Kilgoreite R.E. St. John is Hometown HERO
When the City of Kilgore recently honored local combat veterans by becoming a designated “Purple Heart City,” a step was made towards showing civic gratitude for the sacrifices of men and women in the armed forces.
But Kilgore has a personal history with the Purple Heart, found in a name many folks may recognize but not know much about: R. E. St. John.
Richard Earl St. John was born in 1914, the same year World War I began, in Royse City, Texas — a small town in Hunt County, just outside of Dallas. He was the third child of Henry St. John and Geanie E. Cook.
After attending Texas Tech and Austin College, St. John entered a career in education.
story by LUCAS STROUGH | Route 259 file and contributed photos
He was still a young man in his 20s and working as a coach at Kilgore High School when the Japanese Navy launched a surprise attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Hawaii on Dec. 7, 1941. The KHS football program was newly formed when St. John became its head coach in 1941.
At home in Kilgore, St. John swiftly took action. Only five days after the attack, he bid farewell to his students and to Kilgore and joined the U.S. Navy.
He was serving on the USS Borie DD-215, a Clemson-class destroyer, as the ship hunted for German U-boat submarines in late October 1943 during what became known as the Battle of the Atlantic.
The Borie detected a submarine and began an attack, which led to a protracted, bloody battle as the Borie rammed the sub and
sailors on both began attacking one another with whatever weapons they had.
St. John died a hero's death in the battle. As the Borie began taking on water after the collision and began to sink, the order came to abandon the ship. St. John helped 21 of his fellow sailors reach safety onboard a nearby friendly vessel and St. John returned to the Borie to save any other men he could find. Sadly, he did not survive this final mission and was lost at sea.
St. John was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation and the Purple Heart posthumously for heroism displayed during the sinking of the destroyer.
Back home in Kilgore after the war ended, the community mourned the loss of this hometown hero, along with all the other service members lost or wounded in the conflict.
The Kilgore Lions Club put together a plan to honor St. John by suggesting that the Kilgore school and Kilgore College honor him by renaming their football stadium in his honor.
In 1947, that’s exactly what happened and, exactly four years after St. John lost his life in action while saving his shipmates, a rededication ceremony was held in Kilgore to commemorate his sacrifice by naming the stadium after him.
Nearly 80 years later, the stadium still stands and has even undergone recent renovations to ensure its continued use for years into the future.
With the official designation as a “Purple Heart City,” Kilgore is continuing a decades-long legacy of honoring and paying tribute to local heroes of yesteryear and today who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.
TRADING TRAGEDY FOR
Triumph
Henderson families turn grief into action after crash kills children
story by AMBER LOLLAR | photos contributed to ROUTE 259
As the days ticked down to Nov. 1, Henderson residents
Nathan and Karen Holland and Tommy and Christy Sheppard relived a year’s worth of funny, sweet and heartbreaking memories as the anniversary of the tragedy that shook not only their families, but the entire Henderson community to its core, approached.
On that tragic day one year ago, 18-year-old Jonathan Holland
and 10-year-old Addison Sheppard lost their lives in a fatal threevehicle collision.
Fighting her way through the unbearable loss, Karen Holland, mother of Jonathan, has shared 365 bittersweet moments in a series of daily social media posts, determined that the community will never forget the light these young souls cast on the world around them. From silly sing-alongs on lazy Saturday mornings,
to hilariously biting jokes told in passing, those of us viewing these beautifully devastating moments from the cozy comfort of our own personal spaces hitched a ride along on a journey of despair, grief, anger, injustice, and in the end triumph, many of us seeing the heart of this close knit family in its most natural state for the very first time.
“Mirror on the wall, here we are again, through my rise and fall, you’ve been my only friend….”
From the small screen of Holland’s phone, we see a pajama clad and blanket wrapped Jonathan, with his sleep tousled but ever-recognizable mullet, clearly the star of this early morning show, singing along with his biggest fan, loudest cheerleader and most steadfast champion for justice in a silly moment that was reminiscent of 18 years worth of similar shenanigans.
“I’m thankful that I have those,” said Holland, somber and still grief stricken but eyes alight with joy found in reliving a million special moments.
