Austin news

• ‘We choose life.’ First Sunday service held since church mass shooting

  12-11-2017 22:43 via kxan.com
  SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas (KXAN) – A black tarp surrounded the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs on Sunday.
  On the other side, church organizers say the sanctuary will be a memorial.  Volunteers helped restore it after last Sunday’s mass shooting. They placed 26 empty chairs for all the lives lost inside.
  Memorial near 1st Sunday Service in Sutherland Springs after mass shooting.Earlier, about 700 people gathered for the first Sunday service.
  Pastor Frank Pomeroy led th
  
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• The message during the first Sunday service held since church shooting

  12-11-2017 22:43 via kxan.com
  SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas (KXAN) – A black tarp surrounded the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs on Sunday.
  On the other side is the sanctuary, which volunteers helped transform into a memorial after last Sunday’s mass shooting. They placed 26 empty chairs for all the lives lost inside.
  Earlier, about 700 people gathered for the first Sunday service.
  Memorial near 1st Sunday Service in Sutherland Springs after mass shooting.Pastor Frank Pomeroy led the sermon and said, &ldqu
  
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• Crews battle barn fire in south Austin

  12-11-2017 22:35 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – Firefighters battled a blaze at a barn in south Austin Sunday afternoon, said the Austin Fire Department.
  They responded to reports of the fire at about 2:53 p.m. in the 1600 block of West Dittmar Road east of Manchaca Road.
  AFD said the 2,000-square-foot barn was heavily involved when they arrived.
  KXAN has a crew on the scene and will update this story as more information becomes available.
  
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• Police arrest woman accused of bringing gun to church daycare

  12-11-2017 20:45 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – Austin Police arrested a woman after they say she brought a gun to a children’s day care connected to a church, Friday.
  The incident took place at the Children’s Learning Center on Brodie Lane. This day care is connected to Bannockburn Baptist Church, just south of MoPac. According to APD, Lindsey Holeman, 27, entered the day care with her child and claimed she had a gun in her car. She then offered to give each person in the room a gun shell.
  A father picking h
  
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• Rock the Red Kettle concert to benefit Harvey victims

  12-11-2017 20:34 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – Singer Cory Morrow will host a concert to benefit Hurricane Harvey relief in Texas.
  Rock the Red Kettle ATX will take place at the LifeAustin Amphitheater at 5 p.m., Sunday. The show will also include headliners like Kevin Fowler, Walt and Tina Wilkins, Drew Womack and Roger Creager.
  Event organizers hope to raise at least $750,000 for the Salvation Army. All proceeds will go directly towards Hurricane Harvey relief.
  Monday, Rock the Red Kettle ATX will hold a celebrity gol
  
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• Trump taunts Kim: ‘I would NEVER call him short and fat’

  12-11-2017 20:01 via kxan.com
  HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — President Donald Trump is exchanging school yard taunts with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un.
  In a response to North Korea calling Trump’s speech in South Korea “reckless remarks by an old lunatic,” Trump tweeted from Hanoi on Sunday morning: “Why would Kim Jong-un insult me by calling me ‘old,’ when I would NEVER call him ‘short and fat?'”
  Trump goes on to say sarcastically, “Oh well, I try so hard to be his frien
  
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• Group hosting benefit concert to help local veterans

  12-11-2017 19:05 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – A local blues music concert will raise money to help local veterans.
  The festival is called Red, White and Blues 512. The show will take place at Stubb’s Amphitheater from 4 – 8:30 p.m., Sunday. Anyone can see the show for free, but tickets are limited. There’s also a paid VIP Lounge that offers free drinks, a buffet and access to a special viewing deck to watch the performances.
  This year’s line-up includes local artists like Nakia and the
  
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• Man struck by train in San Marcos

  12-11-2017 18:29 via kxan.com
  SAN MARCOS, Texas (KXAN) – Union Pacific is investigating an incident where one of their trains hit a man, early Sunday morning.
  A Union Pacific spokesperson said around 2 a.m., a southbound train struck Sedrick Smith, near Cheatham Street and Guadalupe, which is north of IH-35 in San Marcos.
  Smith was transported to St. David’s South Austin Hospital with severe injuries.
  There’s been no update on his condition at this point.
  Early investigations say Smith was sitting on the tr
  
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• WATCH: Suspects rob Dripping Springs jewelry store

