July / August 2020 - RGVision Magazine

J ULY/AUGUST 2 0 2 0 | VO LUM E 12 ISSUE 4

Coronavirus caused many changes. Will some stay?

LESSONS LEARNED Online education challenged students and parents alike.

BUSINESS BUST Pandemic slows Valley’s usually bustling economy.

RGV TESTED Virus infections explore limits of local health care.

An Early College District

Brownsville I n d e p e n d e n t

S c h o o l

D i s t r i c t

the Best Choice!

BISD welcomes all of our incoming transfer students from Charter or Private schools!

From Pre-K through high school, BISD has the quality instruction and comprehensive programs with integrated technology that make it THE BEST CHOICE!

All BISD elementary schools have open enrollment and parents of NEW students can enroll at any of the district’s 34 outstanding elementary campuses.

Any NEW private or charter school secondary student can attend a campus of their choice. To attend a campus within your zone, please register online. To attend an out-of-zone BISD campus, a parent must complete an intradistrict transfer application online (FDB Local).

Any NEW student who resides outside of BISD boundaries and wishes to enroll must complete an interdistrict transfer application online (FDB Local).

For more information, call Pupil Services Department at 956.544.3966. Acceptance is based on campus availability in regular and special education setting.

When applying for a student transfer, parents must provide the following:

1. Proof of residence under the parent’s name through a current utility bill (receipt of utility deposit), deed, unexpired lease, or rent receipt with owner address and telephone (FD Local);

2. Parent’s photo identification; and 3. Student identification number.

Note: Transportation service is only provided for students attending their zoned campuses.

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During These Times and Always,

Count on Us for Safe, Quality Care At South Texas Health System Clinics, the safety of our patients, staff and the community is always our top priority.

That’s why our experienced, dedicated physicians and staff are taking extra precautions to help ensure everyone’s safety.

Whether you choose to see your doctors in our safe and clean offices or visit virtually from the comfort of your home using your phone, tablet or computer*, you can expect to receive quality, compassionate care. From family medicine to complex, life-saving surgery, you can count on us to help keep you and your family safe and healthy.

TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT: Schedule online at valleycareclinics.com or call 956-515-2233 Virtual Visits Available

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For language assistance, disability accommodations, and the non-discrimination notice, visit our website. 200128-7681 8/20

SOUTH TEXAS HEALTH SYSTEM CLINICS FAMILY OF PROVIDERS With convenient locations throughout the Rio Grande Valley CARDIOLOGY Federico Azpurua, MD 500 E. Ridge Road | Suite 201 McAllen, TX 78503 902 S. Airport Drive | Suite 4 Weslaco, TX 78596 Lester Dyke, MD 1801 S. 5th St. | Suite 215 McAllen, TX 78503

Ofsman Quintana, MD* Angelica Lozares, AGACNP-BC, FNP-BC, CVNP, AACC 500 E. Ridge Road | Suite 101 McAllen, TX 78503 FAMILY MEDICINE Walk-Ins Welcome!

Anna Atencio, DO 306 E. Main Ave. | Suites 5 & 6 Alton, TX 78573

Carlos Giraldo, MD* Karen Lava, FNP-C Sara Ostrem, FNP-BC Jenny Winger, APRN, FNP-C Harold Yee, FNP-C Kavin Chand, PA-C Rogelio Cruz, MPAS, PA-C 500 E. Ridge Road | Suite 300 McAllen, TX 78503

Martha Cano, MD Jose Gonzalez, FNP 2017 W. Expressway 83 | Suites 1 & 2 Weslaco, TX 78596

Juan Diego Posada, MD Rogelio Cruz, MPAS, PA-C 500 E. Ridge Road | Suite 300 McAllen, TX 78503

Abdias Etienne, MD 1449 W. Duranta Ave. | Suite 3 Alamo, TX 78516

2769 Pharmacy Road Rio Grande City, TX 78572

Brenda Salinas, MD 900 E. Expressway 83 | Suite A Mission, TX 78572

Swarnalatha Kanneganti, MD Kavin Chand, PA-C 500 E. Ridge Road | Suite 202 McAllen, TX 78503

Rolando Yarritu, MD 1200 S. 10th Ave. Edinburg, TX 78539

4302 S. Sugar Road | Suite 102 Edinburg, TX 78539 Luis Padula, MD* 500 E. Ridge Road | Suite 300 McAllen, TX 78503 2121 E. Griffin Parkway Suite 13 Mission, TX 78572

Chris Casso, MD 4001 S. Sugar Road | Suite B Edinburg, TX 78539

GENERAL SURGERY Bob Saggi, MD* Amparo Belo, NP Lauren Hernandez Garate, PA 4302 S. Sugar Road | Suite 100 Edinburg, TX 78539

Daniel P. McLean, MD* Guillermo Luna, PA-C* 1801 S. 5th St., Suite 120 McAllen, TX 78503 OB/GYN Giannina Guardia-Rullan, MD Kristy Morales, MD Luz Pettle, MD Verushka Vera, MD 4302 S. Sugar Road | Suite 206 Edinburg, TX 78539 SPECIALTY CARE Alexandros L. Georgiadis, MD* Daniel P. McLean, MD* Carlos Palacio, MD* Jesus Rendon, MD* LeRone Simpson, MD* Erlinda Abantao, NP Guillermo Luna, PA-C* 1801 S. 5th St., Suite 120 McAllen, TX 78503 GASTROENTEROLOGY Theodore Pettle, MD Anyssa Perez, PA-C 1801 S. 5th St. | Suite 214 McAllen, TX 78503 4302 S. Sugar Road | Suite 102 Edinburg, TX 78539 UROLOGY Desmond Adamu, MD Adolfo Arteaga, NP Luz Gonzalez, NP 1801 S. 5th St. | Suite 209 McAllen, TX 78503 *Providers available for in-office visits only

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The opinions and views expressed in the magazine don’t necessarily reflect those of our advertisers or collaborators. RGVision magazine is published bi-monthly and circulates 12,000 copies across the Rio Grande Valley in 450 locations with a direct mail distribution to major hospitals and Superintendents within Region 1. The RGVision office is located at 801 N. Bryan Road, Mission, TX 78572.

WA LD O PA LO M A R ES

Harlingen CISD PSJA ISD South Texas College Bill Martin Sergio Contreras Leonardo F. Chang Dr. Alfonso Mercado Quinta Mazatlán

James Hord Jason Garza Gwyn D. Zubia

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Isaiah 41:13 “For I am the lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, do not fear; I will help you.”

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In January 2009, the financial crisis and housing market crash brought on a sense of fear and uncertainty among us all. It was during that time that we published our very first issue — Jan/Feb 2009 — with a message of hope and inspiration for our readers. Although the crisis of 2009 differs from the one we face today, our core values and purpose remain the same. It is important for us to highlight and share stories of hope and resilience as you read through this issue of RGVision. We are proud to continue providing positive and encouraging stories about businesses, organizations, and people of our region coming together to overcome fear during these trying times. Stay informed, educated, and inspired with RGVision. Thank you for picking up this issue! For more content, be sure to follow our social media platforms and sign up for our weekly newsletter by visiting rgvisionmagazine.com.

Karina Vargas Rocio Villalobos Nathaniel Mata Jose De Leon III Danya Perez Karla Arredondo Haley Marriott

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TABLE OF

CONTENTS 2020

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VOLUME 12 ISSUE 4 RGVISION MAGAZINE

72 ON THE COVER

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NEW N O RM A L

Coronavirus caused many changes. Will some stay?

EDUCATION

A Drive for Perfection pg 8 A Leap into Law pg 10 Igniting a Spark pg 14 Virtual Connections pg 16 Persisting Through pg 18 Connections & Growth pg 22 Path to Choose pg 24

BUSINESS

RGV Partnership pg 28 Why Do We Make pg 30 'Harlingen is the Place to be' pg 32 Primed for Growth pg 34 Financial Focus pg 42 'Absolutely Amazing' pg 44

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LES S ONS LEA RNED

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B U S INES S B U S T

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RG V T ES T ED

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Online education challenged students and parents alike.

Pandemic slows Valley’s usually bustling economy.

Virus infections explore limits of local health care.

HEALTH

The Invisible Essential Workers pg 46 'Care Should Not be Interupted' pg 48 Be Fast pg 54 Heatstroke pg 56 Positive Psychology pg 58 Gestational Diabetes pg 60 Balance Nutrition pg 62 Still Smiling pg 64

QUALITY OF LIFE

Camo is my Happy Color pg 66 Everything We Do pg 68 The Joy of Baking pg 76 Faces in the Valley pg 78 Playing in Place pg 80 The Bridge Between pg 82 Grillin' Up Grins pg 86 'It's a Community Here' pg 90

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RGVISION ADVISORY BOARD

Each and every member of our advisory board charges RGVision with growth and commitment within our business development, social engagement, and editorial efforts. Through their feedback and contributions, RGVision will continue to help tell and share the Rio Grande Valley’s stories and extend the invitation to join the conversation.

M A R I T Z A ES Q U EDA

J AV I E R D E L E O N

R O B ER T D U N K I N

ED D I E LU C I O I I I

R E N E A. F LO R E S

BY R O N J AY LEW I S

B I LL M A R T I N

M A RK P E T E R S O N

A N D R EA R O D R I G U EZ

F R ED S A N D OVA L

TO M TO R K E L S O N

V ER O N I C A V ELA W H I TAC R E

S A B R I N A WA LK ER H ER N A N D EZ

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E D U C A T I O N

With computers and phones charged, ready to go, hundreds of Harlingen CISD families turned to the internet to see who would win $30,000 worth of prizes from Gillman Chevrolet Harlingen. The Gillman Auto Group of the RGV has partnered with HCISD since 2013 to provide the Drive for Perfect Attendance Giveaway.

While this year’s program was brought to an audience via a cyber awards presentation, the giveaway is unique because it is the only of its kind for the dealership with 10 stores statewide.

“COVID-19 has canceled many events around our community and our world, but we wanted to still make sure we provided this opportunity for students,” said Gillman Chevrolet Harlingen General Manager David Amaya. “We wish everyone could be here in person at Gillman Chevrolet in Harlingen. We want you to know that we are open and would welcome you to stop by and say ‘hello’ anytime.”

In the last seven years, Gillman has awarded $210,000 worth of prizes to deserving students. Specifically recognizing perfect attendance, these prizes are for high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors who did not miss a day of school for the academic year. This year, 624 HCISD students had their eye on the prize, a 2020 Chevy Sonic.

A Drive for Perfection Gillman Auto Group Partners with Harlingen CISD for Perfect Attendance Car Giveaway

by Br ia nna Vela Ga r c i a | p h o to s p r o vi d ed

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“It’s amazing to win. Being at school every day and working hard does pay off. I make sure I can get my education so I can go further in life with it.”

Ramiro Mendoza, Harlingen High School junior who won a 2020 Chevy Sonic through Gillman Chevrolet Harlingen

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The drawing of the last name drew much excitement for Gillman and HCISD staff. Cavazos carefully took out the white folded piece of paper and called out, “Harlingen High School’s Ramiro Mendoza.”

Because the event was held virtually, there needed to be an exciting and special way to recognize and surprise Ramiro. While winning the car remained a mystery to the high school junior and his family, Superintendent Dr. Art Cavazos and David Amaya drove the car to Ramiro’s house. The surprise simultaneously brought joy and shock to Ramiro’s family.

“It’s amazing to win,” Ramiro said. “Being at school every day and working hard does pay off. I make sure I can get my education so I can go further in life with it.”

Having never missed a day of school since elementary, Gillman Chevrolet of Harlingen also awarded two students gift cards for lifetime perfect attendance. The full list of winners can be found at www.hcisd.org.

While the event usually draws a crowd of hundreds to the Harlingen dealership, Gillman Chevrolet knew this year’s presentation would need to look different.

That’s when the dealership decided to live stream the event on Facebook. Eligible students and their families were notified in advance so they would not miss the big announcement.

“We are incredibly grateful to have Gillman Chevy as a partner to our school district,” said Superintendent Dr. Art Cavazos. “This is an incredible moment for our students. They are sending a message about the importance of going to school every day.”

As the names spun round and round in a goldencrafted raffle tumbler, there were a total of 14 prizes up for grabs. Ten students received $250 American Express gift cards, one student received an iPad mini, another a Microsoft Surface Pro, a MacBook Pro, and finally the Chevy Sonic.

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for perfect attendance

E D U C A T I O N

PSJA ISD Early College Alu mni Were Youngest Lawyers to Graduate in their Class

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A Leap into Law

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“It truly takes a village to help us students succeed,” Guerrero said. “The PSJA Early College Program gives you so many opportunities. At the age of 18, I was able to tell my parents that they didn’t have to worry about paying for my college education. Thank you to my PSJA Family for their support and guidance.”

Having completed their law school journey, the PSJA ISD alumni now plan to take the Texas Bar exam and practice law in the Rio Grande Valley to give back to their community. They hope to inspire current students to keep working hard for their dreams.

“Take advantage of the opportunities and work hard,” Garza said. “I want to inspire women, minorities, and my community to fight for their dreams.

There’s no limit to what we can do.”

PSJA ISD is proud to serve students living anywhere in the Rio Grande Valley.

To learn more or register, visit www.psjaisd. us/pointsofpride

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said the 23-year-old lawyer. “PSJA ISD taught me to excel and inspired me to test my own limits and complete my goals.”

Similar to Garza, Guerrero graduated from PSJA Southwest Early College High School in 2014 with two associate degrees in mathematics and biology. He graduated from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science in petroleum geology in 2017 and most recently from St. Mary’s University School of Law. “PSJA’s Early College Program kickstarted my education,” said the 24-year-old and first-generation lawyer.

“When I was 16, I was already taking rigorous college classes. It’s been an honor to study next to professionals. I have had the best of both worlds.”

According to Guerrero and Garza, college was challenging, but they were grateful for the preparation they received at PSJA ISD and the endless support they got from the College Transition Program throughout their undergraduate journey.

RGVISION MAGAZINE

Two Pharr-San Juan-Alamo ISD alumni and Early College graduates recently fulfilled their dreams of graduating from law school. Brianna Garza and Luis Guerrero were among the youngest lawyers to graduate in their class at ages 23 and 24, respectively.

Garza was part of the first cohorts of students graduating from PSJA ISD's Early College Program in partnership with South Texas College.

She received an associate degree in interdisciplinary studies one week before her high school graduation in 2014. While in high school, she was actively involved in drama, National Honor Society and was a cheerleader. She graduated from the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley with a Bachelor of Arts in political science and minors in legal studies and English in December 2016 and got accepted into the Thurgood Marshall School of Law at age 20.

“It’s surreal to have graduated already,”

J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 2 0

A b o v e, Lu is Gu e r r e r o, a PSJA Nor th ECH S Cl a s s of 2014 al umn u s, gradu ated from St. Mary’s Un iversity Sch ool of Law at age 24 .

At l ef t , B r ia n n a Ga r z a , a PSJA Nor th ECH S Cl a s s of 2014 al umn a, gradu ated from th e T h u rgood Marsh all Sch ool of Law at age 23 .

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E D U C A T I O N

IGNITING A SPARK

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How STC’s Efrain Delgado Engineered Success

“That’s when I applied myself to school,” Delgado said.

“It was the smart thing to go to a community college, then transfer to a university to save some money.”

The more he explored engineering, the more certain he became that it would be the foundation for his future.

But with six distinct engineering tracks available through STC’s versatile program — civil, electrical, computer, chemical, petroleum, and mechanical — an important choice remained.

Citing its elegant combination of hard physics and open innovation, Delgado gravitated toward mechanical engineering. For an independent-minded student, the program represented a place not only to apply his skills, but also to satisfy his yearning for exploration.

“I’ve always been a curious person,” he says. “If you have the desire to learn and create new things, that’s basically engineering, and that’s what caught my eye.”

Many of STC’s mechanical engineering classes are project-based, and Delgado particularly remembers enjoying the labs involving bridge-building and the analysis of force. Other highlights included designing machines and tools using state-of-the-art equipment like 3-D printers, spectrometers, and charge-to-mass ratio apparatuses.

Another game-changer for Delgado was the one-onone attention he received.

Delgado remembers having energetic and engaged professors at STC — most memorably Dr. Guanghua Xu, who presides over some of the department’s most challenging physics classes. “He will take his time and explain things to you in detail and make sure you understand everything.”

According to Delgado’s favorite professor, the abstract concepts in his physics classes don’t always come easy.

With hard hats come hard challenges. It’s all part of the job.

But for the mechanical engineers tasked with solving some of the world’s toughest technological problems — from smartphones to submarines to rocket ships — it's as much about passion as it is about perseverance.

