Advocate Magazine

Lake Highlands graduate killed while battling apartment blaze

Christina Hughes Babb — Mon, 20 May 2013 19:30:27 +0000

Stanley Wilson, a 28-year veteran of the Dallas Fire Department and a LHHS alumnus has died in a massive fire at an apartment complex near Richland College. “He’s a hero,” Mayor Mike Rawlings said at a press conference earlier today. “And as I told his boys, they should be very proud.” The fire at the complex, located in the 2300 block of Abrams Road just north of LBJ Freeway, collapsed a portion of the three-story building and destroyed at least 24 condos. Firefighters managed to save several tenants and no other deaths have been reported. WFAA has some impressive photos from this morning’s tragedy. © Christina Hughes Babb for Advocate Magazine, 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags:

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Highlandette directors leaving LH

Carol Toler — Mon, 20 May 2013 15:16:38 +0000

Lauren Turnbull and Catie Epple are stepping down as leaders of the award-winning Highlandette drill team, both departing for Austin at the end of this school year. Eppler’s husband has a received a job transfer and Turnbull has family and a boyfriend in Austin. A reception will be held to honor the women Friday, May 31 from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in the LHHS library. It is open to the public, and former Highlandettes and their moms are particularly invited to attend. Turnbull has served as Highlandette director since 2009, the year Shannon Harty left to lead the Richardson High Desperadoes. Before that, Turnbull was Harty’s assistant. (Harty is now drill team director at Highland Park High.) “Ms. Turnbull definitely helped shape Highlandettes into what it is today with her creativity and passion for drill team,” said Meg Garcia, one of her graduating officers. Meg will dance as a Texas State University Strutter in the fall. “I am sure that I speak for everyone who has had her as a director when I say that she has had such a great impact on each of us. She motivated me to do the best that I could and helped me grow so much. The saying ‘I do not try to dance better than anyone else, I just try to dance better than myself,’ describes her perfectly and is one of the most important things she has taught us as dancers. She has put her heart and soul into Highlandettes these past six years, and the community is truly thankful.” “Ms. Turnbull is such a talented dancer and passionate director,” said Berkley Johnson, Turnbull’s graduating captain. “I feel so lucky to have had her as director during all of my years in Dettes. I admire her deeply as a dancer, teacher, leader and friend. She has taught me to never, ever settle for good when I can be great. She will be greatly missed in LH, but the mark that she has left on the Highlandettes and on each girl will stay with us always.” © Carol Toler for Advocate Magazine, 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: Catie Epple, highlandettes, Lauren Turnbull

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Bath House to open theater-themed art exhibit Saturday

Whitney Thompson — Mon, 20 May 2013 15:08:54 +0000

This Saturday the Bath House Cultural Center is hosting a gallery reception for the new exhibit, “15 Minutes to Curtain!” from 7-9 p.m. The exhibit will feature works from thirteen local artists that merge elements of the visual arts together with elements of the world of theater. The theme for the exhibit commemorates the 15th anniversary of the Bath House’s “Festival of Independent Theatres.” “15 Minutes to Curtain!” will run through June 29. Both the exhibition and reception are free. © Whitney Thompson for Advocate Magazine, 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags:

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Scene and Heard: Enchiladas enchilada-eating contest

Christina Hughes Babb — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:47:01 +0000

Earlier this month Enchiladas restaurant on upper Greenville held its annual enchilada-eating competition. Below, we present the winners. Images courtesy Facebook/enchiladasgreenville. (Click on a photo for magnified, slideshow view). Enchiladas Restaurant is located at 7050 Greenville. Opens daily at 11 a.m. and offers live music Saturdays and brunch on Sundays. 214.363.8969 © Christina Hughes Babb for Advocate Magazine, 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags:

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Thousands of little flags hold vast meaning: Memorial Day at Restland

Christina Hughes Babb — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:26:55 +0000

Each year the Memorial Day display near Restland Funeral Home and Cemetery in the Lake Highlands area grows, and that is not a good thing, for the exhibit comprises miniature flags that represent the loss of military personnel. The flags on the tiny hill at Walnut Street and Greenville Avenue represent contemporary soldiers — those who served in Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn — who have lost their lives. This year the number of flags exceeds 6,640. This Memorial Day, as always, Restland will host a Memorial Day service with a parade, keynote speaker and more impressive displays. The events begin at 10 a.m. Monday. More information is available here. © Christina Hughes Babb for Advocate Magazine, 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags:

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Picture Day: LHWL Scholarship Breakfast

