Brittany and Ley Thomas are proud to announce the arrival of their little bundle of joy. Briley Marie Thomas was born on August 17 at 12:14am. She weighed 6 pounds 13 ounces and was 19-3/4 inches long. Welcoming Briley are proud grandparents David and JoAnne Hesskew and Wes and Charlotte Thomas, all of Blanco.

2011 is flying by for all of us at the Blanco Chamber! We’ve had several successful events already and have more to come! They include, but are not limited to, the Second Blanco Chamber Golf Open on October 17 and the Protect & Serve Mixer , which is a Benefit for the Blanco Police Department on September 30.

The Blanco Performing Arts held an afternoon tea on Sunday afternoon in the Uptown Blanco ballroom. Season tickets were available for purchase. Abigail Webb, one of Vickie Pautz’s students, played the piano and a variety of refreshments including cookies and cucumber sandwiches were served.  Last year’s inaugural season was an astounding success, and Blanco Performing Arts is excited to continue to bring outstanding national classical musicians to perform for us here in the Texas Hill Cou ...

By Pat Vallone The Blanco County Fair, Parade and Rodeo was a big success. Blanco Pioneer Museum was well represented in the Exhibit Hall. We showed items from the early frontier life reflecting on ways to cook, wash clothes, cowboy saddles, branding irons, ropes, chaps they wore while taking care of cattle, and pictures of some of the original families of Blanco.

On August 26 the Lunches of Love recipients came to the Gem of the Hills and tried out Connie Barron’s exercise class. Some of them rode the CARTS bus. For more information about CARTS (Capital Area Rural Transportation System) please call 1-800-456-7433. Everyone enjoyed an Okinawan soba salad provided by New Hope Lutheran Church.

By Mrs. Lawrence Coffee We are all being persecuted, in some form or fashion, and sometimes by our own family, coworkers, friends and neighbors. There is always something going on in our lives to cause turmoil, even in the best of Christian families. You’ll rock along for a few months, even years, with not that much happening, other than ordinary events, such as marriages, deaths and people having to go to the hospital for surgeries, etc., and then it seems like the devil must have asked God ...

Haggai 1:5 says, “Now, therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways.” Haggai was addressing the Jews who had returned from Babylonian captivity, and were more concerned with building their own houses, than with building The Lord’s House. Because of this, the prophet said they were putting their money into a bag with holes.

A King visited his over crowded dungeon and asked all those who were guilty of their crimes to stand. Everyone began to proclaim their innocence. Finally, two men stood and said they were guilty of the crimes of which they had been convicted. The King pardoned the two men and announced to the others that there could be no pardon for innocent men! The disciples of Jesus were asked by the Pharisees why their Lord ate with the tax-gatherers and sinners.

Lee Howard Andrews, 16 years of age, was tragically taken from us on August 31, 2011. Lee died at his home in Johnson City while tending to the numerous animals he loved. Lee is survived by his mom, Terry Fisher. Our Father in Heaven supplied many great men to fill the void of father in Lee’s life; Reagan Heartfield and Don Elmore are just a couple of many such men, his church family, 5 dogs, 8 cats, 2 horses and numerous goats, chickens and turkeys. We are gathering at Ark Revival Church, 1 ...

Frances Rose Kunz, 79, passed away August 30, 2011, at the Warm Springs Specialty Hospital in Luling, Texas. She was born January 13, 1932, in Flagstaff, Arizona to Henry Fox and Ruth Henderson and lived in Elgin, Oregon. She received a bachelor’s degree in Anthropology in 1988. She and her husband owned and operated a motel and ranch.

Terry J. Carmichael was born August 27, 1942, in Bruceville, IN, the second son of Herman and Betty Carmichael. He graduated in 1960 from Decker High School in Decker, IN and served three years in the U.S. Army followed by 41 years as a building contractor—23 years in Wichita, KS and 18 years in Austin, TX, retiring in 2004.

Janette Odiorne Hoppe of Johnson City, Texas, was born May 12, 1935, in Johnson City, Texas, and passed away on August 30, 2011. She grew up on the family ranch in Johnson City and in high school met her future husband. Janette and Dwayne were married on April 9, 1954, in the First United Methodist Church of Johnson City where she remained active throughout her life.

Julie H. Strickland of Blanco, TX, beloved and cherished mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, passed away in Wimberley, TX, on Sunday, August 28, 2011, at the age of 78. She was born on March 27, 1933, in Rosanky, TX, to Julius James and Helen (Vydrzal) Williams. A 1951 graduate of Bastrop High School, Julie played on the First Women’s UIL Basketball team and she played bass drum in the school band. Her parents, husband, Lewis Strickland and sister, Ruby Faye Moderow preceded her in d ...

