San Jacinto County News

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TONY FARKAS | SJNT Relson Gracie JiuJitsu celebrated its grand opening with a ribbon cutting on Saturday.

SHEPHERD — Three businesses new to the community were honored by the Greater Shepherd Chamber of Commerce on Saturday, two with ribbon cuttings and one named Business of the Month.

Fierce Nutrition, a store that specializes in nutritious smoothies, shakes and herbal teas, was named Business of the Month for March and April.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Fierce Nutrition was named Business of the Month for March by the Greater Shepherd Chamber of Commerce.

Texas Glam Girlz celebrated its grand opening with a ribbon cutting, although owner Misty Slawson says they’ve been open since October.

Slawson, who’s been a Shepherd resident most of her life, offers several different services: there’s a boutique that offers women’s and girls clothes, shoes and accessories; a tanning salon, which has tanning beds or spray tans available; and a dry cleaning business.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Texas Glam Girlz celebrated its grand opening with a ribbon cutting on Saturday.

The grand opening was delayed, Slawson said, because of damage done to the building during the severe winter weather, requiring remodeling.

Hours are from 8 a.m.- 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m.- 2 p.m. Saturdays.

At Relson Gracie JiuJitsu, owner Bruce McKinzie said he’s been open eight months, but has been teaching for 10 years.

He has been practicing the discipline for 16 years, but has been into martial arts for 38 years and holds multiple black belts. Currently, he has top belts in kenpo karate, taekwon do, jeet kune do, and kali, a Filipino martial art, to which he holds a rank of full instructor, the highest available.

He also holds full instructor ranking for jeet kune do, a discipline started by Bruce Lee, having trained with Bruce Lee’s friend Ted Wong.

McKinzie said he teaches jiujitsu because of his age and his retirement from competitive matches, and the art is less violent, but will teach other disciplines on a one-on-one basis.

“What I teach kids is to be bully-proof,” he said. “I teach students not to fight if they don’t have to, but to control the situation and holler for a teacher.”

Instruction is offered Monday through Thursday; kickboxing is from 6:15 - 7:15 p.m., children’s jiujitsu from 7:15 - 8 p.m.; and from 8 - 9 p.m. for adults.

Fierce Nutrition is at 11104 TX 150 Suite 300, and can be reached at (832) 946-4615.

Texas Glam Girlz is at 1281 S. Byrd Ave., and can be reached at (334) 429-0545.

Relson Gracie JiuJitsu, next door to Fierce Nutrition, can be reached at (281) 387-8782.

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San Jacinto County Sheriff's Department logo

SJNT staff

OAKHURST — A dispute between family members left an Oakhurst man injured, and his uncle arrested on a charge of assault with a deadly weapon.

Detective Sgt. Gary Sharpen of the San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Office said the shooting occurred after Charles Tubbs shot his nephew, Elem Wynne III, had an argument.

Tubbs allegedly discharged a 12-gauge shotgun at Wynne, hitting him in the neck.

According to reports, at 1:30 p.m. Monday, San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Office and Walker County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call regarding a shooting victim located at Bubba’s gas station located off US 190 in Walker County.

Authorities found Wynne in the parking lot of Bubba’s convenience store in Dodge with an apparent gunshot wound to his neck. Walker County emergency personnel and a DPS trooper were dispatched, and the trooper provided medical aide while he questioned the victim, who said he was shot by his uncle who lives off Harrison Road in Oakhurst.

Reports indicate Wynne drove away from his uncle’s house after the argument, and ended up at Bubba’s. After treatment at the scene, Wynne was LifeFlighted to Houston for treatment.

In the meantime, San Jacinto County deputies arrived at Tubbs’ residence, where it was determined that Tubbs was standing outside when an unfamiliar pickup truck pulled into his driveway. Tubbs told police he was not familiar with the vehicle and could not see the driver or passenger.

The driver’s window came down, and Tubbs and Wynne continued an ongoing family dispute, reports state. It was then Tubbs reportedly discharged his 12-gauge shotgun loaded with birdshot in the direction of the vehicle.

Wynne was struck in the neck and face, and then drove away, reports state.

Sharpen said Wynne’s condition was unknown, but emergency personnel at the scene were confident the injuries were not life-threatening.

Tubbs was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, a second-degree felony. He currently is being held on an undisclosed bond.

This case is still under investigation and will be forwarded to the San Jacinto County District Attorney’s Office for further review.

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TONY FARKAS | SJNT Terry Holcomb was third in Volunteer of the Year.

COLDSPRING — The Coldspring Chamber of Commerce honored the top businesses and organizations in the area, as well as its own volunteers, at its annual banquet on Saturday.

