Local realtor Russell Cain has been elected Chairman of the Real Estate Center Advisory Committee. The Real Estate Center is part of the Mays Business School at Texas A&M in College Station. The Committee approves the Center’s research plans and reviews findings prior to distribution, as well as approving the Center’s proposed budget before it is submitted to the University.

Russell Cain is president of Russell Cain LLC, which has offices in Port Lavaca, Port O’Connor, Seadrift, and Edna. He is a member of the Calhoun County Board of Realtors, Victoria Board of Realtors, Rockport Board of Realtors, National Association of Realtors, and the Texas Association of Realtors.

Children ages 7 to 12 are invited to attend a weekend of fun and inspirational activities to be held February 26 through 27 at Fisherman’s Chapel in Port O’Connor. Teens are invited to come help out.

“Believe in God” (B.I.G.) is expecting a large turnout from the Victoria area and invites Port O’Connor and Seadrift children and teens to join them. The speaker for the event will be Travis Glass.

For more information, or to register, please call Joane at 361-648-4622.

Nancy Taylor Rosenberg is the author of three books in the Carolyn Sullivan series; and the author knows of what she writes.  Her protagonist, Ms. Sullivan serves as a probation officer for the court system in Ventura County, California.  The duties of a probation officer involve interviews with the now found guilty of the offending party, along with many other interviews with other parties to the case.  Then a recommendation to the Judge is made concerning the sentencing orders of the guilty person.

The three books that Ms. Rosenberg has written concerning Carolyn Sullivan are SULLIVAN’S LAW, SULLIVAN’S JUSTICE, and the third SULLIVAN’S EVIDENCE.  Of the three the latter one is the best; plot couldn’t be any tighter, and after two books featuring Carolyn Sullivan, the reader has developed a rapport with the character.  Additionally, there is a major twist at the end of the plot that makes you wish for another book to check it out.  Easy reading but very informative; the reader will have fun.

Vince Flynn, the author of the Mitch Rapp series, died several years ago, and his last novel THE LAST MAN was written with pointers leading to the next story.  Kyle Mills the author of several books as well as writing books for Robert Ludlum has written the succeeding story to Flynn’s THE LAST MAN, with his book, THE SURVIVOR as set in Pakistan with the head of their intelligence service undermining at all times the ruler of that country.

The plot is acceptable, and the information concerning Pakistan and its current upheaval is really fascinating.  However, I found that for the first ten or so chapters, the author was a little too concerned with imitating Vince Flynn.  Then, somehow, the author and his plot smoothed out a little, so that at the ending, one could see Flynn actually writing it.

It will be more than interesting to see what happens with Kyle Mills; he is not the first author to try and follow a highly successful and deceased one.
Currently we have received in the Library several of the 2015 Tax Form Books for 1040A; we’re awaiting others.

The Main Library is staging movies for kids on Saturday here at our Library with the assistance of several members of Friends of the Library.  The next film will be staged on Saturday morning, February 27 beginning at 10:00 a.m., and the film is entitled The Good Dinosaur.  However, on Saturday February 20th in place of a movie will be the Game and Puzzle Day.  And, snacks of various kinds and flavors are available too.  Moms, please see our Librarian for further details.

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

County Politics

I want to say a “Big Thank You” to Connie Hunt for her letter on “County Politics”.

It is time, and way past time to hold the local and State Party people responsible for the actions of their National Party Leadership.
I still consider myself to be a Jeffersonian-Jacksonian ‘Democrat’, was raised a ‘Democrat’ (except for support for Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower), and still at 72 must grit my teeth a bit to vote for the ‘Republican Party’. However Thomas Jefferson called the original Anti-Federalist Party the Democrat-Republicans and that makes it better.

The Problem is the “Democrat Party” does not exist anymore. It is long gone like the Carrier Pigeon, Carolina Parakeet, and the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker! The party started morphing into the  socialist Democrat Party with the FDR administration, took a strong left swing under LBJ, and became permanently Socialist-Democrat under Jimmy Carter and the Clintons.

Now under the Obama Administration there is a farther shift. No longer satisfied with a Democrat Party with socialist leanings, the current leadership have shifted to being the ‘Democrat-Socialist Party’. The ‘Inner-Circle’ are all Marxist/Alinskyites, neo-Federalists in their usurpation of powers belonging to the States and the People, and more interested in International-Socialism, the UN, international Reparations for “Global Warming”, and becoming the World’s Refugee Camp, than “supporting and defending the Constitution of the United States of America”. The Party is unabashedly Socialist (Marxist) using only the façade of “Democracy” and the promises of “Free Stuff” to get votes from greedy parasites,  the unwary, and hard-core communists that want to be part of the New Regime.

