We asked.

You Answered.

Bill and Mary Ellen Humble

Newlyweds Bill and Mary Ellen Humble met while taking part in their church orchestra, she on the alto sax and he on the clarinet, but they truly hit their stride (pun intended!) when they began taking dance classes together in 2019. Numerous dance classes and a pandemic later, they decided to tie the knot and find a new home together.

Mary Ellen was born in a small city along the Ohio River called Martins Ferry. She had a nice, stable upbringing—living 28 years of it on the same street! Most of her family is still in Ohio around Lake Erie, but two siblings remain in Martins Ferry. Mary Ellen’s first career was as a teacher. Ohio University opened a teacher training branch within her high school, so she was able to take her first two years of college within her high school building.

Bill was born and raised in San Antonio. He went to junior college there for two years before transferring to the University of Texas at Austin (Hook ‘em Horns!), where he completed a degree in engineering. He did a bit of graduate school but then got married and moved to Dallas to work for Southwestern Bell. He spent ten years at Southwestern Bell. After Southwestern Bell, Bill went to work for Westinghouse on a contract for the U.S. Navy. He spent five years in Idaho Falls, Idaho in the early 1980s teaching sailors how to start up, shut down, and handle casualties on naval nuclear reactors. Bill found the work to be great fun. After his stint in Idaho, he transitioned to working in commercial nuclear power and was an engineering supervisor for 27 years for South Texas Project Nuclear Operating Company in Bay City (about 90 miles southwest of Houston). He retired in 2011, and he and his wife moved to Plano to be closer to their grandkids. Bill’s wife died unexpectedly of a heart attack in 2016; they had been married 46 years. They have three children and eight grandchildren who live in Orlando, Dallas, and Denver.

Before Mary Ellen and Bill began dancing and dating, they were separately considering their choices for downsizing and moving. Mary Ellen started visiting different places and was drawn to the continuing care model. It gave her a sense of security, and she liked the thought that she could be as active as she liked but that there were also options for when your level of activity might slow down. Bill also had been weighing his options, knowing there would be a time when he was no longer interested in keeping up his home. He sang in a choir that visited various senior homes once a month, and this was a good way for him to do some comparison shopping—discerning what he did and did not like about the different places.

Bill was drawn to communities where the residents were very active, and Mary Ellen liked the ones with indoor swimming pools, among other things. About the time they started thinking seriously about committing to each other, they were getting marketing materials from The Outlook at Windhaven. Bill proposed marriage, and the process of looking for a place to live together became more of a priority. They began the process of downsizing with Bill moving into Mary Ellen’s home and decided The Outlook would be where they eventually landed as a couple. They wanted to be in Plano near their church, First Baptist Plano, and close to the activities they love—including dancing at the various venues and recreation centers and attending community theater shows.

We’d like to wish Marketing Assistant Alyssa Landa the very best as her last day at The Outlook was Friday, August 26. She and her fiancé are beginning an exciting new journey as they return home to the cool Colorado climate. “You have helped me grow both professionally and personally, and taught me things that I will carry with me,” she says. We’ll miss you, Alyssa!

With Alyssa’s departure, Sara Massoudi (who happens to be our own Angela Morgan’s daughter!) will be filling in as our Marketing Assistant until a permanent replacement has been identified. Sara is a recent graduate of Oklahoma City University, and we know you will be in good hands while she is with us. Please join us in welcoming Sara to The Outlook team!

Brad Nitschke is Associate General Counsel for Parkland Health in Dallas, Texas, one of the largest public healthcare and hospital systems in the United States. He supports Parkland’s operations, compliance, regulatory, and risk management functions and is a member of the Ethics Committee. He was formerly a trial and investigations partner at Jackson Walker LLP. Mr. Nitschke received his J.D. with honors from the University of Texas School of Law and a B.A. in Psychology from Texas A&M University.

Dr. Rebecca Gruchalla received her Ph.D. and medical degree from UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. After completing internal medicine training at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and allergy and immunology training at UT Southwestern, she joined the UT Southwestern faculty. She is professor of medicine and pediatrics and she holds the Dr. William A. and Joyce M. Sellars Distinguished Chair in Allergy and Immunology. In addition, Dr. Gruchalla directs the allergy and immunology division in both the departments of medicine and pediatrics.

Offer extended through September 30! There is no better time to recommend The Outlook to a friend! And what could be better than getting to choose your neighbors? Even though The Outlook is more than 70% reserved, we still have some wonderful residences available.
So, if you know someone who would like to learn more about retirement living or life at The Outlook, let us know and your referral can lock in special Construction pricing. And you both win!

When your friend reserves a residence, you will receive a $500 Visa^® gift card right now as a thank-you.
Then, when you and your friend move in, you will receive $3,500 credit toward your monthly service fee, and their credit will be $2,500!

Refer your friends today! Contact Sara Massoudi at (972) 996-3887 or smassoudi@nullforefrontliving.org.

Offer valid for new referrals only through 09/30/22.

Save

The Date

Tips on Downsizing
Tuesday, September 13, 10:00 am
As founder of MOVE Method, Texas’ premier move management resource, Cheryl Morgan has been sharing her expertise with clients and supporting their downsizing efforts for many years. Now, she’d love to share it with you. Join us and get helpful tips and resources that can take your own decluttering experience from overwhelming to empowering.