September/October 2015

county line UPPER EAST SIDE OF TEXAS

175th Issue

M A G A Z I N E

KACEY MUSGRAVES SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

MAX STALLING. BANKHEAD HIGHWAY. CRAIG WALLACE. RED MOON FARM WINNSBORO AUTUMN. TRUE VINE BREWERY. REFLECTIONS. WOMEN IN ART COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM

CREATIVE DESIGNS, EXCEPTIONAL QUALITY WWW.PAULMICHAELCOMPANY.COM | 903.567.0363 CANTON, TX | 1930 N. TRADE DAYS BLVD. |

2 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

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Saturday

November 7, 2015

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Honoring our Veterans Veterans Breakfast Parade Ceremony Carnival Classic Car Show Live Entertainment Food Vendors

The Tuxedo Cats

TAKE 2

7:30 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Downtown Bullard 903.894.4238

A full day of fun for the whole family!

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www.bullardchamber.com

PAPER. INDULGE YOURSELF. YOU DESERVE IT.

county line Regional Magazine for the Upper East Side of Texas

SUBSCRIBE www.countylinemagazine.com 903.963.8306

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CONTENTS 12

STAGE 24 Piney Woods Arts Alliance Season

Card 53 Comedy Show

FILM 26 White God, Journey to the Stars, Tornado Alley, Seeds of Time, The Wrecking Crew

LITERARY 28 Man in Profile: Joseph Mitchell

By Edward H. Garcia 29 Poetry By Len Wheeler and Gina Byford

MUSIC

30

30 Wallace Finds Meaning in the Blues

By Tom Geddie Great Vibes Fill the Autumn Air 32

By P.A. Geddie

33 Max Stalling Releasing Banquet

By Tom Geddie

FOOD & DRINK 38 Athens New Winery By Sherrie Skeeters 39 Red Moon Farm By Lyndsay Caldwell 40 Green Chile Cornbread. Events.

LIVING ROOM 42 Blue Moon Gardens Fall Festival 43 Garden Gatherings

FEEL GOOD

8 FEATURES 6 Musgraves Hometown Hang

Kacey Musgraves is putting on a concert at the Mineola Nature Preserve and donating proceeds to arts and music programs in Wood County schools.

By Tom Geddie

8 Autumn in Winnsboro

Winnsboro rolls out the red, orange, and yellow carpet for visitors throughout the season.

By P.A. Geddie

12 True Vine Taps Local Flavor

Three men got together and decided to make some tasty beers and now it’s all selling all over Tyler and beyond.

By Janelle Lanthrum

44 Abracada-BRA By Pud Kerns 45 Life with Pets. Healthy Counties.

DEPARTMENTS 5 Editor’s Note Letters

THIS TIME OF YEAR 14 Kenneth Threadgill, Vernon Dalhart, WWII, First Day of Autumn 15 General Chennault Honored

CULTURE & ENTERTAINMENT 16 Historic Bankhead Highway.

Fall Festivals and Events 18 Curious Imagination in Palestine

THE ARTS 20 Winnsboro Exhibits Women in the Arts

Art Events 21 Reflections of East Texas 22 Edom Art Festival

SEE WEBSITE EXTRAS! www.CountyLineMagazine.com 4 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

Photo by Kelly Christine Photography

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county line Since 2000

MAGAZINE

PUBLISHER & MANAGING EDITOR P.A. Geddie CONTRIBUTORS Edward H. Garcia Cindy Roller Lyndsay Caldwell Tom Geddie Janelle Lanthrum Pud Kerns Sherrie Skeeters Len Wheeler Gina Byford SALES P.A. Geddie COPY EDITORS Terry Britt GRAPHIC DESIGN & PRINT PRODUCTION Jette Stephens ADMINISTRATION Annette O’Brien DISTRIBUTION Pam Boyd Bombyk David Michelina County Line Magazine is published every other month, 6 timess a year. It is available free of charge in the Northeast Texas area in select businesses, limited to one copy per reader. Subscription costs: $18 per year in Texas, and $22 per year outside Texas. Bulk rate postage paid at Ben Wheeler, Texas. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to County Line Magazine, P.O. Box 608, Ben Wheeler, TX 75754. Contents COPYRIGHT 2015 County Line all rights reserved. Material may not be reproduced without written permission. Opinions expressed in articles appearing in this magazine do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. Mailing address: P.O. Box 608, Ben Wheeler, TX 75754 Phone: 903.963.8306. E-mail: info@countylinemagazine.com Website: www.countylinemagazine.com. Free listings are entered on a space available basis. Advertising space may be purchased by calling 903.963.8306.

Serving the Upper East Side of Texas

EDITOR’S NOTE Dear Readers, Milestones help us reflect on how far we’ve come and this being our 175th issue it’s a big one. The magazine and the region continue to bloom in beautiful ways. I am still amazed at the new treasures we find and the growing number of fun things to do in the region. Kudos to all those in our towns and venues that make it happen!

Kacey Musgraves holds the record for gracing more of our covers than any one else — I believe this is her fourth. Well deserved. We are so proud of Kacey and how far she’s come in her career and always ready to help record for posterity some of her steps along the way. The County Line and Kacey are both renegades of a sort

— different than the average, not bowing to the pressures of what others want us to be, just being who we are and grateful for our fans.

There are many great people, amazing musicians, beautiful places, and new flavors to try in this issue, not to mention the plethora of fun events. I can’t possibly get to all of them but I’m so very grateful for the choices.

As we wrap up this 175th issue for the Upper East Side of Texas, I am so proud of what our region is and continues to become. Hope you all enjoy this gorgeous time of year in this little piece of the earth so many of us are fortunate to call home.

P.A. Geddie Publisher & Managing Editor

LETTERS Dear Editor,

Orchestra and the old hotel in Palestine.

Thanks so much for the tickets (weekly online contest). This was our first time visiting the Winnsboro Center for the Arts. We enjoyed Professor Porkchop and the Dishes — they were very entertaining and talented — the sax player was very good. My wife especially enjoyed the Louisiana references as she is from Louisiana as well. We will be returning to Winnsboro next month for the Celtic show.

Would you have an idea of the guy’s name and number? Although not fancy like the ad’s featured piece, I have an old walnut desk from the 1800’s that I need help with.

Thank you for your time and thank you in advance for your reply.

Lachelle Currin Van

We are fans of the magazine — it is the best resource for keeping us informed about events in the Northeast Texas area.

NOTE FROM EDITOR. Contact master craftsman Kerry Dugger at The Furniture Restorer, 903.880.7486, www.furniturerestorer. net.

Steve & Rebecca Jacobs Avinger

Really appreciate and enjoy your informative and entertaining articles. Our art group, Star Harbor Watercolor Society, has had increased attendance since your inclusion of our yearly event in your calendar.

I cannot find a magazine of yours that I kept on purpose. A certain furniture restorer ran an ad in it and I think it was the March(April) 2015 issue. Somewhere around there. It definitely was the issue which featured the Tyler Symphony

Pat Herring Athens

CHECK OUT COUNTY LINE DIGITAL PUBLICATIONS @ www.CountyLineMagazine.com New responsive eMagazine works great on DESKTOPS, PADS, and MOBILE PHONES! Set up a SHORT CUT TO THE COUNTY LINE ON YOUR DEVICES! Subscribe to eNewsletters including Weekender and FEAST Texas!

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 5

Musgraves Returns for Hometown Hang Concert Benefits Arts and Music for Wood County Kids

By Tom Geddie It might be easy for so many people to think of Kacey Musgraves’ return to Mineola on September 26 with her full band as the return of a conquering hero, an overnight success. The truth is, as young as she still is at 27, it’s already been a long journey, an odyssey of sorts, coming home for payback.

The “Hometown Hang” at the Mineola Nature Preserve includes performances

by Wade Bowen, John & Jacob, and musicians from local schools plus local food vendors, an auction, and more.

Proceeds benefit Wood County schools’ arts and music programs.

“I’m really excited to bring the band to Mineola,” Musgraves said, noting that it will be the first time the full band will be with her in the area where she was raised.

“I just remember when I was growing up hearing an art teacher say she had to pay for some art materials for class.

That really made impression on me. It’s cool to help.”

Musgraves picked up her first guitar when she was 12; soon she was taking lessons in Mineola from John DeFoore, who’s worked with hundreds of students over the years including Miranda Lambert, Casey Rivers, Michelle Shocked, Kerri Arista, Jon Wolfe, T-Roy Miller, Aaron Jackson, Karleigh Paige, and so many more.

“I’d been performing well before then,” Musgraves said. “John was a wonderful teacher. I don’t think I’d be doing what I’m doing right now if he hadn’t inspired me to write and to listen to songwriters and to play guitar.”

Locals know, “outsiders” don’t, that

overnight success was a longtime coming.

Her “odyssey,” indeed began much earlier, with pre-teen performances as a yodeling cowgirl on “The Today Show” and “Good Morning America.” She wrote her first song, “Notice Me,” for an elementary school graduation when she was eight. At nine, she wrote a song about a relationship going bad but, she said, “I wouldn’t want anybody to hear it now.”

When she was 14, Musgraves won the teen album of the year from the Lone Star Music Association. She released three albums before performing on the fifth season of “Nashville Star,” which led to a national contract with Mercury Nashville and the 2013 hit album Same Trailer Different Park, with its country hits “Merry Go ’Round,” “Blowin’ Smoke,” and “Follow Your Arrow.” Same Trailer Different Park won the Academy of Country Music award for album of the year, the first of several professional awards including two Grammies and a World Music Award.

Rolling Stone magazine wrote that she was “one of the loudest symbols of young country musicians embracing progressive values.”

PHOTOS BY KELLY CHRISTINE PHOTOGRAPHY

Now Musgraves is back with co-producers and writing partners Luke Laird and Shane McAnally and the new Pageant Material, a mature album mixing serious and humorous songs with enough clever lines to please any country audience.

Musgraves said she likes all of the songs on the new album for different reasons.

Her favorite, if she has to name one, might be “Late to the Party,” a pretty song about a couple who decide they’re never late to that party because the world can wait “when you’re happy at a party of two.”

She also singles out “This Town,” which opens with gossiping voices, then describes a town big enough for a ZIP code that has a good Mexican restaurant, a beauty shop or two, Methodists 6 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

and Baptists and the Church of the Nazarene; she sings that it’s “too small to be mean, way too small for secrets because they’re too small to keep.”

And “Family is Family,” a fun song that recognizes kinfolks “no matter how dysfunctional or embarrassing they might, at times, be.”

Other highlights, among many, include “(I’m just a) Dime Store Cowgirl” about a young woman who “got too big for my britches; the philosophical “Biscuits” which reminds us to mind our own biscuits and life will be gravy;” and “Somebody to Love” where she sings that we are all “just tryin’ to hold it all together, wishin’ our best was better.”

Just who is Kacey Lee Musgraves these days?

“At my core, I’m the same person. And I’ve got a pretty strong core. I appreciate where I come from and my family’s involvement. Simple things still bring me joy. I’ve seen a lot of the world, really some amazing and crazy things,” she said. “I think I’m the same person, just with more experience of the world. Different perspectives allow me to grow.”

While some people hear her music as fairly happy and some hear anger with a sense of humor, Musgraves doesn’t separate the two.

“I really enjoy songs with a sense of humor, even if it’s a depressing juxtaposition, even if there’s a little sarcasm,” she said. “Whatever rings true to me, and if its feels conversational enough, just how I would say something in real life.”

She doesn’t consider her lyrics controversial, not even in a genre that remains fairly conservative.

“I think throwing the rebel card out there is really cheap,” she once told the Wall Street Journal. “The things I’m singing about are not controversial to me.

I don’t push buttons to push buttons.

I talk about things that have made an impression on me that a lot of people everywhere are going through.”

if she had to choose between writing and performing, her choice would be clear.

“Oh, absolutely writing. Writing brings me so much joy, makes me feel like I’m using my brain,” she said. “Performing is great, just a vehicle to connect with people. But writing is my favorite part. It gives me a true natural high.

There’s no better feeling than when you finish a song that’s really good.”

“I’m really happy to have such great support around me,” Musgraves said.

“Growing up in East Texas, I got a lot of encouragement to be creative, and this is my small way to give back to that.”

Other major influences — her career role models — include another East Texan, Lee Ann Womack, and, for her longtime excellence, Alison Krauss.

What would Kacey Musgraves be doing if she weren’t a musician?

“Oh, who knows? I’d probably be a fugitive somewhere,” she said, laughing. “It would be something creative. I like shaping things from the ground up, whether it’s painting or a song, just putting my stamp on it.”

She’ll put her stamp on Mineola again — and on local schools — with the Hometown Hang.

Tickets are $25 in advance, $35 at the gate, with special arrangements for donations of $150 or more. The gate opens at 3 p.m. with performances beginning at 4:30. For more information, go to mineolanaturepreserve.com or www.kaceymusgraves.com.

For someone who lists John Prine as a major influence, it’s not surprising that,

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 7

AUTUMN IN WINNSBORO November 6 and 7 finds the downtown area filled with one of the best fine art markets in the Upper East Side of Texas. A juried art event, the weekend features fine art from artists all over the country to include paintings, photography, sculpture, metal work, fiber and jewelry. A special “Art of Taste” tent features educational seminars on cheeses, wines and cigars and another, “Our Town First” shares information on Winnsboro attractions, shops, restaurants, and other community services as well as local talent, singers and songwriters that set the mood with live jazz and classical music. Local growers of organic meats and foods from the farmers’ market are also on hand.

Winnsboro is a delightful place to visit any time of year but as autumn leaves start to turn delicious shades of red and gold along the surrounding country roads the area takes on a special glow.

