Y Z Helms, Jr., 95, of Seadrift passed away July 11, 2020. He was born January 24, 1925, in Seadrift to Y Z Helms, Sr. and Mary Belle Epley Helms. He worked as a commercial fisherman and served in Europe in the Army Air Corp during WWII.

He is survived by his children Candance “Candy” Ritch (Jack), Y Z “Rusty” Helms III, Catherine Sullivan (Paul), and William Randall “Randy” Helms; brothers, Leon Helms and Donnie Helms; grandchildren, Nikki Silvers (Doug), N’Seana Ritch, Hilary Braun, and Kolten Braun; 5 great-grandchildren, Rylie Ritch, Brady Silvers, Jack Silvers, Ava Silvers, and Alayna Conat.

He was preceded in death by his parents; sisters, Katherine Jennings, Irene McAlister, and Mary Louise McCown; and brothers, Daniel Helms.

Graveside services were held Thursday, July 16, 2020 at Seadrift Cemetery with military honors.

Pallbearers were Bubba Hall, Johnny Mikolas, James Peeler, Dennis Epley, Durwin Epley, and Kolten Braun.

Honorary Pallbearers were his great-grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Hospice of South Texas.

Words of comfort may be shared with the family at www.richardsoncolonial.com.

David Wayne Tanner, 57, of Port O’Connor, and formerly of Hallettsville; Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, a memorial service will be held at a date to be determined. In lieu of usual remembrances, the family asks that donations be made to the charity of your choice.

SEADRIFT – Willie Florence Johns, known to most as “Florence”, 95, passed away on Monday, March 2nd, 2020. Willie’s family and friendsl gathered for a memorial service on Saturday, June 20th at First United Methodist Church in Seadrift.

Willie was born September 8th, 1924 to the late Willie and Lela Procella in Houston, Texas. She was an amazing cook and enjoyed gardening and reading books. She loved listening to country music and even danced to the radio in the mornings. She was a very strong willed woman and lived her life the way she wanted to. Starting in the 1980’s, she was proudly known for hand making Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls. In 2008, she was even interviewed by the Victoria Advocate because of her craft. She was a loving mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother and she will be greatly missed by all.

Willie was preceded in death by her parents, Willie and Lela Procella; husband, Noel Edward Johns; daughter, Anna O’Neal; sister, Margaret Fisher; and brother, William Byrd. Willie is survived by her daughter, Alice Stalcup (Reese); grandchildren, Troy Stalcup (Susan), Sabrina Stalcup Harris, Mandy Stalcup, Richard Santel, Robert Santel, and Rebecca Santel; and great-grandchildren, Nicholas Santel, Kristen Santel, Ashley Santel, Sean Stalcup, Shanna Stalcup, Benjamin Stalcup, Michael Harris, Emily Harris and Andrew Harris; along with other numerous loving friends and family. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to First United Methodist Church of Seadrift or donor’s choice.

The most critical part of a firefighter’s gear is the SCBA. The SCBA is a self-contained breathing apparatus. The Seadrift Fire Department was awarded four Air PACs through the Texas Department of Agriculture’s F.A.S.T. (Fire, Ambulance Service, and Truck) Program. Due to the combined efforts of the City of Seadrift, the Seadrift Fire Department, and Grant Works the application for this grant became a reality!

The Air PACs are state-of-the-art and come equipped with a thermo camera, Bluetooth, and the PASS device which sounds an alarm if the firefighter is lost or trapped. As you can see from this picture, getting these Air PACs made some special firefighters really happy!

Pictured from left to right is Joe Mayorga, visiting instructor Greg Najvar, John Dufner, and Fire Chief Scooter Gerking.

-Tanya DeForest