James Wesolek of Texas Values will speak at Star Republican Women's next meeting, Tuesday, March 19 at Quail Point Community Center.

​A complimentary light lunch will be served at 12:30 p.m. followed by the program starting at 1:00 p.m.  

Texas Values is the largest statewide nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting for faith, family and freedom in the state of Texas.

​Following is a summary of Texas Values' three primary areas of focus:

Religious Liberty:  Texas Values supports and defends the right of people to speak, express and exercise their faith in public and private without government interference or workplace retribution in the public arena, schools and churches of Texas.

Marriage and the Family:  Texas Values supports and defends the institution of marriage as the lifelong union of one man and one woman, and is committed to fighting for family values in Texas by defending traditional marriage, the traditional family structure and parental rights.

Life:  Texas Values believes that human life is a precious gift that begins at conception and ends at natural death.  Accordingly, Texas Values seeks to build a culture of life that protects and affirms the sanctity of every human life through efforts that support and defend pro-life causes in Texas.

SRW members and associates are encouraged to attend the March 19  general meeting.  Guests are welcome.​

Marsha Lovelady, VP of  Programs

Our 2019 Star Republican Women year has gotten off to a great start with very informative speakers, Teresa Beckmeyer of the Texas Freedom Caucus in January, and Alma Jackson, Vice Chairman of the Republican Party of Texas, in February.  Both spoke of the need to maintain our strong conservative efforts at the local, state, and national levels.

 As conservatives in Texas, Star Republican Women will be working closely with other Republican organizations in Llano and Burnet County, as well as other counties across Texas to “Keep Texas Red.” 

This will require a renewed commitment to continue our efforts in order for this to be a reality.  Llano and Burnet County, both have a strong Republican history.  However, it will take extra effort in reaching outside of our immediate area to secure our stronghold in Texas.

In November, while we retained the core positions in Texas such as Governor and Lt. Governor, we suffered a substantial loss in the judicial arena, especially the Court of Appeals as well as the Texas Senate.  As a result of the loss of several seats in the Texas Senate, it now requires all 19 Republican Senators’ votes to pass any legislation out of the Senate. We must work to increase the number of conservative Republicans in the Senate.

This will require personal sacrifices and commitment.  Some of the activities in which we can get involved are: making phone calls, block walking, writing emails, and informing friends and family about the issues and candidates.  Many of you participated in these activities in November and it paid off in Llano County.  Thank you for your hard work!

While working during the November Elections, I heard many voters express that they didn’t know anything about some of the issues or candidates.  It is incumbent upon us to educate everyone we can.   We have speakers for our SRW meetings lined up to help with keeping us informed, but I will be looking to many of you to share your ideas about other ways we might accomplish this.

Thank you to those who brought guests with you to our first meetings of the year.  Many of these guests became new members.  Welcome new members!  Attending the meetings is a great way to stay informed.   As we, along with the new members, invite friends to the meetings, we will continue to grow our forces to make sure that we “Keep Texas Red!”

Denise Rives, SRW President​

We welcome the following new Star Members & Associates:

Debbie Beeman

Sue Boss-Lee

Joy Collins

Kerry Patch

Don Ecklebarger

It is never too late to join Star Republican Women. The Membership Challenge continues!  

Please ask your friends, neighbors and family members to join Star Republican Women -- as members or associates.  Bring them to our next meeting.  And if you haven't renewed your membership it is time to do so!

Dues are $25 for members and $15 for associates.  Remember, spouses can join as an associate member and attend all of our meetings.  

Click on the button below to download the membership form and recruit family and friends to become new members!

Please bring your completed membership form & your dues to our March meeting or mail to:           

       STAR Republican Women

       P.O. Box 8675

       Horseshoe Bay, TX  78657

Please don't delay!  We need to act NOW! Please mail your membership forms as soon as possible.

Kathy Stahl, VP & Membership Committee Chairman​ 

Star Republican Women's Red Shoe Book Club will meet Tuesday, April 23 to discuss the book "Beneath a Scarlet Sky," by Mark Sullivan.  SRW Literacy Committee Chairman Kathy Hussey will host the event at the Horseshoe Bay Resort Lantana Room from 4 to 6 p.m.

ABOUT THE BOOK:

"Soon to be a major television event from Pascal Pictures, starring Tom Holland.

Based on the true story of a forgotten hero, the USA Today and #1 Amazon Charts bestseller Beneath a Scarlet Sky is the triumphant, epic tale of one young man’s incredible courage and resilience during one of history’s darkest hours.

Pino Lella wants nothing to do with the war or the Nazis. He’s a normal Italian teenager—obsessed with music, food, and girls—but his days of innocence are numbered. When his family home in Milan is destroyed by Allied bombs, Pino joins an underground railroad helping Jews escape over the Alps, and falls for Anna, a beautiful widow six years his senior.

