Friday, December 6, 2019_PT ISSUE

The City of La Joya would like to invite the public to participate in its Angel Christmas Tree.

All Donations will benefit

You can make a difference by making a donation today.

No amount is too big or too small.

• 50¢ minimum per Angel • Your donation will go a long way and the City of La Joya will match every donation.

• Angel Christmas Tree is located at: La Joya Public Utility Dept.

701 E. Expressway 83, La Joya, Texas 78560

Your Hometown Newspaper, Bringing Communities Together.

Vol. 48 - #16

Progress times Friday, December 6, 2019

50¢ cents

• LA JOYA

• LA JOYA

• LA JOYA

Embracing the season of giving

Records show La Joya approved two-year contract with police chief

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Fueled by Facebook posts, La Joya runoff election turns negative

By Dave Hendricks

By Dave Hendricks

The La Joya City Commission approved a twoyear employment contract with police Chief Adolfo Arriaga in October — and kept the details secret for nearly two months.

Mayor Jose A. “Fito” Salinas, who is running for re-election with Chief Arriaga’s wife, Dalia, signed the contract on Oct. 8.

La Joya agreed to employ Chief Arriaga until Sept. 30, 2021. If he is terminated without “good cause,” La Joya must pay Chief Arriaga an amount equal to the remainder of the two-year contract.

“I think he was solely using it for political gain,” said Laura Mendiola Macias, who is running against Dalia Arriaga for City Commission, referring to the mayor. “That absolutely is not in the best interests of the city.”

After meeting in executive session on Oct. 8, the City Commission unanimously approved the employment contract without any public discussion.

The Progress Times asked Mayor Salinas about the contract after the meeting adjourned, but he referred questions to City

In May, a La Joya Police Department investigator approached state District Judge Luis Singleterry with a search warrant.

A pseudonymous author writing under the name “Benito Camela” had spent the past few months attacking the Salinas family — Jose A. “Fito” Salinas, the mayor of La Joya; his wife, City Commissioner Mary Salinas; and their daughter, former La Joya Housing Authority Executive Director Frances A. Salinas — on Facebook.

After the author falsely accused Mary Salinas of harboring a runaway child, the police department attempted to unmask “Benito Camela.”

“They can put whatever they want about me,” Mary Salinas said, adding that the scurrilous rumors didn’t bother her. “I know who I am.”

Singleterry signed the warrant, but investigators never arrested the person behind the Facebook account.

“Benito Camela,” though, was just the beginning. During the next six months, La Joya City Commission candidates and their supporters flooded Facebook with personal attacks, half-truths and claims about corruption.

“I’ve been in some really tough elections,” Mayor Salinas said. “But I’ve never been in one so negative.”

Another pseudonymous Facebook account, “John Johnson,” resurfaced in November and started attacking the Salinas family.

“John Johnson” was a fixture on Facebook during the 2015 mayoral campaign, when the author accused the Salinas family of corruption. The claim prompted Frances A. Salinas and then-city Finance Director

Photo courtesy of La Joya ISD.

Seniors in the PHS Cosmetology program give free haircuts to members of the community.

Palmview High School Cosmetology offers free haircuts monthly

By Jamie Treviño Palmview High School Cosmetology is proving that the only thing being cut this season of giving is hair.

The students who participate in SkillsUSA and PHS Cosmetology have been setting up a monthly

ing what they’ve been learning in the curriculum: customer service, the experience of the haircut, consultations, the infection-control process and having to clean before and after and of course, being of service.”

See PHS HAIRCUTS Pg. 10

• ALTON

See LJ POLICE CHIEF Pg. 9

The La Joya City Commission approved a two-year employment contract with police Chief Adolfo Arriaga on Oct. 8.

(Photo courtesy of the city of La Joya)

shop where peers and parents alike can receive haircuts free of charge.

PHS Cosmetology instructor Leticia Ramirez said the endeavor is led by the students.

“It’s a good way for the students to give back to the community,” Ramirez said. “They’re experienc-

Alton Christmas tree lighting celebrates community involvement

By Jose De Leon III Armed with their cell phones, more than 200 Alton residents ushered in the Christmas season with the annual lighting of the Mayor’s Christmas Tree, and snapped multiple selfies to commemorate the occasion.

The Tuesday tree lighting, held in front of the Alton Recreation Center, invited members of the community to enjoy the nearly 30-foot tall tree adorned in more than 3,000 lights.

“This is what helps the city usher in the Christmas season,” Alton recreation director Samm Mercado said. “Families are very re-

ceptive to community events like this, we like to see them hanging out together and we are always looking forward to this.”

Attendees enjoyed fresh hot chocolate and coffee and cookies provided by students form Alton Memorial Jr. High School and the city’s police explorers program while students from Jessie L. Jensen Elementary School’s cheer team provided entertainment.

For Mercado, seeing members of the community-especially children-volunteering to bring the event to life represents the spirit of

See ALTON CHRISTMAS Pg. 10

Progress Times photo by Jose De Leon III.

See FACEBOOK Pg. 4

Members of the Jessie L. Jensen cheer squad perform in front of the Alton Christmas Tree.

INSIDE

GAINS FEDERAL FUNDING

INDEX

NEW DIRECTOR IN MISSION

Entertainment....pg. 2

See Pg. 10

Classifieds...............pg.9

See Pg. 5

Lifestyle...................pg. 3 Sports.......................pg. 7 Death Notices......pg. 8

Time is money. Manage both with online banking, our mobile app, or even by phone.

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Some conditions may apply. APR: Annual Percentage Rate.

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LOCATIONS IN

LA JOYA • PALMVIEW

page 2

December 6, 2019

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The little city that ‘could’ – does – continuing illuminated holiday tradition

EVENTS

CALENDAR December 7 – The La Joya I.S.D. will hold a Winter Coat Drive. Donations will be accepted from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the LJISD Public Information Center, 200 W. Expressway 83, La Joya. They are accepting new or gently used winter clothes, scarves, gloves, coats and hats. All used clothing should be cleaned before donating, and all donations should be bagged before the drop-off. For further information, call 956-323-2585.

December 7 – Persons of all ages can join with University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine students for the monthly Walk with a Future Doc (WWAFD). It begins at 9 a.m. at the Bronc Trail, 1214 W. Schunior St., Edinburg, near the parking lot on the west side of the medical school. The event is free, and preregistration is not required. For more information, go to walkwithadoc.org.

(For more Events, go to ptrgv.com.

McALLEN – The McAllen Holiday Parade officials continues to unveil new features to delight the public in the spirit of the magic of the Christmas holidays.

As in years past, some of the Dallas Cowboys football players and the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders, along with Rowdy the mascot will be in attendance.

International star power includes Isabella Castillo and Alejandro Lopez from Telemundo’s “El Señor de los Cielos”; Matias Novoa from Telemundo’s “El Señor de los Cielos”; Pedro Rojas, Univision national correspondent and two-time Lone Star Emmy award winner; El Flaco of the morning show, El Flaco y Su Pandilla; and boxerBrandon “The Heartbreaker” Figueroa.

