Winter Texan Times

MOSTH presents Pioneers of the City of Pharr

MOSTH Romeo Rosales Jr Pharr native Romeo Rosales Jr. will present a Sunday Speaker Series Online presentation, “Pharr: A Concise History,” at 2 p.m. on February 28 on the Museum of South Texas History’s Facebook page.

Pioneers come in many forms—sometimes as entire communities with a unique founding story. The All-America City of Pharr, which was incorporated in 1916, is a central community at the heart of the historic Rio Grande Valley. Sugarcane grower Henry Newton Pharr, who was also an engineer and manufacturer, along with his partner John C. Kelly, founded the city of Pharr for their interest in establishing a sugarcane empire.

Rosales Jr., the author of “Images of America: Pharr,” will share Pharr’s foundation and incorporation, stories on the National Guardsmen in the 1910s, agriculture history, and law and order. Copies of Rosales’ 2014 publication of “Images of America: Pharr” are available for purchase in the Museum Store.

Remembering the kindness of a stranger

Submitted by Rev. Dr, Jerry Butcher, Mission

Both in our mid 80’s, my wife, Betty, and I had an ‘appointment’ between 3 and 5 p.m. at the RH COVID Vaccination Clinic in Edinburg. It was a disorganized disaster. They funneled second shot people, cancelled out the day before, on to our day and opened the vaccines to a first come, first serve invitation. This left many elderly people, like us, thinking we had a time slot, waiting in freezing temperatures.

Quinta Mazatlan presents A Walk Around the Valley

Quinta Mazatlán is proud to host Valley native and photographer, Pedro De La Fuente, on Thursday, February 25th, 2021 at 600 Sunset Drive, at 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. on The Back Porch at Quinta Mazatlán. His topic ‘A Walk Around the Valley’ will highlight key locations, animals, local architecture, and a night sky that can be seen--even from your backyard. De la Fuente will take you on a journey showcasing what makes the Valley unique and diverse.

Library to host book discussion

By William Renner, Reference Librarian

Speer Memorial Library in Mission invites you to join us on Tuesday, March 2, for a discussion of the book Educated, to take place via Zoom at 5:30 p.m. in Spanish, and at 6:30 p.m. in English. We will send a link for this virtual meeting to all who sign up.

FESTIBA 2021 events planned

The Festival of International Books and Arts (FESTIBA) promotes the importance of literacy, culture, and the arts to students, parents, educators, and community members throughout the Rio Grande Valley.

The literary and performing arts have seen the world through many times of crisis. As we adjust to new realities during the ongoing pandemic, FESTIBA 2021 will focus on Building Resilience Through Arts and Literacy.

Why should we count our backyard birds?

By Quinta Mazatlán World Birding Center

Every year, thousands of people around the world watch and enjoy the birds that live around us. Because birdwatching is such a popular pastime, different citizen science projects have sprung up to add scientific value to the hobby. One such project is eBird, started by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology in 2002, which has grown to be a favorite for birdwatchers. By submitting checklists, which can include photos and sounds of birds, people can keep track of what birds they’ve seen in a convenient online format. Those checklists are also used by scientists to help better understand bird migration, distribution, and population trends.