2021 July Oak Cliff Advocate

OAK CLIFF

JULY 2 0 2 1

A D V O C AT E M A G . C O M

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INSIDE:

WOMEN IN BUSINESS

LIGHTING UP LAND USE

THE WEED SPOT

Back to your best with Methodist Dallas. If you’re experiencing chronic back pain, you’re not alone. In fact, about 80 percent of people will experience back pain at some point in their lives. For some, it could be just a mild discomfort, or it could be a symptom of a larger issue. The team at Methodist Dallas Medical Center can help diagnose the cause of your pain and recommend treatment options to get you back on the fi eld, back to work, or simply back to enjoying life. Trust. Methodist.

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WOMEN COMPASS OF

REAL ESTATE

THANI BURKE “I have a vintage soul,” says neighborhood Realtor Thani Burke, who embraces Oak Cliff’s grit and cultural distinction and says she’ll never leave. Before becoming an agent years ago, Burke tried other vocations but, meh. Then she found her dream gig, tailoring realty for friends into a similarly intimate experience for the rest of us. Burke finds an intersection of passions with the neighborhood’s historic homes, architecture, commitment to preservation and restoration. “Every home here is wildly different. I love the constant buzz around our hot-spot community,” she says. Working with her husband and team, Burke says “it’s exciting to see Oak Cliff progress; we prioritize our sphere.” Looking for your Oak Cliff real estate connection? Call Thani Burke today. 214-701-4884 Thani.burke@compass.com @theburkegroup_

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contents JULY 2021 VOL.15 NO.7

6 CLICKWORTHY All the web news 10 THE MOVEMENT How Ellen Hoffman builds community 14 GO EASY This isn’t your dad’s head shop 20 ESSENTIAL ASSETS Four entrepreneurs to know 28 SEEING GREEN All about The Weed Spot 30 ZONING OUT Land for the people

Go Easy is a Bishop Arts District boutique focused on female self-care. Read more on page 14. Photography by Kathy Tran.

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JULY 2021

As an all-female business, we’re proud to support the Advocate’s Fierce Females issue and all the powerhouse women featured in it. Whether it’s buying or selling a home, connecting you with other businesswomen, or just being in your corner, we’re here to help you achieve your dreams. Let’s talk. Emily Ruth Cannon and Jenni Stolarski, REALTORS®, Lauren Kravitz, Transaction Coordinator. Follow @thejennistolarskiteam to stay connected.

The Jenni Stolarski Team is a team of real estate agents affiliated with Compass. Compass is a licensed real estate broker and abides by federal, state and local laws. Equal Housing Opportunity.

c l i c k- w o r t hy

We’re Your Neighbors Choose to work with agents that not only know this market, but live it on a daily basis. With superior market knowledge and genuine neighborhood experience, we can help you achieve new heights. Kent Frederick Robb Puckett 972.249.5236 214.403.0098 Richelle Tilghman 469.644.8096

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HISTORY PROJECT Do you have historic photos depicting Mexican-American life in Oak Cliff? If so, the Dallas Mexican-American Historical League wants to hear from you. The organization is putting together an exhibition for the Latino Cultural Center in September. One of the group’s first projects when it was formed in 2008 was to map the historic Mexican-American neighborhoods of Dallas, many of which have been lost to gentrification and redevelopment. Oak Cliff wasn’t considered a majority Mexican-American neighborhood until after the 1970s, when residents were shoved out elsewhere and started moving their households and businesses here. Now the group is working to document the history of Oak Cliff as a Mexican-American neighborhood, which hadn’t previously been an area of focus for DMAHL. If you want your photos and stories to be considered for their exhibit, contact them at officialdmahl@gmail.com.

coming & going [+] A new wine bar from renowned chef Sharon Van Meter is planned in the space on Beckley Avenue formerly occupied by Victor Hugo’s. Beckley 1115 is expected to open this fall.

333 S EDGEFIELD AVE $445,000 See more at 333edgefield.dpmre.com

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Michelle Carter became the first American woman to win the gold medal in shot put at the 2016 Olympic Games, 32 years after her former NFL player dad, Michael Carter, won silver in that event in the Los Angeles Olympics. That made them the first father-daughter duo in American history to bring home Olympic medals. As of press time, Carter was competing in the Olympic trials to reach the 2021 games in Tokyo.

[-] Sunset Art Studios closed its brick-and-mortar space in Elmwood at the end of June, but the nonprofit still has a residency this summer for two artists who will work in City Council District 10 or 12 on projects about “environmental issues of our time.” [+] The Gaming Goat, a locally owned boardgames store, opened in the Bishop Arts District in June.

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#1 IN OAK CLIFF As the top Realtor® team in Kessler Park and Stevens Park for 21 years and proud residents in North Oak Cliff, we are intimately familiar with the subtle nuances that impact value in our dynamic neighborhood. If you are considering buying or selling, give us a call and put our expertise to work for you! 645 Kessler Reserve Ct.

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645 N. Tyler St 101 & 102

649 N. Tyler St 101 & 102

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Rachel Stone

214.207.8309 / rstone@advocatemag.com Jaime Dunaway-Seale

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214.560.4212 / rwamre@advocatemag.com Advocate (c) 2021 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 214-5604212 or email rwamre@advocatemag.com.

ABOUT THE COVER Detail of a mural by SM Sanz in West Dallas. Photography by Marrissa Alvarado.

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M I N D, BO DY A N D G OA LS The Movement Loft puts community first ›

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For her extraordinary contributions to the Winnetka Historic District over the past 40 years, Diane Sherman is honored to be named as the third recipient of the Ruth Chenoweth Award.

