AY About You October 2022

MY LA GOS MY WA Y

Kell

Since 1994, Real Estate professional, Tracie J. Kelley, continues to dominate the industry in Central Arkansas from every angle, and her business acumen only prove that point, further!

With a professional team of over 35 members, KellCo Real Estate is driven to deliver exceptional results and unwavering customer service. As President and Chief Executive Officer of KellCo Custom Homes Inc., Energy Air Inc., and KellCo Real Estate Inc., Kelley certainly has the upper hand when providing powerful insights for her clients on any spectrum. “I hold myself, along with my clients, to higher standards

and expect to receive exceptional results.”

If you’re in the market to BUY. SELL. BUILD. DESIGN. RENOVATE. -Tracie J. Kelley and her team has got you covered! An integral part of KellCo Real Estate is Principal Broker, Mary Freeman, who infuses a wealth of knowledge and wisdom into the firm. Mary has served Arkansas since 1984 and delivers outstanding customer support.

Together, the experts at team KellCo work hard for its clients and delivers only the best at every turn. “Let’s work together and find the right solution for your Real Estate needs,” says Kelley.

SELL. BUILD. DESIGN. RENOVATE.

Make 2022 Your Year for the

Mary with beautiful porcelain veneers.

Wyant

Arkansas’ only

experience and

individual patient insures

receive exceptional esthetic results

of the challenges

more how Dr. Wyant can help you have an incredible smile

today

WHAT’S

&GARDEN

FOOD&DRINK

HEALTH

ON THE COVER

Fine Arts are Fantastic at PCSSD

Fine art programs in school have been proven to help students with motor skills, language and math, and help students with problem solving and decision making. All of these reasons, and more, is why the Pulaski County Special School District is dedicated to providing high quality fine art instruction to students across central Arkansas.

This year, PCSSD has a number of new fine arts educators bringing their skills and expertise in their creative field to students. There is a new band or choir director in three middle schools and one high school.

Mr. Christopher Cross is the new choir director at Joe T. Robinson Middle School. “This year, my plan and focus is to help students develop independent and group artistry,” said Mr. Cross. “I want them to develop and engage their imagination. I believe a vocal music program is a system of uniquely gifted individuals learning to develop their talents in community with other artists. Each artist learns from one another how to develop their perspective gift.”

Mr. Ray Cross is the new middle school band director at Mills Middle School. “Teaching music to children is the best job in the world, in my opinion, and having the opportunity to do exactly what I want to be doing in my first year, I could not pass up,” said Mr. Cross. “I am looking forward to building relationships, helping scholars succeed at their highest level, and to hone in on my personal craft as a music educator.”

Mr. Joshua Jackson is the new head band director at Maumelle High School.

“The Maumelle Band program and its students have a reputation and tradition of working hard to achieve superior results both as a music ensemble and as individuals,” said Mr. Jackson. “I wanted to have the chance to be a small part of this wonderful program, to work alongside my colleagues, Mr. Williamson and Mr. Meadows, and of course teach the wonderful band students of Maumelle High School.”

And Mrs. Anna-Wray Robinette is the new choir director at Sylvan Hills Middle School. “My plan for this year is to give my students as much knowledge and experience as possible,” said Mrs. Robinette. “Most of all, I want to give them a positive musical experience that will help them appreciate music for life.”

These educators are great additions to PCSSD’s long list of existing talented educators and we are looking forward to watching them grow and pass on their passion to our scholars.

ABOUT PCSSD

Pulaski County Special School District spans more than 600 square miles in central Arkansas and requires highly skilled and passionate personnel to adapt educational policies and personalization to 26 schools. Every school is accredited by the Arkansas State Board of Education. PCSSD has served schools across Pulaski County since July 1927.

PCSSD is committed to creating a nationally recognized school district that assures that all students achieve at their maximum potential through collaborative, supportive and continuous efforts of all stakeholders.

PRESIDENT & PUBLISHER

Heather Baker hbaker@aymag.com

EDITORIAL OPERATIONS MANAGER

Lindsey Castrellon lcastrellon@aymag.com

MANAGING DIGITAL EDITOR

Kellie McAnulty kmcanulty@aymag.com

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Sarah Coleman scoleman@aymag.com

ONLINE EDITOR

Kilee Hall khall@aymag.com

STAFF WRITERS

John Callahan jcallahan@aymag.com

Mak Millard mmillard@aymag.com

Katie Zakrzewski katie@aymag.com

PRODUCTION MANAGER

Mike Bedgood mbedgood@aymag.com

GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Lora Puls lpuls@aymag.com

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES

Linda Burlingame lindaaymag@aol.com

Tonya Higginbotham

thigginbotham@aymag.com

Mary Funderburg mary@aymag.com

Tonya Mead tmead@aymag.com

Amanda Moore amoore@aymag.com

Colleen Gillespie colleen@aymag.com

ASSISTANT TO THE PUBLISHER

Jessica Everson jeverson@aymag.com

ADVERTISING COORDINATOR

Rachel Mercer ads@aymag.com

CIRCULATION

Ginger Roell groell@aymag.com

CONTRIBUTORS

DeWaine Duncan, Kenneth Heard, Jordan Knight, Verity Miller, Ryan Parker, Sarah Russell

ADMINISTRATION

Casandra Moore billing@aymag.com

Vicki Vowell, CEO

TO ADVERTISE:

501-244-9700 or hbaker@aymag.com

TO SUBSCRIBE:

501-244-9700 or aymag.com

Please submit press

press@aymag.com

Joe David Rice, born in Paragould and reared in Jonesboro, probably knows Arkansas as well as anyone alive. The former owner of an outfitting business on the Buffalo National River and the state’s former tourism director, his Arkansas Backstories is published by the Butler Center.

Dwain Hebda is president of Ya!Mule Wordsmiths in Little Rock. A writer, editor and journalist of some 30 years, his work appears in more than 30 publications in four states. Nebraskan by birth, Southern by the grace of God, he and his wife, Darlene, have four grown children and two lovely dogs.

Kaitlin Barger is a Little Rock native who has been contributing to AY Magazine for nearly four years. She has an affinity for animals and serves as an officer on the board of directors for the Friends of the Animal Village. Kaitlin earned her bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Arkansas.

Julie Craig began her magazine career while living in New York City as an intern at Seventeen. With fashion and home design as her forte for the past 15 years, Julie is a blogger, writer and editor who has reported stories for Us Weekly and written about and photographed New York Fashion Week.

Nic Williams, an Arkansas native, is a practicing lawyer and contributor to AY About You. He has developed original recipes for more than half a decade and considers Ina Garten as his inspiration. Most importantly, he’s a proud doggy dad and is grateful for his supportive friends and family.

Becky Gillette is a freelance writer/ photographer based in Eureka Springs whose work has been published in about 50 magazines and in newspapers nationwide. Her articles have appeared in Ladies Home Journal, Organic Gardening, Utne Reader, E, The Environmental Magazine, Arkansas Medical News, BioScience and Stockman Grass Farmer

Angela Forsyth lives in Northwest Arkansas. Her articles have been published in AY About You, Arkansas Money and Politics, Food & Drink, Modern Home Builder, Manufacturing Today, Inside Healthcare, Retail Merchandiser and many more magazines. She’s a happy wife and mom to four kids and a dog.

Jason Pederson spent 20 years as KATV’s Seven On Your Side reporter.

He is now Deputy Chief of Community Engagement for the Arkansas Department of Human Services.

He and his wife, Mary Carol, have two bio logical children and one bonus son. They are long-time members of Fellowship Bible Church in Little Rock.

services advertised

the magazine are not necessarily endorsed by AY

Please recycle this magazine.

publisher's letter

A Thing of Beauty

I’ve always had an appreciation for the finer things in life, and the fine arts is no exception.

I recently visited Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville to check out the Listening Forest exhibit by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer. The Listening Forest uses light, sound and projections for an interactive experience as guests walk through the woods. Eight immersive installations are featured in the exhibit, with each installation activated by heart rate, body, voice and movements. The entire experience was captivating and I left with an even greater appreciation for what the arts have to offer us here in Arkansas.

In this issue, you’ll get to meet (if you haven’t already) and see some spectacular works from one of my favorite artists, Buddy Whitlock. I consider Buddy a friend, especially after he created a stunning portrait of yours truly to give my living room that wow factor and a uniquely personal feel.

We’ll also take you behind the scenes of The Walton Arts Center’s new P&G Broadway Series, which brings some of the most notable Broadway classics from NYC straight to NWA.

Speaking of the classics, our October Bucket List celebrates cheese dip – which, did you know, originated right here in our great state, at Little Rock’s own Mexico Chiquito? We will be diving into some of our favorites, including Stoby’s in Conway, and you’ll find out which spots throughout the state made it on this month’s ‘Cheese Dip Bucket List.’

We will be appreciating our ‘Intriguing Women’ of 2022 in this issue as well, and this year’s class is truly a work of art. These ladies are strong and beautiful – inside and out – and we are proud to honor them here.

Of course, we haven’t forgotten that spooky season has arrived, and we have a few spine-tingling features to help get you in the spirit. We’re searching for Bigfoot and asking the important questions along the way such as, if he does exist, is he an Arkansan? We’ll also tag along with local content creator Dustin Poynter on a recent adventure through the always eerie Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs.

Today, take a moment to watch the sunset, then relax and appreciate the beauty of this month’s issue of AY Magazine.

That’s it from me, and us, this time. Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoy.

Heather Baker, President & Publisher

CONNECT

READER FEEDBACK

WHATABURGER IS HEADED TO WEST LITTLE ROCK

“Burgers!!! More burgers!”

Shawn McAnulty

ARKANSAS-PRODUCED PODCAST TO EXAMINE DEATH OF TEXARKANA WOMAN

“Anticipation! Making me wait.”

Geneva Martin Hartman

KELLCO CUSTOM HOMES SETS TRENDS WITH PRISTINE CHENAL VALLEY PROJECTS

“Gorgeous.”

Vickie Kooiman Gillespie

‘PAUL’S PROMISE’ MOVIE HIGHLIGHTS HOLDERFIELD’S LIFE OF FIGHTING FOR GOOD

“I grew up with the Holderfields at Clendenin elementary and the Boy's Club. I knew Paul Sr. as well. Great family.”

Karl S Reynolds

ARKANSAS COMIC CON BOASTS STAR-STUDDED LINEUP

“On my way now.”

John Hancock Mcglohn

ROCK N ROLL SUSHI OPENS ITS DOORS AT BENTON LOCATION

“Always consistently great sushi!”

Diana D Smithson

GET YOUR GOAT: ARKANSAS GOAT FESTIVAL RETURNS TO PERRYVILLE

“See y’all there!!! For the greatest of all times!!!”

The Gravel Yard

WHITE HALL TEEN IS YOUNGEST STATE CHESS CHAMP IN ARKANSAS HISTORY

“It’s a very small rural town close to where I grew up!”

Pamela D Rossitte

TRENDING ON AYMAG.COM

Whataburger

to West Little Rock

Arkansas State Fair Live Music Lineup

3-2-1:

‘Saturday Night

Brown’s

INSTAGRAM

The Arkansas State Fair is returning for its 82nd year,and has recently announcedits live music schedule.

Yellow Rocket Concepts,the company behindseveral restaurant favorites, including Taco & TamaleCo., has announced plansto open Fayetteville Taco &Tamale Co. in the South Yard Development.

Ballet Arkansas has an nounced that it will tour its production of Dracula, which is a multimedia infused production, to the Fayetteville Public Library Event Center from Oct. 14-15.

If you’re in Conway today be sure to go by and see our new friends at Gibson’s Cat Café, who are celebrating their grand opening!

agenda

Top

5

you just can't miss!

BIKES, BLUES & BBQ

October 5-8

Rogers

If you have not experienced the roads of the Ozarks, then you are in for a fun ride. If you are a rally regular, then welcome to another fun year. Bikes, Blues, and BBQ is a non-profit motorcycle rally with a purpose that benefits women, children and the underserved members of the Northwest Arkansas community. Since the first Bikes, Blues and BBQ, the organization has donated in excess of $3 million to local charities.

THE BLACK KEYS

October 13

The Walmart AMP – Rogers

It’s a whole vibe. Hip-hop super-duo Run the Jewels, featuring rapper and producer El-P and rapper Killer Mike, and Grammy award-winning artist Big Boi (one-half of OutKast) take the stage at the Momentary as part of a weekend-long celebration of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art's current exhibition The Dirty South: Contemporary Art, Material Culture, and the Sonic Impulse.

YUNG GRAVY

October 14

JJ’s Live! - Fayetteville

All aboard the Gravy train!

Come enjoy some “music for your dad, mom and sister” by the one and only, Yung Gravy. Matthew Raymond Hauri, known professionally as Yung Gravy, is an American rapper. JJ's Live is Fayetteville's premiere music and event center. See the venue’s full line up at JJsLive.com.

NORTH LITTLE ROCK AIRSHOW

October 22

North Little Rock Municipal Airport

Back after a six-year hiatus, the North Little Rock Airshow features intense, entertaining aerial demonstrations by nationally recognized aerial acts as well as a jet truck, parachute team, military aircraft and equipment, scale model aircraft demonstrations and more! A kid’s zone will include bounce houses and STEM projects and activities with the Arkansas Regional Innovation Hub and other local agencies.

HOME FOR HEALING’S

2022 MONSTER BASH

October 28

The Venue at Westwind – North Little Rock

Monster Bash is an eerie evening full of silent and live auction items, devilish drinks, hors d'oeuvres, dancing and monstrous music by the band Jet420. The Bash is the biggest fundraiser for Home for Healing, providing almost 1/3 the cost to run the charitable facility. There will be costume contests for individuals, groups and couples. Tickets include heavy hors d'oeuvres, allyou-can-drink full bar and a seat at a table.

HOT SPRINGS

Happenings

HOT SPRINGS NATIONAL PARK KENNEL CLUB DOG SHOW

Sept. 30 – Oct. 1 Hot Springs Convention Center

MAGIC SCREAMS WEEKENDS

Oct. 1 – 30 Magic Springs Theme and Water Park

HOT WATER HILLS MUSIC AND ARTS FESTIVAL

Sept. 30 – Oct. 1 Hill Wheatley Plaza

HOT SPRINGS DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL

Oct. 7 – 15 Arlington Resort Hotel and Spa

HOT SPRINGS ARTS AND CRAFTS FAIRE

Oct. 7 – 9 Garland County Fairgrounds

ARK-LA-TEX TATTOO AND ART EXPO

Oct. 7 – 9 Hot Springs Convention Center

ARKANSAS HIGH COUNTRY RACE Oct. 8 Downtown Hot Springs

SPA CITY OKTOBERFEST Oct. 8 Exchange Street Parking Plaza

DON’T DRINK THAT! SPONSORED BY MIDAMERICA SCIENCE MUSEUM Oct. 13 Ozark Bathhousee

23RD ANNUAL HOT SPRINGS CORVETTE WEEKEND Oct. 21 – 22 Hot Springs Convention Center

AARON LEWIS: FRAYED AT BOTH ENDS, THE ACOUSTIC TOUR Oct. 22 Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort

AAA STATE VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIP Oct. 29 Bank OZK Arena

BRIDGE STREET LIVE! HALLOWEEN ICHABOD BASH Oct. 28

Bridge Street Entertainment District

GLOW ON THE ROW TRICK OR TREATING & HARVEST FESTIVAL Oct. 31 Downtown Hot Springs

Luxury Lake Oasis:

THE HOLLOWS AT BEAVER LAKE

Northwest Arkansas dream team creates a standout lake home nestled along Beaver Lake

By Julie Craig // Photos courtesy of Philip Thomas with Novo Studio

While enjoying time at the lake, it’s often said, “Life slows down. Friends stay longer.” A place of tranquility for many, the lake is a spot of respite and time away from the mundane daily to-do’s of life. Many lake houses were built years ago for generations of families to enjoy year after year. Certainly, anyone visiting this new subdivision along Beaver Lake in Northwest Arkan sas will want to stay forever.

Key Concepts, LLC, a Northwest Arkansas-based general contracting firm, which began in 2019 with a “design, build, develop concept,” created The Hol lows at Beaver Lake. With luxury-at-the-lake vibes, these modern lake homes are a part of a community in a highly desirable location, nestled within an established subdivision. The concept is a new, fun twist for one of the most popular recreational areas in the state. Developed with easy access fewer than three minutes away from Prairie Creek Marina, the largest marina in Northwest Arkansas, homeowners and guests can enjoy restaurants, campsites and ample boat ramps.

The Hollows at Beaver Lake features seven luxurious, one-acre lots, including the modern farmhouse style home that was a winner in this year’s “Northwest Arkansas Parade of Homes.” It is listed by The Sudar Group real estate team, which is based in Fayetteville and serving Greater Northwest Arkansas. Owned by Doug and Corrine Su dar, the agency is only a year old and is already one of the fastest growing brokerages in Arkansas. “This was a fun home for us, and a lot of character was brought out with the builder’s vision,” Corrine says.

“The exterior of this standout new construction is de signed to add a bit of modern luxury to the area,” says Key Concepts Owner Joseph Stevens. The striking iron ore hue, dubbed “the dark horse” by the team, is truly what sets it apart at first glance.

Features like cement siding and a light troweled cement finish over the foundation wall below, along with composite decking with a black metal and cable system, also make it a sustainable effort. Metal accent roofing over the large front porch and dormers on the roof further lend to the farmhouse appeal. A tongue and groove ceiling above the porch is stained to match the oversized beam and columns for a soft contrast to the overall “dark horse” façade.

No details are left behind outdoors: Even the driveway has score marks to create a chevron design pointing toward the home, leading down modern black-and-blue-rock stepping

stones, which coincide with the black on the home and the blue in the spruce and evergreen landscaping that lines the home’s yard.

Grand exterior lighting is found under the garage windows and on each side of the entry door to “light the ol’ horse up,” Stevens says. The covered back porch is clad in tongue and groove stained wood with a wa terfall beam effect that creates a panoramic view of the new community, establishing the overall relaxing, lake house aesthetic.

An upward, open-air ambience begins immediately upon entering past the double eight-foot steel front doors with full-light glass and keyless entry, which lead into the dining room.

A tongue and groove stained tray ceiling and long, elegant pendant lights above the dining table overlook the beautiful, panoramic view off the back covered deck.

But it’s the living room that really sets the tone, draw ing the eyes up to a 21-foot, slate-covered fireplace with a wood slat accent wall on each side. “My favorite room would have to be the living room with the stunning ac cent walls on each side of the fireplace,” says Lisa Locke

“We like to mix metals up and blend them into the other details and colors within the home.”

with Encore Building Supply, who selected all floor ing finishes and helped with the design of the home. Amye Hebert, director of Marketing and Design for Key Concepts, took care of staging and accent pieces to achieve a beautiful overall interior design.

The opposite side of the room features a cus tom metal spiral staircase that leads to a wide-open 532-square-foot loft, designated as a game room for entertaining. The room overlooks the living area and features a wooden accent wall with an interactive scan code that plays the song “Wonderwall” by Oasis.

The kitchen features an oversized island with a double waterfall covered in Cambria quartz and a stained butcher block centerpiece that doubles as a buffet counter for an eat-in space.

Clean lines flow along with the open-air interior design, with white-on-white hues and contrasting wood features that soften the overall feel and tie in the wood flooring and tongue and groove ceiling.

In fact, the interior paint color was created as a canvas using alabaster white for the walls, ceiling and trim, while the cabinets were inspired by the HGTV Dream House 2022. Accents from that home were incorporated throughout.

Individually selected lighting from pendants to accent lights were chosen in brass, black and other metal finishes. “We like to mix metals up and blend them into the other details and colors within the home,” Hebert explains.

White oak premium wood flooring sets a rustic, lakeside tone, but carpet was placed in the loft and secondary bedrooms for noise control and comfort.

It’s no doubt this is a project made from com plete collaboration, inviting every lake lover to take a closer look at the possibilities of living on the lake in luxury.

A couple of extra “tricks” the interior designer did on the home:

We slimmed up the vertical casing around all doors and created a larger header casing at the top to make them appear taller and match the vertical theme.

We trimmed out the window jamb only with a reveal from the wall and stained the wood not to make the window appear bulky or traditional and gave it a modern feel.

BoBrook Farms pumpkin patch: PLAYGROUND FUN FOR ALL AGES

By BECKY GILLETTE

Around

this time of each year, BoBrook Farms in Roland transforms into a playground that includes a pumpkin patch with dozens of dif ferent types of pumpkins, a corn pit, a sunflower field in full bloom, piglet races, a hay pyramid with slides and tunnels and opportunities to visit with farm animals. There are also hayrides in a wagon driven by a tractor to get a tour of the farm.

Most of the visitors are families with children, or kids and teachers on school field trips. At times, they have visitors from retirement centers.

“We had a man visit who was 94 years old and had never ridden on a hayride,” says Karen Bradford, who owns and operates the farm along with her husband, Bob by Bradford. “You should have seen the look on his face. Seeing the joy on everyone’s faces is a great reward for all our hard work.”

It is a lot of effort setting up the attraction located on 13810 Combee Lane in Roland, a small community just outside of Little Rock, about 5 miles from Pinnacle State Park which draws between 10,000 and 15,000 visitors per year.

“We are worn out by the time we get it set up,” Karen says. “Once we get it up and going, our favorite part is seeing those kids’ faces light up. A lot of them are seeing farm animals for the very first time. We try to keep it as educational as possible. A lot of pumpkin patches have things that have nothing to do with farming like bounce houses. Every single attraction on the farm is farm-related.”

There are beehives on the farm, and the staff talks to the kids about bees and pollinating. If they will listen. A lot of times, the little ones are so excited that they are more interested in experiencing the fun than learning. The children, many of them from the city, are getting exposed to farm life while getting to run around and play. Families are usually there for at least two hours, sometimes longer.

“We have several mazes,” Karen says. “The one that draws the most people is the 1.5-acre sunflower field. It is beautiful for photos. For the small children, there is a hay bale maze and a fence maze. The biggest attraction for the little ones is our corn pit. We put between 6,000 and

8,000 pounds of corn in the pit. It is like a giant sandbox, but it is corn. They love it. After the season is over, we grind it up and feed it to the animals and the wildlife.”

The farm is called BoBrook after the Bradfords’ chil dren, Bo and Brook. They both have other jobs off the farm, but help out on the weekends.

The hayride takes people around the farm to see the fields, grape vineyard, the orchard and – a particular hit with kids – about 25 funny scarecrow scenes.

“My daughter is pretty good at making the scarecrows,” Karen says. “We get ideas from Pinterest. You can do a lot of fun things with hay bales. We are giving round bale art a whirl this time.”

There is also the River Bottom Winery at the farm that

Photos courtesy of Karen Bradford

Photos courtesy of Heather Baker

is open weekends throughout the year and offers free wine tasting. At the October pumpkin patch events, adults can have a glass of wine while the kids play.

“It is a big draw,” Karen notes.

The Bradfords have been operating the pumpkin farm since 2009. Usually, they plant four to five acres of pump kins, but went down to 1.5 acres this year. It was a challenging season for farmers because of the weather.

“The main thing was it was too wet early in the year,” Karen explains. “We couldn’t get the ground prepared. Dur ing the heat and drought this summer, we were able to irrigate everything, so that was not really an issue with us. We have a buddy in Lonoke who is having a good season, and we will be getting some pumpkins from him.”

Some of the most popular deco rative pumpkins are flat, white boer pumpkins, Cinderellas, blue dolls and porcelain dolls, all of which can be stacked. The traditional orange pump kins for carving are also a hit, and the smaller pumpkins that kids can carry are popular, too.

There are quite a few spaces set up for por traits of kids and families. And the farm animals get a lot of attention. In addition to piglets, there are goats and chickens. The Bradfords may bring their baby calf down. “We have a variety of animals for them to see,” Karen says.

The Bradfords didn’t grow up on a farm, but it was Bobby’s dream to farm. They purchased their farm 30 years ago and have slowly evolved from more traditional row-crop agriculture to agritourism, fruit trees and the winery that offers 27 different varieties of wine.

“I don’t care what you are growing, it is a roll of the dice,” Karen says. “It is a gamble. You are dependent on so many factors that are out of your control. We grow peaches, apples and pears. It was so hot earlier in the year that we didn’t

There are quite a few spaces set up for portraits of kids and families. And the farm animals get a lot of attention.

get good pollination of the fruit. We got only a few peaches this year, enough for us, but not enough to sell.

"This year, the wildlife is tearing up the trees. We have 150 apple trees, and normally begin harvest at the end of September. I guess because of the heat and drought, the wildlife is coming out of the woods to get something to eat. We’ve never had this much trouble. We have tried everything we can think to deter the wildlife. It is mostly racoons and opossums, but deer get their share. We are close to the river. And we have a bayou that goes through our property and a small lake that provides wildlife with plenty to drink.”

In their vineyard, they grow muscadines and grapes, in cluding the Arkansas State Grapes, Cynthiana, that are na tive to the area.

“We try to grow native plants because if plants like it here, they grow better,” she explains. “We make all the wine here. We do all the fermenting and bottling right here on the farm. We bring in juice from all over the world. We don’t grow a lot of the grapes for good traditional wines. They don’t grow well here. The winery is open every weekend with live music on the patio and great food and wine tasting.”

Admission to the pumpkin patch is $7 for ages two and up. All activities are included. The patch is open Mondays through Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in October. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays in October, hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Pumpkins are sold separately.

No pets are allowed to enter the pumpkin patch, including dogs. In addition to the pump kin patch, the farm hosts special events and other celebrations throughout the year.

Every single attraction on the farm is farm-related.

take it

By DWAIN HEBDA // Photos By KELLIE MCANULTY

Cheesy

The simplest of things can often be the most profound. An outnumbered group of ragtag farmers won the American Revolution. John 11:35 consists of two words. A Rubik’s Cube only has six sides to figure out, for crying out loud.

In the culinary world, it’s often the simplest dishes that satisfy us the most – the very essence of comfort food. Nowhere is that truer than Arkansas: From barbecue to greens to catfish to pie, our food culture was born of field and river and garden, refined at the hands of our mothers and grandmothers.

So, when I hear people scoff at the glories of cheese dip, I know they ain’t from around here. And truth be told, from that moment on, I look forward to their return from whence they came.

What a friend we have in cheese dip. As a con sumer of more than my share of this velvety delight, the beauty of the dish lies in its take-me-as-I-am simplicity – a bowl of liquified cheese dipped into with chips. Eat it as an appetizer, enjoy it with friends, ladle

it over a burrito; it’s the do-everything dish that fits any occasion.

There are certainly more sophisticated dishes (in fact, try to fuss it up too much and the cheese dip suffers, if you ask me) but that isn’t to say there’s not an art to making it. Oh sure, some Velveeta, some Rotel – maybe a little milk and a little butter, if you’re fancy – will get you by, but as for the truly life-altering versions, I am reminded of the oft-quoted axiom, “It’s simple, but it ain’t easy.”

Longtime Little Rock restaurant guru Don Dugan holds the keys to two cheese dip recipes, one for Dugan’s Pub and one for Dizzy’s Gypsy Bistro. The downtown spots are barely a couple blocks from each other, but their cheese dip recipes are galaxies apart.

“I’ll tell you a funny story,” he says. “When I was buying Dizzy’s from Darla [Huie], my wife and I and my two sons went and ate dinner there. Of course, we ordered the cheese dip. Well, Darla came over and sat down and talked to us for a minute, and said, ‘Once we get the money transferred, I’ll give you the cheese dip recipe.’

“I was like, ‘That’s OK. I think I can figure it out.’ She

goes, ‘Oh, can you? Why don’t you tell me?’ I told her what I thought it was and she looked at me and said, ‘You’re not even close.’ So, we did the deal, I got the recipe and I thought, ‘Holy cow. I wasn’t even close.’ Dizzy’s is a lot more intricate, a lot more complicated to put together.”

All the extra work is worth it. Dizzy’s recipe is the defending titleist of the annual World Cheese Dip Cham pionships, held each fall in Little Rock, and it wasn’t the first time the stuff came out on top. So why then, you ask, doesn’t Dugan serve it at both places?

“We have a really great product [at Dugan’s]. People go there for that,” he says. “Personally, I think Dizzy’s is the best cheese dip I’ve ever had, and I realize there’s a bias there. The one at Dugan’s is easier and faster, but still tastes really good. Besides, it’s my mom’s recipe that I modified a little bit.”

And therein lies the true beauty of cheese dip: As much as it connects us to traditions of the past, it is also a ready palette upon which cooks can exercise a measure of creativity that even we cheese dip purists can appreciate. Travel across Arkansas – heck, limit yourself to just this area – and you’ll find many translations of the dish, some yellow, some white, some a little spicier, some with protein thrown in.

“I don’t think cheese dip should be super spicy hot,” Dugan says. “It should taste like cheese and should have some flavor to it, and it should have a little bit of something, but it doesn’t need to be so much that it’s burning your face while you’re eating it. That’s what salsa is for.”

Cheese dip is as much a part of Arkansas history and culture as duck hunting, the Buffalo River or Central High School. You don’t find this dish everywhere in the country and where you do, it certainly doesn’t inspire the kind of passion as there is here.

