The West University Buzz - February 2021

Jamie Broach Byrd and Jeff Byrd

Just Love: It’s a No-Brainer From First Glance to Forever

Beginning

Growing Up in Riverbend

Again

A Couple of Beatlemaniacs

by Andria Frankfort

Nearby Farmers Markets Comfort Food for Winter Chef’s Corner: Joey Chavez Travel: Winter Sports Houston, TX Permit No. 2047 PAID US Postage PRSRT STD

Buzz Baby: Out of the Crib

PUBLISHER’S NOTE The Buzz has written and published over 10,000 articles in print and online since we began almost 20 years ago. Love, Love Me Do by Cathy Gordon in this month’s issue has to be one of my all-time favorites. During this same period, Alex and Judy Fazzino were steadily amassing a collection of over 845 Beatles items and memorabilia that rivals anybody’s Fab Four collection. I was fortunate enough to attend the photo shoot and get a personal tour. Alex and Judy also shared some amazing stories about their adventures. Music has the magical ability to transport you back to the time you first heard it. Seeing this collection with Beatles music playing in the background immediately took me back to 1964, when I sat in my parents’ living room listening to I Want to Hold Your Hand on our record player and watching the yellow and orange swirling label from Capitol Records spinning at 45 rpm. Fifty-seven years later, I’m happy to discover that Beatlemania – including, apparently, my own – is still alive and well. michael@thebuzzmagazines.com

THE BUZZ MAGAZINES BELLAIRE • WEST UNIVERSITY • MEMORIAL • TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS Published by Hoffman Marketing & Media, LLC 5001 Bissonnet, Suite 100, Bellaire, Texas 77401 info@thebuzzmagazines.com • p: 713.668.4157 • f: 713.665.2940 Follow us on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter thebuzzmagazines.com Editor Publisher Associate Editors Editorial Assistant Design Manager Staff Writers

Contributing Writers Account Managers

Joni Hoffman Michael Hoffman Cheryl Laird Jordan Magaziner Steinfeld Jenna Mazzoccoli John Duboise Tracy L. Barnett Deborah Lynn Blumberg Sharon Albert Brier Cindy Burnett Andria Frankfort Angie Frederickson Todd Freed Cindy Gabriel Cathy Gordon Michelle Groogan Dai Huynh Annie Blaylock McQueen Jennifer Oakley Pooja Salhotra Cheryl Ursin Erin Faulkner Meg Scott Andrea Blitzer Leslie Little Jo Rogers

On our cover: Jamie Broach Byrd and Jeff Byrd both lost their first spouses at a young age, but they found love again in each other.

Cover photo by Nikky LaWell, lawellphoto.com The Buzz Magazines has made all reasonable attempts to verify the accuracy of all information contained within. Advertising claims are solely the responsibility of the advertiser. Copyright © 2021 Hoffman Marketing & Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any portion of this magazine by any means without written permission is strictly prohibited. Printed on recycled paper. Please remember to recycle.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 4

Your smile can last forever Anna Maria Salas, D.D.S., M.S. Diplomate of the American Board of Orthodontics

713-481-4885 3642 University Blvd.

Suite 102 Houston, TX 77005 www.westuortho.com WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 5

MAILBAG

Your letters, thoughts, opinions Selfless people and brilliant docs Many thanks to Cathy Gordon for the article highlighting live kidney donation [Forever Linked: A three-family kidney swap, by Cathy Gordon, January 2021]. The three-family kidney swap changed the lives of six people directly, but so many more indirectly. I happen to be one of those people. My son-in-law, Steven Thorpe, was a recipient. My daughter, Adrienne Thorp, was a donor. The experience was life changing for me, my children, and my grandchildren. I know the other families were impacted in the same way. I am grateful for healthy kidneys, the selfless people willing to donate to change the lives of others, and the brilliant doctors at Houston Methodist. Thank you to The Buzz.

Leslie Kappler

Screen the newborns My many thanks to Cindy Gabriel for highlighting the wonderful story of baby Faires Lord Weber and bringing attention to biliary atresia [Oh Wow! Uh Oh!: Winging it into 2021, by Cindy Gabriel, January 2021] As one parent put it, Baby Faires is a “Biliary Atresian” – a warrior called at an early age to fight bravely against a serious liver disease. Faires’ disease is the leading reason for why children need a liver transplant. However, Faires’ story shows how pediatricians working together across hospital systems (in this case the Woman’s Hospital of Texas and Texas Children’s Hospital) can improve outcomes by screening infants for biliary atresia at birth. Eventually, we hope to spread this Houston-grown newborn screening program to nurseries around the country, so that all babies born with biliary atresia can benefit.

Dr. Sanjiv "Sonny" Harpavat

Specialists on speed dial One of the many pleasures of our job is collaborating with specialists to help in the care of a patient [Oh Wow! Uh Oh!, January 2021]. As a general pediatrician, we are often the first to encounter a patient and start a diagnostic workup. Most things with children are just normal, self resolved, no-big-deal type problems. But our job is to look for that “needle in a haystack,” which, in the case of Faires, was his initial bloodwork. It is a huge blessing to have Dr. [Sanjiv] Harpavat and the GI team literally on my speed dial to help in the management of a multitude of conditions. It really does take a village to care for these little ones, and I often feel like I’m the quarterback of a great team, ranging from specialists to nurses and the patient care techs – all surrounding ourselves around a family to offer our support in helping them raise their precious little ones.

Dr. Martha Sissa WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 6

Honor is barkworthy The Brazda family and all of Jesse's supporters are paws-itively thrilled that he has been voted your Pet of the Year! We have been longtime supporters of the magazine, and we think the way the Buzz highlights pets of all kinds throughout the year is completely barkworthy. We all know how pets are such fur-real beloved family members. Jesse was just lucky that he fetched the most votes, but we congratulate all of the adorable contestants.

As Jesse claims his Buzz POTY title, he continues to em-bark on his training to become a therapy dog, as mentioned in his Neighborhood Tails column.

Again, our sincere thanks, and ap-paws, ap-paws to you for such a howling success of a POTY contest.

Amy, Halle, and Brady Brazda Editor’s note: Thank you, Amy, and thanks to all who voted in our 10th annual Pet of the Year Contest. To have your pet considered for Neighborhood Tails and automatically be part of next year’s Pet of the Year Contest, submit a high-resolution photo and 150 words on our Submit Your Story Idea page at thebuzzmagazines.com or email info@thebuzzmagazines.com.

Send letters to info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Please include your name, address, phone number and email address for verification purposes. Letters are subject to editing for clarity and space. Views expressed in letters do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Buzz Magazines, and The Buzz takes no responsibility for the content and opinions expressed in them.

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If this sounds like you or someone you know, please contact us at info@thebuzzmagazines.com or 713.668.4157, ext 12.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 7

NEIGHBORS

by Cindy Gabriel, staff writer

Just Love

E

xcuse me for troubling you, but I think I’ve lost my mind. Oh well, it will turn up like it always does, in the middle of the night when I can’t go back to sleep.

It’s funny how the mind can go off on its own.

Stan-the-Man lost his keys for 24 hours. He looked everywhere until he found them where he always hangs them, just one rung higher.

Then, after he found them, he kept looking for them, forgetting he found them.

Guess I’ll just write this column without mine: my mind, not my keys. It hasn’t been working in my best interest lately anyway.

Sometimes it needs to be put in time out.

It wants me to have opinions that separate me from people I care about. It tells me I’m right, while making them wrong. It loves its opinion and is proud of itself. It seeks out things on the internet that agree with everything it believes.

When this happens, huge shots of confirmation endorphins go straight to it.

It’s bucking me now because it knows I’m onto it. The thing I need to realize is that my mind isn’t always working in my best interest. It wants me to worry about a future over which I have no control. Then, it reviews the past, over which I have no control. It gets fidgety if I just want to watch a sunset. It has a short attention span for such things.

What I really want to say is that there is a deeper kind of intelligence, that works in spite of surface thinking. It’s so deep and true that it can’t be talked about in any concrete way. We try to sum it up in words we can’t quite touch, like Love, God, and Infinity.

It’s the stuff of heartbeats, ocean waves, seagulls flying, and, come to think of it, a Texas snowfall, effortlessly appearing without being prompted. It hides just beneath the surface, like a spring, ready to well up through the muck and mud of life. Whatever love is, it is kin to whatever makes our eyes blink and our lungs breathe without us consciously thinking.

It’s like oxygen, that invisible nothing and yet something, that is behind us, before us, and always in us. It’s always there, yet it doesn’t seem to want any attention for itself. We can go all day without thinking about oxygen, but five WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 8

Stan Ehrenkranz

It’s a no-brainer

THE GREATEST OF THESE Cindy Gabriel ponders love as some of it blankets Hunt, Texas, in the form of snow.

minutes without it, and we’re goners.

I happen to believe that God is love. Not the God that makes us run into camps that separate us. The God of radical acceptance, who wants us to love our enemies, however we define them.

Gee, I really have lost my mind.

Love is patient with those who “just don’t get it.” It doesn’t judge. It’s comfortable in mystery.

Love makes us happy and sad on behalf of each other. Love makes people understand that if something seems good for them but bad for others, it’s not good for anybody. It sees a oneness among us in the pulses and the rhythms of the universe.

Last month, we shared that our grandson, Faires Lord Weber, was born with a serious liver condition. Your expressions of sadness, happiness, and hopefulness lined right up with ours.

That’s love.

I see my child, Julia, his mother, skillfully and

dutifully giving him five syringes of life-saving vitamins and medicine twice a day, despite her baby’s squirms and objections. Sometimes love makes us take medicines we don’t want.

Here’s something about love. It heals. It’s vital. It’s something we can’t live without. To deny it is to deny ourselves.

It comes with us when we‘re born. It’s in the gaze and smile of a 3 month old. It’s in the mother who sacrifices sleep to nurse that child in the middle of the night.

We all come into this world knowing love, as the givers and the receivers. But then we layer thoughts over it that set us apart from others.

Then we believe those thoughts. The body knows when the mind is out of place. It sends anxious signals. It knows the mind is a wonderful instrument. It’s just not the boss. The mind works best as a servant to the heart.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 9

NEIGHBORS

Beginning Again

Miroma Photography

by Andria Frankfort, staff writer

A story of love and loss – and love

W

hen it comes to matters of the heart, sometimes what feels like the end of the world turns out to be the beginning of something wonderful. For Jamie Broach Byrd and her husband of five years, Jeff Byrd, there is nothing more true.

Both Jamie, a retired attorney who coordinates special projects at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church, and Jeff, a marketing executive for an energy company, lost their first spouses at very young ages.

Jamie’s first husband, James, was just shy of 38 when he passed away after a three-year fight with glioblastoma, a deadly form of brain cancer.

Diagnosed when their youngest son was 1, James left Jamie with three little boys – Parker, Harrison, and Oliver.

Jeff’s first wife, Melanie, had cystic fibrosis.

She underwent a lung transplant in 2008 and suffered from chronic rejection. A second transplant in 2011 proved too much, and Melanie passed away that year at 32. She left Jeff with twin daughters, Lila and Jentry, who were less than a year old.

When Jamie had been single for a year and Jeff for almost three years, both decided it was time to begin dating. “I didn’t know if I’d be married again,” Jamie says, “but I thought it would be nice to have someone to do something fun with.”

Jamie says she and Jeff shared a mutual friend who suggested the two connect. “They said, ‘Yeah, y’all have the same story. You’ll connect even if you’re just making a new friend.’ So Jeff asked me to coffee, and it all happened from there.”

When they met at Fellini in the Village, neither Jamie nor Jeff had dated in their adult lives.

“Jeff and Melanie were high school sweethearts, and James and I met in college and dated all through grad school,” Jamie says. “So neither of us had dated a whole ton of people to begin with. You forget what it’s like to date.”

“Obviously,” Jeff says, “it’s much different from what you recall when you were a teenager.

We both had a better idea of what we wanted in a partner and what that would look like.”

“I kept telling myself I was just going to meet a friend,” Jamie says.

Jeff is extroverted and loves meeting new peo-

BLENDED AND BLESSED The Broach Byrd family today: Lila, Oliver, Parker, Jamie, Jeff, Harrison, and Jentry.

ple and coaching the kids’ sports teams, while Jamie is more introverted and loves being with close friends, reading, and collecting art. But they both say the first-date chemistry was instant.

“A lot of what attracted us to one another was that our personal stories were so much alike,” Jeff says. “We had years of being caretakers and understanding what each of us had been through. We just instantly connected.”

