Introduction

Faith and Larry Mitchell had been married for twenty years and recently become empty nesters. Their daughter Tina was away for most of the year at the University of Texas down in Austin, leaving them with a big empty house and even emptier lives. Larry had worked non-stop since graduating college, and Faith had been a stay-at-home mom for most of Tina’s life. Once Tina was gone, Faith became bored and needed a new outlet.

Over the years, Faith had explored many hobbies, but most of them dealt with art of one form or another. She had studied many varieties of painting, sculpture, and pottery. To help her explore her passion, Larry converted the upstairs playroom into a studio for Faith so that she could paint or sculpt to her heart’s content.

Faith considered herself to be an amateur. She had sold a few pieces here and there, at flea markets, art festivals and the occasional charity auction at one of the local galleries. However, once Tina had moved out, Faith immersed herself in her art to help fill the gap that her daughter’s moving out had created. In time, Faith decided that she wanted to pursue art professionally and open a gallery to showcase her work.

Larry had been very successful in commercial real estate, and about ten years ago, he opened his own business, buying, selling and leasing properties around the Dallas-Forth Worth Metroplex. Larry was very good at what he did, and his business soon exploded. After several lucrative deals, Larry found himself rolling in profits. At 45, he was still young enough to enjoy his life and financially secure enough to not have to worry about how he and Faith would live.

Like Faith, Larry also had a passion. He was an avid home brewer and had won many awards, over the years, for his handcrafted beers, ales, and stouts. His secret aspiration was to retire early and start a small, craft brewery. Every day that went by, he thought about his dream more and more.

So, when Faith approached him with her desire to open a gallery, Larry had a brainstorm and decided that they should both pursue their dreams. He sold his business netting them more money than either of them could ever hope to spend in their remaining lifetimes. They established a trust fund for Tina, ensuring her financial future, donated several million to their favorite charities, and then decided to enjoy the pursuit of their dreams.

The first step was purchasing a large, antebellum home in the downtown district of McKinney, one of North Texas’ trendy suburban villages. It was a big three-story home with a beautiful wrap-around porch and a tower. It had been a bed-and-breakfast for years, but the elderly couple who had owned it wanted to retire to Boca Raton. The house came with a large yard, shaded by ancient live oak trees and was only a block away from the bustling, prosperous and revitalized town square.

Larry and Faith converted the property into a multi-use business with the first floor serving as both an art gallery for Faith’s work and a tasting room for Larry’s brews. The open, banquet style dining room would also serve as a classroom for teaching art and as a space to hold group classes and parties. The large, round, well-lit tower room became Faith’s new studio, and the external barn became Larry’s brewhouse. Committing fully to their new endeavor, they sold their other house and moved into the third floor.

They named their new venture Live Oaks Brewhouse and Gallery. Faith did the artwork for the company logo, website and all of Larry’s labels. Larry provided a variety of malted beverages for group classes and parties. Together they both created things of beauty and shared them with their community. They became a hit in the rapidly growing and affluent area.

Once or twice a month, they held special art classes that they called Brew & Brushes parties. It was a similar concept to something Faith had attended with some of her girlfriends back on Guilford Court, in their old neighborhood. Singles, couples, and groups would come to their house and Faith would lead them through a basic painting class. She would pick some relatively simple painting and guide the participants in easy, follow-along steps to reproduce the picture.

The paintings required no real artistic ability. The classes were just fo fun to drink and socialize. Larry provided a practically unlimited supply of his beers for the parties, along with an ample amount of appetizers from some of the hottest nearby restaurants and gastropubs. They elevated the basic concept into a fun, yet sophisticated experience. At the end of the party, the participants would have a good buzz and a piece of “art” to show for their time.

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