December 2020 by Austin Woman Magazine

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FEATURE

YOU ARE NEEDED IN THIS SPACE

KEEP AUSTIN SAUCY BY BRIANNA CALERI

BY SABRINA LEBOEUF

ATXWOMAN.COM |â&#x20AC;&#x201A; 9

CONTENTS | DECEMBER

COUNT US IN Women in Numbers

FROM THE DESK OF Jasmine D. Romero

A CHAT WITH Riders Against the Storm

PROFILE Naijean Bernard

SEE HER WORK Nan Blassingame

BEAUTY Raeka Panda

52 RECIPE REVEAL

Whole Wheat Cranberry and Pistachio Scone with Satsuma Glaze

ON THE MONEY Holiday Tips

I AM AUSTIN WOMAN Dr. Choquette Hamilton

ATX WOMEN TO WATCH

52 10 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

LAUREN DUVALL

FANYA RANDALL

THIS YEAR, WE ARE STRONGER TOGETHER The coronavirus pandemic has left many families struggling to get back on their feet. Together, we can fill holiday tables for our neighbors in need and help our community have a happy and healthy holiday season.

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CONTRIBUTORS This month, we asked our contributors: What is one favorite holiday tradition in your family? A PUBLICATION OF AW MEDIA INC.

VOLUME 20, ISSUE 5

KYLIE BIRCHFIELD Photographer, “Keep Austin Saucy,” Page 44 • Is a Christian

DAWN WESTON

• Loves trying new things in Austin

Publisher

• Has one tattoo Tradition: “For Thanksgiving, my dad makes us our own little mini turkeys (Cornish hens). It’s so cute & delicious! ”

NIKI JONES

Creative Director CY WHITE

ANASTASIA VASTAKIS

Managing Editor

Writer, “Fashion Represents a Lifestyle,” Page 34 DARBY KENDALL

• Has a very strong Greek family unit

Copy Editor

• Is graduating from Texas State University •H as to say “Look at the sunset!” every time she sees a sunset

OLIVIA HUNTLEY, KATY MABEE

Account Executives

Tradition: “My favorite holiday tradition is sitting on the kitchen counter and talking to my mom as she cooks Greek potatoes.”

CONTRIBUTORS

Editorial: Aisling Ayers, Brianna Caleri, Dr. Choquette Hamilton, Jenny Hoff, Allie Justis, Sabrina LeBoeuf, Raeka Panda, Anastasia Vastakis

JESSICA WETTERER Illustrator, “Women in Numbers,” Page 18

Art: Rudy Arocha, Kylie Birchfield, Sean Carranza, Gaby Deimeke, Robert Hein, Jessica Wetterer, Jarren Willis

•A s a Kentuckian, eggnog with bourbon is her favorite holiday beverage.

INTERNS

•E njoys having her Christmas tree up until late January

•D raws her own homemade holiday cards for Christmas each year

Tradition: “My favorite holiday tradition starts after midnight. Every year on Christmas Eve, my family goes to 12 a.m. Mass. By 1 a.m. on Christmas night my family is back at my parent’s place partying: We pop champagne, unwrap the honey-baked ham, craft a cheese plate and sit under the tree, opening gifts one by one until the sun rises.”

Aisling Ayers, Kylie Birchfield, Allie Justis, Anastasia Vastakis

AW MEDIA INC.

BRIANNA CALERI

MELINDA GARVEY

KIP GARVEY

Co-founder/Co-owner

CEO/Co-owner

SAMANTHA STEVENS

Co-founder

“Keep Austin Saucy,” Page 44 • Accidentally became a photographer • Shook Charlie Daniels’ hand

ASHLEY GOOLSBY

CFO

• Built her own guitar Tradition: Every Thanksgiving I made my family eat pumpkin cheesecake from a local orchard.”

Austin Woman is a free monthly publication of AW Media Inc. and is available at locations throughout Austin and in Lakeway, Cedar Park, Round Rock and Pflugerville. All rights reserved. To offer feedback, email feedback@awmediainc.com. For submission information, visit atxwoman.com/jobs. No part of the magazine may be reprinted or duplicated without permission. Visit us online at atxwoman.com. Email us at info@awmediainc.com. 512.328.2421 | 7401 West Slaughter Lane, Austin, TX 78739

COVER SHOT ON LOCATION AT GREATER AUSTIN BLACK CHAMBER OF COMMERCE CONTRIBUTORS Hair: Latasha Green (@austintxhairqueen) Make Up: Chanel Sanchez (@beautifiedbychanel) Style Consultant: Kennedy Sams (@kennedyangelinee)

FROM THE EDITOR

Twenty-four days. By the time this issue goes public on Dec. 1, it will have been 24 days since the official U.S. Presidential election results. Between then and now, citizens of the United States will have had to deal with the repercussions of the election results and what they mean for the future of the country. Regardless of the results, the actual race and the numerical electoral results had many confused, worried even. Not me. Not by a long shot. Regardless of what I, and every black woman, have known since childhood, the fact remains we still have a long way to go. Rest assured, I’m not here to get political. December for Austin Woman magazine means more than the holidays. This is our “Heritage” issue. Thinking about all the things that have transpired this year—rampant police brutality without accountability, open and proud profiling and discrimination, worldwide protests, the closeness of the presidential race—I couldn’t help but reflect on this word. Heritage. What does it mean in my life? The lives of my family members, the women in my life? Working on this issue has been a surreal experience to say the least. When first approached with this topic, I jumped at the chance to explore what heritage meant in Austin. Reading Ada-Renee Johnson’s story, how she sees heritage in the eyes of her son and the ways she reimagines heritage in her interactions with other businesses. How the three women over Austin’s Economic Development Department are on a mission to help those businesses that preserve Austin’s diverse heritage. From the indeginous heritage of Austin forever represented at the Bullock Museum through the fashion of Nan Blassingame; to the sister team behind Hermanitas Boutique, Jasmine D. and Violeta M. Romero, sharing tips of how to take heritage to another level; to Dr. Choquette Hamilton, a woman who saw the discrepancies in childhood education and made it her mission to RISE to the occasion. What does heritage mean to me? It means resilience, strength, humanity. I order my steps in the stride of proud, intelligent, fearless Black women. No matter the circumstances, my ancestors walked in excellence. I, too, will walk in excellence. That is my heritage.

CY’S THREE FAVORITE BOOKS OF POETRY:

CY WHITE EDITOR

DIAMOND-LEVEL PARTNER

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Photo courtesy of Cy White.

Publication of Austin Woman would not be possible without the support of our monthly advertisers and sponsors, who believe in the impact we are making in the Austin community. The following businesses have stepped up their support of our efforts beyond traditional advertising and we are proud to recognize them as our partners. The team at Austin Woman is grateful for these businesses that have shown their commitment to the advancement of women in Austin and hopes you, as readers, recognize their efforts and support these businesses and all our regular advertisers.

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Can’t get enough of this issue? Check us out at atxwoman.com. Black Mamas ATX Gives Black Mothers a Voice The mortality rate for black mothers during childbirth is astronomical. Black Mamas ATX helps black mothers through their motherhood journeys.

Fiercely Boricua -- An Interview with Dr. Ana María Tekina-eirú Maynard Dr. Ana María Tekina-eirú Maynard created the Puerto Rican Folkloric Dance & Cultural Center to honor her heritage. She in turn teaches people to embrace their roots and the root of all humanity.

