It’s easy to feel right at home in Coastal Bend of Texas, where housing and overall living costs are more affordable than the national average.

Lifestyle choices range from residing in large cities to small towns, plus there are options such as beachfront communities in Port Aransas or the restored homes and ranches in Refugio County. Meanwhile, communities such as Beeville and Kingsville are Texas Main Street cities with revitalized downtown districts.

The region’s geographic location allows easy access to big-city amenities that are not far away, plus there is also a host of home-grown cultural and recreational attractions. Corpus Christi alone includes the Institute de Cultura Hispánica de Corpus Christi and the Texas State Museum of Asian Cultures, and is also home to the long-standing Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra.

“We enter our 66th consecutive season beginning in October 2011, which is an impressive accomplishment given that symphonies much larger than us in places like Philadelphia, Louisville, Syracuse and even New Mexico have recently ceased to exist or filed bankruptcy,” says Robert A. Reed, executive director of the Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra. “With our symphony, along with museums, the Harbor Playhouse and other cultural attractions, there is enough to do culturally in Corpus Christi to satisfy any community.”

Council of Cultures

The region also boasts a chamber music society and an international piano and string competition, plus a ballet, a collection of art galleries and live theater venues. There is also a diversity organization – Coastal Bend Council of Cultures – that contributes to the overall quality of life by supporting the continuing international development of the Coastal Bend region through cultural and economic projects.

Alison Leithner serves as international relations officer with the Council of Cultures, as well as with Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi, and her job is to find ways that international students can get engaged in the community.

“Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi actually had 750 international students enrolled on campus from 47 countries during the 2011-12 school year, so diversity certainly exists here,” she says. “The recently formed Coastal Bend Council of Cultures has a board that meets monthly to specifically plan how to increase the visibility of the diversity in this region.”

Parade of Nations

The Council board includes the Corpus Christi mayor, university representatives, port officials, Corpus Christi Regional Economic Development Corp., Corpus Christi Convention & Visitors Bureau, Corpus Christi Caller-Times newspaper, plus 16 different organizations representing Turkish, Czech, Filipino, Hispanic, German, African-American and other local cultures.

“The Council is currently planning a large multicultural event in downtown Corpus Christi for May 2012, plus every April, the university students host a Parade of Nations international day,” Leithner says. “We are proud of the diversity in Coastal Texas – it adds to our overall quality of life.”