West Texas Dispatch

This week’s show is a special edition-bringing you the best of what this program has produced in our inaugural year.When we launched the West Texas Dispatch in early February we had no idea what was in store. It’s been a year of ups and downs, some political surprises, major development news, and growing pains for the Big Country.On today’s show we’ll hear from our partners across West Texas. We’ll also bring you the best of reporting from KACU’s student staff–as well as one of our favorite West Texas Roots Segments and a conversation or two with the people who do big things for the Big Country.

We’re continuing to look at the increasing pressure on Abilene’s affordable housing market. Today we’ll hear about how things are changing for renters.We’ll hear from one renter who shares her frustrations with finding housing right now…We’ll also hear more about those who rely on the assistance of housing vouchers–and the challenges they face in being able to use those vouchers.We’ll bring you the second part of the Blood Work series…with a look at the industry around blood-plasma…which is a multi-billion dollar segment of the U-S economy.Abilene’s non-profits have one more chance to be part of what’s become the biggest day of giving in the city. We’ll tell you more about the Community Foundation of Abilene’s plans as they wrap up a decade of community philanthropy through “Abilene Gives”.And the owner of Catie Pies shares some favorite recipes and tips for what to do with the holiday leftovers.

The days of Abilene ranking as one of the state’s more affordable cities–may be numbered. We’ll take a look at how A-I growth combined with major reductions to housing assistance– is pricing-out low-income families.West Texas has at least two open seats for next year’s elections…The window to file for the March primary closed this week. We’ll check out the major party candidates who made it onto the ballot.Texas leads the nation in blood plasma donations. Today we’ll bring you the first installment of a series of reports focused on “Blood Work”.Lots of people look to various types of seeds and nuts to supplement the protein in their diets. We’ll hear about one Texas researcher who’s developing an edible version of one of the state’s big fiber crops.