IN Magazine November/December 2012 by IN Magazine

Top 10 Tech Gifts

November/December 2012 | Complimentary Copy

FASHION GIFTS: LEGION 8

A CrossFit Workout Honoring Lost Soldiers

Freshwater Fishing

Tips on how to get started

Scarves, Boots & a Pop of Color

High School Student Feeds the Hungry Behind the Scenes of

The Welcome Wagon Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

‘Oh yeah, I go shopping

all the time now.’

Linda Morgan

ETMC Orthopedic Institute patient

“It got where I didn’t want to walk.” Severely arthritic knees were keeping Linda Morgan from doing even her favorite activity: shopping. Frustrated and in need of relief from pain, she turned to orthopedic surgeon Brandon Tinkler, MD, at the ETMC Orthopedic Institute. “We start with nonoperative options, including pain medications, steroid injections and physical therapy. Mrs. Morgan wasn’t satisfied with those results and was ready to move on with knee replacement surgery,” said Dr. Tinkler.

Dr. Tinkler also is pleased with the results. “Mrs. Morgan is out there enjoying life again in a way that she hasn’t done for years, and she’s doing it pain-free.” “I would recommend the surgery to people with bad knees because it’ll change their life. It has changed mine,” said Morgan.

“In three weeks I was back at work. Then I decided to have the other knee done and it went great,” recalled Morgan.

Dr. Brandon Tinkler is part of the ETMC Orthopedic Institute, standing by you in Athens, Henderson, Jacksonville and Tyler. To make an appointment, call 903-596-3844.

Free iPhone app

One with East Texas. A not-for-profit organization committed to improving the quality of life in East Texas communities. www.etmc.org 2

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

CANCER TREATMENT AND PREVENTION CENTER

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As part of the world-renowned University of Texas System and the only academic medical center in our region, we have treated patients with cancer for over three decades. Our new Cancer Treatment and Prevention Center was designed with the most important people at the forefront of every decision we made – our patients. We have assembled a team of expert and experienced cancer specialists, ultramodern technology that rivals that of national cancer centers, and a facility focused on patient comfort and convenience – all under one roof.

Our technology superstar is our Varian TrueBeam – the next generation of radiation therapy. This radically new cancer treatment is not only faster, but more powerful, precise, and accurate – targeting the cancer and minimizing exposure to healthy tissue. To schedule an appointment, refer a patient, or for more information – call:

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER AT TYLER

102

112

IN Magazine | November/December 2012 6 From the Editor

arts & technology 12 Tech: A Thermostat that Memorizes Your Schedule 14 Top 10 Technology Gifts 16 Music: Sons of Fathers 19 Art is Like Sprinkles 22 Music: The Welcome Wagon

features 26 Meals on Wheels Ninety-Two & Still Serving Others 30 Hunger for Love Living With Purpose 37 Deaf Pastor Volunteers To Lead Deaf Congregation 40 Humble Beginnings

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

style Featured on the Cover

44 Winter Fashion: Scarves, Boots & a Pop of Color 50 Holiday Attire Fancy & Casual 54 Fashion Gifts 56 Fashion Insight Back in Time 59 Go-to-Girl Twelve Beauty MustHaves for Winter 60 Holiday Gift Inspiration

dwell

66 Showcase Home: A Creole Cottage 76 Bigger Isn't Always Better 86 Do it Yourself: A Friendly Design Challenge

live healthy 94 Achieving a Dream 98 Living with Anxiety 102 CrossFit: Legion 8 106 How Processed Foods Affect the body 108 Avoid the Holiday Gain

food & culture 112 Recipe Ideas: Holiday Feast with Chef Lonnie Crist 116 The Dining Guide 120 Destination Diva: From the Vine to the Glass 126 Calendar of Events 128 Fireside Books: Rich in History 130 Travel: Five Holiday Getaways

outdoors 134 The Tradition of Football 136 Bow Hunting 140 Freshwater Fishing 142 The Thrill of Snowboarding 146 Spirituality: Seek the Blesser Not the Blessings

On the Cover: Model, Elisa Marie Reynolds Photo by: Bethany Jeffery Design by: Patrick Lissner & Lea Rittenhouse

Experience

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

From the Editor

Your Voice

can hardly believe it’s already the holiday season and time for the final IN issue of 2012. We’re so grateful to continue sharing real stories about authentic people and places in our region that

inspire us. We end the year featuring a few individuals who live beautiful, selfless lives serving others in various ways. These are stories of extraordinary people who have achieved great things, or who spend time investing in the community. You’ll read the story of 92-year-old Dorothea Roach and her volunteer partner, Joyce Kuehn, who make time in their week to serve meals to those in need through Meals on Wheels, even though Dorothea herself receives meal assistance. You’ll also peer into the past of Rickey Evans, a successful Longview businessman who spent time at Azleway during his formative years. And you’ll read about Jason Eslicker and his friends, who desired to feed the less fortunate. Eslicker turned his idea into reality at the age of 15 by starting Hunger for Love. Now 17, he works with Mission Tyler to continue his service. One person I’m particularly excited for you to meet is Jeff Morris, a former soldier who served in Iraq. Along with trainers at Premier Fitness, he helped create a CrossFit workout called Legion 8, to be performed yearly in memory of eight soldiers lost while in Iraq. The Premier staff is going through the necessary steps to get the workout recognized by the National CrossFit Company. Choosing the stories to highlight this issue was quite a task. I have personally met many influential people in East Texas who deserve to have their story told, but unfortunately, we couldn’t fit them all into this issue. Do you know anyone with an inspiring story? Please help us recognize them by dropping me a note explaining the details at lea@ inmagtexas.com. We’ll print your letter in an upcoming issue. I’m thrilled to showcase several great holiday gifts, recipe ideas and travel ideas in the Technology, Style and Food & Culture sections. I hope the suggestions are useful for your holiday shopping, dinner tables and traveling. This issue, we decided to use a fashion photo of the beautiful model Elisa Marie Reynolds as our cover feature, so we could show off our unique array of holiday gifts we collected for you, and to feature our newly revitalized Style sec-

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

I recently picked up a copy of IN Magazine. I thoroughly enjoyed the read; it was nice to discover a local magazine that contained both style and substance … What I liked about IN Magazine is its appeal to a wide variety of readers ... As a local magazine, IN Magazine not only serves to inform and enlighten the readers of East Texas, it also serves as a representative to potential residents of the area by featuring the people, places and things that makes East Texas special. Joseph Kyle, Carthage Resident

Lea Rittenhouse, editor of IN Magazine. tion. If you’re looking for some fashion and beauty insight, check out the expert opinions of Mary Mirsky and Go-to-Girl Brittany McCaughan. Rumor has it the fall and winter styles are jumping back into the ‘60s. In addition, we take you around the United States, highlighting five picturesque locations to spend the holidays. But if you’re not into traveling far this season, we also give an inside look at Los Pinos, a beautiful winery right here in East Texas, which makes for a great escape. We’ve amplified the Arts section with a story about a signed national band called The Welcome Wagon. The husband and wife musical duo out of Brooklyn, NY, share how they comfortably stumbled into making records, with sweet inspiration behind the lyrics. We also had a conversation with East Texas native Paul Cauthen from Sons of Fathers, a Texasbased band growing in popularity. Over the past three years, IN Magazine has grown and matured both as a publication and a staff. We truly look forward to continue presenting the hidden stories and treasures East Texas has to offer in 2013. Here’s to a great year.

Lea Rittenhouse Editor

I finally got a chance to read the new issue, and it is so good! I was so thrilled to see two women who I admire so much, Allison and Deanda. It’s great to see a true unsung hero featured. The Brooks family is so special, and I am so happy that you recognized that in such an incredible way. Layout changes look great! Just wanted to tell you that you are doing a great job! Zoe Lawhorn, Director of Development at Meals on Wheels I was in Barnes & Noble Monday and found the IN Magazine. Thank you for such a nice and true story and the lovely photos of the place. I called Bill to see that he got a copy, for you have very favorable mentioning’s of Heritage Builders. My daughters are looking forward to having a copy, so one will go to San Francisco and the other to Paris, France. Kate Vigneron, last issue’s showcase homeowner

Enjoy reading IN? Tell us about it. We hope you enjoy reading this issue of IN Magazine. Please let us know what you think about our bi-monthly publication by sending your comments to, lea@inmagtexas.com.

Find us on Facebook or send us a tweet. www.INmagTexas.com

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

142 INmagTexas.com November/December 2012 Publications Manager | Shannon Dorsey 903.596.6369 • sdorsey@inmagtexas.com Editor | Lea Rittenhouse 903.596.6278 • lea@inmagtexas.com Sales Executive | Renee Luker 903.596.6259 • rluker@inmagtexas.com Sales Executive | Dawn Rhodes 903.596.6354 • drhodes@inmagtexas.com Regional Sales Executive | Debbie Labicki 903.521.2020 • debbie@inmagtexas.com Regional Sales Executive | Meagan Blanks 903.918.1984 • meagan@inmagtexas.com Regional Sales Executive | Stacey Marino 903.918.9080 • stacey@inmagtexas.com

64 21

Regional Sales Executive | Anna Massey 903.596.6202 • anna@inmagtexas.com Creative Director & Graphic Designer | Patrick Lissner 903.596.6347 • patrick@inmagtexas.com

Creative Team Patrick Lissner, Lea Rittenhouse Contributing Writers: Crystal Breaux, Nick Buske, Andy Taylor, Jo Lee Ferguson, Victor Texcucano, Vanessa Curry, Aimee Robinson, Mary Mirsky, Cathy Primer Krafve, Morgan Jones, Debbie Labicki, Brittany McCaughan, David Wallace, Michelle Pena, Mark Kuykendall, Paula Andrea Gean, Jordan Roquemore, Janet Gregg Photographers: Debbie Labicki, Chris Pound, Sarah A. Miller, Herb Nygren Jr., Lori Ivey Photography, Andrea Caldwell, Bethany Jeffery, Victor Texcucano, CJ White Fashion Coordinator & Stylist | Alex Becnel Models: Elisa Marie Reynolds, Marlene & David Dickson © TBB Printing, Inc., 2012

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

MOTHER KNOWS BEST And the Focus won’t let them forget it. The MyKey feature on the 2012 Ford Focus allows the responsible party (that’s you) to set speed and audio volume restrictions, and create low fuel and seatbelt reminders. Be there, even when you’re not. See it at tylerford.com.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

arts & technology 19 16

22 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

arts & technology

A thermostat that memorizes your schedule By NICK BUSKE

Do you remember the noise a record player makes when the needle quickly scratched across the vinyl disc, which some of us remember as an LP? Movies and TV shows effectively use this sound to call out a juxtaposed set of contrasting circumstances or statements. OK, now cue that noise in your head and let it roll after witnessing the following sentences: I own one of the all-time coolest pieces of consumer electronics. I bought it at Lowe's Home Improvement Store. [Insert record scratching sound here.] I can't imagine those two statements ever again flying from my fingertips, yet they are justified in the case of the most high-tech, consumer-optimized thermostat produced to date, called Nest. Not only can you buy one at Lowe's, you can also play with one at Lowe's. A thermostat? Really? How excited can one get about a household appliance? After all, this is a device whose sole utility is to control your indoor temperature. How 'bout if I mention that Nest can be added to a wi-fi network? Or if I slip in the fact that a smartphone can be used to control Nest from the bedroom, grocery store or India. And spending that $250 on it can actually save you hundreds? Yeah, I hoped you might keep reading. When it comes to precisely controlling the modern home's indoor temperature, historically there have been two options: the old-school thermostat where a physical switch is moved to the left or right to affect your personal comfort profile or, more recently, the digital thermostat, with which the desired temperature is dialed-in or pre-programmed. Chances are, you've got one or the other in your own home, and it works just fine. That is to say it performs today about as well as your cell phone of six years ago. Remember texting on that thing? Just as your modern mobile has come to be a hand-held computer that happens to make phone calls, Nest is the evolution of thermostats, de-prioritizing the act of heating and cooling, and instead placing focus on when and why your home's climate should fluctuate. It's the first thermostat to learn from your preferences and, seemingly so, anticipates your home's need for temperature regulation. Before we jump into the tech, let's start with Nest's installation. There's a reason I don't write about home improvement: I've hardly improved my home in the ten years since it was built. I mean, I've improved the wi-fi reception by adding two more networked routers, but "keeping up with the Jones's" just isn't my bag—unless the Jones's have four wi-fi routers. I researched Nest's installation well before purchase and felt confident in my DIY skills. I know how to turn off an electrical breaker, and I'm wicked good with a Phillips screwdriver. However, if you've even once electrocuted yourself while setting up your pre-lit Christmas tree, then call a licensed electri-

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

"The good folks at Nest claim you can save $6,000 over 20 years due to their product's capacity to learn from your schedule and sense when you're gone."

Smartphone With the Nest app on your smartphone, the smart thermostat is pure genius. While much of the rote learning may be done with initially-frequent manual adjustment, it's both the fine tuning and remote control through the app that further educates Nest.

cian. I watched all the installation videos at nest.com, so my smart thermostat was up and running in about 30 minutes. One thing’s for sure, the company’s website is your installation headquarters. The recently released second generation thermostat is compatible with 95 percent of all heating and cooling systems, and you’ll find that the website leaves no setup questions unanswered. Now, let’s get to the real fun—using Nest. Even lacking a single geeky bone in your body, there's something awesome about putting a thermostat on your wi-fi network. Nest needs that connection to maintain communication with its Internet headquarters, where your interactions with the device are constantly monitored and analyzed. Link your thermostat with your Nest.com account and your home enters into its own age of enlightenment—climatically speaking. From this point, there are two diverging paths of usage: with or without a smartphone. Without a smartphone, Nest will learn from and act on every manual adjustment to the thermostat. Within a week or so, it will get the gist of your routine based on every data point provided. Nest will learn workweek and weekend schedules. No need to pre-program it with what you think is your routine; it will just know. For those times when the routine cycle is broken, Nest employs a proximity sensor to gauge when you're at the office on a Saturday. If you haven't walked past your thermostat in a while, it will cease and desist trying to keep your empty home a comfy home. Nest will even remind you to change your filters based on actual usage –not just because a calendar month has elapsed. With the Nest app on your smartphone or tablet, the smart thermostat is pure genius. While much of the rote learning can be done with initially-frequent manual adjustment, it's both the fine tuning and remote control through the app that further educates Nest. If 72 degrees at bedtime just isn't cutting it as those chilly December nights roll in, then open the app and tap it up to 75. No need to scrounge around for bunny slippers to help you traverse the tiled hallway. And if you're leaving town when you realize that your air conditioner is not also on vacation, then use the Nest app to tell your thermostat that you're away. It will disregard your previously learned schedule and maintain a user-selected set of high or low temperatures until you return. The good folks at Nest claim you can save $6,000 over twenty years due to their product's capacity to learn from your schedule and sense when you're gone. Even if they're only 50 percent right, that's a savings of $150 per year. I can't think of any other high-tech consumer purchase that pays back its user. Well, at least not one that can be found on the end-cap display of the plunger and light-bulb aisle. For more technology reviews www.hightechdownlow.com or follow Nick on Twitter @hightechdownlow

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

arts & technology

technology gifts 2.

1. 5.

3. 1. iPhone 5 It's considered a tech faux-pax to gift an unsuspecting loved one with a smartphone. Saddling them with a substantial monthly data bill is just plain uncouth. However, if you think that family member is ready to take the financial plunge or is ready for an upgrade, give the new hotness by gift card. $200 bucks at Apple, Best Buy, Walmart or Target should do the trick.

From $199 14

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

2. Pebble Smart Watch

3. Fitbit Aria Wi-Fi Smart Scale

4. Kindle Fire HD

Everyone's got a geek in the family. This watch will not only light up their eyes, but when paired with their bluetooth Android or iOS phone, it will also light up with emails, caller ID and (on Android) text messages. Some apps will even communicate with the watch.

After you've gained your holiday 10 and swear to lose it on January 1, put this smart scale to work via a wireless connection to your smartphone. A custom app keeps track of your goals, so you can see how your New Year's resolution is playing out in excruciating detail. From $130

2001, it cost $399 and boasted the ability to play 1,000 songs. That's all it COULD do. The modern-day 7" tablet priced at about $200 is like alien technology by comparison. Give one to anybody in your family, and they'll think you're out of this world. Try the Amazon Kindle Fire HD.

From $150

When the iPod debuted in

From $199

5. Griffin Blue Trip Aux

Can't stomach the cost of a fancy new bluetooth car stereo for Uncle Bubba? If he's got an AUX IN jack on the front of his current radio, then this gizmo is the missing link when it comes to wirelessly streaming music to his ride.

From $79

10.

6. New iPod Nano Past iterations of the Nano have been many things to many people: a music player, video camera or watch. This year's model, for the first time, features a multi-touch big screen, bluetooth connectivity and a home button reminiscent of its more intelligent iSiblings, the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch. Where portability is king, Nano reigns supreme.

From $149

7. Ceiva Digital Photo Receiver

If grandma and grandpa aren't keen on the idea of an internet service bill, then take matters into your own hands. This photo frame has its own email address and connects to the internet over an old-fashioned phone line, pulling down sent photos for display. The cost is all on your end, and grandpa and grandpa get those priceless pictures.

From $127.99

8. Samsung Galaxy 5 MP3 Player At 5" the Galaxy 5 Player packs some serious pocketable power. It's like a sweet Android phone without the phone (and without the phone bill). From $199

9. Simple.TV If you know someone who dreams of cutting the cord, AKA ditching their cable or satellite service, then consider this device the necessary pair of scissors. Attach a hard drive (for DVR functionality) and HDTV antenna to this device and watch free, over-the-air local stations via your PC, iPad or Roku box.

From $150

10. Polaroid Z2300

The Z2300 features an integrated printer with ZINK® Technology, enabling users to instantly capture, edit and in less than a minute print full color, 2x3 prints. This camera has the ability to upload images to any social media platform. From $159.99

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

arts & technology

Q: A:

How did you choose your band mates?

We kind of picked and chose who we wanted and we ended up finally lucking out with a good crew that really mesh and feed off of each others vibes. It’s really dynamic.

Q: A: Q: A:

Tell me about your new album coming out in January. What is it to be called? It’s kind of up in the air, what we’re going to call it. As of right now, we’re going to call it Big Diamond Waltz. What was the inspiration for the Sons of Fathers record?

It was Dave and I just being homeless, strumming around and playing music. It’s not just a love song record, it’s not just a rock record, it kind of shares all of our emotions and everything that describes us a band when we started.

SONS OF FATHERS

By Lea Rittenhouse

aul Cauthen and David Beck formed Sons of Fathers after one too many run-ins at local San Marcos music venues while playing their solo acts. Previous to making it official, the duo joined together on a New York trip to play at various clubs and their musical chemistry led to forming a band. Now a six-piece ensemble complete with perfectly blended harmonies, their indiefolk-rock-Americana sound resembles The Avett Brothers, The Byrds and The Everly Brothers, with a Texas flare. Paul plays the acoustic guitar and David plays the upright bass. The band’s self-titled freshman release "Sons of Fathers" débuted last November, and Cauthen says their next album should release in January. The band has toured nationally, opening for big-name acts such as Elsa Crause, Union station and Counting Crows. Sons of fathers, originally known as Beck & Cauthen, hit a slight bump in the road when they received a cease-and-desist letter from popular musician Beck Hansen,

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

during the production of their first album. After the shock, the duo simply changed their name to the pre-planned album title and continued recording. David was raised in San Marcos, TX, and as son of touring musician Bill Whitbeck, music is in his blood. Paul is an East Texas native, born in Tyler, TX. At the age of 7, Cauthen began singing in church and learned how to play guitar from his grandfather, a preacher. A few weeks back, I spoke with Paul in further detail about the band.

