My Portfolio

Our Family History Mission to New York City (Manhattan) in the New York, New York North Mission was a life-changing experience.  We met so many wonderful people and had the opportunity to serve in the New York, NY, Family History Center and the Manhattan Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ...

­­ Essays, Stories, Adventures, Dreams Chronicles of a Footloose Forester By Dick Pellek     Four Days to Uhuru Peak   In March of 1994, the Footloose Forester joined with nine other adventurers to climb Mount Kilimanjaro.  It was one of those bucket list adventures that got a high priority not...

Essays, Stories, Adventures, Dreams Chronicles of a Footloose Forester By Dick Pellek   Into The Volcano The seminal Chronicles of a Footloose Forester has always been an unscheduled mélange of essays, stories, adventures, or dreams.  If he had his way, the adventures would predominate and the stories would follow. The dreams...

  Essays, Stories, Adventures, Dreams Chronicles of a Footloose Forester By Dick Pellek     Let’s Go Bend The Fig Tree   The Bengal Tiger first coined the words to the love sonnet “let’s go shake the mango tree” when we lived in Hawaii in the 1970s.  She sang that sweet...

Essays, Stories, Adventures, Dreams Chronicles of a Footloose Forester By Dick Pellek Countdown to More Sweat Getting started on a job that will likely promote sweat involves a short span of personal contemplation.  The upcoming job may be one of short or long duration, but when real sweat is in the...

On the road…again! Chronicles of a Footloose Forester By Dick Pellek  A to Z Word Potpourri   The Chronicles of a Footloose Forester were compiled over a number of years, one story at a time. Events, observations, encounters, and episodes were the ingredients in the mix that got filed into his...

Ninety-six and loving life!!  Vanita Ward was born in Delta, Utah in her parents’ home on December 11, 1919.  Her parents were William Sanders Jenkins and Betsy Luceen Cook Jenkins.  There were 12 children in her family and she was number seven.  Her father owned a grocery business, and during the...

Aylene Christensen was born August 9, 1927 in the family home in Benjamin, Utah.  Her parents were Charles Arlynn Hickman and Delta Larsen Hickman.  She was the baby of the family with two older brothers and two older sisters.  Her mother passed away at age 39 when Aylene was a young...

We'd like to introduce you to Beverly Faretta.  She was born December 12, 1931.  She was born and raised in the family home at 555 East 200 South, Provo [Utah]. Her parents were Ervin and Minnie Bell Brailsford.  They lived in this this home until she was 12; then they moved...

Marion Robert Morrison aka John Wayne (1907-1979) John Wayne was a larger-than-life movie hero, but his ancestors were the same type and could have fit right into his film roles, according to a Utah genealogical research company. Research International was in the midst of work on a book about Wayne's ancestors...

NaDean Sheen 1 July 2015, Salem Utah NaDean Sheen is a spry 92-year old.  She was born June 16, 1923 in Springville at her grandmother's home. Her parents, Reed and Cathrine Hansen, lived in Palmyra.  She grew up there on the family farm.  She learned to work helping her dad on...

This remarkable story about a defining moment in my personal history was written by Christine Bonham. daughter of my very good friend and visionary, Dave Fankhauser.    Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.                ...

A very community-oriented couple is Neil and Vicki Peterson.  Neil was born in Salem, on the kitchen table.  He was delivered by Dr. Neil, so his mother named him Neil.  His parents were Elmer and Tena Peterson.  They now live two houses north of the home he grew up in.  He...

     Neldon and Diane Jensen were raised in Salem, moved away, and now they are back. Diane is the daughter of Howard and Lois Roper.  She was born in the same house she grew up in on 500 East. She had three brothers and two sisters, and she was second to...

On the road…again!Afghanistan to ZambiaChronicles of a Footloose ForesterBy Dick Pellek   Cap And Gown Are Not For Me   "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by the wind? [Luke: 7:24].  But what did you go to see?  A man dressed in fine clothing? ...

On the road…again! Afghanistan to Zambia Chronicles of a Footloose Forester By Dick Pellek   Who Are Graduates Of The School Of Hard Knocks?   All too often conversations about who had (has) it rough in life devolve into unstated debates wherein speakers subconsciously fish for words to express their plight. ...

If you haven't met Joan Hahn, you need to.  She is known nationally and internationally.  She was born on May 9, 1933 in Kemmerer, Wyoming to Bernice Pringle and Roy Wainwright.  She has a younger brother, Arlyn,  She graduated from Kemmerer High School in 1951 and attended [Brigham Young University] BYU...

Your turn to spin -- no, it's not "spin the bottle" but "spin the wool".  This is a talent of Lillie Francom.  Lillie was born in Payson on July 8, 1926; she is 88 years old.  She has lived in Salem for 43 years.  She met her husband, Arthur Francom, at...

Keith and Gwen Barney never moved very far from where they were born.  Keith was born in Lake Shore 81 years ago and Gwen was born in Spanish Fork 76 years ago.  They were both born at home.  When Keith was born in was 33 degress below zero and his dad...

Grant and Virginia Moore have been married for 28 years.  They were married April 4, 1986. Grant was born in Payson, Utah February 14, 1923.  He grew up on a farm in West Mountain.  He graduated from Payson High School in May, 1941.  Jobs were scarce so he and his friend,...