They went to protests in Houston and El Paso, spoke at an online town hall in Midland and held small celebrations amid national upheaval. In this weekly series, Texans from across the state share stories about how they’re navigating life during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Stacy Fernández
Stacy Fernández was the Tribune’s breaking news reporter in 2019-20. When she wasn't breaking stories, Stacy covered the gun beat and led the Tribune’s reader-driven explainer series, Texplainer. First introduced to the Lone Star State as an intern at the Dallas Morning News, she was also a News21 fellow, reporter for NPR’s Next Generation Radio Project and Buffalo News intern. Stacy graduated from Syracuse University with dual degrees in magazine journalism and Latino-Latin American studies. The Afro-Dominicana thrifts frequently, is a solid bachata dancer and is a firm believer that listening to audiobooks is just as good as reading.
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Coronavirus in Texas
More than a third of Texans speak a language other than English. That means key coronavirus updates aren’t accessible to them.
Because of language barriers, Texas risks leaving some of the state’s marginalized communities even more vulnerable to contracting the virus while making it more difficult to access resources needed to get through the pandemic.
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Coronavirus in Texas
Texas families filing for SNAP food assistance almost doubled in April
Texas received a staggering 417,468 applications for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program last month, a sharp increase from March’s already high number of requests.
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Coronavirus in Texas
Gov. Greg Abbott lifts coronavirus restrictions for travelers from New York, Georgia and other hot spots
Travelers coming to Texas from select major states and cities previously had to undergo a mandatory 14-day self-quarantine.
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Coronavirus: The pandemic through Texans' eyes
“There won’t be a goodbye party”: Hospital administrator prepares to retire during pandemic
A hospital administrator gets a special gift. A food pantry worker gets her coronavirus test results. A Midland family cancels its annual fishing trip. In this weekly series, Texans from across the state share stories about how they’re navigating life during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Coronavirus: The pandemic through Texans' eyes
Dallas food pantry worker gets a boost during the pandemic: a promotion
Mother’s Day brought tough decisions on whether to get together with family, and some took the risk while others spent the day apart. In this weekly series, Texans from across the state share stories about how they’re navigating life during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Coronavirus in Texas
Texas bar owners say they’re going broke and are desperate for Abbott to lay out a reopening plan
Last month, the governor said he hoped to reopen bars “on or no later than mid-May.” He has since walked back the timeline for when bars can open their doors to customers, saying he needs more input from doctors.
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Coronavirus in Texas
Complaint filed over Texas AG Ken Paxton’s tactics to limit mail-in voting
In a series of tweets and a public statement, Paxton said eligibility for absentee voting has not been expanded. But a state judge’s order says otherwise.
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Coronavirus in Texas
Texas A&M is looking at Saturday and late-night options to reduce class sizes and comply with social distancing
Chancellor John Sharp offered some ideas about what the fall semester could look like, but the system won’t have a finalized reopening strategy until at least the end of May.
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Coronavirus: The pandemic through Texans' eyes
“There’s no sense in risking it”: As Texas eases restrictions, a family keeps its social distance
The governor is allowing more businesses to reopen, and Texans are weighing the risks of returning to normalcy. In this weekly series, Texans from across the state share stories about how they’re navigating life during the COVID-19 pandemic.