Carol Toler — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:10:01 +0000

A month ago, the Lake Highlands Women’s League announced the winners of their college scholarships, pulling excited students out of class to give them the good news. Friday, the ladies hosted a ceremony and reception to celebrate with the students’ proud parents, many of whom expressed their gratitude with quiet bows and broken English. The kids went back and forth, mugging for the camera with groups of their buddies and posing for family photos which will hang prominently in their family’s home. Many said they’ll be the first of their relatives to attend college. You can see my photo slideshow here. Despite stories of fleeing war-torn countries, immigrating to America alone, overcoming the death of a parent, and surviving disease or abuse, these students have thrived in school, excelled in athletics, led organizations, founded clubs, and made new friends – all while holding after-school jobs and/or doing significant community service. Amazing! Receiving 2013 LHWL scholarships were: Damanta Adhikari, Tarleton State University Samuel Agabi, Tarleton State University Jose Barbosa, Oklahoma Baptist University Brian Boos, University of Texas Katie Bott, UT Makayla Burnham, Spellman College Keshanda Carraby, Texas Women’s College Erika Carrillo, TWU Salha Faki, TWU Lucina Garcia, Stephen F. Austin Tha Hnem, UTA Stella HrangLung, TWU Cynthia Ibarra, Tarleton State Gennesis Jimenez, UTA Bhupendra Karki, UTA Reginald Marshall, Jr., Southeastern Oklahoma State University Theresa Mendoza, SFA Misha Montfort-Mills, UTD Adam Morrissey, UT Kelsey Munoz, Texas A&M Diep Ngo, TAMU-Commerce Laura Leigh Oualline, Texas Tech University Mason Puckett, Texas State University Sharon Sequera, TAMU LaSchastia Stegall, San Angelo State Hunter Stephan, UTA Olivia Tawi, Tarleton State Wayne Taylor, University of North Texas Natalie Von Sternberg, TAMU Madison Wieters, University of Arkansas Hannah Willard, TAMU Rodger Williams, Oklahoma State, and Ebenether Wondaferew, Texas Tech. © Carol Toler for Advocate Magazine, 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: Lake Highlands Women's League, scholarships

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Why isn’t this Wallace Elementary student famous yet?

Christina Hughes Babb — Fri, 17 May 2013 05:16:33 +0000

It is a travesty that fifth grader Kameron Badgers doesn’t yet have a reality TV show. The Lone Star Circus student show ‘Ice Cream’ is this weekend at the Granville Performing Arts Center in Garland. At least one neighborhood student, Kameron Badgers, and a slew of agile, rhythmic, coordinated and downright stylish youngsters will perform in it. The shows (featuring students from Dallas International School, Lone Star Circus school and The Palestra gymnastics school in Addison) run Friday, May 17, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, May 18, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, May 19, 4:30 p.m. I came across Kameron this week as I was putting together the ‘Scene and Heard’ section for the June magazine. We ask readers to email us photos, which we consider for print. One submission included images from the Wallace Elementary School talent show. Following a link in that email, I arrived at young Kameron’s blog, where he had written about the talent show. He also emceed and performed in said talent show, by the way. Turns out this fifth grader is a prolific blogger and photographer. His circus acts are amazing. Not just amazing-for-a-fifth-grader, but amazing, period. Spinning, hooping, juggling … if that isn’t enough, according to his January 13 post, he also won grand prize in this year’s school science fair. In his May 14 entry he tells his readers all about the Lone Star Circus and the Dallas International School (which teaches circus arts as part of the French language curriculum). Here’s a little preview of what he can do, courtesy Kameronbadgers.com. © Christina Hughes Babb for Advocate Magazine, 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags:

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Movie review: ‘Star Trek Into Darkness’