“I post these videos and I do this countdown because I want that to be real for people,” she said. “You need to understand how real this is. I don’t post them to make people feel sorry for me. I post them to make people have the realization that this is my life. This is my life every single day.”
Despite her ability to find humor in any situation and a temper that’s equally prosaic, Holland’s broken spirit peeks through in quiet moments. Even through stories that leave cheeks and stomachs aching from laughter, the sadness shows.
But even in the dark expanse of their grief, the Holland family dedicated themselves to honoring the memory of their beloved boy, in a big way. From this grew the Fat Boy Foundation.
The foundation’s purpose is to provide scholarship opportunities for students pursuing training and certifications from area trade schools, the kind of furthered education often overlooked in the pomp and circumstance of typical graduation ceremonies.
“If we can change a child’s life by giving them a scholarship and they can make it then we’ve done something,” said Karen. “They can make something of themselves. They can support themselves, be it a girl or a boy. They can go out into the world
and be a good citizen and support themselves and we had a hand in that.”
“So far we’ve given $25,000,” and with the many fundraising events the foundation holds, they intend to continue along their charitable path. “We want to help kids pursuing trades. It could be anything from plumbing to linemen to x-ray technician to scrub nurse. There’s so many. It can be a cook, it can be a chef, it can be anything.”
FATBOY LAWN CARE
Behind his over the top personality and wildly inappropriate sense of humor was a level of maturity not often seen in someone so young.
By the age of 16, Holland was a small-business owner… a successful small-business owner.
“I had a customer tell me one time, ‘I thoroughly enjoyed your son coming to cut my yard. He did an amazing job, but the best part was when I looked outside and they were sword fighting with branches,’” Holland reminisced.
What began as an after school hustle with one borrowed SCAG mower, Holland built his bright orange fleet and a growing list of very satisfied customers. Fat Boy Lawn Care’s plus size logo, a poke at his childhood nickname, became a common sight on the Henderson horizon. In the hours not occupied with typical teenage tomfoolery, Holland and any number of his orange-clad crew could be found zipping along on one of his brand-new zero turns, leaving a trail of beautifully manicured lawns and happy homeowners.
“His dad bought me a SCAG mower for our anniversary, and when Jonathan turned 16, he said I want to do a side job and asked can if he could use my mower,” she said, recalling the start of his business.
“When he’d made enough money using my mower, he bought another one. Then he made even more money and wanted to take out a loan to buy another. He would only buy SCAG mowers.” Holland continued, recounting the purchase of his very own mower.
I said absolutely. He passed his test.”
In a bittersweet turn, Holland’s Fat Boy Lawn Care was named 2023 Rusk County’s Best Lawn Service, shortly after his death.
Accepting the certificate on his behalf, Karen tearfully entered the offices of The Henderson News.
“He would be so proud of this,” she said, simultaneously ecstatic and heartbroken. “He worked so hard to make Fat Boy great. He would be so excited.”
“I know he knows it,” she continued, secure in the notion that he is with her, always. “I know he sees this and he knows how proud we all are and how much we all love him.”
TRADE SCHOOL
Even in view of the success of his growing business, Holland wasn’t content to rest on his laurels.
After his 2023 graduation, Holland joined the high-climbing ranks of students enrolled in the Texas State Technical College’s linemen program.
“He had a plan,” she said. “He knew exactly how he wanted his future to look and he was building that life. He was just months away from graduating and there would have been a job waiting for him, as soon as he was done. He would be chasing a storm right now. He wanted to live in Jasper County and his girlfriend Sarissa was going to move down there to go to school to be an x-ray technician. They had their whole life planned out.”
“He always knew trade school was the way he intended to go,” said Holland.
In full support of his goals and passions, his father Nathan installed a series of electrical poles on the family’s property, allowing Jonathan, his classmates and friends to practice their climbing skills. His lifelong friends, a motley crew of rambunctious youths, quickly took to the skies, eager to compete for bragging rights.
Even in the glaring absence of their beloved Fat Boy, the poles remain, yet another testament to the life of Jonathan. They remain not just as a monument to his life, but a skyward study guide, still regularly used.
“All the kids were at the house climbing. They’re standing around encouraging one of the kids because he couldn’t pass his pole test,” Holland said. “He said, ‘Can I use Jonathan’s gaffs’ and
The Holland family attended the recent TSCT linemen program graduation, the very same ceremony in which their beloved Jonathan was meant to participate.
