2023 July Lakewood/East Dallas Advocate

As Ebby Halliday agents, these empowered women receive the best training, resources and technology available, which helps them provide the best service and results for you. In the end though, it’s their own spirited drive as entrepreneurs and an intrinsic dedication to their craft that set each apart, one from another, and especially from competitors that come and go. Need a fierce female? We recommend one of ours.

A mural by Alec DeJesus at LaBori Boxing. Read more on page 18. Photography by Lauren Allen.

A History of Exceptional Dentistry

DISTRIBUTION PH/214.560.4212

ADVERTISING PH/214.560.4212

ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS

Frank McClendon

214.560.4215 / fmcclendon@advocatemag.com

Greg Kinney

214.292.0485 / gkinney@advocatemag.com

Michele Paulda

214.724.5633 / mpaulda@advocatemag.com

Catherine Pate

214.560.4201 / cpate@advocatemag.com

Linda Kenney lkenney@advocatemag.com

Classified Manager: Prio Berger

214.292.0493 / pberger@advocatemag.com

Marketing Director: Sally Wamre

214.686.3593 / swamre@advocatemag.com

Development Director: Alessandra Quintero 786.838.5891 / aquintero@advocatemag.com

Digital Marketing & Analytics: Autumn Grisby agrisby@advocatemag.com

EDITORIAL

Publisher/Editor-in-Chief: Jehadu Abshiro jabshiro@advocatemag.com

SENIOR EDITOR: Renee Umsted rumsted@advocatemag.com

EDITORS: Alyssa High ahigh@advocatemag.com

Emma Ruby eruby@advocatemag.com

Ariel Wallace awallace@advocatemag.com

Editor-at-Large: Christina Hughes Babb chughes@advocatemag.com

Digital Editor: Raven Jordan rjordan@advocatemag.com

Senior Art Director: Jynnette Neal jneal@advocatemag.com

Art Director/Photographer: Lauren Allen lallen@advocatemag.com

Contributors: Patti Vinson, Carol Toler, Sam Gillespie

Contributing photographers: Kathy Tran, Emil Lippe, Hunter Lacey, Yuvie Styles, Shelby Tauber, Sylvia Elzafon, Lo Kuehmeier, Victoria Gomez, Julia Cartwright

Chief Revenue Officer: Rick Wamre 214.560.4212 / rwamre@advocatemag.com

Advocate (c) 2023 is published monthly in print and daily online by Advocate Media - Dallas Inc., a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation based in Dallas and first published in 1991. Contents of this print magazine may not be reproduced. Advertisers and advertising agencies assume liability for the content of all advertisements and sponsorships printed, and therefore assume responsibility for any and all claims against the Advocate. The Publisher reserves the right to accept or reject ay editorial, advertising or sponsorship material in print or online. Opinions set forth in Advocate publications are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the Publisher’s viewpoint. More than 180,000 people read Advocate publications in print each month; Advocate online publications receive more than 4 million pageviews monthly. Advertising rates and guidelines are available upon request. Advocate print and online publications are available free of charge throughout our neighborhoods, one print copy per reader. For information about supporting our non-profit mission of providing local news to neighborhood readers, please call 214-560-4212 or email rwamre@advocatemag.com.

WOMEN OF COMPASS REAL ESTATE

KATE WALTERS

Kate Walters is the neighorhood’s “go-to” resource when buying or selling real estate. Neighbors know she understands the ins and outs of our hot properties in Lakewood and East Dallas, including how to navigate multiple offers.

Her clients agree: Kate has her finger on the pulse of today’s market.

“I think things will stay steady for awhile, and rates have done the damage they’re going to do. Buyers know this is the new normal and, while inventory is still relatively low, today’s competitive market is very much do-able.”

Why choose Kate as a Realtor?

This life-long local has connections, both in the community and among fellow agents. And she wears her honesty as a badge.

“I’m not an agent who has to say whatever just to make a dollar. I explore ’next steps’ for a seller and ‘where will you go’ options before pulling the for-sale trigger. If this isn’t the right time for a client to make a move, buying or selling, I’m not afraid of saying ‘no’ when that’s the truth.”

Let Kate Walters help guide your next real estate move. Call her today at 214-293-0506 or email kate.walters@compass.com.

BUY THE FRIENDLY SKIES

Deborah Brown’s collection comes from the wild blue yonder

Interview by RENEE UMSTED

Photography by YUVIE STYLES

WOMEN OF COMPASS REAL ESTATE

MARLA SEWELL & MEG BEAIRD

Marla Sewall and Meg Beaird are a highly experienced Dallas real estate partnership known for their unwavering commitment to building relationships and delivering exceptional customer service. With over 20 years of combined experience, Marla and Meg bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the table. Driven by a genuine passion for helping their clients achieve their real estate goals, Marla and Meg prioritize building strong, long lasting relationships. Understanding that buying or selling a home is a significant life event, they go above and beyond to provide personalized guidance and support every step of the way. “We know how trying real estate transactions can be and it is our mission to mitigate that stress for our clients.”

Their dedication to customer service also extends well beyond the transaction . Says the pair, “whether it’s offering advice, recommending trusted professionals, or simply staying in touch, we are committed to our clients for the long haul!”

The Sewall Beaird Group has your back. Call them today: Marla Sewall, 214-415-3466, marla.sewall@compass.com. Meg Beaird, 214-236-5008, meg.beaird@compass.com.

Deborah Brown has collected about 125 uniforms from nearly two dozen airlines in a matter of years.

The clothes, many of them made for flight attendants, are stored in garment bags, boxes and racks in closets and rooms in her Lake Highlands home, where she has lived with her husband for more than 30 years.

Brown says her husband doesn’t mind that her collection takes up so much real estate.

“My husband is so nice,” she says. “He just said, ‘Don’t buy any more china.’”

Brown began collecting about five years ago, when she attended a Braniff conference at the old Braniff International Airways headquarters at DFW Airport. Her interest in airlines comes from her background as an account executive at AT&T for 20 years, where American, Southwest, Continental and TWA were in her territory.

At the event, people kept asking to take photos with Brown and her friend, who were wearing paisley, thinking they were modeling retro Braniff uniforms.

“It was so much fun, so that’s when I went to eBay and started looking,” says Brown, who grew up in Casa View.

Her first purchase was two Braniff uniforms designed by Emilio Pucci. A Halston-designed uniform of the same airline followed.

Since then, her collection has expanded to include designs by Oleg Cassini, Edith Head and Ralph Lauren, among others. She has hats, coats, shoes and even luggage from existing and bygone airlines including Braniff, Southwest, Continental, Delta, TWA, Trans-Texas Airways, Russian-based S7 Airlines and Wardair Canada.

The uniforms typically remain safe in storage, but they’re taken out when Brown wants to wear them — perhaps at a fashion show or some other event. Eventually, she wants to sell the collection and donate the proceeds to organizations that help animals.

HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHICH PIECES TO BUY?

It really starts out with affordability. I’ll always buy something if I can get it for $200, and then if it starts being a little bit more, I have to really think about it. At first, I just wanted the more current ones. And then when this one woman selling her collection had that early American Airlines, well, then, it made me want to get those, too.

YOU HAVE AN EXISTING INTEREST IN VINTAGE. WHY DID YOU WANT TO GO FOR THE MORE MODERN PIECES?

That’s what was available. The older they are, the more rare they are.

WHICH ONES ARE YOUR

FAVORITE?

Of course, the Braniff. But the Trans-Texas, I just love that one so much. And when I looked them up on Google search, they had ads that are very provocative. (One pictures a woman wearing a bandana tied around her neck, barely covering her chest, along with frilly bikini bottoms and sheer stockings.)

WHAT PIECES ARE YOU MISSING?

Still a few from Pan Am. And I’d still like some more from TWA. I met someone, of course. I bought some things from her. She’s in Britain, and she has

all of TWA, and why she’d be interested in that, I don’t know. TWA was just headquartered in Kansas City, you know, mid-America. And they had paper dresses. She says, I have all four of the paper dresses. She says it took her 15 years to collect all of that, and she’s got everything. So anyway, I bought things that she had duplicates of that she was selling.

