Cindy as Wife and Mother
Cindy Ubben Mitchell married Scott Causey in 1992 and blended their four children. Cindy also had an older stepdaughter from her previous marriage and she remained an important part of the family, too.
Juggling school, work and church didn’t leave a lot of time for other things but the family was close.
Shared values, cooperation and a lot of coordination made it work. Everyone grew up to be contributing members of society, smart, hard-working, responsible adults. Mission accomplished!
Grandchildren came along and were a special blessing for Cindy and Scott.
When Scott died suddenly in early 2019, the family rallied, and although that might signal the breakup of other clans, it just made the Causey-Mitchells that much stronger.
They find time to gather several times a year, especially for the Family-Versary in August. Plus, they maintain a lively text thread, sharing bits and pieces of life with each other.
Cindy as Published Author
Cindy Causey taught herself to type in the 8th grade because she couldn’t write in her diary fast enough in longhand. A degree in advertising and a career as an advertising copywriter were the result. A fifteen year stint as a copy chief at JCPenney Catalog qualified her to become Content Development Manager for JCPenney.com and then Internet Marketing Manager.
After 20 years at JCPenney, Cindy retired in December, 2007, and worked full time with her husband Scott in their multi-media production company, Dallas Media Center.
After her first book, a non-fiction work called Cherish the Gift: a Congregational Guide to Earth Stewardship, was published, Cindy began writing fiction. She found her voice in romance, stories of the struggles two people endure on the road to happily every-after.
Her first published romance, A Different Drum, is a story she hopes readers will fall in love with, too. It was published in May 2009 by The Wild Rose Press.
Cindy’s second romance A Hot Time in Texas, also with The Wild Rose Press, came out in August of 2009 and is a steamy romp through a crazy summer in a small town.
You can check out Cindy’s books here.
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Cindy’s Next Chapter
The start of this blog is the beginning of Cindy’s next chapter. She is returning to writing, planning to finish and submit her current manuscript Sensible Shoes. She also has several other fiction ideas in the beginning stages.
“It’s exciting to think what this next phase of my life will look like,” she said. “I’d love to travel, cruising in particular, visit my family in Oregon, spend more time with my grands in Dallas, and work on perfecting my forever home.”
“I love photography, and might try my hand at gardening or other crafts. Who knows?”
Cindy as Business Owner
In the spring of 1999, Scott Causey was asked to help the dads of some Lake Highlands High School band members create the end-of-the-year slide show. For the first time, they were going to use a computerized non-linear editing system and as a band dad to daughter Erin, a computer instructor, and videographer, he jumped at the chance. By the time it was over, he was hooked.
For the next ten years, he and wife, Cindy Ubben Causey, an LH grad (class of ’70), JCPenney copy chief, photographer and graphic designer, crafted a local business that involved videotaping everything from school shows to weddings. They dubbed it Dallas Digital Studios.
Cindy retired in 2007 to work with Scott full time. Their home-based business was bursting at the seams with neighbors editing day and night in their garage office.
“Strangers began showing up at the front door to drop work off for us,” Cindy says. “That was a little unsettling.”
In response they launched a storefront operation in September of 2010 in the shopping center where Audelia and Skillman meet LBJ. It started as LH Media Centers, then was renamed Dallas Media center two years later to reflect a broader clientele. “But the location was terrible,” Cindy says. “The minute we moved in, everyone began moving out. And we felt like we had our back to the neighborhood.”
When that lease ended, they moved to the tiny space between what was then an empty retail space and LH Donuts on the southwest corner of Audelia and Walnut Hill Lane. The commerce wasn’t much better there, but they knew the area had potential. “Plus, I felt like we were in the heart of the neighborhood,” Cindy says.
Over time, their patience paid off. Shady’s moved in, along with Resident Taqueria, Dominos, Andy’s and Cedar and Vine. The Town Center finally reached fruition. And the newly renovated center across the street got up and running. Dallas Media Center flourished in the new space.
When Cindy’s partner and husband, Scott, died suddenly in February of 2019, a void was left for her personally and professionally. Steve White, a friend and classmate of Cindy’s at LHHS who had Scott’s special skill set, having run his own production company for years, stepped in to handle audio and video production.
Tamala Terry was with DMC for five years. She and Cindy have an unusual bond. Tamala’s son Beau and Cindy’s daughter Molly are married and live in Lake Highlands. Tamala and Cindy share grandmothering duties for Lyla and Wren.
In the fall of 2021 Cindy sold Dallas Media Center and now handles websites and graphics work from her home.