The Annual POA General Membership Meeting will take place this year on Wednesday,
November 21, at 8 pm. To save everyone from cold and potential wind and rain,
the meeting will be held at the Tuscan
Hall in the Wizard Academy.
Positions held by Mark Ruthenbeck and Margaret Paine will expire and will be
filled by election from the membership at this meeting. This is the one time
of the year when all property owners meet with their Board of Trustees to talk
about issues affecting the community, and also to ask questions or voice concerns.
All members are strongly urged to attend.
Members are also encouraged to bring a dessert or snack to share with neighbors
during a brief social time after the official meeting ends. To get to the Tuscan
Hall, turn right onto Crystal Hills Drive from GWW, then turn left at the Wizard
Academy sign.
Local History: John Lee Wallace
Shrouded by vines, on the south side of Highway 290, a third of a mile east
of its junction with Rural Route 12, lies the Wallace Family Cemetery. Although
its existence is not well known, it is an integral part of the history of
Dripping Springs. Within its bounds lie the remains of the man who, arguably,
was the
first permanent settler in the area. John Lee Wallace was a true pioneer
through whose veins flowed some of the bluest blood in America. Through his
mother,
Matilda Lee, John Wallace was descended from a Pilgrim Father, Isaac Allerton,
and was a distant cousin of General Robert E. Lee. His grandmother was a
cousin of President Zachary Taylor and second cousin of President James Madison.
On his father’s side, the Wallace roots lie in Scotland, with the original
immigrant settling in the backwoods of Virginia. Lunenburg was the birthplace
in 1742 of John Lee Wallace’s grandfather, Caleb, a Presbyterian minister,
and one of the early settlers in Kentucky, where he was a judge of the Court
of Appeals. His remarkable story can be read online through “Google Books” in
The Life and Times of Judge Caleb Wallace.” While attending the College
of New Jersey, now Princeton University, Caleb Wallace was taught by signer
of the Declaration of Independence, Dr. John Witherspoon, and made friends
with James Madison. Caleb Wallace had three wives, the second of whom, Rosanna
Christian, was the mother of John Lee Wallace’s father, Samuel McDowell
Wallace. Rosanna’s brother, Colonel William Christian, was married to
Anne Henry, sister of Patrick Henry, famous for his “Give me liberty
or give me death” speech.
Like his father, Samuel McDowell Wallace had three wives. The third was Matilda
Lee, whom he married in 1817 in Woodford County, Kentucky. Matilda’s
sister, Elizabeth Lee, was the first wife of the Hon. John J. Crittenden who
became Attorney General of the United States under President William Henry
Harrison and later was Governor of Kentucky. Matilda (Lee) Wallace gave birth
to John Lee Wallace on 23 March 1821 in Woodford County, Kentucky.
At the age of 21, John Lee Wallace married Malvina Louise Gillespie on 28
June 1842 in Versailles, Woodford County, Kentucky. In the next ten years,
Malvina
gave birth to five children, all of whom died. The sixth child, Caroline
Watkins, was born on 20 December 1853. The loss of their five other children
must have
affected the Wallaces deeply and may have played a part in their decision
to leave Kentucky for Texas.
The Wallaces bought 377.5 acres in Hays County in 1854. Their neighbors were
the Pounds and the Mosses. The homestead was built on the slope of what is
now known as Wallace Mountain. There it stood until 1953 when it was reduced
to rubble by fire. A restored stone-walled corral can be seen on the north
side of Highway 290. It was a very important structure as John Lee Wallace
operated a stage-coach stop where fresh horses were always in demand.
During the Civil War, when Texas was part of the Confederacy, John Lee Wallace
was the postmaster at Dripping Springs. His name cannot be found on the official
list of postmasters as he never served under the United States government.
He is said to have served in Company D., Filips Legion Cavalry, Long’s
Regiment, during the war. Three years after it ended, the last of John and
Malvina Wallace’s eleven children was born. He was named after his father.
Sadly, he died a year later, the only one of the Wallace children born in Texas
who did not reach adulthood.
Little John Lee Wallace was the first of the family to be buried in the Wallace
Family Cemetery. There is a story that the flooded creek prevented the funeral
party reaching the Wallace Mountain Cemetery on top of Wallace Mountain.