In an attempt to protect him, Pino’s parents force him to enlist as a German soldier—a move they think will keep him out of combat. But after Pino is injured, he is recruited at the tender age of eighteen to become the personal driver for Adolf Hitler’s left hand in Italy, General Hans Leyers, one of the Third Reich’s most mysterious and powerful commanders.

Now, with the opportunity to spy for the Allies inside the German High Command, Pino endures the horrors of the war and the Nazi occupation by fighting in secret, his courage bolstered by his love for Anna and for the life he dreams they will one day share." Amazon book review

Kathy Hussey will lead the discussion about this book.  Afterwards, attendees will participate in a C.H.A.T. (Chicks Having an Awesome Time) about a timely topic.

Even if you haven't read the book, you can attend and enjoy the conversation about the book and other topics of interest to the group.  Food and beverage service will be available on an individual pay as you go basis.

Kathy Hussey, Literacy Committee Chairman

Star Republican Women continues its partnership with the Kingsland Lions Club in raising funds to help the victims of the Fall 2018 floods in Llano and Burnet Counties. The rebuilding efforts will continue throughout 2019 and perhaps beyond.

Consider supporting the flood victims by providing gift cards to Home Depot and/or Lowe's or sending checks.  You can bring your gift cards to the March meeting.  All contributions will be tax deductible.

If you want to support this important cause via a check, make your tax deductible contributions to Kingsland Lions Club and designate for Llano County Flood Recovery Committee on the memo section of your check.  Mail your checks to Star Republican Women, PO Box 8657, Horseshoe Bay, TX 78657.

Becca Marsh, Caring For America Committee Chairman

The 86th Texas Legislature convened on Jan. 8 and will be in session through May 27.  

If you have read about a piece of legislation that is of interest to you, you can track its progress by using the Texas Legislature Online (TLO) website at https://capitol.texas.gov/.

When you see a bill number cited in the newspaper (usually “HB” for House bills or “SB” for Senate bills), you can quickly find that bill from the TLO home page.  Look at the top of the center column of the home page for a “Search Legislation” box where you can enter the bill number and check the box above for “Bill Number” rather than “Word/Phrase”. 

I recently filed House Bill 1323, legislation that would modernize the current bail bond system in Texas.  The legislation provides judges across the state access to more information for bail decisions through the use of a validated risk assessment tool and includes improvements to the bail bond process.  

The bill has been named the “Damon Allen Act” in honor of the Texas State Trooper who was recently killed by an individual released on bond with prior violent offenses.  In that matter, the magistrate who set the individual’s bond at $15,500 was not aware of the shooter’s violent criminal history.  Had additional information been available, the magistrate likely would have required a higher bond and possible additional bond conditions.

I am proud to author this legislation – not only would it have perhaps prevented the tragic encounter with Trooper Allen, but it provides improvements to our bail bond system that will protect individual Texans’ rights and save taxpayers money. This legislation comes from nearly four years of study by the Texas Judicial Council and my personal experience as a county judge.

As a former rural county judge who prepared our county’s budget, I know the burden the current detention system has on counties’ resources and ultimately our taxpayers. Bail bonds are intended to accomplish two purposes: (1) to ensure the person appears for court when they receive notice; and (2) to protect a victim and the community.  We should be able to accomplish these requirements by modernizing the process and incorporating greater information about the arrestee into the process. 

*House District 53 includes Bandera, Crockett, Edwards, Kimble, Kerr, Llano, Mason, Medina, Menard, Real, Schleicher and Sutton Counties and covers approximately 15,000 square miles of rural Texas.  

The Texas Federation of Republican Women will host its bi-annual Legislative Day on Thursday, April 25 in Austin at the Texas State Capitol.  Special guest speaker will be Ronna Romney McDaniel, Republican National Committee Chairman.  

Star Republican Women will travel together to this important and fun event. Please let Denise Rives know if you plan to attend and want to car pool with other SRW members. All participants are encouraged to wear red to show the power of TFRW!

 To register for this event, please click on the button below.  

At each Star Republican Women's meeting, a group of SRW members provides a complimentary light lunch to attendees.  A special THANK YOU to those ladies who contributed to this special treat:

JANUARY Hostesses:  Kathy Stahl, Marion Gardner, Marsha Lovelady, Charlotte Steindorf, Gennie Ward, Belle Guice, Barbara Derse and Denise Rives.

FEBRUARY Hostesses:  Sam Silver, Sallye Johnson, Cynthia Clinesmith, Jane Boisvert, Emily Tobin, Tommy Kepner, and Barbara Derse.

Carol Ascue, Chairman of Hospitality Committee