Plastic vs Cosmetic, can you spot the difference?
COSMETIC SURGEON Medical School
PLASTIC SURGEON
Medical School
Residency
minimum of 3 years in general surgery
minimum of 3 years specialty training in an ABMS recognized plastic surgery residency
Residency There are no residency programs in the United States devoted to cosmetic surgery.
Post-Residency Training Many choose to pursue further training with specialty fellowship programs
Post-Residency Training This can include anything from weekend seminars to online webinars or one year fellowship.
Specialty Experience Practice for 2 years in the field + Sub-specialties require additional training on top of this
Board Certified in Plastic Surgery: this level of certification goes well beyond the minimum for earning an MD and translates into years of hands-on real-world experience. Must pass comprehensive multiday 8-hour written and oral exams, follow a strict medical code of ethics, peer-review of all surgeries and recommendation from board members.
™
My Passion. Your Results.™
+ Continuing Education
150 hours of continuing medical education every 3 years.
+ Re-Certification every 10 years
2200 N Rodney Parham Rd, Ste 200, Little Rock | littlerockplasticsurgery.com | 501-219-8000
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M Y L A G O S M Y W AY
C AV I A R C O L L E C T I O N S
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Make 2021 Your Year For The Beautiful...
Over Arkansas Smiling
“People all over Arkansas trust Drs. Lee Wyant and Alyssa Lambert with their smile. With a combined 40 years of experience in providing clinical excellence you know your smile is in good hands. Dr. Wyant is Arkansas’ only Fellowed Cosmetic Dentist. Credentials, experience and caring concern for each individual patient insures that you’ll receive exceptional esthetic results regardless of the challenges presented. Learn more how Drs. Wyant and Lambert can help you have an incredible smile by calling today for your complimentary smile consultation.”
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WHAT’S INSIDE
10 Publisher’s Letter 12 Connect 14 Top Events 198 Murder Mystery 200 Arkansas Backstories
HOME&GARDEN
Two’s a Charm
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FOOD&DRINK
I Love This Bar Bar Food Recipes Dinner for Dad FTomas ace Behind the Place: Bohm
24 30 34 38
TRAVEL ARKANSAS
Ouachitas 116 The Ascent of Argenta 127 Quick Getaways
106 Mount Ida: A Little Gem of the
ARTS&CULTURE 136 The Sound of Our Town: Pine Bluff
142 Rich and Green 148 Arkansas Country Music Awards 154 David Adam Byrnes 157 Anna Brinker 176 The People Behind Your News: Wess Moore
HEALTH 160 The Circle 166 Go Red for Women 172 Healthy Heart, Healthy Life 184 Home, Sweet Home
MENTAL HEALTH 190 Saved by Grace
ABOUT YOU
45 AY’s Best of 2021 90 Arkansas Bar Association Annual
Beer and Bar Food Bucket List, page 24 Photo by Jamison Mosley
ON THE COVER One of the most happening spots in all of Arkansas is the Argenta Arts District in North Little Rock. Photo by Jamison Mosley. Read more: page 116.
Awards
96 AY’s Best Lawyers 6
Thank You
for naming CareLink one of AY’s Best for in-home care!
We are overwhelmed with gratitude by the trust families have put in us to care for their older loved ones for more than 40 years. Central Arkansas’s Area Agency on Aging has been caring for families together since 1979. If you or someone you know could use a little help aging safely at home, contact us today. 501 372 5300 | 800 482 6359 | CareLink.org
PRESIDENT & PUBLISHER
Heather Baker hbaker@aymag.com EDITOR
Dustin Jayroe djayroe@aymag.com
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
Mark Carter mcarter@aymag.com
ONLINE EDITOR
Tyler Hale thale@aymag.com
EDITOR-AT-LARGE
Lisa Fischer lfischer@aymag.com
FOOD EDITOR
Kevin Shalin kshalin@aymag.com
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Katie Zakrzewski katie@aymag.com
STAFF WRITER
Emily Beirne ebeirne@aymag.com
ART DIRECTOR
Jamison Mosley jmosley@aymag.com
PRODUCTION MANAGER Rebecca Robertson rrobertson@aymag.com
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.
Janie Jones began her journalism career by writing features for the River Valley & Ozark Edition. After finding her niche as a true crime writer for AY About You, she acted as a consultant for Investigation Discovery. With her husband, she coauthored two books: Hiking Arkansas and Arkansas Curiosities.
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.
Andrea Patrick has spent most of her childhood and adulthood in Little Rock. She loves the local food scene and believes that we all eat with our eyes first. This led her to a passion for experimenting with recipes, designing and plating at home. Find her on Instagram, @DishedbyDrea.
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 now heads up the Office of the Ombudsman for the Arkansas Department of Human Services. Jason and his wife, Mary Carol, have two biological children and one bonus son, all now adults. They are long-time members of Fellowship Bible Church in Little Rock.
DIGITAL MEDIA DIRECTOR
Kellie McAnulty kmcanulty@aymag.com
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ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES
Stephanie Wallace swallace@aymag.com Linda Burlingame lindaaymag@aol.com Tonya Higginbotham thigginbotham@aymag.com Mary Funderburg mary@aymag.com Tonya Mead tmead@aymag.com Shasta Ballard sballard@aymag.com
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ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Jacob Carpenter ads@aymag.com
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CONTRIBUTORS
Kaitlin Barger, Ebony Blevins, John Kelly, Jordan Knight, Meredith Mashburn, Tony Milligan, Sarah Russell, Philip Thomas
ADMINISTRATION Casandra Moore admin@aymag.com Vicki Vowell, CEO
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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.
AY Magazine is published monthly, Volume XXXIV, Issue 2 AY Magazine (ISSN 2162-7754) is published monthly by AY Media Group, 910 W. 2nd St., Suite 200, Little Rock, AR 72201. Periodicals postage paid at Little Rock, AR and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to AY Magazine, 910 W. 2nd St., Suite 200, Little Rock, AR 72201. Subscription Inquiries: Subscription rate is $20 for one year (12 issues). Single issues are available upon request for $5. For subscriptions, inquiries or address changes, call 501-244-9700. The contents of AY are copyrighted ©2020, and material contained herein may not be copied or reproduced in any manner without the written permission of the publisher. Articles in AY should not be considered specific advice, as individual circumstances vary. Products and services advertised in the magazine are not necessarily endorsed by AY. Please recycle this magazine.
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publisher's letter
Summer I Feel Like
Heather Baker, President & Publisher hbaker@aymag.com
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Photo by Jeff Fuller-Freeman
“You can feel it in the streets, on a day like this, the heat — it feel like summer. I feel like summer.” I don’t know about you, but my stereo has been bumping all the bops of the season lately, like this one by Donald Glover. It’s a roof-off, patio-dining and pool-plunging kind of time, and this issue of AY About You reflects every bit of that. We’ve got to start off with this issue’s cover, a beautiful shot of North Little Rock’s Argenta District by our art director, Jamison Mosley. We love visiting our friends over in Argenta year-round, but I feel comfortable surmising that the district was made for summer. From the outdoor eats and drinks to the live music and the swanky new Argenta Plaza, it’s a place that truly has it all. We talk about all that and more in this issue. And the many summer travel destinations don’t stop there. Joe David Rice takes us on a journey to Mount Ida, a place as rich with history and heritage as it is a haven for tourists with the crystal mines and Mountain Harbor Resort on Lake Ouachita. Our Quick Getaways special section features even more ideas for your seasonal agenda, be it your “wild” side at the Little Rock Zoo or Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge, or at the seat of the River Valley in Russellville, the solace of Gaston’s White River Resort, or the tried and true Central Arkansas Library System. This month also marks the time for another rendition of the Arkansas Country Music Awards, held on June 7. We break all the categories down for you in this issue and feature local country artists David Adam Byrnes and Anna Brinker. Speaking of music, June is also African American Music Appreciation Month, which we’ve observed with a wonderful story about Pine Bluff ’s deep footprint on the arts, which too often remains untold. The tunes and history continue with our story on some of St. Francis County’s favorite sons, Al Green and Charlie Rich. We also partnered with the American Heart Association to bring you plenty of heart-healthy content as we lead up to the association’s Go Red for Women Luncheon this month. Survivors of cardiac conditions bravely share their stories with us, and we talk to the experts on the best ways to prevent heart disease, which is the leading cause of death among both men and women in the United States. And, of course, we would never forget Father’s Day. The one-and-only Andrea Patrick (DishedbyDrea) designed a delicious charcuterie spread for the dad in your life. And our editor, Dustin Jayroe, featured FOX16 and 103.7 the Buzz’s Wess Moore, the ultimate girl dad, for our monthly media spotlight.. There are also the winners of AY’s Best of 2021 included in this issue. Would you believe all of this only scratches the surface of this jam-packed copy of AY? I could go on and on, but I think I’ll stop here and leave you to your reading and me to my boombox by the pool. (I know that’s an out-of-date reference, but “boombox” sounds so much cooler than “Bluetooth speakers.”) Enjoy!
AYISABOUTYOU
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TRENDING ON AYMAG.COM Hot Seltzer Summer: Sonic Bringing Alcoholic Beverages to Arkansas Recipe Monday: Cherry Cheesecake Dump Cake Reports: Little Rock Fire Department Fighting Flames at Sims Bar-B-Que AY’s Best of 2021 Winners Recipe: Lemon Blueberry Bundt Cake Susanne Brunner Set to Leave KARK and FOX16
CONNECT AYISABOUTYOU
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AYMAG.COM
READER FEEDBACK SUSANNE BRUNNER SET TO LEAVE KARK AND FOX16 “Good luck, ma’am. You will be great at whatever your next adventure is.” Todd Fletcher MADE IN ARKANSAS: TRUTH SAUCE “Thanks so much for your continued support. You guys are truly a blessing, and I’m forever grateful.” Truth Sauce FIRED UP: MASTERCHEF LIVE BRINGS THE HIGH-STAKES KITCHEN COMPETITION TO ARKANSAS “Well, this is cool!” Geneva Galloway HOMETOWN HEROES: CINDY WOODSON “Thank you for sharing so many good things about foster kids and Haven!” Cindy Woodson
CONTESTS
Petit & Keet celebrates its 4th anniversary with a return to 1975.
Andazi, the Little Rock Zoo’s 15-year-old rhinoceros, is pregnant for a second time. Her baby rhino’s due date is expected to be in November 2021.
Arkansas artist Jerrod Brown is making waves with his company DropKicks Custom.
Contest deadline is June 14! Go to aymag.com and click on the “Contests” tab.
1. TIPTON & HURST
Looking for that perfect gift for a loved one? You’re guaranteed to find it at Tipton & Hurst, which has been providing expert florist services since 1886. Whether you need a beautiful bouquet of flowers or a unique gift basket, this Arkansas mainstay will have it. Drop in to find what your heart desires – it’s on us! CODE: TIPTON
2. LOBLOLLY
There’s nothing like a scoop of delicious ice cream, no matter the season. When it comes to ice cream, you can’t beat Loblolly Creamery. This Little Rock favorite serves up mouthwatering small-batch ice cream, using fresh ingredients and unique flavors. Come and get your favorite flavor, on us. CODE: LOBLOLLY
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3. TURPENTINE CREEK
Take a walk on the wild side at Turpentine Creek. This Eureka Springs refuge provides a home for abandoned and neglected big cats, from tigers to lions to leopards. Win two tickets to tour the refuge and see all the amazing animals! CODE: CATS
The chuck wagons were out racing in May for Racing On The Ridge in Malvern.
!
May WINNERS Tipton & Hurst: LINDSEY SNODDY Loblolly: NIK BROOKS Turpentine Creek: ALICIA HENSON
Our newest branch is on your phone.
At Simmons Bank, we believe in making banking as easy as possible. So you can bank when you want, where you want and how you want. Learn more at simmonsbank.com.
Terms and conditions apply. See website for details.
agenda
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Top
you just can't miss! TAILS AND TUNES June 3, 10, 17, 24 Little Rock Zoo The Little Rock Zoo is going to be open late every Thursday in June for its new Tails and Tunes series. Starting at 6 p.m. on Thursdays, the Zoo will feature food and drink vendors, live music and more, and will stay open until 9 p.m.
DELTA ARTS FESTIVAL June 4, 5
Downtown Newport The 12th annual event is back with a bounty of interesting sights and unique experiences. More than 200 artists will be in attendance for the Delta Visual Arts Show, dozens of musicians for the Delta Musicians Showcase, and then there’s the Delta Festival of Books and the Delta Silver Screen Film Fest.
ARKANSAS COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS June 7
Reynolds Performance Hall — Conway The state’s annual celebration of country music was delayed and switched to virtual last year, but this time around, it’s live and primed to be one of the best renditions yet. (Read more: page 148)
2021 BIG BUZZ BASS TOURNAMENT June 12
Murray Park Lock and Dam — Little Rock The fifth annual Triple B is back on the waters of the Arkansas River this month. Anglers from all over the state will descend to Little Rock to try their rods at catching cash prizes, which amount to more than $6,000.
MISS ARKANSAS PAGEANT June 13-19
Robinson Center — Little Rock Another pandemic postponement, the beloved Miss Arkansas Pageant, is back on for 2021. Candidates will compete for the titles of Miss Arkansas and Miss Arkansas Outstanding Teen.
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events
June 20
Top 3 events to do at home Editor’s Note: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the events and information listed are subject to change. When attending events this month, please remember to be safe and abide by the most current guidelines set forth by Gov. Asa Hutchinson and the Arkansas Department of Health.
HOT SPRINGS MUSIC FESTIVAL (VIRTUAL) June 7-11
www.hotmusicfestival.com
FINDING FAMILY FACTS (VIRTUAL) June 14; 3:30 p.m. www.cals.org
GO RED FOR WOMEN LUNCHEON (VIRTUAL) June 24; noon
www.goredforwomen.org
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home
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Charm Two’s A
Two of AY’s Hall of Fame homes pair up for a stunning aesthetic with contemporary functionality. By Julie Craig // Photos Provided By River Rock Builders
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Since 1999, River Rock Builders of central Arkansas has brought dream homes to life through state-of-the-art virtual technology and superior energy efficiency.
Little Slice of Heaven
Patty and Keith Wingfield are certainly no strangers to the home business. After all, Patty’s father was one of the founding members of the Arkansas Home Builders Association in the early 1950s, making the shift into appraising in the 1960s to focus on commercial appraising. About the time Patty and Keith were married, he was the developer of a large single-family subdivision in Sherwood. “He understood so much about the entire real estate and construction industry,” she says. Keith, the son of a full-time design engineer for Alcoa and a parttime builder in the ’60s and ’70s, credits his father for much of his career path as well. His father, with the help of his brother, began building full time until the recession of 1980-81 when interest rates rose to 20 percent. “He taught me a lot and helped me after he retired from 1999 until his death in 2006,” Keith says. Keith credits his father for much of his career path. In 1999, Keith and Patty started River Rock Builders. “We built our first house for ourselves in 1983, and our second in
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1997,” Keith says. “You can’t do that unless you have some experience or help.” These days, we all know “going green” is of utmost importance, and River Rock focuses on custom home building with an emphasis on energy efficiency. “Energy is not a clichéd topic for us. I mean, we don’t just talk the talk. We walk it — all the way,” Keith says. “We understand the building science of energy efficiency where others really don’t. We energy model and test all of our homes. That sets us apart from every other builder.” What also sets the company apart is its in-house 3D design capabilities that enable the team to give clients a unique experience where they can virtually walk the space of their dream home before it becomes reality. The team, also composed of project manager and designer Ryan Renard as well as office manager Christin Hayes, showcases its building mastery with the Ferndale home featured here — or “little slice of heaven,” as homeowners Mary Jane and Mike Cole like to call it. Once you arrive and soak up the spectacular view from the very high ridge that looks both north and south, it’s clear to see how it gets this name. The addition of Bridget MacKenzie, Interior Designer, in 2020 completes the River Rock team and is a welcome addition Keith says. She’s a California girl who obtained her training from the San Diego Art Institute and brings fresh ideas to the team. The entire project took about 19 months, but as Keith says, “You have to see the environment to understand that.” The team could only bring in fill materials in half loads and concrete in 6-cubic-yard bunches. “The logistics were really problematic throughout the project,” Keith adds. The tough logistics led to one of the home’s greatest assets of all — the exterior. The landscaping has many features that highlight the scenery from the outcropping of rock placed on the embankment of the cut in the ridge to the peaceful running stream and small pond. The view at sunset is simply stunning and really sets the house apart. The owners wanted a stone-and-wood siding look but with a modern exterior. So, the team combined natural stone from Schwartz Stone in Scranton, Arkansas with a new reverse board and batten siding product from Louisiana Pacific called Smart Siding. The Smart Siding came pre-finished with a wood stain and the reverse board and batten mirrors a cool, lapped horizontal siding. The thin veneer stone was cut into various rectangular shapes and then tumbled to take off the sharp edges. The blend of the two products looks like nature pulled it all together. But the home isn’t just all natural in its looks. It is sustainable at its finest. “If it’s not sustainable, River Rock doesn’t do it,” Keith says. “We use high-performance materials like the Smart Siding, which is an engineered wood (sustainable) siding with a 50-year warranty. The stone is a natural product and extremely durable.” The entire building assembly from the foundation to the tip of the roof is foam filled to provide the maximum efficiency to the walls and attic. “This home is built to be a high-performance home with all the materials selected to be some of the best available,” Keith says. The team used an exterior sheathing product manufactured by Huber Engineered
Woods called Zip-R. It has an integrated moisture and air barrier membrane that is attached to the exterior surface of the sheathing. In addition, a half-inch closed-cell foam board insulation is laminated to the interior side of the sheathing, providing a thermal break between the wood studs and the wood. “This thermal break not only adds the wall R-value but substantially reduces the thermal transfer that a wood to wood connection allows,” Keith points out. “[River Rock] specializes not only in supreme energy efficiency but also in the most difficult of job sites,” Keith adds. “Other builders might run from a steep hillside, but we really run towards them. It’s a challenge, but I employ professional engineers, surveyors and geotechnical engineers to make recommendations on how to build a foundation and structure.” Once inside, the mesmerizing two-story living room includes a circular stairwell that wraps around the elevator, creating a gap from the circle to the flat wall. “It’s two stories tall, and the artwork that hangs in this gap is really cool,” Keith says. As a bonus, the semi-circle is formed on the exterior as well and is visible in the front elevation as a circular feature of the home. Additional chandeliers and pendant lights make for a modern and elegant ambiance throughout. The interior features subtle hues of mostly white and light greys brought to life by both Patty and interior designer Carol Lantz. The interior doors and kitchen cabinetry were stained to look weathered. “It was difficult to get the actual weathered look, but I really think they turned out well after some replacement cabinet and interior doors were installed,” Keith says. “What most customers don’t know is that lighter stains go into the wood differently from wood to wood, even in what should be the same manufacturer. That’s because wood varies in nature from tree to tree even though it’s the same species.” Prefinished hardwood and tile envelop the entire space, including several porches with whimsical daybed swings. “This home is the Cole’s oasis. There are so many relaxing areas in this home, both interior and exterior,” Keith says. “Even the laundry room is spacious because Mike likes to do the laundry, and he wanted room to spread out.” “I often say that we are married to the client during construction,” Keith says, “and in some cases forever. We have to work together to achieve a common goal much like a husband and wife work together to make a good marriage. “Our ultimate goal is always the same on every project, and that is to make the customer happy. We want customers to have the home of their own dreams.”
Healthy. Sustainable. Livable. Award-winning. These are all stellar ingredients when they mix to make up an entire eco-friendly home recipe for success. Homeowners Ann and Dr. Rick Owen researched their share of environmental homebuilding components before embarking on a dream journey with River Rock Builders to update their historic Heights
home of 12 years. It not only showcases eco-friendly at its finest, but it truly exemplifies how sustainable design enhances comfort and livability in any home. In this instance, “update” means the home was completely torn down and rebuilt from the ground up to include a plethora of features meant to reduce its carbon footprint. From landscaping and irrigation to countertops and lighting, many aspects of the home received a gorgeous, green makeover. The Owenses installed 42 solar PV panels to produce enough energy to power the 2,662-square-foot residence. The interior green features include: Energy Star appliances; WaterSense fixtures; recycled glass countertops; LED lighting (of which builder Keith Wingfield says, “If you aren’t using LED everywhere, you are missing the lighting boat.”); locally-sourced glass and mirrors; cast-iron sinks and tubs; vintage and upcycled light fixtures; and no-VOC paint from Sherwin-Williams. In fact, the couple’s drive to build the healthiest, most sustainable home they could led them to certify their home in 2018 and go on to win “Project of the Year” in the 2018 LEED Homes Awards. “I wanted to do something that was energy efficient and provided economy as a good investment [in a] personal home,” says Keith, who became Arkansas’ first Certified Green Builder in 2007 and then went on to earn his LEED AP with the USGBC in 2010. “I wish more Arkansans would wake up and understand what a more clean, energy-efficient and healthy home they can live in by practicing just a few of these principles while building a new home.” The Owenses had a goal of achieving a LEED Platinum rating
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Stylish Sustainability
Heaven
through the United States Green Building Council. “I explained the difficulty to achieve this rating; it’s only given to the best of the best green homes and buildings in the country,” Keith says. “When I found out we would get the Platinum rating and told Ann, she was beyond excited to know that their home had made it to the top of ratings. What we didn’t expect was how far we would go with the project, winning Arkansas Green Home of the Year and then finally the National Award for Project of the Year.” One green “principle” featured in this American Craftsman-style residence is that of reusing. When replacing their existing home, the homeowners took great care in reusing salvageable fixtures, appliances and materials. These materials were then collected and sold by the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity. Another principle? Restore. During the landscaping process, to reduce water and chemical usage, the family decided to forego a lawn in favor of permeable surfaces. That means there is no grass sod on the entire landscape since grass is the No. 1 demand for water. Native plants adorn the property, and eight rain barrels are used for irrigation. In a process of restoration, the property’s grass was reallocated to a local preschool playground after de-sodding. In addition, the driveway is filled with porous concrete to eliminate any excessive runoff for stormwater and to get the stormwater filtered into the ground quickly. Perfect for entertaining, the home includes a fantastic screened porch with a huge sliding door and a separate outdoor deck, allowing for large gatherings to mingle inside and out. And certain to be a popular conversation starter at any party is the recycled glass countertops made by renowned manufacturer Vetrazzo. “It’s another way to recycle and reuse materials over and over again,” Keith says. “These surfaces come in many, many different patterns and col-
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ors, and Ann’s kitchen counters are very bright and colorful — in many ways expressing her cheerful attitude of life!” The electric color palette throughout the home lends an aura of pure happiness — from purple to lime green to aqua blue and orange — and contrasts with bamboo flooring and porcelain tile. A very roomy and eye-catching kitchen island bursts with color from the addition of six bright orange barstools. After the home project was finished, the Owenses opened their home when several hundred community members attended open houses hosted by the LEED homeowners to learn more about residential sustainability. Much like them, homeowners can research before deciding how to go green. Keith mentions that anyone living in an existing home more than 20 years old should contact utility providers to see what incentives are offered to help reduce utility bills through energy savings. “The simple things of caulking, sealing and weather stripping are easily done. A little more difficult is the sealing of the duct system,” he says. “Would you be surprised if I told you the average home in Arkansas loses almost 40 percent of their conditioned air (either hot or cold) through duct leakage? It’s a documented fact by our utility providers, and even new homes have duct systems that leak up to 25-30 percent because they don’t have proper filtration, provide fresh air and are much less healthy than a LEEDcertified home or Energy Star home.” In the end, building an award-winning green home is always a fulfilling process for Wingfield. “I’m very satisfied to know that I have one more customer who understands the efficiency and sustainability in their home,” Wingfield says. “I want them to tell everybody they know that you can live in comfort, with clean air, at a fraction of the cost of your neighbor. It takes an investment — but really, what doesn’t?”
CUSTOM
home builders
THANK YOU AY readers and our customers of more than 22 years for voting us AY’s Best Home Builder of 2021! 501-416-8986 | RiverRockBuilders.net | Little Rock, Arkansas
Family Owned and Operated Since 1920 19650 I-30, Benton • congofp.com • 501.316.4328
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This
By DWAIN HEBDA Photography by JAMISON MOSLEY
Lost Forty’s fried chicken sandwich.
Midtown Billiards has been called many things in its mind-bending 81-year history — a dive, a joint, a tavern, an all-nighter and a few compliments not for print word-for-word. But mostly, it’s been Little Rock’s favorite late-night address, a fixture in the South Main neighborhood that time, tastes and even a 2016 grease fire could not silence. You might not know to look at it — and owner David Shipp recoils at the term — but the maverick spot is a drinking and dining institution, a trailblazer more than trendsetter, putting as much attention into food as drink, even at 4 o’clock in the morning. “As for being considered a ‘pioneer,’ I would just say, it’s something you can’t get too wrapped up into,” Shipp says. “An ego is something that kills you in any business; once you start to feel like you’re so big that the world needs to listen to what you have to say for reasons X, Y and Z, that’s ego. It comes in and starts to tear you down, starts to make you a person who loses touch with what’s happening in the world. “When people say, ‘We were told you have the best burger in town,’ I’ll tell them, ‘Well, yes, we have a very good burger here.’ I shy away from saying we have ‘the best,’ because that’s subjective, and it’s kind of hard to build up something and then hope that their expectations will meet what the PR has been built up about it. So, I try to stay humble, and I try to stay in the now, and I try to stay real.” That said, Midtown Billiards makes one of, if not the best burger in town. And not just because it is always fresh, or always inventive (you like SPAM on yours, you just don’t know it until you come here). It’s because the burger or the brats or any of the other great pub fare and the bar are one and the same — inseparable and more than the sum of their parts. All the best bar food is. “Well, there’s no point in reinventing the wheel,” Shipp says, citing the Gospel of Maggie Hinson, his mother, who bought the place in the 1990s. “There’s no reason to overthink the process. Like most establishments that have good food, it always starts with fresh ingredients that are prepped fresh daily. We don’t import anything that’s frozen. We just try to stay as consistent with it as possible, keeping it as simple as we can.” Anyone who knows will tell you Midtown Billiards is one of the most influential spots anywhere in the Little Rock bar scene for serving excellent food to patrons on the principle of the thing. As, still, one of the few all-night joints in the city, its sober-up staples would be consumed regardless of quality in many cases. But Hinson regarded her motley patrons — be they ending a night of unhinged revelry or quietly clocking out of third shift — as family, so no deepfried mess was good enough. “Clientele always shapes what you’re going to offer,” Shipp says. “And we do offer food and services to a lot of people who are getting off that late shift. We have a lot of burgers with egg or bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches or SPAM, egg and cheese — anything with an egg on it is going to do well. Sometimes we just sell egg sandwiches, and I think that is something that’s a good addition to the menu — it’s simple, it’s easy and it satisfies. People really enjoy a good egg on their sandwiches.” Blessedly, there are many other bars now that follow this same principle of knowing one’s customer and cooking for them. Few stay open until 5 a.m., and fewer still have the miles on them Midtown does, but all are driven by a doneright ethos, bringing dish, people and environment into balance. A come-lately disciple of this formula is North Bar in the Park Hill neighborhood in North Little Rock, a bright space that blurs the line between watering hole and gourmet diner. “We see ourselves as a bar that serves really good food,” says Snee Dismang, who owns the place with her husband, Kyle. “When we opened, Park Hill hadn’t had liquor in 50 years. So, we knew we wanted to do a bar there, but the main focus would be the burgers.” That alone might not have necessarily set North Bar into the class of destination dining, but other dishes — things like the fried Brussels sprouts appetizer, salad topped with salmon filet or a sweet and sour chicken sandwich — certainly do. “Plenty of people are pleasantly surprised by our food. I think that’s what put us on the map,” Dismang says. “I think seasoning is big; I’m Indian, so seasoning is a huge thing for us.” The bar’s bestseller of late is the fried pickle burger, but the range of North Bar’s kitchen offers a little something for everyone.
“My favorite is the el Diablo that I veganize by adding vegan sauce and cheese; the buns are already vegan from our supplier,” Dismang says. “Also, I like to do the Asian chicken salad, but I put a white bean patty on top instead of the chicken. “If you want to do something different that isn’t on the page, we can do that. Sometimes when I go out, I want to modify things, and I’ll get crazy looks. We didn’t want that environment. If a customer wants something a certain way, we don’t turn our nose up. We want to make you happy and take care of you.” The challenge was different for Lost Forty Brewing and its taproom restaurant, which opened in 2014. The food pedigree of ownership — which included acclaimed Little Rock chef Scott McGehee — was unquestioned, and the beer side was anchored by some of the best brewers money could buy. Still, says fellow owner John Beachboard, a successful melding of the two was far from assured. “At the end of the day, it’s a pretty simple equation, but sometimes those are the hardest. There’s good food and good service and good beer; that’s essentially our recipe for success,” he says. “You can’t have a perfect experience with any one of those elements missing. For that reason, we originally weren’t going to do a restaurant at the brewery. “I think about getting all those things together, great food, beer and friends. That’s a recipe for a memorable experience, and that’s how you can create true believers. I’m not the greatest salesperson and don’t have the most bubbly personality, but give me some beer and wings and I can make new friends.” Where other bars’ quality of food is a revelation, for Lost Forty, excellent fare was an expectation from the get-go. Recognizing this, the crew goes to extraordinary — some might say obsessive — lengths to live up to its reputation. “The restaurant business is in our blood,” Beachboard says. “Take the wings for instance; right now, anybody can take a wing and throw it in a fryer and put some fatty, sugary barbecue sauce on it, and it’ll probably be pretty delicious. What we do is come in at 6 a.m., fire up our wood smoker, lay out hundreds of individual wings, smoke them for a few hours, then fry them to order and toss in the in-house-made sauces. “The answer to why we do that? I guess the real answer is: We want to do it. We not only have to make customers happy, but it’s in our blood to make our souls happy, to be honest with ourselves. ‘Is this something we are satisfied with?’” For all of the extra work that goes into it, the magic of Lost Forty is everything on the menu is familiar, even as it’s prepared to the highest standards. Nothing among the burgers, sandwiches and other beer hall delights scream pretension, and that attitude carries over to the brewery operations. Lost Forty’s brews win awards, but they don’t taste like cotton candy goat hair just because one of the brewers thinks he can do it. “The word we’ve used since day one among our brew staff is ‘balanced,’” Beachboard says. “We do try to get out there and get crazy but we ask, ‘Is it balanced?’ Balance is a word related to not just the palate but to the mind, too. “There are a lot of breweries making beers that are not even made to be consumed. I feel like they’re just made to be sold on the secondhand market. I understand collecting things — I collect vinyl records — but not collecting beer. I like drinking beer.” Atmosphere means a lot in the restaurant business and as a category, perhaps most of all with bars. From the sunny family environ of North Bar to the Munich beer hall vibe of Lost Forty to the hundreds of moments memorialized on Midtown Billiards’ graffiti murals, the place matters as much as the fare, the people around you as essential as the plate and pint in front of you. Bubba Bass knows this well, as evidenced by the breathtaking Bubba Brew’s on Lake Hamilton. It’s hard to imagine a better setting for a night of noshing on the place’s diabolical burgers and washing them down with one of the home suds shipped in from the brewery in nearby Bonnerdale. It’s a massive, hulking structure staring out over the shimmering lake, yet still a place where, somehow, everybody knows your name.
The Stinger pizza from Lost Forty.
