My Portfolio

  So many people are overwhelmed with an ever-increasing store of photos, slides and home movies that will likely never see the light of day. That’s where Appo can help. If you need help regaining control of your photos and memories, there is an Appo member in your area ready to...

    One of our local community agencies started a program for students called Los Sabios.  In English, that means the wise ones or the ones who know.  The objective of the program was to provide a "wise" mentor for a student.  Most of the students who were chosen for the program...

The volunteering story I'd like to talk about today includes many other people. When I say this, I mean sometimes it takes the help of many to reach your ultimate goal of helping others. In my case it involves gathering, making, dressing, decorating, teaching and loving the people and cause for...

  DEB AND I PLANNED TO MOVE FROM BOSTON TO UPSTATE NY IN SEPTEMBER OF 2007 TO LIVE ON HER PARENTS'  PROPERTY - TO BE CLOSE TO THEM AND PROVIDE SUPPORT AND ASSISTANCE  AS NEEDED AT THIS TIME IN THEIR LIVES. IT WAS A DECISION WE MADE TOGETHER.   MEANWHILE BACK IN...

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As I recall I have done a fair amount of volunteering such as circulationg petitions, collecting for various health aspects, and time donated to conventions.  However what I am doing now is giving me the most reward.  The Episcopal church I attended for over 20 years is now a mission with...

When I stop to think about it, I think I have always volunteered. I imagine it started out as some form of behavioural conditioning, nature vs nurture. I was raised by parents who walked the talk. Though they were extremely busy raising their large brood, they always found time and some way to help others. As my...

Girl Scouts and Volunteerism   The Girl Scouts of America turns 100 years old this year. In their history they have come to represent the fabric of our society. Juliette "Daisy" Gordon Low assembled 18 girls from Savannah, Georgia, on March 12, 1912, for a local Girl Scout meeting. She believed...

I am continually in awe of my four grandparents.  One, the daughter of an immigrant, fluent in two languages and baker of the world's best pies.  Another, a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army and veteran of World War II and Korea.  A flapper and feminist who could play a mean...

The one and only time I have intentionally killed anything more than a bug or mosquito...which they all need to perish if you ask me, was the time my best friend Donnie and I shot at a bird’s nest in the front yard of his house.  We were about 11 or...

Mine was "Forest..er" green! Ha   Here are a few of those lousy ramps!   Now, after you read a number of my stories you will begin to get the idea that I might be a complete idiot when it comes to automotive projects.  My Brother and Cousin Greg can almost...

An '88 Jetta.  Ours was dark navy blue!  Oh, and a cruched front grill, bumper and light   Back in ’88 My family lived in North Conway, N.H.  It was January or February on that Saturday.  My Dad had ordered a new car a few weeks before and today they called...

An example of an '88 VW Jetta.  Ours was dark navy blue.   Another close call... When I was 16 I got my driver’s license.  At sixteen and 2 two weeks I had my first ticket  for speeding!  I just couldn’t keep my foot out of the gas.  It was just...

  On the road…again! Afghanistan to Zambia Chronicles of a Footloose Forester By Dick Pellek   C is for Cambodia Cambodia was on the list of places to see before the Footloose Forester had to decide whether his sojourn out of Pakistan would turn south toward Australia, or continue east into...

This is an example of a jacknifed trailer. Yeah, well it seems like I have this...pun intended....fatal attraction with semi trucks.  See, back in 2004-5 my brother and I were on I-40 westbound headed toward Nashville, TN.  We were going to pick up some off-road tires for his Tacoma.  We were...

I have been having to travel a good bit lately for work and was in Atlanta the end of February.  As I was riding down the elevator with another woman she commented on my lipgloss and how pretty it was. :-) She asked me more about it and we chatted for...

He was a slight man, maybe 5'6", with a thin beard and short dyed hair. He took awkward steps when he walked, and his skin was tightly wrapped around his bones, as though only a step away from resembling a Holocaust victim. He was clearly in great physical pain. He strained...

  On the road…again! Afghanistan to Zambia Chronicles of a Footloose Forester By Dick Pellek   Ambush At An Khe Pass   Most of the sagas about the Viet Nam War are about military operations and men in uniform, but civilian contractors in Viet Nam were not always safe.  This short...

DRIVING ALONG INTERSTATE 495 IN THE BOSTON AREA IT WAS RAINING PRETTY HARD.  I WAS TRAVELLING IN THE HIGH SPEED LANE WHEN I NOTICED SOMEONE AHEAD OF ME COMPLETELY STOPPED IN THE SAME HIGH SPEED LANE. I WAS ABLE TO SEE THE CAR IN TIME TO QUICKLY PULL OVER INTO THE...

Hello everyone. My name is Mark Garay. I am new to this site.  I was a broadcast journalist for 20 years, before venturing out on my own to create a company dedicated to preserving family histories and memories. I create broadcast quality documentaries for my clients. I build video stories around...