“She Persisted”: The Story of Gina Chavez’s “Ella” Austin native and Latin Grammy-nominated artist Gina Chavez uses a slogan of silence as her rallying cry for survivors of domestic violence with her music video “Ella.”

Check out our YouTube channel for more Austin Woman content!

@austinwoman

WIN THIS! Thai Fresh: The Cookbook Want to get away this winter? Us too! But since traveling around the world is a little out of reach right now we’re helping you bring the flavors of Thailand straight into your home with local chef and owner of Thai Fresh Jam Santichat’s new self-published book Thai Fresh: The Cookbook. It includes over 75 recipes that she either learned growing up in the kitchen with her mom in Thailand or serves in the South Austin restaurant now. This month we’ll be giving away one book to a lucky reader, so be sure to follow us @Austinwoman on Instagram and watch for the announcement before the end of the month!

16 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

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COUNT US IN

WOMEN IN NUMBERS

Women of color show the power of their voices in high-ranking government positions.

In the U.S. House of Representatives, out of the 435 members representing the entire nation, only 44 women of color hold seats within the House. This makes up only 10% of the House of Representatives. However, 4 out of 5 voting delegates presiding over the House are women of color.

BY ALLIE JUSTIS ILLUSTRATIONS BY JESSICA WETTERER

117

In the Texas Senate, there are only two women of color, making up only 6.5% of the total Senate. These two women represent over 8.8 million women of color within Texas, and their names are Sen. Carol Alvarado and Sen. Judith Zaffirini.

In November, 117 women of color ran for office on the Democratic and Republican ballots. This seems to be a continuation of the same trend seen in the 2018 election cycle where there was a record-breaking number of women of color elected into the U.S. Congress. Texas’ very own Candace Valenzuela ran to become the first Black Latina in Congress this year.

18% On the Austin City Council there are two women of color that are currently serving the Austin area. Their names are Natasha HarperMadison and Delia Garza. These women make up 18% of the council and have been on the council since 2019 and 2017, respectively.

3% Of the 127 women serving in the 116th U.S. Congress, only four senators are women of color, making up only 3%. However, although these women only have four seats in the Senate, they represent more than 70 million women of color nationwide. These for women are Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, Sen. Tammy Duckworth and Sen. Mazie Hirono. 18 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

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Taking action on our commitment to Austin We know we must do more to address the very real consequences of systemic racism that exist in society today. The impact is clear for communities across the country, including where our teammates live and serve our clients. To drive progress, Bank of America has committed to invest $1 billion over four years to advance racial equality and economic opportunity, building on work we’ve had underway for many years. We’re partnering with community and corporate leaders to create sustainable change. Our actions will help address critical issues and long-term gaps that have only been widened by the coronavirus and amplified by the most recent acts of injustice. Our efforts include: • connecting workers to new skills and enhanced job readiness • increasing medical response capacity and access to health care and nutritious food • powering small businesses owned by people of color through access to capital • helping people find a place to call home My teammates and I here in Austin are committed to doing more, and doing more now.

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FROM THE DESK OF

STAY TRUE TO YOURSELF

Jasmin D. Romero of Hermanitas Boutique shares tips on how to take culture to the next level. BY ALLIE JUSTIS

Jasmin D. and Violeta M. Romero are two sisters that have turned their love for their Mexican heritage into their very own small business. Hermanitas Boutique specializes in small-batch handmade clothing and accessories. The Romero sisters have successfully combined their culture and their hobby into a profitable business. Jasmin D. shares five tips that helped take their small business to the next level while also bringing them closer to their heritage.

EMBRACE THE HARD TIMES Embrace the bad and utilize it to motivate your success. I’ve told our story of poverty and of starting our business with $50 and a dream. It was never ‘How are we going to make this happen.’ It was about how we are going to represent our cultura (culture) in our products and inspire generations that were robbed of that when forced to assimilate to U.S. culture. We are both Mexican and American, but no one creates for us or with us in mind. For us by us!

CONTINUE LEARNING ALWAYS The “lack of” will force you to be resourceful—go with the flow. What we could not afford we learned to do. My sister and I took the time to watch all the tutorials and look up organizations that could help teach us all that we did not already know. We used the small business center and watched hours [and] hours of WordPress tutorials. I crashed our site multiple times and fixed it because I had no choice.

MAKE CONNECTIONS Build community; it’s vital and will help in moments when you most need it. I am very outgoing and my sister is not, so I took it upon myself to go out and spread the word about what we were creating and why. I attended as many events as I could. I wore our creations and sparked conversation with everyone that I came across. Those people are some of the same people that still follow and support our business and all its endeavors. Some have become great friends and have inspired me to keep creating. Being around other entrepreneurs and makers can uplift and teach you in ways you didn’t even know were possible.

REMEMBER WHY YOU STARTED

USE EXPERIENCES TO GROW Always be open to learning, and utilize all your interactions as an opportunity to be inspired. I love to learn and travel, and that has been a space for constant growth. It has also helped me teach others and opened many doors within the community for collaboration. I never shy away from working with people in the community and helping in any way I can. The community has always done for me and inspired me to work from a place of love. 20 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

Photo by Sean Carranza.

Stay true to yourself. This one seems simple, but along the way all types of things will challenge your values. Your production methods may get questioned or who you work with and vendors you chose. Make sure you are true to yourself, your values and are strong in your mission. No matter what circle you are in, don’t forget who you are and your “why.” Your “why” will align with those it is meant to align with, and if it doesn’t it was not meant to be.

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A CHAT WITH

RECONSTRUCTING THE PARADIGM

Riders Against the Storm shake the foundations to keep hip hop alive in Austin. BY AISLING AYERS

aced with a music scene lacking an interest in their genre, Austin hip-hop duo and married couple Riders Against the Storm (RAS) made a space for themselves. Now three-time winners of Austin Music Awards’ Band of the Year, Ghislaine “Qi Dada” Jean and Jonathan “Chaka” Mahone plan to release their new album, Flowers for the Living, at the end of 2020. RAS spoke with Austin Woman about the heritage of hip hop, their ten-year journey in Austin and celebrating the victories of Black women. AW: What do you aspire to achieve with your music? GJ: To help bring spiritual application to people’s everyday lives. To be in the same vein as the people who pioneered hip-hop music, who pioneered reggae and jazz music, is to reignite and evoke something that’s already inside of them and to be able to trust it so that they can birth new things all the time. It’s to encourage people to do their own thing. AW: How does the theme of heritage influence your work? JM: Hip hop is a big part of the heritage that we embrace and the power of it to inform, to inspire, to just empower. The people [who] were the originators of that, people [who] set up their turntables in the parks and plugged into the electricity of the light poles and just did it for their community so their community could have an outlet to escape the realities they were faced with, they created their own vortexes. Our name comes from a group called Sweet Honey in the Rock. They have a song called “Ella’s Song”...taken from a speech from Ella Baker. They talk about passing the torch to the young who will “run against the storm.” We chose Riders Against the Storm in the vein that we are the generation that follows those [who] made a tremendous commitment to freedom. Our mentors were community organizers. Most of them were women. Also African storytellers who embraced us as hip-hop artists but also taught us the power of stories [that] bring people together and the power of that gathering.