It even has its own documentary, "In Queso Fever: A Movie About Cheese Dip," made by Little Rock native Nick Rogers, which should be mandatory viewing in the public school sys tem. Rogers’ badge of Arkansas patriotism was burnished by the public chastisement of the Dallas Morning News over his ori gins claims, only to have them recant later. (More on those pesky Texans in a second.)

According to the film and other published sources, like 2016’s “The Sound of One Chip Dipping” by the Southern Foodways Alliance, cheese dip was invented in 1935 by Blackie Donnelly who briefly operated a restaurant in Hot Springs before moving to a space in Protho Junction, North Little Rock. The original digs of Mexico Chiquito left a lot to be desired – dirt floors and all that –but the cheese dip packed them in from everywhere.

In Little Rock, seemingly anyone who has ever been in the restaurant business has dabbled in cheese dip, so it is hard to pin down the first. The bygone Juanita’s, Browning’s and Blue Mesa Grill all were early perfectors of the dish from which it spread to seemingly every other eatery in town, Mexican-themed or not. Recipes were copyrighted, sworn to secrecy, locked in vaults.

In 2016, the dish spilled into a border skirmish with those sen sitive Texas rascals who this time took umbrage to a New York Times story on the provenance of Arkansas’s favorite dip. The ker fuffle reached Congress where Arkansas senators stood up to the Lone Star blowhards, declaring a duel between Heights Taco & Tamale Co. of Little Rock – the defending World Cheese Dip champ – and Uncle Julio’s, a supposed Texas queso stalwart. Ar kansas’s entry won, of course, even after some witnessed skulldug gery to stuff the ballot box otherwise.

Arkansas cheese dip at last received its global due when Con way’s hometown boy Kris Allen gave a shout out during his titlewinning run on "American Idol." It was a moment Stoby’s propri etor David Stobaugh will never forget.

“That’s an interesting story,” he says. “My wife, Patti, and I were following American Idol and she said, ‘You know, if he gets in the final three, they’re going to do a hometown visit. We need to give him lifetime cheese dip if he wins.’ I said, ‘Yeah, that’s a good idea.’ Several weeks go by and she asked me, ‘Have you done that yet?’ No, I hadn’t done that. A couple weeks later, ‘Have you done that yet?’ No.

“So I finally, with her urging, did that. My grand-niece was visiting with us, and she helped me put a banner on the roof of Stoby’s, about him getting lifetime cheese dip. Then, that night, when he went on TV, we were all watching and [Ryan] Seacrest said, ‘I understand your favorite restaurant is in Conway?’ to which Allen answered, ‘Yeah, Stoby’s, and they gave me something: Free cheese dip for life.’”

Stobaugh had already made a lot of cheddar on cheese dip, his restaurants feeding generations of hungry and broke college students in Conway and Russellville. As those students graduated and moved on, they created a market for retail, and Stoby’s cheese dip had a nice run on Walmart and grocery store shelves there for a while.

“I guess we started serving that in the very early ῾80s,” Sto baugh recalls. “How we developed it; I had gathered a bunch of recipes, put them all together. I had a head waitress for 20 years named Gina Perkins. She’d come in every morning and I’d say, ‘Gina, what do you think about this?’ I wore her out tasting cheese dip.

“We have both white and original and this is another little odd thing. The white dip at Walmart sold 10 to one over the original; at the restaurant, it’s 20 to one of the original versus the white. I never really did understand that. The white cheese dip is a good ingredient. We put it on our Philly sandwich and some burritos, whereas the original doesn’t make a very good ingredient. It’s good for eating, but that’s about it.”

Mañana

Rock

Cow

Coyote

Stoby’s

Mesa

Mama

Pronto

Rock,

Villa

Pizza

Rock

Pump

Taco Factory

By MAK MILLARD // Photos By KELLIE MCANULTY

It’s a name that often needs no introduction and conjures up a col lection of food memories spanning breakfast plates to burgers and that iconic yellow cheese dip. When asked to tell the story of Conway dining staple, Stoby’s, owner David Stobaugh leans back in his seat on the patio contentedly. It’s a tale that starts with some divine direction.

FACES BEHIND THE PLACE stoby’s

that Stobaugh would learn the ins and outs of the industry, as Finch lectured him for three months on how to run a mom-and-pop business instead of a franchise.

“My senior year in college, I was praying about what I should do at 2 o’clock in the morning,” Stobaugh begins. “It felt like the Lord put his hand on my shoulder and said that I should get into the restaurant business.”

Following this calling, Stobaugh made his way through various res taurant gigs for a few years. In 1979, almost exactly a year before open ing Stoby’s, he had a job offer from a Danver’s franchise in Louisiana. Once again, though, he felt that hand on his shoulder. Deep down, he knew he needed to stay in Conway, so he went to work wrapping sand wiches for barbecue legend Joe Finch downtown. It’s during this stretch

From here, the story picks up where most longtime fans will be familiar: At Mrs. Smith’s Pie Shop, the former occupant of the build ing that would become Stoby’s. After striking a deal with Mrs. Smith herself, Stobaugh opened Stoby’s on a loan of $4,000 from his brothers – in fact, you can still see the original banknote on the “history wall” in the restaurant.

Of course, it wasn’t all smooth sailing from there. After buying his equipment, Stobaugh didn’t have the money for the thing that would actually make his restaurant successful – the food.

“I didn’t want to call my brothers back, so I sold my car to buy the beginning food inventory.”

It’s a move that most would be too cautious to make, but it is one

that has paid dividends for Stoby’s since that opening day in July of 1980. The Russellville location opened later, in 1984, and both have be come essential pieces of their communities in the decades since.

Patti Stobaugh, the other half of that dynamic duo behind Stoby’s and PattiCakes, also has a career path that is less than conventional. She and David met in 2000 and were married in 2001. Patti was working as a corporate accountant at the time, but was fed up with her office job and decided to make a change after sending her youngest son, David Cooke, off to college. She was working as a cashier at the Russellville Stoby’s on Saturdays, and it just so happened that they were out of kitchen space for desserts.

One morning, Patti spotted a little bakery across the parking lot where the owner was outside putting up a sign: “Auction on Monday:

Everything Must Go.” Patti walked over to talk to her, and after buying her out and taking over the rent, PattiCakes opened its doors on Oct. 17, 2006 – the Stobaughs’ fifth wedding anniversary. They added the bakery to the Conway location in 2010.

David C. joined his family at the restaurant after getting out of col lege and currently manages the Russellville location. Clifton Stobaugh, David Stobaugh’s son, has worked at Stoby’s off and on since he was (not quite) tall enough to reach the button on the dishwasher. He rejoined the team full time in 2015 and now manages the Conway location.

Originally, Stobaugh only sold one thing – the Stoby’s sandwich. That sandwich is still the bestselling one on the menu, but the restaurant’s

offerings have bloomed over the years to include breakfast, burgers and fries and a vari ety of other options for hun gry diners. Breakfast ranges from the Northerner (featur ing corned beef hash) to the Southerner (with country ham) to breakfast quesadillas and pi tas. The lunch menu also has an impressive reach, with Jamai can jerk burgers and taco salads alongside croissant sandwiches and quesadillas.

But if there is one item on the menu that is mandatory to order every visit, it’s the cheese dip. For the classic concoction, Stobaugh collected several reci pes and took the best of each to create a winning formula. He can be hard to please, and while he was perfecting his recipe, ev eryone around him was subject to random bouts of taste-test ing. According to Stobaugh, it took “several months” to find a winner.

When it came to developing Stoby’s other cheesy offering, the spicy white dip, Clifton shudders, jokingly. “It got to the point where I wouldn’t answer my phone.” The white dip took almost a year and a half to get right, he adds.

That mindset is how Stobaugh runs both his kitchen and his busi ness. “One thing that ensures longevity is an attitude that says you can’t improve something 100%, but you can improve it 1%, one hundred times,” he says. “If you’re always thinking about what you can do better, that helps.”

He says he’s still not completely satisfied with the spicy white dip –the same one that won second place at the inaugural World Champion Cheese Dip Competition – and he’s not afraid to take an item off the menu for a little more research and development.

Stoby’s cheese dip was available in stores for a while, and some die hard fans still claim to find it in their local convenience stores. The dip made its way into Kroger and Walmart and as far out as Texas.

“I’ve even been in Alaska, and when someone finds out who my fam ily is, the first words out of their mouth are, ‘Love that cheese dip,’”

Clifton remarks.

When asked to explain how the dip has become so prolific, Patti explains things from a business perspective, and you can’t argue with the results. “David’s idea was to do a mild enough cheese dip that kids would get hooked on it, because then they’d have their parents bring them here.” Promotions in the early days included clips of toddlers chowing down on the mild dip, proving to parents that it would be a crowd-pleaser.

On top of the homegrown Stoby’s lovers, graduates from four uni versities (three in Conway, one in Russellville) have become unofficial brand ambassadors for the dip, helping to build the near-mythical status it now has across the state.

Sometimes, Stobaugh’s expansive taste and recipe tinkering strays outside of the diner style that guests have come to expect. Even the switch from frozen croissants to authentic, French-style pastries took some getting used to by customers. They’ve come around on that item, but it’s a testament to how strong the Stoby’s signature taste is in so many customers’ minds.

“I’m not a cook,” Stobaugh insists, though Patti rolls her eyes at the idea. His approach is better described as learning to play music by ear, though even that is a talent in itself. “It may be technical, but it’s not like I’m trying to learn how to do everything in the world. I just want to learn that because I like it.”

Clifton’s role in the restaurant has become one of refining, taking David’s intricate recipes and turning them into something that the kitchens at both locations can replicate. It’s in this way that he and David C. ensure that the Stoby’s brand will stay intact after Da vid and Patti hang up their aprons.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Seeing Stoby’s now, it’s hard to imagine that it was filled with smoke and flames just six years ago. Yet, even a devastating event like that seemed poised to happen at just the right mo ment, according to Stobaugh. Though nostalgic, the place was in need of some major updates.

The building Stobaugh bought from Mrs. Smith had been in service since 1940. For those who didn’t get to see it before it caught fire in 2016, Patti describes it simply: “It was a dump,” she says with a laugh.

Stobaugh admits that he didn’t always have plans to rebuild. No one could blame him, since watching your livelihood burn down would be enough to send a lot of restaurant owners packing. But, true to form –and thanks in large part to Patti – Stobaugh didn’t give up so easily.

“You are a staple in Conway and a part of this community,” Patti told him then, and she confesses that David still has a hard time recognizing that. If not for her and the swell of community support following the fire, Stoby’s might have disappeared forever.

“I think a lot of people would have revolted if we hadn’t reopened,” she says.

Soon, after just under a year and a half of rebuilding, Stoby’s went back to business as usual. Longtime customers made their way back to those new-yet-familiar tables, feeling almost like they never left.

The experience proved to be a blessing in disguise in another way, as Stoby’s had already been through the fire – both figuratively and literally – when the pandemic arrived. The rebuild had allowed them to revamp

“It’s a testament to the fact that families can work together, and work well.”

their drive-thru, meaning it was better able to handle the total ban on in-person dining. Similar to the other bumps in the road that led to the creation of Stoby’s, that fire turned out to be perfectly timed to make way for the restaurant’s success.

* *

The stakes of running a business are higher when your co-workers are your family members, but the Stobaughs struggle to think of a time where tensions ran high. To see them laugh and share stories out on the back patio, you have to believe they’ve figured out how to make the family run the business instead of letting the business run the family.

David C. was in middle school when his mother and Stobaugh mar ried, so he’s grown up watching David and Patti build Stoby’s into the mainstay it is today.

“He adopted me when I was six,” Clifton says of Stobaugh, “so we’ve been around each other a long time – through the worst times and the

best times.”

Clifton’s own story is one of addiction and recovery, and as he tells it, Stobaugh’s unwillingness to give up applies to his loved ones as much as to his business. “I had a colorful lifestyle,” Clifton says. “I started out a few years behind, so to speak. I’m still doing a lot of learning.”

“You’re doing a good job – both of these guys are,” Stobaugh says, looking between Clifton and David C. “Both restaurants are in good hands.”

* * * * * * * * * * * *

When asked about the future of Stoby’s, Clifton notes the statistics on second- and third-generation family-owned restaurants, which are less than optimistic. At the suggestion of more locations, both sons seem skeptical. “I’ve always said that if anyone other than a Stobaugh or a Cooke owned Stoby’s, they wouldn’t make it five years,” Clifton says.

“I think the future looks similar to how it does now,” David C. adds. “Serving the community, taking care of people, trying to foster a good work environment.” Just like Stobaugh, they both want to get the little things right.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

The road to Stoby’s and PattiCakes is a long and winding one. It’s a labor of love, a story of staying power and an irreplaceable plate on the Arkansas table. Toward the end of the conversation, though, David and Patti are able to sum things up in just a few words.

“This is a function of amazing grace,” David says.

“It’s a testament to the fact that families can work together, and work well,” Patti adds. “Which is grace.”

You will need

recipes Cheesy Zucchini Squash Bake

If you’re a fan of cheese, zucchini and squash, this recipe is for you! It makes a great side dish for any meal. The best part is, you can use as much (or as little, but why?) cheese as you’d like. This dish is best served right out of the oven.

By Kaitlin Barger

INGREDIENTS

2 medium yellow squash, cut into half-moon slices

2 medium zucchini, cut into half-moon slices

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 tablespoons thinly sliced green onion

1 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 2 cups shredded parmesan cheese

½ tablespoon Italian seasoning

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, for garnish

½ teaspoon breadcrumbs

Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375.

Spray a baking dish (I used the standard 13.2 x 8.9) with cooking oil.

Combine zucchini, squash, garlic, 1 cup of both cheeses, green onion, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper in the dish. Stir until squash is coated in cheese and spices are well-distributed.

Bake for ~20 minutes.

Check squash with a fork to make sure it’s mostly tender.

Remove from oven and sprinkle rest of the cheese on top, along with the breadcrumbs and red pepper flakes.

Bake for another 10 mins., or until cheese is melted and squash is fully baked.

Serve and enjoy!

recipes

You will need

Ooey Gooey Goulash

Although it’s not quite chili and not quite goulash, this ooey-gooey casserole will satisfy your craving for a budgetfriendly dinner, using ingredients you likely have in your pantry right now. Have crushed tomatoes instead of diced? No problem! Or maybe you have pasta shells, but no macaroni? Use the shells instead! Just remember that the casserole will taste saltier as it cooks, so wait until the end before adjusting seasonings.

By Nic Williams

INGREDIENTS

1½ cups dry elbow macaroni

1 sweet onion, chopped

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 pounds ground beef

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 28-oz. can diced tomatoes, with juice

6 oz. tomato paste

16 oz. chili beans, with juice

1 teaspoon chili powder

1½ teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

12 oz. shredded cheese, such as cheddar

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 375 and cook macaroni according to instructions on package.

2. Meanwhile, in a large Dutch oven, sauté onion in olive oil for 10 min. over medium heat, or until onion is soft and starting to brown.

3. Add ground beef and garlic powder to onions. Stir and cook seasoned beef until it has just turned brown and broken into small chunks, about 8-10 min.

4. Add tomatoes with juice, tomato paste, chili beans, chili powder, salt and pepper to Dutch oven. Stir until combined.

5. Drain macaroni, reserving 1 cup pasta water. Mix macaroni into Dutch oven and, if necessary, add enough pasta water to ensure a chili-like consistency.

6. Stir in paprika, put the lid on the Dutch oven and bake for 15 min. Remove lid and sprinkle cheese over the top of the dish, then put the lid back on and bake for an additional 8-10 min. until cheese has melted.

7. Adjust for seasoning if necessary and serve immediately.

theto Milky Way? See Ready

By JOE DAVID RICE

Frankly, I’ve never needed an excuse to visit the Buffalo River. My first ex perience on this classic Ozark stream occurred over 50 years ago, and I’ve been coming back every chance I can get since. The options are truly re markable. Camping, hiking and floating, of course, are right at the top of my list, but it also includes watching wildlife, fishing, photography, swim ming, skipping rocks and plain old relaxing.

Now there’s another good reason to make a pilgrimage to the country’s first national river: Arkansas’s Dark Sky Festival. It’ll take place Oct. 21-22 at the Tyler Bend recreation area, a fine complex operated by the National Park Service on the banks of the Buffalo north of Marshall.

But, you ask, what’s so special about a dark sky? Aren’t all skies dark at night? Well, yes, but not like they used to be – and that’s the problem. You may have read or seen news accounts about how light pollution is upsetting habitats and interfering with ecosystems. Yet Paul Bogard, in his enlightening book “The End of Night,” notes that the impacts go well beyond the disrup tion of migratory patterns of insects, birds and mammals. All kinds of human disorders and diseases, ranging from obesity to hypertension to cancer, have been linked to light pollution and sleep deprivation.

Recognizing this problem, a pair of astronomers formed the Internation al Dark-Sky Association in 1988, with a mission “to preserve and protect the nighttime environment and our heritage of dark skies” through properly shielded outdoor lighting. Since its founding, the association has certified over 130 dark sky reserves, parks and communities across the globe. In 2019, the Association designated the Buffalo National River as Arkansas’s first Dark Sky Park.

Organizing Arkansas’s Dark Sky Festival was a no-brainer for the Arkan sas Natural Sky Association. “The festival is an opportunity to reintroduce people to nature at night, to learn about responsible lighting and to enjoy releasing the soul to wandering among the countless stars of a near-natural night sky,” says Bruce McMath, the group’s chairman. “It is also hoped that the increasing awareness of this vanishing natural heritage resource will bring economic value to the communities that have such skies and work to preserve them.”

To be sure, Arkansas’s Dark Sky Festival will provide participants with a wonderful chance to view the heavens. Twenty or more powerful telescopes coming from four different states will be available for public use at no charge. But don’t wait until dark to show up, considering the full agenda the 21 part nering organizations have put together.

Start with a stop at the festival’s Welcome Center at the Silver Hill Float Service on U.S. Highway 65, about 10 miles or so north of Marshall, where you can pick up complete information on events and activities and purchase an assortment of dark-sky-related merchandise. It’ll be open Friday afternoon (Oct. 21) from 3 to 7 p.m., and then again on Saturday (Oct. 22) from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 4 to 7 p.m. Just beyond the Welcome Center is the park road (clearly marked) leading down to the Tyler Bend campground, visitor center and pavilion, where presentations will take place.

The Friday afternoon session will begin at 4 p.m., with talks from knowl edgeable volunteers about sky-watching activities, sessions on mitigating light pollution effects on wildlife and even a chance to select the winners in a ce lestial photography contest. Brief welcoming remarks are scheduled for 5:45 p.m., followed by an on-your-own dinner break. At 7:30 p.m., there’ll be a Constellation Tour with the Telescopic Star Party beginning at 7:50 p.m. The Orionid meteor watch and celestial scavenger hunt begin at 10:00 p.m.

Saturday’s events begin at 1:00 p.m., with a variety of adult programs on such topics as the birth and death of stars, the 2024 solar eclipse, beginning nightscape photography and how to self-certify your home as night-skyfriendly. But the kids aren’t overlooked, with a children’s celestial drawing contest, giant bubble blowing, solar-cooked marshmallows and stomp rocket

competition. Activities will pause at 6 p.m. for a dinner break. The Constellation Tour will kick off at 7:30 p.m. with the Telescopic View ing Party beginning at 7:50 p.m. As on the previous evening, the meteor watch and scavenger hunt will start at 10 p.m.

Now for some important miscellaneous tips and observations: 1) Arkansas’s October night skies are typically the clearest of the year, but if cloud cover shows up, don’t despair. Plans are already in place for a unique and engaging alternative program should Moth er Nature choose to be uncooperative; 2) Come dressed warmer than you might think, because the cooler tempera tures once the sun sets will probably surprise you; 3) Pack something warm to drink and a snack or two, especially if you plan on staying up to catch the Orionid meteor shower. Likewise, consider bringing a lounge chair, blanket or bed roll to improve your comfort during the meteor shower; 4) Leave your standard flashlights or flash cameras at home (human eyes require 20 minutes to fully adapt to the dark), but if you prefer a light source, bring a red or amber light (available online or at the festival’s welcome center); and 5) Binoculars aren’t necessary, but might prove handy.

Folks arriving early might make a quick jaunt up the road to Gilbert. This friendly little Searcy County commu nity – located just a couple of miles beyond the Tyler Bend Campground and nicely situated within walking distance from the Buffalo Na tional River – has been one of my favorite destinations for years. Not only is it quaint, it’s small (population: 25) and getting smaller, now ranking #19,302 on the list of largest cities in the United States.

Well into its second century, Gilbert was founded in 1902 as a construction camp for the Missouri and North Arkansas Railroad (M&NA, sometimes af fectionately known as the “May Never Arrive”). Named after a gentleman in volved in the railway’s construction, the town soon claimed a post office, cotton gin, two hotels, four stores, a gristmill, several wood mills, three doctors and a saloon. Gilbert fell into a gradual decline when the railroad went out of business in the mid-1940s, although the piers of the old M&NA bridge towering over the Buffalo can still be seen a mile or so downstream of the town.

Gilbert also served as the headquarters of a unique social experiment, the In coming Kingdom Missionary Unit. This utopian cult, established in Gilbert in 1920, chiefly failed for two reasons: The fact that some members eagerly sought to enjoy the possessions of others but didn’t want to share their own caused seri ous dissention. Then, when founder Rev. John Adams Battenfield failed, after three public attempts, to resurrect a dead member of his congregation in early 1925 as he had promised, most of the remaining members dispersed.

Clearly, the town abounds in history. Step into the old Gilbert General Store (1 Frost St., circa 1901) and you’ll step back a century or so in time. But in a concession to concerns of the 21st century, Mayor Alvin “Chip” Johnson and his city council members are working hard to make Gilbert a dark-sky-friendly city. And Jamie Craddock, owner of the Buffalo River Art Gallery (74 Church St. in Gilbert), will offer a celestial art class at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 22.

For complete details on this recent addition to Arkansas’s exciting festival scene, including lodging, dining and shopping options, check out darkskyar kansas.org/dark-sky-festival. If you’re looking for basic information on travel ing in the Natural State, go to the arkansas.com website. If we’re lucky, maybe fall colors will be on our leaves this weekend!

By KATIE ZAKRZEWSK Photos Courtesy of DAN SAWYER/GWL ADVERTISING

Arkansas State Fair

One of The Natural State’s favorite annual traditions is just around the corner: The Arkansas State Fair. Marking the arrival of cooler weath er and a plethora of fried snacks, this year’s State Fair is likely to be the greatest yet.

In 2019, State Fair attendance was 472,308 people. That record was smashed last year, as COVID-19 shutdowns began to end and the weather cooled off, bringing 539,358 people out to the fairgrounds.

This year is slated to break records again, and that means new snacks, rides, entertainment and safety precautions. Will Hornburg, director of Sales and Pro motions with the Arkansas State Fairgrounds, shares what you can expect this year.

Corndogs and Funnel Cakes and Turkey Legs,

This year’s state fair will include all of your favorites and classics, in addition to some newcomers.

For state fair nostalgics, you can expect to find funnel cakes, massive turkey legs and corndogs. But some newbies include a Chinese food vendor, pizza on a stick and dill pickle pizza, courtesy of Swaim’s Pizza, and a sirloin tips booth. Hornburg shares that a Mexican food trailer will also be on-site, selling Hot Cheetos walking tacos and Cheetos-dusted Mexican corn. Fairgoers who are watching their figures can also en joy a new vendor this year who is bringing healthier options, such as a piaya dish and side salad. The Arkansas Cattlemen’s Association has taken over Midway Cafe this year with a steak and potato dinner. For sweets, fairgoers can expect chocolate-dipped ba nanas, dipped cheesecake on a stick and waffle cones with caramel cone crunch ice cream. Hornburg shares that the fair’s cuisine goal for this year is to balance sweet and salty.

Thrills

Oh

My!

and Chills

More interested flying through the sky than grazing on the ground? Hornburg some ride updates for this year.

“We have a lot of the same rides this year since we’re still affiliated with North American Midway Entertainment. We have a mixture of kiddie rides as well as thriller rides, such as Raptor Run and the Wipeout,” Hornburg says. “Wipeout is like a roulette wheel on top of a stick that spins and gyrates. It looks insane.” Thrill-seekers can also look forward to the return of other rides, such as Alien Abduction, Dizzy Drag on, Eli Ferris Wheel, Haunted Mansion, Mach 3, Pharaoh’s Fury, Remix, Spidermania and Vertigo, among others.

Concerts Concerts

It doesn’t matter what your favorite kind of music is — the fair’s got something for everyone.

“This year, our goal is to keep everything balanced in terms of different genres, with more of a focus on local art ists than we’ve had before,” Hornburg explains.

FRIDAY, OCT. 14

6:45 p.m. Tyler Kinch

8:00 p.m. Drive-By Truckers

SATURDAY, OCT. 15

8:00 p.m.

90s Dance Party featuring Color Me Badd, Tone Loc and Young MC

SUNDAY, OCT. 16

7:00 p.m. The Wallflowers

MONDAY, OCT. 17

6:00 p.m. Jettway Performance with Zac Dunlap Band

TUESDAY, OCT. 18

Southern Soul Tuesday with 102.1 KOKY and Power 92Jams featuring Dino D and the D-Train band @ 6 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 19

6:00 p.m. Darin with Spirit & Sound DJ’s

THURSDAY, OCT. 20

6:00 p.m. Arkansas Edge Showcase

FRIDAY, OCT. 21

6:00 p.m. KSSN Home Grown Showdown

SATURDAY, OCT. 22

7:00 p.m. Megan Moroney

8:00 p.m. Blanco Brown

SUNDAY, OCT. 23 TBD

Other Entertainment

If you want even more than food and rides and music, you’ve come to the right place. Some of the other attractions at this year’s State Fair include a Dino Stroll, a Cool Dog Thrill Show, a Casting Workshop, a Prehistoric Museum, a Petting Zoo, a plethora of talented vendors, pageants and a Moogician (yes, you read that right).

Security and Safety

With a record number of people expected to attend the state fair, Hornburg is ready to address any public safety concerns.

“With growth comes security issues. We encountered that last year — the last Saturday of the fair, we closed gates early because we were at capacity,” Hornburg says. But Hornburg is pulling out all the stops this year.

“We have enlisted the help of three correctional departments: The Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office, the Little Rock Police Department and the Arkansas State Police will all be monitoring the fairgrounds and fairground property parking. This is in addition to our own security team located up and down the Midway and throughout the food court. We have also enlisted the help of Pulaski County Emergency Management to keep an eye on the weather in the event we need to shut down rides.”

Law enforcement will be present in the fairground parking areas, which are the north and south lots. When fairgoers enter, they will have to pass through a metal detector. No pocketknives or firearms, even with concealed carry permits, are allowed. Backpacks are not allowed either, due to having too many pockets. No bags larger than 14 x 14 x 6 are allowed. Re-entry after leaving is not allowed, and be sure to have your ticket ready to be scanned at the entrance.

“We don’t want people to have to turn back when they arrive at the gate, so we’re installing a public announcement speaker in the parking lot to let people know ahead of time what they can and can’t have,” Hornburg adds.

Admission

Ticket prices for the Arkansas State Fair are as follows: ADULTS

• Advance Price: $8

• Gate Price: $12

CHILDREN (AGES 6-12)

• Advance Price: $4

• Gate Price: $6

SENIORS (60+)

• Advance Price: $4

• Gate Price: $6

GROUPS (MINIMUM OF 20)

• $6 per ticket

For more special daily events and promotions, as well as price deals, check out the Pricing & Promotions section of the Tickets & Info tab on the Arkansas State Fair’s website.

What NOT to bringto bring

Having to walk all the way back to your car after reaching the state fair’s entrance is the worst. Here’s a list of what not to bring so you don’t have to walk back:

• No bags larger than 14”x14”x6”

• Concealed carry is prohibited even with a permit

• No pocketknives

• No outside food or beverages

• Coolers or ice chests

• Backpacks and bags

• Chairs of any kind (folding chairs, stools, etc.)

• Weapons (including, without limitation, pocketknives), fireworks and other illegal substances

• Pets (except service animals)

• Laser pens and laser pointers

• Alcohol

• Skateboards, hoverboards, and wheeled footwear

• Drones and other unmanned aerial vehicles

• Self-defense sprays (including, without limitation, pepper spray and mace)

• Toy guns or toy knives (including, without limitation, water guns)

• Any other item deemed dangerous or inappropriate or otherwise violating any policy

This year’s state fair is predicted to be one of the best yet. With AY Magazine’s guide to the Arkansas State Fair, you can have an experience that you’ll never forget!

AY About You is proud to present the list of 2022 Intriguing Women, which features some of Arkansas’ brightest minds, boldest visionaries and most passionate leaders from all four corners of the Natural State.

Every year, our Intriguing Women section serves as a celebration of all things female. As a woman-led organization, we understand and appreciate firsthand the value of women in, and outside of, the workplace. This list is a compilation of what "intriguing women" exhibit – brains, brawn, tenacity and tenderness. From physicians to philanthropists and bankers to animal experts, this diverse landscape of glass-ceiling-shattering ladies is proof that women can do anything they set their minds to.

Here is your 2022 Class of Intriguing Women.

Some Q&As have been edited for length and clarity.

