Conroe’s new high school opening in 2027 will be named in reference to an early industry of the city.
Additionally, two new elementary schools will be named after individuals who have contributed to the community.
After a period of public input this spring, the names of three new Conroe ISD schools were announced Tuesday night at a regular board meeting of the Conroe ISD board.
Here’s what to know about the names and details for these three new schools:
NEW TASTES: Conroe’s Honor Cafe rolls out expanded menu with piled-high burger, Texas charcuterie board
Timber Mill High School
To keep up with growth in Montgomery County, Conroe ISD put a $1.9 billion bond package on the ballot in November 2023. Voters approved propositions A, B and C and nixed Proposition D that would have allocated $22.9 million for a new pool and renovations to the district’s natatorium near Woodforest Stadium.
Proposition A sets aside $1.8 billion for eight new schools and eight more school additions and renovations. Among the new schools planned are a new high school for Conroe on the city’s east side in addition to the current Conroe High School.
It was announced Tuesday night that the new school will be called Timber Mill High School.
Conroe ISD executive director of communications Sarah Blakelock said 228 potential names for the school were submitted by the public.
Some of them included Conroe Beach High School, Conroe Crystal Creek, Conroe East High School, Mill High School, North Beach High School, Northeast Conroe High School, San Jacinto High School, Shadow Lake High School and Stewarts Bend High School.
The name chosen references how the town came into existence in the 1800s.
Former Union captain Isaac Conroe mustered out of military service in Galveston. The enterprising veteran traveled by train to the then wilderness north of Houston to establish a sawmill.
He constructed his sawmill east of the north/south railroad tracks in the Beach or Beech community. He would travel up from his home in Houston by train and his stop became known as Conroe’s Switch which was later shortened to Conroe. Other timber and saw mills came up in the Conroe area as well in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
The new school will open in August 2027 and serve students from Conroe and Caney Creek feeder zones. It will be located on Loop 336 East adjacent to the current Stockton Junior High.
According to information filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation recently, work will start on Jan. 1, 2025 and the campus is meant to house 3,800 students.
TRANSPORTATION: Montgomery County funds $19 million direct connector for Texas 242
Mittie J. Campbell Elementary
Local historians rejoiced Tuesday night when a new elementary school serving the Caney Creek and Oak Ridge high school feeder zones was named for the county’s first Black principal Mittie J. Campbell.
In 1918, the new school for Blacks in Conroe was named Mittie J. Campbell School for the woman who had worked tirelessly to educate Conroe’s youth, fellow teachers and the community at large, according to John Meredith, a leader with the Conroe Community Cemetery Restoration Project.
Campbell resigned as principal of the school to become a Montgomery County home demonstration agent. The same year in 1927, the name of the school was changed to Booker T. Washington School.
Campbell is buried in the historic Black cemetery Conroe Community Cemetery on 10th Street in Conroe. In recent years volunteers have cleaned and restored the cemetery where many of the city’s early Black residents are buried.
She died in November 1933 and is buried next to her first husband Rev. Jessie Turner.
“After almost 100 years, the name of Mittie J Campbell will be on a Conroe Independent School District school to make sure Mittie J Campbell gets the respect and recognition she deserves,” said Meredith.
This school will open in August 2025 in the Evergreen community at 15895 Stonecrest Drive off of Texas 242.
Rob Eissler Elementary
A new elementary school coming to The Woodlands will be named for former Conroe ISD board member and former state Rep. Rob Eissler.
Eissler is a native of The Woodlands. After graduating from Princeton University, he served as a carrier-based attack pilot aboard the USS John F. Kennedy in the U.S. Navy.
He served for 18 years on the Conroe ISD board including two terms as president. He represented District 15 in the state legislature from 2002 to 2013. He was chairman of the Public Education Committee in his third session.
He and his wife, Linda, have three adult children and live in The Woodlands.
In 1999, he was named one of 25 “Original Hometown Heroes” for The Woodlands.
This school will open in August 2025 at 14000 Old Conroe Road north of FM 1488.
What is going on this week in Conroe?
Did you miss opening weekend for “Butterflies are Free”? No worries! You have two more weekends-Friday, June 28 through Sunday, July 7th. This is a non-musical about a blind man living alone in an apartment against the wishes of his protective mother. He connects with the lady next door, and they begin a relationship to his mother’s dismay. It is a love story that is both funny and emotional. OwenTheatre.com for tickets.
