Love blooms twice for Troy, Mary Moser
FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS
BY SUZANNE LOUDAMY Staff writer

Troy and Mary Moser

Troy and Mary Moser are not indigenous to Whitehouse. They are transplants. They brought with them a beautiful relationship and a vibrant green thumb.

Mr. Moser's military service in WWII took him to dentistry school. He had a thriving practice in Houston but was really looking for a slower pace. His first wife's health was poor and they wanted to retire in an area with a good health care facility. They found this farm near Whitehouse and bought it.

The loss of his wife in 1974 came before his retirement days. He was still in Houston.

Just a year before, Mrs. Moser's first husband had passed away. These two souls were missing their loved ones and found one another.

They were not strangers. Mrs. Moser's family all used Mr. Moser as their dentist. Mrs. Moser recalls the many times he cared for their children as well as for the elderly members of the family who had needs and could not get into the office. "He would even come to the house," Mrs. Moser said.

Troy and Mary became Mr. and Mrs. in 1976. After much time in prayer over what should be the next step in their lives together, the Mosers left the big city and came to the country. It was a dramatic change.

Living in the country meant, at least for a while, no phone, no electricity and no running water. They moved in a small mobile home at the end of what is now known as Moser Lane, just north of the Whitehouse city limits.

"We had to get permission from James Lilly and others to cross their property to get to our farm," Mr. Moser said. "Later we acquired right of way from them to extend the road." At that time, the road only came as far east as the Old Tyler Road. They talked with each land owner and gained right of way from all of them except one. So when it was time for the road to go in, they just went around that property owner. That's where the big curve in the road came from.

"We bought the old Warren house on the hill and moved it to the farm," Mr. Moser said. "It was all of three rooms and a porch, but it was home."

While Mr. Moser spent many hours swinging a hammer on the new place and getting it ready to live in, he began to miss the whine of the dentist's drill. In January of 1979, he opened a practice in Tyler on Fleishel. But he really wanted to be closer to his new place in Whitehouse. He arranged with the City of Tyler to buy an old park ranger's home and moved it to a location on Hwy. 110 North.

"There were rumors of all sorts about what it was going to be," Mr. Moser said. "Some thought it was going to be a bar some thought it would be a church." After all of the necessary additions and renovations, the new dentist office was open for business.

Since the move from Houston, Mrs. Moser had been working at Southwestern Bell in downtown Tyler. She left there in 1980 and they started their nursery business. If you'll remember, 1980 was one of the hottest, driest years on record for this area. Needless to say, their start was a bit of a flop. "Every tree we planted died," Mrs. Moser said.

But not to be discouraged, they started over again. God smiled down on them and brought them more blessings than every before. Whitehouse Gardens was a wholesale nursery serving East Texas for 25 years.

The Mosers credit all of their success in life and love to the Lord. "We've spent a lot of time of our knees over the years," the couple said. "If the decision is made through prayer, it's going to work out."

Even the home they have now came through hard work and faith. It was built in 1909 on Elm Street in Tyler. They got it at auction. "I wish I had had more faith that day," Mr. Moser said. A friend had encouraged him to put in a low bid of $25. Moser thought that price was much too low and submitted a much higher bid. Turns out, he was the only bidder.

The Mosers share their faith as they continue through life together. They enjoy worshipping at the First Baptist Church of Whitehouse where they were drawn many years ago by Mary's daughter and her family.

"We've seen our church and this town grow and develop unbelievably," Mrs. Moser said. "When we came to Whitehouse that sign said there were 1,721 people here."

The Mosers may not be natives to Whitehouse, but they have played a vital role in nurturing its growth. Everything that lives must have a gardener to tend it; to keep out the weeds, to fulfill its needs and to protect it from harm. The Mosers are true cultivators of the soul.