From library to home design and sales to dining, meet three ladies from Bulverde, Blanco and Spring Branch who are helping to make their communities wonderful places to live and visit.
Beverlee Lemes, Mammen Family Public Library, Bulverde
Your local library is not just a sanctuary for the devoted reader, but also a plentiful hub for resources, programs, classes, and clubs. Beverlee (Bev) Lemes understands just how vital a library’s role is within its community, having been involved with the Mammen Family Public Library of Bulverde for the past 20 years. During 10 of those years, she has served in various roles on the Board of Trustees of the Bulverde Area Rural Library District, and now as the current President, she has made great strides to make the library the best that it can be for a growing community.
Lemes hails from San Antonio and has lived all over the world with her military husband before settling down in Bulverde. During her retirement, she took her love for reading books and libraries, describing it as “part of her DNA,” to become involved with the city of Bulverde and the library. Since then, she has seen the library dramatically change from a small facility to a now expansive, sprawling space at 33,000 square feet. The library recently completed the significant expansion project and celebrated its grand re-opening this past September. As President, Lemes played a significant role in the push for the campaign beginning with surveys to gauge the need for the project, down to signing off on plans and funding. Completion of the expansion was three years in the making and was part of a need to provide more room and space to those coming into the library. It now serves as a true focal point for the fast-growing region providing 40 to 50 programs in art, language, GED, and ESL, along with hosting book clubs and other literary programs for everything and every age. She credits the library’s director, Susan Herr, and countless volunteers who help to bring it all together.
And with her position and the others on the board being elected by registered voters of the library district, she feels great pride in having helped to carry out the expansion. Outside of the board’s monthly meetings, you can find Lemes volunteering around the library, where she enjoys seeing all kinds of people come in for help. And when she’s not there to volunteer, she’s merely there to spend her time doing what she loves the most, reading and participating in book club, “It’s my second home.”
Rebecca Lightfoot O’Shea, RLO Design, LLC., Blanco
Rebecca Lightfoot O’Shea is the true definition of a full-package deal when it comes to her long-standing career in real estate and interior design. The San Antonio native not only runs her own design company, RLO Design, LLC., but also works as an Associate Broker with RE/MAX Genesis in the Hill Country area of Blanco. She has spent more than 20 years in the design business and wholeheartedly knew from an early age that she wanted to work in interior design. It occurred around the age of 7 when she was awed by the transformation of her newly decorated room. She was so moved by how it made her feel that she decided then she was going to be an interior designer. Its that same “aha” moment she sees in her clients when she brings a house or room design together, which makes her feel privileged to be using the talent she has been given. “I feel fortunate to see something others can’t,” says Rebecca. When design work slowed for her a bit during the recession, she took the opportunity to obtain her real estate license. She has teamed up with her two sisters and parents at RE/MAX Genesis and specializes in listings.
At RLO Design, her services include the design finish-out of the construction phase, such as flooring, cabinetry, interior paint, and exterior finishes, to name a few. Staging homes is another big part of what she offers. She is proud to have a home designed that she staged and built by Buttrum Construction featured here with her. Of all the work she does, her favorite design aesthetic is tiling. She loves to tile out a space, enjoying the geometry of it and gaining fulfillment with the work, as it is sometimes the hardest thing for clients to select.
During all of this, she also finds time for co-ownership of Triple L Drygoods. She runs the retail store and sample library with her older sister, Shalyn Lightfoot, where you can find a little bit of everything from clothing, jewelry, candles, and decor. It has a boutique at the front, with furniture in the back, and a sample library with fabrics. Her hope is for it to become a resource for contractors and builders in the area.
Rebecca’s projects take her all over Texas and even out of state, but she loves her location in Blanco, calling it the hub of the wheel in the Hill Country. It allows her to do what she enjoys most—sharing her God-given talent with others.
Chrystal Tamillo, Pecan Street Brewing, Johnson City
Gathering together over food and drinks truly exemplifies a sense of community, and no matter who you’re breaking bread with, whether family or friends, you’re sharing a connection with those at the table. For Chrystal Tamillo, that culture of connection and community moved her to go into business with her husband, Don, and aunt Jackie Bresie to take over ownership of Pecan Street Brewing in Johnson City.
Pecan Street Brewing first opened in 2011 with its original owners, and Tamillo and her family took over ownership in 2016. The couple had come up with a five-year plan to move from Houston out to the Hill Country to start their own restaurant, but that plan quickly turned into a six-month one after a call from her aunt regarding the BrewPub’s availability. Both she and her husband are no strangers to the restaurant business as both hold 40 years of experience in the restaurant/hospitality field, but this is the first business they have opened together. When they began dating, she was an operating partner with Flemings Prime Steakhouse, and some of her most rewarding moments of working in the field have come from the number of great organizations and people she’s worked with and met. She really enjoys working with their team at the BrewPub, whom she considers part of their extended family. They work together to create good craft beers, a great menu, and a welcoming atmosphere for an all-around good time.
One of Chrystal’s favorite things about Pecan Street is the building it sits in and the history associated with it. It was once the original hardware store during the 1950s. With its location sitting in the historic square of the downtown district, Pecan Street Brewery serves as a prime spot for all it has to offer: a restaurant, a brewery, and a dance hall all in one. The choices of beers change weekly with the different recipes they have available, and when it comes to the food, one of her favorite dishes includes the Black Sheep Burger.
She described how the feel of community also carries over into their partnerships with local farms for their farm to table inspired menu, and their full bar serves only Texas wines. The dance hall hosts live music every weekend and is a prime setting for parties, rehearsal dinners, and business meetings. This is all part of the BrewPub’s culture of connection for the Johnson City community, and she loves being a part of that.
By Jennifer O’Neill
Photography by Jason Roberts
This article was originally published in San Antonio Woman Magazine https://sawoman.com/2020/01/pursuing-passions-and-sharing-them-with-others/
