Winter Texans celebrate New Year’s Eve
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- Published: Wednesday, 09 January 2019 00:14
- Written by Henry Miller
David Howard politely excused himself from the conversation. Time was of the essence.
“I have to go give my wife our New Year’s kiss,” he said.
The time was early still for South Texas standards on this day - 9:30 p.m. - but the happy couple rang in the New Year before anyone else. It’s something they are used to doing because of where they live the rest of the year, in the extreme eastern province of Labrador and New Foundland – more than 4,200 miles from the Rio Grande Valley. “We’re closer to England than we are here,” Howard said.
This was no normal jam...if anything, it was the Rock 'n Roll/Big Band All-Star Jam. About 15 musicians set up on the stage at McAllen Mobile Park and, well, they jammed like they were on a red carpet.
CORRECTION: This article was published in the Dec. 27 edition of the Winter Texan Times with the wrong show schedule. We apologize to Tavie Spivey and to our readers for the error. The show schedule published with this article is the correct one.
The 2018 winner of the Valley Star Awards “Best Small Band Variety Show,” Helen Russell and Company, is in demand with a very full schedule of shows at the RV resorts in the Rio Grande Valley this season.
We’ve watched the Redhead Express grow and mature professionally as this talented group of young ladies has won our hearts during their visits to the Rio Grande Valley in their nationwide tours for the past 10 years. Their vocal harmonies are amazing, and their fans have been delighted to see them blossom from a sweet and talented “family band” that went to Nashville to highly polished performers who light up the stage with their music.
While the hustling and bustling of pre-Christmas preparations were over, activity at Tip ‘O Texas RV Resort in Pharr was going full swing the day after Christmas.
Celebrating its 39th annual Golden Age Olympics, the city of McAllen invites anyone aged 50 and up to compete in a series of events that offer everything from bowling to bake-offs. The GAO started in 1983 with just three events. Today they offer approximately 30 different competitions.
Loaves and fishes provides food and shelter for homeless
Jan Murphy fought at the idea; she battled with God over idea.
The Rio Grande Valley Red Hat Society Queen’s Council held its December meeting at Red Lobster in McAllen and celebrated Christmas with a gift exchange. Mission’s Red Hat Society Queen Barbara Gerlach acted as hostess for the event.
For the second year in a row, residents of Southern Oasis in Mission participated in a Christmas Stroll. It was a time for neighbors to get out and greet one another and meet new residents, while renewing acquaintances with old friends.
For Brian and Judy Lunny and Steve and Carol Klem, the 2018 Mid-Valley Lighted Christmas Parade in Weslaco is a must-see celebration.
Tim’s Coats, a holiday tradition in the Rio Grande Valley, is sponsored by Tim Smith, weatherman on TV Channel 5. For over 25 years Tim has encouraged families with old coats that no longer fit or are no longer wanted to donate them to Channel 5 for distribution to families who cannot afford them.
Vivian Tuttle told the Winter Texan Times that the Bentsen Grove Red Hat Society had recently visited ropa usadas and come up with 70 coats for the coat drive.
Rusty Rierson is all country – from his charming looks to his smooth vocals, he brings a touch of yesterday's country and mixes it a little with today's; he doesn't stray (for the most part).
The city of McAllen hosted the Rio Grande Valley’s most spectacular Christmas parade in early December, and members from the U.S. Air Force Honor Guard were happy to be away from the snow and cold of Washington, D.C. Anthony Gonzalez, the voice of the animated star Coco, was excited to visit a city “that shows so much excitement and patriotism.” And as for 6-year-old Brianna Ochoa, she just couldn't wait to see Santa Claus.
Ed Martens was laid up in a hospital bed in Manila, capital of the Philippines, with some type of blood poisoning. His Air Force baseball team had just played the final regular-season game and he was excited to rejoin them the following week for the first round of the playoffs.
Today, the League has players from 27 RV and mobile home parks, 23 states and most of the Canadian provinces. The league began playing in Mission – at three different locations – before moving to Edinburg and, finally to their current home at Westside Park in McAllen, located at 1000 S. Ware Road, across from the McAllen Convention Center. Bentsen Grove Resort has the largest number of participants from a single park and is called the league’s headquarters.
Martens, who played baseball at the University of Wichita, still remembers that time in Manila as if it was yesterday. Some of the players on the team were part of the hospital group. The day of the game, they walked in, gathered Martens’ clothes from the locker, went to where he was and helped him “unofficially get a discharge” for the game.
“He said he listened to the game on military radio and heard my name on it,” Martens said. “He was ready to court martial me.”
The Riverside Dreamer pontoon boat ride is a popular destination for locals, tourists and especially Winter Texans, according to Johnny Hart, captain and owner of the 55-foot pontoon boat as well as the Riverside Club where the Dreamer docks on the banks of the Rio Grande.
Welcome to our Take Home Edition of the Winter Texan Times. In this edition we want to share some of the reasons more and more retirees are choosing the Rio Grande Valley of Texas as their winter home. As they seek a warmer climate, they also enjoy the warm, friendly people who make their winters much more fun and… 
For decades, the Rio Grande Valley of Texas has been a favorite destination for retirees from the Midwest and Canada looking to head south for the winter to escape the snow, ice and cold, harsh weather. In addition to the warm, semi-tropical climate here in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV), Winter Texans frequently… 
Larry Mainz loves the Rio Grande Valley.
The third annual Monarch Fest at Quinta Mazatlan will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 16. Quinta Mazatlan is located at 600 Sunset Dr. in McAllen.
The Swing Street Big Band is keeping big band music alive and their recent pairings with local high schools will be a lesson that musicians can perform for a long time.
Alan Johnston remembers coming to the Rio Grande Valley from Minnesota 29 years ago.
David Howard and his wife live 4,200 miles from the Rio Grande Valley.
Terry Hirschfeld was in her Kentucky home when she started making a list of “warm states.” She was tired of the cold.