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“Well, we started out just bar food,” Bass says. “Then I thought about all the tourists in Hot Springs and the church folks who don’t drink beer but are looking for a place where they can have groups of 20 to 30 people. Most places don’t accommodate that. So, we brought in a chef, and we took it to the next level; now it’s a brewery and a place to eat. “If you can have good food, you’ll get that clientele, and if that clientele wants beer and you do that well, you’ll be successful.” There are a few gimmicks wrapped up in Bubba Brew’s strategy. Bar-patron-friendly cornhole courts, karaoke and trivia delight the party crowd, while massive portions satisfy on the food side. When most people head to a bar to fill up, they’re usually not talking about BBQ ribs, after all. “People love the quality and quantity,” Bass says. “If you leave here hungry, you might have forgotten your to-go box on the table. Since COVID, we could do 64-ounce growlers to-go on Sunday, so we’ve become a destination for folks looking to grab a Sunday beer to take home, too. “We’ve been through probably a thousand different food items, and we always do a customer feedback at the end of the year to see which ones customers like the most. We do a lot with the locals, so the locals support us — they give us feedback if something isn’t right. We go with what the customers want.” Bubba’s take-home business is about to get much larger with the start of a canning operation, which will spread its good cheer to fans over a much wider footprint. But not unlike a hot dog at a baseball game or popcorn in a movie theater, there’s just something about a place that makes everything taste better, feel better. Few people assign ownership to a fast-food joint or chain restaurant; everybody has a bar that’s theirs. For Bass, the feeling is mutual. After the debacle that was 2020, he’s happy to have the family together under one roof again, all 500 of them. “When COVID hit, we took a huge loss of revenue,” he says. “We had to throw out about 1,500 gallons of beer because no one would take it, since at that time we only did kegs, and our place was closed along with everyone else. That killed us for a while.” At this Bass pauses, yielding to the silence of the space broken only by the lapping lake water. He looks around. “If you get good quality — and that goes for beer, food and the perfect atmosphere — all those ingredients go together to make it work.”
The food and drink is just as good as the view at Bubba Brew’s. (Courtesy)
Bites and brews from Superior Bathhouse Brewery in Hot Springs. (David Yerby)
AY’s ARKANSAS
l Bark Bar
Little Rock
l Bear’s Den Pizza Conway
B eaendrBar Food
lade and Barrel Brewing Co. l B
Bucket List
rewski’s Pub & Grub l B
Presented by
Jacksonville Little Rock
l JJ’s Grill
Jonesboro, North Little Rock
eer Creek l D
Cabot
Fire & Stone
Siloam Springs
Various Locations
l JTown’s Grill Jonesboro
l Levi’s Gastrolounge & Low Bar Rogers
l Lost Forty Brewing
ugan’s Pub l D
l Maxine’s Live
l Farrell’s Lounge Bar & Grill
l Midtown Billiards Little Rock
Little Rock
Fayetteville
eno’s Argenta Cafe l R
l Rocky’s Corner Hot Springs
addlebock Brewery & l S
Restaurant Springdale
late Rock Brewing l S
Amity
l SQZBX Brewery & Pizza
iamond Bear Brewing Co. l D
North Little Rock
Mountain Home
Pine Bluff
harlee’s Good Time Drinkery l C
l Cregeen’s Irish Pub
l Rapp’s Barren Brewing Co.
J’s Sports Grill and Bar l R
l Ivory Bill Brewing Co.
Little Rock
Cabot
North Little Rock
ubba Brew’s l B
Bonnerdale, Hot Springs
l Purple Onion
Little Rock
Hot Springs
Hot Springs
tone’s Throw Brewing l S
Little Rock
tudDuck Beers l S
Lonsdale
l Superior Bathhouse Brewery Hot Springs
l Flying Duck Taproom
l Moonbroch Brewing Company
l F lyway Brewing
l Morano’s
able 28 l T
l Foghorn’s
l Norfork Brewing Co.
C’s Midtown Grill l T
l North Bar
he First Seat Pub & Grill l T
zark Beer Co. l O
l The Hangout Grill & Bar
izza D’Action l P
he Pedaler’s Pub l T
l Point Remove Brewing Co.
he Rail Yard l T
l Prestonrose Farm And
l Town Pump
Stuttgart
North Little Rock Conway, Fayetteville, Rogers, Siloam Springs, Springdale
l Fort Smith Brewing Co. Fort Smith
l Four Quarter Bar North Little Rock
l Gotahold Brewing Eureka Springs l Gravity BrewWorks Big Flat
l Grumpy’s Too Neighborhood Bar & Grill Little Rock
l Hill Station Little Rock
Rogers
Fayetteville Norfork
North Little Rock
Rogers
Little Rock Morrilton
Brewing Co. Paris
l Pridgin Family Brewery Scranton rospect Sports Bar & Grill l P
Little Rock
Little Rock Conway
Bentonville
North Little Rock Bentonville Little Rock
Little Rock
ptown Kitchen & l U
Taphouse Rogers
l Vino’s
Little Rock
3C heck off the Beer and Bar Food list as you visit a small sample of our favorite places. 28
AY About You
Arkansas Bucket List
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s t a E
CHORIZO
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S • R ECIPE
FLAVOR PAIRING Topped with smoky chorizo, peppery arugula and cool lime, this flatbread pairs perfectly with a cold beer or a frozen margarita on a warm summer night.
INGREDIENTS
&ARUGULA FLATBREAD By Nic Williams
2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil 6 ounces chorizo, casing removed and sliced in ¼-inch discs Nonstick cooking spray 1 (13.8-ounce) can pizza crust, or homemade if desired 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 teaspoons kosher salt ½ teaspoon chili powder ¼ teaspoon cayenne powder ½ cup goat cheese, crumbled ½ cup arugula, chopped 2 tablespoons ricotta cheese (optional) 4 tablespoons Mexican crema 1 lime, halved INSTRUCTIONS 1. H eat oven to 425 degrees. Add vegetable oil to a 12-inch pan. Fry chorizo in a single layer over medium heat until cooked through, about 2 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels. 2. Spray a large cookie sheet or pizza pan with nonstick cooking spray. Using your hands, spread pizza crust into a 12x8-inch rectangle. If dough retracts as you spread it, let it warm up for a few minutes and try again. 3. In a small bowl, combine olive oil, salt, chili powder and cayenne powder. Brush all of the oil mixture across dough, leaving a 1-inch border around the edge. 4. Combine goat cheese and arugula in a small bowl, and set aside. 5. E venly scatter chorizo across dough, and drop small dollops of ricotta in spaces between chorizo. 6. Bake for 5 minutes, or until edge of crust just starts to turn golden brown. Working quickly, remove flatbread from oven; sprinkle with goat cheese and arugula mixture, and continue baking for another 3-5 minutes, or until bottom of flatbread is firm. (Depending on the thickness of your dough, you may need to bake it a little longer.) 7. Once crust is firm, remove flatbread from oven, and use a toothpick to make sure the dough is baked through. Drizzle with crema, and squeeze lime halves to disperse juice evenly over top.
EASY ROTISSERIE CHICKEN
Nachos By Kaitlin Barger
INGREDIENTS 1 (12-ounce) bag tortilla chips 2 cups Monterey jack cheese 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded 1 rotisserie chicken, meat removed and shredded 8 ounces black beans, drained and rinsed 2 tablespoons jalapeños, sliced ¼ cup red onion, diced 2 tablespoons guacamole ½ teaspoon cilantro, chopped INSTRUCTIONS 1. H eat oven to 350 degrees. 2. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper, and spread chips on pan. 3. Sprinkle half of both cheeses over chips. 4. Sprinkle chicken, black beans, jalapenos and red onion on cheese. 5. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top. 6. Bake for about 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted. 7. Garnish with guacamole, cilantro and any other topping of your choosing.
WHY NACHOS? Nachos are an easy snack or appetizer that you can throw in the oven to feed multiple people, or they can make for an easy dinner. Many people like to add olives, tomatoes and sour cream.
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food
Don’t forget some dipping sauces to add variety.
Dinner
Dad for
By Andrea Patrick | Photos by Jamison Mosley
Serve your skewers with fresh jalapenos and a squeeze of lime.
Finally, we’ve arrived at the month that all dads long for. Their one day a year to kick back and relish being a hero and star. Father’s Day has always been a day of socks and ties, or maybe even a “best dad ever” mug. Dads work so hard and do so much, don’t they deserve a little more spice than they sometimes get? Absolutely! A twist on a classic steak and potatoes meal is exactly what he needs. We present to you a creative and flavorful meal that will leave him feeling exceptional (and full).
Enjoy!
@dishedbydrea www.dishedbydrea.com
Lime Chili Steak Skewers Marinade: ⅓ cup olive oil 1 large, ripe avocado Juice of 2 limes ½ teaspoon smoked Paprika ½ teaspoon red chili flakes (more for increased heat) ½ tablespoon onion powder ½ tablespoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon crushed garlic 1 teaspoon ancho chili powder 1 teaspoon chipotle powder Skewers: 1½ pounds sirloin steak Cherry tomatoes Bell peppers Red onion Sliced or whole portobello mushrooms
Directions: 1. Combine all marinade ingredients by whisk or food processor. 2. Cube sirloin steak to desired size, trimming excess fat. 3. Add steak to marinade and refrigerate overnight. 4. Half tomatoes, roughly chop peppers and onions. Large mushrooms will need to be halved, small mushrooms can be kept whole. 5. Toss veggies with olive oil and season per your taste with salt, pepper, chili powder and chipotle powder. 6. Remove steak from fridge and place on skewers, alternating with veggies of your choice. 7. Reserve some marinade for basting. 8. Cook steak on grill or on flat top until a temperature of at least 145 degrees is reached. 9. Allow to rest at least 10 minutes before serving.
Cheesy Hasselback Potatoes Ingredients 5-6 large Yukon potatoes (russet also works well) 1 tablespoon olive oil Salt (to taste) Pepper (to taste) 1 tablespoon butter, divided (optional) ½ cup white cheddar cheese 1 small bundle of chives, chopped Sour cream Queso fresco
Directions 1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. 2. Clean potatoes thoroughly 3. Place one potato between two wood spoons and begin at one end to slice each potato, being careful not to slice completely through. 4. Place potatoes onto a baking dish. 5. Brush each with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. 6. Place in oven and bake for 40-45 minutes, basting with olive oil every 10-15 minutes. 7. Once slices begin to separate and potato begins to crisp, remove from oven and push butter into alternating slits (optional) and then top with cheese. 8. Return pan to oven and allow cheese to melt.
9. Once melted, remove pan from oven and use a soft spatula to carefully push cheese further between each slice in potato. Add more cheese at this time if desired. Return to oven to melt. 10. Remove potatoes from oven and top with queso fresco, sour cream and chives. 11. Serve hot. (Feel free to add bacon or any of your other favored toppings. )
food
Tomas Bohm.
Face Behind the Place:
Tomas Bohm of The Pantry and The Pantry Crest By Kevin Shalin • Photos by Jamison Mosley
The man behind two of Little Rock’s most beloved restaurants is here to stay. “Failure wasn’t an option. I wanted to keep every single customer that came through that door, forever.” So says Tomas Bohm, owner of The Pantry and sister restaurant, The Pantry Crest. Dining at either restaurant means you have probably spoken with Bohm, as his signature move of visiting with each table is something most folks in Little Rock have come to expect. Bohm is a nice guy, like genuinely nice, and his friendly demeanor and European accent only add to the overall experience. Bohm is from a small spa town named Marianske Lazne in the Czech Republic, where he was raised by parents in the service industry. “My dad was a hotelier, and my mom was a server at one time,” Bohm says. “I grew up in Hotel Bohemia, where my dad was the general manager, just always running around.” With the service industry coursing through his veins, a young Bohm embarked on a hospitality and culinary school path throughout his teenage years, later studying at the university level in Vienna, Austria. Following that, he hooked up with an Austria-based company for an externship that took Bohm to Asia. He was hit by the travel bug. “That was amazing,” he says. “I traveled all over that part of Asia with the little money that I saved, places like Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and parts of China. I traveled for four months. Asia changed my life.” But after a year and a half, most of which was spent in Thailand, Bohm returned home to the Czech Republic. At the time, his grandmother spoke of distant relatives who moved to New York City many years
prior, who, like Bohm, had sought out a career in hospitality. In the mid-1970s, these folks made the trek from New York City to a small town they had heard about, affectionately referred to as Little Switzerland — Eureka Springs, Arkansas. They fell in love with it and later built The Bavarian Inn. A young Bohm wanted in, both from the perspective of traveling to a new, exotic place like Arkansas, but also because he desired to further his career of working in restaurants. He says, “Even when I was a little kid, I always gravitated towards the restaurant in the hotel. I loved to hang out down there, just watching all the cooks work.” Unfortunately, there was only one problem: The visa that would allow him to travel to the States required continuous employment. His distant cousins’ work visas for The Bavarian Inn were all being used at the time. Fortunately, a friend in Russellville had room to work at his restaurant for the first year of Bohm’s year-and-a-half-long visa. The last six months could be spent in Eureka Springs at The Bavarian Inn. “I didn’t care. I just wanted to come there, work, travel and go back home,” Bohm says. And eventually, he did — but not without his fair share of bumps along the way, as might be expected for a wet-behindthe-ears, Czech-born 22-year-old coming to live in the states for the first time. “I was really cultureshocked.” For the next year, he worked in a nondescript restaurant just a stone’s throw from Interstate 40, all while living in a nearby motel, bouncing from back and forth between the two places with occasional Sunday visits to Little Rock.
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“I had such a good time on my Little Rock visits. The town really spoke to me, even from the beginning,” Bohm says. And although his time spent in Russellville was filled with grueling hours, Bohm enjoyed that period of his life before finishing out his visa in Eureka Springs. There, he worked for three months, all the while gearing up for his next adventure with his remaining days in the United States. Bohm says, “I wanted to save a little money, rent a car and travel. I flew my baby brother, Daniel, to Little Rock, and we rented a little three-door hatchback. As long as it had unlimited mileage, that’s all we cared about. We ended up traveling everywhere, over 16,000 miles in three months. It was an incredible time experiencing the states.” But, alas, after this latest journey, Bohm found himself back home in the Czech Republic. Yet, he longed to return to Arkansas, with his sights set on Little Rock. “When we went on those Sunday trips to Little Rock, I never forgot the good times we had,” he reminisces. “When we pulled up to Hillcrest, it had a little bit of a European feel to it. This is where I wanted to stay.” On Jan. 4, 1996, Bohm arrived back in Little Rock, this time thanks to a student visa from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Over the next several years, he got his green card and sharpened his restaurateur skills with stops at Izzy’s, 1620 and SO. In his free time, Bohm enjoyed hanging out at Sufficient Grounds Café in Hillcrest, a spot where he met his wife, Megan, and that would eventually become the home of his second restaurant, The Pantry Crest.
Authentic. Inspired. Unique. A Pantry plate rarely disappoints.
“Failure wasn’t an option.” 40
Rock, thanks in large part to a dedicated staff and a menu featuring favorites like lasagna, bacon-wrapped dates, truffled deviled eggs and The Pantry Board, the signature charcuterie board with various house-cured Cozy meats, cheese, bread, elegance is pickles and jams. the vogue As for Bohm, at both he’s now Little Rock locations. through and through, having established himself and his restaurants as part of the fabric of our local dining scene. “I love it here so much,” he says. “I just wish to leave a small drop in the bucket of this town after I’m gone. The community has been so amazing.” I’d say the feeling is mutual.
Quick Bites with Tomas
“Everything has come full circle,” Bohm says. But before The Pantry Crest, there was The Pantry, which is now in its 13th year of business. And while it is never smooth sailing in the restaurant industry, the start for Bohm as a business owner was a particularly rough haul. Determination and a relentless drive not to fail proved to be the keys to success. “I wanted to open my own place, but I had no money,” he 1. What is your favorite restaurant outside of says. “Well, I had some money, but not much. I was looking for an Little Rock? You are putting me in a tough spot existing place I could take over.” because my brother-in-law and brother both have Fortunately for Bohm, famed restaurateur Denis Seyer was restaurants. If I don’t say those two places, then I’m looking to make a change at Gypsy’s Grill & Bar. Bohm caught dead. My brother’s restaurant in Prague is El Camiwind of this, requested a sit-down, and proceeded to tell Seyer of his no and my brother-in-law’s restaurant in Brooklyn is plan for a restaurant specializing in homemade, Central European called Ammazzacaffé. cuisine. The two worked out a deal for Bohm to take over the space. “He was super generous,” Bohm says of Seyer. 2. You love to bike around town. How often are Bohm’s next move was to secure a kitchen lead, and he set his sights you able to get out each week? I try my best to on Titus Holley, someone he had previously worked with from his time bike four days a week. at SO. But first, Bohm had to sell Holley on his concept and vision. 3. What is your favorite non-outdoor hobby? “I told him, ‘This might be new to you, and you might not know I love to drink wine. what you are doing right now, but I’ll teach you. I want you on my team. I want you running this kitchen. There might be some growing pains, 4. With that said, what is a good bottle of but you have what it takes to make it work,’” Bohm recalls. He continwine to purchase for under $20? Tough quesues, “To this day, Titus is one of the hardest working guys I have ever tion. I am going to say Joseph Phelps Vineyards. met.” 5. How many cups of coffee do you drink each day? From the beginning, it took a tremendous amount of grit and Four. determination from Bohm, Holley, and others to get The Pantry on folks’ radars. Much of the menu was literally and figuratively foreign 6.What is your most embarrassing moment at The to many folks. Change takes time, and time costs money, something Pantry? Oh man, this was at the beginning. I was carrying that Bohm didn’t have much of. Things were touch-and-go, to say a tray of bottled beers and glasses. I turned around, and the least, but six months into the venture, a highlight article from a one of the beer bottles flipped on the tray and spilled on major publication proved instrumental in catapulting the restaurant this little girl. The parents were so mad. I must have spilled a into popularity. good 8 ounces of beer on this girl’s head, and she was like 10 “When that came out, it changed my life,” Bohm says. years old. The restaurant never looked back, establishing itself as a hallmark for consistently delicious food and stellar service in Little
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Quality Care Rooted in Arkansas
hope Is The Foundation. recovery Is The Journey. In response to the growing needs of our community, The BridgeWay has expanded its continuum of care for substance use disorders. The acute rehabilitation program will provide hope and recovery for adults struggling with substance use disorders. Led by Dr. Schay, and a Board Certified Psychiatrist and Addictionologist, the Substance Use Disorder Rehabilitation Program is for adults at risk of relapse. Rehabilitation requires the supportive structure of a 24-hour therapeutic environment. To learn more about our continuum of care for substance use disorders, call us at 1-800-245-0011. Physicians are on the medical staff of The BridgeWay Hospital but, with limited exceptions, are independent practitioners who are not employees or agents of The BridgeWay Hospital. The facility shall not be liable for actions or treatments provided by physicians. 44
Dr. Schay
Medical Director Of Substance Use Disorders & Patriot Support Program
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Thank You for voting Dr. Montgomery Heathman AY’s top family dentist in Arkansas!
At Montgomery Heathman and Associates, our team is 100% focused on your oral health. We offer our patients the very best that dentistry has to offer through advanced technologies and procedures.
7
501-223-3838 heathmanfamilydentistry.com 12501 Cantrell Rd., Little Rock HeathmanFamilyDental
KER LEXUS R A P G IN M A N R O F THANK YOU RSHIP
LE A E D R A C W E N T S BE
in Arkansas!
#1 Lexus Dealer In The Nation For Customer Satisfaction 2020
PARKER LEXUS
#1 Shackleford West Blvd., Little Rock • 501.221.1700 • www.parkerlexus.com
HEALTH & BEAUTY ALLERGY CLINIC Little Rock Allergy & Asthma Clinic
DERMATOLOGY CLINIC Little Rock Dermatology Clinic
ASSISTED LIVING FACILITY Briarwood Nursing & Rehabilitation
DOCTOR-OWNED HOSPITAL/ FACILITY Arkansas Surgical Hospital
CHIROPRACTOR Blackmon Chiropractic Clinic AUDIOLOGY Little Rock Audiology Clinic COSMETIC DENTIST Dr. DJ Dailey, Smile Dailey COSMETIC SURGEON Dr. Suzanne Yee, Cosmetic & Laser Surgery Center DENTIST Dr. Lee Wyant, Smile Arkansas
CARDIOLOGY CLINIC Arkansas Heart Hospital HOSPITAL Conway Regional Health System IN-HOME CARE Elder Independence Home Care MASSAGE THERAPIST Massage Envy
FAMILY DENTIST Dr. Montgomery “Monty” Heathman, Heathman Family Dental
MEDICAL SPA/NONSURGICAL COSMETIC CLINIC Rejuvenation Clinic & Day Spa MEMORY CARE FACILITY Woodland Heights
NURSE PRACTITIONER Ebonye Green, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences NURSING HOME Briarwood Nursing and Rehabilitation Center OB/GYN Cornerstone Clinic for Women ONCOLOGIST Dr. Rachana Yendala, Conway Regional Health System OPHTHALMOLOGY CLINIC McFarland Eye Care
FAMILY PHYSICIAN Little Rock Family Practice
MENTAL HEALTH FACILITY The BridgeWay
OPTOMETRIST Dr. Thomas Chwe, McFarland Eye Care
GASTROENTEROLOGY CLINIC Conway Regional Gastroenterology Center
NEUROLOGIST Dr. Sarah Cobb, Arkansas Children’s
ORTHODONTIST Daniel Orthodontics
HAIR SALON Wild Roots Salon
NEUROSURGEON Dr. Ali Krisht, CHI St. Vincent Arkansas Neuroscience Institute
ORTHOPEDIC GROUP Bowen Hefley Orthopedics
YOUR CHILD’S HEALTH IS A BIG DEAL.
Thank you, Arkansas!
Don’t delay care. We’re ready to see you. TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT:
Arkansas Children’s Hospital (Little Rock)
For voting Dwain Hebda of Ya!Mule Wordsmiths AY’s Best Reporter/ Columnist for 2021.
(501) 364-4000
Arkansas Children’s Northwest (Springdale)
(479) 725-6995
or visit archildrens.org Need a Writer?
Use ya words!
Call (501) 813-9559 Email dwain@ya-mule.com
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THANK YOU for voting us top 3 in AY’s Best of 2021: Arkansas Children’s Hospital & Dr. Sarah Cobb as Best Neurologist.
Thank You
for Voting Us
Best Florist again!
@tiptonhurst
Thank you for your votes!
tiptonhurst.com
501-223-2688 14309 Kanis Rd. Little Rock, AR 72223
BLACKMON CHIROPRACTIC CLINIC
www.chenalpetpalace.com
YOUR FOURLEGGED FRIEND’S PLACE TO SPA, PLAY & STAY. Patients seeking treatment at Blackmon Chiropractic Clinic with Dr. Blackmon are assured of receiving only the finest quality care through the use of modern chiropractic equipment and technology. Dr. Blackmon and the staff have a genuine concern for your well-being! www.blackmonchiropractic.com 501-663-4101 • 7000 Cantrell • Little Rock, AR 72207
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Bowen Hefley Orthopedics is proud to congratulate Dr. William Hefley as AY’s Best Orthopedic Surgeon 2021!
Congratulations to Dr. Hefley and Dr. Stewart for Best Orthopedic Surgeons in Central Arkansas.
With over 50 years of experience between them, Dr. Hefley a Year after year Dr. countless patients in Central Arkansas. From patients suffering Hefley continues toHefley, Dr. Stewart, and they have seen and treated it all. Dr. be quality recognized restoring of life to all offor our his patients. That’s why year a in dedication their respective specialties in Arkansas, and beyond. to excellence
in minimally invasive
If you or a loved one suffers from bone or joint pain of the han orthopedic surgery of the today to schedule an appointment with a surgeon at Bowen H and andshoulder, active lifestyle hip with help fromknee. the best of the best!
THE B
ALL
www.
bowenhefleyortho.com
Little Rock: 501-663-6455 | North Little Rock: 501-771-1600 | Kenny Weaver, PA-C
William F. Hefley, Jr., M.D.
Jordan Milam, PA-C
To schedule an appointment with Dr. Hefley or one of his Physician Assistants, please call 501-663-6455.
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one of ay’s best places to
WORSHIP 11500 West 36th Street, Little Rock, AR 72211 On-campus Sundays at 9:00 am & 10:45 am Online Sundays at 9 am (all week) churchatrockcreek.com
Senior Pastor, Mark Evans
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PUT A STOP TO PESKY PESTS!
DELTA GETS THE JOB DONE AND DONE RIGHT. Providing First Class Service in
Safe for homes, managing sanitization issues we have created a subsidiary businesses, foodcompany to help fight the pandemic. Safe for homes, businesses, and schools. Introducing: service food andservice schools. Introducing:
t to thank all our friends omers for taking the time ote for us last year in zines BEST OF 2020, and so blessed to have been osen by you as the mber One Pest Control mpany in Arkansas.
In keeping with our tradition of providing First Class service in managing sanitization issues related to health concerns, Termite we have created a Commercial Thank you to all our friends and customers Care Services subsidiary company for taking time to vote us AY’s Best of 2020 Who can you trust to help Pest Control Company in Arkansas! to help fight Termite Care Commercial Services you protect your loved ones the pandemic. and your assets from Introducing: termites, roaches,
BE
Deluca’s A Z Z I P T S
mosquitoes, fire ants, bed bugs, wildlife
and other pests? Repair & Residential Over the past 44 years, Delta Remodeling Services Pest Control has grown into The disinfectant we use is one of the largest familyRepair & Remodeling Residentail Services Go to owned aymag.com/best2021 termite and pest safe for use in your home, control companies to vote us best for 2021! business, food service, And now, in 2021, throughout Arkansas. office, restaurants, are asking for your THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT! We are accredited and schools and virtually any pport again. The first licensed by the State of other venue where d of voting has started. Arkansas. We also have a o vote for us as the sanitization might be repair and remodeling ber One Pest Control required to keep the division, with over 40 years pany in Arkansas 2021 people in those places of experience. So, whether it safe. is a minor repair, For your FREE ESTIMATE termite damage repair, call: or an entire renovation, Delta can meet 1-888-894-8177 the construction needs of Visit our website: any client. www.deltapestcontrol.net AR license #024238052 Message us on Facebook For your FREE ESTIMATE call 1-888-894-8177 Please go here:
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
deltapestcontrol.net
831 Central Avenue
deltapestcontrol.net Hot Springs, AR 71901
FREE ESTIMATE CALL: 1-888-894-8177
(501) 609-9002
FREE ESTIMATE CALL: 1-888-894-8177
congratulations
Jon Dor
named best CFO
//aymag.com/best2021
Email us from our website: https://deltapestcontrol.net or
k you for your support!
Message us on Facebook
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Stephanie Parsley Photography
THE PERFECT SPACE FOR YOUR OCCASION Museum of Discovery is busy renovating following our recent flooding from burst pipes. We’re looking forward to a late summer reopening! museumofdiscovery.org
Voted best event rental in AY’s Best of 2021! 10 Rusty Tractor Ln. | Little Rock | 501.916.2294
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ORTHOPEDIST Dr. William F. Hefley Jr., Bowen Hefley Orthopedics
RADIOLOGIST Dr. Daniel Clark, Conway Regional Medical Center
PAIN SPECIALIST Conway Regional Advanced Pain Management Center
RETIREMENT COMMUNITY Mt. Carmel Community
PEDIATRIC DENTIST Kitchens’ Pediatric Dentistry PEDIATRICIAN Little Rock Pediatric Clinic PHYSICAL THERAPIST Cody Schaff, DPT, Lonoke Physical Therapy PLACE TO HAVE A BABY Conway Regional Health System PLASTIC SURGEON Dr. Eric Wright, Wright Plastic Surgery PODIATRIST Dr. Jesse B. Burks, Bowen Hefley Orthopedics
Clothing LOCAL MEN’S CLOTHING Mr. Wicks LOCAL WOMEN’S CLOTHING Dillard’s
SPA Rejuvenation Clinic & Day Spa
Dining
SPORTS MEDICINE CLINIC OrthoArkansas SURGEON (LOWER EXTREMITY) Dr. James/Jimmy Head, Conway Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Center SURGEON Dr. Lewis Porter, Saline Surgical Associates
ASIAN FUSION Three Fold Noodles + Dumpling Co. BAKERY Community Bakery BBQ Whole Hog Cafe NLR
SURGEON (UPPER EXTREMITY) Dr. Jay Howell, Conway Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Center
BREAKFAST At The Corner BRUNCH Lost Forty Brewing
UROLOGY Arkansas Urology
BURGER David’s Burgers
PROSTHETICS Snell Prosthetics & Orthotics
CATERER YGFBFKitchen CATFISH Eat My Catfish CHEESE DIP Heights Taco & Tamale Co. COCKTAILS Copper Mule Table & Tap CREOLE/CAJUN The Faded Rose DESSERT Cheesecake on point!
VOTED ONE OF AY’S BEST
LOCAL MEN’S CLOTHING
Mr. Wicks Gentleman’s Shop 5924 R St, Little Rock, AR 72207
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A heartfelt “thank you” to my loyal clients and supporters. I am grateful and honored you voted me AY’s Best of 2021. I will continue to provide zealous representation for clients navigating the emotional waters of a family law matter.
HELPING EMPOWER PEOPLE Katherine Blackmon Carroll has practiced family law for more than two decades and, with her team, provides a unique approach to representing clients. It takes a special kind of attorney to recognize how a divorce or custody matter impacts every area of a person’s life. Katherine knows that prevailing in court is important, but the entire journey must be considered. “We take a holistic approach. Practicing family law is about helping empower people. It’s helping guide a client through one of the most traumatic experiences of their lives and reassuring them that it will be ok.”
212 Center Street 11th Floor, Centre Place Little Rock, AR (501) 372-7636 facebook.com/KEBlackmon
WINNERS 2 Years Running 2021
BEST LIQUOR STORE
THANK YOU ALL 16900 Chenal Pkwy Suite 130 Little Rock, AR 72223 501-821-3700 LegacyLR.com
MEET BRANDON:
“I think that everybody has
two choices in life: either to go forward or to stop, and I just don’t like stopping.”
read more about brandon whitfield and how his life changed after frank snell invited him to take a walk with him at snellarkansas.com
RESTORING MOBILITY AND INDEPENDENCE SINCE 1911
Little Rock n Bryant n Conway n Fayetteville n Fort Smith n 800-342-5541 Hot Springs n Mountain Home n North Little Rock n Pine Bluff n Russellville
1 Pleasant Valley Dr. Little Rock, AR pleasantvalleycountryclub.net 501-225-5622
P
leasant Valley Country Club, a sprawling sanctuary located in the heart of West Little Rock, offers members and guests memorable experiences and top quality golf play.
Thank you AY readers for choosing PVCC as winner in Best Golf Course category!
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Best Sushi
Thank you AY’s readers for voting us the BEST!
SUNSTOP WINDOW TINTING
Automotive Window Tinting Architectural Window Tinting Paint Protection Film Ceramic Coating
www.sunstopar.com 501.708.0903
SU NST OP
2601 Kavanaugh Blvd. Little Rock, AR 72205 (501) 660-4100
window tinting
https://www.kemurirestaurant.com
Bring Your Dreams
To Light!
Thank you for voting Gary Houston Electric Company AY ’s Best Electrical Company! You’re Retired. Your Money Isn’t. To learn about the different options for your retirement accounts, call my office today.
