Category: Community

Community, Entertainment

Community celebrates Pride in downtown Corpus Christi

Elijah Rangel

Pride Corpus Christi’s Parade and Block Party, originally postponed from Oct. 3, welcomed community members to its rescheduled event on Oct. 10 at Water’s Edge Park. The parade and block party used to be held in June during Pride Month, but in 2021 moved to October to avoid the heat of early summer. Responding to direct community feedback, Pride Corpus Christi featured 34 diverse performers and added interactive games to this year’s celebration. To ensure accessibility for everyone from large corporations to small startups, vendor pricing was kept tiered, while major backing came from title sponsor Hicks Family Subaru, which…

Campus, Community, Music

Brass & blues: DMC Jazz Band preps for annual festival

Matthew Martinez

The rhythm section locks into a blues groove, and suddenly the humid South Texas air feels a little lighter. For three days every October, Heritage Park transforms into a sprawling showcase of brass and blues. Yet, behind the scenes, some of the musicians are not just touring professionals, they are local college students. “With orchestra music, it’s more restricted,” said Del Mar College tenor trombonist, David Hernandez. “But with jazz, there’s technically no rules if you know what you’re doing.” The love of jazz is what brings together the community and artists at the Texas Jazz Festival, scheduled for Oct.…

Campus, Community, Drama, Theater

Little Shop getting ready to feast at Finley

Gabriel Cando

Del Mar Drama’s cast and crew are deep in preparation for the fall production of “Little Shop of Horrors,” which debuts Nov. 5 “Little Shop of Horrors” is a dark comedy musical based on the 1960 film of the same name. It follows the story of a clumsy flower shop worker, Seymour Krelborn, who discovers an exotic, conscious plant with malicious intentions. Most recently, Aurora Arts Theatre performed the musical in the summer of 2023, and it is coming back to Corpus Christi at the Sue Sellors Finley Theatre on the Heritage Campus. It features ear-catching tunes like “Suddenly Seymour”…

Community, Sports

IceRays win leads to split series with El Paso Rhinos

Isaiah Dallas

The Corpus Christi IceRays opened the Hilliard Center to fans on Oct. 10 and Oct. 11 against the El Paso Rhinos, their first games without goaltender Vladislav Bryzgalov, who earned a tryout contract with the ECHLs Tulsa Oilers. Griffin Wright started in the net on Saturday’s game, where he blocked 17 shots-on-goal. Despite his performance, the IceRays fell 1-2 to the Rhinos, ending their 4-0 series streak.  Just five minutes in, IceRays forward Willem Kerr received a minor penalty for cross-checking. Rhinos forward Raphael Laviolette scored a power play goal at 14:56 in the first period against the IceRays, assisted…

Community

Mid-Autumn Festival drives in culture

Steven Garett

Family, laughter, reflection, and gratitude: these were the emotions displayed by participants in the Mid-Autumn Festival put on by the Texas State Museum of Asian Cultures & Education Center on Sept. 26. The festival was filled with food, performances, a weapons demonstration, and vendors selling everything from crocheted characters and keychains to wood block-printed shirts. Also on display were authentic, non-replica weapons like Katana, Dao, and even Wakizashi. The original intention of mid-autumn festivals were reflection and gratitude under the full moon, and began in China with the myth of Hou Yi, a legendary archer who shot down nine extra…

Campus, Community, Food

Del Mar College culinary student cooks the competition

Alyssa Davis

AJ Willingham’s lemon olive oil cake took home the golden ticket this year at the Texas Food Championship.  Willingham, baking/pastry major who competed for the first time, practiced by making a lemon olive oil cake with lemon curd, pistachio mascarpone cream topped with a pistachio crumble, all of which sits on top of a blueberry compote.  According to Willingham, since this was her first time entering any baking competition her biggest challenge was just being in an unfamiliar setting. “Just being there and doing it in a different setting than where I’ve been practicing,” Willingham explained of the change. The…

Campus, Community, Staff

Campus mourns loss of Dr. Patricia Benavides-Dominguez

Victor Herrera

Del Mar College’s Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Patricia Benavides-Dominguez, 62, passed away suddenly in the early evening hours of Oct. 5. Her passing took her friends, family and community by surprise. “Her legacy will continue to be felt for generations through the many lives she changed and the opportunities she helped create,” said Dean of Student Engagement and Retention Rita Hernandez in a written statement. “I am profoundly grateful for her impact on our community and for the generosity of her family in sharing her with us.” Benavides-Dominguez worked for Del Mar for more than 20 years in…

Campus, Community, Education

Del Mar journalists compete at annual TCCJA conference

Arianna Rios

The Texas Community College Journalism Association hosted its an annual fall conference  for students in journalism and other media professions on Oct. 8-9 in Stephenville, Texas. Community college students from across Texas gathered to compete in a real-time multimedia reporting contest based on mock news events.  The conference also offers students professional development workshops held by industry experts to help students prepare for their careers in journalism and media after graduation. “I truly believe these competitions are essential experiences that could make someone a better journalist,” said Del Mar Digital Media major Tamara Martinez. “You get real life experiences from…

Campus, Community

Escamilla reflects on long tenure at DMC

Layla Fonseca

Del Mar College President and CEO Dr. Mark Escamilla has officially become the longest reigning president, recently reaching his 19th year as Del Mar College president. Escamilla is a Del Mar alumnus and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, along with a Ph.D. in educational administration from the University of Texas at Austin.  Escamilla initially wanted to go to law school before his career took a turn into higher education. “After bumping my head around, I came to the realization that education was key. Then I thought back to my own experience and I said, ‘Del…

Community, South Texas Stories, Texas

Anime Fans flood first ever Star Con

David Phillips

Local artist group The Starving Artist Collective held Star Con, a one-day anime convention, at Portland Community Center on Sept. 5. The convention’s opening ceremonies began with a performance by the Corpus Christi Taiko Club. Throughout the convention, attendees could attend a Warhammer 40k speed-painting contest, a concert performance by Chrysalia, and a martial arts demonstration. While the convention hosts originally planned to have a One Piece TCG tournament, it was cancelled before the convention started. The convention concluded with a cosplay stage walk, first for kid cosplayers followed by adult cosplayers. Corry Berryhill won first place for the kid’s…