Our Christmas poinsettia sale was a huge success! We sold almost 200 plants and after everyone saw how beautiful and fresh they were, they wanted more! We hope to get started taking orders earlier next year. Thank you to everyone who bought plants, sold plants and helped get them delivered. It was a fun project that benefits our service to the library.

“Friends” Board of Directors is working diligently on the building schematic and hope to be able to share it with the community soon. In the next few months we will be concentrating on grant applications and planning more ways to meet our financial goals to make the dream of a new library come true.
Stay tuned and Happy New Year Everyone!

I remember on New Year’s Eve, 1968-69, preaching at three churches’ “Watch Night Services”. I preached at Haskell, Jenks, and Okmulgee, which are all in the Tulsa, Oklahoma area. What is most memorable about that evening was that I said with full conviction, “I do not believe we will see 1970 before the return of Jesus!” I was wrong, but I know that His Second Coming is 45 years closer than it was that evening. Also, I remember that my 1962 Rambler required more oil that evening than it did gasoline! I have not remembered these events for a long time – guess that means I am maturing!

We are so sad to learn that our friend Verna Prebilske did not join us for our New Year’s celebration, as she left us on December 30. Mrs. Verna, as I called her, was quite a lady. At one time she could have been the poster girl for “Rosie the Riveter”! During the War, she worked in ship building. Moving to Port O’Connor with her husband Steve, they built Verna’s Motel across 14th Street from where they lived. I could tell you a lot of stories about Mrs. Verna, but the most important thing to me was that she loved me and was always wanting me to come by to help her with something so she could share something she had fixed from her garden. Debbie, along with her husband George and their daughter Melissa will totally miss her and this community has lost one of its leading citizens. Mrs. Verna, we will miss you!

Christmas at the Chapel was superb! We had 29 people stacked on our hay wagon that went around town caroling. Our Christmas Party was second to none with many of us laughing until our sides hurt. Our Family Communion time was very special as individual families came and remembered why we have a Christmas Celebration: Jesus was born to die for our sins!

We passed out 30 Christmas Food Baskets on December 22 and spent all but about $40.00 in the POC Benevolence Fund. The way we accomplished our goal was that hunters have brought in hogs and deer; we had some chicken quarters in our pantry; and canned goods were brought by the sacks full! We will be raising funds to replenish our Fund in order to be ready for 2016 and our community’s needs at Thanksgiving and Christmas time. People in this area always respond to a genuine need and I am certain that this need will be met.

Now that we are in the New Year, we wish to thank members of the Chapel who have made it possible for Pastor Joane and me to take a week off. We left on Saturday, January 2, and returned on Saturday, January 9 after traveling to Van Buren, Arkansas for an “ACTS Conference”. It was a great time of spiritual renewal and an opportunity for Joane and me to celebrate our anniversary. Also, we appreciate Pastor Jesse who filled our responsibilities in our absence. It is always necessary for pastors to have those who will fill-in when they are needed.

Our first All Church Fellowship of 2016 will be on Sunday, February 14 (Valentine’s Day) at 6:00 p.m. This will be our annual Chili Cook Off and we are expecting at least 10 pots of chili to be sampled. Personally, I have decided to find a better recipe so I will not take last place again. I have done so at every one of our Chili Cook Offs. I used to think it was our judges, but now I believe it is a wrong recipe! If you have an award-winning chili recipe, please forward it to me – I truly need help!

Now that school has resumed, it is time for all of us to get back to taking care of business. Our business starts on the first day of the week – Sunday – with Bible Study at 10:00 a.m.; Morning Service at 11:00 a.m.; Corporate Prayer at 5:00 p.m.; and Evening Service at 6:00 p.m. On Tuesdays, we host a Spanish Service at 6:00 p.m. and Fisherman’s Bible Institute meets from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. On Wednesdays, we enjoy Midweek Service at 7:00 p.m. Each Friday, except the first one of the month, is set aside for Friday Night Youth. We have a lot of activities and all are welcome ti be a part of them.

The Chapel is an interdenominational congregation which extends a warm welcome to all. You are urged to, “Come, grow with us!”

Emphasizes Broad Legal Background and Experience in Seeking Judgeship

Local prosecutor James Pink Dickens announced today that he has filed as a Republican for the position of District Judge of the 135th Judicial District. This Judicial District includes Calhoun, DeWitt, Goliad, Jackson, Refugio, and Victoria counties. A veteran prosecutor in several Texas jurisdictions, Dickens currently serves as a supervising prosecutor with the Victoria County District Attorney’s Office. Prior to this, he worked for over a decade as an Assistant District Attorney in San Angelo.

Dickens holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business from Texas Tech University, and a MBA and a Law Degree from Southern Methodist University. He became Board Certified as a Criminal Law Specialist in 1990, and has completed over 600 hours of Continuing Legal Education. He taught law for nearly a decade at Howard College in San Angelo, and worked as the City Attorney for Menard, Texas. He also served as a Special Prosecutor for Castro County.

As an attorney practicing law in West Texas, the Hill Country, and South Texas for over 35 years, Dickens has handled more than 5,000 cases involving many different civil, criminal, family law, oil & gas, real estate, and probate law issues. As a prosecutor, he has tried criminal cases ranging from Capital Murder to major thefts, aggravated assaults, sex crimes, forgeries, and drug offenses.

“I believe judges should interpret the law and stick to the facts, not try to legislate from the bench. Judges should be honest and fair, and not engage in petty politics. The courtroom is no place for bias, it’s a place where people come to seek justice. I’ve practiced in front of a lot of good judges, and I’ve learned something from each of them. Now I want to put my years of experience practicing and teaching law to work for you as a District Judge,” Dickens said.

Dickens, 62, has been married to his wife Pamela for over 35 years, and they have three daughters. An active part of his community, Dickens served for several years as an Advisory Board Member for the Retired Senior Volunteer Program, and also as an elected member of the Kress ISD School Board.

“As a prosecutor, I’ve always tried to give crooks the dickens. I worked on a ranch growing up, and my parents taught us the importance of hard work, honesty, and keeping your word. As a District Judge, I’ll work hard, treat people fairly no matter who they are or where they come from, and keep politics out of the courtroom. I have a lifetime of experience in the law, and I’m ready to work for you as your District Judge. I ask for your support in the Republican Primary,” Dickens concluded.

James Pink Dickens

Volunteers Needed

Since 2013, a team of seabird scientists has been studying the movements of adults and juvenile Brown pelicans living in the northern Gulf of Mexico. They are currently tracking adults with GPS technology but also marked young pelicans with color bands. Colored plastic bands are very useful for obtaining information about migrations of juveniles after they leave the nests where they are born. During the summer of 2014, 300 young pelicans were marked with green plastic bands on the Texas coast (in Galveston, Matagorda and Corpus Christi Bays). In Port O’Connor, they worked with Tim Wilkinson, warden of Chester-Sundown Island.

The scientists rely on volunteers to know more about the whereabouts of young pelicans. Currently, local observers in our area are being sought who can report their sightings of birds wearing plastic bands.

The website, projectpelican.weebly.com explains more about this project. The public can also interact with the twitter feed @project_pelican.

Yvan Satge, South Carolina Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit, Clemson, SC