In just two short years, NISD architect Vernon Dunagin and his wife Fran have turned their backyard into a xeriscaped oasis brimming with more than 700 native plants. Inside their home, they’ve cultivated an equally breathtaking collection of southwestern artwork, glass, and sculpture.
The couple will share both passions with the Northside community when they open up their home as one of four stops on the Northside School Museum Association’s Celebrity Homes Tour.
This year, the tour will be held from 2 to 5:30 p.m. on May 6 and also will include visits to the homes of:
- Winn Murnin, a Northside school namesake, whose home is a testament to her love of education
- Northside Trustee Katie Reed, whose home on the Oak Hills Country Club golf course serves as a gallery for antiques and historical artifacts
- and Geraldine Steubing Scarborough, the first graduate of Northside (now Marshall) High School in 1951, whose custom-built Helotes home showcases country living at its best
Air-conditioned buses will leave the Northside School Museum, 6632 Bandera Road, Building A, and will return at 5:30 p.m. Refreshments will be included.
Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for children (ages 5 to 18) and are on sale now at the NISD Partnerships Office, 6632 Bandera Road, Building A; Murnin Elementary School, 9019 Dugas; Steubing Elementary School, 11655 Braefield; and Marshall High School, 8000 Lobo Lane.
Tickets also can be purchased by phone with a credit card by calling the Partnership Offices at 397-8599. All proceeds will benefit the Northside School Museum Association.
The Dunagins purchased their home 2½ years ago after Vernon was hired by Northside. Their home gallery features works they’ve collected on vacations and from artist friends during their 20-year marriage.
The piece de resistance is a red and orange glass sculpture custom-made with 34 separate pieces of glass. The sculpture was created by friend and glass artist Ron Marrs of Dallas and includes a piece of glass that the Dunagins helped blow themselves.
The Dunagins’ eye for art and design continues to the lush backyard, where the palate is filled with 70 different species of flora, including agave, lantana, yucca, bottle brush, ice plants, and crape myrtle trees.
"Fran and I love color,” Dunagin said. “The butterflies and hummingbirds, they go crazy out here.”
For more information about the Celebrity Homes Tour, please call the Partnerships Office at 397-8599. Tickets are limited to the first 200 people.
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