Voices of the
BIG BEND
Jim Glendinning continues the tradition of his popular radio interviews from “Voices of the Big Bend,” an original production of
KRTS, Marfa Public Radio. The program continues to be broadcast occasionally throughout the region at 93.5 FM.
by Jim Glendinning
IRIS KORUS
IRIS KORUS
Valentine
Photo by Jim Glendinning
Iris Korus was born in 1955 in
Stockdale, Texas, near Seguin, 30 miles
east of San Antonio. She was the only
child of Andrew and Ruth Korus. Her
dad, a disabled veteran of World War II,
farmed. Iris’s early memories were of
hunting for arrowheads, finding out
about plants and riding the bus into
town. “School was my lick,” she says.
After school in Stockdale, she continued
to Texas Lutheran College in Seguin in
1972, only to quit a year later. The reason:
She fell in love. But no marriage
ensued.
Her first job was with a dentist in San
Antonio, whom she knew as a neighbor,
and she loved it. She enrolled in the San
Antonio College dental school the following
year and continued at the
University of Texas at San Antonio,
graduating in 1979. She worked at
UTSA for the next two years. During
these years, she married a classmate,
William Evans Dean III, but the marriage
ended in 1980. She opened her
own dental practice in Stockdale in
1981, and it flourished.
Dr. Iris Korus loved dentistry, but was
also interested in horses and real estate.
In 1986, she sold the dental practice,
built a horse barn and started buying
and selling horses. Later, since she had a
keen eye for land prices, she also bought
land in Kansas – a new adventure. By
the early 90s she had gotten rid of most
of her horses and was ready to get back
into dental practice on her dad’s farm.
Still restless for something else, she
started looking for land in West Texas.
She was impressed by the vast space, the
plant life and the history of the Big Bend
region and visited three times in 2000.
Indian sites, fossil remains and geology
all fascinated her. She was gripped.
She had money in the bank from the
horse farm sale, and her dental practice
paid well, but she was determined to buy
carefully. She knew the ranch would not
produce income, but she wanted access
to land which would give her a lot of satisfaction
– her own laboratory of the
natural world.
She bought the 96 Ranch, on the
Chispa Road west of Valentine, and
took a job in Marfa practicing at the
Marfa Clinic. But the driving distance
was too much, so she started her own
dental clinic in Valentine. Despite the
unusual location, her dental skills soon
became known, and she attracted clients
from as far away as Fort Stockton and
Panther Junction in Big Bend National
Photo by Jim Glendinning
CLARENCE RUSSEAU
Alpine
Park.
She put equally hard work into the
ranch land, which was severely degraded.
Now, after 10 years, water lines and
roads are maintained and grass is growing
again. All over the ranch she has
made discoveries about the life of former
occupants and of the nature that
surrounds her. Volumes of books in the
ranch house speak to her collector’s
interests. She is a new breed of recreational
ranch owner. “Very blessed and
very lucky” is how she describes herself.
CLARENCE RUSSEAU
The Big Bend landscape, night sky
and frontier culture have influenced
many people, perhaps none more so
STERRY BUTCHER
Marfa
Photo by Jim Glendinning
than Clarence Russeau, who changed
from a lost soul in the big city to one who
has found his true purpose in the small
town, speaking forcefully for those who
have been victimized. The confident 50-
year-old emits frequent bursts of laughter
as he describes a life story that is anything
but light.
He was born in Dallas in June 1960,
the adopted child of Clarence and
Odette Russeau, who were both teachers.
Nicknamed Kojak, his hairless head
caused him relentless teasing from elementary
school through Skyline High
School. To compensate he rebelled
against school regulations and fought
against his tormenters. He wanted to be
liked, wanted to help those in need, but
in fact had only one friend in high
24
Cenizo
Fourth Quarter 2011