AW: Tell me about “Black Girl Payday.” What inspired this song? GJ: I wrote the song...based on a historical figure in the Haitian Revolution, the steps she took to acquire wealth, even as an enslaved woman, and the steps she took to matriculate out of that through some particular geniuses that she had. It’s really an homage to that aspect of the spirit, to be able to reconstruct whatever paradigm you’re given at birth. It doesn’t have to be your ultimate. It does not have to be the one thing that defines you. Whatever you were born into, whatever construct, even if it’s more difficult for you than some others, you are very capable of morphing it to your desires and also to the empowerment and benefit at large of people. My grandmother is someone who always was like, “It doesn't matter if your dress costs $7. You walk up to a room like it costs you $7,000 and that is how the room will address you.” That is about that given birthright of black women, if we understand ourselves as the matriarch of the planet, and what [it] means to step into that. Obviously I’m doing it in a very fun way. I’m not necessarily doing it explicitly lyrically, but energetically. That’s what I’m seeking to exude and to have people catch wind of. Once they have that, they’re able to walk with it. It’s really wonderful. I’ve had white men be like, “That is an amazing song” because what I say when I perform it is, “You should be happy to see black women win.” Read an expanded version of this interview at atxwoman.com.

JM: There was some resistance to hip hop in general when we got here in terms of the venues and the booking. In the true form of hip hop, we didn’t depend on venues to determine our outcomes. We did a lot of performances in the community wherever we could. That’s how we really built our initial fanbase. From there, the venues and these folks [who] control who gets booked had to start paying attention to us. We never changed our concept of who we are. That led to us winning Band of the Year three years in a row. Band of the Year’s never been won by a hip-hop band before, and it hasn’t been won after. That led to things like Blues on the Green. I hit up the organizers like, “How can the band of the year two years in a row now not be a part of this Austin institution?” We ended up being the first hip-hop band to play Blues on the Green. Being leaders, saying, “You’re not going to undervalue or undermine what we've achieved,” is part of cracking that foundation. 22 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

Photo by Robert Hein.

AW: What has it been like to develop your music and brand in Austin?

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PROFILE

A SENSE OF COMMUNITY

Naijean Bernard has used her businesses, Jeany’s Ginger Elixir, to unite her community.

veryone has a specific memory that defines them. For Naijean Bernard, it’s watching her grandmother cook in Grenada when she visited her as a child with her family. These memories, combined with the weekly potlucks she would attend in Austin, led her to create her Caribbean-inspired food and beverage company, Jeany’s Ginger Elixir. Bernard says her grandmother “didn’t have an education, but what she did have was more worthwhile: her herbal knowledge.” Bernard uses the knowledge passed down through the generations for her juices. “I learned from my grandma, my mom and my own garden,” she says. “I use herbal remedies for myself, my friends, people I come in contact with.” When Bernard first moved to Austin, she was desperate for a strong sense of community and belonging, so she started attending potlucks with her friends. She would bring casseroles and the like. Then she started bringing her homemade juices. “They were based on my grandmother’s recipes from when I was younger,” Bernard reflects. “She never wrote down anything, like grandmothers do. So based on what I remember from my grandmother, I recreated those recipes. I was sharing them with friends, and they really liked them.” During this time, she worked in corporate America while raising her son, so she wasn’t able to fully commit to the juice business. While this year has been detrimental for many businesses, 2020 gave her the opportunity to commit to Jeany’s Ginger Elixir. In February, her supervisor told her that her position was being eliminated. She could either switch to another position or take a severance package. Bernard took the severance package. “I used that to revamp the website,” she says. “Invest in some photography and utilize a social

24 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

media company. I kind of took a leap of faith. As of March 17, the elixir business has been my full-time income. Since then, I have added additional farmers markets. We are up to three farmers markets per weekend.” In fact, Jeany’s Ginger Elixir has become so lucrative, they have to expand their team. “I have a friend who is on our board of advisors, so to speak,” she says. “He has a history of incarceration. He is going to help find people with a history of incarceration, both men and women, to come and work, learn job and social skills, and how to interact with other people.” Bernard doesn’t only run Jeany’s Ginger Elixir. She also runs a company called the Austin Red Tent Experience, a women’s wellness retreat. “Since it is a smaller big city, sometimes when you’re new to Austin you feel disconnected,” she says. “You’re trying to find your circle of real friends, and it can be really challenging. Especially for women of color.” The primary emphasis is comfortability. “I wanted to make a space that is friendly enough where if you have a different body type or you believe things differently, you can still feel comfortable doing yoga or a different health wellness package you are interested in. We would do a talk on physical health, financial health and mental health. I believe that all of those are interconnected.” She also has a friend who is a medical doctor that came and spoke about the connection between these three ideas. The women, knowing this truly was a safe space, all began to open up about their personal experiences with fibroids, miscarriages, hysterectomies and other health issues that aren’t always talked about. “It was a powerful experience.” All of Naijean Bernard’s business ventures started with searching for a sense of community. Her grandmother’s community, and the way she was raised, influenced Bernard and was the basis for Jeany’s Ginger Elixir. Her own need for community brought a sense of unity and wellness for women of color in Austin.

Photo courtesy of Naijean Bernard.

BY ANASTASIA VASTAKIS

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GO LOCAL

ARTICULTURE DESIGNS These living walls are one of hundreds of unique gift options created by local “artrepreneur” Monique Capanelli and her team of seven beautifully creative women. Select from a wide range of Articulture-made creations, or gift a DIY kit with all the materials and video how-to guide. Plus distinctive home decor, jewelry, apparel and more. Great gifts for any budget, articulturedesigns.com

TIMELESS

WEATHER & STORY Weather & Story is an Austin-based leather goods brand, designed and handcrafted by owner Lainey Wright. We aspire to give the modern woman something more than a product that seizes on a fleeting trend. We craft each bag to one day become your very own heirloom, one that carries with it countless stories and memories Prices range from $100 - $300, weatherandstory.com

FRAGRANCE

HEY MOON Run by Lauren Robertson, Hey Moon Ceramics specializes in wheel-thrown stoneware pottery, scented candles and incense for the home. So much time and care go into making each candle. They are hand-poured with the finest fragrance and essential oils and come in a one-of-a-kind stoneware vessel. Remember to keep and reuse the vessel when the candle is gone. P.S. Don’t forget to trim your wick. Prices starting at $42, heymoonceramics.com Special Advertising Section

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HOLIDAY SURVIVAL GUIDE

GET FESTIVE

MOZART’S Let Mozart’s set your holiday season aglow with our private lakeside event venue. Perfect for family gatherings or to host your next corporate holiday event. Our indooroutdoor venue offers an open-air private viewing deck for an exclusive light show experience. Magical scenes and tens of thousands of lights will captivate your guests, setting the mood for a wonderful holiday season. Email crystal@mozartscoffee.com to book. mozartscoffee.com

GLOW UP

JACQUIE OOH Get happy and healthy winter skin. The Jacquie ooh Collection is specifically formulated and certified organic for those with a range of sensitive skin conditions. Whether you suffer from eczema, rosacea or reactive skin, Jacquie ooh has got you covered. After just a few uses, you'll notice a boost in your skin's appearance and restore its natural balance. Produced locally, right in the big state of Texas.

