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Rick Reyes III is carrying on a family tradition as Potentate of San Antonio’s Alzafar Shrine Temple. His father and grandfather were Potentates. The work of securing health care for children is of utmost importance for Reyes.
Billy Calzada / Staff photographer
SAN ANTONIO — As a child, he imitated his heroes who wore capes over broad shoulders. They fought enemy forces on battlefields in distant lands.
They breathed life into myth and lore on the printed page.
But, as he grew older, his heroes began to look like men in his family. They wore a red fez and raised money to help children they didn’t know — children in need of medical care.
He would soon pick up their good cause, a family tradition.
On March 18, Rick Reyes III will be publicly installed as potentate of the Alzafar Shrine Temple-San Antonio. He knows the responsibilities required of leading the Shrine firsthand — his father and grandfather were potentates.
He will wield the same gavel as they did. He will wear potentate jewels presented to him by his namesake.
Rick Reyes II, father of current San Antonio Alzafar Shrine Temple Potentate, Rick Reyes III, was potentate in 2010.
Billy Calzada / Staff photographerAt a Jan. 12 private meeting, he raised his hand to do his best in the leadership role. The most unforgettable thing during the ceremony was the look in his father’s eye.
A 22-year veteran of the Air Force, Vincent T. Davis embarked on a second career as a journalist and found his calling. Observing and listening across San Antonio, he finds intriguing tales to tell about everyday people. He shares his stories with Express-News subscribers every Monday morning.
“I came to the realization that I finally became my hero,” Reyes, 44, said at the Shrine, located at 901 N. Loop 1604 West. “It’s always been my dad.”
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As the new leader, he’s recruiting a diverse group of men from the community to join the fraternity that governs Central and South Texas. Reyes said the average age of a Shriner is 75. The average age of incoming Shriners is 46. He said the fraternity has 1,331 members.
“It’s not just me,” he said. “All the board members are a huge, integral part of the successes we’re seeing with the increase in membership and decrease in age. With any organization, we can’t do it without the support of our team, and I have the very best team out there. Our ladies are our biggest supporters and absolutely the reasons why we have our successes.”
Reyes said his biggest supporter is his wife of 23 years, Amanda.
The potentate received high marks from David A. Olivares, 59, the Oriental guide of the Shrine. He said his friend is an intense person, planner and one of the funnest guys to be around at the same time.
James Gullette grandfather of current San Antonio Alzafar Shrine Temple Potentate, Rick Reyes III, was potentate in 1981.
Billy Calzada / Staff photographer“He’s like a little brother,” Olivares said. “He can make sure that a goal is seen through. We’re able to bounce things off each other, agree to disagree, move on and stay friends. Not a lot of people can move on, and we’ve done it.”
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Reyes joined the fraternity after serving in the Navy from 1999 to 2007. His father recommended that he join the clown unit that appears at parades, party events and charities. The jesters were the only unit that had direct access to lift spirits of children healing in hospitals.
In 2008, Reyes took on the persona of “Tater the Clown,” painting makeup on his face and putting on colorful clothes to cheer up youngsters. Past Potentate G. I. Flores gave him the nickname after hearing Reyes say “Hey, Tater” to his daughter on a phone call.
One weekday, Reyes visited children in the orthopedic and burn units at a Houston hospital. As he walked down a hallway, someone shouted, “payaso!” It was a little girl, transferred from a Galveston burn unit, who had called him clown in Spanish. Over 90 percent of her body was burned.
A nurse and the girl’s mother watched as he performed magic tricks that kept the youngster laughing. When he looked up, he saw the mother crying.
“What did I do wrong?” Reyes asked the nurse.
Shrine potentate Rick Reyes III displays an officer’s jewel presented to him by his father.
Billy Calzada / Staff photographer“You didn’t do anything wrong,” the nurse said. “Keep doing it.”
Afterward, the nurse shared that the mother said it was the first time she had heard that type of laughter since her daughter’s accident. At that moment, Reyes knew he had found his calling.
“Any opportunity to go to a hospital, in makeup or not, I’m going to do it,” he said.
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Now, as potentate, his focus is leading the Shrine into the future. Reyes works in the financial services industry. He also volunteers with several nonprofits, including the Kendall County Crime Stoppers and Rotary Club in Boerne. Volunteerism, he said, has required him to be selfless on behalf of those in need.
“There’s nothing better than seeing a child’s life so much better,” Reyes said. “I’m glad to live a selfless, Christ-driven servant life.”
vtdavis@express-news.net