Q: A:

How did Sons of Fathers get started?

Dave and I started it in San Marcos, TX about two years ago and we started out as a duo, writing songs and singing a two-part harmony. Then we moved to a three piece with another drummer at the time, and then we moved in and out of different musicians for the next year…finally a year ago we got a full band the way we want it. We have a six piece.

Q: A:

What are some of the songs on the Sons of Fathers album that you like the best? Why?

I would have to say, Sons of Fathers. It’s one of those songs you feel like you were just kind of in on the song writing.

Q: A:

How does the band get along?

We all act like a bunch of kinfolk. We’re just in here rolling down the road. We don’t really bicker or anything—we’re all in it for the right reasons and just have a mindset that there is going to be tense times but we just gotta breathe through it.

Q: A:

Why do you play music?

A lot of people in this world go through their days without thinking about anything left behind after them…I feel better if I had something left behind and what I shared was something worthwhile.

UPCOMING SHOWS: Austin, TX: OCT. 6 The Backyard at Bee Cave

Luckenbach, TX: OCT. 13 Luckenbach Dance Hall

San Antonio, TX: OCT. 13 San Antonio, TX: OCT. 20 San Antonio Botanical Gardens Sam’s Burger Joint Piney Woods Stage New Braunfels, TX OCT. 27 Gruene Hall

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

arts & technology

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Art is like Sprinkles Aspring artist Elizabeth Groth has transitioned from occasional art projects, typically induced from a school assignment, to a promising artist. By Morgan Jones | Photos by Herb Nygren Jr.

As a University of Texas at Tyler junior art major, Elizabeth Groth’s aspirations to be a professional artist are a daily encourager through the usual uncertainty the typical college student endures. “I didn’t plan on coming here it just kind of happened and that’s how my life has been since I have had to be an adult and make adult choices,” Elizabeth says. “All the plans I have had haven’t worked out, but I know I am doing, what I am suppose to be doing.” However unsure Elizabeth might be of her current educational endeavors, all that melts away when her hand guides a paint brush. Her medium is a white canvas soaked with watered diffused acrylic paint of her latest inspiration, or unspoken words, transformed into a tangible art form. “I feel like I am not good at speaking

or expressing myself with words, and I think that’s why I do a lot of art,” she says. “I can’t express myself as a person with words with how I feel. It’s just like, no one has to know what it means, but I know what it means and that I am expressing myself, and that is enough for me.” The 20-year-old beginning artist has evolved from the occasional art project, usually induced by a school assignment, to a promising artist showing her true expression with the use of a pitiable tented paint brush and an array of acrylic colors. “My work kind of has a water color look to it,” she says. “With watered-down colors, they are really forgiving. You can work on a piece, and then if you get tired of it and 20 years later pulled it out, add some water to it and keep working on it.” Like most artists, Elizabeth has determined her own definition of what art is to

her. “Art is sprinkles on life,” she says. “Life is already great, but it’s made better with art. Just like a cake is great as it is, sprinkles make it better. It’s just the finishing touch that you really need.” The hopeful artist finds her inspiration for her artwork through myriad resources of her life. “A lot of times I will be listening to music, reading the Bible or reading really inspiring books, and just the word choices get to me,” she says. “When I don’t know what a word means, I love looking it up and then looking it up in the thesaurus and what the different synonyms are for it.” Other times, Elizabeth receives stimulation through people that she meets, such as her piece entitled “Can’t Rain on My Parade,” that was| Cont. on page 21

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

An original piece of abstract art created by Groth, with a watercolor feel. 20

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Cont. from page 19 | inspired by a friend Meg, whom she met at camp. “This girl really had a lot of bad stuff going on in her life but she still had this smile on her face … life couldn’t bring her down, and her joy was unshakable,” Elizabeth says. “She was very inspiring to me, and I wanted to capture that in that piece.” Elizabeth has built up her collection to be displayed at local art shows, another step in the right direction on her path to becoming a fully established artist. Starting at a young age, Elizabeth had a creative soul. However, she did not know how to express her talent. As a child, she would rescue discarded items from her household trash and attempt to create a new purpose for it. “I guess I have always had creative energies flowing and just never knew how to channel that,” she says. “At times when paint is not accessible, I really like to dress weird and funky because clothes are another form of art. I always find a way to channel this creative energy that is flowing inside of me.” Born and raised in Tyler, Elizabeth has grown up with her parents and five siblings in a nurturing environment, being homeschooled by her mother. “I think they are wise in how the sheltered us and I don’t feel like I was kept from the world and they raised us biblically,” Elizabeth says. “While teaching us what’s in the world, they also taught us how we need to view the world. They definitely have been good parents to me.” At the age of 15, Elizabeth attended her first art class at Tyler Junior College, and her art talent has been cultivated since. “I don’t think my parents have always understood what it means to me, and I still don’t think that they do, but they have always been supportive of me,” Elizabeth says. “They accept me for who I am, but I don’t think they really understand how it works for me.” Having been encouraged by a family friend to follow her dream, Elizabeth knew she wanted to pursue an art career as an interior designer. For years, she admired the Savannah College of Art and Design but felt like it was out of her reach. “I have wanted to go there for years and years,” Elizabeth says. “I heard about them when I was a sophomore in high school, but I thought it was way too prestigious.” Instead, Elizabeth set her heart on Texas Christian University’s interior design program; however, her financial support was not efficient enough for her to attend. She felt lead in another direction to Dallas Baptist University despite them not having an interior design program. “I was just like, ‘God, why do you want me to go there?’” Elizabeth says. “They

don’t have my design program, but that’s what I felt called to do. Then I found out why he put me there every day. He just used me so much, and it was really great.” After attending DBU, Elizabeth applied to Savannah College again and was accepted with efficient financial support. Though, it was not what she had hoped for. “As soon as I got in the city, I just felt this super heavy, overwhelming dark feeling and I was just like I am not supposed to be here,” she says. Still restless to get out of Tyler, Elizabeth moved to Colorado to stay with a friend. “I felt like I was kind of running from it there,” she says. After moving back to Tyler in the middle of the semester, Elizabeth enrolled at Tyler Junior College and finished out her

core curriculum there. She then transferred to UT Tyler. “I definitely feel like I am on the right path now,” Elizabeth says. “I don’t have any regrets. I just feel like God was leading me on a different path.” Having a perspective change, Elizabeth knows that she no longer wants to practice interior design. She aspires to be an art therapist to help emotionally conflicted people express themselves. “I just feel like people whose brains have gotten twisted in knots, can use art to untangle that,” Elizabeth says. “That’s what art is to me. I know we aren’t all wired for that to be what helps us. but I think that there are people who God wants to use art to help them. Art pretty much is everything to me.”

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

The

Welcome Wagon

The Brooklyn based duo explains how they stumbled into their music career, and their unique approach to creating music. By Lea Rittenhouse | Courtesy Photos

Vito and Monique Aiuto live a seemingly ordinary life in Brooklyn, NY. Monique is a preschool teacher, and Vito is the senior pastor at Redeemed Presbyterian church, but one thing sets them apart —They’re in a band called the Welcome Wagon. Signed by Sufjan Steven’s label, Asthmatic Kitty records, the eclectic couple released their second full-length album

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

this year produced by Alexander Foote. The CD, titled “Precious Remedies for Satan’s Devices,” serves its purpose as a joyful solution, with its light-hearted, quirky melodies and relatable, humble lyrics. The name is borrowed from a 17th century how-to devotional written by Thomas Book, which is among Vito’s favorites. “I think of the record as sort of like that, but I wanted it to be remedies that God might use to help people. That it might be something that God would use

to provide solace or comfort or challenge in someone’s life,” Vito says. The album reflects their simple life with refreshingly raw undertones to their musical style, complete with rearranged covers, original songs and guest performances from Stevens. With no ties to a particular tradition, lineage or genre, the Aiutos play music they enjoy, which Vito says could be described as a folk, gospel flavor, although ultimately, their style is hard to pinpoint. “I really always stop short when

SUFJAN STEVENS

Hit and Run Vol. 1 released in 2012

Precious remedies against Satan's devices, released in 2012

somebody asks me or us to describe it,” Vito says. The Welcome Wagon released their first LP record, “Welcome to the Welcome Wagon,” in December 2008. The album was recorded and produced by music pioneer and friend Sufjan Stevens and captured a musical production, heavily influenced by Stevens himself. “It was really a great gift to us from him to do that with us,” Vito says, referring to working with him on their freshman release. “One of the things that was most amazing about it and really wonderful was that he was a real servant to us.” Both Vito and Monique are from Tecumseh, Michigan, but they didn’t know each other growing up. After graduating high school, Vito went to Western Michigan University and Monique attended the Copeland Union art school in New

York. They “ran into each other” during a summer vacation back home in Michigan, and Vito says they’ve “kept running into each other since.” After getting married in 1998, Vito wanted to create an occasion for them to sing and worship together as a family, so he purchased a guitar despite the fact he didn’t know how to play. “When we started to play together, mainly what we would play was hymns,” Vito reminisces. “What’s inspired it is a desire to praise God and also to do something together, to have something that we’re both passionate about.” Around the time the couple began experimenting with old hymns, their friend, Stevens, whom Vito shared a mutual interest in writing, asked them to contribute a song to a compilation his record company was assembling. “He said, ‘Well I’m going to put this on the compilation, what’s the name of your band?’ We didn’t have a band. Monique came up with the name and came up with this idea that we would be welcoming, that we would be hospitable— that’s who we wanted to be as a band.” The couple continued writing songs, and occasionally Stevens would bring a recorder to their house and record more. “Most of the first songs we ever made were recorded at our house and he would teach us about recording and production and arrangement, and we would

Sufjan Stevens mixes autobiography, religious fantasy, and regional history to create folk songs of grand proportions. Stevens attended Hope College, in Holland, Michigan, and the masters program for writers at the New School for Social Research. He currently lives in Brooklyn, NY. As a close friend of the Aiuto, Steven's produced The Welcome Wagon's first album, "Welcome to the Welcome Wagon."

make these songs together.” When Vito met Stevens through a friend and began to form a friendship with him, he had no idea he was a musician until he gave him a copy of a CD he put together in college. “It’s funny because when you live in cities … it seems like everybody you know is a musician, and everyone you know had been a director or has been in a play,” Vito says. “You don’t necessarily assume it’s going to be really excellent. “I remember we put his in our CD player one morning as we were banging around the kitchen and making some breakfast and stuff and the first couple songs played, and then the next couple, and at some point I just sat down, and Monique and I thought, ‘This is really good. This is amazing.’” Vito adds that Stevens is multitalented, with his abilities spanning across recording, producing, engineering and playing instruments. Although the couple hopes to go on a weeklong tour in the spring, they don’t tour or play live on a regular basis because their jobs are year-long endeavors and being parents doesn't accommodate for much free time. If a venue or church requests they play, Vito and Monique try their best to make it to the event. The Welcome Wagon has played a number of shows in Texas, according to Vito. “Texas is where we’ve played some of the biggest shows and had some of the most fun,” he says. The couple’s biggest inspiration for their music is their faith. “We want to be able to love God and love other people with our music. We want that function to be performed when we sing it and when we perform it, but we also want it to be served when anybody else listens to it,” Vito says.“If someone buys one of our records, our hope is that it will help connect them with and help them to love God and know that God loves them … It’s kind of a lofty ambition but that’s the one we’re shooting for.”

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Ninety-Two & Still Serving Others

By Kathy Primer Krafve | Photos by Andrea Caldwell

There is one delivery day each week when Dorothea Roach, 92, does not receive Meals On Wheels. It’s the day she delivers meals to others. One day each week Dorothea and delivery partner Joyce Kuehn pick up Dorothea’s meal as they pick up the other meals they will be delivering. “I won’t let Dorothea get behind the wheel,” jokes Joyce who is retired and has been delivering meals for over six years. “She does the driving and I do the dirty work,” responds Dorothea. Meals on Wheels Ministry, Inc. provides good nutritious meals, daily contacts and other support services that en-

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

able senior citizens and disabled persons to remain independent and living in their own homes as long as possible, according to their website. With offices in Tyler, Meals on Wheels of East Texas extends regionally to Gregg, Henderson, Smith, Upshur, Van Zandt and Wood counties, delivering over 3,000 meals throughout East Texas. The two women have a whole system for making sure each senior citizen on their route gets a complete, healthy meal and a hug or a word of encouragement along the way. They begin by putting all the cold products, like cartons of milk, for example, in a

special cardboard tray that Joyce created to perfectly fit her car’s console. Then, en route to the next house, Dorothea checks each bag of hot food and drops the appropriate cold items in at the last minute to ensure that each meal arrives with every item at perfect temperature. “She is very protective of the milk,” Dorothea says. “We try to keep it cold,” adds Joyce with a conspiratorial smile. “I set the tray on my leg and its pretty hot,” chuckles Dorothea. “By the time we’re done, I have a hot leg.” The bags are heavy, so Joyce is the one who runs them up to the door and says

Joyce Kuehn and Dorothea Roach.

Wendy Baker, director of Venture home school cooperative, and her husband Phil.

hello to each friend along the route. “We do have a lot of fun,” Dorothea says. “Dorothea and Joyce are such a powerful team,” says Meals on Wheels administrator-in-charge Nora Reyes, “They bring so much joy and sunshine to our clients, to the whole ministry.” “It became necessary that she (Joyce) have a helper on her route,” jokes Dorothea, a gentle lady with stylishly clipped white hair, straight posture and an easy laugh. The two friends credit the idea that Dorothea might enjoy a chance to volunteer again at this stage of life to Doro-

thea’s granddaughter Missy Roach Sumter. Dorothea has logged countless volunteer hours over the years with organizations such as the Soroptimist Club, so volunteering with Meals on Wheels came naturally to this nonagenarian. Still, bragging on the accomplishments of her granddaughter never gets old. “She is involved in so much stuff; I am so proud of Missy,” Dorothea says. “Missy is a wonderful lady.” Dorothea and Joyce say one of their favorite things about being a delivery team is the fellowship with other volunteers. Meals on Wheels often feels like a party

as teams arrive to begin their deliveries each day, the ladies explain. “We get Starbucks; I think that’s really nice. We like the popcorn,” Dorothea says about the treats, donated by local sponsors and prepared each morning by MOW staff as a small thanks to dedicated volunteers. Both women are amazed at all the things that volunteers do behind the scenes before food is delivered. “Someone has volunteered to keep those shelves stocked,” Dorothea says about the way the food is already prepared, packaged and labeled when they arrive. For Joyce, the fringe benefits of teaming up with Dorothea are too many to count, but she has one particular favorite. “(Dorothea) is one prayer warrior. Ask her to pray and she can pray.” When Dorothea is not delivering with Joyce, she looks forward to visits from fellow volunteers, such as Iris and Roger Daughtry, who bring her meal each Monday. “She is an inspiration to us,” Iris says. Iris and Roger heard about Meals on Wheels through a friend at church and have enjoyed volunteering together since retirement. “We felt this would be a ministry. We’re doing it together; it’s fun,” Iris says. “It’s really fun to talk to each person. We enjoy their stories.” “They brought me my first meal. We call one another, ‘our elders,’” laughs Dorothea. Dorothea says she is incredibly grateful for all the opportunities she still has, especially to help others when she can. “My sight is not very good and my hearing is worse. I hope I live another hundred years; I am an old woman, too,” she laughs. Joyce agrees that they are committed to the process of nurturing with more than just food. “We are going to stay on the road and sack lunches until we can’t anymore,” laughs Dorothea. Their route will continue to take the two friends into the lives and hearts of all they meet along the way.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

By Lea Rittenhouse | Photos by Andrea Caldwell

On Saturdays, a pleasant scent lingers under the bridge on Ferguson Street in downtown Tyler. The smell of crisp turkey bacon, freshly made pancakes and the bold fragrance of steaming hot coffee weaves in and out of the crowd of people gathered for Church Under the Bridge. Volunteers prepare and serve the food provided by a ministry called Hunger for Love, but there’s something extraordinary about this ministry besides feeding those who may otherwise be left hungry—it was started by a 15-year-old. Robert E. Lee student Jason Eslicker, now 17, casually started Hunger for Love last year with a couple friends from Brook Hill, where he attended high school at the time. “I had this crazy idea—what if we went out to Bergfeld Park one Saturday morning with a bunch of breakfast pastries and we handed them out to whoever came over,” he says while recalling the organization’s beginnings. “Homeless, not homeless, it doesn’t really matter. “ On May 28, 2011, Jason and his friends met at Bergfeld Park with a trash bag of donated pastries, anxious to distribute the food to anyone they could, but that day, only one passerby accepted their offer. The mild response didn’t discourage the group; instead they began to develop the idea. The next time they met at The Square in downtown with a humble bag of pastries, this time, with low expectations based on their last excursion. To their surprise, a group of about 15 people came up to them. Jason and his friends expanded their event to include a hot breakfast onsite. He says they continued feeding others because they truly wanted to and they enjoyed the people, but at least for him, the motive was shared with selfishness. “From an outside perspective it looks like we’re mature for our age … and people liked that idea.” Jason says. “People liked us more, and so it really became us-centered.” But come Christmas, Jason’s motives met reality. They decided to hold a Hunger for Love feast for the homeless downtown on Dec. 23, complete with live Christmas hymns, a hot dinner and clothes for those who were in need. He spent the day preparing the food at Bethesda health clinic, while volunteers set up

tables on The Square for people to gather at, and for the food to be served on. Previous to the event, Jason’s biggest concern was that the event would fail. “My biggest concern beforehand was there’s going to be no one there. No one is going to show up. People are going to think we are complete losers,” he says. They arrived on The Square to find music playing and 150 people in attendance. “And then I saw it. I saw people enjoying life together. I saw tons of broken hearts working together to create something really beautiful,” Jason describes while smiling. “That was the moment where God just screamed at me, ‘No, Jason. This is more than just about you.’” In May, Hunger for Love started to meet under the bridge where Church under the Bridge takes place. On any given Saturday morning, there are volunteers cooking and serving food, tables piled with free clothes provided by a group from Faith Community Church called Jesus’ closet, a Bible study, worship and 100-150 people gathered. “We have volunteers that cook it, volunteers that serve the food, volunteers that lead worship, volunteers that talk at the Bible study, so we’re really community-based,” Jason says. “We want to teach them how to serve and how to serve each other, and also serve alongside them, apposed to just giving out hand outs.” Travis White, executive director at local non-profit Mission | Cont. on page 34 Left: Jason Eslicker and friends lead worship for Church Under the Bridge. Above: Travis White gathers with attendees for the Saturday morning Hunger For Love, Church Under the Bridge event.