The second Wallace to be laid to rest there was Mattie Louise who died aged
22
in 1885, leaving behind husband, Charles Seal, and their three-year-old daughter,
Pauline. The final grave is that of their father, John Lee Wallace, who died
on 27 February 1893. Their mother, Malvina (Gillespie) Wallace, sold the
family property in 1899. She died at the home of her daughter, Caroline (Wallace)
Voight, on 19 January 1912 in San Marcos and is buried in the Voight plot
in
the cemetery there. • © 2007 J. Marie Bassett
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| Luna Moth (Actias luna) sighted in GWW in August by John and Marcia Tolly. |
Another view of the dramatically beautiful Luna
Moth |
Mail station renovation A huge thank you
is extended to the mail station beautification volunteers. Our corporate
sponsor, who gave us the majority
of the paint, was
PPG Architectural Finishes, Inc., Jeff Struder, Manager (512) 420-0783.
Two professional painters volunteered their services: Jim McKey, (512)
202-5035
and William Bollom, (512) 914-8719. Additionally, these neighbors donated
hours of their time to the project: John Anderson, Warren Hayward, John
Ponder, Sue
Ponder, Audrey Pudder and Jerry Stanley. Well, done everyone! We are all
lucky to live in a community that works so well together to keep our common
areas
beautiful. • Editor and Sue Ponder
Low water crossings To learn conditions of area roads subject to
flooding in Hays County visit http://www.engineering.co.hays.tx.us/dwc/WaterCrossingMaps.php/ • Editor, with information from resident Gary Kosut
Neighborhood heros Many of our residents perform various services for our
community without payment and often without even being asked. The following
residents
are gratefully recognized for their efforts: Jerry Stanley fixed the pavilion
security light, John Anderson delivered a ladder for changing the light
bulbs and accessing the ceiling fans. Darby Spencer, a former resident,
repaired
the water fountain pipe in the pavilion. It now has a metal pipe so hopefully
it will be stronger and more resilient.
Keeping GWW beautiful: Understanding
our covenants
CCR
and Bylaws Revisions: Why do we need them? If they’re
so difficult to change, why bother?
Over two years ago, the Goldenwood West Board of Trustees
set an ambitious goal to simplify, clarify and update our Bylaws
and Covenants. The strongest reason for updating the CCRs was to
make the CCRs easier to read, understand, follow and interpret.
The most significant proposed change to the Bylaws permits the
Board to set the date for the annual meeting at a convenient time
for property owners rather than the current mandated requirement
that we hold our annual meeting on the third Wednesday in November.
This often falls on a cold night, ar a time when many folks are
preparing for Thanksgiving (this year the Bylaws force us to hold
our meeting the night before Thanksgiving).
The most significant proposed change to the CCRs is condensing
the six different sets of covenants for our subdivision into a
single, uniform document. The six original versions and the revised
version are available for review on our web site at: http://gww.zpgraphic.com/GWWHTML/GWW_covenants.html.
None of the proposed changes impose more restrictions on any lot
owner.
To date, the Board has received 83 approvals for the changes
but needs 31 more for a total of 114 to file the new documents
with
the courthouse and put the revised document into practice.
The Board asks that you turn in your signed approval form by
November
21, the date of our Annual POA meeting. Residents who do not
approve the changes are encouraged to write a brief statement
of their
concerns and objections and submit them, via the POA drop box
or email, to the Administrator for the next group of volunteers
to
review should this revision effort fail. • Editor
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Journey of the Wise Men In celebration
of the Christmas holidays, the Wizard Academy is once again staging the Journey
of the Wise Men trail this year on
their lovely grounds. The event will be on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings
in December from 6 to 9 pm. They are hoping to have guest groups caroling in
front of the new Bell of La Mancha wall this year. The wall is located in the
small Chapel Dulcinea parking area. Any carol groups who would like to sing
during these weekends are invited to contact Pattie at pattie@wizardofads.com.
• Editor
Trespassing One of our residents in the
back third of the subdivision reports a problem with trespassers driving through
their property on the cul-de-sac
to access the ranch behind them, rutting up the land in the process. The vehicles
drove over septic lines and crushed them, leading to expensive repairs. These
and other residents who own property on the utility rights of way find people
walking their dogs on their land without permission as well. Also, they have
seen small children playing in the creek in the back portion of their lots,
and with no parents around watching them. The current is pretty swift after
a rainstorm and they are very worried that a child might drown or get hurt.
