The Penny Record (Bridge City, Tex.), Vol. 32, No. 45, Ed. 1 Tuesday, February 5, 1991 Page: 1 of 10
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The Penny ^Record
'vHome Owned and Operated"
Vol XXXII, No. 45
Bridge City, Texas
February 5,1991
FREE
New library prepares for
opening; week-long
celebration planned
ORANGE COUNTY DAY-One of the largest crowds ever attended
Orange County Day in Austin on Jan. 2B. State Representative Ron
Lewis and State Senator Carl Parker are pictured with delegations from
Orange, West Orange, Pinehurst, Bridge City and Vidor.
BPW honors
As the first neatly covered book
was placed on the library shelf two
weeks ago, Friends of the Bridge
City Library and new librarian,
Mary Montgomery, began the last
crucial step in opening Bridge
City’s first public library. Library
volunteers are excited to see the in-
terim site close it’s doors and the
brand new structure at 101
Parkside begin to breathe exist-
ence. The modern building is ad-
jacent to the Bridge City Com-
munity Center.
The first box of freshly covered
books were brought to the new
library two weeks ago by city per-
sonnel with volunteers waiting to
place the alphabetized volumes on
the recently assembled shelves.
Additional volunteers are needed
to ready the library for the long
awaited March 14 ribbon cutting
ceremonies.
The Friends of the Bridge City
Public Library held their first year-
ly book sale at the interim site last
Saturday netting over $200. All
proceeds from the sale will be used
to purchase new books for the
library.
Librarian Mary Montgomery ex-
pects to open the library with some
7,500 volumes. The majority of
books have been donated with an
efficient selection of best sellers
and other excellent condition edi-
tions. A wide variety of periodicals
will also be available immediately
upon opening.
The Friends group plans a week-
long celebration for the library’s
grand opening. “We want to in-
clude all the school kids as well as
the general public in our celebra-
tions,” said Chiasson. “We are so
proud of the hard work we have
done for the last two years. We have
worked week after week; it’s clear-
ly a dream come true.”
The Friends will have local wood-
carver Randall Roberts and others
display their carvings with
demonstrations for the school
children during the first two days of
opening, March 18-19. Other ac-
tivities are planned to continue
through the second week of April
which is National Library Week.
If anyone would like to volunteer
their time to help open the library
they may call 735-4242. Library
hours are Monday through
Thursday, 1-6 p.m. All donations to
the Friends group and library are
tax deductible. All residents of
Orange County will be able to use
the library with no card fee
charged. Valid identification will
be necessary.
Ginny and Jack Plunk
Mr. and Mrs. Plunk to be
honored by Chamber
That “special” someone comes
along rarely and Bridge City is for-
tunate to have a couple that fits the
bill. The Bridge City Chamber of
Commerce will host a coffee for
Jack and Virginia “Ginny” Plunk
on Wednesday, Feb. 13 at 8 a.m. at
Jeannie’s Fashions, 2009 Texas
Avenue.
The Plunks have owned Plunks
Photography Studio on Texas
Avenue in Bridge City since June
14, 1946, having opened their first
shop in Orange the year prior.
Plunk built the studio himself with
brick cinder blocks. The couple
have retired after 45 years at the
same location with their business
being a landmark of the com-
munity. The street in which their
business was located was earned
after them in 1970.
Jack and Ginny Plunk are making
a big adjustment with their recent
retirement. When asked what
famous customers they may have
taken a picture of over the last 45
years, Mrs. Plunk said, “All of our
customers have been famous to us.”
The couple will celebrate their
47th wedding anniversary on
March 25. Their many hobbies will
keep them busy, also reminiscing
about old limes. The Plunks are
avid music enthusiast having sang
together live on KOGT Radio “a
long time ago,” said Plunk. Mr.
Plunk plays the violin, guitar and
mandolin. He is a member of a
small band of retired musicians
who play at local nursing homes
and special occasions when asked.
The Plunks are charter members
of the Bridge City Masonic Lodge
# 1345 and charter members of the
the Eastern Star #1038. He is past
officer of the Royal Arch Chapter
#78 Masonic Lodge of Orange.
They were instrumental in building
the Bridge City Full Gospel Church
in 1949 and now attend the As-
sembly of God Church of Bridge
City. Mrs. Plunk is a native of Vir-
ginia and he is a native of
Beaumont.
Other hobbies for the couple in-
clude visiting the sick and elderly,
gardening, making audio tapes and
reading.
The public Is invited to attend the
Chamber coffee for the Plunks on
Feb. 13.
Shae Mikels and band Deep South. Bottom: Jeff Mere, Shae Mikels.
top, Kevin Carlberg, Mike Thompson, Kenzie Newman.
Shae Mikels: Singing career
takes long hours, hard work
by Barbara Fix
“There’s more to it than getting
on stage and singing,” said Shae
Swearingen, who will perform
Friday and Saturday at the Barbary
Coast in Port Arthur.