The Winnsboro Center for the Arts offers numerous exhibits this season and The Bowery Stage presents listening room concerts with popular performers from all over Texas and beyond.

Visitors enjoy staying over a day or so in nearby historic bed and breakfasts and there are several award-winning places to dine, grab a cup of espresso or a glass of wine, experience unique shopping, and even relax at the day spa.

Food presentations by area chefs/Farmers’ Market

The farmer’s market held from 8 a.m. to Noon every Saturday on Market Street downtown is so much more than the average spread of squash, peas and toma-

toes. It’s a weekly celebration of bounty, recipes, home-baked breads, honey, jams, wines, cheeses, music, and more.

This year there’s also a new event, Monday Night on Market Street, during October with a focus on music, food, and wine.

Special events take place throughout the season starting with the Winnsboro Classic Car and Truck Cruise-In September 5 featuring more than 100 cars strolling about town and winning awards. Car enthusiasts of all ages enjoy checking out the retro rides and many a hood gets popped open for a peak inside as stories of the “good old days” fill the air.

The 57th Annual Autumn Trails takes place during the entire month of October. Visitors enjoy the breathtaking country trails surrounding the town and numerous activities including Queen Autumn Trails coronation, arts and crafts, parade, dominoes, cookout and pie baking contest, barn dance, horses and wagons trail rides, Old West reenactments, trade days and swap meet, antique and classic cars, sidewalk sales, and more.

8 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

Fiber art by Valery Guignon/Fine Art Market

Concerts this year at the Winnsboro Fine Art Market include performances

by Hannah Kirby, Audio Adrenaline and the United Concert Series, Chad Evans, Ashes Remain, Shiloh, Shuree, Jeremy Vanderloop and Jonathan Thulin.

To learn more about Winnsboro and all their autumn offerings, start with www. winnsboroonlineguide.com, explore their individual websites and social networks, and make plans to experience a thousand kodak moments. — P.A. Geddie

WINNSBORO CULTURAL ARTS DISTRICT

BREWBAKER’S

ART & ESPRESSO

210 N. Main St. - (903) 342-6119

111 E. Broadway - (903) 342-3343

Adler & Hearne September 12 COPPERLEAF DAY SPA

209 N. Main St. - (903) 342-7772

Druha Trava October 10

Bing Futch October 24

ALL SHOWS START AT 7:30 P.M. TICKETS AVAILABLE AT:

www.winnsborocenterforthearts.com; Winnsboro Emporium, 212 Market St., 903-342-6140; and Winnsboro Center for the Arts

LIEFIE LI VINE

302 N. Main St. - (903) 347-1111

Also at Winnsboro Center for the Arts Women in the Arts Exhibition 9/18-10/10, Reception 9/19 - 6:30 PM Movie: Rocky Horror Picture Show 10/2, 9 PM DITTO GALLERIES

245 Private Road 8571 - (903) 285-2174

Movie: Hocus Pocus 10/3, 4 PM

MONK’S OVEN

Day of the Dead (Dia de Muertos) Art Exhibition 10/17 - 11/8

204 Market St. - (903) 347-1282

Off Broadway Coffeehouse Concerts 9/18 and 10/16, 7:30 PM Unique One-of-a-Kind Artist Creations and Art Supplies

THEE HUBBELL HOUSE

GRAPE BISTRO & WINE BAR

307 W. Elm St. - (800) 227-0639

CLARA IDA FRANCES

219 N. Main St. - (903) 342-6137

217 Market St. (903) 347-6510

WINNSBORO EMPORIUM

100 East Cedar Street • 903-588-0465

212 Market St. - (903) 342-6140

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 9

SPECIAL AUTUMN EVENTS 57th ANNUAL

Winnsboro

AUTUMN TRAILS October 2015

Oct. 2 Grand Parade, Grand Ball, Pet Contest, Art/Photo Oct. 3.

Queen Autumn Trails Coronation Oct. 10 Arts & Crafts, Chili Cook-Off Oct. 10-11 Wild West Days Oct. 16 Trail Ride Parade Oct. 17 Taste of Winnsboro, Pie Contest, Trail Ride, 42 Tournment, Barn Dance Oct. 18 Trail Ride Oct. 22-25 Trade Days & Swap Meet Oct. 24 Antique Car Parade, Sidewalk Sale, Classic Car Show, All School Reunion Oct. 25 Antique Car Tour Oct. 31 Jack Cross Memorial/AT/FFA Livestock Show Proudly supported by

Winnsboro

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION

f

winnsboroautumntrails.com 903.342.1958 10 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

SPECIAL AUTUMN EVENTS

NOVEMBER 6-7 FRIDAY 1 TO 7 P.M. SATURDAY 9 A.M. TO 7 P.M.

Juried Art Event Featuring Fine Art

From Artists all over the country paintings, photography, fiber, sculpture, metal work, jewelry

Art of Taste

Chocolates, Cheese Munger, Finick Cigar Company, 5 regional wineries

Our Town First

Local talent, singers and songwriters, organic meats/foods

Winnsboro Farmers Market Children’s Activities Live Concerts

Contact Greg Bova @ 608-548-7911 gbkmb26@hotmail.com. Winnsboro, TX

Hannah Kirby, Audio Adrenaline and the United Concert Series, Chad Evans, Ashes Remain, Shiloh, and Shuree. $10-$35. Tickets available at event.attendstar.com, Flowerland, and CopperLeaf Spa.

888.559.4333

winnsboroonlineguide.com SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 11

True Vine Taps in to Local Flavor

By Janelle Lanthrum Small and unassuming, True Vine Brewery at 219 S. Englewood in Tyler proves that you do not need to be big to provide big favor. Founded in 2011 by Ryan Dixon, Stephan Lee, and Dan Griffith it was the culmination of hard work and big visions.

“My wife and I love to travel. We love the artsy foodie culture in Austin,” Dixon said. “When we leave, it always felt like a piece of our heart stays behind.

But we realized we were meant to bring the ‘vibe’ of Austin to our home town.”

It was the spark that would grow into a burning passion.

“I started home brewing,” Dixon went on. “But I was always dreaming bigger, about labels and marketing my own brews.”

When Dixon met Lee and Griffith at church he found kindred spirits. After many meetings at Einstein’s for coffee and strategy they put thoughts into action. The grand opening was in April 2014 with their signature Rose City Pale Ale. The timing was perfect. With the “Buy Local” movement in full swing, people were realizing the benefit of supporting local families instead of faceless corpo-

rations. And True Vine responded in kind, sourcing as many of their ingredients as close to home as possible.

The response was phenomenal, so much so they expanded operations. In July they finished increasing their production from 90 gallons a week to 1200 gallons. This brings more beer to more taps. New accounts are planned for Longview and Dallas in the near future.

“We are really excited, and can’t wait to share our home town with even more people,” Dixon exclaimed.

The Beers

True Vine offers a limited but exceptional selection of ales throughout the year.

Rose City is brewed with organic rose hips and English ale yeast. This 2-row barley pale ale is available year round.

Bold and with a citrus kick, it pairs nicely with spicy foods and Tex-Mex, making this staple a fine addition to any Texas table.

New to the year-round line up is the Mermaids & Unicorns Blonde. The name was inspired by the many fairy tales told to their six young children.

This ale is malty with a clean finish and just a hint of orange and peach — a great beer for a hot afternoon and a great accompaniment with most any meal.

For those who desire a more assertive taste, look no further than Rose From the Dead. Debuting at their grand opening in April 2014, it is now available only each spring. Brewed from three kinds of hops with American Ale Yeast, this Double Black India Pale Ale is only for the brave.

Promised Land Belgian is summer in a glass. Brewed with milk sugar and local East Texas honey, it pays homage to its name sake. A great “gateway” beer, it is sweet and creamy, and excellent alongside smoky foods like meats or almonds.

It is limited to the summer and fall, so be sure not to miss out. This is True Vine’s first beer available in bottles.

Pumpkin Ale is an American tradition dating back to the Colonial times. Kip’s

12 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

Pumpkin Ale, inspired by Dixon’s late father-in-law, is a spicy contrast to its siblings. Only available in the fall, it is brewed with pureed pumpkin and nutmeg in classic Octoberfest style. It is best served with Thanksgiving dinner or as a treat in a glass rimmed with sugar and cinnamon.

True Culture is a Coffee Porter to keep a body warm in the winter. Brewed with extra caramel malt and infused dark roast coffee, it has a deep sweet milk chocolate finish. This beer is highly recommended with desserts, and making a float with vanilla ice cream is very popular.

Along with these standbys, new experimental brews are always underway. Future plans include a brown ale called Quick Brown Fox, a Belgian Wheat called Bon Hoffer, an India Pale Ale called Polycarp, and an Imperial Stout called Giant Slayer.

ABOVE. True Vine Brewery team Stephen Lee, Greg Lewis, Dan Griffith, Ryan Dixon, and Scott Williamson take a break in the brewing room of their operation in Tyler. BELOW. Barrels of beer are ready to roll out to one of their many distribution locations. Courtesy photos.

Where to find it

“Integrity, Community, Love” is the mission of True Vine, and in that spirit, they hold a monthly “Open Tap” on the last Saturday of every month. Part brewery tour, part communal gathering, it brings together local food, music, and art in a family friendly atmosphere.

This an opportunity to try not only their classic beers, but to try their experimental varieties before they reach local taps.

Tickets are purchased in advance on their website (www.turevinebrewing. com) for $10, or for $15 at-the-door.

Each ticket provides admission, a True Vine glass, and two beer tickets. Children and leashed pets are welcome at this family friendly event. Children under two get in free with an adult ticket, while children 12 or older and nondrinking adults are $4 in advance and $5 at-the-door. A portion of the proceeds go to local charities.

It is an outdoor event and visitors should bring their own chairs, and it’s subject to the fickle Texas weather. Follow on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for the day-of details.

True Vine is sold in many establishments in and around Tyler. This includes, but is not limited to, BJ’s Brewhouse, Stanley’s Famous BBQ, Fresh, Wasabi, Breaker’s, and Jul’s Restaurant & Lounge. This local favorite is also available in Dallas at Craft and Growler.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 13

THIS TIME OF YEAR SEPTEMBER 12, 1909

Happy Birthday Kenneth Threadgill

Born in Peniel near Greenville in September 12, 1909, Kenneth Threadgill is known as the “father of Austin country music.” The son of an ofton-the-road Nazarene minister Threadgill grew up to become a musician himself, and to turn an old gas station into an iconic restaurant, tavern, and music venue that carried his name and, more important, became a second home for musicians who would became famous and for the hippies and goat ropers who would get along with each other.

Threadgill spent his early years in Peniel, which was annexed into Greenville in the 1950s, before his family moved to Beaumont and then to Austin where he eventually opened Threadgill’s Tavern serving such celebrities as Willie Nelson, Janis Joplin, and many others.

Threadgill’s own singing was usually about social issues, World War II, his father, patriotism, and Texas, creating his own style from early influences including Jimmie Rodgers and Al Jolson. Some of his best-known songs were “Silver-Haired Daddy of Mine,” “There’s A Star-Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere,” and “T for Texas, T for Tennessee.”

Threadgill died of a pulmonary embolism on March 20, 1987.

The Kenneth Threadgill Concert Series in Greenville was established and concerts take place there several times a year. Learn more at greenvilletexas.com/concert.htm and visit the County Line archives.

SEPTEMBER 2014 SEPTEMBER 23,1.2015

SEPTEMBER

SEPTEMBER 14, 1948

23, 20

First Day of 15 Autumn SEPTEMBER 2, 1945 After several war-torn years that made up World War II, the last of the bad guys were defeated and Japan surrendered August 15 1945. It was made official September 2 when Japanese foreign minister Mamoru Shigemitsu signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender on board the USS Missouri. General Richard K. Sutherland, representing the U.S. Army, is pictured here watching the activity from the opposite side of the table.

14 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

Marion G. Slaughter, aka, Vernon Dalhart, was born in Jefferson April 6, 1833, and he passed away September 14, 1948. During his life he wrote hundreds of top songs including “The Prisoner’s Song” and “The Wreck of the Old 97.” He took his pseudonym from two Texas towns.

OCTOBER 14

PAPER

General Chennault Honored in Commerce

Indulge YOU DESERVE IT

A historical marker honoring Major General Claire L. Chennault is scheduled to unveil October 14 at his childhood homestead, 1501 Monroe Street, in Commerce. The state marker is written in two Chinese dialects — believed to be the first marker in Chinese in Texas. Chennault organized the “Flying Tigers” to help the Republic of China fight the Japanese prior to American involvement in World War II. This new marker is placed next to an existing one in English which has the following to say about Chennault (18901958).

Organizer-commander of the famous “Flying Tigers” of the China-Burma-India theater in World War II. An outstanding air strategist, Chennault had retired from a pioneer flying career when, in 1937, he was asked by General Chaing Kai-Shek to help china develop an air force to combat threatening raids by Japan. Four years later, with World War II spreading, he received permission from the U.S. to seek a corps of American airmen to help train the Chinese. A total of 252 men — 87 pilots and 165 ground personnel — joined the “American Volunteer Group.” Its popular name resulted from a misunderstanding of the sharks’ teeth painted on the noses of the aircraft. The Tigers formed three squadrons — “Adam and Eve,” “Panda Bears,” and “Hell’s Angels” — supported by the expert pilots of the China National Aviation Corps, a daring supply transport group. So effectively had Chennault studied Japanese air tactics

SUBSCRIBE! In celebration of our

15th anniversary that his tiny band officially destroyed 539 enemy aircraft while losing only 90 itself. During 1941-1942, they checked Japan’s invasion of China, then joined regular units.

Highway 24 in Commerce is designated as Flying Tiger Memorial Highway in his honor as well.