“You always have a different problem, so it’s a challenge,” says South Texas College alumnus Efrain Delgado, now a customer support DUV engineer II for ASML, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of computer-chip-making equipment.

ASML’s clients include Intel and Samsung, who make microchips that go into virtually everything — from robotic arms to the device you may be reading this article on. For the past three years, it has been the STC grad’s job to make sure the complex chip-making machines are running in top shape.

It’s a fast-paced job that entails analyzing data, troubleshooting problems, making repairs and performing upgrades. Delgado loves the focus on rigorous critical thinking, and looking back, he traces his passion for mechanical engineering to his start at South Texas College.

“My story is actually funny because when I was in high school, I wasn’t really a ‘school person,’” recalls Delgado, who took a four-month break before dipping his toe in at STC for one semester. Not yet convinced, he moved north to earn money in the oil fields, but realized that wasn’t the right path for him, either.

He knew the answer to his future was back at South Texas College, so he retraced his steps. With the help of his advisors, an innovative plan began to emerge.

He decided to pursue his passion for math and science through STC’s engineering program.

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“I’ve always been a curious person. If you have the desire to learn and create new things, that’s basically engineering, and that’s what caught my eye.”

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College, according to current Department Chair Dr. Ravindra Nandigam. Thanks to strong articulation agreements with institutions like UTRGV and Texas A&M, Kingsville, the engineering programs “provide our majors avenues for a seamless transfer into four-year degree programs.”

Delgado was not only prepared when he got to UTRGV — he also was ahead of the game. He earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in just two years, and soon after landed his dream job with ASML. Since then, he’s been problem-solving all over the country, and has even made trips to Asia. “They send me all over the place!” says the proud Jaguar grad, who hopes to be a lead engineer one day.

Though his home base has moved from McAllen to Austin, Delgado says that STC will always be in his history and in his heart.

“It’s a good college, and the right first step to take for your career.”

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When Cortez started as the Physical Science Department Chair in 2008, the program had 307 declared engineering majors. Fast-forward to this past fall, and that number has nearly quadrupled to 1,110. She’s proud of how the program has grown, and how the College continues to help aspiring engineers reach their goals.

“At South Texas College, every student is important to us.”

It was that high-touch support that helped Delgado excel in his studies at STC, and, eventually, make the leap to UTRGV. “I was well prepared,” said Delgado, whose credits all transferred without a hitch. More importantly, he was well prepared for his new program, having already developed the skill set to use math, analysis, and teamwork to solve real-world problems.

“With my knowledge,” he says, “I was ready to start on my engineering career.”

Delgado’s seamless transfer process highlights a point of pride for South Texas

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Efrain Delgado, South Texas College alumnus

RGVISION MAGAZINE

In fact, they often require a totally new way of thinking and studying.

“Efrain did well in the transition and took on the challenges of solving various complicated questions,” said Xu, who was proud to see his student ace his classes and venture on to achieve his goals. “I am so honored to be a very small part of his success.

“As an educator, his success also makes me feel that my efforts are worthwhile.”

One benefit to South Texas College’s small classes was the inherent camaraderie between engineering students. To help each other see different perspectives, the students would hang out, do homework, and study for tests together. For Delgado, that connectedness would prove invaluable.

“The classes are really hard,” he said. “If you try to work by yourself, sometimes you can get stuck.”

The group’s favorite study spot? STC’s Centers for Learning Excellence, of course.

“You could just go in there and grab a table,” he recalls about the comfortable atmosphere. And if the study group’s collective brainpower ever floundered, they had options. “Whenever we had problems with some homework, the tutor would help us out.”

According to Delgado, the program’s “connected” philosophy has always started at the top. As a student, he remembers being approached by the head of the department, Dr. Enriqueta Cortez, with information about a STEM scholarship that would help cover his two years at STC. The gesture was routine to Cortez, now the Assistant Dean for Math, Science & Bachelor Programs, but vital to Delgado’s higher education and future.

“It gave me a big sum of money to help with my tuition,” he said.

When it comes to student support, Cortez says it’s a team effort, involving deans, faculty, and success specialists, all working in harmony to help students like Delgado overcome challenges and succeed.

“We do our very best to help guide them through their educational experience,” Cortez said. “I am extremely happy to learn that Mr. Efrain Delgado benefited from these efforts.”

E D U C A T I O N

VIRTUAL CONNECTIONS How To Support Children’s Socialization Online

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b y Ka r l a A r r e d on d o Widespread social distancing practices have struck us like a lightning bolt. Whether they show it or not, children are affected by the physical distance from friends, teachers, and family, and missing all the routines and activities they used to participate in. Social distancing practices have caused abrupt changes to everyone’s daily life and placed unforeseen burdens on us, all while also requiring a quick and seamless adjustment.

Parents finished off the school year homeschooling and working from home, fitting into a 24-hour period the roles and responsibilities of what feels like four different people: the teacher, the employee, the parent, the playmate.

Where does this leave our kids?

Are we asking our children how they are doing? How are they adjusting and managing these big changes, and what are we doing to support them? As we cope with the load of uncertainty these days, there are simple and concrete things we can do to support kids so that they maintain meaningful connections.

To learn more about how to support children’s mental health and social participation under challenging conditions, a pediatric occupational therapist (OT) came to mind.

“Occupational therapy is the only profession that helps people across the lifespan to do the things they want and need to do through the therapeutic use of daily activities (occupations).” (AOTA) Celina Casas OTR, OTD, shared that, “Social participation is one of our major areas of occupation. As occupational therapists we look at individuals ‘holistically’ — meaning the biological, social, and mental aspects — so it is important that we continue to provide our children with opportunities to fill the void and aid in making them [feel] whole.“

As our routines have changed by the social restrictions in place, social participation is an area that has been significantly impaired. Children are naturally curious beings who crave interaction, physical contact through play and reciprocal nonverbal communication, like the gestures and laughter in response to silly games and pretend play. Even older kids are constantly texting their friends as a more low-key way to be socially engaged.

Meaningful connections with other human beings is at the root of mental well-being no matter what age we are, and it becomes much more important to have reliable, safe relationships with others from a young age.

“Right now children are limited in their education, play, and social participation. This can be affecting the child holistically. Balance is important and required [in order] to participate in daily life and for overall daily occupational performance for both children and adults,” Casas said.

How can we support these connections in the online world? Celina and a few other parents who preferred to remain anonymous, ranging from Head of School to therapists to lawyers, shared what is working for them with their kids at home.

VIDEO CALLS Parents have turned to Zoom, FaceTime, and Google Meets to facilitate online meetups for their kids with friends and family.

MESSAGING Messenger Kids from Facebook is an easy and safe way for younger kids to chat on their own with friends. Through this app, parents have full control of the experience: a parent dashboard to monitor activity, control who the child talks to, and see their messages.

Kids have the freedom to interact online while being

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protected from the common online dangers.

family movie night. A parent represents a child’s most

SOCIAL GAMES ONLINE Games like Roblox, Maker 2, and Mario allow kids to play together while simultaneously interacting. For older kids, there’s Minecraft and Fortnite.

meaningful relationship. Reassure children they can turn

VIRTUAL PLAYDATES Little kids can connect with their friends, with a parent’s help, to do a planned shared activity such as reading a book, playing with Play Doh, dancing, or doing a guided craft.

in these important occupations in a different virtual way,“

HANDWRITTEN LETTERS This is a great activity at any age and fosters expression and deeper connections and is in itself an activity that can be as creative or therapeutic as the writer needs it to be. Younger kids can participate by drawing pictures or making a craft to send to someone they miss.

As we continue to navigate daily life assimilating the

to you or that they can reach out to another trusted adult if they need to talk.

“These alternatives still allow for children to partake Casas said. Providing options respects a child’s sense of autonomy and fosters self-confidence, while the parents are able to maintain safe boundaries.

Meaningful connections are important for everyone. changes occurring, it is important to remember that children are also coping. We can support their mental well-being by fostering social connection in a time when distancing has become the new normal.

With an internet connection, novelty, and creativity, we can find options for little ones to stay connected with

STAY CONNECTED AS A FAMILY Home should be the core place where kids feel safe and at ease. While keeping the kids busy and entertained may come to mind first, remember that family is the heart of love and connection. Find meaningful activities to do together like reading, pretend play, eating a meal together with all media off, dancing, doing puzzles, or having a

their friends, share laughs, and play.

The biggest connection, at the end of the day, is the one we cultivate at home. Finding a connection with friends can boost a child’s mood and provides a sense of normalcy, and parents can be facilitators as well as the

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most meaningful connection for children.

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South Texas College Offers Opportunities for Students to Become Essential Workers

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by Amy Casebier

South Texas College has persisted through the COVID-19 pandemic in continuing to offer resources and study pathways to students and the Rio Grande Valley community.

Particularly in business, public safety, and technology courses, the college perseveres in offering opportunities to female students to pursue studies in traditionally male courses.

“A huge advantage students have for a majority of our programs is that our certificates will stack into the associate degree,” Lozano said. “We even have some technical bachelor’s degrees here at STC that accept most of these technical courses.

It’s intended for students to come in and in a short amount of time, learn skills that can get them a job. Then, they can continue to work their way up.”

Lozano noted that a number of jobs that these courses of study prepare students for were deemed essential during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the early stages of

the pandemic, when many businesses were forced to close their doors to the public, people working in those positions were furloughed or even laid off. Essential workers continued to report to their positions.

“The world goes on and they need to be there for that,” Lozano said. “It really is a new territory for all of us and we’re moving forward very cautiously.”

Students of the business, public safety, and technology division have the added benefit of learning from instructors with realworld experience, giving them a leg up when it comes to expectations in the workplace.

"She persists — that resonates with me because I did persist. Through all of these challenges, I’ve persisted."

Sara M. Lozano, Division of Business, Public Safety,

and Technology

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• Public administration • Architectural & engineering design technology • Automotive technology • Computer and advanced technologies • Construction supervision program • Cybersecurity • Diesel technology • Electrician technology • Heating, ventilation, A/C & refrigeration • Information technology • Advanced manufacturing technology • Welding • Fire science • Law enforcement

Funding has been provided through the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board with funds received from the Carl D. Perkins Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century (Perkins V) Act of 2018

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• Business administration

“The more we are able to put students into the classroom to work on their projects, the more that they’ll learn and get exposed to real projects,” Lozano said. “Students will sometimes get jobs after the first or second semester classes. That happens quite a bit because they have those credentials and they’re employable.”

The challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic have pushed students to work harder and faculty and staff to innovate on new ways to teach.

“A lot of the faculty and program chairs had to jump into finding simulation software or apps that would help guide the students through any pending objectives,” Lozano said. “They had to think outside the box and see what the students needed.”

With courses of study already challenging enough, Lozano has lauded students who have successfully juggled study and home life — particularly female students caring for children at home while advancing their knowledge and opportunity.

Lozano recalled one such student talking about the idea of persisting through uncertain times as she worked to develop new skills and knowledge.

The student remarked, “‘she persists — that resonates with me because I did persist. Through all of these challenges, I’ve persisted,’” Lozano recalled.

“She is part of one of these success stories. We have so many stories like that. And many of us professionals can relate to them. We have our children home — a lot of our students are in the same boat. Being able to push through all of those trials to get to completing this semester — that in of itself was a huge deal.

“I think we all overcame all kinds of challenges these last couple of months.”

Learn more about these exceptional programs and essential careers at South Texas College by visiting bt.southtexascollege.edu/persist. Funding was provided through the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board with Carl D. Perkins Basic funds.

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The programs that students can pursue through STC’s business, public safety, and technology studies include:

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fire FIGHTER

$26/HR

automotive/diesel TECHNICIAN

$23/HR Exceptional Programs.

Essential Careers.

bt.southtexascollege.edu/persist 1-855-GoToSTC.

civil engineering TECHNICIAN

$24/HR

H VA C T E C H N I C I A N

$22/HR PERSISTING THROUGH THE PANDEMIC: South Texas College remains dedicated to its students, faculty, staff and the community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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CONNECTIONS & GROWTH The Role of Internships and Mentorships in Improving Students’ Employment Prospects

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The purpose of higher education is to develop the skills needed to find a good job, but earning a degree is not enough to ensure employment. While the classroom serves as the foundation of knowledge for one’s eventual career, internships allow students to apply that knowledge to an actual work environment.

Jennifer Uranga, IDEA Public Schools manager of alumni affairs, said having this experience is crucial for career readiness.

Uranga, who has a background in healthcare administration, has been with IDEA for four years and founded the school’s college to career initiative to work with IDEA graduates now in their final years of undergraduate study.

“It’s really just making sure they’re aligned after college,” she said.

Uranga coaches 25 to 30 students a week, which means providing support for resume writing, preparation for interviews, or simply a discussion of career goals. While this

program is for IDEA alumni, the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and South Texas College have similar programs in place.

“Resume and interview preparation is great, but more than anything the one-on-one coaching helps students think through what they’re looking for and plan it out.”

As for finding internships, Uranga said the first step is deciding what type of experience a student is looking for and finding a few companies in that sector. From there, they can begin reaching out through email and offering their service.

She recommends getting an internship, whether paid or unpaid, every summer to gain experience as they progress in their degree. “Even if you have an internship not specifically aligned with your field, you’re still learning a lot about how to work with others and how to work in a professional setting,” she said. “That is going to be important, as employers tend to hire someone who has had any type of experience. This means

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“Resume and interview preparation is great, but more than anything the one on one coaching helps students think through what they’re looking for and plan it out.”

Jennifer Uranga, IDEA Public

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of someone they would like to connect with, Uranga suggests creating a profile on LinkedIn, an employmentoriented online service. “A lot of professionals interested in career development and mentoring utilize it to connect with other people,” she said. “If you’re looking for professional growth, there is no better platform.”

With LinkedIn, you can add associations you are interested in, your college or university, and search for people employed in your desired career field.

These are just a few of the features of the platform that make it easy to network and find employment opportunities.

Though students who develop these relationships and get real world experience through internships are increasing their chances of finding their “perfect” job, Uranga said amid the changing world and job market affected by COVID-19, those entering need to remain open to other opportunities. “Many students who graduated this year are struggling because they want to find something in their field,” she said. “So being flexible and being open to trying new things is going to be important.”

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you’ll have a better chance of finding a job.”

Similarly, if a student does not have previous work experience, she said they can highlight other achievements and involvements in their resume. “It’s important to put skills that have developed over time,” she said. “Sometimes we overlook adding student organizations you were a part of, or events you helped plan. External experience, even if it’s not work experience, will help.”

IDEA also offers an academic services summer internship program at its headquarters in Weslaco. The program began five years ago with 10 interns and has grown over the years to support more than 50 alumni.

However, with the COVID-19 pandemic, the program is being done remotely for the time being.

In addition to internships, developing a relationship with a mentor can provide students with valuable insight — even if the relationship is built online and the two parties cannot physically meet.

“If a student has someone willing to devote time talking to them one-on-one on a regular basis, that’s ideal because you get the opportunity to talk about your field,” Uranga said. “You get key insights specific to that job area, which is important because it can help you figure out whether or not that’s going to be the right job for you.” And in some cases, finding a mentor can lead to an internship and eventual employment.

While email works for reaching out if a student knows

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Schools manager of alumni affairs

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PATH TO CHOOSE Don’t Put Your Career and College Plans on the Back Burner

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institutions across the Valley is so important because we want to When is it a good time to start college? What is the right path be able to support students no matter where they start,” Newton for me? Can I even afford it? said. “There really is an opportunity to start at either institution These and many other questions can be overwhelming when it and reach their ultimate goal.” comes to choosing a career or college degree, especially amid a Whether a student is leaving their hometown to pursue a global pandemic that limits one-on-one counseling. degree or staying at a local institution, it is important to visit the But, higher education officials say one answer is key: There is campus or campuses of their choice prior to registering. no wrong time to start.