FAT BOY’S IMPACT
2024 recipients of Jonathan Holland Memorial Scholarships totaling $1,000 were Morgan Doerge, Asa Cook, Jackson Pirtle, Blane Thompson, Preston Pepper, Jasper Scott Best, Abbie Cummings, and Payton Hollis. A second group received $1,500 scholarships. Included in the Jasper group are Brady Colston, Carli Doerge, Morgan Doerge, Presley Foley, Nixon Havelka, Kylie Prior and Jaci Taylor.
Alongside their sponsored events, the foundation has an everexpanding selection of Fat Boy branded merchandise available on their website and through regular social media posts made by Karen and quickly shared throughout the supportive community.
Even on the shortest trip through Henderson’s busy streets, evidence of the popularity of this merchandise is evident. On the window of nearly every vehicle passed a bright orange Fat Boy Lawn Care or Fat Boy Foundation decal can be seen. That unmistakable fat boy can be found on caps and t-shirts with a quick glance down aisles in virtually any Henderson store.
The support can be seen far beyond the city limits of Jonathan’s small hometown.
After unexpectedly meeting Randy Gloede, president and CEO of Metalcraft of Mayville, the parent company of SCAG, at a large drag racing event in Dallas, Holland’s entrepreneurial spirit left a lasting impression. He was invited to be on the starting line with the SCAG cars at the Fall National held at the Texas Motorplex. The company even sent Holland a box filled with SCAG merchandise that he received on Oct. 31, the day before the fatal collision.
The Fat Boy foundation’s logo has since been added to the SCAG Power Equipment National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) racecar.
A year has passed and hearts are still broken. Emotional wounds are still fresh and raw and those that loved Jonathan most still struggle with grief, but even in their sadness they have found a way to trade that tragedy for the triumph of so many others.
Climb high Jonathan Holland… forever our Fat Boy.
AGrandTime Tea room opens in downtown Kilgore
story by AUDREY BLASCHKE | photos by LES HASSELL
Visitors to Kilgore’s downtown can treat themselves to a relaxing English style tea and lunch experience with the opening of The Grand Empress Tea Room earlier this summer.
Owner and operator Memori Ruesing opened her dream bed and breakfast in a Texas Historic Landmark home back in 2009 where she featured her first Tea Room. The Walker Manor B&B and its by-reservation tea parlor were a popular Kilgore attraction for 13 years, active in hosting big events and fundraising for the downtown area and so on. Eventually, Ruesing’s mother faced a serious health issue, necessitating that they close the business to care for her. It was a hard decision for Ruesing, but she never stopped hearing friends and former customers ask her to reopen the tearoom.
“I wasn’t sure if I was ready for it,” notes Ruesing. It would
mean a big change, going from a 120-year old historic building to a commercial space. But then the 1932 historic JORDAN'S clothing store space on the corner of North Kilgore Street and
East Main Street became available. “This location, everything fell in my lap. I thought if I don’t take this opportunity now, will it be there in the future? You can always do things later, but then you wonder what if, so I jumped in headfirst, and here we are.”
Walking into the Tea Room feels instantly transportive. It’s a bright, inviting space of hardwood floors, antique round dining tables and settees, painted in neutral hues accented with gold to evoke a crown. Much of the décor carried over from the original historic B&B. When tables are arranged for a reserved afternoon or high tea date, they’re set with three-tier stackers loaded with colorful macarons or other treats and cucumber sandwiches. Small fruit like grapes is served on decorative toothpicks.
Ruesing makes it a pampering experience for her customers.
“Everybody says the tea tastes better, and that’s because it’s coming out of a silver pot. It’s all about presentation and the things that we don’t use on a regular basis,” she says. “And then you have this conversation. And I’ve noticed all ages, you know, they’re talking, they’re engaging, they’re developing relationships because they don’t have their phones out and that’s what I really love.”
As a history teacher who still teaches at public school, Ruesing’s inspiration behind the Tea Room is bringing back that traditional kind of relationship connection she feels is missing from modern culture — an atmosphere where people sit, talk and linger.
