Here's what's up in SETX,
A lantern-lit stroll along the Beaumont riverfront, John Conlee back on the Honky Tonk Texas stage in Silsbee, and a Dowlen Road burger counter grilling Nolan Ryan's beef since 1982. What a BUSY week.
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Let's get into it. 👇
A Candlelight Stroll Fills Riverfront Park Thursday
Image: Crisis Center of Southeast Texas
Lantern Route : The walk follows a lantern-lit stretch of the Beaumont riverfront, past a memorial wall where people post a photo or a message.
Around The Clock : The Crisis Center of Southeast Texas runs it and answers its crisis line 24/7 at 1-800-7WE-CARE. Registration is $25 at crisiscenterofsoutheasttx.org/ltn26.
📍 Riverfront Park, Beaumont · 🕐 Thursday, Sept 10 · 6 PM · 🎟️ $25 walker registration
Gulf Coast Guac Brings Homemade Guacamole to SETX Farmers Markets
Photo: Gulf Coast Guac
Made by Hand: Caleb Flanigan selects every ingredient for each batch, and preparing for a single farmers market can take as many as 250 avocados.
From Hobby to Business: After making guacamole at home for 16 years, he turned it into a business two years ago. Gulf Coast Guac also takes pre-orders and catering requests through Facebook.
📍 Southeast Texas farmers markets
This section is sponsored by Tailored Financial Solutions. Want your business featured here? Email us at [email protected].
John Conlee Returns to Honky Tonk Texas Thursday
Image: Honky Tonk Texas
Second Set : Conlee is back at the Silsbee dance hall, and Noah Jackson & the Neches River Band open at 7:30.
Advance Notice : Tickets are $25 ahead, $35 the day of the show. It is 18-and-up, standing-room general admission.
📍 Honky Tonk Texas, 2389 US Hwy 96 N, Silsbee · 🕐 Thursday, Sept 10 · doors 7 PM · 🎟️ $25 advance, $35 day of show
Novrozsky's Grills Nolan Ryan Beef on Dowlen Road
Hometown Patty : Novrozsky's opened in Beaumont in 1982, and the beef is Texas beef raised by Nolan Ryan, who calls it the best burger in Southeast Texas.
Spud Money : Past the burgers, the loaded spuds are what people order by name, the chicken-fried steak one among them.
📍 3925 Dowlen Rd, Beaumont, TX 77706 · (409) 899-4076 · novrozskys.com
🤤 Had a great meal somewhere in SETX lately? Reply and tell us. We feature reader picks.
✅ Register for Thursday's Light the Night stroll : $25 at crisiscenterofsoutheasttx.org/ltn26, for the 6 PM walk at Riverfront Park in Beaumont.
✅ Buy John Conlee tickets before Thursday : $25 in advance, $35 the day of the show, at Honky Tonk Texas in Silsbee.
✅ Apply for the invasive-plant cost-share : Texas A&M Forest Service covers 75% of approved removal costs, up to $7,000 per landowner, until the $140,000 statewide pot runs out.
✅ Head to Port Arthur on Saturday : The Mexican Heritage Fiesta is free and runs all day at the Bob Bowers Civic Center.
First Financial Cuts a Ribbon on South 8th
Ribbon Ready : The cutting is Tuesday, Sept 15, 4 to 7 PM at 865 South 8th Street, open to the community.
Branching Out : This is the bank's second Beaumont banking center. The first is on Dowlen Road, so the new one lands downtown.
📅 SETX EVENTS WEBSITE
Everything further out lives at events.whatsupsetx.com — browse the full calendar and submit your own. 🎉
This Week
Sep 9 America 250: Lincoln, Grant and Garfield | Stark Museum of Art, Orange. Exhibition programming on three presidents.
Sep 9: TASI Life Drawing Group | The Art Studio Inc, Beaumont. 6 PM open figure-drawing, bring your own materials.
Sep 10: Blacksmith Demonstrations | Spindletop Gladys City, Beaumont. 12:15, watch iron worked the 1901 way.
Sep 10: Melon Jelly Blues Jam | Crazy Cajun, Beaumont. 7 PM open jam, players welcome.
Sep 10 Light the Night for Hope | Riverfront Park, Beaumont. Six PM stroll, vigil and memorial wall.
Sep 10 John Conlee in Concert | 2389 US Hwy 96 N, Silsbee. Seven PM, the country hall-of-famer in Hardin County.
Sep 11: SMA Playdate | Stark Museum of Art, Orange. 10 to 11 AM, hands-on art for little ones.
Sep 11: LoveBug's Parents Night Out | 1237 Boston Ave, Nederland. 5 PM drop-off, play and dinner.
The Weekend
Sep 12: Mexican Heritage Fiesta | Bob Bowers Civic Center, Port Arthur. Free, all day. Folklorico dancers, mariachi, Parade of Costumes.
Sep 12: Southeast Texas Fishing Classic | Pleasure Island, Port Arthur. 6 AM to 2 PM. Redfish tournament with cash prizes.
Sep 12 13th Annual Neches River Rally | LNVA Saltwater Barrier, 6790 Bigner Rd, Beaumont. Eight AM paddle, Cooks Lake to Scatterman.
Sep 12 Community 5K Run and Walk | Claiborne West Park, Orange County. Nine AM Rotary run and walk, awards after.
