Brazos 360

SUMMER 2017

LIFE LESSONS

Parenting and pep talks for kids and adults AGGIE HISTORY

WHAT’S IN YOUR OFFICE?

PARTY PICS

Hershel’s at The Stella honors former A&M football standout

Get a peek at Sheriff Chris Kirk’s desk and memorabilia

Photos from events and festivals around town

OPAS SEASON

2017-18

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Inside

EVENT CALENDAR

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Get ready for wine events, Fourth of July celebrations and concerts this summer.

BY THE NUMBERS

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The Bombers’ four-peat, summer blockbusters, Disney trips and hot dogs on the Fourth.

360 PROFILE

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Jaime Sorg explores craft beer appreciation with Girls Pint Out.

360 PROFILE

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Ryan and Melissa Swope are back in Aggieland and loving it.

COVER STORY

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Letters from four parents about lessons learned and the advice they have for their children and other parents.

AGGIE HISTORY

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Hershel’s at The Stella pays tribute to a former A&M student and football standout.

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DINING

Try the bacon-wrapped scallops at Madden’s, the ribs at Fargo’s and the Jackalope Julep at West End Elixir Company.

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PARTY PICS

Photos from the Wine and Roses Festival, Business After Hours, Kite Fest, Relay for Life of Aggieland and the Rudder High prom.

WHAT’S IN YOUR OFFICE?

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STAFF Crystal Dupré PUBLISHER

Sean Lewis SALES DIRECTOR

Linda Brinkman ADVERTISING MANAGER

Kelly Brown EDITOR

Rob Clark SPECIAL PROJECTS EDITOR

Timothy Hurst and Dave McDermand PHOTOGRAPHERS

Sheriff Chris Kirk’s office is overflowing with interesting trinkets and memorabilia.

THE LAST WORD All hail the poop emoji. Wait, what?

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ON THE COVER Tyson and Christi Voelkel with children Eliana and Violet. Photo by Dave McDermand.

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Local EVENTS ‘PASSION/ASSASSINS’ The Theatre Company presents Sondheim’s two one-act musicals. Passion tells the story of an Italian soldier pursued by two women. Assassins is a fantasy based in Dallas about famous assassins who influence Lee Harvey Oswald.

Details: June 25 at 2 p.m. at the Theatre Company, 3125 S. Texas Ave., Bryan. $20. theatrecompany.com.

Photo TIMOTHY HURST | THE EAGLE

HARVEST AT MESSINA HOF The festival features a variety of wine-related events.

4545 Old Reliance Road, Bryan.

Moonlit Harvest The event kicks off the festival with the Blessing of the Vines, grape picking and stomping, a dinner buffet and wine. July 28 at 7:30 p.m. $59.95.

Daytime Harvest Grape picking and stomping, winery tour and tasting. July 29, Aug. 5, Aug. 12, Aug. 19 from 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. $35-$75, $12 for children 12 and younger.

Murder Mystery Dinner Guests become the actors and storytellers. July 29 and Aug. 4 at 7 p.m. $69.95.

40th Anniversary Celebration Dinner A three-course meal paired with award-winning wine. Aug. 5 at 7 p.m. $69.95.

SAM RIGGS

CONCERTS AT HURRICANE HARRY’S Doors at 9 p.m. 313 College Ave. Mike Ryan: July 7. $10.

Sam Riggs: July 21. $10.

Stoney LaRue: July 28. $15.

Sean McConnell: Aug. 11. $10. harrys.bcsclubs.com/events.

‘HELLO, DOLLY!’ The Theatre Company presents the musical that focuses on love in New York during the early 20th century.

Details: Aug. 4-20. 7 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. 3125 S. Texas Ave., Bryan. $20. theatrecompany.com.

Painting with Wine A light dinner paired with wine, and painting inside the art gallery. Supplies provided. Aug. 11 at 7:30 p.m. $59.95.

Cellar Tour and Dinner Guests tour the estate and learn about the winery’s history, and have a three-course meal paired with wine. Aug. 12 at 6:30 p.m. Reservations required. $69.95.

Grand Finale Gala An evening of new wine releases and gourmet cuisine to toast the end of the festival. Aug. 19 at 7 p.m. Reservations required. $99.95.

MESSINAHOF.COM/EVENTS/P18

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“I LOVE AMERICA” CELEBRATION The College Station Noon Lions Club’s annual fireworks show is accompanied by the Brazos Valley Symphony Orchestra. The event features concessions, live music, games and bounce houses.

Details: July 4 at the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum. The concert that will accompany the fireworks begins at 8:45 p.m. Free. bush41.org/events-listing.

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SUMMER 2017

FIREWORKS ON THE BRAZOS The event features fireworks, live music, crafts for children, interactive historic re-enactments and old-fashioned baseball games.

Entrance to the park is free; fees apply to Barrington Farm, the Star of the Republic Museum and tours of Independence Hall.

Details: July 4 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at Washington on the Brazos State Historic Site. Free. wheretexasbecametexas.org.

Thousands gather to watch the Fourth of July fireworks show at the George Bush Presidential Library.

Eagle file photo

KURTEN FIREWORKS SHOW The District 2 Volunteer Fire Department fundraiser features children’s activities, silent auction and food. Fireworks begin around 9 p.m. Raffle winners will be announced right before the fireworks.

Details: July 4 at 5 p.m. at Kurten Community Center, 13055 Texas 21, Kurten. Free. district2vfd.org.

NAVASOTA CITY PARADE AND INDEPENDENCE DAZE Attendees are invited to participate in the parade, and can bring bikes, wagons, skates and pets. The Navasota Center will have free games, a rock climbing wall, moon walk, slip and slide and refreshments.

Details: July 4, the parade begins at 10 a.m. at Prosperity Bank.

Independence Daze begins at 10:30 at the Navasota Center, 101 Stadium Drive, Navasota. Free.

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RAY WYLIE HUBBARD The longtime singer-songwriter, known for songs including Up Against the Wall Redneck Mother, Snake Farm and Drunken Poet’s Dream, performs with opening act Kelley Mickwee.

Details: Aug. 12 at 8 p.m. at Lakeside Icehouse at Lake Bryan, 8200 Sandy Point Road. lakebryan.com/slideshow.

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Donna Lamarche fixed a tangle in her machine before spinning a roll of alpaca fur at the Brazos Valley Farmers’ Market in Bryan in 2015.

Eagle file photo

BRAZOS VALLEY FARMERS’ MARKET Get locally grown produce, along with eggs, jellies, honey, herbs and various crafts.

Details: Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon on 21st Street, between Main Street and Bryan Avenue. downtownbryan.com.

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SUMMER FILM SERIES Bring blankets and lawn chairs to enjoy films under the stars. Games and refreshments will begin at 7 p.m., and the movie will start just after sundown. Coolers are allowed. No pets or glass containers.

Details: George Bush Presidential Library, 1000 George Bush Drive West.

Free. bush41.org/events-listing.

• Flicka, Aug. 25 at 7 p.m.

• Babe, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m.

