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Museums of Port Isabel to go Mobile with Telling Our Stories Program

For over two decades the Museums of Port Isabel has hosted a monthly oral history program called “Telling Our Stories”. Featuring a wide variety of topics from the rescue of sea turtles to the history of bricks in the Rio Grande Valley to shrimping history, this program has served to collect the stories that keep the history of the Laguna Madre area alive.

Since mid-March, the Treasures of the Gulf and the Port Isabel Historical Museum have had to close their doors. And with that, came the cancellation of all the Telling Our Stories programming. There are still stories to tell and audience that would love to hear them, so a plan has been put in place to continue the programming.

On Thursday, July 2nd, the first in a series of episodes will kick off with local Bobby Wells. Streamed on Facebook, the event will take us on a route through the streets of Port Isabel for a live conversation about Port Isabel’s history and its people. The format allows for comments and conversation while still being safe.

Scheduled for 2 p.m., the route will give a visual of the Port Isabel of yesteryear. Bobby Wells has been a resident of Port Isabel for the last nine decades and brings a wealth of information and nuances to the conversation of Port Isabel’s history and culture and customs.

Tune in live here: https://www.facebook.com/portisabeltx/posts/10158848636094752. The broadcast will also be posted on the Museum website at www.portisabelmuseums.com.

For more information email info@portisabel-texas.com.

 

Bobby Wells with her tournament winning Tarpon in 1972. Wells reports that it took an hour and a half to boat the silver king.
Bobby Wells with her tournament winning Tarpon in 1972. Wells reports that it took an hour and a half to boat the silver king.
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Telling Our Stories “Growing Up In Old Port Isabel!” 2/27 7p

The Museums of Port Isabel and the Laguna Madre Museum Foundation are proud to present its “Telling Our Stories” Series of 2020 on Thursday, February 27th, at the Port Isabel Event & Cultural Center, 309 East Railroad Ave. @ 7pm. This month’s topic will be on “Growing up in Old Port Isabel” a presentation by Mr. Inocente Zurita.
 
Mr. Zurita, a lifetime resident, born on December 28, 1954 in the Mexiquito area, the oldest section of Port Isabel. His father started working in the shrimping associated business in 1971 for 48 years which he join his father at a later date. Mr. Zurita & his wife, Frances got married in 1973 & reside in Port Isabel, Texas.
 
Please join us for “Growing up in Old Port Isabel”. All locals and visitors are welcomed to attend this free presentation. Complimentary drinks and hors d’oeuvres will be provided.
 
‘Telling Our Stories” is an educational program aimed to preserving the heritage of the City of Port Isabel and the Laguna Madre area. Our goals are to preserve and educate our local and natural history through presentations and exhibits. The program is co-sponsored by the Museums of Port Isabel and the Laguna Museum Foundation. “Telling Our Stories” is presented on the fourth (4Th) Thursday of each month from January through September at the Treasures of the Gulf Museum. Admission is FREE.
 
Sponsored By:
Museums of Port Isabel & Laguna Madre Museum Foundation
 
For more information on Telling Our Stories or to help sponsor an event, contact Jeannie Marie A. Flores at (956) 943-7602 or visit www.portisabelmuseums.com or you may also send an email to museumdirector@copitx.com.
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Telling Our Stories ~ Shrimp Tales: Port Isabel and Brownsville Shrimping History

Museums Telling Our StoriesThe Museums of Port Isabel and the Laguna Madre Museum Foundation are proud to present its “Telling Our Stories” Series of 2020 on Thursday, January 23rd, at the Port Isabel Event & Cultural Center, 309 East Railroad Ave. @ 7pm. This month’s topic will be on “Shrimp Tales: Port Isabel and Brownsville Shrimping History” a presentation by Mr. Rudy Garcia & Mrs. Pat McGrath Avery.

Mr. Garcia & Mrs. Avery came to this book from different backgrounds and have spent much of the last two (2) years interviewing, researching and writing the first-person stories of shrimpers who lived the life.

Mr. Garcia, born and raised in the Laguna Madre community, spent much of his childhood exploring the shrimp docks, venturing in and out of shrimp houses, boarding boats and conversing with the crews. When he was old enough to work on board a shrimp boat, his father sent him to sea with his Uncle Joe and his cousin Eddie. Mr. Garcia & his wife, Rita Nina reside in Laguna Vista, Texas.

