San Antonio Magazine November 2020

SAN ANTONIO MAGAZINE

T H E

A R T S

N OV EM BER 2020

BEHIND THE SCENES of San Antonio's vibrant art world, plus how to start an art collection

(even if you think you don't have the money!)

TH E ARTS / AIR FORC E BAS I C TRA I NI N G

"Philosophical Painter" by Jesse Amado

NOVEMBER 2020 $5.95 SANANTONIOMAG.COM

MEET DR. J U N DA WO O , the medical director helping guide San Antonio through the COVID-19 pandemic

Vol. 16 No. 2

A T E A S E — S I X F E E T A PA R T : How the Air Force is changing basic training to keep future airmen safe

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November FEATURES

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T HE A RTS

Get to know some of San Antonio’s established and up-and-coming artists, add these five local pieces to your must-see list and get a behindthe-scenes look at the installation of one of downtown’s newest outdoor murals.

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M E E T T HE M E D I CA L D I R ECTOR

After starting her career as a reporter, Metro Health medical director Dr. Junda Woo switched gears to medicine and found public health after an encounter with a young patient in San Antonio. Learn more about the physician who's advised city, county and school officials throughout the pandemic.

Jesse Amado with his piece “Philosophical Painter”

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BACK TO BASI CS

Joint Base San Antonio–Lackland reconfigured parts of its Air Force Basic Military Training to keep trainees safe amid COVID-19 and in the process found new methods of efficiency that they’ll carry far beyond 2020.

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TO P AT TO R NEYS

If you need legal expertise, trust one of these local lawyers in 40 specialties.

PHOTO BY JOEL SALCIDO

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November

IN THE LOOP

EAT + DRINK

1 2 CITY NEWS

57 L I BAT I O N S

Classified as bars, VFWs remained closed for over six months, leaving veterans with fewer options for connection and services.

Order one (or more) of these Texas wines for your Thanksgiving table.

16 CULT UR E Add these three local exhibitions to your fall calendar.

1 4 EDU CATION What one UTSA professor says the literature of past pandemics can teach us today.

18 M A KER Patricia Castillo and Paul Jolet practice her family’s tradition of Mexican folk art in the Hill Country.

20 IN FLUEN CER Jazz, TX’s Doc Watkins isn’t letting a pandemic stop the live music.

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5 8 B REW N EWS San Antonio breweries are fighting for survival in a year with shifting regulations and decreased sales.

6 0 S P OT L I G H T Cookhouse matriarch Susan Kaars-Sypesteyn shares her family’s Cambodian heritage in her latest venture with husband Pieter Sypesteyn, Golden Wat Noodle House.

62 DISH Learn the tricks of the perfect apple pie filling thanks to the Rooster Crow Baking Co. pastry chef.

BACK PAGE 6 4 LO O K I N G BAC K The Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner has grown from a parking lot to a convention center and while COVID-19 will bring changes anew, the San Antonio tradition remains.

ON THE COVER Joel Salcido photographed “Philosophical Painter” by San Antonio artist Jesse Amado (hear from Amado on page 30).

FOLK ART: BRENDA PINA; PAINTING: NORMA HOWARD/COURTESY BRISCOE WESTERN ART MUSEUM; DISH: COURTESY GOLDEN WAT

D EPART M EN TS

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UP FRONT / EDITOR' S NOTEBOOK

BEHIND THE ISSUE ometime in my first year on the job as San Antonio Magazine’s assistant editor, I accompanied then editor in chief Rachel Benavidez to a photo shoot at Franco Mondini-Ruiz’s house and studio. The artist’s home was amazing, artfully decorated while simultaneously overflowing with objects. Outside his adjacent studio space, peacocks roamed in an enclosed area.

Mondini-Ruiz was gregarious, charming—and a good salesman, as a successful artist must be to some extent.

His studio assistants sat outside prepping canvases for him by painting them white and surrounding them were 8-by-10-inch paintings—most relatively simple drawings of glamorous looking women against white backgrounds. Ruiz offered us a two-for-one deal. And then really turning on that charm, he told me he loved my look and would do a quick painting of me right then and there. How could a girl resist?

I couldn’t. So, I stood there for 5 to 10 minutes while he ran his brush along the canvas, looking up at me every so often and then producing what’s now one of my most prized possessions. I picked out another painting of a girl in a black dress standing in front of an old-school oil derrick with a “red neck” (man in a black suit with a red bandanna) atop it. It reminded me of my childhood in Beaumont, where Spindletop, the site of Texas’ first major oil gusher in 1901 that ushered in the state’s oil boom, was a mandatory field trip.

These were my first two pieces of original art and made me feel so sophisticated. It was a valuable lesson that art is not just for the rich or just to be enjoyed in museums. It is possible to have an art collection (even if that collection is just two pieces) as a 20-something.

On top of that, art can be seen nearly everywhere—at least in San Antonio. We celebrate the art scene—visual art, specifically—in this issue’s cover story starting on page 22. In a task that tested our limits of decision making, we picked five pieces by local artists that are on public display or in publicly accessible collections, like at the San Antonio Museum of Art. We go behind the scenes with an artist on the making and installation of a large-scale piece on the exterior of a new building on Broadway. We talk to a legendary local artist, Jesse Amado, about the “golden age of contemporary art in San Antonio.” We listen in on a conversation between artists of two generations, and we get tips on collecting from a couple of art lovers, who didn’t let age or money intimidate them. It’s one of my favorite features we’ve done of late, and I hope it adds color and curiosity to your day.

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COMING UP NEXT MONTH

Rebecca Fontenot Cord Publisher & Editor in Chief

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The Spurs may not have had the best end to the season, but there’s more to love about the team than its playoff streak. We’re taking a look at all the ways the Spurs are about more than just basketball.

CORD: VINCENT GONZALEZ; JBSA: ROBERT AMADOR

Photographer Ashton Rodgers and executive editor Kathleen Petty ventured to Joint Base San Antonio–Lackland one Monday in September for a whirwind look at Basic Military Training in its socially distanced, pandemic adjusted form (page 38). While COVID-19 forced the military to make changes, Air Force leaders told us the training program is still very much a priority. Petty was struck by the compassion in the decision to allow trainees to call home once a week (rather than, in normal times, only once after they first arrive).

"We want them to have the opportunity to check on their loved ones—it’s for that sanity piece. We can’t have them concentrating on what’s going on back home because then they won’t focus on what they’re doing here, becoming an airman," Col. Michael Newsom says.

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NOVEMBER 2020 / VOLUME 16 / ISSUE 2 WHERE IS YOUR FAVORITE PLACE TO SEE ART IN SAN ANTONIO?

Rebecca Fontenot Cord PUBL IS HER & EDITOR IN CH IE F

EDITOR IAL EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Kathleen Petty CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Jeremy Banas, Sallie Lewis, Bonny Osterhage, Jennifer Chappell Smith, Katherine Stinson, Edmund Tijerina FACT CHECKER

Katherine Stinson COPY EDITOR

Patsy Pelton

OPE N SKY ME DIA CEO

Todd P. Paul PRESIDENT

Stewart Ramser VP OF SALES

Julie A. Kunkle

“I’ve always enjoyed The McNay—it’s a beautiful home with equally beautiful grounds. I loved growing up next to Texas’ first modern art museum!”

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

Rebecca Fontenot Cord DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Hollis Boice AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR

EDITORIAL INTERN

Clarissa R. Abrego “Lately, it’s been along the River Walk.

Looking forward to getting back out to the museums and galleries.”

Kerri Nolan ACCO UN T IN G

A RT ART DIRECTOR

David G. Loyola PHOTO ASSISTANT

Brenda Piña

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CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

JoMando Cruz, Vincent Gonzalez, Josh Huskin, Ashton Rodgers, Joel Salcido ADV ERTIS ING

Rosie Ninesling CONTACT US

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“First Friday at Brick! They always have such a wide variety of local artists showing off and selling their work.”

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© Copyright: San Antonio Magazine is published by Open Sky Media, Inc. The entire document of San Antonio Magazine is © 2020 by Open Sky Media, Inc. No portion may be reproduced in whole or in part by any means, including electronic retrieval systems, without the express written permission of the publisher. Opinions expressed in this magazine are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of ownership or management.

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In the Loop I NSI D E / G RAT IT UDE A M ID A PAN D EMIC p. 13 / D IA D E LOS MUERTOS ARTISTS p. 18 / JAZZ MAN p . 2 0

A Creative Experience ike nearly every out-of-towner, Hunter Inman and Nicole Jensen knew about San Antonio’s Alamo and the River Walk. But as the cofounders of Hopscotch, the new immersive art gallery downtown, began exploring the Alamo City, they found it also had the kind of organic, authentic culture where their project could thrive.

“It feels kind of like Austin felt for me 15 years ago,” Inman says. “There’s a soul that we really fell in love with here. We honestly see San Antonio as one of those hidden gems.” First introduced in 2019 as a pop-up in Austin, Hopscotch opened in October in San Antonio as a permanent fixture in the Travis Park Plaza Building, where the founders have signed a 10-year lease. Inman says they wanted the gallery to be within walking distance of downtown bars and restaurants while still tied in with nearby cultural centers, like Artpace and the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts. They found both near Travis Park, where they occupy 20,000 square feet of space and have introduced immersive art in formal galleries as well as throughout the building in bathrooms, stairwells and elsewhere. An adjoining bar welcomes guests from the gallery along with the general public and offers food service by Smack’s Chicken Shack food truck. Having been drawn to San Antonio because of its culture, Inman says they wanted to make local artists a fixture. Along with international artists from Russia and Spain as well as national artists from New York, Los Angeles and elsewhere, the gallery will always feature local creatives, which this fall includes pieces by San Antonio Street Art Initiative artists like Eva Marengo Sanchez and Los Otros. Each featured piece is visual while offering some interactive quality. “We have a very tech forward approach so we tend to lean toward experiential, interactive pieces that allow users to fully immerse themselves,” Inman says.—KATHLEEN PETTY

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San Antonio painter Eva Marengo Sanchez with her piece “I’m Soo Busy”

HOPSCOTCH

711 Navaro St., Ste. 100 letshopscotch.com Open Fridays-Sundays

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IN THE LOOP / CITY NEWS

FOUR STO R IES YO U M AY HAVE MISSED

Hiccup No More / Dr. Ali Seifi, a neurointensive care physician at UT Health San Antonio, invented a pipe-like device to get rid of hiccups. Called the HiccAway, when the object is submerged in water and used like a straw it requires such a forceful suction by the user that it triggers the phrenic nerve that regulates the diaphragm, where hiccups involuntarily occur.

Classified as bars, VFW sites were forced to close. Now, veteran leaders worry COVID-19 will have a long-term impact on those who’ve served

BY KATHLEEN PETTY ete Ramos understands the need for caution. The commander of historic VFW Post 76 on the River Walk has watched officers and members from the post suffer from COVID-19, some ending up in the ICU and others succumbing to the virus or mourning the loss of a spouse.

Still, the Vietnam War veteran feels like there has to be some middle ground between keeping people safe and keeping the Veterans of Foreign Wars posts that are classified as bars closed for six-plus months.

“It’s been hard, and it’s scared me, too,” Ramos says, of COVID-19. “But, we’re not just a bar. We serve the veterans and our canteen is really for our veterans.”

The post that was founded in 1917 was one of over 300 statewide that were forced to close along with bars and restaurants in March and then again when Gov. Greg Abbott ordered bars to close in June following a spike in coronavirus cases in Texas.

By fall, some VFWs had contracted with food trucks so they could apply for classification as a restaurant with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission while others had agreed to forfeit their alcohol license for the time being so they could at least open their doors

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or patios for small groups to gather. Ramos and his fellow officers opted for the food license route, but he says he worries the stopgap solution came too late and without enough options for some of the smaller posts.

“Some of them have had to shut down completely because they can’t pay their bills,” Ramos says.

William E. Smith, commander at VFW Post 8541, which hosted a protest to the state closures from its Austin Highway location on Labor Day, points out that VFWs fought for years to rid themselves of the stereotype that they were “smoke-filled bars.” Just as they’d succeeded at that, Abbott continued to characterize them that way and was unresponsive when they asked for reprieve from their bar classification.

At most VFWs, revenue from alcohol sales not only goes to pay for the expense of the physical location, but also for veterans’ assistance, such as burial services and honors, support for spouses of those serving and help connecting to state and federal veterans benefits.

Smith appealed to the governor to look at the broader impact on veterans and their communities.

“If we were just a bar, would we help cover the cost of funerals for our members?” he wrote to Abbott.

Ramos says they’ve done their best to meet needs during COVID-19, partly in thanks to a grant from the city and from savings they had from their annual 10th Street River Festival held during Fiesta. That has meant they’ve been able to keep up with bills and to continue funeral support, like for a member whose son died in a helicopter accident in Afghanistan. But their purse strings are limited from there and without the physical location to connect, Ramos says he knows a lot of veterans simply don’t have the lifeline they normally would. “We don’t understand why the governor didn’t help the veterans. We fought for our country and took care of our country,” Ramos says.

Disgruntled / Grunt Style founder Daniel Alarik launched a GoFundMe page in September asking for support to pay for his wife’s cancer treatment and for care of his son’s special needs after he says he was ousted from his company and left without healthcare (a claim the company disputes). Alarik, a veteran, moved his apparel company’s headquarters to San Antonio in 2018 and said they had an outside partner join in 2019.

He was subsequently removed as CEO and in 2020 Alarik says he was terminated, leaving his family with few options. In just 24 hours, the GoFundMe campaign had raised over $62,000.

No Chicken / Chick-fil-A and the San Antonio International Airport were back in the headlines again this fall after the city announced it had reached a resolution with the FAA that would allow the chain restaurant to seek a lease in the airport if it desired. Soon after, Chick-fil-A announced it was going to pass on the airport.

BRENDA PIÑA

Veterans’ New Fight

Smile! / San Antonio Amputee Foundation founder Mona Patel is one of 30 individuals nationwide whose smile is featured on recently released Lay’s chip bags. Patel and the other participants were selected because of their impact on the community, which for Patel has included advocating for better insurance coverage of prosthetics and encouraging other amputees to stay active. Look for her lip-licking smile on Lay’s Barbecue, Kettle Cooked Flamin’ Hot and Flamin’ Hot Dill Pickle chip bags.

