Four States Living Magazine

Established in 1885, the Nash School closed its doors for good in 1963, when the area was incorporated into the Texarkana Independent School District. The school was on its third building: the first, a one-room schoolhouse, was destroyed by a cyclone in 1894. In 1904, a two-story structure was erected on Highway 82, and in 1924, it was replaced with a larger building to support more students.

Local entrepreneur Cody Peek had been eyeing the historic property for years when it came on the market in 2021. “The day the [for sale] sign went up in the front, I bought it,” he said. “I didn’t know what it was going to be, but I loved the building, and I loved the potential that the building had, and I hated the thought of it not being something cool.”

On any given day in Texarkana, you might pass a business with crisp new lines in its parking lot or notice that a once-faded pavement suddenly looks fresh again. More often than not, that transformation is the work of Kiteco Property Solutions, a locally-owned company that marks pavement, stripes roads, and mills asphalt.

But the story behind this business didn’t begin with heavy equipment or a growing team. It began with the determination of a first-generation immigrant and single mother who saw a gap in the market and decided to fill it.

“My style is rich, like a big piece of chocolate cake,” said Kyle Barrett, Texarkana/De Kalb native and president/cofounder of Barrett Bergmann Home. “I love the word ‘rich,’ but not in the form of money. I love for you to walk into a space, and it absolutely consumes you with good feelings. It makes you want to sit down with a glass of wine or an old fashioned. I love the richness of sitting in my wine room with six close friends, soaking up that fellowship—and I want everyone to have that feeling in their home. When you burn a candle or crawl into bed, I want you to feel like a piece of chocolate cake is being served in front of you. I want you to think, ‘Oh my, this is so rich.’”

You may or may not have heard that, in January, the US Department of Agriculture and US Department of Health and Human Services published the new Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which is typically published every five years. This version is for 2025–2030. 

As your dietitian for the next few minutes, I’ll walk you through what the dietary guidelines are and what updates were made in this version, along with my thought process as I interpret them. 

From a landscape once defined by military operations, TexAmericas Center is helping shape a new chapter for the Texarkana region. Under the leadership of Scott Norton, executive director and CEO at TexAmericas Center, the organization is steadily transforming historic ground into a vessel for economic growth.

This month, Four States Living Magazine spoke with Ana Willis, the new executive director for the Texarkana Museums System, to find out the latest news and future projects from TMS. 

“Texarkana needs a nice, upscale place to get a drink.” When Chris Fuller uttered these words to his wife, Melissa, a magic spell of manifestation took place. This was back in the fall of 2023, and the Fullers ruminated on the idea until inspiration struck and the plan slowly unveiled itself. 

For the past century, families across Texarkana have turned to Twitty Nursery for everything from backyard gardens to full landscape transformations. What began in 1925 as a small nursery founded by R.S. Twitty has grown into one of the region’s most beloved garden centers. Today, the nursery remains a family legacy, now entering its fourth generation of ownership.

As spring gets closer, many athletes get ready to start their seasons. One of these athletes is Aniya Arnold, the team captain and shortstop of Arkansas High’s softball team. Already committed to the University of Memphis, she has the drive to lead the Razorbacks to victory. 

“I’m . . . the encourager, and I make sure we stay on the right path during practice,” Aniya said. Being the team captain has given Aniya a lot of responsibilities, but she seems to be well prepared for them. “I double check to make sure everything’s cleaned up and just help our coaches out in the best way that I can,” she explained. It’s clear that she takes her role very seriously, which is necessary for the observation and extra time that being a team captain requires.

When I hear the word “business,” my first thought is: “none of mine!” That is to say, business is none of my business. 

I’m not exactly what you might consider a money-minded fellow. While I imagine that most people’s checking and savings account balances all graphed out look like gently rising slopes—as one might imagine snow-covered, ascending in a chairlift—my bank accounts more closely resemble the rise and fall of the stock market on a bad day: lots of jagged lines, with peaks and valleys. If it were the graph of an echocardiogram, a doctor would have me wheeled into the cath lab faster than I could spend a hundred bucks on Amazon.

Spring in Texarkana means it’s time once again for the highly anticipated Texarkana Home & Garden Show. Hosted by the Texarkana Home Builders Association, this year’s event will take place on Saturday, March 21st, 2026, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Crossties Event Venue, located at 324 E. Broad St. in downtown Texarkana, Arkansas.

For 774 days, Naomi Elizabeth Berry was a ward of the state of Arkansas. She entered foster care at just 2 weeks old, born into circumstances she did not choose. But on January 29th, 2026, surrounded by the family who had already loved her as their own, Naomi was legally made the daughter of Sarah and Bradley Berry and the sister of four older siblings.

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