THE MCCALLS
In May 1995, Oscar and JacQuelene, “Jackie”, McCall and their daughter, Sheri, became our neighbors on Devonshire Street. Daughter Shara was born shortly after the move. A cute little white poodle, Coconut, completes the family.
Jackie loved their new house at first sight because it looked so cozy, especially the front porch. She convinced Oscar that this was just the right house for them because of its large rooms. The family loves the togetherness of living in Sunnyside and knowing their neighbors. This industrious couple is now renovating the interior of their spacious home.
Oscar is a talented chef. Formerly Executive Chef at the Twin City Club, he’s now the Saturday Chef at Sam’s Club preparing new and exciting recipes for Sam’s shoppers. He does all the cooking at home too!
Multi-talented Jackie began her career as a model and actress. She grew up in NYC but spent summers in NC where she loved going barefoot and picking berries. Jackie did industrial modeling for RJR and Sara Lee and made commercials at Belk and the WS Journal. She has acted at The Little Theater and The Black Theater and is affiliated with the Arts Council.
Jackie currently has two careers—mom/wife AND entrepreneur. She owns and operates a full-service spa, Primadonnas, located at 1168 Burke Street in historic West End. (By appointment only: 703-1SPA or visit: www.spaprimadonnas.com).
Sheri, now a political science major at WSSU, has studied classical ballet since she was 5 years old, including 8 years at NCSA.
Shara studies ballet and takes tennis lessons. She’s the 2007 Spelling Champion at Konnoak Elementary where she just finished 5th grade.
Coconut? His only job is being cute and loveable. He’s real good at it!
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LAURA LASHLEY
In each newsletter edition, we plan to feature a Sunnyside resident from the neighborhood.
The current edition’s neighbor spotlight is Laura Lashley of Devonshire Street.
It’s a good thing Laura Lashley’s mother took an odd detour down East Devonshire street one afternoon last November. That’s when she saw a sweet green and tan bungalow for sale and knew it would be perfect for her daughter. Our new Sunnyside neighbor, Laura Lashley, is a thirty-something visual artist originally from Winston-Salem. She has lived all over town, but never owned her own home.
Lashley had been house-hunting for the last four years, waiting for the perfect combination of timing, price and location. She was thrilled to find all three and made a quick offer. She says she knew the Sunnyside area well because many of her artist and musician friends had recently purchased homes in the area.
Lashley began to settle into the house over the holidays. Her first big project was to have a friend refinish the beautiful hardwood floors. Next, she threw herself into picking paint colors and hanging her collection of paintings by local artists. She says she is most excited about the warm months that are approaching and is already planning her garden.
What surprises her most about Sunnyside so far is how quiet it is at night. She was living downtown previously and the urban noise was constant. So far, she is pleasantly surprised by all of the birds and squirrels who seem to flourish in the neighborhood.
Lashley says she’s spreading the word about the affordability of Sunnyside as well as the over all good feeling she gets from neighbors. And, knowing lots of local musicians, she’d love to see a neighborhood block party happen.
Overall, the price and location initially drew Lashley to Sunnyside. But she says the friendly atmosphere, the convenient location, the view of downtown and closeness to friends and family will keep her here for many years to come.You can take a closer look at Laura Lashley’s artwork at www.lauralashley.com
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