
We are Dale & Mary Parsons. We celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary last December. We met in high school in 1971 and have been together ever since. We have a wonderful family we love dearly, with one daughter and three sons, one son-in-law, three daughters-in-law, and eight grandchildren. We love spending time with our family.
We were in ministry for thirty-one years, but retired as educators. Mary taught middle school social studies, science, and English. I was a middle school counselor.
Dogs have always been part of our family. Golden retrievers are favorites, but we also had a Shih Tzu named Heidi, for fourteen years. Maggie, our mini-goldendoodle, is thirteen. She stays very close to us, but if we are away, always greets us with a toy.

A Coffee State of Mind is a blog that includes many topics. The following links will open examples from each of the menu items:
Model Railroading includes many photos of my HO scale Maple Valley Model Railroad, plus many how-to posts for those interested in learning about the hobby.
Mental Health posts are about ideas for improving mental health.
Blogging is a catch-all of topics, none of which are about how to write a blog.
Scandal at Maple Valley is an ongoing saga about the disappearance of Sylvia Meisner, and life in Maple Valley.
I hope you will choose to follow A Coffee State of Mind and invite your friends to join you.
Thanks so much!
Dale Parsons
Career
Licensed Professional Counselor
Master’s Degree in Educational and Professional Counseling from Central Michigan University.
Writing
Middle-grade novelist. Columnist. Blogger.
Teacher Education
Thirteen years in middle school public education.
Previous Career
Thirty-one years in church work.
Hi Dale I so enjoyed reading your testimony and learning more about you. We have a lot in common. God, family and hobbies. And our unique ability to express positive thoughts through our songs of artistry.
Though I have not tried the Coffee Element yet, the idea is tempting!
I am your friend from Instagram,
Mark LT, talladega_rails and
on Facebook, Mark L-Train
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Thank you, I appreciate your kind comments.
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Enjoyed!
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Hi, Dale! Nice to meet you and your family! And of course, your precious mini doodle! I love your website!
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Thanks!
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Hi Dale, thanks for following our blog. I will look forward to reading your model railways posts as a lifetime fan of trains of all sizes, right up to 1:1 scale 🙂
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Thanks so much! I enjoy watching the real thing too. I wish we didn’t live nearly twenty miles from the nearest active railroad. Looking forward to future posts. Thanks again.
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