In the past I have tried to separate the person from the Party, but that is no longer possible. If you march under the Marxist Banner of Socialism, you are a SOCIALIST, even if you try to fool yourself into believing you are a “Democrat” that still supports the Constitution.

We need a “Constitution Party”, a “Texas First State Party” and an “America First National Party” all rolled into one, but we don’t have that, so we are forced to make do with the Republican Party. There is a small ‘revolution’ brewing there as the last of the Constitutional Patriots are trying to wrest control from the RINOs of the Washington Cartel.

Be careful how you vote, if you want America and Texas to remain free. Any vote for a Democrat-Socialist is a vote for neo-Federalist tyranny. Their direction is locked-in, the only variable is the speed.  Help stop it now.

Bill Brayshaw
Seadrift

Port O’Connor Improvement District Meetings

At the Oct. 22-2015 meeting Allen Junek, Joe Newsome, and Byran Redding approved over $30,000.00 to buy a new truck for the district manager. The truck being replaced could have been repaired for far less. (Our district manager has now resigned.)

Allen Junek said the district was in need of a company called Imagination Monkey to get information out to the residents. There was no presentation, and very little discussion on the subject before Allen Junek, Joe Newsome, and Bryan Redding voted to spend $36,000.00 plus to hire this company.

I voted no to both items, Leon Brown was not at the meeting.

Once again need I say it,,,,,THIS IS YOUR MONEY THAT IS BEING SPENT.

At the Nov. 12-2015 meeting we were billed by Imagination Monkey for $3,000.00 for services. I made a motion not to pay the payables until we were provided more information on this Imagination Monkey and what their services were, there was a second by Leon Brown. This motion failed by 3 to 2. Joe Newsome motioned to go ahead and pay the payables, Bryan Redding made the second, this motion passed with Allen Junek voting yes and myself and Leon Brown voting no.

At the Dec. 10-2015 meeting I put this Imagination Monkey back on the agenda to try and rescind the contract, and save the district some money. Leon Brown made a motion to rescind the contract, I made the second. Allen Junek, Joe Newsome and Bryan Redding opposed, so again we will continue to let the money flow.
Need I say it again,,,,,, PEOPLE THIS IS YOUR MONEY…….and they are doing their best to spend it as fast as they can.

At the Jan. 14, 2016 meeting Leon Brown put the water and sewer rates on the agenda. Mr. Brown made a motion that the board immediately reduce the water and sewer rates to the ratepayers by 17%; I made the second. Well guess what, Allen Junek and Joe Newsome voted no, so the motion failed, Bryan Redding was not in attendance for the meeting. I ask myself this,,,,,why can they spend the money on this Imagination Monkey for information but they can’t look for ways to reduce costs to the district and give our people, who pay the bills, some relief to these inflated water and sewer charges?

At the Jan. 18, 2016 meeting Allen Junek, Joe Newsome and Bryan Redding voted to allow this Imagination Monkey to bill the district for the conversations they have with Jody Weaver at G&W Engineers (at a cost of $150.00 per hour) , myself and Leon Brown of course voted no.

So where will it stop???? Let’s spend it,, They can adjust the budget….. I feel its time to stop the spending , stay in the budget or below if we can stop the flow of money out the door, and find a way to give our rate payers a break from these high water and sewer bills.

Again,,,, THIS IS YOUR MONEY PEOPLE!!!! WE ALL NEED TO REMEMBER THAT NOVEMBER IS NOT THAT FAR AWAY,,,,, MAYBE THEN…….

Marshall Bradford
Director POC ID

The Chaos Continues

A new year begins and the same problems on the Improvement District board continue. Leon Brown took out a full page ad in the Dolphin Talk on November 30, 2015 to call me out of my “Fiction” as he called it concerning his abandoning the rate hearing case due to potential for rate-case expenses. Since Mr. Brown will not put this in simple terms, I will. To go forward Mr. Brown needed to hire an Attorney and an Engineer at his expense. But I believe he was more concerned about the potential for the district to Recover their legal expenses, if he lost his case, from the rate payers as a surcharge to their water and sewer bill. This seems to me to be the real reason behind your abandoning your case.

I DID NOT sign your petition and I DO NOT personally know anyone who did. I believe your irresponsible action to make a name for yourself could have cost everyone money on top of the increased rates to fund the necessary improvements. These Improvements and Upgrades were mandated by the TCEQ. The definition of a mandate as defined in Webster’s Dictionary as “an authoritative command (an order from a superior court or official to an inferior one. Example: TCEQ to Port O’Connor Improvement District).

You and Mr. Bradford can congratulate yourselves on making things so unpleasant and stressful for the district manager that he resigned. Victor Leach was not only knowledgeable and hardworking, he was also a great asset to the community. I would be surprised if anyone would want to work here under current circumstances. I guess now the district will have to use outside services to finish ongoing projects at additional costs to the rate payers. Certainly good management of our funds.

