Nonprofits provide a way for people to work together and strengthen community ties while fostering a spirit of volunteerism that allows residents to stand up for their neighbors and make a difference. Big Bend Citizens Alliance, a community nonprofit based primarily out of South Brewster County, does just that.

Its Board of Directors is led by Terlingua resident Jenny Schooler. She said that during the COVID shutdown, the organization successfully raised $62,000 to help offset rent, housing expenses, transportation costs, medical expenses, utilities, food, shelter needs, animal feed, and more for residents who had lost their jobs.

“Rent was a big portion of it, and it wasn’t covered by any other aid organization,” said Schooler. “The Salvation Army was able to cover a utility bill for a person in Alpine that was well connected, but here in South County we have lots of off the grid people.”

Schooler first worked with the community garden in 2009, a sustainable, organic garden that includes a solar powered system, and is not connected to city water, but rainwater is harvested. Another project the group works with is Voices from Both Sides get together, usually held around Mother’s Day each year at the international boundary on the Rio Grande.

“We have a party by the river, and there is food and music, and it’s always been fun,” said Schooler. “It’s to bring awareness to the issue that the borders were closed, and there’s no official crossing station in Lajitas, and we miss our friends and family from the other side.”

The organization’s future plans are to get the baseball field up and running again. Things such as getting electricity back on for night games, doing clean up, repairs and maintenance, and focusing on baseball programs will all be on the radar. Recycling is also another issue.

“We are basically looking to pivot our recycling program into something that is just different. We are trying to do a composting thing, as opposed to plastic jugs and aluminum cans, where we can actually process our cardboard and make compost and do it here in South County, instead of moving any materials anywhere else, because that model is just not going to work in the future,” said Schooler.

Sara Allen Colando, the Brewster County Commissioner for Pct. 2, is the organization’s secretary. She summed up the experience the organization has for her and others as well.

“I’ve been involved since 2011 when my husband and I were asked to provide solar power for the Green Scene festival,” she said. “I’ve met the most wonderful people through my involvement, and I love it because it’s all about our community coming together to help each other. Neighbors helping neighbors!”

Schooler pointed out that because Terlingua is not incorporated, the community often relies on its residents to come together to work for the better good.

“We are community advocates for a community that’s pretty spread out over a large geographic area without any central government voice or support,” noted Schooler. “We don’t have a city government to make those things happen. It’s kind of up to us to do it.”