1) Tell us about yourself and your family. We both grew up in Houston, but fell in love with Fort Worth when we arrived at TCU in 1996. Go Frogs! We just celebrated our 20th anniversary in November, and have two teen daughters, Ellie and Penny, and a dachshund named Ollie. After two decades of traveling internationally in the field of cybersecurity, Gabe recently joined the team at Gozova, a start-up moving and storage company based here in Fort Worth. Andrea works at Covenant Classical School, where both of our daughters are students. We’ve been members at Christ Chapel for 20 years and Andrea and the girls serve in the youth music ministry every summer. Our entire family enjoys traveling together, and we’ve taken some amazing trips thanks to all of the airline miles and hotel points that Gabe accumulated over the years!
2) How long have you lived in Ridglea North? We’ve lived on Locke Avenue for almost seven years. We’ve loved the neighborhood since the time we were newlyweds when work friends invited us over to their home on Kenwick. After years of living in Keller, we wanted to move closer to the city, so we checked Ridglea North real estate listings every morning for a couple of months. We actually made an offer on our house the day it went on the market, despite the fact that it was in pretty rough shape and had raccoons living in the attic! (There were several times during the 10-day option period that we wondered if we’d lost our minds.) After going through several “phases” of remodeling, we’re so glad we took a chance on this home! Fun Fact: We learned that John Denver used to hang out at our house as a teenager.
3) What’s your favorite neighborhood activity or event? We can’t pick just one – in a non-2020 year, there are so many wonderful events put on by RNNA! We loved the Rock the Block events and look forward to attending those again. And the Ridglea North Garden Tour was so much fun. We also love Movies in the Park, the Ridglea North 5K and Cocoa and Caroling. Oh, and the July 4th Parade has been part of our annual tradition – this year’s drive-through event was a great way to keep the tradition going. We’re so fortunate to have a neighborhood association that works so hard to make this neighborhood such a special place. There really is something for everyone.
4) What’s your favorite thing to do in Fort Worth? Fort Worth has grown so much over the last 20 years, and it’s fun to get out and try it all. We love trying new restaurants and are always on the lookout for great lunch date spots and fun patios.
5) What’s your best advice on being a good neighbor? We once read about a neighborhood “tic-tac-toe” challenge that posed the question: “If your home was in the middle of a tic-tac-toe board, would you know the names of the neighbors in all the other squares?” It’s easy to pull into your garage or driveway and head straight inside. Life is busy. But taking the time to get to know your neighbors is always worth it. The truth is that you already have something in common – you live in the best neighborhood in town! Take a walk. Chat with the neighbors you see. Pull in a neighbor’s trash can on a rainy day. Like we’ve discovered, you’ll definitely find that Ridglea North neighbors are awesome. (Shout out to our amazing Locke and Fairfield neighbors, specifically!)
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