News

Davis Mountains State Park (DMSP), located just northwest of Fort Davis is under the new leadership of Diego Aragon, who is the new park superintendent. Aragon, previously at Choke Canyon State Park took over on October 1.

Visitors from Christmas past walked the main street in Fort Davis during their Christmas Parade recently. The Union soldiers in their warm wool coats passed out tiny wagons from the fort.

Earlier in the year, the Alpine Independent School District (AISD) received a $70,000 grant from the Permian Basin Area Foundation to be used towards technology for the district. This grant funding, when added to district instructional material funds, allowed AISD to purchase new laptops for every teacher, counselor, and attendance clerk in the district.

The Paisano Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) recently donated food and other items to the Sul Ross Lobo Pantry as part of one of its many service projects. Items from the Lobo Pantry are distributed to students with food insecurity.

Big Bend National Park announced last Wednesday that a new concession service has been selected to serve visitors for lodging, food and beverages, fuel, retail, the RV parks, and other visitor services. A new 15-year contract was signed with Casa Grande Hospitality, LLC, a subsidiary of Aramark. Services from the concession servicer will begin July 1, 2024. Aramark, the incumbent operator has provided services for Big Bend since it purchased Forever Resorts in 2022.

Christmas time is commercialized as a time of happiness and good cheer, but for an animal shelter, and those four-legged souls who are stuck there that is not always the case. The holidays, and December in particular see shelters across the country extra full of dogs and cats in need of a loving, forever home, and you can make their dream of a permanent home come true for half price.

In partnership with the Marathon Public Library, Marathon ISD, and the Missoula Children’s Theatre they brought a theatre production to the small community. Students from the local school auditioned for parts in the stage production, rehearsed, and even participated in acting workshops to prepare for the community performance.

The deadline for candidacy filings for the March primary ballot has come and gone, having expired on Monday, December 11 at 6 p.m. Currently, four candidates are running for office as Democrats, and five are running as Republicans in open county positions. Candidates elected to these positions will begin service in January 2025 and will serve a four-year term.

Many pieces of the water system in Alpine have been a puzzle. Some of the wells seem to refuse to fill up, entire networks operate without the required pressure, as well as mysterious water losses. Recently, the city has employed engineers to not only decipher the puzzle but to find ways to make it a better one.

The Alpine Emergency Services Board held its last meeting of the year on Tuesday, December 5. Two members of the board were absent, including Treasurer Stacy Wood, and Alpine Volunteer Fire Department (AVFD) Chief Andrew Pierce.