Cassandra Rector • Financial Advisor
11601 Pleasant Ridge Rd. • Suite 303, Little Rock • 501-907-8961
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(501) 375-8330
GaryHoustonElectric.com aymag.com
DINING FOR KIDS Purple Cow
STEAK Arthur’s Prime Steakhouse
CASINO Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort
RESORT Gaston’s White River Resort
FINE DINING Samantha’s Tap Room & Wood Grill
SUSHI Kemuri
CONCERT VENUE Simmons Bank Arena
SEASONAL ATTRACTION Garvan Woodland Gardens
FOOD TRUCK Tacos Godoy
Entertainment & Leisure
EVENT VENUE Rusty Tractor Vineyards
ITALIAN Bruno’s Little Italy
FAMILY ATTRACTION Little Rock Zoo
MEXICAN FOOD Tacos 4 Life
FESTIVAL/FAIR Wild Wines at Little Rock Zoo
PIZZA Deluca’s Pizzeria
HOTEL 21c Museum Hotel
RESTAURANT Cypress Social
LIVE THEATER Robinson Center
RESTAURANT (NEWLY OPENED) Copper Mule Table & Tap
LOCAL TOURIST ATTRACTION Buffalo National River
SEAFOOD Oceans at Arthur’s SPECIAL OCCASION Table 28
ART GALLERY Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
Home, Home Services & Finance ACCOUNTING FIRM Todd & Associates CPAs BANK Arvest Bank CREDIT UNION Arkansas Federal Credit Union ELECTRICAL COMPANY Gary Houston Electric Company
MUSEUM Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
FABRICS AND DRAPERIES Cynthia East Fabrics
PARK Petit Jean State Park
HOME ACCESSORIES Arkansas Solar Power Inc.
The natural sweet from the natural state. 2001 N Poplar Street • North Little Rock, AR 72114 • 501-758-1123
fischerhoney.com
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Changing the Lives of More Arkansans. When the whole world stopped, they kept going. Working through extraordinary challenges and against countless odds to create a healthier tomorrow.
Congratulations to our Best of 2021 Winner! Neurosurgeon Dr. Ali Krisht Arkansas Neuroscience Institute
Thank you for nominating Capitol Glass one of AY’s Best of 2021! Established in 1950, Capitol Glass Company Inc is the oldest locally-owned and operated glass company in the Little Rock area.
501.374.6422
capitolglassinc.com 59
801 S Broadway, Little Rock aymag.com
Your Plans. Your Progress. Our Priority. Thank you for naming us one of Ay’s Best! Our business is knowing your business. Your team of bankers work together with you to customize solutions to meet your unique needs, both short and long term. Our relationship-based approach to doing business empowers our associates to make decisions locally, close to our clients.
Two relationship-driven banks, both leaders in the industry, have officially joined forces. The combination of IBERIABANK and First Horizon creates a leading financial services company dedicated to enriching the lives of our clients, associates and communities. Together, we will deliver better technology, broader lending capabilities and an expanded financial network powered by a team you know and trust. Joel Jewell 479-695-3702 Joel.Jewell@iberiabank.com
Trish Thompson 479-878-6301 Trish.Thompson@iberiabank.com
Matt Kaczor 501-661-7321 Matt.Kaczor@iberiabank.com
Carol Parham 501-661-7364 Carol.Parham@iberiabank.com
Ryann Thornton 479-878-6308 Ryann.Thornton@iberiabank.com
Marc Luker 501-661-7328 Marc.Luker@iberiabank.com
Conrad Eberhard 479-695-3709 Conrad.Eberhard@iberiabank.com
Lawana Backus 501- 661-7759 Lawana.Backus@iberiabank.com
Josh Taylor 501-537-8424 Josh.Taylor@iberiabank.com
Tyler Spoon 479-695-3704 Tyler.Spoon@iberiabank.com
Frank Hall 501-537-8415 Frank.Hall@iberiabank.com
Our Way of Saying THANK YOU for Naming Our CEO Best Marketing Consultant in Arkansas!
ANY WEBSITE DESIGN OR REDESIGN
$ 2500
NOW ONLY
$ 499 Expires June 30, 2021
FREE! Google Advertising Credit SEO Checkmark Google Monthly Maintenance & Hosting Changes As Needed Google Local Management Social Media Setup $99 Monthly!
CALL OR TEXT 501-505-6278
WinningLocal.com
Win Local With Winning Local and the Number 1 Marketing Consultant in Arkansas Featured on:
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501-327-2255
MOIXRV.COM CONWAY, AR @MOIXRV
VOTED
BEST RV DEALER!
“BRINGING FAMILY AND FRIENDS TOGETHER SINCE 1976” 62
THANK YOU FOR VOTING
SMILE DAILEY BEST COSMETIC DENTIST
YOU’LL FIND THE BEST AT
OUR HOSPITAL Thank you, Arkansas for voting us the best Best Doctor-Owned Hospital – Arkansas Surgical Hospital Best Orthopedist – Dr. William Hefley, Jr. Best Podiatrist – Dr. Jesse Burks For more than 15 years, Arkansas Surgical Hospital has been a trusted resource for patients and their families as they seek safe, high-quality treatments for orthopedic and spine issues. Make Arkansas Surgical Hospital your hospital. Call (866) 260-0542 for help scheduling an appointment with one of our specialists.
Dr. William Hefley, Jr. Best Or thopedist
Dr. Jesse Burks Best Podiatrist
Physician Owned. Patient Focused. 866-260-0542 | w w w.ar ksurgicalhospital.com
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ROLLER FUNERAL HOMES Voted Best Food Truck by AY Magazine Readers West Little Rock Food Truck 14710 Cantrell Rd, Little Rock, AR
Events & Catering Food Truck Little Rock, AR (501) 779-0806
Mobile Food Truck Little Rock, AR (501) 779-0806
VOTED THE BEST FUNERAL HOMES IN ARKANSAS! ROLLERFUNERALHOMES.COM 64
HOME BUILDER River Rock Builders
REAL ESTATE AGENT Casey Jones
Media
CUSTOMER SERVICE David’s Burgers
HOME CONTRACTOR/REPAIR/ REMODELING Top Notch Home Services
REAL ESTATE COMPANY The Janet Jones Company
ADVERTISING AGENCY MHP/Team SI
DOGGY DAYCARE Chenal Pet Palace
SWIMMING POOLS Diamond Pools of Arkansas
COLUMNIST OR REPORTER Dwain Hebda
DRY CLEANER Hangers Cleaners
Kids & Education
MARKETING CONSULTANT Jeff Turnbow
FUNERAL HOME Roller Funeral Homes
RADIO PERSONALITY David Bazzel, 103.7 The Buzz
HEATING & A/C SERVICE Freyaldenhoven Heating and Cooling
HOME SECURITY Triple S Alarm Co. INSURANCE FIRM Farmers Insurance - Shannon Westbrook INTERIOR DESIGNER Garry Mertins Design
COMMUNITY COLLEGE University of Arkansas – Pulaski Technical College
INVESTMENT FIRM/FINANCIAL ADVISOR Cassandra Rector, Edward Jones
PRIVATE COLLEGE Hendrix College
WEATHER PERSON Todd Yakoubian, KATV
KITCHEN STORE/SUPPLY Eggshells Kitchen Co.
PRIVATE SCHOOL Episcopal Collegiate School
Services
LAWN CARE The Good Earth Garden Center
PUBLIC SCHOOL Little Rock Central
ARCHITECT Greg Archer, Garver
TV PERSONALITY Craig O’Neill, KTHV
AUCTION Blackmon Auctions
MORTGAGE LENDER IBERIABANK Mortgage/First Horizon
HOUSEKEEPING Molly Maid LAW FIRM Law Offices of Katherine E. Blackmon NONPROFIT Ronald McDonald House Charities of Arkansas PARTY PLANNING/PRODUCTS/ RENTALS Just Peachy
For two years in a row,
AY Magazine has awarded
The Promenade at Chenal
as the Best Shopping Center Statewide! chenalshopping.com 17711 Chenal PKWY, Little Rock, AR 72223 The Promenade at Chenal @chenalpromenade
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CROSS IRON COTTAGE
an english cottage
Photographer Vivlio Photography
A
s far as venues in Arkansas go, Cross Iron Cottage is among the most unique and breathtaking; there’s nothing quite like its charming locale in Malvern. The ambiance of Cross Iron Cottage is probably more akin to a fairytale than any other — the only place where you can really feel like you’ve stepped into a European countryside without actually leaving Central Arkansas. Tonia Griffin, designer/owner, spent years researching English country designs to perfect every element of the oasis. This many years later, it’s safe to say that she succeeded. Some of the highlights at Cross Iron Cottage include: the English Cottage for the couples to use at their leisure; the open chapel in the middle of the 100-acre plot, which is the perfect place to say “I do”; the French Country Barn, a setting for an unforgettable reception; and the renowned Moon Gate, for new couples to walk under after the nuptials, which is considered a blessing for lasting love. At Cross Iron Cottage, forever begins in the most magical way imaginable. crossironcottage.com | 501-960-6541 | 970 Reyburn Loop, Malvern
Catering and Food Styling: Vibrant Occasions Catering • Florist: Petal to the Metal Gown: Something Bleu Bridal Boutique • Suit: Q Clothier • Planner: Ramsey & Company Cake: Sweet Lavender Bake Shop • Custom place cards: Designs by SK Hair and Makeup: Lavonne Beauty • Jewelry: Nelson’s Jewelers Models: Kayce Johnson and Stefan Vickery
30 YEARS doing what I love
Garry Mertins
Cypress Social
NU Restaurant
42 Bar and Table - Clinton Library
Petit & Keet
G D
A
R
R E
Y
Samantha’s Tap Room and Wood Grill
M S
Cache Restaurant
E I
R
T I G
I N T E R I O R S
N
S N
I N C.
1500 REBSAMEN PARK ROAD, SUITE 200 • LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS 72202 • 501.376.6600 67
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CONGRATULATIONS Briarwood Nursing & Rehabilitation. Voted AY’s Best!
“
Our caring staff are committed to building a supportive relationship that reinforces the dignity of every resident.
“
BRIARWOOD NURSING & REHABILITATION, INC 516 S. Rodney Parham Little Rock, AR 72205 501.224.9000 Fax: 501.224.9016
https://www.briarwoodnursingandrehab.com/
Thanks for naming us
AY’S BEST AUTO DEALERSHIP in Arkansas!
Congratulations
Dr. Lewis Porter
For being voted one of AY’s Best of 2021! # 5 MEDICAL PARK DRIVE BENTON
Mercedes-Benz of Little Rock
501-666-9457 | mercedesbenzoflittlerock.com
8 Colonel Glenn Plaza Dr. Little Rock 501.621.1264 mercedesbenzoflittlerock.com
Here at Mercedes-Benz of Little Rock, we always strive to be the number one automotive solution for drivers throughout Little Rock, North Little Rock, Benton, Bryant and Conway! The best or nothing.
(501) 778-4862 salinesurgical.org
Thank You for voting me AY’s Best! QUEN SPENCER, CCO 5400 Highland Dr. • Little Rock Office: 501-399-4070 • Cell: 501-940-7836 hardbody@quenspencer.com 70
WILD ROOTS hair salon
Friends. Family. Community.
Thank you for voting me one of AY’s Best of 2021!
Thank you for naming us AY’s Best Hair Salon!
Shannon Westbrook
(501) 605-4729
27 Rahling Circle • Little Rock (501) 406-2031
9107 N Rodney Parham Rd. | Little Rock
From @ The Corner, Thank You!
Photo credit: Saira Khan Photography
We love being one of Arkansas’ Best Brunch Spots! “When we began creating @ The Corner, Corner we wanted our diner to be like nothing we had ever seen before. We dreamed to create one that incorporates fresh, local ingredients into dynamic, innovative menus. From fresh farm eggs to farm-raised beef to local, organic vegetables, fruits, nuts & honey, our Modern Diner is everything we dreamed it would be and more.” From our family to yours, thank you for supporting us through this past year! Without you, we would not be here. 1040 South Amity Rd, Suite K Conway (501) 557-3684 | massageenvy.com
www.thecornerlr.com >> 501.400.8458 >>
@thecornerlr
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PEST CONTROL Delta Pest Control
BRIDAL STORE Low’s Bridal
OUTDOOR LIVING Congo Fireplace & Patio
GOLF COURSE Pleasant Valley Country Club
PHOTOGRAPHER Amber Lane Roberts
CBD STORE Heights Apothecary & Hemp Co.
SHOPPING CENTER The Promenade at Chenal
PERSONAL TRAINER Quen Spencer, REPS
SIDING/WINDOWS/ROOFING Cornerstone Construction
FLOORING STORE Carpet Barn
VETERINARIAN Hillcrest Animal Hospital
FLORIST Tipton & Hurst
Spirits
SPORTING GOODS STORE Fort Thompson Sporting Goods
VIDEO PRODUCTION CWP Productions
FURNITURE Hank’s Fine Furniture
WEB DESIGN MHP/Team SI
GARDEN CENTER The Good Earth Garden Center
BREWPUB Lost Forty Brewing
Shopping
GIFT STORE The Crown Shop
HAPPY HOUR Heights Taco & Tamale Co.
EYEWEAR McFarland Eye Care
GROCERY STORE The Bramble Market
LIQUOR STORE Legacy Wine and Spirits
ARKANSAS HANDMADE PRODUCTS Fischer’s Honey
HOME IMPROVEMENT STORE Fuller and Son Hardware
CONSIGNMENT STORE Rhea Lana’s
Sports
JEWELRY STORE Sissy’s Log Cabin
FITNESS CENTER/GYM The Athletic Clubs
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Vehicles, Dealers & Services AUTO ACCESSORIES Parker Auto Accessories AUTO DEALERSHIP Mercedes-Benz of Little Rock AUTO GLASS REPAIR Capitol Glass Company Inc BOAT/MARINE DEALER Bradford Marine & ATV
LITTLE ROCK ALLERGY & ASTHMA CLINIC is committed to providing quality patient care. We have 6 physicians and 4 clinic locations in the Central AR area.
Welcome Dr. Kim Jackson
18 Corporate Hill Drive, Ste. 110 Little Rock, AR, 72205
Dr. Jackson will be serving patients in our Little Rock, North Little Rock, Pine Bluff and Bryant locations.
501-978-7113 Phone 501-801-5561 Fax
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500 S University Ave., # 400 • Little Rock • (501) 664-4044 • littlerockpediatricclinic.com 74
Thank you for voting Little Rock Family Practice Clinic Best Family Physician in Arkansas!
LITTLE ROCK FAMILY PRACTICE provides patients with comprehensive, state-of-the-art medical services in a family-oriented environment. Our practice blends personal care with the latest technology to provide the highest quality of patient care and preventative services to enhance the well-being of our patients.
PERSONAL CARE FOR A
BETTER WELL BEING
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Central Clinic
701 N. University, Suite 100 (501)664-4810
West Clinic
4208 N. Rodney Parham (501)228-7200
Visit our website!
www.lrfpc.com
aymag.com
AY’s Best in 11 Categories Conway Regional is honored to be voted AY’s Best in 11 categories for AY Magazine's Best of 2021 awards. At Conway Regional, we are one team with one promise: to be bold, to be exceptional, and to answer the call. Thank you to the thousands of readers who chose Conway Regional in a field of worthy nominees. Oncologist Rachana Yendala, MD Conway Regional Multispecialty Clinic
Surgeon, Lower Extremity James Head, MD Conway Orthopedic & Sports Medicine Center
Radiologist Daniel Clark, MD Conway Regional Medical Center
Surgeon, Upper Extremity Jay Howell, MD Conway Orthopedic & Sports Medicine Center
Pictured, Left to Right: James Head, MD, Rachana Yendala, MD, and Jay Howell, MD Not pictured: Daniel Clark, MD 76
Thank you to the thousands of readers who voted for Conway Regional as AY’s Best in multiple categories: BEST HOSPITAL BEST OVERALL COMPANY BEST PLACE TO HAVE A BABY BEST PAIN SPECIALIST - CONWAY REGIONAL PAIN MANAGEMENT CENTER BEST GASTROENTEROLOGY - CONWAY REGIONAL GASTROENTEROLOGY CENTER BEST SPORTS MEDICINE - CONWAY ORTHOPEDIC & SPORTS MEDICINE CENTER
Congratulations to our team members who were voted AY’s Best in their respective category. AY’S BEST CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
AY’S BEST PERSON OF THE YEAR & AY’S BEST BOSS
Matt Troup President & CEO
Angie Longing Chief Nursing Officer
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We’re “Hear” To Help
Dr. Tracy Van Es, Audiologist and We’re “Hear” To Clinic Help owner at Little Rock Audiology has been meeting the hearing needs of Arkansans for over 17 years.
Thank You!
Call today to schedule your appointment with Dr. Tracy Van Es and help someone you love better hearing! Dr. Tracy Van Es, Audiologistdiscover and owner at Little Rock Audiology Clinic Because has been meeting the hearing needs of Arkansans for over 15 years.
Call today to schedule your appointment with Dr. Tracy Van Es Store Now Open!and help someone you love discover 9809 W Markham St., Ste. B, Little betterRock hearing. Don’t forget to vote for us in the AY Magazine Best of www.cheesecakeonpoint.com 2020 Awards!
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Life is Worth Hearing! 500 S University, Suite 405 Doctors Building Little Rock, AR 72205 WWW.LITTLEROCKAUDIOLOGY.COM
(501) (501)664-5511 664-5511
22
Celebrating Years of Home Care Serving Central Arkansas Thank You for Voting Us the Best In-Home Care in Arkansas!
In-home care for your aging or disabled loved one that includes assistance with:
• • • • •
Activities of Daily Living Light Housekeeping Medication Reminders Hospital Sitter Services Companionship
• • • • •
Respite Care Transportation Meal Preparation Dementia Care Hospice Support
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Left to right: Jesse D. Abeler, D.O.; David M. Rhodes, M.D.; Samuel A. Moore, D.O.; William F. Hefley, Jr., M.D.; Jason G. Stewart, M.D.; W. Scott Bowen, M.D.; Jesse B. Burks, D.P.M.; Larry L. Nguyen, M.D.; Paul K. Edwards, M.D.
The Best Surgeons. The Best Treatment. All Focused On You. Our skilled physicians are committed to the care, improvement and quality of human life. We provide state-of-the-art, comprehensive musculoskeletal care in a compassionate manner — greatly improving quality of life for our patients. Our emphasis on patient education and rehabilitation helps motivate, encourage and support patients and their families before, during and after surgery.
AY ’s Best Of 2021 ORTHOPEDIC GROUP Bowen Hefley Orthopedics - WINNER ORTHOPEDIST W. Scott Bowen, M.D. - FINALIST William F. Hefley, Jr., M.D. - WINNER Paul K. Edwards, M.D. - FINALIST PHYSICAL THERAPIST Steve Longinotti, MSPT- FINALIST Matt Thornton, MSPT - FINALIST PODIATRIST Jesse B. Burks, D.P.M. - WINNER SPORTS MEDICINE CLINIC Bowen Hefley Orthopedics - FINALIST
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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.
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ARKANSAS’ BEST LAWYERS W
hether they are needed to help someone get out of a legal situation, set up a business or find resolutions to family issues, lawyers play a substantial role in keeping our society moving forward. According to the American Bar Association’s annual National Lawyer Population Survey, the number of attorneys in the country increased by 15.2 percent over the last decade. There are more than 1.33 million attorneys actively practicing law in the United States, and more than 6,000 practicing in Arkansas. With so many to choose from, it can be difficult for a potential client to know they are getting the best representation possible. With that in mind, AY About You is highlighting the Arkansas Bar Association’s award-winning lawyers ahead of its virtual conference on June 15-18, as well as our readers’ choices for the best lawyers in the state.
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Letter from the President
I
t’s Nov. 8, 2015, in Oxford, Mississippi. Ole Miss is ahead 52-45 in overtime. Arkansas has the ball 4th and 25 on the 45-yard line. Brandon Allen drops back to the 50 and hits Hunter Henry at the 25-yard line, well short of the first down. Henry catches the ball and is hit immediately at the 27-yard line by an Ole Miss defender. Game over, right? Nope. Henry laterals the ball back 20 yards where it is swatted away from an Ole Miss defender by tackle Chris Stringer from Rancho Cucamonga, California. The ball bounces and is picked up by running back Alex Collins. Every Razorback makes a block, and Collins runs for a first down, and there to protect the ball at the end of the play is — you guessed it — Stringer from Rancho Cucamonga, California. Arkansas scores a touchdown and, with a two-point conversion, wins the game. Fast forward to April 15, 2020. Arkansas courts are shut down by a pandemic and the Arkansas Bar Association’s annual meeting is in jeopardy. In-person meetings are a thing of the past. The Arkansas Bar Center is closed, and everyone works from home. It is 4th and 25, and time is out for the Arkansas Bar Association in 2020. But the Arkansas Bar Association does not give up. On very short notice, a virtual annual meeting is up and running. To protect its members, the Association shifts to virtual events only. The Association inaugurates its first-ever Board of Trustees and moves forward with an emphasis on serving the people of Arkansas and the lawyers on whom they rely. Social justice, diversity and inclusion take center stage. Children across the state are educated on the importance of our Constitution. A first-rate virtual Mock Trial program is held. Young lawyers hold clinics to assist the poor and to make wills for first responders. An ambitious legislative package is proposed and adopted — for the most part — by the Arkansas General Assembly. Measures that would hurt Arkansans are opposed and defeated. Lawyers are educated in new and innovative ways. All of this happens because the staff and volunteers of the Arkansas Bar Association did not give up facing 4th and 25 in overtime. This edition of AY About You magazine recognizes some of the Arkansas lawyers who never stopped. At this year’s virtual annual meeting, as president, I will honor the following award recipients for their work over the past year: Presidential Awards of Excellence: Joseph F. Kolb Pulaski County Bar Association Aaron L. Squyres Golden Gavel Awards Kandice A. Bell Beverly I. Brister Lillian Dee Davenport Brent J. Eubanks Prof. Lynn Foster Adrienne Morris Griffis Christopher M. Hussein Anton Leo Janik Jr. Sarah C. Jewell
Jamie Huffman Jones Joseph F. Kolb Deepali Lal Jessica Virden Mallett Anthony L. McMullen G.S. Brant Perkins Brian M. Rosenthal George M. Rozzell Other Awards: Vanessa Cash Adams Payton C. Bentley Alexandra C. Benton Christopher M. Hussein Sarah Murphy McDaniel
Lindsey Emerson Raines Ray Slaton Stuart Larson Spencer William A. Waddell Jr. Jennifer L. Zwiegers The Arkansas Bar Foundation and the Arkansas Bar Association will recognize several persons to honor because of their outstanding contributions: Sherry P. Bartley Judge Amy Dunn Johnson Paul D. McNeill Sebastian County Bar Association Judge Joyce Williams Warren
Congratulations to the following members who have been admitted to the practice of law in Arkansas for 50 years: Mr. Hubert W. Alexander • Mr. Roy T. Beard III • Mr. Paul B. Benham III • Mr. John R. Buzbee • Mr. David Victor Capes Mr. John Steven Clark • Mr. J. Michael Cogbill • Mr. James E. Darr Jr. • Mr. John C. Earl • Mr. John R. Elrod Mr. Dan H. Felton III • Mr. Larry E. Graddy • Mr. William D. Haught • Ms. Ann R. Henry • Dr. Morriss M. Henry Mr. Sam Hilburn • Mr. W. Wilson Jones • Mr. Dan P. Kennett • Mr. Robert S. Laney • Mr. G. William Lavender Sr. Mr. James Theodore Magness • Mr. Ronald M. McCann • Mr. Walter W. Nixon III • Mr. Denny Paul Petty • Mr. James M. Roy Jr. Mr. Robert D. Stroud • Mr. Lonnie C. Turner • Ms. Esther M. White • Mr. Alan Wooten
Paul W. Keith Arkansas Bar Association President, Gibson & Keith, PLLC
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Arkansas Bar Association Annual Award Recipients Presidential Awards of Excellence Pulaski County Bar Association, for years of service to the legal profession.
Joseph F. Kolb, j. k o l b, Little Rock, for several years of service as treasurer.
Aaron L. Squyres, Wilson & Associates, PLLC, Little Rock, for several years of service as parliamentarian.
Other Awards
Continuing Legal Education Award: Jennifer L. Zwiegers, Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation, Little Rock, for co-planning the 24th Environmental Law Conference.
Continuing Legal Education Award: Vanessa Cash Adams, ARlaw Partners, PLLC, Little Rock, for the planning of the 2021 Debtor/Creditor Conference.
Continuing Legal Education Award: Sarah Murphy McDaniel, Mackie, Wolf, Zientz & Mann, P.C., Little Rock, for planning of the 2021 Debtor/ Creditor Conference.
Continuing Legal Education Award: Lindsey Emerson Raines, Friday, Eldredge & Clark LLP, Little Rock, For the planning of the 2021 Debtor/ Creditor Conference.
Continuing Legal Education Award: Stuart Larson Spencer, Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard, P.L.L.C., Little Rock, for co-planning the 24th Environmental Law Conference.
Maurice Cathey Award: William A. Waddell Jr., Friday, Eldredge & Clark LLP, Little Rock, for contributions to The Arkansas Lawyer magazine.
Judith Ryan Gray Young Lawyer Service Award: Payton C. Bentley, Clark Law Firm, PLLC, Fayetteville, for his extraordinary service and outstanding contributions to the Young Lawyers Section.
Frank C. Elcan Award: Christopher M. Hussein, Legal Aid of Arkansas, Springdale, for his commitment and dedication to the Young Lawyers Section.
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Other Awards YLS Award of Excellence: Alexandra C. Benton, Blair & Stroud, Batesville, for her work taking the lead on the Domestic Violence Handbook update and the trivia night last fall that she planned and ran.
YLS Award of Excellence: Ray Slaton, Hyden, Miron & Foster, PLLC, Little Rock, for his work on the Wills for Heroes project.
Golden Gavel Awards Kandice A. Bell, Office of Gov. Asa Hutchinson, White Hall, for work as ABCDI Chair.
Beverly I. Brister, The Brister Firm, Benton, for work on Constitution Day Video.
Lillian Dee Davenport, Simmons Wealth Management, Little Rock, for work as Mid-Year Coordinator.
Brent J. Eubanks, Humphries, Odum & Eubanks, Little Rock, for work as PAC Chair.
Prof. Lynn Foster, Professor Emeritus of Law, UA Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law, Little Rock, Legislation Chair.
Adrienne Morris Griffis, Dover Dixon Horne PLLC, Little Rock, for work on the virtual Mock Trial Competition.
Christopher M. Hussein, Legal Aid of Arkansas, Springdale, for work as Young Lawyers Section Chair.
Anton Leo Janik Jr., Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard, P.L.L.C., Little Rock, for work as The Arkansas Lawyer magazine Chair.
Golden Gavel Awards Sarah C. Jewell, McMath Woods, P.A., Fayetteville, for work as the Annual Meeting Co-Chair.
Jamie Huffman Jones, Friday, Eldredge & Clark LLP, Little Rock, for work as the Annual Meeting Co-Chair.
Joseph F. Kolb, j. k o l b, Little Rock, for work on the ABCDI Survey.
Deepali Lal, UA Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law, Little Rock, for work on the ABCDI Survey.
Jessica Virden Mallett, Law Offices of Peter Miller P. A., Little Rock, for work as the Chair of Sponsorship Committee.
Mr. Anthony L. McMullen, Associate Professor of Business Law, University of Central Arkansas, Conway, for work on the Virtual Mock Trial Competition.
G.S. Brant Perkins, The Perkins Law Firm, P.A., Jonesboro, for work as the ByLaws Drafting Subcommittee Chair.
Brian M. Rosenthal, Rose Law Firm, Little Rock, for work on the ABCDI Survey, and a second Golden Gavel for his work on the Sponsorship Committee.
George M. Rozzell, Miller, Butler, Schneider, Pawlik & Rozzell, PLLC, Fayetteville, for work on the Sponsorship Committee.
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Arkansas Bar Foundation and Arkansas Bar Association Joint Awards
The Arkansas Bar Foundation was established in 1958 to support efforts at improving the administration of justice. The foundation’s mission is to promote educational, literary, scientific and charitable purposes, and it is classified as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Founded in 1898, the Arkansas Bar Association is the premier legal association in the state. As a voluntary organization of more than 5,000 members, the Association’s primary mission is to: support attorneys; advance the practice of law; advocate for the legal profession; foster professionalism, civility, and integrity; and protect the rule of law. THE ARKANSAS BAR FOUNDATION AND THE ARKANSAS BAR ASSOCIATION have selected the following persons to honor this year because of their outstanding contributions. Those selected are: Outstanding Lawyer Award: Paul D. McNeill, RMP LLP, Jonesboro, for excellence in the practice of law and outstanding contributions to the profession.
Outstanding Jurist Award: Judge Joyce Williams Warren, Little Rock, for excellence in the practice of law and outstanding contributions to the profession.
Equal Justice Distinguished Service Award: Judge Amy Dunn Johnson, Circuit Judge, 6th Judicial District, 15th Division, Little Rock, for her commitment to and participation in equal justice programs, including pro bono efforts through legal services programs.
C.E. Ransick Award of Excellence: Sherry P. Bartley, Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard, P.L.L.C., Little Rock, for outstanding contributions to the profession.
Outstanding Local Bar Association: Sebastian County Bar Association
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CIVIL RIGHTS Shawn Childs Walker & Childs, PLLC Morris Thompson Morris Thompson Law Firm Thomas McGowan Provost Umphrey Law Firm
Randy Bynum Dover Dixon Horne, PLLC
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“At the Crisp Law Firm, we have a personal relationship with each individual we represent and are committed to devoting the time and resources necessary to achieve the very best results for our clients.”
Hugh E. Crisp exclusively handles medical malpractice and catastrophic injury cases in Arkansas throughout the Mid-South.
Hugh E. Crisp, Attorney 221 W 2nd Street, 8G Little Rock crisplawfirm.com P: (501) 376:6264
Mr. Crisp is rated “AV Preeminent” by Martindale-Hubbell, the highest possible rating in both legal ability and ethical standards reflecting the confidential opinions of members of the Bar and Judiciary for an attorney practicing in the United States and was selected by his peers for the highest level of professional excellence for his legal knowledge, communication skills, and ethical standards. Mr. Crisp personally handles each case to assure that everything possible is done so that his clients receive excellent results.
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A TRUSTED LAW FIRM FOR YOUR LITIGATION NEEDS
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Congratulations Payton Bentley for being awarded the Judith Ryan Gray Young Lawyer Service Award!
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David Martin Rose Law Firm
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Voted Best Trusts and Estates 10350 Riverview Corporate Drive | North Little Rock, AR 72113 501-663-5620 | mikemunnlaw.com
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W E LOV E A GOOD DEBATE , BU T THE PEOPLE H AV E SPOK EN, AGA IN.
MARK ALLISON
JAMES BEACHBOARD
GARLAND BINNS
MATTHEW BOCH
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MONTE ESTES
STEVE GILES
ADRIENNE GRIFFIS
CYRIL HOLLINGSWORTH
TJ LAWHON
CAL MCCASTLAIN
WILLIAM OGLES
MICHAEL PARKER
JOHN PEACE
JOE PURVIS
GARY ROGERS
MICHAEL SMITH
TODD WOOTEN
Readers of AY Magazine have named 19 of our attorneys Best Lawyers of 2021. All of us at Dover Dixon Horne are proud to congratulate them. 100
DOVERDIXONHORNE.COM
Going The Extra Mile
is simply doing what others are not willing to do.
THANK YOU LITTLE ROCK! THANK YOU LITTLE ROCK! THANK YOU LITTLE ROCK!
Pamela Epperson
THANKS FOR VOTING ME ONE OF AY’S BEST LAWYERS OF 2021!
David Fuqua
Administrative/Regulatory Law
Eric Gribble
Health Care Law
Phil Campbell
Annie Depper
Commercial Insurance
Patrick Spivey
Commercial Real Estate
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Criminal Defense
White Collar Criminal Defense
Abbie Rucker
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Fuqua Campbell, p.a. AT T O R N E Y S AT L AW
3700 Cantrell Road, Suite 205 • Little Rock, Arkansas 72202 501.374.0200 • Fc-lawyers.com PROF E S SIONA L . DE DIC AT E D. E X P E R I E NC E D.