Edit by MAK MILLARD • LINDSEY CASTRELLON

Photos by DEWAINE DUNCAN • KAT HOLITIK • RYAN PARKER JEREMY SMITH • PHILIP THOMAS • BRITTANY TRABBIC

Special thanks to Urban Pad and HOWSE for their hospitality and accommodation in providing picture-perfect photoshoot venues.

Intriguing Woman's Hometown Intriguing Woman's Favorite Movie Intriguing Woman's Favorite TV Show Intriguing Woman's Favorite Book Intriguing Woman's Favorite Restaurant Intriguing Woman's Favorite Flower

It takes a true leader to not only climb their way to the top, but to give others a hand up as well. For over two decades now, Natalie Bartholomew has been opening doors for the next generation of women in banking.

In 2017, she started the Girl Banker, a platform encouraging young women to consider careers in the industry. The platform has since blossomed into a community of and for uplifting women, and its success has allowed Bartholomew to speak at conferences all over the state and the country. When she’s not doing that, she and husband Colt can be found cheering on their sons at football and baseball games.

“YOU TEACH PEOPLE HOW TO TREAT YOU.” – ALLYSON TWIGGS DYER

What attracted you to your career?

My late grandfather, Wilford H. Thompson, was a banker for 45 years. As a kid, I played bank using the forms and tickets he brought home. I always knew that was going to be my career someday and that I would be the best that I could be.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mother, Cheryl West, exemplified hard work, volunteerism, giving back and sticking up for what you believe. My great grandmother, Ina Thompson, lived through two world wars, the Great Depression and so much more – yet she always had the kindest smile and a great attitude.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

We have work to do to change the narrative around what it means to be a banker for young women. It’s no longer just men in stuffy suits. Young women need to know they belong in those roles.

What is your proudest achievement?

My two boys, Brody and Witten, are 100% my “why.” I would also throw in that I’m proud of staying true to myself as I’ve navigated this industry over the last 21 years.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

My twin sister and I are the fifth generation to be raised on our family’s farm in Prairie Grove. My sons are the sixth.

What are your favorite hobbies?

I am obsessed with plants; I love working outside with my hydrangeas or taking care of my houseplants. I am also oddly addicted to organizing our closets, cabinets and drawers.

Natalie Bartholomew

Community President, First Community Bank

Dr. Jill Flaxman describes herself as “a work in progress,” but the progress she’s made through her work at Natural State Pain and Wellness hints that she’s much more than that. Flaxman is a pioneer in pain management; she’s challenging traditional care standards and improving upon them with her Whole Person Pain Care Approach. In a state and nation dealing with the effects of over-prescription, Flaxman is working to change how providers approach chronic pain, and she’s giving hope to Arkansans in the process.

What attracted you to your career?

My natural inclination toward science, math and helping others attracted me to the practice of medicine.

What is the best part of your day?

Getting a morning hug from my sweet son, Ben. We call them “cub hugs,” even though he is a big football player now! I always love seeing my two sons and my wonderful husband.

What other woman do you admire most?

Mother Teresa.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

In medicine, everyone’s job is important. The safest, most effective and meaningful patient experience requires that every job be done and done well.

What is your proudest achievement?

Taking the leap of faith to open my own practice. I believe that we can do pain management better: Arkansans deserve better care and improved quality of life.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I worked several jobs to put myself through college and medical school. One of those jobs was teaching baton twirling. I was a baton twirler in high school, and I can twirl fire batons, two at a time.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it?

I would work with the Arkansas Autism Foundation to create viable programs and opportunities for teens and young adults living with Autism.

What are your favorite hobbies?

Traveling and trap shooting with my family. I also love cooking, baking, painting, gardening and stunt kite flying.

Jill Flaxman, MD

Practice Owner, Natural State Pain and Wellness

Jessica Baxter believes in the power of mind over matter. Any problem can be solved with the right know-how and determination, and that applies to her work and her personal life. She’s created a career that allows her not only to help clients buy and sell houses, but to help them transform their house into a home through her design projects. Not even a severe allergy could stop Baxter from getting two cats –hairless cats, that is. Baxter and her husband love to travel and entertain guests, and you’ll often catch them on the way to games and extracurriculars for their four sons.

What attracted you to your career?

I’ve loved real estate ever since I was a little girl. I left the corporate world in 2016 to start my career in real estate, although I have held a license since 2007. The design side of my business took off unexpectedly in 2020.

What is your proudest achievement?

My children. Watching them flourish and seeing their personalities gives me such joy.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

Under promise and over deliver.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I have misophonia, meaning I have a strong reaction to certain sounds and repetitive noises. If I hear someone chewing, I literally have to leave the room.

What do you love most about what you do?

Seeing my clients close on their home is exciting, whether it’s their first or their fifth. It’s the same with my design clients – hearing their reaction to their new space makes my heart smile!

What are your favorite hobbies?

Cooking, vacuuming, shopping and hiking for my mental health.

Jessica Baxter

Executive Broker, Bailey & Company Real Estate; Owner, Jess Baxter Design

Our careers often take a turn from our studies, and this is especially true for Lindsey Blaylock, whose master’s degree in middle childhood education might come as a surprise to those who know her for her real estate career. Her desire to help others while still making time for her family made real estate the perfect fit, and the unpredictability of each client and transaction keeps things interesting. Blaylock and her husband are childhood sweethearts who have been together since they were 16 years old. Outside of work, you can find them with their two children enjoying the outdoors or catching a Razorbacks game.

“IT’S ALL GONNA WORK OUT.” — MY DAD

What attracted you to your career?

I have always loved meeting new people, and I wanted a career that I could work around my kids’ activities.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mom. She retired recently, but she has always been dedicated to her family and her work.

What is the best part of your day?

When I pick up my kids and get to hear all about their day at school. They are so excited and can’t wait to share everything

What is your proudest achievement?

My family.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

Always be prepared for anything.

Lindsey Blaylock

Agent, Bailey & Company Real Estate

Vonnice Boone, MBA

Vonnice Boone has seen her fair share of obstacles and challenges. She was forced to take a four-year break from college after just one semester due to a kidney disorder. After fighting her way back and graduating as both a nontraditional and first-generation student in 2007, she went on to complete her MBA in 2012. She is a former adjunct professor of accounting at the University of Arkansas, and is now pursuing a doctorate in education. Boone was initiated into the Phi Alpha Omega chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha and serves on a variety of boards and councils. She has been widely recognized as a person to watch in the business world, and to top it all off, she and her husband, Dorian own a home-based BBQ business, Avenue Smokers.

What other woman do you admire most?

Vice President Kamala Harris and former First Lady Michelle Obama

What is your proudest achievement

My kids are my prized possessions.

I was sent home to miscarry with them both. I lost one in the middle, but these two stuck in there and beat the odds.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I did ballet for 11 years at the first Black dance studio in Washington, D.C.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field? Entrepreneurship is about taking risks. You can’t be afraid to jump out there. We must pave the way for others – especially for minority entrepreneurs.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it

Donate it immediately. I am the product of a single Black mother, and Black mothers are dying during labor at alarming rates.

What are your favorite hobbies?

Research and glamping in my family’s RV.

Entrepreneur; President and CEO, Vonnice Boone Consulting

Chelsea Boozer, MPA

Government Affairs Manager, Central Arkansas Water

In addition to her vital work ensuring Arkansans have access to clean, safe drinking water, Chelsea Boozer is the vice chair of Create Little Rock and serves on committees of the American Water Works Association. She’s a former reporter, having covered government news in Memphis, Washington, D.C. and Little Rock. She recognizes the importance of small, impactful changes –whether that’s working behind the scenes to improve the water industry or expanding her professional reach through networking events. To her 5-year-old son, she’s known simply as “the — best mom in the galaxy,” and outside of work, you can find them adventuring and exploring new cities and cultures together.

What attracted you to your career?

I’ve always felt called to public service and was lucky enough to happen upon the drinking water industry where I’ve had great mentors.

What is your proudest achievement?

I’ve gotten to lead changes in workplace and university policies, influence improvement of local municipal processes and connect citizens to resources that address their needs. It’s the “Thank you!” texts

from the people who benefit in those situations that make me most proud.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

No matter what work you do or what role you play, everything really boils down to how well you communicate and collaborate with others. The so-called “soft skills” are actually the “power tools” behind any successful product or partnership.

What other woman do you admire most?

I am in awe of Ruth Bader Ginsburg – her resilience, intelligence, service and fighting spirit. I was lucky enough to attend her last public speech in North Little Rock before her passing.

What are your favorite hobbies?

I love to kayak Arkansas rivers and hike in our beautiful state parks. I’ve been known to jump out of a perfectly good airplane a time or two, also.

You could easily describe Joan Botts as “nonstop.” She’s lived all over, embraces daunting to-do lists and is always off boredom — making her career in casino marketing the perfect fit. The projects and challenges won’t be slowing down anytime soon, and neither will she. She’s constantly looking for ways to improve, create and think outside the box. It all might sound a little fast-paced, but Botts has found her balance as well. As a cancer survivor, she knows the value of the little things in life that help bring peace of mind. When she has the time to slow down, she likes to catch up with her daughter on FaceTime and spend quality time hiking, watching movies and going on road trips with her husband.

What attracted you to your career?

I’ve always been a go-getter and I thrive on multitasking; that’s what marketing is all about. When you combine that with the world of casinos, hospitality, entertainment and tourism, the adventures never end.

What is your proudest achievement?

My amazing daughter, Chelsea, and being a 24-year breast cancer survivor.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mom. She showed my sister and me how to balance a family with a successful career. She always had a beautiful disposition, maintained her composure in stressful situations and placed a high priority on how she presented herself in public – all things I carry with me today and have passed on to my daughter.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

Negative perceptions about the gaming industry and casinos. Having spent over 18 years working in the casino industry, there are so many benefits to highlight – jobs, positive impacts on the local and state economy, elevating tourism and charitable community contributions.

Joan Botts

Regional Director of Marketing, Choctaw Casino & Resort – Durant, OK

Though Kristin Chacko may have started working for Google because of the allure of gourmet cafeterias and the sprawling campus, she quickly found she had a passion for working in a high-performance organization. She’s since moved into the startup space, where she enjoys seeing the tangible impacts of her work in building a company from the ground up. When she’s not advocating for more women in tech careers or bolstering her own credentials in graduate school, Chacko and her husband spend time satiating their wanderlust – and trying to catch up to her grandparents’ impressive travel list of 126 countries. They’re currently just a little behind, with 46 so far.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mom. She was pregnant with my brother as a senior in high school, and in the ‘70s, this was the kiss of death for her chances at work or getting a loan. She worked her way as a single mom through college, nursing and law school, and has now recently retired from being a senior partner in a large international firm.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

There are still not enough women in technology. While we’ve come a long way in the last 15 years, women still make up less than 33% of the jobs in tech.

What is your proudest achievement?

I am only a few months away from finishing my MBA and MS in strategic management from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business. It will be the culmination of two years of work in the evenings and weekends while still working fulltime and raising two children.

What are your favorite hobbies?

I like to experiment in the kitchen and I find cooking one of the best ways to unwind after a long day. I played volleyball in college, but since it’s harder to get out for tournaments with two young kids at home, I settle for home workouts now. I’m also an avid reader.

Kristin Chacko

President of Operations,

Jenny Ozment Childress

Licensed Certified Social Worker (LCSW)

Everyone you meet has something deeper going on behind the scenes — whether it’s stress, grief or any number of issues. Jenny Ozment Childress makes it her mission to help people work through these challenges, specializing in areas like women’s issues, grief, and high-conflict divorce. She works to improve access to mental health services for all Arkansans, because no one is immune from life’s complexities. Outside of her practice, she spends time traveling, reading and hanging out with her family and dogs at their houseboat on Lake Ouachita.

What attracted you to your career?

Owning my own business gives me the flexibility to be a mom and a wife while still making a difference in other people’s lives.

What other woman do you admire most?

My late mother, Joye Ozment.

What is the best part of your day?

Waking up with a cup of coffee and a hot bath.

What is your proudest achievement?

My children, Miles and Anna-Kate.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I rode my first horse this year, and I loved it.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

No two days at the office are ever the same. Every day brings new challenges and opportunities to help people.

What do you love most about what you do?

I love being able to take care of my clients in the way that’s best for them.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it?

I would make a substantial donation to The 20th Century Club of Little Rock’s Hope Lodge and invest the rest.

You can’t have learning without teaching, and Candice Cole considers herself “a student of life.” Guiding people through different financial seasons is the most rewarding part of her career. Though not a Southern girl by birth, her nearly three decades in Arkansas and her work in the community have certainly earned her the privilege. Cole started volunteering with the Susan G. Komen Foundation and the Arkansas Race for the Cure in her mid-20s, and she served on the board of the foundation’s Arkansas affiliate for several years. She, her husband and their two kids are a self-described boating family, so you can find them out on the lake from the time it’s warm enough in spring until the fall chill finally sets in.

What other woman do you admire most?

I can’t pick just one. I admire women who stand up and speak for what is right and just, even if it goes against the popular opinion.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer when I was 14 years old, and it shaped my life dramatically.

What is your proudest achievement?

My children. Being a mom is the hardest thing I have ever done; I have the utmost respect for mothers.

What is the best part of your day?

After my kids go to bed is “me time” – reading or watching a show.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

The perception of it. It is truly challenging and definitely not boring.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

I don’t have all of the answers, and I can and should rely on others to help me.

Candice Cole

If anyone understands the power of good branding, it’s Sherra Dunklin. In just some key phrases, Dunklin can sum up the principles she lives by: family first, admit when you’re wrong, fight for what is right and don’t give up on yourself.

With the success that she has achieved since starting her firm, RedSTAR Media, It’s clear that Dunklin is on to something. Sherra lived in Los Angeles, CA for 10 years, where she attended and completed film school. There she gained valuable production experience working on the sets of television shows, such as The Tyra Banks Show, The Price is Right and the American Idol. Soon afterwards, opportunities presented in the Arkansas and Nashville, TN area that brought her back home. Nowadays, she wields her film and marketing background to producing creative and informative radio, tv and print ads for a number of clients.

What other woman do you admire most?

The woman that I admire most is my mom. She is what I call “The Quiet Storm.” She is soft in her tone, quiet in her giving and passionate about the people and causes she loves.

What is the best part of your day?

The absolute BEST part of my day is early in the morning with my 6 year old when we make time to eat together, cuddle on the sofa and watch something fun on tv.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

It is important to show only (and exactly) what is necessary to convey your intended message in both professional and personal situations. People should know that not only products benefit from branding.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

People would be surprised to know how much experience and passion I have for building things related to stagecraft and set design. I love tools and working with my hands.

Sherra Dunklin

Owner, RedSTAR Media

CJ Elumbaugh grew up on a small horse farm in Batesville where she and her sisters learned the value of hard work early on from their parents. That work ethic has stuck with Elumbaugh through it all, including the transition from her 14-year insurance career to work with husband, Rusty in the custom pool business. Whether she’s taking care of the paperwork or driving equipment at a job site, Elumbaugh isn’t afraid to dig her heels in and get to work – all in the same pair of heels, too. Of course, she still finds time to enjoy the little things in life while raising her boys and making her family’s dream farm a reality.

What attracted you to your career?

My husband started building pools in 2010. I was beside him doing all of the books, finances and paperwork, which usually meant early mornings, late nights and weekends. I knew leaving my previous career would give me more time for my family and our ranch, so after COVID hit, I took the leap.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mother. She can literally do anything – ride horses, fix a water leak, sew clothes, weld and dress wounds. She’s the one who taught me how to be so independent!

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

If I could control the weather and keep it mild and sunny year round, our job would be much easier.

What is the best part of your day?

Sunrise. I am an early bird; I love drinking my coffee, watching the sun come up and collecting my thoughts for the day.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I work in heels almost every single day. My office attire usually becomes jobsite attire by the end of the day!

CJ Elumbaugh

Custom Swimming Pool Contractor and Rancher

Mandy Ferguson might describe herself as “just a small town girl who loved beauty and fashion from a young age,” but anyone who’s familiar with her or Swank Hair Studio would tell you that she is so much more. In a surprisingly cutthroat industry that can be looked down upon by others, Ferguson has worked to elevate the role of the hairstylist in Arkansas into a viable long-term career. She puts her faith first in everything, and she and her husband of 20 years have two teenage boys. Outside of the salon, Ferguson enjoys girls’ nights, hiking, dancing and being a great “couch detective.”

What attracted you to your career?

I was always drawn to the arts – books, poetry, fashion, home design. In high school, I shadowed my hairdresser. I always knew I was meant to be in this industry.

What other woman do you admire most?

Marilyn Childress, my mammaw (not by blood, but she would claim me). The way she loves Jesus and serves others and her family is an inspiration to me. She has the best sense of humor and gives the kind of hug that melts all your troubles away. I could only strive to be half the woman she is.

What is the best part of your day?

The morning. I wake up with a fresh cup of coffee. Outside on my porch, it’s me, Jesus, the husband, my Bible and the hummingbird that comes to see us each day.

What is your proudest achievement?

Professionally, it was the day I began offering health insurance benefits and paid time off for my team. It is unheard of in our industry unless you work for a big-box salon.

What do you love most about what you do?

Hands down, sharing Jesus and encouraging others. Whether it is our guests or my team, loving and mentoring their souls is what I am most passionate about.

Mandy Ferguson

April Findlay

April Findlay has been selling real estate for 10 years at what she calls “the best real estate company in Arkansas.” The company’s founder, Charlotte John, encourages employees to get involved in the community, which works perfectly for Findlay, who likes to stay busy. In addition to being president of the Little Rock Realtors Association and co-chairing the PR Committee for the Arkansas Realtors Association, Findlay serves on committees for the Little Rock Marathon, Tour de Rock and the CARTI Festival of Trees. She values kindness, honesty and hard work, and her dedication to people and the community has been recognized by peers and customers alike.

What is the best part of your day?

I love early mornings. My friends make fun of me for getting up so early, but it’s really the only time of day that is completely mine. I get to exercise, pray, meditate or just listen to a podcast.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

I would change the perception of what real estate agents do. We don’t just open the doors to beautiful

houses every day or work at an open house for two hours on Sundays.

What is your proudest achievement?

Being named Little Rock Realtors Association’s Realtor of the Year for 2022.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I only recently learned to swim so I could keep up with my friends who were doing triathlons, and I love it.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

One of Charlotte John’s favorite sayings: “When you have bad news to share with clients, share it quickly. Waiting is not going to make it change.”

What are your favorite hobbies?

Early-morning runs, riding my bike, swimming and my book club at the Little Rock Athletic Club. We meet at 5 a.m. on Monday mornings to work out and then discuss a great book.

Real Estate Broker, The Charlotte John Company

Jordan Franklin learned the value of hard work early on. When her dyslexia presented her with an obstacle in school, she pushed herself to succeed anyway. That work ethic never left her, and now Franklin helps other people find success in the workforce by connecting them to their perfect careers. She has been named as one of the 15 most influential people in staffing by the World Staffing Association for the last two years, and Stratice’s impressive growth continues to earn the company a spot on lists like the Inc. 5000. Franklin also sits on the board for the nonprofit EforAll and mentors entrepreneurs. Outside of her work changing people’s work lives, Franklin enjoys playing tennis, golf and taxiing her three children around to all of their engagements.

What attracted you to your career?

In my two-year-old brain, I thought that the only way to help others was to become a doctor. I was waitlisted for medical school, so after college, I started working with a staffing agency, and it was there that I noticed how much career coaching fulfilled my drive to help others.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

I would like to see a change in how people view recruiters. I think that our team really has everyone’s best interest at heart, and we want to make sure we are putting the right people in the right seats.

What is your proudest achievement?

The first time our team made the Inc. 5000 list. We were among the top 300 fastest growing companies in 2021 based on our 2020 numbers. This meant that our team at Stratice worked hard, even through the pandemic.

What do you love most about what you do?

I love solving strategic problems and helping companies find the best person to reach their goals. On the personal side, I love congratulating someone on the first day of their new job.

What are your favorite hobbies?

I love to consume art. I love to go to museums, discover new artists through social platforms and seek out cool new things in the art world.

Jordan Franklin

CEO, Stratice

Erin Gray is challenging perceptions around the hemp industry, and her company brings education and sophistication to the process of buying CBD products. As a female business owner in a field that is only growing more each year, Gray is opening doors for future women in the industry and redefining what it means to be a healer. Outside the shop, you might find Gray with her three daughters, boating, listening to music or enjoying a bit of patio dining.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

I would change the stigma around CBD and the lack of education about its health benefits.

What is your proudest achievement?

Establishing a career in a still-developing field that has helped so many improve their quality of life.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I love my power tools. I have cut down a few trees for firewood with my chainsaw.

What other woman do you admire most? Any woman who empowers and encourages other women.

What is the best part of your day?

Golden hour – on a boat, with a glass of wine.

What do you love most about what you do?

Helping people. It is so rewarding to have a customer come back in and express gratitude after finally finding relief.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it?

Put it to work!

Erin Gray

Owner, Healing Hemp of Arkansas

Janet Harris

Janet Harris knows a thing or two about protecting legacies and supporting people. After leaving a long career in government service, Harris moved into the nonprofit space to extend former Gov. Winthrop Rockefeller’s vision for transformation through collaboration. Her work at the Institute brings people together for purposeful gatherings, so that groups can leave with useful, collaborative solutions. Her passion for bringing out the best in others translates at home as well, where she and husband, Jimmy are raising their daughter, Bailey to be loving, intelligent and proud of who she is. Harris and her family are also active in their home church, First United Methodist of Conway.

What other woman do you admire most?

My most recent mentor, Dr. Marta Loyd, comes to mind. She taught me so much about philanthropy and how to practice it – namely that philanthropy is not just about the giving of money, but about the love of humankind.

What is the best part of your day?

When I am able to welcome people to Rockefeller’s place on Petit

Executive Director and CEO, Winthrop Rockefeller Institute

Jean Mountain. I particularly love connecting with people who knew Winthrop Rockefeller or have a connection to the mountain area, and I love hearing their stories.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

I would help people understand that nonprofits do have to make money. Our bottom line isn’t a profit, but rather money for the mission and for the public good.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I grew up on a hog farm.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

I’ve learned that the best way to begin working with other people on a shared vision is to take the time to learn their stories. The world doesn’t always need what I know as much as it needs me to ask questions about what I don’t know.

Dawn Hughes, MD

Maternal Fetal Medicine Physician

Through medicine, Dr. Dawn Hughes is able to combine her passions for science and service. No two mothers and babies are the same, especially when it comes to high-risk pregnancies, so Hughes creates individual care plans for her patients. She guides parents and parents-to-be through some of the scariest times of their lives, and she cherishes those relationships. Hughes describes her circle of friends as “wild and eclectic,” and her spare time is spent reading, traveling, cooking and spending time with her two children.

What attracted you to your career?

I fell in love with MFM because I find the pathophysiology of pregnancy fascinating. It’s unique in that you get to care for two patients simultaneously.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

It has taught me not to take the miracle of motherhood for granted. That I am able to come home to two healthy children while so many of my patients cannot is not lost on me. I see all the

tiny moments – “boo boos,” the giggles, the bedtime snuggles – and I appreciate each and every one.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

In some cases, politicians have a bigger say in a patient’s care than I do as their physician. I chose this career because I am passionate about keeping mothers and babies safe. I would love the opportunity to use my medical knowledge to do just that.

What is your proudest achievement?

I have finally found a work/life balance that allows me to be both the parent and the physician that I want to be. It took me five years of struggling to find my groove, and I know it is something that I will constantly have to work on, but I am proud of where I am today.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you I married my elementary school sweetheart.

LaDonna Humphrey

Author; Executive Director, Oasis of Northwest Arkansas

Juggling multiple careers is not for the faint of heart, but LaDonna Humphrey has channeled her desire to make a difference into everything she does – from writing to podcasting to directing a sober living home for women. Her passions include advocating for missing adults, crime victims, children in foster care and women in recovery. In April of this year, Humphrey’s debut book, The Girl I Never Knew, was published by Genius Book Publishing, and she has a second soon to be released. Outside of her advocacy work, Humphrey enjoys reading, taking walks with her husband and attending concerts.

What other woman do you admire most?

I admire strong, courageous women who bounce back from impossible odds.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

I have learned to approach life at all times with an attitude of gratitude. It makes the sweet moments in life even sweeter, and it gives me strength during trials and tribulations in life.

What is your proudest achievement?

Walking alongside women who have successfully rebuilt after drug or alcohol addiction has wreaked havoc in their life. There’s something sacred about watching a woman rise from the ashes as a strong, empowered and contributing member of society.

What is the best part of your day?

The time spent with my children and husband. Those moments are the most important parts of my day.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it?

I would expand the Oasis of Northwest Arkansas program for women who are in need of safe and sober housing. Then, I would provide funding to the nonprofit All the Lost Girls to pay for DNA services that could help solve cold cases like the 1994 murder of Melissa Witt.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I have seven children ranging from ages 5 to 24.

Sharon Ingram Assistant Vice President, U.S. Bank

Sharon Ingram takes the maxim “You are the author of your future” to heart, and she has written quite a story so far. She obtained her bachelor’s degree as a nontraditional student, raised two children as a single mom and is proud U.S. Bank is making strides in diversity and inclusion. Ingram has a passion for children’s causes, and she currently serves as the chairwoman for the Arkansas Martin Luther King, Jr. Commission. Outside of work and serving her community, Ingram enjoys marathoning movies and documentaries.

What attracted you to your career?

I am an accidental banker. In my early career, I enjoyed seeing people’s faces when they were able to buy their first car, their first home or open an account with a check from their first job. My career has taken me in other directions, but I still enjoy hearing those stories.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mentor, Denise Morton.

What is the best part of your day?

My relaxation time. It can be any time of the day, depending on my schedule, but it is the time I decompress, read, listen to music, meditate and write.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

I would like the industry as a whole to recognize that there are people of every gender and race qualified for executive leadership positions who have not been considered historically.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I am naturally a shy person. Typically, I would not be the person who “works the room,” but I have worked hard to become comfortable with public speaking and leadership.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

Don’t just take the norm as a given; think outside of the box to solve problems.

There’s feeling like you were “born” to do something, and then there’s Nancy Jackson, who knew from the age of 11 that she would follow in her father’s footsteps as an insurance agent.

According to Jackson, “So far, it’s working out.” Working out might be an understatement, as now Jackson is recognized far and away as a stand out in the industry. In 2018, she was awarded the Charlotte Patterson Memorial Award and recognized as Insurance Woman of the Year. She was also elected president of the Independent Insurance Agents of Arkansas for 2022-23. She has a passion for problem-solving and loves to tackle a challenge, which is all the better for her clients and peers.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mom, because she is the smartest and hardest working person I’ve ever met. She instilled the importance of work ethic, community, responsibility and accountability in me from a very young age. With her degree in Mathematics from Hendrix College, she set the standard high for my sister and me.

What is the best part of your day?

Being greeted by my two Goldendoodles when I get home at the end of the day. They never fail to greet me with a toy, a bone or (for one of them) a dish towel.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

I think at times the perception of the insurance agent mirrors that of the attorney: No one wants one until they really need one. In reality, your agent is your most important point of contact to help identify risks and educate you on the proper way to protect assets, family members and business interests.

What are your favorite hobbies?

Now that I am older, my favorite hobbies are spending time with family, reading and playing with my ‘doodles. I love sitting on my screened porch just watching the woods or enjoying our family home on Lake Hamilton. I also enjoy watching the Razorbacks play football, basketball and baseball.

Nancy R. Jackson, CIC

Every so often, someone comes along to truly exemplify the “care” aspect of health care, and Holly Jenkins does just that. It is clear that a passion for people is what has driven Jenkins’ nursing over the last two decades. Whether she finds herself in labor and delivery, primary care or her most recent role in the Integrated Medicine Service Line, Jenkins leverages her compassion and skills to the benefit of patients all over the state. Her work throughout the pandemic earned her the 2022 UAMS Advancement of Nursing Award. Like any working mother, Jenkins balances her career and home life, cheering on her kids at lacrosse games and spending time with family and friends.

What attracted you to your career?

I have always felt that nursing chose me. Although I have always had the instinct to take care of others, nursing is so much more than caring for the sick: It’s educating patients and advocating for their wants and needs.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

I would make it mandatory to maintain safe nurse-patient ratios throughout the country. Health care workers have been working to exhaustion over the past couple of years.

What is your proudest achievement?

My three children; they are the light of my life. Second would be the work I’ve done with the Lion’s Club and Jones Eye Institute. We are working to screen patients throughout the state for early detection of diabetic retinopathy.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I’m a Broadway musical fan! I was so excited to see "Hamilton" in Little Rock this year and I hope to someday see "Les Miserables."

What do you love most about what you do?

Working with UAMS Regional Programs allows me to travel the state and meet an abundance of wonderful people who work in the clinics.

Holly Jenkins

Clinical Specialist, UAMS Regional Programs

Dawn Jones may have married into the Jones family of Sissy’s Log Cabin, but she was never a stranger to family-owned businesses. She joined her father’s company, Bruce Oakley Inc., shortly after graduating from college, and only made her leap into the jewelry business after marrying William Jones. The transition from transportation to jewelry might not seem obvious at first glance, but Dawn and the rest of the Joneses know that it’s the family that makes the business, not the other way around. Now, she works to grow the Sissy’s Log Cabin brand and gets to have a hand in some of the most important milestones in Arkansans’ lives – lending that same sense of familial comfort to anyone who walks through the door.