“We stayed longer than we had planned,” Jamie says. “I don’t think I left that coffee saying, ‘This is the guy I’m going to marry,’ but I definitely left saying this is a person I really like and want to spend more time with.”

Jeff remembers being impressed by Jamie, thinking she was a great mom and successful as an attorney. “We both went through difficult years and difficult times, and we had so much in common. The conversation was easy.”

By then, fate had taken over. “He was the first person I talked to; we were each other’s first date,” Jamie says. “We went on this date and clicked and then married each other. I don’t think that’s the norm. God definitely had a hand in this.”

Before meeting Jeff, Jamie had planned on waiting a year before introducing her boys to anyone new. But once they met, Jamie says she

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 10

and Jeff “broke every rule we had given ourselves with those arbitrary timelines.” They began dating in August, and by Christmas they had gotten together with all five children. Jeff’s girls were 3, and Jamie’s boys were 5, 6, and 8.

“We fell in love really early on, and we knew we were going to make a commitment,” Jamie says. “I couldn’t imagine marrying someone my children didn’t like. I wanted to see him with his girls and how he parented. And because we were both single parents, but we weren’t divorced with every other Wednesday and weekend free, we realized if we didn’t include the kids, it was going to be hard to continue a relationship.”

The soon-to-be family met at Jeff’s and the girls’ house in Katy. “We spent a couple hours at the neighborhood park, letting the kids play and feel it out,” Jeff says. “We were both nervous and excited and hoping there would be no major meltdown.”

“We knew enough about each other at that point that there were no big concerns,” Jamie says, “but you’re still nervous like, ‘Oh my gosh what if this ends horribly and what if they hate each other.’” Of course, nobody hated anybody.

“The boys were so sweet with the girls, and the girls loved the boys,” Jamie says. She has a picture from that day – all of the children lined up on a slide – blown up and framed (continued on page 12)

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Makenzie Wheatly

SWEET MEMORIES Top left: Jeff Byrd and his late wife, Melanie, who passed in 2011, hold their twins Lila (at left) and Jentry. Top right: Harrison, Jamie, James, Oliver, and Parker Broach are pictured together before James passed away in 2013 from glioblastoma. Bottom: The Broach boys and the Byrd girls had a great time at their first playdate in the park: (from left) Harrison Broach, Jentry Byrd, Parker Broach, Lila Byrd, and Oliver Broach. (continued from page 10) in the family’s home.

Jamie and Jeff dated for a year before marrying at the Hyatt Lost Pines, during the Bastrop wildfires and a tropical storm. “It was small, with just our closest friends and all of our kids and their friends’ parents, who are our friends,” Jamie says.

“It was as much about the kids as it was about us.” Jeff remembers a massive candy bar, and Jamie says there were more kids on the dance floor than adults.

Five years later, “we have moody teenagers and preteen girls,” Jamie says. “At any moment, someone is fighting around here.” Still, “we pinch ourselves,” she says. “It helps that I had boys, and he had girls because the boys wanted a dad, and the girls wanted a mom, and they stack up in age. As well as families can blend, ours really have.”

Now, the boys call Jeff “Dad,” and the girls call Jamie “Mom.” All of them are athletic, and between baseball and lacrosse and Eagle Scout

certification and violin and piano and school, the family is active and busy. All five kids make As; Lila, Jentry, and Oliver attend Mark Twain Elementary, and Parker and Harrison go to Pin Oak Middle School and graduated from West U Elementary. “At least for other people,” Jamie adds, “they are all well-behaved.”

“That’s probably why blending has been as easy as it has,” Jeff says.

Jamie’s only semi-complaint: “I wish they would do their chores without grumbling more.”

In the midst of the chaos, Jamie and Jeff make a point to schedule dates at least once a week. “It might be a breakfast, a lunch, a dinner,” Jeff says.

“Or a walk,” Jamie adds. “Sometimes I feel like Jeff and I need a date in our car, just driving back and forth to all the activities. Our dating life really is dependent on sports schedules.

When one season winds down and before another starts, we’ll date a lot.”

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 12

Parker is now 14, Harrison is 13, Oliver 11, and Lila and Jentry are 9. “Now we have a built-in babysitter with the almost-high-schooler,” Jamie says. That means more freedom for a favorite date night: listening to live music at White Oak, The Heights Theater, or House of Blues.

Melanie and James are always in their hearts.

“It’s important for them to know they have these other parents who loved them tremendously,” Jamie says. “We celebrate them all the time and help the kids feel as connected as they can.”

Every year, the family celebrates their late mother’s and father’s birthdays with Melanie’s favorite Chinese food and strawberry cake in her memory and James’ favorite wings at Wingstop and Dessert Gallery’s Big O cake in his memory.

“Really,” Jamie says, “James’ favorite was key lime pie. But he knew the boys hated it, so he always got the Big O cake. One of these years I might bust out with the key lime pie.”

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 13

NEIGHBORS

by Michelle Casas Groogan, staff writer

Growing Up in Riverbend lawellphoto.com

A neighborhood where everybody knows your name

WE ARE FAMILY Melinda Abell, Cynthia Lange, Sam McBirney, Kelley Austin, Brian Austin, Helene Brechan (from left, in back), and Axel Brechan and Wesley Parker (in front) are some of the many neighbors who love life in Riverbend.

T

he houses are definitely nice here. Some are original 1950s ranch-style homes, and others are traditional two-stories flanked by manicured lawns. Location is another perk.

This is smack dab in the middle of Houston, cradled by Buffalo Bayou, so it’s not unusual to see a great egret gliding along. This neighborhood in Hunters Creek Village, called Riverbend, is a unique enclave of 65 large lots with expansive homes, sweeping driveways, and winding streets.

But what makes Riverbend special for those who live here, they say, is the comfort of knowing everyone’s name.

Melinda Abell is the second generation of Abells living in Riverbend. Her father, George N. Allen Jr., was one of the first residents to build in 1961, after his father, George N. Allen Sr., developed the neighborhood in the early ’50s.

“We are a special community of friends and neighbors,” said Melinda. “We walk together and support one another through the good times and the tough times. Childhood residents have come back to raise their families in this special place.”

Riverbend is a hidden gem, walled off by bends in the bayou and a brick wall along Voss Road. Some homes appear perched on graceful promontories while others are nestled under trees. In many ways, the neighborhood looks like a nature preserve, in contrast to the crowded strip centers surrounding it.

At 90, Wesley Parker is one of the oldest original residents of Riverbend. An administrator with Baylor College of Medicine, he built his home 55 years ago with his wife, Suzie. Back then, Voss Road wasn’t even paved. His wife passed two years ago, but Wes says he doesn’t

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 14

feel alone.

“Neighbors are out walking all the time.

That's how I keep alive, visiting with the neighbors and walking a mile around the block twice a day,” said Wes. “My wife always used to say that we didn’t know when we moved here that this place was our own Camelot.”

Vicki and John Lange bought their home in Riverbend 34 years ago, two doors down from John’s childhood home. They raised three boys there and now have more extended-family members living in the neighborhood.

“It’s just like our own little town where we know everybody,” said Vicki. “We've ended up being the best of friends with all these people that we probably never would have run across in our paths because of our kids being different ages. It’s just a real special (continued on page 16)

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John Cain Photography

lawellphoto.com

FOREVER FRIENDSHIPS Left: Molly and Sam McBirney recently moved back into a newly built home on the same lot where Sam lived as a teenager. Top right: Childhood friends Scott Lange, Walker Kane, Denman Kane, Miles Abell, Harrison Kane, Will Winters, and Ford Jones (from left) were all ushers in Miles Abell's wedding in 2019.

Bottom right: Back in June 2010, nine Riverbend high school graduates left for college. Top row: Vincent Lovoi, Alec Horner, Will Winters, and Scott Lange. Front row: Thomas Burke, Reese Henningsen, Ford Jones, Miles Abell, and Harrison Kane. (continued from page 14) place.”

Greta Zimmerman has owned two homes here in 20 years, downsizing from a two-story to a single-story home one block away after her kids went to college. “I didn’t grow up with this. I moved 13 times growing up, overseas and in the U.S.,” she says, “so I can really appreciate it.”

The Zimmermans’ second Riverbend home was about 50 percent renovated when it flooded, along with half the neighborhood, during Hurricane Harvey in 2017.

“Our neighbors poured in to pack and mark boxes, then move and unpack us,” said Greta.

“This community looks out for one another, looks for what is needed, and then acts.”

Some of the homes have been torn down and rebuilt since Harvey, but the essential nature of the neighborhood hasn’t changed.

Ten years ago, The Buzz Magazines ran an article, Riverbend Boys, about a group of high school seniors who grew up together. Last year, many of those same boys reunited as groomsmen in Miles Abell’s wedding.

“Growing up in Riverbend was a gift. I miss the community that surrounded us, but in a way it is with me wherever I go,” said Miles, who is now a lawyer living in Austin with his wife,

Katie. “I am blessed with happy and wonderful memories of the neighborhood. The Riverbend guys are my brothers – my lifelong companions.

When we are together, it feels like home.”

Susanna Kane, a nurse, treasures the childhood experience her kids had here and compares it to the perks of growing up in a small town.

“It makes a difference when you know everyone in the neighborhood. We know most people’s parents and grandparents because they lived here. There are lots of multi-generational families. It just seems like that’s always been so important. We even know everyone’s dog’s names. That’s just how familiar we are,” said Susanna.

It seems like everyone knows the house Martha “Tita” McBirney Cavness and her family lived in. The family has owned the home since 1969. Tita passed a few years ago, but her oldest son, Sam, a property-insurance underwriter, is among the latest to come full circle, moving back to the neighborhood with his wife, Molly, in August. They had to tear down the family home after Harvey, but they built a large, new home. They even bought the lot next door and had it landscaped with a bench for the whole neighborhood to enjoy.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 16

“Everyone loves having Sam back,” said Molly McBirney. “We knew that it was a unique, special neighborhood, and we always wanted to be here.”

While “for sale” signs are rare, younger families are gradually finding their way in.

Helene and Jacob Brechan moved to Houston 17 years ago from Norway for Jacob’s job. They discovered the neighborhood and bought their home in 2010 when their youngest son, Axel, was born.

“We fell in love with the house and the vicinity of my husband’s work,” said Helene. “It made sense for us to live here, but then we discovered the people here were different. They invited us to the annual Halloween party.

Three days after we moved in, we started getting dinner invitations. That’s when we knew we were in the right place.”

Neighbors say their affection for this charmed sanctuary runs as firm and deep as the roots of the live oaks that shade its homes and streets.

Melinda Abell says her husband sometimes mentions moving to the Hill Country.

“I’m like, ‘Nooooo! I can’t leave this neighborhood.’ I’m looking forward to all of us growing old together.”

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Pooja Salhotra

FOOD

by Meg Scott, contributing writer

Farmers Markets What to buy this month

A

stroll through a farmers market brings you one step closer to the farm where your food grows. Houston has many markets, and our temperate climate means we get delicate spring greens and a rainbow assortment of root and bulb vegetables throughout the winter months.

This month, look for arugula, a spicy peppery addition to any meal – try it as a fresh finish on top of a pizza or stir into a pasta or rice dish.

Those uses hold true for all of the greens you’ll find at the market stands in February, such as spinach or French sorrel. Don’t let those tops of the carrots, turnips, and beets go to waste either; they’re all a great source of iron.

Bulbs like beets, fennel, radish, and green onions are at their peak in Houston through the winter and early spring. A delicious – and truly Texan – way to use the sunset shades of red or golden beets is in the Chipotle Beet and Egg Tostada (recipe below).

Fresh vegetables can make a fantastic and simple Asian stir fry. Try broccoli, carrots, kohlrabi, bok choy, and sugar peas, or even heartier greens like collards and kale, with a teaspoon of vegetable oil over medium heat.

Deglaze the pan with a splash of soy sauce and mirin (or dry sherry), toss with precooked udon noodles, and finish with a little Sichuan Chili Oil (recipe below). If you keep this infused oil on hand in your fridge, you can turn any farmers-market haul into a rewarding dinner.

Chipotle Beet and Egg Tostada Abridged from “The Taco Tuesday Cookbook”

by Laura Fuentes

FRESH FIXINGS Michael Gaydos and Dena Yanowski pick up Tuscan kale at the Rice Village Farmers Market from the booth of Plant It Forward, a non-profit that empowers refugees to develop sustainable-farming businesses.

