The Calhoun County Republican Club will be hosting Michael Quinn Sullivan, the publisher of Texas Scorecard, on Monday, May 1, 2023 at 6:00p.m. at Drifters Hall, 5287 FM 3084, Port Lavaca, TX 77979.

Through news reporting and investigative journalism, Texas Scorecard provides citizens the knowledge they need to effectively dominate government and culture and exists for the purpose of reporting on the advancement of self-governance in the Lone Star State. Mr. Sullivan has worked as a newspaper reporter, magazine contributor, Capitol Hill staffer, and think-tank vice-president. Texas Monthly called him “the enforcer” in their list of the most influential Texans, while the Dallas Morning News has called him the state’s “most powerful” unelected Republican.

A catered meal is available at 5:00pm for $12 with a reservation. Please call (361) 552-6313 or email CCRCLUB@proton.me to RSVP for dinner or for more information.

April’s Book Club meeting was held on a perfect Spring afternoon, overlooking our beautiful Matagorda Bay, and was a fun and entertaining event! Hostesses Connie Britton, Jeanette Henke, Kathleen Simmons, and Sandra Pustka went all out in portraying April’s book, Bet Your Bottom Dollar, by Karin Gillespie.

All the delicacies served came straight from the pages of the book, spun from the streets of the one-horse town of Cayboo Creek, South Carolina! The Hostesses delighted the Ladies with homemade meat loaf, baby corn on the cob, a beautiful bowl of fruit, hummus and pimento cheese served on crackers, coleslaw, jalapeno corn muffins, Funions, Pork Skins, a can of Vienna Sausages for fun, and various candies, all sold in Cayboo Creek’s “Bottom Dollar Emporium”- Baby Ruths, Milky Ways, Red Hots, and Swizzle Sticks. Tea, bottled water, and wine accompanied the yummy food, and dessert was Vanila Ice Cream served with a side of candy bars!

The book discussion began with the hostesses handing out $1.00 bills (with a song attached) to select members of the audience who were expected to “actively participate”!! The Hostesses read excerpts and quotes from the book, and asked thought-provoking questions about the various characters and episodes in the book, to which the Ladies responded. In a repeat performance, Cindy Boone danced around the room, and belted her heart out in a rambunctious karaoke rendition of “You Can Bet Your Bottom Dollar” by Canadian singer, Jack Scott, and all the “Active Participants” jumped in and sang!
It was a fun, lively, loud, and laughter-filled afternoon, and all agreed the book was a fun account of life in small town America, where the residents rise up to fight against big box stores running little guys out of business, and long kept family secrets are uprooted and exposed, interlocking the lives of the book’s characters in shocking and surprising ways.

Everyone thanked the Hostesses for their hard work in making it such a fun and wonderful afternoon!

Our next Book Club meeting will be held on Tuesday, May 9, 2023, 2:00 p.m. The book is Crowded In The Middle of Nowhere by Dr. Bo Brock, a Texas Veterinarian. If you are interested in joining “Hooked On Books”, please email your contact information to alanehaardt@yahoo.com.
Submitted by Alane Haardt

At the “Hooked on Books” meeting

The POC Community Garden is in full bloom. Squash, beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, and lettuce just to name a few are showing up and the place is showing the results of the planters efforts! Stop by and see what all the green thumbs are up to.

At our April meeting, our speaker was Cindy Meredith, an herbologist from Rockport who spoke about growing and cooking with herbs and as a bonus she had herbs to sell.

You can also join the club for a $20 annual fee which allows you to attend all garden activities.

The club also has a Facebook page POC Community Garden.

Thank you to the POC Community! The Service Club would like to send a huge “Thank You” to the POC Community and to all who helped with, shopped at, and/or donated so generously at our Garage Sale held on April 1, 2023, making it tremendous success! Your continued support allows us to continue doing great things for the POC Community that we all love, and we wholeheartedly thank you and appreciate you!

Community Service Projects: With proceeds from the Garage Sale and our other fundraisers, the Club gives back to the POC Community through our many Service Projects. This month the Club will purchase twenty new 8 foot tables to replace damaged ones at the POC Community Center Pavilion. The Club also made donations to the POC Cemetery Association in memory of Theresa Shirk, John Scott, Hunter Hadley, and Frank Bradford.

