Sparkle - December 2010

december2010 AtUrbanMagazine.com

sparkle

lifestyle entertainment

DIRECTOR OF SALES AND STRATEGIC PLANNING

12 14 16

Hap-e Larry’s Request Express Now Hear This Hogs on Ice

people

MANAGING EDITOR

Catherine Frederick

Arranging the Flowers The Mechanism of Hope Gas Station Goes Gourmet

20 22 27 30

Jay Strongwater The Potential of Ordinary Things Magical Glass “Big Nasty” Big Heart

taste

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF PRESIDENT

7 8 10

34 36

That’s So Cheesy The Irish Coffee

holiday

@INSIDE

38 42 46

Ho Ho Hodo Show The Real Santa Christmas, the Right Way

Marla Cantrell Dana Clunn

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Marla Cantrell Laura Hobbs Jim Martin Tonya McCoy Anita Paddock Whitney Ray Ann Scott Winters

CONTRIBUTING DESIGNER

Jeromy Price

WEB GURU

David Jamell

PUBLISHER

Read Chair Publishing, LLC

COVER IMAGE

Ed Pennebaker

Advertising and Distribution Information

Dana Clunn at 479 / 650 / 9665 Dana@AtUrbanMagazine.com Editorial or Artwork Information

Catherine Frederick at 479 / 782 / 1500 Catherine@AtUrbanMagazine.com ©2010 Read Chair Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. The opinions contained in @Urban are exclusively those of the writers and do not represent those of Read Chair Publishing, LLC. as a whole or its affiliates. Any correspondence to @Urban or Read Chair Publishing, LLC., including photography becomes the property of Read Chair Publishing, LLC. @Urban reserves the right to edit content and images.

@LETTER FROM CATHERINE

W

hen I was young, it seemed as though time passed so slowly. Everyday things seemed to take forever. Don’t even get me started on holidays and birthdays. School days were depressingly long too. Weekends were all too short. The few hours each day spent sitting behind my wooden school desk staring at the dusty green chalk board stretched on for what seemed like eons. As my teacher taught history, I daydreamed about my future.

It seemed so distant then - college, a career, the man of my dreams, marriage, children - I couldn’t wait to get out in the “real world” and start my life. No one could tell me differently, I was a teenager who knew everything.

I traveled through my adolescent years at breakneck speed. I sprinted through high school, graduating early. No time to slow down in college. Living on my own, I didn’t experience dorm life or take the time to form lifelong friendships. I was running a race but I ran it alone. I look back now and ask myself, Why so fast? Where was the fire?

I realize now how foolish I was and how quickly time actually passes. And believe it or not, I’m learning to slow down. I realize I need to spend more time “in the moment” and enjoy the little things. I realize I have one precious lifetime. And I realize even though I don’t know whether it will be long or short I must make the most of the time I have.

In the past, every December I’d dive out wide-eyed into the hustle and bustle in search of that perfect gift for the ones I love. But not this year. I’ve come to realize that the most perfect gift doesn’t cost a penny – in fact, it’s free. It’s time.

Now that I am a wife and mother, the realization hits me even harder. It’s time that I crave. Not a new trinket or new pair of shoes. I’d trade those material things in an instant for extra time snuggling with my five-year-old who seems to grow daily right before my eyes, or a few stolen moments with my husband, not to talk about bills or appointments, just to be with each other.

Time won’t break the bank, it can’t be the wrong size, color or brand. It’s one-size-fits-all. The perfect gift. And even though it’s not on my son’s wish list and he can’t rip into it on Christmas morning, it’s what I promise to deliver- although I’ll probably throw in some WWE Superstar action figures as well.

‘Tis the season Urbanities- I wish you all a season of great cheer and hope you take time to stop and smell the eggnog.

@URBAN POETRY CONTEST @Urban is sponsoring a contest to find our area’s most talented poets who are eighteen and older. Details concerning the competition will be listed in our January issue. So start looking through your best work, or begin writing a brand new poem. Either way, get busy!

January is right around the corner. We can’t wait to see what our Urbanites have to offer.

5

@LIFESTYLE

Arranging the Flowers @lines Ann Scott Winters

My first attempt was a collection of jonquils from the yard on Davis Street to enter a grade school competition.

I made a sail, a solid triangle of Hi-liter yellow, a garish affront to art, American size— no subtle soiree that.

Mother Moore, my mother’s grandmother, was said to force Japonica to bloom earlier than anyone else in Conway could.

Then coming late as usual, she marched up the middle aisle to place the vase crammed full in February of those blossoms of red paled pink on the Central Presbyterian altar.

How like the flowers she must have been—early riser, hands busy ordering others about her boarding house.

My mother has a much more ordered way about her flowers. Her Southern taste subdues the colors and frothy green into spires and cupolas for luncheons. I’ve watched her hands grow old arranging flowers. She feels the length of stems, tilts the Shasta daisy just so before angling it down into the soaked oasis.

On holidays we’ve never bothered florists.

When others have, she’s rearranged what’s sent—not gloating but adamant. I’ve yearned to grace a place that way.

7

I haunted flower stalls, finding prearranged bouquets from mismatched gardens lacking but cheap. But today I am choosing the path of buying one by one names I’ve heard my mother say—baby’s breath, Dutch iris, larkspur, zinnia, chrysanthemum and fern, of course the fern.

And home with clusters of like-minded blooms strewn across the counter and scissors, one of Mother’s old flower frogs or some oasis, I stand in awe. I can feel their blood in my veins, but such extremes of style. Taking one long stalk, I place it beneath cold running water, stand back, look at the bowl trying to judge its need, start to cut, stand back again, looking. Then holding my breath, I shut my eyes and snip.

W

e live our lives on a slender slant. Step off a curb at the wrong moment and all is lost. Slip into a lake where

you spent your summers as a child, swim out a little too far, and you may never come home again. If we think about it long enough, we might never go out again. It’s the mechanism of hope that shifts our thoughts away from our own mortality and the thousands of ways we might be done in. Most of us live in that splendid place, our days stretching out unnumbered, the end so far away it seems unfathomable that it will ever come.

But some have teetered ominously close to the edge, and the experience isn’t as frightening as we might expect. Like the women at the support group at the Donald W. Reynolds Cancer Support House in Fort Smith. They meet each Tuesday, sharing stories of their battle with breast cancer. “What it’s done for me,” Mary Lee says, “is take away my fear of death. I’ve beaten cancer once, and if it ever comes back, I’ll fight just as hard.

But I’m not afraid like I was the first time. If my time comes, it comes. I’ll be able to accept that.”

A few minutes earlier Mary Lee was laughing with longtime survivor, Charlotte, about the zeal of those who’ve tackled the disease. “Partying with a cancer survivor can be dangerous,” Charlotte says. “We love life, and we know how to show it. ..We had a friend here once who wanted to see Paris. And six of us

the mechanism of hope

said, Why not? We got on a plane together and one of the girls looked across the first three rows and said, ‘There’s not a real boob anywhere in this section.’” Laughter rolls across the room as Charlotte finishes. ..”My gosh,” she says, “ we had a good time.”

donald w. reynolds cancer support house @story Marla Cantrell @image Donald W. Reynolds Cancer Support House

There are no taboos here. The women discuss the effects the illness has on sex, the demands of everyday life, and the frustrations of taking a smorgasbord of pills. And while the

8

@LIFESTYLE

older members encourage the newer ones, it isn’t without a

birds. I don’t wait for special occasions to celebrate anything.”

few heart-wrenching moments. “I hear all of you talking about

Rebecca, who was diagnosed when she was thirty-five, chimes

having a good attitude,” Marvilla, who was diagnosed with Stage

in. “The leaves fluttering across the parking lot,” she says, “even

4 cancer in 2007, says, “and I have to tell you I’m still pissed off.

that is wonderful. You notice it all.”

I’d just had a mammogram a week before and I found the lump while I was in the bathtub. I did everything I was supposed to

Joyce, who is sixty-six and was diagnosed last year, runs her

do and it didn’t matter. My whole life changed.”

fingers through her cropped hair. “I volunteer at the library, and so many times I’ll have someone come up to me, pat me on the

The others listen. They ask questions about the medications

arm, and ask if I’ve been ill. They’re very gentle. They don’t

she’s now taking and give her advice on how to deal with the

want to intrude. But it means so much.” Tears shine in her eyes

effects. “This group means a lot to me,” Marvilla says. “I moved

as she continues. “It’s been amazing how good people are.”

here after my diagnosis. They help in all kinds of ways. ..I still Tied end to end, the Donald W. Reynolds Cancer Support House

get angry. ..They think that’s okay.”

estimates its programs have offered 700 years worth of support Kathy, who had a mastectomy twenty-four years ago, remembers

in the years since it opened ten years ago. Many of these women

bartering with God when a mass was found in her remaining

came to their first meeting before they ever had surgery. Not

breast. “I remember saying, ‘Just let me get Jamie out of high

one can imagine walking this path alone.

school.’ You’ll do just about anything to feel like you’ve got Mary Lee recalls the first Christmas Eve after her diagnosis. She

some control over what’s happening.”

stayed on the couch, crying all night, fearing she might not make The others nod in unison. Control is the key. “We do give a lot

it. Her husband found her there, wrapped his arms around her and

of medical advice,” Charlotte says. “Not in the way a doctor

asked her to lean on him until she could stand on her own. She

would, of course, but we know things because we’ve been

considers that moment one of the best in her long marriage. She

there. We know what the medications are, we know the tricks

also thinks it serves as an example of what this group does best.

that help with the nausea, and we know how the system works.

