Local student works toward Eagle Scout status with bed project for children in need

A bed is something many people can take for granted, but Life Scout Jacob Tuckness was working toward achieving the rank of Eagle Scout at only 13 years old when he found that there was a sometimes unrecognized need by local students for that basic home amenity.

“Long story short, my mom showed me this video of this other organization … they were making bunk beds and I thought that was a good idea,” Tuckness said. “And also, one of my friends — she’s a judge now — she … ended up telling me how many kids go without a bed and I thought, that’s horrible. Everyone should have a bed. I know I love mine.”

From there, Tuckness got to work raising money, gathering supplies and volunteers to help him with his Eagle Scout service project of building bunk beds for children in need.

Being only 13 and a student at Mountain Valley Middle School, Tuckness wasn’t old enough to operate the tools necessary to construct the beds, so he turned to leading a group of adult volunteers who would cut lumber to size and prepare it for assembly at the homes of students in need.

“That’s the thing with an Eagle project: you have to instruct people,” Tuckness said.

The people helping included adult leaders, scouts, friends and his neighbors.

“It was my project, but I had a lot of people helping me,” Tuckness said.

People from the community came together to help him with his project in a variety of ways, from cutting the lumber to financial help.

“I also had some help from McCoy’s (Lumber),” Tuckness said. “They gave me a discount on the lumber, which helped a lot.

“He really wanted to build something,” his mother, Alice Tuckness, said. “That’s what we started with.”

His mother, a teacher at Mountain Valley Middle School, helped get him in touch with Communities in Schools of South Central Texas.

According to CIS, the final delivered bunk beds, which were made for two CIS families at Mountain Valley Elementary School and Morningside Elementary School, included the frames and bedding.

“We are very thankful to Jacob for all the hard work and dedication he put into making these beds,” the organization said in a press release. “These will truly change the lives of the students who are benefiting from them. When Jacob first approached CIS about this project, he mentioned that it had really stuck with him when he learned about the importance to children of getting a good night's sleep and sleeping in their own bed.”

What’s left for Tuckness to achieve the Eagle Scout status is to finish his application and await a review by the scout board.

New Braunfels Jeep group stepped up when winter storm shut down the city

As the saying goes, when the going gets tough, the tough get going.

That attitude was evident in New Braunfels when a winter storm shut down most of the state, leaving residents virtually immobile, powerless and without water due to freezing temperatures and ice blanketing the roads.

For some residents who depend on delivered meals and medical appointments, life shutting down for a few days just wasn’t an option. One group in New Braunfels heard that call and stepped up to deliver.

NB Trail Team 6 is an online community of Jeep enthusiasts who in their spare time enjoy taking their vehicles out on trails and helping the community.

When the Meals on Wheels program, which is operated by the Comal County Senior Citizens Foundation, was going to be unable to deliver meals during the winter storm, the Jeep group’s members were contacted about delivering the meals to seniors in need.

“I think because we’ve been doing it so often, a lot of people just know who to go to in the event that something like this takes place,” said Rebecca Price, one of the group’s members.

She said that while many members of the online group were stuck at home helping their own families, there was a subset who were able to pitch in and deliver the meals when most other vehicles were stuck in driveways.

“In particular, I think we had 15 people help out because we also had people helping out with the food bank,” Price said. “So, I’d say about 20 people from the area who were able to help during that time. Some people had some issues with their water or electricity, and they said we’ll come out and help.”

Price said she was no stranger to driving in snow, so she and her Jeep were prepared to lend a hand. 

She said besides just delivering meals, the group’s members found themselves getting calls to take residents to warming centers and dialysis appointments.

“There were some people who had to get their dialysis done. … We were able to take some people to the dialysis center in the morning too. You are talking being up at 4:30 in the morning to get them there by 6:30,” she said. “It was pretty crazy.”

“You don’t realize what people’s lives are like that still have to continue on when something like this happens,” Price said.

She said the group was first organized with the intent to help New Braunfels and its surrounding communities, and during the COVID-19 Pandemic and the recent storm, the group has found many opportunities to help out.

“It’s nice to have that type of connection with people so if something takes place, they have somebody they can call on to be able to help,” Price said. “We’ve helped out with Meals on Wheels. … We volunteer wherever we can. We put ourselves out there to be that type of group.”

Socialization, fitness are key to cognitive ability

With aging, an unpleasant side effect many people experience over time is cognitive decline. But cognitive activity is not limited to just what happens inside someone’s head.

External factors, such as socialization, nutrition and physical activity can be major factors in someone’s overall cognitive health. 

