ufkin IDS’s new middle school and high school athletic facilities are sure to have other districts trying to keep up with the Pack.
Lufkin taxpayers in May 2018 approved a $75 million bond project that would provide the school district the funds to build a new middle school, a multi-purpose facility for the high school and new softball and baseball fields at the high school.
Almost 21/2 years later, in October 2020, the district held a groundbreaking ceremony and tour of the new digs.
The multi-purpose facility officially opened in the fall of 2021. Trustees voted to name the building the “Panther Activity Center,” or “PAC,” during a board meeting.
Now, after moving into the new middle school this past week, students are able to enjoy another part of the bond project.
“We’re extremely excited about the opportunity the bond has brought to Lufkin Middle School and Lufkin ISD,” LMS principal Andres Mijares said. “We’re really excited about the opportunity the community has given us to be able to give our students an upgrade, which was long past due.”
At just under 1,800 students, LMS is one of the biggest middle schools in Texas.
“Lufkin High School got an upgrade back in 1998-99, and this facility was already here when the middle school moved in,” he said. “We needed to focus on the middle school because it was so old, and we do have a big population of students — that creates a lot of wear and tear. We got to a point where it was better to build a new facility instead of draining money into the existing facilities.”
The original middle school was built in the 1950s and served as the Lufkin High School campus. Along the way, Mijares said the district has upgraded and added to it.
“We were at the point just by me being here this last six months that there were a lot of facilities that just needed a lot of maintenance, and it was going to require a lot of funds to upgrade the facilities that we currently have. So the school district moved forward with the bond — which was voted in by the community — and it was needed,” he said. “The students are going to be able to be in a building that they’re proud of and can take pride in, and we can move forward in providing them with a good education.”
With the middle school project, the district is looking at three phases of construction, Mijares said. The district is currently completing Phase 1, which is the completion of the new middle school.
Phase 2 consists of the old wing — which Lufkin residents can see from Denman Avenue — that goes all
JOEL ANDREWS/The Lufkin Daily News Purple, gold and black accents highlight the floors, walls and ceilings of the new Lufkin Middle School. JOEL ANDREWS/The Lufkin Daily News In May 2018, Lufkin voters approved a $75 million bond project that would allow Lufkin ISD to build a new middle school. JOEL ANDREWS/The Lufkin Daily News Lufkin Middle School principal Andres Mijares stands in a hallway at the new Lufkin Middle School.
Slowly but surely, Impact Lufkin is accomplishing goals established following an Appreciative Inquiry conducted six years ago in conjunction with Stephen F. Austin State University and the T.L.L. Temple Foundation.
In 2016, the nonprofit released results of the inquiry, which identified the needs of Lufkin’s residents who live in Wards 1 and 2 while setting goals that, if accomplished, could meet those needs. The community wanted to see more jobs and economic development, educational opportunities, housing and community safety.
The survey found residents were impacted by a lack of transportation and the need for beautification in the community.
Early on in September 2018, Impact Lufkin announced its purchase of the old Lufkin Country Club, a 170-acre tract of land sitting off Sayers Street. About 10 days later, a team from Texas A&M University presented a master plan filled with ideas for the use of Impact Lufkin’s land.
The master plan sought to bring affordable housing, a community center, parks, businesses, restaurants, a health care center and more.
Four years after the release of the master plan, those living along Sayers Street have seen the construction of two new houses and East Texas Community Health Services.
Though community health was not brought to the area in partnership with the nonprofit, it meets one of the major goals set forth in the survey and master plan.
“That would have been a part of the neighborhood center we had hoped to build, so we haven’t come up with anything else (for that space),”
Impact Lufkin president Robert Shankle said. “That’s
Angelina College has never been one to shy away from building facilities that equal and surpass the normal standards of junior college programs.
On the athletic side, Shands Gym is a facility that has been one of the standards of JUCO basketball programs.
The Larry Phillips Sports Complex features baseball and softball fields that feature top-notch facilities for players and fans alike.
