Download & Print
January 8, 2025
Growing Up In Bandera
By Glenn Clark
The Bandera Prophet
Looking back over the last seven decades, from this lofty perch I obtained by reaching what some call the golden years, I see a lot of things that make me thankful for the life I led as a kid. I can't imagine anyone claiming they had it better in some other place. Bandera was a paradise where we had freedoms that people can't even imagine being possible in our town today.
Times were tough for the Bandera folks who came before me. Not sure there was much freedom for my grandparents to have fun and roam freely as they were closely connected to the early settlers and their way of doing things. They were still building a town, and being void of all the technical advantages my generation enjoyed meant they spent more time working than playing, I'm sure. When it came time for me to do chores I was famous for disappearing along the river close to our home.
Those early residents of Bandera went from mules to tractors and horse drawn carriages to automobiles. Some of the work needing to be done was getting easier as new technology was getting a foothold here in the hills.
I recall how proud my Granddaddy Kindla was of his Ford truck. It was his pride and joy and served him well even though some of that new technology was getting in the way. Traffic lights being installed on his normal daily route to the post office caused some issues that needed some rectifying.
Thankfully the DPS officer who patiently followed him all the way back home with lights flashing was understanding, even after receiving a bit of a tongue lashing. Following that incident, granddaddy had a better grasp of traffic light laws and the need to yield to some other drivers while making a left turn even if he had a green light.
If you want to talk about how businesses in Bandera have changed over the years, banking would be a good place to start. I think I was about 15 when I opened my first account at The First State Bank where Burgin Davenport, the president of the bank, knew me by my first name. That institution has evolved into a new brand several times over the years. Today it has many employees on staff and not a single one knows I have an account with them until they ask.
There's another bank on the south end of town where I do the majority of my banking now. It's called Bandera Bank. That location was formerly The First National Bank of Bandera. Frank Montague Jr. was the president and he knew me by my first name, too. Not because I banked there but I went to school with his kids at St. Joseph Catholic School. Bubba and I were in the same class. We all attended services at St. Stanislaus Catholic Church where Bubba and I served as altar boys up through the eighth grade. The Montagues weren't from a Polish clan like many of us back in the day, but we were all members of the so-called mackerel snapper family on no-meat-Fridays.
I can't even imagine where we are headed in these remaining years of my Growing Up In Bandera adventure. The recent discovery of city leaders trying to invoke eminent domain over a lifelong resident's property sent shockwaves through the hills.
Who could ever imagined such a thing happening in Bandera? The times they are a changin'!!!
#421 2024
Times were tough for the Bandera folks who came before me. Not sure there was much freedom for my grandparents to have fun and roam freely as they were closely connected to the early settlers and their way of doing things. They were still building a town, and being void of all the technical advantages my generation enjoyed meant they spent more time working than playing, I'm sure. When it came time for me to do chores I was famous for disappearing along the river close to our home.
Those early residents of Bandera went from mules to tractors and horse drawn carriages to automobiles. Some of the work needing to be done was getting easier as new technology was getting a foothold here in the hills.
I recall how proud my Granddaddy Kindla was of his Ford truck. It was his pride and joy and served him well even though some of that new technology was getting in the way. Traffic lights being installed on his normal daily route to the post office caused some issues that needed some rectifying.
Thankfully the DPS officer who patiently followed him all the way back home with lights flashing was understanding, even after receiving a bit of a tongue lashing. Following that incident, granddaddy had a better grasp of traffic light laws and the need to yield to some other drivers while making a left turn even if he had a green light.
If you want to talk about how businesses in Bandera have changed over the years, banking would be a good place to start. I think I was about 15 when I opened my first account at The First State Bank where Burgin Davenport, the president of the bank, knew me by my first name. That institution has evolved into a new brand several times over the years. Today it has many employees on staff and not a single one knows I have an account with them until they ask.
There's another bank on the south end of town where I do the majority of my banking now. It's called Bandera Bank. That location was formerly The First National Bank of Bandera. Frank Montague Jr. was the president and he knew me by my first name, too. Not because I banked there but I went to school with his kids at St. Joseph Catholic School. Bubba and I were in the same class. We all attended services at St. Stanislaus Catholic Church where Bubba and I served as altar boys up through the eighth grade. The Montagues weren't from a Polish clan like many of us back in the day, but we were all members of the so-called mackerel snapper family on no-meat-Fridays.
I can't even imagine where we are headed in these remaining years of my Growing Up In Bandera adventure. The recent discovery of city leaders trying to invoke eminent domain over a lifelong resident's property sent shockwaves through the hills.
Who could ever imagined such a thing happening in Bandera? The times they are a changin'!!!
#421 2024