“We know how to step in when the battle is hard for someone

..We can tell someone how to get through the tough times, and

newly diagnosed,” Mary Lee says. “We know to lift each other up,

what lies ahead.”

when one of us can’t do it herself. .. We know how to take care of each other when we’re going through treatments. What we have here makes all the difference in the world.”

Anne agrees. “I was diagnosed sixteen years ago. I got through it with the help of this group. The original members started

More information is available at reynoldscancersupporthouse.org

meeting eighteen years ago, even before the House opened. ..Not everything that happens after cancer is bad. I have bird feeders now and they never go empty. I take time to watch the

9

gas station goes gourmet

pinnacle station local market

@story Marla Cantrell @images Pinnacle Station Local Market

T

he lucky traveler will run out of gas within coasting distance of

the meatloaf plate, as well as burgers served on fresh baked

Pinnacle Station Local Market in Rogers. After filling the tank,

Focaccia, roasted chicken, seafood, a fourteen foot salad bar, a

the even luckier traveler will go inside to pay. Because inside this

sandwich station, and the ArkMex center, where flour tortillas

gas station is one of the best gourmet markets in the area.

are made by hand.

No, really.

Every day there are thirty meals for under $6.00. “We are very conscious of our price point,” said Nathan Strayhorn, market

Pinnacle Station Local Market is an eclectic combination of

director. “And it’s worked. We’ve had steady growth since we

gas station, restaurant, gourmet food shop and convenience

opened. ..People come in all the time and say this place is not

store. It even has an executive chef. Jesse Fox trained under

what they expected. We’re excited about that.”

Miles James of James at the Mill in Johnson before signing on when the market opened in 2008. Jesse oversees the food staff,

The 9,000 square foot market was designed to draw in those

including two other chefs, who serve up everything from fried

used to shopping in bigger cities. “Some of our best customers

grits, potato pancakes, grilled rib-eye, crab cakes, and their

relocated here to work at Wal-Mart and Tyson’s headquarters,”

signature Train Wreck Burrito.

Nathan said. “They’re used to these kinds of high-end markets like ours where you can eat, grocery shop, order birthday cakes,

One of the best sellers is the Pizza Rustica, which includes

and get prepared food to take home for dinner. ..They’ll come

the wildly popular chicken parmesan variety. One slice fills

in and tell me they grew up in Chicago and they can’t get the

an entire plate and costs less than $5.00. The pizza is part

same kinds of food here, so I’ll special order items. ..And I have

of a South Beach, Florida, franchise, but is made from scratch

a couple of German ladies I order special cheeses for.”

on site several times a day. There are also daily specials like

10

@LIFESTYLE

But the owners also understood those of us who’ve lived here

Laura’s Granola in Arizona, Chef Laura is the one who answers

our entire lives would also come to the market. “The locals have

the phone,” Nathan said.

given us great feedback. The area from Fort Smith to Springfield, and some in Oklahoma, come here to shop. ..A lot of local chefs

Shoppers mill around the store, checking out the daily specials

shop here, and people bring in recipes with ingredients they

in the Chef’s Case, finding things like eggplant parmesan and

can’t find anywhere else. We have everything from fresh fish

shrimp cocktail. In the drink section, a man dressed in a suit lifts

that’s brought in several times a week from the East Coast, the

a six-pack of Fizzy Lizzy soda out of the case. A mother with two

West Coast and Florida, to the fresh produce section, a gluten-

young boys points out the gargantuan Monkfish in the seafood

free area, and a Mediterranean aisle.”

section, and two middle-aged women look at the Food Should Taste Good Chips.

They’ve even saved the day for those looking for the perfect gift at the last minute. “Our baker keeps cakes ready with “Happy

A fondue kit called Fun-Do To Go is getting a good reception

Birthday” written on them,” Nathan said. “We sell several of

right now, but it’s far from the most exotic item the store has

those a week. ..I help customers pick out gifts, mostly with

sold. The market once carried bottled water from Beverly Hills,

gourmet foods like specialty olive oils, vinegars, teas and some

called Bling H20. It was $22 a pop and had Swarovski Crystals

of our other specialty brands like the Barefoot Contessa.”

on the bottle.

It’s this kind of service that matters the most to Nathan. “We

The array of good food and high-end products has earned

want to be the place that you can come and we know you by

Pinnacle a tongue-in-cheek nickname: the Gucci Gas Station.

name and we know how you like your fish prepared. We’re

“We love that,” Nathan said. “It tells me our customers are

definitely that small town place.”

comfortable with us and they know we’re unique.”

Pinnacle Station also supports area businesses. “I don’t think

So unique, in fact, that Rachel Ray called Nathan to thank him

I’ve ever turned down a local person who’s come in to sell their

for the cheese platter he’d prepared when she came to the area

products,” Nathan said. “From pizza sauce to dog treats, we love

on a book signing tour. “I’d typed up a letter to go with it and

the local vendor.” The evidence is right on the shelves. Shirley’s

we sent it over to her. I’d just left to pick up my daughter when

Flowers has a case filled with arrangements ready to take home,

she called so I missed it but she was very gracious.”

War Eagle Mill has its own display, pasta made in Tontitown is sold next to national brands, and Global Beans, a Fayetteville coffee

Quite an endorsement for a gas station in Arkansas. But then

company, sells its wares next to the likes of Dean and Deluca.

again, it’s quite a little gas station.

All the hard work is paying off. The market now has products

Pinnacle Station Local Market is at 2000 Promenade Boulevard in Rogers. More information can be found at pinnaclestationlocalmarket.com

from all fifty states, many from small companies. “When I call

11

Graduating from Greenwood High School in 1966, Yother started college only to drop out a year later. “It was public speaking class,” he says. “I was too shy, couldn’t stand talking in front of those people.” He became interested in broadcasting while listening to Paul Harvey.

“My first experience in radio was hanging out in the studio while John ‘The Weird Beard’ Gamer did his show on KFSA [in Fort Smith] in the late sixties” In 1970, he started work as a radio dispatcher for Fort Smith’s Checkered Taxi. While not exactly what he had in mind, it was broadcasting.

hap-e larry’s request express

By 1979, Yother had already formed his own home-improvement business, Metro Siding and Awning of Barling, when Saturday morning DJ for KFSA, Larry Reeves, invited him to bring his music

a life in radio

collection in. “I was taking my records down for Reeves to play on-air,” he says. “He’d ask me questions regarding the music and

@story Jim Martin @image Larry Yother

A

I would answer off-mike. People started calling the station asking about the voice in the background.”

LL ABOARRRRD!!” The robust call goes out every Sunday evening, immediately followed by the bellowing train

Impressed by his knowledge of music trivia, listeners suggested he

whistle and the opening strains of the Beatles’ “Magical Mystery

be on-mike as well. It wasn’t long before Program Director, George

Tour,” welcoming listeners to their weekly ride on Hap-E Larry’s

Glover, installed a second mike in the broadcast booth. Then one

Request Express on Fort Smith’s KOOL 104.7.

morning, Reeves called in sick, leaving Yother to go it on his own.

