Our new Pastor, Donnie L. Martin and his wife Shirley, have settled into their new surroundings and their remarks are, “We love Port O’Connor and First Baptist Church!” The Church loves the Martins! This past Sunday we had a great congregation and a Spirit-filled sermon by Brother Donnie. Raymond Grant led the congregation in several fine Gospel songs and delivered a very interesting children’s sermon to all the children.

The Choir is rehearsing for their Christian Concert at the upcoming Rockport Gospel Fest at Rockport First Baptist Church on Sunday evening, January 22, at 5:00 p.m.

Preparations are underway for the Church’s 17th Annual SWEETHEART BANQUET. The banquet will be held in the Port O’Connor Community Center Thursday, February 9, 2012 at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are available now at $7.50 each. Entertainment is by John Sisk and his music and humor. He is an award winning professional auctioneer and recording artist. The banquet will consist of a seated dinner of charcoal broiled steak and all the trimmings, salad, dessert, coffee and tea. Everyone will be served by the Church Youth and Church Men.

Everyone will join in singing “Let Me Call You Sweetheart” and there will be door prizes. The 2012 “Port O’Connor Citizen of the Year Award” will be presented. Recognition of the couple married the longest and shortest amount of time will be made and awards presented. All couples married 50 years and longer will be recognized.

Tickets are available from the following: Pat Ekstrom, 983-2030; Brenda Smith, 983-2272; Debbie Michalek, 648-7075; Evelyn Lewis, 983-4216; and Doyle Adams, 983-4866.

Be sure and get your tickets early as we can only sell 200 due to seating limitations.

See you in church Sunday.

First Baptist Church Port O’Connor Presents

17th Annual Sweetheart Banquet

Entertainment by the Music of John Sisk

Charcoal Broiled Steak with all the trimmings

Door Prizes and Citizen of the Year Award

Thursday, February 9, 2012 at 6:30 p.m. in the Community Center

Tickets $7.50 each

For tickets call 983-4866

Thursday morning, January 5th, 2012 meant a return to business activities for the Port O’Connor Service Club. The first meeting of the year is always one that becomes several minutes of greetings to each member and inquiries of each Christmas and other holiday celebrations. Then, it became time to get down to business.

A schedule for the next History Book meeting was mentioned as being on Wednesday, January 11th during which time the Committee members will be concentrating on the period of time of the 2nd World War and what it meant to POC. Many changes evolved in this community during that time; some as a result of the military activity here which brought into our area additional residents and the establishment of businesses.

Sue Kubecka, Head of the Committee, has requested that current residents who remember that time or had family here, please contact either her or Janet Johnson, President of the Club. Sue can be reached at 361 798-0560 and Janet’s number is 983-4737. Each of us looks forward to hearing from you.

Although this was a fairly short meeting, our next meeting will be Thursday, January 19, 2012, at 10:00 a.m. in the meeting room in the back of the Community Center. Hope to see a full listing of members there!

This past Sunday morning, each participant in the services received a package of honey. It was in connection with the morning’s message titled “Carry a Little Honey”. The message was about the need for us to sweeten our lives when things turn sour, cynical, or bitter. We can never be a help to others if we are not sweet ourselves. We also saw that it is truly important for us to “carry a little honey” for those with whom we come in contact. We truly could help to change a situation, which could in turn help change a life, simply be putting “a little honey” into the lives of others.

Exciting news was also shared with the congregation. A youth group from El Dorado, Arkansas is planning to spend their Spring Break in Port O’Connor. Their goals are simple: 1. Do something physical that can be left here. 2. Take home something new spiritually. 3. Have some fun – it’s Spring Break. More information to follow, but to prepare for this activity, we are spending more effort getting the Retreat Center ready. If anyone would like to help or provide needed materials, simply call the Chapel (983-4240) for further information.

In an effort to reach every member of this community, the Chapel is beginning Spanish Sunday Bible Classes each Sunday beginning at 10:00 a.m. For years the Chapel has been ministering to our Spanish speaking friends with special activities and bilingual services. Now, Hermano Jessie has agreed to begin teaching the Bible in Spanish each Sunday. All those interested should come and learn in their native language.

Fisherman’s Bible Institute (FBI) continues growing with more serious students showing up for the Tuesday evening teaching time. Those working through the Bible with FBI complete workbooks before coming to class each week (Tuesday 7-9 p.m.). It is a great way to get better acquainted with God’s Word. Those interested should call Pastor Joane at 983-2619 for further information.

