Oak Hollow Park San Antonio Archives - Oak Hollow Park

Connections June 2025

Les — Wed, 07 May 2025 16:21:16 +0000

Hello, this is the June 2025 issue of the Connections newsletter. It will include a variety of news, funny jokes, and a self-created crossword puzzle … hopefully you feel this newsletter has enough variety to make it worth reading. Unfortunately, I don’t know what the content will be until I actually start writing this newsletter.

Congratulations! Our Oak Hollow Park neighbors did it! We successfully protested against the zoning change for the proposed car wash … next door.

It’s amazing how our neighbors … all came together! Let’s do it again.

Oak Hollow Park is a vibrant, connected community, where every resident feels valued, and every resident feels confident enough to get involved. We have a safe, walkable environment with active participation from residents in shaping the future of our neighborhood. Let’s work on campaigns to bring neighbors together!

May 3^rd – Coffee meeting recap: (next event is June 7^th)

For the 20 people that attended last month’s (May) Saturday coffee meeting, we enjoyed the Q & A with financial consultant Brian Thompson from Edward Jones (210) 824-7811. We talked about how the tariffs affect the stock market, the cost of insurance and convalescent care, to Wills, Living Trusts and so much more. We discussed “Real IDs, property taxes, and apps by insurance companies that monitor our driving habits.

The hour flew by … Now I am preparing for our next coffee meeting … Unfortunately, Mike Paul has a conflict and will miss our June coffee meeting, but on the Calendar at a later date.

AND we will talk about how some of our neighbors are saving money with HEB coupons.

Consider joining us for coffee on Saturday June 7^th from 9am to 10am. Once a month, my wife & I host a coffee and conversation meeting with neighbors.

If you haven’t attended and would like to spend time getting to know your neighbors, text me, so I can make room for you.

Les Earls, text # (210) 442-9886. We also have chocolate chip cookies. Bring your spouse. 15331 Pebble Path.

Good luck with this self-created crossword puzzle … need to figure out the riddles for answers. Find answers at https://oakhollowpark.com/crossword-riddle-puzzle-answers/

Anybody else have old recordings in a closet?

This is for my (AARP) neighbors that used to own a VHS VCR. I found over 50 VHS disks in a closet with recordings from back in the day. I am curious what we have recorded. I imagine my daughter as a baby, our wedding, vacations, parties, our daughter growing up, and road trips. I barely remember myself over 30 years ago, it might be fun to look back. And, I just found an old VHS player in the back bedroom closet, so when time permits and when I remember, I got me some videos to watch and some memories to remember. Do you have any VHS recorded tapes in your closet?

Some things you do once a year, like re-register your car, pay property taxes, and some things every 10 years like renew your driver’s license, and renew your passport. So now it’s time to renew my passport. I remember 10 years ago, I made an appointment at the post office, I got both the photo and application there. They don’t tell you online that our local post offices don’t renew passports.

At the post office, I grabbed an oversized letter Priority Mail envelope and went to Walgreens for my passport photo. The passport photo ( 2 in a pack) was $18. I got home and I clicked the official state link:

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/have-passport/renew.html … I was on a roll.

I was able to complete the DS-82 form and print my completed application on my home printer. I put a check (payable US Dept of State), my completed application, my expired passport inside the Priory Mail envelope and drove back to the post office. It cost $10 to mail everything to National Passport – Processing Center, Post Office Box 640155 Irving, TX 75064-0155, and I got my new passport 2 weeks later.

Over the past couple years, I have had 6 trees that I had to cut down, leaving me with 6 ugly tree stumps in my back yard. And finally, they are gone. My neighbor was having a large tree removed by a tree service. I was impressed how quickly a couple guys removed that tree. The next day, they brought a “riding stump grinder.” And I asked if they could remove my 6 stumps when they got done next door. I left to pick up my daughter from school and when I got home the stumps were gone (and all cleaned up too). I got a deal (in my opinion). So, if you need some tree stumps removed call Patrick Samaniego at Quicken Tree Service (210) 812-9138.

Welcome New Neighbors:

Info you can use when you move into Oak Hollow Park. I remember moving into Oak Hollow Park like it was yesterday, although it was actually in 2005.

New neighbor, when you move in, you probably have the big stuff working, the roof with no leak, the HVAC system working with cool or warm air. The hot water is good. If you do need a “big fix” go online to nextdoor.com and look for contractor referrals. Also, after you are able to login to the Oak Hollow Park Families Facebook page, ask for recommendations. Read more tips at:

https://oakhollowpark.com/welcome-new-neighbor/

An elderly San Antonio man lay on his deathbed

He was surrounded by his wife, three kids, and a nurse.