TEXAS PRIDE

GARRISON BROTHERS DISTILLERY Garrison Brothers Distillery makes the finest handcrafted bourbon whiskey money can buy. It’s always been a great holiday gift for friends, family or yourself. garrisonbros.com/shop

Prices ranging from $18-$150, jacquieooh.com

GIVE

THE ARTISAN GIFT BOXES We design our collections of luxury artisan gift boxes with small-batch, handmade, all-natural products crafted by artisans all over the world. From a Cabin Fever Survival Kit to a Gentleman's Box. All gift boxes can be customized to suit your needs and your budget. Offering domestic and worldwide shipping as well as freight services. Boxes ranging from $50-$300, theartisangiftboxes.com

SUPPORT

NOW COFFEE Now Coffee is a family-owned business in Austin that focuses on giving you the highest quality organic, fair trade coffee while impacting children’s lives. One bag helps two causes. Each purchase donates 50% of profits to mental health and anti-bullying education in schools. $15.95/bag, nowcoffee.com

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HOLIDAY SURVIVAL GUIDE

LOCAL STYLE

FRANKIE JEAN PAMPER

PARLOR BEAUTY BAR Parlor Beauty Bar is a local and woman-owned salon located in the heart of East Austin. A boutique beauty destination for blowouts, spray tans, brow, makeup and lash services wrapped in one chic environment. Add on a complimentary Nourishing Hair Mask as our gift to you with any blowout service for all Austin Woman readers. Use code: AW20. Prices for services vary, parlorbeautybar.com

PERSONAL STYLE

KELLY WYNNE

Frankie Jean is a local lifestyle brand named after a great woman whose creativity touched many lives before she lost her battle with breast cancer in 2001 at the age of 42. Her daughter, Ashley, now carries on her mother’s dream by using her creativity to bring light and joy to as many people as she can. All in her mother’s name. Prices ranging from $15-$54, frankiejean.com

MEMORIES

SHERISH Let Sherish HDMI receiver and universal remote connect your entire family this holiday season through unlimited photos enjoyed in an endless slideshow on your own TV. Enhance photos with voice and text captions to make moments and memories come to life. Simple and fast to plug in, it keeps the family connected through the power of photos and senior-friendly viewing on an existing TV and WiFi. Upload images via the Sherish mobile app. $98.00 plus $9.99/month or $99/year subscription, sherish.com

The newest addition to the Kelly Wynne Travel collection is this adorable Packed & Ready Pouch! This little cutie is designed with easily wipeable water-repellent lining to create a five-star stay for your makeup or toiletries. Available in three colors. Want to take it to the next level and get bonus points for the perfect gift? Make it personal. Add your initials in gold foil. Kelly Wynne Packed & Ready Pouches $65, kellywynne.com

SOOTHE

DELI AROMA Deli Aroma offers locally made aromatherapy products that are safe, simple and easy to use. Their lavender essential oil blend uses lavender from Australia. Its aroma is soothing and calming with heart-pleasing tones. Deli Aroma products are safe for the whole family and can ease asthma and respiratory discomforts, improve sleep quality and soothe stress. Starting at $20, deliaroma8.com

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IN G A N D BUS

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WOMEN to WATCH Our pages are full of stories of Austinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most engaging, empowering and successful women, and this section is specially designed to provide you access to even more incredible role models and success stories. Be part of this amazing group and share your story with thousands of women. Contact us at sales@awmediainc.com or call 512.328.2421 for more information. PHOTOS BY ROMINA OLSON

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L AU R E N D U VA L L

S E R V I C E M A N A G E R AT A U D I S O U T H A U S T I N

auren DuVall has always had passion for helping people. Early in her career search, she stumbled into what became both a challenge and an amazing opportunity in the luxury automotive industry. As a woman, DuVall is no stranger to the misconceptions people have when they bring their cars to her for service, but she wants to change that perception one person at a time. After about eight years of developing relationships, she sees her leadership at Audi South Austin as an opportunity to help others grow both personally and professionally through a foundation of trust and integrity. DuVall prides herself on her communication and complete transparency. Whether one of her teammates or clients, she uses her own life journeys to focus on every person. DuVall believes each person is equally as important and valued as the next. She is excited to see what the future holds for her team! audisouthaustin.com

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FA N YA R A N D A L L

CEO AND KINDNESS ACTIVIST

ife, mother, CEO, author. Fanya Randall wears many hats, but one particular incident changed her entire mission in life. Her son, who is diagnosed with autism, has been a target for bullies. One night, her daughter said that an older kid on the playground kicked her brother in the head and called him weird. In that moment Randall knew she had to do more for her son. She left her medical career and started a coffee company, Now Coffee Grounds For A Cause, which gives 50% of profits to mental health and anti-bullying curriculum for schools. Randall believes mental health and anti-bullying education is as important as English and math. Her goal is to have all schools establish this education year-round in hopes that bullying and suicide rates will decrease. Are you brewing kindness? Check them out online to purchase freshly roasted, organic coffee and help make an impact. nowcoffee.com

ATXWOMAN.COM | SPECIAL PROMOTION | |â&#x20AC;&#x201A;33 ATXWOMAN.COM 33

SEE HER WORK

FASHION REPRESENTS A LIFESTYLE

Nan Blassingame uses fashion to educate people about Native American culture. BY ANASTASIA VASTAKIS

34 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

Photo courtesy of Nan Blassingame.

eing from the United States, many of us have a unique relationship with our culture. Some are first-, second- or third-generation immigrants. Others can trace their roots to the first 13 colonies. However, there are some who can trace their roots in the U.S. even further back, to the indigenous people of this land. Due to a lack of exposure, we don’t really know much about Native American culture in Texas. However, Nan Blassingame, a fashion designer and member of the Cheyenne tribe, works with Austin Powwow to promote awareness for her community. Originally from Oklahoma, Blassingame first became involved in fashion as a young girl. “I’ve always sewed, since I was 14,” she says. “But I only did powwow outfits. My grandma made the moccasins. That was her job. That’s all she did. She was really, really good at it. I have a pair she made me when I was 13 that is going into the Bullock Museum.” Blassingame has a permanent case at the Bullock Texas State Museum, and every six months she changes out the outfits. As of October 15, she has a dress on display to raise awareness for the Missing Murdered Indigenous Women movement. Indigenous women are the highest rate of women that go missing in the United States. According to Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women, the U.S. Department of Justice found that indigenous women face murder rates more than 10 times the national average. Blassingame uses her fashion to educate people in Austin about the indigenous community. She originally attended their monthly potlucks, where they would listen to drums and practice singing. However, Blassingame wanted more from the potlucks, and the organizers asked her to teach sewing classes. “When I started teaching the classes here, I felt like I could help. I felt like I knew where I was supposed to be. They asked me to be their volunteer coordinator at the powwow, so I started that plus the culture nights. Now I’m the program director [for] the culture nights. I felt like I could help everyone here who grew up in the city and didn’t get to grow up beading or learning how to sew.” The Austin Powwow is the largest powwow in the U.S., but

“”

We don't have to hunt buffalo because we have P. Terry’s and H-E-B.

is amazing. I want to see the feathers and see the dancing.’ I gave them everything they wanted to see. I took my own grass dancer, and my cousin danced jingle.” Blassingame says children often ask if she rides a horse “I make jokes like, ‘I have a black Nissan. That’s my horse.’ I make them laugh and say, ‘We don't have to hunt buffalo because we have P. Terry’s and H-E-B.’” Her work goes beyond fashion. Her work is normalizing the Native American culture in a way that is not often seen in Texas. It is about educating the Austin community about the beauty of indigenous culture.