  12-11-2017 16:45 via kxan.com
  DRIPPING SPRINGS, Texas (KXAN) – The Hays County Sheriff’s Office is asking the community to help them identify two men who they said robbed a jewelry store.
  The suspects entered Vik’s Jewelers on East Highway 290 at about 11:30 a.m., Saturday, the HCSO said. They pulled out handguns and ordered two employees to raise their hands.  One suspect tried to break the glass on a jewelry display. When that didn’t work, the second suspect fired his gun to break the glass cas
  
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• George Takei, Richard Dreyfuss respond in harassment scandal

  12-11-2017 16:25 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK (AP) — George Takei took to Twitter on Saturday to deny groping a male model and Richard Dreyfuss said he never exposed himself to a female writer helping him with a TV script, both back in the 1980s.
  Takei, the 80-year-old “Star Trek” icon, said in a series of tweets that events described by Scott R. Brunton in The Hollywood Reporter “simply did not occur,” and he does not remember ever knowing Brunton.
  “Right now it is a he said/he said situation, o
  
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• Overcoming trauma after mass shootings, national devastations

  12-11-2017 15:56 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — From devastating storms to the shootings in Las Vegas and most recently Sutherland Springs, it’s been a year marked with tragedy.
  With all of the bad — it can be hard to focus on the positive. Psychiatrist Kim Kjome joins us this morning to offer us some practical advice about dealing with traumatic events. She says one way to keep perspective is understanding that deadly attacks are a rarity and that there are many more positive things than negative. She says i
  
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• Gov. Abbott declares Day of Prayer for Sutherland Springs shooting victims

  12-11-2017 15:41 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a proclamation making Sunday Nov. 12th a day of prayer in Texas following the deadly mass shooting at First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas.
  The proclamation encourages all Texans to join in a moment of silence at 11:30 a.m. to honor and remember the lives of those who have been lost.
  “In times of tragedy, we often see the very best of Texas,” the governor said.  “We must remain strong and resilient, and l
  
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• State of Texas: Looking beyond guns

  12-11-2017 15:30 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — In the wake of the Sutherland Springs mass shooting, Texas politicians and advocacy groups are pushing policy proposals that would limit open carry laws, as well as legislation to make sure individuals implicated in domestic violence incidents do not have access to guns.
  Nicole Golden, group leader of the Austin chapter of Mom’s Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, spoke Wednesday at a Capitol news conference with Democratic lawmakers. She asked for support of Sena
  
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• Texas town holds 1st Sunday service since church attack

  12-11-2017 15:13 via kxan.com
  SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas (AP) — Hundreds of people gathered in the tiny town of Sutherland Springs for the first Sunday service since a gunman stormed the First Baptist Church and killed more than two-dozen people in the worst mass shooting in Texas history.
  Pastor Frank Pomeroy led an emotional sermon that called on mourners to worship in the face of evil.
  “Rather than choose darkness as that young man did that day, we choose life,” said Pomeroy, whose 14-year-old daughter wa
  
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• Texas church members gather for 1st time since attack

  12-11-2017 15:13 via kxan.com
  SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas (AP) — Hundreds of people will gather in the tiny town of Sutherland Springs, Texas, on Sunday to worship with surviving members of a local church where a shooting rampage left more than two dozen people dead.
  Members of the First Baptist Church will hold a church service for the first time since a gunman opened fire inside the small church a week earlier in the worst mass shooting in Texas history.
  Initial plans called for gathering at a community center could ho
  
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• Austin Fire: Shorted light bulb to blame for North Austin garage fire

  12-11-2017 14:24 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Austin Fire Department responded to an early morning garage fire in north Austin, Sunday.
  Austin Fire said they were called to the scene at 5:24 a.m. They said the fire was in the garage of a single family home on Swearingen Drive just north of W. Braker Lane and east of Metric Boulevard.
  Firefighters were able to extinguish the fire by 5:45 a.m. with damage confined to the garage. They said the fire was caused by a light bulb that shorted out and dropped unto some comb
  
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• Austin Fire investigating North Austin garage fire

  12-11-2017 14:24 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Austin Fire Department is investigating an early morning garage fire in North Austin, Sunday.
  Austin Fire said they were called to the scene at 5:24 a.m. They said the fire was in the garage of a single family home on Swearingen Drive just north of W. Braker Lane and east of Metric Boulevard.
  Firefighters were able to extinguish the fire by 5:45 a.m. with damage confined to the garage. Austin Fire said the four people living in the home are all safe and can continue to
  
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• Mayor Adler criticized for boycotting Veterans Day Parade

