Jorden Therese Vasquez, 29, of Port Lavaca passed away December 21, 2023. She was born October 11, 1994 in Port Lavaca to David A. Vasquez and Jennifer Garrett Reece. Jorden worked as a Barista at Starbucks. She attended Culinary School and loved to cook. Every dish she made was absolutely delicious. She had an extremely kind heart and loved to give to everyone.

She is survived by her dad and step-mom, David A. Vasquez (Teresa); mom, Jennifer Reece; grandfather, David Vasquez; grandmother, Evelyn Blevins; sisters, Ashleigh McKenzie, Kaleigh McCauley-Stewart (David); brother, Ray Alexander Blevins; step-sisters, Ashley Matula (Brad), Jordan Lopez (Joel); and her significant other, Bryan Anguiano.

She was preceded in death by her grandmother, Cynthia Vasquez and grandfather, Larry Blevins.
Visitation will be held Wednesday, December 27, 2023 from 6-8 p.m. at Richardson-Colonial Funeral Home. Funeral services will be Thursday, December 28, 2023 at 10 a.m. in the Funeral Home. Burial will follow in Port O’Connor Cemetery.

Pallbearers are Alex Blevins, Derek A. Vasquez, Ashleigh McKenzie, Kaleigh McCauley-Stewart, Anthony Luna, Cole Taylor, and Robert George Schaefer.

There is an account open at First National Bank under David A. Vasquez for funeral expenses, write “donation” on the memo line.

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

Pamela Joyce Brantley (Drummond), 66 of Seabrook Texas, went to be with our LORD 12/31/2023.  She is survived by her sister Lisa Foster, her children Zachery Short (Amber), Deedra Short (Gary), Dustin Brantley, and her beloved grandchildren, Jacob Campbell, Keegan & Torunn Short, Arlin & Bo Brantley and many life-long friends.  Pam is proceeded in death by her parents Gerald and Dorotha Drummond, and her brothers Kenneth, Michael, and Scott Drummond.

Pam was born in Houston, Texas 09/19/1957 and attended Sam Houston High School in North Houston.  She became a mother to Zachery and Deedra early in her life.  In her mid-twenties, Pam began work as a doctor’s assistant to Dr. Gay, a urologist of North Houston.  She worked for Dr. Gay for 10+ years, where she gain an incredible knowledge and understanding of human ailments and anatomy.  In the early 90’s, Pam and her family moved to Hilltop Lakes, Texas.  During that time Pam enjoyed and hosted many family reunions and get togethers at Lake Limestone.  She worked many years as a department manager of the Madisonville WalMart, where she developed strong customer service skills.  In 2008, Pam made her move to the PO’C/Seadrift community.  She worked 8 years as management at the local PO’C Speedy Stop.  Pam loved the community and kept up with many once she moved back to the Houston area in 2017.

Pam was a devout Christian. She read her Bible daily and followed many online services. She was an avid reader and enjoyed her online games and later found therapeutic coloring. Pam was an infamous family cook and knew how to pull a party together, among food & fellowship.

A Celebration of Life service will be planned for Pam at a later date. Charitable donations are welcomed and encouraged to your local youth church group.

Pam lived her life as a mother, a friend, a co-worker, a Nana, a nurse, a manager, a tidy housekeeper, and a make-shift therapist to so many. She shared many, many laughs, many meals, and many tears. She is and will be, greatly missed. Special Thanks is giving to all who have cared for her, the local PO’C VFD, Hospice Care, the Seabrook EMT unit, Aunt Lisa, and her daughter Deedra.

Joanne Loyde Petty, 69, of Seadrift, Texas passed away to our Lord on January 9th, 2024. She was born in Portland, Oregon on January 10th, 1954.
Joanne was preceded in death by her father, Sam Counts, her granddaughter Devon Ogg; two sisters, Kathy Paugh and Samantha Counts, and one brother, John Counts.  She is survived by one son, David (Judy) Ogg, Jr.; her two daughters, Dawn (Willie) Ragusin, and Brandy Ogg; grandchildren Albert, Jaciel, David III, Daniel, Will and Taylor;  her mother, Donna Counts; three sisters, Mary Miller, Christine (Lee) Parten, Susan (Jeff) Belote; three brothers, Edward Counts, Mike (Gaea) Counts, Anthony Counts; numerous nieces and nephews.
Joanne lived outside the city where she had plenty of land to enjoy her favorite activities.  She was an avid gardener, and her happy place was with her plants, trees and flowers.  The majority of her life residing on the Texas Gulf Coast and loving the salty air, her catch of the day was often the next meal on the table.  She was always “in tune” with nature and her bronzed colored tan was a quick give-away that she spent the majority of her days outdoors soaking up the sun.  She was a “flower child” at heart.
Joanne was active in her church community and well known for teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a way that impacted the lives of her neighbors and friends.   She especially loved to minister to children.  Those closest to Joanne enjoyed her company and playful sense of humor.  In their words, she was a lady of wisdom, light and love, and they will never forget the blessing of having had her in their lives.  She will be missed by her family and friends, her neighbors and church community.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, January 20th, 2024, 10:00 a,m, at Seadrift Community Church, 912 W. Broadway, Seadrift, Texas, with Pastor Mart Maxwell officiating.  Words of tribute and condolences may be shared at www.hennesseyfuneralhomes.com.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!! Who knew it would come so fast? Now it is time for First Baptist Church to prepare for our annual Sweetheart Banquet. This year’s date is Thursday, February 8, 2024, 6:00 p.m. It will be held, as usual, at the newly refurbished POC Community Center. The tickets are still a bargain at $10.00. We have an entirely new menu this year. Each person gets 1/2 rotisserie chicken, green bean casserole, roasted rosemary and garlic new potatoes, fruit salad and Bundt cake. Come and enjoy the evening of good food, friendly people and fantastic entertainment with your favorite friends or special Valentine. There will be an award for the longest married couple and the newest newlyweds. There will also be door prizes! All this for only $10.00! Don’t miss it. Tickets are limited. You can get tickets by calling the church at 983-2727 or see Pat Ekstrom, Debbie Michalek, MaryNell MaGee, or Diane Cooley.

