Spouse:  M'Barek Touil

Children:  Amine Touil...Married to Stephanie is 1999

Grandchildren:  Jalen, 10; Derek,7; and Zachary, 5

Interests and Hobbies/ What you've been doing for the last 50 years:

I graduated from Wayne State College in 1964 and taught in Meadow Grove, NE for three y ears.  At that time I was  hired to teach in Morocco (North Africa) on the American Navy Base.  The base was shared by the Americans and the Moroccans.  I met my husband, M'Barek, who was a Moroccan Air force officer, shortly after arriving in Morocco.  We were married in 1970 and our son, Amine, was born in 1972.

Unfortunately, a couple of months later, there was an attempt to overthrow the government in Morocco.  My husband was in the wrong place at the right time and even though he knew nothing about the attempt and did nothing to encourage it, he was given a 20 year prison sentence.  Amine and I stayed in Morocco for eight years, but then I decided that I should come back to the States so that I could do something to help my husband and the other men who were wrongfully imprisoned.  However, I wasn't allowed to leave the country, so we had to leave illegally.

When we arrived back in Iowa, where my folks were living, we had to start all over and I spent years trying to find a way to help my husband and the other men.  I got a job teaching in Howells, NE. Nineteen years after M'Barek was arrested, I heard his voice for the first time when he called to tell me that he had been released.  After four months, he was finally able to come to Nebraska and we had a chance to start all over.  After several months M'Barek started working and went to school to be a nurse.  During the time he was in school, we moved to Dakota City and I became the librarian at East Middle School in Sioux City where I am still teaching.

M'Barek retired about four years ago, but I am still teaching.  We have done some traveling and enjoy the house and garden.  I enjoy reading, but don't find enough time to do much.  I'll save that for retirement I guess.  We both enjoy working with computers and learning new things.