The Where I Live series aims to showcase our diverse city and region by spotlighting its many vibrant neighborhoods. Each week a local resident invites us over and lets us in on what makes their neighborhood special. Have we been to your neighborhood yet? Get in touch to share your story.
Castle Hills, considered to be a city within a city in what used to be deemed the outskirts of San Antonio, has been our home for more than 30 years. And for all those years, it’s been a great place to live, work, and raise a family.
What first drew us to Castle Hills were the large yards, mature trees and friendly, welcoming neighbors — making it, in our opinion, a great place to raise a family. Back then we were the young family on the block, with four young children riding their bikes, playing hide and seek, swimming in the neighbor’s pool every summer and bringing the neighborhood back to life, as many of our elderly neighbors told us. They said it brought back fond memories of when they were raising their young families.
Our neighbors have watched our family grow and have celebrated birthdays, graduations, weddings and grandbabies right along with us. We have made lifelong friendships here. As our neighborhood evolves and we lose those dear neighbors that made us feel so welcomed all those years ago, it is our turn to now welcome young families into our neighborhood.
We have seen San Antonio grow and expand around our quaint little landlocked city during these last few years. There’s the Park North Shopping Center where the old Central Park Mall used to be. We witnessed the transformation of Castle Hills Elementary, the oldest elementary school in the North East Independent School District, from a small one-story school to its current facility. Now my grandson, Jack, is a kindergartener there.
Amid all this, we have always appreciated how important it is to the citizens of our community to continue to maintain the integrity of the city. Our city leaders encourage participation in our community-hosted activities like National Night Out, holiday parades, and our own Fiesta celebrations where everyone is welcomed. The Castle Hills Reporter newsletter is published and distributed monthly to inform the citizens of all the city-sponsored activities, new businesses in our city, and a monthly “Message from the Mayor” provides important city information that affects the citizens and the community.
We’re just minutes away from North Star Mall and its iconic cowboy boots and within walking distance to the Lourdes Grotto & Tepeyac de San Antonio where outdoor mass is held, weather permitting, each Sunday and provides a peaceful place to pray and meditate. Our city also is home to Aggie Park, a newly renovated facility supporting the Aggie community in San Antonio. This holds a special meaning to our family, having had two of our four children graduate from Texas A&M University.
We’ve been proud residents of Castle Hills for many years and look forward to watching our beautiful city attract new families who I am sure will enjoy their years here just as much as we have.
