Reverend Oliver Obele, a priest of the Missionary Society of St. Paul of Nigeria, will be living at St. Joseph Church in Port O’Connor for the next year. He has been in the United States for 16 years and as a naturalized citizen joined us in celebrating the Fourth of July.

For the last four years, he has been pastor of a Houston parish, St. Anne de Beaupre.

He will be assisting Fr.Ty Bazar especially with the mission parishes of St Patrick Church in Seadrift, St Ann in Point Comfort and St Joseph in Port O’Connor.

We are grateful he has come to minister among us. Please join us in welcoming Fr. Oliver.
 
               -Georgia Hawes

Peter Saenz, author and former Port O’Connor resident -Photo by Sue Kubecka

I was asked by the Dolphin Talk editor to meet and interview a new young writer who was visiting here in Port O’Connor and meeting with relatives during the week.

Peter and a friend arrived in Texas earlier from their flight from Los Angeles, and the first thing they did was to seek out a restaurant in the Corpus Christi area that served excellent barbecue! As he maintains he is a Texan in California, he definitely displays the “Texan Cool” wherever he is. Peter is the son of Lydia Porto, formerly Lydia Saenz and has spent many of his formative years in our area, attending school, both at Port O’Connor Elementary and Crocket and Travis middle schools in Port Lavaca.

Born in Fresno, California, Peter with his mother and sisters moved to Texas in 1983 following the breakup of her marriage. As most of her family were living here Port O’Connor, Peter and sisters Amanda, Ann Marie and Angela quickly aligned themselves with various activities locally. A major part of his family at that time was Able Carriles, whom Peter considered his true father as he was consistently there for him.

Peter remarked about some of his teachers in the Elementary School: Barbara Crouch, Lynda Gosnell, Elizabeth Bell and Mr. Singleton who previously taught the 2th grade. Peter spent much of his school days in the School Library and said that the exposure to so many books was what initially led him into writing.

Leaving Port O’Connor with his family in 1989, they moved to Southern California, where Peter finished school, graduating from La Puente High School. While in school he became involved with dramatics, both performing and then later, writing skits for various performances. He was then hired into a professional theatre troupe, performing a series of skits for children in neighboring communities concerning the dangers of alcohol, smoking, and other recreational drugs. From this activity in writing these short plays, Peter began writing in earnest.

He and other authors, both residing locally and in other cities around the globe, then started a book of short stories. Peter’s contribution for that book New Moon Rising later became the plot for his first full novel, Coven of Wolves which was published earlier this year. Peter speaks of his admiration for more seasoned authors Anne Rice, J.K. Rowling and Roald Dahl, all expert writers in the fantasy genre. He also mentioned that he was fortunate enough to have met Anne Rice and now owns an autographed copy of her latest book, The Wolf Gift. Peter is now at work on a sequel to Coven of Wolves, entitled “Blood Ties”, which he anticipates to have finished and available in 2013.

He gave me a copy of the first chapter of his new book: his main character Devin Marshall has a startling background being the son of a Mafia princess and also a werewolf father. Devin has the ability of being able to magically change his image from time to time, using his gift in escaping the “bad guys”. The book is written in the first person singular, and descriptive paragraphs are short but succinct. Unfortunately, I have not been exposed to this type of fiction; although I have read and enjoyed both J.K. Rowling and Roald Dahl. As for being able to adequately review the book, I do not feel that I am fully capable as of yet. Perhaps when I’ve researched this type of fiction further, I would be able to be more explicit.

But Peter forwarded a copy of the plot summary that was used for his first book Coven of Wolves:

“Devin Marshall is alone and on the run from a coven of dark witches. New to the world of magic, Devin tries his best to outrun and outlast the coven he once swore loyalty to in order to save his soul. In a last ditch attempt at freedom, he discovers help where he least expects it, but also manages to upset a pack of deadly werewolves along the way.
Two supernatural cultures clash as Devin discovers hidden secrets about his past in an all or nothing attempt at survival. The book is able to take readers around the globe and back in time as a new universe of hidden societies, powerful witches, and sinister creatures dominate the landscape in the fight for control of an unsuspecting world.”

