Fort Worth Magazine - February 2022

THE TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS OF FINDING LOVE IN THE FORT

METALLIC CAT: Meet the City's Most Famous Horse / HANDMADE: $3,500 Boots That'll Last a Lifetime

ON THE ROPES

Donald Curry, once one of the greatest fighters in the world, is in a dark place. Is CTE his biggest fight?

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The Expert in Montrachet

44

Love, Life, and Dating in the Fort

Dating apps, drinks, dentists, and dopamine. The peaks and pitfalls of dating are not for the faint of heart or heartsick.

BY SARAH ANGLE

54

Broken and Alone

Once one of Fort Worth’s most prominent citizens, today former boxing champion Donald Curry wanders an inescapable wilderness. His son believes he knows why: CTE.

BY JOHN HENRY

64

Metallic Cat: The Horse Who Won Titles, Hearts, and a Cameo on “Yellowstone”

By entering the rough-andtumble world of the Dutton family, cutting horses’ king deepens Fort Worth’s ties to one of the biggest shows going.

BY TYLER HICKS

72

Welcome to the Roaring 2020s

After a long hiatus, charity events made a big comeback in 2021, and local nonprofits hope to keep the momentum going.

BY MELISSA MITCHELL

the fort etc.

: know

12 Buzz

Let the water flow! Fort Worth’s ambitious, albeit highly scrutinized, Trinity River Vision at last has received some very good news: federal funding. The long-awaited infusion of cash money will allow for the construction of the bypass channel.

14 Calendar

Grab your friends and your onesie for the comfiest bar crawl around town, the day before you put on your face paint for the Super Bowl. Insert your Cowboys opinion here.

16 Fort Worthian

Brazilian native Andre Silva planted a ballet slipper into the Fort Worth ground almost 20 years ago, wowing approving audiences with his performance art and his compassion.

: live

18 Good Reads

Author Richard Gonzales discusses reading, writing, and running. “Running and writing require discipline, perseverance, and stress tolerance.”

20 Art

Muralist Jana Renee’s plan was merely to stop in town on the way to London. Fort Worth is a lot prettier because she decided to stay.

22 Travel

The Fossil Rim Wildlife Center is as close to a safari as many will ever get. And it’s just a short 60-mile drive southwest to Glen Rose.

24 Style

A comfortable yet refined look has never been more in fashion, and it’s a look that keeps on giving year-round.

28 Dream Street

An update on Fort Worth Magazine’s flagship annual event.

30 People

Steven Parker’s Morris Boot Company will take you back a few years. In fact, the closest thing to modern amenities is a sewing machine. But the boots? “They’ll last you a lifetime.”

34 4 Courses

Chef Michael Thomson takes us through a righteous fourcourse experience, closing with an ancho chocolate dessert soufflé … oh, oui, oui. De plus en plus.

38 Restaurant News

Two brothers with deep roots in restaurants introduce diners to V’s House, a veritable walk-through Vietnamese culture and cuisine.

: snaps

171 More than 1,200 attended the Step Up for Down Syndrome 5K and Family Walk in Grand Prairie. Dallas Cowboys legend Emmitt Smith was the keynote at the 37th An Artists’ Christmas.

CLOSE

184 Joe West owns a Nikon, but when a stunning image suddenly appears at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art, it’s best to capture it with what’s most readily available — an iPhone.

Despite having countless crushes, I didn’t date much in high school — aside from a cringe-worthy two-month fling my senior year that I wrongly presumed would end in holy matrimony. I normally attribute this reticence to my shyness spurred on by every other student having successfully made their way through puberty except me. I was a late bloomer long overdue for a spike in hormones. As a side note, despite my stillcracking voice and lack of facial hair, I did manage to navigate my way through high school relatively unscathed by bullies. Confidence showed up in some form halfway through college, which may or may not have coincided with my turning legal age to drink. This is when I met my future wife thanks to our regularly clocking in together during my 20-hour-per-week food service gig. We would date through my 20s, marry when I turned 30, and divorce just a couple years later. I’ll avoid the details other than to say it is what was best for our happiness.

This means I spent all of what many would deem “prime dating years” with a partner and was now suddenly hurled into a scene I had never experienced. To top it all off, I was also new to a city (this one). I often say what followed was my experiencing a decade’s worth of dating — and that romanticized search for a soulmate — in a couple years. I went on awkward blind dates. I went on phenomenal blind dates. I broke hearts. I had my heart broken. I became excited about potential partners, only to be let down in one way or another. I made lifelong friends (yes, through dating). I was anxious at times. I was distant at

Brian Kendall EXECUTIVE EDITOR

others. I had moments of insecurity. I had moments of self-assurance. The journey has been all at once chaotic, frustrating, and inspiring. While I still haven’t found my lifelong partner, I have discovered and become more comfortable with myself — my gawky 16-year-old self would be proud.

I’m unsure how many of our readers may relate (I’m routinely reminded that our core audience is married homeowners), but I offer my own personal anecdote as an introduction to Sarah Angle’s fantastic article (page 46) on love and dating in Fort Worth. It’s a sweeping piece that will make you giggle, think, and might even make you a little self-aware — much like a good first date.

Elsewhere in this issue, you’ll find two stunning features about Fort Worth champions. The first, our cover story (page 54) written by John Henry, visits the heartbreaking story of Donald Curry, a former welterweight champion whose life has been greatly altered by a suspected battle with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). The other, by Tyler Hicks (page 64), is about Metallic Cat, the local million-dollar cutting horse recently featured on Taylor Sheridan’s hit show “Yellowstone.” Yeah, we have a little something for everybody.

ON THE COVER: It took us more than a minute sifting through the University of Texas at Arlington archives, but we’re awfully pleased with the photo that landed on this month’s cover. The photo, taken on March 9, 1986, shows Donald Curry successfully defending his unified welterweight title against Eduardo Rodriguez of Panama.

Photo Credit: UTA Special Collections/Fort Worth StarTelegram Archives

Corrections? Comments? Concerns? Send to executive editor Brian Kendall at bkendall@fwtexas. com.

NEXT MONTH

Dream Street

Chef Scotty Scott

Top Dentists

Cardiovascular care just a heartbeat away.

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Let’s Chat

A few words from our readers

“The only thing that might make this better is if there was a picture of Jon somewhere in the restaurant with that big eyed surprised goofy smile he used to do from behind the register when I walked in.

“I’m getting sentimental.”

owner/publisher hal a. brown

president mike waldum

EDITORIAL

executive editor brian kendall

contributing editor john henry

contributing writers brandi addison, sarah angle, jessica breslin, tyler hicks, tina howard, michael thomson, jessica verzwyvelt

copy editor sharon casseday

ART

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MARKETING

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CORPORATE

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founding publisher mark hulme

@bougie.balloon I’ll have to say that I wasn’t a staycation person until my eyes landed on @hoteldrover and realized that Joe T Garcia‘s is walking distance. Now I want to have slumber parties with all my girlfriends there and romantic getaways with my husband.

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All’s Well That Ends Well?

Fort

Worth’s Trinity River Vision at long last receives federal funding.

BY JOHN HENRY

Fort Worth’s ambitious, albeit highly scrutinized, Trinity River Vision at last has received some very good news from federal funding authorities, with the long-awaited infusion of money that will allow for the completion of the final design of all project components and construction of the bypass channel.

U.S. Rep. Kay Granger (R-Fort Worth), the Republican leader on the House Appropriations Committee, announced on Wednesday morning that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had released a work plan that includes $403 million for the central city flood control project and development.

“This is a great day for Fort Worth,” Granger said in a statement. “Having experienced unprecedented growth since I was mayor, we are now the 12th largest city in the nation. But with growth comes responsibility. As the leaders in flood control, I thank the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for understanding that responsibility and addressing that need for Fort Worth. Our community will be safer thanks to their hard work and tireless commitment.”

“I also thank U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey for helping this project cross the finish line and Mayor Mattie Parker for her commitments to bring an unwavering community vision to its ultimate reality. Today, Fort Worth will be safer and stronger.”

Though the primary purpose of the project is to enhance an outdated flood protection levee system, dating to the

1960s, it will also double the size of the central business district, providing for more opportunities to live, work, and play — a new slogan for mixed-use developments sprouting across urban settings throughout the country. The project’s ancillary benefits, officials said, would be to enable economic development in underutilized industrial areas between downtown and the Stockyards.

Proponents have boasted that the project’s creation of 12 miles of developable waterfront will contribute more than $3.7 billion in annual economic activity and create more than 29,000 new jobs.

However, critics have since the project’s inception been vocal, denouncing the concept as a costly “economic boondoggle” merely disguised as flood control. They grew louder and louder as the costs of the project escalated well beyond the original estimate of $435 million in 2004. In fact, the estimates of final cost are now in the range of $1.2 billion, according to a consulting firm. Critics also alleged nepotism, pointing to the project’s executive director, J.D. Granger, Rep. Granger’s son.

Congress authorized funds for the project, but the money was never appropriated. Granger reportedly had planned to funnel money by deploying congressional earmarks, which, as it turned out, were banned during a policy change in the Trump era. Because of that change, the Trump administration had to vet the project and approve the funding. Disagreements with the administration over the project, however, stalled funding.

Mayor Betsy Price and Rep. Roger Williams also tried to intervene, receiving an audience with the White House to lobby, but to no avail.

Public confidence in the project hit rock bottom when three bridges — officials, citing efficiency in cost and execution, chose the option of building over dry land — required seven years to complete, instead of four as planned, because of various delays.

The budgetary concerns and scheduling delays only created more questions about the project’s scope and leadership. An examination by a third-party consulting firm was critical, recommending a change in the management structure of the project. In the aftermath, J.D. Granger was reassigned.

“This is the go-time moment we have been anxiously awaiting,” Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker said. “We had confidence in the Corps of Engineers and our federal representatives. This funding announcement delivers the certainty that will make our community safer and the green light for further investment in the area. This is an incredible moment in Fort Worth’s history.”

Officials say the 1.5-mile channel will expedite the flow of water where the forks of the Trinity River converge. The channel will protect about 2,400 acres, according to officials, and create an 800-acre urban island north of downtown for development, Panther Island.

“The Trinity River flood control project is a critical piece of infrastructure,” Veasey said. “I am pleased to have been a part of the bipartisan team that got this project over the goal line.”

Said Leah King, president of the Tarrant County Regional Water District: “This funding will update our levee system to reduce the risk of flooding to over 2,400 acres of Fort Worth neighborhoods. Tarrant Regional Water District is proud to be the Corps local sponsor to get the job done.”

Artist rendering of Trinity River Vision

» Nonprofit Coalition Acquires KKK Building on North Main Street

A local nonprofit coalition announced on Tuesday that it had purchased the building at 1012 N. Main St., the edifice that was once used as a Ku Klux Klan meeting hall and has sparked controversy for decades.

Transform 1012 N. Main Street says it plans to establish The Fred Rouse Center for Arts and Community Healing, a place, organizers say, will be “a space of truth, reconciliation, and liberation for the nation.” The repurposed building and its purpose honor the life of a Black butcher in the Stockyards who was lynched by a white mob in Fort Worth in 1921, the same year construction of the building began.

Last month, the city marked the 100th anniversary of Rouse’s lynching with a historical marker and broke ground on a memorial at the site of his murder at 1000 NE 12th St.

The purchase was made possible by a grant from the Rainwater Charitable Foundation, a statement says.

“I envision a crossroads where all of Fort Worth can gather, where every cultural group feels a sense of belonging, of being seen, represented, and listened to,” says Daniel Banks, board chair and co-founder of DNAWORKS, a founding organization of Transform 1012. “Where we celebrate the richness of our individual cultures freely and openly; and where repairing past harm and damage leads to greater respect and appreciation, creativity, and love — of self and one another.”

Adaptive reuse plans include transforming the space into a vibrant cultural hub with a state-of-the-art performance space; arts training and programming; services for underserved and LGBTQ+ youth; exhibit spaces dedicated to social justice and civil rights; a makerspace and tool library for local DIY classes; meeting spaces for racial equity and leadership workshops and community events; an outdoor urban agriculture and artisan marketplace, and affordable live/work spaces for artists- and entrepreneurs-in-residence. — John Henry

» FEMA OPENS DRIVE-THRU COVID-19 TEST SITE NEAR CHOCTAW STADIUM IN ARLINGTON

FEMA, THE STATE OF TEXAS, AND THE CITY OF ARLINGTON on Tuesday announced a partnership to open a temporary drive-thru COVID-19 test site near Choctaw Stadium, city and county officials said in a news release.

The testing site will open for a threeweek period in response to the rise of COVID-19 cases and the surge of omicron transmission, which is driving an increase in demand for testing countywide. The site, which will operate seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. through Feb. 8, will be located in Texas Rangers’ Sienna Lot M at 1205 Pennant Drive. The testing site can only be accessed by entering southbound on AT&T Way.

“The omicron variant has brought a pandemic high of illness that has triggered a demand for testing unlike anything we’ve seen in our journey with COVID thus far. We know testing is a critical tool in developing plans to mitigate the spread, and the community is understandably concerned about appointment availability and wait times,” says Tarrant County Commissioner Devan Allen in a statement. “We have been working diligently to increase capacity throughout the county, and I want to thank everyone who has helped stand up this new FEMA surge testing site near Choctaw Stadium so quickly.”

Testing is free and open to all ages. No insurance information will be collected.

Preregistration online is highly recommended, however, in order to provide contact information for results and to select an appointment time slot. Multiple people in the same vehicle can receive a test during the same time slot. A QR code will be provided for each person receiving a test and must be shown at the test site as appointment confirmation. On-site registration is possible, but preregistration is highly recommended to reduce waiting times.

Results will be available between 24 to 36 hours. To register, visit ineedacovid19test. com, select Texas, and Choctaw Stadium, Parking Lot M, 1205 Pennant Drive, Arlington.

The test is a self-collected shallow nasal swab test. Individuals will swab the inside of their nose with direction from on-site staff. Parents or legal guardians will need to swab small children. Anyone under 18 years of age will need a parent or guardian to register them online and their consent to receive testing.

Transform 1012 N. Main Street

*Please visit each event’s website for information on COVID-19 protocols.

FEB. 10

Sip N’ Shop

Support small businesses by spending an evening sampling wine and exploring what a variety of local vendors have to offer.

Neighbor’s House Grocery

500 West Seventh St., Ste. 175 neighborshousegrocery.com

817.334.0526

FEB. 12

5th Annual Onesie Bar Crawl

Grab your friends and find your favorite onesies for the comfiest crawl around town. Tickets must be purchased in advance.

Whiskey Garden West 7th 2800 Bledsoe St., Ste. 150

A Tchaikovsky Evening

FEB. 13

2022 Valentine’s 5K

Avoid the heart-shaped clichés with the Fort Worth Runner’s Club’s annual Valentine’s Day race, open to walkers and runners of all levels.

Fort Worth Runner’s Club

Trinity Park

Trinity Park Pavilion No. 3 2401 Trinity Park Drive valentine5k.athlete360.com

FEB. 13

Super

Bowl Watch Party

Celebrate Super Bowl Sunday with $4 Texas draft beers all day, pretzel platters for the team, and the chance to win prizes throughout the game.

Flying Saucer Draught Emporium

FEB. 17

The Cleverlys

Wielding the double bass, banjo, and fiddle, The Cleverlys take a comedic twist on the already offbeat sound that bluegrass music buffs won’t want to miss.

Billy Bob’s Texas 2520 Rodeo Plaza

billybobstexas.com

817.624.7117

FEB. 25

Fort Worth Opera’s Opera Jukebox

This one-of-a-kind concert allows the audience to become a part of the show by offering their aria requests.

Downtown Cowtown at the Isis 2401 North Main St.

Bass Performance Hall 525 Commerce St., 817.665.6000 basshall.com

FEB. 26

Mardi Gras at Fort Brewery

“Laissez les bons temps rouler” with a little beer and a whole lot of dancing at Fort Brewery & Pizza’s Carnival celebration.

Fort Brewery & Pizza 2737 Tillar St. fortbrewery.com 817.923.8000

FEB. 26 – 27

The Cowtown Marathon

Lace up your sneakers for the annual event featuring a 5K, 10K, relay, half marathon, and full marathon. Back to the old ways, race weekend is slated for the final weekend in February.

The Cowtown Marathon 2617 Whitmore cowtownmarathon.org 817.207.0224

MAR. 1 – 6

The Choir of Man

Imagine a pub concert like you’ve never experienced before ... but more! The show allows the audience to get up close and personal with the cast by sampling some pints from the fully functioning bar onstage.

Casa Mañana 3101 W. Lancaster Ave. casamanana.org 817.332.2272

FEB. 17

Artful Moments: Sports

Art aficionados and sports fans can come together over this dichotomous opportunity to explore athletic events with conversations inspired by artists and artworks in the collection, do some hands-on activities, and share experiences.

Amon Carter Museum of American Art 3501 Camp Bowie Blvd. cartermuseum.org

FEB. 3 – 20

On the Exhale by Martin Zimmerman

Sit in suspense while you watch what happens when a college professor falls for the very thing that changed her life.

Stage West 821 West Vickery Blvd. stagewest.org | 817.784.9378

MAR. 5

11th Annual GREAT AMAZING RACE Fort Worth

Assemble your team to compete in a not-soordinary race made up of a series of physical and mental challenges inspired by the hit television show.

Great Amazing Races Trinity Park 2401 University Drive greatamazingraces.com

MAR. 5

Goat Yoga Fort Worth

Few yoga flows are as fun as this one where you can give a good sunrise salutation to the goats that will be grazing and jumping around (and maybe even on) you during the class.

Goat Yoga Dallas & Victory Forest Community Center facebook.com/ victoryforestCFW 3427 Hemphill St.

MAR. 4 – 5

Dinosaur World Live

Whether you’re a die-hard dinosaur fan or tend to stray away, you’re sure to be impressed by the remarkably lifelike creatures brought to the stage.

Downtown Cowtown at the Isis downtowncowtown.com 2401 North Main St.

BY JILLIAN VERZWYVELT

BY

Andre Silva

Professional Dancer, Choreographer, Social Media Influencer

PHOTO

OLAF GROWALD

Born and raised in Brasilia, Brazil, Silva was only 17 years old when he leapt at the opportunity to join Texas Ballet Theater (TBT) under the artistic direction of Ben Stevenson, O.B.E., in 2003.

“I’m so in love with what I do that it was such an honor to be in a professional company at such a young age,” he says.

As a company member for 12 seasons, Silva has performed several leading roles and, over the last 10 years, has plunged into the choreographic side of the creative process. When comparing choreography and dance, Silva describes the latter as a guided practice, delivering what someone else wants you to do. With choreography, you have to consider everything — the music, the counts, and more.

“I’m always listening for and discovering new music I can use to create a piece,” he says.

Silva has secured choreographic gigs across the country, and he was feeling as if he had finally found his voice when the pandemic hit in mid-2020. Left without a platform to perform, Silva took to TikTok and Instagram to create dance-related

content and explore new styles. But the pandemic also brought about a new wave of homelessness Silva saw around his home downtown.

While scrolling through his TikTok feed, he happened upon a choreographic competition hosted by New York-based singer Frankie Zulferino for a prize of $1,000 and inspiration struck. Silva entered and was selected as the winner from among more than 1,000 participants. He donated his entire award to True Worth Place in Fort Worth.

“I wanted to help but didn’t have the money at the time,” he says.

“Then, I saw this competition and knew right away what I could do.”

As Silva continued to post, his following continued to grow. Collectively, Silva’s social media accounts have garnered nearly 70,000 followers. In the beginning, it was a platform for exploration and expression. Today, Silva considers himself to be a burgeoning social media influencer with the goal of inspiring people to be their best selves and pursue what they love to do.

“I just enjoy being able to support the community in every way I can — whether that’s donating money or sharing my art,” Silva says.

1. Enjoying a morning cup of coffee. 2. Celebrating a successful show as Nutcracker Prince with Clara and the Sugar Plum Fairy. 3. Warming up onstage with fellow company member Nicole Van Enck. 4. Standing outside the Bass Performance Hall backstage door with friend Ashley Robbins and her family. 5. With one hour until curtain, Andre puts his focus in place backstage. 6. Following a year-long performance hiatus, Andre is back in the theater preparing

1 Tell me a little bit about yourself. I’ve lived in Arlington most of my life, graduating from the University of Texas at Arlington with a BA in English and Master of Science in social work. Most of my work life consisted of working as a hospital social worker and juvenile probation administrator. However, I plan to pursue my real vocation, writing, until I die. I’m a follower of the three Rs — reading, writing, and running.

2 What inspired you to begin writing for publication? As a Latino, I wished to share my perspective to readers who normally would not have read pieces about Latino culture, history, and issues. When newspapers and magazines published my pieces, I was motivated to continue writing for the public. In graduate school, I was voted by fellow students “most likely to publish.”

3 You’re a marathoner. How do you think running marathons and writing inform each other? Running and writing require discipline, perseverance, and stress tolerance. Both are long-distance endeavors that are normally done in solitude. At the start of training runs, I’ll plant a writing problem, and then as my subconscious goes to work, writing solutions pop up. Some of my most creative ideas have surfaced during my runs.

4 What have you read recently that you would recommend and why? I recently read Misery by Stephen King. Unlike some of his other works that focused on horror and the supernatural, Misery explored the psychology of the deranged fan, Annie Wilkes, as she tortured mentally and physically the writer Paul Sheldon. King wrote in a taut, focused, and lyrical style that kept me

Good Reads

Three stellar books to enjoy this February.

BY TINA HOWARD

1Raza Rising by Richard Gonzales

Based on articles written for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, author Richard J. Gonzales draws on his experiences, scholarly research, and eyewitness testimony to provide insight into issues facing Chicanos, their growth, and subsequent struggles to participate fully in North Texas’ political and economic life.

2

How to Be Human: An Autistic Man’s Guide to Life by Jory Fleming How to Be Human explores life amid a world constructed for neurotypical brains when yours is not. Through a conversation with Lyric Winik, we gain a unique perspective on what it takes to relate to others, seek understanding, and choose empathy. Jory and Lyric also grapple with what is a “disability” and how do connect with each other through our common humanity.

riveted. The story is troubling, but the character development, plotting, and writing are sterling.

5 What is next on the horizon for you? I’m in the midst of writing a novel where I recreate the turbulence of the anti-Vietnam War, feminist, Black and Chicano movements on a college campus. I’ve spoken to college students and am amazed at their lack of historical knowledge of the turbulent ’60s and ’70s. I hope my book helps to fill this knowledge gap in a literary way.

3

Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult

Jodi Picoult’s latest release tackles some of the issues the pandemic forced us to evaluate: What happens when our life plans go awry; what is truly important to us in life; and what does it mean to be resilient in the face of crisis? The book begins at the onset of COVID-19 in New York City, heads to the Galapagos Islands, and then returns home — where nothing remains unchanged.

Tina Howard, along with her husband, Todd, is the owner of Leaves Book and Tea Shop on St. Louis Avenue in the Near Southside.

5 QUESTIONS: RICHARD GONZALES

Fair.

Paint the Town

Jana Renee’s gift as a muralist is a blessing in full view for all of Fort Worth to see.

BY JOHN HENRY

Jana Renee’s plan was to move through Fort Worth like a cowboy on the Chisholm Trail. Her itinerary was a good night’s sleep or two, a refill on nourishment, and perhaps throw a few provisions in a knapsack.

And then hit the road or, more specifically, hop on a plane and head on to the old continent.

“My plans were to say ‘sayonara’ to my family and head to Europe,” she says of those best-laid plans that went, at least temporarily, awry. “I was going to go to London and continue studying sculpture at some of the universities there.

“I wound up getting ensconced here instead. I was here and had a place to stay. I immediately began bartending and getting involved in the arts scene, like, literally right away.”

She isn’t complaining about it. Renee is happy about her detour, and we’re all definitely quite delighted she has put down roots and made Fort Worth a home. Her impact — more an imprint — is all around us.

She doesn’t remember the details of when or where, but it was in all probability finishing up an art show in town. Katie Murray, a notable artistic talent in town, pulled Renee aside for a chat.

As Renee recalls: “She said some-

thing like, ‘Hey, do you do murals? We’re working on this project, and I think you would be interested.’” The project was in Inspiration Alley in The Foundry District, where industrial buildings have been transformed into a cultural experience with eye-popping pieces of art intersecting life.

Murray encouraged Renee to apply.

“I said, ‘Yes!’” Renee remembers with an enthusiasm that’s difficult to translate in print.

Renee had no formal training as a muralist, the discipline, if you will, she calls a combination of illustration and painting.

She has been a muralist ever since and currently working on a piece in downtown, soon to be another of her large-scale depictions that bring onceordinary walls in homes, businesses, and communities into the realm of architectural and social masterpieces for all the world to see.

Renee laughs now thinking about how she got to this time and space. Her family moved to the area in the late 1990s. Renee, 32, spent her high

Jana Renee’s art adorns many walls throughout the town, including Hotel Drover’s.

ART: JANA RENEE

school years at Boswell in Saginaw, where she graduated. She had always wanted to be an illustrator and, sure enough, was contracted to do a children’s book at age 19.

That turned out to be a very valuable learning experience.

“I kind of got screwed by the person I was working with because I didn’t know how to write contracts,” she says. “After spending months and not getting paid, I took my illustrations and went to school. I thought, ‘Oh, crap, I’m 19 years old and not this smart. I need someone to give me advice.’ I had jumped in immediately after high school and realized I needed more training.”

And experience. Who among us hasn’t sat in that seat?

Her roving odyssey took her to Boston and the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, one of the nation’s oldest art schools (founded in 1873) and with a list of notable graduates about as long as its 1,600-plus enrollment. The school emerged out of the Massachusetts Drawing Act, which required all cities in the Commonwealth with more than 10,000 people to include “drawing” in their public-school curriculum. These were the days of the Industrial Revolution, and many Bostonians believed that booming industry wasn’t the only way to evolve a nation. Art was as essential to a great nation, a vital economy, and the well-being of the citizenry. Look no further than London and Paris, they argued.

Something about the more things change, the more they stay the same comes to mind.

When Renee had completed her studies there in 2015, she came down to Fort Worth to see her family one last time before darting across the pond. Only she didn’t. Chalk that one up to circumstances, often as annoying as mosquitoes on a summer cookout, except that a spray can of toxins won’t ward them off.

That first mural in The Foundry turned out to be a collaboration with Hillary Dohoney, the result an extraordinary piece and spiritual experience. The mural tells the story of a Syrian

woman trying to escape with her children the grisly battlefields of the Syrian Civil War. Many tried by way across the Mediterranean Sea. Those who made it arrived to European shores scarred by the trip and the life they had escaped.

Renee calls this work a favorite of hers.

“I love collaborating with other artists,” she says. “There’s always a part of the idea that’s not yours. Hillary educated me on what was going on in Syria. I shield myself from the news if it’s affecting my art. She’s not like that. She dives right in. It was a very beautiful experience because I had never done it before. And I didn’t know I could do that. She’s a dear friend and an extremely talented artist. I was honored to work with her. We put our ideas together. My end of it was feminism and the pain some women go through and how they grin and bear it. And her end was Syria, what was going on with people being turned away and nowhere to go.”

Renee, who calls oil painting another “medium that is important to me,” has completed at least 26 murals in all since Murray asked her to apply for The Foundry project, including the Hotel Drover, one in the Fairmount neighborhood, a few at McFly’s Pub, and at Trinity Coffee Shop.

She has painted Western cowgirls, which she finds kind of funny considering her time spent in the Northeast. On the other hand, her mother is a horse person from California.

“When working with Jana on her first mural in Inspiration Alley, I instantly knew she was going to become a success story,” Murray says. “Watching her discuss and execute her artistic process from idea inception to finished product is both intentional and whimsical. She truly has an illustrator’s eye and a soul full of light.”

Renee’s latest work — a work in progress that is expected to be complete sometime this month — is under a railroad bridge on East Third Street in downtown. It’s a project undertaken by Downtown Fort Worth Inc. and BNSF Railway. Both are funding.

The mural is Henri Matisse-inspired

interiors of people in their homes, Renee says. It is an homage to the community that has been there in the past and is there now. Colorful bold patterns will be prominent in its makeup.

“The underpass itself is kind of a gateway between the neighborhoods where people who work in the city live and the city itself,” Renee says. “It’s meant to bring together all walks of life into one spot, similar to how you would do in a neighborhood.”

Renee believes one reason she was selected for the contract is because she had designed a gutter to filter the dirtand-grime runoff from the bridge and railroad tracks.

The catch on all this, of course, is if she had taken that fork in the road to London. We would not have this unique voice contributing to Fort Worth being such a unique conglomerate.

“I just want people to feel good when they see art, especially these past couple of years,” she says. “So much going on that’s not pleasant. A nice restful moment for the brain.

“Fort Worth has been a really lovely place to make art. I never expected to become a muralist. It’s like crazy doing these projects. Lately, I’m just happy to be here, which is nice because I’m not much of a Texan at times. Now they have me painting these cowgirls, and I think it’s very funny.”

Renee plucking guitar next to her mural on the banks of the Trinity.

Above the Rim

Glen Rose’s Fossil Rim Wildlife Center is bringing animals back from the brink of extinction.

BY BRANDI ADDISON

Apersistent ostrich forces his head through our passenger window, curious about the human looking back at him. After quickly rolling up our window, he, too, quickens his pace, trotting along the side of our car until something catches his eye, and he returns to his friends. Brake lights shine from the car ahead as it slows to a complete halt: A herd of zebras is eager to meet each human passing through. They appear familiar with the high-pitch shrieks of toddlers and the sound of our tires rustling over asphalt as we slowly drive forward. Soon, the eyes of hundreds of animals follow our movement as we roll down the narrow and winding road.

Each year, hundreds of thousands of visitors drive through the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, a conservation park in

Glen Rose, about 60 miles southwest of Fort Worth. For many, it will be the closest opportunity to a real-life safari.

