Susie Onishi

A Special Honor For A Special Lady

Susan Onishi Named Citizen Of The Year

The Port O’Connor Community Service Club was pleased to honor Susan ‘Susie’ Onishi as 2015 Citizen of the Year. Susie is a bright light in our community. Whether you see her out riding her bike or helping at one of her many volunteer opportunities, she always has a smile and a willing heart to lend a hand to anyone in need.

She well known for helping out at church, calling bingo at Tuesday’s senior lunch, delivering meals to the homes of seniors who can’t make it, being a part of the holiday food basket drive, helping decorate the library for the holidays and serving at the annual Christmas lunch. She’s a vital part of Fisherman’s Chapel, and a positive force in our community.

One of the biggest jobs and greatest services she provides is sorting and organizing all the donations for the twice yearly community garage sale. The work involved is enormous but she does it with great skill. Susie and her late husband Carl purchased property here in 1997, and moved in permanently in 2000. Carl had fished here as a child and told Susie for years they would retire here. Even after Carl’s passing, Susie has been happy in the Port O’Connor community. She says her favorite thing about Port O’Connor is the friendly people and the many things she loves doing around her hometown. Susie’s greatest joy and true purpose in life is being girlfriend and best helper to her 99 year old mother, Mrs. Grace Stone. They share a house and much of life’s joys every day.

It’s a real treat for the Community Service Club to honor Susie in this way. If you see her, congratulate her. She may just take you on a bike ride or recruit you to help out. Thanks Susie for all you do! We appreciate you so much and are pleased to name you our 2015 Citizen of the Year!

Josie and Cookie Covarrubias

Congratulations, Cookie & Josie
2015 Citizens of the Year

At the Annual Seniors Christmas Dinner, the Port O’Connor Community Service Club also honored a terrific couple as 2015 Citizens of the Year. These two are a powerhouse team with big hearts. They give back to their community all the time. Their talents and giving goes way beyond the great food they are so well know for as they pitch in and lend a hand with community events and needs. And don’t disregard the impact made by the kind kids, generous grandkids and giving great grands they have raised and are raising. Their influence can be felt from Turkey Cook-off to holiday happenings. Their contributions are sometimes behind the scenes but always adding to the heart of our community.

Those attending the Senior Christmas Luncheon enjoyed the Christmas music presented by the children of Port O’Connor Elementary School. -Photo by Bill Tigrett

Port O’Connor Community Service Club Annual Seniors Christmas Luncheon was possible in part by this crew of members and volunteers. The ‘mucho bueno’ menu of enchiladas, tamales, guacamole, frijoles and rice, pie, cheesecake and pralines was a real treat. The decorations were beautiful and the children from Port O’Connor Elementary sang beautifully. Door Prizes and Citizens of the year awards made the festivities special and time shared with neighbors and friends made the celebration complete.

Are You Fishing For Some Christmas Joy?

Christmas is a lot like fishing. No, really, it is! If you love to fish, you have to make time to go fishing. You have to take a break from work, and worries and all the things that demand your time and attention to actually go fishing. It’s the same with Christmas celebrations. You have to take time and find still moments and quiet spaces in the midst of a busy world to revere the reason we celebrate Christmas. Otherwise you may end up like the innkeeper in the Christmas story…too busy to catch the spirit of Christmas.

Good fishermen listen. They hear the wind and the water and the movement around them so they can track and catch the fish they seek. To find the joy of Christmas you have to listen to the right forecast. You have to tune out the radio holiday playlist, ignore the mall Santas, turn off the commercials and claims that this gadget or that gift will perfect your holiday and listen for the chorus of Christmas. The true joy and peace is found in the small voice of a child singing carols or the laugh of your loved one, or maybe the holiday wish from a friend. The Christmas message may not be as loud as the bad news and gloomy outlook screaming out for our attention, but if you listen carefully enough you too will hear the angels announcing tidings of peace and joy just like the shepherds did long ago.

We all know it’s called fishing, not catching for a reason. Sometimes you fish all day and just catch nothing. Sometimes you just sit and enjoy the sunrise, watch the porpoises play and feed the pelicans because no fish are biting. Bringing sanity and serenity to Christmas is much the same as that tough day of fishing. Sometimes you cook and decorate and buy and wrap and gift and still can’t seem to catch the Christmas spirit. New toys break, the tinsel fades, and the tree will soon be kindling. The meal may not be perfect, and the gifts may not be just right, but if you catch time together it is time well spent. The present of presence will never be the wrong size. Loving time invested in just being with someone never breaks, and you never have to keep the receipt to return the time given to playing a game or sharing a meal or giving of yourself to others. It will be returned to you in full, no receipt required. Just like the gifts of the Wisemen, gifts of self are always a perfect fit.