Amazon now carries his book, available for the print purchase price of $12.95 and is a part of a somewhat unusual but new “green” publication process; the book is printed on-demand instead of having the need to possess a warehouse full of already printed copies. This process not only saves countless trees, but as the book is also available for eBook download, Amazon and companies like them are leading the way for a new generation of environmentally friendly literary works.

Peter is employed by UCLA in the Human Resources section of the Psychology Department; I jokingly wondered if being around those highly educated personnel, would give him some inspiration for his books. I think he passed on that. Peter is also a student at Glendale College with a focus in Business Administration and expects to receive his business certificate shortly.

One always jokes about the madhouse of driving in Southern California, particularly when the distance is semi-short but heavily traveled. Peter says he compensates for the city’s hectic schedule by using the ability to “zone out”, usually by listening to music on his iPod. Comparing the California and Texas Mexican cuisine, he said that they are definitely not the same; Tex-Mex beats California-Spanish dishes hands down every time. As for the comparison between each state’s barbeque, well, the fact that Peter repeatedly headed for several Texas barbecue restaurants in Corpus Christi, Houston and San Antonio during his visit back home speaks for itself.

At the conclusion of the interview that morning at our Library, Peter had an enormous surprise. Lynda Gosnell, his former third-grade teacher, arrived at the library to find some more books, and a warm and delighted greeting evolved.

And then Peter left our Library to join relatives and friends for a reunion lunch at Josie’s. Arriving from Oklahoma were his sisters Ann Marie and Angela. Additionally, he was able to reconnect with Abel Carriles and his mother, now a resident of Corpus Christi. Following the luncheon Peter was again traveling; this time to Houston to visit with aunts and other relatives. And then, before boarding the plane to return to California, Peter, like a true Texan, visited the Alamo in San Antonio.

I was extremely impressed with the warm and courteous demeanor of Peter Saenz; for a young and published writer, he seems to have it all together. Just wish him further success in the future.

Every one of us has influence; we decide whether it is good or bad! The youngest of us have those who look to us for direction as well as those of us “metallic men” with “silver hair, golden teeth, and lead bottoms”. The Apostle Paul talked to young Timothy about the unique place the older men, younger men, older women, and younger women had in the Church. How different our world would be if we all followed Paul’s instructions to treat older men as fathers; younger men as brothers; older women as mothers; and younger women as sisters.

Please allow me to list ten ways we can have a good influence on each of these four groups.

Never take anyone for granted! We will only be a good influence with people we value. I have never at the bedside at one about to go into eternity who wished he had made more money for himself. But, I sincerely believe, that when we stand before our Creator, we will all wish we spent more time helping people. We will realize that people are God’s greatest asset!

Have a “make-a-difference” mind set! We can only make a difference in those areas we think we can make a difference. We can only influence those we think we can. When we have a mental block about helping some person or group of people (discriminate), we will fail to have a good influence with them.

Move toward people – do not wait for them to move toward you! We must go to people and meet them where they are. Often, those who need us the most will stand the greatest distance away from us. There are people who are looking in our direction, hoping we will move their way. Let us be the ones who will make the first move to help.

Always be looking for common ground! It is so easy to see differences in others – their eye and hair color; their hands and feet; their height or lack of such; etc. But it is time that we “major in majors and not in minors”. God had a sense of humor when He made each of us!

Recognize, but respect, differences in personalities! When was the last time we “walked a mile in his moccasins”? When we try to see things from the other’s point of view, we will learn something important and gain an opportunity to be a good influence.