With a deep breath, he began speaking: “Bill, you get the Alamo Heights houses. Mary, the houses in Castle Hills are yours. Tom, the Hill Country Village houses are yours. Debra, the town homes in Shavano Park are all yours. And my dear wife, you take all the homes in Fair Oaks Ranch.”

The nurse, wide-eyed, said, “Wow, your husband must’ve been an incredible man to amass so much property to leave behind.”

The wife sighed and replied, “What property? My husband has a paper route!” (do I see a smile?)

One day a fisherman was sitting on a beautiful beach, with his fishing pole and his solitary line cast out into the sparkling blue surf. He was enjoying the warmth of the afternoon sun and the prospect of catching a fish.

About that time, a businessman came walking down the beach, trying to relieve some of the stress of his workday. He noticed the fisherman sitting on the beach and decided to find out why this fisherman was fishing instead of working harder to make a living for himself and his family.

“You aren’t going to catch many fish that way,” said the businessman to the fisherman, “you should be working rather than sitting on the beach!”

The fisherman looked up at the businessman, smiled and replied, “And what will my reward be?”

“Well, you can get bigger nets and catch more fish!” was the businessman’s answer.

“And then what will my reward be?” asked the fisherman, still smiling.

The businessman replied, “You will make money and you’ll be able to buy a boat, which will then result in larger catches of fish!”

“And then what will my reward be?” asked the fisherman again.

The businessman was beginning to get a little irritated with the fisherman’s questions. “You can buy a bigger boat and hire some people to work for you!” he said. “And then what will my reward be?” repeated the fisherman.

The businessman was getting angry. “Don’t you understand? You can build up a fleet of fishing boats, sail all over the world, and let all your employees catch fish for you!”

Once again the fisherman asked, “And then what will my reward be?”

The businessman was red with rage and shouted at the fisherman, “Don’t you understand that you can become so rich that you will never have to work for your living again!

You can spend all the rest of your days sitting on this beach, looking at the sunset. You won’t have a care in the world!”

The fisherman, still smiling, looked up and said, “And what do you think I’m doing right now?”

When Mom was on a business trip and Dad was left home alone with his toddler daughter for a couple weeks, he quickly discovered how adaptable she was. One of the cutest things? Her newfound obsession with tea parties. Every evening while he relaxed in front of the TV, she’d waddle over with a tiny plastic teacup and declare, “Tea time, Daddy!” He’d take a dainty sip of the clear “tea” and proclaim, “Wow, that’s delicious!” She’d giggle, glow with pride, and scurry off to refill his cup.

By the time Mom came home, he couldn’t wait to show off how their little girl had been taking care of him like a proper hostess. Right on cue, the toddler burst into the room with her tea set, handed Daddy a cup, and stood expectantly. He took a sip and smiled. “Still the best tea, I’ve ever had!”

Mom watched the sweet scene, then raised an eyebrow. “Aw, that’s adorable,” she said.

Then, with perfect calm, she added: “Just curious … have you ever asked where she gets the water?”

Dad shrugged. “Nope. Why?”

“She can only reach one place on her own,” ………. Mom replied, “The toilet.”

The post Connections June 2025 appeared first on Oak Hollow Park.

Hanging coffee

Les — Thu, 29 Aug 2024 13:56:55 +0000

There is a little coffee shop, where two people arrive and approached the counter.

“Five coffees please. Two for us and three hanging.”

They paid, they took their two coffees and left.

I asked the waiter. “What’s this about hanging coffees?”

“Wait and you’ll see.”

Some more people came in.

Two girls asked for a coffee each, they paid & left.

The following order was for seven coffees and it was made by three women – “three for them and four hanging coffees.”

I was left wondering…what is the meaning of the hanging coffees, they leave.

Then, a man dressed in worn clothes, who looks like he might be homeless, arrives at the counter and asks sincerely …

“Do you have a coffee hanging?”

“Yes we do, sir.”

They serve him a coffee … I got my answer.

People pay in advance for a coffee that will be served to whoever can’t afford a hot drink.

This tradition started in Naples. Amazingly, it has spread throughout the world’s cities and towns.

It’s also possible to order not only “hanging coffees” but also a sandwich or a full low cost meal.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could all start doing this in the cities and towns where we live?

Small kindnesses like this can impact so many lives, in ways we could never imagine.

Maybe we should all try it in San Antonio.

The post Hanging coffee appeared first on Oak Hollow Park.

Oak Hollow Park in San Antonio – Don’t move until you read this

Les — Mon, 12 Aug 2024 16:36:10 +0000

Let me tell you our story

We have lived in Oak Hollow Park (Northeast San Antonio) since 2005. We moved-in the week after “Hurricane Katrina” swept through Texas causing so much devastation, fortunately, all outside of San Antonio. That’s why I started believing the San Antonio must be blessed, and has a “protective bubble” around it, protecting us from the damages, like Hurricanes, Tornados, excessive rain, and excessive drought, that have caused nearby cities, counties and states so much pain.