Business and Commercial Law • Employment Law • Real Estate Law • Banking Law • Civil Rights Defense • Intellectual Property Nursing Home Defense • Insurance Law • Probate • Family Law • Criminal Defense • Administrative Law •Litigation • Appeals
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David Mitchell Jr. Rose Law Firm
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Haley Heath Fuqua Campbell, PA
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Congratulations Vanessa Cash Adams for receiving the Continuing Legal Education Award!
Little Rock (501) 710-6500 • Fayetteville (479) 480-4900 • arlawpartners.com
CONGRATULATIONS KEVIN J. STATEN
on being named one of AY Magazine’s Best Lawyers of 2021 Kevin Staten, managing partner at Laser Law Firm, P.A. in Little Rock, has been providing outstanding legal representation to insurance companies and their insureds since he joined the firm in 1985. The Laser Law Firm has been engaged in the practice of civil litigation, specializing in corporate and insurance defense, for over 60 years.
LASER LAW FIRM, P.A.
416 N. McKINLEY STREET, SUITE 760 LITTLE ROCK, AR 72205
501-376-2981
www.laserlaw.com 103
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Brian Ray and John Collins would like to thank the public and our peers for giving us a vote of confidence in selecting us as two of the best. Our firm has been honored to represent people in cases involving drug and alcohol impairment. Call if you have been injured by a drunk driver, and we will put that experience to work for you.
WHEN IT’S SERIOUS ... CONTACT US
GILL RAGON OWEN A T T O R N E Y S
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MOUNT IDA: A Little Gem of the Ouachitas By Joe David Rice • Photos by Casey Crocker
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M
ount Ida, located about 40 miles beyond Hot Springs in west-central Arkansas, is one of the state’s smallest county seats with a population of some 1,076 kind souls. But this center of commerce for Montgomery County swings far above its weight. Let’s start with history. Granville Whittington, the man who founded the town 185 years ago, opened a general store a short distance north of Mount Ida’s present location soon after moving to the Arkansas Territory from Massachusetts. An interesting aside is the fact that Whittington also served as secretary of the group of men that met in 1835 to formally petition Congress to grant statehood to Arkansas, an objective that was met
a year later. Originally known as Montgomery, the town was also called Salem for a while before it became Mount Ida in 1850. Legend has it that Whittington suggested the name, saying that the surrounding countryside reminded him of a Mount Ida near Boston where he had lived as a young man. Back in those early days, livestock and timber were mainstays in the community’s economy. Mount Ida is nicely situated, perched on the banks of the South Fork of the Ouachita River and surrounded by hillsides covered with pines and hardwoods. In fact, about 85 percent of Montgomery County is included in the Ouachita National Forest. And Arkansas’ largest body of water, Lake Ouachita with its 975 miles of shoreline, is located about halfway between Mount Ida and Hot Springs. This fortuitous combination of woods and water has made Mount Ida a recreational haven, popular with an ever-growing legion of outdoor enthusiasts. Anglers have been plying the clear, deep waters of nearby Lake Ouachita since its creation in 1952. Several state fishing records have been set on the lake
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over the years, to include the current best for channel catfish (38 pounds). Likewise, the upper Ouachita River, flowing north and west of the town, is known for smallmouth, spotted and white bass. Boaters have also found the Mount Ida area to their liking. Party barges, sailboats, jet skis, houseboats, paddleboards and runabouts skim across the lake, while canoeists and kayakers head for the river. Hunters, too, have discovered the region. Not just those seeking wild game, but also a different sort of hunter looking for a special something with supposed metaphysical powers — brilliant quartz crystals. Mount Ida’s slogan of “Quartz Crystal Capital of the World” is right on the mark, with half a dozen or so mining operations near the town. For a modest fee, customers can dig for their own crystals, but should be warned that it can be a dirty undertaking. For those inclined to stay clean, a staggering selection of beautiful specimens can be found in local gift shops. And for the visitor truly interested in a memorable quartz experience, plan on attending the annual “Quartz, Quiltz, and Craftz Festival” this fall, assuming that our COVID crisis has improved by then. What’s been truly amazing in recent years is the growth of trails in the area — trails not only for hikers but also for mountain bikers. The Womble Trail, a 37-mile single-track path winding through the Ouachita National
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“We may be a small town,” the mayor says, “but everyone will quickly notice how friendly all of us are.”
Forest, is open to hikers and bikers, but closed to horseback traffic. In places, it meanders along bluffs overlooking the Ouachita River, supplying visitors with compelling photo ops. That the International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA) has designated the Womble Trail as an “Epic Trail” is a testament to its beauty and significance. Another outstanding recreational resource near Mount Ida that’s gotten lots of attention is the Lake Ouachita Vista Trail (affectionately referred to as “LOViT). Also recognized by IMBA as an “Epic Trail,” the LOViT is a challenging 47-mile path for hikers and mountain bikers stretching along the south
side of Lake Ouachita. Built over the past decade by an ambitious group of dedicated volunteers known as the “Traildogs,” the trail dips into deep, lush valleys of old growth timber and then climbs onto the rocky ridgelines of mountains towering over the lake. Stunning views of dozens of islands scattered across the 40,000 acres of sparkling water yield a rich payoff to those up for something a bit out of the ordinary. At least a dozen trailheads have been established along the route, providing convenient access to all levels of users. Given the abundance of recreational opportunities in the area, it’s no surprise that several full-service resorts have been developed to serve tourists. One of the oldest is Mountain Harbor, a picturesque retreat nestled on the southwestern shores of Lake Ouachita. Dating from 1954, Mountain Harbor is among the top resorts in the South, offering a wide range of lodging options (rustic to luxurious), a restaurant, marina and a spa. Bill Barnes, whose father, Hal, founded the resort, has been
A sunset on Lake Ouachita.
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working on the property for well over 50 years now, starting out as a dishwasher. He’s proud of the relationship between the resort and Mount Ida, noting that several generations of the community’s residents have worked at Mountain Harbor throughout the years. “The people in Mount Ida are warm and friendly,” Barnes says, “sharing a wonderful, classic slice of small-town America.” He points out that the Mount Ida area is an interesting blend of native Montgomery County residents combined with an influx of people who’ve fallen in love with the region and relocated there. “There’s not a traffic light in the entire county,” Barnes adds. A couple of miles to the west of Mountain Harbor is another top-quality resort — Shangri-La. It also offers a wide range of lake-oriented lodging and activities but has something that even Barnes strongly recommends: the homemade pies of Mrs. Varine Carr. Now into her second half-century of baking pies, Carr has perfected her culinary skills, so much
The cabins, marina and horseback riding at Mountain Harbor Resort & Spa.
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Wegner Crystal Mines.
so that those in the know make sure to arrive early before all the pieces have been sold. Her specialties include chocolate, coconut, Dutch apple, cherry, peach and blueberry. Go ahead and splurge, and ask for a dollop of ice cream with your order. Mayor Jo Childress is also a big fan of Carr’s pies (and in case you’re wondering, her personal favorite is the coconut). And the mayor should know a thing or two about Mount Ida, now that she’s entering her 16th
year in office. “It’s been a challenging job,” she says, “but very rewarding. For every person who’s ready to tie me up and ruffle my feathers, there are nine that feel the other way.” That’s a ratio that most politicians would envy. Childress also recommends the Heritage House Museum of Montgomery County for visitors, and the Front Porch Stage, a music venue located on the courthouse grounds where live performances can be enjoyed, much like the traditional jam sessions seen up in
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Mountain View (schedule still undetermined at this time due to the pandemic). She notes that Mount Ida has a long history of welcoming tourists. “We may be a small town,” the mayor says, “but everyone will quickly notice how friendly all of us are.” Ever the politician, Mayor Childress reminds me about a couple of other spots in town for tasty desserts. The Mount Ida Café is another destination for lovers of homemade pies. And a few blocks away is the Dairyette, one of Arkansas’ oldest remaining drive-ins. Some AY readers may fondly recall the Lum and Abner radio show. About 20 miles west of Mount Ida on Arkansas Highway 88 is the Lum and Abner Museum and Jot ‘Em Down Store in Pine Ridge. Located in a pair of old general stores, this fascinating collection of historical radio memorabilia is also worth a visit.
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HOT SPRINGS happenings
what’s happening in
HOT SPRINGS? Every month, AY About You will highlight the “happenings” of Hot Springs for our readers’ travel considerations. From Oaklawn to Bathhouse Row, live music to annual festivals, and the most delicious food to the coldest cocktails, we’ll have it all in this recurring travel guide to America’s First Resort.
BRIDGE STREET LIVE CONCERTS Every Thursday Historic Bridge Street, Downtown Hot Springs
Each Thursday in June, Bridge Street will become host to live music. Events are free to attend and will last from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RUNNING OF THE TUBS
Welcome
June 5 Downtown Hot Springs
OUR NEW OWNER!
It’s a wet and wacky weekend in Hot Springs with this one. Costumed participants race customized bathtubs through downtown Hot Springs.
Cassidy Allen GYPSY SOUL HOLISTIC FAIR June 5, 6 Hot Springs Convention Center
The fair will feature a plethora of vendors offering things like shamanic drums, crystals, metaphysical supplies, astrology, tarot readings, mediumship, reiki, sound healing, spiritual artwork and more.
3948 Central Ave, Hot Springs, AR 71913 @shoppinkavenue 114
LET’S Go CAMPINg! HOT SPRINGS MUSIC FESTIVAL June 7-11 Anywhere
Performances may be viewed virtually. Visit hotmusicfestival.com for more information.
MAGIC SPRINGS CONCERT SERIES: VANILLA ICE June 19 Magic Springs Theme & Water Park
When the temperature climbs, there are few better remedies than a little “ice, ice, baby.” Vanilla Ice is making a splash at Magic Springs this month.
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NORTHWOODS FULL STRAWBERRY MOON MOUNTAIN BIKE RIDE June 24 Northwoods Trails
The popular Northwoods Full Moon Rides Series is back again this month for the Strawberry Moon of June. Participation is free, save for a little sweat by moonlight.
Home to the only brewery in a US National Park and the only brewery in the world to utilize thermal spring water in their beer. 329 Central Ave., Hot Springs 501-624-2337 • superiorbathhouse.com
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Heather Baber Roe
The Argenta Arts District.
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The
Ascent of
By Kevin Shalin • Photos by Jamison Mosley
Downtown North Little Rock is on the rise, and at the center of it all is a thriving, diverse food and drink scene steeped in a collaborative effort to keep things moving forward. ake a stroll down Main Street in downtown North Little Rock, an area that runs through the heart of the Argenta Arts District. You will notice historic buildings, expansive murals and manicured flower beds that show off the beauty of a soulful neighborhood, one that has not only embraced change but has run with it. “The city and government, particularly Mayor [ Joe] Smith, did a great job of investing in downtown,” says Stephanie Slagle, marketing director at the North Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau. It is a beautiful mix of old businesses with new ventures, and at the heart of it all is a collection of coffeehouses, restaurants and bars that have teamed up to form a food and drink community that rivals any in the area. “There is a camaraderie among the businesses that was already there, but after the pandemic, it
DRINKS
really solidified. They all started working together and realized that we are stronger together,” Slagle says. “A strong downtown is good for the whole city.” Slagle sees that collaboration among businesses, with advocates like Jess McMullen, owner of Brood & Barley, continuing to lead the charge. McMullen has made a heavy investment in the area. He also owns the popular Flyway Brewing, just a block away on Maple Street. The brewery opened in late 2015, and while elements of the actual space made for an easier initial decision of calling Argenta home, it was also the neighborhood’s potential that inspired McMullen the most. He says, “I thought the neighborhood was so vibrant. It was alive down here, but it was really in its infancy. There were still empty buildings and plots of land.” But progress was right around the corA cold, ner, literally. Argenta
frothy beer at Brood & Barley. (Courtesy)
Flyway Brewing. (Courtesy)
... with increased popularity comes higher expectations. Plaza was built, and the Orion Building soon followed. Then a global pandemic hit and halted the momentum. Says McMullen, “We were getting ready to explode, then COVID.” With the hardship came a sense of urgency, and as Slagle said, business owners and city officials teamed up like never before. An entertainment district was created — no small feat given the rules, logistics and boundaries that needed to be established within a short period of time. The formation of the Argenta Downtown Dining District (ADDD) meant restaurants could now expand dining rooms into the streets; live music offerings were also part of the fun. The ADDD initially ran every weekend throughout 2020 but has since transitioned to the third weekend of every month. It established a true sense of community, even during the most difficult of times. Both Slagle and McMullen brag on the work of Chris Kent, executive director of the Argenta Downtown Council, as a key component in fostering change. “It cannot be understated what he has done for the neighborhood,” McMullen says.
The business community came together at a critical time and has continued with that rising tide mentality: What is good for one is good for everyone. “In the past year, a lot of owners have embraced the idea that the way we’re all going to be successful is by working together and showing people why there are so many good options in the neighborhood,” McMullen says. “I hang out at all these places. There are some fantastic options.” But with Argenta’s increased popularity comes higher expectations, and now — or ever for that matter — is no time to rest on their laurels. McMullen says, “We must continue to keep our standards of excellence high. Everyone has to up their game. When people come down here, they have to have a good experience because we want them to come back.” Chef and co-owner of Ristorante Capeo, Eric Isaac, agrees and adds, “The key is consistency. Also, everyone is doing something different. It is almost like a big food hall down here with all the choices.” Those choices include Flyway Brewing, Cregeen’s Irish Pub, The Joint Theater and Coffeehouse, Reno’s Argenta Café, Skinny J’s, Brood & Barley, Four Quarter Bar, Ristorante Capeo, Mugs Café, and KamiKaito. And while not technically in Argenta, nearby restaurants like Lindsay’s BBQ & Hospitality House, Walker’s Restaurant, and Mr. Cajun’s Kitchen are all within a short half-mile.
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ARGENTA Ristorante Capeo. (Courtesy)
Recently, my wife and I visited Ristorante Capeo, an 18-year veteran of the neighborhood, along with new kid on the block Brood & Barley, both in the same evening. Cocktails crafted by Brood & Barley’s whiz beverage manager David Burnette kicked off the night, followed by fresh-made pasta at Ristorante Capeo just a few doors down. The settings could not be more different, which is an aspect we enjoyed. Having those diverse choices at such close proximity made for a funfilled evening, while also allowing us to support two businesses with relative ease. The next time we visit downtown North Little Rock, I imagine two different restaurants will get our business. Beers and smoked pork nachos at Four Quarter Bar along with sushi at KamiKaito sounds like a fun time. After dinner, we walked down Main Street toward the Argenta Plaza where a crowd of folks was enjoying an outdoor performance by the Arkansas Ballet. It looked like something you would see in the heart of Manhattan. But it wasn’t. It was Argenta. The energy of the neighborhood was palpable, and much like McMullen said, the vibrance was undeniable. Two days later, I was back in Argenta, this time working from Mugs Café. As I sipped on my iced coffee and pounded on the keyboard for a writing assignment, I could not help but raise my head every few minutes to enjoy the hustle and bustle of the shop. Again, the energy was distinct “The future is bright,” Slagle says, and, with more projects in the works, who can disagree with her for that sentiment? A “we” mentality among owners, especially those in the food and drink industry, will only help ensure that progress continues. In the meantime, make sure to get down to Main Street, have a beer, listen to some music, play a little cornhole, and enjoy one of the most vibrant neighborhoods in Central Arkansas. Argenta’s ascent is not slowing up anytime soon. I will drink and eat to that.
The future (for Argenta) is bright.
The Main Street strip.
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Argenta: Dogtown’s Delight Just Keeps Getting Better By Dustin Jayroe
(Jamison Mosley)
s far as feel-good stories go, it doesn’t get much better than North Little Rock’s Argenta District; ironically, it’s also become one of the most iconic places in the state for “good feels.” Whether it’s the favored pastimes of us Southern folk in music and food or the officially dubbed “favorite pastime” of baseball, Argenta delivers. “We’re back to full capacity, and things are starting to get back to somewhat normal,” says Stephanie Slagle, the marketing director for the North Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau, before apologizing for her seemingly tired tone and thoughts. She’s just had yet another eventful weekend in North Little Rock’s most bustling sector, which is not a bad problem to have considering the events (or lack thereof ) of the past year. Argenta felt its fair share of the trials of the pandemic, but as a community — meaning the family of businesses that make up its DNA and the patrons who so loyally provide their time and money to the area — it stuck together, adapted and found ways to make lemonade. Like expanding its outdoor dining scene last summer. Swift moves by the city council made it possible, sweat and elbow grease from business owners and people like Slagle brought it to fruition. And, of course, Chris Kent, executive director of the Argenta Downtown Council (ADC). No conversation about Argenta is complete without making note of the lifeblood and energy that he provides. “What our mission really is, is to promote economic development in the downtown area through the arts,” Kent says. His fingerprints have been behind the mold of Argenta for nearly 20 years, living the mission of the ADC that “a healthy downtown benefits the entire area.” Now, some of those pandemic pivots have become mainstays. Of course, the outdoor dining and drinking were sure to become fan favorites amid the warming weather and overall charm of Argenta; add in the live performances of local musicians and Ballet Arkansas and the litany of public and private artwork, and it’s increasingly clear why it’s one of the hottest spots in all of Arkansas. This is also probably why Slagle reiterates words like “momentum” when talking about the big picture of Argenta.
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(Jamison Mosley)
None of this should come as any surprise to residents of Central Arkansas. The developments in Argenta have been in the works for years, preceding the pandemic, impetus that led to community investments like the $5.36-million-dollar Argenta Plaza. Although it opened last summer and therefore has not yet reached its full potential, there’s still plenty of buzz around the plaza. “The plaza has already been the catalyst for more than $50 million in economic development in downtown North Little Rock,” says the Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism. Argenta Plaza features a stage with a 40-foot projection wall, tent tie-downs, a water wall, a “front porch” with modern swings and a “backyard” area with beautiful foliage. Given its outdoor nature, the plaza has been host to many events over the course of the past year, but, in parallel to the district writ large, the horizon is even brighter for Argenta Plaza as restrictions continue to loosen. “Everybody has been kind of careful about using the word ‘event’ for like a year now because you don’t want it to draw too many people,” Slagle says. “It’s been a very careful balancing act. You want people to come, but you don’t want too many people to come so you can still social distance and make sure everybody feels safe. But I guess that’s the good thing about Argenta is that it feels so open. Like Argenta Plaza itself, I think max capacity is like 3,000 people. So even when we had several hundred people, you’re all spread out.” One of the latest developments at Argenta Plaza is the just-announced summer music series that will take place at the location, which kicks off with the band Year And A Day on June 19. And for such a relatively small area, Argenta has a persquare-inch slate that can compete with any. Our food editor,
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Argenta Plaza. (ADPHT)
Argenta Plaza. (ADPHT)
Argenta Dogtown Throwdown. (Courtesy of North Little Rock CVB)
Kevin Shalin, has laid out the many highlights of the food scene, which alone would be enough to make it a destination worthy of anyone’s agenda. But there’s also just as much to tab on a todo list beyond dining. One would be remiss to not make note of the sports culture, ingrained by Dickey-Stephens Park and complemented by the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame Museum. True to its walkable nature, there’s also plenty of shopping enterprises sure to satiate any style. And apropos of the soul of Argenta as an arts district, there’s plenty more for the imaginative tastebuds, like The House of Art, Thea Foundation, Argenta Community Theater and the North Little Rock Heritage Center, which is located in the old fire station. “Since the pandemic started, we’ve doubled down on creating a beautiful downtown for people when they were able to come back out,” Kent says. “So over the last year, we’ve had several murals go up, we finished up the dog dancer statues downtown, we’ve created and expanded the entertainment district, and we have put up more flowers, plantings and hanging baskets than we ever have before. We wanted to make 124
“ We wanted to make a place for people to come back to when they were able to go out...”
a place for people to come back to when they were able to go out and just be really impressed by and find enjoyment.” There’s also just as wide an array of room and board, like the subtle and whimsy The Baker, a charming little refined guest house on Main Street; or the sprawling Wyndham Riverfront, which is as exquisite as it is comfortable. Modern living at apartment complexes like Argenta Flats and Argenta Square are the cherries cementing the area’s rich sense of community. “Everybody’s out of school and wants to get out,” Slagle concludes. And with the myriad of offerings, entertainment and heart that Argenta has to offer, she’s confident that she’ll see plenty of faces roaming their streets this summer — some familiar, some new, all smiling and soaking up the unique atmosphere of one of North Little Rock’s favorite pockets. Kent sums it all up succinctly. “You can go into a restaurant, you can grab a drink, you can walk around and look at public art, enjoy all of the plantings, flowers and hanging baskets of downtown, and just have a good time.”
Every Week in Argenta
Mondays: Live Trivia at Flyway Brewing; Happy Hour all day at Skinny J’s. Tuesdays: Punchline Stand-Up Comedy at The Joint Theater; Bottle Night at Crush Wine Bar. Wednesdays: Trivia Night at Diamond Bear; The Joint Venture improv at The Joint Theater; Taco Wednesday at Reno’s Argenta Cafe. Fridays: Original comedy show at The Joint Theater. Saturdays: Argenta Farmers’ Market at Argenta Plaza; original comedy show at The Joint Theater; Weekend Brunch at Skinny J’s. Sundays: Weekend Brunch at Skinny J’s.
June
June 4: The Real Mike Epps at Simmons Bank Arena. June 15 – 20: Arkansas Travelers vs. Tulsa at Dickey-Stephens Park June 15: Rev. Horton Heat (solo) with Dale Watson (solo) at Four Quarter Bar. June 18 – 20: Argenta Dogtown Throwdown — outdoor dining on Main Street with live music. June 19: Argenta Plaza Summer Music Series featuring Year And A Day. June 23 – 27: Disney On Ice at Simmons Bank Arena.
July
July 6 – 11: Arkansas Travelers vs. Frisco at Dickey-Stephens Park. July 16 – 18: Argenta Dogtown Throwdown — outdoor dining on Main Street with live music. July 17: Argenta Plaza Summer Music Series featuring The Rodney Block Collective. July 20 – 25: Arkansas Travelers vs. Wichita at Dickey-Stephens Park.
August
August 3: Blippi the Musical at Simmons Bank Arena. August 3 – 8: Arkansas Travelers vs. Northwest Arkansas at Dickey-Stephens Park. August 8: The Greatest Hits of Foreigner at Simmons Bank Arena. August 10 – 15: Arkansas Travelers vs. Springfield at Dickey-Stephens Park. August 18 – 28: Pippin at Argenta Community Theater. August 20 – 22: Argenta Dogtown Throwdown — outdoor dining on Main Street with live music. August 21: Argenta Plaza Summer Music Series featuring The Gravel Yard. August 24 – 29: Arkansas Travelers vs. Corpus Christi at Dickey-Stephens Park.
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ARKANSAS r e m m u S s y a w a t Ge
ummer is here, and it’s time to crank up the fun. No doubt Arkansans will enjoy a red, juicy watermelon – probably lake- or poolside, a bevy of summer blockbusters and fireworks galore. Escape the heat and daily grind to enjoy a bit of self-care away from all the rigamarole. The Natural State is chockfull of fantastic attractions that provide family fun and lasting memories. Here are some of our favorite places for an Arkansas Summer Getaway. 127
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GASTON’S WHITE RIVER RESORT Summer weekends are full of world-class fishing, Ozark mountain beauty and award-winning dining when you stay in your riverside cabin at Gaston’s. When you’re not hooking a big trout, miles of hiking and biking trails call you to adventure. Meanwhile, Gaston’s acclaimed waterfront restaurant is cooking up specials all day, from delicious bistro-style sandwiches to steak, seafood and pasta. The chef will even prepare your fresh catch for you while you enjoy one of our premier wines or craft beers. Now you can top off your first-class stay with music outdoors under the stars. At Friday Night Live in nearby Mountain Home, you can relax to the tunes of popular regional artists in country and classic rock. Join in on the kick-off of the series with a big Gaston’s Summer Launch Party on June 4, featuring Patient Eyes and other special musical guests. Catch more great music on June 18, July 9 and 23, and August 13 and 27. After the music, you can come back for a great night’s sleep and morning coffee on your porch, only steps away from the scenic White River. Start planning your perfect weekend overflowing with fun and music! 1777 River Road, Lakeview • 870-431-5202 • gastons.com
LITTLE ROCK ZOO It’s going to be a “paw-fully” exciting summer at the Little Rock Zoo, thanks to the incredible efforts by the staff, leadership and volunteers who have been working around the clock to make up for the lost time last year. For starters, there is a new furry friend in town, Ambesoli, who is the newest member of the Zoo’s lion pride. That’s in addition to the brand new habitats constructed for the Angolan colobus and serval cat, which were unveiled this spring. Speaking of new friends, the Zoo also just announced that Andazi, a black rhino, is pregnant. She and the father, Johari, expect to share their new bundle of joy with the world in November. With plenty of this excitement in the air, the Zoo is primed to put on a show for the newest members of the family (and you). The can’t-miss event of the summer is the Tails and Tunes series. Every Thursday night in June the Zoo will stay open until 9 p.m. for some family fun after dark — like live music, food trucks, wine and beer vendors, and yard games. Starting Memorial Day weekend, the Zoo’s Animal Ambassador shows will return to the Civitan Amphitheater and recur every Saturday and Sunday at 11 a.m. through Labor Day weekend. (A little bird told us that Griffin, the new eagle, will debut for this series.) Breakfast With a Twist kicked off in May as well, running one Saturday every month from May to September. This is an event where you can come to the Zoo, enjoy a hot breakfast, chat with one of the zookeepers about the featured animal and then end the morning creating art of the featured animal with Painting With A Twist staff to guide you. If you still have an appetite after all that, then there’s also the news that Café Africa is now available for mobile ordering. Add to the mix that ZooFari camps returned on May 31, the train and carousel have officially reopened, and it’s clear why the Little Rock Zoo is one of the best places to get wild this summer. littlerockzoo.com • 1 Zoo Drive, Little Rock
MOUNTAIN HARBOR RESORT & SPA On the largest lake in Arkansas, you can rent a boat and explore hundreds of islands and coves, catch your limit at one of the best fishing spots in the nation, or find adventure when you hike or bike the EPIC LOViT trail. Mountain Harbor Resort & Spa is the ideal haven for a Lake Ouachita weekend getaway. Stay next to the water in a luxury cabin and watch the glorious sunset from the deck. Enjoy a room by the lodge close to one of three sparkling swimming pools. Get on the lake from one of the largest inland marinas in the country, where you can try pontoon boats, houseboats, guided fishing trips, jet skis, scuba diving and more. Then grab one of the famous Harbor Burgers and a dessert in the warm atmosphere of its popular Harbor Lodge restaurant. Your Harbor For Healing — unwind with a massage with heated Arkansas quartz crystals, or try a facial, pedicure or body treatment. Turtle Cove Spa offers pure relaxation that has earned it the honor of No. 1 spa in Arkansas from Spas of America. There are many ways to escape at Mountain Harbor. mountainharborresort.com • 870-867-2191 130
CENTRAL ARKANSAS LIBRARY SYSTEM Books are a world of adventure, and with Central Arkansas Library System (CALS), you and your kids can go just about anywhere. CALS is geared up for a summer packed with adventure, both near and far. Set sail with a book in the comfort of the Level 4 teen area, tour the garden or storywalk at Children’s Library, play games at your favorite branch on one of the many computers or tablets, or take a hotspot home to continue the fun on your own time. Children can even pick up meals for lunch or dinner. The library is open and ready to help you. Join the Summer Reading Club for prizes, crafts and a calendar packed with events for all ages. This year’s theme is “Tails & Tales” and explores stories of animals, dragons, and even mermaids! Throughout June and July, CALS will be offering grab-and-go activities, socially distanced in-person events, and virtual events taking place on Facebook, YouTube, Zoom and other digital platforms. Some events will be live; others will be recorded. Even if your summer will be spent at home, you can still have an adventure with CALS. Visit one of its many branches to pick up weekly grab-and-go bags, and for more information about CALS and to register for Summer Reading Club, visit cals.org/summer-reading-club. cals.org 131
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TURPENTINE CREEK WILDLIFE REFUGE Nestled on 459 acres just south of Eureka Springs is an ethical animal tourism destination offering a taste of Africa in the Ozarks. Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge (TCWR) is home and haven to a variety of exotic and native animals. Accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS), TCWR’s mission is to provide refuge for abandoned, abused and neglected big cats with an emphasis on tigers, lions, leopards and cougars. All the animals that call the Refuge home have been rescued. Each resident has a unique story to tell. Guests enjoy scheduled tours led by knowledgeable staff members who give those stories a voice. A visit can be made even more memorable by ordering a Big Cat Callout — special enrichment given to the cat or bear of your choice with your own unique message. The big cats have even assisted in wedding proposals! Memberships to the Refuge are also available. For an exceptional experience, the Refuge offers overnight accommodations. From adult-only Safari Lodges with access to a fire pit and hot tub, to the extremely popular family suites, the treehouse and even a pair of glamping tents, there is an option sure to meet every taste. There are RV sites if you prefer to bring your road home with you. Plan your visit today to see why Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge has been voted a Top Three Family Attraction in the Natural State! For more information about educational programs, memberships, lodging and tours visit tcwr.org. 239 Turpentine Creek Lane, Eureka Springs • (479) 253-5841 • TCWR.org
DISCOVER RUSSELLVILLE A blend of yesteryear’s charm and modern convenience, Russellville is a small city with a big heart. Art galleries, antique markets and enticing eateries populate the historic downtown area as music from local talent fills the air. Land-loving outdoor enthusiasts will find gritty adventure in nearby public wildlands and parks. Water enthusiasts can boat, ski and fish on Lake Dardanelle. Russellville sits conveniently at the crossroads of Interstate 40 and scenic Highway 7 with interesting and fun opportunities in every direction. www.discoverrussellville.org • 479-967-1762
Anchor Down: Planning Your Cove Time
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By Dustin Jayroe
o be a state so locked by land, Arkansas has quite a share of liquid dividends. Freshwater flows in superfluity across our lands — from the highs of the Ozarks to the lows of the Delta — cutting and carving the very fabric of what makes the Natural State. That’s a romantic way of looking at it, at least. For most of us Joes, a state so strewn with lakes, rivers, ponds, creeks and spillways provides an almost endless supply of recreational opportunities for ourselves and our loved ones. We can float and boat, fish and swim, or simply sit “on the dock of the bay, watchin’ the tide roll away.” This month, as the season of summer officially descends, a safe wager would be that most Arkansans have some form of water-related plans already on the agenda. An even safer bet is that most of that will be time spent on one of our great lakes — skiing behind a speedboat or unwinding on a pontoon. On your way, pack plenty of tubes and floaties, but don’t leave behind the rod and reel.
Test Line for Cove Time
One of the keys to a successful day on the lake is mapping out your time on the water. Naturally, some of it will be spent cruising through channels and open spaces, but at some point you’ll settle into one of the lake’s dead ends and drop anchor. (Tip: If there’s a specific cove you’re after, get there early. As the day wears on, many folks will dock into the same idea.) The best part about cove time is that, well, there’s no time. Seconds can aimlessly drift into minutes and hours, just as you casually float along the surface. But we land-dwellers don’t necessarily need to be in the water the whole time. Some might take the opportunity to sunbathe topside, but this is also the perfect time to engage in America’s real favorite pastime — fishing. Not only is cove fishing good fun for the whole family in between dips in the water, but it can also be among the most rewarding. Absent the speeding boats of the busier parts of the lake, coves are peaceful and quiet — above the surface, at least. Below, coves are bustling with all kinds of aquatic life. Whether it’s Bassmaster, Field & Stream, American Angler or any other fishing-related source worth its salt, you’ll likely find similar advice wherever you look — fish the coves. Some go so far as to refer to coves as “fish pockets.” That’s because, in addition to the solitude, baitfish begin to school en masse in shallow water once spring rolls around; by summer, it’s an off-the-bank buffet. Once that occurs, the other dominos follow suit — baitfish, small fish, medium fish and big fish, each playing its role in the circle of life. No matter which of those varieties you’re after, your luck couldn’t be much better at catching some than in a cove. Slip on a bobber to delicately dangle a hook baited with a worm or cricket, and a cove is almost sure to deliver some bream for your haul. Secure a minnow to that hook and you might interest a rock bass or smallmouth. Or you can get busy with a jig, spoon or spinnerbait to try your hand at a largemouth. Sink a bait to the bottom (depending on the depth of the cove) and you might even snag a catfish or two. No matter what kind of luck you run into, making the time to cast a few lines during your time in a cove is sure to take anyone’s day on the lake to the next level. No matter how big or small your family, making memories is what it’s all about. And it doesn’t get much better than quality time in one of nature’s cul-de-sacs.