The preserve, founded as a private exotic game ranch in the early 1970s, opened to the public in the mid-1980s when Fort Worth businessman and property owner Tom Mantzel’s hobby of collecting exotic hoofstock herds quickly transformed into a passion, says former executive director Kelley Snodgrass, who recently retired from his longtime position in December.

Nearly 40 years later, Fossil Rim cares for more than 1,100 animals — over half of which are threatened, endangered, or extinct in the wild — on its 1,800-acre conservation park site. In total, animals from nearly 50 different species consider Fossil Rim their home.

“The animals are why we exist,” Snodgrass says. “It doesn’t matter

who you are at Fossil Rim; you’re working for that mission and focusing on recovering those threatened and endangered species.”

Conservation efforts Although many tourists view Fossil Rim’s self-guided experiences as an alternative to the traditional zoo, it is unique in its commitment to wildlife conservation and natural habitat preservation.

Less than a decade after Mantzel purchased the property, he attempted to recover a species from the brink of extinction — the Grevy’s zebra — for the first time. From there, Fossil Rim signaled to the world its premier leadership in wildlife conservation and species recovery.

Park staff attempt, in many ways, to save the species they care for, including captive breeding programs, which complement their meticulous species recovery plans.

“It also involves a lot of research, conservation education, and professional training,” Snodgrass adds.

Gemsbok at Fossil Rim

Because of the park’s size, staff can care for intact social groups — a method statistically proving a higher chance of survival — and when the animals produce offspring, they are reintroduced through recovery programs around the globe. While in their care, Fossil Rim carefully prepares for the best conditions to maintain their natural behaviors.

Among the endangered species currently under Fossil Rim’s care are the scimitar-horned oryx, the dama gazelle — almost entirely extinct in the wild — and the reticulated giraffe, which the park staff is incredibly proud to breed, Snodgrass says.

The conservation center is also making strides in saving the Attwater’s prairie-chicken, possibly the most endangered bird in North America.

“Fossil Rim is one of four captive breeding facilities for the Attwater’s prairie-chicken,” says prairie manager John Magera of the Attwater’s PrairieChicken National Wildlife Refuge. “But it’s certainly the most robust of the four and, over the last 25 years, has produced the most [prairie-chicks].”

Habitat degradation and natural disasters — such as Hurricane Harvey and recent tropical storms near their primary habitat on the Louisiana-Texas coast — are the biggest contributors to the loss of the species.

Magera says the entire species’

existence currently depends on about 90 pairs in the wild, adding that this is only an estimate because they only count the males and double that estimate under the assumption that prairie-chickens exist in a 1:1 maleto-female ratio.

“You think that number is pretty low, but two years prior, it was 26,” he says. “The reason we were able to go

have meaningful populations of the wildlife that he chose to work with, to support a greater metapopulation,” Snodgrass says. “We hold to that today. We don’t have a lot of different species. Still, we’re working diligently to create significant populations to support the survival of the species we have well into the future and hedge against extinction.”

from 26 after Hurricane Harvey to 178 three years later is because of facilities like Fossil Rim. Without them, we could have never done that.”

According to Fossil Rim’s website, the center has hatched more than 6,000 prairie-chickens since it joined as the refuge’s first partner in the mid-1990s, accounting for more than half of the species population.

It is also one of North America’s most impressive cheetah breeders, tallying more than 223 cubs since 1986 when its first litter of babies was born. Snodgrass, who has worked numerous roles at Fossil Rim, says the cheetah is his favorite animal on the preserve.

With about 9,000 cheetahs total in the wild and captive, the cats are atrisk because their low levels of genetic variation make them more susceptible to disease. Snodgrass says that breeding is historically tricky in the global captive cheetah population.

“Fossil Rim’s founder wanted to

Ecotourism Tucked away in the Texas Hill Country, Fossil Rim is a not-so-typical getaway and offers a range of experiences — from the standard road tour to a weeks-long stay in a quaint cabin.

The Lodge, originally the home of Mantzel, is a bed-and-breakfast-style resort that offers individual animal-themed rooms and shared common spaces, including a newly renovated lounge, balcony, and kitchen. The Foothills Safari Camp cabin is located down a gravel road and overlooks the center’s most popular watering holes. It is a perfect spot for guests to view wildlife, both exotic and native, from their front patio.

Located halfway down Gosdin Scenic Drive, guests can meet Nause — a Nigerian dwarf goat — and Einstein — a 100-pound African spurred tortoise at the Children’s Animal Center. They may even hear a warm hello from Pearl the cockatoo and scratch the underbelly of Hamlet, their beloved pot-bellied pig.

The self-guided tour is a one-of-akind experience down the 9.5-mile Scenic Drive. Giraffes are the only animals that guests can feed by hand, though all the animals understand that each car means a fresh snack (really, it’s just pellets tossed to the ground).

“Fossil Rim is on this very broad continuum of efforts,” Snodgrass says. “I’m not going to say we’re more impactful than our nearby zoos. We’re just different.”

Wild turkey

Everyday Elegance

BY JESSICA BRESLIN

Loretta dress: Tanya Taylor, $495

Studded heels: $98

Pearl earrings: Ever Alice Studio, $97

Embroidered blouse: Alice + Olivia, $340

Pintuck short: Alice + Olivia, $179

Two-tone necklace: Jenny Bird, $89

Cardigan: Brodie Cashmere, $288

Crop jeans: AGOLDE, $188

Dream Street 2022:

The Finish Line

Touring for the three luxury homes in West Fort Worth’s new Montrachet development begins in March.

BY FWTX STAFF

This marks the last issue with only two pages devoted to the massive Dream Street project. In March, Fort Worth Magazine will go to press with a publication that will include 40 pages of content dedicated to the three jaw-dropping adobes being built in Montrachet.

The three builders, Heritage Homes, Windmiller Custom Homes, and HGC Residential Development, are finishing up the homebuild, and the interior designers will soon follow. Witnessing the process from foundation to the final furnishings

has been a phenomenal journey, and we’re happy you were with us every step of the way. Of course, this is only the penultimate story; the true payoff comes when you crack open next month’s edition.

Fort Worth Magazine’s March publication will be a wish come true for fans of local shelter content. In addition to photography of every square inch that these homes cover, the special edition will also include interviews with the homebuilders, interior designers, home designers, and architects. As these homes will display all of the latest trends in home design and decoration, the magazine will provide a great deal of inspiration for future homebuyers, renovators, and house flippers.

That same month, from March 5 – 27, all three homes will be open for touring: Thursday – Saturday

from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon – 5 pm. Tickets cost $20 and all proceeds benefit a Wish with Wings, a nonprofit that grants wishes to children with life-threatening conditions.

As the homes were built side-byside, walking from home to home shouldn’t be a problem in the spring weather we’re hoping to have.

New to this year, those touring can purchase tickets for a raffle that will also benefit the local charity. While prizes have not yet been determined, they will be shelter-based (e.g., home design or flooring services) and will make any winner the envy of their neighborhood.

For further information, including location, parking, and how to buy tickets, be sure to visit the official Fort Worth Magazine Dream Street 2022 website at dream.fwtx.com.

4616 ESPRIT

Builder: HGC Residential Development

Realtor: Christie’s International Real Estate | Ulterre

Interior Designer: Tori Rubinson Interiors

Appliances: Expressions Home Gallery

Cabinets Kitchen: The Kitchen Source

Countertop Fabrication: Absolute Stone

Countertop Materials: KLZ Stone

Doors Front: Durango Doors of DFW Doors Exterior:

Omniview Window and Door

Electrician: Mackey Services

Flooring (tile, wood and carpet labor, wood and carpet material): Vintage Floors

Flooring Tile (material all spaces):

Interceramic USA

Gutters: Loveless Gutters

Hardware/Cabinet Hardware: Pierce Fine Hardware & Plumbing

Home Plans: Karl Hahnfeld Design Group

Landscape/Irrigation/Grade: Guardado Landscpaing

Low Voltage/AV/Security: H Customs Audio Visual

Mattresses: The Original Mattress Factory

Patio Screens (motorized): Blinds Brothers Plumbing Fixtures:

Expressions Home Gallery

Pool: J Caldwell Custom Pools

Roofing/Flashing: WeatherShield Roofing

Stone and Brick Supplies: Metro Brick and Stone

4624 ESPRIT

Builder: Heritage Homes

Realtor: Martha Williams, Williams Trew

Interior Designer: Susan Semmelmann Interiors

Appliances: The Jarrell Company

Architect: Heritage Design Studio

Cabinets Kitchen: The Kitchen Source

Cabinets Master Closet and Other: Metroplex Cabinets

Countertop Fabrication: Stone Systems

Countertop Materials (all): Levantina

Drywall and Texture: Alliance Drywall

Electrician: C&B Electric

Fireplace Tile: Cosentino

Flooring (tile, wood and carpet labor):

Galvan Floors

Flooring (wood material): Riva Floors

Flooring Tile: Daltile

Framing: Lone Star Framing

Garage Doors/Openers:

Overhead Door Company of Fort Worth

Garage Epoxy Coating:

Premier Custom Floors

Glass (showers-mirrors-other):

Galactic Glass

Gutters: Loveless Gutters

Hardware/Cabinet Hardware: Rick’s Hardware

HVAC (materials and labor): Indoor Climate

Interior Climate Experts HVAC

Landscape/Irrigation/Grade:

Guardado Landscaping

Lighting fixtures (incl. landscaping):

Passion Lighting

Low Voltage/AV/Security: Multimedia Solutions Inc

Patio Furniture: Yard Art Patio & Fireplace

Patio Screens (motorized): Blinds Brothers

Plumbing Fixtures: Facets

Plumbing Labor and Supplies:

Pro Serve Plumbing

Pool: Leschber Designs

Pool Table: Fort Worth Billiards

Stone and Brick Supplies: Metro Brick

4632 ESPRIT

Builder: Windmiller Custom Homes

Realtor: John Zimmerman, Compass

Interior Designer: Amira Windmiller Interiors

Appliances: Factory Builder Stores

Artificial Grass:

WinterGreen Synthetic Grass

Cabinets Kitchen: The Kitchen Source

Cabinets Master and other:

Village Cupboards

Concrete: GHC Concrete Services

Countertop Fabrication:

American Marble & Granite

Countertop Materials (all): Levantina Doors Front:

Silverado Custom Door & Window

Doors Study: A&A Custom Iron Doors Corp

Electrician: C&B Electric

Fireplaces Interior linear plus inserts:

Overhead Door Company of Fort Worth

Flooring (wood and carpet material):

Skyline Floorscapes

Flooring tile (material all spaces): Crossville

Garage Doors/Openers: Open Up Garage Doors

Gutters: Loveless Gutters

Hardware/Cabinet Hardware: Pierce Fine Hardware and Plumbing Home Plans:

Montebello Architecture & Design

HVAC (materials and labor):

Southern Air Mechanical LLC

Low Voltage/AV/Security: Comware AV

Lumber and Trusses: Builders FirstSource

Mattresses: The Original Mattress Factory

Outdoor Fire Pit: Best Block

Plumbing Labor and Supplies:

Pro Serve Plumbing

Pool: Willow Branch Pools

Pool Table: Fort Worth Billiards

Roofing/Flashing: Texas Tile Roofing

Safe Room: Ground Zero Storm Shelters

Stucco (Material and Labor): MCD Stucco

Windows and Doors: Builders FirstSource

Getting the Boot

How a small shop on Montgomery Street is keeping the lost art of bootmaking alive.

BY MALCOLM MAYHEW

To step into Steven Parker’s boot shop is to take a trip to another time, maybe 100 years ago, before machines took the place of bare hands, before one-on-one meant FaceTime calls, before sweat was replaced by the tap of a keyboard.

Morris Boot Company, perched on Montgomery Street, right next door to another time warp, the vehemently old school Montgomery Street Café, is like a scene out of “Lonesome Dove” or “Gunsmoke” or “1883.” This is a boot shop where time and progress aren’t welcome; the closest Parker comes to modern amenities is a sewing machine.

A bootmaker most of his adult life, Parker is adamant about doing things the hard way — the old way, the way he was taught. Over the years, the 59-year-old Fort Worth native has worked in some of the city’s most high-profile Western wear stores and factories. But always — “always, always,” he says — in the back of his mind, he wanted his own shop, a place where he could make Fort Worth’s unofficial footwear by hand — an art that is practically taking its last breath.

“No one does it this way anymore,” he says, banging a nail into the heel of a boot, securing it in a way no machine can. “You have a problem with your boots, you call me, not an 800-number. But I’ll tell you what, you won’t have any problems with these. They’ll last you a lifetime.”

Surrounded by his hand tools of the trade and exotic hides from around the world that will, sooner or later, serve as boot skins, Parker spends his days — and some evenings and weekends — here, crafting boots in the same way a painter splashes colors across a canvas or a sculptor chisels out a statue. “No two pairs are alike,” he says, his lengthy salt-and-pepper beard drooping across his callused hands. “Nothing is pre-made. I don’t start working on your boots until we meet.”

Even during these COVID-19 times,

Steven Parker

he’ll only meet you in person at his shop. “I have plenty of face masks here, in case you need one,” he says.

Parker will then spend about 30 to 45 minutes with you. You’ll fill out a form in which you’ll specify your wants and needs; he’ll go over the form with you and take your measurements.

“The person who measures your foot is the person who’ll make your boots, and that’s me,” he says. “By the time we’re done, I’ll know every curvature of your feet, every bump, and your boots will be custom-made to address your uniqueness and idiosyncrasies.”

Parker takes pride in meticulously piecing nearly every component of his boots together by hand: the heel, the sole, the inlay. Stitching is sometimes done by hand, sometimes with a sewing machine.

It takes about four months for Parker to produce a pair of boots. At any given time, he concurrently works on six to eight pairs, documenting each pair each step of the way.

“One cool thing I do is send stepby-step pictures,” he says. “The first picture is the pile of materials I’ll use for their boots, with the caption: ‘Some assembly required.’ People absolutely love it. It keeps them in the loop, but it’s also a very personal touch, a document of their boots being put together.”

The cost of a pair of Parker’s boots hinges primarily on the boot skin. His least expensive pair costs a grand. That’ll get you a pair of bull hides with up to a 13-inch top, with custom stitching, in any color, heel and toe.

Prices go up to $3,500 — the cost of a pair of standard American gator boots. “I know that may sound expensive to me and you,” he says, “but you’d be surprised how many gator boots I make. They last a lifetime, and they’re so gorgeous. They’re hard to tear up so you can work in them. But you can polish them up and make them shine really good.”

Parker’s boot skins also include hippo, elephant, ostrich, water buffalo,

American buffalo, and a half-dozen other animals. “When I first started doing this, I found a company in Zimbabwe that specializes in skins from animals that died of natural causes,” he says. “No poached animals or anything like that.”

Morris has been open nearly 15 years, and Parker has worked there for nearly 10 years. But his bootmaking days date back decades, to 1978, when he was herding cattle in the Fort Worth Stockyards. “There was this old cowboy who taught me how to tool leather,” he says. “He said, `You’re good with your hands; you’re a natural.’ Then I got introduced to a bootmaker, a guy who insisted on doing everything by hand, and I never turned back.”

Bootmaking was always a side hustle, though, until he met John Morris, a fellow appreciator of quality, custommade boots. “It’s not every day you run across someone who’s as passionate about boots as you are,” Parker says.

The two went into business together, with Morris handling the business end of things and Parker handling the bootmaking.

“I have my wife to thank for this,” Parker says. “I never thought I could make a living doing this, but she kept insisting I could, kept pushing me to take a chance on it.”

Parker’s customers run the gamut, from young to old, from people who just want a nice pair of boots to show off on special occasions to real cowboys.

“All ages, all races,” he says. Parker wonders aloud, though, who’s going to fill his shoes when he retires — if and when he ever does.

“It’s good to know a lot of people still care about these types of boots, but it is a dying art,” he says. “I can hardly find anyone who wants to learn this work anymore. It’s mostly done by machines and assembly lines. I don’t know who’s going to do this when I’m gone.”

Morris Boot Company, 2006 Montgomery St., 817-862-3120

Get your heart back on beat.

As heart and vascular specialists, our team cares for all types of heart issues every day. And arrhythmias, also known as heart rhythm disorders, require special expertise. The heart rhythm team at Baylor Scott & White Heart and Vascular Hospital helps patients with arrhythmias minimize their risk of stroke and get back to enjoying what they love. If you or a loved one have been diagnosed with any heart rhythm disorder, like the most common one of all—atrial fibrillation—we’re here for you.

For more information about the Fort Worth Heart Rhythm Center, please call, 817.825.1374. BSWHealth.com/HeartFortWorth

4 Courses

Chef Michael Thomson, of Michael’s Cuisine on West 7th, shares his recipes for a delectable 4-course meal.

BY MICHAEL THOMSON

CHAYOTE SQUASH SOUP

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 baking potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

• 1 1/2 medium white onion, julienned

• 3 garlic cloves, whole, smashed

• 1/4 cup corn oil

• 6 chayote squash, peeled and diced with pit removed

• 1/2 gallon rich chicken stock

• 1 cup heavy cream

• Salt and pepper to taste

• Toasted croutons for garnish

Instructions:

1. Sauté the onion, potatoes, and garlic cloves in the corn oil until lightly browned and the potatoes are throwing off their starch.

2. Add chicken stock and simmer very slowly for 15 minutes.

3. Add the chayote squash and simmer slowly for another 25 minutes or until the potatoes and chayote squash are soft.

4. Add the heavy cream and season with salt and pepper.

5. Remove from fire.

6. Puree in a blender. Strain through a chinois into a clean container.

7. Chill in an ice bath and refrigerate until needed.

CHICKEN VELOUTÉ

Ingredients:

• 8 tablespoons butter

• 8 tablespoons flour

• 1 quart rich chicken stock

• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a small 2-quart saucepan, melt the butter, add the flour, and cook for several minutes to create a roux.

2. Add the chicken stock, mix well, and bring to a slow simmer.

3. Simmer for 15 – 20 minutes, skimming the foam from time to time.

4. Place in a 350 F oven, uncovered, for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and skim.

5. Strain the sauce through a fine strainer to remove any lumps.

TORTELLINI WITH SUN-DRIED TOMATO BASIL CREAM SAUCE

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds tortellini (multicolored if possible)

• 3 quarts sun-dried tomato basil cream sauce (recipe follows)

• 2 cups rich chicken stock

• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chiffonade

• Salt and pepper to taste

• Garnish:

• Parmesan cheese

• Cracked pepper

• Fresh basil leaves

Directions:

1. In a saucepot, heat the cream sauce to a simmer and add the basil.

2. Season with salt and pepper and, if necessary, thin with remaining chicken stock.

3. Cook tortellini in salted water until al dente and drain.

4. Add the cooked tortellini to the cream sauce and simmer for a couple of minutes to marry flavors.

5. Garnish with cracked black pepper, Parmesan cheese, and fresh basil leaf.

SUN-DRIED TOMATO BASIL CREAM SAUCE

Ingredients:

• 1/2-pound whole butter

• 1 cup shallots and garlic, minced

• 4 tablespoons fresh cracked pepper

• 1 pound sun-dried tomatoes

• 1 quart dry white wine

• 4 cups chicken velouté (recipe follows)

• 6 cups rich chicken stock

• 2 quarts heavy cream

• 1/2-pound fresh basil, stems and leaves

• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Remove the basil leaves from the stems and chiffonade. Set aside whole stems to cook with the tomatoes.

2. Rehydrate tomatoes several minutes in boiling water to soften. Cut into 1/4-inch julienne strips.

3. Sweat shallots and garlic in butter in a saucepot over medium heat until lightly browned. Add the tomatoes, whole basil stems, season with salt and pepper, and sauté several minutes. Add wine and simmer slowly until liquid is reduced by one-half.

4. Add velouté, four cups of stock, and the heavy cream. Whisk until well blended and simmer slowly for 10 – 15 minutes.

5. Remove all basil stems and discard. Add the basil leaves chiffonade and mix well.

6. Cool and refrigerate.

ROC-DOC SEA BASS Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 6 skin-on sea bass fillets (7 ounces)

• 6 teaspoons Roc-Doc Rub*

• 2 tablespoons Mazola corn oil

• 4 tablespoons whole butter

• 12 ounces chipotle lemon butter sauce (recipe follows)

• 6 tablespoons fried capers (recipe follows)

Directions:

1. Prepare the chipotle lemon butter sauce.

2. Season the sea bass with the Roc-Doc Rub.*

3. In a cast-iron skillet, over a medium flame, heat 2 tablespoons of corn oil until almost smoking.

4. Place the seasoned sea bass fillets in the pan and sear evenly on all sides.

5. Add the butter and continue to sear until crusted and deep golden in color — the fish should be cooked only to medium.

6. Remove the pan from the fire and place into a 350 F oven for 6 – 8 minutes to complete the cooking process.

7. To serve: Place 1 cup of mashed potatoes on a service plate. Set the cooked sea bass on top of the potatoes and top with 2 ounces of chipotle lemon butter sauce. Serve with vegetables of your choice, garnishing with the fried capers and a nice sprig of fresh cilantro.

*You can find the Roc-Doc Rub at Michael’s Cuisine. If you don’t have Roc-Doc Rub, you can use salt and pepper to season.

CHIPOTLE LEMON BUTTER SAUCE

Ingredients:

• 1/2-pound whole butter

• 2 tablespoons whole butter

• 1 teaspoon sea salt

• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper

• 1/2 cup minced shallots and garlic

• 1 cup fresh lemon juice

• 4 whole chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (canned)

• 2 tablespoons adobo sauce (from chipotle can)

• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions:

1. Remove the stems and seeds from the chipotle chiles. In a food processor, or blender, puree the chiles with the adobo sauce.

2. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a saucepot. Add shallots, garlic, salt, and pepper and sauté slowly until lightly browned.

3. Add the chipotle puree and sauté for several minutes more.

4. Add the lemon juice and reduce to 1/2 cup of liquid.

5. Whisking constantly, slowly add the remaining butter (cut into small pieces) until all is incorporated.

6. Remove from fire, add cream, and mix well.

7. Strain sauce through a fine strainer and salt and pepper to taste.

FRIED CAPERS

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup capers (drained of liquid)

• 1/2 cup olive oil

Directions:

1. In a small skillet, heat the olive oil until almost smoking.

2. Add the capers and fry for several seconds until popped like popcorn.

3. Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels to remove all oil.

ANCHO CHOCOLATE DESSERT SOUFFLÉ

Ingredients

• 1 quart ancho chocolate pastry cream, room temperature (recipe follows)

• 1 cup reserved egg whites for meringue

• 1 cup sugar for meringue

• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar salt

• 2 cups Grand Marnier crème anglaise (recipe follows)

• 1 orange for “zested” garnish

• 1 shaker can powdered sugar

• 6, 8-ounce souffle ramekins

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.

2. Remove plastic wrap from the pastry cream, and in a large stainless/glass mixing bowl, whisk until smooth.

3. In a deep bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the egg whites on mediumhigh speed until frothy and add the cream of tartar and salt. Mix well.

4. Increase the speed to high and slowly add the sugar, beating until the egg whites form stiff peaks.

5. Using a large rubber spatula, fold one-third of the meringue into the pastry cream and mix well.

6. Add the remaining meringue to the pastry cream and, using the rubber spatula, gently fold, down the sides from top to bottom and up the center, just until no white streaks remain, keeping the mixture light, airy, and smooth.

7. Fill the soufflé cups almost full. The cups must be filled with a straight edge, so lightly tap the cup on a cutting board to settle the batter level. Run your thumb around the inside rim of the soufflé cups to keep the batter from sticking and help the soufflés rise for a cleaner final presentation.

8. Place the soufflé cups onto a parchment paper-lined, large baking sheet and place in the preheated oven. Bake for 16 – 22 minutes.

9. Your soufflés should be served immediately from the oven with a quick sugar dusting on top and garnish before they have any chance to deflate.

ANCHO CHOCOLATE PASTRY CREAM

Ingredients:

• 2 1/8 cups milk

• 1/2 teaspoon ancho powder

• 3/4 cup cocoa powder

• 6 egg yolks

• 1/2 cup flour

• 3/4 cup sugar

• 1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla

• 2 1/2 tablespoons Kahlua

• 3 ounces butter

• 1 1/2 pounds dark Belgian chocolate, melted

Directions:

1. In a heavy saucepan, bring milk, ancho powder, and cocoa powder almost to a boil.

2. Make a paste with egg yolks, flour, sugar, vanilla, and Kahlua.

3. Slowly add milk to temper the egg mixture; incorporate all milk to a smooth paste.

4. Place paste back into the heavy saucepan and cook over medium fire.

5. Beat constantly with a wooden spoon until thick and smooth.

6. Remove from heat and incorporate butter and chocolate.

7. Puree in food processor for a smooth, satin-like pastry cream. Place in a container, press plastic wrap down onto the pastry cream. Cool and refrigerate.

BASIC CRÈME ANGLAISE

Ingredients:

• 4 egg yolks

• 1/2 cup sugar

• 1 1/2 cups milk

• 1 pinch salt

• 2 tablespoons Mexican vanilla (or vanilla beans)

Directions:

1. In a bowl over simmering water (double boiler), beat egg yolks and sugar until cooked to a consistency that forms thick ribbons.

2. In a saucepan, bring milk and vanilla almost to a boil.

3. Slowly add milk to the egg mixture (adding milk too rapidly may overcook and scramble the eggs). Mixture should coat the back of a wooden spoon.

4. Remove from heat and cool over ice. Store refrigerated until service time.

To Die Pho

A new family-owned Vietnamese restaurant in North Richland Hills offers upscale takes on classic Vietnamese dishes — plus plenty of surprises.

BY MALCOLM MAYHEW

BY

PHOTOS

OLAF GROWALD

There’s no shortage of great Vietnamese restaurants in and around the Fort Worth area. But for their newly opened restaurant, brothers Alex and Ryan Vu wanted to not only serve authentic Vietnamese cuisine but do so in an elevated setting — something not exactly common in the Fort Worth burb of North Richland Hills, where their exceptional restaurant, called V’s House, opened late last year.

Scan the menu, and you’ll find most staples of Vietnamese cuisine, including a half-dozen varieties of pho: chicken, beef, meatball, tofu, and shrimp, all of which are painstakingly, over a 24-hour period, made by hand. You’ll see fried rice dishes, too, dotted with your choice of pork, shrimp, or chicken; five variations of vermicelli; and entrees such as shaken beef, lemongrass chicken, and beef noodle soup.

But you’ll also find several nice surprises. One of the restaurant’s must-get dishes, for instance, is the banh khot. The dish is comprised of savory, bite-size pancakes whose edges have been lightly crisped and curled so they can cradle your choice of pork, veggies, or shrimp.

Curry chicken stew is another noteworthy, uncommon dish. Made with chicken roasted with potatoes and carrots in a curry stew, it’s served in a piping-hot skillet. Banh xeo makes an appearance here, too, in the form of a lightly fried crepe filled with pork, shrimp, and bean sprouts. Get it with a side of peanut sauce, your astute, attentive server may whisper to you.

“We wanted to feature classic Vietnamese dishes but also some that people here may not be that familiar with,” says Alex.

Mostly everything is made inhouse, by hand, from the chili oil, sushi sauces, and boba bubbles for the boba tea, which comes in both traditional flavors and unusual (try the brown sugar crème brulée).

The family wanted the atmosphere to reflect the high quality of the food, so they enlisted well-known Dallas restaurant designer Hatsumi Kuzuu, whose design credits include Urban Taco and FT33, to assist with the restaurant’s look and feel, resulting in a vibe that is wholeheartedly modern but tips its hat to a warm, old-world style.

While it’s a good datenight option, with its snug half-booths built for two and happening bar area, there’s plenty of room for large parties and families.

Later this year, when the weather is nice, the spacious, attractive patio will open for regular service, plus special events such as live music and crawfish boils.

“One of our goals was to make sure everyone feels at home here, whether you’re on a date or eating out with your family,” Ryan says.

8743 West BedfordEuless Road, North Richland Hills, vshouse.net

V’s House has been in the works for more than two years. Drivers zooming east on State Highway 183, where the restaurant’s sign and large patio are visible, have no doubt wondered when, if ever, the place was going to open. But COVID-19, and the ripple effects it has caused throughout the restaurant industry, delayed the opening until late last year.

The Vu brothers are third generation restaurateurs. For the past 13 years, their parents, Rex and Ann Vu, have run the popular Pho V Noodle House & Sushi in nearby Bedford, and they’ve also been instrumental in the development of V’s House.

Vu’s grandparents, immigrants from Vietnam who moved to Texas after the Vietnam War ended, were among the many Vietnamese

expats who settled in and/or opened restaurants in Haltom City throughout the ’70s and ’80s, turning the neighborhood into a hotbed for Vietnamese cuisine. A local favorite, their spot was called Quan Vu; it opened in 1982 and thrived for several years.

“Restaurants are very much a part of our family and family culture,” says Alex, whose sister, Victoria, also works at V’s House, as a cook. “When my brother and I got out of school, we had opportunities to do something else. But maybe this is in our blood.”

V’s House

Toasted crab bread

V’s offers 12 different types of Maki

The Grazing Board

Spirited Arrival

The new Lockwood Distilling brings spirits, sandwiches, and ... keys to the Near Southside.

BY MALCOLM MAYHEW

Afunny thing happened when Evan and Sally Batt opened Lockwood Distilling Co., their new spirits distillery on the Near Southside: A bunch of people thought it was a locksmith.

“You know, Lockwood, locksmith,”

laughs Evan. “Doesn’t help that the space really was once a locksmith.”

What’s even funnier: Now it is, again.

“So many people were coming in asking if we still made keys, we decided to buy one of those makeyour-own-key machines,” he says.

“It’s not a bad way to get people

who’ve never heard of us in here for a drink.”

In time, no doubt, the couple will be better known for making spirits and food, not keys. Opened midNovember of last year, Lockwood is the latest distillery to open in a city seemingly enamored with them. Part bar and part restaurant, it’s a spinoff of the original Lockwood Distillery Co., which the couple opened in 2019 in Richardson.

Months after opening the original location, however, the pandemic hit, forcing the couple to rethink their business, from front to back.

