Seadrift- Randall Nathan Maddux, 57, of Seadrift passed away May 16, 2011. He was born August 10, 1953 in Port Lavaca to the late William “Bill” Hamblen and Pearl “Teny” Lena Mullins Maddux. He was an electrical engineer and retired from Dow Chemical Company and Bradley’s Motor Inc.

He is survived by his daughter, Lacey Rose Maddux and Steven Vasquez, Gillian Vasquez, Gavin Vasquez and grandson, Ayden Maddux; daughter, Mallory Paige Maddux Galloway and husband, Joey Galloway and granddaughter, Braylyn Galloway; daughter, Taylar Brooke Maddux; son, Remington Randall Maddux; brother, Terry Wade Maddux and wife, Sheralyn Maddux; and sister-in-law, Joy Maddux.

He was preceded in death by his parents; sister, Karen Jane Johnson; and brother, William Wayne Maddux.

Funeral services were held May 20 at First Baptist Church, Seadrift, Pastor Joe Dufner and Dennis Wittnebert officiating. Interment followed at Seadrift Cemetery.

Pallbearers were Jim Williams Jr., Mark Goodman, David Maddux, Bradley Weaver, John Sanders, Dennis Wittnebert Jr., David Gaskamp and Jesse Hubbell.

Honorary pallbearers were Union Carbide/Dow Friends, William “Shucks” Maddux Jr., and his Weekend Golf Buddies.

Seadrift- There is rejoicing in Heaven because Walter Minatrea is home at last with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Walter E. Minatrea, Sr., 73, went to be with the Lord on May 13, 2011. He was born on July 24, 1937 in Ennis to the late Walter L. and Emma Baker Minatrea.
He married the love of his life, Helen Milam, on December 21, 1957.

Walter never met a stranger and was loved by many. Family was very important to him and he was a dedicated husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. He loved to go fishing with his children and grandchildren, and he loved to garden.

He was a member and a deacon of Seadrift First Assembly of God.

Walter is survived by his wife of 53 years, Helen Milam Minatrea of Seadrift; daughter, Gwyn H. DeForest and husband, Tommie of Seadrift; sons, Walter E. Minatrea Jr. of Seadrift and Tommy M. Minatrea and wife, Lisa, of Telferner; sister, Narita Merridth of Bay City; twin brother, Jonny Minatrea of Houston; grandchildren, Jeffrey Volek, Jacqueline Volek, Melissa Minatrea, Chase Minatrea, and Brittney Minatrea; and great-grandchildren, Annabelle, Alexis and Addison.

In addition to his parents, Walter was preceded in death by his sisters, Peggy Keaton and Barbara Howell; and grandson, Michael Minatrea.

Funeral services were held May 16 at Seadrift First Assembly of God with Tim Smith officiating. Burial followed at Seadrift Cemetery.

Pallbearers were Walter E. Minatrea Jr., Tommy Minatrea, Jeffrey Volek, Chase Minatrea, Jonathan Callaway, and Tommie DeForest.

Honorary pallbearers were his twin brother, Jonny Minatrea, W.T. Hartman and Dale Gohlke.

Memorial donations may be made in Walter’s memory to the Seadrift First Assembly of God.

This week our Pastor, Brother Marcos Gohlke announced his retirement as Pastor of Port O’Connor First Baptist Church, effective June 30, 2011. Brother Marcos and Sue came out of retirement to pastor the Church through some very difficult times in the life of the Church and now are returning to retirement. For almost four years, Marcos and Sue have been dedicated leaders of the Church, under God’s directions. The Church will miss the inspiration given by Marcos’ Bible teachings and sermons and the musical talents of both Sue and Marcos. May God continue to bless them in this much deserved retirement.

