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Bo BB y Est Es started as athletic director and head football coach at Woodrow Wilson High s chool in 1998, when the school’s athletic programs were struggling. s ince then, Estes and his coaching staff have improved athletic programs at Woodrow across the board. We sat down with him recently to talk about the upcoming school year.

since 1998, you’ve had some pretty exciting athletes come through Woodrow.

Yes. Sergio Kindle [who now plays for the Baltimore Ravens] is probably our most famous. And then in basketball, we’ve had Anthony Randolph [who now plays for the Minnesota Timberwolves]. And we had Greg McCoy, who plays [football] for TCU now. We’ve been very fortunate that some great kids have rolled through Woodrow Wilson.

Woodrow has had a lot of success in sports lately.

We’re one of the most successful programs in Dallas ISD. We’ve been a playoff team [in football] for seven out of the last nine seasons. When I got to Woodrow Wilson, they had not had great success. They were in a down cycle, and since 2003, we’ve been in the playoffs all but two years, and even in those two years, we were 5-5, and we were playing for a spot in the playoffs up to the last ballgame. For the last two years, every sport has either gone to regionals — tennis, golf, wrestling, track and cross-country — or we’ve gone to the playoffs — football, basketball, volleyball. Our soccer teams have been very successful. Stephanie Martin won state three years ago in the breaststroke. Grace Choi went to the state golf tournament just recently.

IT’S A PUBLIC SCHOOL, SO OBVIOUSLY YOU DON’T RECRUIT ATHLETES. No. There’s no draft. We always joke about that. The reputation of your program and your school attracts kids, and we’ve been fortunate that Woodrow Wilson is really a neat school. It’s an urban school in a neighborhood setting. We have a really good choir program, and our extracurricular activities are appealing. Because of that, we’re not just a football school. We’re not just a basketball school or an athletics school. If you want to have a good overall high school experience, Woodrow Wilson provides that.

WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT ASPECT OF YOUR ATHLETIC PROGRAMS?

We’re trying to educate or coach the entire kid versus just the athlete. The Sergio Kindles and the Greg McCoys don’t come along that often. We want the athletic experience to be a building block for what the student is going to be as an adult.

THEREIS A LOT OF CROSSOVER BETWEEN SPORTS. KIDS WHO PLAY FOOTBALL ALSO PLAY GOLF, FOR EXAMPLE. TELL US MORE ABOUT THAT. Our school has 1,300 kids, and only 20 percent play sports, which is a lot for an urban school. But for us to be successful, our best athletes have to compete in other sports, especially the girls. If you’re good enough to shoot a basketball, you’re a good enough athlete to swing a golf club. The more things they do, the more experiences they have. And they get to hear a different voice. It produces more adult role models for you. You might not be listening to me any more, but you listen to the basketball coach or the track coach. We’re not preparing for the next NFL player, but we do hope that someday those guys will be doctors and lawyers and school board members and city councilmen. The cool thing about Woodrow Wilson is that we have coaches who understand that. We’re trying to enhance their education, not develop them into pro athletes.

FOOTBALL PRACTICES START INAUGUST. ARE YOU EXCITED ABOUT YOUR TEAM THIS YEAR?

Oh, yes. Every year, you’re excited. I guess, being a Texas Rangers fan, every year I think we’re going to win the World Series. But we’ve got some great kids coming back. Piers Christian is coming back as our quarterback. Andre Plata is in his senior year, and he’s one of the best athletes at Woodrow. Although we lost some really good football players, who are now going to be playing college football, we’ve got some great players returning, so the foundation blocks are there for a great season.

— RACHEL STONE

SADIE BELLA started out at the SPCA four years ago, but moved to Caruth Terrace after finding her owners. She’s a “dog by day, diva by night”, says owner ELISA OWENS.

WHAT GIVES?

Small ways that you can make a big difference for neighborhood nonprofits

VOLUNTEER

The Wilkinson Center, the East Dallasbased nonprofit whose mission is to help people out of poverty, is seeking volunteers. The center has a food pantry and offers a range of services to adults and children. Volunteers can teach adult classes such as money management, GED courses and English for speakers of other languages. They can help with after school programs or in the food pantry. Or they can help with clerical work. For more information, contact volunteer coordinator Chree Carr at 972.284.0301 or chree_carr@wilkinsoncenter.org.

—RACHEL STONE

Or Buy A Brick

Whether you missed out on the hundred days of events celebrating the White Rock Lake Centennial, or you biked, boogied and beach-partied along with the rest of Dallas, there is still time to make a lasting mark on the city’s sparkling gem. Funds collected through purchase of a personalized brick via the “Pave the Way” campaign will be used by the White Rock Conservancy to keep the lake beautiful, and the bricks will be installed near the new spillway for generations to discover and enjoy. Prices range from $100-$1,000, and contributions are tax deductible. More information is available at whiterockdallas.org or by emailing centennial@whiterockdallas.org.

—CAROL TOLER

KNOW OF WAYS that neighbors can spend time, attend an event, or purchase or donate something to benefit a neighborhood nonprofit? Email your suggestion to launch@ advocatemag.com.

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- Dr. Scott Rice, DDS Irvine, CA

A prized artist

“I have to write for 15 minutes every morning, or I don’t get my breakfast,” says Pulitzer-nominated author and Casa Linda resident David Menefee. “I learned early on, if you just write a page a day for a year, you’ll end up with a book.” Menefee’s methods have proven fruitful. With 15 book titles under his belt and more content generated on a daily basis, this neighborhood writer has penned everything from newspaper and magazine articles to novels, non-fiction books and screenplays. The former Dallas Times Herald and Parade writer with a deep-rooted love for the silent movie era recently was nominated for a Pulitzer for his non-fiction book “Wally: The True Wallace Reid Story”. With a forward from wellrespected Turner Classic Movies’ host Robert Osborne, “Wally” thoroughly chronicles the life of Reid, one of the silent movie era’s most celebrated actors. “Ever since I saw my first silent film at 13 years old, I have been entranced by this era,” Menefee says. “The stars of this time were much larger than what we see today; their popularity was universal because they communicated in a variety of languages through subtitles. The reason that many may know of Mary Pickford or Charlie Chaplin but not of Wallace Reid is because, unfortunately, many of his films have been lost over time but his stardom was just as large as the others.” The book contains more than 200 rare photographs, most of which were restored by Menefee himself. “I enjoy photo restoration because it’s a relaxing break from writing,” says Menefee, who works from his Casa Linda home. Next he is working on the “Margo Cranston” detective mystery series — a mental vacation wrought with imagination, as Menefee describes it. Menefee always has multiple writing projects brewing, and the process appears seamless for this seasoned writer. This is probably because he has truly found his niche. “The transition from periodical writing to book writing was not easy at first, and I could wallpaper my home with all of the rejections I got ... but the difference between writing articles and writing books — and the thing that I like most — is permanence. Books come back to haunt you,” Menefee says.