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Donald Ray Pacha “Donnie,” 71, of Bartlett, passed away Feb. 20, 2023.He was born in Taylor, TX on June 3, 1951. A visitation will be held on Friday, February 24, 2023 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Goodnight Funeral Home in Bartlett, TX.

The Junior Woman’s Study Club’s first meeting of the 2023 New Year was held Thursday, Jan. 12, at Mas Fajitas. Twenty members attended the event hosted by Shannon Car roll, Mar y Jane Hammack, Janie Kol lman, Moppy Miller and Melissa Whit e. After the luncheon, Anne Wentrcek conducted a brief business mee t ing. Paulette McConchie, on behalf of the Williamson County Child Welfare Board, expressed her grateful appreciation to the members for their generous December donations toward the purchase of Christmas gifts for the families served.

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“I chose the road less traveled. Now if I can just figure out where I am.” – Anonymous Roads less traveled have always been my preferred routes.

Wintertime in Central Texas doesn’t exactly invoke mental images of lush, green gardens or fresh produce straight from the garden, but if you are wanting to harvest crops in the spring you need to start now. Despite the confusing weather and temperatures this time of year, February is an underrated month for gardening. It’s actually one of the very best times to plant a vegetable garden.

HUTTO – Area residents drove through and dined in as volunteers dished up hundreds of servings of soup during the Hutto Resource Center’s fifth annual Souper Bowl. Volunteers from the HRC and Hutto Independent School District staffed the event on Sunday, Feb.

As the Taylor Independent School District moves forward with “unstacking” plans for the elementary schools next fall, parents and other community members seem to be taking the upcoming seismic shift in stride, officials said during the Feb. 20th meeting of the board of trustees.

PERCUSSION PARK OFFICIALLY OPENS Recently, Murphy Park has gotten a little more upbeat thanks to the addition of percussion playground equipment. On Saturday, a ribbon cutting was held to officially open Percussion Park in Taylor.

A community meeting hub with fitness components that could include a climbing wall, onsite childcare, a multipurpose classroom and an observation deck, covered by a roof that provides fresh water for lush rain gardens below.

City leaders will consider changes to the Envision Taylor Comprehensive plan, but will it be enough to appease landowners in the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction who say their property is being unjustly devalued? At the Feb. 23 Taylor City Council meeting, staff will introduce ordinance 2023-10 to amend some elements of its “Restricted Growth Sector,” which limits some kinds of development in the Extra Territorial Jurisdiction due to the high cost of extending and maintaining infrastructure there, city officials have said.

LULING – Ashlyn Jarosek came off the bench to score a gamehigh 20 points, and a swarming Tigerettes defense held Ganado to five field goals, as Thrall (25-11) captured the bi-district title with a 52-29 Tuesday night in Luling.

MANOR – After a slow start, the Taylor Ducks basketball team ended the regular season dominating the back half of district play. The Taylor Ducks defeated the Manor New Tech Titans 63-53, Tuesday, Feb.

TEMPLE – The Taylor Lady Ducks season came to an end Thursday night in Temple after falling to the Connally Cadets 55-33 in the Area playoff game. While the loss in the game was tough for the Lady Ducks, they emphasized an even bigger loss after the game.

Gov. Greg Abbot has issued a disaster declaration for Texas counties affected by the early February ice storm and is seeking a federal declaration as well for areas in Southeast Texas affected by rare January tornadoes. The ice storm caused considerable damage to property and power outages in the affected areas.

Editor’s note: We’re looking for a variety of young voices to contribute to “Hits Different.” If you’d like to write a commentary, send it to Area Editor Jason Hennington at jason.hennington@ granitemediapartners. com.