Russell Elementary School in Brownsville ISD marked its 110th anniversary last Thursday with a morning assembly that gathered current and former students, teachers and staff. Superintendent Timothy Cuff highlighted the school’s recent A rating from the Texas Education Agency, noting it earned a 94 on the STAAR assessment, a point of pride for the community. The celebration also honored the tradition of the “Los Viejitos” dancers who appear in the BISD Children’s Parade during Charro Days.

Guadalupe Garcia Vela, a 32‑year‑old Mission resident, was acquitted on Tuesday of capital murder charges stemming from the Dec. 20, 2015 shooting that killed Yvette Garza and Nathalie Ingridh Hernandez. The case, which began with Palmview police responding to gunfire on Eastview Circle and included a mistrial after a July 2022 jury deadlock, ended with the jury finding Vela not guilty after a trial that started Sept. 23.

San Benito Mayor Pete Galvan’s ex‑officio seat on the Economic Development Corporation board is under threat after a five‑hour closed‑session on Monday postponed a vote to eliminate the city‑official position. The board also discussed hiring CPA firm Carr, Riggs and Ingram and sought a Texas Attorney General opinion on withholding director applications from Galvan, raising concerns about city oversight of the agency funded by a half‑cent sales tax.

A 45‑year‑old Edinburg man, Jorge Luis Ramos, was sentenced to 60 years in prison after being convicted of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, unlawful restraint, continuous family violence, and assault of a pregnant person. The crimes stem from a Dec. 2, 2024 incident in which neighbors heard Ramos beating, burning and attempting to set fire to his pregnant girlfriend, leaving her with severe facial and body injuries.

The U.S. Small Business Administration awarded the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley a $5 million grant to boost manufacturing in the Rio Grande Valley through its Institute for Advanced Manufacturing. The grant will fund hands‑on training in robotics, automation, AI and digital manufacturing for small manufacturers across Cameron, Hidalgo, Willacy, Brooks, Zapata and Starr counties. The program aims to train 250 workers and create 50 manufacturing jobs.

The Honoring Texas Victims Report, released Thursday, documents that nine people in the Rio Grande Valley were killed by abusive partners in 2025—five in Hidalgo County (three women and two men), three women in Cameron County, and one man in Willacy County. Statewide, the same report shows 160 Texans were murdered by current or former intimate partners in 2025, with Hidalgo tied for seventh among counties for such homicides.

Ultra‑runner Art Hurtado, a lifeguard from Isla Blanca Park on South Padre Island, placed eighth in the Cowboy 200, a 200‑mile race across Nebraska held the weekend of September 25‑27. The flat, limestone‑covered trail follows the historic Cowboy Trail from Norfolk to Valentine, and Hurtado credited his five‑person crew for helping him complete the race despite sleeping only two hours over three days.

Jurors in San Benito saw video of officers pulling Lt. Milton Resendez from his patrol car, loading him onto a truck and taking him to a hospital in Harlingen. The clip shows the Oct. 17, 2023 shooting of a 27‑year‑veteran after a chase that began on South Padre Island and went through Brownsville; Rogelio Martinez, charged with murder of an officer, has pleaded not guilty and prosecutors will seek death penalty.

A Hidalgo County jury sentenced 38‑year‑old Armando Adrian Arebalo of McAllen to life without parole for the June 19, 2017 killing of 41‑year‑old Nicholas Anthony Bazan during a botched cash and meth robbery. The shooting happened in the 2100 block of North Main Street, McAllen, after police responded to gunfire calls at 12:42 a.m.; co‑defendant Alex Arevalo earlier received a 45‑year term, and three other suspects remain charged with capital murder.

Santos Ramos, a 76‑year‑old Harlingen resident, recounts how a follow‑up call after a routine mammogram led doctors to discover breast cancer early, allowing her to become a survivor. Her experience is highlighted during October’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month, when the National Breast Cancer Foundation promotes early detection, and she joins others such as 62‑year‑old Melanie Smith, who was diagnosed on September 29, 2001.

Two Mission residents, 53‑year‑old Leobardo Adan Garza and 36‑year‑old Margarito Vasquez Cano, were killed in a two‑vehicle collision north of Palmview on Sunday afternoon. The crash occurred at about 5:09 p.m. at the intersection of Farm‑to‑Market Road 1924 and Minnesota Road after Vasquez Cano allegedly ran a red light, and both men died at the scene while Texas DPS continues its investigation.

The National Weather Service office in Brownsville/Rio Grande Valley issued a bulletin warning that flash‑flood threats persist across the Lower Valley and lower Texas coast, with a Slight Risk of excessive rain Monday and a Marginal Risk into Tuesday night. A High Risk rip‑current warning stays in effect until 7 p.m. Monday for Cameron, Willacy and Kenedy counties, and rain could fall, urging residents and visitors to stay out of the surf.