“We put on an Alzheimer’s symposium each year, and what we talk about in there are ways to keep your brain healthy and to avoid cognitive decline,” said Terry Jackson, director of independent living at Eden Hill Communities in New Braunfels. “I often cite a book written by some folks here in town called ‘Pillars of Brain Fitness.’ Whenever we are working on strategies or activities for folks here, we often go back to that.”

She said those pillars include physical exercise — the most important pillar — social activity, good nutrition, stress management and good sleep. 

But it’s not always as easy as developing a habit of crosswords or sudoku, she said.

“People talk about the mental activity with stuff like sudoku, and that’s good, but you often get better at sudoku rather than improve your overall brain health,” Jackson said.

Those mind games go back to rote activity or memory, which aren’t doing much to get the brain active, she said. 

The Centers for Disease Control says cognitive function includes language, thought, memory, executive function (the ability to plan and carry out tasks), judgment, attention, perception and remembered skills. According to the CDC, many people never develop serious decline in their cognitive performance, and cognitive decline does not necessarily develop into dementia.

So when developing activities at Eden Hill, Jackson said she focuses on physical fitness, social activities, nutrition and stress.

She said daily interactions are some of the most important, but often some of the easiest to lose later in life.

“This is really more in keeping the brain well to prevent mental decline. Physical fitness gets oxygen to the brain,” Jackson said. “Social activities are so important because the brain fires so rapidly when you are involved in social gatherings, that just being around other people is huge for your mental well being.

“Obviously that’s been so hard during COVID. We offer communal living at Eden Hill, and that’s part of it. We recently had a resident move in who said they are so tired of isolating at home and would rather isolate around friends. And we are finding that here, that people can stay robust as long as they are maintaining those good social interactions.”

Because of that, she said the programs offered at living facilities has become event more important.

“The idea is real conversation, whether that’s in the context of dining with somebody or taking part in classes you like to do together or exercising together,” she said. “Happy hours — anything where true communication is needed because there is that give and take where the brain has to process what you are hearing and then what you are saying before you say it. The idea is that true engagement in meaningful conversation is a goal of those social activities.”

But the COVID-19 pandemic might have brought the deficient social interactions in people’s everyday lives to light for some.

“Part of the pandemic is becoming more isolated is the norm for seniors, and it can kind of creep up on folks,” Jackson said. “All of the sudden they realize they haven’t talked to anyone in a few days, especially if a spouse passes in their home and they are just not out and about. That’s when you see not only increased depression, but increased cognitive decline when folks aren’t having those interactions.”

Pedego rolls into New Braunfels with electric bicycles, tours and big plans

When visitors show up in New Braunfels, they find a picturesque American town with deep German roots. It almost makes a person want to glide on a bicycle, admiring the sights and sounds of the city.

That’s what Pedego New Braunfels owner Kristen Pokky hopes will bring visitors through her doors near Landa Park. The shop, located at 231 Landa St., is marked by a row of bicycles tucked beneath a small awning. But these bicycles have a secret.

They are electric.

Pokky said she hopes to bring her love of bikes to New Braunfels.

“I have always been a bike commuter. When I lived in Austin, I commuted on my bike whenever I could,” she said.

Pokky said after becoming ill she discovered electric bicycles could give her a freedom she felt had been lost.

“I became very ill with a muscle disease and could not walk or hike anymore,” she said. “I moved home to Texas where my friends and family were. It was here I discovered electric bicycles. A friend of mine named Matt let me ride his and it changed my life. Not only did I  feel I had no limitations, (but) I could park at the river easily and get in my daily swim at the Comal. I was gaining strength every day. E-biking healed me.”

But it was the charm of New Braunfels that brought her to open the shop after living in Taos, New Mexico and enjoying hiking in the wilderness for so long.

“I realized that what was missing from this charming town with a European feel was bicycles,” Pokky said. “And bicycle lanes, trails and bike racks. That’s when I started to look into opening a store here. I am not a business person. I am a nurse, but  I knew in my heart it would be a good fit for this town. 

“There are so many fun things to do here, whether you are visiting or live here. A bike is the best way to get around.”

Pokky said she ended up with Pedego bikes because she recognized it as No. 1 in electric bicycles in the United States. 

“Pedego has a variety of bikes for any of all of your needs, from folding bikes, to mountain bikes, commuters, cruisers and low step-through for people with physical challenges,” she said. 

“We strive to delight our customers and help them to choose the right bike for them.”

Pokky dreams of electric bikes zipping around New Braunfels and Gruene as residents and tourists enjoy the town. To help bring that dream to reality, she’s started a number of programs to get people off their feet and onto the electric bikes, which can be rented or purchased at the store on Landa.