Chamber President Barbara Justice said that even though 2020 was an unprecedented year, the chamber and the county managed to make it through by learning to innovate.

“We figured out how to social distance, how to mask, and all the other COVID-19 precautionary measures,” she said. “Zoom became our secondary method of meeting, and email became our primary mode of communication.”

For the first time in memory, annual events were canceled; however, alternate arrangements were made for scholarships, however, Justice said.

“We had various sponsors, and were still able to give scholarships for students,” she said.

The first event attended in 2020 was the Christmas Parade, which was exciting as residents were able to get out of the house; there were more than 30 floats and more than 120 vendors, which put the town at max capacity, Justice said.

In 2021, plans are to have more in-person events, including lunch-and-learn events held monthly, she said.

Winners of the annual Best of Coldspring awards are:

• Grand Business: Bullet Grill House, first; Brookshire Brothers, second; Sheco, third.
• Large Business: The Mason Jar, first; Browders Marina and Store, second; Eastex Title Co., third.
• Medium Business: Hilltop Ice House, first; People’s State Bank, second; Wolf Creek Air, third.
• Small Business: Camp Jason RV Resort, first; Sittin’ Pretty Pet Spa and Boutique, second; and The Dam Liquor Stor, third.
• Non-profit: American Legion Post 629, first; Republican Party of San Jacinto County, second; Heaven’s Army of Resources, third.
• Volunteer of the Year: Barbara Creel, first, Michelle Haylock, second; Terry Holcomb, third.
• Citizen of the Year: Phyliss Powdrill, first, Larissa Sustaita, second; Alvin Wyatt, third.
• Lifetime Member Award: Kathleen E. Mathieu.
• Board Member of the Year: Barbara Justice.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Bullet Grill House was named top Grand Business.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Eastex Title Co. was named third for Large Business.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT People’s State Bank was named second for Medium Business.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Sittin’ Pretty Pet Spa and Boutique was named second for Small Business.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Camp Jason RV Resort took top honors in Small Business.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Heaven’s Army of Resources was third in Non-profit Organizations.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Republican Party of San Jacinto County was second in Non-profit Organizations.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT American Legion Post 629 was first in Non-profit Organizations.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Terry Holcomb was third in Volunteer of the Year.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Barbara Creel was first in Volunteer of the Year. (front)

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Larissa Sustaita was second as Citizen of the Year. (front)

TONY FARKAS | SJNT The Lifetime Member Award, accepted by her daughter, was presented to Kathleen Matheu.

TONY FARKAS | SJNT Board Member of the Year was presented to Chamber President Barbara Justice.

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EMILY KUBISCH-SABRSULA | SJNT Sergeant Rachelle Thomas and her team of medics and administrators teamed up with the San Jacinto County’s Office of Emergency Management to keep the clinic running smoothly, with 105 doses administered in the first day.

COLDSPRING — Last week, San Jacinto County was the first of 26 counties in Texas to implement the Save Our Seniors vaccination program, meant to get the first round of the vaccine into the arms of the county’s older citizens.

Volunteers, who have already been working to assist with distribution at the Brookshire Brothers, along with Army medics, worked side by side to administer the allotted 200 vaccines, with 105 doses of the Moderna vaccine being used in the first day at the Coldspring Emergency Shelter.

Medics also drove around the county to give the first dose to those who are homebound, with officials in the Operations and Emergency Management office calling residents in the county to make sure they were aware of the free program.

The initiative was originally intended for those 75 and older with an appointment, but volunteers moved to contact those 65 and older on the second day as to not waste any of the vaccines, which must be kept refrigerated.

Among those assisting the San Jacinto County OEM office in distribution was Sgt. Rashelle Thomas and her team of certified medics and administrators, who are based out of Lufkin and will continue moving around East Texas to assist in distribution, including in Shelby and Panola county.

“The volunteers and the town are awesome, and we just enjoy all the people we’ve gotten to work with,” she said.

The county, which has been holding vaccination clinics through several outlets prior to last week’s event, claims luck had a small part to do with why the county was chosen as the first to pilot the program, which was put together in less than a week.

“The first day was a little hectic, but we’ve had a steady flow of participants and it’s gone smooth,” SJ County Judge Fritz Faulkner, equipped with a mask, said. “This has really been a blessing.”

Other factors, as stated on the governor’s website, include vaccination rates among seniors and total vaccine allocations over the past three months.

Participants will need to return approximately three weeks after the first shot, as indicated on their form. Those who have received the vaccine are encouraged to continue wearing masks in public and practicing social distancing, as indicated on the CDC website.

While the vaccine has been proven effective in reducing symptoms, specifically those that lead to hospitalization, it’s ability to reduce spread is still being monitored.