Megan Navarro
No. 5 - Dripping Springs moves to new trash service provider
By Megan Navarro - June 18, 2025
DRIPPING SPRINGS — The city of Dripping Springs has been using Texas Disposal Systems (TDS) as its new solid waste and recycling service provider, as of July 1.
Following executive session at its May 6 meeting, Dripping Springs City Council voted 4-1 — with council member Taline Manassian dissenting — to authorize the city administrator to finalize the agreement and begin negotiations with TDS for solid waste collection and disposal services.
The city received responses from multiple entities to its request for proposals (RFP) for solid waste and disposal services, including Frontier Waste Solutions, TDS and Waste Connections Lone Star.
As previously reported by the News-Dispatch, the city has used Waste Connections Lone Star as its solid waste provider since 2017. It was again selected as the provider in 2020, when the city last issued an RFP for solid waste services.
Deputy city administrator Shawn Cox said that the collection of additional bags of refuse will only be collected for the first six months, then, afterwards, if additional collections are regularly required, an additional trash cart will need to be arranged.
With the change, residential rates for solid waste will be $14.80, instead of $14.92, and the option recycling service will be $6.75, instead of $5.97.
Only residents and business owners in the Dripping Springs city limits that are not using Waste Connections and are using another provider will need to use TDS going forward, Cox said. Those in the extraterritorial jurisdiction can choose the provider they prefer.
Council unanimously approved the final agreement with TDS at its June 17 meeting.
More information can be found at www.cityofdrippingsprings.com/wastecollection.
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No. 4 - Family grieves after loss of son in Savage’s fire in Wimberley
By Ashley Kontnier - July 2, 2025
WIMBERLEY — Zachary “Zach” Salley, 23, spent just over two weeks in the hospital after more than 95% of his body was burned in a fire at Savage’s Hill Country Bar & Grill in Wimberley, before he succumbed to his injuries Sunday, July 13.
After losing their son, his father Robert Salley and stepmother Sherri Salley sat down to reminisce on Zach’s life.
Born three months premature on Sept. 8, 2001, Zach spent approximately six months in the neonatal intensive care unit prior to being sent home.
“He was a little slow to speak, a little slow to develop, but it came around,” his father said. “But it was pretty early on, to me, that I noticed there were issues and [Zach’s mother] didn't want to believe that there was anything wrong with him that parental love and attention couldn’t take care of. So, she really never wanted to get him assessed and I thought he could get more help that way.”
Robert explained that, though he and various therapists and professionals believed Zach was on the autism spectrum, he was never formally diagnosed.
Following the divorce of Zach’s parents, he primarily lived with his mother through his school years, while visiting his father and stepmother on weekends and holidays.
Zach graduated during the COVID-19 pandemic and, with the help of his father, worked through the application process for, and was ultimately accepted to, Texas State University.
“So, he came here for two years. He lived on campus and then, he got student housing in an apartment and we saw dramatic changes in him, where he started developing friendships and coming out of his shell,” Robert said. “Still awkward, still different, but growing. It was great to see and everybody around us — all our friends and family — said, ‘Wow, this kid has changed.’ We called it ‘The Great Experiment’ when I ended up dropping $40,000-plus for those two years of school before he quit, but I could have spent $40,000 on therapists and I don't know that they would have done as good as that experience was for him.”
With this new extrovertedness, came danger, said Robert, as Zach was extremely trusting.
Later, when Zach decided that school wasn’t working for him, Robert said the two had a discussion about his next steps, when he was hired as a cook at Brookshire Brothers.
Two years after Zach began working there, emergency crews responded to a fire at Savage’s Hill Country Bar & Grill at approximately 5 a.m. Friday, June 27. Upon arrival, responding units immediately began fire suppression and search and rescue efforts, according to Christopher Robbins, interim fire chief of Wimberley Fire Rescue. After conducting a primary search of the first and second floors of the building, it was determined that there were no occupants inside or around the structure. The building was destroyed in the fire.
It was an hour later when Robert received a call from a police officer, who told him his son had been found with severe burns in the parking lot of his apartment complex in San Marcos. Despite his injuries, Zach was able to give the officer his father’s phone number before being taken to Dell Seton Medical Center in Austin by ambulance.
As previously reported by the News-Dispatch, another Savage’s employee, Aiden Dwyer, 24, of San Marcos, was arrested Monday, June 30, and charged with arson.