Gary Dowell — Thu, 16 May 2013 17:31:52 +0000

The latest entry into the long-running Star Trek franchise finds the series still boldly going, though not quite where no one has gone before. When the reboot movie Star Trek was released in 2009, it re-invigorated the franchise and left its future wide open; Star Trek Into Darkness sees it backtrack a bit a recover what some may consider hallowed ground. The gist of it — and that’s really all that can be provided without spoiling the plot — is this: Shortly after the previous film, Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) is relieved of command of the Enterprise after violating the Federation’s sacrosanct Prime Directive. Almost immediately after, rogue Starfleet officer John Harrison (Sherlock‘s sublime Benedict Cumberbatch) commits a series of brazen attacks on Starfleet in their own backyard. Admiral Marcus (Peter Weller) reinstates Kirk’s command and sends the crew of the Enterprise on a mission to kill Harrison. This is the arguably the film series’ biggest departure to date, and it’s not the only one of many in STID that are likely to divide fans. Abrams’ take is a more militant take that is out of step with Roddenberry’s shiny, optimistic vision of the future, one that sets up a moral quagmire for the crew. It’s no coincidence either; substitute the super-secret photon torpedoes with drone strikes and the Enterprise‘s incursion into Klingon-controlled space with the black op that bagged Bin Laden, and you have roughly a post-9/11 allegory. Which is not to say it’s an overbearing message movie; his is a megaplex morality play with an emphasis on action and adventure, not the science fiction version of Zero Dark Thirty with lens flares instead of night-vision POV shots. Abrams and screenwriters Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman, and Damon Lindelof keep the emphasis on the characters, carrying on with the crew’s growing pains and clash of egos — though it often retreads the character beats from the previous installment: Kirk is still arrogant and cocky, Spock (Zachary Quinto) still has anger issues, he and Uhura (Zoe Saldana) still have relationship problems, McCoy (Karl Urban) is still cranky, Sulu (John Cho) is still stoic, Scotty (Simon Pegg) is still the comedy relief, and Chekhov (Anton Yelchin) is still underused. They haven’t quite established the level of repartee of the original cast, but this is such a fine collection of performers with chemistry to spare. For the most part the rest of the cast fares well, also. Cumberbatch is chilling as Harrison, a man who always seems to be in utter control of his surroundings, even when imprisoned, and the actor brings the combination of eloquence and ruthlessness so often found in a classic Trek villain. Weller follows close on his heels as Marcus, a crusty officer with a few dark secrets. Alice Eve is largely in the background as the admiral’s daughter and Kirk’s underdeveloped love interest, Dr. Carol Marcus; one gets the feeling she’s there just to establish the character for later installments Like its predecessor, Into Darkness is fast-paced almost to the point of frenzied; which makes its only real flaw all the more pronounced. An adrenaline-fueled race across the cosmos full of space battles, shoot-outs, betrayal, and startling revelations, it concludes with an anti-climactic brawl where the story began. It’s a whimper of a conclusion for a movie with a lot of bang. Nevertheless, the movie as a whole stands as one of the best Trek movies to date, and as one of the summer’s must-sees. © Gary Dowell for Advocate Magazine, 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: movies

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FMJH Principal Charles Bruner to helm Richardson High

Carol Toler — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:18:39 +0000

Charles Bruner has been named the new principal at Richardson High School, replacing the retiring Charles Pickitt. Bruner has led Forest Meadow Junior High since 2002. A farewell reception will be held in Bruner’s honor Tuesday, June 4 in the FMJH library. The come & go party, celebrating Bruner’s 11 years of service at FMJH, will be hosted by the PTA. PTA president Stephanie Enlow is raising funds for a gift to honor Bruner. “Mr. Bruner would like to be remembered as having been focused on instruction and student success,” she told me. “We will be creating a classroom which will be a Teacher Collaborative Learning Environment. This will be a concept which will benefit the entire school and is in keeping with RISD’s 21st Century Learning.” Donations are tax exempt and may be sent to Enlow at 9107 Stone Creek Place, 75243. Checks should be made out to the FMJH PTA with Charles Bruner in the memo. You can email Enlow at rsenlow@sbcglobal.net. © Carol Toler for Advocate Magazine, 2013. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: charles bruner, forest meadow junior high, Richardson High School

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Cat Classic Golf Tourney set for June 11

Carol Toler — Thu, 16 May 2013 13:39:36 +0000

Registration is now open for this year’s Cat Classic Golf Tournament, hosted by the Wildcat Club and held Tuesday, June 11 at Canyon Creek Country Club. Proceeds will be used for athletic programs at Lake Highlands High School, LHFC, LHJH and Forest Meadow Junior High. Last year’s sold-out event, which you can relive through my 42-pic photo slideshow here, enjoyed perfect weather and was a fun day for the 100 golfers playing. A special treat, many say, is the participation of the LHHS coaching staff (some play, some just come out and chit-chat) and the LHHS golf men’s and women’s golf team, who provide golf tips and moral support. A registration form is available on the Wildcat Club website here. The day begins with a noon-time lunch and registration, and the cost is $125 per golfer. It’s a 4-man scramble with a 1 p.m. shotgun start, and there’ll be prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place finishers, Longest Drive, Closest to the Hole, and Last Place. Oh, and when you get your hole-in-one, there may be a new car waiting for you on the 18th green. You can also find out more on the Wildcat Club website about sponsorship opportunities, aka “How to become a hero in LH.” These donations, at a variety of levels, entitle you to recognition at the tournament and in the All Sports Program next year. Event Chairmen Paula and Keith Beasley can help you with that, too. Paula’s email is PBeasley@mctaggartbeasley.com. © Carol Toler for Advocate Magazine, 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: cat classic golf tournament, wildcat club

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