Four States Living Magazine

08/02/2025

A SPARK FOR THE ARTS
Artist Kay Thomas inspires others to “reclaim their right to create”
By Brandon Shoemaker

At 71, Kay Thomas is busier—and bolder—than ever. A lifelong artist, educator, provocateur, and national arts integration specialist, Kay doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. In fact, she seems to be hitting a new creative stride.

“I’m at the top of my game,” she said. “I know how to build pretty much anything I want to build. It’s just—do I have the strength to do it? But I never expected my career to explode with such success at age 71.”

Strength, it seems, is no problem. In between sculpting, lamp-making, working with teachers across the country, consulting for the Kennedy Center, and dreaming up her next wild artistic project, Kay is shaping not just clay and paper but also minds. From her roots in East Texas to classrooms and studios nationwide, she’s always been on a mission: to move people to create, especially when they think they can’t.

Read Kay's full article here:
https://www.fourstatesliving.com/feature-stories/2025/8/1/a-spark-for-the-arts

08/02/2025

A WORLD OF WELCOME
Camille Sherman connects international students with local host families—and hosts students herself
By Phoebe Warren

For Camille Sherman, the world got pleasantly smaller when she welcomed a 15-year-old boy from Denmark into her home. In 2022, Camille and her husband, Kevin, had flown out from their hometown of Atlanta, Texas, to join a business trip with Kevin’s boss. During the trip, Camille recalled, the boss was completing paperwork to host an exchange student and asked if he could list the Shermans as a reference. “The very next day, the coordinator called and talked to Kevin,” Camille said. “He asked if we would be willing to host. So we got our first exchange student in the school year of ‘22 to ‘23. His name was Alexander Bodholdt, from Denmark.”

It must have been fate that brought Alexander into the Shermans’ lives because the experience left a lasting impact on the whole family. “He came in and basically fit right in with our family,” Camille said. “He was always up for anything that we did, willing to try all the foods that we had, and was a normal teenager. He made many friends in school and was always on-the-go.”

Read Camille's full story here:
https://www.fourstatesliving.com/feature-stories/2025/8/1/a-world-of-welcome

08/01/2025

TEACHING AT EVERY LEVEL
Daniela and Samuel Tirrito influence children at school and home
By Jennifer Jordan

A love for educating children comes naturally to local teachers Daniela and Samuel Tirrito. On a given weekday, they spend time with a diverse range of ages, from Daniela’s elementary-aged pupils to Samuel’s high school students. Between them, Daniela and Samuel have a combined 30 years in education. Instructing, listening, supporting, soothing—an educator’s daily to-do list—all continue after the final bell, as they parent four young children of their own.

Samuel and Daniela both graduated from Texas High School, where Samuel has taught a variety of English courses for the past 11 years. Daniela’s students are at the opposite end of their K-12 years; she has taught pre-k, kindergarten, and 1st grade, all in bilingual classrooms. She worked at Texarkana ISD as an instructional aide while earning her teaching degree, which she obtained in 2010.

Read the Tirrito's full story here:
https://www.fourstatesliving.com/feature-stories/2025/8/1/teaching-at-every-level

08/01/2025

FROM TISD TO WASHINGTON, DC
Acclaimed educator Monica Washington is named National Education Association’s Director of Teacher Quality
By Ellen Orr

Over Monica Washington’s 20-year career as an English teacher, one activity she developed stands out as particularly revolutionary: “Pie Chart of My Perspective.”

Monica would present a given topic or issue and then ask her teenage students, “Where do you get your information? What gives you your belief? What percentage is family? What percentage is reading? What percentage are your friends?” The exercise changed the culture of her classroom.

“Some of the students would say, ‘Oh, [my perspective is] 100% me,’” Monica recalled. “I’d say, ‘No, it’s not,’ and we’d think through that. And probably the percentages were wrong, but it was helping them make that shift and realize that everybody has a different pie chart. So then, in discussions with each other, they would say things like, ‘Oh, well, it’s okay. Don’t worry about so-and-so; don’t get on her back or whatever. She just has a different pie chart than you.’ Figuring out how to teach them that took me a while, but once I did, it was magical.”

