It is no secret that there are some skewed perceptions when it comes to the neighborhood of 78209. One of the most common is that the community is akin to a private club in that, unless you were born into it, you will find it difficult to assimilate. Carrie Johnston admits that, as a teen growing up in Universal City, her view of ‘09 was largely based on what she had heard rather than on firsthand knowledge. When it came time to settle down and raise her own family, Carrie and her husband, Joe, did their research and soon discovered that this was a community that they could call home.
“I expected that it would be harder to fit in than it actually was,” Carrie says. “We were embraced by the community right away. People here want you to come be a part of it and love it as much as they do.”
EDUCATION, EDUCATION, EDUCATION
While Carrie may have had a vague notion of the Alamo Heights lifestyle, Lubbock native Joe did not. The couple met while Carrie was completing a residency in neurology at the UT Health Science Center and relocated to New Jersey for Joe to complete his surgery residency. When they moved back to San Antonio in 2002, they settled in the 281/Bitters area. It wasn’t until their first daughter, Livi, was born that the Johnstons began to seriously consider where to put down their permanent roots. It came down to a matter of education.
“When we were trying to decide where we wanted to raise our family, it was the Alamo Heights school district that drew us in,” says Carrie.
Part of the reason was the Spanish Immersion Program that Alamo Heights offers to students through a lottery-based system. When Livi was admitted into the program, the Johnstons knew that they had found their new neighborhood.
“The Spanish Immersion Program was something we were really excited about,” explains Carrie. “It wasn’t necessarily a deal breaker, but it was very important to us in terms of our children receiving a well- rounded education.”
The Johnstons are not alone. The Alamo Heights Spanish Immersion Program, which begins in the first grade, is one of the school’s most popular and in – demand courses. If one child is admitted to the program, other siblings are automatically enrolled as well. That was even better news for the Johnstons who, in addition to Livi (age 9), also have Julia (6), and Will (2).
The girls, who will begin fourth and second grade respectively at Woodridge, enjoy the art and music programs, and Julia describes her teachers as “comforting and always around to help you when you need it.”
Carrie, who will serve on the PTO board next year, agrees with her daughter’s assessment, adding that it’s not only the teachers and administration that care about the children, it’s the entire community.
“Education really seems to be a priority for Alamo Heights as a whole,” she says.
CONTAINABLE COMMUNITY
A commitment to education isn’t the only thing that the Johnstons have in common with their neighbors. They have discovered after living in Terrell Hills for the past five years that they are surrounded by a community of what Carrie deems “like-minded people with similar goals and values for their families.”
Joe, who grew up in a similar neighborhood in Lubbock, describes it as a “containable community.” He recalls how when the couple lived in New Jersey, everything to do with living had a destination, while here people actually do their “living” within the community, a fact that he says he believes fosters lifelong friendships like the ones he had in Lubbock.
“You build more robust relationships within a small community because you see each other more often,” he explains.
As a stay-at-home mom, Carrie appreciates the closeness of a “containable community” for another reason: accountability.
“I love that my kids have 15 moms, and I love playing that role to other kids,” she says. “It’s like being a part of shaping the entire next generation.”
Although Joe still works in Stone Oak as the vice chief of staff of Methodist Hospital Stone Oak (he will take over as chief next year), the rest of the family’s activities revolve in or around the Alamo Heights neighborhood. The girls play softball on Alamo Heights Little League teams, are on the Pool Sharks swim team at the Alamo Heights Pool, and the family often frequents the Witte Museum, the Zoo, the Botanical Garden, and, of course, the famous Kiddie Park.
“We love the sense of continuity here,” says Joe. “People take their children to the same places that they enjoyed as kids.”
They are also extremely active at the Alamo Heights Methodist Church, where Carrie helps to lead the children’s ministry. In fact, the family has become so ensconced in the community that they say that they have no plans of ever leaving. Joe sums it up best with a surgical analogy, stating that when you are operating on someone, you are so focused on finding what you are looking for that you might miss something else. He says the same rule applies to what you get out of your community. If you are looking for the negative aspects, you will find them, but you might miss out on the great parts.“We moved here looking for a great school, a strong church and good friends,” he says. “We found them!”
Photography by CASEY HOWELL
