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Community Corner

🌱 Phil Dawson + Art + BBQ + Tomás Pochettino​ + Virgin Atlantic

The quickest way to get caught up on the most important things happening today in Austin.

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Gabriela Cantu Couvillion, Neighbor
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(Patch Media)

Hello, people of Austin! Gabriela Couvillion here with a fresh issue of the Austin Daily.

First, today's weather:

Mostly cloudy. High: 50 Low: 37.

Here are the top stories in Austin today:

  1. Phil Dawson, former Texas Longhorn and NFL kicker, is "returning to Austin to coach high school football." After he retired from the NFL in 2019, he was an assistant coach at a Tennessee high school and will now be the head football coach and assistant athletic director at Hyde Park Schools. "The school announced the hiring last week on social media" to which Dawson responded on Twitter, "It's time. Faith. Family. Football." (KXAN.com)
  2. Students from Rockwall Independent School District submitted entries to Austin's annual PTA Reflections arts program, which "focuses on positive recognition rather than competition." The program offers students "an opportunity to be inspired and find their voice while trying something new." This year's theme was "I Will Change the World By..." and included the categories of "dance, film production, literature, music composition, photography, and visual arts." For a list of student participants, visit: (Blue Ribbon News)
  3. Texas and barbecue go hand in hand, but "no Texas city has Austin beat for the sheer volume of worthy barbecue destinations." Texas Monthly "recently published a list of the top 50 barbecue joints in Texas and 50 more honorable mentions and here in the capital city, you can find some great barbecue joints where you can enjoy the popular Texas meal. For a list of venues, visit: (Texas Monthly)
  4. Tomás Pochettino, former Austin FC midfielder, "is headed to play for Club Atlético River Plate, an Argentinian club in Argentine Primera División." The announcement comes "after the club announced a multi-year deal with Austin FC captain Alex Ring" in which "Austin FC said Ring was given the Designated Player distinction on the 2022 roster, hinting that Pochettino would either be dealed out to another team or have his contract salary 'bought down' to avoid the Designated Player status. Now, we know which of those two options the club has chosen." For more details, visit: (KVUE.com)
  5. On Monday, Jan. 10, Virgin Atlantic at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport announced "a second nonstop flight to London." On Wednesday, May 25, the airline will "launch four-times-a-week service between Austin and London's Heathrow Airport" and tickets will go on sale on Wednesday, Jan. 12. Juha Jarvinen, chief commercial officer at Virgin Atlantic said, "We are incredibly excited to launch this new service between Austin and London Heathrow. With an impressive food, arts, and music scene, we know it's a destination our British customers will love to explore." For more details, visit: (CultureMap Austin)

Today in Austin:

  • We Are Blood Raffles Take Home Dinner from Franklin BBQ for National Blood Donor Month at 4300 N. Lamar Blvd. (9 a.m.)
  • Virtual Cardio & Strength Class Online Event. (5 p.m.)
  • School Safety and Security Committee (SSSC) Meeting at Austin ISD. (5:30 p.m.)
  • Stronger Austin Free Virtual Zumba Classes Online Event. (6 p.m.)
  • Embodied Self Mastery Workshop with Ronnie Landis at 3r Eye Meditation Lounge and Elixir Bar. (7 p.m.)
  • Hostile Comedy Hosted by Big Laugh Comedy at The Ballroom @ Spider House. (7:30 p.m.)

From my notebook:

  • "Congrats to Rebecca Lambdin-Abraham of Austin ISD, who received the 2022 Southern District Teacher of the Year award for elementary education by Shape America!" (Facebook)
  • "Teachers and educators! Sign up for our 1-hour webinar on the digital resources available to you for your classroom this term at Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum. Register at: https://bit.ly/EDUatLBJ." (Facebook)
  • "At Austin Chamber of Commerce, we are delighted to honor Dr. Colette Pierce Burnette, president and CEO of Huston-Tillotson University as the 2021 Austinite of the Year: https://hubs.ly/Q011NLPG0." (Facebook)
  • "On Martin Luther King Day, Pease Park Conservancy will be collecting donations of food for Central Texas Food Bank. You can bring your donations anytime between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Jan. 17 to 1100 Kingsbury St." (Facebook)
  • "Welcome to the Austin Chamber of Commerce, Cyvatar.ai. Automated and fully managed cybersecurity services for startups and small to medium-sized enterprises, Cyvatar is the fastest, easiest, and most cost-effective solution to get your business cyber-secure. Check it out: https://hubs.ly/Q011zwNM0." (Facebook)
  • "Read Like a Longhorn continues with another set of great book recommendations from PCL and the UT Libraries. Today, two of our librarians recommend weird & queer indie SciFi and paradigm-shifting science writing. See our stories for a link to these books and other recommended reads at utexas.edu!" (Facebook)

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Thanks for following along and staying informed! See you all tomorrow for your next update.

— Gabriela Couvillion

About me: I'm an active mom of two grown sons and lifelong San Antonio resident. I received a BA in Spanish from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and in my free time I immerse myself in creative writing. Thanks for reading Patch, and feel free to reach out if you have any news and happenings you think may appeal to our readers!

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

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