The Mercedes Enterprise (Mercedes, Tex.), Vol. 86, No. 47, Ed. 1 Wednesday, November 25, 1998 Page: 1 of 40
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Mercedes Area Newspapers and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Library.
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, Mercedes, Texas 78570 Wednesday, November 25,1998
Volume 86
Number 47
Price 50c
Community Thanksgiving Service
Wednesday at El Principe de Paz |
People from across Mercedes will located at the corner of Georgia and
gather for the Annual Mercedes Com- Fourteen Streets.
munity Thanksgiving Service this The Mercedes Ministerial Asso-
Wednesday, November 25. ciation sponsors the event each year.
The service begins at 7 p.m. at El Thanksgiving worship services, to
Principe De Paz Presbyterian Church, be offered in both English and Span-
ish, will feature hymns, special songs,
scripture reading and prayers offered
by pastors and members of cooperat-
ing Mercedes churches.
A NM Y
TONS DONATED TO EFFORT
School children show
their 'spirit of giving'
To provide a special Thanksgiving
message is Rev. Don Brynteson, pas-
tor of the Mercedes Christian Church.
ACCELERATED READERS RECOGNIZED —
Mercedes High School English teachers are using
the Accelerated Reader Program as a tool to
encourage students to read more, leading them
to become independent, self-directed readers and
learners. The program is also designed to
contribute to the development of critical, analytical
thinking skills, to make reading fun and to help
students develop a lasting love for reading. High
achieving readers recently recognized included,
in front from left, Julie Zepeda, Becky Diaz, top
reader Cristina Reffner, Erica Estrada and Ben
Aranjon. In middle row, in same order, are Diana
Torres, Angela Diaz, Vanessa Rangel, Clarissa
Medina, Maricela Velasquez and Vanessa Perez.
In back are Juan Saldana, Roxann Carr, Lawrence
Garza, Erica Reyes and Edith De La Rosa. The AR
Program has been instrumental in promoting
reading for those reluctant readers, and for other
students it has become a challenge because the
more they read, the more points they earn to
qualify for certification levels and incentives,
program directors say. (Enterprise Photo.)
Mercedes public schools’ efforts
to assist victims of the devastation
caused by Hurricane Mitch have
brought the community together in the
“spirit of giving,” district officials say.
Administrators expressed surprise
at the outpouring of generosity shown
byMercedes students. “Approximately
10,098 items consisting of canned
foods, boxed dry food, diapers, bottled
water, and stuffed animals made the
relief effort a great success,” says Dr.
Ismael Cantu, district assistant super-
intendent.
“After being packed and sealed
into over 200 boxes, the items weighed
over three tons,” Dr. Cantu says.
The goods were delivered to the
Hurricane Mitch Relief Center located
between Pharr and Edinburg, where
they were to be placed in shipping
containers. Then, they are to be air-
lifted to Managua, Nicaragua by a
U.S. government sponsored C-130 air-
craft, or shipped by a Chiquita brands
banana boat.
“On behalf of Mercedes school
district, we’d like to say thanks to all
of the children, parents, and other citi-
zens, the American Legion and
Mercedes ISD employees who made
this relief effort such a great success,”
Dr. Cantu concludes.
The Mercedes Ministerial Asso-
ciation sponsors the service each year
as an opportunity for believers of “Like
Precious Faith” to gather for fellow-
ship. The churches that participate in
this annual event include El Buen Pas-
tor Methodist Church, El Principe De
Paz Presbyterian Church, First Baptist
Church, First Presbyterian Church,
First United Methodist Church,
Mercedes Christian Church, Iglesia
del Nazareno, Southside Iglesia
Bautista and La Alianza Christiana Y
Misionera.
“We invite the community to join
us for Christian fellowship and to cel-
ebrate our faith in our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ, and return thanks to Him
for His goodness and blessings,” say
the spokesmen.
A freewill offering will be received.
Refreshments will be served follow-
ing the service in the fellowship hall.
Police Department
to receive $36,272
Mercedes Police Department has
received a grant from the US Depart-
ment of Justice in the amount of
$36,272, it has been announced by US
Senator Phil Gramm.
Some 200 Texas cities and coun-
ties were awarded grants totaling over
$31 million under a program to help
“reduce crime and improve public
safety.”
The grants, administered by the
US Justice Department’s Bureau of
Justice Assistance were made under
the Local Law Enforcement Block
Grants Program.
“I am pleased that nearly 200 local
law enforcement agencies in texas are
receiving this help, and am confident
this money will go a long way in help-
ing them combat drug trafficking and
violent crime,” Gramm said.
Specifically, the senator said, the
grants were distributed using a for-
mula based on violent crime data the
FBI has collected from the states and
localities covering the last three years.
BJA made direct awards to units of
local government that qualified for the
funds.
Firms can promote
themselves at fete
Preparations are underway for the
Annual Mercedes Winter Texas Re-
ception, to be sponsored by the
Mercedes Area Chamber of Commerce
on December 1, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
in the Youth Center at the Rio Grande
Valley Livestock Show Grounds, says
Edna R. Martinez, Chamber President.
Chairmen of this annual event, as in
the past will be Ken and Bob Eilers.
Mayor Miguel Castillo Jr. will give
the official welcome to the Mercedes
area and the Valley.
Door prizes are made available each
year to the Winter Texans attending.
Merchants who wish to include gift
items in the “Welcome Bag” are asked
to drop them off at the Chamber office
located at 316 South Ohio (at the former
CPL building) in Mercedes. “Welcome
Bags” are given to each couple attend-
ing, which averages about 300, so that
many items will need to be provided.
Some area businesses may elect to
donate door prizes instead of welcome
bag items, which are most welcomed.