“Here I want it to be almost like you’re sitting in my dining room,” says Ruesing. “And it’s just a relaxed atmosphere. That’s what I’m going to provide people.”
Ruesing’s menu offers both homemade food and bakery goods and treats that she carefully selects from different approved vendors, and there are brunch and lunch options that include quiche, soup, scones and salads. She gets her teas from different brands, occasionally blending them together to rebrand. Loose leaf tea blending is a time-consuming and labor-intensive experience, as is making any other menu items from scratch, so that’s not something she can do regularly.
When Ruesing serves tea, she brings guests unlimited water so they can try as many teas as they like.
“My understanding on the East Coast and West Coast, when you go to a tearoom, they give you a menu and you choose your one flavor of tea, and that’s the pot of tea they make and bring to you, and that’s the only tea you get unless you order another pot,” she says. “But I kind of like the variety. And I think my customers do, as well.”
The Tea Room, of course, offers seasonal menu items. For the fall, there’s apple, cinnamon and pumpkin teas aplenty. Back during initial tea testing, Ruesing offered a popular carnival apple flavor that she says is going to be a staple, not just seasonal. Many of these custom flavors are available in boxes for purchase at the Tea Room.
It’s been a rewarding journey for Ruesing already in the months since the Tea Room’s Mother’s Day grand opening.
“We had experience running a tearoom, and now it’s bigger than our parlor. And a lot of our guests have followed us here and we’ve met new guests, fro Kilgore and Henderson. And already this summer we had people from Australia and New York,” she says. “I mean it was just crazy how people find East Texas. We had a couple from Plano who said, ‘We just decided to take a Sunday drive and come to Kilgore and look at the derricks.’ So,
it’s just neat how people move and where they go and they just stumble on you, and then they become your repeat customers. So that’s fun, all the diverse individuals that you meet.”
The Tea Room is available for events like birthday parties, for kids and adults, anniversaries and bridal and baby showers, which Ruesing has a couple booked in the last weeks of 2024. She also hosts special seasonal events.
“In September, I did an Autumn Leaves tea, when I had all the autumn flavors available, and I read a storybook to the guests. There were different words, and when I said a certain word from the story, like scarecrow, the ‘scarecrow’ table had a certain thing they had to do. And it was really fun for adults and kids,” explains Ruesing.
For Christmas, she’ll be holding a similar themed event based on the Nutcracker Suite.
“I’ll tell the story and different tables — like if they’re the Snow Queen table they have to blow bubbles and say ‘Baby, it’s cold outside.’ It’s great fun,” she says. “I like it when people come and they laugh. I think laughter is just as healthy as a lot of these herbal teas.”
The Tea Room receives guests of all ages, and Ruesing notes it’s not just for girls.
“I do have a lot of gentlemen that’ll come who’ll bring their sister, their fiancé or grandma,” she says with a smile.
The Tea Room’s fall hours of operation are Saturday to Tuesday by reservation only, though Ruesing says she does offer a small lunch menu with salad, soup and sandwiches for walkins without a reservation. The Saturday through Tuesday hours include afternoon tea, brunch, lunch, dinner and private event reservations.
Reservations can be made through the Tea Room’s website at GrandEmpress.com.
BLANK CANVASES
No matter where you live, from a bustling to a quiet rural town, potential canvases are scattered throughout the landscape and the push to fill these blank spaces is apparent, even on our own city streets.
The obsession with murals is widespread. These often larger than life art installations quickly become the backdrop to any variety of photo session. From excited selfies in front of Henderson’s own ‘Wish You Were Here,’ haphazardly spraypainted on the broad side of a downtown storefront, to more intricate designs such as Tatum’s eagle wings, calling out for community interaction, these colorful creations can be found on highways and city streets throughout East Texas.
If you know where to look, a few of these hidden gems can be found well out of the public eye, but still on full display. One of these tucked away treasures spurs memory upon memory as generation after small-town generation file past its painted splendor.
Even as its well-loved creator prepares to move on to much brighter horizons, his lasting legacy lives on in these portraits from the past.
Amber Lollar recalls the creation of a masterpiece
story
BEFORE AND BELOW
A quick trip south from Henderson’s busy streets will lead you to Mount Enterprise.