All three teams have hosted regional tournaments.
Next up is an on-campus soccer facility that will be the home of another of AC’s
athletic programs.
The facility is currently set to be open in time for preseason practices in the summer before hosting both the men’s and women’s soccer programs’ openers in August.
“It’s a game-changer,” AC president Michael Simon said. “In terms of building enthusiasm for the program and getting top talent to the school, this is a facility we feel can be very beneficial to the program.”
Angelina’s soccer program
had its debut season in 2016. Since then, both teams have exceeded expectations while competing against some of the top programs in the nation.
This past season was proof of the team’s steady ascent in making a name for itself both at a state and national level.
Despite missing the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, both the men’s and women’s teams had some of their best seasons in the history of the program.
The Roadrunners were a nationally ranked team that finished the season with a 13-4 record. The Lady Roadrunners drew national rankings in an 11-5 season that ended with a 2-1 loss to national
powerhouse Tyler. “Soccer is our newest athletic program, and we want to make sure they understand how proud the Roadrunner family is of their success,” Simon said. “They’ve already had quite a bit of success in a relatively short amount of time. We feel this can be another step in continuing to build the program.”
Since the soccer program’s inception, the Roadrunners and Lady Roadrunners have used Lufkin High School’s Jase Magers Soccer Field for their games due to AC not having an on-campus stadium.
Simon said the agreement was a positive one for the program throughout the first
six seasons, which saw AC go from a newcomer to one that steadily competed for playoff spots.
“I want to say we are very thankful to Lufkin ISD and to Dr. Lynn Torres (Lufkin superintendent) for letting us use their facility,” Simon said. “They worked cooperatively with us. They’d provide an announcer for our games. That was a fantastic relationship and we deeply appreciate their support.
“But when you think from a coaching standpoint, now our coaches are able to walk a prospective athlete out on the field while they’re right here on campus and show them where they’re going to compete. That can make a dif-
ference for students making their college decision.”
The new soccer field will be located next to the baseball and softball fields at the Larry Phillips Family Sports Complex.
The new field will be similar to how the baseball field is set up as it will be cut into the side of the hill.
Seating will include a variety of options.
“There will be stands down on the hillside, but we also wanted to have grassy areas for the fans,” Simon said. “Families can set up their own picnic type areas. We feel like you can make a family day out of it. It’s really going
the way to the science wing, he said. The science wing, the new wing and the band hall will be remodeled, and everything between the science wing and the auditorium will come down, along with the third wing behind it, he said. Phase 3 will be finishing up the library and the special education wing. The district hopes to have these projects completed by the spring of 2024.
“These phases are really going to allow us to take our kids into state-of-the-art facilities that are going to provide them with an exceptional academic environment that’s conducive to learning,” he said. “I’m really excited about being able to present this awesome new campus to our community, to our kids and to our staff.”
Mijares said he is most excited about the classrooms in the new middle school. They will provide students with a clean atmosphere that will allow them to focus on their education.
“I’m also focused on our teachers being able to provide them with a good education,” he said. “It’s a school everyone can be proud of. We’re extremely grateful to the community and to our voters and taxpayers because we need to provide our kids with the best Lufkin has to offer.
‘‘We have outstanding kids, we have kids that deserve the best, so we should be able to provide them the best. And I think this middle school is allowing us the opportunity to do so.”
Kayley Fraze’s email address is kayley.fraze@lufkindailynews.com.
to be a nice facility to watch a game.”
Simon said the on-campus facility has been made possible due to the support of the community for the college and its various programs.
“We’ve been very fortunate and blessed that there has been very strong support from the community for our soccer program,” Simon said. “Now we’re glad to be able to have this enthusiasm right here on campus. It’s going to be special for them to be able to play in front of their peers.
“We have a great relationship with the community. It’s not just our athletic programs, but it goes on to our visual and performing arts programs and others as well. The college adds value to the community, and the community makes things like this possible.”