Discover the hidden treasure! We can never influence people for good if we cannot find what they value the most. This is where friendship communication is important. Personally, I most often use geography to help me find value when meeting people for the first time, especially here in Port O’Connor. Most people here come from someplace else and love to tell us more about “home” than we truly want to know! When we allow people to tell “their story”, we open a door to good influence.

Always speak from the heart! A phony is easily spotted, especially by kids. We must communicate with a truthful, genuine heart – one that hopefully is filled with love. Honesty is always required, but honestly, there are some things better left unsaid. Love will teach us about when to speak and when to remain silent.

Build bridges, not walls! Share common experiences, and be willing to share yours first. I know from experience I will never catch the most fish or the largest fish, but I must be willing to allow others to “out-shine” me. It is the only pathway to bridge-building. Far too many of us “wall people out” of our lives and when we allow this to happen, we will always fail to be a good influence on them. A minister friend, LeRoy Bartell, went to a congregation which had isolated itself. In prayer one day, the Lord gave him a motto for the church: “The Church Without Walls”, and soon people inside the church and outside the church saw a new attitude which helped the church to grow. The same will happen with friendships.

Close the deal – pop the question! We will never lead anyone anywhere until we, totally convinced, move forward. Some of us never get past “the weather topic”. We have a difficult time finding a way to get the conversation moving in a positive direction. Just say it! Provide good influence with a “deal closer”!

Remember the goal! Why do we want to be a good influence? Are we simply trying to see how large an “army” we can muster? I believe most of us want to help people live better lives and see them mature into people of stature. We cannot merely show people the pathway; we must walk the trail with them!

When we are doing what we should, we will be influencing people of all groups. Even young people can influence older ones when they strive to, and older people can relate to the younger ones with extra efforts. Let us all work at being good and Godly influences.

PT boat “Endeavor” in progress

To the passers-by on Tyler Ave (in Port O’Connor), progress on The Endeavor is difficult to notice because of the slow, tedious laminating of the hull; one board at a time. Each plywood board is eight inches wide by eight feet log, 3/8” thick and cut from sheets. Six planks to a sheet, forty sheets to every layer of hull. The work is slow. The first course of plywood is complete; the second well under way. The third has begun. Solving problems is best learned while forging ahead with no timetable, knowing the work can regress to a previous stage. Each successive course goes faster, because the job of “fairing” goes faster. “Fairing” means sanding frames and stringers in order to lay planks to create the desired (boat) lines. Not so easy without plans, and accomplished with the help of a belt sander to reduce the high material and epoxy to add to lower areas. A total of four layers of plywood are planned. Total hull thickness will be 1 1/2” and will require 1,000 planks.

After ply-wooding is complete, a ten-ounce fiberglass cloth is added, saturated in epoxy resin. Some areas will need to be doubled. The final layer of saturated cloth is called “fiberglass”. A wooden skeg is fastened over the finished fiberglass, fastened into the keel. A splash rail is fastened and lifting strakes; then, marine primer is brushed on and the hull painted. The color below the waterline will be black. The enemies of epoxy are the ultra-violet rays of the sun, but actually, any paint will block UV. Lighter colors reflect ultra-violet and darker colors absorb. Marine paints protect the hull from barnacle growth.

At this point, the boat is ready to roll. Four “wheels” will be constructed as aids in the rolling process. They will also be sacrificial in nature to any damages that might occur in rolling. Each “wheel” is made using 2” x 12” boards, three thick, gusseted with 3/4” CDX plywood. After completed, the boat will need to be let down from blocking onto the wheels, the vertical pylons removed, and the boat rolled. Golly, that’s easy to say! The roll date is Christmas, 2013.

Notice the scaffolding in the photo: When fastening the first course of plywood, stringers and frames provided footholds and a place to clamp plywood planking, until the epoxy cures. Now, I stand on the first course, dubious of being able to balance, let alone work, and with no way to clamp the next course. Except for overhead scaffolding, which provides leverage to hold-down the planking, until fastened. In addition, scaffold railings provide safety to keep from falling.