SAN ANTONIO MAGAZINE S E PT E M B E R 202 1 SAN ANTONIO M AKERS / S HE RIFF SALAZ AR
s r e k a M THE
How to make a difference during The Big Give p.16
Sheriff Javier Salazar doesn’t care what his critics think p.36
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September FEATURES
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MA D E I N SA
The pandemic brought about a resurgence of interest in locally made goods. Get to know 10 San Antonians who are meeting that demand as they craft everything from earrings and candles to custom-made jeans, handsewn dolls and leather wallets.
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BE HI N D T HE BA D G E
Nadia Ramon, owner of Dezynr
A year into his second term, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar is confident in his course of action, whether hiring and firing deputies, communicating with Black Lives Matter leaders or creating special task forces to better protect the community.
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A BR I G HT FU TU R E
How the leaders at 100 Black Men of San Antonio are working to ensure that Black young men in every neighborhood know opportunity and success are within reach.
PHOTO BY KLARE PEREZ
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September
IN THE LOOP
EAT + DRINK
9 COMMU NIT Y Drumming can be as therapeutic as it is musical according to the founder of TamboRhythms.
6 0 E AT H E RE N OW The Hayden’s owner says even meatloaf and fried chicken with waffles can be sexy.
10 PERSON O F INTEREST Bombasta frontman Roberto Livar sees music as an outlet for his activism. 1 2 CULTU RE Fine arts leaders are betting on the return of local audiences as they head into the 2021-22 season with a full slate of live performances.
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14 CASA When a simple remodel turned into a total rebuild, architect Elizabeth Haynes was able to create a modern oasis in the city. 16 B IG G IVE The annual 24-hour online giving day returns Sept. 23. Get to know some of the participating nonprofits and learn how you can make a difference with just $10.
62 DISH Try this vegetarian twist on tinga tacos from the latest book by San Antonio’s Cassy Joy Garcia.
63 T H E GU I D E When a craving for Thai food hits, these 10 restaurants deliver. 64 FINAL THOUGHT Artpace director Riley Robinson on why the arts are vital to both the city’s culture and its economy.
ON THE COVER Photographer Klare Perez captured woodworker Darryl Dunn in his East Side workshop. Turn to page 24 to learn more about Dunn and nine other local makers.
DISH: JOMANDO CRUZ; BALLET: COURTESY BALLET SAN ANTONIO; CASA: COURTESY ELIZABETH HAYNES ARCHITECTS/DROR BALDINGER
D EPART M E N TS
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UP FRONT / EDITOR' S NOTEBOOK
ETC.
JOIN US IN GIVING
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Kathleen Petty Editor in Chief kpetty@sanantoniomag.com @kpettysamag
LOOKING AHEAD Hernan Velasquez, @it_be_hernen, reminded us of the beauty of a San Antonio sunset through his Instagram photo at dusk on the Hays Street Bridge in Dignowity Hill.
Want to see your photo published on San Antonio Magazine's social media channels or in its pages? Tag us in your best shots on Instagram and we'll share some of our favorites throughout the year. @sanantoniomag #sanantoniomag
COMING UP NEXT MONTH We spotlight eight women who are leading the way in their industries and in San Antonio. Plus, get ready for the 2021-22 Spurs season.
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JOSH HUSKIN
he red pin indicating that I had arrived popped up on my Google Maps app as I drove down New Braunfels Avenue on the city’s East Side. I was set to meet woodworker Darryl Dunn at his workshop, but when I looked over at my arrival point, the building appeared empty, its doors locked and some of the windows boarded up. The address matched the one Dunn had sent, though, so I parked, knocked on a few of the doors and waited for signs of activity. Just as I was getting ready to dial Dunn’s cell phone and let him know I must be lost, a pickup truck pulled up to the side of the building and Dunn hopped out, gesturing toward the back of the lot where his extensive collection of reclaimed wood, partially completed projects and tools are housed in a dim workshop. “I call it the Dunn-geon,” he said, laughing at his own pun. He unlocked the door, flipped on his generator and invited me in. It took my eyes a few moments to adjust but once they did, I could tell I was looking at a physical manifestation of Dunn’s creativity. A beautiful sliding barn door with a smooth gray finish leaned against the wall to my right. Behind it lay stacks of boards, pallets and broken furniture. “I know it looks all jumbled in here … but I’m picky when it comes to wood,” he explained, talking as I took in the scene. “I have different routes all over the city to pick up reclaimed wood. I’ve climbed into dumpsters, and on brush day, forget about it.” As was the case with most of the makers freelance writer Katherine Stinson and I spoke to for this month’s cover story, Dunn didn’t start out as a woodworker. He was in telemarketing when he fell into his craft. Jewelry maker Nadia Ramon still works for a law firm full time and leatherworker David Montalvo started creating wallets and belts between shifts at the San Antonio Fire Department. Each of the makers we talked with told us about how their art found them and ignited a passion they didn’t know they were missing. Many of them pursued it first as a hobby, turning it into a career or side gig only after friends and acquaintances requested to purchase something they’d made. Already a growing industry before the pandemic began, the maker community blossomed during the last year-plus as people found themselves with more time to create. And makers told us their client base has only grown as San Antonians are increasingly looking to shop local and spend their money supporting someone they could run into while out for coffee (rather than say the billionaire behind Amazon). We offer a glimpse into that maker scene starting on page 24. Get to know 10 local crafters and also learn about where you can shop from other local vendors or discover your own creative side. Because whether you have a heart for supporting makers or you’re a maker at heart, the community has a place for you.
San Antonio Magazine is among the businesses participating in the Sept. 23 Big Give, but you don’t have to be on staff to help us support the 24-hour online fundraising day. Head to thebiggivesa.org/ business_fundraisers to give alongside our team.
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SEPTEMBER 2021 / VOLUME 16 / ISSUE 11 IF YOU BECAME A MAKER, WHAT WOULD YOU WANT TO LEARN HOW TO CRAFT?
EDITOR IAL EDITOR IN CHIEF
Kathleen Petty
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
Chris Warren CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Emily Guajardo, Travis E. Poling, Katherine Stinson, Edmund Tijerina
OPEN S KY MEDI A CEO
Todd P. Paul PRESIDENT
“Forged iron wind chimes set in perfect pitches.”
Stewart Ramser VP OF SALES
Julie A. Kunkle EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
Rebecca Fontenot Cord
COPY EDITOR
Patsy Pelton
DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS
Hollis Boice
INTERNS
Vivian Phillips, Molly Todd
AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
Kerri Nolan
A RT ART DIRECTOR
David G. Loyola
ACCOUNTING ACCOUNTS MANAGER
Sabina Jukovic
CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATOR
Vicente Martí
DIGITAL DIGITAL MANAGER
CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
JoMando Cruz, Anthony Francis, Klare Perez
“I would want to learn how to make bread from scratch so I’d never have a shortage of bread to eat.”
Abigail Stewart DIGITAL MEDIA COORDINATOR
Rosie Ninesling
INTERN
Katelyn Lester “I wish I could weave beautiful, colorful tapestries.”
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© Copyright: San Antonio Magazine is published by Open Sky Media, Inc. The entire document of San Antonio Magazine is © 2021 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. Editorial or advertising does not constitute advice but is considered informative. San Antonio Magazine is locally operated.
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In the Loop I NSI D E / M USICA L PROT EST p. 10 / A MOD ERN REMOD EL p. 14 / GIVE BIG p. 16
Feel the Beat new event on the Tobin Center’s Will Naylor Smith River Walk Plaza is using rhythm to help people overcome their blues. Offered free to the community at 9 a.m. every third Saturday through November (Sept. 18 this month), the drum circle course is lead by Jorge Ochoa, an occupational therapist and founder of TamboRhythms, which uses rhythmic expression to promote fun and functional living. “Drumming activates both hemispheres of the brain,” he says, adding that studies have shown it can improve mood while also releasing endorphins, and in turn, decreasing stress. Drumming also increases energy levels, concentration and self-awareness, he says. A variety of percussion instruments are available each month for use during the event, and students don’t need any experience or equipment. Through TamboRhythms, Ochoa offers drumming sessions at schools and community centers, including for organizations that serve individuals with special needs or mental illness. He says group drumming helps develop sensory skills while promoting social participation. For everyone, the ability to hit an instrument and participate in a positive group activity provides the kind of stress relief that can be tough to accomplish on your own.—VIVIAN PHILLIPS
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IN THE LOOP / PERSON OF INTEREST
says Livar, 46. “If folks are willing enough to lend you their attention and listen to what you have to say, well, then, I think you should say something, right?” How would you describe Bombasta’s music? A lot of it is instrumentation because we’re an 11-piece band. We’ve got a four-piece horn section, lots of drums and percussion and syncopation and rhythms and great soloists. As far as style and genre, we span the whole spectrum. We are kind of dance music, there are elements of funk and soul, a lot of cumbias, musica Latina, tropical, salsa, rock and hip-hop. We do borrow from traditional sounds a lot, remixing them into our own thing. We’ve played with Los Lobos and we’ve played with George Clinton and ZZ Top and kind of hit everybody in between. We’ve been lucky to be able to gather audiences that really span all ages. We’ve come a long way, and everything keeps on growing and moving in the right direction. You know, poco a poco.
Poco a Poco Bombasta frontman Roberto Livar says music and activism go hand-in-hand INTERVIEW BY JADE ESTEBAN ESTRADA
s a young boy, Roberto Livar experienced his first taste of social consciousness while attending political marches with his mother and labor union events with his father in San Antonio. It was also about this time that he discovered he had a gift for playing musical instruments. After playing his first professional gig at the age of 15, Livar embarked on a path that merged his music with activism. Today, he shares music (often with a message) through Bombasta, the 11-piece band he founded in 2003 that’s known for its puro San Antonio sound. Off stage, Livar has advocated for education, immigration, police reform and against violence and white supremacy at events around the city and through the Black and Brown Men’s Initiative. He’s even testified on the floor of the Texas Senate regarding labor issues. “An audience’s attention is a gift and it’s a gift that shouldn’t be taken for granted,”
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SEPTEMBER 2021
FACT FILE
Leader: Livar is a multi-instrumentalist, progressive activist, public speaker and the director of corporate compliance at CDI Technology Services. Education: Fine/studio arts, Texas State University Listen: Follow facebook. com/bombasta bandpage for updates on concerts and events.