When Chennault retired, he went back to Louisiana where he lived after his family moved there from Commerce.

He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1972 and was honored with a U.S. postage stamp as part of the Great Americans series from 1980-2000. He is commemorated by a statue in the Republic of China’s capital, Taipei, as well as by monuments on the grounds of the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge and at the Chennault International Airport in Lake Charles. The Chennault Aviation and Military Museum and Chennault Park are in Monroe, Louisiana.

get a one-year subscription in 2015 for just $15 per year!

SUBMIT ORDER ON WEBSITE OR MAIL TO P.O. BOX 608 BEN WHEELER, TX 75754

county line Upper East Side of Texas Regional Magazine

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Chennault died of lung cancer July 27, 1958, in New Orleans. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 15



CULTURE & ENTERTAINMENT

Check out the eMAGAZINE www.countylinemagazine.com for extended event listings.

Road Trippers on the Historic Bankhead Highway Discover Americana Gems Known as the Broadway of America as the country began paving highways, the classic Bankhead Highway was the first all-weather transcontinental highway in the U.S. running from Washington D.C. to San Diego, organized in 1916.

The portion that ran through Northeast Texas was a major roadway — what roughly began U.S. 67 and U.S. 80 — that forever altered the development and cultural heritage of the region.

In recent years the Texas Historical Commission and area partners worked together to get locations along the way into the National Register of Historic Places and created a trail worthy of an adventurous drive today, both along the real roadway and in a virtual online tour.

A number of old gas stations still stand and provide a variety of architectural styles that influenced the times as well as diners, cafes, motels, and museums.

Other areas highlight old bridges, cul-

EVENTS 1st, 3rd & 5th Tuesday

Longview Swing Dance & Lessons. Longview. www.longviewswingdance.com.

Second Saturday

Bird and Nature Walk. Athens. Explore interpretive wetland trail and other areas of hatchery, for both beginning and advanced birdwatchers. Birdlife changes with the seasons and each outing sees a variety of species. 9 a.m. TFFC Admission: $5.50 adults, $4.50 seniors 65+, $3.50 children ages 4-12.

Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center, 5550 FM 2495. 903.676.2277. athenstx.org.

September 3-6, Oct. 1-4 & Oct. 29-Nov. 1

First Monday Trade Days. Canton. The oldest, largest, continuously operating outdoor market in the United States draws up to 400,000 shoppers a few days every month.

More than 7,000 vendors present wares in almost 400 acres around the downtown area of the city. First Monday Trade Days.

903.567.6556. firstmondaycanton.com.

Several historic buildings stand proudly on the Historic Bankhead Highway like this old Prairie School/ Wrightian style gas station in Mount Vernon and the moderne/streamline style auto sales dealership in the background.

To take the virtual tour or to plot heritage tourism routes, go to thc.state.tx.us to download the Texas Historical Commission’s Google Earth-based Bank-

head Highway map that shows the various alignments of the highway as well as road-related National Register of Historic Places properties, Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks, State Antiquities Landmarks, historic-age resources, and more.

September 5

September 19-20

verts, roadside parks, and other parts of the roadway that made travel easier.

Winnsboro Classic Car and Truck Cruise-In. Food, fun, and autos. 608.548.7911.

September 17-20

Major Battles of the Civil War. Longview.

A Cleburne’s Division Blue Gray Alliance event. 903.753.3281. visitlongviewtexas.com.

September 18-19

Lone Star Heritage Quilt Show. Sulphur Springs. $5. Children 12 and under free.

First Baptist Church R.O.C. 115 Putnam. Street.

903.235.5700. sulphurspringstxquilts.com.

Rally ‘Round Greenville. 10th anniversary.

Friday features a street dance with Emerald City Band and opening act 8 Ball Aitken.

VIP tables available. Saturday features Cotton Patch Classic Bike Ride, Rally Round 5K, Kids Alley, car show, Rally Round the Vine wine tasting, vendors and a full day of music: Tribute Band Stage: Def Leggend, Pearl Gem, Infinite Journey, Trio Grande, Into the West. Country Stage: Max Stalling, Josh Ward, 8 Ball Aitken, Blue Water Highway. 7 p.m. Free. Downtown Greenville Texas.

903.455.1510. rallyroundgreenville.com.

16 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

42nd Annual Gladewater Arts & Crafts Festival. Gladewater. Includes crafts, collectibles, hand-made items, food and more. 10 a.m. Free. Broadway Elementary School, 200 E. Broadway Ave. 903.845.5501. gladewaterartsandcrafts.com.

September 23-26

Red River County Fair. Clarksville. Featuring live entertainment, local food booths, displays of local crafters, produce exhibits, livestock and a midway with carnival rides.

5:30 p.m. Free. Fairgrounds at American Legion Park, US 82 Business East. 903.427.3868. redrivercoc.com.

September 25-October 4

East Texas State Fair. Tyler. Celebrating its 100th birthday. East Texas State Fair Grounds, 2112 West Front Street. 903.597.2501. etstatefair.com.

September 25, October 2 and 9

Maydelle Turntable School Run. Rusk.

Learn about the historic 1890s turntable during this 1.5 hour trip. Educational materials are given to teachers to continue the

lesson with their students back in the classroom. 11 a.m. Texas State Railroad-Rusk Depot, U.S. Hwy 84, Park Road 76. 903.683.3451. texasstaterr.com.

September 26

Montalba Fall Fest. Montalba. Parade, pet show, baking contests, raffles, live auction, white elephant sale, a variety of vendors, a children’s carnival, bounce house, live entertainment, bbq, pie contests, and more.

10 a.m. Free admission. Montalba Community Center, SH 19 near FM 321. 903.549.2384.

Uncle Fletch Hamburger Festival. Athens.

Visit Athens, the home of the original hamburger, for hamburger cook-off, fun contests and more. 10 a.m. Historic Downtown Courthouse Square. 888.294.2847. athenstx.org.

Bluegill Family Fishing Tournament & Outdoor Expo. Athens. Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center, 5550 FM 2495. 903.676.2277. athenstx. org.

September 27

Lunar Eclipse Star Party. Tyler. Join the TJC Science Center staff for free monthly Star Parties with plenty of telescopes for viewing and even more astronomy buffs to help navigate through the skies. 8 p.m. Free. Center for Earth & Space Science Education, 1411 E. Lake Street. 903-510-2312. tjc.edu/cesse.

October 2-31

Winnsboro Autumn Trails. A full month of activities that include a grand parade, ball and pet contest (Oct. 2); queen Autumn Trails Coronation (Oct. 3); Arts &a.m.p; Crafts, Chili Cook-off (Oct. 10); Trail Ride Parade (Oct. 16); Taste of Winnsboro, Pie Contest, Trail Ride, 42 Tourna.m.ent, and Barn Dance (Oct. 17); Trail Ride (Oct. 18); Trade Days and Swap Meet (Oct. 22-25); Antique Care Parade, Sidewalk Sale, Classic Car Show, All School Reunion (Oct. 24); Antique Car Tour (Oct. 25); and Jack Cross Memorial/AT/FFA Livestock Show (Oct. 31). Various locations. 903.342.1958. winnsboroautumntrails.com.

October 17

Star Party Saturday at the Dome. Tyler. 8 p.m. Free. Center for Earth & Space Science Education, 1411 E. Lake Street. 903-510-2312. tjc.edu/cesse.

November 14

Star Party Saturday at the Dome. Tyler. 8 p.m. Free. Center for Earth & Space Science Education, 1411 E. Lake Street. 903-510-2312. tjc.edu/cesse.

October 3

36th Annual Red River County Historical Society Fall Bazaar and 10th Annual Rotary Duck Race. Clarksville. Free. Historic Clarksville Courthouse, Hwy 37 North. 903.427.2266. redrivercoc.com/organizations/historical-society.

October 3-31 Pumpkin Patch Express. Rusk. Children (ages 2-12) can pick up their own pumpkin from the pumpkin patch, visit Trick or Treat Street, and enjoy a hay ride, games, live entertainment and more. Kids are encouraged to wear costumes. Lunches are not included for this event but a food vendor is available at the pumpkin patch. 11 a.m. $15-$45. Texas State Railroad-Rusk Depot, U.S. Hwy 84, Park Road 76. 903.683.3451. texasstaterr.com.

October 9-11 FireAnt Festival. Marshall. Now in its 33rd year, the festival includes a Friday night free

concert with Anthony G. Parrish & Friends, bicycle tour; The Tour De FireAnt; the FireAnt 5K, a parade, live entertainment; kids dance performances and contest, kids area with bounce houses, diaper derby, and contests and fun for kids and grown ups. Shreveport’s Robin & The Mystics perform Saturday night. A special ticketed benefit concert, “The Story of Boogie Woogie” starring Ezra Charles, takes place Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. at the Marshall Visual Art Center. Historic Downtown Square. 903.935.7868. m a r shalltexas.com. continued Page 18

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 17

EVENTS continued from Page 17

Curious Imagination Enters Palestine

2015 Gateway to Texas Get-a-Way Tandem Tour. Clarksville. Cyclists enjoy a taste of Clarksville’s accommodations and dining while cycling through Red River County in its beautiful fall weather. 903.427.2645. redrivercoc.com.

October 9-31

Haunted Halloween and Fall Festival. Athens. Haunted Halloween will kick-off the evenings of Oct. 9 10 with the Fall Festival taking place during the day on Oct. 10. The annual Fall Festival, celebrating the end of summer and the beginning of fall, includes arts and crafts, vendors, a dog show, art show, entertainment and more. Beginning Oct. 16, Haunted Halloween is open every night through Oct. 31. East Texas Arboretum, 1601 Patterson Rd. 903.675.5630. athenstx. org.

October 10

Autumn Festival. Canton. Live entertainment, pancake breakfast, carnival, 5K fun run, arts & crafts, games, competitions, and car show. Downtown Canton Square.

903.567.1851.

October 16-17

An innovative pop-up museum filled with exhibits that explore science, technology, engineering, the arts and math in a hands-on environment opens to the public October 10 at 201 W. Oak Street in downtown Palestine.

The exhibit is open Fridays through Sundays until January 3, 2016 (closed Christmas and New Years Day) and is also available Monday through Thursdays for group visits and school field trips by appointment.

organized by ICEE Success Foundation and the STEAMRollers. The exhibit promote creative and innovation thinking skills important for all ages and is an effort to encourage interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) and a growing demand for innovation thinking in the workforce.

The exhibit, called Curious: Igniting Imagination, welcomes preschoolers through adults in a fun, engaging and, ultimately, educational format.

The Curious exhibit includes a giant harmonograph, a tinkering station where children and adults are encouraged to use everyday materials to build a functioning car, and a math and geometry in nature station which encourages visitors to look at the world around them from a different angle, along with several other exhibits and a gift shop.

October 17

Based on the world-famous Exploratorium in San Francisco, California, it is

For more info email curious.imagine@ gmail.com or call 903-530-9019.

October 21-24

sions, live music, pig chases, and the Wild Hog Cook-off. Saturday evening features Zydeco Stingrays at Moore’s Store. Downtown Ben Wheeler. 903.833.1070. benwheelertx.com.

October 31

Paris Texas Antique Fair. Friday includes antique fair from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Party on the Plaza from 6-9:30 p.m. with late night shopping, dancing and refreshments. Saturday the antique fair is from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with hand-picked vendors, food, wine and beer, and the get away gals. Historic Gibraltar Hotel, Downtown Paris. 903.784.6711. paristexasantiquefair.com.

Chiggerfest. Cooper. Cooper Historic Square.

903.395.4314. deltacounty.org.

Harvest Festival & Livestock Show.

Longview. Providing scholarships and valuable experience to hard working area youth.

903.753.3281. visitlongviewtexas.com.

October 23-24

Country Fall Gathering. Lindale. Antique show and sale. 7644 FM 16W (east of Lindale).

903.569.0867.

NatureFest. Mineola. Storytellers, creatures of the night, East Texas astronomers, free hotdogs (while they last), chasing BigFoot 5K Fun Run, kids contest, nature activities and demonstrations. Free. Mineola Nature Preserve, 1860 CR 2724. 903.569.6983. mineolanaturepreserve.com.

Fall Feral Hog Festival. Ben Wheeler. Friday activities include the Feral Hog Follies and Hog Queen Coronation at Moore’s Store followed by live music and dancing. Saturday includes parade, exhibits, vendors, conces-

October 24

Hot Pepper Festival. Palestine. Downtown and Old Town Palestine host this festival featuring a BBQ & Chili cook-off, Kids Zone, arts & crafts and a pepper eating contest.

Live music and more. Craig Wayne Boyd (season 7 winner of The Voice) is this year’s headliner. 11:45 a.m.

Free. Historic Downtown Palestine. 903.723.2026. cityofpalestinetx.com.

October 29

Halloween at the Hatchery. Athens. A safe trick-or-treating atmosphere for thousands of guests annually. 6 p.m. $1 admission, donation to local charities. Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center, 5550 FM 2495. 903.676.2277. athenstx.org.

18 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

12th Annual Alto Fall Festival. Alto. Vendors, entertainers, contestants, attractions, and classic vehicles. Downtown Alto.

936.858.1000.

November 7

Red White & Blue Festival. Bullard. Veterans breakfast and parade, ceremony, carnival, car show, food, and live entertainment.

Downtown Bullard. 903.894.4238. bullardchamber.com

November 14

Edgewood Heritage Festival. Activities include classic car show, antique tractor show, model trains exhibit and demonstration, blacksmithing, old west shoot out, quilt show, live music, dog show, food, vendors, children’s area, pinto bean cook-off, Santa and Mrs. Claus. 8:45 a.m. Heritage Park Museum of East Texas, downtown Edgewood.