“There’s a number of research studies that show one of the So why not take that first step and research your options today? really important factors in deciding is to get on the college The main paths to choose from are a traditional four-year campus,” she said. “Once you are on the campus you have degree at a university, or a technical degree or certificate from a feeling for the place and the people you meet. How you are a community or technical college — and there’s always a mix of treated and whether you feel welcomed.” Being on campus also the two, of course. gives potential students a chance to see what else is available if “When you go to a four-year university you are entering an they are still weighing their career options. academic, multi-disciplinary path that is going to take four Another big factor is cost. The overall cost of a four-year years or a little bit longer depending on the career,” said Dara degree at a university and a twoNewton, associate VP for strategic year technical certificate at a enrollment at the University of community college can vary greatly Texas Rio Grande Valley. “Students depending on the institution. But seeking a technical degree are talking to a counselor or recruiter looking for a particular type of could help students figure out what vocation or certificate that can “Having those strong partners the financial aid and scholarship take from six months to two and strong collaborations opportunities are. years depending on what they with institutions across “You want to weigh what you are pursuing.” the Valley is so important will pay out of pocket at each Knowing what is available to because we want to be institution, how much financial aid them and what might best fit their may cover,” Newton said. “I think goals is an important first step. able to support students no it’s important to weigh overall This ensures that students get matter where they start.” cost and what potential financial the guidance needed to start and Dara Newton, associate VP for strategic aid and scholarships you may finish their degree plan. enrollment at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley be eligible for.” Once students This is where college counselors have been admitted into one or and recruiters step in. When it more institutions, they can apply comes to higher education, a little for financial aid prior to actually guidance goes a long way. registering for any courses.

“Some students know very Students can then compare awards and costs. clearly what it is that they want to do. Others know what they “There’s staff that will help students compare awards, read enjoy doing and don’t know that they can build on that talent,” their award letters,” Newton said. “That’s also part of our job, said South Texas College President Dr. Shirley Reed. “Others helping them understand the financial implications.” are clueless … they don’t fully realize that going to college and Many students choose to perhaps start their associate degree getting a certificate or degree is the best hope for their future.” at a community college, such as STC, and then transferring their At STC, which offers 120 different degree paths, these credits to a university of their choice. This could help stretch any resources can be found at the career center. “A student can come financial aid they may qualify for. in and take an aptitude test and learn where their talents and Even today, with the complications brought by COVID-19 interests lie,” Reed said. “From there you can take the next step and the need for social distance, colleges and universities are and learn ‘these are the career opportunities I could have. These offering guidance virtually, by phone, or by appointment. The are the kinds of jobs I could pursue. This is the kind of salary I goal, officials said, is not to enroll anyone into any program, but could earn.” Students can also find similar guidance at UTRGV to help students make an informed decision and place them in a where counselors and recruiters are also available. successful path.

The two Valley institutions work hand in hand, as they share “We are here for everybody without regard to your financial many students who bounce between their different campuses circumstances or whether you are the first in your family to go to pursuing degrees and certificates. college,” Reed said. “There’s something for everybody.”

“Having those strong partners and strong collaborations with

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LESSONS LEARNED Online Education Challenged Students and Parents Alike

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b y Da n y a Pe r e z “They would wake up in the morning, do a few chores, and then start with reading,” Moreno said. “I would have one in the living room watching their online lessons on the television, while the other one was in the study watching his online lessons on the computer.”

But her only job wasn’t to oversee and help with the technical aspects of launching the daily lessons. She then had to make sure every lesson was done within the correct online platforms, take screenshots or pictures of their work, and submit these to the right channels, the right teachers, and at the right time.

In Moreno’s case, her training and previous work as a teacher gave her a better sense of how to handle the situation, she said. But it was still an adjustment as her new daily routine had to revolve around her kids’ school work.

“I honestly thought I was going to lose my mind,” Moreno said, laughing. “I’ve been with them 24/7 and I’m just not used to that, you know. I love my kids to death, but sometimes you just need a break and there’s really nowhere to hide.”

Luckily, she said, both of their teachers always had daily lessons ready for each of her children, giving her time to get work done around the house. One of those many teachers who had to adjust to this new environment is Jesus Islas Jr., who has been teaching fifth-grade math at IDEA North Mission for the last three years.

While math doesn’t particularly strike as an easy

Teaching took a whole new meaning in the time of COVID-19. The global pandemic closed schools in mid-March, leaving children, educators, and parents to figure out how to continue the school year while social distancing.

While school districts took advantage of Spring Break — which was also extended in some districts due to the virus — to prepare for fully-virtual and online distance learning, parents also had to figure out what their role would be in this forced equation.

But now that the school year is over, both parents and teachers feel that they were pushed out of their comfort zone — and that came with new lessons learned and even improvement opportunities.

“It’s hard to keep them on task,” Rochelle Sinder de Moreno said. ”Home is where they relax and they let loose, so sometimes I think the environment of being home gets them out of the ‘this is school’ mentality.”

Moreno has two boys at home, 5-year-old Davian, and 7-year-old Dante — who usually attend kindergarten and first grade at IDEA Quest. At home, their quarantine routine actually began during Spring Break, as she realized this adjustment period of seeing home as school for a while would take time.

Their school day started a bit later than usual at 10 a.m. and would finish around 4 p.m., she said. One of the added tricks was having to account for lots of breaks and finding them their own space to focus on their lessons.

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ways to save clear lessons online for them.

Many times, this involved duplicating a live lesson on a Powerpoint presentation and highlighting some of the most complicated aspects in slides and videos they could go over again if they were struggling. “It’s been tough, but it’s also been positive because I have a lot of students who still sign in and are very vigilant about their work,” he said. “It definitely got better every single day.”

Both Islas and Moreno also found lessons for themselves during this time. As a mom, Moreno said she saw how much of a difference little celebrations make in keeping her kids motivated — which she hopes to apply next year as a sixth-grade teacher. “I saw a lot of celebration,” she said. “These types of celebration and motivation can work for middle school children too or any grade. Sometimes we don’t motivate them enough because we think maybe they are too old … but some of those things I think would work.”

For Islas, this experience helped him see some of the gaps he wouldn’t have noticed as much when teaching in the classroom — especially when it comes to using technology. “I definitely opened my eyes more to understand my students and where they are coming from,” Islas said. “I had a good amount of students who were either only signing on with their phones or couldn’t get a lesson because they couldn’t get internet service where they live.”

Islas said having better knowledge of his students’ backgrounds could help him understand the advantages and disadvantages within his classroom and accommodate his lessons to fit their needs.

“I definitely feel the need to understand where they are coming from,” he said. “It made me see the bigger picture that some students may have a bigger advantage, while some maybe don’t have the same opportunities. It definitely makes me want to get to know my students more.”

topic to teach online to dozens of fifth-graders, Islas and his peers had no choice but to go with the flow.

“The transition was pretty smooth. I don’t have any complaints,” Islas said. “But for the most part, it’s just been weird having to transition from the classroom to online so quickly.”

IDEA Public Schools took an extra week of Spring Break. While students were off, Islas said the teachers and staff learned about online resources, created work packages, sent announcements, and brainstormed how to keep things interactive and as normal as possible for students. “We essentially continued to review what we saw during the school year and introduced a few new concepts that they might see in sixth grade, but nothing too overwhelming,” he said. “They are already stressed enough as it is. We didn’t want to make it worse for them.”

Understanding that students were also having to readjust to a different learning environment — and not all of them with the same resources — became key for Islas and other teachers, he said.

His class was scheduled to be the first to go live on a daily basis from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. for 117 students. At a maximum, Islas said about 50 students would sign up for the live class. The rest would watch the recorded live lesson at various times throughout the day.

“An adjustment was trying to make (the lesson) as easy as possible for them to understand online,” Islas said. “It was harder for me to know if they were getting the concept because some of them are afraid to speak up or afraid to ask that question or interact online.”

Islas began giving the students some Fridays off from the live lesson and allowing them to catch up on their work. Other days he would take his live lessons outdoors to teach some of the concepts using the scenery.

Having one-on-one time with students to make sure they were understanding and not just following along became nearly impossible during live lessons, Islas said.

But as the days went by, he and other teachers found

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B U S I N E S S ARTICLE PROVIDED BY

Sergio Contreras President/CEO RGV Partnership

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RGV PARTNERSHIP FOUNDATION SUPPORTS COVID-19 FIRST RESPONDERS The RGV Partnership Foundation distributed meals to local first responders on the front lines in the battle against COVID-19, giving back to those who are doing so much for the local community. The RGV Partnership Foundation announced a $10,000 contribution from the AT&T Foundation and $2,500 from Pathfinder Public Affairs to support the local effort.

“These are challenging times, and we want to show our support for the individuals giving their all to keep the Rio Grande Valley safe and healthy,” said Sergio Contreras, CEO of the RGV Partnership Foundation. “We are thankful for the generous contributions that will make an impact across our four-county region as we support the brave first responders of the RGV.” Leslie Ward, President of AT&T-Texas, added, “Our first responders are on the front lines in the battle against COVID-19, responding to the needs of their communities and working to keep all of us safe. We are honored to do our part to support them during this unprecedented time. We remain fully committed to the Rio Grande Valley, to first responders throughout the state, and are proud to be part of this effort.”

With this funding, the RGV Partnership Foundation coordinated with locally owned restaurants to provide nutritious and convenient meals in support of the four-county First Responder Program, which includes county law enforcement officers and EMS, plus the region’s Healthcare First Responders — hospitals across the RGV. Thanks to the contribution, our local restaurants received a much-needed boost as well.

“We are excited to receive support for this important program — especially the opportunity to also support local restaurants while thanking our first responders,” said Lee Reed with IBC Bank and chairman of the RGV Partnership Foundation. “It’s a silver lining in these difficult times.”

“These are challenging times, and we want to show our support for the individuals giving their all to keep the Rio Grande Valley safe and healthy. We are thankful for the generous contributions that will make an impact across our four-county region as we support the brave first responders of the RGV.” Sergio Contreras, CEO of the RGV Partnership Foundation

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B U S I N E S S ARTICLE PROVIDED BY

Bill Martin, CFP® Vice President, Investments 1845 Capital of Raymond James, 1400 N. McColl Road, Suite 101 | McAllen 956-331-2777

1. Anchoring bias is using an arbitrary number as an anchor for a decision. For example, using the price you paid for a stock to determine whether to sell or not, regardless of the changing circumstances or projected future of the company.

2. Regression to the mean is the tendency to extrapolate small sets of data into future results. So often, investors make a decision on where to place their money based on what went up most recently. The reality is last year’s winner may not be this year’s winner. According to DALBAR, from 1995 to 2015, the S&P 500 returned an average annual return of 8.19 percent while the average equity mutual fund investor return was only 4.67 percent. Many experts attribute that difference to investors chasing returns.

WHY DO WE MAKE THE INVESTMENT DECISIONS WE DO?

3. Confirmation bias happens when one searches for and puts more weight in evidence that backs their opinion, ignoring alternative evidence.

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A Look at the Study of Behavioral Finance

4. Regret aversion is caused by the feeling that taking an action and losing is worse than doing nothing and losing, often seen during a market is dropping and fear rules.

Buy low, sell high. That is what we are told to do.

Intuitively, it’s what makes sense to make money. After the S&P 500 index (a representation of the 500 largest companies in America) topped at 3,386.15 points intraday on Feb. 19 this year, investors sold, driving the index to this year’s low of 2,191.86 — a drop of more than 35 percent. Since then and as of June 5, buyers have driven the S&P 500 up to 3,193.93 — an increase of more than 45 percent off the bottom. So, why then did some investors continue to sell lower and lower, missing out on the ensuing recovery?

To a large degree, we humans have been programmed to avoid pain. If we touch a hot pan, our nerves tell us to withdraw immediately to stop hurting. That’s a lightningquick physical response, but given time to think, wouldn’t we make more logical decisions with our money? Not always. There are more thoughtful processes (mental shortcuts called heuristics) that run through our minds when decision making. Often, these shortcuts leave gaps, which can have a negative effect on the results of our decisions. We call these gaps a cognitive bias, and they are really hard to avoid — even for seasoned investors. For more than 100 years, researchers have looked into those biases in consumer and financial decisions developing the field of behavioral finance.

This article cannot do justice to all the contributions of those researchers, but I will do my best to highlight some of my favorite insights:

5. Overconfidence and optimism bias occurs when one does not take into account the risk in a situation and causes an investor to take greater risk than is prudent. This can often happen when the market is rising rapidly and greed becomes a primary motivator.

Prospect theory, developed by Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky in 1979, challenged the often referenced expected utility theory developed in 1944 by John von Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern, who surmised that people make rational decisions with their money. In prospect theory, people make irrational decisions often due to loss aversion, which essentially summarizes that people feel pain twice as much as joy for the same utility. Stated simply, losing a dollar hurts twice as much as gaining a dollar.

Lastly, investors often hyperbolically discount future events while magnifying today’s events. In other words, we think today’s joys or pains will be greater and last longer than tomorrow’s joys or pains. That way of thinking leads us to make more impulsive decisions and less likely to prepare for the long-term.

My advice is to find a balance between living for today and preparing for tomorrow by working with a professional to help you develop a plan and build discipline to achieve your life’s goals. Making investment decisions is not easy, but with a knowledgeable professional on your side acting in your best interest, you can move forward with more confidence and are more likely to stick to a sound financial plan.

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‘HARLINGEN IS THE PLACE TO BE’ Real Estate Agents Discuss Growth and Development with Harlingen EDC

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by Amy Casebier

Raudel Garza, manager and CEO of Harlingen EDC, was joined on a Zoom call by real estate agents Christian Gutierrez, a senior associate at Southern Commercial Real Estate Group, and Cindy Hopkins, broker at Cindy Hopkins Commercial Real Estate, to discuss real estate growth and development in Harlingen — as well as how the pandemic has impacted the way business is conducted.

“Obviously things have kind of changed the way we do business in the last few months,” said Garza. “A lot of people have been doing things differently.”

“For me, the things that I had in contract when COVID hit I was able to get closed, but it was very difficult. It took longer,” Hopkins said. “Anything I was working on, completely stopped during COVID. No phone calls, no emails, people were unsure of what to do. Now I’m trying to get those deals back, but in real estate, time is of the essence.”

Gutierrez experienced similar circumstances.

“Everybody was kind of getting a little worried,” he said. “Sellers were concerned that it wasn’t going to get closed. Buyers were concerned that if they did close, when were they going to open.”

As the industrial real estate market continues to have a strong showing in Harlingen and the Rio Grande Valley, the economic slowdown brought on by the pandemic has started conversations about moving suppliers nearer to manufacturers — offering a possible boost in jobs for properly trained residents.

“We do have some good partnerships with TSTC and

Harlingen school districts,” Garza said. “We have spent a lot of time in that arena trying to make sure our workforce is ready.”

Hopkins said she didn’t foresee the real estate market shrinking by much despite much of the workforce working from home.

Because of this, she anticipates companies seeking smaller office spaces. Hopkins has noticed an interest in facilities less than 2,000 square-feet that would be ideal for downsizing once leases are up.

“I see a lot of potential for more office development.

There’s not a whole lot of Class A office down here in the Valley in general,” Gutierrez said.

He added that he expects more office developers to take a chance in the Valley, especially with SpaceX, Liquified Natural Gas (LNG), University of Texas Rio Grande Valley growth, and other projects in the works.

“UTRGV has already broken ground and is actually under construction for the neuroscience institute — a little over 32,000 square feet of research facility,” Garza said. “Also, the early college high school is going to be housed within a general education building that UTRGV is going to be building. I can see how institutionally we’re going to see a lot more activity in and around where the current medical school is and the VA hospital.”

Ideally, this kind of development would spur other growth, such as commercial and retail, Garza said. The pandemic took a toll on retail in the RGV and the rest of the country.

“Retail’s been transitioning a long time now. I see a lot

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“Harlingen is the place to be — it’s located perfectly.

We have a port, we have a rail line, we have direct access to 77/83. We have some work to do, but keep pressing on.”

Christian Gutierrez, a senior associate

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of empty boxes,” Hopkins said, citing recent bankruptcy filings from Bealls and Tuesday Morning, two retailers with big box presences in the area. The challenge in finding use for such space is just that — too much space for most buyers.

Gutierrez sees possibilities for those spaces with a little bit of repurposing and innovative thinking.

"You look at what Amazon’s doing — potentially buying JC Penney’s,” he said. “They’ve gone in and converted some of these malls into distribution centers — maybe our mall would be a candidate. I don’t know.”

The Rio Grande Valley remains primed for growth.

Harlingen, in particular, is poised for a boost — if companies and individuals realize just what the city has to offer.

Harlingen is positioned to reach all major points of the Valley within 40-minutes and also has the largest regional airport, Garza added. The Valley International Airport has the longest runway in South Texas - with an expansion coming soon - and is ranked in the top 80 cargo airports in the U.S. “Harlingen is the place to be — it’s located perfectly,” Gutierrez said. “We have a port, we have a rail line, we have direct access to 77/83. We have some work to do, but keep pressing on.”

Learn more about real estate development and other projects in Harlingen by visiting HarlingenEDC.com.

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‘PRIMED FOR GROWTH’ Mission EDC Wins $3 Million Grant for Killam Development Project Drainage

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b y Amy Ca s eb i e r | p h ot os b y G wy n D. Z u b i a

With the 3,400-acre Killam Development project slated to break ground on land around Anzalduas International Bridge and south of Interstate 2, the Mission Economic Development Corporation has secured a $3 million grant to assist with drainage improvements.

