The Women’s Council of the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden announces “Women in the Garden” , the Tenth Anniversary “A Writer’s Garden” Literary Symposium and Luncheon to be held Tuesday, November 8, 2016, 9:30 am to 2:00 pm, at the Arboretum’s Rosine Hall. 

The event is chaired by Alyce Heinrich and co-chaired by Dorothea Meltzer. Melissa Lewis is the Women's Council President. The Honorary Chair is Phyllis McCasland, the 2013-14 Founder's Award recipient with her husband, Tom. Tickets begin at $150 and are available at www.womenscouncildallasarboretum.org/

When did you become interested in gardens?

To answer this I think I have to get back to my childhood in Blackwell, Oklahoma, where my mother always grew enough tomatoes along our driveway to keep her friends supplied all summer and fall.  While she was doing that she also was showing me (as a child) how to plant seeds and cut flowers. 

When I graduated from college Tom and I were married and we went into the Navy.  We were stationed on Guam and then returned to his hometown of Duncan, Oklahoma, and raised our 2 sons, Tommy and Mark.  

I became an Oklahoma Master Gardener and wrote gardening articles for the newspaper.  The newspaper offered me a permanent job, but there never seemed to be time.

How did you become involved with the Arboretum?

When my husband decided to retire to Dallas, I was delighted.  One of the first calls we made was to Mary Brinegar to ask if she had any projects we could help her with.  She did, and we selected the Sunken Garden to help with its renovation.  After that Tom joined the Arboretum Board and we helped where we could until sitting at home one evening I decided that the Arboretum needed a project which would draw people in yearly, preferably at Christmas.

What was your role with the Twelve Days of Christmas?

It seemed to me that family outings were limited at that time of year, and perhaps the Arboretum, with its large spaces could do something spectacular. The Chahuili display had been popular earlier and it pointed the way ---use of different scenes though out the Arboretum that people could visit and see at their leisure. The Twelve Days of Christmas was a prospect.  I thought it would be a good fit because of the Twelve Days of Christmas song and its varied appeal to a wide range of ages. 

When we mentioned this to Mary Brinegar, she whole heartedly agreed, and proceeded to hire the best artisans to produce it. We have been very happy with its widespread success and write-ups in Southern Living and other publications. It will be held again this year beginning November 6.

The mothers of the debutantes and honor guard met on October 19 for details leading up to the Dallas Symphony Orchestra League’s 31st Annual Presentation Ball on February 18, 2017. More than 20 events are planned from the Thanksgiving holidays to the grand finale in February where 35 debutantes will be presented at the Meyerson Symphony Center. 

Presentation Ball chair Jolie Humphrey and co-chairs provided guidelines for ensuring all goes smoothly ranging from making hotel reservations to planning for photography sessions to scheduling hair and make-up appointments. 

The ball is expected to raise more than $400,000 for support of the DSO’s education programs. 

Photos by Deborah Brown

The Greater East Dallas Chamber of Commerce will host a ribbon cutting for the new Manny's Uptown Tex-Mex Restaurante Lakewood on Thursday. October 20 at 5:00 p.m. Complimentary appetizers while supplies last. 

The new restaurant takes over the former Rex's Seafood Restaurant at 6465 E. Mockingbird at Abrams Road. 

It is a branch of Manny's Tex-Mex, the restaurant at Lemmon and Oak Grove avenues. Manny's is the concept founded by Manny Rios, who opened the original location in Uptown in 2005. Rios has family connections to some of the oldest Tex-Mex in town: Ana "Mama Mia" Enriquez, the matriarch behind Mia's Tex-Mex, which spawned much Tex-Mex restaurant action in Dallas, is his sister. He's also planning to open a branch in Southlake at Wyndham Plaza later this year. There's another Manny's Tex-Mex in Frisco, but it has a different owner.

Manny's will join other Mexican Restaurants at that intersection: Taco Joint, Meso Maya and ZuZu Handmade Mexican Food.

Lindsey Nicole Elliott and Austin Milton Franks represented the Dallas Symphony Orchestra League in the Austin Jewel Ball on September 24, 2016 at the Palmer Events Center. The Jewel Ball honors families throughout the state who have contributed significantly to their respective Symphony Orchestras. Sponsored by the Women’s Symphony League of Austin, proceeds from the event benefit educational and music appreciation programs. 

Lindsey, daughter of Mr. Curtis Edward Elliott & Mrs. Paige Elizabeth Elliott, is a Junior at Texas Christian University where she is a Chancellor's Scholar pursuing degrees in both Mechanical Engineering and Mathematics.  She was accepted into The Chancellor's Leadership Program (3.5 year program), VP of Women in Science, on the Board of TCU Catholic Community, and active in The Society of Women Engineers. She was a Duchess at La Fiesta de las Seis Bandera, presented at the DSOL Ball in Feb 2016, DSOL Assembly member and a junior member of The Slipper Club of Dallas and The Dallas Cotillion Club. 

Austin is a 2015 graduate of The University of Texas at Austin where he was a member of The Iron Spikes. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Petroleum Engineering plus a minor in Japanese. Currently, Austin is employed as a Reservoir Engineer with XTO Energy in Fort Worth, TX. In his spare time, he enjoys all sports, reading and learning languages. He is VP of the DSOL Honor Guard and was Lindsey's Escort for the 2016 DSOL Ball. His parents are Mr. Craig Milton & Mrs. Tucean Webb Franks of University Park, TX. In addition, Austin’s Aunt, Suzanne Webb was presented in the Jewel Ball circa 1986.

Photos by James French

A walkable tour of seven lovingly restored and updated MCM homes in East Dallas

Saturday, October 15  1:00 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Advance tickets $10, $12 at the door

Tickets available on Eventbrite

All proceeds benefit the Greater Casa View Alliance, a group of neighborhood leaders working to support reinvestment in this diverse and vibrant community.

• 2663 Millmar Drive
• 2645 Millmar Drive
• 2619 Andrea Lane
• 2604 Andrea Lane
• 2614 Andrea Lane
• 2647 Andrea Lane
• 2646 Materhorn Drive

About Cliff May, Father of the California Ranch Style Home
Cliff May was a well-known mid-century architect whose distinctive home designs incorporate striking walls of windows that blur the lines between indoor and outdoor living. His custom homes and “fab prefab” communities are found primarily in California — but also in select neighborhoods throughout the country, including Harvey Park in Denver and Casa View in Dallas. In fact, Casa View boasts the nation’s third-largest collection of these highly sought-after MCM homes.

About Casa View
Established in the mid-1950s, Casa View consists primarily of single-family homes, along with small shopping venues, mom-and-pop restaurants, parks, churches, and schools. Today, many homeowners are busy reversing more than 60 years of design fads and ill-fated remodels to restore their homes to their mid-century glory. The Casa View area was recently named one of D Magazine’s rising neighborhoods due to its location, affordability, and grassroots community development initiatives.

Remember to like the Casa View Cliff May Home Tour Facebook page and follow us on Instagram to keep up with the details of the tour!