GOLF ANYONE?
Tee Time in the RGV features Harlingen Country Club!
UPCOMING EVENTS!
Check out our weekly listings of what’s happening in the RGV!
RECIPE CONNECTION!
Executive Chef Bettina Tolin shares a recipe that will make you smile!
Welcome Home See review on page 35.
See calendar on page 5.
VOLUME 1 • ISSUE 13 • January 20, 2016
Try her recipe on page 43.
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WINTER TEXAN
• • • your official connection to the rio grande valley • • •
SPI Kite Fest: It’s back... Special to Welcome Home RGV
The festival continues Saturday and Sunday (February 6 and 7) when the festival moves outdoors from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the flats just north of the Convention Centre. Several kite fliers from all over the United States are scheduled to bring their magnificent ‘show kites’ that will be on display throughout the day. If you can imagine it ~ you just might see it floating in the air ~ and many measuring more than 150-feet in length.
What
fun it has been seeing so many of you out and about over the last few weeks. I especially love hearing how much you enjoy reading this newspaper! At Welcome Home, RGV, we have a passion for serving our Winter Texan friends and local retirees. We’re officially celebrating eight years in business and have no intention of slowing down. For those of you who knew us in the very beginning, we are who we are today because of your comments, kind words, suggestions, and, most of all, your zest for life. It is an honor to be of service to you, whether you are here for a short time, or you’ve decided to make the Rio Grande Valley your permanent home, or you’ve lived here all your life--like me. I look forward to seeing all of you out and about for many years to come! We have learned so much from all of you, from the importance of finding balance in our lives to how to stop and enjoy the moment. And it’s OK to stop what you’re doing and dance like no one is watching. My personal favorite is that if you do just that, you can burn countless calories in the dog days of summer. You have so much to share, and we are all ears. • We’re just connecting the dots,
Kristi
. . . and you aren’t going to want
to miss it! After only two short years in ‘retirement,’ SPI Kite Fest is being revived for 2016. The festival that started out as a mere ‘fun fly’ and grew to be recognized as Kite Festival of the Year in 2010 by Kite Trade Association International is back and is looking like it will be bigger and better than ever. On February 5, 6, and 7, SPI Kite Fest will return to South Padre Island. The festival will kick off Friday evening with the Indoor Kite Exhibition to be held at the South Padre Island Convention Centre from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Performances by internationally known kite fliers such as John Barresi, Lisa Willoughby, Scott Weider, and Paul LaMasters will keep you in awe as they slide and glide their choreographed routines to a variety of musical interludes. Tickets for the Indoor Kite Exhibition are $6 per person and can be purchased in advance at B&S Kites.
No kite fest is complete without the mesmerizing performances of individual, as well as team, performances. For the revival of SPI Kite Fest, we are thrilled to have three kite teams attending ~ John Barresi is back with his all-new Team Kitelife, consisting of John (Portland, OR), Scott Benz (Jacksonville, FL), Eli Russell (Portland, OR) and Brett Marchel (Harbor Springs, MI). The New England-based Team RevRiders consisting of Scott Weider (Warwick, RI), Paul LaMasters (Germantown, MD), James Fletcher (Baltimore, MD) and Jim Cosca (Fort Washington, MD) will make their first-ever SPI Kite Fest debut; and Team End of the Line from Austin will be back, as well. Completing the
performance roster will be Lisa and Ian Willoughby from Surfcity, NJ, as well as several ‘Winter Texans’ who have found they have not only a passion for ‘kiteflying’ but a talent for performing, as well. Admission for the outdoor event is free. So . . . let’s make South Padre Island your destination for the first weekend in February. For more information contact B&S Kites at (956) 761-1248, by email at bskites@hotmail.com,on our website at www.spikitefest.com, or by visiting the SPI Kite Fest event page on Facebook. We hope to see you there! •
A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO OUR 2015-2016 SEASON SPONSORS