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Cont. from page 31 | Tyler, has watched their dream grow since the beginning. “At the beginning I thought ‘this will be great. Maybe it will last for the summer.’ I mean, they’re young students,” he says. “I knew he was pretty driven about things, but they are kids, so it may just last the summer and that will be great.” Hunger for Love has now existed for a year and a half and functions as a prominent sector of Mission Tyler. “Mission Tyler is sharpening its focus to four key things in four sections of the community, and one of those four is centered around Hunger for Love and about one- mile radius around the bridge,” Travis says. The other three areas are centered on partnerships with Higher Heights Baptist Church, North Star Missionary Baptist Church and an area north of Texas College. Mission Tyler formally came together about five years ago after Travis felt God gave him the vision to see churches more united and working together. Instead of replacing the church, the 34

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

heart of Mission Tyler is to unite believers in word, action and heart, to serve as a connection piece for the local church to engage in their community and to be a neutral, common ground for the church to come together and love people. The ultimate goal, though, is to build relationships, serving where needs arise to disciple people into an understanding of Christianity. “There’s 400 churches in Smith County. What if we all could unite and work together and work toward meeting the common need,” he says. “It’s hard for me to see a believer or a church that truly gets what the love of Christ is without looking around them thinking, ‘How can I not love the people around me?’ God gave us two directives. He said love me with all your heart and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself, and that’s very powerful in it’s simplicity.” Currently, Mission Tyler educates, equips and empowers almost 40 churches. George Montalvo, board member of Mission Tyler, volunteers with Hunger

for Love on Saturday mornings and says both ministries are centered on outreach and engaging in a mission. “Living missional is understanding what God’s story is to mankind from the early parts of Genesis and on into Revelation … God weaves his theme of mission throughout the entire scripture.” George, Travis and Jason share the same mission, which is to eliminate to socioeconomic gap between communities in Tyler. “Often times you’ll hear about North Tyler, South Tyler, and really, we’re one city with lots of different neighborhoods,” he says while explaining how a lack of mission allows communities to remain disconnected. “What I would like to do is figure out how we can close the loop of North and South Tyler, and East and West Tyler, so that we can really understand what it means to come together as one community.” By serving, feeding the hungry and embracing those in poverty or who have needs, George believes those serving are able to share life and their values with those in need. “What Mission Tyler helps do is carry those humanitarian ideas one step further and it’s ultimately all for the glory of God,” he says. Jason says he doesn’t know what he will be up to come high school graduation, but for now he wants to take it one step at a time and really focus on communicating to young people that they can make a difference. “Young people, my generation, can make a difference,” he says. “They just need to look in the right place and follow the heart of God.”

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Deaf Pastor Volunteers to Lead Deaf Congregation By Paula Andrea Gean | Photos by Herb Nygren Jr.

ocal Pastor Dirk K. Hill doesn’t use his voice to deliver his message Sunday mornings. In fact, he doesn’t use spoken words at all throughout the week. As pastor of New Beginnings Deaf Fellowship, Hill relies solely on his hands to speak for him, utilizing American Sign Language. The church, which began meeting last October, is held at Calvary Baptist Church in Tyler and is the only Deaf church with a Deaf Pastor in East Texas. Hill started the church because of his desire to establish a community for the local Deaf community, a place where attendees could connect with prayer, Bible study and worship in their own language with their own culture. There are 381 distinct non-English languages spoken in the United States, according to the 2010 U.S. Census. Of those languages, American Sign Language, or ASL, is estimated to be the second or third most commonly used language. Sign language is defined as a formal language employing a system of hand gestures for communication, according to the Merriam- Webster dictionary. Although there are multiple forms of sign language, ASL is considered the predominant sign language of the U.S. Deaf communities. ASL is a living language with an expansive vocabulary and considered a foreign language due, in part, to its complex grammatical structure and the rich heritage it encompasses, says Rhonda McKinzie,

Tyler Junior College department chair of the Sign Language Interpreter Program. Across the nation, ASL is growing in its daily use, and East Texas offers numerous exciting opportunities for the advancement of ASL and the Deaf community, McKinzie says. The Deaf culture in East Texas is blooming via the passionate interpreting professionals and slew of unique services and organizations available such as ASL Honor Society, Deaf Connection Club, Interpreter Student Association, Tyler Metro Association for the Deaf, the East Texas Deaf Festival held in Jacksonville yearly, The Deaf Ladies Club of East Texas and others. Beth Noble, Educational Sign Language interpreter for Tyler Independent School District, says Tyler is considered the epicenter for the East Texas Deaf community. This comes as no surprise

since the Sign Language Interpreting Program offered at Tyler Junior College is the only program in Texas to have an American Sign Language Honor Society. The program is an in-depth two-year study that prepares students to become skilled interpreters, McKinzie says. The life of an interpreter is diverse. Not only do interpreters serve in the traditional professional environments like the medical, legal and educational fields, but interpreters also can be spotted translating for football players on the sidelines, swimmers at swim meets, cheerleaders, basketball and baseball players, Noble says. They provide translation in job interviews, weddings, meetings, on-the-job training, driver’s education classes and tests, and semester-long college classes. Pastor Hill and his family hope New Beginnings Deaf Fellowship will continue to grow and provide a haven for the Deaf amid the language and culture in which they feel comfortable. The goal of New Beginnings is to minister the deaf within a 100-mile radius of East Texas. To achieve this dream, Hill supplements his vocation by working full-time at night at Trinity Mother Frances as a lab tech so it will not interfere with his daytime pastoral duties. Though at times he might grow weary, or sometimes the growth may be slower or stagnate than hoped for, he can find hope in scripture. From the Left - Dakota (hearing), 12, Dirk (Deaf), Laura (Deaf) , Lexi, 11 (Deaf).

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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Humble Beginnings Even though he started out differently than others, with the help of Azleway and self ambition, he's become very succesful. By Jo Lee Ferguson | Photos by CJ White

Rickey Evans knows how his life could have turned out. Today, the 47-yearold Longview resident owns a small empire — two salvage yards, a collision repair business, a towing company and rental properties. He and his wife of 29 years, Lynn, have two children and five grandchildren. They work hard, and they play hard, he says. It’s a life he realizes he might not have had if it hadn’t been for his stay at Azleway Boys’ Ranch in Tyler, which was a foster home when he lived there from the time he was about 14 until he was about 17. Back then, it was just a group of youth living with Azleway founder Bill Partridge and his wife, Dana. Currently, Azleway is known as one of the largest foster care systems in East Texas. The organization serves more than 1,100 children from the Dallas-Fort Worth area to Houston, with a range of services for boys and girls. “It helped make a better person out of me,” Evans says. “It helped me realize where I’m at today and where I could have been. I could have been in the peni-

Longview resident, Rickey Evans.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

tentiary ... I’m not saying that they’ve changed me 100 percent. I had a choice in life, and I took that choice to be the way I am now.” Azleway was for “juvenile delinquents,” he says, for “mean kids,” but he added he wasn’t a bad person. He had a good mother, he says, but he ended up doing things he shouldn’t have. He wound up at Azleway when he took the blame, as a juvenile, for something someone else did so they wouldn’t go to prison, he says. Bill Partridge, who is no longer the head of Azleway but continues to work for the organization, recalls Evans’ arrival during the first year the Partridges opened their foster care home. “Rickey was just easygoing,” he says. “He was so good-natured. He was such a good kid. He had parents that really cared about him. He had some issues, but all I had to do was tell him I was going to call his mom, and he’d do it.” Before opening Azleway, Partridge and his wife had been living in Fort Worth, running a foster home as part of another system. That home, on Azle Avenue, also was known as Azleway. That home later closed, and the Partridges returned home to Tyler, disillusioned. He says God wanted him to start a boys home. “Why did God call me? I don’t know why. It was a burden on my heart was the best way I could put it,” he says. “Even today we still do things with kids. I’m supposed to be retired, but that isn’t quite working out that way.” They were in Tyler for about four or five months before they opened Azleway as a foster home, taking in their first foster child April 9, 1979. “It was a mom-and-pop operation, and Dana worked for the money and I worked for the kids,” Partridge says of his wife. “Dana had a job. That’s the only way we survived those early years.” A week after opening their doors with one foster child, they welcomed four more children. “Six months after that we were in a building project, and it’s grown ever since,” Partridge says. Today, the Azleway Boys’ Ranch includes a food pantry, recreation center, charter school, counseling center and maintenance shop/vocational training building. Azleway Children’s Services serves more than 1,100 foster children a year. Other services include a girls’ home in Tyler and transitional living programs for children aging out of the foster care system. The organization has offices in Corsicana, Nacogdoches, Humble, Arlington and Tyler. “When (Azleway) started out, the concept was to have a foster home for about eight kids, and the founder ... and his

wife were going to open up a little foster home and take care of kids until they retired and moved off into the sunset,” says Gary Duke, Azleway’s executive director. “God essentially had a much greater vision than Bill or any of us did.” The rewards for people who are part of Azleway are the success stories such as Evans, Duke says. While there have been hundreds, if not thousands, of Azleway success stories during its 33-year history, the odds for children who pass through foster care in general are not good. “Unfortunately, 80 percent of the prison population in the United States is composed of children who, at one time or another, were in foster care,” Duke says. “It’s horrible. These kids get moved from home to home to home to home. They begin to suffer academically. Most of our kids have been abused, neglected or abandoned. They’ve experienced a lot of trauma in their lives.” Then when they turn 18, they don’t have anyone to support them. That’s why Azleway has started transition, job training and other types of programs to help foster care children prepare for and adjust to life on their own. “That’s why we exist — to literally help these kids, to provide homes for these kids and to provide opportunity so these kids can be successful in life,” Duke says, adding that Azleway wants the children they assist to become contributing members of a community, much like Evans. Evans has taken an active interest in that goal as well. He and his wife have served as foster parents — including five siblings who still call he and his wife mom and dad — and he’s always remained involved with Azleway, including serving on the board for seven years. Today, he serves on the board of directors for the Gregg and Harrison Counties Child Advocacy Center. “I always go back to Azleway. If they’re doing something, they know they can call and I’ll be involved in it,” Evans says. “They did a lot for me when I was there. They helped me realize I was fortunate to be there. At the time, I might not have realized it. I realized it more when I got older.” He’s been blessed, he says, and if he can help someone, he will. “I’ve always really spoken highly of that place, and the reason why is I know what they do for kids over there,” Evans says. “They’ve got a chance in life.” This past Fourth of July, Evans and his wife provided hamburgers, a fireworks show, music and other activities at Azleway Boys Ranch. He’s helped place children in jobs and helped them find a car they could fix up to drive. “He is an avid supporter of ours and has been for many years,” Duke says. “I

“I always go back to Azleway. If they’re doing something, they know they can call and I’ll be involved in it.”

can’t speak highly enough of Rickey Evans. He is one of those people who gives so generously of his time, his energy and his resources.” Partridge recalls that Evans showed back up at Azleway within two years of leaving, at first just to show support at the open house, but his involvement grew over the years. “He’s one of those guys who didn’t just give back financially,” he says. “It blows my mind that we have a man that is so concerned and compassionate about kids.” When Evans joined the board, he told Partridge to call if Azleway needed any help, and Evans answered, call after call after call. “And when he’s around kids, they know he’s interested,” Partridge says. “They know he cares. … He’s blessed our hearts in special ways.”

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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4815 Old BullaRd ROad 903.534.9799 haRleySfORmeN.cOm 4815 OLD BULLARD RD. TYLER 903.561.3136

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

style 44 50

56 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Winter Fashion

Scarves, Boots and a Pop of

Color Shirt and pants provided by Spinout Boots and scarf provided by Gaudy Me Bracelet provided by Vicki Rowe Designs Photos by Bethany Jeffery Fashion Stylist Alex Becnel

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Dress provided by Spinout Jewelry provided by Vicki Rowe Designs Photo by Bethany Jeffery Fashion Stylist Alex Becnel

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Sweater, jeans and purse provided by Spinout Scarf provided by Gaudy Me Photo by Bethany Jeffery Fashion Stylist Alex Becnel Bracelet provided by Vicki Rowe Designs Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Clothes and purse provided by Spinout Jewelry provided by Vicki Rowe Designs Photo by Bethany Jeffery Fashion Stylist Alex Becnel 48

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Clothes provided by Spinout Clutch provided by Hurwitz Jewelry provided by Vicki Rowe Designs Photo by Bethany Jeffery Fashion Stylist Alex Becnel Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Holiday Attire

Fancy and Casual

Her clothes and accessories provided by Spinout Her boots provided By Gaudy Me His clothes Provided By Hurwitz Photo by Bethany Jeffery Fashion Stylist Alex Becnel

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Her clothes and accessories provided by Spinout His clothes provided by Hurwitz Photo by Bethany Jeffery Fashion Stylist Alex Becnel

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Jacket and shoes provided by Hurwitz Pants provided by Spinout

Clothes provided by Hurwitz

His clothes provided by Hurwitz Her clothes provided by Spinout Her shoes provided by Hurwitz

Clothes and purse provided by Spinout Boots provided by Gaudy Me

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

The Diﬀerence is in the Details

Alex Becnel stylist

Styling and gift consulting

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In Magazine Spirit Debit Card color ad 4.6875"x 7.125" Due 7/24/12 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Fashion gifts > Elaine Turner Raquel Nude Patent wedges and purse, Black Fifteen-Twenty shirt, Rocket High Rise Skinny Pant by C of H, all available at Bridgette's.

>D&Y scarf, Black Sheep skirt, Qupid Boots, all available at Apricot Lane Boutique, www.apricotlanetyler.com. > Paul and Shark pullover, brown wallet, brown Mineral long sleeve shirt, Traditional Clothing pants, all available at Harleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, www.harleysformen.com.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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Free Consultations Tyler 903-561-9697 www.positivehair.com Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

style

Fashion Expert, Mary Mirsky

Back in time This fall and winter, we’re taking a trip back in time—back to the ‘60s. Feminine silhouettes with a classy pulled together feel. red this fall and winThe best par t is the textures offe fashions transport ter. So sit back, relax and let the you to a different time and place.

Jacquard and leather

> Vegan Leather Peplum Top from Pipeline, $68, www. piperlime.gap.com. Jacquard LoomTrousers from Zara, $79.90, www.zara.com. Qupid Miriam-51 Peep Toe Platform Pump from Urbanog, $27.90, www.urbanog.com. Gianni Bini Marielle Ponte & Faux-Leather Dress, $83.40, www.dillards. com.

Jacquard and leather are two of the most popular designer fabrics for this fall. It’s all about contrasting textures with a similar sheen or matte appearance. Above you have a slick black leather peplum top paired with jacquard trousers that have a slight blue grain. Because of the blue grain in the trousers, you can toss in many fun shades of blue, hence the wintery blue shoes and earrings. Jacquard trousers are a modern woman’s dear friend. They are transitional, classic and sophisticated, but the best part is they don’t wrinkle. This outfit is a great substitute to boring old “work suit.” 56

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

> Summer disc earrings, $12.99, www. shopruche. com.

The classic trench coat reimagined. I have been so excited about the revival of the classic trench. This is such a refined piece. It is a statement of confidence to rock a trench coat that has a whole lot of personality in and of itself. Here I really wanted to contrast the softness of the coat with the smooth leather boots, and the shine of the gold hardware on the bag.

The Classic Trench

> Elegant High Heeled Pumps with Contrast Black Toecap from Oasap, $47, www.oasap.com.

> Command a Chance Coat from ModCloth, $84.99, www.modcloth. com. Yellow Rachel Roy bag from Macyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, www.macys. com

The â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;60s shape 1960s shapes paired with modern colorblocking make the dress on the left the perfect outing dress for a woman of any shape. The placement of the color blocking automatically gives the illusion of an hourglass silhouette. Not only is this dress flattering, but it is also adaptable. A dress like this has so many options of accessory combinations because of the warm and cool neutral colors combined in the colorblocking.

> Clutch

from H&M, www.hm.com. Countryside Adventure Lace up boots from Ruche, www.shopruche.com

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

style

•Small Animal Medicine & Surgery

•Grooming •Boarding

Dr. Patti Sheehy www.copelandrdanimalhospital.com 5113 New Copeland Rd. • Tyler • 903.509.3454 58

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Beauty Must Haves for Winter

By Go-to-Girl, Brittany McCaughan

‘Tis the season for crisp fall weather, chilly winter nights, cozy family get-togethers and weekend holiday soirées. There’s no better time than the present to look and feel your best at all times! So keep reading for this seasons’ top GO FOR IT’S—you won’t be disappointed.

1. Paul Mitchell Volumizing spray- The perfect way to achieve sky high volume even with winters trying winds. The light spray, especially when paired with a blow dryer, will help keep your roots boosted. 2. L’Oreal color riche moisture balm- A great option for those who are lipgloss lovers but are craving a little more color with a much better staying power. The color “Caramel Comfort” gives your lips a sensual tinted coco color perfect for pairing with winter white sweaters. 3. Caress body wash- When it comes to hydration, you have to start in the shower. I love the Caress body wash line because it is not only affordable, but it’s customizable for various skin concerns and available in so many tantalizing scents. My MUST HAVE is Caress Shear Twilight body wash. I love the perfect mix of black orchid and juniper oil that leaves my skin feeling noticeably softer. 4. Clairol Natural Instincts Shine Happy Clear Shine Treatment- This is a great option for anyone; whether you have color treated hair or just desire more shine, this at home kit appears similar to a home hair color kit. However, instead of applying color to the hair, it’s actually applying a clear coat conditioner with light reflecting properties to give lackluster hair back the shine it needs. 5. V05 Hot Oil Treatment Intense Conditioning Treatment- Winter can wreak havoc on healthy hair strands causing breakage and spilt ends. This hot oil treatment has been around FOREVER and is an oldie but a goodie. Apply it at night after washing your hair when your hair cuticle is open and readily able to absorb more hydration. 6. Principessa Beauty dry shampoo- Contrary to how it sounds, dry shampoo is not meant to be used in place of actual shampoo. It’s is great for touching up roots that tend to be oily and for adding more volume and a refreshing fragrance throughout the day. I love this brand because the scent is light, and it’s available in many wonderful hair shades. 7. DIORSHOW Mascara- I have always been a huge fan of the makeup at the DIOR Shows—specifically the eye makeup with their gorgeous thick lashes. It’s a little known fact that the makeup artists backstage use toothbrushes on the models lashes to get that ultra-full look. And now, we can recreate that look at home with DIORSHOW mascara. 8. Lancôme Teint IDOLE Ultra 24hr wear- Although you may not wear your foundation for 24 hours straight, knowing that you can with this product lets you know this foundation takes its job seriously. With a creamy feel that dries quickly, the foundation also leaves your skin feeling hydrated and smooth. It’s considered a medium coverage, so if you have freckles or dark spots you want to cover, I would layer a concealer over this foundation. 9. OPI Vintage Minnie Mouse nail Shades- Disney anything has always held a special place in my heart since I grew up right next to Disneyland as a child. So whenever I get the chance to incorporate a touch of Disney with fashion, I’m all about it. These OPI shades go perfectly with this seasons color palette. My favorite is the pink shade, ‘The color of Minnie.’ 10. Champney’s Exotic Retreat Body Scrub- In one word—LUXURIOUS. Infused with brown sugar, cocoa butter and actual Bora Bora sand, this whipped body scrub will leave your skin feeling soft and smelling equally delicious. 11. Jane Iredale BB cream- The newest buzz word in the skincare market today is the BB cream, which means most boast they take the place of your serum, moisturizer, primer, foundation and sunblock. Several brands have their own versions, but my pick is by Jane Iredale. It’s all natural and feels great. 12. A Signature Sexy Winter Scent- My new favorite? L’Instant de Guerlaina winter worthy combo of sandalwood, honey and vanilla. A Perfect finishing touch for any occasion.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

HOLIDAY

giftInspiration We wanted to make shopping easier for you. Take a look at these local gift ideas, perfect for your friends, family or co-workers.

Morgan Abbigail

Louis Morgan

Fleur Decor

Come see our full line of Vera Bradley and pick up the perfect gift just in time for Christmas! The bag featured is the Grand Traveler in "Ribbons" and retails for $120. At Louis Morgan you will find only the finest products, personal service, and attention to detail. Come let us help you find the perfect gift this holiday season!