“Pedego New Braunfels is offering a ‘Lunch n’ Ride’ every Wednesday. We will serve you lunch outside at our picnic table and afterwards you can take out the rental bikes and ride around Landa Park. It takes about an hour.” 

She said the tours can include up to four people but need to be scheduled in advance by calling 830-312-6704.

The shop also offers an antiques tour, guided history tour, food tour and river tour on the bikes, some with extra perks included. And Pokky says there is more to come.

Pedego will host an official grand opening April 10 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. with surprises for visitors

Rebuilding history

By Alec Woolsey - Herald-Zeitung

David Snell is in the process of building history. Well, rebuilding to be exact.

Snell purchased land in New Braunfels and has been working for several months to make the town his home. He said after years of running his business in Houston he is ready to head for the Hill Country. What makes his story stand out is that it is televised.

Snell is in the process of modernizing reclaimed cabin and barn structures from West Virginia that were reassembled on the show “Barnwood Builders” which airs on DIY Network.

The show describes itself as, “Six good-natured West Virginians travel the heartland saving pioneer log cabins and building gorgeous modern homes with reclaimed lumber.”

The show stars Mark Bowe and is currently in its fifth season. Snell’s property was featured in a previous episode in February and featured the cabin that is being built, but it has returned to New Braunfels for the assembly of his nearby barn.

“We worked out this deal where they shipped all this down and they came and put the cabin up and then they went ahead and put the barn up,” Snell said.

He said the process took six to eight months to complete, and that’s just for the structure. The projects still have work being done to bring them up to use. The focus of Sunday’s episode is the barn.

“It’s enormous,” said Sean McCourt, the executive producer of Barnwood Builders. “It is a timber-frame barn and it was hand-hewn. That means it was cut by hand during the pioneer era. I believe this one was from the 1830s and it is this huge barn. What makes it really unique in our world is it has this thing in the center of it called a swing beam, which I had never seen before. All these barns, because they are hand-hewn, are unique. This one is particularly different and really, really beautiful and really, really big.”

Snell said the original idea was for him to have a cabin built on the property, but not just any cabin. As he recalled, he had a print of an old, rustic cabin hanging in his office since the 1980s and wanted to build something like that.

He said he and his wife were watching an episode of Barnwood Builders one night and, at his wife’s suggestion, emailed the team about working together to make his dream a reality.

“Yeah, I sent him an email on a Sunday, and the next day I get this call from West Virginia,” Snell said. “Now, my business does work all around the country. Now, we have some business in West Virginia, so I think it’s a customer and he says it’s Mark Bowe on the phone. Finally, I say, ‘Oh, bullcrap. Someone’s playing a joke on me.’ I didn’t believe he would call me the next day, and he’s the head of the show.

“He’s the main character in the show. And he said, ‘No, I’m serious.’ I said, ‘Who put you up to this?’ I thought it was my buddies playing a joke on me.”

The cabin was the main goal, but eventually, Bowe reached out to him again with an offer for a barn they had taken down.

McCourt said the crew likes to explore the towns they shoot episodes in.

“In this episode, they get cowboy hats made at a local hat maker in New Braunfels,” he said. “I believe it was called High Brehm Hats. And they also visited a 19th-century limestone barn in New Braunfels.”

McCourt said this barn is unlike any barn someone would have found in the 1800s in Texas, and that’s part of what makes it special.

“In New Braunfels, and it’s part of what we go through in the show, the trees didn’t grow tall and straight like they did back on the prairie, so back in the era when these barns were being built in the midwest, in Texas they were building with limestone because that’s what they had,” he said. “And so, what they guys love about that is they visit this barn that is in amazing shape that was built at about the same time as the barns that they usually work with and build.”

For Snell, the television aspect of the project is secondary.

“I didn’t care about the television side of it, but there is a good chance that my grand-kids will get married there and if we’ve got really good friends or family that want to get married, it could be a really good wedding venue,” he said. “But that’s not my goal.”

Snell said he wanted to get a piece of property to call home and take care of.

“I mean, I’ve taken this piece of property and turned it into a golf course,” he said. “Not literally, but it’s very well manicured and I’ve worked diligently for about a year and a half to make this place something really special.”

Peace on the Water

By Alec Woolsey - New Braunfels Monthly

In New Braunfels, there are many traditions that have disappeared in time, only to become embraced once again years later. From Christmas markets to biergartens, the German heritage is strong.

According to Heather Harrison, a friendly canoe race once accompanied the Wurstfest celebration, but it fell out of style after a number of years.

In 2013, two competitive canoers came together and organized a new event, Kanu Rennen, to once again give families and friends an opportunity to dip their feet into the world of paddle sports in a friendly, yet competitive, setting. The name of the event comes from a German translation of “canoe race.”

