Square dancing and round dancing are a lot of fun, good exercise, and a great way to meet people and make friends. Square dancing is done in groups of four couples called a square.

Round dancing is ballroom-style dancing done to cues in choreographed dances so each couple in the room is doing the same steps at the same time, dancing in a large circle and often in a second circle inside the larger one. Round dances are done in waltz, foxtrot, two step, jive, cha cha, rhumba, tango, etc. timing. Dances are rated in levels of difficulty, with Phase I being the easiest, Phase II - Phase V, the increasingly more difficult dances, and Phase VI more difficult than anything I've learned so far.

I have been a member of the First Presbyterian Church, Wheaton, Illinois, since 1974.  I have been a member of the church's Communication Committee since 2000.  I previously was also a member of the church's Web Team and Audio/Video Ministry Committee and did a substantial portion of the pages on the church's website, generally completing about 75-190 new pages and updates to pages each month, from June 2000 until March 2014, when our volunteer group was replaced by paid professionals and a redesigned website.  I took the photo on the left on Sunday, October 1, 2000, the first day that people could exit from the new wing of the church.

It is hard for me to believe that it was over 50 years ago that I graduated from high school!  Where has all the time gone?  A few of my thoughts and memories are online.

Regarding my genealogy hobby, there is a great deal of additional information on the pages with links on the left for Thurtell and related families; and I am hoping to update my online information soon.  I had genealogy web pages hosted by Geocities from 1998 through October 26, 2009, when Geocities stopped website hosting.  The two Geocities genealogy sites have been moved to thurtellfamily.net, the domain I purchased in December 2003.  My earliest site, which had a genealogy index page at http://www.geocities.com/foxvalleymixer/genhome.html, was begun in 1998; and its index page has been moved to http://www.thurtellfamily.net/geofvm/index.html. My later Geocities site, begun in 2000, had an index page at http://www.geocities.com/thurtellfamily.   Its index page can now be found at http://www.thurtellfamily.net/geotf/index.html.

I am researching the following families and enjoy exchanging information with other researchers:

THURTELL - in U.S. mid 1800's to present; in Canada primarily Wellington County, Ontario, 1834 to present; in England, primarily Suffolk and Norfolk Counties, 1700 or earlier to present; in Australia, mid 1800's to present; and in South Africa, mid 1800's to present. I have a lot of information going back to James Thurtell (born about 1738 in England and died January 19, 1801, in Suffolk County, England), his wife Winifred Nunn Thurtell (born about 1740 in England and died November 28, 1795, in Suffolk County, England), both of whom are buried at Blundeston, Suffolk, England. This name is sometimes also shown as Thurtle.

SNOW - Especially Charles Blanchard Snow, born March 29, 1833, in Pennsylvania or Palmyra, New York, who died March 8, 1890, in Keeler, Inyo County, California. His parents were Samuel Snow and Hannah Blanchard. His wife was Maria Paul Morrison, who was born April 24, 1842, in Groton, Vermont, and died January 5, 1934, in Washington, DC. Her parents were Timothy Morrison and Olive Paul. Their children were Charles W. Snow (born October 31, 1864, in Dallas County, Iowa, and died October 14, 1890, in Reno, Washoe County, Nevada), George F. Snow (born December 6, 1867, in Dallas County, Iowa, and died July 29, 1887, in Esmeralda County, Nevada), and Julia Mary (Mate) Snow, who was born January 16, 1871, in Dallas County, Iowa, married Henry Thurtell on August 5, 1896, in Pacific Grove, Monterey County, California, and died in 1956 in or near Washington, DC.

MORRISON - Timothy Morrison's grandparents included Charles Emery, who was born August 16, 1745, in Kittery, York County, Maine, and his wife, Ann Hodgdon, who was born in Berwick, York County, Maine, on March 9, 1740/41. Both of them died in Groton, Caledonia County, Vermont. Timothy Morrison's parents were Bradbury Morrison and Betsey Emery, who were both born in York County, Maine, and died in Groton, Caledonia County, Vermont. 

HANNIGAN - Especially Thomas F. Hannigan, born about June 22, 1870, in New York, who died in February 1934 in New York. His wife was Emma L. Nealon, who was born May 18, 1874, in Dublin, Ireland, and died in 1952 in New York. Their children were all born in New York City - Emma, Mae, Lilly, Grace, Florence, James, Irene, and Madelyn Hannigan.

HERZOG/BREITENBACH - Gotfried Herzog, who also used the name George G. Herzog, who was born in Germany or Switzerland probably in August 1863, his wife Rose Breitenbach (or Breidenbach), who was born in New York in April 1863 and died about 1906 in New York City, and their children who were probably all born in New York City or Hoboken, New Jersey - John Herzog, Anna Herzog (August 13, 1890 - April 9, 1977), Rose Veronica Herzog (June 20, 1893 - March 15, 1978), Joseph Herzog, Emma Anna Herzog (August 13, 1899 - September 18, 1982), and Henry Herzog.

KASNER - Anthony Kasner, born June 14, 1887, in Kielce, Poland, who died March 10, 1934, in Detroit, Michigan; his parents, John Kasner and Maria Grzybowska; his wife, Helena Serafinski, born November 23, 1882, in Tarnow, Poland, who died October 19, 1969, in Washington, DC; and her parents Stanley Serafinski and Teresa Nosek.