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ETC . / IN THE LOOP

Giving Thanks in 2020 (Really)

San Antonians share what they’re most grateful for during a year filled with challenges—KATHERINE STINSON

“ TO SAY I ’ M T H A N K F U L

Sarah Forgany, morning anchor, KENS 5

is an understatement. I feel like the most blessed person in the world. This year has tested many of us, but through patience and faith, I watched a miracle as my father (came home) after five months in the hospital ICU. Unable to visit or see him due to the pandemic, he is now out with us. No amount of money or material can replace the feeling of satisfaction and love I feel when I’m sitting in the middle of my family. I am thankful to just be able to hold and hug those I love the most.”

Mike Johnson, contestant on The Bachelor and Bachelor in Paradise, author of Making the Love You Want “THE FRIENDS THAT I CALL MY HOMIES,

my family that I call my strength and my mentors that I call my angels are what I’m thankful for. I’m thankful that I was able to serve in the U.S. Air Force. They taught me culture and compassion. My sister—she’s been the biggest teacher of perspective in my life—I’m beyond thankful for her. Lastly, I’m thankful for every story, every encounter I’ve had and every person that has enduring faith they’ll reach their aspirations.”

Anne Ng, co-owner/chef, Bakery Lorraine “I’M GRATEFUL FOR THIS COMMUNITY THAT

came together to help us all get through one of the most difficult years in the bakery’s existence—our employees, long-time customers, families and friends. In this time of uncertainty, I know I can count on their strength and support.”

Mayor Ron Nirenberg

Mari Valencia, pastry chef/owner, Sweetmade

COURTESY INDIVIDUALS

“WHAT I’M MOST THANKFUL FOR IS MY FAMILY. MY PARENTS HAVE

been running their own business for over 30 years, which is what inspired me to take that plunge myself. I’m thankful for my sister, who is a rock star at her job and is killing it daily; my brother, who has taken over (the family business) since my dad retired; and my husband, who has worked so hard on building Sweetmade. It wasn’t much before he came along. I’ve learned so much over the past year from them. I’m also incredibly thankful for everyone who has purchased from us and supported our small business, especially through these crazy times. My heart is very full this year.”

“I AM THANKFUL FOR ALL OF OUR FRONT-

line health care workers—the doctors, critical care nurses, nursing home workers and paramedics with San Antonio Fire Department who have worked with COVID-19 patients this year and have risked their lives to save others. They are true heroes. I also am grateful for the Metro Health workers who have logged in many, many hours this year to battle the coronavirus pandemic. And I thank every San Antonian who wears a mask, practices physical distancing and follows all of the other health guidelines to keep our neighbors safe during this pandemic.”

Jessica Kuykendall, executive chef, Ocho at Hotel Havana “I AM THANKFUL FOR LIFE, FAMILY, HEALTH

and strength. I am thankful to see another day and to get to spend it with my family and friends. I’m also thankful to wake up and have a job to go to so I can keep a roof over my head and food in my fridge. As a whole, I am blessed and thankful to live in San Antonio with a community that comes together when in need.”

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I N T H E L O O P / E D U C AT I O N

A Scourge of Literature A new UTSA course draws parallels of pandemic writings through history and present day

BY KATHLEEN PETTY teven G. Kellman, Ph.D., knows it’s trite but when it comes to literature and films written during pandemic times, “to be or not to be” often really is the question.

The professor of comparative literature at the University of Texas at San Antonio found the realization provoking enough that when he was determining the topic of his fall senior seminar, “The Literature of Pestilence,” a course that focuses on works created about and during pandemics through history seemed fitting.

“To be or not to be is the question I think in all of these works as it is in Hamlet and many other great works,” Kellman says.

His 25 students, whom he meets with via Zoom, are making their way through eight pandemic-related titles and also delving into a work of their choice, whether a novel, nonfiction piece or even a movie, including the 2011 film Contagion that has become a streaming favorite this year for its eerie parallels to the world’s experience of COVID-19.

In each work, Kellman says he’s found there’s a similar examination of human nature. Whether a book about the plague in ancient Athens that helped to end the Peloponnesian War or ones written during or about the Bubonic plague, the Spanish Flu or the more recent AIDS epidemic, many of the pieces have parallels to current times. Some show individuals who are opportunistic and hoard necessary items, which his students have tied to toilet paper hoarders and those who sold hand sanitizer at a premium

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SELECTIONS FROM KELLMAN’S PANDEMIC READING LIST

The Plague

by Albert Camus Severance

by Ling Ma Station Eleven

by Emily St. John Mandel Nemesis

by Philip Roth

in late March. Other works depict the hedonistic “eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we shall die” reaction that many have while still others point out the inevitable soul searching that occurs in society when the imminence of death is clear.

“It gives us the realization that we’re not alone.

This is not the only pandemic that has occurred in history,” Kellman says, adding that many of his students (and people in general) know very little about past pandemics. “The human race has never been free of germs. At every point in history there has been some epidemic. It’s interesting.”

In A Journal of the Plague Year, which the students are reading, author Daniel Defoe recounts his experience with the Bubonic plague in London, providing a historical picture of a past pandemic.

Pulitzer Prize winner Katherine Anne Porter writes a fictional short story, Pale Horse, Pale Rider, which tells of a woman lying in bed with a fever during the 1918 Spanish Flu while her fiancé heads to war, dying of the flu while en route. The Plague

by Albert Camus is even further fictionalized in its tale of an epidemic on the coast in North Africa.

Though the topic is serious, Kellman says the works are not purely “doom and gloom,” which he knows students likely have had their fill of this year. “There is a dark humor or gallows wit to some of them,” he says.

Some authors, like Shakespeare who wrote King Lear during quarantine and the 14th century poet Geoffrey Chaucer, don’t explicitly address pandemics but Kellman says the environment in which they were writing comes through.

ARNOLD BÖCKLIN/ MONTANTA STATE UNIVERSITY

“We all ought to be thinking about what is going on and how it relates to our history as human beings and how it relates to our identities and the meaning of our lives,” Kellman says. “If you’re going to die next week, did you live your life the way you wanted to?”

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Clockwise from left: A Mexican crane sculpture welcomes guests to the Latin American Popular Art Gallery at San Antonio Museum of Art; David Hockney's “Looking at Pictures on a Screen” is one of 30 prints on display at the McNay Art Museum; The Briscoe Western Art Museum is showcasing Chickasaw Nation artists, including Dustin Mater, who created this contemporary piece, “Warrior II”

Artful Escape

HOC KNEY TO WARHOL: CONTEMPORARY D RAW I NGS FROM THE COLLECTION

Plan a fall visit to the museum to see these three exhibitions

BY KATHLEEN PETTY

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Artist Liz Ward’s “Study for Poza” watercolor is so small that Lyle W. Williams, curator of collections at the McNay Art Museum, says he doesn’t blame guests for missing it. However, he adds, while small in scale it’s worth seeking out as its shades of aqua and blue are mesmerizing and the sheet of paper it’s created on is beautiful in its own right.

It’s one of 30 works on paper from the museum’s permanent collection that are on display as part of a special exhibit this fall. Because of the delicacy of paper, Williams says none of their extensive paper collection can be on permanent display and many of the pieces on view have never been featured in the galleries before. “We’re pretty well known for our American modernist drawings but this part of the collection, the more contemporary pieces, has been growing steadily but kind of quietly behind the scenes and this is an opportunity to kind of bring it forward,” he says.

The watercolors and drawings on display include works by the well-known Andy Warhol and David Hockney as well as lesser-known artists and several San Antonians, including Leigh Ann Lester and Ken Little. Pieces on view span from the second half of the 20th century to the early 21st century.

Once guests finish touring Hockney to Warhol, Williams suggests heading to see Folk Pop: Victoria Suescum’s Tienditas, another paper exhibition that features works by Suescum, a San Antonian.

Open through Jan. 3, 6000 N. New Braunfels Ave., mcnayart.org LATIN AMERICAN POPU L AR ART GAL L E RY

Closed for more than three years following water damage to the gallery’s floor, this reimagined space at San Antonio Museum of Art spotlights works from the museum’s largest permanent collection that spans various centuries and mediums.

“The installation features some of SAMA’s bestknown works of folk art and incorporates interpretive strategies and innovative programming that reflect

CRANE, OLINALÁ, GUERRERO, MEXICO, CA. 1930, THE NELSON A. ROCKEFELLER MEXICAN FOLK ART COLLECTION/COURTESY SAN ANTONIO MUSEUM OF ART; PAINTING: DAVID HOCKNEY, LOOKING AT PICTURES ON A SCREEN, 1977/BEQUEST OF ROBERT H. HALFF/COURTESY MCNAY ART MUSEUM; HELMET: DUSTIN MATER, COSMIC WARRIOR II/COURTESY BRISCOE WESTERN ART MUSEUM

I N T H E L O O P / C U LT U R E

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contemporary discussions about Latin American folk art,” says Lucia Abramovich, associate curator of Latin American Art. The popular 1930s crane sculpture that was created in Olinala, Guerrero, Mexico and was featured in the original gallery greets visitors, but there are plenty of new takes on the works’ presentation inside. Rather than built-in displays, everything is flexible to allow for pieces to more regularly rotate in and out of the space. The gallery’s themes— Histories of Collections, Evolving Traditions, Legacies of Craftsmanship and Life, Death and Faith—also are more flexible and allow for pieces from the 18th century to sit near works made as recently as the 1990s.

Abramovich, who has been working to reopen the gallery since joining the museum last June, says the name of the space also was changed to more accurately reflect the collection. “Popular art embraces every aspect of life,” she says.

200 W. Jones Ave., samusem.org V I SUAL VO I C ES: CONTE M P ORA RY C HI C KASAW A RT

The Briscoe Western Art Museum extends its focus on contemporary art in its visiting fall exhibition, which features 57 pieces by 15 Chickasaw Nation artists. Arranged in the gallery by season—a crucial theme for the Chickasaw Nation—the works range from oil and watercolors to textiles, pottery and mixed media.

One piece, JoAnna Underwood Blackburn’s “Prayers Rising,” is suspended from the ceiling and stretches 11 feet toward the floor representing the smoke that rises from fires lit during ceremonial events. Museum president and CEO Michael Duchemin, Ph.D., says many of the pieces take inspiration from nature and the environment, though the artist might take an allegorical or abstract approach. Duchemin encourages guests to take their time through the gallery and look for pieces including Billy Hensley’s “Young Chickasaw Man,” Brenda Kingery’s “Pow Wow,” Dustin Mater’s “Cosmic Warrior II” and Kristen Dorsey’s “Panther Woman Hair Comb.”

Parts of the exhibit will come to life this month during the Yanaguana Indian Arts Market, Nov. 21-22, which will include virtual and in-person events and feature several Chickasaw artists. Locals can also enjoy 50 percent off admission on Nov. 21 and Dec. 19.

Open through Jan. 18, 210 W. Market St., briscoemuseum.org

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IN THE LOOP / MAKER

An Ancestral Tradition Patricia Castillo and Paul Jolet bring her family’s tradition of Mexican folk art to the Hill Country and Día de los Muertos celebrations

BY KATHLEEN PETTY rt has always been intertwined with the routines of everyday life for Patricia Castillo, but for her husband and creative partner Paul Jolet, it was an unexpected passion he gained in marriage.

“Yes, it’s all because of love,” says Jolet. From the couple’s home in Bulverde, they create clay Mexican folk art, including traditional trees of life, jewelry, candle holders, pots and pieces for Día de los Muertos altars. The two design together while Jolet helps sculpt and Castillo, who goes by Patty, hand paints each piece.

The two met over 20 years ago when Castillo was visiting her sister in San Antonio and was introduced to Jolet while out at a concert one night.

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They didn’t speak the same language at the time but found a connection over coffee and pancakes and, after marrying, decided to move to Mexico to be near Castillo’s family.

It was there that Jolet learned what Castillo and her siblings instinctively knew—in her family, art is life.

“We were involved in the creative process since we were young and we came to understand that this art that we were molding, rolling and manipulating had a life on its own,” she says. “We came to see art as life and life as a result of art.”

Her father taught Jolet the tricks of designing and crafting traditional pieces while her mother, brothers and sisters acted as mentors while he refined his new trade. Castillo collaborated on designs and molding the clay while also specializing in mixing her own paint colors and adding the creative touches that only a brush can bring. “I wake up thinking about colors and designs,” she says.

They returned to Texas over a decade ago and eventually settled in Bulverde. They sell their artwork online as well as at art fairs in Texas, New Mexico, California and elsewhere during non-pandemic times. Each fall, they also present pieces that have been used as part of Día de los Muertos altars and speak about what the holiday means.

Thanks to Disney’s 2017 film CoCo, Castillo says most people now understand the Nov. 1 holiday commemorates and honors loved ones who’ve passed. Beyond that, it can still require more educating.

“In Mexico, we never really say ‘goodbye,’” Castillo says. “We’re always remembering the loved ones that we have so when they finally pass, we continue to remember them and they are still present with us no matter the distance.”

Which is why, Jolet adds, Día de los Muertos is celebrated with altars for those who’ve passed. Families set out that person’s favorite things—from traditional folk art to Coca Cola or pan dulce—just like they might make a family member’s favorite dish when they come to visit.

The couple say it’s important to note that Mexican folk art was not created as part of Día de los Muertos. Instead, folk art became part of the holiday as it grew and integrated more skeleton images and sugar skulls. “Folk art doesn’t exist because of Day of the Dead,” Jolet says. “Most of it is an everyday expression of the life and death that we live with.” patriciacastillo-100759.square.site

PHOTOS BY BRENDA PIÑA

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IN THE LOOP / INFLUENCER

Jazzy Pivots Musician and Jazz, TX founder Doc Watkins on finding new ways to thrive

BY BONNY OSTERHAGE ince 2016, guests have been drawn to the cool vibe of San Antonio hot spot Jazz, TX. Like a scene from La La Land come to life, this throwback to a bygone era is nestled “underground” in the basement of the Bottling Dept. at Pearl. It’s a place where people can enjoy a delicious meal, quality cocktails, dancing and extraordinary live jazz courtesy of club owner and professional musician Brent “Doc” Watkins and his musical ensembles.

