17 WINTER TEXAN TIMES www.wintertexantimes.com FEBRUARY 1, 2023 We Love Our Winter Texans! Thank you for making us your home away from home • Nightly, 7 Day Plus Rates Available • Fully Equipped Kitchens • Free Wi-Fi • Outdoor Pool • Small Pet Welcome (with fee) • Guest Laundry Service Walking Distance to the La PlazaMall and several restaurants. For Reservations 956-668-7829 www.mcallen-studio6.com 700 Savannah Ave. McAllen, TX Lock In Your Rates For This Winter - Now! Winter Texan 7 Day Plus Special! $327.67 Queen Bed • $375.97 2 Full Size Beds PLEASE MENTION AD FOR SPECIAL! SPECIAL! 7 Day Plus South Texas Ecotourism Center EXPLORE, PROTECT, EDUCATE 501 W. STATE HIGHWAY 100, LAGUNA VISTA, TX 78578 FREE ADMISSION OPEN DAILY 8AM-5PM 956-772-0212 WWW.STEC-LV.ORG WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/STECLV • LIVING EXHIBITS • VIEWING TOWER • DISPLAYS W/QR CODES • AMPITHEATER • SPACE RENTALS drawings is well over $1,000. Samples of last year’s prizes included a complete RO water filtration system, a Yeti cooler, many restaurant gift certificates, photo packages, and so much more. At the 2022 Expo, Winter Texan Gloria Simpson won an enormous dog gift package from K9 Headquarters. In the prize basket she found two unique dog bowls, a bag of dog food, bags of dog treats, a dog bed, and a dog collar. She said it was a fabulous prize. She likes this Expo experience. “What’s great about the Expo is that you meet so many different organizations, medical experts and companies,” Simpson said. “We found a dentist. We got a Puretap RO system for filtered water. And the Expo exposed us to things we might not have been looking for or even been aware of.” She plans to be there on February 4. “I wouldn’t miss going to this year’s Expo,” she said, “because each Expo invites new, quality experts,” The unique Expo also offers value to local RV Parks. As Winter Texans from Valley RV parks enter the Expo, they’re asked to register with their name and RV park. A day or two after the Expo, the attendees’ names from each park are counted. Then, the park with the most Winter Texan attendees based on the percentage of residents wins an RC car from New Sun Racing. The more representatives from each park, the better chance they have of winning. Invited businesspeople and health experts find exceptional value in the Expo, too. “It’s the friendly people,” Juan Pablo Gomez, owner of JP Paulus Photography, said of why he loves the Expo. “Well organized. Delicious food. A chance to learn about other interesting businesses throughout the Valley. It all adds up to a great experience.” He said that he has added more clients and received more exposure fromWinter Texans due to the Expo. It’s an amazing event, according to the Zanetti’s. But they feel that the biggest Expo draw may just be the delectable food sold by Willie’s BBQ, Nana’s Taqueria, Milano’s Italian Restaurant, Manjar’s Bakery, Engert’s Orchard, and Sayklly’s Chocolates. In the process of creating a unique Winter Texan experience, the Zanetti’s found added benefit for themselves. “Surprisingly, organizing the ARVP Winter Texan Expo made us feel very connected beyond our RV park to some of the best business people and health experts in the Rio Grande Valley community,” she said. “The experience has ended up being very positive -- just pure delight!” The Alamo Rec-Veh Park manager echoed a common sentiment. “Everyone can expect to have a good time when they come to our Expo,” Hamel said. “They’ll meet vendors and get new ideas. Guaranteed.” Having a varied selection of quality restaurants, serving concessions has been a key ingredient of Alamo Rec-Veh Park’s Expos. Here owner Gilbert Garza [2nd from left] of Arturo’s helps to serve hot enchiladas to Winter Texans. Due to scheduling conflicts restaurants may change yearly. This year’s Expo will feature Willie’s BBQ (brisket sandwiches), Nana’s Taqueria (lonches), Milano’s Italian Restaurant (pizza slices), Manjar Bakery (assorted bakery), Engert’s Orchard (oranges and juice), and Sayklly’s Candies (award-winning chocolates). Photo by Dennis Zanetti
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