Diane Sherman with Richard Ewers, Winnetka Heights Neighborhood Association President

Our love of Oak Cliff homes is matched only by our love for this community itself. From the historic districts to the upand-coming neighborhoods, we are passionate about what makes this community, and those that call it home, special. Our passion stems from one simple ideal: putting the ‘real’ back in real estate. Our professional success hinges on your personal success – if you’re looking for a change in 2021, we would love to help make your dreams a reality.

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nevitably, someone starts snoring at the end of Ellen Hoffman’s Sunday class. It’s perfectly fine, though, because this is “reset yoga and moving sound meditation,” where Hoffman leads participants through movements while using a singing bowl and mallet to create soundwaves that aid mindful relaxation. Falling asleep is about as relaxed as it gets. Hoffman, who was born and raised in Oak Cliff, opened The Movement Loft in Exposition Park at the end of February 2020, and it was open a few weeks before COVID shut it down. “ We t r i e d t o d o o n l i n e , b u t w e w e r e b r a n d new, and how do you generate interest during a pandemic and also c ut through the noise of established businesses that are now doing online stuff ?” Hoffman says. She kept her day job in marketing and reopened The Movement Loft last August. The concept is to “ build a community around movement,” she says. Hoffman, 31, and seve n o t h e r i n s t r u c t o r s o ff e r yoga, dance, conditioning and meditation classes, and they focus on making people feel at home in the space. “ We ’ r e s m a l l , b u t w e ’ r e g r o w i n g ,” s h e s ay s . “ Me m bers that come know each other. They build relationships in the studio and outside the studio, which is cool.” There’s always complimentary tea and a place to sit and hang out. Hoffman, who started dance lessons at age 3, is a lifelong dancer. She recently added a retail component to The Movement Loft called Hello Moon Apothecar y, offering self-care, wellness and post-workout recovery products. She quit her job this past January and spends most of her time at the studio now. “It’s just always a climb,” she says. “ You’re constantly building and refining, and I’m so lucky to have a team that wants to be here.” T h e Mo v e m e n t L o f t i s o p e n e v e r y d ay, a n d class schedules are available at movementloftstudios.com.

go to a studio that has adult dance classes, but it’s usually an add-on to a children’s dance program. I would walk in, and there would be moms waiting there waiting for their 6-year-olds, and it didn’t feel like I should be there. For someone who has always wanted to take a dance class or has wanted to get back into it, it’s not ver y inviting. PODCAST INSPIRATION

Five or six years ago, I started listening to a lot of podcasts, and I even had my own podcast at one point. My ex-boyfriend was in the tech world, and that was a whole new world of entrepreneurs h i p a n d ra i s i n g m o n e y a n d b e i n g b a l l s y a n d daring. Not having a 9-to-5 where someone is paying you and you have insurance benefits was s o m e t h i n g I ’d t h o u g h t o f but never had seen in practice. I star ted listening to all these founders’ stories, like how did somebody start this business? I started saving money and not really knowing what I was saving for, and I would just write ideas down.

“It’s OK to give the 10% you have today. It’s OK to take a rest day.”

HOW SHE CAME UP WITH THE IDEA

There’s a gap in adult dance education. You can

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HOW SHE TOOK THE LEAP

I made a PowerPoint deck, and I would just work on it at night. Then, casually, I started looking at spaces. I looked at a place on Jefferson, actually. One day I saw pictures of this place online right before Christmas of 2019, but the money wasn’ t right. I hadn’ t made my savings goal. So I had a little talk with myself and asked if I was really committed to this. So I filed my LLC and set up my business account, and by Christmas I’d signed a lease here. SEEING THE LIGHT AFTER A YOGA INJURY

I was doing super intense y oga. I injur ed my r i g h t w r i s t a n d h a d t o t a ke a s t e p b a c k f r o m e v e r y t h i n g . We ’r e t a u g h t n o b a l a n c e b e c a u s e y o u ’r e c o n s t a n t l y t o l d “ n o p a i n , n o ga i n” a n d t o go 2 , 0 0 0 % a n d g i ve e ve r y t h i n g y o u ’ ve go t in e ver y dir ec tion. No one e ver says, “It ’s OK t o g i v e t h e 1 0 % y o u h a v e t o d a y. I t ’s O K t o t a k e a r e s t d a y.” I w a n t e d t o m i x e v e r y t h i n g toge ther and give peopl e the option of thing s l i ke s t r e t c h i n g a n d m e d i t at i o n b u t a l s o s o m e intense things.

DAILY DALLAS NEWS 304 W. Greenbriar Dr. 1234 Street Address PENDING $000,000 David Griffin Name Here214.458.7663 000.000.0000

301 S. Edgefield Ave. 1234 Street Address PENDING $000,000 Bart Thrasher 469.583.4819 Name Here 000.000.0000

1033 N.Street Plymouth Rd. 1234 Address SOLD $000,000 Robert 214.356.5802 NameKucharski Here 000.000.0000

2535 Wedglea Dr. 1234 Street Address SOLD $000,000 Robert 214.356.5802 NameKucharski Here 000.000.0000

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NORMALIZE IT Go Easy makes self-care approachable Story by RACHEL STONE Photography by KATHY TRAN

M O L LY M AT H I A S R U N S A FAMILY BUSINESS. The former certified public acc o u n t a n t ’s e n t r e p r e n e u r i a l l e a p started with her mother as a partner when Mathias had a side business “for fun,” buying vintage furniture and selling it on Instagram. That started in Mathias’ Oak Cliff garage and eventually moved to a warehouse in the Design District. When they decided to parlay that into a retail store a few years ago, the concept evolved into a unique