However, like music venues across the country, Jazz, TX has had to redefine what “live entertainment” looks like during a pandemic—and Watkins was up to the challenge. Instead of bringing the people to Jazz, TX, Watkins is bringing Jazz, TX to the people and expanding his reach through food and beverage delivery, as well as technology.

“We have taken everything online that we possibly could, and then some,” says the 39-year-old Watkins, whose livestream program “The Doc Watkins Show” has garnered over a million views.

“We’ve seen a huge increase in our following during the pandemic because we stayed relevant.”

Each show includes a short interview via Zoom with a “special guest” in the entertainment industry, from actors and comedians to bartenders and of course, musicians. That segment was such a hit that it spawned a spinoff podcast, The Place to Be. This Carnegie Hall performer is also helping other aspiring jazz musicians sharpen their skills while at home through an online course called, “Conversational Jazz.”

The son of a professional musician, Watkins followed in his father’s footsteps as a classical pianist, winning his first national competition at the age of 17. His talent earned him full scholarships to Southern Oregon, as well as the University of Texas at Austin, where he earned both a master’s and Ph.D. (thus his nickname “Doc”) in music performance. It wasn’t until after graduation that he taught himself to play jazz. “Jazz was where the viable gigs were,” he says.

Influenced by the greats like Bill Evans, Oscar Peterson and Frank Sinatra, Watkins has created more than just a jazz venue; he has crafted an experience that extends beyond the walls of a club.

It’s a vibe that Watkins describes as simply, “class.”

“To me, the word ‘class’ is synonymous with ‘care,’” he says. “If you do things right, and you care and work hard, you get a classy product.”

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ANSEN SEALE

The interior of Ansen Seale’s “Tricentennial Clock,” located in the Alamodome parking lot.

10/2/20 12:04 PM

A STARTER GUIDE TO SAN ANTONIO ART 23 SAN ANTONIO IS WELL KNOWN AS A CULTURALLY RICH

CITY AND THE LOCAL ARTS

SCENE HELPS DEFINE THAT

REPUTATION. IN THIS SNAPSHOT OF THE LOCAL ART WORLD,

GLIMPSE THE DIVERSITY OF LOCALLY CREATED WORK

WITH A TOUR OF FIVE PIECES WE LOVE, GO BEHIND-THE-

SCENES OF A NEW LARGE SCALE INSTALLATION, FIND OUT WHAT IT TAKES TO START AN ART

COLLECTION, LISTEN IN ON A CONVERSATION BETWEEN A

LONGTIME SUCCESSFUL ARTIST AND AN UP-AND-COMER, AND GET TO KNOW ONE OF THE

GIANTS OF SAN ANTONIO’S ARTIST COMMUNITY

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5

PIECES

WE LOVE

BY SALLIE LEWIS

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Grotto de San Antonio

by Cakky Brawley Brawley hand-cut the entire sculpture using a jigsaw and a plasma cutter.

2005 sculpture, Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center In 2005, San Antonio artist Cakky Brawley honored the city’s namesake with this 15-foot-tall sculpture. The aluminum metalwork depicts Saint Anthony with outstretched arms standing beneath a filigreed arch. When designing the piece, the artist was inspired by imagery she grew up with, such as altars and milagros. The saint is positioned in a site-specific nook facing the Tower of the Americas. Over his head, a glass orb attracts sunlight, while in the evenings, a back-lit lighting system illuminates Saint Anthony, reminding all who pass by of the reverent spirit that lives on in the city.

COURTESY THE ARTIST

These works by local artists, all public art or in accessible collections, offer a snapshot of San Antonio’s diverse art scene

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JULIAN ONDERDONK (1918), GIFT OF MR. AND MRS. I.L. ELLWOOD/ COURTESY SAN ANTONIO MUSEUM OF ART; PHOTO BY PEGGY TENISON

“Near San Antonio” hung in the Oval Office during George W. Bush’s presidency.

SAMA has a number of Onderdonk’s paintings, including “Blue Bonnets at Late Afternoon,” and “Blue Bonnets at Twilight.”

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Near San Antonio

by Julian Onderdonk 1918 oil painting, San Antonio Museum of Art Texas Gallery (East Tower, 3rd floor) San Antonio painter (Robert) Julian Onderdonk (1882 -1922) was known as the “Father of Texas Painting” and one of the city’s great artists. His work explores the allure and timeless beauty of Texas wildflowers, especially bluebonnets. “Near San Antonio,” which hangs at the San Antonio Museum of Art, is a prime example of Onderdonk’s passion and talent. The 30-by-40-inch painting features a composition of thick scrub brush and trees, limestone cliffs, and rolling hills, all of which frame a field of blue and purple flowers. Overhead, a pastel sky painted with lavender clouds casts light and shadows on the scene below, transporting the viewer to the Texas Hill Country in spring.

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1995 mural, Central Library (1st floor auditorium foyer) Internationally acclaimed muralist Jesse Treviño has contributed significantly to San Antonio’s public art scene over the years. Walking into the foyer of the city’s Central Library, marvel at his spectacular mural of downtown San Antonio during World War II, which stretches 36 feet wide and 10 feet tall. The U.S. Army veteran taught himself to paint with his left hand after losing his right hand in the Vietnam War. Painted on a single canvas, the mural depicts wartime landmarks, marquees, and an altar—complete with flowers, candles, and photos—paying tribute to those who served.

WILL VAN OVERBEEK

Some of the photos represent celebrated San Antonians, like labor leader Emma Tenayuca and WWII Medal of Honor recipient Cleto Rodriguez.

W.W. II- San Antonio, 1995

by Jesse Treviño

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4 Incubators San Antonio boasts dozens of art galleries, museums and educational programs, including these four that focus on developing artists and growing the local arts scene Artpace San Antonio

The International Artist-in-Residence program is a signature outreach of this nonprofit gallery. Three times a year, one Texas artist, one artist from the greater U.S. and one international artist are invited to live and create in San Antonio for two months with the help of a stipend, Artpace studio space, a production budget and the support of Artpace staff. The organization also promotes local artists through exhibitions. artpace.org

Sala Diaz

Established 25 years ago, this contemporary arts nonprofit acts as part-exhibition space, part-residency program and part-community organization. The Casa Chuck residence, named for the late San Antonio artist Chuck Ramirez, was added to the property in 2011 and gives invited artists a space to pursue their work while connecting with other artists. saladiazart.org

SAY Sí

This Southtown educational nonprofit has plans to move to the West Side where it will continue its focus on youth education, working to provide visual arts, theater, digital and other media access to marginalized communities. During COVID-19, it has taken those programs online, even delivering WiFi hot spots to help students stay engaged in art. saysi.org

Light Channels by Bill FitzGibbons

BILL FITZGIBBONS

2006 light installation, I-37 underpass at Commerce and Houston streets Bill FitzGibbons’ Light Channels installation has undoubtedly brightened the city of San Antonio since its completion in 2006. The artist designed a series of sculptural columns with a computer-controlled LED lighting system to illuminate the underpasses beneath Interstate 37 at Commerce and Houston streets. The result is a revolving rainbow of light, played nightly. This popular public art attraction has bridged the gap between the city’s East Side and downtown, while making the gateway more pedestrian- and motorfriendly. “I feel that this light sculpture is a good example of place-making, being a destination in and of itself,” says FitzGibbons.

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Since its installation, “Light Channels” has been featured in countless selfies, car advertisements, band performances and gala photographs, to name a few.

Southwest School of Art

Along with its bachelor’s and community education programs, this downtown school also hosts residencies for artists in metals, printmaking and paper and book arts.

Locals also are invited to apply to teach community courses and solo exhibitions often feature regional artists. swschool.org

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Lina by William Carrington 2015 bronze sculpture, Cellars at Pearl lobby The commission was awarded after San Antonio architect Don McDonald saw one of Carrington’s smaller javelinas at Hunt Gallery in Olmos Park.

In the swanky Cellars apartment building at Pearl, San Antonio wildlife sculptor William Carrington’s bronze javelina runs in front of the courtyard window. Carrington, a former elementary school teacher, is known for his animated, playful and muscular depictions of Texas wildlife, like jackrabbits and wild pigs. This 36-inch-by-18-inch commission is no different. Its taut legs and chiseled body hover over a pedestal, as if running through the green space just beyond the floor-to-ceiling glass. Carrington crafted the life-like javelina from clay before casting it in bronze.

PHOTO BY JOEL SALCIDO

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1.

The Making of Diana Kersey’s “The Riparian Edge”

At 25-by-28 feet, “The Riparian Edge” is Kersey’s largest piece to date and had to be created in sections. Kersey begins with a computer sketch, always leaving a little ambiguity so she has some creative freedom while sculpting. She drew out the mural in sections, then added it to 1-inch installation foam that was cut and used as a template for the clay.

The San Antonio ceramic artist and Northwest Vista College instructor spent nearly three years designing, creating and, finally, overseeing the installation of her latest public art mural on Silver Ventures’ Oxbow Building at Broadway and Grayson Street—Kathleen Petty

2.

After design, the physical creation of the piece took about eight months in Kersey’s studio where she and her team used over 3.5 tons of clay to craft each element. Once complete, the clay was processed, fired and glazed in the studio, laid out into mural form, labeled, boxed and sent by pallet to the installation site.

3.

COURTESY KERSEY CERAMICS LLC

At the Oxbow Building, the mural’s tile pieces were placed together on the floor so masons from Shadrock & Williams could pack tiles into boxes by section, load them onto a pully and take them up scaffolding where they installed each piece by hand before adding grout. Kersey stayed on the ground during the eight-day installation to answer any questions that should arise.

“The masons did a heroic job,” she says.

4.

To come up with the design, Kersey sat in on meetings with Don McDonald Architecture and Silver Ventures, who wanted the building to celebrate the commercial sector of Broadway plus the live-work aspect of the nearby river. Kersey’s design relates that live-work balance to ecology and is based on the edge effect, which occurs when two vibrant zones of life—in this case the land and the river—interact. Along with the largescale public mural outside, Kersey created 16 clay medallions that mimic the mural and will be on display in the lobby so visitors can see elements of the work up close. “I hope it becomes a part of the fabric of the city,” she says.

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Five Minutes With Jesse Amado The acclaimed mixed media artist reflects on the San Antonio art scene of the 1980s and ’90s when he got his start and how things look from his perspective today 30s, and that was about the time that Blue Star opened. [The San Antonio Museum of Art had planned a contemporary art exhibit featuring local artists and when it was cancelled, Hap Veltman and Bernard Lifshutz, the new owners of what is now the Blue Star Arts Complex offered one of their warehouses to the artists to host the exhibition, ultimately creating what would become Blue Star Contemporary.]

I went to that exhibit and I was totally captivated. I wanted to do that, and so that was my start—seeing that and being inspired by that. Other artists as I got more involved were doing a lot of their own alternative spaces. I had an alternative space called House Space for four years. That was the ’80s.

There was an emphasis on current contemporary art, places where you could go and show that and there was support for that, mostly from the art community.

All that was going on, so I thought there’s nothing wrong with staying in San Antonio and I did. I became a fireman and spent 24 hours at the fire department and then had 48 hours to work in my studio.

Then the ’90s happen and that’s when Sala Diaz opened and most of all, Artpace opened. When Artpace opened, I was one of the first to be selected (for the International Artist-in-Residence program) in that first round. Then myself and (fellow artists) Franco Mondini-Ruiz and Chuck Ramirez all moved to South Flores, just south of Alamo there. We started having get togethers, parties, soirees all the time. All the artists and the international artists from Artpace would come out and hang with us.

I always refer to that era, 1995 to about 2000, as the golden age of contemporary art in San Antonio. It was just amazing.

You wouldn’t believe the images sometimes of what was going on then. Familiar faces and faces that have come and gone and done well for themselves, etc.

Then I moved to New York in the mid-2000s. I came back in 2014 and it started to kind of rejuvenate again. Now Blue Star Contemporary I think is doing an amazing job. Mary Heathcott, the director—she’s really turned this place around.

It’s quality work, once again, and I’m really happy about that.

The art community is strong here in San Antonio. We all embrace each other and help each other out. It’s a really positive community and there’s some really amazing artists.

I’m really proud of these younger artists that are taking over now. I’ve been at it for 30-plus years now, so I’ve seen a lot of it come and go. What’s coming in is pretty impressive in my estimation. It’s well done, well crafted. Conceptually strong.

It’s great.”—AS TOLD TO REBECCA FONTENOT CORD For an extended conversation with Jesse Amado, visit sanantoniomag.com/amado

ART: COURTESY RUIZ-HEALY ART

“I STARTED TO MAKE ART LATER IN LIFE. I WAS IN MY 30S, EARLY

PHOTO BY JOEL SALCIDO

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From left: “Ashley” by Jorge Villarreal, “Tricentennial Clock” by Ansen Seale

Art Talk: Ansen Seale + Jorge Villarreal

ANSEN SEALE

We asked longtime San Antonio artist Ansen Seale to sit down with an emerging local artist—fellow McAllen native Jorge Villarreal—for a conversation about their careers and San Antonio’s art scene. We got them started with the question “Do you see the San Antonio community as supportive of art and artists?”

Definitely.

A no-brainer. Completely. One of the most supportive communities I’ve ever experienced anywhere.

AS: I’ve been here since 1979 when I graduated and went to Trinity and I’ve also traveled all over the world and seen other art communities. And like you said, it’s a hundred percent for the artists and the artists all help each other. They all pull together. It is truly a community. It’s a community, more than even larger places in Texas.

JV: It is. I’ve heard other people talking about how competitive and how like closed off some art scenes are and how artists act toward others in larger cities. I’ve seen it very little, but when I come back home from traveling, it shows and you feel it and you see it and it’s a great, great feeling. Everyone’s loving, caring, happy to help, supportive of one another in any way that they possibly can.