You state in your ad that misrepresentation is the action of giving a false or misleading account of the nature of something. I think, Mr. Brown, that this is your specialty. The District has hired a company to help inform the rate payers on their concerns. You have talked transparency in the District business and decisions and should welcome this opportunity to get the information out.

My understanding is that you have REFUSED to meet with or talk to this company. You may not have voted to approve the contract with Imagination Monkey, but as a director representing the ratepayers, it is the duty of you and Mr. Bradford to cooperate fully.

It is time for you and Mr. Bradford to SERVE or RESIGN.

A Concerned Citizen

An Open Letter to Mr. Leon Brown:

Are you happy now?! Can you look yourself in the mirror? Your goal, as you stated, was to get rid of the old board and Victor Leach. You finally succeeded. But it seems you are unable to get along with the new board and accomplish anything productive. Could it be you and Mr. Bradford instead? The people of Port O’Connor and this area have always made it a beautiful and special place to live. Your goal seems to have been to cause discord here.

Are you willing to be an outstanding and very active and helpful member of this community as Victor and Annette Leach have been? They were active in Service Club – garage sales, dinners, doing the billboards, etc.; Toy Run, Warriors Weekend, school activities and many more. They will be greatly missed and I’m sure an asset – a very welcome, loving and cheerful couple in their new community. May God be with them as they move on to a happier environment.

Pat Ekstrom

Re: The Way I See It

Editor:

Thanks for running the article by William D. Brayshaw, “The Way I See It – Obama & Gun Control”. I agree with William’s truth about the socialist agenda in America and the anti-Christian, anti-Christ, Anti-Bible, atheists and liberals or their new name as “progressives”. We better wake up and smell the roses and ask for God’s mercy.

In Christ’s Service,
Bro. John Fisher
Point Comfort

Warrior’s Weekend Housing Preparations

Dear Editor,

It is hard to believe that in just a few short months from now, beginning on Friday the 20th through the 22nd of May, Port O’Connor again will be the host of the (10th Annual) Warrior’s Weekend Event.

Before I begin with my request, I first want to personally thank those who previously participated. Sometimes in the rush I tend to forget that it is such a generous gift you offer to these true Defenders of Freedom. Many of you expressed a true sense of Patriotism. However, even though last year there were over 150 (donated) places available for the hosting of many of our out of town visitors, we still did not have enough places for everyone. With folks driving in as far away as Kentucky last year to come experience this very unique adventure, it is so important that we treat these folks to a very special stay.

I have been informed this year there will be a Wounded Warrior and his family driving in from the state of Michigan. I can assure you he is not driving that far just to go fishing, but to show his family that there are very good-hearted souls and loving people in our little community and our Country who are dedicated to taking care of our Defenders of Freedom.

My goal is to get an earlier start in securing housing for our guests and to hopefully increase the number of available accommodations so none of our Heroes have to stay in hotel rooms in Victoria. Ron Kocian and the Warrior’s Weekend Board of Directors opened up ‘sign ups’ for our Warriors early in January. To date, there are over 190 ‘drive-ins’ looking for places to stay. Needless to say this Huge Challenge can only be met with the support from the home owners willing to donate housing.

My procedure is very simple: I try and match the attendees to the best bedding arrangements offered. I want to make sure each person receives the best we can give, helping make the Warrior’s Weekend experience, an ‘Event of a Lifetime’. I would like to start reserving housing for Warrior’s Weekend beginning the first part of April.

If you have not participated before and not sure of what it is all about, please contact me with any questions. At this time, we are asking anyone who would like to participate in this heartwarming event to call me at 361-983-2671. We can use almost any type of space: an entire house, a bunk house, an upstairs or downstairs arrangement, a guest room, etc.

As always, I look forward to working with you to make this year’s Warrior’s Weekend scheduled for May 20, 21, 22, the Best Ever! Thank you for your patriotism and your continued support.

Sincerely,
Bill Tigrett
361.983.2671 Office

The Dolphin welcomes letters from our readers on any subject that is of general interest to our audience. Letters should be 300 words or less (with exceptions at the Dolphin’s discretion). Letters reflect the opinion of the writer, and not that of Dolphin Talk staff, and we retain the right to determine suitability for publication. It is the policy of this newspaper to promote area interests: therefore, complaints against local businesses should be directed elsewhere. Letters must be signed and include day and evening phone numbers, which will not be published. Your name will be withheld upon request, but anonymous material will not be considered for publication.
Letters to the Dolphin
P.O. Box 777
Port O’Connor, TX 77982
dolphin1@tisd.net