From the Editor | August & September 2019

Welcome to Tex Appeal’s annual Young Professionals issue. We’ve been on the hunt to find young people who are developing new and exciting businesses in town and are setting their professional world on fire. There’s a fascinating young professional around every corner in Bell County (literally and figuratively!) and I think we’ve brought you a representative sample in these pages.

First on my list was Guadalupe Bluhm de Saldivar, a culinary instructor at Central Texas College. I’d been told that she had an amazing story, and it was certainly true. This ambitious young woman got her start cooking in her grandmother’s restaurant in Chiapas, Mexico, her hometown. After traveling extensively and biding her time until her husband retired from the Army, she threw herself into coursework at the (then) brand-new Culinary Arts and Hospitality Program at CTC. Next, she worked her way up to executive chef at The Barton House in Salado while also catching the attention of CTC faculty for her artistic wedding cake designs. Now, she’s juggling a full load as a professor and supervising staff on weekends at the restaurant as well. I asked her where she gets her energy and she shrugged, smiling, saying she was inspired at a young age by the work ethic of her parents and grandmother (p. 22). Don’t miss her recipe for Chimichurri sauce—it will bring the flavors of South America to your next steak BBQ.

On our cover, we introduce you to Brandon and Jessica Bozon, rising stars in the financial world in Temple (p. 26). They were kind enough to pose with their daughter, Elisabeth Fay, for our fabulous photographer, Kati Maxwell, an up-and-coming young professional in her own right. Brandon has just been named as the new CFO for Temple College and, while he settled into his new office there, he sat down with writer Mandy Shelton to chat about his life with his wife and young daughter—with baby No. 2 due to make an appearance in September. This young couple seems to have it all—a supportive family in town, thriving careers and a fulfilling home life.

Another hard-working young man we featured in this issue is José López, a business resource counselor with the Central Texas Business Resource Center in Killeen. This well-traveled entrepreneur and speaker (he’s taught at a university in China and Japan, among other countries) spends his days devoted to assisting young-professional wannabes who seek coaching about ways to start their own businesses (p. 40).

Happily for me, I was able to spend some time with youngsters and their mentors at the Lake Belton Yacht Club and nonprofit Regional Sailing & Boating Center (p. 36) based at Frank’s Marina in Belton. The boating program there seeks to remove barriers to sailing for local youth—sailboats and training are available at extremely affordable rates by volunteers and parents. Teens who wouldn’t normally be exposed to this exhilarating sport are enjoying time with new friends on the lake this summer, gaining confidence and leadership skills as they skipper their own boats out on the water.

It was a pleasure to meet and learn more about so many creative and dedicated young professionals in our area. I hope you’ll enjoy reading their stories as much as we enjoyed bringing them to you.

Stacy Moser
stacym@texappealmag.com
254-774-5266