903.896.1940. edgewoodheritagefestival.com.

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THE ARTS ART EVENTS

Winnsboro Exhibits Women in the Arts

Through September 5

Recycled Art Exhibition. Winnsboro. The exhibition features both two-dimensional and three dimensional works of art created from found, used, and recycled materials.

Free, donations accepted. Winnsboro Center for the Arts, 200 Market Street. 903.342.0686. winnsborocenterforthearts.com.

Through September 13

The Art of the Brick. Tyler. The storied toy building of countless childhood creations take form as fine art with the unique vision of Nathan Sawaya. The exhibition is open during regular museum hours of 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday and 1-5 p.m. Sunday. $3-$5. Tyler Museum of Art, 1300 S. Mahon Ave. 903.595.1001. tylermuseum.org.

September 3-4

Silk Ribbon Embroidery by Sewing Machine.

Mineola. 1 p.m. $35/45. Mineola League of the Arts, 200 W Blair. 903.569.8877. mlota.org.

September 4

Free First Friday at TMA. Tyler. Full day of free admission plus guided tours of its spotlight exhibitions. 10 a.m. Free. Tyler Museum of Art, 1300 S. Mahon Ave. 903-595-1001. tylermuseum.org.

September 12

Music & Art Expo by Red River Revue Center for the Arts. Clarksville. Listen to various styles of music, browse featured artists work and support the start of a Center for the Arts in Red River County. 1 p.m. Free/Donations Accepted. NeNe’s Books & Café, 100 N Walnut. 903.427.2000. redriverrevue.weebly.com.

Family Day at TMA. Tyler. Free admission, interactive art projects, light snacks and a festive atmosphere for all ages are on the menu plus current exhibits. 2-4 p.m. Tyler Museum

Main Street Seeks Entries for Sculpture Show

The Palestine Texas Main Street is seeking entries for the 4th Annual Main Street Art Tracks Outdoor Sculpture exhibit. Pieces are displayed October this year through October 2016 in prime downtown locations. Artist stipend and cash prize money offered. For more information call 903.731.8441, download an application from www.palestinemainstreet.org or message on Facebook (PalestineMainStreet).

Entry deadline is September 30.

The Winnsboro Center for the Arts presents the annual Women in the Arts exhibition featuring the works of up to 30 female artists from throughout the East Texas area who showcase their art in the areas of traditional and contemporary visual arts, theater, dance, writing, and music. Now in it's fourth year, the exhibition endeavors to highlight the motives, inspiration, problems, and creative process unique to women.

History shows that although women are strong participants in the arts for generations, it was only in the 20th century that women were accepted into the academic arts as equal in talent and social relevance. Little is known or discussed about the relative differences and perspectives that women bring to art and of Art, 1300 S. Mahon Ave. 903.595.1001. tylermuseum.org.

September 18-October 10

Women in the Arts Exhibition. Winnsboro.

Features the work of up to 30 female artists from throughout the East Texas area showcasing their art in the areas of traditional and contemporary visual arts, theater, dance, writing, and music. Winnsboro Center for the Arts, 200 Market Street. 903.342.0686. winnsborocenterforthearts.com.

September 28

Spiral Tablerunner. Mineola. 10 a.m. $20 up. Mineola League of the Arts, 200 W Blair.

903.569.8877. mlota.org.

October 9-10

Mineola League of the Arts Annual Quilt Show. Mineola. Approximately 100 quilts to view along with a craft and fine art sale.

10 a.m. $3. Mineola League of the Arts, 200 W Blair. 903.569.8877. mlota.org.

20 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

the driving forces behind their work that is often gender based.

Usually produced by women, traditional arts, some labeled as “crafts,” such as needlework, quilting, weaving/textiles, and pottery, have only recently begun to be accepted into the fine art community. Like many other areas of society, women still struggle with artistic recognition in the mainstream art world, even while producing work in the more contemporary processes of photography, sculpture, painting, and design.

The exhibit opens to the public September 18 and runs through October 10. An artist reception is held at 6:30 p.m. September 19. For more information, contact the WCA at 903-342-0686.

October 17-18

Edom Festival of the Arts. Downtown Edom.

903.852.3897. edomfestivalofthearts.com.

October 17-November 8

Day of the Dead Art Exhibition. Winnsboro.

Winnsboro Center for the Arts, 200 Market Street.

903.342.0686. winnsborocenterforthearts.com.

October 24

Day Dreams Art Show & Opening Reception/Block Party. Athens. Live music, food, and drawings. 5 p.m. Free. Gallery 211, 211 N. Palestine. 903.292.1746. athenstx.org.

November 6-7

Winnsboro Fine Art Market. Juried art event with paintings, photography, fiber, sculpture, metal work, jewelry, wines, live entertainment, farmers market, children’s activities. Live concert by Hannah Kirby and others. Downtown Winnsboro. 888.559.4333. winnsboroonlineguide.com.

7th Year Harvest by Franklin Demetrius Willis is one of the paintings on display at the Reflections of East Texas exhibition at the Tyler Museum of Art through September 27.

Reflections of East Texas Showing in Tyler Five talented and versatile artists with strong ties to the region are in the spotlight with the Tyler Museum of Art’s major exhibition, Reflections of East Texas that is open now and continues through September 27.

Organized by the TMA and co-curated by the Museum’s Jon Perry and Derek Frazier, Reflections features more than 30 works across a broad spectrum of media by artists Keith Carter, Ted Ellis, Diane Frossard, Mike Perry and Franklin Demetrius Willis.

“This exhibition is a homecoming to East Texas, if you will” Jon Perry said.

“Each of these remarkably diverse artists, in his or her unique way, shows how profoundly they have been influenced by their experiences in this region and how they continue to evoke those memories in their work. The subject matter is varied, the geographical boundaries are loose — from the Piney Woods to the Gulf Coast — but Derek and I hope audiences come away with a genuine sense of moods and feelings that characterize a broader sense of the East Texas experience. There’s no place like it.”

THE ARTISTS

Keith Carter holds the Endowed Walles Chair of Art at Lamar University in Beaumont, his home of more than 40 years. He is the recipient of the Texas Medal of Arts, the Lange-Taylor Prize from the Center for Documentary Stud-

ies at Duke University, and the Regent’s Professor Award from the Texas State University System. Carter’s work has shown in more than 100 solo exhibitions in 13 countries, and he is the author of 11 books including Fireflies, Mojo, Keith Carter Photographs: TwentyFive Years, Heaven of Animals, and From Uncertain to Blue. His series of images showcasing scenes from rural East Texas that form his publication The Blue Man are featured as part of exhibit.

Ted Ellis grew up in New Orleans, a city known for its rich African-American heritage and history, but has lived and worked for the last 25 years in the southeast Texas city of Friendswood.

A former environmental chemist, the self-taught painter blends realism and impressionism in his work, “evoking nostalgia and inspiration” in his subjects that celebrate the African-American experience of the rural South. His “Juneteenth Freedom Series” recently was featured at the U.S. Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C., as part of the Juneteenth Independence Day Celebration organized by U.S. Sen. John Cornyn.

Dallas native Diane Frossard spent 10 years as a geologist before turning her attention to painting and drawing full time. In 1998 she relocated to Tyler, where she continues to live and work.

Painting primarily in the plein air tradition, Frossard has won numerous

awards at Plein Air Southwest Salon at Southwest Gallery in Dallas, and been featured in multiple shows at Tyler’s Gallery Main Street.

Mike Perry was raised in Tyler, graduating from Robert E. Lee High School and Tyler Junior College before moving on to study under acclaimed Texas artist Vernon Fisher in the bachelor of fine arts program at the University of North Texas. His impressionistic landscapes and abstracts are featured in several galleries including the recent solo show New Horizons at Stellers Gallery-San Marco, and have been purchased for numerous public and private collections including Nordstrom Department Stores and the home of Ted Turner.

Longview native Franklin Willis studied at Kilgore College before moving on to receive his B.F.A. degree from Corpus Christi State University and a master’s degree at the University of Michigan.

He recently was promoted to professor of art at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff where he’s lived for the last two decades.

Regular TMA hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday; the museum is closed Mondays and most major holidays.

The museum is supported by its members, Tyler Junior College and the City of Tyler. For more information, call 903.595.1001 or visit www.tylermuseum. org.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 21

Enjoy Fine Art at the 2014 Edom Festival of the Arts

Fine Art and Fun Days Planned for Edom With more than 40 festivals under their belt supporting working artists, the small community of Edom knows how to throw a stellar art show in East Texas. This year’s Edom Art Festival takes place October 17 and 18 and will once again present high quality art and fine craft in a peaceful meadow adjacent to the heart of downtown Edom.

Types of art and traditional crafts represented at the show this year include jewelry, weaving, wood working and wood turning, metal smithing, sculpture, photography, painting, pottery, baskets and gourds, glass work and mixed media that defies description.

Returning Artists Many artists from years past are returning this year including Jo Jennings and Tammy Pruitt.

Jennings has designed jewelry for 45 years. Her creations are made by lostwax casting gold or silver into intricate shapes then adding precious or semiprecious stones. Each mold is used only once so every piece is one of a kind.

Her incredible jewelry has won many awards and a legion of devoted fans.

Pruitt is the artist behind Adiya Creations, located in Marshall. She takes her experience living with various cultures all over the world and weaves the beauty she’s seen expressed in a smile, in snow-capped mountains, and in desert rock formations — celebrations of the world — into her leather-bound journals and diaries, each embellished with a symbol or saying. She also pro-

duces leather bags and purses.

New to the show a couple of years ago were Mickey and Lesli Bruce, a husband and wife pottery team from Forney. Lesli’s work is influenced by her love of natural objects, their beautifully textured surfaces and by the endless possibilities and playfulness of clay. Mickey was born a dirt loving southern boy. Barefoot chasing bees, he admired plants, flowers and how things are made and that led to his work with clay. At 36 he studied under James Watral and then Barbara Frey receiving a BFA from Texas A&M Commerce. Mickey now works at Trinity Ceramic Supply helping others in the clay world and continues to look for inspiration through the natural world for pattern, form structure and design in search of surface beauty along with functional forms that please the senses.

New Artists

The Edom Art Festival is pleased to welcome several new artists this year, including Debbi Elmer, a glass artist born in Sherman and raised in Odessa (her work is pictured above). She received a Bachelor’s degree in Art from the University of Texas at El Paso and has attended numerous seminars on glass techniques and processes. Most recently, she attended a week-long seminar by invitation at the Bullseye Glass Factory in Portland, Oregan. She has lived in many areas of the state but now resides and keeps her studio,Timberidge Glassworks in the deep glorious woods of East Texas where she teaches small classes and creates glass art.

22 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

While she started out in jewelry design and pottery, she has dabbled in a variety of media. Her focus has exclusively been on glass for the past 12 years. Glass indulges her fascination with color, texture and light and enables her to achieve the whimsical and abstract themes to which she gravitates. Her pieces are typically fired multiple times to achieve the depth, interest and shapes she desires.

She is often requested to do custom pieces for homes and offices.

Food and Other Activities While walking the fairgrounds looking at all the beautiful artwork, visitors can enjoy some great food. Traditional fair food like funnel cakes are available, as well as roasted corn, slap-yo-mama Cajun gumbo, hamburgers, and hot dogs.

Several kinds of homemade ice cream and gourmet sorbets satisfy the sweet tooth.

The Edom Art Festival is a tradition for many families with their kids painting masterpieces at the Kids Art area.

Visitors enjoy listening to original music from regional singer/songwriters on two stages through the day on both days of the festival.

Check the website EdomFestivaloftheArts.com for a complete listing of all the music and other activities for the weekend.

For more information contact Mary Wilhite at mwilhite@embarqmail.com or phone 903.571.7631.

www.VisitEdom.com

DRAGONHEAD RETREAT

ZEKE & MARTY

B&B on 25 Wooded Acres at 675' The Lodge (sleeps 9+) Cedar Cabin (sleeps 4+) Outside Living Area • WiFi • Kid Friendly

Jewelry Studio Custom Orders Welcome 903.852.3311 www.zekeandmarty.com

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THE FARM HOUSE RETREAT

MARIPOSA CABIN Quiet Relaxation in the East Woods Hand-crafted, lofted 1 bedroom cottage

A Unique East Texas Experience Lodging, Weddings, Retreats 903.749.1682 www.farmhouseretreat.com

903-571-2423 www.Vrbo.com/354940

POTTERS BROWN STUDIO & GALLERY Original Handmade Stoneware

VINTAGE EDOM

Coffee Shop. Mid Century Cool Items.

Vintage Antiques. Boutiques.

Collectibles. Arts & Crafts.

Yard Art & Ornamental Fixtures 903.852.5552 • EdomGallery.com

WOOD HAVEN CABINS

Relax & Unwind 903.279.2308 www.woodhavencabins.com

BLUE MOON GARDENS Perennials. Herbs.

Garden Art. Gift Shop Open Daily 9-5

903.852.3897 www.bluemoongardens.com

903.852.6473 www.pottersbrown.com

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 23

STAGE Piney Woods Announces New Season

September 8-21

2015

Partnerships for Peace Music ~ Film ~ Art Children’s Activities Poetry ~ Peace Pole Living Peace Sign

Enjoy Art of Peace activities at venues around the city of Tyler.

Most activities are free of charge and all events open to the public.

Find out more at www.tylerpeace.com.

The Piney Woods Fine Arts Association in Crockett is preparing for its 25th anniversary of bringing the best acts in the performing arts to East Texas. The season opens with the annual Piney Woods PolkaFest October 3 featuring Brave Combo.

Other shows in the season are: October 23. Restless & Reckless: Restless Heart and Reckless Kelly.

