Tom and Ruth grew up in Bandera, Texas, where their parents, Don and Anita, were teachers at Bandera High School, from which Tom and Ruth graduated. Ruth exhibited early musical ability, emphasis on piano. Tom was early into horses and participated in junior rodeo. His hopes of turning pro were stopped by his being drafted and sent to Vietnam.
Ruth graduated two years later, Tom having returned and begun cattle ranch work in San Saba County, and enrolled at LSU, continuing her piano development in their School of Music.
Ruth graduated LSU and moved to Austin to be in the music scene, playing in blues bands and thus meeting Dave, a guitar player. A couple years later they were married. Two years after that, their son Kyle was born. Not long thereafter they moved to Memphis where Dave began producing records, Jan's piano playing on hold while she raised Kyle, Don and Anita frequent visitors, as were Dave's parents, and Ruth, Dave and Kyle getting to Bandera whenever possible.
When Kyle was seven he died with Dave when the Cessna they were on crashed upon landing on the airstrip of Dave's parents' ranch in West Texas. Ruth moved to a cabin in the deep woods of Maine and then after two years back to Bandera when Anita was diagnosed with breast cancer, already spread. Eight months later she was gone. A year to the day later Don died from a heart attack.
Tom and Ruth sold the house in Bandera. Tom retreated to Mexico, Ruth to Europe, living in Spain for a year before returning to Texas to teach high school music. She never remarried and retired to Comfort, Texas. Tom returned to ranch work, became ranch foreman, met and married Wanda when they were fifty.