4 medium beets, ends trimmed 1 can (7-ounce) chipotle peppers in adobo sauce 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil, divided ¼ teaspoon ground cumin ¼ teaspoon salt 1 lime, halved, divided 4 large eggs 8 tostadas, store-bought or crisp a lightly oiled corn tortilla in oven 6 ounces goat cheese, crumbled Chopped fresh cilantro Preheat oven to 375 F. Wrap each beet in a square of aluminum foil with a tablespoon of adobo sauce. Roast for 50 minutes, until fork tender. Allow to cool on counter for 10 minutes.

Peel and cube the beets. Coarsely chop the chipotle peppers. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil to medium-high heat. Add beets, chipotles, cumin, salt, and juice of half a lime. Stir to combine and heat through – about 3 minutes.

In another skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat and cook the eggs sunny side up.

Make a layer of beets and chipotles on each tostada, top with goat cheese crumbles, add a fried egg, and sprinkle with cilantro. Finish with a squeeze of the remaining lime.

Sichuan Chili Oil Abridged from “Cook’s Country” online ½ cup peanut or vegetable oil 2 Tablespoons red pepper flakes 1 Tablespoon Sichuan peppercorns 2 teaspoons smoked paprika 2 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled 1 (½-inch) piece ginger, smashed 1 cinnamon stick 2 Tablespoons toasted sesame oil Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium heat to 350 F. Remove from heat and add all ingredients except sesame oil. Let come to room temperature, about 1 hour. Strain oil mixture through a fine-mesh strainer; discard solids. Stir in sesame oil. Store at room temperature up to 3 weeks, or refrigerated up to 3 months.

Nearby markets Saturdays Urban Harvest Farmers Market, 2752 Buffalo Speedway, 8 a.m. to noon Memorial Villages Farmers Market, 10840 Beinhorn Road, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Freedman’s Town Farmers Market, 1320 Robin St., 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

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Braeswood Farmers Market, 5401 South Braeswood, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Sundays Rice Village Farmers Market, Kelvin Dr. at Amherst St., first and third Sundays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Heights Mercantile Farmers Market, 714 Yale St., second and fourth Sundays, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Megan Snell Urban Harvest

Ira Rozen Photography LeeAnne Carlson

FARM TO TABLE Top left: Bok choy, sweet peppers, and other winter-spring vegetables grown in Houston make a vitamin-rich stir fry. Top right: Tangy golden beets are in season and perfect for this Chipotle Beet and Egg Tostada. Middle left: Booths offer produce, prepared goods, and crafts at the Braeswood Farmers Market. Middle right: A shopper purchases freshly cut flowers at the Heights Mercantile Farmers Market. Bottom left: A farmer displays his crop at the Memorial Village Farmers Market. Bottom right: Carrots and beets are in their peak in Houston right now, as shown here at the Urban Harvest Farmers Market.

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NEIGHBORS

by Cathy Gordon, staff writer

Love, Love Me Do hartphoto.com

A couple of Beatlemaniacs

BONKERS FOR THE BEATLES When Alex and Judy Fazzino feel nostalgic for the iconic band, they just walk upstairs. Their Beatles assemblage – one of the highest quality collections in the country – takes up the second floor of their Bellaire-area home.

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eeny-bopper girls swooned and screamed at the first note. Sons ditched tidy crewcuts for flat flaps of bangs. It was 1965, and Beatlemania was in full-swing, thanks to the previous year’s debut of four mop-topped Liverpool lads on The Ed Sullivan Show.

They hijacked popular culture in a single bound, turning the country on its head. America

was berserk for The Beatles.

But little Alex Fazzino knew nothing of this till his fun, vivacious mom plopped him in front of the family’s black and white set in September 1965 to watch another of their appearances on the variety show. “Watch these guys, Alex!” she implored. “Watch!”

So, the pajama-clad 5 year old set aside his

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toys, eyes fixed on the monochrome images before him: Dark pudding bowls of hair. Fresh faces beaming from tailored suits. And the sounds! Songs with toe-tapping beats that danced straight into his heart. Yeah yeah yeah.

He was feeling it. The Beatles in his blood.

“And that was it for me,” says Alex, 61, of his lifelong passion for the Fab Four, shared these days

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MAGICAL MOMENTS & MEMENTOS Clockwise: The couple met with Ringo Starr at a group meet-and-greet in 2015 and flew to Liverpool in 2014 to meet Paul McCartney privately, their pinnacle Beatles moment. Beatles pins and puzzles are but a few of the toys and trinkets from the quartet’s heyday.

with bubbly brunette Judy, his wife of 19 years. The two met in 2001, both going through divorces.

“Comfort at first sight,” recalls Alex. Love blossomed. Fate, he soon realized, had delivered the perfect match. For Judy was also a Beatlemanic.

“I couldn’t ask for a better partner in crime,” he says.

They can talk The Beatles with the best of

them, but this couple has the advantage of visual aids. Because the entire second story of their Bellaire-area home is an Alex and Judy Beatles museum of sorts, one of the country’s highestquality collections of period memorabilia, merchandising, and music from the iconic band’s days.

“Don’t ask which Beatle is my favorite. It’s like asking who your favorite son is,” quips the

architect who, with his wife, a nurse, has acquired more than 845 collectible pieces related to the quartet of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr.

Three bedrooms serve as gallery space for every conceivable period piece and bauble: exceedingly rare, limited-release albums, still sealed; a Magic Slate toy, one of two (continued on page 22)

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APPETIZERS, ANYONE? Visitors to the Alex and Judy “museum” are first taken to the “appetizer room,” says Alex, a taste of what’s to come. Replete with jukebox and every kind of Fab Four memorabilia, it’s the first stop in a three-room tour. (continued from page 21) known to exist; 45s in

pristine picture sleeves. The list goes on and on.

But the pièce de resistance doesn’t come in inanimate form. They’ve collected precious memories, too. The couple met Ringo Starr during a group meet-and-greet in 2015 and flew to Liverpool for a private meeting with Paul McCartney in 2014, a bucket-list moment that gets their adrenaline pumping to this day.

It was a long and winding road to that pinnacle McCartney moment, they say, but, boy, what a ride.

When Alex and Judy first got together, they had a smattering of Beatles albums and a few scratched 45 singles. Buoyed by their Beatles bond, they began adding to their album catalog, learning the nuances of collecting – what records were rare and why. But they had no memorabilia or merchandising items to speak of.

Till Judy discovered that market.

Watch out. Whole new ballgame.

They recall a 2003 California trip that yielded a set of rare 1964 Beatles bobbleheads. “We didn’t have a clue about memorabilia or the prices.

We had nothing to compare prices to,” explains Judy. “No vendor friends, or price guides or catalogs. We were winging it.” But they sprang for the $800 set, trusting they didn’t just get fleeced.

“Turns out the price was pretty in line for the time and what we paid,” says Alex. The newly minted memorabilia couple then set their sights on their first-ever Fest for Beatles Fans in Chicago, Judy’s birthday gift to Alex. “I couldn’t

sleep for two months. I was so excited for that fest,” he says.

They arrived early, wristbands on. Doors opened, and eyes went tilt. Before them, Beatles manna for the masses. Booth after booth of vintage items. Musicians from tribute bands added to the surreal experience, both in look and sound. “We’ve met so many good friends and dealers from going to that festival the past 15 years,” Alex says.

Among them is Beatles broker and close friend Gary Hein of New Jersey. Alex recalls buying a Yellow Submarine lunch box and a few other items during that first fest. Over the years, that buyer-dealer relationship has produced several rare items.

“They’ve definitely got one of the highest quality collections in the country. There are a few guys with bigger collections, but they aren’t as focused on quality. Sometimes, less is more,” Gary says. “Alex and Judy have the period stuff that sets them apart, and then they’ve taken it up to top-notch, top-shelf stuff.”

Among those rare gems, the group’s first-ever recording, the 45 My Bonnie from October 1961, before they were known as The Beatles. Gary sold the record to the couple, as well as John Lennon’s personal British European Airways flight bag. The broker purchased the bag from Alf Bicknell, The Beatles’ chauffeur and a tour manager during their height of fame.

“He was quite elderly and has since died, but I flew him over from England and made the pur-

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chase,” Gary recalls. “And he told me a horror story. He was gifted quite a few things from The Beatles, and for the longest time he’d had a couple of sets of Beatles suits in his closet. He came back from a trip to find his wife wanted to surprise him by cleaning out his closet and donated them, not realizing what they were. Poor guy was mortified. There’s probably some homeless guy in Liverpool right now wearing a Beatles suit.”

While Alex and Judy didn’t spot that homeless man, they did see plenty of Beatles history during a 2013 Liverpool tour for International Beatles Week. They rendezvoused with a tour group of 70 fans, visiting London, then Liverpool and places like The Cavern Club where the Fab Four’s popularity started.

The trip peaked with tour members laying down a vocal backtrack to The Beatles’ All You Need is Love at the famous Abbey Road Studios where the band recorded the majority of its songs. “So, I guess you could say we are Abbey Road recording artists,” Alex says with a laugh.

Lots of friendships were forged during that trip, including one with tribute artist Michael Callahan, known as Ringer Starr. Ringer, as in dead ringer, for he bears an uncanny resemblance to the drummer Beatle. And he’s no slouch on the drums either. He’s been playing for more than half his life. He travels the world with tribute bands, belting out Ringo songs and other pop favorites.

Michael is often mistaken for the real deal. Like at Alex’s 60th birthday-party (continued on page 24)

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FAB FOUR FUN Top photo: An impressive catalog of rare records, many still sealed, line the walls, sharing space with a child’s drum set, among other finds. Center: Period Beatles toys and baubles line the shelves. Bottom: A mannequin in a mod Beatles dress oversees this room, a bastion of rare collectibles. Among them are a Magic Slate toy – one of two known to exist – and John Lennon’s personal British European Airways flight bag.

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SINGLES & BOBBLE BEATLES Clockwise: Their 45s, in pristine picture sleeves, serve as eye candy. A rare Beatles flight bag shares space with the inflated Fab Four. Two shelves of bobbleheads were great finds, say the couple, who purchased the smaller set in 2003, their first taste of Beatles memorabilia. (continued from page 22) Beatles bash in 2019.

“I asked him to just come in character and walk around the party, then to sing with the band on stage,” recalls Alex, who hired Houston’s The Fab 5 Beatles tribute band to play The Heights Theater shindig.

“It was an over-the-top party, really cool,” says Michael. “People were afraid to come up to me. Some were trying to sneak pictures. It’s typical when I’m in situations like that.” The crowd went wild as he took to the stage singing With A Little Help From My Friends.

“Definitely the best birthday party I’ve been to in my life. And their collection is like something out of the Smithsonian,” enthuses the couple’s friend, Alex Wolchansky. An avid sports collector, he understands the thrill of the hunt. “And wow, the fact that they got to meet Paul McCartney… that’s a lifetime experience.”

Friend Jeff Smith concurs. He was on the Liverpool trip with Judy and Alex and viewed their collection upon return. “It knocks your

socks off. It is like a museum. I’ve met a lot of my musical idols, but never Paul McCartney,” he adds. “To think that Judy and Alex had a oneon-one with, in my opinion, the greatest songwriter who ever lived… wow, that’s something.”

So how does one wrangle a meeting with Sir Paul?

Very quietly, it would appear.

The couple’s Beatles world has expanded to include friends in McCartney’s circle. One of those friends reached out to McCartney, who agreed to meet the couple if they could come to Liverpool. Alex wasn’t on cloud nine. He was on cloud eleven. “I didn’t know he’d see us oneon-one! I thought it’d be in a group setting, like a meet-and-greet. I just couldn’t believe it!”

He called Judy at work to relay the news.

Screams ricocheted off the walls.

“But we were calm and collected when the time came,” says Judy. “We knew exactly what we wanted to say.” Alex arrived with a spiral notebook bucket list. Top of that list: Meet Sir Paul McCartney.

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“Paul said, ‘Well, let’s have a look,’ then signs my bucket list and says and writes Done!” recalls Alex.

“He couldn’t have been nicer and posed with us for pictures, and, of course, wow, Judy got to kiss him.”

Oh yeah, those pictures are in their Beatles collection, Judy planting a kiss on Sir Paul’s cheek. He autographed the couple’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album and made note of Judy’s handbag by fashion designer Stella McCartney, his daughter. “When he saw that he said, ‘You’ve got good taste, girl!’” Alex recalls.

Definitely the pinnacle in Alex and Judy’s Beatles-blissed life.

As for their collection, they’re all about sharing. They are hoping to establish a pop-up Beatles museum one day, with proceeds going to a worthy cause. And they’d like to hand off their bit of Beatledom in its entirety one day.

“We won’t be here forever, and I think it would be a great museum for Houston,” Alex says. “I want people to enjoy it for eternity.”