“We panicked, but we didn’t shut down,” Evan says. “We just went into full transition mode and started making hand sanitizer for frontline and health care workers. We didn’t have to let a single person go. We trained our wait staff to become warehouse workers and bottlers.”

In the meantime, the distillery’s

reputation for its small batch, housemade spirits continued to grow. In a brief time, Lockwood has garnered a strong following for its Straight Bourbon and Straight Rye, its Texas Style Gin, flavored rums, and a pair of vodkas — one regular, the other flavored with hibiscus.

Lockwood’s most popular bottle is, without question, the Bourbon Cream Liqueur, a mix of almond, vanilla, Texas pecans, and real Wisconsin cream.

“You can put it in coffee or your milkshake,” says Evan, who has worked in the spirits and wine industry since he graduated from college. “Or you can drink it straight, on the rocks, or out of the bottle — however you drink something straight.” (Currently, the spirits are made at the Richardson location and sent to Fort Worth; Evan says they’ll begin production at the Fort Worth store sometime this year).

The distillery’s popularity sparked the couple’s expansion to Fort Worth’s Near Southside, an area the two immediately fell in love with.

“We became obsessed with it,” Evan says. “We knew immediately, this was the spot; this is the vibe we’re looking for. New Orleans has always been a big inspiration for us, and the Near Southside has that

same feel — cool, indie businesses next to a neighborhood full of cool, old homes. It didn’t make sense for us to go anywhere else.”

Developed by Julio Ortiz, currently the executive chef at the Richardson location and whose resume includes stints at the Ritz-Carlton and Knife Steakhouse, the food menu is made up of chef-inspired sandwiches, salads, and other light bites.

Particularly good is the pastrami sandwich. “The pastrami brines for nine days in gin,” Evan says. “We cut off the ends and make chili with it”; fans also rave about Lockwood’s bologna sandwich, the meat for which is smoked for hours.

Elsewhere on the menu, there’s a poblano and pimento cheese sandwich, various dips, and other small plates meant to be paired with Lockwood’s cocktails.

“We make our own pimento cheese, our own white bean dip, the chutney that goes on the turkey sandwich,” Evan says. “It’s our twist on hearty, Southern-style food.”

Lockwood also offers a handful of vegetarian and vegan dishes, including a vegan hot dog.

While Evan handles the spirits and production side of the business, Sally handles community outreach and social media.

Distilling Co. 1411 West Magnolia Ave. lockwooddistilling. com

“Community outreach is a huge part of what we do,” Evan says. “We love working with local businesses and finding organizations that could use some support. I think one thing that makes us different from other distilleries is that we’re very active in the community. You’re going to see us out and about in Fort Worth a lot.”

Lockwood Distilling offers a wide variety of cocktails featuring their signature spirits.

Lockwood Muffaletta

Dirty South Pie

Lockwood

Wheels Up

A new German-themed bar and restaurant, called The Radler, has rolled into the Near Southside.

BY MALCOLM MAYHEW

When The Bearded Lady took its award-winning burgers, extensive beer list, and hip and friendly servers from Magnolia Avenue to South Main Street, it left a void on Magnolia that has yet to be filled.

The short-lived Magnolia Tree, which took over the nearly 100-yearold bungalow after The Bearded Lady moved, tried but fell, another restaurant put out of business by the ongoing pandemic.

Hopes are high, though, for the latest restaurant to open in the space.

Called The Radler, it’s the latest concept from Morgan Roberts, Trey Floyd, and Brendan Willbanks — the team behind Durty Murphy’s Irish Pub, The Winchester Tavern, The Local, and Durty Crow. The Radler opened in December.

The restaurant specializes in gastropub fare with a heavy German bent. There’s a killer bratwurst dog, slathered in sauerkraut and served with German potato salad; large, unapologetically salty pretzels, waiting to be dunked in a pool of hot beer cheese; and, of course, plenty of German brews (in addition to national and local beers).

Bits and Bites

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, local chef Ben Merritt opened his new restaurant, The Fitzgerald, last month. It’s a classy, date-night affair, a step up from his Near Southside spot, Fixture, with an emphasis on high-end, wildly creative seafood and steak dishes. Menu items are set to include prime steaks, blackened redfish served with succotash, Chilean sea bass with mango salsa and spinach, and chargrilled and baked oysters topped with a variety of housemade sauces and ingredients, such as kimchi compound butter and Manchego cheese sauce. He’ll have some more lighthearted and lightweight dishes, too, like lobster corn dogs and crab beignets.

Elsewhere on the menu, there are burgers, fried pickles and cheese curds, a handful of salads, Black Forest ham sliders, and a steak fingers basket, The Radler’s take on the Dairy Queen classic.

The Radler team developed the menu with a little help from Edward Gutierrez, a chef-about-town who most recently worked at Roy Pope Grocery.

Bearded Lady regulars will notice a few updates have been made to the historic building, originally built in 1926. Décor now leans heavily on German imagery, from beer posters to German beer steins. More important, the patio has been expanded and now includes outdoor TVs.

Hanging from the ceiling is an old bicycle, a nod to the restaurant’s name. The word “radler” has two meanings: The beer often called a shandy in Great Britain is known as a radler in Germany, and also in Germany, radler sometimes means “cyclist,” of which, of course, there are many on Magnolia Avenue.

Says Morgan: “So many people bike in this area, we thought it was the perfect name.” The Radler, 1229 Seventh Ave., 817.501.1850

The Fitzgerald takes over the massive 8,000-square-foot space once home to a pair of long-running restaurants: Blu Crab and before it, the much-missed Café Aspen. It’ll be Merritt’s third restaurant, after Fixture and the now-closed Ben’s Triple B’s, the latter of which specialized in burgers, biscuits, and beer. Merritt’s excellent biscuits will, thankfully, reappear at Fitzgerald’s on the weekend brunch menu. The beautifully refurbished space will include a large bar area and a massive patio — perfect for these social-distancing times. 6115 Camp Bowie Blvd., 817.349.9245.

Tarrant County has landed its first location of Happy Lemon, a China-based boba tea chain that imports its tea leaves from Asia. After starting in 2006, the company expanded to the U.S. in 2014 and to Texas last year, when it opened a location in Richardson. The Tarrant store has opened inside North East Mall in Hurst. The thing to get is a “cheese tea,” sweet or savory iced teas topped with salted cheese foam — a cool change of pace from most boba tea shops. Happy Lemon also serves lemonbased slushies, dragon fruit-lychee juices with cream, smoothies, and drinks made with Yakult, a bottled Japanese probiotic milk. 1101 Melbourne Road, Hurst, happylemonusa.com

Fort Worth has a new vegan option: Zonk Burger, a just-opened spot in the River East neighborhood that serves vegan burgers and sandwiches. Located in the tight-fit space that once housed Kneady Doughnuts, the small, counter-service shop is open for lunch and dinner, with items such as fried tofu sandwich, doublefried french fries topped with mushrooms and caramelized onions, and a handful of salads. The restaurant’s namesake burgers come in two varieties: a black bean burger and the Zonk Burger, whose patty is made with millet, garbanzo beans, and mushrooms. The restaurant is run by Erin Hahn and Zachary Stacy, who started out in 2019 with a food truck of the same name. 2912 Race St., facebook.com/zonkburger

Love, Life, and Dating In the Fort

The journey to finding a soulmate isn’t always smooth sailing.

BY SARAH ANGLE

BY OLAF GROWALD

PHOTOGRAPHY

He’s standing outside the Modern Museum of Art in Fort Worth waiting for me. My hair is perfectly coiffed. Lipstick applied. Skinny jeans glued on. After six weeks of texting, calls, and shared life photos, we were finally meeting in real life: Bumble date No. 1 billion and one. He waves as I’m walking up from the parking lot. It’s sunny and he’s hard to see, but as I get closer to him, I feel good, and my anxiety starts to ease. He has on jeans (normal), button-down shirt (classic), and nice shoes (smart). Then, he opens his mouth: “Hello, Sarah. Nice to meet you.” My mouth drops. What I’d missed from the online photos, phone calls, and a failed Facebook search was an open-mouthed smile. He didn’t have any teeth.

Well, to be fair, he had a few. They were sprinkled around an otherwise cavernous gumline, which almost made the missing ones even more prominent.

I’m sure my face was filled with terror. I looked at the door handle to the museum. I thought about where my car was parked and how quickly I could get there.

Then, I stuck out my hand and said, “Nice to meet you, too.”

Now, this was then — four years ago when I was much nicer, not nearly as experienced in the world of dating, and didn’t really know what I wanted in a partner or what a “partner” even was.

Also, I kept thinking: What if I didn’t have any teeth? I would still want somebody to date me. Hell — to love me.

This empathetic mantra ran through my mind the whole time we walked around paintings, sculptures, and photography. Not looking at his mouth was the only thing I was really concerned about. The artwork was a great escape from actual eye contact and conversation. Thank you, Modern Museum of Art.

I’m guessing that was a faulty signal to him that I was enjoying myself because I wanted to get a drink. When really, I needed to dull my senses and try to create an out-of-body experience with the help of my friend, gin.

Sitting around a table at the bar of Café Modern, he started talking. I will say, he was delightful in some ways. We talked about where he was from. His job. His family. The art, which he said had a lot of “naked people” (not wrong). And then, he got to the elephant in the room:

“I’m guessing that was a faulty signal to him that I was enjoying myself because I wanted to get a drink. When really, I needed to dull my senses and try to create an out-ofbody experience with the help of my friend, gin.”

After about an hour and a mental commitment to finish the afternoon, I decided I needed to make this date better for myself.

“Want to go to the bar?” I asked. “Oh, definitely,” he said.

“You might have noticed … I’m missing some teeth,” he said.

Now, luckily, I’ve had many college students tell me a lot of personal stuff over the years, and I’ve learned how to keep a straight face regardless of the subject matter.

“Oooooh … yeah,” I said, kind of looking off into the distance as if I’d just barely noticed.

“Well, I was in a motorcycle accident,” he goes on.

“I’m so sorry,” I said. “That must have been terrible.”

“Yeah,” he said. “It happened a year ago.”

A YEAR AGO? I’d be selling a kidney and getting implants the next DAY.

“But I’m going to get new teeth anytime now,” he said.

“Oh, that’s good,” I said. “I’m sure it’s been tough.”

At that point, he paid our bill, and we headed to the bathroom.

I’d kind of stopped noticing the missing teeth over the course of the afternoon — it’s like watching a car wreck that’s lost its luster. But I was more than ready to go.

Back from the bathroom, he asked, “Where are we going next?”

Again, I was not very smart. This was years ago. And I had no exit strategy. All I’d been doing the whole time was trying not to stare at his mouth where teeth should have been.

“Um, I need to go to Target,” I mumbled.

“Great, I’ll go with you,” he said, with a big toothless smile.

Shit. I’m going to have to say something honest.

“Well, actually, [stall, stall, stall, look at the ground, look at my hands, look at the wall] I don’t think we’re a good fit.”

He disagreed but respected my opinion and hugged me as we walked to our cars in the parking lot.

That day, I felt like God had spoken very clearly: Delete all your dating apps. You. Are. Done.

And that is exactly what I did as I sat in the car listening to the little voice inside my head, repeating my greatest fear over and over again:

You’re going to die alone.

You’re going to die alone.

You’re going to die alone.

Fear and Love

Imet the man I married when I was 17. We sat beside each other in government class at Haltom High School. He was dreamy in cutoff khakis, a wild Hawaiian buttondown, and flip-flops. He didn’t care what the world thought about him, and that made me care about him even more; he walked those crowded high school halls with confidence and ease, towering above the sea of pimple-faced teenagers at a gorgeous 6 feet, 4 inches. He was so many good things. But he wasn’t good for me. We used to talk about how we weren’t quite right for each other — not a “good fit.” We talked about it during our time together

reason, it can be a very salient issue for people; it’s incredibly important in our lives.”

Hill says that having a partner or that “pair-bond” translates into what people have historically needed to thrive and survive.

“When we don’t have that [partner], our brains frame it as a survival threat,” Hill says. “This can also add to the type of anxiety a lot of people get when unpartnered.”

Biology is hard-wired, she explains, and human mating psychology is incredibly rich because it has been inherited from the brains of successful ancestors. “Evolution by selection.”

“Despite all of our evolutionary drivers, we still have choice. But it’s nearly impossible to change who you’re naturally sexually attracted to.”

Women are naturally attracted to men who possess health, resource access, provisioning ability (think bringing home the bacon) and parenting potential, says Hill. Why? All this hypothetically helps create a more successful outcome for a woman’s children. Men, evolutionary, have been attracted to signs of fertility like youth and beauty. A woman’s ability to provide for the family financially wasn’t a thing in the brains of our male ancestors like it is today.

So, what’s love got to do with it? Well, a lot.

Despite all of our evolutionary drivers, we still have choice, explains Hill. But it’s nearly impossible to change who you’re naturally sexually attracted to, she says.

in college, we talked about it when we moved back to Texas and I was in graduate school, and we were still talking about it after we got engaged. Deep down, I knew he wasn’t right, but the fear of being alone — even then — held me back from ending it with him and trying to start a relationship with somebody new; the thought was terrifying. He was safe, secure, kind, and I didn’t know anything else.

Now, I know, that type of fear is engrained in our DNA.

“There’s a deep evolutionary wisdom for our desire to pair-bond,” says Dr. Sarah E. Hill, professor of psychology at Texas Christian University. “For this

“I think we need to be more compassionate with ourselves for this. We are attracted to who we are attracted to — these are qualities that would have historically let our ancestors reproduce.”

Many times, Hill says, women are told we’re too picky. But she believes that’s just not true.

“You can’t force it. I think this is especially true for women,” Hill says. “Women’s superpower is discrimination on male partners — we need to be aware of that and not listen to messages that say we are being elitist or bitchy or gold diggers, just because we have standards.”

Chemistry

Envision this: You’ve found a great guy or gal. Y’all met in the Whole Foods lotions and potions aisle discussing the merits of beeswax and organic lotion — um, dreamy. They’re kind, funny, smart, ambitious, and they even smell good, but you’re not sure the chemistry is there.

The sexual attraction between a guy and a gal is often there but sometimes simply needs some focus. Couples can create an experience for your body and mind by incorporating all of the senses. Light a candle, turn on music, and pay attention to the tiny details we sometimes rush past: What’s the taste of your partner’s skin. So, yes, sexual chemistry can absolutely improve.

It’s a lifelong exploration that ebbs and flows and changes with our bodies.

“A lot of factors go into strong relationships,” says Brad Nowlin, a marriage and family therapist in Fort Worth. “Friendship, respect, shared values, commitment, continued growth mindset, and positivity are really important in terms of repair and

overcoming challenges together.”

But not all couples can successfully overcome these challenges, especially when there’s the added pressure of a two-year pandemic.

The divorce rate in the U.S. is about 43%, Nowlin says. And the past two years may have pushed those numbers up even higher, he says.

“I think the pandemic affected us a lot mentally and emotionally,” says Nowlin. “We had a four-layer stress cake with the pandemic, the political situation, race relations, and the snow situation in Texas. Stress affected everybody.”

He says it probably led to more anxiety and depression in relationships, which then affects the overall happiness of the couple and the family.

My own 11-year marriage to my daughter’s father was overshadowed by a decade of chronic depression. It eroded trust, killed emotional intimacy, and eventually led to major financial problems — and that was without a pandemic in the mix.

On the Prowl

Fort Worth is arguably the biggest small town in the country. In 2021, it climbed to the 12th largest city in the U.S., according to a new population estimate from the U.S. Census Bureau. But it still feels like a cozy neighborhood where everyone is only one degree of separation from everyone else, and each unique district is pulsating with possibilities from business to the arts to higher education. Go Frogs!

It’s a great place to live. It’s a great place to work. It’s also a great place to date.

But it’s hard to quantify the number of truly single men and women living in the city because people are waiting longer to get married but not necessarily longer to couple up. A 2021 Census report showed men are waiting until about 30 and women, age 28 to tie the knot for the first time; those numbers include same-sex couples, too.

Anecdotally, it’s a sea of plenty if my dating apps are any measure of quantity. But we know quantity doesn’t equal quality, and sometimes less is literally more.

All these handsome possibilities lighting up my screen creates a psychological effect called the paradox of choice, which means that too many options make people feel less happy and more unsure about a decision in general, explains Logan Ury in her book, How to Not Die Alone, (yes, I’ve read it, twice).

“We’re crippled by analysis paralysis,” writes Ury. “And this is especially true when it comes to choosing a life partner.”

What makes modern dating and the ever-present dating apps so hard to navigate is they can only communicate

measurable, factual traits such as height, eye color, and other listables that potential mates are willing to share:

I like tennis. Wine. My dog Fido. Bacon. And maybe you.

Trying to see if you’ve got chemistry with a picture and some words on screen is an impossibility. Trust me. I’ve gone out with many guys who were “great on paper” but didn’t check the box in the chemistry department. I wanted to like them, but I just couldn’t. As Hill says, you can’t force it.

“What makes modern dating and the ever-present dating apps so hard to navigate is they can only communicate measurable, factual traits such as height, eye color, and other listables that potential mates are willing to share.”

Enter meeting IRL, the acronym for what used to be the only way people met and started dating up until the 1990s. But where-oh-where are all the single people hiding in The Fort? And where’s the best place to meet somebody new, bring a first date, or grow and nurture an established relationship?

I’m not a paid spokesperson for

Wishbone & Flynt, but maybe I should be. The newish restaurant located off South Main in Southside has all the makings of a great love story, starting with a happy hour from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday.

I order the house pinot noir (Sand Point from California) when I go and an appetizer like the beef skewers. There are singles sitting at the bar and couples spread throughout the dining room; business meetings happen there, too, with cowboy hats, sometimes sequined dresses, and boots.

If you feel so inclined, there’s a speakeasy cocktail bar in the back called the Amber Room that’s open late and decorated in retro mixed with gemstones. Or you can do as I do and just cut straight to the Amber Room for a first date test drive.

Fort Worth celebrity, Tony Green, of the fabulous “Hello, I’m Tony Green” television show is a longtime service

industry pro and purveyor of awesome eats and drinks throughout Cowtown. Green likes Nickel City off South Main and the new Hotel Dryce for easy drinks and a great bar scene.

Green says the long bar top at Nickel City is a great place to land for a view of who might get your next glance. “Expect great cocktails, amazing bar food, and should you be so bold, mezcal!”

At Hotel Dryce, the drinks and the vibe just keep getting better as the hotel finds its groove, says Green.

The hip hotel, opened in 2021 by local entrepreneur, Jonathan Morris, has a downstairs bar that’s known for its “fabulously curated cocktails.” It might also be known for great first dates that lead to dinner down the street.

All the Likes: Dating Style Advice for Women at Every Decade with Tiffany Blackmon

“Always dress to fit your personality, body style, and a look that makes you feel confident. Local boutiques are great at creating looks that are feminine, minimalist, with a sense of flare and over the top.”

In your 30s: Select a pair of on-trend jeans with a statement blouse and simple shoes and accessories.

In your 40s: A look that shows a bit of youth and a dash of maturity. A feminine skirt paired with a beautiful, tailored blazer and statement jewelry.

In your 50s: Tailored pants or jeans, simple blouse, bold shoes, and accessories.

Local boutique recommendation from the Tiffany Blackmon closet:

• C+B Furs

• Shop Birdie

• Esther Penn

• Hale House

• You Are Here

• Neiman Marcus Clearfork

• Tory Burch Clearfork

Creating a Love Story That Lasts

My parents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in November.

I filmed them cutting the cake (again) and reciting written down speeches:

“I love you for always putting me first and taking care of me through our good times and rough times of our marriage,” my mom said.

“You are my best friend and the love of my life. My love for you will always continue to grow as we live the rest of our lives together.”

My mom was crying and toasting my dad with champagne sipped from the same 1970s wine glasses they used on

the day they got married. I know what true partnership and love looks like; it’s been omnipresent in my life through my parents’ shining example.

But what my parents have is extremely rare. Nowlin says that just 5% of couples make it to 50 years of marriage. Male mortality is a big reason, says Nowlin, and of course the divorce rate, too.

George and Karen Angle, both 73, met at church in Haltom City, a suburb located outside of Fort Worth, when they were just teenagers. Karen was a shy and gorgeous brunette, and George was the outspoken student council president, football player, and Mr. Popular.

“Admiration for my wife is why my marriage has lasted so long,” George said. “Her hard work ethic, understanding, and a sense of forgiveness.”

sees my mom.

But not all love stories (or marriages) work out the first time around. Nowlin says that couples have to really want it and really work at it to create a “10 level” relationship. And that’s what he works toward every day with his wife, Grace Nowlin.

“We’re in a second marriage for the both of us,” says Nowlin. “We didn’t get it right the first time out of the box but learned and grew and found the right person. It helps me as a counselor to show people they can be resilient and bounce back regardless of the challenge.”

“The beauty of being married or partnered for five decades is seeing all the memories and all the life you’ve created together each time you look at that person’s face.”

“And quick to admit when I’m wrong,” Karen quipped.

“If I ever happen to be wrong, I’ll be glad to admit it, too,” George joked.

That’s how my parents are. Still playful after 50 years of marriage. Maybe that’s the secret: Having fun despite the challenges.

My dad says the hardest part of sustaining years of love is appreciating the self-sacrifice it takes to make it work year after year.

The beauty of being married or partnered for five decades is seeing all the memories and all the life you’ve created together each time you look at that person’s face. It’s a vision of the past; it’s a portrait of the present; it’s a glimpse into the future. At least, that’s how my dad

Fort Worth social influencer Tiffany Blackmon (@tiffanycblackmon) would agree. The now happily married 56-yearold fashionista, chef, and podcast host says she’d nearly given up on ever finding a partner, let alone getting married again.

She says her first marriage “was a train wreck.” But the second was good. She married a wonderful man, had her daughter Kennedy, but it didn’t last, and she felt all the pain and loneliness of being a single mother — missing her child for major holidays and splitting precious time with another parent.

“I thought, ‘I’m never getting married again,’” Blackmon says.

And she didn’t, for years, until Greg. Not surprisingly, she met Greg online, but it wasn’t the standard Bumble or Hinge or Match.com that’s on the tip of all singles’ tongues and screen-time histories. They met through a high-end matchmaking service called Selective Search. (Maybe I’ll sign up.)

It was Dec. 27, 2009. She got off the elevator at the Omni Hotel in Fort Worth, rounded the corner, and saw him: “There he is; that’s my husband,” she said to herself.

Dinner was perfect. Greg said he’d call her the next day, and he did. They went to lunch. And many more lunches and dinners after that.

Greg told her that when he saw her picture, he knew he’d found the love of his life.

“He was searching for a wife. He wanted a partner,” says Blackmon. At the end of the day, being ready to date or commit to a relationship is really all about knowing yourself and what you want.

Nowlin says “being ready” depends on the individual, where they are in life, and if they’re brave enough to be uncomfortable. “Discomfort is the price of admission we pay for a meaningful life,” says Nowlin, quoting the psychologist and author Dr. Susan David.

“In dating, I think you have to be willing to experience a lot of awkwardness and uncomfortableness. And be able to laugh through those moments and enjoy those experiences as much as you can,” says Nowlin. Being ready requires a heavy knowledge of self, he says, and selfcompassion.

Nowlin says more people are getting divorced during the pandemic, and perhaps the entire experience has made us more aware of our mortality and unwilling to stay in unsatisfactory relationships.

He also sees those couples who come in for counseling to be proactive because they realize how fragile relationships are and want it to work; they want it to get better.

Tiffany married Greg Blackmon on June 11, 2011.

“I’ve found my one and done,” she says. It just took her a little life experience and wisdom to get there.

Addicted to Love

Love is the most powerful drug in the world.

We all want it. We all try to find it. And when we get it (really get it), we don’t ever want to let it go.

Drugs were basically created to mimic the experience of love, explains Hill. Yeah, love is addictive, she says. The brain rewards us when we’re in love by releasing chemicals like dopamine and serotonin, creating an amazing experience.

“It’s a superhighway of happiness and reward so we want more; we want to be in it. We want to bathe in it. Love is the most phenomenal magic carpet ride with our neurotransmitters.”

And just like any addictive substance, when it’s taken away, we crave it. We feel pain. We break. In this case, it’s called heartbreak.

MRI brain scans show that withdrawal (read: break-ups) from romantic love activates the same mechanisms in the brain that go crazy when a person is experiencing withdrawal from cocaine.

Even in an established relationship, the withdrawal is terrible, explains Hill. “You’re removing positive stimuli (taking away the opioid), and there’s a lot of fear associated with being unpartnered. We are wired for long-term pair-bonding.”

was acute physical pain. But the heartbreak was worse. I’m now fully recovered from COVID-19 (thank you, Lord), but the pain of losing that kind love is a grief that remains. It’s something you carry. And in the end, the ability to carry something so heavy makes you stronger; it makes you better. Smarter. More empathetic. And more resilient. That broken heart heals with scars that make it harder to break the next time, but hopefully still soft and fragile enough to open up again.

And yet.

I still want that drug back.

“You’re the love of my life,” he told me.

“And you’re mine.”

I don’t think he was lying, but I do know now that love isn’t enough.

“Just like any addictive substance, when [love] is taken away, we crave it. We feel pain. We break. In this case, it’s called heartbreak.”

Like Nowlin says, it takes work, compromise, and the choice to stay in it even when it’s hard. It takes commitment in a culture where we are inundated with potential dates and mates on apps, social media, and other various screens. Commitment can be tough. But it’s the only way to form true emotional intimacy, and that’s the best drug money can’t buy.

Heartbreak is sickness with no cure, remedy, or respite.

The worst one of my life happened right before the world entered a global pandemic.

I contracted COVID-19 and called off an engagement in the same year, many months apart. I thought I was going to die from both the heartbreak and the disease equally. My heart hurt in different ways: It

Today, when I go out with men (yes, mostly to Wishbone & Flynt) I care less about a strong jawline, bulging biceps, or a full head of hair and more about emotional intelligence, values, and a life well-lived. Even in the age of infinite possibilities and dating apps that provide the opportunity to select almost anything, the best partners can’t be quantified digitally. That latest dopamine ding rings empty without something real on the other side of the screen. Something real is a precious thing.

WE SPEAK FORT WORTH

For over 20 years, we’ve had our ears to the ground, our eyes on the ball, and our fingers on the pulse of Fort Worth. This gives us an edge to deliver the city’s best lifestyle, business, and home content.

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“A stage portrayal at the Golden Gloves Gym in Fort Worth.”

PHOTO

OLAF GROWALD

BROKEN AND ALONE

Once one of Fort Worth’s most prominent citizens, today former boxing champion Donald Curry wanders an inescapable wilderness. His son believes he knows why: CTE, or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy.

BY JOHN HENRY

IT DOES SEEM A PECULIAR COINCIDENCE THAT FORMER TEXAS GOV. CHARLES CULBERSON AND DONALD CURRY CURRENTLY RESIDE WITHIN 3 MILES OF ONE ANOTHER. THE MAN WHO LITERALLY DID ALL HE COULD WITHIN HIS POWERS AS GOVERNOR TO ENSURE THAT A BOXING MATCH NEVER TOOK PLACE ON THE SACRED SOIL OF THE LAND OF STEPHEN

F. AUSTIN, AND THE BOXER WHO QUITE POSSIBLY EXEMPLIFIES

EACH OF HIS FEARS. “DONALD CURRY IS ON THE PRECIPICE OF GREATNESS,” REFEREE MILLS LANE SAID ONE NIGHT IN 1985, THE NIGHT THE “LONE STAR COBRA” CONQUERED MILTON MCCRORY WITH A STUNNING LEFT HAND IN A SECOND-ROUND ROUT IN LAS VEGAS. “WHEN HISTORY TELLS THE STORY OF HIM, HE MAY GO DOWN AS ONE OF THE GREATEST.”

Jake LaMotta, the “Raging Bull,” said Curry was the best fighter since Sugar Ray Robinson.

Greatness certainly seemed to be Curry’s destiny. Many believed he was a certain gold-medal winner in the Moscow Olympic Games the U.S. boycotted in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Curry indeed rocketed to the top of his profession, but history’s story turned out a far different one than prophesied for a variety of reasons. Greed, which decimates like the most aggressive cancer, was forefront among them.

In the social media parlance of our day, it’s complicated.

Still, the big wheels of the International Boxing Hall of Fame three years ago admitted him to the place of vaulted ceilings where the legacies of the greatest of his sport in the modern era sit for posterity. That weekend Curry joined the sweet science’s most elite upper crust, taking his place alongside the likes of Ali, Arguello, Camacho, Cesar Chavez, Duran, Foreman, Frazier, Hagler, Hearns, Holmes, LaMotta, Leonard, Liston, Louis, Marciano, Norton, Patterson, Spinks, and Tyson.

In Fort Worth, his hometown, Curry was a hero. He had become the city’s first world champion as a welterweight. Two years later, he unified the division with the knockout of McCrory, the first unified welterweight champion since Leonard. Curry was the toast of Fort Worth when he scored a second-round KO against Eduardo Rodriguez in March of 1986 in front of a standing-room-only crowd of 8,864 at Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum. The first defense of his undisputed title left Curry at 25-0 with 20 knockouts. He embraced his heritage, reminding whoever would listen that

he was a proud son of Fort Worth and a 1980 graduate of Paschal High School. He was feted publicly — the City Council proclaimed a Friday in February 1985, “Donald Curry Day,” and a banquet followed — he spoke and encouraged children to be their best, to overcome obstacles, and echoed Nancy Reagan’s directive to “Just Say No.” He willingly signed autographs, staying until the last in line got his signature.

It’s not even a slight overstatement to say that in Fort Worth, Curry is as legendary as the Stockyards, the Acre, the Hawk, or even the camp Ripley Arnold’s men staked into the ground at the banks of the Trinity in June 1849.

Jim Wright, the future Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives and boxing fan, was a big admirer.

“Everyone was proud of him. He was up-and-coming,” says Michael Mallick, a Fort Worth developer who knew Curry at Paschal. “A lot of us followed his fights. He was the ‘Cobra,’ he was from Paschal, we were all proud of him.