Mrs. Avery and her husband drove her parents down from Kansas to spend winter in the mid-1970s. Returning to her home in land-locked Missouri, she never forgot the shrimp boats and her first taste of Gulf shrimp. By the time she moved here, most of the shrimp boats were gone, but those remaining still captured her interest. Mrs. Avery & her husband Everett live in Brownsville, Texas.

Rudy and Pat teamed up to write the history and share the stories of those who lived it. Mr. Garcia knew many of the shrimping families and the industry. Mrs. Avery had written several historical books featuring first-person accounts. Two (2) years ago they began interviewing shrimpers and are proud to bring their stories to life in Shrimp Tales: Port Isabel and Brownsville Shrimping History. The book highlights the years when an entire area – men, women and children – worked together as a community.

Please join us for an entertaining evening with Mr. Garcia & Mrs. Avery on a presentation on “Shrimp Tales: Port Isabel and Brownsville Shrimping History”. All locals and visitors are welcomed to attend this free presentation. Complimentary drinks and hors d’oeuvres will be provided.

‘Telling Our Stories” is an educational program aimed to preserving the heritage of the City of Port Isabel and the Laguna Madre area. Our goals are to preserve and educate our local and natural history through presentations and exhibits. The program is co-sponsored by the Museums of Port Isabel and the Laguna Museum Foundation. “Telling Our Stories” is presented on the fourth (4Th) Thursday of each month from January through September at the Treasures of the Gulf Museum. Admission is FREE.

Sponsored By:
Pirate’s Landing Restaurant, Garcia’s Family & Mr. & Mrs. Avery

For more information on Telling Our Stories or to help sponsor an event, contact Jeannie Marie A. Flores at (956) 943-7602 or visit www.portisabelmuseums.com or you may also send an email to museumdirector@copitx.com.

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Telling Our Stories: Sea Turtle Patrol 8/22 7p

Museums of Port Isabel Oral History

“Sea Turtle Patrol”

The Museums of Port Isabel and the Laguna Madre Museum Foundation are proud to present its “Telling Our Stories” Series of 2019 on Thursday, August 22nd, at the Treasures of the Gulf Museum, 308 Queen Isabella Blvd. @ 7pm. This month’s topic will be on “Sea Turtle Patrol” a presentation by Mrs. Linda McGonigle.

Mrs. Linda McGonigle is a free lance artist, calligrapher, and a retired teacher from public schools for 33 years.  She studied art at Texas Tech University & received her bachelor’s degree from Texas A & I University (Kingsville) now, Texas A & M. She completed a 500+ mile walk in 2013, following the original pilgrimage called “Camino de Frances”, a route through France & Spain.

Mrs. McGonigle has resided on South Padre Island for the past 27 years.  She is an active member of the Rio Grande Valley Chapter of Texas Master Naturalists, Texas Coastal Naturalist and volunteers her time in numerous activities that support nature, including Sea Turtle Inc. where she volunteered for many years and been an ATV patroller for 15 years, and she is also a member of St. Andrew’s by the Sea Episcopal Church & co-founder and teacher of the Adult Literacy Program at the Church.

Mrs. McGonigle is a longtime member of the PI/SPI Shell Club. She has been a consultant and active volunteer at the Native Plant Center & Island Arboretum on South Padre Island and does presentations about nature sketching and nature journaling for a variety of groups and organizations.

Please join us for an entertaining evening with Mrs. Linda McGonigle on a presentation on “Sea Turtle Patrol”.  All locals and visitors are welcomed to attend this free presentation. Complimentary drinks and hors d’oeuvres will be provided.

‘Telling Our Stories” is an educational program aimed to preserving the heritage of the City of Port Isabel and the Laguna Madre area. Our goals are to preserve and educate our local and natural history through presentations and exhibits. The program is co-sponsored by the Museums of Port Isabel and the Laguna Museum Foundation. “Telling Our Stories” is presented on the fourth (4Th) Thursday of each month from January through September at the Treasures of the Gulf Museum. Admission is FREE.

Sponsored By:
Museums of Port Isabel

For more information on Telling Our Stories or to help sponsor an event, contact Jeannie Marie A. Flores at (956) 943-7602 / (956) 943-0755 or visit www.portisabelmuseums.com or you may also send an email to jrivera@copitx.com.