March 1, 1968

Forty-four members of the Blanco Panther Band won fifty-eight Superior and Excellent ratings at the Region XI Solo and Ensemble Contest in Uvalde. There were thirty first division and twenty-eight second division ratings. • Blanco scored 20 points, placing ninth in a field of 19 schools at the Mason Relays in Mason. The meet was won by Round Rock, an AA school. Charles Lux placed first in the Mile Run with a time of 4:52.1, and Ronnie Coffee won the High Jump with a leap of 5’7”. The 880-yard relay team placed third and won their heat, but were DQ for running out of their lane. The 440 Relay team of Burk, Gibbons, Morgan, and Coffee tied for 7th in that event. • Dr. Ed Roy, accompanied by about 200 students from Trinity University’s Department of Geology, was in Blanco. These students, who come from all over the US, were collecting rock specimens for study at the University laboratory.

March 3, 1978

The Johnson City ISD school board, which failed in two attempts to get voter approval of a $700,000 school construction and remodeling bond proposal, was named in a voting violation suit filed in Johnson City. The suit is based on information published in a copy-righted story in the Feb 24 issue of the Blanco County News under the byline of Editor Ann Shields in which it was reported that school district officials conducted an unauthorized and apparently illegal recount of the vote results in the most recent bond election failure. Crider’s suit claimed that Editor Ann Shields furnished him with information on which he is basing his legal action. However, Mrs. Shields denies she furnished Crider with any special information on which to base the suit. She indicated she is considering filing her own legal action against Crider and others because of possible financial damages the Blanco County News may suffer resulting from Crider’s false wording in his claim. • Mrs. Mary Galbreath celebrated her 102nd birthday.

March 2, 1988

Ten Blanco High students placed at the Boerne Invitational UIL Meet in their individual categories. Of the 15 schools participating, only three were 2A schools (Blanco, Comfort, and Lytle). All other schools were either 3A or 4A. The students achieved two 1sts, one 2nd, one 4th, two 5ths, one 6th, two 9ths and one 10th place. • The Hill Country Junior Miss committee, sponsored by the Fredericksburg Chamber of Commerce, returned to activity. The same committee, who won “Best in the State” for 1987 is now expanded and has plans for even greater efforts and larger scholarship awards. This local program is part of a nationwide effort to honor and reward the leading high school junior girls for achievement in scholastics, creative talents, self development, and community betterment. • Crystal Cox and Jill Klepac of the Blanco High School girls’ basketball team were named to the 29AA All District team by the district’s coaches. Cox, a sophomore, was an unanimous 1st team selection. She averaged 17 points and 12 rebounds per game. Klepac received Honorable Mention Honors.

March 4, 1998

Though the number of strep throat cases in Blanco is unusually high this year, so far no cases of the deadly “invasive Group A streptococcal infection” were reported locally. • The Birds of Prey program was to benefit LBJ State Park and Last Chance. • An EMS drill educated EMT students and photography students. This drill, had it been real, would have been particularly difficult on medics in a rural area since it involved 10 teenage patients, one who was driving under the influence of alcohol. The driver ran into a group of students walking home from a lacrosse game. The drill, set up for the 37 photographers involved in the competition, also overwhelmed the photographers, medics, and other personnel. Coverage of the event prompted discussions for the remainder of the three-day convention about a patient’s right to privacy, scene access, and interfering with a crime scene.

March 5, 2008

Events celebrating Blanco County’s 150th birthday were set to take place Saturday, March 8, 2008, in Blanco. The county is celebrating 150 Years of “Friendly” with a year’s worth of festivities for the residents and visitors. • The official dedication of the Withers-Spaulding Building, Johnson City, brought together a large group of Blanco County citizens, some in 1850’s period dress. • The American Red Cross brought its emergency shelter operations training back to Blanco County. This was the same course which previously launched the Blanco County Disaster Response Group by training 36 local residents in how to set up, operate, and shut down a short-term emergency shelter.