Ob-la-di, ob-la-da, life goes on, brah…

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NEIGHBORS

by Pooja Salhotra, staff writer

Love Stories From first glance to forever

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eorge Alcorn won’t hesitate to tell you that, in the fall of 1986, he fell hard for a tall and gregarious 23-year-old woman named Sallie Comstock. It was the night of Halloween, and George, then a 28-year-old geologist, was hosting a costume party with his roommates in Tanglewood.

“I glanced over in the living room, and [Sallie] was sitting on a sofa we had,” recounts George.

“I stopped and went, ‘Woah. Who is that?”

George then walked right up to Sallie, a 5’11’’ brunette who was dressed as a witch, and introduced himself. George, wearing a tuxedo and a scary mask – a getup he calls “the sharp-dressed ugly man” – started a conversation. Soon, George and Sallie were laughing it up and dancing to Jimmy Buffett in the den. All seemed to be going well, until Sallie said it was time for her to go.

“I was having the best time, and all of a sudden she was getting ready to leave,” says George.

“I was like, ‘Where are you going?’”

The answer is one George, now 63, shares somewhat solemnly: Sallie had another date.

The name of the man Sallie left with that evening is not something she remembers. What she does remember is that she hit it off with George. Sallie won’t go so far as to call it love at first sight – though she did take a liking to George’s hair and 6’4’’ frame – but she was interested.

For about six months after the Halloween party, Sallie and George saw each other only once per month. Sallie, working as a legal assistant at the time, was still dating someone else – a different guy than the one she went out with on Halloween, and it took some persistence for George to win Sallie’s admiration and love.

With time, Sallie got to know George as a fun and generous man with a sense of humor.

She recalls a Christmas gift he gave her – a planter filled with poinsettias and a reindeer Christmas ornament. “I remember I thought, ‘What guy would get me this?’ It was so nice,” Sallie says with a big laugh.

By the following summer, the couple was dating each other exclusively, often going out dancing. “We were always dancing,” Sallie reminisces, rattling off names of places they frequented in Houston. The relationship progressed

GEORGE AND SALLIE George and Sallie met at a Halloween party in 1986 and got engaged the following year. What they love most is throwing parties together — they can't wait for more dinner parties at their house post-Covid. Here, the couple is pictured recently in their front yard (top photo) and on their wedding day (bottom photo).

quickly: George proposed in December, Sallie said yes, and by April, they were married.

Today, Halloween remains an important holiday in the Alcorn household. Just like the night they met, George dresses up as a sharp-dressed ugly man, wearing a tuxedo and a different mask each year, and Sallie dresses up as a witch.

Though the pandemic stopped them from host-

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ing a Halloween party in 2020, it could not stop the Alcorns from celebrating. Creatively, George constructed a candy chute using a six-foot PVC pipe. He painted it orange and secured it above the front door using a bungee cord and hook.

Throughout the evening, the couple dropped candy down the chute to trick-or-treaters.

“We’ve spent every single Halloween the same

Lisa Beth Photography

SANDI AND FRED Though it took them 45 years, Sandi Bodzin and Fred Jordan – who met as students at Westbury High School – got married in December. They are pictured here at their wedding (at left) -- which took place in the parking lot of Brookdale Senior Living, where Sandi's 95-year-old mother resides -- and back in high school (at right).

way: at home, handing out candy, and celebrating with our friends. Just like the day we met,” George says, grinning. “It’s our favorite holiday.”

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hen George Alcorn tells his love story, it sounds simple: He spotted Sallie, was struck by her beauty, and was won over by her kind and generous spirit, which he says is evident in Sallie’s career. She’s a dedicated public servant: for over 10 years, she worked for the City of Houston before she ran a successful campaign and was elected in 2019 to serve on Houston’s City Council. George never doubted that Sallie was the one he wanted to spend his life with, and he patiently waited until she felt the same way.

But when it comes to love, it’s not always a straight path. There can be rough patches, hiccups, unreciprocated gestures, or even broken hearts along the way.

Take Sandi Bodzin and Fred Jordan. The couple met almost 50 years ago, as students at Westbury High School. Although they dated for two years back then, it took Sandi and Fred 45 years to get together.

“It took me a long time to marry her, but I’m persistent,” says Fred, 66, who married Sandi last December. “I call her my bookends,” Fred says, explaining that Sandi is both the first woman he ever loved and the last he ever will love.

When Fred first met Sandi at BBYO, a nonprofit organization for Jewish teenagers, he was smitten. Sandi was smart, sweet and popular. Fred

wrote love letters to Sandi while she was on a pilgrimage to Israel and then invited her to his senior prom. Even when Fred went off to the University of Houston to study engineering, he continued to date Sandi, then a senior at Westbury.

“But then shortly after that, we broke up, and she broke my heart,” says Fred. Sandi was off to college at UT Austin, and she wanted to experience new things, meet new people. She did just that. After graduating from college, she married a fellow Longhorn and moved to Dallas, where she worked as a math teacher. She built a family, a teaching career, good friends – an entire life.

Fred, though despondent about the breakup, eventually moved on, too. He graduated from UH and moved to Savannah, Georgia, and later to his birthplace of Brazil. He got married, had kids, traveled the world, and worked as a manager of industrial projects.

For 25 years, Sandi and Fred neither saw nor spoke to each other. When they finally did meet – at a bar mitzvah of a mutual friend’s son in 2000 – they simply said hello and went their separate ways.

It wasn’t until 2018 that someone hit play on Sandi and Fred’s love story. Sandi had recently lost her husband, Mark Bodzin, and Fred, divorced, was back in the States, living in Atlanta. He commuted each week to Baton Rouge, where his company operated an industrial plant. One weekend, Fred traveled to Houston to visit friends. He took photos of his

old neighborhood and posted them on Facebook. When Sandi saw the post, she reached out to Fred.

“We started conversing through Messenger, and then finally she sends me a phone number,” Fred recounts. “It took me a couple days to get enough courage to call her.” That first phone call lasted three hours.

Soon after, Sandi got on a plane and met Fred in New Orleans. She was nervous. After spending 38 years married, this was new territory. But, as the couple walked down Bourbon Street, Sandi realized that even after 45 years, the chemistry was there. Sandi laughed at Fred’s jokes, and Fred found Sandi to be the sweetest woman he had ever met. From then on, not a day went by that Fred and Sandi didn’t talk on the phone.

Today, Sandi and Fred are happily married in Dallas. They’ve blended two lives: Sandi’s grandkids call grandma’s new husband “Uncle Fred.” And when the coronavirus is under control, the couple plans to travel to Brazil and Georgia to visit Fred’s friends and family, who Sandi adores.

Romantics may see Fred and Sandi’s story as evidence of fate – only divine intervention could reunite two long lost lovers after 45 years. Right?

Maybe. Or, perhaps Sandi and Fred wrote their own love story. It was, after all, Sandi’s own chutzpah that led the two to reconnect through Facebook. And ultimately, it was Fred and Sandi who chose to surmount geographical barriers to make a relation- (continued on page 28)

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Diego Ramirez

(continued from page 27) ship work.

Maybe love isn’t up to fate at all; maybe it is very much in our own hands. Such is the case for Lucian Rombado and his fiancée Sarah Staerker, two 23 year olds who, against both statistical odds and physical distance, are together.

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ucian and Sarah first met as shy and awkward 14 year olds. It was a cold winter day in Houston, and Sarah, a freshman at the allgirls St. Agnes Academy, was introduced to Lucian, a freshman at the all-boys school down the street, Strake Jesuit. What Sarah recalls most about that day is how she felt.

“I remember I was super embarrassed,” recalls Sarah, visibly cringing at the memory. “As a 14 year old, you’re obviously self-conscious, but I was also embarrassed about the way my jacket was zipped up all the way past my chin.”

Sarah thought Lucian was cute and went on a few of what Sarah called “group dates” – hangouts at CityCentre, lunch at Chipotle – teenage stuff. It was a sweet romance. Eventually, Sarah asked Lucian to the St. Agnes winter formal.

But, unsure of how to process her feelings, she said they should just be friends.

“I was pretty bummed out,” admits Lucian.

After spending their sophomore year apart – during which Sarah dated one of Lucian’s friends – the two were back together junior year.

They went to homecomings, proms, cotillions, and National Charity League dances together.

“You could just kind of see that they did really well together,” says Marissa Rombado, Lucian’s mom.

After high school, Sarah decided to attend Texas A&M while Lucian picked the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Lucian’s mentors suggested he end things with Sarah.

“They said the Naval Academy is not the type of place you want to go with any kind of attach-

ments,” says Lucian.

A young man with a strong will, Lucian dismissed these warnings and decided with Sarah to try long-distance. For the next three years, Lucian and Sarah matured, physically apart but still together, staying connected through FaceTime and occasional visits.

It was by no means easy. “There were trying times where we’d ask, is it worth it to be doing long distance, where we see each other twice a semester at best?” says SARAH AND LUCIAN Sarah Staerker and Lucian Rombado met as shy 14 Sarah. “It came to a year olds. As freshmen, Sarah asked Lucian to attend the St. Agnes winter formal head our senior year with her (bottom photo). Through physical distance and ups and downs, they’ve always found their way back to each other. Lucian proposed to Sarah in Memorial when we broke up.”

Park over the Christmas holidays last year (top photo).

Breaking up was, stacer. That summer, Lucian boldly drove from tistically speaking, likely. At the Naval Pensacola, Florida – where he was in summer Academy, students speak of the “two percent training – to see Sarah in Nashville. “It’s pretty club,” the small number of students who continmuch been uphill ever since,” says Lucian. ue to date and then marry their high school Over the past year, Lucian and Sarah have sweethearts. Lucian and Sarah knew the odds together survived and even thrived during a were not in their favor. global pandemic. They’ve made it through two But after a year apart, they both realized that of Lucian’s deployments, when he’s stationed on no relationship with the other was far worse a submarine with little to no ability to commuthan a long-distance one. nicate with Sarah. So even though the odds “That year that they were apart, Sarah’s name have never been in their favor, Lucian and would always come up,” recalls Lucian’s mom Sarah – who got engaged in Memorial Park over Marissa. “Lucian would say, ‘I wonder what the holidays – are confident that their relationSarah’s doing. And I wonder what Sarah’s ship is built to last. doing. And I wonder what Sarah’s doing.””

“What’s cool about our story is we’ve always Lucian discovered that Sarah had moved to found our way back to each other,” said Lucian.

Nashville for Teach For America, not far from “We always figure it out.”

Georgia, where he’d be stationed as a navy offi-

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KIDS

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by Annie Blaylock McQueen, staff writer

Buzz Baby

Out of the crib

Buzz Baby is a column about life with babies.

Writer Annie McQueen is a mother of four children under the age of 6.

O

ne does not realize how important it is to feel rested and ready to take on the day until sleep becomes a precious and limited commodity.

That happens when you have small children who will not stay in their cribs. It is a scary moment when you realize your wiggly, squirmy toddler has suddenly mastered climbing out of the crib, previously the only place he or she could not escape.

One Buzz mom splurged on the fanciest, magazine-worthy crib in Highland Village. “It was our first baby, so I wanted to have a really pretty crib,” she said. The crib had gray, neutral colors, with paneling on the head and footboards and soft upholstered tufting.

The crib was delivered and set up, with striped curtains and a white shag rug. The nesting continued with crib bedding, washed and prepared. Their baby arrived – a girl, and she slept like an angel in her beautiful crib.

Swaddled up, she would be exactly where they placed her the following morning.

Fast forward about 18 months. The fancy crib became the now-toddler’s playhouse, and she learned that when she pulled herself up and threw one leg over the side and kept pulling, she could escape. The parents scratched their heads and wondered, like so many parents in these shoes, what to do. Leave her in the crib and continue battling her escape plan or transition her into a bed?

The parents were exhausted, but they decided they did not feel ready to move her out of the crib, so they improvised. “We got desperate,” the mom said. “My husband took the mattress and unscrewed the bottom of the bed and put the mattress on the floor so she could not climb out.” The sides were too tall for her to grab.

That solution worked for a little bit and bought them some more time before they converted the crib into a toddler bed (which a lot of cribs these days can do – they come with a conversion kit).

THE GREAT ESCAPE Elyse Gonzalez, here at 14 months, and her two sisters all learned how to climb out of the crib at 18 months old.

It can be challenging to move a toddler from a crib to a bed. Timing is important. If the child is too young, not having those walls surrounding them might scare them. They might be safer in their crib to avoid rolling out of bed (although bed rails are an option) or getting out of bed at night, that is, if they cannot climb out of their crib already. Not all kids master that skill or realize they can.