The program doesn’t have any immediate plans to name the soccer facility. It will open in the fall as the Angelina College Soccer Field, which will be played at the Larry Phillips Family Sports Complex.
At some point, the facility could be renamed, although that has yet to be discussed.
Simon said AC’s athletic program is one that has benefits all around.
“One of the reasons I was attracted to Angelina College was their great intercollegiate athletics program. It adds so much not just for the student-athletes but for the students as well.”
The AC athletic program has gone through one of its best stretches in school history.
The softball team won the national title in 2014 and was the national runner-up in 2019.
The women’s basketball team won the Region XIV title in 2019, which automatically qualified it for the national tournament.
The men’s basketball team qualified for the national tournament by winning Region XIV in 2020. It was AC’s first time to qualify for the national tournament since 1998, although it was eventually canceled due to COVID-19.
“We want to underscore how much our student-athletes really appreciate having our community come out and support them,”
Simon said. “We’re putting a quality product out there on the courts and the fields. For anyone who hasn’t come out, they’re missing a great opportunity. We encourage everyone to come out and support the product we have put out here.”
Josh Havard’s email address is josh.havard@lufkindailynews.com.
still up for discussion.”
But the space will be filled with something that meets the community’s needs, he said.
The houses are a part of the first phase of property development set forth by the nonprofit, Shankle said. Their placement was dictated out of necessity and will result in a reimagining of the original master plan by Texas A&M. But one house is already occupied and the contracts are being finalized on the other, Shankle said.
“Housing was one of the biggest issues — affordable housing,” he said. “That was the first step we took.”
The nonprofit broke ground on the three bedroom, two bathroom houses along Sayers Street in early December 2020. They were constructed by Hicks Co., a company owned by Lufkin Mayor Mark Hicks.
Seven different banks have taken on the initiative to help prospective homeowners into the nonprofits’ new homes — their focus being on helping those who may not otherwise qualify for homeownership,
Shankle said.
Homeownership is crucial for helping low-income families out of poverty, a report released by the national Habitat for Humanity organization states. Homeownership leads to an increase in graduation rates, children’s health and the net family wealth. It also helps reduce reliance on government assistance.
“When you own a house you will take better care of it — not saying people who don’t won’t — but if you have a house, you take more pride in keeping it up,” he said. “Then it just beautifies the scenery of where you live at.”
He hopes to get a community garden started as people begin occupying the homes, something they can walk out behind their homes and help maintain and of which they can enjoy the fruits.
The nonprofit will construct eight homes in total, each with three bedrooms, two baths and a fenced-in backyard. They will cost an average of $139,000, Shankle said.
“To walk through the house, if I weren’t the president of this organization, I’d
be trying to get into one myself,” he said. “Those are nice houses for the price they’re being sold.”
He thinks construction of the eight houses will be completed by December, but said the weather slowed the progress some. He thinks crews will get a lot of work done this spring and summer, though.
“We have to fulfill our promise to the community, and that was one of our promises — we will build affordable housing,” Shankle said. “So it’s up to them now to apply to get one of these houses.”
The nonprofit also will construct a small street through the former golf course property in hopes of relieving the potential congestion issues residents may face with development.
In Phase 2, Impact Lufkin hopes to bring a small community grocery store to the area. Shankle said the nonprofit is in talks with a local grocer. He said he hopes to make a big announcement in 2022 about that particular project.
Another goal was the construction of a light manufacturing facility that residents could find employment with; the nonprofit hasn’t reached the point to bring in any manufacturers, Shankle said. But it did sell 25 acres to the Community Foundation, and Shankle thinks the foundation has some leads on a potential buyer.
The community center will
likely be the last thing the nonprofit works on, he said.
Cost estimates received a few years ago suggested it would cost close to $10 million to construct a facility capable of meeting the needs expressed by the community, Shankle said. And since then, inflation has skyrocketed.
The nonprofit also wants to make sure the center is run by people who know what
they are doing and will make it a true benefit to residents.
