Valley Life

Have jury duty? Here's what you need to know

Travis M. Whitehead

There’s no such thing as "selecting" a jury. Attorney Mike Wise, a former state representative who now practices civil and criminal law, says lawyers deselect jurors from a pool of potential jurors called veniremen. "It’s more art than... Full story

Local artist’s painting nets thousands for Carter Center

ARTIST PROFILE: Wilma Langhammer

Crystal Olvera

McAllen artist Wilma Langhamer did not expect a winning bid as high as the one her painting sold for at the annual Carter Center Winter Weekend auction Feb. 27, at Port St. Lucie, Fla. She originally valued her painting “Messengers of... Full story

San Juan woman on quest for four-leaf clover finally lucks out

Amy Nichol Smith

Gloria DeLaCruz-Vasquez never considered herself lucky, but a fateful day this month may have changed that. As DeLaCruz-Vasquez watered the aloe vera in the back yard, she glanced down and saw among a patch of weeds, a rare four-leaf clover.... Full story

Why shop at a local meat market?

Travis M. Whitehead

Roberto Garza had just picked up some fajitas at La Michoacana Meat Market. He prefers shopping here instead of bigger grocery stores because, he says, there’s more variety. "They have other types of meat, like the chicharrones, carne de... Full story

IMAS exhibit explains the ABCs of DNA

Travis M. Whitehead

Yogi Bhatt and his son Rajiv really enjoyed learning about genes and the double helix. "I learned that instead of learning ABCs, in the DNA double helix you learn your ATGCs," said Rajiv Bhatt, 12, as he and his father explored the exhibit Genome:... Full story

DEBORAH MARTINEZ: Bilingual education still a big puzzle

Deborah Martinez

Bilingual education is just one of those issues. It sparks debates. It stumps lawmakers. It challenges educators. It simply has yet to be figured out. And for a border region like ours, that is just downright scary. Considering that the first... Full story

Winter Texans continue tradition of making quilts for the needy

Zack Quaintance

Between the electronic bingo board and the lunch menu featuring taco salad for $3.50, the Winter Texans make quilts to keep children warm. Every Tuesday morning at 8 a.m., the Canyon Lake RV Park Recreation Hall in Mission transforms into an... Full story

Missionary couple from McAllen brings relief to orphan girls in Guatemala

Alex M. Rovzar

For the past 22 years, local artists Roger and Naomi Keith have dedicated their time and efforts to raising donations for the less fortunate. Originally from the Midwest, the Keiths have been married for twenty three years and have lived in McAllen... Full story

Design a t-shirt for Quinta Mazatlán

Crystal Olvera

The third annual Vida Verde Earth Day Festival is holding a T-shirt design contest. Participants are required to design T-shirt artwork to celebrate a vida verde or “living green.” All participants will receive a free T-shirt that will... Full story

How they do dessert Down Under

Amy Nichol Smith

All this week, The Monitor's Valley Life is joining the City of Hidalgo and State Farm Arena in saluting Australia, the country of honor at this year's BorderFest celebration. Each day we'll look at a different aspect of the fascinating culture... Full story

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