August 16, 2021

The three R’s; reading, riting, & rithmatic, I lernt them all in Bandera schools (apologies to my teachers).
It’s such a different world in the learning of today as students learn robotics, coding and lessons that we can’t fathom the use or application of.
It seems that the wisdom of our years may need to be gently applied, so as not to be rejected as dinosaur thinking, by the young people who we encounter. They will certainly understand love and understanding, so this is where I will begin to relate.
May God always bless the children of the world and may He help them through a world that we may struggle to understand! First week of school for many, so be patient with your driving.

David Lee Jureczki
Bandera

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Exciting updates on the Wastewater Front

August 11, 2021

Camp OTX in Tarpley implemented their TCEQ “zero discharge-discharge permit” this summer. There will be verifiable transparency: a Texas Clean Rivers monitoring site just downstream from the camp has been approved by TCEQ, and will be managed by the Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District. Friends of Hondo Canyon joint settlement with RR 417 (owners of Camp OTX) has been a win-win for water, and a win-win for neighborliness. It could not have been accomplished without your support.
In another canyon, we have more wonderful news to share. Young Life (the new owner of Camp Lone Hollow on the Sabinal River near Vanderpool ) just issued a press release stating their intention to withdraw their application for a wastewater discharge permit in the Sabinal River! Their press release outlines plans including an application for a Texas Land Application Permit (TLAP) – so ALL wastewater effluent will be used for irrigation. Beneficial reuse of wastewater for irrigation reduces groundwater pumping, and helps conserve our precious groundwater resources as well as keeping our few remaining clean rivers pristine. This is yet another win-win for water and a win-win for neighborliness. We await confirmation of Young Life’s decision –  an official posting of the formal withdrawal on the TCEQ website. We celebrate our community for coming together to defend our shared resources that have no legislation to protect them.
Development in the Texas Hill Country is going like gangbusters. Everyone in Bandera County received their property tax assessment – a real wake-up call. And the Friends of Hondo Canyon funded monitor well for the Trinity Aquifer has not been drilled yet, because there are so many new well applications in the que. 
Our work is not yet done. Without legislation, the preservation of pristine streams using zero discharge wastewater systems remains one battle/one permit at a time. Without dedicated monitoring wells to monitor aquifer levels, water waste will be policed by neighboring wells going dry instead of by logical restrictions on pumping during drought. I urge your continued support of Friends of Hondo Canyon. And I will ask for your voice to join our voices whenever an effective opportunity to speak out for clean rivers presents itself.
In the meantime, use your voice to share the cheers!
Remember Hondo Canyon! Celebrate Sabinal! 
Let’s stay united in support for keeping the few remaining clean river segments pristine.
More later.

By Margo Denke
Secretary/Treasurer
Friends of Hondo Canyon

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Bandera County EMS Paramedic Jennifer Harris

July 12, 2021

A few weeks ago Paramedic Jennifer Harris from Bandera County EMS came to College Station for training (https://teex.org/class/MGT314/). It is advanced Large Scale Incident Management training, where she was put alongside very experienced and seasoned responders from all around the country. I have the pleasure of working as an Adjunct Instructor there. Jennifer worked as part of a Type 3 Incident Management Team in a number of exercises, culminating in a full-day exercise where she served in the Command Section as PIO - Public Information Officer (see attached photo).
In that role she demonstrated remarkable clarity, compassion and experience. Frankly, in my 13 years as an Adjunct Instructor there, she was a top performer. My fellow instructors from all over the country made the point to congratulate me on living in a small county with such accomplished people.
Just a handful of days later, we had a medical emergency at our home in Pipe Creek. It was an early morning call, and Jennifer showed up as one of the responders. I listened and watched while she demonstrated excellent patient care, worked closely with her team, and provided good direction to their intern. Once again, very impressive. She communicated with our family all throughout the incident, even when arriving at the hospital to let us know his condition (it was a full recovery).
I contacted Calvin Plummer, our EMS Director, to solicit his thoughts about a story on Jennifer. As a matter of perspective, it was my honor to serve with a large municipal Fire/EMS department for over 30 years, so I have some sense of what the job entails and what excellence looks like. It was no surprise to me when I learned he, too, is a professional and well-spoken supervisor. Good leadership results in good teamwork.
Jennifer is a remarkably accomplished professional. I think the community would be well served to hear how well their EMS Department is doing.