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Special advertising section

The George Bush Presidential Library and Museum is honored to host the College Station Noon Lions Club's “I Love America” Fourth of July Celebration. The museum will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. with free admission all day.

Concessions start at 5:30 p.m. and include Slovacek’s sausage on a stick, roasted corn, pizza, a BBQ food truck, snow cones and refreshments. There will also be free watermelon while supplies last. Live entertainment and the Kids' Zone will open at

FREE MUSEUM ADMISSION

6 p.m. The Kids' Zone includes games, bounce houses, face painting and Paw Paw’s Train.

The evening will culminate with a patriotic concert by the Brazos Valley Symphony Orchestra and a spectacular fireworks display, which will begin at 9:30 p.m.

1000 George Bush Drive West College Station, TX 77845 979.691.4000

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For more information visit Bush41.org or call 979-691-4014.

FIREWORKS

By the Numbers

4 A round of applause for the Brazos Valley Bombers, for winning four straight Texas Collegiate League championships. As the team’s website states, the Bombers are “the first team to repeat, three-peat and now four-peat in the Texas Collegiate League and the first team to four-peat in the history of summer collegiate baseball in the United States.” Few teams in any sport have reached the four-peat feat. Among those that have: the New York Yankees (four straight titles from 1936 to 1939 and five straight from 1949 to 1953), the Boston Celtics (eight straight titles from 1959 to 1966), UCLA men’s basketball (seven straight from 1967 to 1973), the WNBA’s Houston Comets (four straight from 1997 to 2000) and the Connecticut women’s basketball team (four straight from 2013 to 2016).

48 million

Making the big trip to Disney World this summer? That whopping number is the estimated yearly attendance at Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom and Downtown Disney, according to Orlando-Florida. net. So let’s break that down: A heavier attendance during the summer months means that you’ll be mingling with, bumping into and smelling approximately 130 people per square foot. (Don’t check my math on that.) There’s no doubt, however, that Disney can live up to its label as “the happiest place on Earth,” especially the Magic Kingdom. That park also qualifies as “the most expensive place on Earth” and “the ‘what-doyou-mean-there’sno-beer?’ place on Earth.”

2,000 Hooray, the Fourth of July is around the corner. Time to gather with family and friends and light sparklers, right?

Those little sticks can burn as high as 2,000 degrees, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Those annual warnings you hear about fireworks safety are legit: The CPSC reports that in the month around the holiday, 230 people a day go to emergency rooms with fireworks-related injuries. The most commonly damaged body parts are hands and fingers at 36 percent, followed by a tie for second with eyes and the combination of head, face and ears. Firecrackers are the worst offender, involved in 20 percent of injuries, followed by sparklers (19 percent) and reloadable shells (9 percent). Most injuries happen to the 25-44 age group (34 percent), the commission reports.

150 million Yep, that’s the number of hot dogs consumed

by Americans on July 4, according to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council (Imagine the businesscard potential of that particular council.)

That many hot dogs could “stretch from D.C. to L.A. more than five times,” the council’s website proclaims.

Other fun figures: Americans eat 7 billion hot dogs between Memorial Day and Labor Day. At Major League Baseball ballparks, fans devoured 19.4 million hot dogs last year. And look for Joey Chestnut to aim for his 10th championship at Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest on July 4. Last year he inhaled 70 hot dogs in 10 minutes.

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$

million That’s the amount that Jaws earned on its opening weekend in 1975. The Steven Spielberg film is regarded as the first summer blockbuster, which now means big business for the movie industry. Last year’s summer champ, Finding Dory, earned $135 million in its debut weekend. Jaws would go on to earn $470 million worldwide, according to boxofficemojo.com. That’s well behind Dory, which topped the $1 billion mark worldwide, according to the site.

(A fun connection between the two: Dory’s predecessor, Finding Nemo, included a Jaws reference. The shark character was named Bruce, which was the name that Spielberg gave the mechanical shark used in Jaws. It was also his lawyer’s name.)

— ROB CLARK THE EAGLE

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360 Profile

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JAIME SORG

Craft beer community Story ROB CLARK

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or someone who leads an appreciation group, Jaime Sorg had a slow-and-steady road to loving craft beer.

Living in Boston was the key, she says. The Houston native and Indiana-raised 38-year-old lived there with husband Joseph, and the couple was surrounded by the craft-beer culture. Joseph, a microbiologist, took an interest in brewing. Jaime did not.

“To be completely honest, I hated it,” she says with a laugh at Eskimo Hut, the craft-beer and drive-through spot on Harvey Road. “When he was brewing at home, I would have to leave the house. I could not stand the smells, I could not stand anything about it. It wasn’t until years later, after going regularly to brew festivals, it was just something to do. You’re in Boston, where craft brewing is huge. It’s the home of Sam Adams and all that, and there’s a beer festival every weekend.

So we were always out of the house with friends and trying new things and learning it.”

The Sorgs moved to College Station in 2010, and now have two children. Joseph is a professor in the Texas A&M biology department. Jaime, who graduated from Purdue with a communications degree, handles marketing and social media

Photo TIMOTHY HURST

for Pure Energy Dance Productions in Bryan. Her interest in craft beer led to exploring the area for like-minded aficionados.

Sorg started the local chapter of Girls Pint Out, a national nonprofit organization, in October. The group averages three events per month, and has had gatherings at New Republic Brewing Company, Brazos Valley Brewing Company, Zoigl Brewery, Carney’s Pub, Downtown Uncorked and Eskimo Hut, along with an event with Yoga & Hops. (See more at “Bryan/College Station Girls Pint Out” on Facebook.)

One event included the group members brewing a beer at Blackwater Draw from start to finish, “doing the lifting, doing the grinding, doing the boiling, all of it,” Sorg says. “It’s dirty and it’s fun.” They dubbed it Hazy Lady, a New England-style IPA. They tapped the 13-gallon keg two weeks later, she says, and it sold out in three hours. “[Girls Pint Out’s] goal was simply to bring women together over craft beer, to create a community for women to feel comfortable, to educate, to socialize,” she says. “To feel confident in their beer knowledge without having to deal with some men behind the bar who questioned what they know. It was just meant to be fun and a community.”

Q&A How did you get interested in Girls Pint Out? I think I just stumbled across an article that was highlighting Girls Pint Out … and I thought, “Well, wow, that sounds interesting. I wonder if there’s something like that here.” I participate in a bunch of boards on Facebook, there are a bunch of “craft beer Aggieland” and “craft brewpubs of Aggieland” pages. So I posted a question on one of those boards, “Is there anyone that would be interested in a nonprofit that was for craft beer?” And several people piped in. I was like, “All right, this may be happening.”

What has the reaction been?

After our first event at New Republic I sent out a survey, and a lot of the feedback was around wanting educational events. It wasn’t so much about the social hours or the happy hours. It was more about, “I want to learn about brewing,” “I want to learn about the different

types of beers,” or “I want to get to know the breweries in the area.” And that was exciting to me, and also a challenge to find the right people that can educate.