“If the fight was in front of a hometown crowd, the roof would come off. Everybody went berserk. Everyone loved this guy.”

To his closest associates from those days, however, Curry is not the same person.

No one within his sphere knows for sure how to explain the tragedy of Donald Curry, today a seeming wayward, broken soul who can’t find an escape from his long walk in the wilderness. Worse than the millions earned and lost long ago are the relationships fractured and ruined from aggressive mood swings and impulsive control problems.

Curry’s is a sad and tragic tale that goes far beyond coming up short in meeting all the expectations of being a world champion boxer.

There is a time, we have been instructed, to keep and a time to throw away.

Curry’s son is trying desperately not to throw away his father. Donovan Curry believes he knows what has happened, writing late last year an eloquent post on social media, seeking answers and asking for help.

He thinks it is CTE, the brain disease seen in many athletes of sports in which they take repeated blows to the head. In boxing, it has a different name: dementia pugilistica.

“Hello, all, I’m speaking on behalf of my father, Donald Curry, today. A champion of the world of boxing, one of the greatest welterweights of all time. However, today I’m asking for help. Not in a monetary way,

Donald Curry was the toast of Fort Worth as this warm embrace from former U.S. Speaker of the House Jim Wright and then-state Sen. Mike Moncrief, both boxing fans, demonstrates.

but to spread awareness [and] hopefully find a solution for retired athletes with head trauma and symptoms of CTE. For the last three years, I’ve tried to find help for my father to possibly get a CT scan or have a mental evaluation take place, but living far away and him not being able to travel correctly have dampened that situation.

“I have not been able to figure out how to do so. My father has declined mentally since I was in high school. He now sits in jail again, where he has spent quite a bit of my childhood, teenage, and adult years. I didn’t feel for him at first when I was younger because I was unaware and uneducated on CTE and mental health. I didn’t realize what was going on. I had no idea why we would sit on the phone, and he would ramble for hours. He would ask me the same question multiple times in a conversation.

“He would forget where I went to school after telling him hundreds of times or forget where I live. My family members would say he would talk to himself in the bathroom for periods of time. He would randomly be aggressive to someone. Instead, some feedback I receive or when I look at people’s comments from the internet, people say, ‘That’s just the way he is, he’s crazy.’

“I went to a pawn shop in the Dallas/ Fort Worth area where a fan reached out to me because there was memorabilia and family photos that were probably sold in an auction, and the employee said, ‘I heard he was on drugs.’ It was disheartening to hear [that] knowing what truly is going on.

“Then, for the first time in my life, I spent a weekend with him when he was inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame. There I could see he had trouble walking down a hallway. He would lean on a wall while walking and seemed impaired. He would need assistance with simple things and tasks. He would be confused about going to different events that we talked about before getting there.

“The last thing that broke me down was during the final day. I heard great, thoughtful speeches from [commentator] Teddy Atlas, [former champions] Julian Jackson and Buddy McGirt, and more. All of their families were there to support them. I tried to prepare a speech for my father for months, and he never wanted to really get to it. He thought he could go up to the stage and speak from his heart and talk about memories. But when he got there, all he could say was thank you, and he walked off because he was not able mentally.

The state of Texas’ boxing history is storied. Fort Worth is a big part of that story.

Nick Wells, a heavyweight, knocked out future world heavyweight champion Larry Holmes in the 1972 Olympic Trials at TCU’s Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. Holmes would go on to be one of the fight game’s most prestigious champions, successfully defending his title 20 times, second only to Joe Louis’ 25.

Wells, who grew up in Polytechnic, was a legend, but he was merely the prophet for the greatest of them all in Fort Worth.

JAKE LAMOTTA, THE “RAGING BULL,” SAID CURRY WAS THE BEST FIGHTER SINCE SUGAR RAY ROBINSON.

“Things like this dishearten me because I know the reason why he is like this, but unfortunately, CTE and mental health is something that’s new to us all [in 2022]. He has more than likely broken relationships because of this disease, and I’m here to apologize on his behalf.”

“The only person who continually takes him back after verbal or physical assaults or more is my aunt. But at this point, she does not know what to do. I don’t know what to do. The last thing I could think of is to ask all his fans, supporters, friends, and former business colleagues for help before he hurts someone, someone hurts him, or he hurts himself.”

That was Curry, but he had world championship peers from his hometown. Stevie Cruz, Gene Hatcher, Troy Dorsey, and Robin Blake all held world championships in various weight classes during the same timeframe of the 1980s. Curry’s brother, Bruce, was another world champion, though he was splitting time between here and California. A bit later came Paulie Ayala, and Sergio Reyes was an Olympian at the Barcelona Games in 1992.

Curry was the best of all of them.

“Donald was a well-schooled fighter, intelligent, and he knew how to work the ring and outsmart his opponent,” said Rudy Barrientes, who is notable in his own right as Fort Worth’s first Golden Gloves national champion, in 1968. Barrientes’ father, Joe, was Curry’s cut man.

“Man, he was fast with those hands. I say that because I sparred with him at one point to stay active in the gym. As I recall, the bell rang, and we started moving around, and I caught Donald with a 1-2 combo flush. I can still see in his eyes saying to me, ‘You should not have done that.’ He opened up a can of whoop-ass on me. It was not fun.”

Curry with his mother, Hazel, who raised five children as a single mother. At left, the Curry brothers, Bruce and Donald, were the first brothers to hold world titles at the same time.

‘I INTEND TO STOP THIS FIGHT’ If Charles Culberson, Texas governor from 1895 – 1899, had had his way, the bouts and adulation never would have happened.

Culberson’s final resting place is on Fort Worth’s North Side, in Oakwood Cemetery. He sits among some of the city’s early luminaries, including John Peter Smith, Burk Burnett, and K.M. Van Zandt. Horace Carswell, shot down in World War II, is there. Gunfighter Luke Short and his victim, Jim Courtright, ironically found places in the same burial ground.

Culberson today is little known, but he had key roles in history. Culberson County in West Texas is named for his father, David Culberson, a lawyer and Confederate soldier. The last part should in no way taint the son. Charley Culberson spent is career opposing the KKK in every way.

Upon Culberson’s death, he was brought back to Texas and buried in a plot owned by his wife’s family, the Harrisons, in Oakwood Cemetery. A historical marker adorns his grave site.

Unlike Donald Curry, a cemetery plot is about the only personal tie Culberson had to Fort Worth. Culberson lived and worked in Dallas after immigrating from the Deep South. His introduction to our fair burg, it is presumed, was the state Democratic Convention in 1888 in Fort Worth.

In 1895, Culberson was elected governor. While he supported the free flow of booze, Texas’ new governor was as anti-boxing as the Rev. J. Frank Norris was against sin.

Dan Stuart, a promoter of his day every bit as persuasive as Barnum or Jerry Jones, had up his sleeve a championship heavyweight bout between “Gentleman Jim” Corbett and “Ruby Robert” Fitzsimmons in Dallas’ grand new amphitheater covering 4 acres, a quarter-mile northeast of the state fairgrounds, which had been advertised as the coming of the second-largest building, in terms as seating capacity, in the world.

Dallas city leaders envisioned the stadium as a permanent structure — they were saying that in those days, too — for athletics and conventions.

In fact, at the state fair that October, the same month as the fight, noted orator William Jennings Bryan, who next year would begin the first of three runs for the U.S. presidency, made an address. But this would be bigger, they all predicted, each and every one of the arena’s 52,000 seats occupied in Dallas, then a city of about 45,000.

Boxing had been outlawed in many states, but not Texas, not completely anyway. So, city and state officials smelled a big money and public relations opportunity.

Stuart, by force of personality and a robust checkbook big enough to outlast any economic panic, outbid all the others by offering a purse of $41,000, including $39,000 going to the winner.

That was serious scratch in those days — more than $1 million in today’s money — in America the Beautiful.

The fight between the two premier pugilists of that day in Dallas was a very big deal.

A few years earlier, Gentleman Jim was the first to win a heavyweight championship bout under the code of the Queensberry rules with boxing gloves. Before then, they did it the way John Wayne would’ve done it, bare-knuckles.

This “glove contest,” as it came to be called among all those with opinions about it — and there were plenty — would be the “most scientific boxing contest in the world” and the “premier event in the domain of sport,” the mayor assured his subjects.

Then Charles Culberson entered the figurative ring. This prize fight would occur only over his dead body.

“I intend to stop this fight if it takes the entire police force of the state to stop it,” Culberson said. The great moral and religious sentiment of Texas has been aroused as perhaps it never has been either before or since, he added, perhaps forgetting the Alamo and Goliad.

The entire state was in an uproar of vigorous protest against this attempted piece of brutality, he concluded.

That was political hyperbole. Even Culberson’s wife disagreed with her husband’s assessment, saying, “I say let them have [the fight]. There is no use in his staying up nights and worrying himself to death trying to keep up the public dignity. It’s all foolishness, and I’ve told him so. What is the use in poor Charles working himself to death to prevent something the whole state wants? At least nine men out of every 10 in Texas want the fight.” Even in Fort Worth, there were supporters.

Nonetheless, Culberson’s wife’s input was for naught. Culberson called a special session in 1895 to outlaw boxing.

“Impelled by a sense of duty to exert every executive power to

Curry brought Fort Worth its first world title fight, a WBA welterweight clash with South Korea’s Jun Sok Hwang in front of the home crowd at the Fort Worth Convention Center. It ended with Curry winning his first belt with a unanimous 15-round decision.

avert this calamity, you have been called in special session, and the responsibility for the consequences is now divided with you,” he said, welcoming the Legislature into session. “That you will meet it as becomes the representatives of the whole people, anxious and ready to protect the fair name of the state is, is not doubted.”

The bill was passed the next day in what might still be the shortest special session in the history of the state.

Boxing and “all its kindred spirits” were outlawed in Texas until repeal in the mid-1930s.

THE RISE OF A CHAMPION Donald Curry came up through the ranks of the Texas Golden Gloves as an amateur. He competed on Paul Reyes’ United Auto Workers team.

“I met Donald when he was 7 years old,” says Reyes, his longtime trainer. “I had no idea I had a world champion on my hands. He’s not the same person.

“Donald needs help.”

Curry’s amateur career was second to very few anywhere.

Curry’s preparation for becoming a world champion — which he first accomplished with a unanimous decision over Jun-Suk Hwang for the WBA world welterweight crown at the Fort Worth Convention Center in 1983 — included 404 amateur bouts.

Reyes says Curry was 400-4 in those bouts, all of them before his 20th birthday. (That’s a record that is widely accepted as accurate.) In

two of those losses, he won in rematches, including a second time against 147-pound, Golden Gloves national champion Ronnie Shields, who was seven years older than Curry. Curry lost the first bout in a decision in the Golden Gloves state tournament at Will Rogers in 1979 in a fight some longtime observers recall as the best ever in the Gloves tournament.

Curry’s camp believed they won that fight, but that Shields’ status as national champion gave him an edge among the judges.

“That was the only time I saw Donald cry, that Shields fight,” says Reyes.

That summer at the Amateur Athletic Union national tournament — now the Junior Olympics — Curry again ran into Shields. And this time he won.

“I’m not a big-time gambler, but I went up to [Shields’ trainer],” Reyes says, “and I said, ‘I bet you $100 we beat you this time.’

“He wouldn’t take it.”

Curry, the youngest competitor, won the AAU title that year, one of five national titles in his career, including the 1980 Olympic Trials. Curry defeated Davey Moore to win a berth to Moscow.

Reyes recalls the beating Curry took against older and more experienced boxers at the AAU tournament.

“He was just a kid, and he was fighting against men in the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marines,” says Reyes. “I said, ‘Donald, you don’t need to do this.’

“He said, ‘Paul, I’m going to win it.’ That told me a lot about Donald. I knew he had the heart. He was something special. It was his first year against the big boys.”

After his knockout of McCrory, talk immediately began to swirl about a bout with Sugar Ray Leonard, then the beau ideal of the boxing industry. Good-looking, charming, and as marketable as perhaps any boxer in history, even Ali, whose marketability was harmed by his political stances.

And a fantastic boxer, too, Leonard’s career cut short by an eye injury, which forced him to retire. For the moment, at least. Curry’s camp twice offered Leonard a fight. They were turned down twice.

“I think Donald would’ve beaten him,” Reyes says.

In an interview with this writer several years ago, Curry said he never believed a fight with Leonard would even happen. “Ray had a lot of respect for me as a fighter,” Curry said.

Curry’s handlers then pursued moving up weight classes and fighting Marvin Hagler as a middleweight, another premier match that would have earned Curry multimillions against another of boxing’s star attractions.

According to Curry’s handlers, Leonard advised the Fort Worth fighter against a Hagler bout, advice designed to keep Curry from being thrown to the dogs, which was the allegation his brother Bruce’s handlers faced.

There was a reason for that, Curry’s people said. Leonard wanted the fight and the payday against Hagler.

Those two fought in 1987. Curry’s advisers, who by then included Curry’s original manager, David Gorman, and Akbar Muhammad, alleged in a federal lawsuit that Leonard conspired with this attorney and lied about his comeback plans so as to assure that Curry was not in the way of that Leonard-Hagler fight. It turned out not to matter.

Curry lost his welterweight titles in a stunning upset to Lloyd Honeyghan in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in September 1986. Curry,

struggling to make weight, lost 10 pounds in the days preceding the bout. Curry was suffering from extreme dehydration in an effort to make weight.

“Anybody would’ve have beaten him in that fight,” Reyes says. “He was weak. He lost it to a nobody. Honeyghan wasn’t in Donald’s class.”

Curry eventually did move up, winning a junior middleweight (USBA super welterweight) title with a victory over Tony Montgomery. He defended it against Carlos Santos before being knocked out by Mike McCallum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas in a fight for the WBA belt.

A fight against Michael Nunn for the IBF middleweight crown in Paris ended in a knockout loss in the 10th round.

More than a few believe that Curry’s decline began when he moved Gorman out and Muhammad in as his manager and was not coincidental. It was a move intended to enhance his earnings opportunities. Gorman, who had been a friend for years, had been in construction before becoming Curry’s manager and earning reportedly a 28% share of Curry’s purses.

Muhammad was a vice president of Bob Arum’s boxing behemoth, Top Rank Inc.

“A fighter reaches a point,” Curry told a reporter at the time, “where he thinks of putting away money. I want to restructure my contract, so I get to keep 80% of what I earn.”

Curry demoted Gorman to a role as an adviser at a significantly lower price. The move was controversial and met on the whole with disappointment from his hometown fans. Curry had achieved so much with Gorman as the lead of his organizational structure, why change?

“I asked him what had happened,” says Reyes, addressing a person he doesn’t know anymore.

Curry had been arrested and charged with assault of a family member, his sister — Donovan Curry’s aunt — the one person who has continued to take in her broken-down brother.

That’s all in the past, however. She has vowed to never again, those close to the situation say.

Having now lost perhaps his last friend, Donald Curry has lost everything.

His boxing fortune long ago had been eaten up in what he called bad investments, and the last remnants used to win acquittal against federal drug conspiracy charges in Detroit in 1995. Curry swore he “never, never, ever had anything to do with drugs,” calling the ordeal a terrible misjudgment he made by hanging around the wrong people.

“I don’t even know how I got there in that situation,” Curry told news reporters afterward. “There’s good and bad in the world, and I wanted to go see what the bad looked like. For real. A lot of it was being curious. I was destructive of myself. I can’t blame nobody for where I am today but myself.”

MORE THAN A FEW BELIEVE THAT CURRY’S DECLINE BEGAN WHEN HE MOVED GORMAN OUT AND MUHAMMAD IN AS HIS MANAGER AND WAS NOT COINCIDENTAL.

Curry and his trainer, Reyes, disagree over whether the controversy hurt the boxer, though Curry acknowledged it was a difficult period, which coincided with the Honeyghan fight.

“Akbar, I did not know the guy when he came in,” Reyes says. “I told Gorman, ‘You better watch him because he’s going to move you out of the way.’ He was up to no good.

“David always did what was best for Donald. Akbar just wanted to make money off of Donald.”

Reyes said Muhammad “interfered too much” in the relationship between trainer and boxer.

Muhammad “wouldn’t let me do what I wanted to do,” Reyes says. “To me, that was Donald’s downfall. He quit listening to me and more to Akbar.”

After the Nunn fight in which he lost, Curry, a couple of months shy of his 31st birthday, faced Terry Norris for the WBC world super welterweight title in Palm Springs, California. A battered Curry succumbed in the eighth round. Curry’s last fight was in April 1997, a second attempted comeback that was stopped at 1:08 of the seventh round.

Now it was truly over, the hopes and dreams shattered once and for all.

THE FALL In November, Reyes drove to a hotel on the South Freeway, not altogether sure what he would find. Out of a room came his former protégé, once one of Fort Worth’s most prominent citizens. Curry’s disheveled appearance and long, unkempt beard were the face of a man who had spent the first half of the month in the Tarrant County Jail.

The allegations and subsequent proceedings were simply the start of his spiral.

In March 1996, he was sentenced to a six-month jail term in Dallas for failing to pay child support for a son born in April 1992, the result of an infidelity that cost him his marriage.

Public records show a lengthy arrest record since the late 1990s, including assault of a family member now three times, assault with a deadly weapon, and assault on a public servant. He also had two possession of marijuana charges.

His dramatic descent mirrors that of his half-brother, Bruce, he, too, a boxer of repute and world champion in his own right. Bruce Curry was the runner-up to Sugar Ray Leonard in the 1976 Olympic Boxing Trials.

In 1983, the Currys became the first brothers to hold world titles at the same time. After a loss the very next year, Bruce Curry’s mental decline was swift.

Bruce Curry at one time in the mid-1980s had been committed to a Nevada mental institution after trying to shoot his trainer, the same trainer who by that time had refused to go to Curry’s door.

“He regrets the one time he did,” a report in the Los Angeles Times recalled. “After first checking under a nearby car and then looking behind bushes, Reid [the trainer] cautiously approached the door, knocking, and standing aside. Curry jumped onto Reid from an upstairs window.”

The trainer, the report went on, recalled incidents in which Curry would call him from Texas in the early hours of the morning, wanting to know why Reid had caused a girl to spill popcorn on him at the movies, or why Red had caused a fly to be in his room because if his mouth were open, it could fly in and kill him. In another phone call, Curry demanded to know why Reid had nixed a dream date with one of the Pointer sisters.

Donald Curry during that time placed the blame on the downfall of his brother’s career to mismanagement by his handlers.

All three of the Curry brothers — Bruce, Donald, and Graylin — were boxers. Two sisters were part of the family, too. One, Angela, was

Curry successfully defended his undisputed welterweight title against the No. 1 contender Eduardo Rodriguez at Will Rogers Coliseum in March 1986.

killed in a motorcycle accident in 1984 at age 18. Some say Donald Curry witnessed the accident as he left training at the gym, though he didn’t know at the time that Angela was the victim.

Brooks said he never knew Donald Curry well, considering he and Bruce were five years older.

On the topic of Bruce and Donald Curry, Brooks says: “There’s a lot of guys out there who have brain damage. I’ve seen guys I used to fight as amateurs, and I could see it in their eyes. The way they look and the way they respond. Their speech itself tells you they have damage. I’m sure [Donald Curry] has got some problems, and it all stems from the fight game.”

They were raised by a single mother, Hazel, who made ends meet as a maid at St. Joseph Hospital on South Main Street.

Curry, his mother said, was the “quiet one.” Hazel, her son said, impressed upon him the values of life and how “to stand on my own two feet during hard times.”

His mother, Curry said at another time, knew sadness intimately. What she hated most was seeing her kids sad.

“He was a great kid,” says Gary Lee Williams, who grew up with Curry playing baseball and football, as well as boxing. “He was the biggest laugh. Just a big kid. Not a mean bone in his body. Never has been. How he’d ratchet up and fight the way he did always amazed me. A lot of guys fight out of meanness, but Paul Reyes and those guys took care of him. He never had a worry in the world.

“I can remember nights we were supposed to fight [each other], before or after fights, we’d be out shooting basketballs. Just a big kid. Fun-loving. Great athlete, obviously.”

“They were like the average African American family household,” remembers Overton Brooks, who fought with Bruce on an amateur team sponsored by the union at General Motors. I parlayed boxing into getting a job. I didn’t really care about boxing. My brother [Monroe] was a boxer. I knew how to fight. When I found out they had a team, I figured if I could get on the team and get some good representation, just maybe [GM] would give me a job. And it turned out that way, and they did. I qualified for the AAU national championships and sat down and told them I need a job.

“GM also offered Bruce a job and Robert Williams [another boxer] a job. I went to both and said, ‘I’ve got the door open for you. We can get you in.’ But they said they would have to work second shift and couldn’t train with the team. I said, ‘Boxing is just a play thing. Something to do. This is a job with a future that we can really do good for ourselves.’ They both refused to take the jobs.”

Boxing was Bruce’s world, Brooks remembers.

Bruce Curry had a reputation for being uncoachable and narcissistic. If he wasn’t the center of attention or perceived as the most important member of the boxing team, he left for another team. He craved the attention.

Bruce Curry quit high school because it interfered with boxing.

THE TRAGEDY “Don is a true disaster story,” says Larry O’Neal, sitting in his offices at Classic Auto Detail Shop, which doubles as his equally known Fort Worth Memories Museum, which has a following on Facebook of more than 100,000. Sitting on shelves are countless mementos of Fort Worth history. O’Neal, once himself a Golden Gloves fighter in his youth, also has a Facebook page devoted to Fort Worth boxing.

“I don’t know what the hell happened to him. He had a beautiful wife. He just went to hell in a handbasket. He helped a lot of people. He would take your call and talk to you. The stardom never went to his head. He was a humble guy.

“It has to be CTE.”

In November 2021, O’Neal says, an associate of his had closed on the purchase of a warehouse. In it, he found a number of items from Curry’s old fighting inventory, including a robe, gloves, and trophy. The gentleman and O’Neal made arrangements to meet with Curry.

“Don said, ‘I don’t want to buy that,’” O’Neal says. The warehouse owner said, “‘I’m not trying to sell it to you. I want to give it to you.’ Don said, ‘I don’t want it.’ I said, ‘Don, you could go sell it and get some money that you need.’ That’s when I knew something was really wrong.”

It was O’Neal’s office that Reyes took Curry after picking him up from the hotel. O’Neal was the one who had bailed Curry out of jail.

The meeting didn’t go well, O’Neal says. Curry was agitated, he says, standing most of the time shadow boxing. The 61-year-old Curry added that he would be back in the ring in 60 days, declaring that “they’re all jealous.”

When asked who “they” were, Curry responded USA Boxing and Sugar Ray Leonard.

It was determined there, however, that Curry needed professional help.

The brain scan that Curry’s son Donovan wanted performed wasn’t part of that remedy, at least not immediately. Curry said he had a scan a couple of years ago, O’Neal said, though none of the participants knows if that’s true. The World Boxing Council has been in contact with the Cleveland Clinic in an effort to help get Curry a brain scan, according to The Independent.

CTE can only be definitively diagnosed after examining a brain after death, according to the medical and scientific community.

Reyes asked a friend who operates a church-based facility for addicts to take him in. The friend agreed. It is not known if Curry has been diagnosed as an addict or if he suffers from any other emotional or mental conditions. That facility is a mere 3 miles from Culberson’s gravesite.

In his youth, his friends said they never knew him to drink or

City Councilman Bert Williams was among those dignitaries who heaped praise on the city’s favorite son at the banquet marking “Donald Curry Day” in Fort Worth, with manager David Gorman at the boxer’s left, and Dee Jennings in the background.

smoke. “He trained hard, and he was clean, clean, clean,” says one.

“He is doing fine,” says Reyes, 83.

It was in 1928 that an American pathologist introduced a “peculiar condition among prize fighters.” Harrison Stanford Martland titled his study, “Punch Drunk,” which was soon adopted as part of the American lexicon.

“As far as I know, this condition has not been described in medical literature,” Martland wrote. “I am of the opinion that in punch drunk there is a very definite brain injury due to single or repeated blows on the head or jaw which cause multiple concussion hemorrhages in the deeper portion of the cerebrum. … These hemorrhages are later replaced by a gliosis or a degenerative progressive lesion in the areas involved.

Therefore, in the late stages the symptoms often mimic those seen in diseases characterized by the parkinsonian syndrome. I realize that this theory, while alluring, is quite insusceptible of proof at the present time, but I am so convinced from my former studies on post-traumatic encephalitis that this is a logical deduction that I feel it is my duty to report this condition.”

Many of these cases of dementia pugilistica, as it is also known, Martland noted, were mild in nature, though others were severe with symptoms that that included a “peculiar tilting of the head, a marked dragging of one or both legs, a staggering, propulsive gait with the facial characteristics of the parkinsonian syndrome, or a backward swaying of the body, tremors, vertigo and deafness. Finally, marked deterioration may set in necessitating commitment to an asylum.”

professional ranks, the punches come more frequently with 8-ounce gloves being thrown, as opposed to 10 ounces in the amateur ranks.

And, as one former boxer said, “I can assure you, six of those ounces are in the wrist.”

Ann McKee’s research at Boston University has become the authority on CTE. McKee has identified more than 450 cases in the last 20 years, particularly in former NFL players and boxers.

She told The Independent: “Cognitive issues like forgetfulness, memory loss, and difficulty with organization that present in middle age are a very common onset to the disease. Then, it’s common to develop behavioral abnormalities. They can be violence, a short fuse, anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts. It can involve motor symptoms in some people like Parkinson’s, rigidity, or difficulty walking. It’s a progressive disease, that can start even a decade before you see the symptoms, and then accelerates as a person ages.

What Martland was describing was CTE, or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. Over the course of the next 10 decades other researchers have found similar findings. One of those was titled, “Chronic Traumatic Brain Injury Associated with Boxing,” by Cornell University researcher Barry D. Jordan. He found that 20% of professional boxers suffer from chronic traumatic brain injury.

A signature study was performed by English pathologist John Corsellis, who studied the brains of 15 retired boxers. He also examined their fight histories and found a correlation between punch drunkenness and number of fights. The fighters he studied had between 300 and 700 bouts over the course of their careers. That was in addition to sparring and other fight training.

Curry had at least 444 bouts, including 404 amateur fights. The fight game has come a long way since 1928. In use today is protective headgear for amateurs as well as more proactive referees encouraged to intervene sooner when a fight turns one-sided. In the

“It’s very common for people to behave in ways that make them unlikeable or hard to live with because they become irrational and act out. The smallest infraction can make them fly off the handle and have explosive or erratic actions. But the thing that can help families to understand it is that it’s the disease making them this way, it’s controlling their mind and their behavior. It’s not really them.”

There has been change within the professional boxing industry. Championship fights have been reduced to 12 rounds from 15, and weigh-ins are now conducted the day before a bout, rather than the day of, a move designed to reduce the likelihood of a boxer entering the ring dehydrated as Curry did in his loss to Honeyghan.

After seeing Donovan Curry’s social media post, the World Boxing Council is offering its resources, too. Last year, the WBC and Wesana Health partnered to investigate new medications for those affected by CTE. Williams, Curry’s chum from their boyhood days, says he spoke to his old friend about two years ago.

“He sounded happy,” Williams says. “Like a lot of them, his speech was a little slurred. A lot of those guys … I guess I was just lucky. I quit at 18. I didn’t pursue it. I got out at the right time. You step up the caliber of competition … you take a hell of a lot more punishment fighting professionally than as an amateur.”

And so, it is this time that rather than a boxer’s defensive posture, it is perhaps only a guardian angel who can protect Curry from the wickedness and snares of a devil of a disease.

“I have nothing but great things to say about him,” Mallick says. “The Donald Curry I knew was a mild-mannered, respectful gentleman who showed great promise, and we were all proud of him.

Curry, under the watchful eye of trainer Paul Reyes, works out at David Gorman’s gym on South Main Street.

Metallic Cat

The Horse Who

Won Titles, Hearts,

and a Cameo on “Yellowstone”

BY TYLER HICKS PHOTOGRAPHY BY OLAF GROWALD

By entering the rough-and-tumble world of the Dutton family, Metallic Cat deepens Fort Worth’s ties to one of the biggest shows on TV.

He tracks his target with beautiful agility. The way he seamlessly glides — no, cuts — through the air may remind you of a cornerback like Deion Sanders. Above all else, the horse named Metallic Cat just seems smart.

In one video online, he struts across the arena with the swagger of a seasoned athlete at the top of his game. In fact, that’s exactly what he is. The year was 2009, and Metallic Cat, then 4 years old, was competing in the Abilene Spectacular. Like most competitions he entered, he walked away a champion.

His speed was impressive, and he cut a daunting figure (pun intended). But what was most impressive, at least to those who knew what to look for, was his “cow sense.”

If you’re not familiar with the world of cutting horse competitions, here’s how it works: The rider and horse — typically part of the American Quarter Horse breed — are tasked with separating a single cow (i.e., “cutting” the cow) from its herd. The game is a callback to the very beginning of the cattle ranching industry when cowboys needed horses like Metallic Cat to help them herd. Otherwise, well, their jobs were even harder.

“We live in the capital of the cutting horse world. This is Churchill Downs.

Flash forward a couple centuries, and the cutting horse industry is a thriving business with shows and competitions in Fort Worth and throughout the world. Now, think about what Michael Jordan is to basketball or what Tom Brady is to football. The glory. The status. The reverie that accompanies the mere mention of their name. That, in essence, is what Metallic Cat is to the cutting horse industry. I asked Bobby Patton, the horse’s owner, to tell me about the first time he heard of Metallic Cat, and he simply couldn’t do it.

in the crowd just know they are in the presence of something special, as they should: At that point, Metallic Cat had already been crowned champion of three different top-tier competitions and been named “Horse of the Year” by the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA), located in Fort Worth. Even still, the crowd at the 2009 Abilene Spectacular was not what you would expect for a crowd witnessing an MVP at the top of his game. Part of that is the nature of the venue. After all, most horse competition venues can’t seat the tens of thousands of fans you’ll find at MLB or NFL games. But the world of cutting horses has significantly grown in the 13 years since that competition. The horse industry now generates more than $120 billion in revenue each year, and competition drives a sizable portion of the profits. Further, purse sizes at major competitions continue to grow, and guys like Patton, an oil and gas investor and lifelong Fort Worth resident, have entered the fray — often in eye-popping fashion. Case in point: In 2017, Patton bought Metallic Cat for a reported $14 million. Patton didn’t confirm that figure, but when interviewed for this story, he offered plenty of praise for his champion.