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The Sound of OUR TOWN: Pine Bluff Paved by Music By Dwain Hebda / Photos by Ebony Blevins
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t’s hard to stump Jimmy Cunningham Jr. when the topic is the Arkansas Delta and especially on his beloved hometown of Pine Bluff. Cunningham, head of the Delta Rhythm & Bayous Alliance, knows this place like most people know their own heartbeat. The people, the culture, the tragedy and the triumph, all of it Cunningham knows by rote, like the lines of the Pledge of Allegiance or the words to “Amazing Grace” or the idealized version of humanity that lies somewhere in between. But asked what makes it different, what you hear rumbling up from the Arkansas flats that chimes differently than, say, Tupelo or Clarksdale, and Cunningham’s resplendent baritone — round, deep and lush as a whiskey barrel — falls silent in thought. “That’s a very good question,” he says at last.
“One of the differences between the Arkansas Delta and the Mississippi Delta is that even though both regions had large populations of African Americans, on the Mississippi side the entire area was predominantly African American while on the Arkansas side it wasn’t. And if you went to the Upper Delta, you got places right on the river where it’s an even different mix of elements, and you get a different mix of art.” Cunningham unleashes a broad smile at this thought, then a dram of liquid basso laughter pours out. “It’s kind of blues-plus,” he says. “You know, we have some different dynamics and some different things going on that have impacted our music, and they kind of make us different.” *** Of all the geographic regions that comprise Arkansas’ unique physical landscape, the Delta is easily the most enigmatic. On the one hand, it’s by far the harshest, most economically disadvantaged and most troubled, both in retrospect and present tense. On every measure — quality of education, median income, access to health care, addiction rates — Delta communities simmer at the bottom of the societal pot, causing population to gurgle downward, flowing out in search of opportunity. On the other hand, no stretch of Arkansas ground — perhaps none in the entire South — stakes a larger claim to the soul of a state than these alluvial reaches. It’s where the ducks come home, greeted by hunters from all over the world huddled in phantom flooded timber and stubbled fields where rice billowed just two months prior. It’s where the White River carves its ancient, looping initials into the ground, underlined by slow, mystic bayous.
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Cunningham inside the Delta Rhythm & Bayous: Freedom & Blues Exhibition in Pine Bluff.
And somewhere from within this collision of staggering beauty and indescribable hardship, came its soundtrack, the blues. Al Green (Forrest City), Robert Nighthawk and CeDell Davis (Helena), Big Bill Broonzy (Pine Bluff ), Louis Jordan (Brinkley) and Albert King (Osceola), among others, preached tales of lives lived, loves lost and demons at the crossroads. (In the process, it bears mentioning, fueling Arkansas’ native gospel greats Roberta Martin of Helena and Sister Rosetta Tharpe of Cotton Plant who put back on Sunday what Saturday night had let out.) Joining all those who came from here are those who came to here, by fate or by opportunity. Every artist large or small on the so-called Chitlin’ Circuit knew well the Arkansas dance halls and juke joints throughout the region. At its heart was Pine Bluff, a citadel of Black culture and commerce since Union forces secured the city during the Civil War, making it a haven for runaway slaves. The musical roster, seared into the face of history here, puts any other community to shame. “It is absolutely staggering,” Cunningham
says. “Big Bill Broonzy, any of the folks from the British Invasion pay homage to him, the Rolling Stones, the Animals, the Yardbirds, the Beatles. “You got people like Charles Brown who lived here; 13 No. 1 blues songs in the ’40s and the ’50s, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. George Washington Thomas, first published boogie-woogie song, first recorded boogie-woogie song. You get Bobby Rush who comes here from Louisiana and ends up starting his career over here on 3rd [Avenue]. Got paid in chitlins, hamburgers and 25 cents when he started out.” Somewhere along the line, Pine Bluff ’s glittering history fell gray, caked-over with urban decay, loss of local industry and the incursion of drugs. The cracked streets once walked by jazz legend Miles Davis, here on summers visiting his grandfather, and Sam Cooke, looking to become Sam Cooke, grew weeds and leaked dreams. All of Arkansas, and Pine Bluff itself, forgot its birthright. “All of these different performers who are connected to this area, and the world doesn’t even know,” Cunningham shakes the words out of his head. “When I tell you the world does not know, it’s a shame. They sent out all these sociologists that were supposed to be so smart and had the
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“People want these authentic experiences to be built out where they can interpret and have fun with them.”
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The artifacts that make up the rich history of arts in Pine Bluff spans as long as a Delta highway.
vision to write all these books and theses and dissertations and everything? Hell, they missed Pine Bluff. They just — you know, just missed it. “Somehow, we didn’t get written up about all of this stuff, about our contributions to music, places where people were born, places people lived or places where significant developmental milestones occurred. It’s just — it’s staggering. It is absolutely staggering.” *** Cunningham’s growing up in Pine Bluff was in many ways typical, right down to his leaving here after graduating high school and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. “I flew the coop, like so many of my
classmates did, looking for gold and whatever else that big world was out there holding,” he says. “But my mother lived here until she passed in 2017, and I got cousins and friends and everybody else and their mama. Really, I got like 20 mamas, and then I got big mamas; I got all that here. Literally, it’s like a Southern buffet of family, friends and networks. I’m rich in that regard. So, I was always coming back.” Moving around in a professional career that also included travel, Cunningham began to notice how communities with a similar backstory were finding ways to thrive in ways his hometown was not. “It sounds so cliché, but it’s so true: When you travel and come back to your hometown, you see things from a different angle,” he says. “You can see some things that are appreciated
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in other places may not be as appreciated in yours. It’s a reason to say, ‘Hey, y’all, we got something here!’” In 2009, Cunningham ran across a random historical fact about his hometown, a tiny thread of local lore that before long led him down a rabbit hole of all the things about Pine Bluff that he didn’t know. “I found so much stuff that I got with my mom, and we wrote our first book, African Americans of Pine Bluff and Jefferson County,” he says. “After that, I ended up finding stuff about the Lower Delta, which led to the second book, Delta Music and Film. “Then I got an idea; it was about 2015, and one of the biggest trends at the time was cultural heritage tourism. People want these authentic experiences to be built out where
“I’m a person of passion. I’m not some subtle seasoning, like paprika or something. I’m hot sauce. I’m looking to get the sauces out of this life before I get out of here.”
they can interpret and have fun with them. And they bring in dollars, and they help a community to redefine itself, recenter itself, give it some spiritual depth and meaning.” Inspired, he returned to Pine Bluff to give a presentation on the subject at a local museum. There, he spelled out for the audience all of the historical inventory the region had to work with and ways other communities had leveraged similar assets into tourist dollars. “I said, ‘Here’s your story, here’s a bunch of stuff.’ People were going on, ‘Oh, I love it, I love it, I love it,’” he says. “Then at the break, two guys pulled me aside and said, ‘Great ideas, great history, great plan. Who’s going to implement this?’ “I was like, ‘I’m giving it to y’all. Like, I’m presenting this and y’all, the community, makes it happen.’ They looked at me and said, ‘You’re crazy. There’s no way anybody else
around here is going to do this.’ I said, ‘No, you don’t understand. If I give it to y’all, somebody is going to pick up. Just watch.’” He took a breath and again shakes his head. “The best way I can describe this is it’s almost like a football,” he says. “As quarterback, I dropped back in the pocket, and I took the ball, and I threw it way out there, and through some cosmic quirk in the universe I looked up, and I was catching the ball! I’m like, I threw it to me, and now I’m running.” *** Two years after his museum audience, Cunningham was again presenting, this time before the state legislature to get Arkansas Highway 65 from Pine Bluff to Lake Village designated the Delta Rhythm and Bayous
Somewhere along the line, Pine Bluff’s glittering history fell gray, caked-over with urban decay, loss of local industry and the incursion of drugs. Highway. That accomplished, he told the same story in 2018 to Mississippi lawmakers to gain similar designation for the stretch between Greenville and Leland to create the nation’s only multistate music highway, intersecting with the Blues Highway, Highway 61. Also that year, the Pine Bluff City Council designated an area downtown, the Delta Rhythm and Bayous Cultural District, for which Cunningham envisions a forthcoming clutch of art and music spaces telling the story of the city and the region. “The district is an area where a lot of music and art activity and accomplishments occurred,” he says. “Part of it is where Black businesses were clustered during the days of segregation; part of it is where the theater district was; part of it is where the Civil Rights movement is connected. One part of it is where a Civil War battle was, one of four urban battles in the war. There are 15 to 20 powerful areas in that district.” The speed with which the effort has moved belies the difficulties in getting this far. The fight for authenticity of message was more than Cunningham bargained for, challenging his staunch belief that editing history’s darker moments robs luster from hard-won accomplishments. “It comes down to this: Getting people excited about history has been hard,” he says. “History is what builds the sense of community and the sense of bonding, even when it’s the bad stuff. A block from where we have all the blues that happened, all the juke joints and so many of the blues greats coming through, one block over is an area where we had a lynching, on that very spot. In fact, Pine Bluff has had the largest number of lynchings of any major city in the state of Arkansas. “Now, we have political players here who
see things a certain way with the same kind of paternalistic attitude they have had for years. Father knows best, and follow us, because what we say counts. And, if they have the money and the muscle, they can build that vision out, and if the vision doesn’t include cultural heritage tourism, so be it. “But I’m as persistent as a mosquito on the lake, man, and I will keep buzzing until I get what I need. I have preached this gospel and preached it, and I was able, fortunately, to link up with the Pine Bluff Advertising and Promotion Commission who understood that this is the direction that we need to be going. That has helped to amplify the message and, in some ways, legitimize it.” The district Cunningham envisions is right now little more than pictures on a page, but something he’s determined to see through. Meanwhile, he’s producing short films and music videos that tell bits and pieces of the
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story of this place, until the full chapter and verse can be completed. Ask him why, and he pauses long once more. “Purpose,” he says softly. “Purpose. If you haven’t been able to pick up on it, I’m a person of passion. I’m not some subtle seasoning, like paprika or something. I’m hot sauce. I’m looking to get the sauces out of this life before I get out of here. “I really and truly believe what led me here was this broader sense of purpose, and the fact that I’m supposed to do this, that I am intimately connected to this, that there is something bigger for this city, and I’m supposed to be part of that. And there’s more hot sauce to come in the process; I see something much bigger with a third eye. That lights my fire. When you know you’re walking in your purpose, it doesn’t matter what things look like around you. This is where I have to be to get out of me the things that are there.”
At Good Shepherd Nursing and Rehabilitation 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.
NURSING & REHABILITATION CENTER at
GOOD SHEPHERD Bobby Lamb, Administrator 3001 Aldersgate Road, Little Rock AR 72205 • Phone 501-217-9774 • Fax 501-217-9781 www.goodshepherdnr.com 141
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Rich
Green: St. Francis County’s Musical Sons By Caleb Talley
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Few states or regions can lay claim to producing as much musical talent as Arkansas, especially that easternmost corridor where the soil is as rich as the souls of the men and women who walk and work it. Legends known ‘round the globe — like Johnny Cash, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Levon Helm — once called the Arkansas Delta home. While traces of musical greatness can be found up and down that alluvial plain, some communities just became synonymous with the artists who lived there and the works they produced. Think Helena and Robert Johnson’s legend; Conway Twitty’s awards; or Brinkley and Louis Jordan’s sax, Al Bell’s labels; or Turkey Scratch — yes, even Turkey Scratch — and its famous natives Helm and Robert Lockwood Jr. Often overlooked, though, in the fanfare of Phillips County’s blues lore are the contributions of two St. Francis County sons: Al Green and Charlie Rich. Born more than a decade but just eight miles apart, the two musicians shot to stardom almost in lockstep. They climbed to the tops of two very different charts, traveled two very different paths after their ascension, but both were shaped, influenced and inspired by the same row crops and religion of St. Francis County. Rich was born in 1932 in the town of Colt, home to fewer than 300 people at the time. His parents were salt-of-the-earth Missionary Baptists, both members of the church quartet, and his mother played the piano during Sunday service. For Rich, music was everywhere. Country music played on radios outside the gas station; church family practiced gospel music in the evenings after supper; and Forrest City Mustang band members played through sheets of jazz music outside the schoolhouse. But it was on the family farm that Rich would receive the most inspiration, where he would learn blues licks and piano from a
His feathered mane of hair had already begun to turn white, earning him the nickname that would stick with him for life: Silver Fox.
farmhand named C.J., who also joined the family during some of those Saturday night jam sessions at home. Rich would join the high school band, too, and play his way up to the University of Arkansas Razorback marching band. But after only one year of higher education, he left and joined the U.S. Air Force. During his time in the military, he helped start a blues group called the Velvetones. His wife, whom he married right after high school, was the lead singer. After four years in the Air Force, Rich came home to east Arkansas. He tried his hand at farming, playing the few local bars at night. He was only in his 20s, but his feathered mane of hair had already begun to turn white, earning him the nickname that would stick with him for life: Silver Fox.
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************ Meanwhile, 45 miles west in Forrest City, a young Al Greene (he would later drop the “e”) was also being steeped in the soulful sounds of gospel music produced by his family. Greene was born in 1946 to a sharecropper family known for their gospel group, the Greene Brothers. He was a key member of the family group as young as age 9, touring and performing, and at one point even moving to Michigan. But when he took a liking to more secular music, Greene’s father kicked him out of the group and out of the family home. He was only 16 years old. Once out on his own, the teenage Greene was recruited by a band called the Creations. Greene became Green, and the Creations became Al Green and the Soul Mates.
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Al Green performing. (Courtesy of CALS)
Green’s soft phrasing and falsetto embellishments brought himself and the entire soul genre into a new direction and ushered in an era of success the Forrest City native likely could not have imagined.
************ Back in Memphis, Rich’s passion for music finally became a career when, in 1957, he signed on with the legendary Sun Records in Memphis after his wife secretly took a recording of his music to the studio. While having signed on as a session pianist and songwriter, Rich managed to cut his first record the following year. And the year after that, his “Lonely Weekends” would hit No. 22 on the pop charts. Country fans familiar with Rich’s iconic sound would find that initial record almost unrecognizable. The folks at Sun Records were looking to shape the young singer into something that more resembled another one of the more recent successful signings: Elvis Presley. That wasn’t Rich, but he played along and saw some more success in the mid-1960s with the release of “Mohair Sam,” which made it to No. 3 on the pop charts. But real, sustained success would elude him for a few more years, as the 1960s proved to be pretty lean years. During that time, he experimented with styles that ranged from boogie-woogie to novelties to honky-tonk. As he rounded out the decade, Rich left Sun and signed on with Epic Records, teaming up with producer Billy Sherill. His life would never be the same.
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At the time, Sherrill was known for having helped propel the careers of Tammy Wynette and George Jones. With Sherrill, not only would Rich embark on a new chapter of his career, but he would also solidify the burgeoning new musical genre known as countrypolitan. Countrypolitan, often referred to at the time as that “Nashville sound,” steered away from the rough honky-tonk sounds of traditional country music and introduced smoother strings and choruses, orchestras and background vocals. Music producers like Sherrill hoped that, with the help of talents like Rich, that smooth new sound would allow them to capture the attention of pop music listeners. It worked. Rich dropped the Elvis impersonation and, with Sherrill’s direction, found his sound in a winning countrypolitan formula. ************ While the late ‘60s were proving to be lean years for Rich down South, Al Green and the Soul Mates got their first taste of success. In 1967, the group recorded a single, “Back Up Train,” which hit No. 5 on the R&B charts. Unfortunately, that taste wouldn’t last long, and before the turn of the decade, Green’s luck looked to have run out. During a stint in Midland, Texas, Green met Memphian Willie Mitchell at a nightclub. Just as with Rich’s chance encounter with
Sherrill, Green’s introduction to Mitchell would prove to be life-altering. Mitchell was a bandleader and an executive at the Memphis soul label Hi Records. He convinced Green to move back to the Delta and work with him on a new sound. With Mitchell’s help, Green’s soft phrasing and falsetto embellishments brought himself and the entire soul genre into a new direction and ushered in an era of success the Forrest City native likely could not have imagined. In 1971, Green released a cover of The Temptations’ “I Can’t Get Next to You.” It was a hit, but not yet a chart-topper. The same year, he released “Tired of Being Alone.” With that, Green had arrived.
“Hey baby, you didn’t go for that It’s a natural fact That I wanna come back Show me where it’s at, baby” “Tired of Being Alone” reached No. 11 on the charts, and it remains one of his mostrecognized hits. Before the year ended, Green reached No. 1 with “Let’s Stay Together.”
“Oh, baby Let’s, let’s stay together Lovin’ you whether, Whether times are good or bad, Happy or sad” ************ The early 1970s proved to be the end of the lean years for Rich, too. Like Green, the Colt native dropped two of his most iconic hits in the same year. That year was 1973, with the first major release being “Behind Closed Doors.” The song climbed all the way to No. 1 on the country charts.
“‘Cause when we get behind closed doors Then she lets her hair hang down And she makes me glad I’m a man Oh, no one knows what goes on behind closed doors” “Behind Closed Doors” wasn’t just a hit. It took country music by storm. After 20 weeks on the charts, the song garnered Song of the Year and Single of the Year from both the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music. Rich would also take home the Grammy for Best Country Vocal Performance. Another song from the same album, “The Most Beautiful Girl,” reached No. 1 on
both the country charts and the pop charts, launching Rich’s stardom, alongside Green’s, in the United States and beyond.
“I woke up this mornin’ Realized what I had done I stood alone in the cold gray dawn I knew I’d lost my morning sun” All told, five songs from the Behind Closed Doors album would climb the charts. Rich would take home another four Academy of Country Music Awards, and the album was certified gold. This was the pinnacle for Rich. Before 1973 ended, he was named the Academy of Country Music’s Top Male Vocalist and the Country Music Association’s Male Vocalist of the Year. In 1974, he was named the CMA’s Entertainer of the Year. In the world of country music, Rich could do no wrong. And then he did.
************ As with Rich, Green’s first hit album, Let’s Stay Together, would be certified gold. But he didn’t stop there. His follow-up album, I’m Still in Love with You, which was released only a few months later, would go platinum thanks to its title track and hit, “Look What You Done for Me.” A few months after that, he released another album, Call Me, that featured three top-10 singles. One of the hardest working men in the business, Green churned out a few more albums before 1977, including the certified gold Livin’ for You, and would become a radio staple with hits like “Love and Happiness” and a popular cover of the Bee Gees’ “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart.” And just as with Rich, Green could seemingly do no wrong. Until he did. Following his rapid ascension to stardom, trouble found Green. Perhaps the most infamous incident occurred in 1974, just months after his last album had been certified gold. While in the bathtub of his Memphis home, an ex-girlfriend burst in and poured a pot of scalding-hot grits on Green, resulting in second-degree burns all over his body. She then retreated to his bedroom and took her own life with his gun.
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For Green, it was a sign. He had recently returned to the Christian faith of his youth but had not been ready to give up the secular world that had brought him fame and fortune. He would later buy a church just two miles from Graceland in Memphis, famously purchasing the building by signing a blank piece of paper as a check. But Green still wasn’t ready to turn his back on stardom.
************ Meanwhile, in Nashville, Rich was dealing with some problems of his own. He had reached the pinnacle of country music success, but he had painted himself into a musical box that kept him from expressing himself the way he had hoped he could by this point in his career. Later in life, he would say he had been “pegged” and crippling anxiety kept him from experimenting with the sounds he enjoyed as a boy. He began to drink heavily and occasionally caused a commotion in public. His drunken misbehavior reached a fever pitch in 1975, when, at the Country Music Association awards show, a visibly inebriated Rich took the stage to announce the Entertainer of the Year. When he opened the envelope and saw John Denver’s name on the card, he pulled out his lighter and set it on fire, shocking the audience in attendance and watching at home, as well as industry moguls. The industry took his actions as a form of protest to Denver, who was arguably more of a folk singer than a country artist, and Rich was never invited back. In a 1992 interview with NPR’s Terry Gross, Rich confessed that his actions had more to do with being drunk and incredibly anxious — severe anxiety, he said, was something he later realized he had for most of his career; they just, he said, didn’t have a name for it yet. Rich quickly fell from superstardom and left the spotlight for a while to find sobriety. In 1992, he returned with the release of Pictures and Paintings, his first album in years. The album was modestly produced but featured heavy jazz and blues influences — the kind of music he’d heard his father and the farmhand, C.J., play in his home those Saturday evenings as a boy. While the album didn’t sell, it received solid reviews from critics. Rich said it was the
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album he had waited his whole life to make.
************ Owning a church didn’t provide Green with the spiritual cover he’d hoped, and trouble continued to follow him through the end of the 1970s. He married in 1977, but the relationship soured quickly, and his wife would accuse him of being abusive during their relationship. With ongoing controversy, Green’s reputation among his once loyal fans had begun to sour, too. His record sales began to dry up, and in 1979, Green was significantly injured when he fell from a stage while performing in Cincinnati, Ohio. That was the last sign from God he would need. From then on, he would get serious about pastoring and turn his talents toward the kind of music that had inspired him as a boy: gospel. With a new focus in life and performing gospel music exclusively, Green went on to record a series of albums in the early 1980s. While he had been nominated for Grammys before as an R&B star, the hardware had eluded him. But in 1982, he won the Grammy for Best Soul Gospel Performance with “The Lord Will Make a Way.” That was just the first of eight Grammys he would take home through the decade, all within the gospel genre. The 1980s also saw him take the Broadway stage with Patti LaBelle in a gospel musical, Your Arms Too Short to Box with God. In 1994, Green teamed up with Lyle Lovett for “Funny How Time Slips Away,” which earned him his ninth Grammy. ************ While Pictures and Paintings helped restore Rich’s legacy as one of country music’s greats, it would be the last album he would produce. Living a semi-retired life in Benton, Rich and his wife of 43 years went on vacation to Florida after seeing their son, Allan, perform with Freddy Fender at Lady Luck Casino in Natchez, Mississippi. Along the way, Rich began to experience a severe cough. They stopped to see a doctor in St. Francisville, Louisiana, and then continued traveling until he stopped to rest for the night in Hammond. That July night in 1995, Rich died in his sleep. The cause of death was a pulmonary embolism — a blood clot in his lungs. Rich was laid to rest in Memphis. In 2002, seven years after Rich’s passing, Behind Closed Doors was certified quadruple platinum. The following year, Country Music Television (CMT) ranked the title track No. 9 among the 100 greatest songs in country music. In 2006, CMT would rank the album among the 40 greatest albums in country
music history. In the end, Rich’s broad scope of talent would prove to be an obstacle to his recognition. Few country artists were as big a star as he was in the 1970s, but he has yet to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. But, despite having been from Colt, on the other side of the Mississippi River, Rich was posthumously inducted in the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2015. ************ In 1995, just a few months before Rich’s passing, Forrest City’s Green was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Green was honored with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002. Throughout the decade, he would occasionally collaborate with old friends like Willie Mitchell and new friends like Queen Latifah,
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Questlove and John Legend. During those years, Green was also included into the Gospel Music Association’s Gospel Music Hall of Fame and The Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2009, BET honored him with a Lifetime Achievement Award and Rolling Stone magazine ranked him No. 65 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In September 2018, Green broke a neardecade-long hiatus with the release of “Before the Next Teardrop Falls.” The song was originally released by Freddy Fender, the same artist Rich had gone to see perform with his son just before he died. While he’s considered one of the last great soul singers, the Rev. Al Green can still be found behind the pulpit of the Full Gospel Tabernacle Church in Memphis any given Sunday morning.
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By Emily Beirne
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t’s been a “Wide River to Cross,” but “People Get Ready,” because the Arkansas Country Music Awards (Arkansas CMAs) will be live and inperson once again, much to the enjoyment of performers, fans and nominees. Making this a year to remember, the event will be held on June 7 at the Reynolds Performance Hall at the University of Central Arkansas. An extensive lineup of performances and awards is chock-full of Arkansas talent — the best kind, really. Country music enthusiasts are in for a treat as legendary names — such as Debby
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Campbell, daughter of Glen Campbell; Amy Helm, daughter of Levon Helm; and Billy Dean will be in attendance. Additionally, the three Lifetime Achievement honorees from 2020 will be recognized alongside the 2021 recipients. The nail-biting outcomes of the other categories are also to be announced at the event. The process of nominating an artist to selecting a winner may seem like a gray area, but Charles Haymes, vice president and co-host of the Arkansas CMAs, is here to explain every detail. “There’s a three-week period that’s open for nominations in all of the categories,” Haymes explains. “Fans or country music professionals can go in and fill out a nomination ballot. When the time ends for nominations, there are executive checks of criteria, as in checking that the song nominated did come out in this year, the vocals did release during this time, and so on. Once everything meets the criteria for that particular category,
the nominations move on to be reviewed by special committees. These committees are made up of music professionals, and they have ballots with links to all of the information they need to know about the nominee.” He shares that these committees never meet in person, so they don’t have the opportunity to discuss with one another. One committee person does not know who another committee person is. “They select the final five in each category, and the ones with the most votes become the final five of each category,” Haymes says. “When the final nominations are announced, the final ballot goes out to the committees, and each person makes their final selection per category. There is then a two-week period online, March 1-14, where fans can go in and vote. The nominee with the most votes from fans counts as one committee person’s vote.” Understanding this process gives more perspective on how and why some artists, individuals and teams may be chosen over others. The team behind the Arkansas CMAs show has really turned up the heat for this comeback year with 26 categories, six Lifetime Achievement honorees and about 20 performances. Pushing through the obstacles and tragedies of the past year, this event celebrates the Arkansas voices that carried us through. We’ve been walkin’ these streets so long, it’s time to start feelin’ good.
Jabe Burgess. (Courtesy)
Erin Enderlin. (Jamison Mosley)
ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR
COUNTRY ARTIST OF THE YEAR
ACOUSTIC ACT OF THE YEAR
NOMINEES: David Adam Byrnes, Erin
NOMINEES: Bailey Hefley, David Adam
The Creek Rocks, Grace Stormont, Lee Street Lyrical, Mallory Everett, Ryan Harmon
Enderlin, Jabe Burgess, Lance Carpenter, Maybe April Starting off hot and anyone’s game is the Entertainer of the Year award. This award has had a different recipient every year since the start of the award show back in 2018. So there really is no way of telling which of these five nominees will take the title home — especially when each nominee is up for many other categories. AMERICANA ARTIST OF THE YEAR NOMINEES: Grace Stormont, Maybe April,
National Park Radio, Pam Setser, Ten Penny Gypsy
Maybe April was the 2020 recipient after a two-year reign from Bonnie Montgomery. Grace Stormont, nominated in four other categories next to this one, is an artist to give ear to. National Park Radio, Pam Setser and Ten Penny Gypsy round out the competitive group as worthy nominees also deserving of recognition. BLUEGRASS ARTIST OF THE YEAR Arkansauce, Butch Suitt, Possum Trot, Spillwater Drive, Tacie and the Sunshine Band NOMINEES:
Always a fun group of nominees, the Bluegrass Artist of the Year is another category that is unpredictable. None of the 2021 nominees have yet to land this title, so this will be the year for one talented group.
Byrnes, Erin Enderlin, Jabe Burgess, Ward Davis
Looking at the rundown of past winners and nominees in all categories, it’s evident that Erin Enderlin is a champion. 2020 Country Artist of the Year, 2018 and 2020 Album of the Year, 2019 and 2020 Song of the Year, 2019 Female Vocalist of the Year and 2018, 2019 and 2020 Songwriter of the Year, Enderlin has the receipts proving she is the one to beat. Bailey Hefley and David Adam Byrnes each bring their own wins to the table, while Jabe Burgess and Ward Davis are definitely rising names to watch out for. FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR NOMINEES: Erin Enderlin, Grace Stormont, Mae Estes, Pamela Hopkins, Sarah Jane Nelson
The massive amount of talent nominated for this category each year never fails to highlight how technical this selection can get. These five women earned their nominations, and there is no telling which way the wind will blow. MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR NOMINEES: Cory Jackson, David Adam Byrnes, Jabe Burgess, Lance Carpenter, Tyler Kinch
The 2020 winner of this category, David Adam Byrnes, is back for another round. Nominated in four other categories this year, Byrnes is looking at a good year. Lance Carpenter has also returned to the lineup as a nominee, so there is a strong chance this will be his year to take the title of Male Vocalist.
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NOMINEES:
Raw and classic, Acoustic Act of the Year brings out the barebones of country music. As this category has not had a consistent winner or nominee list, a new name will join the winner’s circle this year. Lance Carpenter. (Kristin Barlowe)
VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR NOMINEES: Diane Berry/Joe Wade Smith, Hayefield, Maybe April, Nik & Sam, The Salty Dogs
Celebrating the groups and duos that may not always receive the recognition they deserve, this category is another that’s had a different winner each year. The Zac Dunlap Band (2018), The Reeves Brothers (2019), and Anna Brinker and Adam Cunningham (2020) have all paved the way for another nominated group to join their ranks. ALBUM OF THE YEAR NOMINEES: Black Cats and Crows by Ward Davis, produced by Jim ‘Moose’ Brown; The Country Blues by Billy Don Burns, produced by Charlie Ammerman, Thomas Gramuglia, Billy Don Burns, Jeff Williams, Mike Randolf and Aaron Dethrage; Horses and Steel by Kenny Drain, produced by Kenny Drain; Neon Town by David Adam Byrnes, produced by Trent Willmon; Rain and Whiskey by Anna Brinker, produced by B.J. Taylor and Kevin Sokolnicki.
Choosing one album from the list nominated must not be an easy feat. Each album above encompasses the dedication and talent put forth by a whole team of writers, producers and, of course, the performers. Hats off to the professionals that had to make the hard decision and choose our 2021 Album of the Year winner. SONG OF THE YEAR NOMINEES: “Dianne’s Song,” written by
Jabe Burgess, Steve Williams and Mark Alan Springer, performed by Jabe Burgess; “Great Again,” written by Justin Wilson and Brice Long, performed by Lance Carpenter; “On Your Own,” written and performed by Grace Stormont; “Recycled,” written by Autumn McEntire, Hannah Blaylock, Mae Estes and Josh Matheny, performed by Mae Estes; “Say it Again,” written by Lydia Dall, Morgan Johnston and Joe Tounge, performed by Kelsey Lamb.
Mae Estes. (Courtesy)
VIDEO OF THE YEAR NOMINEES: “Everything but Us” by Jabe Burgess, directed by Noah Coffey III; “Lost Boy” by The Render Sisters, directed by Joe Sikkema and Pam Tillis; “Old School” by David Adam Byrnes, directed by Dylan Rucker; “She Knew Better” by Abby Lindsey, directed by Lexy Burket; “Water” by Lauren Richmond, directed by B.J. Taylor and Brent Wheeler.
New list of performers, new list of directors. This year’s Video of the Year award will be a first for both sides of the video production. Music videos are the visual accompaniments to the songs we love. The videos, with endless opportunities for additional elements, are another way for artists to show the story they’re sharing with their listeners. No telling which video will have that extra something that impresses the judges; the outcome of this category has us all on the edge of our seats.