How have you enjoyed the experience?

One of the big draws for me, in addition to there being beer and the education of beer, it was the opportunity to connect people. … Each brewery has a reason for why they started, they each have unique beers, they all have a story to tell. And they are all so open. It’s a community that wants to connect and be connected with. The fact that I can connect women to a business like Eskimo Hut … most people are like, “Eskimo what? I don’t know what that is, I thought it was a daiquiri bar.” But there’s a ton of beer here.

Is there a stereotype about women and beer?

Oh, sure, that they probably don’t like beer, that they don’t know what kind of

beers are out there. They don’t know their palate, basically. Like a woman goes up to the bar and orders a porter, and they’re like, “Are you sure you want a porter?” It’s a little bit of talking down to. … [Girls Pint Out is about] awareness.

I don’t think our group of women gives a flip, really, what the person behind the bar is. They know their own truth, and they know the reality of what they do know and what they like. They don’t owe that to anybody.

But I do think it’s interesting, depending on where we’re at, you might get some looks, like, “That’s interesting, what are you guys all about? What is Girls Pint Out? What’s so special about that?” And then there are some times, like the Dogfish Head event [held at Carney’s], there were tons of men who wanted to come to that. It was like, “Sorry guys, maybe we’ll keep you in mind for the next one. But it’s just women right now.”

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This marks the second time our breast cancer program has gone through the certification process with NAPBC, which represents a consortium of national and professional organizations dedicated to improving the quality of cancer care and monitoring of patients with diseases of the breast.

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360 Profile

Return to Aggieland

Ryan and Melissa Swope get back to where they once belonged Story JOSH McCORMACK

A

fter Ryan Swope stepped away from a career in the NFL, he lived in Dallas and then in Houston, starting a career in commercial real estate. He married his longtime girlfriend Melissa. But something was missing in the big-city life, and it wasn’t football.

“We need to get back to God’s country,” Ryan recalls saying.

“To Aggieland.”

The Swopes returned to College Station in September. Ryan is a real estate agent with Walsh and Mangan, and Melissa operates the local franchise of Card My Yard. And they’re back

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Photos TIMOTHY HURST

where Ryan said he spent the best years of his life, playing wide receiver for the Aggies from 2009 to 2012.

SUCCESS ON THE GRIDIRON → Ryan was a standout at A&M, and earned All-Big 12 and All-SEC second-team honors. He holds the school records for career receptions (252) and receiving yards (3,117), and is second in receiving touchdowns (24).

Among the high points was A&M’s upset win over No. 1 Alabama in Tuscaloosa in 2012, the year the Aggies debuted in

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Texas A&M’s Ryan Swope was honored at Senior Night at Kyle Field before the Aggies’ home matchup with Missouri in 2012.

Eagle file photo

the Southeastern Conference.

Johnny Manziel threw a memorable touchdown to Ryan in that game, on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy and leading the team to an 11-2 record.

“That whole season was pretty magical,” Ryan said.

“Over all four years I made such great teammates and friends. It’s something I’ll always miss, the camaraderie and the locker room.”

The NFL was Ryan’s next stop. He was graded as a third-round pick in the draft by experts including the NFL Network’s Mike Mayock. But Swope had reportedly experienced multiple concussions in his career, which Mayock noted might push him further down in the draft. Swope was picked in the sixth round by the Arizona Cardinals.

At training camp in Phoenix, Swope endured another concussion. Team doctors recommended that he retire in July 2013. Cardinals general manager Steve Keim said at the time, “… We all decided that Ryan’s long-term well-being was the No. 1 priority, and this was the best course to take.”

“I had a bad concussion up there and I couldn’t ever really get back to normal,” Ryan said. “I wasn’t in a great place at that time, and it was probably best for me to walk away. Toughest decision of my life.”

For support, Ryan leaned on Melissa. At the time she was back at home in Longview, planning their wedding.

“It was hard, honestly,” Melissa said. “When he got drafted, it was such an exciting time. Ultimately, I was there to support him. I didn’t want to make any decisions for him because that was his lifelong dream. I definitely supported his decision, because health is more important than money.”

Leaving the game can be difficult, according to Ryan’s

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SUMMER 2017

friend and former A&M quarterback Stephen McGee. He played three seasons as a backup quarterback with the Dallas Cowboys.

“I think everybody’s different,” McGee said. “I feel blessed that I don’t really have a desire to be back playing football anymore. But I know some guys, it’s hard to leave the game if they’ve always loved to play.”

Ryan has a positive take on his transition from football. He misses it, and said he wakes up every morning thinking about it. But he loves the life he is living now.

COMMUNITY AND CAREERS → Even during their time as A&M students, Ryan and Melissa had discussed making their way back to College Station. This is where they wanted to start a family, Melissa said, and the area growth, schools and Aggie connections were all selling points.

“I just feel like life is a lot more simple in College Station,” Melissa said. “You just feel like a lost fish in the sea living in such a massive city like Houston, and we were ready for a community.”

Melissa, who graduated in 2012 with an agricultural communications and journalism degree, said she was unsure about a career path.

After a recommendation from her sister, Melissa reached out to the Austin-based business Card My Yard, and opened a local branch. The company decorates yards with signs celebrating birthdays and graduations or advertising open houses. Graduation season was a big one, she said.

“It’s fun,” she said. “I’ve enjoyed it because I’ve gotten to meet people that way, and it’s just fun to see people’s reactions. The parents will send me photos and say, ‘Claire loved her yard sign, thanks for making her day so special,’ and hearing that stuff makes me happy.”

Ryan, who has a university studies degree, has found enjoyment in real estate with Walsh and Mangan. He said he’s had “a passion for farm and ranch and residential” since childhood, and recalls asking his father about various properties.

“I figured, ‘Let’s get my license and see what we can do,’” he said. “It’s been great, the transition from football to real estate. ... It pushes your work ethic to the max, as well as being competitive.”

Morgan Mangan, co-owner of the real estate firm, praised Ryan’s approach and dedication.

“I think that work ethic that he got from A&M and playing football has really carried over, and that’s what makes him stand out in real estate,” she said.

McGee also came back to live in College Station, and has bonded with Swope over hobbies including hunting and fishing. But he said they don’t talk much about football.

“We talk about everything other than sports,” McGee said.

“Ryan is just a ball of fun … he can do anything. Whether he’s playing football or selling real estate, the guy is just a winner.

That is a trait that I think is unique to Ryan. He’s just good at everything he does.”

Ryan keeps up with his former teammates, and when they come into town, they seek him out. The Swope home has become a meeting place for old friends during football season.

Ryan said he is excited about being back and for what comes next.

“We made the move and we’ve been very fortunate and very happy ever since,” Ryan said. “I thank the big guy upstairs, more than anything for introducing me to Texas A&M, and just being able to wake up every day and put my shoes on and have a beautiful wife. So I have a lot to be thankful for.”

Ryan and Melissa Swope stand with a Card My Yard sign at the Walsh and Mangan real estate office in College Station.

