It has been a week of community pride in Tyler, with residents stepping up for neighbors in need and a hometown hero landing a major new role in collegiate sports.
Tyler and Longview are going head-to-head in a friendly competition that benefits everyone: the East Texas Food Bank has launched a peanut butter collection contest pitting the two cities against each other to see who can donate the most jars. The drive taps into a little local rivalry to fuel a whole lot of generosity, with every jar collected going directly to families facing food insecurity across the region. It’s the kind of community challenge that turns everyday grocery runs into acts of kindness — and Tyler residents have been answering the call.
The East Texas Food Bank serves a wide swath of the Piney Woods region, and peanut butter is one of the most requested and nutritious staples in food pantry distributions. Protein-packed and shelf-stable, it stretches further than almost any other donation, making this contest as practical as it is fun. Whether Tyler ultimately out-collects Longview or not, the real winners are the East Texas families who will benefit from every single jar.
On the sports front, Tyler has another reason to celebrate. Erik DeRoo, a Tyler native, has been named general manager for Texas Tech Women’s Basketball. DeRoo described himself as “super excited” about the new role, and the feeling is mutual back home. Landing a GM position with a major university athletics program is a significant achievement, and the Tyler community is cheering him on as he takes this next step in his career.
From food drives to front offices, Tyler is showing that its community spirit runs deep. Whether you’re dropping off a jar of peanut butter for the East Texas Food Bank contest or celebrating a hometown success story, there’s plenty of good news to go around in the Rose City this week.
