GOOD MORNING!
What a weekend. How would you like to be a teacher today? Fortunately, many of the Halloween-themed events were Saturday, but it seemed like most children had bags of candy weighing pounds — many pounds. To say, Kerrville and Kerr County did Halloween right in 2021. We hit 11 places on Saturday and Sunday, and we know we didn't come close to getting them all. We'll give you a rundown of the weekend, but first, some updates.
THE LEAD LIVE
We don't have a guest booked for today's show, but we'll have plenty to discuss this morning. The show starts at 9 a.m. However, the rest of the week looks promising. Here's our schedule:
- Tuesday: Kerr Economic Development Corp. Chief Operating Officer Gil Salinas previews the KEDC's first Business and Innovation Forum that starts Wednesday.
- Wednesday: Texas Hill Country Advisors Gilberto Paiz and Andrew Gay will talk personal finance with us.
- Thursday: Schreiner University basketball coaches Marwan Elrakabawy and Stacy Stephens will preview the season, which starts Friday. Stephens is in her first season.
COMMISSIONERS COURT WILL APPROVE NEW BOUNDARIES
With the Texas Legislature completing its work and approving new political boundaries for Congress, the legislature and the state school board clear the way for the court to make its changes. The court will meet at 9 a.m. on Wednesday to discuss the matter.
FOURTH WHATABURGER HEADED TO KERRVILLE
The Kerrville Planning and Zoning Commission will consider approving what would be Kerrville's fourth Whataburger during its 4:30 p.m. meeting on Thursday. The beloved fast-food chain already has a restaurant in the construction stage on Memorial Highway near Schreiner University. This fourth location would be where Margarita City near Interstate 10. The chain's corporate entity owns the land along the freeway, while a local franchisee owns the other sites. It seems like it's a sensible fix, especially with the amount of traffic passing along I-10 daily. The commission is asked to approve the preliminary plat for the restaurant near I-10.
AN AWARD FOR KPUB
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KPUB was honored with an award of excellence in the website/social media category for its powering a better community social media campaigns and an award of merit in the print/digital communications category for its annual community report. The awards were presented this week at APPA's Customer Connections Conference in Scottsdale, Ariz.
"We're always looking for creative ways to share KPUB's story and the value of having a public power utility company here to serve our community," said Allison Bueché, KPUB director of customer and community relations. "Being recognized by our peers for KPUB's communication efforts are a great honor."
NEWS TO WATCH
The San Antonio Express-News took a look at the drag racing death of three people in Kerrville on Oct. 23. There wasn't anything really new from the story, but it was a compelling read with photos from the funeral of Santiago Martinez, the eight-year-old boy killed in the crash. Here's the link: https://www.expressnews.com/news/local/article/fatal-drag-race-crash-Kerrville-16576106.php
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments today on Texas' controversial abortion law — that practically bans the practice. Here's the Texas Tribune's take on the story: https://www.texastribune.org/2021/10/29/texas-abortion-law-supreme-court/
HALLOWEEN TAKEAWAYS
OK, so how about the places that stood out when it came to overall Halloween fun? To be honest, every place we stopped had something cool going on, but here's what caught our attention:
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STOP 1, THE KROC CENTER: As a parent, now grandparent, bounce houses are mildly terrifying, but as a kid, they are a joy. The Kroc Center had one where the kids could balance themselves and jump from one big ball to another. That was pretty cool.
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STOP 2, THE RIDGE MARKETPLACE: Great setting for sure. However, I wanted to get in line for the caramel apples you could dip into bowls of goodies — M&Ms and chocolate chips! Glorious.
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STOP 3, ORGAN CONCERT AT FIRST PRESBYTERIAN: Any time you get to hear music performed at First Presbyterian's magnificent sanctuary is a treat. However, the concert that organist Sabrina Adrian performed was a fantastic experience. A master of the church's organ, Adrian performed a Halloween-themed show that featured plenty of context about the music's place in the holiday. This may have been our favorite event.
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STOP 4, SOUTHSTAR BANK: Normally, you can't really get that excited for trick or treating at a bank, but the SouthStar Bank did a good balancing job with treats and practicality. The practical part? A pencil. That works.
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STOP 5, MUSEUM OF WESTERN ART: Look, the Museum of Western Art had a two-toed sloth. Game-winner? Potentially. Dubbed the Creature Feature, the annual Night at the Museum was packed with kids looking for candy, but for a chance to see animals ranging from the world's largest rodent (capybara), turkeys and plenty of hooved mammals. However, that sloth was awesome, and at one point, we were confident it was going to climb into Sterling Stark's arms and runoff. It was a great night brought to you by Fore Premier Properties.
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STOP 6, FRIGHT NIGHT AT LOUISE HAYS PARK: In terms of scale, the city of Kerrville's "Fright Night" at Louise Hays Park was the big winner on the night. The park was packed. There were several standout moments here from the Kerrville Police Department's Sgt. Jack Lamb wearing a Daffy Duck mask to the top-notch costume contests. It was a massive effort by Kerrville Parks and Recreation Department Director Ashlea Boyle and her team, and it was magnificent.
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STOP 7, DOYLE SCHOOL COMMUNITY CENTER: My grandsons discovered the joys of the Doyle School earlier this year — they loved the playground. When I got to Doyle, the playground was packed, and that's what you want for kids — to burn off some energy. However, there were many fun games and hamburgers — a winner in our book.
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STOP 8, THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS: As far as food goes, the Mormons had this one figured out — chili and tamales. Forget the donut eating contest or the cakewalk, those are gluten-potent problems for us, but that chili and tamales looked and smelled fantastic. Well done.
SUNDAY
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STOP 9, INGRAM'S HALLOWEEN CELEBRATION: Look, the Ingram cops were giving out footballs, dolls and Beanie Babies. Game over. It was like Christmas on October 31. Well, done, Ingram P.D. Well, done indeed.
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STOP 10: BACK TO FIRST PRESBYTERIAN: They had a haunted bus! That's the first we've seen. It wasn't particularly terrifying, but it was a fun idea, and all of the kids coming through it seemed to enjoy the experience.
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STOP 11: SCHREINER UNIVERSITY'S DRIVE-THRU TRICK OR TREATING: The traffic into this event was unreal. Car-bound trick or treaters backed Texas 27 in both directions, but the carloads were able to make their way through the university to pick up treats from student groups, sororities and fraternities. The only hiccup? The volleyball ran out of candy early. Still, it was a great evening for all who participated.