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JULY 2021

home goods store called the Magic Hour, which moved from Tyler Street to Bishop Arts in 2019. That store, where Mathias’ dad built most of the shelves and displays based on her design, always had a small apothecary section offering aromatherapy oils, face masks and the like. That stuff was never a moneymaker until after the pandemic, when people got really into both home décor and self-care. The apothecary business started doing so well that

Mathias spun it off into a separate store, Go Easy. The shop sells items such as crystal eye masks, skin-care stuff, aromatherapy oils and sprays, CBD products and accessories like pipes, and sex toys. It’s like the Gas Pipe and Condom S ense had a ver y classy and approachable baby boutique. There’s only one other store in the United States that is similar, Mathias says. “It’s a very new idea to have all these produc ts in one place, but

“Women are the queens of the side hustle, and we’re afraid to go all in.” that’s what my friends and I were i n t o ,” s h e s ay s . “ We we re talkin g about vibrators. We were talking a b o u t C B D a n d w e e d . We w e r e talking about doing face masks, but we were also talking about going to therapy and healing and all these things. And the y all go toge ther, really.” She was afraid at first that her landlords would object, but they’ve been very supportive. The store also hasn’t received a single complaint from neighbors, she says.

It is very complicated on the back end, receiving licenses to sell highly regulated merchandise and dealing with payment processors, some of which don’ t allow sales of certain items. But customers have spoken with their dollars. Go Easy did so well after one year in business that Mathias is opening a second one in Houston this summer. Mathias, 31, is from Grand Prairie and has a master’s degree in taxation from the University of North Texas.

She also worked as a residential real estate agent for several years before quitting to work full time for herself, which she almost didn’t do because of doubts. “Women are the queens of the side hustle, and we’re afraid to go all in, and it’s scar y and risky,” she says. “But if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that you cannot do this business unless you’re 100% in it.”

JULY 2021

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food

K E E P CA L M A N D WASA B I O N Community is key to longevity for Zen Sushi Story by RACHEL STONE | Photography by KATHY TRAN

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JULY 2021

THE BISHOP ARTS DISTRICT’S only sushi spot marks its 14th year in business this month. Zen Sushi chef and owner Michelle Carpenter says she owes it to our neighborhood, which supported her from day one. “These are my people. This is my community,” she says. “This is where I live. This is where I work. A lot of my staff live in Oak Cliff.” The menu has changed a little in a decade and half, but not a lot. Customers still love the Sakura Roll, Carpenter’s original creation, with crab, shrimp and clam in a soy wrap. The bacon yakitori is still a hitter, as is the beef gyoza, both popular from the beginning. Newer items like Zen bruschetta, made with the unique combination of fried eggplant and raw tuna, have found an audience. But longe vity in this business means consistency, and Carpenter

sometimes has to bridle her creativity. “There are some items that I would like to maybe change a little bit, but I think my customers would be upset,” she says. “When I do my Valentine’s dinner, I rarely change anything because the customers like that same menu every single year.”

“I like to know what’s going on and do my part.” But she does try to motivate her customers to try new things, and in turn, they challenge her with requests and suggestions. Zen fared fine through the

economic shutdown. The restaurant never closed, and no one was laid off, thanks to neighborhood customers who frequently ordered takeout. Now the challenge, as with every restaurant, is a shortage of labor. It’s difficult to hire enough workers, so virtually every restaurant is understaffed, just as everyone wants to start dining out again. Carpenter says food costs have also gone up, and some items are harder to find because of supply chain frustrations. But Zen is still open every day. Carpenter recently served on the board of the Bishop Arts Merchants A s s o c i at i o n , a n d s h e f r e q u e n t l y contributes to local nonprofits such as the Mammogram Poster Girls. “ I t r y t o s t ay i nv o l ve d i n t h e community and events,” she says. “I like to know what’s going on and do my part.” Zen Sushi 380 W. Seventh Street, 214.946.9699, zensushidallas.com

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CADILAC LAW

It’s been a 15-year ride. That’s how long ago neighborhood resident Lauren Cadilac found herself in the passenger seat and on the receiving end of a head-on collision — the jaws of life variety. After a four-day coma and months of recovery, Cadilac stopped counting after 10 broken bones and 30 surgeries. Cadilac says after re-learning how to walk, she said to herself: How hard can law school be? Fast forward: Today, her neighborhood offices employ 12 people in Dallas, Fort Worth and the Philippines. The law firm offers tri-lingual services, and Cadilac is completing her Master’s of Law (LLM) in taxation. Pointing to a hefty scar on her wrist, Cadilac says one of many remaining pieces of glass from the accident dislodged recently and severed a tendon. “I say I got that when I broke the glass ceiling,” she says. Belen Tamayo, Jamesha Owens, Lauren Cadilac, Lisa Begley and Nayra Tiscareno NEED THAT CADILAC DRIVE? Call Lauren and her team today for your legal journey. 5787 S. Hampton Road, Suite 445. info@cadilaclaw.net 972-845-1200.