You lived in Austin for four years, but returned to San Antonio. What did you learn from that? I learned that it wasn’t home. I learned that I often found myself having to explain my experience. I came back with that new appreciation and enjoyed just coming home and being with familia, getting rooted and just being able to go out and not being the odd man out. Everything was just like tu sabes. My wife and I thought about: How do we want to raise our kids? How do we keep them connected to our ways, our family, our tierra? Both our families are Tejanos for generations—since before the river crossed us. It’s important for us to remind our kids of that and to really own that we belong here. How often are we told that we don’t belong here? When you hear that you don’t belong, how does that make you feel? Oh, it’s f****ing ridiculous, you know? Our family’s got ties to all these lands. We have a historical record here back 15,000 years in Yanaguana, but you get people who are three-, maybe five-generation Texas settlers acting like they built the Hill Country by hand. It’s even more laughable when those same types of people decide to arm themselves with semi-automatic weapons and try to intimidate in tactical gear [as demonstrators did in protest of changes ILLUSTRATION BY VICENTE MARTÍ
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proposed as part of the Alamo redevelopment]. That is settler colonialism 5.0—or whatever wave we’re in right now. When did you decide to use your music as an outlet for activism? It’s always been that for me. Prior to Bombasta, everything that I was a part of was collaborative. Until this May, the band wasn’t performing because of the pandemic, so a lot of energy was just spent in organizing and working behind the scenes and supporting folks. It’s not always my voice that needs to be heard. It’s about passing a mic to these young cats, too. In the end, it really just comes down to the music. If the music was whack, nobody would be listening to what we were saying anyway. What is the message that you want to get across? The message is freedom, right? The message is that none of us are free unless we’re all free. The message is to connect with each other, to build with each other, to fight with each other and to cry with each other. The message is life, you know? I’m like mid-life. I lost my elders over the past couple of years. We had this whole generational shift happen in my own family, so it makes you just realize that you only get this one chance. And you can choose to live this one life you get full of coraje. Living full of hate, anger, frustration, self-doubt and insecurity seems like such a waste of life—to go through it with that type of unjustified rage and misunderstanding, qué triste. And knowing that tomorrow’s not guaranteed. If it doesn’t come, what was it for? You use Spanish words mixed with English when you speak. Is this a way of pushing back against people and things that are trying to erase Latinidad? Language is a bridge. Here in San Antonio, it’s Spanglish, right? For a lot of complex reasons, a lot of us grew up not being taught to speak Spanish. So, in some ways it’s reconnecting with language taken from us, that was beaten out of our parents. It’s also a recognition of the fact that not everybody speaks English in Texas. What issue would you say is most important to you now? I think the most pressing issue is just violence. It wasn’t that long ago that a gunner went to El Paso to shoot Mexicanos. [The suspect, who is still awaiting trial, told authorities he drove from the Dallas area to target Mexicans. He also posted anti-immigrant sentiments online.] We can’t forget about that. That type of hatred is very real. It’s the same stuff that we saw Jan. 6 at the Capitol and the same stuff that we saw paraded outside of our own City Hall [when people protested proposed Alamo renovations while openly carrying]. It all has that same tie to it, and it’s based on this misinformation of the way these historical stories have been told. So much of it is rooted in education. I think when you distill it all down, it gets us right to our education system and just how messed up the Texas State Board of Education has been and how it has not served the majority of its students. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. SEPTEMBER 2021
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I N T H E L O O P / C U LT U R E
Fine arts companies and local theaters ready for a rebound of normalcy BY KATHLEEN PETTY
ormal might spell boring in a typical year but for San Antonio’s fine arts companies and performance venues, a bit of normalcy is precisely what they’re looking forward to most about the upcoming 2021-22 season. “This season is basically back to normal,” says San Antonio Symphony executive director Corey Cowart. “People want to get back out and want to get back to the music and the entertainment they’ve missed.” Anthony Runfola, artistic director at The Magik Theatre, admits planning for live shows that won’t take place until 2022 took some getting used to after a year of only online performances and educational programs. But, he says, they’re thankful for the opportunity. “We’re grateful that we’re still here,” he says. “A lot of places didn’t make it through the pandemic.” At Opera San Antonio, general and artistic director E. Loren Meeker echoes that sentiment of thanks and says that while they
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Ballet San Antonio presents Don Quixote, March 4-6
202 1-2 2 FINE ARTS HIGHLIGHTS
Cinderella Through Sept. 19, Woodlawn Theatre My Fair Lady Sept. 21-26, Broadway in San Antonio at Majestic Theatre Don Giovanni Oct. 7 & 9, Opera San Antonio at the Tobin Center A Night at the Castle Oct. 22-24, Ballet San Antonio at the Tobin Center Gloria! Oct. 24, South Texas Symphonic Orchestra at St. John’s Lutheran Church Handel’s Messiah Dec. 22-23, San Antonio Symphony and Mastersingers at the Tobin Center Selena Maria Sings March 4-April 3, The Magik Theatre Don Quixote March 4-6, Ballet San Antonio at the Tobin Center Misalliance May, The Classic Theatre The Music of John Williams May 28, San Antonio Symphony at the Tobin Center Once on This Island: A Musical July 15-Aug. 21, The Public Theater
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Broadway in San Antonio stages My Fair Lady, Sept. 21-26
The San Antonio Symphony returns in October
and other nonprofit arts organizations were fortunate to receive government and grant funding to get them through COVID-19, they will need audiences to return in order to thrive in the months to come. “I believe our digital offerings were vital to Opera San Antonio still being here today, but when we didn’t have live performances it almost entirely cuts out the revenue stream,” she says. Cowart says they also received funding and even increased their donor base during COVID-19 but that without regular capacity ticket sales last season, the symphony “lost millions.” “As we ramp back up, it is critically important for us to continue to see support both in contributions and donations and to get back to where we were in ticket sales,” he says. Tobin Center CEO Michael Fresher says the pandemic tested the whole industry but that their staff—and the industry in San Antonio—did not sit idle, which has positioned them to come out strong as performing arts returns. “We’ve spent the better part of a year planning for this return,” he says.
BALLET: MARTY SOL PHOTOGRAPHY; MY FAIR LADY: JOAN MARCUS; SYMPHONY: COURTESY SAN ANTONIO SYMPHONY
A Return to the Stage
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IN THE LOOP / CASA
Modern Marvel Elizabeth Haynes Architect creates an oasis in the city during a remodel-turned-rebuild rchitect Elizabeth Haynes insists she doesn’t have a preferred style. The founder and president of the San Antonio firm that bears her name says whether a historic bungalow redesign, a midcentury modern finish or a ranchstyle build, every project shares the same basic goal. “We create great spaces that have appropriate proportions and connection to the surrounding environment,” she says. That was the objective with a remodel-turned-rebuild in the Northwood neighborhood of Alamo Heights that’s featured in the new book, Spectacular Modern Homes of Texas. When Haynes’ clients initially enlisted her firm, they were looking to add updates to an existing home that had been neglected. As the team began working, though, some major issues turned the refresh into a rebuild. Haynes, her clients, and the builder, Ironside Building Group, opted to use the existing footprint while adding a large primary bedroom, bathroom and closet and a second floor with bedrooms and bathrooms. A casita also was built on the property. Both the casita and the living room of the main house feature glass walls outlined with dark steel frames that Haynes says form a “glass box” that looks out onto an oversized oak tree on the 2-acre property. Outside, a drainageway lined
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with steel was created to provide an intentional flow for the water that runs through the land whenever it rains. “It’s in the middle of the city but you would never know it,” Haynes says. “Every time you turn around there is something beautiful in nature to see.” The four-bedroom house features a gym and media room plus a modern swimming pool out back. The laundry room includes a tiled dog shower on one side and a kennel built into the cabinets on the other. Collected Design Studio completed the home’s interior design. A glassed-in living space opens up into the kitchen, where large windows also are prominent. White cabinets are flush with the fridge and oven on one wall while white quartz provides an accent between the glass on the exterior wall. Walnut is used as the base for an oversized island that features a quartz countertop. Walnut is also on a banquette while architectural cedar covers the ceiling in the living room and spills out to the overhangs, bringing warmth throughout. Positioned up a winding driveway, the home is set back from the street and utilizes straight, clean lines, stucco, glass and dark steel to achieve a contemporary look that is simple so as not to distract from the natural setting around it. “It was really about focusing on the natural beauty,” Haynes says.
COURTESY ELIZABETH HAYNES ARCHITECT/DROR BALDINGER
BY KATHLEEN PETTY
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Architect Elizabeth Haynes relied on glass, dark steel, walnut and clean lines to create a modern design that allows for the focus to remain on the homeowners’ 2-acre property in Northwood. The primary suite (above) was an addition and is elevated on steel piers.
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BIG GIVE
Giving Big
By the Numbers
Support area nonprofits with as little as $10 during the Big Give, Sept. 23 BY KATHLEEN PETTY
$30+ million has been raised for over 1,000 local nonprofits from more than 242,000 individual donations since 2014.
2020 Donor Profile 41 percent of donors were first-time Big Give participants 75 percent of donors were female, 22 percent were male and 3 percent declined to say
52.97 percent of donors were between the ages of 55 and 74
Through the Years 2014:
$2,095,606 raised from 21,909 donations 2015:
$4,334,561 raised from 39,394 donations 2016:
$4,302,417 raised from 40,400 donations
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Match Minutes Matter
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arts, homeless prevention and healthcare. Scott McAninch, CEO of the Nonprofit Council, which organizes the Big Give, says many nonprofits benefited from grants and relief funds during COVID-19 but that it’s individual donors who will help them continue providing services in the years to come. “Our goal is to keep these nonprofits as strong as we can in the one, two and three years after the pandemic when public and private support may start to be cut back and when the emergency relief won’t be there,” he says. “This is the funding that will help them achieve stability.”
Give to your favorite nonprofit during specific designated minutes and your donation will automatically double. Introduced in 2020, Big Give’s Match Minute program utilizes sponsor funds to match all gifts of $100 or less that are made during certain minutes on Sept. 23. At 9:15 a.m., for example, $10,000 is available from Schriver Carmona and Wave Healthcare. Every gift made to participating nonprofits during that minute will be matched until the $10,000 runs out. It’s not unusual for the match money to last only a dozen seconds, so give as soon as the clock turns. In 2020, Match Minutes brought in over $303,000 in donations from nearly 3,000 individuals and benefited 170 organizations.
2017:
$4,681,522 raised from 43,400 donations 2018:
$5,110,741 raised from 43,834 donations 2019:
$4,711,825 raised from 28,826 donations 2020:
$5,064,079 raised from 31,150 donations
GET INVOLVED
Big Give Midnight-11:59 p.m., Sept. 23 Online giving opens Sept. 16 Businesses can register to participate as a group through Sept. 10. Give at thebiggivesa.org
NEOLEO/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
rom mental health services to food insecurity and an increase in pets looking for permanent homes, the last year-plus has been one of exponential need in South Texas. That’s where the Big Give comes in. Now in its eighth year, the 24-hour online fundraising day returns Sept. 23 with the goal of raising support for over 400 nonprofits in San Antonio and 14 surrounding counties. To get involved, individuals can give $10 or more on their own or as part of a corporate team to nonprofits that support everything from pet rescue efforts and education to fine
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PROMOTIONAL
Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf Children OUR MISSION Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf Children promotes early identification and intervention for children who are deaf or hard of hearing and helps them develop their maximum potential through listening, spoken language and literacy.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf Children is a listening and spoken language school comprised of three specialized learning and support programs designed to provide children who are deaf or hard of hearing the finest care. The Newborn Hearing Evaluation Center is a full audiological diagnostic testing site for babies. In the Parent-Infant Program, advisors guide parents through the initial diagnosis and the acquisition of auditory verbal strategies to help their baby learn to listen and talk. Early Childhood and Elementary schoolprograms offer instruction focused on speech and language development, small classes, expert teaching staff, and several support services to assist each child in developing optimal listening and speaking skills. Sunshine Cottage is accredited by AdvancEd and OPTION Schools, Inc., a TEA approved non-public school, and a 501(c) (3) nonprofit educational organization.
LEADERSHIP
Mark E. Eads / Executive Director Dr. Fred Hayes / Deputy Director & Principal Sabrina Dannheim / Finance Director
EVENTS & OPPORTUNITIES Two major fundraising events are held annually. Legacy Luncheon is planned for October 13, 2021, and Noche del Sol is planned for March 24, 2022. Please contact Miriam Elizondo (melizondo@sunshinecottage.org) at 210-824-0579, ext. 211 and help support our mission.
GIVE ON SEPTEMBER 23: THEBIGGIVESA.ORG/ORGANIZATIONS/SUNSHINE-COTTAGE-SCHOOL-FORDEAF-CHILDREN
603 E. Hildebrand Ave. San Antonio, Texas 78212 210-824-0579 sunshinecottage.org SEPTEMBER 2021
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BIG GIVE
Addressing Anxiety Clarity Child Guidance Center experiences increased need for services as kids return to school following the pandemic
Donor Connection
f anything positive came out of the pandemic, Clarity Child Guidance Center president and CEO Jessica Knudsen says it’s that people became more comfortable talking about mental health. “There has been a collective trauma,” says Knudsen, explaining that many individuals experienced depression, anxiety or other issues during and coming out of the height of COVID-19, which made them more willing to discuss the topic. At Clarity, Knudsen says they continue to see an increase in needs. The nonprofit provides in-patient and out-patient services, day treatment and prevention and awareness programs. Funds raised during Big Give cover the gap between what insurance pays for and what it takes to provide comprehensive treatment to youth, ages 3 to 17. “It’s a journey and it’s work,” Knudsen says, adding that all children are served regardless of ability to pay. “You don’t see the doctor one time and you’re done.” When people thought of depression in the past, Knudsen says they often pictured someone huddling under a blanket in a dark room. That certainly can be a behavior exhibited, but it hardly describes everyone living with mental or emotional difficulties. In youth in particular, Knudsen says mental health issues might manifest in
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bad behavior, withdrawing or even overcompensating. “We tell parents to look for changes in behavior,” she says. Because of that, Knudsen says families who come to Clarity often don’t know what they need, only that something isn’t right. The nonprofit offers a comprehensive intake process that screens children for learning disabilities, behavioral issues and mental illness. Sometimes a child is acting out because they have dyslexia and are struggling in school. By catching that and addressing it early, Knudsen says they can prevent anxiety that such an issue can lead to in the future. In talking more openly about mental illness since the pandemic, Knudsen says she’s hopeful parents will not only come to understand that symptoms in children can vary widely but also that no one is to blame. Knudsen points to statistics that show it can take eight to 11 years from the start of symptoms for a person to be diagnosed with depression, anxiety or other mental illnesses and says that’s what they’re trying to avoid. The sooner a child can receive help, the better the long-term outcomes. “One in five kids will have a mental or behavioral health issue so we all know someone, whether it’s a neighbor, a friend at school or your own child,” she says.