AS: Why do you think you’re a photographer instead of some other form of artist?

JV: Well, ever since I was a little kid, I always had cameras. I always had disposable cameras. I always had Polaroids. I always loved to play with my parents’ cameras ever since elementary.

I always had a camera, but I never knew the science behind it, or I never knew how it actually worked or like, what was what?

And it wasn’t until the first time I went to Cuba with my little shitty point-and-shoot camera that I realized, ‘Oh my God, I’m missing out on so many amazing photos.’ That’s when I realized I need to invest in a better camera and I needed to really start ANSEN SEALE:

JORGE VILLARREAL:

COURTESY THE ARTISTS

JORGE VILLARREAL

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learning how to use this thing. And I did. And it just felt natural to me. I love photography.

AS: I chose photography and then I chose something else. And then I chose something else and find myself at this point, I’m giving in to my desire to create in any form, not being constrained by saying, ‘Oh, he’s a photographer.’ So I’ve done sculpture and light sculpture.

JV: When did you start to dive into public art? Cause that’s not photography either. Would you consider your clocks sculpture?

AS: Yeah. Kinetics, kinetic sculpture. That started in 2009 with Luminaria and "The Corn Crib" project.

JV: I love your piece ("Tricentennial Clock") with the clock inside the house. Cause it’s very different. You don’t expect it. I’m a person who loves wandering and getting lost and like stumbling across random (things). Your sculpture outside of the Alamodome, it’s the kind of thing that I love to stumble across when I’m wandering a city and the idea that you peek in through the window and then you walk around the other side of the house and you peek in the other window and just that whole kind of feeling you get—you don’t know if you’re supposed to be there or not. Like, am I looking into someone’s house or is this an art piece? I love that about it.

AS: That’s interesting. I’d never heard that particular take on it. It’s a pretty well-kept secret in plain sight.

JV: That’s what makes it even more special. Is it still ticking?

AS: Yeah, it’s a permanent part of the collection of the city of San Antonio that was commissioned during the tricentennial.

JV: There’s a lot of murals on the West Side, but I stumble upon more murals on the South Side that I find more interesting.

There’s this mural right next to Mission Concepción. It’s like a convenience store, but on the back, there is this beautiful mural.

It’s definitely by an artist; it’s not graffiti. It’s a huge mural with the Virgin Guadalupe in the center, but then there’s just like kids playing. There’s the man selling popsicles with his little cart. It’s just very San Antonio.

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This conversation was edited for length and clarity. For a longer version, visit sanantoniomag.com/ansenjorge

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Art Collecting is Easy San Antonio’s Lori Dunlap and Charlie Biedenharn show how starting your own collection can boost the local art scene—and the ambiance at your home

BY JENNIFER CHAPPELL SMITH hometown of San Antonio in the early 1990s, she had her reservations. Joel had just finished medical training and had a time-consuming job lined up in radiology. In the 12 years she’d been away from San Antonio, she’d lived in culture-rich cities like Charleston, Houston and San Francisco. “I was into the cultural aspect of things,” she says, “and there was really a dearth of that in San Antonio in the early 1990s.”

Then she and Joel bought the first of their prized San Antonio art collection shortly after settling in—a piece by San Antonio artist and photographer Rick Hunter. “We didn’t have much money,” she says. But, she adds, explaining what has become her advice to any beginning collector, “It doesn’t matter how much it costs. If you love it, it enhances your life.”

Soon after, Dunlap discovered the nonprofit Blue Star Contemporary.

WHEN LORI DUNLAP AND HER HUSBAND, JOEL, MOVED TO HER

Established in 1986, the nonprofit gallery and arts organization gave her a way to connect with and foster arts in the Alamo City. “The arts scene has made my life in San Antonio awesome,” says Dunlap, who served on the board at Blue Star for many years and also co-chaired galas at other institutions, including Artpace and San Antonio Museum of Art. “It was a lifesaver to come back here and to be a part of that creativity and the artist community and to have access to all of that.

It’s available to anyone who wants to be involved.”

Accessibility is one thing Dunlap loves about the San Antonio arts scene. In Santa Fe, where she’s spent a lot of time, Dunlap has noticed a disparity between artists and collectors, who pay handsomely for art but often keep the creatives fueling those collections on the fringe.

Not so in San Antonio. “San Antonio is a much more democratic art world,” she says. “We have a wonderful mix of artists, collectors, patrons and political people who all spend time together.”

Though Dunlap retired five years ago from board involvement at Blue Star Contemporary, she still works on the annual Red Dot sale (she co-chaired the event this year, which was originally scheduled for May and then transitioned to a combination virtual and gallery sale that ran Sept. 23 through Oct. 4). The event is a great place for newcomers to get to know artists, whether in-person or even by perusing the sales’ collection online. “Intimidated is the last thing to be about the sale,” Dunlap says, adding that all works are available to look at online and often range in price from $800 to $25,000.

PHOTO BY JOEL SALCIDO

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Where to Get Started

BAKERY: COURTESY BAKERY LORRAINE/NICK SIMONITE

In addition to nonprofit contemporary gallery spaces at the McNay Art Museum, Ruby City, Sala Diaz and Artpace, where many local artists showcase their work, you can meet working artists during First Fridays in Southtown and Second Saturdays in the Lone Star Arts District. These open house–style gallery strolls have a festive feel and allow glimpses inside working studios.

Visit area galleries such as RuizHealy Art in Olmos Park, the 1906 S. Flores Gallery Complex run by artist and entrepreneur Andy Benavides, Freight Gallery & Studio at 1913 S. Flores St., or Centro De Artes .

“Between all those places, there’s art available for all prices,” says collector Charlie Biedenharn. “Art, especially local art, can be very accessible to any budget. If you start small and get into it, then you’re a collector. And it makes such an impact.”

As you’re training your eye for the type of art you appreciate and enjoy, pay attention to local artists working around town outside of galleries, too.

Felíz Modern carries prints, postcards and stickers from a variety of local artists. And sometimes art is on your daily commute. The nonprofit San Antonio Street Art Initiative champions artists painting murals that brighten buildings, underpasses and other spaces downtown. Find a mural map at sanantoniostreetart.org/mural-map.

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At the McNay Art Museum, an annual Print Fair (typically held in early March) offers even lower price points for those just starting a collection. Guests at the event can flip through stacks of prints, photographs, drawings and watercolors, whether looking for that perfect home accent or a piece to liven up a business space. “You can buy a print for $20,” says local collector Charlie Biedenharn, co-owner of Bakery Lorraine and the other co-chair for Red Dot 2020.

Whether collecting or just looking to get inspired by local art, Biedenharn says museums are also just the start of places to go. The walls of each Bakery Lorraine double as gallery spaces, highlighting the works of local artists and photographers. Local and regional art has also become a focal point at the San Antonio International Airport and the AT&T Center, which boasts a multimillion dollar collection with works by locals like Ethel Shipton, Ansen Seale and others.

“We have one of the best art scenes in Texas in terms of artists that are emerging and art being made here,” Biedenharn says, admitting the city has a smaller market than Dallas or Houston in terms of serious collectors. His hope is that more residents become interested.

“There are two kinds of collectors: one is the trophy collector, who wants to acquire big-name artists and go to auctions and spend a ridiculous amount of money,” he says. “Then you have your patron or regional collector, who is the life blood of the art community.”

Before attending an event like Red Dot or even expanding her collection through a direct purchase, Dunlap often does some research so she knows which local artists she wants to connect with right now.

This year, she purchased a piece by El Paso artist Margarita Cabrera, who previously lived in San Antonio. She’s also interested in acquiring a piece by Jennifer Ling Datchuk, a native of Warren, Ohio, who now lives and works in San Antonio. Daughter of a Chinese immigrant and granddaughter of Russian and Irish immigrants, Datchuk uses her family heritage as a driving force in her work. She’s received grants from San Antonio’s Artpace and the city’s Artist Foundation and was awarded the Berlin residency at Blue Star, giving her the chance to work and create while living in Berlin. “We have all kinds of artists that move to San Antonio,” Dunlap says, pointing to the city’s affordability and quality of life in contrast to New York City, L.A. or even Santa Fe. “And the artists are so supportive of each other.”

The Dunlaps’ own personal collection includes a range of contemporary styles, including pieces by Ricky Armendariz, Lloyd Walsh, Chuck Ramirez, Cruz Ortiz and Kathy Sosa. “It’s everywhere, all over my house,” Dunlap says. A central gallery displays much of the collection and one bedroom is dedicated to old lithographs. The couple even considered their collection when they added on to their historic home near the King William District, working with California designer Roy McMakin—whose home designs constitute works of art themselves.

“He built a ‘sculpture’ for our art,” Dunlap says.

And while the collection provides plenty of personal joy, part of the obsession with art for collectors like Dunlap and Biedenharn is that every purchase helps the creative spirit of San Antonio soar. “That is why I feel so inclined to have stacks of artwork laying at my house that I don’t have space for and why I feel inclined to have it in our bakeries,” Biedenharn says.

He knows that many young professionals like himself hear the term art collector and assume it’s a role reserved for the elite. “That couldn’t be further from the truth,” he says. “The more artists that can sustain their lifestyle and continue to make art the better culture we have in the city.”

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SAN ANTONIO’S DR. FAUCI

Dr. Junda Woo was cast into the public eye this year when officials pointed to her—Bexar County’s local health authority and San Antonio Metropolitan Health District medical director—as one of the leaders providing guidance on COVID-19, including when it was safe to bring students back into the classroom.

By Kathleen Petty

Photography by Vincent Gonzalez

NOVEMBER 2020

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FACT FILE Education:

Bachelor’s of journalism, University of Texas at Austin; doctor of medicine, State University of New York; residency, Baylor College of Medicine; master of public health, University of Texas at Austin

Areas of focus:

Pre-pandemic, Woo was focused on HIV and STI prevention and research, among other public health and community measures

Years in San Antonio: 14

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team spent the next six months devoted almost solely to the coronavirus.

Early on, Woo and other top leaders from Metro Health were involved in case investigations and contact tracing alongside everyone else, just working to get a handle on the virus.

“Normally, public health isn’t dealing with a condition that is brand new like COVID,” Woo says. “It’s not just me, it’s a lot of us, but 12- to 16-hour days were normal, including weekends and holidays.”

Along with pulling and analyzing COVID-19 data, Metro Health and Woo also collaborated with Southwest Texas Regional Advisory Council, UT Health San Antonio and area hospitals to ensure hospitals had the capacity and ventilators to care for patients. Woo paid close attention to marginalized communities in San Antonio, working to ensure free testing was available early for those who needed it most and getting the messages of mask wearing and social distancing out to all areas of the region.

“Dr. Woo is a tireless advocate for marginalized communities and brought her knowledge and commitment to successful community engagement to the COVID-19 Health Transition Team," says Dr. Barbara Taylor, an associate professor of infectious diseases and the assistant dean for the MD/MPH program at UT Health San Antonio. “Her experience creating community collaboratives around diabetes and HIV and her work on COVID outbreaks in congregate settings were incredibly valuable for the group."

In late July as public school districts were working to determine if and how many students should return to classrooms, it was Woo who Mayor Ron Nirenberg and County Judge Nelson Wolff pointed to as the public health authority to serve as the leader on the matter. (The state would later overrule counties’ authority to set strict guidelines but the majority of local school districts continued to follow Woo’s guidance.)

Before making any recommendation, Woo assembled a task force that included teachers, health professionals, students and superintendents, hoping to provide guidelines that were based on the science of the pandemic but also that were practical for those living them in the day-to-day. “It did not make sense for me, a non-educator who hasn’t been inside a school in decades, to be making these decisions without the benefit of other voices,” she says.

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n journalism, reporters can spend weeks just trying to get someone to return their call. In health care, by the time a doctor walks into the room, the patient is often already naked save for a flimsy gown.

It’s a quip Dr. Junda Woo often makes when asked about her transition decades ago from writer with the Wall Street Journal to medical doctor and public health professional—which is to say, the two careers don’t overlap much. “The commonalities are education and breaking things down in a way people understand,” says Woo, medical director for San Antonio Metropolitan Health District and the appointed local health authority for Bexar County. “And you get such great stories in talking to people.”

Medical school was not something Woo ever thought about as a young adult. But while living in New York during the early 1990s, she watched a friend contract HIV and die within six months and Woo’s life began to shift. She started volunteering at a local LGBTQ clinic and says she was transformed by the experience. She eventually enrolled in pre-med courses and applied for medical school, attending State University of New York and completing her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Baylor College of Medicine.

She was working at a Centro Med clinic in San Antonio when she realized she wanted to focus on public health. “Most people who went from practicing medicine to public health had some kind of ‘ah-ha’ moment,” she says. “For me, it was when I had a young adolescent—she was maybe 13—come into my office and say that she had been with her partner for seven months and she was ready to get pregnant.”

Looking at the middle schooler, Woo says she knew it was too late to completely change her trajectory in a short appointment. Some kind of intervention was needed well before this teen made her inquiry. “At most, 20 percent of your health, if we think about it generously, depends on the amount of time you spend at the doctor’s office,” Woo says. “All of the rest of health is governed by what we call social determinants—factors like where you live, what you eat, what’s your health literacy, what do you have access to and what don’t you have access to? So, I feel like public health is where the big levers get pulled.”

She earned her master’s in public health at the University of Texas at Austin and joined Metro Health after serving as medical director at Planned Parenthood South Texas. (She would later receive criticism for that role from pro-life groups that successfully opposed her consideration for public health authority in 2015 when the appointment was rescinded by then-Mayor Ivy Taylor and the City Council. She was considered again in 2018 with a high recommendation from Metro Health Director Colleen Bridger and was confirmed by Mayor Ron Nirenberg and the council.)

Prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Woo, as medical director saw patients, managed quality control and audits for clinics and was involved in strategic work related to HIV, access to care in the community and policies affecting those major factors that impact a person’s health in the long-term—housing, transportation, education, food insecurity.

