Harriet and David Houston - St. Matthews Episcopal Church

St. Matthew’s Sages
Harriet and David Houston
David Houston Harriet Houston
Birth year: 1921 Birth year: 1935
Education: B.A. Engineering, UT, 1950
Education: B.S. Speech and Drama,
MS in Community and Regional
Education; North Texas State
Planning, 1970
University, 1958
Places lived: Texas, New Mexico & Sicily, Italy Places lived: Texas, Louisianna, Georgia,
Missouri, Pennsylvania
Children Franklin, Ronald
Children David Perry Saunders, Lisa
Grandchildren Franklin and Dena have 2
Grandchildren Spencer
children: Rachel and Adam
Ronald and Tatiana has 1
daughter – Tanya
2 great-grandchildren
Lisa has 1 son – Richard Perry
Married: April 26, 1986
Mention Harriet Houston’s name to David, ask him what he thought of her when he first met her, and
his whole face lights up! He was struck!
Ask Harriet what she thought when she responded to a “sign call” (House for sale) from David and she
answers: “Welllll, I could immediately tell he was an engineer!” He was not impressed with the house;
however, he was impressed with the land and back yard. Just days from the closing, the house flooded!
During this great flood in Austin, the house wound up with five feet of water. He didn’t buy it, and he
was saved from what would have been a disaster. Harriet continued to show David properties for almost
three years. He wound up buying a house just 7 houses down the street from Harriet, and that’s where
they live today.
Courtship and Wedding
Harriet was a member of St. Matthew’s. David, although a member of All Saints, had dropped out of
church for about ten years. He started attending the St. Matthew’s Singles Group with Harriet, and they
were both happily knit into St. Matthew’s. The Rev. Ben Aurand even “officiated” the night David
proposed to Harriet. When time came for the supposedly small wedding, the group kept growing and
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growing! Creating the wedding list was quite a challenge what with the Singles Group, St. Matthew’s
membership, and David’s Folk Dancing group! They married in Huffman Hall, the last to do so.
They did their nuptial instruction with Ben Aurand, complete with Rorschach testing. When he saw that
they really were very compatible, he approved the match. After exactly thirty years, two months, and 25
days of being single, David Houston was ready to be married.
There was one bit of sobering news. Just two days prior to the wedding, David’s mother passed away in
Oklahoma. She was 96 years old, bedridden and unable to travel to the wedding. Harriet had an
interesting comment about the timing. (David’s mother was very happy that someone would take care
of him.) “She figured out a way to get to the wedding!”
Although their wedding trip had to be postponed, they made the trip to East Texas for her burial and
stayed there for a rather subdued honeymoon trip, postponing a trip to Santa Fe.
Families of Origin
David had one sister, eight years older. She passed away seven years ago.
Harriet was the youngest of three girls in her family. Kathy, the reader in the family, was just 11 months
older than Harriet. Ann, the oldest one, was the studious one. And Harriet, the baby, always wanted
friends around! On Harriet’s sixth birthday, she announced to her family (who called her “Baby”) very
emphatically that she would not answer to the name Baby any more! And she did not, and gradually,
her family began calling her Harriet!
World War II Begins
As a young man, David enrolled as a pre-med student in Hardin Junior College in the fall of 1941. He was
able to complete two semesters prior to enlisting in the military just a few months after Pearl Harbor. It
was sort of automatic that David would become a medic since he had work experience in a hospital. He
was part of the first initiative in Europe as a part of World War II. For some days prior to November 8,
1942, David was on a ship, part of the amphibious assault division, in the North Atlantic assembling a
huge convoy.
Very quickly, this man from Wichita Falls found himself in Italy, Sicily, and part of the initial assault onto
the North African coast. He was on a medium-sized cargo ship that had been converted to a troop
carrier. He remembers a night when there was a huge storm, with 40-foot waves. David was standing
watch on the outside deck of the ship and could hear the explosions of the anti-submarine depth
charges. While he was alone on the deck, he did have the thought: “What in the world am I doing
here?” It was not Wichita Falls!
The officers on his ship, part of the Third Infantry Division, were very experienced. Many were doctors,
including surgeons and dentists. They took very good care of David. He was commissioned an officer
before leaving the Armed Services, and he remained in the Army Reserves for 28 years.
After the war, David came to UT Austin to study engineering. As a part of his studies, David pursued an
advanced degree in city planning, which was the basis for his career.
Harriet and Rising Star, Texas
Rising Star, Texas, had only about 1,000 people – counting dogs and cats, according to Harriet. Her high
school education was a little lacking, in that they couldn’t keep a science or math teacher! The football
coaches filled in on these positions, but didn’t teach much science or math.
On Harriet’s graduation night from high school, her beloved sister, Kathy, was killed in an auto accident.
A college graduate, Ann was already out of college and working. This sent her mother into a deep
depression, and she wanted to keep Harriet home nearby, so Harriet enrolled at a nearby junior college
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– Cisco Junior College. She had a wonderful voice teacher there and attended for a year, although during
that year the school burned to the ground!
The weekend before the fall semester began; Harriet’s father came to her and told her to get packed.
She asked him where they were going! He responded that he was going to enroll her in the University of
North Texas. They drove up to the University, her father asked where to find a dorm, and he went
directly to the front door. Although there was no “room,” the administration agreed to allow three girls
in one room! The other two girls never showed up, so Harriet had a room all to herself! Another girl
decided to move in with Harriet and that great friendship continued for many years. Everything about
North Texas was exciting and new and exhilarating! It was a wonderful fit for Harriet and she graduated
with Honors with degrees in Speech and Drama and in Education. Her first job was teaching in Corpus
Christi, where she was surprised to find her first assignment to be a fifth grade teacher! She learned
quickly, though, and taught elementary school for eight years.