“Its true purpose is to alleviate the flooding and make it to where we can start recruiting businesses,” Mission EDC CEO Daniel Silva said of the grant.

Back in 2018, Mission suffered a 500-year flooding event that inundated the city. This grant will help redirect floodwater from the industrial, retail, entertainment, and residential areas that Killam is developing.

“They want to make sure they take care of all of the drainage issues and they want to build it up,” Silva said.

“The county requires us to build out for a 10-year flood event. [Killam is] building for a 100-year flood event. They want to make the community something that we’re all

proud of. This grant will kickstart all of that.”

Silva says he expected the new development to further Mission’s growth as a community. From 2000 to 2010, the city saw a boom in its growth and population thanks to the development of Sharyland Plantation, Silva said.

“We basically increased by about 8 percent because of Plantation,” he said.

Since then, Mission has continued to grow, but certainly not at the same rate.

“The area’s been poised” for something like the Killam Development project, Silva said, citing the Anzalduas Highway and the 4 miles of expressway frontage it adds for development in Mission.

“We want to have a lot of shopping,” Silva said. “We want to have retail, we want to have commercial.” He added that with an increase in housing and population, Mission could be due for another elementary campus as

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“It was something that we haven’t seen before. We had about 600 people stop in. It’s good because the one thing about [Killam Development] is they’re very community focused. They do want to build something we don’t have anywhere in the Valley and they have the ability to do that.”

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the one thing about [Killam Development] is they’re very community focused. They do want to build something we don’t have anywhere in the Valley and they have the ability to do that.”

Silva anticipates future growth in Mission both thanks to and beyond the Killam Development project — and the grant to improve drainage and attract businesses and families.

“The next 15 years here in the city — what it’s going to end up doing. The grant is going to help the industrial area,” he said. “Industrial’s going to come in, families are going to want to move closer to where these jobs are.

Retail’s going to come in. The entertainment district is going to want to develop because there’s a lot of population now.

“Mission’s primed for growth.”

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well as a new junior high school.

In the beginning, the project consisted of a number of community-driven collaborations and workshops among Killam Development, Able City, and Dover, Kohl & Partners, hosted at the Center for Education and Economic Development in Mission.

“We really just want to listen to folks and help create a place where they want to live,” said Cliffe Killam, a partner at Killam Development, back in December 2019 before the charrettes began. “I think we’re just excited to be a part of the community and hear what everyone wants.”

Silva remarked on the success of those public workshops, highlighting the fact that people wanted to be involved in developing their community.

“It was something that we haven’t seen before,” Silva said. “We had about 600 people stop in. It’s good because

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Daniel Silva , Mission EDC CEO

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BUSINESS BUST Pandemic Slows Valley’s Usually Bustling Economy

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by Nathaniel Mata When the first case of the COVID-19 in the Rio Grande Valley was detected and announced on March 19, everything was tossed in the air without knowing where it might land.

In a few quick months, most residents were mandated to stay inside while the virus continued to spread. By mid-May, over 1,000 cases were confirmed with many recovers and fortunately, a relatively low number of lives lost.

For the economy, especially locally, the timing couldn’t have been worse. Annual cash cows ran away before they could be milked or turned to beef — figuratively, of course.

Popular Valley traditions like the RGV Livestock Show held in Mercedes were canceled despite event organizers trying to keep hope alive that they would take place.

Dozens of musical acts centered around Spring Break on South Padre Island were canceled even as city officials tried to hold onto the usually consistent revenue streams.

Physical schooling ended months before what was expected, throwing the education system, as well as annual end-of-year tradition into uncertainty.

Shopping and almost all commerce braked like a driver realizing they weren’t going to be able to make the light.

U.S. retail sales saw a 16.4 percent decline in April sales, a part of the worst two months in modern history.

The effects were felt Valleywide. From South Padre and Mercedes to Weslaco’s Onion Fest, McAllen’s ComiCon

and Pride Event. Lots of revenue was surrendered to COVID’s wrath.

McAllen City Roel “Roy” Rodriguez manager estimated $20 million in lost revenue, including bridge crossings and hospitality.

McAllen Chamber of Commerce released the most detailed estimates of impact. Their report said 84.36 percent of businesses suffered economic injuries.

Another unique border issue as the virus lingers in our community is restrictions regarding international travel in and out of Mexico.

Business, companies, and services were all hit with restrictions, precautions, or worse — the designation as non-essential industries. State and federal government did have loans for struggling businesses and as the virus progressed, local governments were given funds to help with economic hardships.

THE HUMAN IMPACT OF COVID-19 Job loss in the RGV was consistent with statewide figures that saw a big jump in unemployment.

The federal government tried to mitigate the economic impact with a one-time (for now) stimulus check of $1,200 to eligible individuals.

Undocumented people and “mixed-status” households took the worst of the impact. Without legal status, people were unable to access any type of government assistance and college students who were claimed as dependents on their parents' taxes were also left in the cold.

By May, thousands were given food through the Food

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Bank of the RGV at Bert Ogden Arena. Many good samaritans and charities have stepped up to do what they can to lend a helping hand.

The government response has addressed many of these issues to the best of its abilities.

Unemployment insurance was bolstered by Congress and local governments, at the county level, were given hundreds of millions to help municipalities, individuals, businesses, and schools through this time.

SWITCHING GEARS Many businesses had to adjust on the fly. Print and promo companies were one of them. Instead of focusing on printing like normal, Andy Santos of BrandIt explained that production changed to meet the situation.

“Our customers weren’t ordering shirts or promotional products, because they couldn’t get in front of people to hand out merchandise,” Santos said. “At first it was kind of hard but fortunately we had some customers that needed PPE (personal protective equipment) — one being the City of McAllen. They ordered 2,300 masks for us and it kept us busy for a couple of weeks.”

There were community efforts nationwide to get N95 masks onto the faces of healthcare workers as it began evident the country lacked some essential supplies.

BrandIt joined the efforts and found supplies to produce custom masks.

“I started researching masks, face shields, face guards,” Santos said. “We started ordering the equipment so we can print locally and keep our production going.

That’s what we transition into: from neck gaiters to KN95s. One of our vendors has masks that have different holes for the ears.”

The protective gear turned out to be massively important as shelter-at-home didn’t last long and the governor quickly enacted plans to get business back rolling in phases.

ESSENTIAL DISTINCTION One issue that rose for commerce was the distinction between essential and non-essential business as

determined by the government. Restaurants could stay open if they could offer curbside pickup while services like tattoo and massage parlors were out of luck.

The virus and the subsequent regulations put many Valley workers and employers between a rock and a hard place. Between putting the community at risk and keeping workers from their paychecks and revenue from bank accounts.

President Donald Trump’s ban on non-essential travel put a halt to Mexican nationals spending their dollars at local businesses.

Many businesses suffered due to low traffic and most residents stayed inside except for food, grocery, and drink runs.

Some companies were in the right place at the right time. Cleaning services or sign makers pumped out “curbside pick-up” and safety messaging to everyone adjusting while heavy contact activities like professional, college and youth sports were put on the shelf.

COVID-19 affected a million things in a million different ways and it’s still unclear how things will look when the dust settles.

BUSINESS CASUALTIES OF COVID As the Valley came together to support local businesses, not every establishment was fortunate enough to survive coronavirus.

To name a few local businesses that closed their doors for good: Grain to Glass in McAllen, and Frio Grande Ice Center, the only place to ice skate in the RGV. The Edinburg Review, a weekly newspaper serving the city, also announced they were ceasing operations.

Independent bookstore Books-n-Things and even national chains like Luby’s, Quiznos, and El Pollo Loco closed some of their RGV locations.

It will be a different Valley, a different world once the virus is eradicated. There’s plenty of change on the horizon.

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FINANCIAL FOCUS

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Sticking to a Budget Can Boost Your Emergency Fund

During the coronavirus pandemic, our health concerns — for ourselves and our loved ones — have been at the top of our minds. But financial worries have been there, too, both for people whose employment has been affected and for investors anxious about the volatile financial markets. And one aspect of every individual’s total financial picture has become quite clear — the importance of an emergency fund.

Even in normal times, it’s a good idea for you to keep three to six months’ worth of living expenses in a liquid, low-risk account. Having an emergency fund available can help you cope with those large, unexpected costs, such as a major car repair or a costly medical bill.

Furthermore, if you have an adequate emergency fund, you won’t have to dip into your long-term investments to pay for short-term needs. These investment vehicles, such as your IRA and 401(k), are designed for your retirement, so the more you can leave them intact, the more assets you’re likely to have when you retire. And because they are intended for your retirement, they typically come with disincentives, including taxes and penalties, if you do tap into them early. (However, as part of the economic stimulus legislation known as the CARES Act, individuals can now take up to $100,000 from their 401(k) plans and IRAs without paying the 10 percent penalty that typically applies to investors younger than 59 1/2. If you take this type of withdrawal, you have up to three years to pay the taxes and, if you want, replace the funds, beyond the usual caps on annual contributions.)

Of course, life is expensive, so it’s not always easy to put away money in a fund that you aren’t going to use

for your normal cash flow. That’s why it’s so important to establish a budget and stick to it. When developing such a budget, you may find ways to cut down on your spending, freeing up money that could be used to build your emergency fund.

There are different ways to establish a budget, but they all typically involve identifying your income and expenses and separating your needs and wants. You can find various online budgeting tools to help you get started, but, ultimately, it’s up to you to make your budget work.

Nonetheless, you may be pleasantly surprised at how painless it is to follow a budget. For example, if you’ve budgeted a certain amount for food each month, you’ll need to avoid going to the grocery store several times a week, just to pick up “a few things” — because it doesn’t really take that many visits for those few things to add up to hundreds of dollars. You’ll be much better off limiting your trips to the grocery, making a list of the items you’ll need and adhering to these lists. After doing this for a few months, see how much you’ve saved — it may be much more than you’d expect. Besides using these savings to strengthen your emergency fund, you could also deploy them toward longer-term investments designed to help you reach other objectives, such as retirement.

Saving money is always a good idea, and when you use your savings to build an emergency fund, you can help yourself prepare for the unexpected and make progress toward your long-term goals.

This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor.

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SHE PERSISTS “She persists — that resonates with me because I did persist. Through all of these challenges, I’ve persisted.”

Learn more bt.southtexascollege.edu/persist

Funding has been provided through the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board with funds received from the Carl D. Perkins Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century (Perkins V) Act of 2018

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‘Absolutely Amazing’ Homeowners Highlight Customer Service, Value with Infinity Homes

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b y Amy Ca s e b i e r | p h ot os p r ov i d e d If you’ve ever built a home from the ground up before, you know just how stressful the entire process can be. From delays to budget problems, anything that can go wrong often will — especially if you don’t have the right homebuilder for the job.

However, homeowners Lizette Ramirez and Abraham Soto were thrilled with the experience they had when Infinity Homes built their dream home.

“We decided to choose Infinity Homes from the day we walked into their Tres Lagos model home,” Ramirez recalled.

“It was just amazing. It was beautiful from the quality and from the design.

Everything was just perfect.”

Simply walking in to that model home made Ramirez and Abraham Soto feel at home — particularly with the greeting and tour they got.

“Michael was the first person we met — he was the first person we had contact with, and he was very friendly,” Soto remembered. Michael Bear Vela is a member of the Infinity Homes team. “He walked us through the model home. We

kind of had this vibe that this guy knows what’s up. He knows what he’s talking about, and we felt like we could really have that relationship going forward.”

It’s important to have a close working relationship with the people building your home. You should be able to communicate every step of the way, and expectations from the very beginning should be crystal clear.

“The process from beginning to end has been absolutely amazing,” Ramirez said. “We’ve been guided by Michael and the builder, Mr. Eddie Garza, from day one.

There’s no doubt that we couldn’t have chosen anyone better than Infinity Homes to build our home.”

While shopping around for the right homebuilder for their needs, Ramirez and Soto ran into some roadblocks.

“One of our main concerns was always finding a builder that would build a home within our budget,” Ramirez said. “When we did shop, honestly, it was like, 'we can’t,’ or their square footage was less and Infinity was a little bit higher, but we

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were getting more for our money.”

Soto agreed, explaining that Infinity Homes solved problems they were having with other homebuilding companies.

“From certain builders, we were told ‘no, this can’t be done. No, there’s no way this would work,’” he said. “When we presented that to Infinity Homes, they didn’t give us any ‘no’s.’ They told us, ‘yes, we could do that.’ So that’s really one of the main reasons we ended up going with Infinity Homes.”

Good communication throughout the construction process and an end result that they could call their dream home made Ramirez and Soto enthusiastic about recommending Infinity Homes to others.

“The process has been totally amazing,” Ramirez said.

Find Infinity Homes online at InfinityHomesRGV.com, or on Facebook or Instagram @InfinityHomesRGV. For questions or more information, call (956) 888-1115, or stop by Infinity’s model home at 1607 S. Claire Ave., Edinburg, TX 78539.

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THE INVISIBLE ESSENTIAL WORKERS OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC The current COVID-19 pandemic has brought about major changes and new challenges to our communities.

In the course of these uncertain times, healthcare workers and first responders have often been recognized, and rightfully so, for their essential services during the pandemic. Without their services, disease would prevail in our communities; for this reason, we should thank them for their tireless efforts. However, society should also acknowledge the important roles that less visible essential workers serve amid this global crisis, keeping our country and communities operating.

According to an American Community Survey, essential workers represent about 70 percent of the United States labor force. This includes a group of essential workers known as “frontline” workers. These workers earn lower wages on average and “come disproportionately from socio-economically disadvantaged groups compared to the overall workforce” (Blau et al., 2020). “Frontline” workers comprise grocery stores employees, agricultural and immigrant farm workers, maintenance crews, production and food processing workers, and truck drivers, to name a few. Without doubt, these workers perform crucial roles in society, especially now during this pandemic, and thus they, too, merit recognition.

Indeed, the services these “frontline” workers provide are vital in keeping our communities running.

Throughout this pandemic, every essential worker, including all the less visible essential workers, has contributed to keeping our hospitals and communities safe, clean, and functional. One specific group of direct healthcare frontline personnel includes approximately 30,000 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients, whose future is uncertain given the U.S. Supreme Court’s upcoming ruling. Other less visible COVID-19 essential workers include hospital cleaning staff and maintenance workers, who have kept clinics, hospitals, and buildings safe. Also, truck drivers have delivered many vital goods to and from us. Agricultural and immigrant farm workers have continued to supply us with fresh produce to feed our families. Workers at grocery stores have kept shelves stocked and helped us in purchasing necessary items and foods to sustain our families. Fast food workers have served us in their drivethrus and their cooks have provided our families with warm meals. They do all of this and more while risking exposure to the COVID-19 virus.

Furthermore, not only are “frontline” workers often overlooked amid this global crisis, but also many of

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them belong to low socio-economic status, racial or ethnic minorities, or undocumented groups. These statuses present even more nuanced problems for them to face in addition to their already apparent high risk of exposure to the virus. Due to underlying comorbidities such as diabetes, crowded living spaces in urban areas, and the nature of jobs they hold (typically in service or transportation), this population may be at an even greater risk of contracting the virus and may even suffer from higher morbidity rates (Hooper, 2020). Additionally, recent reports have uncovered significant disparities in the impact of COVID-19, with undocumented immigrants being an at-risk group often unaccounted for. What is worse, these immigrants are less likely to have access to health care, putting them at a particularly treacherous predicament (League of United Latin American Citizens, 2020).

Unquestionably, many of the jobs carried out by undocumented immigrants greatly contribute to keeping our communities functional and the U.S. economy afloat. While undocumented immigrants are putting their lives on the line for our country, the backlash from our government’s immigration policies and subsequent surrounding rhetoric are felt by these individuals.

Certainly, this pandemic has exposed the irony inherent in these anti-immigration attitudes. Even as many undocumented immigrants are risking their lives to support our communities, they continue to face the threat

of deportation, regardless of being deemed as essential workers. On top of this, they have worked without the promise of receiving benefits from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act to help them through the pandemic (U.S. Department of the Treasury, 2020).

At the end of the day, every essential worker, even the ones we hear about less often, is important because their work contributes to keeping our communities running and to the fight against COVID-19. Recognition should not be influenced by immigration status, race, ethnicity, cultural background, or socioeconomic status.

Undeniably, many undocumented immigrants risk their lives on the “front line” to serve our country and families, and their work should not go unnoticed. The invisible essential workers also deserve much gratitude, higher wages, and an opportunity to obtain a legal work permit. Together, we can and will get through this global pandemic.

