UPCOMING EVENTS!
GOLF ANYONE?
Check out our weekly listings of what’s happening in the RGV!
Tee Time in the RGV features Tierra Del Sol Golf Course!
RECIPE CONNECTION!
Executive Chef Bettina Tolin shares a couscous recipe for you to enjoy!
Welcome Home See calendar on page 5.
See review on page 29.
VOLUME 1 • ISSUE 21 • March 16, 2016
Try her recipe on page 31.
®
WINTER TEXAN
• • • your official connection to the rio grande valley • • •
Nearly 600 Runners and Walkers Participate in McAllen Heart Hospital’s Healthy Hearts 5K Special to Welcome Home RGV
I
had the opportunity to spend a few days in Kansas City, Missouri, to represent the University of Texas in the Big 12 Big Q, a barbecue cookoff in conjunction with the Big 12 basketball tournament. What a fun city! We were blessed with beautiful weather on the day of the cook-off, and I felt right at home with thousands of basketball fans from Iowa, Kansas, and the rest of the home states of the big 12 teams. While our team didn’t win, in basketball or barbecue, it was so much fun to show basketball fans true Texas hospitality. What I found is this--it’s hard to find a bad meal in Kansas City, and the people are so friendly. It’s no wonder so many of you find yourselves right at home in South Texas. While our cuisine packs a little more heat, our locals are just as friendly as your locals are back home. For those of you who are about to head north, we wish you the safest of travels. Please tell your friends and family back home to come see us next season. If you’d like to take marketing materials home with you, please let me know, and we can hook you up! (That’s in keeping with UT’s slogan--Hook ‘Em Horns!) • We’re just connecting the dots,
Kristi
The
McAllen Heart Hospital’s Healthy Hearts 5K attracted nearly 600 runners and walkers Saturday, February 13, to learn about how to prevent and fight heart disease, the number one killer of men and women in the United States. One hundred percent of the event’s registration fees benefitted the American Heart Association. The Healthy Hearts 5K raised a grand total of $8,638, and three quarters of that will stay within the American Heart Association’s southwest region to support regional research projects and fund local mission-related programs and operations, such as smoke-free campaigns, childhood obesity, physical education initiatives, and community health initiatives. The other 25 percent funds nationwide research and programs such as Go Red for Women and Life’s Simple 7. On average, heart disease claims the lives of 2,250 South Texas residents each year, and stroke claims the lives of 380 residents. But in many cases, heart disease and stroke are preventable. The mission of the American Heart Association in South Texas coincides with the community outreach goals of the McAllen Heart Hospital, this year celebrating 20 years of service to this community. The McAllen Heart Hospital is the first stand-alone cardiovascular hospital in the United States and became part of South Texas Health System in January 2001. Through
advanced technology, innovative programs, and specialized staff and dedicated physicians, the McAllen Heart Hospital saves lives daily and adds quality years to many South Texans’ lives. The McAllen Heart Hospital supports the American Heart Association’s mission to reduce deaths attributable to cardiovascular disease and stroke and to improve the health of all Americans, starting with our children. “We are happy to support Healthy Kids programs, such as Jump Rope for Heart and Hoops for Heart and to lend our venue to raise awareness about the effects of smoking,” said Lance Ames, interim CEO of the McAllen Heart Hospital. “At the McAllen Heart Hospital’s Healthy Hearts 5K, more than 162 smoke-
free petition cards were signed, which will help convince city leaders to pass a smoke-free ordinance at workplaces.” The McAllen Heart Hospital would like to thank all of the physicians, volunteers, and community members who supported this event. The date of next year’s event is Saturday, February 11, 2017. For more information on the McAllen Heart Hospital, visit us online at www.mcallenhearthospital. com or “Like” us on Facebook at fb.com/mcallenhearthospital. •
A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO OUR 2015-2016 SEASON SPONSORS