On Friday, April 13, the San Antonio ice hockey team the Rampage had a Scout Night. On Scout Night, the scouts get a discount ticket that usually includes a hot dog, drink, and chips. The scouts also were given the chance to purchase a Scout Night jersey. The AT&T Center has various fun things to do out in the courtyard for the scouts before the game and scouts also have the option to camp out at the AT&T Center after the game.

Our Friends of the Library annual Dinner and a Movie was a big success. Our tickets sold out and there was not a seat to be had upstairs at the Old Blanco County Courthouse! You helped us to raise $2,000! We also had a full house to watch The Help.

With this year’s Soil Stewardship week theme, ‘Soil to Spoon,’ the Pedernales Soil and Water Conservation District is proud to join forces with the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) to celebrate this historical observance which will be officially celebrated April 29-May 6, 2012. In 1955, the NACD began a national program to encourage Americans to focus on stewardship.

Some injuries don’t bleed; injuries from psychological and emotional trauma, for example. It may be someone trying to cope with a death in the family, a child who can’t understand why a parent has gone away, or a family dealing with the loss of their home and belongings in a disaster.

Pedernales Electric Cooperative’s Board of Directors received the audit for the 2011 fiscal year during the Board’s regular meeting on April 16. Accounting firm BKD gave PEC an unqualified or “clean” opinion, the best opinion an auditor can offer. Chief Financial Officer Frank Skube presented the financial statements to the Board.

On Saturday, May 5, at 10am, the Jane Wells Woods Chapter of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas (Burnet County) will host a double medallion placement ceremony at the Comanche Creek Cemetery near the Blanco-Llano county line. The medallions will be in honor of San Jacinto veteran Rev. Arter Crownover and wife Levinia Castleman Crownover, daughter of Sylvanus Castleman. Both the Castleman and Crownover families were among Austin’s Old Three Hundred.  They are the ancestors of Nona Moore ...

Not transferring a vehicle in 30 days can cost Blanco County residents big money. A new state law requires those who purchase vehicles in a private sale, whether it’s in or out of state, to obtain a new title within 30 calendar days or face financial penalties. “In some counties people are finding they owe hundreds of dollars in title penalties for failing to title within a month of purchasing their new car or truck,” said Hollis Boatright, the Blanco County Tax Assessor-Collector.

The weekend of April 12-15 was a reunion for seven members of the 1st Marine Brigade that once served together in 1964 -1966 in Hawaii and Vietnam. The Marines came from across the country with their wives for a bi-annual reunion that started ten years ago. Blanco was selected by organizer Dave Traylor because of its location in Texas and local friends Bob and Donna Johnson and Jerry and Pat Hendricks. The group visited the Alamo, Fredericksburg, and the Nimitz Museum, and made a stop at Luck ...

Kenneth Schramm D.C., a chiropractor in Blanco, is joining fellow practitioners of complementary medicine from around the world in donating their net proceeds earned on May 1, 2012 to benefit The ONE Research Foundation (ONE). The Foundation raises funds for alternative health research validating the BioPsychoSocial Model (BPS) and Neuro Emotional Technique (NET). BPS and NET are safe, gentle and effective interventions used to normalize physical and emotional balances, and provide a framework ...

The Democratic Party of Blanco County convened its convention in Johnson City at 9am on Saturday, April 21. The convention was well attended by enthusiastic Democrats with wonderful ideas for our county and state. Resolutions passed included: concern about the practice of oil and gas well fracking within the State of Texas; conservation of water resources; improved and expanded education opportunities for our children kindergarten through college; standardized testing of our children; and wom ...

As a first step in implementing membership changes in the new bylaws, the BCED board last week voted to offer membership in the BCED Corporation to active members of both the Blanco Chamber of Commerce and Johnson City Chamber of Commerce as an acknowledgement that membership in the chambers consist of businesses and individuals who are interested in a strong economic climate within Blanco County.

Are you looking for something fun and easy to make? How about a leather woven rim gourd? Why not join us this Thursday, April 26, from 1pm to 5pm? Uptown Blanco Art Center has a few workshop seats left, and would love to have you join. The workshop is taught by award-winning gourd artists Lelia and Jimmy Sublett. You’ll see a demonstration and get basic instructions for how to prepare your gourd, including cleaning, cutting, and how to apply the design for a woven rim.

Jer 9:23-24 says, “Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD.

More than thirty years have passed since I met the general, an unforgettable meeting that took place as the result of answering a classified ad. We had just moved into a new home, our first with a formal dining room, and were looking for a china cabinet. Since couldn’t afford a new one, we searched the classifieds and called about one we hoped would be within our budget. “My husband is ill and we’re getting ready to move to Chicago to be near his doctor,” the woman who answered my cal ...

Have you ever thought about denying yourself? Weren’t we all raised to think of ourselves first? I remember learning about moods, and how to live by what mood I was in. Isn’t that a selfish way to live? It’s very undisciplined. I remember growing up (with seven younger brothers) and we argued to get our way, to be right, and to tell each other what to do!

Carlos “Papo” Garcia, Jr., 76, passed away April 21, 2012, in San Antonio, TX, surrounded by his family. He was born April 1, 1936, in Zapata, TX, to Carlos Garcia, Sr. and Angelita Garcia. Carlos was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Oscar and Fernando Garcia; and nephew, Oscar Javier Garcia. He is survived by his loving wife of 51 years, Hilda Garcia; four children, Carlos Noel Garcia and wife Esmeralda of Temple, TX, Debbie Martinez and husband Tony of Blanco, TX, Angie Sando ...