The RGV Women’s Poet Society and Poets Against Walls are hosting a “Celebration of the Land and the People of the Rio Grande Valley” at Bentsen‑Rio Grande Valley State Park in Mission on Sunday, featuring poet laureates and speakers such as tribal chair Juan B. Mancias. The program begins at 6 p.m., with organizers asking attendees to arrive at 5 p.m.; 40 guests receive free park entry, after which a $3 fee applies.

Opening arguments began Monday in the capital‑murder trial of 20‑year‑old Rogeilo Martinez, accused of killing San Benito Police Lt. Milton Resendez on Oct. 17, 2023 after a chase that started on South Padre Island and ended near the Gateway International Bridge in Brownsville. Martinez has pleaded not guilty, and prosecutors say they will pursue the death penalty.

Former President Ronald Reagan visited the Rio Grande Valley 42 years ago, speaking at Texas Southmost College in Brownsville to a crowd of thousands. About 40 United Farm Workers Union members protested, some of whose signs were torn by Reagan supporters, and activist Juanita Valdez Cox was among them. A Valley resident might note that the protest specifically targeted Reagan’s increase in weapons funding while cutting bilingual‑education programs.

Texas Appleseed released a report stating that the U.S. Department of Justice’s 2024 findings of unconstitutional conditions persist in all Texas juvenile centers, including Edinburg’s Evins Regional Juvenile Center. The study cites ongoing excessive force, abuse, inadequate mental‑health care, special‑education failures and a 62 % staff turnover rate, prompting continued concern for local families.

Brownsville songwriter and podcaster Lorenzo Lopez is preparing to launch The Lorenzini Show on tour, with about 40 original Tejano/Country songs ready for clubs across the Rio Grande Valley. The podcast, recorded near the Brownsville‑South Padre Island International Airport, has aired 16 episodes and targets a 20‑episode first season, hoping a streaming service will pick it up. He also secured a five‑year royalty deal with the Brownsville Independent School District for his song "Mi Passion".

Students from Lee H. Means Elementary Fine Arts Academy are staging the musical “Trolls The Musical Jr.” at the Harlingen Performing Arts Academy. Fine‑arts coordinator Sandra Luna says rehearsals are going well and the production, which features 167 children, follows a storyline where Princess Marie Bergenette still intends to eat trolls despite a peace treaty. The show includes nine songs and extensive dancing.

Seventh‑grader Nathan Montelongo of De Zavala Middle School was named one of 30 finalists in the 2026 Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge for his project to remove microplastics from river water. The competition, a national STEM contest, will bring him and his mother to Washington D.C. in late October, where he will present his work and compete for more than $100,000 in awards, including a $25,000 top prize.

An 18‑year‑old man was arrested Thursday morning after fatally shooting a 26‑year‑old in the abdomen during a family‑related disturbance in Pharr. Police responded at about 10:15 a.m. to the 1200 block of East Serenidad Drive, found the victim dead at a hospital, and later located the suspect unarmed near East Trenton Road and the expressway. He is scheduled for a first appearance Friday at 11 a.m. in Pharr Municipal Court.

Brownsville officials enacted a new ordinance on Thursday that requires tire retailers, haulers and generators to obtain an annual license and follow strict storage, identification and disposal rules to stop illegal dumping that creates mosquito‑borne disease risk and contaminates soil and water. The measure, presented by Health Director Arturo “Art” Rodriguez and approved in June, mandates that tires be stored to prevent standing water and pest attraction, a key concern for local residents.

The Advocacy Alliance Center of Texas (AACT NOW) launched its nonpartisan “Rally the Vote” campaign on Thursday morning at the Bert Ogden Arena, gathering leaders from Hidalgo, Cameron, Starr and Willacy counties to boost Rio Grande Valley voter turnout before early voting begins. Executive director Norma Flores Ruiz said the goal is to raise participation from 48.5 % to 55‑60 %, urging residents to verify their registration online or by phone, a detail especially relevant to local voters.

The Texas Education Agency released in August the 2026 accountability ratings, showing that the Harlingen and San Benito school districts are improving their scores. Harlingen moves up to the "B" tier with eight "A" campuses and receives the Postsecondary Preparation Distinction; San Benito reaches the high end of the "C" tier with three "A" schools. The results reflect gains in STAAR testing, graduation rates, and college and career readiness.

The Brownsville Public Utilities Board is hosting its second annual Big Public Utilities Bash, a free family event Friday from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the BPUB headquarters, 1425 Robinhood Dr. Residents can meet utility employees, view trucks and equipment, enjoy free elotes and tostadas, and participate in hands‑on demonstrations and a raffle.