Eva Howard had never heard of Abode Contemplative Care for the Dying before logging onto the Big Give’s website in 2020. A dog owner, Howard, 24, had committed to giving toward Texas Chihuahua Rescue during the annual 24-hour giving day, but after reading Being Mortal, she also wanted to contribute to an organization providing quality endof-life care like is discussed in the book. She visited Big Give’s homepage to start her search and saw Abode Contemplative Care for the Dying listed on the leaderboard for fundraising. After reading through its Big Give webpage and then the nonprofit’s own site, Howard says she knew she’d found an organization with which she connected. “They operate completely on donations and grants and that moved me,” she says. In the weeks following Big Give, Howard read through stories of patients (called guests) on Abode’s website, talked with its director and soon became a monthly donor. She’s since toured the facility and hopes to become a volunteer. “It’s really a home environment and was even more intimate than I was expecting,” says Howard, who works in insurance and is preparing to return to school to become a nurse. Abode executive director Mary Thorsby says they relish the opportunity to reach new donors, like Howard, who might never hear of them if not for the annual giving day. “Stories like hers are one of the things that Big Give strives to achieve,” she says. Abode first opened in 2014 and welcomes guests who are near the end of their life at no cost. Thorsby says they provide physical care and also hope to help individuals find peace, whether from reconnecting with lost relatives or simply by walking in the facility’s butterfly garden with a friend. “We meet people where they are,” she says. “It’s going to happen to all of us and we just try to make it as beautiful as we can.”
COURTESY CLARITY CHILD GUIDANCE CENTER, EVA HOWARD
How the Big Give lead to a new monthly donor at Abode Contemplative Care for the Dying
SEPTEMBER 2021
8/5/21 10:39 AM
PROMOTIONAL
Assistance League of San Antonio OUR MISSION Volunteers transforming lives through community programs.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED Assistance League of San Antonio operates eight charitable programs, all designed to provide for the needs of our community. Our flagship program, Operation School Bell®, focuses on children in grades K-5. Providing quality new clothes, books and shoes helps these children feel better, gives them more confidence and encourages them to participate in school. Togs For Tots focuses on children preemie to pre-K, providing new clothes, supplies and books. We work closely with area school districts and Bexar County agencies to identify those children and families with the greatest need, and we help them overcome the problem of not being able to provide sufficiently for their children.
Pam Marsh, President 2611 West Ave. San Antonio, TX 78201 210-732-1200 assistanceleague.org/san-antonio GIVE ON SEPTEMBER 23: THEBIGGIVESA.ORG/ORGANIZATIONS/ ASSISTANCE-LEAGUE-OF-SAN-ANTONIO
The Salvation Army OUR MISSION The Salvation Army, an international movement, is an evangelical part of the universal Christian Church. Its message is based on the Bible. Its ministry is motivated by the love of God. Its mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in His name without discrimination.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED For more than 130 years, The Salvation Army has provided vital support services to San Antonio and Bexar County residents. We provide immediate solutions in times of crisis and assist individuals and families with the necessary resources to better their lives. We provide more than 500,000 people each year with shelter, food, fellowship, human development and enrichment programs, homeless prevention programs, disaster services and seasonal assistance. All services are provided in a compassionate and nurturing environment to restore hope and dignity.
GIVE ON SEPTEMBER 23: THEBIGGIVESA.ORG/ORGANIZATIONS/ THE-SALVATION-ARMY-SA
521 W. Elmira St. San Antonio, TX 78212 210-352-2000 SalvationArmySATX.org
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PROMOTIONAL
Project MEND OUR MISSION Project MEND is committed to improving the quality of life for individuals living with disabilities and illness through the refurbishment, reuse and distribution of medical equipment and other assistive technology.
1111 Austin St. San Antonio, TX 78208 210-223-6363 projectmend.org
GIVE ON SEPTEMBER 23: THEBIGGIVESA.ORG/ORGANIZATIONS/ PROJECT-MEND
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PROMOTIONAL
YMCA of Greater San Antonio OUR MISSION The YMCA of Greater San Antonio has served the community since 1876, faithfully guided by its mission to put Judeo-Christian principles into practice through programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED Y After School provides help with homework, a healthy snack and encouragement to play. Our Y After School staff creates a supportive, fun environment to bridge the time between school and home. Through the support of people just like you, we can offer this critical care to all, including families in financial hardship. When you give to the Y, you help give children a place to belong and thrive and parents the support they need. Please consider a special gift to the YMCA today.
231 E. Rhapsody Drive San Antonio, TX 78216 210-246-9600 ymcasatx.org GIVE ON SEPTEMBER 23: THEBIGGIVESA.ORG/ORGANIZATIONS/ YMCA-OF-GREATER-SAN-ANTONIO
NONPROFIT DIRECTORY
Air Force Villages Charitable Foundation
Project MEND
5100 John D. Ryan Blvd. | San Antonio, TX 78245 | 210-568-3206 | afvgiving.org
1111 Austin St. | San Antonio, TX 78208 | 210-223-6363 | projectmend.org
Project QUEST
800 Quintana Road, Bldg. 8 | San Antonio, TX 78211 | 210-630-4690 | questsa.org
Cibolo Center for Conservation 140 City Park Road | Boerne, TX 78006 | 830-249-4616 | cibolo.org
The Assistance League
Elf Louise Christmas Project
PO Box 39107 | San Antonio, TX 78218 | 210224-1843 | elflouise.org
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2611 West Ave. | San Antonio, TX 78201 | 210-731-1200 | assistanceleague.org/ san-antonio
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8/5/21 4:28 PM
PROMOTIONAL
Project QUEST OUR MISSION Project QUEST strengthens the economy and transforms lives by preparing individuals for in-demand living wage careers.
KEY SERVICES PROVIDED Working with unemployed, underemployed, and under-skilled individuals, Project QUEST offers the necessary wraparound support services to enable individuals to work toward an education and/or training certification programs. Through an intensive job readiness program, Project QUEST helps the participants' economic mobility by moving them into living-wage and in-demand careers in healthcare, IT/cybersecurity and trades. Invest in QUEST! Invest in people!
800 Quintana Road, Bldg. 8 San Antonio, TX 78211 210-630-4690 questsa.org GIVE ON SEPTEMBER 23: THEBIGGIVESA.ORG/ORGANIZATIONS/ PROJECT-QUEST-INC
NONPROFIT DIRECTORY
The Salvation Army - San Antonio Area Command 521 W. Elmira St. | San Antonio, TX 78212 | 210-352-2000 | salvationarmysatx.org
San Antonio Threads
10446 Sentinel St. | San Antonio, TX 78217 | 210-600-3989 | sanantoniothreads.org
Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf Children
ThriveWell Cancer Foundation
4383 Medical Drive, Ste. 4078 | San Antonio, TX 78229 | 210-593-5949 thrivewell.org
YMCA of Greater San Antonio
231 E. Rhapsody Drive | San Antonio, TX 78216 | 210-246-9600 | ymcasatx.org
For a full list of nonprofits participating in The Big Give and to donate on September 23, visit thebiggivesa.org.
603 E. Hildebrand Ave. | San Antonio, TX 78212 | 210-824-0579 | sunshinecottage.org SEPTEMBER 2021
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Marielle La Rue of The Indigo Prophet
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SEPTEMBER 2021
8/5/21 4:30 PM
E M H A T ER
MEE
T
K
S
I N
S A N
A N T O N I O
KLARE BY PHOTOGRAPHY ILLUSTRATION: DAVID G. LOYOLA
GET TO KNOW 10 SAN ANTONIANS WHO CRAFT EVERYTHING FROM WHIMSICAL DOLLS AND CUSTOM JEANS TO SOUTH TEXAS-INSPIRED CANDLES AND HAND-SEWN LEATHER WALLETS. THEY ARE JUST THE START OF THE EVER-EXPANDING COMMUNITY OF MAKERS IN SAN ANTONIO AND THE SURROUNDING HILL COUNTRY WHO ARE TURNING THEIR PASSIONS INTO BUSINESSES AND AFFORDING LOCALS THE CHANCE TO INVEST IN THEIR OWN CITY WHEN MAKING PURCHASES. AS WE EMERGE FROM THE PANDEMIC, MORE AND MORE SHOPPERS ARE TURNING TO LOCALLY MADE GOODS, WANTING TO KNOW NOT JUST WHAT THEY’RE BUYING BUT ALSO WHO IS BEHIND THE PRODUCT THEY’RE BRINGING HOME. MARCIE ANGUIANO, A CANDLEMAKER AND OWNER OF MISSION CRAFTS CHANDLERY, SAYS, “IN A SERENDIPITOUS KIND OF WAY, COVID BROUGHT BACK A RENAISSANCE OF PEOPLE WHO APPRECIATE HAND-CRAFTED GOODS AND THE BEAUTY AND THE ART AND THE INGREDIENTS BEHIND THINGS.”
BY KATHLEEN PETTY AND KATHERINE STINSON
PEREZ
M A D E
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M A K E R S
DARRYL DUNN
DARRYL DUNN CONSIDERS HIS WOOD-
T H E
DUNNSWOOD
+ 3 MORE WOODWORKERS TO KNOW
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Chap’s Choppin’ Tops: Specializes in charcuterie and cutting boards, bar tops and more.
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Creo Custom Woodwork: A Texas Army National Guard veteran leads this shop that specializes in custom furniture.
Dusty Cats Woodshop: From carports to jewelry boxes, their work is always customized from client requests.
working venture, Dunnswood, more of an alter ego than a job. “I don’t know if I’m really a business,” says Dunn, while surveying his East Side workshop that’s crowded with reclaimed wood and half-finished projects that have been commissioned by clients. “Dunnswood has recentered me. I see it as art. I’m a functional artist.” A military brat who landed in San Antonio when the Air Force stationed his father here in 1999, Dunn first dabbled in woodworking eight years ago after a friend asked for help turning old pallets into a bed frame. He enjoyed the task so much that he bought his own circular saw and used his sister’s garage to emulate projects he saw on YouTube and Pinterest. A telemarketer at the time, Dunn found himself running late to work because he was spending more and more mornings in the garage. The job was “soul sucking” anyway, he says, so he left and landed with a cabinet maker in the hopes he could hone the craft that he’d been teaching himself largely through trial and error. By the start of the pandemic in 2020, Dunnswood had so many custom project orders that Dunn resigned from the cabinet business and moved his vast collection of reclaimed wood and furniture into a private workshop. “It looks all jumbled in here, but I know under this pile are a few old vintage chairs with beautiful color and over here that wood I found behind a dumpster will make a beautiful plant stand,” he says. “I’m picky when it comes to wood. I look for grain and color and I’ve trained myself to know when I drive by a pile whether it’s worth stopping.” A Black father of two who listens to reggae while he builds, Dunn says it’s not uncommon for him to be covered in sawdust with a tool in his hand and hear passersby question “Did you make that?” He grew up without seeing any woodworkers who looked like him so Dunn says he understands the question and hopes by sharing his story that he’s showing how makers and business owners can come in every shape and color. Whether a cutting board, barn doors for an office, a TV stand or a shelf, Dunn says everything he makes is alive. “I always tell the pieces there will be a home for them soon,” he says. “If I make you something, you’re the only one who has it.”—KP
SEPTEMBER 2021
8/5/21 10:44 AM
BATTLE FAMILY
GRASSHOLE OUTFITTERS CO-OWNER HEIDI
GRASSHOLE OUTFITTERS
+1 OTHER RECYCLED MAKER TO LOVE Mujeres Gonzalez Art: Dolores Gonzalez-Jarvis makes mosaics with broken plates, mirrors, shell pieces and more.
