Brittany Kelley
Kyle Public Library to open new mobile library
By Brittany Kelley - April 23, 2025
KYLE — It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s … the brand-new Kyle Mobile Library, which launched in the summer of 2025.
“[The] former librarian that we used to have here … she’s the one who started the interest in it and asked [The Kyle Library Thrift Store] if we would be interested in funding it. I’ve been here 13 years and we’ve never told the library, 'No,'” said Judy Deats, bookkeeper for The Kyle Library Thrift Store, which funds projects for the Kyle Public Library.
This small spark was nearly two years ago, said Deats, and since then, the thrift store worked to raise funding, do research on possible vehicles and, now, purchase the van, which arrived at its destination at the end of March.
“I’m thinking of it like a mobile branch. So, cities our size sometimes accommodate their populations by having a system of libraries. Kyle is a one branch system right now, but we can actually think of the mobile library as a branch,” said KPL Outreach Librarian Jesus Hernandez, who will primarily be operating the vehicle.
The opportunity is exciting, the outreach librarian said, as not many libraries have a mobile attachment and so, having the opportunity to network with others in Texas has been a stimulating experience.
The exterior is fitted with the Kyle Public Library’s logo, an awning and speaker, while the interior — all of which was designed by the librarians — has a desk area for a computer, a rotating driver’s seat, a microphone — to host storytimes, according to Deats — and, of course, shelves for books, though those are not all that will be available on the vehicle.
“That's going to be evolving as we start going out and learning what people are asking for. We’re trying to make a collection that dynamically changes with our population. We’re going to see who we end up serving the most [and] they’re going to make themselves apparent to us through our visits,” said Hernandez. “I’m imagining we’re going to have a large mix of media formats, reading levels and not just books.”
This includes the possibility of movies, audiobooks and the library’s new StoryTime Kits, which provides a picture book, along with felt games and interactions for families to experience together.
Because the library is full of a variety of collections and opportunities for guests, said Scott, each stop will be curated to those that visit. So, if the library mobile visits a senior center, it will alter its traveling collection to match those needs.
The library’s goal, though primarily to expand the services, is also to cultivate literacy in the community, Scott emphasized.
“We think that we have the most amazing resources in the library and it’s like letting people know the secret that, ‘Hey, we’ve got more than just books.’ We have database access, educational activity, kids' books that read out loud to you, all kinds of things," concluded Hernandez.
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Hill Country Favorite celebrates 10 years
By Brittany Kelley - March 5, 2025
DRIFTWOOD — Nearly 11 years ago, Travis and Tamra Tindol were driving down FM 150 when they spotted the closed-down Hays City Store convenience shop. Turning to each other, they asked, “Why don’t we make a little cafe here,” and the rest is history, said the pair. Now, the restaurant is celebrating its 10-year anniversary.
The two were initially managing separate restaurants, with Tamra in Austin and Travis in Dripping Springs, when they decided to open a business together.
Tamra revealed that because the couple hadn’t done anything before in the area, banks wouldn’t loan to them, so the initial budget was extremely small and consisted of their own savings, along with donations from friends and family.
It was several months later, in March 2015, when the restaurant officially opened, sharing the same name as its predecessor. According to Travis, community members would always refer to it as Hays City Store because that’s what they knew it as, so they felt no need to change it.
The goal of the restaurant was to serve Texas comfort food, said Tamra, with something for everyone.
Their suggestions from the menu include the chicken-fried steak, truck stop enchiladas, fried shrimp and the bone-in pork chops for Travis or the new Greek salad, fried shrimp and a simple burger for Tamra.
Although the two crafted many of the recipes themselves, Travis and Tamra often stuck to the front of house duties, such as making sure customers were happy and ensuring food got to the right tables.
It was more than 10 months before the owners had a day off, as they were regulating the business and entrusting new responsibilities in staff members. Now, after significant growth — from 90 seats to 323, adding an ice house and additional patio space — Travis and Tamra were able to step back and split their time between Hays City Store and their new business venture, TasTe on Main in Buda.
Over the past 10 years, there have been numerous memories at the store that stick with them, but they all have one common theme: bringing the community together to provide a safe space.
For example, the Memorial Day flood of 2015, which occurred only three months following the opening of their store.
“It was very emotional. It was a Saturday night and I remember vividly — I remember even some of the people that were in the restaurant — it was just coming down, cats and dogs,” recalled Travis. “We woke up the next day to disaster. You had some people come in and … they just had this kind of 1,000 yard stare, just like, ‘What happened to me?’ … [It was just] getting to know people and that was really an awesome thing to see the Wimberley Valley community come around and support.”
The restaurant also survived the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced many small businesses to shut down. Tamra noted that people would buy their food and eat it in their cars in the parking lot, as they were simply so grateful to be out of the house. The restaurant being open gave them something to look forward to, to see the faces of other community members, even if it was only through their car window.
“Aside from that, one of my favorite things about being there for 10 years and being in the smaller community, which has now grown quite a bit, but we’ve seen relationships blossom. We’ve seen couples come together. We’ve seen young children being brought into the world and now, they’re in high school or employees that were teenagers when they started working for us are now married with children or finished with college, just seeing where their lives have gone,” Tamra said.
For the restaurant’s 10-year anniversary, Travis booked 10 live performances for the “Ten Days of Hays,” which ran March 7-16, and included performances by Anamé Rose, Mickey & the Motorcars, Dale Watson, Two Tons of Steel, Vallejo, Ian Moore, The Derailers, Scotty Alexander, Suede and LC Rocks.
Additionally, a fan favorite — the sausage board, filled with local sausage, housemate pickles and jalapeños, pimento cheese and crackers — returned for the celebration.
In the future, Travis and Tamra hope to keep doing what they’re doing and evolving the restaurant.
For more information on the Ten Days of Hays or Hays City Store, located at 8989 FM 150 in Driftwood, visit www.hayscitystoretx.com.
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