Asked about her father, Harriet relishes talking about her Dad. He quit school in the 8 th Grade in order to
help his mother on their farm. When he was 24, he decided to go to college. In his first year at the
University of Missouri, he had completed his first year of college and completed his high school
education. He graduated with a degree in Agriculture. He was very interested in his children’s education
and taught each of them how to read, sitting in his lap. Harriet had the utmost respect for her father,
and so did everyone in town.
David’s Family and Parenting
David’s father and his sister were totally supportive of him. They were known as loving people in all of
Wichita Falls. Of his sister, he says she never had an evil thought. Of his father, David says he had a hard
life. David had the utmost respect for his father. His grandfather, Dr. Benjamin Franklin Houston, Jr.
shares a common ancestor (Robert) with Colonel Sam Houston. David’s father, David Lipscomb Houston,
went to Nashville to study as a pre-divinity student at David Lipscomb College. His mother was also very
influential in his life.
Although only eight years old, he has vivid memories of the day the stock market crashed in 1929. He
remembers the feelings of helplessness and hopelessness.
David feels his parents greatly influenced his parenting, especially since he became a single parent after
his divorce. He feels that he did wonderfully well in parenting his two boys Franklin and Ronald, except
in one area: he never taught them successfully the concept of forgiveness. He admits to having some
problems with this himself. That is one area where he would like some reconciliation.
Reflecting on her own parenting, Harriet was a single parent for about six years. Harriet had only minor
problems with her son and daughter, and they were raised with the idea of being careful in their choices
of friends. The kids grew up happy and with a broad range of interests.
Asked if either of her children inherited her love of flowers and gardening, Harriet discusses her son
David Perry Saunders. He has run a large nursery business for years. Her daughter Lisa Spencer is now a
gardener with a passion for roses and peonies! Lisa’s husband is landscape architect. They have a
beautifully landscaped home.
Asked about the Flower Guild at St. Matthew’s, Harriet explains that in the 1980s, Sue Kinney Burton
went to an Altar Guild Conference where she talked with Sandra Hynson, who founded the Flower Guild
at the National Cathedral and was promoting the ministry. Sue talked with Harriet about it and
persuaded her to start a Flower Guild. Chuck Huffman was supportive, so Harriet recruited members
and gave them lessons in flower arranging every Saturday morning for about six weeks. Although the
idea was that the chairmanship of the Guild would rotate every two years, it never happened. This is a
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ministry that has kept on giving, with Harriet continuing to teach and mentor members of the Guild. The
congregation appreciates the work of the Guild, frequently noting the beauty of the arrangements.
David’s Career Reflections
Asked about contributions and awards, David’s eyes twinkle and he explains a particular award
recognizing his long career as a professional engineer in the field of environmental health, signed by the
Governor! Another award from the State Health Department recognized the effectiveness of a grievance
committee. Its purpose was to resolve employee disputes, and perhaps reduce the number of lawsuits.
David was the one to come up with the solution to several of these, and he was the only person to
receive the award, and he is very proud of it.
Many people have been called to serve on juries from time to time. David was called to serve on the
Travis County Grand Jury for a period of three months. David agrees that he has been instrumental in
helping people reconcile and in negotiating peaceful solutions.
Harriet’s Career Reflections
Asked if she has a strong memory of her Real Estate career, Harriet recalls many whom she loved and
who liked her a lot, too! She has enjoyed long relationships with many clients. However, there were also
some scary times.
Harriet remembers one situation with a man who walked in to the office and stated that he wanted to
go look at houses out in the FM2222 area. She began to show him homes in the area, but noticed that
he seemed to pay more attention to furnishings and the windows than the floor plan. On his third trip,
Harriet reiterated that he needed to get himself qualified with a bank, so that she could be sure she was
showing him homes that he could afford! With no progress, one day Harriet just refused to take him out
again. It turned out that he was on parole and the friend he had been staying with had kicked him out of
his house. So this, at the very least, was one way to keep him occupied during the day. Harriet believes
in her gift of discernment. She was glad she had refused this man access to any more homes.
Reflecting on their courtship during this time, Harriet recalls that during the first two years of David’s
house-buying ventures, he wouldn’t even stop and buy her a coke! But when he finally invited her to
dinner, that was it! It was decided!
St. Matthew’s has been a huge part of their lives. They have given a lot to St. Matthew’s and St.
Matthew’s has given a lot to them. Their faith has underscored many significant events in their lives.
David reflects on many significant events in his live that just could not have occurred without the
intervention of the Lord. He just had not put it together until a few years ago. As he puts it: “The Lord
was looking out for me, many, many times.”
Asked if there were any great or bad decisions, David recalls with a grin one not-so-good decision he
made for the little investment club he began with other engineers in his company. It was his turn to
research a couple of options for the club. He told the group that he just couldn’t see the point of a
company that would reproduce things! The company was Xerox, David reports with a laugh.
Folk Dancing
About three or four years after his divorce, David wasn’t doing much socially and he heard about a
group being organized called the “over 21 club.” It was teaching international folk dancing, and it turned
into an avocation for David that lasted many years. He enjoyed the physical activity, the good food they
shared, and the people in the group. His sons got involved early in their lives, too, and they now dance,
compete, and teach internationally!
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