You will not find a more soft-spoken person than Marilyn Sebesta. But that does not mean she’s not persuasive. She went from public meeting to public meeting, giving every reason under the sun why this old historic bridge should not be replaced. She argued that it should be fully restored instead.
It was fully restored instead.
Marilyn, a much-honored retired county extension agent, busted a bottle of grape juice on the metal base at the bridge’s grand reopening.
But before that grand reopening occurred, another person came to the scene. He had a great idea. He’s Paul Webb. Paul is an attorney, actually Wharton’s city attorney.
Paul asked me to come to his office. He told me we should not let the bridge reopen without a significant marking of the occasion. He said let’s have a party.
Party Under the Bridge was born. On Thursday, Oct. 19, it will be the sixth consecutive annual event. It will be from 5 to 7 pm at Dinosaur Park, with a puppet show, train rides, free T-shirts, a petting zoo, and food trucks. Paul and his wife, Cindy, have been the sponsor every year since inception.
Back, six years ago, Paul suggested we visit, first, with the folks from El Campo, as they have had much success with food trucks events. Not many people were doing it at the time.
So city of El Campo folks came to our chamber for a brain-storming meeting. It was they, not us, that actually came up with the name “Party Under the Bridge.” And we collaborate with the city of Wharton and many, many others to pull this off each year. This is one more example that great things happen when people collaborate. It’s always a team effort.
Like the great baseball player of yesteryear, Bill Taylor said, “Players win games, teams win championships.”
