Benefit raises thousands of dollars for Silsbee pastor with heart trouble
Leanna Seaman, second from right, wife of William Seaman, stands with their two grown daughters, son-in-law and three grandchildren at the Ragball Tournament and Silent Auction benefit Saturday afternoon. The event, which included 27 12-player teams paying $200 per team, raised a total of $25,000 for the family of William Seaman, who is battling heart trouble and is in need of a transplant.
Dan Eakin | Silsbee Bee
SILSBEE – Hundreds, if not thousands of people participated last weekend in a benefit for William Seaman, lead pastor of the Agape Life Church, who has been in a hospital for the past three months and is in need of a heart transplant. A ragball tournament, in which 27 teams had paid $200 each to participate, started about 2 p.m. Saturday, continued all night and concluded Sunday morning at the Little League complex north of Silsbee. Also, a silent auction brought in several thousand dollars and the large crowd attending also purchased food, drinks and other items to add to the amount being collected for the pastor and his family. Children sold rocks to honor the pastor, and other projects also took place to raise funds to meet medical and other expenses being faced by the family. Kim Vickery, one of the organizers of the benefit, reported Monday that the event raised a total of $25,000 for the family. A list of donors would be too long to be printed in an article, as would be many contributions, many of which were made anonymously. Seaman, 54, who remains lead pastor even though he has not been able to attend church for months due to being in the hospital, has been battling severe heart conditions for the past six years. His wife said it was amazing that on the day before the benefit, he was able to be transferred from ICU to a private room. A member of the church said, ““How amazing is it that the transfer came the night before the scheduled benefit in his honor. June 7 was a beautiful day of honor for an amazing man that has poured so much of his life and love into the community. The turnout and support was overwhelming to us. Leanna was able to get away from the hospital for a few hours to attend.” Anyone wishing to make a contribution to the Seaman family may do so by going to the cash app: $Leanna Seaman777 or Venmo: @LeannaSeaman.
Library summer reading kicks off across H-County
HARDIN COUNTY – Summer is a great time to catch up on reading, and libraries in Silsbee, Kountze, and Lumberton are in full swing with their summer reading programs. Silsbee Public Library Silsbee kicked off its “Color Our World” Summer Reading Program on May 27. Over 75 kids signed up on the first day, with 232 now registered. Participants have until July 26 to complete an at-home reading challenge and will be invited to a glow party on August 2. First-week activities included face painting, snow cones, and a snake education session by Kevin and Loree Williams. Weekly programming runs through July, with Tuesday guest events like visits from the Beaumont Children’s Museum and magician Bronson Chadwick. Thursdays are reserved for themed crafts. Children up to age 15 can participate in the free program, funded by Friends of the Silsbee Public Library. A special program is also offered for younger children. For details, call 409-385-4831. Kountze Public Library The Kountze Public Library launched its “Splash into Reading Fun” program on June 3, with support from the Friends of the Library. The kickoff included hands-on activities under a big tent from community partners like Agri-Life, the Red Cross, and the Big Thicket organizations. Kona Ice served snow cones, and the Sour Lake Lions offered free train rides. Mary Catherine Johnston entertained with her accordion. Funded in part by a Foundation For Southeast Texas grant, the program recently featured a visit from the Beaumont Children’s Museum. Lumberton Public Library Lumberton’s program is also underway, featuring a special visit from Orbit, the Houston Astros mascot, who encouraged children to read. Upcoming events include a snake demonstration on June 25 and a foam-filled celebration on July 19 behind the Trest Center. Children up to age 8 who read 10 books by June 30 can earn a certificate and T-shirt. Older kids earn awards for reading 500 to 1,000 pages. For more information, call 409-755-7400.
Southern Plainsmen in concert June 21-22 at Woodrow Church
The Southern Plainsmen Quartet, one of the best known quartets in the South, will be in concert at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 21,and at 11 a.m. Sunday, June 22, at Woodrow Baptist Church, located at 1325 Woodrow Road in Silsbee. No admission charge. Free lunch after church Sunday, June 22.
Submitted | Silsbee Bee
SILSBEE – The Southern Plainsmen Quartet, one of the best known Southern Gospel quartets in the south, will be in concert at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 21, at at 11 a.m. Sunday, June 22, at Woodrow Baptist Church, located at 1325 Woodrow Road in Silsbee. A free lunch will follow after church Sunday. There is no admission charge to the concerts. Offerings will be taken. The Southern Plainsmen, who have performed before in Silsbee and at various locations in Southeast Texas, have been performing since May 1978 and have been seen and heard in concerts all over the United States, in California and Colorado to the west and in Pennsylvania to the east. They have been seen and heard many times on various television programs, as well as on You Tube and on Facebook. In 1998, the 20th year of their music ministry, they were appointed “Louisiana’s Ambassadors of Goodwill by Gov. Mike Foster. This honor has been renewed every 10 years since 2008 by Gov. Bobby Jindal and in 2018 by Gov. John Bell Edwards. The Southern Plainsmen are not restricted by boundaries of denomination. It is their strong belief that all Bible-believing Christian people must love one another and work toward the common goal of working in the Kingdom. People from all churches in the area, and people who are not now attending church anywhere are invited to attend the Saturday night concert on June 21 and the 11 a.m. morning worship service on June 22.
SILSBEE — A new way to stay connected to Hardin County news quietly began this week with the launch of The Silsbee Bee Buzz, a free weekday email newsletter from The Silsbee Bee. The first edition landed in inboxes Monday, June 2, at 9 a.m., marking the beginning of a digital push to keep readers informed in a faster, more convenient format. Sent out each weekday morning, the Buzz includes a brief roundup of breaking news, school coverage, community features, and even daily lunch menus—all aimed at giving readers a simple, streamlined update before the day gets away from them. “In these modern times, we don’t have time to wait for the news,” said the new publisher Dennis Phillips in the original launch announcement. “It is happening everywhere, every minute of every day. Sign up today and you will be set to receive all the community news, every day at 9 a.m.” Signing up is quick and free. Readers simply visit newslandingpage.com/silsbee, enter their email address and name, and they’ll start receiving the newsletter automatically. There’s no cost and no subscription required. The content is tailored to the local audience and curated by the same newsroom that produces The Silsbee Bee. While the print edition of the newspaper continues to run weekly, the Buzz is designed to give readers something more immediate—especially on fast-moving or timely local topics. Though still in its first week, the Buzz reflects a broader trend in local journalism: using digital tools to meet readers where they are. By offering news in a format that fits modern schedules, the Bee aims to provide added value without replacing the newspaper itself. The newsletter’s tone is brief and to the point, with a goal of giving readers what they need to know in just a few scrolls. For longtime readers of The Silsbee Bee, the Buzz offers an extra layer of connection. For new readers, it’s an easy way to plug into the rhythm of the community. The Silsbee Bee Buzz may be just getting started, but it’s already one more way local journalism is adapting—and sticking around.
