Texas Bucket List

Texas Bucket List

Simmons Bank

The Texas Bucket List – Don Pedro Jaramillo Shrine in Falfurrias

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Texas – Smack dab in the center of south Texas, you’ll find a small town with a unique name. As we traversed South Texas, we heard the story of a magical, mystical healer, who made his mark on Texas many years ago. He’s not recognized by any church or religion, but that doesn’t stop the masses from flocking to Falfurrias.

Alberto Huerta was born and raised here, so we meet up at the town’s heritage center to talk about a local legend, Don Pedrito Jaramillo.

“He was this kind of person that was always willing to help the community and he was well-known around the area,” said Huerta.

Born near Guadalajara, this son of Indian parents moved to the area in 1881 and provided this part of Texas with an interesting trade.

“Don Pedro was a, what’s been called a curandero, somebody that looked after people’s health back then when doctors weren’t, they weren’t available to for a lot of locals,” Huerta explained.

Known as a faith healer, Don Pedrito first learned of his abilities as a poor laborer in Mexico and after suffering a major injury to his nose, he remedied the pain by burying his face in a pool of mud in the woods for three days.  Once cured, he returned home, fell into a deep a sleep, and a voice awakened him to tell him that God had given him a gift, the ability to heal others.

Throughout the rest of his life, Don Pedrito was sought out by believers from all over the world and today people still come to this small cemetery northeast of town to visit the shrine dedicated to the Don Pedro.

“For years and years, people have been coming here,” said Huerta. “They come and visit his shrine and people just spend time meditating or praying or just relaxing. They’re trying to take it all, you know, and that’s…and for the community it’s good because, well, at least we have something that people can come and visit and spend some time here with us.”

Miriam Fernandez spends a lot time at the shrine helping out in the small store next door that carries nothing more than a few candles.  She’s seen what this site means to believers.

“They’re not only believing just in him, but they’re believing that he’s working through God, you know,” Fernandez said. “People that come here come here with either negative depression or anything. They leave here feeling more positive, more reassured of whatever they’re asking and believing for is going to happen.”

Don Pedrito isn’t a saint or part of any religion but for some reason people still come to leave notes, ask for healing, or just to say a few prayers at his gravesite.   You’ll even find a corner covered with crutches from people who apparently didn’t need them after coming here.

“I mean, it’s just the way they believe, and it’s making me believe. It’s making me a believer just to hear the stories of how he used to go to the little ranches when people couldn’t come, and he would go heal them,” said Fernandez. “I do believe God gives us gifts, and some people have different gifts and he had that one.”

Vidal Moreno drove from the Valley to say a prayer for his family.

“My mom and dad would, they actually swore by this place,” Moreno said. “We believe in the power or prayer, you know. My mom was a big believer in the power or prayer, so she just, one of the things that she passed on to us.”

Prayers for those fighting for our country, prayers for those fighting cancer, prayers to provide comfort seem to be answered in this small shrine.

“When we leave in a minute, we’re going to leave a little bit lighter, you know, as if we’ve actually accomplished something, that things will go right, that things will be positive, so yeah,” said Moreno. “It’s worth the detour.”

So the people come, with open minds, open hearts, and passionate prayers.  It’s a combination of faith, the seeking of divine guidance in our lives, and the continuation of culture.

“I think within the Hispanic community, we still have that thing that takes us back to our original roots, you know, of the way, the way our ancestors or our people, things that they used to do and I guess it’s in our culture that we still feel it within the younger generation,” Huerta said.

The Texas Bucket List – The People of Earth

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EARTH, Texas – Along the backroads of Lamb County, you’ll find a place we’re farming and ranching still reign supreme.

It’s the way of life in the far outreaches of the Lone Star State, where the nearest cities of substantial size seem like they’re in a far off galaxy.  That is until you land upon Earth.

Jerry Carpenter has spent 47 years of his life on….I mean in Earth and today he’s got the top title in town as mayor.

When we asked to see their leader, this former firefighter and maintenance man answered the call.

“I married a lady from here. That’s what brought me to Earth!” said Carpenter.

But he’s not the only salt of the Earth people we ran into in this town.

Helen Hulcey is a lifelong resident of Earth along with Todd Moore.

“You’d be surprised how fascinated people are by the name ‘Earth.’ You just don’t hear that,” Helen said.

In a town of just over 1,000 people, time can get away from you, which is odd when you’re a visitor, considering how it seems like the one-day Earth stood still.  Even if it’s not listed on the marque of town’s abandoned theater.

Established in 1924 by Rancher William Halsell, all this space used to be part of the XIT Ranch.  It’s been said that Tulsa and Fairlawn were first considered for the name of the town but for some reason or another Earth came light and the reason why is still something no one is real sure about. But if you want a hot cup of coffee and good conversation, The Wolverine is about the only place to go.

That’s where we ran into Todd and Helen.  A pair of Earthlings that have known each other for literally a lifetime.

“Both good and bad. They’re always knowing what you’re getting into,” said Todd.

“You can’t get by with it, too,” added Helen.

“There was a lot of it you didn’t know about,” Todd replied.

Helen has seen her share of days in Earth.

“I am glad that I stood firm and stayed here all my life. And I’m glad I married a man that would allow that,” said Helen.

