Longhorn Country Gift Shop blesses
patrons, crafters, Hebbronville church

By Leo Carrasco
First UMC, Hebbronville
God has blessed our congregation with folks who have many talents. We have the best pies and cakes you could possibly put into your mouth on a regular basis. The additional 20 pounds I’m carrying around my midsection is a testimony to that tasteful fact.
The arts and crafts carefully made by members of our church are treasures worth owning. So some of the ladies got together and decided to put all these talents to good use. These ladies opened the Longhorn Country Gift Shop in a little strip center directly across the street from the parsonage.
The shop was to be a way of earning additional money for each of the artisans as well as becoming a tool for church evangelism. A section in the store provides a spot where milling around and sharing a cup of coffee and fellowship are just the ticket.
And if that’s not enough, it also was decided to help the church financially by donating a tenth of the gross receipts to the church’s general fund.
So far, this project has become a very successful win, win, win situation.  The ladies have a venue to sell their goods. The church makes 10 percent of the sales, and last Sunday a new family of five attended our church for the first time—all because of the shop. So we’re excited!