Kaiser, who became director of the event this year, said the event falls on one of the same weekends as Wurstfest, but that has more to do with canoeing than the festival itself.

“Essentially, how it got started was it was set at the end of the Texas canoe race season and Holly and Heather are both [canoe racing] veterans and wanted to do something at the end of the season that was kind of fun and involved families,” Kaiser said.

Holly Orr and Heather Harrison, both veteran marathon canoe racers, decided to hold the first Kanu Rennen in 2013 as a way to include family and friends.

Canoe racing events in Texas, he said, generally run from January through October, so the beginning of November makes for a convenient time to wrap up the season with a friendly canoe race.

“There used to be a canoe race held in conjunction with Wurstfest a long time ago and that’s what gave me the idea,” Harrison said. “And Holly and I started talking about it, but it’s also a really nice time of the year to have fun on the water. It’s nice and cool.”

Kanu Rennen will be held on November 4 in 2017 at Cypress Bend Park in New Braunfels. It consists of a series of competitions with the requirement that a child be participating in each competing canoe (Kaiser noted it does not necessarily need to be the adult’s own son or daughter).

TAKING TO THE RIVERS

Talk to Heather Harrison long enough and you will figure out where her passion lies.

“To me, being on the river is my respite,” she said. “It’s where I find my peace.”

Growing up on a lake, she said she spent some time on the water, but it wasn’t until her 30s when she really started to find herself in the rivers.

“When I discovered paddling, not until I was 30, did I understand just how great it is to move a vessel on the water myself,” she said.

According to her, it’s almost a reset-switch of sorts for her mind. It’s a peaceful place where she can ignore the problems of the world and focus.

“There’s one book in particular I always reflect on about this, but simply put, it’s said that when you can clear your brain of everything and just do one thing, your brain can actually reset,” she said. “All the different things that we have going on in our brains, when you do one thing and only one thing… that’s why people knit. That’s why people paddle. That’s why people do crossword puzzles.

“You are only thinking about that one thing and it actually helps your brain rest.”

Her way of getting out on the water: ultra-marathon canoe racing. This is a multi-day endurance test that takes canoers hundreds of miles down rivers and through the country.

For David Kaiser, paddling is a new way of seeing the world. Sometimes, even, it’s the only way to see parts of the world.

“You see Texas in a completely different light by paddling across it in a boat,” he said.

To him, canoeing down the Texas rivers means seeing areas and environments that aren’t visible from the highway. Now living in Austin, Kaiser explores the rivers of the Hill Country when he can.

“There’s really no other way to cross the state other than driving,” he said. “You can’t really hike from point to point, but you can paddle the entire state without ever getting out of your boat.”

“It’s one of the few times when you can really get remote in the state.”

Although New Braunfels is known around the state for it’s lazy tubing down the rivers on hot summer days, Harrison said it wasn’t always this way.

“We used to have paddling all the time in New Braunfels, but those have gone by the wayside and now we only have tubes,” she said. “Well, there’s nothing that says we can’t have both.”

KANU RENNEN

Harrison lives in New Braunfels, and she is passionate about getting people out and involved with the rivers.

“I wanted to race in New Braunfels. I have a much larger goal of increasing paddling in the New Braunfels area,” she said. “I used to have a business — New Braunfels Paddle Sports — I love getting people in the water. Stand-up paddle boards, kayaks… things like that.”

Kanu Rennen is a series of events, but they are open to participants of any skill level.

Events include a multi-man race (more than 3 participants in a boat), parent-child, relay, blindfold, backwards paddling and kids only. Each event requires that a child be present in the boat.

Tickets cost $20 per adult and $12 per child, with families capped at $55.

“It doesn’t go towards anything, but we also don’t make any money off of the race,” Kaiser said. “If there is any cash left over, it just funnels into next year’s race. And everyone working it is on a volunteer basis.”

Orr, who stepped away from directing the race to run her business, Paddle with Style, will be bringing equipment for those who need it, but Kaiser asks that participants give him warning before the day of the races so they can prepare.

All of this ties into the mission of Kanu Rennen: to promote river recreation for all ages and experience levels among friends and families by experiencing the freedom of paddling and the thrill of canoe racing.

“It’s a real sport,” Harrison said. “That’s part of why we wanted Kanu Renne to happen. It’s an Olympic sport, canoeing and kayaking both. And there’s several different parts of that, even in the Olympics.”

And that isn’t meant to be intimidating. Harrison just wants to get people out on the water.

“You don’t have to be especially skilled to have fun on the water, and that’s what we enjoy,” she said.