When COVID-19 began to spread in San Antonio this spring, her role— and that of many at Metro Health—changed dramatically. In February, Joint Base San Antonio–Lackland became a quarantine site for those exposed to COVID-19 on the Diamond Princess cruise ship and for Americans who’d returned from China’s Hubei province. By mid-March community spread had been reported in San Antonio and many on the Metro Health

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COVID-19 FAQs How much should people consider COVID-19 in their holiday plans, starting with Thanksgiving?

It’s going to be different, just like everything else this year. We should continue the practices that we’ve been so successfully engaging in until there is a widely available vaccine.

The hard part is when we talk about people who are close to you, the people you’re emotionally close to aren’t the same people necessarily who are in your household and the safe thing to do is keep your distance from the people who are not in your household—especially if you are older or have some of those underlying conditions, including diabetes or obesity. If you have the luxury of being able to self-quarantine for two weeks before a holiday, that’s one option, but only some people can do that. There could be a lot of virtual feasts this year, outdoor fun or dropping off of gift baskets.

Does that mean we should expect masks and distancing to be the norm until well into 2021 then?

Northside Independent School District Superintendent Brian Woods says her guidance was invaluable and that he was also impressed by the amount of time she gave to school leaders, school board members with questions and even to students who have an interest in medicine and wanted to hear from someone dealing directly with the pandemic.

“Given what her schedule must look like, she’s been incredibly available to school leaders as well as to elected board members to answer questions and explain the why and give her opinion,” Woods says.

By summer, Metro Health had used CARES Act funding to contract case investigations and contact tracing to the UT School of Public Health. By fall, that meant Woo and other Metro Health leaders were beginning to work more of their pre-pandemic public health activities back into their routine.

Certainly, this was not the first pandemic the public health field encountered. Most recently there was H1N1 and SARS (and prior to Woo or any other current official’s time, the Spanish Flu). But between its quick spread and the public scrutiny that comes with a politicized virus in a world with 24/7 media, this one feels unique, Woo says.

“This is not our first pandemic rodeo,” she says. “I think the differences now include the scale—and it’s a scale that nobody imagined, so that is hard to plan for—and the level of politicization and heightened scrutiny that has occurred.”

Now a regular on the panel during the city and county’s daily COVID-19 updates, Woo, always wearing a mask, is the one answering questions from journalists. She works to provide scientific answers but in the clear and concise way she knows reporters need. “It was a long time ago that I was a journalist, but it does put your brain into a certain mode,” she says.

Yes. I think we can get through this if we don’t set false expectations. We can’t set a finish line that when we’re in the green (safe risk) zone, that everything can go back to normal. We need to set the expectation that we’re in this for a longer haul than we first realized. We’re doing a great job. We just have to keep doing it.

It’s not that we can’t be in our workplaces, it’s just that we’re going to have to continue to do it in a different way.

If I had to pick one thing, the distancing is most important. But the other point that I need to be better about making is you can’t just pick one measure. You need distancing, mask wearing, hand washing, good ventilation and to stay home when you or someone in your household is sick. It’s a layer of measures.

Is Metro Health expecting a fall or winter surge of COVID-19?

It really does depend on us still being vigilant. If we all continue on the behaviors we’ve been engaging in, there is a model that shows we don’t surge very high—certainly not anywhere near a level that would overwhelm the hospitals. But that’s with the assumption that everyone will continue to be careful.

What impact are you anticipating flu season will have?

In any year, there’s not as much uptake of the flu vaccine as we hope, so No. 1, we hope people feel more inspired to get vaccinated this year. Happily, consumer demand is strong so far this year. In the Southern Hemisphere, there has been very little flu because the same measures that protect you from COVID-19 protect you from the flu. However, some of those countries also were under lockdown.

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THE AIR FORCE TRAINS OVER 30,000 RECRUITS AT JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO–LACKLAND EVERY YEAR, AND WHILE COVID-19 SEEMED TO PAUSE REALITY, COMMANDERS KNEW THE NATION’S ENEMIES WERE NOT STOPPING AND NEITHER COULD BASIC MILITARY TRAINING

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hen COVID-19 forced businesses and schools to shut down this spring, the military—known for its well-established systems not swift to change—had to shift quickly.

Pausing Basic Military Training for any extended period of time was simply not an option, says

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Chief Master Sgt. Learie R. Gaitan, superintendent of basic training for the 737th Training Group at Joint Base San Antonio–Lackland.

Instead, top leaders at Lackland reviewed every element of the training that prepares recruits to become airmen and made adjust-

ments beginning in March as the rest of San Antonio started to shut down. Basic training was halted for one week to fully reset processes and begin the practice of bringing in smaller groups but since then has been running as close to normal as is possible. “The things you can’t

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PHOTOGRAPHY BY ASHTON RODGERS CAPTIONS BY KATHLEEN PETTY

control you can’t control,” says Col. Rockie K. Wilson, who took command in July of the 37th Training Wing, the largest training wing in the U.S. Air Force. “We’re focusing on making sure our processes and our mindset are consistent.”

Along with reconfiguring processing week,

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dining hall protocols, physical training and classroom instruction, the 37th Training Wing— which since 1968 has been the only site of Air Force basic training—also created a small squadron at Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi that’s graduating 60 airmen a week while

fewer trainees are in San Antonio.

Once a vaccine is widely available, some protocols will return to normal, but Wilson says they’ve also found efficiencies that have enhanced their mission and will remain in the years to come.

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40 — “WE DIDN’T HAVE A HANDWRITTEN BOOK BEFORE COVID CAME SO HOW DO WE ADAPT?” SAYS COL. MICHAEL S. NEWSOM, COMMANDER OF THE 737TH TRAINING GROUP. “WE’VE REFINED THE PROCESS OF WHAT IT TAKES TO BECOME AN AIRMAN. THE RESPONSIBILITY HAS BEEN ON OUR MILITARY TRAINING INSTRUCTORS AND THEY HAVE RESPONDED. THIS VIRUS HAS REALLY SHOWN THE RESILIENCY OF THE ORGANIZATION.”

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TRAINEES FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY ARE TESTED FOR COVID-19 WITHIN 24 HOURS OF ARRIVING ON BASE AND THEN QUARANTINED IF POSITIVE, SAYS TECH SGT. JAMES JENNINGS. ALL TRAINEES SPEND THEIR FIRST 14 DAYS IN ROM (RESTRICTION OF MOVEMENT) HAVING MINIMAL CONTACT WITH ANYONE OUTSIDE OF THEIR GROUP, INCLUDING MILITARY TRAINING INSTRUCTORS WHO TEACH FROM 6 FEET OR MORE AWAY AND DEMONSTRATE THINGS LIKE UNIFORM FOLDING TECHNIQUES WITH THEIR OWN SAMPLE ITEMS RATHER THAN TOUCHING STUDENTS’ ITEMS. IN APRIL, THIS TOOK PLACE IN TEMPORARY TENTS SET UP ON THE BLACKTOP OUTSIDE. NOW, THEY’RE CONTAINED IN ISOLATED DORMS. INSTEAD OF TRAVELING AROUND THE BASE TO HAVE THEIR HAIR CUT, THEIR UNIFORMS FITTED AND THEIR PAPERWORK COMPLETED, EACH OF THOSE PROCESSING ACTIVITIES COMES TO THEM—A SHIFT THAT HAS SAVED TIME AND HELPED CONTRIBUTE TO THE WEEK THE AIR FORCE HAS BEEN ABLE TO CUT FROM BASIC TRAINING DURING THE PANDEMIC. “WE’RE DOING THE SAME AMOUNT OF WORK BUT CRUNCHED INTO A SHORTER PERIOD OF TIME,” JENNINGS SAYS, EXPLAINING THAT AIRMEN NOW GRADUATE AT SEVEN-AND-A-HALF WEEKS INSTEAD OF OVER EIGHT. CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION CONTINUES WITH FEWER STUDENTS IN EACH ROOM AND SOME CLASSES ARE NOW COMPLETED VIRTUALLY DURING SELF-STUDY TIME THAT TRAINEES WORK ON IN THEIR DORMS. TRAINEES SIT TWO TO A TABLE AT MEALTIME INSTEAD OF FOUR, EAT ONLY PREPORTIONED ITEMS DURING THEIR 10 TO 15 MINUTES AT THE TABLE AND INTERACT WITH ONLY THEIR TRAINING GROUP, OR FLIGHT, AT ALL TIMES. PREVIOUSLY, FLIGHTS WOULD PAIR UP TO ATTEND CLASSES TOGETHER.

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42 — PRIOR TO COVID-19, STUDENTS ALL COMPLETED PHYSICAL TRAINING (PT) AT THE SAME TIME, ROTATING BETWEEN RUNNING ONE DAY AND STRENGTH TRAINING THE NEXT. THE TRAINEES CONTINUE TO COMPLETE PT WITHOUT MASKS ON BUT CAN NO LONGER RUN OR DO PUSHUPS IN CLOSE FORMATION. INSTEAD, ABOUT HALF OF THE TRAINEES PARTICIPATE IN PT AT 6 A.M. AND THE OTHER HALF AT 7 A.M. INSTEAD OF JUST TWO ACTIVITIES, THEY NOW ROTATE THROUGH FOUR STATIONS THAT TAKE PLACE IN DIFFERENT OUTDOOR SPACES, INCLUDING AN ALL-NEW CIRCUIT INTERVAL TRAINING EXERCISE THAT IS SIMILAR TO HIIT WORKOUTS CIVILIANS MIGHT DO AT THE GYM. COL. WILSON SAYS THE ACTIVITY WAS ADDED TO PROVIDE ANOTHER OPTION FOR SPACING STUDENTS OUT BUT HAS HAD AN ADDED BENEFIT OF IMPROVING TRAINEES’ PHYSICAL READINESS. “WE’VE SEEN INJURY RATES GO DOWN AND PT PERFORMANCE SCORES HAVE GONE UP A LITTLE BIT, SO THAT WILL DEFINITELY STAY,” HE SAYS.

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DURING PRE-PANDEMIC TIMES, FUTURE AIRMEN IN EACH TRAINING SESSION WERE BROKEN INTO 24 TRAINING GROUPS, CALLED FLIGHTS, CONTAINING 50 PEOPLE EACH. TO KEEP CAPACITY DOWN DURING COVID-19, AN AVERAGE OF 18 FLIGHTS COMPLETE TRAINING AT ANY ONE TIME LEAVING MORE ROOM IN DORMS AND THROUGHOUT THE BASE. FLIGHTS WERE INITIALLY CUT TO 24 TRAINEES EACH BUT BY SEPTEMBER WERE RETURNING CLOSER TO NORMAL LEVELS OF AROUND 40 TRAINEES EACH.

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44 — CHIEF MASTER SGT. GAITAN, WHO COMPLETED BASIC AT LACKLAND IN 1994, SAYS THEY WANT FUTURE AIRMEN TO LEARN A “MILITARY MINDSET” FROM THE MOMENT THEY STEP ON BASE. “WE HAVE WHAT WE CALL ‘OPERATION KILL COVID’ AND WE’VE APPROACHED THIS LIKE A WAR,” HE SAYS. “WE RECOGNIZE WEAKNESSES AND THEN WE LOOK AT HOW TO ATTACK THE ENEMY— WHETHER IN DRY CLEANING OR CLEANING HANDRAILS MORE OFTEN—AND KILL IT.” FOLLOWING ORDERS, EVEN IF THOSE NOW INCLUDE KEEPING A MASK ON, SANITIZING SURFACES IN THE DINING HALL AND CLASSROOMS, MAINTAINING DISTANCE WHILE LEARNING FORMATIONS OR RUNNING AND KEEPING TO THE GROUP WHERE YOU’RE ASSIGNED, DEMONSTRATES THE KIND OF DISCIPLINE AND LEADERSHIP GAITAN SAYS YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN WILL NEED TO SUCCEED IN THE AIR FORCE. ALONG WITH RECONFIGURING SCHEDULES DURING THE FIRST TWO WEEKS OF TRAINING, STUDENTS ALSO COMPLETE THEIR FIELD TRAINING AND INITIAL WEAPONS TRAINING— WHICH OCCURS OUTSIDE AT A TRAINING ANNEX NEARBY—IN FOUR DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS RATHER THAN THE PREVIOUS FIVE DAYS AND FOUR NIGHTS. GRADUATION ACTIVITIES HAVE BEEN CONDENSED INTO A THURSDAY INSTEAD OF TAKING PLACE THROUGHOUT THE WEEKEND. FAMILIES NOW TUNE IN VIA FACEBOOK LIVE RATHER THAN CELEBRATING IN SAN ANTONIO AND AIRMEN— ALL SIX FEET APART—ARE CONGRATULATED WITH ELBOW BUMPS FROM THEIR SUPERIORS RATHER THAN HANDSHAKES. WITH NEW RECRUITS COMING IN ON TUESDAY AND TIME NEEDED TO SANITIZE, EACH NEWLY GRADUATED AIRMAN IS PREPARING TO LEAVE FOR THEIR TECHNICAL TRAINING ASSIGNMENT BY FRIDAY MORNING.

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“THE REASON WE KEEP DOING (BASIC MILITARY TRAINING) DURING COVID IS BECAUSE OUR ENEMIES ARE LOOKING—THEY DON’T SLEEP,” GAITAN SAYS. “IF WE TAKE A KNEE DURING COVID THEY HAVE FOUND A KINK IN OUR ARMOR. WE MUST CONTINUE TO KEEP THIS PIPELINE OPEN.”

