personal growth, there is no limit of that child’s achievement.

Sincerely,

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Port O’Connor’s Proposed Sports Area (Located behind Community Center)

1. Complex Site Sign
2. Existing 15’0” wide Utility Easement
3. Parking for 85
4. Concession Stand/Storage/Restrooms/Water Fountains
5. Covered Picnic Areas (2)
6. Little League Baseball Field
7. Fence Line
8. Bleachers
9. Youth Soccer Fields
10. Official Area
11. Team Coaching Area

Charles E. Robinson, 73, of Port O’Connor, Texas passed away Monday, September 10, 2012. He was born December 17, 1938 in Groesbeck, Texas to the late Richard and Lorena Bollier Robinson. He was a retired guard at the Sugarland TDC Prison after 30 years of service.

After retirement, he moved to Port O’Connor so he could enjoy his favorite hobby of fishing.

He is survived by his sister, Lois (Rex) Widle; two brothers, James (Laverne) Robinson and Hodge (Barbara) Robinson; and numerous nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Alvie and Billy Jack Robinson; and sisters, Elsie Widle and Marie Wilkerson.

Graveside services were held September 13, 2012 at Memory Gardens Cemetery in Edna.

Services were under the direction of Slavik Funeral Home, 209 N. Allen St., Edna; 361-782-2152.

All are invited to participate.

First Corinthians Bible Study Starting Sept. 23rd

St. Joseph Catholic Church in Port O’Connor is starting their next The Great Adventure Bible study, First Corinthians: The Church and the Christian Community, featuring Dr. Tim Gray via DVD. The conflicts of the early Christians in the seaport town of Corinth are in many ways similar to our struggles today as Christians. With divisions, immorality, persecution, and other trials of the faithful, the message of St. Paul to the Corinthians is a much needed message for our own times. The study explores the key elements that the apostle Paul introduced to a new and growing Church.
Come join us Sunday evenings starting September 23rd from 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. as we explore Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. We will meet in the Parish Hall to discuss Scripture readings followed by a 30 minute video summarizing the lesson. The first session is an introduction followed by ten study sessions. No prior experience or knowledge is necessary.
Please contact Melissa Doggett at 361-983-2510 to register or if you would like more information regarding the study.

San Antonio Bay has a way of stirring up trouble: shrimping wars, industrial waste disputes, and environmental lawsuits.

Still, some bay stakeholders believe that working together is a better way to calm the troubled waters than working at odds. These stakeholders formed the nonprofit San Antonio Bay Partnership to find common ground among all who rely on the bay – people and the environment.

“We want to bring everyone to the table,” said John Kisalus, board chair of the San Antonio Bay Partnership. “We are confident that our goodwill and inclusive, scientific approach will build on the recent efforts of state-appointed stakeholders and the future outcome of the whooping crane lawsuit.”

In 2010 the San Antonio Bay Partnership was created by interested parties to develop a management plan that protects, restores and enhances the bay and estuary to benefit the environment and people. Similar management plans have been developed for Galveston and Corpus Christi bay systems.

Now the San Antonio Bay Partnership faces the biggest opportunity yet to help residents, landowners, businesses, recreationists, municipalities, river authorities and government agencies balance their needs with those of the environment. The Partnership aims to develop a bay management plan that bridges basic differences about San Antonio bay health that couldn’t be bridged before.
“Vested interests have a lot at stake in San Antonio Bay,” Kisalus acknowledged. “But we believe that a collaborative process is more promising that polarized arguments.”

In 2010 The Aransas Project – an alliance of environmental groups, businesses, municipalities, political parties and individuals – sued the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality on grounds that it failed to allow enough fresh water to flow into San Antonio Bay to protect the endangered Whooping Cranes. A decision is still pending.

The stakes are rising for San Antonio Bay. The estuary system relies on fresh water flowing in from the Guadalupe and San Antonio rivers, which face growing water demands upstream. Both quantity and timing matter.

Earlier this year, a panel of state-appointed stakeholders made recommendations to the TCEQ about how much water should flow into San Antonio Bay to maintain a sound ecological environment while considering and balancing public interests in water supply. The stakeholders failed to reach a consensus on their recommendations, and some felt the subsequent rules developed by TCEQ were inadequate.

“Both the TCEQ stakeholder process and the whooping crane trial recognized the need for more information,” said Kisalus. “That’s where we can play a role, for example, if a crane conservation plan is required by a court decision in the whooping crane lawsuit.”

The San Antonio Bay Partnership could help TCEQ and other agencies implement a work plan for additional studies and activities developed by the state-appointed stakeholders, said James Dodson, facilitator for the Partnership. The work plan covers San Antonio, Mission, Copano and Aransas bays.

Other pressures on the San Antonio Bay system include:

• Population growth along the coast and inland

• Pollution from non-specific points

• More frequent droughts

• Warming air and water temperatures

• Invasive plant and animal species

• Rising sea levels

Stakeholders in the San Antonio Bay Partnership represent a wide range of interests: the public, landowners, businesses, recreational and professional fishing, water recreationists, bird watchers, municipalities, river authorities, state and federal agencies.

The aim of the Partnership is to balance these human interests with those of the environment through a consensus building process, rather than an adversarial one.

“We realize that competition for water is growing,” Kisalus said. “New ideas and willingness to innovate are needed if we are to make more effective and efficient use of our limited water resources.”

The Partnership focuses its efforts in four areas:

• Assessing the health of the bay through evaluations of the current status and trends of key ecological parameters (i.e., salinity and water quality; shellfish, fish and bird populations; and marshland habitat);

• Identifying potential sites for habitat protection, restoration and enhancement;

• Locating potential sites for public access and encouraging ecotourism activities;

• Coordinating with other coastal and watershed groups involved in assuring the environmental and economic health of bays and estuaries.

To raise public awareness of its efforts, the San Antonio Bay Partnership is holding “SA Bay Day” on the Seadrift waterfront on Sept. 29. The public is invited to participate in a variety of water and shore side activities, in coordination with other coastal organizations in the region to celebrate National Estuaries Day.

For details, visit www.sabaypartnership.org

“This is one of the most pristine bays on the Texas Coast,” said Roy Foley, vice chair of the San Antonio Bay Partnership board and Professor of Education at University of Houston-Victoria. “Among other benefits it provides, it is the winter home for the world’s last wild flock of Whooping Cranes. We need to be good stewards.”

About the San Antonio Bay Partnership
The San Antonio Bay Partnership was formed to develop and implement a management plan for San Antonio Bay and the Guadalupe Estuary through public and stakeholder involvement and scientific research. The plan will be a comprehensive, science-based “blueprint” for protecting, restoring and enhancing both the ecological resources and the human uses of the San Antonio Bay/Guadalupe Estuary System.
The public is invited to participate in all meetings and activities of the San Antonio Bay Partnership.  For information on these events, please check the website frequently: www.sabaypartnership.org

Whooping Crane on the Johnson Ranch in Aransas County. Photo courtesy of John Martell.