We are proud to be a Bridgewater Candle Company Authorized Dealer. Bridgewater is known for clean burning candles and fragrances that create snapshots of life. Light a Candle, Feed a Child. For every jar candle sold, a donation is made to feed an orphaned child for a day.

www.louismorgan.com | 903.758.6164

121 E Tyler Street • Longview | 903.232.2295

Off the Wall Gift Store

The London Shop

8th Street Boutique

Mistral... a fragrant journey. Signature, luxury, french soaps & gifts. Shown: Verbena Collection.

FINE PERIOD ANTIQUES

Trendy. Classic. Affordable

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101 East 8th Street • Tyler

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100 W. 8th St. • Tyler | 903.592.4541

101 E. 8th St. • Tyler | 903.595.6557

*Mention this AD for 20% off suggested retail! This Holiday Season let Santa know you want something special from Morgan Abbigail! We are featuring an array of monogramed jewelry by Jane Basch Designs. Order yours today and receive in time for Christmas.

1505 Judson Rd. • Longview | 903.234.9944

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Pearls

Only $30.

The best way to say...

Hobby Horse Stop by the Hobby Horse in Downtown Carthage for all of your Holiday Shopping needs! As a Carthage tradition for 39 years we offer a variety of unique gifts and home decor. From candles to jewelry, bridal registries, baby gifts and more, come see what we have in store!

119 W. Sabine, Carthage | 903.693.9327

Dazzle's

Collectables & Accessories Looking for the perfect stocking stuffer? Lily and Laura bracelets are the gift you can feel great about giving! Dazzle's offers a unique collection of gifts and customer service that can't be beat.

114 N Shelby St. Carthage | 903.693.9499

At only $30 each these Freshwater cultured pearl, gemstone and memory wire and rubber bracelets may be the perfect gift to yourself or a loved one. Mix and match and stack them to achieve the perfect look!

Elliott's Jewelers

At only $30 each of these FreshwaterPromises cultured Made. Promises Celebrated. pearl, gemstone & memory wire & rubber brace4607or Troup Hwy. lets may be the perfect gift to yourself a loved 903-939-0603 eelliottsjewelers.com one. Mix and match and stack them to achieve the perfect look!

www.elliottsjewelers.com | 903.939.0603

Red Barn

Janie's Cakes

Crafts & Quilting, Etc

Making Seasons Brighter Battery operated, remote control, flameless candle.

Quilting classes, quilt repair, fabric & supplies, handmade gifts.

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PREMIUM POUND CAKES All-natural, made-from-scratch using only the finest ingredients. The perfect gift for: Family: Friends: Birthday: Appreciation: Corporate. Shipped nationwide.

www.redbarnflorist.com | 888.333.8612

www.JaniesCakes.com | 903.592.6150

www.craftsandquiltsetc.com | 903.533.1771

715 South College Ave. â&#x20AC;˘ Tyler

Shannon Dorsey Independent Beauty Consultant sdorsey1@marykay.com 903.521.4794

Barron's Barron's has been a staple for Longview's retail community for 40 years. We offer gift ideas for Christmas, birthdays, anniversaries, co-workers, and much more! Shop Barron's for everyone on your Holiday gift list!

www.shopbarrons.com | 903.663.2106

Since 1970

Al H. Horaney's, Inc. Come see our brand new line of artistic glass bird baths. Perfect for indoor decor as well. Featured here is our Peacock Glass Bird bath retailing from $50-100.

www.alhoraneys.com | 903.939.1046

Shannon Dorsey Call for your FREE facial, and glamour make-over! Ask how you can earn FREE product! www.marykay.com | 903.521.4794 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

www.welcometotyler.net Welcoming Newcomers to Tyler for over thirty years Regina Roosth • 903-245-4360 • Regina@welcometotyler.net

Sterling silver charms from $25

3320 Troup Hwy. #300 Tyler, TX 75701 903.592.4171

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

1725-C Troup Hwy Tyler, TX 75701 903.592.7730

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A totally new kind of RESALE store for women. We understand that your life is always changing and that those changes bring on new needs for your wardrobe. We help you meet your everyday lifestyle changes by growing and adapting your wardrobe in the most cost-effective way possible... RESALE. We buy and then resell your better brand name, “gently-used” items that are in style and in good condition - business and casual, smart and stylish apparel, shoes, purses and accessories. Our stores are clean, bright, organized and sophisticated... just like our customers. ®

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

dwell 86

66 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

A Creole Cottage An East Texas Louisiana-style home that has a vibrant soul reminiscent of a 100-year-old plantation house. By Lea Rittenhouse | Photos by Sam Smead Architectural Detailing & Interior Design by Harry J. Crouse

Tucked away in the billowing trees of East Texas, near a picturesque lake, is a spacious property beholding an architectural structure best described as Creole cottage. With interior design elements reflecting a prominent New Orleans flavor, Jimmy and Patti Wright’s threestory home captures a time period and décor rarely found on this side of the Louisiana-Texas border. “Almost every single thing in the house came from New Orleans,” says Interior Designer Harry Crouse, who has been involved with the home since its beginnings. “Going back and forth and back and forth to auctions—it took years.” The home was built on 11 acres of land about 17 years ago, but with the authentic slate roof, Cyprus doors made in Baton Rouge and the lived-in antique heart pine wood floors, the house has a vibrant soul reminiscent of 100-year-old plantation house. “I’ve always loved old things, antiques and things like that, so part of the style of the house…it’s just different than what you normally see,” Patti says describing the furnishing and design elements that add to the soul feeling of the house. The Wright’s purchased the Longview home from | Cont. on page 71

Above: The illuminated den and breakfast room boasts incredible views from the over-scaled windows. Left: The home, situated on 11 acres, looks as it could have been built 200 years ago with the antique slate roof and cypress doors. Right: One of the five dormer windows in the 2nd floor.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

A cozy sitting area on the second floor for guests to relax.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

The living room, showing numerous English antiques acquired by Crouse , displayed on a fine heart pine floor.

The master bedroom features floor-to-ceiling windows looking into the tree tops and the lake beyond.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Cont. From page 66|the original owner about nine months after the property was finished. Previous to settling on their Louisiana-style home, the couple often scoped out land outside of town. “We came out here and looked (at the house) and he fell in love. It wasn’t just me, it was Jimmy,” Patti says while explaining their unique attraction to the home. “That was our hobby, we’d drive out to the country and look at land, and we kept dreaming. ‘Okay, eventually one day we’re going to find a piece of land and we’re going to buy it.’” Since the vision for the home was deeply rooted in the already established structure and design elements, Patti knew she didn’t want to deviate from the vested direction. She found out Harry had collaborated on the original plans and contacted him,

hoping he would want to continue his work. “We knew that Harry had ideas about he saw it to be furnished and the vision to complete it to be a Louisiana style house,” She says. Harry was thrilled the Wright’s invited him to continue working on the home since he had helped finish the home when the original owner was still building. “He had a passion for Louisiana architecture,” Harry says while expounding on the eclectic collection of authentic touches on the structure the builder included. “He searched out all of these wonderful old things.” The largest deflection from the Creole flavor of the architecture is the extravagant floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the landscape, which the Wright’s treasure about house. Both of their daughter’s

wedding portraits were taken in front of the windows. “The huge floor-to-ceiling windows, that’s something they would not have done,” Harry says. “We did it because of the view, but we divided it in the traditional way. You couldn’t possibly use the small little windows with the shutters with this view.” When the family moved into the home, Patti says Harry acquired a vision for their girls and worked hard to incorporate into the design what reflects the family, while keeping in line with the New Orleans feel. “My kids were at an age where they definitely had opinions about their space, not that they could pick everything, but I wanted them to feel like it was their home,” Patti says. “I think it’s really important that your home be your home, and feel like you.” Several pieces used in the home belonged to Jimmy’s grandparents, adding to the family flavor of the space. Jimmy and Patti have done two significant remodel jobs, on the lower level and second floor, and Harry helped guide both of them. In 2005, Patti gained inspiration to remodel what is now known as the media room, so the family would have an indoor reception area for her oldest daughter’s May wedding. “It was plain concrete floors and cinderblock and I needed the other bathroom and I needed an indoor area,” Patti says. The second remodel on the third floor was completed after both of the Wright children had moved off to college. The goal of the alterations was to replace the upstairs carpet with wood floors and to overall create unity within the design of the entire home. Despite the remodels, Harry says the house is still not finished. “The main reason it’s not finished is it takes so long to find the right pieces,” he says. Although she would enjoy finish the home one day, Patti says finding authentic pieces is worth the wait rather than putting a time limit on the process. “You’re not going to have the ability to acquire the things that are you, and representing the house and its period,” She says adding that her and her husband slept on a mattress with no headboard for years while waiting for the right piece. “Another reason why the house does feel like it has soul is because it’s along the line of these slow acquisitions that it takes.” Left: The entry staircase looking into the dining room. Above: The lower level game room is a favorite place for the family to gather with it's antique slate floor and fine old rugs. Below: The rear elevation shows the traditional detailed chimney, staircase and dormer windows, mixed with large pained windows. The home is paired with 11 acres of beautiful landscape.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

DOWNTOWN KILGORE UPSCALE, SOPHISTICATED SHOPPING

Mingle & Jingle 6pm-till Nov 24 Main St. 903-988-4117

City of Kilgore 72

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Commercial

u Ornamental Iron Specialties & Custom Design

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

dwell

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Bigger isn't Always Better By Janet Gregg | Photos by CJ White

They say bigger is better. Here in the Lone Star State, where residents are infamous for Texassizing everything from hair to houses, big is synonymous with happy. But one Tyler couple who decided to buck the trend and downsized to a home one-third the size of their previous one say they are happier now than in any home they’ve ever lived in. Tom and Karen Johnson moved to Tyler from Houston in June 2006 after their children graduated and moved out and Tom retired from 20 years of service with the Houston Police Department. Now he is the executive director of Campus Safety at Tyler Junior College and director of TJC’s Law Enforcement Academy. He also teaches history thanks to a doctorate degree in education, one of five college degrees he holds. Karen, who is a Tyler native, teaches ESL with the Tyler Literacy Council. They have been married for 19 years. “In Houston we commuted an hour to work every day,” Tom says. “Now we’re five minutes from work. It’s all about being happy and having a simpler, better quality of life.” When they moved to Tyler they bought a 1945 house on New Copeland Road that they first saw on the Internet. It was in disrepair but had charm, and | Cont. on page 80

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

dwell

“We consider ourselves part of the new downsizing movement. We just wanted a simpler life and a smaller house gave us that." Cont. on page 77 |they could tell it had been well-built. It took four months of work to get the inside the way they wanted, and Tom laughingly says they’ve been improving on it ever since. “We did it one room at a time. I handsanded all of the beautiful, original oak hardwood floors and then sealed them with three coats of varnish,” he says. “We replaced all of the windows with double-paned argon gas windows. They’re very energy efficient.” “This house is 896 square feet,” Karen says. “It’s one-third the size of our home in Houston, and I just love it. We’ve had more company here than we ever had in Houston.” The house retains a number of original features, ranging from built-ins to the cabinet where the hideaway ironing board used to be mounted. It now serves as a display shelf. The house also has

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

the original phone nook and door knobs that, while not original to the home, are still very special. “These glass door knobs are around 100 years old,” he says. “My Dad gave them to me. Years of sunlight hitting the manganese in them gave them a purple tint.” A few other features that attracted them to purchase the two bedroom 1 ½ bath home are a large workshop where Tom pursues his woodworking hobby and the half-acre lot, the majority of which makes up the large back yard. Tom has built a deck and added some strategic seating throughout the yard. The front of the home is highlighted by a picturesque porch and large oak trees. They say every aspect of their home is perfect for entertaining. “This home reminds everyone of a simpler time,” Karen says. “Tyler is a wonderful town, and we have a lot of people who stop by, write us letters or even

knock on the door out of the blue saying it’s beautiful and praising all of the renovations we’ve done. I think it reminds them of a simpler time and place in their life, when people sat on their front porches and talked to their neighbors. These smaller old houses are the houses our parents and grandparents grew up in.” “We consider ourselves part of the new downsizing movement,” Tom says. “We just wanted a simpler life and a smaller house gave us that. Our electric bills here are half of what they were in Houston. We have gas heating and a gas stove. The taxes are also much cheaper here.” “We can actually enjoy life now,” Karen adds. “Back then we worked to live. Now we enjoy life. Everything we do is on a cash basis, and for us it’s all about being happy and having a simpler, better quality of life. Everything now is about quality of life. My dad even moved up here to Tyler last year, and he’s very happy here, too.” So instead of “bigger is better” consider this instead: Sometimes good things really do come in small packages. That was the case for Tom and Karen, who are proving that things really do come full circle and all things old are eventually new again.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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2 bedroom 2 bath 84 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com 1564 sq. ft. living area

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A friendly Design Challenge

By David Wallace | Photos by Herb Nygren Jr.

I love a good challenge. However, I often bite off more than I can chew. It's been fun showing you how to use discarded items, found objects and even simple trash to create something special, such as furnishings for your home, decorative items and art. Did you know Americans generate more than twice as much trash than any other population in other major countries? Each one of us contributes about 4.6 pounds of trash per day, which translates to an astounding 251 million tons of trash per year, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Some trash gets recycled and some gets burned, but the vast majority, 55 percent, is buried in well-managed landfills. The amount of trash buried in landfills has more than doubled since 1960, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency. My recent endeavors to turn trash into treasure are beginning to overtake my home, which is

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

the place of storage for all items that offer me challenges for future projects. In fact, many of you have called me or come knocking at my door to offer your recent finds and challenge me to create something out of themâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;I appreciate it very much. If this keeps up, however, I'm going to need to live in a warehouse. Staci Palmer, business administrator at Venue Properties, recently called and asked if I could make use of some old wire rack carts and cardboard tubes because she was going to throw them away. It sounded interesting, and she seemed to think they had potential, so I quickly ran over to her place to take a lookâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;she was right. I was thankful that when someone thought of trash, they thought of me. In this issue, I'm going to show and tell you what I did to those items that could have ended up in a landfill for the next 1,000 years. The wire rack carts were an easy transformation. First, I tightened up all of the fasteners and wheels. This made them quite sturdy. Then I measured the top length and width, which was about 13-by-20 inches. After that, I built a simple open-box construction of 2-by-4 lumber and topped it with some

quarter-inch-thick plywood and painted it white to match the wire racks. Then I nestled it on the top shelf of the cart. To further reflect my personal style, I enhanced the industrial look by taking 12 of the cardboard tubes and cutting them in half. I dropped the tubes into the divided areas, which is what the racks were designed to hold. But I didn't want the tubes to come all the way up. Look at the picture to the right of the wire rack carts and tubes. Now I've got two great-looking end tables, and I chose to pair them with the love seat I made from two chairs and pillows. This little grouping would look good in a home office. I still had many cardboard tubes left, so I created a great piece of art for the wall above the love seat ensemble. This project was almost as easy as the end tables. It looks massive and very substantial, but it is actually very light weight. The supply list consists of only a few items, and the time it takes to make is much less than you may imagine. Also, depending on the light source, the shadows cast will give the piece even more dimension. Start by spreading some plastic trash bags on a horizontal surface, like the floor. You will glue the tubes together on top of the bags. Once the glue is completely cured, the bags will be fairly easy to peel off the finished project. Use Gorilla glue for the permanent adhesion, especially to porous materials such as the cardboard tubes. I used an artist brush to spread the glue on the tubes. Gorilla glue starts out with the consistency of maple syrup, slowly foams up and hardens like rock. Like super glue, it is difficult to remove from skin, so latex gloves are recommended. Carefully arrange the tubes in a pile after coating the surfaces with glue. They

tend to move around or roll away, so be very easy. It's a little like playing pick-up sticks in reverse. The glue will not stick on contact, but this actually provides time for repositioning. Also, once you spread your plastic bags, you must place a piece of very sturdy cardboard or even a piece of very thin wood on top of the plastic under the pile of tubes. When the project is completely cured, this will give it support and something to hold the hanging hardware. Once the project is dry, which usually takes overnight or at least several hours, you can paint it. Pull off the plastic but spread it out again. Place the project back on the plastic, and you are ready to paint. I like latex wall paint because it has minimal odor, dries quickly, is easy clean up and inexpensive compared to artist acrylic paints. I like flat white because it makes the project look like sculptured limestone, but any color and any finish can be used. Latex paint comes in flat, satin, semi-gloss and gloss. Use a two or three inch brush to spread a generous amount of paint broadly over the project, then use a small artist brush to push the paint into all the visible nooks and crannies. Once it is completely dry, you’re done. Hang it up. Even though latex paint dries quickly, let it dry overnight, because there will be heavy pools of paint in some areas and you don't want it to drip on your walls or floors. It will be fairly easy to pull off the plastic after the paint is dry. My good friends Kamla and Alan Utz, who own and operate Jake’s Tyler, offered me the use of a historic building adjoined to the restaurant to display my art. The space is more than a 100 years old and will provide room for future expansion of their business. For the time being, I get to use it

to store my exceptional finds and to display my art. It's like having my own private gallery on the Square in downtown Tyler. The window looks great and everyone is enjoying as much as I am. It has become my new canvas. These projects were very easy, and I believe a lot of people are starting to see the potential in their trash. I'm doing it, you’re doing it and others are starting too! It's kind of like a bunch of talented musicians assembling for an orchestra performance. At first, every one begins by tuning up their instruments. It is just a bunch of noise. Then suddenly one begins to play a well-known piece of music and others begin to recognize it and join in. Eventually everyone is playing the same piece, and before you know it, a beautiful symphony begins.

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The finished wall art and side tables.