HOW DID YOU GET INTO VINTAGE?

I think I’ve always liked to shop. I found a ’50s prom dress that I wore at costume parties and all, and I loved it. I wore it so much it got stained, you know, dropping things on it. But I loved it so much. I like to go to vintage clothing now. There’s more shops available.

IT SEEMS LIKE YOU’VE LEARNED A LOT ABOUT HISTORY, TOO, BY PURCHASING AND COLLECTING YOUR UNIFORMS.

It’s really neat to learn about the history because these clothes were so wellmade, and that’s why so many have endured. My favorite decade, really, is the ’50s, with the full skirts and petticoats.

HOW OFTEN DO YOU LOOK FOR NEW UNIFORMS?

If my husband reads this, oh my god, he is going to learn so much. I wake up in the morning. At least 12 times a day, I’m looking. Just because things may be listed, so you don’t want to just look once a day. It may be listed before I go to bed. If I wake up at 2 o’clock in the morning, I gotta go look.

This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

WOMEN OF COMPASS REAL ESTATE

LAUREN LEVI BAKER

Lauren Levi Baker is a “strategy tailor.”

Everyone’s real estate needs differ, and this Realtor sizes up each client’s needs and finds the perfect fit.

“I understand working moms and young families, those looking for a bigger home with a game room and premium school options; singles or empty nesters looking for a lock-and-leave condo within walking distance to bars and restaurants; out-of-state property-seekers wanting a place to call home when in Dallas. I am seasoned at working with all price points across the spectrum,” she says.

“I know how to interpret what customers want and then go find it.” Even after a deal is done, Lauren says her role as a strategy tailor continues.

“My full service doesn’t end at a transaction’s closing. Clients know I’m a huge resource for interior design solutions, contractors, painters and more.”

Let Lauren Levi Baker tailor your perfect real estate fit. Call 817-944-2413 today or email Lauren.Baker@compass.com.

Serving East Dallas/Lakewood real estate clients since 2005. It’s important that I give back to the community. One way I do that is as a member of the MLS Community Outreach Committee. Our mission is to work with nonprofits in all areas of DFW to raise awareness, volunteer participation and financial support.

Women to know and love, in neighborhoods to know

love.

International Realty. All Rights Reserved. The Sotheby’s International Realty trademark is licensed and used with permission. Each

ce is independently owned and operated, except those operated by Sotheby’s International Realty, Inc. The Sotheby’s International

International Realty

the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. All o erings are subject to errors, omissions, changes including price or withdrawal without notice.

Evo Lineberry, left, has taken the lead on designing landscapes with native plants, which are environmentally sustainable and invite bees, butterflies and “good bugs,” as Dione, right, calls them.

Putting in roots

Mother-daughter-owned Blue Ribbon Lady Landscaping has served East Dallas for decades

Story by RENEE UMSTED | Photography by LAUREN ALLEN

Around age 21, Evo Lineberry came to her mom, Dione, with a proposition. Only two weeks into working full time at the company, Blue Ribbon Lady Landscaping, Evo wanted to buy her mom’s business.

Blue Ribbon Lady had no website or logo. There was no marketing strategy. The business structure and operations needed organizing.

“I was like, if this is going to become a proper company, I’m going to have to be the one to come in and take that charge and do it,” Evo says.

They signed a contract, and Evo started ticking away at her checklist. She created a website with a contact form so leads could be tracked, hired a graphic designer to make a logo and took an inventory of customers.

But there was manual labor involved, too. For more than a year, Evo was in charge of the garden care work — swapping out flowers, weeding and trimming — transporting materials in her Subaru. That’s when she convinced Dione to purchase a company truck. Then the workload became too much for Evo to handle alone, so she gradually formed a team.

For Evo, managing Blue Ribbon Lady Landscaping has been intentional. But for Dione, starting the company was anything but.

About 21 years ago, having worked for 10 years in the fashion industry, Dione was a stay-at-home mom, taking care of the kids and participating in their school activities.

The Lineberrys’ yard in Casa Linda wasn’t fenced, so Dione was always outside with her son and Evo.

“Got tired of playing in the swingset and the sandbox, so I started messing around with the garden,” Dione says. “And then I guess over the years, I just landscaped my yard.”

Afterward, a neighbor asked Dione to landscape

their yard. It took about a week for her to move soil and mulch, plant vegetation and install edging. News of Dione’s skills spread by word of mouth, and people kept asking her for help. At the time, Dione was doing all of the work herself — a lot of cleaning, weeding, trimming and mulching gardens.

Other parents at Lakehill, where Evo was a student, connected Dione to people who could provide labor and irrigation expertise. Several of them continue to work with the Lineberrys on projects.

With a crew, Dione could do more and bigger jobs faster than before. This definitely wasn’t a hobby anymore; this was a business, and it needed a name.

Years earlier, Dione had been part of a garden club. Each of the members used ribbons to mark their flowers, so they would know which belonged to whom once they unloaded the truck. Dione was the blue ribbon lady.

“And here we are,” Evo says.

Evo raked up experience from a young age, helping her mom pick weeds. She always enjoyed being outside, and she worked for her mom part-time while she was getting her associate degree.

Now, Dione focuses most of her time on landscape designs. Evo designs, too, but she’s also doing a lot of the behind-the-scenes work to keep the company running. Blue Ribbon Lady handles garden care, landscape design and installation, and flower replacements, serving residential and commercial clients.

There’s no certification or accreditation in landscape design, but Dione and Evo have educated themselves over the years. Dione, a founder of the White Rock East Garden Tour, is a master gardener. Evo, a millennial who says she needs to find purpose in everything, is a master naturalist with an interest in native plants.

“That filled that gap where I was like, this isn’t

just lawn ornaments for people who can afford it. These things are actually beneficial,” Evo says.

The Lineberrys begin their landscape designs by finding architectural features of the home to highlight. Meeting the client reveals personal preferences; some want low-maintenance yards, and others hate flowers. And of course, there are the practical matters to consider, like where the yard is more or less exposed to light.

Designs may not be exactly what the Lineberrys would choose for their own yards, but they give each one the attention and care they’d invest in their own property.

“When we create a garden, it’s our garden,” Dione says.

Landscape design can be an emotional process, the Lineberrys say. They’ve been asked to incorporate plants that belonged to deceased relatives. Evo once found a wedding ring lost years earlier by a man whose wife recently died. They find a lot of toys, buried for decades, that parents insist on keeping.

“We started here, and we service a lot of people here,” Evo says. “And I think we’re able to meet those cultural, fun quirks that make East Dallas East Dallas, and just feed into that.”

Blue Ribbon Lady Landscaping doesn’t use chemicals, even organic ones. Instead, the company educates clients about natural pest control, using specific bugs and plants to tackle issues.

Photography by Skyler Fike.

LIVE AROUND THE LAKE

NO PULLING PUNCHES

LaBori Boxing brings STEM and sports to East Dallas

Story by RENEE UMSTED

Photography by LAUREN ALLEN

NEUROSCIENCE AND BOXING may attract different crowds, but East Dallas resident Amanda Alvarez wants to change that.

She was introduced to boxing at a young age, growing up in Puerto Rico, where the sport was an important part of her family life and the culture. She has been training in boxing for the past 14 years.

But her day job is working as a consultant in the pharmaceutical industry. Alvarez moved to the United States when she was 18 to study neuroscience at New York University. She stayed in New York for a year after graduation, researching cellular and molecular mechanisms of autism.

Then she came to Dallas, where she earned her doctorate in neuroscience from the University of Texas at Dallas in 2017.

Wanting to expose more kids, especially students of color, to boxing and opportunities in STEM, she founded a nonprofit, LaBori Boxing.

