Upcoming Tournament
Posted by Joyce Rhyne on 21 Jun 25 - Comments Off on Upcoming Tournament
TWO GIANTS by Erny McDonough
Archived in the category: Featured Writers, General
Posted by Joyce Rhyne on 21 Jun 25 - Comments Off on TWO GIANTS by Erny McDonough
One of the most unforgettable stories in the Bible is the one about David and Goliath. David was just a boy, too young to go and join the army like his brothers. David was determined to get into the fight when he heard Goliath cursing God. He went to the king and the king tried to arm him for battle, but David refused. He would use that tools that had taken care of him in the past – a sling and a rock. David was nimble, free to move, slung a stone and Goliath fell to the ground so David could cut his head off and win the battle. The enemies fled but the story remains.
There will always be people like Goliath, giants who will threaten the peace, who by their mere massiveness hold the world in their grip of fear. These “giants” may have name changes, and personalities differences, but we all know some of them and can easily identify each. We will have to face them or they will destroy us from within or outside. It may be an addiction or just a simple weakness, but we see their devastation all around us.
That giant could simply be called the great conflict of good and evil. In the great issues of life, it seldom happens that all the good is on one side and all the evil on the other. The good is almost always tinctured with evil, and the evil is seldom, if ever, entirely devoid of potential good. None of us have always been right, are not always right, but we trust we are on the rick track and come to the right place at the right time. But before we get to where we are headed, there will be a battle.
Giants will always present themselves in different forms. Some will be judged by their weight and height, others by their intellect and spirit. David won his battle not with physical strength but with his spiritual power.
It seems to me that America try to wear the armor of our opponent. We are being tempted from every side to match out might against his, pound for pound, bomb for bomb, and so outmaneuver him at his own game. Competition is a good and legitimate thing, but none of the really great things in life have ever been accomplished by people who were doing it from the sheer ambition to get there first.
Let us get smart – the old weapons of yesterday are obsolete. Everyone has big bombs! If we are going to win any battles, it must be with two things: intelligence and faith. We must stop challenging our enemies with their types of weapons and seek to develop skills that are different, maybe not yet found. Try something non-conventional, like befriending or some other novel ideal. And what would happen if we would seek the will of God before we attempt to get even with another. What if we reached for the things that shape our character and believe that loyalties are more important than mastery?
In the world that we know today, we are the giants. What kind of giant will we be? Shall we be the old-fashioned, traditional giant, putting all our trust in our weight, size and money? Or shall we be a new kind of giant who realizes that the victor will be the one who has the intelligence of God and the faith in God? I think we will determine if we have a history of David or Goliath!
SEADRIFT SCHOOL 2024-2025 A HONOR ROLL 4th 9 WEEKS
Archived in the category: General, School News
Posted by Joyce Rhyne on 21 Jun 25 - Comments Off on SEADRIFT SCHOOL 2024-2025 A HONOR ROLL 4th 9 WEEKS
First Grade:
Second Grade: Quinton Callaway, Kannon Hunt, Lane Saylors, and Colton Zeine.
Third Grade: Jessah Benitez, Kassy Christy, Hayden Harvey, Mason Matej, and Jocelyn Vallejo.
Fourth Grade: Dante Calzada, Cooper Horadam, and Alexis Jaramillo Vazquez.
Fifth Grade: Huntley Galloway, Madison Pina, and Peighton Saylors.
Sixth Grade: Janesa Banda, Kole Goode, Adalyn Heath, and Andrea Jaramillo Vazquez,
Seventh Grade: Charlie Ayres, Anamika Brown, Paige Davenport, Ryan Gohlke, Gilliana Gonzalez, Trace Myers, Isaiah Ochoa, Erianna Silvas, Symone Smith, Alie Villarreal, and Felicity Waghorne.
Eighth Grade: Phoenix Gordillo, Isrrael Jaramillo, and Tyler Saylors.
A/B HONOR ROLL
First Grade: Oliver Demarcus, Castynn Green, Anystynn Pendergrass, Lazarus Villarreal, and Weston Wygrys.
Second Grade: Kinley Caylor, Zane Henning, Leon Odell, Xyler Quintanilla, and Mateo Vallejo.
Third Grade: Harper Amerson, Xaelyn Banda, Peyton Blevins, Irma-Janeth Claros, Bentley Duque, Finley Dworaczyk, Reagan Eure, Landon Luna, Frances Odell, Anna Rankin, Alexandra Sanchez, and Jolee Wooldridge.