Photos courtesy of Nan Blassingame.

many people don’t know about it. Blassingame uses her fashion to help promote the powwow and educate people about the indigenous community. Part of that education includes dancing, bead classes, food and other activities to help immerse the Austin community in Native American heritage. Blassingame’s fashion not only educates; it innovates. In 2019, Nan was one of the designers that attended New York Fashion Week. “I finally submitted all my pictures and emailed them. At 9 a.m. they were calling me like, ‘We didn’t even know Native Americans did fashion. This

ATXWOMAN.COM | 35

BEAUTY

DIVING SKIN DEEP WITH AYURVEDA

Raeka Panda shares the recipe for radiant skin passed down in her culture. BY RAEKA PANDA

The dawning of Ayurveda stretches deep into antiquity. It is said to be

from 1858 to 1947, the practice of Ayurveda survived. Its influence continues through generations of the South Asian diaspora. Thus we are privy to this ancient tradition that has shaped everything from our heritage to our self-care rituals, especially in the case of beauty. Here is one of Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most popular beauty rituals that you can try from the comfort of your home.

Photo by Gaby Deimeke.

an eternal science passed from the creator to the ancient Indian mystics through meditation. India has been a legendary land of spices, precious gems and rich textiles, and has always been a tempting prospect for traders and invaders alike. Despite invasions by Genghis Khan and the Mongols in the 13th century, the conquest of much of India by the Mughals in the 16th and 17th centuries and the direct rule by the British Crown

36 |â&#x20AC;&#x201A; AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

“” We carefully formulate ingredients that innovate Ayurvedic methods for modern skincare through New Generation Ayurveda.

“HALDI” NOURISHING FACE PACK

Turmeric on the skin can help reduce dryness while increasing radiance and glow. Honey’s antioxidants, antiseptic and antibacterial properties also make this ingredient a go-to for fighting acne and other common skin problems. This face pack will also open your pores and get rid of blackheads while keeping your skin hydrated. Traditionally a bride uses this method before the wedding so she can radiate her wedding day with her beauty.

Photo by Gaby Deimeke.

Ingredients 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder One tablespoon of milk One teaspoon of honey Method 1. Mix 1/4 teaspoon of turmeric powder, one tablespoon of milk and one teaspoon of honey to form a paste. 2. After the paste is ready, apply this pack all over your face and neck. 3. Keep it on for 10 to 15 minutes. 4. Rinse with warm water. Pro Tip: If you want to avoid the mess or staining, try one of Raeka Beauty’s turmeric peel-off masks. Raeka products are free from parabens, sulfates, SLS and synthetic fragrances. ATXWOMAN.COM | 37

YOU ARE NEEDED

IN THIS SPACE Ada-Renee Johnson is on a mission to diversify the tech industry. BY SABRINA LEBOEUF PHOTOS BY RUDY AROCHA

St. Louis remembers August 2014. It was the month police officer Darren Wilson shot and killed Michael Brown on Canfield Drive in Ferguson. His body remained uncovered on the pavement for four hours, and the crime sparked several nights of protests afterward. The nation’s eyes were on Missouri. Ada-Renee Johnson, a new mother, an HR thought leader and strategist and a St. Louis native, watched it all unfold on her television from her home in Hayward, California, a city in the San Francisco Bay Area. It still felt close. From her couch, she recognized the images of her hometown, the streets and people who contributed to the person she had become, broadcasted on national news outlets. “I am what I’ve experienced,” Johnson says. It was the place where she fell in love with roller skating and glided with smooth grace every Sunday at Saints Olivette Family Roller Skating Center. Saturdays were for skating at The Palace. When she came of age, Johnson drank beer and visited the Clydesdales at the Anheuser-Busch headquarters and ate toasted ravioli dipped in marinara sauce at Busch Stadium. Each May, she celebrated the Annie Malone May Day Parade by marching in the procession or sitting on the sidelines to see the local dance teams and the high school bands. The following month brought Juneteenth festivities. Back in Hayward, the television announced Brown had graduated from Normandy High School eight days earlier. Johnson’s mother was the principal there, and though she didn’t know him personally, she had handed him his diploma. This was really close. Johnson turned to look at her son, Kade, running around in his bouncer. The carefree 1-year-old had just learned how to walk right as another boy had his life taken away from him. Johnson knows the color of her son’s skin will precede him wherever he goes. As he grows up, she will need to work with her husband and her own father to teach Kade the importance of showing up as a strong Black man, unafraid. He has a voice and the power to use it, no matter where he is or the situation. “Heritage is the past, but it’s also the present,” Johnson says. “So what I’m experiencing now as an adult, as a mother, as a wife, I am defining heritage every day, but I’m also responsible for building that heritage for my children.” Today, Johnson’s building heritage for her children in Austin, 38 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

Texas. Her family moved here in 2016, after relocating to Nebraska and giving birth to her daughter, Knox, for her new job at Google Austin. The state lacked Missouri’s four seasons, but with a family where everyone was born in a different state, Texas was to be a point of commonality. The Johnsons were going to plant their roots and reconnect with old ones—Ada’s grandmother was born and raised in San Antonio. She and her husband, Brandon Johnson, visited San Antonio as part of their church’s marriage retreat in July 2017. The couple explored the city in their free time, but solely breathing the air was enough for Ada. The family began a tradition of taking the kids to San Marcos for new cowboy boots to fit their ever-growing feet. When Kade turned 5, his dad took him to his first Longhorn football game, and, even though the Johnsons already said “y’all” before coming to Austin, Knox picked up a Texas twang. Ada’s still working on her queso-making skills, but she knows where to get the good stuff. Beyond eating tacos on Tuesdays and wanting to teach her kids how to roller skate, Johnson defines heritage for her family through her work. She hopes to set an example for other professionals so they can get it right for her children in the future. She’s specifically on a mission to dispel a myth that the technology industry isn’t open to Black people or women. According to Google’s 2020 Diversity Annual Report, women make up 32% of their workforce. As for race and ethnicity, Black Googlers represent 3.7% of the workforce. Both statistics have increased 0.4% from the 2019 report. To help diversify both Google’s landscape and the tech industry as a whole, Johnson makes herself available to others— whether as a facilitator at the Capital Factory’s annual Women in Tech Summit, a panelist for Persian Women in Tech or a speaker at her alma mater, Spelman College. Her main goal is to build confidence in others to apply for jobs in technology and to show up as their full selves in the workplace. “Look, I have a degree in English literature, and I work at one of the biggest tech companies,” Johnson says. “Here’s how I use my degree, here’s why my degree is needed in this space and here’s why you are needed in this space. It’s the intersection of your faith, your person, your experiences and your exposure that impact the company.” When Ada shows up to work, she’s always her complete self. Rather than having separate calendars for work and her personal

