Margaret Ellison-Ruiz
Founder & Executive Director
A former hospice social worker who opened Cypress Hall in 2013 on land her grandparents ranched.
Our people
Meet our team
Nurses, caregivers and leaders who stay, and who know every resident by name.
Our team
The people who keep the year
Dana Whitfield, RN
Director of Nursing
Eighteen years in memory care nursing. Rounds every household before breakfast.
Dr. Alan Reyes
Medical Director
A Hays County geriatrician who makes monthly rounds and returns calls the same day.
Sophie Tran, APRN
Nurse Practitioner
Sees residents weekly and catches changes early.
Elena Brooks, LMSW
Social Worker
Guides families through move-in, Medicaid and VA paperwork, and the monthly support group.
Tom Albrecht
Life Enrichment Director
Plans the year: the garden, the peach social, pecan day and the December carolers.
Ruth Anne Pena
Dietary Manager
Writes a menu for every season and bakes the pecan pies herself.
Amina Yusuf, LPN
Night Nurse Supervisor
Keeps the households calm overnight and knows who likes the lamp left on.
Marcus Lee
Household Lead, Live Oak
Has led the Live Oak household for seven years. Residents call him 'the mayor'.
Jenna Kirk
Admissions Coordinator
Gives most of our tours and helps families with the first weeks.
Sample family reviews
Through the seasons with our families
Mom grew peaches in Stonewall for forty years. Peach day at Cypress Hall, she peeled faster than anyone half her age.
Dad doesn't know the date, but he knows it's fall. He came in with his pockets full of pecans and said, 'Harvest's early this year.'
The December open house was the first Christmas in three years that felt like Christmas.
Dana calls me every season to go over Mom's plan, and in between whenever anything changes.
The season table by the door is genius. Mom smells the cinnamon and starts telling stories about her own mother's kitchen.
They took my husband on the wildflower drive. He named every flower. Every single one.
Marcus has been with Dad's household for three years. When Dad has a bad day, Marcus is the one who can turn it around.
Elena walked us through the VA application and checked on me afterward. Nobody does that.
My grandmother's room has her quilt, her photos and her window on the oaks. She calls it her cabin.
I visit on summer evenings. The porch, the fiddle, the fireflies. It's peaceful for me too.
When Mom passed in the spring, the staff planted a bluebonnet bed for her by the gate.
Come see what season it is at Cypress Hall.
Call or text the front desk, or ask for Margaret. Tours end with whatever's on the season table: peach cobbler, pecan pie or hot cider.