Memories are instant flashes where all our senses converge, transporting us back to another moment in our past. The smell of an ingredient while cooking. The color of a stranger’s hair. The perfect summer coastal breeze in the evening. A song is playing overhead while shopping at HEB. Each of these brief things invokes an … Read more
Kevin Klaerner’s roots in law enforcement run deep. His great-great-uncle John Klaerner, great-grandfather Alfred Klaerner, and grandfather Hugo Klaerner each served as Sheriffs of Gillespie County. “Continuing that family tradition is something I take great pride in,” he said. “It drives me every day to uphold the values they lived by.” Now a Kendall County … Read more
“Though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again…” – Proverbs 24:16 In 2009, Boerne High School reopened its doors, and with it, the heartbeat of a small-town tradition came back to life. We had closed the school for a calendar year while it was remodeled. And with that return came the need for a … Read more
In the heart of Kendall County, Texas, where the Hill Country’s rugged beauty meets the warmth of community, a simple coffee shop stands as a testament to faith’s transformative power. Barker and Wortman Coffee is more than a place for a morning brew; it’s a sanctuary where an eight-foot cross looms on the wall, a … Read more
Published in 2011, the late John Eddie Vogt’s book, Witches, Bitches, and Other Small Town Folks, brings to life the quirky, unforgettable, and entertaining tales of growing up and living in Kendall County from the 1930s through the 1960s. Thanks to the gracious permission of his family, The Kendall Gentleman is honored to share excerpts … Read more
Growing up as a Gen X Texas boy, it was never considered to be ‘manly’ to show emotions (unless those emotions happened to be something to do with courage, perhaps). Sadly, this is a recurring theme with many fellow men I have visited with. Dealing with emotions is something that every human must contend with, … Read more
I once heard a simple line that stopped me cold. As the saying goes, “We do what we want to do, and we don’t do what we don’t want to do.” At first, it made me laugh—it sounded like something someone might say to justify skipping a meeting or leaving a party early, but the … Read more
The story of Jacob and Justina Luchenbach is one of perseverance, hope, and quiet influence The mid-19th century witnessed a remarkable tide of German immigration to Texas, a movement that profoundly shaped the cultural and economic landscape of the Lone Star State. Among these intrepid pioneers stands Jacob Luchenbach, whose journey from the Duchy of … Read more
When Andy Ivankovich first drove down Mill Dam Road in Comfort, Texas, he wasn’t looking for a vineyard. Truth is, he’d never even tasted Texas wine. What he sought was just a quiet slice of the Hill Country, somewhere to clear brush on weekends with his kids and let his mind rest from years of … Read more
Cody Davenport isn’t the kind of CEO who spends his days behind a desk, distant from the work that drives the heart of his organization. Instead, the leader of the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo is a hands-on, boots-in-the-dirt Texan who can often be found alongside volunteers, loading livestock, or training with his staff … Read more