For the first time in nearly a year, the Rio Grande Valley Livestock Show Grounds were bustling with people after the annual livestock show was cancelled last March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the large crowd at the showgrounds were there for the same reason the show was cancelled. On Tuesday, Hidalgo County held…

New Hidalgo County commissioner sworn in The new year kicked off with a new county commissioner to represent western Hidalgo County. On New Year’s Day last week, local businessman Everardo “Ever” Villarreal was sworn in as Hidalgo County Precinct 3 commissioner by state Senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the swearing in…

Outgoing Queen Citrianna honored Palmview celebrated one of their own who represented western Hidalgo County during last year’s Texas Citrus Fiesta. During their Tuesday city council meeting, Palmview council members approved a resolution honoring Jaedynn E’Del Alaniz, TCF Queen Citrianna 83rd. Alaniz made history when she was crowned Queen Citrianna last year as the first…

A Brownsville federal grand jury has indicted a Canadian woman three months after she was arrested and accused of mailing envelopes containing a deadly poison to President Donald J. Trump and six local law enforcement agencies. Pascale Cecile Veronique Ferrier aka Jane Ferrier, 53, is currently in custody in Washington, D.C., on separate, but similar…

In a year where experts predicted the pandemic would force one-third of nonprofits to close their doors, Buckner International found a way to continue serving the Rio Grande Valley area. The Dallas-based non-profit, which has a location in Peñitas and a foster home in Mission, was able to successfully transition to online services to continue…

An ordinary looking ball of chocolate is bringing joy to millions around the world, including those in the Valley. A simple search through the social media apps TikTok and Instagram shows that among the most trending topics are hot chocolate bombs, balls of chocolate that erupt to reveal marshmallows and hot chocolate powder once warm…

Those looking for a last-minute alcohol-related gift in your local liquor store in the last week may have come across a familiar sight. On Monday, Brunette Bombshell, the flagship beer from the Mission-based 5×5 Brewing Co., appeared in local retailers such as H-E-B, Holiday Wine and Liquor and more. “It’s the first beer product from…

Alton teen part of award-winning football team After the COVID-19 pandemic almost ended their season early, the Texas School for the Deaf football team won the state championship earlier this month for the first time in the program’s 164-year-old history. Among the athletes who make up part of the groundbreaking team is Jose Ismael Garcia…

 Armed with a new tool they say will better prepare them for any scenarios, the Alton Police Department is taking their training to the next level. The department unveiled on Wednesday the Milo Range virtual training simulator, which uses VR technology to place officers in numerous situations that wouldn’t normally be possible. “This virtual reality…

COVID-19 vaccines arrive in Hidalgo County Lindsie Schuster is one of many frontline workers at DHR Health who are known as “COVID warriors” for being at the frontlines of treating the sickest of the sick. Schuster, a native from the Rio Grande Valley, was working in Austin up until last summer when she heard of…