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JULY 2021

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mber LaFrance had bedbugs in her $450-a-month apartment in Austin. Otherwise, she might’ve never come back to Dallas, where she’s now one of the most boss public relations mavens in town. Her clients include Deep Vellum Books’ La Reunion imprint, publisher of the long-awaited repress of The Accommodation, and artists such as Jeremiah Onifadé and Mariell Guzman. Her firm has represented clients from fashion designer Venny Etienne to locally owned retail boutiques and major hotels and commercial real estate developments. The 33-year-old is marking her 10-year anniversary of working in the PR business, as well as the eighth year in business for her firm, CultureHype. Her dad helped her move out of that apartment in the middle of the night, leaving a note for the neglectful landlord, and she moved into her dad’s house in her hometown, Plano. By then, she’d put herself through college working in retail and graduated with a degree in marketing and a minor in business from Texas State University. She’d also worked her way from volunteer intern to paid publicist for Heather Wagner Reed of Juice Consulting in Austin. Back in Dallas, she was still working for Reed as needed but realized she didn’t know anyone in PR here. She took another unpaid internship with the bargain that she would be exempt from intern work, like stuffing bags, and get to do client work instead. That’s how she met Jarrod Fresquez, the account executive whose biggest client at the time was the Hilton Anatole. Eventually, Fresquez and LaFrance started their own firm, with him as the face of the operation and LaFrance doing behind-thescenes PR work. They added Red Bull as a client, and their second event was Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware’s birthday party at the W Hotel. She had student debt and no savings, and she made about $14,000 the first year. “But we aggressively networked,” LaFrance says. They did over 30 events that first year. She lugged her laptop everywhere and always had a change of clothes in her car for nighttime networking. She forced herself

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into extroversion with a goal of getting 10 business cards at events and learned networking techniques by watching her business partner in action. After about a year, Fresquez went to work for his family’s financial firm, and LaFrance took over the business and rebranded. She now has four employees, all women whom she trained from interns. She lives in the Bishop Arts neighborhood and offices at the Common Desk on West Davis. HER FIRST CLIENTS

We kept the Hilton Anatole, and we had Red Bull and Hard Night Good Morning, D’Andra Simmons’ skincare line. She was a friend of Jarrod’s mother, so she became our client, and I was doing press all over the nation for her. It was a little out of my comfort zone at the time, but I ended up getting her in the Wall Street Journal and a lot of national press. She was really my first big client. MUSIC INDUSTRY PR

Musicians weren’t hiring PR at that time, and it was a boys’ club, so I had to educate them on what PR is, why you need to invest in it, what I charge and why I charge that much. So I did this PR stunt, one of my favorite things I’ve done. We planned a circus-themed album release for a band, Goodnight Ned, at Trees. They wanted a “janky circus,” so we made all these circus games in my dad’s backyard. They wanted to be taken seriously by festivals and booking and make more money. We used that as an example, and we blew that party out. There were like 450 people. Then they started to get booked for all the festivals and get good press and all of that. KEEPING IT FUN

Our clients represent what we’re personally into. I have four employees, and they all do business development. They’ll pick clients they want to work with, and they’ll sign them and get that account. It’s really fun. NOT JUST PR

I expanded my ser vices a few years ago because I was doing a lot of marketing for my PR clients. We do event planning, music booking, influencer marketing and programming for the W, WFAA and the Virgin Hotel.

misty contreras

ouTube put Misty Contreras on the entrepreneurial path. Contreras was working at a mortgage firm 10 years ago when she got the idea for a side business to create and sell these extravagant chocolate-covered strawberries that can be customized with messages or made with candy colors and edible glitter.

She’d never actually made anything like that before; she just thought it was a good idea for a business, so she learned by watching internet tutorials. Orders came rolling in right away for her Gossip Strawberries, starting with family and friends who shared them on Facebook. Then she realized, “Strawberries arJULY 2021

en’t going to make me a million dollars. I need to go to the next thing,” she says. The idea for Texas Crunchies came about because Contreras just likes when a Jolly Rancher gets down to the crunchy part at the end. “So I thought, ‘why not just make the crunchy part?’” Think ice chips but make it candy. “After the first month of launching, Central Market calls me,” she says. “And I totally bombed that because I had not perfected the candy yet. So it was just … it was awful. But it was a big learning experience.” Texas Crunchies come in all kinds of flavors, like tropical punch or green apple; one of the best sellers is pickle, she says. Any of them can be made spicy or sugar free, and you can mix pickle essence into any of them. The company recently started making candy beer bombs, which look like jawbreakers that you drop into a pint to add mango-chili to your brew, for one example. Contreras is from Duncanville, and she graduated from Bishop Dunne Catholic School in Oak Cliff. She and her 12-year-old son, Jonathan, live in West Dallas. Texas Crunchies are available at the 7-Eleven store on Colorado at Zang,

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Tienda Choris at 838 W. Jefferson Blvd. and at texascrunchies.com. Davis Street Mercantile, 710 W. Davis, carries Texas Crunchies chili-lime Gusheez. Contreras also recently opened a retail store in the office building adjacent to the Kessler Theater, 509 N. Winnetka Ave., suite 102C, which carries all of her candies and gummies, plus candied popcorn. HER BRUSH WITH A M A J O R R E TA I L E R CAME TOO EARLY

I’m ready for the next one, though, the next store that calls me. HER MOTIVATION

My son became epileptic, so I kind of shut down mentally to a full-time job, and I just wanted to be at home with my son. I was just trying to make ends meet with the strawberries, and then with the candy. My parents have also been very supportive of me. THE STRUGGLE FOR FINANCIAL INDEPENDENCE

Don’t get me wrong, I had to do Uber Eats for a while. I’m to the point where I don’t have to do that anymore, thank goodness. But I did what I had to do to get where I am now.

denise manoy

enise Manoy opened her Bishop Arts District fashion boutique 15 years ago. “In spite of everyone going, ‘You’re opening a store where? Where is that? Are there people that live over there?’ That’s what caught me,” she says. “Yes, there are people that live over there.” People with few places to shop, at least at that time. Indigo 1745 was so named because of its initial focus on denim at a time when high-end jeans were the thing. It’s evolved since then to include a range of men’s and women’s apparel, accessories and toiletries that can’t be found just anywhere. Manoy says the concept is “comfort, but dressing nice and not looking like everyone else.” “We’ve always had local jewelry designers. We have two bowtie designers. We have a couple of things from McCullough now in the store,” Manoy says. “When the customer comes in, they find that shirt, that dress, and they can walk out knowing they’re not going to see it on anyone else because typically we only get five or six styles in the sizes and that’s it.” She went to high school in San Antonio, where her father retired as a command master sergeant in the 82nd Airborne Division of the U.S. Army. She earned a degree in nutrition from the University of Texas at Austin, where she met her husband, Keith, who was transportation director for the City of Dallas for 30 years. He retired and now has a consulting business. They live in the South Boulevard/Park Row Historic District. Her parents are now deceased. She was an only child and says they’re still with her in spirit. Manoy worked in the insurance business for 15 years. When her company wanted to transfer her to Atlanta, she decided to quit and do something else.

