Recent News

New Texas-Exes Affiliated Retirement Community, Longhorn Village, Announces Opening of Sales Office & Model

August 25, 2006


Longhorn Village (www.LonghornVillage.com), the first and only retirement community developed in association with the Ex-Students' Association of The University of Texas, today opened the doors of its sales office and models for enlisting residents at the future community to be located at the award-winning Steiner Ranch master-planned community.

"Our new sales office and models show potential residents the distinct lifestyle opportunities at Longhorn Village," said Stan Finch, Sales Director of Longhorn Village. "It's a privilege to be part of a project of this stature in conjunction with the Texas Exes, and we look forward to delivering an unmatched lineup of amenities complemented with the exclusive benefits of university affiliation."

In addition to announcing its new sales office and models, Longhorn Village welcomed George and Polly Trusty of Austin as its first official members.

George, an 83-year-old retired Air Force officer, and Polly, a 74-year-old real estate broker, have lived in Northwest Hills for the past three years and were first attracted to Longhorn Village based on its location within Steiner Ranch as well as proximity to family, especially grandchildren.

The Trusty's have two children in Austin, Richard and Kay, and grandchildren, Will and Dillon. Their other grandchildren, Lauren and John, live in Baton Rouge, La., with the Trusty's son David. They also have a daughter, Kimberly, in Nashville, Tenn. Incidentally, their two daughters, Kimberly and Kay, are graduates from the University of Texas at Austin.

"We visited similar retirement communities in Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Louisiana and other states," Polly Trusty said. "But we feel Longhorn Village meets our requirements in terms of lifestyle, conveniences, location, engaging events and opportunities to make friends."

While George is a graduate of Mississippi State University and Texas State University, and Polly from the University of Georgia, they look forward to the community's affiliation with the Ex-Students' Association of The University of Texas. This relationship will give them access to continuing and extended education programs, social activities and fine arts events, feature publications, library resources, campus facilities, and exclusive travel packages.

The Trusty's and 50 other members have already signed on to become future residents of Longhorn Village, joined by more than 500 priority depositors that have reserved the opportunity to become members. As residents, these members will enjoy breathtaking, panoramic views of the rolling West Austin hills, complemented by the surrounding wooded nature preserve and nearby Lake Travis. Additional features include miles of hiking and biking trails and the nearby University of Texas Golf Club, a 7,108-yard, par 71 championship course covering 275 Hill Country acres.



Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant and Guests Help Make Children's Wishes Come True Through Make-A-Wish Foundation

August 17, 2006


One year ago, no one could have guessed that the indoor pool of MTV's The Real World: Austin house would become a fountain of change helping children's wishes come true. The Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant, which has since taken over that space, has partnered with the Make-A-Wish Foundation® of Central & South Texas to turn the wishes guests make as they toss a coin into the fountain into the power to grant the wishes of children benefited by the Make-A-Wish program.

Representatives from the Make-A-Wish Foundation® and the Rio gathered together and brought change jars from home to toss pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters into the fountain, officially beginning the Rio's efforts to help make these children's wishes come true.

"Throwing spare change into our large fountain made famous by MTV's The Real World: Austin, has become a popular tradition by our guests since we opened our doors earlier this year," said Robert Allen, general manager of the Rio. "After seeing how much change the fountain collected, we couldn't have imagined a better avenue than a charitable organization with the rich history of Make-A-Wish."

Annually, the Rio will collect the change donated by guests from the fountain and make a matching donation of its own to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Known for fresh, simple and homemade Tex-Mex dishes and famous margaritas, the Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant, www.riograndemexican.com, located near San Jacinto and 3rd Street, is a fun and festive addition to downtown Austin's thriving scene. The menu at the Rio is based on traditional Mexican cooking with a hearty Texas influence. The restaurant prides itself on its chips, tortillas, salsas and sauces, which are made fresh daily to ensure the highest quality.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation® of Central & South Texas grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope strength, and joy. To date, it has granted over 2,000 wishes since its founding in 1984. For more information, please visit www.centralandsouthtexas.wish.org.



