News

Lost Bridge Road in Edna is covered with water after a sequence of storms hit Jackson County. The weather is expected to continue through next week and we may see more flooding in surrounding areas. This is an ongoing story.

Jackson Electric Cooperative awarded ten $1,000.00 scholarships during the annual membership meeting held May 16 at the Hafernick Center in Brackenridge Park. Those receiving scholarships were, from left, Kara Bickham, Sarah Bubela, Megan Callaway, Elizabeth Callis, Rachel Chovanec, Maci Engelmohr, William Roger Gay, Jr., Brianna Hendry, Winston Cole McKnight, III and Thanh Phuong Thi Nguyen. The meeting this year, attended by 161 members and their families, was dedicated to Manager Roy Griffin who is retiring June 15. Griffin has provided 32 years of dedicated and loyal service to the Cooperative. Service awards were presented to Annabelle Gonzales, 5 years; Martin Palomares and Ed York, 10 years; David James, 15 years and Director Michael Jacobs, 15 years.

    Ladies in Edna enjoyed quite a treat on May 13. Hosted by Carol Ann Lee in her home, Gita Shaffer and Michael Carroll from Saks Fifth Avenue in the Houston Galleria packed up a selection of furs from their Fur Salon and brought them 100 miles for viewing, purchase, upcycling, and even trade in. Shaffer is the director of the Fur Salon and Carroll is a fur specialist.
    Carroll, an Edna native, said this is a first for Saks.
    “This started as a conversation 20 years ago, when we both worked at Neiman Marcus together and it just never came to fruition,” he said, “When I came on [at Saks Fifth Avenue] in March, we picked it right back up. I knew we had all these people down in Edna who have furs in their closet they probably don’t wear because the styles are kind of outdated with big ‘Dynasty’ shoulder pads, that need to be tapered or shortened a little bit.”
    Shaffer said some beautiful furs just need an upgrade.

    A recent food drive by the Edna mail carriers turned into a tug-of-war when a representative of the Food Bank of the Golden Crescent showed up to pick up the donated food.
    Post office employees planned to donate the canned goods to the Helping Hands of Jackson County, a local food bank. When Robin Cadle, director of the Food Bank of the Golden Crescent showed up to get the food, postal employees told her she could not take it, that it was to go to Helping Hands.
    “We were promised that food over a month ago,” said Marcella Ramsbacher, executive director of Helping Hands.
    Local mail carriers collected donated food along their route on May 9. The Annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, touted by the National Association of Letter Carriers as the nation’s largest single-day food drive, advertised that the carriers would bring the food to local food banks, pantries or shelters, including many affiliated with Feeding America.

    The Ganado Farmer & Handmade Market was awarded a $1000 grant from Capital Farm Credit along with 200 reusable tote bags for future farmer market customers and a Capital Farm Credit Banner.
    Market managers Amanda Mamerow and Maria Hernandez are excited to put these funds toward a permanent sign to be displayed at all times in the Market area.
    Going strong for almost three years you can visit the Ganado Farmer & Handmade Market on the 4th Saturday of the month in Downtown Ganado from 9am to 1pm.
    Home grown and homemade is the motto to their Market. The market each month has 10 to 20 booths filled with vegetables, eggs, honey, wine, fruits, nuts, and home made items from holiday decor, hand sew items, furniture and more. Each market varies and they can not guarantee what will be at each market but you can expect to find local treasures from your neighbors.

Board members of Memory Gardens Cemetery of Edna placed 30 large flags at the entrance of the cemetery for Memorial Day in honor of the deceased veterans. There are approximately 800 veterans buried in the cemetery. Gus Westhoff of Westhoff Mercantile, Edna Mayor Joe Hermes and other anonymous donors made the flag display possible. The cemetery will sell flags in memory of individual veterans as a fund raiser beginning Aug. 1 to be displayed on Veterans Day in November. For more information contact Billie Rodriguez, office manager, at 782-2931 or go by the office at 1300 N. Kleas during office hours, Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. From left are Mary Ann Latimer, board member; Billie Rae Rodriguez, office manager, Jo Ann Blanar, board president, and Brenda Novosad, board member. Not pictured are board members John Jarratt, vice president, Mindy Yendry, Steve Minch, and Joan Stallings.

    The Warrior’s Weekend convoy of buses rolled through a sopping wet Jackson County on Saturday, carrying veterans to Port O’Connor for fishing and fun. On the buses the buzz was all about what an amazing experience it was.
    “This is awesome,” said Marine and Army National Guard veteran Stephen Burpee, “It’s unbelievable. Even in the rain, we’re still here and we’re still going.”
    Keenya Lawrence, a veteran from Alabama, echoed his thoughts.
    “This is so amazing,” she said, “I didn’t expect all these people, and this hospitality. This is my very first one, but it won’t be the last.”
    Tavis DeLong, a disabled Navy veteran from Michigan, was impressed with Texas’s hospitality and love for the troops.

    Valedictorians and salutatorians have been named and high school graduation dates are set for three high schools in the county.
    The top students will be recognized at the graduation ceremonies. Edna High School’s graduation will be Thursday, May 28 at 8:30 p.m. at Cowboy Memorial Stadium. Baccalaureate services are set for 6 p.m. on Sunday, May 24 in the high school auditorium.
    Ganado High School’s seniors will receive their diplomas at ceremonies set for Friday, June 5 at 7 p.m. in the high school auditorium. Baccalaureate services will be Sunday, May 31 at 7 p.m. at the First Baptist Church in Ganado.
    Industrial seniors graduation ceremonies will be held at 8 p.m. on Friday, June 5 at Industrial High School Cobra Field. Baccalaureate services will be at 7 p.m. on Sunday, May 31 in the high school auditorium.

A group of Edna Elementary students devoted their time to collect recycled material for the H-E-B recycling project. H-E-B  has reduced more than 63 million pounds of harmful air pollutants and diverted more than 1.2 million tons of waste from landfills—more than the annual waste produced by 627,000 households—by recycling materials including aluminum, steel, plastic, oil, cardboard, and computers since 2006.