BIG
2
S B R AND
WITH E TOWN HOM
TIES
Battle credits her two “environment-loving, fishing-crazy kids,” 12-year-old Jessi and 10-year-old Lake with the creation of their family’s business. Her son and daughter came to her about four years ago with the idea of making environmentally friendly fishing shirts they could wear on their family trips. Battle wasn’t quite sure how they would accomplish their wish, but says she knew they had to see it through. She wanted Jessi and Lake to know they could make a difference. “Our business is literally ‘grass roots.’ We started by making shirts and caps for our family fishing trips, and people started asking where we sold them,” Battle says. They began working from a guest room in their Bandera home and now operate out of a small warehouse in San Antonio. Each GrassHole shirt is made with six recycled plastic bottles, which are broken up into chips that can be spun into yarn and fabric. The shirts are designed to mirror the waters where the Battle family fishes. The signature “Coastal Seagrass” shirt shows grass in vibrant blue ocean water while the “Cloudy Day” shirt aims to mirror the water on a rainy day. The name of the business came from Lake, who enjoys fishing in the sand holes and grassy areas of South Texas waters. “He termed the phrase, ‘throw it in the grasshole,’” Battle says. “And just like that, they started a business that we never expected.” A portion of each shirt sold supports seagrass conservation. Jessi Battle, who helps with shirt designs, says she loves seeing other people wear their shirts while Lake Battle is excited to be making a difference. “It makes me feel like there are so many people who care about our ocean life in Texas, and that makes me happy,” he says.—KS
SUPERGOOP!
SAS SHOES
Founder Holly Thaggard began with a mission of putting sunscreen in school classrooms and ended up building a company that makes clean sunscreens, moisturizers and other SPF-carrying products meant to keep skin safe from the sun every day of the year. The brand has offices in SA and NYC and is carried at retailers nationwide, including Sephora and Nordstrom.
San Antonio Shoemakers started from the corner of an unused aircraft hangar on New Laredo Highway in 1976 with the goal of crafting high quality leather shoes. Still family owned, it now creates dozens of shoe styles that are sold at over 200 SAS stores and retailers across the U.S. and the world, including in Mexico, Canada, Panama and Australia.
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M A K E R S
MARIELLE LA RUE
T H E
THE INDIGO PROPHET
IT WAS MARIELLE LA RUE’S HUSBAND WHO
first suggested she create custom jeans. The couple met in Marfa when La Rue visited from her hometown of Toronto after Googling “tiny towns in Texas.” They got married in West Texas and then decided to try a new city with the intention of launching a textile business. But La Rue was struggling to pinpoint what she would specialize in. “I made a list of all of these things I never wear—bathing suits, lingerie, ’40s-style dresses,” says La Rue, who previously worked in music and film production. “He was like, ‘You don’t wear any of those. What about jeans?’ I wear jeans all day, every day.” Still, the first pair of jeans La Rue attempted to sew—a skill she learned from her grandmother as a child and has long practiced—were unwearable. “I couldn’t get them over my knees,” she says, laughing. “It was a steep learning curve.” Once she began to master the art of denim, though, La Rue fell in love with the product. She launched her business, The Indigo Prophet, in North Carolina in 2019 and then moved it to a small studio in Olmos Park when her husband took a job in San Antonio’s culinary industry this year. Each pair of jeans La Rue makes are cut and sewn to order based on a customer’s measurements, a process she says can take eight hours or more. Clients come from throughout Texas and beyond and usually find La Rue on Instagram. In her jeans, she says, she hopes to deliver a style piece that can function with a T-shirt while working from home or dressed up while out for a drink. They’re especially popular with women who struggle to find jeans that fit well in both the hips and waist. “I’ve never been very fancy, so I like being able to get multiple looks out of a few garments,” she says.—KP
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+ 2 MORE CLOTHING MAKERS TO MEET Richter Goods: Mario Guajardo designs and makes shirts known for their Western details. Dos Carolinas: Founder Caroline Matthews and her team offer made-toorder guayaberas plus a limited supply of ready-made shirts for shoppers.
SEPTEMBER 2021
8/5/21 10:45 AM
TARRA HARDEMAN
CARMEL SOAP WAS BORN OUT
CARMEL SOAP
+3 ADDITIONAL B AT H A N D B O D Y BRANDS TO TRY
Organically Bath & Beauty: Organic, vegan soaps, bath bombs and other products are the result of Kela Nabors’ quest for skincare her daughter, who suffers from eczema, could use. Look for them in Target stores next year.
Capistrano Soap Co.: This La Villita shop makes handcrafted body products inspired by the recipes from the owner’s grandfather, who worked at Mission San Juan Capistrano.
From Scratch Farm: Amy Bierstedt makes home, bath and body products with the simplest ingredients she can find, like essential oils, beeswax and coconut oil (rather than perfumes or dyes).
of disappointment. Owner Tarra Hardeman remembers purchasing a natural lavender body wash created by a bigname brand and being flabbergasted when she opened it and realized it smelled like window cleaner. “I researched the ingredients and found that I had paid for water, fragrance and detergent,” Hardeman says. Disappointed but determined to create something superior, the mother of four continued researching to learn what could be used to make soap that wasn’t harsh or toxic to her family’s skin. She launched Carmel Soap (formerly Paisley Naturals) in 2016 in Maryland and moved to San Antonio with her husband and kids a year later to focus on the business and take advantage of a slower pace of life. Carmel Soap has since grown from soaps to a line of body products that also features sunscreens, bath bombs and deodorants that are truly natural. “I handcraft all of our products from scratch,” Hardeman says. “We don’t use any bases, fillers or shortcuts. I specifically use plant-based oils, butters and natural colorants, such as clays and charcoal.” Along with a wide variety of products for use at home, Hardeman creates custom bath products and labels that can be handed out as favors at events, from baby showers to conferences and team meetings. Each item purchased comes with a “handmade on” date so buyers know exactly when it was created. “We’ve been in business for five years and have hundreds of loyal customers who appreciate our willingness to be transparent, educational and honest,” she says.—KS
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M A K E R S
ERICA GARCIA
T H E
POPS OF WHIMSY
+2 MORE KID-CENTERED CRAFTERS TO CONSIDER
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SewtulleyCute: Dresses with full tutu-like skirts are adorned with glitter and bright colored ribbons and available in themes like Peppa Pig, Candy Land and watermelon.
Craft Tree by Terry: Cute and cuddly octopuses, tigers, bees and other creatures are all crotched by hand.
IN A SMALL HILL COUNTRY STUDIO, ERICA GAR-
cia’s sewing machine sits surrounded by soft cotton flannel fabric pieces in dozens of colors and patterns, plus multicolored yarns and faux furs for putting the finishing touches on her one-of-a-kind dolls and stuffed animals. “I kind of let the doll speak to me as it’s happening,” says Garcia, of the process behind her Pops of Whimsy creations. “It’s kind of a whirlwind in my little workshop. I have so many fun colors around me, and I love having them displayed so I can just grab what inspires me.” Having learned to sew from her grandmother, Garcia got into making children’s items when her niece was born in 2016 and began to specialize in dolls two years ago as she was preparing for the birth of her own daughter, Juniper, now 1. Garcia begins by cutting patterns for the dolls’ bodies, which can take on human form or that of llamas, mermaids, hippos and more. She selects colors and textures as she goes, always drawing out the doll’s face before embroidering it and then adding stitching details after that. Animal manes, mermaid braids and flowing locks on princess dolls are handmade with alpaca blended yarn or merino wool and each piece of clothing, from polka-dotted dresses to striped socks and bright shorts, also are handsewn by Garcia. Along with animals and whimsical people, Garcia introduced a HERstory collection earlier this year featuring dolls fashioned after role models she hopes her daughter can learn from, people like Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Rosa Parks, Selena Quintanilla and Frida Kahlo. Pops of Whimsy dolls have been ordered from customers in all but two states and also are carried in several stores in Texas, including Crib & Kids in San Antonio and Handmade on Main in Boerne. “If kids are going to have one of my dolls, I want them to have one that’s as unique as they are, something that only matches them,” says Garcia, who is working to publish short stories to go with each of her dolls. “My No. 1 goal is to give them a best friend for their big adventures.”—KP
SEPTEMBER 2021
8/5/21 10:45 AM
DAVID MONTALVO M O N TA LV O L E AT H E R
+1 OTHER L E AT H E R WORKER TO KNOW
3 P L A C E S
T O HONE YOUR
Bexar Goods: Founded in 2011, Bexar Goods makes leather products the company’s owners say they want to use themselves—wallets, bags that can withstand the wear of a camping trip, watch straps and more. Everything is sewn by hand using a stitching saddle technique and items are stocked at their Outland Provision Airstream at Broadway News (and online). The brand also has partnered with the Spurs to create limited-edition leather goods inspired by the team’s Fiesta-themed City Edition jerseys.
M A K I N G
SKILLS
Handmade on Main in Boerne offers hands-on workshops with several of its vendors. Spots sell quickly for the classes about everything from making bath bombs to succulent gardens and wreath design. handmadeonmain boerne.com
Southwest School of Art offers community classes for adults and kids alike. Register for fall classes in ceramics, weaving, photography, jewelry making and more. swschool.org/ community-classes
10BitWorks is a nonprofit maker community with workshop space, tools and more for members who want to create but don’t have their own place. Members have access to the space for $60 per month, and there also are occasional classes for those who just want to try something new. 10bitworks.com
WHEN DAVID MONTALVO WANTED TO LEARN MORE ABOUT
leather working after trying it during a high school art class, he had to rely on books and patterns he found at the library. “Now you can just watch YouTube and learn,” says Montalvo, “but this was back in 1976 and resources were a little harder to come by.” Montalvo eventually found a mentor, saddle maker Leonard Galvin, and says he still relies on the traditional techniques and tools he learned from Galvin when completing a wallet, belt, gun holster or other project. “I don’t use computers or laser cutters,” he says. “It’s all handmade from scratch.” Whether making a belt for himself or a custom item for a client, Montalvo starts with a large piece of butcher paper and draws out his patterns by
hand. He then transfers that design to a piece of leather—a cowhide or exotic skin—so it can be cut, stitched and glued together by hand. Pieces can be stamped or engraved upon request. “The process is very involved,” he says, explaining that each project can take weeks. “It’s not like a department store.” A retired San Antonio firefighter/paramedic, Montalvo built his business on the side starting in the late 1970s and says the biggest compliment he has received was when he heard from a customer who is still using a wallet Montalvo made for him 40-plus years ago. “It’s been really great to make gifts that are meaningful,” he says. “It’s like a puzzle. When someone wants something, I can see it in my head and I get to create it with my hands. It’s just such a fulfilling thing to do.”—KP
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M A K E R S
NADIA RAMON
NADIA RAMON WAS ALWAYS A MINIMALIST WHEN IT
T H E
DEZYNR
+3 OTHER EARRING M AV E N S TO MEET
Em’s Clay & Craft: From bluebonnet pieces to Fiesta-themed dangles and tasteful studs, Em’s polymer clay earrings and other macrame goods are one-ofa-kind.
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KatieLynneSATX: Vintage textile pieces feature hand-cut, sewn and painted elements. A recent pair of earrings was crafted from a 1940s feed sack.
Regalitos by Esmy: One customer described her earrings as “my new lipstick” and we couldn’t agree more. The statement pieces are all you need to dress up an outfit.
came to jewelry. Before launching her Dezynr line of colorful and creative polymer clay earrings, she owned one pair of pearls and a single pair of hoops. “That’s it,” she says. And while she now spends the bulk of her free time designing and creating custom earrings, Ramon says it wasn’t until 2015 that she even considered making anything tangible at all. A self-described theater kid, Ramon preferred to channel her creativity on the stage. But when her trainer in the dispatch department at the Bexar County Sheriff's Office offered to teach her how to make seed bead jewelry, Ramon was intrigued. She worked to master the art and even opened an Etsy shop. Unfortunately, she says, laughing about it now, not a single item sold. She left art behind, moving to Asia to work as a teacher, and then came back to San Antonio, where she’s a paralegal at a downtown law firm. She hadn’t thought about making anything again until COVID-19 hit, forcing her to work from home and leaving her looking for something new to fill her time. “I Googled crafts and tried painting, puzzles, coloring,” she says. Then she remembered how much she loved working with seed beads and decided to pursue a different type of jewelry: polymer clay. Earrings made from the material are light and easy to wear and Ramon says the array of clay colors that can be purchased or mixed are endless. She started by designing a pair to match her swimsuit—“they were terrible,” she says—and improved her craft from there, adding different shapes, colors and designs to her inventory. As her earring collection expanded from her standard two pairs to dozens, she decided to offer them for purchase on Instagram. Friends responded so enthusiastically that she launched a separate social media account, Dezynr, then expanded to include a website and pop-up shop that operates at local markets throughout the area. “It means the world to me to see someone wearing my jewelry,” she says. “A year ago it’s not even something I dreamt about so living it and continuing to watch myself grow, it’s like an outof-body experience.”—KP
B R O A D W AY N E W S
L A V I L L I TA
THE POP UP
The parking lot on Broadway just north of Pearl houses more than a dozen local food vendors, brands and makers, including Lunchroom Anxiety, Bexar Goods’ Outland Provision and La Casa Frida. insta gram.com/broadwaybooze
Artisans have long called the small shops at La Villita home. Look for local stores like Capistrano Soap Co., B.Link handmade jewelry, and Bird & Pear, which carries textiles by its owner plus gift items by others. lavillitasanantonio.com
The artisanal market at historic St. Paul Square launched on weekends in 2019 and returned this year with handmade goods by local makers, thrift shopping and street food. egcollaborations.com/ thepopup
SEPTEMBER 2021
8/5/21 4:30 PM
MARCIE ANGUIANO M I S S I O N C R A F T S C H A N D L E RY
+1 OTHER CANDLEMAKER TO LOVE
Karma Candle Makers: Vegan candles are hand-poured with all-natural soy wax and come in scents inspired by South Texas, like Fiesta Sangria.
