Port Aransas, TX

PDF of print edition Git your 'Boots' on BAND IS FRIDAY'S SUNSET SOUNDS FEATURE       Grab a picnic, a blanket and a pair of dancin' boots (or flip flops) and head on down to Roberts Point Park on Friday, May 9. The Sunset Sounds concert series will present this month's band, Boots. The band originally formed as a neighborhood backyard pickin' and singin' group that played just fo... More ... A place in the shade       With an umbrella set up for some shade, an angler enjoys some time alone on the north jetty on San Jose Island on Saturday, April 19. This photo was shot from a small private plane passing over the island. More ... Rabies clinics set today, Saturday       Pet owners will have the opportunity to get their pets' initial or annual rabies vaccination at a reduced cost this week. Pets and veterinary records should be brought to the rabies clinic at 319 Beach St. Rabies shots and tags and city tags will be given for $5 for unaltered animals, and $2.50 f... More ... Spots still available in lifeguard course       There is still time to get certified as a lifeguard in May. Registration will be held throughout the day on Tuesday, May 13. The three-day course for certification in American Red Cross lifeguard, first aid and CPR for the professional rescuer is being offered Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, May 1... More ... City offers bike safety on May 18       Gather up the family and bicycle over to the Port Aransas High School parking lot for a workshop on bike safety on Sunday, May 18, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Sgt. Sandy Flores of the Port Aransas Police Department will instruct any who would like to attend. Families should bring their bikes, as instruct... More ... Moms swim free on Mother's Day       In celebration of Mother's Day on Sunday, May 11, all mothers may swim for free at the Port Aransas Community Park Pool, 700 Clark Pkwy. Lap swimming begins at noon on Sundays, and open swim is from 1 to 6 p.m. More ... GED party is canceled       A party to observe the closing of a General Education Development (GED) and Literacy Program housed at Community Presbyterian Church has been cancelled, said Alice Marks, an instructor with the volunteer program. The party previously was scheduled for May 15 at the GED classroom at the church's ... More ... WIC representatives will visit Port Aransas Monday       Representatives from the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Nutritional program will be in Port Aransas on Monday, May 12. Situated at the Family Center IGA, 416 S. Alister St., they will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. For questions or an appointment, call (361) 767-7777... More ... Construction progress       Construction on the new St. Joseph's Catholic Church building is taking shape. The new church is expected to cost about $2 million, and will hold 500 people. Groundbreaking was on Aug. 4, 2007, and completion is expected in November 2008. More ... PASTOR'S PEN Growing in spirit       In Greek the word 'Pentecost' means "50th." Pentecost Sunday ends the 50- day season of Easter. Pentecost grew from a festival marking the first grain harvest of the Middle Eastern year. It was a festival offering sacrifices to the gods from the first harvest. More ... Program offers yoga on beach       Stretch out, relax and rejuvenate your spirit at Yoga on the Beach Saturday, May 10. Nancy Myers will instruct the free class beginning at 8 a.m. next to the Horace Caldwell Pier at the end of Beach Street. The public is invited to attend the class held the second Saturday of the month. More ... Shooters endangering boaters BY PHIL REYNOLDS SOUTH JETTY REPORTER       Boaters and law enforcement officers are looking for the people who are shooting out navigation lights in Piper Channel, putting boaters at risk. More than two dozen of the lights have been shot out since the channel was re-dredged last year, said Paul Page, president of the Airport and Channel C... More ... POLICE BLOTTER CITY OF PORT ARANSAS POLICE DEPARTMENT       MONDAY, APRIL 28 • 10:26 A.M . An officer charged a man at Avenue G and Station Street with public intoxication (PI). • 2:35 p.m. More ... Vandals, thieves hit park concession stand FOUR TIMES IN TWO WEEKS       Police, as well as a horde of angry Little League parents, are looking for the vandals who have broken in to the concession building at Community Park four times in the past two weeks. More ... CONSTABLE'S BEAT NUECES COUNTY, PRECINCT 4      MONDAY, APRIL 28 • 5:30 P .M . A deputy charged two people on the beach with minors in possession of alcohol. TUESDAY, APRIL 29 • 6:40 P .M . A man was arrested in the 600 block of Summer Place on an outstanding warrant. More ... One charged, one sought in truck burglary at motel       Port Aransas police have arrested a man accused of stealing an ice chest from a pickup truck. Robert Glen Tatum, 19, of Port Aransas, is charged with burglary of a motor vehicle after a man identified him as one of two people who took an ice chest from his truck on Sunday, May 4. More ... ISLAND OBSERVER: TONY AMOS Hapless heron rescue       This may go down in the ARK annals. Any of you who go boating in the bays will doubtless have seen the untidy nests of the great blue heron built of sticks a few feet above the water on any convenient structure. Nests may be built on old duck blinds, oil and gas standpipes, aids to navigation and ... More ... That's a big turtle!       