California to Texas

We were living in Downey, California (Los Angeles County), when after years of trying (fertility treatments), our baby girl was born. We put up our house for sale and decided to move to Texas. My wife’s parents reside in Mexico, so we felt the need to move closer to them. After much consideration, we chose to move to San Antonio. Since we were not familiar with San Antonio, we decided to do a short term lease while we browsed the neighborhoods, some established and some brand new neighborhoods. My wife wanted a “pool” and a “one-story” home. Also we were favoring an established neighborhood. Let the search begin.

Retired Realtor

For over 30 years I was a Realtor. I retired in 2019. My wife also worked as a Realtor but eventually changed paths and working as an administrative assistant for a private company. On week days, after she leaves to work, I have big decisions to make. I mean, after I have made her breakfast, her lunch, kissed her good bye, feed the dogs and drink some coffee, yeah, big decisions to make.

Do I walk around the neighborhood and get my steps in, and visit with other neighbors along the way, or do I go to the nearby YMCA (couple blocks away & free to seniors) or drive a mile to the Senior Center for some fun activities.

I used to get up early and walk our dogs, but about a year ago, they pulled me one way and my knees went another, it was quite painful. Now I wait until Saturday mornings (when my wife is home) to take the dogs to the nearby “dog park” in McAllister Park (about 2 miles from home).

Arrived in San Antonio

When we first arrived in San Antonio in 2005, my wife and I, attended real estate classes to update our real estate licenses, like we had done in California. We met several local Realtors, renewing their licenses and we talked about neighborhoods that they felt would be best for our family. Within 2 weeks, we made an offer on the only pool home available for sale (at that time) in Oak Hollow Park. Saying it again, Hurricane Katrina had just swept through Texas but San Antonio, was spared any damages.

In our first couple weeks after moving into the Oak Hollow Park neighborhood, we met several neighbors. Surprisingly, many were retired school teachers (I wondered if Teachers talk about Oak Hollow Park at their schools). We received several discount coupons in the mail, mostly restaurants, and we enjoy living so close to pretty much everything we could want. It was nice, pushing our daughter around the neighborhood in her stroller and meeting so many neighbors in our new cozy neighborhood.

Oak Hollow Park was built by Sitterle Homes

Oak Hollow Park, (formerly Pebble Forest) became a neighborhood in the fall of 1981, selling most of the 296 homes in 1982 and 1983. The final homes sold in 1984. The homes featured 3 bedrooms, 4 bedrooms and a few are 5 bedrooms. The For Sale prices in 1982 were in the $80,000 range and today, 40 years later, homes are selling in the $350,000 range and higher. A nice place to live and affordable compared to today’s prices.

We have resided in Oak Hollow Park for 19 years and are very comfortable.

We enjoy visiting the Alamo (18^th-century Spanish mission ), Six Flags, Sea World, the River Walk, San Antonio Zoo, Historic Market Square, San Antonio Aquarium, but most of all we appreciate the change in traffic, it is so much easier to drive around here in San Antonio than when we drove around in Los Angeles. In San Antonio, there’s a real “southern hospitality”, as most people we have met are polite and wave hello, or stop and say, hello.

19 years later

Our baby girl is now in her second year at the University of Incarnate Word, pursuing a “theater” career. It seems like the 19 years has flown by.

Long term homeowners; that is the history of Oak Hollow Park. We still have about 15 neighbors that have resided in Oak Hollow Park for over 40 years. When those neighbors talk about 40 years of changes, it is fun to listen. The “good old days” when they were bringing up their families and they would meet with groups of other neighbors for bar b q’s and potluck lunches. Before the cell phone craze, when people would sit and talk to the people around them.

In my opinion, I think we still need to make more time for neighbor-to-neighbor events, where we sit with each other at tables, face-to-face and have fun conversations. Today, even at family gatherings, it seems everyone is paying attention to their phones and not so much about the people around them.

Coffee and Conversation

Once a month my wife and I have coffee with about 20 neighbors, where we (without many phone interruptions) sit, drink coffee, eat cookies and simply talk to catch up. It is a nice comfortable atmosphere, like back-in-the-day.

The Past 3 years

Over the last three years, we’ve had more families moving in and out of Oak Hollow Park than any other time that I can think of. Many of the home buyers moving into the neighborhood have families.

Fortunately, Oak Hollow Park is located in the North East Independent School District.

