Mrs. Krista and Mr. Barry Lehtinen of Seadrift, TX are proud to announce the graduation of their daughter Sasha Gabrielle Howell from Texas A&M University Medical School at College Station. Sasha received a Master Degree in Medical Science with a concentration in Developmental Neurobiology and graduated with Honors from Texas A&M Medical School with a Doctorate of Medical Science.

During her studies at Texas A&M Sasha conducted research and presented exhibits at conferences. Her most recent research appeared in the Journal of Neuropathology and Experimental Neurology this year, and she appeared at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons annual conference in San Diego, CA in April of 2019. Sasha was also proudly inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society in 2019. Their Society’s slogan is to “Be worthy to Serve the Suffering”. Sasha was President of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) TAMCOM Chapter from 2018 until graduation. She was an active academic mentor and tutor to other medical students as well as a college ministry organizer, leading Bible studies and providing counselling for students adjusting to college life.

Sasha’s career path began 14 years ago with great compassion for her little brother Kidron Lehtinen, a student at Seadrift School, who was born with Spina Bifida. Currently, Sasha has started her 7 year Neurosurgery Residency at University of Alabama Hospital at Birmingham, Alabama.

On July 4th, around 600 boats, not sponsored by any organization, paraded down the ICW in Port O’Connor to show their support for President Trump.

How many of you remember The Ryon Store of Seadrift? It was on Main Street. One store had Dr. Oscar Ryon’s office in the back of the building. In front of his office was the Drug Store with Philip Ryon filling prescriptions for Doctor Ryon.

Then there was the Post Office with Lucille Byon, the Post Mistress, wife of Philip Ryon, working with Lucille Ryon.

My Mama, Mary Alma Williams, had “catarrh”, which was the same as my sinus allergy. She bought off the shelf in the Ryon Drug Store cigarettes to smoke for her “catarrh”. They were not tobacco cigarettes; the name of them was “Doctor Blosser’s Cigarettes”. They did really help her “catarrh” thing she had.

I was just thinking – why not put them back on the selves of the drug stores of today? Surely they were not “pot” or “joints”.

Were they?

Just wondering,

Dorothy Geraldine Wilson
Seadrift

Island Summer Heat Has Arrived

Greetings from the island everyone. I hope that all of you are doing well and adjusting to this ridiculous sultry heat that we have been having lately. As I sit out on my island porch having my Maxwell House coffee at 6:50 a.m. ( one week prior to you reading this ), the “feel like” temperature is 91 degrees! Are you kidding me?? And that number is gonna rise to around 110 degrees later this afternoon. It just makes me wanna cuss! Any outside work related projects are only done during the early morning and late evening hours due to these times of extreme high humidity heat.

I gotta admit, with the progression of age, these south Texas summers sure are beginning to make me miss the comforts of air conditioning. Luckily for me, there is usually at least a light breeze coming in off the Gulf, and that, along with staying in the shade and drinking plenty of sweet iced tea, makes the summer heat bearable. During my mainland supply runs, I bring back several bags of ice and pack them in a 75 quart Yeti cooler that I keep on the porch, in the shade and covered with a large towel. This ice, along with some in my small propane fridge freezer, provides me with cold drinks for much needed hydration until my next trip across the bay.

I hope that everyone had a great 4th of July and enjoyed the 50th annual fireworks show in POC. I sat out on my upstairs deck and watched the show from the island, not being able to hear the booms from the displays, but could easily see them from my five miles away. And if you didn’t make the POC show, I know that Bubba’s Seadrift had a wonderful fireworks display out at Swan Point, as he does every year. Thank you Bubba for your continued great generosity!

With my goal of getting a small tractor out on the island, I’ve been working on putting a sturdy wooden floor in one of my 12’x26’ garages, this one being built specifically to house a tractor. Probably 95% of the flooring project consists of treated 2×6 boards, 12’ long each. . . about 84 of these boards total, and a grand total of about 2,000 – 3” treated deck screws. So I’ve been hauling out 10-12 boards at a time on my supply runs until I can get it finished. I’m also painting the double doors on each of the connected three garages red, white and blue, to give it all a nice island patriotic look. There’s always a project or something to do out here.

Well, my raised bed and tub gardens have officially played out. These prolonged days of summer heat spell the end to late Spring and early Summer vegetable gardening, especially the tomatoes. When temps remain consistently in the high 80’s and low 90’s, the tomato blossoms simply will not set but instead fall off. When it cools down some, I’ll start getting all my planting areas ready for early Spring planting next year, adding a large assortment of organic material to the existing soil. I always look forward to the next tomato crop.

For those that have asked, Mom is doing as well as can be expected in the nursing home. Still being on lock-down, we are only able to visit her through a large window, communicating by speaker phone. Prayers that this epidemic will end soon so that we can at least physically be with Mom. We love you Mom.

Well, that’s it from the island for now. Everyone please stay cool, have a great day and be careful out in this dreadful heat.