Read Monica's full story here:
https://www.fourstatesliving.com/feature-stories/2025/8/1/from-tisd-to-washington-dc

08/01/2025

THE CAMP OF OUR DREAMS
Lindsey McMillan and others recount memories of Camp Mystic
By Lindsey McMillan

There’s an old camp song that ends with, “Camp Mystic, I will pledge my true and faithful love to you.” As locals share stories about the beloved summer camp they called home for years, it is clear that the pledge is more than a lyric. This blissful summer haven was struck with tragedy when floodwaters rushed through in the early morning of July 4th, 2025. Usually, the Guadalupe is calm and clear, gently lapping the edges of centuries-old cypress trees that grow alongside its banks. Many summer camps dot the landscape along Highway 39 in Hunt, approximately 18 miles outside of Kerrville, Texas. Camp Mystic is one of those camps, set to celebrate its 100th birthday in 2026.

Many traditions still exist from 1926, which mothers, daughters, granddaughters, sisters, aunts, and cousins have carried across generations. Former campers stretch across the state and beyond, all recently connected by their grief for the young people lost in the flood, along with longtime camp director and owner, Dick Eastland. Dick and his wife, Tweety, served as surrogate parents to countless girls who attended the Christian camp each summer. Online, the fondest of memories are being shared, along with songs, stories, and photos. Kerr County suffered the worst of the flood, and many people are still missing from the riverbanks where they were happily celebrating a long holiday weekend.

Read Lindsey's full article here:
https://www.fourstatesliving.com/feature-stories/2025/8/1/the-camp-of-our-dreams

08/01/2025

FSLM STUDENT PROFILE AUGUST 2025
Meet Lynleigh Henderson
By Baylor McLelland

As August begins, so do preparations for the incoming school year: gathering supplies, buying clothes, and memorizing the new schedule. On top of that, seniors have to prepare for the end of their high school journeys, and for some, their journeys as athletes. For Pleasant Grove High School’s Lynleigh Henderson, this month represents all of that and more.

Lynleigh began playing tennis in sixth grade as a way to avoid taking a P.E. class. “Tennis was the only other option, so I signed up for it,” she said, “and it took a while, but I ended up falling for it.” It was during her eighth-grade year when she started to take the sport seriously. She began taking private lessons at Northridge Country Club to improve. Since then, Lynleigh has gone from an amateur—who hadn’t even held onto a racket before—to one of the school’s best players. She is beginning her senior year in the number-two position in the girls’ tennis division.

Read Lynleigh's full article here:
https://www.fourstatesliving.com/feature-stories/2025/8/1/fslm-student-profile-august-2025

08/01/2025

A CUT ABOVE THE REST
Teen brothers run landscaping business
By Phoebe Warren

Before most of their peers have even stumbled out of bed, the White brothers have already mowed half a neighborhood. What started as a remedy for boredom during the memorably sluggish summer of 2020 has snowballed into six seasons of lawn care for Jeb, Chapman, and Harrison White. “We mainly mow, but we do [also] offer light landscaping and bed work,” Chapman said. “We started doing yards with our parent’s lawn equipment but have since invested about $7,500 in purchasing our own equipment.”

The brothers give credit to their dad, Justin White, for getting them started. “He made the first steps in starting our business by posting our desire to do yard work for those in our neighborhood,” Chapman said. “We started with our neighborhood since none of us had driver’s licenses at the time we started. We now all have licenses and can efficiently and safely manage our 14-foot trailer.”

Read the White brothers' full story here:
https://www.fourstatesliving.com/feature-stories/2025/8/1/a-cut-above-the-rest

08/01/2025

LEAVING A MARK
With art and design, senior Brody Fincher revitalized his campus
By Alex Hartline

Brody Fincher fell in love with art as a child and has pursued it relentlessly since. Currently a senior at Queen City High School, he has made a name for himself on campus through his artwork.

“Beautiful things always captured my attention, and I was drawn to the subject [of art],” Brody said. He also has several family members who were involved in the arts who helped to encourage his interests. In particular, his mom, who is a painter and interior decorator, has influenced him to grow his art from a hobby to a professional skill. They now work alongside each other to transform spaces with new art and interior design.

Read Brody's full story here:
https://www.fourstatesliving.com/feature-stories/2025/8/1/leaving-a-mark

07/31/2025

07/31/2025

August arrives tomorrow and that means it's almost time to head back to school. And it also means a new issue of Four States Living is here! This edition features articles about amazing students and educators from the area. So go grab a copy, or if you can't wait, check out our digital version on our website.

https://www.fourstatesliving.com/