All three Triple Crown events are in Fort Worth and kinda always have been.” – Bobby Patton

“For as long as anyone can remember, he’s been the dominant figure in the sport,” he told Fort Worth Magazine. “There’s just something special about him.”

It was remarkably similar to the words he had for reporters after that fateful 2017 purchase.

around age 4), but since then, Metallic Cat has fathered many championship-caliber horses, quite literally creating a destiny unmatched in the sport.

“The money he has won has hardly ever been done before,” says Debbie Roberts, a horse cutting veteran with close ties to Metallic Cat. “He keeps breaking record after record after record.”

But there’s yet another reason why Metallic Cat has rapidly become one of the most famous horses of all time. In late 2021, the legendary cutting horse made the crossover to Hollywood with a guest spot on a beloved show that also shares a special connection to Fort Worth. The cameo, years in the making, was just another chapter in the tale of Metallic Cat — a tale that is still being told.

“It’s been an incredible journey,” says Roberts. “All of the stars have aligned.”

Debbie Roberts still remembers the first time she saw a cutting horse. The beauty. The raw power. The pure athleticism. She was immediately enraptured by all of it, which is saying something: Roberts grew up around horses; an in-depth knowledge of the animal is practically embedded in her DNA.

“I chose early on to go this direction because of the passion I had for these animals,” she says of the cutting horse industry. “That was 33 years ago.”

“That’s like asking, ‘When’s the first time you heard about the Dallas Cowboys?’” he says over the phone in January. “In a way, you’re kind of born knowing who they are.”

So, back to 2009. Even before Metallic Cat begins lithely herding the cow, there is a tangible energy in the Abilene arena, a veritable hum of anticipation. The people

“I’m excited! That’s what I’m feeling, more than anything else,” said Patton, also a part-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, at the time. “I was really excited when Clayton Kershaw signed his contracts and he was going to be a Dodger for a very long time, and I think this is a similar feeling. I really do think Metallic Cat might be the Clayton Kershaw of the cutting horse business.”

Patton’s instinct was spot-on — and then some. He may have retired shortly after that 2009 video (cutting horses peak

Roberts, who currently resides in Oregon, can spend hours waxing poetic about this business and its athletes. She is one part marketer, one part manager: an expert in the business and the breeds. Her home is in Tualatin, Oregon, but her work as head of her own company, Spurs Equine Marketing & Promotions, has taken her all over the country. That’s how she met Metallic Cat.

“It’s a little hard to describe, but I felt an immediate connection to him,” Roberts told Fort Worth Magazine, recalling the night she met the champion horse in 2008. “You don’t always feel that connection right away, but for whatever reason, I felt it with him.”

It was the night of the 2008 NCHA Futurity, one of the three jewels in the “triple crown” of cutting horse

competitions. As Metallic Cat galloped toward the cowherd, the announcer at the Fort Worth Stockyards informed the crowd that the horse before them was sired by none other than High Brow Cat, a legend in his own right (as of this writing, High Brow Cat is the highest-earning sire in the history of the sport). The crowd was wowed by the mere presence of High Brow Cat’s progeny, but the real treat was watching Metallic Cat perform.

For three brief but memorable minutes, the horse and his rider, Beau Galyean, put on the kind of cutting clinic that is now synonymous with the name “Metallic Cat.” With every deft move, the audience noise seemed to grow another decibel. The horse’s “cow sense” was perhaps most impressive of all. At the three-minute mark, the crowd whooping and hollering with all their might, Metallic Cat sauntered to the side with the confidence of a boxer who just dominated his opponent.

According to Roberts, that kind of showmanship belies a sweet, tender personality that she associates with the

champion horse.

“Whenever I think of him, I think of that night,” she notes. “But I also think of his quirky personality. Here is this big, fierce, dynamic, and athletic personality that goes into the pen and dominates, but whenever you’re around him in the pasture, he’s just a big puppy.”

After witnessing his title-winning performance at the ‘08 Futurity, Roberts says she became Metallic Cat’s “biggest cheerleader.” She struck up a relationship with both the horse and its owners, the husband-and-wife team of Alvin and Becky Fults, and Metallic Cat became part of the “portfolio” of horses that Roberts helps market and manage. Looking back, it was the start of a year of utter domination: From 2008 through 2009, Metallic Cat won $637,711 in 11 competitions. By 2010, a year after his retirement, he was a member of the NCHA Hall of Fame. Yet in some ways, his career was just beginning.

High-caliber cutting horses like him have enormous potential as sires, so, like his father before him, Metallic Cat

started passing on his talent to the next generation. His progeny includes horses like the aptly named Bugattii who, in a fun indicator of the small, family-esque world of cutting horse competitions, is ridden by Wes Galyean, the brother of Metallic Cat’s famed rider, Beau. That world has also advanced in terms of tech and technique.

“Pretty much everything you would think about doing for a human athlete, we do now for these horses,” Roberts says. That includes acupuncture, private chiropractor treatments, cold water spa days, and much more. “We learn about these new techniques, and we’re like, ‘Hey, that sounds good,’ so we try it out. Usually, it works real nicely.”

Meanwhile, renowned sires like Metallic Cat are living lives of luxury. As Roberts puts it, “He’s finally allowed to be a horse” (and being a horse sounds pretty amazing).

“He has lived a life of luxury,” Roberts says. “During breeding season, he’s bringing in a lot of mares, and most of the time, he hangs out in luscious green pastures, exercising daily, and eating the

Owner Bobby Patton with Metallic Cat

best feed there is.”

Roberts adds that she has “kind of adopted” Metallic Cat as her own horse. But she does not own him, and at the time of this writing, she was only seeing him once every two to three months (her schedule keeps her pretty busy with travel). Still, whenever they meet, Metallic Cat remembers exactly who she is.

“He has my heart,” she says. “He’s my special boy.”

She isn’t the first to develop a close bond with the famous horse. When Alvin and Becky Fults sold Metallic Cat to Patton five years ago, they called it “the biggest and hardest decision of our lives.”

“This is a very emotional day for us,” Becky said at the time. “This horse was our whole life for nine years, and he has impacted our family in more ways than I can begin to express.”

“He is a once-in-a-lifetime horse,” Alvin added.

The sale took place roughly a decade after Beau Galyean used his truck as collateral to obtain the bank loan he needed to buy Metallic Cat. In just 10 years, the horse had become about as famous as a horse can get outside of Hollywood. Plus, Tinseltown wasn’t too far off.

In 2019, Roberts, who kept working with Metallic Cat after the Fults’ sale,

approached Patton with an opportunity. Taylor Sheridan, the Oscar-nominated screenwriter and the pride of Paschal High School, had partnered with the NCHA Charities Foundation for a special auction. The highest bidder would earn their horse a spot on Sheridan’s show “Yellowstone.”

“I told Bobby about this opportunity to be on this show,” Roberts recalls, “and at first, I don’t think he was really into it. I remember he said, ‘I don’t know. Do you really think it’s worth it?’”

It ultimately didn’t take too long for Roberts to convince Patton. It helped that he was a big “Yellowstone” fan, of course.

“I don’t know if I was always on the edge of my seat during the first season,” he says, “but by the second season, they had me.” Then he briefly trades his investor cap for the title of TV critic.

“The character development is solid, and it has drama, action, great writing, and great acting. What else can you ask for?”

He pauses.

“I would still say ‘Game of Thrones’ is my favorite show of all time, though.”

However, TV stardom didn’t interest him as much as the chance to support NCHA charities. Once Patton realized the money he bid would be going to a stellar cause — a cause close to him and his family — he was all in. He won the auction with a bid of $165,000, and though it took a couple years to film and air Metallic Cat’s TV debut, Patton says it was well worth the wait. Plus, he got to know fellow Paschal alum Taylor Sheridan. Patton thinks the pair might’ve crossed paths at some function or another before the 2019 auction, but since then, the two Fort Worth sons have had plenty of time to talk shop and become friendly. Sheridan has been the main point-of-contact for both Patton and Roberts for all things Metallic Cat, and both folks are now on a first-name basis with the acclaimed filmmaker.

“Taylor is very talented, very passionate, and I think he really loves Fort Worth,” Patton says. “He’s actually kinda similar to his character in ‘Yellowstone.’”

If you’re not familiar, “Yellowstone” tells the story of the Dutton family, the owners of the largest ranch in Montana.

Throughout the show’s four increasingly popular seasons thus far, the family has dealt with a succession of challenges to their land and power. Betrayal, intrigue, and the occasional shootout are all par for the course in a perfectly cast saga that stars Kevin Costner, Kelly Reilly, and Cole Hauser as Rip Wheeler, a ranch foreman and fan favorite. Sheridan, who got his start in the biz as an actor, portrays Travis Wheatly, a rugged and loyal horse trader. These characters — and the world they occupy — have so enthralled fans that a spinoff show, “1883,” debuted late last year.

Part of the show’s appeal is its embrace of Western culture, which isn’t a major facet of many — or any — mainstream TV fare. Yet as Patton pointed out, it’s also the characters that keep people engaged at a time when there are more television shows than ever before.

“I’ve always liked the notion of playing with who is a protagonist, and allowing our heroes to be flawed, and really question what they’re doing morally, ethically, and keep them really human,” Sheridan recently told Variety. “I don’t like my good guys to be all that good, and I don’t like my bad guys to be all that bad, even though they may do really bad things. And I think that makes them relatable.”

In late 2021, two years after Patton won him a spot on the show, Metallic Cat officially joined the captivating universe crafted by Sheridan. The horse’s appearance came the day after Christmas in the penultimate episode of the show’s fourth season. In the episode, titled “No Such Thing as Fair,” Metallic Cat emerges as a key part of the plot when a character named Jimmy is told to drive the “Stallion of the Year” back to the Yellowstone Ranch from Texas, where Jimmy has been earning his official cowboy education at the Four Sixes Ranch. It might seem like a small detail in the grand scheme of things, particularly since the episode also included heaps of intense family drama and some angsty, emotional romance. But for many “Yellowstone” fans, Metallic Cat’s cameo was the highlight of the night.

“I LOVED seeing the great ‘Metallic Cat’ on last night’s episode!” tweeted a fan named Suzanne Hooper. “He is one of my all-time favorites and have had the

pleasure of seeing him work in person.”

“Metallic Cat!” exclaimed Jerry Douglas. “What a name. What a beautiful horse.”

Of course, Patton loved seeing his horse on a TV show that is watched by about 8 million people each week. But the greater joy is thinking about the future of the horse business. The show and its latest equine guest star have ignited new interest for the world of horses and the West, and he hopes that interest pays dividends for the world of cutting horses.

“To me, the message of something like this is, ‘Hey, Fort Worth, you really ought to pay attention to something that goes on here year-round. We live in the capital of the cutting horse world. This is Churchill Downs. All three Triple Crown events are in Fort Worth and kinda always have been.”

potential of the cutting horses and the facilities he had on hand (“Rocking P is perfect for cutting,” he says), he gradually built what has become an impressive and competitive business.

There are essentially two sources of revenue: breeding from the outside and breeding from the inside. Ranchers who want to breed with a champion horse (and newly minted TV star) will bring a mare to Rocking P Ranch. At the same time, Patton owns his own mares whom he breeds with his horses to create yearlings he can then sell.

“The money he has won has hardly ever been done before. He keeps breaking record after record after record.” – Debbie Roberts

In addition to Metallic Cat — who now has multiple “Sire of the Year” awards to accompany his “Horse of the Year” trophy — Patton also owns Spots Hot. The latter horse might not be comparable to Metallic Cat just yet, but he has already sired a Futurity Champion.

That’s how I felt,” he says. “My daughter was much, much better. But that didn’t surprise me.”

In other words, he has no plans to change careers anytime soon. Nor is he aware of any future “Yellowstone” plans that involve Metallic Cat. That said, he is open to another cameo — as is Debbie Roberts, who also appeared in the episode alongside her “special boy.” And who is to say it couldn’t happen? Sheridan is currently developing another spinoff show based on Texas’ legendary 6666 Ranch, and in the “Yellowstone” universe, Metallic Cat was based out of that very ranch.

“There’s nothing planned,” Patton says, “but I would be happy to do anything.”

Patton, about as shrewd a businessman as you are likely to find in Fort Worth, admits that the horse business is as much about passion as it is money.

“I can see it being profitable,” he notes, “but there’s no guarantee of it being profitable.”

And technically, his foray into this business wasn’t some sort of grand plan; it just kind of happened. One day, he had zero cutting horses; the next, he had 13.

In September 2015, Patton purchased the property that would become his Rocking P Ranch from the Walton family (yes, those Waltons). He also bought the horse Boon San, who, too, was sired by High Brow Cat, and a score of other cutting horses. According to him, the property seemed like “a good real estate investment.” Plus, it had the added benefit of giving his daughter, a budding barrel racer, a chance to hone her craft. When he realized the

“It’s a fun business to be a part of,” Patton says. Then again, the money isn’t the point — at least not the whole point. Recently, the businessman and his daughter entered the pen. Patton — oil titan, Dodgers owner, and foremost investor — rode a horse in competition.

“What’s that old joke about golf? ‘You don’t have to be good to enjoy it?’

Until then, the story of Metallic Cat will live on — mostly through the many horses he has sired. It’s possible that one day his progeny will outearn those of his father, High Brow Cat, who, through frozen sperm, is still producing top earners years after his death. Roberts knows beating High Brow Cat’s record will be tough, but she would never bet against Metallic Cat. As of this writing, Metallic Cat’s progeny have won more than $49 million. He earned roughly $10 million in 2021, and his dad’s total earnings are roughly $87 million.

“I think he can catch him,” Roberts says. “And if he does, it’ll be a heck of a story.”

From left to right: Jefferson White as Jimmy Hurdstram and Taylor Sheridan as Travis Wheatley on “Yellowstone”

Lisa and Burch Waldron with Toby Owen, Executive Director of Presbyterian Night Shelter

 Welcome to the Roaring 2020s

After a long hiatus, charity events made a big comeback in 2021, and local nonprofits hope to keep the momentum going.

BY MELISSA MITCHELL

Itwas a little over a century ago when humanity was exiting an era defined by a world war and a pandemic. Yet the decade that followed — the Roaring ’20s — was an era of hope, progress, and lavish events. As we remain steadfast in making an economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, there is reason to think history might be repeating itself — extravagant parties are making a comeback.

After nearly two years of health restrictions and isolation, Fort Worthians are primed to trade in their slippers for dancing shoes — that is, if we can keep the omicron variant at bay and still safely gather.

FALL RECAP

While events carefully make their way out of their shells, the most impactful parties resurfacing are nonprofit fundraisers. Out of the nonprofit events that Fort Worth Magazine sponsored in fall 2021, 88% of them moved forward as originally planned. Below are a few of the highlights.

Girls

Inc. – Champions Breakfast

The mission of Girls Inc. of Tarrant County is to inspire all girls to be strong, smart, and bold.

Held on a beautiful morning at the Fort Worth Zoo’s outdoor pavilion on Sept. 16, this breakfast recognized Bold Woman honorees and Champions for Girls donors. Attendees heard from the Morales family, who has been positively impacted by Girls Inc. programming. The event raised over $140,000 to support the Girls Inc. mission.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County – Youth of the Year Gala

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County held its annual Youth of the Year Gala at the AT&T Stadium Oct. 7. Attendees enjoyed a plated dinner on the field and a keynote presentation from Dallas Cowboys legend and former Club member, DeMarcus Ware. This gala is Boys & Girls Clubs’ premier fundraising event, dedicated to uplifting the mission of the organization and recognizing the remarkable lives of its Club members.

The Junior League of Fort Worth – Christmas in Cowtown

After canceling in 2020, Fort Worth’s favorite holiday shopping market, Christmas in Cowtown, returned on Oct. 14-17 at Will Rogers Amon G. Carter Exhibit Hall. Upon arrival, shoppers were surrounded by festive Christmas décor leading into the large market that had over 200 vendors who sold a variety of products like home goods, jewelry, clothing, gifts, and accessories. Since its inception, this event has raised over $5 million to help support women, children, and families in need.

The Women’s Center – Monster Mash

Supporters of The Women’s Center look forward to Monster Mash annually. The event took place at Ridglea Country Club on Oct. 22 last fall. Guests were asked to dress to the theme Cartoon Smash. Imagine attendees dressed as all your favorite television characters from all generations, from the old-school Flintstones to new-age Disney Princesses. The night included a cocktail party with a raffle and games, a sitdown dinner, and silent auction, followed by dancing to the entertainment of Emerald City Band.

Ronald McDonald House of Fort Worth – 40TH Anniversary Party

Guests began their evening at the Ronald McDonald House of Fort Worth’s 40th Anniversary Party with a pre-event cocktail party, liquor toss, and big board auction. Later in the evening, attendees enjoyed a seated, buffet-style dinner, live auction, and live music by Josh Weathers. The element of surprise at this event was a balloon emerging from the centerpiece when each table reached their fundraising goal. The celebration was held at Lucky Spur Ranch Retreat on Oct. 30. This was the first event for Ronald McDonald House of Fort Worth since taking a pandemic pause.

“The cancellation of special events created huge pressure to find operating funds elsewhere while still connecting with our very generous supporters,” Ronald McDonald House Chief Impact Officer Beth Lamb says. “We were pleasantly surprised and deeply grateful for the overwhelming support received from our many supporters.”

Altogether, the event netted $387,000 for the families of sick and injured children.

National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame – Desert Rose Luncheon and Fashion Show

A chic luncheon presented by the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, the inaugural Desert Rose Luncheon and Fashion Show was held on Nov. 10 at River Crest Country Club.

“The Desert Rose Luncheon was new,” National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame Director of Development Emmy Lou Prescott says. “We have been doing the Old Bags Luncheon for eight years, but it was recommended by my dear friend and a great volunteer, Olivia Kearney, to come up with a new luncheon idea.”

Women in the Fort Worth community strutted on the catwalk as they modeled clothing that will be sold at the new Desert Rose boutique located at the museum. Attendees

enjoyed a mouthwatering fall menu selection of tomato basil soup with gourmet grilled cheeses; a fall flavor salad with candied pecans, cranberries, apples, butternut squash, quinoa, and creamy cider dressing; and a fall spiced carrot cake with maple ice cream.

The purpose of the event is to raise both awareness and education funding. “It raises about $70,000 each year,” Prescott says. “We must have these events to survive.”

Children’s Charities – Margarita Ball

An anticipated black-tie affair, the Margarita Ball returned in person on Nov. 13 at The Worthington Renaissance Hotel. This fundraiser benefits 13 children’s charities throughout Fort Worth. Tickets included a toy donation for local children, entertainment by Stratosphere Band, complimentary Don Julio Tequila margaritas, and entertainment such as a casino game room, photos with Santa, raffles, and a silent auction with board member and auctioneer Chuck Darling of Tyson Fundraising. Over 1,200 tickets were sold to the event. “This year was bigger and better than ever,” Children’s Charities President Beth Driskill says. “We had the most successful year in all 32 years of hosting the Margarita Ball in terms of the amount of money we raised. People were ready to get back out in the world and contribute.”

Presbyterian Night Shelter – Home for the Holidays Gala Poinsettia centerpieces and twinkling holiday décor adorned the Fort Worth Club on Dec. 3 when guests gathered for an evening to raise money benefiting Presbyterian Night Shelter. A virtual option for the event was also available to further its reach in educating attendees about what the community can do to help Tarrant County’s homeless population.

“With the pandemic being very difficult for those who are experiencing homelessness, the funding we received from the Gala is especially important during a time that the homeless population in our community need us the most,” Presbyterian Night Shelter Director of Communications Whitney Rice says.

BEHIND THE SCENES

Although a well-planned charity fundraiser looks and feels like a seamless experience to attendees, months (if not years) of planning go into the making. Some have a volunteer committee, others have a salaried employee to do the job, and many have a hybrid team.

“We are volunteer-lead and staff-driven,” March of Dimes Development Director Heather Evans says. “We had an event planning committee, an executive committee, and a chef’s recruitment committee for our Signature Chefs Auction event that happened this fall.”

Committee tasks include coordinating donated goods and services such as the venue, vendors, raffle, live auction items, and food.

“Operational costs can be very high to put on events,” Evans says. “However, our generous chefs, like Richard King of Ellerbe Fine Foods, donated 100% of the food that is served at

this event. A plated dinner is the most expensive component, so because of these donations, our overhead costs are less and a lot more is going back to the mission.”

Outside of the normal heap of tasks incurred from event planning, fundraising, and garnering donations, charity organizations have had extra work cut out for them specifically dedicated to implementing health and safety restrictions at their events to ensure a positive guest experience. The required restrictions at these events vary. Some are following minimum CDC guidelines. Others are still requesting that guests wear face masks, sanitize hands, and participate in temperature checks. Many choose outdoor and well-ventilated venues and require attendees to sign a COVID-19 waiver of liability.

“Everything that we do at March of Dimes locally has to be approved by our headquarters nationally. Nationwide, our COVID-19 policy is a mandatory vaccine. However, we couldn’t implement that regulation in Texas, so we had to require a negative test for all attendees to enter,” Evans says.

The Signature Chefs Auction was initially scheduled for Sept. 30 but then was postponed to Nov. 17. This was due to the spread of the delta variant, to allow attendees time to schedule tests, and with hopes that regulations might be lifted for health care workers so they could be present.

“A handful of people were deterred by the test requirement, but the room at the event was as packed in 2021 as it was in 2019,” Evans says. “We almost doubled our fundraising goal.”

EVENTS ARE ESSENTIAL

The purpose of charity events goes far beyond an opportunity to show off bowties and ballgowns. These events are crucial for most organizations to maintain operations and carry out their mission. Over the past two years, many organizations have missed out on the valuable (for some critical) donation opportunity that hosting an event provides.

“Our organization is events-driven, and 80% of the revenue that we receive locally is through events,” Evans says. “If we’re not having events, we’re not raising money for our mission.”

Driskill with Children’s Charities of Fort Worth shares that the donations from the Margarita Ball accounts for 85% of their overall fundraising efforts, netted in one single day.

“Margarita Ball is absolutely essential and critical for our organization,” Driskill says. “We are already planning for 2022.”

SPRING PLANS

If the omicron variant settles down so that we can continue to gather and support Tarrant County’s nonprofits, there are several soirées to look forward to.

Cook Children’s Foundation – Jewel Ball

One of Fort Worth’s longest-standing charity traditions and largest fundraisers for Cook Children’s Foundation, the Jewel Charity Ball, is scheduled for March 5 at the Amon G. Carter Exhibit Hall. Guests will be transported to the streets of New

York City with the theme “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” Words that come to mind are Audrey Hepburn, The Temptations, The Four Tops, a Tiffany & Co. store front, and delicious fare catered by Wolfgang Puck.

A trip experience sponsored by Tiffany & Co. will be included in the silent auction. The lucky winner will have an insider tour of the New York City flagship store and be the first to dine in the newly renovated Blue Box Café.

“Since we canceled in the past with the protection of our hospital, membership, and community in mind, we have been planning the 2022 event for the past three years,” Jewel Charity Volunteer President Michelle Marlow says. “The response of the event coming back has been nothing but positive and joyful.”

Since the first Jewel Charity Ball 68 years ago, the organization has raised over $77 million for Cook Children’s Foundation. Each year, a signature project is selected for the funding to be dedicated toward. This year, funds will support a project called Protecting Your Tomorrows, which will provide Cook Children’s aid in better preparing for the possibility of future pandemics.

“Cook Children’s did a wonderful job handling COVID-19, but we need isolation rooms for families, so this project will help aid in preparing us for possible scenarios similar to COVID-19,” Marlow says.

The Alzheimer’s Association North Central Texas –ABLAZE

After a two-year hiatus, ABLAZE is finally coming back to Cowtown. The Alzheimer’s Association plans for this event to be held on March 5 at a new favorite venue, Hotel Drover. This event benefits the nonprofit’s mission to end Alzheimer’s.

Cuisine for Healing – Dinner Party for Life

Cuisine for Healing’s annual Dinner Party for Life event will return on March 10 at Hotel Drover. Participating celebrity chefs will feature artful dishes and select complimentary wine pairings for guests to enjoy. The support garnered at this event provides immune-boosting meals for community members battling life-threatening diseases.

“We do not receive any government funding,” Cuisine for Healing Executive Director Lori Henson says. “The funds raised at this event go directly to our programming, which is to provide organic, healthy meals to people in Tarrant County going through a health crisis like cancer.”

Goodwill North Central Texas – Project Goodwill

An interesting concept, this event tasks aspiring local designers with designing fashionable garments using materials from Goodwill stores. Leading up to the fashion show, attendees will enjoy cocktail hour and a wine raffle. The event will be on April 7 at Ridglea Country Club.

“Over the years, participants have used materials including lampshades, album covers, a trampoline, suitcases, tin foil pans, air filters, and more to complete their looks,” Goodwill

Director of Community Engagement Liz Confiliano says. “Contestants compete for top honors in design materials and method, and runway presentation.”

All proceeds go to the Moncrief-Ryan Scholarship Fund, supporting initiatives focusing on providing jobs and training for the homeless, at-risk youth, veterans, the formerly incarcerated, and people with disabilities.

Recovery Resources Council – Stars in Recovery

The 34th Annual Jim Bradshaw Memorial Stars in Recovery event featuring Jason Starkey will take place on April 21 at the Fort Worth Botanic Gardens.

“For those attending in person or virtually, Stars is a chance for guests to join their like-minded neighbors in helping Texas families get addiction and mental health treatment,” Recovery Resources Council Development Director Alicia Peoples says.

A Wish with Wings – Butterfly Wishes Gala

This exciting event is back on April 22 just in time to celebrate the 40th anniversary of a Wish with Wings. Guests can look forward to dinner, an auction, and live entertainment from Emerald City Band at the Simons Bank Plaza at Dickies Arena.

SafeHaven

of Tarrant County – Purple Party

The Purple Party is set for April 22 at Ashton Depot. SafeHaven Director of Marketing Micah Thompson says the event will include a cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres, a mystery wall, silent auction, dinner, a light program, and even dancing.

“Purple Party is, of course, a night of fundraising for the shelter, transitional housing, counseling, legal aid, and prevention services, but we also love this time of celebrating with our community partners,” Thompson says.

Leukemia Texas – BEATLeukemia Ball

The BEATLeukemia Ball is scheduled for May 7 at the Omni Fort Worth Hotel.

“The funds raised at this event allow us to provide a $100,000 Research Grant to a Texas researcher/doctor who has applied for funding to aid in their research of leukemia cures, better testing, and blood cancer issues,” Leukemia Texas Chief Executive Officer Jessica Dunn says. "The remaining funds are used to provide financial aid grants to leukemia patients of all ages across Texas to support them and their families during their cancer journey. These funds are used to help offset their costs for medical treatments and help so many patients keep their lights on or food on their table.”

Big Brothers Big Sisters – Big Taste

After postponing this event originally planned for the fall, Big Taste will now be held on May 22 at The Worthington Renaissance Hotel. Big Brothers Big Sisters mission is to help children reach their potential and build their futures. This event honors former Fort Worth Magazine employee and philanthropist Diane Stow Ayres.

Charity Starter Guide

» Putting together a comprehensive list of every Fort Worth-based charity would be an exercise in futility — there are nearly 7,000 nonprofits in Tarrant County. Not only would this be a bear to compile, but it would also prove overwhelming for our readers. So, instead, our editors have put together a list of charities that we feel is a good place to start. Eventually, our hope is that locals who get the philanthropic itch might widen their scope of giving, and we guarantee there’s a charity within Greater Fort Worth that aligns with your niche.