What other woman do you admire most?

There are many wonderful women who have shaped me into the person I am today. If I had to choose a few that I admire most, they would be my mother, Leslie Green; my mother-in-law, Sharri Jones; my grandmother-in-law, Sissy Jones; and my best friend, Lakynn Harris.

What is your proudest achievement?

Becoming a mother to our two boys.

What is the best part of your day?

I like to save the best for last. The best part of my day is when William and I pile up in bed with our two boys to watch a movie before bedtime. We do this each night, and I look forward to it all day.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

The jewelry industry is such an intimate field of work. Whether our customers are choosing the perfect engagement ring, buying wedding bands, celebrating an anniversary, birthday, or any of life’s special occasions, we get a chance to join in on the fun. It is a very humbling experience to be invited into these private moments.

What do you love most about what you do?

I get to spend my days working with brilliant diamonds and brilliant people. I’m very blessed and grateful to be part of such a wonderful team and company.

Dawn Jones

Executive Brand Manager, Sissy’s Log Cabin

Paige Kelly’s path to Wright Plastic Surgery might not have been a logical series of jumps – over the course of her 25 year nursing career, she spent many years in the NICU at UAMS and a shorter stint in neurosurgery – but each role prepared her to give patients the best care possible. These stops along the way also allowed her to keep a healthy work-life balance, so that she and her husband could focus on raising their three daughters. Now that they’re grown, Kelly gets to combine her skills as a nurse with her passion for helping people achieve their aesthetic goals.

What other woman do you admire most?

I have been very fortunate to come from a lineage of strong women, from my mother to my grandmothers and now my three adult daughters. From them, I have learned what it means to be courageous, kind and driven.

What is the best part of your day?

My morning commute. It allows me much-needed quiet time to prepare for my day. I have commuted from Sheridan to Little Rock since college. Without it, I would not have learned the power of time alone in prayer.

What is your proudest achievement?

Raising my three daughters was by far the hardest and most important work that I have ever done. I am very proud of each of them.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I wanted to be a professional water skier at Busch Gardens growing up.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

Nursing has taught me to trust my instincts. When something doesn’t seem right, it probably isn’t.

Paige Kelly

RN at Wright Plastic Surgery

Summer Khairi has a passion for serving others. She currently serves on boards for the Habitat for Humanity of Central Arkansas, UALR Alumni Association, Mount St. Mary’s Academy and the Big Dam Bridge Foundation. She’s also a member of the 20th Century Club of Little Rock. Khairi studied nuclear medicine at UAMS, and now works to improve the culture of her alma mater by being involved in the House of Delegates, Academic Senate and other committees. In the middle of all that, she found the time to complete her MBA at UALR and is currently working towards her Ph.D. in Leadership Studies at UCA. With her level of dedication to both her career and her community, Khairi is a standout on both fronts.

What attracted you to your career?

Choosing to study nuclear medicine allowed me to take care of people who need it the most. With my current role I have the privilege of influencing the next generation of health care workers.

What other woman do you admire most?

I am blessed to have an exceptional mentor: Christina Clark, Vice Chancellor for Institutional Support Services and COO of UAMS. She has been instrumental in guiding me on my career path.

What is the best part of your day?

I love starting my day off with a workout at the Little Rock Athletic Club.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I love coaching and mentoring young basketball players. Basketball has taught me many life lessons: Overcoming adversity and obstacles, never giving up, making sacrifices, time management skills, working as a team and believing in yourself.

What do you love most about what you do?

Every day is a different day, and I get to do a mix of teaching, working with students, service work and research. I love being able to collaborate with other groups to get events and projects completed.

Summer Khairi

Program Director and Assistant Professor, UAMS College of Health Professions

Sharon Ledbetter is a champion of mental health advocacy in the state. She’s a support group facilitator for the National Alliance on Mental Illness, president of the Case Management Society of America’s NWA region and serves on two American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Out of the Darkness Suicide Prevention walk committees. If you find her outside of work, she’ll probably be decorating her house for the next major holiday, enjoying live music or spending time with husband, Wes, daughter, grandaughters and Taco, my Chihuahua.

What is the best part of your day?

Waking up every morning with a full calendar of things to accomplish.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

We need a stronger mental health system that provides full wrap-around care for every life in our state. According to NAMI Arkansas, 457,000 adults in Arkansas have a mental health condition.

What is your proudest achievement?

Personally, my beautiful family, they are my priority.

Professionally, every day I am allowed to start a conversation with a neighbor, a stranger or a health care provider about mental health care in our community.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

We all have a path to take. Along the way, we must build each other up, share our experiences, meet people where they are and leave them with a smile.

What do you love most about what you do?

Connecting with our community partners and engaging in conversations that develop into actions.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it?

Travel.

Sharon Ledbetter

Director of Business Development, Springwoods Behavioral Health

Mimi Lee,

Dr. Mimi Lee describes herself as optimistic, prepared and motivated. It is those qualities that helped Lee adjust to life in the U.S. after her family moved from Hong Kong when she was only 13 years old. Because her parents didn’t speak English, Lee had to navigate the challenges of young adulthood by herself, such as college applications, student loans and renting her first apartment. She considers her specialization in aesthetic treatments “a dream career for a first-generation immigrant,” and she passes that dream on to the next generation of medical professionals through mentorships. Lee fosters a trusting relationship with each patient before using her artistry, precision and a gentle touch to give them more confidence in their looks. Her husband, Gene Sloan, is also a surgeon, and the pair have two daughters together. In her free time, Lee enjoys traveling to see her daughters, playing tennis and cheering on the Razorbacks.

What other woman do you admire most? Serena Williams. She came from a humble background and uses her platform to help others pursue their dreams.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

I wish doctors and patients had more direct autonomy over their care.

What is your proudest achievement?

I was the first physician in Arkansas to perform Endovenous Ablation for the treatment of varicose veins in 2001. This minimally invasive procedure is now the standard of care, replacing vein stripping.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I was originally an engineering major. I changed to pre-med because I enjoy helping people while problem-solving.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

You never know what someone is going through. I ask every patient how their day is. Most days are routine, but sometimes I discover they are going through tragedies. Spending a few extra minutes to listen can be the most impactful part of their visit.

If you were handed $1 million, what would you do with it? I would travel more often, especially to the beach!

A natural storyteller, Nia McConnell grew up wanting to be a news broadcaster. McConnell is grateful for those “little detours” – they led her to her husband, lifelong friends and her position at Think Rubix. Nowadays, McConnell uses that knack for communication to advocate for change and set an example for her sons. In her spare time, you might find her on a stroll with her family, journaling or marathoning a new TV show.

What attracted you to your career?

Entrepreneurship was a pathway to flexibility, which I knew I needed to be successful as a developing professional. Once I became a mother, in the wake of Trayvon Martin and Mike Brown, I knew there were inequities in the world that I wanted to change for my sons’ future.

What other woman do you admire most?

Sherece West-Scantlebury’s leadership at the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation has provided opportunities for me to do the storytelling and community advocacy work I’m most passionate about.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

I’d encourage leaders in my industry to bring more voices to the table when creating solutions for vulnerable communities; those closest to the pain hold the greatest clues to crafting solutions.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I get pretty nervous when I visit someplace for the first time, but it never takes me long to feel welcomed.

What do you love most about what you do?

I love working with a team that harnesses the transformative power of culture. We’re diverse in gender, identities and cultures, and we use those experiences to understand our clients' problems and craft solutions that are impactful.

Nia L. McConnell

Director of Operations and Business Development, Think Rubix

Erica Montenegro

VP/Business Banking Manager, Arvest Bank

When it comes to being a successful banker, it’s not enough to be good with numbers (though that certainly helps). Having started young as a cashier in her parents’ businesses, Erica Montenegro definitely brings her math skills to the table, and she has the Sales & Service Awards from Arvest to prove it. But more than that, it’s Montenegro’s ability to bridge gaps that has made her an irreplaceable part of Arvest Bank for the last 16 years. That aptitude for connection can look many different ways. It can mean bringing Arvest’s quality service to Spanish-speaking communities as a bilingual banker. It can mean connecting a small business owner with the financing they need as a small business owner herself. It can also mean being a role model for women and underrepresented groups trying to find success in a largely white, male industry.

What other woman do you admire most?

Natalie Bartholomew, the Girl Banker. She does a remarkable job advocating for women in the banking industry. Although I have not had the pleasure of meeting her in person, her motivational posts on social media and appearances on podcasts have influenced me greatly.

What is your proudest achievement?

I’ve lost over 100 pounds in the last year, which required discipline,

consistency and accountability. It’s been a challenging and rewarding journey. I’ve learned to prioritize and take care of myself.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I lived in a small town in Mexico for part of my elementary and middle school years. I also played in the drum line for the school’s battle band and took folk dancing classes. Both of my parents are from Mexico, and I love our culture, the colors, mariachi and the food!

What lessons have you learned from working in your field Planning and preparation are fundamental before making big decisions, like starting a business. It’s best not to act on your emotions; take a pause and pray before making any major life decisions. Mistakes are opportunities for growth – don’t be so hard on yourself.

What are your favorite hobbies?

I spend most of my time outside of the office exercising, going on walks outdoors and reading. I also love to entertain and cook for my family.

Even though Cinda Montgomery never dreamed of owning a small business, her knack for organizing, decorating and problem-solving, combined with a desire to help others, made starting her consignment business a no-brainer. Over the past 23 years, she and her team have stayed true to the principles of kindness, generosity and hard work that Yours Truly was founded on. Montgomery loves seeing the difference that love and acceptance make in the lives of others, and she has no plans of ever retiring. Helping to keep her active are husband, Greg, their three children and two granddaughters. If you catch her outside of work, she might be snuggled up with her dogs, mountain biking or decorating for the next season.

What attracted you to your career?

I love people and wanted to make their lives easier. I designed the business to meet a need in people’s lives, offering them convenience and the opportunity to make and save money on clothing and accessories.

What is the best part of your day?

Waking up at 5 a.m. to read my Bible and devotionals while it’s quiet and calm.

What other woman do you admire most?

Joanna Gaines. Personally, she’s real, honest and committed to her family. Professionally, she’s innovative, creative and has a good sense of humor.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

When I was younger, I was on staff painting murals at Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

What do you love most about what you do?

The people, and hearing how much they love shopping and consigning at Yours Truly. They really encourage me, and I know that what we are doing matters. It’s a bonus to get great clothing at amazing prices!

Cinda Montgomery

Amber Jewel Moody, APRN

Aesthetic Nurse Practitioner & Co-Owner, Revolution Med Spa

Amber Moody is in the business of empowerment. She is constantly learning from aesthetic clinicians around the world and mentoring her peers in order to better serve the patients that come to Revolution Med Spa. She and her husband also hope to be an example to families going through the uncertainty and fear of childhood cancer like they are; they’re raising their four children to not take anything for granted. Moody knows that “A little grace goes a long way,” and she brings that grace to her family, co-workers and patients every day. In her free time, she likes to travel and spend time with family and friends, enjoying the outdoors.

What attracted you to your career?

Medical aesthetics allows me to utilize my medical knowledge while exploring my creative side. It’s the perfect balance for me.

What is your proudest achievement?

Overcoming my fears and starting a business. I hope to show my children that anything is possible if you are willing to put in the time and the work.

What other woman do you admire most?

I have always looked up to my sister, Tara. We both left our stressful jobs in 2021 to open our own businesses. After years of having a dream to open a maker’s market, she opened the Artisan Hub earlier this year! I admire her resilience and her creative mind. We are so similar and I am blessed to have her to look up to.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I play the guitar. I have three, including my dad’s acoustic guitar that was passed down to me.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it?

I would pay off debts and invest a portion. I would use the rest to support families experiencing childhood cancers.

Deciding who to trust your furry friend with on a vacation or business trip is no small matter. Thankfully, Ashley MosleyTrentham has been making that call much easier for 17 years with Chenal Pet Palace. Her care for animals is apparent, and has been since she was young. Years ago, she warned her mother that she would grow up to be a “crazy cat lady.” According to Mosley, seven cats and two dogs isn’t quite crazy, so she’s not grown up yet. She’s developed relationships with customers that now span two or three pet (and parent) generations. Mosley describes herself as a categorizer, a lister and a doer, and she harnesses that energy for everything from improving her business to planning a vacation with her husband based on an interesting restaurant on TV.

What other women do you admire: Snow White. What a dream – to go out into the forest and all the little creatures come listen to you sing! On a serious note, I love the strong, eccentric, throw-it-to-the-wind ladies: Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, Beryl Markham, Suzanne Valadon, Isabella Stewart Gardner, Marian Anderson.

What is the best part of your day: The midday hours. Some days, I just love to step back and watch – the roughhousing of two best friends, the loner roaming the perimeter, the pack huddled around a single tennis ball and the handful of littles in the shadow of a human. It’s then that I realize dogs are so much like people – perpetual third graders.

What’s one thing you would change about your field: Delete the word kennel from the dictionary. It has such a negative tone, like when people say “doggy jail.” Who wants to go to jail for vacation? That is why we have always used terms like dog hotel and suites.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you: I create yearly challenge lists. Some of the most recent were a pie a month from scratch, and watching all of the Criterion Collection. This year I’m reading the top 100 Penguin Classics.

Ashley Mosley Trentham

Co-Owner,

Shelley Myers has never been afraid to put herself out there, no matter where “there” is. She has lived in several different places throughout her life and has traveled all around the world. The wisdom she’s gained from these experiences plays well into her role as both CFO and COO at Camp Aldersgate, which might seem daunting to most. But Myers knows that “Life is too short to take yourself seriously, even if what you do is difficult and demanding.” Her appreciation for the uniqueness of every individual also supports Camp Aldersgate’s transformational work for children with special needs. When she’s not traveling or making a difference in the lives of others, Myers spends her time playing tennis and enjoying the company of her family and pups.

What attracted you to your career?

I was in high-risk lending, which required reading a lot of financial statements. I wanted to learn more about what was behind the numbers. I had a BBA in finance, and I went back to school to become a CPA. My role at Camp Aldersgate recently expanded to include a focus on evaluating the infrastructure of the organization to position it for future changes and growth.

What other woman do you admire most?

Women who are trailblazers and take risks, like Taylor Swift and Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

What is your proudest achievement?

My family – with two gracious, fun-loving sons and a patient, loving husband.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

Hard work doesn’t always translate to better work when trying to create value. People don’t always recognize their own potential and their innate talents.

Shelley

Myers

Some people spend years searching for the perfect career fit. For Karlea Newberry, however, a college gig as a bank teller quickly turned into a lifelong calling. A graduate of the UofA, Newberry has worked a total of 10 years with Signature Bank of Arkansas, first in Fayetteville and now in Harrison. Pouring into people and relationships has given Newberry a return on investment you can’t get from any savings account – a husband and two boys; a small family farm with horses, cows, a dog and a cat; and the chance to bring her career back home to Boone County.

What other woman do you admire most?

The woman who has been there through everything is my mother. She has always been such a hard-working role model who will do anything for the ones she loves.

What is the best part of your day?

As a mother, there is nothing better than seeing your child’s excited face when they see you at daycare pickup.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

Providing more stability in the market so consumers would know what to expect and plan for.

What is your proudest achievement?

I’m so proud to be part of the team that brought Signature Bank of Arkansas to Harrison. Being able to bring the bank I love to my hometown was not just an achievement, but an honor.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I have not drank caffeine since I was 13 years old. What started as a New Year’s resolution turned into a permanent decision.

Karlea Newberry

Harrison Market President, Signature Bank of Arkansas

Maria Olmos has a knack for bringing different worlds together. Since she and her husband moved from Argentina to Arkansas, they’ve raised their children to value both languages and cultures while still navigating those differences themselves. In her work, Olmos uses those skills to help members of the Hispanic community who might otherwise have a more difficult time finding their dream home. According to Olmos, real estate is not just about buying and selling properties; it’s about creating opportunities for those who need them the most. Outside of work, she loves spending time outdoors, playing tennis and enjoying a great asado around the firepit with friends and family.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mother, Silvina Games. She has been an amazing fighter since being diagnosed with breast cancer, and she taught me firsthand that early screening saves lives. This definitely saved my life, as I was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer in 2020

What is the best part of your day?

When a client calls me to say they have been pre-approved after months of knocking on financial closed doors.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

More equity and inclusion, more documents translated for our Hispanic community and more access to credit for those who do not have residency.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I am an agriculture engineer. I was the director of operations in a brewery, a feed mill and a rice mill, accumulating more than 15 years in the food and beverage industry.

Maria Olmos

Real Estate Agent, Move Realty

Heather Owens, MD

OB/GYN

Dr. Heather Owens comes from a lineage of caretakers. Her parents both had careers serving the developmentally disabled, and in high school, Owens decided she’d give medicine a shot. Fortunately for her patients and peers, it was the perfect fit, and Owens has been helping women navigate some of the most intimate, vulnerable and important moments in their lives ever since. From delivering babies to having conversations about hormones, puberty or menopause, Owens prioritizes the doctor-patient relationship and advocates for her patients however she can. In her spare time, Owens is a foodie, so you might find her on a patio with her girlfriends enjoying a margarita and some great food.

What attracted you to your career?

When I delivered my first baby in medical school, I was hooked. It was the most magical thing I’d ever seen. I knew I wanted to care for women for the rest of my life.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

I wish there were more women going into medicine. We have so much to offer in this field, yet medical school enrollment is still not equal among men and women.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mother. She was the executive director of a large nonprofit in Hot Springs called First Step. She was a pioneer and an advocate in enabling the developmentally disabled to live independent lives. She was a total workaholic, but also wicked smart and a wonderful friend.

What is something others would be surprised to know about you? I love Marvel movies!

What is your proudest achievement?

My three children: Jack, Gabe and Camille. I never knew the human capacity to truly love unconditionally until they were born. They are kind and smart, and they make me proud every day.

My favorite hobbies

Working out – I do a lot of pilates. I like to read when I can. I also like to marathon-watch a series.

It can be hard to break into a male-dominated field like banking, but Kathryn Pannell’s 15-year career and current rank as a senior vice president at Citizens Bank proves that it can be done. She values the relationships that she’s able to foster with clients and the level of service that a community bank is able to provide. Pannell and husband, Jake have two children, and you can usually find her fly-fishing on the Little Red River, gardening, shopping or hanging out on the family farm.

What attracted you to your career?

I always knew that I wanted to be in a field that was focused on customer service, and banking seemed like the perfect fit.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mother. Everything she did reflected her love for life. She gave her all to her family and her work and was the absolute best role model I could ever ask for.

What is the best part of your day?

My drive to and from work. In the mornings, it gives me time to have coffee and candid conversations with my daughter. In the evenings, it is my time to decompress and reflect on my day.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

Banking has always been a male-dominated field, and while there are more women in leadership roles today than when I began my career, we still have a long way to go.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

My family and I live on a tiny farm. We have two pigs, 18 chickens and a dog.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

No one is perfect; mistakes happen. Own it, learn from it and use it to your advantage tomorrow. Being vulnerable may be uncomfortable, but is necessary to grow in life.

Kathryn Pannell

SVP/Director of Treasury Management, Citizens Bank

Lucie Pathmann’s career has been built on years of hard work and great mentors. From overseeing a NASCAR sponsorship during her time at Alltel to directing brand management and communications at Stone Ward, Pathmann has made an impressive name for herself in the marketing industry and continues to make waves with her current role at Westrock Coffee. She’s a self-described workaholic – thanks to the example of her farming grandfather, uncles and cousins – and she learned early in her career to never turn down an assignment. She’s a proud Arkansan through and through, and she enjoys cheering on the Razorbacks and exploring the state. When it’s time to recharge, Pathmann loves nothing more than hanging out with her dogs, Brinkley and Grady, and throwing on "NCIS" reruns.

What attracted you to your career?

I was accepted to the Disney College program when I was at the U of A. The weekly marketing classes fascinated me. When I returned to Fayetteville, I changed my major from education to advertising. I love that I work in an industry that is constantly changing.

What other woman do you admire most?

Millie Ward taught me so much during my 11 years at Stone Ward, both personally and professionally. There’s no question I wouldn’t be where I am today without her influence.

What is the best part of your day?

Waking up. I’m a morning person, so I always try to start the day strong. It’s the one thing you can be grateful for, even on bad days.

What is your proudest achievement?

I had the honor of being one of the 1,200 employees that worked to take Westrock Coffee public this year. Planning that announcement and participating in ringing the opening bell at Nasdaq was the most gratifying thing I’ve ever experienced.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it?

I’d invest half, then use the rest to travel and buy a place on a lake here in Arkansas.

Lucie Pathmann

SVP of Corporate Marketing, Westrock Coffee Company

Sometimes a single leap of faith is all it takes. After a few years in the corporate world, Susan Erwin Prowse made that jump and decided to pursue a full-time career in music. She and her husband, Cliff now own Big Red Dog Productions, a music production, artist development and event promotions company. Her career has allowed her to travel all over the world celebrating music and connecting with others. Prowse is also looking towards the next generation of artist-preneurs through education; her Entertainers Academy will launch later this fall.

What is the best part of your day?

When I find time to meditate.

What is your proudest achievement?

Sticking with classical piano lessons for 10 years during my chaotic formative years.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

That I do sleep.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

How to sustain a full-time career doing what I love, what songs typically work on any crowd and how to pack for six weeks of shows in one suitcase.

What do you love most about what you do?

I get to do it with the person I love, my husband, Cliff.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it?

Call a trusted financial advisor immediately. I’d be marking off my list of goals a little faster.

What are your favorite hobbies?

We’ve recently fallen in love with researching and foraging mushrooms while exploring our beautiful state!

Susan Erwin Prowse

Artist-preneur, Music & Festival Producer, Pianist

Brittany Rush might not have had a major in mind when she first started at UALR, but by the time she graduated in 2011 and received the Outstanding Marketing Student award, it was clear she’d found her calling. She’s been helping businesses across the state tell their stories ever since, from digital and print marketing to TV advertising. Rush loves helping business owners reach their goals and build their brands. When she’s not networking or deepening her involvement in the community, you can find Rush kayaking or traveling.

What other woman do you admire most?

Jamie Kern Lima, founder of IT Cosmetics. She built a global cosmetics brand from the living room of her apartment and made the inclusion of all women a focal point of her brand.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

In advertising, business owners typically look at you as a salesperson and tend to look at their marketing as a cost rather than an investment. These points of view have to change, and consultants can help by nurturing that relationship and educating clients. The partnership cannot be solely transactional.

What is your proudest achievement?

Being the Event Coordinator of ARKAST: Arkansas Podcast Convention, the first event of its kind in our state.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

Trust and communication are essential components to a partnership. Patience is a virtue; be persistent. Always do your research. If you fail to plan, you’re planning to fail.

What do you love most about what you do?

I’m able to teach others what I’ve learned in the industry over the last decade – networking is a big part of building your brand, and the rest is the math, message and execution of your marketing strategy.

What is the best part of your day?

Coming home after work and loving on my fur baby, Mabel.

Brittany Rush

COO, American Business Engine

Whether a client is trying to track down a forever home or planning a cross-country move, realtors have a lot to deal with. Rachel Rushing handles it all with style and patience. As she puts it, “Everything happens in due time and on God’s time.” Occasionally, that “due time” is impressively short: Rushing was instrumental in iRealty Arkansas opening a Sheridan location, passed the brokers exam, was promoted to Executive Broker and then Principal Broker all in the span of just five years. She enjoys traveling with her family, decorating for the holidays and keeping up with her daughter’s busy schedule of dance competitions and softball games.

What other woman do you admire most?

My grandmother, Louise. Every person I introduced her to called her Granny. She taught me so much about life – from everyday skills like how to make dressing and chocolate pie, to advice on what a great marriage is – God, loyalty and work ethic.

What is the best part of your day?

I love mornings! I wake up early, when the house is still quiet, to enjoy a cup of coffee and get my day started. I finish my cup just in time to hear my daughter’s bedroom door open and see her sleepy smile running towards me for a good morning hug.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it?

I would donate a portion to Arkansas Children’s Hospital. Our daughter was very sick a couple of years ago, and ACH is the reason she is still with us. After that, I would buy a large tract of land, cut a long, curvy drive that leads to a couple of cleared acres in the center, and build my forever home: the kind of place that’s full of memories of raising children and that one day your grandchildren can’t wait to get to – the kind of place that’s passed down for generations.

What are your favorite hobbies?

In the spring I enjoy gardening, and in the summer we spend a lot of time at the lake.

Rachel Rushing

Realtor and Principal Broker, iRealty Arkansas - Sheridan

If you’ve tuned in to the local nightly news any time in the last couple of decades, Dawn Scott probably needs no introduction. After a combined 21 years with THV11, Scott now finds her way into Arkansans’ homes through the front door instead of the TV set. She stepped down from the news desk at the end of 2020 to focus on her family and transition to a career in real estate. Her storytelling skills serve her well in her role at The Janet Jones Company, where a deep understanding of people and an empathy for their unique situations can tell you a lot more than what the price tag on the house can convey.

What attracted you to your career?

My grandfather was a real estate broker. He operated with character and integrity, just like we do at The Janet Jones Company. This felt familiar and like the natural next step for me.

What is your proudest achievement?

Transitioning out of TV news. I had my real estate license long before I left, and I wanted to do it many years before I did, but I kept coming up with reasons why I could not leave the news desk. My family kept showing me why I had no other choice. I was afraid, but I knew I couldn’t keep missing school pick-up, games, events and dinners with my son and daughter.

What other woman do you admire most?

My late mother. She was a young, single mom with very little starting out. I was her only child, and she poured love into me and taught me that being kind and loving is the most important thing in life. If I am 1/1000th of her, I have done OK.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

Zestimates on Zillow. Has Zillow set foot in your home? While Zillow makes the buying and selling process less intimidating, it also creates unrealistic expectations.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it?

I would build a home for the children who’ve grown up in Arkansas foster care without ever getting adopted. I may just raise the money locally and do it anyway.

Dawn Scott

Real Estate Agent with The Janet Jones Company

Morgan Shaw might have cracked the code to finding the “perfect” work-life balance, even as a mother of five. Her business, Share the Love, is all about creating a welcoming space for parents and their children, so no one bats an eye at Shaw or her employees bringing their own kids to work. Shaw grew up around her mother’s in-home day care, which not only inspired her own large family, but made a career taking care of children the perfect choice. Contrary to popular belief, working moms do have hobbies, so in her down time, Shaw can be found daydreaming about beach trips, reading or finding time to play the piano or attend a concert.

What other woman do you admire most?

Melissa Longing. If you know her, then your life has been blessed in some way. She’s a business owner, leads at Alzheimer’s Arkansas and has the biggest heart for helping people.

What is your proudest achievement?

My family, hands down. Finding a man that also wanted a big family and creating that together has been a dream come true.

What’s something others would be surprised to find out?

Nothing! I’m an open book.

What lessons have you learned working in your field?

All children hit milestones at different ages – and that’s OK, momma! Your child was perfectly and specifically made, so don’t compare.

What do you love most about what you do?

Providing a space where families feel safe, welcome and seen. Postpartum can be scary. Parenthood is hard and lonely. You shouldn’t have to do it alone.

If you were handed a million dollars what would you do with it?

Pay off all my loved ones’ debts and set them up for financial freedom. Then, small things, like buying a stranger lunch or gifting groceries to a family in need.

Morgan Shaw

Owner, Share the Love KIDSCLUB; KIDSCLUB Tents & Events

While an intense area of medicine like labor and delivery might scare some off, that high pressure has only made a diamond out of Dr. Courtney Sick, who embraces the challenge head-on. Building relationships with patients and being part of a family’s story through the highs and lows, from childbirth to loss and everything in between, is something that medical school can’t teach – but it’s an aspect of the job that Sick cherishes. In the community, Sick is involved with nonprofits like Conway Cradle Care, which provides daycare and mentoring to teen parents, and Mamie’s Poppy Plates, which provides custom ceramic plates with footprints to families in 20 states that have suffered a stillbirth or infant loss.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mom is my rock. She has helped me get through medical school and residency, and she is now helping me be the best mom I can be for my children. I admire her ability to always put her family first and her ability to always get my kids to behave!

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

Women’s reproductive health is not a political issue. It is something that should be discussed between a physician and the patient. We need to focus on ensuring that all women have access to prenatal and postpartum care. Arkansas has the fifth highest maternal mortality rate in the country. As an ob/gyn, I have become active in the Arkansas Medical Society with the hopes of encouraging legislation that will actually affect maternal morbidity and mortality.

What is your proudest achievement?

There are no medical degrees or board certifications that mean more to me than seeing my children grow and thrive.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I was a registered nurse prior to becoming a physician. I worked at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in the Burn Center for three years before I started medical school.

Courtney Sick, MD

OB/GYN

Maria Simpson describes herself as a visionary, and it’s easy to see why. Since starting in the hospitality business, she’s worked her way up from housekeeping to management, and now she has even higher aims of owning her own company and one day opening a homeless shelter. Her optimism and faith push her to be a problem-solver and to give back to her community. She spends her time motivating others to unlock their potential and helping them “have a good day on purpose.”