Photo TIMOTHY HURST | THE EAGLE

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Cover Story

Life lessons

from those in the know Parenting and pep talks for kids and adults

Story KELLY BROWN

L

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Photos DAVE MCDERMAND, TIMOTHY HURST

ook both ways before crossing a street. Don’t talk to strangers. Good manners will take you far in life. Take risks. Teach by example. And, a classic: Life isn’t easy.

It’s expected that most parents will give their children a generous amount of advice over the years, as well as share casual observations, such as “parenthood makes you appreciate your own parents even more,” or even the old standby with an underlying message: “Money doesn’t grow on trees.”

These all are good tidbits, but the amount of parenting advice from family, friends, strangers, online articles and experts can, at times, seem like information-overload.

Psychologists, educators and grandparents have long pointed

out that there’s no manual or rule book that can anticipate all the problems, questions, concerns, joy, fear and satisfaction that comes with parenting.

But it never hurts to hear from those finding success in their efforts.

With that in mind, Brazos 360 recently asked a handful of parents in Bryan-College Station to share some of the lessons they’ve learned so far along the way. None of those interviewed claimed to have all the answers and each made it clear that there’s no magic formula to raising a child – every family, each individual is different. Here are the words of wisdom they hope to pass on.

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‘Forever and always’ From Tyson and Christi Voelkel to daughters Eliana and Violet:

Tyson is president of the Texas A&M Foundation; Christi is director of programming and communications at the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library Foundation.

There is no book that can prepare you for the journey of parenthood. It has been the greatest joy and blessing of our lives. It will be for you as well. No matter the job or titles we may have for work, the proudest titles we have are “Mom and Dad.” There is but one rule for parenting: Love your children. Love demands trust, time, purpose, discipline, integrity and focus.

Remember that you have a responsibility to raise your children in a way that enables them to embrace their faith, family and friends. It sounds easier than it is. The world moves faster each year and it’s up to you as parents to focus on what’s most important. Do what matters, and do your best not to get caught up in trends or short-term gratification at the expense of longterm value.

Parents are not perfect — no one is, and don’t expect your children to be either. Love them unconditionally and raise them to be confident, yet humble enough to ask for help. Establish open communication and conversations about tough subjects at an early age. Protect your children from the world, but also embrace it so that you can prepare them for the challenges that lie ahead.

Raise them to appreciate the freedoms we enjoy as Americans, to value their heritage and to bring honor to our family name and history. Live with integrity — always. Life is a blessing and each day is a chance to be thankful, regardless of the challenges that may be placed in our path.

Provide your children opportunities but don’t spoil them.

There is nothing more damaging to a company, a family, or a country than complacency. Entitlement is more often the enemy of progress. Hard work coupled with humility and respect make for good followers and great leaders.

Learn from the challenges. Life isn’t fair sometimes. For many, like your sister Lily, the odds were stacked against her before she ever took her first breath. Although she was only here with

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us three short years, she showed us just how deep our love for you girls, for our faith, and for each other could be. She was courageous and reminded us how blessed we are to have our health and a family that loves one another — neither we, nor you, will ever forget that.

Attack each obstacle as a team, and you will be well served as parents. Don’t fall into the trap of blaming others or finding excuses — own your responsibilities and accept the consequences and benefits of your actions.

Be your best and set a positive example for your children.

Life sometimes makes demands of time, resources and energy that seem impossible. Never take your children — or the precious time each day affords — for granted.

We struggle daily with this one. You can’t multitask your way to good parenting. Focus on your children.

Don’t be the family at the dinner table communicating through their phones and apps. Look each other in the eye. Pray. Have conversations. Share the good and bad in your day.

Empower your children, but listen, too. Things won’t always go as planned — your kids won’t always listen to your advice. Heck, sometimes you might just learn something from them! Life happens. Embrace it and enjoy it. You will make lots of mistakes — we do, and it helps keep us grounded and focused on the future. Don’t do all the work for your children. Let them learn.

Let them lose, too. Sometimes those losses end up teaching them more about success.

We love you both more than words can express. As we watch you interact with family and friends we are humbled at the compassion and genuine love you share with them. Our hearts overflow at the sight of your sisterly love and support of one another and we know, without a shadow of a doubt, that you will be wonderful parents one day.

‘To my lovely daughter’ From Jarvis Parsons to daughter Erin:

Jarvis is Brazos County’s district attorney; his wife, Aimee, is testing coordinator for College Station schools.

I will keep this hidden away until you are expecting your first child, but I wanted to give you something that will be far more important than any gift on your registry. Here are some things

‘Quentin’s diploma’

From Sondra White to only child, Quentin: Sondra is the director of marketing and communications in Texas A&M’s division of student affairs; husband Sam is director of IT at Fibertown Colocation Data Centers.

Special to The Eagle

I’ve learned being your dad that I wish someone told me before you were born. I think the best way to do it is to give you a list of things that will apply at different stages of your child’s life.

• Be their parent first and their friend second. They need it and they will appreciate it.

• Allow God to lead you in your life. Talk to them about your walk with God. They need to see that you depend on Him in your daily life.

• Always tell them you love them. They will remember it.

• They will fall down in life. You can encourage them, but they have to learn to get up on their own.

• More is caught than taught. They will learn how to conduct themselves in private and in public by watching you. They will listen to the sermon you live more than the sermon you give.

• When you are wrong, apologize. It doesn’t make you weak. It makes you a grown up.

• It is not about you.

• Please re-read above.

• Work will always be there. Your child won’t be. Your kids need to know the value of work, but they need to know that you value them more than your work.

• You and your husband need time alone. Schedule it on the calendar. It doesn’t make you a bad parent — it makes you a better one.

• Reward effort, not results. Always preach to them to do their very best in everything they do. Then celebrate their best.

• Make sure you are their biggest fan. They will love it, be embarrassed by it, and remember it for the rest of their lives.

• Teach them to be kind to others and to help those who are less fortunate than they are.

• Take the time to learn their unique personalities and quirks.

• There is no such thing as a perfect parent. Remember that when you mess up. They don’t need perfection. They need you.

Except for the fact that I was four months pregnant with my first and only child, it was a typical day at the office when my obstetrician called with the news: “Mrs. White, we just received the results back from your triple screen test, and it looks like you are at a high risk for having a child with Down syndrome.

Now this doesn’t necessarily mean your child will have Down syndrome — but you are at a much higher risk, so you need to make a decision.”

The triple screen is a routine blood test they offer to women who are in the second trimester of pregnancy to classify a patient’s risk for chromosomal abnormalities. “Your options,” she went on, “are to validate the diagnosis by undergoing an amniocentesis, or you may choose against this and simply wait until your baby is born.”

Somehow I had made it well into adulthood without clearly understanding the meaning of “Down syndrome,” or without ever knowing anyone with this condition. I didn’t know that it is the most common chromosomal disorder.

Each year, about 6,000 babies are born with Down syndrome, which is about one in every 700 babies born.

