Angela Menchaca was a busy physician assistant, rotating among cardiac clinics in Edinburg when she felt the pull to be closer to her Weslaco home with a young daughter to raise. Her best option was one she knew well. Her husband, Michael, is a family nurse practitioner who has opened a direct primary care clinic in Harlingen. It’s not a clinic like many others with long patient waits. There are…
A letter from a former president said it all in expressing appreciation for a job well done. “Nancy and I know how much work goes into the preparation of such wonderful meals, and we greatly appreciate all you did,” wrote Ronald Reagan in an August 1992 letter to Arnie Creinin. “Thanks to you and your staff, our stay was delightful!” It wasn’t the first time Creinin had cooked for President…
Banners began appearing in late 2022 above storefronts at Sam’s Trenton Plaza Phase II in McAllen. The west side of Phase I faces Trenton and then wraps around as if highlighting the path for customers heading to Sam’s Club. Phase II rests immediately to the north of Phase I. It’s all part of the bustling growth and traffic in north McAllen. In this case, it’s the broad area of 10th…
A stately and historic home on Missouri Avenue in Mercedes needed work after years of neglect. Beyond its then-rough exterior, Dr. Barbara Baggerly-Hinojosa and her husband, C.A., saw great potential. Baggerly-Hinojosa was looking for a corporate office for her Leadership Empowerment Group. Hinojosa, a Mercedes native, encouraged his wife to look at the city as a Mid-Valley hub to grow her business. They would settle on 805 S. Missouri –…
The Hope Family Health Center has expanded into to the Mid-Valley with the opening of the HOPE Mid-Valley Clinic in Weslaco on Jan. 23. HOPE offers free counseling services to the low-income, uninsured people in the Rio Grande Valley. HOPE’s counseling services treat depression, anxiety, trauma and grief. The center is possible with the help of the Knapp Community Care Foundation, which makes grant distributions to fund nonprofit organizations that impact,…
The Boys & Girls Club of McAllen, Visit McAllen, McAllen Parks & Recreation, PONY and the McAllen Chamber of Commerce will hold a joint press conference Jan. 18, announcing the return of the PONY International Softball World Series to McAllen in July. The Boys & Girls Club of McAllen has a long-standing relationship with Visit McAllen, McAllen Parks & Recreation, PONY and McAllen Chamber of Commerce through collaboration efforts in youth and community development. This…
Being a kiteboarder, Jason Norwood got a frequent question as a sporting event loomed at South Padre Island in 2021. “How do we get from the airport to the Island?” he recalled being asked. Getting from the Valley International Airport in Harlingen to South Padre can be problematic. Finding reliable ground transportation for the hour-long trip from the airport to SPI is often a challenge. This is especially true during…
The way Jesus Mendiola sees it, “you’ve got to move or you’ll go down.” It’s a befitting viewpoint for the owner of two Trek Bicycle stores in the Rio Grande Valley. Mendiola recently opened a store in Harlingen to go with his existing shop in Mission. He opened the latter business in 2007. A visit to the Trek Harlingen showroom features dozens of bicycles of differing styles, colors and prices.…
“All my life,” Luz Ramos says when asked if she is a daddy’s girl, a not surprising fact when seeing the name of the specialty donut bar she opened in Edinburg on May 28. Papy Donuts is named after her papy, Jaime Ramos, a master baker who learned the craft in Mexico. “I wanted to show appreciation because he actually has a gift,” Ramos said about her father. The elder…
Jesus Pena and his big sisters Carmina and Sonia knew the sights and sounds of the downtown Harlingen of their growing up years. They grew up on Monroe Street, within walking distance of downtown, as well as their schools, churches and stores. Jesus recalled a neighborhood barber shop on Van Buren Street where his father took him as a child. It’s just down the street from the former barber shop…