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40 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

life, she schedules out everything together—meetings, gym time and picking up her kids—to clearly present herself as a working mom and set the boundaries she needs. She’s an active member in Google Employee Resource Groups, including the Black Googler Network, Women@Google and the Inter Belief Network. As the daughter of a military family, she also regularly partners with the Google Veterans Network. Even her love for roller skating comes into play. She knows how to skillfully fall and pop right back up. “Who shows up as a Christian at work?” Johnson says. “I do, and we have T-shirts to prove it. My faith very much leads how I respond to people in situations.” Right after she arrived at Google Austin to manage a team of sourcers, she was tapped on the shoulder by Google’s Director of Global Recruiting Channels, Greg Garrison, and asked to be the head of diversity staffing. She disregarded the idea of changing roles. She reasoned that she had a commitment to the position she originally came for, and even though people throughout her life predicted her to lead rooms of people someday, as an introvert, she never envisioned that for herself. The opportunity was brought to her a second time. Then a third. Each time, she declined the offer. Brandon wondered why she kept saying no and encouraged her to accept the position. “I don’t know that she realizes the true potential that she possesses and the true power that she has,” Brandon says. Ada then realized why she kept saying no. She felt afraid that she would not be the best person for the job. With this epiphany, she decided to take on the new role. If she was going to be a cheerleader for others, she needed to advocate for herself as well. She became responsible for leading a team of 21 people, all with the common goal of diversifying Google’s landscape, specifically in tech. To make up for her insecurities, she tapped into her past experiences on the volleyball and basketball courts. She played both sports throughout college and was well aware of the difference in her confidence levels when playing volleyball games vs. leading work meetings. As an athlete, Johnson focused on the skills she had been taught and felt confident that she couldn’t be outplayed. She needed to recreate this mindset in her career and position herself as a subject-matter expert. She read case studies, took a coding course and talked to software engineers to find out how recruiters could effectively communicate with potential candidates. However, after asserting herself and working with her team to break down barriers, Johnson had another realization. Her leadership didn’t inherently come from her expertise. It came from her experiences of being

“”

managed by others. She understood her own likes and dislikes as well as the importance of listening to her team members and helping them navigate their careers. She realized that she is an influencer of people. “The sky’s the limit for Ada,” Garrison says. “She’s navigated Google’s biggest challenges, but also has aligned herself to work that’s meaningful and fulfilling for her.” Almost two years later, as part of Black Googler Network, Johnson went on to participate at the Dynamic Young Women’s Workshop, an event dedicated to empowering young women in Austin with the mindset and skills to navigate the technology industry. She spoke on a panel about navigating the tech space as someone who did not grow up in tech. Each conversation felt like ones she’d had as a child with family members. She wanted to be that same extended network for these young women. “I have an obligation to young women coming up around me,” Johnson says. “If I don’t get it right for them, they won’t be able to get it right for my daughter.” On Feb. 8, 2019, she witnessed an example of the impressive young women who would set the stage for the future at the inaugural Elevate: Diversity & Inclusion Conference. The event was created by University of Texas at Austin MBA students Ashley Fox and DeAndrea Staes to discuss strategies for transforming diversity and inclusion efforts into an organization’s core values. Similar to other speaking engagements, Johnson imparted her wisdom and knowledge unto the participants, but this time felt different. She watched as two young women, Fox and Staes, identified a gap in recruiting underrepresented groups for MBA programs and filled it. She saw two young women propose an idea without ever considering “no” as an answer. “If a college student can notice a gap and fill it, as a working professional, I have to be able to do the same. And I have a responsibility to teach my children to do the same thing,” Johnson says. Ada and Brandon want to teach Kade and Knox that the sky’s the limit; their ceiling is their children’s floor. However, they have tougher lessons to share as well. In May, just before Kade turned 7 years old, Knox took notice of the television playing in the background and asked, “Why won’t he get off his neck?” She was referring to a video of George Floyd’s murder. On May 25, 2020, he died in Minneapolis, Minnesota, as police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. The revelation of the video led to protests across the United States

My faith very much leads how I respond to people in situations.

ATXWOMAN.COM | 41

“” I have an obligation to young women coming up around me. If I don’t get it right for them, they won’t be able to get it right for my daughter.

and a discussion in the Johnson family household. Kade wasn’t a baby in his bouncer anymore. It was time for the talk. Knox received a brief explanation about the video, but there was a deeper conversation with Kade. He asked if his white friends would still be his friends when school returned. The question brought tears to Ada’s eyes. “Who would have thought in 2020 this would be the question that a 6-year-old boy is asking?” As Kade’s parents, Ada and her husband had to give their son an honest response. They didn’t know what conversations Kade’s white friends were having, but they hoped he wouldn’t end a friendship just because a friend was white. Soon after, Alisha Lagarde, mother to Kade’s friend Brooks, reached out. Brooks and Kade had done Zoom calls over the past few months, but, being second-graders, it just wasn’t the same as hanging out in person. Lagarde asked about the Johnson family’s quarantine practices before proposing a COVID-safe play date. Johnson agreed. Her son needed to see that his white friend was still his friend.

42 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

Lagarde opened the door to her house to find the Johnsons wearing their masks. There was a moment of awkwardness as to how they would navigate their first play date together during the pandemic, but Largarde quickly dispelled those feelings; she welcomed them inside and invited them to swim in the pool. The boys jumped in the water together. Johnson and Lagarde chatted about their lives and their faith. Their children attend St. Austin Catholic School together even though the Johnsons are members of Greater Mt. Zion Church and Largarde is Jewish. When Johnson found out, she had to know if Lagarde made good challah bread. (Growing up, Johnson’s church would celebrate Thanksgiving service with the synagogue around the corner.) All the while, the mothers watched their sons rejoice in their play date. It was a reminder of their youth and innocence despite the ongoing world around them. “We’re going to play together, bringing our differences together in a shared space,” Johnson says. “I thought it was amazing because it meant more for me than he knows now.”

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KEEP AUSTIN SAUCY

Austin’s economic development department is protecting the diverse businesses keeping the city’s culture alive. BY BRIANNA CALERI PHOTOS BY KYLIE BIRCHFIELD

Talk to anyone who knew Austin in the ’80s. In the past four decades, the population has nearly tripled. It’s been just long enough that those who stayed have to spin yarns to their Austin-born children and grandchildren about an adolescent city, barely bigger than present-day Corpus Christi. They chuckle or shake heads at their colleagues from New York and Los Angeles and remind them, “It wasn’t always like this.” So many residents left as the outsiders flowed in that Austinites born here are reluctantly saddled with the moniker “unicorn.” With so much outside influence rushing in, Austinites have had to defend their collective identity. Local businesses have had to compete with fads and chains from both coasts. Helping prop up those local businesses, the city’s economic development department is here to ensure they can expand without diluting the landscape’s essential character or leaving communities behind. It operates in six divisions—cultural arts, global business expansion, heritage tourism, music and entertainment, redevelopment and small business—that emphasize the importance of maintaining a unique and diverse identity. Three women guard Austin’s cultural heritage on the department’s executive team. Director Veronica Briseño and Deputy Director Sylnovia Holt-Rabb have spent 20 years or more with the city, learning how it works inside and out. Assistant Director Susana Carbajal, the 2020 addition to the executive team, brings know-how from finance and federal government along with her own decade of Austin government experience. All three bring a natural edge: as moms, they tap into an endless lineage of passing culture down. As moms of color, they work to protect every voice and offer every opportunity. Through all its growing pains, Austin will make them proud.