'Make every day a Day of Thanksgiving
Travis earns
• SWB grant
Travis Elementary School has been
awarded $5,000 for its March to Suc-
cess program, by the Southwestern
Bell Foundation.
The program promotes parental
involvement with a partnership be-
tween parents and teachers and special
a activities throughout the school year.
“Each year, the Southwestern Bell
Foundation recognizes the best alli-
ance between active parents, commu-
nities and schools through the Parents
as School Partners program,” said
Gloria Delgado, president of the South-
western Bell Foundation. “This pro-
gram gives us a chance to make a real
difference by rewarding programs that
encourage parents to take an active
a role in their children’s education.”
“When parents are involved, chil-
dren stay in school and achieve more
through their studies,” said Sonia
Perez, executive director-external af-
fairs for Southwestern Bell. “The Par-
ents as School Partners program helps
improve in their students’ education.”
For additional information, one can
contact Ramiro R. Sierra, Executive
Director, at 565-2221.
Thanksgiving celebrations in some form have been held for thou-
sands of years in many countries. The first Thanksgiving Days were
Harvest Festivals, days for thanking God with feasting and prayer for
a plentiful harvest and the blessings of the previous year. Our Thanks-
giving Day is rooted in this tradition and especially takes us back to the
Pilgrims at Plymouth Colony.
Thanksgiving Days for the Pilgrims were days set aside to worship
and praise God in congregational meetings, followed by a meal together
for a particular victory or blessing. According to Christian History
Institute, the first official Pilgrim Thanksgiving Day in America was in
July of 1623, to give thanks to God for rain after a drought, and was
probably the real start of our present holiday. However, the event we
remember and associate most with Thanksgiving is the festival the
Pilgrims held in 1621, likely in October, which commemorated the
harvest of Plymouth Colony following a winter of great hardship.
The Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, Massachusetts, December 11,
1620. Forty-seven of the 102 Pilgrims died during that first bitter
winter. Looking at the desperate situation Governor Bradford wrote,
“Only the Spirit of God could sustain them now.” Those who survived
did so with the help of Squanto, an Indian who helped them build
shelters, gather food and, in the spring, plant their first crops. It was the
harvesting of these crops that prompted the Pilgrims to celebrate.
Hunters went into the woods after turkeys, geese and ducks. The
Indians were invited to join them and added five deer to the menu. The
Pilgrims feasted, prayed, sang songs of praise to God and participated
in races and athletic events for three days with Chief Massasoit and 90
Indian guests who joined the celebration.
During the next 200 years. Thanksgiving was only sporadically
observed. The Pilgrims and some of our founding fathers were opposed
to the idea of having a Nationally Proclaimed Day for Thanksgiving.
They believed that Thanksgiving should be a spontaneous response to
special Diving blessings.
In October of 1777, the Continental Congress appointed a commit-
tee to draft a resolution for a common Thanksgiving Day to be observed
throughout the 13 colonies. The resolution passed and December 18,
1777 was set to commemorate the first major success of America in its
struggle for independence. There were 8 special days of Thanksgiving
observed for victories and for being saved from dangers during the
Revolutionary war.
The first proclamation of a National Thanksgiving Day was pro-
claimed by President George Washington, October 3,1789. He stated,
“...both Houses of Congress have requested me to recommend to the
people of the United States a day of public Thanksgiving and prayer to
be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many favors of
Almighty god, especially by affording them an opportunity to establish
a form of government for their safety and happiness. I recommend and
assign Thursday, the 26 day of November...to acknowledge the provi-
dence of God which we experience in the course and conclusion of the
war...to thank God for our independence, our liberty, and our form of
government...to be grateful for His benefit and to humbly implore his
protection and favor...beseeching him to pardon our transgressions and
enable us to render our Government a blessing to all the people by being
a government of wise laws, faithfully executed and obeyed.”
Thanksgiving eventually became an established, national holiday
largely due to the efforts of Mrs. Sarah Hale. She began to actively
campaign for a National Thanksgiving Day in 1827 and finally in 1863
President Abraham Lincoln declared that “henceforth, the last Thurs-
day of each November would be a National Thanksgiving Holiday, as
a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our Father who dwells in the
heavens.” Each year afterward for 75 years, the President formally
proclaimed that Thanksgiving Day should be celebrated on the last
Thursday in November. In 1941, Congress permanently established
Thanksgiving Day as the fourth Thursday in November.
Someone has said that “Thankfulness is the parent of all virtues.”
Thankfulness requires thoughtfulness. It is easy and somewhat a trait of
human nature to just live, breathe God’s air, eat His food, enjoy health,
wealth, freedom and the blessings of America and take it all for granted.
At this Thanksgiving Season, let’s stop and think and truly return
heartfelt thanks and appreciation to God and the people who benefit our
lives. Then let’s seek to make every day a Day of Thanksgiving! We
really don’t need more to be thankful for — we just need to be more
thankful!
Rev. Don Brynteson
Mercedes Christian Church
CELEBRATING BOOK WEEK — National Children’s Book Week brings
numerous guest readers to local elementary schools each year, and this
year’s recent event was no exception. In photo above at left, Superintendent
of Mercedes Schools Jesus Gandara is shown as he reads to students in
Room 35. Also doing their part to reinforce the importance of reading were
second grade students, who were called on to read to their first grade
counterparts. In photo at right, second grader Tanya Trevino reads to first
graders from Room 5, while in back are Teacher Zita Castillo and Teacher
Aide Gracie Johnson. (Enterprise Photos.)
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The Mercedes Enterprise (Mercedes, Tex.), Vol. 86, No. 47, Ed. 1 Wednesday, November 25, 1998, newspaper, November 25, 1998; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1632236/m1/1/?q=mission+rosario: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Library.