YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD ZOMBIE SQUAD

The menacing truck seen around our neighborhood actually belongs to a sweet-natured East Dallas artist

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You’re driving down Abrams when you suddenly find yourself in a Mad Max movie. The black truck next to you, the one with the fierce-looking sharp spike jutting out of the front bumper, sports machine guns mounted on the bed, another on the hood. A green skull painted on the side grins menacingly at you. Wait, is that a flamethrower on top of the truck?

Not to worry, it’s just neighbor Ace Cordell in his art car. Glance over, and he’ll likely give you a friendly little wave.

No, they’re not real guns. It’s not an actual flamethrower. And the truck’s name is “Jezzie” — short for “Jezebel.”

It all started back in February when Ace bought a 1990 Ford Ranger truck from “a little old lady who drove it only to church on Sundays.” Seriously.

Ace had a plan, a vision, one he had already sketched in his much-used sketchbook. He headed to the scrap yard, picked up $700 worth of odds and ends, and went to work in the driveway of his Junius Heights home “constructing my baby.” Making good use of the welding skills he learned at Mountain View College, Ace created giant guns out of army surplus ammo boxes, lawnmower parts, an old mop bucket, a caulking gun, bearings, pipes, water heaters, drill bits, an antique jackhammer, and an ancient crutch. The “flamethrower” on top? Antique gas lantern, springs, an air compressor, and an industrial air filter from a laundromat.

Thick chains dangle from the bottom edges of the truck, driver and passenger windows are covered with rebar, and the crowning touch would be those crossed machetes on the back window, topped with a skull. “Zombie Squad” is scrawled across several areas of the truck.

So, Ace, you’re a big fan of “The Walking Dead”? Not at all. “I can’t watch horror mov- ies,” he shakes his head. “ They give me bad dreams.” Then why the zombie/gun theme? Months before, Ace’s brother had purchased a cheap but aesthetically challenged truck. Ace’s suggestion to his brother: “Let’s Mad Max it out.” The brother, though, is a fan of all things zombie, so they zombied out his truck instead. When Ace began plans for his own truck, he decided to stick with the theme, amused by the idea of “a whole fleet of Zombie Squad trucks running around East Dallas.”

You would expect such an alarming vehicle would invite, at a minimum, the stink eye from fellow motorists, or even more likely, a little chat with police. “If I was a cop, I’d be leery, too,” Ace nods. But he says he’s never been pulled over and insists, “I think the cops know I’m on their side. I like police officers.”

Ace knows of only one instance when his truck frightened someone. “Jezzie” was parked at the Lakewood Whole Foods while Ace sat inside the store, enjoying a meal. He’s a regular there — think Norm from “Cheers” and you get the picture — and employees know him and his vehicle well. A panicked customer rushed in, reported the truck, and insisted that security check it out pronto. Calm down, she was told, it’s just Ace.

Reactions are overwhelmingly positive. While Ace chatted with me in the Whole Foods parking lot, no fewer than a dozen folks walked by, expressing admiration for Jezzie. As one fellow artfully expressed, “That truck is badass, man.” That may be, but more than anything, Ace muses, “I want my truck to be seen as art, not a killing machine.”

Ace describes himself as a mixed media artist and prefers to go the recycled route. “The truth is, whatever my hands get a hold of, I’m going to use.” His art is installed all over town, including a 25-foot dragon made from barrels at Mountain View College. His 9-feet-tall robot constructed from keg parts sits outside a Deep Ellum bar, which also features a 400-square-foot mural he painted.

Current projects include another mural, four t-shirt designs, a railing for a loft and illustrations for a children’s book. And he likes the idea of creating more art cars, maybe for himself, maybe for other folks who are so inclined.

Ace loves his art and he loves his Jezebel. He jokes, “Maybe I should deliver pizza, or sign up as an Uber driver.” Most of all, though, Ace hopes his truck inspires folks to adopt the don’t-judge-a-book-by-itscover philosophy. Jezzie isn’t outfitted with guns, she’s adorned with random objects. And Ace? “I’m anti-violence. I’m just a big ol’ teddy bear.”

Education

Anna Rose McGoldrick, who graduated from Bishop Lynch High School last month, won a National Security Language Initiative for Youth scholarship, and is studying in Morocco this summer. McGoldrick is one of 620 American students who received the scholarship to study Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Korean, Persian, Russian or Turkish.

The Dallas Urban Debate Alliance recognized Trace Rosenbower, an Alex W. Spence Talented/ Gifted Academy student, as eighth-grade debater of the year. Two instructors at neighborhood schools won coach of the year. Patricia Hay of Spence won middle school coach of the year, and Patrick McGhee of Woodrow Wilson High School won assistant coach of the year.

Fourteen Woodrow Wilson High School students received Community Foundation scholarships from local individuals during a reception in May at the White Rock YMCA. The foundation awarded $25,750 in scholarships this year, and each of the winners also received a Texas flag, courtesy of the foundation director and Texas State Rep. Kenneth Sheets. Most of the scholarships were for one year, and ranged from $500-$1,500. Two are four-year scholarships.

Stonewall Jackson Elementary School, which recently celebrated its 75th anniversary, is working to develop a five-year plan. Tracie Fraley, executive director of the Woodrow Wilson High School feeder pattern, is gathering feedback from parents about what they want to improve and build upon successes at the school such as the learning garden and deaf education program.

People

Founder of the White Rock Marathon and the Dallas Running Club Tal Morrison died last month of congestive heart failure. He was 93 years old.

East Dallas neighbor Josh Daugherty and his friend Phillip Bird are tackling the Tour Divide, touted as “The Holy Grail” of bike races. The two Dallasistes are biking 2,745 miles from Canada to Mexico, raising money for Big Pig Cancer Foundation and Pedal Against PTSD. The race takes 20-25 days and involves more than 16 hours of cycling a day. Learn more about their trip at tdrfundraiser.com.

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