All of the following charities and foundations are registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations. With the caveat of this not being comprehensive, we’d love to hear your feedback and include additional charities in our online version. For any suggestions, please email our editor at bkendall@fwtexas.com.

a Wish with Wings awww.org

Children

817.469.9474

ACH Child and Family Services achservices.org

Children

682.432.1112

Academy 4 academy4.org Education 817.332.5070

AIDS Outreach Center aoc.org Health and Wellness

817.916.5224

Airpower Foundation airpowerfoundation.com

Military

817.682.0767

All Saints Health Foundation allsaintsfoundation.bswhealth. com

Health and Wellness

817.922.7706

Alliance for Children allianceforchildren.org Children

817.348.1173

Alzheimer's Association alz.org

Health and Wellness

817.336.4949

American Cancer Society acshpfw.ejoinme.org Health and Wellness

817.570.0634

American Diabetes Association diabetes.org Health and Wellness

972.392.1181

American Heart Association heart.org

Health and Wellness

817.698.5443

American Lung Association lung.org

Health and Wellness

214.631.5864

American Paint Horse Association apha.com

Wildlife and Animals

817.834.2742

American Warrior Association

americanwarriorassociation.org

Military

682.350.5003

Amon G. Carter Foundation agcf.org

Arts and Culture

817.332.2783

Arise Africa artisafrica.org Education 877.360.9151

Art Bridges Inc. artbridgesfoundation.org

Arts and Culture

Art Tooth arttooth.com

Arts and Culture info@arttooth.com

Arts Council of Fort Worth artsfortworth.org Arts and Culture

817.738.1938

Autism Treatment Center atcoftexas.org Disabilities 469.872.7720

Association of the United States Army (AUSA) ausanorthtexas.org Military ntam@ausa.org

Ballet Frontier of Texas balletfrontier.org Arts and Culture

817.852.6887

Big Brothers Big Sisters bbbstx.org Children 817.566.7424

The Big Good thebiggood.org Community

Black Dog Charity blackdogcharity.com

Health and Wellness

817.924.4236

Bobby Norris Roundup for Autism roundupforautism.org Disabilities 817.312.5845

Botanical Research Institute of Texas brit.org

Wildlife and Animals 817.332.4441

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County bgcgtc.org

Children 817.834.4711

Boy Scouts of America Longhorn Council longhorncouncil.org

Children

817.231.8500

Camp Fire First Texas campfirefw.org

Children

817.831.2111

Camp John Marc campjohnmarc.org

Family

214.360.0056

Cancer Care Services cancercareservices.org

Health and Wellness

817.921.0653

Cancer Research Foundation

Health and Wellness 817. 261.7654

Cancer Support Community North Texas cancersupporttexas.org

Health and Wellness info@cancersupporttexas. org

Carroll Education Foundation

carrolleducationfoundation.org

Education 817.999.3281

Catholic Charities Fort Worth

catholiccharitiesfortworth.org

Poverty and Hunger 817.413.3924

Center for Transforming Lives transforminglives.org

Poverty and Hunger 817.332.6191

Cheryl's Voice cherylsvoice.org

Domestic Violence

682.325.9307

Child Care Associates childcareassociates.org

Children

817.838.0055

Children's Charities of Fort Worth

childrenscharitiesfw.com

Children

817.269.0332

Chris Kyle Frog Foundation chriskylefrogfoundation.org

Military and First Responders

844.336.2533

Clayton Youth Enrichment claytonyouth.org

Children 817.923.9888

Colleyville Garden Club colleyvillegardenclub.org

Wildlife and Animals 817.798.3058

Colleyville Woman's Club c-w-c.org

Volunteer Service 817.300.5902

Community Enrichment Center cechope.org

Poverty and Hunger 817.281.1164

Community Food Bank food-bank.org

Poverty and Hunger 817.924.3333

Community Frontline communityfrontline.com

Special Interest 817.755.0605

Communities in Schools Greater Tarrant County cistarrant.org

Education 817.446.5454

Community Healthcare of Texas chot.com

Health and Wellness

817.870.2795

Community Storehouse communitystorehouse.org

Children 817.431.3340

Cook Children's Health Foundation

cookchildrens.org

Health and Wellness

682.885.6245

Cornerstone Assistance Network

canetwork.org

Religious 817.632.6000

Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) speakupforachild.org

Children

817.877.5891

Cowtown C.A.L.F. Program cowtownmarathon.com

Children 817.207.0224

Cowtown Warriors cowtownwarriors.com

Military and First Responders

760.699.1813

Cuisine for Healing cuisineforhealing.org Health and Wellness

817.921.2377

Cystic Fibrosis Foundation cff.org

Health and Wellness 817.249.7744

Development Corporation of Tarrant County devcorptc.net

Poverty and Hunger

817.870.9008

DNAWORKS dnaworks.org

Arts and Culture

212.765.4914

Don’t Forget to Feed Me dontforgettofeedme.com

Wildlife and Animals

817.334.0727

Down Syndrome

Partnership of North Texas dspnt.org

Disabilities

817.205.5094

Downtown FW Initiatives Inc. dfwi.org

Community 817.870.1692

DRC Solutions drc-solutions.org

Poverty and Hunger

817.810.9797

Easter Seals easterseals.com

Disabilities

512.615.6800

Fairway to Heaven fairwaytoheaven.org Education 817.989.1300

Fellowship of Christian Athletes fca.org Religion 817.205.2334

First Tee Fort Worth firstteeftworth.org Children 817.420.9370

First United Methodist Church fumcfw.org Religion 817.281.5254

Foodie Philanthropy foodiephilanthropy.org Special Interest

Fort Worth Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology Coalition fwaya.org Health and Wellness

855.664.2922

Fort Worth Ducks Unlimited fortworthdu.com Environmental Fort Worth Classic Guitar Society guitarsociety.org Special Interest 214.236.0783

Fort Worth Community Arts Center fwcac.com Arts and Culture 817.738.1938

Fort Worth Garden Club fortworthgardenclub.org Wildlife and Animals

817.392.5510

Fort Worth HOPE Center fwhope.org Poverty and Hunger 817.451.6288

Fort Worth Opera fwopera.org

Arts and Culture

817.731.0833

Fort Worth Police Foundation fwpolicefoundation.org Military and First Responders 817.885.7765

Fort Worth Promotion and Development Fund thepartyinfortworth.org Government 817.451.8740

Fort Worth Public Library Foundation fwlibraryfoundation.org Education 817.871.8022

Fort Worth Save Our Children Learning Center fwsoc.org Education

817.536.2364

Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra fwsymphony.org

Arts and Culture

817.665.6500

Fort Worth Youth Orchestra fwyo.org

Arts and Culture

817.923.3121

Fort Worth Zoological Association fortworthzoo.org

Wildlife and Animals

817.759.7555

Fortress YDC fortressydc.org

Education 817.335.1007

Gary Patterson Foundation pattersonfoundation.org

Education info@pattersonfoundation. org

Gill Children's Services gillchildrens.org

Children

817.332.5070

Girl Scouts of Texas

Oklahoma Plains

gs-top.org

Children

817.735.5311

Girls Inc. of Tarrant County girlsinctarrant.org

Children

817.259.1050

Gladney Center for Adoption adoptionsbygladney.com

Children

817.922.6000

Goodwill North Central Texas goodwillnorthcentraltexas.org

Disabilities 817.332.7866

The Greatest Gift Catalog Ever tggce.org

Special Interest

817.922.8297

Grapevine Relief and Community Exchange gracegrapevine.org

Poverty and Hunger

817.488.7009

Guardianship Services, Inc. guardianshipservices.org

Disabilities 817.921.0499

Happy Hill Farm happyhillfarm.org

Education 817.692.4495

Helping Restore Ability hratexas.org

Disabilities 817.469.1977

Historic Fort Worth Inc. historicfortworth.org

Special Interest

817.336.2344

Hope Center for Autism hopecenter4autism.com

Disabilities 817.560.1139

HOPE Farm hopefarmfw.org

Religious hope@hopefarmfw.org

Hope Prison Ministries hopeprisonministries.org

Religion 817.323.7686

Humane Society of North Texas

hsnt.org

Wildlife and Animals

479.461.6034

International Rhino Foundation rhinos.org

Wildlife and Animals 540.465.9595

JDRF

jdrf.org/northtexasoklahoma Health and Wellness

214.373.9808

Jordan Elizabeth Harris Foundation jordanharrisfoundation.org Health and Wellness

682.207.5250

Junior Achievement of the Chisholm Trail chisholmtrail.ja.org Education

817.731.0838

Junior League Of Arlington jlarlington.org Special Interest 817.277.9481

Junior League of Fort Worth juniorleaguefw.org Special Interest 817.332.7500

Kids Who Care kidswhocare.org Arts and Culture

817.737.KIDS

Kimbell Art Foundation kimbellart.org Arts and Culture

817.332.8451 ext. 224 or 293 KinderFrogs kinderfrogs.tcu.edu Education

817.257.6828

Ladder Alliance ladderalliance.org Education

817.834.2100

Leadership Fort Worth leadershipfortworth.org Special Interest

817.888.8468

Lena Pope lenapope.org

Children

817.255.2500

Leukemia & Lymphoma Society lls.org/rdrv Health and Wellness

817.288.2630

Leukemia Texas leukemiatexas.org Health and Wellness 214.265.7393

LinkED link-ed.org Education 817.336.0808

Lone Star Film Society lonestarfilmfestival.com/joinfilm-society Special Interest

LTVRise lvtrise.org

Community 817.420.9741

JPS Foundation jpshealthnet.org/foundation Health and Wellness 817.702.7310

LifeGift lifegift.org Health and Wellness

817.870.0060

Lighthouse for the Blind of Fort Worth lighthousefw.org

Health and Wellness

817.332.3341

Make-A-Wish North Texas wish.org/ntx Children

817.336.9474

MANNA Worldwide mannaworldwide.com

Poverty and Hunger

817.346.3641

Mansfield Women's Club themansfieldwomensclub.com Special Interest

March of Dimes marchofdimes.org

Health and Wellness

817.451.9174

MaskOffPanel maskoffpanel.com

Health and Wellness

817.264.7250

Meals on Wheels mealsonwheels.org

Poverty and Hunger

817.336.0912

MHMR of Tarrant County mhmrtarrant.org

Health and Wellness

817.569.4300

Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth themodern.org

Arts and Culture

817.840.2115

Moslah Shrine moslahshrine.org

Special Interest

817.335.9469

Muscular Dystrophy Association mda.org/office/north-texas

Health and Wellness

972.480.0011

National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) namitarrant.org

Health and Wellness

817.332.6677

National Charity League –Fort Worth nationalcharityleague.org/ chapter/fortworth Special Interest

National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame cowgirl.net

Arts and Culture

817.336.4475

National Kidney Foundation kidney.org/offices/nkf-servingtexas

Health and Wellness

214.351.2393

The National Leadership Foundation nationalleadershipfoundation. org

Military

817.923.4527

National Multicultural Western Heritage Museum and Hall of Fame cowboysofcolor.org

Arts and Culture

817.534.8801

Near Southside Inc. nearsouthsidefw.org

Community 817.923.1649

New Day Services newdayservices.org

Children 817.926.9499

Nicholas & Louella Martin Charitable Fund northtexascf.org

Education 817.877.0702

NICU Helping Hands Foundation nicuhelpinghands.org

Health and Wellness

817.668.5191

North Texas Community Foundation northtexascf.org

Community 817.877.0702

Northside Inter-Community Agency, Inc. nicaagency.org

Poverty and Hunger 817.626.1102

One Safe Place onesafeplace.org Domestic Violence 817.916.4323

Once Upon a Time Foundation onceuponatime.org

Health and Wellness Operation Relief Center orctexas.org

Housing 972.643.3243

Pathfinders of Tarrant County pathfinderstc.org

Poverty and Hunger

817.731.1173

Performing Arts Fort Worth basshall.com

Arts and Culture 817.212.4300

Before the pandemic, many were struggling to survive.

A PATH FORWARD

1 in 5 children were already living below the poverty level prior to COVID-19*. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic continues to exacerbate this issue.

A strong and secure United Way guarantees a safety net in times of crisis and a path forward for Tarrant County. Please donate now to ensure we can continue providing emergency assistance for those who need it most.

DONATE TODAY AT:

UNITEDWAYTARRANT.ORG

Presbyterian Night Shelter journeyhome.org

Poverty and Hunger

817.632.7400

PRSA fortworthprsa.org

Special Interest gfwprsapresident@gmail. com

Pure Adventure pureadventure.org

Special Interest

817.999.7634

Rainwater Charitable Foundation rainwatercharitablefoundation. org Education information@rainwatercf. org

Read Fort Worth readfortworth.org

Education

817.258.8130

Real Estate Council of Greater Fort Worth recouncilgfw.com

Special Interest

Recovery Resource Council recoverycouncil.org

Health and Wellness

817.332.6329

Rivertree Academy rivertreeacademy.org

Education

817.420.9310

Ronald McDonald House rmhfw.org

Children

817.820.8988

Rutledge Foundation rutledgecancerfoundation.org

Health and Wellness

682.312.5514

SafeHaven safehaventc.org

Domestic Violence

817.536.5496

Samaritan House samaritanhouse.org

Poverty and Hunger 817.332.6410

Santa Fe Youth Services yapinc.org/santafeyouthservices

Children 817.492.4673

SCORE fortworth.score.org

Business 817.871.6002

Sixty & Better sixtyandbetter.org

Seniors

817.413.4949

South Central Alliance of Churches

fwscac.org

Poverty and Hunger

817.923.0486

Southlake Women's Club southlakewomensclub.org

Special Interest info@ southlakewomensclub.org

Spark Worldwide sparkworldwide.org

Helping Through Healthy Eating

Children 817.295.7671 1614 Mistletoe

921-2377

cuisineforhealing.org

Leukemia Texas has been dedicated to providing hope to Texans by funding research and granting financial aid for more than 50 years. All funds raised stay in Texas, supporting leukemia patients of all ages. www.LeukemiaTexas.org @LeukemiaTexas

Fairway to Heaven helps small Tarrant County non-profits with limited resources raise funds. We do this by organizing and holding golf tournaments donating 100% of the profits to the selected non-profit.

We are currently accepting applications for the 2023 beneficiary.

Learn more by visiting www.FairwaytoHeaven.org.

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (ALSAC) stjude.org

Health and Wellness

800.822.6344

Streams and Valleys, Inc. streamsandvalleys.org Special Interest 817.926.0006

Susan G. Komen Greater Fort Worth komengreaterfortworth.org Health and Wellness 817.735.8580

Tarrant Area Food Bank tafb.org

Caring With Commitment

c-w-c.org

•Founded in 1978, CWC has raised over $4.4 million to support our charitable grants, schol arships and service projects while also volunteering in the community. CWC has over 150 individual & business members who support the mission of the organization.

•CWC hosts two major fundraising events annually with funds going to support our charitable organizations and youth scholarships.

•Annually the membership is asked to provide feedback on allocation priorities between Civic, Cultural Arts, Domestic Violence, Education & Literacy, Mental & Physical Health, Welfare & Social Services. Then a special committee reviews grant applications and allocates funds accordingly.

•CWC celebrates the recipients of grants and scholarships at our annual Caring with Commitment Celebration. Our sponsors are also recognized at this event.

Poverty and Hunger 817.857.7100

Tarrant Coalition for Environmental Awareness dpjc.org/teca Special Interest lonburnam@gmail.com

Tarrant County Homeless Coalition ahomewithhope.org

Poverty and Hunger 817.509.3635

Tarrant County Medical Society Alliance tcmsalliance.org Health and Wellness alliance@tcms.org

Tarrant Literacy Coalition tarrantliteracycoalition.org Education 817.870.0082

Texans Can Academy - Fort Worth texanscan.org Education 817.735.1515

Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association tscra.org Special Interest 1.800.242.7820

Texas Angus Association texasangus.com Special Interest 817.740.0778

Texas Ballet Theater texasballettheater.org Arts and Culture 817.763.0207

Texas Center for Arts and Academics artsacademics.org Arts and Culture 817.766.2390

Please join us for our inaugural event, Cowtown’s Summer Soirée: A Night in White

Benefiting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

Honoring Cline McMurry & Kristee Walker Saturday, June 4th at 7:00pm Fort Worth Zoo

Sponsorship opportunities, tickets, and additional details available at

www.creelfamilyphilanthropies.com

Photo by Paige Walker Photography

ABOUT US

Catholic Charities Fort Worth (CCFW) is a learning organization that believes every person should have the opportunity to live their best life, free from poverty. Founded in 1910, CCFW works every day to make this vision a reality, serving tens of thousands of people in North Texas, and across the nation, each year. CCFW is rooted in Catholic Social Teaching and reflects these values through our client-centered approach and commitment to ensuring our practices meaningfully impact the lives of those we serve.

We strategically challenge the way poverty is addressed nationwide by creating solutions to meet the evolving needs of our community, eradicating the barriers keeping people in poverty, and transforming the narrative around poverty through advocacy and collaboration.

Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame tchof.com

Arts and Culture 817.626.7131

Texas Girls' Choir texasgirlschoir.org

Arts and Culture 817.732.8161

Texas Health Foundation texashealth.org/en/foundation Health and Wellness 682.236.5200

The Art Station theartstation.org

Arts & Health/Wellness 817.921.2401

The Fort Worth Foundation thefortworthfoundation.org

Poverty and Hunger 817.887.9207

The Jewish Federation of Tarrant County and Fort Worth tarrantfederation.org

Religion 817.569.0892

The Miles Foundation milesfdn.org

Education 817.293.5555

The Net thenetfw.com Human Trafficking 682.233.4283

The Parenting Center theparentingcenter.org

Children 817.332.6348

The Salvation Army of North Texas salvationarmyntx.org/north-texas Poverty and Hunger 1.800.SAL.ARMY

The Saving Hope Foundation saving-hope.org

Wildlife and Animals 817.336.7232

The WARM Place thewarmplace.org

Children 817.870.2272

The Welman Project thewelmanproject.org

Education 817.924.4000

The Woman's Club of Fort Worth thewomansclubfw.com Special Interest 817.335.3525

MAKE A DIFFERENCE, MENTOR!

Academy 4 connects local churches and communities to schools through mentoring 4th graders in leadership. We provide a mentor for EVERY 4th grader in the economically disadvantaged schools we serve. Our volunteers serve together once a month for 90 minutes and mentor the 4th graders in leadership, providing the students with a positive relationship with a dependable adult.

Sign Up to Mentor and find out more ways you can support the program, at academy4.org

1905 West Broadway Fort Worth, TX 76102

info@academy4.org academy4.org

The Women's Center of Tarrant County, Inc. womenscentertc.org

Domestic Violence

817.927.4039

The YMCA of Metropolitan Fort Worth ymcafw.org

Health and Wellness 817.335.9622

Trinity Habitat for Humanity trinityhabitat.org

Poverty and Hunger 817.926.9219

Unbound North Texas unboundnorthtexas.org Human Trafficking 817.668.6544

Union Gospel Mission of Tarrant County ugm-tc.org

Poverty and Hunger 817.332.2922

United Community Centers unitedcommunitycenters.org Special Interest 817.927.5556

United Way of Tarrant County unitedwaytarrant.org Special Interest 817.258.8000

Volunteers of America Texas voatx.org

Poverty and Hunger 817.529.7300

Wings of Hope wingsofhopeequitherapy.org

Health and Wellness 817.783.3805

Women's Policy Forum womenspolicyforum.org Special Interest womenspolicyforum@gmail.com

WPI Firefighters' Fund wpiff.org

Military and First Responders 817.872.1500

Young Life fortworth.younglife.org

Children 877.438.9572

Coming in August

FORT WORTH INC.

Is your company one of the best places to work for in Fort Worth?

Fort Worth Inc. is once again presenting the Best Companies to Work For in Fort Worth awards. Our program uses a two-part assessment process taking into account the employer’s policies, practices, benefits and demographics, as well as the company’s employees and their engagement and satisfaction. After all, employees know best if their company is a great company to work for or not. The winning companies will be recognized in Fort Worth Inc. and honored at an awards event to be held in August.

2022 FACES FORT WORTH of

Pioneers in their fields, the following pages feature some of Fort Worth’s finest. Those spotlighted in “Faces of Fort Worth” want to share their expertise in various industries from medicine and retail to professional accomplishments, personal pastimes, and so much more.

The Face of Auto Leasing D&M Leasing

D&M Leasing is the leader in the nation and in the state in consumer leasing. We have over 50,000 active clients in the DFW area, and we are privileged to be able to service these clients on a daily basis. With our home office located in Fort Worth, we are the leader in direct-to-consumer leasing. D&M’s EZ lease is the best-in-class, state-of-the-art lease. The EZ is more flexible and has payments and retention benefits that are unique to D&M Leasing. Our people and our perfected systems that have allowed our sales force to provide our clients top-notch service set us apart from other leasing companies. Our service and programs have proven success. We are honored to have been awarded the 2021 Dealer of the Year from DealerRater.com, a leading car dealer review and reputation management platform and company of Cars.com Inc. (NYSE: CARS). PICTURED: (left to right) Brad Turner, Fort Worth general sales manager; Kelly Strausser, managing partner | Hernco; Chase Kennemer, president | D&M Leasing Fort Worth; Cody Kennemer, president | D&M Leasing Dallas; John Conn, Fort Worth sales manager. 1400 W. Seventh St., Ste. 200 | Fort Worth, Texas 76102 | 817.355.3273 dmautoleasing.com | fortworth@dmautoleasing.com

The Face of Sophisticated Baths and Kitchens

Expressions Home Gallery powered by Reece

Our people service, expertise, quality product selection, and fabulous showroom are what make us the face of sophisticated baths and kitchens. We’ve been building our business around customers — with customers at the focus of everything we do. At Expressions Home Gallery, we have perfected the home customization experience by getting to know customers’ style and vision. Understanding that all customers are unique, we take the time to understand their goals so that we can tailor service in the way that works best for them. Let our team of experienced professionals be part of your dream team, your trusted partner from start to finish. PICTURED: (left to right) Kym Newman, Brooke Cowdin, Maegan Lynch, Joyt Gray, Billy Wadle, Nohemi Bustos, and Allison Greenhaw. NOT PICTURED: Shawn Linett (showroom manager).

5001 Bryant Irvin Road N. | Fort Worth, Texas 76107 | 817.259.0920 | expressionshomegallery.com

The Face of Mexican Food

Joe T. Garcia’s

When people describe our family’s restaurant, one of the phrases we hear most often is also one of our favorites: Joe T.’s is a Fort Worth institution. It’s true. Founders Joe T. and Jessie Garcia moved to Fort Worth from Mexico in the 1920s in search of their American dream. They found it in 1935 when they set up six tables and launched Joe T. Garcia’s Mexican Restaurant. Thanks to Joe T.’s legendary hospitality and Jessie’s scratch-made enchiladas, the restaurant became an instant success. Now, nearly 90 years later, we’ve added a few more tables, and generations of friends and families have grown up going to Joe T.’s. As the third and fourth generations of the Garcia-Lancarte family, we are dedicated to continuing the Joe T.’s legacy for generations to come. Joe T.’s is a friendly, affordable Mexican restaurant that also happens to be an award-winning dining destination. The restaurant boasts both a coveted “America’s Classics” award from the prestigious James Beard Foundation and a “best gardens” nod from the Fort Worth Botanical Society. And we are proud of our longtime support of local nonprofit organizations and schools, including the Lena Pope Home, the Gladney Center, and Cassata Learning Center. By underwriting the entire cost of annual benefit events held at Joe T.’s, we’ve helped these groups raise more than $10 million to help children and families across our community. Our service, food, and beautiful flower-and-fountain-filled outdoor patios are our wow factors, and we think our most loyal guests would probably say the same thing. Oh, and the margaritas! Can’t forget about the margaritas. PICTURED: (left page) Joe Lancarte, Zurella Lancarte, Lanny Lancarte, Phillip Lancarte, Elizabeth Lancarte, and Jesse Lancarte; (right page, front) Kelly Lancarte, Hope Lancarte, Cali Lancarte, Elliott Lancarte, Leah Zavala; (back) Chance Lancarte, Neal Lancarte, Tyler Lancarte. 2201 North Commerce St. | Fort Worth, Texas 76164 | 817.626.4356 | joetgarcias.com

The Face of Fitness

Orangetheory Fitness

At Orangetheory Fitness, you get a workout utilizing the latest heart rate-monitoring technology, personalized guidance, and consistently changing formats, all designed to help each individual member achieve their unique results and get More Life in and out of the studio. What sets Orangetheory apart is its heart rate-based training, which means that when you first arrive to the studio, you’re set up with a heart rate monitor that shows your individualized heart rate in real-time on TV screens and tablets throughout the studio. This propriety heart rate system is referred to as our “OTbeat” system. Intensity is based on your own individual heart rate zones, making the workout effective for all fitness levels. Orangetheory Fitness’ one-hour, full-body workout focuses on training endurance, strength, power, and ESP, which is a combination of all three. Workouts utilize a combination of treadmills, WaterRowers, and floor equipment such as dumbbells, TRX suspension straps, BOSU trainers, and medicine balls. Members are guided in and out of intervals and coached to perform exercise blocks using specific equipment on the floor. This combination of intervals and exercises (the Orangetheory workout) is designed by a team of fitness experts. The team equips our coaches with science-backed workouts that are tested at corporate and distributed to our 1,000-plus studios. Our coaches are nationally certified and required to hold a Personal Training or Group Fitness certification through an accredited fitness organization as well as be APE/AED certified. They are taught to prevent over- or under-training to keep each member safe and foster a sense of community, all while having fun. Our members all over the world talk to each other about the “workout of the day” and share their experiences with each other, making them feel a part of something bigger. Multiple locations | orangetheory.com

The Face of Classic Tex-Mex

Rio Mambo

Rio Mambo has been serving Fort Worth and the surrounding cities for 20 years by providing an ingredient-driven menu in a contemporary setting with a focus on developing and maintaining long-term relationships. A hands-on, family-owned, and family-operated business, Rio Mambo is invested in church, school, and business communities. Owner Brent Johnson is personally involved in every aspect of the business daily, from building to designing, operating, and creating community-driven marketing and relationship-building events. The wow factor that keeps bringing customers back is the staff. The combined efforts of people who have been with the restaurants between 15 and 25 years provide a personal experience, transforming every customer’s visit into an individualized occasion. Involvement in the communities they serve is important to them. The longstanding staff of managers and employees are committed to the communities they serve on a personal level.

Rio Mambo | Multiple Locations | riomambo.com

The Face of Family Dentistry

Rodeo Dental & Orthodontics

Since 2008, Rodeo Dental has aimed to create a culture and experience so powerful it shatters health care norms. We’ve assembled a distinctive set of core values that empower our team members and promote individuality and self-expression in our patients. We pride ourselves on not only delivering exceptional, all-inclusive clinical outcomes but creating a patient experience that sets us apart. These unique vibes have brought us the honor of receiving over 50,000 five-star reviews across Google and Facebook! Aside from our immersive and vibrant settings, our comprehensive practice model provides our patients in-house access to elite general and specialty doctors including pediatric dentists, orthodontists, endodontists, oral surgeons, and implant specialists. Over the past decade, we’ve successfully been able to cultivate a powerhouse of award-winning dentists, leadership, and culture. Among those incredible recognitions are Fort Worth Magazine Top Dentists from 2014-2021, Fort Worth Inc. Best Companies to Work for in Fort Worth from 2016-2017, and D Magazine Best Dentist Award from 2014-2021. Additionally, our CEO and Co-founder, Dr. Saam Zarrabi, was a Fort Worth Inc. Entrepreneur of Excellence Finalist in 2018 and Winner in 2019. With a mission to provide all families access to care, each of our practices is deeply ingrained in its surrounding community and is invested in using our business as a force for social good. As a result, we’ve been humbled to become the first Dental Service Organization globally to achieve B Corporation status and be awarded Best for the World™ 2021 by B Lab in governance impact, becoming one of only four U.S.-based companies within the largest size category of 250+ employees. PICTURED: (left to right) Dr. Yahya Mansour, Dr. Kevin Sun, Dr. Rahul Patel, Dr. Jinny Kim, Dr. Ali Mostafavi, Dr. Saam Zarrabi, Dr. Sahil Patel, Dr. William Dunklin. 3204 N. Main St., Ste. 120 | Fort Worth, Texas 76106 | 817.380.5574 | rodeodental.com

The Face of Cosmetic Surgery Accent On You

Y. Anthony Nakamura, M.D., F.A.C.S., P.A. Staying humble and enjoying the combination of my love of science with the artistry of cosmetic surgery make Accent On You unique. We take the time to explore with our patients their individual needs and concerns. With over 30 years of experience, we work hard to find a surgical plan that is both realistic in expectation while achieving beautiful aesthetic results. We understand that each patient comes to us by choice and consider this a privilege. We are continually self-evaluating and improving the pre-, intra- and post-operative experience for our patients. Our biggest WOW factors are my facility and my wonderful staff. They all love what they do, and it shows. They work closely with me to create a safe, inviting, and individualized plan of care for each of our patients.

Accent On You

303 South Cooper St. | Arlington, Texas 76015 817.417.7200 | accentonyou.com

The Face of Wealth Management Argent Trust Company

You, first. That simple phrase says everything you need to know about how we approach client relationships at Argent. As fiduciary wealth managers, we understand that each client’s situation and challenges are unique, and we strive to serve each excellently and according to what’s in their very best interest. Clients choose Argent because we listen first and then have the competence to confidently recommend the best course of action. We are approachable, accessible, and highly responsive. Furthermore, our experience with complex trusts and wealth management needs, our objectivity, and our integrity are second to none. Call us today to discuss how we might meet your needs for wealth and investment management, wealth transfer and estate planning, and oil and gas management. PICTURED: Patrice Parks, VP & Trust Administrative Officer; Kathy Christoffel, Market President; Travis Gist, Mineral Manager; and Saiyida Gardezi, CFA, Portfolio Manager. 4200 S. Hulen St. | Fort Worth, Texas 76109 | 817.502.3586 | kchristoffel@argenttrust.com

The Face of Refined Real Estate

Ashley Black – Williams Trew Real Estate

After 15-plus years in the real estate industry, Ashley Black takes an innovative approach to real estate. By effectively combining proven principles and practices with the latest in techniques and technology, she is providing industry-leading service to her clients and delivering quality results. She has refined the process of buying and selling homes to make it an enjoyable and rewarding experience by providing creative solutions for clients and ensuring that she is always one step ahead of the competition. Today’s market requires proactive, aggressive marketing with an excellent understanding of the overall market. Ashley is diligent in keeping her clients apprised of changing market conditions. She attributes her sales success to four factors: pricing homes properly, marketing effectively, negotiating aggressively, and building long-term relationships. She is a multi-award-winning agent who prides herself in providing high-quality service and delivering quality results.

3707 Camp Bowie Blvd., Ste. 300 Fort Worth, Texas 76107

817.966.7904

ashley.black@williamstrew.com williamstrew.com

The Face of Remodeling B Smart Builders

Serving the Fort Worth area for 14 years, B Smart Builders’ design and project manager teams have a combined total of 135-plus years’ experience in custom homebuilding, interior design, remodeling, and civil engineering. We specialize in remodels versus remodeling as side projects. We have a dedicated team of trusted subcontractors that share a commitment to their craft. What makes B Smart unique is our in-house design team and detailed approach to budgeting and scheduling. Our design team helps guide selections tailored to clients’ budgets and customize to clients’ wants and dreams. We believe good remodels center around the relationship between our clients and the B Smart team. Because we value transparency, honesty, and creativity, our customers come back for this reason — trust in our team.

