Wrecked

It all started with a bottle of wine

Neighbor Matthew Ladin couldn’t help but notice all the beautiful blue wine bottles his family threw away, which got him thinking: “Couldn’t these bottles be used for something better?”

A few years later he learned about a man in Nacogdoches who repurposes wine bottles into drinking glasses. Ladin contacted the artisan to ask if he was interested in teaching him his craft.

Ladin roped his friend, Aron Siegal, into the venture, and the two traveled to Nacogdoches to learn how to safely turn wine, soda, beer and liquor bottles into drinking glasses and vases.

They broke a lot of bottles at first, but they started selling the ones that made it through the process — which involves scoring with a diamond blade, heating over a flame, cooling with ice, breaking and a little bit of luck — at markets and shows around Dallas.

Their wares were well received, which convinced the pair to continue. They founded Rec’d Glass & Metal out of their homes in East Dallas and began crafting other objects such as table lamps, planters and wind chimes. They recently began turning old pickup truck tailgates into porch benches.

“The idea is to take something that would otherwise probably end up in a landfill and make it into something artistic and functional,” Ladin says.

These days they break less and less glass, but as Ladin points out, “It’s definitely an art, not a science,” even with their tools and years of experience.

That inspired the name, Rec’d Glass, which Ladin says has three explanations:

“It’s recycled glass. It’s wrecked glass because at the beginning we were destroying a lot of it because we weren’t that good at it. And if you drink a lot, you get a little wrecked,” he says with a laugh.

—Brittany Nunn LEARN MORE at facebook.com/RecdGlass.

– Brian Jackson

– Chuck Bauer

End in sight

After breaking ground on Gaston in November 2013, the White Rock YMCA has reached the final stretch of construction.

Construction crews have finished work on the structure and outside of the building. The heavy lifting on the inside also is complete, and crews are finishing the aesthetics of the interior. Soon they’ll start moving in furniture and equipment, and the White Rock YMCA is set to open in its new space at the end of March.

Eve Wiley’s pregnancy went from easy to scary when a sonogram showed the umbilical cord wrapped four times around her baby’s neck, posing a serious threat. “Our world turned upside down,” says Eve. The doctor checked her into a high-risk pregnancy unit at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas for 24/7 monitoring and immediate access to the delivery room. “Just in case,” adds Eve. She credits the nurses with being her “calm in the storm.” Then, 17 days into her hospital stay, the storm clouds cleared as her baby managed to unwrap himself. Eve spent the rest of her pregnancy back home, returning to Baylor for the birth of what she calls her “miracle baby.”

For a physician referral or for more information about women’s services, call 1.800.4BAYLOR or visit us online at BaylorHealth.com/DallasWomen

To explore the new digs, we took a hardhat tour through the new facility with Stacie Renfro, senior program director; Ann Noble, the annual campaign chair; and Eric Schenkelberg, the vice president of operations.

There’s a childcare center right beside the large front entrance, and it will have its own outdoor play area.

A short hallway, where the entrance desk will be located, opens up to the main room. To the left will be a small lounge area, and to the right is the fitness room, lined with floor-to-ceiling windows.

A long hallway leads to the gymnasium that will house the basketball court and other indoor sports facilities.

Upstairs includes a yoga studio, a multipurpose room for meetings, classes or similar activities, and a spacious aerobics room that features a row of windows overlooking White Rock Lake.

The White Rock YMCA is still within 8590 percent of its fundraising goal of $14 million. They’ve raised $12 million but still need to raise the last $2 million.

They’re continuing the Click the Brick campaign. Starting at $1,500, community members can purchase a brick with their name on it.

In 2014 the YMCA raised $183,000, which will go toward providing membership and other YMCA services for neighbors who can’t afford them.

WATCH A VIDEO of our hard-hat tour through the White Rock YMCA at lakewood.advocatemag.com.