Sincerely,
​
Mike Arguelles
Pipe Creek​

Archives

May 12, 2021

If you truly want Bandera to stay the same, then a lot of people need to go back to where they came from. They’re not courteous, they’re rude, they lack patience, and they’re always in a hurry!
Everyone loves the chickens, the horses, the ducks and the wildlife within the city limits of Bandera. But yesterday, Mama duck and her eight baby chicks were coming up the hill to get some cat food from Mrs. Stein’s, and some bastard ran over the male duck and two of his babies! People!!!
The male and female are paired and go everywhere together. As of 5 p.m. the female and what is left of her babies were lost in time. They were waiting for the male duck to return so they could go back to the city park!
I can tell you it’s not a hometown man or woman (native) who did this! We were raised different, to respect others and God’s animals that he has given us!
Bandera is headed in the wrong direction due to some really wrong people to spoil it for everyone.

​James McGroarty

April 30, 2021
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The month of May is National Neurofibromatosis (NF) Awareness Month. NF is a genetic disorder that causes tumors to grow on nerve tissues.  They can grow anywhere in your nervous system, including on your brain and  spinal cord. It can also cause optic glioma, and Lisch nodules, bone deformities, learning disabilities, fine and gross motor skills delays, and multiple Café au lait spots. There are three types of NF.  NF 1, NF 2, and Schwannomatosis. NF 1 is the most common and affects 1 in  3000 people  of all races and genders. 50 percent of the people with NF inherited it and a spontaneous mutation on a very-long arm of chromosome-17 results in the other 50 percent. In April 2020, the FDA approved a drug called Selumetinib that can shrink plexiform tumors in individuals two years old and older. With continued research maybe one day there will be a cure for NF.

Sheila Zavorka
Lakehills

April 10, 2021
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Dear Friends of Hondo Canyon,       

We have been working on a long-term solution to prevent wastewater discharge into our pristine creeks/streams/rivers. Here is the problem: TCEQ cannot deny administratively complete applications that meets their regulations! We were fortunate to be able to work with Camp OTX and TCEQ to negotiate the first of its kind “ZERO DISCHARGE discharge permit.” But in order to avoid yet another battle as development of the Hill Country continues, we need to give TCEQ the tools to deny discharge permits into pristine streams. So here we have it: there are two bills before the 2021 Texas Legislature:  HB 4146 and SB 1747, and HB 4146 will be reviewed by the Texas House Committee on Environmental Regulation on Monday, April 12, at 2 p.m. I am going to Austin to testify on our behalf, but I need your help!  Can you send House Representative Andrew Murr an email asking for his strong support for HB 4146? He needs to hear from our community. We need Representative Murr’s help. To be certain your email doesn’t end up in spam, it is best to send your letter to his aide: Logan Harrison Logan.Harrison@house.texas.gov
Thank you for your continued support. We can make a difference.

Margo Denke

THE DETAILS:  HB4146 and SB1747  bills will prohibit TCEQ from accepting applications for wastewater pollutant discharges into pristine stream segments – streams that have undetectable phosphorus as determined by 10 years of monitoring by the Clean Rivers Program in Texas.  There are about 40 such stream segments left in Texas,  comprising nearly 2,000 miles of creeks, rivers, and streams that remain pristine.  This is less than 2% of all of the classified stream segments.  5 of these segments are in our neighborhood--  the Upper Nueces River Basin. The legislation will not stop development.  Developers can apply for a TLAP permit (Texas Land Application Permit), using wastewater for irrigation.  This benefits all sides (developer, local landowners, TCEQ) from wasting time, money, and effort fighting a discharge permit that will pollute a pristine creek; the end result saves groundwater from being used for irrigation when wastewater will do.

April 9, 2021

As of today at 5:15 p.m., the FM 337 Bridge at Mill Creek in Vanderpool is open to traffic. Harper Brothers will still have construction ongoing, and will implement daily lane closures. Thanks to the Fire Department and EMS for handling that area on this side of the creek and everyone who helped keep response going during this time. 

Carey Reed
Bandera County Emergency Management Coordinator/911 Coordinator 

April 6, 2021

Henry Bussey 
​On behalf of Save Medina Lake

March 30 was the 22nd anniversary of the Grand Jury investigation of BMA. Let’s examine the Grand Jury’s conclusion and the progress made in the ensuing 22 years.