PEARL FA R M E R S M A R K E T Earlier this year, Pearl transitioned its Sunday hours into a makers market that focuses less on locally grown food and more on locally made artisan goods and food products. atpearl. com/weekend-market
BEFORE CREATING HER LINE OF SAN ANTONIO
Mission–inspired candles, Marcie Anguiano spent hours roaming the grounds of the historic sites. The owner of Mission Crafts Chandlery is a firm believer that a place or person’s story can be told through the olfactory system, so she works hard to cultivate scents that not only smell great but also have a purpose. In her Mission Espada candle, for example, cotton blossom is used because of the cottonwood trees that grow on the grounds while heart notes of chamomile are added to symbolize energy and the nearby acequia system, which was the main source of water for farmlands there years ago. “It’s my passion to help tell stories in a different way,” she says. A native of McAllen, Anguiano first launched her business as a side project in which she designed and curated mission-related items by a variety of makers. She still carries some goods by others but in the last few years has shifted her focus to designing niche fragrances expressed through candle making. The art honors her mother’s history as a soap maker and pays homage to her husband’s family’s deep ties to the missions as well as to Ethel Wilson Harris, who led the arts and crafts arm of the Works Progress Administration and was the first site manager at Mission San José . From the workspace at the back of her small shop on the city’s South Side, Anguiano makes candles in the same slow way that her mother created soaps. That means using small steel boiling pots to melt the wax over a low temperature so it doesn’t burn. Each scent is then blended individually, starting with essential oils. She’s fine-tuned recipes for the candles she makes regularly, but even those have to be tested and tweaked to ensure each batch is just right. “This is my craft, my art, and I take pride in everything that I do,” she says.—KP
BOERNE HANDMADE MARKET
MAKERS M A R K E T AT T H E GOOD KIND
The twice-yearly market features over 70 vendors and makers with everything from home decor to toys. The next one is scheduled Nov. 19-20. boernehand mademarket.com
On select Saturdays throughout the year, this Southtown restaurant hosts local artisans and makers in its outdoor garden alongside menu specials and DJ tunes. eatgoodkind.com
MUSEUM MARKET The San Antonio Museum of Art introduced this event, held in partnership with Southtown Market Co., on the second Saturday of each month. Shop from various culinary artisans, artists and more. samuseum.org
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M A K E R S
ANITA BECERRA
T H E
N I TA C O L E
LESS IS MORE IS THE CREATIVE MOTTO THAT
drives Anita Becerra. Each piece in her Nita Cole collection is a demonstration of that ethos, from elegant minimalist teardrop earrings to modern tile landscape works for the wall and white bud vases, each handcrafted from clay. “Nita Cole has a distinctive style—not as typically found in the clay community,” she says. “I practice minimalism in everything I do. I focus on form rather than decoration. Functionality and form are at the forefront of my designs.” It was during her time as a sculpture major in college that Becerra fell in love with wheel-throwing, but it wasn’t until 10 years later that she returned to the wheel to create. “I always knew I would come back to it,” she says. Her pieces, which often sell out, are available online and at pop-ups, including at 1906, the arts incubator in Southtown. Becerra says she enjoys collaborating with other local business owners. On Mother’s Day, for example, her vases were sold with Tall Poppy flowers and a pair of earrings were offered as part of a package with Wildflower Caramel Co. “I love to showcase raw clay—oftentimes I’ll leave my pieces unglazed. I throw on the wheel and hand build. In the next couple of months, I will start using molds to produce some of my work, as well,” she says.—KS
+1 OTHER CERAMIC ARTIST TO FIND Guten Co.: Terra cotta vases, cobalt tumblers and sturdy mugs are just some of the items made by artist Sarah Sauer. They’re available at gutenco.com with select goods at West Elm.
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JOAN AND BRIAN MIKITEN C A S A C H O C O L AT E S
+2 OTHER LOCAL SWEETS T O TA S T E
Ms. Chocolatier: Pastry chef Janie Romo uses local and seasonal ingredients, including honey from Gretchen Bee Ranch, when possible. Find chocolate bars at Pearl Farmers Market, Larder at Hotel Emma and Hotel Havana.
CASA CHOCOLATES CO-FOUNDER BRIAN
Mikiten initially made chocolates as a hobby from his home kitchen when he started back in 2014. He owned an engineering and construction company at the time and when he sold it in 2017, he had already acquired such a following for his chocolates that he and his wife, Joan, launched a business. “We started growing slowly and enjoyed a larger following, which then turned into our retail/manufacturing location at the Alley on Bitters,” Mikiten says The couple sources cacao beans for their dark chocolate from small farms in Vietnam, Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, India and Guatemala, while their milk chocolate beans come from Uganda. Those beans serve as the base for their fan-favorite Mexican hot chocolate bars. “We like to think of our bars like fine wine,” he says. “They are unique and different from each harvest.” Casa Chocolates roasts their beans in a similar way to how coffee beans are roasted. This process brings out specific flavor notes. “Once the roasting process is completed, we separate the shells from the nibs in a process called winnowing, then stone grind the nibs for at least a week to develop flavor and smoothness,” Mikiten says. “After that we add other natural and organic ingredients to produce the final chocolate which is then aged for two to six weeks before being made into bars or tasting discs.” The full process can take up to two months. Along with dark and milk chocolate bars, Casa Chocolates makes Texas pecan chocolate, peppermint chocolate and CBD-infused bars in a variety of flavors. “The smile we see on our customers’ faces when they taste our bars or discs keeps us coming back and striving for exciting chocolate,” Mikiten says.—KS
Wildflower Caramel Co.: Ellyn and Matt Dixon’s traditional salted, hot honey and maple bacon caramels are all handcrafted near downtown San Antonio. Find them at Whole Foods, Larder at Hotel Emma or Blue Star Provisions.
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THE NO NONSENSE SHERIFF
AS HE SETTLES INTO HIS SECOND TERM IN OFFICE, SHERIFF JAVIER SALAZAR MAKES NO APOLOGIES FOR THE WAY HE RUNS THE BEXAR COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE
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EMILY
BY
GUAJARDO
|
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY
KATELYN
LESTER
Two of the eight rescued horses that make up the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office Mounted Patrol Unit, Joseph and Chucky, spend their off-duty hours enjoying the open space at Sheriff Javier Salazar’s ranch just outside of Universal City. Salazar launched the unit after first being sworn in as sheriff in 2017, bringing Bexar County in line with most other major Texas counties that have Mounted Patrol Units. His passion is evident listening to him talk, smiling widely as he describes the personalities of each horse and explains how they are all named for fallen deputies. Salazar cares for two of the horses at his home but says they’re a major part of the department, with roles in seizure operations, patrolling and other routine jobs, plus participating in community events. “I really do love our horses,” says Salazar, who grew up with a fondness for the animals after first encountering them at a rodeo as a kid. And while the Bexar County native’s childhood days didn’t have him running around pretending to be sheriff, he says being elected the county’s top law enforcement officer was also a dream come true.
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LAW ENFORCEMENT MEETS POLITICS
FROM LEFT: DEPUTY CHIEF JAIME RIOS, SHERIFF JAVIER SALAZAR, SGT. PETE GAMBOA
A PATH OF HIS OWN
Salazar spent over two decades with the San Antonio Police Department before running for sheriff in 2016, but he didn’t grow up with an eye toward law enforcement. The youngest of six, Salazar remembers frequently going to work with his father, who was a producer at a local radio and television station in Schertz. He would sit swinging his legs off the chair as his father worked on producing segments. “At the age of 5, I was learning how to cut radio ads and do voice-over work,” Salazar says. “Then all through junior high and high school, I was doing camera work and learned how to be a host. When people ask, ‘Why are you so comfortable on camera?’ I say it’s because that’s what I grew up doing.” A graduate of Samuel Clemens High School in Schertz, Salazar says while his parents set the expectation that he and his siblings would attend college, they also made clear they would have to earn their way. Already skilled in production and communication, he was encouraged to become a producer like his father. However, Salazar wanted to go his own direction. He had heard that the San Antonio Police Department (SAPD) provided opportunities for tuition reimbursement and while the field was new to his family, which has military ties, it was one that interested him. He applied shortly after high school and was accepted, starting first
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as a downtown bike patrol officer and later serving as a patrolman, supervisor in the Narcotics Division, director of communications and director of the department’s Integrity Unit, among other jobs. He was also one of the first members of the Fear Free Environment Unit, a community-oriented group that focuses on resolving crime with the help of residents. As he’d hoped, the career also allowed Salazar to earn his associate degree in criminal justice from Alamo Colleges District and his bachelor’s from Wayland Baptist University.
“AS A LIFELONG BEXAR COUNTY RESIDENT, I HAVE BEEN IMPRESSED BY SHERIFF SALAZAR’S STRONG WORK ETHIC.” Salazar says the work at SAPD was fulfilling but at times physically taxing. After 20-plus years, the married father of two wanted to try something new. His wife encouraged him to run for sheriff, knowing he had a vision for how law enforcement could work not just for the community but with the help of the community. “I just saw a lot of problems within [SAPD] during my 23-year career,” he says.
Running for any office is daunting but Salazar says there was added intimidation when aiming to unseat the county’s first female sheriff, Susan Pamerleau, after first going to a runoff against Andy Lopez in the Democrat primary. Salazar focused on straight-forward campaigning, using the communication skills he learned from his father to lay out his vision for the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, which included enhanced training for deputies and increased interaction with the public. He earned endorsements from the Deputy Sheriff’s Association and the San Antonio Police Officer’s Association and narrowly defeated Pamerleau in 2016, winning by less than one percentage point. In 2020, he was reelected with ease, capturing 62 percent of votes cast. “When I first ran, and won, I was like ‘Oh my gosh! Now what do I do?’ I just left the only job I’ve ever known and now I’m going to be running a whole department,” Salazar says. He went straight to work, though he admits there was an underlying fear of failure driving him. “OK, I just said, ‘Let’s do it,’” he recalls. Since 2017, he has created over two dozen special units and task forces, each with a very focused mission. He also cleaned house—firing over 100 deputies during his first term due to charges of inmate assault, family violence and other issues. It is something he continues to work at after additional deputies were arrested for DWI, domestic violence and other charges in recent years. Salazar says each of the units he has created—from the Public Integrity Unit and Special Victims Unit to the Sheriff’s Community Oriented Response and Education Unit (SCORE) and the Special Multidisciplinary Alternative Response Team (SMART)—are about addressing a specific issue and, in the long run, making the county safer. SCORE and SMART, which runs in partnership with Southwest Texas Regional Advisory Council and the county, work to serve communities that are often “misjudged and overlooked,” including homeless individuals and those living with mental illness. SMART, a $1.5 million program that launched in 2020 after the department was criticized for its handling of cases involving those with mental health issues, consists of teams that include a mental health clinician, peer support specialist and paramedic. Along with specialty programs, Salazar says he believes community engagement is key. He has worked to enlist the
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participation of members in the religious community, educators and residents throughout the county. Some are trained officially to support BCSO through organizations like Pastors on Patrol or the Gold Badge Business Certification. Others he hopes will simply want to be good neighbors and call officers when they see something suspicious because they’ve grown to trust the deputies they know in their community. “What people don’t understand is how one small item can lead our deputies to uncovering a much larger problem or issue,” Salazar says. “When we go out into the community and befriend members of the community, it’s because we want eyes out there. When we go and catch big cats, it’s because we know big cats lead to narcotic activity. Everything I do is connected to getting the bigger fish.” Such initiatives are part of what led people like County Commissioner Justin Rodriguez and State Reps. Ray Lopez and Philip A. Cortez to endorse Salazar in 2020. “As a lifelong Bexar County resident, I have been impressed by Sheriff Salazar’s strong work ethic,” Cortez says. “He is raising the level of integrity at the BCSO and providing a level of service that we have never seen before.”