Are you or someone you know a mom or stepmom of a child serving in the military please consider joining the Spring Creek Area Blue Star Mothers. They meet to do volunteer service to Veterans, the community, promote patriotism, and to assist in efforts to help our country remain strong. Monthly meetings to coordinate efforts are at a local restaurant or a member’s home. The next meeting will be June 24 at 6:00pm at Burger Fresh and More, located at 804 Gladstell, in Conroe. Guests are always welcome. More information on their Facebook page: SpringCreekAreaBlueStarMothers.
The 4th annual Freedom Fest in downtown Conroe will start at 11:00am Saturday, June 29th with many activities for the family and FREE admission! Water slides, axe throwing, obstacle courses, live music, shopping, and so much more. Stay for the 3rd annual Stars and Stripes Celebration hosted by the City of Conroe from 6:00pm-9:30pm at Heritage Park. Free parking around the downtown area or in the parking garages. Kids activities, vendors, and food trucks on site. The Conroe Symphony Orchestra will take the stage at 8:00pm followed by the fireworks display at 9:15pm. Bring chairs, blankets to sit on, and water to hydrate!
Sundance Head will be taking the stage in an electrifying energy boost of music at the Table at Madeley on Saturday night June 29 at 7:30pm. Get your tickets at ConroeTable.com.
Not downtown, but worth the trip across the San Jacinto River bridge to hear a free concert by the Houston Symphony playing the music of Pink Floyd on Wednesday, June 26 at 7:00pm. The concert is free, and the sound effects will be surreal.
The Crighton Theatre is pleased to present their last show of the season, “Beauty and the Beast,” weekends July 5- 21 with many seats selling quickly.
Summer is clearance time at our local shops. Help them make room for new inventory! Support local business with services, retail, and entertainment.
Enjoy the summer!
Margie Taylor may be reached at margie@taylorizedpr.com.
Immediate Past President Jason Miller stood in for our newly installed President Bryan Rennell who is representing our Conroe Noon at the Lions Clubs International Convention in Melbourne, Australia. Here on the home-front, Past President Miller, along with 1 VP Tracy Irvine, 2VP Sharon Carr and 3VP Jake Freeman, led the way for the day with visitor greetings, patriotic pledges, new member badge exchanges and lively renditions of our favorite songs.
The “Greatest Lions Club in the World,” aka CONROE NOON LIONS CLUB celebrated and recognized over a HUNDRED of our wonderful members who make our programs and service projects so successful and important to our community. While some of our “Work-Horses” and “Super Stars” were recognized for their fantastic work on more than one project, certificates of appreciation and recognition were presented to Chairs, Assistant Chairs and committee members. This reflection of the broad scope of Conroe Noon Lions Club service spans an incredible range of dedication from vision screenings for preschool kids, staffing the concession stand at the Montgomery County Fair for all participants to have a hot meal, organizing fabulous social and sporting events to recognize our Community Partners and service projects to help our community, along with the Texas Lions Camp to name a few. This brought to light what every member knows is that there is ALWAYS something exciting to do and great fellow Lion leaders to help everyone get involved.
Past District Governor Karl Johnson took the podium to bestow the exceptional honor of “Life Member Honorariums” upon six of our esteemed members; Lions Sandy Apostolo, Donnie Bucklew, Donnie Cates, Rob Hamilton, Charlie Irvine and Ken Smith. Each of these great Lions’ accomplishments and service were presented to the membership. Each Lion has performed decades of sustained exceptional service, leadership and commitment in addition to bringing many new members to the club. Conroe Noon Lions’ legacy of service and community pride owes a great debt to each of these great Lions, and we all appreciate their continued active service and engagement.
For more information, please visit our website, www.conroenoonlions.org, or call the local club office at 936-760-1666. You may also call 936-760-1666 for additional information on any area Lions Club.
One of Rotary’s focus is on education. These responses to education is shown in a multitude of way from “I Like Me” books supplied to first graders by the Rotary Club of Conroe to education scholarships from Montgomery County’s five Rotary Clubs to graduating seniors to student mentoring by
Rotarians in the Rotary Club of The Woodlands and Rotary Club of Conroe to a unique approach by the Rotary Club of Lake Conroe.
These innovative Rotarians have bonded with the city of Montgomery and the Friends of the Charles B. Stewart West Branch Library to expand the existing Story Walk in Memory Park.
Memory Park was formulated and created and designed and constructed by those hard working Rotarians in the Lake Conroe Club in the beginning of the century. Rotarians like Pete Wakefield along with Kris and Michael McBride made this ark a reality. It does help that Pete Wakefield was the landscaper for the Queen of England and had expansive knowledge of park designs.
Getting back to the real story, the Rotary Club of Conroe added the Story Walk in 2017. This small part of Memory Park was expanded recently in a venture propelled forward by the City of Montgomery and the Friends of the Library in conjunction with those hard working Rotarians in the Lake Conroe Club. The City of Montgomery, the Rotary Club of Lake Conroe, and the Friends of the Charles B. Stewart West Branch Library had the dedication of the “new” and expanded Story Walk at Memory Park, 202 Bessie Price Owen Drive, Montgomery Texas on June 15.
This “New” Story Walk represents the coming together of the resources of The City of Montgomery, the Rotary Club of Lake Conroe, and The Friends of the Library. These Rotarians leveraged their concept with others to provide an even better education and learning process. This project started in January of 2024 with the support of thousands of dollars of donations along with hundreds of volunteer hours to accomplish this major improvement to Memory Park. Story Walk also offers a reading adventure. Patrons can walk along the paths to read stories on the seventeen book-page panels which is a delight for the whole family. The new additions include updated walking paths, additional trees, and other plantings. There is a new seating area on a stone wall, just perfect for enjoying a day outside while reading a good story.
Memory Park is a picture-perfect lakeside spot for relaxing, sitting on the many benches, walking your dog on the paths, and feeding the ever-hungry turtles and Koi fish. Memory Park was first dedicated in 2008 by the Rotary Club of Lake Conroe. This landscaped gem is a 5-acre Montgomery treasure and is open to the public daily and closes at 7 p.m. The picnic area is an inviting spot to eat, read in a secluded outdoor setting on a bench, or rest and enjoy the scenery with the birds chirping in the background.
The Rotary Club of Conroe meets most Tuesdays at noon at Honor Cafe, 103 N. Thompson Street.
To find out more about Rotary, contact Ron Saikowski at rsaikowski@comcast.net.
You know about the Bentwater Civic Association, right? Of course you do, because the BCA does lots of things that make your life better and easier. But all those good deeds don’t just happen by themselves. It’s all thanks to their board, all volunteers, and one of those volunteers is Bobby Viktorin. Now when he threw his hat into the ring and agreed to become part of the BCA board, he was crystal clear that it came with zero compensation. But we all know that volunteering comes with all sorts of benefits. And, when he was elected President of this particular volunteer group, karma really kicked in. Case in point, last week the golf gods gave Bobby a bonus he’ll never forget.
Yep. Bobby made his first hole-in-one. It was on #8 Miller and, for those of you familiar with that hole, you know it’s actually one of the longer 3-pars on any of the Bentwater courses. Definitely not a chip in. Never one to be timid, Bobby laced a 25-degree wood (or fairway metal or whatever the proper name is these days) through a howling wind, straight into the hole. Okay, it actually bounced and rolled a few yards but it really did find its way to the bottom of the cup. Ace! And there were witnesses. Kevin Doris, Dan Brown, Fred Ziker, and Keith Neely were there and will swear to it, though they might have a slightly different recollection about those 50 MPH wind gusts. Nevertheless, congratulations are in order, and so are drinks next time you see him at the club. Cheers Bobby! And thanks for serving.
Switching gears, even if you were one of few paying attention when your seventh-grade teacher was boring the class with details about the summer solstice and the vernal equinox and other such cosmic things, you can just forget about all that now. Because it’s a well-known fact that summer in Texas officially begins on July 4th. At least that’s when the fireworks start (pun intended). And, in Bentwater, the annual fireworks show is always preceded by an epic parade and you can bet there’ll be some awesome imagination on display again this year. Of course, you can always sit along the parade route and wave as you watch dozens of the funkiest golf carts ever and amazingly-decorated other modes of transportation (and walkers) pass by. But, as with every aspect of life, there are spectators and there are participants.
And, since you still have over a week to get your creative juices flowing, why just sit and watch when you could be the star of the show. After all, you know you love being the center of attention. And, since you probably didn’t have a hole-in-one this week, here’s your chance. Hoping to see ya’ in the parade. I’ll be the one riding with the border collie who thinks he’s Uncle Sam.
Send Bentwater news to Bruce at bruce@LakeConroeFineLiving.com
The recent rains have sent ants into construction mode as they build the annoying mounds that are typically right in the area where weed pulling needs to be done. Just watch out for the ones that have not reached towering heights. There are a ton of products on the market to control ants. So, how do you choose one that will work? Knowing a little bit about the fire ant is helpful in comprehending treatment options available today. Fire ants eat both plants and animals, however; they cannot digest solid foods and stick to liquids that supply them with carbohydrates (sugars), lipids (fats) and protein. Researchers have development bait made of processed defatted corn grit impregnated with soybean oil. The soybean oil contains the active ingredient, or chemical that affects the ant. The ants feed on the oil and ingest the chemical. So now you know how granular baits work! Most products today are classified as contact kill toxicant or IGR (Insect Growth Regulator). A contact kill toxicant is exactly as it implies; the chemical comes in contact with or ingested by the insect. IGR’s are granular baits that contain a growth regulator that gets carried back to the mound and can cause the queen to lay infertile eggs or keep ant larvae from developing into workers. Contact kill toxicants can be in the form of a spray (liquid), powder, granule or a baited granule. Granule products are only comprised of the chemical to control the ants and must be watered in for proper application. Contact kill toxicants work relatively quick but treated areas can be re-infested easily and over a short period of time. Baited granules do not require water to be affective. The purpose is to lure the ants to take the product back to the mound. They are used for individual mound treatments or broadcasted to treat larger areas such as a lawn or landscape. Bait-formulated insecticides contain one of the following active ingredients: hydramethylnon, abamectin, spi¬nosad or indox¬acarb work within1 day to 2 weeks’ time. Insect growth regulators are much slower acting than contact insecticides. Because of the slower rate of action, fire ant re-infestation is considerably slower than with contact insecticides. The benefit is that ants will travel from mounds throughout the area to get the product. Insect growth regulator baits that work slowly (4 to 6 weeks) contain the active ingredient of; methoprene or pyriproxyfen.
Be careful not apply contact insecticide dusts or liquid spray directly to butterfly host plants or butterfly nectar plants. It is likely that caterpillars or butterflies will also be affected along with the ants. Also, disturb the mound when applying contact insecticides for individual mound treatments. Only the ants that contact the treatment are killed. Upon disturbance, the queen(s) is moved away and the treatment will be less likely to kill the queen and thus the colony. Insecticide treatments do not prevent fire ant infestations. Fire ants rapidly re-infest a treated area from adjacent areas that go untreated. Follow the label instructions, if the treatment is done incorrectly, it may not kill the colony but may cause the colony to split into separate colonies. In addition, there are some “organic” options for fire ant control around the home and garden. Spinosad is an option that formed through a bacterial fermentation process that produces a toxin (spinosyns) that is then extracted and inserted into a bait form. This product disrupts the nervous system of the ant. Also, there is a substance (d-limonene) that is toxic to ants that is released when citrus peels are crushed or grated. Products are available for use as a mound drench and provide quick elim¬ination of treated colonies. There are many options available to use for battling fire ants around the home and garden. They are all tools that we have in our tool belt and have been proven to help reduce fire ant problems. If you would like additional information, as well as other alternatives you can visit the web site: http://fireant.tamu.edu/. There are 2 great publications under the ‘Materials’ tab and then the ‘Fact Sheets’ section. They are “Managing Fire Ants in Vegetable Gardens” and “Managing Fire Ants in Butterfly Gardens”
Don’t forget to send your garden questions to Plant Answers at 9020 Airport Rd., Conroe TX 77303 or e-mail me at mpotter@ag.tamu.edu.
Downtown Conroe’s military-and-veteran-themed restaurant Honor Cafe has launched a new menu leading up to the fourth anniversary of the restaurant’s opening in July.
New menu items were introduced with the spread containing restaurant favorites from the last four years along with some new selections.
Here’s what to know about Honor Cafe’s new menu:
NEW CONROE PROJECTS: Four new buildings are under construction in Conroe. Here’s what to know about them.
About the restaurant
The eatery just off the downtown Conroe square is owned by Chris and Mandi Sadler. Chris is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and former law enforcement officer in the Houston area.
Honor Café opened in July 2020 as a place for veterans to share camaraderie and the restaurant’s walls are filled with a variety of unique military memorabilia donated by the public and patrons of the restaurant.
The space also has two meeting and party rooms. On Sundays, the Little Flock church has been meeting there as well. In November 2022, the restaurant was featured on “The Texas Bucket List” television show.
Chef Dylan Evelyn has been with them for roughly a year.
Appetizer refresh
Among the featured appetizers, Mandi’s favorite Fried Mac and Cheese that was previously on the menu remained. The dish features garlic aioli topped with truffle oil and pickled onions.
Chris’ favorite appetizer is the new Texas Charcuterie Board with honey habanero smoked brisket, smoked chicken, cheesy jalapeno sausage and cheese curds all paired with barbecue sauce, queso and the legendary Big Dilly Sauce also Chris’ favorite. The Big Dilly Sauce started out with their house-made tartar sauce and they took it a notch up with more capers, dill and lemon.
“It’s a real look at what Texas is made of,” he said of the Texas Charcuterie Board. Another new menu item is five cheesy raviolis drizzled in a creamy salsa verde sauce topped with Parmesan cheese.
Also new is the jalapeno and Cheddar cheese sausages on a stick. There’s four on an appetizer plate.
Beef upgrade
Along with the new menu launch, the restaurant is now serving Winch Beef Company products. Chris said the Winch meat is locally sourced from ranch to table from a Montgomery ranch.
The Winch ribeye steak is a featured ingredient in the breakfast bowl under breakfast items. The bowl had been a special but it’s now a regular menu item.
New breakfast additions are sausage gravy and a custom omelette option.
BOOK CONTROVERSY: An author says Conroe ISD banned his book. District officials say students weren’t reading it.
New entrees
A customer favorite on the new menu has been the Hatch Green Chili Burger. It has two four-ounce grilled prime beef patties with garlic aioli, Hatch chile bacon jam, caramelized onions and Pepper Jack cheese.
Their Welcome Home Burger is a piled-high eye catcher with two four-ounce grilled prime beef patties topped with eight fried jalapeños, five hand breaded onion rings, slices of American cheese and bacon drizzled with honey habanero barbecue sauce.
Also new is the Officer’s Club Braised Beef featuring braised beef with caramelized carrots, onions and celery served over garlic mashed potatoes with butter gravy.
They also have a new build-your-own burger option, a chicken-fried steak sandwich and two “Po boy” sandwiches.
New desserts are the strawberry shortcake and banana pudding topped with a toasted marshmallow meringue.
Lighter options
Based on customer feedback, three new salads were added including a Classic Chef Salad, Walnut Cranberry Salad and Southwest Salad.
Mandi said their two new wraps — a Chicken Caesar Wrap and a Chicken Chipotle Wrap have been customer favorites.
Coffee launch
The Sadlers are also making their foray into the coffee market. Their new coffee is called Honor Cafe Globe and Anchor Coffee. Chris said people ask all the time for the coffee they serve at the restaurant so they wanted to make it available for purchase.
The first blend is called Officer Country a Columbian and Guatemalan blend.
“The tag line for that is it is bold and smooth and better than any enlisted deserves,” Chris said. “Officer Country is where the officers live when you’re on a ship or on land it is the Officers Club. Only officers belong there.”
He said there’s bold flavor in the front followed by a smooth aftertaste. The coffee will be packaged and sold in the restaurant soon.
Texas is fast becoming a recognized state that produces quality wines.
The Texas Wine Industry contributes over $20 billion dollars annually to the Texas economy. It has grown from four wineries in 1980 to 40 wineries in 2000 to almost 1,000 wineries today. The vast majority of these wineries are small wineries that do not distribute their wines, but they do sell some outstanding wines in their tasting rooms. Those wineries that do distribute produce thousands of cases of wine annually and mass produce certain Texas wines because of the availability of Texas grapes.