But that was “them,” not us, right? I felt great — in fact better than ever! I never experienced morning sickness, had a ravenous

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appetite, and felt much more energized than normal. There couldn’t be anything wrong with my baby. And the thought of someone poking a needle into my belly for a sample of amniotic fluid was out of the question.

After talking with our family and agreeing that a confirmed diagnosis would not affect our actions, we decided against the amniocentesis, and went on with our busy lives. Within a few days, we forgot about the phone call, and never gave it a second thought until May 26, 1998, the day Quentin Hunter White was born, and we were told that in fact he did have Down syndrome.

Flash forward exactly 19 years: I’m looking at the diploma that our son earned just last week — on his birthday — from A&M Consolidated High School. We are blessed and grateful beyond measure with a handsome, loving, confident young man with a bright future ahead.

If I could travel back in time, I’d give my 33-year-old pregnant self these five nuggets of wisdom. I hope that sharing them might make the journey a bit easier for young parents who have been told that they have a special child.

• Your child will make you a better person. Quentin has taught us more than we could have imagined about humility, patience, unconditional love and pure joy. Open your mind to the lessons your children will teach you.

• Make time to laugh and play. Every single day, you will be given a chance to laugh and play with your child, if only for a few hours. Embrace it.

• You are part of our evolution. Children born with Down syndrome today have even more chances to thrive, and their

peers are much more accepting of their differences. Understand that you will be an essential part of the change for future generations. Push gently for what you know is right.

• “Normal” is relative. At times you may feel as if everyone is staring at your child and asking, “What’s wrong with him?”

But it’s likely they are either curious and want to learn more, or because they care about you and want to help.

• There will be unexpected heroes. Ask for help. Never did I imagine that so many individuals — all heroes in our eyes — would transform Quentin’s life, including family members, friends, neighbors, teachers, therapists and even strangers.

During the last 12 years, Quentin’s life has been especially enriched by numerous Texas A&M students, or “Aggie buddies” as he calls them, who have unselfishly volunteered their time and talent. Share what you learn along the way, stop to help others when you can, and give more than you take.

‘Rewards for parenting’

From Jeannie McGuire to her grown children Jason Goss, Callie Goss Halbrook and Justin Goss, and grandchildren Hunter, Jase and Kalder: Jeannie is founder and president of Project Unity, a local nonprofit dedicated to helping families. Her husband, Bill McGuire, is executive director of the local Better Business Bureau.

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Special to The Eagle

Parenting is not black and white. It’s red, yellow, black, white, blue, purple, orange, pink and just when you think you’ve got it, magenta shows up! Be their best cheerleader and advocate, whatever color they may be.

• Don’t get bogged down in the “details” of parenting. When your children are adults, they will not remember the daily grind — they will remember the experiences of spending time with each other, holiday traditions, birthday parties, time with grandparents.

• Don’t compare yourself to other parents. There are no perfect parents or perfect children. Find parents you can share “war

stories” with — where you will feel supported and encouraged.

• If you are divorced or separated, remember these things: The No.1 risk factor for your children is parental conflict. It’s the conflict between you and their other parent. Half of your child belongs to the other parent. The good news is that you can make a positive impact.

When you say something bad to your child about the other parent, you are not hurting the other parent, but your own child.

• Allow your children to suffer natural consequences when they are young. When your child forgets his homework and calls you to bring it to him, don’t! It is easier for you to allow your child to fail when the consequences are insignificant. You are teaching your child that he can get to the other side of failure. When the stakes are higher, for example, your child is fighting for his life with the disease of drug addiction, you will feel helpless and your child may not be able to get to the other side.

• Do not live your life through your children. You will be miserable when they do not meet your expectations. Your role is to help your children find their passion and then live it.

• Don’t ever give up on your children or on yourself as a parent. Remember that your actual “parenting role” is only for a short amount of time. Stay in the present moment, don’t worry about the future or live in regrets from the past. Make time for “uninterrupted” quality time when you are focused on nothing else but what is important to them. Love, live and laugh every chance you get!

• Once your children begin having families of their own, get ready. Your rewards for parenting are given to you through your grandchildren.

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A toast to

Hershel Burgess

Bar at the Stella Hotel pays tribute to A&M graduate and football star Story STEVE KUHLMANN

H

ershel Burgess was known to occasionally sit under an oak tree in Bryan, sipping whiskey among friends.

Today, the new Stella Hotel’s cozy bar that bears his name stands near that very spot.

Spencer Clements, principal of the ATLAS development at the Traditions Club, said Hershel’s was designed to be a reflection of the class of 1929 A&M graduate who once owned the land on which the hotel and many of the surrounding properties now stand.

Permeated by a distinctly rustic feel, Hershel’s is filled with antique decor, purposely mismatched furniture and a carefully detailed dark wood bar. Two walls of floor-to-ceiling windows, flanking opposite sides of the room, create an openness to the bar, and bring in natural light during the day.

Scattered among the decorations are black-and-white photos of Burgess, including portraits from his time as an Aggie football player and during his service in the military.

Burgess’ grandson, Jim Cashion, said he believes the man he knew would have been honored by the recognition.

“My grandfather was a high achiever, but he was a minimalist,” said Cashion, who bears the middle name of Hershel after his grandfather. “He’d rather sit under an oak tree and visit with his friends rather than be in a banquet hall.

I think he would appreciate it very much.”

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Burgess came to the area as a teenager, enrolling in the then-all-military Allen Academy with a track scholarship. He first met legendary A&M football coach Dana X. Bible while hitchhiking back to town from a state track meet in Austin — an encounter that Cashion said ultimately swayed Burgess to attend the college.

Burgess played running back during A&M’s undefeated 1927 season and was named an All-Southwest Conference fullback in 1928. He also found love in his time at A&M, marrying Ethyl Walton — daughter of A&M president Thomas Otto Walton — in October 1930.

His legacy extends beyond his accomplishments at Kyle Field. Cashion said his grandfather was an active member of the A&M community after graduation, starting what would eventually become the Lettermen’s Association’s Annual Burgess Banquet, which serves as A&M’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony. He also helped to develop the budding real estate of College Station decades ago.

“He was a lover of Texas A&M and an Aggie of the Old Army school,” Cashion said. “Like the cliché goes, he bled maroon.”

Burgess’ family tree extended to include another famous Aggie: Red Cashion, now a retired NFL official and Texas Sports Hall of Fame member, married Burgess’ daughter Lou

Hershel Burgess, shown in his Texas A&M football uniform (at left) and in his Army uniform (above), is the namesake of the Stella Hotel’s bar. Burgess’ grandchildren (top left) include Joyce Cain, Jim Cashion and Sharon Cashion. The venue features rustic decorative items, including an armadillo-themed football hung on the wall (right). Burgess was inducted into the Texas A&M Athletic Hall of Fame in 1975 (top right).

in 1952. The two met and fell in love on campus while Hershel Burgess was serving in the Army during World War II. They eventually had four children, Jim Cashion and his sisters Sharon Cashion, Joyce Cain and Shelley White.

Clements said he hopes the bar will serve as a comfortable space for visitors of the hotel, an eclectic living room filled with items that look like they’ve been there for decades.