Hap-E Larry is Larry Yother. His first memory of music is listening

“I didn’t know what to do,” he says. “The fear I’d felt as a kid had

to the Grand Ol’ Opry with his parents. Later, he remembers

returned.” That’s when he received what he calls the best piece

seeing Elvis Presley on the Ed Sullivan Show, leading him to buy

of advice he’s ever gotten. “’Remember, Larry,’ said George

his first record in 1957. He was nine years old. “It was ‘Teddy

Glover. ‘They can hear you, but they can’t see you. Just relax

Bear,’” he says. “Still got it, and the picture sleeve it came in.” That

and have fun.’”

purchase marked the first entry in one of the most extensive music collections in the River Valley. Yother now owns over 200,000

After doing the morning show together for a year, Reeves suggested

recordings on vinyl and nearly 4,000 on CD.

they take it elsewhere. A new station, KLEO, had just started in

12

@ENTERTAINMENT

Caulksville, Arkansas. Reeves wanted to go there on the Saturday

During an interview at KBBQ, he was jokingly asked if he was the

night shift. While trying to think of a name for the show, someone

“kiss of death” for every radio station he worked for. He began

commented they did things haphazardly. The Hap & Hazard Show

a ten-year run there in 1992, building an even bigger fan base

hit the airwaves that Saturday.

than before. In 2002, the station was bought out by the Cumulus Corporation, bringing in a new program director who wanted things

The show lasted four months before the station went belly up,

done a certain way. “After doing my show my way for twenty-two

leaving the duo out of work. Reeves left radio altogether. Yother

years, I didn’t want to deal with the headache.”

decided to try his luck at KZRK in Ozark. After convincing Program Director Marty Houston that an all-request Oldies-Rock show would

Not ready to give up completely, he went to the Garrison Avenue

work on a Country station, he was given the Sunday night shift.

offices of Bill and Karen Pharis of Pharis Broadcasting. Already fans, they hired him on the spot. “You can now hear us every Sunday

Already known as Hap from the Hap and Hazard show, he decided to

night on KOOL 104.7,” says Yother. “We’re still playin’ what you’re

keep the moniker, adding his own middle initial, E. In 1980, “Hap-E

sayin’ from six till midnight.” He has a loyal fan base, with regular

Larry’s Request Express” made its debut. “From that point on, I’ve

callers becoming as well known as Hap himself. Cedar Foot, Big

done an all request show, always carrying my own records, always

Mac, Shaw-Dog, and the now deceased Uncle Zeb are names all his

on Sunday night.”

fans are quick to recognize.

The show was an instant success earning a loyal fan base. He stayed

“One day,” he says, “while in the bank, someone asked how I was

at KZRK for five years, until the station folded in 1985. “My show

doing. ‘Fine,’ I said. ‘Do I know you?’ He said, ‘No, but I know you.

was the last broadcast,” he says. “I actually turned the lights off

I love your show, Hap-E Larry.’ He recognized my voice. You never

there for the final time.”

know when you might run into another fan.”

The Request Express soon returned, this time broadcasting from

Then, smiling, he quotes his signature line, the one he uses to close

Hap’s hometown of Greenwood on Country-106. Once again,

every show, “May all your trails be happy ones!”

playing Oldies-Rock on a Country station proved successful, this time in more ways than one. It was there he met Pamela Scott, the future Miss-Hap, his life partner both on-air and off.

When the station went under two years later, the Express rolled on to KBBS in Booneville. Again, his faithful listeners followed and again, the show was a success. Also like before, the station was not, going under a year later. He then took the Express to KLOX in Barling, staying there till the station folded in 1992.

13

@ENTERTAINMENT It shouldn’t work. Three artists with styles so distinct it seems they have nothing in common. Yet somehow, on The Union, the new release by Leon Russell and Elton John, produced by T-Bone Burnett, it not only works, it works well.

“Leon is one of my idols,” Elton said in Rolling Stone. “His music takes me to a happy place. It pisses me off that he was forgotten.”

now hear this

Of course it doesn’t hurt that every song, written in some combination of Leon, Elton, and Bernie Taupin, is top notch.

Elton John, Leon Russell — The Union

Their voices blend perfectly with Leon’s guttural growl being

@review Jim Martin

the perfect antithesis for Elton’s higher, smoother sound.

T

ake one part Leon Russell, born on April 2, 1942, in Lawton,

Highlights include “If It Wasn’t For Bad,” echoing back to Leon’s days

Oklahoma. Having played and/or toured with acts as diverse

as fictional honky tonk legend Hank Wilson, “The Best Part Of The

as Jerry Lee Lewis, Joe Cocker, and the Rolling Stones, he is

Day” with an electrifying vocal performance by Elton, and “Gone To

known as the ultimate sideman. As a session musician, Russell

Shiloh,” a Civil War tale featuring guest vocalist Neil Young.

played on many of the finest pop singles of the sixties, and as a songwriter, he has known success with Joe Cocker’s recording of

Joined by other guests Booker T. Jones, Robert Randolph, and

“Delta Lady,” and of course, the classic “A Song For You,” covered

musical genius Brian Wilson, other tracks include the rollicking

by everybody from Ray Charles to Elvis Presley to Willie Nelson.

“Hey Ahab,” heartbreaking ballad “When Love Is Dying,” and first time collaboration between Leon and Bernie Taupin, “I

Then, add one part Elton John, born in 1947, in England, the son of

Should Have Sent Roses.”

a former Royal Air Force trumpeter. He began playing piano at four, earning a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music at eleven,

Closing track, the gospel tinged “The Hands Of Angels” ends the

where he studied for six years before leaving to attempt breaking

set on a hopeful note, that no matter how dire our circumstances,

into the music business. He began a songwriting partnership with

there is always hope as we are carried and protected by the

lyricist Bernie Taupin in 1965 that lasts till this day.

hands of angels. The perfect closing to what may very well prove to be the best release of 2010.

Mix them together with the help of T-Bone Burnett, who, despite critical acclaim as a performer, is best known as the

If this collection doesn’t move you, you can’t be moved.

producer who single-handedly brought old-school bluegrass back to modern day record charts by releasing the soundtrack of O’ Brother, Where Art Thou.

I Rate It 14

Holiday Special

4300 Rogers Avenue – Fort Smith Green Pointe Center

479.434.2945 $25 $100

Receive a

gift card

with any

purchase.

Gift card for use on future purchases. Good through 12/24/10.

Home of the Original Cookie Cake!

The River Valley's Pizzeria that brings you great food with Hollywood Entertainment!

Cookies and Cookie Cakes for All Occasions.

Cookie Cakes ready in 15 minutes or less.

7805A Rogers Ave. — Fort Smith

479.452.9999 l GreatAmericanCookies.com Central Mall — Fort Smith

Sweeten Your Christmas!

Bring in this coupon for

15%off

your next order!

Across from Lowes, next to Sports Clips

479.452.4445 l HollywoodStarsPizza.net

Offer valid with coupon only. Not valid with any other offers or discount.

20%

off

(beer not included)

Empower a loved one with the gift of confidence this Christmas.

3112 Cavanaugh Rd — Fort Smith

479.649.3542 l KSWoftheRiverValley.com

$39

Registration

Includes one free month and a uniform

Get in Shape Before the Holidays.

What Do You Have to Lose Besides Inches?

By Appointment Only

479.651.6703

3 Private Sessions 2 Mat Sessions Offer expires 12/23/10

$150

New Clients Only. Offer Expires 12/31/10.

Free Scentsy Bar of Your Choice with any order!

Order must be made by email or phone.

Amanda Johnson 479.353.1599 l AmandaJohnson.Scentsy.us Online orders not available for this offer.

hogs on ice razorback hockey

@story Tonya McCoy @images Razorback Hockey

T

he tearing force of twenty-eight sets of blades cut through

last season. In mid-November they got even more good news:

the ice as the Razorback hockey team takes the rink at the

they’re now third in the South Region, the highest ranking

Jones Center in Springdale. This University team is only three

they’ve ever received.

years old, but their acclaimed trip to the “Sweet Sixteen” in the Division 3 American Collegiate Hockey Association’s

Fans are calling the Ice Hogs as they cheer this season’s team.

tournament last March introduced Arkansas fans to the rugged

“We’ve sold out and had standing room only crowds for all four

sport. The Hogs caught everyone’s attention with an amazing

of the home games so far. And the atmosphere’s been electric.

eighteen-game winning streak and an SEC title win in the ACHA

It’s packed in there, and I certainly didn’t see anything like it last

@ENTERTAINMENT

season. And I have every reason to believe it’s going to continue to grow,” says head coach Brian Gallini.

As the six-on-six action begins, the players move so fast all you see are streaks of red and white. They change direction in less than a second, and you’re lucky if you can keep your eye on the puck. These players run the gamut, from flowing elegantly along the ice and turning their skates on a dime, to brutally knocking opponents into the glass partitions. Sticks in hand, and some weighing upwards of 200 pounds, they are forces to be reckoned with.

One such force is team captain Garrett Meier, playing Senior Defensemen. The 6’ Meier started playing roller hockey in Allen, Texas, when he was only six and ice hockey when he was twelve. When he came to the University of Arkansas, he’d all but given up the game to pursue his major in Biology. But since the team formed during his freshman year, he’s been enjoying both.

“To see it go from just a bunch of kids who kind of wanted to have a good time and play a few hockey games to competing on a national level is quite the experience,” says Meier.