November 20. The Charlie Daniels Band (pictured above).

December 12. The Vocal Majority Christmas Show.

January 30. Kenny Rogers.

February 19. Driving Miss Daisy. Starring Antonio Fargas (Everybody Hates Chris, Starsky and Hutch, All My Children) and Dawn Wells (Gilligan’s Island).

March 19. The Texas Guitar Quartet.

April 2. Bill Haley Jr. and The Comets.

All tickets can be purchased at pwfaa. org. All shows, subject to change, are at the Crockett Civic Center unless otherwise stated. There are no refunds, exchanges, or exceptions. For more information call the PWFAA office at 936.544.4276 Monday-Friday from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. or stop in to visit at 603 E Goliad, Ste 203.

Card 53 Comedy Show is scheduled for September 12 at Liberty Hall in Tyler. This short form improv comedy troupe was started in 2009 by co-founders Aaron Smith and Jamey Whitley. A typical Card 53 show consists of eight 3-5 minute sketches or games where the audience is asked to give a suggestion such as a location, movie genre, or emotion. The actors then make everything up on stage going off their instincts using props and costumes as needed. Due to the unpredictable nature of the show, The actors strive very hard to provide a professionally clean show, but due to its unpredictable nature its deemed appropriateness is compared to a PG-13 movie rating. Cost is $12 and the show starts at 8 p.m. Call 903.595.7274 for more information and visit libertytyler.com.

24 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

October 21-24 Providing scholarships and valuable experience to hard working area youth.

September 17-20

903.753.3281 • VisitLongviewTexas.com 410 N. Center Street • Longview, Texas 75601

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 25

FILM

Ongoing

Journey to the Stars. Tyler. The Center for Earth and Space Science Education (CESSE) at Tyler Junior College offers a new fulldome show narrated by Whoopi Goldberg.

The film features extraordinary images from telescopes on the ground and in space and stunning, never-before-seen visualizations of physics-based simulations. It launches visitors through space and time to experience the life and death of the stars in the night sky, including the nurturing Sun. Audiences tour familiar stellar formations, explore new celestial mysteries, and discover the fascinating, unfolding story that connects us all to the stars. 4 p.m. $7 adults; $5 children, students and senior citizens. Center for Earth and Space Science Education, 1411 East Lake Street.

903.510.2312. tjc.edu/cesse.

October 10

Ongoing

Tornado Alley. Tyler. Experience the force of one of nature’s most destructive marvels as this film follows Sean Casey (Discovery Channel’s Storm Chasers series) and researchers from the VORTEX2 initiative on a journey to bear down on a tornado at the closest proximity possible. Narrated by actor Bill Paxton (Twister), Tornado Alley chronicles storm chasers as they head out into gale force winds, torrential rains and hail, while measuring storms with advanced weathergauging instruments and gathering extreme weather data, never collected before. 3 p.m. $7 and $5. Center for Earth and Space Science Education, 1411 East Lake Street.

903.510.2312. tjc.edu/cesse.

White God. Downtown Edom. Independent film showing. Doors open 6:30p.m, film starts at 7p.m. 2014 Cannes Film Festival Winner. This film is subtitled.

A cautionary tale about our superiority over lesser beasts. A seemingly harmless measure that aims to make dog-breeding more disciplined in Hungary kicks off a series of extraordinary events. Favoring pedigree and purebred dogs, the new regulation places a severe tax on those who own mixed breeds -- so owners begin to dump their mongrels and shelters quickly become overcrowded. This new set of laws has real consequences, especially for 13-year-old Lili who’s already a pawn in her parents bitter divorce. Lili can’t understand why her dog, Hagen, is now somehow less than other dogs, nor can she comprehend why her father won’t simply pay the tax on her beloved companion. Instead, her father, in a fit of rage, abandons Hagen on the streets.

Heartbroken, Lili hates her father for making her betray her beloved companion. Still innocently believing that love can win over any difficulty, Lili sets out to find her dog and save him. Meanwhile,

26 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

Hagen, too, searches desperately to return home to Lili. Struggling to survive, Hagen soon learns that not everyone is a dog’s best friend. Wandering the streets, the former house pet falls into a series of dangerous situations. He must flee dogcatchers; he is exploited by a crafty beggar; he even becomes the prisoner of a dog fighting trainer. Hagen is soon back on the street where he joins a pack of stray dogs. Weeks later, Lili begins to accept the fact that she may never be reunited with Hagen. She is bitterly disappointed, but she tries to focus on preparations for her orchestra’s annual concert so she can reconcile with her father and enjoy the life of a normal teenager. When Hagen is captured and sent to the pound, his future seems more dismal than ever. He and the other dogs seize an opportunity to escape and revolt against mankind. Their revenge will be merciless — and courageous Lili may be the only person who can stop this unexpected war between man and dog. 7 p.m. $8.

The Old Firehouse Cinema, 8241 FM 279.

903.852.2781. theoldfirehouse.net.

September 26

Seeds of Time. Downtown Edom. Independent film showing. Doors open 6:30p.m, film starts at 7p.m. A Q&A session via Skype with one of the Filmmakers immediately following the screening. 77 min. A perfect storm is brewing as agriculture pioneer Cary Fowler races against time to protect the future of our food. Seed banks around the world are crumbling, crop failures are producing starvation and rioting, and the accelerating effects of climate change are affecting farmers globally. Communities of indigenous Peruvian farmers are already suffering those effects, as they try desperately to save over 1,500 varieties of native potato in their fields. But with little time to waste, both Fowler and the farmers embark on passionate and personal journeys that may save the one resource we cannot live without: our seeds. 7 p.m. $8. The Old Firehouse Cinema, 8241 FM 279. 903.852.2781. theoldfirehouse. net.

RESTAURANT – LIVE MUSIC – FULL BAR — MOORE FUN! OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK. ENJOY SPORTS TV. FOOD & DRINK SPECIALS. EVERY TUESDAY Kids Eat Free 5-8 p.m.

EVERY THURSDAY Karaoke 7 p.m.

September 12 Horseshoe Tournament

September 24 Cruise Night

September 26 BEAN WHEELER Our version of Cornhole

LIVE MUSIC EVERY FRIDAY & SATURDAY

FRI SEP 11 Tejas Brothers

SAT SEP 26 Wesley Pruitt Band

SAT OCT 17 Max Stalling

SAT OCT 24 Zydeco Stingrays

FRI SEP 4 Big Gus & Swampadelic. SAT SEP 5 Gary Patrick. FRI SEP 11 Tejas Brothers.

SAT SEP 12 Father Brother. FRI SEP 18 Pushwater. SAT SEP 19 Group Therapy.

FRI SEP 25 Shinebox. SAT SEP 26 Wesley Pruitt Band. FRI OCT 2 Ben Lowery.

SAT OCT 3 Scott Mulvahill. FRI OCT 9 Drew Kennedy. SAT OCT 10 Chase & the New South.

FRI OCT 16 TBD. SAT OCT 17 Max Stalling. FRI OCT 23 TBD. SAT OCT 24 Zydeco Stingrays. FRI OCT 30 Gary Patrick.

Unplug & Wine Down

Every Wednesday

Acoustic Music/Wine Specials

November 7

The Wrecking Crew. Downtown Edom. Independent Film Showing. Cast: Brian Wilson, Cher, Dick Clark, Glen Campbell, Lou Adler, Nancy Sinatra. Music lovers will be astonished at the influence The Wrecking Crew wielded over rock and pop music in the 1960s and early 1970s. These unsung instrumentalists were the de-facto backing band on hit records by The Beach Boys, Phil Spector, Frank Sinatra, Nancy Sinatra, Sonny & Cher, Elvis, The Monkees and many more. These dedicated musicians brought the flair and musicianship that made the American and West Coast Sound a dominant cultural force around the world. 7 p.m. $8. The Old Firehouse Cinema, 8241 FM 279.

903.852.2781. theoldfirehouse.net.

Hog Follies October 23

Scary-oke October 31

www.mooresstore.com • 903.833.5100 OCTOBER 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th, 31st Ennis Farmers Market 8 a.m.-1 p.m.

Fall for Fun

14th - Pre-Stage Fan Fest (Celebrating AAA Texas NHRA Fall Nationals) 5-9 p.m.

15th-18th - AAA Texas NHRA Fall Nationals, Texas Motorplex

in Ennis!

f�t 972.878.4748 • www.visitennis.org

17th - Autumn Days in Ennis Fall Festival 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

31st - Monster Mash 5-K Dash

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 27

LITERARY

Mitchell Has Writers Block for 30 Years Man in Profile: Joseph Mitchell of The New Yorker

by Thomas Kunkel Random House, $30 Review by Edward H. Garcia These days, Joseph Mitchell is most famous as the supreme example of writer’s block. After an illustrious career as one of the most respected essayists writing for The New Yorker, he published almost nothing for the last 30 years of his life, in spite of going to work at the magazine regularly. The literary world (and the colleagues who listened at his office door) wondered what he was doing all that time, and why he wasn’t publishing.

Thomas Kunkel’s new biography gives a detailed account of Mitchell’s early life and background, his start as a journalist, and his growth while writing for The New Yorker into one of the most admired writers of non-fiction in the country.

One of his colleagues at the magazine said that all the younger writers wanted “to write in a way that would be worthy of Joe Mitchell.”

who claimed to be writing An Oral History of Our Time. By 1964 Mitchell became convinced that the book was a myth and Gould a fraud. The later profile was the high point of Mitchell’s artistry, and it was the last piece he published.

A native of North Carolina, he wrote brilliantly about the odd characters in the city he loved, New York, starting in the late thirties. In 1964 he wrote “Joe Gould’s Secret” about an eccentric character he had first profiled 22 years earlier. Gould was the son of a prominent Boston family who lived off the people he could talk into supporting him and

One of the interesting revelations in Kunkel’s book is that some of Mitchell’s most memorable characters were, in fact, composites, and that he was willing to bend events, so that his portraits would be true to life works of art, rather than perfectly factual. So he might make one speech out of what an interviewee said at two or three different

Get in touch with your nature side!

OCTOBER 23-24 FRIDAY. 6-10 p.m. Storytellers. Creatures of the Night. East Texas Astronomers.

Free hot hogs while they last SATURDAY. 8-4 p.m. Chasing Bigfoot 5K Fun Run, $20, Fun Kids Contest. NatureFest Activities & Demonstrations.

Free for the Family.

1860 CR 2724. Mineola. (903)569-6983. (800)646-3652. www.mineolanaturepreserve.com 28 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

times. Mitchell (and other New Yorker writers like A.J. Liebling) did so with the full knowledge and approval of The New Yorker’s editors, but these days the practice would be questionable.

The portrait Kunkel fashions of Joe Mitchell’s long dry spell offers no startling revelations. Mitchell was a perfectionist, he was getting older, his life was full of distractions (like the deaths of his parents and his wife), he suffered bouts of depression, he felt the city he loved and wrote so lovingly about was disappearing. All that combined to keep him from finishing anything to his satisfaction. Only at The New Yorker could a writer have been kept on staff for so long with no production, but it is certainly a measure of the esteem in which he was held that they were so patient with him.

Thomas Kunkel makes the case that Joseph Mitchell should be known for what he accomplished in a long writing career and not for what he didn’t do in the last 30 years of his life. And Man in Profile is a wonderful occasion for the reader to become acquainted or reacquainted with Joseph Mitchell’s work.





POETRY The Pineys

VISIT

Gun Barrel City ...a straight shot to Cedar Creek Lake

Every waking is an apertif consume today’s offerings In Texas, it’s called the Pineywoods Here I find life’s reason feel the green-red-brown spectral taste camphored air drink of the environs dive into the day

Come Stay & Play.

We Aim to Please!

anchored by hundreds of greens cones fall, my tears follow in wonder and ignite in me a spirit of endings that are but beginnings Prickly needles pierce my skin and say, Look up. I’m still here.

My pines love the humid red clay that complements the resplendent wood of the luscious longleaf, but the long lithesome loblolly is my favorite. I always wanted to be tall and slender.

People of the First Nation lived here mound builders, Caddos Spanish missionaries tried conversion French soldiers built exclusive forts From here the Texas Revolution sprang our first newspaper was published

903.887.1087 www.gunbarrelcity.net www.gunbarrelcityfestivals.net

My wandering instinct is haunted by meandering black bears, feral boars copperheads keep senses on alert red earth, red snakes, red-cocked birds Red is the color of Passion, life’s reason.

Len Wheeler, Mineloa

Whose Life?

The verdant valley beckons all.

At a matronly pace they come.

Heads swing low.

Progeny in tow, an orderly procession they form.

Lush fodder, a spring fed stream, shady glens in which they rest while ruminating.

When dusk settles, a voice cries, lowing resounds.

It’s a cow’s life.

Gina Byford, Ben Wheeler SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 29

Wallace Finds Meaning in the Blues

By Tom Geddie Consider the stories we know, and don’t know, about the people we see. One example: the gray-haired man who sits in The Forge bistro in Ben Wheeler, bent over an acoustic guitar, his eyes closed, playing the blues.

His name is Craig Wallace. He’s played at The Forge on Saturday afternoons for more than three years now. And Wednesday evenings for more than two years. He seldom looks up. He seldom pauses between the songs. His playing on the Taylor acoustic guitar is excellent; his soothing voice, not quite a hoarse rasp, works well with the songs.

He picked up his first guitar when he was 8. Soon, as many kids do, he put it away.

When he was 14, his grandfather’s death left a hole in his soul.

“The hole was just too big,” Wallace said.

“I had to fill it with something.

He picked up the guitar again.

“I pulled out the Silvertone and found somebody to help me string it. I sat on the back porch and played everything I could get my hands on.”

