One doesn’t often hear the words “Texas” and “France” in the same sentence. And that’s exactly why the Texan French Alliance for the Arts was established. Engaging local Texas youth, the Texan French Alliance for the Arts (TFAA) creates opportunities to enhance Texas communities through an artistic dialogue between the rich cultures of Texas and France.

The TFAA was founded in 2005 by a group of prominent Texas enthusiasts of the French culture, under the leadership of the former Consul General of France. The original aim of the organization was to create a dialogue between France and Texas, primarily through a sharing their cultures of art, literature and music. “Both Texas and France have thriving artistic cultures and a wealth of talent, so we wanted to facilitate an exchange between them to show that Texas is more than Stetsons and spurred boots and France is more than strong cheeses and good wines,” says the TFAA spokesperson.

Over the years, though, the TFAA has recognized more effective ways to engage with the community. Rather than taking a disinterested approach to the sharing of cultures, the TFAA has moved to facilitate interactions between the cultures of France and Texas by creating programs, events and exchanges.

Moreover, the new programs work towards a purpose beyond simple artistic appreciation. “Our creative programs and varied partnerships aim to improve the quality of life in our cities and local communities, especially those that are at-risk or underserved, using art, along with other disciplines, as a catalyst to create positive change,” says TFAA’s spokesperson.

TFAA has expanded with its new mission into a number of different projects, with plans for more to come. At present, TFAA focuses on three programs: educational programs for kids, such as From a Space to a Place, healing arts programs like the Texas Children’s Hospital Mural Project and Open the Door Veterans’ Program, and public art installations like Open the Door. The organization also holds occasional festivals for the public like Once Upon a Door. Each of these programs addresses distinct groups and aims.

The Texan French Alliance for the Art’s festivals can be wonderful opportunities to investigate the intersections between these two cultures. Recently, the TFAA hosted the Once Upon a Door festival in collaboration with Marjon Aucoin, a central figure at Little Wonders Learning Center. “This project created a 360-degree sensory environment where children and adults could explore their creativity,” says the TFAA spokesperson, “using art and playfulness to transform their perception of the world around them.” With music, theatre, visual images and video and a variety of experience spaces, Once Upon a Door brought all the sensory modalities together to enrich and delight.

But the TFAA doesn’t only hold festivals. The bread and butter of the organization is to help people to learn and expand their understanding of the world, in order to thrive within it. TFAA offers a collaborative mentoring program called From a Space to a Place (FASTAP). FASTAP is a partnership between TFAA and a number of other organizations that works with middle and high school students from underserved neighborhoods. The aim of the program is to allow youths to envision beautiful redesigns for shared public spaces and to help them make those visions a reality.

FASTAP engages young people with the larger community and other cultures, especially the French culture, and helps them to learn leadership, discipline and build bridges to the broader world. To facilitate these connections, the program brings together many kinds of learning and content, from STEM to visual and performing arts to project management to mindfulness.

“Giving the youth a platform from which they can express their ideas empowers them and establishes a sense of ownership through the implementation of their own tangible change in the community, be it an urban outreach installation, such as a park or a mural, or an engaging performance addressing social issues,” says the TFAA spokesperson.

Other programs bring together diverse communities to share and learn from one another through collaborative projects. One program brought people together to create murals at Texas Children’s Hospital. Recently, TFAA started an Open the Door program to assist veterans to re-engage with the community. This program brings veterans together with visual artists and community leaders to collaboratively create art-installment doors situated in public places throughout San Antonio. For many veterans who feel isolated from civilian society, these doors create a genuine sense of participation in the larger community, and a means of creating a deeper conversation.

Texas has been exceptionally fortunate to have such a dynamic organization in their midst. The French culture has much to offer, as does the Texan one. Bringing them together has proved a stimulating and fruitful mix for the people involved, regardless of background. With plans for future collaborations and many projects currently running, the Texan French Alliance for the Arts and Texas have much to be excited about.

By David Boegaard

It’s been recognized as one of the Top 5 Drive-thrus in America by the Food Network. Modern Baking magazine named it one of the top 50 food service bakeries in the United States. But the Kolache Factory’s menu isn’t the only reason it has garnered so much praise. It is also one of the fastest growing companies in Houston, and Franchise Times magazine listed it as one of the top 20 bakery-cafés to watch.

The Kolache Factory introduced its European-style pastry, a sweet yeast dough with a variety of different fillings, to the Houston area in 1982, when the first store opened. There are now 23 company-owned and 28 franchise stores around the country. Kolaches originated from Eastern Europe in the Czech Republic, and were traditionally thought of as wedding pastries with fillings such as poppy seeds or prunes.