Establishing a singing career
takes promotion, dedication and
patience, especially patience, said
Swearingen, who performs under
the stage name Shae Mikels.
Everything must be done in a par-
ticular sequence, Mikels said, and
at the proper time.
As fellow graduates of Bridge
City High School went on to jobs
and colleges in the summer of 1990,
Mikels began the steps that she
hoped would lead to a career in
country and western music.
Several months earlier a chance
meeting with former artists’
promoter Bob Lavergne in her
uncle’s denist office had developed
into a serious discussion about
Mikels’ music and singing ambi-
tions. Lavergne said he would help
Mikels when she was ready to start
her singing career.
That summer when Mark
Chestnut! had a big hit with “Too
Cold at Home,” she decided to call
Levergne.
Mikels had performed with
Chestnutt while she was in high
school. “When he did well, it was an
inspiration to me,” she said.
During the phone conversation,
Mikels accepted Lavergne's offer
to manager her career and began
the process of turning a dream into
reality.
The first step was recording a
promotional cassette, “Run Like
The Wind,” at Master Trak Studios
in Crowley, Louisiana.
Finding a band was the next step.
A singer can make a recording
without a band but can’t perform
live without one, Mikels said.
Lavergne looked for musicians
who could play well and were com-
patible with each other and with
Mikels. After working with several
musicians, Lavergne and Mikels
chose the Deep South Band led bv
Jeff Mere.
Next, Mikels, her mother Thelma
Taft, and Lavergne traveled to
Nashville, Tenn. to meet with music-
producers and writers. While
See MIKELS, page 8
Report from Washington
Join the “Mail Call” support team
by Congressman Charles
Wilson
A friend of mine heard recently
from another friend of ours who is
an officer on the USS Saratoga.
The Super Sara, as her crew calls
her, is one of the U.S. Navy Aircraft
carriers in the Persian Gulf. It is
also the carrier that suffered the
first combat casualty of Operation
Desert Storm: Lt.Cmdr. Michael
Speicher.
Our sailor friend spoke of the
spirit of the other sailors and Navy
pilots he is serving with, of their
dedication and their hard work.
One part of his letter asked a favor
of my friend, and at his suggestion
I’d like to share that excerpt with
you:
“Besides ‘liberty call,’ the most
welcome sound a sailor at sea will
hear is ‘mail call, mail call.’ Mail
brings a link with home and familiar
surroundings.
“Unfortunately, for many
reasons, many of our sailors do not
receive much mail. I would en-
courage your readers to write to
these young men. Send the letters
to: Dear Sailor; c/o Public Affairs
Office; USS Saratoga (CV 60);
FPO Miami 34078-2740
“Often these letters (even from a
stranger) provide positive feed-
back letting the men know that
their sacrifices are appreciated.
And that encouragement, as your
old Navy friends will tell you, is
what sustains them in tough times.”
I am one of those “old Navy
friends,” and 1 know that what this
man is saying is very true. These are
the toughest times many of the
young men and women participat-
ing in Desert Storm will ever know.
A letter of support, just a few words
of encouragement, is an easy way
See MAIL CALL, page 2
Bette Davidson
as Woman of the Year
The Bridge City Business and
Professional Women’s Organiza-
tion will honor their Woman of the
Year with a banquet on Monday,
Feb. 11 at St. Paul’s United
Methodist Church. The 1991
recipient of the honor is Bette
Davidson.
Mrs. Davidson is a graduate of
Nederland High School. She has
been employed with Bill Nickum
State Farm Insurance for the past
five years. She is attending Lamar
University in Beaumont seeking a
bachelor of science degree in
education. Mrs. Davidson was
recently inducted into Kappa Delta
Pi Honor Society at Lamar Univer-
sity.
Mrs. Davidson was selected
Woman of the Year for her dedi-
cated work in the community and
within the BPW organization. This
year’s honoree states that she is
proud to be a member of the Busi-
ness and Professional Women’s
Organization for the contributions
the club makes to helping other
women. The organization provides
scholarships for high school female
students and mature women
returning to college seeking a
career. She is proud of the con-
tributions made to charity and for
the involvement of the young laics
in the Miss Bridge City Pageant.
In the seven years since she be-
Bette Davidson
e a member of the BPW or-
zation, she has held the offices
:cretary, first and second vice
idents, president-elect and
ident of the organization. She
served on various committees,
ing as chairman of the annual
ng Style Show and the Miss
Ige City Pageant.
:tte is the wife of Jerry David-
president of Bridge City State
k. They have two children:
w, age 3 and Jill, age 16. She
her family are members of
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Taft, Thelma. The Penny Record (Bridge City, Tex.), Vol. 32, No. 45, Ed. 1 Tuesday, February 5, 1991, newspaper, February 5, 1991; Bridge City, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1170857/m1/1/?q=Lamar+University: accessed June 1, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .