By Mary Torres, Special to the Star
What a difference a week makes in the Rio Grande Valley – from freezing weather to daily
temperatures in the 80s!
The Ocelot Conservation Festival has gone virtual for 2021! The event hosted by the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge and Viva the Ocelot, Friends of the Laguna Atascosa, National Wildlife Refuge can be viewed at savetexasocelots.org. This year’s festival will feature a series of speakers that will highlight the importance of ocelot conservation in the United States. The event is free and open to the public.
The winning quilts from the National Quilt Museum’s 2020 “Wheel of Fortune” themed “New
Quilts From an Old Favorite 2021” annual contest will be on display at the Harlingen Arts &
Heritage Museum, 2425 Boxwood St., Harlingen, through April 16. This year the contestants redesigned the “Wheel of Fortune” (a wheel with spokes) and created their works of art based on original quilts from the last half of the 19th century which featured a simple nine-patch that is eye-catching, but an often forgotten patch. The exhibition is organized by the National Quilt Museum, Paducah, KY with support from MODA Fabrics and Janome America, Inc. This year, due to the pandemic, an opening reception was not held but the informative “Gallery Talks” with Pat Skye are available by reservation. Local support is provided by the Harlingen Arts & Heritage Museum and the RGV Museum Association. For more information call 956-216-4901 or visit the museum’s Facebook page.
If you’re using your Harlingen Public Library card to access rbdigital.com and view magazines and comics for free, access to that site and those titles will end on or before March 31. However, magazines and comics have moved to the Libby app which can be accessed at https://harlingen.biblionix.com/catalog/ and by selecting Overdrive – South Texas you can set up a Libby account and continue to enjoy expanded content including books. While you’re on the library’s catalog website take a look at the other offerings such as Heritage Quest Online, a genealogy site, and a wealth of other resources available at no cost.
Just a reminder that the Youth Services Department of the Harlingen Public Library is hosting a Virtual Science Fair in March! Kids (0-17) are invited to participate individually or as a group. Participants can choose any safe, family-friendly experiment they like, get their parent/guardian’s approval for the project and send in a completed permission slip and a picture or video of the experiment. The library will put together a slideshow on its social media for everyone to enjoy. All participants will be entered into a raffle for science kits. Submission deadline: March 18, 5 p.m. Visit the Harlingen Public Library’s Facebook page for the entry form and information on virtual science fair resources. Please direct questions to [email protected].
Genealogy Musings:
Did you know that the video quality of your old VHS videotapes is deteriorating every
year even if you’re not playing them? If any of your tapes captured priceless family moments and memories visit https://www.tomsguide.com/how-to/digitize-vhs-tapes for a
presentation by Jeanette D. Moses that provides information on how to convert VHS
tapes to more modern and longer- lasting media.
Genealogy tracking online is big business and according to techcrunch.com, Israel’s
MyHeritage.com has been acquired by Francisco Partners. MyHeritage.com has 62
million active users of its site which is available in 42 languages, it also has a database of
some 13 billion historical records, 58 million family trees on its platform, and has run
nearly 5 million DNA tests for its users. According to a statement by Eran Gorev,
Francisco Partners President of Israel & Senior Operating Partner, “By leveraging our
operational expertise, market resources, and strong industry networks, we believe
Francisco Partners is uniquely positioned to help MyHeritage.com accelerate its vision for
growth.”
Stay safe!