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Chris Arce The Law Firm Of Chris Arce 210-882-0220 Stephen C. Barrera BCP Criminal Defense Attorneys 830-769-1010 Roy R. Barrera Jr. The Barrera Firm 210-224-5858 Robert J. Barrera The Law Offices of Nicholas & Barrera 210-224-5811 Erica Benites Giese Jackson Walker 210-978-7791 Shawn C. Brown Law Office Of Shawn C. Brown, P.C. 210-265-6290 Neil A. Calfas Calfas Law Group, PLLC 210-405-8315 Jonathan Chavez ★ Calfas Law Group, PLLC 210-405-8315 Kevin L. Collins Kevin L. Collins, P.C. 210-223-9480 John A. Convery Hasdorff & Convery PC 210-738-9060 Adam C. Cortez Cortez Law Firm 210-273-2277 Adam John Crawshaw Law Office of Adam John Crawshaw, PLLC 210-595-1553 Brent de la Paz Law Office Of Brent de la Paz 210-229-1322

Dante Eli Dominguez The Law Office Of Dante Eli Dominguez 210-899-4588 Joseph A. Esparza Gross & Esparza, P.L.L.C. 210-354-1919 Adrian Flores The Law Office Of Shawn C. Brown PC 210-265-6290 Justin Fowlks LaHood Law PLLC 210-405-1000 Andrew Froelich Law Office Of Andrew Froelich 210-725-4658 Robert F. “Bobby” Gebbia Hoelscher Gebbia Cepeda PLLC 210-222-9132 John S. Gilmore III ★ Goldstein & Orr 210-226-1463 Gerald “Gerry” Goldstein ◆ Goldstein & Orr 210-226-1463 Stephen H. Gordon The Gordon Law Firm, P.C. 210-531-9700 Kurt W. Gransee Rush & Gransee, L.C. 210-223-9200 Michael C. Gross Gross & Esparza, P.L.L.C. 210-354-1919 Patrick L. Hancock ◆ Law Offices Of Patrick L. Hancock 210-223-8844 Amanda I. Hernandez ★ Flanary Law Firm, PLLC 210-319-4385 Derek B. Hilley Hilley-Solis Law 210-446-5000 B. Colin Hobbs Gireud | Hobbs, PLLC 210-787-3916

Cynthia E. Hujar Orr Goldstein & Orr 210-226-1463 John Kuntz The Law Office of John Kuntz 210-881-7509 Marc LaHood LaHood Law PLLC 210-405-1000 Veronica I. Legarreta Legarreta Law Firm PLLC 210-532-5321 Ray Lopez Law Office Of Ray Lopez 210-585-2233 Louis D. Martinez Price & Martinez Law 210-227-5311 Adam J. Paltz ★ The Law Office of Munoz & Paltz, PLLC 210-587-5170 Joel Perez Law Office of Joel Perez 210-222-1888 Kelly F. Pittl The Law Office of Kelly F. Pittl, P.L.L.C. 210-798-1453 Brian T. Powers The Law Office Of Brian T. Powers 210-222-9446 Erik Reynolds Erik Reynolds-Attorney At Law 210-226-0026 Zoe Russell ★ Law Office of Zoe Russell, PLLC 210-501-0458 Gable Sadovsky Sadovsky & Ellis, PLLC Tylden Shaeffer Tylden Shaeffer, Attorney at Law 210-227-1500 Mark Stevens Law Office Of Mark Stevens 210-226-1433

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Jonathan Watkins The Law Office Of Jonathan Watkins 210-904-0620 Sergio C. Ybarra Calfas Law Group, PLLC 210-405-8315 Laura N. Zachariah ★ Hoelscher Gebbia Cepeda PLLC 210-222-9132 EDUCATION

Matthew L. Finch Law Offices of Matthew L. Finch 210-223-1123 Joseph E. Hoffer Schulman, Lopez, Hoffer & Adelstein, LLP 210-538-5385

William H. Ford Ford Murray, PLLC 210-731-6306

Marissa Barrera Morales The Morales Firm, P.C. 210-225-0811

Stephanie Bandoske Bandoske & Butler Family Law, PLLC 210-299-4777

Edward J. Garcia Carroll & Hinojosa, PLLC 210-650-9074

Chris H. Negem Law Office Of Chris H. Negem 210-226-1200

Jessica Bartlett Law Office Of Chris H. Negem 210-226-1200

Francis E. “Frank” Gonzalez Calfas Law Group, PLLC 210-405-8315

William Bineham Bineham & Gillen PLLC 210-541-6800

Matthew A. Grimshaw ★ Grable Grimshaw Mora PLLC 210-761-5687

Rachel Reuter Reuter Law Group, PC 210-812-4239

Bertha Gutierrez Law Office Of Bertha Gutierrez, PC 210-212-5442

Jaclyn Roberson Roberson Duran Law, PLLC 210-761-6282

Charles E. Hardy Higdon, Hardy & Zuflacht, LLP 210-771-4310

Rachel Sadovsky The Law Office of Rachel Sadovsky

& Anderson, LLP 210-225-5567

Ashley Butler Bandoske & Butler Family Law, PLLC 210-299-4777 Chase W. Butler Calfas Law Group, PLLC 210-405-8315

ELDER LAW

Carol Bertsch Law Offices Of Carol Bertsch, PC 210-892-4555

Rebecca J. Carrillo The Law Office Of Rebecca J. Carrillo 210-468-1581

Lynnelle Moore Loke Moore Law, PLLC 210-736-2222

George Carroll Carroll & Hinojosa, PLLC 210-650-9074

EMINENT DOMAIN

Marco Cepeda Hoelscher Gebbia Cepeda PLLC 210-222-9132

Paul D. Barkhurst Jr. Barkhurst & Hinojosa, P.C. 210-226-7800 Paul A. Fletcher Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-253-7128

Heather Clement Tessmer Tessmer Law Firm, PLLC 210-368-9708

A. A. Jack Ross IV Ross Molina Oliveros, P.C. 210-249-3202

Kristal Cordova Thomson Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600

Jim Spivey Spivey Valenciano, PLLC 210-787-4654

Charla D. Davies Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600

ENERGY

Moulton S. Dowler Jr. Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600

Diana Liebmann Haynes and Boone, LLP 210-978-7418 Joyce W. Moore ◆ Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600 FAMILY LAW

Matthew Cameron Allen Allen & Roig, LLP 210-377-2529 Amber Liddell Alwais Orsinger, Nelson, Downing

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Tess Dunn Osborn ★ Reuter Law Group, PC 210-812-4239

Ana Laura Hessbrook Hessbrook Law Firm 210-706-9466 Frank A. Hinojosa Carroll & Hinojosa, PLLC 210-650-9074 Patricia Jay Patricia Jay Attorney at Law 817-261-4333 Casey Lee Tessmer Law Firm, PLLC 210-368-9708 Jo Chris Lopez Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600 Crista Marichalar-Branch Branch Family Law 210-229-2088 Karen L. Marvel Marvel & Wong, PLLC 210-201-1630 H. E. Mendez Mendez H E 210-224-4081

Jennifer Espronceda Espronceda Law, PLLC 210-504-1514

James Monnig Law Office Of James E. Monnig 210-224-5400

Patrick J. Filyk Law Office of Patrick Filyk 210-614-6400

Randy Mora Grable, Grimshaw, Mora, PLLC 210-761-5687

Amy Perkins The Law Office Of Perkins & Janis PC 210-549-9975

Jeffrey A. Saenz Grable Grimshaw Mora PLLC 210-761-5687 Mark C. Thompson The Law Office Of Mark C. Thompson 210-775-1140 Tina Torres Tina Torres, PLLC 210-775-1255 Larry Tschirhart ★ Law Office Of Larry Tschirhart, PLLC 210-569-1219 Robert J. Ulman Robert J. Ulman Attorney at Law 210-691-1800 Mark I. Unger The Unger Law Firm 210-323-2341 Lisa A. Vance The Law Office Of Lisa A. Vance, P.C. 210-265-6277 Michael Villa Villa & White, LLP 210-225-4500 GOVERNMENT & ADMINISTRATIVE

Ruben R. Barrera Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600

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Corina Castillo-Johnson Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7153 John C. Dulske Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5505 Rodrigo Figueroa Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5581 HEALTH CARE LAW

Charles A. Deacon Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7133 Bruce M. Mitchell KreagerMitchell 210-283-6228 Jeff Joseph Wurzburg Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7186 IMMIGRATION LAW

Eric M. Bernal Eric M Bernal & Associates LLC 210-544-5368 Lance Curtright De Mott, McChesney, Curtright & Armendáriz, LLP 210-590-1844 Victoria M. Garcia Bracewell LLP 210-299-3546 Fernando D. Gireud Gireud | Hobbs, PLLC 210-787-3916 Alfredo Lozano Lozano Law Firm, PLLC 210-507-3348 Ruth Lozano McChesney De Mott, McChesney, Curtright & Armendáriz, LLP 210-590-1844 Alejandra Martinez De Mott, McChesney, Curtright & Armendáriz, LLP 210-590-1844 Anne D. Monahan Law Office Of Anne D. Monahan 210-375-7447

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Marisol L. Perez De Mott, McChesney, Curtright & Armendáriz, LLP 210-590-1844

210-886-9500

Monica N. Saenz De Mott, McChesney, Curtright & Armendáriz, LLP 210-590-1844

Ed Marvin Gunn, Lee & Cave, P.C. 210-886-9500

Adriana Segundo De Mott, McChesney, Curtright & Armendáriz, LLP 210-590-1844 Nancy T. Shivers Shivers & Shivers Law 210-226-9725 Robert A. Shivers Shivers & Shivers Law 210-226-9725 INSURANCE

Hannah M. Dominguez ★ Plunkett, Griesenbeck & Mimari, Inc. 210-734-7092 Neel Lane Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7170 Nik Mimari Plunkett, Griesenbeck & Mimari, Inc. 210-734-7092 Manuel Mungia Chasnoff Mungia Valkenaar Pepping & Stribling, LLP 210-469-8366 Matthew Pepping Chasnoff Mungia Valkenaar Pepping & Stribling, LLP 210-469-8499 Jake S. Rogiers 210-879-8523 Thomas H. Veitch Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

Court B. Allen Pizarro Allen PC 210-634-4113 Nick Guinn Gunn, Lee & Cave, P.C.

J. Daniel Harkins Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5285

Mark H. Miller Jackson Walker LLP 210-978-7751 Mike Stimson Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7177 Miguel Villarreal Jr. Gunn, Lee & Cave, P.C. 210-886-9500 INTERNATIONAL LAW

Robert M. Barnett Cacheaux, Cavazos & Newton LLP 210-244-0207 Joseph B. Newton Cacheaux, Cavazos & Newton LLP 210-244-0217 LABOR & EMPLOYMENT

Paloma Z. Ahmadi Haynes and Boone, LLP 210-978-7427 Elizabeth Assunto Germany★ Cubeta Law Group Justin Barbour Schmoyer Reinhard LLP 210-447-8033 Mario A. Barrera Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7125 Ramon D. Bissmeyer Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5589 Tiffany Cox Stacy Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. 210-354-1300 David M. Evans David M. Evans, Attorney & Counselor at Law 210-880-4606

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Delilah Lorenz Evans Schmoyer Reinhard LLP 210-447-8033

Christine E. Reinhard Schmoyer Reinhard LLP 210-447-8033

Richard A. Mcnitzky Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600

Clinton M. Butler Langley & Banack, Inc. 830-780-2700

Thomas A. Crosley Crosley Law Firm P.C. 210-529-3000

Grant T. McFarland Tinsman & Sciano, Inc. 210-225-3121

Dylan A. Farmer Schmoyer Reinhard LLP 210-447-8033

James D. Rosenblatt Rosenblatt Law Firm 210-562-2900

Lisa Rocheleau Boone, Rocheleau & Rodriguez PLLC 210-761-2040

Sean Caporaletti Drought, Drought & Bobbitt LLP 210-225-4031

Fernando Cruz Cruz Injury Lawyers PC 210-224-4474

Ryan Orsatti Ryan Orsatti Law 210-525-1200

John A. Ferguson Jr. ◆ Schmoyer Reinhard LLP 210-447-8033

Mark Anthony Sanchez Sr. Sanchez & Wilson, P.L.L.C. 210-222-8899

William G. Weiss Plunkett, Griesenbeck & Mimari, Inc. 210-734-7092

Matthew Crowell Elder Bray & Bankler PC 210-424-4534

Steve Dummitt The Carlson Law Firm 210-696-8600

Daniel W. Packard The Packard Law Firm 210-340-8877

Edna Elizondo The Carlson Law Firm 512-346-5688

Michael Palasciano Wayne Wright LLP 210-888-8888

Jon Ellis Sadovsky & Ellis, PLLC

Malorie J. Peacock Cowen | Rodriguez | Peacock 210-941-1301

Dawn B. Finlayson Caldwell East & Finlayson, PLLC 210-225-1655

Shannon B. Schmoyer Schmoyer Reinhard LLP 210-447-8033

Michael V. Galo Jr. Galo Law Firm, P.C. 210-764-6135

Leslie Selig Byrd Bracewell LLP 210-299-3460

Malinda Gaul Gaul and Dumont 210-225-0685

Lawrence D. Smith Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. 210-354-1300

Judy K. Jetelina ◆ Schmoyer Reinhard LLP 210-447-8033 Alex Katzman Katzman & Katzman, PLLC 210-979-7300 Donna K. McElroy Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5272 Christopher McKinney The Mckinney Law Firm, P.C. 210-832-0932 Lawrence Morales II The Morales Firm, P.C. 210-225-0811

Daniel R. Stern Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5591

Beth S. Janicek Janicek Law 210-988-9856

LAND USE/ ENVIRONMENT

Stephen F. Lazor Tinsman & Sciano, Inc. 210-225-3121

Kenneth W. Brown Brown & Ortiz PC 210-299-3704 James B. Griffin Killen, Griffin & Farrimond 210-960-2750

Laura E. O’Donnell Haynes and Boone, LLP 210-978-7421

Luke Kraus ★ Barton Benson Jones 210-610-5335

Philip J. Pfeiffer ◆ Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7117

Daniel Ortiz Brown & Ortiz PC 210-299-3704

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Jeffrey C. Anderson Tinsman & Sciano, Inc. 210-225-3121

Thomas G. Kemmy Kemmy Law Firm PC 210-735-2233

Melissa Morales Fletcher The Morales Firm, P.C. 210-225-0811

Robert A. Rapp Rosenthal Pauerstein Sandoloski Agather LLP 210-244-8824

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE PLAINTIFF

Erica Valladares Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600

Paul Robert Killen Killen, Griffin & Farrimond 210-960-2750

Kelly E. Preston Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. 210-354-1300

