Afternoon at the Hotel Del Coronado circa 1920

I've been going through old family photos while working on my website and, as always, I keep coming back to one of my all-time favorites, the photo above.

So, what do you think about this moody, turn-of-the-century photo taken at the Hotel del Coronado in San Diego, California? It's the work of photographer Harold Taylor and quietly captures the pace and mood of the idyllic life at a popular resort in those days.

On the left is my "aunt" Lottie Hatch Neufeld and on the right is her cousin, Anna Hatch, standing over their aunt, Grace Bierce Hatch.

Lansing and East Lansing Icon, Betty Price

I've been working with Lansing/East Lansing icon, Betty Price, capturing an oral (and video) history of her. What a treasure this woman is! Topics we're covering include her life growing up in Saginaw, Michigan, her family's move to East Lansing when her father started the family business, Liebermann's, in Lansing in the depths of the Depression in 1931, the history of that treasured local business, and Betty's involvement in the founding of the Wharton Center for the Performing Arts at MSU. An avid reader with the sharpest mind of any 96 year old I know, Betty keeps up with current events and wouldn't dream of starting her day without thoroughly perusing both local and national newspapers. Betty continues her fund-raising activities for Michigan State University's Wharton Center and College of Arts and Letters, and just recently returned from Utica, New York, where she held a jewelry show in support of the local public library. Stay tuned for more updates on my talks with this fascinating woman. Above is a picture of Betty and me taken on Friday, May 21, 2010. Doesn't she look great?

Welcome

Welcome to Your Life and Times, a blog dedicated to the capture, preservation, and sharing of personal history and family memories.

My interest in personal and family history dates back to my early childhood and the little girl in the picture is largely responsible for it. That's my grandmother, Bernice Scott Christle, and the picture was taken in 1899 when she was 5 years old.

She had an ordinary childhood in an ordinary small town in the midwest and I couldn't be more fascinated. Join me as I share some of what I know about her, her life, and other of my ancestors and family members. Our families are more alike than not so my story, and her story, are much the same as the story of your life and times.