Legacy members, Norm and Pat Gillespie, are a delightful and engaging couple in every way. Their days are full enjoying volunteering, reading, walking, swimming, physical fitness, travel, theatre, tennis and people. They appreciate Casa for its supportive environment, its friendly residents, and of course the fabulous food! Both were born in the midwest during the depression, Norm in Flint, Michigan, and Pat in Chicago. They appreciated their families and embraced the values of hard work and honesty. In 1945, Norm joined the Navy where he took the rear seat in dive bombers and torpedo bombers as an aviation electronics technician. Norm and Pat met at Purdue University and married after graduation on February 25, 1956, Norm with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and Pat with a B.S. in Home Economics & Textile Merchandising. Norm enjoyed work as a systems engineer for Honeywell in Minneapolis and later worked on aircraft and space programs after they moved to the West Coast. He retired from Ryan Aeronautical in 1993. Pat was employed in the fashion industry in Chicago before marriage and then enjoyed time as a homemaker, Cub Scout den mother, adult ed teacher and school librarian.
Norm and Pat are very proud of their family, which includes their son, Scott, his wife Vicki and grandson Daniel, and their son, Peter, his wife Cheryl and grandson Cole. Daniel is in the Coast Guard Academy and Cole will be attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo to study aerospace engineering. Norm and Pat became Legacy members with a pledge, which is a great way to make outright contributions over time to one or more areas of interest. Call Jim Eckel in the Foundation at 858-592-1898 for details on how a pledge might satisfy your charitable giving goals.
Ellen and Ken came to Casa from Palm Desert in February of 2012. They became involved in many activities and served on several Casa communities: Ellen - the Health and Knitting Group; Ken - Hobby Shop, Scholarship Committee and the Resident Council.
When Ken sadly passed away, the family created the Waters Scholarship Endowment on behalf of the Casa Foundation in Ken's honor as he and Ellen were huge believers in education. Ken had been the head of the College of the Desert Agricultural Department. Ellen, a nurse, was head of the Health Committee here at Casa and was very instrumental in the development of the Knitting Club which knits items for donation to organizations in need. The Waters have always supported the Foundation - a double plus, as the donations are also tax deductible.
There were obvious needs in a couple of our resident organizations/clubs which weren't going to get solved in a timely way, if ever, so I ponied up with donations which would at least get them started on the way to solutions. Otherwise, my investments with the Foundation were to benefit me tax wise - if I live long enough.