For now, the nonprofit will move as it receives grants and such to tackle each of the community initiatives. And in the meantime, the property will be made accessible for events including cross country meets, fishing tournaments and more.
Jess Huff’s email address is jess.huff@lufkindailynews.com.
It is spring in Lufkin again, and in the gently warming weather, residents are returning to the city’s parks for some much-needed fun.
Lufkin is home to 16 parks, four trails, three spray plays, two community centers, one swimming pool and one recreation center. And even as the cool days melt into a warm summer, the city has begun working on projects planned before and during the pandemic.
“Green Spaces are a way for a city to protect natural resources in different areas of our city,” Parks & Recreation director Rudy Flores said. “These passive areas allow nature to take full bloom while providing a space where park patrons can relax, reduce stress and boost mental health.”
Parks are designed according to the area’s geographical features, so each of Lufkin’s parks was uniquely designed to meet the needs of its closest patrons when it was constructed, Flores said.
“You can always identify an older playground in a park if you see the tall metal slide we all remember from our childhood,” he said. “The slide in question is a concept from the 1970s. You can spot the age of a park or playground because of that decade’s park design or trends.”
Another example of this is in playgrounds built before the Americans with Disabilities Act was enacted in July 1990. They weren’t readily accessible for residents with physical disabilities and changed dramatically in the 31 years since.
“The outlook for our parks seeks to form a clear vision to meet our current community’s diverse and changing needs,” Flores said. “Some of the park concepts that are currently trending are technology-enabled interactivity, nature-based design, intergenerational and inclusive design, physical distancing, to name a few.”
The National Recreation and Park Association Magazine in 2017 published an article reviewing the use of technology to engage and inspire children using city parks. Cities across the U.S. have begun including technology into their park plans, the magazine reported. Whether it is the addition of Wi-Fi or the placement of charging benches, cities like Los Angeles are focused on bringing residents to their public amenities by plugging the community in.
Lufkin implemented something similar to this concept in 2019 with the addition of workout stations to the Azalea Trail with which patrons need only scan a QR code with their phones to be provided with short drills they can implement on their walk.
And almost contrasting the goals with bringing technology to nature, some designers believe parks should encourage
JOEL ANDREWS/The Lufkin Daily News
A man fishes at Jones Park in Lufkin. The city recently installed a walking path around Jones Park Lake to encourage residents to get out and enjoy the waterfront.
JOEL ANDREWS/The Lufkin Daily News
An information board at the Ellen Trout Park tells patrons about the nature trail encircling Ellen Trout Lake outside of the zoo.
Lufkin has always been quite a sports town. From state championships in baseball, football, basketball and soccer to the back-to-back national titles of the Thundering 13 and Fierce 14s, sports have a way of bringing the community together.
Thanks to some major recent additions, the rest of the state is getting to share what East Texans already knew: The Lufkin area is a pretty special place when it comes to the athletic spectrum.
Lufkin opened what is now known as the Panther Athletic Center prior to the volleyball season in August. After each team played a game there last spring, the new baseball and softball fields officially opened for games in February.
In terms of 5A athletic facilities, it is not an overstatement to say Lufkin stands on its own.
“I think it’s safe to say it’s surpassed expectations,” Lufkin athletic director and head football coach Todd Quick said. “When they passed the bond, the school board and administration went to work on it. They knew we had one chance to really do it right.
“They understood the importance of it. Of course it’s going to affect the kids in school now, but this is also going to affect people for 20 years, not just one. They knew this opportunity only comes once and they made sure they did it right.”
The results already speak for themselves as it has become a venue for events at a statewide level.
The Panther Activity Center, otherwise known as “The PAC,” hosted the Class 6A Region II Volleyball Tournament that featured The Woodlands, DeSoto, Mansfield and Klein. With teams from much larger enrollments in town, Lufkin was able to put on a successful event.
Lufkin hosted both the boys and girls Class 4A Region III basketball tournaments over the recent months.