PICTURED: Project Management Team: Daniel Soria, Miguel Casarez, Brock Montgomery, Bill Mullinix, and Jedediah Bechard. 5148 Vickery Loop E. | Fort Worth, Texas 76116 817.368.8659 | bsmartbuilders.com

The Face of Authentic Italian Cuisine

Café Bella

Cooking authentic Italian dishes has been a part of Eli Golemi’s family for generations. Eli takes pride in preparing Italian cuisine, knowing the ingredients necessary to provide classic yet innovative dishes for her Café Bella customers. Serving the Fort Worth area for over 22 years, Eli is “very appreciative” of her loyal customers who have been a part of Café Bella’s dining experience through the years. When customers walk through the doors, they know they can consistently expect excellent Italian cuisine, exceptional service, and a cozy, welcoming environment. Café Bella is unique, not only in serving delicious authentic Italian dishes, but also offering the option of bringing your own wine to enjoy with your exceptional dinner. Eli welcomes you with a smile and wants every customer to know how grateful she is for their love of Café Bella. PICTURED: Eli Golemi. Westcliff Shopping Center | 3548 S. Hills Ave. | Fort Worth, Texas 76109 | 817.922.9500 | cafebellaftw.com

The

Face of Chevrolet

Platinum Chevrolet; Pegasus Chevrolet

Gilchrist Automotive

As part of Gilchrist Automotive, we strive to continuously deliver excellent service and treat our customers as if they were family. We value our relationships and are always looking to build on those. The ease of doing business with us sets us apart from the competition. We are respectful of our customer’s time and make the buying experience quick and easy. You can purchase your vehicle completely online, and we will deliver your vehicle to your doorstep at no extra charge. Our wow factor is that our customers are very loyal and keep coming back because of the “everyone is family” culture we have built and the strong relationships that have been developed. You know you are doing something right when customers continuously send friends and relatives to be helped. We invite you to come Drive the Difference. PICTURED: Gary Walker, GM, Pegasus Chevrolet; Justin Rudd, GM, Platinum Chevrolet; Stephen Gilchrist, Dealer Operator, Gilchrist Automotive. Pegasus Chevrolet | gwalker@gilchristautomotive.com |

Platinum Chevrolet | jrudd@gilchristautomotive.com |

The Face of Christian Care Communities

Christian Care Communities & Services

For more than 70 years, Christian Care Communities & Services, a nonprofit, faith-based organization, has provided quality housing and health care services for seniors in North Texas through three communities in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. Christian Care Communities – Fort Worth is a Life Plan Community in east Fort Worth located on 51 acres of rolling country hillside, with a 5-acre lake and gated dog park, just minutes from downtown. CCC&S is committed to empowering residents to live life to the fullest through a spectrum of unique lifestyle solutions. Our residents thrive in our caring environments through meaningful relationships and programs that meet their physical, social, and spiritual needs. We offer various services, including Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Care, Outpatient Therapy, Home2Stay Personal Assistance Services, and Hospice Care. CCC&S Fort Worth offers wellness activities, such as Tai Chi Body Balance classes, in the Wellness Center. 5100 Randol Mill Road | Fort Worth, Texas 76112 | 817.451.8001 | christiancaretexas.org

The Face of Fort Worth Real Estate

The Walsh, Wegman, and Giordano Team

The Walsh, Wegman, and Giordano team with Christie’s International Real Estate | ULTERRE knows that the key to everyone’s well-being is the beauty and functionality of our homes, our businesses, and our farms and ranches. In the last 12 months, they have closed $100,000,000 in property transactions across Texas and the world through their global network. With 25 years of experience in building, buying, and selling properties in this market, they have the connections to get the deals done and the expertise and knowledge that reflect deep homegrown relationships with our communities. Eric Walsh, Rick Wegman, and John Giordano are the founding brokers of the Christie’s International Real Estate brand in North Texas and the cornerstone of a great company with exceptional people who are obsessed with helping our clients and agents succeed. 4838 White Settlement Road | Fort Worth, Texas 76114 | 817.882.6450 | wwgteam.ulterre.com

The Face of Chrysler, Dodge, Ram, Jeep

SouthWest Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram

Pegasus Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram

Platinum Chrysler Dodge Ram Jeep

Gilchrist Automotive

At SouthWest, Platinum, and Pegasus Chrysler, Dodge, Ram, Jeep, personalized service is paramount in all our stores. Our teams know that the customer relationship does not end with the sale. We care about our customers and will always do what is right to earn their business and, more importantly, their trust. When you work with our dealerships, your experience will be special. Our wow factor is our people and the level of service they provide. SouthWest CDJR came in 58th and Platinum CDRJ came in 64th in new sales in the Southwest Region. We invite you to come Drive the Difference. PICTURED: Andrew Beck, GM, Platinum CDRJ; Mike Brown, GM, SouthWest CDJR; Gary Walker, GM, Pegasus CDJR; Stephen Gilchrist, Dealer Operator, Gilchrist Automotive.

The Face of Solar Energy

Circle L Solar, Inc.

A DFW energy-efficiency and solar company founded in 2016, Circle L Solar has experienced year-after-year growth while maintaining the family-like atmosphere and level of service that separates it from other solar companies. Circle L Solar offers a best-in-industry warranty with full-time field technicians and customer support personnel to address any customer’s needs. It also has a specialized crew of full-time installers and electricians with decades of combined experience. With offices in Austin, San Antonio and Houston, Circle L Solar proudly hires from the DFW community where its headquarters are located. The wow factor for Circle L Solar is the atmosphere and the treatment of customers and the invaluable employees at the company. Circle L Solar takes pride in not only treating customers like family but offering an experience and support system that its competition does not have. PICTURED: Shaun Sierra. 5450 Stratum Drive, Ste. 110 | Fort Worth, Texas 76137 | 817.945.2011 | circleLsolar.com

The Face of Audiology and Hearing Aids

Cityview Audiology & Hearing Aids, Inc.

With over 24 years of experience in helping patients with hearing needs, Dr. Diane Blaising, owner and founder of Cityview Audiology & Hearing Aids, Inc., is the Face of Audiology and Hearing Aids in Fort Worth. Dr. Blaising and the staff at Cityview are well known and greatly appreciated for taking the time to listen to each patient’s needs and concerns. Treatment plans are customized with the latest, cutting-edge technology available to fit seamlessly into each patient’s lifestyle. A full range of audiometric tests and evaluative instruments, including tinnitus assessment, is available to meet each patient’s unique needs. Cityview Audiology & Hearing Aids, Inc. is devoted to providing the best care and service to each patient for quality living in the world of sound. PICTURED: Dr. Diane Blaising.

7801 Oakmont Blvd., Ste. 109 | Fort Worth, Texas 76132 | 817.263.1800 | Fax 817.263.1802 | DrBlaising@CityviewHearing.com

The Face of IV Infusion Therapy and Internal Medicine

Clover Internal Medicine Associates

What makes Clover Internal Medicine Associates stand out in IV infusion therapy is our customized infusion therapy combined with guidance-based internal/adult medicine care. Our board-certified physicians create a unique comprehensive wellness plan that is not only complementary to patients’ health management but also preventative through healthy nutrition and lifestyle guidance. Our three core principles — Safety, Efficacy and Privacy — set us apart from others. During infusion, patients are closely monitored by a team of trained medical staff with a ratio of 1:1 patient to staff to ensure optimal comfort and privacy during therapy. The Clover Internal Medicine Promise ensures that all our patients receive optimal care with maximum efficacy topped with bespoken customer service for their IV infusion therapies and needs. PICTURED: Elaine Phuah, DO, MBA, FACOI; Leon Tio, DO, MA, FACOI; Gabriela Luevano (not pictured), Shelby Podsednik, Jacqueline Perez, and Axa Espino, medical assistants. 800 Eighth Ave., Ste. 506 | Fort Worth, Texas 76104 | 817.386.3632 | cloverinternalmedicine.com

The Face of Fine Jewelry

Collections Fine Jewelry

For 39 years, Collections Fine Jewelry has been anchored in one primary philosophy — provide exquisite jewelry at price anyone can afford. We take pride in the many faces who have graced our showroom over the years because at Collections, we aren’t looking to be your one-time jeweler — we want to be your family jeweler for life. Whether we are creating a custom piece from scratch, showcasing exclusive designers, remounting your mother’s wedding ring, or repairing your grandfather’s pocket watch, Collections provides a full-service menu of fine jewelry needs. At Collections, every moment that brings a design to life for a customer is a magical moment, and we are honored to be a part of those daily. From our family to yours, we look forward to servicing Fort Worth families for generations to come. PICTURED: Sharon Evans, Founder and CEO. 708 S. Saginaw Blvd. | Fort Worth, Texas 76179 | 817.232.9251 | collectionsfinejewelry.com | info@cfjmfg.com

The

Face of

Custom

Pools, Spas, and Outdoor Living

The Complete Backyard Inc.

The Complete Backyard creates meticulously designed pools, sustainable outdoor living spaces, kitchens, exotic fire features, decks, cabanas, and more. We are passionate about building complete backyards for families in the North Texas area. With over 20 years’ experience helping customers in North Texas, there’s no project we can’t tackle. We pride ourselves on supplying our clients with the perfect blend of aesthetics and quality. Whether you’re looking for a clean post-modern swimming pool or a Caribbean backyard oasis, we are your team. We believe that actions speak louder than words, and we apply the “golden rule” to every project we undertake, treating our clients as we would like to be treated. We take responsibility for our work and provide constant communication with our customers from the beginning of their project until the end. PICTURED: Ross and Laura Woerner, Amanda Akers, Rene Mendoza, Adan Garcia, and Roy McNett. 201 E. Oak St. | Aledo, Texas 76008 | 817.441.6878 | thecompletebackyard.com

The Face of Med Spa

CRAVE Medical Spa

Crave Medical Spa is the Face of Med Spa because of our genuine desire to help women feel confident in themselves through the beauty experience. We take pride in our constant pursuit of cutting-edge techniques and the advancement of our craft. And we offer treatments in a relaxing atmosphere to ensure your comfort at all times. What sets us apart from our competition is specializing our services to the person, rather than the industry. We listen to the goals of our patients and design a plan to best help them achieve those goals. Our wow factor that keeps customers coming back is our Beauty-Vibe-Tribe! We believe everyone has a desire to belong; we want our patients to experience being a part of our tribe and feel beautiful too! Many friendships have blossomed from our patients, and we love it.

6100 Camp Bowie Blvd., Ste. 22 | Fort Worth, Texas 76116 | 817.727.9260 | cravemedicalspa.com | contact@cravemedicalspa.com

The Face of Minimally Invasive Spinal Surgery DFW Center for Spinal Disorders

Dr. Jason Tinley has a passion for optimizing spine surgery outcomes through development and utilization of new techniques and materials. On the forefront of new technology, Dr. Tinley has become a leader in instruction and research in avoidance of fusion (disc replacement) where possible and minimally invasive fusion when necessary. He has spoken around the world on these techniques and is involved in several FDA trials. Frequently these procedures are outpatient surgeries with minimal recovery times (one-two weeks.) Though his specialty is in addressing surgery for spinal stenosis, spondylolisthesis, and degenerative and herniated discs, nonsurgical management is almost always directed through him first, and only 15% of patients require surgery. Dr. Tinley attended Medical College of Georgia on full scholarship and completed his training at the prestigious H.H. Bohlman Spinal Surgery Fellowship in Cleveland, Ohio. PICTURED: Jason Tinley, M.D. 6900 Harris Parkway, Ste. 310 | Fort Worth, Texas 76132 | 817.916.4685 | dfwspinecenter.com

The Face of Ford

SouthWest Ford

Platinum Ford

Triple Crown Ford

Gilchrist Automotive

Not only will you find quality new and used Ford models at SouthWest Ford, Platinum Ford, and Triple Crown Ford — you’ll also find a friendly and accommodating staff eager to assist you. We don’t believe that customers are numbers; they become part of our family. You can purchase your vehicle completely online (100%), never set foot in the store, and we will deliver your vehicle to your doorstep at no extra charge. Our wow factor that keeps bringing customers back is that we take their experience personally. A great experience is when we go above and beyond customers’ expectations in the way we serve them. SouthWest Ford came in 51st in the nation in new Ford sales. We invite you to come Drive the Difference. PICTURED: left to right: Adam Vincze, GM, Platinum Ford; Stephen Gilchrist, Dealer Operator, Gilchrist Automotive; Chris Bonnett, GM Southwest Ford, Weatherford; and Dustin Rodgers, GM Triple Crown Ford and Lincoln, Terrell, TX.

Platinum Ford | avincze@gilchristautomotive.com | platinumford.com | 469.595.0099

SouthWest Ford | cbonnett@gilchristautomotive.com | southwestford.com | 817.596.5700

Triple Crown Ford | drodgers@gilchristautomotive.com | triplecrownford.com | 254.968.7000

The Face of Fertility

Fort Worth Fertility

Dr. Robert A. Kaufmann, Dr. Biren V. Patel, and the team at Fort Worth Fertility have helped create families in DFW and across the globe since opening our doors in the heart of downtown Fort Worth. Through a variety of treatment options including intrauterine insemination, in-vitro fertilization, and third-party services (egg donors, sperm donors, and surrogates), each patient receives personally tailored plans to maximize success. We pride ourselves on providing affordable treatment plans with proven success rates well above the national average. Dr. Kaufmann and Dr. Patel lead a highly trained team of nurses, lab, and administrative staff dedicated to providing specialized patient care from your first moments in our office until graduation to your Ob/Gyn. Our staff greets you by name, and our physicians perform all ultrasounds and treatments each time you visit our office. PICTURED: Dr. Robert A. Kaufmann and Dr. Biren V. Patel. 1800 Mistletoe Blvd. | Fort Worth, Texas 76104 | 817.348.8145 | fwivf.com

The Face of Franchise Matchmaking

FranNet of Dallas/Fort Worth/Oklahoma

FranNet is your one-stop shop for all franchise information and services. My area of expertise is matching individuals to the business investment that best fits their unique goals and talents. With my help, clients understand the pros and cons of franchising, costs and financing techniques, types of industries and business models, and the keys to effective research. Based on my 10 years as a franchise consultant and my own experiences, I can provide education and insight when assisting clients in achieving their goals. After clients purchase their business, I stay in touch and provide resources and connections to foster their success. So, my work goes well beyond just helping them find the right franchise fit. And my services are at no cost to my clients because I’m paid by the franchise companies that partner with FranNet to help them grow. PICTURED: Sara Waskow. 6340 Davis Blvd., Ste. 200 | North Richland Hills, Texas 76180 | 817.519.3952 | frannetdfw.com

The Face of Landscaping

Guardado Landscaping

With over 20 years of operation as a landscaping and retail garden center, Guardado Landscaping is equipped to provide anyone a premier landscaping service. Owner Eloy Guardado is often recognized for his meticulous, thorough work and unique, inclusive design services. With jobs ranging from fountain installations to fencing, you are ensured to receive customized outdoor excellence. Custom fabrication enables our prospective and existing clients to realize their modern and classical visions into bespoke gates, all the way to pergolas and catwalks. As the official landscaper for 11 Fort Worth Magazine Dream Homes, the team at Guardado Landscaping believes that a job well done means that promises have been kept and customers are delighted with their project. You only get one chance at a first impression — let us design a landscape that will be remembered. PICTURED: Eloy Guardado.

The Face of Laser and Noninvasive Skin Rejuvenation Hanami Medspa

Hanami Medspa has been providing customers with results-oriented skin rejuvenation services in an intimate and friendly environment for almost a decade. Through minimally invasive treatments and customer education about leveling up their skincare game, we have helped many men and women maximize their youthful glow. Our team undergoes extensive training, continuous education, and ongoing skills development to create personalized plans designed to maximize each client’s own kind of beauty. Every service and protocol are vetted extensively with only FDA-approved or science-backed technology. Our wow factor is our relaxing environment and exclusive sense of personalized care. Clients love seeing how their skin becomes healthier and more vibrant with time. And, we have an artistic eye that matches our hands-on skill. PICTURED: Elaine Phuah, DO, MBA, FACOI; Corey Schlomach and Courtney Clayton, medical aestheticians and certified laser technicians. 800 Eighth Ave., Ste. 508 | Fort Worth, Texas 76104 | 817.808.8938 | hanamimedspa.com

The Face of Professional Painters of DFW

J & V Painting

The J & V Painting crew is what makes us the face of Fort Worth painting. Our guys are polite, clean, and professional, and it shows in the dedication and pride they take in their work. Our teams have a track record of being respectful of your time, money, and home. Seventy-five percent of our teams have been with the company for over a decade, and, therefore, have a vested interest in the company. We have been in the painting business since 1975 and have painted thousands of homes, businesses, and industrial jobs. As a family-owned business, our name is important to us, and our work is a direct reflection. Providing top-quality work with a dedicated, timely workforce and peerless knowledge of cutting-edge materials and techniques makes J & V the right choice for painting services. PICTURED: Jon Nappier. 4429 Birchman Ave. | Fort Worth, Texas 76107 | 817.994.3277 | jandvpainting.com

The Face of Personal Injury Law

Greg Jackson Law

Greg Jackson is the Face of Personal Injury Law in Fort Worth. You won’t find a better lawyer to handle your injury case. Trained in the famed Practice Court Program at Baylor Law School, Greg has exclusively handled injury cases for more than 25 years. He founded Greg Jackson Law in 2004 to help injury victims. Greg has unique experience — nine years as an injury defense lawyer and 17 years as an injury victim lawyer — to represent his clients. He works hard for his clients and treats them like family members. He represents them to the limit of the law, but at the same time deals with his opponents in a courteous and professional manner. You can trust him to handle your case the right way. PICTURED: Greg Jackson. 201 Main St., Ste. 600 | Fort Worth, Texas 76102 817.926.1003 | Fax 817.886.3653 gjackson@gregjacksonlaw.com | gregjacksonlaw.com

The Face of Conservative Values

William A. Knight for Judge

William A. Knight is a conservative running for the open 371st District Court in the 2022 Republican primary. Knight’s experience, conservative judicial philosophy, and legal scholarship make him the right choice for voters who want to keep Tarrant County safe. Born and raised in Fort Worth, Knight sits on the board of All Saints’ Episcopal School. He serves as the Assistant Chief Prosecutor in the District Attorney’s Intimate Partner Violence Unit and is Board Certified in Criminal Law. Knight previously prosecuted child abuse and elderly abuse cases in the Special Victims Unit. In 2019, he was voted Child Abuse Prosecutor of the Year for Tarrant County by his law enforcement peers and named Top Attorney, Fort Worth Magazine, in 2021. Early voting is February 14, and Primary Day is March 1. Remember to vote and put a Knight in the court! KnightforJudge.com

Paid political ad William A. Knight Campaign in compliance with the voluntary limits of the Judicial Campaign Fairness Act. Annette P. Tofan Treasurer.

The Face of Family Law Specialists

KoonsFuller Family Law

As one of the largest family law firms in Texas, KoonsFuller Family Law offers an unmatched level of clout and range of resources, earning the firm numerous accolades. Whether your case calls for informal negotiations, mediation, collaborative law or court proceedings, KoonsFuller is equipped to handle cases of all sizes and issues and has been doing so for over 40 years. Our Tarrant County attorneys pride themselves on the compassion, skill, and thoughtfulness they bring to each case. They understand that every family is unique, and every family’s concerns are different, especially when divorce, custody issues, and finances are involved. PICTURED: (left to right) Drew Williamson, Dana Manry,* Heather King,* Rob McEwan,* Jessica Janicek*, Paul Leopold, and Courtney Harbaugh Walker. *Board Certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. 550 Reserve St., Ste. 450 | Southlake, Texas 76092 | 817.481.2710 | Fax 817.481.2637 | koonsfuller.com *Principal office in Dallas

The Face of Trucking Accidents

Law Offices of Steven C. Laird, P.C.

Steve Laird and Seth McCloskey are experienced lawyers for serious cases: 18-wheeler trucking collisions, meritorious personal injury, wrongful death, and product liability cases. They are two of only five lawyers in North Texas who are Board Certified in Truck Accident Law. Laird is the only Tarrant County, Personal Injury Lawyer to be recognized as one of the Top 100 Super Lawyers by Thomson Reuters and Texas Monthly. McCloskey is also Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law and has been named to the Top 40 Under 40 by The National Trial Lawyers, as well as also being recognized as a Rising Star by Thomson Reuters and Texas Monthly. Laird is quadruple Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law and Civil Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, as well as being Board Certified in Truck Accident Law and Civil Trial Advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. PICTURED: Steve Laird and Seth McCloskey. 1119 Pennsylvania Ave. | Fort Worth, Texas 76104 | 817.531.3000 | texlawyers.com

The Face of Lincoln

Triple Crown Lincoln

Gilchrist Automotive

As a part of Gilchrist Automotive, we strive to continuously deliver excellent service and treat our customers as if they were family. We provide a vast selection of new and used vehicles, exceptional car care, and customer service with a smile. Here at Triple Crown Lincoln, it is our mission to be by your side whenever you need any car service or repair work done. Our customers are loyal, they keep coming back, and they send their friends and family. What sets us apart is our willingness to always go the extra mile for a customer. Our red-carpet treatment is our wow factor — Lincoln delivers and offers valet pickup and delivery service, a personalized experience that gives you back your most important asset – time. Triple Crown Lincoln is committed to providing amazing customer experiences. PICTURED: Stephen Gilchrist, dealer operator; Dustin Rodgers, GM, Triple Crown Lincoln. 2975 W. Washington St. | Stephenville, Texas 76401 | 254.968.7000 | triplecrownlincoln.com

The Face of Farm & Ranch

Talia Lydick

Williams Trew

Longtime Fort Worth native Talia Lydick has sold some of the most prominent residential and farm and ranch properties in Fort Worth and the surrounding areas. Her knowledge of real estate ranges from being a seller’s agent, giving her clients confidence in their representation, to being the buyer’s agent, finding the perfect home or property. One of Talia’s interests is the equine industry, having owned and shown many horses over the years. Her experience in the equine industry has broadened her network to the farm and ranch community. Talia’s energetic personality and love for working with people enhance her capabilities in communications, sales, negotiations, and ability to maintain satisfied clients. All indications show that 2022 is going to be an active year for farm and ranch properties. If you have any questions about the market or your property, give Talia a call.

3707 Camp Bowie Blvd., Ste. 300 | Fort Worth, Texas 76107 | 817.692.4821 | williamstrew.com | talia.lydick@williamstrew.com

The Face of Real Estate Results

Mary Margaret Davis Real Estate Team

“Mary Margaret Davis is the face of real estate results. Mary Margaret possesses qualities that any home buyer or seller would want their realtor to have — honesty, knowledge, integrity, morals, compassion, and a Can-Do attitude,” client S. Powell says. Creating a comfortable exchange of ideas, listening for the hidden attributes that help properties sell, and discovering forgotten wishes that inspire a “Yes, this is it” have helped Mary Margaret Davis achieve results for her clients as a licensed real estate broker since 1982. Married to Grant Davis, she is half of the parenting team to doggy, Spunky, and kitty, Adan. As an advocate for all animals, Mary Margaret is a champion to the organization, Don’t Forget to Feed Me. PICTURED: Mary Margaret with Spunky. 817.925.1740 | mmdavis.com | marymargaret@mmdavis.com

The Face of Custom Bedding Manufacturers

The Original Mattress Factory

A 126-year-old, Fort Worth family business, the Original Mattress Factory manufactures quality bedding and sells directly to the public nationwide. We are focused on innovating the best way to give our customers a great night’s sleep at a low price. Not settling for anything less, we believe that we need to own and control the production process to make sure quality is second to none. A Texas original since 1896, our family takes pride in continuing the tradition of excellence, quality and value in our products that the generations before us established. Our employees, customers, and vendors are our lifeline for our success. We are proactive in our approach to making sure everything from ordering the raw materials, to production, to delivery is done in a timely manner and with top quality and integrity.

900 East Vickery | Fort Worth, Texas 76104 817.334.0361 | originalmattress@gmail.com themattressfactory.com

The Face of Family Law

Law Office of Gary L. Nickelson

The firm is uniquely qualified to handle the most complicated matrimonial cases in the trial or appellate courts throughout Texas, having board-certified attorneys in both Family Law and Civil Appellate Law. Gary is board-certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Chris is board-certified in both Family Law and Civil Appellate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Gary holds many prestigious awards in Family Law and has been named “Texas Super Lawyer” in Texas Monthly magazine since the program began in 2003. Chris has been named a “Texas Super Lawyer” in its Super Lawyer issue published in Texas Monthly since 2004. PICTURED: Gary L. Nickelson and Chris Nickelson. 5201 W. Freeway, Ste. 100 | Fort Worth, Texas 76107 | 817.735.4000 | Fax 817.735.1480 | garynickelson.com

The Face of Virtual Golf Lessons

Nick Waldum Golf

Nick Waldum takes a new age approach toward golf instruction by integrating the latest in golf technology and a personalized coaching platform. With over 13 years of experience, Nick is focused on understanding the client’s needs and developing a custom, personalized coaching experience to help them achieve their goals. Virtual golf lessons will improve your game at a faster pace, lower cost, and around your schedule. You can refine your golf game from anywhere at any time. You simply record your swing and comment on what you’re looking to improve. Nick will build a detailed swing analysis with personalized techniques or skill-based drills. Whether you need full game, short game, putting, mindset, or golf course strategy help, all of your needs can be met through virtual lessons with Nick Waldum Golf. For more information or to book an appointment, please call, email, or visit the website today. PICTURED: Nick Waldum. 909.557.4629 | Nick@NickWaldumGolf.com | nickwaldumgolf.com

The Face of Nissan

SouthWest Nissan

Gilchrist Automotive

Experience VIP treatment while selecting from an incredible lineup of vehicles at SouthWest Nissan. Our team is dedicated to providing you with great customer service, and our family-friendly atmosphere shows we are committed to really “Drive the Difference” in our community. We listen to our customers’ wants and needs and then work hard to get them what they want in a timely fashion — with a touch of extras they did not expect and try to make it fun! Sometimes we can even do things that customers themselves are surprised we do — like obtaining great payment plans for them. We take care of our customers before, during, and after the sale. Bottom line is that we want customers for life, and people are quick to pick up on that feeling when they deal with us. We invite you to come Drive the Difference. PICTURED: Chad Shelton, General Manager, SouthWest Nissan; Stephen Gilchrist, Dealer Operator, Gilchrist Automotive. 817.596.3811 | southwestnissantx.com | cshelton@gilchristautomotive.com

The Face of Home Appliance Sales and Service

Oliver Dyer

Growing up in a family business performing service in customers’ homes, I always considered my customers to be my best source of new customers. Whether it’s service or delivering new appliances into thousands of homes, I’ve seen how my customers react when a worker respects their home. Everyone at Oliver Dyer Appliance knows his or her customer will refer friends, neighbors and family members, so they go out of their way to create a satisfied customer. We only sell appliance brands where the manufacturer backs our efforts to do whatever necessary to satisfy every customer. If it’s not good enough to be in our homes, it isn’t good enough to be in yours. My name, email address and personal cell phone number are on every invoice. In over 40 years, I’ve only had a handful of calls with a problem, but I’ve received thousands of calls complimenting my employees.

8320 Camp Bowie W. | Fort Worth, Texas 76116 | 817.244.1874 | oliverdyersappliance.com

The Face of Breakfast

Ol’ South Pancake House

Founded in 1962 and celebrating our 60th year in business. Voted Best Breakfast in Fort Worth many times, Ol’ South Pancake House has become known as THE spot to go to for breakfast in Fort Worth. And, except for Christmas Eve, we don’t close. Ever! Owner Rex Benson continues to carry on the same tradition of serving homestyle cooking that his father, late co-founder David Benson, started over 58 years ago. And Rex has started some of his own traditions, such as the Mega Pancake Challenge and a beautiful, fully equipped catering trailer for events. Now, we have added a brand-new location that’s open in Burleson to that list! We always welcome families and children, hungry TCU students craving some homestyle cooking, tourists looking to grab a bite from a true local joint, and everyone in between. So, try us out — see how sweet life can be, the Ol’ South way!

1509 South University Drive | Fort Worth, Texas 76107 | 817.336.0311 | olsouthpancakehouse.com

The Face of Orthopedic and Sports Medicine

Michael H. Boothby, MD

The Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Institute

To Dr. Michael H. Boothby, the most important aspect of being an excellent orthopedic surgeon is to improve his patients’ lives. He established The Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Institute in 2011 to deliver cutting-edge sports medicine and orthopedic care to everyone. Based on listening and creating opportunities to get to know his patients, Dr. Boothby builds trusted relationships. The recommendations by patients to their own family and friends are a testament to his care and excellent results. For 2022, the Panther City Lacrosse Club, Fort Worth proper’s only professional sports team, has engaged Dr. Boothby and OSMI to be the Panthers’ official health care provider. Whether student or amateur athlete, or an “athlete of daily living,” everyone needs to achieve their best physical function. Dr. Boothby’s philosophy is to provide professional athlete level of care to all who seek it.

The Face of Screen Printing

Printed Threads

It’s not just about custom merchandise or T-shirts. For us, it’s about cultivating creative community. What started as a screen-printing shop in 2010 has grown into a space where Fort Worth’s creative community can come together and learn from each other while providing quality custom goods. Aside from our attention to detail and quality, we educate, collaborate, and focus on serving our community and clients. We’re not just a print shop; we are a venue for creatives and local businesses to come together and share ideas. There is truly no other place like Printed Threads, just like there is no other town like Fort Worth. We strive to be that visionary lighthouse our city needs to bring business and creativity together. PICTURED: Brett Bowden. 210 South Freeway | Fort Worth, Texas 76104 | 817.601.7116 | printedthreads.com

The Face of Dermatology

Betty Rajan, MD, PLLC

Our practice philosophy is to have healthy skin throughout a lifetime, which is why our approach is both preventative and restorative. Our board-certified dermatologists and providers can help you achieve your goals of having both healthy and beautiful skin! We recognize that every patient is different with unique needs, and we customize treatment plans to best fit each patient’s lifestyle. Our philosophy for taking care of patients has always been a simple one: Treat others as you would want to be treated. Customer service and meeting patient expectations are top priorities in our practice, and we strive to meet those goals each day. PICTURED: (left to right) Amy Wolthoff, MD; Sommer Durante-Murray, RN, BSN; Betty Rajan, MD; Karen Moreland, PA; Jennifer Gamez, NP; Sonya Tanna, PA; and Rebecca Mullins, LE (not pictured).

