This photograph by Michael Ainsworth appeared on the front page of Sunday’s Dallas Morning News on March 4^th. It shows Father Sebastian leading the parade across the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge. The bridge bears Margaret’s name since she threw in a couple million dollars to hire the world famous architect Calatrava and get this bridge project going. Behind Sebastian are Mattie Nash and Victor Considerant, puppets representing the giants of west Dallas’ history. Father Sebastian’s banner reads: “St Mary of Carmel School presents Father Sebastian [who] in the 1930s envisioned the first Catholic school in West Dallas.” His puppet artist is Junanne Peck. All fifteen puppet artists are associated with the La Reunion TX artist residency in Oak Cliff. Each puppet in the Parade of Giants was designed to be ten feet tall.

Mattie Nash is a long-time community activist who represented West Dallas on the Dallas City Council from 1991-1993. She holds a house, representing her work on the Dallas Housing Authority. Mattie died just two years ago. She was known and referred to by Dallas mayors as “The Mayor of West Dallas,” where she is remembered for launching drives to bring water, sewers, paving and gas to African-American parts of the city, esp. the decaying west Dallas projects. Her puppet artist is listed as VET.

Victor Considerant, a French socialist who founded the utopian La Reunion colony in what is today West Dallas. He defined the notion of a “right to work,” devised a proportional representation system, and advocated such measures of “direct democracy” (a term he coined) as referendum and recall. Contrary to a common error, his name is not written Considèrant as he explained, “There is no acute accent on my e. I have fought in vain for more than sixty years ever since my name was printed to defend it [from the accent]!” His puppet artist is Nicole Horn.

Bettie Odom, long-time West Dallas businesswoman and restaurateur who for many years was the proprietor of Odom’s Barbecue on Singleton Blvd. Her puppet artist is Walter Johnson. If there be a predominance of over-weight people in West Dallas, it might be traced back to Bettie’s famous barbeque. The idea for the Parade of Giants came from Randall White, chair of the West Dallas Chamber of Commerce.

Clyde Barrow is buried in Western Heights Cemetery on Fort Worth Ave. Puppet artist, Gary Buckner, made no attempt to make him look like Warren Beatty. Bonnie Parker puppet artist Gretchen Goetz, describes bank-robber Barrow’s girl friend as a “gangster who terrorized West Dallas and beyond in the 1930s.”

Judge Harold “Barefoot” Sanders steered the Dallas ISD through the long process of desegregation as federal judge for Northern district of Texas for 28 years. One lawyer said on the occasion of Sanders’ death in 2008, “I have known only a few judges who deserved the vaunted respect insisted upon by our Constitution and whom I felt honored to call 'Your Honor.'” Artist: Jessica Sinks. I did get a picture of his bare feet which I’ll try to throw in later on.

Andrea Flores Cervantes established the first free summer lunch program for West Dallas children. She was also Los Barrios Unidos clinic founder. Puppet artist: Iris Candelaria. Mrs. Cervantes’ banner was carried in the parade by her children. One of her 16 grandchildren wrote on the occasion of her death in 2010, “Hey Grandma… I miss you sooo much right now. And I love you sooo much. You was a very strong lady. You told me so many stories when I was little. You made me laugh.”

Hattie Rankin, in the 1930s started the Eagle Ford Mission to alleviate poverty in West Dallas. Eagle Ford was located at the west end of what is now Singleton. That’s why Singleton Boulevard was known as Eagle Ford Road until 1941. Hattie’s puppet artist is Cori Berg.

Jerry Buchmeyer, liberal Judge best known for his 1985 ruling that forever transformed living conditions in West Dallas’ public housing projects. Body of puppet never made. Individuals hold head and hands of artist Sean Springer. For years, Judge Buchmeyer entertained lawyers with his “et cetera” column in the Texas Bar Journal. One entry tells of the very first divorce client of a Judge in San Angelo: His client, the wife “lived on a ranch and apparently got none of the benefits of grocery shopping. When going through the list of required questions to have the divorce granted, Judge Hart realized he had never inquired of his client as to why she wished to get a divorce.” Q. Tell the court why you want this divorce. A. “Well, I just can’t eat any more deer meat.” The divorce, of course, was granted.

Julien Reverchon, one of the LaReunion colonists who also taught botany at what today is Baylor University Medical Center. Kevin Obregon’s puppet weighed down by long whiskers broke its neck on the approach to the bridge. Sponsored by Friends of Reverchon Park. His hands are made of flowers in honor of the park that bears his name.

Myrtle Davis, a late 20^th century community and political leader who is one of the namesakes of the street where Fr. Sebastian built our seminary. Puppet artist: Jennifer Sereno, sponsored by Westmoreland Heights Neighborhood Association. The photograph of her puppet, shown here waving to downtown, was taken by Stevan Koye. In front of Davis is a backward glimpse of Rhoda Dragon.

Rhoda was a Methodist deaconess who in 1915 won the right for Mexican children to attend Dallas public schools. As no photograph could be found for Rhoda, puppet artist Andrea Davis made her a blond.

Sarah Cockrell brings up the rear. In 1872 she opened and managed the first bridge over the Trinity river linking West Dallas for the first time with all major roads north and east. Heather Blaikie was her puppet artist. We know her best by the street that bears her name: Cockrell Hill, our main Interstate highway link to Mt Carmel Center.