Artwork: Tjala Tjukurpa (Honey Ant Story) by the Ken Sisters

44 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

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46 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

VERONICA BRISEÑO Veronica Briseño sits at City Hall, eyes on a bench made of rainbow neon tubes. Pedestrians smile at the fluorescent oddity, and so does Briseño, at their simple joy. The bench, built by the same artists as the striped ATX sign outside Whole Foods (which became a tourist destination of its own merit), is just one of the few pieces Briseño visits. She also loves the stately owl sculpture in the Second Street District and mourns the loss by vandalism of the “Ganador,” a playful grackle in a luchador’s mask. “The beauty of art is that it speaks to who we are as a city,” says Briseño. “It preserves that spirit and...it brings joy.” As Austin’s economic development director, Briseño oversees initiatives that put public art on the street and in City Hall, redevelop neighborhoods and keep all the department’s objectives in check. While earning her master’s at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, Briseño started as the city council agenda coordinator. Without specifically pledging a lifelong career, she took opportunities as they came, as cities have no shortage of projects to work on. After 21 years, she only has two to go until she is eligible for retirement, but isn’t planning on winding down anytime soon. For now, Briseño is invigorated by opportunities to ask her two decades’ worth of Austin allies for help. Every day, the executive team checks their calendars together, parse out a pandemic-size workload and work around their own newly homeschooled children. It’s nothing like working at City Hall, but the three are mindful about giving one another space. That kind of sensitivity—an understanding of what each one of them carries—is what Briseño hopes the team can bring to the city as three women of color. In hiring, she’s started asking about equity from a more personal perspective, hoping to find others who will not only champion equity, but relate to it. Putting those ideals in action, Briseño is excited to work on the Colony Park Sustainable Community. Located in Northeast Austin and spanning over 200 acres, the area is under redevelopment for better sustainability, while providing affordable housing and maintaining the community beloved by its very involved inhabitants. She explains it’s not about building a new neighborhood, it’s about bringing an old one up to speed without leaving any residents behind. “To me that’s heritage,” says Briseño. “We want to make sure we provide a way for people to stay in the neighborhoods they love and enjoy them.”

1. H ow did you inherit your business sense? I inherited my passion for public service from my dad. My business sense was inherited from my mom, who worked her way up from a receptionist to a senior director at Valero Energy. 2. W ho would you like to pass it on to? The next generation. The young minds that can encapsulate the importance of supporting our local economy and run with it. My goal is that [my two boys] are raised with the value of community. 3. Which part of Austin really reflects your personality? Our eclecticness. We are a Renaissance city, and I relate to that. Everything we do in economic development are areas I prioritize in my life: creativity, local business and community development space.

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SYLNOVIA HOLT-RABB Sylnovia Holt-Rabb won’t say Austin is weird. She will say it has a great “secret sauce” that simmers as it keeps its cultural memories alive. A transplant from Florida who, nevertheless, started working for the city of Austin just one year after her current colleague Veronica Briseño, Holt-Rabb had a lot to learn about the area. When she started with Neighborhood Housing and Community Development, the headquarters dropped her right in the middle of the African American Cultural Heritage District on Eleventh Street. There, she learned about the 1928 Master Plan, which established a “negro district” to aid in segregating the city’s residential areas. Austinites now may recognize the area and the organization that preserves it as Six Square, after the six square miles the district had covered. Holt-Rabb is proud to have maintained involvement in the area 20 years later, as it preserves and develops Black culture in a contractual relationship with the city of Austin. As deputy director of the economic development department, Holt-Rabb supervises the cultural arts, music and entertainment and heritage tourism divisions. Overseeing such a wide range of initiatives, she understands the variety of approaches a city can take to preserving its heritage. It can happen by geography, as it did in Six Square or the Rainey Street area, previously the historically Hispanic Palm District. It can also happen by industry, as the city is exploring within hospitality. Holt-Rabb points out a promising change that, two years ago, allocated the full 15% hotel occupancy tax to heritage initiatives. It can even happen during legislative recesses or on hold with the city phone line; the music division features local musical artists in both spaces. Holt-Rabb believes in preservation through immersion. She learned about the city by moving in. She got involved in the community through working with nonprofits. She grew accustomed to finding balance and making hard decisions as a single mother. Following metrics outlined in a 2016 cultural tourism plan, she is passionately ensuring new generations of Austinites have a culture to assimilate into that can’t be overwritten. Holt-Rabb concludes, “As long as you honor [the past] and you keep...connecting with people that get born and raised here, I don’t think you would ever water it down.”

48 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

1. H ow did you inherit your business sense? In high school I ran my baking business and after college had a bookkeeping business. I attended one of the best business schools in the country, Florida A&M University School of Business and Industry.

2. W ho would you like to pass it on to? I would love to pass my work ethic, business acumen and servant leader qualities to my son. He watches me do the #peopleswork. It’s a term coined by a previous EDD employee, and I use it every day.

3. Which part of Austin really reflects your personality? Grant AME Worship Center welcomed a transplant in over 20 years ago. HustonTillotson, an HBCU (historically Black college and university) is similar to my alma mater. There’s nothing like an HBCU homecoming.

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50 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

SUSANA CARBAJAL In 2019, Austin-Bergstrom Airport was Fodor’s runner-up for Best U.S. Airport. With a great selection of local restaurants, an uncrowded security process and the occasional live music performance, it’s a reassuring and very Austin place to spend an hour or two waiting for a flight. Susana Carbajal, the newest addition to the economic development executive team, spent 10 years working on it. Although travelers may not consider it while dragging bags and kids to the gate, the airport is a government entity owned and operated by the city of Austin. As assistant director of business development, Carbajal worked on everything from tenant management, to marketing, to governmental relations. Her two former career paths—in federal government and commercial law— converged to make her a great candidate to manage Austin’s first and last impression to visitors. “I think by building a small business community that is growing,” Carbajal says, “we’re able to provide our visitors, whether for leisure or for business...the local flare of Austin.” In Carbajal’s first year as assistant director of economic development, her job is not so different. She focuses on the small business, redevelopment and global business expansion divisions. In short, she emphasizes, the team builds “complete communities.” Not only do they represent a general Austin-ness to outsiders, they honor the residents and make sure that local flavor is sustainably produced. One underutilized area in proposals for redevelopment is the St. John’s site. The former location of a Home Depot and Chrysler dealership on I35 sits abandoned. The 19 acres await local businesses and creative groups, performance spaces and splashes of green to break up the concrete. Most importantly, the redesign must include affordable housing to avoid pricing out its predominantly Latinx and Black neighbors. The team also mitigates the risk of gentrification by ensuring community members are present for every step of the process, from seminars to meetings with the mayor. Businesses of all sizes throughout Austin can participate in trainings by the department, whether or not they are involved in redevelopment areas. The outreach even works on a global scale, bringing Egyptian fashion designers to Austin for a new exchange program announced this fall. A quickly expanding Austin has known for decades that people will come. But Carbajal is making sure the city remembers how to reach out.

1. H ow did you inherit your business sense? From all the women in my family, of course! My sisters taught me to dream big, my mother taught me to never give up and my grandmothers taught me to be creative and resourceful. 2. W ho would you like to pass it on to? Every business owner in Austin who is wondering and worrying what tomorrow will bring. I say to them, “Let’s dream big together! How can we use this opportunity to transform the business landscape?” 3. Which part of Austin really reflects your personality? The North Lamar International District. I love to travel and learn about cultures through art and food. I can visit businesses there and remember the tastes, sights and sounds of Latin America, Asia and the Mediterranean.