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Dr. Fletcher’s innovative stem cell therapy aids in joint damage & natural cosmetic procedures. Some people recall the history of embryonic stem cells that were derived from fetal tissue. Now fat derived stem cells are the hope of the future….. Stem-like cells can be obtained from your own fat cells. These stem-like cells can aid the regeneration of your own bone and cartilage. Usually they are obtained from the fat pad in your abdomen, processed and then injected into your damaged joints. This procedure is done in one day. After the stem-like cells have had time to grow then the pain can be reduced and the patient can become more active. Patient must be between the age of 18-80 to qualify. Before

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102 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

live healthy

Achieving a dream

Tyler resident Michelle Brookshire set her heart on climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, the world’s tallest free-standing mountain. By Michelle Pena | Courtesy Photos

Top: Michelle, Emma and Bruce Brookshire during sunrise at the mountain summit. The white in the middle of the photo is the top of the clouds. Michelle says it looked like the waves of the ocean rolling in. Below: Photo during the climb up Mount Kilimanjaro.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Tyler resident Michelle Brookshire set her heart on climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, the world’s tallest free-standing mountain, after climbing a smaller mountain in high school. Mount Kilimanjaro, located in Tanzania, Africa, sits south of the equator and stretches 19,000 feet into the sky. More than 25,000 climbers per year make the trek to the summit, Uhuru Peak, to mark personal accomplishments or to draw attention to a worthy cause or charity. Suitably, Uhuru is the Swahili word for freedom. Michelle’s dream became reality through Young Life Africa. Tyler residents Tom Ramey and Rick Rogers are members of Young Life Africa’s Regional Committee, and they rotate every year as leaders of the Climb for Change fund raising outreach, which began in 2008. Climb for Change raises money to send African high school students to a Young Life Africa summer camp, where they are introduced to the love of Jesus and are given hope for their future. Participants of Climb for Change take a twoweek trip to Tanzania, Africa, where they work and serve in a Young Life Africa camp for three days, then take a seven-day Mount Kilimanjaro journey. Due to the ravaging effects of war and AIDS, 75 percent of the population of the African countries below the Sahara Desert is under the age of 21, making Africa a continent of young people. Young Life impacts the next generation of Africa by utilizing African leaders who show interest. The Mount Kilimanjaro climb is strategically tied to the Young Life Camp experience. The trip is much more than an expedition or vacation; it marries the harsh reality of pain and struggle to the possibilities of freedom, allowing the climbers to catch a glimpse of unlimited beauty and the promise of hope. Michelle and her two children, Emma, 17, and Bruce, 15, decided to participate in last summer’s Climb for Change trip, after hearing about the Ramey and Roger’s previous three | Cont. on page 97

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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"We thought we were going to climb the mountain, but the thing that was the most valuable for us was seeing Young Life at work over there." Cont. from page 94 | year’s experiences. Michelle dreamed of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro as a teenager, and now the opportunity was tangible. The fact that she could climb it with close friends and her children made the decision simple. Michelle, Emma and Bruce embraced the spiritual, physical and mental challenges before them and embarked on a lifechanging journey. In preparation for the mountain climb, Michelle walked the trails at both Tyler State Park and The University of Texas at Tyler. She exercised at a local health club and also ran up steep hills near her house to prepare her ankles and condition her heart. Mount Kilimanjaro’s

terrain does not require mountain tools. However, muscle and cardiovascular endurance is needed to make reach the summit. Climbers will encounter diverse terrain, including grasslands, jungle, snow and ice. Michelle described the trip to Africa as two mountain top experiences. Incidentally, the three days they spent serving at the camp took precedence over Mount Kilimanjaro. “We thought we were going to climb the mountain, but the thing that was the most valuable for us was seeing Young Life at work over there. I was completely and totally amazed at what’s going on in Africa as far as the Lord and what Young Life is doing with its ministry. It is so powerful.” Tanzanian tour guides and porters helped Michelle and the team make the seven-day trip up and down the mountain. They cooked, carried backpacks, set up tents and campsites, ultimately ensuring everyone was well and safe. Michelle enjoyed learning about the Tanzanian people and their culture. She pointed out “the songs they would sing kept everyone’s morale up and inspired momentum during the climb.” Tom Ramey, the leader of this year’s trip, described it as being much harder than previous years’ because it was much colder than normal, with temperatures at 10 degrees below zero. “If you are in moderately good shape you will make it to the peak. One of the dangers of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro is altitude sickness. It is not a respecter of persons. If you get it, your trip is over,” Ramey says. The last 3,000 feet of the ascent was the most challenging, Michelle says.

The trek began at midnight to allow the climbers to reach the peak at sunrise. Headlamps were attached to everyone’s heads, and a single file line was formed. “You could only see right in front of you. It took seven hours to make it to the peak,” Michelle recalls. “ Many times I thought, ‘Am I going to make it to the top?” Her body was working overtime trying to stay warm and alive in the subzero temperatures and high altitude. “It’s as if you have everything fighting against you,” she says. Her desire to reach the mountain top partnered with a favorite scripture gave her the strength and determination she needed to keep going. The sun emerged with perfect timing as they reached Uruhu Peak. Although tired and fatigued, the team paused for reflection and photos as they basked in their accomplishment. After about 30 minutes at the top, they headed back down the now familiar path. The threeday journey down was ironically as hard as the ascent. Michelle and her two children share special memories that hold an arsenal of life lessons. Headed home, leaving the great continent of Africa, their airplane flew by Mount Kilimanjaro, and upon seeing the vast mountain from a higher perspective, Michelle, thought, “Oh, I can do anything.” Left: Part of the Young Life group at the summit holding the Young Life flag that was handmade the night before the summit. Right: Bruce, Michelle and Emma at 15,000 ft.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

live healthy

Living with Anxiety By Lea Rittenhouse

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the United States, affecting 18 percent of the population over the age of 18—about 40 million people.

Thoughts of danger, sweating, worry and avoiding situations are just a few typical symptoms of anxiety, a disorder prominent in American culture. The elicited emotion of anxiety is a normal reaction to various situational triggers, but there is a point where the symptoms form a disorder and may need to be treated. “Anybody can be anxious in any situation, but if it begins to affect your ability to deal with others and your ability to work, then it might be a time to visit somebody about it,” says Dr. Dennis Combs, associate professor of psychology at The University of Texas at Tyler. Dr. Combs is also a licensed psychologist and has a private practice in Tyler. If the attributes of anxiety occur excessively in an otherwise healthy person, Dr. Combs says some people benefit from engaging in exercise, relaxation techniques, distractions or attempting to avert the focus from worrying. “Anything involved with healthy lifestyles generally helps with anxiety,” he

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

says. “One of the things that I’ve suggested to people is to have a worry time, where they set aside 10-15 minutes a day to worry about whatever’s on their mind, and then once that times over, they move on and deal with their life.” There are people, however, who don’t benefit from the above preventative techniques and find themselves with impaired functioning because of anxiety — those with anxiety disorders. Dr. Combs says treatment and or medication is the next avenue to pursue in attempts to control or manage the condition. Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the United States, affecting 18 percent of the population over the age of 18—about 40 million people. The symptoms are examined from three different angles: physical, cognitive and behavioral affects. Common physical symptoms include: increased heart rate, sweating, rapid breathing, trembling and shaking. Cognitive symptoms include: thoughts of danger, losing thoughts or the inability to think and concentrate. Fear, panic, worry and concern are also emotional-

cognitive reactions. Common behavioral symptoms include: avoidance and attempting to escape the situation. Dr. Combs says the most common anxiety disorders are phobias, both specific and social, Panic Disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Post-Dramatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Phobias

A specific phobia is an intense, irrational fear of something the poses little or no actual danger. Some of the more common specific phobias are centered around closed-in places, heights, escalators, tunnels, highway driving, water, flying, dogs and injuries involving blood, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. These phobias aren’t extreme fears, just irrational fears. “Phobias are by far the most common fear,” Dr. Combs says. A social phobia is a strong fear of being judged by others and being embarrassed. Many people deal with these issues, but those with social phobias begin worrying about the situations weeks before they happen, according to NIMH.

“Anybody can be anxious in any situation, but if it begins to affect your ability to deal with others and your ability to work, then it might be a time to visit somebody about it.” This phobia is equally common in men and women.

Panic Disorder

Panic disorder is characterized by sudden attacks of terror, usually accompanied by a pounding heart, sweatiness, weakness, faintness, or dizziness. During these attacks, people with panic disorder may flush or feel chilled, their hands may tingle or feel numb and they may experience nausea, chest pain, or smothering sensations, according to NIMH. Panic attacks typically produce a sense of unreality, a fear of impending doom, or a fear of losing control. Women are twice as likely to be affected than men.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

and using rituals (compulsions) to control the anxiety these thoughts produce. Most of the time, the rituals end up controlling them, according to NIMH. This disorder is equally common in men and women.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

PTSD is a disorder that some people acquire after experiencing a dangerous event. Although it’s natural to feel afraid, those who have PTSD feel stressed of fearful even when they are no longer in danger, according to NIMH. Women are more likely to have PTSD. Anxiety disorders are commonly treated with medication or therapy, both of which are successful ways to manage the disorders. Dr. combs says the treatment depends on the patient. “Medications are often fast acting, they’ll cut your anxiety down really quickly, so for people who have a panic attack, they can take the anxiety drug and that works usually within 30 minutes,” he says. “The psychological therapies have a roll for people who have tried medicine that maybe didn’t work or maybe they don’t want to take medicine at all.” Although anxiety can be treated and managed, neither therapy nor medication can guarantee eliminating the problem permanently.

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People with GAD go through the day filled with exaggerated worry and tension, even when there is little or nothing to provoke it. They anticipate disaster and are overly concerned about health issues, money, family problems, or difficulties at work, according to NIMH. This disorder is twice as common in women. “That seems to be for sort of a normal group who are working and have families. Some people just cannot stop worrying,” Dr. Combs says. “They worry constantly, it wakes them up at night, they’re tense, they’re moody and the just can’t stop worrying.”

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

OCD involves the occurrence of persistent, upsetting thoughts (obsessions)

“We don’t like to use the term cure because it means the symptoms won’t ever come back, but you can control anxiety and you can manage it very well,” he says. Since anxiety is a disorder related to brain chemistry, specifically serotonin, it’s not uncommon for anxiety and depression to be synonymously experienced. In fact, popular depression drugs like Zoloft and Prozac are also approved for anxiety. “One of the things I’ve noticed is about 50 percent of people who have anxiety, also have depression,” he says. Dr. Combs has noticed an increase of anxiety since he began his practice. “People tend to be more worrisome, the stresses of life kind of build on people. People get over committed,” he says.

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101

Tyler resident, Jeff Morris. 102 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

LEGION8

A CrossFit workout designed to honor eight brave soldiers who lost their lives while serving their country. By Morgan Jones | Photos by Chris Pound

o honor the fallen soldiers of his unit, Jeff Morris and his close-knit group of friends established Legion 8, an intense CrossFit Hero Workout of the Day, or WOD, routine to be preformed yearly in memory of those who were lost. CrossFit is recently popular strength and conditioning brand that offers participants WODs to get in better physical shape. “It’s a brutal work out. Very, very hard,” Morris says. “You look at it on paper and you think, ‘That won’t be that bad.’ While it’s completely different than the training we do in the military, the whole idea is the same in that you just have to keep going.” The Legion 8 workout consists of eight rounds of eight different exercises with eight repetitions each. The exercises range from chest bars to clapping pushups to toe bar pull-ups for an average 50-minute exhausting workout. The CrossFit challenge is dedicated to the men who served in Morris’ Bravo Company in Baghdad, Iraq, and were unable to make it back home to their loved ones. “The idea behind Hero WODs is they are supposed to hurt,” says John Wilmoth, CrossFit trainer and friend of Morris. “They are supposed to be long, not just seven-minute workouts. We wanted to get Jeff’s story out there and make it real to people. We wanted to find a way to honor these eight men that gave their life along side Jeff for our country.” Since a young age, Morris knew he wanted to serve in the military. Having

grown up in on the beach of Destin, Fla., and knowing how to swim like a fish, he aspired to be a Navy SEAL. However, he thought his dream was crushed after a serious football injury that decommissioned his shoulder after extensive surgery. He went to work as a financial consult in Florida and later buyer for CarMax in Dallas. Morris still had a yearning to apply for commission. “I did the corporate American thing for a few years,” Morris says. “But I still had that itch of wanting to serve. I got a

who had become more like brothers to him through friendships that were built on respect and camaraderie. “I think we did have a very special bond from the deployment,” Morris says. “We went through so much together and you can’t help but become close.” While in Iraq in 2007, during Operation Freedom Iraqi II, Morris’ Bravo Company (Company B), 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team and 1st Cavalry Division), better known as The Legion, underwent months of patrolling through Al Razul, Baghdad’s city streets. For the men of The Legion unit, March 15 is a day that will never be forgotten because of the terror that tore through the lives of six of the brave soldiers. One of the Bradley Fighting Vehicles of the bravo unit was hit by road side bomb, injuring several in its path. Staff Sgt. Terry W. Prater, SSG Blake M. Harris, SSG Ryan P. Green, SSG Emerson N. Brand, SSG Nicholas Lightner and Specialist James L. Arnold broke out to investigate the site when a second boom exploded, killing four instantly. SSG Green died three days later, and SSG Lightner died six days later from their injuries sustained. “No one knows how they would react in a situation like that” Morris says. “You just have to go with that inherent fight or flight instinct. Its mental discipline: If you mentally prepare yourself the best possible, you will be OK. You may not be able to completely prepare yourself, but if you train a certain way, then when bad things happen, maybe come under fire, you have to have the | Cont. on page 104

“We went through so much together and you can’t help but become close.” good job, making good money. I should have been happy where I was at, but I just felt like I never fulfilled this dream of mine.” Morris tried to ignore his childhood dream until the terrorist attack of 9-11, which landed him in the Army recruiting office two days after the attack. By March 2004, Morris was sent to Iraq as a platoon leader where he would serve his first deployment. By the end of his first deployment, his task force had earned more Purple Heart medals than any other team since the Vietnam War. For his second deployment, Morris was offered the commander position of the same unit and served with a group of men

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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live healthy Cont. from page 103 |mental know how.” On April 4, 2007, Spc. James Coon was shot by a sniper, followed by Sgt. Calbe Christopher, who was killed by an explosive formed projectile. This line of war casualties are the men of Legion 8. “Dealing with the loss of life and the worries back at home, you have to focus and not let it get to you,” Morris says. “It’s a chapter of my life that I will never forget, but it’s not necessarily something I want to live again. To do something like that, and move forward, that’s the stuff that shapes me but doesn’t define me.” After 68 months of service in the Army and two deployments, Morris decided to retire and return home – with three Bronze Star medals (one for each deployment and a Bronze Star Medal with Valor from a heroic mission during his first deployment) – to Colorado to his son, Cole. “I had all these things in me that I want to accomplish, but that was the kid side of me,” Morris says. “I realized that being a father was the most important thing. While I had my own selfish desires, my son always comes first. That was really what helped me get out.” Because of his military background, Morris earned a position as a spine consultant for the Tyler area for Medtronic to be close to his son, who lives in Austin. For the first year in Tyler, Morris had trouble adjusting to the city’s social scene, until he meet John and Charity Wilmoth, who plugged him into the Premier CrossFit family of Chris Hughes and the owners of Premier, Cune and Michelle Pena. “It’s weird. I have always found myself talking about it with the guys that I went through it with,” Morris says. “I never really opened up to other people about it.” Over time, Morris opened up to Chris Hughes and John Wilmoth about his experience with the men of The Legion. “The goal in the beginning was to get as many people as possible to understand what Jeff went through,” Hughes says. “It is a terrible story and these are the stories that we never hear. People have things to say about the war. It’s stories like this that make people say, OK maybe they really do need funding, maybe they really do need more support.” In June of this past year, Wilmoth took it upon himself to develop an initial Hero WOD routine with Morris’ support that Hughes tweaked for the final exercise flow. “Everybody was really excited about it. I don’t think they knew how big it was going to turn out,” Hughes says. “What I like about Legion 8 is it will definitely expose any weakness in a 104 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

CrossFitter because there is Olympic lifting, vertical pushups, toe bars, clapping pushups and more. If you have any weakness, it will find it.” Hughes then worked with Morris on pairing each movement with one of the fallen men that became known as Legion 8 Hero WOD. “That’s kind of how this whole process worked. Other people came up with ideas and then they would come to me and ask if I blessed off on it,” Morris says. “This was for those guys that I was deployed with, and since I had the personal relationship with them, they wanted me to be happy with it.” With little time to prepare for the first Legion 8 event in July, the more than 50 participants who endured through the brutal workout came as a surprise to the development team. “That day was incredible. I mean, it really was,” Wilmoth says. “The goal is to put yourselves through a millionth of the amount of discomfort those men might go through on a normal day over there, and you just have to be prepared for that.” Because of the high difficulty level of the Legion 8 routine, the workout could be divided between teams that could consist of two to four people. Participants paid an entry fee of $25,

which included a T-shirt and lunch. Mel Morgan planned the event, and Fran Morgan designed the T-shirts and logo. “What I want people to get out of this event is, yeah, the war is fresh in their head because they see it in the news, but they have to think about the people that are still going to be affected by this for the rest of their life,” Morris says. Because of the powerful results of their first event, the continued expanding interest from other hopeful future participants and the desire to continue to share Morris’ story, the Tyler Premier CrossFit box is going through the necessary process with the National CrossFit Company to get Legion 8 nationally recognized. Premier plans to host the second annual Legion 8 event this coming March. Interested participants and spectators can visit the Premier CrossFit website to gather more details of this year’s event. “People out there hear about bad things happening over there on the news all the time and they believe in it, but it’s not really real until they have someone like me standing in front of them to tell them about it,” Morris says. “That day it was funny because the first thing everybody said is ‘I won’t do that again until next year.’ It is a once a year kind of workout but is so worth it.”

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live healthy

How do processed foods actually affect the body? By Andy Taylor

The mass consumption of processed foods might be a staple in modern society, but it wasn’t always that way. For thousands of years, humans ate foods they grew and prepared themselves, without access to sealed cans or freezers. The fact that processed meals are so common today begs the question: How does factory-altered food affect the body? Alicia Burgin, owner of Pure Body Nutrition, says eating processed foods often means sacrificing health content in exchange for shelf life or taste. “It’s taking what God has created and pulling out all of the vitamins and nutrients and putting it on the shelf,” Burgin says. “It’s been processed, so it’s not what nature intended. It’s not what you need for your body.” At her store, Burgin advises customers on the best ways to maintain healthful eating habits. She says many people make the mistake of cutting corners on their diet by eating low-calorie foods that provide little health value. Eating diet-friendly frozen dinners, for example, means consuming high levels of sodium. “They have to put tons of salt to actually preserve that food,” she says. “Whereas, you can get fresh vegetables and things of that nature and be a whole lot healthier.” Still, Burgin says some processed foods can be beneficial. The important factor to note is the ingredient list. In most cases, the shorter the list, the better. “If it says, ‘peas and carrots,’ you’re good,” she says. “If it says, ‘peas, carrots, salt and all these other additives,’ you’re not doing great.” Burgin says this is because altering natural foods can strip away nutrients that make bodies healthy and strong. She cites the fact many Americans rely on multivitamins to supplement their diets as evidence many foods lack what bodies need. She recommends looking at different brands of steamed vegetables to find produce that lacks harmful additives. “They haven’t done anything to it, they haven’t taken anything away,” she says. “It’s just been freeze-dried.” Justin Sturgis, nutritional consultant at Complete Nutrition, says processed foods might not pose an immediate risk but can lead to trouble later in life. The problem, he says, is not that all processed foods are inherently bad, as many altered food products pose no immediate physiological reaction. However, the additives used in many processed foods can build up over time.When he talks to people about improving their diet, Sturgis says he always advises a natural approach. He’s concerned not only with macronutrients, such as fats and proteins, but also the quality of the food. “A lot of times processed foods are cheaper, they’re mass produced,” he says. “Whether it be livestock or produce … it comes down to (money).” Large food companies, he says, are more interested in selling as much of a food product as possible, rather than providing a nutritious meal. Burgin says the fact that processed foods are cheaper makes eating healthfully even more challenging. It’s made even more complicated by the fact many processed meals are enriched with vitamins and minerals. Products such as milk or bread might be fortified with Omega 3 fatty acids, which can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, or fiber, which helps with digestion. In this case, eating processed foods actually can be beneficial, according to the International Food Information Council Foundation. Burgin says the important thing to remember is to give the 106 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

body what it needs, rather than what is cheapest or fastest. She emphasizes that just because a diet might seem cheap now doesn’t mean it will not cost more later, because a poor diet over time can lead to health problems. “You have to spend a little bit more money to buy a bag of carrots and cut them up and steam them yourself,” she says. “I kind of look at it when I’m going to the grocery store that I’ve got to put that money in now, so that I don’t have to put it in later and be in pain and pay doctor bills.” While maintaining a diet rich in processed foods might take years to catch up to someone, the effects of natural foods are much faster, she says. Eating natural, nutritious meals can lead to more energy and fewer aches and pains. “It gives you the ability to do more and be more active,” she says.

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live healthy Have fun with the planning and make it a family affair by getting the children or out-of-town guests involved. Secondly, in order for you to meet your new goals, decide what parties and events are a priority so you’re not overwhelmed with a loaded schedule. Save time by writing down a gift list at the beginning of the season and stick to it. Of course there is always the unexpected, but have a general plan. This can allow focus on the season’s priority, which is health. If traveling this season, get a plan of action before leaving.

For Example: Look for walking or hiking trails where you may be staying. Check out any local gyms in the area. Suggest an exercise activity for a family event. Bring along a 10 minute workout that can be done anywhere.

