JULY 2020 24-26 WEEKEND EDITION

Volume 55 • Number 139

830 • 379 • 2234

Walk-up Testing Site Available Friday in Schertz

By Darren Dunn

(Schertz) -- Guadalupe County, the city of Schertz, and the Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City ISD are working together to try to get more people tested for COVID-19. A walkup COVID-19 testing site will be conducted from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday at Lehnhoff Stadium, located 1100 Elbel Rd., next to Samuel Clemens High School. The free testing will be done underneath the home side bleachers. No registration is required, and the tests will be conducted on a first come, first served basis.

According to the data released by the Guadalupe County Office of Emergency Management on July 22, Guadalupe County had a total of 1582 cases. That’s based on data collected by the Texas Department of State Health Services, since the start of the pandemic in March. That figure includes 937 confirmed cases, plus 645 pending cases. The pending cases are positive tests that have not yet been verified by the state. While cases continue to grow in Guadalupe County, so do the number of people who have recovered from the virus. On July 22, there were 921 people who have recovered from the disease.

The report indicates that there are 30 people hospitalized at GRMC, and that there have been 22 Guadalupe County residents who have died from COVID-19 complications.

According to the Associated Press, state health officials say Texas has hit a new record high the number of daily coronavirus deaths. The Department of State Health Services reported the Wednesday death toll hit a record 197, beating the previous record of 174 set on Friday of last week. That brings the overall Texas death toll to at least 4,348. Health officials say at least 9,879 new people have tested positive for COVID-19 as of Wednesday, which is slightly off the string of 10,000-case days over the past week. That brought the overall caseload to 351,618 since Texas began tracking the outbreak in early March.

Again, people can be tested in Guadalupe County from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday at Lehnhoff Stadium in Schertz.

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Councilman says CCSCT helping to pay utility bills for people struggling

By Darren Dunn

(Seguin) -- A member of the Seguin City Council wants people to know that there’s help available to people who are having trouble paying their utility bills.

District 1 Councilman Ernest Leal works for the Community Council of South Central Texas office in Seguin. He says the nonprofit group is offering financial assistance to those who need help.

“The Community Council has funds (available) to help people with electric bills. (This is for) people, from the city of Seguin, that fell behind because of COVID-19. So if you’re one of those clients for the city of Seguin and you need help, you can call us at the Community Council -- 830-379-3022, and we can help you with those bills that you fell behind on,” said Leal. Leal says it’s important that people get signed up for this assistance as soon as possible, because its available on a first come, first served basis.

“Don’t wait unitl they put that disconnect hanger on your doorknob, because (it might be too late). People bring us applications and we go with the first people that brought us their application. And if you’re like number 20 or 25 (on that list), you might have to wait, and you are going to have to pay the bill yourself. So bring us your bill, and give us a call and maybe we can help these folks,” said Leal.

Leal made his plea to the public during Tuesday’s meeting of the Seguin City Council. Those who need utility payment assistance or access to other services offered by the CCSCT, can call (830) 379- 3022.

Tesla bringing 5,000 new jobs to Texas

The Tesla Cybertruck pickup will soon be built at a new plant in the Austin area.

(Austin) -- Need some good economic news during this pandemic. “Texas has the best workforce in the nation and we’ve built an school district. The new factory will build Tesla’s upcoming Well, for Texas, it doesn’t get much better than this. Tesla is giving economic environment that allows companies like Tesla to innovate Cybertruck pickup. It also will be a second U.S. factory for the green light to a new factory in Texas. The $1 billion Gigafactory and succeed. Tesla’s Gigafactory Texas will keep the Texas economy the Model Y small SUV. in southeast Travis County will create at least 5,000 jobs in the area. the strongest in the nation and will create thousands of jobs for hard-working Texans. I look forward to the tremendous benefits The region that’s home to the University of Texas at Austin and Governor Greg Abbott said Tesla’s decision will keep the state’s that Tesla’s investment will bring to Central Texas and to the entire tech companies such as Dell Inc., was a candidate all along. But economy strong and help create jobs. state.” Tulsa, Oklahoma, showed up on the short list in mid-May.

“Tesla is one of the most exciting and innovative companies in the world, and we are proud to welcome its team to the State of Texas,” said Governor Abbott.

According to the Associated Press, the company will build on a 2,100-acre tract in Travis County and will get more than $60 million in tax breaks from the county and a local

Tesla doesn’t have a lot of time to get the factory running. The company says on its website that the Cybertruck will be available starting late next year.