“Just in basketball, we hosted 12 playoff games, two regional tournaments and a couple of warm-up games,” Quick said. “At Panther Gym, I think we hosted six games one time and everything else was below that. We’ve obviously doubled that with a bigger facility.
“This is a place that people want to come to and people want to play at. It’s rated at 3,500 people both for seating and standing. We hosted Silsbee and Houston Washington, which wasn’t a total sellout, but we were close. There isn’t a chance we could have had a big-profile game between those two teams in the past if we wanted to let all their fans in.”
While the basketball facility has shown the benefits at a regional and statewide level, the local teams also made themselves at home in the facility’s inaugural season.
The Pack basketball team put together their best season since 1979, advancing to a regional tournament of their own. They went undefeated at home until the last week of the regular season.
The Lady Pack basketball team swept its home district games in securing the district’s second seed and just missing out on the 16-5A title by a single game.
Lufkin’s volleyball team was nearly flawless at home on its way to clinching another district title.
Once those teams were on the road for their playoff runs, the new facility welcomed in teams from across the region.
“If you build it, then they’ll schedule it,” Quick said. “It’s been kind of the magnet we thought it would be in terms of teams wanting to play here.”
With the scheduling of the games, Lufkin is able to use the money from those playoffs to help with upkeep on each of the new facilities.
“It goes to the maintenance with the upkeep,” Quick said. “You want to keep the facilities nice where everybody still comes here. This isn’t a museum. These facilities are here to be used.”
Quick also said that while he couldn’t speak to the exact community impact, he was confident those games and tournaments brought plenty of added revenue to the community.
“When the regional tournament was here, one of the teams had to stay north of us because there were no hotel rooms available here in
town,” Quick said. “I think that in itself speaks to how many people were here that weekend. Fans, players, coaches and families come into town for places like this and they’re going to eat, they’re going to shop and they’re going to need a place to stay. I think that has to have a positive impact.”
While the PAC has seen the majority of benefits, the Lufkin baseball and softball teams already have seen plenty of benefits from the new fields.
With winter rain usually wreaking havoc on preseason practice schedules, those teams have had the benefit of the new turf fields.
“We’re so used to having to change the schedule every day that
we almost don’t know how to handle this,” Lufkin head coach John Cobb said. “We’ve had years where we got on the field three times before the season just because it was too wet to play on. This year, it’s been almost nothing. There isn’t any telling how much practice time we’ve saved just by being here.”
The baseball team also hosted two tournaments for the first time. In addition to the annual Pete Runnels tournament, it hosted the Integra Classic.
Each tournament saw a strong level of competition, something Cobb said could be attributed to the new facilities. Only one game was lost between the two tournaments due to weather when a storm hit on the second night of the Integra Classic.
“If they can, most teams are going to try for tournaments with turf fields because you don’t have to worry about losing a whole weekend,” Cobb said. “I think that helped us get a few of these teams here.”
The baseball and softball teams also were having plenty of success as both appear ready for postseason
runs.
An extra benefit for the athletic program has been in the safety aspect of students, something that was a major selling point when the bond issue was voted on.
In past years, softball and baseball players would need to travel across town to Morris Frank Park for after school practices and games.
Basketball players would need to make the trip to the middle school. With the new facilities, all practices and games are at the on-campus location.
“We were all 16 years old at one time, and we know we’d wait until the last second to get where we needed to be,” Quick said. “Anytime you can keep them off the road for a little bit, it’s a positive. Parents don’t know whose riding with who. Then you’ve got three 16-year-old boys or girls in a car. It’s better for all of us that they can just go across the parking lot.
“Besides that, our baseball and softball coaches figured out they’re getting an extra two weeks of practice time throughout the year just from the time it takes to get out there. They’ve got more time to recover, study and relax. All that adds up for student-athletes throughout the season.”
Like the basketball facility, the baseball and softball teams also are expecting a much larger slate of playoff games at their facilities this year.
With the turf fields, there will likely be at least one game or series at each field each weekend throughout April and May.
