July’s neighbor is Ms. Ginger Tester, and what a story she has! Ginger is not one of those neighbors who was born and raised here. She is one of those neighbors who CHOSE to make Bolivar her home. Most of you have seen or heard Ginger. She covers local events for the Bolivar-Bulletin, and she is the person behind that calm, reassuring voice on WMOD 96.7. Ginger was born and raised in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She made her way to New Braunfels, Texas, where she just happened to take on a job that involved proofreading newspapers. One of those newspapers that she proofread every week was The County Journal. In 2014, Ginger saw a job ad for a position at WMOD/The County Journal as she was proofing it. The rest, as they say, is history. In addition to her work at WMOD, Ginger is a passionate advocate for suicide prevention and provides support for survivors of suicide loss. Her work in suicide awareness, prevention, and support came as a result of the heartbreaking loss of her daughter in 2015.
Check out her T-shirt. Ginger still loves Texas, but Ginger chose BOLIVAR. She stays here because, in her own words, she has “adopted” a whole new family here in Bolivar - a church family at St. James Episcopal Church, the cast of Hee Haw, and those she has met along the way in her coverage of local events. We are a small town full of extraordinary people, and Ginger’s story is one of many proves that!
If you see Ginger out and about, be sure to say HELLO! If you see Mayor McTizic and I out and about, you may be our next featured neighbor!