COURTESY SALAZAR FAMILY
BLACK LIVES MATTER
Still, Salazar’s actions haven’t been met exclusively with praise. After learning of a Black Lives Matter rally outside the Bexar County Courthouse following the murder of George Floyd in 2020, Salazar knew he wanted to attend. “I did go outside and let them know that we agreed with what they were saying and that we were there to protect them,” Salazar says. “And they asked me if I wanted to march with them and I did.” Some say that action, and the ones that followed, though, were not enough. “The promises the BSCO has made are seldom seen through. They ask (the Black community) to be a part of the conversation, but they don’t involve those that actually need to be a part of it: the families of those who have been affected by police brutality,” says Kimiya Factory, founder of Black Freedom Factory. “As far as I know, they need to do more for those families and I just don’t see it. To me, it’s all performative.” Salazar says he knows it takes more than showing up at a protest to demonstrate to the Black community they are committed to protecting everyone. Since the protests in 2020, he has formed a special unit comprised solely of Black officers and also launched a task force focused
SHERIFF JAVIER SALAZAR WITH WIFE, SARAH, AND DAUGHTERS, ISABELLA AND BROOKE.
on recruiting Black residents to the force. Referencing officers like Derek Chauvin, who was convicted of killing George Floyd, Salazar says that it only takes the bottom 2 percent of law enforcement to smear the name and hard work of the other 98 percent. It’s part of why he is so strict and does not apologize for letting officers go when they don’t meet department standards. “We go through serious training, and I make it very clear to all of my deputies that if you see a fellow officer doing something wrong, you need to force them out,” he says. “We train the 98 percent to find that 2 percent.” Salazar also has butted heads with some county officials and come under fire for understaffing (and overspending due to overtime pay) at the Bexar County Jail. In late 2020, the Deputy Sheriff’s Association released a report saying that the chronic understaffing was taking a physical and mental toll on deputies while costing taxpayers through overtime pay. It acknowledged the issue is not new to Salazar’s administration but also criticized him and other county leaders for not doing more to fix it. Salazar responded that he doesn’t like overtime either, but he is not willing to hire just anyone for the roles. He also has worked to reduce the jail population, which would decrease the number of staff required at any one time. Just this summer, Salazar and newly elected Commissioner Trish DeBerry disagreed after Salazar requested to purchase a search and rescue boat for the department. DeBerry questioned why a “shiny new toy” was a priority and asked Salazar
to return with more details. Meanwhile, the owners of Black Rifle Coffee Co. offered to pay for the boat while disparaging DeBerry on social media for not approving the purchase. In a Facebook post, Salazar urged kindness, but he was criticized by county leaders for fueling the situation.
A FAMILY MAN
Nearly a year into his second term, Salazar says he works to keep the noise out so he can stay focused on the task at hand— which also means he’s not yet thinking about whether he’ll run again. “I sleep with the phone like two to four inches away from my head every night. And my wife hates it,” Salazar says, laughing. “But she and the girls know that this is part of the job.” His daughters are grown now, but Salazar still likes to spend free time doing “dad things,” like helping his daughter move out of her dorm. Salazar’s mom died recently, but his dad is still active, even hosting a radio show. Salazar says being a father and a son has shown him how to be a better boss while also driving him to make the people who love him most proud. “(My mom) started to have dementia when I first thought about running,” Salazar says. “And I just remember praying I’d win so she could see me and know what was happening. And she did. She got to see me and that was the proudest moment for me… Whether I run next term, whether I win or lose, or do something else, I just hope that I did what I had to do. I see the needs of our community and my job is to service those needs.” SEPTEMBER 2021
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NO MAN LEFT BEHIND
100 Black Men of SA wants every young Black man in San Antonio to know success is an option. Its mentors already are changing lives and the organization hopes to expand its reach in the months and years to come BY
TRAVIS E. POLING PHOTOGRAPHY BY
A
fter a four-year stint in the military and less than a year at the historically black St. Philip’s College, Keibian Crumedy was ready to call it quits. The pressures of academia, and life in general, were weighing on the 24 year old. His counselor was out for the day when he went to tell her he was leaving school. Instead, another counselor in the office, Richard Johnson, asked Crumedy to come talk with him before making his final decision. Johnson, then head of 100 Black Men of San Antonio’s Collegiate 100 chapter,
ANTHONY FRANCIS
told Crumedy that if he agreed to be mentored by a group of successful Black men in the community—people who would invest time in his future achievements— then things would turn around. “He guaranteed I would see a change in my life,” Crumedy says. From that moment, “they all came through in pivotal times when I needed them. Whenever I felt depleted, they would just pour back into my cup.” With guidance from mentors, Crumedy joined numerous campus groups, kept his grades up, earned more than $20,000 in
scholarships and was selected by his class to speak at commencement in 2016. Since then, he has graduated from UT Health San Antonio and is working as a dental hygienist while he awaits acceptance to dental school. “That’s a group of strong men,” Crumedy says. That group, 100 Black Men of San Antonio, is only about 30 members strong, but they play to the strengths of those members—accomplished men of color who want to show youth that they have the power to choose their own path. The local group was formed in 1999 as SEPTEMBER 2021
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Milton Harris
Marvin Hurst
a chapter of 100 Black Men of America, a group founded in 1963 in New York City by 100 influential African American men, including former NYC Mayor David Dinkins and baseball legend Jackie Robinson. There are now more than 100 chapters across the U.S., with a few international chapters, as well. San Antonio’s chapter had gone dormant about seven years ago until, in 2014, Milton Harris, broker/owner of a real estate investment company, along with KENS 5 journalist Marvin Hurst and a handful of others, met to breathe life into it. Hurst says he got involved because he saw a program that he would have benefited from while growing up. “We were looking for good men with good names who wanted to do good
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things,” Hurst says, explaining the process of rebuilding the chapter. “For me, it’s almost personal, giving them a voice I never had … A lot of kids drop out because they don’t have committed mentors. You can’t just show up and talk about yourself. You’re not going to get their trust by showing up once.” It’s because of that belief that one of the group’s operating principles is “Real men giving real time.” The other is “What they see is what they’ll be." Harris, who has a business docotare in finance, became executive director of the group after serving as president from 2014 to 2016. He says that mentors must agree to dedicate at least a year to working with youth, but the hope is that the relationships will be even longer lasting—starting
in grade school, high school or college and continuing into adulthood. “We tell (the mentees), ‘Sometimes you’ll have to check your emotions and feelings at the door,’” Harris says, acknowledging that such a commitment isn’t always easy. “We tell them, ‘You’re the captain of your ship and you choose to get angry or not.’” Ivory Freeman, a financial services representative and retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel who now serves as president of 100 Black Men of SA, says the need for positive examples is great in San Antonio’s historically Black East Side but also throughout the city. San Antonio’s chapter has recently expanded as far north as Schertz/Cibolo and they are seeking more volunteers to continue broadening their reach.
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Ivory Freeman
GET INVOLVED
Apply to become a mentor at 100blackmensa.org.
“The ones who are struggling the most are usually having struggles at home,” Freeman says. “Exposure to a (professional) individual can show them a career path they never thought of.” The group, which is sometimes referred to in short as The 100, recently expanded its mission to focus on helping at-risk young people in the form of paid job training and high school degree completion. To that end, the organization took over San Antonio’s YouthBuild program from George Gervin Youth Center in late 2019. Funded by a grant from the Department of Labor, the program pays high school dropouts ages 16 to 24 a bi-weekly stipend while they learn a trade and complete their high school diploma online. When The 100 became the managing organization for
the program, it also took on the building George Gervin Youth was operating the program out of and kept its staff on. Since they took over, more than 58 young men and women have completed or are completing the program, says program director Vernadette Ellis-Kyle. The program includes mock electrical and carpentry training in a workshop and provides experience building under supervision at Habitat for Humanity sites plus professional certification. Medical training is offered for those who want to become certified nursing assistants. While the YouthBuild grant provides one caseworker for about every 25 students, the volunteer mentors from 100 Black Men provide extra one-on-one attention. “It gives them self-confidence,” Ellis-Kyle
says, adding that even some of the simplest things the young people get from their mentors make a difference, including how to speak clearly and shake hands properly in a business situation. Harris says most volunteers, or members of The 100, find out about it through word of mouth or because they were involved in the Collegiate 100 in college before coming to San Antonio for their careers. He’s hopeful they can raise awareness of the need for male mentors in the coming months and also collaborate with other groups, like My Brother’s Keeper, which has been a partner for the last five years. “We’re just servant leaders who want to make a difference for communities of color in San Antonio,” Harris says. “So many are left behind. We have to continue the fight.” SEPTEMBER 2021
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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION
2021
F A C E O S F S A
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Photography By Sarah Brooke Lyons
What defines San Antonio? More than its top-notch culinary scene, military and technology sectors and even the Spurs, it’s the authentic and talented people that make up the face of San Antonio. The most ambitious of those lead the business community in a variety of industries. In this special advertising section, San Antonio Magazine gives them a spotlight to tell their stories.
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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION
FACES OF SA 2021
The Faces of MODERN BANKING BROADWAY BANK For 80 years, Broadway Bank has been an integral part of South Central Texas, evolving into one of the largest independently owned banks in Texas with more than $5 billion in assets and nearly $3 billion in Wealth Management assets. Broadway Bank offers a full range of financial services including personal, private, business, mortgage banking, and wealth management. Broadway Bank is committed to enhancing the banking experience through leading edge technology. With financial centers across San Antonio, Austin, and the Hill Country, Broadway Bank delivers modern banking that’s locally sourced and personally delivered.
210-283-6500 BROADWAY.BANK
Left to right: Kenny Green, Megan Torzewski, Christian Escamilla, Charles Houston, Michelle Fernandez
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FACES OF SA 2021
The Faces of PERSONAL INJURY LAW
TINSMAN & SCIANO, INC. Tinsman & Sciano, Inc. has been representing clients in San Antonio and throughout the state of Texas for the last 50 years. Founded on the premise that each client’s case is of the utmost importance, our dedicated team of attorneys and support staff is committed to providing clients with the best possible legal representation. The firm’s attorneys have the experience, training, and resources to handle serious and complex litigation, including claims involving bodily injuries, wrongful death, trucking and vehicular collisions, medical malpractice, federal tort claims, defective products, unsafe premises, trust disputes, will contests, and disputes regarding oil and gas royalties. Tinsman & Sciano, Inc. is rated AV® Preeminent™ by Martindale-Hubbell® and has been ranked as one of the Best Law Firms in every edition of U.S. News & World Report/Woodward-White’s Best Lawyers® issue since it first started its rankings in 2010.
210-225-3121, TOLL FREE 800-292-9999 TSSLAWYERS.COM
Left to right: Alva Marquez, Stephen F. Lazor, Aaron Valadez, Daniel J.T. Sciano, Grant McFarland, Jeffrey C. Anderson, Lawrence J. Webb
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FACES OF SA 2021
The Face of SAN ANTONIO REAL ESTATE PHYLLIS BROWNING COMPANY Jennifer Shemwell is one of the most respected names in San Antonio real estate. Following closely in the footsteps of her mother, Phyllis Browning, Shemwell is a luxury real estate agent and community leader who is known for selling some of the city’s most elite addresses. The innovative thinking, solutiondriven negotiating, and strategic marketing tactics that Shemwell employs ensure clients receive the very best deal in the shortest amount of time. Her clients call her to find that dream home that is not yet on the market. Shemwell is a graduate of Yale University, a Harvard Business School alum, a graduate of Leadership San Antonio and the President’s Program in Leadership, and is also fluent in three languages. She has been honored with the 2018 Realtor Broker of the Year award from the San Antonio Board of Realtors, the 2018 C-Suite Award and the 2019 Women's Leadership Award from the San Antonio Business Journal.