These young men are pursuing careers in everything from advertising to mechanical engineering. Besides tuition and school fees, team members also have to pay to play. Members pay around $2,000 in team dues per season. “We pay for personal training, we pay for our ice time,” Galini explains. “You name it, we pay for it. We pay for refs and scorekeepers. Just putting on a Razorback hockey game costs a significant amount of money.

Traveling to games also costs a significant amount of money.”

With money tight, you might ask why a team member would pay to play. Gallini says, “The players on this roster are extremely

17

@ENTERTAINMENT

dedicated and would do whatever it takes to better the program

of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation. The guys raised

for the team. And I think they see the bigger picture, which is that

$2,000 in one night and hope to make this an annual event.

this is just temporary. It’s a willing trade-off for them because they recognize that they’re part of the history of this program

Coach Gallini and the team want to do even more for local

and they’re the building blocks for it.” Many of these players

charities, but he also hopes that one day he’s working with local

hail from the Dallas, Texas, area, but a few grew up in Canada,

kids to build a better hockey team. “That would be the dream

and one traveled from Brooklyn to attend the University.

scenario. Could you imagine if we could grow the youth hockey program in a way that the University was actually able to recruit

Gallini, who grew up in the D.C. area, and coached college

local kids? Other than converting Barnhill into a rink, that’s kind

hockey at the University of Pennsylvania before moving to

of the dream come true where everything’s in house, Arkansas

Arkansas, also leads a hectic life. “I have two fulltime jobs and

homegrown, and we’re competing at a high level.”

my wife hasn’t left me yet for it,” jokes Gallini. “I’m also a fulltime law professor here at the University. This time of year it’s

The Razorbacks hope to play at the top level this season with

seven days a week, and it’s really not an exaggeration to say

a team goal of winning a national championship, according to

that almost every day is an eighteen hour day.” He says that

Meier. In the future, the team hopes to climb the division ranks

luckily he and his wife have hockey in their blood.

in ACHA hockey, and to one day become an NCAA team. As of mid-November, they have a record of 11-4.

You wouldn’t think players or coaches have much time left over for anything but school and hockey, but you’d be wrong. This

Follow the Ice Hogs on Facebook and also learn more about the

team takes time to give back to the community. In the team’s

team and this year’s season at razorbackhockey.com. Admission

short tenure, they’ve already raised money for such causes

for home games at the Jones Center is $5 dollars and under.

as autism, heart health, and breast cancer. This year the boys hosted “Pink the Rink” with proceeds going to the Ozark Division

18

@PEOPLE

sparkle on dragonfly wings, iridescent colors dance across bowls, and even the backs of his picture frames are ornately enameled.

His work is so detailed it can take up to nine months to create a prototype. At that point production begins. “Ninety-five percent of what I do is in Cranston [Rhode Island]. There are about eighty people working there. ..Most of our designs are only 100 to 125 pieces.“

jay strongwater

Jay looks to the past for inspiration. “I like things that have an antique feel, because I feel they have a history behind them.

modern day heirlooms

You pick up one of our pieces and it feels like it’s been around a

@story Marla Cantrell @images Jay Strongwater

while, that they have a patina to them.”

I

n the early 1980s, when Jay Strongwater was still a student at

John Mays, who is hosting a signing event with Jay at John Mays

the Rhode Island School of Design, he took a length of twine, a

Jewelers in Fort Smith on December 11, said collectors in this

handful of wooden beads, and created a necklace for his mother.

area are already making plans to attend. “His work is at Neiman

A boutique owner saw it, picked up his designs, and then Saks

Marcus, at Saks Fifth Avenue, and at Harrods in London. Elton

Fifth Avenue and Bergdorf Goodman followed suit. When he was

John has one of his piano music boxes. ..I’ve already heard from

twenty-three, he caught the attention of Oscar de le Renta, who

collectors in other states who are coming. It’s incredible that he

wanted his runway models to wear Jay’s jewelry.

comes here and signs what customers buy.”

In 1995, another benevolent act caught the attention of the

Jay is happy to do it. “A lot of times when I meet collectors, I think

design world. “It wasn’t planned,” Jay said. “I made a few picture

they feel the hand of the artisan behind it. We all love our iPod

frames. I decided to give them out to some of my family, and

and our computer, but maybe what we’re looking for are things

buyers, and friends. It wasn’t that I was thinking, Gee, how am I

that have a sense of personality behind them. I think my things

going to move this ship, how am I going to change the business?

have that personality.”

It just sort of evolved, naturally, and it was lovely, really.”

Jay will be available to meet customers and sign the items they buy December 11th 9:00am – 6:00pm John Mays Jewelers 1401 South Waldron in Fort Smith

Seven designers now work with Jay at his studio on Fifth Avenue.

He takes practical items, such as clocks, vases, lamps, and small boxes, and turns them into art. The techniques and precision he used in designing jewelry show up in his designs – crystals

20

T

emple Skelton Moore drives her red convertible along a country road in Prairie Grove, and waves at a neighbor in a

pickup headed the other way. Dust rises, gravel pings against the chrome wheels, and the late afternoon sun slices through the maple trees, throwing fretwork patterns across the leather interior. This is the kind of light Temple lives for.

As she pulls into her driveway she says. “I’ve got to have shadows for my art to work. My husband Charles bales hay. ..He’ll call me when the light is right. One cold evening the light was casting these long purple shadows, making the bales look abstract. And they were perfect – I don’t like the ones covered in net because they lose that frizzy look; they lose that texture. Charles was

the potential of ordinary things temple skelton moore

@story Marla Cantrell @images Temple Skelton Moore

moving the bales to the barn and it was like working with a moving still life. He’d point to one and I’d shake my head and say, ‘Don’t move that one.’ So he’d leave it there and he’d move onto another bale. When the right ones were left, I got my painting.”

Temple, who uses her dining room as her studio, sees the beauty in everyday things. A series of clocks appear one behind the other, time frozen in their arrow-straight hands. Flea market perfume bottles stand at attention, like sentries in the Queen’s service, and a long line of metal lawn chairs, bright as jewels, wait expectantly for a gaggle of weary visitors. “I love acrylics and use them like watercolors, using the transparent and the opaque too,” Temple says. “I love slick paper. I want it to be really smooth. I’m often told I need to switch to canvas, but it’s not the same. The paint needs to slide.”

In her early years Temple used any surface she could find. She devoured magazines, copying the ads where beautiful women pitched everything from Pond’s Cold Cream to Pepto-Bismol. “I made their noses way too long. I also drew a lot of mice, their

@PEOPLE

ears huge, and I’d put a little sparkle in their eyes. ..We lived in

Podunk and I thought, What am I doing here? And my parents

a neighborhood that was mostly boys. I had two brothers, and

took me, just to make sure everything was on the up-and-up. I

I tried playing with toy cars in the dirt, but you can only take so

was pretty sheltered.”

much of that, so I had to entertain myself. I had this incredible

I think without art, I might have turned out to be a mousy little housewife.

grandma. She made homemade paste and she’d let me cut and glue and she fed that part of me. She’d take Styrofoam and make flowers from the egg cartons. I thought they were gorgeous.”

In high school, she finally had a chance to take art classes.

“Everybody else was taking Home Ec. and I was in Art. I was

For years she’d been working on projects assigned by professors.

kind of the outsider, but I blossomed there. When I went to

Suddenly she was being asked what she wanted to do, and once

the University of Arkansas, I wanted to take art education, but

she finished, she had to defend her work to a group of peers and

I knew I had to make a living, so my dad encouraged me to get

professors. “It was great for me. I learned to be independent.

my teaching degree.”

..I used to be shy. I think without art, I might have turned out to be a mousy little housewife.”

But she still took art classes. Ken Stout was head of the art department at the time. After she finished her degree in

It’s hard to imagine Temple as a mousy anything. When she

elementary education in 1985, he came up with a plan that

speaks, she’s as persuasive as any evangelist, making her case

allowed her to finish a second bachelor’s in fine arts.

for arts in the school, detailing the love she feels for her teenage daughter, grinning when she talks about the husband she met

And then an Ivy League college took notice of this young woman

on a blind date. “We got married when we were twenty-nine,”

from Arkansas. “There was a summer art program through Yale

Temple says. “We were so opposite. He was country; I was an

- the Yale Norfolk Fellowship - which was on an estate donated

artist.” She moves her hands quickly, pointing to her right ear

to the university. It was eight weeks of painting, print making,

and then to her left collarbone. “I had my hair cut asymmetrical

drawing and photography.”

at that time,” she says, as if that summed up exactly what Charles thought when he first saw her.

Temple had little confidence she’d be selected. She remembers weighing the cost to apply against the possibility of being chosen.