Avoid the holiday gain

Two days meant for celebration can turn into six weeks of overeating, overscheduling and a lack of exercise.

By Crystal Breaux | Courtesy Photo

The holidays can be overwhelming and stressful. The two days meant for celebration turn into six weeks of overeating and overscheduling, with a lack of exercise. The combination can lead to feelings of guilt, stress, exhaustion and sometimes defeat after having worked hard to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight over the last 10 months. How does that happen? One reason might be the need to add more and more to our to-do lists. I’m guilty of unrealistically thinking I can buy one more present, plan or attend one more party and take my children to another holiday event. Sound familiar? If you have been exercising all year, the lack of time for exercise can be frustrating and can set you back mentally and physically. However, with a little bit of thought, you can stay healthy and fit,

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even through the holidays. First, sit down and write a new, perhaps altered, workout schedule with modified goals for the holidays. It might not be realistic to exercise like you have the past few months. Then, of course, when you are unable to keep that schedule, you are more likely to quit exercising all together, which makes it even more difficult when the new year begins. So how to set realistic goals for the holidays? Fit the frequency, duration, intensity and type of exercise into the new holiday schedule. For example, if exercising five days a week, set a goal to get in three. If the routine has consisted of 45 minutes, schedule 30 minutes instead and increase intensity. Maybe the daily schedule included going to the gym at a regular time for a favorite class. If that does not work, replace the class workout with a walk at a new time.

In addition to the lack of time for exercise during the holidays, it can feel like you are surrounded by food. For six weeks or more, there is the temptation to overindulge with yummy treats, which can lead to feeling defeated. As with exercise goals, get specific with a few preventative ideas. Don't Skip Meals. It's tempting to want to save all of your calories for the party. However, that can leave you feeling famished without care or concern about what you eat. Make sure you eat a few small meals throughout the day and even a light snack before your go. It can help you feel in control of the situation when faced with temptation. Choose One Treat. I have a few favorite items that I only get to eat during the holidays and can’t wait to make them my one treat at a party. Scan the menu before you fix your plate and choose the item you wish to indulge. Don’t waste time or calories on things like chips and dip that you may get all year long. Control Your Drinking. Alcohol is an easy way to consume more calories than you need. Watch the fruity drinks and especially the eggnog, which can have up to 350 calories a cup. Alternate drinks with a glass of water, and if you choose a high calorie drink, give up something else in the food line. There isn’t a set rule that applies to everyone. The important thing is to sit down and set goals for a personal holiday schedule to reduce stress and stay in control. By thinking it through with a plan, one can enjoy the holidays and avoid the feelings of guilt associated with overeating and a lack of exercise.

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Upcoming Events:

Lewis Auto Swap Meet: November 9 - 11 Open House: 11/15 Downtown Square, ALL DAY! Yesterland Farm: Pumpkin Patch & Tree Farm Open from 11/23 thru 12/16.

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Holiday Feast Looking for a way to break out of the mold for this year's Holiday menu? Try these favorite flavors to personalize the table.

Recipes By Lonnie Crist | Photos by Sarah A. Miller

Festive Tuna Tower Cook time: about 20 minutes

Ingredients

3 oz. Ahi tuna, diced 1/4" ¼ of a cucumber, peeled and diced 1/4 " 1/2 of a small tomato, diced 1/4" 1/3 avocado, diced 1/4" 1/2 tsp. white toasted sesame seeds Small handful rice stick noodles (optional)

Directions

> Take a small Styrofoam cup, 8 to 12oz. size, and cut the bottom out. Spray lightly with non-stick cooking spray. Place the wide opening side down on the middle of your plate. > Start with the tuna first, you can sear it or prepare raw. Evenly distribute it at the bottom of the cup. Use a round container that has about the same diameter as the cup to press the tuna to the form of the cup. For a tighter hold you can mix a little mayonnaise or sesame oil with the tuna. > Next, take the avocado and do the same, building on top of the tuna. Be careful not to press too hard. > Add the cucumber next, and then repeat with the tomato. > Very carefully, pull the cup straight up with one hand while pressing the middle of the tower towards the plate. > Add rice stick noodles to the top and sprinkle with sesame seeds. The tower can be served with soy sauce.

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Lobster Bisque Cook time: about 30 minutes Ingredients

1 cup chicken broth 2 medium slices onion 2 tbsp. butter 2 cups heavy cream 1/2 tsp. salt 4, 3 oz. lobster tails 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce 1 pinch ground cayenne pepper 1 tsp. Cajun seasoning

Directions

> Saute butter and onions in frying pan for five minutes on medium heat. Add chicken stock and simmer for an additional three minutes. Then add the heavy cream, salt, Worcestershire and cayenne and bring to almost a boil. > Reduce heat to a low simmer for five minutes and turn off the heat. Cut the lobster tails down the middle, from the top down to the end of the tail, with a sharp knife. Carefully use your fingers to open the tail and expose the meat. > Sprinkle with Cajun seasoning and steam in a colander on high heat for seven minutes. Move lobster tails to the oven, cooking at 375 degrees, for about eight to 10 minutes. > Serve the lobster tail in middle of soup bowl upside down, and garnish with fresh chives.

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food & culture

Beef Wellington Cook time: about 30 minutes Ingredients

Directions

> Â Remove gills from mushrooms with a spoon. Coarsely chop and add to food processor. Add salt and pepper to taste, 1 clove of garlic and arugula. Pulse until finely mincedâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;this mixture is known as a duxelle. > Add Duxelle to a hot, dry skillet and cook on low until most of the moisture evaporates. This is a very important part to the process. > Meanwhile, season your tenderloin with salt, pepper and remaining garlic. > Heat a hot skillet and add olive oil. Sear the entire tenderloin evenly on all sides for about two minutes or less. While tenderloin is cooling, mix mustard and horseradish together and cover the entire tenderloin. > Next overlap two pieces of cling film over your work space. Lay 12 pieces of prosciutto on the cling film, slightly overlapping, in a double row. > Once the duxelle is cooled, spread evenly over the prosciutto and then lay the tenderloin in the center. Carefully take the bottom corners of the cling wrap and draw the prosciutto around the tenderloin. Roll it into a sausage shape and twist both ends tightly. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. > Spread a little flour on the work surface and lay out your puff pastry. Remove the tenderloin from the cling wrap and set in the center of the pastry. > Beat the egg yolks and spread a little on the edges, tops and sides of your pastry dough to ensure a tight seal. Fold the pastry dough over covering the entire tenderloin. Cut any additional pastry. Trim the edges and wrap tightly with cling wrap as you did the first time. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. > Remove cling wrap and brush the entire tenderloin with egg yolk. Score the top of the pastry with a sharp knife, making sure you don't cut through the pastry dough. Sprinkle with salt and place on a baking sheet to cook for 35 minutes at 400 degrees. > The beef wellington should look nice and golden brown, cooked medium rare. Adjust cooking time for desired results.

20 oz. center cut tenderloin 4 large portabella mushrooms 12" square of puff pastry dough 3 tbsp. dijon mustard 3 tbsp. horseradish 1 tbsp. arugula, chopped 2 garlic gloves, minced 3 oz. prosciutto ham 2 tbsp. olive oil Salt to taste Pepper to taste 2 egg yolks

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Pumpkin Oreo Cream Cheese Torte Cook time: about 30 minutes Ingredients

16 oz. Philadelphia cream cheese (softened) 1 1/2 cup pumpkin puree 3/4 cup sugar 1/4 cup powdered sugar 1/4 tsp. nutmeg 1/2 tsp. cinnamon 2 cups Oreo crumbs 1/3 cup melted butter

Directions

> Begin by mixing Oreo crumbs and butter until evenly distributed. Take a tart pan or spring form pan and mold the mixture into a pie shell. > Place in freezer for 30 minutes. Next, mix cream cheese until smooth and then add the pumpkin puree while mixing. > Continue by add sugars and spices in the order given above. > Remove pie shell from the freezer and pour mixture into pie shell and spread evenly. > Refrigerate for three hours, or overnight, and serve.

Chef Lonnie Crist

Born in Redwood City, California, Chef Lonnie Crist began his education at an early age learning to cook from his mother who was trained in French cuisine. Lonnie moved to East Texas at the age of 12. After high school graduation, he attended AIMS academy in Dallas, where he graduated from bartending school. Lonnie began his first job at Clicks Billiards. After bartending for several years, he became the restaurant and bar manager at the Sheraton hotel. In 2001, Lonnie trained under Chef Robert Hile, former corporate chef for P.F. Chang's at Julian's restaurant in Tyler. Chef Lonnie has made several TV appearances with CBS 19 and KLTV demonstrating his Asian cooking skills. He also has a love for natural, whole foods. In 2008 he trained as a live food chef at Jubbs Longevity in New York under Dr. David Jubbs. Currently, Lonnie is the executive chef at Hideaway Lake. Lonnie enjoys serving the membership and offering new culinary creations as well as meeting the unique dietary needs of the members.

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The Dining Guide Newks An express casual dining experience in a refreshing and stylish atmosphere with an emphasis on freshness and flavor. Serving fresh tossed salads, oven baked sandwiches, California style pizzas, madefrom-scratch soups and homemade cakes from Newk’s open kitchen. Come in and enjoy for yourself, and see the many good reasons why everyone continues to come back to Newk’s Express Café!

3985 Old Jacksonville Highway • Tyler, TX • 903-509-4646

newkscafe.com

Villa Montez Villa Montez is a unique casual family dining restaurant that offers the best of the “Cocina Latina” (Latin Kitchen). Our festive and friendly environment is the perfect place for lunch or gathering for a delicious meal with friends and family. Book your holiday parties-Private rooms available • Catering Dining indoors • Beautiful patio seating • New Tapas Menu in the bar Extensive Wine Selection • Lunch & Dinner-Closed on Sundays

3324 Old Henderson Highway • Tyler, TX • 903-592-9696

villamontez.com

Panera Bread Introducing our Roasted Turkey & Cranberry Panini. This sandwich is truly memorable and features a combination of zesty cranberry mostarda, garlic-herb cheese and Thanksgiving-style roasted turkey, all on freshly-baked Ciabatta.

5755 S. Broadway Avenue • Tyler, TX • 903- 561-1303

panerabread.com

Rick’s

Savor prime steaks, market-fresh seafood, house-made desserts and vintage wine. Enjoy premium cigars while watching the game on one of three 46” flat-screen TVs on our open-air patio. Our full menu is offered till closing and boasts over 40 items under $20. You’ll love our fresh halibut, mahi-mahi, sea bass, lump crab, oysters and calamari. Look to Rick’s for catering and over 20,000 sq. ft. of private meeting rooms for up to 200 guests. LCD projectors with screens, and free, secure wireless Internet are available.

104 W. Erwin • Tyler, TX • 903-531-2415

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El Ranchito Known for it's Traditional Mexican entrees, as well as unique vegetarian plates. Imaginative rice bowls, specially prepared to your individual taste. Two restaurants in one. You are welcome to bring your favorite wine to complement El Ranchito's diverse menu items.

Gresham Village • Gresham, TX • 903-534-3947

Bernard’s Bernard’s was invisioned as a getaway, where all East Texans could escape to and experience the great tastes of the Mediterannean. With that in mind we have paid special attention to the relaxing atmoshpere and the extraordinary tastes you will experience at Bernard’s. Lunch 11am-2pm Tues.-Fri. • Dinner 5:30pm-10pm Mon.-Sat. Reservations are recommended.

212 Grande Blvd • Tyler, TX • 903-534-0265

bernardsintyler.com

Collins St. Bakery Featuring custom-made sandwiches made fresh daily from our own unique breads, home style soups, garden-fresh salads, and gourmet coffees at our Cinchona Coffee Bar. And of course, all the other bakery goodies you love, like artisan breads, dozens of varieties of cookies, pies, cakes and pastries.

17044 I-20 W • Lindale, TX • 903-882-9205

collinstreet.com

Lago del Pino Come to Lago del Pino to experience all that makes Tyler’s destination restaurant an oasis in the countryside. From its spectacular private lake views and its distinctive fountain show, to its eclectic live music, relaxed fine dining, Sunday Jazz Brunch, and fabulous wine and cocktail list, you’ll quickly recognize all that makes dining at Lago del Pino a colorful experience in southern hospitality.

14706 CR 1134 • Tyler, TX • 903-903-561-LAGO (5246)

lagodelpino.com

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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The Dining Guide Jakes Jakes Tyler Steaks and Seafood, a Tyler favorite for dinner is now open for lunch, Tuesday thru Friday 11am - 2pm. The lunch menu at Jakes features fabulous salads, soups, sandwiches and pizza. In addition to the menu, Chef David Wallace is creating daily lunch specials that are out of this world good!! Most lunch items are priced under $10. Of course, if you are in the mood for a steak for lunch, Jakes is always the place to go.

111 East Erwin Street • Tyler, TX 75702 • 903-526-0225

jakestyler.com

Cafe' Barrons Gourmet dining in a casual atmosphere Lunch | Mon-Sat. 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Dinner | Tues.-Sat. 5-9 p.m. Menus & Chef's Specials available online!

Loop 281 @ McCann • Longview, TX • 903-663-4737

cafebarrons.com

Breakers Breakers is now serving dinner until midnight. Thursday through Saturday from 9 to midnight come pick a live lobster from the tank for only $14.95; or grab some buffalo wings, boiled shrimp, burgers and more. Mon-Wed 11 a.m.-10p.m. | Thurs-Sat 11 a.m.-12 a.m. | Sun 11 a.m.-9p.m.

5016 Old Bullard Rd • Tyler, TX • 903- 534-0161

breakerstyler.com

Corner Bakery Cafe Warm wishes are freshly delivered when you order catering from Corner Bakery Cafe. Offering handcrafted sandwiches, pastas, signature panini, salads, sweets, and much more, our catering options are perfect for any occasion. Breakfast • Lunch • Dinner • Catering

3306 Troup Hwy • Tyler, TX • 903-592-0000 118 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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from the vine to the glass By Destination Diva, Debbie Labicki | Photos by Lori Ivey Photography, Debbie Labicki

mack dab in the middle of nowhere is an escape worthy of discovering. Los Pinos, best known as the true pioneer spirit in the Texas wine industry, offers a taste of the world of wine making, which began in California and settled in East Texas. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all about wine, dining and relaxing for the guest who on the first visit becomes a part of Los Pinos big Italian wine family. Los Pinos is in the country just south of Pittsburg. | Cont. on page 123

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food & culture

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Above: Harvesting the grapes from the vineyard. Below: The view from the The Tuscan Cottage overlooking the vineyard.

Cont. from page 121 | When entering the sprawling estate-lined vineyard, I felt I had arrived at a distant land as I had to take a second glance at the elephant art sculptures to confirm they were not real. The Tuscan Cottage overlooking the vineyard, one of the few available lodging options, had been reserved for my stay. My friend and I were invited to meet Chef Dana as she was orchestrating the Chef’s Special for the evening. She even showed us the latest kitchen addition, an Italian wood-fired pizza oven. There is always a new creation in development in Dana’s gallery as she creates incredible specials to compliment Los Pinos’s wines. The evening special for our night’s stay was Grilled Flat Iron Steak with green peppercorn sauce, Hasselback potato and butter sautéed asparagus spears. The chef creates food that’s wine and fun friendly, including a tapas menu, great salads and creative pizzas. Before our tour of the winery operations, we had a wine tasting. Flights of five with an option of dry or sweet in a little glass corked carafe were presented to us as the rules of wine snobbery were scoffed at. Other guests were relaxing, enjoying a glass of wine, dining and listening to live jazz music with no cover or reservations. The dining room accommodates 80 guests, but another option is the outdoor covered tasting deck overlooking the vineyards. The dry selections included Grand Reserve Vioqnier 2010, Chardonnay Reserve 2007, Sangiovese—Bin 10, Cabernet Sauvignon—Bin 10 and a Grand Reserve Meritage 2009, which was my choice. My friend prefers the sweet wines and that tasting flight included Moscato Reserve 2010, Rosie the Riveter, Sweet Rodeo Red, All My X’s and Pinky Tuscandero. Jeff Sneed, founder of Los Pinos, joined us and shared his journey from California in a high stress life with a highly successful engineering career, to seeking out his longing obsession for land and farming. Sitting at the table in gentleman attire and a classic hat, Jeff told us about the real work that went into his creation. He did the work himself 12 years ago using 40 acres of raw East Texas land to establish the vineyard and entertainment venue. Unless you have the opportunity to understand the process of starting a vineyard and producing quality wine, there is no way to describe the sweat and labor this passionate endeavor entails. His passion is bringing wine to people in a safe haven, where the rules of modern life do not apply. Weddings and special events are also part of this experience. After our discussion he led us into the production facility adjoining the restaurant. The gleaming stainless steel vats in process, and the oak barrels waiting to be bottled adjoining the neatly stacked cases of wine are the heart of this immaculate wine | Cont. on page 124

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food & culture Cont. From page 123| production facility. Several weathered oak tables lined the Barrel Room, a peaceful setting for the wine to relax and age, perfect for private dinner parties. Jeff shared the complexities of the wine-making process before it reaches the glass. He researched grape varieties that were suited to the soil and climate of these estate vineyards as well as from three vineyards in West Texas which are producing some world class dry reds. The grapes are harvested by hand. Volunteers are encouraged to help and are treated to a chef’s spread after harvest. We headed back to the Verano dining room to enjoy the upscale but casual dinner presentation. After dinner, walking back to the Tuscany cottage, I wondered where all the guests arrived from in this off-the-beaten-path hideaway. Looking at the guest book locations from Dallas, Houston Shreveport/Bossier, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Chicago and more were all signed in with accolades. There is a population of Dallas folks that have weekend getaways in the surrounding area and love coming here, Jeff says, while sharing plans of some very creative future lodging expansions. The next morning, wrapped in a plush robe, I enjoyed “Joie de vivre” with a morning cup of specially selected Costa Rican coffee on the deck of the cottage overlooking the vineyard. We enjoyed lunch with Gerald Jones, another member of the big Italian family, who escaped the lucrative, crazy life of filmmaking and advertising based in DFW. He traveled worldwide for 35 years entertaining corporate advertising executives. Gerald joined the family six years ago to do marketing. Promoting Los Pinos wines at festivals and events keeps him extremely busy, as well as traveling to Italy and Spain every other year. He is excited to share the soon-to-be-released Dolchetto—a mild-medium Italian blend of red table wine and Montepulciano. A dry white Vermentino also will introduced showcasing the Texas High Plains Terrier, which is becoming known as one of the best grape growing regions. He and his wife are raising their daughter in East Texas. Los Pinos is worthy of discovering, wrapped in a tale of escape, passion for wine, cuisine, jazz, and an unpretentious endeavor. Top: Flights of five with an option of dry or sweet in a little glass corked carafe presented to the geusts during wine tastings. Middle:The evening special: Grilled Flat Iron Steak with green peppercorn sauce, Hasselback potato and butter sautéed asparagus spears. Below: The outdoor dining area.