The Song of the Year is a well-sought-after award that gives recognition to the songwriters that pour time and talent into memorable lyrics. Each year brings a fresh set of songs, one of which will be deemed as No. 1.
SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR NOMINEES: Charley Sandage, Erin Enderlin, Jason Lee Campbell, Kenny Drain, Phil McGarrah
The champion and three-time Songwriter of the Year winner, Erin Enderlin, remains on the list of nominees for her fourth year. She’s stiff competition, but the four other nominees have obviously earned their places next to her and may give her a run for the title.
Maybe April. (Courtesy)
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FULL LIST OF NOMINEES ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR David Adam Byrnes Erin Enderlin Jabe Burgess Lance Carpenter Maybe April AMERICANA ARTIST OF THE YEAR Grace Stormont Maybe April National Park Radio Pam Setser Ten Penny Gypsy BLUEGRASS ARTIST OF THE YEAR Arkansauce Butch Suitt Possum Trot Spillwater Drive Tacie and the Sunshine Band
LBUM OF THE YEAR A The Country Blues by Billy Don Burns. Produced by Charlie Ammerman, Thomas Gramuglia, Billy Don Burns, Jeff Williams, Mike Randolph and Aaron Detharge. Horses and Steel by Kenny Drain. Produced by Kenny Drain. Neon Town by David Adam Byrnes. Produced by Trent Willmon. Rain and Whiskey by Anna Brinker. Produced by B.J. Taylor and Kevin Sokolnicki.
I NSPIRATIONAL ARTIST OF THE YEAR Brenda Denney The FlatLand Gospel Band Grace Stormont The Tiptons The Villines Trio
SONG OF THE YEAR “Dianne’s Song,” written by Jabe Burgess, Steve Williams and Mark Alan Springer. Performed by Jabe Burgess. “Great Again,” written by Justin Wilson and Brice Long. Performed by Lance Carpenter. “On Your Own,” written and performed by Grace Stormont. “Recycled,” written by Autumn McEntire, Hannah Blaylock, Mae Estes and Josh Matheny. Performed by Mae Estes. “Say it Again,” written by Lydia Dall, Morgan Johnston and Joe Tounge. Performed by Kelsey Lamb.
FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR Erin Enderlin Grace Stormont Mae Estes Pamela Hopkins Sarah Jane Nelson
SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR Charley Sandage Erin Enderlin Jason Lee Campbell Kenny Drain Phil McGarrah
MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR Cory Jackson David Adam Byrnes Jabe Burgess Lance Carpenter Tyler Kinch
VIDEO OF THE YEAR “Everything But Us” by Jabe Burgess. Directed by Noah Coffey III. “Lost Boy” by The Render Sisters. Directed by Joe Sikkema and Pam Tillis. “Old School” by David Adam Byrnes. Directed by Dylan Rucker. “She Knew Better” by Abby Lindsey. Directed by Lexy Burke. “ Water” by Lauren Richmond. Directed by B.J. Taylor and Brent Wheeler.
COUNTRY ARTIST OF THE YEAR Bailey Hefley David Adam Byrnes Erin Enderlin Jabe Burgess Ward Davis
ACOUSTIC ACT OF THE YEAR The Creek Rocks Grace Stormont Lee Street Lyrical Mallory Everett Ryan Harmon VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR Diane Berry / Joe Wade Smith Hayefield Maybe April Nik & Sam The Salty Dogs
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MUSIC PRODUCER OF THE YEAR Andy Wallis Jon Raney Kent Wells Nathanael Stone Tim Crouch
YOUNG ARTIST OF THE YEAR Lance Curtis Lillyanne McCool The Render Sisters Savannah Free TRIPPP
SOUND ENGINEER OF THE YEAR Bryce Roberts Darren Crisp Jon Raney Ryan Ceola Woody Wood
BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR Big Shane Thornton Doug DeForest Garrett Jones Irl Hees Michael Rinne
PROMOTER OF THE YEAR Alice Walker Beth Brumley Bill and Linda Lovett Cliff and Susan Prowse Joannie Howell
DRUMMER OF THE YEAR Bart Angel David O’Neal Evan Hutchings Jon Blum Quin Hill
RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR KCYT “96.7 The Coyote,” Springdale KDXY “The Fox 104.9,” Jonesboro KSSN “US 96,” Little Rock KQUS “US 97,” Hot Springs KZHE “KZ-100,” Magnolia
FIDDLE PLAYER OF THE YEAR Garry Murray Jenee Fleenor Jonathan Adams Nathan Agdepa Tim Crouch
RADIO DJ OF THE YEAR Amy G, KABF, Little Rock Big Dan Hentschel, KAMO, Rogers D.J. Taylor, KSSN, Little Rock J.R. Runyon, Y107, Conway Lisa Lindsey & Jim Weaver, KKYR, Texarkana P UBLICATION/BLOG/PODCAST OF THE YEAR AY Magazine Acoustic Music Talk with Brad Apple If That Ain’t Country Jonesboro Occasions T h e Vine Brothers Songwriter Series Presents: ENUE OF THE YEAR V The Collins Theatre George’s Majestic Lounge Jimmy Doyle Country Kings Live Music Ozark Mountain Hoe-Down Music Theatre
GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR Buddy Case Charlie White Jon Conley Luke Williams Randall George S TEEL/DOBRO PLAYER OF THE YEAR Josh Matheny Randy Terry Robby Springfield Robert Jones Zane Kin L IFETIME ACHIEVEMENT 2021 RECIPIENTS The Original Rhodes Show Elton Britt Bill Carter e Lifetime Achievement Th 2020 recipients are also being recognized at the 2021 event: Levon Helm Charlie Rich Wayland Holyfield
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I’m finally doing it the way I’m supposed to be doing it, and I’m finally where I need to be.
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EVER CROSS YOUR MIND? Arkansas Native David Adam Byrnes Has Found his ‘Neon Town’
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he list of household names in country music grows bigger each year. Arkansas has a firmly planted history in blues, folk, bluegrass and country with names like Al Green, Glen Campbell, Johnny Cash and Patsy Montana. A product in the making, David Adam Byrnes, has his sights on one day joining this list of icons Arkansans hold near and dear to their hearts. Born and bred in the Natural State with a guitar in his arms and a twang in his voice, Byrnes doesn’t remember a time when he wasn’t singing. “If we go back to the beginning, it’s 3-year-old me sitting on the fireplace just singing my little heart out at my parents’ friends’ house,” Byrnes shares. Landing “gigs” at the age of 5, Byrnes would sing George Strait at nursing homes up until the fateful day he would make a move to the music city of Nashville, Tennessee. “That molded me to learn how to play in front of people — I guess you could call it a start to where I am now,” he says. On top of his regular shows at nursing homes around Central Arkansas, Byrnes performed in talent shows, formed a little band that played at the occasional bars and backyard parties, and as he puts it, “basically anywhere with a stage and a chance to get in front of people.” This first group disbanded, and Byrnes formed “a little bit better band” his senior year of high school. “It was during this time that we really started hitting the bar scene around Little Rock, and even some other parts of the state,” he says. He remembers the band going on their first tour to Alabama and feeling like everything was getting more serious. “My bass player and drummer were brothers who worked at Casa Mexicana in Sherwood. They asked the owner if we could play there one Saturday night, and the owner told us that we could come perform that Tuesday. We packed the place that Tuesday night, and the owner told us to start playing every Tuesday.” Byrnes believes that if he had to pinpoint one place from all the shows he did growing up, he would credit Casa Mexicana as being where he really got his start. “We did
By Emily Beirne that for a few years, and it just kept getting bigger and bigger to the point there were lines wrapped around trying to get in every week. The people that found me and kind of took me to Nashville actually found me there.” Making the move from his home state to Nashville at the age of 19 was not the easiest feat. Byrnes explains that he realized he was sheltered and that he may not have been the most prepared. “I don’t think I really knew what I was doing, to be honest. I had been making trips to Nashville for the year and a half before I moved — pretty much right after I graduated I started making trips up there,” he explains. “Arkansas has always been home, will always be home, but I knew that if I was going to take the next step and chase this country music dream, I had to go where the country music world was.” Raised on the old country sounds of Strait and Tracy Lawrence, Byrnes came to realize that the country music he was chasing wasn’t found in the current trends being promoted in Nashville, but down south in Texas. “I came into Nashville guns blazing. I was there to do traditional country music and really grab the attention of the older guys that were songwriters back in the ’90s and before,” Byrnes says. He received a record deal his first year in Nashville. What has been coined as “bro country” and “country pop” is more or less what Byrnes signed into. Battling with what his producer wanted him to sound like and what he wanted to sound like, the old country always prevailed. “There were moments where the Texas scene would flash its lights at me and let me know that there were people out there that like traditional country music, it’s just that this town isn’t catering to them.” A few times, Texas tried calling him back to his roots. “I remember hearing Cody Johnson for the first time, and I ran out of the room going, ‘Who the hell is that? They’re doing the kind of country music that I want to do, and I was told I’m not allowed to do,’” Byrnes says with a laugh. A more serious memory sticks with Byrnes of a separate night. “There was a conversation with Daryle Singletary where he straight-up told
me, ‘You’ve lost your way,’ and then to lay it on thicker, ‘You’re of the last of this new generation that gave me hope for traditional country music. Quit chasing, and get back to your roots.’” Tired of holding back and moved by all the signs pointing him south, Byrnes saw the beginning of the end in Nashville. One foot in Nashville and one foot out, Byrnes worked on a record with Trent Willmon and did performances with Johnson, Aaron Watson and a few others with similar styles. Byrnes credits this period of time as being the first instance that he felt encouraged to make music he was proud of. “These guys would tell me, ‘Texas would be a great place for you,’ and, ‘You would kill it there.’” After listening to these sentiments time and time again, he gave in and decided he was moving to Texas; it took only a week and a half before he was gone. “Once I was there, I still felt like it took over a year for me to ‘unbrainwash’ myself — which may not be an accurate way to describe what happened, but it’s as close as I can get to it,” he says. Now, years later, he has come to appreciate the journey he went through to land where he is now. “I’m kind of glad that I went around the sun and came back to help me really understand the style of who I am.” Byrnes’s newest album, Neon Town, encompasses the sounds he had been looking for all those years. He can’t name one song he prefers over another because he takes pride in the record as a whole. “It’s a sense of validation. I knew the sound I wanted, I just didn’t understand where it came from or why it was my sound,” he says seriously. “The reason we named it Neon Town is every single one of the songs on this record is something that you would hear at a Texas honky-tonk, songs that would fill up the dance floor. We thought Neon Town was the perfect representation of that.” His latest released single from the album, “Signs,” was the first song he knew he wanted on the record. “We wrote this song as far back as 2012 or 2013. Most of the songs on Neon Town are songs I wrote years ago, and I finally got a chance to record them. I’ve been saying for years and years that I can’t wait for the world to hear this song,” Byrnes says. He remembers driving to a writing session and being hit with traffic. Not breezing through town as he normally would, Byrnes had the chance to take in a few sights. “I realized that day how many things you see when you slow down. I was seeing signs, I was seeing billboards, I was seeing buildings — stuff that I would normally ignore.” He says that going from 50 miles per hour to 12 really put in perspective how important it is to occasionally slow down and look for the little things that might actually be important. “I got to thinking about how the same thing applies to relationships. You’re going so fast and doing all these things that you miss exactly what it is [your partner] is wanting you to do,” Byrnes explains. After pitching the idea to the guys at the writing session, they wrote “Signs.”
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The album, officially released in 2020, has already found great success in the short time it has been playing through radios and headphones. Byrnes is nominated for five awards at the Arkansas Country Music Awards (Arkansas CMAs) this year, one for Video of the Year for a music video Byrnes describes as being the definition of chaos. “‘Old School’ is the only song on the album that I didn’t write. My buddy brought it to me at the last minute, and I thought it fit me to a T. I’m not very fond of the way I see a lot of the male generation acting these days, so I thought this song was a good way of calling it out,” he says with a laugh. The music video was filmed during the pandemic, which took a hit on the people lined up to play parts. “Everyone was either exposed, sick or something happened, and they couldn’t make it. We were scrambling that morning calling anyone we knew.” Something worked, because the video he describes as a series of spur-of-the-moment decisions landed him on CMT — something he says never happened while he was living in Nashville. “It’s funny because now that I’m in Texas, I’m finally on CMT,” he says. “It was a fun, fun video to make.” On top of Byrnes’ Video of the Year nomination at the Arkansas CMAs, he is also nominated for Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, Country Artist of the Year and Album of the Year for Neon Town. “Validating is the word that comes to mind, but I feel like that doesn’t express it enough,” he says regarding the support of his home state. “I’ve lived in Nashville, [I’ve] lived in Texas, I’ve traveled the world, but home is always and will always be Arkansas. It means more to me than anywhere else.” Byrnes won in the category of Male Vocalist of the Year in 2020, but due to the pandemic things looked a little different with a virtual award show, and he’s excited to get the chance to potentially stand on stage in front of the people who gave him his voice. “These are the people that helped me build this career when nobody on planet Earth knew who I was or even cared who I was. To finally get the recognition and share that moment with them is something special.” Byrnes will also be performing at the award show on June 7 — one of many performances he has upcoming. “There’s a heck of a lot of touring coming up, and we’re so excited to go to places we haven’t played yet and grow the fanbase,” he says. While the pandemic closed down the world, Byrnes kept working and planning out the next moves in his career. “The pandemic really allowed me to get back to writing. I had been so busy and on the move for so long and figuring stuff out, but those few months that everything was shut down and people were sitting on their thumbs, we were writing, doing Facebook Lives, put out the music video, and just kept going.” Through all the highs and lows since moving out of Arkansas to follow his dream, Byrnes finally feels like he’s found his groove and takes pride in all that he’s done. He says, “To see the growth we’ve had just in the past year or two … it’s a sign that I’m finally doing it the way I’m supposed to be doing it, and I’m finally where I need to be. I feel at home.”
arts&culture
‘If Strings Could Talk’ Anna Brinker Continues to Grind By Kenneth Heard / Photos by Jamison Mosley
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he’s 30 years old, but country and western musician Anna Brinker sings like a veteran of the genre, telling stories of lost love and broken hearts, of old country roads and family photographs, of empty Jim Beam whiskey bottles and rusty pickup trucks. Brinker has had a lifetime of experiences in her three decades, moving frequently with her truckdriving father and her mother from Illinois to Wyoming, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Missouri, New Mexico and Arkansas. The brief stops along her life’s ways and the myriad of encounters she’s had over the years all lend to her heartfelt songs. She’s now settled, living with her husband, Cruise, in Ulm, a small Prairie County town of some 200 near Stuttgart, but the influences of her parents and her traveling continue through her music. Brinker’s father, Bill Scranton, taught her to play on an Abilene guitar in 1995; she first learned to cover Jeanne Pruett’s “Satin Sheets.” Scranton
Anna Brinker.
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would play coffee shops, singing songs he wrote in a lined, spiral notebook while strumming on his Gene Autry guitar. He kept the notebook with him constantly, scrawling a line or two whenever the muse hit him. Brinker studied his technique and replicated the writing, keeping a notebook full of ideas and potential lyrics herself. “He enjoyed the good old songs,” she says. “I feel like my daddy’s style influenced me a lot.” One of Brinker’s latest projects is Tumbleweed, a collection of songs that honor her father, whose nickname was “Tumbleweed.” She also recently released “Possum,” a tribute to George Jones, a pioneer of the country music industry who died in 2013, and another major influence of her up-and-coming career. Her video of the song shows Brinker walking through Jones’ museum in Nashville, stopping to look reverently at his displays, and visiting his gravesite at the Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum in Nashville. “When you think of grassroots and homegrown country music, you think of Anna,” says Charles Haymes, the vice president and director of artist relations for the Arkansas Country Music Association. “She loves the traditional country. She’s not into the new pop and contemporary country as much as some are.” Her album Rain and Whiskey has been nominated for the association’s album of the year. An awards ceremony will be held June 7 at the Reynolds Performance Hall on the campus of the University of Central Arkansas in Conway. This is the fourth year she’s been nominated for an Arkansas Country Music Award. In both 2018 and 2019, she was up for acoustic act of the year, and last year she and Adam Cunningham won vocal group of the year for their duet, “Thinking About You.” The awards are given to independent Arkansas artists who haven’t signed with major record labels, Haymes says. “It’s an honor,” Brinker says of the nomination. “I love the album. It’s humbling. There are a lot of albums in Arkansas that are really good. “I’m not a flashy singer. I just love getting lost in the music.” Brinker began singing at an early age. She and her mother, Trudy Scranton, would bounce around the back roads of wherever they lived in their Subaru BRAT pickup and sing to John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” on her mother’s eight-track player. She sang in her church bands and continued traveling with her father to his impromptu shows. And, like her father, she kept jotting down feelings and emotions, writing down snippets of possible songs that could be worked into melodies. “It comes from emotions,” she says of her music. “Whatever I’m feeling, eventually, the words come. I’ll work on it for a while. I may get frustrated, thinking, ‘Where could I put this in a song?’” Writing is not always pleasant for Brinker. “The words can put up a fight,” she says. Brinker is almost a contrast to the country music genre. While country songs are often about loss and heartache or partying with loads of alcohol and a devil-may-care attitude, Brinker is upbeat and optimistic. She includes smiling faces in her emails and is encouraging. But her lyrics are reflective of the emotions she feels inside.
In “Pictures on the Wall,” she sings, “In every picture, on every wall, there’s a memory.” In the title track, “Rain and Whiskey,” Brinker laments, “The bottle’s dry, but my eyes are soaking wet. I can’t forget you walking away. Oh, I tried. I fight like hell, against the dark you know my heart can’t take any more.” And loss is evident in “Between Being in Love and Alone” and reflective of her constant moving as a youngster. “Texas and Wyoming, Colorado roaming,” she sings.”I can’t believe how much it’s snowing. “I’m sure I’ll end up back at home, lookin’ at these pictures on my phone of us back when you loved me.” Brinker, who sells home and automobile insurance during the week and performs at weekend venues within a day’s drive from her home, gets up each day and writes songs before heading to work. Her father may call her early with an update on his own writing progress. “He’ll call me at 5, 6 or 7 a.m. and say, ‘I’ve got five songs. I’ve been up since 3.’” Brinker says she was able to repay her father for his influence by taking him to see George Jones perform in Forrest City in 2012. Jones died four months later in Nashville. “He was my daddy’s hero. It was the first time he ever saw him,” she says. “I still get chills talking about it. Seeing him live and hearing it was such a cool experience.” Brinker first performed at a show at a VFW lodge in Searcy in 2013. Her friend was a disc jockey there and set up her brief three- or four-song set. “I loved it,” she says. “I was overwhelmed by it. I loved every second of it. When I got off stage, my daddy said, ‘I told you they’d love you.’ It made me want to keep doing it.” Eight years later, she said she’s found her sound more and has gone from performing 30-minute gigs to playing three- or four-hour shows at times. “All I do now is work, sleep, take care of our three dogs and write music,” she says. Her husband has helped book shows for her and is her “top supporter.” Like all live performers, Brinker did have a setback this past year, though. Just as she was beginning to find weekly shows and becoming more confident in performing in 2020, the COVID-19 outbreak occurred, and venues began closing for health reasons. From last March to May, Brinker could play two or three shows a weekend. Then, when the virus was in full swing, she was lucky to find two shows in a month. “It took a toll,” she says. “It was disheartening.” The virus continues to alter her shows. Brinker was set to perform at the Arkansas Country Music Awards in Conway this month, but the act was canceled. Still, she says, she will continue searching for shows and playing wherever she can. She hopes to take time off from work later this year and play in Nashville. She has a friend there who is working to book her in a Nashville club. “That’s what I’ve always dreamed about,” she says of performing in Nashville. “I hope my audience will greet what I put out with open minds and open arms. The songs are so meaningful to me. I hope they accept them.”
I hope my audience will greet what I put out with open minds and open arms.
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By Lauren McLemore • Photos by Jamison Mosley
f Red Circle oB rd yrd Tjuana ffice of Tjuana By Law O
Heart Disease is the number one killer of women. Seventeen years ago, this was a little-known fact, but through the founding, advocacy and fundraising efforts of Go Red for Women, awareness is more widespread than ever before, and research is reaching new heights. Red Circle ofSnider Martha ropist Philanth
Circle of Red Jean McSweeney, PhD UAMS
popular event, the 2021 Central Arkansas Go Red for Women Go Red for Women is the American Heart Association’s luncheon. Though it is usually a social event, this year it will (AHA) signature initiative; a platform focused on women and take place virtually at noon on Thursday, June 24. During the designed to increase awareness of women’s heart health while luncheon, survivors of heart disease will be recognized. These encouraging change to improve women’s lives. Taking on this survivors are generally approached by their physician about challenge requires a village, which is why Central Arkansas’ recognition at the event and typically not otherwise involved Circle of Red is vital to the mission. with AHA, although sometimes they are. The Circle of Red is a diverse group of individuals who have Survivors of heart disease come from all backgrounds and joined the Go Red for Women movement and work together to ages. One particular honoree at this year’s luncheon is as young as drive and influence change to improve the lives and heart health 4 years old. of women in their communities. “[The luncheon] brings to Becki Swindell is the light different types of heart corporate market director and diseases,” Swindell says. “It has been with AHA since brings to light the different 2020. She helps to recruit conditions that these survivors members and sees a variety of face and helps educate not only individuals who are drawn to our Circle of Red members, the organization. but the general public about “We have numerous different heart disease and risk physicians, we have stay-atfactors that go along with those.” home moms, we have CEOs The event will also feature of corporations — so it’s a wide two female speakers, one of range of people that are drawn which is a heart disease survivor to the organization. We like herself: Catherine Biggers, to bring in a lot of different who suffered a heart attack at ideas and a lot of different age 49 during the coronavirus people with the common core pandemic. of having an interest in heart The stories and information health,” Swindell says. “We that will be shared across the come together socially and share virtual stage have a tendency to ideas and the latest information help the women attending with regarding women and heart their, what member Gina Pharis disease and just join forces calls, “lightbulb moment.” with regard to Go Red to help Pharis, a Circle of Red empower women to take charge member, has been involved of their health.” Circle of Red with AHA for 10 years. With LaShannon Spencer The organization doesn’t just Community Health Centers of Arkansas a strong family history of heart start conversations, though. It Chair, Go Red for Women disease, including a mother also puts action behind them by who died from it, Pharis has a advocating for and funding new personal connection to the mission. research. “I started with my mother in mind and my husband in mind,” “We also recognize the fact that women are highly Pharis says. “Since I joined, my two brothers have had open-heart underrepresented in cardiovascular research, which is ironic since surgery. My dedication is still there, and it’s been there since I heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women,” she says. “So that is started on Day One.” another factor of Go Red, that we try to close the gender gap in One of her neighbors will be recognized at this year’s research.” luncheon. Swindell is also the brains behind the organization’s most
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Arkansas CEO and Chair for Go Red for Women Raise awareness. Raise money. ofLaShannon Spencer is heading the organization’s initiative to expand the awareness to Arkansas’ rural Support the cause. communities. “It’s about actually witnessing women get it,” Pharis says. “Watching the lightbulb go off in their head when you go to an event and you introduce somebody new to what AHA does, it’s wonderful. The more people know, the more education people have. Maybe they’ll go get a baseline heart check, maybe they’ll go check something, maybe they’ll go get their cholesterol checked and change their way of dieting or eating by cutting out what they think is contributing to their cholesterol. I have seen and witnessed people do that, and that is a big deal.” Although she has now rotated off the board, she’s more passionate than ever about the mission. “It’s a great organization and is making a significant impact for women, especially, and that’s why I’m a Circle of Red member,” she says. “The AHA has put in over $4 billion in research, and part of our mission at Circle of Red is to raise awareness, raise money, support the cause as much as we can so we can do more research to educate women about heart disease. Just letting people know that it is so easy to pay attention to your body and listen to it, and if you have something, you need to go get checked out.” With the help of Community Health Centers of Arkansas, the message about heart health and encouragement to get checked out is reaching even more areas of the state. In October, AHA joined Community Health Centers of Arkansas for a Community Conversations webinar series focused on senior health, sponsored by CHI St. Vincent and Saline Health System. Webinar topics included: telehealth services, cardiovascular disease and vulnerable populations, COVID-19 and senior wellness checks. Community Health Centers
“I’m looking at it from a rural health care perspective — rural health and health inequities,” Spencer says. “And it’s important to me to be a part of giving back because the American Heart Association actually grants funding to not-forprofit organizations to help transform and increase awareness about heart disease. I have a 2024 strategic goal that really fosters rural health partnership by really working with rural residents to make them very much aware of the triggers when it comes to heart disease.” Having been involved with AHA for the last three years, Spencer’s role began when AHA leadership approached her to join the cause, knowing she can represent community health centers and be a resource to connect to rural communities. She’s also a Southwest Region Board Member for AHA, giving her new insight into what is possible at that level. “I see policies, I see how they have pushed policies pertaining to adolescent health, whether it was vaping and e-cigarettes legislation, whether it was in schools like the hydration stations where students can actually refill their bottles of water, grassroots campaigns,” Spencer says. Spencer often thinks about Go Red for Women luncheon speaker Biggers’ story about the heart attack she suffered during the pandemic and how this period of time has intensified many already-present risk factors for heart disease. She also cautions women against stress in general. “People don’t really think about the stress that has compounded because of COVID. How do you relieve stress? Your exercise, your diet. … I think about inflammatory disease and how inflammatory disease can often lead to heart attack,” Spencer says. “Stress is a silent killer, and I think about the workload, the roles that so many women have in their life.” Since joining and working with AHA,
Circle of Red Sharon Heflin Philanthropist
Circle of Red Debi Barnes DD&F Consulting
Circle of Red Anthony Fletcher, MD FAHA CHI St. Vincent
Spencer has seen her drive for public health and community health really begin to morph into a personal passion and commitment to educate about heart disease. “Most people, when they think about the Heart Association, they think about the special events,” Spencer says, “but they really don’t understand the value proposition of the return on investment they are making when they give that donation — so much research, clinical trials, published papers, partnerships with other not-forprofits, working with school districts to encourage children, teens to promote exercise — it’s definitely given me a different outlook and a connection to that mission.” She says that at the end of the day, raising awareness about heart health is as simple as just caring for the women in your life. “The idea is really to empower each woman to understand the signs and the importance of self-care — that is the most simplistic way that I can look at it. Self-care is critical. Selfcare for self, also self-care for the women you love. Being your friend’s keeper; being your sister’s keeper,” Spencer says. For information on Go Red for Women, Circle of Red or to get involved, contact Becki.Swindell@ heart.org.
Circle of Red Mike Poore Little Rock School District
Circle of Red LaShawn and Morris Kelley, MD
Circle of Red Mike Poore Little Rock School District
Circle of Red 2021 • Justin Allen • Elizabeth Andreoli • Heather Baker • Debi Barnes • Tjuana Byrd • Mangaraju Chakka, MD • Tom Conley, MD • Brian Eble, MD • Anthony Fletcher, MD, FAHA • Sharon Heflin • Tanya James • Cara Jones, DDS • LaShawn Kelley • Morris E. Kelley, MD • Lyndell Lay • Steve Leek • Jean McSweeney, PhD • Gary Nash, MD • Jim Pappas, MD • Gina Pharis • Mike Poore • Molly Smith • Martha Snider • LaShannon Spencer • Cassandra Steele • Carol Stephens • John Steuri • Grace Steuri • Cindy VanVeckhoven • Amy Wiedower Eble, MD
Gina Pharis Little Rock Marathon
IN ARKANSAS for Cardiology and Cardiovascular Surgery When your heart needs help, you can find one of our heart specialists or heart surgeons nearby. The CHI St. Vincent Heart Institute has more than 30 clinics across the state, treating everything from high blood pressure to open heart surgery. Our cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons take your heart care personally. Learn more about the CHI St. Vincent Heart Institute at chistvincent.com/heart.
Infirmary
www.chistvincent.com/heart
Arkansas Children’s treats children and adults with congenital heart disease. For more than 35 years, the David M. Clark Heart Center has provided expert care for countless patients. More than Follow approximately
1,700 adult congenital
patients annually (ONLY adult congenital heart program in the state) Almost 10,000 patient visits to cardiology outpatient clinics
350 heart transplants performed More than
600 procedures
performed in our cath labs each year
1,000–1,300 echocardiograms read monthly across the Arkansas Children’s system
Visit archildrens.org/HeartCenter to learn more about our cardiac services.
aymag.com
AY ABOUT YOU IS A PROUD SUPPORTER OF THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION AND GO RED FOR WOMEN As a women-led organization, the mission behind Go Red for Women is especially important to us at AY. We are honored to be the media sponsor and do our part in helping AHA raise awareness, support and resources to help combat the leading cause of death among women in the United States — heart disease.
Heather Baker Circle of Red 2021 Member President/Publisher AY Media Group
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very year, more than 200,000 women die from cardiovascular disease. And every year, the American Heart Association (AHA) continues its signature initiative, Go Red for Women, designed to increase awareness, institute change and, most importantly, save lives. “It’s no longer just about wearing red; it’s no longer just about sharing heart health facts,” AHA says in a statement on its website. “It’s about all women making a commitment to stand together with Go Red and taking charge of their own heart health as well as the health of those they can’t bear to live without. Making a commitment to your health isn’t something you have to do alone either, so grab a friend or a family member and make a Go Red Healthy Behavior Commitment today.” This month, the AHA is hosting its annual Central Arkansas Go Red for Women Luncheon, presented by Saline Health System, virtually on June 24 at noon, and its online auction adjacent to the luncheon from June 21 to June 24. Tickets to the luncheon will include a delivered box lunch for digital attendees to eat while watching the ceremony, and proceeds from both the luncheon and the auction will go toward continuing the mission of reducing heart disease, as about 80 percent of lifethreatening cardiac episodes are preventable. Among the itinerary for the Go Red for Women Luncheon will be the opportunity for attendees to “meet” local survivors of cardiac events. Their stories may sound similar to yours or someone you know. That’s not by design, it’s reality. Each has bravely retold the most vulnerable and terrifying moments of her life in order to make a difference for others. These are their stories. This is how they “go red.” How will you?
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Catherine Biggers Little Rock native Catherine Biggers was busy living a full life in Phoenix. She’ll be the first to say a heart attack was not in her plans. She was playing tennis with a friend one
Survivors recommends calling 911 at the first signs of a heart attack.) She was diagnosed as having a unique kind of heart attack called a Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection (SCAD), or the result of spontaneous tearing in the coronary artery wall. Patients are often women who are otherwise healthy, with few or no risk factors for heart disease. Biggers remained in the ICU for three days and was sent home with medication and pamphlets of information. Her heart is healing, but she is still trying to wrap her mind around what happened. “I was determined to find answers and help others,” Biggers says. “It was clear to me more research is needed and awareness had to be raised.”
Miracle Diaz
late July afternoon in 2020 — at the height of pandemic — when she suddenly felt as if someone was tightly squeezing her arm. As she continued to play, the left side of her chest felt as if it were being crushed. Biggers played on, assuming her symptoms were heat-related. Then she began to sweat profusely, much more than what should be considered normal for tennis on a hot July day. “I must have begun to look ill because my tennis partner asked if I was OK,” she recalls. “I said, ‘Yes,’ and carried on.” The pain worsened, and she took a break, but the symptoms wouldn’t go away. She drove herself home. Her symptoms came and went until she went to bed. Then, Biggers awoke at 4 a.m. in excruciating pain and decided it was time to go to the emergency room. (The AHA
Doctors noticed that Miracle Diaz had a hole in her heart during a prenatal ultrasound. The news was alarming, but her parents were told the problem would fix itself before Miracle’s birth. She was born without complications, and her family assumed all was well. One morning when she was 3, Miracle started getting sick and began to turn blue, but once she arrived at the hospital the symptoms were gone. An ER doctor said he heard a heart murmur and recommended she get an echocardiogram to further check her heart. Her family was stunned to hear their little girl needed open-heart surgery. The holes in her heart would need to be repaired. There was extra blood being pumped into the lung arteries, which makes the heart and lungs work harder. The day before Miracle’s surgery, her blood work showed she had a virus, and the surgery would need to be rescheduled. The procedure ended up being rescheduled three times, but on July 13, 2018, doctors patched the largest hole in her heart. Just seven days after surgery, Miracle was released from the hospital to go back home. She has to take medication regularly but has been able to reduce the number of medications from 15 to just five. She also has been cleared for check-ups annually instead of every six months. Her family says they got through the experience by staying strong in their faith, and it reminds them to live life to the fullest every day.
