Back to Celebrate the Arts

STAR Volunteers of the Year

Lou Ellen and Dave Ruesink have lived in College Station for 56 of the 63 years they have been

married. In addition to careers at Texas A&M University and an active family life, both Ruesinks have found time and energy for volunteer service to their community.

For more than 40 years, Dave served on city committees including Parks and Recreation, Safety, Historic Preservation, and Zoning Board of Adjustments. He was elected to serve two terms on the College Station City Council. Dave has also served as president of the C.S. Noon Lions Club and the local Sister Cities organization. He and Lou Ellen have traveled to Germany, Mexico, and Poland representing the BCS Sister Cities Program. He was named Volunteer of the Year for 2014-15 by the BCS Chamber of Commerce and currently serves as a Chamber Ambassador. In 2016 Dave was honored as a Jefferson Award Nominee.

Lou Ellen’s involvement in the Arts Council goes back to the 1970s when she served as a board member and chaired the student art competition. She helped found the Arts Council STARS program and also helped create and organize the BVSO Premiere Market. She is a former president of the Friends Association of the Symphony Orchestra and served two terms on the Brazos Valley Symphony Society Board. In 2015, The Prenatal Clinic named Lou Ellen as a You’re the Tops Honoree.

For decades, the Ruesinks have held season tickets for OPAS, BVSO, and The Theatre Company. They also enjoy StageCenter and the Navasota Theater as well as performances by the Brazos Valley Chorale. They have traveled with the Brazos Valley Troupe on three Broadway trips in the past ten years. Both Dave and Lou Ellen are ordained elders and members of the Covenant Presbyterian Church. They are proud to be parents of three A&M Consolidated graduates; grandparents of six, and great grandparents of one: Hayes David Ruesink.

As Arts Council STARs, the Ruesinks continue to help serve food, pour wine, address envelopes, or help with other behind the scenes jobs needed to assure the success of Arts Council programs. Both believe the Arts Council and its affiliates make College Station a wonderful place to live and raise a family and the best place in the world to retire!