Residents are reminded to supervise their children carefully, and to respect
the privacy of all property owners. Please talk to older children about staying
off of other neighbors’ properties. • Editor
Board of Trustees News
Election of officers Two Trustee positions are up for election on November
21, to serve full two-year terms ending December 31, 2009. These positions
have been held by Mark Ruthenbeck and Margaret Paine. Neither is seeking
reelection, in order that other POA members may have an opportunity to participate
in governing
our community.
Two members have been nominated
for the open BOT positions. Penny Frohlich Jungerman provided the following
candidate statement:
| When my husband and I were looking to purchase a home several years ago,
we wanted to find a neighborhood such as Goldenwood West that reflected
the natural beauty of the hill country. Once we settled into the neighborhood,
we found a community in which we enjoyed privacy as well as caring neighbors
and family friendly activities. As a member of the board, I envision projects
that increase the beauty and enjoyment of the neighborhood, such as wildflowers
in the grasslands of the common areas and chaise lounge chairs and sun
umbrellas for the pool area. The explosion of high end development in the
Dripping Springs area bodes well for established neighborhoods such as
ours. It is my hope that we can foster a laid back and caring community
while continuing to watch our home values grow. |
Member Paul Laird, also a nominee, provided this statement:
| My name is Paul W. Laird and I am running for the Board. I lived in Fort
Worth my whole life until moving to this lovely area of Texas. We have
two boys and three grandchildren. I live at 16911 Bluestem Court with my
wife Teruko in the house we purchased a year ago this last August. After
26 years with the Fort Worth Police Department I retired with the rank
of Corporal / Detective. I am also a retired Master Sergeant after 26 years
of service with the United States Air Force and Texas Air National Guard
. I am a veteran of Vietnam and Desert Storm . I have been an Assistant
Scout Master with Troop 50 for eight years before moving here. I think
I would be able to use my past experience to work with the board to make
the POA even better for the residents that live here. I have several areas
on security that I want to put out for discussion. |
Member Steve Johnson, a third nominee, provided this statement:
| My family and I have been residents of Goldenwood West for
five years. We have all enjoyed the community pool, pavilion and neighborhood
events and have met many of our neighbors and friends through these experiences.
As a member of the Board of Trustees, I would work to enhance and maintain
our community amenities and ensure the continuation of neighborhood events
that enhance our way of life in Goldenwood West. I also believe we should
each maintain our properties as it also enhances our experience as well
as our property values. I have never served on the board or APC and felt
it was a good time for me to contribute to the community. |
Any property owner may nominate a candidate. Please fill out and submit a
nomination form either by email or in hard copy form in our POA drop box
at the mail station
by October 31. Nomination forms may be obtained from the Administrator or
downloaded from the News page of our website. Nominations may also be made
in person at
the Annual meeting, but nominees must give their consent before being accepted
as candidates. Candidates must be POA members who are current in their dues
to the Association, must not be currently involved in a violation issue with
the APC, and must agree to be nominated.
Property owners who will not be able to attend the Annual Meeting should
fill out and turn in a proxy for their votes for BOT candidates. Proxies
will be
mailed to owners the first week of November.
The next meeting of the GWW Water Board will be on Monday, 26 November,
at 7:30 pm at Nicholas Dotin’s home, 8501 Persimmon Grove.
News from the APC
The next meeting of the APC will be on Tuesday 11 November at 6 pm at the
pavilion. Residents with questions for the APC are always welcome to
attend the meetings.
POA members and visitors may speak during the public forum at the beginning
of the meeting.
News from the GWW Water Board
The next meeting of the GWW Water Board will be on Monday, 26 November,
at 7:30 pm at the pavilion.
Helpful Information
For useful reference information, such as a listing of area churches and telephone
numbers for important local contacts, please go to our neighborhood web site
at www.goldenwoodwestpoa.org or contact
the webmaster.
This newsletter published for:
Goldenwood West
Property Owners’ Association
16200 Westview Trail
Austin, TX 78737-9068
(512) 858-9528 office
Administrator@GoldenwoodWestPOA.org
www.GoldenwoodWestPOA.org
Please direct comments,
articles, email subscriptions
and inquiries regarding
advertisements to the above address.
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