“We’re not far removed from the situation of looking for a turf field just because all the grass ones weren’t playable,” Quick said. “We drove to Mumford one time just because they had a turf field. We expect we’ll be pretty busy for the playoffs with this facility.”
With all the new facilities wrapping up their first year of use, Lufkin has high school facilities that are built for the long haul.
“The school board, the administration and the community did what’s right for the kids,” Quick said. “That doesn’t go unnoticed.”
josh.havard@lufkindailynews.com.
Those interested in Lufkin’s future can rest assured one of the visionaries moving it forward has her eye on the ball.
Ivorie Ford, owner of F.I.F.T.H. Quarter Performance, joined Lufkin Forward 2.0 in December 2021 because she believes East Texans can progress if they are willing to open themselves to new experiences.
“If we are forward thinking, if one person progresses, then their group of people can progress and it becomes a ripple effect to the community, then it goes to the city, then so on and so forth,” she said.
Ford was born and raised in Lufkin and, with the exception of when she attended the University of Texas in Arlington, has lived here her whole life. She graduated from Lufkin High School in 2011 and studied exercise science in college.
“Growing up, I’ve always been an athlete and I really understood at an early age that life would be more than just sports for me,” she said. “Originally, I wanted to go to school to be a physical therapist, so I went to school and was exposed to a completely different side of the sports industry, which really piqued my interest on the training aspect with that particular degree from internships that I was a part of.”
Ford said her time at college offered her the chance to experience different things she wished she would have had the opportunity to experience growing up as a student athlete in Lufkin.
“It was really the training,” she said. “I wish I had somebody to really take the time and not just encourage me about where I was already advanced but to really help me work on what I would consider minute details about
mechanics, mobility, flexibility, strength, conditioning, mindset, nutrition, the holistic approach of being a great athlete.”
Ford graduated from UT Arlington in 2015 and stayed in the area for about a year but ultimately moved back to Lufkin.
“It was laid on my heart to move back to meet that need that I wish I had when I was a student-athlete here, so in transitioning, I moved back and I was really just doing general fitness because I was trying to find my way,’’ she said. ‘‘But as the years have progressed, it’s become evident to me that my calling, my ministry, is really just to student-athletes so that’s one
of the things I’ve taken more time to do.”
Ford started F.I.F.T.H.
Quarter Performance in 2019 to fulfill that calling. It provides her a way to connect and mentor athletes not just on the court or field but in life in general, she said. The program provides skill development sessions in basketball and volleyball and strength and conditioning.
The program has grown over the years, but Ford said she still has some major goals she wants to accomplish to better serve athletes.
“Really, I just want to provide more services that we can help athletes not have a rural city mindset but to understand that we do have
resources and opportunities that can help you go to the next level — it’s just them being exposed to them,” she said. “In Lufkin, we’re geographically disadvantaged because we don’t have a lot of resources that the city has. My goal is to not necessarily take them there but to bring it to them.”
Ford said she believes God placed her on this earth to share firsthand the things she has experienced. That transitions into Lufkin Forward 2.0 because they are all forward
thinking, she said.
“I believe that F.I.F.T.H. Quarter Performance adds value to that in that that’s what we’re standing for — not to have the mindset that just because we’re in East Texas we can’t do certain things,” she said. “Starting with youth athletes, we’re able to connect with the future generations — if we can cultivate that mindset then it’s only gonna better the city.”
That’s important, Ford said, because one of the reasons she found it difficult to move
back to Lufkin was she felt it was complacent.
“It was a breath of fresh air to me that city officials and leaders really were putting forth an effort to do things different and to bring about a change for the people,’’ she said. ‘‘That’s what I’m all about: bettering ourselves, making sure we’re moving forward, progressing and making sure we’re putting ourselves in a position to grow.’’
Kayley Fraze’s email address is kayley.fraze@lufkindailynews.com.
children to play in those made with more natural materials. WGI, a Floridabased engineering firm, has begun constructing playgrounds like this across Florida. In an article by the company, the writer explores ways in which parks created using wood, metal and other more natural products can engage children and still be accessible for those who have special needs.
