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Megan (35), Lindsay (33), Kasey (32)

Biography: Yes, I still live in Petoskey! I am one of the few "natives" still living in town. After graduating from high school, I spent a year at NCMC then transferred to CMU. I received my Bachelor's Degree in 1970 and accepted a teaching job in East Jordan.

After college graduation, I married Chad McDonald, whom I had dated since our senior year in high school. During the summers, Chad and I ran Ye Nyne Olde Holles Golf Course, which we owned with Chad's parents. We had two daughters, Megan and Kasey in '76 and '79. After eleven years of working two jobs and raising my daughters, we sold the golf course and moved to Petoskey. I continued to teach in East Jordan and carpooled the 30 miles daily. (The funny thing is I was offered a teaching job in Petoskey after graduation, but turned it down because I didn't want to drive!)

The teaching career lasted, the marriage did not. After 16 years of marriage and 20 years together, Chad and I were divorced in 1986. I sold the home we had lived in and built my own house. I really enjoyed building a home (actually I have built more than one but that comes later in the story) and hope to build another retirement home somewhere in the next few years!

In Petoskey, I met my current husband, Phil.  Phil, who had grown up in Harrison, MI, was an attorney in Petoskey and later accepted a job running the trust department of Old Kent (now Fifth Third) Bank, which in our high school days was First State Bank and Trust!

Phil and I were married in 1989 and combined our families, my daughters, Megan and Kasey and Phil's daughter, Lindsay. The girls have grown up together and are all good friends. Phil and I built a home on Round Lake just outside of Petoskey. With the help of the girls (actually they did more playing than helping) Phil and I built our house doing everything starting with tearing down a cottage that was on the property through all of the construction taking two years working evenings and weekends while we continued with our careers.

As the girls grew, we spent a lot of time at Petoskey High School events. Megan was a cheerleader in middle and high school, plus played softball, so we had to attend the "boys" sporting events to watch Meg cheer and we spent a lot of time at the waterfront watching girls' softball.   Megan went on to Western Michigan University and received a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice.  She is a stay at home mom to our 3 grandchildren.

Kasey was our athlete playing basketball, volleyball and softball. (She broke a PHS record in volleyball for solo blocks and kills, but being 6'2" gives her a definite height advantage.) You'll notice girls can now actually participate in something athletic besides GAA!!!!  Kasey went on to MSU and received a degree in film.  She lives in CA working in the film industry and her goal is to write movies.

Lindsay is our academic. She participated in Olympics of the Mind, debate and theater, so as you can see, our evenings and weekends were taken up for the 7 years that our girls were at PHS.  Lindsay went on to U of M receiving a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering and then a PhD in Aeronautical Engineering at Purdue.  She now works for a think tank in CA.

With my 30 and out, I retired from teaching in 1999. (I really loved teaching, but wanted to retire while I still enjoyed what I did.) I do LOVE being retired! It is really true that the days fly by and you don't know where they have gone! The first year of retirement, I did all of those things I had always wanted to do while I was working but didn't have the time to do. I took piano lessons, tried to learn French (notice TRIED), redecorated my house, skied in a racing league at Nub's Nob, sailed, kayaked, golfed, traveled, read and planned a wedding for Megan, the oldest. (I figure after all three girls are married, I'll be a real pro at wedding planning!) We are now preparing for our second wedding as Lindsay will be married in November 2011 in CA.

Retirement has been a busy time for me.  We spend a lot of time traveling to Florida to see our daughter and grandchildren (often going to babysit for a week at a time so the adult kids can get away) and also traveling to California to see our other two daughters who live in the LA area.  We are also doing a lot of travel abroad while our minds are still sound enough to function in a foreign country.  We have traveled to Hydrabad, Agra, and New Delhi in India (quite an experience), London (twice), Paris, Berlin, Munich (for Oktoberfest), Prague, Budapest, Vienna.  Our fall plans this year include a trip to Switzerland, then driving through eastern France, Luxemburg, Belgium, and Netherlands.  We also tentatively have a trip planned to South Africa shortly after we return from Europe.