No Wurstfest for 2020 Popular sausage festival shut down due to COVID-19

(New Braunfels) -- The Wurstfest Association of New Braunfels announced on Thursday that it was canceling its 2020 festival, due concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic. The ten-day salute to sauage was scheduled to run November 6-15 at the Wurstfest grounds in Landa Park. The Wurstfest Board of Directors met July 21 to consider input from a committee assigned to continually monitor the latest COVID-19 information and made the decision that it would not be feasible to host the 2020 festival. Randy Rust, 2020 Wurstfest President, said “This will be the first time Wurstfest has canceled a festival in our 60-year history. We have had our challenges in the past, including flood events and most recently a fire that destroyed the Marktplatz building. We have always overcome our challenges while making the festival better each year. We made this decision knowing what a difficult year 2020 has been and that our guests were looking forward to Wurstfest more than ever. We also realize how important the festival is to the community non-profit organizations that participate. Many of them make their fundraising goals for the year during the ten days of Wurstfest and go on to use those funds to do good work that benefits our community throughout the year. That made this decision even more difficult. When we looked at how festival operations would have to change to prioritize safety, plus the related operational restrictions, we just didn’t feel we would be able to provide the Wurstfest experience we are known for.” A list of non-profit organizations that benefit the local community and fundraise at Wurstfest can be found at wurstfest.com/support. Plans for fundraising efforts to help support these organizations will be announced in the coming weeks.

Next year, officials say Wurstfest will be a historic celebration, marking the 60th festival, and take place November 5-14, 2021. Wurstfest is eager to unveil a new and improved Marktplatz building along with many other improvements to the grounds which will no doubt add to the excitement about the 60th festival. The rebuild of the Marktplatz, which houses most of the food vendors, has been underway since early this year and was on track to be completed for the 2020 festival.

New Braunfels Mayor, Rusty Brockman, said “Wurstfest is a community tradition where families reunite, new friends are made, and people from all walks of life come to enjoy the heritage of New Braunfels. This community and the countless volunteers who make Wurstfest happen are resilient and will be back next year stronger than ever.”

NBC News: White House Complex Cafeteria Worker Tests Positive For COVID-19

(Washington, DC) -- The White House is dealing with another positive coronavirus test. NBC News reports the Eisenhower Executive Office Building cafeteria was shut down this week after a worker tested positive for the illness. It is unclear how long it will be shut down but contact tracing is being done. The building is part of the White House complex, sitting across street from the West Wing. Other White House officials have also previously tested positive.

Trump Praises Deal With Pfizer For COVID Vaccine

(Washington, DC) -- President Trump is cheering an agreement with drug company Pfizer to produce a coronavirus vaccine. The two-billion-dollar deal will allow the company to produce and deliver 100-million doses of their vaccine once it’s approved. The agreement paves the way for the government to get an additional 500 million doses of the drug. Several companies are working on vaccines for COVID-19. Trump praised the record-setting pace of coronavirus vaccine development.

Fauci Says Coronavirus May Never Go Away

(Washington, DC) -- The nation’s top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci [[ FOW-chee ]] says COVID-19 may never go away. He spoke at a T-B Alliance event Wednesday, saying health officials may be able to “get very good control” of the virus, but it’s here to stay “long after we’re gone.” He says the increase in cases is bad for public health, but it’s helping researchers develop a vaccine. Fauci urges people to remain committed to fighting the virus as infections will continue to crop up.

Three More States Are Mandating Masks In Public Places

(Columbus, OH) -- Three more states are requiring residents to wear masks to slow the spread of the coronavirus. The governors of Ohio, Indiana and Minnesota all announced mask mandates on Wednesday. More than 30 states and Washington, DC now require face coverings in public. Ohio’s order begins Thursday. Minnesota’s starts on Saturday and Indiana’s begins Monday. A new Morning Consult-Politico poll found three-fourths of registered voters support mask mandates.

COVID-19

Tips to protect yourself and others

• Wear a mask when in public. • Practice proper hygiene, and wash hands thoroughly and frequently. • Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands. • Keep a distance of 6 feet between you and others when outside your home. • Cover your coughs and sneezes with the crook of your arm. • Avoid crowded public areas and stay at home if possible. • Do not shake hands.

• If you exhibit symptoms, call your doctor BEFORE going into the office.

For more information, visit grmedcenter.com/covid-19 1215 E. Court St. | Seguin, TX 78155 | 830.379.2411 grmedcenter.com/covid-19