The first song he learned was Don McLean’s “American Pie.” And in the streets, the children screamed The lovers cried and the poets dreamed Wallace said he wasn’t close to the rest of his family.

“Other than my grandfather, the people who raised me weren’t very good people,” he said. “I was lied to about who my real father was. My mother left the man who was my namesake (who wasn’t his father) when I was six. Nobody told me the truth even though I suspected it all my life.

I worked all the time when I was a kid.

These things shaped me, made me.

“Basically, from high school on, I did everything I could to not be at home anymore.”

Born in Dallas, raised in Garland and then back in Dallas, his first love was art.

“Everybody in junior high and high school at Lake Highlands thought I was going to be the next Salvador Dali. I sucked my thumb until sixth grade,” Wal-

lace said. “I didn’t really do much homework but I read everything in the library so they passed me.”

“I was just going to play music the rest of my life. Just when I thought I had everything figured out, I met Andrea.”

By the time he was 17 and out of school, he was playing regularly with all sorts of bands including blues bands in South Dallas with Freddie King Jr., Cookie McGee, and others. Too many bands to list here. He played with Alex Moore, John O’Daniel, Karen Bella, and more. One of the bands, Joe City, opened a lot of onenighters for Humble Pie, Dwight Tilley, and REO Speedwagon.

Craig, Andrea, and their two children eventually wound up in Van Zandt County.

He hobnobbed with B.B. King and Stevie Ray Vaughan.

When he was 18, one band he was in was supposed to get a national contract to record its own material and tour with Pink Floyd, but it never happened.

“For six months I was thinking I was going big time. When that petered out, I came back to Dallas and played with Alex Moore for two years. I broke into the session world, playing lot of session work.”

Wallace wanted to get back onto the road so he joined a Southern rock band, Raising Cain. He was married, and he was putting his first wife through college. They had a son.

Early, he was named a Buddy Magazine Texas Tornado for his guitar prowess, alongside Stevie Ray and Jimmie Vaughan, Bugs Henderson, Albert Collins, Billy Gibbons, Eric Johnson, Junior Boy Jones, Willie Nelson, John Nitzinger, Lee Roy Parnell, Doug Sahm, and other Texas stalwarts.

The first copy of Guitar Magazine Wallace ever bought was the issue that had a feature about him in it.

“I was picking up a lot of tour dates with a lot of heavy guitar players. In the middle of all that, after my (first) wife got her CPA while I was on the road supporting her, she pretty much decided she wanted me to change,” Wallace said. “She wasn’t digging my lifestyle, being on the road like 265 days a year” for a dozen years. “I had bought a house. She decided it wasn’t working for her so I gave her everything but my guitars and an old car and took my first sort of break from music to reevaluate.”

Within two years, he’d put out an album, one of the four he’s released.

30 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

“It’s sort of like a dream for me,” Wallace said. “I’ve cared about two things in life: to have a family and to say something when I played music. I was never caught up with fame.”

He’s made peace of a sort with his first family, “but I haven’t had any of them in my life since I was 40,” he said.

He searched for and found his real father and, at 55 years old, talked him into doing a DNA test so he would know his real roots: Cherokee, Hopi, Hungarian gypsy, and British.

“I was in therapy for 10 years with a great psychiatrist. He said there’s no secret to why I play the blues.

“I learned to forgive them and forgive myself. I’m grateful for all of these things. All these things make me who I am. When I was playing more and more and more I was successful, but sometimes my decision was whether to feed the family or play music, I always elected to feed the family,” Wallace said. “Andrea was always at home with the kids. I started fixing guitar amps and sometimes I had day jobs for insurance.

“We came down here with $450. Sometimes I had $10 a day to feed my family.

We worked hard.”

In 2005, business began to dry up.

“I kid around about the Creator letting the world kiss my butt. It looked like we were going to be in a totally weird situation.”

Instead, both children graduated from high school. Both in their 20s now, their daughter recently returned from a teaching assignment in Japan; their son is heavily involved in theater and Andrea got her teaching certificate and has taught locally for seven years now, nominated three times for teacher of the year at her school.

Wallace met local attorney Jeff White, who introduced him to Brooks Gremmels in Ben Wheeler.

takes away from the music for me. When I play, I try to get to a clear mind and try to become the instrument.

“Another reason comes from when I first picked up the guitar, even at 8 years old, knowing I was living in lies. I asked my psychiatrist much later in life if I would intuitively sense all the lies and he said yes.

If I look out at the audience, it takes away from the performance. I don’t know. I guess that’s just the way I do it. That’s why I don’t break between songs.”

Wallace plays songs that mean something to him.

“When I played with Alex Moore, he said, ‘Man, I do it the way I do it, my way, and nobody else.’ In the blues community, if you dig it, you dig it. Then you find your own way to do it. I don’t play anything exactly like the records, although I did learn the songs like the records. The tunes I choose, some people may consider them darker than most, but they appeal to me.

I try to make them my own.”

Aside from his gigs at The Forge, Wallace doesn’t play much anymore. He’s played with Heather Little and with Matt Bradshaw at a couple of venues because he respects their talents.”

Of his own playing, his own solo work, his own evolving story, Wallace said he always wants to, in some way, make it new.

“Jeff and I went to Moore’s Store (in Ben Wheeler). I got up and walked around and when I got back to the table Brooks was sitting in my chair. He recognized me and told me they were doing a benefit for Ronnie Weiss (of Mouse and the Traps fame) and he wanted me to play,” Wallace said. “I told Brooks it sounded like a lot of great players were coming and that they don’t need me, “‘I ain’t nobody man, so why are you sitting here talking to me?’ I asked him.”

Soon, he was playing again. He sat in with Bugs Henderson.

“I was getting phone calls and people were always bothering me about not playing, so I’d go do some show,” Wallace said. “I didn’t even own a guitar so I would borrow one from Brooks.”

The night that Bugs died from cancer, Wallace called Gremmels to borrow the guitar again so he could play the next afternoon at The Forge.

“Nobody was there, but I played from three until six. Brooks asked me to play every Saturday after that. That’s why I’m playing now,” Wallace said.

Then Gremmels, the man most responsible for Ben Wheeler’s renaissance, died from an inoperable kind of cancer. Before he died, he vowed to make sure everything was in order to keep the renaissance going. One of those “things” was Wallace.

“If I can’t make it new each time I play there — every time I play — if I think of the drudgery of being in the same place, it’s not a lesson. It’s that each day is new.

One of the songs I always play is ‘Lenny,’” the Stevie Ray Vaughan song Vaughan named for his own wife. “When I’m starting to play these tunes, I’m trying to bring back memories of places and people.

When I play ‘Lenny,’ I’m back hanging out with Stevie at the Agora Ballroom.”

The Taylor acoustic guitar he plays isn’t his, Wallace said.

The songs are blues, rock, and even country, all turned into blues. He plays them with his eyes closed.

“I borrowed it so much, it sort of ended up with me so I still call it Brooks’ guitar. A couple of people said it would be mine when he died. I still say it’s his. It’s another way for me to be humble and grateful. John Coltrane said the ending is important in all things. When I went to Brooks’ memorial service, there were all these people from the 1970s and 1980s I knew. I know the ending is important in all things, and that the world is so small.”

“I used to look out (at the audience), but there are two reasons I don’t. One, it

The stories we know. The stories we don’t.

The endings all count.

“Brooks read me the riot act about six month before he passed,” Wallace said, “about me having this big chip on my shoulder. I didn’t see it, but I asked Andrea and she said yes. Now I’ve turned into ‘hello, how are you,’ that sort of thing. I still play my way.”

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 31

MUSIC

Great Vibes Fill the Autumn Air

By P.A. Geddie Upper East Side of Texas venues and townsfolk are bringing some pretty fantastic music to the region mixing with natures glorious early fall vibes to make this one of the best places on the planet to be.

Mineola is hosting a return of Golden girl Kacey Musgraves in concert September 26 at the Mineola Nature Preserve. (see article in this issue). It’s going to be so much fun to see how she’s grown as a performer since her yodeling days in East Texas.

The incredible Loretta Lynn plays at the Caldwell Auditorium in Tyler October 16.

Mount Vernon Main Street and Edward Jones teamed up to bring Walt Wilkins and Owen Temple to town September 17 for a concert they’re calling Soft September Night after a Wilkins’ tune.

The San Antonio-born Wilkins is an outstanding songwriter and storyteller, singing with his hard-edged vocals everything from Americana, folk, rock, country, blues, and soul whether by himself and a guitar, or with his talented wife Tina, or with a full band, The Mystiqueros, that he dubs “a living art collective, a hill country jukebox, one of the bands on the bill in honk-tonk heaven.”

For this show Wilkins teams up with Owen Temple. Rave reviews on Temple include his “songs are sophisticated and enlightening, offering a view of the Texas west that’s akin to Dave Alvin’s medi-

tations on mid-century California. He writes with a folksinger’s eye, observing intimate, interior details of every day life, and painting big, mythological sketches, ...” (Hyperbolium).

The one and only amazing Ruthie Foster plays at Liberty Hall in Tyler as part of the Art of Peace festival. Those who follow Ruthie Foster’s eclectic musical history know she can burn down any stage with her combustible blend of soul, blues, rock, folk and gospel. Her astonishing voice has taken her on full ride from humble church choir beginnings in rural Texas, followed by a tour of duty with the U.S. Navy Band, and ending up in Austin. Her list of achievements include numerous “best” awards and has her third straight Grammy nomination for 2015 Best Blues Album.

In Ben Wheeler, see the very talented Craig Wallace at The Forge every Saturday afternoon and he hosts an open mic every Wednesday (see story in this issue). The Forge hosts some good talent every Wednesday through Sunday including folks like Heather Little, Jimmy Wallace and Jerry Branch.

At Moore’s Store in Ben Wheeler see The Tejas Brothers September 11 with their Tex-Mex honky tonk sound that’s earned them accolades of being one of the best bands in the state. From their website, “The Tejas Brothers use the stage like a weapon, attacking your heart and poking at your funny bone. Their sound is unique, yet familiar — it’s like something brand new on top of something known and loved forever.”

32 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

A Texas Music Awards winner for best “Live Band of the Year,” Push Water plays at Moore’s on September 18.

Their Texas Country is a family affair with a father, son and two cousins that include Jesse Duke on vocals, rhythm guitar, Jerry Duke on bass, Eddie Duke on lead guitar and John Sunkes on drums. Their delightfully twangy, good harmonies, on “In the Ground,” their first music video, is gaining popularity on YouTube.

The Wesley Pruitt Band takes the Moore’s stage September 26 playing “Texas music with soul.” They play all kinds of music, some originals, some blues and Allman Brothers covers, or an Elvis medley, and even honky tonk tunes.

Often billed as Texas Country, Max Stalling has a sound that’s totally unique to him and it’s loved by fans all over the world. He’ll take the Moore’s stage October 17 and debut songs from his brand new CD, Banquet (see article in this issue).

Putting anybody in a party mood, Cajun funk band Zydeco Stingrays plays the Moore’s stage October 24 to help close out the hilariously fun Fall Feral Hog Festival.

Stanley’s Famous BBQ is well known for bringing some totally different performers to East Texas, often from the Austin music scene. Soul Track Mind is in Stanley’s house September 25 with their original sound that blends soul, continued on page 34

Stalling Releasing Banquet

Mount Vernon Main Street and Edward Jones present

WALT WILKINS OWEN TEMPLE

Soft September Night Thursday

September 17, 2015

By Tom Geddie Banquet is what we expect from a Max Stalling album: a feast of that familiar, welcome voice on quality, well-developed songs that respect country traditions. We get 11 songs that share stories of life that’s sometimes as good as it should be.

There’s “Convenient Lovers,” a fun duet with Andie Kay Joyner about a welder who’s been married a couple of times and the waitress at the Smoke House Inn who needs his services.

There’s the interesting juxtaposition of “You’d Better Be” dancin’ in the kitchen “holdin’ on to love when I come to town,” whenever that is. “You’ll know me by the gleam in people’s eyes,” he sings. Then, “I been here for all these years, and you just don’t see me, stare right through me, walk right by me.”

The most strikingly different song among the 11 is the delicate “All the Way,” which I’m tempted to call folk, although that’s just a label like “country” is a label. The song begins with a mention of a celebration, from Baltimore to Boston, for soldiers coming home, followed by the acknowledgement that “we were not soldiers and we had not

been so far as to justify parades,” and the question that, if you might pass yourself on the side of some lost highway, “would you stop and help yourself?”

On the mix of contemplative and upbeat songs, we also get a little bit of name dropping (Boone and Little John, certainly familiar to the Dallasarea Americana crowd), some beautiful Texas sunshine and bluebonnets, the smiles on people’s faces but it’s time to move on; some unwelcome carousing; a character study of a young man whose every step is a parade; and some life philosophy.

Stalling wrote nine of the songs, including co-writes with Jason Boland, Mark David Manders, and Heather Stalling.

He covers Doug Sahm’s “Beautiful Texas Sunshine” and John Lennon/Paul McCartney’s “Two of Us.” Stalling is joined on harmony vocals by Joyner and Heather Stalling (who also plays fiddle). Lloyd Maines produced and played rhythm guitar, pedal steel, and Dobro, joined by Jason Steinsultz (bass, harmony vocals), Bryce Clarke (electric and acoustic guitars), Tom Lewis (drums), and Riley Osbourne (piano and organ).

7:00 to 10:00 p.m.

Cultural Arts Center Courtyard 100 Rusk Street Mount Vernon, TX 75457 $20 Tickets available at eventbright.com or in Mt. Vernon at city hall or Edward Jones.