This quiet, slow-moving community holds dear its small town origins. While the city’s new-fangled coffee shop, May May’s, slings some of the county’s best caffeinated creations, you can still find a group of familiar faces crowded into a corner, sipping steaming black coffee from branded mugs and trading stories about local happenings. While the coffee crew’s faces may have changed over the years, as patriarchs passed on, their purpose remains the same, to sit, to sip and share.
Further down these small town lanes are similar instances of slightly updated antiquities. From the decades old Chapman’s Grocery, locally known only as Chappy’s, to familiar storefronts, some filling old well-known spaces with food, fashion and friendly customer service, while others hawk the same goods and services from decades past. Even the community’s health clinic inhabits a beautifully aged business space.
A few blocks west and one quick turn from an only occasionally busy highway, you’ll find the campus of Mount Enterprise ISD.
and photos by AMBER LOLLAR
While the school boasts a recently completed brand new high school campus, the district’s original stone building still stands. The town’s favorite old man sits with his iron-ore filled masonry rubbed not quite smooth from hundreds upon hundreds of hands tracing the unregulated shapes of its proud fascia.
Decades of upgrades can’t hide its age. From boys and girls restroom faceplates stamped in antique metal to nine-window doors peering into personally decorated classrooms, a trip down these hallowed halls bring on a slow rush of memories as the school’s alumni span generations. Children sit in nice new desks in the same spots as mothers, fathers, grandparents, even generations further back, once sat taking in lessons they were sure they’d never use, but always did.
Up a steep slope to another slightly less antiquated addition, you’ll find what was once the school’s small cafeteria.
The faintest whiff of bleach-filled mop water and thousands of state-regulated meals will forever haunt those cinder block walls. Now filled with costumes, props, and all things dramatic, this space belongs to the Mount Enterprise theater department.
Along what was once the perfect placement for a single-file lunch line, you’ll find a deeply artistic backdrop for the theatrical group. Decades old strokes of paint depicting even older images, slathered onto cinderblock walls by the very hands of one of Mount Enterprise’s own deeply artistic sons, Tommy Jay Grubbs.
FLASHBACKS
From an empty cafeteria filled with darkened windows and surrounded by even darker halls, comes the muffled but familiar beat of any number of ‘90s pop songs escaping the well-worn speakers of a battery-powered boom box. The stale but somehow inviting smell of square slices of cheese pizza, tiny milk cartons and mop water wafts through every nook and cranny in the space, aromatic triggers to bring up memories of the soy patties of Hamburger Fridays passed.
A peek into those large glass panes show a solitary figure, tall, shaggy haired and covered in various shades of paint, backlit by an overhead projector that had seen many better days. Beyond the shadow of this pigment-stained, backwoods Michelangelo lie the faint tracings of vaguely familiar faces and the scripted outline of words oft-repeated…”We Are Bound Together.”
The sheer whisper of these words invoking the off-beat swaying of couple hundred red, white, and blue clad kids. Little legs switching from one hip to another in time with a lazily shifting left arm, one school pride-filled finger on point.
“For we are bound together through eternity…”
As layers of colored acrylic were applied by the skilled hands of this small-town artiste, recognizable renditions of real life moments appeared, seemingly out of thin air and thick paint. From black-and-white photos of long demolished buildings to the recreation of a night-time pep rally, complete with a burning effigy atop a blazing bonfire, scenes from Mount Enterprise days passed emerged from the square blocks.
Even now, some 30 years later, observers swear they recognize the faces of those brought to life by Grubbs’s skilled eye, most of which are figments of a brilliant mind. Familiar faces created from a mixture of a dozen others.
“It was meant to be universal,” said Grubbs. “Craig [McAlister, a classmate and friend] would have been in the cap and gown. He would have been instantly recognized. I didn’t want anyone to claim it as theirs.”
“I didn’t want anyone modern to be recognized so that it looked like I played favorites,” he explained, but did admit that the images depicting older students were, in fact, based on real people. The portrait of a young pigtailed girl was based on Mount Enterprise alum Shirleen Tipps, while the grayscale image of a tousled hair teen was a close friend of the family, the late Ross King.