210-824-7878 PHYLLISBROWNING.COM
Jennifer Shemwell, President
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FACES OF SA 2021
The Faces of FINANCIAL ADVISING TEXAS FINANCIAL ADVISORY At Texas Financial Advisory, we specialize in a holistic approach to wealth management that seeks to optimize each and every aspect of the client’s financial strategy with the goal of helping them enhance their financial well-being. We excel by creating an experience that aids clients in making informed and educated decisions. Advisors work closely with clients to define their financial goals by outlining paths for achievement, delivering their tailored TFA Roadmap to Financial Confidence in order to help reach their financial future. Join Brooklynn Chandler Willy every Sunday at 10 a.m. on WOAI 1200 AM or at 1 p.m. on KTSA 550 AM. Each week, Willy shares what she’s learned over 10 years of helping retirees and pre-retirees prepare for financial well-being.
210-530-1292 | TEXASFINANCIALADVISORY.COM Investment advisory services are offered by Queen B Advisors, LLC dba Texas Financial Advisory. Insurance products are offered by Texas Financial Advisory.
Left to right: Yvette Barerra, Vice President and Lead Advisor; Tammie Tierres, Lead Advisor; Brooklynn Chandler Willy, President/CEO
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FACES OF SA 2021
The Face of MODERN LASIK PARKHURST NUVISION After honing her skills for 10 years, Dr. Alexandra Wiechmann has become the face of Modern LASIK. According to the American Optometric Association, data shows female students have outnumbered males for at least the past decade. The numbers are clear. In eyecare, the future is female. As a past LASIK patient herself, Wiechmann offers a real perspective on how LASIK works and how it can change your life. She has helped thousands of patients answer the questions, “Am I candidate for LASIK?” and “What procedure is best for me?” With the introduction of SMILE LASIK and implantable contact lenses in the U.S. market, Wiechmann can offer all of the latest technologies to get patients out of glasses and contacts. A San Antonio native, Wiechmann is a University of Texas at Austin and UIW Rosenberg School of Optometry graduate. Her dedication to her profession and the community is unmatched. She has taught hundreds of students and doctors as Director of Student Education at Parkhurst NuVision.
210-585-2020 PARKHURSTNUVISION.COM
Dr. Alexandra Wiechmann
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FACES OF SA 2021
The Faces of DENTISTRY 7 TO 7 DENTAL “Designed around your life” is not just their tagline, it’s how 7 to 7 Dental runs their entire organization. From convenient hours seven days a week, to affordability and customer experience, it’s no wonder why so many families choose 7 to 7 as their dental provider. “We’re a customer service business that just happens to do dentistry,” says CEO and co-founder Justin Coke. Coke and his team invite you to come see why 7 to 7 Dental’s locally owned and operated organization is truly “designed around your life.”
210-495-2000 7TO7DENTAL.COM
Left to right: Mandy Dennis, Mike Burns, Dr. S amuel Saltzman, Dr. Tiffany Winburn, Travis DeZuba, Makayla Taylor, Dr. Joseph Sage, Bradley Allbritton
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The Faces of HOME LOANS BANK OF SAN ANTONIO - TEXAS PARTNERS BANK Team Guidry has taken the San Antonio mortgage world by storm. Led by Jen Guidry, this small and mighty team has continued to break mortgage records in our great city. Their production has put them at the top of the list for origination in San Antonio for the third year in a row. Guidry, who loves to motivate others through her writing and segments on morning shows, is also nationally ranked as one of the Top 200 Loan Officers in the country. Her first book, The Storm, is scheduled to publish at the end of the year. The key to the team’s success? Their love of people. That is what motivates them. It is never about the money; it is always about helping others. Team Guidry specializes in Construction, Physician, Professional, Portfolio, VA, and Conventional loans. For more information and to contact them, please visit SALending.com.
210-838-3310 SALENDING.COM
Front: Jen Guidry, Mortgage Sales Manager, NMLS 323935 Back: Ryan Fay, Mortgage Account Manager, NMLS 745670; Mary Moore, Loan Officer Assistant, NMLS 1495240; Robert Meagher, Loan Officer Assistant, NMLS 996241
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The Faces of HEARING HEALTHCARE DOSS AUDIOLOGY & HEARING CENTER
SCHERTZ: 210-819-5002 • FLORESVILLE: 830-542-8957 DOSSAUDIOLOGY.COM
Left to right: Ashley Zamarripa, Au.D.; Phallon Doss, Au.D.; Melissa Neve, Au.D.
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PHOTO CREDIT: SARAH LYONSTK
The Doss Audiology & Hearing Center team is equipped to identify and treat hearing loss in infant through geriatric populations using the latest hearing technology. Their Doctors of Audiology are licensed, clinically certified, and ready to lead each patient on their path to better hearing. The audiologists have extensive experience in a wide range of procedures, including diagnostic hearing examinations, hearing aid selection and fitting, and cochlear implants. This award-winning office has received acknowledgment in numerous publications such as O The Oprah Magazine, Forbes magazine, San Antonio Business Journal, and San Antonio Woman magazine. Doss Audiology is also a two-time winner of the Best Audiology Clinic in San Antonio by Senior Resource Guide. Doss Audiology is proud to deliver unparalleled service, knowledge, and hearing expertise to the greater San Antonio area.
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FACES OF SA 2021
The Face of FAMILY-OWNED BUSINESS REAL ESTATE COLDWELL BANKER D'ANN HARPER, REALTORS® A born and raised cattle ranchers’ daughter, Leesa HarperRispoli is the second generation to carry on the legacy of her iconic mother, D’Ann Harper. Consistently pushed by her parents to surpass expectations, Harper-Rispoli is well equipped with the grit and work ethic to succeed. As President and Broker of a concierge brokerage founded in 1986, specializing in superb customer service and experience, Harper-Rispoli settles for nothing less. Coldwell Banker D’Ann Harper, REALTORS® (CBDHR) extends these values through its eight offices, 450 sales agents, and divisions including Global Luxury, Property Management, Commercial, Farm and Ranch, an award-winning Relocation team and, above all, by serving the community with a servant’s heart, through countless community service programs. With over a billion dollars in sales, the numbers confirm what our great city has recognized over the past three decades— CBDHR is a family-owned, woman-owned real estate brokerage that knows how to sell real estate.
210-483-7070 18756 STONE OAK PKWY., STE. 101 SAN ANTONIO, TX 78258 CBHARPER.COM
Leesa Harper-Rispoli
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FACES OF SA 2021
The Faces of WINE AND SPRITS TWIN LIQUORS Margaret and David Jabour, the third-generation co-owners of Twin Liquors, are passionate about the wine and spirits industry. The siblings have grown their Austin-born-and-raised family business from one store in 1982 to more than 100 locations across the state. They named their company Twin Liquors in honor of their father, Theodore, who was an identical twin. The co-owners set a goal to elevate the liquor industry by introducing fine wines and premium spirits into the Texas market in refined, education-oriented retail stores. Originally poised to enter the fashion industry, Margaret brought the fine department store ambiance into the business, while David, who worked in the banking industry for many years, was able to work synergistically to bring their shared vision to life. At the core of it all, the Jabours believe in the importance of relationships and giving back to their communities, a value they have instilled in their entire team.
TWINLIQUORS.COM
Margaret Jabour, David Jabour
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FACES OF SA 2021
The Face of SOUTHTOWN DEVELOPMENT EXQUISITE PROPERTIES Southtown has quickly become one of the most sought-after areas in the city, and nobody knows that better than Exquisite Properties’ Micah Harper. As a resident of the Lone Star neighborhood, Harper shares his firsthand experience with clients looking for homes. He also has taken an active role in developing the neighborhood’s fabric by buying underutilized properties and redeveloping them into residences and businesses that make a positive contribution. Whether turning a 1925 bungalow into Tutti’s A Place for Foodies, redeveloping a rundown bar into Dos Sirenos Brewing, or developing and selling the Residences at 7 Stones on Clay Street, Harper’s influence on the neighborhood is undeniable. His latest project, replacing a defunct industrial shop with a swanky new retail center, will provide a space for even more small businesses to call the Lone Star neighborhood home. Harper is proving that engaged and passionate residents can impact how our urban neighborhoods change and grow.
210-324-2647 MICAH.EXQUISITESA.COM
Micah Harper
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The Faces of GREAT SMILES
ADVANCED SMILE CARE For 40 years, we have been San Antonio’s premier dental practice for creating transformational smiles. Many dentists provide limited or basic treatment. They don’t have the expertise to offer specialized services. We do it all, whether it be a full smile makeover, dental implants, dentures, orthodontics or a root canal. We are also trained to provide a range of sedation to help patients with dental anxiety. We offer nitrous oxide (laughing gas), oral sedation, IV sedation, and general anesthesia. We want you to get the care you need without any worries whatsoever. We offer early morning and evening hours, and we're conveniently located near I-10 and Loop 1604 in North Central San Antonio. We get told all of the time that we treat our patients as if they’re family. We are grateful for the compliments and the fact that so many San Antonians have entrusted their smiles to Advanced Smile Care.
210-366-3606 3829 LOCKHILL SELMA ROAD, SAN ANTONIO, TX 78230 ADVANCEDSMILECARE.COM
Left to right: Joanna Lin, Hygienist; Dr. Laura Benjamin; Wendy Harmon, Hygienist; Dr. Akshay Thusu; Trudie Boss, Hygienist; Dr. Tony Thomas; Patricia Suarez, Hygienist
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Eat + Drink I NSI D E / M A K ING M E AT LOA F SEXY p. 60 / VEGGIE TIN GA TACOS p. 62 / TH AI FOOD TO TRY p.6 3
BAR LORET TA
320 Beauregard St. 210-757-3607 barloretta.com Open daily
Neighborhood Haunt estaurateur Roger Herr takes seriously the legacy of the 100-year-old King William building where he recently opened Bar Loretta, a restaurant, bar and adjoining market that formerly housed Madhatter’s Tea House & Cafe and Beauregard Cafe. “When you walk through this neighborhood, you feel it with all the beautiful, old homes—this sort of responsibility to try to keep that (history) intact,” says Herr, who lives in the area. Herr worked with executive chef Paul Petersen to create a Texas-inspired menu that combines fine dining and approachability in dishes like chili-glazed quail, chamoy
COURTESY BAR LORETTA
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Brussels sprouts and burgers. The bar menu, crafted by cocktail guru Michael Neff, of Houston’s Cottonmouth Club, has an equally Texan bent. Both Petersen and Herr are San Antonio natives who worked for years in New York before returning home. During his time away, Herr says he learned the importance of becoming a part of the community, and he’s focused on that with Bar Loretta. “With my other places, I was lucky enough to achieve acceptance by the neighborhood,” he says. “We want to be active participants in this community. We hope the neighborhood embraces us.”—MOLLY TODD
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THE HAYDEN
4025 Broadway thehaydensa.com Breakfast & Lunch Tues-Fri, Dinner Tues-Sat, Brunch Sat-Sun
Reviving Classics The Hayden brings new spins to diner favorites BY EDMUND TIJERINA
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SEPTEMBER 2021
dam Lampinstein is on a mission. “I’m trying to make meatloaf sexy,” says the owner of The Hayden. At his old-school diner with a modern feel, he’s going beyond meatloaf and bringing a fresh vitality to pastrami, latkes and a fish spread. Along with classics, he adds several items you don’t usually see on a diner menu—barbacoa, fried chicken and even a sauerkraut-stuffed kolache. It all works because of Lampinstein’s background. He grew up in Dallas, the son of small business owners. His mother’s catering company imbued him with a love of food and hospitality, and after a few years of working in advertising, he moved to Austin to attend culinary school and work in the industry. From Austin, he went to El Paso, where he opened a restaurant with his sister, whose husband was stationed at Fort Bliss. It was there that he met his wife, Perla, a native of Ciudad Juárez, Mexico. Perla took a teaching job in Alamo Heights, which brought the couple to San Antonio. Once they arrived, Lampinstein saw the need for a traditional diner.