Sam Craig and his Eagle Wings Camp boys will be arriving in Port O’Connor next week. The boys are beginning a week of camp at Port O’Connor as they have done for the past eight years. The Church welcomes the boys on Friday, June 3 and they will be staying in the Fellowship Hall. On Saturday, the boys will go fishing, followed by a swimming party at Kenneth and Grady Jean Clark’s pool. They will enjoy hamburgers, pool side, and a lot of fun. On Saturday evening, the group will have a fish fry at the church. Sam Craig and the boys will be in charge of the Sunday morning 11:00 a.m. service, singing and giving personal testimonies. After a big send off luncheon Sunday, the group will be off to their camp on the Medina River for seven days.

The “Big Apple Adventure” Vacation Bible School begins on Monday, June 13. Candice Stryker has lined up a great staff of teachers and workers for this exciting school. All children from PreK to sixth grade are invited to attend. VBS begins at 9:00 a.m. and ends at noon each day, Monday through Thursday. Thursday, June 16, is “Hot Dog Day” and the children will be treated to all the hot dogs they can eat. Wow! Thursday evening, June 16, at 6:00 p.m., is Graduation Time. All children and their parents and grandparents are invited to attend and experience what the children did during VBS. Refreshments will be served.

On Monday, June 20, the children in grades 3 through 6 will be off to Summer Camp in Palacios. The children will enjoy four days of fun, food, fellowship, games and Bible study. The group will return June 23. Call the church if you need more information.

See you in church Sunday!

Just received information concerning the Summer Reading Program at the Library. The programs start here on Tuesday, June 7th until Tuesday, July 12th. Registration will begin on Tuesday, May 31st; see Ms. Shirley here at the Library for further information. This can be a fun morning for the kids as various speakers will be here to talk about what’s going on!

A very kind gentleman in this area donated a book to our Library that still has me in a state of fear concerning our government and its proposed actions. The book is entitled Inside Out, and the author is Barry Eisler. Mr. Eisler had spent three years in a covert position with the CIA’s Directorate of Operations. Not too certain what that involved, and not too certain that after reading the book and the listing of footnotes, bibliography, and acknowledgments from the author, I would want to know. The book hits a very hot point today with the subjects of “torture” and “waterboarding” and hidden CIA prisons, and a team of assassins, the JSOC, supposedly under the control of the Vice President. The book is impossible to put down until the last page is reached, and then, you want to reread it. Beautifully written, the author’s previous career in law is quite evident in his writing.

A fun book was also a gift, Remember Me by Sophie Kinsella, and we have on our shelves another book by this author. The plot concerns a young woman, Lexi Smart, a lower echelon employee of a firm in London, who wakes up after suffering amnesia to find that she has become a high rising corporate executive with an extremely wealthy and gorgeous husband. Her struggles to learn how all of this happened in the previous three years are entertaining and also frustrating. But when she learns that she has an adorable lover with whom she is planning to live, well, Lexi’s level of confusion reaches a high. A great book for the summertime.

Wendy Corsi Staub writes mysteries filled with suspense; she has achieved the talent of providing the reader with an unexpected and twisted ending. All The Way Home tells the story of a haunted area in upstate New York; haunted not by ghosts but by the mysterious disappearance of four teenage girls previously. When the heroine returns to this small town, after being absent for a number of years, she finds herself involved once again in these disappearances when she had lost her older sister. Now she loses her younger sister along with another teen resident. And the story continues and continues.

Ladies: don’t forget, Bunco will be the first Tuesday of June, the 7th at 7:00 p.m. in the back room of the Community Center. See Shirley for more details!

We have a number of books, both hard cover and soft cover, available for sale at the prices of $1.00 for hardcover and $0.25 for the soft. They make excellent companions when you go on a trip and don’t want to worry about a due date from our Library. Do come and check them out! You won’t be disappointed.

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

There were flags and motorcycles as far as the eye could see when the first wave of Wounded Warrior’s arrived in Port O’Connor Friday evening, May 20th. After finding their lodgings and freshening up, the warriors were treated to a fish fry at the Community Center. Afterwords they had the choice of a card game or fishing off the docks.

Saturday morning, after breakfast, they headed for Froggie’s Bait Dock for a morning of bay fishing. They were joined there by warriors from BMAC in San Antonio. All were greeted enthusiastically by a large crowd of thankful citizens.

Photo by Patricia Mayhall