There is a country song about a daddy taking his little girl fishing. They talk of many things and he teaches her how to tie a line and bait a hook and finally to catch a fish. He is sharing much more than fishing with his daughter. She gains much more than dinner. They both benefit and their relationship is strengthened. The chorus says, ‘she thinks we’re just fishing.’ But it is much more. Celebrating Christmas is just the same as sharing great fishing. You need to share it, you need to teach it, you need to tell about it, and you need to know that it will mean more to your life than new socks or a few days off of work near the end of December. A baby was born that changed the world, and celebrating Him can change your outlook and impact those around you. So, if you want to catch the Christmas spirit, find the joy of the season, see the star in your own sky, look no farther than a good fishermen would look. Just like fish, Christmas is everywhere. It is up to you to bait your hook then cast out your line and find it.

Grandpa and Grandson – Still moments and quiet places

Dalene Caffey, Crazy Fishermen, winners of BBQ Turkey & Cowboy Stew, with Paul McGee

November 21, 2015 dawned with greyish skies and a weather report that went from bad to worse. And this was the weekend of the Annual Turkey Cookoff as staged by Joe and Eloisa Newsome on the grounds of their restaurant, Josie’s. Due to the inclement weather forecast of rain, chilled temperatures and wind, a number of the previous participants in this event decided to cancel. But we had a number of chefs who braved some rain and a coolish temperature to set up their bbq stands and start cooking.

There were three events this time for those cooks to show off their skills: a Bloody Mary cup; a Cowboy Stew; and the cooked turkey. And if you were driving up or down Adams, you could smell that distinctive aroma of cooking turkey. And many newcomers to our area, decided to stop and see exactly what was cooking!

Seven potentially winning teams entered this event, all hopefully aimed at showing off their talents and capturing the trophies for the very best entry. These included the Smokin’ Joes composed of Joe and Eloisa and Dandra Alford; the Up ‘n Smoke Smokers with Kim Dickens, Steven Few and Deidre McCollum; the Trophy Hunters with Gary Rigamonti and Tammy K; the Crazy Fishermen with Scott and Dalene Caffey; the Bugs composed of Alex Doolin and Andre Brown; the Team Butterballs with previous winner Leroy Smith attending the pit; and the Chuck Wagon Chicks, the gals from Austin with Sue Glover and Nicole Collins. Some of these teams entered all three divisions; some entered only one; but their winning and losing output was amazing.

And then, after several hours of preparation, it came time for five brave people, serving with much trepidation, to prepare to judge with pure honor the dishes. And, despite much experience in preparing Bloody Marys, the judges still awarded the trophy for the best to the SMOKIN’ JOES! Taking second place was UP ‘n SMOKE SMOKERS, and although they mentioned a recount, the awards stood.

First for the Cowboy Stew, a new item in this contest, was claimed by the CRAZY FISHERMEN, and Dalene S. Caffey happily claimed that trophy; and Second went to UP ‘n SMOKE SMOKERERS. But the Award Trophy for the BEST bbq turkey went to the newcomer once again, Dalene Caffey, and her smiling face was very apparent. Second went to the “BUGS”, though as a late arrival to start cooking, they obviously did quite well.

Our community thanks Joe and Eloisa Newsome for once again providing this fun-filled event, from which our community benefits. A donation of $1,000. was made to the Volunteer Fire Department, and the cooked turkeys once again went to the Benevolence Fund for Thanksgiving Baskets.

Eloisa Newsome, the Smokin’ Joes, winner of the Bloody Mary Contest.

We are again proud to announce that Warrior’s Weekend X will be held in Port O’Connor the week of May 20th-22nd. As many of you know, we hold a huge fundraiser in Victoria each spring known as the Muster and we are going to hold Muster POC on May 5th in Port O’Connor. The Muster in Victoria will be held April 14th. These Musters enable Warrior’s Weekend to bring as many military heroes wounded in the Global War on Terror as we do and we need your help.

On January 4th, we will be holding a volunteer meeting once again in POC at the 1st Baptist Church Fellowship hall beginning at 6 pm. Please try and attend, as we need as much in the way of assistance from the local POC folks as we can get. Don’t hesitate to call me at 361-935-7414 or see Kelly Parks or Russell Hofer down @ Froggie’s most any day. You may also email me at ron_kocian@hotmail.com. We hope to see you on the 4th of January. Please don’t forget our military this Christmas season.

Ron Kocian, President Warrior’s Weekend