Hurricane Preparedness – A Must On The Island

Greetings from the island everyone. Hope all of you are doing well and surviving this dreadful south Texas heat the past few weeks. I think the older I get, the less tolerable I become with the heat.

The local Poco Bueno fishing tournament was a huge success again this year. I have no desire to be directly involved in it, or to become entangled in the multitude of people that flock to POC, but I know it brings a positive financial lift to the local businesses, so that’s a very good thing. I do enjoy seeing the beautiful fishing boats that dock in town during the week, and I often wonder what one of those vessels must cost.

Well, we are beginning the prime time of hurricane season for the summer. And right on cue, Tropical Storm Ernesto formed last week and began its trek through the Carribean, with an initial forecast path bullseye on Matagorda Bay. However, as of writing this Monday morning, landfall appears to be further south into Mexico.

From years of closely monitoring these storms, I know that the first forecast path given rarely, if ever, becomes the final landfall location. But when The Weather Channel shows the center of that path cone directly on or near us, I can’t help but begin mental preparations for the worst. Of course, if The Weather Channel and some of these other news stations, including one that predicted Ernesto could reach Category 5 status, would forego the drama for their ratings, then our tension levels would lessen considerably. Simply keep us honestly informed and don’t mislead us so that we will “stay tuned” to your station.

Living on a barrier island, basically the first line of defense for the mainland coast during a storm, is challenging for being prepared. First and foremost is BEING PREPARED and having beforehand what you will need to secure your house. Windows and doors are your weakest and most vulnerable points of entry into the house, and once breached, it’s like inviting hell’s fury to come on in. Pre-cut sections of at least half inch plywood, labeled for specific doors and windows, should be completed and stacked in waiting to be used if necessary. Good luck trying to find plywood the day before a hurricane is making landfall where you are.

Having a downstairs living area, I also have to move everything upstairs when a landfall is expected near me. Yes, it’s a lot of work and something that takes time and sweat and usually blood loss from scrapes and cuts, but it has to be done. Living along the coast is a choice that all of us make, and being prepared for tropical storms is just part of that choice. Pre-cut sections of plywood for each door and window should either already be completed or at the top of the list come tomorrow morning.

Well, the chickens are in full laying mode now, pushing out an average of 32 eggs a day, and I’m not certain that all of the forty five hens are laying yet. Either way, that’s a lot of eggs and people are happy to take every one of them, plus I love using them as a bartering tool.

The watermelon and cantaloupes are doing very well, having been kick started by five inches of rain a few weeks ago. Before next spring I’ll write an article for the Dolphin Talk giving some hints and a how-to on growing melons for beginners. I’m not an expert, but I know what has worked for me and I’ll share that info. I’m hoping Bobby, working behind the meat counter at Speedy Stop, will read it and other gardening articles, instead of picking my brain with questions. Just give me my pound of spiced luncheon meat and let me get back to the island.

Well that’s it from the island for now, everyone take care and have a great day.

The POC Service Club has been trying for the past two years to obtain information from the families and descendents of early residents of our area to write a book detailing our history and THE PEOPLE WHO MADE IT!  We’ve been fortunate to have interviewed several residents, but we need more input.  In particular, we are seeking family stories of early life here, prior to WWII and then following, to show the impact that war made on this area.

The book will contain a short history of the development of Port O’Connor, preferably with a picture outlining certain portions of that time.  But the major portion of the book will be a picture of the early families that made Port O’Connor what it is today.

If you would like to be a part of this book, please contact Ms. Janet Johnson, President of the Service Club at 983-4733 to set a mutually convenient time for an interview.

Sincerely,

POC SERVICE CLUB, Sue Kubecka and Janet Johnson

Here it is August; summer is winding down and school will be starting this month. But before school starts let your children enjoy the Annual Speedy Stop Kids Fishing Tournament on August 11th. Just go to www.speedytstop.com for information or call 361-582-5142 for more information.The first 500 entries will receive snack packs and t-shirt.

If you have an event you would like for the Chamber to put on their Facebook page or send out to all the members on our mailing list, please just give us a call 361-983-2898 or email us poccc@tisd.net. Check out our Facebook page on www.portoconnorchamber.org and we welcome you to post on our page, if you have an upcoming event, if your business has a special and also need pictures posted of your fishing trips to POC. Share your fun and adventures with the rest of us.

The next meeting will be on August 13th, in the back room of the Community Center at 6:30 p.m.

New/Renewing Members:

J. Jordan Properties

William & Donna Pyle

Gerke’s Guide Service

Already it is August, 2012! Summer is just about gone, with school starting back this month! We were blessed with a fine rain shower this past Sunday morning and it did affect our attendance at church. We really needed the rain, low attendance or not. Brother Donnie Martin delivered a wonderful message and Brother Raymond Grant gave the children a fine children’s sermon.

The congregation sang “Nothing But the Blood”, “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name”, “Surely Goodness and Mercy” and “I Will Sing of My Redeemer”. The Church Choir sang the beautiful Gospel song “The Royal Telephone”.

