In 1957, I married a med. student named George. So guess what? I taught kindergarten for 12 years, putting my hubby through med. school, internship and residency. After he started an OB-GYN practice, I changed careers, spending 30 years in real estate. This included sales, management of Burnet and Edina realty offices, and starting my own company. In 1991, I formed my fourth company, now called the House of Dreams.

House of Dreams is a “design, remodel and build” construction company (visit website). We just won a prestigious award for incorporating "green" building methods, along with a national award called the BIG 50. My husband George retired from OB-GYN and joined me as a partner. Now, work, kids, grandkids and travel keep me very busy.

At Macalester, I learned a great principle that I've never forgotten: "Accept each child as they are, and help them realize their full potential.” When I moved from teaching to the business world, I continued to apply this concept, only substituting "adults" for children. It really works!

I worked at several jobs for a year between high school and starting at Mac in 1953. I attended Mac for two years, LaCrosse Teacher’s College for one year and the U. of Kentucky for a half-year. Since I was in different majors at each school, I never did graduate and have no interest in doing so now.

While working in Yellowstone Park for three summers, I met my first husband, who was from Kentucky. Lived in Lexington, Ky., for three years before coming back to Minnesota in 1959, at which time I took a class at Mac.

My second marriage produced a daughter and a son and six stepchildren. My daughter has a son in the Marines about to go to Iraq and two stepsons, one of which just returned from Iraq where he was serving through the Air Force. My stepchildren have given me six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

I worked at various jobs while in and out of college. I have been a waitress; cook; gift-wrapper; insurance salesperson; sales and sales manager and service advisor for a car dealer; a car and trailer mechanic; semi-truck driver; Avon Lady; Tupperware demonstrator and have worked some other jobs I’ve forgotten. The two most significant of them were running a service station and camper business for eight years with and without my second husband, and being a city bus driver for 20 years and seven months here in the Twin Cities. In the service station, I was mechanic, bookkeeper, rental agent, saleswoman, wrecker driver and car starter. My best career move was to finish up as a bus driver, from which I retired at 65 with a very comfortable retirement benefit and a good medical plan.

In my forties, I started skiing with my kids and am now an avid downhill skier, skiing about 25 to 40 days a winter. Along with the skiing, I have followed in my father’s footsteps and become a (ski) journalist. I have also been the editor and director of a newspaper, The Midwest Skier, published by the Midwest Sport/Ski Council for the last 25 years, along the way becoming very comfortable with computers. Oh, and I nanny my six-year-old granddaughter.