Residents can begin their 2019 holiday season fun by celebrating under and with the stars at Christmas in the Park, starting on Friday, Dec. 6. The family-friendly and free winter festival is held at Municipal Park, next to McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium, 1921 Bicentennial Blvd., and features food, fun, vendors, arts and crafts and entertainment for the whole family.

For the first time, Jerry Jonesʼ Private Dallas Cowboys Tour Bus will be made available to the general public at Christmas in the Park. Attendees will be able to board the bus, take pictures and see

HIDALGO – The lights are again on, and the door is open, welcoming visitors to the City of Hidalgo and the 2019 Festival of Lights. Continuing a 20-year tradition that extends three miles with over five million lights illuminating over 500 hundred characters and themes, the community shows the public how belief in a shared vision and hard work can make it all happen.

Tonight, Dec. 6, the wheels of the Hidalgo Illuminated Christmas Parade entries are set in motion at 7 p.m. in front of city hall and moves down Ramon Ayala Drive – complete with all the parade earmarks of illuminated floats, performers and

marching bands ringing in the sights and sounds of the season. The event is free and open to the public.

Visitors can take nightly light tours via foot, their own vehicle, or hop on the Holiday Train. The narrated train rides, complete with holiday music, begin at the City Hall Plaza. Train access is available nightly at 6 p.m. for $5 per person. Train tours are not available Dec. 6 because of the parade, and not on Dec. 18, 24, 25 and 31. The roast beef dinner and entertainment tour is $13 per person, Throughout the month, the Carnival Court is open from 6 to 10 p.m. for rides and food in the City Hall Plaza. Check out the outdoor Holiday Arti-

san Market for keepsakes and Christmas gifts, and don’t miss one of the community’s favorite traditions of the Hidalgo Posada with the legendary “King of the Accordion,” Hidalgo native Ramon Ayala.

He’s a Latin Grammy award winner, and the free concert is a gift to the public and is set for Dec. 18.

There is a synthetic ice rink, an opportunity for photos with the Santa, the Coca-Cola Polar Bear meetand-greet every Monday, and musical and dance entertainment every night in the plaza presented by school and church choirs, ensemble groups, musicians, folklorico groups and more. This year, the “Frozen Winterland” pro-

McAllen holiday extravaganza grows bigger every year what life is like for those Dallas Cowboys and Jones when traveling on the bus. Additionally, the official Dallas Cowboys Tailgate Trailer, complete with a chef cooking on site, will be a part of the set-up at Christmas in the Park, as well.

This year’s McAllen Holiday Parade will be held on Saturday, Dec. 7, stepping off at 6 p.m. from McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium, 2001 N. Bicentennial Blvd.

The parade features 55 floats that boast a wattage power of 153,000 watts from just under five miles of rope light; 39 giant character balloons that utilize 34,000 cubic feet of helium; and 50 vehicles providing 12,000 horsepower to pull floats.

Prior to the parade is a Holiday Musical Extravaganza featuring international singing sensation Mane de la Parra, joined by 500 4th and 5th grade choir students from McAllen I.S.D., plus the Valley Symphony Orchestra.

Also part of the extravaganza will be a Tuba Christmas, as well as local dance group sensation, Razz Matazz. Singing cultural and holiday favorites, the performance will start at 5:30 p.m., in mid-field of McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium.

The performance will be completed with a dazzling fireworks display and decorations that will bring the South Pole of Texas theme to life. A ticket is required for the Ex-

travaganza, but is included in the VIP Stadium Parade seating ticket.

Getting the family to the parade will not be difficult via the free McAllen Holiday Parade Park & Ride Polar Express Shuttle from the South Texas College campus on Pecan Blvd. and 29th St. Running from at 12 p.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 7, trolleys will make a continuous loop approximately every 10 minutes, from the pick-off point at STC at 31st Street and Quince Avenue. People with disabilities, including those in regular or motorized wheel chairs and walkers, should utilize the ADA shuttle pick-up point from 31st Street and FM 495. Strollers are welcome, as are service dogs.

General admission tickets are $10 and are exclusively for the east side of the stadium, while reserved tickets are for $20 or $35 for the west side of the stadium.

Tickets may be purchased online at face value at the McAllen Convention Center Box Office, 700 Convention Center Blvd. or at ticketmaster.com, but expect additional service charges on the website. VIP chairs along the route are available for $8 or free seating is found on a first come basis. Go to mcallenholidayparade.com for tickets and information.

The McAllen Holiday Parade is not complete without the appearance of

the world-famous Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders and Rowdy, the Dallas Cowboys mascot, who will arrive for a special Meet & Greet with children from the Capable Kids Foundation, before their big presentation during the Saturday night parade.

This year organizers unveiled “The Brightest Lights at Santa’s Circle in the South Pole of Texas,” the theme for this year’s event. Giant, illuminated holiday and charac-

ter displays will transform Oval Park at the McAllen Convention Center into Santaʼs dazzling new winter home for Christmas with light displays that people will be able to walk into for photos or a magical experience.

The Brightest Lights at Santa’s Circle light displays will include Santa’s giant castle home, his village and penguins around the pond. Other, more traditional, elements include an illuminated nativ-

duction will be presented for four nights, Dec. 20 to 23 at 8 p.m. at the holiday skating rink, and then resumes Dec. 27 to 29. A holiday dance party is featured on Dec. 26 at 7 p.m..

The Hidalgo Festival of Lights continues throughout the month until Dec. 30, but everyone takes a break on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to celebrate with their families.

For tickets to the paid events, or for information, go to hidalgofestivaloflights. com, call 956-843-5311 or email eventinfo@cityofhidalgo.net.

ity scene, while even more feature glittering lanterns of orchids floating in the pond and a bright, luminous field of light tulips that change colors. The displays run throughout the 40 days of Christmas in McAllen celebration and the complement FRIO!™, a winter wonderland of frozen fun and delight with real

See MCALLEN PARADE Pg. 8

31st Annual TubaChristmas concert set for Dec. 8 McALLEN – The 31st Annual Rio Grande Valley TubaChristmas Concert will begin at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 8, at the McAllen Convention Center, 700 Convention Center Blvd. For the first time, this unique concert of Christmas music will be performed outdoors on the south side of the Convention Center. Spectator seating will be available. The concert is free to the public.

TubaChristmas is an ensemble of several hundred tuba and euphonium players from the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) and beyond. It includes members of the Rio Grande Valley Symphony Orchestra, the McAllen Symphonic Band, RGV band directors and the finest RGV

high school and junior high students from across the area.

The Rio Grande Valley TubaChristmas Concert has grown in recent years to become the largest TubaChristmas event in Texas and one of the largest in the world.

Each year, a guest artist is featured. This year’s guest artist will be Eric Fritz, principal tuba for the Xalapa Symphony Orchestra. Fritz earned a music degree from the University of Southern California and a music master’s degree from The Juilliard School in New York City.