Most parents who use a crib transition their children out of it in a timeframe that works best for their household and the child, but it usually starts around 18 months at the earliest. Some kids might stay in their crib until age 3 – if it is working, why make the big change?

Sue Hurley’s son Conor, 3, surprised her one morning. “I remember one of the first times he crawled out of his crib,” said Sue. “It was a complete shock. He climbed out in the morning, made not a peep, walked down the stairs, and came into our bedroom and woke us up. We were so disoriented.” They soon

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moved him to a bed.

For parents Kevin and Marie Gonzalez, by the time their third child, daughter Elizabeth, now 3, was 18 months old, she was climbing out of her crib. Like most parents, they decided that was their signal – time to move her into a toddler bed.

However, her first nights in her new toddler bed did not go as planned, and instead of falling asleep and staying in her bed, Elizabeth was climbing out each night. They were exhausted.

They purchased a crib tent. A crib tent is made of soft mosquito netting. It is tied onto the sides of the crib, creating an escape-proof dome over the baby. Marie said Elizabeth was skeptical at first, judging from her expressions, but she quickly adjusted to the new mesh dome.

Sleep is valuable, and there are no rules in the theoretical manual of parenting that no one owns, so if the child is getting the appropriate amount of sleep, whether in a crib or a bed, that’s a win for everyone in the household.

NEIGHBORS

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by Cindy Burnett, staff writer

Buzz Reads

Five picks for February

Buzz Reads is a column about books by reviewer Cindy Burnett. This month, Cindy recommends five recently released titles.

T

he Invisible Woman by Erika Robuck – Robuck brings real-life American heroine Virginia Hall to life, highlighting her immense bravery as an Allied spy in German-occupied France during World War II. She vividly depicts Hall’s extraordinary heroism amid the horror of the Nazi atrocities while also shining a light on the thousands of regular people who bravely joined the Resistance (and put their lives on the line) to ensure that their country would not fall to the Nazis. I read this one in less than 24 hours and absolutely loved it.

The Kindest Lie by Nancy Johnson – Set at the dawning of the Obama administration, The Kindest Lie follows Ruth Tuttle, a black engineer whose husband is eager to start a family. Haunted by her decision to give up a baby she gave birth to when she was young, Ruth returns home to Indiana to face her past so that she can focus on her future. Disheartened by the poverty and racism she encounters upon her return home, she searches for the son she gave up while also digging into her family’s past, only to unearth secrets long buried. As racial and economic tensions build and eventually overflow, Johnson vividly demonstrates the brutal and long-lasting consequences of an ongoing racial divide that continues to exist.

The Last Tiara by M.J. Rose – M.J. Rose’s latest book focuses on a tiara that was once owned by the Romanov family (and is actually still missing today) and her reimagining of what could have happened to this priceless artifact.

When her mother Sophia dies in 1948 Manhattan, Isobelle stumbles across a tiara, stripped of all of its jewels, hidden in their shared apartment. As she researches the mysterious tiara, she learns more about her mother’s past, something Sophia would never speak about when she was alive. In 1915 Russia, Sofiya Petrovitch and her close friend Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna tend to injured troops on the grounds of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg where Sofiya/Sophia falls in love and sets in

motion events that eventually cause her to flee to the United States. Told in alternating perspectives and time periods, the tales of the two young women slowly unfold as the mystery of the tiara is ultimately resolved.

Moms Don’t Have Time To: A Quarantine Anthology edited by Zibby Owens – Covid-19 altered our lives in 2020 in ways that few could have foreseen – we have a new vocabulary specific to our current existence, our interactions with each other are modified, and our day-to-day routines are significantly WHAT TO READ This month's picks include a compilation of essays, two historical-fiction titles, a mystery set in Australia, and a timely tale set during the early different than prior to days of the Obama administration. the pandemic. Zibby The Survivors by Jane Harper – Jane Harper Owens has used this time productively, promotreturns with another stunning and well-paced ing authors and their books on her podcast Moms Australian mystery, this time choosing southernDon’t Have Time to Read Books and on IGTV, most Tasmania as her setting. After a long absence, through an online magazine she created called protagonist Kieran Elliott returns home to Evelyn We Found Time, which addressed growing Bay for a visit to help care for his ailing father. When demands on our time (something the pandemic he was 12, an accident led to the death of Kieran’s exacerbated). This anthology compiles the essays brother Finn and his friend, and the town blamed from We Found Time, written by a variety of Kieran for the tragedy. His arrival is met with disauthors and organized thematically into five catdain, and when a murder occurs, all eyes are focused egories of things moms have to find time for: eat, on Kieran again. Part character study, part mystery, read, work out, breathe, and sex. Some of my The Survivors showcases Harper’s stellar writing style, favorites are “Wait, Did I Kill My Book Club?” and her vivid imagery helps to immerse the reader

by Rachel Levy Lesser, “What the Brady Bunch in the atmospheric and gloomy setting.

Taught Me about Family Dinners” by Alison Cayne, and “When I Got Coronavirus, My Editor’s note: Southside Place resident Cindy Husband Became My Wife” by Karma Brown.

Burnett also writes our weekly Page Turners column All proceeds from the sales of this book go to the at thebuzzmagazines.com. She hosts the Thoughts Susan Felice Owens Program for COVID-19 from a Page Podcast, is co-creator of the Houston Vaccine Research at Mount Sinai Health literary event series Conversations from the Page, System (Zibby lost her mother-in-law, Susan runs the Instagram account @thoughtsfrompage, Felice Owens, and grandmother-in-law to and regularly speaks to groups about books.

Covid-19 this summer).

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TRAVEL

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by Tracy L. Barnett, staff writer

Travel Buzz

Winter sports in a pandemic

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iven that some of the first Covid hotspots originated in ski resorts, some people are opting to take a pass on winter sports this season. But the ski industry has met the challenge head-on and implemented multiple measures that have allowed them to keep the slopes open. Indeed, it’s a sport that’s practiced in the open air and by definition must be distanced – so with a few precautions, according to experts, there’s no reason it can’t be practiced safely.

“If you look at different types of activities and the risk posed by the viral pandemic, I think being outdoors and especially covered with masks or other types of protective devices, it’s probably as safe an activity as you could do,” said Charles Katz, an ENT specialist formerly of Bellaire who moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, almost a decade ago.

Charles has been a part of the medical community responding to the Covid crisis that hit Park City in March, just as it did ski towns around the world. He observed closely as the numbers went down and then back up again, with Park City experiencing an intense second wave in December and January, at the time of our interview.

“There are certain risks associated with resorts; you’re not outdoors in a socially distant situation all the time,” said Charles. “You have to go out and have food breaks – those situations that may not be socially distanced.”

Still, travelers can take measures to reduce those risks — he recommends avoiding busy holiday weekends, preparing your own food, and choosing a condo or an Airbnb type of situation, rather than a crowded resort. A number of Buzz travelers have been venturing out to try out the terrain and are finding good conditions and reasonable risk levels, and enjoying their winter sports with a minimum of traffic on the slopes.

Guys on the slopes Kevin Boyle, for instance, took a weekend getaway in Vail the first week in December with his buddy from Tanglewood, Mark Young.

There they found the ski resort taking multiple precautions: mandating mask-wearing, spacing out the wait lines for the lifts, requiring reserva-

tions, and reducing seating capacity at the restaurants to allow for distancing.

APRES SKI The Boyle Boys are all smiles after a blue-sky day on the mountain. From “The mountain din- left: Kevin Jr., Kevin Sr., and Sean Boyle. ing had very restricted So it was just the guys this time, and they spent access; they were taking reservations, and that the vacation bonding over breakfasts and dinjust motivated us to throw granola bars in our ners in the condo, with an abundance of advenpockets and eat on a picnic bench on top of the tures on the slopes – and for lunch, reservations mountain and not bother trying to find a reserwere secured every morning at 7 a.m. for onvation,” he said. “The views were great.” mountain dining.

“It was great to see,” said Kevin. “The mountain Things were different this time; the instructor was certainly doing its best to have new rules in had to meet them at the bottom of the slope place, to make sure the trails stayed open and that instead of at the lodge; she couldn’t hang out everyone was safe. There were not tons of trails and have lunch with them, as she had in the open, but there were enough to keep us busy.” past. Kevin had to stay present with the boys, He researched the safety of flying and found and couldn’t leave them in her care. that while it’s not risk-free — tight seating may They had a ski-in, ski-out condo, which require sitting next to an asymptomatic carrier helped tremendously with logistics – skiers with– he said the documented incidence of transmisout that advantage were booting up in their cars, sion from air travel has been rare. United since the lodge wasn’t offering that service.

Airlines, his chosen carrier, uses hospital-grade, But even with the restrictions, the trip was a high-efficiency air filters, as do most commercial wonderful father-son adventure. This was the airlines, which brings in half of the air from outthird year in a row that the boys had gone skiing, side. The other half is pumped through the and each year they’ve grown in strength and HEPA filters, which filter out 99.97 percent of confidence. To Kevin, the trips have been an airborne particles. important way to give the boys something he Kevin was gratified to see the airline staff wasn’t able to do when he was growing up, and enforcing the mask mandate when a 20-someit’s been a pleasure to watch them develop their thing woman refused to wear one. “The pilot got skills, each in his own way. on and said if you don’t wear your mask right “Their personalities are reflected in their skiing,” now, we’re going to kick non-mask wearers off he said. “Kevin (Jr.) tends to be a little bit more the plane.” The woman put the mask on, and hesitant and nervous, and Sean is the one who there were no further incidents. tends to go all in, so that’s reflective of their styles.”

So upon his return, he decided to reward his To Kevin, the adventure is about much more two boys — Kevin Jr., 12, and Sean, 11 — for a than skiing; it’s about building self confidence. tough semester cooped up indoors with their “Anytime you stretch your comfort level, and online classes. He took them to Beaver Creek, you’re able to successfully accomplish that goal, Colo., where the family has now been going for it’s just a great life lesson – and it’s something I three years in a row. There they had found an continue to stress with the boys: It’s not about excellent adaptive ski instructor, Jenifer skiing, it’s about the lessons you learn from Behrens, who is trained in working with people doing those activities, and this is one of them,” with disabilities, and who used a special bluehe said. “The boys were nervous that they hadn’t tooth device that connected with Kevin Jr.’s been on skis for a year. To overcome that dishearing aids, making it sound as though she were comfort and the nerves and work through it, and 18 inches away. “It was awesome,” said Kevin. then excel, is a great life lesson – because how Kevin’s wife, Liz, who is not a fan of flying, many times do we face that as adults? Falling decided to stay home with the three family dogs.

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Bob Scott Bob Scott

Photo courtesy Cheryl Rosenberg

MOUNTAIN VIEWS The Rosenbergs take a photo break at the top of the Bonanza lift at Park City Mountain. From left: Jonah, Cheryl, Samantha, and Richard, with Allison in the front in a sit-ski. Top right: Bob Scott took this photo of Colorado’s Collegiate Peaks from the top of Beaver Creek Mountain. Lower right: Bob and Susan's dog, Sasha, waits for her frisbee in the snow at Beaver Creek.

down, then getting up and dusting yourself off and trying again. We’re all going to fall – and that’s ok. It’s how you respond that’s important.”

A home on the slopes Bob Scott and Susan Bickley, friends and neighbors of Kevin, and Cheryl and Richard Rosenberg, friends and former neighbors of Charles, are two Buzz couples who have opted to go all in and get a second home in ski country – Bob and Susan in Beaver Creek, and the Rosenbergs in Deer Valley, Utah. Both couples are finding it to be a great alternate work environment – and also a good place to be during a pandemic.

Bob and Susan were in Vail at the time of the big outbreak in March, and it was a worrisome flight home. Still, they watched as the ski industry and the country in general began to get a handle on the virus, and by December, they felt they were ready to give it another try – taking all the precautions.

Normally they go and visit their families at Christmas and Thanksgiving, alternating between the families. But this year with the pandemic they thought it better not to potentially expose their mothers, so they packed their two

dogs in the car and headed for the hills.

“I don’t think either one of us is anxious to fly at this point,” Bob said. “We’ve managed to make it to this point without contracting the coronavirus, and we’d like to keep it that way.”

Their work with the national law firm Blank Rome keeps them busy – especially Susan, who is the Houston office chair – but other than the spectacular view of the White River National Forest, and the ski breaks every now and then, their working conditions are pretty much the same.

What they’ve noticed in their occasional outings to town is that people in Vail and Beaver Creek are more cautious about using masks and distancing than they are in Houston – so they actually feel safer in their mountain home.