Alton Arlie Lynch, Sr. was born June 12, 1914, in Corpus Christi, TX, to Clara Mable Johnson and Phil Roy Lynch. He left this world at age 97 in Llano, TX, on April 21, 2012. Graveside services were held on April 23, 2012, in Blanco, TX. Al was the second of seven children: Gladys Kinnison, Nina Kirkland, Dorothy Kinninson, Jesse Lynch, Suggie Goodman and Tommie Lynch. Al married Alma Lee Mahan on May 5, 1936.

Dear Editor, Some campaign signs belonging to my opponent, Mrs. Riley, have been vandalized or stolen. Mrs. Riley has conducted a clean and fair campaign, and I urge all supporters of all candidates to refrain from such bad acts. If a sign is placed illegally or without permission, it should be taken down, but destroying a legal campaign sign is petty, criminal, and ultimately pointless because people vote for a person, not a sign. David Allen Hall Blanco, TX

AUSTIN – With sights set on the 83rd Texas Legislature convening in January, Gov. Rick Perry on April 16 announced “five key principles for a stronger Texas” that he has titled the “Texas Budget Compact.” The principles are: • Practice truth in budgeting; • Support a Constitutional limit of spending to the growth of population and inflation; • Oppose any new taxes or tax increases, and make the small business tax exemption permanent; • Preserve a strong Rainy Day Fund; an ...

The Blanco Middle School 8th Grade Formal was held Saturday, April 21, at the Second Mile Recreational Center. Pictured above is the Blanco High School Class of 2016.

Middle school gifted and talented (TAG) students created an array of awesome academic and artistic projects to “show off” at their annual open house last week. TAG student John Adams gave Mark Keubel the ultimate compliment when he stated that Mark’s custom-made computer complex was “beyond genius!” There were approximately forty fabulous self-chosen independent study projects that the students researched, built, or created to display.

The high school UIL Academic Team claimed two regional championships, qualified seven students to the state meet, and finished in fourth place out of about 50 schools at the Region I-AA meet at Odessa College on April 20-21. In Lincoln-Douglas debate, Samantha Primeaux defeated a debater from Breckenridge for first place, and Tate Baker placed third after defeating a debater from Early.

The Blanco FFA Livestock Judging Team has been traveling the state over the past two months, competing in numerous competitions. Just recently, the team finished 1st overall at contests in Boerne and Jourdanton. At the first annual Boerne Invitational CDEs, Blanco took home top honors out of 20 schools. Individually, Callie Culton placed 3rd, while Logan Dodd and Tyler Hardin placed 6th and 19th.

The Blanco FFA Entomology Team consisting of Erica Flores, Megan Wier, Rance Dollahite, Deanna Sevilla and Monica Flores placed 1st overall as a team at the Fredericksburg FFA Invitational Entomology CDE this past week. Individually, Blanco also claimed the top five places, with Rance placing 1st, Megan 2nd, Erica 3rd, Monica 4th, and Deanna 5th.

The Blanco All Sports Booster Club will be holding their next meeting on Tuesday, May 1, 2012. The meeting will be held at the First Baptist Church at 6:30pm. The booster club is accepting nominations and will be voting on new officers at the May 1 meeting. All offices are open for election including President, Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary.

The JV girls softball team finished the year with a 13-1 season record. Team members are: (front row, l to r) Abbie C., Katherine B., Kendall T., Valerie H., Payton S., (back row) Coach Jason Lester, Jamie M., Olma G., Kari G., Kasi D., Alley P., Grace S., Lexee J., and Reagan R.

The Panther baseball team will face Junction here on Friday, April 27, for the last home district game. The Panthers lost to Comfort 5-7 on Saturday, April 21, to place the two teams tied in the district standings. See next week’s paper for play-off information.

One of the most prevalent justifications for using supplements is that the soil is depleted and that you can't possibly get enough nutrients from eating food, therefore the use of supplements is necessary. Although it is true that commercial farming has depleted nutrients from soil, it is not true that commercially grown food is devoid of nutrients.

Today we will report the graves in Section 11D. The closer we come to the center of the cemetery, the more difficult it is to determine exactly which section some of the graves are in. As work progresses and the records mesh better, some of the graves may actually be in the adjoining section.

When I became the principal of an alternative school (AEP) in a large school district, I found that drug abuse, gang activity, bullying, violence, sexual activity and disrespect toward legitimate authority were rampant in the campus student population. The disciplinary consequences were weak to the point of being laughable to the students.

Gentle readers: First, a belated but nonetheless heartfelt Happy Birthday to Dot Warrington. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Dot Miller's family as well. She was an amazing woman, whose quilting skills, among many other things, were truly enviable. She asked me once to go with her to a quilting guild meeting – I was unable to and have kicked myself frequently ever since.

You might want to ask a few questions when you decide to build in a subdivision or even when you buy land. Occasionally, the owner or prior owners will have a stipulation on what you can build. When you buy in a subdivision, you need to look at the restrictions for building.

April 28, 1967 Chamber of Commerce officials report that the Blanco Chamber of Commerce annual barbecue was a complete sell-out due to the splendid operation of Blanco merchants and individuals. Lunches were served at the school cafetorium with barbecue to go being served on the Chamber of Commerce grounds. • Charles Lux captured third place in the Regional Meet Mile Run at San Antonio’s Alamo Stadium.

Before you submit an offer on your dream home, get pre-approved or pre-qualified for a mortgage loan. Either one can make your offer more attractive to the seller, but they mean different things. What are your qualifications? To get pre-qualified for a mortgage loan, you provide a lender your approximate income, current debts and any important details from your credit history.