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CALENDAR OF EVENTS Tyler Canton Canton Trade Days November 1-4 Downtown Canton

www.cantontradedays.com Lewis Auto Swap Meet November 9-11 Lewis First Monday Grounds www.visitcantontx.com

Canton Trade Days Nov. 29- Dec. 2 Downtown Canton

www.cantontradedays.com Annual Lighted Evening Christmas Parade December 6 Downtown Canton www.visitcantontx.com

Winnsboro Christmas in the Park Bazaar

November 10, 9-3:30p.m. Civic Center - Winnsboro City Park

www.winnsboro.com

Marshall

Marshall Wonderland of Lights

Nov. 21-Dec. 31 Downtown Marshall www.visitmarshalltexas.org

Marshall Lighted Christmas Parade

December 31, 5:30 a.m. Downtown Marshall

www.visitmarshalltexas.org 126 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

The Women’s Fund November 1, 11a.m. Ornelas Activity Center www.uttyler.edu

Tenth Avenue North

November 3, 6:30p.m. The Oil Palace www.oilpalace.com

Tyler Youth Orchestra Fall Concert

November 4, 4p.m. Tyler Junior College

www.tyleryouthorchestra.org Mistletoe & Magic November 7-10 Harvey Convention Center www.juniorleagueoftyler.org

Bringing UP Champions

November 13, 7p.m. KE Bushman’s Winery and Celebration Center

Tyler Jaycees Annual Christmas Parade

November 29, 6p.m. Downtown Tyler

www.tylerjaycees.org Live Music @ Lago del Pino Every Friday & Saturday Night Food & Drink Specials Lakeside Dining lagodelpino.com

Stop in the Name of Love - 2012 Fur Ball December 1, 6-8p.m. The Broadway Event Center

www.spcaeasttx.com YMCA Reindeer Run December 1, 9:30a.m. YMCA www.tylerymca.org

903-952-2330

Holiday in the Pines Home Tour December 8, 10-5p.m. Adresses TBA

Habitat for Humanity’s Christmas Spectacular November 15, 7-8:15p.m. First Baptist Church (903) 595-6630

Fine Arts Jury Exhibition December 15, 5:30-8p.m. Gallery Mainstreet www.downtowntylerarts.com

Live Music at Rick’s

Every Friday and Saturday night Rick’s on the Square

rix.com Christmas in the Village

November 17, 2-6:30p.m. Breckenridge Village of Tyler 903-596-8100 Tyler St. Jude Give Thanks Walk November 17 Bergfeld Park

www.givethankswalk.org

www.tyler_tx.aauw.net

It’s A Wonderful Life December 20, 7p.m. Liberty Hall

www.libertytyler.com Mission Tyler / Hunger For Love Christmas Party Under the Bridge December 22, 5-7p.m. Gentry & Spring Ave www.missiontyler.com

Longview Ladies Night Extravaganza

November 3, 10-6p.m. The Maude Cobb Convention and Activity Complex www.ladiesnightextravaganza.com

Travis Tritt in Concert

November 8, 7-10p.m. The Belcher Center www.belchercenter.com

East Texas Pipe Organ Festival November 11-15 First Baptist Church

www.easttexaspipeorganfestival.com

Annie

November 15-18 Artsview Children’s Theatre www.artsviewchildrenstheatre.com

GLOBE College Night

November 26, 6:30-8p.m. Maude Cobb Convention and Activity Complex (903)983-8131

Downtown Longview Christmas Parade

December 6, 6:30-9p.m. Downtown Longview 903 237-4000

Peter Pan 2: Hook Returns December 7-9 The Belcher Center

www.belchercenter.com

New Years Eve Celebration December 31, 8p.m. Longview Fairgrounds 903-717-6119

Michael Bolton in Concert December 16, 7-10p.m. Belcher Performance Center www.belchercenter.com

Jefferson History, Haunts & Legends November 3, 9-4p.m. Downtown Jefferson www.jeffersonghostwalk.com

Rail of Lights Christmas Train Nov. 22 and Dec., 6p.m. Historic Jefferson Railway www.railoflights.com

John, His Story

December 13-16 First United Methodist Church Jefferson www.jeffersonfumc.com

Steampunk Christmas Ball

December 15, 9p.m. Jefferson Tourism & Visitor Center www.jefferson-texas.us

Austin Austin Celtic Festival

November 3-4 Fiesta Gardens www.austincelticfestival.com

Cowboy Roundup 2012

November 16, 6-10p.m. Rattle Inn www.texascowboyroundup.com

Renegade Craft Fair

November 24-25 Palmer Event Center www.renegadecraft.com

Renegade Craft Fair

November 24-25 Palmer Event Center www.renegadecraft.com

22nd Annual Wild Ideas Holiday Event Nov. 30-Dec. 1 Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

www.wildflower.org

Austin Symphony OrchestraChristmas Sing-A-Long

Nacogdoches Downtown Art Walk

November 10, 4-10p.m. The Cole Art Center www.finearts.sfasu.edu

Pilgrim’s Pride Turkey Trot November 22, All Day healthynacogdoches.org

December 11 Riverbend Centre www.austinsymphony.org

Bastrop

Zilker Park Holiday Trail of Lights

November 24, 9a.m.-12p.m. Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort and Spa

December 16-23 Zilker Metropolitan Park www.austintexas.gov

Breakfast with Santa

www.visitlostpines.com. Lost Pines Christmas in Downtown Bastrop December 6-9 Downtown Bastrop

Christmas Day Buffet

December 25, 10a.m.-3p.m. Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort and Spa www.visitlostpines.com.

Shreveport Titanic- The Artifact Exhibit

Sept 29- Jan 20 Sciport

www.sciport.org/titanic The Redd Dawn Band featuring Aleatha Lowe

November 25 Josh Lounge

318-681-9960

Dallas

2012 State Fair of Louisiana Oct 25- Nov 11 Hudson Avenue

www.statefairoflouisiana.com Dallas Travel and Adventure Show November 10, 5p.m. Dallas Convention Center www.adventureexpo.com

Christmas on the Square

Children’s Chorus of Greater Dallas: BACH: Christmas

Family Past Times: Victorian Christmas December 16, 12-4p.m.

November 25, 7:30-9p.m.

Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center

www.thechildrenschorus.org

25th Annual Children’s Medical Center Holiday Parade December 1, 10a.m. Dallas City Hall (214) 670-5111

December 6, 5:30-9:30p.m. Downtown Garland Square

www.christmasonthesquare. Dallas Heritage Village at Old City Park

www.dallasheritagevillage.org

Kilgore Mingle and Jingle

Want your event on our calendar? email the details to lea@inmagtexas.com

November 24, 6-10p.m. Downtown Kilgore 903-988-4117

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

127

Rich in History

The story behind the East Texas bookstore, Fireside Books, captures a beautiful legacy left behind. By Jordan Roquemore | Photos by CJ White 128 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

The rolling shelves pull you in first. A small maze exists of tall aisles, comfy chairs, and bookslots of books. In the back stands a quaint fireplace with the picture of a smiling woman sitting on the mantle. Everything about the store seems to invite you to follow the simple advice of it’s owner: just browse. “Fireside books is a general bookstore for people who still like to browse and touch real books,” James Leath, owner and manager of Fireside Books, says. “They can find something they weren’t expecting. Something new and interesting or maybe something out of their past.” Leath became the owner of the bookstore last year when former owner, Trudy Richardson, passed away. A picture of Trudy is kept on the mantle in the store to remember her legacy. “Trudy was one of a kind,” Leath says. “She had a real heart for helping people. She loved books, reading, playing games with friends and once you heard her laugh, you never forgot it.” Trudy bought the store, formerly known as Lena Dean books, in 1976. She hired Leath in 1988 and he’s been there ever since. “Trudy just grew up in a family that appreciated books and reading,” Leath says. “It was her dream to own a bookstore, and she made it a central part of the town’s literary interests. A lot of famous authors came and signed their books.” Trudy was heavily involved in the Tyler-based organization, People Attempting To Help (PATH), a non-profit started by her grandmother Gertrude Windsor. PATH is a faith-based social services agency addressing poverty in Smith County. “It all started with Gertrude feeding people from her kitchen

door,” says Janet Hills, childhood friend of Trudy and the Windsor family. “The whole family had such giving hearts. You’d be hard-pressed to find any need that Trudy didn’t notice and take care of.” Hills believes much of Trudy’s giving was a component of her faith in God. “She [Trudy] would say 'Yay, God!,' whenever something good happened,” Hills says. “ She was a brilliant, young woman and had the most giving and generous heart. She saw a need and tended to it without question and without looking for recognition.” Never marrying, Trudy kept a wide circle of friends varying from the elderly to children. Leath says she used the bookstore as an opportunity to meet and connect with people. “She was able to make contact with any age or level of person, and you never felt like she was talking down to them,” Leath says. “Being in the book business was such a joy for her. She was probably more interested in buying and selling the books than actually making a profit.” After Trudy passed away, Leath began to run the business entirely on his own. “The buying and the selling are the most fun parts, but I do all the paperwork, and yes, I even vacuum,” Leath says. “The fun thing about used books is picking out what you think other people would like. You’re the connection in the book’s history of people enjoying it and that’s a neat feeling.” In 1993, with the influx of chain bookstores into Tyler, Fireside books changed their business model and began selling used books. “The chains certainly have their place,” Leath says. “They handle a lot of books, but you’ve got half a dozen people in New York buying the books for the country and setting the trends. Now Amazon has come and it’s starting to blow them out of the water.” Leath explained that nearly half of his bookstore’s sales happen on the internet. “The internet, on one hand, is a lot of competition, but on the other hand it’s an opportunity,” Leath says. “I sell books to people all over the

world. That’s not something you would have expected 20 years ago—that a small bookstore in Tyler would be shipping books to Germany and Malaysia and India.” Fireside Books currently carries genres ranging from cooking to sports and biographies to novels. Two-thirds of the books they sell are priced at two dollars or less. “Some people seem to have an idea that we’re just rare and expensive books,” Leath says. “We’ve always tried to have a whole range to meet lots of needs. Whatever your interest, we probably have something on it, but the best way to find it is to come in and browse.” Left: A reading nook inside the bookstore. Top: Fireside Books is located on Houston St. near Downtown Tyler. Below: Store owner James Leath purchased the store after the previous owner passed away.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

129

food & culture

5getaways Holiday By Jo Lee Ferguson | Courtesy Photos

Picture this: It’s East Texas, and it’s Christmas time. Sure. It’s home. Family is close by. The tree is up in the living room. Stores are decorated. Downtown looks nice, and there are some great, big Christmas light displays not too far from home. Chances are, though, there’s no snow on the ground. It might even be... warm and humid. Those decorations on your tree are the same ones you’ve had for 10 or 15 years, and you know your aunt will be making that same green bean casserole we all love to hate as part of Christmas dinner. Now, picture this: a place you’ve never been. Maybe it’s covered in snow. Or maybe Christmas carols are sung to the tune of waves lapping up on the shore. Maybe Santa show up on skis. Or even a surfboard. The lights are spectacular, and green bean casserole is definitely not on the menu. In short, it’s a holiday, from your holiday. If it sounds like a good idea, here are some suggestions, some holiday destinations that are on IN Magazine’s must-see list.

SANDPOINT, IDAHO www.sandpointonline.com

Located in northern Idaho, a town of about 7,500 people is 60 miles south of the Canadian border and about 75 miles from Spokane, Wash.; named Most Beautiful Small Town in America in the Best of the Road competition by Rand McNally and USA Today and Best Ski Town in the USA, Rand McNally; National Geographic named Sandpoint an Adventure Town; Sandpoint listed in America’s Prettiest Winter Towns by Travel and Leisure; home to Schweitzer Mountain Resort, largest resort in Idaho.

b d

EVENTS

Eugene Ballet’s “The Nutcracker" at Panida Theater - Dec. 3; Santa Claus hits the slopes at Schweitzer Mountain Resort and then stops at the Selkirk Lodge - Christmas Eve; Christmas Home Tour; Schweitzer Mountain Resort hosts several parties for New Years Eve - Dec. 31; ice skating; sleigh rides at Western Pleasure Guest Ranch; Winter Festival - Feb. 1524, Sandpoint Ski Joring competition, downtown events such as BioLuminesce Fire Dancing, Rail Jam, Taste of Sandpoint, Shop Around Sandpoint and Dine Around Sandpoint.

SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA www.santacruz.org

Beach town 70 miles south of San Francisco, 40 miles north of Monterey; ranked by “Travel and Leisure” as one of the best places in the world to spend the holidays; birthplace of mainland surfing; redwood forests nearby; more than 300 days of sunshine a year; home to Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk and wetsuit pioneer Jack O’Neill.

130 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

A. Natchitoches, Louisana. B. Sandpoint, Idaho Photo courtesy of Bonner County Daily Bee. Idaho. C. Grapevine, TX. D. Taos, New Mexico. E. Santa Cruz, California. Photo courtesy of Santa Cruz County CVC/Covello & Covello.

EVENTS

Surfin’ Santa - Santa and his reindeer surf into Capitola Beach, Nov. 24; Santa Cruz Holiday Lights TrainLighted Boat Parade, through Santa Cruz Harbor, Dec. 1; Jingle Shells Art and Craft Festival with the lighting of Ms. Blue, one of the largest blue whale skeletons in the world, Seymour Marine Discovery Center, Dec. 2; Santa Cruz Bird Club 56th Annual Christmas Bird Count, Dec. 15.

TAOS, NEW MEXICO

www.taos.org Annual snowfall of 35 inches, 312 inches in the Taos Ski Valley; home to the National Historic Landmark Taos Pueblo, multi-storied adobe dwellings continuously inhabited for more than 1,000 years; centuries old Historic Taos Plaza is home to old mercantile stores, house galleries, restaurants and shops; Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, second highest bridge in U.S. highway system is nearby.

EVENTS

Famous Taos Ski Valley opens for skiing and snowboarding Thanksgiving weekend; at the Taos Pueblo - procession of the Virgin Mary, Dec. 25; Deer or Matachines Dance, Dec. 25; Turtle Dances, Jan. 1; Brewmaster’s Festival - festival of beer and food, Dec. 22; torchlight parade - Christmas Eve; farolitos and luminaries lighted through town, caroling, festivities - Christmas Eve; torchlight parade and fireworks - New Year’s Eve.

GRAPEVINE, TEXAS www.grapevinetexasusa.com

Designated Christmas Capital of Texas by Texas State Senate with 1,400 Christmas events in about 40 days; named for wild mustang grapes that grew in the area; Bonnie and Clyde robbed the Home Town Bank and were later killed by two of Grapevine’s motorcycle officers; home to the Great Wolf Lodge and its indoor waterpark, Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center; Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World; Grapevine Mills mall with LEGOLAND™ Discovery Center and SEA LIFE Grapevine Aquarium

EVENTS

Ice! at the Gaylord Texan Resort, with a theme of “Merry Madagascar” this year, featuring 2 million pounds of carved ice ; Texas Tenors perform at historic Palace Theatre; synchronized Christmas light display with singing Christmas tree at Town Square Gazebo; North Pole Express on Grapevine’s vintage railroad; Christmas wine trains; Christmas classic, family friendly movies at the Palace Theatre; Christmas on Main in historic downtown Grapevine; Parade of Lights in downtown Grapevine and Twinkle Lights Boat Parade on Lake Grapevine; Snowland at Great Wolf Lodge.

NATCHITOCHES, LOUISIANA

www.natchitoches.net Louisiana’s oldest town, established in 1714; originally settled by French near the Natchitoches Indian Village; Louisiana later became a Spanish territory and then joined the United States of America; filming location for “Steel Magnolias; Bed and Breakfast Capital of Louisiana; one of the 2005 Dozen Distinctive Destinations for Historical Preservation, by the National Trust.

EVENTS

Natchitoches Christmas Festival of Lights, Nov. 17-Jan. 6, with the Natchitoches Christmas Festival, the largest event held during the Festival of Lights; Festival of Lights includes home tours, children’s activities, entertainment, arts and crafts shows, carriage tours and lighted downtown historic district; annual Christmas Festival includes a parade and fireworks over Cane River Lake. Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

131

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133

outdoors

The Tradition of Football In East Texas, football isn't just a favorite pastime. It's a treasured part of the culture. By Vanessa Curry | Courtesy Photo

134 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

inding an unfamiliar East Texas football stadium is simple on a Friday night—just drive toward the glowing dome of lights stretching across the skyline. A line of pickups and cars snake their way into the parking lot as fans dressed in team colors slowly stake their claim in the bleachers. It’s the end of the workweek: a time to enjoy a pastime that has united a town’s populace — both young

and old — for generations; a time to cheer for touchdown passes and quarterback sacks, and to boo the bad calls. The popcorn popper in the concession stand is overflowing with fluffed kernels, and the smell of hot dogs and jalapeño juice mingles in the air still sticky from a sunny fall day. Marching band members tuning their instruments create a cacophony of toots and squeaks that will soon come together in a practiced rendition of the school song. The music and the roar of the crowd ushers the team onto the field through an inflatable tunnel and bouncing cheerleaders. And with a toss of a coin, a shrill blast from the referee’s whis-

tle, the game is on. In the next three hours or so, opposing teams will attempt to out run, out maneuver, out tackle and out pass each other in order to light up the scoreboard. Winning is more than a statistic. It’s a matter of pride, bragging rights and moments to relive over and over in the decades of reunions to come. Meanwhile, on the edge of lighted field where the gradients of light slowly turn from gray to black, is another field of glory — a small grassy knoll or patch just off the concrete paths that channel the human traffic to and from the parking lot and the concession stand. It is here the future of football plays. There are no coaches. No official score. And the designated quarterback is the one who remembered to bring the ball. Just a loose-knit group of boys eager to expend a week’s worth of energy playing a game they hope to experience someday in front of the crowd they hear on the other side of the bleachers. There are boys such as 10-year-old Tylerite John Carlton Vandiver, who ducks and dodges through a mass of outstretched hands desperate to strip the ball from his arms. Strands of dark hair stick to his forehead as he reaches the imaginary end zone nearly out of breath, but obviously pleased with his accomplishment. He tosses the ball high above the other players and watches the scramble to be the next receiver. Then, he’s off to join the chase. He says playing sideline football, as well as with his older brother at home, makes it easier for him when he plays Pee Wee Football after school. Vandiver loves to watch college and professional football on television but never misses to a chance to play with his friends in the shadows of the Friday night lights. The only thing that tears them away from their game is the sudden roar of the fans. It is then they run and peer through the chain-link fence to see what caused the commotion. Ah, another great play from the player they hope to be one

day. By the end of the game, the bunch of boys are nearly exhausted, but they’re not too tired to rally around the high school players as they come off the field, their helmets swinging in their hands. Their hair and shirts are soaked with sweat, but win or lose, they still hold their heads high and smile as the younger boys call their names and parents and fans slap them on the back. Billy Tomlin, a Bullard High School senior and defensive tackle for the Panther football team, recalls the days when he and his friends were on the sidelines. He rattles off their names as he points them out on the high school squad. They played with a little plastic freebie football the cheerleaders threw into the crowd, Tomlin says, and had to keep watch for the school security guard who would shoo them back into the stands to be with their parents. Playing sideline football gave youngsters an idea of just how fun football can be, he says. Now the 5-foot-11 Tomlin is one of the football players the elementary students look up to, just like he used to look up to the players before him. Still he looks to his future and wonders if it will include playing football for a college team. Javanty Mack of Lufkin and Eddie Fluellen of Gilmer made it to the next step. They’re members of the Tyler Junior College Apache football team. They, too, remember playing sideline football and trying to be like the players they saw on the field, in the spotlight of the stadium lights. They learned the game by watching and imitating the plays — lessons that carried over into organized games after school and then into middle school and high school. For them, playing the game and not just watching it on television “made it real.” The players look back to see how much their love for the game has grown. They see their younger brothers or cousins filling their shoes, and eventually they may see their own children playing on the sidelines. There still will be games on television and tailgating in college parking lots, but nothing can replace the memories of their days of sideline football. And so it goes. The great football tradition.

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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Chandler resident, Hans Dorey.