In addition, he has carried out postgraduate studies in the conservatories of Lausanne and Zurich, Switzerland. He has been principal

Meet Bailey.

She loves eating and playing and is extremely friendly. Bailey is a Domestic Short Hair, and is a little over a year old. If you want to give her a forever home, contact the Mission Pawsible Program at 956580-8741, M-F, 8AM-5PM. The City of Mission Animal Shelter is located at 227 Abelino Farias, and is open throughout the week and on Saturdays - 9AM to 4PM. The cost to adopt is $50, which includes: Spay/Neuter, Rabies Shot, First Vaccine, Microchip and Deworming.

To view more animals in the Mission Pawsible Program, visit missiontexas.us.

tuba of the Xalapa Symphony Orchestra since 1992 and was the principal tuba of the Spoleto Festival in the United States of America and in Italy, as well as the Symphony Orchestra of Mining in Mexico City.

“One of the most popular features of the RGV TubaChristmas Concert is the tuba-decorating contest,” said Dr. Scott Roeder, TubaChristmas co-coordinator and University of Texas Rio Grande Valley professor. “Several of the performers have very extensive decorations on their instruments. This is one of the reasons that this concert is unlike any other Christmas Concert.”

Sponsored by

Jerry Saenz, Agent

1211 Conway Ave • Mission TX 956-585-2715

COLLECTION DATE

December 7, 2019 9:00AM - 2:00PM Public Information Center 200 W. Expressway 83 • La Joya TX 78560 (Please ensure that donations are bagged) For more information please contact (956) 323-2585

Let’s help keep local families warm this winter by donating new or gently used winter clothing.

Donations may include scarves, gloves, coats and hats.

December 6, 2019

August 16, 2019

www.ptrgv.com

page 3

CLAA to host Ballet Folklórico de la Universidad Veracruzana performance

EDINBURG/Brownsville – The UTRGV Center for Latin American Arts will present two evenings with the Ballet Folklórico de la Universidad Veracruzana. Tickets are now on sale for the performances – Saturday, Dec. 7, at 7 p.m. in the Performing Arts Complex, 1201 W. University Dr. in Edinburg, and then on Sunday, Dec. 8, at the TSC

Performing Arts Center, 90 Taylor Ave. in Brownsville.

The world-renowned ballet folklórico will present its show, “Raices de mi pueblo,” a performance that honors Mexico’s beautiful cultural traditions through dance and music.

Dr. Steven Block, dean of the College of Fine Arts; Dr. Katherine Moore McAllen,

Coming Attractions December 6-8, 12 • A Tejano Christmas Carol plays at the Pharr Community Theater, (PCT) at 213 W. Newcombe Ave. in Pharr. It plays Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. A final show will be held on Thursday, Dec. 12, at 7:30 p.m. at the larger venue at the Pharr Events Center, 3000 N. Cage Blvd.

Tickets are $5 for students, seniors and military or $8 general admission. Seating at PCT is limited to 55 persons per show and tickets will be sold at the door starting one hour before curtain, upon availability. To reserve advance tickets, text or call 956-239-0412 or 956-655-9308.

December 6-8, 13-15, 20-21 • The iTheater production of “Playing Doctor” and will be staged at Weslaco’s historic Tower Theater, 120 S. Kansas.

Performances will be held Dec. 6 to 8, 13 to 15, and 20 to 21.

Show times are 7 p.m. on Fridays, 3 and 7 p.m. on Saturdays, and 3 p.m. on Sundays. Tickets are only available online at iloveit.live. Reserved seating is $15.50 and $10.50 for general admission. VIP tickets are $20.50.

December 6-9 • McAllen I.S.D.’s Memorial High School is excited to present the musical Frozen, Jr. for its 31st annual musical production.

Performances will be at the William Hetrick Auditorium at Memorial High School, 101 E. Hackberry Ave., on Dec. 6 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 8 and 9 at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at frozeninmcallen. eventbrite.com. Call 632-5258 for reservations.

December 7 • Tickets are now on sale for the 10th Annual KTEX Ten Man Jam benefiting the Food Bank RGV. It will be held at the RGV Livestock Show Grounds, Mercedes, with 10 rising country music stars performing. Food and beverages will be sold at the venue. Parking opens at noon, gates at 1 p.m., and music starts at 2 p.m. and ends at midnight. Pre-sale tickets are $10 and go up on the day of the show; parking is not included. There are no ticket refunds. Tickets are available online at ktex.net or tenmanjam2019.eventbrite.com, and at the Food Bank RGV, 724 N. Cage Blvd. in Pharr.

• An Evening of Flute, part of the UTRGV Patron of the Arts Student Ensemble Series, begins at 7 p.m. in the UTRGV campus Multipurpose Hall in Brownsville. Join the UTRGV Flute Studio for an evening of flute solos, chamber works, and a performance by the UTRGV Flautistas Flute Ensemble under the direction of UTRGV Flute Professor Dr. Krista Jobson. Admission is free. For special accommodations, call 956-882-7025.

December 7-8 • The Edinburg Dance Theatre presents their production of “The Nutcracker” ballet at 7 p.m. on Saturday and 1:30 p.m. on Sunday. The performances will be held at the La Joya Performing Arts Center, Coyote Dr. in La Joya. All seats are $15. Call 956-383-2623 for tickets or stop by Dancentre of Edinburg, 2750 Hedfelt, Edinburg.

December 9, 10 & 12 • The Upper Valley Art League will host “Introduction to Welding Workshop for Art Sculptures.” Workshop hours run from 5 to 8:30 p.m. all three days and will be held at UVAL, 921 E. 12th St., Mission.

The class includes safety equipment and materials and will be taught by G. Hernandez, a certified welding instructor. Cost is $225 for UVAL members and $250 to the general public.

For more information and to sign up, call the UVAL gallery at 956-583-2787 or Eric Olivarez at 956-240-1949, or make contact via email at uval.texas@gmail.com.

December 12 • The iconic band STYX will make its Rio Grande Valley debut at Bert Ogden Arena, 4900 S. I-69C, Edinburg. Doors open at 7 p.m., and the concert begins at 8 p.m. The legendary band will ignite the stage as it draws from over four decades of hits with joyous singalongs and hard-driving deep cuts.

Tickets start at $46 per person, and various VIP packages are available. Tickets are available at the Bert Ogden Arena box office, 4900 S. I-69C, Edinburg, or go to bertogdenarea.com.

December 13 • The City of Palmhurst celebrates the holidays with their Third Annual Christmas in the Park from 5:30 to 10 p.m.

There will be music, food, pictures with Santa and a movie at the park. It will be held at Shary Municipal Park, 4900 N. Shary Rd. • A Touch of Frost, the annual season celebration of the Valley Symphony Orchestra, features the VSO Chorale, UTRGV’s Ballet Folklorico, and selections from favorites such as Handel’s Messiah and The Nutcracker. It will be held at the McAllen Performing Arts Center, 801 Convention Center Blvd. in McAllen from 8 to 10 p.m. For tickets and information, go to valleyorchestra.org or call 956-661-1615.

