San Marcos mayor proclaims September recognitions for service dogs, suicide prevention, bird safety and seniors

San Marcos Mayor Jane Houston on Tuesday read a series of proclamations designating September 2025 for multiple city observances, including National Service Dog Month, National Suicide Prevention and Action Month, Emergency Preparedness Month, a Lights Out bird-safety period and Senior Center Awareness Month.

The mayor described the service-dog proclamation as recognition of organizations such as K9 Companions and the broader need for trained service dogs. "Now, therefore, I, Jane Houston, by virtue of the authority vested in me as mayor of the city of San Marcos, Texas, do hereby proclaim the month of September 2025 as National Service Dog Month," she read.

In a separate proclamation the mayor announced that San Marcos will join the Lights Out Texas initiative during migration periods, asking that municipal buildings turn off or dim non‑essential lighting between 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. from Aug. 15 through Nov. 30, 2025. An unnamed presenter representing the bird-safety effort told the meeting that dimming or turning off lights can "reduce window collision fatalities of migratory birds by 60%." The proclamation also encouraged residents and businesses to participate in dark-sky practices during critical migration windows.

Mayor Houston also proclaimed September 2025 National Suicide Prevention and Action Month, citing national data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other surveys included in the proclamation to underline an increased suicide burden and the importance of prevention. After the proclamation, Amy Lowry, clinic director at the San Marcos Mental Health Clinic, thanked officials and emphasized local crisis supports, noting in part, "I wanted to share the 988, the crisis hotline, as well as a text line that's 741741 and you just text HOME and you can also receive free crisis and suicide prevention support."

The mayor declared September Emergency Preparedness Month and urged residents, businesses and schools to develop preparedness and resiliency plans. The proclamation thanked first responders, critical infrastructure workers and volunteers for their work in disaster response and encouraged people to sign up for emergency alerts as directed by the proclamation text.

Finally, Houston proclaimed Senior Center Awareness Month for the CAPCOG region and highlighted local senior programming: the San Marcos Activity Center and the public library reported hundreds of classes and thousands of senior registrations and attendances so far in 2025. Local speakers thanked staff and described a range of offerings from caregiver support groups to lifelong-learning classes.

All items presented at the meeting were proclamations and informational remarks; no formal votes or ordinances were recorded during the segment covered in the transcript.