Collecting corks empowers singer's nonprofit

Terri Hendrix, local musician and founder of the nonprofit Own Your Own Universe, created a music label, Wilory Farms, co-wrote a Grammy award-winning song, “Lil’ Jack Slade” for The Chicks, received a star on the South Texas Music Walk of Fame and she is a recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, has a SMART award for artistic excellence and was inducted into the Women’s Hall of Fame in San Marcos.

She said none of that compares to the satisfaction she gets from helping others.

Hendrix's music career began in 1990.

“I moved to San Marcos in ‘89 and was working at a place called Peppers at the Falls. I met Todd Snyder, and he told me about Cheatham Street songwriter nights,” Hendrix said. After she went to one songwriter night, she said she was hooked.

“Next thing you know, I’m buying a pick-up truck and a PA system, and driving all over Texas.

Hendrix writes music for other musicians as well.

“I write songs, and if I’m lucky, other people cover them,” Hendrix said. “I wrote an instrumental–I couldn’t find lyrics for it, and The Dixie Chicks– now they’re called The Chicks– recorded Lil’ Jack Slade and [it] ended up winning a Grammy. That was back in 2003. My songs have been covered by a bunch of different regional artists. Ruthie Foster covered ‘Hole In My Pocket.’” She debuted a childrens’ record that came out in 2005, receiving traction in the industry.

“And it really changed my life because it did so well. It was just a fluke–a little project I did on a whim and it ended up doing really well,” Hendrix said.

Hendrix said her least favorite shows to play are large festivals. “If there’s a rope between me and the audience, I’m just not going to enjoy it. I like to be right up close to people and relate to people,” Hendrix said. Some of her favorite venues to play are Summer in the Park in San Marcos, the Kerrville Folk Festival, The Bugle Boy in La Grange and the Barn Dance in Lake Tahoe.

With all that on her resume, Hendrix reaffirmed how much her work locally with her nonprofit OYOU is her main focus. Others have noticed and have brought assistance to her nonprofit organization, sometimes in unusual ways. OYOU has hosted various free and ticketed events and workshops, and has supported local artists and musicians by acquiring their services to lead workshops or perform at community concerts.

With a goal of helping the community it serves, restaurateur and Palmer’s owner Monte Sheffield takes a portion of the daily alcohol sales in a unique way to support the mission for Hendrix’ charitable organization.

According to Sheffield, all of the restaurant’s corks from bottles of wine and champagne are collected and placed on display in a case made by him and located on a wall of the restaurant. Each time it fills, $100 is donated to the non-profit.

Sheffield said he has donated to OYOU in this manner for approximately five years.

“This thing will fill up in two weeks to sometimes a month. The cool thing about it is, if people don’t drink wine, but are behind what this is all about they’ll donate cash,” Sheffield said.

The cash donated in the display case by restaurant patrons is then given to the non-profit in addition to the $100 donated by Sheffield.

Sheffield said he then takes the corks to a business that repurposes them into yoga blocks so they don’t end up in a landfill.

“Here’s one little restaurant in San Marcos, Texas, United States, and I bet I could fill up a four-yard dumpster in about six months with corks,” Sheffield said.

According to the OYOU website, the organization spearheaded by Hendrix, has made it their mission to make the arts accessible to everyone, and particularly to empower and transform lives by connecting the mind, body and spirit through music and the creative arts. Hendrix’s involvement in the music industry and her battle with health problems inspired her to create OYOU. “It’s a non-profit I started in 2012. I have epilepsy, and I like to work with people with neurological disabilities and people that don’t have it. I like to take people who have a disability and people that don’t, and throw them together and do music,” Hendrix said.

Dealing with focal epilepsy was no picnic, but she was able to overcome it and continue her music career. “Once I figured out how to work with focal epilepsy and got on the right medications, I was able to control it and have a great career that was from 1990 until 2020,” Hendrix said.

She took a critical blow to her music career in 2020 that began with the loss of her sister in 2018. “It was devastating, and I cried a whole lot. I mean, I cried every day for a year, and it created a lot of tension in my throat. Grief can do that, it can create tension,” Hendrix said. The tension was causing vocal spasms, which she wanted to fix because she had an upcoming show at the Paramount Theatre, she said.

“I was advised to get Botox, and when I got that Botox, my body had a bad reaction to it,” Hendrix said. “It damaged a muscle and the nerve that surrounds the muscle, and it caused the spasms to increase. It caused a vocal tremor to pop up. There’s a main muscle called the thyroarytenoid muscle that is a major component in control of the throat and the voice.”

Hendrix said that when she initially damaged the throat muscle, she could barely talk, but she has been working toward rehabilitation ever since and has come a long way. “I’ve pretty much been benched from touring, but I’m still able to play,” Hendrix said. She said the majority of her time is dedicated to her nonprofit organization. “I won’t tour the way I used to but I still write a lot and record a lot; There’s still things I want to play and a lot of public speaking I want to do,” Hendrix said.

Many of OYOU’s workshop leaders are individuals who have been affected by neurological conditions, cancer, depression and other health challenges, and they mentor students with similar health conditions. OYOU routinely offers scholarships for each of their programs based on financial need, and for special needs students, veterans, teachers and patients suffering from medical conditions.

Hendrix said that the success she’s had in her music career has been fantastic, but she derives even more satisfaction from helping those involved in OYOU programs. “I do this thing called the Snowbird Concert Series,” Hendrix said. “I saw these kids get up on the stage that had just learned to play Mariachi music, and their teacher John Lopez just did a great job. It was inspiring.” Hendrix said she’s very excited for the OYOU kids camp that’s happening this week. Sometimes she does camps for kids who are nonverbal or have other disabilities, which she can relate to. “Nothing comes close. I could end up with five Grammy’s,” Hendrix said. “And there’s nothing that would ever match going to the Bugle Boy in La Grange and hosting a concert for kids.”

Sheffield donations have helped OYOU maintain its operations in various ways.

“We’ll use that check [from Palmer's] to pay for kids programs or we’ll use the check to buy art supplies for art programs or we’ll use the check to support the concert series for the music program,” Hendrix said.

Hendrix said Sheffield and Palmer's have supported OYOU in other ways, too. “Our first fundraiser that we did, one of our first, Monte provided the catering. We’ve been long-time friends, and he’s always doing stuff for the community, and doesn’t really talk about it. With our concert series, I came over [to Palmer’s] and picked up a huge thing of queso, a bunch of chips and he gives it to me for free, and that makes it to where we don’t have to spend $150 on queso and chips to feed about 150 people,” Hendrix said.

Hendrix said she has a message for the public.

“Support local. There’s a lot of things out there that people don’t know, like how much, for instance, that Palmer’s does that’s in the community. And by eating at Palmer’s, you’re also supporting local. By them supporting Monte, it then supports me because this place helps support us [OYOU] and what we do,” Hendrix said.

To help contribute, visit Palmer’s and have a glass of wine or drop cash in the display case to support OYOU. Go to ownyourownuniverse. org for upcoming workshops and other events and to find a link to donate.