When they were there over the summer, they were able to dine at a few of the local cafés, which had outdoor seating arrangements.

Nowadays with the cold and the snow, everything is indoors, so they are enjoying creative cooking together – something they haven’t taken much time for in recent years, with the intensity of their work.

Cheryl and Richard are in the same boat, officing from their second home in Deer Valley.

They have been pleased to find resorts and other local businesses taking ample precautions. Still, they don’t get out much, except to ski. “We didn’t go out to restaurants or go shopping; all we did was ski and go home,” she said. “You have to have reservations to eat at the restaurants on the mountain, which we didn’t do; we just brought our own sandwiches.

“So far we’ve skied three mountains – Deer Valley, Park City, and Canyons – and they’re all taking precautions very seriously,” she said. “We felt very safe.”

“My recommendation would be to come out when the snow is better,” said Dr. Katz in a December interview. “If they’ve been vaccinated that will make it safer for them and for everybody. Expect some changes, embrace them, and enjoy themselves. It’s still a fantastic opportunity to get outdoors and enjoy themselves and as low-risk an endeavor as you’ll find anywhere.”

Editor’s note: Buzz travel columnist Tracy L. Barnett is a Lowell Thomas travel journalism award winner and longtime travel and environmental writer. Email her at info@thebuzzmagazines.com to share your own travel tales.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 35

DINING

Chef’s Corner T

Joey Chavez

he Brennan family has mentored countless talents through the decades, including celebrity chefs Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Lagasse. Both honed their skills at Commander’s Palace in New Orleans. Meanwhile, across state lines, its younger sibling, Brennan’s of Houston, has nurtured talents such as Randy Evans, Danny Trace, Chris Shepherd, and Joe Cervantez. Now add another: Joey Chavez.

Unlike Brennan’s past executive chefs, Chavez didn’t rise through the ranks: “We’ve never hired someone from the outside to be executive chef. I don’t think it’s ever been done since I’ve been here,” says general manager Carl Walker, who helmed the kitchen at Brennan’s of Houston in the late ’80s and ’90s.

But when Chavez’s résumé came across his desk, something told him and owner Alex BrennanMartin to delve deeper. Walker visited Chavez in Baltimore, where Chavez was executive chef at The Bygone, a rooftop restaurant at the Four Seasons. It wasn’t Chavez’s appearance on Food Network’s Chopped or being named “Best New Chef” by the Baltimore Sun Readers’ Choice Awards in 2019 that landed Chavez the job – it was his zeal for sharpening his culinary skills constantly.

Below, 32-year-old Chavez, currently planning Brennan’s Mardi Gras celebration Feb. 16, discusses snaring one of the most coveted chef positions in the South, as well as his favorite Houston restaurant for crab cakes.

You were born and raised in Southern California.

How did you land in Texas?

I got a football scholarship from Lamar University in Beaumont, but I knew that I would never go to the NFL. I wasn’t big enough, being barely 6-foot tall. Once football ended, I knew I wanted to be a chef.

Did you work at Pappadeaux while working on your bachelor’s degree and culinary degree at Lamar?

I was a crawfish cook. At the same time, I was working at a sushi bar, called Koi. I was also commuting to Lake Charles to work at La Truffe Sauvage, a little French restaurant. I really fell in love with the refinement and discipline that went into cooking at La Truffe Sauvage. Every night, the owner, Arthur Durham, was there cooking with his partner, Mohamed Chettouh. The two

Kimberly Park

by Dai Huynh, staff writer

were on the line every night making everything from scratch with the help of only two other people.

One of the things that impressed the folks at Brennan’s was your relentless drive to expand your food knowledge. After college, in 2012, you started at Wolfgang Puck’s Spago at the Ritz-Carlton in Colorado. In less than a year, you worked your way up to sous chef. What came next?

At the Ritz-Carlton, I discovered what Michelin was and who Thomas Keller was. It became my main focus to work for the best of the CHEF CHAVEZ New executive chef Joey Chavez balances traditions and trends best. Every time I had off, at the iconic Brennan's of Houston.

I staged. I made it a point ture for four minutes in the sink before draining. to stage [intern without pay] at every threeNow, you can remove the lobster cleanly from the Michelin-starred kitchen in the U.S. The one I shell and toss it into pastas or garnish soups or salads. missed was Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare [in New You arrived at Brennan’s of Houston right when York]. I never was able to get in there, but I staged restaurants were forced to do curbside pickup or delivat Le Bernardin, Per Se, Masa, Dovetail, Nomad, ery because of Covid-19. Have you had a chance to Eleven Madison, The Restaurant at Meadowood, try out any of our city’s restaurants? and others.

There is an Italian restaurant near my house, I saw all these great chefs, and they all had Lomonte’s Italian Restaurant and Pizzeria (815 worked for Thomas Keller at one point. So, that’s Plantation Drive, Richmond). The fried ravioli what I got to do. Every time I sat down to a comand pizzas are fantastic. They have a great baked puter, I would send my résumé to Thomas Keller. rigatoni with homemade sauce, peppers, and ricotI finally got a call to do a stage at The French ta. I’ve also been to Loch Bar (4444 Westheimer Laundry, then I ended up getting a position there Road). They have one of the better crab cakes and his other place, Bouchon. around. Coming from Baltimore, I miss the crab In 2016, you became chef de cuisine for James cakes. And their negroni cocktail is really good.

Beard Award-winning chef Charles Phan’s OTD in When this is over, I hope to make my way to San Francisco, followed by the legendary private club, Ostia (2050 Dunlavy St.). Travis McShane Caribou Club, in Colorado, then The Bygone. Share worked for Jonathan Waxman. a technique that you learned from staging that you used regularly at these places.

Editor’s note: Buzz dining columnist Dai Huynh is To get lobster to a perfect medium-rare, you bring a James Beard food-journalism award winner and water and vinegar to a boil, then you pour it over longtime Houston-based restaurant writer. the lobster. Let it sit in the water-and-vinegar mix-

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 36

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 37

Photo courtesy of The Junior League of Houston

FOOD

by Erin Faulkner, contributing writer

Cooking Buzz Comfort food for winter Cooking Buzz is produced in partnership with the Junior League of Houston, a women’s charitable and education organization founded in 1925.

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s the cooler temps in Texas continue and we find ourselves in the 10th or 11th month of spending maybe too much time with our families (thanks, Covid), comfort food sounds appealing. Why not prepare a meal that makes everyone in the family happy and lets you give into our cold weatherinduced need for carbs.

Both of these recipes take some time and forethought but are worth it. The Savory Breakfast Strata isn’t the same old breakfast casserole everyone makes. The addition of rosemary, sundried tomatoes, and turkey sausage gives this casserole an Italian twist. The Salisbury Steak isn’t your average Salisbury steak either, due to its special ingredient: hot sauce. And kids will love the mac and cheese.

Savory Breakfast Strata From Stop and Smell the Rosemary 5 cups cubed day-old bread 1 pound turkey breakfast sausage (ground or links with casing removed) ¼ cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, oil reserved ½ cup chopped onion 1 to 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary 4 to 6 ounces (1 to 1½ cups) Monterey Jack cheese, shredded 6 large eggs 1½ cups milk 1 teaspoon of salt ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper 1 teaspoon dry mustard Spray a 9-inch square baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle bread cubes in casserole. Sprinkle sausage evenly over bread cubes. Pour 1 tablespoon of reserved sun-dried tomato oil into skillet. Add onions and sauté until tender. Add tomatoes and rosemary, stirring until blended. Place onion mixture over sausage. Cover with cheese. Whisk eggs, milk, salt, pepper, and dry mustard in a medium bowl

OVERNIGHT CASSEROLE Breakfast Strata is quick to put together with ingredients already in the fridge.

until well blended. Pour egg mixture over casserole. Cover. Refrigerate 8 to 10 hours or overnight. Bring to room temperature before baking. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake 30 to 45 minutes, or until set. Serves 8.

Salisbury Steak with Mac ‘N’ Cheese From Peace Meals Salisbury Steak: 1 pound of ground venison (beef can be substituted) ½ pound of ground beef 1 teaspoon Creole meat seasoning ½ cup dry bread crumbs ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce 2 Tablespoons of hot sauce ¼ cup ground onion 1 garlic glove, minced 1 egg, slightly beaten Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil Sauce: 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil 2 cups julienned yellow onions 2 cups sliced shitake mushrooms 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour 3 cups beef broth 3 Tablespoons Madeira wine 1 Tablespoon Louisiana hot sauce 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper Fresh herbs to taste Mac ‘N’ Cheese: 4 ounces cream cheese, cubed ¾ cup milk, divided 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese Pinch freshly grated nutmeg

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 38

Coarse salt White pepper 3 cups cooked nori or other pasta (1½ cups dry pasta) Salisbury Steak and Sauce: In a medium bowl, combine the meat and Creole seasoning; mix well. In a small bowl, combine the bread crumbs with the Worcestershire and hot sauce, and allow to soak for 1 minute. Combine with the seasoned meat, onion, garlic, and egg. Shape into 6 patties and lightly season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large soup pot over high heat, add 2 tablespoons of oil. Once it starts to smoke, add the onions and mushrooms, and sauté until they have caramelized. Remove from heat and stir in flour until well combined. Move the pot back to heat and add remaining ingredients and bring to a medium simmer for 30 minutes; adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Reserve.

Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a large sauté pan over high and sear the patties on both sides until browned; arrange in a single layer in a 13- by 9inch or 12- by 8-inch baking dish. Ladle the sauce over the patties and bake covered for 30 minutes or internal temperature reaches 135°F. Remove from the oven and keep warm until ready to serve. Serves 6.

Mac ‘N’ Cheese: Melt the cream cheese and half of the milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat, whisking until the cream cheese is creamy; add the remaining milk and cook over low heat until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in the cheddar cheese and season the cheese to taste. Stir the cooked pasta into the hot cheese sauce.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 39

SPORTS

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by Todd Freed, staff writer

SportzBuzz G

reat things came in threes for the Episcopal and St. Thomas football programs on early National Signing Day. For Episcopal, the Knights are sending a trio of offensive lineman to the collegiate ranks, led by 6’4”, 308-pound Ohio State signee Donovan Jackson. Jackson, who had verbally committed to Ohio State last year, was recently named the winner of the Anthony Muñoz Lineman of the Year award, which goes to the nation’s top high school lineman in the class of 2021.

“To be ranked as the No. 1 player in the country is incredibly special,” said Episcopal head football coach Steve Leisz. (Former Episcopal Knight Walker Little, who went on to star at Stanford, won the same award back in 2017.)

“I’m just blessed and grateful for everything that’s come my way, and I plan on continuing to work hard to achieve my dreams,” said Jackson.

Another Power Five Conference signee for Episcopal is offensive lineman Cullen Montgomery, who will play college ball for the Oklahoma Sooners. The 6’5”, 315-pound Montgomery is a 4-star prospect who’s ranked among the state’s top offensive tackles. “It’s been fun to watch Cullen mature over the years. He’s a raw talent that Oklahoma will mold into a great player,” said Leisz.

Rounding out the trio of signees for Episcopal is another standout offensive lineman in Luis Chavarria, who started all four years for the Knights. Rated as one of Greater Houston’s top interior linemen, Chavarria signed with Prairie View A&M. “Luis is the ultimate team player and a guy who cares for everyone. He’ll make an immediate impact at Prairie View,” said Leisz.

With the signings of Jackson, Montgomery, and Chavarria, Episcopal continued its trend of sending an incredible haul of offensive-line talent to the next level, including Little at Stanford as well as Florida State star defensive tackle Marvin Wilson, Little’s 2017 teammate at Episcopal. “It is pretty amazing to have all those phenomenal linemen represent our school at the next level,” said Leisz.

Meanwhile, the St. Thomas Eagles are sending an impressive threesome of players to the collegiate ranks, with quarterback

TALENTED TRIO The Episcopal Knights are again sending a haul of offensive-line talent to the collegiatefootball level. From left: Donovan Jackson (Ohio State), Luis Chavarria (Prairie View A&M), and Cullen Montgomery (Oklahoma) made their commitments official on early National Signing Day. Also on hand was Episcopal Knights football coach Steve Leisz.

Maddox Kopp, wide receiver Cameron Bonner, and tight end Drake Martinez making their collegiate choices official on early National Signing Day. Kopp, who had earlier verbally committed to the University of Houston, officially signed on with the hometown Cougars. In just nine games this past season, Kopp threw for 3,100 yards and 30 touchdowns. During his illustrious career at St. Thomas, Kopp totaled over 6,000 passing yards with 57 touchdowns. He was among the invitees to the Elite 11 camp, which brings together the nation’s top high school quarterback prospects. “Maddox is not only a great talent, but he’s also a tremendous leader,” said St. Thomas head football coach Rich McGuire.