What other woman do you admire most?

My mother and four daughters.

What is the best part of your day?

The best part of my day is when I take the time and have a moment of reflection. I reflect on the events of the day and process them so that I can grow and learn from them. Believe it or not, this is very relaxing to me.

What is your proudest achievement?

Giving my life to Jesus Christ and birthing five beautiful children.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I own three staffs, and I carry one of them everywhere I go.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

I have learned to put my best foot forward, because the saying “You never know who is watching you” is true.

What are your favorite hobbies?

Journaling, encouraging others, reading and helping those in need.

Maria Simpson

General Manager, Haywood Hotel

Lorrie Trogden became the first female president of the Arkansas Bankers Association in 2018, and if you’ve ever met her, it’s clear to see how she got there. Self-described as dedicated, fiercely loyal and even a bit stubborn, Trogden doesn’t shy away from hard work – she tackles it head on. She embodies the idea of loving one’s career, and she takes pride in advocating on behalf of the banking industry to better protect institutions and their customers. Trogden backs up her confidence in the field with a compassion for others, and it is this balance that allows her to keep blazing a trail for other women in banking.

What attracted you to your career?

No two days are ever the same. It’s challenging and demanding, but it allows you to utilize and grow your talents every day – you never stop learning. It’s an avenue to help our member banks give the best service to their customers and communities. It’s also an opportunity to affect policy at both the state and federal level to ensure the soundness of the country’s financial system.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

Unnecessary and overly burdensome regulation. It may look good on paper, but when you are in the trenches doing the work, it can work against customers rather than for them. When it comes to banks, one size does not fit all.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

In college, I was a dispatcher/911 operator for the Faulkner County Sheriff’s Office. That 911 phone terrified me, but it helped me learn how to deal with stressful situations.

What lessons have you learned working in your field?

Find your voice when you have something to say, but be prepared to know your facts and back it up. Admit your mistakes and step up to apologize when you are wrong. The buck stops here – when you are the president, you must set the example and provide leadership.

Lorrie Trogden

Arkansas Bankers

Alexandria Washington

Founder/Managing Principal, The BIG Agency

The first time Ally Washington stood behind a microphone, she felt empowered, and she’s been using her skills in front of an audience to change the world ever since. She’s been an on-air radio and TV personality in cities from Atlanta to London, and now shares her talents in marketing and storytelling through her creative firm, The Big Agency. When she’s not spending time with family or her puppy, Motown, you can find her cheering on her alma mater, University of Alabama, attending concerts or exploring the culinary and museum offerings of Central Arkansas.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mom, Carla, and sister Brianna are the greatest examples of poise, class and street smarts that I could ever have to light my path. They are, and will forever be, my blueprint.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I grew up in church. My parents, Robert and Carla were pastors, and I learned to be comfortable in front of an audience at a very young age.

What is your proudest achievement?

Making Amazon’s bestseller list with “Would You Love Me If,” a book my nephew and I authored together.

Being an aunt and a godmother are some of the greatest gifts I’ve been given in this lifetime, and I wouldn’t trade them for anything.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

I’ve learned that you have to always keep a pulse on what’s happening

around you. Engaging with people in a memorable way is the always the BIG difference in our work.

What do you love most about what you do?

I love that I have the opportunity to work alongside homegrown talent with an expertise in storytelling. Highlighting their talent and seeing an impact through the work we do, makes my heart full.

There are working moms, and then there is Joanna White. After deciding in college that architecture wasn’t for her, White turned her passion for construction and design into a fulfilling career showing Arkansas natives and new residents alike what The Natural State has to offer. She attended real estate school in her second trimester and received her license just 20 days before her son was born – not to mention going on to sell seven homes and win her firm’s Rookie of the Year award soon after. She has an eye for style and has been known to research home improvement projects for fun, whether it’s for her own home or one she’s selling. Outside of work, White spends time with her family, improving her tennis game and attending country music concerts.

What attracted you to your career?

Real estate seemed like a natural fit considering my passions and love for Arkansas. My father has been a residential contractor most of my life. I grew up visiting job sites, hearing conversations about home improvement ideas and studying his blueprints at the dining room table.

What is the best part of your day?

I love school pickup. My son has the biggest smile on his face when he sees me; he waves constantly until it’s time for him to get in the vehicle and tell me about his day.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

You have to put yourself out there. I’m not the biggest fan of sharing things so publicly, but social platforms are a great way to connect with people. I’ve had to put my hesitations aside to share my real estate journey and stay relevant.

What do you love most about what you do?

Making connections and building relationships. When a first-time home buyer becomes a friend and sends me pictures of their first home decorated for Christmas, it’s so rewarding.

If you were handed a million dollars, what would you do with it?

Pay off my family’s mortgages and invest the rest in rental properties and other real estate developments.

Joanna White

Real Estate Broker, Bailey & Company Real Estate

RaeAnn Wilson is at the forefront of wellness and recovery. With ten years of experience in the medical field, her businesses represent both the confidence she has in groundbreaking techniques and her own commitment to helping people. As a single mom to two daughters, Wilson understands the impact that a strong support system can have, and that only further enhances the care she brings to patients every day.

What attracted you to your career?

I feel a great deal of compassion for patients. This is the principal reason I started my businesses – to help take a negative, scary experience like surgery or a health challenge and turn it into a positive, encouraging experience. IV infusion therapy is an effective way to deliver nutrients, vitamins and hydration to the body and can be extremely beneficial during recovery. It is also highly effective in maintaining overall health and wellness.

What lessons have you learned from working in your field?

I have learned that spending extra time with a patient can make a huge difference in their experience. At the end of the day, a great patient experience is our ultimate goal.

What other woman do you admire most?

I admire women who truly empower other women to succeed. I greatly admire Oprah Winfrey because she embodies that spirit in an intelligent and giving way by providing encouragement to millions of women around the world.

What is your proudest achievement?

Besides being a mother to two amazing daughters, I am most proud of opening both Zen Recovery Care and Zen Infusion. I am particularly proud that we donate IV therapy sessions to patients undergoing cancer treatment.

Surprising Fact

I love to read psychological thrillers and I love to cook. I am currently trying to give up meat and eat more plant-based foods.

RaeAnn Wilson

As a human resources pro, Julie Wood knows better than anyone that people are complicated. Her role at Arkana Laboratories allows her to help remedy those tough problems while working with some of “the coolest and smartest people” around. Outside of work, you might find Wood hanging out with her dogs, enjoying Lake Ouachita with family and friends or picking fresh flowers for her home.

What attracted you to your career?

When I first started working in human resources, I worked with and for a special group of individuals who took the time to teach me all the “HR things.” It was the people that I enjoyed most, and they made all the difference in which career I selected.

What other woman do you admire most?

I admire a woman who has the grit to fight for what she loves.

What is the best part of your day?

Picking my daughter up from school. She will be driving soon, so I will really miss it. No matter how tough the day is, seeing her makes everything better.

What’s one thing you would change about your field?

Because they are so busy helping others, HR professionals are often the last people to ask for help when they need it. I would like to see our profession do a better job of realizing that.

What is your proudest achievement?

Walking away from a job that was no longer serving my wellbeing and starting my own HR consulting practice. It was a huge opportunity for learning and growth.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you?

I hate to cook, because I’m terrible at it. My mom is an amazing cook, but I didn’t get the gene.

Julie Wood

Chief People Officer, Arkana Laboratories

Suzanne Yee, MD, FACS

Facial Plastic Surgeon/Cosmetic Surgeon

Dr. Suzanne Yee has spent her life turning obstacles into opportunities. Growing up Asian American with immigrant parents in a small town meant that she came face-to-face with prejudice at an early age, but her family also had plenty of supporters in the local community. Thanks to that experience, Yee learned to ignore the detractors and live her best life anyway. Taking inspiration from the resolve and adaptability of her parents, Yee took her work ethic to medical school, where she ranked first in her class at UAMS. With her husband taking care of the business side of things, Yee is able to focus on building relationships with patients and using cutting-edge techniques to achieve their dream results in every season of life. Yee, her husband and two daughters are active in their community, and if you can catch her outside of the office, you’ll probably find Yee traveling and trying out new restaurants.

What attracted you to your career?

As a surgeon, I can make an immediate difference in a person’s life with my skills. I am able to use my creative abilities and foresight to affect positive change in patients. It is an amazing feeling for me when someone comes back ecstatic about their results; I benefit from a patient’s positive outcomes as much as they do.

What other woman do you admire most?

My mother. She came to the United

States with basically nothing and married my father. She learned to speak English, started a family business, worked extremely hard and afforded her children the ability to go to college and professional schools.

What’s something others would be surprised to know about you? I love to watch "America’s Got Talent." It allows people to showcase their talents – no matter what that talent is – and it is inspiring. I laugh and smile at every episode.

What is the best part of your day?

Early morning. I’m most productive in the morning, and I have a little quiet time to gather my thoughts since I’m in the office for about an hour before anyone else.

What is your proudest achievement?

Our daughters. We instilled values and a strong work ethic into them, and they are responsible, independent women who are driven to make a difference.

Without Further Ado:

The Walton Arts Center P&G Broadway Series

By Sarah Coleman // Photos courtesy of Walton Arts Center

Listed in bold letters on just about every New York City travel guide are all the Broadway musicals and shows that trav elers should consider attending. While seeing a Broadway show live on Broadway may still be a high priority for many, places like the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville, have made the dream of seeing traveling Broadway shows easily accessible for residents of Northwest Arkansas – for viewers to enjoy right from the comfort of Dickson Street.

2022-2023 P&G Broadway Series

The Walton Arts Center has a six-show P&G Broadway Series lineup this season, and according to Jennifer Ross, vice president of Programming, this will be the Walton Arts Center’s most-award ed season yet.

This year, three of the Walton Arts Center’s shows are Arkansas premieres, which include, “Pretty Woman: The Musical,” “Moulin Rouge” and “Hadestown.” While “Pretty Woman: The Mu sical” has already shown this season, audiences can look forward to “Moulin Rouge” and “Hadestown” coming to the stage soon.

Jennifer Wilson, director of public relations for the center, shared that all of the performances showing this season have one thing in common: They all highlight women.

“The shows feature female authors, focus on fe male characters, explore and challenge traditional gender roles and provide realistic representations of women along with their strengths and faults,” Wilson says.

“My Fair Lady” showed eight times from Aug. 19-24, and “Pretty Woman: The Musical” also showed eight times from Sept. 20-25, as an Arkan sas premiere.

“Chicago” will premiere in November, with eight shows spanning from Nov. 8-13. “Chicago” won a Tony Award for Best Musical Revival, and as a musical that has existed for 25 years, it is still celebrated as a tale of fame, fortune and “all that jazz,” according to Wilson.

“This is the longest running show in Arkan sas, and holds a satirical look at fame, justice and media,” Ross notes. “It is a show that has held up well throughout time, especially when you look at it through the lens of our world today.”

“Tootsie” will be making its appearance in Fayetteville in January, with eight shows scheduled from Jan.17-22. The musical is known for its come dic relief and serves as a laugh-out-loud love letter of sorts, as it tells the story of Michael Dorsey, a talented and difficult actor struggling to find work.

“This is one of the funniest musicals I’ve ever seen, and I would even say that it is the show I have laughed the hardest at,” Ross says, adding that the musical is fun. “It has great physical comedy and the lead character’s role is changed up a bit in order to be more theatrical, so instead of being a soap opera star, the lead plays the role of an aging actor.”

“Moulin Rouge! The Musical” will also pre miere in Arkansas, with 14 shows from Feb. 9-19.

This is a musical based off of the movie, Moulin Rouge! (2001), and has won 10 Tony awards, in cluding the award for Best Musical.

Ross explains that “Moulin Rouge! The Musi cal” will follow a somewhat different schedule, with a Thursday matinee show serving as the opening to the performance. “It will follow a different sched ule because the production itself takes two to three days to get set up and ready, and the set is spectacu lar,” she says. “Truth, beauty, freedom and love are the biggest themes for this musical. It is a JukeBox musical of the highest order, with 70 familiar songs and 160 songwriters. It is fantastic, musically.”

If she had to compare it to any other musicals, Ross says she would compare it to “Hamilton,” giv en the fact that it is a huge blockbuster, but visually, she would compare it more to “Wicked.” “This is a show recommended for teens and adults, but not for children. It is eclectic and familiar and tells the story that we all know. Boy meets girl, they fall in love and then you have to wait to see what hap pens,” she says.

Courtney Reed, who is best known for playing the role of Princess Jasmine in Disney’s “Aladdin” – for which she received a Grammy nomination – is playing Satine in this performance. That be ing said, Reed is not new to the theater. She most recently featured in Lauren Yee’s play, “Cambodian Rock Band” at the Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia, and made her own Broadway debut in

“If people come away from the show with a sense of warmth, inspi ration, empower ment and hope for what could be, then I think that that is the best possible thing that could come from this.”

Moulin Rouge! The Musical

“Mamma Mia!”

As Satine, Reed says she feels she has land ed a dream role.

“I feel that there are actually several simi larities between Jasmine and Satine. They are both roles of strong, independent women who are defining their own paths in life. Satine is obviously much older than Princess Jasmine, but they both are really strong leading ladies,” she says.

As an Arkansas premiere, Reed is excited to bring the musical to different audiences around the country. “I am so excited to play Satine and I am thrilled to be on tour. It’s a blast to see how different audiences react to the same show,” she says. “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” is a show that really has a broad ap peal and it really hits the mark in terms of re latability. Most everyone in the audience will know the music, and if you are a movie lover, then you will see all that you love in the movie on the stage. It really is made for the stage.”

Reed expresses how this is a love story that also leans into friendships, but holds true to a typical production with lots of dancing and lots of singing on the backdrop of a really cool set design.

“I hope everyone will leave the show feel ing inspired and that everyone will be able to enjoy a story that appeals to them,” Reed adds.

“Hadestown” will close out the season with an Arkansas premiere on May 23, show ing eight times through May 28. It consists of two different mythical tales, intertwined for a musical adaptation of Greek mythol ogy. Orpheus and Eurydice and King Hades and Persephone are featured in this musical. Hadestown will close out the season in May 2023, and according to Ross, it is a must-see.

“The themes of ‘Hadestown’ are faith, hope, rebirth and a love story that is for today and for forever,” Ross says. “For me, it is really genre-defying. It’s two mythical tales woven together. The music is fantastic. It has a New

Orleans vibe, and this is my favorite show of recent times.”

Chibueze Ihuoma, a Nigerian-American actor, musician and writer, plays the role of Orpheus in the show, and like Ross, Ihuoma believes that this is a must-see production. Ihuoma, like many casted for Broadway shows, was taken aback by being casted as Orpheus.

“It was a bizarre experience, and not one that I had expected at all. I thought it was pos sible, of course, but the day I found out I had been casted, I was fully blindsided,” Ihuoma says, adding that his own goals as an actor and as a creative are to be able to give back to the people who watch him or interact with his art.

“‘Hadestown’ works as a piece and produc tion on so many levels. If someone is looking for a unique show, it’s perfect. It is not the kind of musical that is full of constant jump ing. The lighting, set design and every aspect of this show just leaves the audience with a lot of visceral feelings,” he adds. “This is a show that so heavily leans into all of the senses, and that is something that is so powerful. I hope a lot of people are able to take away how power ful love is from this show.”

Ihuoma believes that he is like Orpheus in a lot of ways, especially in the idea of wanting to make the world a better place.

“There is so much pain that we see in the world and for Orpheus and me – there’s a lot that we want to fix. There’s so much power in individual lived experiences,” he says.

Ross encourages the audience to become familiar with Greek mythology before attend ing the show, for a better understanding of the context on which the show is based.

Ihuoma believes that regardless of whether you see the show blind to the meaning, or whether you know Greek mythology well, the show is still incredibly impactful.

“There is something very impactful about

As Satine, Reed says she feels she has landed a dream role.

knowing how this story is developed, and still being shocked about what happens in the end. Everytime I get to talk to people after the show, they say that it offers such an intense experience,” Ihuoma says, adding that the first time seeing this musical is a very special thing, and that even people outside of theater will enjoy it.

Ihuoma also notes that “Hadestown” is about so much more than just romantic love. He says it is also about platonic love, the love one has for oneself and the love one has for their own community.

“If people come away from the show with a sense of warmth, inspiration, empowerment and hope for what could be, then I think that that is the best possible thing that could come from this,” Ihuoma says.

According to the Walton Arts Center website, the 2022-2023 Broadway subscrip tion includes the six shows with prices that start as low as $312.

Ross offers a unique look inside Broadway shows because she has actually seen them all, as a Tony voter. She also has valuable insight into which shows come to Fayetteville, and how those decisions are made.

“The Broadway game really depends on the puzzle that the booking agents put to gether. We have real interest in shows right off Broadway, and where the show is coming from and going to. Sometimes it’s a routing game with the booking agents, and sometimes the booking agents are very familiar with what the interests are at the Walton Arts Center,” Ross explains.

She also explains that this year, the Wal ton Arts Center will be offering three cocktail classes before three different Broadway shows. In these instances, viewers can buy a ticket add-on for $38 to learn from a master mix ologist how to make cocktails based upon the

Broadway show they are attending.

“There will be light snacks, and it’s a great way for people to meet pre-show and learn how to make two cocktails themed after the shows,” Ross says.

The remaining classes for this season in clude one for “Chicago” on Nov. 11, and one for “Hadestown” on May 27. Guests can also add the VIP experience to their tickets for hors d’oeuvres, desserts and an open bar at “Moulin Rouge! The Musical.”

In addition to the P&G Broadway series, the Walton Arts Center will host two Broad way theatricals, “Annie” and “Legally Blonde: The Musical.” “Annie” will play five shows from May 4-7, and “Legally Blonde: The Mu sical” will play four shows, Oct. 14-16.

When the Walton Arts Center initially announced the 2022-2023 P&G Broad

way series, it also announced the 2023-2023 Northwest Arkansas debut of the Academy Award-winning adaptation of Harper Lee’s “To Kill A Mockingbird,” by Aaron Sorkin.

This season has a bit of everything: Musicals that come from popular movies, musicals that were later created into beloved movies, Greek mythology, strong leading roles of women, fe male authors and Arkansas premieres.

“Our subscription base is better than ex pected after COVID-19. We are really hap py that over half of our week-long house is subscription based, and we have very strong single-ticket sales while also seeing a tremen dous number of new subscribers,” Ross notes, adding that the best value for customers is in being a subscriber.

For more information about the Walton Arts Center, visit its website.

BuddyHowseWhitlock is in the

– By RYAN PARKER

Walk into any of the beautiful showrooms operated by Jay Howard of Howse, and you cannot help but notice the Buddy Whitlock paintings. The stylish furniture store, located in West Little Rock, boasts a plethora of beautiful works by the Arkansas artist, all of which so exquisite, you may want a big panel truck to help you get them all home safely – and Howse offers that as well.

Howard says the work created by Buddy Whitlock was something he knew he wanted to display in his showroom. He wanted to draw in more people, as he knew he wasn’t the only one who loved

Whitlock’s paintings. Howard’s focus on fine art – which began over 20 years ago with his I.O. Metro showroom – has been steadily grow ing over the years.

If you’ve ever shopped at HomeGoods, then you’ve likely passed by one of Whitlock’s paintings on display, as the artist has an agreement with the major retailer for his originals to be reproduced. He has an astonishing array of abstract works of art, designed with his eye for the homeowner in mind. Whitlock creates art for every room in the home or office, with each piece intentionally being versatile enough to work in many spaces throughout the modern style home.

My fiancée Heather and I own a few Whitock paintings ourselves, by way of some expert guidance from Kathy McCray, a home design specialist at Howse. One, which is proudly displayed in our family room, is a Buddy Whitlock original that he created for Heather when we were selecting our new family room furnishings. The piece he created espe cially for us is, at the risk of sounding cliché, truly a work of art.

Surprisingly for Whitlock, art was “never something [he] took a class in at any school.”

“Unless you count the time in sixth grade when I visited the school library and took those four classes on shadows,” he recalls with a laugh. “I did enjoy those classes and that’s all I needed I guess.”

Whitlock’s work recently appeared on the hit television series "Yel lowstone," prominently displayed in the office of character Beth Dutton, played by Kelly Reilly, during one of the most talked about episodes. Whitlock said when he met Reilly and shared he had painted the piece, Reilly expressed how much she loved it.

The works Whitlock has created are undoubtedly some of the most beautiful pieces of abstract art that I’ve seen. I will always remember the first time I saw it and how it made me feel. This is what a great painting is designed to do – elicit a response of astonishment.

Buddy doesn’t sign all of his paintings, due to his agreement with reproduction efforts that Howard helped design for Howse. Whitlock

Whitlock recently created an original piece for AY Magazine President and Publisher Heather Baker.

It’s no secret that Whitlock has a big heart and a sincere love for people, but what is surprising is that the artist didn’t begin to paint until after his children were born.

was able to parlay some great deals with Howard for international op portunities he never knew were possible.

Buddy and his husband, Tyler Whitlock, have spent many years fo cusing on building a niche in the art world. A Buddy Whitlock painting can be hanging on a wall in your home, can be found in your favorite Kevin Costner television series, or perhaps you’re a fan of the DIY hit “Fixer to Fabulous,” by River Media, which has decided to partner with Whitlock for the new season and will feature his work.

It’s no secret that Whitlock has a big heart and a sincere love for people, but what is surprising is that the artist didn’t begin to paint until after his children were born.

Born and raised in Des Arc, Whitlock served in the health care in dustry, providing life-saving treatment daily, for over 20 years. He start ed out painting children’s murals and recalls that it’s been nearly 23 years since creating his first painting – a piece for his newborn daughter – a painting of a castle to hang on his princess’ wall.

Whitlock officially got his start with Massimo, an interior design firm in the Riverdale area of Little Rock. David Peterson of D.P. De signs was another partner that helped springboard Whitlock to greater success. This was in the late ῾90s and early 2000s, when Whitlock recalls his painting business began to gain traction.

Howard entered the picture when he sponsored a contest for local

artwork that would be reproduced in China. A painting submitted by Whitlock titled, “People in the City” won the award, earning the artist a great deal of respect in the local creative community. Howard has now been working with Whitlock for 15 years, reproducing some of the most amazing paintings with national and international distribution.

“The reproductions have been such a great success,” Whitlock says. “I’m enjoying creating more original work.” Whitlock offering to create custom pieces for clients with their specific space in mind is something unique for the local art scene.

Over the last few years, Whitlock has been in Northwest Arkansas, painting live at the Bentonville Howse location. Howard has mentioned plans to relocate to a larger showroom just south, in Rogers, for live painting as well. The new Howse location on Chenal Parkway in Little Rock had not yet opened for business when customers began pouring in to look around in early spring of this year.

After the live painting in Howse Bentonville began to take off, Whitlock and Tyler felt the time was right to start taking back some of the previously outsourced reproductive processes of the artist’s work, bringing some of the manufacturing work behind the pieces back to the United States.

Whitlock explains that he and Tyler started with only an inexpensive printer, which was not easy to deal with.

“Tyler’s been focused on the reproduction process, while I create the originals,” Whitlock says. The duo worked hand in hand with Howard to scale the in-house production process, and over time, they were able to invest in better tools and equipment for domestic reproduction.

The streamlined process has since allowed for production numbers ranging between 3,000 and 4,000 pieces of original works of art being reproduced each month.

“Depending on the complexity of the piece and the framing, I’d say a reproduction costs around $25 per square foot. Original pieces are ap proximately four times that,” Whitlock explains.

Some of the artist’s reproduction partners, like Harp&Finial, have

Whitlock’s work has appeared on the hit television series "Yellowstone." The piece was prominently displayed in the office of Beth Dutton, played by Kelly Reilly, during one of the most talked about episodes.

Photos courtesy of Buddy Whitlock

helped considerably with digital imaging by promoting expansion and distribution of work that Whitlock has created. Digital equipment and overseas manufacturing has also allowed Whitlock to grow his abstract painting business, which pays a commission for each duplication.

In addition to custom pieces, Whitlock says that he also loves to come up with paintings that aren’t too specific and that will appeal to a broad range of audiences, such as one of his recent pieces which features a large, colorful bug.

Whitlock says he first became interested in painting in elementary school, when he learned perspectives and began painting things for his mother’s house. Then, shortly after his divorce, Whitlock began to study and admire the work of famous French artist Yves Klein.

“I don’t need to be a famous artist,” Whitlock says, “the work I do is selfless.” What he loves most is helping people fill their homes with bold and stunning works of art. “Whether anyone knows the work is mine, doesn’t really matter to me.”

Arkansas has many other great artists, according to Whitlock, such as Beau Jones of BeautoxArt.

“[Beau] has some good stuff. He doesn’t make the same type of works I do, but it’s good,” he says.

“I’m really enjoying myself. Tyler and I are doing amazing things together and have partnered with distributors to get the work in front of as many people as we could hope for. It’s truly been a blessing.”

Celebrating Reading, Writingand the Pursuit of Education at

annual

Bridges Book Festival

By JOHN CALLAHAN AND VERITY MILLER

In any modern society, reading is the firm foundation that allows us to build upon the bedrock necessities of life. Food, water and shelter will keep you alive, but the ability to read is what allows us to thrive. The rela tively recent phenomenon of univer sal basic education means that almost everyone is literate, yet not everyone truly becomes a reader. A love of read ing, once fostered, can be an incredible asset, benefiting agreement issue through out his or her life. Through books, a person can learn, understand and engage with so much more of the world than would have ever been pos sible otherwise.

Named for the six bridges that span the Arkansas River between Little Rock and North Little Rock, the Six Bridges Book Festival has been working since 2004 to foster and support a love of reading in Central Arkansas.

The festival began 18 years ago as a project of the Arkansas Literacy Council and was originally named the Arkansas Literary Festival. In 2008, the organization asked the Central Arkansas Library System to adopt the event, and CALS has managed it ever since. Since then, it has grown into a nearly two-week-long celebration where reading takes center stage. This year’s event will stretch from Oct. 20-30, featuring dozens of authors from Arkansas and abroad as speakers, and a wide range of other events, exhibits, performances and film screenings.

Cooking workshops, a teen poetry competition, a magician and a screening of "The Exorcist" (1973) are just a few of the attractions the festival will offer this year, with many of the events being free to attend. A full day of children’s events dubbed, “Little Readers Rock,” has been set, in partnership with the Junior League of Little Rock. And CALS has introduced a new section of the festival called Six Bridges Market, which includes three exhibits, special events, workshops, a concert, a rooftop party, films, books giveaways and more.

Although the majority of events will be in-person, after the festival went primar ily virtual in 2020 and 2021, festival organizers found that many people enjoyed the online events and found them more accessible. So this year’s festival will be approxi mately two-thirds in-person and one-third online.

“I have a passion for teaching kids to become readers, to become comfortable with a book, not daunted. Books shouldn’t be daunting, they should be funny, exciting and wonderful; and learning to be a reader gives a terrific advantage.”

- Roald Dahl

“Reading is essential for those who seek to rise above the ordinary.”

- Jim Rohn

“The man who does not read good books is no better than the man who can’t.”

- Mark Twain

Six Bridges Book Festival Coordinator Brad Mooy explains with pride the efforts that go into preparing the festival. As soon as one festival ends, planning for the next begins. Some things – like the Oliver Jeffers exhibition on Oct. 20 – have been planned over a year in advance. Volunteers are essential to the festival, given the tight budget that CALS has to run on.

A talent committee nominates authors and votes on what books to include, and has the difficult job of putting together a robust and diverse panel of writers, on a limited budget that is bolstered by more than 40 sponsors in 2022. This year’s ros ter shows just how capable they are of overcoming such chal lenges, with a long list of authors who have been willing to visit Arkansas from across the country and the world.

As for the cause behind the festival, Mooy says it ties into the Central Arkansas Library System’s mission to help im prove literacy and encourage the exchange of ideas.

The fest serves the community by presenting diverse per spectives and providing access to outstanding authors from across the country.

“Seeing the excitement of someone receiving a free book or meeting an author they love or who they just discovered – there is nothing quite like it,” Mooy says. “Being in spaces with groups of people listening to stellar writers, then hearing audiences ask questions of these authors and witnessing the instant answers . . . Arkansas is fortunate to have an event that provides so much to those willing to participate.”

The 2022 Six Bridges Book Festival features 60 writers of all walks of life. Here are a few Arkansan writers who will be attending as speakers.

“When I look back, I am so impressed again with the life-giving power of literature. If I were a young person today, trying to gain a sense of myself in the world, I would do that again by reading, just as I did when I was young.”