  12-11-2017 05:17 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Thousands of people stood along Congress Avenue Saturday morning to thank and honor local men and women who’ve served during Austin’s annual Veterans Day Parade. But for many, the one person who wasn’t there became the focus of conversation.
  “Pretty disappointed with Mayor Adler,” said Danny Horrigan, whose brother was killed in Iraq.
  Mayor Steve Adler announced earlier in the week that he would not participate in this year’s parade, 
  
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• Bee Cave veteran helps other veterans through ‘ruff’ times

  12-11-2017 05:00 via kxan.com
  BEE CAVE, Texas (KXAN) — A veteran in Bee Cave is starting a non-profit to help fellow veterans with PTSD who need service animals.
  Jack Bodolosky was a combat veteran in Desert Storm, and he’s also worked in the veterinarian field for years. So he’s combining his two passions through the Companion Animal Foundation. The non-profit will provide pet insurance for veterans’ service animals.
  Bodolosky says often, charities will donate the service animals and the co
  
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• PHOTOS: Target at UT campus opens for business

  12-11-2017 04:27 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — In a state where most of us think bigger is better, Target is going smaller. The company’s first small-format store in Texas held a soft opening Saturday before officially opening on Sunday – and it was packed with people taking a first look.
  The new store is located on the Drag at 2021 Guadalupe Street at the campus of the University of Texas at Austin.
  Store services include a CVS pharmacy, a Starbucks, order pickup, clothes, dorm essentials and fresh grocerie
  
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• Texas beats Kansas behind huge 1st quarter

  12-11-2017 03:50 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas moved back to .500 with a 42-27 win over Kansas Saturday night at Darrell K. Royal Texas Memorial Stadium. The Longhorns scored 28 points in the first quarter and then had to hold on as Kansas kept the game within two possessions for most of the second half.
  Texas travels to West Virginia next week looking to become bowl eligible for the first time in three season
  
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• Candidates, including Gov. Abbott, begin filing paperwork to run for office

  12-11-2017 03:00 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Starting Saturday, Nov. 11, candidates looking to run in the next election could officially file.
  A number of statewide positions will be on the ballot including governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and Ted Cruz’s U.S. Senate seat.
  The primaries will be held on March 6.
  Gov. Greg Abbott held an event to file his papers followed by a Veteran’s Day picnic at the American Legion’s Charles Johnson House across Veterans Drive from Deep Eddy Pool.
  &ld
  
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• 2 die in fiery crash when car slams into billboard in southeast Austin

  12-11-2017 01:55 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – Two people were killed in a fiery crash in southeast Austin Saturday evening, said Austin-Travis County EMS.
  It happened at about 6 p.m. when the Austin Fire Department and medics responded to a call of a vehicle on fire on East Riverside Drive at Vargas Road just east of Montopolis Drive, ATC EMS said.
  There were two occupants inside and both were pronounced dead at the scene, said ATC EMS. Their age and gender are unknown at this time.
  Police said the car was travelling w
  
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• 2 die in fiery crash in southeast Austin

  12-11-2017 01:55 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – Two people were killed in a fiery crash in southeast Austin Saturday evening, said Austin-Travis County EMS.
  It happened at about 6 p.m. when the Austin Fire Department and medics responded to a call of a vehicle on fire on East Riverside Drive at Vargas Road just east of Montopolis Drive, ATC EMS said.
  There were two occupants inside and both were pronounced dead at the scene, said ATC EMS. Their age and gender are unknown at this time.
  Austin Police Chief Brian Manley sai
  
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• Political parties get creative with engaging activists and volunteers

  12-11-2017 00:48 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Texas Democratic Party and the Republican Party of Texas are trying to bridge innovation with engagement for future elections.
  The Austin Political Hackathon was one way the Texas Democratic Party put participants’ tech skills to the test. People who attended the event focused on building creative voter engagement and local campaign tools.
  “We want to show them — here are some positive uses of technology that can really advance progressive values,&rdqu
  
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• Efforts being made to hire veterans, close homebuilding labor-shortage gap

  12-11-2017 00:40 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Homebuilders are making the case to hire more veterans in the midst of a labor shortage in the construction industry. This summer, KXAN reported the challenges Austin is facing hiring skilled workers as the housing market continues to boom.
  “The labor crunch here in Texas is big,” said Mike Starich, CEO of Orion Talent. “And so we identified construction companies to basically find opportunities that we could put our candidates into, like Daniel.&rdqu
  
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