Rains County Leader (Emory, Tex.), Vol. 127, No. 3, Ed. 1 Tuesday, June 25, 2013 Page: 5 of 12
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TUESDAY, JUNE 25, 2013
Bains Qmnta Leader
BONNIE’S WORLD
Bored teenagers? Not that day
Solorio celebrates Quinceanera
BONNIE BURCH
Rains County Leader staff
One trip to the Rains County
Good Samaritans Thrift Store
(GS) begets another, if you know
what I mean. So many treasures,
so many charitable volunteers
and such a feel-good place to
be.
On a recent visit, there for
another reason, I visited with
volunteer Sherry Wilkerson who
suggested I come back later
when a group of 15 Pacesetter
volunteers would be there. Who
are they? I wondered.
Turned out they were an
amazing group of cream-of-the-
crop youth who were attend-
ing Glowing Heart Ministries’
Focus Point Base Camp in the
Alba-Golden area. Called Pac-
esetters because that’s exactly
what they are - leaders who set
the pace - those kids’ primary
goal was to serve.
Only at GS for a day, they
sat on concrete floors while
washing dusty glassware on bot-
tom shelves and balanced on
stools while sorting and hanging
clothes. Sherry said they also
diligently cleaned out flower
beds, scrubbed floors, sanitized
the freezers and work area in the
food pantry and cleaned ceiling
fans and air vents.
Praising them as well, other
volunteers said they tackled
behind-the scenes tasks that are
routinely missed because there
CITY GIRL
are simply not enough hours in
the day.
Not wanting to impede prog-
ress, I only talked with high
school student Andrew Estes
and team leader Rachel Haire.
Andrew is a tall, dark-haired
handsome lad with Christ in
his heart and a desire to serve.
Rachel, with hair refreshingly
pulled back in pigtails, added
she was there for the same rea-
sons.
Sherry said what impressed
her most was how the teens
accomplished the overall purpose
of Focus Pointe Base Camp: To
develop community awareness
by identifying the needs of the
community and finding ways to
serve. Throughout the day, she
observed skills such as team-
work and organization while
the teens worked cheerfully and
respectfully, traits Sherry would
like to see in our future leaders.
During a subsequent call to
Camp Coordinator Robert Lof-
tin, who has since gone to Ugan-
da, Africa, to serve at an orphan-
age through another ministry, I
learned that the teens also went
to an area nursing home and fel-
lowshipped, helped a disabled
man clean, inside and out, and
painted at the Mineola Library
that week.
Loftin explained that Grand
Prairie-based Glowing Heart
Ministries’ major goal is to min-
ister to youth, and it functions
under the auspices of Dallas
Baptist University. The Alba-
Golden camp, meanwhile, is
Christian-based but is essen-
tially non-denominational. He
added that youth from as far
away as Hawaii have attended.
Space may be rented, he noted,
for church functions, retreats,
etc.
During a prior visit to GS, I
talked with kids who were vis-
iting their grandmother in the
Emory area who brings them to
the facility to volunteer. They
said, “We can’t wait to get here
[to GS] because it’s the high-
light of our trip.”
To be sure, those words gave
me pause. When my grandkids
visit, I wear myself out trying to
dream up ways to entertain them.
I’ve endured hideous movies in
Greenville and Sulphur Springs
and visited the Discovery Sci-
ence Place in Tyler (great, by
the way) so many times I could
drive there blindfolded. Never
once did it enter my pea brain
to take my darlings to GS to
volunteer.
With only one left who is
young enough to enjoy com-
ing out to “Mimi’s house in the
woods,” my plan is to make sure
she is here before school starts
and haul her to GS. We’ll both
have fun and be involved in a
much-needed endeavor.
My hat’s off to the Paceset-
ters and other youth who aren’t
lounging around fingering tech
gadgets or staying glued to the
TV this summer. They’ve found
a way to feel worthy - and per-
form worthwhile tasks - at the
same time. Hopefully, those will
be America’s future leaders, and
boy am I glad.
(For ideas for future Bonnie’s
World columns, call 903-473-
2653 W, 903-473-1122 H or
email burchl44@verizon.net.)
Am I smarter than a fifth-grader?
By LINDA BRENDLE
Rains County Leader correspondent
No, I’m not even smarter than
the local squirrels.
Last year I wrote (and whined)
a lot about the squirrels who
were stealing my tomatoes. I
had two little plants and was so
proud when the little green fruit
started to show up. But one by
one, before any of them could
get larger than a golf ball, they
disappeared.
After searching the Internet
and picking the brain of every
experienced gardener I knew, I
narrowed down the usual sus-
pects to squirrels. I went to the
local hardware/lumber/garden/
everything store where the resi-
dent expert sold me some pellets
that were supposed to repel all
comers, but the tomatoes contin-
ued to disappear.