- Maya Angelou

“Reading should not be presented to children as a chore or a duty. It should be offered as a gift.” - Kate DiCamillo

BROOKS BLEVINS:

Born in Batesville in 1969, Dr. Brooks R. Blevins has a long history of studying, well, history. An author of seven books and editor of two, he has a passion for the historical American South and the history of American higher education, and continues to foster leadership and research in the Ozark region of Arkansas especially. After receiving his bachelor’s degree in history in 1992 from Lyon College, Blevins went on to get his M.A. and Ph.D. from Auburn University, then to teach at the Meridian campus of Mississip pi State University and Ozarka College. After briefly returning to Lyon to serve as director of the Regional Studies Center, then as an associ ate professor of history, Blevins joined Missouri State University as the first Noel Boyd Profes sor of Ozarks Studies, a professorship created to

help teach courses in the study of the Ozarks. He has since helped create a minor in Ozark Studies for the university, where he teaches as a professor of history. Blevins is also the Chair of the Ozark Folk Cultural Center Commission, which helps oversee the Ozark Folk Center State Park in Mountain View. His latest book – "A History of the Ozarks, Vol. 3: The Ozarkers" – is the third and final publication in a trilogy, with this last volume covering late-19th century to mod ern day in the fascinating lands of the Arkansas Ozarks.

JANIS F. KEARNEY:

Born in Gould (a small town south east of Pine Bluff) in 1953, Janis Kearney was the 14th of 19 chil dren and grew up assisting her family with sharecropping cotton. In spite of working through the summers and sacrificing that time away from school, Kearney attended the University of Arkansas, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism in 1976. She was hired by the State of Arkansas in 1978, where she worked for a total of nine years, before be coming the managing editor for the Arkansas State Press newspaper, which was owned and run by civil rights activist Daisy L. Gatson Bates. Upon Bates’ retirement, Kearney purchased the newspaper from her and ran it for the next five years. From 1993 to 2001, Kearney served in

Nonfiction

the Clinton administration, known especial ly for being the first Personal Diarist to the President. After being a fellow at the W.E.B. DuBois Institute of African and African American Studies at Harvard University, she and her husband founded Writing our World Publishing. Kearney also founded the “Cel ebrate! Maya Project” to promote the legacy of Dr. Maya Angelou, along with the “Read. Write.Share.” Writers Conference held in Arkansas annually. Kearney’s latest book, "Only on Sundays: Mahalia’s Long Journey," is a study on Mahalia Jackson’s road to be coming America’s Queen of Gospel.

ELI CRANOR:

“in the Delta and raised in the Valley,” Eli Cranor has lived in Forrest City and Russellville in Arkansas, as well as in South Florida and overseas. An English and politi cal science major at Ouachita Baptist Uni versity, Cranor planned to go to law school after getting his bachelor’s degree, but instead moved to Sweden where he was a professional quarterback for a year. Once back in Amer ica, Cranor returned to Arkansas, where he coached and worked as a high school English teacher for five years. This is when his short story, “Don’t Know Tough” won the Miller Audio Prize from The Greensboro Review in 2017 and the The Robert Watson Literary Prize from the Missouri Review in 2018. Be tween 2019 and 2020, Cranor contributed a

Born

series of creative essays to The Oxford American –an American quarterly literary magazine featuring writing from the South – as well as wrote a weekly sports column called “Athletic Support,” that ap peared in many newspapers across the nation. His first self-published children’s book, "Books Make Brainz Taste Bad," was created to educate children on the power that knowledge and literacy hold. His short story, “Don’t Know Tough” was the ba sis for his new novel by the same name, exploring a high school football player who is struggling, a coach who is trying to help and a murder that looms over their Arkansas town.

The Arkansas Game and Fish and … Bigfoot Commission?

By JOHN CALLAHAN

Photos courtesy of White Dove Photography for Beyond the Lens in Branson

Bigfoot,

Sasquatch, the Fouke Monster, the Skunk Ape, Momo, Wood Booger: This strange creature that supposedly dwells in the forests of North Amer ica – ranging somewhere between a man and an ape – is without a doubt the most famous of American cryptids, rivaling the Loch Ness Monster in the popular imag ination. With literally thousands of alleged sightings, many believe wholeheartedly that Bigfoot exists, while few scientists will say it is anything more than a hoax or a misidentification. Yet, the purpose of this article is not to try to convince one way or the other; not to try and fail at what others have attempted to do for decades. We will be asking a different set of questions, the most crucial of which is: Is Bigfoot an Arkansan?

Centuries before modern sightings of Bigfoot, numerous Native American tribes had traditional tales including large, hair-covered creatures, from petroglyphs in California depict ing what some assert to be a family of Bigfoots, to an early Jesuit priest in Mississippi who told of stories about large hairy creatures that would scream in the woods and steal livestock. Similar examples are to be found from the Iroquois in the region of upstate New York and the Sts’ailes in British Columbia, far to the northwest, who called it the “Sasq’ets,” possibly the origin of the name Sasquatch.

The first supposed evidence of Bigfoot was found by David Thompson, a British explorer, in 1811. On one expedition, while trying to cross the Rockies in what is now Alberta, Canada, he came across a strange track. He wrote of it: “the [sic] Men and Indians would have it to be a young mammoth and I held it to be the track of a large, old grizzly bear; yet the shortness of the nails, the ball of the foot and its great size was not that of a [sic] Bear, otherwise that of a very large old Bear, his claws worn away, the Indians would not al low.” He mentioned the track multiple times in his writings, never quite able to believe that a nor mal bear could be of such a size.

These tales and the print found by Thomp son weren’t connected, however, until the story of Bigfoot as we know it really took off in 1958. Journalist Andrew Genzoli of the Humboldt Times in California made what he thought was an amusing story from a letter that had been sent in by some loggers who had seen strange, 16-inch footprints. He jokingly suggested that it may be some American relative of the Yeti, but was surprised to find that people were fascinated by the idea. The story quickly spread, and Bigfoot became a popular character for men’s adventure magazines and pulpy novels. The Bigfoot craze hit its peak in the 1970s, but the public fascination with the mysterious wild man has never died.

While most alleged sightings occur in the Pacific Northwest, Arkansas has its own famous Sasquatch story, that of a creature called the Fouke Monster. In 1971, in the small town of Fouke — just outside Texarkana – one family claimed to have experienced a much closer encounter with a Bigfoot-like creature than a grainy photograph or strange screams in the night. While sleeping in her living room, Elizabeth Ford reported that a hairy, clawed arm came in through a window. She began to scream, which alerted her husband, Bobby Ford, and his brother, Don, who were hunting together.

Bobby rushed back to the house, where the creature allegedly put his arm around his shoulder and grabbed him. Panicked, he broke free and ran into his home so fast that he barreled through the front door without opening it. Bobby and Don fired their guns at the creature, driving it away, but no blood was ever found. They reported to the local constable that they had been attacked by an ape-like monster with red eyes, around 7 feet tall and weighing from 300-500 pounds. An investiga tion found scratches on their porch and three-toed footprints in their yard.

After the Ford incident, other sightings of strange creatures from previous de

cades were pointed to as further evidence of the Fouke Monster’s ex istence. There were several other sightings, and it was often reported that the monster had a terrible odor, like a cross between a skunk and a wet dog. It gained other names, like the Boggy Creek Monster or Swamp Stalker. The fame of this version of Bigfoot spread well beyond Arkansas, thanks to a 1972 film named “The Legend of Boggy Creek.” Produced by Charles B. Pierce, the film was funded by a local truck company and most of the work was done by college students. It is best described as a docudrama horror movie, and mixes staged interviews with reenactments of notable encounters and interviews with real peo ple who claim to have seen the creature. Despite its shoestring budget of $160,000, the film brought in more than $20 million at the box office and became a cult classic.

Whether Bigfoot exists, and whether the Fouke Monster is the same creature as the more generic Sasquatch, Arkansas has as good a claim to the legend as anywhere else in North America. Now, for the sake of thoroughness, let’s suppose that Bigfoot is real. Not only that, but imag ine that Bigfoot is properly discovered and named as a new species. One question is hypothetically answered, creating countless more. First of all, what should Bigfoot be classified as?

Despite the lack of hard evidence, there is already a scientific name for Bigfoot, assigned by Zoobank: Homo sapiens cognatus. Homo sapi ens is the scientific name for humans, and cognatus is Latin for “related by blood.” In 2014, a veterinary laboratory called DNA Diagnostics an nounced that it had discovered not only proof of Bigfoot’s existence, but that Bigfoot is a direct human relative resulting from a cross between humans and primates thousands of years ago.

The head of the laboratory, Melba Ketchum, asserted that Bigfoot and its species should be recognized by the government as an indig enous people, given full constitutional rights and protected against those that might seek to hunt or trap them. The study was quickly dismissed

due to lack of evidence, but the line of thought is amusing. Once a myth, the Sasquatch would suddenly become a man. He would have to serve jury duty and could even run for political office.

It seems much more reasonable to believe, however, that Bigfoot would be a wild animal rather than an intelligent creature on the level of a human. If this were the case, then it opens questions about Big foot’s legal and conservational status. Garrick Dugger, assistant chief of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s Wildlife Management Division, helped explain what the AGFC’s role might be if Bigfoot were to be discovered. According to Amendment 35 of the Arkansas Constitution, the AGFC is responsible for “the control, management, restoration, conservation and regulation of birds, fish, game and wildlife resources of the State.” Any involvement by the AGFC would require Bigfoot to fall under one of those categories.

If nothing else, we can quite confidently say that he is neither a fish nor a bird. Yet, categorizing him beyond that is more difficult. Some sort of primate seems the most likely, but the Fouke Monster is said to have only three toes on each foot – and there are no other primates with just three toes. Luckily, that’s irrelevant to whether the Sasquatch would be considered game or wildlife.

This is where the question of whether Bigfoot is an Arkansan be comes critical. Whatever form it may take, any animal only falls under the AGFC’s jurisdiction as wildlife if it is actually native to Arkansas. Imported exotic animals like big cats and monkeys are licensed by the AGFC, but it does not regulate or conserve them because they are not a part of Arkansas’s ecosystem.

Though it may come as a surprise, feral hogs also do not fall under the jurisdiction of the AGFC. Because they are domesticated, non-na tive animals that have gone feral, they are not considered wildlife. As a result, they can be hunted at any time without restrictions on private land and can be killed by hunters on Wildlife Management Areas who

are hunting other game animals with seasonappropriate weapons. If Bigfoot were proven to not be native to Arkansas, and particularly if he were proven to be a threat to native species as feral hogs are, then similar rulings may apply.

To determine if Bigfoot and its species are native to Arkansas, the AGFC would have to survey the population of Sasquatches in the state and find if there is a viable breeding popu lation. Since Bigfoot has been sighted all across North America, but only rarely, it could be ar gued that the population of these creatures is small and nomadic. If so, there may well not be a viable breeding population within Arkansas — just a few individuals that occasionally wander through the state. Even if that were the case, they still might be able to qualify if it could be proven that they were once native to Arkansas. Mountain lions or ivory-billed woodpeckers once lived in Arkansas, but any breeding popu lations have been extirpated or driven extinct. If they returned to Arkansas and began to breed, it would be the AGFC’s responsibility to protect them.

But the alleged existence of the Fouke Mon ster and its unique three-toed footprint sug gest a local population with a unique mutation, perhaps isolated from the rest of the species for some time. And since the Fouke Monster is hardly the only regional variant on the Bigfoot legend, there may be numerous subspecies of Sasquatch recognized and protected separately across the country. In this case, the Fouke Mon ster would indeed fall under the AGFC’s juris diction as native wildlife. The AGFC’s mission statement is “to conserve and enhance Arkan sas’s fish and wildlife and their habitats while promoting sustainable use, public understanding and support,” so that is what they would do for the Fouke Monster population.

Depending on the size of their population and its effect on the ecosystem, Bigfoot and its variants could be classified as game animals. Hunting licenses could be distributed to keep their numbers in check, just like elk and black bears. Given how difficult they have been to find, however, it seems they would be far too few to cause any concerns of overpopulation.

Conveniently, the AGFC’s Sulphur River Wildlife Management Area is within spitting distance of Fouke, and could be where the creature dwells. The AGFC could begin programs to expand this area into a nature reserve to conserve and enhance its habitat, raise awareness of the subspecies and its unique attributes and work to increase its population. Someday, if the population increased enough, Arkansas Sasquatch could even be opened to quota hunting. The Fouke monster would once again be an icon of the state – a myth made real.

Of course, all of this is pure speculation. Bigfoot might not exist, or it may be something utterly different from what we imagine it to be. Yet, that mystery is what keeps the legend alive. A low-budget film about alleged monster sightings made millions and catapulted a tiny town of less than 1,000 inhabitants to brief national fame, from which they still benefit today. Tourists often visit Fouke hop ing to catch a glimpse of the creature. If they do not, they can still visit the Mon ster Mart in the center of town, or the Miller County Historical Museum, which contains supposed Fouke Monster artifacts. Likewise, the Bigfoot Hideout Hotel in Northwest Arkansas invokes the legend of Bigfoot to highlight its position in the beautiful wilderness of the Ozark Mountains.

Arkansas is The Natural State, after all. The AGFC may not be protecting a population of Sasquatches, but what we know to be real is well worth protecting. You may not prove the existence of Bigfoot while exploring the woods, might not rediscover the ivory-woodpecker or a population of mountain lions. But in such a beautiful state, when you spend time outdoors, it is certain that you will discover something worth finding.

SHORT-TERM REHAB, LONG TERM CARE & RESPITE SERVICES

We specialize in Short-Term Rehabilitation and Long-Term Care services. From the moment you enter our facility, we want you to experience the difference our facility has to offer. From our light-filled common area to our beautiful outdoor patios, we want you and your loved one to feel comfortable and safe when staying with us.

Hotline to Dead: the

By KATIE ZAKRZEWSKI

Arkansas content creator investigates paranormal at Crescent Hotel

Warning: The following article contains links to content with strong language. Reader discre tion is advised.

Dustin Poynter takes a deep breath as his fingers rest on the planchette perched atop the Ouija Board. As a content creator interested in video games and horror, doing a tour of the Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs didn’t seem far out of his realm of interest.

But what Poynter initially thought would be a quiet, unsuspecting evening had turned out to be the opposite.

Especially when Poynter takes his fingers off the planchette, and it continues gliding.

Poynter, who lives in Little Rock, has been

creating content across social media for eight years. He went to the University of Central Arkansas, where he had already amassed an impressive social media following.

“I had about 150,000 followers on Vine back in the day, which was enough to make me realize that this was what I wanted to do,” he says. “I got some attention from several marketing agencies before graduating college, and I’ve learned how to market and brand my self through the companies I worked for.”

Poynter started gaining traction on Tik Tok and Instagram a few years ago, leading to his current 800,000 followers on TikTok and 230,000 followers on Instagram.

“I have enough of a following now to where it’s my full-time thing. I’ve started to build up my YouTube channel and my Twitch

channel as well.”

While Poynter doesn’t usually find himself in the middle of haunted locations equipped with the equivalent of a pager linked to the dead, he is a content creator with a penchant for the paranormal.

“I was born on Halloween, and I’m enam ored with the paranormal, but I’ve never been brave enough to ghost hunt on my own, until now,” Poynter explains. “I wanted to get some questions answered and didn’t know how I felt about ghosts. It was a change in my routine –it was something fresh for me to do.”

The allure of the Crescent Hotel attracts tourists from all over the world, and with a moniker like “the most haunted hotel in America,” it’s easy to see why.

“I figured that with it having that title

alone, there was a good chance that we’d see something,” Poynter reasoned.

Poynter realized that he was going to need some equipment. He purchased an electro magnetic field (EMF) detector, said to detect the energy that spirits give off. He also pur chased a Ouija Board, a toy for some, but also known as a tool for communicating with the dead by others. Accompanied by his child hood best friend, Alex Priest, and hired cam eraman, Kurt Lunsford, Poynter headed to Eureka Springs.

The Crescent Hotel was built in 1886 by the Eureka Improvement Company, which was overseen by former Gov. Powell Clayton and constructed by Irish workers. The promise

Photo courtesy of ADPHT

of the healing waters drew many to the hotel’s location.

But as the economy faltered in the 1900s, the hotel limited its opening to sum mer months. The property was the site of an elite all-girls boarding school throughout the school year, reverting to a hotel during the summer months.

During the Great Depression, the hotel closed its doors again, until it was purchased in 1937 by Norman Baker, who turned the hotel into the Baker Hospital and Health Resort to serve cancer patients. But, Baker was not a real doctor and killed far more patients than he saved, often enlisting nurses to help, unwittingly, in his quackery. An archaeological dig on site in 2018 un earthed bottles and vials of “cures” that Baker had hidden on the property.

A pompous and colorful man, Bak er’s charades were doomed from the start. When he was convicted of mail fraud in 1940, the hotel was closed again.

In the 60 years that it had been open at that point, the Crescent Hotel saw the death of many cancer patients, as well as some of the workers who helped as semble the hotel. Some of those spirits are said to remain today.

Michael, an Irish stonemason, is said to have fallen to his death while building the hotel and now lurks around Room 218. An other ghost is that of a cancer patient named Theodora, often seen fumbling for her keys outside of Room 419 and tidying up after

guests. Breckie is a ghost of a four-year-old child who died in the hotel from appendici tis complications. He was the son of Richard and Mary Breckenridge Thompson and is of ten seen playing throughout the hotel with a ball. Around Room 212, you’re likely to smell

the next.

* * * * * * * * *

“My plan was to try to get some sort of interaction with a ghost or spirit or some thing, and we wanted to get that on camera if we could — but I had my doubts,” Poynter confesses. “I realized there was a good chance we were not going to get anything. I figured that I would end up making this a historical episode with a silly ghost hunting bit, but it didn’t turn out that way.”

Poynter and Priest started livestream ing around 6 p.m. With Lunsford fol lowing close behind, the trio began to get spikes of EMF activity down in the spa area of the hotel where the morgue once was.

“We went to the third floor around 2 a.m., where it was rumored that on part of that floor, people get nauseous and throw up and pass out. It has a lot of ac tivity in that area. The EMF reader was going insane the whole time we were up there,” Poynter says.

smoke from the pipe of Dr. John Freemont Ellis before you see him. He was the hotel’s in-house doctor.

If you prefer four-legged ghosts, keep an eye out for Morris, the famed feline hotel gen eral manager of 21 years, later buried on the property, but still seen and heard today. The Crescent Hotel seems to frequently serve as a favorite spot for cats from this world, and

After wandering around the hotel and looking for EMF spikes, the trio de cided to stop near Room 218 to pay the ghost of Michael a visit.

“We knew we were on the floor with the most ghost activity, so we decided to try the Ouija board.”

Poynter and Priest sat in the floor, each placing their fingers on the planchette as it hovered on the Ouija board. To their surprise — and horror — the planchette started mov

Dustin Poynter

“I was born on Halloween and I’m enamored with the paranormal, but I’ve never been brave enough to ghost hunt on my own, until now.”

ing in response to their questions.

“Alex has been my best friend since we were 13," says Pointer. "He wouldn’t lie to me — he’s a denier of sorts, in a way. At one point, we both took our fingers off the planch ette, and it kept moving. That’s what really got me freaked out, and I was like, ‘OK, we just lifted our damn fingers off this thing, and it kept moving, and it was answering all of our questions concisely.’ We had such high-quality camera footage focused on our fingers. If we were faking it, our fingers would have gone in opposite directions at some point. That never happened.”

Poynter points out that he and Priest in tentionally decided to go in blind, so they wouldn’t know how to “fake” any paranormal activity.

“There’s the theory of you subconsciously moving the planchette with your fingers. But, we didn’t know much beforehand about the board and how it worked, and we kind of did that on purpose so that if anything happens, we’re gonna know, because we’re too dumb to fake it or plan it,” Poynter says with a laugh.

But Poynter admits that there was a down side to not doing research: He and Priest were not aware that they were committing several faux pas during their Ouija board session.

“Our questions were kind of…not pre pared, and we kept offending the ghosts,” Poynter explains. “They don’t like to be asked a lot about how they died; they wanted to talk more about what their passions were. Any time we asked about their deaths or their emotions, we either wouldn’t get an answer, or at one point, the planchette just flew off the

board unprompted. We did some research af terward and discovered that means you’ve of fended the ghost, and they don’t want to talk to you. We didn’t know that.”

The EMF reader began to pick up on ac tivity around the Ouija Board, too.

“We didn’t hear voices or see anything, but the EMF reader went off pretty much every time we started getting a lot of Ouija board activity. When it went into the red zone on the detector, ghosts would start answering our questions. We bought those items separately, so they’re not rigged in any way.”

At one point during Poynter’s video, Priest mentions that he’s beginning to change his mind.

“Feels like most of my life, of denying spirits and the fact that people could be on another plane, could possibly be incorrect,” Priest confesses.

“He was really spooked by the whole thing,” Poynter recalls.

And he’s not the only one. Viewers began sharing their thoughts in the comment section of Poynter’s YouTube video.

“When the planchette is moving, it’s mov ing from the front. You can’t do that with your fingers,” one viewer observed.

“Even though I don’t ‘believe in ghosts,’ either, this still gave me chills,” another user commented.

“Watching the [fourth] Ouija board at tempt, both of them were barely touching it, and it was moving like crazy. Freaky,” another user said.

The night continued with other spooky events, such as flickering lights in their hotel

room and continued EMF spikes.

Still, Poynter shares now that he’s dipped his toe in the water, he’s ready to dive in.

“I’m thinking about going back with more equipment. This livestream was really suc cessful, pulling in nearly four times as many viewers as I normally get. It’s definitely a new content realm for me. I stream a lot of hor ror games on Twitch, and I’m always talking about horror and crime.”

Poynter is next considering taking a trip to the Stanley Hotel in Colorado, which inspired "The Shining" by Stephen King.

“We’re planning on something for a Hal loween episode and planning on doing some thing like this again; we just don’t know where yet. Next time, we’re going to amp the budget up and get more equipment. I wanted to see if people were interested in this before I started buying a ton of equipment.”

Many of Poynter’s fans were eager for more, expressing their intrigue in his com ment sections.

“This was really awesome and creepy. LOVED IT! I hope you do more videos like this!” commented one user.

“Watching you guys do this live was both fun and amusing. Well done on the edit, would love to see more of this kind of content along with your usual stuff,” shared another.

“Please do more of this kind of investiga tion. I love seeing honest reviews like this,” another fan implored.

For Poynter and Priest, this experience has been eye-opening.

“I’m new to this: It’s a world I’ve never really explored myself. It’s a very new thing for the viewer to see someone who’s curious and en amored. With professional ghost hunting, you lose some of that,” Poynter says. “Both Alex and I came from the skeptical perspective.

There are so many things that can be de bunked, but I haven’t been able to debunk a lot of what we experienced that night. The series we end up doing won’t be professional, but just two curious dudes.”

CABOT HEALTH & REHAB, LLC

is a skilled nursing facility offering resident-centered care in a convenient and quiet location. Cabot Health & Rehab, LLC is located in beautiful Cabot, AR near the city center, medical offices and hospitals. Our team consists of licensed nurses, physicians, therapists and other medical specialists who believe in building strong relationships with our residents and their families. We believe this is essential to the healing process.

ACCOMMODATIONS & SERVICES

Cabot Health & Rehab, LLC offers both semi-private and private rooms (when available). Our staff is dedicated to ensuring that our residents are provided a robust activity calendar, a superior dining experience in a warm, family-like setting. When recuperation and convalescence is needed, our staff works as a multi-disciplinary team to develop a comprehensive rehabilitation program to facilitate a return to home.

REHABILITATION

When indicated, our team of therapists work with residents to customize a rehabilitation program which can include physical, occupational and speech therapy with a focus on improving mobility, endurance, safety and facilitating a return to home. A tailored treatment plan will allow residents to recapture health and an independent lifestyle when possible. The enrichment of daily physical function can significantly improve a resident’s self-reliance and overall happiness.

When considering a facility for short-term rehabilitation services, families want the best they can get for their loved ones, and they have to look no further than Superior Health and Rehab in Conway.

Our rehabilitation gym offers state-of-the art rehab and features interactive equipment to enable our licensed therapists to create a comprehensive therapy program designed to get our residents back to their prior functional level, regain their self-reliance and facilitate a return to home as quickly as possible.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME

By DWAIN HEBDA // Photos Courtesy of KRISTIN TRULOCK

A young mother settles herself, leaning back in her chair. She rubs her eyes. Hospital rooms have become her world, its caregivers and the treatments they bear her life’s pocket watch. She can almost tell the time of day by their coming and going.

She cleans offices for a living, has for years, just not for the last three weeks that have passed in this room. It’s hard work done in the dead of night, a sixhour block cut out of every 24 like the mass they took from her right breast. It’s taken some adjustment to function in daytime hours; hours spent being poked, radiated and dosed to root out any remaining rogue cancer cells.

She locks her fingers and stretches, trying not to think about her two chil dren back home, restless in missing their mother, adding to the exhaustion her

husband feels after a 12-hour shift at the plant. She wants to see them, but more than that, she wants them to see her free from all of this – free from the oncological signature scrawled on her body. Healthy – as she was before the lump – with hair and color in her cheeks and with love handles.

It’s late-autumn dark when her mother helps her into the car, a cheap import model that’s seen four presidents. Belts squeal and the engine rattles under the cold hood, but it starts, and two dim headlights cut a short path through the moat of darkness. At a stoplight, the woman aims her heavy eyes through the windshield at a house across the street, glowing in the night. As she adjusts the scarf around her throat, a ragged breath comes out as a sigh. Almost home.

Kristin Trulock never fully knows what each day will hold, so she approaches each one expecting a miracle. As executive director of Home for Healing in Little Rock – a temporary home for people receiv ing cancer treatments and families with a child in the NICU at any of the city’s hospitals – there is plenty challenges to her belief that today, wonder will tri umph over sorrow and joy overshadow pain.

But you can’t tell that to Trulock. Today, a scan will come back clean; today, a baby gets to go home; today, the medicine finally kicks in. She’s certain of it, because she has to be. For the people staying at the home, today is everything, so she and the staff work to make it everything it can be.

“We pride ourselves on knowing all of the guests in our home – knowing about their families, knowing about their backgrounds, understanding what their barriers are,” she says. “We help them break those barriers while they’re here by helping them focus on what they have to focus on, and that’s healing or stay ing strong for their babies or their loved ones.

“I’ve seen many who leave much more positive, with a better outlook on life, and that’s because we stayed positive the entire time they were here. We held their hand the entire time. ‘How is your day to day? What can we do for you today? Do you need anything?’”

Since its opening in 2003, Home for Healing has undergone a couple of name changes and refined its mission to better find its spot among other resources available in Little Rock. In the last two years, Trulock has led efforts to better maximize the home’s utilization.

“When I came on board two years ago, the home was not being fully utilized, so I did a community assessment to see who else needed these services,” Trulock explains. “One thing we learned, was there’s a large amount of teenage patients undergoing cancer treatment at Arkansas Children’s Hospital, specifically those going through stem cell trans plants. They are in the hospital for almost 100 days, and then when they come out, they have to stay close to the hospital for multiple months and check their blood levels every single day.

“At other facilities in our area, they either don’t take teenagers or they don’t allow them to stay that long without checking out and checking back in. At our facility, we allow them to stay as long as they need with out checking out and checking back in, and we lowered our threshold to accept patients 13 years old and up.”

As Trulock discovered other classifications of patients who were fall ing through the cracks, Home for Healing became the place that took them in.

“Other changes came about organically,” Trulock says. “We had a cancer patient who was in ICU. He had brain cancer and when they were in the surgery, his skull collapsed because of the cancer and all the radiation. Most recently, the Arkansas Heart Hospital called us with a patient. It really has expanded our mission to keep our home full at all times with people in need.

“We used to say you had to live 50 miles away or more to stay here, and that’s the way most of the lodging facilities still are. But we know there’s a need among people from Jacksonville, Conway, Benton or Red field, people who do not have the transportation to go back and forth or it’s too hard on them with the cost of gas and everything else. So, we lift ed that restriction. As long as patients have a need, we’re here for them.”

* * * * * * * * * * * *

The old man rises earlier than most of the people in the house, the byproduct of 80 years working the land of his father and grandfather. He dresses quickly, runs a comb through his mop of white hair and fluffs the beard that reaches the chest pockets of his overalls.

She looked better last night, he thinks, as he laces up his boots. Her color had returned and she had a little more of an appetite. The doctor says she’s making progress, but hell, what does he know? He’ll trust the knowledge gained through 60-plus years of marriage over some sawbones barely old enough to shave.

He’s not a church-going man, at least not compared to some, but he catches himself whispering into thin air a lot lately. Sometimes it’s bargaining, some times pleading, sometimes it’s just what takes the place of the screaming he forces back into his chest – screaming at her pain, at helplessness, at the terror of losing her. Then, he remembers the conversation he had with the volunteer at dinner last night – the kindness of her voice, the encouragement that fed him as much as the meal. He reaches for his hat, heading back to the car and back to her side.

“We are passionate to support Home for Healing’s mission to provide a peaceful home for so many in need.”

Richard and Brandy Harp said attending last year’s event was so much fun, it inspired them to co-chair this year’s Oct. 28 bash.

Brandy and Richard Harp

Jon Underhill Real Estate

In almost 20 years of operation, Home for Healing has stacked up some impressive credentials, welcoming 5,000 cancer patients, their caregivers and the parents of babies in the NICU to the 30-person oc cupancy home. Almost 700 babies have been born to parents in that time, including 59 sets of twins and 9 sets of triplets.

Each year, the point of origin for guests is split nearly 50/50 between Arkansans and those from elsewhere – patients who’ve come from 35 states and seven foreign countries, as far away as Bangladesh and Nepal.