The space is open to patrons looking for a nice, quiet place to sit and talk by day, Clements said, but comes alive at night.

“The music comes up, the lights go down, the bartenders appear and it becomes a really cool crafted cocktail lounge with a good old-fashioned bar and somebody behind it that really knows their craft,” Clements said.

“This is our way of paying respect to the Burgess and Cashion family, and letting the world know that this wasn’t always a hotel. It was someone’s homestead and this land has meaning to people.”

Hershel’s The Stella Hotel, 4100 Lake Atlas Drive, Bryan. thestellahotel.com.

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BACON-WRAPPED SCALLOPS Madden’s Casual Gourmet You know a dish is good when, after the first bite, all you can say is, “Oh, man.”

That was the instant reaction to the bacon-wrapped scallops at Madden’s. Now, those two ingredients together are a slam dunk.

But Madden’s adds to the appeal with a colorful display, thanks to the sweet corn puree sauce and green pea puree neatly pooled by the four scallops, and slim slices of red pepper on top. Manager Stuart Roebuck says the purees add ”a little bit of sweetness to offset the saltiness of the bacon-wrapped scallops.”

As anyone who has tried to cook scallops at home knows, they’re tricky little suckers. Keep them in the pan too long and soon you’ll have a rubbery, scallop-flavored chew toy. Madden’s, as you might imagine, has it down, lightly searing the scallops so that they reach the ideal texture. The scallops, nice and fat, are “U10 scallops,” Roebuck says, as in there are less than 10 of them per pound.

And it’s hard to go wrong with bacon. Roebuck says Madden’s uses “quite a bit” of it throughout the menu, including the popular bacon-avocado grilled cheese on the lunch menu. “People definitely gravitate toward bacon,” he says.

The scallop dish has been a popular one at Madden’s. “Somebody recently described it as being the best scallop dish they ever had,” Roebuck says, “and they told me they were from Charleston, South Carolina. I know I’ve had pretty good scallops in Charleston before, so that was a pretty great compliment to get.”

— Rob Clark Details: Madden’s Casual Gourmet, 202 S. Bryan Ave., Downtown Bryan. maddenscasualgourmet.com. Bacon-wrapped scallops price: $27.

Photo TIMOTHY HURST | THE EAGLE

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BRISKET & RIBS Fargo’s Pit BBQ Among the many accolades heaped upon Fargo’s Pit BBQ is a prestigious honor by Texas Monthly. As ordained by barbecue guru Daniel Vaughn in 2013 and again in May, Fargo’s was named one of “the 50 best BBQ joints in Texas.”

Pit master and co-owner Alan Caldwell’s reaction? “We just ate it up,” he says of the initial honor. “Just like a rib, we ate it up.”

It’s high praise, for sure. Almost as glowing as this comment I spotted from a Yelp reviewer: “Yeah, dude. Their ribs changed my life.”

I had somehow missed out on this transformative dish. So, dude, I made a long overdue visit to Fargo’s. As I stepped out of my truck, the smoky aroma in the parking lot made me wonder how nearby businesses get any work done, and I briefly envisioned floating nose-first toward the smell, Tom & Jerry style.

Inside, a line had already formed by 11:15 a.m. The main wall is lined with awards, magazine and newspaper stories, and a Ty Warren New England Patriots jersey, inscribed with his affection for Fargo’s. Caldwell checked on patrons with friendly greetings and banter.

As at most good barbecue restaurants, deciding on the meat was a challenge, but I started with the brisket. You can choose between marbled and lean, and I went with the former for a change of pace. It was flavorful and, yes, fatty.

But that’s what “marbled” is all about, so go for the lean version if that’s not as appealing. The accompanying sauce is nice and tangy, but not necessary with meat this savory.

On to the ribs. In a word: wonderful.

That barky crust had superior texture, and the meat was tender, several steps away from falling off the bone. The portions are generous as well, so I was glad to have skipped the sides.

I’ll have to heartily agree with Mr. Vaughn and Ms. Yelper. Did the ribs break the rules of time and space? Not quite. But they did make my day considerably better.

— Rob Clark Details: Fargo’s Pit BBQ, 720 N. Texas Ave., Bryan. Half-pound of ribs: $7. Halfpound of brisket: $8.

Photo TIMOTHY HURST | THE EAGLE

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THE JACKALOPE JULEP West End Elixir Company The Jackalope Julep, a new cocktail from West End Elixir Company at Northgate, is a refreshing treat for the summer. It’s built like a snow cone and mixes watermelon-infused tequila, cucumber and a housemade mint syrup, according to manager Mickey Lane.

The tequila is poured in a shaker with the syrup, muddled cucumber juice and ice to mix and cool. After it’s shaken, the drink is strained and poured over more crushed ice, ready to be sipped.

Served in a silver julep cup, the drink is picturesque, garnished with mint leaves, a cucumber slice and a piece of tequila-infused watermelon. Be careful when tasting the watermelon — it’s strong.

The idea for the drink began with West End owner Dustin Baston, who wanted to infuse tequila with watermelon. From there, the creation was a group effort, Lane said. The West End bar team tried different avenues for the flavor, first with the mint syrup, then adding the muddled cucumber.

Lane says the Jackalope Julep has been a hit, and will only be offered during the summer months. “It’s a very good featured cocktail,” he said. “People order it often, especially on a nice day.”

— Josh McCormack Details: West End Elixir Company, 100 Church Ave. westendelixircompany.com. Jackalope Julep price: $10.50.

Photo DAVE McDERMAND | THE EAGLE

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Al and Mary Broussard

Kimberley Watkins and Jenny Liscano

Wine & Roses Festival April 22

Messina Hof

Messina Hof’s 33rd annual festival attracted about 3,000 guests. The event featured dancing, wine tastings and a grape stomp. Messina Hof donates a portion of the proceeds from the festival to the Brazos Valley Arts Council.

Kathryn Clark and Chip Johnson

Photos TIMOTHY HURST

Sandy Killian, Deborah Melanson, Cynthia Hinesley Susan and James Massey

Phillip Skweres, Cindy Spangler, Larry Schulze

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Bruce and Kyanne Hoak

Bruce Fay and Jennifer Kessler

Stace and Sylvia Medellin

Thomas and Maggie Boriski

Rachelle and Gary Gardner

Shannon Starnes and Debbie Kinman Sherry and Joe Guerrero

Dennis and Brenda Callahan

Jonathan, Norah and Peter Thomas

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BUSINESS AFTER HOURS April 20

The Eagle

The Chamber of Commerce’s event came to The Eagle, where guests saw the newspaper’s second printing press, which was added in fall 2016, and the expanded press room.