“We have long since Americanized them to include all types of delicious fare like BBQ or Bacon Egg & Cheese,” says Dawn Nielsen, Vice President of the Kolache Factory. “The most popular type here in Texas is by far the sausage and cheese. True Czechs call the enclosed meat filled ones klobasniky, but for ease we just call them all kolaches because they are all delicious and all made with our kolache dough. The dough for the kolaches is made fresh on-site at each Kolache Factory location and does not come from a pre-mixed bag. Many competing bakeries use doughnut dough but that is not what a kolache is all about.”

Customers love kolaches because they offer a lot of variety and are easy to eat on the run. Nielsen says that while many compare the kolache to a pig in a blanket or a Hot Pocket type pastry, the Kolache Factory defies any comparison.

“What sets us apart is the quality of our dough,” she says. “Ours is a true Czech recipe and much time and energy goes into preparing this semi-sweet dough. We only put the finest meats, cheeses and fruits into them.”

The Kolache Factory keeps their offerings inventive by holding an annual Kolache Olympics, where stores compete against one another to come up with the next flavor of the month. The top sweet and savory item will find its way to the following year’s rotation. Kolache Factory franchises also listen to their customers’ suggestions, and great ideas are always passed onto the research department for further review.

Kolache Factory becomes very popular around the holidays, especially their dinner rolls. From full-service catering with holiday flavors like pumpkin/pecan pie and turkey and dressing, to party trays for the family on Christmas morning, Kolache Factory is always a big help in the kitchen when the family is in town.

“The only day we are closed is Christmas Day, so we encourage everyone to pre-order their holiday treats,” Nielsen says. “Besides, who wants to cook on Christmas morning when they can eat a delicious Kolache Factory kolache? Other items we offer include our cinnamon rolls, cinnamon twists, muffins, croissants and sticky buns. If you have a sweet tooth, we have a fix for that!”

The Kolache Factory is open Monday through Saturday, from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. and on Sundays, from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.

By Allison Wilson

The city of Fort Worth is big and bustling. For those in need of a break from the noise there is Pilates Works. Owner and instructor Kerry Kreiman focuses on helping adults, especially those over 50, age gracefully. A certified functional aging specialist, Kreiman has developed a studio that mixes Pilates, Plyometrics and so much more to create an all-encompassing workout for the busy person. Kreiman answered questions for Texas Homes For Sale about her inspirations and philosophies of what makes for healthy aging.

What advice would you give beginning Pilates practitioners?

Sometimes newbies get intimidated by the fact that there are hundreds and hundreds of exercises on a wide variety of machines. I tell new clients to be patient with themselves, to realize there is a big learning curve at first, and that as you continue to learn more over time, your mind and your body will come to understand that all of the different pieces of equipment and exercises are complementary to each other and help to inform each other.

Depending on where you live, the options for Pilates-based training may be quite limited, or may be quite diversified. Some fitness facilities only offer Pilates mat classes and others offer a variety of equipment training. Each studio may have different training formats ranging from one-on-one private personal training to small or large group training. Different teachers have different degrees of training and experience. If you have health conditions, injuries, or body issues which may impact your performance, you may want to spend some extra time shopping for a teacher who is appropriate for your needs. The best certification programs require more than 450 hours of training for a comprehensive certification (to teach on all of the large pieces of equipment, such as the Reformer, Chair, Cadillac/Trapeze Table, Ladder Barrel, etc.). When investigating studios, you may want to inquire about simple things, like what their cancellation policy is, what their dress code is, how often they clean their equipment, how often they replace the springs on their machines, and what kinds of continuing education their instructors do.

How can your personal fitness program help your clients get in shape?

In addition to a wonderful selection of traditional Pilates equipment, our studio also has Balanced Body CoreAligns and MOTRs, which beautifully blend the traditional Pilates repertoire with functional fitness methods. We try to make each workout session unique to keep challenging neuromuscular pathways in varied ways. For our regular private clients, we give great consideration to their lifestyle and participation in other fitness forms, sports, leisure activities, etc., and think about designing their training over days/weeks, rather than just that day’s work out. This enables us to better help our clients improve over time.

What else would you like to convey to the public about your Pilates center? What do you enjoy about your job?

I truly love my job because I am able to use my skills and knowledge to help others, and see their progress over time. I love helping people to be stronger and feel better in their bodies. I also greatly enjoy getting to know clients over time, because they start to feel like family and truly become part of our Pilates community. It’s also fun to see clients make new friends from exercise class. It can be a great way for people to find new face to face social connections, at a time when our society can start to feel more and more disconnected. Whether it’s making new connections in your body, or with others, it is my hope that everyone will feel more connected, healthier, and happier as a result of their participation.

By Caitie Vernon