December 13-14 • Illumina Fest is an art and music celebration of the Earth’s continents hosted at Quinta Mazatlan World Birding Center, 600 Sunset in McAllen. Guests will travel the quarter mile Luminaria Trail and get a glimpse of how the world celebrates with light across the seven continents. Tickets are $5 per person, and children age 2 and under are admitted free. Advance tickets are available at qm.ticketleap.com/illumina-fest/. Children who bring their own decorated paper luminaria bag (use a paper lunch bag) will receive a glow band for sharing their gift of light. Adult guests are invited to also create luminaria bags to add to the trail. For information, call 956-686-3370.

December 14 • The City of La Joya will host their 14th Annual Winter Wonderland Christmas Parade beginning at 10:30 a.m.

The parade route will run down South Leo Avenue. For parade entry information, call La Joya City Hall at 956-5817002.

• The City of Alton Christmas Parade begins with a parade at 11 a.m. and runs from in front of Cantu Elementary down to City Hall. The celebration continues with the Christmas Festival beginning at 5 a.m. at the Alton Recreation Center.

The event offers live, family-friendly entertainment. For parade entry information, call 956-432-0790.

• The next Sunset Live, the Rio Grande Valley’s free outdoor concert runs from 5 to 9 p.m. at the McAllen Convention Center Oval Park, 700 Convention Center Blvd. The concert combines music, outdoor activities, a variety of food trucks, beverages, and local artisans. Admission and parking are free. For information, call 956-681-3800.

(For more Coming Attractions, go to ptrgv.com)

director of the center; and Miguel Peña, director of the UTRGV Ballet Folklórico program, have invited the celebrated ballet folklórico dance company from Veracruz, Mexico, to present the performances.

The guest performers will team with UTRGV university students and dance professors to host ballet folklórico dance clinics for students at various public schools

throughout the Valley.

The clinics will be held at different studios in several high schools, including PSJA Southwest, La Joya High School, Dancentre of Edinburg, Edinburg North, Economedes, Hidalgo Early College, Edinburg, Valley View High School, PSJA North Early College, Juarez Lincoln, and PSJA Memorial.

The dance company also

will give three large clinics at the UTRGV dance studios at both campuses.

All proceeds from the ticket sales support future programming projects at the Center and enable the CLAA to fund faculty and student research initiatives and provide salaries of graduate student staff members.

Tickets, available at patron.utrgv.edu/CLAA, are $20 for general admission

and $15 for students and seniors. Also available by calling the respective box office – Edinburg at 956-665-3881 and Brownsville at 956-8827025.

Event contacts are McAllen at CLLA@utrgv.edu or katherine.mcallen@utrgv. edu and Peña at miguel. pena@utrgv.edu. For more information, visit utrgv.edu/ claa.

Celebrate holiday borderland culture at MOSTHistory EDINBURG – The Museum of South Texas History presents Fiesta de Noche Buena Sunday, Dec. 8, from 1 to 5 p.m. The public is invited to enjoy the border-spirit event with traditions, stories, crafts and performances.

Returning this year is the popular “Posada Por Tiempo,” which takes guests through the museum’s exhibits while telling the biblical story of María and José’s search for an inn. “Posada Por Tiempo” is scheduled at 1:30, 2:30, 3:30 and 4:30 p.m. Kids and their families can capture the holiday

spirit with free make-totake-home crafts memory ornaments and felt poinsettia ornaments and then take a picture with Cowboy Santa.

For the uninhibited singers in the family, there will be “Holiday Karaoke” in the Grand Lobby from 1 to 4 p.m. to share a favorite holiday song or carol.

New this year is the Christmas comedy play, “Pastorela,” which is another retelling of Mary and Joseph seeking shelter. The play, however, focuses on the challenges laid out by the Devil and a saving moment by Mi-

chael the Archangel. Two local groups will perform their own renditions in Spanish in the Courtyard Gallery.

At 2 p.m. the Edinburg Municipal Auditorium Community Theater will perform “Cómo te quedó el ojo, Lucifer” by Norma Román Calvo and directed by Dr. Edna Ochoa. At 3:45 p.m. Latino Theatre Initiatives will perform “La Apuesta” written

by Hugo Rodolfo Gomez and directed by LTI President Francisco Garza Rincones.

To whet the appetite, bring extra cash for some Mexican dishes and beverages that

will be sold, such as pozole, tamales and champurrado or snacks such as elote en vaso, fritturas Mexicanas con queso, marranadas and gummy bears with chamoy. Pair it with a soda, agua fresca or hot chocolate, sold by the Scouts.

Admission for Fiesta de Noche Buena is $8 for adults; $6 for seniors, active military and students with ID; $5 for children ages 4 to 12; and free for children ages 3 and younger. Call 956-383-6911 for information. The museum is at 200 N. Closner, Edinburg.

ENROLLMENT CENTER FREE CONSULTATION NO CALL (956)929-1520 OBLIGATION CRISTA WESTON LICENSED AGENT C: (956) 929-1520

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14th Annual WINTER WONDERLAND

Christmas Parade December 14th at 10:30am South Leo Ave. FREE Parade Entry for more info contact La Joya City Hall 956-581-7002

page 4

December 6, 2019

www.ptrgv.com

From Rattler to Tiger

La Joya seeks community’s help in decorating angel tree raised, Bazan said.

“It’s a project to give back to children and family members that are going through medical issues,” Bazan explained. “There’s so many children out there in all communities like this so we decided to partner with a foundation dedicated to researching and curing child diseases. A lot of our children from the Valley are diagnosed with diseases and sent there. This project is one that lets us be able to give back to those in need and allows the community to do the same.”

The city will announce the donation totals during a January city commissioners meeting and will send St. Jude a check afterward.

Bazan said participating in the angel tree donation represents the spirit of the holiday season.

“We’d like to start special projects that show that not only are we providing services to the community, but we’re giving back,” Bazan said.

By Jose De Leon III

La Joya residents and members of the public going to city hall are invited to help decorate the Christmas tree in the public utility department of the building.

Last week, the city of La Joya began accepting donations for their Angel Christmas tree, which city Administrator Jaqueline Bazan said she hopes would become a new holiday tradition for the city.

“This is the first time the city has done this and we’d like to see it be a continued tradition from here on annually,” Bazan said. “We’re excited, it’s our first new projects this year for the holiday season and are excited to do this for the children.”

The angel tree involves members of the community purchasing a papier-mâché angel to decorate the tree at city hall for a minimum of 50 cents. Proceeds will benefit St. Jude Children’s Hospital and runs through Monday, Jan. 6, 2020. The city plans to match every donation

19

Sharyland High athlete signs NLI to play softball at East Texas Baptist University

By Jose De Leon III After competing on the Sharyland Rattlers softball team, a Sharyland High School senior has signed on to compete for the East Texas Baptist University Tigers.