903.537.4070 facebook.com/ mountvernonmainstreet

f EDITOR’S NOTE: Max Stalling’s new album, Banquet, “hits the streets” around October 1. He’s planning at least one Northeast Texas CD release party at Moore’s Store in Ben Wheeler October 17.

Concert goers at Rally Round Greenville September 19 may be lucky enough to hear a few of these new tunes as well.

Visit maxstalling.com for other tour dates and CD information.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 33

MUSIC continued from page 32 funk, and rock with elements of R&B, blues, and jazz. Band members Michael Ingber (drums), Jonathon Zemek (guitar), Donovan Keith (vocals), Michael Culbertson (sax), Shane Walden (trumpet), Rudy Eccles (bass), and Andrew Nolte (keys) are often lauded in print for their intricate instrumentation, high-speed horn solos, and impressive vocal range, and as the Huffington Post declares they are “a cultural exclamation point about American music.”

The London Souls hit the Stanley’s stage October 23 with some hard hitting rock and roll. The London Souls’ are Tash Neal on guitar and vocals and Chris St. Hilaire on drums and vocals. Hailing

from New York City, they built a fervent and dynamic fan base leveraged by their ever sustained reputation for consistently well-rehearsed and impassioned, explosive live performances. The band’s celebrated sound and spirit draws significant influence from the driving force of British rock pioneers Cream and Led Zeppelin to billowing and bouncing funk and soul, to the layered harmonies and memorable hooks of The Beatles and The Hollies, to the contemporary psychedelia of My Morning Jacket among many more.

On October 30 an Austin favorite, and fast-growing East Texas favorite too, Uncle Lucius performs at Stanley’s.

Discover the East Texas Oil Fields of the 1930s

Called “Southern rock for the thinking man” the band doesn’t shy away from doing things their own way and quotes philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti and mythologist Joseph Campbell in the same breath as Willie Nelson.

Their quest for authenticity is paying off with fans across the nation.

Taking The Bowery Stage in Winnsboro this season are local favorites Adler & Hearne on September 12.

The duo is officially deemed Texas Touring Artists of the Texas Commission on the Arts and after a few years touring the country they are happy to spend some time closer to home. continued on page 36

NOMINATIONS

OPEN

September 1 - November 15

BEST OF 2015 The East Texas Oil Museum is located on the campus of Kilgore College in Kilgore, Texas. This fascinating museum houses the authentic re-creation of oil discovery and production in the early 1930s from the largest oil field inside U.S. boundaries.

MUSEUM HOURS Tues-Sat 9am - 4pm April-Sept 9am - 5pm Sun 2-5p.m.

Hwy. 259 at Ross St, Kilgore, Texas On the Kilgore College Campus, 903.983.8295

www.EastTexasOilMuseum.com 34 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

Cast your nominations for your favorite people, places, food, and other things in the Upper East Side of Texas. Winners are announced in the January/February 2016 issue.

county line

www.countylinemagazine.com

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 35

MUSIC continued from page 34 On October 10 The Bowery Stage hosts the amazing bluegrass band from the Czech Republic, Druha Trava. Their “Czechgrass” music is a fusion of acoustic, bluegrass, folk and rock and even has elements of jazz and classical motifs -- audiences are never disappointed.

Rounding out this early fall season on The Bowery Stage is Bing Futch on October 24. He uses the Appalachian mountain dulcimer, Native American flute, ukulele, drums and electronic effects to present traditional and modern Americana with passion, with and a genuinely big heart for sharing music.

Rally Round Greenville celebrates their 10 year anniversary September 18-19 with free concerts by the ultimate party group Emerald City Band that’s played at the White House twice, classic rock tribute bands, and country talents Max Stalling, Josh Ward, 8 Ball Aitken, and more.

MUSIC Every Wednesday

Unplug & Wine Down. Ben Wheeler. Live acoustic music. Moore’s Store. 903.833.5100. mooresstore.com.

Every Monday-Saturday

Live Music. Tyler. Stanley’s Famous, 525 S. Beckham Ave. 903.593.0311. stanleysfamous.com.

Greenville hosts the Bob Wills Fiddle Festival again this year with legends Ray Benson, Asleep at the Wheel, Charley Pride, and Leon Rausch October 15-18.

Every Saturday

Craig Wallace. Ben Wheeler. 3-6 p.m.

The Forge Bar & Grill, 1610 FM 279.

903.833.5970. theforgebenwheeler.com.

The list goes on and on with tons more great music at the many festivals and special events held during this harmonious time of year. See the listings in this issue and at countylinemagazine.com.

September 11

Tejas Brothers. Ben Wheeler. Moore’s Store.

903.833.5100. mooresstore.com.

OCTOBER 15 - 18, 2015 Downtown Greenville, Greenville, Texas Texas Downtown

Thursday “ making of ‘ still the king ’ & “ tales of the texas playboys ” WITH RAY BENSON AND SPECIAL GUESTS @ THE TEXAN THEATER

Friday Saturday

WITH HOT CLUB OF COWTOWN asleep at the wheel @

THE GREENVILLE MUNICIPAL AUDITORIUM AS PART OF THE KENNETH THREADGILL CONCERT SERIES

charley pride

WITH SPECIAL GUEST LEON RAUSCH AND THE WESTERN FLYERS

@ THE GREENVILLE MUNICIPAL AUDITORIUM

Sunday fiddle contest finals & awards @ THE GREENVILLE MUNICIPAL AUDITORIUM

VISIT

bobwillsfiddlefest.com

(FREE ADMISSION)

FOR DETAILS AND showtimeatthegma.com FOR TICKET INFO FOLLOW US @ dtgreenvilletx

36 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

September 12

Charley Pride takes the stage Saturday at the GMA with special guests Leon Rausch and the Western Flyers. The fiddle contest finals and awards take place Sunday at GMA. 903.455.1510. bobwillsfiddlefest.com.

etc. 7 p.m. $6-$15. Palestine Civic Center, Loop 256 @ Hwy 19. 903.729.7080.

J.D. Souther. Linden. 8 p.m. $50. Music City Texas Theater, 08 Legion St. 903.756.9934. musiccitytexas.org.

October 16

October 24

September 17

October 17

Adler & Hearne. Winnsboro. The Bowery Stage @ Winnsboro Center for the Arts, 200 North Market Street. 903.342.0686. winnsborocenterforthearts.com.

Soft September Night with Walt Wilkins and Owen Temple. Mount Vernon. $20. Cultural Arts Center Courtyard, 100 Rusk Street.

903.537.4070. facebook.com/mountvernonmainstreet.

Max Stalling. Ben Wheeler. Moore’s Store.

903.833.5100. mooresstore.com.

Frank Martin Gilligan. Edom. 7:30 p.m. $12/$15. The Old Firehouse, 8241 FM 279.

903.852.2781. theoldfirehouse.net.

Loretta Lynn. Tyler. $45-$50. Caldwell Auditorium, 300 S. College Ave. ticketstorm.com.

Zydeco Stingrays. Ben Wheeler. Moore’s Store.

903.833.5100. mooresstore.com.

Palestine Dogwood Jamboree. Palestine.

The autumn performance is held in conjunction with the annual Hot Pepper Festival in Palestine. The show features Classic Country music, patriotic, bluegrass, gospel,

Bing Futch. Winnsboro. The Bowery Stage, 200 North Market Street. 903.342.0686. winnsborocenterforthearts.com.

September 18

Pushwater. Ben Wheeler. Moore’s Store.

903.833.5100. mooresstore.com.

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Wesley Pruitt Band. Ben Wheeler. Moore’s Store. 903.833.5100. mooresstore.com.

Kacey Musgraves. Mineola. $25-$150. 3 p.m.Midnight. Opening, John & Jacob, Wade Bowen, and local talent. Bring lawn chairs or blankets. No coolers, outside food or drinks, or pets allowed. Proceeds from the event to art and music programs in the Wood County school system. $25-$150. 3 p.m.-Midnight.

Mineola Nature Preserve. 903.646.3652. kaceymusgraves.com.

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Bob Wills Fiddle Festival & Contest. Greenville. Thursday events include the “Making of Still the King” and “Tales of the Texas Playboys” with Ray Benson and special guests at The Texan Theater. Friday, the Kenneth Threadgill Concert Series presents Asleep at the Wheel with Hot Club of Cowtown at the Greenville Municipal Auditorium (GMA).

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Jeans ‘n Classics Annual Concert. Marshall.

The Music of Queen featuring the Marshall Symphony Orchestra and the East Texas Baptist University Choir and the Matthew Davidson Band. $30. Downtown Marshall.

903.935.4484. marshallartscouncil.org.

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Ruthie Foster. Tyler. 8 p.m. $20/$25. Liberty Hall. 903.595.7274. libertytyler.com.

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FOOD & DRINK

Athens Welcomes New Winery

By Sherrie Skeeters 3 P’s in a Vine Winery and Vineyard is Athens’ newest establishment offering the finest wines made from grapes grown in Texas. The beautiful log winery is built on 12-acres and features indoor and outdoor seating for tasting pleasure.

Enjoy wine tastings in front of the stone fireplace or at the bar. Relax on the patio overlooking the vineyard under the bright starry skies of East Texas.

3 P’s in a Vine is a dream come true for owners Brett and Rae Priestley. In 2012, Brett was doing carpentry work for a local doctor who had a small vineyard of Blanc Du Bois grapes. He was relocating and offered Brett the eight-year old vines and all the post, irrigation, and wine making equipment. Brett had to dig up each vine and transplant it onto their land. In the process of getting the vines transplanted, they only lost one vine out of nearly 100.

After two years of growing the vines and propagating new vines, they came up with the idea of having their own winery. The winery overlooks the vineyard.

Rae’s daughter came up with the name 3 P’s in a Vine, the three P’s representing their last name.

The family hopes to give everyone a great, relaxing experience when they visit the winery and vineyard and they are excited to provide their customers with some of the finest wines. All of

Open 24/7 Full Menu Breakfast Anytime!

Hwy 19 near I-20

903-567-6551

www.dairypalace.com

their wines are made from grapes that are Texas grown.

The Priestleys feel strongly about educating their patrons on the quality of wines that they can produce here in Texas. Their goal is to have people come to 3 P’s in a Vine and have them leave with a greater appreciation of Texas wine, and feel like they had a great experience at their winery that will make them want to return again and again.

east F T E X A S

SUBSCRIBE

38 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

Located at 955 Douglas Road in Athens, the winery is open Friday through Sunday. For more information about 3 P’s in a Vine Winery, visit www.3psinavine. com or on Facebook for information on live music and special events.

For more information about Athens including other local wineries, things to do and see, accommodations and upcoming events, visit www.AthensTX.org or call 1-888-294-2847 to request a free visitor’s guide.

Red Moon Farm Shares Organic Crops

By Lyndsay Caldwell Tucked down a county road near Van is an impressive family-owned farm with a host of organic vegetables and flowers.

The farm includes 40 acres, six of which hold the vegetable-producing garden.

Justin and Jessica Bullock are the owners and farmers at Red Moon while Jessica’s mom Melinda manages the flower gardens.

“We moved here about three years ago from Pennsylvania where we managed another farm,” Bullock said. “Jessica also worked on a raw milk farm there.”

In addition to being part of the farming team, Jessica works full time at nearby Mercy Ships and provides birth doula services across East Texas and crafts a line of organic herbal body care products from medicinal plants grown on the farm. Visit nobarriersbirth.com to find out more.

The farm is divided into half-acre zones and is rotated seasonally for higher production yields. Currently the farm hosts squashes, melon, cucumber, tomatoes,

eggplant, okra, basil, multiple pepper variations, and Malabar spinach.

the squash bugs from flying from plant to plant and doing detrimental damage.

The farm has a weekly Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program that services people in Dallas, Tyler, and East Texas. Members commit to buying fresh farm produce for a season and the Bullocks commit to growing it for them ensuring a steady stream of freshly harvest vegetables just about year round.

“You can’t get rid of the squash bugs, but you can make it harder for them to get to the plants,” Justin said.

“We have about 80 people currently but we normally do 100-120 boxes,” Bullock said. “We lost a lot of our spring crops and some of our summer crops due the torrential rains after planting so that has slowed our numbers a little bit.”

The CSA boxes may be ordered for two to four people and are available for pick up at the farm.

While the farm is not completely organic certified, Justin said their practices meet the requirements.

They use cover crops such as millet and iron and clay pea to deter bugs and shade plants. These cover crops help prevent

September and October yields bell peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, okra, greens, turnips, radishes, and bok choy.

“We will harvest up until Christmas. From about mid-November through the end of December we will harvest arugula, broccoli, cabbage, beets, brussels, and carrots.

Justin spoke of future plans to expand the farm operations.

“We would like to start integrating animals in the future. We could likely graze sheep and raise broiler chickens.”

Red Moon farm is a regular at the Rose City Farmers Market next to Jul’s restaurant on Old Jacksonville Road in Tyler where they sell their seasonal vegetables as well as fresh cut flowers and homemade soaps. Learn more about them at redmoonfarmtx.com.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 39

Green Chile Cornbread by Chef Lyndsay Caldwell

Best Steakhouse

County Line Magazine Hall of Fame

¾ cup shredded sharp cheddar ¾ cup shredded pepper jack cheese ¼ cup all purpose flour 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. baking powder ½ cup buttermilk 1 egg 1 4.5 oz can green chiles 2 tsp. fresh chives Combine cheddar and pepper jack cheese in a small bowl. Whisk together cornmeal, flour, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl. In a separate

Tuesday & Wednesday

DINNER SPECIAL

Mixed Green Salad Choice of Fresh Fish of the Day, Ribeye Steak, or Filet Mignon Served with Whipped Potatoes and Green Beans $26.00

FARMERS CITY OF ARP

MARKET

Top 100 American Steakhouses

bowl, whisk together ½ cup of cheese mixture, buttermilk, egg, and chiles.