Despite her commitment and love for this town, her sons didn’t feel the same.

“My son will get on the phone for me, talking about Tennessee, or the one in Oklahoma, we’ll talk about Oklahoma, about how terrible of people. I say, see what I mean? I told you not to leave Earth. And they didn’t listen!” Helen said.

“A lot of these old people, they can’t get out of the windmill,” Todd added.

Todd Moore talks a big game, but he too has never left.  He’s too busy running his restaurant which has been in the family since 1959.  And unlike Helen, Todd has family to lean on – his daughter Heather.

“It’s a unique situation. I get to have my family around. My daughter went off to college, decided she liked the small town, the way she was raised, the way I was raised, so she brought her, she’s raising her daughter in this business now,” said Todd. “It doesn’t get any better than that.”

Despite being one of the friendliest places on Earth, and the only place on Earth named Earth, this lifestyle and way of life isn’t for everyone.

“One time, we were a thriving community,” said Carpenter. “But it’s just like all the small communities in this part of the state of Texas here, the kids grow up and they move off and they want to go somewhere where they can draw big money like Dallas, Houston, you know, areas like that, and they don’t ever move back home.”

And so Earth continues to spin, slowly.  Striving to survive and keep its Lone Star State way of life alive knowing that one day, just maybe, people will return to Earth.  So don’t waste too much time getting here so you can meet Earthling that are proud of where they come from, their way life, and have a love for each other that only a destination the size of Earth can provide.

“What does it mean to me to know that I’ve lived here in Earth all my life? I wouldn’t change it for a million dollars. I wouldn’t,” said Helen.

The Texas Bucket List – Eisenhower Birthplace in Denison

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DENISON, Texas –Seventy-five miles north of Dallas, you’ll find a jewel at the crossing of a great river. Denison, Texas is just a few miles from the Oklahoma border and was founded in 1872, the same year that the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad depot made its debut in town.

In 1888, work on the railroad brought a young man by the name of David Jacob Eisenhower to town and the 25 year-old moved his wife Ida down from Kansas the following year to a beautiful home that happened to be right next to the train tracks.

But the home’s proximity to the former railroad line that used to run past this place isn’t the only significant feature – we’re at the Eisenhower Birthplace State Historic Site. John Akers is the site manager to the house that welcomed Ike to the world.

“I think it was built on a double lot. It was meant to be a very fancy house before the railroad got put through right in front of it, and the guy who built it I think said ‘See ya, that was enough,’ and had a variety of homeowners after that,” said Akers. “The house was built in about 1877, but the family lived here from 1889 to early 1892. If the president wasn’t born in it, we might not have this house today.”

While Dwight didn’t grow up in this house, his connection to it was establish by a neighbor who helped deliver the president when he was a newborn, and thought his name sounded familiar as she watched newsreels of the General during World War 2.

“She was thinking about, what was that family that lived across the street? The Eisenhowers? So she actually starts writing General Eisenhower and eventually connects him to this house, and she also becomes the one who starts the movement to purchase the house for the town, and they successfully opened it as a museum in 1946 and they invited General Eisenhower to visit, and she was the hostess,” Akers said. “So, when he came in the front door we just went in, he met the woman who held him as a baby.”

After the war ended, Eisenhower was able to take trip down memory lane, even though he really didn’t have any memory of this place.

“When he came here on April 20th in 1946 for an event we call ‘Big Texas Breakfast,’ that was his first time seeing the house,” said Akers. “I think he was touched by the effort of Texas to preserve the house he was born in.”

After guiding Allied forces to victory, Eisenhower was hailed a hero of World War 2 and both political parties wanted to see Ike take the next step into the political ring.

“We won the war, so he’s very popular from that, and became a natural for the presidency. People saw him as a person of great character, and you know, a lot of people say they miss him, they miss having someone like him as president today,” Akers said.

In 1952 Dwight was the elected president and during the Republican’s two terms, NASA was founded, the interstate highway system was formed, America got out of the Korean War and the former general even downsized our nation’s military.

“Because he was a general, he had that credibility to make these changes, so I think he really did change the course of our country based upon his background,” said Akers. “No one questioned him when he said, made decisions about the military and about military spending because he had the credibility and people had great faith in him.”

Dwight would return to the home in 1952 and once more in 1965.  Even though the former president called Abilene, Kansas home, he always kept a connection to the Lone Star State and the people of Texas kept a connection to him.

“The best part of my job is meeting all of these people and hearing their stories. We get a lot of people now that were, he’s the first president they remembered or they remembered that it was the first experience with television, and he was on television, and they talk about seeing him come through their town – so they’re on dad’s shoulders in some town – so in fact, we still have lots of people that come by and remember him or they have the ‘I like Ike’ buttons, the campaign buttons,” Akers said. “So you get a lot of people that they bring their kids and grandchildren and they want to share these stories with them. They do that here as well.”

So dive into Denison to pay tribute to one of the most influential presidents of the 20th century and heroes of the greatest generation that ever lived.

“Denison has embraced having Dwight Eisenhower from here. You’ll see the Eisenhower name everywhere. There’s a lot of pride in Eisenhower, in the Eisenhower birthplace. So they’ve embraced him, he’s a big part of Denison’s identity,” said Akers.