Tristen Maddox signed to participate in softball for East Texas Baptist University at a Tuesday ceremony.

The university is, an NCAA Division III school located in Marshall, Texas. The Lady Tigers compete in the American Southwest Conference won their 9 ASC Tournament Championship last May and finished their season with a 39-6 record.

Maddox is a four-year letter winner in softball and a three-year letter winner in volleyball. She was the district 31-5A Newcomer of the

from pg. 1

Year as a freshman, the 315A MVP as a sophomore and the 31-5A Defensive Player of the Year as a junior. Academically, Maddox is ranked in the top 30 percent of her class.

“They have a good softball program and a kinesiology program that I want to study,” Maddox explained.

“Playing softball in college is a dream come true, I’ve been wanting to do this since I was young and it makes me happy to be here doing it. My mom played when she was my age and she got a college scholarship but decided not to play. I hope I’m making her proud.”

Maddox’s mom, Nikki, was at the signing and reflected on her own past as a volleyball player in college where she was offered an

athletic scholarship but declined it to be closer to home and join the United States Marine Corps.

“Tristen playing softball in college is amazing, she’s surpassed anything I’ve ever dreamed off and I am glad she’s got the opportunity and to push her forward and get her an education while she plays,” Nikki said. “It’s been a lot of work to get there but it’s been worth it to watch her do something she loves and learn what hard work is.”

Maddox’s softball coach, Paul Cruz, praised her skills and said she’s one of the top players in the district.

“Offensively and defensively, she is sound. She will be an impact player, she moves so quickly and be one of the better hitters on the team. She’s ready to start the

first year, that’s how good she is. She’s always been a great role player and an equally great role model for her teammates and I wish her the best.”

Maddox also competed at the Rattler’s volleyball team.

Her volleyball coach, Raul Castillo, reflected on Maddox’s work ethic.

“We knew volleyball would always be her second sport, but if you watched her play you wouldn’t be able to tell. That’s how dedicated she was,” Castillo said. “She’s a hard worker and naturally talented and brought the best out of everyone and gave 100 percent without being asked because it came regularly for her.”

between Mayor Salinas and City Manager Jacqueline Bazan.

Asked about the Facebook post, Bazan said she hadn’t seen it. Bazan said her phone hadn’t been hacked or stolen.

While the pseudonymous Facebook accounts caused a commotion, posts by Frances A. Salinas and former City Attorney Roberto Jackson forced the candidates to respond.

Frances A. Salinas posted

records from a lawsuit filed against Casanova by two female police officers.

They accused Casanova of sexual harassment. Casanova denied the allegations, but the city forced him to resign and paid the women more than $513,000.

Frances A. Salinas posted an image that shows Casanova as a sweaty giant, preparing to grab two women. Text on the image reads: “Don’t let Isidro Casanova defile our City Hall.”

The image also included jail booking photos of Casanova from 2006, when he was arrested on the charge of accident involving damage to a vehicle. A judge found Casanova not guilty and dismissed the case.

Casanova and the “We are La Joya” candidates responded with a Facebook post.

“Isidro Casanova was NEVER found guilty of any Sexual Assault, sexual harassment or any other sexual crime against his employees.

He was NEVER CHARGED with a crime. The 2 employees turned around and sued the city for insurance money.

The CIVIL suit was NEVER $1 million they say the city lost. Again there were NEVER any charges filed!

He was NEVER found guilty of a crime,” according to the reply posted by “We are La Joya” on Nov. 26. “The hit & run claim they say resulted in charges is NOT TRUE. All

charges were DISMISSED by the judge himself. After miscommunication between the police and Isidro, all charges were DROPPED. Everything was cleared up and the charges were DROPPED.” Attorney Roberto Jackson, who is among Casanova’s most prominent supporters, posted a video about questionable spending by the police department.

In the video, Jackson said someone provided him with public records that show the police chief spent forfeiture funds at Academy Sports + Outdoors and Victoria’s Secret.

“I’m not making this up,” Jackson said in the video. “I have the receipt here, which he submitted for reimbursement.”

Jackson said the city spent $579 at Victoria’s Secret and held up the receipt.

“Various perfumes. I would imagine there’s some lingerie,” Jackson said in the video. “I’m not familiar with this. I don’t buy stuff at Victoria Secrets (sic).”

Jackson deleted the video. Other accounts, including “John Johnson,” continued sharing it.

In a Facebook post, police Chief Adolfo Arriaga accused Jackson of making false statements as part of a politically motivated smear campaign.

His wife, Dalia Arriaga, is running for City Commission with Mayor Salinas.

“For all those that are trashing me on Facebook, let me educate you,” Chief Arriaga wrote on Nov. 11. “No purchases were done from a forfeiture account, no lingerie was bought. Many people are trying to use this as political gain.”

In an interview with the Progress Times, Chief Arriaga said he asked family members to buy items for a holiday party in 2018.

His father helped buy Yeti-brand coolers for male employees, Chief Arriaga said, and the city reimbursed him.

His wife helped buy fragrances at Victoria’s Secret, Chief Arriaga said, and the city reimbursed her too.

Chief Arriaga said all expenditures were approved by the city, which didn’t pay for the items with forfeiture funds. He posted the rebuttal on Facebook, along with a copy of the receipt from Victoria’s Secret.

“Just look below, see it for yourself if any lingerie was bought or if a forfeiture account was used,” Chief Arriaga wrote.

The runoff election is Dec. 10.

FACEBOOK

Gregoria Jackson to file a lawsuit.

The number of negative posts exploded after Nov. 5, when the election resulted in a runoff between Mayor Salinas and former police Chief Isidro Casanova.

Along with reams of public records purporting to document corruption at City Hall, the account posted copies of what the author claimed were Frances A. Salinas’ medical records and text messages

December 6, 2019

page 5

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UTRGV receives over $300,000 for economic development in rural areas

By Jamie Treviño Congressmen Henry Cuellar, Vicente Gonzalez and Filemon Vela announced $374,580 in federal funds for the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.

Cuellar and Gonzalez, along with several leaders from UTRGV, held a press conference to announce the grant funding, as well as give an update on humanitarian reimbursements coming to the Valley, the recent designation of Mexican drug cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and the pending United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

Expanding Economic Development received UTRGV $374,580 in federal funding from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development grant program.

According to a press release from Congressman Cuellar, $174,856 of the grant funding (from the Socially Disadvantaged Groups Grant) will be going toward providing technical assistance to groups throughout rural South Texas. Specifically, they want to use the funds to increase the capacity of small-scale Latina agricultural producers and improve the understanding of new marketing strategies and tech that will increase farm income. $199,724 (from the Rural Cooperative Development Grant) will be used to support the work of the Texas Rural Cooperative Center, which assists with the startup, expansion and operational im-

provement of rural businesses.

George Bennack, the Executive Director for Rural Business Development, spoke on what kind of an impact this can make on the community.

