August 2022

Pursuit leads to arrest in Fort Stockton

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A call for trespassing in Fort Stockton ended with a pursuit and arrest of a former resident of the city on Aug. 18.

Andres Garcia, 37, was arrested on eight charges, including three counts of aggravated assault against a public servant following a pursuit in Fort Stockton by law enforcement.

Andres Garcia

FM 1053 south of Imperial still closed due to heavy rainfall

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The Texas Department of Transportation reported on Tuesday morning that FM 1053 is still closed to through traffic between FM 11 and FM 1450 south of Imperial.

Heavy rains caused large cracks in the surface of the road beginning on Saturday evening. Local traffic will still have access, but no traffic is allowed to pass by the subsidence about 6 miles south of Imperial.

Crews are currently working on repairs, but there is no timeline for reopening as of now. Please do not move barricades; that is a criminal offense.

DPS

Capital Highlights: Farmer’s Almanac predicting a white winter

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As Texas gets at least a temporary reprieve this week from the heat, with a nice round of rain blanketing much of the state, the Old Farmer’s Almanac is predicting January will bring significant snowfall to the state.

The periodical, founded in 1818, develops its extended forecast “using a 204-year-old mathematical formula focused on sunspot activity, planet positions and tidal actions of the moon.” The almanac’s website claims its forecasts are 80% to 85% accurate.

Capital Highlights

Pioneer Athlete of the Week - Aryanna Gonzalez

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This week’s Pioneer Athlete of the Week is Aryanna Gonzalez.

The junior earned the libero jersey to start the 2022 volleyball season for the Prowlers and the junior showed why in the first seven games of the season last week. Gonzalez tallied 115 total digs in the seven matches (16 digs per match).

See Gonzalez’s Athlete of the Week in the Aug. 18 paper. The Athlete of the Week for Aug. 18 was sponsored by The Pecos County State Bank.

Aryanna Gonzalez receives a serve during the team's season-opener at home against Wink on Aug. 9. Photo by Nathan Heuer

Round 2: Bond election called by Fort Stockton ISD

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The Fort Stockton Independent School District Bond Proposition A was 10 votes away from passing in May, failing 665-656 during an election that had 18% of registered voters participate.

Now, the Fort Stockton ISD School Board is moving forward with a second bond election that includes the same $84 million proposition.

The school board approved the order of a bond election for two propositions (see details below) at a special meeting on Aug. 17 – five days before the Aug. 22 deadline.

FSISD Administration Building

Eating well to tame the silent killer

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What do we mean when we talk about the silent killer? We’re talking about high blood pressure. According to the website meddler.org, there are 1.13 billion people worldwide suffering from hypertension, or high blood pressure as we know it, and 50% of these people suffer from it due to an unhealthy diet. That is pretty telling.

Sheet-Pan Chili-Lime Salmon with Potatoes and Peppers

Barrio Fest coming up in September

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To qualify for a Humanities Texas grant, a humanities advisor must be involved in the planning and implementation of the activities. The humanities advisor for Barrio Fest will be Dr. Nicolas C. Garcia, a Fort Stockton High School graduate class of 2004 who went on to earn his PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Texas at San Antonio. Garcia will moderate two discussions during the Barrio Fest weekend. The first discussion will be on Saturday, Sept. 17, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Butz Education Center. The topic will focus on the educational experience of the Hispanic community prior to integration. The second discussion will be held on Saturday from 5-6 p.m. at Joe’s Place. Descendants of some workers who came to Fort Stockton through the Bracero Program in the 1950s will tell their first-hand experiences of this work program that added greatly to Fort Stockton’s economic development.
Barrio Fest Logo

Forgiving some sinners and castigating others

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Iwas watching an old documentary the other day about classic Hollywood stars. Henry Fonda, a man who epitomized the stalwart, decent American, was the narrator, and he walked us through several decades of famous (and sometimes infamous) actors, from Charlie Chaplin to Natalie Wood.
Forgiving some sinners and castigating others