Co-authors include Dr. Mercado’s Mental Health Lab at UTRGV: Jacqueline Martinez, Frances Morales, and Nyla Vela.

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PH.D., Licensed Psychologist Valley Psychological Services - Assistant Professor Department of Psychology at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley | www.utpa.edu/psychology

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Alfonso Mercado

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‘CARE SHOULD NOT BE INTERRUPTED’ South Texas Health System Clinics’ Chris Casso, MD, Dedicated to Keeping Patients Safe Amid COVID-19

at any given time has helped with social distancing recommendations.

And as always, high-traffic areas like door handles, countertops, and other surfaces are regularly disinfected.

“We also have seen a significant decline in patient visits and had to make sure that there was a process in place to safely evaluate patients with acute or chronic illnesses,” Casso wrote. “When a state of emergency was declared, insurance companies including CMS approved Telehealth visits, and so we started to convert a lot of our in-office visits into telemedicine visits.”

Casso’s office has been using Zoom and Doximity to conduct virtual visits for patients whenever applicable. Patients typically receive instructions on

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downloading the appropriate software the day before the appointment, and then are contacted via email or text to begin.

Casso said she saw the value in using virtual meeting applications for telemedicine appointments.

“Telemedicine visits have been helpful for our patients. I hope that insurance companies including Medicare continue to make these types of visits available for our patients, as it can help with continuity of care and preventive health,” Casso wrote.

“There will always be a need for inoffice visits, but I am so grateful that we have been able to continue our care for our patients through this pandemic using telemedicine.”

No matter the reasons for seeking a doctor's visit, Casso wants her patients to know that as always, she is here for them.

“I want them to know that I am still able to see them virtually or in the office, that South Texas Health System Clinics is taking extra precautionary measures to keep patients, physicians, and staff safe, and that their care should not be interrupted,” she wrote.

Dr. Chris Casso practices family medicine at 4001 S. Sugar Road, Suite B, in Edinburg. Call to schedule an appointment at (956) 603-1515. Learn more about her practice and background at https://www.valleycareclinics.com/ casso.

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FAMILY MEDICINE Dr. Chris Casso provides the following services in her Edinburg office: • Adult care • Management of diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and related disorders • Geriatric care • Pediatric care • Physicals • Preventive medicine • Urgent care • Wellness visits

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The COVID-19 pandemic has changed many aspects of life, but one thing that hasn’t changed is the care that patients are able to receive at the office of Dr. Chris Casso, a boardcertified family medicine physician with Valley Care Clinics in Edinburg.

“We continue to have our patients come in for their lab appointments, and we continue to see our patients for their follow-up visit for chronic illnesses or acute illness,” Casso wrote in an email.

“It is best to evaluate some patients in person, depending on their symptoms.”

Casso and her team have taken steps to adapt to the COVID-19 situation, ensuring that everyone who comes to or works in her office stays safe.

“We had to make some immediate changes regarding patient access during the pandemic including screening those who may be ill and finding a safe way to evaluate and treat without the risk of exposing other patients and staff,” Casso wrote.

Some of those changes included requesting that patients disclose whether they have had any possible exposure to COVID-19 or displayed any of the typical symptoms, including sore throat, fever with shakes, dry cough, and loss of taste or smell, among others. Staff members check patients’ temperatures before they enter the office and require that masks be worn. Removing chairs in the lobby and limiting the number of people

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by Amy Casebier

H E A L T H

RGV TESTED Virus Infections Explore Limits of Local Health Care

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by Nathaniel Mata most of our clinics into telemedicine.”

Physicians looking to see patients also used distance medicine when available and hospitals postponed elective surgeries to free up space in case of COVID-19 hospitalizations.

As restrictions began to loosen in the state, UT Health has begun to reintroduce some in-person appointments.

But Dobbs said a return to pre-COVID practices might not happen.

“What I anticipate we’ll be doing is a hybrid between telemedicine and some face-to-face [meetings],” he said.

“I don’t know where it will balance out in the end, but I don’t think it will be likely that it will go back in healthcare to less telemedicine like we were before.”

So what are telemedicine and telehealth?

According to ChironHealth.com, telemedicine is not a new concept. In the 1950s, a few hospital systems and university medical centers tried to find ways to use telephones as a way to disseminate health information.

“In one of the first successes, two health centers in Pennsylvania were able to transmit radiologic images over the phone.”

With the advancement of technology and the concerns of the SARS-2 Coronavirus 2020 was the perfect time to see the rise of telehealth which covers a broader scope of medical and health communications.

ChironHealth.com goes on to explain the difference.

“Telehealth is different from telemedicine because it refers to a broader scope of remote health care services

A lot changed in the weeks and months following the global pandemic sweeping into our country and community. Naturally, health care was one of the most affected industries.

Hospitals, clinics, and extended care facilities, like nursing homes, all underwent a metamorphosis to keep operations running while also trying to keep employees and patients safe from the virus.

Even though every aspect of life has been impacted, at the end of the day, COVID-19 is a public health crisis — a moment when every corner of society is called to curb potential sickness and death.

“People are a little reluctant to be around healthcare workers. It’s a paradox because people are very thankful for the work of healthcare workers,” Dr. Michael Dobbs said. “I can imagine that people who have coronavirus are feeling very marginalized, at the edge of society. And unclear when they can get back to their lives.”

Dobbs, who practices as a neurologist and serves as the Chief Medical Officer for UT Health RGV, spoke on how UT Health RGV clinics adjusted on the fly to the evolving guidelines while still serving the community.

“UT Health RGV has already been making strides in medicine before the COVID-19 pandemic,” Dobbs said. “We were implementing telemedicine in fields like behavioral and mental health and we were looking at a strategy to do a lot more. And of course when [the pandemic] hit the whole healthcare enterprise, we had to fully implement telemedicine rather quickly. We turned

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so we can turn quickly.”

As state and local governments requested more testing, mobile sites opened up, UT Health RGV and UTRGV led the way.

“We went from nothing to one of the major testing sites in the state in a few weeks,” Dobbs said.

The first COVID-19 death was reported April 4 in Willacy County.

Cases continued to rise over the next couple of months, reaching over 1,000 total cases by mid-May. The silver lining of course is that the death toll has been relatively low. Come June, less than 50 residents had perished due to complications from the virus.

However, a majority of deaths in Cameron County can be traced to two long-term care facilities. Windsor Atrium and Veranda Nursing home both had over 10 cases turn fatal.

Testing capability reached new heights that month which also meant 45 new infections reported in Hidalgo County and 69 Valleywide on June 4, the largest singleday increase at the time of publication.

THE ROAD AHEAD While the governor’s office has committed to opening the country and getting the economy back rolling, remember the guidelines that have always remained.

Wash your hands. This is a virus that lingers and is spread primarily through touching your face after touching infected surfaces.

Simply wearing a mask and keeping clean could keep you or someone you love out of an uncertain and potentially deadly situation.

Once this passes, Dobbs says many lessons should be taken away.

"One thing that we can do is we can be aware that there are diseases out there that can emerge and can cause a huge amount of disruption to society and we need to maintain a state of continuous readiness,” he said.

than telemedicine. While telemedicine refers specifically to remote clinical services, telehealth can refer to remote non-clinical services, such as provider training, administrative meetings, and continuing medical education, in addition to clinical services.”

This means CDC and even county communications via video feeds could also fall into this category. In a way, all of us have been exposed to telehealth over recent months.

LOCAL COVID-19 TIMELINE The first case of COVID-19 in the state was detected on March 4 in the DFW metroplex.

A lag in testing availability hindered the RGV at first.

It wasn’t until March 13 that KRGV reported testing had arrived in Harlingen. The first positive case wasn’t reported until six days later in Cameron County’s Rancho Viejo community March 19.

In the early weeks, testing was limited to those showing specific symptoms: either high fever or dry cough with other lesser symptoms.

On March 26 the four-county Rio Grande Valley was all under shelter-at-home orders and prohibited large gatherings. Restaurants were mandated to close dining rooms and transition to curbside pick-up. Only “essential” businesses remained open with social distancing as the new norm.

On March 27, UTRGV opened testing centers to increase testing capacity. The UT System — including UT Health RGV and UT Health Science Centers around the country — have come together to provide not just testing but test results.

Dobbs explained the institution's commitment to serving the community.

“Here at UT Health RGV we are very vision-focused and our mission is to provide advanced academic healthcare for the Rio Grande Valley region,” he said.

“We also have the advantage that we are a little bit small

Wash your hands. This is a virus that lingers and is spread primarily through touching your face after touching infected surfaces.

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BE FAST Valley Baptist Urges Community Awareness as it Provides Advanced Stroke Care to RGV

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When it comes to a stroke, experts at Valley Baptist Health System urge the RGV to “BE FAST.” The acronym offers instructions on how to tell if someone is having a stroke — and how to respond: • Balance issues • Eye problems, including acute blindness or double vision • Facial weakness or drooping, including saliva on one side of the mouth • Arm or leg weakness, including not being able to raise an arm • Speech disturbance, including difficult speaking or understand speech • Time, meaning that you should call 9-1-1 as soon as possible —and note the time when the symptoms began “It’s very important that the patients in our community be familiar with the symptoms of stroke and the best way we teach about stroke is by learning BE FAST,” said Dr. Luis Gaitan, medical director of the stroke program at Valley Baptist Medical Center-Brownsville.

“These two acronyms are very easy to learn and anybody can learn — you don’t have to be a doctor or a nurse. By learning BE FAST, you can make the diagnosis in 78 percent of the cases.”

The accompanying Spanish acronym is DALE, meaning: • Debilidad de la cara • Adormecimiento de la mano • Linguaje al tirado • Entrar en acción para llamar el 9-1-1

For both of these acronyms, time is perhaps the most important factor when it comes to strokes.

“Treatment for stroke is time sensitive because for patients who come very late, they may not be treated,” said Dr. Wondwossen Tekle, director of stroke and neurocritical care for Valley Baptist Medical Center-Harlingen.

“The longer you stay with stroke, the more damage happens to the brain. It’s like fire.

When fire catches, you want to put it out quickly, otherwise it will burn more territory.”

Gaitan agreed.

“Approximately 1.9 million neurons [in the brain] die every minute that we delay the treatment of the stroke,” he said. “Time equals brain.”

The team at Valley Baptist typically address two types of strokes: • Ischemic strokes, which are usually caused by a blockage in the artery • Hemorrhagic strokes, which occurs when a blood vessel ruptures “The population in the Valley is at much higher risk than the rest of the country [for strokes],” said Dr. Ameer E. Hassan, DO, FAHA, FSVIN, head of the neuroscience department, director of endovascular surgical neuroradiology and director of clinical neuroscience research at Valley Baptist Medical Center-Harlingen. “We’ve done much research on this. It comes down to the higher rate of hypertension, diabetes, and obesity — we have much more of that combination than the rest of the country. We

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Facial weakness or drooping, including saliva on one side of the mouth

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Arm or leg weakness, including not being able to raise an arm

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also have unfortunately a less educated population, so they’re not coming into the hospital soon enough.

“There’s almost a 30 percent difference in mortality when you compared border Hispanics to non-border Hispanics,” such as those living in New York or New Jersey, he added. “Because of that research, we spent a lot of time and a lot of money educating the public — specifically in Spanish.”

In addition to public outreach and education efforts on strokes, the stroke team at Valley Baptist is dedicated to offering the best care available.

“Valley baptist is the most experienced comprehensive stroke center in the Valley,” Tekle said. “We’ve been here the longest. What a comprehensive stroke center means is you have 24/7 stroke care 365 days a year, which includes all forms of treatment modalities.” Some of those treatments include IV injection of a clot-busting drug (also called recombinant tissue plasminogen activator or tPA) to dissolve blood clots, physical removal of blood clots from brain arteries using catheters, minimally invasive surgery to remove blood clots from inside the brain tissue, and more.

After receiving treatment, the focus shifts to patient care in a dedicated neurological intensive care unit and neuro rehab facility where patients receive physical and occupational therapy.

Having advanced care available at Valley Baptist is key for the time factor of BE FAST. The research that takes place right here in Harlingen — along with groundbreaking studies and trials — means that innovations for stroke treatment are putting the Rio Grande Valley on the medical advancement map.

It’s important that Valley residents remember that such high quality care is always available to them, Tekle said.

“People in a lot of places are reporting reduced numbers of stroke patients. Many hospitals across the country are reporting reduced numbers of stroke patients despite anecdotal evidence that suggests COVID-19 and stroke are related. The main reason appears to be some people are scared to come to the hospital because of the fear of COVID-19,” he said, adding “Please call 9-1-1 and go to the ER if you have the stroke symptoms. Do not stay home for fear of COVID-19. There are standard protocols in place in our hospitals to protect patients from COVID-19 while providing timely treatment for strokes.”

Learn more about the stroke treatment available at Valley Baptist Health System at www.valleybaptist.net/services/ stroke-treatment/.

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HEATSTROKE Tips on Avoiding Injury During Summer’s Hottest Months

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state each year. Even when death does not occur, the impact of high temperatures is felt in other areas of life as well. Many people miss time from work due to illnesses related to heat stress and exhaustion, costing families a regular paycheck in the summer months, and affecting productivity for some businesses.

AT-RISK GROUPS According to the Texas Heart Institute, heat exhaustion is a phenomenon that typically afflicts those who fail to drink enough liquid while they are exposed to high temperatures. The groups most commonly affected are children, older people and the elderly, patients suffering from hypertension, and athletes and workers in high-temperature environments. Heatstroke also affects people with chronic illness who are also taking medications. Even pets can suffer from heatstroke and require immediate medical attention when symptoms first appear.

HOW TO AVOID IT Experts recommend the best way to prevent heatstroke and other heat-related illnesses during the peak summer months is to avoid being outside during the hottest hours of the day. Those hours are typically between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. here in the Rio Grande Valley. Furthermore, always carry a reusable water bottle with you and drink plenty of water. Very importantly, no matter how short of a stop you are making, never leave anyone or any pets inside a vehicle.

WHAT YOU CAN DO Remember that most cases of heatstroke and exhaustion are preventable if you take the proper precautions. In the event that you experience a heat-

Summer is coming, and as Rio Grande Valley residents, we know what that means. While the summer season can paint a picture in our minds of leisurely pool and beach days, cool refreshments, and fun under the sun, the reality in our everyday living is somewhat different. The summer hits our area with intensity and even devastation. The temperatures can make it unbearable to enjoy time outdoors and we stay away from parks and playgrounds for a while. Regrettably, every year we also see cases of fatality due to heatrelated conditions. We can be prepared to prevent heat exhaustion and heatstroke, and aware of recognizing signs and symptoms of these so we can act with prudence and avoid devastating outcomes.

HEATSTROKE VERSUS HEAT EXHAUSTION It can be easy to confuse heatstroke with heat exhaustion and as a result, ignore the signs of danger.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), heat exhaustion is recognized by weakness, profuse sweating, erratic pulse, dizziness and nausea, and skin that feels cooler than normal.

Heat stroke involves more severe symptoms such as body temperature above 103 degrees Fahrenheit, a very rapid pulse, hot and sometimes reddened skin, and potential loss of consciousness.

Heat exhaustion can make you ill and uncomfortable and may require medical help. Heatstroke, on the other hand, can quickly turn fatal. It is crucial to differentiate between the two in order to seek help quickly when a heat-related condition becomes life-threatening.

Despite widespread efforts to educate the public, heat-related illnesses and deaths still occur across the

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Attempt to reduce core body temperature by applying water-soaked towels to the body (room temperature water is fine). Conscious victims should consume water in small amounts to rehydrate.

The summer months in the Rio Grande Valley come with temperatures that soar above 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Although this is a prime climate for heatrelated illnesses, these are highly preventable by taking the right steps and being aware of risks and vulnerable populations. Be aware of the signs of heat exhaustion and heatstroke and, if despite your best efforts to prevent them, you start to notice symptoms, do not hesitate to get medical help immediately.

related illness, below are the symptoms to look out for.

Heat cramps are the first sign that heat exhaustion is imminent and they usually involve the leg and stomach muscles. Make sure to immediately stop, rest, and hydrate to aid recovery.

Immediate treatment is necessary to avoid further complications if you are experiencing heat exhaustion.

Move yourself or the person affected to a cool location and drink water. If there is vomiting or loss of consciousness, seek medical treatment.

When heatstroke occurs, the body’s ability to regulate heat shuts down. Seek medical help immediately, and move or transfer the affected person to a cool location.

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POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY The Power of Perspective

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According to PositivePsycholoy.com, the commonly accepted definition of the field is: “the scientific study of what makes life most worth living” (Peterson, 2008).