Eight kids showed up for classes when the studio opened at the Samuell-Grand intersection in January. Within a matter of months, 40 are now regular participants.

“It’s just crazy to see how fast they can learn in a matter of weeks,” says Alvarez, who lives in East Dallas. “They’re already looking that much closer to a real boxer, and they’re like 9 years old.”

Through LaBori, kids ages 8-18 get access to free boxing classes and opportunities to learn about potential careers in science, technology, engineering and math.

Students are divided into two groups, one for younger kids and one for older. Each age group trains two days each week, learning the proper stance and footwork, how to jab and punch and how to move to avoid hits. The older group, ages 13-18, has more of a focus on strength conditioning compared to the younger.

“My favorite thing is watching their self-confidence grow,”

Alvarez says. “It’s very, very noticeable. In a matter of a week, you can tell they feel that much stronger, that much more confident, and then they start making friends.”

Word of mouth, along with partnerships with Jubilee Park Community Center and Buckner NextStep, have drawn more people to the boxing classes.

LaBori held its first STEM event in May. A woman from Dallas College shared information about STEM opportunities at the school and made packets for a few students who had expressed an interest in nursing. To Alvarez’s surprise, the kids were engaged.

“I was concerned that it was going to take a lot to get them to come because boxing is a lot more fun than sitting down, talking about science,” Alvarez says.

It took a few months to get the STEM events going, but more experts are lined up to come speak with the kids.

Alvarez will give a presentation on neuroscience, explaining what scientists do and what career opportunities exist for them. And she’s planning on having an

IT specialist and an engineer give talks. For a small fee, LaBori offers fitness courses for adults, too. Proceeds pay the instructors and fund the youth program.

“The vibe is just like a happy family, just happy vibes,” Alvarez says. “The music’s going. People are basically half-dancing, half-boxing for the most part because they’re just having fun. It’s a big LaBori family.”

Recently, the studio offered a self-defense class for women and girls, which Alvarez says they want to repeat because of its popularity. The class started at the request of female bartenders who work in the neighborhood.

“This is my happy place,” Alvarez says. It’s just been happy. It’s been a really, really amazing experience.”

Donate to or get involved with LaBori Boxing by visiting laboriboxing.com.

LaBori Boxing offers a highintensity interval training class and a boxing-based workout class for adults each week.

Cinnamon crisp coffee cake and sourdough waffles from Hippos & Hashbrowns, a bakery that grew out of The Mix Kitchen.

GRANITE COUNTERTOPS and tile backsplash are missing. Cooking tools and dishes aren’t stored in custom cabinets. Guests can’t gather around a spacious island for refreshments and conversation.

But to Rhonda Sweet, The Mix Kitchen is a dream kitchen. Located in the basement of White Rock United Methodist Church, on Old Gate Lane near Diceman Drive, the commercial kitchen provides entrepreneurs round-the-clock access to equipment and space they may not have in their own homes.

Sweet was hired by nonprofit Missional Wisdom, which also used to manage coworking space and artist studios at the church, to transform the kitchen. She converted a pantry into a walk-in refrigerator, replaced the dishwasher and added equipment to supplement the stove and pizza oven that were there.

Now, she’s the managing director of the kitchen, which opened in 2017, and she shares her lifetime of knowledge with members.

“When you get the Mix, you get a resource center,” Sweet says. Her love of food started during childhood, sitting around her grandparents’ table for family meals. Though the job of host was passed down to her from her grandmother and mother, real experience came while she was working for her stepfather, who owned a catering company.

Later, Sweet spent 17 years with Boston Market, working her way up to regional manager, covering Central and North Florida. And a few years before she left Boston Market, she took over a company that cut collard greens, growing the business from selling just at the store to more than 20 locations.

In 2010, Sweet decided to leave her six-figure salary and move to Texas.

“So I turned in my resignation letter saying I was going to live my purpose and passion in life,” she says. “I had no clue what I was saying and what I was getting myself into.”

She had a short run as a contestant on season 2 of Master Chef , only making it through a few episodes. In Dallas, with no job and living with friends, Sweet began volunteering every day. Part of her service work was cooking dinner for residents of a CitySquare housing development.

Eventually, she established a catering company called Sweet Moses Brands, which she still owns. Missional Wisdom was one of her clients, and that’s how she got an offer to build and run the commercial kitchen.

It started with just a handful of members, and now there are 20.

Sandra Daniels was among the first to rent space at the Mix, having outgrown her home kitchen.

“Everybody that’s there is trying to support everybody else,” says Daniels, who owns Hippos & Hashbrowns. “We’re all trying to just make it.”

At first, Daniels baked at the Mix three days a week. But as her sourdough waffles, crisps and homemade biscuits surged in popularity, she needed help and more kitchen time.

Daniels knew the holiday season of 2021 would be the last time she could stay at the Mix. To keep up with the demand for Hippos & Hashbrowns products, sold at Whole Foods and

Rhonda Sweet, the managing director of The Mix Kitchen, uses the commercial kitchen space to store and prepare meals donated to food-insecure people in North Texas.

Good Local Markets, Daniels needed more space.

“We had taken up this room and that room,” Daniels says. “And any place that we could sneak something in, we were doing it.”

That’s when she started looking for a place of her own. But the process took longer than she thought it would, and Hippos & Hashbrowns continued operating out of the Mix throughout 2022. They got lucky because another baker who used the Mix daily got married and moved to South Texas, creating some room.

In March, Daniels celebrated the grand opening of her first brick-andmortar store at Casa View Shopping Center.

“We miss them when they go, but our goal is for you to outgrow us,” Sweet says.

In addition to offering commercial kitchen space, the Mix serves as a stor age and prep facility for Sweet, who partners with Noble Life Outreach and Peer 2 Peer Whole Wellness to make hundreds of meals each week for food insecure North Texans.

The organizations provide food, and Sweet repurposes it. She takes the ingredients and comes up with recipes based on whatever she’s given, and if she needs something else to finish off the meal, her catering company provides it. When Noble Life donated 700 hot dogs, Sweet had to figure out how to incorporate them into meals, feeding people casseroles and other dishes for about two months.

Rescuing and repurposing food has only been going on for a few months at The Mix Feeding Kitchen, but Sweet has plans to grow the program. She set up an Amazon Wish List where people can purchase and donate supplies, and she hopes to partner with an organization that will provide trucks, so Sweet can take food to communities in need.

“I’m back where I started,” she says. “I’m back serving the streets of Dallas, just now through other ministries.”

Learn more about the commercial kitchen and support The Mix Feeding Kitchen at themix.kitchen.

Bid farewell to budget surprises.

In today’s market, budget management may be more important than ever. Some builders rely on cost-plus pricing, leaving you vulnerable to budget overruns and big headaches. At Bella Vista, our decades of experience give us the knowledge to provide the security of a fixed-price build. That way, you’ll experience peace of mind knowing that your home will be beautiful and on budget.

We have infused the classical Thai cuisine with a modern ambiance.

Check out our lunch specials Mon.-Fri.

Do it all this summer.

Except for the ER.

Most summer-related ER visits are preventable with a little precaution, but we’ll always be here when you need us.

Remember to use sun protection and insect repellent, stay hydrated, wear life jackets, and leave the fireworks to the professionals.

Helping keep our friends and neighbors safe.

That’s community and why so many people Trust Methodist

For more summer safety tips, scan the QR code

Story by RENEE UMSTED | Photography by YUVIE STYLES

LIPSCOMB ELEMENTARY TEACHER ZORAIDA BUSTOS SEES HER ROLE AS MORE THAN DISPENSING KNOWLEDGE.

To Bustos, who was recently named Lipscomb’s Teacher of the Year, it’s about relationships.

Though she had different jobs throughout her life, Bustos knew, even from a young age, that she’d end up as a teacher someday.

She moved with her family from Mexico to Brownsville, Texas, when she was 5 years old, and she grew up in South Texas.

Bustos studied psychology and sociology at the University of Brownsville, now called the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. Her first job out of college was with Child Protective Services, where she stayed for five years.