“He did a great job of keeping our team focused all season.”

One of Kopp’s favorite targets, Bonner will now take his receiving talents to the Big 12, having signed to play for the Baylor Bears. This past season for St. Thomas, Bonner had over 760 yards in receptions despite playing in only seven games. Over the last two seasons, he accounted for 20 touchdown receptions while averaging a lofty 24 yards per catch. “Cameron will be a really terrific slot receiver in college,” said McGuire. “The really big thing about Cameron is that he’s also blazing fast.”

Martinez honored his earlier verbal commit-

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 40

ment and signed to play for Colorado State.

Over the last two seasons, Martinez accounted for 1,240 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns for the Eagles. “Drake really fell in love with the place when he went there last spring on a recruiting visit,” said McGuire.

“Drake, Maddox, and Cameron have a tremendous work ethic. It’s also really great for our St. Thomas football program to receive the kind of notoriety with the signing of these three outstanding individuals.”

Over at Lamar High School, the Texans celebrated early National Signing Day with the signings of defensive backs Lamont Landry and Khai’mon Samuel. Both of the senior standouts are heading to Prairie View A&M. “Lamont and Khai’mon are extremely physical and athletic players, so I expect great things out of them,” said Lamar head football coach Mike Lindsey.

“The other terrific thing about those two guys is that they are both outstanding students, with high GPAs, so they’ll represent Lamar nicely at the next level.”

Editor’s note: Todd Freed is the host and executive producer of H-Town High School Sports, which airs Monday through Thursday on AT&T SportsNet SW. To submit high school sports news for possible inclusion in SportzBuzz, please email todd@thebuzzmagazines.com.

32 WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 41

SPORTS

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by Angie Frederickson, staff writer

SportzBuzz Jr. W

elcome to SportzBuzz Jr., a column spotlighting neighborhood athletes in elementary and middle school.

In-house competition Westbury Soccer U9 players (top photo) enjoy an in-house game day at Bayland Park. In response to the pandemic, Westbury Soccer altered its usual format and created an intra-club league for the fall season. Teams practiced twice each week and participated in a game day every other week. The teams played 3v3 and 6v6 games, and also participated in skills challenges. For the spring 2021 season, Westbury looks forward to getting back to the usual developmental program for younger players and competitive league for older players. The U9 game-day players are (top row, from left) Alek Morency, Finn Koenig, Landry Patterson, Judah Umbriaco, Jonah Silva, and coach Yudith Morales; (bottom row, from left) Grant Bowyer, Dominic Floyd, Alex Robertson, and Tyler Levin.

Jiu Jitsu champ Condit Elementary School first grader Nina Shelger (middle photo, left) won gold at the Jiu Jitsu World Pro Houston event. The Brazilian Jiu Jitsu organization hosts tournaments around the country, for both children and adults. The combat sport is based on grappling and submission holds, with the goal of controlling your opponent and gaining a dominant position.

Nina began jiu jitsu and wrestling when she was 4 years old, and she practices at the Paradigm Training Center under Grappling Fight Team coaches Marcus Bello and Washington Luis. In addition to learning new moves, practicing with her friends, and earning belt promotions, Nina also loves her post-match tradition of eating at Fuddruckers with her family.

From HJPC to SFL The Southwest Football League (SFL) Shamrocks-Blue team (bottom photo) won the senior-division championship with a 28-18 victory over the Shamrocks-Orange team. Most of the team’s players attend Annunciation Orthodox School and normally play in the Houston Junior Preparatory Conference (HJPC). When the HJPC fall season was canceled, they decided to join SFL. Other HJPC teams also opted for an SFL season, creating a competitive environment for all. The championship game went back and forth, and the Shamrocks-Blue pulled ahead after recovering two onside kicks on consecutive kickoffs. The SFL champs are (top row, from left) coach Tucker Fowler, Ashton Bell, Matthew Bonasso, Porter Garza, Jackson Skaife, Maddux El-Hakkam, Lucas Mensing, Nico Broyles, Carson Fowler, coach Paul Posoli, and coach Brad Sanders; (middle row, from left) Jay Woodhouse, David Henry, Nolan Pursley, Sloan Rippstein, Lane Bumgarner, Jack Bumgarner, and Daniel Makulski; and (bottom row) Chrysanthos Fetokakis.

Editor’s note: Send your best high-resolution photos and behind-the-scenes stories about young local athletes, in both team and individual sports, to SportzBuzz, Jr. at info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Include all contact info, names, ages, grades and schools. Featured athletes must live in Buzz-circulation neighborhoods. Items will be published on a space-available basis.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 42

A

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Yes, food allergy can be treated It is estimated that 4 percent of American children and 1 percent of American adults have a true food allergy (not just a food intolerance). For decades, the standard of care for food allergy was to avoid eating that food and, if the allergy was severe, carry an EpiPen to use in case of accidental ingestion.

In 2015, the LEAP study was published, proving that feeding peanuts to infants at high risk for developing food allergy significantly decreased the risk that they would become allergic to peanut. Only 1.9 percent of the treated group developed peanut allergy by age 5, whereas 13.7 percent of the peanut-avoidance group became allergic to peanuts. This was a complete paradigm shift from “expert consensus” developed in the 1990s, which recommended that highrisk children avoid common food allergens until age 3 or 4.

But what about those already allergic? The lack of treatment has been a source of frustration. A successful phase 3 trial was presented in November 2018, showing that those allergic to peanuts can undergo desensitization.

Aimmune got FDA approval for peanut desensitization in 2020, then the company was purchased by Nestle. However, their maintenance dose is considered too low by many allergists. Some allergists across the country, including us, have been performing off-label food desensitizations for several years, and not just to peanut; we can also treat tree nuts, milk, egg, soy, wheat, and many other foods. This involves once-a-week trips to our office to increase the dose from a few milligrams of the allergy-causing food until we have our patients eating the equivalent of 4 to 8 peanuts twice each day.

Once we have someone eating that many peanuts, they are at very low risk to have an allergic reaction to peanuts. The main disadvantage is that you

must continue eating the peanuts indefinitely, or you may become allergic again. Thus, rather than a “cure,” our goal is “desensitization,” which is defined in the New England Journal of Medicine as “an increase in the reaction threshold to a food allergen during active therapy.” (NEJM 2017;377:1168-1176) Desensitization requires ongoing therapy indefinitely.

Aimmune only got approval for peanuts, and are now doing a study on egg. Off label, though, we have protocols for almost all foods that cause true food allergies, including eggs, milk, wheat, soy, cashews, pecans, walnuts, and seafood. Again, there are risks to the desensitization procedure, but those risks are less than full-blown anaphylaxis by accidentally eating the food one is allergic to. And the comfort of not having to be hypervigilant at all times is a great relief. If you are interested in this procedure for yourself or your loved one, please contact our office.

No one nose allergies like we do.™ Note: Information contained in this article should not be considered a substitute for consultation with a board-certified allergist to address individual medical needs.

David B. Engler, M.D., The Allergy Clinic, 7707 Fannin, Suite 100, Houston, Texas 77054, 713.797.0993, *1200 Binz, Suite 180, Houston, Texas 77004, 713.522.9911, www.allergyclinic.com, *Operating as Houston Allergy and Asthma Clinic

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WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 43

A BIG FAN Eleanor Dick, a third grader at River Oaks Baptist School, has loved elephants ever since she saw some at the Houston Zoo.

KIDS

by Eleanor Dick, age 8

Buzz Kidz W

Elephant enthusiast

hen I first saw elephants at the Houston Zoo, I was captivated by the sight of the massive, magical animals.

I love elephants because they are interesting, wonderful, and smart animals. I feel like I am a bit like them, so I have wanted to study them since I was 4 years old. In the first grade, I did a research project on elephants. I learned so much.

Did you know elephants can inherit memories from close family members? Elephants communicate with each other all day by blowing noises through their trunks or stomping their feet, causing vibrations through the ground as far as 50 meters away. They have a photographic memory and can memorize everything they see.

Elephants are highly intelligent animals and are even smarter than dolphins and gorillas. They

are the largest land animals and spend most of their day eating. They need a lot of food to survive. Their heavy diet includes fruit, bark, leaves, and grass. Baby elephants play with the animals around them, including warthogs, wild pigs, antelope, and birds. The adults bathe, look for food, and sleep. Elephants also love to have fun. The elephants and their friends play a game like tag where they chase each other round and round until they get bored.

As I learned more about elephants, I realized I wanted to make a difference for these fascinating animals. Elephants' lives may seem like fun, but they are in great danger. They face many challenges when they need each other’s help.

Wild animals like alligators and lions might try to eat them. They also face the danger of poach-

ing, which is against the law. Elephants are endangered and might become extinct if we humans don’t do something. There are several organizations that are working to stop this tragedy. One of the ones I appreciate is called Save The Elephants. So go, save some elephants.

Want to be a Buzz Kid? Email approximately 350 words, a high-resolution photo and caption to info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Or mail it to The Buzz Magazines, 5001 Bissonnet, Suite 100, Bellaire, Texas 77401.

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Locating wills and assets before probate Everyone asks, “How much is probate going to cost?” and “Is it worth it?”

It depends. Is there a will? What’s in the bank? It’s an expensive disappointment to go to court and request administration of an estate, only later to discover a will leaving everything to someone else or that the estate was too small to bother.

Texas enables family to gather at least some documents and information without committing to an administration.

Safe deposit boxes are not frozen on death. If a husband and wife lease a box, and the husband dies, the wife may still get in the box and remove contents. If listed on the account agreement, children may, too. This works for all listed lessees and designees, not just family. If keys are lost, the bank may charge for a locksmith, but cannot deny access.

There are two options for those not listed on the safe deposit agreement.

First, the bank may let in the decedent’s surviving spouse, parent, or adult child, and may also admit a named executor who has a copy of the will. The bank gets to watch. If found, the bank may deliver the will to the named executor, any burial plot deed to the designated agent, and any policy on the decedent’s life to the beneficiary. If it prefers, the bank may deliver the will to the county clerk where the decedent resided. No court order is required, but the bank may disregard requests without one.

Second, if the bank won’t cooperate or someone other than the surviving spouse, parent, adult child, or named executor wants in, a court order is needed. The bank still gets to watch, but the judge appoints a representative to deliver documents instead of the bank.

These same procedures are available if documents were left elsewhere, e.g., with a financial advisor or CPA. As with safe deposit boxes, only certain documents are delivered. The rest may be examined but not taken, and are stranded absent probate.

If the decedent did not leave a will, the court may order banks and financial institutions to disclose each account balance. Heirs, spouses, creditors, and the court itself may initiate a request, but only if 90 days since death have passed, no administration is pending, and none is requested. This is helpful when trying to qualify for a probate alternative, e.g., a small estate affidavit.

Nonprobate accounts are excluded, protecting the privacy of designated beneficiaries and survivorship owners.

We write wills and go to probate court. We offer no-obligation initial interviews for estate planning and administration, so it costs nothing to hear specific recommendations that suit your needs. Foreign nationals and international families welcome.

Russell W. Hall, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Board Certified – Estate Planning and Probate Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 6750 West Loop South, Suite 920, Bellaire, Texas 77401, 713.662.3853, bellaireprobate.com/blog

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 45

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HOUSTON ELITE CHEER

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The Buzz Magazines 2020 Pet of the Year Contest Winners

Bella Second place

Bella Third place

Congratulations to Jesse for being voted our 2020 Buzz Magazines Pet of the Year.

Also, congratulations to our second and third place winners, both named Bella.

Our pets played a special role this past year. They got us through the tough times of 2020. They’re all winners to us!

Thank you to all who voted and to our contest sponsors, Gulf Coast Veterinary Specialists and Sunset Animal Hospital for their support.

Jesse First place To have your pet considered for 2021, please submit a high-resolution photo and 150 words from your pet’s perspective to info@thebuzzmagazines.com.

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Intensive therapy for mental health When an individual is seeking help with navigating emotions, processing life transitions and/or exploring the self in relation to others, we may recommend individual, group or couples therapy. If an individual is so impacted by their struggles that they are unable to function in their day-to-day life, we would recommend more intensive mental health treatment, such as The Lovett Center’s Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP).

What is an IOP? The Lovett Center’s proprietary IOP is an eight-week program designed for those who are experiencing considerable distress, anxiety, depression, interpersonal struggles and/or substance use issues. It offers a structured curriculum that can be an effective alternative to hospitalization. Beyond the eight weeks, we offer continued options for ongoing care to facilitate long-term healing. Our IOP can also serve as an aftercare program following residential treatment. In order to best meet the needs of our clients, treatment is divided into groups based on stage of life.

