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In light of all that has occurred in the last two weeks involving the Flour Bluff Citizens’ Council, as chairperson of the steering committee, I thought it a good idea to let everyone know what is happening. The founding group that met on Monday, July 25, 2016, at Janet Harte Library was composed of people in Flour Bluff who expressed a desire to see if they could get anyone else interested in the Flour Bluff community to come together to discuss issues specific to Flour Bluff. We met and one of the attendees wrote a story about all that happened the night the FBCC was born. The story tells how the group came up with a name, a vision, and a mission. We posted the article, and that started a huge buzz on Facebook. We learned that lots of people are interested in taking part, which is very exciting.
With the response we received, we decided to move forward and form a steering committee. (NOTE: The steering committee does not discuss issues. It is charged with finalizing the vision and mission statements, creating bylaws, selecting a person to handle PR and social media, laying the groundwork to establish the group, and setting the date for the first general meeting.) Those who have done this assured us that grassroots groups die when there is no organization or leadership, and we didn’t want to fail before we even got started. So, we agreed to tell more people and try to get enough volunteers for a steering committee.
The steering committee held its first meeting on Monday, August 1, 2016. Those present were: Justin Green, Kyle Pape, Melanie Hambrick, Lynn Kaylor, Cliff Zarbock, Weston Beseda, Susan Ludka, Billie Reeves, Christy Zamora, Jeff Craft, and Shirley Thornton. Those who said they wanted to serve on the steering committee but could not make the meeting are: Miles Graham, John Michael, Robert “Buddy” Seeds, James Skrobarczyk, Tina Green, and Inna Klein. (Two additional community members have volunteered to serve on the steering committee: Lloyd Stegemann and Steve Woolery.)
Though the group is really happy about all the talk the group has generated, there is a bit of misinformation that has been sent out. I will attempt to set the record straight below:
- WE HAVE NOT HAD A GENERAL MEETING YET. We will be signing members up for the FBCC at the town hall meeting called by Congressman Blake Farenthold which will be held on August 22, 2016, at 6:00 p.m., at the Ethel Eyerly Community Center on Graham Road. The congressman will be granted all the time he needs since he asked to meet with us. The steering committee will set the date for the first general meeting where the input of the community will be needed to launch the FBCC.
- The next meeting is a steering committee meeting on August 15, 2016, at Janet Harte Library meeting room, which has a capacity of 50. (I chose this site because it is available and free to use.) It is not a secret meeting or one where people will be excluded. It is an organizational meeting. We will not be discussing any of the issues that many of you are anxious to discuss. We will be finishing the bylaws and setting a date for the first general meeting. We want to pull the Bluff together, so please stay informed, ask questions as many of you have already, and invite everyone you know who might want to join. The Facebook page will be up soon, and that will help a great deal with getting the word out. Lynn Kaylor has graciously volunteered to take on this task. Until then, I volunteered the Paper Trail to help communicate what is happening.
- If you want to send me your email address so that you can receive the minutes of the meetings, please shoot your email to me at [email protected] . I’ll be happy to add you to the list.)
- Please know that no one was intentionally left out. We just took a leap of faith and grabbed a group of people to get this party started. Your presence and input are essential to making this whole plan come to fruition. We can’t do it without you. Let me reiterate: Our main goal is to bring the people of Flour Bluff together – regardless of past issues that may have divided us – and work to be a voice for our community. We have been called “the sleeping giant of Corpus Christi.” He is waking up!
- It is true that the first meeting included people who are running for office or are currently holding office or both. They learned of the meeting because they are already actively involved in the Flour Bluff community in some manner. Our hope is that all these folks will continue to join us when we hold our general meetings, whether they are elected or not. We want them involved, and we need them to hear what we have to say. County Commissioner Brent Chesney already contacted us to see how he could help out. Councilman Chad Magill offered us valuable advice on how to get started. We are building relationships with the powers that be, and that is a very good thing. Our goal is to work WITH these folks to solve the unique problems of our community.
- Cliff Zarbock has volunteered to have a logo made for the FBCC that we can use on the social media sites. We will have our own brand! I am seeing t-shirts in our future!
For now, the steering committee is hustling to lay the foundation. If you wish to attend the August 15 meeting, you are certainly welcome. Just don’t forget about the seating problem. We may have to turn some people out into the library, which is not so bad. They have some wonderful reading material! We have had a Flour Bluff church offer its building for our general meetings. What a blessing! I hope we have so many members that we have to meet at the football stadium!
Thanks for taking the time to read what was supposed to be a short article, and please share it so that everyone will have the facts. God bless you and God bless Flour Bluff!
Contact the FBCC at [email protected]