As the season drew to a close,
1 finally picked a 2" red tomato
that was disappointingly tasteless
and a handful of green tomatoes
that I breaded in Louisiana Fish
Fry and soaked in hot grease
until they were a beautiful gold-
en brown. They upset my stom-
ach. A less than stellar season,
but my cayenne and Anaheim
peppers were successful enough
to encourage me to try again this
year.
I started well enough. I lost
2 of 12 plants within the first
couple of days, but the remaining
10 thrived and bloomed. I staked
and fed and watered, and the
tomatoes came. And they stayed
- for a while. I guess the squir-
rels were still working on their
winter stash of acorns. Then the
tomatoes started to disappear.
One or two at first, so I wasn’t
completely sure any were miss-
ing. Then the thief got bolder,
taking more and leaving no doubt
of his crime.
I didn’t waste any time. I went
straight to Hooten’s, bought some
netting, hammered “tent” stakes
into the ground, and draped the
endangered plants. It worked
- for a while.
Sunday morning we came
home from church and there was
a squirrel - inside the tent -
chomping on a big green tomato.
Needless to say, I wasn’t pleased.
I screamed and stomped and the
squirrel went ballistic, dodging
between rows of tomatoes, trying
to find an exit. After he made his
getaway, I found the weakness
and fortified the perimeter.
After dinner, I went out to
water. There, sitting on one of
the boards that secured the net-
ting to the ground, was my big-
gest tomato with four bit bites
out of the top of it. That little
furry-tailed rat was taunting me!
I closed the gaps again the best I
could and went in the house and
cried on David’s shoulder.
Obviously we needed more
netting. The plants and their sup-
porting stakes were tall enough
that there wasn’t enough mate-
rial left to secure it to the ground
properly. Monday morning we
went out to rearrange what we
had in a way that would protect
the plants until we could get to
the store.
All was well when we left
for lunch, but we stayed at the
Center longer than usual, and of
course, we had to stop at Hoo-
ten’s on the way home. We got
home around 4:00 p.m., and the
first thing I saw when we pulled
into the driveway was a half-
eaten tomato laying about 10 feet
from the garden. Several smaller
victims lay scattered inside the
tent, and the center plant was
laying on its side.
I sighed in resignation and
went inside to fix dinner. David
reassured me that the raids were
probably over for the day and
promised to help me construct a
new shelter first thing Tuesday
morning.
It wasn’t a graceful under-
taking. The pieces of net are
14'xl4', and they kept snagging
on the support poles which are
mostly thin branches taken from
the dead trees David has been
cutting down. In addition, we
had to be careful not to step on
the row of peppers on one side
and the row of okra on the other.
We finally managed to remove
the original netting, shore up
the sagging stakes and plants,
and reconstruct the tent. There
was plenty of surplus material on
the ground, and we secured the
circumference with end-to-end
rocks and boards, double stack-
ing in areas that looked a little
vulnerable. We poked and prod-
Courtesy photo
QUINCEANERA CELEBRATION - Joanna Solorio, daughter of Miguel and Guadalupe Solorio of Emory,
is joined by her parents and damas and chambalanas during her Quinceanera celebration. Front row (l-r):
Emmanuel Aguilar, Diego Alvarez, Bryan Lopez, Ralphy Solorio, her father, Joanna, her mother, Vanessa
Campos, Maria Sanchez, Laura Garcia and Daniela Rodriquez; second row: Luis Garcia, David Tapia,
Sergio Camacho, Eric Castillo, Katia Rojo, Stephanie Ontiveros and Rosa Medrano.
By MINDA PAINTER
Rains County Leader correspondent
ded to check for weaknesses and
left for lunch feeling confident
that our crop was safe.
What can I say. The squirrel
is smarter than we are. When
we got home, there was half
of a larger green tomato sitting
right in the middle of the tomato
patch. It was the ultimate locked-
door mystery. We poked and
prodded some more and couldn’t
find anywhere he could have got-
ten in or out. David checked
later and said there was a place
where the two pieces of netting
overlapped by several feet. He
said it was possible the squirrel
had made his way down the “cor-
ridor” between the two and come
back out the same way. David
closed the gap and, although he
hasn’t carried through yet, threat-
ened to pull up a chair and guard
the garden with his pellet gun.
The good thing is that the
tomatoes are prolific and, in spite
of the pilferage, there are lots
left. Maybe the squirrel will take
pity and leave us a few. All I
want is enough for a nice salad,
maybe a sandwich or two, and a
couple of jars of salsa. Is that too
much to ask?