Positive psychology focuses on the positive events and influences in life, including positive experiences (like happiness, joy, inspiration, and love), positive states and traits (like gratitude, resilience, and compassion), and positive institutions (applying positive principles within entire organizations and institutions). Topics like character strengths, optimism, life satisfaction, happiness, well-being, gratitude, compassion, selfesteem and self-confidence, hope, and elevation tend to

Positive psychology is a relatively new field that was born out of its complete opposite: depression and “learned helplessness.” Applicable in modern days in almost every area of life, the principles of optimism, resilience, a focus on happiness, well-being, and character strengths have resonated with many researchers, producing theories backed by science. The principles of positive psychology are used by life coaches, therapists, workplaces, prison systems, and more, and the effects on a person’s outlook on life are translated into real, physical health benefits.

A change in perspective has the power to change us deeply from even the molecular level.

Martin Seligman’s research in the 1960s and 1970s laid the groundwork for what came to be known as the theory of “learned helplessness,” which is connected to depression and backed by decades of research. Although this was quite a significant contribution to the field of psychology already, Seligman knew there was more he wanted to offer. Thus, he changed perspectives and focused on “the positive, the uplifting, the inspiring,” as PositivePsychology.com notes. Determined to focus on resilience and learned optimism and to shift the focus of

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method, uses a sound cue such as a phone alarm, that goes off at a random time of the day. This cue invites you to pause and notice what you are thinking, feeling, and doing in that moment, and write it down. This method aims to help people notice the positives in their day.

A gratitude journal is another practice that gives you a chance to identify and reflect on the good things to be grateful for in one’s life. This type of journaling requires you to write down three things you are grateful for each day, with the only condition being that you write three different things every day. Within a week, many people experience a boost in well-being along with an increase in gratitude, according to PositivePsychology.com.

A gratitude visit or letter consists of identifying one person you are grateful for, and writing a letter to this person where you express and explain your gratitude. A phone or video call can take the place of writing as well.

Well-Being therapy is a holistic approach to therapy similar to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) but focuses on both promoting the positive and alleviating the negative in the person’s life. It is founded on Carol Ryff’s model of well-being, which recognizes six facets or factors of well-being: mastery of the environment, personal growth, purpose in life, autonomy, selfacceptance, and positive relationships (Harvard Health Publishing, 2008).

Being optimistic is not just a fleeting state of mind but rather a quite sophisticated mental exercise to change our perspective and then our outlook on life. By changing our perspective and focusing on our character traits and strengths and the goodness in our daily life, and by expressing gratitude, the body responds along with the mind. The experiences we live are therefore a test to how we respond: are we defeated by hardship, or do we choose the power to dig for the positive amid the struggles? We have a choice.

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be the focus of this field.

According to the experts, the greatest potential benefit of positive psychology is that it teaches us the power of shifting our perspective. Perspective is the focus of many techniques, exercises, and entire programs based on positive psychology. Research has shown that a relatively small change in one’s perspective can lead to wondrous shifts in well-being and quality of life. Infusing life with more optimism and gratitude is a simple action that can radically yield a more positive outlook on life.

As with everything we do, balance is important, and focusing only on the positive is unrealistic. Positive psychology was established to complement traditional psychology with a positive bias that is just as strong as psychology’s negative bias over the last several decades.

In our area, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) implemented a program called Whole Health a couple of years ago, which utilizes principles from positive psychology. Licensed psychologist Faith McGowan shared, “At the VA we started using a program called Whole Health that incorporated some of their principles of bolstering meaning for veterans beyond traditional health models that treat after a disease has formed. We incorporated the use of exercise, improving sleep, mindfulness, faith, etc., to make overall improvements in functioning and health.” McGowan led the meditation/mindfulness practice during her time at the VA. The Whole Health program was promoted to help veterans understand how comprehensive, integrated, holistic services can contribute to the development of behaviors motivated by self-empowerment, self-healing, and self-care.

Positive psychology in practice can take the form of positive habits that we adopt in our everyday living. The remainder of the article gives some specific examples, but it is by no means exhaustive.

Experience Sampling Method (ESM) or daily diary

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According to the experts, the greatest potential benefit of positive psychology is that it teaches us the power of shifting our perspective.

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GESTATIONAL DIABETES: THE SILENT DISEASE

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Digestive and Kidney Diabetes website, there are little to no symptoms of gestational diabetes. The smallest things like constant thirst and having the urge to urinate more often are some of the mild symptoms. “Majority of the time there’s no symptoms whatsoever. That’s why they don’t believe they’re diabetic,” Marriott said.

According to the CDC, gestational diabetes happens to be one of the most common medical complications in pregnancy. It affects 2 to 10 percent of pregnant women each year in the United States.

Marriott said the people who are at highest risk for developing gestational diabetes are people of Hispanic ancestry, African Americans, and people who are overweight and have poor diets. She said family history of diabetes means patients are more prone to developing it as well. “It’s a big problem here because of the culture and the diet most Hispanics have,” Marriott said.

WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES? Family Nurse Practitioner Erica Perez, Ph.D., said the biggest risk to the mother is the development of preeclampsia, which can cause life-threatening problems for the mother or the baby. She said other risks include the chance of them becoming diabetic after pregnancy or later on in life, hypoglycemic episodes, postpartum hemorrhage, and propensity for infections.

“We try to keep the patient’s diet under control so it doesn’t get bad,” Perez said.

According to the CDC, around 50 percent of women who developed gestational diabetes will develop Type 2 diabetes later in life. But, Marriott said there are ways to lower the chances of developing Type 2 diabetes.

She explained the importance of maintaining a healthy weight by eating healthy and exercising. “A lot of people in the Valley don’t have the money to pay for a gym membership or eat healthy,” Perez said. “But there’s ways around it and always something you can do.”

Perez said the risks to the baby are more crucial

Jessica Cruz walked into the cold doctor’s office.

She dreaded having to drink the gross, sugary juice for a glucose test. She knew she would pass with flying colors, but it was still a pain to do it.

She felt the nurse’s hands on her arms as she drew Cruz’s blood. The nurse let her choose what flavor of glucose drink she wanted. Cruz decided the orange flavor seemed the most appealing of them all.

She gagged while she swallowed the drink and complained about how disgusting it was the entire time. Cruz walked to the waiting room, where she sat for an hour.

After an hour passed, the nurse called Cruz from the waiting room to draw her blood again for the results.

Cruz was in disbelief when the nurse said, “you failed the glucose tolerance test. You will have to take the three-hour test now.”

Cruz took the three-hour tolerance test and it turned out that she had gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes was never a worry on Cruz’s mind, but now it was all she could think about. She felt fine, she did not feel sick, how could this have happened to her?

Although disheartening, this diagnosis helped her learn how to change her diet for the better and get into an exercise routine she continued even after delivery.

WHAT IS IT AND WHO IS AT RISK? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website, gestational diabetes can only happen during pregnancy. It affects how cells use sugar in the body and causes high blood pressure that can impact both the mother’s and baby’s health.

Women’s healthcare nurse practitioner Irma Marriott explained why gestational diabetes occurs in pregnant women. “It’s a problem that occurs in pregnancy because your body doesn’t produce enough insulin to control blood sugars,” Marriott said.

According to the National Institute of Diabetes and

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Diabetes and Digestive Kidney and Disease website, planning ahead before getting pregnant will help lower a woman’s chances of developing gestational diabetes. Early weight loss and getting into a routine that includes exercise is important before getting pregnant. “A healthy lifestyle is their best bet,” Marriott said. “Having a healthy diet, weight loss before pregnancy, and exercising will improve their odds.”

Perez said the average weight gain during pregnancy should be no more than 20 pounds for someone who is overweight and no more than 35 for women with normal weight and BMI. She said a good rule of thumb is to gain one pound a week.

Marriott said the ideal diet for pregnant women includes all the animal protein, even the unhealthy ones, like bacon and cut back on carbohydrates, like pasta, sugar, and potatoes. “High protein, low carbs,” Marriott said. “Eating the right foods will help you keep your blood sugar at safe levels for you and your baby.”

Perez said managing gestational diabetes means controlling your blood sugar during pregnancy. Promoting exercise during and after pregnancy essential for handling gestational diabetes. She said to start slow; 20 minutes a day works fine. Diet becomes extremely important when learning how to manage gestational diabetes as well. She said the clinic will refer patients to specialists to learn about portion control and how to eat healthy. “We want the best for the patient and the baby,” Perez said. “And we will do everything we can to educate them on diet and exercise.”

Gestational diabetes can be scary and overwhelming but the potential complications for both mother and baby can be avoided with proper diet, exercise, and monitoring the mother’s blood sugar. Drink the nasty drink. Learn what to eat and what not to eat.

Exercise every day. Avoid the silent disease.

For more information on gestational diabetes, visit www.cdc.gov.

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than the risks to the mother. Sometimes gestational diabetes causes babies to be very large and this can either result in a C-section or shoulder dystocia. Shoulder dystocia can happen during vaginal delivery, which can cause the baby to lose function to their arms.

Other risks to the baby are an enlarged heart, neurological defects, and hypoglycemia because of low blood sugar after birth.

In worst case scenarios, gestational diabetes can increase the chances of a miscarriage or a stillborn baby. “If it is not well managed, it can cause death to the fetus, which is huge,” Perez said. “We always try to educate patients on that.”

WHY SCREENING IS IMPORTANT Perez said at 24 weeks of the patient’s pregnancy, they are given a one-hour glucose test which consists of the patient fasting, drinking 50 grams of a glucose juice, and getting their blood drawn before and after the juice. She said if the patient fails the one-hour test, they are then given a three-hour glucose test to confirm or deny if she is diabetic. The three-hour glucose test involves fasting and checking blood at one hour, two hours, and three hours. “If they fail two out of the four levels we collected, then they are deemed gestational diabetic,” Perez said.

If the patient has a high-risk pregnancy (over the age of 35, overweight, had gestational diabetes in the past, or had a large baby) specialists recommend that the patient be tested as soon as they find out they are pregnant (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Kidney and Disease website).

Perez said the major reasons patients do not get tested are because they miss appointments due to lack of transportation in the area where they live and because the glucose juice causes mothers to vomit, which results in a void test. “Mothers should get screened because of the risks to the baby,” Marriott said. “It’s better to be safe than sorry.”

HOW TO PREVENT AND MANAGE IT According to the National Institute of

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BALANCED NUTRITION

“The best way is just to explore the grocery store or farmer’s market and hop right on to Google,” she said. “For sure you’ll find a great recipe to highlight a new ingredient.

You may like it, you may not, but at least you tried it.”

And due to their properties, some plant-based foods have a host of positive effects on the body. Oranges and strawberries are high in vitamin C, which helps combat oxidized stress and fatigue. The nitrates in beets help improve blood flow. Hummus, edamame, avocado, seeds, beans, and green leafy vegetables also improve energy levels due to their fiber, carbohydrate, vitamin, and mineral content. The potassium and vitamin B6 levels in bananas “contribute to overall good health.” Brown rice, oats and sweet potato — all high in the enzyme manganese — aid metabolism, regulate blood sugar, and contribute to decreased inflammation.

Another energy source can be found in caffeine.

Salinas said there is evidence of the caffeine found in coffee and green tea improving energy levels, diminishing fatigue, and improving alertness. But she warns of not over-consuming the stimulant by limiting your caffeine intake to 150 to 200 milligrams per day, which is about a cup-and-a-half of coffee. And if someone is concerned or having trouble reducing their consumption, she suggests switching to green tea due to a naturally occurring compound that “mellows” out the caffeine, so the body’s response is not so harsh.

“For myself, what I do is half decaf, half caffeinated,” she said. “That way I get a little zing from the caffeine but I’m not overdoing it.”

As for how to balance the three main macronutrients in food, United States dietary guidelines recommend adults consume 45 to 65 percent of their daily calories from

Identifying and Creating the Right Diet for Our Bodies

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Though there is no perfect way of eating, putting in the effort to eat a balanced diet can lead to more energy and maintaining a healthy body mass index.

Registered Dietician Nutritionist and University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Lecturer Dr. Lisa Salinas said the way people should eat is dependent on what outcome they are looking for. She worked in hospitals and private practice before joining UTRGV in 2018 and focuses on “big picture general health,” which generally leans in the direction of a more plant-based diet.

“This doesn’t mean being vegan or vegetarian, but just making sure you have enough fruits and vegetables,” said Salinas, adding that means having between five to eight servings a day. “When I think plant-based, I think increasing your beans, increasing fruits and vegetables, and things of that nature.”

While steaming vegetables is considered the healthiest cooking method, Salinas said the best way to cook them is the way you’ll eat them. She also recommends branching out to try new types of produce.

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The importance of a high-fiber diet is for a two main reasons: supporting gastrointestinal health and supporting consistent energy levels by slowing down the absorption of food.

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Contact your Edward Jones financial advisor for a one-on-one appointment to discuss what’s really important: your goals.

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it comes to bread, pasta, rice — look for the whole grain option.”

The importance of a high-fiber diet is for two main reasons: supporting gastrointestinal health and supporting consistent energy levels by slowing down the absorption of food.

On top of eating a well-rounded diet, Salinas stresses the importance of drinking enough water. As a rule of thumb, if you feel thirsty, you are already dehydrated. So, she suggests thoughtfully drinking water throughout the day.

“Water is a part of all the processes that occur in our bodies,” she said. “If we don’t have enough water, we become dehydrated, which can actually slow down cellular function and cause fatigue.”

One resource she recommends for calculating how many servings of a food group and how many calories to consume is choosemyplate.gov. It takes height, age, weight into consideration and produces a healthy, balanced diet plan.

She said this and tracking macronutrients can be helpful to get used to eating in a way they feel their best.

“After a while, you’ll start to understand what your day needs to look like to give you the most amount of energy and maintain your weight,” Salinas said. “I would also encourage someone to reach out to an RDN because they’re going to give evidence-based info on what the science says, which is ultimately the truth in nutrition.”

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carbohydrates, 25 to 30 percent from fat, and 10 to 35 percent from protein.

Salinas said a healthy lifestyle can result from these guidelines, but people need to be careful what sources of food they eat to fulfill these macronutrients.

“Although 25 to 30 percent should come from fat, it is recommended no more than 5 to 6 percent is from saturated fat, which is going to be fat from your meats and high-fat dairy products,” she said.

Meanwhile, examples of unsaturated fats include avocado, nuts, olive oil, and canola oil.

And while up to 35 percent of one’s recommended total calorie intake can come from protein, Salinas said unless the individual is an athlete or otherwise has an extremely high activity level, they don’t need more than .8 to 1 gram of protein per kilogram of their weight.

“I’m a believer in trying to get what you need from foods, opposed to supplementation,” she said.

As for carbohydrates, which are the body’s most important source of energy, Salinas said it is best to opt for a complex carb.

“I’m not referring to potato chips or sugary cereals,” she said. “I like to see a carb go beyond offering more than just energy. I like to see high fiber. I like to see it has not been stripped of all its grain, because the grain aspect of a carbohydrate is not only what provides it with fiber, but with vitamins and minerals.

“I always encourage somebody — when

Investing is about more than money.

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STILL SMILING Rodeo Dental Puts Patient Health and Safety First While Delivering Excellent Care

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than a minute, the team will make sure everyone is good to go before giving them a VIP backstage pass straight to the exam room.

If you are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, such as fever, sore throat, dry coughing, and sudden loss of taste and smell, or if you suspect you have been exposed to the virus, contact your regular family physician before making an appointment with us.

Even during the pandemic, Rodeo Dental continued to address dental emergencies. Don’t hesitate to call in for an appointment if you are in pain.

To limit contact and the time patients spend in the office, the Rodeo team asks that you call ahead before your appointment to update any health or personal information that may have changed since your last visit. Rodeo also offers payment options by phone for orthodontics adjustments.

While Rodeo may not have been seeing as many patients as usual recently because of social distancing recommendations, that doesn’t mean that the team hasn’t been staying busy.

Numerous offices across the region collected personal protection equipment, like gloves and masks, as well as other medical supplies to donate to first responders and hospitals. The service mindset goes to show that Rodeo Dental remains committed to giving back to the community in any way it can.

Learn more about how Rodeo Dental is addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, delivering on patient care, and much more at RodeoDentalTexas.com.

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You might not see the smiles beneath the masks at Rodeo Dental, but you can be assured that they’re still there — smiles are in the Rodeo team’s DNA. The entire team at Rodeo Dental takes seriously their responsibility to keep patients safe, particularly during the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Balancing that dedication with continuing to provide the community with excellent dental and orthodontic care means that all of Rodeo’s offices are ready to welcome patients with open arms.