Friday Night Youth (FNY) is getting back in its normal routine following the special activities that marked the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. All community youth are invited to the Chapel each Friday evening (7-10 p.m.), except the first Friday of each month. There are always friends to hang with, food to grub, and a fun, safe place to come on Fridays. We even know some adults (parent types) who enjoy FNY! So, come enjoy an evening with Annette and friends who supervise the FNY.

The Sea Academy has announced another opportunity for those seeking “Captain’s Licenses” in Port O’Connor from January 27 through February 3. All those interested in these classes should contact the Class Instructor Captain Robert at 361/816-3010 or the Sea Academy at 361/758-6184. If one cannot make these classes, the next opportunity for a Port O’Connor class is April 13-20.

There will be a time of fellowship following the evening service this Sunday (January 15) to honor Pastor Joane’s birthday. There will be cake and ice cream, plus a lot of fun. We trust all will attend and sing the Birthday Song for Pastor Joane!

Special plans are being made for another “Movie Night” at the Chapel and the return of Ric Gordon during February. Many will remember our last Movie Night and have asked for another. Popcorn and bottled water will be served. Ric has graced our services for a number of years, but was not with us this past year – so make plans to enjoy his special style of music and humor. Watch for further information in the Dolphin Talk.

Fisherman’s Chapel is an interdenominational congregation whose goal is to help every resident of this community be ready to meet Jesus. We believe that Jesus is coming very soon and we strive to help everyone be ready! But, we are not only concerned about eternity; we also care about the here and now. We believe that the Bible has a lot to say about how to have a joyful life now and we at the Chapel endeavor to help all find these truths. You will always find a warm welcome at the Chapel and are urged to, “Come, grow with us!”

Entitled “A New Beginning”, the first meeting in January of the Bunco Group was Tuesday evening, January 3, 2012, at 7:00 p.m. And the Back Room of the Community Center soon filled with many eager participants to play and enjoy the excellent repast of delightful desserts as accompanied by croissant sandwiches and a savory dip. The hostesses for this evening were Pat Ekstrom, Joyce Jordan and Kelly Cooper, and Pat astonished everyone with the Sparkling Apple Juice served in elegant champagne glasses. However, I think that one bottle of the Apple Juice was well on its way to fermenting again as there were a lot of giggles and red noses later in the evening!

Our guest of honor was Lorene Webb from Conroe who had been staying with her daughter-in-law, Joyce Jordan for several weeks. Although Lorene did not win a prize for most games or most buncos, occasionally she would be on a streak of rolling solid sixes for many times.

At the end of the evening, several prizes were awarded to the various players, all with original photographs of “A New Beginning” as crafted by a local photographer. Receiving a photograph of an angel was Diane Cooley for winning the most games. Shirley Gordon carried off the most buncos and her photo was of a set of steps. (OK, the photographer has a sense of humor?) And Sally Jones was the winner of the booby prize; her card displayed a totally hip New Orleans gal with purplish-pink hair and an outstanding tattoo! As Sally commented, “When did you take my picture?”; the reply “Last summer, but you had colored your hair!”

Needless to say, a fun time was had by all! And the hostesses for the February meeting will be Sally Jones and Biddie Hileman; the date is February 7th at 7:00 p.m. in the Community Center. See you there!

The Port Lavaca Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce they recently received four awards at the Texas Chamber of Commerce Executives (TCCE) 2011 Annual Conference.

Social Media Division – 1st place
Web Division – 2nd place
Brochures Division – 3rd place
Newsletters/Newspapers – 3rd place

TCCE member chambers are invited to submit their best media projects in the TCCE 2011 Media Awards Contest. The contest is judged at the annual conference. Intended to create a benchmark for other chambers of commerce with similar budgets, the media contest spotlights six classes of communication: directories/magazines, maps, newsletters/newspapers, websites, brochures and new in 2011 – social media.

Of over 600 local chambers of commerce in Texas, only a few innovative chambers received one of the top three placements in the media contest.

Jasmine Gordon, Deity Design of Port Lavaca, Texas was hired to redesign both the Port Lavaca Chamber website and brochures.

TCCE is an organization of chamber executives from across the state, working together to improve the business climate in Texas, while developing ways to enhance the quality of life in the communities that they represent. Since 1906, TCCE has been enhancing and promoting the professional growth of chamber executives, by providing leadership for chamber employees through its many publications, resources, and conferences.