Charles breaks in. “Her brother called and said, ‘You need to

She had to produce sixty slides of her work. “That was $127. I

take Temple out, she doesn’t ever go out with anybody.’”

thought, you’re kidding me. This is a total waste of money.”

Temple touches the sleeve of Charlie’s jacket. “As soon as I Only it wasn’t. She was one of thirty who made the cut. “The

opened the door I was like “yes.” I just knew.”

first guy I met was from Scotland and here I was Podunk from

23

@PEOPLE

“She’s taught me so much,” Charles says. “I look at a painting

This woman, who lives just three miles from the house where

and I don’t see the same thing as she does, but I do know a lot

she grew up, is able to capture the world through a complex

more than I used to. And I’ll tell you something else. She teaches

series of careful brushstrokes. “I see potential in ordinary

about 700 elementary kids [kindergarten through fourth grade]

things. It happens in a split second,” Temple says. “You catch a

in Prairie Grove and that’s going to change everything. Not

glimpse or a moment and you paint it.” And that’s the glory of it

today, but in the next ten to fifteen years.”

all, that the contraptions of our everyday life become art in the hands of Temple Skelton Moore.

“Art broadens these kids’ thinking,” Temple says. “There’s not one right answer. There’s many ways to solve any assignment I give them, and they learn to appreciate differences rather than just conform. ..And if they tell me they don’t like their work, I’ll say, ‘Well, then that means it’s not finished yet. They get that and they work harder. It makes them understand there’s no failure here. “ Outside the classroom, Temple is gathering a roster of adult fans, including Robert Workman, the former executive director of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville. “He came to the Clothesline Fair [in Prairie Grove] and bought a painting. Then he told me the frame was awful. He pointed to several others and said you need to reframe this one, this one and this one, and keep them sleek and modern. And I said, ‘Yes, sir.’ He was right. He asked me where we got our frames and my husband said, ‘We get them at garage sales.’ That was the only way I could keep my prices low. I saw him at a much later show – I had reframed my work - and he looked at my booth and said, ‘Looks like you took my advice.’”

She continues to gain recognition; one of her pieces will be touring with the Arkansas Artists Registry, and she has an online shop at Etsy called Art by Temple. For the most part, everything she paints is for sale – with a few exceptions. “My mother still had her first pair of red high heels. She was going to throw them away and I said no, no, no. Let me have them. Let me paint them. I still have that, and paintings of my daughter.”

24

@PEOPLE

where he rolls it back and forth, and then blows it again. He is all muscle and sinew, compact and efficient. He is dressed in cotton – synthetics are too flammable – and as he works his safety glasses catch the light, casting it out into the room.

It will take him another four days to work through the rest of the one-hundred-and-twenty pounds of blue glass. When he’s finished he will have two-hundred pieces to be used in future projects.

magical glass

There is something about glass, the way the light dances through

the art of ed pennebaker

it, the way it seems to move while standing still, that’s fascinated Ed for years. He’s best known for his chandeliers – he’s made 550

@story Marla Cantrell @images Ed Pennebaker

so far -- but he also creates sculptures, some small enough to hold in your hand, part metal, part glass, and all absolutely captivating.

I

n a backwoods studio in Osage, Arkansas, long before the sun rises, glass blower Ed Pennebaker mixes one-hundred-twenty

The recurrent theme in his work is nature. It’s why his studio, Red

pounds of silica, potash, lime and cobalt oxide. When he’s finished,

Fern Glass, is in the woods, and it’s what motivates him to keep

he puts the compound into a four-by-four cube of a furnace he

creating. “I live on the side of a mountain. ..I’m about twenty miles

built himself. In the afternoon, he cranks the temperature up to

from a town of any size. ..Seed pods and flower buds change every

2,350 degrees, the heat ferocious in the small space. It is hot hard

day. Everything cycles through the seasons. My interpretation of

work, and it takes its toll on the fifty-five-year-old. Still, Ed can’t

nature is abstract, but the connection is there.”

imagine a life without the fire blazing, the glass melting and a stack of projects waiting to be completed.

This is the life he’s always wanted.

This is the life he’s always wanted.

Ed’s talent surfaced early, when he was still a boy in southwest Kansas. “I drew a lot when I was really young. ..In high school,

The following day, when the furnace is churning at a tamer

my painting called “Honeycomb Spectrum” won an award. It was

2,100 degrees, Ed slides open a tiny door, pulls a small amount

actually more of a design idea, like a record cover, and it had a

of the liquid glass out with a five-foot stainless steel pipe, then

bunch of hexagons with all different colors.”

dips it into a gear-shaped mold that adds the ribbed texture he’s looking for. “It looks kind of like a ball of taffy at this point,” Ed

He majored in art, with a primary focus in silk screen printing. He

says, describing the glass that glows white in its molten state.

liked the way the ink looked on the paper, the flatness of it, the

The process alternates: he blows the glass, shapes it at a bench

beauty of a work without any modulation. From there he became

27

@PEOPLE

an artist-in-residence in Liberal, Kansas. And that’s when he was

across his untamed beard. “It’s good to know other people are

introduced to glass. “The process is so intense,” Ed says. “You have

creating beautiful things.”

to concentrate, you have to be very coordinated. ..The hardest part is controlling the glass. It’s liquid and it’s moving all the time.”

As for the future, Ed wants to focus more on sculpture. The

The art is so difficult, in fact, that it weeds out all but the most

chandeliers, some of which are now in Brazil, Portugal, and Saudi

dedicated. “There are only six or seven artists blowing glass in

Arabia, put Ed on the map. And he will continue to make them,

Arkansas right now,” Ed says.

although he does plan to scale back. “A lot of other glass blowers, probably struggling through this economy, have jumped on the

But Ed loves the challenge. His chandeliers, which take about

functional art band wagon and gotten away from sculpture. ..I’m

a week to assemble once the glass is formed, are frenetically

the opposite. I need to do more sculpture, combining glass with

beautiful. The process is a lot like hanging ornaments on a

steel and limestone and cast bronze, which will have a lot of me in

Christmas tree. Each piece is numbered. Ed starts at the lowest

it. I think it’s important to do that.”

point on the metal frame and works up. As he adds the glass, the fixtures take on life. They seem to be in motion – spirals swirling,

And so his course is set. What won’t change is the glass. “I’ll

spikes extended, globes filling in every gap. Once lit, they glow, the

blow glass for as long as I can. “Glass, to me, is a magical

blues like the ocean, the ambers rich as an Ozark autumn. “There

substance. It’s translucent. It looks liquid but it’s solid, kind

isn’t one particular kind of customer,” Ed says. “I’ve made them for

of like ice,” Ed says, growing philosophical over the art that’s

ranch houses, and one for the foyer of a $5 million dollar house in

shaped his life. ..”I never forget how lucky I’ve been to be able

Long Island. That one was a seven-foot chandelier.”

to make it a living working with it.”

When asked why he’s been so successful, Ed downplays his talent.

“I think a lot of it has been that I can balance the business with the art. If you’re too independent and want to do just what you want to do, it can be hard. But if you allow yourself to do commissions and let people have a say in what they want, you can work it out. ..I do my creative work in the morning, when I’m fresh, and the run the business end in the afternoons.”

It’s a system that’s worked for him. He lives the life he wants, surrounded by art he’s collected over the years. “I’ve traded work with artists I admire for a long time now. Art gives you a personal connection to the person who created it. It’s good to live with that,” Ed says, and then rubs his thumb and forefinger

28

“big nasty” big heart coach williamson brings it home @story Whitney Ray @images UCA

I

f there is a missing piece in Corliss Williamson’s almost prefect puzzle of awards, it’s a coaching

championship. The former NBA star and University of Arkansas basketball legend has won a title at every level -- an AAU National Champion in 1990, while in high school, a NCAA Championship in 1994, and a NBA championship in 2004, with the Detroit Pistons.

In

2007, after a twelve-year stint in the NBA, Williamson hung up his sneakers and picked up a coach’s whistle.

Instead of using his stardom to land a job coaching in the NBA, or at a big name university, the Russellville native took an assistant coaching job at Arkansas Baptist College, a small HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) in Little Rock that didn’t even offer athletic scholarships. For Williamson the choice wasn’t about the money or the prestige; it was about giving back to the state that has given him so much. “Being at Arkansas Baptist, we had a lot of kids there, who, it was kind of their last chance. If they didn’t make it there, it was going to be pretty tough on them to be successful,” Williamson said. “To me, that’s the most joy I get out of coaching, sharing some of my experiences in life, whether it’s success or failure, being able to take those experiences and help kids navigate through life.”