But then she had her first son, and she and her husband wanted to continue growing their family. So things changed.

“Working with CPS was a high-risk job,” she says. “You work 24 hours a day. You’re on call on the weekends. Sometimes you go out on calls at 2 in the morning, 3 in the morning. And so that was the point that we realized that I wanted a more stable job for myself and for my family.”

She had already completed an alternative teaching certification, just as her sister, an educator in Austin, did. Once she passed her assessments, she was ready to become a teacher.

An aunt of Bustos’ husband, who had been working at Oran Roberts Elementary School for over 15 years, encouraged her to work at Dallas ISD. In 2015, Bustos was hired as a second-grade dual-language teacher at Lipscomb Elementary.

When she was hired, she thought she’d never want to teach fifth grad -

ers “because, you know, attitude,” Bustos says. But now, as a fourthand fifth-grade teacher, she doesn’t think she could go back to the younger kids.

The material she teaches her students is different from what she learned as an elementary-schooler, so Bustos prioritizes thoroughly understanding the subjects so she can make sure her students grasp the concepts.

Interactive activities are a strategy for student comprehension. One of her students’ favorites is what they call the “buzz game.” Bustos has buzzers like those used in TV game shows, and students use them during reviews to signal that they want to answer questions. She even created a store, where students can use points accumulated by answering questions correctly to buy prizes such as books and candy.

Bustos’ work stood out to her peers at Lipscomb, and they selected her to be Teacher of the Year.

“I honestly take that with immense gratitude and honestly makes me super humble because I’ve always compared myself to the best teachers out there, and I’m always trying to strive to be like them,” she says.

Eventually, Bustos says she would love to become an instructional coach for math. But she hasn’t let go of one of her earlier career goals, working as a school counselor.

Her husband encourages her to move into the administrative side of education, but Bustos says she prefers working with children, rather than adults.

“I was very blessed to have amazing teachers while I was in school,” Bustos says. “So I just wanted to be that for my kids — be a safe place, somebody they could always count on and come back to talk to.”

AMANDA DOTSETH IS THE FIRST TO SAY SHE HAS NO ARTISTIC TALENT. THAT HASN’T PREVENTED HER FROM TURNING ART INTO A LIFELONG OBSESSION AND CAREER — ONE THAT HAS LED HER TO MAKE LOCAL HISTORY AS THE FIRST FEMALE DIRECTOR OF SMU’S MEADOWS MUSEUM.

Seeing collections at the University of Arizona Museum of Art were enough to ignite Dotseth’s interest in art from a young age. Her AP Art History class took a trip to the museum, where she could see works by Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko along with Spanish art.

“As a high school student in Tucson, Arizona, I got to see old master paintings, and that’s pretty special,” Dotseth says.

In college at the University of Arizona, she knew she wanted to take art history classes, and to do that, she had to major in the field. Dotseth decided to take a yearlong study abroad program in Madrid, Spain, a country she first visited at age 12.

During her year abroad, Dotseth could study Picasso in front of one of his paintings and take classes at the Prado.

The University of Arizona’s art museum was the first Dotseth worked at. As a student, she was posted at the front desk, though she had opportunities to take on other responsibilities, such as helping with events and monitoring galleries. Eventually, she ended up as an assistant to the associate director, which allowed her to help with grant applications.

“Once they find out you’re halfway competent, you get kind of pulled into things and you know, it’s the good news about small museums,” Dotseth says.

After graduation, she received a Fulbright Scholarship to research architecture and architectural restoration in Spain.

“That was really, I would say, the kind of game changer that was like, ‘OK, this is definitely the career for me,’” Dotseth says. “It’s one thing to study in the classroom and be like, ‘Oh, pretty,’ or, ‘Oh, I got to go stand at the Prado and look at “Las Meninas.’” But if you still love it after you’ve spent three days in archives, I think you’re in good shape.”

Dotseth, who now lives in East Dallas, earned her master’s degree in art history from Southern Methodist University in 2006 and worked in a curatorial position for three years at the Meadows Museum. Later, she went to London, earning a Ph.D. in medieval Spanish art from the Courtauld Institute of Art in 2015.

While working toward her doctorate, Dotseth had a fellowship in Madrid at the Spanish National Research Council. She was part of a team researching women as makers of medieval art and architecture, highlighting women’s talents and contributions to the fields.

“The impression is that when you find a female artist in the Middle Ages that she’s an exception,” Dotseth says. “But in, I would say, most cases, we don’t actually know if it was a man or a woman. It’s anonymous. So the argument is, anonymous could be a woman and probably was in a lot of instances.”

She came back to Dallas as the Mellon Curatorial Fellow at the Meadows Museum. Then she became a curator under Mark A. Roglán, who led the museum for 20 years before his death in 2021.

Earlier this year, Dotseth was named the new director of the museum.

Though the title is a milestone, Dotseth points to other accomplishments she has achieved leading up to the appointment.

For example, she played a key role in bringing an exhibition on Francisco Gallego to the museum in 2008. The project began around 2004, when Dotseth was still a student. Twenty-six panel paintings created in the late-medieval period were shipped from Arizona to the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, where they underwent technical analysis, including infrared reflectography. The imaging allows researchers to see the underdrawings below the paint.

“These kinds of projects happen a lot, where the imaging happens but it’s not necessarily published,” Dotseth says. “And in this case, that was what was the big deal. There was a catalog with scholarly essays, and we published all of those infrared reflectograms.”

Plus, the images were displayed in the exhibition.

Dotseth is also proud of acquisitions the museum has made in recent years, pieces made by lesser-known artists important to Spanish art.

Now as director, Dotseth spends time speaking with art sellers, leading museum tours, teaching classes, completing administrative work, discussing potential collaborations with other museums and working on outreach strategies.

“I think it’s important to be the first female director of the Meadows Museum so that other women working at other art museums in other positions see someone like them in charge,” Dotseth says. “And something we’re all working on across the field is diversifying our employee base with men, women, people of color, all of that.”

IN 2020, NEIGHBORHOOD RESIDENT KATHRYN BAZAN LEARNED THE DALLAS CITY COUNCIL WOULD SOON VOTE ON A REQUEST TO BUILD A CONCRETE BATCH PLANT NEXT TO A NEIGHBORHOOD IN ZACHA JUNCTION, NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF GARLAND ROAD AND EAST NORTHWEST HIGHWAY.

She believed the project had to be stopped.

Bazan and her neighbors, who knew nothing of zoning procedures, formed a community action group and led a grassroots campaign. They held socially distanced meetings in backyards and passed out flyers. About 40 people signed up to speak in opposition at the council meeting, drawing from organized talking points, she says.

Their efforts, which began two weeks prior to the city council vote, proved successful. And it was just the beginning of Bazan’s activism.

“We decided, we’ve got this momentum,” Bazan says. “We know some things that we didn’t know before, and we can share this information with other communities that are going through the same things.”

She invited local officials and zoning staff, state representatives and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to discuss how concrete batch plants affect residential areas. Then she mapped all such plants that have ever been permitted in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, showing where the plants are concentrated.

After some press attention, Bazan started receiving inquiries from people throughout Texas, asking for advice to oppose plants from being approved in their neighborhoods.

Eventually, she learned about the city’s Comprehensive Environmental & Climate Action Plan, and she contacted her council representative, Paula Blackmon, to learn more. Blackmon appointed Bazan to represent District 9 on the newly formed Environmental Commission — becoming the first female chair of an organization Bazan says is meant to facilitate information and feedback between the city and its residents.

“To be a woman in a leadership role is not easy, but I am supported and empowered by a whole group of other women on the commission who help me get the hard things done,” Bazan says.

Her appointment and work on the commission is a lifetime in the making.

It’s not enough that she has spent her career working to preserve nature. She wants to address inequity, too.

“When we’re looking at policies, the structure of our government, the way that we have historically treated community members regarding their placement next to sources of pollution,

those things are really what I am most interested in dismantling,” she says.