Not surprisingly, all of this doesn’t come cheap, which is what makes the Monster Bash, Home for Healing’s annual benefit costume party, so vital to the organization’s ability to provide services.

Richard and Brandy Harp said attending last year’s event was so much fun, it inspired them to co-chair this year’s Oct. 28 bash, with the goal of raising $300,000.

“We are thankful for all the sponsors, local businesses, friends and family that will help us achieve our goal,” Brandy said. “We are pas sionate to support Home for Healing’s mission to provide a peaceful home for so many in need. After attending this event last year, this is our fa vorite nonprofit fundraiser we have ever attended.”

The event will feature live and silent auction items, delicious food, creative cocktails and live en tertainment. Individual tickets, limited to 500, are $100, and a table of eight is $800. Attire is come-as-you-are, but longtimers know to dress up in their best Halloween costume duds.

Also featured during the event, the presenting sponsor of which is Jon Underhill Real Estate, is the presentation of two awards. The Heart of the Home Award will be presented to interior designer Larry West Jr., and the Community Impact Award will be presented to Gary Dean, the architect who designed the house.

Richard Harp said in addition to promoting a fun evening, he’s relishing the opportunity to spread the mission of the organization to people who are unaware of what it does.

“We’ve found several folks who did not know what the organization was, didn’t understand its purpose,” he says. “It wasn’t that long ago I was in that same boat. In fact, it wasn’t until I went to Monster Bash last year that I learned it’s a great cause. We’ve done some education and in the vast majority of cases, people say, ‘Oh my gosh! I didn’t imagine that even existed.’”

When asked what it was about Home for Healing that stood out from the city’s many other worthy causes, Brandy says seeing the home in action compelled them to get involved.

“It’s so hard to put into words, but if you walk inside this home and you spend one hour there, it’s going to change your whole perspective,” she says. “It’s the most amazing thing. You come in and yes, we all live busy lives and yes, there’s a lot that comes with that. But here, there are people who are really worthy of positive encouragement and support, who are going through one of the hardest times of their entire life, fight

ing significant health issues.

“Home is the most im portant place on earth to feel safety, love and to come spend time together as a family. We want to shine a bright light on that and help provide that kind of home for those who need it most.”

* * * * * * * * * * * *

After 11 weeks, Baby Logan is finally going home. The tough little preemie has seen more than his share of doctors and nurses during his short life, starting just minutes after birth when delivery nurses noticed something wrong with his heartbeat. Surgery soon followed, to the horror of his parents.

Logan is the couple’s first child, and nothing could really prepare them for everything a baby brings, much less one so small he’s dwarfed by the teddy bear his Nana and Papa gave him. Days folded into weeks of staring through a clear plastic bassinet. Neither got the blessing of holding him at first – he was too sick and frail for that – so they settled for nudging his tiny palm with their fingers. On the day he finally squeezed back, they wept.

Every evening, they returned to their room at the house, amazed at how exhausting a day of sitting in a chair or pacing a hallway could be. It’s just one of the things they found in common with the other parents of other babies in similar circumstances here. They’ve become each other’s mooring point in good days and bad, sometimes sobbing under the weight of it all, other times high-fiving over good news. If they are honest, they envied the ones who got to go home, but they also drew strength from them; strength that let them get up, go back to the hospital and do everything all over again.

But, not today. Today, they hold their breath through discharge paperwork and final instructions, half expecting something to derail at the last possible second. When they step into the bright afternoon sunshine, they breathe new air and cast one last look at the house that has embraced them for so long. A key turns and the car seems to know the way home. Today, the miracle is theirs.

2022 Monster Bash Friday, Oct. 28; 7:30-11 p.m.

The Venue at Westwind, 7318 Windsong Drive, North Little Rock homeforhealing.org/about/#events

SHERWOOD

We are devoted to providing high quality care which celebrates the dignity and grace of every person who enters our facility.

At Sherwood Nursing and Rehab we are committed to providing the highest quality of patient care. Our qualified staff is here giving support for the tasks of day-to-day living, allowing for the enjoyment of more pleasant and carefree activities.

CHILDREN’S ADVOCACY CENTERS OF ARKANSAS

2022 WOMAN OF INSPIRATION:

First Lady Susan Hutchinson ‘Shines Hope’ over a Lifetime of Service to Children

By DR. HOLLY SHAW

“The skills a victim learns to survive are not the skills they need for life.” These were words a friend said to First Lady Susan Hutchinson regarding navigating childhood abuse. The words resonated with Hutchinson, who in turn, has had an immeasurable influence on expanding the footprint of the life-changing organization, Children’s Advocacy Centers of Arkansas.

The seed for her involvement was planted four years before she became First Lady of Arkansas, alongside her husband, Gov. Asa Hutchinson. At that time, she had learned about the CAC in Benton County, on whose board she had begun serving as secretary. She realized, as she took notes of the terrific need, that the organization’s 14 locations were just not enough. “Oh, this is bad; and we’re nationwide?” she thought. “The U.S. Dept. of Justice recognizes us.” In having observed the humble communities on various campaign trails throughout the years with her husband, she thought there was no way the areas that needed it most could afford the philanthropic giving nec essary [to support more centers, to service more needs.

But, when her husband decided to run for governor, she thought, “If he can get this, I’ll do this, and it will be worth giving up my privacy. If God allows Asa to be governor, I’ll take this. I’ll take it to the rest of the state and tell everybody that there is help. I’ll raise money.”

During the first few months of being First Lady, she shared her mission with Shayla Copas, a local interior designer who’s an expert at putting big bashes together. Copas had already thought of the title Woman of Inspiration and was thinking of attributing it to a different cause. But then, she saw what the First Lady was doing, and it resonated with Copas more deeply. Tom Kennedy, a former prosecutor who’d gotten a conviction on a child abuse case, got Entergy to pledge $20,000 to the cause, which established instant credibility for Children’s Advocacy Centers of Arkansas.

Hutchinson’s tireless, perpetual efforts to wither the incidence and effects of child abuse across Arkansas have doubled the number both of CAC locations in the state in seven years and the children served by them in only five years. She’s also partnered with first ladies in 14 other states in her latest campaign “Shine Hope” to end child abuse by strengthening and coordinating CACs nationally.

Children’s Advocacy Centers of Arkansas (CACar) is the State Chapter supporting 30 Child Advocacy Centers throughout the state, according to CACar Development Specialist Dawn Meyer. CACs provide a safe place for child victims of physical and sexual abuse and neglect, to find hope and healing. All services are free to the child and their non-offending family members. Services available at a CAC include advocacy, forensic interview, medical exam by a trained sexual

Photo by Jordan Knight

abuse nurse examiner, mental health therapy and prevention education. CACs are teaching the skills survivors of abuse need to live the lives they were intended to live.

“This year, we are honoring First Lady Susan Hutchinson with this new award. She has spent her life working to improve the lives of children,” notes Meyer. From her initial involvement with the CAC of Benton County, [Susan] has made this cause her passion. Her knowledge of the workings of government and legislation has helped Arkan sas align with a national standard for child abuse response.”

To appreciate the seriousness of the problem of child abuse, the essential role CACs play in children’s healing and her mission to spread their benefits wherever possible, Hutchinson shared in timately her connection to the cause.

“I’m trying to use the time I’ve got [before the inauguration day of the new governor of Ar kansas],” she explains. “I know what I have now: People are paying attention and taking my calls. I talk with them, learn how things work and ask questions. If I don’t like the answer, I ask myself, ‘What was the thinking? Did they miss some thing?’ I don’t know what will happen when I return to being a private citizen, but I do know I will continue to work tirelessly for the children of our great state.”

“The First Lady, I don’t think, truly grasps the gravity of how much impact she has had across the state, and nationally, in just 7-and-a-half years,” observes Misty Hunt, First Lady Hutchinson’s Chief of Staff. “She has traveled the state and spoke to many audiences raising awareness for child abuse and bringing a once hidden and unspoken abuse to the forefront. By saying the words out loud, she started breaking the silence, and giving victims hope and the courage to come forward with their secret, knowing there is hope and healing for them and all child abuse victims and adult survivors.

“When she was given this amazing role of First Lady, she went to the Children’s Ad vocacy Centers of Arkansas, and offered to help in any way she could and made raising the awareness of child abuse and the work of Children’s Advocacy Centers her official platform as First Lady,” Hunt adds. Hutchinson’s pivotal impact on CACar conveys why she is being recognized at the end of this month with the organization’s first-ever “Lifetime Achievement Woman of Inspiration” award.

When asked whether it is hard to be tenacious when encountering cultural roadblocks in galvanizing support for the CACs, Hutchinson explains that “Culturally speaking, child abuse is a very difficult subject. I certainly don’t want to have to talk about it in the sense I know it’s a very unsettling truth. It’s very painful.” People also have a difficult time hearing it.

“For centuries, we blamed the rape victim, [implying] that there was something wrong with her or him – that they were lewd or promiscuous, etc. – and put it back on the victim.

“Even if the child approaches law enforcement with all the good laws passed through the

“This year, we are honoring First Lady Susan Hutchinson with this new award. She has spent her life working to improve the lives of children,” notes CAC Development Specialist Dawn Meyer.

years, the response is still too often: ‘Why has this been going on? Why haven’t you spoken up?’” Such a line of questioning shifts the responsibility back onto the victim, suggesting she/ he had control, which she/he did not, Hutchinson explains.

“We should have all learned in school about the adrenal glands being activated when you’re threatened, and your fight or flight response… But to “freeze” is something they never taught us. If you tell that to the general public, they don’t understand freezing. In small ways, it has happened to me, and I froze, just trying to get through the moment…But you put that experi ence on time and time again, and worse and worse, and on a kid or adult… and they respond that way, too. We need to understand that.”

Hutchinson explains that law enforcement, prosecutors, jurors and investigators have to come to understand when working in these personal violations, how people respond.

“Because the rest of us haven’t experienced it, we have a hard time understanding why [victims] don’t do more. Our prosecutors aren’t trained in how to interview a child or why a child would recant.”

Hutchinson underscores the complex mindset of a victim. “There’s a different kind of logic that doesn’t make sense to jurors or other folks who have never heard that kind of testimony. That’s where education needs to come in, for people to really take it in.”

Hutchinson explains that law enforcement, prosecutors, jurors and investigators have to come to understand when working in these personal violations, how people respond.

“Because the rest of us haven’t experienced it, we have a hard time understanding why [victims] don’t do more. Our prosecutors aren’t trained in how to interview a child or why a child would recant.”

Hutchinson underscores the complex mindset of a victim. “There’s a different kind of logic that doesn’t make sense to jurors or other folks who have never heard that kind of testimony. That’s where education needs to come in, for people to really take it in.”

The Children’s Advocacy Center resulted from the imagination of a prosecutor, Bud Kramer, in Huntsville, Alabama. As Hutchinson relates the concept, Kramer had worked diligently on his cases of violations against children and teens but faced many setbacks. In one case, thrilled with a victory, justice for the family and incarceration of the perpetrator, Kramer expected his client’s parents to be equally “jubilant,” recounts Hutchinson. But, they were not. The system had put their child through a vise by the persistent questioning by dif ferent strangers in the system, asking and insinuating, making this child relive it, having to see this medical person and that case worker.

Hutchinson explains that in the absence of a CAC, a child abuse victim who comes forward will likely interact with 14 different people charged with protecting and seeing justice for the child.

“When is that child supposed to heal?” she questions. “Why would anybody want to talk about this nastiest of things? Why would any adult want to? You don’t go around talking about those things to have that information broadcast or on a court record. This is very private. And it was hurtful. We have to find a way to stop that hurt being repeated by the various wolves that walk among us.”

Kramer considered deeply what this 12-year-old client of his had endured while interacting with the government over her abuse. Hutchinson relates, “Traumatized, traumatized, traumatized – when they’ve already gone through the most horrific trauma. And who knows how many times with that same person? We’ve got to handle this better.

“The responsibility is still with the state, judges and social workers,” she explains, “but how can we help without trauma tizing the victim more? What if somebody else, who knew how to talk with a child, would do it in such a way and record it to be acceptable in court for testimony, for sentencing – how ever the court wanted to use it? We would have it on video, so anybody can see and discern for themselves what the vic tim is saying. Leave cross-examinations for the courtroom.” While she points out there’s rarely a witness to the crime, these interview-conversations still provide critical testimony of the victim’s experience.

CACs adhere to a careful protocol for interviewing. Ac

cording to Hutchinson, they ask questions in an unobtrusive way to ascertain what happened, the timing, what happened afterward, how this person approached and what access the ac cused has or had to other children.

“It gives credibility to what’s been stated,” she explains. “The interviewer poses questions to build the scene: ‘Do you remember who else was in the house? Was it cold that day?’ Adults can piece together the timeline.” The interview is vitally important.

“Law enforcement, prosecutors and investigators are watching in real time our CAC in terviewer with the victim in a comfortable room, through a one-way mirror or closed-circuit television. They can send questions into the earpiece of the interviewer. The camera is always on. Sometimes the child needs a break. They try not to be interactive with the child, so that information does not influence his or her statement.” Hutchinson also notes that the inter view is conducted with the voluntary consent of the child to avoid further harming the victim.

Still, the ongoing threats made by the perpetrator to the child also pose a major obstacle to him or her seeking escape from abuse or other help.

“All the things the victim’s been told entrap them – The person hurting them might say, ‘If you tell anyone, they won’t believe you and will put you in jail for lying.’ Or, ‘If you tell anyone, I’ll hurt your mother.’ ‘You tell anyone, and I’ll kick you out and you won’t have any place to live.’ These wolves can also be blood-related to the victim.” Upwards of 86% of perpetrators are relatives or significantly known to the victims, and not as one might like to believe – strangers.

The First Lady recounts story after story of how these “wolves among us” operate in threats and secrecy that profit off of children’s vulnerability and trust. These predators rely on emo tional blackmail. One young girl, whose friend had been over to visit and wished to go to the park, asked her father if he could take them. “He said ‘yes, but you know what you have to do for me,’ Hutchinson shares. “So she went back to her friend and said, ‘Yeah, he’ll take us, but I gotta go do such-and-such.’” The friend later bravely reported what the daughter had been forced to do, allowing the CAC to intervene.

“It’s not enough to just survive,” she adds. “Healing of your mind, soul and emotions – that primarily comes through counseling that is targeted, trauma-focused, cognitive, behavioral therapy. We use play therapy [referring trauma therapy age appropriate for children]. I en

“There are over 42 million adult survivors of child sexual abuse,” CACs were created to help children heal from trauma caused by physical abuse, sexual abuse and neglect.”

Photo by Jordan Knight

courage people to visit with God about it, if you can trust another person, etc. But you need somebody to walk you through it. This is a crime of one human onto another human in the most personal way.” Trust has to be rebuilt from one human to another, too. That’s what the CAC does.

“In a perfect world, the public and legal and welfare professionals just need to know to refer to the CACs. My call would be out there for adults also to have some sort of help,” Hutchinson says. “Save the cross-examining for later. [We need] more training for prosecu tors, deputy prosecutors. Different private entities can train professionals on how to talk to victims. The Department of Justice has a program for attorneys.” The federal justice system has no statute of limitations on child abuse, so some cases were better tried there. It wasn’t until the high-profile case in 2015 involving the “cause celebre” Smith Brothers that the law in Arkansas was amended in 2013 to eliminate statutes of limitations on sex crimes against minors. These two adult brothers were professionals before they admitted their abuse to one another. One is a lawyer and their case and example has helped engender support for male victims no longer hiding in silence about what was done to them against their will as children.

Still, regarding victims becoming predators themselves, as is so often how perpetrators begin, Hutchinson notes, “That’s the impetus to getting to the children as quickly as we can, to get them treatment before the abuse is ingrained in them. All kinds of damage is done to the child, the psyche – bedwetting, nervousness, not doing well in school, anger, fights, other behavioral anomalies – all kinds of warning sights for good parents to pay attention to. Very often children act out on other children what’s been done to them. At some point that mir roring becomes part of them; we want to get to them before that happens.

The Children’s Hospital offers counseling for those young people. This danger is just one of the many scenarios that manifest in victims. If children are not able to tell early on, the average age of telling is 55. Some are going to the grave with this information.”

Many of the services CACs provide, Meyer notes, are deeply needed.

“There are over 42 million adult survivors of child sexual abuse,” she says. “CACs were created to help children heal from trauma caused by physical abuse, sexual abuse and neglect. CACs specifically employ a multi-disciplinary approach. They work with all agencies and individuals trying to help the children.

In Arkansas, CACs partner with Arkansas State Police – Crimes Against Children Divi sion; DHS – Department of Children and Family Services Division; prosecutors; local law enforcement; and medical and mental health professionals to advocate for the benefit of the child. Every year, the Arkansas Child Abuse hot line investigates over 35,000 child abuse claims. The problem crosses all socioeconomic, gender and racial boundaries: It is everyone’s problem.”

The main purpose of advocates at CACs is to help connect the child and family with resources in or der to stabilize the child’s environment. Profession als will work with the family to navigate the child protection system, assist with court preparation, as sist with school and job issues and offer assistance to benefit the child. They further counsel with nonoffending caregivers to support the individual needs in each situation.

These centers are interrupting generations of abuse in ways that may have been previously impos sible. Yet, as Meyer explains, prevention is extremely important. To that end, CACs also offer free com munity education for children, parents, educators and community leaders.

“It is important to know the signs of abuse, since 60% of children never tell anyone about their abuse,” Meyer says.

CACar’s Woman of Inspiration event to honor First Lady Susan Hutchinson will be held on Oct. 28, 2022, at the Statehouse Convention Center. Hutchinson’s Shine Hope campaign has been pro moted on social media with the tagline #ShineHope. With this nationwide campaign, first ladies from 14 states have pledged “to recognize that child abuse and neglect is a serious problem affecting every seg ment of our communities.”

Hutchinson’s tireless, perpetual efforts to wither the incidence and effects of child abuse across Arkansas have doubled the number both of CAC locations in the state in seven years and the children served by them in only five years.

Briar wood Nursing and Rehab is a 120-bed skilled facility located in an urban setting within the heart of Little Rock, in the neighborhood of Briarwood. We are located just minutes from downtown Little Rock and are only one block off interstate 630.

We provide long-term care and short-term rehab care. All residents are monitored throughout the day with assistance in providing daily care as is needed: bathing, dressing, feeding and providing medications. Briarwood staff also work at ensuring the best care for residents through individual care plans of residents' needs, as well as daily activities, which allow for a variety of interests and abilities.

Nearly all - 98 percent - of our rehab residents return to the community as a result of positive, caring therapists. Briarwood's approach has provided healing to many people in the community.

At Briarwood Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, we are committed to ensuring that the best possible care is given to you or your loved one in an atmosphere that is calm, quiet and focused on healing. We endeavor to ensure that all aspects of your well-being — mental, physical and spiritual — are cared for in a peaceful and safe environment. Our staff strive to promote dignity, respect, and independence as much as possible, in a beautiful, soothing enviornment that was designed with our residents' comfort in mind.

Briarwood's service-rich environment is made possible by its dedicated staff, from our nursing staff and therapists, to our operations and administrative employees. At Briarwood, our residents enjoy three generations of staff and families. That is over 30 years of service to the community!

When you walk into the Robinson Nursing & Rehabilitation Center you will feel a comfortable atmosphere different from any other facility you have visited. We feature tall ceilings and an open floor plan. We have a lovely dining room and a covered outdoor patio area.

When you walk into the Robinson Nursing & Rehabilitation Center you will feel a comfortable atmosphere different from any other facility you have visited. We feature tall ceilings and an open floor plan. We have a lovely dining room and a covered outdoor patio area.

We specialize in short-term rehabilitation and long-term care services. The short-term rehabilitation area has its own dining area and day room. From the moment you enter our facility, we want you to experience the difference our facility has to offer. From our light-filled day areas to our beautiful outdoor areas, we want you and your loved one to feel comfortable and safe when staying with us. You will also notice the pride we take in our facility by keeping our building sparkling clean from the inside out.

We specialize in short-term rehabilitation and long-term care services. The short-term rehabilitation area has its own dining area and day room. From the moment you enter our facility, we want you to experience the difference our facility has to offer. From our light-filled day areas to our beautiful outdoor areas, we want you and your loved one to feel comfortable and safe when staying with us. You will also notice the pride we take in our facility by keeping our building sparkling clean from the inside out.

Our team is dedicated to providing a safe and comfortable environment. Robinson Nursing and Rehab offers modern conveniences in a gracious setting. We provide daily planned activities led by certified activity directors, like social events and outings and pastoral services with spiritual care for all religions. We strongly encourage family participation in group activities, meals and celebrating family birthdays and special days.

Our team is dedicated to providing a safe and comfortable environment. Robinson Nursing and Rehab offers modern conveniences in a gracious setting. We provide daily planned activities led by Certified Activity Directors, like social events and outings and pastoral services with spiritual care for all religions. We strongly encourage family participation in group activities, meals and celebrating family birthdays and special days.

To help you plan your visits, we provide a monthly event calendar and a monthly meal planner. Robinson Nursing and Rehab does not have set visiting hours. We view this facility as the “home” of each resident.

To help you plan your visits, we provide a monthly event calendar and a monthly meal planner. Robinson Nursing and Rehab does not have set visiting hours. We view this facility as the “home” of each resident.

We try our best to communicate with patients and families to help alleviate the anxiety that accompanies this journey. Our team of nurses, therapists and support staff work closely together to develop a plan based on the individual needs of each person. We recognize that rehabilitation involves not only the patient, but the entire family.

We try our best to communicate with patients and families to help alleviate the anxiety that accompanies this journey. Our team of nurses, therapists and support staff work closely together to develop a plan based on the individual needs of each person. We recognize that rehabilitation involves not only the patient but the entire family.

Breast Care & Wellness is About You Breast Care You

By HOLLY SHAW

I

If health care professionals agree on one thing regarding women’s breast care, it is that women should feel confident in taking control of it. The same holds true for men’s reproductive health. And while this article focuses primarily on women’s breast health care, men should also take note to feel for lumps in their chest areas and be evaluated annually. They too can inherit the BRCA1 gene, which puts them at increased risk for various types of cancer. Too often, individuals become immersed in the care of others or demands of their careers to prioritize their own well-being. Or, conversely, they fear the unknown – the sterility of the medical en vironment and how physically painful the experi ence can be. However, current medical profession als aspire for women’s health care in particular to be an inviting, personalized experience, not to be dreaded, but embraced without delay. The accessi bility, caring, convenience, customization and prog noses in breast cancer intervention have never been more hopeful than now – particularly in medically robust communities in Arkansas.

To get the most out of their personal health care, women are encouraged to seek out profession als deeply invested in their patients – professionals who, fortunately, seem to abound in Arkansas.

In fact, the relational aspect of medicine was one that drew Dr. Andrew Cole to the field. Cole is an Obstetrics-Gynecologist at Conway OB-GYN and is Chair-elect of the Board of Directors for Conway Regional Health System. Conway OBGYN operates out of the Conway Regional Medi cal Center campus, giving Cole and his team easy access to patients in the labor and delivery unit at the main hospital.

“The reason I chose this field is for the variety. I am a people person, and it allows me to both per form surgery, deliver babies and see patients over their lifetimes. I am now delivering babies for some of the first babies I ever delivered,” Cole says.

Dr. Britton Lott, a radiologist fellowshiptrained in breast imaging at The Breast Center: A MANA Clinic (with multiple locations across Northwest Arkansas, including Bentonville, Fay etteville and Harrison) adds, “We listen closely to our patients, so they feel heard and empowered.”

Women have the right, and possibly even duty, to listen to their intuition and shop around for the best women’s health care specialist for themselves. As these experts explained in multiple ways, women should like and feel comfortable with their health care providers. The more at ease patients feel, the more likely they are to open up about their lives and health history, so providers can in fact provide patients their best.

Customized Care

To that end, Lott describes the highly personalized experience for women who enter The Breast Center of Northwest Arkansas. “For one thing, physicians at The Breast Center realize that modern women often have complicated schedules and do not have infinite time and availability. Appointments between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. don’t work for all women. We respect the spectrum of women’s responsibilities, both personal and profes sional, and respect their time.”

Lott continues, “We believe the future of breast imaging is moving toward being personalized, efficient and flexible.” She explains they are working to establish clinics convenient to the growing populations all across Northwest Arkansas, to remove barriers related to transportation and child care. Exams with their facility can be completed quickly early in the morning, during a lunch break, after work or on weekends.

Additionally, if a woman has sensitive breast tis sue, the doctors and technologists can fine-tune new machines easily to reduce compression and discomfort. She encourages women to ask for that accommodation rather than avoiding mammograms altogether. Lott further suggests the option of taking an over-the-coun ter pain reliever beforehand to avoid soreness following, and to take deep breaths immediately before the exam to help relax the shoulders and chest. It is her desire for patients to feel comfortable speaking up, as it’s part of being empowered in this process.

The specialists at The Breast Center also “personal ize the interpretation of the mammogram.” No longer are there one-size-fits-all reports. Lott says that the specialists at The Breast Center take a comprehensive look at their patient’s breast health, including in the event of a positive cancer diagnosis. “We are in a con sortium with other breast specialists – a clinic without walls – working together and meeting weekly to col laborate on newly diagnosed patients.” As an official National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers program (UAMS has one, too), she enthuses that the consortium is “all the cancer specialists you would need on your team” – pathologists, radiologists, radiation and medical oncologists and breast surgeons.

Opt for an Annual Exam

The consensus of these health care professionals favors an annual, all-encompassing well-woman exam at the same time every year. Depending on the facil ity, exams can take as little as 20 minutes separately, or combined, about an hour.

Cole explains that obtaining a full gynecological exam – including a breast and pelvic exam – and mam mogram covers ground possibly missed otherwise. By going annually, women benefit from having an expert physically examine their bodies. A professional breast exam provides good modeling and a reminder of how women should conduct them later at home. Also, Cole warns, 10% to 15% of precancerous cervical cells are missed on typical Pap smears; testing annually provides more data to avoid a missed change that could escalate.

At The Breast Center of Northwest Arkansas, as their name suggests, the exam focuses on breast treat ment. However, one of their suites of specialists within MANA Medical Associates, Renaissance Women’s Healthcare, also provides gynecological services. At the breast care appointment, which can be a referral from the woman’s primary care physician, gynecologist, or

self-referral, they call and schedule an appointment. At registration for that appoint ment, patients complete a screening for breast cancer risk. All patients will then have a screening mammogram. If the screening reveals high risk, the technologist or radiologist will refer them for a risk assessment appointment.

From that moment onward, relates Lott, “Patients’ care is customized, efficient, with lots of options to make the experience less intimidating and or unpleasant. If a patient has a family history, we offer genetic testing to determine the presence of and or type of a mutation. If the lifetime risk is 20% or more, [a patient is considered high-risk] and an MRI is recommended (usually the course of treatment taken with family history pres ent).” To encourage regular examinations, Lott says, “I advise women to go ahead and schedule the next appointment on their way out the door from one mammogram. It’s on the calendar, at the back of one’s mind, and removes the burden of remembering.”

Mammogram and Breast Ultrasound Screening

At The Breast Center, when the mammogram report is available, dense breast tissue may have been indicated. If so, then a breast ultrasound screening is recommended. However, Lott explains that breast tissue density affects the accuracy of mammograms. Density is largely age-, genetics- and weight-related.

“While breast density is largely genetically determined, low amounts of adipose tis sue and hormone replacement therapy increase a woman’s breast density,” Lott explains. “Ap proximately 40% to 50% of women have dense breast tissue, and these women need to be in formed that dense tissue can limit the accuracy of their mammogram.”

A screening breast ultrasound is probably go ing to be recommended in addition to the annual mammogram, which is not unpleasant. An ultra sound uses high frequency sound waves inaudible to humans and requires no radiation. A trained technologist or radiologist moves the probe to scan the whole breast which might otherwise be hidden to the touch or 3D mammogram.

The technology of a 3D mammogram makes the breast tissue much more visible to the radi ologist with images increased exponentially over the older 2D technology, reducing the possibility of diagnosing cancer that is not actually present. In turn, this better imaging process reduces the possibility of follow-up imaging associ ated with increased time investment, stress and financial resources or insurance coverage.

Genetic Testing and MRIs

According to the American Cancer Society, while only about 5% to 10% of all cancers result from specific inherited genes, inherited genes do contribute to overall risk. The pri mary genes looked at are mutations with the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, though there are others for which to be on the lookout, as well.

As Cole explains, these two BRCA genes, whether in men or women, increase the chance of developing several types of cancers: Breast (much more commonly in women but also men); ovarian (females); prostate (males); melanoma and pancreatic. Various factors, in cluding being of Ashkenazi Jewish descent, increasing age, reproductive history, dense breasts, personal history of breast cancer or other non-cancerous breast diseases, family history of breast or ovarian cancer, exposure to radiation therapy, number of sexual partners, and others also impact risk level.

