Officers Sam Mitchell and Jason Wicks of the Corpus Christi Police Department Quality of Life Unit attended the Flour Bluff Business Association meeting on March 8, 2017, at Funtrackers in Flour Bluff. These officers typically patrol the uptown and downtown business districts and in the areas where homeless and transients congregate. They work on foot, on bicycles, and even on mules (UTVs). Due to an overwhelming number of reports about illegal activities taking place in Parker Park around the Ethel Eyerly Center, the officers have started making rounds to help make the park safe for children, families, and those attending the senior center at Ethel Eyerly.
Officer Mitchell, a graduate of Flour Bluff High School, said, “We are going to be combating some of the issues we’ve had by helping the homeless get the assistance they need to get better. We’re going to start off with the Ethel Eyerly Senior Center. A lot of those seniors fear they can’t exercise or move about in that area, so we’re starting in that area first. Then, we’ll work our way to the Waldron and SPID intersection and then throughout the Bluff.” He went on to say that he takes great pride in serving the community where he grew up. “I want to give back what the community gave me.”
Officer Wicks agreed with Mitchell and encouraged anyone who has questions or concerns to contact them. “We will do all that we can to help you out. That’s why we’re here.”
Retired from education after serving 30 years (twenty-eight as an English teacher and two years as a new-teacher mentor), Shirley enjoys her life with family and friends while serving her community, church, and school in Flour Bluff, Texas. She is the creator and managing editor of The Paper Trail, an online news/blog site that serves to offer a glimpse into the past and present of the little community of Flour Bluff. She wrote for The Flour Bluff Messenger, wrote and edited for The Texas Shoreline News, a Corpus Christi print newspaper that existed from December 2017 to April 2020, served as copy editor on three books, and continues to tutor students of all ages in the lively art of writing.
