Cactus Jack is pretty much a household name, derived from the popular store bearing his nickname.
So, it was a secret he probably wasn't going to keep upon relocating to Elk Creek, a new senior living community in Burleson.
Jack Morton was attending dialysis appointments when he ran across Jennifer Sain.
"We began to talk about different things. Then I realized he was Cactus Jack," she said. "He grinned when I said that."
Morton was selected as this month's Elk Creek Resident of the Month and last week was honored by staff, his family and new friends he has made.
"He told me how he missed being at home," Sain said. "I thought about what we could do to bring home here for him. Then we learned he used to train and own bird dogs."
That led to a call to Peter Crouch, who owns highly-skilled bird dogs. Last week, when Morton was honored, those dogs greeted the longtime outdoorsman.
"The quail have just about left this country," Morton said. "When that happened is about when I stopped hunting. The most exciting thing I believe I have ever done is watch bird dogs work."
He owned English pointers and recalls the day he got his nickname. He was unloading his gun right over a cactus, "so they started calling me Cactus Jack."
His son, Joel Morton, received a call that Elk Creek wanted to honor his father, who in addition to owning a western store in Alvarado had also served for 24 years for the U.S. Post Office.
"They [Jack and his wife, Joy] were among the first residents here, and they seem to know everyone," Joel said. "It was so nice for them to honor both of them."
Jack and Joy have been married for 68 years. The western store was opened in 1973 and moved to Interstate 35W in 1997 under the operation of Joel.
"I think the more we've gotten to know Jack the more we like him," Andrea Owen said. "When one of our residents has something they think they will never do again, we want them to see they can."
So, Jack got the chance to see working bird dogs do what they do best, and other residents may have had their first opportunity to gain an understanding of the time and training that goes into a bird dog.
"I came through here and there were a bunch of people," Jack said. "I didn't know what they were up to. No one told me anything about this."
Known as Miracle Moments, the event will feature a different resident each month.