R. Blake Zuber Wagner, Cario, Veale, and Zuber, LLP 210-979-7555

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE DEFENSE

Janice Maloney Law Offices of Janice Maloney 210-735-2233 Pat Maloney Jr. Law Offices Of Pat Maloney 210-226-8888 George W. Mauze II Mauze Law Firm 210-225-6262 S. Tyler Scheuerman Scheuerman Law Firm, PLLC 210-735-2233 Andrew Skemp Janicek Law 210-988-9856

Richard J. Kasson Gonzalez, Chiscano, Angulo & Kasson, P.C 210-569-8500

OIL & GAS

Lucretia R. Marmor Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-253-7188

Stephen Brearley Kohm & Associates, PC 210-704-1067

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Stephen J. Ahl Langley & Banack, Inc. 830-876-2431

Brandon E. Durrett Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5276 Jean Hegeler Hegeler Law Firm, PLLC 210-749-7315 Reagan M. Marble Jackson Walker LLP 210-978-7770 Michael L. McReynolds McReynolds & Tye, P.C. 210-227-8800 Benjamin Robertson Santoyo Wehmeyer P.C. 210-998-4184 David Roth Elder Bray & Bankler PC 210-424-4531 James M. “Marty” Truss Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5240 Jeffrey A. Webb Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7109

Eunice Fernandez Moore Law Offices Of George Salinas, PLLC 210-225-0909 Clinton M. Glenny II Glenny Law Firm 210-340-3200 Otto Stoler Good Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600

Sonia Rodriguez Cowen | Rodriguez | Peacock 210-941-1301 Fidel Rodriguez Jr. Law Offices Of Fidel Rodriguez, Jr. 210-777-5555

Francisco Guerra IV Watts Guerra LLP 800-294-0055

George Salinas Law Offices Of George Salinas, PLLC 210-225-0909

Sue M. Hall ◆ Carabin Shaw 210-222-2333

Daniel J. T. Sciano ◆ Tinsman & Sciano, Inc. 210-225-3121

Taylor W. Harper Ketterman, Rowland & Westlund 210-490-4357

Carlos A. Solis Hilley-Solis Law 210-446-5000 Brian C. Steward Ketterman, Rowland & Westlund 210-879-8523

Katy Wehmeyer Santoyo Wehmeyer P.C. 210-998-4188

Javier L. Herrera The Herrera Law Firm, Inc. 210-224-1054

Corey F. Wehmeyer Santoyo Wehmeyer P.C. 210-998-4190

Justin Hill Hill Law Firm 210-960-3939

Robert Stone Law Offices Of Robert M. Stone 210-832-0326

Christopher M. West Santoyo Wehmeyer P.C. 210-998-4187

Zachary O. Luce DLG Luce Salazar PLLC 210-226-1331

Ruben Valadez Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600

PERSONAL INJURY

Manuel Maltos Maltos Law Firm PLLC 210-598-8474

Aaron Valadez Tinsman & Sciano, Inc. 210-225-3121

Chris Mazzola Patterson Law Group 210-874-2424

David A. Volk Volk & McElroy, LLP 210-377-1414

Harold McCall Jr. Wayne Wright LLP 210-888-8888

Mikal C. Watts Watts Guerra LLP 800-294-0055

Ronald Armstrong II The Armstrong Firm, PLLC 210-277-0542 Lara Brock The Espinoza Law Firm, PLLC 210-229-1300

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Roger G. Bresnahan Farrimond Castillo & Bresnahan, P.C. 210-231-0919 PRODUCT LIABILITY

Jane E. Bockus ◆ Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5549 Steven D. Jansma Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-9366 Erin Rogiers Watts Guerra LLP 800-294-0055

210-824-2188 Kerry T. Benedict Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5398 Kevin H. Berry Law Offices Of Kevin H. Berry PC 210-802-2424 Peter R. Broderick Jackson Walker LLP 210-978-7705 Christopher P. Carlin Norman & Oliver, P.C. 210-822-8972

Ryan J. Sullivan ★ Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5226

Shanna Castro Barton Benson Jones PLLC 210-610-5335

John W. Weber Jr. Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7122

Adrian Coronado Pulman, Cappuccio & Pullen, LLP 210-222-9494

PROFESSIONAL MALPRACTICE NON-MEDICAL DEFENSE

William Crist Crist Law Firm PLLC 210-340-3277

Barry A. Chasnoff Chasnoff Mungia Valkenaar Pepping & Stribling, LLP 210-469-3316

Kelly Depew Metz Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5880

Robert G. Newman Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7138 REAL ESTATE

Matthew Badders Drought, Drought & Bobbitt LLP 210-225-4031 Morton W. Baird II BairdLaw PLLC 210-828-5844 Michael F. Baird BairdLaw, PLLC 210-828-5844 Thomas G. Bassler Law Office of Thomas G Bassler PC 210-826-8885 Andrew L. Baumgardner Jackson Walker LLP 210-978-7748 Joshua Behnke Mazurek, Belden & Burke, PC

Sara E. Dysart Sara E. Dysart, P.C. 210-224-7111 Stephen L. Golden Golden Steves & Gordon LLP 210-745-3777 Ami Gordon Golden Steves & Gordon LLP 210-745-3710 George E. Hinchey Haynes and Boone, LLP 210-978-7000 Paul J. Hunt Barton Benson Jones PLLC 210-640-9149 John P. Jennings Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7140 James M. McDonough Jackson Walker LLP 210-978-7754

James C. Norman Norman & Oliver, P.C. 210-822-8972 Carl R. Oliver Norman & Oliver, P.C. 210-822-8972 Marc J. Schnall Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600 Ty Hunter Sheehan Hornberger Fuller Garza & Cohen Inc. 210-271-1700 Andrew G. Sherwood Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5466 John B. Stewart Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5513 Katherine A. Tapley Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7191 Allison Tipton Tipton Law Firm PLLC 210-963-5288 Jeffrey A. Walsh Barton Benson Jones PLLC 210-610

210-271-1700 Asel M. Lindsey Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5298 Robert W. Nelson Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5266 Katherine Patton Noll Chamberlain, Hrdlicka, White, Williams & Aughtry 210-278-5804 George W. Scofield Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7189 Joshua A. Sutin Chamberlain, Hrdlicka, White, Williams & Aughtry 210-278-5810 Jaime Vasquez Chamberlain, Hrdlicka, White, Williams & Aughtry 210-507-6508 TECHNOLOGY/ VIRTUAL

Debra L. Innocenti Innocenti Jones, PLLC 210-819-4340

SECURITIES LAW

TRAFFIC LAW

Erin M. Camp ★ Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5261

Justin A. Coquat The Coquat Law Firm, P.C. 210-745-2000

Gary Hugh McDaniel Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7172

Mark Sideman Mark J Sideman Inc 210-826-0819 WILLS

Amelia M. Edelman Porter, Rogers, Dahlman & Gordon, P.C. 210-736-3900 Tanya E. Feinleib Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-8300 Nancy Nowlin Kerr Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP 210-270-7173 Sasha N. Kiger Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-736-6600 Jessica Ramirez Hailey-Petty Law Firm, PLLC 210-570-2458 Ryan Reed Pulman, Cappuccio & Pullen, LLP 210-222-9494 Hella Scheuerman Scheuerman Law Firm, PLLC 210-735-2233 Maurine Shipp Clark Hill Strasburger 210-250-6083 David P. Stanush Clark Hill Strasburger 210-250-6164 Patty Rouse Vargas Davis & Santos, P.C. 210-853-5882 Carl Werner Carl Werner & Associates 210-377-4242

Ruth S. Thomson ★ Jackson Walker LLP 210-978-7716

James J. Aycock Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-731-8300

Ryan K. Yergensen ★ Dykema Gossett PLLC 210-554-5219

David G. Balmer Balmer Law Firm, PC 210-617-4600

TAX LAW

Amanda Batsche Batsche Law PLLC 210-920-5661

Travis R. Anderson Spencer Anderson, PLLC 210-699-0004

Arthur H. Bayern ◆ Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-731-8300

Javier Espinoza The Espinoza Law Firm, PLLC 210-229-1300

Stanley L. Blend Clark Hill PLC 210-250-6116 Katherine E. David Clark Hill PLC 210-250-6122 Charles M. “Boxy” Hornberger Hornberger Fuller Garza & Cohen Inc.

Matthew K. Williamson Duncan, Bressler & Williamson, Inc. 210-224-0781 WORKER’S COMPENSATION

Using an online survey, San Antonio Magazine solicited peer nominations from attorneys in the San Antonio metropolitan area, asking them to nominate up to three attorneys per practice area who they would trust with the care of their or their family’s legal needs. To ensure the nomination process is peer-based, full contact information was requested.

San Antonio Magazine then tallied the results, selecting the top 10 to 15 percent of vote recipients in each practice area before submitting the final list to our fact-checking process, which includes a review of good standing.

Attorneys do not and cannot pay to be a part of the list. We recognize that many good attorneys are not included on the list; this is only a sampling of a huge array of talented professionals within the region. We encourage all consumers to do their own research before selecting an attorney.

San Antonio Magazine uses best practices and exercises great care in assembling content for this list. It does not warrant that the data contained within the list are complete or accurate. San Antonio Magazine does not assume, and hereby disclaims, any liability to any person for any loss or damage caused by errors or omissions herein whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause. All rights reserved. No commercial use of the information in this list may be made without written permission from San Antonio Magazine.

If you see an error in the information listed, please contact editor@ sanantoniomag.com.

ATTORNEYS:

William T. Bayern Langley & Banack, Inc. 210-731-8300

Jason C. Spencer Spencer Anderson, PLLC 210-699-0004

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HOW THE LIST IS MADE

Congratulations! If you’d like to display this accomplishment with a plaque, please visit our official store at sanantoniomag.com/ plaques.

SANANTONIOMAG.COM

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Eat + Drink I NSI D E / # SAVE T E X ASB REW ERIES p. 58 / CAMBOD IAN FLAVORS p. 60 / PERFECT P IE p. 6 2

LOST D RAW CE L L A RS 2018 A LTA LO MA SA N GIOV ESE Winemaker and COO Andrew Sides says the Sangiovese grapes from Alta Loma Vineyards in Brownfield have “an impressive depth” that makes this wine approachable, fresh and fruity while also having a dynamic structure and balanced tannins that complement the traditional holiday meal.

WIL L IA M CHR I S V IN EYA RDS 20 19 RO USSA N N E Made with grapes sourced from the Texas High Plains, the Roussanne has what the Hye vineyard describes as “rich golden hue” and notes of honey that make it easy to drink at any dinner table but particularly with roasted Thanksgiving vegetables.

SOUTHOLD FARM + CELLAR 20 18 TOURIGA NACIONAL The Touriga Nacional red wine grape is usually grown in Portugal but does well in Texas because it can withstand the heat. While a red wine, Ota says Southold’s is appropriately light so it won’t overpower the myriad of other flavors on a holiday table.

Holiday Spirits ith their vast array of sweet and savory flavors and textures, Thanksgiving menus can pose a challenge when it comes to finding the right wine to complement the meal. Scott Ota, general manager and beverage director at High Street Wine Co., says to keep it simple.

“Look for wines that are versatile—so brighter whites and lighter reds. And there’s never a problem with having bubbles,” says Ota, who is an advanced sommelier. Some of his go-tos? Grüner Veltliner whites that go well with veggies, Corvina wines made with

W

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grapes from Italy, Gamay or 'Glou' style wines with turkey, Chenin Blanc alongside sweet potatoes, and Madeira, a Portuguese wine that’s similar to a port, to sip alongside pumpkin or pecan pie a la mode. For Texas wines, William Chris Vineyards’ Roussanne is made with Texas High Plains grapes that complement most dinners, Lost Draw Cellars’ Sangiovese is always approachable and Southold Farm + Cellar’s Touriga Nacional never overpowers.

Order directly from a Texas vineyard and have a bottle shipped to you or work with Ota to create your own Thanksgiving bundle.—KP

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E AT + D R I N K / B R EW N EW S

Will San Antonio breweries survive this year of changing regulations and shutdowns?

BY JEREMY BANAS

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actus Land Brewing just outside of San Antonio in Adkins has spent the last six months focusing on a business model that they never planned for: packaging their beer for to-go sales only.

In Texas, all retail locations that have a 51 percent red sign (a license that indicates alcohol sales are over 51 percent) were required to close in June after the state saw a spike in COVID-19 cases following the initial reopening of businesses in May. For Cactus Land, that meant everything they had placed in kegs for on-site consumption had to be repackaged in a can or growler—which took extra time and money.

“We have had to completely switch our business model to packaging beer instead of serving beer on draft (from our taproom), which is completely the opposite of why we started this business,” says co-founder Dustin Teague.

He’s not alone. San Antonio now boasts over 20 craft breweries and each have been forced to rethink (and rethink again) their strategy in an effort to survive. Statewide, the Texas Craft Brewers Guild has reported that at least six craft breweries have permanently closed and two out of three surveyed in July feared they would not make it through the end of the year under current conditions. It launched a #SaveTexasBreweries campaign in an effort to drive support for craft brewers.

Some changes have occurred, but for Roadmap Brewing Co. co-founder and brewer Dustin Baker, that has in many cases compounded the problem. Roadmap shifted to a purely to-go model after the first shutdown but says the second shutdown was tougher. “The first shutdown hurt everyone, restaurants, bars and breweries alike, but at least the playing field was relatively even,” he

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JOMANDO CRUZ

Tapped Out

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From left: Mad Pecker Brewing Co. reopened in August under new TABC guidelines for breweries with kitchens; Roadmap Brewing Co. offered only to go sales until mid-September when it partnered with a food vendor and sold beer in souvenir cups to ensure alcohol sales accounted for less than 51 percent of revenue; Ranger Creek Brewing & Distilling used a variety of methods to serve customers.

says. “The second shutdown in June put most breweries on life support since customers were still able to go to restaurants and get the same atmosphere. I don’t blame the consumer … Simply put, it is a better experience than grabbing a four-pack and enjoying it at home alone.”