According to Robert and Sherri, Dwyer had come up in their conversations with Zach previously. They stated that they knew Zach gave Dwyer rides home from work. Based on some of the stories Zach told him, Robert was concerned.
Two weeks later, Zach died July 13. Throughout their time at the hospital, Robert shared that the staff was wonderful, caring and understanding of their needs.
The next day, on Monday, July 14, Dwyer was charged with murder for Zach’s death. Though the fire is still under investigation, no charges were filed against Zach.
“As the parent of an autistic child, there comes a point when you can't control their environment, even though you want to try,” Robert said. “Our objective was to try to get him to be an adult, to make his own decisions and he was doing quite well with that, but I still felt like sometimes in his head he was only about 15 [and] some of the decisions he made were too trusting.”
With the expected closure of Savage’s planned for July 1, Zach was looking ahead to the future.
Shortly before his death, Robert and Sherri learned that Zach planned to go to technical school to become an electrician. After taking a placement test, he was on the list for the program, waiting for an opening. He was in the process of moving into an apartment in Austin with some of the friends he made at Texas State University and was applying to work at Austin restaurants, while he waited for a spot in the electrician program, at the time of his injury.
Upon his death, Zach’s organs were donated, a wish he made clear on his driver’s license and to his family years prior.
Sherri recalled having a conversation with her stepson when she found out he was an organ donor. When she asked him about it, surprised, Zach responded, “Well, what am I going to do with them?”
This was very in line for Zach’s character, said Sherri. He was very practical and always thought of others first.
Although this is a kind-hearted trait to have, Robert urged parents to encourage their neurodivergent children to realize that “they are in control of their own destiny.” He emphasized that it is important to push them and guide them in the right direction, while also acknowledging their own wishes.
For Robert, if he could go back and say anything to his son, he would say the same thing he told him every day, “I love you so much. I'm here for you. I've always got your back.”
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No. 3 - Wimberley siblings build dream brick by brick
By Megan Navarro - June 4, 2025
WIMBERLEY — A childhood dream came true for a brother and sister duo from Wimberley, Ian and Sage Summers, who won season five of the FOX TV show LEGO Masters.
The show put together teams of two from across the United States and Canada to compete each week during brick-building challenges in hopes to win a $100,000 prize, along with the LEGO Master trophy and title.
Growing up, Ian, 23, and Sage, 21, the youngest girl to be on LEGO Masters, were big fans of the show and they knew that they wanted to try out to be on the competition when they turned 18. So, they auditioned for season four and got called back for season five after the siblings were putting their names out there by posting the LEGO builds on Instagram.
While they have been watching the show for years, the homeschooled siblings were a brick-building team long before that.
“I love LEGO because it’s an art form. You have a bunch of different pieces and everybody has the same amount of pieces, but you can create completely different things and the possibilities are endless,” Sage said. “It's just such a great art medium.”
Ian recalled that when he was young, he was obsessed with the “Star Wars” franchise and whenever he would get one of the themed sets, he would immediately tear down the spaceships that he would build, use some of the techniques and build his own creations. He added that what brings him so much joy is when he takes a piece that is intended for one thing and turns it into something else.
“That started from when I was like six or seven and whenever my friends would come over, their mom would tell my mom, ‘Hey, where did he get that set? My child wants to buy it. And she told them, ‘No, that just is out of his head.’ So, from the beginning, I loved LEGO sets, but I never had any sets intact, even as like a 7-year-old,” Ian said. “My favorite part is 100% making my own creations and building it.”
The teams competed in various challenges, with episodes having various themes, such as “Star Wars,” wedding cakes, “Batman and “Wicked.” The judges, who are known as brick masters, looked for technical ability, color and storytelling when the contestants are building their creations; they also had to build something that is meant for television, making it colorful and stand out in the room, the duo said.
Competing on a national show can be challenging, but, for Ian and Sage, they tried to enjoy the moment. Additionally, competing with a sibling can also bring out the best or worst in each other, but the two figured out a dynamic that worked for them.
The show wrapped up filming at the end of 2023; since then, the two have been non-stop building LEGO and continuing to fulfill their passion, including attending the BrickFair Convention in Virginia. They even flew to Denmark in September 2025, where Ian’s mockups were displayed at the LEGO House. Along with that, they are continuing to run their small pet sitting business.