30

@PEOPLE

Williamson is taking his role as coach/mentor to Conway. In

the students’ parents who remember his glory days, when he

March, the thiry-six-year-old was named head basketball

helped put Arkansas on the map. “The recruiting is going well.

coach at the University of Central Arkansas. The Division I

People are still in awe a little bit of a former NBA player in their

university in Conway is just fifty miles from where Williamson’s

house. But like I tell them, ‘that’s in the past, now I’m trying to

famous number 34 jersey hangs on the wall in the high school

coach and get down to business.’”

gymnasium. Being close to home was crucial in Williamson’s Williamson said once he gets a season under his belt at UCA,

decision to cut his professional career short.

his up-tempo coaching style will be his biggest recruiting tool.

Williamson has a wife, Michelle, and three kids: CJ, five, Creed

It’s a play right out of former Head Hog Nolan Richardson’s “40

seven, and Chasen, who’s fifteen. Moving back to Arkansas gives

Minutes of Hell” playbook, although Williamson is quick to give

him more time to be a part of their lives. It means meals around

credit to all his former coaches. He says he brings an infusion

the dining room table instead of eating on airplanes in between

of different basketball philosophies to the hardwood from all

games. It means being in the stands while his kids battle it out

his former coaches, but the bond between Richardson and

on the court instead of hoping they’re crowded around a TV

Williamson is undeniable.

watching him grab rebounds and shoot layups hundreds of miles away. But what it really means is being home. Williamson’s mom

Williamson discussed his career move with Richardson before

is nearby, working at Arkansas Tech University in the same town

he made the jump from player to coach, and he still talks to the

where his Uncle Tyrone Williamson became Russellville’s first

former Hog turned WNBA coach of the Tulsa Shock twice a month.

black mayor. “There’s nothing like being in the state of Arkansas,

“He’s taken on a mentor role for me. I’m able to call upon him for

and I feel the support of the community here. I feel the support

advice in any situation. He has always been there for me and now

of the state,” Williamson said.

being on this side of the basketball, I appreciate and understand a lot of the things he put us through when I was playing for him.”

And he gives as much as he gets. At 6’7, 245 lbs, Williamson wore the nickname “Big Nasty” for most of his basketball career. But his

Richardson’s influence on the young coach is apparent.

biggest attribute is not his size, it’s his heart. In 2003, Williamson

Richardson took heat from fans near the end of his career at

raised a million dollars to build the L.V. Williamson Boys and Girls

Arkansas for recruiting players who didn’t have a lot of offers

Club in Russellville. He also founded the Legends in the Rock

from other schools in major NCAA conferences. Richardson

Basketball Camp to raise money for Arkansas Children’s Hospital

defended his players’ talent, but never denied his affinity for

and the Martin Luther King Junior Commission.

giving athletes from meager means a chance to shine.

He hopes to give dozens of Arkansas basketball players a

Williamson acknowledges that talent and character are

chance to play Division I hoops at UCA. Williamson said his

essentials in recruiting, but he hopes he can use his position to

success on the court helps him recruit, although it’s mostly

give opportunities to some Arkansas athletes who may not get

31

@PEOPLE

the kind of attention players in bigger states attract. “That’s my

For now Williamson is focused on the Bears, but if the

number one goal in coaching is to try to help more kids out of

opportunity to become a Razorback coach arises, he won’t

the state have more experiences than I’ve had,” Williamson said.

rule it out. And while he has decades ahead of him to find that final piece of the puzzle - a national championship as a

It’s not just about success on the court. Williamson said being

coach - Williamson doesn’t define winning as the only way to

a coach gives him the bully pulpit that’s needed to reach

be successful. “I can win it all and if I’m doing it the wrong way

young adults who may face tough choices in college. “I tell the

then that’s not success,” Williamson said, “but if I never win it

kids, ‘You are almost living in Disneyland, but you’re not a kid

all and I’ve been doing things the right way, and we’ve helped

anymore because mom’s not there to watch over you every

other people be successful in their lives, then I feel like that’s

day.’ So I tell them they’ve got to be careful with the decisions

success for me and my family.”

they make and hopefully, with my experiences, I can help the kids through some of those tough times.”

32

that’s so cheesy @recipe & images Laura Hobbs

A

cheese ball is a classic Christmas party snack, with its pungent,

classic cheese ball with a reputation that’s been hard to shake

creamy filling and its nutty crust. They’re often smeared onto

over the decades. Not to mention its imminent demise: A few

crispy crackers and toasted bread, or plunged into with baby carrots

careless swipes from partygoers and it looks like the darn thing

and celery sticks. Before we go any further, let me just say that I

exploded. Party foul!

know what you’re thinking: “Cheese balls?! What’s next, Salisbury steak and onions, or nuclear green Jell-O salad?” And I get it. I hear

With the poor cheese ball’s ego in the gutter, it was ripe time

you loud and clear. Cheese balls are retro. They’re kitsch. They’re

for an update. Gone are the days of orange mystery cheese,

passé. All I have to say to that is, “Au contraire!”

that unsettling sweetness and the addition of “port wine”; the influx of gourmet cheeses onto grocery store shelves within the

Granted, history has not been kind to the cheese ball. An unnatural

past decade has exponentially increased the possibilities for a

orange color, unidentifiable flavors and soggy nuts have clad the

delicious, modern and – dare I say it? – sophisticated cheese ball.

34

@TASTE

I’m providing you, dear readers, with two options here. The first is a classic-with-a-twist cheese ball, which requires a little more time and effort, but the results are well worth it. The second is the “Oh-crap-we-need-to-take-something-to-the-party-and-

Blue Cheese Ball with Walnuts and Dates

we-only-have-an-hour” route, with fewer ingredients, fewer steps and less time in the kitchen. The choice is yours, of course – or you could just be an obnoxious overachiever and make both! After partygoers stop rolling their eyes, they’re sure to dive in like a pack of hungry wolves.

1 cup blue cheese, crumbled 8 oz. cream cheese, softened 1 Tbs. heavy cream 3 dates, minced 1 tsp. garlic, minced 1/2 tsp. lemon zest 1/4 cup parsley, minced 1/4 cup toasted walnuts, chopped salt and pepper to taste

In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment,

The more classic version gets its delicious twang from blue cheese, which is tempered by mild, delicious cream cheese.

The addition of garlic, lemon and sweet dates boosts the flavor over the top, and the toasted walnut coating adds a satisfying crunch. Be sure to start this one a day ahead of time; it needs

or in a large bowl and using a handheld mixer, beat the first 3 ingredients together at medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the dates, garlic and lemon zest, beating well to combine, and scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary. Taste, and season with salt and pepper.

a good 24 hours to set up in the fridge. Like I said earlier, the

On a large sheet of plastic wrap, spoon the cheese mixture into the

results are worth the wait. I promise.

center. Drawing the four corners of the plastic together, tighten the plastic around the cheese mixture to help form a ball, and wrap in

The speedier version can’t get much simpler: a log of goat cheese (which is sometimes labeled “chevre”) rolled in a festive mix of chopped pistachios and dried cranberries, and drizzled with honey right before serving.

This has sweet-and-salty

written all over it, with a creaminess that’s hard to beat.

Serve either of these cheese balls with your favorite crackers or veggies – or better yet, a crusty baguette fresh from the bakery. Enjoy!

another layer of plastic wrap. Chill in the fridge 24 hours.

In a wide, shallow dish, combine the parsley and toasted walnuts.

Unwrap the chilled cheese ball and carefully roll in the nut mixture, gently pressing the nuts into the cheese. Serve immediately, or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Goat Cheese Logs with Cranberries & Pistachios

1 8oz. goat cheese log (or two 4oz. logs) 1/2 cup pistachios, chopped 1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped 2 Tbs. honey

Step by step photos AtUrbanMagazine.com.

In a wide, shallow dish, combine the pistachios and cranberries.

Carefully remove the wrapping from goat cheese, and roll in the nut mixture, gently pressing the topping into the cheese. Place on a serving tray, and top with honey. Serve immediately.

@TASTE

Provided by Mojo’s Ivory House 479.434.5434 @image Catherine Frederick

ender

by Bart Recipe

ce Jeff Pri

Freshly Brewed Roasted Coffee 1 1/2 oz. Irish Whiskey 2 Sugar Cubes Whipped Cream Sprinkles (optional)

» Drop sugar cubes into coffee mug or glass » Add Irish Whiskey » Fill coffee mug or glass with coffee » Top with whipped cream and sprinkles 36

ho ho hodo show the lights of christmas @story Marla Cantrell

S

everal years ago, while Richard Hodo was atop his house in Van Buren stringing Christmas lights across his steep

roofline, he lost his footing. Even as he slid, he felt a certain confidence about the outcome. He’d had the foresight to tie a rope around his waist and attach it to the red brick chimney.

The rope was fairly short, so his descent would end long before he hit the ground. But his wife Helen didn’t share his assessment. And when she saw her husband dangling high above her she put her foot down: Richard wasn’t going solo on the roof anymore.

