Officers and Board Members
Friends of Garland's Historic Magic 11th Street
Louis Moore
President
Louis Moore is the founder and president of Friends of Garland's Historic Magic 11th Street. Since moving to Garland in 2000 he has immersed himself in the life of the city. having served on the city's Plan Commission for 10 years. He is also a former board member and chair of the Garland Salvation Army, an early founding board member of Hope Clinic, and a former vice president and board member of the Garland Downtown Business Association. He and his wife, Kay, received the prestigious "Who's Who in Garland Neighborhoods" award in 2017. He is a citizen and elder of the Chickasaw Nation and was a "diversity scholar" in the National Trust for Historic Preservation programs in 2016, 2017, 2021, and 2022. He previously served as a director and on the executive board of Dallas Heritage Village in Old City Park in Dallas. He is retired from a career in journalism, corporate media, and book publishing. He has worked tirelessly to help restore Garland's inner city, most notably the preserving of Garland's Historic Pace House.
Christopher Ott
Vice President
Christopher Ott, one of the founding directors of Friends of Garland's Historic Magic 11th Street, is the nonprofit's vice president. For 35 years he has owned a Garland small business, Rotary Performance, one of the oldest and most important names in the Mazda rotary engine world. Recently elected to his first term on the Garland City Council, he has served 12 years on the Garland Plan Commission. He is a graduate of the Garland Citizens Fire Academy and has been involved in numerous other philanthropic endeavors. Chris, a native Texan, performed in the role of Pascual's friend Don in "The Cactus Chronicles" musical drama in 2021 and assisted with sound in all the musicals. He created the commemorative metalwork sculpture that honors Garland's COVID fatalities in the North Entryway Garden as well as the metalwork butterfly that adorns the commemorative sign in the South Entryway Garden.
Kay Wheeler Moore
Secretary
Kay Wheeler Moore has combined her career as a Pulitzer Prize-nominated reporter and later author, editor, and publisher with her passion for historic preservation to write and produce musical dramas that tell various aspects of Garland's story. After their work history took her to various U.S. cities, she and her husband, Louis Moore, returned to live on her growing-up street in Garland, where they led a movement to revitalize a decaying area and obtained National Register of Historic Places designation for their neighborhood just behind Garland High School, her alma mater. Kay wrote the original music for the musical drama "Becoming Garland Avenue" in 2019, the "Becoming Garland Avenue—2020 Revival" movie in 2020 and "The Cactus Chronicles" musical drama in 2021, as well as original solo numbers for the dedication of the North Entry commemorative sign and the Valle Family Texas Historical Marker.
Frederick Downes
Treasurer
Frederick Downes, one of the founding directors of Friends of Garland's Historic Magic 11th Street, is the nonprofit's treasurer. Retired from his professional career, Fred and his wife, Deborah Downes, traveled the world in his 30 years experience in golf course construction, 22 on high-end projects overseas, as the senior design superintendent for Robert Trent Jones II, LLC. He holds dual citizenship with passports for the United States and Great Britain. He had six years of experience as Director of Base Operations at Sugarloaf USA, a major New England Ski resort, with full responsibility for hiring, training, budgeting and operations of six separate departments. Deborah has been photographer for numerous Friends' events, including "The Cactus Chronicles" and the two "Becoming Garland Avenue" musical dramas.
John Combs
Board Member
John Combs worked full time in the Garland Independent School District first as a teacher and the last 27 years as a counselor, finishing as lead counselor of North Garland High School. He and his wife, Beverly, have traveled to all 50 states and all Presidential libraries. John graduated from Garland High School and has two degrees from University of North Texas. He starred as Editor Will Holford in "Becoming Garland Avenue" and as an Official in "The Cactus Chronicles". An ardent and competitive runner, he and Beverly most recently traveled to Poland to work with refugees from the Ukraine. He is an active volunteer and deacon at his church.
Roger Poore
Board Member
Roger Poore is one of the original board members of Friends of Garland's Historic Magic 11th Street and has served as the nonprofit's vice-president. He is the descendant of several of the original families in the Garland/Pleasant Valley area. He is the grandson of legendary Garland News owner/editor Will A. Holford. He graduated from Garland High School, the University of Texas at Arlington, and the University of Dallas Braniff Graduate School of Management. He served as board chairman of the International Aloe Science Council during his long career at Aloe Vera of America in Dallas. He portrayed pioneer land owner Richard C. Wyatt during the performances of "Becoming Garland Avenue" and "Becoming Garland Avenue—2021 Revival". He volunteers by serving Friends as unofficial proofreader and parking attendant. He is also a member of the GHS Alumni Association Board. The Poore-Nickens Home, one of the 11th Street dwellings in the National Register Historic District, is named for his family.