“I’ve never known who this girl was,” said former MEISD teacher Jo Freeman, pointing to a red jacket clad image on the large-scale painting. Nor should she have, as the muse for this particular portrait was Grubbs’s long-time friend Buffy Scott, who was not a product of the Mount.
Knowing the name behind the face always felt like the key to the Kingdom. Inside knowledge is hard to come by in a town as small and close-knit as Mount Enterprise. Sitting in the dank, musty background watching this master at work on such a grand scale, made one chubby, mismatched, and desperately awkward little MEISD alum feel like the queen of all things. Even in her invisibility, her proximity to the artwork and the artist himself left her feeling like an ‘electric youth.’
A sentiment she carries now, some 30 years later looking at those long-lasting brush strokes, carrying on her own artistic vision influenced entirely by her life-long best friend, her greatest tormenter, her uncle, the artist, actor, and small town alum made much larger than life…Tommy Grubbs.
This mural sits safely now, tucked away in the costume-filled theater space, coveted by those who know Grubbs best, by those who have been so influenced by his talent.
Kilgore Public Library expands outreach with bilingual storytime STORYTELLERS
story by LUCAS STROUGH | photos by LES HASSELL
Author Madeline L’Engle once said “Stories make us more alive.”
The art of storytelling has been bringing people together for generations, and Kilgore Public Library continues that tradition with its weekly storytime events, offered in both English and Spanish.
Storytime was already a popular event at KPL when library staff decided to expand it into a bilingual program.
Bilingual storytime began in September 2021, according to Jennifer Weaver-Jones, KPL’s programming coordinator.
“Blanca Amaro, reference librarian, and Kay Stidham, children's librarian, wanted to offer families another weekly storytime that was bilingual for the Spanish-speaking community,” Weaver-Jones said.
The expanded program attracted patrons wanting to hear stories in both languages, as well as those wanting to learn new
language skills.
“It soon became an audience of both Spanish speakers and their children and English speakers with children who were interested in learning some Spanish through songs and stories.”
Weaver-Jones said storytime is geared towards preschool kids, ages 2-5. The events also feature crafts for kids, where they can make things like paper wreaths or bookmarks which are tied to the theme of the story being read that day.
Bilingual storytime is offered every Thursday at 9:30 a.m. and is usually led by Amaro.
“The books we read to the children are according to the month, celebrations and seasons,” Amaro said
“We try to make each story short, funny and educational. We also make a craft that correlates with the theme of the book.”
Amaro said the storytime events can help kids get a jumpstart on their language skills.
“I have found that the best way for toddlers and preschoolers to learn a second language is to sing and play,” she said, noting the events also include bilingual and educational songs.
Besides serving as a fun and educational resource for kids at the library, storytime also helps promote library services to more members of the community.
“It is a great way to encourage non-English speaking families to visit the library and help them feel comfortable in a library setting,” Amaro said.
Bringing in new patrons can connect them with the library’s other services and programs, which include public use computers with internet access, office machines and other programs designed for teens and adults.
For those wanting to develop their language skills even more, Weaver-Jones said KPL has a selection of bilingual English/ Spanish materials as well as audiobooks and materials in Spanish.
Learn more about KPL and its programs at www.facebook. com/KilgorePublicLibrary/ and www.cityofkilgore.com/528/ Library or call (903) 984-1529.
www .w or k4manp ow er .c om
FanFAVORITES
Henderson restaurant offers concession stand-style food
Nestled on a corner of Henderson’s Main Street is a restaurant where diners can treat themselves to statefair concession stand food, handcrafted burgers and all-day breakfast every day of the week.
The aptly named Concession Stand opened in Spring 2023 and has become a lunch hot spot and popular weekend dinner choice that aims to provide not only great food but also serve as a welcoming downtown hangout.
For chef Jarod Abbott, who owns and operates the Stand alongside wife Brittni, it’s all about crafting an exceptional product while building relationships with the community. Nothing would make him happier than to have a restaurant that
story by AUDREY BLASCHKE
photos by LES HASSELL
people still remember decades later, a place that feels like a home away from home.
“I want people to have that memory like, ‘I used to get burgers from that guy from the time I was little. He had that shop there that was so good,’” says Abbott. “Building those kinds of relationships is vital to having a good life. Almost more important than anything else.”
