Putting the Brakes on Drunk Driving By Mary Nichols There is a famous Spanish song, titled “Amor Eterno,” (Eternal Love) a song that sings of a loved one taken before his time. The lyrics state, “It pains me so much you are not here. How I wish you were still living, that your eyes had never closed, and I could be looking at them. Sooner or later, I will be with you again.” The pain voiced through the lyrics is incomparable to the pain many suffer when they lose a loved one to drunken driving. In 2007, Texas ranked number one with 3,363 alcohol-related fatalities, and South Texas alone had a total of 563. Texas and the Rio Grande Valley have the highest drunk driving fatalities in the country. It’s a problem that victims and authorities feel needs to be addressed. Mission Chief of Police Leo Longoria feels people who choose to drink should be more responsible. “People who are out there drinking and driving, don’t realize the consequence and the loss they can bring upon an individual,” said Chief Longoria. “If you drink and drive and get caught or die, you’re not going to be able to see your daughter or son graduate, (you will) miss out being a grandfather, or seeing your spouse. You lose all the comforts that come with being part of this earth. Most importantly, you take someone else’s life.” Full Story
July 4 Tea Party at Speedway The McAllen Tea Party Association will host an Independence Day Celebration at the Rio Grande Speedway on Saturday, July 4, beginning at 5 p.m. Flyer in PDF Format Full Story Newspaper Office Closed Friday The Progress Times office will be closed Friday, July 3, in observance of Independence Day. The newspaper office will re-open Monday morning at 8:30 a.m. Offices for the City of Mission will also be closed Friday.
	Gov. Perry applauds Peñitas’ 300 Walmart jobs By Edwina P. Garza PEÑITAS – The 300 new jobs brought here prove that the Rio Grande Valley is still growing and is still a powerful force, Gov. Rick Perry told Walmart shoppers in Penitas last week. Full Story
Edwina Garza named Progress assistant editor Edwina P. Garza has been named assistant editor of the Progress Times. Jim Brunson, publisher and editor of the newspaper said she is a welcome addition to the Progress Times staff. “Edwina is a resident of the area who has returned to her roots with a masters degree in journalism and excellent skills. She knows the Valley and she will do a fine job for this newspaper and for the community,” Brunson said. Garza earned her bachelor’s degree in communications/print journalism at the University of Texas-Pan American before completing a masters degree program at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in New York City. Full Story	Hometown Hero ?Air Force Major Byron T. Brunson began his service in June, 1990 when he first reported to the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Physics in 1996. Archive
H-E-B issues voluntary recall for JBS Swift Beef products SAN ANTONIO — H-E-B officials are asking local shoppers to look inside their freezers for beef products that are a part of a voluntary recall. The store’s recall is in connection with the voluntary national recall by JBS Swift Beef Company for possible E-coli 0157:H7 in some of its products. H-E-B is notifying its customers and advising them to check their freezers for the beef products. Full Story	Mission teens repair Hurricane Dolly damage By Edwina P. Garza With the early afternoon summer sun beating against their backs, eight teenagers pounded nails onto the roof of an Edinburg home this week as part of the annual Mission Service Project. “There’s a huge sense of satisfaction with the work,” said 17-year-old Quinten Womack, a senior at Sharyland High School. Full Story
Mission teacher's sculpture in Salt Lake City exhibit By Edwina P. Garza The line of people stretches well over a dozen. They are children, young couples and elderly people standing 10 inches tall, all waiting for what could be hours, to greet Jesus Christ, whose hands and feet are extended toward the crowd. A father swings his son around while his wife waits attentively. A young man guides an elderly blind man, and others stand to the side in awe. Full Story	Read these stories and more in this week's Progress Times The Boys from Roosevelt Elementary County Partners with HEB for passport fair Marathon canoe race is Mexico's oldest Mission streets get face lift Alton Rollover Hidalgo expects another short fall in 2010 budget >> Progress Times can be found at these locations
Dramatic Drug Smuggler Chase by Mission PD - Part 1	Dramatic Drug Smuggler Chase by Mission PD - Part 2