“The average life of our playgrounds across all parks is around 10-12 years old,” Flores said. “All of our parks are under the new outlook to find what best represents our community right now. I am confident we will see some
over East Texas.”
The city also has Morris Frank Park in its sights as local leaders seek to make it a “premier park and destination for all sports,” Flores said. Morris Frank Park has baseball, softball and soccer facilities, as well as an 18-hole disc golf course, wetland garden, trail, lake, playground and picnic area.
“In the Parks & Recreation world, we like to use the abbreviation C.A.P.P.A. Culture, Active, Passive, Primitive and Aquatics,” Flores said.
Rudy considers those to be the top five ways to define recreation and said green spaces would be a combination of passive space and primitive areas.
“The importance of preserving or developing green spaces ensures our citizens have the freedom to create their type of recreation,” he said.
Liya Guerrero considers Lufkin Forward an investment in her future. Her unique perspective is what she invests in the project.
Guerrero said she was excited to be able to represent the people of Lufkin when she joined the board. The owner of Bella Grace Shoppe in downtown Lufkin, she has lived here her whole life.
“I look like you, I live where you live,” she said.
“Just like you, I could be a wife, I could be a mother, I could be a sister, I could be someone’s cousin, I could be a friend and I’m a business owner, so I feel like we relate to a lot of people in our community because we are true members of the community.”
Guerrero was born and raised in Lufkin, graduating from Lufkin High School in 2009. She worked in corrections for a while at the Angelina County Sheriff’s Office, worked in the medical field in Nacogdoches, worked at a bank and dabbled in photography and makeup artistry before opening Bella Grace Shoppe in 2019.
“I was all over the place; I wasn’t conformed to one idea of what my life should look like, but I knew that it wasn’t going to be in corporate America,” she said.
“I’m a little more artistic in a sense, and creative, and I’m not all black and white. Working all these jobs I felt was necessary to teach me the selfdiscipline and character that I have today. I don’t regret all of the things I’ve put my hand in because they’ve prepared me for seeing an avenue that looks successful to me.”
Bella Grace Shoppe was created from a vision that was all her own, Guerrero said. She built the store from nothing and has no loved ones with prior business knowledge, she said.
“Absolutely no one helped me with my store, and that’s been my biggest success to this day,” she said. “It was a
lot of late nights, determination, self-discipline — and I feel like these things help me with Lufkin Forward, that drive and determination of always wanting more.”
Guerrero didn’t always know she wanted to open her own store, but the idea came about from promoting other businesses, she said.
“In the past, companies would send me free makeup or want me to model clothes — I was always kind of being invested in as an influencer. I figured if the power lies within me, why not take
advantage and hit the ground running and open my own business?” she said. “I was already promoting other businesses — why not go ahead and invest in myself and in my future?”
Guerrero’s store is named after her daughter Grace. She also was adamant when creating the store that ‘Shoppe’ be in the name, not boutique, she said.
“I knew with it being labeled as a shop, I’d be able to carry a lot more than just traditional boutique clothing, so in the long run I do hope
to invest in other things that aren’t traditional boutique items,” she said. “My husband was in the Marine Corps, and eventually, I do want to have a men’s section.”
Just as Guerrero loves being able to bring something unique to downtown Lufkin, she is able to offer that same unique perspective to Lufkin Forward 2.0 by being a Latina, she said.
“The board that we have now is very diverse, and we all are someone in the community that you can relate to,” she said. “I can represent the Hispanic community, and
they’ll feel more open to talk to me, and my store gave me the platform for that because I meet so many people here. If they don’t personally know me, they at least know my face and it’s trusted.”
Guerrero said she dove in head first to Lufkin Forward 2.0 because she had already seen Lufkin Economic Development director Bob Samford speak and had seen how passionate he was.
“I just knew it was going to be a good team, especially when he mentioned the other people he wanted on the advi-
sory council. I knew it was going to be a strong foundation for all of us and a safe space for all of us to grow with the community,” she said.