“We went everywhere and looked at all kinds of stores,” she says. “I never got the feeling anywhere else that I did when we were in Oak Cliff. It felt like a community and like home.” WHAT IT TAKES TO RUN A SMALL BUSINESS

The keyword is “perseverance.” That’s what you have to do; you have to decide to persevere. If you work hard, you’ll get through. There’ve been times when I just thought, “I can’t do this,” especially this past year. It’s been rough, but my father is always in my ear, saying “Nope! You don’t give up. You keep pushing.” And that’s what you do. THE MOST CHALLENGING ASPECT OF HER BUSINESS

It’s still the hardest thing. It never gets easier: Knowing what your customer might want from season to season. You go in (to trade shows in Dallas, Las Vegas and Atlanta) and you’re presented with this wide range of things, and you’ve got to break it down to what you think your customers will buy. HOW SHE’S WEATHERED THE PANDEMIC

Our customers are the reason why we made it through. People were calling us and buying things. I knew they weren’t going anywhere. They didn’t have anywhere to wear it, but they were doing it just to support us. Our customers and friends and family — we wouldn’t be here today without them. They really came through and were there for us, even if it was just buying masks. It might’ve seemed like a little thing to them, but it was huge for us. WHY SHE LOVES WHAT SHE DOES

There’s a smile that’s on someone’s face when they’re wearing something they really like, and I love that. It makes them happy. Then they smile at someone else, and it makes that person feel good. It’s a little bit of positivity in the world. JULY 2021

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marci orr

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JULY 2021

racie the office greeter is an Oak Cliff street dog that Marci Orr found darting through traffic on Tyler Street nine years ago. She comforts and amuses visitors to Lifeologie Counseling Oak Cliff, as Orr’s therapy assistant. Melanie Wells founded Lifeologie in Dallas in 1999, and Orr is clinical director of the Oak Cliff franchise, which opened in 2018. Orr was clinical director for multiple outpatient facilities in the Dallas/Fort Worth area when the opportunity arose. The Elmwood resident has lived in Oak Cliff for 10 years. “It has been a beautiful journey,” she says. “The community here is remarkable. It’s made up of small business owners and entrepreneurs, so everyone is very supportive.” The concept is to provide mentalhealth services and counseling at various price points in a setting that’s approachable. It’s more like walking into a chic coffee shop with good lighting and inviting furniture than a medical office. They offer clients coffee and tea. Aromatherapy and soft music

are at play too. “We engage the senses. What you see, what you taste, what you hear, what you smell,” she says. “We want to brighten your day.” It’s also very collaborative. Professionals at Lifeologie include interns who are graduate students, post-graduates who are still under supervision and then fully licensed counselors. Once a week, they all get together and talk about their personal and professional lives. And they host events like Movember, which spotlights men’s mental health every November. Their 2019 event included brewery samples, giveaways, local musicians, a mustache contest and a panel discussion on men’s mental health. Every December is “Women’s Winter Wellness,” and Lifeologie is also an Oak Cliff Women in Business member. Learn more about the services offered at wefixbrains.com /oakcliff or call 972.590.8030.

impact of what this pandemic did to us. Couples and families either thrived, or it really divided them, so there are a lot of couples struggling. The divorce rate has gone up. Kids were really struggling with the isolation and a complete change in their lifestyle, so we’re seeing an increase in that need for teens and tweens and littles. Depression and anxiety are way up. The need is there, but it’s different. We’re all trying to understand what it’s done to us.

ORR WORKED IN ADVERTISING AND MARKETING FOR 20 YEARS

ADAPTABILITY

I made a career change at 40. I went back to school and got my master’s in counseling from SMU, and it’s the best decision I’ve ever made. It was a calling, and I finally heard it and acted on it. THE NEED FOR COUNSELING IN A POST-PANDEMIC WORLD

We still don’t know the full

THE NEIGHBORHOOD MADE THE BUSINESS A SUCCESS

Oak Cliff has a unique set of circumstances and people that made this so welcoming. It was a lot of work, and it took a vision, but it was built through relationships, referrals, word of mouth. It’s great to know that can still happen in this technologydriven world.

Telehealth became a big part of our business during the pandemic, and we will always have that option available. We have a bilingual therapist, Kenia Rios, and we’re growing our multilingual resources to serve our diverse community. We also offer group therapy in response to our clients’ need. We try to respond to whatever the community needs.