Our TEAM KIDS and YOUTH meetings on Wednesday evenings at 5:30 p.m., continue to draw record numbers to FBC. They have dinner, Bible study, crafts and recreation until 7:00 p.m. If you have a child in first grade through high school that would like to join the fun, please call the church at 983-2727 or call Candice Stryker at 361-655-8224.

We also have other activities taking place at FBC during the week. Monday morning at 10:00 a.m., you can join others in our sanctuary for prayer time. On Tuesday afternoon at 4:00 p.m., ladies meet for Bible study. On Thursday evening at 6:00, FBC has prayer time, and on Sunday there is Sunday school at 10:00, Church services at 11:00 and at 6:00. You can watch Sunday, 11:00 a.m. services live on Facebook. Friendly people are waiting to welcome you to any activity. Our Pastor, Brother Rich Schaller, is at church Monday through Thursday and Sunday, and his door is always open. Come see us next Sunday.

What a great time to be living in Port O’Connor! We have been experiencing the Birthday of Jesus, the Christ; New Years came in with a lot of bangs: Pastor Joane and I celebrated our Wedding Anniversary with a special meal with the Pastor who tied our knot, and Pastor Joane celebrated another birthday! (Since I am 29, and she is 12 years my junior, she reached the ripe old age of 17! – I just love this new math!)

Christmas at the Chapel has several layers! We had a great crew come and decorate the Chapel and it, as usual, was beautiful! Thanks to the hard work and great artistic talent we have, the work went quickly and without a hitch! What usually takes several days was all finished in only a part of one day. Thanks!

We enjoyed our Christmas Sunday on December 17, with a great morning service and our annual Christmas Party in the evening. We had invited Friendship Bible Church to join us and we had a great meal and a lot of fun with all the games and activities that go together to make our Celebration always a memorable one!

On Wednesday, December 20, we had a cook-out in our fire pit in front of the Chapel. There were sausages and hotdogs to roast and marshmallows to “burn” while enjoying the friendship and family love that our events are known for. The weather was suitable and we enjoyed singing Christmas Carols together!

On January 11, 1995, the Chapel installed its blue carpet. It was a very cold weekend and John helped provide a place for us to be able to roll out the materials so it could be glued in place. On Monday, January 13, 1995, a glass panel was placed in one of the two front doors of the Chapel, and it was so cold that the silicon would not properly seal with a smooth finish. The pews had been placed in the room, the Reverend Steve Linney took his place, and Pastor Joane walked down the aisle to the waiting arms of Pastor Erny to be married in the new Chapel. It was an anointed service with many friends, several who were pastors, serving as witnesses. It was a special journey, and we have been blessed to have been “tied together” in Port O’Connor’s Fisherman’s Chapel.
Our family planning is not very effecting for most families! We celebrate Thanksgiving, followed in about a month with Christmas. We then celebrate our Wedding Anniversary, followed in five days with Pastor Joane’s Birthday. Then it is only a month until we celebrate Valentines Day! But, maybe the way to look at it is that we got all of the special things quickly scheduled so the rest of the year we can move forward without so much fanfare! Yes, you helped make Pastor Joane’s birthday celebration very special, with a special meal of pork tenderloin and all the trimmings on Wednesday, January 10. You truly know how to make you Pastor feel extra special. Thank you!

We are planning a special activity for February 14. We are thinking about having our men serve their ladies a special meal. Keep your ear to the ground for all the details that will be coming shortly.

Report on Thanksgiving & Christmas Baskets:

Please allow me to share a report concerning the Port O’Connor Benevolence Fund, for which we raise funds and from which Thanksgiving and Food Baskets are purchased to provide needy families with a special Holiday blessing. In 2022, we had a total income of $4,265. From those funds and the generosity of previous years’ giving, we expended expended $5,375.84. In 2023, we received $4,814.74. Since we knew our children from the school system would be out for 20 days, we made extra provisions available for our needy families. We expended $6,659.09 to pass out the 54 food baskets we gave both for Thanksgiving and Christmas. We had an ending balance of $4,662.02, but received a Formosa Grant of $800.00, which makes our balance stand at $5,462.02. It is readily seen that we are expending more than we are receiving each year, and with the large rise in food costs, we can not continue providing this service to needy families from our area without additional assistance. Those who seen the need and are able to assist can give a gift to any of our three community churches or can go to the local bank and give to the special account there. We do not know what the need will be like in 2024. We do not know the gifts we will receive during this year, but we do know that our community has some of the most generous people on the planet!

None of these funds are expended for anything except our Thanksgiving and Christmas Food Baskets. With your generosity, the Chapel has a community food pantry which operates out of the Chapel, but the funds are never mixed! Make a special donation if you possibly can to help the needy people of Port O’Connor.

Fisherman’s Chapel is an interdenominational congregation in the heart of the POC Community with the community at heart! We truly desire to see your friends and families blessed, hence we serve! Sundays we meet at 10:00 a.m. for Bible Study, 11:00 a.m. for Morning Service, and 6:00 p.m. for Evening Service. We have a group of Spanish speaking saints who meet in our Retreat Center on Sundays at 5:00 p.m. for a devotion. Our Wednesday gathering is at 7:00 p.m., and we begin with a fellowship meal, followed with a Meal from God’s Living Word! Everyone will find a warm welcome at the Chapel and all are urged to “Come, grow with us!”