At facilities such as Conway Regional Health Sys tem or The Breast Center of Northwest Arkansas, the patient with higher risk can see a radiologist at the same general location for her MRI as for her gyneco logical exam. In fact, Conway Regional Health System hosts a wide array of services from dental, adult psychi atric and counseling, home care and neuroscience, to digestive disease, endocrinology, sleep and home care (to name just a handful).

higher and you wish to go forward with the processing of the genetic testing. If you are not sure how billing is handled at your facility of choice, be sure to ask, so you don’t find yourself unwittingly saddled with an enormous lab work bill.

Also, genetic testing is often covered by health insurance companies after a patient reaches 18 years of age. There is no age limit regarding MRI testing coverage, though a physician must provide a referral for it. These health coverages help women plan and take control of their long-term breast health management.

Dr. Lott elaborates, “Women with significant family histories can consider genetic testing as early as age 18. If a mutation is identified, MRI may be recommended as early as 25 years of age. Insurance coverage has improved significantly for these ser vices, in part due to the laudable efforts of local legislators like Senator Greg Leding from Fayetteville.”

Moreover, breakthroughs in cancer treatment at all stages of the illness are also mak ing it much more hopeful. Advances in gene therapy, immunotherapy, and targeted che motherapy are changing the landscape of modern cancer treatment.

Final Notes

Cole emphasizes the importance of an annual pelvic exam as part of the annual wellwoman exam. Areas surrounding the vaginal region can be susceptible to other forms of cancer, aside from cervical or ovarian. These areas are difficult for women to observe for themselves. He further explains the human papillomavirus (HPV) is transmitted sexually, and is associated with people having multiple partners, and at earlier and earlier ages. Cole says, “The presence of HPV virus alters healthy tissue (called dysplasia) over time and is connected with other forms of cancer – including not only cervical, but also vaginal, vulvar, anal and throat cancers. Furthermore, an annual exam helps assess for ovarian cancer.” Though not HPV-related, your health care provider may feel an ovarian abnormality. Cole explains that by receiving the HPV vaccine, patients lower their risk of all these cancers other than ovarian. The annual exam helps to nip such concerns in their much more treatable stages and remind you, if applicable, to schedule an HPV vaccina tion appointment, as well.

Between Wellness Visits: The SelfExam

The best time to perform the exam is about one week after one’s monthly cycle ends, and the best place to do so is in the shower, as the water improves the ability to feel abnormalities, advises Cole. Imitate the manner in which your health care provider conducted it during your wellness visit. Practice it monthly. Cole further adds, “For postmenopausal women, just mark your calendar and perform it at the same time each month.”

“Familiarity with your body is key,” Lott advises. “The way I coach patients on the self-exam is that it’s important to know what’s normal so a change will be noticed. Most cancers feel firm or fixed. However, only about 5% of lumps in the breasts are ultimately shown to be cancerous,” she points out, reassuringly. All lumps should be evaluated in any case, however.

The Good News

All insurances cover 100% of wellness, which in cludes women’s wellness. Breast ultrasound screenings are covered by many insurances, and increasingly so. For uninsured women, programs exist to cover these important annual exams: The Arkansas Department of Health website offers information for eligible women.

Payment plans are also often available if the cost is

Both Cole and Lott underscored the heartbreak of having to look a person in the eyes who could have faced an easier path to wellness if she just had prioritized her health sooner. The same is true for men’s cancers. Often with a simple lumpectomy, a person can return to his or her normal life – if caught early. Please take this time to recognize your deep inherent value and importance to untold numbers of people in your circle of influ ence, and schedule your next evaluation today.

Innovative Services

Early Detection Saves Lives

New Medical Offices

At Conway Regional, we are using the latest 3D technology in the fight against breast cancer. Clinical studies show the use of 3D mammography can increase detection rates of invasive breast cancer when compared against traditional 2D mammograms. Schedule your mammogram appointment online by visiting ConwayRegional.org or calling 501-450-2244.

We’re not just growing we’re growing together.

Expanded Access

More Specialists

SCHEDULE

The BridgeWay is more than a hospital-it’s a place of hope and recovery from substance use disorders and mental illness. With the belief that each person can change and heal, we offer a program and treatment plan unique to each patient.

Our outpatient treatment represents our least restrictive and most flexible care options. Our Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP) and Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) offer either day or evening schedules. These options allow patients to receive recovery-focused treatment that addresses a full range of psychiatric and addictive issues while attending to daily family and work obligations. In addition, our outpatient programs provide specialized group therapy for adults 18 and older with specific mental health or substance use disorder needs.

Fighting for Her Son’s Rights

By ANGELA FORSYTH // Photos By DEWAINE DUNCAN

In

1995, Veronica Tess Myers was a young single mother when she was delivered the news that would shape the rest of her life. Her son Alexander, 2 1/2 years old at the time, was diagnosed with severe autism. She was in shock and deeply disap pointed. Professionals provided no hope, telling her she would need to choose an institution for her son soon because she would not be able to provide the support he needed at home.

Myers refused to accept this bleak scenario professionals had laid out for her. Turning her disappointment into determination, she resolved to raise her son herself, in their home and under the most natural circumstances possible. She worked holistically with her son to avoid behavioral medication, trying everything from craniosacral therapy to chiropractic back adjustments. Alexander ate a gluten-free diet consisting of more fruits and vegetables and less fried foods. His mother was determined to help her son defy the statistics that sur rounded children with severe autism.

From day one, life with Alexander was a difficult and stressful journey – not because of Alexander’s own limitations, but because of the challenges Myers faced as she navigated a complicated system of laws and policies. “Even going to public school was an obstacle,” Myers recalls. “They were not too quick to appropriate his services even though the Indi viduals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) warranted him a public education in his least restrictive environment. I still had to fight every inch of every day of every year he was in public school, from kindergarten through 12th grade to ensure he was able to walk across the stage of his high school [graduation].”

The fight to find services for her son didn’t end when Alexander graduated from high school. In fact, the struggle became even harder as Myers searched, and failed, to find an appropriate program that would support Alexander during his transition to adulthood and beyond. Realizing the lack of help available for young adults like her son, she became more fired up than ever. That was when Myers officially dedicated herself to advocating for the rights of the disabled and started Alexander’s Secret – a nonprofit devoted to improving the quality of life for individuals with developmental disabilities.

LEVELING THE PLAYING FIELD

Today, Alexander is a happy 29-year-old adult who likes music, shooting pool, eating out and traveling. Despite his speech difficulties, he makes himself understood to those who know him by communicating with a few words, his bright eyes and a big smile. Alexander is also one half of the dynamic duo that makes up Alexander’s Secret. Through their non profit, they continue to advocate relentlessly for the rights of children and young adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD).

Alexander Myers

Make no mistake, Veronica Tess Myers isn’t out to raise awareness. She believes the awareness already exists. What’s lacking is inclusion, and the way to achieve that is to empower the vulnerable. Her plan is to put the necessary tools in the hands of people who need it the most. “You can’t even have a leg in the race if you don’t know the rules of the game,” she emphasizes. To level out the playing field, Myers provides workshops and consultations that guide families through the compli cated laws and policies she has had to learn along the way.

Over the last two decades, Myers has immersed herself in learning the rights of individuals with developmental disabilities and has suc ceeded in forming partnerships within the realm of political influence. She became the first Black member on the board of the Central Ar kansas Autistic Society. She also joined the Arkansas Legislative Task Force for Autism, as well as the Arkansas Governor’s Developmental Disability Council Family Leadership Training and the Judevine Center for Autism Parent Training.

A CONSTANT BATTLE

When Alexander was diagnosed in the mid-1990s, there was no where near the amount of resources that are available now. Not only have there been drastic advances in the understanding and treatment of autism, but the internet has also opened the doors for parents to dive into endless research. For Myers, little information existed in the begin ning, so she purposely sought out groups where she would be in the right place at the right time to hear the information she needed.

Through sheer necessity and determination, Myers built up the ex tensive background she now draws from when she advocates for others. For years, she attended workshops on the politics and laws that govern developmental disabilities. She learned to build partnerships with local legislators who could make her voice heard and who could help her bring to light some of the discrepancies and challenges in the system. Myers taught herself how to write grants so she could attend trainings like the one at the Center for Autism in St. Louis, a three-week course

that parents attend with their children to learn behavior modification techniques and contingency plans for improved attention spans.

She continues to attend workshops, classes and events to keep up with the constantly evolving amendments to various laws. She also makes it a point to hold onto her political partnerships. “I have to main tain those relationships so that I can have a foot in the door of what’s going on when it comes to legislation here in Arkansas,” she notes. This is especially important to Myers because she has witnessed what she describes as “systemic issues that continue to grow at the expense of the vulnerable and at the expense of the taxpayer.” Her ultimate dream is that “every person who is facing the challenges of autism be treated as an individual and not as insurance reimbursement dollar signs.”

According to Myers, a common misconception is that autism can be treated by “cookie-cutter methods.” “When you’ve met one person with autism, you’ve met ONE person with autism,” she says. “They are affected differently than the next two, or 10, or 1,000 or 10,000 individuals who are diagnosed. So, my goal would be that everyone is truly treated as an individual, that their rights are not being taken advantage of.”

Myers likens this struggle to the civil rights movement, citing that the rights of the disabled – under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) – are an extension of civil rights protections. She believes law enforcement officers and first responders should be taught during their initial training how to effectively and compassionately deal with indi viduals who have autism. Unfortunately, this is something Alexander and his mother have dealt with firsthand. Years ago, Alexander was ad dressed by security at a local hotel and inappropriately restrained be cause he wasn’t able to speak for himself and explain a misunderstand ing. Thankfully, his mother was nearby to help him. But she worries about what could have happened if she hadn’t been there.

The same goes for direct support professionals, whom Myers says also lack proper training. In her experience, many of the service provid ers who have been sent to her house have not been properly trained to handle Alexander’s disability. “It was just about filling a seat and collect

ing reimbursement from the Medicaid program,” she says. “I’ll be doing all of this directly as my son’s mother and advocate for the rest of my life until I die.”

PUSHING AHEAD

Unable to fully trust outsiders to care for Alexander in the way she feels he needs and deserves has led Myers to sacrifice a large part of her own health. She suffers from a heart condition, high blood pres sure, hypothyroidism and obstructive sleep apnea – all due to high stress. Despite her health issues, financial pressures and lack of support, she continues to move forward with big dreams and laser-focused resolve.

Myers acquired her Bachelor of Arts degree in 2021 and is now half way through her master’s program. She will graduate in spring 2023 with a Master of Arts in Applied Communication Studies from UA Little Rock. As a young single mother, she paused her education when she realized Alexander needed her full attention at home. Now that she has resumed her studies, Myers hopes her college degrees will open new doors that will ease her tight financial situation and add credence to her nonprofit. “That’s something I’m very proud of,” she notes. Myers has a podcast coming out in the fall and is also planning to write a book where she can pull together her life experiences along with what she has learned in her master’s program. She looks forward to completing her collection of nonfiction essays.

Her ultimate dream is that “every person who is facing the challenges of autism be treated as an individual and not as insurance reimbursement dollar signs.”

Alexander with his mother, Tess Myers

This side of SEVEN

By Jason Pederson

You Can’t Make

OLD FRIENDS

On July 8, 2022, I had lunch at a rooftop restaurant called Mal lory’s with my friend, Mike Shumaker along the St. Croix Riv er in Hudson, Wisconsin. Ten days later, I received word that Mike had died. The following is the eulogy I shared at his fu neral service in our hometown of New Richmond, Wisconsin.

“Good morning, everyone. My name is Jason Pederson. My wife, Mary Carol, and I make our home in Arkansas, where I have lived for nearly 30 years now. In fact, 27 years ago today, Mike was with us in Arkansas to serve as best man in our wedding. Our anniversary is tomorrow, so today would have been the groom’s dinner, and Mike delivered an amazing speech. It was funny, heart felt and accurate.

I’ll do my best now to return the favor for my best friend of 45 years.

Mike was at his core an encourager and a uniter. “The Breakfast Club” was an ῾80s movie that we enjoyed, Mike especially, because one of the characters was a wrestler. But if Mike had been cast as the wrestler in that movie, the premise would have been destroyed.

The movie puts five students from different cliques – the jock, the nerd, the debutante, the burnout and the introvert – all together in de tention. We watch walls break down as they all learn about classmates they didn’t know. Mike would have already been friends with the nerd, the burnout and the introvert. He would have been dating the debu tante. Mike seemed to know everybody, in every grade. He was the class president, the prom king, and he was at home in any group.

Over the years, Mike would tell me all about the people in his spheres of influence, starting with his college friends at the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire. Then it was about his adventures in Cali fornia. I heard about colleagues at Andersen Windows, Medtronic, Toro, Starkey and all the other workplaces that were fortunate enough to hire our smart and talented friend. I heard about great neighbors, the band members at the church he was attending and his fellow jour neymen and women at AA. But more than any of these, over the last 18 years, I have heard about Mike’s family, especially his children, Caroline and Max. He loved them deeply and dearly.

No matter where you knew Mike from, I want to welcome you and thank you for being here today and thank you for being his friend. I’ve heard about you, but I wish Mike could have formally introduced me to you. He loved to embarrass me by telling the story about how we met.

It was second grade, and Mike and his family had just moved to New Richmond from Iowa. A very nervous Mike soon walked into a new school classroom, in a new city, in a new state, where he knew

Jason Pederson and Mike Shumaker

absolutely nobody. Now, the Mike you all know has always been in great shape. But, if you attended New Richmond Elementary in the late ῾70s, you may remember that Mike was a bit on the chunky side. Mike says he was sitting at his desk when he heard a voice behind him say. ‘Who’s the new fat kid?’

Unfortunately, the voice was mine.

Despite that rocky beginning, we would go on to create a lifetime of memories together. My first concert, Def Leppard, Mike was there. We canoed scenic rivers, climbed modest mountains, traveled the Pa cific Coast highway and attended sporting events, from college foot ball in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on a Saturday to the hallowed grounds of Augusta National golf course in Georgia on a Sunday.

Maybe you saw the photo of one of our trips in the slide show that was playing before the service started. It was a Packers-Rams game about 20 years ago. We met in St. Louis. Mike flew down and I drove up. The next day, we drove back to Little Rock together.

We had eight hours in the car. Mike loved music, and he had discovered the James Brown musical library and was eager to share all these songs from the Godfather of Soul. We talked about many things. But the hot topic on that trip was religion. Living in the Bible Belt had given life to a long-dormant faith I had inside me, and I wanted Mike to experience the same thing. But, he was hesi

tant. Resistant. Mike had gone through some things that up until that trip even his best friend didn’t know about. And during those difficult moments, Mike had wondered where God was and why God was allowing bad things to happen to him. And ultimately, if God allows bad things to happen to innocent people, he wasn’t sure that was a God he wanted to support.

We talked about evil and the concept of free will, and why bad things happen to good people. And ultimately, here is where we landed: Maybe in time Mike would join me, but he wasn’t ready quite yet.

In recent months, Mike was finally trying to seek healing through Jesus Christ. He was coming to realize that there was no career, no achievement, no woman and no bottle that was going to make things better. He texted me often lately to let me know he was praying for me and my kids, and he asked if I would do the same for him and his kids. He was attending, serving and connecting with believers at Faith Community Church in Hudson. He had set a date of August 28 to be baptized

So, why was he still drinking?

Mike didn’t want to drink, but he did. Mike wanted sobriety, and he flirted with it, but loneliness and hopelessness would call him back into addiction. Mike knew that drinking was shrinking his world –costing him jobs, opportunities, money, relationships and his health. But he drank anyway.

Why?

The Apostle Paul tries to explain why in Romans Chapter 7 when he writes, ‘I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do, I do not do. But what I hate, I do.’ Mike had a spirit that was willing, but a body that was weak. Christ was working in him, but other forces were at work, too.

Paul finally found peace when he found Jesus and allowed Christ to bridge the gap between himself and God. But even then, the struggle would continue. Paul goes on to say, ‘I have the desire to do what is

Best friends Jason and Mike canoed scenic rivers and attended sporting events together, such as a PackersRams game in St. Louis about 20 years ago.

Photos courtesy of Jason Pederson

good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do – this I keep on doing.’ The Apostle Paul was a saint; he was saved, but he was not sinless. He wanted to do good, but sometimes he still sinned.

My best friend, Mike Shumaker, was a generous person, a kind person, always thinking of others, who, throughout most of his life, battled some pretty determined demons in both healthy and un healthy ways. Mike cared about people and brought out the best in many, including myself.

You know, Mike never gave me any credit for his physique. Obvi ously, my comment in second grade motivated him to a lifetime of working out and healthy eating. I’ve always been thin, but it’s getting harder and harder to keep the weight off. I’m thinking about giving up and letting go. I weigh about 175 pounds now. By the time some of you gather for my funeral one day, I might weigh closer to 240 or 250. Not because I want to be fat. But because after I reach the pearly gates and after I hear the words, “Well done, my good and faithful servant,” I want to hear a voice from behind me say...

‘Who’s the new fat guy?’”

JASON PEDERSON

For two decades, Jason Pederson served as KATV-Channel 7’s Seven On Your Side reporter. Now on the other “side” of his award-win ning time on the news, he now serves as Deputy Chief of Community Engagement for the Arkansas Department of Human Services. His perspective-filled and thought-provoking column, “This Side of Seven,” publishes exclusively in AY About You magazine monthly.

facility

experience the

to offer from the moment

walk through

IN-HOUSE SPECIALTY SERVICES

Health & Rehab

Blvd, North Little Rock

bringing the

Lakewood Health &

Health and Rehab

FACILITY

skilled professional care in

supportive and compassionate

to experience the difference

facility has to offer from the moment

walk through our door.

Russellville Nursing and Rehabilitation Center is nestled in the heart of the River Valley in Russellville, Arkansas. Our staff provides skilled professional care in a compassionate and supportive atmosphere. Russellville Nursing & Rehabilitation Center not only provides long-term care services, we also offer a wide range of rehabilitative services. Our physicians, nurses and staff all believe strong relationships with residents and their families is essential to the healing process. The entire staff is devoted to providing quality care, which celebrates the dignity and grace of every single resident.

MURDER MYSTERY:

Locating the Loved

By Sarah Russell

It

was late fall, and Mother Nature was act ing accordingly. In Russellville, the wind was creating chills and chopping up the water on Lake Dardanelle. At the underpass of the Mill Creek Road Bridge, a small group was gathering. Today, the waters would be searched for a missing mother and her daughter. Her family was there, as well as two volunteer search and res cue teams – Adventures with Purpose (AWP) and Chaos Divers.

Both teams have gained recognition in the media for their ability to locate missing persons in waterways across the country. To establish the most viable search area, AWP’s team leader, Jared Leisek, was consulting with the family. The teams try to obtain cellphone data as well as input as to the last known locations and possible routes the missing might have taken.

Late one Friday afternoon, Samantha Hopper put her kids in the car, heading first to her mom’s place on Ball Hill Road. Planning to spend the night out with a friend, Samantha dropped off her oldest daughter there. She then drove downtown to the home of her youngest daughter Courtney’s father. Could he keep her for the night? He had something else to do first, but if she would be willing to give him an hour or so, he’d take her. With their plan in place, Samantha left with Courtney. Over the next few hours, dark skies wrapped up the day, and Samantha and Courtney were missing. It was Sept. 11, 1998. Samantha and Courtney would be gone for 23 years.

A Missing Person’s Report made it official: 19-year-old Saman tha Jean Hopper, 9-months pregnant, along with her 19-monthold daughter, Courtney Esther Danielle Holt, was last seen in her 1989 blue Ford Tempo. There was no crime or accident scene, no witnesses or evidence of either type of incident. Nor was any mo tive found for their disappearance.

That was where the case remained until Oct. 26, 2021, when AWP and Chaos began the search. It was thought that Samantha might have turned around to go back to her mother’s, perhaps

Samantha Hopper with daughters Dezarae and Courtney

of time so Samantha could be on her way. There were two ways she could have gone – over the Mill Creek Road bridge or the Pleasant View Road bridge. Each team launched searches in their respective areas, with Chaos Divers taking the area around the Pleasant View Road bridge.

Adventures With Purpose was the senior team on the mis sion. Four years ago, Leisek, an Oregon scuba diver, began doing volunteer cleanup dives in his local waterways. The amount of debris recovered proved to be massive – 2,000 pounds over three weeks – a process Leisek documented on YouTube. He and others soon pivoted to removing a number of submerged cars around the area. Then, from Missouri, came an unusual request. Would they be willing to look for a missing person thought to possibly be in a waterway there? The answer brought closure to the family and a new purpose to the team – hence the organization’s name. In approximately 3 years, AWP has had over 20 successful waterway recoveries of the missing.

Chaos Divers is a newer organi zation. Leader Jason Grubbs start ed with the sole intent of clearing his favorite Illinois fishing holes. However, after discovering AWP, Grubbs became inspired by their work. AWP encouraged Grubbs to join the cause of searching for the missing. Chaos Divers quickly became Grubbs’ full-time focus.

From October to December of last year, Chaos’s team brought seven missing persons home from the waters. And just as they would on the Hopper search, the teams often work together.

Now, AWP team member Doug Bishop was methodically checking the guard rails of the Mill Creek bridge. The age of the rails, deter mined by the appearance of the fit tings and/or signs of corrosion, was quickly determined to have been too new to apply to the Hopper case.

Damage to the rails, even repairs, can point to a possible entry point for a vehicle. Bishop encourages road workers and boaters to take a moment to look further and/or let authorities know about such damage. Searching around bridges is crucial – most vehicles are found there, damage evident or not. It’s not unusual for a ve hicle to totally clear a guard rail.

Before the morning had even settled in, Grubbs had a hit on his sonar. There was a car upside down, ten feet away from one of the bridge’s pillars, the depth appearing to be around 8 feet. Everyone relocated with Bishop, suiting up to dive in. Bishop’s entry was met with a shortrange of visibility, but nonetheless, a blue Ford could be seen. After confirming all wheels and win dows were intact, he moved to secure a license plate. It was when he relayed that it had no tags that the family knew they had found those they loved. The car was such a recent purchase that it did not yet have permanent tags.

Generally, at this point, AWP and CD will step back, becom ing only involved further as requested by local law enforcement. Leisek called 911, and a member of the family called Erick Riggs, the detective whom they credit with working so hard on the case. Joining Riggs at the scene was Pope County Sheriff Shane Jones, who would now coordinate the recovery phase.

As the bridge was being closed to the public, Office of Emer gency Management Search and Rescue divers, as well as the tow truck and crane teams, were coming together, conferring with AWP and Chaos as to what they would be dealing with. Often, in these recoveries, the vehicles can be extracted from a boat launch by a tow truck. This would be much more challenging. It was essential that the car be rigged in such a way as to create the necessary angle for it to safely clear the guard rail. Rigging the vehicle was compli cated by poor underwater visibility, further provoked by any move ment of the silt in and around the car. By now, the search, which began in morning light, was being overtaken by nightfall. However, each difficult circumstance was outmatched by the good hearts of those who were working to bring Samantha and her babies home. And so, they did, the dark water slowly parting to allow the vehicle to come to the surface.

The wind had been relentless that day, but it is said that “Eerily, in that moment, the wind stopped blowing. It was still, and it was so very peaceful.”

The gift of knowing would soon come to the family of another missing person in Arkansas. Samantha had been found on Oct. 26 of 2021. In January of 2022, AWP was back in Arkansas, this time in Marianna, helping in the case of 66 year-old Annie Lee Hamp ton. Her wallet, money and medicine were found in her home, but Annie, and her phone, had been gone since October 2019. That was all that was known – AWP had no good starting point and lots of water surrounding them. Fortunately, on this 20-degree day, the water was still just above freezing. Initially, the team was met with nothing until they relaunched off a boat ramp in the Bear Creek Lake area. Almost immediately, they had a hit on their sonar, with Bishop once again diving down to confirm the make and model of the car. Annie’s 2001 Pontiac Grand Prix was found upside down. Annie was no longer one of the 600,000 Americans missing each year. She, too, had been brought home to those who loved her. Bishop left with an invaluable tip: Boaters tend to wait until they are further off the boat launch to turn on their sonar, but the missing are often closer to the launch than expected. Turning it on sooner might mean everything to a waiting family.

Families are typically the first ones to contact these groups, but now, dedicated law enforcement is beginning to welcome the teams in to provide closure or at least help eliminate search areas for the families. Even the best of law enforcement tends to be restricted by tight budgets and red tape. Groups like AWP and Chaos Div ers are all-volunteer, supported by individuals, organizations and corporate sponsors. It is the latter who often provide the expensive state-of-the-art technology that can prove crucial in these kinds of locates. And because these teams are able to use this equipment frequently, they have become skilled to the nuances of the equip ment and the conditions. Samantha and Annie were but two of Arkansas’ 200 missing persons. Many more need to come home to those who love them. In small ways, we can all help make that hap pen – whether it’s being diligent on the waterways or contributing to this cause.

Courtney Holt

Samantha with her girls

Ghost Towns

By Joe David Rice

With one exception, Ar kansas doesn’t have ghost towns similar to those fascinating rel ics found in the western states. Most of our alleged ghost towns are old communities such as Bear, Grayso nia, Paraclifta and Pinnacle Springs, which simply dropped off the map for one reason or another. There’s little, if any, physical evidence that these towns ever existed.

Take Pinnacle Springs. In the late 1880s, it was a flourishing Faulkner County community on North Cadron Creek, between Damascus and Guy. Its claim to fame was a collection of 13 springs, the waters of which sup posedly offered exceptional curative powers. At its peak, Pinnacle Springs included a dozen bathhouses, eight stores, two hotels (one of which had 40 rooms), two shoe shops, a post of fice, skating rink, cotton gin, grist mill, saloon, sawmill, newspaper, ferry and the Arkansas Christian College. But for unknown reasons, the town fell into decline with its post office closing on Sept. 30, 1891 – and the last remaining inhabitants moved away shortly thereafter. A diligent searcher might find a few pieces of footings or foundations hidden in the under growth, but otherwise, there’s nothing left of Pinnacle Springs.

The one exception is Rush, a former mining town founded near the banks of the Buffalo River in Marion County. Named for Rush Creek (which flows through remains of the settlement), this historic community based its existence on zinc deposits, although the original prospectors were seeking silver. By the late 1880s, several hundred mining claims had been recorded in the vicinity.

While the area’s zinc deposits were legitimate, mining proved margin ally profitable, mostly due to the difficulty in getting the ore shipped from the rugged terrain. Miners hoped and prayed for rail service, but the trains never got closer than Gilbert or Buffalo City – both located miles away. Much of the ore was transported by barge down the Buffalo, when water conditions were right, to the White River and then to Batesville. Among the shipments was a 13,000-pound zinc nugget from the Morning Star mine, bound for Chicago, where it won blue ribbons at the 1892 Chicago World’s Fair.

Zinc prices skyrocketed from $14 to $160 a ton with the outbreak of World War I – and Rush boomed. Incorporated as a town in 1916, the community soon became known as the state’s most prosperous locale. Ho tels, dance halls, pool halls, restaurants, a bakery, theater and hardware store were built to accommodate the human influx (although most of the min ers lived in tents). With a population of several thousand residents (one estimate placed it at 6,000) crammed into tight quarters, and little thought given to sanitation, Rush experienced several outbreaks of typhoid and other maladies.

At the war’s end, the demand for zinc collapsed, and the mineral’s price plummeted – leading to Rush’s downfall. Mines closed, shops failed, and people moved away for better opportunities. Shuttering the last store and post office in the mid-1950s signaled the end of an era.

In 1972, Congress established the Buffalo National River, the first such official designation in the country, to preserve the waterway’s natural and cultural features. Although bearing the ravages of time, weather and the occasional vandal, many of the old buildings in Rush still stand, a testa ment to the tenacity of the Ozark spirit. Now known as the Rush Historic District and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987, it’s a bit off the paved highways, but definitely worth a visit.

Joe David Rice, former tourism director of Arkansas Parks and Tourism, has written Arkansas Backstories, a delightful book of short stories from A through Z that introduces readers to the state's lesser-known aspects. Rice's goal is to help readers acknowledge that Arkansas is a unique and fascinating combination of land and people – one to be proud of and one certainly worth sharing.

Each month, AY will share one of the 165 distinctive essays. We hope these stories will give you a new appreciation for this geographically compact but delightfully complex place we call home. These Arkansas Backstories columns appear courtesy of the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies at the Central Arkansas Library System. The essays have been collected and published by Butler Center Books in a two-volume set, both of which are now available to purchase at Amazon and the University of Arkansas Press.

Photo courtesy of ADPHT

Supported/made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, Arkansas Humanities Council, National Endowment for the Humanities, United States Congress, Arkansas State Library, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services The Junior League of Little Rock is a partner for the Little Readers Rock events.

Left to Right: Dawn Hughes, MD, and Stacey Johnson, APRN

A

System

a Growing Community

Innovative Services New Medical OfficesMore Specialists

Conway Regional Maternal-Fetal Medicine Center of Arkansas

The new Conway Regional Maternal-Fetal Medicine Center of Arkansas, led by Dawn Hughes, MD, and Stacey Johnson, APRN, offers care for women with complications found prior to or during pregnancy and for their unborn baby. Each woman's journey to having a baby is unique, which is why our highly-skilled specialists collaborate with ob-gyns, neonatologists, and pediatricians to provide each patient with a special, individualized care plan. Visit ConwayRegional.org to learn more.

We’re not just growing—we’re growing together.