JULY 2021

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flower power

Puffing up the benefits of cannabis Story by RACHEL STONE Photography by KATHY TRAN

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JULY 2021

THE NAME IS IN YOUR FACE ON PURPOSE. “I’m the last person you would ever think would be involved with cannabis,” says April Watson, who has a master’s degree in public health and is working on a doctorate. She’s the owner of The Weed Spot in the Bishop Arts District. The boutique at 502 N. Madison Ave. looks like a typical marijuana dispensary that can be found wherever weed is legal. Here, everything is above board, in line with Texas law, which allows certain types of cannabis, including

CBD, which has no psychoactive effects, and delta 8, which does but is still chemically different enough from marijuana to be legal. Watson is not a cannabis user herself, but she named her store The Weed Spot because she understands the benefits of it, and she wants to exorcise its stigma. Her introduction to CBD came about six years ago when her son, who is on the autism spectrum, was prescribed Ritalin. She says the medication made her son dispassionate and caused insomnia. “I didn’t like what it did to him,” she says. A friend suggested CBD gummies, which helped decrease his anxiety, increase his focus and aid sleep, she says. There were no side effects. Watson was already an entrepreneur. A former teacher and administrator with Dallas ISD, she became a diagnostician, hired to diagnose intellectual and mental disabilities in children. She also owns a rehabilitation clinic in Oak Cliff, Ability Solutions, which helps clients receiving social security disability to qualify for jobs. Two years ago, she found out that her nephew had been using Xanax to treat anxiety, and she tried to get him to convert to CBD. He ended up overdosing on Percocet and Xanax, and he died. Soon after, she opened The Weed Spot. “A weed is something that grows and thrives in places where it’s not wanted,” she says. “I want to start having conversations about why we’re so afraid of cannabis.” Watson, 37, was hesitant to sell hemp flowers at first because it seemed less medical to her than, say, gummies or oils. She’s never smoked or done any illegal drugs, she says. Then one of her customers, who is a nurse, told her that smoking can be the quickest way to get CBD into the bloodstream to treat pain. CBD is used for all sorts of ailments, mental and physical, and some people partake for sports recovery or purely relaxation. While cannabis is no cure-all, it also isn’t deadly the way some pharmaceuticals can be. “You may take too much and not feel very well and wish you hadn’t done that, but it’s not going to kill you,” Watson says. All of the cannabis products at The Weed Spot are from hemp grown in the United States, Watson says. Most of it is sourced from small farms and manufacturers, and she says it’s important to her for customers to know where the products are coming from. The Weed Spot also makes CBD lattes, which cost $7-$8. The shop hosts occasional open-mic nights and has DJs every Saturday. There’s a lounge area with board games and comfy sofas, plus murals depicting weed aficionados Willie Nelson, Snoop Dogg and Cheech and Chong by Dallas artist Theo Ponchavelli. Hours: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday

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THE PEOPLE OWN THE STREETS The urban planner empowering communities JENNIFER RANGEL FELT LIKE AN OUTSIDER growing up in Oak Cliff because her family didn’t have a car, and their housing was often insecure. She knows there are still kids in our neighborhood who feel like “a shadow” the way she did, and that’s what keeps her motivated to fight for inclusivity in urban planning. Rangel recently launched a nonprofit, RAYO Planning, with partners Evelyn Mayo and Victoria

Ferrell-Ortiz. They have a mission of helping communities understand planning concepts like zoning and land use, and they aim to teach neighbors to use their power against potentially harmful policies and to advocate for what they need. Rangel was the 2012 valedictorian of Molina High School because she treated her grades like a paycheck. She told herself that the higher her grades were, the more money she could earn in

the future so that her parents wouldn’t have to work. She rode the bus before dawn so that she could use the internet at school to apply for grants and scholarships, and she stayed late to do homework. “I learned a lot, and I observed a lot,” she says. “We would take the DART from Westmoreland Station all the way to Garland. I could see how different my neighborhood was from others, but I never questioned it because I didn’t

Story by RACHEL STONE | Photography by KATHY TRAN

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understand that zoning and land use were at play.” As a sophomore at Texas A&M University, one of Rangel’s professors said, “It sounds like you want to be an urban planner.” She said, “What’s an urban planner?” “I realized that all of these things that I had been noticing for years were part of this urban planning,” she says. The profession requires a master’s degree, which Rangel obtained from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2018. Her thesis used Oak Cliff as a case study for a geographical examination of Latino urbanism. She interviewed business owners and residents, and the thesis makes recommendations for engaging with Latino communities. Here are some highlights: — Create Spanish and English materials about the agency/department and their intentions. These outreach efforts should be considered ongoing and can become an outlet for the community to speak up. Familiarity is key for trust and authentic conversations. — Develop community events to create bridges within and among the community. Grant community members the agency to participate in the creation of these events. These events should have a diverse audience. — Surveys can be online, but in person communication with business owners informing them why their opinion is important can motivate them to participate. — Online communication should be available in English and Spanish. Renderings and photos should reflect the community. Rangel says some of the recommendations she made in her 2018 thesis are coming into play with RAYO. For example, it states: “Teach others what urban planning is and how it influences their neighborhood. Sometimes people do not participate because they simply are not aware how.” “Urban planning and zoning are very technical, but the essence is not,” she says. “The essence is that it’s about people’s lives.” Rangel is the planning and community outreach director for the Inclusive Communities Project. She has a full-time job, but she wanted to launch RAYO now because of plans to grow it into a national presence. They also want to educate city planners everywhere on how to engage with Latinos, including the fact that “Latinos” represents an incredibly diverse population. She bristles at the popular urban planning term “highest-and-best use” because “highest and best use for who?” she says. “It decenters the essence of people. Why are we talking about ‘uses,’ when in reality, it should be for the people?”

