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…
As we dive into 2023, one of our challenges with managing businesses and organizations is scheduling the best use of time for ourselves and our departments. “This is easy,” said no one. The priority of executive tasks consumes a substantial portion of our work day. Actually, the sharpest leaders map out a fluid plan before the work day starts. The allocation of which tasks are the highest priority and how…
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…
Valley International Airport is now offering a new Delta Air Lines non-stop route to Minneapolis – Saint Paul International Airport. The seasonal flight will begin service on Feb. 17 and run through May 8. “We would like to take this opportunity to welcome back a long time airline partner to Valley International Airport,” said Valley International Airport’s Aviation Director Marv Esterly. “We are very excited by Delta’s decision to service…
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley plans to offer a new graduate program – a master of science degree in biomedical engineering – starting Fall 2023, as part of the UTRGV College of Engineering and Computer Science. The program has received approval from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and is pending approval from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. Biomedical engineering is a multidisciplinary field…
Danny Smith was taking a holiday break in New Mexico when one of his sons called with devastating news on the first day of 2022. “Dad, your shop is on fire,” Smith recalls upon hearing his 125,000-square-foot Matt’s Building Materials store in Pharr was engulfed in flames. Baldo Arriaga, a 20 year-plus employee of Matt’s, got to the store 30 minutes after the blaze was reported to the local fire…
Valley Initiative for Development and Advancement is a Texas Talent Connection Grant recipient for a second time in a row to continue enhancing employment opportunities and promoting workforce development across the RGV. The $350,000 grant project will provide VIDA the opportunity to lead a continuation of the successful outcomes and deliverables from Texas Talent Connection Grant year one, in which 440 underserved residents were provided student support services to pursue…
McAllen ISD’s highly successful meals program is about to become a subject of study for other schools nationwide. Alexandra Molina, McAllen ISD’s executive director of Child Nutrition and Purchasing, will be sharing the district’s model. She is one of just 12 nationwide members, and the only one from Texas, chosen to serve with a leading champion of food insecurity – No Kid Hungry. The group is called the No Kid…