Those wineries produce small boutique-style wines of superb quality. There are about 80 different grape varietals produced in the State of Texas from hybrids along the Gulf Coast Region like Blanc du Bois and Lenoir to the classic vitis vinifera grape varietals further inland such as Tempranillo, Sangiovese, Tannat, Viognier, Sagrantino, and much more. These grape varietals are well suited to the Texas climate and soils. For instance, Germany produces outstanding Riesel grapes because of the climate and soils. France produces wonderful red blends made of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petite Verdot, Mouvedere, and Cabernet Franc in Bordeaux along with 100% Pinot Noir in Burgundy. These wines have been around for centuries. In 1976, California was recognized as an outstanding wine region in what is called the Judgment of Paris which brought immediate recognition to its Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, and Merlot. Prior to that blind wine tasting event in Paris, wines were known by their wine regions. Afterwards, wines were known by their grape varietals.
In the early years of the Texas wines industry starting in 1976 when Texas got its first new winery since the end of Prohibition in 1933, Texas wineries and vineyards tried to copy what California had done by producing the same wines made from those outstanding grape varietals that California grows so well. Texas wineries and vineyards learned this was not the right path to follow. Vineyard Pioneers like Vijay Reddy experimented with different grape varietals to find just the right varietals that will produce quality grapes. Pioneers like Raymond Haak brought Blanc du Bois to the Gulf Coast and Paul Bonarrigo brought Sagrantino to Texas. It has taken years of experimenting and growing to establish what grape varietals grow best in Texas. This continuing research is being done by Texas Tech University and Texas A and University to find what grows best in Texas. The results are amazing. Texas produces some of the best Viognier and Tannant in the world even though other areas have been growing those varietals for year.Texas currently has eight recognized American Viticultural Areas (AVA’s) recognized by the U. S. Department of Agriculture with two more AVA’s pending approval.
Texas is beginning to reach its stride in the wine industry with Texas wineries earning hundreds of Double Gold and Gold Medals annually along with Best of Class in California under California judges. Texas wines continue their uphill journey with restaurants being one of those challenges. Texas wineries are trying to get their wines into Texas restaurants, but those Texas wineries need your help. As wine consumers, ask for Texas wines in Texas restaurants. Texas foods always taste better with Texas wines.
“Timing is everything.”
In the Alley Theatre’s current production of “Dial M for Murder,” this seems a judicious observation for the plotter of a complex murder to make. And as the play unfolds, the murder plot proceeds through most of Act I like a well-oiled train: the timing goes according to plan—a key to play. For its story is no murder mystery in the who-dun-it tradition. Audiences know early who is planning what; the surprise is not the killer’s identity but how his plan goes awry and how the hunter becomes the prey. Without giving anything away, the fly in the ointment is another mystery cliché: there’s no such thing as a perfect murder. A hiccup in the timing is crucial.
It turns out this is also true – consciously or not – of this production as a whole.
Like the plot, “Dial M” has potential to be a perfect suspense drama. Indeed, Frederick Knott’s piece survived three moves during the decade of its creation in the 1950s, beginning as a TV play for the BBC in 1952 before jumping to the London and New York stages the same year, and becoming an Alfred Hitchcock film starring Grace Kelly in 1954 — a triple crown of drama. But this adaptation and updating by Jeffrey Hatcher tries to keep the original’s suspense while turning at least three central characters into campy versions of the original: comical wink-wink, nudge-nudge figures who dissolve tautness with laughter.
To be fair, the audience when I saw the production didn’t seem to mind this twist. The packed Alley audience simply wanted to be amused, and their wish was granted. As the would-be victim, a wealthy but brainless wife, and her struggling writer lover, Teresa Zimmermann and Geena Quintos exude a passion as believable as a calorie-free hot fudge sundae.
Todd Waite, as the intrepid Inspector Hubbard who descends from Scotland Yard and ferrets out the truth, handles the verbal dexterity needed to unfold the plot, but his character never shows the depth to solve a Monday crossword much less a complex murder scheme. Moreover, the campy characterizations jar beside those of Brandon Hearnsberger as Tony, the plotting husband, and Dylan Godwin as Lesgate, the hired assassin. Both play their roles with verve that never makes them cartoon villains. Instead, Hearnsberger’s constant smile always suggests his hidden depths, while Godwin’s nervous mannerisms make Lesgate a man cornered. Individually, all five performances are strong, but they don’t mesh, leaving the audience unsure about the tone the play is trying to set.
