1. Name & occupation?
I am Dusty Reins, a contemporary documentarian, and historian wherever I go.
2. What led you to Amarillo?
My family moved to Amarillo in 1961 from Roswell, New Mexico. My father was a residential/commercial electrician and Amarillo was growing. He was hired on by the Bryant Electrical Company, one of the largest electrical contracting companies in the region at the time.
3. How long have you been here?
The memories I have of Amarillo at that time include the impact of the US Air Force Strategic Air Command (SAC) Base and the young men who trained to fly B49s and B52's and other aircraft to support our national defense during the cold war years. I was an avid book reader and spent a lot of time at the Mary E. Bivins Memorial Library at the time at South 10th Ave. and Polk Street. I loved to sit on the second story balcony with a book in hand but keeping a watchful eye on the airmen who would arrive and leave from downtown on the air force base transport buses. Downtown was where all the action was at the time. All the major legacy stores were on Polk Street and the new Sunset Center Mall was just a city bus ride away for a .30 cent round-trip fare for the airmen. I have been fortunate to have met some of those airmen in my professional life. Many have shared fond memories of a time long past of their time in Amarillo.
4. What is a memory you have about the region that is no longer here?
By the time the air base was officially shut down in 1968, construction in Amarillo had come to an almost complete standstill, especially in the residential housing sector. The company my father worked for went out of business and once again, my dad was out of work due to his trade. This made me determined to become the first college-educated member of my extended family. I wanted to seek a more stable means to raise a family someday. But in order to do that, I would have to pay my own way.
5. What are some events that happened in your life that made you who you are?
I had two part-time jobs while attending Caprock High School. The primary one was at Montgomery Ward in the Sportings Goods Dept. The other was cleaning the Federal Building and US Post Office located north of the Potter County Courthouse square. My supervisor was a small black man who would ask me the same question, "If you had your druthers, would you druther mop or would you druther buff?" I was amazed he would give me the opportunity to choose. A good lesson I served up to others to those I wound up supervising in my business software development career.
6. Where would you spend all your time if you could?
These days, I ask myself the same question about how I spend my time and efforts. I would be quite content on a small plot of land in Roberts County raising plants, quail, and horses, but I feel compelled to contribute back to my hometown community where I was reared. So I have chosen to do what I can for the Amarillo community if and when allowed to do so.
7. Do you volunteer or sit on a board? Is yes where?
I have contributed volunteer time and effort to four nonprofit organizations since moving back to Amarillo in June of 2017. I champion the efforts of the Wild West Wildlife Rehabilitation Center (WWRC), Yellow City Community Organization (YCCO), and a number of other organizations. I also sit on the board of the Friends of The Amarillo Historical Museum and serve as president of the Panhandle Bluegrass & Old Tyme Music Association.
8. What are you most passionate about?
I am most passionate not only about helping to spread the word about how we as a community can and are building a better run and compassionate community, but mostly to document the current times and experiences of our lives and take steps to ensure that future generations have better access to the experiences and the wisdom we have gained from it to the benefit of those who follow my generation.
9. What is the strangest thing you've ever come across?
The strangest thing I have come across is the matter where our current society in the USA has become so polarized about political and religious issues that we no longer seem to have the ability to work together to resolve the most pressing issues at hand in our local communities and the nation as a whole. For instance, why should we remove 80-year old monuments from our city parks be more important than giving our homeless street people a hand up instead of a handout? Why are mentally challenged people in our community being raped every day? Why are pet animals being put to death due to owner irresponsibility and wildlife being poached from public lands to be sold into the pet market? Personally, I think we need to be more responsible about the amount of trash that is generated and we need to think smarter about what we do with it in addition to these other more pressing issues that impact the people and quality of life in our community.
10. What do you wish Amarillo had or did not have?
I wish the people of Amarillo area who have the economic and political power would have the same bold vision of our trade territory that the people of Potter County had, and the people of the State of Texas had, when they overbuilt the state capitol and county buildings to make the statement that we are a people of extraordinary vision beyond the needs of today. The current development vision for downtown Amarillo is far less than what our region requires for our citizens to be empowered to meet future demands for our historic trade market. The people know what they will support and yet developers do not listen to their customers. Amarillo can currently support a year-round venue that can seat more than 25,000 in consumer demand. It makes me sad that Amarillo has lost the bold visions which built this community to begin with. Amarillo is likely to lose the largest annual public event it has ever had should the Working Ranch Cowboy Association (WRCA) choose another site for their World Championship Ranch Rodeo. We are truly a hub for transportation, commerce, arts and education in a five-state region. And yet we have so little to offer compared to other trade regions around us. Shame on us for not living up to our potential.
11. What direction do you think Amarillo is headed?
I will never live long enough to see the community I grew up in become the type of ideal community we would all like to see. I can only hope the effort I make will encourage others to make an investment in a better community for all denizens as a whole.
12. What else should readers know about you?
I wish the people of Amarillo area who have the economic and political power would have the same bold vision of our trade territory that the people of Potter County had, and the people of the State of Texas had, when they overbuilt the state capitol and county buildings to make the statement that we are a people of extraordinary vision beyond the needs of today. The current development vision for downtown Amarillo is far less than what our region requires for our citizens to be empowered to meet future demands for our historic trade market. The people know what they will support and yet developers do not listen to their customers. Amarillo can currently support a year-round venue that can seat more than 25,000 in consumer demand. It makes me sad that Amarillo has lost the bold visions which built this community to begin with. Amarillo is likely to lose the largest annual public event it has ever had should the Working Ranch Cowboy Association (WRCA) choose another site for their World Championship Ranch Rodeo. We are truly a hub for transportation, commerce, arts and education in a five-state region. And yet we have so little to offer compared to other trade regions around us. Shame on us for not living up to our potential.