David O’Neil, Crystal Dupré and Glen Brewer

Photos DAVE MCDERMAND

Glen Brewer and Mary Mike Hatcher

Nikki Fonville and Lyn Wilund

Carol and John Nichols Chris Newsome, Gregg Lancaster, Eva Lancaster and Wenli Huang

Paden Wiese and Brandon DeStefano

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Valentin Chapa and Casey Barnette

Brittany Trapani and Joanne Flores

Jason Nowak, Foster Ullmann and James Nowak

Terry Kroeger, Bob Rogers, Jim Wilson and David Hogan

Margo Costello, Ryan Hill and Nikita Loston

Glen Brewer and Crystal DuprĂŠ

Lisa Howard and Faye Lane

Wade Vanderboom and Bobby GriďŹƒn

Dennis and Brenda Callahan

Irene Markowski and Barbie Springer

Crystal Lazarski, Nicole Hesseltine and Callie Theiss

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The theme for the third annual Kite Fest was “Colors in the Sky.” The event, which is hosted by Recreational Park and Tourism Sciences students at Texas A&M University, included games, crafts, kite-making and kite-fl ying contests.

KITE FEST April 30

Wolf Pen Creek Park

Photos DAVE MCDERMAND

Fernando Colato

Braly and Bryce Morris

Hudson and Victoria Hester

Caroline, Jimmy and Carleigh McDaniel

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Carleigh McDaniel

Jason Wulff

Dytrick Whiters

Justin and Mia Hancock

Brooke Terry

Terry Sanson (far left)

Stephanie Golie and William Doyle

DeAndra and Anniston Hancock

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Angie Kaldro, James Brau and Irene Bessette

Nyra Robinson, Jourdan Tucker, Felicia Gibbs, Emily Knight-Hunter and Gloria Padilla

Charles Kennedy and Stephany Rubalcaba

Kelsey Krnavek, Lia Musgrave, Collin Gainz, Robert Todd and Logan Teter

Austin Adams and Adriana Perez

Ashleigh Moody, Scout and Katie Freeman

Relay for Life of Aggieland April 28 Caleb Merritt, Kenneth Vice, Claudia Shapiro and Ania Gawronska

Hannah Karnes and Javier Barillas

Brazos County Expo

Teams gathered to inspire each other and raise money and awareness for cancer research at the Relay for Life of Aggieland. The annual event beneďŹ ts the American Cancer Society and includes a 12-hour relay, with cancer survivors taking the ďŹ rst lap.

Photos BRYAN SMITH

Lidia Rojas, Victoria Scriven, Blake Cotter, Christine Devoucalla, Jourdan Tucker, Miriam Donis, Sarah Peabody, Ryan McColley-Perez, Tyler Maris, Caleb Taube, Nadir Pozegija

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Travis Schaefer and Ariel Black

Meagen Turner and Kaitlin Foster

Bobbie Olivares, Norma BorneAshley and Midge Garcia

Rachel Gonzales, Elizabeth Diaz, Paul Korpal and Cecilia Schmidt

Jessica and Rachel Wheat

Kevin Krawczynski, Aaron Daniel, Zac Caraway and Alan Putnam

Dana De Pau, Anayeli Calixto and Ursula Lomas

Meagen Turner, Cydney Paden, Kaitlin Foster, Miranda Gilcrease, Kelsey Krnavek, Cord Casas, Shannon Smith, Allie Saunders, Morgan Baker, Kathryn OeďŹ nger, Nena Fiero and Ty Underwood Larissa Ramilo, Raj Aragon, David Belleza and Kendall Arceo

Alberto Flores, Jake Clements, Lindsey Thomas, Charles Anderson and Marissa Werchan

Jasmine Derry, Eli Sims, Alyssa Kadjar, Haleigh Madden and Kendall Shaw

Bethany Galat and Raena Eldridge

Alan Moon and Stephanie Taylor

Shari and Mike Moore

Jackson Milton and Allyson Hunter

Megan Croes, Meghan Bauman, Jane Igbeka and Lynsey Prokop

Jordan McClanahan, Ty Cox, Madison Cox, Robert and Debbi Lowry

Brianna Mena and Dianne Fontanilla

Jeremy, Janice, Elizabeth and Samantha Quast

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RUDDER HIGH SCHOOL PROM May 6

Hilton College Station

Rudder High School students celebrated their prom at the Hilton ballroom on May 6.

Eric Davis and Tyra Lewis

Photos BRYAN SMITH

Lazaria Chattel, Skylar Davis, Correy Lloyd, Angel Bradford and Alexis Robertson

Mitchell McNiel and Caitlyn Houdek

Brandon Lopez, Andrea Esparza, Emily Fajardo and Jahaziel Torres

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Jessica Garrett and Burke Mumford

Claudio Vallejo and Daniela Aguina

Lili Ocampo, Shannon Cysewski and Ashlynn Gyug

Christian Palma, Alejandra Baena, Veronica Montanez and Jesus Martinez

Jazlyn Williams and Justin Jones

Tessa Collins, Cierra Dickerson, Hailey Lanehart and Erin Benedict

Layne Scroggs, Stephanie Contreras, Rachel Barnes and Conner Dunn

Nathan Carpio and Annah Starks

Alma Torres, Christian Hernandez, Jesus Martinez and Veronica Montanez

Alex Ellison and Ashley Williams

Layne Scroggs, Hannah Witwall, Jairo Reyes-Ruiz, Stephanie Contreras, and Justin Smith

Demarcus Dates, Armani Garner and Zharia Manley

Alyce Riley, Alex Alderete and Allison Vaughan

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What’s in your

OFFICE? CHRIS KIRK Brazos County Sheriff

C

hris Kirk calls his office “a historical overview of my career as the sheriff of Brazos County.” Considering he has 36 years with the sheriff ’s office — more than 20 of them as sheriff — there’s an abundance of treasures, all with interesting back stories.

There’s a wall of Texas A&M sports memorabilia, from a volleyball signed by Stacy Sykora to a football with Johnny Manziel and John David Crow autographs. (There’s also a football signed by receiver Ricky Seals-Jones, addressed “Yo Sheriff Kirk.”) That wall includes a sheriff version of a Mr. Potato Head, a gift from Kirk’s grandchildren.

Kirk also has space for tributes to two departed friends: his longtime secretary Lita Sifuentez, who died of pancreatic cancer, and Brian Bachmann, the constable who was being groomed to potentially replace Kirk as sheriff someday. Bachmann was killed in the line of duty in 2012. “Brian was a dear friend of mine,” Kirk says.

Here’s a look at several of the notable items in Kirk’s office. We must note that it was a challenge to narrow down the featured elements.

Kirk has enough for six more pages.

Story ROB CLARK | Photos TIMOTHY HURST

Challenge coins, that’s real prevalent in our profession. Whenever you meet somebody and have a significant interaction, you usually share a challenge coin. The only people that get one of ours is someone that has gone above and beyond. So if someone in our organization does a good job on a project or makes a significant arrest or something like that, they’re honored with a challenge coin. The rest are visitors or people I meet in the course of doing business. Most of them are peers.

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I’m an avid fisherman. That’s a picture of a muskie, which is a cold-water freshwater fish. You can find them up in the northern United States and Canada. My family are big fishermen, and we would travel up there. That fish gets up to 60 inches long. It’s the most fighting freshwater fish I’ve ever caught. My wife gave me that beautiful print.