While Richard agreed with Helen, he did have a problem complying. He’d built the house with Christmas in mind, making sure electrical outlets were installed on the eaves at regular intervals so he could string all the lights he wanted. The effort was paying off. Every year a long line of cars snaked through his neighborhood, on a pilgrimage to see the house that shone like a lassoed star. So Richard came up with a solution; he hired a professional to help get the job done. The decision was a good one. Raymond Harvey, who runs a holiday light business, is still with Richard.

@HOLIDAY

Five years ago, Raymond threw out an even bigger idea: why

other people. What good is it going to do me to hang on to that

not add music? The Hodos jumped at the chance, brought in

when there are so many people in need?”

a computer savvy teen to program the system, and the display Footage of the show has turned up on CBS affiliate stations

started drawing even more traffic.

across the Southwest. A fan posted video of the light display on There are now ten synchronized songs in the Hodo show. Eighty-

YouTube. The coverage has brought in visitors from as far away

thousand lights blink and sparkle, pulsing along with the lyrics.

as Texas and California. And for many local families, the Hodo

Visitors sit in their cars, tune radios to 150.5 FM, and watch the

show marks the beginning of the holiday season. “We start on

magic unfold. Lifelike reindeer stand on the lawn, and when

Thanksgiving night,” Richard said. “I’ve had people tell me this

Gene Autry sings, “Then one foggy Christmas Eve,” fog rises from

is part of their tradition. They’ll say, ‘We don’t start celebrating

the straw beneath their furry bodies. When Bing Crosby takes

until your lights go up.’ We love being part of that.”

over, belting out “White Christmas,” three snow machines puff clouds of white across the dream-like scene. The crowd favorite,

Even the wait, which can be well over an hour on weekends,

however, is the Trans-Siberian Orchestra performing “Wizards in

turns into an adventure for those excited to experience the

Winter,” a tune played without the snow effect. When the song

holiday wonder. Richard once apologized for the delay to a

begins, the lighted archway thrums with the tempo, the lights

couple whose children sat wide-eyed and fidgety in the back

jumping to keep up, the notes hitting like thunder.

seat. “They said, ‘Oh no, Mr. Hodo. We tuned our radio in and we’ve been singing the Christmas songs together. It made us slow down and focus on the kids. It really got us thinking.’”

Richard thinks of it as a massive Christmas card to the City of Van Buren. And while it doesn’t cost a thing to experience it, it isn’t cheap. Richard estimates he spends $15,000 to $20,000

It’s not just young families that benefit. In March of 2007, an

each year on new displays. He and Helen don’t worry too much

elderly woman rang the doorbell at the Hodo house. She had a

about the expense. The couple, known for their philanthropy in

handmade afghan with her, folded carefully, and when Richard

the area, are grateful for the life they’ve been given. “I grew up

opened the door, she offered it to him. “I’ll never forget it.”

in Riverside, California, in the ‘40s and ‘50s,” Richard said. “My

Richard said. “The lady said, ‘Mr. Hodo I made this for you and

father was a minister and my mother was earning her teaching

your wife.’ I said, ‘Ma’am, I can’t take that.’ She said, ‘Yes, yes

degree. We didn’t have a whole lot. There were five of us kids.

you can. I came to your Christmas lights several times. I was

They did the best they could. You were lucky to get socks, or

going through some tough times in my life. When I felt like I

maybe a football at Christmas. My mother had a wreath and

couldn’t function I’d come and sit and look at your lights. You

it had one red light on it, and we had a tree, of course, and we

don’t know how much that helped me. It got me through.’”

loved each other. But I learned this from my parents: it’s not about money; it’s what you do with what you have. ..I told the

Richard will never be able to tally the impact of the lights, but

Lord many times, if I ever get any money please let me help

the thought of it is a constant source of joy. “I know it helps,

39

@HOLIDAY

even if it’s just a little,” Richard said. “It can be as simple as lifting someone’s spirits after a really hard day at work. It all

The Hodo’s light display is at 1205 Woodland Creek Circle in Van Buren. It runs from 5:00 till 10:00 p.m. on Sunday through Thursday. On Friday and Saturday the show runs from 5:00 till 11:00 p.m. On Saturdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. the children’s train will run. Santa will also be on hand on Saturday afternoons for 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. to pose for pictures in the sleigh. Be sure to bring your own camera. The twenty-minute show is free and ends on December 27.

adds up. It all matters.”

Thousands come through every year – about 600 vehicles on weekend nights and 300 on weeknights - to see the twentyminute show. Limos wait in line along with school buses, church and senior citizens vans, and enough cars and trucks to fill a Wal-Mart parking lot. On Friday and Saturday nights, Richard stands in the yard with Santa and the two give candy canes to the littlest visitors. Last year they handed out 16,000.

For a map to the Hodo show log on to AtUrbanMagazine.com

With all the shine, flash and sparkle, it’s hard to decide what the best part of the Hodo show is. This year he’s added a pintsized train that rolls along a railroad track on his lawn. There’s the lighted arch that trumps any Vegas show, mega-sized toy soldiers, and reindeer that look so real you think they might soon take flight. But for Richard it’s the nativity scene that matters most. “I looked for years for the right one. When I found it I told Helen, ‘That’s it.’ I came home and built the manger. It’s my favorite part,” this minister’s son said. “The lights are nice, and it’s fun to add the new displays every year, but it’s the nativity scene that gets to me. I have a snow machine behind it and from time to time snow drifts across Mary and Joseph, the Wise Men, and baby Jesus. It’s beautiful.” Richard paused and looked out across his yard where five miles of extension cords connect the engine that powers the spectacular light show. “Yes,” he said, “it’s the nativity. Because even if it sounds cliché, it really is the reason for the season.”

40

the real santa H

e wears large round golden bells pinned inside his coat, so you can hear him jingling as he approaches. Clad in

furry red and white, his big black boots sounding against the

the joy of giving

tile floor, he enters the room and bellows, “Ho, Ho, Ho,” and the

@story Tonya McCoy @images Temple Skelton Moore

crowd goes wild.

Every year Charlie and Jeri Moffett, of Fort Smith, transform into Santa and Mrs. Claus. Santa carries his big, red toy bag with him wherever he goes. On top sit hand-sewn Raggedy Anne and Andy dolls which his mother made years ago. Mrs. Claus follows Santa, the white fur on her red skirt swaying as she rushes to keep up. There’s a sprig of holly pinned to her hat, and she peers through glasses painted to match the candy canes she carries in her basket. “It’s amazing how much joy he brings, just being in

42

@HOLIDAY

his outfit. I mean everybody’s joyful this time of year but it’s just

with a walker. You hold them and their faces just light up.” Mrs.

extra, extra when they see Santa,” says Mrs. Claus. They moved

Claus adds, “When they’re sitting on his lap, and they have the

to Fort Smith from Tulsa in 1994 and started playing Mr. and Mrs.

little braces on their legs… it’s just a joy to see them sitting there,

Claus a few years later. “Isn’t it funny how you start something

looking happy.”

and later you think back, ‘how did we get this started?’ It just

In fact one child touched his belly last year and said, “Oh! You are the real Santa.”

snowballed,” says Jeri. The Moffetts visit hospitals, churches, clubs, parks, and private homes free of charge.

Sometimes they are called on unexpectedly to suit up and spread some cheer. One December evening, the Moffetts were going to dinner when they got a call to play Santa. Charlie was working in

The two share stories, finishing each others’ sentences as they

accounting for Beverly Enterprises and the couple was supposed

sit in the living room of their hundred year old Victorian home

to meet a client at the Lighthouse Inn, in Fort Smith. However,

in Fort Smith. With a twinkle in their eyes, each chatters happily

before the two made it to the restaurant, someone from Grand

about Christmases past. Charlie, wearing suspenders that remind

Avenue Baptist Church called. There was a mix-up with their Saint

you he is Santa Claus, grins as Jeri teases him. Jeri says, “I tried

Nick, and they were in need of a Santa. Kids from the Gregory

to get him to grow a beard, but it just didn’t work, but the one we

Kistler Treatment Center for Children were waiting for the jolly

have is pretty and all… but I want him to be as ‘real’ as possible.

old elf at the church. The couple regretfully declined because of

You know this is real.” Jeri reaches over and pats his belly and the

their plans, but that was not the end of the story. “We got in the

two giggle. “In fact one child touched his belly last year and said,

car and started to go, and Mrs. Claus looked at me and said, ‘You

‘Oh! You are the real Santa.’”

know what we have to do.’” Mrs. Claus interjects, “I knew that he knew - I never have to say a whole lot. He didn’t say a word, he

For Jeri, making the experience ‘real’ for children is so important

just turned that car around. After we came back up the driveway,

that the couple parks their car blocks away, because the kids

man we couldn’t beat it up the stairs fast enough. You should’ve

expect to see them leave on their sleigh. “Even when we park

seen it, red and white just flying everywhere.”

around the corner, they’ll press their little noses to the window and watch. And I say ‘Charlie they’re going to see us. Duck!’”