Farmers Market: The Service Club appreciates your support at our Booth at POC’s Farmers Market, held the 2nd Saturday of every month; next one being Saturday, May 13, 2023 from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 Noon. There will be a variety of homemade breads and sweets, plants, hand crafted items, our “Service Club Cookbooks“ and our “POC- End of The Road” License Plate Covers! We will also be selling raffle tickets of $5.00 each for a beautiful handmade quilt donated by Club Member, Carol Haverfield. There is something for everyone, so please stop by!!

Meetings:
May’s Service Club meetings will be held on May 4, 2023 and May 18, 2023 at 10:00 a.m., at the POC Community Center, and all Ladies are welcome!

Garage Sales:
The Ladies continue to accept 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 until our next Garage Sale, which is scheduled for September 30, 2023. You can leave your items in the “Drop Box” at the front of our Donation Center, or, for large items, please contact one of the Service Club Ladies listed below:
Alane Haardt- 281-416-6028
Marie Hawes- 361-920-2322
Nan Burnett- 832-276-5948
Nancy Ladshaw- 830-832-0510

Easter Sunrise Service
-Photo by Karolyn Kinsel

What a great Easter Sunday Celebration! We gathered as a community at the Front Beach at just before 7:00 a.m. and enjoyed the music, message, and fellowship! We drank about 100 cups of coffee, enjoyed about five gallons of orange juice, and ate 100 cinnamon rolls provided by the POC Pie Lady! For us, the day continued with Bible Study at 10; Morning Service at 11; and Evening Service at 6:00 p.m. We had many guests but also missed several who were visiting family.

This week has been crammed full with a variety of activities. Two of our ladies had surgery on Tuesday and both are doing better and out of the hospital. Steve and his mighty men are working hard on the base of the Cross, so we can get it standing soon, but not soon enough for me! A lift for the Parsonage is being worked on, and my doctor told me to never use it – it was like most Doctor’s Advice – “in one ear and out the other”! I received an unexpected, but exciting, call from my old Army buddy, Travis Rawls. We served together and had a lot of fun with his family that came to Germany with us. We had not spoken in a while and had a lot to catch up on.

We received word that Joane’s Dad’s brother, Uncle Oscar, passed away. His funeral was held on April 18 in Houston where they lived. We will miss this dear, Godly minister, who preached for us at the Chapel on several occasions.

I received a call telling me that what began while I served the Water District had finally been fully approved. The water wells are expected to begin being drilled before summer and they are projected that in March, 2024, we will be able to drink our own water, which should be better tasting and cheaper! YEAH FOR THE WATER DISTRICT AND THEIR HARD WORK!

On April 30, at the Morning Service (11:00 a.m.) the ladies from Saving Grace will be at the Chapel to give us personal testimonies and help our community see what help is available for those with life-controlling challenges. From right here, three years ago, Jessica went to this program and we just learned that she is the Program Director for one of these programs in Florida! God can truly make a difference in a life which will give Him opportunity! We welcome all to come and hear how the Lord can make a difference, no matter how large the problems!

May 14 will be a huge day at the Chapel – Mother’s Day! Every Mom present will receive a specially prepared gift for them! This is one of the largest celebrations of our Chapel calendar. Everyone is welcomed to come, bring your Mom if possible, and enjoy a great day as we honor our Mothers!

We are gearing up for our Annual Egg Cracking Party on May 19. Port O’Connor is again hosting the Warrior’s Weekend events, and we will be doing our part by providing the Saturday Morning Breakfast. Everyone has not received a Hero’s Welcome when they return home from war, but we here in POC make sure that our soldiers know we sincerely appreciate their sacrifices and service for our nation and for us personally! IF one would like to help make the breakfast, please come to the Chapel very early on Saturday morning and your assistance will make the work load lighter!

On May 24 through 27, we will be hosting a Seniors’ Retreat at the Chapel. It is for ministers who have given their lives in service for the Lord and now have little retirements. We are asking anyone with a boat who would like to be a part of blessing an older preacher to contact me (361-218-6693) so we can make this day memorable for these Soldiers of the Cross! We are hoping to get them on the water on Thursday and Friday mornings for bay fishing.

As you can read, the Chapel is very active and believe we are seeing the Lord’s Hands of Blessing all around! Everyone is cordially invited to attend any or all of the Chapel services. We gather on Sundays at 10:00 a.m. for Bible Study; 11:00 a.m. for Morning Worship; and 6:00 p.m. Evening Service. We also come to enjoy each others’ fellowship on Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. One will always find a warm welcome at the Chapel and all are urged to, “Come grow with us”!