From the Editor | Spring 2020
Welcome to our Spring 2020 issue of Tex Appeal.
I’m Janna Zepp, Tex Appeal’s new editor. While I’m new to the magazine, I’m not new to the area, having lived here the last 15 years, and I’m certainly a Texan, six generations proud. I’m also the wife of a retired U.S. Army Sergeant Major whom I met during my time working at Fort Hood, so I know how much our troops mean to all of us here in Central Texas. I’m excited to help tell the stories of our friends and neighbors, both yours and mine.
In this issue of Tex Appeal, we’ve got some great stories to tell about our fellow Central Texans in the business of making our area homes and landscapes beautiful.
Lori Murdoch graciously opened her home to us to show how she made an amazing space with repurposed décor elements and items found at places many of us already shop regularly.
Meet Jesse and Brenda Esparza of Gallery Design Center, two hometown folks who’ve been helping Bell County residents for nearly 20 years to get cutting edge interior design, flooring, tile, and fixtures into their own homes that rival style found in larger cities.
It was wonderful to get to know Laura White of Laura White Interior Design who lends her talents and design expertise to a new patient and family hospitality house on the Baylor Scott & White Temple Medical Center campus.
Villa Lu Necia, the 1920s-era home of Belton’s own version of the Great Gatsby, L.B. Kinchion Sr., gets a makeover thanks to Troy and Paula Finley, new Beltonians who used the talents of Gage Construction, Inc. to make their dream home come to life in honor of the memory of the Kinchion family and the many famous African American entertainers such as Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, and Duke Ellington who stayed at Villa Lu Necia during their travels through Central Texas.
We’ll introduce you to Denio’s Furniture Flooring & Fireplaces located in what might have become a hay barn were it not for the business acumen of three generations of Denio women in Cameron that made the store one of the most sought-after resources for interior design in Central Texas.
We’ve put the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor on display with the people in charge of making it one of the most beautiful college and university campuses in Texas.
Bell County Appraisal District’s chief appraiser, Billy White, will share how BCAD appraises property and what homeowners can do to make sure that appraisal is fair.
In addition to the focus on home and garden matters, we’ll take a trip just south of Killeen to Ware’s Wander Woods, a working farm that opens its gates to private tours, parties, and events with a touch of humor and a taste of honey.
And we’ll celebrate 50 years of the Saint Francis Church Gift Shop which has supported the community and the ministries of St. Francis Episcopal Church since 1970.
I sure hope you enjoy reading our stories as much as we have loved bringing them to you in this issue. If you have a story tip for us, let me know at editor@texappealmag.com or call me at 254-774-5266.