The second shutdown was baffling to others that, though licensed as taprooms, have full operating kitchens. Often at odds with breweries over case law, the Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission (TABC), finally threw breweries and brewpubs with kitchens or partnerships with food trucks a lifeline in late August: pay a fee of $800, file for a food and beverage permit and they could reopen as a restaurant.

The whole situation was frustrating says Jason Gonzales, founder and brewer at Mad Pecker Brewing Co., which was among several to reopen under the new TABC allowance. “The challenges were the daily, weekly, and monthly unknowns of if we would ever open our doors again while maintaining as much of our staff as possible,” he says.

“We were already selling enough food to meet the requirements, but a pandemic just wasn’t something as a business owner I planned for when applying for permits five years ago.”

Still, some breweries were not set up to add a food component while others didn’t see it as the solution. “It’s a money grab,” says Teague.

“And does nothing to change the safety of our establishment.”

Throughout the pandemic, Ranger Creek Brewing & Distilling has employed a variety of efforts to connect to customers. They’ve continued curbside service and cocktail kits to go while bringing back some taproom offerings and special events in recent month, like pizza nights and yoga classes at the brewery, says co-founder Dennis Rylander. They’ve also worked to keep their subscription-style Texas Whiskey Club going.

With the continued uncertainty, San Antonio brewers say they’re looking not only for more consistency in the state’s order and its application from the TABC in the months to come, but also for a few new allocations that could help them generate more revenue to weather the COVID storm, such as opening direct-to-consumer shipping options.

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Something Old for Something New Golden Wat, the newest venture from the couple behind Cookhouse, turns a painful history into delicious dishes

ake one bite of any dish from Golden Wat Noodle House and bask in the subtle complexity of its flavors, with ginger, galangal, lemongrass, a bit of fish sauce and several other notes deepening the sensation but never overwhelming the palate.

Each dish is sheer beauty in a bowl, a gift to San Antonio—and a testament to the human spirit that arose out of a brutal time that most Americans only know from history books, if at all. In the mid-1970s, as American eyes shifted from Southeast Asia after the end of the Vietnam War, the Khmer Rouge took power in neighboring Cambodia and embarked on a campaign of slaughter that ultimately killed some 2 million Cambodians.

Among those who fled were the parents of Golden Wat’s Susan Kaars-Sypesteyn. Her mother, Sokhom Chhuon, had a noodle shop in Phnom Penh and because her parents were entrepreneurs, they feared the Khmer Rouge would eventually come for them. “My parents were able to hide gold and able to trade and make their way to Thailand,” Kaars-Sypesteyn says. “They wrote a letter to the U.S. government and were sponsored by an American family to come over in the ’80s.”

As immigrants, they faced challenges adjusting to the culture and spent their first two years living on nothing but rice. Kaars-Sypesteyn was born

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and grew up in California speaking Khmer and eating Cambodian food, but feeling like her native culture was less than that of her country.

“When we grew up, we were almost ashamed of being Cambodian,” she says.

“In this time, when everybody feels like they have a voice, Cambodian food, Cambodian culture can stand on its own. We can have our own identity right now. I want to remind people we are not like anyone else. Our culture and our people are survivors and we have a rich culture that should be showcased.”

Kaars-Sypesteyn and her husband Pieter Sypesteyn, the well-known chef behind Cookhouse, NOLA Brunch & Beignets and Bud’s Southern Rotisserie, usually eat Cambodian dishes at home with their four children and say they found the food especially comforting during the uncertainty of 2020. They shared a few recipes in their temporary Cookhouse at Home meal kit service and decided if there was ever a time to try something new, this year was it.

To test the concept, they launched the Golden Wat pop-up inside Cookhouse over the summer that proved so successful they’re hosting monthly one-day pop-ups through the end of the year with plans for a standalone location in early 2021. Says Pieter, “This is a great time to tell Susan’s side of the story of how we build community and share a little more of ourselves.” goldenwatnoodlehouse.com

COURTESY GOLDEN WAT NOODLE HOUSE

BY EDMUND TIJERINA

NOVEMBER 2020

10/2/20 12:22 PM

OFF MENU News from the restaurant scene

ILLUSTRATION: DAVID G. LOYOLA

The former hot dog cart RockerDogz Gourmet Street Dogz opened a restaurant on Roosevelt Avenue on the city’s South Side. / The couple behind the online Akhanay Coffee Roasters launched a Thai takeout concept in the Five Points neighborhood, Hew

by Akhanay Coffee Roasters. / Folklores Coffee House shuttered its original location with plans to reopen on the South Side in 2021 with a new concept, Grind and Roses, which will offer coffee, food and flowers. Its new Grayson Street coffee house remains open. / Camp Outpost Co., an American eatery with wood-fired food, opened in the Lone Star Arts District. / Spurs Sports & Entertainment launched its Spurs Eats Food Truck in October, offering AT&T Center favorites like nachos, street tacos and loaded baked potatoes over fries. / Wine and coffee bar Eleven O Two opened in Southtown this summer with an art gallery, shop and live music. / Little Em’s Oyster Bar will open this fall on South Alamo Street from restaurateurs Emily and Houston Carpenter. Ben Crumley will serve as chef. / Saweet Cupcakes reopened under new ownership in September after its founders closed the shop in July. / Jujuice Cold Pressed Juicery, a Laredo-based juice bar, opened near the Witte Museum on Broadway. / Austin-based Señor Fish Seafood Bar is opening in the former Tacos and Tequila location in The Mosaic building on Broadway. / The Encino Farmers Market, which is run by Dallas-Fort Worthbased Four Seasons Market, opened at the Village at Stone Oak.

What’s your must-have Thanksgiving dish, and where would you order it from in San Antonio if you weren’t going to make it at home?

It’s not Thanksgiving without sweet potatoes, and my absolute favorite is the sweet potato casserole from The Big Bib BBQ. It’s sweet, buttery and resplendent with pecans. It’s so rich you know you should only have a little but so good you can’t help but have some more.

Do you have a question for our resident foodie? Email asked@sanantoniomag.com.

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I N GREDI ENTS 4 tablespoons butter 5-7 large apples, peeled and cut into wedges (Riesman uses Gala or Granny Smith apples) ½ cup sugar ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon ½ teaspoon ground ginger Splash of vanilla Splash of bourbon (optional) Salt and sugar to taste Lemon juice to taste Handful of flour

P RE PA RAT IO N Heat butter over medium/high heat in saucepan. Add apples, sugar, seasonings, vanilla and bourbon, if desired. Sautee until apples are fragrant and slightly soft. Riesman says to try not to overcook them but not to panic if that happens—everything will be OK. Let the apples cool and then drain off the majority of the liquid. (If you want to get fancy, Riesman says you can reduce the excess liquid into an apple caramel topping. Otherwise, it’s fine to discard.)

Place the cooled apples in a bowl. Taste one and add salt or sugar as desired as well as a splash of lemon juice. Still taste like it’s missing something?

Riesman says it’s fine to add an extra touch of cinnamon or ginger if you prefer a stronger flavor.

Once seasoned, sprinkle the apples with flour lightly to coat. You want to add just enough so that the apples remain wet rather than turning pasty.

The filling is complete and can be added to your favorite pie dough recipe, a pre-made shell or as stuffing in another favorite treat.

If you’re opting for pie, Riesman likes to add a few pieces of butter on top of the apple filling for “extra love” before placing the dish in the oven. The bake time will depend on the width of your crust, but Riesman says to bake at 350 F for 30-45 minutes and watch for the apples to begin to bubble and the crust to turn a deep golden brown.

B A K I N G T H E U LT I M AT E A P P L E P I E Pastry Chef Jenn Riesman, of Rooster Crow Baking Co., shares her tips for crafting the perfect applebased filling

BY KATHERINE STINSON shutting down due to COVID-19. For Jenn Riesman, pastry chef and owner of Rooster Crow Baking Co. located inside the Fairmount Hotel, the news presented more than a little challenge. Riesman had her first major pie pop-up planned for the day and had already baked dozens of pies to sell at Cullum’s Attagirl.

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When the event was canceled, she had to pivot quickly, instead selling her pies to Maverick Texas Brasserie and Battalion to use as their featured desserts for the weekend.

“After hiding in my bed for a week, I ventured back into the then-shuttered Fairmount Hotel,” she says. “I could either close with the rest of the property or keep going inside an empty building. After taking stock of what products were on hand, I caught my breath, wrote a prep list and started peeling apples.”

Because while Riesman can bake everything from specialty wedding cakes to savory kolaches and turnovers, it’s the apple filling that goes into her pies, empanadas and even cinnamon rolls, that brings her the most comfort. After missing out on Pi Day, the chef has turned her attention back toward pie this fall, just in time for the holiday season.

Want to try your hand at a homemade apple pie? Riesman shares her secrets for the perfect apple filling here.

PHOTO BY JOMANDO CRUZ

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D I N I N G O U T / E AT + D R I N K

8 Options for Thanksgiving Pies BEAR MOON BAKERY & CAFE (Boerne) This

Belgian chocolates and cakes but their baking

MEEMO’S BAKERY (Central) The bakery that

skills extend to pies, macarons and more. This

started from a small house on Sunset Road

fall, place orders for desserts including bourbon

expanded in 2018 to a new location where it also

Texas pecan, roasted pumpkin and apple streusel.

serves breakfast (don’t miss the pancakes) and

946 N. Loop 1604 W., Ste. 145, 210-545-2200,

lunch. Special orders of pies and cakes remain

delicechocolatier.com

their go-to, though. Make reservations for a pumpkin, pecan, apple or cream pie at least three

scratch bakery on Main Street in Boerne got a jump on the holidays with their “Christmas in

EARL ABEL’S (Pearl) A San Antonio tradition for

business days before you’ll want to pick it up. 2611

August” campaign and owner Paula Hayward says

more than 85 years, Earl Abel’s is known for its

Wagon Wheel, 210-390-1592, meemosbakery.com

they plan to continue the fun with pies available

pies not just around the holidays but every day of

for order at both Thanksgiving and Christmas.

the year. Select from classics like apple, cherry,

POWERHOUSE BAKERY (Northeast) This glu-

Mini pies are available for those looking for a treat

pumpkin or chocolate ice box or consider some-

ten-free bakery founded by registered dietitian and

to enjoy at the cafe. 401 S. Main St., Boerne, 830-

thing new with maple pecan or banana cream.

personal trainer Suzanne Parker is so dedicated to

816-2327, bearmoonbakery .com

Those dining at the restaurant can enjoy $3 slices

pie that it has named an entire season after it. “Oh

each day starting at 5 p.m. 1639 Broadway, 210-

My Pie!” launched in October and lasts through

444-9424, earlabelssa.com

the holidays with a menu that includes options

THE BREAD BOX (North Central) Order a whole

like Keto apple, pumpkin, pecan and more. Vegan

pie for the holiday meal or stop in at the Alley on Bitters for a slice of your own. Their chocolate

LICK HONEST ICE CREAMS (Pearl, Hemisfair)

options also are available. 4902 Golden Quail, Ste.

icebox pie is so tall you’ll have trouble determining

This Austin-based ice cream shop opened a second

101, 210-354-7995, powerhousebakery.com

where to start while their key lime pie tastes like a

San Antonio location this fall and along with its

slice of the coast and their warm apple pie con-

signature Texas-inspired ice cream scoops will add

SWEETMADE (Online) Chef Mari Valencia has

jures memories of home. 555 W. Bitters Road, Ste.

ice cream pies to its menu for the holidays. Select

been baking for 20 years and describes her desserts

115, 210-277-8612, thebreadboxsa.com

from Hazel’s pumpkin ice cream pie or a vegan/

as an expression of art. Her artisanal cakes are

gluten-free chocolate-chocolate ice cream pie.

perfect for weddings and special occasions and

DELICE CHOCOLATIER AND PATISSERIE

Customers are asked to preorder pies online. 312

her pies the ideal complement to a holiday meal.

(Stone Oak) The 2018 Food Network Spring

Pearl Pkwy., Ste. 2101, 210-314-8166; 639 Hemisfair

Place an order online or through Instagram, where

Baking Championship winners, Susana Mijares

Blvd., 210-957-4000, ilikelick.com

you can ask about custom flavors and options.

and Nacho Aguirre, may specialize in handmade

sweetmade.co

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LOOKING BACK

RAUL JIMENEZ THANKSGIVING DINNER

Nov. 26 Learn more or sign up to volunteer at rauljimenezdinner.com

COVID-19 forces Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner to pivot during its 41st year but it’s not abandoning its mission of bringing joy (and meals) to those in need

BY KATHLEEN PETTY

essica Jimenez doesn’t remember a Thanksgiving not spent with the community. The granddaughter of Mary and Raul Jimenez, who founded the annual Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner in the parking lot of one of their restaurants in 1979 to serve senior citizens who were alone and in need on the holiday, Jessica says the event has long been the center of their family’s own celebration. “We always make it a point to eat together at the dinner, but this is how we celebrate,” says Jessica, whose aunt Patricia now leads the event. “We wouldn’t have it any other way.” When Raul and Mary hosted that first event, it served around 100 people. In the years since, it has grown to fill the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, serving as many as 25,000 seniors as well as other residents of any age who are in need. “Anything my grandfather did was big,” Jessica says. “He thought big and dreamed big. He was a man of meager beginnings and he worked very hard to build his company and he wanted to give back.”

Last year’s 40th annual dinner was the family’s first without their matriarch, Mary Jimenez, who passed away during the summer of 2019 (Raul died in 2004). Jessica Jimenez says it was tough to host it without her but that her grandmother’s death also gave them resolve anew to keep the tradition going.

In a typical year, the family is now joined by more than 4,000 volunteers who spend days prepping food before serving guests on Thanksgiving. This year, Jessica says they are keeping the tradition alive but pivoting to a delivery-style model that will rely on volunteers to help provide around 10,000 meals to homebound individuals. “For us, our goal is to continue this event in their legacy and to continue to honor their spirit,” she says. “They couldn’t have set a better example.”

J

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COURTESY RAUL JIMENEZ THANKSGIVING DINNER

Community Table

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SAN ANTONIO MAGAZINE N OV EM BER 2020

TH E ARTS / AIR FORC E BAS I C TRA I NI N G

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