Bazan, a master naturalist, is originally from Fort Worth but spent most of her childhood surrounded by nature in the Piney Woods region of East Texas.

While she was taking college classes, she worked in municipal governments, including the City of Irving, where she helped launch its environmental sustainability office.

She left the city after four years to work for a renewable energy company. After a year, she started at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, where she worked in environmental assistance. Bazan kept that job for about four years, leaving when she was pregnant with her son; she didn’t want to be exposed to contaminants on site visits.

While she was at home, she started a consulting company that has evolved, and she now helps clients with graphic and web design and strategic communications. The steps to start the consulting venture — creating a website and logo, taking photos, marketing, accounting — gave her the skills she offers clients in a variety of industries through her business, Nested Creative.

“I was able to take on clients when I wanted to and not to take clients when I didn’t want to,” Bazan says. “And I have been able to have the flexibility to do the advocacy and the volunteer work that I’m really passionate about.”

The volunteer work has been manifested through Friends of the Old Fish Hatchery, which Bazan became involved with after Oncor clear-cut the area at White Rock Lake Park in 2020.

Chairing the Environmental Commission is volunteer work, too.

The commission has already helped change the zoning code so concrete batch plants can only be in industrial manufacturing districts, and the commission added two opportunities for public input on those cases. Bazan’s proud of that accomplishment.

Another thing she’s proud of is the commission’s contribution to the city’s racial equity plan; an environmental commission subcommittee wrote four equity indicators — land use, trees, access to solar technology and food security — to be incorporated into the plan.

“I really want to fundamentally change the game in Dallas,” Bazan says. “I want to change the way that we look at land use in our communities, who gets resources, who gets consideration, who gets the opportunity to live a quality life.”

THE SEACAT LETTER

This M Streets neighbor sells and bakes to give back

Story by RENEE UMSTED

Photography by LAUREN ALLEN

Kathleen Seacat is the Energizer Bunny of the M Streets. Though she has been busy since her retirement from a 40-year career selling cheese, including 35 as an industrial ingredient sales rep for Kraft Foods, one activity stands out: selling greeting cards made by her nephew, Robert Jonathan Seacat, who goes by Jonathan.

In June 2015, she says, Jonathan got high, stole some clothing from a Walmart and in an attempt to escape police, broke into a home in Colorado.

Jonathan, who had a gun, let the 9-year-old boy who was alone in the house leave, while he barricaded himself inside. After 19 hours of negotiating, firing tear gas, using an armored Bearcat vehicle and sending in SWAT teams, police arrested Jonathan.

No one was killed, but during the standoff, Jonathan had shot at the police.

In 2018, at age 35, Jonathan was sentenced to 100 years in prison by a district court judge in Colorado. A jury found him guilty of attempted manslaughter, and his sentence was enhanced because he was a “habitual offender,” according to a press release from the 18th Judicial District in

Colorado. Seacat says her nephew had been in and out of prison for crimes such as possession of marijuana.

When Jonathan was in prison, he started writing to Seacat.

“That was really nice, because it gave him just a way to vent,” she says. “Of course, when he first went in there, he was full of awful anger.”

Jonathan had swallowed heroin, Seacat says, which damaged his leg, and he had to do rehab in prison. Eventually, he started going to the gym and lifting weights.

After three years of letter-writing, Jonathan began calling his aunt, which he continues to do monthly. And he started drawing, sending his art to his aunt.

“I really encouraged him to draw, because I thought it was such a wonderful thing for him to spend his time in prison doing,” she says.

He told her that he had started a business in prison, selling cards decorated with his artwork to other prisoners, who would mail the cards to their families.

Seacat, who enjoys writing cards,

offered to help find other people to buy his cards so he could get a little extra money but also have something to do.

“That gave me so much peace, knowing that he was doing something that he enjoyed for two or three hours every day,” Seacat says.

Seacat took colorful drawings Jonathan sent her to a business in the Design District to be digitized, and then she provided the digital images to a printer and had the cards made.

She began selling the cards last summer. They’re available at Makers Connect on Garland Road, but Seacat is always searching for more stores to sell the cards.

Seacat’s volunteer work doesn’t stop with Jonathan.

Within the past few years, spurred by a frustration with gun violence in America along with policies on abortion rights and climate change, Seacat has become more politically engaged.

She’s worked on campaigns for Colin Allred and Rochelle Garza and with the Funky East Dallas Democrats, the FEDDs, fundraising and block-walking.

And baking. She was part of an organization called Bake Back Better, selling fancy cupcakes to raise money for Democratic candidates in Dallas. By herself, she bakes muffins and cookies weekly for migrants who arrive in Dallas, at Oak Lawn United Methodist Church, through the church’s Dallas Responds outreach program.

“I just was down there and saw these people,” Seacat says. “And I thought, oh my God, wouldn’t it be nice to have something homemade to eat?”

Besides food items, Seacat organizes donation drives for backpacks, stuffed animals and other items for the immigrants aided through Dallas Responds.

Seacat, who grew up in rural Kansas baking from a young age, is a prolific baker. She makes 14 kinds of Christmas cookies every year, along with a Christmas tree made of cinnamon rolls. For Easter, she makes a cake shaped like a bunny for the neighborhood kids. And recently, she’s been teaching an 8-year-old who lives in the neighborhood how to bake.

“That’s what I do,” Seacat says. “I love to bake.”

East Dallas Arts Community

Dear Neighbors,

For the 35wth consecutive year, we proudly present you with this Fourth of July American flag — a symbol to unite our Lakewood community.

I hope that you will honor our great nation by proudly displaying the American flag as we celebrate this wonderful holiday.

LAX GIRLS

GIRLS

Dallas City Lacrosse player Mea Andres.

Top left: Emmy Dattilo, a daughter of Dallas City Lacrosse coach Doğ an Dattilo.

Top right: Adelaide Hoffman, a daughter of DCL co-founder Pete Hoffman. Bottom: Molly Carpenter, Stella Walker, Emmy Dattilo and Riley Blaydes play during a “play day” at Woodrow Wilson High School.

PETE HOFFMAN AND VARINA LIN couldn’t wait until their daughters were old enough to start playing lacrosse.

Hoffman, originally from upstate New York, had grown up playing the sport and continued as an undergraduate at TCU on the club team. Lin played on the Division I women’s team at George Washington University.

Both parents of Mockingbird Elementary students targeted 2022 as the year they would start a lacrosse team for their daughters and other young girls in Dallas.

But the COVID-19 pandemic altered their plans.

Hoffman and Lin’s families lived nearby. Around October, they were going stir crazy.

“So we went over to Mockingbird Elementary, and we trained our girls, and we had a really great experience,” Hoffman says.

While Hoffman had coached kids in sports before, he relied on Lin for her experience as a former player.

“Men’s and women’s — completely different rules. Completely,” Lin says. “I mean it is two different types of sports.”

The next week, a daughter of one

of Hoffman’s acquaintances came to play. They kept training the girls for a few weeks, and then the parents started talking about getting the team started.

It was earlier than Hoffman expected but still possible. In just over a week, he built a website, made social media accounts and reached out to more contacts to invite more girls to play.

They held a clinic at Glencoe Park for girls in kindergarten through second grade who were interested in lacrosse. Of the 32 who signed up, 24 decided to join the two teams: one for kindergarteners and one for first and second graders.

Neighbor Kristy Mathot, who played lacrosse in high school, saw a social media post about the clinic and knew she wanted to get her daughter, then in second grade, involved right away.

“I was so passionate about the sport myself, and I wanted her to find something that she could be passionate about,” Mathot says. “She hadn’t really found her sport yet.”

Now, just three years after Dallas City Lacrosse began, the program has grown to include more than 100 girls in kindergarten through fourth grade who are zoned to Dallas ISD schools or those in the Lake Highlands High School feeder pattern. Next year, they’ll have a team for fifth graders.