The Church youth are selling T-shirts to finance their various activities during the year. The shirts come in all sizes and four different colors and are selling for $10 each. The back of the shirts have a big flounder with the inscription, “Don’t Flounder Around – Get Hooked on Jesus”. T-shirt sales financed the children and youth camp this summer.

It is full speed ahead for the Church Revival next month. Brother Shannon Talley, Pastor of McAllen First Baptist Church, will be preaching both services Sunday, September 16 and nightly at 7:00 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, Sept. 17, 18 & 19. Everyone is invited to attend these evangelistic services.

From Sept. 24 to 27, several of our Senior Adults will be attending the Senior Adult Retreat at beautiful Camp Zephyr on the banks of Lake Corpus Christi. This is always an exciting, evangelist retreat. Brother Marcos and Sue Gohlke will be in charge of the music service and Brother George Yarbrough will be in charge of the devotions, sermons, and Bible study.

Brother Sam Craig’s Senior Adult Retreat at Palacious Baptist Encampment will be October 15 to October 18. Sam Craig will be the Camp Director and leading the music program. Bible study and preaching will be by Southern Baptist of Texas senior leaders.

The Annual Guadalupe Association meeting this year will be at Victoria First Baptist Church on Sunday afternoon, October 21. First Baptist, Port O’Connor, will cancel their evening services that day so all may attend the Victoria Annual Meeting.

See you in church Sunday!

We’ve just received four cookbooks dedicated only to Texas cuisine (really cooking for us Texans), and Shirley and I would enjoy receiving your input as to whether we should keep these books. They are currently on the top shelf behind the chairs of the computer stations. Please, if you have the interest and the time, glance through them and let us know what you think.

Summer reading, or really any time, are two books by two unusual authors: the first, Porch Lights by Dorothea Benton Frank and the second, Spring Fever by Mary Kay Andrews.

And, to give another type of reading, St. Dale by Sharyn McCrumb is dedicated to following the racing results of Dale Earnhardt, a NASCAR driver. As I’d read and enjoyed a previous book by Ms. McCrumb, I’d selected this from the shelf. And, was amazed at the amount of research the author had done.

Porch Lights is set in Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina, an area that has been the subject of many of the author’s books. One time she stated that if you ever get the beach sand from Sullivan’s Island in your shoes, you have to return. And I definitely believe that saying as we will be returning there in the Spring of 2013. And the title comes from the necessary porches on each of the homes on Sullivan’s Island, a place where a family or a couple gather at the end of the day to watch the sun set over the sand dunes. This book tells the tale of a young mother returning to her previous home with her young son following the tragic death of her husband, a firefighter. She drives from Brooklyn to the Island in hopes that a summer spent there will help them heal from their loss. Her mother resides in the home and she then takes over the lives of both daughter and grandson. And Edgar Allen Poe, his writings and life, are interwoven throughout the narrative.

St. Dale by Sharyn McCrumb. I’d picked this book from the shelf without realizing who “St. Dale” was, not a person as canonized in the Roman Catholic faith, but I quickly learned what the author meant. “St. Dale” was Nascar racing driver, Dale Earnhardt who had won many championships prior to his fatal crash.

The author tells the tale of a very unusual journey with many unusual travelers. Starting at the Bristol Motor Speedway and ending at Daytona, the Number 3 Pilgrimage, a large silver bus, has a group of passengers, all committed to visiting the race tracks where Dale Earnhardt made his presence known. As each traveler had his/her own reason for taking this journey, the plot carries the reaction of each to the life of Dale Earnhardt at the particular race track. And each passenger is touched somehow by the aura of #3, Earnhardt.

An interesting story and full of many tales of not only Dale, but many other racing drivers. Although I had followed the SCCA, sports’ car racing for many years, I had never seen nor knew much about Nascar racing. But I’m learning now.

And the last of the reviewed books is Alafair Burke’s newest, Never Tell, featuring the Manhattan detective, Ellie Hatcher and her partner, J.J. Rogan. The story begins with the sudden and unexplained death of a teenaged girl with wealthy parents and ends with the unforeseen trial of another mother. Alafair Burke is the daughter of writer, James Lee Burke. Her novels are somewhat lighter than those of her father’s, and they appear to be written mainly in conversation, though some description of characters and places do appear. I’ve found that by using this type of scenario, the plot often becomes easier to understand. Plus the reader has to use his/hers sense of imagination. Which really isn’t that difficult.

We have an unbelievable array of books for purchase at our Library, both hard cover and soft cover, of all types of fiction and even nonfiction. And we welcome all you summer visitors to our Library; we may be small but we have a lot of good books and DVDs! Just takes a Library Card! Our Library is open on Monday & Tuesday from 9-1 & 2-6; on Wednesday, we open at 1:00 p.m. till 6:00 p.m.; Thursday from 12:00 Noon till 5:00 p.m. and Saturday from 9:00 a.m. till 1:00 p.m.

“When an old person dies, a Library burns down.” -Karin Gillespie