TEMPLE, Texas — After traveling coast-to-coast for eight years, David and Diane Henderson were looking to settle down. What better way to decide where to live than by throwing a dart on a map? Literally.
David Henderson explained to 6 News, "We took a dart and threw it at a map, and it hit Temple! We have kids in McKinney and Fort Worth, Huntsville and League City, so we are three hours away from the kids."
The couple's story begins 15 years ago when their children became adults and they sold their house in Conroe, Texas.
The couple bought a truck and a five-wheel camper and hit the road for what ended up being an eight-year adventure of traveling and volunteering
"We started traveling and I’d call places, national parks, church camps and they'd say 'yeah stay and help us out,'" David Henderson said. "We volunteered lots of places, four years out west and four years back east. Methodist church camps, Baptist church camps, the Blue Ridge Parkway right out of Ashville, we stayed there one summer. We spent two months in the fall at Cumberland National Park where Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia all touch in the Tri State Peak area."
David Henderson, who received two degrees from West Texas A&M and a doctorate from Texas Tech, taught for 40 years at Sam Houston State University.
He even made time to teach one course a semester the entire eight years of traveling and continues to this day.
But, it was something about the freedom of traveling, they told 6 News, "To just be able to go where you want to go and to be where you want for eight years, we were very blessed to be able to do that."
Eventually, after eight years on the road, and two years back in a Conroe apartment, the Henderson’s felt they were done.
They have been enjoying the last five years in their new hometown of Temple.
"We'd never been in Temple before and then we saw this house, and it was a new house, and then we said, 'fine. We'll take it," he said. "And it's been great, the people are friendly and we're really enjoying Temple and Belton both."
Does the couple have any more travel plans? David Henderson told us jokingly, "At 78 years old, you don't plan a lot I guess."
The Hendersons have now been married 24 years and their family of five sons and 17 grandkids keep them very busy on Texas road trips to visit the four living nearby.
One of their other children is in Florida and they recently got back from visiting the Sunshine State this summer.