Please see more here

February 24, 2021

Share the Joy! Zero wastewater discharge from Camp OTX in Tarpley is now a reality. The ink is dry on the signed permit, which was mailed Feb. 23, 2021.
Thanks to all of you for supporting this community effort. Our creeks will remain pristine. It took all of us, including the owners of Camp OTX, to come together to make this happen.
Rejoice!

Margo Denke Griffin Secretary/Treasurer Friends of Hondo Canyon

January 13, 2021

Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District to hear agenda item for a water well permit from Young Life on Thursday, Jan. 14. Send your comments NOW to dmauk@bcragd.org and hphillips@bcragd.org

Imagine that we live in a quiet, peaceful corner tucked into the canyonlands of the beautiful Texas Hill Country. So idyllic is this spot in fact, that when the first European settlers came and drank in the beauty that surrounded them they named one of the communities Utopia. Imagine that, as we go about our quiet way of life, we strive to keep our employment routines in such a way to not disturb the ecosystem, as we enjoy the unspoiled setting, feeding the birds, counting the butterflies every year to participate in a nationwide survey, swimming in and paddling the rivers. We strive to maintain a balance that honors nature, the native wildlife, and the rural way of life that our great grandparents, our grandparents, our parents lived, and to maintain that same tranquil way of life we found when we became stewards of the land. We and they have worked hard to keep the serenity ofthis unspoiled place. Now imagine that a very large corporation decides to bring their brand of summer youth camps into our setting. They come with admirable stated goals, a Christian camping experience for young adolescents. In this case they apparently wish to develop a campground that would serve a much-expanded attendance from that of the former owners of a camp at the same location. Imagine, such a well-funded corporation – a corporation that urges their supporters to cement their legacy in this life by giving real estate, business interests, oil, gas and mineral rights to fund the camp corporation – a corporation so well-funded that it can spend millions to develop massive new uses of the natural resources they have found available in this chosen spot. And now you need not imagine any longer! Young Life has come to Utopia. While we applaud one of the basic tenants of their values stated on their website “ Observing the highest standards of stewardship of all the resources placed in our trust” this high standard does not seem to include avoiding the risk of irreparably polluting our beautiful Sabinal River......... Now we find that they and a neighbor landowner are also seeking to draw a very significant volume of ground water in an area of our canyonlands where some landowners wells have reportedly already gone dry!

FOR THE WATER WELL PERMIT: Please make your voice heard. Send your comments to Bandera River Authority and Groundwater District (dmauk@bcragd.org and hphillips@bcragd.org) BEFORE this agenda item is heard TOMORROW, Jan 14, 2021.
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FOR THE WASTEWATER DISCHARGE PERMIT: Send your comments to: Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (https://www14.tceq.texas.gov/epic/eComment/ Enter permit : WQ0015892001) asking that the PERMIT BE DENIED to discharge 60,000 gallons of water daily into creeks that ultimately flow into the Sabinal River. Please alert your neighbors to do the same. If we are to protect this gift of nature we must stay alert, be willing to make our voices heard. Together our community can save these treasured place we call home.​

EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELLED
January 7, 2021

​Hi CCTRA riders! It’s warmup ride time.
This is our 51st year. Mark your planners for Saturday, Jan. 9. Rideout is at 9 a.m., from Twin Elm Guest Ranch Arena, around Schmidtke Road to Mr. Frank and Mary Anderwald gravesite to pay respects at S.t Stans. Chili/cornbread lunch in town around 1 p.m. and then return to the Twin Elm. Wagon space available and wagon friendly for folks who would like to come along. Please RSVP.

Jeanne Beauxbeannes
830-534-5750

January 5, 2021
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I just read the article about Elithe Hamilton Kirkland, submitted by Bandera Spirits of Texas. My mother purchased Kirkland’s novel, Love is a Wild Assault, from a book signing at Scarborough’s Department Store in Austin in 1960. When she finished the book she gave it to me and I still have that signed, first edition copy. Love is a Wild Assault is by far one of my favorite novels. It is rich with Texas history and tells the story of one of our most fascinating pioneers, Harriet Potter, during the time of our fight for independence. Every few years I get a hankering to read it again and have enjoyed it several times. It is a classic. Kirkland was an excellent story teller and I was so pleased to hear more about her. She, too, was a pioneer and a true Texas treasure. The book is still available from Amazon and they have it in hardcover, paperback and Kindle edition.

Vicki L. George
Pipe Creek, TX​

2020 Letters to the Editor

*The views expressed in Letters to the Editor do not necessarily reflect the policy, position or opinion of the Bandera Prophet.