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RECIPE REVEAL

PUTTING HERITAGE BACK INTO BAKING

With grains stone milled from Barton Springs Mill, Abby Jane Love reimagines “heritage.” BY ALLIE JUSTIS

ouisiana native Abby Jane Love came to Austin back in 2013, and after being in the restaurant community for a few years, she wanted to branch out and get back to her bakery roots. In 2016, Love was brought onto the Barton Springs Mill team to oversee their in-house bakery, and from there she never looked back. “I was really immersed in the world of local food in a way that I had never been before,” says Love. “It’s a hard life, but I feel like I have a pretty specific set of skills that enable me to be a link in the chain between what the farmers are doing, what the millers are doing and what the public is wanting.” Barton Springs Mill specializes in stone-milled heirloom and landrace grains, which aren’t commercially or strategically bred. The mill sources their grains from a handful of farmers. After the grains are put through a stone milling process to create their unique flour, Love uses the final products in her baked goods. “It’s a living product,” says Love. “It’s nutritionally superior, and they all taste different. When you use the stone milling process, you just get more flavor. So as a baker…I got to do what chefs everywhere get to do when they get to choose the healthy ingredients to make my products.” Love strives to always make a good impact on the community by using local ingredients in her baking and supporting sustainable agriculture. “My goal has always been to be a beloved neighborhood bakery,” says Love. “I’m not trying for a James Beard Award, I’m not trying to hit the top 10. I just want our customers to love us and to keep coming.” Love chose to reveal her favorite cranberry scone recipe, as well as the secret to getting the best results. “I think the best way to get the most bang-foryour-flour buck is by using whole wheat flour,” says Love. “Whole wheat flour helps make the scone more dense, which helps keep it together. A cream scone hydrates the flour nicely. Definitely use fresh flour and buy flour from Barton Springs Mill. It is 100% a game changer. Fresh flour will take your baking to a place you didn’t even know existed.” 52 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

WHOLE WHEAT CRANBERRY AND PISTACHIO SCONE WITH SATSUMA GLAZE Ingredients Scones:

Glaze:

1 Satsuma or small orange, zested and juiced

1/4 cup Satsuma or orange juice

1/3 cup sugar

2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

2 3/4 cup Marquis whole wheat flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 1 teaspoon sea salt 1/2 cup pistachios, lightly toasted 1 2/3 cup heavy cream 3 tablespoons honey 1/2 cup prepared cranberry jam 1 egg, beaten, or 1 tablespoon of heavy cream for brushing on top Directions 1. Preheat oven to 375°, then line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2. I n a medium bowl, combine zest of Satsuma and sugar. Rub between your fingers until the sugar becomes fragrant and resembles wet sand. 3. A dd flour, baking powder, salt and pistachios to the sugar mixture. 4. Separately, whisk together cream, honey and 2 tablespoons of Satsuma juice. 5. Pour the whisked liquids into the dry mixture all at once and mix just until the dough comes together. 6. D ivide the dough into two equal pieces and flatten each into an 8-inch circle. 7. Spread jam in a donut pattern over the top of one circle, leaving a 1/2 inch of border and about an inch diameter in the center uncovered. Top with the second circle and lightly press to connect. 8. C ut the circle into 8 wedges. 9. Transfer wedges to the prepared baking sheet and brush with egg wash or cream. 10. P lace the baking sheet in the refrigerator to chill 15 minutes before baking. (At this point, scones may rest up to 18 hours in the refrigerator.) 11. B ake for 20-22 minutes, or until golden brown and baked through. 12. T o make the glaze, stir together juice and powdered sugar. For best results, spoon over the top of scones while still slightly warm to get a melty, drip effect. (Optionally, add additional chopped pistachio for garnish before the glaze sets.) 13. The prepared scone dough can also be flash frozen. Place scone wedges on a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover in plastic wrap and set in the freezer for 30-45 minutes before baking. Bake straight from frozen and increase baking time by 5-7 minutes. Use frozen dough within a week.

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Photo courtesy of Abby Jane Bakeshop.

ON THE MONEY

JOY TO YOUR BUDGET

Here are a few tips so you don’t go broke this holiday season. BY JENNY HOFF

There are many reasons to celebrate this month. The holidays are here, but so is the end of a year that has caused health anxiety, financial distress and a global economic shutdown. Bring on 2021! While there is no way to know how the pandemic will play out or when the economy will rev up again, one thing you can do to start off 2021 on the right foot is to avoid high credit card bills arriving in January. That doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate; it just means you might want to get creative when showing your festive spirit. 1. Budget First, Spend Later The most important step to celebrating the season is making a budget and sticking to it. This should include how much you plan to spend on food, drinks, gifts and decor. If you don’t trust that you will log every purchase to know if you’ve hit your limit, then either consider downloading a budgeting app like Mint, YNAB or EveryDollar that will track it for you, or put the amount you’ve calculated on a gift card to use when making all holiday and seasonal purchases. Give yourself a hard rule to not reload it.

“”

3. Creative, Budget-Conscious Gift Ideas If you’re shopping for small kids, there is no reason you need to pay top dollar to buy new toys. Staying at home has given people ample time to clear out their toy closets, and you can find some great deals on gently used (and sometimes new) toys on places like Facebook Marketplace, the Nextdoor app and in local resale shops. Join your local “buy nothing” Facebook group, where you can both request and offer up items that will make for great gifts, without so much as a dollar exchanging hands. For items you need to purchase, most sellers nowadays are set up to take virtual payments over Venmo or PayPal and are happy to leave items on the front porch to avoid person-to-person contact. For adult gifts, this is the time to put personality over price. If you have a cocktail lover in the family, consider making cocktail mixes in mason jars that can be mixed with their favorite liquor for a refreshment at home. Or create cookie mixes in mason jars so those with a sweet tooth can enjoy a treat with just a few added ingredients. If it’s been an especially hard year financially, avoid spending any money and offer a virtual lesson on a skill you have to someone you love. Whether you enjoy cooking, playing piano, painting, knitting or writing, find something you can share with a loved one in a fun one-on-one class, either in person or virtually.

Put personality over price.

2. Make Your List and Check It Twice The best way to avoid going broke is to avoid impulse buys on “doorbuster” sales. Instead, make a detailed list of what gifts or items you need to buy and don’t deviate from it. 54 | AUSTIN WOMAN | DECEMBER 2020

4. Saving on Food and Decorations If there is one time you can get away with DIY decorations and casual food, it’s 2020, so take advantage of it. Search the web for creative ways to decorate using items you already have and make it an old-fashioned holiday celebration with basic dishes and simple ingredients. If family is coming over, plan out what you need and assign each person a dish or drink to bring so you only need to cook one thing yourself. To go really budget-friendly, suggest a virtual holiday celebration with family and avoid cooking altogether. This is the year anything goes!

December 2020

Articles inside

ON THE MONEY Holiday Tips

BEAUTY Raeka Panda

FANYA RANDALL

I AM AUSTIN WOMAN Dr. Choquette Hamilton

A CHAT WITH Riders Against the Storm

RECIPE REVEAL Whole Wheat Cranberry

SEE HER WORK Nan Blassingame

COUNT US IN Women in Numbers