Alex Fergus, whose daughter was one of the first 24 to join the organization, says the team gave the girls something safe to do outside during the pandemic, and it has helped them grow their confidence.

Plus, it’s provided young girls an opportunity to participate in a sport not offered by their schools.

“We’ve got over 100 girls who never would have picked up a stick,” Fergus says.

There are about 15 adults on staff of the nonprofit organization, and most of them are women.

“I’ve had several moms who have said, ‘You know, we just really love the fact that there are strong

female coaches and leaders and role models, because so many other sports are led by dads,’” Mathot says. “And no discredit to that, but it’s just a really unique community, a unique league.”

Do ğ an Dattilo, one of a few male coaches, has two daughters playing for Dallas City Lacrosse. He says he tries to stay off the field as much as possible so the players are led by women.

Dallas City Lacrosse plays teams from the suburbs and nearby private schools, such as Hockaday and Episcopal School of Dallas. But with so many teams, it was hard to schedule games for each one.

The solution was what they call “play days.” Held at Woodrow Wilson High School, the play days brought other teams to our neighborhood to compete, with games scheduled one after another.

“It’s just amazing to watch these girls play, the first year playing, never having picked up a stick, never having heard of lacrosse,” Lin says. “And then all of a sudden, they love the sport. They want to play. At practice, they’re always asking for more time.”

To learn more about Dallas City Lacrosse, visit dallascitylacrosse.org.

DCL players Remy Hills, Ruth Braddick, Tess Cottrell, Flossie Enriquez, Blake Sherman, Wini Nepveux and Adelaide Hoffman with coach Jenn Kinney.

OUR NEIGHBORHOOD

By PATTI VINSON

Gestures big and small

Finding kindness in our neighborhood

Put down your phone. Turn off the news. There’s good out there, people. If you need your faith in humanity restored, check out these tales of kindness — some big, some small — that happened right here in our neighborhood.

Neighbor Sujata Desai is a recipient of unexpected grace. On a cold and rainy December night a few years ago, Desai was out with her husband and two young children when their car was rear-ended. They had been waiting a couple of hours for police to arrive when a woman came out of her nearby house to see if they were OK and if they needed anything. She allowed the children to use her bathroom and gave them hot cocoa as they waited. “To this day, I think about her kindness … in the dark with total strangers,” Desai says.

Another neighbor, Kirsten Schlein, has a story that proves even during the most difficult times, folks can set aside their worries and think of others.

“During the worst of COVID, I stopped at Sprouts after work. I’m a health care worker — I was in scrubs, tired and I’m sure I looked like absolute hell,” Schlein says. “The person in line in front of me paid for all my groceries, gave me a potted orchid, thanked me and swiftly left, just giving me enough time to get out a thank you. I’ve thought about that often and how that empathy and kindness are so impactful.”

Diane Birdwell, a teacher at Bryan Adams High School, tells of an encounter that proves good begets good.

“Last winter, I ran into the Dollar General on Ferguson at Highland Road because I needed a half-gallon of milk. That was all, but you know how you see other things? Well, I had an armful of stuff, and I was standing in line when the woman behind me was about to drop a few things she was

holding. I put my stuff down on the counter and caught her items for her. No biggie. I’m checking out, the total is about $13, and that woman reaches past me and puts it on her card! She was just grateful that I helped her. After a stressful day at BAHS, it was like having a touch from the wing of an angel.”

Another similar story comes from 80-year-old Abby Bush. Recently, she was paying the tab for herself and a friend after breakfast at Chubby’s on Northwest Highway.

“I handed the cashier my credit card, but she handed it back and said, ‘The young man behind you is paying for your meal.’ I was overcome with surprise and gratitude, and I got all emotional and choked up,” Bush says. “All I could say was, ‘Thank you, thank you so much, sir!’ Then as we were leaving the restaurant, I said to him in a faltering voice, ‘I want a hug.’ He didn’t hesitate to give me a big hug. We said good-bye and wished each other a good day.”

Neighbor Lauren Ortega recounts a memorable run there. She was shopping with her two toddlers, one of whom was still nonverbal and prone to overstimulation.

“Without the communication aspect, he would have epic meltdowns quickly that I would then have to attend to,” she says.

This particular day, all went surprisingly well until checkout time. The line was long, and her son began having a meltdown, flailing and screaming, prompting his tearful, frightened brother to join in.

Ortega remembers she was on the floor “trying to wrangle” her son, when help appeared out of nowhere.

“All of a sudden, these two kids, high schoolers they looked like, walked up,” Ortega says. One steadied the cart while the other started reading a magazine to the crying toddler, giving Ortega the chance to deal with her other child. The two helpers pitched in at checkout and walked the mother and children out to her car, where they loaded up the purchases.

One handed Ortega a bottle of water

and wished her a good day.

“I was so thankful I started crying, and the other one gave me a hug and said that they babysat often for a family with twins, and they understood how it was. They wouldn’t let me pay them or give me their names. They just said to pay it forward one day when I could.”

Alicia Love has her own good Samaritan story. A few years ago, she and her then-small daughters became stranded at CVS at Lovers and Greenville due to car trouble. A middle-aged woman approached and asked if they needed help. Love explained she needed a ride for herself and her daughters to Autozone at Park and Greenville. The stranger offered a ride, explaining she was on her lunch break.

The car part purchased, the woman gave them a ride back to their car at CVS. “God sent me a guardian angel that day, and I’ve always wanted to find her and thank her again,” Love says.

Another East Dallas neighbor, Oliver Butler, has a story of compassion that inspired him to action.

“When Ingram’s Doughnuts at Abrams and Northwest Highway was in the old spot with the drive-thru, I pulled in behind Harry, who is the homeless gentleman who can be seen around there,” Butler says. When he saw Harry walk away with a bag of food and a coffee, he was curious and asked the Ingram’s owner about the exchange. “That’s Harry,” the owner told him. “We help him the best we can.”

Butler shakes his head. “I was so moved! Floored! It was inspiring — so much so that since then, we have smoked and given away turkey breasts at Thanksgiving. I gave the first one to the lady at the doughnut shop. What do you think she did? She made sure Harry got a big portion!”

We’ve all had these moments of grace. Pay it forward, neighbors. Let’s keep it going.

PATTI VINSON is a guest writer who has lived in East Dallas for more than 20 years. She’s written for the Advocate and Real Simple magazine.

AC & HEAT

ALEXANDER HOME REPAIR. AC/HEAT

Repair & Install. LIC#28052 469-226-9642

AIR SHIELD LLC AC/Heat Repairs, Installs

Airshieldpros.com. 214-394-1788

THE HEATING & AC EXPERTS

Installations & Repairs

Emergency Services

24/7 On-Call

100% Satisfaction

Guarantee

ASK ABOUT

DISCOUNTS!

TACLA67136C 214-710-2515 dallasheatingac.com

APPLIANCE REPAIR

JESSE’S A/C & APPLIANCE SERVICE

TACLB13304C All Makes/Models. 214-660-8898

BUY SELL TRADE

!!OLD GUITARS WANTED!! Gibson, Fender, Martin, Etc. 1930’s to 1980’s. Top Dollar Paid.1-866 -433-8277

CABINETRY & FURNITURE

SERNAS & BASS DESIGN-BUILD

We design, build & Install cabinets & tops! (214) 354-3074 • aldo@sernasbass.com

SQUARE NAIL WOODWORKING

Cabinet Refacing, Built-ins, Entertainment/ Computer Centers. Jim. 214-324-7398 jhholbert2@att.net

CLEANING SERVICES

ALTOGETHER CLEAN

Relax ...We’ll Clean Your House, It Will Be Your Favorite Day! Bonded & Insurance. Free Estimates. 214-929-8413. www. altogetherclean.net

