When you first walk into the lobby of Park Place Motorcars Arlington, you’re sure to be captivated by Gabree Torres. The 23-year-old sales greeter is vivacious and charming. But there’s more than meets the eye to this energetic young lady.
Torres is finishing her Masters of Social Work degree at the University of Texas at Arlington. And she’ll leave her mark on the campus before she graduates in December.
Earlier this year, she was selected to paint a horse sculpture for the UTA Spirit Horse project.
“I saw a flyer on a bulletin board and only had two days until the deadline to submit my design,” said Torres, “but I knew this opportunity was mine.”
Torres had previously painted seven large murals in a San Angelo hospital while attending Angelo State University for her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology.
“Gabree submitted a design that showed three students in academic regalia at commencement,” said Jennifer Fox, UTA Assistant Director of Student Governance.
“The UTA Ambassadors, a group of 25 elected student leaders that serve as the official hosts and hostesses of the campus, really liked her design. The proposed location for this year’s Spirit Horse was near the College Park Center, the on-campus arena where commencement ceremonies are held. We did not advertise this when soliciting proposals, so the fact that Gabree’s design also fit well with our proposed location was a nice surprise. We did ask her to add an ‘athletics’ component to the horse since our volleyball and basketball games are also held in the College Park Center. She quickly revised her sketches, and the end result was beautiful.”
Torres’ Spirit Horse was recently unveiled at the Maverick Stampede, a UTA Welcome Week event. The final installation will be later this semester.
In addition to working at Park Place Motorcars and attending school, Torres is completing an internship at a local mental health treatment facility. She also does photography for Calvary Arlington, a local church that meets at the Arlington Music Hall.
“I hope to work with the Domestic Violence population once I graduate,” said Torres. Not surprising for a determined young lady who seems to make an impressioneverywhere she goes.
Park Place Motorcars Arlington is a 91,000-square-foot Mercedes-Benz dealership located at I-20 and Collins that opened December 2015.
Ken Schnitzer founded Park Place Dealerships in 1987 with a single Mercedes-Benz dealership on Oak Lawn. Today, Park Place Dealerships employs more than 2,000 people and operates 18 full-service dealerships For more information about Park Place Dealerships, visit parkplace.com
