Submitted by Ruth Filz
Residents of Palm Gardens RV Park in Harlingen routinely take the following words of the popular Christmas song Do You Know It’s Christmas to heart, and especially during the holidays.
And in our world of plenty
We can spread a smile of joy
Throw your arms around the world
At Christmas time.
Submitted by Margaret Bergen
The community of Eastgate RV & MH Park, 2801 Harrison Ave. in Harlingen, collected 55 bags of food for Child Protective Services and the Food Pantry in 24 days using a Reverse Advent Calendar.
Tears of happiness and joy were shed as CPS Program Director Joanna Garcia, Adela Gonzalez (Case worker), Edgar Quintanilla, Yesenia Guerrero and staff, came to pick up their bags. Pastor Hector Perez, the pastor of The Fathers House on Morgan Blvd. in Harlingen, also arrived to give a beautiful blessing for the food as we all gathered around. His parish also donated mittens, gloves, and hats. A resident, Steve Fawley, made and gave a number of blankets. Another resident, Terry Romanchuk, made little ornaments from paracord.
Seven Oaks RV Resort Veterans and other residents joined scouts and other community members on Saturday, December 15, in the laying of wreaths at the Rio Grande Valley Veterans Cemetery in Mission. Through the help of the community and Wreaths Across America, all Veterans graves were able to receive a wreath in remembrance of their sacrifice.
The Senior Texan Softball League is looking for players 55 and over. The league recently changed their name to Ed Martens Senior Softball League to honor their founder.
Come join the fun! Play Senior Slow Pitch Softball on Monday and Wednesday or Tuesday and Thursday. The games are in the mornings at 9 a.m. at West Side Park in McAllen on Ware Rd., the best field in the Valley.
We had such a nice Christmas. It was low key, but we had a great time with family. We had some good food for Christmas Eve and a great breakfast Christmas morning. There wasn’t much to do outside because of the weather, so we made sure to watch some Christmas shows, went to church Christmas Day, drank some homemade hot cocoa, took some time to relax – (meaning leftovers and sandwiches after the initial meal), and drove around to see the Christmas lights.
I hope you had a great Christmas with family and/or friends. I saw several parks host dinners and lunches for their residents, or just gatherings with hot cocoa and cookies. The pictures showed a lot of happy faces – despite the cold.
It’s time to travel
I hope you stayed warm, cozy and safe for your Christmas celebrations and that you were able to visit with your family and special friends either by phone or in person. And now what do you do with the leftovers? Even before Christmas, I had made a huge pot of turkey and corn soup from the leftover Thanksgiving turkey. Easy as pie and so, so good on those cold days. Just add the chopped up leftover turkey to a can of celery soup, a can of whole kernel corn, a can of cream corn and a can of water. And if you had any turkey drippings, add them in and bring all to a boil and then simmer.
By Barb Zanetti
Photos by Dennis Zanetti
The Second Annual Christmas program for disadvantaged children faced many obstacles.
Its Santa, a driving force, died in August. The weather for the morning of Dec. 17 was accurate: high winds, chilly temperatures, and rain. And the planning group had had only three weeks to prepare for an anticipated 200 children and their parents.
By Herb Moering
Hundreds of residents along with Winter Texans turned out on a perfect night, Friday, December 9, for Alamo’s annual Christmas parade and tree lighting plus stage entertainment.
Bill and Jean Snyder, from Carroll, Iowa said “this parade rocked.” “It was very good,” Jean said. “I loved the (PSJA High School Memorial) band and cheerleaders.”
The couple, who were attending their third or fourth parade and ceremony, have been coming down to the Valley for 12 years and currently stay at Winter Ranch RV Resort in Alamo. Their main pleasure is the sunshine, quite a difference from an Iowa winter Bill indicated.
Winter Texans celebrate the holidays
Over the years we have had the pleasure to share how our readers celebrate the holidays. We have so much to do in the Valley during the holidays, giving you plenty of options to choose from.
Winter Texans love celebrating with others. You love to have get-togethers. You love to have parties. You love to have dinners. And you love to go places together.
By Henry Miller
Apparently, grandma did get run over by reindeer.
She ended up at the Seven Oaks Resort Illuminated Golf Cart Parade over the weekend, still sprawled on the ground with her walker cast aside, and other evidence strewn atop a trailer pulled by a golf cart.
Yeah, that last part wasn’t in the song – just at Seven Oaks.