For those that are not aware, NEISD is a very good school district. My daughter did not attend the nearby Thousand Oaks Elementary School, because we had an opportunity ( through San Antonio’s School Choice option) to take her to Steubing Ranch Elementary School. Why not, Thousand Oaks Elementary School, which is a very good school, you might ask? Because Steubing Ranch Elementary School offered “Dual Language” classes so our daughter could learn to speak 2 different languages (Spanish and English). For middle school, our daughter attended “Omar Bradley Middle School” (when I was growing up, it was called Junior High), where she continued taking (about half the core classes) Dual Language classes. Our daughter went to “MacArthur High School” and now is at UIW. Fortunately, the local schools do provide school bus rides to and from school and our daughter has taken many bus rides. By-the-way, our daughter is totally fluent in English and Spanish now. The “Dual-Language” classes were a great plan for us.

Oak Hollow Park has no Homeowner’s Association (HOA)

Even though Oak Hollow Park has a 6 foot high brick wall along the two main streets, Thousand Oaks and Jones Maltsberger, the Oak Hollow Park neighborhood is not a mandatory HOA subdivision. Oak Hollow Park does not have an Homeowner’s Association (HOA), but Oak Hollow Park does have a Neighborhood Association and our (not-mandatory) volunteer annual dues are $40 to maintain our common areas.

Our neighborhood has elected neighbors that form the OHPNA’s board members. Those board members collect the voluntary dues and perform tasks, plan neighborhood gatherings and make recommendation to keep the neighborhood maintained.

One of the coolest things about living in Oak Hollow Park is that every home is blessed with large shade trees, mostly Oak Trees. There are several neighborhoods, where the builders have mowed all the trees down to build the homes, then afterward they plant baby trees in the yard. Sitterle Homes has a reputation, to work around the mature trees.

Our neighbors are happy that our neighborhood is not too big and not to small.

Just under 300 homes, with no HOA cops, you own it, you maintain it. I believe our neighbors are friendly.

Neighbors can walk a rectangular path around our neighborhood in about 30 minutes, a little over a mile.

Location, Location, Location

Is Northeast San Antonio, where Oak Hollow Park is located considered a good safe place for families and Retirees to live? The answer is Yes, boasting an exceptionally low crime rate across all categories. Plus, we seemed to be blessed to miss catastrophes when they occur around our state and beyond.

The San Antonio International Airport is only 5 miles north from Oak Hollow Park. The ever-popular “Medical District” is a quick drive now that the construction for Wurzbach Parkway is finished. Since the completion of work done on the 281 freeway, getting to Sam’s Club now only takes 10 minutes from home.

Near us we have a variety of restaurants, HEB markets, Banks, just about every convenience you can think of nearby. All major freeways are only minutes away, Loop 1604, the 281 fwy, the 35 fwy, and a little further the 410 fwy and the 10 fwy. Except during “rush-hour-traffic” I can drive from one end of San Antonio, to the opposite end in about 40 minutes.

Inside the neighborhood and online

In our neighborhood, we compare and share funny stories and since many of us can’t imagine ever moving out of Oak Hollow Park, we share tips on how to pay lower property taxes and we look after the neighbors we know. Many are really good friends now.

We invite you to come and take a drive through our neighborhood. I bet you would love living in Oak Hollow Park as much as we do. And think about it when you get here, if you lived here, you’d be home.

– Les Earls

The post Oak Hollow Park in San Antonio – Don’t move until you read this appeared first on Oak Hollow Park.

Oak Hollow Park, San Antonio – Why we love living here

Les — Fri, 02 Aug 2024 16:57:13 +0000

We moved into the Oak Hollow Park neighborhood in 2005, the week after Hurricane “Katrina” passed through Texas.

Katrina caused devastation throughout several states and parts of Texas, but none in San Antonio.

It seems like there is a protective “bubble” over San Antonio, especially in northeast San Antonio, where Oak Hollow Park is located.

We relocated from California and we enjoy the “southern hospitality” and much less traffic in San Antonio, Texas.

The Oak Hollow Park neighborhood does have a 6 foot high brick wall along the main streets but is not a gated community.

Oak Hollow Park does not have any mandatory HOA rules.

Oak Hollow Park was constructed by the builder “Sitterle Homes” in the fall of 1981.

Oak Hollow park consists of 296 homes, featuring mature majestic oak trees. Our family neighborhood features mid-sized homes, that are reasonably priced.

Our neighborhood is adjacent to the intersection of Thousand Oaks and Jones Maltsberger.

Oak Hollow Park is located about 5 miles north of the San Antonio International Airport.

If you are relocating and are looking for a peaceful family neighbood in San Antonio, I bet you’ll love living in Oak Hollow Park as much as we do.

– Les Earls – 2024

The post Oak Hollow Park, San Antonio – Why we love living here appeared first on Oak Hollow Park.