It’s an inconsistency that cloys and needs either a better script or a director who steers the actors in one direction.
Nevertheless, the production’s qualities of set and lighting are top-notch. Designer Marcelo Martínez Garcia has created a timeless art deco London apartment for the well-heeled Margot and Tony Wendice — a place full of niches, corners, and distorting glass walls that are ideal for murder and cover up. Yuki Nakase Link’s lighting moves from bright to dim as events require and ends with a sly wink of a blackout that befits the play’s comic aspects and happy, maybe, ending.
In short, “Dial M for Murder”’s line has some static, but the call goes through. For the start of summer entertainment, it’s worth giving the Alley a ring.
“Dial M for Murder” is on the Alley Theatre’s main stage through June 30.
Robert Donahoo is a professor at Sam Houston State University and writes theater reviews for The Courier.
Sandee June calls it her favorite song to date – that’s because her new single honors veterans and current military and first responders who protect our country and communities every day.
“Rolling Strong,” June’s sixth radio single, is now available on all streaming platforms and playing on Texas country radio.
“Rolling Strong” pays homage to American resilience, freedom, and the unwavering support for veterans. With its compelling blend of June’s traditional country sound, four-part harmony, and a powerful message about pride in the red, white, and blue – it resonates with all who are proud to be an American. June teamed up with the non-profit Wheelchairs for Warriors to produce this new record.
The organization serves veterans and first responders injured in the line of duty with customized, high-tech wheelchairs to ensure they achieve the highest level of independence possible.
“Many times, we find our warriors living in subpar wheelchairs; sometimes falling apart and being held together by duct tape. Often, they are on a years-long waiting list for a new one. This not only causes them tremendous stress, but it also creates a burden for their caregivers who struggle with the transportation of heavy, bulky chairs. Stress and isolation can lead to deep depression and depression can lead to suicide,” said Crystal Laramore, founder of Wheelchairs for Warriors. “We custom fit each wheelchair to the specific physical and lifestyle needs of our recipients. Our warriors have sacrificed so much for us, they deserve to have freedom, independence, and enhanced quality of life.”
Laramore met June through a mutual friend and asked her if she would consider writing and recording a song to bring attention to the organization, so more veterans would receive the wheelchairs they need. June was immediately onboard.
“This song is my way of personally thanking our military and first responders. One of the lyrics in the song is ‘Freedom isn’t free. They wrote blank checks for you and me.’ And they did just that, selflessly putting their lives at risk to protect our freedoms. It is now our duty to help veterans when we can and show them how thankful we are for the sacrifices they made for us,” said June.
June co-wrote the song with Laramore. They even added a nod to Toby Keith, a country music legend known for his love of supporting veterans.June features real-life veterans and first responders in the “Rolling Strong” music video, including members of the Kemah Police and Fire Departments.
“It was great having them in our video because the song is about them. I wouldn’t have wanted the video any other way,” June added.
After just a few days on streaming and radio, “Rolling Strong” is receiving rave reviews.
“So far it is all positive feedback and why wouldn’t it be? This song is about the fabric of America. It is about honor, sacrifice, and freedom,” said Laramore. “It gives people a 3-minute glimmer of hope that we can still roll strong as the United States of America.”
Visit https://orcd.co/v1gl9nv to stream “Rolling Strong” today and www.youtube.com/@sandeejunemusic5028 to watch the “Rolling Strong” music video.
Go to www.wheelchairsforwarriors.org to make a donation to help provide a customized wheelchair for a veteran.
The Santa Fe, Texas, native released her first song, “Somewhere Between Hell and a Honky Tonk,” in 2020. Since then, she has been touring the state and making new friends and fans along the way. As soon as she steps up to a microphone you know exactly who she is – a modern torchbearer of classic country music who holds strong to her convictions and her love for God, her family, our country and its veterans. Make sure to catch a concert the next time Sandee June rolls through town.
Visit www.sandeejunemusic.com to learn more.