136 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

Bow Hunting

T [ The adrenaline rushing through the hunter’s body is intense: A deer is close, within fewer than 40 feet to be in range, and any movement, any scent, could send the animal running. Time stands still. “You start shaking.” That’s how two bow hunters — Chandler resident Hans Dorey and Longview resident Tom Tutt — describe the moments before they let the arrow fly. “You start trying to remember to take deep breaths,” Dorey says. “You can hear your heart in your ears. It’s very intense. It’s a very powerful thing. To me, any animal taken with a bow and arrow is a trophy. It’s a very hard thing to do. There’s a lot of work involved. It’s a big deal. You respect every animal you take, and to me every one of them is a trophy.” There’s no way to explain that moment, Tutt says, describing how the seconds pass by slowly, like minutes. Bow hunting season in Texas kicked off at the end of September, a month earlier than the regular hunting season. It’s a pastime Tutt and Dorey took different paths to their involvement. Tutt has been hunting most of his life, first with a rifle and then also with a bow. His older brother was in an archery club at the University of Texas at Austin and introduced him to the bow when Tutt was about 14. He remembers being impressed as he watched his brother shoot at a target deer in their family’s yard. “It’s a lot more challenging to get (a deer) close enough to shoot with a bow than with a rifle,” Tutt says. Dorey, on the other hand, did not come from a family legacy of hunting. He didn’t start bow hunting until about 15 years ago, after being introduced to it by a family member and friends. Now, he hunts solely with a bow and arrow, regardless of what he’s hunting. “I was hooked from the second I started,” Dorey says. “That was it.” Typical bow hunting is not like what Native Americans did. Dorey and Tutt use compound bows. “There are still guys that are into that primitive archery thing,” Dorey says. “I didn’t get into that, but I can appreciate that. The challenge is just that much more intense and real when you’re trying to do it with a stick and string essentially.” Bows these days, though, are modern,

By Jo Lee Ferguson | Photos by Chris Pound

"I’ve been scouting a deer this year that’s the biggest I’ve seen in East Texas."

with technology that continues to progress. “They’re very high-powered weapons,” Dorey says. “I like them because they’re quiet, and you have to get really close to the game. It’s a lot more challenging ... With a bow, you have to figure out when you can draw back.” Dorey and Tutt say bows start around $400 but can cost as much as $1,000. Dorey hunted with an entry-level bow for three or four years. “There is a big difference between entry level bows and higher level bows,” Dorey says, explaining that more advanced bows are lighter and shoot smoother and faster. “They’re just produced with much better materials, far better than inexpensive bows. The bows they’re putting out today, the high-end bows pretty much shoot themselves. It doesn’t take long to learn how to shoot.” Bows, like rifles, have a system for aiming. Hunters typically use a “release” system for actually letting go of the string, Tutt says. There are different types of releases, but they’re essentially a “trigger” a bow hunter uses to release the string of the bow, instead of using his –or her—fingers. The release clips to the bow’s string, with the hunter either holding the other end with three or four fingers, or wearing a wrist strap that holds the release. “You use a release so it doesn’t mess up your aim,” Tutt says. The process, though, doesn’t stop at the bow. Lighted arrows for nighttime use are available. Different points –or broadheads—are designed to fly differently and enter an animal in different ways. Range fingers, trail cameras and tricks to mask your scent: They’re all part of the bow-hunting experience. Tutt says bow hunting is humane because hunters aim for the heart. “(The arrow) is so sharp, so quick — they don’t know they’ve been hit,” he says, a fact he illustrated with a hunting show on television. It showed a hunter releasing his

]

arrow and striking a deer. The deer barely flinched, and then walked on a little before collapsing, dead. Tutt and his family, including his sons, Jonathan and Andrew and extended family, hunt on a deer lease in Central Texas, where they stay in a small cabin with no television and no phone service. His sons, he says, are the fifth generation of children to hunt on that land. “For us, it’s not about killing something,” he says. “It’s about spending time with your family. It’s important that I teach my boys about the outdoors.” The boys have been accompanying their father on hunting trips since they were in diapers. Tutt’s wife, Karen, says safety is very important to him. “He’s taught that to the boys,” she says. The Tutts butcher their own meat, something Dorey says he did at first, too. Now, though, he pays someone else to do it. “It’s what my family eats, me and my wife, all through the year,” he says, explaining that deer meat can be used in any recipe that calls for beef. “Deer meat is extremely healthy for you,” Dorey says. It takes a lot of patience to hunt a deer with a bow. Dorey says after he started bow hunting, it was a couple of years before he “harvested” his first animal, in part because he was hunting on public lands instead of deer leases. The deer are more aware of their surroundings and finicky. “It was several years of a lot of work and patience before it started to pay,” he says. In August, Dorey already looked forward to the start of bow hunting season. “I’ve been scouting a deer this year that’s the biggest I’ve seen in East Texas,” he says, explaining that a neighbor has said he can hunt on his land. It’s one of the best places he’s ever hunted on. “(The deer) doesn’t know he’s in a danger zone yet,” Dorey says. “He will be huge.”

Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

137

AZLEWAY Boys’ Ranch & Children’s Services www.Azleway.org

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24-hr. residential treatment for boys ages 6-18

15892 CR 26, Tyler, Texas 75707 (903) 566-8444/(800) 340-2697

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Therapeutic foster group homes & drug rehab.

1085 PR 3481, Big Sandy, Texas 75755 (903) 636-9800

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(903) 566-6827 ext. 2018

Azleway Children’s Services

Adoption, foster & group foster care for children birth -18

Not just a home, an opportunity. Businesses in Longview Supporting Azleway: Triple R’s Auto, Recycling Metals of Texas Bumper2Bumper Collision Center, Joeyboy’s U-Pull-it, 138 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

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Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

139

outdoors

freshwaterfishing Tips on how to get started By Aimee Robinson | Courtesy Photo

140 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

There are 30 million adults and eight million children who fish in the United States, according to 2006 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting & Wildlife. Are you among this statistic? If you are unfamiliar to the sport, before you hit the water with your gear and buds in tow, there are a few things to consider first: type of water you’re fishing in, what kind of bait you’ll use and the fishing laws in your area. Lakes, ponds, rivers and streams—it’s all freshwater, right? Correct, but each type of freshwater presents its own set of challenges when you drop a line in the water. Each environment has its own unique ecosystem and structure. It’s “crucial” to know your water’s structures and fish habitats to make for a fun day of fishing. If you aren’t familiar with fishing and are lacking the expensive gear, you may be interested in Dick Strother’s guided fishing tours, Dream Day of Fishing, out of Tyler. “No fuss, just fishin’” is Dick’s motto, and he embraces it. Knowing the expense and hassle fishing can too often present, he offers dream days of fishing, where his customers dream up their perfect day of fishing, and he turns it into reality. “They dream up their fishing trip, and I make it happen,” Strother says laughing. “If someone doesn’t have a special spot, then I suggest what fish are biting and what could be the most fun. We rely on my expertise, and then we just go and catch some fish.” Strother is a long-time fisherman, and he is deeply passionate about the adventure and fun involved within the sport. “I grew up fishing. It’s what we did every Sunday afternoon, a picnic and fishing out on the creek,” he reminisced. After years of being a professional, traveling competitor at fishing tournaments, Strother started traveling less, and the idea of being a guiding fisherman became a reality. “If you really enjoy doing something, nothing makes it more fun than sharing it with others and introducing it to them,” he says. Freshwater fishing in lakes and ponds is a good place to start out because the water produces plentiful plant food and offers areas for fish to hide. Structures such as logs, brush and rocks provide shelter and protection for fish. In the winter months, when the sun

heats up, the baitfish reside in the middle of the lake on dams and high spots, and also go to deeper water and stack up on humps and riverbeds, says Mike Weeks, owner of East Texas Fishing. Knowing your still water’s structure, such as points, inlets, holes, dams, submerged objects and weeds, can lead you to success on your fishing trip. Fishing around structures provides you with this simple formula, according to takemefishing.org: • Structure creates shallows • Shallows create plant growth • Plant growth attracts bait fish In addition to knowing your water’s structures, you also should know which direction the water is moving and how fish behave in it. When fishing in running waters, it’s best to stay near the bends of the rivers and streams. “This creates a pocket there and the fish won’t fight the current; this is also where the bait fish can hold up at, creating a natural strike zone,” Weeks says. “If you have a big tree in the water, it will break the flow of the water.” It’s also important to know what kind of bait is available for use. There are countless types of fishing bait and lures to use when you’re out on the water. Good freshwater fishing baits include worms, minnows, leeches, crayfish, crickets and grasshoppers. Bottomfeeders like catfish and carp can also be

attracted to cut up bait fish and already prepared baits, which are also known as dough balls. Fishing jigs, poppers, spoons, plugs and spinners are the most popular lures for freshwater fishing. Mike Bolt, fisherman from Okmulgee, Okla., has been fishing all his life, even designing and hand making his own fishing gigs inhouse for more than 45 years. The jigs have weighted metal heads and tails made of animal hair, plastic, feathers or even rubber. “We make a fishing jig, we catch three or four different types of fish from stripers, sand bass, crappie, walleye and even some blue catfish,” Bolt says. “We can use the jigs for really anywhere there are fish.” Like with state-to-state regulations for bait, there are also rules and regulations to follow in the state of Texas for fishing as a sport itself, such as licensing and catch limits. Any person who takes or attempts to take fish, mussels, clams, crayfish or other aquatic life in the public waters of Texas must have a current Texas fishing license with the appropriate stamp endorsement, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife’s website. A saltwater endorsement is required to fish in coastal waters, and a freshwater endorsement is required for inland waters. Texas Parks and Wildlife website provided the graph given below, showing fishermen the statewide bag and length limits for freshwater fish.

Statewide Bag and Length Limits for Freshwater Fish Species: Bass:

• spotted and Guadalupe • largemouth and smallmouth

Bass, striped and hybrid striped Bass white Bass yellow Catfish Catfish; flathead Crappie Paddlefish Gar, alligator Saugeye Sunfish Trout: rainbow and brown, their hybrids and

Daily Bag: 5 (in any combination) 5 (in any combination) 25 NO LIMIT 25 5 25 NO HARVEST 1 3 NO LIMIT 5 (in any combination)

Length (minimum): 14 inches NO MINIMUM 18 inches 10 inches NO MINIMUM 12 inches 18 inches 10 inches NA NO MINIMUM 18 inches NO MINIMUM NO MINIMUM

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Local student Miles Zeorlin attributes his love for snowboarding to being a self-prescribed adrenaline junkie.

By Victor Texucano | Courtesy Photos

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January/February 2010 | IN Magazine | The Tyler Paper

Imagine a cold winter morning in the mountains with powdered snow covering everything in sight, a freezing wind that numbs the nose and cuts through bare skin like razor blades and snow falling mercilessly, yet gracefully, all around. This is not a scene most East Texans are used to, and it might even be a setting they have never experienced. This scene, however, is not only common to the average snowboarding junkie but is one they find addicting. The thrill of snowboarding and other winter sports are something few locals experience often, but those who do would say the rush of the mountain adrenaline is not easily forgotten. Miles Zeorlin, a 20-year-old student at the University of Texas at Tyler, has a passion for the sport. Miles was an eighth-grader when he caught snowboarding fever in the winter 2006. He was encouraged to take up snowboarding by his uncle, Mark Zeorlin. “My uncle took me to a skate park, and he saw me skateboarding,” Miles says. “He said, ‘You can do all these things without the board attached to your feet; I think you should go snowboarding.’” Miles says that ever since that day, his uncle, an experienced snowboarder who at the time lived in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, continued to encourage him to go snowboarding with him. Miles finally got his uncle’s wish in 2006, when he and his dad traveled to Highlands Ranch, a suburb of Denver. Miles recalls waking every day at 4 a.m. to make the long drive to Breckenridge, where he got his start in the sport he now loves. During the trip, there was a blizzard rolling through the mountain, which Miles says was ideal, since fresh snow leaves a better ground cushion. “It was dumping tons and tons of snow,” he says. “In my opinion, it was the perfect condition to learn, because I could do whatever I wanted and not worry about getting hurt.” Miles attributes his love of snowboarding to his love of the mountains and the outdoors, as well as his being a self-described “adrenaline junkie.” Miles says he considers snowboarding an addiction. “I think about it year round,” he says. “I actually plan my bank account around it, too. I try not to spend any money in winter unless it’s snowboard-related.” Miles has gone snowboarding at least once a year since his first trip, not only in Breckenridge but also other world-class spots such as Copper Mountain, Winter Park, Loveland, Arapaho Basin and Keystone, all in Colorado. He has also snowboarded at Silver Mountain in Idaho. | Cont. on page 144

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outdoors

Cont. from page 142 | While snowboarding has its share of thrills, it also demands a lot, says Leigh Pierini, training manager for the Ski & Ride School at Keystone. Getting acclimated to the elevation, staying hydrated and being properly equipped are key, Leigh says. Leigh also stressed the importance of learning how to fall properly, by letting momentum roll the bodyweight instead of the participant trying to catch himself. She says many common injuries, such as wrist and arm fractures, can occur if the snowboarder attempts to interfere with the fall. This was a bit of advice Miles forgot the last time he went snowboarding, he says. Snowboarding last Spring Break, he

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tried to catch himself after falling while attempting a trick known as “jibbing,” similar to the skateboard equivalent of “grinding,” and broke his wrist. Another thing Leigh stressed was having the right attire. She mentioned some people try to ride in jeans instead of the recommended waterproof pants. “They should be aware, they spend a lot of time their first day on the snow… so having the proper clothing is my No. 1 thing,” she says. “If they don’t have the right gloves or the right pants, it’s not a healthy environment for them.” Leigh says the learning curve is a lot faster than in skiing. The first few hours of trying to find balance on the board are the trickiest. However, after balance is learned, people usually want to go on steeper terrain because it is easier. Like Miles, Leigh says she loves snowboarding because of her love of the landscape but also because of the control she feels over that landscape when on the board. “There’s nothing like being out in the middle of (the mountains), waking up in the morning and the air is just like crystals all over the place and you’re just out there with nature,” she says. “You’re just able to feel the wind in your face and you’re actually controlling your speed. It’s like being on a ride, but you’re the one driving the coaster.” Another reason Leigh loves snowboarding, she says, is the people. She says there is certain camaraderie with people in the mountains who “share the same addiction as you.” Leigh, who has been instructing for over 20 years, obviously loves her job. She says working as an instructor is like “being in a candy store, where you get to make the candy, and get to eat it all day.” She says there is nothing like working in a recreational field and “recreate for work.” She also finds it special to be able to have people come on vacation and share most of their vacation with them. Leigh said the most interesting thing about her job is the people. The different people who come to the resort bring something new every day, she says. Whether they are millennials or Baby Boomers, they may have different perspectives on life, but they share the same commonalities, which are the sport and the mountain. “The people are why I keep coming back. Everybody has a story, everybody has history, but there’s one common denominator, and that’s the passion for snow.” Above: Miles Zeorlin and his uncle Mark Zeorlin, who introduced Miles to snowboarding, at Breckenridge Ski Resort.

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spirituality

Seek the Blesser Not Blessings

Mark serves as the Pastor of Family Ministries at Bethel Bible Church in Tyler, TX. He and his family moved to Tyler five years ago, but the move felt like coming home since Mark and his wife Marla grew up nearby by in Henderson. The couple has been married for over 18 years and is blessed with three children: Kylee, Ufayse and Marcus. Mark is passionate about coming alongside families as they raise their children, and teaching them about who God is and what He has done.

By Mark Kuykendall | Courtesy Photo

t’s the time of year when I watch with anticipation to see who will be the first store to announce they have Christmas decorations for sale. The beginning of fall and the holiday season always brings out different responses in people—some are excited to break out their holiday books and purchase pumpkin spice candles, while others are bent out of shape because stores are already dedicating space to Santa. To them, it’s just too early. Some don’t looking forward to this time of year because when the holiday table is set, an empty chair will be there representing someone they love who could not be present. No matter how the holiday season, particularly Christmas, strikes you, there is one thing for certain: Christmas is accompanied with many associations. What things do you associate with Christmas? Over dinner, ask your family what they associate with Christmas and see what they say. Some commonly shared associations are Christmas trees, decorations, stockings and, of course, Christmas carols. Have you heard the song “We Wish you a Merry Christmas?” There is a line in the song that says, “Now bring us some figgy pudding, now bring us some figgy pudding, now bring us some figgy pudding, now bring it out here.” I have never in my life had figgy pudding, nor do I know what it is made from, or why it is in Christmas lyrics. I grew up on chocolate pudding advertised by Bill Crosby. So, curiosity sparked a quest of inquiry about figgy pudding, and I was amazed at what I discovered. Figgy pudding is a form of what many refer to as a Christmas pudding. In the 16th century, this was a popular dish in England served at family dinners and often given to carolers as thanks. Figgy or Christmas pudding was commonly made four to five weeks before Christmas Day at the start of Advent. Authentic Christmas pudding would also have 13 ingredients standing for the 12 apostles and Jesus and would be stirred in an east-to-west motion in honor of the magi’s journey. The custom was to allow the pudding to sit on the kitchen table and when people would walk by, especially children, they would stop and stir the pudding. As the tradition grew, the custom began to change. To enhance the tradition of Christmas or figgy pudding, people would place items inside the pudding. The favorite additive was silver coins. When the pudding was served, there would be anticipation on whose bowl would contain the silver coin—the coin was believed to bring you wealth in the coming year. I can’t help but think some genuinely ate the pudding because they enjoyed it, but others ate it just for the prize they might receive. I believe the silver coin tradition sheds light on something we

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are all in danger of this holiday season—following Jesus because of the prize we might receive. I would best phrase the danger this way: “We can easily begin to love the gifts over the giver.” It is true that we gain so many things by trusting in Jesus. We are given forgiveness for our sins, removal of guilt and eternal life. But are we seeking the gifts above the giver? We see an example of these tendencies in John chapter 6 in the Bible. Jesus had just fed the five thousand, walked on water and escaped to the other side of the sea. The next day the crowd went to seek Jesus, and in verse 26, Jesus replies to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves,” he says. The people Jesus addressed, those who crossed the lake to find him, were similar to many of us. Do we often follow Jesus for what we can get out of it, and not because we're deeply in love with him and genuinely trust him as our Good Shepherd? Do we look forward to a full stomach more than knowing and fellowshipping with God himself? We often seek God when we need help with something, such as finances, a promotion, parenting and so on. It is certainly not wrong to ask Him for help in these situations, because He invites us to come to him with these needs, problems and hurts, a truth found in Phil 4:6-7. But, is this a pattern in our lives? Do we pursue Him primarily to get something we feel we need and then react bitterly when He doesn't give it to us? Or, do we forget about Him after he does grant our request like the nine lepers in Luke 17:11-19? Are we chasing after Him only for the bread? R.C. Sproul, a great pastor, writer and theologian wrote, “The universe shudders in horror that we have this infinitely valuable, infinitely deep, infinitely rich, infinitely wise, infinitely loving God, and instead of pursuing Him with steadfast passion and enthralled fury — instead of loving Him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength; instead of attributing to Him glory and honor and praise and power and wisdom and strength — we just try to take His toys and run. It is still idolatry to want God for His benefits but not for himself.” During this holiday season, I want to remind us all to seek the "Blesser," not just the blessings, God Himself and not just His benefits.

Enjoy the pudding not just the prize inside.

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700 Olympic Plaza, Tyler Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com

147

It’s Where You Belong. Altra is a financial cooperative serving members from all walks of life and business since 1931. We provide the same full range of

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5523 Troup Hwy. & 3829 Hwy. 64 W, Tyler, TX 903-581-6091 • 800-755-0055 • www.altra.org 148 Nov/Dec 2012 | INMagTexas.com