6600 Bryant Irvin Road | Fort Worth, Texas 76132 |

| bettyrajanmd.com

The Face of Cataract Surgery

Martin Reinke, M.D.

Dr. Reinke has been performing cataract removal with lens implantation for over 20 years. A fellowship-trained retina subspecialist (Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School), Dr. Reinke has experience using the latest technology and intraocular lenses available for cataract surgery, including laser-assisted cataract removal. Dr. Reinke personally sees every patient at every appointment and spends time with patients in order to determine the best lens implant option for their lifestyle. Patients receive a comprehensive retina evaluation prior to and after cataract surgery. Cataract patients often have co-existing problems, such as diabetes or age-related macular degeneration, and Dr. Reinke is able to manage these issues without additional referrals elsewhere. With personalized attention by highly empathetic and skilled staff, Dr. Reinke is able to provide excellent care for patients as part of the cataract removal experience.

1310 N. White Chapel Blvd. | Southlake, Texas 76092

817.310.6080

dfwlasercataract.com | martin_reinke@yahoo.com

The Face of International Speaking

Don C. Reynolds II

World-renowned speaker Don Reynolds has given over 1,000 fee-paid speeches in 47 U.S. states and 22 countries, including such elite audiences as the Russian Academy of Sciences, Harvard Medical School, and Saudi Central Bank. He keynoted the Australian IT Summit, advised the heavy equipment industry in Rome, and spoke on global warming in Santiago. Over the years, he has traveled more than 4 million miles on American Airlines, with his favorite airport being Minneapolis and his favorite city being Florence. Described as “the guru of oil forecasting” by the Dallas Morning News, Don has shared the stage with Alan Greenspan and Henry Kissinger, and his audiences have topped 17,000 listeners. Retired from public speaking, he manages financial portfolios full time and focuses on the global economy and velocity of change by looking at “all sides of a coin.” Don says, “I focus on what I am not reading. When everyone knows the deal, it’s not a good deal.”

DonCReynolds@msn.com

The Face of Weight Loss and Nutrition SciFit Center

At SciFit Center, the goal is to help clients look and feel their best by guiding them through personalized plans tailored to their individual needs and preferences. Dr. Bryce Calvillo, health and wellness practitioner, and Angela Calvillo, nutrition expert, work side by side in delivering the most effective weight loss programs in Fort Worth. They take a new age approach toward weight loss, fitness, and wellness by integrating body composition scanning, food sensitivity, metabolism and DNA testing. The team takes time to educate clients on how to be versatile and sustain a permanent lifestyle to maintain the progress they have made, including a healthy balance between eating healthy and still being able to enjoy indulging foods. SciFit Center is a place where you can have your cake and eat it too!

PICTURED: Dr. Bryce Calvillo, Health & Wellness Practitioner; Angela Calvillo, Nutrition Expert. 2408 Forest Park Blvd. | Fort Worth, Texas 76110 817.975.7583 | scifitcenter.com

The Face of Custom Home Building

Sean Knight Custom Homes

For more than 30 years, Sean Knight Custom Homes has been recognized as a premier homebuilder in North Texas. Sean Knight is a certified master builder and remodeler and has a reputation for delivering luxury, quality, and elegance. We are dedicated to growing relationships through trust and respect. At Sean Knight Custom Homes, we continually aim to go above and beyond. Vast experience in the industry and a reputation for superior quality, attention to detail, honesty, and integrity make us unique. We believe that our expertise, dedication to quality, and strength of communication set us apart from many in the industry. We do more at Sean Knight Custom Homes than just build superior homes; we build long-lasting client/contractor relationships focused on service, detail, and trust. 109 S. Ranch House Road, Ste. 107 | Aledo, Texas 76008 | 817.560.0828 | sknight@flash.net | seanknightcustomhomes.com

The Face of Interior Design

Susan Semmelmann Interiors

Susan Semmelmann is a designer on a mission. Susan says her mission is to use her gifts and talents “for the greater good of everyone in her reachable sphere.” Semmelmann Interiors’ mission statement reads “The spirit of living is in the giving.” To Susan, those words are much more than a tag line beneath a logo. She strives to make clients’ dreams a reality with custom crafted furnishings and accessories created in-house and manufactured drapery and bedding directly from fabric mills. Semmelmann Interiors has its own workroom for clients that allows it to turnkey any project in a timely manner and accommodate every style. “Our wow factor is definitely the eye for design and the client relationships. Over the years the clients come back because they had a great experience. Customer service is the highest priority for us, and we make every client a VIP.”

The Face of Custom Door and Window

Silverado Custom Door & Window

In business since 1987, Silverado Custom Door & Window works with homeowners, interior designers, builders, and architects to produce client-specific custom wood doors and windows, with no size or wood species restraints. Owner Rick Parrilla has studied wood and its properties, as well as European architecture and proper finishing techniques, to produce products that will last for decades to come. Silverado Custom Door & Window also offers various brands of door and window hardware. With the belief that things made by hand have more natural splendor than short-lived, factory-built objects made from preprocessed materials, the skilled artisans at Silverado Custom Door & Window make sure every door is made from solid hardwood, using no veneers, and is created to last for decades. As handmade pieces age with character, they soften, get richer, and are cherished even more. PICTURED: Rick Parrilla. 940.362.4571 | silveradodoors.com | info@silveradodoors.com

The Face of Cosmetic and Reconstructive Plastic Surgery

Matthew H. Steele, M.D.

Dr. Matthew Steele’s attention to detail and extensive experience in all aspects of cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgery ensure excellent patient outcomes and satisfaction. Dr. Steele is one of a handful of plastic surgeons in the DFW area that is double board-certified in otolaryngology (ENT) and plastic surgery. The wow factor that keeps bringing patients back is our customer service. Dr. Steele devotes a lengthy amount of time during his consultation to provide a custom, individualized treatment plan with patient’s goals in mind while answering all of their questions. We pride ourselves on our small, intimate office where patients are treated like family. Additionally, our practice is the only office in Fort Worth offering awake in-office liposuction with BodyTite. Finally, Jennifer, our aesthetician, brings her extensive experience in skin care, injectables, and noninvasive facial rejuvenation. PICTURED: Dr. Matthew Steele, Keri Steele, Jessica Garcia, Erica Ramos, Jennifer Geyer, and Chelsea Baytos. 5656 Edwards Ranch Road, Ste. 202 | Fort Worth, Texas 76109 | 817.731.5330 | drsteeleplasticsurgery.com

The Face of Axe Throwing Stumpy’s Hatchet House

Located in the historic Near Southside neighborhood, Stumpy’s Hatchet House Fort Worth is an upscale axe-throwing venue. As a veteran-owned business, our goal in opening Stumpy’s was to be able to reach and support our community and give back to other local veterans and active-duty military. We specialize in parties and provide excellent customer service. All parties receive white-glove service while we can handle every aspect of your event. With our unique experience of axe throwing, we can provide camaraderie between teams, be a stress reliever, or a fun date night. Stumpy’s is a social environment with each of our private pits having cowhide chairs, rugs, leather couches or live edge tables. We have a little bit for everyone with large yard games and a beer and wine bar to top off the experience. PICTURED: Devin Parks. 824 W. Daggett Ave. | Fort Worth, Texas 76104 | 817.353.2524 | stumpysfortworth.com

The Face of Labor and Employment Law

Tanner and Associates, PC

Tanner and Associates, PC, recognized by U.S. News & World Report as a Tier One law firm, has a national practice focused on labor and employment law and civil trials in federal and state courts. Rod Tanner, the firm’s founding shareholder, is a Fellow in the prestigious College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and is widely recognized as one of the state’s preeminent labor and employment attorneys. Texas Super Lawyers (Thomson Reuters) named Mr. Tanner one of the state’s Top 100 Super Lawyers in 2019-2020. Noting that the purpose of our labor laws is to establish justice in the workplace, Mr. Tanner has said that “our passion for accomplishing this vision is matched only by our dedication to our clients’ interests and our pursuit of exceptional results from the boardroom to the courtroom.” PICTURED: Symantha Loflin, Jamie King Harrison, Rod Tanner, and Aarika Johnson. 6300 Ridglea Place, Ste. 407 | Fort Worth, Texas 76116 | 817.377.8833 rodtannerlaw.com | rtanner@rodtannerlaw.com

The Face of Graduate Studies

Tarleton State University

A founding member of The Texas A&M University System, Tarleton State University has offered graduate programs in Fort Worth since the 1970s — everything from a master’s in medical laboratory sciences to a PhD in criminal justice. A master’s in mechanical engineering and a PhD in counseling (pending approval by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board) are planned for fall 2022. The vibrant 80-acre campus on Chisholm Trail Parkway proclaims our commitment to serve Greater Fort Worth as a regional center of excellence for instruction, research, and economic development. Expert faculty teach affordable courses that propel personal and professional growth. Students choose Tarleton because they know they gain the knowledge and skills to be a leader in their career and in their community. That’s powerful. That’s Tarleton.

10850 Texan Rider Drive | Fort Worth, Texas 76036 | 817.484.4411 | tarleton.edu/fortworth

The Face of Executive Terminal and Private Aircraft

Texas Jet

For five out of the last six years, private jet pilots have voted Texas Jet the No. 1 Independent FBO (private aircraft terminal) in the country. This success is due to the emotional bonds Texas Jet’s team creates with customers so they can’t imagine going anywhere else. This Culture of Excellence is also displayed by providing complimentary plane-side valet, detailing of passengers’ vehicles, and safe storage of vehicles in Texas Jet’s private garages until customers come home. Texas Jet’s operations at Meacham encompass 500,000 square feet in its 24 hangars. Experience Texas Jet’s Culture yourself next time you’re at Fort Worth Meacham! PICTURED: Silvia Rangel, customer service manager; Merly Rieman, assistant to the customer service manager; Lesa Moke, finance; Holly Hopkins, customer relations manager; Gabe Cross, assistant line service manager; and Mario Sanchez, line service manager.

Texas Jet

200 Texas Way | Fort Worth, Texas 76106 | 800.776.4547 | 817.624.8438 customerservice@texasjet.com | texasjet.com

The Face of Luxury Senior Living

The Stayton at Museum Way

The Stayton is a premier continuing-care retirement community in Fort Worth with a “Type of Life Care” contract and offers a lifestyle compared to no other with a cultural face. When you move in, The Stayton acts as your “age management team” to assist in your independent lifestyle. Lifestyle of all levels of living, perfect location in the Cultural District, Trinity Trail for hiking and biking, exceptional dining services, and the best in senior living set The Stayton apart from other retirement communities. The Stayton’s wow factors are its customer service, superior health care and rehab, therapy team (long term), and community life. PICTURED: (back, left to right) Jeromy Parker, sales counselor; Pam Haman, executive director; Christopher Dennis, community outreach coordinator; (front, left to right) Kim Jennings, sales counselor; Patrice Smith, admission coordinator; Karon Porter, sales director. 2501 Museum Way | Fort Worth, Texas 76107 | 817.632.3601 | Fax 817.632.3610 | thestayton.com

The Face of Commercial Banking

Third Coast Bank SSB

Whether you are buying equipment or refinancing your commercial real estate, our team of professionals at Third Coast Bank will help you find the financing that works best for you. When it comes to loans, not all loan needs are created equal; some come with unique challenges. The team at Third Coast Bank looks for a way to get to “yes.” Our employees are empowered to do the right thing and encouraged to make a difference in our communities. It’s about doing good for the community and the people that we serve. We strive to be a trusted advisor to our clients and help them meet their financial needs. Our clients would tell you that we have a genuine desire to help them achieve their goals and that we are always available to talk to them. PICTURED: Ryan Mordecai, Fort Worth Market President. 817.288.4064 | tcbssb.com

The Face of Cannabis

Thrive Apothecary and Thrive Medical Cannabis

Board-certified physician, Dr. Lisa Gardner, and her husband, retired Fort Worth Police SWAT team leader, Trey Phillips, brought cannabis to Fort Worth in 2018 with the launch of their award-winning CBD store, Thrive Apothecary. They continue to dominate the North Texas market with the launch of Thrive Medical Cannabis, as Dr. Gardner is now licensed by the state to prescribe medical marijuana to Texans who qualify. Prospective patients from anywhere in Texas can book a free online eligibility consultation to qualify for a medical marijuana prescription. Thrive offers a full-service cannabis solution that offers customers every level of cannabis legally available, from traditional CBD products to emerging hemp-derived THC edibles and smokables, and now medical marijuana. The size and scope of their product offering is unmatched and, when combined with their vetting process, makes them the only cannabis retailer you can truly trust.

The Face of Distilleries

Trinity River Distillery

Trinity River Distillery is a Fort Worth-owned company, born in Texas, raised in Texas, and still in Texas! Home to the award-winning Silver Star Bourbon, Whiskey, Vodka, and the local favorite, Texas Honey, TRD is located right up I-35 on the edge of downtown Fort Worth in the historic Ranch Style Beans plant. You’ll know it by the Texas Silver Star mural, now a permanent part of the Fort Worth city skyline — making Trinity River Distillery a premier location. No matter what your occasion may be, a tour and tasting, a private event, or even your own spirits brand to take to market, we are open for business. Cheers, and as always “Drink Up Stream, responsibly.” PICTURED: Kirk Richards, owner/operator; Chris Reeves, production manager; Hannah Brackett, venue director; Nathan Trevino, production/tour guide.

1734 E. El Paso St., Ste. 130 | Fort Worth, Texas 76102 | 817.841.2837 | silverstarspirits.com

The Face of Higher Education

UTA Fort Worth Center

Designated as a Texas Tier One university, UTA has established itself as a top-choice destination for education in Arlington and downtown Fort Worth. UTA’s Fort Worth Center offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs, professional certificates, student support services, and tailored training opportunities to students and employers in North Texas. Degrees in nursing, social work, Executive MBA, MBA, health care administration, real estate, and the newly established Master of Public Administration are offered to Fort Worth students. UTA Fort Worth is home to a new Go-Center and T3 office. Tarrant To & Through (T3) Partnership aims to ensure more Tarrant County students have training and skills to thrive in today’s workforce, and the Go-Center and mentors enhance opportunities for high school students by helping navigate the college admissions process. PICTURED: Dr. David Coursey, Michael Wollman, Dr. Arthur Gonzalez, Dr. Sriram Villupuram, Reagan Cooper, Sandra Esquivel. 1401 Jones St. | Fort Worth, Texas 76102 | 817.272.5988 | fortworth.uta.edu

The Face of Moving and Storage

Veterans Moving America

For more than eight years, we have maintained a reputation for authenticity, quality, and excellence. Beyond providing superior service, VMA is the only moving company in DFW that maintains a 100% veteran workforce. We are a values-driven organization that exists primarily to support and encourage American veterans. Notably, we are proud to have won Fort Worth Magazine’s Best Of award for the past three years. Our clients love the experience of having veterans serve them again for their moving needs. Getting to work with veterans is a special, meaningful memory for our clients, especially those who have served themselves. We are consistently told by our clients that they are amazed at how smoothly and stress-free our veteran teams made their move. Some even call it fun, which is quite an amazing thing! PICTURED: Employees who served in the Marine Corps, Army, Navy, and Air Force. 6815 Manhattan Blvd., Ste. 104 | Fort Worth, Texas 76120 | 817.989.6362 | veteransmovingamerica.com

The Face of Flooring

Vintage Floors

With a culmination of over 200 years of flooring and design experience, Vintage Floors is the Face of Flooring in Fort Worth. It is this vast industry experience that sets us apart. When making selections for the largest asset in your life, where you live, entertain friends, and raise your family, it’s important to choose a trusted company that’s been providing flooring for many years in the community. The staff at Vintage Floors cares about your 100% satisfaction. We believe that our teamwork approach, superior customer service, and solid commitment to our clients are the key to our company’s success. Quality products and exceptional customer service keep our satisfied customers coming back and recommending us to their friends and family. PICTURED: Bryan Page (President).

5136 Camp Bowie Blvd. | Fort Worth, Texas 76107 | 817.877.1564 | Fax 817.882.1162 | vintagefloorstx.com

The Face of Architecture VLK Architects

At VLK Architects, we design the places where life happens — places for living, learning, working, and playing. We have served hundreds of clients in every corner of Texas across five offices. But Fort Worth is our heart and will always be our home. Integrity, service, relationships, innovation, equity, individuality, passion for our work … our values mirror the character of Fort Worth’s spirit. At VLK, we are compelled to build genuine partnerships with our clients that result in projects that are perfectly suited to their specific needs. We listen, we collaborate, we guide, and we respond. In the course of that process, we become a trusted resource. Our highest achievement is a client who comes back to us again and again. VLK is proud to have many. PICTURED: Sloan Harris, CEO and Partner.

2821 West Seventh St., Ste. 300 | Fort Worth, Texas 76107 817. 633.1600 | vlkarchitects.com

The Face of Volkswagen

SouthWest Volkswagen

Gilchrist Automotive

Buyers choose SouthWest Volkswagen because of the hassle-free buying experience. At SouthWest Volkswagen, we are a one-touch store, meaning the business manager handles your purchase from start to finish. This makes the process quicker as well as not having to be introduced to several people during the car buying process. We make it a fun experience for you to get the car you want at a fair price with no hidden adds or fees. Our wow factor that keeps customers coming back is the genuine care and appreciation we have for our customers. We treat you like you are part of the family … because you are! Whether it’s sales, service, or parts, we are all under one rooftop and ready to fulfill all your automotive needs. We invite you to come Drive the Difference. PICTURED: Stephen Gilchrist, Dealer Operator, Gilchrist Automotive; Chad Shelton, General Manager, SouthWest Volkswagen. SouthWest Volkswagen | southwestvolkswagen.com | cshelton@gilchristautomotive.com | 817.458.5400

The Face of General Dentistry

Vosh Dental

Vosh Dental is a modern, boutique dental office which utilizes a progressive approach to dentistry. Patients will feel Vosh’s spa-like environment the moment they walk through the doors. Our wow factor is the anxiety-free and stressfree atmosphere. It’s Dr. Patel’s mission to help alleviate the anxiety that most people get when visiting the dentist. The use of advanced technology also separates Vosh Dental from others in the industry. Vosh Dental is equipped with the Solea laser, which allows procedures such as fillings to be completed without the use of numbing or the drill, and treatments for sleep that can help alleviate snoring. Offering you the comfort and relaxation of your favorite spa combined with the latest technology in dentistry, we bring a modern approach to the average dentist appointment and create a personalized, transparent, and encouraging visit, every time. PICTURED: Dr. Trisha Patel.

4541 Heritage Trace Parkway, Ste. 1301 Fort Worth, Texas 76244

817.203.1561

voshdental.com

The Face of Mohs Surgery

Molly M. Warthan, M.D.

Dr. Molly M. Warthan has performed over 8000 skin cancer surgeries in her career. Specializing in Mohs Micrographic skin cancer surgery, she excises skin cancers from the face and neck mostly and does frozen tissue sections on the skin cancer to ensure that the skin cancer is completely removed before suturing the area. A board-certified dermatologist, Dr. Warthan had the unique opportunity to do her fellowship for Mohs skin cancer surgery with a Mohs surgeon and a plastic surgeon who did all the skin cancer surgery repairs. She is able to ensure skin cancers are removed prior to patients leaving the office. The Warthan Dermatology Mohs Skin Cancer Surgery Center wants its patients to feel comfortable with the staff and the physician and offers its patients a warm, friendly environment while they are having surgery.

Warthan Dermatology Mohs Skin Cancer Surgery Center 5751 Edwards Ranch Road, Ste. 101 | Fort Worth, Texas 76109 817.923.8220 | mohsdermatology.com | info@mohsdermatology.com

The Face of Residential Real Estate

Martha Williams Group

What sets the Martha Williams Group apart is its dominance in the Fort Worth real estate market and its dedication to customer service and customer relationships. “We know and understand the intricacies of Fort Worth, and we have over 50 years of combined experience.” Martha Williams, Amanda Massingill, and Patricia Williams were born and raised in Fort Worth. They are actively engaged in and connected with the Fort Worth community and truly appreciate the rich culture and arts that our great city has to offer. Clients return to the Martha Williams Group because of its history of success. Attentive to its clients’ needs, it is committed to providing extraordinary service. Fort Worth is Home.

The Martha Williams Group | 3707 Camp Bowie Blvd., Ste. 300 | Fort Worth, Texas 76107 | marthawilliamsgroup.williamstrew.com

Martha Williams | 817.570.9401 | martha@williamstrew.com

Amanda Massingill | 817.570.9451 | amanda@williamstrew.com

Patricia Williams | 817.504.2410 | patricia@williamstrew.com

The Face of Artificial Grass

WinterGreen Synthetic Grass

Named one of Fort Worth Inc.’s Fastest Growing Companies in 2020 and 2021, WinterGreen Synthetic Grass is the fastest growing turf company in the metroplex. We are leaders in the industry and are always a few steps ahead of our competitors. When it all boils down, we operate from a foundation of integrity and honesty. We pride ourselves in being honest with our clients and providing the highest level of customer service possible. Our process cuts no corners to ensure our clients will be enjoying our work for years to come. Because we are not a franchise, we are not subject to one company’s product. This gives us the flexibility to help our customers pick the best product, while maintaining competitive pricing. Customers know we will get it right the first time and that we will do everything we can to make sure they are completely satisfied with their turf.

PICTURED: Winter Moore.

1507 E. First St. | Fort Worth, Texas 817.386.7261 | wintergreengrass.com

john.zimmerman@compass.com jzfortworth.com

What makes John Zimmerman the No. 1 agent in Fort Worth? A relentless pursuit of excellence and dedication to providing the best results for his clients across every price point. Innovation and hard work are not just taglines but an obsessive pursuit that inspires fierce client loyalty. As the founding agent for Compass Real Estate’s Fort Worth office, Zimmerman is combining 30 years of residential real estate experience with Compass’ best-in-class data and technology to optimize the client experience. 817.247.6464

Zimmerman Compass Real Estate Fort Worth

The Face of Luxury Real Estate

Step Up for Down

The Down Syndrome Partnership of North Texas

The Step Up for Down Syndrome 5K and Family walk is an annual fundraiser for The Down Syndrome Partnership of North Texas. Funds raise support programs, services and resources for individuals with Down syndrome and their families. Over 1,200 attended the event this year held at EPIC Central in Grand Prairie.

The Turner family

The Campos family

Kiernan Smith, Ethan Whitt

Connor and Lydia Genteman present a check to Self-Advocate Lauren Fairchild

Step Up committee Kirsten Gaddis, Azure Jensen, Kim Rocha, Lacey Larsen, Ashley Pechacek, Krysten Vaughan

37th An Artists’ Christmas Camp Fire First Texas

On Nov. 19, more than 470 art lovers and Camp Fire supporters gathered for the 37th An Artists’ Christmas that featured three-time Super Bowl champion, Pro Football Hall of Famer, author and philanthropist Emmitt Smith as keynote. The event, emceed by Deborah Ferguson of NBC 5, led guests through an inspirational and high-energy evening highlighted by Emmitt Smith’s message inspired by the practical lessons learned throughout his life that helped him fulfill his career path followed by bidding on a collection of original art, a seated gourmet dinner and later a live auction offering unique, exotic experiences all in support of the children of our community. This year’s event was organized by Honor Chairs, Evalis and Jay Chapa, Event Chairs, Linda and Jake Jacobson, and a dedicated event committee.

Jason & Nelli McMillan

Tom & Therese Moncrief, Eric & Lynda Tiedtke

Donna Thomas, James Harvey

Orlando & Anne Carvalho

Emmitt Smith, Deborah Ferguson

Evalis & Jay Chapa

Youth of the Year Gala

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County celebrated their outstanding Club members at AT&T Stadium during their annual Youth of the Year Gala presented by BNSF Railway on Oct. 7. The keynote speaker was DeMarcus Ware. Fidelity Investments was awarded The Dr. Robert & Sara Brown Humanitarian Award.

Monster Mash

The Women’s Center

The Women’s Center hosted their annual Monster Mash Cartoon Smash at the Ridglea Country Club. Animation reigned as guests danced the night away to the Emerald City Band.

Corinne Alley, LouAnne O’Donnell, Dana Queenan

Curtis W. (Club Kid), Imani M. (Club Kid) DeMarcus Ware

Daphne Barlow Stigliano, Scott Orr, Eric Bocan

Kristi Scales, DeMarcus Ware

Scott & Kelly Smith, Cody & Nicole Minshew

Steve & Merianne Roth

Janet & Glen Hahn

Casey & Mark Oliver

Erika Salter, Tommy Jones

Wranglers & Wishes

Make-A-Wish

On Nov. 18, Make-A-Wish North Texas supporters gathered to celebrate the power of a wish come true with a live and silent auction, traditional Texas barbecue, inspiring wish stories and music by Fort Worth’s own Dan Roberts at River Ranch Stockyards! The first annual Wranglers & Wishes was a night to remember, and generous donors helped raise $313,500 to help make wishes come true for children across North Texas.

Brian Grossman, Natalie Burraston, Eric Grossman

W.R. “Bob” & Jerri Watt Christina & Cass Rodgers

Michael Logan, Jaxson Jordan, ReBecca & Chris Jordan, FiFi Jordan.

Brayden Simpson

PHOTOS

Women of Distinction Awards

Girl Scouts of Texas Oklahoma Plains

Girl Scouts of Texas Oklahoma Plains celebrated five exceptional leaders at the annual Women of Distinction luncheon on Friday, August 27 at the Hurst Conference Center. These 2021 Women of Distinction award recipients have made significant contributions in key areas and serve as role models to the next generation of female leaders:

Woman of Distinction: Dr. Jacquelyn MinorDepartment Chair of Academic Foundations, Tarrant County College, Southeast Campus.

Outstanding Community Partner: Fort Worth Chapter, The Links, Incorporated.

Lifetime Achievement: Debra Shackelford – Girl Scout Volunteer.

Rising Star: Savannah Haynes – Girl Scout Senior, Troop 3518 (Arlington).

Man Enough To Be A Girl Scout: Dr. Marcelo Cavazos - Superintendent, Arlington Independent School District.

Dr. Jacquelyn Minor, Lara Fulghum, Becky Burton

Becky Burton, Dr. Marcelo Cavazos, Lara Fulghum

Savannah Haynes, Becky Burton, Lara Fulghum

Beatrice Self, The Links, Lara Fulghum, Becky Burton

2021 Top Attorneys

Fort Worth Magazine

On Nov. 18, Fort Worth Magazine’s 2021 Top Attorneys celebrated making this year’s list with an evening of cocktails and hors d’oeuvres at City Club of Fort Worth. This annual business reception is a chance for the honorees to connect with like-minded legal professionals. The platinum sponsor of this event was Pinnacle Bank, along with several law firms as the participating partner sponsors.

Stephani & Jon Harrison

Jan Hueber, Emily Hollenbeck,Mahan Wright, Sunny Smith, David Knote

Matt & Angela Towson

Laurie Weir, Carey Thompson, Randi Hartin

Ty Stimpson, Jordan Rolfe (Stimpson), Bryan Kelly

Tony Mancil, Tammy DeNapoli

Alexis & Chris Gebhardt

Kent & Irma McAfee, Brittney McAfee, Hal Brown

Nelda & Chad Cacciotti

Mark Petracchi, Mark Dugan

Give Back

There’s nothing more rewarding than giving back and making a difference in the lives of people in this great community. As the city’s magazine — which has the eyes and ears of some of Fort Worth’s most affluent and philanthropic citizens — we feel a responsibility to give back to the people of the city that is our namesake, which is why Philanthropy is one of our core values.

Every year, Fort Worth Magazine sponsors more than 100 charity events, which range from luncheons to black-tie galas. The following promotional section is devoted to these charities and their fundraisers. We invite you to consciously peruse and consider lending a helping hand by either making a donation or attending these events.

Feb. 22

Annual Ladies Luncheon Union Gospel Mission

Feb. 26

Celebration at Sundown St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Feb. 28

Dinner & After-Party Foodie Philanthropy

Though he owns a Nikon, Joe West might be the first to admit that it doesn’t take a DSLR or mirrorless camera to capture a stunning photo. After all, that’s exactly what happened one October afternoon when West snapped this photo at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art with his iPhone. “I was visiting my nephew, and we were walking around the museum district (a favorite since my college days at East Texas State in Commerce — now A&M),” West says. “The sun was going down, and we all noticed the shadows while walking the Amon Carter grounds.” When a powerful image appears, it’s best to capture it with what’s most readily available.

@303photos

So you’ve snapped a cool pic of the city. We want to see it. Tag your photos on Instagram with #fwtxmag. The winning image will get published on this page — so hit us with your best shot. main line 817.560.6111 | subscriptions 800.856.2032 | website fwtx.com

PHOTO BY JOE WEST

PERFECT Match

Midlothian residents Blanca and Miguel Piña have found their perfect match … not only in each other but also in their MercedesBenz vehicles purchased from Park Place Motorcars Arlington. The couple agrees on Mercedes-Benz for its “legendary brand, technology, performance, and reliability.”

Blanca finds herself on the road often, which is why she drives a sporty, world-class 2022 Mercedes-Benz CLA sedan that rides serenely, with high-end amenities and EPA-rated fuel economy of up to 25 city/36 highway mpg. “The drive is extremely comfortable and makes my commute to work and home more enjoyable,” says Blanca, a director of human resources. Blanca’s husband, Miguel, a machinist at Brasscraft Mfg. Co., is equally

impressed with his 2018 Mercedes-Benz CLS, with its four-door coupe silhouette, high performance, lavish comfort, impeccable interior, and advanced safety features.

The Piñas scooped up both Mercedes-Benzes from Park Place Motorcars Arlington, an experience about which they still rave. They return to the award-winning dealership time and again for its outstanding service and professional courtesy. “Our sales manager, Ken Erwin, has made it easy for us to choose this dealership. He makes us feel at home and goes out of his way to help in any way he can,” Blanca says. “Park Place is My Place because we are treated like family.”