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PHOTOS BY JOMANDO CRUZ
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ORDER THIS
Pastrami & Swiss Sandwich Texas Redfish Spread Barbacoa Stroganoff
“I’m kind of an old soul. I love vintage things, nostalgia, and to me, the old diner is a romantic thing,” he says. “The idea of the everyday place—I love it.” He wanted to create a neighborhood spot with items at reasonable prices that people could visit over and over. Yes, in San Antonio, the everyday spot is traditionally the neighborhood taquería, but there’s room for other options, too. The Hayden’s menu reflects Lampinstein’s influences and travels, and so a matzo ball soup feels right at home next to a seared salmon and beef barbacoa stroganoff. “A diner, depending on what part of the country you’re in, should serve what’s local to the area,” he says. “I wanted to merge the things that I enjoy.” Beyond the plate, the space at the Boardwalk on Broadway has a stylish and modern design with plenty of natural light and an open floor plan. Meanwhile, some terrific original and classic cocktails bring a different dimension to this modern diner. Whether you want a bagel with lox and a Day Dreamsicle cocktail during a weekend brunch or a couple of main dishes and a bottle of wine for a date night, it’s all good here. This spot is already becoming known for its excellent housemade pastrami that stars in several dishes. It anchors a delicious sandwich with housemade sauerkraut, accents the Delicatessen Fries, and fills a definitely nontraditional kolache at brunch. (Since the pastry has a meat filling, it’s actually more accurate to call it a klobasnek.) One of the best examples of deli-meets-Texas comes in the smoked redfish spread, a delicious take on the classic whitefish spread made famous at traditional Jewish “appetizing” places. This spread starts with Texas redfish that are brined and hot-smoked. Pro tip: When offered a choice of chips or raw veggies, get both. The Hayden started with lunch and dinner plus weekend brunch, and Lampinstein recently added weekday breakfast. “This is a diner,” he says. “What diner cannot be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner?” SEPTEMBER 2021
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Dinner Simplified Get healthy meals on the table without all of the fuss thanks to Cassy Joy Garcia’s latest cookbook A WORKING MOM OF TWO WITH A THIRD ON THE WAY,
Cauliflower Tinga Tacos Serves 4
Ingredients 3 chipotle chiles, canned in adobo sauce, finely chopped ½ cup tomato paste ½ cup fresh lime juice 2 tsp. dried oregano 1 tsp. ground cumin 1 tsp. fine sea salt ½ tsp. ground black pepper 4-6 tbsp. water 6 cups roasted cauliflower (toss cauliflower florets with olive oil and bake in a single layer at 400 F for 35-40 minutes) 8 corn tortillas, warmed Garnishes 1 avocado, thinly sliced ¼ cup cilantro, chopped ¼ cup red onion, finely chopped 1 lime, cut into wedges
Preparation Preheat oven to 375 F. In a large bowl, whisk together the chipotle chiles, tomato paste, lime juice, oregano, cumin, salt, pepper and water. Add the pre-roasted cauliflower and toss to coat evenly. Spread the cauliflower evenly over a baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes, or until the tops of the cauliflower florets start to darken. Divide the cauliflower among the tortillas. Add garnishes of avocado, cilantro and red onion. Serve with a lime wedge for squeezing over the top.
How can kids get involved in cooking or food prep at home? As the dad of a 13-year-old, I have a few ideas: Start with some basics, like preparing cereal or PB&J. Then, teach a simple vinaigrette (three parts oil to one part vinegar with a bit of Dijon mustard), to build some confidence. If you want your kids to help you make a recipe, clean your workspace and organize your ingredients before starting anything so it’s easy for you to give them tasks to complete. And be sure to allow extra time to make the recipe—something unexpected always happens. Want to go further? Consider a kid-friendly cooking class at Central Market, Sur La Table, Williams Sonoma or online with Outschool. Have a question for our resident foodie? Email asked@sanantoniomag.com.
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TACOS: KRISTEN KILPATRICK/COURTESY SIMON & SCHUSTER; ED: DAVID G. LOYOLA
Cassy Joy Garcia knows all too well the struggle of creating healthy meals that taste good without requiring her to spend the entire evening in the kitchen. Her latest book, Cook Once Dinner Fix, out Sept. 14 from Simon & Schuster, provides a solution. “How do we make life as efficient as possible and also not sacrifice flavor?” says Garcia, who first started sharing recipes 10 years ago as a blogger on her own journey to health. Instead of meal prepping on Sunday for the full week ahead or tackling a new complicated recipe every night, Garcia’s new book provides pairs of recipes that rely on one main ingredient. Cauliflower, for example, can be chopped and roasted on Monday to be used that night in a veggie version of General Tso’s chicken and rice. On Tuesday, that pre-roasted cauliflower is tossed with taco spices and turned into easy tinga tacos. Beef can become pot roast one night and barbacoa tacos the next and shredded chicken easily transforms into sloppy joes and an enchilada casserole. “This is how I really cook,” Garcia says. The idea behind all of her recipe pairings is that you can take one or more of the already prepared ingredients (or leftovers) from night one and create an entirely new dish on night two with minimal time in the kitchen. Those who want to plan meals for a full week can pair together several chapters while those who just need a few dinners at home can start with one chapter. The book features dishes that can be prepared gluten-, dairy- and grain-free and includes recipes for plenty of sides and vegetarian dinner options—two requests Garcia heard from readers after the release of her 2019 book, Cook Once, Eat All Week. “I’m a holistic nutritionist by training so a lot of thought and consideration went into the nutrient balance of each meal,” she says. “But it also means that if there’s a modification listed—whether grain-, dairy- or nut-free—it’s been thoroughly tested, and we know it will work and taste good.”—KP
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T H E G U I D E / E AT + D R I N K
10 Restaurants For Tasting Thai BAAN THAI RESTAURANT (North-
west) This Thai outpost puts a modern take on classic dishes. There’s a full menu of curry, rice and noodle dishes. Looking for something different? Consider the Stir-Fried Mango Delight, which includes fresh mango alongside onions, bell peppers, carrots and basil, all served in a housemade chili paste sauce. Lunch specials enjoyed at the restaurant are served with crab Rangoon and the soup of the day. 9386 Huebner Road, Ste. 101, 210-690-6000, baanthaisanantonio.com
and avocado salad, the lemongrass rice soup or the yum tofu. There are also a variety of classic noodle soups and seafood dishes, including the roasted duck soup with steamed noodles and the pan-fried sea scallops served with asparagus, avocado, pineapple and green curry cream sauce. 16666 San Pedro Ave., 210-490-3636, lemongrassthai sanantonio.com MON’S THAI BISTRO AND SUSHI BAR (Alamo Heights) The sushi
bar delivers high-grade, fresh and authentic selections while the main menu features an array of fresh dishes, from the crab fried rice with egg, onions and crab meat, to the Pla Pad Prik, a snapper topped with chili paste. 4901 Broadway, 210-822-3253
BANGKOK 54 THAI CUISINE
(Alamo Heights) Inspired from family recipes, the menu here offers Thai home cooking in entrees such as beef with basil, pad woo sen with stir-fried noodles and eggs, chicken with cashew and sweet and sour pork. 2515 Nacogdoches Road, 210-822-5454, bangkok54texas.com
SAWASDEE THAI CUISINE (North
KIN THAI & SUSHI (Northeast, Dominion) This family-owned restaurant recently expanded to a second location on the Northeast side. Both restaurants offer an array of sushi rolls, curry bowls and just-spicy-enough pad Thai. Look for lunch specials during the day and a dinner menu that features Thai and Japanese classics. 17306 Bulverde Road, Ste. 105, 210-3147827; 22211 I-10, Ste. 1102, 210-4740959, kinthaisushi.com
SUKHOTHAI (Lackland, Northwest) The name of the restaurant means dawn of happiness and that’s what the family behind both locations hope customers experience with their entrees, which include a mix of Thai and Chinese cuisine. Pick the level of spice you’re comfortable trying—from medium to Sukhothai hot—and then follow the spice key through the menu when selecting curries, noodle dishes, fried rice and classic pad Thai plates. 410 Valley Hi Drive, 210-463-9001; 7664 Tezel Road, 210-314-1106, sukhothaisa.com
LEMONGRASS THAI RESTAURANT
(North Central) Vegetarian options abound here, whether the tofu
OFF MENU News from the restaurant scene
Central) This eatery has been serving authentic Thai food since 2005. Everything on the menu is made in-house to ensure freshness, from the veggie cakes appetizer to the Thai Fried Rice and Spicy Noodles. 6407 Blanco Road, 210979-9100, sawasdeesa.com
THAI CHILI (Stone Oak, North
Central) The family behind this restaurant says they’ve been recognized by the Royal Thai Government for using only imported Thai ingredients. It’s that commitment to authenticity, whether in the Thai chili fish filet or spicy Thai lemon grass, that has made it a favorite among locals for the past two decades. 2950 Thousand Oaks Drive, 210-656-8589; 19141 Stone Oak Pkwy., 210-402-4042, thaichili.net THAI DEE (North Central) Owner Chanapol Sanseeha grew up in Thailand and says he learned his authentic flavors from eating street food in the heart of the country. In San Antonio, he’s known for his curry puffs (pillow puffs filled with Thai curry), tiger cry (which is a rib-eye steak with thai chilies, lime juice and fish sauce) and banana spring rolls served with coconut ice cream. Lunch specials include two vegetable egg rolls and a stir fry with rice or noodles plus your choice of beef, chicken or tofu. 5307 Blanco Road, 210-342-3622, thaideesa.com THAI ESAN & NOODLE HOUSE
(West) Start with the papaya salad, Thai Esan meatballs or fried sweet egg and then select a main entree from the long list of curry dishes, noodles and house specialties. The Thum Thad is a house variety plate that allows diners to try a little bit of several flavors and includes fried chicken, papaya salad, a boiled egg, Esan sausage and rice noodles. 9820 Huebner Road, 210-8770888, thaiesannoodlehouse.com Restaurants' service and menus can change. Please call ahead to confirm. For our full directory of San Antonio restaurants, visit sanantoniomag.com/restaurants-bars.
Wild Barley Kitchen & Brewery food trailer is opening a brick-and-mortar location in the former Taco Garage on Broadway. / Sichuan House owner Kristina Zhao opened Dashi Sichuan Kitchen + Bar over the summer. / Clear Light Brewing, a new coffee shop that will add food in the coming months, debuted next to Two Bros. BBQ Market. / House of Ma permanently closed shortly after opening on the River Walk earlier this year above Hugman’s Oasis. / After closing and moving to a food truck during COVID-19, Café Azteca announced it will reopen in a new location on Mitchell Street. / Clutch City Cluckers, a food truck that started in Houston, opened a second truck in San Antonio last month. / Roots Salad Kitchen is now open in the Flats at Big Tex in Southtown. / Laika Cheesecake & Espresso, the Alamo Heights bakery known for its cheesecake-in-a-cup and slices in multiple flavors, will open a second location at The Rim. / Golden Wat Noodle closed. / This fall, Naco Mexican Eatery food truck will expand into a restaurant at Los Patios. SEPTEMBER 2021
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Art and the Bottom Line Director of Artpace San Antonio, Riley Robinson, says the pandemic serves as a stark reminder that thriving arts institutions are not only integral to the city’s culture but also its economy
remember when Artpace first opened to the public in 1995. The building was full of energy and excitement as our first group of International Artists-in-Residence lived and created at Artpace. The galleries were full on opening night as founder Linda Pace and the Artpace team welcomed the community into one of the first spaces in the city dedicated to contemporary art. On March 14, 2020, Artpace closed to the public for the first time since its opening 25 years ago. As programming and events came to a pause and we were all trying to adjust to life in quarantine, funding for arts and culture suffered immensely. Not only were our significant fundraising events postponed, but funding from the city was cut due to the decrease in tourism. The struggle that all of San Antonio’s nonprofit arts and culture organizations found themselves in led to the development of what is now known as Culture and Arts United for San Antonio (CAUSA). CAUSA started out as a kind of support group where leaders from culture
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organizations around the city met online to share their struggles and advice. Eventually, CAUSA turned into an initiative that focuses on raising awareness for the contributions the arts have on the community—both culturally and economically. As of May 2021, the total economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on just arts organizations in Bexar County was $24 million, with an overall economic impact of $4.8 billion. Last year showed us that we cannot survive without the support and help of our community. It also made us realize that it’s not only important to emphasize the power of art as a catalyst for important conversations, but also as an integral part of the city’s economy. In July, we held an opening for our Summer 2021 International Artists-in-Residence. The exhibition opening featured an engaging artist talk followed by a live performance by one of the artists. It was refreshing to see our galleries open again and feel the support of our community. It served as a reminder that together, we can ensure San Antonio’s future economic and cultural vibrancy.
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ILLUSTRATION: DAVID G. LOYOLA; ROBINSON, ARTPACE: COURTESY ARTPACE; OTHER IMAGES: GRAPHIC GOODS
FINAL THOUGHT
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SAN ANTONIO M AKERS / S HE RIFF SALAZ AR
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