Work and Progress

Jan Dockery is the definition of a working mayor. In addition to a successful first term as La Grange’s first Black mayor, she still pulls cashier shifts at the local H-E-B and takes the occasional waitress gig. “You can’t say I’m not approachable,” she says. “You can probably stop anybody in the city limits and ask, ‘Where’s Jan Dockery?’ and they would be able to find me real quick.”

A native of La Grange, located about an hour southeast of Austin, Dockery has been working hard for more than 50 years. She got her first paycheck as a 13-year-old dishwasher at the Bon Ton, the town’s popular café on the square that transitioned into Weikel’s Bakery in 1985. But even before that, Dockery was industrious; as the oldest of five, it was her job to get her siblings fed and ready for school, as their mother left early to work morning shifts. Dockery remembers the stool she stood on as she heated oatmeal on the stove for her brothers and sisters. “I had to be the good example for them,” she says. This role inspired her desire to serve others.

But Dockery’s rise to mayor was “off the charts unexpected,” she says. She had never considered politics an option and hadn’t seen any other Black residents in political leadership. Her journey began in 1990 when she started volunteering at her daughter’s school. That opened a pathway to employment in the school system, which led to an introduction to La Grange’s previous mayor, Janet Moerbe. She saw potential in Dockery and encouraged her to run for City Council. When Moerbe retired, she endorsed Dockery’s own run for mayor in 2021, culminating in a historic election with Dockery clinching 59% of the vote.

“It’s a dream that I never ever thought would happen, but I had to give it a shot,” Dockery says. “And people trusted me because they knew me as an individual.”

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TEXAS CZECH HERITAGE CENTER

This museum and cultural center has an amphitheater for music performances and a Texas Czech village visitors can tour to learn more about the daily lives of early Czech settlers. “I love taking my grandchildren there to engage them in the history of La Grange,” Dockery says.

FAYETTE PUBLIC LIBRARY

La Grange’s library expanded to two floors in 2006. “Our library is off the charts,” Dockery says. “It caters to all ages, but especially young families.” The library offers an annual summer reading program and a genealogy walk each October.

HISTORIC FAYETTE COUNTY SQUARE

Dockery encourages everyone to visit downtown La Grange. “The courthouse is beautiful, and the atrium inside is gorgeous,” she says. The square is also the site of many community events, including Feed the Need’s Monday free food service for hunger relief, Christmas event Schmeckenfest with wassail tasting, and the Uncorked Wine Stroll.

MONUMENT HILL STATE HISTORIC SITE

“Every Thanksgiving, our family goes over to the park to take pictures at the overlook,” she says. The site also includes the historic Kreische Brewery ruins. In January, the City Council awarded a $1 million bid to begin construction on Hope Hill Park. “It’ll be a state-of-the-art park with a bike trail and pickleball court,” Dockery says. The 6-acre park will be adjacent to the Hope Hill subdivision, built for residents who lost their homes during the 2017 Hurricane Harvey flood.

COUNTY FAIR

Every Labor Day weekend since the 1920s, the Fayette County Fair comes to town with carnival rides, parades, arts and crafts exhibitions, and the crowning of a new Fair Queen. Next year, the historic food court will be overhauled. “I saw the plans at our last meeting, and it’s going to be very nice,” Dockery says.