Lance Winter
WIMBERLEY — As patrons entered Wimberley’s Ace Hardware Thursday, Aug. 6, looking for back-to-school supplies, they encountered something they couldn't buy off a shelf.
Four grandmothers from Alexis Pointe Senior Living sat behind a small table with a big purpose: sharing the kind of advice that only comes from decades of raising children, loving grandchildren and learning that the most important lessons in life never really change.
Customers wandered over, some smiling, others curious. Before long, conversations replaced transactions, as the women dispensed gentle reminders, practical parenting tips and a healthy dose of grandmotherly common sense.
"Tell your kids don't get into any trouble and concentrate on school," Shirley Aromando said with the confidence of someone who has seen enough first days of school to know what matters.
Beside her, Sharline Alvord encouraged parents to invest in relationships, not just school supplies.
"Meet with the teachers and get to know the teachers and the principal," she said.
Jane Gunn, whose family now includes 15 grandchildren, didn't hesitate when asked about classroom discipline.
"When the teacher says, ‘no,’" she said, smiling, "they mean no and that's final."
The advice wasn't complicated. It didn't come from parenting books or social media experts. It came from women whose experience spans generations; women who have celebrated report cards, soothed first-day tears, packed countless lunches and watched nervous children become confident adults.
Their memories of school still bring smiles.
Peggy Bateman, who spent her career as a teacher, said it was always the children who made every day worthwhile.
"Your kids made you smile," she said simply.
Alvord still laughs when she thinks about riding the school bus for all 12 years.
"We had fun on the bus," she recalled.
Aromando remembered a different challenge.
"It was hard getting my son to go to school because he didn't like it," she said, drawing laughs from those listening.
For Gunn, one lesson has remained constant through the years.
"Know what your kids are participating in," she said. "Participate with them."
As they talked of those first day jitters of school, the women revealed the routines that helped calm anxious children and sometimes their parents.
"Just have everything ready to go," Bateman advised.
Alvord remembered walking each of her children into school, holding their hand before they stepped into the classroom.
"That kind of calmed them down a little bit," she said.
Gunn believes perspective matters just as much.
"Manage your expectations of the school and the kids," she said. "It always works out."
Then came the lighter questions, what was the one school lunch or after-school snack their children loved?
Bateman's answer was immediate: "Cookies."
Alvord said peanut butter and jelly sandwiches disappeared quickly from lunch boxes, while Gunn laughed remembering how much her children loved French fries after school.
But perhaps the sweetest moment came when Alvord reflected on the legacy she hopes she has left her family.
"All my grandchildren remember that they were loved by their grandmother," she said. "They're all adults now and they still say that."
Asked what single sentence they would write on a classroom chalkboard for every family to read, their answers reflected a lifetime of parenting.
"Participate in every activity your children are in," Alvord said.
"If you obey the rules, we'll have more fun doing the good stuff instead of spending all our time disciplining," Gunn added.
Aromando offered a simple reminder : "Do what you're supposed to do. Be good to your family. And have fun."
For the Alexis Pointe staff members who joined the residents, the afternoon was a reminder that their community is filled with living history.
"They carry so much wisdom and so much knowledge," said Victoria Whitley, LVN and area director of business development. "One of the things you heard over and over was, 'Have fun. Live life. Be happy.' That's something every generation needs to remember."
Community Relations director Katy Starr said the residents continue to teach her every day.
"They've lived so many years and what better source to learn from than our elders?" Starr said. "Whenever I have a question or something weighing on me, I can ask them. They'll give it to me straight and they're always uplifting."
Activities director Lili Kiel said the relationships she has built with residents shape both her work and her life.
"They teach me the importance of community and being there for your neighbors," Kiel said. "They inspire the work I do and the way I move through life with my friends and my family."
As customers paused to chat before heading down the aisles, it became clear the women weren't simply handing out advice. They were offering reassurance.
In a time filled with hurried shopping trips, nervous children and anxious parents, four grandmothers reminded everyone that success isn't measured only by grades or test scores.
It's found in showing up, holding a child's hand, knowing the teacher's name, making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, baking cookies and saying "I love you" often enough that your grandchildren still remember it decades later.
Those lessons don't come pre-packaged or in a backpack. But they may be the most valuable things children carry into a new school year.