“When we arrived the kids just went crazy and I told Charlie

But Jeri has a solution; she plans on painting her Kia Sportage

there is not a dinner anywhere worth that,” says Jeri. The Gregory

red and lettering Santa-Mobile on the side. She wants to string

Kistler Center offers special care, including physical therapy for

Christmas lights along the front, add antlers to the top, and put

young people who suffer from such conditions as paralysis, brain

a giant, prop key on the back to make the small SUV look like a

injuries, and spina bifida. Charlie says, “A lot of them have to go

windup toy. With all of Jeri’s creative schemes, Charlie says that

through a lot of medical struggles just to survive. Just to see

living with her is like being married to Lucille Ball.

them walk up is amazing. You see them, and some are walking

43

@HOLIDAY

the big guy over just to give him a hug. “Some come like they’ve known you all their life, and they run straight into you,” says Santa.

“When we went to St. Edward there were so many arms wrapped around my legs I couldn’t even move. But it was so wonderful. To me this is what Christmas is all about. It’s just the joy of giving, and I hope that’s what we’re doing. I hope we’re giving joy, too,” says Mrs. Claus.

If ‘Santa Claus’ means bringing joy, then Santa is real, and he lives in Fort Smith, Arkansas. If you’d like to visit Mr. and Mrs. Claus, they’ll be helping the Salvation Army at Creekmore Park this holiday season. “Life is hard, but to give people who are sick or in pain, or lonely, a little bit of hope is indeed a blessing,” says Mrs. Claus.

No one knows kids like the Moffetts. Jeri has spent years teaching Fort Smith elementary students, and Charlie started

When Santa and Mrs. Claus leave a room, again you’ll hear the

substitute teaching a few years ago. They have six children,

jingling of bells from Charlie’s coat, but if you listen a little closer,

seventeen grandchildren, and six great grandchildren. Each

you’ll hear Jeri whisper: “Don’t forget Charlie, your Ho Ho Ho.”

holiday season, the Moffetts celebrate Christmas with their family a week early. They leave their calendars open for last minute appointments for Mr. and Mrs. Claus.

Christmas is so important to the Moffetts that Jeri keeps every letter to Santa they’ve ever received in a basket in their home.

Letters that say: I’ve been good this year could you please get me an Ipod Shuffle and a Webkinz? The same request also asks for a skateboard or a Barbie. But one special Christmas letter brings tears to both Charlie and Jeri. “There was one little boy whose little sister was really sick and all he wanted was for his sister to have a good Christmas. He said, ‘If you can, I’d really like you to help my sister out,’” says Charlie.

While some kids can only quietly pass their letters along, stunned to shyness by the mere presence of Santa, other children knock

44

christmas, the right way a lasting lesson

@story Anita Snoddy Paddock @images Temple Skelton Moore

B

efore the days of Wal-Mart and the disappearance of small –town Mom and Pop stores, my daddy

owned a thriving OTASCO store in Alma. was the quintessential salesman.

Daddy

He knew every

customer’s name, where they lived, what they did for a living, and oftentimes, the names of their children.

By selling appliances, hardware, sporting goods, furniture, and toys, he sent three daughters to the University of Arkansas, an accomplishment any parent would applaud.

Christmastime for our family was hard work, long hours, sore feet, and few smiles (except for those aimed toward the customers). My two sisters and I learned early to not be a bother during December.

“Daddy’s got a lot on his mind,” was the most common Christmas phrase spoken around our house. I realize now that Mama was just as frazzled as Daddy (she was in charge of the checkbook and cash-flow problems), but she was never cross with us. It was Daddy we steered clear of.

46

@HOLIDAY

Holiday decorations in our house consisted of one red

Her kitchen, a large room with two stoves and a fireplace,

poinsettia plant set in the middle of the dining room table, one

perfumed the house with the aroma of cinnamon, sugar,

artificial wreath hung on the front door, and a small cedar tree

oranges, apples, and nutmeg.

decorated with a couple of strands of lights and a few red and A gigantic cedar, cut by Papa and his sons, sat in front of a big

green ornaments. Mama had time for nothing more.

bay window that faced the street. Strands and strands of lights I was envious of my friends whose mothers didn’t work, mothers

glittered twenty-four hours a day—the electric bill and safety

who stayed home and decorated their houses with pine cones

precautions be damned!

and holly branches. I wanted to stand under mistletoe and dream of romantic kisses. I longed to languor with Mama at the

On the mantle hung ten beautifully hand sewn red velvet

kitchen table, cutting out stars and reindeer from sugar cookie

stockings. The newest one had my name on it.

dough. I wanted to smell ginger men baking in our oven. But I never told Mama how I felt; I knew how important it was that

“I’ve never had a stocking before,” I told Big Mama. “My mother

we work hard to have a good Christmas business because slow

doesn’t have time to do anything but help Daddy in the store.

months were sure to follow.

You know how busy Christmas is.” And then I added very melodramatically, “ We don’t have a fireplace.”

When I was nineteen, and much too young, I married a boy who was nineteen, and much too young. We lived in a three room

“I started sewing on your stocking the week after your wedding,”

apartment in Fayetteville and went to college—he to become a

she said.

doctor and I a teacher.

The lump in my throat kept me from saying thank you, but I think she heard me anyway.

Our first Christmas was spent in Booneville, with his parents in a big, rambling rock home full of children and dogs and cats. My mother-in-law, an olive skinned woman with gorgeous brown eyes, loved Christmas and everything about it. My father-inlaw, a tall, handsome judge with a marvelous vocabulary and the cheeriest of dispositions, loved the season maybe even

The lump in my throat kept me from saying thank you, but I

more than his wife.

think she heard me anyway.

Big Mama and Papa, the names given them by their first

All during the week before Christmas, the house was abuzz

grandchildren, and the names I chose to call them as well,

with excitement. Friends and relatives swarmed in and out with

welcomed me with outstretched arms and warm hugs.

presents galore. Eggnog, lightly laced with bourbon, was served in silver cups, and everyone was in a happy holiday mood.

47

@HOLIDAY

closing time on Christmas Eve. He stood quietly out of the way, with his hands behind his back. Waiting.

“Yep, just like always.”

“And did you load up the empty washing machine cartons with all the toys we didn’t sell?

“I loaded the truck and delivered them to the church myself.”

Papa called everyone into the living room on Christmas Eve to listen to the story of Jesus’ birth. From the worn Bible that had belonged to his grandfather, he began to read: “And it came

I looked at my watch, knowing that just about now, Reverend

to pass….”

Mennenoeh would be in his old black Chevy, driving up and down the mountain roads, delivering our toys to all the little children Santa forgot.

In that dark living room with only the light from the fireplace and the Christmas tree, I listened to Papa’s mellow, deep voice.

I looked around at my new family of brothers and sisters and

“Now, here’s your mama,” Daddy said. “She’s anxious to talk

felt the spirit of Christmas I’d always wished for.

to you. She’s been pretty sad this first Christmas without you.”

Early the next morning before anyone was awake, I called

Almost fifty Christmases have passed since that day, that day I

home to wish my parents a Merry Christmas. I was eager to tell

realized there was no right way to celebrate Christmas. I was

Mama about my first Christmas in Booneville, and I suddenly

only part of that Booneville family for seven years, that wonderful

realized I was homesick for the home I’d grown up in. When

Booneville family who could bring in Christmas like no other I’ve

Daddy answered the phone, my first words were questions:

ever known. My son is a link of love that still binds me to them.

“How many TV’s did we sell? How many refrigerators? Was this Nearly everyone is gone now. The Presbyterian minister is long

Christmas better than last year’s?”

dead. So are my mama and daddy and the judge I called Papa.

And then I remembered something Daddy did every Christmas,

Big Mama is still alive, although she doesn’t know Christmas

something that I hadn’t paid much attention to before.

from any other day.

“Daddy,” I asked, “did Reverend Mennenoeh come by last night?”

I can only hope that somewhere out there, in a little country town, a shopping mall, or a wholesale warehouse, there’s a

Reverend Mennenoeh was the Presbyterian minister at Alma

merchant who orders more toys than he knows he will sell. I

and Mountainburg, and he always appeared at our store at

hope, somewhere out there, a preacher waits at closing time.

48

Read Chair Publishing, LLC 3811 Rogers Avenue Suite C Fort Smith, Arkansas 72903