Our Story
The Reid Family
How Broken Halos Haven Started
On August 14, 2018, my seemingly healthy, 47-year-old husband died suddenly of a massive heart attack, leaving me to raise our three boys as an “only parent.”
Wayne Reid had a strong faith and loved everyone around him. He was passionate in his pursuit of deep friendships and tried to embrace and appreciate every moment of life…even the tough, hard moments. Because of that he was well-respected and loved by many. There was a huge outpouring of support for the boys and me from our friends, our church, and our community.
In the days, weeks, and months following his death, we muscled through our grief and figured out the new norm of living life without Wayne. (You can read about it HERE.)
This picture was taken while on a family vacation to Colorado just six days before Wayne died.
But as our first Christmas quickly approached, I knew it would be too difficult to be home. Waking up Christmas morning without him would be an in-your-face reminder to the boys that their dad was gone forever, and nothing—not the holidays, not birthdays, not even lazy, Saturday mornings—would ever be the same.
So, what do you do when you don’t want to be home on Christmas and need a major distraction??? You take a trip to one of the busiest places on earth: NEW YORK CITY!
The boys and me in Rockefeller Plaza on Christmas Day now as a family of four.
But the thought of planning a trip and navigating a busy metropolitan city all alone with three kids was daunting for this already worn out, grief-stricken widow. Because of that, I reached out to a dear friend who had a 3-bedroom apartment in Harlem and asked, “Remember when you said we could come stay with you anytime? Well, what are you doing on Christmas Eve??” And do you want to be our official NYC tour guide???” That led to an amazing week of distraction from our grief and the making of new memories. They were able to drop the label of “the boys who lost their dad the day before school started” and just enjoy being kids who got to see new sights and experience cool, new things.
The idea for Broken Halos Haven was birthed out of that trip to New York. We wanted a place where young widows/widowers and their school-aged children could stay at NO CHARGE to get away from their new norm and be distracted by all there is to do in Dallas/Ft. Worth.
On June 30, 2020, my new husband, Kjell (pronounced “Chell”), and I purchased a 100-year-old house in Old Town Lewisville. It’s located near tons of family-friendly entertainment and activities and just a short 15-minute drive from DFW airport; making it easily accessible to anyone in the country.
But it needed a TON of work! There’s not an accurate record of the home’s age, but we’re guessing it was built sometime in the mid 1920s. When we began the demolition process, we discovered a gold mine of shiplap and beadboard (Chip and Joanna would’ve lost their minds!). We salvaged and repurposed as much as we could, along with the original hardwood floors and exterior siding, as we brought the house back to life. The renovation took us an entire year to complete and was well-documented on our social media channels. You can scroll back through the photos and videos of the journey and see how we turned this place into something very special.
Instead of receiving keys at closing, we were handed a hammer and crowbar!
But why the name Broken Halos Haven? Well, you can read the backstory and watch the video over on my personal Facebook page and you’ll know why.
As the song says,
“Don’t go looking for the reasons,
Don’t go asking Jesus why,
We’re not meant to know the answers
They belong to the by and by.”
My boys and I will never know why Wayne was taken from us so early. But there’s one thing we do know—his passion for life and appreciation for everything in it will live on through Broken Halos Haven.
About the House
Our 1920s, newly renovated 3-bedroom, 2-bath house is the perfect homebase for your visit to Dallas/Ft. Worth. Click below to learn more about the house and its location in revitalized Old Town Lewisville.