Dawn Peacock
Board Member
Dawn Peacock lives on the original Garland Avenue with her husband and two children. When she's not in the kitchen or vegetable garden, Dawn loves speaking Spanish and having fun with her kids around the house and neighborhood. She teaches English as a Second Language and has a large YouTube following for her videos that give an intuitive and holistic approach to language learning. She played the role of Ella Beaver in the "Becoming Garland Avenue" musical drama and the role of Emma Hunt as an on-the-street interpreter during "Magical Candlelight Christmas-town 2022". She was a volunteer during the Fiesta at which the Garland Latino Heritage Cookbook was introduced.
Robert Vera
Board Member
Robert Vera has lived in Garland for more than 40 years. He considers that public service is in his blood, and he served the Garland City Council for three terms before he rotated off council in 2023. His father was a school board member in South Texas for 25 years and set the example for serving others. Robert has been actively involved with the West Garland Neighborhood Association and served on the Garland Plan Commission for six years. He was a founding member of LULAC in Garland and is a graduate of the Citizens Fire Academy. Robert is a 10th-generation Texan, his family coming to South Texas when Texas was under Spanish rule. He is a barber by profession and is still works full-time in a salon on the SMU campus. He also has an exterminator business. He and his wife, Jeanne, enjoy helping their neighbors and encourage their children to serve others as well. He was the first individual to receive an honorary lifetime membership from Friends of Garland's Historic Magic 11th Street.
Dawn Hallman
Board Member
Dawn Hallman is a veteran volunteer and community activist in Garland. A professional educator, she is executive director of Dallas Association Parent Education/ DAPE, an adjunct professor at Eastfield College, and a teacher trainer/professional development. She is a trustee of the Central Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas. She and her husband, Steven, teach middle-schoolers in Sunday School at Wilshire Baptist Church. The Hallmans live in a historic home in adjacent James Terrace subdivision. Her father, John Shaw, was the first administrator at Garland's Memorial Hospital, later known as Baylor Scott & White Hospital of Garland. Her parents-in-law, Sandy and Peaches Hallman, lived in the 200 block of South 11th Street before their passings. She performed the role of Ella Beaver as an on-the-street interpreter in "Magical Candlelight Christmas-town 2022".
Kenia Carreón-Ott
Kenia Carreón-Ott originally hails from Irapuato, Mexico. With a communication degree from Mexico's prestigious Universidad Iberoamericana (UIA) she launched a varied career of television/radio production and marketing. She is an original board member of Friends of Garland’s Historic Magic 11th Street and serves on the Garland Parks Board. She has been a prompter in all three of the Friends-sponsored musicals and in "The Cactus Chronicles" performed as Sylvia's college roommate. She organized the Monarch butterfly walk when the South Entryway Garden and Monarch Butterfly Waystation marker was unveiled in 2018. She and Chris conducted the online auction to support Friends during the virtual showing of "Becoming Garland Avenue—2020 Revival". They designed and operated the Santa photo-op booth for the Christmas home tours in 2019 and 2022.
Board Member
Emeritus Board Members
Kay Crossman Turner
Kay Crossman Turner, one of the founding Board members of Friends of Garland's Historic Magic 11th Street, passed away on October 22, 2022. She was a descendant of one of Garland's most storied families: great-granddaughter of former Garland Mayor George Wilson Crossman, founder of the Crossman Insurance Agency, situated in downtown Garland. Her grandfather, Curtis Crossman Sr., who inherited the agency, and her grandmother, Dixie Tucker Crossman, were longtime residents of 11th Street. She taught middle-school history for 39 years in the Garland school district and became an active substitute teacher after her retirement. She also was a board member of the Garland High School Alumni Association. The original treasurer of the Friends Board, Kay portrayed her great-grandmother, Ella Sparks Crossman, in the "Becoming Garland Avenue" musical drama.
Charley Thibodeaux
CharleyThibodeaux is an active volunteer with Friends of Garland's Historic Magic 11th Street. He has served in ticket sales and with stage set-up and stage management in the three musicals that Friends has produced and also at the various home tours and other Friends-sponsored events. With his wife Amy he is involved in the restoration and preservation of Garland's historic Allen-Ryon House near the 11th-Street neighborhood. He is a retired network architect fro AT&T and in retirement is business owner of Thibodeaux Solutions LLC. He enjoys beekeeping and volunteering at LakePointe Church.
Amy Kilpatrick Thibodeaux
Amy Kilpatrick Thibodeaux is actively involved in the preservation of Garland’s history through her membership in Friends of Garland’s Historic Magic 11th Street and through research and restoration of the Allen-Ryon House, where she lives with her husband Charley. She played the part of Hattie Ryon Darling in "Becoming Garland Avenue 2020 Revival" and has been involved in ticket sales other volunteer activities for the musical dramas. When she is not teaching ELAR to her 5th grade students, Amy enjoys beekeeping, running and reading. She is also active at Lake Pointe Church, where she teaches in the nursery and summer VBS.