It didn’t take a pandemic to force the Rodeo to rethink their approach to sanitation and sterilization. From the very beginning, Rodeo Dental has always been focused on keeping patients safe and offices clean. The team wears protective gear while seeing patients and sanitizes between appointments. Rodeo also has dedicated staff to consistently and thoroughly clean high traffic areas, keeping everyone safe and healthy. Likewise, Rodeo Dental follows the latest guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control, the American Dental Association, the Texas Dental Association, and the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners when it comes to safety protocols.

You might notice some differences when you come in for your next appointment at Rodeo Dental.

If you have a mask, please wear it to come into the office. Fittingly, Rodeo Dental is currently having fun with a Masquerade Pop Spirit Celebration, and you’ll get a chance to participate. If you don’t have a mask, the Rodeo team will supply you with one.

Before the appointment, Rodeo Dental asks that all patients swing by the screening station. In less

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Common Pauraque Adapts to Life on the Forest Floor b y Co l l een Ho o k, E xe cu t i v e Di r e ct or a t Q u i n t a M a z a t l a n

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on the Thornforest floor on fallen leaves.

A clutch consists of one to three eggs, which are pink colored with buff spots.

Incubation takes about 20 days and is carried out by both parents.

Their family name, Nightjars, define their adaptations of hunting at night for insects. Their eyes are placed on each side of the head to significantly increase their visual field. There are six species of Nightjars commonly seen in North America, all of which have been found in Texas. They are named for their calls like Whip-poor-will and Chuck-wills-widow.

The Pauraque call really doesn’t sound like their name “Pah-Raah-Key.” It sounds 67

more like a blurred whistle, Pur-WHEEEER Pur-WHEEEER Pur-WHEEEER. Maybe the Spanish name “Pucuyo” is a better rendition of the sound.

Maybe the call of the Pauraque is saying “Who-R-You, Who-R-You, Who-R You?” This leads to the Camo Wisdom for the Day, Just BE Who You Want to BE Not What Others Want to See Enjoy birding with your family. Follow Quinta Mazatlán on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube @QuintaMazatlan to learn more about our natural and cultural heritage in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas.

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One of the most near-perfect camouflaged birds is the Common Pauraque. The Pauraque has an understated beauty marked in brownblack and gray patterns and can just “disappear” on the Thornforest floor.

While Pauraques are an adaptable species, they need forests to live and will leave areas that are heavily built up.

Forests are important for many reasons from providing homes, to providing food, medicines, and helping us breathe and keep cool.

Pauraques are unlike most other birds, as they really don’t construct nests. They make a scrape in the ground and lay eggs

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Co m m o n Pa u r a q u e s , s e e n abov e and at l e f t, ar e exp e rts at blen din g in . ph otos by Joh n Bru sh

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Everything to Do

Explore RGV Regional Calendar a One-Stop Shop for Valleywide Events

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by Amy Casebier

Nothing to do in the Rio Grande Valley? Not true, to do was kind of have a clearing house for events,” said many stakeholders say — especially those invested in Ed Caum, director of South Padre Island Convention helping develop a Valleywide events calendar through and Visitors Bureau. Caum is one of several officials regional tourism and travel website Explore RGV. on a regional events calendar committee for Explore “I think that it’s a really neat initiative,” said Barbara RGV. “It will be vetted so people will know that the Garza, president and CEO of the Weslaco Area information on it is correct. If something gets canceled Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Center. “It was due to the weather, they’ll be able to go there and see created through the support of all of our cities and that event was canceled.” communities in the Rio Grande Valley in an effort to The vetting process will help ensure that events really provide a resource to included on the calendar the community to get more appeal to a wide range “I think that for so long involved and find out about of people. people have always all the great things that “We want to put up events thought there’s nothing are happening.” that are open to the full Explore RGV was community that they can to do in the Valley, but launched at the end of just stop by and be a part there’s a lot to do all the 2018 as a website and of,” Garza said. “Having a time. It’s just a matter smartphone app designed resource where you can look of being able to have a to consolidate and promote at and say, ‘oh, this is a free the region’s hundreds of event for families, let’s go,’ resource to find those gems into a mappable versus trying to figure out, events when they’re collective. Since then, it has ‘what city am I going to go to, happening and where continued to refine its look where is this going to be’ — they’re happening and and add to its collection this is one regional calendar having a central place to while bringing in city leaders where you can see events to help shape Explore RGV from the entire Rio Grande refer to.” into the most useful tool Valley in a way for those Robert Lopez, vice president and director of Visit McAllen, a division of the possible to showcase individuals to be able to go McAllen Chamber of Commerce everything there is to do in to one central spot. I think the RGV. that’s super exciting.”

Many early stakeholders pointed out that the region In terms of logistics, stakeholder cities will have lacked an events calendar that spanned all four an individual who vets individual events from the counties and the dozens of cities that make up the community before submitting them for inclusion Rio Grande Valley. These events play just as large a in Explore RGV’s calendar. The regional calendar role as physical points of interest in highlighting just committee members and other officials will have the what this region is about to both locals and travelers final say in what constitutes a good candidate for a to the RGV. community event.

“The one thing that everybody said that they needed “Our goal is something that’s user friendly,” Garza

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RGV EVENTS CALENDER EXPLORERGV.COM/EVENTS-CALENDAR

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“What we’re going to find, I think, as we recover from the pandemic is people are going to travel as families. They’re going to want to do multiple things when they reach a destination, so this would give them the opportunity to plan a weekend, a week, or even longer if they wanted to and have different events they can attend.”

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Ed Caum, director of South Padre Island Convention and Visitors Bureau

said. “The community here has really come together to develop a resource that is going to be usable for everybody.”

The sense of a one-stop shopping point for all of the richly different events that speak of the culture heritage and value of the RGV was attractive to many stakeholders.

“If someone’s visiting the Rio Grande Valley, the event calendar is the perfect place to find out all of the hottest happenings and marquee events going on in the entire Rio Grande Valley, said Robert Lopez, vice president and director of Visit McAllen, a division of the McAllen Chamber of Commerce.

“I think what makes the Valley special is each community has its own character. We’re all one, and we’re all united, and we’re all together, but each one has its unique character — its unique signature event that really tells the story of the city.

“Having an event calendar like Explore RGV’s event calendar is the best place to spot those events and plan your trip around those.”

The calendar pulls double duty as a way to help visitors plan on spending time in the region — and an organized method for RGV residents to be tourists in their own communities.

“Exploring those other parts of the Rio Grande Valley that you may have never visited because maybe you didn’t have a reason,” Lopez said of the value of the regional events calendar to locals. “Finding an event and planning your weekend around something that’s happening in another city that you maybe have never visited before and

discovering something new that’s right in your backyard that you didn’t know existed.

“I think that for so long people have always thought there’s nothing to do in the Valley, but there’s a lot to do all the time. It’s just a matter of being able to have a resource to find those events when they’re happening and where they’re happening and having a central place to refer to.”

That includes encouraging travelers to visit the region because of the wealth of special events, like the Rio Grande Valley Livestock Show or the annual McAllen Holiday Parade.

“If I’m a local and I have somebody coming in from out of town, offering them a unique experience that really tells a lot about our culture here is a memory that will last forever,” Lopez said. “If we can do that and we can affect people by creating wonderful memories, we’ve made a step in the right direction.”

Even if the COVID-19 pandemic has scuttled some events and rescheduled others, Caum foresees a boom in travel once more people become more comfortable.

“What we’re going to find, I think, as we recover from the pandemic is people are going to travel as families,” he said.

“They’re going to want to do multiple things when they reach a destination, so this would give them the opportunity to plan a weekend, a week, or even longer if they wanted to and have different events that they can attend.”

Interested in checking out the regional events calendar?

Visit ExploreRGV.com/events-calendar for more information.

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NEW NORMAL Coronavirus Caused Many Changes. Will Some Stay?

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The word “normal” is tough to define. It has a lot to do with the status quo and what is socially and culturally acceptable.

It used to be normal to commute to work via horse and buggy. Of course, now almost all of us own or lease a personal automobile to get there quicker than hooves.

The American Dream used to imply homeownership, a white picket fence. Now, many rent property for decades before getting a place of their own.

In 2019, it was common to say hello to la familia with a hug and kiss on the cheek and to greet colleagues with a firm handshake. As I write in June 2020, close contact is frowned upon with fear of spreading the novel coronavirus. Getting too close could put abuela y abuelo in grave danger.

The point is that normalcy never stays still. It’s always evolving with the world around us.

In 2020, the focus has turned to prevent the spread of a virus that stays on surfaces, can be spread through coughs, sneezes, handshakes, and inhaling breaths of infected air.

Andy Santos of BrandIt believes this is an overdue shift in cleanliness.

“This should have been done a long time ago, staying clean,” Santos said. “I’ve been in sales for 25 years and I always carry hand sanitizer because I open doors. I shake

hands with business owners that see reps every day.”

“I think people will get used to it,” Santos said. “It is a change for sure but I think people will get used to it, it’s for the best.”

Santos, who spent time in Chicago, also mentioned that guards to keep cashiers, bankers, and others safe are commonplace in bigger cities. Something that might stick around as the virus remains prevalent.

“Those sneeze guards are normal over there,” he said.

“There’s a door that comes out where they give you your food or money. It’s a different place and it might be bulletproof for different reasons but it’s the norm over there. They have those guards for safety purposes as well.”

As COVID-19 ravaged not only some healthcare facilities in the hardest-hit spots, it also took a toll on society and the way we live our lives.

EVERYDAY CHANGES In response to the virus, especially during the month of April, much of society was quiet and in their residences due to the “shelter-at-home” order in Valley counties.

The running joke is that there is no separation between the days. With workers and students at home, a Tuesday and Saturday evening can start to look eerily similar.

School and work nights were impossible to distinguish from weekends as most work and education transitioned

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In response to the virus, especially during the month of April, much of society was quiet and in their residences due to the ‘shelter-athome’ order in Valley counties.

to online only. Some companies and employees embraced work from home and have continued the practice, while others, like the education sector, have remained mostly digital.

April and March birthdays that kept community health in mind were confined to Zoom meet-ups [and drive by parades].

“I’ve been doing Zoom calls for the last 10 years with my profession,” Santos said. “Now it’s being utilized [by all] — more like they say the future is here.”

McAllen’s vivid downtown nightlife was hit hard. Spring Break wasn’t the time that visiting college students and partygoers imagined.

Suerte Bar & Grill, arguably 17th street’s top destination, took drastic measures to keep cash flowing.

They transformed into a curbside restaurant with a new law that allowed take-out alcohol the liquor kept flowing.

“Suerte pretty much converted into a drive-thru overnight,” manager Analisa Luna said. “We hit some rough patches, never having done carry-out before, but we definitely improved and adapted. Thankfully, we have a very creative team (family) that never stops and our revamped to-go cocktails created quite a buzz.”

As restrictions started to fade and bars were allowed to reopen, Luna says safety has stayed on the minds of the establishment.

“It was a huge eye-opener,” Luna said. “All of us in the industry need to do our part to get this virus under control. We would hate to see another outbreak and to close our doors again, so we will definitely be keeping some of these new guidelines permanently for our safety and our guests.”

Luna explained why Suerte, which is known for vibrant Mexican themes and with loteria art, is so loved by the community.

“We love and represent our culture and the Valley!” Luna said. “This is a family-owned and operated business. We have to make it work and we have to figure it out — we don’t have a choice. Imagine having all your family at a barbecue or group chat: brainstorming, always throwing out ideas, and then, bam — we make it happen. It’s a fun process, a team effort, and it’s a beautiful thing to see when we see the success.”

SILVER LINING If you’ve been able to keep employment, then this might have actually been a good break from the rat race of daily life.

Families have had more time together, which in turn has led to parks filling up with people exercising.

Playgrounds and basketball courts were closed to curb the spread on surfaces and person-to-person transfer. Parks and recreations departments encouraged social distancing while enjoying local parks and hike and bike trails.

As things return to some resemblance of pre-COVID ‘normalcy,’ we can keep some of the nightly activity and slower pace.

Even as restrictions end, there remains a concern.

The economy needed to open, so it did. But the novel coronavirus still doesn’t have a vaccine, and there are still hospitalizations and deaths.

While you enjoy this relative freedom, remember the reality of a global pandemic. Be safe, RGV.

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Amateur Bakers Note Benefits of Kneading Homemade Loaves as Local Bakers Rise to Occasion to Supply Handmade Goods to RGV

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With just a few simple ingredients — flour, water, salt, sugar, yeast — you can create dozens of varieties of bread and enjoy a relaxing pastime.

He uses it for all types of sandwiches and bakes extra loaves to share with his friends and family, which he finds to be one of the most enjoyable parts of the process.

The biggest difference between baking and cooking, he said, is the need for exactness and actually measuring ingredients by weight. “The way I was brought up, cooking was always by feel,” he said. “If my grandma was going to make something, no matter how simple or complicated, she’d never measure anything out.

“When I started to bake and get into the nitty gritty, you have to use a scale and measuring cups.

Everything has to be more dialed in.”

McAllen resident Genesis Moreno has been experimenting with baking breads for several years, but she started doing it on a regular basis around April this year after COVID-19 hit the Rio Grande Valley and entire grocery aisles were cleared of the staple.

“It got to the point where during the pandemic, we needed bread, but there was a shortage,” he said.

“So that is kind of what gave me the idea of just baking my own bread. I have always been fond of the idea of baking; the only thing is I’m not much of a sweet person.”

"Milk bread” is his favorite type to bake due to its versatility and “straightforwardness” in preparing.

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“A lot of anxiety and worries throughout the day tend to go away when you focus on baking something. That time is really therapeutic for me.”

Genesis Moreno, at-home baker, on how the baking process helps relieve stress

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baking times.

Though it took him 12 years, along with the discipline of remaining calm and focused, to become a master baker, Popoco said anyone can begin successfully baking at home. He recommends starting with a sponge bread, which is the base used for traditional sandwich breads, empanadas, and bolillos.

Moreno said checking out videos online and other resources has also helped him improve his baking and learn new techniques.

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types of dough and about 30 varieties are derived from these bases.”

Popoco and his wife have been running the bakery off Paredes Lane for more than 5 years. He has 20 years of experience in bakeries and said the most popular bread variety among customers is the cream cheese, turkey, and ham-filled croissant.

The selection offered also includes pastries. While the ingredients used in breads and sweets are the same, Popoco said the differing results are from the measurements, temperatures, and

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A b o v e, be l ow, an d at left, Fiber Plu s Pastry Sh op in Brown sville offers someth in g fo r e v e r y o ne l ookin g for th e wh olesome goodn ess of bread made from scratch .

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While baking requires precision in ingredient ratios in order to turn out as desired, it requires just a few tools: a digital scale, mixing bowls, and measuring cups and spoons. But if you would rather not knead by hand, you can invest in a stand mixer, as Moreno has, saying it makes the labor less tedious.

Since he has gotten into baking, Moreno said it was something he has begun to look forward to and schedule time for in his week. And aside from the joy of creating something delicious and sharing it with others, baking helps him to relieve stress.

“A lot of anxiety and worries throughout the day tend to go away when you focus on baking something,” he said. “That time is really therapeutic for me.”

And while he is keeping it simple right now, he has a few goals for his bread baking journey ahead. One is to make a “really amazing” sourdough, as it is a more complicated loaf requiring a sourdough starter, which can take up to two weeks to create. Another goal of his is to get to the point where he can bake breads commonly found at restaurants. “That honestly is what got me baking my own bread — so that I can make an amazing chicken sandwich,” Moreno said.

Another option for people who enjoy bread made from scratch but who don’t have the time or patience to do it themselves is to shop from a local bakery.

Fiber Plus Pastry Shop in Brownsville specializes in healthy loaves with some even suitable for diabetics and vegans.

“All the bread is whole grain,” said bakery owner Esteban Popoco. “We add oats, bran, and flaxseed to the dough to help promote digestion.

“We use amaranth, sunflower seeds, brown sugar, coconut sugar, and almond flour,” he said. “We bake with six different

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FACES IN THE VALLEY:

HOLLY SMITH

McAllen Woman Creating New Home for Teen Moms

program that introduces adolescents to Jesus Christ and his teachings. As part of her volunteer work, Smith worked at a section called Young Lives which helps teen moms.

“God has given me a special love for kids. This past summer I attended a camp in San Antonio with 230 other mommas and a group of them were from a foster home for teen moms,” Smith recalled. “There were several girls there who were about to turn 18 and have to move out of the home with their babies who were so fearful of their future.”

Seeing these stories inspired Smith to take action and create a program, Remember Beloved Ministries, in the Rio Grande Valley dedicated to helping teen moms lead successful adult lives.

“Working with Young Lives, I got to mentor girls and spend time with them which is great but I wanted to take time to find a few girls and do everything I could do to help them,” Smith said. “I talked to friends and pastors and we prayed about it and it started to come together, I wanted to buy a piece of property with cottages and each cottage would house a teen mom and her child. I already talked to counselors who said they’d offer counseling services for free and have friends who will do cooking classes and financial literacy classes. We can provide mentoring, child care, and they’d learn to take care of

Holly Smith recalls being a teen mom on the verge of struggling to make ends meet.

“I was 19 and left my abusive husband with my twomonth old,” Smith recalled. “I had just graduated high school and wanted to attend college but knew I’d have to do so while raising a child.”

Smith’s dilemma is one that she says many teen mothers still experience today. Though the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the percentage of teen moms is steadily dropping, a total of 194,377 babies were born to women aged 15–19 in 2017 for a birth rate of 18.8 per 1,000 women in this age group.

Despite the decline, the U.S. teen pregnancy rate is substantially higher than in other western industrialized nations, according to the CDC. For help in raising her son, Smith turned to her parents for help.

“My parents let me stay at home with them and attend college with the stipulation that I earn all As and Bs,” Smith recalls. “I wouldn’t have to work and I’d just raise him which I was thankful for. My parents giving me a safe place to live in helped me become so successful.”

25 years later, Smith is a teacher at Nikki Rowe High School in McAllen and hopes to help other teen moms in the area who struggled like she did all those years ago.

Smith is a volunteer at Young Life, a faith-based

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to do something about that.”

“You always want your kids to have a better life than you, but if you’re stuck in this cycle, it’s hard to get out of it,” Smith said. “My hope is that they’ll be able to take advantage of this and become independent so when they leave here, be it with a college degree or some sort of certificate, they heal emotionally, spiritually, physically and then be able to have a good job and be prepared for their babies and have a better life to not continue the cycle they’re in.”

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animals and things like that depending on what they enjoy to teach them about responsibility.”

Remember Beloved Ministries is in its beginning stages and so far has created a board of directors and purchased a piece of property in La Feria that Smith says she hopes will house four teen moms in the future.

“I’m spending my summer writing grants to get this ball rolling,” Smith said. “The property is 37 acres of land and it's the most peaceful place I’ve ever been to in my life. It's so beautiful, I feel safe here.”

Smith knows the teen moms will need this feeling of security, especially under her care.

“I had to hide from my ex after my divorce and had to have his parental rights terminated and I know these girls are going through something similar,” Smith said.

“It’s hard to work with teen moms. It’s a lot to get them to trust you and it's understandable. Most of them have been abused or hurt in some way so you have to dedicate time to them and know it's what you want to do.”

Smith said there’s no program like Remember Beloved Ministries in the Valley.

“One of the girls I mentor dropped out of her class at the age of 16 after having a baby despite being third ranked in her class,” Smith said. “And I see them struggling to make ends meet and hold down two jobs as they raise a kid, there’s not a lot of opportunities for them and I want

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Rainbow Play Systems Offers At-Home Fun for All Ages in Rio Grande Valley

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b y Amy Ca s eb i e r | p h ot os b y M a r k P u e n t e Rainbow has since evolved into an outdoor living store, offering the top brands in everything a family would need to transform their backyard into an oasis of entertainment. Rainbow carries Jacuzzi hot tubs, Big Green Egg smokers, and other high-end outdoor items.

Montalvo described his stores as local businesses and authorized dealers for all items they sell that deliver, install, and service across the RGV. Rainbow itself is the top brand when it comes to swing sets, he added. The company stocks more than 100 swing set and play set models to choose from — along with more than 100 accessories to add on to the sets, Montalvo

Sheltering at home during the COVID-19 pandemic has perhaps made some people recognize the shortcomings of entertainment options at their abodes.

At least, that’s what Rudy Montalvo, president of Rainbow Play Systems RGV, has noticed.

Montalvo has been with the company for 22 years, bringing Rainbow stores to McAllen and Harlingen when he realized there was a lack of them in the Rio Grande Valley.

“Swing sets are very popular — especially in Texas,” he said “I think that’s why we’ve been around for so long.”

Starting off as a store exclusively for swing sets,

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people are going to use more as they stay home more,” he said.

“We sell fun,” Montalvo said. “All our products are fun — whether it’s a grill, a hot tub, a swing set … it’s a fun store to visit. People walk into our store and love it and there’s something for everyone.”

Rainbow Play Systems RGV has two locations: one in McAllen at 2321 N. McColl Road and the other in Harlingen at 4220 S Expressway 83. Learn more about what Rainbow Play Systems has to offer your backyard by visiting https:// www.rainbowrgv.com/.

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Starting off as a store exclusively for swing sets, Rainbow has since evolved into an outdoor living store, offering the top brands in everything a family would need to transform their backyard into an oasis of entertainment.

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said. That means families have a multitude of ways they can customize a swing set that in turn will inspire their children’s imaginations while staying safe at home.

At the start of the pandemic, Rainbow closed its door to the public for six weeks — much like other businesses in the Rio Grande Valley.

“It’s been crazy,” Montalvo said. “But then we started taking phone orders. The only problem was we couldn’t go and install our products.”

Once the store reopened, it saw a surge of public interest.

“It was like an avalanche of sales,” Montalvo recalled.

“People were getting cabin fever — especially families with kids — realizing the kids weren’t going to go back to school, so our swing set sales went through the roof.

“Our grill sales have also exploded because a lot of people are staying home and cooking these days since people are at home more. They’re looking for home products and that’s what we sell.”

Staying home to help reduce the rate of COVID-19 infection drove sales of home products — a silver lining for Montalvo and Rainbow both.

“We just happen to have the types of products that

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The Bridge Between our Past and Present McAllen Heritage Center is as Dynamic as its City’s History

The city of McAllen marks its beginnings with the establishment of its first train station. Back in 1904 after the train station was completed, a town started to grow up and flourish around it. 100 years later, McAllen hosted a city-wide celebration in Archer Park to commemorate its anniversary in 2004, which included a gala dinner and outdoor festival. Almost 8,000 community members participated, and the event was a huge success.

Because of the popularity of the historical displays at the celebration, Elva Cerda and several other city members decided to create a place where people could learn about McAllen’s history year-round. So after four years of planning, in 2008 the McAllen Heritage Center (MHC) opened its doors.

Cerda, a founding member and now MHC Managing Director, explained that the MHC started with just two offices given by the McAllen Economic Development

Corporation. “We had nowhere to put our founding exhibit or our base collection,” she said. At one point the city’s old post office building, which had not functioned in its initial capacity since 1958, was made available. The MHC founding members approached the city and were able to acquire a fourth of it for exhibits.

There was finally enough space to showcase the founding collection as a whole. The collection came from the family of Helen Snider, who was a member of the McAllen Old Timer’s Club, which worked to preserve the area’s history. “She was a pioneer family here, so it was an accumulation of a lifetime of collecting artifacts through her club.” Over the years as more historical items and artifacts were collected or donated by the community and city, the MHC slowly acquired more and more of the building until they acquired the whole facility.

“And we actually need more space,” Cerda laughed.

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history, the MHC members are always looking C

ahead to how they can make the experience M

more accessible. “We may be working on conversion to bilingual, if possible. I’m trying Y

CM to bring in someone to work on that project, ”

Cerda said. Additionally, “we’re going to MYbe digitizing our newspaper archives. We’re CY

working towards that end because we have at

Outdoors Month

at Quinta Mazatlan Perform Random Acts of Wildness

CMY

clippings that cover different segments of K

what happened in McAllen.”

Another new project, and another way that citizens can contribute to the Center’s unique collections, is the production of oral histories. People can apply online and then the MHC will set an appointment with the city studios so that they can share on specific topics. “If you want to come and visit and talk with us about your neighborhood, your church, your school, or whatever, we’re open to that,” she explained. “Whatever topic

Hike through the Thorn Forest Bird at the Stone Amphitheatre Follow the Animal Sculpture Trail Find Items on the Scavenger Hunt

would pertain to city history that you feel is valuable, we are looking for that.”

history. “I think that everything here is very valuable and tells the story of our city,” Cerda said. “History is our path to the future.”

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The MHC wants to encourage people to come learn and take part in McAllen’s

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least 5 cabinets just chock full of newspaper

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Even though the former post office is quite sizable, there are a lot of exhibits in the collection. Many of the displays have to be in rotation year-round in order to all be enjoyed by guests. Visitors can enjoy multiple trips to the MHC throughout the year and see diverse and dynamic displays showing both past and present events throughout McAllen’s existence. One such exciting feature is the Artist’s Corner, where local artists can apply to have their works on display.

The Center also has interesting exhibits for visitors of all ages, such as phones that are set out from different decades. “Kids get a big kick out of that because half the time the kids don’t even believe us that that’s a phone,” said Cerda. The McAllen High School, the city’s oldest high school, display cases are also very popular with local alumni and their families, and there are even yearbooks to flip through from various area high schools.

Cerda explained that a lot of the guests who come to the Center are businessmen, Winter Texans, school children of various ages, and families who want to know more about McAllen. “What it does do for them is give them insight as to who our city is,” she explained.

In addition to looking back on McAllen’s

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RGVision Food Fave

Grillin’ Up Grins Qweenie Hot Dog Truck Owners Prepare to Celebrate Two Years of Business b y Ka r i na Va r g a s | p h ot os b y J a s on G a r z a One look at Qweenie RGV’s bright pink, outer-space inspired murals complete with a Schnauzer dog in a flying saucer and you know you’re in for a one-of-a-kind experience. The business’ slogan “Qweenie hot dogs are savage — not average” makes it clear that customers can expect anything but ordinary when they order their meal.

This is exactly what owners Kimberly Avila and her fiancé, Brian Nunn, had in mind when they started their business.

Shortly after graduating from UTRGV in 2018 with her bachelor’s degree in psychology and minor in sociology, Avila decided to take a chance on purchasing a food trailer in order to launch her business.

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“It was right around finals week when I saw the trailer online,” Avila said. “All of my previous thoughts of enjoying cooking and wanting to open a business hit me all at once. We had talked about it a long time ago when we were in California, but it was super expensive for us. I thought it wouldn’t be a huge loss if it failed. So I decided

to purchase it and then see where it would go from there.”

Qweenie’s name originated from Nunn when he combined Avila’s idea of “queen of weenies” into one simple word that rolled off the tongue. “We kept saying it over and over. And it sounded really cute and awesome. So we just decided to stick with it. And we love it.”

Qweenie’s trailer’s graphic design and distinctive space-themed logo was created by Avila and Nunn’s friend, fellow

RGV native and professional graphic designer David Garcia. “All of the four photos that are on each wall of the trailer tell a different story about our brand,” Avila said. “We were talking to him about what we wanted and the color scheme and idea of an out-of-this-world alien type theme. I also wanted to incorporate Diego, my dog, and he literally just put it all together and created it.”

When starting out, Avila said the first couple of months were difficult

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getting customers to take a chance on a $6 hotdog. After offering customers promotions like free drinks or free chips with a Facebook check-in or sharing photos of food on social media, business began to grow quickly.

“It was kind of like free marketing and everybody was posting and tagging us everywhere,” Avila said. “That really helped us out. Our name kind of spread like wildfire.”

Fast forward to the present day, and

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Kimberly Avila, co-owner of Qweenie hot dog truck

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“I feel like it’s made me more resilient in a way, because when you’re your own boss, there’s nobody to bail you out of a problem or answer a question. You have to figure it out for yourself. I don’t really focus on the obstacles. I just try to find a solution to everything that is thrown my way.”

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photos of their food circulating online continue to bring in new customers.

“People eat with their eyes, so we try to take as many photos as we can of our food and share it on social media. From there, people just seek us out because of how good the food looks,” Avila said.

Avila and Nunn knew they wanted their menu to reflect a fusion of different flavors, some familiar and some new.

Qweenie’s customers have helped make five fan favorites permanent items on their menu. These include their Pizza Dog, Mac Dog, Hot Cheeto Dog, Taco Dog, and Fry Dog. Aside from these popular picks, adventurous customers can always try the Dog of the Day, which is a new recipe that varies on a daily basis.

“Aside from our food being unique, the creation of it is different,” Avila said.

“We probably have about 50 total recipes that we’ve done since we’ve been open.

We like to experiment a lot with different recipes to give our customers a new taste.”

Qweenie’s also offers vegetarian options and will accommodate those on a keto diet with grilled cheese wrapped dogs in place of buns.

With their business’ success, Avila and Nunn are eager to share Qweenie’s flavor with more customers and expand their brand in the near future. “We want to have several trucks, several locations,” Avila said. “A brick and mortar main restaurant in the Valley where it’s kind of like the home location. Hopefully by next year we’ll have one trailer outside of the Valley in a bigger city. Expansion for sure is in the works.”

Avila and Nunn hope to inspire others interested in starting their own business to stop waiting for the perfect time or conditions and just “go for it.” “You can’t just wait for everything to be perfect because you’re never going to start,” Avila said. “You just have to take the chance and everything will fall into place as long as you put in the work.”

Avila said even through the inevitable

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challenges that running her own business brings, she wouldn’t trade the independence of being her own boss for the world. “I feel like it’s made me more resilient in a way, because when you’re your own boss, there’s nobody to bail you out of a problem or answer a question. You have to figure it out for yourself.”

Avila said that problem-solver mentality is the key to success. “I don’t really focus on the obstacles,” she said. “I just try to find a solution to everything that is thrown my way.”

Follow Qweenie’s social media accounts to see their location of the day, hours of operation, and menu as well as to see the latest promotions and upcoming events via their social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok all via the same handle, @ qweeniergv. Customers can also reach out to Qweenie’s official email at qweeniergv@ gmail.com for business inquiries about catering or events.

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‘IT’S A COMMUNITY HERE’ Paintball Enthusiasts in the RGV

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by Jo se De Leon III | p h o to s b y Ja s o n G a r z a “If you’re creative, there’s lots of opportunities to play in the Valley. We encourage players to go [play beyond] our field to get involved with other paintball communities,” Gonzalez said. “It’s a community here. We get so many types of people participating. Once we had two kids who were homeschooled participating and they didn’t get out a lot but by the time they left the paintball field, they had friends and confidence. I’ve seen a lot of friendships being made and met people I’d otherwise wouldn’t have met.”

Carlos Obregon regularly plays at Delta Field Paintball and is familiar with other paintball fields in the Valley such as Edinburg Paintball Bttlgrnds, Maven Paintball and Phobia Paintball Park near the Mission area.

“I’ve been playing for 12 years and started with my cousins. We’d hang out together and just play with basic equipment in the backyard,” Obregon said.

Though he admitted that explaining why he loves paintball is hard to describe, he urged people to try it.

“You would have to play to get it. It’s a stress reliever and you concentrate on shooting others and they shoot back,” Obregon said. “Everybody struggles at first. You don’t have

“If you’re scared of getting a shot, you’re not going to do well,” Janette Gonzalez answered when asked for advice on playing paintball.

“I'm not a pro or anything but the key to paintball is moving up in confidence,” Gonzalez continued.

Gonzalez flexes her confidence on the paintball field when she plays as part of the Aztec Warriors Paintball Team and sees it every weekend on Delta Field Paintball, a field located near Edinburg that she has been managing for the last three years.

The field is a family business that has been in existence for 9 years, roughly the same amount of time since Gonzalez started becoming an active paintball player.

“I had friends in the Aztec Warriors Team who kept coming here to play and inviting me to join them,” Gonzalez recalled.

“At first I’d tell them no but since it’s easy to develop good relationships with other players here I eventually said yes.

We now hold charity events together every year.”

Gonzalez said that playing paintball with others creates a sense of camaraderie that leads to deep friendships with even those you just met at the start of a round of paintball.

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the best equipment when you start but it makes the experience better, especially if you practice a lot.”

When Obregon started to play paintball more competitively, he recalled buying more equipment and playing in several different fields.

“Not every player is the same, it’s like a video game but handson and in real life,” Obregon said. “I think you need different types of fields to truly know yourself and other people you play with and practice. It’s a great sport. At the end of the day you forget about everything and are a kid again for a few minutes and enjoy that.

It’s a fast-paced game. When you’re out there you feel nothing else besides the motion of it all.”

Gonzalez said the video game comparison was appropriate for paintball. She and her team participate in “scenarios” where players take part in a story that includes video game simulations or historical re-enactments.

“As someone who plays a lot of Call of Duty videogames, scenarios are up to my speed,” Gonzalez said. “It’s cool and very fast-paced and insane. Our team is known for being aggressive, my children will participate in this when they’re older.”

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