IOP for young adults: Individuals ages 18-25 who are struggling with mental health issues that are preventing them from individuating from their parents, succeeding in school and/or building appropriate self-esteem may benefit from participating in our IOP. In this program, individual therapy is combined with group therapy, mediation, trauma-informed yoga and financial skills training. It may be paired with family therapy and sessions with a recovery support therapist, if applicable.

IOP for adult professionals: Our IOP for adult professionals is tailored to high-achieving individuals seeking to manage their health, well-being and work-life balance. Often, high-pressure professions compound work-

place challenges and interfere with personal relationships.

In these cases, we work with individuals via solo and group therapy, skills training and more to help them achieve longterm wellness.

Our approach: No matter the age group, The Lovett Center uses a psychodynamic approach, which is widely considered a holistic, global approach to treatment that focuses on the client’s emotions, perspectives and life experiences.

Our compassionate, master’s-level clinicians provide intensive care while allowing clients to continue with their normal work and academic activities, guiding them towards long-term healing by setting them up with skills for daily life and offering aftercare support through The Lovett Center or other healing locations within the Ethos Behavioral Health Group family.

Virtual therapy options are currently available to assist clients of all ages. For more information about our IOP programs, please contact us confidentially.

The Lovett Center, 900 Lovett Blvd., Houston, Texas 77006, 713.470.9878, thelovettcenter.com, info@thelovettcenter.com

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NEIGHBORS

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by Angie Frederickson, staff writer

Buzz About Town An overlooked essential

One&Only Palmilla resort in Mexico and will live in The Woodlands.

Every vote counts

Natesha Tama-Madison (pictured) and her family used quarantine time to make a difference in the community. Knowing that socks are some of the most needed, but least donated, items in homeless shelters, she collected almost 2,000 pairs. The hope was to gather a couple hundred pairs of new socks for local shelters, but the response was greater than Natesha imagined.

She delivered the new socks to six different organizations: U.S Vets, The Beacon, LGBTQ Center of Montrose, Harmony House, Casa De Esperanza, and Helping Hand for Relief & Development. The sock collection was just one of several efforts Natesha and her family coordinated during 2020. They also distributed more than 1,000 face masks to frontline and essential workers and older adults in the community.

Some of the masks were reusable, made using Indonesian batik and local fabrics.

iWrite winners Five middle-school students from The Regis School of the Sacred Heart will have original short stories, poetry, and artwork published in an upcoming kids’ anthology. Sixth grader Lucas Garza’s (pictured) artwork was selected for the cover of I Write Short Stories by Kids for Kids. Children’s author Melissa Williams Murphy founded the iWrite contest to build writing confidence in children, and she publishes an anthology each year with the winning entries. Students in grades 3 through 12 can sub-

mit original work, and 100 winners are selected for publication. Other Regis winners are Warner McDowell (short story: “The Prize”), Leo Hanson (poetry: “Only the Stars”), Charlie Hough (poetry: “The Solitude of Space”), and Chase Whitman (poetry: “Saturn”).

Music and marriage Friday the 13th during the pandemic might seem like a really unlucky day, but for Annie Frazier and Tyler Price (pictured, from left) it was perfect.

The couple kept their originally planned wedding date and celebrated with family and friends. The Frazier family loves music, and the wedding reflected it. Guests entered the church as the gospel choir from the Church Without Walls sang, the song “Oh Happy Day” was chosen for the recessional, and the Frazier family’s Band of Brothers performed at the reception. The Band of Brothers actually is a band of brothers, including Bob Frazier, Stephen Frazier, David Frazier, Travis Frazier, Joe Frazier, Paul Frazier, Greg Frazier, and Robert Frazier. (See the Buzz story “Wedding Singers” at thebuzzmagazines.com.)

Annie and Tyler honeymooned at the

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Students at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic School learned about our nation’s voting process through a fun election of their own. While adults were casting their votes for U.S. president in November, first grader Audrey Tam (pictured) and her schoolmates voted on something almost as important: a new tiger mascot for the school. Students had voter ID cards, stood in line, and voted for their choice between the four illustrated options. It was a close race, but Tiger Option #1 was declared the winner, and celebratory banners around the school announced the election result.

Celebration in the garden Houston Hospice's historic garden reopened to patients, families, and the community in December during a small ceremony in the Texas Medical Center. With grant funding, the newly renovated garden was (continued on page 50)

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Holcombe House estate design, including wheelchair and hospital-bed access. The timing of the garden’s reopening aligned with Houston Hospice’s 40th anniversary, celebrated with an official recognition proclamation signed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. Houston Hospice supporters participating in the ceremony included (pictured, from left) Garden Club of Houston board members Vivie O’Sullivan, Isabel Lummis, Sue White (Houston Hospice board member), Julie Griffin, and Jenny Kempner; Cynthia Nordt, VP development, Houston Hospice; Sue Gaines, 29-year volunteer at Houston Hospice; Dr. Paul Mansfield, professor of surgical oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center and Houston Hospice board chair; Rana McClelland, president and CEO, Houston Hospice; and Aida Matic, incoming VP of development, Houston Hospice.

from the comfort of her canopied bed. The book fair was a fundraiser to benefit the school library.

Students were able to purchase books from Brazos Bookstore, with grade-level reading recommendations from the Houston Area Independent Schools Library Network and the Brazos Bookstore staff. The school’s book fair is usually held in person with crafts, a scavenger

For love of reading

Alina Farshadi (pictured) participated in West University Elementary School’s virtual book fair WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 50

hunt, and guest readers. This year’s virtual event was a hit among students, who were excited to participate in the socially distanced format.

Tacky sweaters and good books The Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation's Young Professionals Group hosted their 7th Annual Tacky (continued on page 52) Natalie Gaynor

(continued from page 48) restored to its original

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 51

(continued from page 50) Sweater party and holi-

day community book distribution. Group members, including Aubrey Leatherman and Victoria Villarreal (pictured, previous page, from left), bundled and distributed 1,500 books to pre-kindergarten through second grade students at San Francisco Nativity Academy of Houston. Along with the books, children received backpacks filled with snacks, face masks, puzzles, and holiday-activity books.

The books and treats were purchased using proceeds from the Young Professionals Group’s 2019 annual Jungle Book Gala, and backpacks were provided by The Carnrite Group. Guests at the event included Jeff Carnrite, Megan Carrasco, Grace Gosnell, Andrea Henery, Rebecca Hoffman, Clair Hopper, Aubrey Leatherman, Monica Lunsford, Melissa McDaniel, Eleni McGee, Michael Perkins, Rome Street, Joselyn Tego, Victoria Villarreal, and Andrew Wilson.

through and pick up their meals to take home.

For each dinner order, Local Foods donated 20 percent of the proceeds to the Poe PTO. The money raised will be used for classroom supplies, educational enrichment programs, need-based uniforms and supplies for students, and development of outdoor learning spaces.

A break from cooking Poe Elementary School students Luke Nguyen and Caroline Szulc (pictured, from left) picked up to-go dinner orders to raise money for the school’s PTO. The PTO organized a “spirit night” for families to take a night off from cooking dinner and instead get their meals from Local Foods in Rice Village. Families could drive WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 52

In the Christmas spirit Eighth graders at St. Thomas’ Episcopal School enjoyed Santa’s Workshop Day during the school’s annual Christmas Spirit Week. Pictured are (top row, from left) Bela Kumar, Leila Shortt, Eden Stewart, Keirsten Butler, Helena Fernandes, Mackenzie Bowes, Isabella Soliz, (second row, from left) Norah Watts, Emily Jackson, Daniela Laing, Chifum Ibekwe, Sofia Dunek, (third row, from left) Phoebe Tysor, Anika Harpavat, Ellie Wiesner, Elsie Wire, Emily Calvert, (bottom row, from left) Leah Feng, Chloe Wong, Jolie Vinh, Eden Haight, and Jane Johnson. The beloved tradition happens every year during the last week of the fall semester. Each day of the week has a different theme and students dress up in festive clothes and accessories, including Christmas colors and ugly sweaters.

Editor’s note: The Buzz congratulates our regular Buzz About Town writer, associate editor Jordan Steinfeld, and her husband Matthew on the recent arrival of baby Sloane. Jordan is taking a short break to spend time with Sloane. In the meantime, Buzz writer Angie Frederickson is handling this column.

As usual, please send your high-res photos and community news to info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Items are published on a space-available basis.

Another reason to celebrate with a portrait… when the braces come off.

A Portrait Remembers 713.523.4916 nikky@lawellphoto.com www.lawellphoto.com

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ FEBRUARY 2021 53

NEIGHBORS

by Andria Frankfort, staff writer

Back Porch T

A good Valentine’s Day

here are people out there who say Valentine’s Day was made up by a card company and is just one more of those “amateur night” holidays, the kind where everyone makes fancy plans, and no one has fun.

If you think about some Valentine’s datesgone-bad, you might be convinced that’s true.

Like the time one couple was headed out to a Valentine’s Day dinner only to have their 8year-old son vomit all over his mother as they were walking out the door. They didn’t go.

Or the story Tevia McLaren tells of being stood up by her boyfriend on Valentine’s Day her senior year of high school. “We broke up,” she says. Update: They went to college and found each other again and have been married for almost 31 years.

Or when Tina Pyne was in her early 30s and had a blind Valentine’s date. “I was hungry and took a big bite of spinach salad [just before] the doorbell rang,” she remembers. “He was English and said, ‘I see you have already had dinner.’ I had a big green leaf on my front tooth! Needless to say, I never went out with him again.”

Or the date Peggy Haney went on as a freshman in college. They went to Vargo’s. Peggy remembers, “I was so excited, and we had a lovely dinner. Until it was time to pay.” The poor date’s credit card was declined, and Peggy hadn’t brought a wallet. She waited for her date to find an ATM and come back with cash. “I never went on another date without my own money again,” she says.

But if you talk to Susan and Bob Zeller, Valentine’s Day is pretty special.

“My father’s very best friend was head of child neurology at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center,” says Susan, who lived in New York at the time and was working as one of the first female auctioneers of antiques (another story, which we will tell another time). “He called me one day and said, ‘There’s a young man coming up from Texas Children’s – to me that was like shoot-’em-up in the West – and he wants to be a pediatric neurologist and doesn’t know anybody in New York. Would you have dinner with him?’”

Dinner was successful; Susan and Bob started dating. Three weeks later, Susan says, “My col-

lege roommate had gotten married and moved to St. Thomas. She and her husband asked me to come for a couple of weeks. I wanted Bob to say Don’t go, but he never said don’t go. So I went.

Meantime, unbeknownst to me, Bob calls my parents. My parents were really kind of cool. Weren’t they fun, Bob?” Bob is nodding.

“So Bob had dinner with them and said he was going to marry me.

They were a little surprised because of the short time, but I had already told my grand- YES For some couples, Valentine’s Day holds the happiest memories. mother after our everybody at the airport started clapping. And first date that I wasn’t sure when, but I was going that’s how we got engaged. to marry this guy. Bob, correct me if I’m wrong.”

Fifty-one years later, Susan says, “I just knew “Why would I correct you?” he was who I wanted to marry. There’s a warmth “Next thing you know, there’s a blizzard in about Bob and a sincerity and his sense of New York. Bob called me in St. Thomas and humor. What shines through with Bob Zeller said, ‘You need to come home.’ I couldn’t fly above all else is his incredible integrity. I sat into New York, but he could get out. His parents there that night and I thought This is a very, very were in Miami Beach, and I had an aunt there, special man.” so he told me to meet him in Miami Beach.”

“You were looking for a doctor,” Bob says.

On Valentine’s Day, Susan flew in from St. “No, I wasn’t looking for a doctor. This Thomas, and Bob flew in from New York. doesn’t mean I don’t get mad at him sometimes.

“We go to the airport, and who shows up but But I think you have to continue laughing. Life Bob’s parents,” Susan says. She hadn’t met them has a lot of adversity, but if you have a sense of before. “His mother kept saying, ‘What is all this humor you move through it.” about?’ With that, Bob’s flight lands, and he’s at On Valentine’s Day, you’ll find Susan and baggage claim, and his mother is yelling, ‘What Bob laughing at dinner, reliving their first is all this about?’ So Bob finally turned around Valentine’s Day together in the Miami airport, from the baggage claim – I was outside that area and all of the others that came after it.

– and says, ‘Susan, will you marry me?’ And

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