Michal Prokop & Jill Kintner Earn Titles at Second Leg of Jeep King of the Mountain 2006 Mountain Biking World Professional Championships

August 13, 2006


A phenomenal display of racing prowess by the top racer in the U.S., Eric Carter, and an inspiring comeback from injury by Dutch competitor Anneke Beerten were the stories of the day at the Jeep® King of the Mountain (www.jeepsports.com) 2006 Mountain Biking World Professional Championships in Elkhart Lake, Wis., but in the end, the world's top-ranked male and female racers, Michal Prokop and Jill Kintner, were able to fight off adversity and bring home titles for the second time in as many events.

The race day atmosphere was as exquisite as the racing itself, with several thousand Jeep enthusiasts lining the Y-cross racecourse at Road America to witness the athletes battling one another while also navigating a layout that featured parallel giant slalom and downhill disciplines with a multitude of bumps, jumps, banked turns, tabletops, step-downs and rollers thrown in for good measure.

From the number of bike-to-bike collisions and over-the-handlebar crashes beginning in the first round and lasting through the Championship Heat, it was evident that the invited athletes were eager to not only bring home the lion's share of the series' record $100,000 cash purse, but to position themselves for the overall title of World Professional Champion and drive away with the keys to a new 2007 Jeep Compass.

Prokop, who has won four of the first five races of the 2006 UCI World Cup season as well as a World Championship, European Championship and National Championship, started the day with a win over Jon Watt of Broomfield, Colo., a former National Collegiate Champion and Colorado State Champion. He then faced off against archrival Brian Lopes of San Clemente, Calif., a three-time World Champion, five-time World Cup Champion and nine-time National Champion, where a hard-fought win earned him a place in the Championship Heat. On the other side of the bracket, Eric Carter of Temecula, Calif., the 2005 and 2006 USA Cycling Mountain-Cross National Champion, offered one of his finest Jeep King of the Mountain performances ever. Following a victory over former World Champion Mike King of San Diego in the first round, he found himself up against Wade Bootes of Australia, the 2004 Jeep King of the Mountain World Professional Champion and runner-up in 2005. Carter outlasted the savvy veteran in two straight races to gain a shot against Prokop in the finals. Carter came out aggressively, but Prokop had too much speed and was able to bring home the title. In the Consolation Heat, Lopes out-dueled Bootes to capture third place.

In the women's competition, the action was equally intense. Kintner, who has proven nearly unstoppable with four out of five World Cup wins, a BMX Australian National Championship and an Australian Mountain Bike National Championship under her belt, knew that her challengers would not back down. After receiving a bye in the first round, she squared off against Corona, Calif.'s Tara Llanes, the 2006 USA Cycling Downhill National Champion, in the semi-finals. A bad spill by Llanes in the first race gave Kintner a sizeable time advantage, which she never relinquished before moving into the Championship Heat. There, she would face off against Beerten of the Netherlands, who had suffered a serious injury earlier in the year during a UCI World Cup event in Brazil. In her first appearance of the Jeep King of the Mountain 2006 season, Beerten looked in peak form as she knocked out Bobbi Kae Watt of Broomfield, Colo., a former Sea Otter Classic Champion, and Melissa Buhl of Chandler, Ariz., a former NORBA Downhill Champion ranked fifth in the current UCI World Cup standings, to reach the finals. Kintner, who had been able to conserve energy throughout the day, was simply too much for Beerten as she stormed to a second straight title. Llanes, showing incredible grit, overcame the injuries from the earlier crash to nab third place with a win over Buhl in the Consolation Heat.

The 2006 Mountain Biking World Professional Championships from Elkhart Lake will air on CBS Sports on Sept. 24, from 5:00 - 6:00 p.m. EST. Each race of the 2006 season, spanning July through September, is televised to a national audience on CBS Sports, representing the most expansive coverage of professional mountain bike racing in recent history.