Natalie Ann Young, 53, passed away on Friday, August 26, 2011, at her home in Kendalia. She was born on December 14, 1957, in Johnson City. She was preceded in death by her father, Wayne Allen Young, Sr. She is survived by her mother Ruby Weidner Young and step-father Jerome Jonas, and her grandmother Gertrude Johnson of Floresville.

Do you live in Blanco or own a business in Blanco?  Do you have one of those 175 watt mercury vapor “barn lights” installed on your property whose light shines off your property and/or above the horizontal plane (thus contributing to light pollution and nighttime sky glow above Blanco)?  Did you install that fixture after February 14, 2006?  If so, oops!  You are most likely in violation of Section 5.12, Outdoor Lighting, of Blanco’s Unified Development Code (UDC) and could be subject ...

AUSTIN – Gov. Rick Perry’s popularity as a Republican presidential candidate quickly vaulted the Paint Creek native to the top of at least three national polls last week. Perry committed to a couple of live debates with fellow GOP contenders in September. Moderators and participating candidates are expected to focus on Perry’s performance with emphasis on budget issues, job creation, education and health care.

Pedernales Electric is again joining other electric cooperatives across the country in the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association’s Youth Tour program, which sends high school students to Washington, D.C. to learn more about cooperatives and government. For its 2012 Youth Tour Contest, PEC is asking area high school students to write an essay and develop a Green Works initiative for their school, community or organization, incorporating a variety of conservation and green-living idea ...

The 2011 Panther football season kicked off at Canyon Lake High School this past Friday. After a fast start by the visiting Panthers, Blanco was unable to find the end zone again while the Hawks scored twice in the second half to pull off a 14 to 7 victory. After a 26 yard kick-off return by Weston Copenhaver to open the game, QB Tanner Rogers connected with Copenhaver on the Panther’s first offensive play for a 49-yard pass play.

The Panther JV lost their season opener 8-22 to the Canyon Lake Hawks on August 25. With 2:10 remaining in the first quarter, the Hawks scored a four-yard run. The 2-point conversion attempt failed. The Hawks took the lead 0-6. The Panthers scored on a quarterback keeper by McKay Adamson. McKay scored the 2-point conversion, diving into the end zone at the pylon.

The home court advantage was sweet to the varsity team as they swept the Center Point Pirates 3-0 on August 23 and the Randolph Ro-Hawks 3-0 on August 26. The Panthers outpaced the Pirates with scores of 25-16, 25-22, and 25-9. They then rocked Randolph with game scores of 25-23, 25-21, and 25-17. Against the Pirates, Abbey Weaver slammed ten kills and two blocks, and Lindsey Jenkins set 25 assists.

Just One Word: Plastics By Pamela Prescott Capps Arriving in my bucolic Blanco after a grueling day in a town nearby, I was disturbed to see so much garbage on 281 near the river. Dozens of plastic bags attached to bushes along the road floated up as each car passed. Eventually, some of these bags will wrench free of their anchor and end up in our beautiful river where they will wreak havoc on the delicate eco system. Recently, you may have heard that the good people of Brownsville enforced ...

In response to the most recent Mustard Seeds, “Where Were You When the Eagle Landed?” I received the following response: “As a member of the Apollo Eleven Recovery Team aboard the USS Hornet, I was watching the satellite feed of the landing in the HS-4 squadron ready room. I was the Maintenance Chief for Helicopter Antisubmarine Squadron Four when we recovered Apollo 10, 11, 12 and 13 aboard USS Princeton, USS Hornet, and USS Iwo Jima.

Gentle Readers: Fall is in the air, somewhere! And the weather report says it might be a sort of wet Labor Day Weekend! We can only hope... The kids are back in school and a routine has been put in place. I hope everybody got the teachers they hoped for and everybody's school year is marvelous!

What is a basic set of tools for the novice/new homeowner? The answers you may get vary widely depending on who you talk. Have the right tool for the job and your headaches will be few. There is nothing like trying to make the wrong tool work for a specific job.

August 28, 1964 Lyndon Baines Johnson was nominated for President of the United States at the Democratic Convention being held in Atlantic City. This was assured well in advance but did not dampen the enthusiasm of the delegates and guests attending the convention. Thus, Johnson became a candidate for the office on his own which he has held since the assassination of President John F.

People may select homes based on their wants and needs, but their personalities affect the transaction, too. As a seller, you can benefit from knowing about the different types of buyers you’ll encounter. Such an understanding will help you avoid frustrations and make the transaction and negotiations go much smoother. I’ll take it.