Linda Brendle writes a weekly col-
umn for Believers’ Baptist Church. She
also writes about caregiving, faith and
family at http://www.LifeAfterCaregi
ving.WordPress.com. You can email her
at LindaBrendle@yahoo.com.
The celebration of a girl’s 15th
birthday in Latin America marks
a girl’s transition from child-
hood to womanhood, referred to
as a Quinceanera Festivity.
Last Saturday, June 22, Joanna
Solorio, daughter of Miguel and
Guadalupe Solorio of Emory,
was the quinceanera celebrant.
During the proceedings, she was
accompanied by her Court of
Honor, made up largely of peers
from Rains High School.
Joanna was dressed in a for-
mal, baby blue ballgown. Her
Court of Honor was made up
of seven pairs of girls and boys,
known as damas and chambel-
anes. Damas were dressed in
formal, dark blue gowns and
chambelanes were in dark blue
chalecos.
The festivity began with a
Thanksgiving Mass at St. John
the Evangelist Catholic Church
in Emory. A processional entry
demonstrated the solemnity
of presenting the celebrant to
SPRING MEETING
receive the blessing of God.
After the Mass, a reception
was held at the Greenville Civic
Auditorium. A mariachi band
and special songs, rendered by
her dama, Katia Rojo, serenaded
guests at dinner. Several events
took place, including the presen-
tation of gifts.
A close friend from Scout
Venture Crew 345, Vickie
Jimenez, vested her with a tiara,
which tells the world that she is
a “princess” in the eyes of God
and the world, has triumphed
over childhood and faces the
challenges ahead.
The “Change of Shoes” cer-
emony was carried out by older
sister, Katia Solorio. Accompa-
nied by Edgar Camacho, they
slipped on Joanna’s first pair of
high-heel shoes.
In the “Ceremony of the Last
Doll,” a doll, wearing a similar
dress as the quinceanera, was
presented to her by her father.
That ceremony is based on a
Mayan tradition and is related to
the girl’s receipt and renounce-
ment of the doll as she grows
into womanhood. Likewise, the
ceremony of the “Change of
Shoes” symbolizes the girl’s
passage into maturity.
Father and daughter danced
the traditional quinceanera waltz
with the doll. Her two-year old
sister, Camilla, continued the
waltz with the celebrant, then
Joanna was joined by four-year-
old sister, Alexandria. The old-
est of the four sisters, Katia,
embraced her sisters to finish
the dance. Joanna’s brother,
Miguel, took his turn in a spin
around the floor while their
mother watched.
Since Joanna is an active
trooper in Venture Crew 345, a
surprise gift box was presented
by crew leaders Tammy and Joe
Legenza. A dash for balloons
and candies, included in the box,
was a big treat to the many kids
in the crowd.
Several choreographed danc-
es were performed by Joanna
and her court, and another band
enlivened the party to the enjoy-
ment of everyone.
Museum hosts Historical Association meeting
On Tuesday, June 18, the
A.C. McMillan African Ameri-
can Museum hosted the first
Program Committee Meeting
for the 2014 Spring Meeting of
the East Texas Historical Asso-
ciation to be held in Emory.
The meeting included individ-
uals from surrounding counties
associated with several muse-
ums, libraries, colleges/universi-
ties and historical associations.
Theodore and Gwendolyn Lawe
of the A.C. McMillan African
American Museum, Keeley
Roan and Nancy Deemer are
participating on the Program
Planning Committee on behalf
of the Museum, City of Emory
and Rains County.
All are planning to make this
a memorable occasion for the
City of Emory, since it will be
a first visit to the city for many
attendees.
Elaine Bay, author of Images
of America: Rains County and
former Rains County resident,
was in town for the meeting and
is looking forward to participat-
ing and including members of
the Rains County community in
the Spring Conference.
She encourages all interested
parties to register for the Spring
Meeting. Membership in the
East Texas Historical Associa-
tion is not required, although it
is suggested. Information regard-
ing the East Texas Historical
Association can be obtained by
going the Association’s website
at www. easttexashistorical. org.
Volunteers from the Genea-
logical Society, the Historical
Association, the Friends of the
Library and other organizations
will be needed as the meeting
nears. Contact Gwendolyn Lawe
at acmaam.@aol.com. or Keeley
Roan at keeley @ emorytx.com if
you are interested in participat-
ing in the planning of this con-
ference.
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Hill, Earl Clyde, Jr. Rains County Leader (Emory, Tex.), Vol. 127, No. 3, Ed. 1 Tuesday, June 25, 2013, newspaper, June 25, 2013; Emory, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth823080/m1/5/: accessed June 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rains County Library.