“These two programs support the UTRGV Texas Rural Cooperative Center, and this center is part of a bigger-picture integrated research center called the Center for Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Advancement,” Bennack said. “This integration is an integration of research, with education and with outreach - the center itself is mostly grant-funded through programs like this. It uses outreach with the community to link back to research and educational opportunities with UTRGV.” Dr. Parwinder Grewal, the UTRGV Executive Vice President of Research, Graduate Studies and New Program Development, was glad to see new funding acquired for rural development.

“We as a non-profit organization are in the business of creating future professionals who will help economic development,” Grewal said.

“These kinds of grants help us take the research done by the university students and faculty to the real world, where things will happen, to complete the full circle.”

Colin Cain, the Director of the UTRGV Texas Rural Cooperative Center and the Principal Investigator, said the projects will benefit communities in 41 counties in South Texas.

“We deliver on-the-

ground, tangible benefits for communities that really need it, because frankly, that’s what that money is really for,” Cain said. “It’s passing through the university to really benefit communities throughout these congressional districts.”

Cuellar noted that expanding economic opportunities in rural South Texas is critical to strengthening the local economy as a whole.

“We cannot forget about the rural areas,” Cuellar said. “[It’s important] to provide technical assistance to socially-disadvantaged groups through cooperatives or development centers, or whether we provide help to certain populations in the rural area to start up.”

Gonzalez said that small, locally-owned businesses are the future of the American economy.

“We’re always proud to bring money to small businesses,” Gonzalez said, adding that he was a business owner for 21 years. “I know how hard it is to keep employees employed, taxes paid, insurances covered and all the burdens that small businesses really have that many people don’t see. These grant moneys are for businesses with less than 50 employees, and it really helps our community.”

Humanitarian Reimbursements In July, Cuellar announced an aim to get $30 million in reimbursement funds for humanitarian efforts carried out by local governments and non-governmental organizations in the RGV. The funds for this endeavor were

Progress Times photo by Jamie Treviño.

(from left) Ruby De La Garza, Veronica Gonzalez, Congressman Henry Cuellar, George Bennack, Dr, Parwinder Grewal, Colin Cain, Congressman Vicente Gonzalez and Roel Gomez holding a check presented to UTRGV from the USDA Rural Development grant program at the Mission CEED building. secured after the passing of the FY19 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill.

During Monday’s press conference, Cuellar also announced that the first round of reimbursements to be received in Hidalgo County will total at $712,528.45.

Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley will be receiving $601,557.88, the Salvation Army Corps Center will be receiving $108,371.25 and the United Way of South Texas will be receiving $2,599.32.

The city of McAllen will also be receiving reimbursements of $109,312.51 for the first round. In a release from Cuellar’s office, they specified that “the first round did its best to reimburse cities but did not cover all expenses.” Cities and local entities needed to apply for reimbursements with the Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP) National Board, chaired by the Federal Emergency Management Agency

(FEMA).

Reimbursements cover expenses accrued from Jan. 1, 2019 through Dec. 31, 2019.

The National Board predicts that about $21.6 million will remain to be awarded in the second round application period, which gives agencies more time to work on the application. They plan to meet today in order to discuss the timeline of the second round.

FTOs and Pending USMCA Last Tues., President Donald Trump said his administration will be giving Mexican drug cartels the same designation as al-Qaeda, ISIS and Boko Haram and classify them as “foreign terrorist organizations,” or FTOs. The designation is reserved for non-U.S. based groups deemed by the U.S. Secretary of State to have been involved in terrorist activities or terrorism that “threatens the security of U.S. nationals or the national security of the United States.”

Former presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush both considered designating Mexican drug cartels as FTOs, but decided against it because of the economic and trade implications it could stir with Mexico. Currently, they are classified as “drug trafficking organizations,” (DTOs).

Cuellar and Gonzalez noted that while the U.S. and Mexico should not be treating cartels with “hugs and kisses,” and that they are involved with a “broader assortment of criminal activity far beyond the realm of the illegal drug trade,” this classification could complicate U.S.-Mexico security cooperation and trade.

Cuellar recently visited Mexico and met with high-ranking officials to discuss the pending trade agreement, and said they were receptive to USMCA, which would replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

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December 6, 2019

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Luciano Guerra

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page 7

Sports Editor

www.ptrgv.com/sports

December 6, 2019

THE

BIG7

Covering Mission, Veterans Memorial, Sharyland, Pioneer, La Joya, Palmview & Juarez-Lincoln Sports

SCHOOLS

UIL realignment cutoff numbers released Patriots to join Rattlers and Diamondbacks in Division II

By Luciano Guerra The University Interscholastic League (UIL) has released its realignment cutoff numbers for the 2020/2021 and 2021/2022 school years and one way or another all seven high schools from the Mission, Sharyland and La Joya ISDs, the Big 7, will be affected. Not to be confused with the actual realignment of districts across the state of Texas, which the UIL does every two years in February, what the UIL released this week are simply the enrollment cutoff numbers which will determine what classification each school’s sports teams will belong to.

School classifications range from 1A for the schools with the smallest enrollment, to 6A for the schools with the largest enrollment, and for the last two years Mission High, La Joya High and

Juarez-Lincoln have been 6A schools while La Joya Palmview, Mission Veterans, Sharyland Pioneer and Sharyland High have been 5A schools. As of the release of the most recent cutoff numbers this will not change.

However, Mission Veterans, which was a 5A Division I school for the past two years, has been reclassified as a 5A Division II school. Division I schools are considered to be large schools while Division II are considered to be small schools. As a result of this change, the Patriots will no longer be in the same Division as the Palmview Lobos.

Instead, they will be in the same Division as the Pioneer Diamondbacks and the Sharyland Rattlers.

Does this mean that the Patriots will once again be in the same district as the Diamondbacks and the Rattlers?

As Mission Veterans head

football coach David Gilpin explains, possibly but not necessarily.

“Based on the cutoff numbers that the UIL put out today, there are nine 5A Division II teams in the Rio Grande Valley. That’s not going to change. So we know that there’s a possibility that our district will be those nine teams. That would be the simple part of it. But there’s always uncertainty, and where the uncertainty comes into play here is that there are zero 5A Division II teams in Laredo and there are only three Division II teams in Corpus. So what is the UIL going to do with those three Corpus teams?”

“Is the UIL going to bring those three teams down here to make two six team districts or are they going to keep us with our nine-team district and move the Coastal Bend teams up the road to-

Fantastic four

wards San Antonio? There’s a lot of uncertainty right now as a result of this,” added Gilpin.

Besides the Patriots, the Diamondbacks and the Rattlers, the other six Valley 5A Division II schools are Edcouch Elsa, Mercedes, PSJA Memorial, PSJA Southwest, Roma and Valley View.

The 5A Division I schools are Palmview, Brownsville Lopez, Porter, Pace and Veterans, Donna High, Rio Grande and Weslaco East.

As of right now, there are 20 6A Valley schools including Mission High, La Joya High, Juarez-Lincoln and the three McAllen schools.

That however is subject to change because shortly after the UIL released its cutoff numbers, McAllen ISD notified the UIL that the enrollment numbers it used for its three high schools were inflated and that the actual

Numerous Big 7 football, volleyball, cross country and tennis teams excelled this fall

By John Hamann The fall 2019 slate of games, matches and meets for the schools of the Big 7 ended this past Saturday and by any measure it was a successful performance.

A total of seventeen teams across four sports qualified for competition beyond the regular season, six of whom won or shared district championships. Of the teams who qualified for post season competition a total of six moved beyond their first round games into either area, regional, or state level events. Several individuals had performances worthy of state standards too.

Football Five of the post season qualifiers came from the gridiron.

Sharyland Pioneer led the way, claiming their first out-

right district championship in UIL District 16-5A Div. II. The Diamondbacks went a perfect 6-0 in district play and then won both bi-district and area championships for the first time before bowing out in the regional semi-finals last weekend. Pioneer finished as one of the last 16 teams left in the state in Class 5A Div. II. Coach Tom Lee thanked his seniors first. “This group I’ve known forever . . . it’s a tough one, losing this group.

They were the ones that helped us build this foundation.”

Lee then reflected on this season and beyond. “District champs, eleven wins, a bi-district championship, an area championship against some good teams. I think Valley football is getting where we need to get to.”

Mission Veterans Memo-

rial claimed a share of the District 16-5A Div. I title by going 8-1 in district play.

The Patriots were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, something that gave Coach David Gilpin mixed feelings.

“While we are disappointed that we were not able to get a playoff run going this year, I am extremely proud that we were able to win a third straight district championship. We measure our success by winning championships and we won a championship.”

The Mission Eagles shared a district title too, going 6-1 in District 30-6A before being eliminated in the opening round of the playoffs.

Mission Coach Koy Detmer spoke about the Eagles title winning season.

“It feels awesome. It took

some time to get some things in place. It was a long haul but it feels good in the end.

The hard work paid off.”

Detmer was positive about the season when he spoke after their season ending loss in the first round of the playoffs.

“We told our guys (they)

See FANTASTIC FOUR g. 8

enrollment numbers would place all three McAllen high schools under the 6A cutoff number of 2,200 and into the 5A Division I classification.

“That adds a little more confusion and a little more indecision into this whole situation.” Gilpin said. “So I don’t know if there’s going to be any movement in the cutoff numbers or how the UIL is going to handle it.

But I wouldn’t expect them to move the three McAllen schools into 5A Division I.” The three Coastal Bend

area 5A Division II teams that could be added to the nine Valley 5A Division II teams are Flour Bluff, Gregory Portland and Alice.

While not knowing if his team will be part of a single, nine-team all Valley district or one of two six team districts that include the Coastal Bend schools makes things difficult for Gilpin because he has no idea if his Patriots will be playing two or five

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December 6, 2019

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A new director for the Boys & Girls Club of Mission

By Jamie Treviño J.J. Guerrero has returned to Mission.

Guerrero was recently named the director of the Boys & Girls Club of Mission, and has been at work with the staff in order to help the programs grow and flourish. He replaced Juan Arevalo, and is excited to be part of an organization that has influenced several leaders across the country.

Born in McAllen, Guerrero lived in Mission for fourteen years before he and his father moved to Montana.

There, he graduated from high school and college, met his wife Randi, and the pair had three children.

“I was there twenty years,” Guerrero said. “We did all that before we moved to South America.”

Called to give back to those in need, the Guerreros moved their family to Cochabamba, Bolivia and started Ciudad de Refugio (City of

Refuge), an organization that worked with high school and college students and taught them how to give back to orphans, homeless people and battered women and children. They were there for nine years before making the move to the Rio Grande Valley in 2019.

“We went on trips not only in their community but the country: we went to the Andes Mountains, we had 17 villiages where we would go to help the people,” Guerrero said. “We would encourage the parents, and we would help the kids with food items, coloring books and all stuff for kids.”

The students who worked with Guerrero in Ciudad de Refugio would play with the children in these villages and teach them different lessons.

Guerrero trained the children to go out to the children in need and work with them.

“It’s kind of like what we do here in the Boys & Girls Club in the after school pro-

gram, it was just a different context,” Guerrero said. “It was with kids who lived out in the mountains or the jungle.”

Guerrero received his bachelor’s degree in Christian Studies, and was happy to see Mission has kept traditions of faith in the community.

“I’m glad that we haven’t taken God out of our city and our functions,” Guerrero said. “While specifically we’re not going to be preaching at the Boys & Girls Club, we have those values that we’re going to continue, so I’m excited.”

Guerrero said he was excited to see how much Mission has changed after his decades away. While it has taken he and his family some time to adjust to the area (and the weather), they are finding great friends and community partnerships.

“When I left I was fourteen years old, and I was looking at Mission from the

commemorate the occasion as the smell of freshly baked desserts wafted from the kitchen.

“It’s important to celebrate this occasion whenever a local small business finds success,” CJ Sanchez, vice president of the Greater Mission Chamber of Commerce.

“It’s a Mission-based business run by someone from Mission and we’re highlighting them for all the sacrifices and success they’ve had in the last year to show the community how they’ve prospered.”

Before becoming a baker, De la Garza worked as a teacher at Agape Christian School and left her job after five years there due to mental health issues. She spent her first year after that on a missionary trip in Romania and volunteering at the bookstore in her father’s church, Mission’s Iglesia del Pueblo.

“Part of that work included bringing in sweets and I’d always order out but I liked the fact that baking and eating sweets always brings people together,” de la Garza recalled. “Everyone in the area gets around with sweet bread and coffee and talked.

It reminded me of how grow-

ing up in the church, fellowship was important for us.

Every time we were together we would come in with bunuelos and other sweets and we’d do it every week.

It was our church’s way of providing an environment to bring people together and I wanted to recreate that.”

This led to de la Garza taking baking classes at South Texas College and practice her baking and decorating skills on the side and selling her sweets, de la Garza’s father, Juan, said.

“Eventually, every table at home was filled with different cakes and people would be knocking on our door because they wanted to try and buy them,” Juan recalled. “We knew something special was happening, her vision was coming true.”

After three years of selling from home, de la Garza opened up her shop with the help of her family. Juan and his wife, Rosie who dabble in carpentry and interior decorating, respectively, helped decorate the shop while a cousin created the logo for the bakery and de la Garza’s sisters and cousins work the front and help her in the kitchen.

“Baking helps with the anxiety, it’s a creative outlet for me,” de la Garza said.

“I thought owning a shop would be stressful but actually being in the kitchen and baking ended up being such a stress reliever because I’m on my feet concentrating on something and surrounded by my family. It’s exciting to have this ceremony. It’s a lot of work and thankfully I had a support system to make it happen. I feel thankful for them and much closer as a family. I hope customers who come in here feel that closeness with us.”

Local bakery celebrates first year in business

By Jose De Leon III

If there’s one lesson business owner Kezia de la Garza has learned about running a small business in the last year, it’s this: “It’s a lot of work, a lot of people are always encouraged to open up businesses but I honestly didn’t know how much it would take out of a person to run it,” de la Garza said. “Owning a business is a lot of hard work and energy, you have to be mentally strong for it.”

Garza is the owner and baker of the bakery Your Sweets by Kacy, located at 1627 N. Conway Ave. She reflected on this lesson during a Wednesday ribbon cutting ceremony at her business to celebrate her shop’s successful first year.

“We didn’t set up this business to fail, it just wasn’t an option,” de la Garza said.

The shop, which provides a range of sweets such as cupcakes, cookies, tarts, biscottis and their famous cheesecakes (available exclusively on Wednesdays) was packed with customers and members of the Greater Mission Chamber of Commerce who were there to

Progress Times photo by Jose De Leon III.

Your Sweets by Kacy owner Kezia de la Garza works behind the counter at her shop during a ceremony to celebrate its one-year anniversary Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2019.

Photo courtesy of the city of Mission Facebook.

J.J. Guerrero (center) stands with the Boys & Girls CLub Youth Advocacy Advisory board after the ribbon cutting for the newly expanded Bannworth Park location.

perspective of a fourteenyear-old,” Guerrero said.

“Coming back it is not how I remember it - it’s a lot bigger, and it’s grown in a good way.”

The mission of the Boys & Girls Club organization is to ensure that all young people, specifically those who need them most, have the opportunity to develop and grow into responsible, caring, productive citizens.

“These kids are our future,” Guerrero said.

“They’re the future directors, staff members, mayors, people working in our community.”

Recently, the Boys & Girls Club of Mission’s Bannworth Park location was reconstructed to include classrooms and office space, making it a full-service unit.

The walls are painted white for now, but Guerrero hopes

the season.

“We’re definitely a community, so when you get members of the community to help, it truly makes it a hometown event,” Mercado said. “When you look and see all the people looking at each other, holding on to each other, with moms and kids, to me that’s what makes a community.”

Janette Ibarra, a strategist at Alton Memorial Jr. High School, oversaw the students volunteering at the event.

“They volunteer to appreciate what they have and what they do not have,” Ibarra explained. “They need to know there’s some other people who aren’t as fortunate as they are to do something as simple as enjoying a cup of hot chocolate to see

Ramirez also added that the program is a way to give back to the La Joya Independent School District and the people that feed into it.

“We have gratitude for what the district has to offer our students,” Ramirez said. “The community needs to know what’s offered, and what the students can do.”

Originally, the PHS Cosmetology students were solely providing this service during the district’s annual Back to School Bash, which draws students from every campus.

“It was only offered once before school starts,” Ramirez said. “I discussed it with my students - we all do belong to a chapter of SkillsUSA, and when we discussed it we wondered, why should we only have it once

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ceremony and said it would be Gabriel’s first tree lighting ceremony.

She praised community members for their involvement in the event.

“It shows the kids how the community embraces the holidays while they give back,” Hernandez said. “It’s good to see them give back like this because they can make something wonderful out of it such as seeing the community together.”

Christmas festivities for Alton continue next weekend when the city holds their annual Christmas Parade on Saturday, Dec. 14 at 11 a.m. and their Christmas Festival that same day at 5 p.m. at the Alton Recreation Center.

a year? Why not offer it once a month?”

She noted that the students were all for the endeavor once it was suggested. Ramirez pointed out that the time slot for free haircuts (typically 4:30 to 5:30 p.m.) is a challenge for the students but it allows them to gain further experience.

“It will look good on their resume, that they have experience working in community service,” Ramirez said.

“The students learn from this experience, and it’s only about 40 minutes to complete a haircut. They only have this window and timeframe to complete the tasks, and they’ve been doing well and kept that time.”

Ramirez hopes the free haircuts will be beneficial to those in the community who

struggle to fit everything into their busy schedules.

“As a working parent, sometimes your only day off is a Saturday, and you have to do errands,” Ramirez said.

“So to take all of your children for a haircut, it could be time-consuming, and budget-wise not everyone can afford it.”

The next round of free haircuts is set for Wednesday December 11 from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. at 3901 La Homa Rd. in Palmview. The school plans on offering additional days of free haircuts again in January, February, March and April of 2020.

“We felt that whoever needs a haircut is welcome to come,” Ramirez said. “It’s been going well.”

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how some things we take for granted brings joy to others.”

Among the students volunteering was Jamie Sosa, an 8th grader who says she views the volunteering opportunity as a way to get to know the members of her community.

“I want to be a psychiatrist when I grow up so I know I will need to master basic skills to get to talk to people and help them,” Sosa said.

“This is my second-year volunteering here and it’s great.

It’s all about making the people we talk to feel welcome as they celebrate something special with their families.”

Carmen Hernandez, an Alton resident who showed up to the event with her daughter and grandson, Gabriel, visited the tree lighting

PHS HAIRCUTS

from pg. 1

Business Hours: Mon. & Tues. • 8:30am - 7:00pm (Evening Hours) Wed. & Thurs. • 8:30am - 5:00pm (Closed for Lunch 1-2pm • Mon.-Thurs.)

Friday 8:30am - 1:00pm • Sat. & Sun. Closed

- who are mainly college kids - can really impact the children.”

Right now, the Boys & Girls Club of Mission is offering their after school program and boys and girls basketball for five- to twelveyear-olds. In the future, they plan to open up a robotics program, include pickleball, and expand what is currently available.

Guerrero also aims to incorporate more family involvement in the Boys & Girls Club of Mission by starting programs and activities that would include the child and their parents.

“Who know where the kids are going to take that?”

Guerrero said. “We have to be able to give them the tools to grow and fill those roles in the future.”

ALTON CHRISTMAS

from pg. 1

Sharyland Family Dentistry, P.C. SPRINGFIELD BUSINESS CENTER

to open up for artists from Mission schools to create original pieces in designated spaces.

“They’re the future leaders not just in our community, but beyond into our country and even the world,” Guerrero said. “We have no idea how our impact with these kids is going to affect them and where they’re going to go.”

Currently, Guerrero has been working with program staff in order to improve their quality of education and training so they can give it to those parts of the program.

They are also working on the organization of the athletic programs offered, so parents and children can enjoy all the activities offered.

“There’s a great foundation here,” Guerrero said. “I just want to go above and beyond so those program staff

Rubi E. Perez, DDS

INSURANCE ACCEPTED IN NETWORK: • Ameritas • Assurant • BCBS • Cigna • Cigna Healthspring • Dearborn National • Dentaquest • Liberty Dental (Molina) • MCNA • Principal Life Insurance • TMHP • TML • United Concordia • United Health Care (Medicare)

TRINITY LUTHERAN CHURCH

Worship Service SUNDAY English 9:30 am Español 11:00 am

3 Mile Line & Bentsen Palm Drive Mission, TX 78574

(956) 585-3261