Gary Engstrand
My parents’ albums…were falling apart…
My parents’ albums, dating from the early 1900s to the 1960s, were falling apart and the pages were yellowing. I put everything on acid-free paper/plastic so I could at least preserve the photos. All of the photos are mounted on acid-free paper with acid-free double-sided tape and placed inside acid-free clear plastic sheet protectors, along with printed descriptive labels mounted on the acid-free paper. All inside three-ring binders, with each covering a certain period of years and branch of the family.
There were a number of photos of people I did not know—and had no one to ask who they were. Those got tossed. There were many of my parents' travels with friends or other engagements with friends and at events; I kept a good-sized representative sample and tossed the rest. It can be difficult to sort and pitch, but no one down the line will be interested in hundreds of pictures of people they do not know and are not related to.
Gary wanted to clarify that he used acid-free card stock, not regular paper. He found the stiffness of the card stock far easier to work with than ordinary paper.
Gary has also used some of these photos to illustrate several family stories. Here is beginning of the story about his paternal grandparents, Theo Engstrand and Bess Wilson. The full story will be posted on the Family History website shortly.
News
The election of UMRA officers and board members for 2026-27 will be held online from Monday, May 11, through Sunday, May 17, with the results to be announced at UMRA’s 2026 Annual Meeting and Luncheon Forum on Tuesday, May 19. Nanette Hanks, nominated to become UMRA's next president-elect, tops the slate of candidates approved by the current Board of Directors during its meeting on Monday, March 23.
Proposed changes to the UMRA Bylaws will be on this year’s election ballot along with the nominees for officers and directors. The updates to the bylaws were drafted in response to changes proposed by the Nominating Committee and Membership and Communication Committee, and were approved by UMRA’s Board of Directors in November 2025.
Meet UMRA member Mike Amidon, whose career in computers and information technology spans the years when the Gopher system was developed at the U of M and then quickly eclipsed by the World Wide Web. Remember the days before the internet?
In partnership with Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs Beth Lewis, UMRA has been helping current University faculty members to decide whether and when to retire. It’s an experience only actual retirees can truly share.
If getting to know more retiree colleagues and serving the University community were among your goals in joining UMRA, sign up for one of the Silver Gopher Service Corps volunteer projects and come for the fun—and teamwork!
Northrop Organist Greg Zelek will team up with the University Singers, led by U of M professor and director of choral activities Matthew Mehaffey, for a can’t-miss concert blending choral and organ works at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 29. Northrop is offering UMRA members a 20% discount on tickets.
The SparkPath Young Authors Conference (YAC) program gives 4th- to 8th-grade students the opportunity to learn from professionals with actual writing experience. The University Retirees Volunteer Center is seeking volunteers to assist with several conferences to be held at Bethel University in St. Paul in May.
Plans are well underway for UMRA to host the 2026 Big Ten Retirees Association Conference this July on the Twin Cities campus in Minneapolis. There are a few, limited volunteer opportunities that may be of interest to you.
Do you remember when “Driven to Discover” was new? Do you know what is taking its place? For the answers to these and similar questions you may have, join UMRA’s Campus Conversation with Chris Gade, U of M vice president for marketing communications, on Tuesday, April 7.