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Amber Edwards
Suzette Didier Suzette Didier remembers waking up on Dec. 7, 2013, after a snowy night. Later in the day, she decided to exercise, and that’s the last memory she had for seven weeks. Didier had experienced a stroke. She was found unresponsive, and she was rushed to the hospital. She had suffered a hemorrhagic stroke — or a brain bleed — along with multiple complications. This type of stroke makes up about 13 percent of stroke cases. She had bleeding on her brain, which was causing seizures. She also had experienced an aneurysm. About 5 percent of the population experiences a cerebral aneurysm. They occur when the wall of a blood vessel in the brain becomes weakened and bulges or balloons out. Doctors performed a cranial drill and placed a shunt to control the pressure in her brain and cauterized the aneurysm. From there, she began her long road to recovery. During that time, Didier was in and out of a coma, she received therapy to learn how to speak, swallow and walk and focused on helping the right side of her body recover — the side impacted by her stroke. Didier also lost part of her memory, and still to this day doesn’t recall her time in the hospital. She moved to an inpatient clinic, focusing on regaining writing skills, her attention span and her short-term memory. She couldn’t drive for an entire year afterward. In February 2014, she was finally able to return home, but that wasn’t the end of her journey. She continued therapy both in hospital and at home, she had regular checkups and needed a steroid shot to help with mobility in her right shoulder. Didier works part-time now and has continued her recovery. She attributes early intervention to saving her life.
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Amber Edwards received her diagnosis when she was pregnant. For years, she had problems of feeling winded easily and often experiencing shortness of breath. When she was pregnant, the stress the pregnancy added to her body caused problems with her heart rate. Without warning sometimes, her heart would race, or other times her heart rate would drastically slow. She passed out often. She felt drained of energy all the time. Edwards saw a cardiologist who tried several medications to help. When the symptoms subsided after her first baby was delivered, she thought most of the problems had been resolved. However, while carrying her second child, the symptoms returned and were even more severe. Her heart rate would suddenly jump to 200 beats per minute. She was referred to a different cardiologist
who determined — after many tests — that Edwards had mitral valve regurgitation and supraventricular tachycardia (SVT). Not long after delivering her son, Amber had her first heart ablation — which would remove a small area of tissue that caused irregular heartbeats. She has had two more ablations and another exploratory surgery that helped show doctors how to map pathways in her heart to fix the irregular heartbeat. Edwards takes medication daily to help stabilize
Nearly 80 percent of cardiac events can be prevented. her heart rhythm. She knows that there will always be a chance that doctors will tell her she needs a pacemaker. While she still experiences times of feeling winded, she doesn’t let her diagnosis control her life. She wants other women to know that your health story may include some hurdles, but the key is having determination bigger than any obstacle in your way.
Lisa Gaddy Lisa Gaddy lost both her father and her sister to heart disease within less than a year, but when she started experiencing symptoms of her own, they didn’t raise any red flags. At first, she
assumed her feelings were those of depression. However, months later she kept having bouts of dizziness and difficulty breathing. It was time for a checkup. Gaddy’s heart looked enlarged, so she was referred to a cardiologist. The initial plan was to have a cardiac stress test and an echo — but before the stress test could be done, doctors asked her if there was anyone she’d like to call to join her during a consultation. Gaddy was in congestive heart failure. In fact, she had an ejection fraction (EF) of just 17 percent. (EF is a measurement of how much blood is being pumped through the body.) A measurement of 40 percent or below is considered reduced, and symptoms may be noticeable even during rest. Gaddy was stunned. She had just turned 40 years old. She had a pacemaker and defibrillator implanted just three weeks after that appointment. The device, paired with
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medication, helped give her greater stamina, and her heart maintained the EF of 17 percent for a decade. In fall 2015, those sluggish and dizzy feelings came back — so Gaddy made an appointment. Her EF had decreased to just 10 percent. She met with the transplant team and created a comprehensive lifestyle plan, which included new medications, as well as dietary changes and regular exercise. She started feeling better in a few weeks. She’s maintained those adjustments, and her EF has remained steady. Gaddy’s heart failure has not kept her from living a full life. She loves to travel with friends and family and being a wife, mother and coach.
Katie Lea Katie Lea’s heart story began when she was just a toddler. During a routine checkup, her primary care physician heard a heart murmur. At the time, the doctor advised that the situation would be monitored, and if the murmur didn’t resolve on its own, Lea would be referred to a specialist. Her heart murmur was due to a coarctation of the aorta — a narrowing of the major artery that carries blood to the body. This narrowing affects blood flow to the upper and lower parts of the body and can cause high blood pressure or heart damage. She had surgery when she was 3 and stayed in the hospital for two weeks after the procedure. While Lea doesn’t personally remember all the details of what happened to her, she has a permanent reminder. The surgery left a scar on her chest — a “zipper,” as many heart patients refer to it. To help reduce the stigma of the scar, Katie’s mother gave one of her dolls a similar mark. While her memories of the recovery aren’t as clear, the love and support her family received from their community is something she still holds dear. Lea believes that sense of giving back led her to choose a career in nursing. aymag.com
Cardiovascular diseases continue to be a woman’s greatest health threat. Michelle Rupp
Jennifer Siccardi
Michelle Rupp’s diagnosis came in December 2005, however, she had been experiencing episodes of her heart “racing” since she was 9 years old. Sporadically and without warning, her heart would race, at times beating as much as 300 beats per minute. Extreme chest, jaw and arm pain would accompany such an irregular beat. The beating was so fast you could feel it by placing your hand on her chest. Rupp’s pediatrician surmised this was her body’s way of dealing with stress. Still, doctors never caught the episode in the moment, so there were no definitive answers. Without a diagnosis and subsequent solution, Rupp handled the racing heart as best she could. Generally, the episodes would force her to sit down and get still. They would run their course, lasting 30-60 seconds, at times longer, before her heart would convert back into a normal rhythm on its own. After finishing a 5K on that December day in 2005, Rupp knew something was different. The episode lasted more than an hour, and she went to the hospital. When the nurse took her vitals, her heart rate was 208 beats per minute. While being whisked away to a room, the nurse explained they needed to stop her heart and restart it in the proper rhythm. After the reset, it was determined she had WolffParkinson-White Syndrome. She had too many electrical pathways for her heart to receive the signal to beat. When the signals got crossed, her heart would race. On April 7, 2006, doctors cauterized her heart to sever those extra pathways, thus curing her. Still a runner, Rupp has successfully completed 18 marathons, one 50k and numerous half marathons since that procedure.
Jennifer Siccardi was getting ready for bed one late October night in 2017 when she started experiencing pronounced chest pain. Since she suffers from acid reflux, both she and her husband assumed that was the culprit. The pain was severe, but when she woke up the next morning she felt fine. Over the next few days, she experienced the same symptoms of chest cramps and weakness whenever she ate. Finally, she sought help at an urgent care clinic and, eventually, the emergency room. Siccardi was diagnosed with coronary artery disease, a condition in which plaque grows within the walls of the arteries and restricts blood flow to the heart’s muscles. Doctors in the emergency room told her she would be getting a stent put in her heart to open the artery to allow better blood flow. Once the procedure was finished, her husband shared that days before, when they both had assumed she had suffered from reflux, she had in fact experienced a heart attack. These days, Siccardi is doing well. She sees her doctor every few months and makes sure to exercise regularly and monitor her diet. No additional surgeries are on the horizon. Siccardi is passionate about educating all those around her about heart disease. She stresses that if something feels off, people should check with their doctor and not try to diagnose themselves.
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Lucy Street Lucy Street’s heart story began before she was born. During a prenatal checkup, doctors noticed Lucy’s heart was slightly enlarged. Further tests showed that she had severe Ebstein’s Anomaly, a condition in which a heart valve doesn’t work properly and may leak. If the valve leaks, some of the blood pumped by the right ventricle goes back through the valve with each heartbeat. The valve on Lucy’s right side is so inferiorly displaced that her right ventricle barely functions. After birth, Lucy had difficulty breathing and experienced frequent arrhythmias. She remained in the hospital until her first surgery at just 2 months old. This removed the wall between her two atriums. The first year of her life was a whirlwind for her family as they learned new terminology, medicine, starting physical and occupational therapy and a second heart surgery at 6 months old. This procedure rerouted her blood flow and helped increase her blood/oxygen level. Lucy had a third surgery, the Fontan Procedure, a type of openheart surgery to make the blood from the lower part of the body go directly to the lungs. This lets the blood pick up oxygen without having to pass through the heart. There were complications, but nothing they couldn’t overcome. She has had several arrhythmia issues since, with a couple hospital stays to adjust medications, but her parents believe she’s on the mend. When spending time with her, it’s easy to forget her heart functions differently than other 4-year-olds. Lucy’s family sees her scars as beautiful reminders of where the family has been and to be thankful for every moment together.
Go Red for Women Luncheon,
presented by Saline Health System • Thursday, June 24 Noon – 1 p.m.
Go Red for Women Auction • June 21 to June 24
For more information, visit heart.org or CentralARGoRed.heart.org
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C
atherine Biggers is active, fit, doesn’t smoke and had a heart attack at the age of 45. She had no pre-existing health conditions and no genetic history of heart disease. And although her heart attack came as a terrible shock, Biggers’ story is one of hope. On July 28, 2020, Biggers had been playing tennis when she felt a crushing pain in her chest and left arm. Being young and healthy, she told herself she was probably just tired and decided to turn in early that night. As she lay in bed, a small part of her wondered, “What if?” At four in the morning, she woke up to excruciating pain in her chest and arm again, but now accompanied by another symptom — jaw pain. This time, she
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listened to her gut and went to the hospital. Biggers’ heart attack was a surprise even to the ER nurses and doctor who at first assured her it was probably just anxiety. But, after running precautionary tests and an EKG, the doctor came back with the tough news. “He put his hand on my leg and said, ‘You are having an active heart attack,’” she recalls. Biggers was placed in an ambulance and rushed over to a cardiac hospital where she spent several days in the ICU. “That was very scary.” Cardiologists discovered she had an uncommon type of heart condition called Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dis section (SCAD), which is a tear in an artery wall. This kind of heart attack doesn’t follow the traditional risk factors associated with
HEART DISEASE IS THE LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH FOR MEN AND WOMEN IN THE UNITED STATES. ACCORDING TO THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION (CDC), ABOUT 655,000 AMERICANS DIE FROM HEART DISEASE EACH YEAR — THAT’S 1 IN EVERY 4 DEATHS.
more common heart attacks. In fact, SCAD mostly targets women exactly like Biggers — women who are in their mid-40s to mid-50s and are healthy and active. Researchers aren’t sure what causes SCAD, but just like other types of heart attacks, it’s important to recognize the symptoms and get treatment immediately.
KNOW THE SIGNS If there’s one thing we can learn from Biggers’ experience, it’s to pay attention to possible signs of a heart attack and take them seriously. Early recognition of heart attack symptoms equals
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early treatment and a better chance of survival. In her case, if she had not gone to the emergency room that day, doctors said her heart attack would have been fatal. Experiencing a heart attack may be beyond your control, but what you can do is know the signs and get to a hospital immediately. The Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) has instilled a “Dial, Don’t Drive” campaign. About half of all heart attack patients drive themselves to the ER, not realizing the potential for cardiac arrest along the way or the risk of not going to the appropriate hospital. Calling 911 for an ambulance is more than a quick ride to the hospital. Treatment begins in the ambulance with first responders who know which hospital is best for
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cardiac emergencies. They can start treatment right away, assess vital signs, perform an EKG, start an IV and begin life-saving measures that can often be the difference between life and death. According to the American Heart Association, the following are the most common signs of a heart attack.
CALL 911 IF YOU EXPERIENCE: • Chest discomfort. Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes — or it may go away and then return. It can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain. • Discomfort in other areas of the upper body. Symptoms can include pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach. • Shortness of breath. This can occur with or without chest discomfort. • Other signs. Other possible signs include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness.
Dr. Sarah Beth McKenzie.
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Sadly, heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 655,000 Americans die from heart disease each year — that’s 1 in every 4 deaths. In Arkansas, 8,675 people died of heart disease in 2019. Dr. Sarah Beth McKenzie of Arkansas Heart Hospital recommends that, whether heart disease runs in a person’s family or not, everyone should establish care with a physician and see that doctor regularly. “That way, your doctor can identify familial patterns that might need further evaluation,” she explains. Women are especially urged to make heart health a priority. According to McKenzie, death by cardiovascular disease has been declining in men, but not in women. Women share the same risk factors as men — such as family history, age, hypertension, diabetes and more — but they have additional risk factors related to menopause, hysterectomy and pregnancy. McKenzie screens her patients with risk factors annually and recommends patients with no known risk factors undergo specific cardiovascular risk assessments throughout their lifetime. She also asks people to focus on lifestyle modification because “the best treatment is prevention.” Maintaining a healthy lifestyle means keeping a continuous pattern of good habits. It is something you can work on every day.
HOPE FOR HEARTS Biggers is one of this year’s speakers for the Central Arkansas Go Red for Women event. The event, run by the American Heart Association’s (AHA) local chapter, is one of several created to bring awareness about heart disease and to be a driving force for research, public health policy and gender and racial equality in health care. “Every person deserves the opportunity to live a healthy life, regardless of their gender or socioeconomics,” LaShannon Spencer says. “It’s a matter of removing those barriers so that they can.” As the Community Health Centers of Arkansas CEO and the Central Arkansas 2021 Go Red for Women Chair, Spencer is passionate about bringing awareness, especially to those groups that need it most. “I am passionate about this because heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women,” she emphasizes. “How are we, as women, taking care of ourselves? How are we as women, wives, mothers, daughters, sisters, friends empowering to educate our loved ones about the power of being healthy and whole and eliminating stress, which can actually be a trigger?” AHA has created a road map to advance cardiovascular health for all by removing barriers to health care access and quality by 2024. Almost one year later, Biggers is living a healthy and full life. “I don’t know if this will happen again, but I can’t live my life in fear that it might,” she says. “I want to inspire other women who are dealing with heart disease to find out what their new life looks like and find joy in that.” Biggers’ new life includes a few things she cannot do anymore but also many things she can. She still bikes, hikes and plays tennis. Now, she takes her prescribed daily medication, keeps up with her doctor’s visit and stays informed by reading information related to her heart condition. She also adds some practical steps to her daily routines, like monitoring her heart rate with a smartwatch to make sure it stays in her recommended zone.
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FOR A
HEALTHY HEART: WATCH YOUR WEIGHT.
QUIT SMOKING AND STAY AWAY FROM SECONDHAND SMOKE. IF YOU DRINK ALCOHOL, DRINK ONLY IN MODERATION. CONTROL YOUR CHOLESTEROL AND BLOOD PRESSURE. GET ACTIVE AND EAT HEALTHILY.
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M THE PEOPLE BEHIND YOUR NEWS:
Wess
MOORE
By Dustin Jayroe • Photos by Jamison Mosley
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I was at Lon Morris Junior College and realized I love TV news, and that was the career path I wanted to take.
Wess Moore.
I
n the sports world, much is made about athletes who are dubbed “triple threats.” In the NFL, there are few better examples than the late Sammy Baugh, who famously could pass, run and kick. In basketball, there are the pass-dribbleshoot trifectas like LeBron James and Luka Doncic in the modern-day. And, of course, one of the greatest players to ever kick a soccer ball, Lionel Messi, is a maestro of all trades. If one were to concoct a list of Arkansas triple threats, it would probably be led by the likes of Joe Johnson and Darren McFadden for his days in the “Wild Hog” formation. But in media? Well, there’s no more obvious answer than Wess Moore. He’s co-host of The Zone on 103.7 the Buzz by day, sports director at KLRT-FOX16 by night, and a quintessential family man all the time, as a husband of nearly 20 years and a father to two daughters. But just as happy and blessed as he feels to be where he is today, and for as notorious as his name, face and voice is in the local sports scene, the path he’s walked would probably look completely foreign to his teenage self. A boy whose seasons were determined by the sport played — be it football, baseball, golf or basketball — and who had aspirations to follow in the footsteps of the many hoopers that made up his family tree. His grandmother’s side of the family included a towering group of men, many of whom took their basketball careers with them to college at places like Louisiana Tech University, Lamar University and Tyler Junior College. When he got a little older, one of his cousins went to play for Lon Morris Junior College in Jacksonville, Texas, Moore’s hometown, which is just south of Tyler. “I would go to all of his games,” Moore says. “So, I always grew up wanting to be like them and play college basketball and be a basketball player.” Life has a funny way of hedging hopes and dreams, though. In the summer leading into his senior year of high school, Moore played pick-up basketball with a few of the players at Lon Morris, some of whom went on to play for the University of Texas. “They were really, really good,” Moore remembers. “[I was] getting dunked on and dominated, and I knew I wasn't going to be an NBA player. That was kind of my slap in the face that I didn't have a professional future. The college offered me a scholarship after my senior year, but I knew I wasn't going to get a lot of playing time, and I needed to probably start figuring out what I wanted to do when I ‘grew up’ and graduated from college.” On his first day at Lon Morris, his counselor (unwitting of his existential epiphany on the pick-up court) asked him for an answer to that question. What Moore had come up with to that point was pretty scattershot — an architect, a dentist or television news. “She said, ‘Well, that's funny because the news director for the local station was just in my office and said that if I had anybody interested, send them on out, and I’ll put them to work,’” Moore recalls. “So, I went home, gave the guy a call, he gave me a job, and I started as an 18-year-old working for the local TV station as like a cameraman, editor, teleprompter operator — just behind-the-scenes work. I did that for the two years I was at Lon Morris Junior College and realized I love TV news and that was the career path I wanted to take.” After two years at Lon Morris, Moore took his talents to San Marcos and Texas State University because of its reputation for having a great department and curriculum for budding broadcasters. His headstart at junior college and his work on the ground — which sometimes took a form akin to “trial by fire” — left him just as prepared as anyone else, if not more so. Contrasted against his setback on the court three summers prior, Moore was the one dunking
and dominating now; he was in his element. There were plenty of times at Texas State when he knew more about the television equipment than even some of the teacher’s assistants, advising them and his classmates through troubleshooting with simple remedies like, “unscrew the top, and this wheel right here is clogged — all you’ve got to is kind of wind it up a couple of times,” and so on. His time spent at work left him well-equipped for the back end of the news; college provided experience in front of the camera as an anchor and reporter. Moore’s first gig out of college was as a news reporter in Ada, Oklahoma, in 1994. Shortly after, he ventured south to be a reporter in a larger market for KTAL-NBC in Shreveport, Louisiana, and would soon earn a promotion to anchor the morning and weekend news for the station. But a career move wasn’t the only thing in store for Moore in the Bayou State. In 1998, his morning show hired a new producer, fresh out of college and a native of the city: Alyson Courtney. Residents of Central Arkansas may recognize her well as the morning news anchor for KATV-Channel 7, but at the time, she was a little “green in the business,” as she’s said in the past. And she didn’t particularly like her new boss, the blue-eyed, matter-of-fact son of Texas: Moore. “I went home to friends and family and said, ‘I don’t know if I can work for this guy,’” Courtney told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette in 2015. Once again, the ironies of life continued to spindle for Moore. Because, though she may have said those things about him back then, that quote comes from a Valentine’s Day article titled “Lasting love in Little Rock,” for the two would eventually hit it off romantically and wed in 2002. “When you do that morning shift, it's just you and a couple of people at the station, and you become friends,” Moore says. “Over time, our friendship just really, really developed.” He still remembers their first official date — Dec. 14, which also happens to be his sister’s birthday. And with the benefit of a little amative hindsight, he now admits that her first impression might have been warranted. “I may have been a little hard on her,” he says behind a laugh, before adding that there were some instances where he “could have been a little bit nicer.” The pair quickly became a package deal and would then move to Moore’s home state to work at a local station in Victoria, Texas, where he would be the main news anchor at 6 and 10 p.m. for the next three years. He was a decade into his career at this point, working beats and behind desks that were — save for a few opportunities here and there — absent of his first love. Having his lifelong love by his side helped, but he couldn’t quite shake that itch to get into sports. The problem, however, is that sports news is a very difficult niche to break into. Moore recalls some advice that he received at the dawn of his career: Most men in the news want to do sports, but there are usually only two sports jobs available at each station. There are 10 to 20 general news jobs, so it’s usually easier to chart an upward trajectory in the industry with that route. For 10 years, the news was his lane. Then came that move back to Texas, where high school football is connate to religion. Every Friday night, his station would devote a huge portion of the program to the sport, and Moore was all over it. “They knew I loved sports, so they would send me out to the game of the week; I would report live, do the highlights and do a live shot every Friday night at 10 o’clock.” One Saturday morning, a consultant for the station came to town and met with Moore. The consultant told him, “Look, you're really good at doing news. But when you did sports last night, a different side of you came out. You were shining. … I'm not trying to encourage you to leave here, because I'm here as a consultant for the station, but when you do decide to leave, I would advise you to put together a news tape and a sports tape — send it out
I love what I do. I feel truly blessed, and I'm very lucky.
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and see what happens.” When Moore’s contract neared its end, that’s exactly what he did. To his excitement, he got a lot of attention for the latter, including from a station in Little Rock: KTHV-Channel 11. The gravy was that Courtney, now his wife, was also offered a job at THV11 as a reporter. It was a “no brainer” in their eyes, and the tandem joined the network in 2003, with Moore as the weekend sports anchor. Arkansas would become much more than just another stop for each of them. In 2005, their first child, Brooklyn, was born. That, mixed with how fondly the pair had come to feel about living in Little Rock, made the Natural State feel like a place that they could call home for the long haul. Just a couple of years later, they welcomed their second daughter, Berkeley, into the world. If there were any doubts left, she surely erased them. Arkansas is where they’d stay and raise their daughters. “We love Little Rock … it's a great market, and it's the perfect location for us; my family's four and a half hours away in east Texas, and Shreveport’s three hours away from here,” Moore says. “So we can still jump in the car and see our families.” By 2012, Moore had stepped away from the television screen for sports radio. That deviation of his career actually has roots dating back to 2003, when he had a side gig on AM radio called Mayhem in the AM. The station was later sold, and the new owners changed the format, but his bug for microphones and headsets didn’t dissolve with the show. At THV11, he ran a recurring subsidiary show called The Hog Zone, which KARN would later pick up to air on 920 AM the Sports Animal. Moore’s radio show directly preceded the Shawn & Wally Show, which was hosted by Shawn Arnell and Wally Hall. Ladder rungs in radio just kept appearing for Moore; he’d hoist himself up, the ownership would change or another opportunity would come, and he’d latch onto another. When he left THV11 to pursue radio full time, he figured that was the end of his television career. He loved radio for its long-form nature and the freedom it provided and had no intentions or inclinations elsewhere. Then FOX16 called him in 2013. They were in the market for a sports
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director, and he was at the top of the list of candidates. “‘We really want you to come on board,’” he still remembers the words quite vividly. “It was just perfect timing.” Moore took the job, slating him as the sports lead for the network and tabbing him with sports segments for the 5:30 and 9 p.m. news shows. But he wouldn’t give up his radio side, going on to host a mid-afternoon FM show for KKSP out of Bryant, which had rebranded itself in 2013 to “93.3 The Source,” and then to “93.3 The Jock.” Following the trend he had grown accustomed to (and now laughs about), though, KKSP’s ownership then changed, and in 2015 it went through another rebranding, this time to contemporary Christian music, and renamed itself “93.3 The Fish.” You’ll get no complaints from Moore for all of the radio hopping, however. The sometimes chaotic ladder ultimately led him to his current side hustle in radio — co-host of 103.7 the Buzz’s The Zone with Justin Acri. Which was fitting, considering Moore was hand-selected by Acri to fill the shoes of previous co-host Pat Bradley when the former Razorback basketball player moved back to his hometown of Boston in 2018, because Bradley cut his teeth in radio at 93.3 with former Razorback football player Clint Stoerner. “I didn't have to worry about the station being sold, the format being changed,” Moore says of joining The Buzz. “It brought along some stability, and I just absolutely loved it. It's been just the perfect fit for the last two and a half years.” The obvious question to beg at Moore — who, to reiterate, is the sports director for FOX16 and a co-host of one of the state’s most popular weekday radio shows at its most recognized sports station, who also volunteers in the audio/video room at Pulaski Heights United Methodist Church every Sunday, all while being married to someone also in media with whom he’s raising two daughters — is how? Has he found a way to cheat the mere 24 hours the rest of us get in a day? Not exactly, but sort of. “I am a routine guy,” Moore says, before explaining that routine in a way that sounds far too easy. His wife, who left THV11 for KATV in 2011, typically wakes up at
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around 2 a.m. to prep for her morning show, Daybreak. Moore is up by 6:30 a.m. to get the girls breakfast and ready for school. After dropping them off (sometimes being joined by his wife if she gets home early enough), he gets in at least a 30-minute gym workout from 8:15 to 8:45 a.m. Then it’s back home to clean up and get ready for work — which is the Buzz from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and straight to the FOX16 headquarters afterward where he begins the second part of his workday. He handles the sports segment for the 5:30 p.m. news show, goes home to eat dinner with his family, and then heads back to HQ for the 9
p.m. news. Such a lifestyle has meant making sacrifices from time to time, decisions that came naturally and easily for Moore. Easily because he loves his family more than anything; naturally because he learned a lot about that from his father, Mavis Moore Jr., who passed away from a heart attack in February. “I love telling the story that I grew up a sports fan and loving sports and playing sports, and he was an outdoorsman,” Moore says. “He loved to hunt and fish, and he took me hunting and fishing all the time. I liked it, but I didn’t love it. … Unless the fish are schooling and you’re catching them one after another, that wasn’t fun for me. “Once he saw my love for golf, he sacrificed for me hunting and fishing. He basically put up the guns and boats and went golfing with me every weekend — me, and my grandfather, and my godfather and my dad would go golfing every Saturday and Sunday at our little nine-hole course. To me, that was a great legacy — that my dad sacrificed what he loved so that he could be with me doing something that I loved. … He was a great father, and that’s what he’s passed down to me.” Approaching his first Father’s Day without his own dad, Moore is even more dedicated to living his life without regrets and with the ones he cares about most. The priority of Moore’s life is his girls — his wife, Courtney, and their two daughters, Brooklyn and Berkeley. In one final toast of irony, the very weekend tradition that he developed with his father, brought about by sacrifice, has now been cut out of his routine via the same selfless act. Although, for both men, sacrifice might be too strong a word. It’s love. “I don’t want to get up on a Saturday and Sunday and say, ‘Hey, I’ll see y’all in five hours,’” Moore says. “I want to be there on the weekends, whether it’s going to see a play that the girls are in, or some kind of performance, or just hanging out or grilling — that’s our time, family time on the weekends.” And while lots of men often daydream about playing catch — or hunting and fishing — with a son one day, Moore pays such stereotypes no mind and has fully embraced life as a girl dad. Whether it’s their aforementioned theater performances or simply participating in a color-coordinated dressup party to help his family pass the time during the pandemic, he’s there (and probably having just as much fun as his girls are at every turn.) One thing is for certain — Moore is living his life to the fullest, and you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who loves that life more than he does. Just as his father passed the torch on that legacy to him, so too is Moore to his daughters. And then some. “I love what I do,” he says. “I feel truly blessed, and I’m very lucky.”
Photos courtesy of Wess Moore and family. 180
Introducing the UAMS Health Heart Center.
Comprehensive heart care from the state’s #1 hospital.*
Paul Mounsey, M.D.
Jay Bhama, M.D.
Hakan Paydak, M.D.
Guarav Dhar, M.D.
Chief of UAMS Cardiovascular Medicine, Electrophysiologist
Chief of Cardiovascular Surgery, Cardiovascular Surgeon
Director of Electrophysiology, Cardiologist
Director of Interventional Cardiology and Structural Heart, Interventional Cardiologist
At the UAMS Health Heart Center, you’ll find a team-based approach to heart care combining the best of cardiology care and cardiac surgical expertise. Our focus is on our patients and their families to provide outstanding care and clear communication.
Heart Center To schedule a consultation, call 501-686-5311. Learn more at UAMS.Health/HeartCenter
Our approach is to use minimally invasive techniques whenever possible to build up the structure of your heart, help your heart work more efficiently and, ultimately, provide life-changing results. Our expert team uses the most advanced treatments and procedures to treat a wide range of heart conditions, including: Artery Disease Cardiac Arrest Cardiovascular disease Chest Pain Cholesterol Management Congestive Heart Failure
*Recognized by U.S. News & World Report as having the best hospital in Arkansas 2020-21 rankings and ratings.
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Heart Murmurs & Palpitations (Atrial Fibrillation) High Blood Pressure Mitral Valve Disease Stroke Vascular Disease And much more
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By Dwain Hebda
Photos courtesy of UAMS
UAMS Breast Center offers hope, healing in spacious new setting “I DON’T WANT TO DO THIS.”
Most of the thoughts rolling through LeaAndrea Maxwell’s head on that day, Feb. 27, 2020, were a numbing buzz. The medical professional in front of her hadn’t stopped talking, but the words ceased to make sense, like listening to music underwater. The entrepreneur, performer and caregiver to her aging father had just been given news none of the women in her family had ever had to hear — breast cancer. And the shock of it dulled her senses aside from one quiet but firm voice, on repeat: “I don’t want to do this.” “To be diagnosed with cancer at such a young age and then, right at the beginning of the pandemic, I really didn’t know what to do,” Maxwell says. “I thought, this is going to just stop everything in my life, and I was having some second thoughts about treatment, and whether or not I wanted to do anything about it. “One of the things that I really loved about my doctor is she knew that, and she actually took the time to call me — like, personally, herself. She sat on the phone with me for almost an hour, explaining the type of cancer that I had and how imperative it was that we do something about it. So that’s what gave me that extra push.” Even with the physician’s consult giving
her direction, Maxwell’s choice of the UAMS Breast Center didn’t do much to inspire her in her recovery. With its cramped quarters stuck into a make-do space in the aging Outpatient Center, the accommodations were somber and inefficient, far removed from the hospital’s stellar reputation for level of care that attracted her in the first place. “Initially, I chose UAMS because I know they are second to none when it comes to care and the patients and forward-thinking treatment and medication,” she says. “UAMS has saved my life on more than one occasion, so I definitely wanted to go there. “As far as the Breast Center, it definitely left a lot to be desired. I don’t think it was laid out well. You were kind of confused where you needed to go, and everything wasn’t centrally located.” Maxwell nonetheless reported for her treatments as scheduled during March and April, pandemic be damned. Then, by the time she made her next appointment, she was directed to the new UAMS Breast Center, freshly opened in the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute. It was like stepping onto the surface of another planet. “It had such a nice, open feel about it. I mean, it’s like a breath of fresh air,” she says. “It’s easier to find everything, every doctor that you need. When you go and get your blood work, it’s right there when you first come in the door. I think it’s a lot easier for people.” Through a series of medications, radiation and surgery, Maxwell was declared cancerfree and put onto a stepped-up maintenance program of exams and return visits to ensure the cancer doesn’t come back. She considers the new facility to have been critical in her recovery. “When you’re dealing with cancer, you’re going to be exhausted. You’re going to be tired,” she says. “You really don’t want to have to trek from one building all the way to the next, or to another floor, or this is in the old
The functional and artful design of the new center left no detail to chance.