On Wednesday, April 30, a tagged Kemp's Ridley turtle came ashore to lay 91 eggs. Rachel Blair, left, from the Padre Island National Seashore, removes the eggs, places them in a cooler (inset) as Animal Rehabilitation Keep patrolers Xavier Harrison, upper left, and Guy Davis, kneeling, assist in t... More ... Ferry shuttle to resume routes through summer       The city of Port Aransas and the Corpus Christi Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) are offering commuters and visitors another chance to get a ride to work or shop this summer. The ferry shuttle - a bus that starts and ends at the Port Aransas ferry ramps and runs through the city - will s... More ... Artists and artisans to show work at ArtFest       Art lovers may want to make plans to be in Port Aransas next weekend. The Art Center for the Islands is holding its third annual Artfest on Saturday and Sunday, May 17 and 18, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Artfest, held in the courtyard of the historic Tarpon Inn, 200 E. Cotter, provides an opportunity ... More ... Songwriter's event is Monday, May 19       Bring a lawn chair, blanket and cooler to the 25th annual Songwriter's Showcase in the Tarpon Inn Courtyard, 200 E. Cotter, on Monday, May 19. Music starts at 7 p.m. The showcase gate fee of $5 will benefit The Art Center for the Islands. More ... Ford is first recipient of new writing award       Laughing Gull Writing Contest coordinator Ruth Asher introduced a new award at the reception for winning writers on April 13. The Laughing Gull Heritage Award was presented for a nonfiction piece tied to the history and heritage of Port Aransas. More ... Multiple blessings For some women, Mother's Day is twice (or thrice) as nice BY DAN PARKER SOUTH JETTY REPORTER       Some Port Aransas women can expect double and triple-doses of love this Mother's Day. The experience of motherhood is very different for women who have twins and triplets. "There's more trouble," said Marci Morris, a Port Aransas woman who has 11-year-old triplet boys, Elliott, Jason and Ty. "Th... More ... Klostermann design chosen for surf exhibit       The Texas Surf Museum has selected a design by Port Aransas resident Elizabeth Klostermann to serve as the logo for a major new exhibit to open soon at the museum. The logo will be printed on hundreds of T-shirts and other paraphernalia associated with the exhibit titled, "Texas Women, Texas Wa... More ... Appraisal notices sent       Your property appraisal is in the mail. If you own property in Port Aransas, you should be receiving the Nueces County Appraisal District's valuation of your property soon - if you haven't gotten it already. More ... Mercer house remodeling is PAPHA topic       Dr. David Murrah will present remodeling plans for the new Port Aransas Museum to the Port Aransas Preservation and Historical Association (PAPHA) at their next meeting. The meeting will be held Tuesday, May 20, at the Port Aransas Civic Center, 710 W. Ave. A. More ... Book club to meet on Tuesday       There is still time to read the library Book Club's selection for the May discussion group, which will meet on Tuesday, May 13, at 6:30 p.m. They will discuss "The Jane Austen Book Club," by Karen Joy Fowler. The public is invited to join the group at the Ellis Memorial Library meeting room, 700 ... More ... Port Aransas birding teams place in Classic       Port Aransas teams were among winners in the Great Texas Birding Classic. Awards were presented in Beaumont on Sunday, May 4. The Port Aransas Spoonbills, sponsored by the Port Aransas Chamber of Commerce-Tourist Bureau, took third place in the Big Sit! Tournament. More ... UTMSI grad wins award for research       Dr. Nancy Rabalais is the 2008 recipient of the National Water Research Institute (NWRI) Athalie Richardson Irvine Clark Prize for excellence in water research. Rabalais, who received her Ph.D. from UT-Austin Marine Science Institute (UTMSI) in 1983, will be presented with a gold medallion and $... More ... Blue whales in the pink of things RACHEL PEARSON       Well, gentle readers, the weather has brightened up. Last week it was sunny for almost two days, and the flowering cherry trees took advantage of the good weather to drop blossoms all over the street. More ... Shrimp season closes May 15       The Gulf of Mexico commercial shrimp season for both state and federal waters will close 30 minutes after sunset on Thursday, May 15, until an unspecified time in July. More ... Taco to Go       Owners Joe and Carrie Molina opened their new restaurant, Taco to Go, in March. Located at 717 Tarpon St., they serve breakfast tacos everyday from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m. More ... FOR THE BIRDS Last of the migration . . .       What else is there to talk about except the migration? It's all around us; it's in motion. The proof of migration is in the tops of the trees, in the low foliage, on the ground, flying overhead, in the mud flats and on the beach. More ... Junior Boatmen learn knot and leader tying       The Port Aransas Junior Boatmen learned a few new tricks at their Wednesday, April 23, meeting. Tim Bradfield, owner of Big Game Tackle, hosted the meeting at his shop and led a knot and leader tying workshop. Matt McClellen and Chris Wallace, both deckhands at Dolphin Dock, helped out. More ...