Abbott is an experienced chef who cut his teeth in the culinary industry working in Tyler restaurants, including the Willow Brook Country Club. Cooking is his passion, and he takes pride in serving high quality, satisfying meals. That means taking his time with the food — it’s not about competing with fast food
FAVORITES
chains and handing out sloppy food in a hurry.
“People work hard for their money too. Our goal is to have it well spent if you’re going to spend it here,” says Abbott.
The menu features plenty of concession food favorites like burgers, hot dogs, sandwiches and wraps, nachos, chili cheese fries, corn dogs and fried pickles, plenty of all-day breakfast options like breakfast burritos, waffles, sausages, pancakes and bagel sandwiches, and tasty desserts like funnel cakes and deepfried Oreo cookies.
Uniquely, the Stand has a bit of an “unspoken” menu, in that customers can make special requests.
“We know how to cook. We’re good cooks. If you have an idea, and we have the ingredients, we’ll do it,” says Abbott. “We’ll worry about what it’s supposed to cost later.”
A favorite custom creation Abbott made was a Philly cheesesteak hot dog. A regular suggested it offhand through a Facebook chat, and Abbott whipped it up. Now, it’s known as the Philly Dog on the Stand’s menu.
Other unique creations include an omelet burger, also known as the Breakfast Burger, a funnel cake burger, and even a donut burger on occasion. Abbott will sometimes post a new menu item on their social media pages and invite customers to try it halfprice.
“He’s pretty good about that. You’ll let him know about something, if he doesn’t make it or doesn’t know how, he doesn’t mind trying,” says another regular. “He likes a challenge… I haven’t had anything here yet that I didn’t like. And I’m a picky eater. His cheesesteak and the burgers, man.”
The Stand of course offers online ordering for pickup, accessible at their website, theconcessionstandtx.com, through apps like DoorDash and by phone. Abbott’s favorite is seeing customers hang out a while to enjoy their food and talking to people. There’s still renovation work to do with the building, but Abbott has an indoor area often used to screen movies or streaming sports events, including the live stream of local football games. To contribute to the Henderson downtown nightlife, Abbott makes the Stand available for live music.
“I’m a musician myself so I naturally want to become a feeder vendor for people who want to share their art,” says Abbott. “You want to come play, do it. I want to get set up and do acoustic shows inside, maybe a small electric set. Whatever art form that you want to express, stand up comedy, live sculpture, whatever you’re into.”
Abbott envisions himself as a kind of “small village shopkeeper” and feels like the town he chose is perfect for it.
“You’ve got the street right here. I know people’s genetic memory is there,” he says. “They want to have a good life and walk through their town and feel safe and like the people they’re spending their money with care. And I want to provide that because I want that too. And a lot of the shops on this square are like that… And anybody of any walk of life can come here and feel
accepted, I think.”
Henderson sucked him in, Abbott says. A golden opportunity came to set up shop there when he was looking to start something new. The Abbotts have a catering company called 903 Catering that they still run, but the venture had to be shelved throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. They had a choice to go back to that or start something new, and this location became available.
“I guess I was magnetized to this place,” he says. “This is definitely one of the more unique towns that I’ve ever been in and a lot of it’s because of the people. The people here are selfsufficient. You’re kind of isolated out here — you’re 40 miles from anywhere… The people are doing well enough to support all these different kinds of businesses. I don’t know, I just thought it would be nice if a business supported them back.”
The Abbotts received a warm welcome in Henderson. He grew up in Crandall, a small town near Dallas with a similar feel. As a former truck driver, Abbott has been to almost every major city in North America, and the experience has made him appreciate small towns even more.
“[Henderson] is somewhere you feel like you could grow. If you try to start a small business or something like that, a lot of people want to try to go into the bigger cities, but there’s nothing wrong with that if you’re trying to make a lot of money real fast. Lots of people like to do that. That’s cool,” explains Abbott. “But if you really want to be part of a community and make a difference somewhere, I’d say start small. Small business, small town. And Henderson has been extremely welcoming and accommodating for everything we’re trying to do. People have really appreciated the vibe we’re putting out. I think the more people that learn about us the more people that enjoy us, you know?”
It's ultimately not about the money. Abbott is wary of ever letting that come first.
