Meet Janie Tucker

Janie has lived in Prosper since 1991 — more than 26 years.

If that name sounds familiar it’s because she is married to the ever-popular Prosper Fire Chief Ronnie Tucker. Janie said they lived in Allen when they married and Ronnie was a volunteer fire fighter there. “We wanted to move out of the city,” Janie said. Ronnie cleaned pools as a side job and met Randy White by cleaning his pool. Randy talked Ronnie into looking at Prosper after Randy moved to Prosper. So, the Tucker’s gave it a look and liked what they saw. They found a really cute house they liked and moved to Prosper.

Janie is an artist who likes to work in acrylics. She took up the paint brush before marrying and continued off and on throughout her adult life. She has been more serious about it at different periods. At one time, Ronnie would say Janie would paint anything that moved and he would hide his tools to keep them from getting painted.

But Janie says she also loves painting her house and decorating her home. In fact, she said she helped with the interior design when Prosper’s Central Fire Station was new. “I did the leather looking walls,” she said. “I plan on picking up my crafts again.”

Janie says the Tucker family has one cat named JC and that is the extent of their current pet population. “We used to have a black poodle and a Dalmatian but they both passed away. It got to us so much we just haven’t got another dog yet.” But plans are to move to Sadler to live out of town and on property they have owned there for a while and Janie thinks they might get another dog then.

They hope to build a “barndominium” (yes, that’s a real thing) on their property and live there while building their dream home. Janie says the barndominium is a combination of a condo with a barn in one building and will allow them to have a place to live while building their home and also, she said, they will have a chance to experience life on their property to make sure they really like living there.

Janie graduated from Princeton High School in 1978, although she was born and raised in McKinney until her parents moved their family to Princeton when she was in middle school. After graduation, she wanted to be with children so she went to work at Allen Meadows Day Care Center.

She tells the story of meeting Ronnie but she warned it starts out with a tragedy. She said her cousin was killed in an accident on U.S. Highway 75 in 1979. Ronnie worked as a paramedic in Allen and he went on the run for her cousin. “I went with my aunt to the fire station to get the accident report and met Ronnie,” she said. “He asked me out and we have been together ever since.”

The announcement has been made that Prosper’s longest employee and longest fire chief is retiring at the end of August. Janie says she’s excited to start the next chapter in their lives beginning September 1. She says she’s a little nervous “because I’ve never seen anyone love a job the way he does. It’s going to be nice to be able to get out and travel. He’s such a different person when he can let loose.” But she admits to being a little worried Ronnie will miss the job.

Janie says their only child and daughter, Brandy, has move back home with them for a short time and both the women of the house are looking forward to spending more time with Ronnie.

She is also looking forward to building their dream home.

Janie’s favorite quote comes from Roy T. Bennett in “The Light in the Heart” — “Do what is right, not what is easy nor what is popular.”

Joyce Godwin | joyce@cedarbrookmedia.com