I’ve been gathering muskie baits, that’s about half of my collection. I thought, “Well, what better place for them?”

This is an 8 ball, so I’m sitting behind the 8 ball. The longest-serving sheriff of Brazos County is J.W. Hamilton. He served for 29 years and he died in office. I went to his estate sale and was hoping to buy some badges or something like that, but the family kept all those. That was on the table, and I said, “Well, I’m gonna buy the 8 ball.”

We were the first law enforcement organization to go to the fleet of Dodge Magnums and Chargers. We literally took delivery of these before they even knew how to install lights and sirens on them. Dodge sent a team down here to work with our installers to figure out the best paths to mount everything. After they did that, they put everything online, and then they got called by Matchbox, and said, “Hey, we want to feature your Dodge law enforcement products as a Matchbox toy.” ...

I got a call from Mattel, and I didn’t believe it. They said they wanted to make a Matchbox toy out of our car. I thought it was a hoax, so I had one of my lieutenants follow up on it. And it was true. We were the only law enforcement agency to be featured in that year’s line, actually two lines. … Brazos County Sheriff’s Office, worldwide. They are highly collected locally. You can’t hardly get them. If we had known how collectible they would be, we would have bought a lot more.

I was a patrol deputy for two years. Started out as a jail officer, became a patrol deputy. We changed uniforms from white shirt, brown pants, to the gray over black. And I ended up modeling that. I think that picture ran in The Eagle, announcing the new uniform change for the sheriff’s deputies of Brazos County. That would have been 1983.

Wild Bill Hickock was playing cards. That was the hand he was holding when someone came up behind him and shot him in the back of the head. So that’s displayed as a reminder -- to always watch your back.

This belt and buckle belonged to J.W. Hamilton.

He was a thin, tall man.

This would be a better hat band for me than a belt.

The connection is [legendary A&M football trainer] Billy Pickard, rest in peace. He wore this to motivate the team. [Three years ago] we had him in the patrol car, and he was in a Speedo and wearing this hat. And we escorted him into the practice field and then turned the siren on. And he jumped out and ran across the field, to motivate the team.

My first and only hole-in-one on a golf course. [In 2006] I was playing in the Texas Jail Association Tournament over in Huntsville. It was on the sixth hole of Raven’s Nest, 134-yard par 3. The tee overlooked the green, but there was a dip in the green. I hit a really nice solid ball, and it hit the front of the green, and it rolled over the dip and it turned toward the pin. We lost sight of it, but I thought it was because of the elevation. One of the guys I was playing with said, “I think it went in the hole.” I said, “No, there’s no way.” So we drive down there, and I didn’t see any ball on the green, and I thought, “Maybe it was.” I went in there and sure enough, there it was. My father’s got three holes-in-one in his lifetime. My mother had one. My twin brother, bless his heart, has never gotten a hole-in-one.

I was on the ballot the year that the hanging chad was an issue [2000].

The election coordinator, at the end of it I called him and said, “I would like some chad.” So he found this really unique bottle and filled it up for me. So those are all chad. These were paper ballots, and you poke a little stylus through and it would knock that little piece of paper off. On some of those ballots in Florida, that paper wouldn’t come all the way off, it just kinda hung. And then they challenged the election as to whether that was a legitimate vote or not. These were not hanging chad, these all broke off.

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The Last Word

The straight POOP An emoji leads the rise from the bathroom to the mainstream

Fans hold emojis during an NCAA college basketball game between Stanford and California in 2016.

AP Photo

O

f all the things to become a craze for youngsters over the years — from Cabbage Patch Kids to Tickle Me Elmo to that water-bottle-fl ipping thing they’re doing these days — the popularity of poop has to be among the most surprising.

Cue the Seinfeldian query: “What is the deal with the poop?”

Excrement is excellent now, thanks to emojis, the expressive cartoonish icons used in text ROB CLARK messages and rob.clark@ social media. theeagle.com The perky plop sits happily alongside the crying-with-laughter face and thumbs-up gesture, and can be found on kids’ toys and games.

Text messages that incorporate the poop emoji can mean a variety of things. They could reflect a high level of frustration or disappointment. (We need a detailed study to determine the number of turd texts sent during Aggie football games.) They could be a depiction of a parent’s unfortunate adventures, especially those dealing with young children and their pro-

digious output. Or perhaps a cry for help from someone stuck in an early morning staff meeting, when the coffee starts to kick in.

Maybe kids and some adults just like the word, and that carries over to the emoji. It is fairly versatile, even beyond bathroom humor: nincompoop, party pooper, a ship’s poop deck, “pooped” as in exhausted and “straight poop” as in vital information. And it is a giggly sort of word.

For anyone who recoils at it, I always like to point out that it is a palindrome. Everyone loves palindromes.

The history of the poop emoji was chronicled by Lauren Schwartzberg for business website Fast Company in 2014. Emojis began in Japan and gradually moved into the mainstream in 2008, thanks to Google, including the first incarnation of the poop emoji (sans smile, but with circling fl ies).

By 2014, Schwartzberg wrote, emojis made the leap to all operating systems and social media. As software engineer Darick Tong says in the piece, the poop emoji “elicits a smile from the reader and the writer, which is ultimately the purest purpose of emoji: to add emotional expressiveness to written communication.”

It should be noted that there are skeptics who believe the emoji is actually the top of a chocolate ice cream cone. But no one texts “I am having the ultimate [ice cream cone] day!”

A great example of the buzz: A poop-themed birthday party for a 3-year-old girl in Missouri went viral earlier this year. The parents suggested other themes, but little Audrey knew what she wanted, which led to a poop-shaped cake, cookies, balloons,

games and costumes.

A Toronto venue called the Poop Cafe Dessert Bar opened last year, and features poop-themed goodies, even in toilet-shaped bowls.

I recently spotted a basket of emoji pillows at a local superstore. But no smiley faces, no kissing lips. Just poop. I tried to picture my father or grandfather hearing this from a whiny child: “Please-please-please can we get that poop pillow, pleeeease?” The confusion would be staggering.

Perhaps the ultimate proof is The Emoji Movie, a Sony Pictures animated fi lm set for release on July 28. It’s true that poop — real or perceived, and in physical or gaseous form — has been a part of memorable scenes in hit movies, including Bridesmaids, Blazing Saddles, Caddyshack, Friday, Trainspotting, Dumb and Dumber and Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. And the creators of South Park were far ahead of the emoji curve with the merry Mr. Hankey.

But in The Emoji Movie, poop has pomp, thanks to being voiced by the Shakespearean-trained actor Patrick Stewart. The honorary British knight, former Star Trek captain and X-Men leader has a regal voice, surely among Hollywood’s finest. Dulcet tones from a most unlikely animated source will likely bring big laughs.

So it appears that this is no temporary trend. As long as there are snickering kids and easily amused adults — and I’ll raise my hand on that front — poop is here to stay. We might as well embrace it.

(The emoji, that is. Definitely just the emoji.)

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