Urban planning has been used in the past to create harm in communities. The most striking example in Dallas is Shingle Mountain, the recently removed environmental hazard in a neighborhood where heavy industrial zoning is allowed next to residential neighborhoods. With RAYO, the objective is to use the same tools to undo those wrongs. Everyone can be an urban planner, she says. It’s just a matter of understanding the lingo and the process. Her master’s thesis mentions “ganas,” the Spanish word for perseverance. When she struggled growing up, her mother always told her to use her ganas, and that’s what Rangel wants for urban Latino communities like Oak Cliff. She says urban planning can take an emotional toll because she sees how people struggle, and she understands what it’s like. “As long as I’m on this planet, I’m going to keep fighting the good fight,” she says. “I’m not the first one, but I’m going to grab the baton and keep running that marathon.” Rangel says she hated telling her mother, Maria, that she had to wait two more years after college for her master’s degree, but now Rangel supports her so that she doesn’t have to work anymore. Rangel’s father, Hector, died of COVID-19 at the end of 2020. “My dad told me: ‘This is your city. This belongs to you. Feel proud of it,’” she says. “I want people to feel that way too. That they truly belong here and they’re not outsiders and they don’t belong in the shadows.”

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WORSHIP

By ERIC FOLKERTH

99 problems but a splotch ain’t one A l i t t l e m u d n eve r h u r t a ny b o d y

snapped a picture of a splotch of mud on our sanctuary carpet a few weeks ago. It was part of a trail of mud, all the way down the center aisle. We had a lot of visitors that week; our first officially planned Sunday back inside our sanctuary since March 2020. I had two immediate and unconscious thoughts when I saw it. First: “Oh, dang. Somebody tracked mud in the sanctuary.” And then: “Thank God! Somebody tracked mud into the sanctuary!!” You know that in far too many churches, some version of the following might actually happen: Disturbed parishioners would call the pastor about the desecration of the holy space. A committee might be formed and meetings held. Ideas would be tossed around on how to prevent the future scourge of muddy feet. The church might buy the newest and best door mats. Church leaders would buy a plastic runner for the carpet, or disposable shoe coverings. (Kept in the narthex, next to the umbrella stand.) Ushers might “check feet” as folks came in the door. Printed signs might be tastefully placed on all exterior doors, and the verbiage added to the bulletin. The pastor would make an announcement before the start of the next week’s service, about how everyone needed to be on their best behavior and “check yourself.” In sum, the energy, concern and precious time expended to combat the scourge of a splotch of mud could be staggering. (Please understand. I am not talking about your church, or mine, specifically. I’m asking you to pretend with me about what happens far too many places.) I trust you know where I’m going.

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The pandemic year has reset everything. It’s peeled back layers of “the way we’ve always done things” and left them rotting in the gutter to be washed away by our copious spring rains. Churches can no longer afford to waste their time on such nonsense. For decades, most churches have wrestled with their sense of calling or purpose, or how to attract and keep young folks, or how to become more diverse. All while the percentage of church-going Americans plummets, year-on-year. Churches everywhere have an insidious way of “majoring in the minor.” We waste what poet Mary Oliver calls our “one wild and precious life,” solving problems that aren’t problems. The world is complicated and real, gritty and challenging; filled with muddy ethical and social justice issues. And the “real world,” is always far, far “muddier” than the pretend world we too often play at inside a sanctuary’s walls. Right now, people are desperate for community, connection, and support, after a year of isolation. After it dried, somebody broke out the vacuum and cleaned the splotch away. But for all of us who seek to welcome the community back, after a long year apart, keep meditating on this picture. It’s a sign of hope. After a year of pandemic, I pray we all say: “Thank God! Somebody tracked mud into the sanctuary!!”

WORSHIP BAPTIST CLIFF TEMPLE BAPTIST CHURCH / 125 Sunset Ave. / 214.942.8601

Serving Oak Cliff since 1898 / CliffTemple.org / English and Spanish 9 am Contemporary Worship / 10 am Sunday School / 11 am Traditional GRACE TEMPLE BAPTIST Come to a Place of Grace!

Sunday Worship: English Service 9:30am / Spanish Service 11:00am 831 W. Tenth St. / 214.948.7587 / gracetempledallas.org

C AT H O L I C ST. CECILIA CATHOLIC PARISH / StCeciliaDallas.org / 1809 W Davis St. / Saturday - Bilingual Mass 5PM; Sunday – English Masses 7:30AM & 11AM; Spanish Masses 9AM & 1PM

DISCIPLES OF CHRIST EAST DALLAS CHRISTIAN CHURCH / 629 N. Peak Street / 214.824.8185

Sunday School 9:30 am / Worship 8:30 am - Chapel 10:50 am - Sanctuary / Rev. Deborah Morgan-Stokes / edcc.org

E P I S C O PA L CHRIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH / ChristChurchDallas.org Sunday School: 11:15am /Mass: 9am & 10am English, 12:30pm Español Wednesday Mass: 6pm English, 8pm Español / 534 W. Tenth Street

METHODIST KESSLER PARK UMC / 1215 Turner Ave./ 214.942.0098 I kpumc.org

10:30am Sunday School/11:00 Worship /All are welcome regardless or race, creed, culture, gender or sexual identity.

N O N - D E N O M I N AT I O N A L KESSLER COMMUNITY CHURCH / 2100 Leander Dr. at Hampton Rd.

“Your Hometown Church Near the Heart of the City.” 10:30 am Contemporary Service / kesslercommunitychurch.com TRINITY CHURCH OAK CLIFF / Love God. Love Others. Make Disciples. Sundays 10:00 am / Worship & children’s Sunday School 1139 Turner Ave. / trinitychurchoakcliff.org

PRESBYTERIAN PARK CITIES PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH/ 4124 Oak Lawn Ave Sunday Worship 9:00 & 11:00 A.M. To all this church opens wide her doors - pcpc.org

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

ERIC FOLKERTH is senior pastor of Kessler Park United Methodist Church. The Worship section is underwritten by Advocate Publishing and the neighborhood businesses and churches listed here. For information about helping support the Worship section, call 214.560.4202.