“As long as I’ve got enough money to pay the bills, I’ll keep doing this. I love doing this,” he says.
For him, being a chef and running a restaurant has to come from a place of joy and creativity. One of his creeds is that you attract the best version of whatever you want to think of. He’ll always want to take time hand-making almost everything with quality and consistency in the name of bringing that joy to others. Simply doing it to make money is boring.
“Greed comes in many forms, it’s not just corporate. It can be in small business too — I’ve seen it. It’ll eat you alive,” he adds. “And that’s really what you want to stay far away from if you want to be a part of a community and you want to put out an exceptional product.”
The Concession Stand is located between Quick Copy and Happy at Home Healthcare at 201 S. Main St. in Henderson. Current operating hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. between Wednesday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday.
GIVING THANKS
Kilgoreites detail what they’re grateful for in 1991 article
The following article, written by Charlotte Heldenbrand, was published in 1991:
Since the holiday is centered around counting one’s blessings and hosting family dinners, rather than giving gifts, Thanksgiving Day, unlike Christmas, gives people the opportunity to stop and reflect on the good things in life. In a time when many people are out of work and dissatisfied with their lives, many Kilgoreites are thankful to be living in this town and to be able to raise their families here.
Debbie Bazinet, florist, is thankful for health and that it enables her to work.
“I’m thankful for good health. If you don’t have good health, you can’t go to work or do anything. You don’t get to enjoy life all that much. I’m thankful for a source of income these days,” she said.
Pastor Troy Henager is grateful for his calling and his country.
“There’s so many things really. I’m thankful for my family and the freedom that we have in our country to worship the Lord as we see fit,” he said. “First of all, that the Lord did save me. I’m thankful that He did call me to be a pastor, for our church and my health. I’m thankful that they haven’t commercialized this day. This is God’s day – a family day.”
Pat Anderson, a local business owner, is appreciative of her hometown.
“I’m glad my doors are still open. I’m thankful for my church and my church family. I’m so blessed I could go on all day. I love Kilgore. I wouldn’t live anywhere else. We have more good people here than most anywhere else,” she said. “I had the most wonderful parents you could ask for; I’m thankful for that. And my husband, Jim, is the air beneath my wings.”
Restaurant manager Joe Woodard is thankful for Kilgore, also.
“Personally, I’m thankful for my family and for being a Christian. I’m thankful that I live in Kilgore. It’s a nice community. I really enjoy it here,” he said.
Lois Jordan, secretary, is grateful for her home and health.
“I’m thankful for my good health, my family and my country,” she said.
First-grade teacher Charlotte Austin is thankful for her students.
“For Thanksgiving dinner this year, I would hope for all my little students to have a nice meal with their families and to remember to ‘praise God from whom all blessings flow.’ And surely our children are one of our greatest blessings. We teachers feel a strong commitment to helping these children grow into caring, responsible citizens,” she said.
One responsible citizen, Linda Melton, who is a real estate agent, appreciates being able to give back to the community what she has been given.
“I’m really thankful for living in Kilgore, owning a business in Kilgore, being able to use the education that I’ve acquired and put it back into the community. I’m proud to live here and bring my children up here. I’m thankful for my children, my husband and our health, and my church family,” she said.
Local restaurant owner Brad Thrower is, among other things, thankful that the Bulldogs made the playoffs.
“I’m thankful that I live in a free country, that I can eat tonight. I’m thankful my children are healthy and making good grades,” he said. “I’m thankful I’ve got a good job and my wife’s got a good job. God has really been good to us. I’m thankful the Ragin’ Red made the playoffs.”
Amy Samples, cashier at SWEPCO, is grateful for all the blessings in her life.
“I’m thankful for everything – to have a job, food and my family. Although my husband is laid off, we’re still thankful. We’re still doing good and I thank the Lord for that,” she said.
Kyle Perkins, local businessman, is thankful for his family.
“I was just talking with some customers this afternoon about my family – about the kids and how much fun I have with them, how good they are,” he said.
He and his wife, Linda, have a daughter, Laura, 4 ½, and a son, Travis, nearly 3.
Missy Nicholson, a local daycare center worker, appreciates the freedom of living in this country.
“I’m thankful to live in a free country and I’m thankful for my family,” she said.
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