Sep 12 Fiesta with the Folklorico Dancers | Port Arthur. Mexican Heritage Society dancers in full costume. Free.
Sep 12 Beaumont Farmers Market | 6525 College St, Beaumont. Eight to eleven AM, twenty-plus vendors.
Sep 13 Sensory Sensitive Day | LoveBug's Learning Lab, Nederland. One PM, lower lights and sound.
Sep 12: Free Yoga at Cattail Marsh | Cattail Marsh, Beaumont. 9:30 AM, all levels, bring a mat.
Sep 12: Open Studio | Stark Museum of Art, Orange. 10 AM to 2 PM, free drop-in watercolor, all ages.
Sep 12: Tomayto Tomato! Comedy Show | 4155 Laurel St, Beaumont. 7:30, local stand-up.
Sep 13: VIVA Beaumont Hispanic Heritage Festival | Main Street Plaza, Beaumont. 3 to 8 PM, free. Live music, food, performances.
MOVIE NIGHTS @ JEFFERSON THEATRE
345 Fannin St, Beaumont. Every Friday — doors 6 PM, film 7 PM. $6, general admission, concessions available. Supported by ExxonMobil.
Sep 4: Singin' in the Rain
Sep 11: West Side Story
Sep 25: Some Like It Hot
Which event are you hitting up? Reply and let us know. Missed one? Submit it at events.whatsupsetx.com 🎉
📌 GOOD TO KNOW
🚧 Twin City Highway is down to one lane at night : TxDOT has Texas 347 in Nederland alternating between Avenue B and FM 365, 7 PM to 4 AM, through Saturday.
🩸 Gulf Coast Blood has two September offers : Every donor gets a pair of their socks, and African American and biracial donors can add free sickle cell trait screening.
🩸 The Southeast Texas Stand Down is Friday, Sept 25 : Services and resources for area veterans and their families in Beaumont.
🎉 A Beaumont clinic cuts its ribbon Sept 29 : The Foundation for Community Health and Wellness, on Washington Blvd, now has state licensure for outpatient substance use treatment.
🏆 THE SPORTS DESK
🔴 Lamar drops one in Lafayette : Louisiana beat the Cardinals 38-7 on Saturday, putting Lamar at 1-1 after opening with a win over then-No. 15 Abilene Christian. Idaho is next.
🏈 PN-G rolls West Brook at home : Port Neches-Groves 50, Beaumont West Brook 19 on Friday night.
🏃 Vidor Rotary runs its Community 5K Saturday : 9 AM at Claiborne West Park in Orange County.
TWIA Drops the Plan to Cut Second-Home Coverage
Photo: Greg Henshall / FEMA
Coverage Holds : Jefferson County keeps 3,974 secondary-home windstorm policies and Chambers County 480. Statewide, the proposal would have made 53,620 vacation houses, beach cabins and rentals ineligible.
Off The Table : The committee left the proposal out of its 2026 Biennial Report. Any change would still have to pass the Texas Legislature.
💡 The bottom line: Nearly 4,500 Southeast Texas households own a camp, a cabin or a rental that keeps its windstorm eligibility, so the same policy renews next hurricane season.
📋 IN OTHER NEWS
🏛️ Beaumont council votes 4-3 to keep its own pay : The cut would have saved $127,800 a year. The same meeting gave the FY2027 budget tentative approval, with the final vote Sept 22.
💵 Two Orange County cities want a higher tax rate : Pinehurst proposes 75.1 cents per $100, up from 69.5, roughly $44 more a year on a $100,000 home. West Orange goes to 42 from 38.
🌉 The Roundbunch swing bridge is back open : Edouard damaged the East Roundbunch Road bridge's electrical system and Orange County closed it. Traffic moved again Tuesday at 1 PM.
🔥 Orange County lifts its burn ban : County Judge John Gothia lifted it Sept 2 on the strength of recent rain, so outdoor burning is allowed again.
📬 Which story caught your eye?
💼 JOBS AND OPPORTUNITIES
Industry pulse: Public payrolls are carrying the week's hiring. The City of Beaumont has 34 open postings, and the two sharpest are frontline.
🚑 Paramedic | City of Beaumont Fire Department | Beaumont
$23.27 an hour with a $5,000 hiring incentive, full time in EMS. Apply at the city's careers portal.
💧 Assistant Superintendent, Water Production Plant | City of Beaumont Water Utilities | Beaumont
$85,000 a year, for surface-water treatment plant operations, troubleshooting and repair. Apply at the same portal.
🌿 Tailored Lawn Care | Golden Triangle
Looking for work? Outdoor work, local routes. Call or text Frederick: (409) 365-4887
🔜 Browse all local SETX job listings. Coming soon. Want early access when our jobs board launches? Email [email protected] to get on the list.
💼 Hiring in SETX? Send us your listing at [email protected] and we'll get it in front of our readers.
📣 YOUR TURN
Every week, we ask a few questions because this newsletter is a two-way street. Hit reply. We read every single one.
🍔 Where does Novrozsky's land on your SETX burger list?
🕯️ Are you walking Light the Night at Riverfront Park on Thursday?
🎟️ Saturday: the Fiesta in Port Arthur or the Fishing Classic on Sabine Lake?
👏 Got someone to brag on? A graduation, a new business, a milestone, a neighbor who showed up. Reply and we'll put them in Community Notices.
See you next week, neighbor 📍
The What's Up SETX Team
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