June 2026

Hector Ismael Balderrama, 80, passed away Tuesday, June 02, in Fort Stockton. He was born in Terlingua on February 24, 1946. Hector loved participating in Special Olympics not only in Alpine, where he was raised, but also in Carlsbad, New Mexico, and in Fort Stockton. Hector did not need to practice for Special Olympics because he naturally loved walking. He would walk all over Alpine making new friends and catching up with old friends. Later in life, Hector formed a strong bond with birds, especially his beloved cockatiel Paco. His bond was so strong that even when he was in the nursing home, he would ask for Paco to pray for him.

Yolanda Parras Marquez, 74, passed away on June 3, 2026, in Alpine. Yolanda was born on July 8, 1951, in Alpine, to Francisco Parras and Ramona Ramos Parras.

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The Alpine City Council held a special meeting on Tuesday, June 9, at 5:30 p.m. to enter into an executive session with the city attorney to address and deliberate the employment, discipline, or outright dismissal of City of Alpine Secretary Geoffrey “Geo” Calderon, who was placed on administrative leave with pay at last week’s regular city council meeting after being arrested for narcotics. All council members were present inside council chambers, except Rick Stephens, who joined via Zoom. Calderon was arrested just before 3 a.m. on May 30 for possession of a controlled substance, possession of a prohibited substance in a correctional facility, tampering with evidence, and resisting arrest.

In just a few short weeks, one of the world’s foremost museums, education, and research facilities will take a seat in Alpine at the Museum of the Big Bend. Beginning July 3 and running through August 8, the Museum of the Big Bend will host “Spark! Places of Innovation,” a traveling exhibit by the Smithsonian focused on innovation in rural America.

On Tuesday, the Trump Administration and the Department of Homeland Security continued to bypass a multitude of environmental laws to expedite the construction of border barriers and roads through Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park. This move marks a historic move by the federal government in discarding wide-ranging environmental laws that include the National Park Service Organic Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act inside a national park. According to a press release from the Center for Biological Diversity, Laiken Jordahl, a national public lands advocate, commented, saying, “The absolute disdain this administration has for our national parks is disgraceful, and now they’re targeting Texas’ most beloved national park.”

By now, most of us have heard of the current return of the New World Screwworm to American soil through a confirmed case on Wednesday, June 3, in a calf in South Texas. As expected, the situation remains extremely fluid, with additional cases popping up in several locations across the western and central parts of the state. While obviously disconcerting, this is not the first time we have had to deal with this particular pest in our own backyard, and there are several things to keep in mind over the coming weeks as the situation develops.

We met Bobbi Jo at a restaurant across the street from our Appleton, Wisconsin hotel. Her smile was exactly the kind of welcoming presence one needs a thousand miles from home, exhausted after a long day at an airshow, and swatting the everpresent ginormous mosquitoes during the short walk to get there.

Former principal speaks With regard to my exit as Fort Davis principal. I would like to clarify that I resigned from the position on May 15, 2026 (in FDISD’s public statement, the dates are both off by one day).

On Saturday, June 13, at 1 p.m. in the Alpine Public Library, the Big Bend Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas will host a program on Pollinators in the Davis Mountains by Eliana Goodwin of the Borderlands Research Institute. The event is open to the public, and all are welcome.