John Lopez of JS Shop in Poteet makes ink pens from cow manure. He said he’ll never run out of supplies in South Texas.

Chris Edwards is an Army staff sergeant who was burned over 80 percent of his body when a roadside bomb exploded under his patrol vehicle in Iraq in April 2005. I followed Chris, his wife Tammy and their son Riley for eight months for this three-part story on what it takes for a family to recover from the unthinkable.

The ten problematic homes in West University Place are huge and beautiful — luxurious — ranging in value from $945,000 right up to $2.8 million. Without knowing about a major paperwork oversight, families have lived in the homes for four, five, sometimes up to nine years.

From Sept. 10 to 13, 2008, I traveled to the Texas coast to cover Hurricane Ike for the San Antonio Express-News. I filed video stories on the evacuation of special-needs residents, people preparing their homes for the storm before leaving, others who decided to stay, and the destruction after the hurricane.

A police officer from West University Place was fired last month and now faces two felony charges that could each bring 2-to-10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Nelson Hernandez, who is still appealing his Sept. 18 termination from the West U. Police Department, is charged with two counts of tampering with a governmental record after he allegedly fabricated the reasons he pulled over two cars. Video footage from his in-car camera showed a different story than Hernandez allegedly wrote in his report, according to a complaint the police department filed with the Harris County District Court.

While many people are cursing high fuel costs, those at Alamo Biodiesel in central San Antonio smile as prices climb. The company’s business has blossomed as customers seeking financial relief have sought out its cheaper alternative fuel.

A three-alarm fire Monday afternoon at the Atlas Pallet Company in downtown San Antonio sent plumes of black smoke hundreds of feet into the air, drawing onlookers who heard multiple loud explosions as propane tanks ignited.

More than an awesome hangout with rails and ramps, Delta Force Skate Church ministers to young people who are often exposed to drugs, gangs and crime. The Lakeview Baptist Church program has been successful at turning many of them to God.

In the thick of a smoke so oppressive that visibility was cut to a couple feet, the shadowy figures of the firefighters drifted in and out of sight. But their voices on the radio were loud and clear.

“We’ve got a victim,” called the tinny voice. “We’re trying to bring him out.”