“It’s a chance for us to build the community together, and I feel like we finally have a shot at it with the diverse board, which is something we haven’t seen, and we have honest, direct members, and we’re going to be able to have those conversations with people and move the city forward.”
Kayley Fraze’s email address is kayley.fraze@lufkindailynews.com.
Kim Ogden said Lufkin Economic Development director Bob Samford approached her about joining Lufkin Forward 2.0 after her 2021 bid for city council.
She said Samford had been watching her campaign and thought she would be a great addition to the team.
“Bob’s enthusiasm, not just for Lufkin Forward 2.0, but for the community and for this town — it is an all-encompassing excitement, and he relays that to you so well that you want to be a part of it,” Ogden said.
Ogden’s family moved to Lufkin in the early 1980s, and she graduated from Lufkin High School in 1998. She received her bachelor’s degree in anthropology from Texas A&M University and received a master’s degree in criminology from the University of
Cincinnati.
“I always wanted to be Indiana Jones growing up,” she said laughing. “I got to Texas A&M as an adult and realized there’s no such animal. A&M offered this anthropology course with a very heavy emphasis on forensics and anatomy, and I fell in love with it.”
Ogden had been a police officer before she and her husband — who is a fighter pilot — moved to Corpus Christi so he could train pilots to fly fighter jets.
“I worked for a medical examiner’s office down there as their only female investigator, so what I would do is investigate all unattended deaths in Oasis County and in the 14 surrounding counties,” she said. “The South Texas Rangers division contracted me as an anthropologist to come down to the border and identify human remains in clandestine graves.”
Ogden said she ultimately moved back to Lufkin because she and her husband wanted their children to be raised the
same way they had been.
She began working at Woodland Heights as a clinical and non-clinical recruiter and also worked in the marketing department. Ogden also worked in marketing for Brookshire Brothers and owned Journey Magazine.
“I really found my place working as a medical examiner — that kind of field working with deceased people, I was built for that. I was really good at it; it didn’t affect me,” she said. “When we got back to Lufkin, we have a (justice of the peace) system here, so I didn’t have a job as an investigator here that wasn’t part of a police force. I kind of found my way into marketing and relations for people, and it worked.”
Ogden returned to Woodland Heights five years ago and now works as a registered nurse recruiter.
“I absolutely love my job. I recruit people for this hospital. My dad was a physician here forever and I grew up here. That’s what I love the most about what I do — I get
to talk to brand new people every single day,” she said.
“I talk to all kinds of new people I’ve never met, I get to bring them here to the hospital, I get to introduce them to my work family here, they get to meet our staff, they get to see how our hospital runs and they are able to get hired into it and come on to our team and be a part of us.
‘‘I find the right people to help our patients, help our staff and I love it.”
Ogden’s ability to talk to people is what helps her with Lufkin Forward 2.0, and that is what she brings to the table, she said.
“All of us — myself, Liya, Coach Ivorie — we’re all very involved in our community and we enjoy going out and talking with people and hearing their stories,” she said.
“As this progresses, as Lufkin 2.0 progresses, our jobs are going to be getting out into the community and talking to people, holding different meetings where we meet all different kinds of the community. I think my skill
set I’m bringing is very much a personality to be able to sit and talk and listen and take what I hear and process it in a way that Lufkin Forward can move on a project.”
Ogden said being a part of Lufkin Forward 2.0 means leaving behind a legacy.
“When I ran for city council, that was one of my big things was that I wanted to make a community better than what it is, which, it’s a great community, but to grow it and move it forward and to
CONTRIBUTEDleave something for my son so one day he can look back and be like, ‘That was great. I remember when my mom and this team were able to bring projects to life here so our future generations can enjoy it,’” she said.
“I want Carter and his generation to look at this town and grow up in it and to love it just as much as we do — and to be proud to be from here.”
Kayley Fraze’s email address is kayley.fraze@lufkindailynews.com.