CINDY’S HOUSE CLEANING 15 yrs exp. Resd/Com. Refs. Dependable. 214-490-0133

GOLDEN CLEANING, Home Basic Clean,Move in/out. 214-500-6998

WANTED: HOUSES TO CLEAN, Organize, De-clutter, or Pack. Sunny 214-724-2555

WINDOW CLEANING Power washing No Job To Small. 30 Yrs exp. 214-360-0120

WINDOW MAN WINDOW CLEANING.COM

Residential Specialists. BBB. 214-718-3134

COMPUTERS & ELECTRONICS

AT ODDS WITH YOUR COMPUTER? Easily Learn Essential Skills. Services include Digital Photo Help. Sharon 214-679-9688

CONFUSED? FRUSTRATED? Let a seasoned pro be the interface between you & that pesky Windows computer. Hardware/Software Installation, Troubleshooting, Training. $100/hr. 1 hr min. Dan 972-639-6413 / stykidan@sbcglobal.net

CONCRETE/MASONRY/PAVING

ADVANCE STONE ART CREATIONS

Decorative Concrete Overlays. 214-705-5954

BRICK WORK, DRIVEWAYS, PATIOS, Flagstone. Call Eli 469-870-5420

CONCRETE/MASONRY/PAVING

CONCRETE, Driveway Specialist Repairs, Replacement, Removal, References. Reasonable. Chris 214-770-5001

CONCRETE, RETAINING WALLS 25 yrs exp.

T&M Construction, Inc. 214-328-6401

EDMONDSPAVING.COM Asphalt & Concrete Driveway-Sidewalk-Patio-Repair 214-957-3216

FLAGSTONE PATIOS, Retaining Walls, BBQ’s, Veneer, Flower Bed Edging, All Stone work. Chris 214-770-5001

JOHNSON PAVING Concrete, Asphalt, Driveways. New or Repair. 214-827-1530

ELECTRICAL SERVICES

ANTHONY’S ELECTRIC

Master Electrician. TECL24948 anthonyselectricdfw. com

50 Yrs. Electrical Exp. Insd. 214-328-1333

BRIGHT LIGHT ELECTRIC • 214-553-5333

TECL 31347 Brightening Homes and Businesses

LAKEWOOD ELECTRICAL Local. Insured. Lic. #227509 Call Rylan 214-434-8735

TH ELECTRIC Reasonable Rates. Licensed & Insured. Ted. E257 214-808-3658

WHITE ROCK ELECTRIC All Electrical Services. Lic/Insd.TECL-34002 214-850-4891

EXTERIOR CLEANING

G&G DEMOLITION Tear downs, Haul. Interior/Exterior. 214-808-8925

FENCING & DECKS

4 QUALITY FENCING • 214-507-9322 Specializing in Wood. YourWoodmaster.com

AMBASSADOR FENCE CO. Automatic Gates, Fences/Decks, Pergolas, Patio Covers, Arbors. AmbassadorFenceCo.com 214-621-3217

FENCING, ARBORS, DECKS oldgatefence.com 214-766-6422

LONESTARDECKS.COM

214-357-3975

Trex Decking & Fencing, trex.com All Wood Decks, Arbors & Patio Covers

HANNAH WOODWORKS

• Decks • Pergolas

• Patio Covers

Hannahwoodworks.com 214-435-9574

FLOORING & CARPETING

EPOXY GARAGE FLOORS

Many colors to choose (flakes optional) Call Nick for bid 214-341-5993 hastingsfloors.com

HARDWOOD INSTALLATIONS Waterproof, hardwood, carpets, tile laminate, & vinyl click. 214-772-9503. Free In Home estimates

FOUNDATION REPAIR

• Slabs • Pier & Beam

• Mud Jacking • Drainage

• Free Estimates

• Over 20 Years Exp. 972-288-3797

We Answer Our Phones

GARAGE SERVICES

UNITED GARAGE DOORS AND GATES Res/Com. Locally Owned. 214-251-5428

GENERAL CONTACTING

A2H GENERAL CONTRACTING,LLC Remodel, Paint, Drywall/Texture, Plumbing. Electrical, Siding, Bathroom/Kitchen Remodels Tilling, Flooring, Fencing. 469-658-9163. Free Est. A2HGeneralContactingLLC@gmail.com

GLASS, WINDOWS & DOORS

LAKE HIGHLANDS GLASS & MIRROR frameless shower enclosures • store fronts replacement windows • mirrors 214-349-8160

PRO WINDOW CLEANING prompt, dependable. Matt 214-766-2183

ROCK GLASS CO Replace, repair: windows, mirrors, showers, screens. 214-837-7829

HANDYMAN SERVICES

BO HANDYMAN Specializing In Historic Home Renovations & Pro Remodels. Custom Carpentry, Doors, Kitchens, Baths & more. 214-437-9730

DANHANDY.NET Repairs Done Right For A Fair Price. References 214-991-5692

HANDY DAN The Handyman. ToDo’s Done Right. handy-dan.com 214-252-1628

HANDYMAN SPECIALIST Residential/Commercial. Large, small jobs, repair list, renovations. Refs. 214-489-0635

HANDYMAN WANTS your Painting,Repairs, To Do Lists. Bob. 214-288-4232. Free Est. 25+yrs exp.

HOME REPAIR Doors, Trim, Glass. Int/Ext. Sheetrock, Windows, Kitchen, Bathroom 35 yrs exp. 214-875-1127

HOMETOWN HANDYMAN All phases of construction. No job too small 214-327-4606

ONE CALL WEEKEND SERVICES

Contractor & Handyman. Remodels, Renovations . Paint, Plumbing, Drywall, Electrical. 469-658-9163

Let Us Tackle Your To-Do List!

HOUSE PAINTING

Interior & Exterior Painting Siding • Gutters

$500 OFF

Over 25 years of experience Free Estimates 214-702-2188 morganexteriorsdfw.com

HECTOR PEREZ PAINTING

Commercial/residential. Intrior/ Exterior. Fair Rates. 214-489-0635

INT / EXT PAINTING, DRYWALL, SIDING And repairs call Eli 469-870-5420

RAMON’S INT/EXT PAINT Sheetrock, Repairs. 214-679-4513

TEXAS BEST PAINTING LLC Resd,Interiors 30Yrs. 214-527-4168

TOP COAT 30 Yrs. Exp. Reliable. Quality Repair/Remodel. Phil @ 214-770-2863

VIP PAINTING & DRYWALL Int/Ext. Sheetrock Repair, Resurfacing Tubs, Counters, Tile Repairs. 469-774-7111

KITCHEN/BATH/TILE/GROUT

FENN CONSTRUCTION Full Service Contractor. dallastileman.com 214-343-4645

MELROSE TILE James Sr., Installer, Repairs. 40 Yrs. Exp. MelroseTile.com 214-384-6746

TK REMODELING 972-533-2872

Complete Full Service Repairs, Kitchen & Bath/Remodeling, Restoration. Name It- We Do It. dallas.tkremodelingcontractors.com

JIM 972-992-4660

For complete terms and conditions, visit advocatemag.com/advertisingterms.

• Tubs, Tiles or Sinks

• Cultured Marble

• Kitchen Countertops

214-631-8719

WE REFINISH! www.allsurfacerefinishing.com

LAWNS, GARDENS & TREES

#1 WHITE ROCK TREE WIZARDS Professionals, Experts, Artists serving Dallas 15 years.Trim, Removals. Tree Health Care services. Insured. Arborwizard.com. Free Est. (972) 803-6313.

LAWNS, GARDENS & TREES

A BETTER TREE MAN Trims, Removals, Insd.

18 Yrs Exp. Roberts Tree Service. 214-808-8925

Lawns, Gardens & Trees

HOLMAN IRRIGATION

Sprinkler & Valve Repair/ Rebuild Older Systems. Lic. #1742. 214-398-8061

MAYA TREE SERVICE Tree Trim/Remove. Lawn Maintenance. Resd/ Commcl.Insd. CC’s Accptd. mayatreeservice.com

214-924-7058 214-770-2435

MONSTER TREE SERVICE DALLAS

Certified Arborists, Fully Insured 469.983.1060

NEW LEAF TREE, LLC

Honest, Modern, Safety Minded. 214-850-1528

PAT TORRES 214-388-1850 Lawn Service & Tree Care. 28 Yrs. Complete Landscape Renovation. New Fence Install & Brick Repair. Concrete Removal and Gutter Cleaning.

