From the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Lonesome Dove to books like Horseman, Pass By and The Last Kind Words Saloon, America has seen the Old West through the eyes of Larry McMurtry. McMurtry’s lifelong pursuit began with just an inheritance of a small sack of books.

You know it is “that time of year” when Christmas music begins playing on the radio and in stores. With the Christmas season creeping slightly earlier and earlier each year, or so it seems, the merry tunes can lose their novelty by the time the big day rolls around! To put some jingly spirit back into the classic tunes that underscore the holiday season, enjoy some lesser-known stories behind the songs.

His name may not be as recognizable as his brainchild, TOMS, the $625 million apparel company best known for their canvas slip-on shoes, but Blake Mycoskie does not appear to be someone who concerns himself with frivolities like fame. Often seen in pictures with a signature look of long hair, a beard, and a festival of pendants around his neck (including […]

For Bobby Lackey, it seems, it is not the third time – but the first – that has always been the charm. Now in his 80s, the Weslaco native set the stage for a standout collegiate career in football at the University of Texas at Austin when, in 1957, in one of his first games as starting quarterback for the Longhorns, he […]

Taft, Texas is a classic small town. With a population of nearly 4,000, it only took one of San Patricio County’s community members to make an impact. Hometown hero turned award-winning animal advocate Kayla Denney did just that.  Denney saves lives. In 2018, chief of police John Cornish appointed Denney as the lead animal control […]

Fighting for representation in a predominantly male industry, women have had to overcome many obstacles to earn respect as professionals in the sports industry. Women in the field today have many strong, female influences to thank for paving the way thus far, including Texas’s own Anita Martini, the Galveston native who opened the door to gender equality for female sports […]

“The energy I receive is from light,” Wyman Meinzer said, award-winning photographer, author, and the official State Photographer of Texas. Meinzer first took an interest in photography around the age of 13. “I love great light, and even after 40-plus years of using a camera, light moves me greatly and energizes my creative store. I asked my mom for […]

John C. Scharbauer, the owner of Midland Meat Company and Scharbauer Ranches, is not particular about how his German surname is pronounced. Technically, Scharbauer sounds like “shar bower,” but those familiar with the name, synonymous since the 1800s with local beef, simply pronounce it “scarber.” The fifth-generation rancher is picky, however, about the cattle his family has worked 135 years […]

Most know the name “Sully” from that fateful day, January 15, 2009, when he piloted US Airways Flight 1549 through a historic water landing on Manhattan’s Hudson River after the aircraft encountered an unprecedented bird strike shortly after takeoff. Captain Sullenberger’s entire life had prepared him for such an event, although most commercial airline pilots never have to experience dual engine […]

Mowgli and Murphy It was mid-morning in August. I sat outside to enjoy my daily cup of coffee, but that particular morning I felt as though something was off. I looked around with my coffee in hand and realized that I could not find one of my cats, Mowgli, who usually enjoyed going outside. We lived in […]

Joe Haynes leaned back in a well-worn chair at the KSTA radio station in the small west-central Texas town of Coleman. The studio is crowded with memorabilia: Coleman Bluecats rally gear, inspirational messages, and a large framed painting of Jesus walking on the water. “My whole life has been about overcoming odds,” said the beloved […]

Wade Bowen’s music career has taken him everywhere. With tour dates in France, the U.K., and Germany, Wade has journeyed all across the world sharing his heart through country music. Yet, regardless of where he has roamed, one place is always in the back of his mind beckoning him home . . . his beloved […]

Some people spend a lifetime simply trying to discover their passion. Mary Elizabeth Holdsworth Butt spent a lifetime juggling a plethora of them. Her surname alone is synonymous with charitable giving: She was the matriarch of the Butt empire, which includes H-E-B Grocery, a supermarket chain with more than 350 stores in Texas and Mexico, […]

Travel down to South Texas and peel back a history more rich than the juicy citrus the region mass produces. The Rio Grande Valley is home to cities that are close in proximity yet differ in their beginnings, with culturally diverse populations waiting for someone to tell their authentic, homegrown, and antique origin stories. An […]

Convicted of murder at as a teen, Clyde Thompson spent most of his life in prison. He earned the moniker "the meanest man in Texas," and lived up to it for a time, before finding salvation and the love of a good woman. Thompson served as a pastor for several years after his release.