Fourth Grade: Jaxson Allred, Laykenn Green, Leilani Lopez, Dalyssa Rendon, and Bryton Tanton.
Fifth Grade: Fabian Adame, Samantha Garcia, Zavien Garcia, Maisyn Hernandez, Easton Lancaster, Jaxon Treumer and Riley Vanwinkle.
Sixth Grade: Naomi Aguilar, Yarexia Anzaldua, Amara Brown, Paxon Crone, Brynlen Eure, Brooklyn Flint, Brooklyn Gregory, Sophia Huerta, Emily Mapp, Helios Ochoa, Lucas Resendezmontalvo, Brady Treumer, Shaila Vallejo, and Austin Vanwinkle.
Seventh Grade: Noah Ayres, Jennifer Barcenas, Tanner Cheatham, Laila Cook, John Glover, Kolt Leiker, Brileigh Phillips, and Jaxon Waghorne.
Eighth Grade: Marcos Blanco, Justin Carnes, Emma Quintanilla, Payten Rivera, Aiden Robbins, Brooklyn Russell, and Victoria Spencer.
Beach-nesting Birds by Celeste Silling
Archived in the category: Featured Writers
Posted by Joyce Rhyne on 21 Jun 25 - Comments Off on Beach-nesting Birds by Celeste Silling
Caption: Least Tern with egg. Photo credit: Mike WilliamsNow that the weather is warmer, our researchers here at Gulf Coast Bird Observatory have begun another season of our Beach-nesting Birds monitoring project. Wilson’s Plovers and Least Terns are nesting on the beaches of the Upper Texas Coast, and it is our research team’s job to find them, monitor them, and teach the public how to protect them.
Wilson’s Plovers are sneaky shorebirds that nest directly on the ground in the soft sand along dunes, mudflats and shelly areas. The pairs are territorial and easily disturbed by people, dogs, cars, and other threats. One of the main causes of nest failure amongst these birds is disturbance, as the parents sometimes have to prioritize protecting their nest (chirping, running, flying at beachgoers and other interlopers) over incubating their babies. Their eggs or chicks get over-heated and perish often in this way, while their parents are off defending the nest. So, beachgoers can easily save the lives of these birds simply by giving them their space!
The Least Tern is a small black and white waterbird that nests in colonies on the ground in flat, open, shelly areas. Similar to the plovers, these terns are very prone to disturbance, and you can often see the entire colony up-in-arms about a trespassing beach-goer or car. Fortunately, because they nest in a large group, our monitors are able to protect whole colonies by erecting symbolic fencing around them with orange twine and poles with signs. If you want to help these birds, just stay away from the fencing! You can save animals and avoid an attack from a tern tornado just by staying 50 yards away.
Our researchers monitor the beaches every few days to keep track of the birds. They track whether they’ve made a nest, laid eggs, whether there are potential threats, and if the eggs are able to hatch. GCBO researchers catch and band the plover chicks so that we can track their success and determine if they return to this beach once they’ve grown into adults.
The plover chicks, once they’ve hatched, are fuzzy little cotton balls on stilts. They are well camouflaged and tend to hunker down in the sand to hide from predators. Unfortunately, this makes them nearly invisible and prone to being run-over or stepped on. Driving slowly, away from the dunes and watching where you step can help these little birds immensely.
April through July is the most vulnerable time for Wilson’s Plovers, Least Terns, and other beach-nesting birds. You can help these birds by giving them their space; fish swim and play from 50 yards away. Drive slowly, avoid the dunes and back-beach areas where plovers and terns tend to nest, and keep dogs on a leash at all times. From Gulf Coast Bird Observatory, we hope to see you and the birds on the beach this summer!
Caption: Gulf Coast Bird Observatory researcher banding a Wilson’s Plover chick. Photo credit: Morgan Barnes
Democrats to Meet
Posted by Joyce Rhyne on 21 Jun 25 - Comments Off on Democrats to Meet
The July meeting for Calhoun County Democratic Club will be held Tuesday, July 1, 2025 at the Calhoun County Library, in the community room, 200 W Mahan St., Port Lavaca.
Social/potluck is at 5.30pm and the meeting starts at 6pm.
Got questions? Concerned about democracy? Come and join us.
You can RSVP for our monthly meetings here:
mobilize.us/calhouncountydemocrats/event/457242/
The August Monthly meeting will be on Tuesday August 5, 2025.