Because they are young, Ian and Sage are saving the $100,000 cash prize for the future.
Though they have been on a national competition show, the Summers siblings have not lost their love for their small community of Wimberley.
“Being able to represent Wimberley on such a big stage was so rewarding. We love our small town, so we knew that they'd be cheering us on through it and so, to be able to win for them was definitely a reward in itself,” Sage said.
“It just goes to show that anybody, anywhere, in any small town, can do great things,” Ian shared. “It doesn’t matter where you are or what you do, you can accomplish amazing things.”
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No. 2 - Mother blames Hays County family court for failing her daughters
By Brittany Kelley - June 25, 2025
Several families have reached out to the Hays Free Press/ News-Dispatch in regards to what they believe are concerning experiences in Judge Karl Hays’ family law court. The following is the finale of a four part series discussing assertions against Judge Hays and the alleged failure to consider the best interest of the child(ren) involved in cases in his courtroom.
This story includes discussion of allegations of child sexual abuse. Please proceed with caution.
SAN MARCOS — Kourtney P. thought she had won: She and her two young daughters escaped what she described as an abusive household, but she quickly discovered that the horrors continued. She claimed that her children detailed several instances of alleged sexual abuse at the hands of their father, which made no difference, said Kourtney, in Hays County Judge Karl Hays’ family law court.
It was early June 2020 when she and her two daughters, both below the age of five at the time, fled Glen G. with nothing more than the clothes on their backs, claiming that they were headed to dance class. Once in a safe location, she was able to file for divorce June 23, 2020, in Judge Hays’ court, where she was granted a temporary protective order three days later.
Hays was appointed in May 2019 by unanimous approval of several district judges, as Texas Family Code Section 201.001 (d) states that “if an associate judge serves more than one court, the associate judge’s appointment must be made with the unanimous approval of all the judges under whom the associate judge serves.”
Because Kourtney left without her possessions, she later went back with her father to retrieve her dog from the couple’s shared house in Wimberley. While out of the house, the children’s grandmother was watching the girls when she observed concerning behavior that was sexual in nature, prompting her to call their mother.
“I asked [my daughter] where she learned to do that … and then, she said she learned it from her dad, that her dad does that to her. So, that’s essentially what started everything,” alleged Kourtney.
The mother then called Child Protective Services (CPS) and began the process of pressing charges against Glen. Following several forensic interviews with the girls, an arrest warrant for Glen was filed July 24, 2020, for aggravated sexual assault of a child.
The charge was only for the older child, explained Kourtney, as it was difficult to confirm the facts of the other, since she was so young.
Throughout the trial, Kourtney shared numerous instances that she claims were against the best interest of her children.
For example, according to an order on condition of bond filed July 24, 2020, in the criminal court, Glen was required to avoid any communication with his eldest daughter and remain at least 300 feet away from her residence, though court notes on the custody case state that less than a month later on Aug. 17, 2020, Glen was granted supervised possession for two- 4-hour periods each week, along with joint managing conservatorship.
Regarding the joint managing conservatorship, Texas Family Code Sec. 153.004 (b) states that “The court may not appoint joint managing conservators if credible evidence is presented of a history or pattern of past or present child neglect, or physical or sexual abuse by one parent directed against the other parent, a spouse, or a child.” Although, there may not be documented history of alleged physical and sexual abuse against the children, Glen does have a recorded history of supposed physical abuse against the mother. According to a first amended application for protective order, request for temporary ex parte protective order, and notice of hearing, in 2018, Glen shoved Kourtney into a fireplace in New Orleans, Louisiana. Records show that on March 24, 2018, he was arrested and charged with domestic abuse battery.
During supervised visitations, Glen would bargain for his children’s affection, claimed Kourtney, rewarding them with candy after giving a kiss or laying down and snuggling. She also stated that her eldest daughter revealed that Glen threatened to kill her mother and grandmother during one of these visitations.
She stated that each visitation occurred at a facility, which provided notes and summaries of what occurred, including the inappropriate activities she mentioned prior. The mother alleged that she was told that these notes were then reported to Judge Hays, which never resulted in any action taken.
