How We Met. We were raised in the same area, but didn’t
meet until we were adults. We were set
up on a dinner date by Lisa’s cousin (who was also Mike’s friend). Mike was interested in finding someone to settle
down with. Lisa went just to appease her
cousin! It turns out that we liked each
other and started dating. We became
engaged on Lisa’s birthday four months after meeting and married another four
months after that. We frequently comment on how fortunate we are to have found each other.
We are a lot alike and get along well.
We were raised in small towns and have the same values and
attitudes. We enjoy going to dinner and movies and especially like to go for drives
to out-of-the-way places and shop at boutiques.
We also love to travel.
Education and Work. Mike has a degree in
business. He worked for many years for
Thai Airways, but was forced to change careers after September 11th. He then obtained a degree in Radiation
Therapy. While working in this field, he
attended night school and received his B.S. in Radiation and Imaging Sciences,
graduating magna cum laude.
Lisa received a degree in office education. She has worked as an administrative assistant
to a CFO and VP of a university, as a legal secretary and as an office manager
for a mortgage company.
Background and Upbringing. Mike is the youngest of four children.
He grew up working on a farm and had the privilege of working beside his
father and brother while he was young. Mike is athletic and works out
frequently. He enjoys water and snow
skiing, hiking, biking, and windsurfing.
He enjoys going to college football games with his buddies.
Lisa lived near both
sets of grandparents and one set of great grandparents while growing up. Her family spent summers vacationing in
Yellowstone Park. Her extended family
gets together for birthdays and holidays and keeps in close touch. She has many nieces and nephews. She is very close to them and they are
anxious to have another cousin! She grew up in a small town
and attended part of her early school years at a small school across from her grandparents’
home (the same school her father attended).
She had a happy and stable childhood where she played with friends in
the neighborhood, took music and dance lessons and went to church and civic
functions with her parents. She grew up
with lots of aunts, uncles and cousins. Many
of the people she grew up with are still her closest friends. She have many fond memories of her childhood
and feels it provided her with a strong and secure foundation for the rest of
her life.
Beliefs. We are both members of The Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints. Mike has been
a bishop and had numerous assignments working with youth groups. It is touching to see many of the youth grow
and return to thank him for his work. Mike
spent two years in Thailand serving a mission for our church and speaks Thai
fluently. Lisa has also been involved
with young people in our church. She has
spent many years working with teenagers and currently teaches singing to the
children each Sunday. She is also
involved with the women’s organization and has held several leadership
positions with this group.
Lisa’s Thoughts
about Mike.
I married later in life and always said that if I settled down, the guy
would have to be really great! Mike was
worth the wait. In many ways, Mike
reminds me of my father. He is what I
call a “kind soul” who is compassionate and patient yet has enough backbone
to do what needs to be done. He is
down-to-earth, level-headed, a hard worker, and well grounded. His work has taken him to many countries
where he realized there are many children in the world who need
assistance. He has financially sponsored
two children from India and two from Thailand through a children’s
organization. He has gone the extra mile
by visiting the children, and his financial assistance has built them new homes
and provided supplies for school. I was
impressed that a single man would do this, and we continue to sponsor children
as a married couple. When Mike first met
my family they immediately liked him (even my nieces who didn’t want to share
Aunt Lisa with anyone)! He is an
all-around good man, well loved by everyone.
He calls from work to talk with our daughter, Danielle, every day and is always interested in spending time with his family. He is patient and loving toward Danielle and truly enjoys her. When we married, he made a commitment to work at being the best husband he could, and he has never let me down. He has made this same commitment to being a father.
Mike’s Thoughts
about Lisa.
Lisa is the best thing that has happened to me. One of my biggest
regrets is that I didn’t meet her earlier. She is kind and caring and is a joy
to be around. She is extremely close to her family and friends and is always
keeping in touch. She is a great mother
to our daughter. If she could adopt her
nieces and nephews, her brother and sister would be missing all of their kids
as they would all be at our house! I know
that if the Lord blesses us with another child, Lisa will be the best mom on
earth to that child. I love her and I
know your child will, too.
Our Thoughts on Family. We have made a family decision to live within our means and saved
aggressively for a rainy day. Because of
these decisions, we are out of debt and Lisa has been able to stay at home to
raise our daughter.
Parenting Philosophy. We believe the best way to
raise a child is to be involved and teach by example. We are united in our methods of teaching and
instilling values. We are affectionate
and involved in our daughter’s life and believe that common sense and logic go
a long way in raising a child. We strive to have just
the right balance of structure and responsibility coupled with enough freedom
to learn and grow.
Travel. We love to travel and recently went to the New England states during Autumn to see the colors. We've also visited Washington, DC and Vancouver, BC. We frequently go to Oregon where Mike windsurfs and where we had, until recently, a second home to spend weekends. We enjoyed the wildlife, water and mountains. We plan to go to the Niagara Falls and Toronto, Canada areas in the next year or so to visit family and friends. We would also like to visit Thailand when Danielle is a little older as Mike has ties there with work and our church.