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The new Breast Center has been in the works forever. This has been 17 years in the making.
Dr. Gwendolyn Bryant-Smith, director.
part of the hospital, or this is in the new part of the hospital. With them putting it all in one area, and the nice open-space design with the windows, and you get the sunlight coming in, it’s definitely beautiful. It makes you feel a lot more welcome. “It was a very emotional journey, but I’m thankful for the doctors that I had because they were very understanding. You never felt rushed. If you were having a happy day, they were all for it. If you were having a bad day and you wanted to cry, they let you cry.” *** Laying eyes on the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute is an aweinspiring experience. Twelve stories of glass soar skyward ushering in countless people whose only commonality is they are facing the biggest fight of their lives. Tour any one of the departments and see the latest in cancer technology at work with equal attention paid to patient comfort and emotional health, while drugs and machines wage war on mutated cells. The finished floors are so impressive that it’s jarring to find a floor that is still just steel studs and drywall. Most people don’t know the looming tower is not yet fully built out, forcing some cancer departments to reside
in makeshift quarters until the necessary funding can finish out their floor alongside their fellows. Such was the case with the UAMS Breast Center, which finally welcomed patients to its new, 12,000-square-foot space in early April. It’s part of a domino effect of cancer departments at long last coming home. “The new Breast Center has been in the works forever. This has been 17 years in the making,” says Dr. Gwendolyn Bryant-Smith, director. “Funding was the issue. There’s been a pursuit of fundraising for a number of years to finish out floors three, six and seven. That is all happening now. “Six was finished first and opened first a few months back. Then we’ve opened on the third floor, which is housing the Breast Center and bone marrow. Bone marrow opened a month or two before we did. The last project that they expect to open in the fall is the seventh floor, which is going to be a multi-disciplinary clinic where multiple doctors can see a patient at one time, so the patient’s not having to go all over.” Bryant-Smith is a small woman with a huge personality, whose personal and professional roots in Little Rock run a mile deep. UAMS is familiar turf; here, she completed medical school, her five-year radiology residency, her one-year breast fellowship, then two more years on staff. After an eight-year stint as chief of breast imaging for the VA, she came back to UAMS in 2016 as head of breast imaging and director of the program. Despite all of this affinity, she doesn’t pull any punches when describing the challenges of the center’s previous digs, as it awaited the funds to expand. “The Breast Center, prior to our April 5, 2021 move, was housed in the Outpatient Building, an older building that’s been around for many, many, many years,” she says. “We were in about 4,500 square feet, and we had
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outgrown our space. We had kind of a closed area waiting room with no windows. The space was small. We had three mammography rooms, two ultrasound rooms.” The overloaded space forced a daily three-card monte of personnel, shuffling 20 employees and a stray medical student or two among the average 67 scheduled patients a day, not counting drop-ins. Wait times could expand at the drop of a hat when the unexpected walked in. “We often got behind if we had a biopsy going on in one ultrasound room and two or three patients unexpectedly showed up with lumps,” Bryant-Smith says. “They would schedule as a screening exam, then they would come to clinic and say, ‘Oh, by the way, I feel this lump.’ “So that would completely change their exam and, of course, we’re not going to turn them away and say, ‘This is not what you were scheduled for.’ That could change a wait time from 20 minutes to an hour or an hour and a half if you had to just sit and wait until another patient finished having an ultrasound.” The new Breast Center, by contrast, is an open and airy space where no design detail has been left to chance. Attention was given right down to placement of changing rooms’ fixtures and lighting. Special attention was devoted to traffic flow, minimizing the number of steps a woman takes from one area to the next with a special discreet entrance for public figures to avoid prying eyes. On par with the medical offerings is the attention given to ambiance, anchored by a large wall at the entrance finished in a texture that simulates waves on a lake or ocean with soft color-change lighting flowing over it. Original artwork is soon to arrive to adorn the walls, and natural light is everywhere. If these considerations seems superfluous, it’s only because you haven’t found yourself in this
Dr. Cam Patterson and other UAMS leadership touring the center.
situation, Bryant-Smith says. “Anxiety is quoted as one of the harms in the literature of mammography. We are fighting to decrease that by creating a space for the patient that feels more serene, less claustrophobic,” she says. “You always remember the painting that was in the room when you get diagnosed. Or, you always remember the painting in the room when you sat there scared, waiting on the diagnosis or if they were going to tell you that you were cleared. “So, artwork is a very important way to minister to patients, as is lighting that’s serene. The whole thing is to create a calm environment for medical procedures and tests that tend to provoke anxiety.” *** There’s no telling how many lives will be saved by the new Breast Center, just like no one can say for sure how many women skipped or avoided their exams last year due to a combination of COVID-19 fears made worse by the cramped quarters of the previous space. But as the saying
goes, just one death is too many, and just one woman saved makes all efforts worth it. Holly Choate is one such patient. “My gynecologist told me, ‘You’re 40 now, so you need to start getting your mammogram screenings,’” Choate says. “I said, ‘Sure, will do. We’ll go to UAMS and get everything done.’ My first round here was about three years ago, and I was getting diagnostic mammograms at that time. They just saw some things that didn’t maybe look quite right. Instead of the screening route, they sent me through the diagnostic route. I did the mammograms, and I did the ultrasounds every six months.” Like most people, Choate saw the former Breast Center space as substandard to meet the needs of patients, but she chose it in part because of being a UAMS employee. But once 2020 rolled around, even that wasn’t enough to keep her on her schedule. “I was really super-nervous about coming in during 2020,” she says. “My mammogram was actually scheduled for July 2020, and I canceled it. And I saw the commercials, ‘Don’t put off your screenings! Don’t put off your
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screenings!’ But I really was more scared of COVID than I was of my screening. “So, recently, I was talking to one of my coworkers, and I said, ‘I’ve really got to get an appointment, I put it off.’ She said, ‘Do not put it off. I got my screening and found out I had breast cancer. If it hadn’t been for the screening, I would’ve never known. Get your appointment.’” Choate, who ultimately proved cancerfree, said the new center will put anyone’s fears to rest — COVID-19, cancer or otherwise — while at the same time inspiring hope in patients. “It definitely lifts your spirits,” she says. “My first experience, when I did have that little scare, was in a dark, dingy space. When you get the news, it’s just … not the best headspace that you want to be in. When I walked into the new center, everything was so nice. Even the little changing area that they put me in just was so welcoming and warm. “Between the nice space that you’re in, plus the staff being so caring, I think it’s just a wonderful experience to come here.”
aymag.com
PRIVATE SETTING HOLDS APPEAL FOR PATIENTS CONWAY REGIONAL CLINIC OFFERS RELIEF TO PEOPLE WITH CORE AND PELVIC CONDITIONS.
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arla Cathcart spends much of her time alleviating her patients’ fears and misunderstandings surrounding the very private and isolating conditions that she treats. Cathcart is a physical therapist and the director of Conway Regional Health System’s Core & Pelvic Physical Therapy Clinic. Cathcart and her staff of five licensed physical therapists rehabilitate the muscles of the pelvis, pelvic floor, lower abdomen and trunk to help patients overcome bowel, bladder and pelvic pain conditions. They also provide rehabilitative services for pregnant and postpartum women with lower back and pelvic pain and bowel and bladder issues. About a third of the clinic’s patients are pregnant and Cathcart says about 70 percent of women will experience some type of lumbar or pelvic pain during pregnancy. The other two thirds of the clinic’s core and pelvic patients experience issues for a variety of other reasons, with 10 to 20 percent of their patients being men. They also work with children with bowel and bladder problems. “Core and pelvic issues are not exclusively problems for women,” Cathcart says. PRIVATE THERAPY Patients experiencing incontinence, constipation and pain during sex among other sensitive conditions are common, so all of the Core & Pelvic Physical Therapy Clinic’s services consist of private, one-on-one sessions with each patient. To treat her patients, Cathcart helps them to overcome the fear of talking about private issues. “Oftentimes, we are reassuring the patients that this is not like going to another physical therapy clinic,” Cathcart says. “They are not going to be out in the middle of a gym
with incontinence or back pain during pregnancy, pain during sex and other issues. For some patients, just getting them 50 percent better can change their lives. We will tell a patient if we don’t think therapy will help after the evaluation, and direct them to an appropriate treatment option.”
talking about bowel and bladder issues. They are not going to be doing treatment in a big open space.” She adds, “You are in a private room with a therapist who has experience dealing with these issues. Our clinic is focused solely on working with people who have bowel, bladder and pelvic pain or pregnancy or postpartum related conditions.” Knowing they are not alone in experiencing a medical condition helps decrease the anxiety. A typical first visit will last about an hour and will include a medical history and a physical exam to assess muscles, joints and nerves to determine the physical problem. “Core and Pelvic Therapy does not cure everyone, but we believe it can improve quality of life for many people,” Cathcart says. For instance, exercises to strengthen pelvic floor muscles can be effective in treating urinary incontinence, Cathcart explains. A quarter to a third of men and women in the U.S. will suffer from urinary incontinence, according to the Urinary Care Foundation. After the initial visit, a treatment plan is developed and most patients go home with a set of exercises to begin rehabilitating the muscles of the affected area of the body. “We make sure you are moving in the direction of healing and doing treatment at home that can prevent reoccurrence,” she says. “Patients don’t necessarily have to live
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HIDDEN GEM Cathcart is on a mission to educate the public about pelvic health therapy and how to visit the clinic. “One of the things that we hear over and over is that our patients did not know this service existed,” she says. “This is such a hidden gem within health care, and we want to let people know about it. Also, because of the history of physical therapy, people assume they have to have a physician referral. That is not always the case. They can reach out to us directly.” A Louisiana native, Cathcart was in the fourth year of her physical therapy career in Shreveport when she was encouraged to apply for a women’s health residency at Duke University. After completing her residency, she returned to Shreveport and established a clinic there. In 2013, she moved to Conway to teach in the Physical Therapy Department at the University of Central Arkansas (UCA). After five years, she began to miss patient care and left UCA to help establish the Core & Pelvic Physical Therapy Clinic under Conway Regional’s leadership. Over the past 11 years, she has also been one of the course instructors who teach pelvic and pregnancy therapy to other therapists throughout the United States. “I love teaching and being in the clinic,” Cathcart says. “It’s the best of both worlds.” The Core & Pelvic Physical Therapy Clinic is located on the first floor of the Conway Regional Medical Office Building, Building #4 on the Conway Regional Campus at 2108 Ada Ave. For more information, call 501-513-5108 or visit www. conwayregional.org.
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mental health
Grace
Saved by By Carl Kozlowski / Photography by Jamison Mosley
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t’s the Tuesday night before Easter, and the sound of nails being pounded into wood fills the sanctuary of First Assembly of God Church in North Little Rock. More than 150 people are lined up, awaiting their turn to grab a hammer and nail pieces of paper to one of three crosses standing at the front of the church, as a band of volunteer musicians and singers perform praise and worship music. The experience is highly cathartic, and those who participate hunch forward in intense personal prayer once they sit down again. Some are visibly crying. The reason this is so emotional is that the attendees have been asked to write down their biggest life crises — ranging from alcohol and drug abuse to porn and sex addiction and anger management issues — and nail them to a cross as a firm statement of determination to turn their problems over to Jesus Christ and declare themselves powerless over their weaknesses.
Outside the First NLR campus.
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Celebrate Recovery has become so successful in transforming lives that judges across the state advise parolees to take part as a step toward learning to live on the straight and narrow. That declaration is the first step required for successful participation in Celebrate Recovery (CR), a 12-step program that puts a directly Christian spin on the formula created by Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and its sister programs including Narcotics Anonymous and Overeaters Anonymous. Founded 30 years ago by John Baker and internationally renowned pastor Rick Warren (author of the mega-selling Christian self-help book The Purpose Driven Life) of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, CR has grown to have chapters in 20 languages at nearly 37,000 churches worldwide. “Basically, Celebrate Recovery is a place for anyone with a hurt, habit or hang-up,” says Layne Mason, 56, the minister at First Assembly of God Church who oversees the direction of CR at the church and 11 satellite groups at locations in Arkansas and as farflung as New York City and even Afghanistan. “It’s a Christ-centered program, meaning we declare who our Higher Power is, and make no mistake about it — He’s Jesus Christ. “We declare that’s who we serve and who gives us the strength and power to do this. What makes it so much different is our groups aren’t just for drugs or alcohol. Only about one out of three people who attend are there for drugs and alcohol. Most are there for some other life issue like codependency,
Layne Mason, and his wife, Marsha.
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Inside First NLR is a spacious and comfortable atmosphere.
anger, grief, abuse or sex addiction.” Mason knows the power of CR personally, since he admits being an addict of “some substance or something” since he was 10 years old, starting with pornography before adding cigarettes, alcohol, sex and finally drugs to his personal list of temptations. His wife of 20 years, Marsha, who’s 52, also battled addiction to drugs and alcohol, and the pair first got together in 1997 in Salt Lake City before moving to the Sin City capital of Las Vegas after they became friends during their prior marriages. “We didn’t do anything right. We weren’t believers in Jesus, and there was verbal and physical abuse because of my alcoholism,” Layne recalls. “I was arrested in January 2003, and that started my recovery journey. I went back to an AA sponsor I’d had been exposed to before, but it was eight months into sobriety before we were introduced to CR, and miracles really started to happen.” Even after joining CR and becoming leaders of the program in their Las Vegas church, the Mason marriage was struggling. Their relationship had deteriorated so badly amid their mutual drug use and physical abuse toward each other that it took two years for Marsha to fully trust that Layne was truly determined to change for good. The Masons moved to Little Rock 13 years ago when Layne took the job of internet sales manager for the state of Arkansas for AT&T. He had started attending Bible college before arriving, and he took eight years to earn his degree, as the couple planted their roots at First NLR. They eventually started CR at the church about seven and a half years ago and have seen it flourish ever since. “We had about 325 people attend each week before COVID, and we’re now at about
half that but growing our numbers back each week,” Layne says. “We also have a program for children called Celebration Place, which is ‘pre-covery’ for children because they’re learning the same things as adults, only in an age-appropriate way. We also have child care, and we used to have a CR teens program that we want to start again.” Each week at First NLR — which is the core location for all Central Arkansas CR activities — there is a catch-all gathering in which attendees sing praise and worship music before listening to a short speech by Layne and a testimony from a person who’s experienced success in their recovery. Each of the 12 steps of AA is read aloud, but with a corresponding verse from scripture that spotlights how each point is tied to Christian ideology. The crowd then disperses into small groups that are broken down by the various types of issues people face — drugs, alcohol and codependency are the main ones — and separated by genders. “The separating of the sexes leads to more transparency in sharing because there’s another level of openness when you’re called to share with your own sex,” Marsha says. “When people are in mixed groups, there is posturing to impress or a desire to keep certain things secret. It’s very rare that a woman would admit to being a sex addict in front of a male, and vice versa. And you certainly wouldn’t want to put them all together in the same group, because that’s a recipe for disaster.” Celebrate Recovery has become so successful
Each of the 12 steps of AA is read aloud, but
with a corresponding verse from scripture that spotlights how
each point is tied to Christian ideology.
“Basically, Celebrate Recovery is a place for anyone with a hurt, habit or hang-up.” in transforming lives that judges across the state advise parolees to take part as a step toward learning to live on the straight and narrow. Each week, several buses pick up men and women at halfway houses across the city and bring them to the meetings and step studies (which are held on Thursday nights) and the specially designated CR church services on Saturday nights. Layne also leads a prison ministry called CR Inside that offers 10-week stepstudy programs to inmates at Pulaski County Jail, as well as state prisons at Pine Bluff, Malvern and Wrightsville. He takes particular pride in the transformations he sees among prisoners in the program. And that brings us full circle to this night, where well over 100 people nail their problems to the cross, believing that they could put them to death once and for all and experience the joy that comes from faith in the resurrection of Christ. “That was the cool part about CR — the big difference comes in things like nailing your problems to the cross,” Layne says. “Recovery is fun because you’re doing it together as a forever family. A lot of our people don’t have healthy normal families they come from. “Here, we have a healthy family of people who are willing to admit they’re not OK, and they come to this place where they’re vulnerable and honest — not there because they have to be, but because they want to have that different life dynamic. We’re healthy because we admit we have problems, and secondly, we know a program that’s gonna help us maneuver through those problems, and we know the source of all hope is Jesus. You combine all that seriously, and if you work this program hard, it works 100 percent of the time.”
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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.
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This side of
SEVEN – By Jason Pederson
When the
VOW BREAKS Arkansans marry. A LOT. And Arkansans divorce. A LOT.
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n 2019, only wedding destination states Nevada and Hawaii had higher marriage rates than Arkansas (8.4 marriages per 1,000 people). And in 2019, Arkansas trailed only Nevada for the highest divorce rate (4 per 1,000 people). And in the state’s history, perhaps no one participated in more marriages and divorces than Melba Burks. Burks is buried in Saline County’s Fairplay Cemetery. Before her death in 2011, Melba showed her tombstone to her brother, Stanley. On it, she chose to list all 12 of her husbands (one she married twice). “I asked her which one she loved the most?” recalls the now 82-year-old Stanley Burks. Melba refused to answer his question. But Stanley thinks he knows why. “She didn’t marry out of love,” he says. “She married out of convenience.” Melba was a proud (and disabled) veteran who served in both Korea and Vietnam. She claimed to be the first female military police officer in the United States. After her service, she worked as a long-haul trucker, a Realtor and a political activist (she ran unsuccessfully for both sheriff and mayor in north Arkansas). During one of those campaigns, she told voters she was a four-time cancer survivor and that she had been “shot, stabbed and died twice before being revived.” She also said, “I don’t take nothin’ from nobody.” Her 13 failed marriages didn’t come up on the campaign trail. “Mainly it’s because she wanted to be the
Melba Burks’ gravestone, which she had list all of her husbands.
boss all the time,” her brother says. “She was a tomboy from the start. She chewed tobacco as a young girl and liked it. Her language was pretty rough. She was physically strong. You never would want her to get a hold of ya. Honestly … she was a little crazy.” Melba was the product of divorce. Her parents, Velva and Luther, split when she was a teen. Stanley says he and his father moved to California. Melba wanted to go with them, but she and their other two siblings stayed in Arkansas with their mom. Stanley says life was hard for them. In his 2014 book Labor’s Loves Lost,
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sociologist Andrew Cherlin posits that the breakdown of a stable family structure has serious consequences for low-income families, particularly for children. Instability and complexity at home, Cherlin argues, impact school performance, thereby reducing future employment prospects and perpetuating an intergenerational cycle of economic disadvantage. “There has never been such a split between marriage-based families on the top rungs of the social ladder and cohabitation and single-parent-based families on the middle and bottom rungs,” Cherlin writes. The Institute for Family Studies backs
Marriage is not designed to be convenient, temporary, disposable or replaceable. The football field at Mountain Pine.
this up, making this finding after examining the 2018 census data: “For Americans in the top-third income bracket, 64 percent are in an intact marriage, meaning they have only married once and are still in their first marriage. In contrast, only 24 percent of Americans in the lower-third income bracket are in an intact marriage.” In other words, one way to help avoid poverty and produce healthier and happier children is to get married and stay married, hopefully happily married. There are no guarantees, but statistics indicate it helps. Twenty years ago, the Arkansas Legislature passed the “Covenant Marriage Act.” It was designed to strengthen the institution of marriage by making it harder to get divorced. From 2002-2019, there were 544,168 marriage licenses issued. Only 2,932 couples chose to enter a “covenant” marriage (just over one-half of 1 percent). It is difficult to legislate a greater esteem or respect for the institution of marriage. Which brings me to one of the most blatant abuses of the institution that I ever covered as a reporter. Back in 2017, retired Rev. John Vise married a pair of 17-year-olds at the Garland County courthouse in the middle of a school day. He didn’t ask why they were getting married. “I’m not the moral compass as far as who is getting married, or why,” Vise told me. In this case, the “why” had little to do with love and a lot to do with football. In January 2017, a star athlete transferred from Lake Hamilton to Mountain Pine. Mountain Pine Schools Superintendent Bobby Applegate wanted to get this new student eligible to play sports as quickly as possible. In Arkansas when a student moves from one district to another, they cannot immediately play sports. Generally, the student-athlete must sit out a year before eligibility is restored. There are exceptions.
If the new student marries and moves in with a person already living in the district, that is one of those exceptions. And one day before the second game of the season for the 0-1 Mountain Pine Red Devils, Rev. Vise united two teenagers in holy matrimony. And in that second game, the newly eligible player scored five touchdowns in a victory. The Red Devils would win seven games in a row and make the playoffs for the first time since 2010. The season was a success. And the marriage? It lasted an unhappy 20 months. Here is what the young bride had to say in a May 2019 divorce filing: “I was only 17 when we got married. We lived together for two months after our marriage, and then we lived with our parents. When we were together, he was verbally abusive on a regular basis. He was physically abusive once, and that’s when I filed for divorce.” What did the young groom have to say? “I’m alright with this divorce.” Which seems to echo the sentiment of much of the nation — alright with divorce. The oft-cited statistic that “50 percent of all marriages end in divorce” is not true and most likely never was true. A more accurate assessment puts the divorce rate at 39 or 40 percent. Still not great, but much better than 50-50. Marriage is not for everyone. Jesus taught about God’s plan for marriage and about the oneness and stability that can be found in marriage, but Jesus Himself never married. While being
single was his preferred status, the apostle Paul taught that if a widow or someone single cannot control themselves then it was better to marry than to “burn with passion.” (1 Corinthians 7-9) Maybe Melba burned with passion, so she married. And married. And married. Her tombstone reflects variety but not commitment. It also reflects a lifelong search for someone, or something, better. Maybe those two Garland County teens started out in love and really tried to make it work. But it seems more likely that their marriage was a sham — a temporary solution to a temporary problem, concocted by the adults in their lives to exploit a loophole. Marriage is not designed to be convenient, temporary, disposable or replaceable. And when so much of society doesn’t follow the design, we should not be surprised by the results.
For two decades, Jason Pederson served as KATV-Channel 7’s “Seven On Your Side” reporter. Now on the other “side” of his award-winning time on the news, he leads the Office of the Ombudsman 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.
JASON PEDERSON
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MURDER MYSTERY: Murder at Horseshoe Lake, Part 1
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he murder of Martha McKay at Horseshoe Lake in March 2020 was like a tragic case of déjà vu. Her mother and cousin had been slain there in 1996, and the same person killed all three victims. The unusual circumstances drew national attention despite the other pressing news of the day: the COVID-19 pandemic. The history of this lethal legacy is the history of a family, blessed and cursed — a family Tennessee Williams might have conjured up. The McKays are descendants of Robert Bogardus Snowden, who was a colonel in the Civil War. After the war ended, Snowden returned to his home in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was a successful landowner and businessman. He married Anne Brinkley, whose father established the Memphis-to-Little Rock railroad, which went through what is now Brinkley in eastern Arkansas. The town was named after him in 1872. Robert Bogardus and Anne lived in an elegant mansion, known as Annesdale. On the National Register of Historic Places since 1980, Annesdale is in the Italian Villa architectural style. It is now used as a venue for weddings and other events. Coincidentally, a crew doing repair work at Annesdale in 2016 found some old bones inside a boarded-up fireplace grate. Due to the age of the bones, the discovery was considered a curiosity instead of a crime. The pair had five children, including Robert Brinkley Snowden, who followed in his father’s footsteps and became a land developer. Then came Robert Bogardus Snowden II. Upon his return from serving in World War l, Snowden II bought 1,000 acres of land and established a cotton plantation at Horseshoe Lake near Hughes in Crittenden County. He and his wife, Grace, built a lovely but modest house with a screened-in porch that looked out over the lake. In 1949, the structure was transformed into a 6,000-square-foot, three-story showplace with a grand staircase, marble floors
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– By Janie Jones
and crystal chandelier. Grace patterned it after a Louisiana antebellum home she had admired. Snowden II and Grace had a son, also named Robert, and three daughters: Sara (better known as Sally), Edith and Dorothy, who was nicknamed “Happy.” All had blissful memories of Snowden House to Sally Snowden McKay. take with them when they grew up and moved away. By 1982, Sally was divorced from her second husband, actor David McKay, and her children were out of the nest, so when her father died, it was Sally who returned to Horseshoe Lake. She was a certified public accountant and well-suited for the job of overseeing the family business that included, Joseph Lee Baker. among other things, 30 lake-front cabins. Her own home was near Snowden House, which was leased to a couple who turned it into a bed and breakfast. McKay also had an antique shop. Joseph Lee Baker was Sally’s nephew. He taught English at Hughes High School but was better known as a primo blues musician and vocalist. Baker lived on
Horseshoe Lake with his wife and three sons, and had been a fixture on the Memphis music scene since his big debut at the June 1969 Memphis Country Blues Festival with a group called Moloch. His psychedelic guitar solos were legendary. After Moloch broke up, he played in Mud Boy and the Neutrons, a band that defied labeling with their eclectic discography. He also had his own band, Lee Baker and the Agitators. On Aug. 12, 1996, a fire swept through the Baker home while the family was away. Investigators determined the cause to be arson and suspected the motive was to cover up a burglary. The Crittenden County Sheriff said a rash of burglaries had been reported in the upscale community, and Baker had accumulated and kept in the house a considerable amount of cash to use for printing and pressing his band’s new record. Besides the money, he lost an extensive memorabilia collection, including an irreplaceable guitar once owned by Furry Lewis, an early influential blues musician. Whether it was to be their permanent new home or just temporary, the Bakers moved into a cabin about 100 yards from Sally’s. On a Tuesday morning, Baker went over to discuss business matters with her. It was one month later, almost to the day, of the fire that had destroyed his home. While he was at Sally’s, someone entered her house and set it ablaze, only this time the results were deadly. Firemen found the bodies of Sally, 75, and Baker, 53, near each other in the smoke and rubble. Autopsies revealed the victims were shot to death before the fire occurred, between 10:30 and 11 a.m. After inspection of the crime scene, officials thought burglary was the motive again. A neighbor found McKay’s red Toyota Camry, wrecked and turned over, a mile or so west of the house. The car had hit a tree and rolled into a ditch. It appeared that the driver hit his or her head on the windshield. The killings had an unnerving effect on residents of the area. Who was the murderer, and was this person still in their midst? Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief with the arrest of a boy named Travis Lewis on Nov. 5, 1996. Only 15 at the time of the murders, he had just turned 16 at the time of his arrest. Lewis knew both victims. His grandparents rented their home from McKay, and his mother, Gladys, was a housekeeper at Snowden House. Lewis attended Hughes
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The Snowden House. High School where he was in the English class taught by Baker. When he appeared in court on a probable-cause hearing, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Lindsey Fairley told Judge Samuel Turner the police “had evidence tying [Lewis] to the scene. He was subsequently interviewed and has made a statement and confirms his presence at the scene.” Turner ordered Lewis to be held without bond. Fairley mentioned “possible additional defendants and the possibility of additional charges” but didn’t want to elaborate at the time. The Shelby County (Tennessee) Sheriff ’s Office sent a dive team to assist Arkansas officials in searching for a gun in the lake near a boat dock behind McKay’s home. Lewis had a juvenile record, including a conviction for assault. Though he was originally charged with capital murder, the McKay family did not seek vengeance but rather showed mercy toward the youth. They asked that the death penalty be taken off the table. Lewis’ lawyer convinced him to plead guilty to two counts of first-degree murder. The circuit judge was David Burnett, the same judge who blocked appeals by Damien Echols and the West Memphis Three. Burnett sentenced Lewis to 28 and a half years for the slayings and five years for burglary and theft. The additional time was to run concurrently. Lewis tried to recant his confession by saying he was not alone at the crime scene. He admitted he had been there when the murders occurred but said it was an adult who committed the killings. Officials dismissed his claim about an accomplice when he named an individual who had an airtight alibi, and no one else was ever charged. The McKays hoped Lewis would turn his life around. Martha McKay, especially, concerned herself with Lewis’ rehabilitation and befriended him while he was in prison. Little did she know that the darkness in his heart would betray her — and he would kill again. TO BE CONTINUED …
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Islands By Joe David Rice
M
ention the word “islands” among friends and colleagues, and you’re likely to get a wide assortment of reactions: the Caribbean, Staten Island, Alcatraz, the Florida Keys, Hawaii or Manhattan. The more learned among your associates might quote poet John Donne (“No man is an island”) while some will prefer Paul Simon’s contrarian view (“I am an island”). Those occupying the other end of the intellectual spectrum might proudly reference one of the characters from Gilligan’s Island. In any event, Arkansas is unlikely to come up in the conversation. Fact is, the Natural State is Sugar Loaf Mountain. (ADPHT) blessed with a remarkable array of these interesting geological anomalies. Dozens of islands are scattered along and hills. Now and then, however, an isolated our east coast, more commonly known as the mountaintop stood above the encircling waters. One that I fondly recall is Goat Island on Mississippi River — and several are surprisingly large. Buck Island, near Helena, for instance, Lake Norfork in north central Arkansas. Located is nearly 900 acres in size. Downstream near about a quarter of a mile off Jordan Landing, it’s Arkansas City is Choctaw Island, another well-known for something not often found in extensive tract managed for wildlife. These and the state: sandy beaches. As a child, I spent many others in the Mississippi, Arkansas and White a fine hour with my parents and sisters on Goat rivers are natural islands formed over the centuries Island, picnicking, swimming and throwing by meandering channels of the streams, often horseshoes. We never did spot the legendary appearing after major floods. And a few, among goats. Greers Ferry Lake, about 75 miles north them Island No. 32 on the Mississippi River near present-day Osceola, disappeared altogether as a of Little Rock, includes a handful of islands, result of the notorious New Madrid earthquakes the most prominent of which is Sugar Loaf Mountain. Towering over the western end of of 1811-1812. Many of Arkansas’ islands are man-made and the reservoir, Sugar Loaf ’s peak can best be relatively young. During the 1940s, ’50s, and ’60s, appreciated via a 2-mile-long national recreation the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers constructed a trail which winds its way to the top nearly 550 dozen or so dams across most of the state’s major feet above the lake’s surface. It’s a moderately rivers. As lake levels rose, they eventually covered strenuous climb, but the views from the bluff are tens of thousands of acres of valleys, coves worth the trouble. You’ll need a boat, of course,
to reach the trailhead. Southwest Arkansas’ DeGray Lake features a small collection of islands, and one of them is home to the 96-room lodge of DeGray Lake Resort State Park. Given that a paved causeway now provides access to the lodge, purists may claim it’s no longer an island by the strictest of definitions. But I’m willing to give it benefit of the doubt. Arkansas’ unquestioned island hopper’s paradise is Lake Ouachita, a major federal impoundment a short distance west of Hot Springs. With more than 200 islands spread among its 40,000 acres, this is the place for anyone wanting a modern-day Robinson Crusoe experience. Its crystal clears waters surrounded by the Ouachita National Forest, the lake offers a scenic and relaxing antidote to our 21st-century pace. Overnight island camping is permitted, but here’s some advice for the wise: the best sites go quickly during the summer months.
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.
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NURSING & REHABILITATION LIVING PROFILE RESORT: Pocola PUB(S): a) AY Magazine TRIM: 8.375x10.875 COLOR:CMYK
Briarwood 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!
501.224.9000 • 516 S. Rodney Parham Rd., Little Rock • briarwoodnursingandrehab.com
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We’re not just growing—we’re growing together. Pictured: Brock King, MD, FACS, Landon Humphrey, MD, Michael Stanton, MD, FACS, Anthony Manning, MD, and Josh Dickinson, DO