These supervised visitations continued, said Kourtney, despite a discovery made by her lawyer in October 2023 that the amended bond conditions by another criminal associate judge were never filed: “As discussed last week the January 2021 order was never filed and as we sit here today it’s still not on file. With that being said the current supervised access is in violation of the current filed bond order,” read an email sent to the guardian ad litem and other case-related staff by her attorney.
“There’re all these holes where things just slip through in this county and it’s ridiculous. I don’t know if [Judge Hays] even knew that the bond conditions weren’t filed,” said Kourtney. “You finally leave an abuser and then, you get stuck in this family law case, where you have no voice and you’re literally trapped still and it’s suffocating.”
Kourtney stated that in November 2024, the judgement was finalized orally. Glen received joint managing conservatorship and “exclusive 153.132 rights after meaningful conversation,” read the court notes.
Just three months after the newly imposed custody agreement, Kourtney’s youngest daughter made an outcry about Glen: “I get a call from school and [my youngest] has outcried [sexual assault] in full, tons of detail and [the school] basically said they’ve opened up a CPS investigation in a criminal case and they’re refusing to release the child to [the father] … All of this because Karl Hays allowed this to happen. My children have been sexually abused again.”
Since the start of the custody case, Kourtney noted that her eldest has been diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and depression and that both children have suffered endless trauma, with one trusting men too much and the other not trusting them enough. Additionally, she claims that her youngest has developed a nervous tick after she began living with her father. The experiences not only have embarrassed the girls, claimed the mother, but prevented them from living normal childhoods.
Kourtney stated that she firmly believes that her family’s situation and her daughters’ suffering is a direct result of Judge Hays.
“He makes it a personal vendetta to not believe the people that are claiming abuse and he chooses to manipulate the law and eliminate evidence to make it fit his narrative, so you can’t apply it to the actual case. It’s heartbreaking that someone in power would do this,” concluded Kourtney.
Neither Judge Hays, nor the court administrator, responded to requests for comment.
Editor’s Note: Following the publication of the first story in this series, “Attorney shares experience with family law judge Karl Hays,” the Hays Free Press/News-Dispatch has been inundated with other people coming forward to share their own stories and experiences regarding Judge Hays’ court. Due to the taxing nature of a series of this magnitude and our small staff, we have decided not to continue the series at this time. We sincerely appreciate everyone who has been willing to share their stories and encourage anyone who believes they have been wronged to file their concerns with the appropriate court.
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No. 1- Shooting involves Wimberley student, district addresses incident
Staff Report - Jan. 29, 2025
DRIFTWOOD — The Hays County Sheriff’s Office responded to a fatal shooting incident that took place at a Driftwood residence on Tuesday, Jan. 28, which involved a Wimberley High School sophomore student.
At approximately 4:56 p.m. on Jan. 28, HCSO responded to a call “reporting suspicious circumstances” on Canna Lily Circle in Driftwood. Upon arrival, deputies determined that there was a firearm discharged, striking a 16 year old, and, despite life-saving efforts, the female — who was later determined to be WHS sophomore McKenzie Duggar – succumbed to her injuries.
A 14-year-old male, who resided in the home, was taken into custody and transported to the Hays County Juvenile Detention Center.
On Jan. 29, the Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office conducted an autopsy and ruled the manner of death to be homicide.
“The Hays County Sheriff’s Office extends its deepest condolences to the family affected by this heartbreaking tragedy,” a HCSO news release stated. “We also wish to express our gratitude to all first responders who assisted at the scene.”
The Wimberley community partnered with First Baptist Church worship center to provide support services for anyone who needed them. Additionally, students were encouraged to visit with Wimberley ISD counselors who were available “to provide a safe space at school for those who need it. We are grateful to our many community partners who are helping to assist with additional grief counseling services for our students and staff,” said WISD Superintendent Dr. Greg Bonewald in an email to parents on Jan. 29.
WISD also shared the following references that could be helpful for families:
Grief and Mental Health Support List: bit.ly/3WF2pn7
WISD Student Support Services Resource webpage: bit.ly/3WIaFm7
“This news can also have a profound impact on many of our families across the community. Please know that our counseling personnel are also available to talk with parents who may be looking for resources and guidance,” Bonewald said. “We are thankful to our Texan Family for navigating this difficult time with love and respect for [Duggar] and her family and friends. Our prayers are with the Duggar family and all those impacted by this tragic loss.”
Anyone with information related to this case is urged to contact investigators by emailing [email protected].
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