RED SUN LANDSCAPES • 214-935-9779 RedSunLandscapes.com

TAYLOR MADE IRRIGATION Repairs, service, drains. 30+ years exp. Ll 6295 469-853-2326. John

DALLAS KDR SERVICES

• Lawn service

PEST CONTROL

WHERE CAN I FIND LOCAL ...?

REMODELING

KEYS AND GRIM

30 years of experience in residential remodeling. “They are the best…and so nice.” ~ Mom keysandgrim.com 214-952-4490

"Keeping Children & Pets in Mind"

Termite Specialist - Mosquito Mister Systems

Licensed · Insured · Residential · Commercial · Organic 214-350-3595 • Abetterearth.crw@gmail.com abetterearth.com

PLUMBING

AC PLUMBING Repairs, Fixtures, Senior Discounts. Gary Campbell. 214-321-5943

PLUMBING ISSUES?

We’re

ASK ABOUT DISCOUNTS!

POOLS

972-379-4000 staggsplumbing.co

CERULEAN POOL SERVICES Family Owned/ Operated. Weekly maintenance, Chemicals, parts & repairs. CeruleanPro.com 214-557-6996

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

C.A.S. BOOKKEEPING SERVICES

Personal/Small Business. Payroll, Accounting, Organizing, Consult. Cindy 214-577-7450

REAL ESTATE

ESTATE HOME NEEDS TO BE SOLD? Facing forclosure? IG Heron Homes Call Ricardo Garza @ 469-426-7839

GARDEN OFFICE SPACE FOR RENT

Walnut Hill @ CENTRAL.3 Smaller Suites Avail. Flexible Terms 214.915. 8886

OFFICE SUBLEASE In Bishop Arts. Cool, Quiet. 1,179 Sq ft. 4 rooms + kit / bath, parking. $2,950 + NNNs. 713.302-7722.

REMODELING

FULLY

PEST CONTROL

MCDANIEL PEST CONTROL

Prices Start at $85 + Tax For General Treatment.

Average Home-Interior/Exterior & Attached Garage. Quotes For Other Services.

214-328-2847. Lakewood Resident

MOSQUITO SHIELD 972–850-2983

Imagine A Night Outside Without Mosquitoes

NATURE KING PEST MANAGEMENT INC.

Squirrels, Racoons, Skunks, Snakes, Possums, etc.

Pest & Termite. Neighborhood Resident 30+ Yrs.exp. 214-827-0090

SERVICES FOR YOU

ARE YOU A PET OWNER? Do you want to get up to 100% back on vet bills? Physicians Mutual Insurance Company has pet coverage that can help! Call 1-844-774- 0206. insurebarkmeow.com/ads

O’BRIEN GROUP INC. Remodeling Dallas For Over 24 Years www.ObrienGroupInc.com 214-341-1448

RENOVATE DALLAS

renovatedallas.com 214-403-7247

S&L CONSTRUCTION All Home Services & Repairs. 214-918-8427

SQUARE NAIL CONSTRUCTION

Kitchen/Bath remodeling

Re-facing, Pergolas/Decks. 30Yrs exp. 469.585.1588, 469.585.7756

TK REMODELING 972-533-2872

Complete Full Service Repairs, Kitchen & Bath/Remodeling, Restoration. Name It- We Do It. dallas.tkremodelingcontractors.com

MP ARCHITECTURAL Design & Construction. mattandpaul.com 214-226-1186

ROOFING & GUTTERS

BERT ROOFING INC.

BATH & SHOWER UPDATES in as little as ONE DAY! Affordable prices - No payments for 18 months! Lifetime warranty & professional installs. Senior & Military Discounts available. Call: 855-761-1725

BECOME A PUBLISHED AUTHOR. We want to read your book! Dorrance Publishing trusted since 1920. Consultation,production, promotion & distribution. Call for free author’s guide 1-877-729-4998 or visit dorranceinfo.com/ads

DENTAL INSURANCE-Physicians Mutual Insurance Company. Covers 350 procedures. Real insurance -not a discount plan. Get your free dental info kit! 1-888-623-3036 www.dental50plus.com/58 #6258

DIRECTV STREAM - Carries the most local MLB Games! ChoicePackage $89.99/mo for 12 mos Stream on 20 devices at once.HBO Max included for 3 mos (w/Choice Package or higher.)No contract or hidden fees! Some restrictions apply. Call IVS 1-866859-0405

DISH TV $64.99 For 190 Channels + $14.95 High Speed Internet. Free Installation, Smart HD DVR Included, Free Voice Remote. Some restrictions apply.Promo Expires 7/21/21.1-833-872-2545

DONATE YOUR CARS TO VETERANS TODAY. Help and Support our Veterans. Fast - FREE pick up. 100% tax deductible. Call 1-800 -245-0398

ELIMINATE GUTTER CLEANING FOREVER! LeafFilter, the most advanced debris-blocking gutter protection. Schedule a FREE LeafFilter estimate today. 15% off Entire Purchase. 10% Senior & Military Discounts. Call 1-855-402-0373

FREE HIGH SPEED INTERNET if qualified. Govt. pgm for recipients of select pgms incl. Medicaid, SNAP, Housing Assistance, WIC, Veterans Pension, Survivor Benefits, Lifeline, Tribal. 15 GB internet. Android tablet free w/one-time $20 copay. Free shipping. Maxsip Telecom! 1-833-758-3892

GENERAC Prepare for power outages today with a GENERAC home standby generator $0 Down + Low Monthly Pmt. Request a free Quote. Call before the next power outage: 1-844-334 -8353

HUGHESNET Finally, super-fast internet no matter where you live.25 Mbps just $59.99/mo!

Unlimited Data is Here. Stream Video. Bundle TV & Internet. Free Installation. Call 866-499 -0141

MOBILE HELP, America's premier mobile medical alert system. Whether you're home or away. For safety & peace of mind. No long term contracts! Free brochure! 1-888-489-3936

SAFE STEP North America's #1 Walk-in tub. Comprehensive lifetime warranty. Top-of-theline installation and service. Now featuring our free shower package & $1600 off - limited time! Financing available. 1-855-417-1306

Complete Kitchen/Bath Remodels/New Additions Granite, Marble, Tile, Travertine Fully Insured Residential/Commercial 214.870.5420

BO HANDYMAN Specializing In Historic Home Renovations & Pro Remodels. Custom Carpentry, Doors, Kitchens, Baths & more. 214-437-9730

FENN CONSTRUCTION Kitchens And Baths. Call Us For Your Remodeling Needs. 214-343-4645. dallastileman.com

469.870.5420

SWITCH & SAVE up to $250/yr on talk, text & data. No contractor hidden fees. Unlimited talk & text with flexible data plans. Premium nationwide coverage. 100% U.S. based service. 1-855-903-3048

THE GENERAC PWRCELL, a solar plus battery storage system. SAVE money, reduce your reliance on the grid, prepare for power outages and power your home. Full installation services

TUTOR/LESSONS

WANTED: OBOE TEACHER needed for 14 year old student. Call 214–235-7429

THESE WOMEN MEAN BUSINESS

Being a real estate agent is not the glamorous, cush life portrayed on TV. For these independent self-starters, it most often looks like hard work in the form of back-to-back-to-back showings, managing vendors and repair people, strategizing and negotiating, late night contract-writing and more. But everyone pictured here knows it’s all in a day’s work. And because it’s driven by a desire to serve others with excellence, it doesn’t feel like work.

MARTIN MAYER GROUP

GOLDEN WHEELER GROUP RINNE O’HALLORAN GROUP

MARTIN MAYER GROUP

SKYLAR CHAMPION GROUP RINNE O’HALLORAN GROUP