Stir dry and wet ingredients until combined.

Preheat the oven to 425 with a cast iron skillet inside. Pour batter into the hot skillet and bake 20 minutes. Top cornbread with cheese and cover to melt; about 3 minutes. Garnish with chives.

FOOD & DRINK EVENTS September 19

Red River County Annual Stew-Cook Off. Clarksville. 5 p.m. $5. Fairgrounds at American Legion Park, US 82 Business East.

903.427.3868.

September 26

Pints in the Pines. Rusk. This special Adults Only (21 and older) train ride offers a relaxing journey through beautiful East Texas countryside. Passengers have an opportunity to sample eight beers/ales from Texas breweries with appetizers and live entertainment. Reservations must be booked by 5 p.m. September 23. $75. Texas State Railroad-Rusk Depot, U.S. Hwy 84 W, Park Road 76.

903.683.3451. texasstaterr.com.

October 18

25th Annual Taste of Jefferson. Downtown is transformed into a street filled with local food provided by restaurants, cafes, hotels and other businesses in the area. Buy a ticket to try all food provided and then vote on favorite dishes. Noon. Downtown Jefferson.

903.665.2672. jefferson-texas.com.

OpenTable.com

Located in a beautiful lakeside lodge at 21191 FM 47 in Wills Point,one block north of Interstate 20, Exit 516 Open Tuesday - Saturday 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Available for Special Events

Make A Reservation

903.873.2225

www.fourwindssteakhouse.com 40 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

October 23-24

Wine in the Pines. Downtown Mount Vernon.

903.537.4070. mtvernonwine.com.

April — October

New Vendors Welcome.

No booth fees.

903.859.6131

November 8

Fall Foliage Brunch Train. Palestine. Reservations must be booked by 5 p.m. November 4 . $50-$80. Texas State Railroad-Palestine Depot, U.S. Hwy 84 E, Park Road 70. 903.683.3451. texasstaterr.com.

Enjoy Farmers’ Markets in the Upper East Side of Texas

SOME OPEN YEAR ROUND. CHECK WEBSITES FOR DAYS AND TIMES AND INDIVIDUAL MARKET AND FARM OFFERINGS.

GREENVILLE GreenvilleFarmersMarket.com • MINEOLA MineolaFarmersMarket.com MOUNT PLEASANT MtPleasantTx.com • PARIS ParisTexas.gov MOUNT VERNON facebook.com/MountVernonTxFarmersMarket ROCKWALL RockwallFarmersMarket.org • SULPHUR SPRINGS SulphurSpringsFarmersMarket.com WINNSBORO WinnsboroFarmersMarket.com SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 41

LIVING ROOM

Blue Moon Gardens Holds Annual Fall Festival

Blue Moon Gardens in Edom celebrates the beauty and bounty of autumn during their annual fall festival from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. October 10.

The nursery is decked out with pumpkins and gourds, herbs, vegetables, perennials, mums, and shrubs for fall planting.

Guests enjoy herbal snacks while strolling the lovely display gardens.

Free programs are held under a tent on the grounds and a charming gift shop is filled with candles, soaps and lotions, home decor and fashion accessories, many made by local artists.

Their famous scarecrow display is up only for the month of October.

Blue Moon Gardens is located 4.5 miles east of Edom on FM 279. For more information call 903.852.3897 and visit bluemoongardens.com. $3

EN

TR

Y

Reaching the market that counts for the Upper East Side of Texas

200,000 readers every issue in print and online.

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for the most cost-effective, results-oriented advertising.

903.963.8306 sales@countylinemagazine.com

Garden Gatherings Educate and Inform The Texas Master Gardeners Association presents a variety of programs to help guests develop their green thumbs. Most of the events take place at he Tyler Rose Garden, 420 Rose Park Dr, except for the Smith County Master Gardeners Fall Conference which takes place at Harvey Hall. Call 903.590.2980 and visit txmg.org to find out more. Upcoming First Tuesday seasonal gardening lectures are September 1, October 6, and November 14. They are free and start at Noon and are about 30 minutes with a Q&A session follow. Seating is limited and guests should bring a chair.

In case of inclement weather the program will move inside. Other events are noted below.

September 19

East Texas Garden Lecture Series. Tyler.

Dr. William C. Welch presents “Redesigning Your Garden-Give Your Landscape Pizazz.”

8:30 a.m. $15.

October 6

H

Smith County Master Gardener Fall Confer-

ence and Bulb Sale. Tyler. Timely gardening tips and topics are covered during the conference with bulb and plant sale following.

Bulbs, perennials, trees and shrubs suitable for the local area are offered. Free.

October 24

East Texas Garden Lecture Series. Tyler. Dr. Jared Barnes presents “Herbaceous Design-

COUNTY LINE MARKETPLACE

H Bar Hauling

2015 Fall Gun Show September 26-27, 2015

Saturday 9am-5pm • Sunday 9am-4pm

East Texas Garden Lecture Series. Tyler. Dr. David Creech presents “Camellias-The winter garden shouldn’t be boring.” 8:30 a.m. $15.

N WHEEL O G A W ANTIQUE MALL

GUNS, AMMO, KNIVES, POWDER, PRIVATE SALES, RELOADING SUPPLIES Adults: $8.00 • 12 and under free (Must be accompanied by a parent) Free Parking. Food Vendors on Site.

Sponsored by

Winnsboro Civic Center in City Park • 900 Wheeler Dr.

903.342.3666 • www.winnsboro.com

Pawpa’s House in the country

November 14

To advertise, call 903.963.8306 or email sales@countylinemagazine.com

Greater Northeast Texas

Hay. Equipment. Livestock.

Meeting all your hauling needs.

Derek Hazel 903.316.6091

Incorporating Annuals and Perennials Into Your Garden.” 8:30 a.m. $15.

Satellite • Wireless Internet Jacuzzi Tub • Hot Tub Fully Equipped Kitchen Handicap Accessible Near Canton, Ben Wheeler, Lindale, Tyler, Mineola.

One hour to Dallas.

1601 VZ County Road 1512 Van Texas

903.571.3620 • www.pawpashouse.com

Voted Best Antique Store

by County Line Magazine readers

12,000 square feet

Home Decor & Furniture

VintageVinylRecords,ArtPottery,Art Glass,Silver,China,Candles,FineAmerican and European Furniture, Texas Primitives, WesternCollectibles,Rugs,Gifts,Chandeliers, and so much more!

Open 7 Days, Mon-Sat 10-6, Sun 1-5

903-469-4321 7150 SH 31E • Murchison www.wagonwheelantiquemall.com

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 43

FEEL GOOD

Abracada-BRA Theme Set for Bras for the Cause

By Pud Kearns Bras for the Cause is one of the most unique charity events in Northeast Texas, raising money to benefit breast cancer detection and cancer patient services at Hunt Regional Hospital in Greenville. This year’s event takes place on from 6-8:30 p.m., October 8 in downtown Greenville.

At Bras for the Cause, local individuals and businesses are invited to create elaborately decorated bras and enter them in a competition. Each bra must have a title — the puns used are often hugely entertaining — and each entry must be ready to hang or display. About 150 bras are set up in exhibits at business locations along a three-block area in downtown Greenville. On the night of the event, the public is invited to come and see the bras and to vote on their favorites. There is no admission charge. All the downtown restaurants are open for the evening, and several have special menus, with a portion of the proceeds donated to the charity.

It’s free to enter a bra and free to attend the event. Bras for the Cause raises money by selling votes. Each vote costs $1 and the five bras raising the most money are presented “BRAbie Awards,” trophies made from Barbie dolls covered in pink glitter. Shameless campaigning is encouraged and that’s part

of the fun of the evening. Hundreds of people turn out to see the exhibit and pay to vote on their favorites. Bra-makers carry signs, dress in costume, offer homemade cookies and do anything else that will garner them more votes.

Online voting is available the week of the event on the Bras for the Cause website, www.b4tcgreenville.com. Tens of thousands of votes are counted during the evening.

founded Janice’s Closet, a program to provide free mastectomy bras and prostheses, lymphedema garments, wigs, and other supplies to Hunt County residents fighting breast cancer and other cancers, and assisted with purchase and operation of Hunt Regional Healthcare’s Mobile Mammography coach.

Recently, an exciting new project for this year’s proceeds was announced, the purchase of a state of the art “robot” that will sterilize, better than ever before possible, the treatment rooms and patient rooms in the Hunt Regional Hospital’s cancer center.

In addition to the “pay to vote” program, a panel of judges select BRAbie winners in seven categories, including “BRAiniac” (Best Use of Technology on a Bra), “BRAinteaser” (Best Name), and “BRAids, BRAds and BRAss” (Most Creative Use of Materials).

Each year Bras for the Cause selects a theme, and special tee shirts and merchandise are sold before and during the event. Bra-makers may enter a bra interpreting the idea, and a special BRAbie is presented to the creation that best reflects the theme, which for 2015, is Abracada-BRA! Winners are announced and BRAbies handed out to the proud recipients after all the votes and the judges selections are tallied, about 9:15 p.m.

Since its inception in 2009, over $300,000 has been raised, all which stays in Hunt County. Bras for the Cause

YAMAYOGA spa school retreat Massage. Aroma Touch. Reiki. Facials/Chemical Peels. Pedicures/Manicures.

Natural Hormone Replacement/Medical Weight Loss. Boutique. Infrared Sauna.

YOGA Daily Classes • Stretch • Beginner • Flow • Vinyasa & 200 HR Teacher Training 1023 S. Trades Day Blvd. (Hwy 19), Canton, TX 75103

WWW.YAMAYOGA.NET 903.567.0077 44 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

“Diamonds are a Girl’s Breast Friend” by Tommie Kerr was the 2014 top winning bra at Bras for the Cause in Greenville. This year’s event, to be held on Thursday, October 8, from 6-8:30 pm, features more than 150 decorated bras and is open to the public.

Life With Pets Moves to New Location

Counties Receive Awards for Providing Healthy Environments

Life With Pets has moved to the Brick Streets, at 300 W. Rusk St on the corner of College.

The independent pet supply store originally opened at 5304 Old Bullard Road in November 2013, bringing to East Texas a unique shopping experience for pet lovers.

The store carries necessities as well as items not found in chain pet stores like Molly Mutt duvets to assemble-your-own pet bed; interactive dog toys; specialty harnesses that are escape proof and fit any size dog; essential oil pet shampoos, natural supplements and treats, Nature’s Select pet food, gift items, Leanin Tree cards with a pet theme, and much more.

Proprietor Pamela Bombyk brings her knowledge, experience and a degree in Natural Health to use herbs, essential oils and homeopathy to address dog’s and cat’s health issues.

New items are received in the store every month, and special orders are welcomed.

The goal is a relaxing and enjoyable shopping experience where patrons can bring their dog and buy items that are healthy, great value, and enrich their lives.

They are open Tuesday and Wednesday Noon to 5 p.m., Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. and on Saturday from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m., as well as by appointment.

More events and info are on the website at www.alifewithpets.com. Reach owner Pam Boyd Bombyk at 903-714-2172.

Three counties in Northeast Texas were among the 20 in the state of Texas that received awards recently for providing healthy places to live, work and play. Angelina County received a Bronze Award and Smith and Wood Counties received Honorable Mentions.

The annual awards are presented by the Texas Healthy Communities Program, a division of the Texas Department of State Health Services.

Communities are assessed on eight indicators to determine their eligibil-

ity for recognition as a Texas Healthy Community. Environmental indicators include offering physical activity areas, healthy eating options, mother-friendly worksites and an evidence-based health curriculum in schools.

Policy indicators include a 100 percent smoke-free city smoking ordinance, an EMS system which maintains a rapid response time for cardiac events and treatment of stroke as an emergency in the community, with appropriate acute stroke treatment protocols in place.

When everyone else is running out of a burning building firefighters are running in.

Support your local volunteer firefighters .

Donate today.

Pure, serious, results-focused skin care!

Facials, Eye Treatment Waxing & Tinting, Chemical Peels

Michelle Lintner, Master Aesthetician 1023 South Trade Days Blvd Canton, TX. 214.862.5664

www.glowskinstudios.com

ft& SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 45

46 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

aCountrya Fall Gathering ANTIQUE SHOW & SALE • LINDALE Fri, October 23, 9am-4pm Sat, October 24, 9am-3pm

Mount Vernon Wine Festival Wine Tasting Capital of East Texas

Friday Oct. 23 5 pm—9 pm Saturday Oct. 24 Noon—7 pm ADMISSION $5

tastings $1 must be

21 or over

ID REQUIRED art. crafts. shopping food. live entertainment Downtown Mt. Vernon, Texas for more info 903.537.4070

Wine in the

6th Annual

American Country Antiques. Primitive Furniture & Accessories.

Textiles — Wool Weaving, Spinning. Folk Art and Demonstrations. $5. Food Concessions Available.

7644 FM 16W (East of Lindale)

903.569.0867

903.858.2465

903.439.5577

Pines

MAIN STREET ALLIANACE | WWW.MTVERNONWINE.COM

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 • COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 47

“The country’s calling.

Come on out here.”

Jay Novacek Texas Rancher Former All-Pro Tight End Dallas Cowboys

When they need to kick back, Jay and Amy Novacek head for the peace and quiet of the ranch. The good news is, you can too. For almost 100 years, Heritage Land Bank has helped Texans finance land, country homes or just about anything else in rural Texas. If you’re ready to answer the call of the country, take it from Jay and Amy - talk to Heritage.

Jay & Amy Novacek own a working ranch in Johnson County.

903.534.4975 • HeritageCounty.com EQUAL HOUSING LENDER

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