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UPHOLSTERY

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JULY 2021

WELLNESS

By LIZ GOULDING

G e t d ow n a n d ge t u p M a k i n g t h e m ost of yo u r h ea l t h s pa n

ow easy is it for you to get up off the floor without using your hands? For me, a w o m a n i n h e r l a t e 3 0 s , i t ’s c u r r e n t l y p r e tty e a s y. But what will that experience be like when I’m 70 or 80? Lately I’ve been thinking about longevity and health span. Not just how long I’ ll live but what the quality of t h o s e y e a r s w i l l b e l i ke . I l i ke to imagine myself carr ying my o w n l u g ga ge t h r o u g h t h e a i r por t, hiking in the mountains, and yes, getting up off the floor with ease. When it comes to the last q u a r t e r o f my l i f e , t h e r e a r e a m i l l i o n f a c t o r s o u t s i d e o f my c o n t r o l . Ho we ve r, I a l s o k n o w that the habits I build today a ff e c t my f u t u r e t r a j e c t o r y. I am highly motivated by the idea of living a vibrant, full life well into old age. T hat m e a n s d o i n g my b e s t t o b u i l d a body that can quite literally c a r r y m e t h r o u g h a l l s t a ge s o f l i f e . Fo r m e , t h a t ’s m e a n t I ’ v e spent the last few years focused on strength training. Many women shy away from strength training, and if you o n l y t a ke aw ay o n e t h i n g f r o m this article, please let it be that many of the fears associated with weight training (namely

t h a t w e i g h t s m a ke y o u b u l ky ) a r e u n f o u n d e d . Po p u l a r c u l ture sug ges ts that the point of fi t n e s s f o r w o m e n i s t o m a ke o u r s e l ve s a s s m a l l a s p o s s i b l e . Fr a n k l y, I fi n d t h a t w ay o f being exhausting. Strength training is all about building yourself up in a very literal sense. I’ve found it quite liberating to focus on building myself up instead of constantly diminishing and tearing myself down.

“If you were healthy and well for the next 30-50 years, what would you do with your life?” A l l b o d i e s c a n b e n e fi t f r o m the practice. Building muscle now helps combat the muscle l o s s t h at h a p p e n s n at u ra l l y a s we age. Weight bearing exercise also helps strengthen bones, which is an important factor in reducing the risk of developing osteoporosis. G etting up off the floor m a y n o t f e e l h a r d t o d a y, b u t

s o m e w h e r e a l o n g t h e w a y, i t b e c o m e s d i ffi c u l t f o r a l o t o f people. T h o s e a r e n’ t l o s s e s t h at h a p p e n o ve r n i g h t , n o r a r e t h e behaviors that keep muscle w a s t i n g a t b ay, o n e s t h a t y o u c a n d o o n c e a n d f o r ge t . B o t h o f t h o s e p at h s a r e c h o s e n o ve r a n d o ve r a ga i n , t h r o u g h s m a l l ac tions and decisions that add up over time. T h e go o d n e w s i s t h e p a t h b e f o r e y o u i s s t i l l u n w r i tt e n . E a c h d ay i s a n o p p o r t u n i ty t o choose which way you want t o go . Strength training is just one of many things I do with an e y e o n h e a l t h s p a n . He r e a r e some things to think about if you’re interes ted in e xpanding not jus t the length of your life b u t t h e q u a l i ty o f y o u r y e a r s : If you were healthy and well for the ne xt 30-50 years, what w o u l d y o u d o w i t h y o u r l i f e? If you continue the current path you’re on, where does t h at l i ke l y l e ave y o u r p hy s i c a l health in 30-50 years? What habits, if started or m a i n t a i n e d n o w, g i v e y o u t h e best chance of living a vibrant, full life now and 30-50 years from now? Liz Goulding is a health and wellness coach in Oak Cliff. Contact her at liz@ alongsideliz.com or alongsideliz.com.

Wa t c h G ou ld i ng a nd her d a d g e t t i ng up of f t he f lo or w it h no h a nd s .

ON L I N E V I DE O S OAKCLIFF.ADVOCATEMAG.COM

JULY 2021

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Properties of Distinction. Agents for Life. The best of Oak Cliff real estate is at daveperrymiller.com

PENDING

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PENDING

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3 BEDROOMS | 2.1 BATHS | 1,862 SQ. FT. | $685,000

4 BEDROOMS | 3 BATHS | 2,445 SQ. FT. | $650,000

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4 BEDROOMS | 2.1 BATHS | 2,417 SQ. FT. | $650,000

3 BEDROOMS | 2 BATHS | 1,525 SQ. FT. | $550,000

4 BEDROOMS | 3.1 BATHS | 2,957 SQ. FT. | $549,000

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SOLD, Represented Buyer

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SOLD, Represented Buyer

2318 Barberry Drive

2534 Sunset Avenue

1038 Kings Highway

3 BEDROOMS | 2 BATHS | 1,935 SQ. FT. | $540,000

3 BEDROOMS | 2 BATHS | 1,655 SQ. FT. | $445,000

1 BEDROOMS | 1.1 BATHS | 1,318 SQ. FT. | PRIVATE SALE

Michael Mahon

Joanna Robben

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972.740.5420 joanna@daveperrymiller.com

Price and availability subject to change. Information deemed reliable, but not guaranteed. An Ebby Halliday Company

2021 July Oak Cliff Advocate

Articles inside

ESSENTIAL ASSETS

SEEING GREEN

GO EASY

ZONING OUT

THE MOVEMENT