Biography for

Nancy (Carter) Trantum

After high school Nancy attended Wittenberg University for one year then she transferred to Michigan State University where she majored in Restaurant Management. The summer after graduating she spent three months working in Zurich, Switzerland and traveling in Europe. Once she returned to the U.S. she worked for Win Schuler's Restaurants in Marshall, Michigan as the assistant to the vice president. The following year she met and married her husband, Tom. A year later they moved to Lansing, Michigan so that Tom could complete his work on his master's and she worked for Michigan State University. She quit work and they had two daughters. When the girls were in school, she returned to working part time in numerous fields of the hospitality business--fast food customer relations, hotel sales, travel agency accounting--and then full time for the State of Michigan and MSU before she retired in 2005.

Her hobbies include photography, sewing, knitting, crocheting, card-making, baking, cake and cookie decorating and yes, even basket weaving and wheat weaving! For about ten years she also belonged to her church bell choir. She mostly enjoys traveling, having visited all 50 states, Mexico, Canada, several Caribbean islands, Argentina, and much of Europe. She and Tom have enjoyed sailing and have spent most of their time being involved in their two daughters' numerous sports, music, and college-related activities. During the week of 9/11 they catered 3 meals a day for 7 days for 30 people when their youngest daughter filmed her masters thesis film in Chicago. As though that weren't enough in itself, they did it without a refrigerator or stove! Now with a new grandson in California, they will be traveling there much more often; and they are very involved in helping their older daughter who lives in Lansing with her new home.